I'm a Wingnut now!

I went to KFCI to attend my second Wingnuts flying club meeting at 7 pm. Luckily, enough members showed up to form a quorum. I had to tell my story again. Every one agreed to take me in as a member. At the end of the meeting, submitted all the paperwork and the check to Joe, the treasurer. I am now 1/66th owner of four airplanes! One of the Wingnuts, Tim, volunteered to sponsor me. We are going to discuss further on Friday over lunch. I am yet to get the keys for planes, hangars and the gate card. I also need to find a CFI now to check me out on club's Cessnas before I can start flying on my own.

Pictures Posted

I finally got a chance to post the pictures. I misplaced my bluetooth dongle hence the delay. Luckily, Jeff helped me transfer the photos from my phone to his Droid and then to the PC. Enjoy them. Also, I hoped to become Wingnuts flying club member two weeks ago. I went prepared to the flying club's meeting on 4/20/2010. But, as per their bylaws, I have to attend at least two meetings before I can become a member. They meet every 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month at KFCI. Hopefully tomorrow, there will be enough members show up to form a quorum and let me become a member. I can't wait to get back in the air!

Trip back Home

I checked out of my room at 11 am and Bill and his wife, Emily picked me up to drop me at Orlando airport. Emily manufactures personal care products all by herself and sells them on her website. Very impressive! I was going to take them out for lunch but, there was a lot of traffic on the way to Orlando. We didn't have time for lunch.

Luckily there were no lines. After checking in and clearing security I still had an hour. After we boarded the plane to Atlanta, they kept us in the plane waiting for the weather to improve at Atlanta. After a while, they gave up and asked every one deplane. We started again two hours late. These clouds must have caused the delay.

As soon as we landed in Atlanta there was a plane ready to depart for Richmond. I could have taken it but, the luggage wouldn't have come with me. So, I decided to stick to the original schedule. It's good to be back home.

I will continue the blog once I start flying here. I need to join a flying club first. Thanks to every one who supported me in this endeavor especially my family, friends and colleagues. I hope you also learned a little about aviation along the way!

Flight# 57 - I'm a Private Pilot now!

Bill and I arrived early at the airport and kept the plane ready when Chuck walked in around 8 am. He just made me do three take offs and landings (normal, softfield and normal w/o flaps), I made them reasonably good and he was satisfied. His advice was don't jam the landings and fly first and communicate later. Wise words! Bill and I went back to Chuck's place to complete the paperwork. Chuck gave me a temporary license and FAA will mail permanent one shortly. At last, the hard work has paid off!

Below is my memorabilia from my solo flight! Checkout the comments from other CFIs and fellow students in English, Spanish, French and German!!

Flight Details - Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Flight# 56:
As a final preparation for tomorrow morning's retake check ride, we practiced normal, short field take offs & landings and emergency procedures. The problem was I was coming in way too fast and was not paying attention to airspeed. Bill made me do wide patterns and that helped. It was way past 8 pm by the time we returned. We also simulated a couple engine failures.

These pictures are taken during this flight. On left is, my instructor, Bill with his headset on. Look at the beautiful sunset on the right!

The time of this flight was 1.0 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 65.1 hours.

Flight# 55:

Bill was taking Karl under wing to help him regain his confidence in landings. They took the plane for quite some time. As soon as they returned, I went to practice more landings around the pattern on my own. 

The time of this flight was 0.7 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 64.1 hours.

Flight# 54:

Bill and I stayed in the pattern and practiced short field, normal and cross wind landings.

The time of this flight was 1.4 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 63.4 hours.

Flight# 53 - Checkride:

Bill walked me through the IACRA registration process. We went through all the hours recorded in the log book in detail to fill up the application. He then drove me to the seaplane base nearby for oral which is owned by the  examiner, Chuck. He also happens to be Jimmy Buffett's pilot! The Oral was easy. Chuck and I then headed back to the airport for practical exam. Just like Fred, he also asked me to take him to Lake Wales. He asked me to land there which I never did before! I managed to get in the pattern and land there. Performed a soft field take off and landing and a short fied take off. But, while getting on final for short field landnig, a tail dragger cut me in the pattern and landed on the runway without any announcement! I was hoping it would get on the taxiway by the time I land. I should have gone around instead. That wasn't a good decision on my part. Chuck also took me to Bok tower and made me do circles around it, then S-turns, steep turns followed by power off and stalls (straight up, while turning left and while turning right), power on stall, turns in slow flight and recovering from unusual attitudes. It was bumpy due to thermals. On the way back to the airport, he also simulated an engine failure. I followed all the procedures but, he didn't like the area I picked to land. I also messed up the landing at GIF. He was fair and discussed with Bill and I on how I performed and asked us to practice more landings and gave a chance to retake the landing portion of the test again in the morning. I thought I could go home today. I guess not!

The time of this flight was 1.2 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 62.0 hours.

Flight Details - Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Flight# 52:
As a final preparation for tomorrow morning's check ride, I got to practice with Bill pretty much all the maneuvers again. I also had to work on planning the trip to West Palm Beach (KPBI) for the examiner after the flight. This included filling up the Navigation log with True course, magnetic headings, check points along the way, weight and balance data to ensure Center of Gravity is within the limits, Determine runway lengths and communication frequencies along the way.

The time of this flight was 1.9 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 60.8 hours.

Flight# 51:

I went to the practice area to practice steep turns on my own. It was little scary doing these maneuvers all by myself. 

The time of this flight was 1.0 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 58.9 hours.

Flight# 50: 

Since I didn't do well on the steep turns with Fred, Bill and I headed to the practice area and practiced until I got them right.

The time of this flight was 0.9 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 57.9 hours.

Flight Details - Monday, April 5, 2010

This week was very hectic due to preparations for the check ride. I'm catching up on my blog now.

Flight# 49:

Bill and I went to the practice area again, to practice slow flights, stalls and steep turns under the hood. If I remember correct, during this flight, Bill flew us through a fluff cloud. Then I saw an amazing thing. Our plane's shadow on the cloud surrounded by a perfect circular rainbow! I wish I had the camera ready to take a picture of that. I didn't know what it is called at that time but, after researching I learn now that it is called a Glory! It was so beautiful. It lasted only a few seconds.

The time of this flight was 1.3 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 57.0 hours.

