Finally restarted my flying lessons.

Good deal. I've not soloed since I sold my plane a decade back, and hadn't even gotten into anything smaller than an RJ until last month, when I went up in a 172 just to see if I wanted to get back into it in retirement.
So I'm starting taildragger training in a J3 next week. Predicted to be 95°F that day ...
 
RyanB said:
Congrats! What’s next?
Click to expand...
I'm reviewing aviation knowledge before passing my knowledge exam.

Also, fine tuning my air-work and ground reference maneuvers, as well as practice short and soft field take offs and landings.
Not to mention cross-country trips.

I'm also planning on seeing a man in Missouri about another firebird to add to my collection.

My home remodel is starting to wind down. Once that's finished, I plan to start researching what I need to do to put up a hangar on my lot on the Erie Airpark, so I'll have a real hangar home, and buy a plane to park in it when I'm not flying.

And I'm working on an American Road Trip story.
 
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Kenny Phillips said:
Good deal. I've not soloed since I sold my plane a decade back, and hadn't even gotten into anything smaller than an RJ until last month, when I went up in a 172 just to see if I wanted to get back into it in retirement.
So I'm starting taildragger training in a J3 next week. Predicted to be 95°F that day ...
Click to expand...
Good luck. I expect you'll have so much fun you won't notice the heat, if you can get the plane off the ground, that is.
 
Summer is not a problem with J 3's, I took lessons in Georgia, July, and we used abut 1000 feet of runway. All in 65 HP planes.

We flew late in the day, near suppertime, as that was when I had free time.
 
geezer said:
Summer is not a problem with J 3's, I took lessons in Georgia, July, and we used abut 1000 feet of runway. All in 65 HP planes.

We flew late in the day, near suppertime, as that was when I had free time.
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Reminds me of when I started my lessons in a Citabria. It was like a hot air balloon with wings.
 
Story about the student in a Champ with an instructor during the summer heat. After take-off and climbing for what seemed like ten minutes to get to pattern altitude with WOT the student asked the instructor where to set the power. "Leave it where it is" was the instructor's reply. ;)
 
I've had three lessons since I soloed. This past lesson I needed three soft field landings until I nailed them. I only needed two short field landings to nail them. Soft field and short field takeoffs are a piece of cake. My demonstrated crosswind and wind speed maximums exceed the limits Aaron has set for me.

My 6th, and final landing for the day was a regular landing. I normally do 20 degrees max flaps, but because it was a gust and bump free day, I did 30 degrees. It seemed to me that doing the short and soft field landings helped my normal landing a lot.

We did some air work Wednesday, and then he "failed" the GPS and wanted me to get us back to the airport. I had a rough idea of where we were in relationship to it, so I pointed the nose about SW and when the airport came in sight, we pointed directly at it. I thought we were 10 miles out, but it was actually 5. (All of my cross-country trips in CA were pilotage, so I'm not entirely dependent on the magenta line.

When we got back to the airport, still w/o GPS, he wanted to know how many people were in the pattern. I'd heard one person on final, and another departing the pattern, so I told him that. He looked at his ForeFlight and concurred.

I'm getting a lot better at picking out traffic. At least twice I've seen it before ADSB reported it, and twice before Aaron. Mostly, when I know the approximate direction to look, thanks to ADSB, I can see the traffic immediately.

Aaron says as soon as I'm able to plan and fly a complete XC with him along, he'll cut me loose to do it on my own. I have 3 blocks long enough for XCs scheduled the end of the month, and he's trying to work some magic to get a long enough block to do XC earlier.

I'm also reviewing my aviation knowledge. Until now, I figured I had a lot of time because it seemed like I was making logarithmic progress. Now it seems more like exponential progress. It does seem that the more time I spend in the cockpit, the more time I have to keep everything under control. Anyway, it looks like my knowledge exam results are the gating item until my check ride.
 
