Flying

Flying. It's been a while since I've used that word on a regular basis but recently it has featured more and more in my vocabulary. 

Let me talk you through what stage I am at the moment and what I need to be at in now only a few weeks time.

When I left here for Christmas I had a remainder of nineteen flights to complete for roughly the middle of March. This included one mock check ride, two real check rides, eight dual flights and a significant number of solos. Since returning from the festive break I've reduced this to only thirteen flights with 11.3 total hours accumulated in the 25 days I have been back here in the United States.

With my FAA PPL check ride now on the horizon having completed the mock yesterday I'm looking forward to knocking down the final days of my single engine flying one by one. 

Since completing the hypoxia training I managed to get a flight last Sunday with my instructor. We went out into the local area to complete a number of the maneuvers that would be coming up over the coming weeks in the check rides. These included both JAA and FAA stalls, steep turns, navigational procedures, ground referencing (making turns around a point) and landings. The idea was to again become comfortable with the material and it's practice for the weeks ahead.

All went well and back on the ground we debriefed what took place in the air. Happy enough, I departed after quite an eventful weekend!

Come the following day I was again back in the air but this time on the back seat observing. It's now getting to the stage where every minute is a big help in the air whether it be at the controls or sat just behind. 

It was an almost repeat from my lesson the previous day but not being focused on actually flying the aeroplane I was able to take in some of the other work that we need to do while in the air such as navigating and most importantly monitoring our systems.

For all those that read this blog and are currently out here training or are planning to come out here or any other FTO and train in this profession I would highly recommend, neigh, insist that you get as many back seats as you possibly can. It doesn't cost you a penny and observing while not having to concentrate on the basic factors of flying helps you develop everything else that goes into operating a flying machine.

We headed out towards the practice area and completed a number of maneuvers, again, similar to the previous afternoon. 

As we were heading south a decision was made to head off to Vero Beach, an airport pretty close but not often visited. It's a towered airport south of Melbourne that, going by the look of the ramp, caters for a significant number of business traffic. 

A few touch and go's in the pattern and we departed north. Engine failure. Well not really, simulated. 

With a simulated engine failure the idea is to go through the procedure by touching and talking as to what you would do with the 'dead power plant' as the engine sits at idle. The initial plan is to pitch the nose attitude to reach the perfect gliding speed which for the Piper Warrior is 73 knots (84mph) and secondly pick a spot to make an emergency landing. This could be a field, a lake, a road or if you're lucky an airport! 

Having got yourself into the optimum configuration and you're planning for arrival to your fixed point, it's time to see if we can find out what caused the 'engine failure.' Switching fuel tanks, checking the temperature gauges, mixture, magnetos etc. If nothing is resuscitating the engine then it's time to let ATC know. 

Squawking 7700 on the aircraft transponder will set off all the bells and whistles in the relevant control tower/centre pin pointing the location of the aircraft and with more modern transponders the altitude and speed of the airship in question. Tuning 121.500 (the international emergency radio frequency) and saying the following: "MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY." Following this with the aircraft description, the predicament that the aeroplane is in and the number of soles on board. While in touch with ATC the aircraft must be prepared to the landing.

"Fuel selector: off; ignition switch: off; alternator switch: off; standby alternator switch: off; electric fuel pump: off; mixture: idle/cut-off; seat belt and harnesses: tight; cabin door: open. As you bring the aircraft down towards the chosen area the radio master switch should be switched off as late as possible to allow the communications equipment to continue track the plane to the very last moment possible.

When simulating such an event the protocol is to end the procedure at 500ft and climb back to a reasonable altitude with full engine throttle.

Following the simulated engine failure we returned to Melbourne.

Tuesday to Friday was back in the classroom which including a significant number of hours spent going through the material for the coming exams at the end of February. There were also another four weekly tests which went pretty well.

The Saturday just passed was the day of my mock check ride for the FAA PPL with one of the senior flight instructors out here in Florida. 

The same protocol was followed as would be while during the real test which includes an oral examination covering everything from airspace to aircraft systems and much more. This is followed by the flight test which involves pretty much everything I have explained above.

The flight went really well - it was great to go up with such an experienced pilot who was able to pass on a lot of advice. Thankfully he passed me and as I write I now have my FAA PPL check ride due this coming Saturday.

