SkyHog
Touchdown! Greaser!
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Everything Offends Me
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Frustration!!! (DUAL Posted, AOPA and POA)
- Thread starter SkyHog
- Start date
Brian Austin
En-Route
Sometimes you have a good day, sometimes you have a bad day. It happens to everyone.
If you learned something, regardless of your own opinion of your performance, it was a good day.
If you learned something, regardless of your own opinion of your performance, it was a good day.
gibbons
En-Route
NickDBrennan said:
Nick,
Glad to hear that I'm not the only one this has happened to. My "test apprehension" level gets so high as I get close to the check ride that I start questioning if I'll ever be ready. Fortunately, I've had great instructors and they've been able to help.
I can truthfully say that within the first five minutes of any of my checkrides I settled down and, while the nervousness didn't go away, it fell to a controllable level. I try to remind myself that the worst that can happen is that I'll have to retake part of the ride. Lots of very, very good pilots have retaken check rides so it's not the end of the world.
Please post back and let us know if the ride doesn't go much better than these few lessons leading up to it. I think it will.
Chip
jdwatson
Line Up and Wait
Nick,
I know what you're going through. I was a week out from my IFR checkride. I had one of those "do no wrong" days and was feeling great. My CFI-I was convinced that I was ready. A few days later we went out to do another "checkride" dry-run with all the steep turns and etc. Well, I couldn't do anything right. After more than two hours of trying, I limped home with my tail tucked. I called and cancelled my checkride.
A couple days later, I went out with another instructor (my CFII was away) and that "do no wrong" guy was back. I went two more times and each time I was up to the task. Turns out, I let one marginal day destroy my confidence. You can have safe, but marginal day and still be a good pilot. I passed my IFR checkride with confidence and haven't looked back since.
My moral of the story, don't let one day diminish what you've accomplished.
I know what you're going through. I was a week out from my IFR checkride. I had one of those "do no wrong" days and was feeling great. My CFI-I was convinced that I was ready. A few days later we went out to do another "checkride" dry-run with all the steep turns and etc. Well, I couldn't do anything right. After more than two hours of trying, I limped home with my tail tucked. I called and cancelled my checkride.
A couple days later, I went out with another instructor (my CFII was away) and that "do no wrong" guy was back. I went two more times and each time I was up to the task. Turns out, I let one marginal day destroy my confidence. You can have safe, but marginal day and still be a good pilot. I passed my IFR checkride with confidence and haven't looked back since.
My moral of the story, don't let one day diminish what you've accomplished.
spiderweb
Final Approach
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- Feb 22, 2005
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Ben
Nick, some days are just made for staying in bed, but I do have a suggestion. What I tell my (cello) students to do to help calm themselves is to breathe slowly and measuredly, with more time spent on the outbreath. The outbreath relaxes the muscles.
I use this when flying an ILS, or when landing in difficult conditions. So for example, on final when everything else is done, I am trying to "become one" with the airplane. I breath in on a slow three count, breathe out on a slow five. Feel your neck, back, and shoulders relax. I guarantee that your reactions will be smoother. This is what you need, because nervous, jerky responses tend to be cyclic and promote nervous, jerky counter-responses.
I hope this sorta makes sense!
I use this when flying an ILS, or when landing in difficult conditions. So for example, on final when everything else is done, I am trying to "become one" with the airplane. I breath in on a slow three count, breathe out on a slow five. Feel your neck, back, and shoulders relax. I guarantee that your reactions will be smoother. This is what you need, because nervous, jerky responses tend to be cyclic and promote nervous, jerky counter-responses.
I hope this sorta makes sense!
MSmith
Line Up and Wait
Hang in there, Nick.
My "3 hours of test prep" turned out to be more like 6. I had to battle my personal nemesis - steep turns. In the course of doing that, I developed a secondary stall problem on my power-off stalls that hadn't been there in any of my previous training. Once those were conquered, my checkride went fine.
My "3 hours of test prep" turned out to be more like 6. I had to battle my personal nemesis - steep turns. In the course of doing that, I developed a secondary stall problem on my power-off stalls that hadn't been there in any of my previous training. Once those were conquered, my checkride went fine.
glpilot
Pre-takeoff checklist
jdwatson said:
You mean I have to do steep turns again for the instrument checkride?
UGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH...........
Ahh what am I worried about, I did them fine on my checkride. But I have not done them in so long I am having flashbacks of when I first attempted them.
BruceAir
Pre-takeoff checklist
Note that the new PTS for the instrument rating includes a change in how flight maneuvers are to be handled:
From the new FAA-S-8081-4D, Instrument Rating Practical Test Standards for Airplane, Helicopter, and Powered Lift:
================
The need for testing basic instrument flight maneuvers throughout the practical test instead of being treated as separate TASKs has been addressed in AREA OF OPERATION IV.
AREA OF OPERATION IV requires the evaluation of basic instrument flight maneuvers under both full-panel and references to backup primary flight instruments/electronic flight instrument displays. These maneuvers are described in detail in FAA-H-8083-15, Instrument Flying Handbook. [See this link for parts 2-4 of this handbook] Examiners should determine that the applicant demonstrates competency in either the PRIMARY and SUPPORTING or the CONTROL and PERFORMACE CONCEPT method of instrument flying. Either attitude instrument flying method is described in FAA-H-8083-15 and is recommended by the FAA because it requires specific knowledge and interpretation of each individual instrument during training.
