Back in at the deep end

So I'm now back in Florida and it's been a tough couple of days with more to come!

I left a very windy Manchester on Thursday morning and made my way back across the Atlantic to Orlando and then on to Melbourne in the Sunshine state. Leaving Manchester was quite interesting. As many in north western Europe will know the winds have been extremely strong over the past week and come 10.30am on Thursday it was no different. The winds were so strong that as we boarded and waited to leave the gate the plane could be felt rocking in the airflow. Not only this, upon pushing back from the gate we had to wait for twenty minutes due to cargo containers sat by aircraft stands which had been carried by the weather and were now sat covering the main taxiways. The captain advised he would refrain from starting the taxi until all had been safely removed to save 'embarrassment' on behalf of the airline and airport in the case of one again been thrown into the air and in the worst case scenario striking the aircraft.

Anyway, we were soon airborne and after an extremely bumping departure we quickly got above the clouds and on our way to the US.

After landing in Orlando I joined the long and laborious immigration line which lived up to it's infamous name. Finally arriving at the desk I was asked kindly to follow the immigration official into a room for secondary checks. I wasn't thoroughly informed as to why this was the case at the time but soon enough my documents were returned and I was able to leave the arrivals facility and meet up with some of my fellow students before the journey back to Melbourne.

Shortly after arriving back and unpacking I was on to the computer to see if any flights had been scheduled by my instructor. True to his word the following morning I would be flying bright and early - at 7am. I'd been awake many hours and with the five hour time difference it added extra time on to an already long day. I had to get some shut eye.

Waking up the following morning bright and early (not long after 5am!) I headed to the Flightline. Since returning I was quickly informed that the weather was not what it had been when we left less than three weeks ago. It was apparently much cooler when the sun set and as was said I soon felt the chill (even after enduring the English winter for two weeks) of a cool Floridian January morning.

The aircraft was prepped and ready to go. Just one problem - mist. Unfortunately until the obscurity had burnt itself off it wasn't possible to get back into the air for the first time in 2012. To keep the plan alive I delayed the flight and went for breakfast at a local diner with three other students. Arriving back around 10am the weather had improved quite considerably and I was able to soon get back into the seat and head towards the runway.

The checklist had been thoroughly 'checked' and I sat there, waiting to make my first radio call of the new year. If I was to ask every student here the worst part of the flying (apart from the paperwork of course) the majority would most likely say it is making that initial radio call at the run up area. It's a very simple request to the controller and we have all done in many times yet it's one of those things that we all just have to sit there for all but a couple of seconds and just think - "what on earth do I have to say?!"

Luckily I got the first call under my belt correctly and it all flowed back. Within minutes I was pointing towards the sky and heading south. The air was still cool which helped the aeroplane climb much quicker than would normally be the case. Soon enough I was at my cruising altitude of 6,500ft. Aircraft configured, radio checks complete and check lists again re-checked I got to again appreciate some of the glorious views on offer here on the east coast of the United States. Only twenty four hours earlier I was being rocketed into the tropopause in a metal (well...composite...) tube containing some of Europe's latest technology while now I sat in an aircraft designed in the seventies (albeit kitted out with twenty first century navigation equipment) cruising at 117 knots (135mph) just a mile above the earth's surface. The difference being, this time I was in control.

Soon enough I was ready to begin the descent into Okeechobee, somewhere I had been many times before. With the terminal information gathered (the weather for the particular airfield and any other relevant information) I began the approach. One thing was for certain - it was going to be quite windy!

After a few landings (which went OK - safe but not what passengers would 'appreciate' had their been many in the back) I headed back to Melbourne, this time at a lower altitude of 3,500ft. This allowed me to experience a more detailed view of the landscape and get some great shots.

"FIT 37, cleared to land Runway 5."

So that was that - first flight of 2012 complete. Although it had been quite an effort to get myself organised and ready for the trip so quickly after returning to the US I was especially pleased to get it under my belt.

Again today I was scheduled for a 7am solo flight. As yesterday I arrived nice and early and again the weather told the same story - fog. Due to me also having a dual flight with my old instructor at 10.30am I unfortunately had to cancel the flight as I simply did not have the time to wait and fit the journey in before the following lesson.

I'm hoping to get my FAA PPL in as soon as possible and after cancelling the mock check ride before going home for Christmas this has now been reorganised for Monday. Before this I wanted to get a flight in with either my current or old instructor so that I was able to iron out any creases that had formed over the past few weeks on the ground while at home in Europe - and indeed there were a few!