Yesterday I again went flying, this time on a solo cross country flight to a small airfield near West Palm Beach on the Atlantic coast. As you can see from the photo above it wasn't the most picturesque mornings we have experienced here in the US and the winds were extremely strong. Although quite challenging it was great to get up and continue to fill in the log book with more and more hours of flying time. 

It was early morning number six yesterday so this morning was reserved for a lie in. Now it's time to return to the books for another four tests this week and even more hours of classroom work.

But before I go, below is a video of what now is only weeks away - upgrading to the Piper Seminole.

We've been here in Florida now for over eight months and with only a couple to go out here, time is starting to tick slowly towards Ireland. It's amazing how fast this time has gone and I'm sure once these exams are complete and we return to the air full time it will only speed up.

But before then, there is plenty to be getting on with...

Returning back to Florida with exam results...

It's quite scary how quickly these two and a half weeks at home have gone. It's been a bit of a whirlwind with moving house, Christmas and New Year all coming at once. It's certainly been a time of over indulgence and I think it will be good to get back to some normality in the coming weeks.

I've pretty much spent the past week doing much very similar to the week before with a great night on New Year's eve. I also managed to get to a local football game yesterday and was good to get back into the old mould before leaving for Melbourne back in May 2011. Although the local weather is something I haven't enjoyed while being back home!

Today I finally got hold of my exam results for the ATPL exams taken before Christmas. I managed to achieve an average of 98% giving me an overall average of 95.4% with five exams remaining. I'm glad to have been able to increase my percentage going into the final module.

So, when I return later this week to Florida I'm hoping to get a few flights in before starting ground school again on Monday 9th. The structure in which we complete our schooling is due to change this time and I'll explain next week how so.

It has been absolutely fantastic coming back home and seeing family and friends and I'm now looking forward to getting back to the states, getting the final set of examinations complete and then onto flying full time once again. In three months time I should be back in Europe for the foreseeable future.

Next time I head east across the Atlantic I'll be back for good...

Home

Whether it be in the centre of a bustling city or down a quiet country lane it’s always the same – it’s home.

We now live in a world where we can travel with ease across boarders at costs unimaginable twenty (even ten!) years ago. As the world becomes a smaller place and business moves ever more quickly ; the phrase “leaving the nest” has become a lot more distant than ever before.

There are certain times of year, different in different cultures, where those, wherever they may be, come together to celebrate or simply to reunite for old time sake. For those in the Christian world, this time of year is more prominent than any other.

Over the past seven months away from home I’ve worked pretty hard. Through long days and short nights it has been a rollercoaster of emotions and something twelve months ago I would never have dreamed of encountering. It’s almost been surreal but here I am, back to spend three weeks with family and friends over the festive period.

Having concluded the short stay in Orlando we headed to the airport for the flights back to our respective countries and more particularly cities. The flight to Manchester was delayed by one hour due to snow the previous day here in the UK; having a knock on effect on the airline’s schedule. As predicted the plane arrived sixty minutes late into Orlando International and the operation got underway to turn the aircraft around as soon as possible.

Plane fed, cleaned and refreshed we took off into the night sky and headed north east bound out into the Atlantic Ocean. Thanks to some impressive tailwinds the flight time was reduced to seven hours meaning an on time arrival into the northern city.

Living in a climate that would feel embarrassed below twenty degrees Celsius, landing in Manchester where a frosting of snow covered as far as the eye could see was a bit of a shock to the system. The first time I’d seen the white stuff since I was last at the airport in January!

Touchdown was particularly impressive after a smooth ride. To add to a very good flight, spending only twenty minutes from disembarking the aircraft to leaving the terminal it was impressive to see the new passport chip system in operation – fantastic idea!

So here I am. Back at home. It’s been seven months; and it’s most certainly been worth the wait…

Round two complete - countdown to home begins...

So the exams are finished and it's almost time to return to the UK for Christmas.

Monday through Wednesday saw everyone here at PTC who are currently taking the ATPL exams sit their respective subjects.

For myself, all five tests went well and I'm hoping to receive the results within the next few weeks.

