Flight Training Blog

Well, it’s been a little while
since I’ve done a blog entry so I figured it was about time for an update.  Yes I’m still alive!  I’ve been busy getting prepped up for my
Commercial end of course and check ride with an FAA appointed examiner.

My last cross-country for my
commercial time building was to Asheville, NC (KAVL).  I always look forward to any chance to get
some time flying in actual mountains.
That is something we don’t exactly get a lot of here in Florida.  It was a long flight but we made it to KAVL
in about 3 hours.

It was very hazy and smoky out on
this particular day so the horizon line was a bit obscured.  One thing I had an initial tendency to do was
to try and pull the nose of the aircraft above the mountain tops in cruise flight
because it felt unnatural to have the nose pointed at the ground.  But, I had to stop myself and remember that
the earth’s horizon is actually more towards the base of the mountains and not
near the peaks.

It was definitely a beautiful
change of scenery flying over the Smokey Mountains.  Its funny how small they look from up in the
air, and then you look at your sectional and realize that they are actually
several thousands of feet in the air.

We were flying towards the
mountains with a strong head wind so the closer we got to KAVL, the bumpier the
ride became.  It was already a
gusty/windy day so that headwind made things pretty bumpy.  It’s a good thing I didn’t eat a heavy
lunch!  KAVL is a single main strip
nestled between two ridges in the mountains.
We had a pretty nasty crosswind correction in as we came in for
landing.  That is one thing I have
noticed about a lot of mountain strips… you better be good at crosswind landing
because they aren’t like the airports of flatter land; there is usually only a
single strip to land on.

All in all it was a great flight
and a great learning experience for me.
I have to say that flying in and over the mountains has to be one of my
favorite things.  The scenery is gorgeous
(even if it is a little hazy) and the terrain makes you bring skills to the
table that we normally don’t have to really think about flying over the flat
lands of the south. 

Today was probably the most fun I’ve had in my commercial training so far. Stefan and I decided to go down to Space Coast Regional Airport (KTIX) for the annual Tico Warbird Airshow. It was quite the event with warbirds and aerobatic acts from all across the country in attendance. I forgot to wear sun block though and I look like a lobster to say the least! After we left the KTIX, the sun was already beginning to sink over the gulf. We headed on over to Tallahassee Regional (KTLH) for a quick stop and then back home to Craig Airport. This flight was a great learning experience as well. We flew in a lot of IMC conditions and I got some night cross-country time in as well so that is always a good thing. We cruised above the clouds and weather most of the way and dipped down into it to shoot different approaches. When we landed back at Craig, we broke out at about 1,000 feet and circled to land. It was a great experience getting to do a lot of this at night! It really made me pull together everything I have learned up to this point and use it all cohesively to make the flight a success. I’m starting to feel like a real pilot! Who would of thought!? The Tecnam is going down for some scheduled maintenance so I will have a few days off to take a mini-breather and start studying for my commercial written test. I’ve flown around 20 hours in the past few days but it feels more like 100! Time to get a little rest. Talk to you soon!

It shaped up to be a beautiful day for a VFR cross-country flight today. The ceilings weren’t that low and they were broken in a lot of places and scattered in most. We made our way up to Waycross then over to Heart of Georgia Regional. I flew with Don again and he told me that the last time he was at Heart of Georgia Regional, it was just a little field with a self-serve gas pump that barely worked. Well, they have changed a lot to say the least! There was an awesome FBO (Fixed Base Operator) there now with cheap gas and great hospitality. They even had a bookstore! After doing a couple of VFR cross-countries, I can definitely see that I’ve been spoiled on IFR cross-country flights. IFR is less workload (to me, anyways) because you are just listening to whichever controlling agency you are on with and following their directions. VFR is a lot more work because you are constantly keeping your head on a swivel looking for other traffic and visual landmarks to aid in your navigation. Today was fun though. It feels good to not be “under the hood” as they say in IFR training.

Don and I did a VFR cross-country up to the Charleston, SC area and back earlier today. It has been a little while since I have done a VFR cross-country (since my days as a private student) so I was a tad rusty. But, it all went smoothly and we ended up having a great time. The weather wasn’t perfect today for VFR with several different layers of clouds forming as we moved north up the coast. We had to change altitude quite a bit and this increased our fuel burn. Not to worry though! The Tecnam only burns about 10 gph in cruise so we can go for a long while (and save a few bucks while we’re at it!). It was another windy day today so I got plenty of opportunity to practice my crosswind landing technique. Tomorrow we are going VFR up to Heart of Georgia Regional Airport so I have to get off of here and start planning. I’ll have another post soon! Till next time.