Flight# 48: - Final Stage Check

Bill set me up with Fred for the final stage check. I'm suppose to plan a trip to Sebring. Bill never took me to any of the airports to the south of Winter Haven! I quickly printed the flight plans from fltplan.com. We took off and headed towards Lake Wales airport which is the first check point on the way to Sebring. Since I never been to these areas, I struggled little to find the airport. Comparing the landmarks on the sectional map, I expected the airport to be right after a road but, it wasn't there! I started getting little nervous. I went little further south and before I knew it, we were over the Lake Wales (KX07) airport. Whew, what a relief! Fred pulled the power on me. I followed the emergency procedures successfully and when I was about to land, he asked me to give full power and go to the nearby Bok Tower to make circles around it. This followed by S-Turns along a road. He also made me do stalls and steep turns while under the hood. I lost a lot of altitude while doing steep turns. That wasn't good. I haven't done these in a while and already lost touch! I also, didn't stay at 1000 ft while in the pattern for landing. After we landed at KGIF, he signed my logbook and asked Bill to work with me on Steep turns. 

The time of this flight was 1.1 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 55.7 hours.

Flight# 47:

Since I never had any solo time on this aircraft, I took it up around the pattern to practice take offs and landings.

The time of this flight was 0.8 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 54.6 hours.

Flight# 46:

With N4655X out of service, I had no other choice but to use a different aircraft. Since Cessna 152 is very similar to Cessna 150, we went with N6490L. I flew in this aircraft nearly two weeks ago, only an hour!  Working with a different aircraft, two days before the practical exam is not a good thing but what else can we do? In preparation for the final stage check, Bill made me practice all the maneuvers like turns in slow flight, power on, power off stalls / recoveries, and steep turns. By the way. the Hobbs meter doesn't work in this plane. So, we had to note the time from engine start to shut off.

The time of this flight was 1.3 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 53.8 hours.

Flight# 45

After my cross country trip, another student flew my plane and wrecked the nose gear while landing. So, I have to use a different plane for my check ride on Tuesday! Just to finish off the remaining two night landings, we went up in a Piper Warrior N121DL. It's a low wing, heavy plane with powerful engine. It has an entirely different feel from Cessna 150. It is more like a luxury car with low engine noise. Had I started my training in this plane, I might have liked it. It felt as if the plane doesn't have a soul. I will probably stick with Cessnas. I made three landings.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.9 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 52.5 hours.

Flight# 44 - Long Solo Cross Country

Finally the radar showed that fog had cleared up along the route. So, I started on my long cross country trip (KGIF - KOCF - KGNV - KGIF) around 11:00 am.This trip is around 240 miles. Since I already traveled this route with Bill before, there was nothing to it. It was lunch time by the time I landed at Ocala. Taxied to the FBO thinking that I could eat lunch at the restaurant. But, it was closed because of Easter. Taxied back to the runway and took off for Gainesville. Tune the Nav radio to Gators VOR frequency and center the needle and it tells you which direction to head to. It is that easy. Tower cleared me for Runway 25. Taxied to the GA ramp and got it refueled and headed back to Winter Haven.

It was a good thing I requested Flight following on the way back. I initially planned on traveling at 5,500 ft but, beyond 4,500 ft it was very hazy. So, I asked the controller if I could descend to 3,500 ft. While doing that, she advised about another plane at 12 O' clock at 4,600 ft. I was at 4,100 ft at that time. I may not have noticed it if not for the controller. Whew!

Because I was traveling at 3,500 ft, the ride was bumpy all the way back. There was also a lot of cross wind. I had to crab 15 degrees to the left to go the desired heading due to the easterly wind. I landed safely back on Runway 5 around 3:45 pm.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 3.2 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 51.6 hours.

Flight# 43

I still need two night landings to meet the requirements. Bill had asked me to show up at the airport by 5:45 am so that we can get this done. But, when we arrived at the airport, fog started rolling in. So, we decided to get them done tonight. I am also suppose to go on a long cross country trip today. I had to wait until fog cleared up all the way along the route. As soon as the fog at Winter Haven cleared up, I went up to practice soft field and short field take offs and landings.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.8 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 48.4 hours.

Flight# 42

As part of the 10 hour solo requirement, I have to perform 3 take offs and landings to a full stop at a towered airport. To meet this requirement and to work on my communication with air traffic controllers, we headed to the near by towered airport, Lakeland (KLAL). I did all the planning and communication. After reaching there, dropped Bill at the FBO and talked to ground and control tower to make three take offs and landings.

The ground controller had asked me to taxi via Taxiways Bravo and Alpha to Runway 9. I didn't notice the sign for Taxiway Alpha and was going straight to another runway. Oops! The controller must have been watching me with binoculars. He asked me to make a hard stop at the hold short line and make a tight turn to get back on to Taxiway Alpha. I was glad to tell him upfront that I'm a student pilot. Otherwise I would have been in trouble. Luckily they were not busy today. After my third landing, taxied back to the FBO to pick up Bill and we headed back to Winter Haven. We actually planned on going to Lake Wales (KX07) and then to Winter Haven but, we had to cut short our trip since some one else reserved the plane at 5 pm.

Last night one more student, Fabrizio, from Italy joined us. The first five days of my stay here, I was all alone. Now the house is full. More than half the students here are from Europe! They come here to build time as the plane rentals are very expensive in Europe. By the way, Karl had his first solo flight. He already had 40 hours of flight time in Europe. That must have helped him to solo little faster.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.5 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 47.6 hours.

Flight# 41

I went up with Bill on this flight to fine tune my Soft field, Short field take offs & landings and emergency landings staying in the pattern. After doing a couple of these, we went to the practice area to practice slow flights, do some hood time, rotate around a point and simulate engine failures. Bill also introduced me to S turns on this flight. I have stopped taking Meclizine for the past few days. Looks like my body is now used to the movement in 3-D environment.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.7 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 46.1 hours.

Flight# 40

I practiced take offs and landings (Normal, Soft field, Short field) staying in the pattern.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.8 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 44.4 hours.

Flight# 39 - My First Solo Cross Country

It was very stressful yesterday. I was still reeling from it this morning. So I took my time to head to the airport and prepare for the cross country trip without Bill sitting next to me. I made a call to 1-800-WX-BRIEF to get the standard briefing about the whether and airspace restrictions along the route (GIF to OCF). It seems there is going to be parachute activity near Ocala! Since I already went on this trip with Bill twice so far, once during night a few days ago and once yesterday during the day time, it shouldn't be that difficult to fly there alone and come back. I identified a few landmarks on the Sectional chart along the route and filled in the Navigation log. Bill signed me off for the solo trip in my log book and on the student pilot certificate.

I might have been feeling nervous unknown to me because, I tried to start the engine without going through the start checklist first! The engine won't start because the mixture was set to lean! One of the mechanics, Liz,  came by and told me to set the mixture to rich. It was embarrassing to say the least. I also taxied with flaps on! I caught that at the Run up. Any way, the trip was exciting without any complications. I really enjoyed looking at land marks while flying to make sure I was on course. I originally thought of traveling at 4,500 ft but, it was foggy beyond 3,500 ft. So, pretty much I stayed at 3,000 ft for the whole trip. My magnetic heading calculations were based on winds aloft between 3,000 to 6,000 ft. So, on the way to Ocala, I was slightly right of the intended route as there was no wind below 3,000 ft.