Wow, I'm just a zero-hour lurker, but this thread was as good as any book I've read lately. Crashnburn, Congratulations! Your perseverance is astounding! I certainly can't be giving out much advice, but I will say that I've passed the knowledge test twice (the second time was last Tuesday), and if you're scoring 90s on practice tests, I think it's time to just get on the website and schedule a time to take it. Knowing that the test is scheduled will give you the motivation to focus on deficiencies and cram a little, but honestly, if you're consistently hitting 90-ish on practice tests, you'll be fine. You can continue mastering the finer points after you have the magic sheet of paper. Is there really any difference between a 98 and an 80 on the knowledge test (other than bragging rights)? I'm honestly not sure...I personally just felt like it might save me a little stress to already have a passing score in-hand before I started training and didn't have it hanging over my head, but I'm also sure that there are probably valid holes in my logic. If it's worth anything, I was scoring 85-95 on practice tests both times (I watched the King videos and used both Gleim Online & the Sporty's "study buddy" app for practice tests) and scored right in that range on both attempts and didn't feel like I was thrown any big surprises. To me, it seemed like the "study buddy" question pool might have been slightly more realistic, but they're both very representative of the test. Also, on my last test, one nice thing I wasn't expecting is that the on-screen calculator was a "virtual" ASA CX-3 instead of a regular calculator, and it actually helped me a lot to have it. It was just like this virtual calculator, and I'd recommend being familiar with using it for the wind correction, arrival time, weight and balance, etc. Just do it...You've got this!
 
InsertCoin said:
Is there really any difference between a 98 and an 80 on the knowledge test (other than bragging rights)?
Click to expand...
Scoring lower the examiner is required to ask questions about the areas you missed on the knowledge test. Scoring high the examiner might want to play stump the chump to see if the material was actually learned.
 
InsertCoin said:
Wow, I'm just a zero-hour lurker, but this thread was as good as any book I've read lately. Crashnburn, Congratulations! Your perseverance is astounding! I certainly can't be giving out much advice, but I will say that I've passed the knowledge test twice (the second time was last Tuesday), and if you're scoring 90s on practice tests, I think it's time to just get on the website and schedule a time to take it. Knowing that the test is scheduled will give you the motivation to focus on deficiencies and cram a little, but honestly, if you're consistently hitting 90-ish on practice tests, you'll be fine. You can continue mastering the finer points after you have the magic sheet of paper. Is there really any difference between a 98 and an 80 on the knowledge test (other than bragging rights)? I'm honestly not sure...I personally just felt like it might save me a little stress to already have a passing score in-hand before I started training and didn't have it hanging over my head, but I'm also sure that there are probably valid holes in my logic. If it's worth anything, I was scoring 85-95 on practice tests both times (I watched the King videos and used both Gleim Online & the Sporty's "study buddy" app for practice tests) and scored right in that range on both attempts and didn't feel like I was thrown any big surprises. To me, it seemed like the "study buddy" question pool might have been slightly more realistic, but they're both very representative of the test. Also, on my last test, one nice thing I wasn't expecting is that the on-screen calculator was a "virtual" ASA CX-3 instead of a regular calculator, and it actually helped me a lot to have it. It was just like this virtual calculator, and I'd recommend being familiar with using it for the wind correction, arrival time, weight and balance, etc. Just do it...You've got this!
Click to expand...
Thanks much for the comments, and the link to the calculator. I've been doing all of my wind triangle work on the Whiz wheel. I've been using the online ASA Test Prep software. Also, it's been a while since I was scoring that high on the prep software and took a break to lick my wounds after getting let go from Vector Air. (I was a lot better pilot when I soloed a couple weeks ago than I was just before I was supposed to solo last year.)
 
Racerx said:
Scoring lower the examiner is required to ask questions about the areas you missed on the knowledge test. Scoring high the examiner might want to play stump the chump to see if the material was actually learned.
Click to expand...
I thought that the examiner could only ask questions in the areas that you were weak in.
 
