Rich's Quest For Flight

Memorial Flight

2011-12-10T12:49:00.001-08:00

On this date, 41 years ago, Dick Fraser was at the controls of a Beech H-18 airplane during final approach into Truax Field in Madison, Wisconsin. The weather was harsh, but that was not news. The forecast he received before departing Cleveland called for freezing temps and mixed precipitation, but the boss had an important engagement that evening, and Dick was going to do his level best to get him there. Tragically, the forecast came true and got the best of the plane and pilot, which crashed into Lake Monona and killing all aboard except for one. Dick Fraser was my father, and he was one of the fatalities. The crash also changed the course of music history.

A couple of years ago I was fortunate to be able to collaborate with master story teller P.W. Fenton, and I'm quite proud of the result. You can listen to my story as an episode of his podcast Digital Flotsam.

Over the years I've found ways to commemorate my father's memory, but today was the first time I had the chance to actually complete the flight by landing at Dane County Regional Airport - Truax Field. The weather was perfect and there was the added training benefit of flying and landing at a Class C airspace facility. The funny thing was that as a pilot maneuvering in controlled airspace, you're too focused on the task at hand to think about why it was you were flying in the first place. But as I completed my landing and takeoff and was climbing out, I looked over to Lake Monona off to my front right and gave a wave.

Mission complete.

Like Tears In Rain

2009-09-03T19:19:00.001-07:00

P W Fenton is a talented story teller and musical historian whose Digital Flotsam podcast has been my favorite for over 4 years. An offhand comment one day resulted in a most remarkable collaboration, and a tribute to my greatest influence - my father.

Radio Free Radio's - Digital Flotsam Blog » Blog Archive » Digital Flotsam #74 – Like Tears In Rain

AirVenture Is Coming

2009-05-16T12:35:00.001-07:00

Yes, we are very much looking forward to attending this year. And this time I am a member of EAA.

Longing for AirVenture 2009

Technorati Tags: flying, eaa, airventure

An Increasingly Rare Flight

2009-01-18T11:07:00.000-08:00

KRYV 181900Z AUTO 28006KT 10SM CLR M10/M16 A2976 RMK AO2
It was back in November when I had my last flight. Money has become exceptionally tight in the household, and flight time is more of a luxury than ever. My 2 year anniversary of my checkride is this week, so this is going to be my last flight for the near future. So I needed to get up one more time before I fell out of currency requirements, if not to reaffirm some confidence in my skills.

The plan for today was simple. Jot up to Juneau for a couple of touch and goes and then back to Watertown for a couple more. Basic stuff. It's nice to have another field close to home to allow for airport approaches and pattern entry. It's one thing to just take a few trips around the patch, but there's no real planning that has to go into that. Going to another airport forces you to plan. Runway selection, pattern entry, and all the different sight pictures are reinforcing more skills than just takeoffs and landings. It's the next best thing to an official cross country. The only things missing are the in depth weather planning, fuel management, and navigation. An these days, navigation is a snap with the GPS unit.

Besides being bitterly cold this morning (or downright tropical compared to earlier this week, it's all relative), conditions were perfect. A slight breeze with a tiny cross wind component both here and at Juneau. The longer I go between flights the more apprehensive I am climbing into the plane. Have I lost my skills? Is my head properly in the game? Today my head was in the game. I was more focused than I had been on the previous two or three flights. I made sure I verbalized my preflight briefing to myself. Besides, there's nothing better to do while you're waiting for the engine to reach temperature.

Any lingering apprehension vanished when the wheels lifted off the pavement. You just don't have time to think because of the focus you need in the first two minutes. Not until I'm at a safe altitude can I relax and start enjoying things. Approach to Juneau was routine. First landing may have been a couple of knots fast, but aligned nicely and slightly left. Second landing I flared a little earlier, but I drifted a little left and slightly misaligned. The right wheel might have been on the centerline. The two landings in Watertown were about the same. Slightly left but aligned with a nice flare.

So my next flight will be part of my biennial flight review. The review is mandated to ensure minimum pilot proficiency. I still haven't talked to an instructor about it, but I have an idea of some things I want to make sure are covered. It's probably wise to do some training on emergency situations, as well as a full series of stall sequences. Since that near disaster the last time I tried a power on stall, I'm a little gun shy about doing one without a safety on board. Plus my landing techniques probably need a little tweaking to stop that left drift I keep getting. A cross country up to Appleton or Oshkosh, with lunch in the middle and training each way should suffice. I reckon an hour on the ground and two in the air. We'll see what the instructor recommends. I feel like I've done well to keep the knowledge high.

In the end, it gets back around to money. I fear that this might be six months or more before I get it done. The very real possibility of going inactive cannot be discounted. How I would love to buy one of the nicer light sports and take nice, leisurely cross countries around the region. That dream is at least 10 years away. But I dream. I am never more at peace than when it's me, a magic anti-gravity machine, and the limitless sky. There just ain't nothing like it.

Watertown Aerial Winter
Originally uploaded by richmanwisco

Becoming a Pilot In a Most Unusual Way

2008-12-19T12:14:00.001-08:00

Our soldiers and sailors deployed to Iraq endure harsh conditions in the performance of their mission. Trying to beat the monotony of down time and perhaps even to take their minds off their difficult jobs is a challenge. AOPA brings us the story of a group of our finest professionals taking an opportunity to fulfill a dream.
AOPA Online: GA brings a lift to troops in Iraq

Techonorati Tags:

aviation, flying, cool stuff, our troops

Igniting a Passion?

2008-08-03T19:06:00.001-07:00

20080727 Local 004
Originally uploaded by richmanwisco

After my father's death, my mom, brother and I moved to northern New Jersey, right under the final approach path to Teterboro Airport. Day after day, countless airplanes flew down the street, and I just had to stop and look up at every one of them. One day, the Goodyear Blimp passed overhead, and it was so low I could swear I could reach up and touch it!

Here, two youngsters observe the departure of 55 Piper Comanches leaving Watertown Municipal Aiport for Oshkosh and the EAA AirVenture. Could these be future aviators?

Incident at Watertown Municipal

2008-07-26T16:59:00.001-07:00

At about 3:45 pm this afternoon, a Cirrus airplane, reported to have 2 aboard, attempted a landing on runway 29 at Watertown Municipal Airport. The airplane appeared to abort the landing and lost control as it tried to climb out, veering to the left and crashing into a row of hangers. It is not known the extent of injuries at this time to those on board or any on the ground. It is very fortunate that the plane crashed there as it just missed crashing into 15 to 20 parked aircraft on the ramp that were assembled in preparation to travel to Oshkosh tomorrow. More information as I get it.

UPDATE: So far it has been reported that 2 people were aboard and both suffered non-fatal injuries although their exact condition is not known. This was a terrifying incident; Watertown was hosting a Piper Comanche gathering, and 3 dozen planes were parked on the ramp just behind my vantage point. Additionally there were several dozen people gathered in the main hanger for a barbeque. It could have been a disaster.

UPDATE 2: The occupants of the plane were a man and his wife. The injuries have been reported as non-life threatening. The plane was a Cirrus SR-22, which is equipped with seatbelt airbags. Those airbags may very well have saved two lives today. Very good news indeed.

Technorati tags: aircraft, accident, watertown, wisconsin

Every Young Aviator's Dream

2008-07-25T19:25:00.001-07:00

I have seen the Navy Blue Angels just once in my life thus far, back in 1982 at Lakehurst NAS, New Jersey. Back then they flew the old A-4F Skyhawk, not one of the more memorable jet fighters, but awesome all the same.

Brian Terwilliger is a film maker who has taken his passion for aviation and put it on film in his critically acclaimed "One Six Right". Earlier this year, he was offered a ride in one of the Angels' F/A-18 Hornets and he takes us along for the ride.

I'm off for vacation for a week, and I will be attending EAA Airventure Oshkosh for the very first time. It's yet another thing I've wanted to do my whole life. I hope to have plenty of material when I get back. Meanwhile, enjoy the film.

Flying Full Circle | A Dream Come True Ride with the Blue Angels

A Long Time Between

2008-05-24T08:20:00.000-07:00

KRYV 241335Z AUTO 09007KT 10SM CLR 13/08 A3024 RMK AO2

Today I made re-acquaintance with an old friend.

Since my checkride in January of last year, I had been flying only the Cessna 152 planes of the fleet at the FBO. My budget for flight training was used up, and flying the smaller 152s was considerably cheaper. And since I can't seem to attract passengers, there was no sense flying a 4 seat plane with 3 empty seats.

But today was the beginning of the execution of what I hope is a wisely devised plan. On November 8, Penn State plays a road football game at Iowa. Depending on what time it starts, it would be a perfect reason to fly a medium length cross country just to see the game. I would love to take the wife with me, but she's still pretty skittish about flying in a small plane. And after taking her up last year in a C152, there's no way she's going up in anything smaller than a C172. Now I know it's not smart to just wait until November and expect she's going to make it 90 minutes each way. So we need to work up to it. So the objective today was to do some airwork with N9002E and shake off the rust. Next month, I'm going to take her to a pancake breakfast 50 nm from here. One longer cross country later on, and she'll know for sure if she can make the game in November. So that's the plan.

The weather is absolutely brilliant today. Opening the door to 02E quickly reminded me just how different the 172 is to the 152. The taller seats, higher step up, larger instrument panel, and of course the back seat. I finished up the preflight, took another long look at the procedures checklists, and started up the plane. As I started my takeoff roll, it took just a moment to recall that this plane was all about rudder, rudder, rudder. Where in the 152 you could forget to use rudder and still have minimal slip, the 172 is not so forgiving.

I climbed up to 3500' and performed my clearing turns in the maneuver area, and I did a set of steeps turns, some flow flight clean and slow flight dirty. I even felt bold enough to stall and, where the 152 barely breaks, the 172 takes your over the top like a roller coaster. I was nearing the end of my allotted time, so I headed back to the airport. Things got a bit interesting as I turned final for Runway 11. Since that was the short runway at the field, I decided in advance that I would make the first landing a full stop with a taxi back for another takeoff. But as I descended during downwind, base, and final, nothing felt right. I was still too high and too fast 200 yards from the threshold, so I aborted the approach and called a go around. Maybe it was a flashback from the checkride, when I damn near crashed the thing making a bad approach to 11. So it was another time around, with much better results. I still did a full stop, and with the taxi back and the go around eating up time, I needed to park it for the next guy. But it was a fun flight, a much richer experience than flying the 152.

I promise I won't wait 16 months before the next time.

Next Time Somebody Offers You a Ride In a Small Plane

2008-04-20T19:26:00.001-07:00

From time to time people will ask me just how safe is flying small planes, and naturally the answer is, quite safe. Now I can say that it's safer than ever to fly in a small plane, with fatalities reaching a 40-year low in 2007. Why is that? We in the pilot community know that aviation is one of the most intensely scrutinized industries anywhere. When an accident happens, chances are you'll read about it or see it on television. We, as a community, go to great lengths to make this activity as safe as possible.

NTSB Chairman Mark Rosenker commented that pilots cannot afford to become complacent. “We must continue to take the lessons learned from our investigations and use them to create even safer skies for all aircraft operators and their passengers,” he said.

We strive to do exactly that. No operator of a public conveyance is required to complete as much training and assessment as are pilots. When traveling on commercial airliners, the folks in front will have passed at least 5 and likely several more flight examinations to get where they are. Compare that with your bus driver, truck driver or, for that matter, every other driver on the road. And you have our word that we are trying to make 2008 even safer. Read more by clicking on the link below.

AOPA Online: NTSB notes big drop in GA fatalities

Technorati Tags: flying, aviation, pilot, aopa, safety

Fresh Medical

2008-04-04T17:10:00.001-07:00

DND365 54
Originally uploaded by richmanwisco

First the original milestones. Now the recurring milestones. Today was the first renewal of my original medical certificate. So I am medically fit in the eyes of the FAA for another two years. Naturally I am still responsible for reviewing my own medical status prior to each flight. I was hit with a minor surprise: my blood pressure was just below the maximum limit. This is the first time ever that my blood pressure was a concern. Perhaps it's age, perhaps it's diet. I reckon I have some monitoring to do.

By the way, on the application, I recorded 82 total hours flown with 15 of those in the last 6 months. It was a long and weather filled winter this year. I certainly resolve to improve the hours. My original plan was to fly to as many pancake breakfasts that I could reach. Today's events are causing me to rethink that strategy.

A Crisp Fall Morning

2007-10-28T10:10:00.000-07:00

KRYV 281414Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 02/M01 A3058 RMK AO2

No, I don't fly as much as when I was in training; those resources were well expended just as I was earning my certificate back in January. But that just makes each time up more special. And it also means that I have to make the most of each flight, to set an agenda of skills I need to cover to keep my proficiency at a high level.

As it was, my last flight was on September 9, a run to Racine for the pancake breakfast and back. I had a plane reserved last Sunday, but the winds were too strong and from the wrong direction to safely operate a Cessna 152. Today was much different, with calm winds, and Jason came along for the ride.

After preflight and takeoff, we headed north toward the Horicon Marsh National Wildlife Refuge, a large wetland area about 15 miles north of Watertown. Along the way, I treated Jason to some basic flight maneuvers: clearing turns, followed by a steep turn (he begged out of the second steep turn but said it was neat anyway), then some slow flight dirty. From there, we flew a big lap around the marsh, careful to observe the 2000' AGL recommendation for the area. Jason had visited the marsh as part of a school field trip, and he really got a kick out of seeing the area from the air. We didn't see very many geese; you'd want to be there at sunrise or sunset for that show. As we turned around at the north end, Jason complained of a headache, so we headed back to Watertown. I dropped him off there, and took the plane back up solo for some pattern work. A simulated power off landing, and a partial flap landing were the highlights of a very productive session.

Next plan: getting some night work in after the clocks roll back.

The Flying Jeep

2007-09-24T19:06:00.001-07:00

Another plane seen at my local airport this summer is this beautifully restored Stinson L-5 Sentinel, owned by Sam Tabor of East Troy, Wisconsin.

From Warbird Alley:

With short field takeoff and landing capabilities, and the ability to operate from unimproved forward airstrips, the two-crew L-5s were used during World War II for reconnaissance; delivering supplies to, and evacuating litter patients from, isolated units; rescuing Allied personnel from remote areas; laying of communications wire; transporting of personnel; and -- on occasion -- as a light bomber. Nicknamed "the Flying Jeep," the L-5 demonstrated amazing versatility, even landing and taking off from tree-top platforms constructed above a thick Burmese jungle which could not be cleared for more conventional airstrips.

Technorati tags: flying, aviation, stinson, warbird

Spirit of Carnauba

2007-09-09T11:55:00.001-07:00

20070909 Racine 001
Originally uploaded by richmanwisco

I've been trying hard lately to make sure I get up in the air at least once a month to keep the rust off, so this morning I headed to Racine, Wisconsin for a pancake breakfast sponsored by the local Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter. What I did not expect was this gorgeous airplane.

In 1935, Herbert F. Johnson Jr. and a crew embarked on an expedition to northeast Brazil. The purpose of this trip was to discover new stands of carnauba palms and whether existing growths could sustain the demand for raw material for Johnson Wax. The model S-38 aircraft was remarkable in its day, flying a number of history-making flights in the 1920s and early 1930s. One of which was Lindberg's 1929 inaugural airmail flight for Pan American Airways from Miami to the Panama Canal. Of the original 100 Sikorsky S-38 planes built, none still exist. This prompted Sam Johnson to have a replica built using the plane's original blueprints. The construction of the replica was done at Born Again Restorations in Owatonna, Minnesota. It took over three and a half years to complete, requiring more than 35,000 man-hours. Upon its its completion, it was christened the Spirit of Carnauba. The S-38 replica has a range of 550 nautical miles. Cruising speed averages 100 miles an hour. The aircraft is powered by two 450 horsepower Pratt & Whitney Wasp Jr. engines. The upper wing spans 72 feet. In fall 1998, Sam Johnson and his sons, Curt and Fisk, embarked on a journey to replicate the original 7,500 mile trip flown in 1935. Their trip took 27 days and concluded successfully in Forteleza, Brazil.

After display at the EAA Museum in Oskosh, the plane is now on display at the Southeast Wisconsin Aviation Museum, Racine.

MultiTasker

2007-08-20T18:26:00.001-07:00

MultiTasker
Originally uploaded by richmanwisco

"Damn", said the pilot as he stepped out of his plane, "I forgot my chocks again."

A Lightning Flies High Again

2007-06-24T20:29:00.001-07:00

Really cool stuff. Read more about it at Telstar Logistics.

Telstar Logistics: Defrosted P-38 Visits New York En Route to England

Technorati Tags: aviation, warbirds

Flight Patterns

2007-06-12T18:54:00.001-07:00

This is just amazing stuff. That you can take something as routine and mundane as flight tracks and turn it into brilliant art; now that's creativity.

The Family Flies!

2007-05-19T21:01:00.001-07:00

KRYV 191855Z AUTO 22013G19KT 10SM CLR 23/11 A3001 RMK AO2

I realize this space has become much less active since I earned my certificate, but it's not because I haven't been flying. I've made it a plan to try to fly 2 times per month and a maximum of 4 hours per month. So I've been up about 5 times since my last post. Mostly it's been practice in the Cessna 152, but in April I took a plane up for an overnight to Stevens Point Municipal (KSTE) for a Destination Imagination contest my oldest son was participating in.

But today, after many weeks of cajoling, shaming, and yes, threatening, I finally got the wife into a small plane. But first, I took the boys up. Since I only had a 152 for the day, I could only take one up at a time. That was actually by design, since I don't think anybody is ready to fill all four seats of the Cessna 172. I just had this feeling that there would be too many distractions, and perhaps too much passenger discomfort to take the chance. Of course I can't wait to do just that and having the experience of a Center of Gravity (CG) further aft than I'm used to.

Jason was most eager to go, so he was first. We brought along a couple of shoeboxes for him to sit on during the flight so he could see over the cowl. That, and having an empty stomach today, yielded much better results than the unfortunate events of the first flight. The flight plan was the same for all three and went as follows: climb out Runway 23, turn to the north, over the high school, and then turn back to the south after flying over the homestead of one of Colin's friends. All told, about a 20 minute flight from takeoff to touchdown. Jason was ebullient afterwards, a very positive experience compared to the first time up.

Colin was next. He didn't have any reservations about going up, but he also wasn't real enthusiastic about it, either. That didn't mean he was disinterested, and I think he thought positive of his flight.

Finally, my wife. If I am ever going to take the family out on destination flights, I must get her comfortable with flying in a small plane. She is both afraid of flying, and of small spaces. I started by just having her sit in the plane with the doors open as I explained preflight checks inside the cockpit. I also talked out my flight plan with her, beginning with the ground roll, takeoff, climb out, descent and landing. For instance, I explained that I would release some back pressure on the elevator immediately after leaving the ground so I could build some speed before pitching for my climb angle. That way I hoped that there would be no surprises during the flight.

The flight itself went fine. This was the heaviest I've flown this plane, and you can tell the difference. Longer takeoff roll, slower climb, etc. It would have been best to fly earlier in the day, since by this time the boundary layer/low level turbulence was at its height. So the 20 minute flight proved to be the practical limit this time out. But I was really proud and happy for my wife. I knew this wasn't fun for her, but she did it for me. And these would be the worst conditions I would subject her to, in the smallest airplane possible. So I'm very hopeful that she'll be more willing in the future, in a larger plane, to go along for the ride.

One Year Later

2007-04-01T21:25:00.001-07:00

Cessna 195 C
Originally uploaded by richmanwisco.

One year ago today, I launched Rich's Quest For Flight as a way of chronicling my journey toward obtaining my private pilot certificate. I did it as much for personal reasons as it was to help others who are starting out in this wonderful activity.

I Got Lost

2007-03-11T12:51:00.000-07:00

KRYV 111539Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 02/M03 A3046 RMK AO2

Today was an exercise in cross country navigation. Not counting the checkride, the last cross country I flew was back in October. So I dusted off the chart (yes, a current chart), got out the plotter, and set myself a course to Poplar Grove (C77), just south of the border in Illinois. It was perfect for a short cross country, 51 nm south of Watertown. The weather was ideal, save for some fog that I needed to make sure was burned off before I departed.

I departed in the C152 that I had flown the previous time, and set south for Fort Atkinson, with a slight turn to the left, almost due south to Poplar Grove. There were still some low cloud remnants with some haze, but conditions improved as I continued. Things went perfectly fine until about 10 miles out when I crossed Interstate 43, just east of Beloit. I started having some trouble pinpointing my location visually. I was trying to judge my position by the curve of the interstate as it exited a town, but it would turn out the I was about 3 miles east of my plotted course. I called in range of Poplar Grove anyway, and started looking for the field. Since this was my first time there, I suppose it was wishful thinking.

I couldn't find the field. I knew Poplar Grove ringed a small lake, and I knew the field had a fly-in housing development, but I could find neither. So, in the tradition of pilotage, I flew to the nearest town with a water tower. I descended down to about 1500' AGL and tried to read the town name off the tower. There wasn't any, the tower was painted solid white. So I flew to the next town. The tower there said "Sharon". There was no town marked Sharon on my chart. Okay, so I am now a little lost. I could see Lake Geneva off in the distance, and I was sure I was too close to it. And then, it struck me like a V8 commercial. Use the dang navaid, stupid! I had plotted the radial from Rockford VOR before I left, so why not use it! I knew I was north of the radial, so I dialed it in and flew toward it. And sure enough, just as the needle started moving, there was the field. Poplar Grove has one paved runway and two turf, but there was still snow on the ground, so I entered the pattern and landed on the paved runway. No touch and go since this was a new field, I turned off the taxiway and taxied back to the top of the runway for departure.

The trip back was uneventful. What a beautiful day with great visibility. Beloit and Janesville to the left, Whitewater on the right, over the top of Fort Atkinson, Jefferson and Johnson Creek as I descended into Watertown for a spot on landing in near calm conditions. Good stuff indeed.