After reaching Ocala, I had to go around to make a 2nd attempt at landing as the base to final turn was too tight and over shot the runway on the 1st attempt. The lineman directed me to the parking area. I had lunch at the airport's restaurant before heading back to Winter Haven.

There is a horse statue in the Landmark Aviation's lobby. Notice the horse heads on the body of the horse! There is a jet outside being serviced. I took off right behind it. This town must be having a horse track. Look at the jockeys lined up on both sides of the path way. Bottom left is Landmark Aviation's entrance. The restaurant is inside this building. The bottom right picture shows the 4655X on the ramp. The Qantas airplane still there!

Next time, I need to remember not to pick Transmission lines as landmarks. I couldn't locate them on this trip even though I saw them yesterday! Even though I used dead reckoning, I also used Ocala and Orlando VOR radials to confirm I stayed on course. The picture on the left is of the VOR at Ocala. The trip back was little bumpy as there were lot of thermals. I encountered a few gliders along the way near Leesburg. I recorded this trip on GPS. It can be replayed in Google Earth by downloading this file.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 2.3 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 43.6 hours.

Flight# 38

Finally the weather improved at Ocala (KOCF) and Gainesville (KGNV). So, we took off around 11 am to Ocala first, flying at 4,500 ft identifying different landmarks and used dead reckoning to ensure we stay on course. Ocala is 80 miles away. We landed and parked the plane on ramp and walked over to the restaurant at the airport to have lunch. It took us close to an hour to get here. They built a new control tower at this airport but is not operational yet. I was surprised to see a Qantas airways plane on the ramp of this small international airport! The picture on the right is of planes parked on Ocala's ramp.

We headed north to Gainesville after lunch which is around 35 miles away and is a towered airport. We flew at an altitude of 3,500 ft. We tuned to the ATIS frequency first to get weather information. I then had to contact control tower to give them our position 10 miles out and say we are inbound for landing. The controller asked me to talk slowly but when he rattled off instructions it was very fast and I couldn't keep up to acknowledge! Bill had to pitch in now and then. Around 2 miles out, he cleared us to land and provided taxi instructions to the FBO area. Just like in big airports, our small plane was directed by a lineman to the tie down area! We took a break while they fueled the plane.

I had to contact Gainesville ground on our departure to get taxi instructions and request for flight following. On the way to the runway, went through the Run up checklist and taxied to the Approach threshold as directed. Ground controller came back on radio and asked us to contact Jacksonville departure at certain frequency once in the air and gave us a squawk code. I then contacted tower indicating that we are ready to take off. He cleared us to Runway 11 for take off. I had to cross Runway 7 to get onto Runway 11 and headed south to Lakeland (KLAL).

Once in the air, contacted Jacksonville informing them that we will climbing to 5,500 ft. He acknowledged us and told us to let him know if we deviate from that altitude. After a while he passed us on to some other controller by giving us another frequency. At the same time, Bill also put me under the hood to fly the plane by looking only at the instruments. Keeping track of all the chatter on the radio made my head spin. Trimmed the airplane after reaching 5,500 ft so that it can fly by itself. We then used Ocala and Lakeland VOR radials to take us all the way to Lakeland. KGNV to KLAL is about 120 miles. Bill purposely stressed me out on this flight by keeping me busy all the time. I could hardly enjoy the sights outside. After a while, we got transferred to Tampa approach.

Prior to reaching KLAL, got permission from the controller to switch the frequency to ATIS for KLAL. Close to KLAL, controller asked us to contact KLAL tower. I called the Lakeland tower and he asked us to contact again 2 miles out. He then cleared us to land. After we landed and crossed the runway threshold, contacted Ground for taxi instructions to FBO. He told us that we may not be able to park there since there is a Delta airways plane in that area. We then told him that we changed our mind and would like head back to Winterhaven. He cleared us to A3 taxiway. Contacted tower again and he cleared us to take off from Runway 9.

On the way to Winter Haven which is only 15 miles away, Bill created an emergency situation by closing the throttle when we are at 2000 ft. I quickly established best glide speed by pulling the nose up and identified a site to land and flew close to it while reciting the emergency procedures. Tuned to the Winter Haven's AWOS frequency 5-6 miles away from the airport and since there is only 3 kts wind speed, decided to land on Runway 5. Positioned my self for a 45 entry to the downwind and landed very smoothly.

This trip was very tiring. I was completely drained at the end of the day. This is like a military boot camp. I am beginning to wonder why am I putting my self through this!

If weather permits, I'm going to go all by myself to Ocala (KOCF) and come back to Winter Haven tomorrow. It is looking very bleak that I can take the check ride on Saturday. There is still some dual training left and I have to do 5 hours of cross country and a few more hours of solo time. Bill thinks we can shoot for the check ride on Monday!

By the way, we have a new house mate who is also starting the accelerated flight training tomorrow. His wife will be joining him tomorrow for the same! Both are physician assistants working for Coast guard soon to be transferred to Hawaii.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 4.1 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 41.3 hours.

Flight# 37

The weather at Ocala and Gainesville is yet to improve for a VFR flight. So, I went solo in the pattern to practice more landings.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.5 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 37.2 hours.

Flight# 36

We planned for a Dual cross country at 7 am today but, the weather at the destination airports didn't cooperate. There was fog at both Ocala and Gainesville. So, we postponed that until weather cleared up. Mean while, Bill and I flew in the pattern to practice short field take offs and landings. As far as landings are concerned, I am way better now.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.7 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 36.7 hours.

Flight# 35 - Second Solo flight

Some one else reserved N4655X from 4 - 7  pm. The other Cessna, N5307Q was available around 4:30 pm. But, I didn't want to keep switching planes because every plane is different. It helps to maintain consistency,  if I continuously fly in the same plane. Since the other instructor's student hasn't showed up yet, Bill talked to him so that I could take N4655X around the pattern. Every landing is different! My second landing was very good. Bill radioed me to come back since the other student showed up. So, I had to head back to the flight school. According to the flight log book, I have 121 landings under my belt in the last 12 days. I didn't realize that we did that many landings!

We can have N4655X to ourselves all day tomorrow. So, Bill said we can do the day cross countries. We are going to go to Ocala and then fly to Gainesville and back to Winter Haven. If I do well, Bill will sign me off to do a solo cross country tomorrow itself. I would then need to fly to Ocala and back all by myself! I'm looking forward to it.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.4 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 36.0 hours.

Flight# 34 - First Solo Flight!

