Diary of a Student PilotPart 3
Diary of a Student PilotTo shorten page loading time, this diary is divided into 5 parts. This is Part 3. The Table of Contents spans all parts. The parts are as shown in the following table.
| Part 1 | Preamble to Lesson 13 |
| Part 2 | Lesson 14 to Lesson 29 (including Solo!!!) |
| Part 3 | Lesson 30 to Lesson 46 (including first solo x-c) |
| Part 4 | Lesson 47 to Lesson 60 (including long x-c & written) |
| Part 5 | Lesson 61 to Lesson 71 (including Checkride!!!) |
| Buying an Airplane - the Epilogue | |
I hadn’t had time to fly earlier in the week; Monday I was at a retreat, Tuesday I went but it was too windy, Wednesday & Thursday I was committed to help at the firemen’s picnic. On Friday, we had a 2-day seminar at work that finished around 3:30. Sounded like the perfect opportunity! I started driving first, then called Linda and the airport. Linda was picking up a new puppy so was happy. I took 757AJ (the other 152) and put in 0.8 hours. Did some turns around a silo, then headed for the lake and did 3 turns around the cottage. Found out later that my neighbor was on his dock waving but I never saw him. Headed back, did one T&G, then quit. First landing needed a little work; second was fine. Hated to give up, it was a beautiful day and I was having fun but I had to work at the picnic again. (Back to Contents)
We were on the way to the lake, Linda, I and the TWO dogs. My car was getting brakes so Linda rode with me to Seamans. We still couldn’t use 23E ’cause the nose strut still isn’t fixed. As a result, we still couldn’t do the controlled airspace stuff. This is getting pretty old! We talked about a cross country and actually started planning it but I decided it’d take too long with Linda sitting in the car. Took 609 and flew to Stahl’s Mountain (34PN) to see what a grass strip is like. The field there is weird. Runway 19 starts right after a stand of trees, has a dogleg in it and drops about 30 feet in its length. Makes for some interesting challenges. I was nervous about it so Greg did the first landing, then I did two more, he did another to try another technique at clearing the trees and I did one more. He asked if I wanted to do more and I said, “Nah, I can do these...” On the way back we did another power out drill, I set up the landing before checking things out so he corrected me. Makes more sense to worry first about restarting the engine, then landing. Did a nice landing and quit. Funny, though, when we dual, I walk away uptight; when solo, I walk away relaxed. (Back to Contents)
Hadn’t planned a lesson but it was a beautiful morning and I hadn’t flown all week so I called Greg to see if he wanted to fly. He decided we’d go cross country and I chose Greenwood Lake (4N1). There’s a very interesting pilot shop there which I found on the web. It’s in an old Constellation. It took quite a while to plan the trip since I was learning how to do it. The air was a bit rough ‘til we got to about 4000 ft. Since we flew at 5500, it was not too bad once we got to cruising altitude. The trip out went like clockwork; hit every fix dead nuts and within a minute or two of the expected time. Had a strong tailwind so we had a GS of 109 KTS. Made the trip in 42 minutes (ETE was 43.5) Winds on landing were a bit gusty but we had no problem. Unfortunately, the pilot shop was closed so that was a disappointment. We had lunch and did the planning for the trip back. The wind had actually picked up a knot or two so the estimated GS for the trip back was only 59 KTS! The visibility was fantastic. Shortly after leaving 4N1, Greg was able to point out Elk Mountain. We could clearly see Elk and New York City at the same time! The trip was so beautiful, blue sky, bright green trees and black lakes. What a great way to spend time! The trip back was not quite as precise but still damned good. Pretty gusty on landing so it was tricky but again, no big problem. All in all, a great day. (Back to Contents)
Another beautiful day. Finally, 23E was serviceable and available. Used it to do work in the controlled airspace at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Int'l (AVP). We first did a long pre-flight briefing on controlled airspace. Took off and contacted AVP approach. They vectored us over to Eynon, then straight in for 22. They couldn’t get a reading from our transponder ‘til Greg fooled with it a bit. Another problem with 23E!
Did 3 T&G’s and a full stop on 22 at AVP. Man, that runway is HUGE! It’s exactly 3 times as wide and 3 times as long as at Seamans'. No real problems but I did tend to come in too high. I just wasn’t extending the pattern enough. Extended on the fourth approach and came in fine. Taxied to Tech Aviation and parked next to a Lear. Some contrast!! Had a Coke, paid my $3 landing fee and left. No problems with ATC on the way out, either. It’s a little intimidating but I’ll be OK with it after a few more tries.
