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jsstevens
I just got word that my flight instructor is closing shop. One flight short of solo. I just can't even........
That sucks!
I just got word that my flight instructor is closing shop. One flight short of solo. I just can't even........
Sorry Brother, can you get a new instructor?I just got word that my flight instructor is closing shop. One flight short of solo. I just can't even........
Alright, back in the saddle after not flying for about a week.
The school I'm at uses the Cessna Training Program which is essentially the Kings program. So today he looked at my practice test results: 92%, 83%, 95%, and 95% and signed me off for the written exam. So I'll need to sign up for that soon.
Following that review we looked at the weather and the goals for today's lesson. It's Florida in the summer and there's always a storm nearby. Everything looked to be clearing up or moving away so off we go to preflight. The goals for the flight were some hood work, emergency descents, and crosswind landings. Sounds like fun!
We take off and once we're at pattern altitude leaving for the practice area he has put on the foggles. These things sit too far down my nose but oh well. Simulated instrument flight doing climbs, turns, descents, climbing and descending turns, etc. all go very well. I don't have any problems here except I tend to climb at a higher airspeed and turn with less bank than normal which I guess overall isn't a bad thing for a VFR pilot.
Then we do slow flight and emergency descents. Emergency descents are definitely uncomfortable. I thought a slip brought you down fast but holy cow! Next is some S turns and turns around a point. I started too far away from the point but otherwise fine.
Back to the airport for some crosswind landing practice.
ATIS at takeoff said winds were 170 @ 11 kts and we have runways 04-22 and 18-36 so it was pretty much right down the pipe on 18.
ATIS on arrival back says 160 @ 12 kts which isn't bad. After a couple landings we can tell it's changed a little and is gusty. Check the ATIS and it's 150 @ 13 kts. Still not bad.
Greased two of the landings but we notice on the last one that it's really bumpy and strong winds (mechanical turbulence all around that approach to 18). When we get back to the FBO, the next student sitting in the lobby says "It was 130 @ 13G17 sometimes G18."
End conclusion was that with all the afternoon heat and storms that the wind was very variable and gusty. It was making me work hard for those landings but knowing that I didn't struggle with them is awesome.
1.0 hours for a total of 10.2
And I'll be soloing in one of the next couple lessons according to my instructor.
Im 28, been flying with my Father in law since 16. Just started working on my PPL. 3 hours in and i feel very confident that i can solo. To me it seems more of a formality. CFI says im "the most advanced student hes had". Lots of flying time. I just want to solo! haha. Whats the solo hours of everyone? Obviously its all about being safe and proficient.
Being able to fly the pattern and put it back down isnt the only consideration. Your instructor has a list of things has has to teach you and you have to be able to do. Stall recovery, MCA, or slow flight, emergency procedures, probably power off 180 landings, just to name a few. Even if you already know how, he still has to teach them and you have to demonstrate them to him, it takes time. If you really are that good you are probably looking at 10-12 hours.Im 28, been flying with my Father in law since 16. Just started working on my PPL. 3 hours in and i feel very confident that i can solo. To me it seems more of a formality. CFI says im "the most advanced student hes had". Lots of flying time. I just want to solo! haha. Whats the solo hours of everyone? Obviously its all about being safe and proficient.
that's a lot rock stars here, I'm a student pilot myself, 10 hours of flight time. I'm very frustrate at this time and thinking my CFI is going to tell me quit learning due to my poor performance, poor judgement, the only thing i'm good at is positive attitude. After today's event, my CFI didn't give me any debrief, he signed my logbook, and told me he will cancel my tomorrow's flight training and text me next week to regroup my training. I'm so jealous at you guys doing solo in 13 hours or so, at this point I can see myself Nowhere close to do solo, maybe 25 hours later, but i'm pretty sure I'll get kicked out of the program before that happens.
