When I started flight training my goal was to fly 2-3 times a week but, at the very least, once a week. As you can see, my ideal schedule hasn't panned out. This reality is something I've learned many students and instructors battle with while learning to fly—schedules are tough.Everybody's situation is different. Some people can only fly in the evenings, some only on weekends, others only in the morning. I thought scheduling wouldn't be that big of a problem for me since I live in Oshkosh and work only about a mile away from the runway. I was wrong.So, here's something I've learned about flight training: be pro-active about scheduling flight lessons. This is still not a guarantee, but it's better than not having a plan. For instance, this week we had three flight lessons scheduled. Two were cancelled because of winds and rain, the third cancelled due to a schedule conflict with Jason. Jason encouraged me to take advantage of the opportunity to fly with another instructor, so I called Whitney and learned she was about to leave town for a week. Bummer. Jason spends most weekends at his home in Michigan, so flying this weekend isn't an option. Next week, I have an out-of-town business trip and a couple other projects that will likely keep me from flying. Right now it looks like Wednesday is the only day I might be able to fly. I'm crossing my fingers for good weather because then I leave town for a four-day camping trip. Grrrrr. See what I mean.
I've learned life doesn't come to halt when you learn to fly, so you have to make it a priority and take every opportunity you can.
While I've only had a couple true flight lessons this past month, I've had other opportunities to get in the air and I'm sure these experiences have been good for me. I flew in the right seat on two air-to-air photo missions at Sun 'n Fun to help spot traffic. I also rode in the backseat of a Cessna 206 while a missionary pilot flew his annual proficiency check. It was good for me to hear and see what these checkrides are like. I also flew in the front seat of an AirCam (which is an amazing plane by the way). I saw firsthand what it takes to plan and execute a real cross-country trip like this. I realize not everybody gets opportunities like this (I normally don't either), but my point is to always look for ways to stay sharp and continue improving your skills as a pilot.
How do the rest of you handle scheduling flight lessons? Is it hard for everybody? In an ideal world—where work schedules, family schedules, and weather aren't ever an issue—I'd be flying 3 times a week, but life doesn't happen like that. So, those of you who've traveled this road before, do you have any advice?Speaking of advice, I really appreciate all the comments on the previous post about short and soft field landings. There's some great tips in there and I can't wait to try some of them out.
Posted by John G @ 01:11 PM, May 29 Hi Brady,Schedules, yes you have to plan ahead, like this past week I looked at the weather forcast ahead of time and using what I learned about weather from paragliding I booked my solo x-country for Wednesday.So I plotted the flight on the chart two days before, completed the flight log and flight plan the night before, phoned my instructor who check them telephonically. I then filed the plan with ATC in Cape Town, the next day at 8:30am I activated my flight plan and began my planned route of 170nm.The weather was excellent, as we can get heavy fog in the mornings and high winds here in Cape Town, As I routed over the field I noted the time on the flight log and headed 345deg towards Saldanha (FASD)44min later I arrived over field, the air was quite bumpy from some rotor coming off the surrounding hills.After battling through the turbulance I headed 117deg on my second leg 52mn to a small town called Porterville, I chatted to Langebaan Airforce Base as they routed me past, nice and close to the southern runway.38min later I affived over the town and I turned onto my final heading 218 deg back to Fisantekraal. Weather was nice all the way and I arrived back overhead within 5min of my projected time.On a nav planning is everything, I like the book "PPL" by Jim Davis and the explaination and approach to navigation.I really enjoy reading your blog!keep up the good work.All the best John GTip of the day: Find a good weather site.
Posted by WP @ 01:15 PM, May 29 I agree, my training has been slowed to a halt, due to weather and money.I am thinking of an accelerated program in the future if my training doesn't resume soon. Any thoughts on those programs?
Posted by Jessica @ 04:09 PM, May 29 Hi Brady,I was lucky in that the place I went for lessons had an online scheduler, which made it quick and easy to see open spots weeks out. So what I did was schedule myself like crazy. If there was an open spot at a time when I knew I didn't have anything going on and the projected winds and weather looked good, I'd plunk myself in for a 2 hour slot. Sometimes that meant being on the schedule every day of the week...sometimes 2x a day. However, knowing that weather and winds change from day to day, I figured I'd be lucky if half those even happened. Nevertheless, scheduling like that has always given me at least 2 lessons.Of course, to schedule like that, it would be a good idea to ensure your bank account can handle those weeks when you actually end up flying 4 or more times. (:
Posted by Douglas @ 08:29 PM, May 29 Flight lessons do have to be a top priority if you want to make steady progress.I suppose I had the almost ideal siuation:I'm single, self-employed, and had plenty of cash in the bank. I made my lessons a priority, and scheduled my work week around my CFI's availability.At first I was flying 5 hours/week, but going home for the holidays as well as the January weather put the brakes on that. Finished my private in 52 hours over a 5 month period.Just keep going.........you'll get there.Doug
Posted by Dave S @ 10:09 PM, May 29 I know what you are going through. I had all my training at Waukesha County Airport back in 2003. Had the same scheduling problems due to weather. I actually rescheduled for two months to get my checkride due to weather. That was frustrating! But, it finally all worked out in the end. Just keep at it, you will get your license.I really enjoy watching your blog...it really brings back some good memories of learning to fly. I now live in the San Diego area, but there is something about flying back in the midwest that I miss. Keep it up!Also, get yourself a scanner or a radio that can receive the aircraft band (if you don't already have one). Just listening to the local air traffic and controllers, and having a mental picture of what is going on can help keep you sharp!
