Cross country flights used to be intimidating for me. A year ago, when I was training for my Private Pilots License, cross countries were a time of weaning. It was a time when I as a student was released into the real world of aviation; hands shaking, butterflies fluttering, yet confident in the training I had received. And as I reflect on that time of weaning, I realized that many and most of those flights I did solo were not enjoyed. It was not that the flights were miserable and dreaded but that I, as a new pilot, was so focused on what I was doing I had little time to really realize that I was having fun.
Now that I am far more comfortable in command of an aircraft, I can sit back an really enjoy the flight. On Saturday I took a flight to Dodge City Regional Airport in Dodge City Kansas. This was a milestone in my career as it was the first cross country to an airport of my choice, that I planned and had never been to before. In my private training, the instructors picked the destinations and had the students plan the flight. Hesston Aviation has their "milk run" routes for cross countries which usually consist of: Newton-->Topeka (Forbes Field)--> Manhattan Regional--> Newton, or Newton--> Hays--> Hutchinson--> Newton. However, now that I am in the commercial portion, I get to choose any destination I please as long as I can get the plane back in decent time (or back before the weekend ends). So this flight to Dodge City (KDDC) was very rewarding.
The day couldn't have been more perfect to fly! And after reaching my cruising altitude, a sense of freedom overtook me. The sky was clear blue and the air was clear, I could see for miles in every direction. Little patches formed all over the terrain where farmers divided up their farms and grain elevators marked where little towns lay. I can say right then I had my "aha!" moment. I felt so free up there in that little tin can of a machine. I smiled to myself and though, "I wouldn't mind doing this for the rest of my life."
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
Still Here!
Hey guys! I'm still alive and well. The beginning of school has been extremely busy. I have started on my Commercial License and can tell you that flying is starting to become second nature! Right now I am in stage 2 and need 40 solo cross country flight hours. This is the fun part! I get to choose my destinations for my cross countries and am already thinking about trip to Colorado sometime. My goal is to fly as much as possible this month to try and get this stage done. My instructor Mike informed me that this is the longest part of the training because everything depends on weather and availability of planes. Because I need to fly so much, the combination of the two can mean sometimes I don't fly. As long as I am aggressive with the scheduler then the latter of the two shouldn't be a problem.
You might ask, why not go IFR if the weather is bad? Although I am instrument rated, I have never flown actual IFR, much less actual single pilot IFR. While my training means that I can fly IFR by the book, being in that setting in real life is completely different. I have set personal minimums for myself which means I am not comfortable quite yet going single pilot actual IFR until I have had a bit more experience in it. I hope this year to have plenty of opportunity to do that. IFR flight is as rewarding as it is challenging and I can't wait to do more of it!
I hope to post more in the coming days. But for now, this will have to do for a recap. Later!
You might ask, why not go IFR if the weather is bad? Although I am instrument rated, I have never flown actual IFR, much less actual single pilot IFR. While my training means that I can fly IFR by the book, being in that setting in real life is completely different. I have set personal minimums for myself which means I am not comfortable quite yet going single pilot actual IFR until I have had a bit more experience in it. I hope this year to have plenty of opportunity to do that. IFR flight is as rewarding as it is challenging and I can't wait to do more of it!
I hope to post more in the coming days. But for now, this will have to do for a recap. Later!
Monday, May 17, 2010
Instrument Rated
Sorry this post is so late, traveling back home took 20 hours and I have been catching up on sleep for the past week. The last week of school was very hectic, trying to balance finals with getting the remainder of my flights in. But I am now an instrument rated pilot! The day of the checkride was beautiful, but with some winds that were not forecast. That, with a number of other factors including Wichita Approach denying 2 of our requested approaches threw a challenge into the mix. But at the end of the afternoon, I was all smiles with an instrument rating in hand. Well sort of, the actual card from the FAA will take a couple months to get to me.
Right before we left, I had the chance to take my father up. It was his first time flying with me, something that I have been looking forward to my whole life. It was a great experience enjoyed by all.
