The Offutt Airshow has seriously disturbed my Chi this week. Due to flight restrictions my CFI thought it best if we skip flying this week. Although the Temporary Flight Restrictions did not quite cover our practice area, he thought it would be best to not have to worry about an F16 flying up our tail. This does however give me the opportunity to enjoy the airshow which only comes around once a year. The Thunderbirds are performing this year and I have not seen them in quite some time. I am looking forward to watching the pros.
As for my flight training, it is coming along quite nicely. I have 4 landings to date. My takeoffs could be better. For some reason the aircraft always feels a little squirrelly at first. I just need to relax a bit more and not get so excited :) I have been going over the takeoffs and landings in my head quite a bit and I am seriously looking forward to getting another crack at them. My CFI says I have been doing quite good thus far but I guess my expectations are high. I am comparing my rookie skills to someone who has a bajillion flight hours compared to my 3.2. I guess he is right.
We practiced recovering from stalls a couple of weeks ago. These scared me at first but to be honest they are quite fun. I love amusement park rides that suddenly drop you and this perfectly describes a stall. I would practice recovering from those all day if I could. The funny thing is that everytime I learn something new, that seems to be my favorite part of flying. So far my favorites include: takeoffs, landings, high bank turns, medium bank turns, stall recoveries, and straight and level flight.
I think next week we are working on instrument flight. I plan on earning my instrument rating after my Private Pilot Certificate so as usual, I can hardly wait.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Thursday, July 24, 2008
First Flight
Well the morning had finally arrived. I was going to go up for the first time with my Flight Instructor (CFI). I was a little nervous as I pulled up to the airfield. There were cars everywhere. I found out as I walked into the administration area that there was a sky diving club going crazy over the air field and they would be there all day. Watch out for jumpers would be the saying of the day.
I met my CFI and he briefly explained to me what would happen on the first flight. He told me we would go out to he plane and he would show me how to perform a proper pre-flight check. We went over the procedure and made all the appropriate checks then he told me to climb into the pilots seat. I had no idea I would be flying on the first lesson. Oh boy!
We climbed in and he explained to me where all of the controls were and how they effect the aircraft in flight. It all seemed pretty straight forward to be honest so he asked me if I had any questions before we took off. I had none so we fired her up.
When that engine fired up I felt an excitement that only a certain woman has ever made me feel. I could not wait to hit that runway. He explained to me how to taxi and I did the same silly thing every other student pilot does on their first taxi. While I was using the rudder pedals to properly taxi the aircraft, I also turned the yoke as if it was a steering wheel. While this has no effect on the aircraft while taxiing, it can make you look silly. It is a habit that every new pilot eventually learns to break. Before I knew it we were ready to take off.
There were skydivers coming in before we could get going so we were forced to wait. Once the majority of them were on the ground my CFI decided we were ready to go. There were still a couple of jumpers who were sort of floating around up there and did not appear to be coming down. This concerned me but he said they would not be an issue. Throttle up!
As the aircraft lept forward my excitement grew. 45 knots, 50 knots, 55 knots, 65 knots, time to pull back on the yoke and before I knew it the Earth just sort of fell out from below us. I was flying!
My CFI instructed me to climb about 2500' then level off for some practice at straight and level flying. This was extremely easy as the plane will almost fly itself straight and level if you have your trim adjusted properly. After a few minutes of straight and level it was time for some "medium banks". A medium bank is a 20 degree banked turn. Once you hit the sweet spot, it feels like the plane will just keep that bank going without any assistance from the pilot. The trick is to not let your nose drop while doing it. This is accomplished fairly easily but using a spot on the windshield of the aircraft that is on or close to the horizon and keeping it on the horizon as you bank. This was actually quite fun. He let me loose to practice a a few more of these before it was time to head back to the airfield.
My CFI handled all the radio work as this was my first flight and I had enough going on in my head as it was. He guided me on the approach as I lined us up on the runway for our landing. He instructed me on how much flap to deploy and when to deploy it. I had the runway numbers lined up exactly where they needed to be. He told me to keep them on the same position on the windshield until they disappeared below us. Then I was to do the same thing with the 1000' markers. I raised the nose slightly when instructed and before I knew it I could feel the Earth below us again. I had just landed an airplane!
Once the plane was back in it's hangar my CFI sat me down and we went over our post flight. He said I did a really good job for the most part, but he said my grip on the yoke was a little too tight. I am sure I will be a bit more relaxed on the flight next week. I can't wait. I am officially a student pilot.
I met my CFI and he briefly explained to me what would happen on the first flight. He told me we would go out to he plane and he would show me how to perform a proper pre-flight check. We went over the procedure and made all the appropriate checks then he told me to climb into the pilots seat. I had no idea I would be flying on the first lesson. Oh boy!
We climbed in and he explained to me where all of the controls were and how they effect the aircraft in flight. It all seemed pretty straight forward to be honest so he asked me if I had any questions before we took off. I had none so we fired her up.
When that engine fired up I felt an excitement that only a certain woman has ever made me feel. I could not wait to hit that runway. He explained to me how to taxi and I did the same silly thing every other student pilot does on their first taxi. While I was using the rudder pedals to properly taxi the aircraft, I also turned the yoke as if it was a steering wheel. While this has no effect on the aircraft while taxiing, it can make you look silly. It is a habit that every new pilot eventually learns to break. Before I knew it we were ready to take off.
There were skydivers coming in before we could get going so we were forced to wait. Once the majority of them were on the ground my CFI decided we were ready to go. There were still a couple of jumpers who were sort of floating around up there and did not appear to be coming down. This concerned me but he said they would not be an issue. Throttle up!
As the aircraft lept forward my excitement grew. 45 knots, 50 knots, 55 knots, 65 knots, time to pull back on the yoke and before I knew it the Earth just sort of fell out from below us. I was flying!
My CFI instructed me to climb about 2500' then level off for some practice at straight and level flying. This was extremely easy as the plane will almost fly itself straight and level if you have your trim adjusted properly. After a few minutes of straight and level it was time for some "medium banks". A medium bank is a 20 degree banked turn. Once you hit the sweet spot, it feels like the plane will just keep that bank going without any assistance from the pilot. The trick is to not let your nose drop while doing it. This is accomplished fairly easily but using a spot on the windshield of the aircraft that is on or close to the horizon and keeping it on the horizon as you bank. This was actually quite fun. He let me loose to practice a a few more of these before it was time to head back to the airfield.
My CFI handled all the radio work as this was my first flight and I had enough going on in my head as it was. He guided me on the approach as I lined us up on the runway for our landing. He instructed me on how much flap to deploy and when to deploy it. I had the runway numbers lined up exactly where they needed to be. He told me to keep them on the same position on the windshield until they disappeared below us. Then I was to do the same thing with the 1000' markers. I raised the nose slightly when instructed and before I knew it I could feel the Earth below us again. I had just landed an airplane!
Once the plane was back in it's hangar my CFI sat me down and we went over our post flight. He said I did a really good job for the most part, but he said my grip on the yoke was a little too tight. I am sure I will be a bit more relaxed on the flight next week. I can't wait. I am officially a student pilot.
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