My First Victim

2007-03-04T10:58:00.000-08:00

KRYV 041637Z AUTO 24009KT 10SM CLR M07/M14 A3005 RMK AO2

Jason was quite excited when I asked him if he wanted to go up with me. He was certainly more enthusiastic than the 15 year old Colin, who gave a somewhat more indifferent response. So Jason would be, as they refer to in aviation circles, my "first victim".

After my first go around with the C152 last week, I was ready to carry a passenger for the first time. The morning was cold, but Jason was raring to go and he sat in the cockpit giving things a good look over while I walked around the outside. The preflight complete, we had to troubleshoot the intercom connection, but then we were off. The route of flight was a quick trip over to Hartford (with a flyover of my office building), then west to Juneau and back south to Watertown.

There was no turbulence as we climbed to 3000', and Jason was enjoying the view, asking questions. He declined the controls when I offered them, however. But then, shortly before reaching Hartford, I noticed he was staring straight ahead into the instrument panel. He had fixated on the instruments, and now he was feeling nauseous. It didn't help that he could not see over the cowl straight ahead. I turned around and headed back to Watertown, and we made it back without incident. It was good practice for dealing with a sick passenger. I turned the heat off, got fresh air into the cabin, and I had him look outside at the ground and around for other traffic to help take his mind off of it. The plane was still clean as we headed back into the FBO office.

It took about 20 minutes to get all the paperwork taken care of, including some friendly chitchat with others in the lounge. Jason was still a bit pale as we headed to the car. And then, just as we started driving away, he leaned over and deposited his breakfast all over my car. He had a big bowl of cereal, too. Poor kid felt bad about it, too. And I felt bad for him. He was pretty stoic in the end, though. He said he'll try again in just a little while.

Return to Flight

2007-02-23T09:13:00.000-08:00

KRYV 231516Z AUTO 07004KT 10SM CLR M05/M09 A3044 RMK AO2

For the first time since earning my certificate last month, I finally had the opportunity to go back in the air. It was also the first time I could experience the pleasure of not having to need an endorsement to fly, or to ask an instructor if the weather was acceptable. It was my decision, 100%. And that feels pretty damn good.

I also used this as the opportunity to fly a new plane for the first time. Well, new to me, anyway. It is a model year 1978 Cessna 152, tail number N68954, one of three of the type that Wisconsin Aviation has for rent at Watertown Municipal. The 152 gives me a lot of flexibility in flying, since there are three, one is always available, and they are $14 per hour cheaper. That means more bang for the buck, and since most flying will still be of a practice nature, there's no need to worry about carrying other folks. There is also a Piper Archer and a Piper Arrow at Watertown that I will get checked out in, for those occasions when I want to take the whole family somewhere. But most of my flying will be solo work, so why take more plane than the mission dictates?

I had purchased a copy of the Pilot Operations Handbook last week to become familiar with the numbers. Generally, the key "V" speeds were 5 knots less than what I was used to on the C172, so that's an easy adjustment. The other notable difference was that the fuel tanks are of the cross-feed type, whereas the C172 tanks are not. Which means that the fuel cutoff lever on the C152 has two positions: on and off. The C172 fuel cutoff has four positions: both, left, right, and off.

The morning was crisp and clear, deceiving in advance of the major winter snowstorm due through here this weekend. Conditions were excellent. I took extra time during preflight to calculate weight and balance, to examine the panel and, most importantly, to start running my mental checklists. It strikes you quickly how small the cockpit is in the C152. The two seats are butted right together, and there are no rear seats, just a baggage area. Niner-five-four is not the prettiest pig in the pen, having endured close to 12,000 hours on the airframe during it's long career. The interior plastic is cracked in many places, and the instruments show the yellow patina of age. There is only one communications and one navigations radio, and no Automatic Direction Finder (ADF). But aside from the tachometer located on the right side of the panel, the instrument arrangement was nearly the same.

As I belted into my seat, I realized how smart I was to choose the larger C172 as my training plane. Two normal size adults would be quite friendly in these cramped quarters. Now imagine an instructor in the right seat articulating and gesturing while the poor student in the left seat is trying to fly. Cozy indeed.

Startup was quick and easy. With only one radio, I had to switch back and forth between the CTAF and ASOS (weather) frequencies instead of taking the lazy guy's way out. Did I already mention how nice I had it in Zero Two Echo? But after a few extra minutes doing instruments scans (and some relaxed breathing) I taxied the plane out to Runway 5 for takeoff. Runup checks complete, pattern empty, and I positioned for takeoff. This was my second most nervous part of the flight. I haven't flown in over a month, and rust is not an excuse for a damaged plane. So all during taxi I was playing the mental takeoff checklist. Power to 2000 rpm, check oil pressure, power to full, release brakes. Right rudder as necessary, speed to 45 kts, rotate, liftoff at 50. Lower nose to gain speed, pitch up at climb speed. Crab into wind and climb out on runway heading. And I was in the air, keeping an eye open for landing places in case the engine failed.

I climbed to 3000' and headed for my favorite maneuver area, about 8 miles north of the airport. My plan was to get better familiarized with the plane by simulating some landings. Starting at 3000', I picked a road to represent a runway threshold, and I initiated the downwind leg to that point. The "runway" would actually be an imaginary floor at 2000'. I reduced power, dropped flaps, and flew base and final legs just like I was approaching a real runway. When I crossed the threshold, I reduced power and held my altitude as the plane slowed and flared. When she stalled, I performed stall recovery and otherwise initiated a climb out just like at the airport. I also wanted to do some steep turn practice, but I was running short on time, so I headed back to the airport. Conditions at Runway 5 were very nice. A slight crosswind to keep things honest. Zero Two Echo happened to be in the pattern as I approached, so I took that as an opportunity to practice some pattern separation. I flew a couple of circles just to the south of the downwind entry point and waited for Zero Two Echo to turn base, then I would enter downwind. In the analysis, one turn would have sufficed, and I could have reduced speed while in the pattern to increase the separation. But that was some opportunistic practice that I needed to do anyway.

As I reduced power at the numbers and began my descent, I could already tell that the smaller plane liked to fly tight patterns. When I turned for final and added the remainder of flaps, I was at the right altitude but close to the runway. So I was high, and at 70kts I was 10 faster than I should have been. So I just reduced power, almost to idle, and let the plane glide in. Crossing the threshold I pulled all power out, and the plane settled down. But I was a little high and flared early. It's always an uncomfortable feeling when you've pulled power and the plane could stall at any time, and there's still 4 feet between you and the runway. But hours of experience taught me to put in just a quick burst of power to keep from stalling while I eased her down. The landing itself was a bit bumpy because I had started moving laterally off the centerline, but I was down. I cleaned up and took her up again.

Second time, still high on final, but I reduced power and glided in. I crossed the threshold right at 60 kts and reduced power. I waited just a couple of seconds longer before flaring, and I was at just the right height as the nose rose and the stall horn came on just as the wheels touched down. A very nice landing. One more time around and the results were close to the same. So I got my 3 landings in, and it was time to taxi to the ramp. Total time: one hour.

So now I am familiarized with the Cessna 152. Next time out I think I'll take up a passenger. Jason has been eager to go up with me ever since I started training. It's time to perhaps instill some of the passion of flying in him.

1911 Model B

2007-02-20T19:19:00.001-08:00

1911 Model B
Originally uploaded by richmanwisco.

Creation of the Wright Brothers, this example is a restored version of an actual example. Franklin Institute, Philadelphia.

It's been a cold stretch in Wisconsin, and I haven't been up since the checkride. And yes, I still have to write my account of the day. I'm just lazy that way.

Quest Complete - And Merely Beginning

2007-01-21T17:33:00.000-08:00

Cessna 172 tail zero two echo on the ramp at Watertown Municipal Airport, waiting on a cold Wisconsin morning.

Yesterday was a day I won't soon forget. Flying an airplane had been a dream of mine ever since the day my father took me up in a small Cessna over Macon, Georgia. The dream was interrupted on December 10, 1967 when my father was killed while at the controls of the plane he was flying. Had he lived, I am certain I would have had a career in aviation. But without him, I had no guide in that respect, and I had no idea how to break into the field. Not until much later did I realize how possible it was, but by then I had a family and no resources to change my career.

In fact, it was another deep loss, the death of my mother, that enabled me to pursue this personal goal. Beginning in April of last year, and after nearly 59 flight hours, over 200 takeoffs and landings, and a lot of sweat, I was presented with a stiff examination of my skills in the practical exam. Many times I thought I was sunk. But the examiner, a very nice older gentleman, stuck with me, saw that I capable, and approved my certificate. Waves of emotion coursed through me, and continue even as I write this. For I have, after all these years, paid my father the honor he so deserved. And with that I honor my mother, who made this pursuit possible. I only wish she were here to celebrate with me.

There are many people I would like to thank for their support. My wife, for understanding perfectly what this meant to me. My brother, who never really knew father, but did pass along his flight logs. I owe you a ride or two. To all of my readers I give thanks. My primary instructor, Adam Warnemunde; good luck with your career, I hope you get that Skywest job. Other instructors, Kevin Loppnow of Watertown, and Paul Dwyer of Santa Fe, New Mexico, who not only gave me a great mountain orientation, but fixed some landing problems I was having. All of the great people at Wisconsin Aviation. And finally to Adam Curry, whose podcast I started listening to in 2005 just at the time he earned his private certificate. His enthusiasm for aviation and joy of flying helped me realize that it was never too late to fly.

What does my flying future hold? As much pleasure flying as I can get in. Perhaps as time goes on I might be able to afford an airplane of my own, and maybe an Instrument Rating. But the major goal is accomplished. And I'm still in the clouds.

Stay tuned for a more complete account of the actual flight test in a few days right here at Rich's Quest For Flight.

Two Step, and It's All Set

2007-01-19T22:01:00.000-08:00

KRYV 191654Z AUTO 28013G17KT 10SM BKN120 M07/M12 A3017 RMK AO2

In a final push to get ready for my practical exam (otherwise known as the checkride), we scheduled the twice postponed final phase check with Kevin for this morning, while I would then go up with Adam in the afternoon for final cleanup and paperwork preparation.

Adam had arranged a primary date of tomorrow, January 20, and next Saturday. With the postponements, as long as the weather held up, I would have premium practice time the day before my checkride. One thing did try to get in the way, and that was scheduled maintenance. The plane was due for its 100 hour service yesterday. My heart sank when the scheduling calendar showed the maintenance window overlapping my time today. This was not a good sign. I called the FBO this morning, and the nice lady on the other end told me that they are doing all they can to have it ready by 10:30 a.m. and to plan on coming in. So I arrived, met with Kevin, and waited. The maintenance technician was just in the process of taking the plane to another part of the ramp for a runup check. Shortly after, the plane was back and ready to go.

Kevin watched as I did my walkaround. I explained everything to him. What I was looking at and what to watch for. With the preflight complete, I set my materials up in the cockpit: my kneeboard with flight plan and sectional, the Airport and Facility Directory (the brand new edition) and my headset. We got her fired up and headed to Runway 29 to start the cross country. Take off and climb out were excellent, and the air was smooth and clear as I climbed to cruise altitude. At the second checkpoint, Kevin suggested the oil pressure had dropped dramatically, and so the cross country portion ended. I talked through what I would do, which was to land as quickly and safely as possible, after ruling out possible causes. Since we just passed over Fort Atkinson airport, we could land there. Instead, we turned to the east to perform air maneuvers. Kevin didn't run through the entire set of maneuvers, electing to sample power on stalls, turns around a point, and some instrument flying. We talked through partial engine failure, then simulated total engine failure. Everything went well, and we headed into the wind back to Watertown.

Short field, soft field and normal landings along with a short field takeoff, and we rolled it back to the ramp. Kevin was very impressed and had no concerns about my passing the exam tomorrow. It was perhaps my best session of all. We debriefed with Adam, and I went back home to have some lunch. My next flight was at 2:30 p.m.

KRYV 192034Z AUTO 27009KT 10SM CLR M05/M12 A3014 RMK AO2

So it was back to the airport for some clean up work with Adam. He had me do steep turns again, a couple of crosswind landings at Dodge County, then some no flap/forward slip landings at Watertown. I think we got the rest of the burrs ground off, so to speak, and I'm ready to handle just about anything the examiner might toss at me. We finished off the paperwork, double and triple checking the FAA Form 8710-1 (Airman Certificate Application). Adam also finished all of the endorsements to my logbook, including one completely asinine one that says I'm not a terrorist. But perhaps I'll rant about that some other time.

Tomorrow I meet with the Flight Examiner at 9:00 a.m. at Watertown, for what should be a great day. I have already called him tonight and also called Green Bay Flight Service for an outlook briefing. And the outlook is fantastic. Perfect VFR conditions with light surface winds. It's come down to this. A day 39 years in the making.

Last Solo

2007-01-06T15:58:00.000-08:00

KRYV 061916Z AUTO 28011KT 10SM BKN027 03/M02 A2993 RMK AO2

As a student, at any rate. The morning dawned with a low ceiling and marginal visibility, but the forecast called for improving conditions and that's what happened. The ceiling was questionable considering my solo endorsement, but it went from broken to scattered just as I fired up zero two echo. That meant I could leave the pattern and get in some last cleanup before my final phase check with Kevin next Friday.

The cold temperatures today let zero two echo jump off the runway. I was climbing 1000' per minute while maintaining 73kts climb speed. Really was quite remarkable. I found a spot just south of Clyman for some maneuvering work and I began with the rectangular course. That was followed by a turn around a point to the left, then a turn around a point to the right, then s-turns. I easily maintained the altitude and speed requirements, and while they weren't perfect circles, they should satisfy the examiner just fine.

Then it was back to the patch, and the first landing was a short field. I did float it slightly, but I got it down and stopped in about the right distance. The next time around was a forward slip to landing with flaps at 10 degrees on the final. I have trouble judging the right distance on these, since I start final almost at pattern altitude. That means losing 1000 feet of altitude in little more than a half a mile. So I pegged right rudder and dropped the left wing and wished that baby down. I did well to avoid exceeding flaps maneuvering speed, but I still one hopped the landing. Back around two more times, one a short field, and the other a normal landing and it was back to the ramp.

My solo work is done. A phase check with Kevin, a clean up session with Adam, and I'm ready for the final practical test.

Final Polishing

2006-12-26T10:12:00.000-08:00

KRYV 261517Z AUTO 29006KT 10SM OVC018 M03/M07 A2994 RMK AO2

Approaching the airport today, there were a couple of indicators that I might not fly. First, the ceiling was about 2000', so we certainly weren't going to fly anywhere except around the patch. Second, I was still not fully recovered from a stomach virus that hit me hard Friday night. The first problem was no problem as Adam said we'd just focus on takeoffs and landings with some oral review tossed in. So out to the plane I went for preflight. It was quite cold today, and in my rush to get to the airport, I only had a medium jacket. So at least the preflight checks weren't lazy. But I still felt a bit groggy, and a bit sore from being sick. I wasn't completely sure I wanted to fly. But I wasn't at all nauseous, so I decided to go forward as we'd only be local and we could scrub at any time.

Turned out to be a good decision. Winds favored Runway 29, so most of our time was spent practicing the takeoff and landing variations. Short field, soft field, no flap, forward slip to landing. Then we switched to Runway 23 for some light crosswind work. Out of 6 landings on the day, only one could be considered less than satisfactory and the passenger probably wouldn't be able to tell. It all feels so coordinated now, very natural.

I need one more solo session, and Adam is sending me up with another instructor for a final phase check, then it's on to the practical exam.

That close.

A Mild Day In December

2006-12-17T15:27:00.000-08:00

KRYV 171835Z AUTO 29007KT 10SM CLR 06/M05 A3008 RMK AO2

After my solo time last week, it was time for some more scrutiny from Commander Adam. The script today was much the same as it was the last few instructed flights. Get up, clean up, practice flight maneuvers, finished off with takeoff and landing practice.

As has been the trend the last several times we were up, the air maneuvers were just a shade easier and performed a shade better than the previous times. The only hitch came when we initiated an engine out landing over Dodge County Aiport. I was about 1500' AGL when Adam pulled the power, and my initial reaction was to just do a couple of circles over the field before turning base then final so as to lose altitude. But another plane entered the pattern, and Adam directed me to turn to base now. This proved to be a distraction, and while I managed to get it around to final, I was way too high, and by the time I decided to enter a forward slip, it was too late. I was still 300' AGL crossing the threshold, so Adam ordered a go around, and we cleared the pattern to the south.

On the way back I practiced the ground reference maneuvers, and they're coming along much better. A few cross wind landings back at Watertown and we taxied back to the ramp. And so it was. Adam is very satisfied with my airwork. Now it's back to finishing up the oral review preparation and starting on the paperwork for the check ride. Just a couple of more hours to go.

Anniversary

2006-12-10T11:25:00.000-08:00

KRYV 101614Z AUTO 19012G16KT 10SM CLR 03/M04 A3010 RMK AO2

It's been so long since I've flown, I wouldn't blame any of my readers if they thought I had given up, or just taken a break for the winter. The time between my last flight and now was filled with weather scrubs, maintenance problems, and sometimes no availability at all. It has all but assured that I will not get the practical exam done this year, what with the holidays and all.

But the weather today could not keep me down, and it was time for some solo work. The breeze was stiff, but the crosswind component was within my limitations. With the light load, the plane nearly jumped in the air, and I reached 3000' very soon after leaving the pattern. After clearing turns, I set up for some slow flight practice. With the air clear, setting up for slow flight was a snap today. Throttle down, first notch of flaps, let the plane increase attack angle as it slows without gaining altitude, put in rest of flaps, then pitch for speed and control altitude with throttle. Trim as necessary. Why it's so hard with another person in the plane is beyond me. Did some turns dirty, then set up for slow flight clean with the same results.

Now was a good time for a special break from routine. Today is the anniversary of my father's fatal plane crash, so I held a brief ceremony which you can see here.

After that was some ground reference maneuver practice. Rectangular course is not a problem, but I still need a little work on S-turns. After finishing that bit or work I headed back to Watertown for a little landing practice. The air got real bumpy again below 2200', so I knew these landings were going to be a workout. The first landing was not far from a mess. I landed along the centerline, but the plane was somewhat crooked, and I briefly teetered on one main before settling down. I think my mistake was turning the left aileron up prematurely, causing that wing to dip. I got the plane back up and the second and third landings were much better. I still carry about 5 knots extra into the threshold, but I'll give myself the pass today due to high winds. The crosswind component was near my allowable limit.

So I'm down to less than one solo hour to go and that requirement is met. Just some instrument training to go and a pre-checkride phase check with another instructor.

Refinement

2006-11-12T15:14:00.000-08:00

It sure has been a while since I've posted in here, and I want the half dozen or so of you know that the quest is still going, just not quite as strong as during the summer. With fall comes shorter daylight hours and less predictable weather. But I have gotten some flying in, and the good news is that I am still progressing to my goal. Whether I get it done by the end of this year is hard to tell.

Since the cross country phase ended, I have been focusing my efforts back on cleaning up the basic maneuvers and refining my landings. Here is a recap of the past few lessons.

October 14.
KRYV 141737Z AUTO 27015G20KT 10SM BKN045 07/M04 A2992 RMK AO2

A blustery day in the hundred acre wood. Wind conditions today pretty well limited us to landing practice. The steep turn and slow flight segments were a little ragged, due to gusts at maneuvering altitude. So it was hard to get a real gauge on how well I'm doing.

October 29.
KRYV 291759Z AUTO 27010KT 10SM CLR 09/M07 A2987 RMK AO2

A beautiful day in southeast Wisconsin. Quite windy, too. We ran through the standard maneuvers and practiced some landings. A good day, the cleaning continues.

October 30.
KRYV 301918Z AUTO 17012G19KT 10SM CLR 19/08 A2955 RMK AO2
KUNU 301939Z AUTO 17016G21KT 10SM CLR 19/09 A2955 RMK AO2

The good news was that we were able to get in some serious cross wind landing practice today. The bad news was that Runway 5-23 was closed because it's in the process of being extended. That meant using Runway 11 at the beginning and end of the lesson. That meant landing practice would be at Dodge County Airport. Even there, it was quite tricky, exhilarating, and fun. I almost feel more comfortable in crosswinds as I do on a calm day. Which I think is good.

November 11
KRYV 111815Z AUTO 34010KT 10SM CLR 01/M02 A3020 RMK AO2

A cold, beautiful day. We had snowfall the night before. After climbing above a few low clouds the air was very smooth. This led to the best set of steep turns and slow flight yet. Really felt great. Then up to Dodge County, and I greased the first landing. Adam never said a word. I wanted to let out a yelp like crazy, but I am not going to jinx myself that way. Went back under the hood as Adam put the plane in various odd orientations. When doing unusual attitudes, level the wings, stop any descent or climb, and bring the speed within the normal range. After a few of those setups, he next had me fly to Watertown just by instruments. Without that natural horizon, it really does get harder to fly the plane. It really teaches you the value of subtle control inputs.

November 12
KRYV 121755Z AUTO 18009KT 10SM CLR 04/M01 A3023 RMK AO2

Light winds today, and only slightly bumpy in the air. More work on cleaning things up. Steep turns, turns around a point, s-turns, turns around a course. No flap landing at Dodge County. Need to work on controlling speed for no flap landings, perhaps consider doing a slip to lose altitude without picking up airspeed. That will need to be something I practice during the next solo. A couple of not very glamorous landings on Runway 23 at Watertown, and we're one step closer. Adam stated that we're basically done with dual instruction. Now the focus is on preparing for the practical exam. So this is it, the home stretch. I have two oral exam guides to crank on, and hopefully I'll get the checkride before the end of December. What a great Christmas present to give to my dad.