Now I have the summer ahead of me. This blog will most likely become quite silent until the beginning of September when I start on my commercial license. There is a chance I might be able to go flying this summer, but we'll have to see. But until then I will be flying Flight Simulator, staying sharp on my instrument scan and procedures. Until I write again, its been a great year! One down, one to go.
Right before we left, I had the chance to take my father up. It was his first time flying with me, something that I have been looking forward to my whole life. It was a great experience enjoyed by all.
Now I have the summer ahead of me. This blog will most likely become quite silent until the beginning of September when I start on my commercial license. There is a chance I might be able to go flying this summer, but we'll have to see. But until then I will be flying Flight Simulator, staying sharp on my instrument scan and procedures. Until I write again, its been a great year! One down, one to go.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Proving Day
It has been a really busy week so far and will continue to be. I just wanted to update you readers to say "Yes! I'm still here!" This is the last week at Hesston College before I start the 20 hour drive back home. In that amount of time I will hopefully obtain an Instrument rating. Balancing studying for my written (which is tomorrow by the way, May 5 @ 8am) and my checkride among other exams has proven quite challenging. But hey, I chose this career as a pilot which will most definitely involve efficient time management. I might as well start learning the skills now! I still have a checkride date in the works, but hopefully that will be Saturday (May 8). I am nervous, but feel prepared. That is the way to go! Until next time readers, hopefully an instrument rated pilot will be writing the next post!
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Thursday Tour
(If you haven't seen my other new post about the rally, read below)
I apologize that these posts will come out of order. But I realized that I also should be writing about the field trip that took place last thursday, the 8th. Dan, our director, arranged an all day tour to Flight Safety International in Wichita, and then the Cessna Single Engine Factory in Independence, Kansas. Both were extremely enriching experiences!
In the morning we headed to Flight Safety at the bright hour of 7oclock in the morning. Flight Safety International is like one massive flight school. Their clients are pilots with thousands of hours under their belt who need to get type ratings in specific aircraft. They have training centers all over the U.S, Europe, and Asia, with their headquarters being Wichita with six training centers. We went to the Hawker Beechcraft Learning Center where pilots come to get type ratings in all of the Beechcraft King Air series (C90, 200, 350), the Beechjet, the Premier, as well as all of the Hawker Jets (400, 750, 800, 900, 4000) and some with a variety of avionics (like the ProLine 21, or Honeywell, or Collins EFIS 85B.
Training pilots in the actual airplane, with as many trainees as they have, is not cost effective. So flight safety has full motion flight simulators. On our tour by Mike Wallace, program manager of the Beechcraft 350 training and a 1993 Hesston Aviation alum, it was made known that a client can train all of their hours in the simulator, get their checkride in the simulator, and fly a real Beechcraft home. We were thrilled to discover that we would be given a chance to test out the simulator after the tour. At the bottom you can see me in the cockpit of a Beechcraft 350, taking off from JFK International. I am proud to say I can log 0.1 of an hour in a Beech 350! We were also excited to learn that Flight Safety offers internships mainly to Hesston and K-State aviation students. The pay is only about $15/hr, but you get free type ratings in a Beechcraft 350, and Hawker 4000, each worth about $25,000 each! I'd say thats a good deal!
After the exciting tour of Flight Safety, we headed 2 hours south to the Cessna factory. Unfortunately they didn't let us take pictures but the experience was incredible! We got a tour of the factory floor where the Cessna 172, 182, 206, 350 Corvallis, and Citation Mustang were being hand built. The manager that gave us the tour was a very friendly guy who answered all of our questions willingly. One thing that stuck out to me was what he said he looks for in a worker. He looks for the worker who goes out of his or her way to help others, and go the extra mile. He also pointed out that the floor supervisors were in there working with the workers, and weren't there just to "oversee." It was incredible for me to see a basic principle at work amongst a very powerful multi-billion dollar company: servant leadership. That really stuck with me.
