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Commercial pilot · ACS CA.V.C · lesson pack

Chandelles

Why this one matters

A chandelle is controlled flight at decaying speed and high angle of attack while turning: the same setup as a climbing turn away from terrain or a box canyon. Done uncoordinated or too slow, it ends in a stall or spin. Practicing it builds the feel for energy and coordination near the stall.

1 · Know these cold

  • •The purpose: getting the most altitude out of a 180° change of direction, with precise coordination as the airspeed decays.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers)
  • •Clear the area; start at an altitude that keeps the whole maneuver at or above 1,500 feet AGL.(Commercial Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-7B), CA.V.C.S1-S2)
  • •Pick outside references for the 90° point and the 180° reciprocal and note the entry heading (into the wind if possible). Enter at the recommended speed (at or below VA), roll to about 30° of bank, then set power as the POH recommends (full throttle within RPM limits in a fixed-pitch airplane) and raise the nose for a smooth climbing turn.(Commercial Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-7B), CA.V.C.S3-S5; Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers)
  • •First 90°: constant bank, pitch increasing smoothly, airspeed decreasing.(Commercial Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-7B), CA.V.C.S5)
  • •Second 90°: hold a constant pitch attitude (the picture, not the controls: add a little back pressure as speed decays to keep the nose from dropping) and roll out at a constant rate, finishing level-winged at 180° ±10° just above the stall. A stall warning or buffet before 180° ends the maneuver: lower the nose, stay coordinated, recover.(Commercial Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-7B), CA.V.C.S6-S7)
  • •As speed decays, left-turning tendencies grow: right rudder increases through the climb either way and is greatest rolling out of a left chandelle; rolling out of a right one the rollout yaw partly cancels them, so less right rudder (maybe a touch of left). Fly the ball.(PHAK (FAA-H-8083-25C), Aerodynamics of Flight)
  • •Hold the near-stall speed momentarily without stalling, then lower the nose to resume straight-and-level with minimum altitude loss.(Commercial Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-7B), CA.V.C.S7-S8)

2 · The lesson

Flying it
  • Configuration: clean (gear and flaps up), entry at the POH speed or VA or below, power as recommended (in a fixed-pitch airplane, full throttle as the climb begins without exceeding the RPM limit; with a constant-speed propeller, the POH climb or cruise setting, not automatically maximum).(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers)
  • Roll to about 30° of bank, then begin a climbing turn, adding power and increasing pitch smoothly so the pitch peaks at the 90° point.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers)
  • At the 90° point the airspeed should be about halfway between the entry speed and just above the stall: much faster means you pitched up too slowly, much slower too aggressively. From 90° to 180°, hold that pitch attitude and roll out at a constant rate; the airspeed keeps decaying and reaches just above the stall as the wings come level at 180°.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers)
  • Pitch control throughout: the airspeed must fall continuously; too little pitch ends fast and low, too much stalls early.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers)
The aerodynamics
  • Keep it coordinated: as speed drops, P-factor and slipstream effects grow, needing more right rudder, especially rolling out of a left chandelle.(PHAK (FAA-H-8083-25C), Aerodynamics of Flight)
  • The overbanking tendency increases as airspeed decays in the first 90°; hold a constant 30° until the 90° point. Fly by outside references with quick glances inside, not by the heading indicator.(PHAK (FAA-H-8083-25C), Aerodynamics of Flight)
  • Enter at or below VA, which is lower at lighter weights; abrupt inputs at higher speed can overstress the airplane.(PHAK (FAA-H-8083-25C), Aerodynamics of Flight)
  • An accelerated stall can occur if you pull hard in the turn; smooth, steady pitch changes avoid it.(PHAK (FAA-H-8083-25C), Aerodynamics of Flight)
  • Turn radius tightens as speed decays. That's the only link to confined areas: a chandelle is not an escape maneuver, since it ends at the reciprocal just above a stall, in the lowest-energy state. In a narrowing valley, turn back early.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers)
Energy
  • The chandelle converts kinetic energy (speed) into potential energy (height). The best result uses all the speed, ending just above the stall, not below it.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers)
  • After the 180° point, lower the nose to regain flying speed before anything else.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers)
Doing it safely
  • Clear the area with clearing turns before every maneuver, and keep scanning: you're turning, climbing and descending through other airplanes' airspace.(AC 90-48, Pilots' Role in Collision Avoidance)
  • Keep the whole maneuver at or above 1,500 feet AGL, with room to recover from a stall or spin.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers)
  • Divide attention: outside references for attitude and orientation, quick glances inside for altitude and airspeed. Fixating on one instrument is how errors grow.(Risk Management Handbook (FAA-H-8083-2A))
  • Keep the ball centered. Uncoordinated flight at high angles of attack is the setup for an accelerated or cross-controlled stall and a spin.(PHAK (FAA-H-8083-25C), Aerodynamics of Flight)
  • Distraction, poor task priorities, lost situational awareness and disorientation: fly the airplane first, re-establish orientation on outside references and the instruments, and abandon the maneuver if you lose it.(Risk Management Handbook (FAA-H-8083-2A))

Want it all on one page, with scenarios? Read the full lesson.