Solo Work

2006-10-07T11:31:00.000-07:00

KRYV 071416Z AUTO 16010KT 10SM CLR 10/06 A3035 RMK AO2

A cool morning at the airport. Originally I was to fly in the afternoon with Kevin, but he was on assignment out of the area. So a solo practice it would be. After all, I still needed a bit over 3 hours of solo time to fill the required hours. I spent a few minutes in the lounge area filling out my maneuver card. Short field takeoff, clearing turns, steep turns, slow flight dirty, slow flight clean, then to Dodge County for a couple of landings, then back to Watertown. There I would try as many landings as I can, with at least one short field landing, and a soft field takeoff. The winds, as they always do, would influence the conduct of the flight today.

Takeoff was from Runway 11 and I rose quickly in the light aircraft and cool air to my maneuver altitude. The ride was very smooth, great conditions for maneuvers. The steep turns come much more naturally these days. Using power instead of elevator to make minor altitude adjustments is much easier. Still have to work on maintaining the bank angle, but that's minor. The slow work was good, but I can probably try slowing a little more to get closer to the envelope.

My mistake of the day was my approach into Dodge County Airport. I announced entry into downwind for Runway 20, except I was on the wrong side of the runway. I was making right traffic instead of left. Once I realized that, I called to announce that I was breaking off to the west and would make a proper re-entry. It was my second incorrect pattern entry during solo flight; I need to work hard on that. I made two landings, both were right down the center line. The thing that seems to happen now is that I bounce between the main gear wheels when landing before the plane settles down. Maybe it's just a little extra speed.

Getting back to Watertown, I had a real crosswind situation now with the wind coming out 190 to 200 degrees. Way I figure it, you can never have too many crosswind landings. They're the most difficult, and when Murphy is playing, that's what you have to expect on the checkride. So bring it on. There was some suspense as I entered the pattern. Just as I was entering the crosswind entry into the pattern, another plane called to say they were entering 45 to downwind. Sure enough, I looked up and the plane was in front of me. I quickly called out my location, with the other plane in sight, and I would allow the plane in ahead of me and I would be #2. I could have claimed right-of-way since I was lower and already in the pattern, but I would not beat him to that position, so it made sense to let him go first. But just that little bit of suspense threw me off enough mentally that my first landing was sloppy. I took it around again, and again the landing was sloppy. The wind was just a bit gusty, and puffs were catching me and pushing me off of the centerline. I didn't have much time left, so I decided to call it a day and taxied in. Another solo hour down, two more solo hours to go.

Worth The Wait

2006-09-30T11:54:00.000-07:00

KRYV 301356Z AUTO 23003KT 10SM SCT110 09/08 A2971 RMK AO2
KSBM 301453Z AUTO 25005KT 10SM BKN060 BKN100 11/08 A2969 RMK AO2 RAB39E50 SLP057 P0000 60000 T01110078 53007
KATW 301645Z 26008KT 10SM SCT020 BKN070 14/09 A2969
KUNU 301737Z AUTO 26007G18KT 10SM SCT065 16/10 A2974 RMK AO2

And so it was, the stars aligned. The forecast wasn't optimal, but once again it didn't turn out to be reality. Conditions overnight were IFR, but the advisory was dropped with the 1400Z AIRMET. I was clear to fly. It wouldn't be a milk run, though. The radar showed a line of showers passing just north of Appleton and heading southeast toward Sheboygan. Ignoring them would be perilous. Adam reviewed my planning sheets and endorsed my logbook while I called for the weather briefing. One thing I've observed about weather briefings. When I'm on the ground, the information I have is the same as, or in the case of radar better, than the weather briefers. One thing the briefing you get from Flight Service is best at is completeness, especially when it comes to the non-weather items, like NOTAMS.

With the endorsement and good wishes from the ground staff, I made 02E ready for flight. After finishing the walkaround and securing the cockpit door, I laid out my materials on the right seat: the chart, the Airport/Facility Directory, plotter, sunglasses, water bottle. The kneeboard with my flight plan and the E6B were strapped to my leg. With over 2 hours of flying ahead, I took a deep breath and cranked the plane to life. And with a final check of instruments and radios, I taxied to Runway 23 for takeoff.

After liftoff, I climbed quickly. I tuned to Madison VORTAC and raised Green Bay FSS to open my flight plan. One note from all of my climbs for the day: I did not do a good job of holding my climb speed. Since that is part of the practical test, I need to focus on it. On the other hand, there will be someone in the right seat during the checkride, and the plane is not so spry with a passenger. I should be ok. The ride into Sheboygan is without incident, I make left traffic for Runway 21 and execute a decent landing. But there were dark clouds with rainshafts just to the north of the airport, and raindrops are hitting the windshield as I stop the plane on the ramp so that I can close the flight plan. My first attempt to call Green Bay FSS on GCO fails, so I shut the engine down and use my cell phone. I closed the flight plan, and I almost forgot to ask for an update on conditions at Appleton. And it's a good thing I did, because Appleton was reporting a ceiling of 3000'. That and the rain over Sheboygan was enough to convince me to get out of the plane on wait it out in the FBO. (The FBO, Western Shore Aviation, was pretty sweet. They had 6 leather recliners in the pilot lounge. Too bad I was too nervous to sit down.)

After 45 apprehensive minutes, the radar showed no precipitation en route, and the latest observations for both Sheboygan and Appleton showed ceilings above 5000'. I headed back to the plane. I strapped in, checked the controls for freedom of movement, and started the plane. I headed back toward Runway 21. I had called my position on the ground, and I even saw a plane land, but nothing was coming over the radio. That's when I noticed my first blunder. I had forgotten to tune the radio back to CTAF from the GCO frequency. Not a big deal, but one of those detail things that drive me nuts. The skies looked good from the ground as I lifted off of Runway 21 and made my turn toward Appleton.

I made it to 3500' in little time as the plane was running well. Then, at 4000', everything went white. How could that be? I didn't see any cloud layer from below, yet here I was with no visibility. Do I keep climbing? That's risky business; I don't know how thick this layer is. I look below and observe clouds at about 2500'. How long can I fly above those clouds and still have a hole big enough to descend through? Appleton is reporting scattered at 2000', but this looks closer to a broken ceiling. It's a tough decision, but I decide to descend below the clouds. This will mean flying about 800' above ground level, so I have to be very careful. Towers can definitely come into play if I'm not extremely careful. Looking back, this may not have been a good decision, I'll admit to as much. The ride was bumpy, and I always had to keep an eye out for potential landing sites. If the engine quit now, it was a short trip to the ground. And I had to pee. The adventure was now in full swing, and it would only get better.

It was a great relief then, when I reached the eastern edge of Lake Winnebago. No more towers, but now I had to call Appleton tower. I made initial contact with Appleton tower and tower replied with an instruction to report when 5 miles out and to expect Runway 2_. I read the instruction back, but I got the runway wrong, which the tower controller quickly corrected. This is also when I made my next mistake. I stopped paying attention to my VOR needle and tried to find the airport visually. When I thought I was 5 miles east, I called the tower. The tower asked me again for my position. After my reply, tower immediately replied "Skyhawk 02E, IDENT". I knew right away I was not where I thought I was. I quickly pressed the ID button on my transponder, which sends a ping that the controller can see on his radar. He came back and told me where I really was, and it was time to confess. "Appleton Tower, I'm a student on solo, airport not in sight." Tower told me to turn to the southwest, and the airport should be about 5 miles to my 10 o'clock. Shortly afterward, I saw the airport and notified the tower. I was then cleared for landing, and things were fine as I landed.

I really had to go to the bathroom, and I tried to reach the FBO on the UNICOM frequency, but there was no answer. So I found a place to park on the ramp, shut the plane down and took my break. They have ramp fees at that FBO, so I discreetly went in, nodded at the girl at the desk, found the bathroom, and quickly made my way back to the plane. Next set of tasks would be to complete my landings requirements at a towered airport. I am required to do 3 solo landings, and 1 was complete. When I contacted the tower, I asked for 2 stop and go landings, and since traffic was light, the tower approved. A stop and go would allow me to stop on the runway after landing, then take off from that position. The runway was over 6000' long, so there would be plenty of room. All of that went quite well. The patterns were good, the landings were good, and communications were good. Just after taking off for the last time, I requested departure to the south. The tower told me to maintain heading while a commercial jet came in, then directed me to the south, which was good because this ensured I got above the 3500' ceiling of Oskosh airspace about 12 miles south of Appleton. I reached my cruise altitude of 4500', and requested to change radio frequency from Appleton tower, which was granted.

As I made my way over Appleton, conditions were good. That is until I saw a scattered cloud layer ahead at about eye level. I tuned Fond du Lac ASOS, and it said the scattered level was at 5000'. So I had to make another decision. Do I go over or under? This time, I could see this was just a cloud band, and there were clear skies at the other side, and this scattered layer had plenty of clear holes that I could descend through. So I pushed the throttle in and took the plane up to 6500'.

I wasn't at the level for long, as I needed to make my descent for Dodge County. I did have to deviate slightly to the west to make it through the clouds, but that worked to my favor, setting me up nicely for my entry into the Runway 26 pattern. Everything went fine at Dodge County, and I only had time to touch and go and make it back to Watertown.

It was good to hear the familiar "Welcome to Watertown" greeting on the CTAF as I tracked over the city on the way to a landing on Runway 23. It was a long morning, with 2.8 hours of flying time. I lingered in the lounge for about an hour, drinking in the experience, telling my tale to the nice lady at the desk, and building up anticipation for the next chance I would get to fly. It's getting closer now, let's see if we can get it done before Thanksgiving.

Back In The Saddle

2006-09-29T18:22:00.000-07:00

KRYV 292257Z AUTO 18005KT 10SM BKN065 OVC075 12/04 A2975 RMK AO2

The last time I flew, it was summer. Warm, sunny, summer. It's been a while. Today was chilly, overcast, with some scattered showers wandering through. I originally intended this to be a solo practice session, but Adam had added himself to the whole time slot, and I had no problem having him along for some practice evaluation. Turned out to be a good idea. When we departed, winds were from 160, so Runway 11 was the choice. By the time we came back, the winds favored Runway 23, and a nice little crosswind at that.

My great fear today was how rusty I was. I took plenty of time with the preflight walkaround, and by the time I strapped myself in, I was ready. We were up and heading north, and we can see virga in the distance. It would certainly add realism to the simulated instrumented flying we would do later. Level at 3000' and after the clearing turns came the first order: steep turns. Toughest stuff first as usual. The turn to the left started out a little shaky, but I recovered quickly. The transition to the right turn was flawless, and the turn and roll out were very satisfactory. The key to my success? I never took my hand off the throttle. And that goes back to that instructor in Santa Fe. And because of the obvious variations of engine power I noticed while running through the mountain updrafts, I now can tell just through listening that the engine is running too fast or too slow. So now when I do a steep turn, I can concentrate more on the visual horizon and manage the plane by touch and feel.

After slow flight practice, Adam gave me the hood for the first time and told me I just flew into a cloud deck. The fancy name is Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC). There I practiced a procedure turn and controlled descent to get us out of the "clouds". I tell you what, that is an unsettling feeling indeed to not be able to see the outside references. But just like everything else, I'm sure practice makes it familiar.

Back to Watertown, and the wind had shifted to give us a nice crosswind option for Runway 23. Entered on the upwind, hit all the marks and greased the landing. I can't recall a previous session that I nailed the first landing. Nothing sounds sweeter than the stall horn going off just as the upwind main gear hits the pavement. I cleaned up quickly and went around two more times. On the third circuit, another instructor came into the pattern just behind me, so I knew we wanted to clear the runway at the first taxiway. So I was just a little distracted as I touched down, a small crosswind puff making for some side loading on the gear. Not a great landing, but ok. Adam then hit the brakes so we can make the turn (inducing a little skid in the process). Then, all of a sudden, a loud klaxon noise came through the radios. Well, let's just say I know what the Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) sounds like. We had to deal with that noise all the way to the ramp. We jumped out of the plane once I shut down, and we got at the ELT in the baggage compartment and turned it off. We both laughed about it, after all it wasn't a bad landing. I had certainly had much worse. We both knew that this long journey was entering its final phase. If only the weather would cooperate.

FAA Slaps Chicago Over Midnight Raid On Helpless Airport

2006-09-22T16:21:00.000-07:00

Chicago will pay a $33,000 fine for illegally tearing up Meigs Field airport without proper notification. And the city will have to repay $1 million of airport funds that Mayor Richard M. Daley illegally diverted from O'Hare and Midway airports to give to the destruction contractors.

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Technorati Tags: aviation, chicago, meigs, airport, faa, aopa

Best Available Information

2006-09-17T10:50:00.000-07:00

We pilots are bound by Federal Aviation Regulations to base our flight decisions on all available information. With my long solo cross country scheduled for today, I started looking at the forecasts last night. And the forecasts weren't good. Not for Green Bay, not for Madison. A frontal boundary was scheduled to pass through my flight area during my flight window, with thunderstorms, moderate turbulence, and wind shear. Saturday was a windy day in the area, and turbulence was a problem, even though it was very pleasant on the ground. I resigned myself to a negative decision in the morning, based on available information.

That information did not change overnight. I didn't get a phone call from the airport this morning, so I made my way in and met Adam in the standby room. Ground winds were 180 degrees and breezy while winds at 3000' were 240 degrees and strong. A very sharp wind shear at just around pattern altitude. Plus, the TAFs were still predicting rain in Madison during my return with gusty winds. There were still enough negative variables to scrub the flight, and that was my call.

So as I write this, guess what happened? The squall line thunderstorms broke apart, with nary a shower remaining. The ground winds are now close to the low level winds aloft. Perhaps some turbulence still, but it's not a bad day out there. I had a plane of my own, I'd love to shoot some landings. But I made the decision on the best available information. Very frustrating. The plane is not available next weekend, so it will be two weeks before my next chance. Adam assured me that once we get the last cross country out of the way, that it's just a matter of a few more hours of instruction and some practice and we'll be looking at the checkride. Still, I can't help the nagging feeling that I'm stuck in this rut and I won't get it done before the first snow.

Long Cross Country, Take 2?

2006-09-10T07:50:00.000-07:00

KRYV 101436Z AUTO 09011G17KT 10SM OVC036 15/12 A3023 RMK AO2
KSBM 101353Z AUTO 09008KT 10SM SCT034 OVC065 15/07 A3028 RMK AO2
KATW 101345Z 08008G15KT 10SM SCT040 OVC070 13/08 A3028

For those tuning in hoping to see a wonderful reverie of my fantastic flight, sorry to disappoint. The problem here is a strong high pressure system over eastern Ontario that is blocking moisture moving north from the Gulf of Mexico. A trof in this system is causing a low overcast with scattered showers that has scrubbed the day. It's not IFR conditions, and it's not marginal around the whole course, but just enough for postponement. So now I wait for another week. It's been tough. The anticipation is just like that for a big holiday or any other significant day. Thanks again for stopping by and tune in next Sunday.

Alone In The Sky?

2006-09-02T23:42:00.000-07:00

KRYV 021815Z AUTO 11006KT 10SM SCT047 23/12 A3019 RMK AO2
KSBM 021953Z AUTO 06007KT 10SM CLR 23/11 A3020 RMK AO2 SLP224
KUNU 022035Z AUTO 08005KT 10SM SCT048 SCT060 24/11 A3019 RMK AO2

Today was a big test. First solo cross country. And it took some piloting skills to get this one done.

I met Adam at the airport, where he examined my flight plan (RYV-SBM-UNU-RYV) and, satisfied I was ready to go, endorsed my logbook. I took my plane with my preflight walk around, practicing in my mind what I would explain to an examiner when the time comes. The first minor surprise came when I started the plane and tuned in the AWOS on the radio. The winds were still light, but they had shifted to the right, meaning Runway 11 would be my takeoff runway instead of Runway 5. One final check of my cockpit organization, kneeboard strapped to leg, map folded, and I was off. Just after liftoff I called Green Bay FSS over the Madison VOR to open the flight plan.

The first event of note was as I approached Hartford. I made a call on Hartford CTAF that I was transitioning the area en route to Sheboygan. Another pilot responded by saying he was southeast of the airport towing gliders. I could not see him, but I replied that I would stay to the northwest of the airport and continued on.

This is the village of Kewaskum, from the south looking north at 3500' MSL. As I neared Sheboygan, the scattered clouds cleared away and the wind shifted back around to the north. I would be using Runway 3 in Sheboygan, a decision backed up by the local traffic flying the closed circuit at the airport. I was approaching from the southwest, and I heard a call from a Beechcraft Bonanza approaching from the south and at a slight greater distance. I looked to my right rear, but that's a blind spot in a Skyhawk. I announced that I would enter the pattern on the upwind leg while the Bonanza announced he would go straight in. If he doesn't see me, then there's a slight chance my path can cross in front of his with bad results. He contacted my over the CTAF to try to get a fix on my location, and I told him at that time that I would do a left 360 turn to let him by. Just as I began my turn he announced that he saw me and thanked me for the courtesy. I landed at Sheboygan (flared late again, pretty much a 3-pointer) and brought the plane to the parking area where I then contacted Green Bay FSS via GCO and closed the flight plan.

That part done, I doubled checked the gauges and set the radios for my next leg. I then taxied to the runway, took off, and did a couple of touch and gos before leaving Sheboygan for Dodge County. Not long after leveling off at 4500', I was startled by another Cessna flying north , crossing maybe 500' above me. There was no radio call or anything. For all I know the plane might have been on a different frequency. When between airports, or in areas where there isn't an airport nearby, a pilot can choose whatever frequency to monitor that he feels will be most useful; there's no specific frequency. Let's call it another good reason to abide by the VFR altitude rules.

Except for the bumpy air and the return of scattered clouds, things were uneventful until I neared Juneau. I fixed on a water feature that I thought was near Beaver Dam and I aimed to the left (south) of it. Turned out I misidentified the feature and was actually the Horicon Marsh, and I was about 3 miles south of my plotted checkpoint, which was Mayville. Once I reoriented myself I turned toward Mayville then began my descent into the pattern for Juneau. The AWOS reported calm winds at Juneau, which was unexpected to me. Now I'd have to pick a runway. Since I was heading southwest, why not try Runway 26? I made my initial call on CTAF, then heard a plane that was taking off from Runway 8 and heading toward Juneau, the opposite of 26. I was now confused. Which runway to use? I made a left turn, then moments later the plane that just took off passed below me. I had made a serious mistake in judgment, turning into the path of a runway. If I am going to deviate my course while on approach, I must ensure I am not crossing any extended runway paths. This was certainly the low point of the flight; I was pretty rattled. After the first plane left, I was alone in traffic, so I decided on Runway 20 and entered the pattern on the crosswind. I made two landings at Juneau, and both were awful. I don't know if it was a light crosswind, or that I was still a little off from my close encounter, but I just didn't have it together. So after the second landing I thought to myself "just get this thing back to Watertown, and by the time you get there you'll be more composed."

So I headed south on my final leg, the short 13 miles or so to Watertown. Over the CTAF I could hear Adam, with another student this time. A different feeling, to be sure. I entered the pattern for Runway 11 and setup for the landing. Another bad landing, with a main wheel coming off the ground to boot. I got the wheel down, then decided to take off again. But since I landed long and took extra distance to correct the plane, I was running out of runway. I managed to get her off the ground with 500 feet to spare, but it was another case of bad judgment. This is going to be the last landing, better make it good. I know I wasn't properly catching my sight picture on final all day, let's focus on that this time. Let's make sure the speed over the threshold is good. And so it was as I turned final; height was good, speed was good, and I was centered. Look over the nose down the runway. Flare. Hold it. Hold it. Let it settle. Nose up, and touchdown. Best landing in a while. And somehow the difficult moments didn't seem so bad. I had just completed my first solo cross country. Two hours in the air by myself. Great flying. This time though, I taught myself some lessons.

High Desert

2006-08-29T19:02:00.000-07:00

KSAF 282253Z VRB04KT 10SM SCT085 25/04 A3022 RMK AO2 SLP145 T02500044

It occurred to me on my trip to Santa Fe, New Mexico last month that there was a terrific opportunity to broaden my experience and get a taste of high altitude flying. So once the client took the option on the follow up visit, I made plans to do just that. Thanks to the miracle of the internet, I found the flight school that is based at Santa Fe Municipal Airport (KSAF), an outfit called Sierra Aviation. The sparse website yielded the bare essentials. The planes they have, their staff, and a phone number. Looked good enough to me. I called on Friday (after my solo scrub) and reached Paul. He set me up for an appointment at 4:00 p.m. today. Fortunately today (compared to last month) Northwest Airlines kept their flights on schedule, and after checking in at the hotel, I headed over to the airport.

As it says on their site, the entrance was off the same parking lot as Million Air. And that was literally the case. Their whole operation was a single room with a desk, filing cabinet, a phone, and some tables and chairs. Suffice to say almost their entire capital was tied up in the planes. There wasn't even anybody in the office when I walked in. So I walked over to Million Air, got a cup of water, and headed back over. This time, a gentleman was behind the desk checking the messages on his machine. He motioned me in and I took a seat. When he finished, he stood up and introduced himself as Paul. He was probably a few years older than I and with thin hair. Most of you probably are aware of the "beach bum"; this guy was an aviation equivalent. His whole professional life was flying, and he appeared quite content with it.

Paul launched into a pre-flight briefing, going into considerable detail on how we need to lean the fuel mixture during ground operations, how the altitude affects the flight characteristics of the plane, and how the winds can be tricky. He also asked a few questions of me; I can imagine he needed to get a minimum level of comfort in a guy who just walked in off the street. Once finished with the briefing, we made for the plane.

The plane was a Cessna 172P, much the same as the 172N that I fly. Some minor differences included newer gauges, a vertical card compass, and flaps that only extended to 30 degrees instead of 40. Even though Paul said he preflighted the plane, I still had a quick look around just to be sure. I fiddled with the seat controls, trying to raise the seat, when Paul offered his first tip. Don't sit so high so that you have to duck to see under your wingtips. Don't worry about the cowl, it ain't going nowhere, use the top edge of the instrument panel as a horizon reference.