Posted by John G @ 01:08 AM, May 30 To help with the weather problem.When I started flying paragliders we would often spend more time para-waiting then flying waiting for the right weather, so I looked up a few weather sites and found one that seemed to give fairly accurate results for my area.After awhile you get a feel for when the site is accurate or not.my favourite site is www.windfinder.comHope that helps!John G
Posted by Brett Campany @ 07:24 PM, May 31 Hi mate, yeah scheduling lessons is hard. Right now in Australia, winter has hit so there's a good chance of at least 3 to 4 weeks of no flying in between lessons. Flight sim's help with basic memory items and procedures but there's nothing like getting up there.I generally book about 4 lessons a month and during winter am finding that it's hard to keep those.Then there's rostering issues at work, someone will call in sick, usually on a day that I'm booked to go flying and I end up working.So yeah it's not easy booking lessons. You're lucky you're so close to your airfield. I was driving for 2 hours one way to get to one airfield but I've since found a new instructor so my drive is only about an hour or just over that.
Posted by Cliff Huss @ 08:15 PM, May 31 Keep after it Brady! It took me 30 years but you're going to beat that by a ton! I have a photo of you from Ogden, Ut. during last years B-17 tour I would like to get to you. Let me know where to send it.
Posted by John @ 09:16 AM, June 01 Hey Brady, This is John from Wild Rose. Was good to have you stop by Sunday. I wish we had more time to talk but My buddie came by and you were going to the hatchery. Hope you stop by next sunday the 7th for our fly-in and we can talk a bit. Shoot me an e-mail sometime. Hope your flying is going well. John
Posted by Garrett @ 11:17 AM, June 01 Scheduleing is a bummer sometimes..If its not weather it seems to be something else. For me lately its been the funds!! Tough times but I am trying to squeeze every penny I can from places to put toward my flying. Looks like my solo is coming up in a few weeks. Pretty excited about that. Hope all is well. Keep it up and before long we will be calling you "Pilot Brady"www.mypilotchronicles.com
Posted by Ken B @ 12:57 PM, June 01 Brady,I understand the frustration of not flying because of scheduling, but it is better to not fly, than pushing to fly in questionable conditions. I was determined to get my ticket in the shortest number of hours possible. As a result I ended up not flying at all for a couple of months because the last thing I had to do was my X country. The seasonal "May grey" and "June gloom" that we experience here in San Diego prevented my flight. As it was I wanted to fly so bad that I did a solo X country in conditions that were legal, but with my experience, were questionable. My CFI knew that I could handle it, so he let me make the call, but upon my return I exclaimed that "I will never do anything like that again"! It's just not worth it. I had a case of getthereitis regarding my ticket and that can be just as hazardous as the other kind of getthereitis disease.As frustrating as this time can be, it is worth all of the time, effort and money that you spend. When you take your first passenger along for a flight as PIC you will have realized a dream that few people have had the privilege of experiencing!Thank you for sharing your experience, and for all that you are doing to promote aviation.Ken B
Posted by Adam Smith @ 01:18 PM, June 02 This was a big problem for me.. it took me fully 2 years from first lesson to getting my certificate. Getting my schedule, my instructor's schedule and the Scottish weather to all co-operate was not easy. It gets frustrating because you need to spend time catching up. In the end I decamped to one of the British "pilot factories" in Florida and did my last 15 hours in 10 days.
Posted by Larry @ 10:18 AM, June 04 Hey Brady, I took the LSA practical exam last Sunday and passed!! I'm flying the Remos G3 just like the one you're flying. The oral testing started at 8am and lasted until 10. We then went flying for the proficiency part. I was on pins and needles the whole time knowing that at any point if I missed a maneuver the test would be over and I'd have to come back another time. It was great making the last landing of the day and taxiing back to the hanger. The pressure was over and my examiner shook my hand and gave me his congratulation. I can only describe it as exhilarating and an experience that I'll never forget. Good luck to you Brady and thanks for posting this video blog. Your posts were certainly a big factor in my getting interested in LSA flying.
Posted by Alistair Simmons @ 11:39 AM, June 09 Brady- Step back. Don't worry about the weather. Don't stress over the schedules or timelines....at the end of the day you are actually committted to doing it! -and you will get your license. You are envied (in a nice way :-) by many of us who are unable to find a way to raise the $ or find the time or are physically unable to learn to fly. Keep the updates coming.... GOOD LUCK from the UK.
Posted by Jason Bigler @ 03:33 PM, June 09 Hey Brady...I have the same problem except my schedule conflict has always been school. Lucky for me i guess, in august im going to The university of North Dakota to be a professional pilot. That way they mandate my flying schedule. P.S. Enjoy the AirCam? Yeah most people do and so do i...every time i get in ours. My dad is a partner in one and its a blast to fly. As im sure you found out, it out-climbs anything you've ever flown. At least it feels like it.Have Fun and Stick With it.Jason
Posted by Will Strong @ 06:30 PM, June 19 Good going Brady. I've been following your blog from the beginning. I'm going for my PPL and have my night x-country tonight... can't wait! I fly out of KBFI in Seattle so I know the woes of weather. Good luck going forward!Nicholas, first off I would say this video blog is the most comprehensive and informative of any flight training blog I've found. Also, if you take the time to read all the comments I think you'll find many people have been inspired. In fact, a few even give credit to this blog for starting them off!
This lesson was a difficult one for me. Jason introduced me to short and soft field landings—simulating what to do when you are landing on a short runway or a soft runway like grass or sand.The goal for short field landings is to come in slightly slower than normal and make sure you touch down at the beginning of the runway. I was able to land each time, but regardless of how hard I tried, never landed on the numbers. Taking 5-10 mph off my normal approach speed was just enough to make the whole approach feel off to me. Jason assures me I'm on the normal learning curve, but it sure was frustrating.Jason also told me that short field landings are the most commonly failed portion of a checkride so it is going to take some practice to master. I'm curious if any of you struggled with these precision landings and what you did to finally get it.On a positive note, the takeoffs were a blast. Climbing out at Vx (best angle of climb) in the Remos is an incredible ride.