Came in on 22 at Seamans and had a real problem. It was gusty so I came in a bit fast. Used quite a bit of runway so had to brake fairly hard. Trouble is, the left brake was nearly useless! We were risking going off the end and/or the side. Got it stopped on the grass and had to turn through the threshold lights to get back on! Wouldn’t have gotten hurt but might have damaged the plane if we’d have gone 5 more feet! I’m having serious doubts about 23E! (Back to Contents)
This flight started shortly after the last one. I left the airport and, as usual, called Linda from the car. Got her in her car as she was going to recycling. She was doing errands and said she’d be at least 2 hours. I turned around near the golf course and headed back to Seamans! Took 757AJ to do some solo work. Did some MCAS work and, at the same time, turns around a point. Interesting combination. Had trouble hearing the stall horn with the headset, though, so took it off for the MCAS. Flew to the lake and did 3 or 4 turns around the cottage. Saw Dad’s Sunfish coming in - found out later it was my son, Don. Also found out Mom, Dad and several neighbors were all watching. There was a bit of turbulence but only enough to make it interesting. Came in on 22 with a fair crosswind - no problem. This is really fun! (Back to Contents)
Night flight again. Got there about 9:00 and it was still too light so we chatted a while about what I still need to learn for my checkride. Except for unusual attitudes and VOR, DME, etc., it’s a matter of improving what I already know. Last time, we were up before it got fully dark so this was my first preflight in darkness. It was a bit foggy so we stayed in the pattern, Did short field, soft field, and normal takeoffs and landings. I didn’t do as well as I did last time; had a hell of a time with depth perception on the approaches. Need more work on this. (Back to Contents)
Took 609 for some solo practice. Did 2 or 3 T&G’s, then left to east to do steep turns. Had a hell of a time holding altitude. Tendency was to loose altitude and accelerate. This needs lots of work. Returned to pattern for more T&G’s. Still having some trouble keeping approach consistent and speed pegged. My flares are much better, though. At one point I was just turning final when 76F announced he was back-taxiing on 22. I’d made every announcement so I was a bit surprised. I was just deciding whether he’d get clear in time when he apparently saw me and announced he was holding short. I tried to call him to see if he could hear me and there was no response. I don’t know whether the communication was his or mine. Odd situation; Greg wasn’t there when I got back so I wrote up my own bill, left a check and left. Overall, I nice evening. (Back to Contents)
Saturday’s 8:00 lesson was a wash-out because of the tail end of Hurricane Bertha. I made a 5:00 appointment for Sunday. We’d planned to do unusual attitude hood work and solo then T&G’s at AVP. Visibility sucked and there were t-storm warnings so we stayed pretty close to 9N3. Still did the hood work, though. Don’t know what other CFI’s do but, when Greg takes the plane and I close my eyes, he jigs it around a lot to get me totally disoriented before he gives it back to me. First time we did it, I recovered beautifully. Then he said I can’t use the attitude indicator - he covered it with a piece of paper. That made things a lot trickier and I had some trouble. I could recover fairly well but had a hell of a time holding altitude. Found he was also messing with throttle, flaps and trim on me just to see if I’d pick it up. He kept saying “Look around the cockpit to see what other information you can pick up.” Eventually, he said, “After you get your license, you can carry passengers. There’s always the chance that someone will mess with the controls.” That’s how I found the flaps! The kid’s a sadist! :-) I eventually started to get it but it’s a challenge. No fear here ‘cause Greg’s with me but if I was alone in the soup, I’d be scared silly!
Took the hood off and visibility wasn’t much better! We ended up north of Seamans but I wasn’t sure exactly sure where we were so I asked him what the Lake Henry (LHY) radial was for the instrument approach into 9N3. He said 309 and that put us on the subject of VOR’s. Used both Lake Henry and Wilkes-Barre (LVZ) to practice with, then quit. Shorter lesson than we planned; just 1.1 hours. (Back to Contents)
I was supposed to go on Saturday AM as usual. The plan was to do cross-country. We’d talked about Grand Canyon (the one in PA, not AZ!) but I got the bright idea it’d be good to go to Quakertown (UKT) since it’d give me experience in the class C for Allentown. The wind howled all night so I knew it was no-go. Got up anyway and checked DUATS. Winds gusting to 30 and winds aloft @ 6000 ft. were 45. Called and re-scheduled for Sunday.
Sunday was
beautiful but still a bit windy. Don’t know why, exactly, but I took the camera
along. Went up early to do my briefing, etc. This was the first time I got a weather
briefing other than from a recording . The briefer was very friendly and helpful. The
winds were still pretty stiff but manageable. Calculated my GS at 133 KTS! Greg asked me
if I’d mind taking a few minutes to fly around Pocono Raceway (found out later it was
the Winston 500!). Since I’d plotted a check point within about a mile of the track,
that was no problem. Greg took the plane at the check point and flew around while I took
pictures from our 5500 MSL. Nifty to get photos of the top of the Fuji blimp!
