Learning to fly, or thinking of learning? Post your questions, comments and experiences here

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By GeorgeJLA
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1609207
Hi

Apologies in advance - not showing off, but just wanted to share this as I have no aviators in my circle in real life to talk about my relief at passing the R/T practical test!

Thanks to a superb teacher - I won't name him publicly but he was excellent!

4 written exams down, 5 to go. Next challenge - Circuits and (hopefully) solo!

G
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#1609701
Congrats! :)

By the sounds of it, you've not gone solo yet so you're still early stages of training? If so, I also did my RT practical/theory as a full day course before I went first solo and it made me much more confident throughout the training on the radio :thumleft: Everyone else seems to take theirs in the later stages of training!
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By Irv Lee
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1609709
Personal opinion: by doing it early you should complete your ppl with fewer hours or possibly same hours (due weather) but finding easier. There is enough to learn and fill the brain on things like learning nav without adding learning new radio to push it into overload. If your club encourages early radio use in cockpit and early radio practical you ought to name them for a :thumleft: or two.
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By GeorgeJLA
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1610691
Hi Irv and CapnM.

Thanks for that. I've been encouraged to use the radio early but not all the time. I've mainly found that talking is not too bad it's processing what I've been told for read back whilst flying.

I have to say that in the two lessons I've had since the RT course I don't feel as apprehensive I used to about talking to ATC ( I used to have to take several deep breaths before talking whilst still on the ground!)

I'm doing circuits now so not gone solo yet but fingers crossed it won't take too many lessons to get there...

So yes :thumleft: to Merseyflight at EGGP and to Javelin Aero for delivering a fantastic course.
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By Irv Lee
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1610700
GeorgeJLA wrote:Hi Irv and CapnM.

Thanks for that. I've been encouraged to use the radio early but not all the time. I've mainly found that talking is not too bad it's processing what I've been told for read back whilst flying.

I have to say that in the two lessons I've had since the RT course I don't feel as apprehensive I used to about talking to ATC ( I used to have to take several deep breaths before talking whilst still on the ground!)

I give a two evenings course, usually a week apart, (3 hours each) and one student pilot at the start of the 2nd evening who flies near a busy Matz stood up and said the first evening the week before had surprisingly made a huge difference to his most recent lesson, and not through his own radio use. He realised he had been worrying about what everyone else was saying, and letting it interfere with his lesson. During the latest, he had settled and got on with his lesson as he understood what everyone else was saying and why.
So yes :thumleft: to Merseyflight at EGGP and to Javelin Aero for delivering a fantastic course.

:thumleft: :thumleft: one each
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By riverrock
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1610738
I was "booking out" over the phone with our Tower at Prestwick Flying Club from lesson 2 which is a very relaxed way to start to deal with ATC. Instructor gave me the performa and what to say, explaining each part. I would know all of the elements from the pre-flight briefing and doing the paperwork ( which he would check & sign).
Instructor also provided a paper performa for the various parts of the expected RT for me to print out in advance of the flight (he used a laminated version) - just fill in the standard blank spaces for ATIS and various clearances. This let me easily digest the ground chat on the radio when not time pressured.
As I knew what to expect (getting ATIS, asking for clearance (etc) ) he therefore had me doing all of the ground RT after introducing it from very early lessons (plenty of time available on the ground to get it wrong!), followed soon after by clearance back into the circuit, then circuit calls and nav.
The club has a self created "RT" cd which students can use to practice with once the instructor has briefed all the parts (although it now needs updated).
As the RT was being progressively taught to me, the RT practical I found easy. I don't remember the Coms exam - so it must have been a non-event.
I guess that this is much more of an issue at non-towered fields?
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