I did a cross-country with Aaron from Longmont to Akron, CO, and back yesterday. We had planned on stopping in Greely on the way back, but the pizza took too long so we skipped that stop. I need to demonstrate pilotage better before Aaron will cut me loose for a solo cross-country, but I should be able to do that fine next time. We ate ate the airport diner "Miss Bea Having". It was fresh cooked and tasty.

The Akron runway 26/11 looks like a ski jump, but I had no problem landing nor taking off.

We had typical East CO summer weather. Thermals from the ground and turbulence from the wind blowing over the Rockies. I could have used the autopilot, but I figure it was good practice trying to fly straight and level, keep the plane coordinated, and not exceed Va. I noticed later that my left shoulder was a little sore from all the exercise I got herding the plane along. At some points, even though we were 90 - 95 knots, the plane was wallowing like we were in extremely slow flight.

I noticed on final at Longmont that there was a bit of cross wind. I fed in some opposite rudder to take out the crab and kept the plane pointing and going straight down the runway until if finally touched down. I don't know if we had a bit of a tailwind (winds were variable) or that I've had enough time in the cockpit that everything seems to take longer to happen. Even though there's no such thing as too much flying, after two hours of fighting turbulence, I was ready to park the plane.

I was exhausted by the time I got home, but a 35-minute nap rejuvenated me, and I was ready to continue for the rest of the day. I'm lucky a short nap recharges my batteries.
 
Crashnburn said:
I thought that the examiner could only ask questions in the areas that you were weak in.
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No. You are liable for the entirety of the Knowledge tasks for each section of the ACS during the oral and practical exam.
 
Salty said:
Will ask something on all topics. Will ask more on topics you seem less comfortable with. Best to be well prepared on all the material.
Click to expand...

True, so don't try to bluff. You should be well studied, but if you truly don't know something, say so and look it up. Looking up an answer is infinitely better than giving a wrong answer.

My PP DPE asked me some question about medicals, probably the interval. I said, "Don't know, don't care, because I'm on Basic Med. But I can look it up if you need me to, even though it's not applicable to me." I think I was the first examinee he'd had who was using Basic, because he really seemed unfamiliar while I was explaining things to him.
 
Half Fast said:
True, so don't try to bluff. You should be well studied, but if you truly don't know something, say so and look it up. Looking up an answer is infinitely better than giving a wrong answer.

My PP DPE asked me some question about medicals, probably the interval. I said, "Don't know, don't care, because I'm on Basic Med. But I can look it up if you need me to, even though it's not applicable to me." I think I was the first examinee he'd had who was using Basic, because he really seemed unfamiliar while I was explaining things to him.
Click to expand...
One of the questions I got wrong was a stupid basic med question that could have been easily looked up and shouldn't be rote memorization. When the dpe asked, told him I'll look up part 68 when I need it. Not worth memorizing right now.
 
Racerx said:
One of the questions I got wrong was a stupid basic med question that could have been easily looked up and shouldn't be rote memorization. When the dpe asked, told him I'll look up part 68 when I need it. Not worth memorizing right now.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the advice. I'm a recovering engineer, and "I don't know" was always an acceptable answer, much better than making something up, finding out you were wrong, and having to 'fess up.
 
Had another flight yesterday. It was a maintenance flight, as the pilot could either use the intercom, or talk on the radio, but not both. As we were flying into KBJC where the maintenance shop is, I opted for the intercom and let Aaron talk to ATC. This time around I could keep up with the controller.

Before we headed there, I tried an impossible turn, and didn't come close to making the runway. I figured that we'd lose 500 feet making a standard rate turn of 180 degrees. I tried to get fancy and turn 90 degrees into the wind before turning back around. I didn't realize that that 90 degrees added another 90 degrees to the 180 I had originally calculated, so we pretty much lost 1000 feet doing it my way. Well, now I know that idea won't work, and we didn't bend any sheet metal.

We followed 287 from Longmont to Broomfield, at about 105 kts. My sister and her husband are both speed demons, but I doubt they've ever cruised 287 as fast as we did.

We did right traffic to 30L. That meant we crossed in front of 30R but that was what the controller wanted. Surprisingly, I rolled out on final right on the runway center line.