I started the plane up, and tuned to the ATIS for the latest conditions. Santa Fe is a towered airport, and up to this point all I had done at towered airports were touch-and-goes. Now I will be exercising my ground operations skills with the tower. I call for and receive taxi clearance to Runway 20. Then, after the pre-takeoff runup checks (during which we leaned the mixture for takeoff) clearance to take off. We are configured for a short field takeoff as we start the roll. And, as advertised, it takes almost 2000 feet to get off the ground. The climb rate is slow as well, although we're helped at times by thermals coming off the surface.

Slowly we climb, heading north toward the nearest mountain ridge. It didn't take long before noticing that the atmosphere is quite a bit active around mountains. Paul said that when you catch an updraft, expect a downdraft close behind. And he was right. There was no taking it easy once we reached our cruising altitude. But after I while, I noticed how you can tell what the plane is doing just by listening to it. When in an updraft, the engine runs faster, when in a downdraft, the engine slows down. The plane tells you what it is doing. We get to the foot of the mountain and Paul points out that you don't want to go closer to the mountain than the nearest flat piece of land, in case the engine fails. Always sound advice. And if you're going over the top, get all the altitude you can.

We next turn west, heading to Espanola. We've accomplished the orientation portion of the flight, now we're sightseeing. And what beautiful country it is. Hard to imagine I could land at all out here if I needed to, compared to the relatively flat farm fields in Wisconsin. The airport at Espanola was barely more than a runway, with a couple of out buildings. But an airport it was, and hopefully people will use it enough to keep it open. We turned and headed next toward Los Alamos, famous home of the atomic bomb. We turned to follow the Rio Grande river in order to avoid the restricted area located south of the town. It was striking terrain, a web of canyons that flowed into the river. From there we turned southeast and headed back to the airport for a couple of touch and goes. Paul offered me some great advice on how to turn the plane in the pattern and how to loosen my death grip on the yoke. I did well with the tower, even though the controller spoke quickly and said a lot.

We taxied back to the ramp after the third landing, secured the plane and debriefed. Paul paid myself and Adam some good compliments, and he said I will be a good pilot. Great stuff. And I took away some valuable lessons and a wonderful experience. This flying thing is pretty damn cool.

Next up are my solo cross country flights. I scheduled the short cross country for Saturday, and the long cross country for Monday. Let's hope the weather holds up. Thanks for allowing me to share my quest with you.

2006-08-25T16:38:00.000-07:00

Hi again folks. If you've followed this blog for a while, you know well by now that it doesn't take much to keep a plane out of the sky. Today was supposed to have been my first solo cross country flight, from Watertown to Sheboygan to Dodge County and return. The weather watch began early this morning, and at the time it seemed like there just might be a hole in the weather large enough to get the flight in.

But alas, the warm front moving through the area became stationary, allowing storms to train along the frontal boundary, leading to IFR conditions throughout the day. Compounding the issue was moderate turbulence at all levels in the area. So just as I was getting up from the table to head to the airport, the phone rang ominously, and sure enough Adam was on the other end. No flying today. But no surprise, either.

In the meantime, I contacted the flight school located at the airport in Santa Fe, New Mexico, site of my business trip next week. I have lined up a lesson with an instructor there on Monday. Why is this neat? Because Santa Fe is located 7000' above sea level. This will be a great opportunity to get some familiarization with high altitude and mountain flight. So join me then for a special edition of Rich's Quest For Flight.

2006-08-19T21:28:00.000-07:00

KRYV 200136Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM SCT060 20/14 A3004 RMK AO2
KMSN 200153Z 00000KT 10SM BKN055 18/16 A3005 RMK AO2
KDLL 200155Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 18/14 A3006 RMK AO2
KUNU 200236Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM SCT035 SCT050 18/14 A3008 RMK AO2

Boy do I love to fly at night!

So here was the plan: takeoff Watertown (KRYV), touch and go Madison-Truax (KMSN), full stop at Wisconsin Dells (KDLL), full stop at Dodge County (KUNU) and back to Watertown. Total distance of 111 nautical miles. It wasn't looking promising earlier in the day, as a trof was forecast to be moving across southeastern Wisconsin bringing overcast conditions with a chance for rain. Fortunately that proved inaccurate as the trof moved through faster than forecast, the breezes shifted around to the north, and the cloud deck dissipated. It turned out to be a beautiful night, with near calm winds at each airport and no turbulence in the air.

Even though I had the route plotted weeks ago, I still spent 3 hours reviewing each checkpoint of each leg. Since 02E has two navigation/VOR radios, I made sure each checkpoint had two VOR fixes. I made sure I had all frequencies for all airports listed on my flight plan along with runway diagrams and pattern information. The less I had to look at a map or look something up in the Airport/Facility Directory, the more attention I could spend on flying the plane.

I preflighted the plane while there was still some light, then I reviewed tower procedures and discussed our landing options for Madison with Adam before we got in the plane. We took off from runway 5 in calm winds, cleared the pattern, and turned toward Madison. Here begins the most nerve wracking part of the whole evening: talking to controllers. Madison is in Class C, radar controlled airspace, meaning I have to establish contact with approach control and follow their instructions based on my announced intentions. I'll spare the details, but this exposure to controller communications went a bit better than my first attempt during the Appleton cross country flight back in July. The controllers have a tendency to speak fast, and if they request something or direct something I haven't heard before, I just don't understand it. Those were the calls that Adam answered. Otherwise, I handled the basic communications fine. What I'll do is spend some time reading the Pilot/Controller Glossary and commit as much of it as I can to memory. But the perhaps the second coolest thing all night was when we were cleared to land on Runway 32 while a Northwest Airlines Airbus was instructed to position and hold on Runway 36. Imagine that! Big tin waiting for the little guy!

The landing itself was a 3 pointer, but straight, so we cleaned her up and took off, staying on the runway heading as directed by the tower. Depth perception is really tricky at night; the runway seems to stay low until you're on top of it, and then it's too late to flare. So the trick is to adjust the sight picture by watching the runway edge lights until you are almost level with them. Since we were on runway heading, and that heading was taking us to the Dells anyway, there wasn't much navigating to do on the second leg of the trip. Once we had the airport in sight, we called Madison Departure and asked to be released from control. They agreed and we made ready to land. I originally planned to land Runway 1, but since the wind was calm it was easier to enter the pattern on the downwind for Runway 19. I gave a shoutout on the CTAF, and hearing no other traffic, we executed our approach. So with the bright lights of the Ho-Chunk Casino adjacent to the airport, we landed. Now for the longest leg, to Dodge County.

This would be the longest leg, and without direction from any ATC, we were completely on our own. Actually, only I was. Adam brought his handheld GPS and had it mounted on his yoke, so he knew where he was. Gotta get me one of those things. Night navigation is easy as long as you've planned your checkpoints well, including timing. Keep the right course, and when the watch says you're there, just look out and make sure you're flying over lights. All of that time spent plotting VOR intersections and it came down to simple pilotage. We came to Beaver Dam, and I was drawn to two sets of lights. The first was of the Beaver Dam Raceway. Little cars going round and round, way cool from 3500'. Then, just after that was the Dodge County Fairgrounds with the annual county fair in full swing. Those two facilities pointed us right to the Dodge County Aiport just 4 more miles away. Winds were calm, and no traffic reporting, so I chose runway 2 since that pattern was the easiest to enter. The landing was average at best, and we pulled off and taxied back to the top to depart for Watertown. As we climbed and entered the downwind leg prior to leaving the pattern, the nightly fireworks went off back at the fairgrounds. Very cool.

A bit of a tailwind got us back to Watertown a few minutes quicker than usual, and I made right traffic to land on Runway 5. This was the best landing of the night, so with that feeling of satisfaction we made for the ramp and parked the plane for the night.

I asked Adam what was left for flying before the checkride. Two, maybe three solo cross country flights, some instrument flying, and final prep before the checkride. Things are really getting clear now. Hard to imagine I could have made it this far when I was struggling with landings back in May. Thanks for hanging in there; it's been my pleasure to share my quest with all of you. Stay tuned for the next installment.

2006-08-06T12:57:00.000-07:00

Today is an important day.

Medical Certificate: 4-28-06
First Solo: 6-18-06
FAA Written Exam: 8-6-06
Solo Cross Country: To do
Checkride (Verbal & Practical): To do

I started working on the knowledge test right as I was starting my flying lessons. There was the big handbook by Jeppesen to read. Then there was the companion test prep book to go with the handbook. And let's not forget the test prep package from ASA with all the DVDs and dry commentary. There are 657 questions in the FAA test bank, and I must have answered 550 of them, some of them multiple times. Today it all paid off:

95

The score may make it seem like it was easy, and in some respects it was. You are presented with 3 choices to each answer. One of the choices is frequently improbable. The math problems aren't as easy because you still have to do the calculations. Sometimes with the word problems you can take a good guess. The bottom line is you can't just take this test blind and expect to pass. You have to at least be familiar with the material.

I arrived at the Wisconsin Aviation Flight School in Madison, where they are a designated computer testing center and presented my driver's license and logbook endorsement for verification. The proctor then started the LaserGrade interface that would administer the test. Once I was registered, the application took me through a brief tutorial to explain all of the features. Then it was on to the test. Sixty questions, 150 minutes to complete. The software builds the list of questions during registration, so no two tests are alike, and there's no practical way to just memorize the test. Things went along fine until the first question that required a course direction in the answer. I went to the figure, put the overlay on the course (you're not allowed to write in the supplement) and then......wait a second. Something missing here. No plotter. I FORGOT MY PLOTTER!!!! I'm hosed, for sure!

Now hold on, no need to panic. We can improvise. Let's look at the line. (They had a plastic overlay with a cross hair on it to measure distance). Wouldn't you know, it was a perfect split of the ordinal. And once I did the calculations, the result matched the choice on the screen. And, as luck would have it, the only other problem involving a course direction laid out the same way. So I was spared. A nice feature in the testing application was a flight computer emulator. I found it useful to double check my answers against what I was getting on my manual computer.

But alas, to the bad news. I did miss three questions. It wasn't until I got home that I was able to research the question bank to find them. One question I doubt I would have gotten correct, but the other two were quite preventable. So here they are (I'll leave the answers off to give you all a chance to answer them for yourself. Leave your guesses in the comments):

1. With respect to the certification of aircraft, which is a category of aircraft?
A) Normal, utility, acrobatic.
B) Airplane, rotorcraft, glider.
C) Landplane, seaplane.

2. (Refer to figure 4.) What is the maximum structural cruising speed?
A) 100 MPH.
B) 165 MPH.
C) 208 MPH.

Since you can't see figure 4 here, I will tell you that the answer I chose was answer C. It appears that the correct answer was answer B.

3. The normal radius of the outer area of Class C airspace is
A) 5 nautical miles.
B) 15 nautical miles.
C) 20 nautical miles.

I'm still kicking myself on this one. I spent 5 minutes looking at this one and looking at the Class C airports in the summary, and couldn't see the right answer. Turns out I was measuring the RADIUS when they were looking for DIAMETER. D'oh!

Chance is, even if I had those right, there's no telling how many others were half-baked guesses that could have gone the other way. According to 2005 FAA statistics, 95.5% of all test takers passed the test with a mean score of 84.9. So I didn't do too bad.

That's it for now, folks. Still a light schedule; the night cross country will be on Saturday the 19th. So check back then for the next installment of Rich's Quest For Flight.

2006-08-04T15:52:00.000-07:00

KRYV 041915Z AUTO 33006KT 10SM CLR 28/12 A3012 RMK AO2

Ahh, another nice day. And this time the winds were favorable. But that didn't mean they weren't troublesome.

I meant to bring a camera with me to take some pictures as I flew over Riverfest, but damn if I didn't remember until I was turning on to Runway 5 to take off. So there you go. I did remember, however, to bring with me a list of maneuvers that I jotted down, although I knew the focus would be on steep turns. Once again, with just me in the cockpit, I rose fairly quickly to my ceiling of 3500', just so I could be above the turbulence. I headed north to the area between Clyman and Hustisford and performed my clearing turns. The CTAF was crackling with traffic, but none of it was within 20 miles of my location.

One disadvantage of the area I was in was that there weren't many roads running straight north-south or east-west, so ground reference was difficult. The only thing that nagged me as I set up for the first set of turns was the difficulty I was having maintaining maneuvering speed. So the first set I entered from the north, and got through it pretty well. I am more comfortable leaving a hand on the throttle to fine tune my speed, and the advice from the current issue of Plane & Pilot worked well for me, too. The article said you can fine tune altitude variations by simply increasing or decreasing the bank angle slightly. This seemed to work better than adjusting pitch, since adjusting pitch would take away speed or increase speed faster than I could react to correct. By adjusting bank angle, I could maintain the same pitch and I could manage my speed with the throttle. As it was, I did ok with the first set. The only thing I thought I could improve was to maintain a steeper bank since I did get to less than 45 degrees on a couple of occasions when I should be between 45 and 60 degrees. I try to stay away from 60 degrees, since going steeper than that is inviting a spiral, and I don't want that.

I set up again for another set of steep turns, but my altitude got away from me and I aborted the maneuver shortly after starting. And that was the nice thing about not having an instructor on board. No matter how much he is there to help, you always have a certain pressure to perform well when there's an audience.

I flew for a couple of minutes to get my thoughts together and performed some turns to reposition in my "box". I also used those turns to maintain that "steep" feeling. The P&P article suggested leveling out starting 45 degrees prior to completion, but the Cessna is so responsive that I could wait until 20 degrees to level out and still not turn past the start point. The third take went much better, with better control of speed and good bank control.

With the main objective of the flight completed, I set up for a rectangular course. These are supposed to be performed around 1500' AGL, but the air was too bumpy at that level, so I compromised and flew about 500' above that. My main objective here was to gauge how tight I needed to be to the course without overbanking. I'd rather perform the maneuver with steeper turns than trying to modulate a shallow turn and get clumsy at it. A steeper turn is more decisive. Not that I think I could fool an examiner though.

After a couple of rectangles and some S-turn practice, I headed back to Watertown. Runway 5 was the active (right hand pattern) and I was on the wrong side of the pattern, so I decided to stay high above pattern altitude and overfly the field before descending to pattern altitude and entering from the downwind. It had been a while since I used Runway 5, and I was slightly disoriented. By the time I turned final, I was too high and too fast. I cut throttle and pointed down, but I was still 10 kts fast at the threshold. This caused me to go long, and then the tricks happened.

Left quartering winds on Runway 5 pose a specific challenge at Watertown. First, the approach takes your over a low bluff and it's covered with trees. The wind, combined with a minor thermal, pushes the plane up. Then there's a set of hangers to the left of the runway that block the wind. So here I am wondering why I need right rudder to keep her straight. Then, as I floated down the runway, I came out from behind those buildings, and the crosswind pushed me off the centerline. I very nearly pushed the throttle in to abort the landing when the mains touched down. I landed straight, but right of the centerline. I decided to exit the runway instead of trying to take off, worried that I didn't have enough runway. Besides, my brain got a little scrambled, too. Better to take a moment to get myself back together than to make a poor decision.

So I taxied back to the top and took off again. I landed 3 more times, with #2 being straight but a little long, #3 being totally unsatisfactory (crooked) and the last one being satisfactory but slightly long. I had hoped to do some short field practice, but normal landings were challenging enough this day.

I got back to the flight desk and annotated my logbook. This flight completed a page in the logbook, so here's a recap. Total hours: 32.6. Night: 1.6. Cross country: 5.0. Solo: 1.9. Looking at the flying requirements, I need 1.4 more night hours, which I will do in two weeks. I need a little more than 2 hours of instrument flight and 5 hours of solo cross country flight. That leaves 3 more hours of solo flight. All told I need a minimum of 11 hours to finish requirements. Then it's a matter of practicing until Adam thinks I'm ready for my checkride. If everything goes well, that should come at anywhere from 44 to 48 hours.

Adam was in the office before my flight today, so I had a chance to show him my practice written tests. He was satisfied with them, and he endorsed my logbook so that I can take the written test in Madison. I called the test center and made a reservation for Sunday. So there we are. I'll be back with you after I take the test. Thanks again for stopping by.

2006-08-03T17:29:00.000-07:00

KRYV 032135Z AUTO 34008KT 10SM CLR 27/16 A2997 RMK AO2

Yes, it has been a long time since my last post, no doubt. I can explain.

But I won't. Instead, I'll just say that I've been especially busy with an aggressive work schedule, as well as the fact that we bought a new camping trailer and just HAD to take it out for a shakedown trip in the middle of Hades last weekend. That, and the fact that things were hopping up in Oshkosh made this a good time to take a break.

That said, I was really aching to get back in the sky today. But take a close look at the METAR. Sure it was a beautiful day today. And yeah! the heat wave has broken. But winds from NNW (and its evil twin, SSE) are as close to perpendicular to our two runways at KRYV as you can get. And with the breeze gusting to 13 kts, my crosswind limitations were exceeded. So no solo today. Adam offered to go up with me so I could practice, but I deferred. I've been aching to do a proper solo for a long time. I want a chance to do my manuevers as I want, and to yell at myself when I screw them up...I mean to self critique my own maneuvers.

So I reserved the plane for tomorrow afternoon and we'll try it again. Meanwhile, if you're anywhere near Watertown this weekend, do stop in at Riverside Park for our annual Riverfest. Free music and lots of fun!

2006-07-15T21:12:00.000-07:00

KRYV 160235Z AUTO 22004KT 10SM CLR 24/23 A3006 RMK AO2
This was an event I was fairly nervous about. I haven't made any night landings to this point, and we were going to 2 airports that I was unfamiliar with. So in a way I was relieved when Adam told me that we would just fly up to Dodge County and do some landings there. I put up a mild protest, especially after all that planning, but I knew this would be a better option. But just to show I did the homework, I showed Adam my planning sheets and asked him some questions about checkpoint selection for night flights. Mostly, I selected checkpoints that would have some kind of lighting (towns, water towers), and I since I have two VOR radios, I derived fixes for them in case I couldn't see them. A fix is simply intersecting VOR radials. Set the OBS for one radial on one gauge and the other OBS for the other VOR radial on the second gauge. When the needles indicate that I am on each radial, then I'm at my fix.

It was still a bit warm as I preflighted the plane, but there were only puffs of breeze disturbing the still air. We started up and headed out to Runway 23 while there was still some light in the sky. As we climbed out of Watertown and turned to Juneau, it felt as though we were the only thing in the sky. The radios were silent and the winds were calm. Then came the first noticeable difference between day and night flight. No sooner were we at 1500' then we could already see the rotating beacon at Juneau, about 12 miles away. Clyman, our informal checkpoint, was lit up and much easier to find than in the day.

Within minutes we were in the pattern for Runway 26. The winds favored 20, but we opted for 26 to avoid flying over houses, and the light breeze would give us an easy crosswind component. Dodge County has approach lighting for Runway 26, but I discovered it was quite bright at full intensity. Adam did me a favor and keyed the mike to turn it down and I could see better. I came in slightly high and floated slightly, landing flat instead of fully flared. But it wasn't bad for a first night landing. I cleaned up and took off for the next go round. Another night observation is that familiar reference points on the ground for the pattern are not visible at night, so I used the heading indicator to judge each leg of the pattern. The second landing earned a favorable comment from Adam, and he would bring me back to earth the next time around.

This time, as I was focusing outside the plane, Adam reached over and turned off the landing light. So now on final all I could see was the approach lighting and the runway edge lighting, but I had no idea where the threshold was. Here's how it went. Flaps to full, keep some power in. Maintain the total picture vision-wise and gently fly the plane into the ground. We went long, and it was a little unnerving, but it was quite safe. On the final two landings, we left the approach lighting on full because I have to get accustomed to it sooner or later.

On the way back to Watertown, Adam took the plane and told me to close my eyes. After performing some maneuvers, and just as the stall horn sounded, he gave the plane back to me. Quickly I had to ascertain the attitude of the plane and recover from the stall. Similar stuff the second time, this time the plane was descending quickly and I had to recover from the dive. The third time I must have had my eyes closed for a minute, and by the time I got the plane back, I was totally disoriented. All Adam said was, "take us home". I suspected he played with the instruments, and my suspicions were confirmed. But that was after I looked at the compass first. I was over a town heading north and Watertown was south. The town was Juneau. I glimpsed ahead and I spotted fireworks off on the horizon. Boy this was fun!

I turned the plane south and fixed the gauges. Watertown was bright in the distance and getting brighter by the minute. We set up for Runway 23 and entered the pattern. The first landing was a bit of adventure. Whereas the runway markings at Dodge County were in good condition, the markings for Watertown are well faded. They barely showed under the landing light once we crossed the fence, and I was high when I pulled the power. I flared when I thought I should, but it was actually about 6 feet higher. Result? Hard landing. Should have added some power. I pulled off the runway at the turn off, and asked Adam our next move. He gave me the option. I wanted another shot. So it was back up to the top and once more around the patch. The second landing was much better, and we took 02E to the ramp. It was a fine 1.5 hours in the air, probably the most fun flying so far.

As we pushed the plane over her parking spot and tied her down, I paused for a moment to take in emptiness of the sky, the still air settling with moisture. A deep, satisfying breath. I could get to really enjoy night flying.

No lessons scheduled at the moment. Oshkosh kicks off next weekend, and the skies over Watertown are going to be crowded with traffic starting Thursday. That, and Adam is taking some time to go home and to Oshkosh. A break at this point isn't the worst thing in the world. I have to get my written test done, so I have time to prep. So I'll look at the weekend of the 28th for the next trip. Thanks again for stopping by.