Bill had asked me to perform only two take offs and landings and come back to where I dropped him off earlier. I taxied off to Runway 5 and went through the run up checklist. There are only 2-3 other flights in the pattern. I positioned behind a plane that just landed pushed the throttle as soon as it cleared the runway. The plane climbed spiritedly without Bill sitting next to me reaching 1000 ft before I even turn downwind. I announced my position on each leg of the pattern identifying myself as a student pilot. Bill was listening on his transceiver and watching my landings.

The first one around the pattern was a perfect rectangular pattern and the landing was not perfect but good. Bill congratulated me over the radio. I greased the landing on the second one even though base to final turn was not rectangular. I taxied back to the flight school and Bill was waiting with a scissors. He cut my T-shirt on the back. This is a tradition that dates back to the time when pilots were trained in tandem planes. We also took some pictures.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.4 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 35.6 hours. Below are the photos taken right after my first solo:

Flight# 33

Bill had asked me to bring my flight logbook on this flight. If I show him three good landings, he is going to let me solo, which I did. He also pulled the power while on downwind. I was able to immediately turn towards the runway and land with full flaps. He then asked me to drop him off at the flight school area and sent me on my first solo flight!

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.5 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 35.2 hours.

Flight# 32 - Pre Solo Stage Check

Even though I went with John yesterday for presolo stage check, Bill wanted Fred, the chief flight instructor, to do the stage check. By this time, N4655X came back on line.

So, I went ahead and did the preflight inspection and Fred joined me shortly there after. He asked me to depart the runway to the north. After reaching 2000 ft, he had asked me to get into slow flight configuration, perform turns, stall while turning and perform power on stall, stall recovery and 360 degree turns. We then headed back to the airport to do some take offs and landings. I greased a few landings. He was impressed but, I wasn't consistent all the time. He showed me how to control the flare while touching down. I even managed a smooth landing in cross wind! He signed off my logbook with satisfactory presolo stage check.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.0 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 34.7 hours.

Flight# 31

Since N4655X is back in the shop, we topped of the tanks for N5307Q ourselves in preparation for the early morning flight. We stayed in the pattern and practiced soft field take offs, short field landings and normal take off landings.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.0 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 33.7 hours.

Flight# 30

I had little sleep last night as I was working on the Pre solo written exam. So, took a nap in the after noon and went back to the flight school for the 5 pm flight. Aircraft unavailability is becoming a big issue. Benjamin was very upset today, as he was hardly getting any flight time. Four students end up having to share one aircraft. As a result of this and the few days we lost to bad weather, I may need to extend my stay here a day or two. I am pushing Bill to finish it up by Saturday.

The maintenance guys put N4655X back online for use. So, we decided to take it up in the air. But, during the preflight inspection, we noticed that the battery is discharging. It's back to the shop again! Luckily, Benjamin wasn't interested in taking N5307Q as he was looking to go on longer trips. So we switched to it. I did a couple good landings. Bill also showed how to land in a cross wind. I think I need a lot more practice to master that. We then headed to the practice area. On the way, I spent around 30 minutes under the hood doing various maneuvers including slow flight turns, power off stalls, power on stalls, stalls while turning, etc..

Bill also introduced me to emergency procedures today. He simulated an emergency landing while we are at 2000 ft. It looked very easy. I'm not sure whether I can apply it when the time comes though!When we are in the pattern, he pulled the power on me and asked me to land. We were very high close to the airport. I had to deploy 40 degree flaps and do a steep forward slip to make it to the runway and land. I liked doing this maneuver. For some one on the ground, it may look as if the plane is going to hit the runway nose dive but, it is a very controlled maneuver. We called it off for the day. I may do solo followed by a cross country tomorrow. I have only two flights scheduled in N5307Q tomorrow. So, we went ahead blocked the early morning time slot. So, I need to be at the airport prior to 7 am tomorrow too.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.4 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 32.7 hours.

Flight# 29

The chief flight instructor, Fred, was not available until 5 pm to conduct a pre solo stage check. John, the flight school owner, agreed to stage check me. He asked me to stay in the pattern and do Touch and Gos. After the usual pre-flight inspection and doing the run up at the designated run up area, taxied to Runway 29 for take off. There is also some cross wind with speed around 10 kts. I botched the first landing. I also had to do a go around on my second approach as the wind was blowing me to the side of the Runway. I managed to do a few good landings. John gave a few tips on how to improve.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.6 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 31.3 hours.

Flight# 28

Arrived at the airport by 7 am. Jorge was already there waiting for me. I did several Touch and Gos in N5307Q. At least 5 out of 8 were pretty good landings. Jorge thinks I am ready to solo.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.1 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 30.7 hours.

Flight# 27

The last flight of the day was from 5:00-6:30 pm. The wind was stronger than before with gusts up to 25 knots. Bill tells me that if I can land in these winds, landing when there is no wind will be a piece of cake. There was hardly any one else flying in these winds. So, we could even back taxi on the same runway to take off again. Flew in the pattern several times announcing my position on each leg. I also got to practice a couple of soft field takeoffs and low flights over the runway.

Bill thought it would be good idea to fly with another instructor so that I may pickup some tips to nail the landings each time. So, I will be flying with Jorge (the same instructor who did an emergency landing a few days ago) in the morning. I need to be at the airport by 6:45 am.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.3 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 29.6 hours. Below are the pictures of my bed room.

Flight# 26

Since the other small planes are in maintenance, Karl, Benjamin and I are having to share N5307Q. We got into the air again at 2 pm. I'm able to land but still not in a consistent way. The wind was pretty strong with gusts up to 24 knots. It's like fighting the wind through out the pattern. Managed couple of landings but they are not smooth all the time. I also got to practice a couple of soft field landings.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.0 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 28.3 hours.

Flight# 25

I left the bicycle at Flight school yesterday as it was raining cats and dogs. It was still raining this morning. Bill picked me up around 10 am. Luckily, by the time of our first flight around 10:30 am, sky started clearing up. I practiced several more Touch and Gos.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.0 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 27.3 hours.

Flight# 24

The problem with my landings turned out to be due to looking directly at the runway instead of looking far down the runway at the tree line and let the peripheral vision measure distance above ground. The owner of the flight school, John, happened to notice one of my landings while driving by and knew right away what the problem was. His suggestion was to force myself to look outside the side windows while landing, instead of looking directly at the runway. I tried to apply that trick on this flight. Bill also placed a book infront of me to block my forward vision while I was landing. I was able to land even with a crosswind without many issues this time. I still need more practice though. After I practiced around 4 landings, only 0.1 hour was left on the tach time of N4655X before 100-hour inspection is due. So, we cut short our practice and headed to the hangar area.

