Aztec Driver
Line Up and Wait
I had my 6 month IPC / pt 135 checkride today.
Honestly, I can't understand how they let me continue to fly, sometimes.
Weather varied from 800 - 1200 overcast and 3-5 miles visibility, unless you really waned to see something, then it was 2 miles.
Had to do a local IFR file to do the entire ride, almost all in IMC. Started off right away by tuning the wrong frequency for approach, a frequency I use all the time when leaving the home drome. I transposed two numbers and could not figure out why I could not raise anyone. That seems to have set the tone for the ride.
We entered a hold at the initial approach fix and asked ATC for an extra turn in the hold for some maneuvers, a maneuver that I have never done in IMC before in my life, a power off imminent stall. Thankfully, ATC gave us a Pilot's Discretion descent of 1000 feet, so any altitude loss would not be noticed. But that was highly disorienting, and disturbing. Ended up at the approach fix for the turn at the same time as the stall was coming to an end, a situation that made things very interesting. Ended up in a steeper than normal turn, slower than I would like, turning around in the hold whilst recovering from the imminent stall. Ended up turning around a point and heading back up the wrong way on the hold. No big deal, just reverse the entry just like we did before. Then on to the ILS approach.
Well, we can't have two engines. That would be too easy. The pilot is still breathing, albeit a little uneasy and sweaty now. So, down the rails I go with one engine, yawing and bobbing and weaving like a drunken bum. I was way high and way off to the side for a good portion of the time. Using really large corrections, swaying back and forth, I managed to wrestle the beast back to the centerlines and actually pull out a reasonable landing. I think, though, that it may have been the worst ILS I have ever done, including training. My corrections were like a gorilla was at the controls.
Ah, a brief respite on the runway, it was back into the soup for some non precision approaches. Didn't do too bad on either of those, although I was rather high on the GPS approach. Managed, again, to eek it out at the end with some slightly higher than normal sink rate. Leveled off at circling minimums and did a circle to land. Contrary to the ATIS, the weather was 800 overcast and 2 miles visibility, not 1200 and 7 miles. Just barely able to keep the runways in sight at the mile and a half circle. Managed to have a decent landing there , too.
A fun time, but brutal. The examiner is a really nice person. He exudes calm. I enjoy flying with him, as opposed to my boss, who, for some reason, makes me nervous every time I fly with him.
Good for another five months, anyway.
See, Kimberly, even those of us who get paid to fly have terrible days too.
Honestly, I can't understand how they let me continue to fly, sometimes.
Weather varied from 800 - 1200 overcast and 3-5 miles visibility, unless you really waned to see something, then it was 2 miles.
Had to do a local IFR file to do the entire ride, almost all in IMC. Started off right away by tuning the wrong frequency for approach, a frequency I use all the time when leaving the home drome. I transposed two numbers and could not figure out why I could not raise anyone. That seems to have set the tone for the ride.
We entered a hold at the initial approach fix and asked ATC for an extra turn in the hold for some maneuvers, a maneuver that I have never done in IMC before in my life, a power off imminent stall. Thankfully, ATC gave us a Pilot's Discretion descent of 1000 feet, so any altitude loss would not be noticed. But that was highly disorienting, and disturbing. Ended up at the approach fix for the turn at the same time as the stall was coming to an end, a situation that made things very interesting. Ended up in a steeper than normal turn, slower than I would like, turning around in the hold whilst recovering from the imminent stall. Ended up turning around a point and heading back up the wrong way on the hold. No big deal, just reverse the entry just like we did before. Then on to the ILS approach.
Well, we can't have two engines. That would be too easy. The pilot is still breathing, albeit a little uneasy and sweaty now. So, down the rails I go with one engine, yawing and bobbing and weaving like a drunken bum. I was way high and way off to the side for a good portion of the time. Using really large corrections, swaying back and forth, I managed to wrestle the beast back to the centerlines and actually pull out a reasonable landing. I think, though, that it may have been the worst ILS I have ever done, including training. My corrections were like a gorilla was at the controls.
Ah, a brief respite on the runway, it was back into the soup for some non precision approaches. Didn't do too bad on either of those, although I was rather high on the GPS approach. Managed, again, to eek it out at the end with some slightly higher than normal sink rate. Leveled off at circling minimums and did a circle to land. Contrary to the ATIS, the weather was 800 overcast and 2 miles visibility, not 1200 and 7 miles. Just barely able to keep the runways in sight at the mile and a half circle. Managed to have a decent landing there , too.
A fun time, but brutal. The examiner is a really nice person. He exudes calm. I enjoy flying with him, as opposed to my boss, who, for some reason, makes me nervous every time I fly with him.
Good for another five months, anyway.
See, Kimberly, even those of us who get paid to fly have terrible days too.
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Sounds like you worked through it just fine.