2006-07-09T19:22:00.000-07:00

KRYV 092357Z AUTO 25007KT 10SM SCT060 SCT110 27/22 A2981 RMK AO2

Today was a watching day. Watching the weather, of course. The day started off clear, but ominously humid. As the heat built up during the day, clouds started appearing overhead and storms started to fire up north and west. I resisted washing any cars, for fear of disturbing the rain gods. I had the plane reserved for 6 p.m., and it wasn't looking good.

A light shower passed overhead as I pulled into the airport parking lot. Adam met me inside and we agreed that I should just fly around the patch a few times. He said he's be leaving shortly and bid me a good flight.

I got the plane pre-flighted as quickly as I could, and I fired it up and made my way to Runway 23. The skies seemed to be getting darker by the second. The winds were well within my parameters, though, and I pulled onto the runway and pushed the throttle in. She was up quickly and I was on my way. I turned to crosswind at 1500' MSL, then to downwind a few moments later. And then....

A lightning bolt. About 5 miles to the east. That little shower that passed overhead was now a thunderstorm. The decision was easy. Just one landing today. In fact, I couldn't wait to get her on the ground. More lightning as I turned on final, and I could see the storms to the west coming in quickly. And a crappy landing, too. Sigh.

Adam was just walking out the door as I pulled up to the building. He didn't say so out loud, but I'm sure he was pleased at my decision. I sure was. And then, after I got home about 15 minutes later, the storm came and went, and everything cleared up. Darn the luck.

2006-07-08T10:39:00.000-07:00

KRYV 081237Z AUTO 20004KT 10SM CLR 17/17 A3019 RMK AO2
KSBM 081253Z AUTO 20008KT 10SM CLR 21/14 A3018 RMK AO2
KATW 081245Z 23010KT 10SM SCT080 21/12 A3016

It takes a pretty important event to get me out of bed at 6 o'clock in the morning. Flying definitely qualifies as one of them. Even if it did take until 11 last night just to do the flight planning. The route again: Watertown (RYV) to Sheboygan (SBM) to Appleton (ATW) to Dodge County (UNU) and back to Watertown. Several legs, lots of checkpoints. Checkpoints can be identifiable features on the ground, or they can be a fix from navigation aids. The best checkpoints are both. Checkpoints are necessary for two reasons. One is that they help you verify that you are still on course to your destination. Second, they help the pilot to track progress to the destination in terms of speed and time flown. Since a pilot has a finite amount of fuel on board, he needs to accurately predict that he has enough to get to his destination. If the plane is taking longer to get there, the pilot will need to adjust his plan to account for the extra fuel burn. Run out of gas on the road, you pull over and call AAA. Run out of gas in the air, and it's a bad landing.

I got to Wisconsin Aviation-Watertown at 7 o'clock sharp and finished my computations based on the weather. And the weather would be fine for flying today. Light surface winds, with stronger winds at 3000', then decreasing with altitude. We would fly to Sheboygan at 3500', then 4500' to Appleton and Dodge County. The last task on the ground would be to call Green Bay Flight Service for a weather briefing and flight plan filing.

Wheels were up at 7:55 and I turned for my calculated course heading to Sheboygan. Adam sprung a surprise, declaring that the VOR radios were inoperative. Naturally, I fell for it. But it only meant that I would be using pilotage as my primary navigation method. No worries. Whereas last week I was two miles east of course before I realized it, this time the inital heading was accurate and I was on course. In fact, I flew directly over my office in Hartford. A short time later, I was ready for descent into Sheboygan. Problem was, I couldn't see the airport, and by the time I found it, I was too high. Adam cautioned me about diving into the pattern, so I broke away from my approach and did a circle turn to lose some altitude. Then it was into the pattern for landing at Sheboygan.

The first landing was marginal, so we went back around and tried it again. Seems I've gotten a little rusty on crosswind landings, and practice is always good. Adam let me have my radios back, so we set them for our leg to Appleton, and took off. This leg worried me, since it would be my first experience with a towered airport. And sure enough, I was very intimidated. There's a certain pressure, as with every other aspect of flight training, to get it right the first time. Of course it's self inflicted; the only person concerned about it was me. Neither the guy in the tower nor my instructor were too concerned. After all, tower controllers deal with students all the time, and they really are there to help. Still, I was petrified. Since flying the airplane was the first priority, I eventually leaned on Adam to talk to the tower. I was slotted number 3 to land, behind a regional jet and a Beech King Air. I was placed in a long downwind until we had visual of the King Air. Once it passed by, I was cleared to land. We had also requested touch and go's, and the tower granted it. Landing on this runway was also a new experience in that it was 150' wide - it almost left the impression that you could land on it widthwise. Certainly a different sight picture, to be sure. It was a slightly clumsy landing, but nothing unusual. I cleaned up the plane, and we left the ground.

Tower directed me to maintain a one mile upwind then execute right pattern for Runway 21. That was easy enough, and I recovered my senses enough to read the instructions back. So the next thing to do was find a point that I thought was one mile away. But about 300 yards short of that target, tower comes on to ask me when I'm going to turn! So I ackowledge and begin my turn to crosswind. There was nothing else of note until late in the downwind when tower said, "N9002E, cleared for your option." This threw me off, until Adam said I just received clearance to either land and stop, or to land and take off again. So I read back the clearance to tower and said that this would also be a touch and go with departure to the south. So a landing, then up again and now we were headed for Dodge County.

I hadn't planned the navaids very well for this leg, but this would be a combination of pilotage and dead reckoning. I could see Oshkosh in the distance as soon as I was 1000' AGL and my course passed directly over the tower. The only concern there was that I was above the ceiling of the tower airspace, so I focused on climbing the airplane until we were above 3300' MSL. At about the same time Appleton tower gave approval to change frequencies, so we thanked them for their help and we moved on. Once over Oskosh, I tuned to their VOR and fixed on a radial leading me toward Dodge County. After that, things were pretty relaxed. We were flying into a moderate headwind, so there was time for a little sightseeing.

This is the view just to the south of Wittman Regional Airport (KOSH) in Oshkosh. You can see Runway 36 on the right. At about top and center is the Experimental Aircraft Association headquarters and museum. The museum is world class and a must see for any fan of aviation. In about two weeks those fields will be packed with airplanes and visitors in town for the largest airshow anywhere, the 2006 EAA AirVenture (commonly referred to as the "fly-in"). Wittman will be the busiest airport in the world during the seven day run. Special procedures are published (NOTAM) to handle the traffic that include dividing the runways into sections that handle multiple actions at the same time!

A couple of landings at Dodge County, including the best crosswind landing of the day (always need a confidence builder) and we were on our way back to Watertown. Three hours in the plane, and it was a lot of work. But it was also a rewarding feeling to get a plane around a large part of the state and without getting lost.

Next up is a solo practice session on Sunday, followed by a night cross country flight the following Saturday.

2006-07-07T18:38:00.000-07:00

KRYV 072259Z AUTO 19005KT 10SM CLR 25/13 A3024 RMK AO2

I wasn't supposed to fly tonight. I'm sure glad I did.

Got back home from our camping vacation to discover my reservation for tonight had been cancelled so that the plane could have its 100 service. All planes used for hire or for training are required to have services performed every 100 hours in addition to its annual inspection. So I talked with Adam yesterday and we agreed to take the time to do some flight planning for our long cross country tomorrow.

Sure enough, when I got to the airport, there was good old 02E sitting on the ramp, ready to go, and Adam needed no extra arm twisting to get me to agree to fly tonight. That said, he promised an endorsement allowing me to solo up to 25 nm from Watertown if I gave him a good landing at Dodge County (UNU).

And what a beautiful evening it was. Light winds, and absolutely no turbulence. It was like we were ice skating on air as we headed up to Juneau. That's when we discovered that the ADF receiver was malfunctioning, so we had to find the airport by ground reference. But once we got over that minor annoyance, I dropped into the pattern and set up for the first landing. I tried to finesse it by getting as low as possible before the flair, but I misjudged it, and promptly did a two hop landing. Not pretty, but nothing horrible. Adam directed me to take it around again, and the second landing was spot on perfect, earning a "good landing" from Adam. So we headed back to Watertown, where I carried about 5 knots too fast on the flare, but held it nicely and settled down right at stall speed.

So, back in the shed we went and then spent a few minutes talking about tomorrow's route. Depart Watertown, to Sheboygan (SBM). Then to Appleton-Outagamie County Regional Airport (ATW). This will be my first experience with a towered airport, so I will have to review radio procedures. From there we head down to Dodge County (UNU) and finally a short hop back to Watertown.

More tomorrow, on Rich's Quest For Flight.

2006-07-01T08:49:00.000-07:00

KRYV 011317Z AUTO 20013G20KT 10SM SCT100 22/19 A2991
KSBM 011253Z AUTO 18012KT 4SM HZ CLR 22/18 A2990

First cross country flight. I have been looking forward to this flight all week. A warm and humid day today, with the winds picking up fairly quickly. I got back from my trip late last night, and I tried to prep as much as I could. I got to the airport just before 7 and checked the weather, namely the METARs for both airports and the winds aloft observations for Green Bay (the closest reporting station). Finally got all the calculations done around 7:35 and called Green Bay FSS for the standard weather briefing and to file the flight plan. It's a good idea, even when flying VFR, to file a flight plan. It's a kind of insurance policy that, just in case something goes wrong, somebody knows about where you might be so they can find you.

Plan filed, plane inspected, we were strapped in and taxiing to Runway 23 for takeoff. Once in the air, we contact the FSS over the Madison VOR to open the flight plan. This lets the FSS know that you're actually en route. With the strong tailwinds, we were moving quickly, and before we knew it, we were 3 miles east of our flight path. The winds weren't blowing as predicted. Not to worry because by now we were picking up the Sheboygan VOR and I pointed the airplane toward the needle. In what seemed another eye blink, we were over West Bend, but now we were on course, tracking the 050 degree radial into Sheboygan. The airport was soon in sight, and I announced my intention over the Sheboygan CTAF and started my descent to the pattern altitude. The strong tailwind pushed me a bit far on the downwind and base, but otherwise the approach tasks were all familiar. I had to carry extra speed on the final before landing, but I put the plane down on the centerline and heading straight, so it was a good landing. We parked with the engine running so that we could close the flight plan. That involved using a ground communications frequency. It's kind of weird, actually. You tune to a special frequency, then key the mike 6 times. Then you hear a tone, followed by a dial tone and the number being dialed. It was, in reality, a phone line. The person at the other end was speaking over telephone while I was talking over the radio.

With the plan closed, we taxied back out to the runway and departed Sheboygan for Juneau/Dodge County. Instead of using dead reckoning (navigation aids and checkpoints), this time we navigated by the pilotage method, which is the good old, read the map and figure out which town you're flying over method. Flying into a strong headwind, we were moving pretty slow. Where it took us about 25 minutes to get to Sheboygan, it took us nearly an hour to get to Dodge County. A touch and go on Runway 20, and we were up quickly, heading back to Watertown.

Bumpiness aside, it was a nice day to fly. Summer mornings are best because you're getting up before it gets too hot. Two hours flying time today, so the hours are starting to really add up. I have a solo practice session scheduled for Friday, then another cross country flight on Saturday. This time we will fly to Sheboygan, then to Appleton, then back to Watertown.

Enjoy your holiday all, and come back again soon to Rich's Quest For Flight.

2006-06-26T19:17:00.000-07:00

Today was a short ground session with Adam to do our initial flight planning for my first cross country flight. Adam has selected Sheboygan County Memorial Airport (KSBM) as our first destination, 53 nautical miles northeast of Watertown. Armed with the current weather, we planned as though we were flying this evening. The flight is relatively short, so planning began with a straight plot on a sectional chart and determination of the true course. The true course is converted into a magnetic then compass heading by correction for wind and magnetic deviation and variation. Then, checkpoints are selected on the route to help in verifying our location and speed. Performance data gives us cruise speed, climb and fuel burn information. We also looked along the route for potential alternate airports in case of emergency or sudden bad weather. So, based on our calculations, it should take us 29 minutes at an altitude of 3500' MSL (based on most favorable winds aloft), and fuel consumption of 4.74 gallons.

Saturday morning we'll calculate the data all over again and fly it for real. And then, as soon as I get back, we'll be leaving on a camping trip to, that's right, the Sheboygan area. Too bad we can't pack the gear in the plane.

2006-06-23T18:22:00.000-07:00

KRYV 232256Z AUTO 11003KT 10SM CLR 22/09 A3015 RMK AO2

My business trip this week was to the Phoenix, where the average daily high temperature was around 110F (43C). Boy was it ever nice to get back to Wisconsin, then to fly on a superior night like this. In fact, I wasn't even expecting to fly since Adam said after my solo that we'd get into flight planning for our cross country work. But you can't blame him for not passing up an afternoon like this. So there's the reason why he asked me when I walked in if I had done any grass landings yet. I said that I had, but certainly not since I really learned how to land. So with our excuse for flying I went out to preflight the plane, and then we were off.

We headed south to Palmyra (88C) and set up to enter the pattern for landing on Runway 9. Things were a lot different at Palmyra this time compared to the first time I was there. Then there was a lot of activity around the field, with planes taking off frequently for rides and such. This time we had the place to ourselves, mostly. This first landing went very well. A plot of trees about 800 feet in front of the runway gave us a bit of a thermal pop, which left us a little high for landing, but that was easily corrected. The second landing was quite satisfactory as well.

After the next takeoff, I spotted a plane directly ahead and above. There wasn't any traffic on the CTAF, so I had no idea what this plane was up to. Then it turned toward us and was descending. I quickly turned the plane to crosswind and put that plane behind us. Just then did the other pilot announce that he was also entering the pattern and that he had me in sight. Also turned out it was the airplane that took off from Watertown after we did. So I got our plane around and landed, and exited the runway as soon as I could. This landing wasn't as neat, landing a little flat without a good flare, but it worked. We climbed out and headed back north to Watertown.

Along the way I found an intersection to practice my turns around a point. It was really pretty easy, and we agreed that this is something I can work on by myself as I build my solo hours. So we landed in Watertown and pulled up to the pumps. The plane was being rented for the whole weekend, so there's no further flying this weekend.

Everything feels great. I'm still buzzing from last Sunday's solo. Now the challenge will be to not get complacent or overconfident. I don't think it'll be a problem. Next lesson will be a ground lesson on Monday, see you all then. Thanks to all who have passed along their best wishes, I really appreciate it.

2006-06-18T19:47:00.000-07:00

KRYV 182356Z AUTO 22009KT 10SM CLR 24/23 A2982 RMK AO2

This evening, after 22.4 hours of dual instruction, 95 landings, and several ego bruises, it is official: I HAVE SOLOED!! And what a feeling it was!

Things didn't look so promising this morning; the weather was gray and rainy. And the rain didn't clear out until close to 3:00 p.m., which was 3 hours before the lesson. In fact, Hartford (where my office is located, about 25 miles from Watertown) was hit by a small tornado, causing some damage. But things continued to improve even as I walked into the FBO. A line of showers building west of Madison was weakening, and the ceiling over the field was lifting.

Adam had me check the crosswind component and aircraft performance parameters and then I did the preflight on the plane. The winds were quite fluky - variable and a bit gusty. We were airborne off of Runway 23, and I knew that if I could give him some good landings, he would get out of the plane. But the winds were playing tricks with me. The first landing was ok, but a late gust from the left of the plane on the second landing pushed me a little to the right and crooked. The third wasn't any better, and I was slower than I should have been because I was more fixated on keeping straight than paying attention to my speed. I could feel my solo opportunity slipping away. But then the fourth and fifth landings were trouble free, and my confidence surged. After the sixth, Adam directed me back to the ramp. It was time. He got out of the plane, endorsed my logbook, and told me to perform three takeoffs and landings, each to a full stop with taxi back to the runway.

There was no perceptible increase in my heartrate, nor did I have a panic attack. It was more like "it's showtime". And then the plane wouldn't start. Cranked once for 6 seconds. Pushed the throttle in and pulled it out. Cranked again. Throttle in and out. One more time. Nothing. So I hit one shot of primer and tried again. This time it finally cranked over. That turned out the be the most difficult part of the flight! Taxied back out to 23, and I did the engine runup checks just for good measure. The oil pressure gauge showed low pressure at low rpm, so it wasn't a bad idea to run at higher rpm just to make sure it came into the green range.

I announced my takeoff on CTAF, and I moved onto the runway. Once I lined up, I held the brakes, took a deep breath and advanced the throttle. Once it got to 2000 rpm, I checked the gauges, then let the brakes go and pushed the throttle all the way in. Right rudder, 40 then 50 knots, rotate at 54 and airborne at 59. Level some to increase speed to Vy and I was on my way. Adam said the plane would be lively without him in it, and he was right. I was up to 1500' in no time, and I was turning to crosswind probably a full minute before I usually did. Everything felt really comfortable. As I reached the end of the runway before turning base, I reminded myself of my pattern speeds. Eighty-five, seventy-five, sixty-five. I turned to final, keyed the mike to activate the glide slope indicator and kept a hand on the throttle. Everything lined up perfectly. The wind was behaving. I crossed the threshold right at 65 kts. I pulled the throttle out, leveled the plane and bled off the speed. As she sank I pulled back on the yoke. Left main touch, right main touch, lower the nose gear. It was my best landing ever.

And the sweetest.

I couldn't slow before the first taxiway, so I coasted to the next. I could feel the elation building. I shouted something I can't repeat here. Turned off the runway, lowered the flaps, and headed back up the taxiway to the top. The second trip around was just as perfect (to me). What a nice landing. One more to go. I tried for a more artistic flare on the last landing, and I got a little crooked and also floated it just a little. But no hard or crooked landings. No go arounds. It couldn't have gone any better.

So the solo is done. I am now competent enough to fly an airplane. Now onto the next phase: cross country flight. Is the hard part over? Or is it yet to come? We shall see. Thanks for staying with me.

2006-06-17T16:57:00.000-07:00

KRYV 172236Z AUTO 20016G22KT 10SM SCT070 BKN095 30/18 A2980 RMK AO2

You may (or may not) have noticed that there was no post for last Sunday. You know, the day I was supposed to solo? I also happened that Sunday was the Open House held at the airport, and 02E was being used for rides. Sure enough, during the day, the starter broke and the plane went out of service. I got a phone call from the airport saying the lesson had to be cancelled. Ugh. And the weather was perfect, too. I'd have to wait a week before my next chance. It was quite a let down.

Today's lesson didn't get off to a great start. I thought the lesson was at six, and my cell phone went off at 4:30. I had read the schedule wrong. I was late for my lesson! To top that, we are in advance of a front and we had very strong southerly winds. Given the runway configuration at KRYV, the worst winds to have are gusty from north or south. So I knew I wouldn't be soloing, my solo endorsement is for a maximum 6 knot crosswind component. I was worried we would fly at all. But Adam said not to worry, he'll do the landing, let's get up and practice maneuvers.

It wasn't a good omen when, during preflight, the plane started moving backward when I lowered the flaps. The wheels weren't chocked, and I had to put the parking brake on. Takeoff was like a bad farm road - the plane was all over the place. All you can do is work with what the wind gives you, don't fight it, or you'll find yourself upside down. With the tailwind, it took us no time at all to get to the maneuver area. Then we went through what is now the standard routine: clearing turns, steep turns, slow flight dirty, power off stall, slow flight clean, power on stall. And it was all, well, easy. It was fun. We did the slow flight dirty into the wind, and I swear the wind was pushing us backward. What a hoot! Wasn't much else to do, so we headed back.

And it took a while. Took at least 15 minutes to cover the last 10 miles, heading into the wind. We eventually made it back to KRYV, entered the pattern (flying sideways in the crosswind leg), then I set it up for Adam and turned the plane over to him for landing. Damn he made it look so easy. But I wasn't about to chance it. The whole flight was fun. So as long as the winds are good tomorrow, then I'm soloing. Adam feels good. I feel good. Stay tuned.

2006-06-09T18:42:00.000-07:00

KRYV 092356Z AUTO 09007KT 10SM OVC090 12/12 A3006 RMK AO2

I had been grinding myself all week, waiting for a chance to redeem myself after last Sunday's debacle. If I could just get some practice in tonight, with the tips I took away from the last lesson, then I should solo on Sunday.

The weather deteriorated as the day wore on, to the point where there was light rain when I got to the airport. Adam was running a little late with the earlier student (who happens to be my dentist), so I was left to sulk in the lounge area watching the weather get worse. Just an hour earlier the METAR was reporting a ceiling of 3300' AGL, just higher than minimums. I even brought my textbook with me, certain we were going to do ground school. To top it off, more rain seemed to be heading in from the northwest.

So when Adam came out and told me we can get some circuits in, my mind jumped. I had to reframe my brain, if you will, and get in the plane. But that's why the preflight walkaround is so useful. It really gets you focused. That said, I still fumbled at bit with the seatbelt while strapping in. We made our way to Runway 11, and we were off.

First time around, I had to lose a little altitude just before touchdown, I picked up too much speed, and floated a little down the runway. But it was straight. The second landing, not a full flare, a three point landing. A little right of the center line. But it was straight. Remember to aim for the numbers and pull power as you pass over them, Adam says. Next landing. Perfect. Now I had it. I had my sight picture fixed. My speed was right, and my flare was right. It was all right. And so it was. Six landings, all straight.

After the last landing, as we head back to the taxiway, Adam gives me the "nice job" compliment. Now that I could relax, all I could say was, "Wow!" It was the best hour I've had in a plane yet. I finally feel like I have it locked in. Give me three clean on Sunday, Adam says, and you're soloing.

We shall see.

2006-06-04T19:08:00.000-07:00

KRYV 050055Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM CLR 21/11 A3000 RMK AO2

Around about 5:30 p.m., after we got back from the Brewers game, I got a phone call on my cell phone from Adam. He was letting me know that another instructor (Andy) would be flying with me. A pre-solo checkride, if you will. I kind of half expected this, and I felt pretty good about it. Why not send your student up with another instructor to get a second opinion? And with the winds totally calm, it should be a snap, right?