Weather outlook is not good for the next 24 hours. On top of that, two of the three small aircraft are out for maintenance. So, there is going to be a lull in training for the next day or two.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.7 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 26.3 hours.

Flight# 23

I called the FBO to top off the tanks of N4655X before heading to the airport at 8 pm. Did several touch and Gos in the pattern. I am finding landings to be the most difficult thing in flying especially when there is crosswind! There were only 2.2 hours of tach time left on N4655X before 100-hour inspection is due for N4655X. Also, since thunder storms are predicted for the next 24 hours from noon, we tried to burn up those hours before noon.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.9 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 25.6 hours.

Flight# 22

The FBO closes by 5 pm. So, we couldn't get the fuel truck to fill the tanks prior to our cross country night flight. There is a self service AvGas station within the airport. I used my credit card and filled the tanks myself! This is different from filling gas for your car. You have to attach the ground cable to airframe first before you start fueling.

We called Flight Service (1-800-WX-BRIEF) to get a standard briefing for our route. We decided to request for flight following once in the air from Orlando Approach instead of filing a flight plan. You got to plan every thing ahead for night flying. Several radio frequencies like, Approach control, source and destination's (AWOS and CTAF), VOR frequencies along the way so that you can intercept different VOR radials to find your location on a map in case you are lost!

After plotting the route on the Jacksonville sectional chart from KGIF to KOCF, we measured the True course heading of 340 degrees. Magnetic course is 340 + 5 degree isogonic deviation near KGIF. The FSS briefer told us that wind was 10 kts from 110 degrees. Which means, there will be some right quartering tail wind. With the wind correction angle, the magnetic heading comes to 355 degrees. After taking off from Runway 5 around 8 pm, we headed towards 355 degrees. Our altitude was 4,500 ft KGIF to KOCF and 5,500 ft from KOCF to KGIF. For VFR flights, above 3,000 ft, the altitude needs to be odd thousands + 500 ft when flying magnetic course 0-179 and even thousands + 500 ft when flying 180-359. On the way back, we could see Orlando to our left and Tampa to our right. We also saw the Disney fireworks far away. It was fun to turn on Runway lights and change their intensity using the mic button with Radio tuned to the CTAF frequency.

We received flight following from Orlando Approach who then handed us off to Jacksonville Approach after a while. On the way back, Jacksonville Approach and Tampa Approach handled our flight following. Bill pretty much handled these communications with the approach controllers. We had to squawk the code they give us in the transponder so that they could monitor our flight path. At night, Runways appear much higher than the true elevation! After landing on Runway 5, I got to practice a few more Take offs and landings flying around the pattern in the night. Since we were running low on fuel, we called it off for the day after 8 take offs and landings. The strong cross wind made these landings difficult. It was midnight by the time I reached the room. I need to be back at the airport by 8 am tomorrow. My total Hobbs time for today was 7.6 hours! This was almost close to the combined time of my first 10 flights!

The Hobbs time of this flight was 3.1 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 23.7 hours.

Flight# 21

It turns out N4655X has a few more hours left before the 100 hour inspection is due. So, we decided to use it all up today and work on the inspection tomorrow. So, we went up again around 4:30 pm. This time, Bill changed the strategy and made me do long final approaches to help me with controlling the plane close to the Runway during landings. That worked. I made 2-3 real good landings. Still, more practice is needed to be consistent. Bill and I went out to eat after this flight to get ready for the night time cross-country flight to Ocala which is about 70 nautical miles (~80 miles) NNW to Winter Haven..

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.9 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 20.6 hours.

Flight# 20

The third flight of the day was around 2:30 pm. Bill's solution for my problem of getting fixated on looking at instruments is to cover up the instruments with his jacket! I actually found it much easier flying that way. I was making good approaches to landing when I look outside and fly. I made one or two good landings but, a lot more practice is needed to be consistent. I'm still finding it difficult to control when close to the Runway while landing. 

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.0 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 19.7 hours.

Flight# 19

We went back up in the air around 10:30 am staying in the pattern doing Touch and Gos. We must have done at least 8 take offs and landings. I'm having difficulty controlling the plane when it is close to the Runway while landing. Also, I'm focusing too much on looking at instruments rather than looking outside while in the pattern. Bill and I discussed about this after the flight and he mentioned that he knows a way to get that problem fixed!

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.5 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 18.7 hours.

Flight# 18

Karl and I headed to the airport at 7 am but, no one was around! The FBO terminal wasn't open until 7:30 am to get N4655X tanks topped off. Bill and I headed to the practice area taking off from Runway 11 since the wind was from 90 degrees. We climbed to above 5,000 ft on this flight. Weather was gorgeous this morning. On the way, we saw a few baloon flights near the fantasy of flight landmark. I got to practice power on stalls followed by power off stalls. On the way back to the airport, I got to perform forward slip to lose altitude quickly.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.1 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 17.2 hours.

Flight# 17

Since the other Cessna 150 is still in the maintenance shop for repairs, Karl's instructor had scheduled N4655X for him. So, Bill and I couldn't get back into the air until 2:30 pm. Bill asked me to fly the plane to the Lakeland airport (KLAL) near the practice area since it has a longer runway so that I could practice Touch and Gos. Here is a sample video of a Touch and Go. Lakeland is a towered airport. So, I got to communicate with the control tower on the 124.5 mhz frequency. The controller was pretty busy through out the time we were over there sequencing the aircraft. Twice, the controller asked us to use the right hand traffic pattern to avoid running into some high speed aircraft and on one occasion, he asked us to come to a full stop on the runway since a helicopter was flying crosswind. I still need more practice to land the plane gracefully. Since some one else got the plane for 4:30 pm, we headed back to the Winter Haven airport (KGIF). After landing, we came to find out that the 4:30-6:00 pm reservation was canceled! Had we known that, we could have stayed for some more time in the air. Some one else got it reserved for 6:00-8:30 pm. So, that was it for today. Tomorrow is going to be a long day. We got the plane reserved from 7 am to 8 pm pretty much to ourselves.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.6 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 16.1 hours.

Flight# 16

It rained last night. The cloud bases were still low for a VFR flight at 8 am. So, we reviewed how aircraft instruments work until the weather cleared up a bit. Around 9:30 am, we took off from Runway 29 to the practice area at 1500 ft but, couldn't find an opening to go above the clouds. It is not safe to do that under VFR conditions as you may get stuck above the clouds and may not be able to get down if the weather doesn't clears up! So, we headed back to the airport to practice a few Touch and Gos flying around the pattern.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.1 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 14.5 hours.

Flight# 15

Today Bill and I reviewed Aircraft systems in between flights. As soon as Benjamin returned from the cross country trip around 3 pm, we topped off the tanks again and headed to the practice area taking off from Runway 11. I'm getting better at slow flights and power off stalls. I'm at least not losing that much altitude as I used to. Practiced several rounds of 360 degree turns in slow flight and steep turn configurations.

