Flying37

A Pause....

2011-06-07T12:41:00.000-07:00

The other day a casual friend asked me if I still fly. I said "not really".
That felt weird. But it's the truth.
I don't know if I have the energy to keep working at it or not.
Maybe if the financial outlook improved it would be more attractive to me, but the youngest is only a freshman in college so I don't see that improving for awhile.
I don't seem to make the time to even practice on the simulator.
I rarely, rarely check out the forums any more.
Sigh.
I guess I'm taking a break from airplanes for awhile.

Why I Almost Gave Up My IFR Rating- An How A Flight Simulator With Real ATC Saved Me

2011-03-01T19:05:00.000-08:00

I’ll try to make a long story short. I struggled to pass my IFR checkride...failed it twice before finally passing it the third time. It didn’t come easily to me, obviously. The extra tests (and related training) took me far, far over my budget and when all was said and done I had an IFR ticket and no money left to go use my “license to learn”.

It was somewhat depressing. I flew a few VFR flights over the next several months but did not fly IFR. Partly I couldn’t afford to rent a plane and an instructor, and partly I just didn’t feel like it.

Then I read about PilotEdge (www.pilotedge.net) and how they have Air Traffic Controllers in real time, set up like real life. You have to change frequencies as you travel through the system. They offer you shortcuts just the way it’s done in real life. There’s other airplanes on the frequency with you and sometimes you have to wait for a break to get in, just like in real life. It sounded like a way for me to practice and get better without spending a wad of money.

I had played around with Microsoft Flight Simulator X before and it was somewhat helpful for tracking VORs, setting up an approach, and all the planning stuff that goes into an IFR flight. The Beta testing of PilotEdge was up and running, but so far only supporting X-Plane’s flight simulator. At only $29 I figured it was worth trying out X-Plane. And it certainly was. I was able to get a Comanche set up nearly identical to my buddies airplane and then I got configured for PilotEdge.

The experiences I’ve had on PilotEdge have been far more profound than I expected. Each flight I’ve become more and more comfortable flying “in the system” and I’m a much better pilot because of it. The controllers are professional and treat you just like real life ATC.

I can practice as much as I want and I know that the next time I file IFR in real life, I’ll be far better prepared.

PilotEdge

2011-02-16T13:12:00.001-08:00

So, I discovered another really cool tool in my quest to become a better pilot. When flying on X-Plane's flight simulator I can now get live Air Traffic Controllers to talk to me just the way it would happen in real live. PilotEdge is an app that you add to your X-Plane simulator and it ramps up the realism exponentially. I file a flight plan, then pick it up from clearance delivery (or ground if it's a class D airport) and read it back. Then I fly the IFR flight plan but because there's a real controller involved sometimes things are different, like getting a vector, just like it is in real life. This combination of X-Plane and PilotEdge is really going to make a difference in my proficiency.

Simulator Flying

2011-02-16T13:10:00.001-08:00

I spent some time on Microsoft Flight Simulator X awhile back and thought it could be a good tool for training...but I recently purchased X-Plane and I'm blown away by the realism. I was able to take a Comanche 250 and reconfigure the panel to replicate my buddy Ron's airplane so that when I practice, everything is where it should be...practice makes permanent!

Montgomery Field to Big Bear

2011-02-14T15:34:00.001-08:00

Roy and I went flying again, this time a cross country trip from Montgomery Field (KMYF) to Big Bear Lake (L35). We used a flight plan and timed each leg and were somewhat amazed at how close we were in our flight planning.
http://www.bigbearcityairport.com/

WoooHooo!

2011-02-13T08:35:00.000-08:00

Ron and I flew the Comanche from El Monte to Santa Ynez the other day and then took the shuttle over to the Indian casino for lunch. Normally neither one of us is too keen on gambling but this time we pooled our considerable resources ($25) and punched the buttons on a few slot machines.