Andy was waiting for me when I walked into the FBO. I had checked the weather at home, so I laid some of that knowledge on him, just to show I was prepared and in the right frame of mind. He told me that we'll go up, walk through the basic maneuvers, then come back to Watertown for a few landings. He also said he doesn't plan on touching any controls.

We take off Runway 11 and head north. As it would happen, Adam was in another plane in the area, and we actually exchanged communications to make sure we weren't going to be in each other's way. So, Andy had me go through the motions. The steep turns went great, the slow flight clean and dirty. No major issues. I felt sharp. A bit of a hiccup during the power-on stall. My lack of a strong right foot on the rudder caused the plane to slip to the left; the first time that has happened to me. But now I knew why. Adam had a tendency to help me in situations like that; he would put in the rudder for me. But Andy stayed off the rudder. I was on my own. Andy had me do it again, this time I stomped the rudder and the plane stayed straight into the stall.

We headed back to Watertown, and on the way he pulled my power. I went through the checklist, then he made me sweat. He didn't let me recover until we were less than 500' from the ground. I had the field lined up pretty good though. He tried a couple of other mind games, like changing the ADF frequency so that the needle was pointing away from Watertown. So I enter the pattern, still no wind, I should really grease these landings. Alas, right rudder would be my downfall. First landing I came over the threshold right at 65 kts, but I was crooked, and by the time I straightened out I was right of the centerline. Bobble number 1. Now I'm finally getting nervous. I put the throttle in before raising flaps; a mental error. Then, on the downwind leg, Andy pulls power, then tells me this is a soft field. I did fine to get the plane around on final and over the threshold, but then my brain fried. I concentrated more on the soft field landing then on just landing. After all, it was an emergency. So while I was trying to keep the nose up, I flared early and stalled the damn thing. The last five feet were straight down. DAMN! Then I rushed to clean the plane up to take off, and I was squirelly on the runway and it was all wrong. Andy tried to settle me by saying that we landed and that was the important part. But I was shaken. We went around one more time, and I made a reasonably good landing, but the damage was done. I still had work to do. It just seems everything is great until the last 10 feet.

Once we were parked, we went inside and Andy debriefed me. Good comments for the most part, and the obvious issues with landings. He did have some different takes on establishing good sight pictures of the runway that I will put to use. And now I know much better just how much rudder I need. Adam came in after he was done with his student and asked if I was ready. And the answer was: almost. Somehow I have to shake this yoke so that I can solo and then move on with the next phases. And it's all I can think about. I'll try not to psyche myself out.

2006-06-03T08:44:00.000-07:00

KRYV 031455Z AUTO 03006KT 10SM CLR 19/16 A3007 RMK AO2

What a beautiful morning. Arrive at the FBO just as it's opening. The plane was still in the hanger, fresh from its service. Adam came in after I did, and he immediately asks me to complete a crosswind component, a weight and balance, and takeoff and landing distances. I just happened to be working on it last night, so it was still fresh in my mind. So once I work out the gross aircraft weight, I show him my figures, and he says that seems heavy for one occupant. Translated: I'm not in the plane with you. My eyes glazed for a second as the thought rushed through my mind: is this it? Is this the solo? My breath shortens a bit and my mouth dries out as I complete the preflight calculations. He tells me to call for a weather briefing and I can't remember the number. I get that sorted out and call the FSS in Green Bay. This was the first time I've called for a weather briefing, and I wasn't sure what to expect. As it turned out, they do use actual humans for the briefings. I gave him my aircraft registration number (N9002E) and my flight intentions. He read back the current weather conditions at Watertown as well as the Terminal Aerodrome Forecast (TAF) for Madison (KMSN). Additionally, he gave me the winds aloft for 3000'. The dispatch is ready, and I head to the plane and start the preflight. At the same time, Adam took my log book back to his office for a few moments.

I took my time with the preflight inspection for two reasons. One, I need to calm down a little and two, since this plane just came out of service, I wanted to have a good close look. The door latch works better, they fixed the baggage door, fresh tires all around and a new exhaust pipe. All of the bugs have been cleaned off of the wings and windshield. Then Adam comes out and starts to get into the plane. So there you have it, no solo today.

All we did today was practice landings at Watertown. Adam is really trying to get me dialed in, and for some reason I'm not cleaning up as well as I would like. Runway 5 was today's runway, with the right hand pattern. Most of the landings were standard, but we did do some interesting things. One time Adam had me land without flaps, which proved interesting. Because the angle of attack is lower, the nose appears to sit up higher and the visual picture is quite different. There was a power off landing to simulate engine failure. A soft field landing as well. My main faults at this time are a tendency to come in too fast over the threshold and not using enough right rudder, causing crooked landings. Adam feels I'm about an hour away from soloing, so that's cool. And what did he do with my logbook? Well, he added the endorsements required for me to legally fly a solo flight. So all other requirements have been met; it's just about time to do it.

Next lesson is tomorrow. I didn't originally have a lesson planned, but Adam suggested it, so I'm doing it. I do love to fly!

2006-05-31T19:46:00.000-07:00

Ground lesson today. Pity, the weather was just gorgeous today after a day of stormy weather yesterday. But alas, 02E is in for its annual service, so it was a ground session today. Today's topics were communications procedures and the weather. Pretty simple for me, since I had quite a bit of experience talking on radios during my army days, and these procedures are not a from cry from what the military does. As for the weather? Well, let's just say my degree in Meteorology is finally proving useful after 20 years.

Test time is approaching, and my end of June target seems very realistic. I have one more chapter of the ASA ground prep and about two chapters of the Jepp private pilot manual. I have at least three practice tests I can take, plus I think Adam will be giving me one as well. Looking at the June calendar, I am scheduled for roughly 7.5 hours of flying time, surely my first solo will happen this month. Get past those two milestones, then we'll start getting into cross country flight. Next lesson is Saturday, see you then, and thanks for stopping by.

2006-05-29T21:20:00.000-07:00

KRYV 291836Z AUTO 17010G17KT 10SM SCT050 30/21 A3001 RMK AO2

If I hadn't lost my E6B Flight Computer, I'd be able to tell you that 30C is pretty damn warm. Okay, that's 86F, but in the plane it was 105F, for the time being at least. Scattered towering cumulus clouds about 4000' AGL meant the air was unstable and that there could be some turbulence.

Today the active was Runway 23, and the takeoff roll was a wee bit longer because of the density altitude of 2400'. Density altitude is the pressure altitude (the reading on your altimeter if set to the standard value of 29.92" Hg) adjusted for temperature to arrive at a theoretical value of what altitude the plane "thinks" it's at. The basic skinny here is that the higher the density altitude, the more runway the plane will need to take off.

We take off, and turn to the north toward Juneau. We level off at 4000' where, thankfully, it's a bit more comfortable. Then Adam does something a little uncharacteristic. He directs steep turns. Thing is, we hadn't done clearing turns yet. If you recall, clearing turns are advised before practicing maneuvers to ensure the area is clear of other aircraft. So I gently assert that we need to do our clearing turns first, and he concurs. A test, perhaps? As to the steep turns, they're getting better all the time. I lost no more than 50' at any time and I went straight from the left turn directly into the right turn. Then it was slow flight dirty, including power off stalls, then slow flight clean and stalls. The slow flight stuff still bedevils me, it's so tough to get the plane into the narrow performance range and hold it there. Even a small puff of wind pushes me off the "needle". To think the C172 is easy to fly, I can't begin to imagine how other planes react to slow flight parameters.

We're already near Dodge County Airport (KUNU), so we take advantage of minimal crosswinds to do some touch and goes on Runway 20. The first one was almost passable, which for me was a small victory since rarely has a first landing gone well at all. Three more landings of various quality, but I "greased" the third, earning a "good landing" compliment from Adam. Out of 71 recorded landings (I think there's been more) I can say with confidence that I've greased only about three of them.

Along the way back to Watertown, we finally got into some ground reference maneuvers, namely the turn around a point, and the s-turn. Far as I can tell, these maneuvers have no practical purpose in general flying, but they do serve as an exercise in workload management. The pilot is forced to divide his attention between monitoring gauges, flying the plane, and adjusting for varying wind conditions. There was more confusion in the cockpit as Adam was pointing out road intersections to turn around and I just couldn't see them. Once we got it all sorted out, the first attempt was clumsy as you can imagine. I had little idea of just what I would need to do with the plane to do the turn. After a couple of repetitions, I think I started getting the hang of it. The first try at s-turns went okay as well. S-turns are similar to turns around a point except that doing s-turns forces you to make at least one right turn.

And so we returned to Watertown. Landed Runway 23 and taxied in. More and more as I go along, it feels like driving a car. Things getting more instinctive. Not much talk in the cockpit during landings. A quick critique after each landing, then it's on to the next. So I take a couple of days off of work and wouldn't you know, the plane is going in for its annual. So no more flying until Saturday, save for a ground review lesson on Wednesday. More next time at Rich's Quest For Flight.

UPDATE: Jeez, I almost forgot to mention that I have filled in one full page of my logbook. Thirteen entries can fit on one page, so I've been up thirteen times. Isn't that supposed to be an unlucky number? Anyway, here are some totals so far: 17.6 total hours (all dual received) with 71 takeoffs and landings. Another check for $2000 to keep my account current as well. I believe that brings that total to $4500.

2006-05-27T13:30:00.000-07:00

KRYV 271857Z AUTO 15007KT 10SM CLR 25/21 A2988 RMK AO2

The long layoff is over, and I hope I don't go that long between flights again.

I had a really messed up travel day yesterday, resulting being stuck in Charlotte for over 7 hours. Fortunately I had my ASA Prep stuff with me, so I was able to knock out a good chunk of it. I only have one more chapter of that product to do. I'll get caught up on the Jeppesen stuff, then I'll take the practice tests. So I think I'm still on track for getting the written test out of the way by the end of June.

First time I've talked to Adam since he was married, he said everything was very nice. It had been raining for quite some time leading up to wedding day, but things cleared up just in time. Had a look at his wedding band, it had a set of wings on it.

It was warm and humid today, and once we were airborne it was quickly evident that conditions in the sky were quite different on the ground. There was quite a bit of haze, cutting visibility well below advertised. Plus, we rain through some raindrops at several points during the flight. But, all in all, my expected rustiness never surfaced. It felt really good up there today. We ran through the regular maneuvers: slow flight dirty, slow flight clean, power off stalls, power on stalls, steep turns left and right. Nothing perfect, but nothing really drastically wrong, either.

Then it was landing practice on Runway 20 at Dodge County (UNU). Short field takeoff, soft field landing, then soft field takeoff followed by a touch and go. Then it was back to Watertown, but a simulated engine failure came first. Worked through the checklist and recovered. Did one touch and go on Runway 11, went around the pattern then landed and parked.

A very quick 1.3 hours. And it felt really good. The rough edges are less rough, and outside of one final approach that was a little too slow, there were no major faults. I have one more chance to fly (on Monday) then the plane goes in for its annual. Adam advised me to sign up for a ground session in the meantime, so I'll do that Wednesday.

After we were done, I hung out on the ramp for a few minutes, watching some of the transient traffic heading back out after (presumably) having their $100 hamburgers. And the single major thought running through my head? Damn! I want a plane!

2006-05-21T07:18:00.000-07:00

An update for those who might be curious what's been going on. As mentioned in the previous post, there has been no flying for the past week and won't be for another. My instructor, Adam, was married yesterday and is taking some well deserved time off. Congratulations to him and all the best wishes.

In the meantime, I've been hitting the books getting ready for the knowledge test. In the Jeppesen Private Pilot Manual (more like a college textbook), I'm now into the later chapters, currently the chapter on weather products. Since my college degree is in Meteorology, this is not new material to me. What I am ensuring by reviewing those chapters is to make sure I am on the same page when it comes to describing the various products and the terminology. What remains in the textbook then is the section on performance and navigation, a very important section, and the section on integrating knowledge and skills.

I am also in the later sections of the ASA Test Prep course as well. I've become less impressed with this product as I've gone along. The basic delivery techniques do not change, and that repetitiveness has begun watching these videos a bit of a chore. The transitions are all the same, the graphics vary little (and, in some cases, repeated quite frequently), and I now know every annoying habit of the presenters. The $100 I spent on the course remains a good value, but if I were doing it again, I would give a serious look at the Sporty's Private Pilot Course for $179 or perhaps even going for the King Schools Private Pilot Exam Course at $279. I have seen samples of both, and at the very least they are no worse than the ASA product. One feature both of those have that you may find useful are the progress tracking features that the ASA product does not have.

My next lesson is Saturday, with another scheduled for Memorial Day. Then it'll be another week until the next time in the plane, since 02E is going into maintenance on Tuesday (presumably for its 100 hour check). I feel confident that one of the next two lessons will be the first solo, but I won't make any predictions. So stay tuned, and thanks for stopping by Rich's Quest For Flight.

Low Ceiling

2006-05-12T18:30:00.000-07:00

Low Ceiling
Originally uploaded by richmanwisco.

We seem to be prescient when it comes to predicting the weather. Adam decided last Sunday that today would be a ground lesson, and there you have it, it rained anyway. We actually got quite a bit accomplished today in just an hour and a half.

During the week I worked on my ASA test prep in the aircraft performance section. That covered weight and balance, and aircraft performance. So we reviewed that tonight in the specific case of good old 02E. It was a small kick in the head when, calculating weight and balance for 02E we found that with a full tank of gas and Adam and myself as the only occupants, we didn't miss maxing out the weight by a whole lot. So if I plan of taking the whole family up, we're going to have to offload some gas.

We also looked over the Operating Handbook for the Cessna 172N. It has tons and tons of important information on the aircraft and its systems. It's important for me to be familiar with it because the examiner will ask me any number of questions about the airplane in which I will be taking my checkride.

Finally, we reviewed the pre-solo written test. Adam was very pleased with it and my verbal responses to his questions. So I'm getting ever so close to my first solo, except one thing. Adam's getting married next weekend, so it might be another couple of weeks before I get back in the plane. So in the meantime, I'm going to hit the books and try to complete the practice tests so that he can sign off that I'm ready to take the FAA knowledge exam. I've set myself a goal of taking the exam by the end of June, but earlier would be nice.

So there we are. I'll find a way to get some content in here during this break of sorts. Take care for now.

2006-05-07T22:29:00.000-07:00

KRYV 071755Z AUTO 20009KT 10SM CLR A2999 RMK AO2

I am having a hard time trying to recall better weather than what we've had this weekend. Yesterday was a hard day only in that I wish I were flying. Instead, I attended the wedding of the girl across the street (more here).

Sorry to disappoint, but there were no near misses today, nor were there any moments of utter exasperation. A good, solid hour-and-a-half of further learning.

Runway 23 was the active at KRYV today, and we were up and on our way to a new practice field. Things were bumpy until we reached 4000'. On the way, some slow flight practice. This slow flight stuff is frustratingly hard to do. I've written about this before, the envelope that you're operating in and trying to attain is difficult to get to. It was slow flight clean that was kicking my butt. So there's plenty to work on there.

By the time Adam let me off the hook (this time) we were over Palmyra Municipal Airport (88C). I wouldn't have known it if he hadn't pointed it out. I was quite disoriented, and nearly openly wondering how I could possibly do a cross country flight on dead reckoning alone. So there it was, a bunch of buildings. You can't tell where the runway is, because it looks like a big open grass field from the air. It was busy, too. Three planes were in the pattern around this grass field airstrip; things were getting quite surreal. The pattern was 800' AGL as opposed to 1000' AGL, so that would take some adjustment as well. By the time I entered the downwind, the traffic was on the ground, so one less thing to worry about. As with the first time with the other airports I've landed at, I had no visual cues to work with; I only had the runway to judge my pattern by. And there would be no doubt this would be a soft field landing, so 40 degrees of flaps would be in order. We were landing on Runway 27, so the crosswind component was minimal. Good thing, too, this whole landing on green stuff was a counterintuitive feeling. All I had to tell me where the runway started were three white cones on either edge. Oh, by the way, there's a road passing across the field less than 200 yards from the threshold with actual vehicles, too!

So we get the plane down, and I admit Adam did most of the work. We held the nose up as long as possible until we were slow enough to turn off of the runway. It was quite a different sensation than landing on a hard surface. There was no "chirp" like you hear when the tire touches, and certainly no sense that the landing was hard or soft. Just a series of, well, lumps. There was a taxiway that ran parallel to the left edge of the runway, and it was nice to have something smooth to roll on after the lumpiness of the runway. We taxied back to the top of the runway, pushed the carb heat back in, and set the flaps for 10 degrees for a soft field take off. Off to the right it looked like they were having a picnic or something, perhaps some of the local pilots offering "Young Eagles" rides. That would explain all of the traffic.

Entering the runway from the top, it was quickly apparent why a pilot should apply power and keep the plane moving, because the field tends to slow the plane down very quickly. So I added extra power, turned so I was roughly on the center line, pulled back the yoke, pushed the throttle in, and we were moving. Once off the ground, I'm supposed to level the plane so that I can gain speed while still in ground effect. That is also a difficult thing to do since the plane wants to go up. And it's against instinct to point the plane anywhere close to the ground. So that will take some more practice until I'm used to it.

We went around the pattern one more time, and landed, then taxied back to the top, took off again, and then turned north out of the pattern back toward Watertown. By the time we were within three miles, there were three or so planes hovering around the airport. The CTAF frequency was crackling with traffic; pilots reporting their positions around the pattern, even some cross communication between planes. It's a bit difficult to explain here, but I am really gaining an appreciation for the importance of knowing where you are and reporting it concisely on the frequency. This is not something I experience during our weekday lessons.

So here was the hitch today. I'll be landing into a left crosswind component, so I need to turn final earlier than usual. Backing up a little bit, it becomes quickly apparent that a thermal has set up over the base leg that wants to push the plane up. That meant I turned final high every time (we made 3 landings on 23 today). But this time, Adam only mentioned anything about it the first time. And by the time he said anything, I was already compensating. Power almost to idle, pitch to slow to 65 kts, then some power back in and assume the proper glide slope. Straight down the centerline, except I leveled just a bit early and a puff of wind pushed the plane slightly to the right, causing me to correct to the left before letting the wheel touch the ground. Then it was back up again, two more times. Those last two landings, Adam said very little. Partly because, each time I turned final it said, "I'm high again, cutting power and pitching" before he could remind me. I wasn't trying to be annoying, I was speaking out loud so that he knew exactly what I was thinking. And it seemed to work.

After landing the last time, and completing the after landing checks, we parked in front of the FBO and deplaned. Back inside, Adam said we'll spend more time the next couple of lessons catching up on ground work. After that, it'll be solo time. Today's landings must have assured him that I'm very close. Those magic words. It's getting closer folks. Checking the logbook, I'm now up to 14.9 hours. Only one downside. After my lesson on Friday, which looks like a ground lesson, there will be a two week break while Adam gets married. Which is great for him, naturally.

Today felt good. Very good. More work needed on slow flight and soft field landings. Darn near proficient on landings, except I'm still leveling just a little early. Let's hope I don't get rusty over the break. So tune in Friday to see what happens next at Rich's Quest For Flight.

2006-05-04T22:01:00.000-07:00

KRYV 042357Z AUTO 30009G15KT 10SM SCT060 A2994 RMK AO2

In rugby, they call them "the hard yards".

On an Army obstacle course, it's called "the dirty name."

I don't know if there's a name for it in aviation, but doing touch and goes in gusty conditions directly into the setting sun has to be something. This much I will say: tonight's lesson tested my resolve. There were a couple of times when I wanted to walk away, except I couldn't; I was flying an airplane. But by the time we landed for the last time and pulled up to the pumps, I felt like I actually did something good.

Nine knots may not seem like much, but the gusty conditions and boundary layer turbulence did not sit well with 02E, tossing and heaving back and forth during each climbout. She made noises and acted every bit the old training craft that she was. Tough conditions, to be sure. Now shine the setting sun straight in so that seeing the gauges is next to impossible not to mention trying to see the runway through the streaked windscreen. Have I missed any of the sensory inputs? If either of us had farted, it could've spelt disaster.

Okay, perhaps not.

Eight approaches we made to Runway 29, seven times we landed. On the third approach, I was way high. When I turned final I was nearly 300' higher than I needed to be, with not enough room to get it down soon enough and still slow to the proper speed for landing. So, for the first time, I announced I was going around. Flash back to Tuesday. On one approach, I leveled with the plane going too fast, and I floated halfway down the runway. I put it down, and cleaned up again for take off, but Adam mentioned (in a constructive critique) that he might have waived it off. That struck a chord with me. It's OK to swallow your pride if it isn't right. A little humility now might save a life later. And in a way, I'm trying to show Adam that I can make decisions in difficult situations. I want him to feel like he doesn't need to be there. I am trying to prove that I am ready for solo.

After the seventh landing, Adam directed me to set up for Runway 23. Landing Runway 29 involved a minor 10 degree crosswind. Now I will be dealing with a 70 degree crosswind from the right. It was as if, after a 5 mile run, I was being asked to run a set of 50 yard gassers. I swallowed hard, took a deep breath, and re-mapped the winds in my mind. At least this runway is the longer runway, so I had more time to mentally prepare during the downwind. The winds, though not as gusty now, were still pushing the plane around. Depending on the leg, I'm pointing 20 to 30 degrees off line just to track correctly. The first landing wasn't too bad; a slight confidence boost. I felt good climbing out. I reduce power as I pass the numbers and start my descent. But then it all starts going wrong. A series of updrafts keep the plane from descending. Now I'm high even though I reduce power to try to let her sink. I'm still high as I turn final, and now I'm preoccupied with getting her down. I ignore my speed, and I don't even remember if I put in the last notch of flaps. I cross the threshold at the right height, but 15 knots too fast. I level off, and she floats. And floats. Land, dammit! Then, Adam calls "go around". Shit. Power in, start to climb, carb heat in, flaps up. NO!!! Just as I catch myself, Adam fixes the flaps, then gives the closest thing to a lecture that I've gotten since I started flying. Always, ALWAYS, bring the flaps up incrementally. Taking them all out at once will cost you your lift and your plane will stop flying. Even though it was for just an instant, I had caused an unsafe situation. I was pissed. I felt lower than whale scum. I kicked myself in the ass during the whole climbout. I had to get myself together.