Posted by John Galt @ 04:13 PM, May 21 I remember doing these and it was an odd feeling but the key is not to get frustrated because then you begin to overthink it...just aim for the numbers and it will all come together. Great Video~!
Posted by Brady Lane @ 04:24 PM, May 21 John: That was the very word I used when debriefing the Jason after the lesson - overthink. I was making these landings much harder than they needed to be. Thanks for letting me know I'm not the only one who tried too hard at these. I hope to get up soon and try them again.
Posted by Patrick Saenen @ 04:43 PM, May 21 Brady,I love to follow your exploits. I am also a student sport pilot with about 14 hours, and I just did my solo XC last weekend which went very well. However I still have to do my written test......Can you please tell me what GPS data logger and what software you used to create the picture in lesson 21. I think it would be a great tool in analyzing my flights.I must say that the short field landings and the soft field landings are also for me really difficult, and I am going to need a lot more practice to get them mastered.Keep up the good work!Best regards,Patrick Saenen
Posted by Brady Lane @ 05:03 PM, May 21 Patrick: I am using a Amod AGL3080 GPS data logger on my flights away from the airport. Here is a link for it on amazon. http://tinyurl.com/amod3080 (there may be better prices elsewhere though). There are "full service" gps devices that can also record your track, but I like this because it is small, easy to use and will record for days on two AAA batteries. I created the image by taking a screen grab of the GPS track in Google Earth. Congrats on your solo cross-country. How was it? Nerve-racking? I hope to be doing my solo cross country soon, so I'm eager to hear how yours went.
Posted by Jay @ 07:54 PM, May 21 Hey Brady, Remember when you first stepped in the place and wondered how you were going to fly while talking to ATC, scanning for traffic, scanning the gauges, etc.? Now its no big deal. The same will happen with this. Once you get use to playing with the throttle (which in turn make you work the rudder a bit more), hitting the landings should be fine. I remember doing my PPL short field landings. I really had to force myself to think not to worry about impressing my instructor with a smooth landing. I needed to remember that all I want to do is get down and stopped before the end of the runway. It helped me to (as a VFR pilot you can do this) aim for the very start of the runway as your point to reference. Once over the end you should be starting the flare, which will allow you to touch down on the numbers. Aiming for the numbers means you'll get there and then start your flare. Those things helped me get past this point. As long as you realize these landings aren't there to impress anyone and you're not scared (and force yourself) to get lower of approach, you'll get the hang of it. Good luckJay from Toronto, Canada
Posted by Garrett @ 11:37 PM, May 21 Looking good Brady. I have heard that these are fun yet frustrating. Of course I am a few lessons away from these, but definatly looking forward to them. Keep it up buddy!!
Posted by Patrick Saenen @ 05:54 AM, May 22 Brady,Thank you for your quick response on the GPS Data Logger. I ordered one so I can take it with me on Saturday!The solo cross country was quite easy. The first airport (BKV) where i had to land, had a Learjeat in take off position waiting for 3 deer to clear the runway. I had to wait in pattern for more than 10 minutes before the deer were gone and I could land. My biggest problem is communication. I get sooo nervous every time I have to push the transmit button. When I hear you talking on the radio, it is lake you are doing this your whole life. Did you follow a special course or how did you learn it?Best regards,Patrick Saenen
Posted by Greg Skufca @ 02:46 PM, May 22 Hello from Texas Brady,I hope you continue your blog even after your certificate. You are an inspiration to many student and young pilots with your ongoing eagerness and desire to learn. I am also a student pilot that enjoys the common situations expressed here. I look forward to viewing your next lesson. You are ahead of me in your lessons, so it seems to give me a better insight of what to expect, and prepare for it, from a fellow students point of view. Thanks.Sunny Skies,Greg
Posted by Todd Fischer @ 09:57 PM, May 23 Brady,This is a great thing you are doing. I just passed my sport pilot check ride yesterday and I have been following your progress as I was working up to the check ride. I know all the ups and downs you are going through but it is all great experience. I will continue to follow your progress. Watching your videos made me feel better when I was frustrated knowing I wasn't the only student feeling that way. Great Work!
Posted by Todd Fischer @ 09:59 PM, May 23 Brady,One other thing, I am at Brennand in Neenah so maybe I will see you buzzing around.
Posted by Ricky @ 02:57 PM, May 24 Hi,Love your video blog its very helpful and fun to watch. To hit those numbers have you tried an earlier aim point? It seems like your aim point is pretty close to the numbers. Maybe it just feels akward to make the end of the runway, or even a spot slightly off the end of the runway your aim point down final, but maybe that will help you hit that spot!
Posted by Connie(tiny)Lee @ 06:46 AM, May 25 Hi Brady,I really enjoy your video blogs. I flew U/L's out of X-51 in Homestead, Fl. I have my solo on video. I learned a lot about about the mechanics of the landings watching the video. I soloed in a Quicksilver Sport ll. I still watch the video. What is amazing about and me flying U/L's is I'm 6'9" tall and weigh 270 lbs. I wish you the very best in your flying.
Posted by Brian @ 09:57 AM, May 25 You're doing great Brady! You've got a 200ft margin for the check ride(just passed my PPL 2 weeks ago). Looked like you were close. Are you trimmed for 60? When you have the airspeed nailed, playing w/ the throttle for descent becomes easier! Aim for the theshold, not the numbers to take into account the roundout. I was used to hitting the #s, my DPE told me to land on the aiming markers...Doh! I targetted 50ft in front of the markers and hit the markers dead-on. Have fun!!
Posted by Luke @ 01:45 PM, May 25 When I was practicing free throws in basketball I learned that when I concentrate on a certain part of the hoop I could get consistency. I learned that when I concentrate on the front of the rim I could be consistent. I would ask yourself where are you focusing your eyes when you come in on final? You might try focusing on a line just before the numbers instead of maybe focusing on the numbers themselves. Just an idea!