We also had the chance to tour the tower facility and met a test pilot there who instructed at Hesston for a number of years. Hesston Aviation connections are everywhere! If I wasn't convinced before, I am now.
At the end of the day we climbed into the van exhausted from a tiring but rewarding day. I only hope that someday I can work as a pilot at either one of those places. I sure would be tickled pink.
I apologize that these posts will come out of order. But I realized that I also should be writing about the field trip that took place last thursday, the 8th. Dan, our director, arranged an all day tour to Flight Safety International in Wichita, and then the Cessna Single Engine Factory in Independence, Kansas. Both were extremely enriching experiences!
In the morning we headed to Flight Safety at the bright hour of 7oclock in the morning. Flight Safety International is like one massive flight school. Their clients are pilots with thousands of hours under their belt who need to get type ratings in specific aircraft. They have training centers all over the U.S, Europe, and Asia, with their headquarters being Wichita with six training centers. We went to the Hawker Beechcraft Learning Center where pilots come to get type ratings in all of the Beechcraft King Air series (C90, 200, 350), the Beechjet, the Premier, as well as all of the Hawker Jets (400, 750, 800, 900, 4000) and some with a variety of avionics (like the ProLine 21, or Honeywell, or Collins EFIS 85B.
Training pilots in the actual airplane, with as many trainees as they have, is not cost effective. So flight safety has full motion flight simulators. On our tour by Mike Wallace, program manager of the Beechcraft 350 training and a 1993 Hesston Aviation alum, it was made known that a client can train all of their hours in the simulator, get their checkride in the simulator, and fly a real Beechcraft home. We were thrilled to discover that we would be given a chance to test out the simulator after the tour. At the bottom you can see me in the cockpit of a Beechcraft 350, taking off from JFK International. I am proud to say I can log 0.1 of an hour in a Beech 350! We were also excited to learn that Flight Safety offers internships mainly to Hesston and K-State aviation students. The pay is only about $15/hr, but you get free type ratings in a Beechcraft 350, and Hawker 4000, each worth about $25,000 each! I'd say thats a good deal!
After the exciting tour of Flight Safety, we headed 2 hours south to the Cessna factory. Unfortunately they didn't let us take pictures but the experience was incredible! We got a tour of the factory floor where the Cessna 172, 182, 206, 350 Corvallis, and Citation Mustang were being hand built. The manager that gave us the tour was a very friendly guy who answered all of our questions willingly. One thing that stuck out to me was what he said he looks for in a worker. He looks for the worker who goes out of his or her way to help others, and go the extra mile. He also pointed out that the floor supervisors were in there working with the workers, and weren't there just to "oversee." It was incredible for me to see a basic principle at work amongst a very powerful multi-billion dollar company: servant leadership. That really stuck with me.
We also had the chance to tour the tower facility and met a test pilot there who instructed at Hesston for a number of years. Hesston Aviation connections are everywhere! If I wasn't convinced before, I am now.
At the end of the day we climbed into the van exhausted from a tiring but rewarding day. I only hope that someday I can work as a pilot at either one of those places. I sure would be tickled pink.
Aviation Rally
Last Saturday was the annual Larks Rally for Hesston Aviation. The entire weekend we had speakers talking about missions in aviation, not necessarily missionary aviation. One speaker shared about his witness as a captain in the airlines and how he sees opportunities to share Christ ever day. He also gave a glimpse of what the airline structure is like and how that relates to his faith.
Saturday was a nice sunny day and we were getting fired up for the flour drop and landing competition. We had seminars in the morning with various speakers. One of them pulled up mid noon in a beautiful Beechcraft Bonanza, which made our Cessna 172's look that much smaller. After a delicious barbecue lunch in the hangar, we started to preflight the planes. The wind had started to pick up, and so we hoped it wouldn't go over Hesston College standards. Unfortunately it went past 20, the limit gusting to 30 or so. After waiting 30 minutes or so it was decided that an instructor would go up with each team to ensure safety. Our team was the second off the runway. We stayed in the pattern, fighting a stiff crosswind, and made our first run in the flour drop. Needless to say dropping flower bags out of the window of a Cessna at 300 feet is a lot harder than it sounds. My teammate found it difficult to judge where the bag would fall. Sadly, none of our bags on our three runs hit the target. Travis was on the ground judging, and our team would later help him judge as the second group went up.
