ok so this has been bugging me for a while. im working on getting my split S consistent and the altitude loss is just way more than i account for every single time. i know thats kind of the nature of the maneuver but i keep nearly clipping stuff at the bottom of the pull because i misjudge where im gonna end up.

im practicing in a big open field so its not like im gonna crash into anything serious but i want to actually understand whats happening rather than just brute forcing it until i stop screwng up. is this mostly a throttle management thing during the roll or is it more about where i initiate the maneuver from. feels like both but i cant figure out which one to focus on first.

flying a 5" on betaflight, rates are pretty moderate, not super aggressive. been flying acro for maybe 8 months.

yeah the altitude loss catches everyone off. basically the issue is you're probably initiating too low or too slow ? the split S needs enough entry altitude to complete the half loop and you need to be flying at decent speed going into the roll otherwise you lose way more height in the pull. if youre crawling into it the nose drops hard and theres not much you can do.

throttle during the pull matters too, a lot of people cut throttle completely which is fine in some situations but if your entry speed isnt great you want a little throttle through the bottom of the loop to arrest the descent. try practicing it higher up until you get the muscle memory for where the bottom of the arc is gonna be, then slowly bring it lower as you get consistent.

8 months in and working on split S is solid honestly. took me way longer to even bother with it. one thing i'll add is that your rates might actually be working against you here ? if your roll rate is slow the aircraft is losing altitude the whole time its on its back before the pull even starts. not saying crank your rates up randomly but worth understanding that faster roll = less time inverted = less altitude lost before you even get to the pull portion