Luckily I was able to get a flight with my old instructor who took me up for two hours and went through the majority of the procedures and manoeuvres that would be covered in the FAA check ride. It was great to get some feedback on areas I need to work on and hopefully there will be an improvement come the mock flight.

So, having gotten out of bed at not long after 5am for the past couple of days I was looking forward to taking the Sunday off to relax before the flight on Monday and the ATPL classes which start again on Tuesday but no, tomorrow morning by 6am at the very latest I'll be at the Flightline preparing another solo cross country flight. It's certainly not something that I am complaining about and I am extremely happy to be getting as many flights as possible under my belt as the CPL training lies only nine weeks away.

So, a busy few days and a few more to come - and that's before we start class again this week!

Next week I'll give more information on the final module including the subjects and the new changes with regards to the timetables.

Time for bed - another early start in the morning.

Back seating

Saturday morning, 5.15am. Alarm goes off. Weary eyed I rise out of bed and get ready for my 8am solo flight.

I arrive at the Flightline around 6.15am and finish my flight planning. After checking the weather on the computers it looks like it's going to be a very good morning. The round robin flight would involve heading from Melbourne down to Stuart on the Atlantic coast before heading inland to Okeechobee and then back north to base.

The flight block time is scheduled as two hours and handy enough the actual flight should take a similar time including start up, taxi and shut down.

Paperwork complete, aircraft prepared I headed out to the run up area and completed the next couple of sections on my check list.

"Melbourne Tower; FIT 40 is holding short of Runway 23 at Echo, ready for departure."

"FIT 40 cleared for take-off Runway 23 at Echo."

Transponder set to ALT, flaps set, landing light on, mixture fully rich, throttle advance, temperatures and pressures in the green, airspeed is alive.

Into the morning sun the warrior climbs (at quite an impressive rate) as I direct her to the first way point en route to the first stop of the morning - Stuart.

I had yet to visit Stuart, a similar yet smaller airport to Melbourne but still controlled. There were no clouds at this time in the morning so the climb to 5,500 feet was smooth, uneventful and rather rapid. I was rather impressed with this particular airframe!

I've explained before the number of checks en route we are to conduct and this flight was not much different. I pride myself in trying to stay ahead of the aircraft and ten nautical miles north of Stuart I was ready to make my approach.

"Stuart Tower, good morning; 640FT is five miles north of the airfield, requesting touch and go and departure to the west with Bravo."

"640FT good morning; enter midfield for the left downwind for Runway 7. Report downwind."

Easy enough. Airport diagram out and time to plan the route towards the reporting point.

"Stuart Tower, 640FT is on left downwind for runway 7."

"640FT, cleared to land runway 7, fly runway heading after departure."

I've said this before and I'll say this again - landings always seem to come off better on solos! I'd like to think I'm quite critical of myself but I was extremely proud of my landing in Stuart and the one to follow in Okeechobee.

After touchdown, flaps were retracted and full power applied until the Piper Warrior was back where she had spent the last thirty five minutes.

"640FT, make left traffic runway 7, depart on course, free to change frequency above 2,500ft, good day."

The third and final airport of the day, Okeechobee is fast becoming an old favourite...well old at least. The airport is not towered meaning traffic has to be conducted by oneself and those flying and taxiing around the airfield.

A quick check of the weather and traffic frequency and I established Runway 5 was open. To enter the pattern it would involved overflying the airfield at 1,500 feet and then making a right tear drop approach to enter the left downwind for Runway 5 (see below).

A quick touch and go (again impressing myself!) and then back up to Melbourne.

By this time the clouds had started to move in and form. My planned altitude of 5,500 feet was scuppered the further I got towards Melbourne. 3,500 feet; 3,000 feet; 2,500 feet; 2,000 feet; 1,500 feet. Luckily by this time I was approaching the reporting point for Melbourne and I was able to descend to 1,000 feet and ask for a full stop landing.

"Melbourne Tower, FIT 40 is over Abandoned, 1,000 feet. Request full stop with Victor."

"FIT 40, fly straight in Runway 5. Cleared to land Runway 5."

A bit of a crosswind caught me out on final but other than that a safe landing and then taxi back to the ramp to park up. Overall a very enjoyable flight!

