Merry Christmas!
Seasons greetings with a bit of (harsh) pilots humor.
To be continued…in 2012!
(originally posted on December 25, 2011 by tilbo at aloft.blog.com/merry-christmas/)
Instrument flying
Visibility: right around 1.5 kilometers
Temperature: 11°C
QNH: 1014hPa
Location: EDAY
Equipment: Cessna 150 (D-EALX)
It is a miserable day with visibilities so close to the VFR minimums, that only the fact that it is Saturday is getting aircraft in the air. I arrive at the flight school and we start our morning with an extended theory lesson.
Around mid morning we go out to fly a few patterns to see if the visibility has improved. It has not. In the down wind leg we are just about able to see the runway.
Back in the briefing room, we continue theory of radio navigation. Today I am introduced to the concept of the VOR (VHF Omnidirectional Radio). This is a network of ground based radio stations. Their signal can be picked up by the VOR receiver in the aircraft which displays the relative position of the aircraft to the station.
We go through the theory. Then we simulate a trip on the computer. After that the flight instructor looks out of the window. The fog has not lifted. “Today would be a great day to get some real life experience” he says refering to the poor visibility. I’m game.
Our half hour trip will be a triangle to the south. My job will be to follow VOR and compass and to fly the aircraft without looking out of the window (there is not much to see out there anyway). The job of the flight instructor is to tell me the new headings at the way points.
We are departing to the south, following the VOR receiver in the cockpit to a close by VOR station. I hold the course and maintain the correct altitude. Maintaining the correct attitude with the artificial horizon is something new to me. It requires a lot of my concentration.
We use the VOR station as our first turning point and change the course to the north east. Again we follow its signal, this time to guide us away from the sender.
The next turning point, which will bring us on a western course back to the airport, is more complicated to find. We calculated the time after which we should get there and we know the heading for the last leg of the trip back home. As we are getting closer to the turning point, we start calling in to the airport to get our bearing.
At about 30 degrees south of the final bearing, I begin a left bank onto the new course. I peek out of the side window. Beneath the clouds and the fog I see something dark which may or may not be the lake that markes our way point.
We keep confirming the heading to the airport and before long, we see our home field through the mist. This was great training. I’m sure I will be tired tonight!
To be continued…
(originally posted on November 10, 2011 by tilbo at aloft.blog.com/instrument-flying/)
roger, Roger!
Just back form a morning of radio training. My head hurts from reading back winds and headings and from avoiding traps like not requesting clearances to cross over virtual runways.
This is gonna be fun when combined with some flying!
To be continued…
(originally posted on November 2, 2011 by tilbo at aloft.blog.com/roger-roger/)
D-EALX
Visibility: less than 5 kilometers
Temperature: 10°C
QNH: 1014hPa
Location: EDAY
Equipment: Cessna 150 (D-EALX)
I have an appointment at a different flight school in EDAY today to sign up for the PPL, the Private Pilots License. It is the next step from my Sports Pilots License.
The new flight school is in the tower building. A friendly office manager welcomes me to a tidy room with large windows. We go through the details and start the paper work.
Next door, a flight instructor is preparing a check ride with another student. It is a rainy day with a low cloud ceiling. The weather is around minimums and they are debating weather or not to cancel the check ride.
New part of the airport
I have been flying in EDAY for a little over a year but I had not been to the round hangar at the far end of the airport. This is where the Cessnas of the new flight school are living.
Meet Lima X-Ray
My new ship is going to be Lima X-Ray, a Cessna 150 that is older than me. She has the look and feel of an old-timer but I know that her logs are up to date and that she is absolutely airworthy. The aircraft is larger and heavier that the light sports aircraft I had been flying so far, but the cabin is surprisingly narrow. We pre-flight the aircraft and I get my first hands-on experience with a certified aircraft. I read the flight manual of the C150 last week. That helps me now.
We taxi to the runway. The fight instructor operates the radio and I concentrate on steering. On the runway I slowly push the throttle forward. The Rolls Royce engine has a reassuringly deep vibrato. At 60 mph I start taking weight of the front wheel. At 80 mph I carefully lift Lima X-Ray off the runway, ease back on the joke to let her pick up speed close to the ground before I pull her up gently at 90 mph. So far so good.
We climb out of the pattern and break through a layer of scattered clouds at about twelve hundred feet. I know the area but I quickly loose my orientation with the poor visibility and my concentration on the new aircraft. The instructor keeps track of were we are while I do full circles to get a feeling for the handling of the aircraft.
Back in the pattern we do an approach. I am in charge of steering and holding the correct speed. The instructor takes care of the power settings and the flaps. I am pleasantly surprised how stable the glide path is and how easily Lima X-Ray comes down onto the runway. It is a calm day, that certainly helps. On the next round the instructor adds the flaps to my responsibilities and from the third touch-and-go on, I also set the power. I’m officially flying the little Cessna now.
The fifth landing is our last one for the day and we taxi back to the hangar. I’m enthusiastic. Not surprising, I guess…
To be continued…
(originally posted on October 27, 2011 by tilbo at aloft.blog.com/d-ealx/)
RE: Bird strike
The repair work on the “Wild Thing” has started. The engine and the wind screen have been taken off and the aircraft looks rather sad like that.
I am looking forward to finishing the tail wheel endorsement next spring!
