The first hundred hours....

[kevin7500]

I have been reading quite a bit about new pilots and the apprehension that comes along with getting kicked out of the nest, so to speak. So, I decided to put together a recap of my first hundred hours.

After I got my certificate I logged about 10 hours of instrument training. Not because I was going to immediately pursue the rating, but rather to gain experience with one of the leading killers of low time pilots.....VFR into IMC. I also used this time to experience some things with an instructor in the plane. We flew over lake Michigan on an IFR flight plan at 8,000' that would have been a short transit just a bit north of Chicago's airspace. About 10 miles out we were vectored at 310 which added many miles of open water, in the winter. On the way back we flew over an overcast layer and filed a PIREP, at the request of ATC, regarding the ice we picked up during our descent through it (trace amounts on the fuel caps, overcast layer about 200' thick, etc).

At 70 hours of logged time we (my wife and I) took off from 35D with a final destination of MYCA in the Bahamas. Following is a list of "firsts" experienced during that trip:

-Flight following is just that, following. When I notified ATC that my destination was changing, the response was something like "Are you cancelling flight following", um....."No, change destination to Kxxx"...."Frequency change approved, squawk VFR"...."Squawk VFR, thanks"

-Flying toward a weather front can look really bad!

-Diverting to an alternate fuel stop because of weather is easy.

-It can be very hot in Georgia in June and the inside of a Warrior gets hot fast. Vents in a Warrior work best at cruise speed and altitude.

-Crop dusters may land with the wind and without any radio communication. I learned this as I looked to the departure end of the runway before taxiing out to leave. This was not a crosswind....he landed with a tailwind.

-Not all rural airports have hotels near them. An airplane backseat is a poor substitute but there are fewer bugs than outside.

-The corridor between Orlando and Kennedy Space Center is very busy!

-After 3.5 hours at 9,500', a straight in approach may result in a go-around. Nope, not even close to getting on the ground.

-Taxiing past the FBO sucks.

-Key Air has a tiny sign (see above)

-ATC ground control has a sense of humor (see above)..."left turn in 50 feet"...D'oh...."thank-you"...(giggles from passenger seat)

-Crew cars are a pretty sweet perk. Key Air had a Nissan Altima with about 2,000 miles on it.

-Planes make funny noises as soon as they are over water.

-There are always boats in sight to crash land near should there be a problem.

-Flying into an uncontrolled airport that also has turbo prop and jet traffic is interesting. Parking a 70's Warrior next to a newish Citation jet is intimidating. Corporate jet pilots thought we were the lucky ones...flying into the Bahamas without any schedule to meet.

-The 10,000' runway on Cat Island is big enough to land on sideways. The FBO parking is big enough to land in. Our Warrior looked tiny and alone.

-Big thunderstorms are easy to see from a long distance. Big thunderstorms are difficult to see when closer against a pale background. Thunderstorm tops are really high!

-Head winds suck in slow planes.

-Not all airports have self serve fuel pumps after hours.

-Some mechanics fly to work.

-Being over an overcast layer for a long time leaves you with nothing to do other than compare the GPS position with VORs and sectionals. That and hope that the weather forecast for the destination is right.

-Gusty cross wind landings are not my wife's favorite thing.

-A yorkie will lay in the backseat sleeping until short final. Then it wants to be on your lap looking out the window.

-Everyone involved in general aviation, from line guys to retirees hanging out at the airports to customs at Fort Pierce, is extremely friendly.

 

[woodstock]

Cool post, thanks for sharing. Sounds like you have had a lot of fun with the ticket.

 

[Jim_R]

I admire your confidence in setting out on a long (and international!) trip with only 70 hrs logged. I wonder if, 10 years from now with a few hundred more hours logged, you'll look back and have any more comments to add to that list? : )

(I only have ~130 hrs, btw. I would not have had the confidence to do what you did at 70 hrs, but I think I'm probably on the "timid" side of the spectrum.)