The progress test ride is fast approaching (hopefully early next week) and therefore I'm starting to get as much back seating in as possible. After the night flight last week (which I must admit was much more for enjoyment and inquisitiveness) I've not had much time in the back of the plane until today.

Back seating, as described before, is basically sitting in the back of the aircraft of another student's lesson. It takes away the stresses and distractions of A.N.C. - aviate, navigate and communicate and allows the back seater to concentrate on the areas he/she sees fit. This maybe listening to the radio calls, looking at how procedures are carried out or how manoeuvres are completed etc.

Today I was glad to get into the air for two back seat flights both covering similar lesson plans to mine over the next week or so. We're all pretty close to our progress check therefore getting in the back is as I said the other day, repetition. Seeing things happen more often certainly helps in cementing them in the brain and almost making them second nature. By being able to identify immediately the procedure and execution of any instruction is great and allows more time to be spent flying the aeroplane.

Anyway, up at 5.30am this morning and out of the door forty minutes later. Just after 7am we were airborne for the first fight of the day. I was due to fly again at 10am and then my own flight at 1pm.

As we move ever closer to the progress test we have been covering a lot of material that will have been forgotten since the start of the flying course. This includes everything from stalls to different types of landings.

Steep Turns

Steep turns are quite fun to do and are certainly key for any private pilot. Firstly the student pilot completed a thorough look out of the area for any traffic that may interrupt the manoeuvre. Once this is complete he enters a thirty degree bank to the left while maintaining his current altitude. Here (luckily for him this was the steep turn I recorded!) he executes this. Often an increase in power is needed to maintain the altitude.

His/her turn should continue for a full 360 degrees before arriving back at the original heading. Exactly the same is done to the right following this.

The idea of controlled steep turns is to allow the pilot to manoeuvre the aircraft more quickly and effectively and can be very good in sticky situations such as busy airspace.

Stalls

The primary learning point of a JAA stall is not how to actually stall the aircraft but more so how to recover from it.

Here my colleague enters his lookout turn before leveling off and slowing down while still maintaining his altitude. To maintain the altitude he must increase his angle of attack. Upon reaching the critical angle of attack the aircraft will buffer and then fall into a stall. You'll hear the aircraft stall warning horn go off as he approaches such an angle. 

As the aircraft begins it's stall he must be able to recover by dropping the nose, adding full power and adding a touch of right rudder to compensate for the P-factor caused by the engine.

He must then return the aircraft to a controlled and steady climb the instructor tells him to do otherwise. 

After a few touch and goes in Valkaria and Melbourne we landed and returned to the ramp for the debrief and for to then get ready for my second back seat of the day.

10am came around and again we taxied to the run up area, checks complete and we departed to the practice area south of Melbourne. 

Along with those already covered above we also covered two other important components of any PPL holder or student pilot. Unusual attitudes and emergency landings.

Unusual Attitudes

Unusual attitude training is conducted at a safe altitude (above 3,000ft MSL) where the flight instructor will disorientate the student pilot (who has no visual reference) and then leave the aircraft in an unusual state. This is mostly in terms of the aircraft's pitch but also the roll (turn) of the aircraft.

The student pilot must return the aircraft to a straight and level flight.

Emergency Landing Procedures (in the pattern)

An emergency procedure landing at Valkaria airport in Florida. The instructor simulates an engine failure while the aircraft is on downwind to the intended runway. The student pilot must run through the procedure he has been trained to complete in order to land the plane safely. 

Note, the engine is set to idle and can be used to it's maximum capacity at any time should the situation arise that it be needed.

This basically involves initially correcting the speed for the optimum gliding speed which in the case of the warrior is 73 knots then checking anything that could have caused the engine to stop such as an empty fuel tank or trying ways to restart said engine. In the event of this failing it is time to prepare the aircraft for landing. This means securing the engine for touchdown and preparing to exit the aircraft at the soonest yet safest opportunity.

Engine out procedures are carried out at all different altitudes and terrain areas but today was focused on the engine failing while in the airport pattern. Further posts in the future will certainly include different engine failure scenarios. 

An almost identical flight complete and then to check the computers for the fore-coming weather over the following couple of hours. Not good reading. 'TSRA' - Thunderstorms with rain. Winds were over 20 knots and gusting into the 40s. I had seen the weather growing all morning and the radar confirmed my worst fears - the flight would be cancelled.