Posted by Ryan Warner @ 09:58 PM, May 26 Don't give up on it. This was just about the last thing my instructor and myself did before the checkride but luckily it was enough. I love being 18 and telling my friends that I'm a pilot!
Posted by Cary Alburn @ 05:57 PM, May 28 There's a tendency to separate these into short landings and soft landings__but in the "real world" a typical soft strip (like grass or dirt) is also pretty short.When you don't need soft but do need short, it's easy. Or in the unlikely event that you have a really long soft runway, that's easy. It's the combination that is tough. But there is a secret to success.In your POH, you will find that most manufacturers use a range of approach speeds these days, and often pilots (of all experience levels) just use any old speed that falls in that range__and so their landings are inconsistent. My advice: Pick the slowest speed in the range for ALL of your landing approaches. That should be 1.3 Vso, which is what I was taught and then later taught as a CFI, before the manufacturers started publishing a range of speeds.There is rarely a reason to use a faster approach speed than 1.3 Vso, and only the back country pros will use less than 1.3 Vso. If you consistently, absolutely every time, use 1.3 Vso, you will find that all of your landings will be reasonably good, whether they are normal, short, soft, or a combination of short and soft.FWIW, typically a soft or combo short and soft means carrying a little power, so that you can use that to keep the airplane from landing hard. But I made the very best soft field landing of my life when my engine came apart in the air 5 years ago, and I had to land in a field__so power is not an absolute necessity to soft.Finally, practice so that when you use that consistent same speed every time, you know how far the airplane will glide during your flare before touchdown. If you are using the same speed each time, that will become a same distance__so that if you aim for a point that same distance before the numbers, you will land on the numbers.The key to good landings is consistency, especially consistent airspeed on approach that is 1.3 Vso. The only time you should use more than 1.3 Vso is in a gusty situation, and then you only add 1/2 the gust factor__like for instance, if the wind is gusting from 10-15, half the gust factor is 2.5__so it's not a lot faster, just a little.Good luck! After more than 36 years and some 2100+ hours, I still love to fly__and because I regularly fly into a small dirt strip where I used to keep my airplane, I get lots of practice with short and soft landings__and I'm good at it!Cary
Today Jason and I were going to go practice short and soft field landings. After taxiing about 2 miles to the end of runway 36, I noticed the power seemed to change, then the taxiway started getting real bumpy. A couple seconds later I realized what was really happening—a flat tire.These things happen. And I'm glad they're happening during my training. So what did we do? Called the tower, then called the shop and had them come out to see if the tire would hold air so we could get it back to the hangar.I'm glad real life continues to happen during training - because I know real life will continue once I get my certificate.Jason and I seized the opportunity to do some ground instruction over the hood of the plane while we waited. With planes landing on the runway beside us, the scenery doesn't get any better.And even though I'd rather be flying, it was nice to just get out to the airport today and deal with a flat tire.
Posted by Scott K @ 05:12 PM, May 11 Brady__Flat tires on 2 occasions, replacing a radio antenna, and high oil temps during my training. In retrospect, I'm very glad that this happened during training - I remain cooler and more focused when it matters most!Scott
Posted by rusty @ 06:51 PM, May 11 I've been there, just AFTER a landing @ KBUU thankfully you didn't LAND with a flat...sorta reinforces the preflight checklist idea the side-effect was a tour of Burlington, Wi in yet another former police cruiser airport car & my 1st visit to WAG Aero for a tube we were fortunate in that we landed at an airport with an A&P onsite/avaialble - enjoy your flying- when's the checkride?
Posted by Larry @ 08:18 PM, May 11 Brady,Same thing happened to me. I had just made the last landing of the day in my Remos and on the taxi way back to the hanger I felt the same thing. Bumpy and sluggish movement. Sure enough...flat right tire. Glad it happened after the landing.
Posted by Doug @ 08:51 AM, May 12 Happened in a G3 to me, too (and I've heard of other cases). After landing and turning onto the main taxiway with no issue, the tire just rolled off the rim, while taxiing at very slow speed. NOT a leak or puncture, JUST ROLLED OFF THE RIM. I wasn't even in a turn when it happened. I love the G3, but this has to be fixed before someone gets hurt. The thing is, this is easy to fix, but the S-LSA nature of the beast requires Remos to address it.
Posted by David @ 10:09 PM, May 12 Yeah, these things happen. But as you said it's good real life experience that you're getting. This has happened twice to me, one time while I was flying Young Eagles with 3 kids in the plane and their parents watching from the FBO.
Posted by John Craparo @ 10:14 PM, May 16 Since this is about learning to be a pilot and we want to set a great example, let's mention that casually leaning across or hanging around a propeller is not good practice. Even with the Master Switch off, the magnetos might still be "hot" and this flat tire could become far worse for Brady and Jason. Let's look after one another.
Posted by AHT @ 03:51 PM, May 18 Hi Brady,I followed your progress sine Day 1 since I was considering taking flight lessons last fall. I'm having my first class this Wednesday and I just went over your whole series again yesterday and today. I'm so excited and I can't wait.
Posted by Randy Epstein @ 07:32 PM, May 19 Brady, Seems to be a trend here. When I first started back last year I was flying a Zodiac. We'd been out doing T&G's at a nearby non-controlled field and we're coming back to the home field to end the day. We touched down and one of the mains blew. We got her stopped and then proceeded to try and pull the plane down the runway to the first taxiway. Hey, I was 57 then and got a bit winded before the guy with the tug showed up to finish moving it for us. Randy
Posted by scott fohrman @ 09:23 PM, May 19 Ted looks good down there changing that tire!!!
Posted by Phil @ 12:57 PM, May 22 Is the tire tubeless or is there in inner tube. If it is tubeless I would definatly look into installing an inner tube. Lucky you were at an airport that has an FBO.