There was a little bit of gusty crosswind; I corrected for it on short final and figured we'd float a while, as we did Saturday. This time, we didn't. The upwind wheel planted pretty firmly, followed by the other main, and I tried not to overcontrol the rudder as the nose came down.

We caught an Uber back to Longmont. EQ is back, with its new 160 HP engine.

I'm making plans to buy a C177B Cardinal. I like the looks, and more importantly, its cabin width. The performance over a Skyhawk with the same engine doesn't hurt, either.

A neighbor down the street has a 177RG; the cabins are the same. I want to make sure the carry through spar doesn't cause me any head room issues, and ask him about transitioning from his previous plane to this one. Next, I'll make sure I can get insurance for it. After that, probably a spot to park it at Longmont, at least until I can get signed off to fly it solo; then park it at Erie until I can get my hangar built. I'll definitely have a pre-buy inspection done. They might not catch everything, but there's nothing like doing due diligence.

Somewhere along the way, my ears stopped getting plugged up. Several months ago, I demonstrated a couple of steep forward slips for Aaron, and I could hear as well after, as before. I chew gum, mostly because I have it, but it doesn't seem to make a difference. I'm still using Flonase (or generic equivalent) but only half as much as recommended.

I don't know why my ears are better, but I wonder if it's because I'm regularly cycling between higher pressure to lower, and back to higher. I don't think it's the dry air, nor altitude because I was having problems with my ears a year ago here.
 
Crashnburn said:
Thanks for the advice. I'm a recovering engineer, and "I don't know" was always an acceptable answer, much better than making something up, finding out you were wrong, and having to 'fess up.
Click to expand...
The oral portion is open book. You don't want to have to go to the book for every question. But when it comes to nuance, the ability to show you know where to find the information quickly is just as important.
 
Had another lesson yesterday. Worked on steep turns, power on and off stalls, turns around a point, engine failure, unusual attitude recovery, and soft field takeoffs and landings.
My first steep turn, it was like the plane was on rails the whole 360 degrees. I had to restart the first turn the other way because I got everything out of kilter. The second try was much better.

I was too high on my first soft field landing attempt, so the plane touched down rather firmly. The second (and last) landing of the day, I was just about the right height.

Two days ago, I worked on short-field and soft-field landings. Aaron says, and pun intended, my short-field landings are spot on. My goal was the 1000-foot markers, and I landed in the middle of them each time. We also tried a couple of impossible turns and couldn't get back to the runway from 1000' AGL either time.

I also have my next XC planned. Longmont to Cheyenne to Akron, CO and back to Longmont. I am continually impressed with ForeFlight's functionality. We'll also practice VOR navigation. Once I prove I can do it with him along, he'll cut me loose to do it solo.

I broke out my Cx-3, finally. It's a lot more accurate than the whiz wheel, and faster on most problems. However, I ran into one problem where it wasn't close to any of the answers. I used the whiz wheel for that one.
 
I finished reviewing all of the aviation knowledge and did the ASA online test twice. First time through, I missed two. Second time, five, but I understand why I missed them. I'll be doing som more practice tests before I get Aaron's endorsement.

I've had three lessons since my last post. We were supposed to go on a XC today: Longmont to Cheyenne to Akron, CO, then back to Longmont, as a trial run for my solo XC, but the weather was marginal and supposed to have TSRA and RA before my time slot was finished. As it was, I snuck my lesson in between bad weather.

I worked on soft and short field landings and demonstrated a short field takeoff. My short field landings are consistently in the 1000-foot markers. I had the choice of the numbers or the 1000-foot markers, but I didn't want to land short if I landed short.

Aaron said my 3rd soft-field was good enough to pass the check ride and he liked my 2nd soft-field landing the best. I hadn't flown since Wed last week, and if anything, my landings were better today than last week.