After we dropped our last bag we came around the pattern to do the landing competition. Once we were abeam our landing spot we were to do a power off landing. No throttle adjustments after that point, safety permitting. But the wind was so strong we needed to make our turn to the runway immediately even though it looked as if we were going to get there too soon. And boy did the wind factor in. With no power, the wind practically pushed the plane down. It was extremely hard to judge. Of our three landings we only had points on one of them. Our team came in last, but the day was still a fun experience! And I got to log 0.7 hours of free time, which is always a plus. What a day!
Saturday was a nice sunny day and we were getting fired up for the flour drop and landing competition. We had seminars in the morning with various speakers. One of them pulled up mid noon in a beautiful Beechcraft Bonanza, which made our Cessna 172's look that much smaller. After a delicious barbecue lunch in the hangar, we started to preflight the planes. The wind had started to pick up, and so we hoped it wouldn't go over Hesston College standards. Unfortunately it went past 20, the limit gusting to 30 or so. After waiting 30 minutes or so it was decided that an instructor would go up with each team to ensure safety. Our team was the second off the runway. We stayed in the pattern, fighting a stiff crosswind, and made our first run in the flour drop. Needless to say dropping flower bags out of the window of a Cessna at 300 feet is a lot harder than it sounds. My teammate found it difficult to judge where the bag would fall. Sadly, none of our bags on our three runs hit the target. Travis was on the ground judging, and our team would later help him judge as the second group went up.
After we dropped our last bag we came around the pattern to do the landing competition. Once we were abeam our landing spot we were to do a power off landing. No throttle adjustments after that point, safety permitting. But the wind was so strong we needed to make our turn to the runway immediately even though it looked as if we were going to get there too soon. And boy did the wind factor in. With no power, the wind practically pushed the plane down. It was extremely hard to judge. Of our three landings we only had points on one of them. Our team came in last, but the day was still a fun experience! And I got to log 0.7 hours of free time, which is always a plus. What a day!
Monday, April 5, 2010
Piaggio Aero P180 Avanti II
A recent assignment for Instrument Ground School has peaked my interest in a very unique aircraft. I am currently writing an article on the Piaggio Aero Avanti II, one of the most intriguing business aircraft on the market. Its bold design and five bladed "push" turboprop engines give it an unmistakable look. I remember seeing it for the first time in FLYING magazine and at first I couldn't decide if I liked it or not. But that undecided feeling soon turned into a full blown fascination with the aircraft. Sure, there are the powerful and luxurious Gulfstreams, and the sleek Learjets to gawk at. But the Avanti II introduces performance, luxury, and style to the world of VIP turboprop aviation, maybe even spilling a little into bizjet territory.
I will post my article at a later date, once written. But for now I encourage you to take a look at this airplane and its features and see why I have fallen in love with this most alluring aircraft.
http://www.piaggioaero.com/#/en/products/p180-avanti-ii/overview
I will post my article at a later date, once written. But for now I encourage you to take a look at this airplane and its features and see why I have fallen in love with this most alluring aircraft.
http://www.piaggioaero.com/#/en/products/p180-avanti-ii/overview
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Mental Check
Yesterday something interesting happened to me that I haven't yet experienced in aviation. When I got to the airport in the morning, Amy told me we were just going to preflight the plane and fly without really doing much briefing on our lesson. The winds were supposed to pick up at around 9:30 and so it was best we get in the air before that. I knew mostly how to do the approaches she was going to teach me, so I felt briefing was not necessary.