For this flight, we left Oshkosh and navigated to two other airports for my first cross-country flight. I also called 1-800-WX-brief for the first time for a weather brief—both the night before and again in the morning for an update. I told them I was a student pilot and they gave me the info slow enough I could take notes — greatly appreciated.
I then calculated for wind corrections and studied the sectional charts for landmarks to look for on the way. I knew we'd be flying GPS-less, so the charts would be all we would have. Sectional charts are awesome! There is so much information on them. It's a great feeling not having to rely on GPS. (That being said, I'm sure I will enjoy flying with one if I have one in the future.) I'd be curious to hear how many students now learn with or without a GPS. I'm sure there are definite advantages to both approaches.
We never got lost on our flight, but as you'll see in the video, we did get slightly "misplaced" for a few moments as we were coming into Marshfield. It's a weird feeling not being where you think you are - even if it's just a few miles off.Have any of you gotten extremely lost, ugghh, I mean "misplaced" while flying? If so, what did you to find your location again? I felt really confident on this flight at the controls landing at airports I've never been to - even in strong winds. It really makes me look forward to my next cross country, which I'll do solo!
Posted by Kelly @ 04:09 PM, May 06 I’m glad to see you had to do this without using a GPS… those skills will serve you well in the future. And no shame in getting lost – you just taught your viewers a good lesson, and hopefully you’ll inspire them to learn GPS-less too!
Posted by John Galt @ 05:15 PM, May 06 That next cross country that is solo is a real mind opener! I finished about 54 hours of PP training then had to stop but was able to do 2 solo x-ctrys and your mind is running a mile a minute. Its a great feeling when youre done. Thank you again for a wonderful video series, it's fun to live vicariously through you :)
Posted by Paul Aseltine @ 05:36 PM, May 06 Hi Brady. It has been a while since I posted a comment even though I have checking to see your progress most every day. My son in law Diego is keeping track of you from Buenos Aires Argentina. I have been one of your FANS since you started that process. I am proud of you for showing poise even when you were temporarely lost. I am praying for you for your safety during all your training. Keep up the good work!
Posted by Douglas @ 05:41 PM, May 06 Not bad, Brady. The landings are getting more consistant, I see.No VOR in the plane? I did my Private training in a plane with dual VORs. (No GPS) Great for getting a cross fix and pinpointing your location if you get "misplaced".I still don't use (or even know how to use) a GPS. Seems like cheating, to me. Of course, it might save your butt when you get "misplaced"!Doug
Posted by Douglas @ 05:49 PM, May 06 Not bad, Brady. The landings are getting more consistant, I see.No VOR in the plane? I did my Private training in a plane with dual VORs. (No GPS) Great for getting a cross fix and pinpointing your location if you get "misplaced".I still don't use (or even know how to use) a GPS. Seems like cheating, to me. Of course, it might save your butt when you get "misplaced"!Doug
Posted by Brendan @ 06:39 PM, May 06 Brady, glad to see a video! You aske "how many students learn with / without GPS. I got my PPL last year in Oregon, and was allowed to use the GPS more than I should have. I think the more you do WITHOUT a GPS the better! It will help prevent that lost feeling sometime in the future! You can use a GPS anytime you want later! Yes, I have one, but I am not as good with a sectional as i WISH I was!
Posted by Randy Epstein @ 07:03 PM, May 06 Brady, Great job, you're almost there!! I can remember my first solo cross country. I was in Arizona and had been flying along tracking the VOR. I was timing myself and thinking that I ought to be near the airport. I came over a little mountain ridge and looked straight down to see the airport. I was quite relieved. As far as the GPS I did my recent trianing leading up to my certificate in a G1000 equipped 172. That didn't stop me from using VOR's or pilotage for my cross countries. I do own a 296 now and take it with, I like the track feature, but still also use the VOR's for navigation and am always looking for check points. with the sectional in my lap or my wife's lap.Keep up the good work!!
Posted by Bryan Blazek @ 07:06 PM, May 06 Brady-Nice job with the first cross country. Everything looks like it went as planned and everyone gets misplaced at least once. On your solo cross country you should head down to 02C. It is a nice 50nm flight down and just a nice grass roots airport. Hope to see you in the sky!Bryan
Posted by Dave @ 07:11 PM, May 06 WTG Brady. As far as being lost, no I never have been lost. Been a few times I didn't know where the heck I was, but since I'm still here, I was never lost.
Posted by Brett Campany @ 07:17 PM, May 06 Great work on your first XC mate, I've got 3 XC's to do this weekend, one each day so that's going to be really fun. How far into your planning are you going? Basically I'm looking at using 10nm markers, track and distance magnetic and that's about it until the day.
Posted by Ian @ 08:20 PM, May 06 Hey BradyGood Job on Your first cross country flight!Up here in canada last weekend we had the 17th annual Canadian Aviation Expohttp://www.canadianaviationexpo.com/Had a great time the aviation community is a real blast got to meet some nice people and even got to go up in a cessna 172 and a helicoptor made me want to be a pilot so much more. They have one of two Air worthy Lancastors in the world at the museum amazing plane Hope some of the viewers where there! If not see ya next year!