The ADSB squitter crapped out, so we had to land, and Aaron reset it. We were at the hold short line and 4 or 5 RVs landed; the first one did a low approach and turned on his smoke generator. I talked to one of the pilots who was refilling his plane afterwards and he said they flew in to practice for the air show at Colorado University's home opening football game on Saturday. Almost as cool as seeing the Blue Angels land in front of me when I was sitting at the hold short line in Marysville a couple of years ago.

Another lesson I was doing the Bay Tour, and the Fleet Week airshow had just ended. We were about 5K MSL and I looked down to see a Blue Angel about 4K feet below us. You don't often get to see any fighter from that height. I tried to take a picture, but the plane was behind the wing strut.

I have another 4-hour block scheduled for Wednesday, Foreflight's but MOS says it'll be the same weather as today.

My iPad connects to my Stratus, and Aaron connects to EQ's Sentry. When we were initially waiting at the hold short line, my Stratus picked up a plane long before the Sentry, and before either of us could see it. If we hadn't seen it on ADS-B, we might have been on the runway when the plane was on final, and at best forced him to go-around.

After the 4th landing, when we were in the pattern, I didn't like how visibility was getting. I couldn't see the mountains, and everything was closing in so I told Aaron that we were done after that landing. Turns out we probably had 5 miles of visibility, but at most I probably would have made one more lap. Still, when I was done with the very short debrief, I saw some planes in the pattern. Still, discretion is the better part of valor.

We'll probably have grumpy weather for a week, the 2 or 3 months of nice weather. I'm hoping I can get my knowledge exam done soon and pass my check ride before winter sets in.

I talked with my insurance company. Turns out I'm now in an age range where I have to have my PPL before they'll talk to me about insuring my own plane. Another reason to expedite.
 
Crashnburn said:
After the 4th landing, when we were in the pattern, I didn't like how visibility was getting. I couldn't see the mountains, and everything was closing in so I told Aaron that we were done after that landing. Turns out we probably had 5 miles of visibility, but at most I probably would have made one more lap. Still, when I was done with the very short debrief, I saw some planes in the pattern. Still, discretion is the better part of valor.
Click to expand...

Good ADM. Keep it up.
 
Forgot to mention on a previous flight, we were on downwind, and planes kept stacking up on final. By the time I was able to turn base, and then final, I could hardly see the airport. At least it gave me time to stabilize my approach. Actually, for the most part, I have plenty of time to stabilize my approach when I turn final from the usual distance.

I had another cross-country Wednesday. I'm not quite ready for the solo journey. The turbulence and thermals were relentless. The ride was rougher than trying to wipe with an uncooked corncob. At one point, the wind lifted my right wing and banked the plane hard left. I already had the ailerons and rudder in to bank us back to the course when Aaron yelled at me for being off course.

A couple flights ago, Aaron told me I was responsible for spotting traffic, and he wouldn't speak up unless it gets too close, and except for a few times, he's been quiet. One time it was my bad. We were on downwind, and a pilot said he was joining the downwind on the 45. I assumed (you know what three words come from assume) that he would see us. Well, he didn't, and he wasn't listening very well to his radio. Aaron had to call him 3 times before he noticed us. I learned a lot about flying from that.

I had another new CFI yesterday, Claudia. She's also a multi-engine instructor, but it will be a while, if ever, before I'm ready for multi. Anyway, we flew to Greely for a touch and go, then returned to Longmont. I tried a soft field landing, but she explained what I did wrong, I added a bit of power before we were in ground effect, so the plane stalled instead of gently touching down.

She gave me a pre-descent checklist that will really help in my cross-country flights. Much better than anything I've gotten from Aaron. I plan to put it on a 3 x 5 card and slip it into my kneeboard.

Next lesson is Monday, with Kate. (I think I've set the world's record for CFIs.)
 
Crashnburn said:
Forgot to mention on a previous flight, we were on downwind, and planes kept stacking up on final. By the time I was able to turn base, and then final, I could hardly see the airport.
Click to expand...

If there's nobody behind you, these situations present a good opportunity to practice slow flight.
 