We also flew by the sod farm owned by one of Bill's friends. There was a grass strip on his farm but, we didn't land as the strip may not be long enough to take off again due to high density altitude. His friend came out to wave and we rolled our wings in response. We then picked a farm house and performed low altitude (1000 ft) circles around it correcting for wind through out the turn. On the way back to the airport, I got to practice the slip which was a lot of fun. Wind keeps changing direction. We had to use Runway 23 to land.

Since Bill was conducting a solo stage check for one of the students at 5 pm, I could go to the room little early today. Shortly there after, I got company after living in this house alone for the past 5 days. Another instructor (Mike) picked up a new student (Karl) from France at the Orlando airport and helped him check into the house. Looks like, Mike and Carl will be using N4655X too. In a day or two, it will be up for 100 hour inspection. Since Bill is also a mechanic, he wants to pitch in to speed up the 100 hour inspection. It will be interesting to see how the schedules pan out. I hope I will have a plane to fly!

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.2 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 13.4 hours.

Flight# 14

The student from France (Benjamin) reserved the flight for several hours today as the other Cessna 150 was in the shop for maintenance. So, we couldn't go back into the air until Noon. By this time, wind picked up and shifted direction with gusts up to 20 knots. After the usual preflight inspections, took off from Runway 23 departing the pattern for North to the practice area. This again involved practicing slow flights and power off stalls.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.8 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 12.2 hours.

Flight# 13

It was a beautiful day today. We took off from Runway 5 for the practice area around 8:30 am. Practiced several clearing turns, slow flights and power off stalls. The Meclizine HCL 25 mg I have been taking motion sickness is doing wonders. I absolutely have no nausea or any side effects. There is no way I could have endured these maneuvers without this medication. Unfortunately, even though Airforce allows some anti-nausea medication, FAA doesn't allow any of it to act as a pilot in command. Bummer! So, I need to wean off of it before I get to do solo.

We also went past 4,000 ft on this flight. Bill also demonstrated a slip. The falling leaf stall and the slip are a lot of fun. This is the longest flight so far. On the way back to the airport, I got to spend flying some time under the hood.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.5 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 11.4 hours.

Flight# 12

The plane I have been flying, Cessna 150, N4655X was returned only around 6 pm. So, Bill and I headed to the practice area again for the third flight of the day. I was able to record this flight using Garmin Nuvi 200. You can play this file in Google earth to see the route we flew. You need to play the Garmin Nuvi log that shows up under Tracks to get a bird's eye view along the route. For some reason, the altitude along the route isn't showing up correctly.

It's again the same routine of more practice on power off stalls, dutch rolls and slow flights. I made two nice circles. They show up on the Google earth! I flew the plane to the airport unaided and entered the pattern at 45 degrees for Runway 11 but, I botched the landing. Bill assisted me in the go around. The second time was ok.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.1 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 9.9 hours. 

Flight# 11

For the second flight of the day, the regular N4655X was not available as Mike was having his check ride today. His Oral and practical flight exam took close to 5 hours! By the time he was done, it was 2:15 pm. Some one else scheduled the plane from 3-6 pm. So, we decided to take Cessna 152 with tail# N6490L.This is pretty similar to Cessna 150 but, heavy. I got to practice again the power off stalls and dutch rolls. The Hobbs meter in this plane was not working!

The Hobbs time of this flight was ~1.0 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 8.8 hours.

Flight# 10

I called the fuel truck to fill the tanks before heading to the airport. By the time I reached there around 7:45 am, tanks were already filled. I went ahead and performed the preflight inspection and we headed to the practice area taking off from Runway 11. Bill demoed a slow flight, power off stall, power on stall, falling leaf stall and the corresponding recovery procedures. I performed 360 degree turns in a slow flight configuration. It seems I can't proceed to the next stage until I master these techniques. All these maneuvers are suppose to help in recognizing the situations when the plane stops flying and enters a stall. This can very much happen while landing. So, this practice will help to recover from those situations while landing.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.1 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 7.8 hours. 

Flight# 9

Bill suggested I take Dramamine to help get over the motion sickness. I picked up some thing from Walgreens that's equivalent to Dramamine but less drowsy and long lasting. I didn't get to fly again until 5:30 pm as Bill went practicing on a more complex airplane. After reaching the practice area, I got to work on maintaining the same flight attitude irrespective of what Bill did to the control settings. He would change the elevator trim, make turns and asks me to bring the plane to level and direct it in certain heading. I also got to work with the trim so that the plane will fly by itself without any additional control inputs. We then headed back to the airport flying cross wind over Runway 11 and entered downwind instead of the usual teardrop approach to enter the pattern. I got to practice flaring on the runway. We taxied back to Runway 29 again to practice one more take off and landing. I was able to takeoff on my own without any assistance from Bill. I became more familiar with flying the pattern on this run. I also got to practice some more flaring and the landing is not intimidating any more!

For what ever reason, I didn't feel any nausea at all on this flight. Either I'm getting used to flying or the medicine kicked in. That's a good sign and I intend to keep on taking the medicine. Bill already warned me that tomorrow is going to be hectic and I'm going to be tired at the end of the day. I guess he is mentally preparing me.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.8 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 6.7 hours. 

Flight# 8

The student whose plane got wrecked yesterday is having his check ride (practical exam) tomorrow. So, we had to share our flight time with him. We took alternate flights to fly today. Because of this, I didn't get to fly again until Noon. Wind pretty much stayed in the same direction (from 290 degrees) through out the day. So, Runway 29 was the logical choice. Same exercise of going through the checklists and then takeoff to the practice area followed. Wind is little higher than the morning. Due to my propensity for motion sickness, didn't stay too long in the air. I did fine on this flight.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.7 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 5.9 hours.

Flight# 7

I arrived at the airport early today by 7:30 am to get the plane ready for 8 am flight. Called the fuel truck to top of the tanks. You can see the picture I took of the fuel guy filling the tanks. As you can see they use ladder to stand higher than wings and fill the tanks in both wings!

We started taxiing to Runway 29 as soon as Bill showed up. Bill showed how to enter a stall and recover from it. I will get to do this more tomorrow. Practiced some turns and then picked an interstate (I-4 I think) intersection with on and off ramps as a reference point and circled around it twice with corrections for wind through out. Since I will be coming to the practice area on my own next week, Bill pointed to some landmarks and showed how to locate the airport to get back. We flew back to the airport passing over it at 2000 ft and then descended to 1000 ft turning in a teardrop fashion to enter the pattern at 45 degrees. The usual downwind, base and final legs followed, to land safely back on Runway 29. Every thing was fine until I got out of the plane and then it happened again! I couldn't wait until I reach the restroom and I threw up in the parking area itself. Bummer!:-( It wasn't as bad as yesterday though. I felt better a little while after.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.0 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 5.2 hours.

