Flight Lesson: 03-12-10

Snaggletooth

Snaggletooth

Line Up and Wait
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Dustin
I got back from doing my Night XC Flight lastnight. We ended up flying from BYY direct to 66R, then flew direct to VCT, then navigated to the PSX VOR, and then turned for BYY.



After getting the Flight Plans ready, and doing the Preflight we taxied down to Runway Three One for Take Off. After going wheels up we turned on course for 66R. As we climbed up to 2,500ft we called and got Flight Following. It was a beautiful night for flying. We had probably, 20+nm visibility, no Clouds below 12,000ft, and no Turbulence what so ever. It amazing how many aircraft you see flying around you at night that you can't see during the day. At one point we counted seven Aircraft out in front of us. We made to in to 66R fine, got the other plane ready to go then we took off and headed to VCT. using the tailwind to our advantage we climbed up to 3,000ft. Made one Touch and Go at VCT then turned for the PSX VOR. Once we got the From reading on the VOR we turned for home, BYY.

I had a blast. One of my favorite things to do in Aviation is flying Cross Country, but I have to say that Night flying is a a very close Second Place.

I'm excited to say, I now have 39.8 Hours logged! Just off the FAA Minimums! The Check Ride is closing in!!!
 
Snaggletooth said:
I got back from doing my Night XC Flight lastnight. We ended up flying from BYY direct to 66R, then flew direct to VCT, then navigated to the PSX VOR, and then turned for BYY.



After getting the Flight Plans ready, and doing the Preflight we taxied down to Runway Three One for Take Off. After going wheels up we turned on course for 66R. As we climbed up to 2,500ft we called and got Flight Following. It was a beautiful night for flying. We had probably, 20+nm visibility, no Clouds below 12,000ft, and no Turbulence what so ever. It amazing how many aircraft you see flying around you at night that you can't see during the day. At one point we counted seven Aircraft out in front of us. We made to in to 66R fine, got the other plane ready to go then we took off and headed to VCT. using the tailwind to our advantage we climbed up to 3,000ft. Made one Touch and Go at VCT then turned for the PSX VOR. Once we got the From reading on the VOR we turned for home, BYY.

I had a blast. One of my favorite things to do in Aviation is flying Cross Country, but I have to say that Night flying is a a very close Second Place.

I'm excited to say, I now have 39.8 Hours logged! Just off the FAA Minimums! The Check Ride is closing in!!!
Click to expand...

What! You didn't get lost? I thought everyone gets lost on the night cross country. (or did, back in the olden days before GPS and stuff)
 
LOL we had GPS too...covered up on the outbound leg and uncovered back home...so we still had the VOR-1 function and I could see the freqs on the left side of the display. I had an evil CFI (but I learned alot)
 
Ours was uncovered for the whole flight. It's a Northstar M3.
 
Trapper John said:
Good you had a nice flight, but by using GPS, you missed a good opportunity to build pilotage and/or ded reckoning skills.
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It was a long time ago, so I don't remember all the details, but I recall all the lights from the different cities, and at one point the instructor looks over and says "You don't know where you are, do you..."
 
My night XC was almost ridiculously easy- Millville, NJ (KMIV) to Salisbury, MD (KSBY) and back. Cross the bay, fly over over Dover AFB, turn left on course. I could see the airport beacon as we settled on course and Hwy 13 on my right- just followed that all the way down. Coming back was just as easy...follow the highway until over Dover and find the KMIV beacon. I didn't even bother looking at the electronics.
 
Cap'n Jack said:
My night XC was almost ridiculously easy- Millville, NJ (KMIV) to Salisbury, MD (KSBY) and back. Cross the bay, fly over over Dover AFB, turn left on course. I could see the airport beacon as we settled on course and Hwy 13 on my right- just followed that all the way down. Coming back was just as easy...follow the highway until over Dover and find the KMIV beacon. I didn't even bother looking at the electronics.
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When you have good map sense, most pilotage flights seem like cheating.

Some have the ability to translate map to view-out-the-window. Some don't. If you don't, it can be learned -- just takes practice, and too many gadgets take away from the practice.

I had one student who could tell me where he was any time, anywhere, but couldn't figure out the 430 menu system.
 
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Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
What! You didn't get lost? I thought everyone gets lost on the night cross country. (or did, back in the olden days before GPS and stuff)
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No problem on my night XC back in 2001. OLM-PAE-AWO-OLM. GPS? Not in that plane then (430 now). Did the whole 3 hours and 10 take offs and landings as part of the flight.

dmccormack said:
When you have good map sense, most pilotage flights seem like cheating.

Some have the ability to translate map to view-out-the-window. Some don't. If you don't, it can be learned -- just takes practice, and too many gadgets take away from the practice.

I had one student who could tell me where he was any time, anywhere, but couldn't figure out the 430 menu system.
Click to expand...

That's me. I have no trouble keeping track of where I am VFR, but there's a good reason why my IR check ride is going to be in the 182 and not the 430 equipped 172. :D
 
AuntPeggy said:
I'm putting one on mine for my checkride.
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I don't have one to worry about... the downside is that I've never flown an NDB approach and wouldn't know how to, if someday I find myself flying something equipped for one with no other legal alternative. But the chances that "someday" will be anytime soon are pretty small.

BTW, I thought I read somewhere (here or on the Red Board) that the DPE could check the logs to be sure that it really was INOP?
 