Since we finished on Wednesday I was hoping to relax until returning home this weekend however on Tuesday evening I became aware that I would be having my mock-check ride on the Thursday morning. So, having completed however many hours sat in my room learning about the relevant ATPL subjects I now had less than twenty four hours to cover a number of different subjects relating to the aircraft we fly, US airspace, pilot performance and much more.

So, up at 6am the following day. Slightly tired and a head ready to burst with information I arrived at the Flightline slightly after 7am. The weather was looking good - almost cloudless and a cool (well...21 degrees Celsius) morning in eastern Florida. I started to prep for the oral and the following flight.

Due to a number of reasons the flight was cancelled in favour of rescheduling it in January. It was disappointing, especially with the amount of effort that went into preparing, but was completely understandable.

The rest of Thursday was spent resting the brain and starting to look forward to the journey home.

Awaking today (Friday) I became aware of  how little I had done to prepare for the journey home. A list of jobs needed to be completed before finishing off the packing.

This evening a few of us had dinner in the local Irish bar before heading up to Orlando to spend the rest of the time here in the US before the festive season in the villa of my roommate. En route we made a detour and headed towards a place known as 'Celebration,' a small town off the beaten track. It's known for it's perfection and cleanliness. It was quite an interesting site to see!

With all the Christmas decorations on display and the inability to spot an imperfection in the entire town it was something to behold.

Anyway, it's now time for bed and it will be the last time I post from Melbourne for a few weeks. Home bound begins soon - the countdown continues...

So close...

It's Friday 9th December. In just over a week I'll be on a flight back to the UK for the Christmas period. Between now and then there are many hours of revision and five IAA ATPL examinations.

Starting on Monday the exams take place over three days at the local Hilton hotel.

Monday afternoon involves General Navigation encompassing fifty four questions over a two hour time period. Tuesday morning is IFR Communications followed by Radio Navigation later in the day. The first is twenty three questions in thirty minutes while the latter is much longer with fifty nine questions over one hour and thirty minutes. The final day involves Flight Planning first thing followed almost immediately by VFR Communications. The former consists of fifty six questions over a large time scale of three hours while VFR mirrors the IFR test.

As mentioned last week, taking the mock examinations gave us all a good indication of what we need to work on before the IAA arrive this weekend.

Since Sunday, bar the below, there has been very little activity over here. I've done some small amounts of revision but now as the weekend arrives it's back to the studying for most hours of the day and reacquainting myself with the four walls of my room.

The weather over these past few days, bar yesterday, has been fantastic. It's quite odd being in an environment of 25°C+ at this time of year. The Christmas songs have now slowly started appear and will no doubt play a major part during the study this weekend!

I had said last week that I was hoping to get my mock FAA PPL check ride complete yesterday however unfortunately this didn't take place. The next best thing was to back seat a flight.

Although we have had cloud free skies for quite a while now, yesterday was the exception as the clouds hung over Melbourne for the entire day. It looked unlikely that we would manage to get airborne for the trip up to Daytona. Arriving early at the Flightline the visibility was looking promising. It was decided between the instructor and student that the lesson would at least be given the opportunity.

Paperwork complete, forms, binders and documents collected we headed out to the plane. The plane was prepped and we headed out to the run up area. 

As the relevant checks were being conducted by the student the instructor contacted the ground frequency here in Melbourne and asked for the latest visibility reports. A Delta jet had just departed and the controller was waiting for a pilot report from the flight crew and would report back.

"FIT 40, the Delta jet departed to the south and was therefore not able to supply a relevant PIREP, I'm seeing clouds broken at three thousand."

It was decided we would try the flight. 

"Melbourne Ground, FIT 40 is at the FIT run up area, departure to the north west with information C, ready to taxi."

"FIT 40 taxi Runway 5 via Victor, hold short Runway 5 at Victor."

Due to the short taxi distance and how quiet the airport was at that time we were in the air within a couple of minutes and heading towards the north west.

As we climbed it was evident that weather wasn't improving and the instructor made the decision as we passed two thousand feet that it would not be beneficial for the lesson to continue and as such we returned to Melbourne's airspace.

I would imagine most would think the eighteen minutes we spent in the air were a waste of time however one could argue it was good experience in airmanship in knowing when and when not to make the go or no-go decision.