After an hour or so with my instructor with some quite helpful ground school it was time to return home. Although I'd not managed to actually get up myself it was good to get into the back of a couple of similar flights which will hopefully put me in good stead for my next flight tomorrow lunchtime - if the weather isn't similar to today!

First Cross Country Solo

Sunrise during the pre-flight before departure from Melbourne

Tuesday came and saw me take to the sky for the first time in nearly a week with my new instructor. Having a weekend away in Orlando had taken my mind off of the flying and it wasn't until I actually got into the plane I realised it had almost been a week!

It was great to once again get into the air and continue the training. The first thing I noticed about the new instructor was his different style of teaching. It is almost impossible for me to describe. I can't quite put my finger on it but I certainly think a change is always good and I look forward to seeing what different techniques and advice he has to offer me over the coming months.

Our first flight together was a cross-country flight to Okeechobee. It was very much focused on him being able to get a feel as to where I am in the training and how we can move forward. It was also great just to have a chat and to get to know him a little better also.

Landing in Okeechobee - not my best landing but one I would class as safe and acceptable.

The flight went well down to Okeechobee and on the return I was diverted by my instructor to Vero Beach, an airport about 15-20 miles off course. This involves planning the route from the point of diversion to the arrival airport listing en route the magnetic heading, distance, fuel burn over that distance, expected time of arrival and the minimum safe altitude (MSA) over that distance all while still flying the plane to that diversion airport. My understanding is that to pass the check ride you must fall within 2 miles and/or 2 minutes of your calculations (I maybe wrong on that and someone can correct me!)

After the Vero Beach diversion we headed back to Melbourne to complete a few touch and go's in the pattern. As we approached Melbourne I contacted Tower of our intentions and to receive instruction for entry into the airspace and relevant pattern.

"Melbourne Tower, FIT 42 is currently over Radiation (a VFR reporting point - basically what I assume to be a power station on the ground) requesting to enter the pattern with information wiskey (current weather information)"

The controllers reply was...

"FIT 42, head towards the causeway (another VFR reporting point), expect Runway 27R, report over the causeway."

So off we set to enter the pattern.

"FIT 42, continue north-east over the causeway to avoid traffic landing 27L, you'll be cleared for base after the inbound aircraft has cleared your path. Report traffic in sight."

My instructors initial reaction was to ask the controller the type of aircraft we were looking out for until we saw right in front of us and no more than a few miles away a Delta MD88 pass right in front on finals for the parallel runway. Seeing them on the ground is impressive but air to air has to be the best viewpoint ever. It was a moment where you had to admire then quickly remember you're flying an aeroplane. However, it was nothing on what was about to follow...

In Melbourne for a number of days a US Air Force C-17 had been sat on the ramp and rumour was that the aircraft had gone tech. Before departure to Okeechobee we saw landing a C-130 and a fellow C-17 and assumed both were there to help said stranded aircraft. Anyway, as we were in the pattern and on finals for Runway 27R tower contacted us.

"FIT 42, cleared to land Runway 27R, caution wake turbulence from aircraft departing 27L."

A quick look out to our 10 o'clock saw the rescuing C-17 entering the runway and begin it's immediate take-off roll. Although the following video doesn't provide the best view point due to the bumpiness of the approach (I blame the weather!) it was without doubt the coolest thing I have seen since my arrival here in the USA.

The aircraft performs a short-field take-off, flies level for the remainder of the 10,000ft+ runway (the nearest thing we are going to see to a tower flyby in Melbourne!) and then heads almost vertically into the sky. I have been told this is a military type of take-off that often takes place in war-zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan where ground-to-air missiles are frequent (anyone wish to clarify?) but whatever it was it was bloody impressive. A great end to a very good flight.

So after a couple of hours of flying we landed, returned to the ramp and did our debrief. As I'd hoped he was able to offer me some advice different from that I would have likely have gotten from my old instructor about things to think about old and new. It was also pleasing that he was happy with my flight and I would be ready for my first solo cross country. I must say, I'm very pleased with my new instructor.

Thursday. First cross country solo. I was to repeat my trip to Okeechobee. I arrived early at the Flightline for my instructor to have a look over my flight plan and complete all the relevant paperwork (yes there is more) for me to be able to fly legally before he departed on another lesson with a fellow student.

