Don't have much time today, so just a quick post of SOME of the things I need to remember/add to my flow:
More landing practice!
Just some things I need to remember:
Pre-takeoff flow:
-elevator trim
-mixture rich
-appropriate lights
-final clear
-runway clear
Lining up/takeoff roll:
-heels on the floor
-throttle forward
-airspeed alive (after pushing stick forward)
-instruments in the green
-pull back stick around 55MPH
Post-landing flow:
-mixture lean for taxi
-carb heat cold
-elevator trim
-lights
-radios set
Thursday, August 11, 2016
Wednesday, August 3, 2016
(17.7) 8/2/2016
After fueling up and preflighting, we hopped in.
"Gross"
"Whats up?"
"The dude before me was realllly sweaty"
"HAHA! Yeah, when he got out of the plane, I noticed that his back was wet, all the way down to his pants"
Part of flying club planes, I guess >:| Started Snoopy up, and made the radio calls to taxi for closed traffic. Today was the first major day of landing practice, a day I've been excited about for a long time. It's funny that going around in circles repeatedly is fun, but variations in wind conditions, other traffic in the pattern, and other variables make each approach and landing feel different. It's almost like a video game where you hold yourself to standards of perfection, and where greasing the landing feels like magic.
I got 7 in today, and even one after the sun had set. That felt nice because in a Citabria, the instructor sits in back and has little vision out of the front of the plane. The back seat person has to rely on peripheral vision, which becomes worse with darkness. So they're trusting you a lot as it gets dark. Anyway, there was a slight right crosswind, but nothing too crazy. I want to get good at landing tailwheel planes in harder conditions, consistently.
A nice bonus at KRHV is that on 31L, tower often lets you back taxi to take off again, if traffic in the pattern is light. This saves a bit of time! I landed on 31L three times and 31R four times, so I got a little bit of experience doing left and right traffic patterns, too. It was a nice lesson.
A few things to note:
1) For left traffic pattern, you need little-to-no left rudder on the climb out turns. I skidded a bit because I was adding some left rudder, out of habit.
2) During the turns, watch the nose attitude. Keep constant airspeed (in climb or descent)
3) Don't overshoot the runway on approach (due to the parallel runways at KRHV), but also don't undershoot the runway.
4) Look down the whole length of the runway on downwind, so that you maintain parallel course with the runway. Watch out for the misleading grassline on the runway at KRHV. It tapers into the runway, which can skew perception of how "parallel" you are.
5) Stay on the center line on approach!
6) Be patient in the round out/flare! Slowly ratchet the stick back to slow down, and when the wheels touch in the stalled configuration, pull the stick all the way back to plant her on the ground. Dance on the rudders to keep her going straight. My first two landings were bouncy, but the last five had little bounce. If you do have a small bounce, repeat the ratchet back and planting steps. If it's a big bounce, power out of it and go around.
Practice practice practice.
---
Also, I've been trying a new strategy for my evening lessons: Wake up at 5:50AM, get ready, and then drive down to the San Jose Caltrain Station in time to catch the 6:45AM train. I get to work at 7:45AM, then leave to catch the bullet train at 4:33PM to make it down to my car by 5:40PM. Twenty minute drive, and I'm at my 6PM lesson! It worked well today, so I'm going to try it again tomorrow.
It sure beats the 2 hour drive down from SF during traffic, but fingers crossed that I don't have to deal with any Caltrain SNAFUs anytime soon.
Wednesday, July 27, 2016
(16.4) 7/26/2016
Hell yeah. Passed Stage Check 1!
After a SNAFU this weekend, I was a little nervous. Basically, both lessons got cancelled because I had to ground both planes for separate issues. I wanted some extra practice before today, but on the plus side, I learned a lot about Citabria systems.
Why Sharkie was a little bitch: During my preflight, I noticed that the #2 cylinder intake was leaking oil at it's base, so I traced it to a loose connection at a bracket mounting the #2 intake to the cylinder. Jostled the bracket and it moved. Dammit. Jostled the intake pipe and it moved. SIGH. Sharkie's grounded. On the plus side, one of the check ride instructors came by and congratulated me on my preflight.
Why Snoopy was a little bitch: After visiting my sister and nephew who live nearby, I came back for lesson 2 of the day. While preflighting, Snoopy's beacon wasn't working. ARGH. Radio out too. Thought process: 1) I'm cursed and 2) the battery is fully discharged. We tried hand starting it and it started right up, but the ammeter didn't show charging so the initial thought was that there was an alternator issue. Snoopy's grounded too.
I ate pie and ice cream for both lunch and dinner that day. #adulting.
---
So yeah, I was a little nervous, given my luck. I woke up a little earlier and got to the club around 7:20am to check out Sharkie. Things looked good and everything was tight.
"I got this."
The chief instructor I was doing my stage check with came by as scheduled at 8, and we went through the ground portion of the stage check. Super knowledgeable and an airplane owner too, so we talked a lot about system differences between the Citabrias, his 120, and our 180. Really cool guy. Everyone I meet at this club seems to be "our people".
After I did a second, more thorough preflight than the quick look I took earlier this morning, we hopped in the plane. He had a coffee cup in his hand, and I asked if part of the test was to make sure it didn't spill in a steep turn. He laughed :)
Ground work all went well, and traffic in the pattern was light so we were off quickly. All the maneuvers went really well, accept for one steep turn to the left where I lost about 100 feet. I fixed it on the steep turn to the right though, and he said I had great altitude control. I also pitched the nose forward a little too hard in the power off stall, but he said it wasn't terrible. I got away with things on the ground reference maneuvers because the wind was so light, so I definitely want more practice in stronger wind conditions.
Over UTC, he asked me how much landing practice I had.
"I've been talked through it several times and done most of the approaches recently, but Batelle usually helps with the flare."
"Well, you'll do everything this time and I won't touch anything, but I'll talk you through things if I notice you need any corrections".
Wut. Okay.
The approach was perfect, but I came in faster than usual and not in a full stall configuration. The straight in approaches from UTC are tricky for me because I don't have the full pattern to work with. Unintentional wheel landing (it wasn't hard, but I didn't like that it wasn't intentional). Pulled the stick back and touched the tail to the ground.
"That was okay, but you were a little fast. Have time for another?"
Always.
Second one went a lot better. We worked the pattern, and came in full stall configuration for a three point landing. He said I was good at keeping her straight.
He had me post-flight things, and we went back to the club office. Logbook signoff happened, and he said I flew really nicely. Alright alright, I'll stop gushing. I'm just happy I made my instructor look good. She's really good. Texted her the good news, and we went back and forth about how things were at Oshkosh. Apparently, it's super busy this year.
That's all! To more landing practice and safe landings :)
My mini celebration:
After a SNAFU this weekend, I was a little nervous. Basically, both lessons got cancelled because I had to ground both planes for separate issues. I wanted some extra practice before today, but on the plus side, I learned a lot about Citabria systems.
Why Sharkie was a little bitch: During my preflight, I noticed that the #2 cylinder intake was leaking oil at it's base, so I traced it to a loose connection at a bracket mounting the #2 intake to the cylinder. Jostled the bracket and it moved. Dammit. Jostled the intake pipe and it moved. SIGH. Sharkie's grounded. On the plus side, one of the check ride instructors came by and congratulated me on my preflight.
Why Snoopy was a little bitch: After visiting my sister and nephew who live nearby, I came back for lesson 2 of the day. While preflighting, Snoopy's beacon wasn't working. ARGH. Radio out too. Thought process: 1) I'm cursed and 2) the battery is fully discharged. We tried hand starting it and it started right up, but the ammeter didn't show charging so the initial thought was that there was an alternator issue. Snoopy's grounded too.
I ate pie and ice cream for both lunch and dinner that day. #adulting.
---
So yeah, I was a little nervous, given my luck. I woke up a little earlier and got to the club around 7:20am to check out Sharkie. Things looked good and everything was tight.
"I got this."
The chief instructor I was doing my stage check with came by as scheduled at 8, and we went through the ground portion of the stage check. Super knowledgeable and an airplane owner too, so we talked a lot about system differences between the Citabrias, his 120, and our 180. Really cool guy. Everyone I meet at this club seems to be "our people".