IV. AREA OF OPERATION: FLIGHT BY REFERENCE TO INSTRUMENTS
A. TASK: BASIC INSTRUMENT FLIGHT MANEUVERS (IA, IH, PL, AA, HA, PLA, PC) REFERENCES: 14 CFR part 61; FAA-H-8083-15.
Objective. To determine the applicant can perform basic flight maneuvers.
1. Exhibits adequate knowledge of the elements related to attitude instrument flying during straight-and-level, climbs, turns, and descents while conducting various instrument flight procedures.
2. Maintains altitude within +/- 100 feet during level flight, headings within +/- 10°, airspeed within +/- 10 knots, and bank angles within +/- 5° during turns.
3. Uses proper instrument crosscheck and interpretation, and apply the appropriate pitch, bank, power, and trim corrections when applicable.
=============
Steep turns are no longer listed separately among the required maneuvers (in fact, the phrase "steep turns" doesn't appear in the PTS). Of course, the section on recovery from unusual attitudes remains.
A good review of the new PTS for the instrument rating is also available in the first-quarter 2005 edition of the AOPA Air Safety Foundation's Instructor Report (although this article doesn't appear to be online yet, you can find Instructor Reports at http://www.aopa.org/asf/publications/inst_reports.cfm).
If you're training for an instrument rating or preparing for an IPC, you should review the new PTS, which became effective October 1, 2004.
One of the best sections of this new PTS (or any PTS, for that matter) is the list of references. It's a checklist of things you should know.
All of the current practical test standards are available for free download from the FAA Web site. You can find links to many references for pilots, examiners, FAA inspectors, et al. at http://www.faa.gov/education_research/training/
From the new FAA-S-8081-4D, Instrument Rating Practical Test Standards for Airplane, Helicopter, and Powered Lift:
================
The need for testing basic instrument flight maneuvers throughout the practical test instead of being treated as separate TASKs has been addressed in AREA OF OPERATION IV.
AREA OF OPERATION IV requires the evaluation of basic instrument flight maneuvers under both full-panel and references to backup primary flight instruments/electronic flight instrument displays. These maneuvers are described in detail in FAA-H-8083-15, Instrument Flying Handbook. [See this link for parts 2-4 of this handbook] Examiners should determine that the applicant demonstrates competency in either the PRIMARY and SUPPORTING or the CONTROL and PERFORMACE CONCEPT method of instrument flying. Either attitude instrument flying method is described in FAA-H-8083-15 and is recommended by the FAA because it requires specific knowledge and interpretation of each individual instrument during training.
IV. AREA OF OPERATION: FLIGHT BY REFERENCE TO INSTRUMENTS
A. TASK: BASIC INSTRUMENT FLIGHT MANEUVERS (IA, IH, PL, AA, HA, PLA, PC) REFERENCES: 14 CFR part 61; FAA-H-8083-15.
Objective. To determine the applicant can perform basic flight maneuvers.
1. Exhibits adequate knowledge of the elements related to attitude instrument flying during straight-and-level, climbs, turns, and descents while conducting various instrument flight procedures.
2. Maintains altitude within +/- 100 feet during level flight, headings within +/- 10°, airspeed within +/- 10 knots, and bank angles within +/- 5° during turns.
3. Uses proper instrument crosscheck and interpretation, and apply the appropriate pitch, bank, power, and trim corrections when applicable.
=============
Steep turns are no longer listed separately among the required maneuvers (in fact, the phrase "steep turns" doesn't appear in the PTS). Of course, the section on recovery from unusual attitudes remains.
A good review of the new PTS for the instrument rating is also available in the first-quarter 2005 edition of the AOPA Air Safety Foundation's Instructor Report (although this article doesn't appear to be online yet, you can find Instructor Reports at http://www.aopa.org/asf/publications/inst_reports.cfm).
If you're training for an instrument rating or preparing for an IPC, you should review the new PTS, which became effective October 1, 2004.
One of the best sections of this new PTS (or any PTS, for that matter) is the list of references. It's a checklist of things you should know.
All of the current practical test standards are available for free download from the FAA Web site. You can find links to many references for pilots, examiners, FAA inspectors, et al. at http://www.faa.gov/education_research/training/
lsimonds
Pre-Flight
Nick,
You know what they say in theater? A bad dress rehersal always means a great performance!
Here's how I look at this type of thing. We all have good days and off days and great days. What makes us competent is that on our worst day we don't prang. It's like there's an imaginary line of safe performance, and as we progress our peaks rise above that line and then our valleys rise above it. There will always be the peaks and valleys, but at our worst we are still safe pilots. That's how I look at it anyway.
Good luck!
You know what they say in theater? A bad dress rehersal always means a great performance!
Here's how I look at this type of thing. We all have good days and off days and great days. What makes us competent is that on our worst day we don't prang. It's like there's an imaginary line of safe performance, and as we progress our peaks rise above that line and then our valleys rise above it. There will always be the peaks and valleys, but at our worst we are still safe pilots. That's how I look at it anyway.
Good luck!
M
Mark S
Guest
Nick,
Hang in there. We've all been in your shoes before and you will end up doing fine.
Hang in there. We've all been in your shoes before and you will end up doing fine.
bbchien
Touchdown! Greaser!
60 deg. for the ATP under the hood. BTDT.