Time to solo is the pilot form of the fish story. Don't take it too seriously, and it really doesn't say much about the kind of pilot you become.
thanks. i'd be sure to review all maneuvers and try to redo them again next week to see how it goes.
I had 20ish hours. That was over a 5 year span, though. Probably 3.5hrs of consistent flying.Im 28, been flying with my Father in law since 16. Just started working on my PPL. 3 hours in and i feel very confident that i can solo. To me it seems more of a formality. CFI says im "the most advanced student hes had". Lots of flying time. I just want to solo! haha. Whats the solo hours of everyone? Obviously its all about being safe and proficient.
Sunday was the last big step before the check ride. I have completed all my solo cross country work, done all the maneuvers, done the towered landings, etc. I just had to do the written test to be ready for the checkride, and that is now complete.
I know the only thing that matters is passing the test, and I also know that the FAA is putting a higher emphasis on weather and safety. I am still not happy with the score I got, and I really felt like it was more weather trivia than a test about flying. The test is a random selection from the test bank, but still...
I did not get a single question that required a plotter or doing wind calcs.
I got 1 VOR related question, and it was a triangulation one.
I got two weight and balance questions.
I got two of the long and lat position questions.
One about reading an altimeter.
Nothing at all about any of the other instruments or the pitot static system.
I was surprised that I did not get any of the IMSAFE of PAVE questions.
Nothing at all about overcoming unsafe attitudes.
The one fuel calc question I got was flawed to the point that it should be removed from the bank or altered. I was given a burn rate, a total fuel on board, and the ground speed, and asked to calc the time before I must land. It was not mentioned that it was VFR, but you assume it is for the PPL test. Was not told if it was day or night, so not sure what reserve was needed. Was not even told if the calc should be done with or without any type of reserve since all they ask is when must you land. Well depending on altitude and descent rate I must land at some point after the tanks run bone dry if you want to get technical. When I did the calcs for touching down at the last second after using the entire fuel load the answer was not one of the available ones. When I did the calc assuming I wanted to keep a 30 minute reserve for a day flight the answer was actually in the list. Even that does not account for the unusable fuel and such. So just a horrible question. At least I got it right.
Then there were a lot of questions I cannot remember, but many of them were based on remembering one small detail of a definition. Basically stuff that while yes it is in the study material I still find it to be by far the information of lesser importance in real world flying. Finally there were 15 questions that were about weather. I got one that asked about updrafts in a thunderstorm, and one that talked about the dangerous turbulence in a thunderstorm. Both of which are pretty important in general. All the rest were weather trivia like the 2 I got about radiative fog and the one I got about advection fog. I wish I could remember them all, but basically I am warning people getting ready to take this that it is not enough to have a good understanding of the material. What the FAA seems to be concerned about is your ability to memorize the exact wording and details of even the smallest thing they mention.
Your mileage may vary, and I am sure someone will get on here and say the test took them forever because all they got was questions that required extensive calculations. I guess the one nice thing about getting all questions of this type is that I was done in 32 minutes flat.
Passed with an 83, but I was really hoping for something more focused on actual flying and that tested the knowledge I need day to day. Then again there will also be plenty of people that would defend this type of testing.
Sunday was the last big step before the check ride. I have completed all my solo cross country work, done all the maneuvers, done the towered landings, etc. I just had to do the written test to be ready for the checkride, and that is now complete.
I know the only thing that matters is passing the test, and I also know that the FAA is putting a higher emphasis on weather and safety. I am still not happy with the score I got, and I really felt like it was more weather trivia than a test about flying. The test is a random selection from the test bank, but still...
I did not get a single question that required a plotter or doing wind calcs.
I got 1 VOR related question, and it was a triangulation one.
I got two weight and balance questions.
I got two of the long and lat position questions.
One about reading an altimeter.
Nothing at all about any of the other instruments or the pitot static system.
I was surprised that I did not get any of the IMSAFE of PAVE questions.
Nothing at all about overcoming unsafe attitudes.