After I did a second, more thorough preflight than the quick look I took earlier this morning, we hopped in the plane. He had a coffee cup in his hand, and I asked if part of the test was to make sure it didn't spill in a steep turn. He laughed :)
Ground work all went well, and traffic in the pattern was light so we were off quickly. All the maneuvers went really well, accept for one steep turn to the left where I lost about 100 feet. I fixed it on the steep turn to the right though, and he said I had great altitude control. I also pitched the nose forward a little too hard in the power off stall, but he said it wasn't terrible. I got away with things on the ground reference maneuvers because the wind was so light, so I definitely want more practice in stronger wind conditions.
Over UTC, he asked me how much landing practice I had.
"I've been talked through it several times and done most of the approaches recently, but Batelle usually helps with the flare."
"Well, you'll do everything this time and I won't touch anything, but I'll talk you through things if I notice you need any corrections".
Wut. Okay.
The approach was perfect, but I came in faster than usual and not in a full stall configuration. The straight in approaches from UTC are tricky for me because I don't have the full pattern to work with. Unintentional wheel landing (it wasn't hard, but I didn't like that it wasn't intentional). Pulled the stick back and touched the tail to the ground.
"That was okay, but you were a little fast. Have time for another?"
Always.
Second one went a lot better. We worked the pattern, and came in full stall configuration for a three point landing. He said I was good at keeping her straight.
He had me post-flight things, and we went back to the club office. Logbook signoff happened, and he said I flew really nicely. Alright alright, I'll stop gushing. I'm just happy I made my instructor look good. She's really good. Texted her the good news, and we went back and forth about how things were at Oshkosh. Apparently, it's super busy this year.
That's all! To more landing practice and safe landings :)
My mini celebration:
Friday, July 22, 2016
(15.0) 7/22/2016
Watch the fuckin nose attitude. That is all.
Stage Check got rescheduled to next week, but it's okay! I don't mind the extra practice :)
We're still moving along and building on old skills/practicing 3-point tailwheel landings in different conditions.
I'm within limits of the checkride on maneuvers, but I don't like when I unintentionally do things like gain or lose 70-100ft in elevation during a maneuver. Once I catch it, I'm good, but I'll sometimes start the maneuver in a slow climb or descent because I pull back or push on the stick ever so slightly (at least to me) when I initiate the maneuver.
Also, GARLIC. That's what it smells like at 3500' over Gilroy on a hot summer afternoon.
Stage Check got rescheduled to next week, but it's okay! I don't mind the extra practice :)
We're still moving along and building on old skills/practicing 3-point tailwheel landings in different conditions.
I'm within limits of the checkride on maneuvers, but I don't like when I unintentionally do things like gain or lose 70-100ft in elevation during a maneuver. Once I catch it, I'm good, but I'll sometimes start the maneuver in a slow climb or descent because I pull back or push on the stick ever so slightly (at least to me) when I initiate the maneuver.
Also, GARLIC. That's what it smells like at 3500' over Gilroy on a hot summer afternoon.
Sunday, July 17, 2016
(13.3) 7/17/2016
Not much to report on today.
Batelle says I'm ready for the first stage check, so we've just been practicing maneuvers/doing more ground school. Remember that "bible"? I've been going through it. It's a bit dry, but nice to see some familiar material, in terms of what I studied for the written exam.
Honestly, we've just been cleaning up the maneuvers. Power on/off stalls, slow flight and maneuvers during slow flight, steep turns, ground reference maneuvers, forward and side slips, and emergency landings. She wants me to be within her standards, which are higher than the commercial standards (e.g., be within 50ft of an elevation during maneuvers, leveling off, etc.). Fortunate to be training with a perfectionist!
A few notes from yesterday and today:
1) Throw in a little bit of power (~2350-2400RPM) during steep turns because you lose a little bit of performance during the maneuver
2) During slow flight, reducing power is much more sensitive, so be light on the power reduction (e.g., for adjusting ascent/descent)
3) Power on stalls: hold back pressure and watch the airspeed slowly come down. Keep wings level and rudder centered. Recover by pushing forward to below straight and level, slightly up to see that attitude adjustments affect airspeed properly, and then back to straight and level. Reduce power back to cruise settings.
4) Find the right field during emergency landings! Be quick, but also have good judgment. Time is critical.
Taking the stage 1 check ride this week depending on the other instructor's schedule. Wish me luck. Also happy to have "passed" the crosswind correction during approach to landing, and I had a nice landing today. Feels good.
Hey! Just noticed I hit my 10-hours-before-end-of-the-month goal. WOOT.
Batelle says I'm ready for the first stage check, so we've just been practicing maneuvers/doing more ground school. Remember that "bible"? I've been going through it. It's a bit dry, but nice to see some familiar material, in terms of what I studied for the written exam.
Honestly, we've just been cleaning up the maneuvers. Power on/off stalls, slow flight and maneuvers during slow flight, steep turns, ground reference maneuvers, forward and side slips, and emergency landings. She wants me to be within her standards, which are higher than the commercial standards (e.g., be within 50ft of an elevation during maneuvers, leveling off, etc.). Fortunate to be training with a perfectionist!
A few notes from yesterday and today:
1) Throw in a little bit of power (~2350-2400RPM) during steep turns because you lose a little bit of performance during the maneuver
2) During slow flight, reducing power is much more sensitive, so be light on the power reduction (e.g., for adjusting ascent/descent)
3) Power on stalls: hold back pressure and watch the airspeed slowly come down. Keep wings level and rudder centered. Recover by pushing forward to below straight and level, slightly up to see that attitude adjustments affect airspeed properly, and then back to straight and level. Reduce power back to cruise settings.
4) Find the right field during emergency landings! Be quick, but also have good judgment. Time is critical.
Taking the stage 1 check ride this week depending on the other instructor's schedule. Wish me luck. Also happy to have "passed" the crosswind correction during approach to landing, and I had a nice landing today. Feels good.
Hey! Just noticed I hit my 10-hours-before-end-of-the-month goal. WOOT.
(13.3) 7/17/2016
Not much to report on today.
Batelle says I'm ready for the first stage check, so we've just been practicing maneuvers/doing more ground school. Remember that "bible"? I've been going through it. It's a bit dry, but nice to see some familiar material, in terms of what I studied for the written exam.
Honestly, we've just been cleaning up the maneuvers. Power on/off stalls, slow flight and maneuvers during slow flight, steep turns, ground reference maneuvers, and emergency landings. She wants me to be within her standards, which are higher than the commercial standards (e.g., be within 50ft of an elevation during maneuvers, leveling off, etc.). Fortunate to be training with a perfectionist!
A few notes from yesterday and today:
1) Throw in a little bit of power (~2350-2400RPM) during steep turns because you lose a little bit of performance during the maneuver
2) During slow flight, reducing power is much more sensitive, so be light on the power reduction (e.g., for adjusting ascent/descent)
3) Power on stalls: hold back pressure and watch the airspeed slowly come down. Keep wings level and rudder centered. Recover by pushing forward to below straight and level, slightly up to see that attitude adjustments affect airspeed properly, and then back to straight and level. Reduce power back to cruise settings.
4) Find the right field during emergency landings! Be quick, but also have good judgment. Time is critical.
Taking the stage 1 check ride this week depending on the other instructor's schedule. Wish me luck.
Hey! Just noticed I hit my 10-hours-before-end-of-the-month goal. WOOT.
Batelle says I'm ready for the first stage check, so we've just been practicing maneuvers/doing more ground school. Remember that "bible"? I've been going through it. It's a bit dry, but nice to see some familiar material, in terms of what I studied for the written exam.
Honestly, we've just been cleaning up the maneuvers. Power on/off stalls, slow flight and maneuvers during slow flight, steep turns, ground reference maneuvers, and emergency landings. She wants me to be within her standards, which are higher than the commercial standards (e.g., be within 50ft of an elevation during maneuvers, leveling off, etc.). Fortunate to be training with a perfectionist!
A few notes from yesterday and today:
1) Throw in a little bit of power (~2350-2400RPM) during steep turns because you lose a little bit of performance during the maneuver
2) During slow flight, reducing power is much more sensitive, so be light on the power reduction (e.g., for adjusting ascent/descent)
3) Power on stalls: hold back pressure and watch the airspeed slowly come down. Keep wings level and rudder centered. Recover by pushing forward to below straight and level, slightly up to see that attitude adjustments affect airspeed properly, and then back to straight and level. Reduce power back to cruise settings.