After trying out 2 or 3 slots with no luck (but no real loses either) we found a cool machine that went into a mode where it played itself...and it kept winning and winning and winning until we had parlayed our small fortune into $226.24!

As Toyota used to say "Oh, what a feeling!"

Flying Again

2011-02-13T08:20:00.000-08:00

After finally completing my Instrument Rating my flying dropped to practically zero. The move to San Diego's North County (Escondido) put me about 2 1/2 hours away from my home base airport (El Monte) and the beautiful Piper Comanche that I regularly flew with my buddy Ron.

I thought I would be renting airplanes down here but the way I drained money into the IFR rating there wasn't much left for fun flying.

I did manage to meet up with a guy I met on the Purple Board (http://www.purpleboard.net/forums/index.php) and we flew around the San Diego area and out to the Anzo Borrego Desert where we landed at a remote airport (the name escapes me). That airport was a trip because the ground rises pretty steadily to the north (I think it was north) and there's a mountain to the south and west...So....if you take off to the west and turn to the north the ground continues to rise at about the same amount that your airplane is climbing...an interesting feeling to say the least. My new flying buddy, Roy Rodgers, has done extensive mountain flying training with a CFI that's an expert in the field so I was able to trust his judgement.

Roy is an Electrical Engineer and he brings that certain thoroughness to flying that you would expect. I love it. He verbalizes everything he's doing and that, to me, goes a long way toward building trust. I never once think that Roy might do something dumb.

I'm hoping that Roy will help me get to know the intricacies of the complex airspace around San Diego.

Analyzing A Flight

2011-02-13T08:12:00.000-08:00

One of the cool things about PilotEdge is that you can look at all the parameters after the flight to see how you did. Altitude, direction, air speed, etc... Check out this link.
http://peaware.pilotedge.net/flight.cfm?id=280

My road to the instrument rating...

2010-09-09T20:07:00.000-07:00

My Road To The Instrument Rating

After getting my Private Pilot certificate in November of 2006 I decided to take a break from studying and just enjoy flying. I certainly did that. Averaging about 100 hours a year in a Piper Cherokee 140 and then a Piper Comanche 250 (more on the switch later) brought me up to about 440 hours when I passed my Instrument check ride in September of 2010.

It’s the details in between that might be of interest. After spending about $6000 getting my Private Pilot certificate I was in no hurry to spend more money on airplanes. I’m not wealthy by any stretch of the imagination and it was difficult enough to get to where I was at that point.

As luck would have it I found an airplane-owning pilot who wanted to pair up for trips to local and distant airports for fun and he insisted on paying for all the expenses. I got to fly half the time in exchange for arriving at the hangar early and getting everything ready, fueling the plane, keeping the airplane tidy after flights, helping out with new technology (a succession of GPS units, for example), pulling the airplane in and out of the hangar and other dirty or heavy work.

After a year of fun and frivolity I was ready to get started on the IFR (instrument flight rules) rating, starting with the written test. I bought a book or two and settled down for a few months of mind-numbing reading. To say that it’s a daunting task would be an understatement. The FAA has a way of wording things that leave you completely befuddled. I found other books by authors who tried to help me grasp the complexities of flying “in the system” with doses of humor, interesting graphics, memory aids and mnemonics. They helped, but I still couldn’t grasp the overall picture or the minutia of details.

After some time I decided to enroll in an IFR ground school at the local community college. This helped quite a bit. At the end of the class I received a certificate that allowed me to go take the written test. I passed with an 80, and it irked me that my score wasn’t in the 90s as all my practice tests had been.

I wasn’t ready to start spending money in the airplane yet and the college’s next semester had a class offered that was focused on simulators. While enrolled in the class I found a local CFII to work with me on the simulator so that I could log the maximum allowable simulator time in preparation for the IFR check ride.
Once the semester ended and I had accrued the maximum number of hours in the simulator it was time to start training in a real airplane. My friend’s Cherokee 140 was perfect for basic instrument training with a glide slope and a second VOR, but no DME or anything else to “complicate” things.