On the flight

ACS standards

  • About 30° of bank; smooth coordinated climbing turn to the 90° point with constant bank and decreasing airspeed; constant-pitch, constant-rate rollout to the 180° point.(Commercial Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-7B), CA.V.C.S4-S6)
  • Complete the rollout at 180° ±10°, just above stall speed, held momentarily; resume straight-and-level with minimum altitude loss; no lower than 1,500 feet AGL.(Commercial Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-7B), CA.V.C.S2, S7-S8)

What your instructor is watching for

Your instructor watches the clearing, entry speed, a constant 30° bank to 90°, steady pitch increase, a constant-rate rollout at constant pitch, the ball centered as speed decays, and a finish just above the stall at 180°.

3 · Say it out loud

Answer each one out loud, then check yourself and mark how it went.

  1. Remember Recall it

    “What bank angle does the chandelle use, and where does the rollout begin?”

  2. Understand Explain why

    “Why does a chandelle need more right rudder toward the end?”

  3. Apply Use it on a flight

    “At the 150° point, the stall horn sounds steadily. What do you do?”

4 · Common mistakes

  • Increasing the bank during the climbing turn.

    The first half is flown at a constant bank.

    Instead: Hold 30° to the 90° point.

  • Letting the pitch attitude change during the rollout.

    The second half is flown at a constant pitch attitude.

    Instead: Hold the picture, adding back pressure as speed decays, and roll out at a constant rate.

  • Mistiming the rollout.

    Starting it late, or leveling the wings before 180°, breaks the 180° ±10° standard; too shallow a bank stalls early, too steep never gets maximum performance and becomes a steep climbing turn.

    Instead: Start the rollout at 90° and time it to reach wings level at 180°.

  • Uncoordinated at the end.

    Low speed, high power: a stall-spin setup.

    Instead: Lead with right rudder as speed decays.

5 · Quick check

Answer, then reveal. Flag anything you want to see again.

  1. 1. What changes during the first 90° of a chandelle?

  2. 2. What stays constant during the second 90°?

  3. 3. Where should the airspeed be at the 180° point?

  4. 4. What is the minimum altitude for the maneuver?

  5. Scenario5. The airplane starts to buffet at 120°. What do you do?

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Connect it

One situation that runs across this lesson and its neighbors in the same ACS area. Decide first, then check.

Connect it · Performance Maneuvers

A practice session: steep turns at 50°, a steep spiral, then chandelles.

What do the three have in common in load factor and energy, and what limits each? Decide, then see the worked answer

All three are about load factor and energy, but each trades it differently. The steep turn holds altitude, so you add power to hold airspeed against the extra drag; a level 50° bank is about 1.56 G, with the stall speed about 25% higher. The steep spiral is flown at idle, trading altitude for a constant gliding airspeed around a point at a constant radius, steepest bank when the groundspeed is highest (downwind), never more than 60°. Fly at least three 360° turns, finish no lower than 1,500 feet AGL unless it's an actual emergency landing, and clear the engine periodically with brief power so it stays warm and the plugs stay clean. The 60° figures (2 G, stall speed about 41% higher) are for a level turn; in the descending spiral the load is close to that but slightly less. The chandelle trades airspeed for altitude in a 180° climbing turn at a fixed power setting: about 30° of bank, entered at or below the recommended entry speed, never above VA. In the first 90° the bank stays constant and the pitch increases; in the second 90° the pitch stays constant and the bank comes out, rolling out at 180° ±10° just above the stall. Hold that attitude briefly, then lower the nose to regain airspeed without losing altitude. Coordination doesn't prevent an accelerated stall; only reducing the angle of attack and the load factor does. What coordination does is make a stall under load break evenly, not by one wing first.

Commercial Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-7B), Area V; AFH (FAA-H-8083-3C), Performance Maneuvers; PHAK (FAA-H-8083-25C), Load Factor

Brings together: Steep Turns · Steep Spiral · Chandelles

Teaching this? The instructor lesson plan →

Study aid, not FAA guidance. Sources: Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C); Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (FAA-H-8083-25C); AC 90-48; Commercial Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-7B); Your airplane's POH/AFM. Checked against current sources 2026-11-13.