4) Find the right field during emergency landings! Be quick, but also have good judgment. Time is critical.
Taking the stage 1 check ride this week depending on the other instructor's schedule. Wish me luck.
Hey! Just noticed I hit my 10-hours-before-end-of-the-month goal. WOOT.
Thursday, July 14, 2016
(10.7) 7/14/2016
Starting to feel in the groove a bit with the basic maneuvers.
Lesson 1:
Batelle is prepping me for that Stage 1 check ride, so we've been practicing everything we've learned so far. Got 1.8 hours in the first lesson today, the longest flight I've had thus far. Another double header today, so I'm mentally prepped to get my brain ambushed by flying info today. Definitely hitting up the gym after so that my brain can take a break and so that the learnings from the day can rattle around a bit.
In relation to my previous post, I'm going to try something new in preparation for my lessons: the liquid diet. I want to have enough food to feed my brain, but I don't want to feel stuffed during lessons. Also, I want to make sure I'm hydrated so that I don't get headaches in the air. I "ate" this for breakfast and lunch today, and it seems to be doing the job. Don't feel super full or hungry, and I'm getting enough protein and veggies. Definitely an adjustment because I like eating food so much, but it ain't so bad!
There was a mic issue in Snoopy today, so Batelle took over the radio calls after the run-up. Squawk!
We got to altitude (3500'), and practiced slow flight with airspeed and altitude adjustments (maintaining altitude with power, airspeed with attitude). Then we practiced power on and off stalls, steep turns, descent and glide, and emergency landings. The landing at Frazier Lake (1C9) was a lot of fun! It's a grass strip, so the landing wasn't as bouncy, and it was easier to keep Snoopy straight after we touched down. I can see why learning tailwheel on grass strips is heaven.
Some notes to add on to my previous notes:
1) For the stalls for check ride, start with slow flight. Watch nose attitude and keep the wings level/ball in the center. When the plane stalls, lower the nose first (below straight and level) and increase power and carb heat cold (for power off). For power on, keep low nose attitude for a second, check nose high attitude, and then resume straight and level flight.
2) For steep turns, roll to enter the bank more quickly. Check nose attitude so that you remain at the same altitude.
3) For descent and glide, maintain about 60 mph airspeed (best glide).
4) We practiced forward slips in the downwind to crosswind turn and crosswind to landing turns for the emergency landing. Slip in the turn direction. Get to pattern altitude, using slips or 360s, when you know you can make it to the runway.
5) For soft field takeoffs, you don't push the stick forward as much. About half a normal field takeoff. The plane will lift off, and then keep the stick position in the initial part of the climb. We climbed at ~70 mph.
General note to self: WATCH NOSE ATTITUDE. THE PICTURE IN EVERY PLANE WILL BE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. Kind of obvious, but I keep having to slap myself on the wrist for this one.
Check out dem neck rolls. Don't worry, I asked before I snapped the shot ;)
---
Lesson 2:
Did about 1.5 hours of ground school (FAR stuff, Sectional Stuff, and Plane System stuff, Airworthiness stuff, and performance stuff).
Then we practiced more ground maneuvers (turns around a point), emergency procedures, and a landing. The emergency landing was fun because we were cruising at 2500' and then Batelle just pulled out the power and told me to set up best glide/make it to a good field. I made it :) Well, we got to 300' above the ground before she had me recover (throw in power) and climb out from the field I chose. But she said I did a good job.
She said we should schedule the Stage 1 check next week, so I'm kinda stoked about that. But if i'm not ready yet, that's cool too.
I'm tired. 2.6 hours of flying and 1.5 hours of ground school. Keep on it!
Lesson 1:
Batelle is prepping me for that Stage 1 check ride, so we've been practicing everything we've learned so far. Got 1.8 hours in the first lesson today, the longest flight I've had thus far. Another double header today, so I'm mentally prepped to get my brain ambushed by flying info today. Definitely hitting up the gym after so that my brain can take a break and so that the learnings from the day can rattle around a bit.
In relation to my previous post, I'm going to try something new in preparation for my lessons: the liquid diet. I want to have enough food to feed my brain, but I don't want to feel stuffed during lessons. Also, I want to make sure I'm hydrated so that I don't get headaches in the air. I "ate" this for breakfast and lunch today, and it seems to be doing the job. Don't feel super full or hungry, and I'm getting enough protein and veggies. Definitely an adjustment because I like eating food so much, but it ain't so bad!
There was a mic issue in Snoopy today, so Batelle took over the radio calls after the run-up. Squawk!
We got to altitude (3500'), and practiced slow flight with airspeed and altitude adjustments (maintaining altitude with power, airspeed with attitude). Then we practiced power on and off stalls, steep turns, descent and glide, and emergency landings. The landing at Frazier Lake (1C9) was a lot of fun! It's a grass strip, so the landing wasn't as bouncy, and it was easier to keep Snoopy straight after we touched down. I can see why learning tailwheel on grass strips is heaven.
Some notes to add on to my previous notes:
1) For the stalls for check ride, start with slow flight. Watch nose attitude and keep the wings level/ball in the center. When the plane stalls, lower the nose first (below straight and level) and increase power and carb heat cold (for power off). For power on, keep low nose attitude for a second, check nose high attitude, and then resume straight and level flight.
2) For steep turns, roll to enter the bank more quickly. Check nose attitude so that you remain at the same altitude.
3) For descent and glide, maintain about 60 mph airspeed (best glide).
4) We practiced forward slips in the downwind to crosswind turn and crosswind to landing turns for the emergency landing. Slip in the turn direction. Get to pattern altitude, using slips or 360s, when you know you can make it to the runway.
5) For soft field takeoffs, you don't push the stick forward as much. About half a normal field takeoff. The plane will lift off, and then keep the stick position in the initial part of the climb. We climbed at ~70 mph.
General note to self: WATCH NOSE ATTITUDE. THE PICTURE IN EVERY PLANE WILL BE A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT. Kind of obvious, but I keep having to slap myself on the wrist for this one.
Check out dem neck rolls. Don't worry, I asked before I snapped the shot ;)
Lesson 2:
Did about 1.5 hours of ground school (FAR stuff, Sectional Stuff, and Plane System stuff, Airworthiness stuff, and performance stuff).
Then we practiced more ground maneuvers (turns around a point), emergency procedures, and a landing. The emergency landing was fun because we were cruising at 2500' and then Batelle just pulled out the power and told me to set up best glide/make it to a good field. I made it :) Well, we got to 300' above the ground before she had me recover (throw in power) and climb out from the field I chose. But she said I did a good job.
She said we should schedule the Stage 1 check next week, so I'm kinda stoked about that. But if i'm not ready yet, that's cool too.
I'm tired. 2.6 hours of flying and 1.5 hours of ground school. Keep on it!
Tuesday, July 12, 2016
(8.1) 7/11/2016
Not many skills-based updates in this one, but there were definitely important learnings from the lesson today.
Knowing your body is really important in flying, and in relation to being PIC of an airplane. With practice, I've learned to leave the stress out of the airplane. This has actually been a great form of therapy, in relation to everything going on in my family. Stuff that's going on with your body? A little harder to ignore.
This was the latest lesson I'd done (time of day-wise), and because I was rushing back from the city, I didn't get a chance to eat even a little bit before. Add to this a night of poor sleep, and it was a perfect recipe for being in a low-energy/low brain power state. I was also flying Snoopy (1806G) for the first time, so I had to familiarize myself with the instrument locations, different rudder feel, different stick feel, and different radio. All great things to teach adaptability and feeling different airplanes.
We practiced slow flight and ground reference maneuvers again. Turns around a point, S-turns across a road, and rectangular pattern. I remembered everything conceptually about turns from downwind needing to be steeper and turns into upwind needing to be shallower, but it took me a few tries to feel in the zone again. We had strong winds (15-18kts on the ground), which made me instinctively grip the stick a little too hard and made it harder to feel what the plane was doing. After two rough turns around a point, I transitioned back to a thumb-and-middle finger grip, and did a whole lot better. Phew. I still have a problem with pitching the nose up slightly during ground reference maneuvers, so I need to watch out for that.