After I had the plane preflighted, I went back into the hangar to get a drink and gather my things before the flight. As Amy and I walked back out, she commented "See this?" She pointed to her hair. "Its a natural windsock. I don't think the wind is coming from 320.
AWOS (Automated Weather Observation System)is exactly what it sounds like. It reports weather at the airport like wind speed, direction, altimeter setting, ceiling (cloud layer) sky condition (visibility), etc. On this day, AWOS was reporting winds 15 knots at 320 (north being 360). Amy said "I don't think the wind is coming from 320, that just doesn't sound right." Sure enough, as we taxied to do our run up on the ramp, we looked at the windsock. The wind direction was almost 180 degrees from what AWOS was reporting!
As we started our run up (the preflight check before takeoff, usually done on the ramp or out of the way of other taxiing traffic)we heard Oliver (another instructor) and his student on final for 35. The weather was still reporting wind at 320, when in reality it was directly behind them! They were about to land in a tailwind with about 15 knots. We observed their plane coming in fast and high, a very unstabilized approach. Amy was about to inform them to go around when we saw the nose pitch up and heard the roar of the engine as the plane started its go-around. Amy, notified the FBO of the problem and then had it corrected.
What I have learned from this experience is to constantly question your surroundings. If something doesn't feel right, don't blow it off. Ask yourself if you have the right information, if you have completed all of the proper checklists, what is the situation now, and how can it change for the better or worse? If you feel uneasy about something, DONT FLY until you have identified the problem.
And by observing the other aircraft, I can affirm what has been drilled into me time and time again. If the approach doesn't feel right, go around. Don't try and salvage the landing, you might not be able to salvage the aircraft afterwords.
After I had the plane preflighted, I went back into the hangar to get a drink and gather my things before the flight. As Amy and I walked back out, she commented "See this?" She pointed to her hair. "Its a natural windsock. I don't think the wind is coming from 320.
AWOS (Automated Weather Observation System)is exactly what it sounds like. It reports weather at the airport like wind speed, direction, altimeter setting, ceiling (cloud layer) sky condition (visibility), etc. On this day, AWOS was reporting winds 15 knots at 320 (north being 360). Amy said "I don't think the wind is coming from 320, that just doesn't sound right." Sure enough, as we taxied to do our run up on the ramp, we looked at the windsock. The wind direction was almost 180 degrees from what AWOS was reporting!
As we started our run up (the preflight check before takeoff, usually done on the ramp or out of the way of other taxiing traffic)we heard Oliver (another instructor) and his student on final for 35. The weather was still reporting wind at 320, when in reality it was directly behind them! They were about to land in a tailwind with about 15 knots. We observed their plane coming in fast and high, a very unstabilized approach. Amy was about to inform them to go around when we saw the nose pitch up and heard the roar of the engine as the plane started its go-around. Amy, notified the FBO of the problem and then had it corrected.
What I have learned from this experience is to constantly question your surroundings. If something doesn't feel right, don't blow it off. Ask yourself if you have the right information, if you have completed all of the proper checklists, what is the situation now, and how can it change for the better or worse? If you feel uneasy about something, DONT FLY until you have identified the problem.
And by observing the other aircraft, I can affirm what has been drilled into me time and time again. If the approach doesn't feel right, go around. Don't try and salvage the landing, you might not be able to salvage the aircraft afterwords.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Landing Competition and Flour Drop!
Each year, Hesston College aviation has missions week, where various aviation alumni come and speak on their experiences in mission aviation. The even is the entire weekend with various speakers and a meal. But the think I a personally looking forward to is the Hesston College Aviation Larks Rally. This is a time when the aviation students compete in two competitions: The Landing competition and the flour drop.
I'm not sure of all the details, so I will update you after this event takes place. I believe the landing competition is to see who can land in the shortest distance, between two markers. Either that or there is specific markers to see who can land between them. The flour drop sounds pretty straight forward in that teams will overfly the field and try to land their flower sack on a prescribed target.
