Training Program for US tour

Which plane

  • 180

    Votes: 2 40.0%
  • 182

    Votes: 3 60.0%
  • M7

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    5
  • Poll closed .

sterlingmossy

Pre-Flight
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Jun 19, 2016
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Wilmette, IL
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sterlingmossy
Hi,

I am looking for some perspective from some experienced pilots and wonder if I could pick your brains.

I have a dream to take several months off and fly around the USA with my wife at some point in the future. I am imagining a trip where we would plot out some really interesting places to see and meander from place to place, land at some interesting (short) strips, in no particular hurry, taking in the sights and the sounds.

I would like to be as safe a pilot as possible before starting the trip. I currently have around 130 hours and imagine taking the trip in 2020. I would like to put a program together between now and then that would make me as safe a pilot as possible. I think of it in the same way that I might plan and train for a long distance triathlon.

My question is this. What sould I include in my plan?

- Should I get my IFR rating? Some people say that this makes you a better pilot others say that single pilot IFR is crazy. Your thoughts?
- Assuming that I put in 10 hours a month 120 hours per year between now and 2020 I would end up with around 400 hours before I go. What are some of the best ways to spend that time flying to prepare? Particular exercises, activities, training?
- What is the best kind of plane for this kind of trip? My thoughts include:

1. Cessna 180 - I love the romance of a tail dragger like the all metal construction but worry about the age.
2. Maule m7 - I like that it is a more modern version of a 180 but worry that it has fabric parts and can be a handful to fly (yes I know this is a Cessna forum :))
3. Cessna 182 - I like that it has a wider cabin, can be serviced anywhere, is well established and can be loaded up with sophisticated gear like a G1000 and GFC700 autopilot which I think could increase safety.


I know this is a mix of a training question and plane question so feel free to answer as you see best.

Many thanks

David
 
Yes to the IFR rating. But not necessarily to fly in the clouds. I just flew back from Michigan to California yesterday. In Nevada, visibility was so poor due to smoke that I was basically flying solely by reference to the instruments. It was much more comfortable having the instrument training. On the other hand, I'm pretty comfortable with our benign marine layer stuff close to home. I am not comfortable with weather patterns and systems in the Midwest.

P.S. My 13 hours of hand flying yesterday felt very similar to some of the long distance tris I've done!
 
Thanks, One part of me says that even if I don't use it very often the IFR training will be useful, the other side says "if I don't use it very often I will lose currency and could be dangerous".

Were you hand flying because you don't have an autopilot or because you enjoy the pain :)
 
Get the IFR. Go on a few long cross countries. By long I mean at least 6 hours in the air so you see weather patterns change. Go to new destinations like land at every airport in your state (assuming you aren't in Rhode Island). In other words get real experience not just the same old hamburger run 120 times a year.
 
Get the instrument rating. It doesn't allow you to fly in all weather conditions. It teaches you to understand all weather conditions. It's like a graduate degree in aviation weather planning. And when you're working on the required cross-country PIC time, take a variety of trips.

You can ask plan some training into your tour if your family allows. When you get to the Rockies, take a mountain flying course. Failing that, take one before the trip. Even if you go "around" the Rockies on your trip, you're going to be a safer pilot and more capable of safely reaching interesting parts of the country if you have this skill set.

Fly more at night. So many of us private pilots hardly log a true night landing after finishing up our license. Being able to safely fly in night conditions will help you remain flexible on your trip, especially if part of it takes place in the winter up north where the sun is hardly up for enough hours to get anywhere.

As far as the plane, that's beside the point. Find one that will haul what and whom you plan to bring along with adequate fuel to get somewhere with a full hour of reserve and then get very comfortable in that plane.
 
Thanks, One part of me says that even if I don't use it very often the IFR training will be useful, the other side says "if I don't use it very often I will lose currency and could be dangerous".

Were you hand flying because you don't have an autopilot or because you enjoy the pain :)

Definitely did not enjoy the pain! :) Was hand flying for a couple of reasons: it was pretty bumpy and the ap doesn't handle that well. Also, the ap seems to "hunt" a lot lately for headings.
 
If the idea is to view the country, you're not going to be able to do that very well from the inside or above a cloud...

That said, I'd still suggest getting an instrument rating. It will make you a better pilot and with a trip like you're proposing you WILL run into weather problems/delays. Having he instrument rating will give you more options when that time comes.

As far as airplane goes, any of them would work. Decide what you want and buy it. If you get one of the tailwheel options, make sure you get yourself ample training and are proficient before departing. At my local airport we've had not one, but TWO Cessna 180 ground loops in the past year. Both were by new owners on their flight home after checkout. Don't let that be you.
 