Posted by alex @ 10:51 PM, May 06 nice job I just finish my private it was a blast
Posted by John G @ 03:00 AM, May 07 Nice XC Dude!, here in South Africa, we are not allowed to use a GPS for nav. We also revise our ETA's etc.. on the Flight Log.I've completed my dual x-country last month, busy with some GF flying and then my solo x-country, YaY!Nice landings! John
Posted by Garrett @ 09:57 AM, May 07 Looks like your coming right along Brady. Not much further now huh. I am a little farther back in my training than you are, but look forward to my XC and Solos. Fly Safe buddy!!www.mypilotchronicles.comGarrett
Posted by Garrett @ 09:58 AM, May 07 Looks like your coming right along Brady. Not much further now huh. I am a little farther back in my training than you are, but look forward to my XC and Solos. Fly Safe buddy!!www.mypilotchronicles.comGarrett
Posted by Ron H @ 11:32 AM, May 07 Hi Brady,To answer your question about getting “misplaced”, I never have but did think I was more than once. Had to really cross check on the sectional to get that weird feeling you describe to go away. Didn’t like that feeling at all so I took additional steps that made it easier to know where I was at any given time.One thing I did while gaining both confidence and experience early in my flying (pre-GPS!) when planning a long cross country flight was to draw my course right on the sectionals or WAC charts with a blue pen (easier for me to see than black). That made it easy to follow my course and easy to refold the charts as I progressed along my flight. About every 15 minutes I would mark my position and time right on the chart. I would always know exactly where I was no more than 15 minutes ago when going someplace new. In your Remos 15 minutes is about 25-30 miles so you may want to adjust the time interval to something more comfortable. It also makes it easy to confirm ground speed, make time and distance calculations and heading corrections if the winds aloft change on you. Keep in mind too, that I was learning in the southwest where you can fly over a whole lotta nuthin’ for a long time.I have a few questions for you and this may all be planned for future flights but I’m curious.Did your instructor have you file a flight plan for this flight?If not, does he plan to go over that with you at some point?Can’t tell on the video if you have a Nav/Com or just a Com radio. If you have the Nav/Com are you learning how to use VOR’s to navigate? Our Remos is equipped with a Nav/Com and a backup Com radio plus the Garmin 496 in a docking station so we can use both.Has he mentioned anything about showing you how to get VFR flight following from Center?What about calling for weather in flight and will he show you how to give a Pilot Report?Do you plan to get endorsements for additional controlled airports since you’ll need them as a sport pilot?Thanks, and I look forward to every new video you post.
Posted by Kirk @ 12:43 PM, May 07 Brady, I'm impressed that you're willing to reveal the learning process - yep, we all learn by making mistakes, hopefully little mistakes.I remember a couple of my early student solo cross-country flights 40 years ago. My base was a controlled field, but traffic was GA with an occasional biz jet for the nearby big companies. I flew a triangle and the first landing was another controlled field I'd seen with my instructor. VOR nav was fine, winds required a small correction angle. I entered the pattern acting like I did this all the time, landed fine, switched to ground control planning to get my log book signed at the FBO and discovered I was sharing a taxiway with a United 727 headed right toward me! I had no idea this little airport, actually smaller than my base, had big commercial traffic twice a day. If I'd known that beforehand I would have been tense. This showed the value of training and confidence in following procedures.The second memorable flight was a cold winter day on a 100+ mile out and back. Despite the cold and snow on the ground, the air was clear with 50+ mile visibility. Winds were vicious, however, 20+ headwind at a nasty angle. At cruise in a PA-28-140B I had a 15 degree wind correction angle. If felt like I was in a slip the whole flight. It was a long flight out, and a very short flight back, but the views were spectacular. Flying along the Ohio edge of Lake Erie I could make out Canada most of the flight, sitting warm in my plane.
Posted by Brady Lane @ 03:50 PM, May 07 Thanks everyone for your encouraging comments and for sharing your cross-country experiences. Keep 'em coming - I love reading your advice and what you've encountered on cross-country flights.Kirk, I was a bit nervous going into CWA because I knew they have airline traffic - in fact I've flown out of there before on an airline. I was expecting to have to deal with wake turbulence, increased traffic and everything, but there wasn't a jet in sight. At least I was mentally ready if there were. And thanks for your questions Ron. I try to include as much as I can on the blog, but obviously Jason does show me things that don't make it to the blog. We've talked about filling flight plans and obtaining in-flight weather reports, but didn't do it on this flight. He said he wanted to keep the workload to a manageable level for this first cross-country, but said we will likely do them on future flights if it's appropriate. And no, we don't have any other navigational equipment in the plane other than our eyes and a sectional chart. I'm sure I'll learn to navigate with VORs and such as I start flying in other planes. The more I learn the more I learn how much there is left to learn.
Posted by Tom @ 09:17 PM, May 07 Hi Brady:I fly in SW Ontario Canada...in fact straight east of you- east of Lake Huron. The geography is much like Wisconsin-i.e. flat farmers fields.I didn't have a GPS for quite some time. But once flying with a friend we got misplaced like you did. Except it was about 10-15 mins. Visibility was a hazy 6-10 miles so it is quite easy to get disoriented. We did find a town and did what my instructor once told me to do. Check the name on the water tower and set off to our destination from there. It's a bit humiliating but it works.The next day, I bought a GPS to back up my map reading. Wouldn't fly without either today.It is a lonely feeling being misplaced...but always remember to fly the airplane. AVIATE,NAVIGATE, and COMMUNICATE!Tom SW Ontario, Canada
Posted by Jim Nichols @ 11:10 PM, May 07 Good job. You are correct is your assumption that there are advantages and disadvantages for both GPS-less and with GPS.I did my entire private Pilot training and check ride with a G1000. Let me tell you, that thing kicks tail. If you can afford it that is the plane to buy. Biggest disadvantage? Now I am retraining in an older 172, because the only aircraft i can afford to buy will not have a glass panel. Oh well. it was sweet while it lasted. Keep up the good work.
Posted by David Peel @ 11:45 PM, May 07 'Enjoyed the ride Brady. Thanks for sharing and keep it up.
Posted by Steve Carroll @ 04:42 AM, May 08 Brady, What are you paying per hour for the Remos?
Posted by Brady Lane @ 09:14 AM, May 08 Steve: Remos has generously donated the plane for us to use in this project (as well as EAA's Air Academy program), but to reflect a normal training experience I've been calculating what it would cost per hour to rent a similar aircraft on the field... $99/hr. wet (w/ fuel). Add $36/hr. for an instructor and the total for an hour of dual instruction comes to $135.