I still need to get a team together, and I have two weeks to do that. The competition takes place on Saturday, April 10. Be assured I WILL post after this event to tell details and stories on what happened. I might even get some really good pictures!
I'm not sure of all the details, so I will update you after this event takes place. I believe the landing competition is to see who can land in the shortest distance, between two markers. Either that or there is specific markers to see who can land between them. The flour drop sounds pretty straight forward in that teams will overfly the field and try to land their flower sack on a prescribed target.
I still need to get a team together, and I have two weeks to do that. The competition takes place on Saturday, April 10. Be assured I WILL post after this event to tell details and stories on what happened. I might even get some really good pictures!
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Acronyms
I apologize for my lack of posting lately. College, as it were, just gets busier as the semester goes on. However, I realize that there are those out there (namely family members) that check my blog faithfully and because of that I have decided to make it a goal to post at least once a week.
Instrument is going well, although a combination of bad weather and health have kept me from progressing as fast as I would like. I am, however, confident that I will obtain my rating within the next few weeks. Focus and determination is what is what is needed.
Before I became a pilot, I didn't think much of acronyms. To me they were just silly words that meant the person was too lazy to actually say the phrase. But in aviation, acronyms are almost essential to safety and smooth function of the flight. Acronyms in aviation serve there purpose as memorized checklists. While the same information is on a physical checklist, it speeds up the flight and reduces pilot load if you have that checklist memorized. I AM NOT ADVOCATING FOR THE MEMORIZATION OF ALL CHECKLIST MATERIAL. This is dangerous, as you might miss something vital. But there are certain elements that can be memorized using a helpful acronym.
One simple example that most pilots use is the GUMPC check. This stands for Gas (fuel selector valve set to both), Undercarriage (In the down and locked position, verifying you have a wheel on either side), Mixture (rich), Prop (spinning), Carburetor heat (on). This is used on the downwind leg to final, or at the final approach fix to final in instrument. It means the pilot can quickly have his descent checklist done without having to fumble with a card while concentrating on his approach.
My favorite by far though is the three series of acronyms used to verify that you can fly instrument. TOMATO FLAMES, FLAPS, and GRABCARD. TOMATO FLAMES is used to verify that you can fly VFR in day conditions, TOMATO FLAMES + FLAPS is used to verify that you can fly VFR night. TOMATO FLAMES+ FLAPS + GRABCARD verifies you can fly in IMC conditions (assuming you are instrument rated that is).
Here we go:
T achometer
O oil pressure gauge
M anifold pressure gauge for each atmosphere engine
A irspeed indicator
T emperature gauge for each liquid cooled engine
O il temperature gauge
F uel level gauge
L anding gear position indicator
A ltimeter
M agnetic heading indicator
E mergency locator transmitter (ELT)
S eat belts
F uses
L anding lights
A nticollision lamps
P position indicator lamps
S ource of power
G - Generator or alternator
R - Radios for navigation (ADF/VOR/GPS...)
A - Attitude Indicator
B - Ball (inclinometer)
C - Clock
A - Altimeter (sensitive)
R - Rate of Turn (or turn & slip)
D - Directional Gyro (Heading Indicator)
*another D can be added for DME or RNAV above FL240
And there you have it. Other acronyms include AROW (used to verify aircraft documents are in order), AAVIATE (verify the aircraft has had proper maintenance and inspections), UNOS (North/South Turning Error with magnetic compass), ANDS (acceleration error with magnetic compass).
I hope this has satisfied a small portion of the postings that have been lacking. Until next week! (hopefully!)
Instrument is going well, although a combination of bad weather and health have kept me from progressing as fast as I would like. I am, however, confident that I will obtain my rating within the next few weeks. Focus and determination is what is what is needed.
Before I became a pilot, I didn't think much of acronyms. To me they were just silly words that meant the person was too lazy to actually say the phrase. But in aviation, acronyms are almost essential to safety and smooth function of the flight. Acronyms in aviation serve there purpose as memorized checklists. While the same information is on a physical checklist, it speeds up the flight and reduces pilot load if you have that checklist memorized. I AM NOT ADVOCATING FOR THE MEMORIZATION OF ALL CHECKLIST MATERIAL. This is dangerous, as you might miss something vital. But there are certain elements that can be memorized using a helpful acronym.