ColinD said:
If there's nobody behind you, these situations present a good opportunity to practice slow flight.
Click to expand...
True. My CFIs agree I practice slow flight whenever I'm on final. I had 10 degrees of flaps in, so I was flying less than 85 knots, which isn't the definition of slow flight but definitely slower than cruise.

Tomorrow's flight has been cancelled. EQ's XPNDR is INOP. I'm hoping it will be fixed/replaced by Wednesday.

EQ has a more sensitive rudder (because it's a converted tailwheel) so flying it gives me the chance to practice tap the rudder pedal and wait for a response, as you do in a tailwheel plane. It flies a bit faster than before, and it doesn't need coaxing when taking off. The new engine got basic cruise up to 95 knots (from 90) and if there are thermals, it will get up to 100. Considering VA is about 95 with 2 people, the plane is fast enough now. I fly around VA a lot here in NE Colorado.

If my flight simulator was usable, I could practice descent procedures, but Claudia sent me a list of what needs to be done pre-descent. I copied it onto a note card, with enhancements, and stuck it in my knee board. That should help a lot.
 
Racerx said:
If you're missing 2-5 out of 65... Take the written
Click to expand...
Thanks. I'm missing 4 to 5 out of 60. I'll see my CFI Saturday and see about getting an endorsement. In the meantime, I plan to keep studying. My CX-3 Flight Computer really helps, but I find it occasionally gets confused. The E6-B from my Cessna Flight School days has a protractor that really helps finding VOR radials.
 
If you used an on line course like Sporty’s, Gleim, King, then that will generate an endorsement for you why taking their final test / review.
 
If the cx3 is confused, it's an input error.
 
Crashnburn said:
I saw 4.25 on a flight duration question when the answer was supposed to be 4.08, and all of my inputs were correct.
Click to expand...

How do you know the answers provided were correct?

Sometimes it’s about finding the most correct answer, not the exactly correct error. Other times it’s understanding what piece of information was overlooked.
 
Skip Miller said:
If that is the case, go back and check the inputs for knots/mph, statute/nautical miles discrepancies as well. -Skip
Click to expand...
TCABM said:
How do you know the answers provided were correct?

Sometimes it’s about finding the most correct answer, not the exactly correct error. Other times it’s understanding what piece of information was overlooked.
Click to expand...
I know 4.08 is correct, because that's the correct answer on the test, as well as other calculators give 4.08.

I went back, cleared all of the registers and tried again. It came out with 4.08 that time.
 
I had another lesson, which was another maintenance flight to KBJC, Wednesday. I did most of the tower comms this time. (The plane needed a new XPNDR). Anyway, it was a round trip this time.

I avoided an accident on the ground to start. We were just entering the taxiway to taxi to 11 for departure and I saw a plane that had just landed zip onto the exit ramp and come around the corner. My CF CFI said they'd stop for us, but I've seen enough cars run exit ramp signs on the highway to not expect they would stop, and they didn't. I didn't want to have two banged up planes as well as the FAA and insurance to deal with. As Claudia was the CFI and PIC, it would have been on her, but I still would have felt awful.

We used my note card that has the acronym Claudia gave me after my previous flight with her. It helped a lot in getting ready for contacting Metro Tower. I was able to keep up with the controller, it was just hard to find a break in the comms so I could state my intentions.

The crosswind was stronger than I expected, and 30 R didn't register with me immediately, so we drifted almost into 30L's path. I got told about it; luckily, I didn't get a phone number.

I did a soft- field crosswind with gusts landing there, and back at KLMO. Funny thing, when I first came to CO, my sister and I visited KEIK and the wind was calm. I told her I was disappointed that I wouldn't get much chance to practice my crosswind landings. I guess you should be careful what you ask for.

On the way back, my iPad mini overheated so I had to shut it off. I found a cooler for it on Amazon, and it should be here by Sunday, after my XC flight tomorrow. Fortunately, the weather has cooled off so there shouldn't be a problem.

I got 59 of 60 on my practice test today. I knew the one I missed, I just selected the wrong answer. I'd say I'm ready.
 
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