 

[deltafox]

Great post, thanks for sharing.

 

[jxdrl]

Where do you live in GR? Are you still renting? I'm moving to Grand Haven soon and was looking at general aviation in the area.

 

[flav8r]

-Flying toward a weather front can look really bad!

Never a pleasant sight.

-Diverting to an alternate fuel stop because of weather is easy.

Live to fly another day.

-It can be very hot in Georgia in June and the inside of a Warrior gets hot fast. Vents in a Warrior work best at cruise speed and altitude.

Imagine being stuck in an extensive runway hold in a Diamond.

-Crop dusters may land with the wind and without any radio communication. I learned this as I looked to the departure end of the runway before taxiing out to leave. This was not a crosswind....he landed with a tailwind.

May not even have a pilot certificate.

-The corridor between Orlando and Kennedy Space Center is very busy!

Major flight school operations at KORL KTIX KSFB KISM not to mention commercial traffic going into and out of KMCO mixed in with class B, class C and a sprinkling of numerous class D airports.
Did I forget to mention the Disney TFR?
Orlando Sectional

-Crew cars are a pretty sweet perk. Key Air had a Nissan Altima with about 2,000 miles on it.

Gotta love them, even the beater loaners can be very unique.

-Planes make funny noises as soon as they are over water.

I thought I was the only one with this special hearing.

-There are always boats in sight to crash land near should there be a problem.

Hopefully a Navy Aircraft Carrier.

-Head winds suck in slow planes.

Suck more money out of the wallet too.

-Gusty cross wind landings are not my wife's favorite thing.

My ex-wife hated them as much as I loved her hating them.


Great post!
Updated us on your 200 hour observations.

 

[kevin7500]

Where do you live in GR? Are you still renting? I'm moving to Grand Haven soon and was looking at general aviation in the area.

I live in Dorr, about 20 minutes south of Grand Rapids. Yes, I still rent. I am currently using the Warriors at Dodgen in Allegan (35D). There are a couple places at GRR that rent DA40s...one of them has a glass cockpit. I don't know of anyone at Grand Haven, but Muskegon and Holland both have plenty of rental options.

 

[kevin7500]

Imagine being stuck in an extensive runway hold in a Diamond.

I learned in a Diamond DA40 in the summer out of Class C airspace! It was standard operating procedure to have the side windows open and hands out while taxiing just trying to get some cooler air flowing around.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

I learned in a Diamond DA40 in the summer out of Class C airspace! It was standard operating procedure to have the side windows open and hands out while taxiing just trying to get some cooler air flowing around.

You know about the 2nd canopy position, right?

 

[Jeanie]

Kevin, that sounds like a fantastic trip. And, I know what it's like to feel very small next to a big jet. Imagine a 152 parked next to a Gulfstream! Pretty funny really - could have probably put her in the Gulfstreams aft baggage compartment. But, hey, GA is for everybody.........

The thought of flying over water gives me the willies...

 

[skylanerg]

Great post, thanks for sharing.

+1

 

[Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe]

Kevin, that sounds like a fantastic trip. And, I know what it's like to feel very small next to a big jet. Imagine a 152 parked next to a Gulfstream! Pretty funny really - could have probably put her in the Gulfstreams aft baggage compartment. But, hey, GA is for everybody.........

The thought of flying over water gives me the willies...

How is this for a mix...

 

[Tristar]

Nice picture!!!

There are a lot of interesting things you learn during your first 100 hours. These are the two I always remember.

Lesson #1 Passengers don't always understand what's going on.

My mom was my first passenger. I remember after an uneventful short flight the very week after I got my pilot's certificate, I landed and began to taxi past the hold short line. My mom started screaming, "stop, stop!!!!" There are many things that go through your head at that instant. 1. Why in the world is she screaming? 2. I know...or at least...we always did pull past the hold short line, was I not supposed to this time?! So with the instinct of I know I'm right, I kept going until my tail was clear of the runway. Then I looked at her, "what! why are you yelling?!" She said, "there's a huge airplane heading our way and I didn't want you to pull in front of it!" "DOH!!" I did in fact see the CRJ, but I promise you he was not going to be an issue...like every other time I've pulled past the line! I had to gently explain to her that we were supposed to be where we were! Thankfully after my heart settled down, we got permission to taxi to the ramp. Now after many flights with me, she's an excellent passenger.

