So, student pilots.. Who are we and where do we stand?

....and we had a disappointing day today. After about an hour of flight, the ABS CFI and I landed (very smoothly) at KENW. We got taxi instructions, rolled back up to the hold short line, and paused to re-load the flight plan and check everything before heading back to home base. Tower clears us to take off and we start to roll onto the runway....

.....and the plane didn't want to roll. We got about 20 feet past the hold line and scrubbed the takeoff.

Uh-oh.

Long story short, somehere during the taxi-back we must have rolled over something sharp, because the nose gear tire was dead flat. Fun. 2 hour Uber ride back to KETB got us back where we started, but without an airplane.

Welcome to aircraft ownership, I guess.
 
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Cali kid over here, I just started ground school & hoping to start flight training in a couple of months!
 
Half Fast said:
C’est la GA.

I found a bad exhaust valve last week. While the cylinder was off I found corrosion and pitting on the cam lobes. Now I’m looking into an engine OH.

Grumblegrumble.......
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I really hate to hear that but sometimes bad things happen to good people ...
 
Half Fast said:
In the long run it’ll be a good thing. A fresh motor that I can trust.
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Got a friend in Tennessee that had a similar experience when he noticed something strange with EGT on one cylinder. A&P pulled a jug and found a cam lobe was wiped. He's almost done spending money and about ready to fly the thing again. But, as you say, he now has an engine that he can have confidence in ...
 
Daleandee said:
But, as you say, he now has an engine that he can have confidence in ...
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Well, after the first 200 hours perhaps! I just had an engine overhaul and did a coast-to-coast after about ten hours of local hard flying for break-in. I have never been more suspicious of an airplane engine than I am of mine right now, even though its running flawlessly. If something is going to break or declare that it wasn't installed correctly, now is the time.

Happily, I installed a GI-275 engine monitor in the meantime. I have never been so happy to have hard data as I was when I started imagining weird engine sounds while working my way through the mountains! Those little green bars kept my blood pressure in check!
 
Gess said:
This ended up being down for 9 weeks. I'm staying in the club and looking forward to flying the plane when I get my PPL, but I've joined the local flight school to finish this up. I only flew 17 hours between June 1 and November 1.
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Had my first solo today, at a busy Class D. The flying was easy but the airport was busy and it threw in a few challenges so that was a lot of fun.

I've flown 15.8 hours since 1-Nov and am now progressing nicely.
 
Up to 20+ hours since March 2024. The weather and repairs have really limited me the last two months. Last week, it was icing.Today, the Cessna 150M's left magneto died during run up. I love flying and will continue at it til I either get my license or die! Still working towards soloing. Ran through ground school once, but going to do it again before taking the knowledge test. I got together back to twice a week….. $$$ yikes!
 
Passed my written test for private pilot today.
About time , I started lessons in 1970 , now 84 years old . 250 hours in my log book . Now on to the DPE scheduling.
I’m happy to finally get past that point. Hopefully January will have some good flying weather for test.
 
Started flying from the right seat yesterday, kinda feel like a 20-hour student pilot again. All my right-hand-stick tailwheel time helped with the control inputs, but the new sight picture is downright odd. Solo practice tomorrow.
 
Instrument rating finally done, after initially starting it and planning to get it back in 2020. Life, uh, gets in the way.

Next up in the learning journey is plane ownership
 
Sierra1 said:
XC solo done, what a cool feeling. Had a couple small hiccups to improve on but probably being tough on myself. Overall it was amazing to do.
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Completed my night flying requirements last night. Weather permitting I'll be doing my XC solo tomorrow. Then all my requirements will be met. Still need to take written. Been procrastinating on that but have committed to my instructor to get that done by end of March. Getting close.
 
strikes2k said:
Completed my night flying requirements last night. Weather permitting I'll be doing my XC solo tomorrow. Then all my requirements will be met. Still need to take written. Been procrastinating on that but have committed to my instructor to get that done by end of March. Getting close.
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I loved my night flight, but sobering when you look around for a potential landing spot and realize it’s all a dark hole you would be guessing at.
 