Because of the fast speed and my choosing fixes too close together, it was tough keeping up with the plan. Definitely didn’t feel in control as with the last one. I’d plotted VOR bearings in as a cross check and for practice. In the heat of battle, I completely forgot to use them! To add interest, the DG on 23E is completely shot so I had to fly on the magnetic compass. Another fun thing, I’d chosen a reservoir as a fix but missed it completely. Figured out the reason on the way back; it was dry! That made me mis-judge my progress. If I’d not been above it, I’d have busted the class C; I was 2 miles inside the perimeter when I called them! My radio work is still pretty bad. Forgot to give them the ATIS letter. Then too much info came too quickly for me to get it all. Glad Greg was with me! Was a bit high when we got to UKT so had to slip down big-time while crossing midfield for 29. Was a bit gusty but no major problems on landing. I’d called a friend who lives in Quakertown before we left 9N3 so he was sitting on the fence when we arrived. Got talking to him and almost forgot to close my flight plan. Need to be more careful! Looked at planes for a while then planned the return and left. Trip back was a lot slower so the checkpoints unfolded more slowly. Still forgot to mess with the VOR. Only trouble coming back was the fact that the class C is just north of UKT. We had to contact them before opening the flight plan. The radio work was confusing. Got back at 4:55 to a strong cross wind on 04. A little rough but no problem
I’d hoped I’d be ready for solo cross country by the end of this one but I’m not. I guess I’d get there and back OK but not without some anxiety. (Back to Contents)
Greg had suggested we do some airport hopping to several uncontrolled fields. After thinking about it, he changed his recommendation to 3 class D airports. Took a long time to flight plan - about an hour and a half! The weather briefing called for good weather everywhere but at AVP. Finally took off for Reading (RDG). Tried to climb over the crap at AVP but gave up at 6500 MSL and went under. Trip down was uneventful. Did a T&G at RDG, then headed out for Harrisburg Capital City (CXY). Did a T&G there (didn’t handle the cross-wind landing too well), then went to Lancaster (LNS) for a full stop. On that leg, got vectored very close to the infamous Three Mile Island. Shut down at LNS and had lunch. Disturbing to see a soldier at the gate; obviously a result of concern over bombings of TWA 800 and at the Olympics. Had lunch and planned the flight back. Winds were apparently different from what I’d planned so I had to correct quite a bit. Got back no problem, right on schedule. Wind was strong and directly across. I was a bit high and Greg took it from me; guess he didn’t want to waste time going around or maybe he didn’t trust me. Anyway, his landing wasn’t elegant; I’d have been unhappy with it if it had been mine. I guess even a CFI can have a bad one sometimes.
My radio work was a better this time but still pretty rough. I was pretty unhappy but Greg said I’m doing fine. He wants me to solo to AVP, then do some more night and a few maneuvers. After that, he says I’m ready to go to Greenwood Lake. Maybe I’m doing OK... (Back to Contents)
Went up at noon and, as I got to the airport, Greg was taxiing out in 23E. Called him on the radio and he said I should solo in the pattern for an hour. Took 76F and proceeded to do a horrible landing. Second one was a bit better. Greg called and said to pick him up. We did dual pattern work for the balance of the 1.1 hour and I wasn’t functioning well, doing stupid stuff like forgetting to call downwind, etc. I suggested we quit for a while.
Tied down and did some ground briefing; sectional, weather reports, FAR’s, etc. About 3:00 Greg said he wanted me to go down to AVP and work there. Talked through the procedure but I decided against going for 2 reasons; visibility sucked (3 miles MAYBE) and it was getting late and we were going out for dinner with Mom & Dad. So, I took 609 and did more pattern work. By the end, they were pretty good. I’m going to have to do several landings every time I fly. (Back to Contents)
TV weather forecast was for clear skies across PA and NJ. Was clear when I got up. DUATS, however, was not as good. Was sunny when I got to Seamans so I asked Greg if I could solo down to Greenwood Lake. He wanted to do maneuvers so he said to preflight the plane and then we’d talk about it. As I was pre-flighting, he asked me a zillion questions (e.g. What’s the gross weight of this plane, where are the com antennas, etc.) Didn’t do too well on them. Need to be a lot more careful when it’s the examiner’s turn. By the time we were finished, the sky was overcast and the ceiling was quite low. Took some work to find clear sky to work in. By the time we found it, we were at Harvey’s Lake. Did stalls and power outs for quite a while. As usual, I was rusty but was OK after a series of each. Amazing how fast you loose this stuff.