I brought her around, made a pretty good landing, and it was up one last time. Adam gave me a pep talk, complimenting me on the last landing. Landed on the center line, with the windward wheel touching first. Continued around the pattern, and set up for final one last time. But once again, I was a little fast and a little high. This time, I took out more power than usual to correct, and at least got the plane at the proper glide slope. But I was still fast. More power out. But this time, instead of porpoising as I had in the past, I gently leveled her off, letting the speed bleed off. Sure, I was floating a little, but this time the plane settled down nicely as I flared at just the right height and she touched down just as the stall horn sounded. A good landing.

So after tearing myself apart, I built myself back up. We had a philosophy in the Army that you trained in the most difficult conditions as possible. Tonight was difficult. It was downright hard. But I'm okay with it. I know I will be a better pilot for the trouble.

2006-05-02T21:45:00.000-07:00

KRYV 022335Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM SCT070 A2992 RMK AO2

Tonight, this pilot almost became a statistic. Twice.

The weather was just wonderful. No wind. Land on the longest runway. Which seemed to cause some people some problems.

It's routine now. Check out the plane. Preflight. Engine start. Before takeoff checks. We took off from Runway 29 and depart the pattern to the north, toward Dodge County Airport. So smooth, the climbout was almost relaxing. We get to 4000' and level off for some maneuvers. Clearing turns first, then into steep turns. But once again doggone it, I don't quite have the speed right and I start losing altitude. And once you start going down, it's hard to get back up, since nearly half of the lift generated by the wing is turning the plane. Put in some throttle and hope for the best. The right steep turn wasn't as bad, but I turned out a little late. Taking these lessons in the evening means that the sun is setting, so there's no trouble figuring out where west is. But I also can't see my gauges from the glare. In fact, I can't see much of anything in the sun glare. Next was slow flight in the landing configuration. Seemed like it took forever to configure the plane for slow flight. The envelope that I'm flying in is very narrow. With flaps down, I have to maintain altitude while holding the speed just above stall. With the angle of attack already high, if I pitch up higher, the plane will stall. It's almost like flying while standing still. So I finally get there, and I'm directed to make a turn to the left, then pull power and stall. A turning stall it is. Except that in anticipating the imminent stall, I level the wings early, and then stall. What can I say, I'm a cautious flyer.

As we recover, we're over Dodge County Airport (KUNU). Adam pulls the throttle and I've lost my engine. Time once again for the ABC. Pitch for best glide Airspeed of 65kts. Look for your Best landing option. We already were over the airport, no problem there. Then, perform the engine failure Checklist. All that done, it was just a matter of bleeding off enough altitude so we can make our turn for final. Once the runway was assured, then put the flaps in, pitch for landing airspeed, and land. And thus was the first touch and go of a sequence of at least five for the day at KUNU. On the next 3 circuits I made my turn for final late each time. I also kept coming in high. I must concentrate better. Then Adam reminded me of the optimal speeds for our descent sequence. Once power is reduced, put in first notch of flaps, then pitch for 85kts. Turn to base, next notch, pitch for 75 kts. Then on final, last notch, pitch for 65kts. I know he said this way back when, but now it was finally clicking in my mind. 85-75-65. Simple as that. My mental checklist is now that much better.

After a soft field, then short field, and they were both the best of the type so far. But, seeing as all my previous tries at those were so bad, it's not saying too much. But the improvement continues. So now on the next circuit we're going to set up for a high approach so that we can practice a forward slip. A forward slip is a way of turning the airplane sideways in the air, causing the wind to flow at an angle over the wing instead of straight over it, resulting in reduced lift and a quick loss in altitude. If everything works right, you get down fast, but without gaining too much speed, just in time to straighten her out and land normally.

We were using Runway 26 at Dodge County, and during our downwind leg we heard a plane call that they were on the right downwind for Runway 20. All runways at Dodge County are left pattern, so we were on alert. No problem, except that neither us could see the plane. We continue, and I begin my turn to base. Just then, the other plane appears on our left, heading the wrong way from where he announced his position. Adam takes the plane, puts in full throttle and breaks out of the pattern to the right. Adam politely got on the radio to "help" the other pilot find his bearings as we did a circle turn to give the other pilot a chance to unscrew himself. At worst, we were about 300 yards apart at our closest encounter.

So after another circuit at Dodge County we had back south to Watertown. On the way, another engine failure. I waffle on my selection of landing site, but the routine is getting better. We approach the airport from over the city and enter the upwind for Runway 23. Once again, despite the conditions, I just don't have my act together, and I enter the final high and fast. Adam points out how it all began by not getting configured right prior to the base, which led to an error during base and an error during final. The mistakes piled up and made for a poor landing. One more mental inventory, and the second landing is much better. Time for one more circuit. The sun has set, and conditions are perfect. This one is going to be all mine.

As I climb from the runway, another C172 announces on traffic that he's entering the downwind for Runway 23. No sweat, I look toward my 8 o'clock as I climb on the upwind. No visual. I look again as I turn crosswind; he should be about 9 o'clock. Still nothing. I level off at pattern altitude and reduce power to cruise as I turn to downwind. Now I catch him and announce I have visual contact, but wait. That's a LANDING LIGHT! He's heading straight for us. No sooner do I realize it then I begin turning to the right at the same time Adam is kicking the throttle in and taking the plane. This yokel was on the wrong side of the runway heading in the opposite direction from what he announced. Separation was maybe 200 yards. You could read his tail number. A close call indeed. Adam got on the horn to point out the other pilot's mistake, and once he was satisfied that the other plane was no longer a danger to us, we resumed the pattern and set up for landing. With my wits back together, I brought 02E in for the best landing of the day. We didn't plan for a situational awareness lesson, but we sure did get one, and it turned out to be a positive thing. I reacted correctly to the situation, so that's a feather in my cap.

I didn't want to land tonight. Conditions were so nice and, near misses aside, I was really doing well and improving on each pass. I could have run the tanks dry if it didn't cost so much. I am at the point now where I can think through all of these maneuvers, yet I can't quite string it all together. It's getting better all the time, but incrementally slow. For instance, Adam rarely needs to correct my rudder inputs any longer. Now we're just finessing things as opposed to making big corrections. Calm days work wonders for the confidence. I am more relaxed more often during flight. And yes, that incident resulted in the consumption of a fine lager beer. Next lesson is Thursday, and I can't wait. Join me then!

2006-04-30T15:32:00.000-07:00

Rainy. Wet. Windy. All aircraft on the field were tied down. Nothing was moving at KRYV today. So it was a good thing to plan a ground session in advance. Beats the disappointment of expecting to fly and not being able to.

So we hit the books today, covering two important areas of aviation: the sectional chart and airspace. The sectional chart is more than just a map, it also displays important and valuable information concerning airports and navigational aids. As long as the pilot understands the information and how to use it, he will never find himself on the wrong side of an embarrassing situation, be it violating restricted airspace or landing at the wrong airport.

Our other topic was airspace. The FAA created airspace regulations to provide a systematic way to control how airplanes move through the air to ensure the safety of all who use it. Airspace is divided into two broad categories: controlled and uncontrolled. In reality, most airspace is controlled in some way. There are 5 classes of controlled airspace: A, B, C, D, and E. Class A is all the airspace above and including 18,000 feet all the way up to 60,000 feet. I won't be using that airspace anytime soon, since you have to be instrument rated to fly there. Below 18,000 feet, the size of the airport will generally determine the class of the airspace you are flying in. The busiest airports, such as Chicago-O'Hare (KORD), Dallas-Fort Worth (KDFW), or Memphis (KMEM) will be surrounded by Class B airspace. The requirements to fly in that airspace is most restrictive and you need permission to fly in it. At the other end of the scale is Class E airspace, which surrounds airports like Watertown (KRYV) and provide minimum visibility requirements. The concepts are simple, but trying to remember all the parameters is the hard part. As a VFR (visual flight rules) pilot, I have to know the visibility and cloud clearance requirements for all classes of airspace.

So there you go. Pretty dry stuff. But very important. I still get these moments where I wonder how it will all come together, and that first cross country flight will truly be nerve wracking. As always, a quick moment of personal inventory reassures me that all you have to do is do it a few times and it will become near second nature in the future.

Next lesson is Tuesday, and the forecast is not looking great. We'll see how it goes. Until then, keep the blue part up and the greasy part down!

2006-04-28T22:19:00.000-07:00

KRYV 282215Z AUTO 11012G16KT 10SM CLR A3020 RMK AO2

Another nice Wisconsin day, especially if you like gusty winds. But before I get into the lesson, here's a news bulletin:

That's right folks! It's my medical certificate! I am now officially a student pilot. It was a bit of an adventure, though. I originally scheduled the appointment for 11:45 a.m. today, but then my return flight from my trip to Kentucky was scheduled for early this morning. My plane didn't land in Milwaukee until 10:21 a.m., so I had to hustle to get to Fort Atkinson for my appointment. I was in phone contact with the doctor's office and the people there were very accomodating and understanding. In a way, it was an old fashioned physical such as is rarely administered any longer. There was a questionnaire to fill out. I was measured, had a urine sample, and blood pressure taken. Then the doc (a nice, elderly gentleman) came in, reviewed my questionnaire and did all the things a doc used to do when giving a checkup, including the turning of the head and coughing. Then, after remitting $107, I had my certificate in hand, good for two years.

I didn't have long to get back home and gather my kit for my lesson. I have maintained my custom of walking to the airport, just under a mile away. I like to think that it helps get me mentally prepared for the lesson to come, then to provide me the opportunity to blow off steam once I'm done.

It was a mixed bag today; some success and some frustration. Although conditions were bumpy and gusty on the ground, things were quite different at 4,000 feet. It was quite smooth. After clearing turns, I tried steep turns. The first one went badly. Perhaps it would have helped if I was at the proper speed before I started the turn. Adam didn't remind me about airspeed, and perhaps he was testing me to see if I remembered. Once I set up properly and at the right speed, I tried it again and it was much better. There was some practice with slow flight and stalls which went fine. Then we headed over to Dodge County (KUNU), and as we flew over the airfield, Adam cut the power to throttle and I got to rehearse my engine failure and power off landing. I did fine to pitch the plane and glide it in, but now I realize I forgot to run through the troubleshooting checklist. I'll have to talk to Adam about it on Sunday. After a "normal" touch-and-go to gauge the crosswinds, Adam had me practice a short field landing. It didn't go very well. Let's say I was rusty. All the the brainpower that I put into trying to remember how to do one caused me to miss the first one badly. I didn't even correct properly for the crosswind. So we went around and tried it again. The approach went better, but I floated too far down the runway to make it a satisfactory attempt. We did a couple of soft field landings and take offs, then we departed Dodge County and headed back to Watertown.

This would be the second time that I used Runway 11, with the right hand pattern. The first time didn't go well since I was a bit disoriented between landing on this particular runway for the first time and using a right traffic pattern. This time, with no crosswind, I did much better. I am pretty certain that both landings were all mine, with no help at all.

So now we reach a critical point in my training. I have my medical certificate, so now all that stand between me and my first solo is my instructor's judgement. When will it happen? I've resolved to not ask. I have a feeling that it will just happen. I may show up at the field and Adam will tell me to take her up by myself. Perhaps we'll do landing practice and he'll get out of the plane and tell me to take it around a couple of times. I just have this feeling that he's not going to tell me ahead of time. He just might decide I'm ready during a lesson and go with the feeling.

I know this much; Sunday's lesson will be a ground lesson for knowledge review. The forecast calls for rain, so we made that decision now that we're not going to fly. Adam already told me that our next flying lesson will involved ground reference maneuvers (more about that next time), so I doubt the solo will happen then. I am not traveling next week, so I've scheduled lessons for Tuesday and Thursday.

So stay tuned for the next exciting edition of Rich's Quest For Flight.

2006-04-23T20:38:00.000-07:00

KRYV 231959Z AUTO 02011KT 10SM SCT042 BKN050 OVC060 A2991 RMK AO2
KRYV 232159Z AUTO 35008KT 10SM CLR A2992 RMK AO2
What a difference a couple of hours makes, eh? When I arrived at the airport, it was overcast and a breeze from 20 degrees. By the time we were finished, the wind shifted around to 350 and the skies were clear.

Last time we were together, I said my next lesson would be a ground lesson on Saturday. Well, I flubbed the day, but I was pleased to learn we would be going up. Recall that Tuesday's lesson didn't go so well for me, and I was really yearning to get back up and redeem myself. And redeem myself I did! It was a wonderful afternoon in the air. Never before has 1.7 hours gone by so fast.

I checked the plane out and did the preflight, and we were rolling to Runway 5 for takeoff. The pattern was clear, and we were rolling and on our way. In about 15 minutes, we were entering the pattern for Runway 2 of Dodge County Airport (KUNU).

KUNU 232119Z AUTO 36011G18KT 10SM SCT035 SCT049 BKN055 13/09 A2992 RMK AO2

Now the conditions here were slightly different. The winds were from due north. But even that's misleading, because for the hour or so that we were doing landings there, the winds continued to shift around to the extent that the first landing was crab left, and the last one was crab right. So the lesson there is, always watch the windsock. And if you don't do that, as long as you're paying attention to how you have to keep moving in the direction you want to go, you'll notice how you're having to point the airplane. It really isn't that hard. The landings overall went much better than Tuesday. Repetition is the key to everything. Practice, practice, practice. The most notable landing came when Adam cut the throttle while I was on the downwind leg. He asked me what my options were, and I start saying, "well, we can make that field, and that field and that field". I thought I was giving the right answers. Adam wrecks my smugness by suggesting that we can make the airport. D'oh! Foiled again. Pitch to the glide speed, see where I'm at in relation to the runway, and quickly determine that I can make it. Now it's a question of turning to final and making sure the runway is assured. Once it is, I start putting in flaps, pitch the plane down, and glide in for a smooth landing. Then, miraculously, the engine comes back and we're lifting off.

On the way back to Watertown, time for some maneuvers. For the first time, I am proud to announce, I did my steep turns to standard! That felt good. Real good. Slow maneuvers? No sweat. Full power stalls? Easy. This time, when we did low speed stalls, Adam had me execute a turn as the plane stalled. The recovery from my first turning stall was almost uneventful. The only difference is to make sure to level the wings. Everything else is the same.

We fly over Watertown airport and continue a short way to the south so that we can enter the pattern on the right downwind to Runway 5. This is the first time I've used Runway 5 since the very first lesson, so once again I'm landing on an unfamiliar runway. And a right traffic pattern is still hard to get used to. As a result, I rely on Adam for my turning cues as I set the plane up for landing. I'm a bit high once again as I turn final, but now I'm finding it more and more instinctive to reduce power while still maintaining pitch to lose altitude. I make the runway, the crab is a little off, and I glide a little far. But not as bad as any of the other first landings. It seems to be getting better, bit by bit, all the time. While my initial landings are still a bit high from final, I'm not having as hard a time trying to lose that altitude. My confidence is growing. Perhaps not as fast as I'd like. Then again, this is a long process.

The last landing was the best, and we taxi off the runway and head to the pumps. Since I didn't want to jinx myself in the air, I waited until we were at the ramp before I finally relaxed and expressed some good vibes. What a great day it was.

So it's back to work and back on the road again. Next lesson is Friday. My flight physical is scheduled for Friday, but there's a potential glitch. I called the doctor's office to let them know that I might be 15 minutes late, and the person on the other end informed me that a parent of the nurse was in bad health and that the visit could be postponed. So I need to cross my fingers and hope that we're still on when I land on Friday. If all goes well, I will show up for my lesson with my medical certificate and student pilot permit in hand. Then I'll be a pre-solo written test away from my first solo. Oh yeah, Adam makes that call. It's whenever he feels I'm ready. Now that I have a computer with a DVD drive, I can take the ASA Virtual Prep course with me. I will also continue to work on the pre-solo exam.

One last note. I found out that a classmate of my oldest son is starting his lessons soon, also with Adam. I will try to follow his progress.

That's it for now. Another episode of my Quest For Flight is in the can. See you all on Friday.

2006-04-20T19:29:00.000-07:00

Welcome back to Rich's Quest For Flight. Fully refreshed and recovered from the adventures on Tuesday, I was actually raring to go. Problem was, there was going to be no flying today as per the plan. The winds were brisk again but from the west, favoring Runway 29. There were some awfully neat wave clouds in the sky like I've not seen since I moved here; I'll see if any of the pics I took of them are any good.

So, while a class was going on in the classroom for the sport pilot course, Adam and I sat in the training room and worked our way through the first two chapters of the Jeppesen Private Pilot Handbook. It was easy stuff, but since it has been two weeks since I read it originally, it turned out to be a nice review. It's so important to continue to keep fresh, no matter how easy it may seem. Adam remains pleased with my progress, this time from the knowledge side, so all is well. We're planning on more of the same for Saturday, but we haven't cancelled the plane yet, so I'm hoping I'll get up to at least do a few local circuits.

2006-04-18T22:00:00.000-07:00

KRYV 182358Z AUTO 09011G16KT 10SM CLR A2990 RMK AO2

I can't believe what I'm about to say. For the first time, flying was more of a chore than fun. Winds were brisk out of the east and gusty. Skies were clear, which has been a bit of a problem during these evening lessons. The wind suited Runway 11 at Watertown perfectly, so what do we do? Yep, we fly up to Dodge County Airport so that we can use Runway 8 for crosswind landing practice. So now when we do a circuit, the crosswind leg is more of a downwind, the downwind more like a crosswind, the base like an upwind, and the final is just one big crab. There are two ways to do a final approach into a crosswind. One is to point the plane into the wind so that the track along the ground gets you to the runway. Just before touchdown, put in left rudder to straighten out the plane. That's called crabbing. The other way is to dip the wing into the wind while applying opposite rudder. Level the wing just before landing. This is called the wing-low approach. Oh, by the way, don't forget to land on the upwind landing wheel.

Once you land, carb heat in, throttle in, flaps up, and take off again. Oh, and don't forget to breathe. Climb to pattern altitude, turn to crosswind and quickly to downwind and repeat the whole thing over. When flying in the pattern you can't relax for a minute. Maybe thirty seconds, but not a minute. And I was always coming in high. Which meant I had to nose down and cut power more, which meant we came in steep, causing me to flare too early, and then just plopping the thing down. No fun. Ego deflating.

We made our way back to Watertown and entered the pattern for Runway 11 on the upwind leg. Runway 11-29 is the short runway at Watertown, and a right pattern for 11 is directed. This is the first time using this runway for landings, and I'm already drained from the struggles at Dodge County. The downwind went so quickly that I must have been a whole mile from the airport before turning to base. There was a Piper Archer behind me, and the pilot must have been thinking, "student". I finally got the thing turned to final and I was still high! More playing around with power and I muscled it to the ground. At least I think I was. I'm pretty sure Adam was controlling the plane for most of this lesson. And around one more time.

I look at my logbook and it says 6.9 hours. I need at least 40 and probably 50. It's hitting me now for the first time that I have a long way to go. This lesson left me exhausted mentally. I spent the whole walk home talking to myself. There's a lot of work to do. The forecast for Thursday calls for rain, but Adam said we're going to do ground stuff unless the weather is perfect. Maybe I'll get my head back together before then.

2006-04-16T16:02:00.000-07:00

KRYV 162158Z AUTO 05012G17KT 10SM -RA SCT055 BKN070 BKN100 A2967 RMK AO2
In other words, a blustery, rainy, low ceiling kind of a day. Yep, it's a scrub. Which really isn't that bad. Remember, my instructor said I was well ahead of the game, and a solo will come sooner rather than later. But I need my medical first, and that isn't until the 28th. I have 3 lessons scheduled this week alone, so another 4.5 hours along with the 4.5 I have so far will put me at 9 hours with a week until the physical.

So I spent my time today studying. I'm through the first 3 chapters of the ASA Virtual Test Prep, and I'm in Chapter 4 of Jeppesen's Private Pilot Guide. Adam also gave me a video of chapters 4 and 5 to look at. I'm past all of the flight theory and instruments stuff, and now I'm looking at airport operations, voice communications, airspace, and all that. There is a lot of redundancy between the two products, and that's fine. It's good to see things explained in slightly different ways. For instance, I'm a meteorologist, and I still have a trouble remembering the affects of temperature on air density. Or the proclivities of the magnetic compass.

The ASA Ground School is very good, but since the method is "say what you're about to teach, teach it, and tell them what you've learned", it can get pretty mundane. Plus, one instructor they use is a TV weatherman, and he brings all that obnoxious banter with him to these DVDs. Plus, I started later with the ASA than the Jeppesen, so I've seen it once already. What I will do is get caught up so that I will proceed through them in a parallel manner. The ASA product also uses actual FAA exam questions, and as long as you have reviewed the material, they are really quite easy. Here's an example:

3105. If an altimeter setting is not available before flight, to which altitude should the pilot adjust the altimeter?

A - The elevation of the nearest airport corrected to mean sea level.
B - The elevation of the departure area.
C - Pressure altitude corrected for nonstandard temperature.

Feel free to leave a comment with your guesses. But that's the format of the exam. A question followed by 3 choices. The knowledge test will be 60 questions long, with a passing score of 70%. Should be a piece of cake. But I'm not taking any chances. Before I take the test I will have answered over 160 practice questions along with 2 full length practice exams, or another 120 questions. I'll be ready, you can be sure of it. At the rate I'm going, I should be ready to take the test for real in about 4 to 5 weeks.

So that's it for now. Lessons Tuesday and Thursday. Tailwinds!