Toward the end of the lesson I felt more in the zone. Turning back to RHV, setting up the approach, forward slipping to descent, and flaring/keeping the plane straight with the rudders all felt good. Slight hiccup on the flare - after the plane touched the runway, there was a small bounce because I let off some back pressure on the stick. Gotta remember to keep the nose high attitude so the plane stays on the ground!
Things I noticed - missing some things on the radio calls, like saying "Runway 31" instead of "31 right". Super important detail when there are two parallel runways. I left this bit of info out during taxi to takeoff, but luckily remembered when I was inbound to land. And I'm glad I did, because tower had me and a Skyhawk landing at the same time on the parallel runways at RHV.
Overall, I'm more aware of some of the mental/physical things that happen to me when I'm in a tired state. Gotta remember to give myself more time if and when I fly like this in the future, and maybe keep a small snack on me at times when I'm rushing back from the city. I told Batelle I felt off my game today, but she said I wasn't as bad as I thought and it was a good experience to have. She's got a good mix of being a hard instructor and a constructive instructor at the right times.
On a reallllly high positive note, I finally broke the cycle of not getting to fly on days where I came home from work early! I didn't report the snafu on an attempted lesson from last week, but basically, Sharkie came back from an 100-hour inspection and needed some work because of a crack in the exhaust. The test flight went a little long and made it nonsensical to fly that day because I'd only basically get to take off and land. Anyway, things are looking up.
I have two more lessons on Thursday, one on Saturday, and one on Sunday. Batelle said that I might be ready for the Stage 1 check ride after my lessons on Thursday, but I said I wasn't in a huge rush. I want to feel competent at every stage.
Thinking about being in the air, and not at this stupid desk right now :P
Knowing your body is really important in flying, and in relation to being PIC of an airplane. With practice, I've learned to leave the stress out of the airplane. This has actually been a great form of therapy, in relation to everything going on in my family. Stuff that's going on with your body? A little harder to ignore.
This was the latest lesson I'd done (time of day-wise), and because I was rushing back from the city, I didn't get a chance to eat even a little bit before. Add to this a night of poor sleep, and it was a perfect recipe for being in a low-energy/low brain power state. I was also flying Snoopy (1806G) for the first time, so I had to familiarize myself with the instrument locations, different rudder feel, different stick feel, and different radio. All great things to teach adaptability and feeling different airplanes.
We practiced slow flight and ground reference maneuvers again. Turns around a point, S-turns across a road, and rectangular pattern. I remembered everything conceptually about turns from downwind needing to be steeper and turns into upwind needing to be shallower, but it took me a few tries to feel in the zone again. We had strong winds (15-18kts on the ground), which made me instinctively grip the stick a little too hard and made it harder to feel what the plane was doing. After two rough turns around a point, I transitioned back to a thumb-and-middle finger grip, and did a whole lot better. Phew. I still have a problem with pitching the nose up slightly during ground reference maneuvers, so I need to watch out for that.
Toward the end of the lesson I felt more in the zone. Turning back to RHV, setting up the approach, forward slipping to descent, and flaring/keeping the plane straight with the rudders all felt good. Slight hiccup on the flare - after the plane touched the runway, there was a small bounce because I let off some back pressure on the stick. Gotta remember to keep the nose high attitude so the plane stays on the ground!
Things I noticed - missing some things on the radio calls, like saying "Runway 31" instead of "31 right". Super important detail when there are two parallel runways. I left this bit of info out during taxi to takeoff, but luckily remembered when I was inbound to land. And I'm glad I did, because tower had me and a Skyhawk landing at the same time on the parallel runways at RHV.
Overall, I'm more aware of some of the mental/physical things that happen to me when I'm in a tired state. Gotta remember to give myself more time if and when I fly like this in the future, and maybe keep a small snack on me at times when I'm rushing back from the city. I told Batelle I felt off my game today, but she said I wasn't as bad as I thought and it was a good experience to have. She's got a good mix of being a hard instructor and a constructive instructor at the right times.
On a reallllly high positive note, I finally broke the cycle of not getting to fly on days where I came home from work early! I didn't report the snafu on an attempted lesson from last week, but basically, Sharkie came back from an 100-hour inspection and needed some work because of a crack in the exhaust. The test flight went a little long and made it nonsensical to fly that day because I'd only basically get to take off and land. Anyway, things are looking up.
I have two more lessons on Thursday, one on Saturday, and one on Sunday. Batelle said that I might be ready for the Stage 1 check ride after my lessons on Thursday, but I said I wasn't in a huge rush. I want to feel competent at every stage.
Thinking about being in the air, and not at this stupid desk right now :P
Sunday, July 3, 2016
(6.6) 7/1/2016
Fun fact! Rod Machado got his primary at Aerodynamic with Amelia Reid herself (back when it was Amelia Reid Aviation). Makes me feel nice, knowing that the legend himself started out here too.
Today was PACKED. I had two supposed-to-be two-hour lessons, but Batelle wanted to make up for the botched lesson the other day, so we got 3 hours in across the two hours. I really wish I worked closer to this airport. Then, I could fit in lessons during the week a lot easier. Ambitious goal: get my license by my 30th birthday (May 20, 2017). I think I can do it.
Dumb mistake of the day (all things considering, not that bad): I forgot mixture full rich on starting up. As we were taxiing out, I told Batelle that I couldn’t believe I did that, and she was like, “Don’t think like that! You’ll never make that mistake again. Plus, you have to let things go as you are flying. Don’t dwell on the past during a flight - always think about what you’re going to do next. Otherwise, mistakes tend to build on mistakes.” Sound advice, and something I need to take to heart.
Here’s what we covered today: crosswind takeoffs, more slow flight practice, more power off stall practice, power on stalls, ground reference maneuvers (turns around a point, s-turns across a road, pattern work), forward slips, side slips, and one landing. I’m definitely processing everything we covered today, and I feel like my mind is going to process everything as I sleep tonight. I can’t wait for things to get to the “muscle-memory” stage, and I don’t have to think about what I’m doing as much.
More detail. This is mostly for me, so you can skip ahead if the meaty stuff that follows gets boring. If it’s in caps, it’s something I especially need to remember for next time.
----------
Cross wind takeoffs:
Keep the upwind wing from rising with aileron! Don’t let the wind pick up the wing. Dance on the pedals as always, but you’ll have to work on the opposite rudder more to keep the plane going straight. Push straight forward with the stick as before, so that you keep the upwind wing down! Don’t center the stick on the push forward. When you lift off, start leveling the wings, and crab a bit with the crosswind in the climb.
Power on stalls:
Starting from level flight or slow flight, throw in full throttle and pitch up to climb, maintaining nose high attitude in the climb. Continue to pitch up slowly and hold higher than climb attitude, while keeping right rudder in and the WINGS LEVEL to not enter a spin. When the stall is entered, lower the nose attitude, hold it, and then level the wings. Sharkie isn’t actually that rough in the power on stall, so I definitely want to feel a power on stall in a 172, for reference.
Power off stalls:
Starting from level flight or slow flight, carb heat hot, and pull back power to 1700 RPM. Pitch up to maintain altitude with airspeed around 65 MPH. Maintain nose-high attitude and airspeed for a few seconds. Then, pull back power to idle and maintain a constant descent rate of 65 MPH (as in glide to landing) for a few seconds. Then, pitch up smoothly until the stall is entered. Reduce angle of attack immediately, in almost a simultaneous motion with carb heat cold and full throttle. As airspeed increases, keep nose attitude out of the stall, but test shallow climb attitude quickly and then level flight before climbing back to altitude.
IN SETTING UP THE STALLS FOR CHECK RIDES, REMEMBER LEFT RUDDER IN DESCENT/LOW POWER AND RIGHT RUDDER IN CLIMB/HIGH POWER. THAT DAMN P-FACTOR. KEEP THE WINGS LEVEL. BREAK THE STALL BY REDUCING ANGLE OF ATTACK BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO LEVEL WINGS.
Slow flight:
Adjust climb and descent with power and adjust airspeed with pitch.
Forward Slips:
Coordinated aileron and rudder, but opposites! Steepen the descent with a larger bank angle. This is a maneuver that allows you to control descent rate while maintaining heading, which is extremely useful in planes with no flaps. Also super fun.