Lesson #2, Tower doesn't always have the right solutions.

I decided to go up for a short flight, so I grabbed one of our 152s. Started her up and called ground. I noticed I had a little bit of trouble communicating. I could hear them but the transmission back was broken. For some odd reason, it went away. I figured it was just a glitch or I didn't hold the button down hard enough so I went ahead and taxiied to the runway. After runup complete, I was holding short of runway 35 and called. "82Bravo holding short 35 ready for departure" ...no response....I called a couple times with no response. So, there I was confused at what to do. Should I squawk 7600? Did that work on the ground? Tower finally called me, "82Bravo can you hear me?" Obviously I tried to respond but no answer. We eventually got a taxi/wiggle your wings communication going which was good but what happened next surprised me. "82Bravo, if you can hear me, you're cleared for takeoff." "What!! Nooo! I wanna go back!" I was very confused and not wanting to take off, so I just sat there. Eventually, tower came back and said, "82Bravo, you can taxi to parking." Sigh...thank you! I talked with my CFI afterwards, he laughed and said I could have just taken the runway and pulled off at the next intersection. Doh! Okay, so lesson learned. Although I'm still stunned tower cleared me for takeoff.

 

[Tristar]

BTW Kevin, kudos for such an awesome trip with so little experience. One thing I tell my students is they will learn way more once they're on their own than they ever will in flight training. That is nothing against any CFI, every pilot will experience this!

 

[N801BH]

I think Kevin is going to turn out to be a very good and happy pilot. Thanks for your thoughts and tailwinds for all your flights.



ps. Just to expand on your views of flying over water.

1- water is softer then the ground.
2- water does not burn.
3- 99.99999% of the time there are no power lines to hit.
4- 99.99999% of the time there is a boat you can glide to in case the motor quits.

One quick disclaimer....
Never look down into the water while flying over the coastline of Fla as those curious dark shadows are not sea grass,, they are sharks. Once you process that you will never swim, surf or even frolic in the surf again.

Carry on fellow pilots.

Ben.

 

[azure]

4- 99.99999% of the time there is a boat you can glide to in case the motor quits.

Except when you're flying over Lake Michigan, where it's more like maybe 60% of the time -- and the water is cold enough that even if you splash down within a mile or so of a boat, there's no guarantee they'll actually pull you out alive.

That said, I still do lake crossings in my own plane, getting as high as I can, and crossing at the narrow points or following chains of islands. Solo that is, or with pax only if they're fellow pilots, or someone who understands and is okay with the risk.

 

[Tristar]

One quick disclaimer....
Never look down into the water while flying over the coastline of Fla as those curious dark shadows are not sea grass,, they are sharks. Once you process that you will never swim, surf or even frolic in the surf again.
Ben.

I flew that coastline a lot. Yes I did see some sharks which is sobering since I swam a lot but many of the dark shadows are actually dolphins. There are some places I wouldn't go swimming but otherwise they will usually leave you alone. I'd worry more about sting rays. If you're truly worried, there are plenty of pools!

 

[rottydaddy]

I think Kevin is going to turn out to be a very good and happy pilot. Thanks for your thoughts and tailwinds for all your flights.



ps. Just to expand on your views of flying over water.

1- water is softer then the ground.
2- water does not burn.
3- 99.99999% of the time there are no power lines to hit.
4- 99.99999% of the time there is a boat you can glide to in case the motor quits.

One quick disclaimer....
Never look down into the water while flying over the coastline of Fla as those curious dark shadows are not sea grass,, they are sharks. Once you process that you will never swim, surf or even frolic in the surf again.