Returned to Seamans’ after 1.6. I really wanted to solo today, at least to AVP but the weather really sucks; decided it was prudent to quit. (Back to Contents)
What a frustrating day! After going home from the last flight, Linda and I went shopping and for lunch. Thought about waiting for the mailman who we hoped would deliver my handheld. Finally decided he’d leave it at the door. As we were going to W-B, I could see the ceiling lifting - could have gone to NJ or at least AVP if I’d waited a while. When we got home, there was a card from the post office saying they tried to deliver a package. By this time, the PO was closed so now I have to wait ‘til Monday. It was still clear so I called and Jamie said I could have 23E at 3:00. I figured maybe I could still get to AVP with NJ as an outside chance. Got to Seamans to find a gusty crosswind. Greg felt it prudent to hold off. We decided to do some dual T&G’s in the crosswind, though. Good practice but boring. Went home and the wind died again. @#$&*%! (Back to Contents)
The day started with rain but it cleared up by noon. I went over to the pilot’s club to eat lunch and some of the guys came in so I didn’t watch John & Martha King as planned. More fun to talk to the guys, anyway. Left the office at 4:30 for the airport. I’d asked Greg to sign me off for AVP on Saturday so Jamie released me in 23E. I’d been apprehensive about the radio work but it was no big deal. Told the tower I wanted to do full stops and taxi backs. Did all the work on 04. As soon as I’d clear the active, he’d clear me to taxi back. At one point, he held me for traffic and I watched a C130 do a T&G. What a sight! Must be getting ready for the air show on Saturday. He cleared me to taxi and hold position for wake turbulence separation and I waited a long time! Traffic was fairly heavy and once he had me do a right pattern. On the fourth landing, I taxied to Tech Aviation. Parked my little 172 next to a Citation; some contrast! Had a Coke and talked to the girl at the counter about the air show. Back to 9N3 and did the nicest landing of my life. Nobody at the field to see it, of course! I love to solo! Weather was magnificent. Life is good. (Back to Contents)
Finally! This was my first solo cross country. I’ve been getting antsy to start these things. I was concerned about the weather on Saturday since we’ve been getting so much AM fog. Also, tomorrow’s forecast was for T storms. Called the FSS about 10:00 and all looked good. Called Jamie and booked 609. Called Greg when he got back at noon and he said OK. So, I took 1/2 day vacation do the x-c.
After flight planning, got off about 2:25. Visibility was only OK - perhaps 10 miles in haze. Sky was scattered at about 4000 - 4500 MSL. I started out at 3500 but later dropped to about 3000 to maintain cloud clearance as I got into NJ. Also, by the time I got to Sussex Co., visibility was down to 6 or so. My navigation was dead-on the whole way down with one notable exception. There was a notam about sky jumping over Sussex County - asking pilots to stay 1 statute mile away. My direct route put me just north of the airport. I figured I’d spot it a couple miles out, then skirt it. When I found it, it was under my right wingtip! Actually, I probably still had the 1 mile separation! The good news that I was exactly where I was supposed to be relative to course. As I got to 4N1, I started to listen to ATIS at some nearby airports. All had landings on runways like 25. Naturally, I expected to use 24 at Greenwood Lake. Called unicom without response. Started setting up for 24 and heard someone announce that they were using 06. Pattern work was a bit sloppy and the 1000 ft pattern (as opposed to the 800 at Seamans) resulted in my being a bit high and therefore fast at the fence but all was well.
Looks like Greenwood Lake is in trouble. Though it was mid afternoon on a Thursday, the restaurant and pilot shop were both closed. Even the lobby was locked up. I got someone to open the door so I could use the restroom. He also opened the pilot shop for me but I didn’t buy anything after all.
Did my flight plan sitting at a picnic table outside. There were two guys there with a homebuilt gyrocopter so I chatted with them for a while. Called the FSS and filed my flight plan. Took off on 24 and flew a bit north of my intended course to miss Sussex. I overdid it a bit since I never did see Sussex County. It was pretty hazy and I didn’t really want to be on top of the scattered layer so my whole trip back was 3000-3500 MSL.. Crossed into PA over Matamoras rather than Milford so cut south a while ‘til I intercepted I84 at the power line I crossed on the way out. As I approached Lake Wallenpaupack, I realized I’d never opened my flight plan. Well, too late now! When I spotted Seamans, it was dead center in the windscreen. Nifty.
Overall, I had a good time and I guess I did OK for the first time. My errors were:
I’d booked my appointment for 10:00 rather than 8:00 to avoid the August AM fog. It was raining when I got up but the briefer said it’d clear up within an hour. He lied! Never got into the air ‘til after 11:00. In the meantime, I talked to another student who’s a mechanic at O&N. Nice guy. Gave me some insight on maintenance costs. When we did get off, we were bumping our heads. Had to work to find a hole in which to practice. Did turns around a point which Greg said were flawless. S-turns were trickier but he explained I should pick a point on the road and turn 180º around it, then pick another for 180º the other way. Also helps to pick the point at which to re-cross the road. That seems to work and I’ll practice it on my own. He said I should pick a road that’s aligned with the wind if possible. The big problem around here is finding a straight road! Because of the late start, we only got in 0.7 hours but it was well spent. (Back to Contents)
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