Being over an hour before departure I dared to look at the TAF (Terminal Aerodrome Forecast) which would give me a text brief of the weather expected over the coming few hours. It didn't look good: VCTS - which quite painfully translates as thunderstorms in the vicinity. It was quite odd actually as I look outside and saw clear blue sky with quite high winds at 11 knots but saw no sign of these thunderstorms that were due locally within the following hour or so. With the weather as it is here in Melbourne it's almost never readable. To add confusion to the decision of whether to go or not go, the radar was showing little cloud, little turbulent air and pretty calm conditions up to my highest cruising altitude of 5,500ft.

I was lost. 30-odd hours into my training and I couldn't make up my mind. To many of you pilots reading that would automatically be a 'no-go' scenario. Play it safe and I was 99% sure of doing the same, as much as it pained me. However, as the new METAR (weather information) and updated TAF came out and the TS had disappeared from the screen it looked more promising. I had a chat with my old instructor who was hanging about between his flights and he agreed it was perfectly fine to go. Having spoken to the weather-briefer on the phone before hand (quite an odd, inefficient system whereby you are able to ring up someone and file a flight plan and gain all the possible information you would/could possibly want to know about your route of flight and areas around it - a twentieth century system that has avoided the chop in an industry obsessed with cost cutting) they said there shouldn't be anything to worry about weather-wise en route.

So paper work completed, aircraft prepared and off I went! After departure from Runway 5 I headed South West to my starting point along my route. Time and fuel logged, route to the next check-point, look outside for traffic, aircraft checks, look outside for traffic, radio changes/checks, look outside for traffic, heading, altitude, speed, look outside for traffic, time and fuel logged, route to the next check-point...That is pretty much the recurring theme along the flight route until approaching the destination airport where further planning comes into play including getting the weather information for arrival and then the current runway in use. At un-towered airports it is the responsibility of the pilots flying within the pattern and on the ground as well as those around the field to make sure they abide by those rules and regulations set. It is often that you are able to determine the current runway some distance away simply by the wind heading however as soon as I'm onto the relevant frequency for the airport it's possible to confirm your arrival route to enter the pattern.

The flight en route was bumpy and I wasn't able to get to my desired cruising altitude of 4,500ft due to the cloud above meaning I had no other choice but to cruise at 2,500ft. Visibility was good, the aircraft was performing well so I had nothing really to complain about and other than the clouds being lower that expected everything else was better than I had hoped for.

Luckily Runway 14 was in operation at this time therefore I was able to head south before making a right turn to enter the left downwind for the runway. Checks complete, aircraft configured for landing. A good landing (If I should say so myself!) and then a taxi back to the runway for departure back to Melbourne. Times and figures noted, radio calls made, aircraft configured for take-off and I was back into the air within minutes heading back north to base.

A complete opposite flight was completed with no problems on the return leg although thankfully the clouds had lifted slightly so I could cruise at 3,500ft as opposed to 1,500ft (although my desired 5,500ft cruise was never going to happen!) Approaching Melbourne I was looking at around 25 minutes of flight time to spare. My instant thought was to practice some crosswind landings in the patter until I got the ATIS.

"Winds 110 at 12 knots."

A bit of a gulping noise preceded my call to tower for entry for a definite full stop landing and taxi back to the ramp.

"FIT 37, make a left 360 and then fly straight in for runway 5, expect late landing clearance."

Runway 5?! A quick calculation meant I would be landing into a crosswind of almost 10 knots on what can only be described as a glamorous taxiway! No thanks!

"Melbourne Tower, FIT 37, can I request runway 9R please?"

"FIT 37 no problem, fly north west, expect 9R."

A sense of relief came over me. 10,000ft of asphalt with hundreds of feet either side of the centreline to play with not to mention an almost direct headwind for landing. I headed north west.

"FIT 37, cleared to land Runway 9R, you're number one."

Lining up with the runway was a bit tricky and involved a considerably amount of rudder work but finally she was in line, two red two white on the PAPI landing lights (a guidance system to help landing aircraft which I will describe in further detail in a future post) and after a bit of a bumpy approach another good landing (they always happen when no-one is there to see them!) followed by a long taxi back to the ramp.

Aircraft shut down, closed and tied up, paperwork complete and back to home base for a rest.

Since Thursday I've been packing for our move tomorrow from our temporary accommodation to the permanent apartments the other side of the campus. Having had a little nosey around this evening while dropping off some of my stuff it was nice to see we'll be living somewhere better than where we are currently.

So, tomorrow we move and Monday is my next flight! Roll on the new week!