Side Slips:
Opposite aileron and rudder again, but adjusting rudder pressure without compensating on the stick allows you to adjust heading (I may be wrong and need a refresher on this one).
Ground reference maneuvers:
Basically, turns from a downwind heading should be steeper, and shallow out as you turn upwind. For turns relative to a reference point, keep a constant radius by keeping the point at the same position between the leading and trailing edges of the wing, at the same position along the length of the wing.
The landing!
Batelle had me fly the pattern at South County at traffic pattern altitude, and then had me fly back to KRHV and set up the approach. Rudder action to keep the nose pointed at the numbers, and aileron to keep the wings level. We did a full stall landing, pulling the power back to idle with carb heat, and pitching the nose up and holding attitude in the flare to let the plane gently come to the ground in a three-point landing. I think it was mostly luck, but Batelle said she wasn’t doing that much. Feels good. Anyway, I know I’m going to have to practice a ton of different types of landings, and they’ll be trickier in a tailwheel plane. The day definitely ended on a good note, though.
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When I was checking Sharkie back in, several instructors were in the club, chatting about camping plans for the weekend. It’s a really nice community here.
No lessons until next Thursday, so I’m kinda bummed about that. BUT I reserved the Champ for an hour, so I’m going to get some hand propping action!
Today was PACKED. I had two supposed-to-be two-hour lessons, but Batelle wanted to make up for the botched lesson the other day, so we got 3 hours in across the two hours. I really wish I worked closer to this airport. Then, I could fit in lessons during the week a lot easier. Ambitious goal: get my license by my 30th birthday (May 20, 2017). I think I can do it.
Dumb mistake of the day (all things considering, not that bad): I forgot mixture full rich on starting up. As we were taxiing out, I told Batelle that I couldn’t believe I did that, and she was like, “Don’t think like that! You’ll never make that mistake again. Plus, you have to let things go as you are flying. Don’t dwell on the past during a flight - always think about what you’re going to do next. Otherwise, mistakes tend to build on mistakes.” Sound advice, and something I need to take to heart.
Here’s what we covered today: crosswind takeoffs, more slow flight practice, more power off stall practice, power on stalls, ground reference maneuvers (turns around a point, s-turns across a road, pattern work), forward slips, side slips, and one landing. I’m definitely processing everything we covered today, and I feel like my mind is going to process everything as I sleep tonight. I can’t wait for things to get to the “muscle-memory” stage, and I don’t have to think about what I’m doing as much.
More detail. This is mostly for me, so you can skip ahead if the meaty stuff that follows gets boring. If it’s in caps, it’s something I especially need to remember for next time.
----------
Cross wind takeoffs:
Keep the upwind wing from rising with aileron! Don’t let the wind pick up the wing. Dance on the pedals as always, but you’ll have to work on the opposite rudder more to keep the plane going straight. Push straight forward with the stick as before, so that you keep the upwind wing down! Don’t center the stick on the push forward. When you lift off, start leveling the wings, and crab a bit with the crosswind in the climb.
Power on stalls:
Starting from level flight or slow flight, throw in full throttle and pitch up to climb, maintaining nose high attitude in the climb. Continue to pitch up slowly and hold higher than climb attitude, while keeping right rudder in and the WINGS LEVEL to not enter a spin. When the stall is entered, lower the nose attitude, hold it, and then level the wings. Sharkie isn’t actually that rough in the power on stall, so I definitely want to feel a power on stall in a 172, for reference.
Power off stalls:
Starting from level flight or slow flight, carb heat hot, and pull back power to 1700 RPM. Pitch up to maintain altitude with airspeed around 65 MPH. Maintain nose-high attitude and airspeed for a few seconds. Then, pull back power to idle and maintain a constant descent rate of 65 MPH (as in glide to landing) for a few seconds. Then, pitch up smoothly until the stall is entered. Reduce angle of attack immediately, in almost a simultaneous motion with carb heat cold and full throttle. As airspeed increases, keep nose attitude out of the stall, but test shallow climb attitude quickly and then level flight before climbing back to altitude.
IN SETTING UP THE STALLS FOR CHECK RIDES, REMEMBER LEFT RUDDER IN DESCENT/LOW POWER AND RIGHT RUDDER IN CLIMB/HIGH POWER. THAT DAMN P-FACTOR. KEEP THE WINGS LEVEL. BREAK THE STALL BY REDUCING ANGLE OF ATTACK BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO LEVEL WINGS.
Slow flight:
Adjust climb and descent with power and adjust airspeed with pitch.
Forward Slips:
Coordinated aileron and rudder, but opposites! Steepen the descent with a larger bank angle. This is a maneuver that allows you to control descent rate while maintaining heading, which is extremely useful in planes with no flaps. Also super fun.
Side Slips:
Opposite aileron and rudder again, but adjusting rudder pressure without compensating on the stick allows you to adjust heading (I may be wrong and need a refresher on this one).
Ground reference maneuvers:
Basically, turns from a downwind heading should be steeper, and shallow out as you turn upwind. For turns relative to a reference point, keep a constant radius by keeping the point at the same position between the leading and trailing edges of the wing, at the same position along the length of the wing.
The landing!
Batelle had me fly the pattern at South County at traffic pattern altitude, and then had me fly back to KRHV and set up the approach. Rudder action to keep the nose pointed at the numbers, and aileron to keep the wings level. We did a full stall landing, pulling the power back to idle with carb heat, and pitching the nose up and holding attitude in the flare to let the plane gently come to the ground in a three-point landing. I think it was mostly luck, but Batelle said she wasn’t doing that much. Feels good. Anyway, I know I’m going to have to practice a ton of different types of landings, and they’ll be trickier in a tailwheel plane. The day definitely ended on a good note, though.
----------
When I was checking Sharkie back in, several instructors were in the club, chatting about camping plans for the weekend. It’s a really nice community here.
No lessons until next Thursday, so I’m kinda bummed about that. BUT I reserved the Champ for an hour, so I’m going to get some hand propping action!
Monday, June 27, 2016
(3.6) 6/27/2016
God hates me when I cut out from work to fly :(((
I checked out N1806G, one of the other Citabrias in the club. According to the online FBO, Sharkie wasn't available. There's a third Citabria, but it has toe brakes so Batelle wanted me to check out Sharkie or 06G (maybe I'll call him Snoopy, because it's red like the Red Baron) for more consistency at an early stage.
I started pre-flighting Snoopy, and everything checked out except the fuel was too low for an hour and a half flight.
"Let's take 9091L instead". It was a hot day, and Batelle got word that the other person who was going to take Sharkie originally decided to cancel. Fueling up would take longer than preflighting, so it sounded like a good option.
I started my walk around, but when I got to the air filter at the lower part of the cowl I noticed that there was a crack all the way through the mount, right at the screw positions. Gave it a little nudge and sure enough the whole thing moved. Gave it a pull, and the whole unit slid out easily. SIGH.
Ran into the club to tell Batelle (I had told her earlier to stay cool inside), and she, another instructor, and the club manager came out to look. Sho nuff, the plane had to be grounded.
Part of me thinks the prop downwash would have kept the unit in place, but better safe than sorry. I definitely never want to lose credibility in relation to having good judgement as a pilot.
By this time, there was only an hour left in my lesson, so we decided to do some ground school instead. After fueling Snoopy we'd only have 30 minutes in the air. Enough for me to takeoff and for Batelle to land, but not much else. I like that she's aligned with her students in relation to maximizing value of each lesson.
We headed back inside, and Batelle pulled out the tailwheel syllabus. At this club, there are three "stage checks" for tailwheel students to get their license. Stage one is mastery of basic maneuvers, stage one is solo fight, and stage three is cross country. To pass each stage check, you fly with another instructor in the club who is certified for the stage check. It's their way of making sure you get exposure to different perspectives, and so that the final check ride isn't as stressful. Fine with me. She said I was making fast progress, but that she'd continue to push me and make sure I was ready for each mini check ride and the final check ride.
We talked about the maneuvers for the next lessons, airspace around KRHV, and books I should get.
She pulled a club copy of the FAR AIM from a nearby shelf.
"That's it? Gross."
"Don't talk about it that way! That's your bible" she said with a chuckle.