Carry on fellow pilots.

Ben.

Some very good points... but aside from the danger of hypothermia mentioned above, it's good to remember, if you ever have to ditch, that water is a lot harder than dirt or even trees, being virtually uncompressible. It yields, being a fluid, but it doesn't give, if you know what I mean. There's a reason why it's heavier than fuel (or most other materials, for that matter)- it's denser. If I remember right, water "gives" about as much as steel.

And if your "arrival" leaves you with serious injuries, you'd be a lot better off on terra firma than in the water, especially if you are unconscious, LOL. Same goes for a situation where you need more time to exit the plane, due to injury or airframe damage (or ending up upside-down).
Fire is definitely a potential problem, but I'd guess that fire is less of a risk after the average "controlled crash" on land than drowning or hypothermia after a ditching.

But I think we all agree that a forced landing is never a good thing, except as compared to going down out of control.

Back on-topic: it's interesting to see the different lessons learned by the OP and others in their first 100 hours, but I think the "important lesson per flight hour" ratio has remained the same with me, well beyond the first 100.

 

[woodstock]

I think Kevin is going to turn out to be a very good and happy pilot. Thanks for your thoughts and tailwinds for all your flights.



ps. Just to expand on your views of flying over water.

1- water is softer then the ground.
2- water does not burn.
3- 99.99999% of the time there are no power lines to hit.
4- 99.99999% of the time there is a boat you can glide to in case the motor quits.

One quick disclaimer....
Never look down into the water while flying over the coastline of Fla as those curious dark shadows are not sea grass,, they are sharks. Once you process that you will never swim, surf or even frolic in the surf again.

Carry on fellow pilots.

Ben.

My dentist told me that. Her BIL is a pilot and apparently somewhere in Florida they see how very close those sharks are to people - not necessarily doing anything, but very close. If people really knew how close they were, ALL THE TIME, they would stay away.

Myself, it just took a nasty jellyfish/stingray/not sure what the hell it was... sting... to make me think again...

 

[Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe]

-Being over an overcast layer for a long time leaves you with nothing to do other than compare the GPS position with VORs and sectionals. That and hope that the weather forecast for the destination is right.

I assume you have the skills to do the IFR approach at the other end. Otherwise you are betting your life on a forecast.

Of course, meteorology is a science. So, really, what are the chances that a weather forecast could be wrong?

(In my book, flying over water is pretty low risk compared to flying over an overcast without IFR skills)

 

[kevin7500]

Except when you're flying over Lake Michigan, where it's more like maybe 60% of the time -- and the water is cold enough that even if you splash down within a mile or so of a boat, there's no guarantee they'll actually pull you out alive.

That said, I still do lake crossings in my own plane, getting as high as I can, and crossing at the narrow points or following chains of islands. Solo that is, or with pax only if they're fellow pilots, or someone who understands and is okay with the risk.

Strategy for emergency over the lake:

-Establish best glide
-Declare emergency
-Request vector to responding Coast Guard post
-Glide toward responding helicopter
-Seat backs up, belts tight
-Go into the water as slow as possible, as level as possible
-....hopefully under a waiting Coast Guard helicopter.

The above wisdom was given to me by a pilot who flies over the lake regularly.

 

[kevin7500]

Of course, meteorology is a science. So, really, what are the chances that a weather forecast could be wrong?

(In my book, flying over water is pretty low risk compared to flying over an overcast without IFR skills)

Interesting perspective. So, trusting the science of weather forecasting is bad. But, trusting the science and technology that is bundled together and assembled as an airplane is acceptable?

We departed under broken skies and flew over an overcast layer that existed between us and a destination 350nm away. Broken skies were forecast 150nm before our destination with clear skies being forecast at my destination. Would you have scrubbed the flight?

 

[Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe]

Interesting perspective. So, trusting the science of weather forecasting is bad. But, trusting the science and technology that is bundled together and assembled as an airplane is acceptable?

