What does it tell me? I understand that a PA-28 has a demonstrated crosswind component of 17KTS and I have landed my plane in a direct crosswind of around that, I was a little nervous doing it but it was a textbook landing and compared to the C150 i learned to do crosswinds landings in, it was "easy". Would I be in trouble if I put the Cherokee down in a 20kt crosswind (either by the FAA or exceeding the planes limitations)? or is the number just a good number to go by? Also, what method do you prefer in a Cherokee for crosswind landings? The crab or the wing low? I learned the wing low method in the C150 but my instructor said some low wing pilots like the crab method better to keep the wing a safe distance away from the ground. I feel more comfortable crabbing in the Cherokee than the wing low/land on 1 wheel method. So, what's your method and why?
One good or bad thing depending on how you look at it is that the airport runway I fly out of is pretty much 90 degrees from the prevailing winds, there is an airport just north that has a main and a crosswind runway and another just south that is more situated with the prevailing winds so if things get too strong Im only a 10 or 15 minute flight from a more preferable runway. But, learning to fly in pretty much direct crosswinds most of the time really was a confidence booster for being able to actually land the thing and handle it in a crosswind without sweating too much. I took my PPL practical in a cessna 150 with about a 12-14KT direct crosswind. Luckily the examiner didn't make me do short/soft landings with that strong of a crosswind at that airport so we flew down to the airport south and did them with a direct headwind.
One good or bad thing depending on how you look at it is that the airport runway I fly out of is pretty much 90 degrees from the prevailing winds, there is an airport just north that has a main and a crosswind runway and another just south that is more situated with the prevailing winds so if things get too strong Im only a 10 or 15 minute flight from a more preferable runway. But, learning to fly in pretty much direct crosswinds most of the time really was a confidence booster for being able to actually land the thing and handle it in a crosswind without sweating too much. I took my PPL practical in a cessna 150 with about a 12-14KT direct crosswind. Luckily the examiner didn't make me do short/soft landings with that strong of a crosswind at that airport so we flew down to the airport south and did them with a direct headwind.