Other things I need to get: Jeppessen private pilot manual and a Citabria POH.
I mentioned that I hadn't finished the application for the student pilot certificate so we knocked that out on the IACRA website. Then I mentioned I was slightly colorblind and looking for a good AME, and some of the other pilots in the lounge chipped in on who they go to when they're scared they won't pass their medicals.
One guy: "You have diabetes? I know the guy for you".
Another guy: "look at him. You think he has diabetes???"
Mental note to self. Wear looser shirts.
I like it here. Everyone is super down to earth.
One guy: "You have diabetes? I know the guy for you".
Another guy: "look at him. You think he has diabetes???"
Mental note to self. Wear looser shirts.
I like it here. Everyone is super down to earth.
It was nearing the two hour mark, so I asked Batelle how I should pay her for her instructor time.
"Don't worry about it."
I tried to insist, but she gave me a firm "STOP". Definitely makes me appreciate her as an instructor and like I'm not getting jipped here. Apparently, she and some of the other instructors sometimes get drinks after their last students of the day, and she invited me to come along next time.
I'll be sure to get em at least one round :)
Positive things about today:
1) I got praised on my preflight (haha, *ugly cries into shirt*)
2) submitted the student pilot certificate application
3) got a good recommendation for an AME who deals with *very* slightly colorblind pilots
Plus, I've got a double header on Friday (two two-hour lessons) and Batelle said she was going to try to tack another hour onto one of them. Gotta keep pushing!
Sunday, June 26, 2016
(3.6) 6/26/2016
I got to aerodynamic aviation about 10 minutes before the lesson, and just as I was pulling up Batelle sent me a text to do the preflight because she was running late. :D
Started the walk around from the inside, making sure to get the Hobbs, check the beacon, and check the rudder cables.
Half fuel, 5 1/4 quarts of oil. Everything else looked good, except the inspection panel was missing again on the left wing. Batelle arrived by this point so we grabbed a replacement and jumped in.
She's been giving me a lot more responsibility, which feels nice. I pulled Sharkie out by myself, verified the preflight checklist, and started her up with three pumps of primer because it was colder environmental conditions. Batelle told me she wasn't going to say anything to correct me unless I was going to damage the plane, but to verify what I was doing with the checklist card. Feels good to be more in control.
Did the runup procedure while verifying everything with the checklist card. Almost forgot to check the oil temp and pressure during the runup, though, so I mentally slapped myself on the wrist for that one.
"Citabria niner zero niner one Lema, ready three one right". Got cleared for takeoff, did the takeoff roll, and climbed to 3500 toward Mission Peak.
Lots of maneuvering practice over the Calaveras area today, south of KLVK. We practiced climbs, descents, shallow turns, medium bank turns, and steep turns again, along with climbing and descending turns. I have a good picture of where the nose should be during climbs and descents, but I'm still working on getting the picture right for normal level flight. Gotta remember to throw in some left rudder during descents, and throw carb heat on first before reducing power. Then, to level off from a descent, take carb heat off and throw in power about 50 feet above intended altitude.
Slow flight was definitely a new experience! I've done a little bit of pattern work in Little Spiffy (the Loveness 172) but because there aren't any flaps on Sharkie, things feel pretty different.
To get to MCA (minimum controllable airspeed): Throw carb heat on and pull back power, while pitching the nose up. Fine adjustments to power to maintain airspeed and adjust pitch to keep angle of attack below a stall, but without descending. The sweet spot was at about 2000 RPM for me. Trim off the pressure for the nose high attitude.
We felt the edge of the stall, where roughness kicks in. Then we did shallow bank turns, which was mostly rudder pressure. Batelle told me to be easy on the stick (two finger grip) to avoid stalling and the spinning during a turn. To get out of slow flight, carb heat cold, throw in power, and reduce pitch to level flight. We went in and out of slow flight a few times, and then headed back.
I missed a few of the radio calls on landing, so Batelle jumped in and laughed at me, while telling me to not feel rushed by the tower. Fly the plane first. I'm definitely trying to keep on top of everything, though :)
Next lesson we'll be doing power on and power off stalls, and maybe some pattern work if there's time!
Got 1.4 hours in today, and I'm up to 3.6 hours now. Goal: to have 10 tailwheel hours logged by the end of July :)
Saturday, June 25, 2016
(2.2) 6/25/2016
Sharkie was good to me today!
I got to Aerodynamic a little bit early, so I started the pre-flight without Batelle. I'm getting good and efficient with my pre-flight flow, but one thing I need to be better about is starting with the interior - check the fuel gages, flip on the master and beacon to check that they're working, get the starting Hobbs meter number, testing brake pressure, and inspecting the rudder cables (connections and safety pins) to make sure everything is good. The other day a safety pin on an interior rudder cable popped out, and someone taxi-ed off the taxi-way because they lost rudder authority. Scary stories are always good to remind you to be thorough and not miss key items.
Only thing I needed to followup on after the pre-flight was a missing inspection panel on the left wing. Can't believe the previous person who took Sharkie out didn't notice it was missing when he/she returned the plane. Again, #clubplanes. Still a good learning experience, and I'm learning how important proper pre-flighting is.
We hopped in, and taxi-ed over to the run-up area. Batelle was about to make the radio calls, but I offered and she gave me the okay to call up ground and state intentions. "Citabria November niner zero niner one lema at Aerodynamic, requesting taxi for a departure to the southeast with kilo". Repeated the instructions to "taxi via zulu", and started moving. Felt good! Batelle said she was glad to pass the radio calls onto me because she gets tired of talking on the radio :) Definitely told her to push me as far as she thinks I'm capable, and that I'd ask questions if I wasn't confident about something.
We checked that the controls were free and correct, and set the trim for takeoff. Then we did the run-up, checked the RPM drops with left and right mags, and checked the RPM drop with carb heat. Everything looked good. PHEW. Checked pressure and temperature gages. Checked idle. Good and good.
"Citabria niner zero niner one lema, ready three one". Got the okay, and lights, camera, action! Batelle had me do the takeoff roll. Mixture full rich and full throttle (action), kept level pitch attitude as the tail rose (required more nose forward stick than I expected because I was nervous about pitching forward), and danced on the rudders to keep Sharkie straight. Kept relaxing forward stick pressure until Sharkie lifted off. Wheee!
We climbed to 3500 ft. toward the reservoir again, and Batelle had me do shallow bank turns, medium bank turns, and steep turns. She had me select which maneuver would be comfortable/efficient depending on the heading to which she instructed me to turn to. Shallow bank for small changes in heading, and steeper bank for larger changes in heading. Remember to keep the turns coordinated, Ivan. Coordinate rudder pressure and stick movement/back pressure, if needed!
One tip that was useful was to keep a reference object (part of plane, bug, etc). on the horizon during steep turns. You'll automatically keep the right back pressure and coordinated-ness of the turn. It definitely helped my steep turns to the right and left improved. Batelle said that the last few I did were with PTS for sure. Woohoo! We did three or four of each, and then practiced a few climbing turns.
In relation to level flight, I need to improve a little bit - I always get into a slowww climb or descent, so I need to be more precise about what "picture" I keep. It's not a big error (about a 100 feet descent or climb over a few minutes), but I'm going to beat myself up over it until I get it right.
Time to head back! Batelle had me set up the approach heading and descent. Carb heat on, throttle back, trim.
We practiced forward slips, a maneuver to descend at a faster rate without necessarily increasing airspeed. Opposite stick and rudder, but you still need to be coordinated! You can increase or decrease airspeed if you want, by adjusting forward or backward stick pressure. It's a good maneuver when you have a crosswind, or when you don't have flaps.
It feels good when you get the coordination just right. Heading and plane orientation doesn't change, but you definitely feel the descent!
I followed along for the landing again, but Batelle said she'd be having me do more of the landings in future lessons. I'm going to push myself, but there's definitely a difference between the landing flare and approach in the 172 vs. in the Citabria. No flaps and you have to be wayyy more active on the rudder pedals!