Flight# 6

The wind picked up to 16 knots with gusts up to 25 knots by Noon. In a way, it is good to practice in difficult conditions so that it will be piece of cake when flying in normal weather. We used this opportunity to practice cross wind take off. The usual routine of preflight inspections followed by run up to Runway 23. Bill loaned me a dvd to watch on Takeoffs and landings last night. I got to put some of those tips into practice. It was a lot of bouncing around due to high wind. Picked some ground reference points and practiced staying on course in spite of the wind. We picked up some tail wind for some time, with GPS displaying much higher ground speed than the indicated airspeed! We headed back to Runway 29 for landing. Bill flew the base and final and landed us safely on the ground. This is a shorter runway with no glide path indicators! Bill has been giving me more and more home work. So, I'm going to keep these posts shorter to focus on what I came here for.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.6 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 4.2 hours. Below are some pictures taken from the backyard:

Flight# 5

Arrived at the airport around 8 am. Weather was good for a VFR flight. Performed all the preflight inspections and we were ready to roll. ATIS indicated wind from 260 so, we could have picked either Runway 29 or 23 but decided to take off from 23 as the other traffic was using it. Taxied to the Run-up area and completed the Run-up and Pre-takeoff / Takeoff checklists. We heard on the CTAF another aircraft 6 miles away heading for Runway 23. Since it is a few minutes away, we decided to take off. I got to announce to the other traffic (just press the small mic button on the yoke and speak into the headphone's mic) our intentions. I said the following:

"Winter Haven traffic, Cessna 4655 X-ray entering Runway 23 for Take off, Winter Haven".

We climbed to 3,000 ft and headed to the practice area. I learned some thing new today. Bill demonstrated a few things like what you do if the elevator and rudder stop working. These control surfaces basically move the airplane up or down (pitch) and left or right (yaw) respectively. In the small planes, just leaning forward in your seat causes the plane to nose down and leaning backward moves the nose up. Similarly, opening the left door in flight, turns the nose to the right and opening the right door turns the nose to the left. Pretty neat. What we need the controls for? Bill also demonstrated the inherent stability of the airplane. Pushing the yoke forward, pitches the nose down and when the controls are untouched, the increased airspeed over wings wants to fly the plane so the nose comes up automatically and as the nose comes up, airspeed decreases so the nose goes down again. This happens until the plane levels out. It is kind of like pendulum swinging up and down! We also practiced a few Dutch rolls.

We then descended to 700 ft to locate a sod farm which is owned by one of Bill's friends. At the low altitude, as the ground started heating up, the ride was bumpy which made me feel nauseous. I felt little better after eating a cracker. We then headed back to the airport. Climbed to 2000 ft and flew over the airport to enter the pattern for Runway 23 at 45 degrees. While coming down to the pattern altitude of 1000 ft and banking at the same time, the dreaded thing happened. I had to use the sick bag.:-( I was glad I looked at the glove box contents the previous day. Otherwise, I would have had to open the window! Bill took a shortcut and took permission to land ahead of the aircraft about to take off, to take us quickly to the ground. I felt better after while.

The plane which gave us way, owned by a student (Mike). He was learning to fly from one of the flight school's instructors (Jorge). Unfortunately, shortly there after, their plane had to make an emergency landing due to engine failure resulting in plane flipping upside down after the wheel got stuck in the ground. There was heavy rain last night.

I snapped the photo on the left while watching news that evening. It was unbelievable having seen that plane intact waiting for us to land while I was barfing and seeing it wrecked on TV a few hours later! I got to talk to both the instructor and the student at the end of the day. It seems the shoulder harness and the lap belt prevented them from getting injured as they were hanging up side down in the cockpit! Both are planning to continue the training tomorrow in a different plane of course. My hats off to their spirit.

The Hobbs time of this flight was 1.2 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 3.6 hours.

Flight# 4

We had the plane scheduled for Noon. It was still very cloudy but, luckily there wasn't much wind. So, we did more ground practice. After the preflight inspection, it started raining. There is hardly any one flying. This worked out for us because, Bill could let me taxiing on the run way to simulate the landing and take off speeds. That was fun going back and forth on the 5-23 run way. I am getting good at maintaining that center line. Breaking needs more practice though. Looks like, you need to control the rudder with the ball of your feet and the breaks (at the top of the rudder pedals) with the tip of your feet applying the same amount of pressure on both rudder pedals while pulling back the elevator. I could practice this a few more times on the runway and a taxi way. I wanted to practice for some more time on the runway but, Bill wouldn't let me. It seems, training is effective if you practice for no more than an hour and take a break. We taxied back to the parking area.

Parking: This is kind of like parallel parking the car. One person pushes the plane back by placing hands on the propeller at the center while other person, holds the tail down and nose up by pushing on the vertical stabilizer and the fuselage guiding the plane to the tie down position. Once in position, tie the ropes to wings and the tail so that wind won't blow the plane away!

Thunder storms rolled in for rest of the day so, further training was called off. The Hobbs time of this flight was 0.7 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 2.4 hours.

Flight# 3

The weather outlook for today didn't look good. It rained cats and dogs in the after noon. We managed to squeeze in two flights between the openings but, never left the ground though. Below is a view of the planes mostly, amphibians, parked on the ramp.

I reached the airport slightly before 9 am. Bill was already there dispatching the N4655X. I went ahead to clean the windshield with some special spray. When you wipe, it has to be in the direction of the wind blowing over the airplane it seems. Otherwise, streaks will form on the glass which could create glare.

After the preflight inspection, we headed to hangar area, for some more ground practice. The ground control appears to be more difficult than flying the plane! Any deviation from the center line could clip wings with electric poles or buildings. On top of that, wind is gusting around 25 knots! This means, you also need to turn ailerons into the wind. Otherwise, especially because the Cessna 150 is a high wing plane, the wind can tip the plane over. After practicing a few turns and circles in the hangar area and on taxiways, it started raining with wind gusts increasing. So, we headed to the parking area.

The practice time during this flight is .6 hours on Hobbs. Cumulative Hobbs time: 1.7 hours.

Flight# 2

Finally, Bill dropped me at the place of my stay for the next two weeks. It's a five bedroom house with Pool and lake view from my bed room!

At present, I'm the only one in there with other students coming towards the end of this week. The second flight is schduled for 4 pm. So, I had little over an hour to take a break. I finally figured out the hack for Garmin Nuvi 200 GPS to record a trip. I am going to try it during the second flight.