At my local airport we've had not one, but TWO Cessna 180 ground loops in the past year. Both were by new owners on their flight home after checkout. Don't let that be you.

Haha, I don't want that to be me!!
 
Preparation: Do lots of 200+ NM overnight trips to different locations. Use the plane to travel and go explore which will expose you to a lot of the variables out there.

Plane: As someone who does travel 250MN XC trips regularly and did a coast to coast trip...I have a 182 and love it as a traveling machine...but regardless of airframe knowing what I know now a 430 GPS and two axis auto pilot or better are on my MEL for any plane purchase moving forward. Can you hand fly across the country?...yes...will you want to HAVE to hand fly the ENTIRE time?...probably not.

IFR will most certainly make you a better and safer pilot...but of you are heading out with flexibility and can afford diversions and delays it can easily be done VFR.
 
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... land at some interesting (short) strips ...

...

- Should I get my IFR rating? Some people say that this makes you a better pilot others say that single pilot IFR is crazy. Your thoughts?

- Assuming that I put in 10 hours a month 120 hours per year between now and 2020 I would end up with around 400 hours before I go. What are some of the best ways to spend that time flying to prepare? Particular exercises, activities, training?

Partial answer and an important question.

"Short" and "strips".

How short and how strippy (unimproved surfaces)?

Can't answer the aircraft question without the answer to that. Have you looked at a chart and have your heart set on any particular airports?

If you're saying, "Small public use airports" that's quite different than "back-country dirt strip in Idaho".

It also heavily affects the training I would suggest.

Meanwhile: With three years to go, earning the Instrument isn't a bad idea. Your statement about it making you a better pilot is true. Your statement about single pilot IFR is a) subjective and b) just because you have an instrument rating doesn't mean you have to use it. In fact weather decisions about whether or not to use the ticket are harder than a hard VFR limitation.

But think about the first question first. My thoughts are that if you're doing a true "grand tour" of the U.S. there's very few areas WITHOUT an improved runway nearby, so the unimproved/backcountry question leads to a specialty question: Do you want to be a back-country pilot?

Because to do that you're going to need some specialized training before you should be doing it with a loved one on board.
 
Partial answer and an important question.

"Short" and "strips".

How short and how strippy (unimproved surfaces)?

Good question. True answer is "I don't know". I did land on a lake bed near Reno and loved that. I have a dream of living in Park City and visiting the Fly Utah strips BUT I am not sure I would want a super STOL plane for my tour with the wife. More likely a pretty standard 182 that I could later STOL up if I go that way down the road.
 
Good question. True answer is "I don't know". I did land on a lake bed near Reno and loved that. I have a dream of living in Park City and visiting the Fly Utah strips BUT I am not sure I would want a super STOL plane for my tour with the wife. More likely a pretty standard 182 that I could later STOL up if I go that way down the road.

I own a STOL 182 and it's not the best airplane to "STOL up". It's alright, but there's better options. Just sayin'.

If you're serious about backcountry, I'd say to get started on the tailwheel endorsement now.
 
I own a STOL 182 and it's not the best airplane to "STOL up". It's alright, but there's better options. Just sayin'.

If you're serious about backcountry, I'd say to get started on the tailwheel endorsement now.
Good input. Yeah I wrestled with this. I have my tailwheel endorsement and and have been flying a J3 and a Citabria working on my skills. However I feel like a 182 with a GFC700 autopilot might be a better round the US platform and then if I want to go more STOLy later I can sell it and get a 180 later for Utah.
 
I own a STOL 182 and it's not the best airplane to "STOL up". It's alright, but there's better options. Just sayin'.

If you're serious about backcountry, I'd say to get started on the tailwheel endorsement now.

Just curious, why is a tail wheel needed for off airport?

All my off airport landings have been in a 206 and 207. I did one off airport landing in a Chieftain, but it sure wasn't the smartest thing I have done. I got away with it though.
 
Just curious, why is a tail wheel needed for off airport?

All my off airport landings have been in a 206 and 207. I did one off airport landing in a Chieftain, but it sure wasn't the smartest thing I have done. I got away with it though.

It's not. It depends on where he wants to go.
 
I think a simple Archer is worthy of consideration. Where do you live now? Generally?
 
As others have mentioned, get the instrument rating. Start to spread your wings as often as possible. Plan and fly overnights, explore new places. Don't think that the sunday breakfast runs will provide much training or weather education in your safety zone. Have some fun planning and making this dream happen. Cross country flying is just like flying a short day trip, except when you take off again you don't go back. You keep going in the same direction. Or as Bo Boggs said, "its like eating a pizza, one bite at a time."
 
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