How many times have you found a forecast to be inaccurate and had to divert mid trip? How many times have you had an engine fail?

Looking back I would say my answers are: many times, and never.

We departed under broken skies and flew over an overcast layer that existed between us and a destination 350nm away. Broken skies were forecast 150nm before our destination with clear skies being forecast at my destination. Would you have scrubbed the flight?

Yup. In a heartbeat. Wouldn't have even considered it unless I could have gone under.

But I don't have the skills (or equipment) to let down through IMC (or do an IFR approach) at the other end. Without the skills, if the forecast is "right" 90% of the time (which seems optimistic to me), you end up dead 10% of the time.

 

[azure]

Interesting perspective. So, trusting the science of weather forecasting is bad. But, trusting the science and technology that is bundled together and assembled as an airplane is acceptable?

We departed under broken skies and flew over an overcast layer that existed between us and a destination 350nm away. Broken skies were forecast 150nm before our destination with clear skies being forecast at my destination. Would you have scrubbed the flight?

I might or might not have. It depends, and based on what you've posted I'd say I don't have enough information. I actually did make a flight kind of like that less than two weeks after passing my PPL checkride, returning from MCD. We had gotten the crap knocked out of us under the ceiling on the way up, but I really agonized over whether to go over the top for the trip back home (to 76G north of Anchor Bay). Skies were forecast to be OVC from MCD down to about midstate (on the way back to 76G north of Anchor Bay), then clear from MBS south. That wasn't enough for me, but the METARs showed a favorable trend: skies had already cleared in the Detroit area a few hours before, and they were gradually clearing from south to north. That clinched it. I launched in SCT030 conditions, found the tops were a bit higher than the forecast 6000 so climbed to 9500 for legal VFR, and my pax and I had a wonderfully smooth and beautiful flight home. (And actually it turned out to be BKN not OVC, and only as far south as GDW.)

But without the favorable METARs I would have gone underneath, even with the turbulence, or scrubbed. I won't risk getting caught on top based only on a forecast.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

Interesting perspective. So, trusting the science of weather forecasting is bad. But, trusting the science and technology that is bundled together and assembled as an airplane is acceptable?

We departed under broken skies and flew over an overcast layer that existed between us and a destination 350nm away. Broken skies were forecast 150nm before our destination with clear skies being forecast at my destination. Would you have scrubbed the flight?

Depends. How much fuel do you have? Is it enough to make it to your destination, and then make it to *KNOWN* VFR if the destination isn't clear? If not, what are you going to do if you get to the destination and there's no holes to get through and no VFR within your range any more? How high are the ceilings above the MEF's?

I did an over-the-top flight only once before I was instrument rated... Severe clear at departure and destination, overcast between - But it was less than an hour flight and I had 5 hours of fuel on board, and the areas opposite the overcast had widespread severe clear.

 

[kevin7500]

Is it enough to make it to your destination, and then make it to *KNOWN* VFR if the destination isn't clear? If not, what are you going to do if you get to the destination and there's no holes to get through and no VFR within your range any more?

How do you make the decision about flying above overcast when the assumption (based on some prior posts) seems to be that current conditions and forecasts are not adequate tools to determine the destinations weather?

In my situation the destination was clear and forecast clear. Broken skies were forecast 2-1/2 hours into 5 hours of fuel. There were also instruments on board to make an ILS approach should that have been necessary. I didn't have approach plates on board, but I did have a radio and the ability to say "xxx approach, um, I have a problem.....little help?"

 

[azure]

How do you make the decision about flying above overcast when the assumption (based on some prior posts) seems to be that current conditions and forecasts are not adequate tools to determine the destinations weather?

Personally I wouldn't do it without studying current conditions, forecasts, and the forecast discussions on the NWS site (not just the TAF discussions you can read via ADDS either, since those are really focused on what they put in the TAFs, which are very localized forecasts). Even then, it would have to be somewhere I'm very familiar with the weather patterns and have an idea of how to interpret what I'm seeing out the window if it doesn't match up with what I expect.