To be continued…
(originally posted on October 18, 2011 by tilbo at aloft.blog.com/re-bird-strike/)
Work-Fly-Balance
Visibility: almost unlimited
Temperature: 12°C
QNH: 1034hPa (very high pressure)
Location: EDAY
Equipment: MD3 Rider (D-MALJ)
I am very busy at work right now. I am a new father and I am getting a private pilots license (PPL). My good friend asks me how I do it. I say that flying is the reason I can do it!
I am very flexible at work which means that I am working all the time. Work and private life overlap a lot. I have a work computer and a work phone at home and I answer emails at night. This is my own choice and I am not stressed about the situation as work is my own company and I love what I do.
However, a hobby is good for me. I used to fill idle time with work as I can always find something to do. Now I have an airplane magazine in my pocket and the PPL theory training program on my computer. When I go to the airport, I switch off the mighty iPhone. I can not check email and I can not be reached.
The aircraft demands my full attention and I enjoy focusing on something not work related. It relaxes me and I am energized and in a good mood for the rest of the day.
To be continued…
(originally posted on October 14, 2011 by tilbo at aloft.blog.com/work-fly-balance/)
Bird strike
A bird brought down my beloved “Wild Thing” and brings my tail wheel endorsement to a sudden halt! Fortunately nobody was hurt – except for the bird, that is…
The pilot, who flew the plane, is a flight instructor with a lot of experience on the “Wild Thing”. He could land it safely on a field.
Unfortunately the aircraft was damaged quite severely. Until it is repaired, I will not be able to finish the training on the tail dragger.
To be continued…
(originally posted on October 6, 2011 by tilbo at aloft.blog.com/bird-strike/)
Licence talk
Visibility: about 10 metres
Temperature: 21°C
QNH: undetermined
Location: my desk
Equipment: the trusted Mac
I was at the airport yesterday and talked to two of the other flight schools about a “Private Pilote Licence” (PPL).
I have a “Sports Pilots Licence” (SPL) right now. It lets me fly “ultra light” aircraft with a maximum take-off weight of 475,5 kg. I can fly VFR (visual flight rule) in the day time in Germany and a number of neighboring countries, that Germany has mutual agreements with.
From my SPL I can trasition to a PPL-N, the national version of the private pilot licence. That will let me fly single engine piston aircraft with two seats and a maximum take-off weight of 750 kg. I can fly VFR in the day time in Germany only.
SPL vs PPL
Ultra lights have come a very long way from the “lawn chairs with wings” that they used to be. Modern ultra lights like my trusted “Rider” or the “Wild Thing” are quite capable and very economic. They are fun to fly and range from very simple fun flyers to high tech flying machines. Modern ultra lights can exheed 150 knots cruise speed with retractable gears and adjustable pitch propellers.
In the PPL world, the development is much slower. The reason for that is the very different certification process. It makes the equipment much more expensive which means it is also more expensive to get the PPL and later charter aircraft.
So why do it?
The PPL-N has no big advantage over the SPL in itself. But it does open the door to a whole new range of options which are not available in the ultra light class.
The most obvious change is weight restriction: While I start in a similar weight class, I can get a two ton rating which will allow me to fly larger aircraft. Single engine aircraft with up to two tons covers most of the market. So I will be able to charter airplanes with four or six seats.
I can get extra ratings which will expand possibilities and safety like a rating for night flight, for controlled visual flight and even a rating for instrument flight (IFR).
And some day, in the distant future, I can get the international version of the PPL which will let me charter aircraft all over the world.
So after I have the tail wheel endorsement (which should be soon), I will go back to “ground school” for the PPL theory. Stay tuned for more licence talk!
To be continued…
(originally posted on October 3, 2011 by tilbo at aloft.blog.com/licence-talk/)
RE: when in doubt, don’t!
It was the exhaust manifold!
It was cracked, hence the sound. This may or may not have been a safety issue – but it is a good feeling that I did not imagine the rough sound.
To be continued…
(originally posted on September 21, 2011 by tilbo at aloft.blog.com/re-when-in-doubt-dont/)
when in doubt, don’t!
Visibility: about 50 km
Temperature: 23°C
QNH: 1011hPa
Location: EDAY
Equipment: MD3 Rider (D-MASL)
It is a fair deal: My friend with his American death missile (I borrowed that term from Captain Dave) uses it to shoot us to the airport and I take over from there. The day is nice and the airport is busy.
I pre-flight the trusted “Rider” and he snaps the first pictures. I feel great! We get aboard and I run the engine start check list. All is clear, the starter cranks but the engine does not start. Strange. I try again, nothing.
The Rotax engine usually starts up right away with a very characteristic “bang”. The airplanes of the flight school are used often and are very well maintained. They have two good technicians.
After another one or two attempts, the engine finally come sputtering to life. It runs lousy, though. I decide to keep it running for a bit to see if it was just flooded. And sure enough after a few moments it runs almost normal. Temperature and oil pressure are good but is there a funny sound? I am not sure.
I check in with the tower and the friendly voice on the air asks me if I think my engine sounds funny. That does it for me, we are staying on the ground today.
We are sitting on the terrace of the airport restaurant having a beer instead of a pleasure flight. As we watch everybody else take off, I think that it is not easy to actually cancel a flight when in doubt.
To be continued…
(originally posted on September 10, 2011 by tilbo at aloft.blog.com/when-in-doubt-dont/)