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

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By T6Harvard
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1891943
Ha! I've been stymied by the weather. TAF showing strong gusty wind but also PROB30 snow at lesson time, so I think it may be OK to fly but not good for circuits. I am always happy to travel in hope and see what materialises but...the weather for my journey over high ground was forecast Snow. I checked eleventy billion different weather forecasts, obvs including Met Office Aviation briefing, hoping for better but all were pessimistic for the journey. Common sense prevailed so I rang and cancelled.

It is snowing like mad here now so I'm glad I'm not driving in it at higher elevations en route.

Ah well, I have a double lesson booked for Monday :mrgreen:
By TopCat
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1892001
T6Harvard wrote:I checked eleventy billion different weather forecasts

Were Windy and Netweather included in those?

They're among my go-tos when I want to see what the general cloudbase is likely to be, and how densely packed the showers or other bands of precipitation are shaping up.
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By T6Harvard
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1892005
Windy, yes. I've not tried Netweather, didn't know there were eleventy billion and one weather sites :lol: I'll look that up, thanks.

Ground school is currently being pursued - no time to waste :mrgreen:
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By T6Harvard
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1892798
As last week's lesson was cancelled I had 2 hours today. Good job I did.

The first hour was a case of extreme rustyness and in inability to re-calibrate my circuit to account for strong Southerly blowing me in on Downwind and hastening Base leg. Landing overall was poor, although the ac is undamaged and Instructor and I still have all our teeth :lol:

The second approach was ragged but I was stable on target well before we got over the fence. However, I then dropped it in and bounced. A picture of an ever-increasing porpoising scenario flashed through my mind so I applied full power while telling my Instructor that I couldn't land that. Did the necessary and then called going-around. Instructor didn't think it needed his intervention to save it but was happy with the go-around.

The remaining time was, well, a bit various and I felt a bit of a plank, but I did promise to do better after the break.

I spent the mid-lessons break trying to visualise the correct landing picture :mrgreen: It did help later.

Second lesson, I was determined to get back into the groove. Circuit overall was much improved, landing EVENTUALLY was back on form. The hour sped by and thankfully my last landing of the day was good. Phew.

Remind me not to have a 4 week break from flying again!
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By Miscellaneous
#1892821
T6Harvard wrote:...so I applied full power while telling my Instructor that I couldn't land that. Did the necessary and then called going-around.

Just as well it wasn't your gliding experience flight. :D
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By T6Harvard
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1892823
Miscellaneous wrote:
T6Harvard wrote:...so I applied full power while telling my Instructor that I couldn't land that. Did the necessary and then called going-around.

Just as well it wasn't your gliding experience flight. :D


Aye, right enough :lol: :lol:
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By lobstaboy
#1892905
T6Harvard wrote:
Miscellaneous wrote:
T6Harvard wrote:...so I applied full power while telling my Instructor that I couldn't land that. Did the necessary and then called going-around.

Just as well it wasn't your gliding experience flight. :D


Aye, right enough :lol: :lol:


You aim to land a glider with half airbrake deployed. That gives you the option, even quite low down, of closing the brake and using the extra 'buoyancy' to have another shot at it. Not quite a go around but pretty useful anyway. Plus glider landing strips are usually very long because of the winch cables.
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By tr7v8
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1893791
Long time no posts, thank god you all exclaim!
So after breaking my shoulder in October after my bike spitting me off & not being able to fly because of it although pretty much "fixed" now.
However I had started exams a few months after starting lessons, a mistake I now realise. Because of the 18 months rule in that you have to pass all the exams within 18 months from start to finish. That meant I HAD to complete by end of March 22. I had managed 7 exams but still had 2 to do, Met (yuk) and Nav. Having tried revising with the books & EasyPPL Ground School I was struggling with Met. I just couldn't get into the groove with it & kept failing both intermediate as well as the end exam.
So posted a message on the FaceBook forum for UK PPL Students about which Ground school they recommended. Quite a few recommended Mark Watkin (https://www.mwgroundschool.co.uk/) at Gamston airport. I put a message on his mobile & he phoned back 5 mins later. I explained what I was after & he said he could do 3 days, 13-15th Jan. I booked accommodation in nearby Retford & was all set. I drove up from Kent the night before.
Highly impressed with Mark, 1 2 1 definitely worked. As I had done Day Skipper for boats and the attendant Nav he started with that. I passed that with 91% on the first day. Met was a bigger nut to crack. Did Friday & then Saturday & passed that with 100% today.
Musing on the first day as we were finishing at around 14:00 that gave me time for a flying lesson if I could find someone. Mark seems to know everyone & made a few calls. I ended up doing 50 minutes with Trevor Lawrence in a C172. The day was amazing, gin clear sky, no wind. Despite not having flown since the end of Sept 2020 & never having flown at Gamston I settled in pretty quick & did 5 reasonable take offs & landings. So now back home, very happy bunny. Once the weather improves will restart lessons & get back up to speed, hopefully going solo fairly quickly.
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By Duncan M
#1893834
TR7V8,
Congratulations on the exam passes in met and nav. After getting over the shoulder pain I bet your brain hurts now!
Good luck with the rest of your flying course.
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By T6Harvard
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1894070
After last week's poor show I was a little concerned that I'd lost the landing plot and I wasn't so excited to be going flying today.
The wx was forecast good - CAVOK, light winds, not too much across, sunny all day. At home it was very dull and murky but the airfield's a long way, and is south east of home. I therefore tried for optimism with a standby of asking my Instructor to fly one approach and landing if I hadn't got my eye in after the first one (yes, most of last lesson was that poor I doubted I'd get the landing picture).

Sure enough it was sunny, great vis, but a much stronger wind than forecast. So another chance to crack crosswind landings :mrgreen:

Although my first circuit was good it took me a while to get the a/c to actually descend on Base due headwind!
Crabbed in, lined up, speed OK, saw the picture, put rudder in and flared at the right height but struggled to apply sufficient aileron into wind. I just find it counter-intuitive :? Could do better.

Second go, Instructor suggested just use 2 stages of flap and reminded me about aileron :lol: . It was much better.

Third circuit, no patter, all good, a thumbs up from the RHS :mrgreen:

By now I was back in the swing of it and mightily relieved to find my landing mojo had returned.

I am also aware that everything is now happening at a speed I can cope with, rather than all being too fast. There was a few seconds in one circuit when I was getting behind the a/c but I just knew I could quickly get on top of it. During a spell of constant radio chatter from landing and departing a/c I had enough SA to fly S&L, speed nailed, do checks, see where they all were, and keep one ear open for a gap for a late downwind call. A small thing but significant for me.

I was actually almost relaxed about landing as soon as I made my first approach. Despite concentrating on the effects of the crosswind I had the flare height and the landing attitude nailed down all lesson. Phew! In fact double phew!!
(Yes, @TopCat , stall warner an' all :mrgreen: )

The lesson went over the hour because I was really enjoying it so I asked for one more circuit :D :mrgreen:

Can't wait for the next lesson :sunny:
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By Milty
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1894097
That sounds brilliant. Some great sentences in there. “I was getting behind the aircraft but knew I could get on top of it”. “I was really enjoying it”. “Everything is happening at a speed I can cope with”. If my limited but recent experience is anything to go by, these are very positive signs and you should relish and enjoy them.

As mentioned, soon time to hoof the ballast out…
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By T6Harvard
FLYER Club Member  FLYER Club Member
#1894101
I am still buzzing :D

I forgot..... There was an interesting couple of minutes as I pre-flighted. First thing, remove the small, poorly painted chock so it's not forgotten. Start walk round. Notice an RV taxi in front. Notice it stop in front. Really notice when he increases power, giving me full blast! I actually held on to the strut because at best my C152 was going to be pushed back, but I seriously thought she was going to lift! What was worse was he was mid-taxiway but at 90° angle. Grrrrr.
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By Miscellaneous
#1894107
@T6Harvard the rollercoaster ride continues. :D It's as much an emotional experience as a practical one. And an experience which gives a previously unseen insight in to oneself. :D
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