Beyond that, it's a question of how comfortable you are with the risk. There will always be some risk remaining, since as you say, the destination weather isn't really determined until you get there!

In my situation the destination was clear and forecast clear. Broken skies were forecast 2-1/2 hours into 5 hours of fuel. There were also instruments on board to make an ILS approach should that have been necessary. I didn't have approach plates on board, but I did have a radio and the ability to say "xxx approach, um, I have a problem.....little help?"

If you're proficient enough on instruments to be comfortable doing an instrument letdown, then maybe this is something you're okay with. (Don't think in terms of flying an ILS though, unless you have the training and all the required recent experience AND are comfortable with your own level of proficiency.) Personally, at this point, even with all the requirements for the instrument rating done with except for the checkride, I'd be a little leery since I haven't flown instruments in a couple of months, and haven't flown in actual IMC for over a year. Yes, I would probably (almost certainly) get down safely, but is it worth the risk? And then what if ATC turns my emergency over to the FSDO for certificate action (I'm guessing probably a 709 ride)? Is it still worth it?

 

[flyingcheesehead]

How do you make the decision about flying above overcast when the assumption (based on some prior posts) seems to be that current conditions and forecasts are not adequate tools to determine the destinations weather?

You can get some idea of the quality of terminal forecasts by watching how they change over time, and whether the METARs have been matching up with them.

Also important is the weather trends - ADDS allows you to look at METARs and TAFs for the past 36 hours. If things are trending toward better weather, and they've matched up pretty well with the forecasts, you're probably OK. But be sure you get a good big-picture view, establish some "checkpoints" where you either use an XM device or a radio call to FSS to verify that the weather still looks good or you execute a backup plan, and put it all together.

I also mentioned ceilings - An overcast that's two THOUSAND feet or more above the highest MEF's and has excellent visibility below gives you a much better chance of survival than one that's two HUNDRED feet above the surface of the airport, should the undercast accelerate to the point where there's no VFR within your fuel range. But that's not the sort of thing you want to plan for as a "plan B." That's more like about plan G.

Being instrument rated, current, and proficient is a wonderful thing.

 

[Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe]

There were also instruments on board to make an ILS approach should that have been necessary. I didn't have approach plates on board, but I did have a radio and the ability to say "xxx approach, um, I have a problem.....little help?"

If you have the skills, you have the skills. That makes it a whole different ball game.

I've never flown in actual, never did an ILS approch, so I am not going to even pretend that I have the skills.

 

[Jeanie]

Tristan,

"82Bravo can you hear me?" Obviously I tried to respond but no answer. We eventually got a taxi/wiggle your wings communication going which was good but what happened next surprised me. "82Bravo, if you can hear me, you're cleared for takeoff." "What!! Nooo! I wanna go back!" I was very confused and not wanting to take off, so I just sat there. Eventually, tower came back and said, "82Bravo, you can taxi to parking." Sigh...thank you! I talked with my CFI afterwards, he laughed and said I could have just taken the runway and pulled off at the next intersection. Doh! Okay, so lesson learned. Although I'm still stunned tower cleared me for takeoff.[/QUOTE]

~~~~~~~~~So, did you find out what was wrong w/ the radios?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Kevin, I might have flown over that undercast but I would have checked w/ FSS at the turn back or divert to another airport point to make sure that the weather would be safe at the planned landing airport.
I have flown over clouds like that twice as a Private Pilot. Once I turned back and ducked under and landed to check weather and possibly just stay overnight - I ended up taking off again and skirting it around to the north then back towards home. Once I just kept going chiding myself like : "OK Princess, now what are you going to do if the engine quits?" I was very uncomfortable with it and was quite relieved when it started clearing out.
Flight Watch is your friend if you don't have XM Wx on board.

 

[Tristar]

It's been quite a while but I believe the mechanics said a wire had loosened.