Bikes are provided as part of the rental. The flight school is 3 minutes away by bicycle. I reached flight school by 4 pm for my second flight of the day. This time, we spent a lot of time doing a through preflight looking every nook and crook in the air frame. It's remarkable how it held up even after 43 years! I got to do lot more practice steering the plane on the ground with my feet. I'm getting better at it. Again, the take off was smooth. For some reason, I was not able to get Satellite signal to record the flight. :-( We climbed to 3,200 ft. I had the controls for most of the time. Practiced climbs, level flight and turns. We hit a few thermals on this flight which resulted in a few bumps. The Hobbs time for this flight was 0.7 hours. Cumulative Hobbs time: 1.1 hours.

Flight# 1

Bill showed me around the flight school including the maintenance shop.

He introduced me to the weekend administrative assistance, Donna to complete the paperwork. She took copies of my passport, Driver's license and Medical certificate. I just had to fill up two other forms and it was all set. The plane I'm going to be using for Training is Cessna 150 with tail# N4655X is older than me! I know that it is still safe to fly as every plane goes through 100-hour and annual inspections with Engine getting overhauled every 2000-hours. The FAA regulations are very strict in this regard. You can see it in the photo below on the left and the one on the bottom right is a Lake amphibian waiting outside the hangar to be serviced.

We are ready for the first flight! Bill showed me the flight school procedures on dispatching the aircraft. Weight and balance calculations are also part of the procedure. With full tanks of fuel and for our weights, it was very close to the limit. I'm glad we didn't have to defuel a few gallons. We signed out the airplane for half an hour (1:00 pm -1:30 pm) for a quick flying in the pattern. However quick it is, there is a long list of verifications and procedures to be performed at each and every stage of the flight. Nothing is taken for granted. A sample preflight procedure looks like this. This is before you even step into the plane. Then there are procedures for Starting, Pre-Taxi, Taxi, Run-Up, Pre-Takeoff, Takeoff, Climb, Cruise, Descent, Pre-Landing, Landing, After Landing, Securing! I learned about some thing called Gascolator today during the preflight.

Bill let me steer during the taxi. Unlike car, the steering on the ground in small airplanes is completely done with your feet. The same pedals control both rudder and breaks. On the ground, the speed is contolled by the throttle (push and pull with your right hand when in pilot seat). It basically controls the propeller speed there by the forward movement. The trick is to apply breaks slightly for quick corrections whenever there is a deviation from the center line.

There was hardly any wind. Since all the traffic was using Runway 11, we did the same. Look at the bottom of this article, if you are interested in knowing how the runways are numbered. We reached the pattern altitude of 1000 ft and Bill then pretty much took control to fly cross wind, down wind, base and final legs to land it smoothly. It seems, the trick is to configure it correctly so that the plane lands itself. The flight was uneventful with no issues at all. I think my noise canceling headset, Lightspeed Zulu,  also contributed to the comfort. I performed some more rudder work after landing. Hobbs time of this flight is 0.4 hours.

Destination: Winter Haven, Florida.

By the time I went to bed last night, it was past midnight. On top of that, with all the anticipation and excitement, I could hardly sleep. Also, had to get up early to catch the 7 AM Airtran flight to Orlando. Boarding has already started by the time I reached the gate. I was glad that there was no wait but, even though my bag was within the carry on dimensions, I had to leave it at the plane's entrance to be checked into the belly. Even after every one boarded, Pilot had to wait for the fuel truck to arrive! So, the plane left the Gate around 15 minutes late. I thought of posting to the blog using the iPod touch via the free WiFi on the plane as there was some promotion going on for two weeks but the gogo inflight internet wasn't working! :-(

During the flight, I also happened to notice that the cell phone was dead. I am not sure how that happened! I remember checking the previous day and I purposely didn't charge it because the battery strength meter showed full bars! Any way, the charger was in the bag and I expected it to be at the entrance when I deplaned in Orlando which is the usual practice but, I was told to collect it from the baggage claim! My instructor (Bill) would have been waiting for me. How in the world am I going to contact him? All the numbers are stored in the phone too. I had no other option but to wait at the baggage claim area until the bag showed up. Luckily, I found a power outlet in the airport to hook up the cell phone so that I could contact the instructor. Luckily he was still on the way as he got stuck in traffic. He showed up after 10-15 minutes. That wasn't bad. It all finally worked out. It was an hour drive from Orlando to Winter Haven. I was actually surprised to learn that he moved all the way from California to Florida last year just to join this flight school. California already has a few good flight schools. He joined this flight school since it was recommended by one of his friends. This gave me some comfort that I made the right decision. Bill has most of the ratings and is working on his Instrument Instructor rating. We were going to stop by the place of my stay to drop the luggage before heading to the flight school but, since both of us were hungry, we stopped at a restaurant called Crispers. There was another student waiting for Bill at the flight school so we headed there right after lunch.

The sign at the airport entrance:

Flight School's sign:

Prologue

I clearly remember my first flight trip from Madras (MAA) to Chicago (ORD) with stop overs in Bombay (BOM) and New York (JFK) back in 1993. On the MAA - BOM segment, there was a gentleman from Australia sitting next to me. Having learned that it was my first flight, he made sure air hostess got me what I wanted. I was so excited and pretty much glued to the window whenever I could see outside!

I got to make another trip to Chicago in 1993 followed by an assignment in Honolulu, Hawaii the very next year. This time, my wife and I with our 9 month old daughter headed eastward from MAA to Honolulu (HNL) via Delhi (DEL) and Tokyo (NRT). We completed a trip around the world when we moved to Richmond (RIC)  in 1995 followed by a visit to India in 1996. I guess you could say, Around the world in 21 months!

I am fascinated with flying and airplanes since then. We attended a Fly-in at the Petersburg airport (PTB) and started my first ground school in 1999 through the County of Henrico Adult Education program. Those days, the county used to have a flying program for students at the Highland Springs High School. The same instructor taught us the ground school. Around that time, I took a 30 minute demo flight in a Cessna-152 at the Hanover airport (OFP). I was glad there was a sick bag on the plane! :-(. With this experience and with all the restrictions ensued for non-citizens following 9/11, I put my interest on hold. Attended ground school for the second time in late 2007 at the Chesterfield airport (FCI), cleared the written exam with 97% and got the second class medical cum student pilot certificate right before I turned 40.

If I go to a local FBO on the week ends, it will take around 6 months to complete the minimum 40 hour flight training to become a Private pilot. There is a flight school in Florida offering 2-week accelerated Private Pilot training. With the written expiry date fast approaching, I have decided to give this a shot. I know it is not going to be easy with so much to learn in such a short span. Saying it will be like drinking through a Fire hose would be an under statement. So, I need all the encouragement I can get.