"FIT 40, cleared to land Runway 5." 

Back to the books...

Consolidation complete

Five exams done, five exams thankfully passed.

Consolidation exams took place over the past week in the Babcock facility here in Melbourne. All fourteen were conducted over four days.

Four long nights since the end of ground school interrupted by Thanks Giving and Black Friday proved fruitful as the results came out all above the 80% mark needed to be allowed to sit the real IAA exams which will begin next Monday (12th) running for three days.

All of the consolidation exams are designed to give each student not only a good idea of how each test will be set but also an understanding of their current knowledge level in that particular field.

Since completing consolidation I have had a few days off spare a couple of hours of Radio Navigation whilst watching the Manchester United game on Saturday morning. It is hard to describe going from constant hours of revising to almost 'slobbing' within a matter of hours.

Tomorrow is where the work starts again as I slowly get through the material again and again before the all important tests in seven days time. Having said that, having the ten days between mock and real examinations is more of a time to buffer and fine tweak the knowledge already gained over the previous five to six weeks. If it is possible to score highly with only four days of intense study before consolidation then the extra ten days are a great way to tune the already embedded material. Having said that, I am hoping to get a number of hours in daily.

I'm also hoping to get back into the air this coming week with the mock check ride. I have been waiting a number of weeks to finally get towards the FAA PPL and although it maybe touch and go (no pun intended) I am hoping to have this under my belt before departing the country for the Christmas period.

Talking about the festive season, it is great to be able to start organising to meet up with friends and family when I'm home for three weeks. Having started in May it has been almost seven months here in Melbourne and although we are living in a fantastic climate, doing something that thousands (if not more!) would love to do it; I know it will be nice just to return to a sense of normality for a short time and what better way to do that than over Christmas.

Consolidation and Thanks Giving

This week we concluded our five weeks of ground school for this module. We now have one week of Consolidation starting tomorrow followed by a study week and if all goes well during the mock exams the real IAA sitting in just over two weeks time.

This week was also a time for the United States to celebrate one of it's biggest holidays. As someone who lives in the UK we are well aware of the tradition but not a nation who takes part was a whole. So to be here in the US on such a day, I was hoping for an insight into the 'pre-Christmas' holiday - something a number of us certainly got! More on that later.

The time comes again where we must spend many an hour sat in front of the computer and books revising for the forth coming examinations. Round 2 is almost upon us as General Navigation kicks off tomorrow morning bright and early at 9am.

As it was eight weeks ago we all sit Consolidation exams to determine whether we are indeed ready to sit the IAA tests. We will be put forward for any or all of the subjects we achieve a score of 80% or above on.

The Consolidation papers take place over one extra day compared to the IAA running from tomorrow morning (Monday) to Thursday afternoon. All three modules will sit any of their respective fourteen subjects they're currently studying for. The results are usually distributed pretty swiftly within hours.

This week I have General Navigation on Monday, Radio Navigation on Tuesday, Flight Planning on Wednesday and the two Communication papers on Thursday.

Following this, assuming all are passed, we will have ten days to swat some more before the finals the week before leaving for Christmas.

As mentioned above, Thanks Giving is a big day on the American calendar where all families come together (maybe for the first time in twelve months) to say thanks, whether that be to their family, their friends or through their beliefs. 

Eight students from my class including myself were lucky enough to be able to attend a real traditional Thanks Giving in the home of a big American family. With what must have been over forty people coming in and out all afternoon the food production was run like clockwork. It was great to meet so many different people from so many different backgrounds who had all come together at one time.  

The evening was concluded by all gathering around in one room (I'd never imagine a family being so big!) to each say what they were thankful for. Overall it was a fantastic day and I can't thank enough the family for their hospitality.

The day following Thanks Giving is known over here as 'Black Friday.' Another national holiday (for those who don't work in retail anyway!) where the nation almost comes to a standstill...outside of their nearest superstore anyway. The country goes into lock down with consumers snapping up what I as a European can only describe as eye-watering cheap deals. Seeing people camping outside of Best Buy on Thanks Giving with tents it's the extent some will go to to make big savings and get their early Christmas shopping done. 

Needless to say I also took part in this tradition - it would after all be rude not to!