Ghery said:
That's me. I have no trouble keeping track of where I am VFR, but there's a good reason why my IR check ride is going to be in the 182 and not the 430 equipped 172. :D
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Me too, usually. The DPE for my private checkride even commented that she hadn't had too many examinees before me who could always tell exactly what direction the airport was in by pilotage alone. My night XC was 76G-MOP-76G -- a piece of cake since Midland, Bay City, Saginaw, Flint, and Port Huron are pretty hard to miss (not to mention Detroit, of course ;)), and there are lots of nice bright beacons along the way.

But I like to use every tool available unless I know the area really well. I don't have a problem with 430 GPS menus -- though I have to stop and think sometimes when the workload gets heavy. Now the 480... dunno about that one. There may be a 480 in my future and I'm looking at the Pilots Guide to figure out if it's something I'll take to easily or if the learning curve will be a tough one.
 
DutchessFlier said:
Oh man, do I want to put an inop sticker on my ADF when I take the IR checkride!
Click to expand...

If I survived a checkride with the ADF then so can you. In other words, I'm not particularly good at this IFR stuff. OTOH, my airplane is coming along nicely to make it much easier: Aspen, autopilot, GPS, GPSS, more and more components rebuilt as time goes by...I figure in five or ten years I'll have a totally new old aircraft.

Now, repeat after me: NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad,NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad, NDB approaches aren't that bad.

There. All better now?
 
Yeah Clark, you made it all better! Rub the lamp and wish it went away!
Word around here is that most of the folks who do checkrides haven't seen an NDB either so its not something they usually ask to see on the checkride anyway. I am told that perhaps the ADF will get my plane into the air and space museum someday!!!
 
Ahhh, ya wimps... I'm still PO because my airport shut off the NDB to save money...
(county owned airport and they expect it to turn a profit - though they cheerfully keep funding county parks and boat ramps that the public uses for free)...
I miss doing the NDB approach, doubling the angle off the needle, etc...

On any XC practice runs I give, there is no GPS used... Charts, VOR, NDB (if any), whiskey compass, and a clock... When the day comes that some whacko takes out the GPS signals over an area, if you happen to be flying, that is what you will have to get yourself back on the ground... It would be nice to have practiced it once, even if it was long ago...

In fact, let me offer for free, no charge, for the next fly-in would be an XC rally, with a triangle course that has to be done with only a chart, whiskey compass, and a clock...
Of course, you have to flight plan and calculate the time around the course... Then the winners are the ones closest to their calculated times...
The REAL winners will be everyone who takes on the challenge...

denny-o
 
DutchessFlier said:
Oh man, do I want to put an inop sticker on my ADF when I take the IR checkride!
Click to expand...

AuntPeggy said:
I'm putting one on mine for my checkride.
Click to expand...

Once I figured out how to teach 'em, it never took more than an hour to teach NDB approaches.

First thing you have to do is get out of the friggin' airplane.

Then, find something that will work with gravity to stay put (I used a bottle of oil, but I suppose that would be "un-green", wouldn't it?:mad2:

Put said object in the center of a large hangar or ramp.

Draw a rudimentary compass rose on a piece of paper, and keep the pencil/pen that you drew with in your hand.

Now...walk around the ramp/hangar. Keep the pencil pointed at the oil bottle at all times--this is your ADF pointer. Keep the compass rose oriented with north (or a predetermined simulated north reference, which may be easier) at all times--you've got a high-tech RMI card, so use it. ;) "Fly" procedures with your body pointed in the direction of the nose of the airplane. Pretty easy in no-wind...just walk forward. Gets a little more complicated with wind components added--you have to walk crooked. But it works.

"Fly" some approaches and holds this way, and you'll find they go a lot easier in the airplane.

Fly safe!

David
 
DutchessFlier said:
Oh man, do I want to put an inop sticker on my ADF when I take the IR checkride!
Click to expand...

AuntPeggy said:
I'm putting one on mine for my checkride.
Click to expand...
Careful! I understand that the DPE now is supposed to check the airplane logbook and verify that the correct entry was made there about rendering it inoperative.
 
Dr. O said:
Ahhh, ya wimps... I'm still PO because my airport shut off the NDB to save money...
(county owned airport and they expect it to turn a profit - though they cheerfully keep funding county parks and boat ramps that the public uses for free)...
I miss doing the NDB approach, doubling the angle off the needle, etc...

On any XC practice runs I give, there is no GPS used... Charts, VOR, NDB (if any), whiskey compass, and a clock... When the day comes that some whacko takes out the GPS signals over an area, if you happen to be flying, that is what you will have to get yourself back on the ground... It would be nice to have practiced it once, even if it was long ago...

In fact, let me offer for free, no charge, for the next fly-in would be an XC rally, with a triangle course that has to be done with only a chart, whiskey compass, and a clock...
Of course, you have to flight plan and calculate the time around the course... Then the winners are the ones closest to their calculated times...
The REAL winners will be everyone who takes on the challenge...

denny-o
Click to expand...


Any extra points if I do it in my glider?

I still like the day I sent my student off on his Solo Cross country In a C-150. I then launched in the glider and flew the same course.

Brian
CFIIG/ASEL
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
What! You didn't get lost? I thought everyone gets lost on the night cross country. (or did, back in the olden days before GPS and stuff)
Click to expand...

No GPS and I didn't get lost. Just followed the freeway up and back. The next morning I got in late (late night) and my postdoc was polishing up his resume. He looked white as a ghost. Someone had gone down on my route, and he thought it was me.
 
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