Posted by Paul @ 11:28 AM, May 08 Brady - A couple years ago, I decided to fly from Arlington (AWO) to Lynden (38W) by the Canadian border. Since I fly an open trike, I decided to be sneaky and enlarged the appropriate parts of my sectional and cut it into three parts to fit my kneeboard. When I stopped at Skagit Regional (BVS)for gas, I would take out #1 and replace it with #2 portion. Well, as I was gassing up, I was beset by a group of curious pilots who really thought my craft was cool. So, off I went toward Hwy 9 when I noticed I hadn't switched the sectional. Instead of going back, I figured I'd do it by 'memory' - I'd fly up the valley until a big cut out onto the Fraser River plain. But, when I got there, there were TWO cuts and a huge plain in front of me (half of which was Canada). The 'misplaced' feeling set in hard. I figured I could land at some field and ask the directions to Lynden if I had to. I had plenty of fuel to wander around for a while. Then I noticed a stock yard by a school and realized that I was near Everson, my wife's home town. Then, there should be a bridge across the Nooksak. Yep! And the hardware store, Yep! Then follow the river to Lynden where the airport would be just south of the golf course - Yeah, sorta. Could that be the airport? Looks like an asphalt sidewalk with #07 painted on the end.
Posted by Philip Wallace @ 01:39 PM, May 08 Hi Brady,I've been following along on your pilot training and want to congradulate you for setting up a video blog so that others can watch as you learn. Your video blog brings back many great memmories for me as I reflect back on my training to become a private pilot. The confidence that we gain along the way is incremental and with each hour of training that confidence grows. For me, the most rewarding part of learning to fly, are the friendships we gain along the way. From the very first day it was clear that every pilot or want to be pilot all share one thing in common, a love of airplanes. When people share common interests, friendships are easily made and we gain from each and everyone of them. I was very lucky when I first started out because the instructor I had was an old WWII fighter pilot and he had flown everything from L19's, the F4U Corsair, to the famous P51D Mustang. The first day we met was on the flight line. I watched as he and his student taxied back to the tie down and climbed out of a PT19 trainer. My first impression of him was one of exictment and I said to myself, this is to good to be true. I knew right then and there, at that moment, that we would become life long friends. My instructors name was Bruce "Pops" Pronk and he was a wonderful man with a passion for flying and of passing on that passion. Sadly, Pops passed away a few years ago and I felt this emptyness that I still feel today. We always stayed in touch and we used to get together for breakfast up at the "Prop Stop" resturant that was located on the airport where he tought me to fly. I could go on for days about the many great times I shared with Pops, and I would love to tell you more, but for now, lets just say goodby and God bless. It's because of the grace of God that we enjoy this wonderful thing we call, flight. Keep the rubber side down when landing and you'll get to do it again tomorrow. God bless you Brady. Regards,,,Philip Wallace
Posted by Bill @ 10:48 AM, May 09 Hi Brady - fantastic blog you have here. Keep up the good work!!In the UK we appear to place a greater emphasis on flying a pre-determined heading, calculating ETAs, ATAs and of course fixing our position with reference to VRPs along track rather than flying VRP to VRP. Do you create pre-flight PLOGs with planned true/magnetic headings, planned speeds, ETAs etc, that you take into the cockpit to aid you?I've done a couple of cross countries now and have found myself off track a handful of times. I tend to use the standard closing angle technique to get back on track:1. Establish distance off track e.g. 1.5nm2. Turn towards track by a standard closing angle of 40 deg for a 90kias aircraft (angle varies with different KIAS)3. Hold revised heading for the same number of minutes as you were miles off track e.g. 1.5 minutes for 1.5nm or 180 seconds for 3nm off track etc.4. Turn back onto original heading5. Adjust ETA by adding 1/3 of the time spent on the Standard Closing Angle (for a 90KIAS aircraft – again this differs with different KIAS).Hope to read more posts soon.Bill.
Posted by Doug @ 05:37 PM, May 10 Hi, Brady,When I take people flying I take my handheld GPFS along. When I get home I then download the track from the GPFS into the computer, print the track on a map, and give it to my passengers as a memento of the flight. The software I use does a 2-D track and it would be cool if I could give them the 3-D track like the one you included. Can you share with us how you created this? What software did you use?Doug
Posted by Brady Lane @ 09:34 PM, May 10 Using Google Earth, import your track then click “get info” on your path. Under the altitude tab, select “absolute.” If your GPS records altitude it will then display your altitude on the map as you climb and descend. Use the compass to tilt your view so you can see your path from an angle. Feel free to call me at the EAA office (1-800-JOIN-EAA) and I can try to walk you through it. I’m still learning new tricks with Google Earth, so if somebody else knows more, please chime in.
Posted by Terry @ 01:29 PM, May 11 Nice job, remember if you ever get "misplaced" again that water towers usually carry town names. Believe me, I know, had to use it once before I was IFR.
Posted by Doug @ 11:26 PM, May 11 Thanks, Brady! My gps is an old one so it make take some work to get the track into Google Earth. I'll need to spend some more time to try and make it work.
Posted by Mike Coates @ 11:28 AM, May 14 I got myself lost(misplaced) the first time I went off on my own after I soloed. I flew around until I finally spotted a landmark that I remembered while flying with the instructor and then realized what direction I needed to go to get back to the airport. I was extremely nervous until that moment. In my case it was a lake that I remember passing each time I drove to the airport and knew following the road near the lake would get me back.
Posted by Bob Blakeslee @ 03:55 PM, May 14 My first cross-country with my instructor was hectic to say the least. He insisted that I did it without GPS and one 35 mile leg was over swamp land - no land marks at all, no roads, no towers, no powerlines, no lakes, nothing but trees and wetlands. To make it worse, he sat there frowning not saying anything - no help at all. I took off, figured I use the sun, found my plane's shadow on the ground and estimated what angle I had to fly in relation to that shadow in order to fly a SW heading. It was very disconcerting to be flying in a direction not knowing if you are right and always running in the back of your mind, "How much fuel do I have left"? Flying in a Quicksilver at 45mph, it was about 50 minutes of worry. When I finaly saw the town and approaching airport I was only a couple miles off. Although I never wanted to do that again, the experence paid off when I was flying solo and my GPS died, I had to fly pilotage and it was no big deal at that point.