So...back to the books I go - less than twenty four hours to go...

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I'm not wanting to make a habit of these bottom post-blog comments but I think it's only right to highlight the sad news today of the death of one of the Premier League's all time greatest players; Gary Speed.

The Welsh football (soccer) manager was this morning found dead at his home, believed to have taken his own life.

I grew up with the Premier League and the entertainment it has brought to billions around the world. Up to only a couple of years no other player had contributed more playing time to the spectacle that is the greatest sporting league on the planet than Gary Speed - he will be a great loss to the game.

"The holidays are coming..."

Made famous by the drinks manufacturer the unofficial start of the Christmas period now seems to begin with the first showing of their adverts on TV screens across the world. Going by Facebook, during last week's X Factor the festive season was well and truly kicked into life.

Since the summer the majority of students have had their flights booked to return to their homelands for Christmas. A chance to catch up with family and friends and take a well deserved break from what, although it maybe enjoyable, quite stressful times along the Florida coastline. Something to look forward to at the end of this module in a few weeks time.

These past seven days saw the end of week four of the ATPL ground school for this module. We're now in full flow with all five subject and we again took another three weekly tests to help determine our credibility for the Consolidation exams coming up in only eight days from now. Thankfully all went to plan.

This weekend is also a landmark in that we are exactly half way through the whole ATPL programme. Twelve weeks down, twelve to go.

There is not much else to report actually. I'm currently awaiting a date to go flying with one of the senior flight instructors before my FAA PPL check ride but other than that the head is now solely focused on the forthcoming exams.

This coming week our timetable changes bringing forward the lectures by two days due to the holiday of Thanks Giving on Thursday followed by 'Black Friday' where all shops seem to drop their prices exponentially for only hours. A bit of Christmas shopping maybe a necessity...

Finally, I've had a few emails over the past few weeks about people who are planning to take the assessment day with PTC asking advice etc. I have added a page which can be found on the navigation bar at the top giving a bit of information on my assessment day and the weeks following that if that is of any help to anyone.

Two weeks down and a broken laptop

Well...we're now two weeks into the second module, in fact as I type starting week three! Of the eight weeks we spend on each group of subjects the time just seems to get shorter and shorter and Christmas nearer and nearer.

Sitting here thinking back to when we first started in May the time seems to have flown by (please excuse the pun) but the work must continue and the weekly tests this past week again reared their heads. In all three subjects I seem to be making steady ground. It is very clear that this module is highly theory and maths based which, for me, is far better than the previous.

This week in Radio Navigation we have covered the properties of different tools for aircraft to use when navigating using their instruments such as VORs and NDBs; focusing on the characteristics and properties associated with each.

General Navigation covered different conversions from a whole list of measuring terms such as US gallons, imperial gallons, metres, feet, nautical miles, litres etc. A lot of time spent on the calculator and the cool little old-school computer known as the CRP-5.

The CRP-5 is now outdated with the scientific calculators we can all now buy from our nearest WH Smith (or any other stationary store...) however the actual theory behind it and how it's put into practice is quite superb.

Although I would love to explain it's every function it's quite apparent that I'm hardly aware of half of them as I am much more at home with the Casio sat next to it however for wind calculations the CRP-5 seems very logical, easy to use and provides very quick and accurate answers. 

Flight Planning was mainly focused on map and graph reading as well as fuel calculations.

Outside of the classroom I haven't been back into the air yet although tomorrow I hope to fly an hour solo, a requirement before the FAA PPL check ride. 

On Friday evening as a class we went to TGI Fridays for something to eat to finish off the week. Earlier that afternoon my laptop broke which means I spent a good three hours on the bike on Saturday afternoon touring Melbourne to find another computer. Alas, I returned at 6pm with new machine in tow. One thing I have found over the years, whether you're getting a new laptop out of choice or because the previous was simply getting too old it's quite frustrating having to spend time moving things across and setting everything into place. Maybe it's just me...

Anyway, it's now less than six weeks before going home for Christmas. In between then and now is another eleven class tests, five consolidation exams and hopefully five IAA examinations. Sorry this week has been a bit of a boring update - not much to say! Back to the books and the CRP-5 I suppose!