I finally took the written and passed . Been 5 years since I started flying lessons. Have 250 hours total time . Bought my 172 after the first few hours in the 150 pictured in avatar. Waiting for some nice spring weather to take the flight test. No big rush as I really don't have any place I want to fly to. At age 84 its getting tougher to pull and push the 172 in and out of hangar. When I can no longer do that by hand I shall quit.
My 1959 straight tail has been through 5 annuals with no major repairs needed. 9900+ hours on air frame, 1500 hours since MOH.
At one point the engine crank was changed and upgraded to a O-300 C.
I love my Cessna. :)
 
Passed my Private Pilot ASEL checkride yesterday and it went very well. Well enough the DPE said I should seriously think about becoming an instructor. It still hasn't quite hit me yet, although it's funny, it's kind of terrifying knowing I'm on my own now. I know that's a normal feeling and I also know I can and will, continue learning and communicating with my instructors. Anyway, I'll enjoy this for a bit then get back into learning complex, high performance, and mountain flying.
 
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Mooneymayhem said:
it's kind of terrifying knowing I'm on my own now.
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No you're not. You've joined a tight-knit group of a skilled people who will continued to be flying, chatting, and arguing with you, for as long as your remain in the community! Congratulations!
 
Gess said:
Had my first solo today, at a busy Class D. The flying was easy but the airport was busy and it threw in a few challenges so that was a lot of fun.
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Finished all my specific requirements last week. The school assigns checkrides for the next month around this time, and I was given a checkride date of April 24th. Time to transition from general anxiety to focused anxiety. ;)
 
Gess said:
Passed.

Going to take a few days/weeks to not think about syllabi and lessons and just do some pleasure flying, then dive into IFR in June.
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Congrats! How are you planning on knocking out your 50hr XC PIC requirement?
 
Thanks.

I'm going to transition from Part 61 to Part 141 (my flight school does both) so there will be no 50 hour XC requirement.
 
Hello, introducing myself to this forum: I'm an aviation psychologist from the University of Maine. My lab and I are finishing two studies (one on pilots and personality traits and the other on decision making and flight deck conversational dynamics). We'd like to recruit students from part 141 and part 61 programs for our studies (5-minute, online studies). Do you have any suggestions for forums/online groups we can hit up to pitch our studies for recruits? Thanks in advance!
 
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I'm nearing the end of IR training...or so I thought until yesterday.

Ever have one of those days when you can't do anything right at all? Yup - that was my flight with CFI yesterday. A bit turbulent, winds 15g20, in and out of clouds...but nothing that shouldn't be flyable. We started out expecting to do the flight under the hood VFR, but ended up getting a pop-up IFR clearance as clouds were forming around us, all the while dodging other training traffic in the area. I couldn't hold an altitude, speed or heading to save my life (literally). All of a sudden I was flying like a 10-hour beginner. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?!?!?!?

:mad2:

Naturally, when we got back to the home field after having screwed everything else up that I possibly could have, including my turn to final, the landing itself was super-smooth. Go figure.... :redface:


a963c94f-a196-4c75-af02-95ea37b85b3f_text.gif
 
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StraightnLevel said:
I'm nearing the end of IR training...or so I thought until yesterday.

Ever have one of those days when you can't do anything right at all? Yup - that was my flight with CFI yesterday. A bit turbulent, winds 15g20, in and out of clouds...but nothing that shouldn't be flyable. We started out expecting to do the flight under the hood VFR, but ended up getting a pop-up IFR clearance as clouds were forming around us, all the while dodging other training traffic in the area. I couldn't hold an altitude, speed or heading to save my life (literally). All of a sudden I was flying like a 10-hour beginner. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?!?!?!?

:mad2:

Naturally, when we got back to the home field after having screwed everything else up that I possibly could have, including my turn to final, the landing itself was super-smooth. Go figure.... :redface:


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Ooo weee…it be like that sometimes! I’ve had MANY of those days in Private training. I know IFR is precision flying, so I know it has to be a lot on the brain.

Get some rest, focus on a little self care to clear your head a bit, dust off the “sub par flight” and get back in it. ✅
 
StraightnLevel said:
I'm nearing the end of IR training...or so I thought until yesterday.

Ever have one of those days when you can't do anything right at all? Yup - that was my flight with CFI yesterday. A bit turbulent, winds 15g20, in and out of clouds...but nothing that shouldn't be flyable. We started out expecting to do the flight under the hood VFR, but ended up getting a pop-up IFR clearance as clouds were forming around us, all the while dodging other training traffic in the area. I couldn't hold an altitude, speed or heading to save my life (literally). All of a sudden I was flying like a 10-hour beginner. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?!?!?!?

:mad2:

Naturally, when we got back to the home field after having screwed everything else up that I possibly could have, including my turn to final, the landing itself was super-smooth. Go figure.... :redface:


a963c94f-a196-4c75-af02-95ea37b85b3f_text.gif
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Sounds about right. You just sometimes have days like that. I just recently passed my IR checkride, but about 2 weeks before I had a couple of really bad flights like you described. Debrief, get some rest, reset, then try again. Practice makes consistent.