Posted by Philip Wallace @ 11:44 PM, June 11 Hi Brady,I really enjoy reading your blog and it reminds me of when i first started flying. I learned to fly in a Cessna 172 and soloed in 13 hours. I was real lucky and just by chance I found and bought a 1963 Piper Colt which is a two seater similar to the Tri Pacer but without flaps. The plane hadn't been flown in about a year and the guy that was selling it was moving his family to California and needed to sell it. The thing is thou, I wasn't even thinking of buying a plane because I figured I'd never be able to afford one. I was looking thru the local Want-Adds for a metal cutting band saw for the RV-4 I was going to build. The RV-4 is one of Vans Aircraft's earlier models of kit airplanes and I had the bug to build one. That's a whole other story for another time so I'll get back to the Colt story for now. After flipping the pages of the Want-Add and not finding what I was looking for I noticed there was a section with listings for airplanes. So just for giggles I started looking over the listings and low and behold there was this 1963 Piper Colt that had just been listed in this weeks new Want-Add. The asking price wasn't in the add so I gave the guy a call and we talked for a little while and I got the low down on the plane and why he was selling. So after about 15 minutes of talking I asked for his asking price. I was kind of shocked when he said six thousand dollars because either the plane was a wreak or it needed a complete airframe and engine overhaul. Six grand was cheap and he said it would come with a fresh annual if I wanted to pay cash. Well to make a long story short, I made arrangments to meet him at the airport on Saturday morning and was real excited to have a look at it. It was Thursday when we first spoke so two days seemed like forever and I couldn't wait to see it. So that night I made the drive to the airport and also figured I could get a look at it before he had a chance to do any work/cleaning up on it and that way I'd have a better idea of how he cared for it. So on Thursday night I made the drive to the airport and after looking around for a while I finally found it. It had been sitting behind a hanger and the wheels were burried in the sand to a depth of about 4 or 5 inches and the tires were just about flat. My first impression was that it probably needed a lot of work but as I looked it over it really didn't seem that bad. I opened the cowling and pulled the dip stick to find the oil was nice and clean and the engine was clean to. No oil stains or wet areas to be found and the only real thing I could see was that it needed a paint job. It was getting dark and I thought I had sniffed around enough for now so it was time to split. On my drive home I wanted to call the owner because I had a ton of questions and my interest was really peaking by now. So I had to tell myself to chill out and just wait until Saturday. It seemed like forever for Saturday to come around and when it finally did I was up with the birds and made the drive for the second time to the airport.When I got there he had the plane in a different spot from where I had first seen it. He had pumped up the tires and he had the battery on a charger. We finally met in person and after shaking hands we started talking about the plane and he told me that it had been about 6 months since he last flew it and that the tires needed to be pumped up because it had been sitting behind the hanger since his last flight. I liked that he came out and told me what I already knew about the tires and since he didn't seem like he was trying to hide anything I felt that I could trust him to be honest. As we talked and poked over the plane he gave me a history lesson of what he knew about it. Turns out he had owned it for about 7 years and flew if regularly and showed me the log books with all the maintenance records for the airframe and engine. Turns out the plane still had a current annual that had about 3 or 4 months to go before it was due but told me he would pay to have a fresh annual if I was to pay cash within the next couple of days.Well after thinking it over I finally got the courage to make an offer. I offered 5 thousand cash and had half right now and would be back with the rest once the annual inspection was completed. We haggeled over price for a little while and finally setteled on $5300.00. I had just bought my first airplane. What a week. I never thought that on Monday morning I would own an airplane by Saturday and was so excited that I called my flight insturctor to let him know. He was just as suprized as I was.I got a call from the owner a couple of days latter and he told me the annual would be done by next Saturday. What perfect timing. I made the necessary arrangements to have my next flight lesson so that we could fly out to the airport with my flight instructor and another pilot so that me and my flight instructor could fly the Colt back to our base. Everything worked out great, and when we got there I made my final payment and he signed over the Colt to me, but there was one little problem. The brakes didn't work. I was really bummed out and thought it would take at least another week or so until the brakes could be fixed and I could actually take owenership of the plane. Well my flight instructor stepped in and told me that we didn't really need the brakes for landing back at out home airport because there was a long grass strip that we could land on and it was plenty long enough to slow us down so if i didn't want to wait I could fly it home today. For the inconvienence the seller offered to fill the tanks and I figured what the heck,,lets go for it. The return flight was awesome and I couldn't believe I had just bought an airplane. Upon landing at Norwood my instructor took control and landed on the grass and just like he promised we slowed down with plenty of room to spare. We taxied to my new tie down spot and I was now the proud owner of a 1963 Piper Colt, otherwise known as the flying milk stool because of the way it looks. I had the brakes fixed within a few days and after a little instruction in the Colt, I was now signed off and could fly solo. So within two weeks I had soloed two different planes and was feeling pretty good about myself. I could go on and on and tell you plenty of stories of all the great times I had with the Colt but surfice it to say, over the next six years of owning the Colt I had gained over 500 hours PIC time and flew to so many places and met so many fantastic people. I think pilots are some of the finest people you'll ever meet and I never met one that I didn't like. I didn't have the coolest plane in the fleet but even the guy's that flew corprate jets became friends of mine. We all shared the same love of flying and it never mattered what one or the other flew, it was always about planes and the hanger talk was just as good as flying on a clear summers day. Keep up the good work Brady,,I look forward to your next installment. Best regards,,,Phil
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