Also...Batelle gave me the go-ahead to do the pre-flights by myself (basically, everything up to pushing the plane out or re-fueling the plane). Cha-ching! Gonna save about $25 bucks per lesson now, and be able to spend 20 more minutes flying :D
I got to Aerodynamic a little bit early, so I started the pre-flight without Batelle. I'm getting good and efficient with my pre-flight flow, but one thing I need to be better about is starting with the interior - check the fuel gages, flip on the master and beacon to check that they're working, get the starting Hobbs meter number, testing brake pressure, and inspecting the rudder cables (connections and safety pins) to make sure everything is good. The other day a safety pin on an interior rudder cable popped out, and someone taxi-ed off the taxi-way because they lost rudder authority. Scary stories are always good to remind you to be thorough and not miss key items.
Only thing I needed to followup on after the pre-flight was a missing inspection panel on the left wing. Can't believe the previous person who took Sharkie out didn't notice it was missing when he/she returned the plane. Again, #clubplanes. Still a good learning experience, and I'm learning how important proper pre-flighting is.
We hopped in, and taxi-ed over to the run-up area. Batelle was about to make the radio calls, but I offered and she gave me the okay to call up ground and state intentions. "Citabria November niner zero niner one lema at Aerodynamic, requesting taxi for a departure to the southeast with kilo". Repeated the instructions to "taxi via zulu", and started moving. Felt good! Batelle said she was glad to pass the radio calls onto me because she gets tired of talking on the radio :) Definitely told her to push me as far as she thinks I'm capable, and that I'd ask questions if I wasn't confident about something.
We checked that the controls were free and correct, and set the trim for takeoff. Then we did the run-up, checked the RPM drops with left and right mags, and checked the RPM drop with carb heat. Everything looked good. PHEW. Checked pressure and temperature gages. Checked idle. Good and good.
"Citabria niner zero niner one lema, ready three one". Got the okay, and lights, camera, action! Batelle had me do the takeoff roll. Mixture full rich and full throttle (action), kept level pitch attitude as the tail rose (required more nose forward stick than I expected because I was nervous about pitching forward), and danced on the rudders to keep Sharkie straight. Kept relaxing forward stick pressure until Sharkie lifted off. Wheee!
We climbed to 3500 ft. toward the reservoir again, and Batelle had me do shallow bank turns, medium bank turns, and steep turns. She had me select which maneuver would be comfortable/efficient depending on the heading to which she instructed me to turn to. Shallow bank for small changes in heading, and steeper bank for larger changes in heading. Remember to keep the turns coordinated, Ivan. Coordinate rudder pressure and stick movement/back pressure, if needed!
One tip that was useful was to keep a reference object (part of plane, bug, etc). on the horizon during steep turns. You'll automatically keep the right back pressure and coordinated-ness of the turn. It definitely helped my steep turns to the right and left improved. Batelle said that the last few I did were with PTS for sure. Woohoo! We did three or four of each, and then practiced a few climbing turns.
In relation to level flight, I need to improve a little bit - I always get into a slowww climb or descent, so I need to be more precise about what "picture" I keep. It's not a big error (about a 100 feet descent or climb over a few minutes), but I'm going to beat myself up over it until I get it right.
Time to head back! Batelle had me set up the approach heading and descent. Carb heat on, throttle back, trim.
We practiced forward slips, a maneuver to descend at a faster rate without necessarily increasing airspeed. Opposite stick and rudder, but you still need to be coordinated! You can increase or decrease airspeed if you want, by adjusting forward or backward stick pressure. It's a good maneuver when you have a crosswind, or when you don't have flaps.
It feels good when you get the coordination just right. Heading and plane orientation doesn't change, but you definitely feel the descent!
I followed along for the landing again, but Batelle said she'd be having me do more of the landings in future lessons. I'm going to push myself, but there's definitely a difference between the landing flare and approach in the 172 vs. in the Citabria. No flaps and you have to be wayyy more active on the rudder pedals!
Also...Batelle gave me the go-ahead to do the pre-flights by myself (basically, everything up to pushing the plane out or re-fueling the plane). Cha-ching! Gonna save about $25 bucks per lesson now, and be able to spend 20 more minutes flying :D
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
(1.2) 6/22/2016
A little bit of a bummer today! There was an issue during run-up, so we had to taxi back to the tie downs (after my hard work during the pre-flight!) and I didn't get to fly today. We were still able to use the rest of the time productively and I added 0.4 hours (hah), so I don't feel as bad about it.
Here's what went down. I did the pre-flight on N9091L as before, only we only had about 8 gallons left so we needed to re-fuel. It turns out that one of the other instructors had just taken her up for five hours, and left her pretty much with minimum fuel requirements and bugs all over the front window. THANKS BRAH.
I pulled Sharkie (that's what I'm gonna call her now, given her paint job) to the fuel truck, and put 6 gallons in each wing. Done and done.
Started Sharkie up, leaned for taxi, and taxi-ed to the run-up area. I pulled the stick around "the box" (front-left corner of range, front-right corner of range, back-right corner of range, back-left corner of range) to check that the controls were free and correct, and that the elevator was trimmed for takeoff. Cool.
Next was the run-up. Mixture full rich, throttle up to 1800 RPM, and instrument check. Looks good. Left mag check, about a 100 drop in RPM. Right mag check, about 200 drop in RPM and rough. Uh oh.
At this point we were thinking it could have been fouled plugs, so we leaned out the mixture for 2200 RPM for what seemed like 10 seconds. Did the mag check again at 1800 RPM, full rich, and there was the same issue with the right mag. Did the test one more time and still no dice. SIGH. Time to taxi back home. Breaking my balls, Sharkie. Breaking my balls.
As we were taxi-ing, Batelle and I were brainstorming what could have caused it. Loose spark plug? Maybe, but I checked them all in the pre-flight. Major fouling on the plug? Likely. We've had issues with spark plugs in the 180 and the ES, and sometimes you need to ultrasonically clean them to get everything off. The person who took Sharkie up previously did go on a longer flight, so maybe he ran the mixture too rich for a long duration of the flight or something. The maintenance guy at the club was going to look into it.
So yes, a bummer. But it was a good experience overall. Sometimes you have to make calls to NOT FLY as a pilot, as a matter of safety.
Batelle was cool about it, though. It didn't make sense to check out another plane (and there wasn't even another Citabria available), so we finished ground instruction for the next two lessons so that we could spend most of the next lesson flying :) I'm going to try to fit in two hours on Saturday and two hours on Sunday.
On the plus side, she says I'm doing great on the preflights and also at tailwheel taxi-ing! Next time she's going to play some tricks on me (move some inspection panels, etc.) and see if I catch them all. Goal: convince her that she can trust my pre-flights, and soon I won't have to take up any more instructor time for them.
Here's what went down. I did the pre-flight on N9091L as before, only we only had about 8 gallons left so we needed to re-fuel. It turns out that one of the other instructors had just taken her up for five hours, and left her pretty much with minimum fuel requirements and bugs all over the front window. THANKS BRAH.
I pulled Sharkie (that's what I'm gonna call her now, given her paint job) to the fuel truck, and put 6 gallons in each wing. Done and done.
Started Sharkie up, leaned for taxi, and taxi-ed to the run-up area. I pulled the stick around "the box" (front-left corner of range, front-right corner of range, back-right corner of range, back-left corner of range) to check that the controls were free and correct, and that the elevator was trimmed for takeoff. Cool.
Next was the run-up. Mixture full rich, throttle up to 1800 RPM, and instrument check. Looks good. Left mag check, about a 100 drop in RPM. Right mag check, about 200 drop in RPM and rough. Uh oh.
At this point we were thinking it could have been fouled plugs, so we leaned out the mixture for 2200 RPM for what seemed like 10 seconds. Did the mag check again at 1800 RPM, full rich, and there was the same issue with the right mag. Did the test one more time and still no dice. SIGH. Time to taxi back home. Breaking my balls, Sharkie. Breaking my balls.
As we were taxi-ing, Batelle and I were brainstorming what could have caused it. Loose spark plug? Maybe, but I checked them all in the pre-flight. Major fouling on the plug? Likely. We've had issues with spark plugs in the 180 and the ES, and sometimes you need to ultrasonically clean them to get everything off. The person who took Sharkie up previously did go on a longer flight, so maybe he ran the mixture too rich for a long duration of the flight or something. The maintenance guy at the club was going to look into it.
So yes, a bummer. But it was a good experience overall. Sometimes you have to make calls to NOT FLY as a pilot, as a matter of safety.