The one fuel calc question I got was flawed to the point that it should be removed from the bank or altered. I was given a burn rate, a total fuel on board, and the ground speed, and asked to calc the time before I must land. It was not mentioned that it was VFR, but you assume it is for the PPL test. Was not told if it was day or night, so not sure what reserve was needed. Was not even told if the calc should be done with or without any type of reserve since all they ask is when must you land. Well depending on altitude and descent rate I must land at some point after the tanks run bone dry if you want to get technical. When I did the calcs for touching down at the last second after using the entire fuel load the answer was not one of the available ones. When I did the calc assuming I wanted to keep a 30 minute reserve for a day flight the answer was actually in the list. Even that does not account for the unusable fuel and such. So just a horrible question. At least I got it right.
Then there were a lot of questions I cannot remember, but many of them were based on remembering one small detail of a definition. Basically stuff that while yes it is in the study material I still find it to be by far the information of lesser importance in real world flying. Finally there were 15 questions that were about weather. I got one that asked about updrafts in a thunderstorm, and one that talked about the dangerous turbulence in a thunderstorm. Both of which are pretty important in general. All the rest were weather trivia like the 2 I got about radiative fog and the one I got about advection fog. I wish I could remember them all, but basically I am warning people getting ready to take this that it is not enough to have a good understanding of the material. What the FAA seems to be concerned about is your ability to memorize the exact wording and details of even the smallest thing they mention.
Your mileage may vary, and I am sure someone will get on here and say the test took them forever because all they got was questions that required extensive calculations. I guess the one nice thing about getting all questions of this type is that I was done in 32 minutes flat.
Passed with an 83, but I was really hoping for something more focused on actual flying and that tested the knowledge I need day to day. Then again there will also be plenty of people that would defend this type of testing.
I'm scheduled to take it at 2pm today. I'll try to provide some similar feedback to see if our experiences are similar.
Well, my experience was definitely different.
I had a number of questions that required a plotter and an E6-B including wind calcs, fuel burn, etc.
I had a VOR question that basically said "the OBS is XXX degrees with a to indication and a right course deflection. Where are you in relation to the VORTAC?"
I had almost 0 questions on weather. There was one that was basically "What happens in the cumulus stage of a storm?"
Overall, if you've done any prep using any of the available practice tests that still use the old test bank, you'll pass it no problem. The questions are different so do not memorize the answers. But if you understand the material it will be fine.
I got a 93%.
Nice job, now go ace that check ride.
Need at least 29 more hours... I've only got 11.1 in my logbook right now.
I soloed at 17.3 or something. No big deal. Many years later I have a CFI, CFII, CFI-ME, ATP, 4 types, and flew for the airlines 24 years flying turbo props and jets. Not boasting at all, just saying the solo does not mean a thing whether you solo at 1 hour or 25 hours. I can teach someone nothing but landings in calm wind conditions and solo them in 3-5 hours. But, is this a safe pilot? No.
Post-wedding/honeymoon and with my wife's job hunt not going well, we are broke. Stupid broke. Flat broke.
What about back seating with another student? That might keep your head in the game a bit.Post-wedding/honeymoon and with my wife's job hunt not going well, we are broke. Stupid broke. Flat broke. It has been 6 months since I've flown. I was THIS close to my checkride, and I can feel my skills slip-slip-slipping away. My CFI moved on to a small charter/airline operation, and I just don't see the light at the end of the tunnel at this point. And, I know the longer it takes me to get back in the plane, the longer it will take me to get to the checkride-ready point again, and the more it will cost.
I miss flying, so I read and watch everything I can about it, which only makes me miss it more. Watching all of the Oshkosh fun was torturous.
I had the idea of going for a Ground Instructor certificate (AGI instead of BGI, I suppose) just to have something to do. I mean, studying doesn't cost any money, you know? But man, I can hardly muster the motivation to open the books, because it all just bums me out so much.