Don and I did a VFR cross-country up to the Charleston, SC area and back earlier today. It has been a little while since I have done a VFR cross-country (since my days as a private student) so I was a tad rusty. But, it all went smoothly and we ended up having a great time. The weather wasn’t perfect today for VFR with several different layers of clouds forming as we moved north up the coast. We had to change altitude quite a bit and this increased our fuel burn. Not to worry though! The Tecnam only burns about 10 gph in cruise so we can go for a long while (and save a few bucks while we’re at it!). It was another windy day today so I got plenty of opportunity to practice my crosswind landing technique. Tomorrow we are going

Today was the official start of my commercial training! I decided to kick it off by doing a long cross-country flight to Marathon Key and back. I am excited to start my commercial because a lot of the flight hours that I will be getting are cross-country hours. I love traveling, seeing new things, and meeting new people. It is one of the best things about aviation if you ask me. This flight was a wealth of good experience for me. We flew down the east coast of Florida right after a cold front had moved through the area so I got to experience a lot of adverse weather and what it feels like to fly on an IFR flight plan over long distances. When we got down to Marathon Key (KMTH) the wind was sustained 15 and gusting to 25 and it sure was bumpy. I had quite the crab angle in when I came in to land! It felt like I was flying sideways. I couldn’t have asked for a better day to get some crosswind landing practice in. When you crab into the wind, it means that you are lined up with the runway, but your nose is pointed into the wind. This helps your aircraft to stay aligned with the runway until you are ready to kick in opposite rudder a few feet above the pavement. We ate lunch in Marathon and then flew over to Ft. Meyers International to fuel up for the last leg home. I personally enjoy flying into international airports (provided they don’t have a landing fee!). It is always a good experience to “play with the big boys” as I like to say. You have to be vigilant of what is going on around you at all times and you have to be especially careful of wake turbulence. Wake turbulence is turbulence that forms behind an aircraft as it moves through the air. It is especially important to be mindful of it during take-off and landing as this is when the worst wake turbulence is created. After refueling in Ft. Meyers, we made our way back up central Florida to Craig. It felt great to be home after such a long day. Over 6 hours in the Tecnam! I’m going home to sleep!

Well today was the big day… I finished my instrument training! It’s a good feeling when you work hard for something and achieve your goal. There isn’t much else like it. I took my check-ride with Ernie Strange. Everything went well. We went down to St. Augustine and shot a couple of approaches and performed a hold… then we came back up to Craig and did a little bit more work. It was overall a great experience. I enjoy flying with Ernie as he always manages to find a way to teach me something new every time I fly with him. I’m off to celebrate and start thinking about my commercial training! Till next time…

Well it’s been a long journey through instrument training. But, I can finally say I’m almost there! I have one more flight tomorrow to work on some holding procedures and some single engine approaches, and then on to my check ride this Friday! I’m very excited to say the least. It will be a good feeling to start my commercial training. I got up early this morning and flew with Stefan again for a little extra training. I’m going to start drinking more coffee if these early flights become a regular thing. It seems like coffee can be a pilot’s best friend some times. We went over to Cecil Field (KVQQ) and did a VOR hold and shot a VOR approach. I love getting in the air before the sun comes up and then watching it rise. It’s always cool to see.

Woke up early for a flight today with Stefan. I love flying in the mornings. It seems like the wind is usually more calm and the air up above more smooth. Can’t complain about that! Today we reviewed some basic maneuvers like power-on and power-off stalls, steep turns, and slow flight. These are the basic set of maneuvers you will be tasked to perform for the rest of your career as a pilot so mastering them is essential. The Tecnam is a very stable aircraft, that is, it does not want to stall very easily. You really have to coax it into the stall sometimes. This was a short hop so we were back in time for breakfast!

Today I had my End-of-Course (EOC) check-ride with our Chief pilot, Scott Malone. An EOC basically consists of everything that you have learned in your training and it simulates what you will experience when you fly with an FAA check-pilot for your certificate. We reviewed a lot of the knowledge-based information on the ground and then we went up in the air for the practical portion. The weather was nasty and it was only my second time being in rough IMC (instrument meteorological conditions) so I was a tad nervous. But, Scott has a way of instilling confidence when you fly with him. We did holds, approaches, maneuvers, engine-out procedures, and just about anything else you could think of involving instrument flying. At the end of the flight, all was well and we made it back in one piece. Oh yeah… and I passed! However, I wanted to touch on something that I was reminded of on this flight… We heard another aircraft near St. Augustine (KSGJ) having engine problems. Keep in mind that the weather was pretty nasty. Not a day you would typically want to fly on, and especially not when your aircraft is having engine problems! The aircraft lost one engine, and then it lost its second engine coming back in to land. Now, I’m no expert by any means, but I would say that the problem was fuel-related as they lost both engines within a short period of time and still retained use of the radios. A thorough pre-flight is always key to a successful flight! I’m not saying the pilot did or did not do a thorough pre-flight, but NTSB reports don’t lie and if you see the statistics, a lot of people get themselves in a bad situation just by not doing a good pre-flight and checking all possible areas (including fuel-quality) of the aircraft to ensure the best possible flight. The key is to learn from other people’s mistakes so you can live another day and I always take these kinds of lessons to heart. Anyways, till next time!