Batelle was cool about it, though. It didn't make sense to check out another plane (and there wasn't even another Citabria available), so we finished ground instruction for the next two lessons so that we could spend most of the next lesson flying :) I'm going to try to fit in two hours on Saturday and two hours on Sunday.
On the plus side, she says I'm doing great on the preflights and also at tailwheel taxi-ing! Next time she's going to play some tricks on me (move some inspection panels, etc.) and see if I catch them all. Goal: convince her that she can trust my pre-flights, and soon I won't have to take up any more instructor time for them.
Tuesday, June 21, 2016
(0.8) 6/19/2016
Officially started primary instruction today and it feels good. I've been putting this off for way too long, and at some point you can't keep making excuses for yourself to not...try a little harder in life. That's what I'm telling myself, at least. It hasn't been an easy year.
After searching around, I ended up joining Aerodynamic Aviation, a club based at KRHV that instructs in tailwheel airplanes. Tailwheel instruction is surprisingly harder to find in the Bay Area than one would expect! Anyway, Aerodynamic has a few Citabrias, a Champ, and a C170. Sweet.
My instructor, Batelle, is a badass. She served in the Israeli Air Force and trained around the DC area before she came to California. After introducing ourselves to each other in person for the first time, we checked out N9091L (a Citabria painted in SJ Sharks colors!) and chatted a bit. About loving classic planes, camping in the Western United States, going to OshKosh, and loving the 49ers. Her heart's in the right place, and I'm looking forward to training with her.
The pre-flight walkaround: We checked the oil level (5 qts) and fuel level (~1/2 full in each wing, total capacity of 35 gallons), and inspected the engine. No visible issues, no nesting animals, and the alternator belt was tight. We then walked around the perimeter of the aircraft counterclockwise and checked: 1) the wheels/tires (for tight bolts, tire pressure, treads, pad thickness, and cotter pins in place); 2) gear strut tightness and wing strut tightness; 3) inspection panels in place and secure (wood and fabric FTW); 4) aileron couplings; 5) rudder couplings and cable tightness; 6) no cables rubbing on the fabric of the aircraft; and 7) elevator movement and trim tab. Check, check, and check.
The rest of the pre-flight: Old instruments and no Garmin! Kind of refreshing, actually. Just a whisky compass, a VSI, an Altimeter, an analog clock, an airspeed Indicator, a turn coordinator, a G-force indicator (the Citabria is an aerobatic airplane), a tachometer, oil temperature and pressure gages, an ammeter, and Hobbs meter. + Radios. Throttle and carb heat knobs on the left, heel brakes with the rudder pedals, and...the best part: the control stick! I know I'm going to have a lot of fun in these :D
Batelle had me start the plane. It's a fun startup procedure. You bicep curl the stick with your right arm to keep the elevator up and control the throttle with your right hand, so you can push the starter with your left hand. 3-7 pumps of primer, flip the master and mags switches, yell CLEAR PROP, and up to 7 seconds on the starter. Baby started right up. Thanks for not making me look dumb, 9091L!
I then taxi-ed out while she made the radio calls performed the run-up, and we took off. I have to say that practicing taxi-ing in a C172 and a C180 has paid off a bit. Taxi-ing in 9091L wasn't easy, but I was able to get the hang of it. There's no direct coupling between the rudder and the gears, so you rely on the rudder to steer and dance on the pedals to keep things straight. It took a bit to get used to the heel brakes, but then again, you shouldn't have to use much of the brakes while taxi-ing anyway.
"November niner zero niner one lema ready runway one three left for a departure to the south east". A bit of a mouthful. Lights (beacon and strobe), camera (transponder to ALT), action (mixture full rich and throttle), and we were off!
We flew over toward Lake Anderson, climbed to 3500 ft, practiced straight and level flight, and practiced steep left and right 360s. Then we did a few power-off stalls and recoveries. It was my first time experiencing a stall - feels a bit like cresting the first drop of a roller coaster!
After what felt like a short flight, Batelle had me set up the approach to 31R. Last minute call from the radio told us to switch to 31L (a Pitts was taking off on 31R). Readjusted the approach, and Batelle had me follow along on the landing. There was a lot of stick movement to control for a right crosswind to keep the wings level, and once we touched down, there was dancing on the rudder pedals to keep the plane going where we wanted her to.
Overall, I had a great experience during the first lesson. I now have a whopping 0.8 official hours logged, and I really like my instructor. I told her not to be afraid to yell at me because I want to become GOOD, and she said not to worry about that :)
I'm really looking forward to my next lessons.
After searching around, I ended up joining Aerodynamic Aviation, a club based at KRHV that instructs in tailwheel airplanes. Tailwheel instruction is surprisingly harder to find in the Bay Area than one would expect! Anyway, Aerodynamic has a few Citabrias, a Champ, and a C170. Sweet.
My instructor, Batelle, is a badass. She served in the Israeli Air Force and trained around the DC area before she came to California. After introducing ourselves to each other in person for the first time, we checked out N9091L (a Citabria painted in SJ Sharks colors!) and chatted a bit. About loving classic planes, camping in the Western United States, going to OshKosh, and loving the 49ers. Her heart's in the right place, and I'm looking forward to training with her.
The pre-flight walkaround: We checked the oil level (5 qts) and fuel level (~1/2 full in each wing, total capacity of 35 gallons), and inspected the engine. No visible issues, no nesting animals, and the alternator belt was tight. We then walked around the perimeter of the aircraft counterclockwise and checked: 1) the wheels/tires (for tight bolts, tire pressure, treads, pad thickness, and cotter pins in place); 2) gear strut tightness and wing strut tightness; 3) inspection panels in place and secure (wood and fabric FTW); 4) aileron couplings; 5) rudder couplings and cable tightness; 6) no cables rubbing on the fabric of the aircraft; and 7) elevator movement and trim tab. Check, check, and check.
The rest of the pre-flight: Old instruments and no Garmin! Kind of refreshing, actually. Just a whisky compass, a VSI, an Altimeter, an analog clock, an airspeed Indicator, a turn coordinator, a G-force indicator (the Citabria is an aerobatic airplane), a tachometer, oil temperature and pressure gages, an ammeter, and Hobbs meter. + Radios. Throttle and carb heat knobs on the left, heel brakes with the rudder pedals, and...the best part: the control stick! I know I'm going to have a lot of fun in these :D
Batelle had me start the plane. It's a fun startup procedure. You bicep curl the stick with your right arm to keep the elevator up and control the throttle with your right hand, so you can push the starter with your left hand. 3-7 pumps of primer, flip the master and mags switches, yell CLEAR PROP, and up to 7 seconds on the starter. Baby started right up. Thanks for not making me look dumb, 9091L!
I then taxi-ed out while she made the radio calls performed the run-up, and we took off. I have to say that practicing taxi-ing in a C172 and a C180 has paid off a bit. Taxi-ing in 9091L wasn't easy, but I was able to get the hang of it. There's no direct coupling between the rudder and the gears, so you rely on the rudder to steer and dance on the pedals to keep things straight. It took a bit to get used to the heel brakes, but then again, you shouldn't have to use much of the brakes while taxi-ing anyway.
"November niner zero niner one lema ready runway one three left for a departure to the south east". A bit of a mouthful. Lights (beacon and strobe), camera (transponder to ALT), action (mixture full rich and throttle), and we were off!
We flew over toward Lake Anderson, climbed to 3500 ft, practiced straight and level flight, and practiced steep left and right 360s. Then we did a few power-off stalls and recoveries. It was my first time experiencing a stall - feels a bit like cresting the first drop of a roller coaster!
After what felt like a short flight, Batelle had me set up the approach to 31R. Last minute call from the radio told us to switch to 31L (a Pitts was taking off on 31R). Readjusted the approach, and Batelle had me follow along on the landing. There was a lot of stick movement to control for a right crosswind to keep the wings level, and once we touched down, there was dancing on the rudder pedals to keep the plane going where we wanted her to.
Overall, I had a great experience during the first lesson. I now have a whopping 0.8 official hours logged, and I really like my instructor. I told her not to be afraid to yell at me because I want to become GOOD, and she said not to worry about that :)
I'm really looking forward to my next lessons.
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