What does the Turn Coordinator show? When?

• A. Shows both roll and yaw; roll when starting a turn; yaw once established
• B. Shows only yaw; yaw when starting a turn
• C. Shows roll only; roll after completing turn
• D. Shows pitch and bank; pitch during climb

Answer: (A)

The Turn Coordinator is designed to provide both roll rate information and turn (yaw) information. Because its gyro is mounted at a slight cant, it senses rotation about the roll axis as you begin to roll into a turn, so the miniature airplane tilts and you get roll information during the roll-in. Once the bank is established and the aircraft is actually turning, yaw about the vertical axis becomes the dominant motion, and the instrument shows the rate of turn. In short, you see roll information while you’re rolling into the turn, and you see turn rate information once the turn is established.