One simple example that most pilots use is the GUMPC check. This stands for Gas (fuel selector valve set to both), Undercarriage (In the down and locked position, verifying you have a wheel on either side), Mixture (rich), Prop (spinning), Carburetor heat (on). This is used on the downwind leg to final, or at the final approach fix to final in instrument. It means the pilot can quickly have his descent checklist done without having to fumble with a card while concentrating on his approach.
My favorite by far though is the three series of acronyms used to verify that you can fly instrument. TOMATO FLAMES, FLAPS, and GRABCARD. TOMATO FLAMES is used to verify that you can fly VFR in day conditions, TOMATO FLAMES + FLAPS is used to verify that you can fly VFR night. TOMATO FLAMES+ FLAPS + GRABCARD verifies you can fly in IMC conditions (assuming you are instrument rated that is).
Here we go:
T achometer
O oil pressure gauge
M anifold pressure gauge for each atmosphere engine
A irspeed indicator
T emperature gauge for each liquid cooled engine
O il temperature gauge
F uel level gauge
L anding gear position indicator
A ltimeter
M agnetic heading indicator
E mergency locator transmitter (ELT)
S eat belts
F uses
L anding lights
A nticollision lamps
P position indicator lamps
S ource of power
G - Generator or alternator
R - Radios for navigation (ADF/VOR/GPS...)
A - Attitude Indicator
B - Ball (inclinometer)
C - Clock
A - Altimeter (sensitive)
R - Rate of Turn (or turn & slip)
D - Directional Gyro (Heading Indicator)
*another D can be added for DME or RNAV above FL240
And there you have it. Other acronyms include AROW (used to verify aircraft documents are in order), AAVIATE (verify the aircraft has had proper maintenance and inspections), UNOS (North/South Turning Error with magnetic compass), ANDS (acceleration error with magnetic compass).
I hope this has satisfied a small portion of the postings that have been lacking. Until next week! (hopefully!)
Monday, January 18, 2010
Instrument Flight
Starting off the new semester has gone well. I feel like I've gotten back into the flow of things, which has been good. Last semester my goal was to get my Private Pilots license by Christmas, a goal which I effectively achieved. I am very grateful that this happened, for I think if I would have taken my checkride after a three week break, I would have needed a few review flights. Now the challenge for me is to push myself in my instrument studies. The first part of my life long dream has been fulfilled. I hold a private pilots license. The temptation will be complacency, something which I would rather live without. I am confident with lots of focus, passion, and good weather I can tackle the challenges of instrument flight without a problem.
I have started instrument ground school but unfortunately haven't had the chance to fly yet. This entire week has been foggy or overcast. You might ask why I'm not flying. After all I AM learning instrument flight, why not go up in instrument conditions? Flying in IMC (Instrument Meteorological Conditions) required IFR clearance, and working with that while training is quite difficult. There will be a time, a little later, where we will fly actual, but for now we need to wait for a clear day.
Amy is my instructor again and she informed me that the instrument rating is achieved a lot quicker than the private pilots license. She estimates, if the weather cooperates, that I could be finished with it around spring break in March. Lets hope so!
I have started instrument ground school but unfortunately haven't had the chance to fly yet. This entire week has been foggy or overcast. You might ask why I'm not flying. After all I AM learning instrument flight, why not go up in instrument conditions? Flying in IMC (Instrument Meteorological Conditions) required IFR clearance, and working with that while training is quite difficult. There will be a time, a little later, where we will fly actual, but for now we need to wait for a clear day.
Amy is my instructor again and she informed me that the instrument rating is achieved a lot quicker than the private pilots license. She estimates, if the weather cooperates, that I could be finished with it around spring break in March. Lets hope so!
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