The oblique can be increased in vertical plane toward a loop until approx 150^o before you lose the escape routes available in the manouvre - roll out and pull to the nearest horizon. This is because rolling, in most aeroplanes, will be quicker than pitching and the nose vertically down position - where rolling has no advantage over pitching - is avoided.

The oblique is therefore a safe manoeuvre for display flying yet, to the audience, is as rewarding as a loop.

Look at the height and speed at the top of the loop, this will become your 'gate height and speed' - the gate height is the height above the base height that you need to pull through from the inverted - any less then roll to the horizon and start again. The gate speed is the speed below which you can pull through to base height without Vne or exceeding the 'g' limits to avoid crashing base.

The escape attitude is the amount of nose down in degrees after which you are committed to pull through - at 70^o nose down, a slow rolling aircraft will be safer to pitch out of the loop (or jump out of) as the height lost in the roll will equal the height lost in the 20^o extra pitch required, whereas one which rolls quickly may allow a recovery through less pitch by a quick roll and only 75^o pitch angle.

Most early loops are obliques because a pilot has to learn how to move the stick back centrally. In the early days the tendency will be to pull toward the side of the body the arm - actuator - is on. To correct this you should try a few loops from the glide using both hands, this ensures a central pull and the lack of power ensures that yaw and speed effects are minimised.

Practice fast and slow flight so that you can judge the amount of rudder required to prevent the power yaw effects in the loop.

Remember, at the bottom of the loop gravity is against you but at the top it is with you.

In effect, all you do is fly the first ¹/₄ of a loop, stop in the vertical then roll 90^o and continue the loop as above. This can be done as a single positioning manouvre to give depth to a display or to allow a stall turn in a plan form to the crowd/judges.