2006-04-14T21:30:00.000-07:00

KRYV 142218Z AUTO 30010G16KT 10SM CLR A2956 RMK AO2

It started off overcast today, with a few scattered showers. But as the day went on, everything cleared up and it got very warm for April. The winds were a bit stiff today, which would make for some fun boundary layer turbulence. I took off from work an hour early so that I could get this flight in before dinner.

I was on a trip this week, so I hadn't flown since Sunday, and I was just a little concerned. Would I be rusty? How natural would this come back? I got home from work and had just enough time to jump into a pair of shorts, grab a couple of snack bars, pick up the bag, and walk to the airport. Adam was out with another student when I arrived, so I had a seat, pulled out my maneuvers manual, and tried to get my head on. Soon, Adam got back, I pre-flighted 02E, and we were on our way. Right away I had difficulty taxiing, and for no good reason. I was all over the place. Turns out my foot placement had been too high on the rudder pedals, and a repositioning made it easier to steer. Quite frankly, if there was anything causing me any kind of grief during my experience thus far, it's been the rudder. Whether steering on the ground or flying in the air, the rudder turns out to be a rather stiff and mushy proposition. Feedback from input is not instantaneous, so one needs to develop some patience with it.

Once airborne, we turned north up toward Hustisford to our maneuver area. The clearing turns went fine, and the next order was steep turns. I knew we were going to do these, I knew what the standards were, I knew that I would need to apply back pressure and add throttle, and yet I still made a hash of it. I dropped close to 500', which is almost hard to do. I only had time to take a breath as I was directed to proceed straight to a steep turn to the right. I did better on that one, but the turn was still a bit too shallow at times. Perhaps the wind was playing games with me, too. As you turn through a circle, the direction of the wind (and its effects on the plane) is constantly changing. This clearly was going to take a lot of practice. But it was also a slap to the face, so to speak, and now my head was finally in the plane.

We next made our way over to Dodge County Airport (KUNU), near Juneau. New airfield, new runway, so we're going to go easy, right? We're going to use runway 26, so that means we're landing into a 35 to 45 degree quartering wind. In order to keep the pattern a rectangle, I need to fly the plane turned into wind. Which is fine, but I'm constantly making left turns. So the wind is always coming from a different place and I have to account for it. Which takes brain power. Which turned out to be not that difficult at all. Some farmer had a leaf pile burning (not a good idea on a windy day, btw) and it was providing a perfect wind gauge to help me figure the wind out. The first landing was a touch and go and we were back in the pattern. Next landing is a full stop landing, and this one wasn't so good as a puff of wind caused us to balloon a bit and land long. With 5000' of runway, there's plenty of real estate to work with, so no worries. As we leave the runway and taxi back for the next take off, Adam told me how John Deere likes to use the airport grounds as a test ground for their new mowers and such. He said it's quite the sight to see, platoons of mowers running around like the Shriners in their go karts.

Our next manuever was a short field takeoff, followed by a circuit and another full stop landing. Taxi back to the top of the runway, then we did a soft field takeoff. Both times I forgot to push the carb heat back in. More minor mental lapses. We headed back south toward Watertown, entered the pattern from the crosswind and came in to land for the last time today. Adam is really pleased with my progress. He says I'm a good 5 lessons ahead of the average student. He also told me not to beat myself up over mental mistakes.

My initial account of $1000 is about used up, so I'm bringing a check for $1500 with me next time. That means the quest so far has cost about $1280. While I was gone, the DVD Ground School came in from ASA, so I'll start looking at that. Time to put this one in the shed for the night. Next lesson on Sunday. Thanks for stopping by.

2006-04-09T23:11:00.000-07:00

METAR text: KRYV 100018Z AUTO 18004KT 10SM CLR 11/M01 A3011 RMK AO2
Conditions at: KRYV (WATERTOWN, WI, US) observed 0018 UTC 10 April 2006
Temperature: 11.0°C (52°F)
Dewpoint: -1.0°C (30°F) [RH = 43%]
Pressure (altimeter): 30.11 inches Hg (1019.7 mb)
Winds: from the S (180 degrees) at 5 MPH (4 knots; 2.1 m/s)
Visibility: 10 or more miles (16+ km)
Ceiling: at least 12,000 feet AGL
Clouds: sky clear below 12,000 feet AGL
Weather: automated observation with no human augmentation;
there may or may not be significant weather present at this time

This format breaks out the message at the top into its components in a way that is more understandable to the layperson. It was just a beautiful evening.

Got to the airport 10 minutes early, and Adam was there and ready to go. We went back to the briefing room, and had a 10 minute discussion about flying in the "pattern". The pattern is the prescribed circuit in conjunction with a given runway that helps pilots to be more aware of the traffic around them in the critical airspace around an airport. Think of a rectangle with one side overlaying the runway. In the case of a left pattern, you start with takeoff into the wind, or the "upwind". The you turn left after you've climbed out, onto the "crosswind". Once you've reached the pattern altitude, level off, reduce power to cruise, then turn left again onto the "downwind". Once you've reached the end of the field, then reduce power again, pitch down and put in a notch of flaps. When the runway is 45 degrees behind you, then turn left again, onto the "base" leg. Another notch of flaps, pitch to maintain 70 knots, and wait for the runway to get to your left front, and then turn to final. One last notch of flaps and then use power and pitch to get the plane to the threshold. Once you've reached the threshold, you're home, so you can reduce power until the plane is about 50 feet off the ground, then pull back on the yoke and bleed off the rest the speed until the plane gently touches down. That's the idea, at least.

Usually patterns are left patterns. It's the easiest way for the pilot (in the left seat) to see the airfield. At Watertown (KRYV) only runways 23 and 29 use left traffic patterns. When 5 and 11 are in use, then a right pattern is directed. The reason why it's that way at Watertown is because a left pattern for those runways would route aircraft over residential neighborhoods. Certainly it saves the residents from some noise but, more importantly, if a plane loses power over houses, bad things get even worse. The airport is at the edge of town, and right patterns for those runways fly over mostly farms fields.

So we took off from Runway 23 and did landings for the entire lesson. We did a total of 8 landings, applying power and raising the flaps after each one for an immediate takeoff. The runway is about 4400' long, so there is plenty of time to land, take a breath, savor it for a second, then power up and do it all again. We practiced several types of landings. There's a short field procedure, and a soft field procedure. Nothing difficult about them, just slight variations of the standard procedure.

It was a fun flight. After the fourth touch-and-go I felt as though I could do it all day. Then again, I was caught trying to steer on the ground with the aileron (you steer on the ground with the rudder peddles, not the yoke), so I did lose some mental sharpness near the end. Flying the plane is feeling more and more like driving a car; the controls are feeling more natural.

So that's all for now, the next lesson is not until Friday as I am on another business trip this week. Bye!

2006-04-08T17:38:00.000-07:00

KRYV 081918Z AUTO 33005KT 10SM SCT035 06/M01 A3022 RMK AO2

In other words, just a beautiful gorgeous day today. Light winds from the north, lightly scattered clouds, cool temperatures.

I spent a little time at home doing some reading on maneuvers. A nice walk to the airport; takes about 15 minutes. Heidi had the dispatch paperwork ready when I arrived, so I checked that over. Adam came by after a couple of minutes and we were on our way to the flightline. Completed the preflight checks and belted ourselves in. Since winds were from 330 (NNW), we would be using runway 5. This would mean we would be taking off and landing into a crosswind. Before takeoff checks were complete, and we taxied onto the runway and we took off. As we rolled, we added right aileron to counter the effect of the wind. Once we left the ground, we neutralized the aileron but added some left rudder to crab into the wind so we could maintain our heading. We turned to north and continued out of the pattern on the way to the training area.

There were some clouds around 3500 feet, so we needed to climb at least 1000' above them. Once we were at altitude and leveled, I did clearing turns to the left and right. Adam then had me perform steep bank procedure turns to the left and right. These are actually tricky critters. When you bank an airplane, you do not have the full vertical component of lift that you would when the wings are level. This means you're going to descend unless you either pitch up or add power. In a steep bank, your wings are at 45 degrees, so you're getting only about half the lift. The requirement is that you must complete the turn and vary in altitude no less than 100' up or down. I descended 500'. Suffice to say I need practice.

Then we slowed the plane down and dropped flaps as Adam had me do some slow speed maneuvering. So now we're flying 5 knots above stall speed and making turns. The plane gets real "mushy" when flying slow. You really have to muscle the thing to get it to do what you want it to. Then, just for fun, Adam has me stall the plane just to practice stall recovery. I have a feeling that he's going to have me stall the plane every flight. After we recovered, we did a full throttle stall.

Once we got back up to our practice altitude, Adam says, "let's look at the engine failure checklist." Right away I got a lump in my throat. Second flight and we were going to practice emergency landing procedures. I took a breath, and away we went. Pulled the throttle out, and trimmed the plane for a 65kt glide. The glide velocity, simply put, is the speed at which the plane can fly and is controllable, for an optimized descent rate. Adam had me look around for suitable landing fields, at the same time trying to keep level flight and the 65kt airspeed. We talked through the engine restart procedure (we never actually shut the engine down, that would be dangerous) and "determined" that the engine was out and we had to land. I swallowed again. He actually had me take the plane down and set flaps. The ground was getting awfully close. Then, after what seemed like two minutes, he directed me to recover, so I got that throttle in and pitched the sucker up. I wonder what an observer on the ground would think if he saw a plane 4oo' off the ground.

We climbed back up to 3000' and headed back to the airport. As we approached, we started a descent to around 1800' for entry into the traffice pattern. Runway 5 at Watertown mandates a right hand pattern, meaning we'd be making a lot of right turns. So we entered the pattern on the crosswind, then turned downwind (parallel to the runway, with the wind). Reduced throttle, speed below 100kts, then one notch of flaps. Lowering the flaps forces wind down so the plane wants to go up. So I have to pitch down to accomodate and reduce power. Then the turn to final, and lining up with the runway. We did four landings today, and each time I always turned to final too soon, meaning I had to slide a bit to the left to line up. Part of the reason was that I was turning into a quartering wind, which was pushing the plane to the right. Also, each time we came in I was a little high. Better to be high, than too low and slow. One would rather land halfway down the runway than not make it at all. It was easy to correct by reducing power and dropping the nose down. Once we cleared the threshold, I reduced power slowly and let the plane drop. About 20' above the ground, a gentle pull back on the yoke to flare, then holding and pulling back until the plane plopped gently on the ground. Then it was flaps up, carb heat off and full throttle and we were airborne again. As I said, we did four circuits like this. By the third circuit I was at sensory overload, and I started to feel confused. I almost told Adam that this ought to be the last one. But I hung in there and trusted that Adam that he would notice if I was impaired and take the plane. And it was a good thing we continued as I pulled myself together and made the fourth landing the best one of the clutch. We pulled off the runway, stopped, performed after landing checks, and taxied to the ramp.

We secured the plane and I told a huge breath. Good thing it was a cool day, or I would have been sweating buckets. Adam had quite a bit of praise for me, saying we did things today that he often waits until the fifth or sixth lesson with other students. He really likes how well it's going, and that's pleasing to me. It was a real mental challenge today. We did so much stuff that I'm amazed how I could remember to type it all down here. Of course Adam said that all students tend to be a bit overwhelmed at the start, it's just a matter of time before it's all routine. I suppose it's a smart thing to reach the point of overload just to know what it feels like, to determine just how much sensory input you can endure. That kind of knowledge may just save my life in an emergency.

Quite a day. The first solo seems a long way away, yet I intend to be ready. I have this sneaking suspicion that Adam is not going to tell me when it is. I'm just going to show up, and he's going to tell me to preflight and take off...by myself. That will be an interesting day.

(On a related note, I am scheduled for my flight physical on April 28. I can't solo until i have my medical certificate, so just maybe the solo will happen that day.)

Next lesson is tomorrow. I have a video tape to watch tonight. God, I love this.

2006-04-07T18:48:00.000-07:00

This won't be the last time you hear me complain about the weather. We don't have just any weather here, we have Wisconsin Weather. And we had Wisconsin Weather today. I'm sure you've heard the old saw, "if you don't like the weather in Wisconsin, just wait 5 minutes." That turned out to be the truth today. After raining most of the day, and with most of southern Wisconsin under IFR conditions, I headed to the airport for my 5:00 p.m. lesson fully expecting a scrub. And scrubbed it was. Adam didn't have anything to cover in ground school today, so I left the airport looking forward to tomorrow's lesson. And better weather. (Note: Anticipating the weather, I scheduled a lesson for Sunday.)

So I got back to the house, and not long after, the doorbell rang and it was Mr. Brown delivering my brand new headset! And here it is:

So, like a kid at Christmas, I opened the package, read the instructions, and generally fiddled around with my new (coff coff) toy. I swear I did not run around with my arms extended making engine noises with my lips. I am well beyond that.

And then I looked out of the window and wouldn't you know it, the skies were clear and the sun was shining. The rest of the front had blown through and all that was left was some wind.

Back at it tomorrow, see you then.

2006-04-05T21:50:00.000-07:00

First lesson! But first, some meteorology:

KRYV 060058Z AUTO 00000KT 10SM BKN090 12/M03 A2991 RMK AO2

The above line is called a METAR. It's a one line reading of the current weather conditions. More later, but all you need to know is that the weather was fabulous.

I was originally scheduled for 7:00 p.m., but since sunset was at 7:27 tonight, I called the FBO and was able to move that up to 6:30 p.m.

I arrived about 10 minutes early, and Adam was just finishing up his previous student. Rana had the plane checked out and the keys were ready, so Adam and I went to the flight line to start the pre-flight checks. Since N9002E is used primarily for training, there was a laminated checklist and we went through it in detail. We made a counter clockwise path around the plane, checking flight surfaces, moving parts (ailerons, elevator, rudder, etc.). We also checked the fuel and engine.

With the inspection complete, we buckled ourselves in, performed the engine start checks, and then we started moving. After some taxi practice, we made our way out to Runway 23. We stopped short and did our runup checks while a plane in front of us was moving onto the runway. The runup checks involve bringing the engine to speed and checking the component gauges and magnetos to make sure everything is functioning properly.

Since Watertown (KRYV) does not have a tower, we don't need a clearance, per se, to take off. But protocol says we still should announce our movements over a common frequency so that other planes in the area know what we're up to. We move onto the runway, align with the center line, then a bit of a surprise. Adam has me throttle up, and we're rolling. Then he gives me the plane and tells me to watch the air speed indicator and notice what happens when we hit 55 knots. I'm holding back on the yoke, and sure enough, when we hit 55, we lift off the ground and we're airborne. We turn to the south and climb to around 3500 feet and make our way to the manuever area. Once there, we work our way through a number of turns, do some climbing and descending, and similar things to familiarize me with the plane. We even did some stall training! Funny thing, stalls. The whole concept might seem intimidating, since it's another way of saying the plane has lost the ability to fly. But it's really not a big deal and it's very easy to recover from. Just point the nose down and apply power. Now a stall during a turn could be an adventure, but we'll learn how to deal with those later.

The sunset was a normal one I suppose, but it was the first one I've seen while flying an airplane. So it was just gorgeous. We made our way back to Watertown, entered the pattern, and brought 02E in for a landing. I actually had the plane all the way down until Adam took over and flared the plane for landing. We cleared the runway, taxied back to the ramp, shut down and performed our after checks. Back in the FBO office, I got my very first logbook entry.

We're on our way.

Next lesson is Friday. More then. Thanks for stopping by.

2006-04-03T21:40:00.000-07:00

#3. It's Saturday, April 1.

Now that I've resolved to go forward with lessons, I stop in at the Fixed-Base Operator (FBO) for Watertown Municipal Airport (KRYV), Wisconsin Aviation, Inc. Adam happened to be there, and he introduces me to Rana, the administrative assistant (who happens to live two houses down from me on my street), and we begin the process of opening an account and filling out of paperwork. Adam shows me how to log into their scheduling system, which means I can schedule my lessons without having to call the FBO. One of my worries is that, with my travel schedule, I'll be taking most of my lessons on the weekends. This concerns me two ways: one, going from Sunday to the next Saturday can cause rustiness that takes additional flying time to shake, and two, if I flew Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, that causes problems because with the lessons condensed so close, negative learning becomes a concern. I will have assignments to do between lessons, and having a dense schedule may cause me to not prepare well enough for the next lesson. And that could lead to more makeup time.

Quick tangent. I've been a soccer referee since 1994. Without getting into a long winded discussion on priorities and passions and all that, I've decided to cut back substantially on my referee committments this spring. There's more to it than that, but let's consider that box checked. Back to the story.

So managing the schedule will be key. Now the money starts to flow. I need stuff. A pilot starter kit. This one is by Jeppesen, and it is a collection of textbooks, maneuver manuals, practice tests, and instruments needed to complete training, both flight and ground.

The FBO had a pretty good deal on it, $222. I put $1000 on account, and that entitled me to a 5% discount, so the price for the kit was $172.

Next, Adam recommended I obtain my own aviation headset. A headset serves two purposes: first, you need to talk to the guy in the other seat and whoever you need to talk to over the radio, and second, noise reduction. These little single engine planes are pretty loud. Headsets are available for a wide range of prices, and typically you get what you paid for. After doing some research on features, and trying to guess just how much I'd be able to fly in the future, I settled on the AVCOMM AC900 PNR headset. I ordered from a store on eBay for $165.

Finally, my schedule prevents me from attending a traditional ground school to prepare for the FAA written exam, so I thought it prudent to buy a test prep program online. Adam recommended the package from ASA, so I ordered one for $110. This package is DVD based, so if I can wangle a DVD drive out of my tech support for my laptop, I'll be able to study at night while I'm on the road.

So that about catches everything up. My first lesson is on Wednesday, and Adam assigned me to read the first chapter of the Pilot Handbook. I read the first two chapters, just for good measure.

2006-04-02T07:56:00.000-07:00

Here's the story so far:

I owe all of this to my wife. For Christmas 2004, she gave me a gift certificate entitling me to an introductory flight at the local flight school at Watertown Municipal Airport. It was an important moment, for a several reasons. First, my mother passed away less than two months earlier, this was a significant positive emotional moment for me. Still in mourning for my mother, I now had something to look forward to. Second, this was an endorsement of sorts from my wife that she wanted me to pursue this. I had made no secret that this was a dream of mine, now she gave her approval. She still says she won't go up with me, though. I'll keep working on that.

So here we were, on a warm July day. Time to take that introductory flight. I walked to the airport (my house is just less than a mile away) and enjoyed the sights along the way. When I arrived, I met my instructor, a fellow named Adam. He gave me a few initial instructions, and we were on our way to the flightline in quick order. The plane was a Cessna 172, tail N9002E, and after some adjusting of seats and reading the pre-flight checklists, we started her up and we were taxiing to the runway. I was in the left (command) seat, but Adam had the plane for the takeoff and initial climb. Once we were at a safe maneuver altitude, Adam gave me the controls. A little background here. I have been using Microsoft Flight Simulator for more than 10 years, so I have a passing familiarity of what it takes to fly a plane. A little more background, for what it's worth. I'm actually scared of heights. But that didn't stop me from going through the Army Airborne School in 1985. As long as I know something is keeping me from hurtling to my death, I'm ok. The last time I was offered the controls of an airplane, I refused out of fear. This time, I embraced it. It was freaking cool! To finally get a sense of the feel of an airplane was a major rush. I took the plane through some simple turns over Johnson Creek, then we headed back to the airport. Adam took charge for the landing, and we were back at the apron. I swear I had a cake eating grin the whole way back from the airport.

Wow! What a thrill! I knew this was going to happen. The question was, when? Money has never been in great supply in this house; that's why I haven't already done it. So I would need to wait until the financial picture got better. And eventually, it did. My brother, the executor of my mom's modest estate, had yet to sell her house. He was unable to do so right away because the timing was all bad. But now he had a buyer. Folks here in the U.S. know how crazy the real estate market had been, and my brother and I are the only beneficiaries. Believe it or not, not only will I be able to fund my flight training, but I will also be able to finally get rid of all of my credit card debt and most of my other obligations. So now the stars are all aligned and everything is go to pursue my license. Sad, in a way, that it would take a death to make this happen, but on the other hand I know this is something my mother would have approved of. She knew this is what I wanted to do. She would have never gotten in the way of it.

So that's the prelude. Yesterday I went and spent lots of money. More about that in the next installment of Rich's Quest For Flight.

2006-04-01T15:03:00.000-08:00

Welcome to the first post in Rich's Quest For Flight. As you can probably tell, I'm Rich.

I had my first ride in an airplane on a summer day in 1967 in Warner Robins, Georgia. My father had earned his pilot's license while he served in the Air Force. During his stint in the Air Force he had discovered his calling and had made a quick progression in flight training and certification, starting with his private pilot's license, then instrument rating, multi-engine, and commercial rating. He also was certified as an instructor. He did this all in a very short period of time. He knew what he was going to do for his life after the Air Force. When he landed his first professional job as the pilot for a young soul singer from Macon named Otis Redding, he processed out of the service and began his new career. It would be a short career, ending when the Beechcraft he was flying crashed into Lake Monona in Madison, Wisconsin on a cold December day in 1967.

But that flight with my father became stamped in my memory. There I was, in the right seat, my dad at the controls. Unencumbered by restraints in any direction, we were floating high in the sky. I was barely tall enough to see out the door window, but I could see for miles. The most vivid memory was when my dad offered me the controls. I was mortified! How could I possibly fly this plane? But perhaps it was that moment that became the seed of a dream that I would now, after 39 years, finally fulfill. And, it is the single memory that remains of the father I lost a short time later.

So here we are. Learning to fly. This blog will be a journal in the traditional sense. I aim to document every action and every expense of all the events during the course of the next several months. I am doing it really for no one else but me, and the memory of my father. For those who wish to follow along, welcome aboard. It should be a fun ride.