Also keep in mind that any reasonable DPE will factor in difficult flying conditions. Remember that the ACS states that you cannot consistently exceed standards. It does not say you can NEVER exceed standards. So if you have a particularly bumpy day and are 150 ft off altitude one time, but manage to notice and correct for it, that should be acceptable. A little bit subjective, I suppose.
 
StraightnLevel said:
…
Ever have one of those days when you can't do anything right at all? …
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There was a point late in my IR training when that happened on a couple of flights. I took a break and did some spin training and pure VFR bon-instructional flying for a couple if weeks then came back refreshed and ready to go.
 
I'm a student pilot, Getting back in the cockpit after 6 months of MX, Wx, work,life... Yadda, yadda... getting in the way.

I have 3 days scheduled, Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday, 2-3 hours. I can't wait!
 
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Southpaw said:
I finally took the written and passed . Been 5 years since I started flying lessons. Have 250 hours total time . Bought my 172 after the first few hours in the 150 pictured in avatar. Waiting for some nice spring weather to take the flight test. No big rush as I really don't have any place I want to fly to. At age 84 its getting tougher to pull and push the 172 in and out of hangar. When I can no longer do that by hand I shall quit.
My 1959 straight tail has been through 5 annuals with no major repairs needed. 9900+ hours on air frame, 1500 hours since MOH.
At one point the engine crank was changed and upgraded to a O-300 C.
I love my Cessna. :)
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If at 84 you can push a 172 in and out of the hangar at all, then you have earned the right to send 3k to the Powertow people and you can fly until at least 90! I'm a generation younger and no longer even bother to try and push by hand unless it's a very light airplane on very good ground. Not a couch potato, just a lifelong member of the lumbar back preservation society.
 
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strikes2k said:
Completed my night flying requirements last night. Weather permitting I'll be doing my XC solo tomorrow. Then all my requirements will be met. Still need to take written. Been procrastinating on that but have committed to my instructor to get that done by end of March. Getting close.
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Did my XC solo as mentioned above. Took written yesterday so didn't make my self imposed deadline but got it done. I really head gamed myself in to thinking this test was going to the hardest test I'd ever taken. Was expecting like 10 full on Pilotage/Dead Reckoning problems from point A to Point B in the two hour test window. Did a lot of cramming and practice testing Friday night. Knocked it out with a 95 in about 40 minutes. So, all requirements are now met and the only thing left is the check ride I think. Flying has been good and good enough that the other day my instructor didn't feel well and instead of canceling she just sent me an endorsement through foreflight and told me to go solo and practice what I needed to practice. So, getting close......
 
Just finished the third flight in my quest for my high performance and complex endorsements. It's coming along slowly but surely. There's a big difference between the PA28 I had been training in, to the C210 I'm currently learning. A LOT more to keep track of and everything is happening much faster, it's easy to find myself behind the plane, trying to play catch-up.
 
Mooneymayhem said:
Just finished the third flight in my quest for my high performance and complex endorsements. It's coming along slowly but surely. There's a big difference between the PA28 I had been training in, to the C210 I'm currently learning.
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Did you consider finding an Arrow to train complex with?
 
StraightnLevel said:
Did you consider finding an Arrow to train complex with?
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I didn't. In fact, I wasn't even going to actively pursue the required endorsements until I decided on my "forever" plane (which I thought was a Mooney) Then the opportunity to use this 210 kinda fell into my lap.
 
Passed checkride, got my paper cert in hand. Still waiting on the plastic card.

I just gave up worrying about anything and decided to have fun. Pass or fail? who cares. I'm gonna fly in the sky like a freakin' bird and show off what I've learned.

It was a gusty kinda nasty day. We basically had to scud-run to get from PAO to WVI, which was the center of a 25nm sunny circle.

Oral no problem.

Practical portion: Wind was 27007G15KT. Nailed everything no question except power on stall which was not up to my own standards. I felt it bank right wanting to start a spin, jammed full left rudder, held ailerons neutral. Recovered into level flight without entering a spin. DPE turned to me and just said "what happened there?". I replied: "not enough rudder". DPE said "good". I think the DPE appreciated me showing up and fighting for it because I was absolutely a workout. I had to fight hard for every thing.


To each their own but I don't regret showing up even though it wasn't ideal conditions.
 
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