I found an independent CFII to train me in the 140 and we got going at a rate of about two or three flights a week. This was the perfect low-budget setup for me as the CFII was charging me only $25 an hour and I only had to pay for the fuel during training.
Then my buddy got the itch to get a bigger airplane and sold the 140. He bought a Comanche 250. This is a bigger, more complicated airplane. And it hadn’t flown in years. A lot of work needed to be done. A lot. First, it was painted. That takes weeks. Then the panel was rearranged and straightened out. That took forever. Then the interior had to be completely redone in leather. In the end, the airplane turned out to be a real beauty, but it took about six months for the metamorphosis.

I didn’t want to wait to continue training and I didn’t think doing it in a high performance/complex airplane made sense. So I went back to where I did my primary training and found an instructor and got back into the Piper Archer I knew very well. After 4 lessons the instructor moved and I was assigned a new CFII. After 2 lessons with him he switched to nights. I moved with him even though it meant getting home at midnight after training (oh, did I fail to mention that I moved 90 miles away from the airport during this time?). After three different instructors in two airplanes, and a total of about 2 ½ years of studying, I was ready for the check ride.

Or, maybe I wasn’t. It was an awful display of my talents and I did not pass. I was given a “notice of disapproval”. I’m not going to go into every last detail but here’s the Cliff Notes. An Airmet Tango for turbulence had been issued earlier in the day and it turned out to be a doozy. In the holding procedure my altitude fluctuated from 150 feet above the assigned altitude to 125 feet below. I was flown far enough off my path on the ILS approach that I had a full-scale deflection. Either one was good enough for a failure. I elected to discontinue and that meant that on my retest everything would have to be done again...save for the oral exam because I nailed that. I had been very nervous about all the things that I didn’t know, but impressed myself with the way I pulled answers out of the back of my head and never once asked to consult my notes or books. I would not need to redo the oral portion of the exam.

It’s hard to call your family and tell them that you failed the check ride, but it’s even harder to call the CFII and explain that you didn’t pass. More training was needed, obviously. We flew about five more times and it looked like I was rock solid. The Designated Pilot Examiner gave me a new date for the flying portion of the check ride (no more questions!) and I even snuck in one last lesson the morning before the test. Everything looked perfect.

Except for the Airmet Tango issued just an hour before my check ride. I put that out of my mind and actually did a very nice job of flying...save for two issues. One, I was on an ILS approach and the localizer went beyond ¾-scale deflection. Well, that’s what the examiner said anyway. I’m convinced that it did not, and that from the right seat it could LOOK like the needle went beyond ¾-scale, but from my seat it did not. I’m somewhat convinced that if that was the only issue the examiner would have bought my story. But there was a problem entering the holding pattern.

After the ILS and on the way to the hold (already approved by ATC), ATC asked if I wanted “another” ILS to an airport I hadn’t been to yet. I said, “no, we are going to hold at Paradise at 3500 feet” and a moment later ATC came back with “so you want another ILS into Chino?” One more time I said “no, we are going to hold at Paradise at 3500 feet”. We were almost to the VOR when ATC gave me a Vector to fly. Then another Vector...then another. I lost track of where I was and when he dumped me off virtually right at the VOR I turned to enter the hold in the opposite direction of where I was supposed to go. Now, I can’t blame ATC for me getting turned around and not having situational awareness, but if I had just headed straight to the VOR like usual I would have been fine.

Anyway, I got my second “notice of disapproval” and that’s not a good thing. The FAA starts to wonder what’s going on. You cannot use the same DPE and no CFII will sign you off a third time because another failure would lead to an investigation of both the pilot and instructor. That’s a lot of pressure.

I had to look at my options, and I narrowed it down to four. The first option was to quit and I considered it. All the extra lessons and extra check rides were costing me a whole lot more money than I ever expected and it made me question my reasons for doing this in the first place. Ultimately I decided that I’m not a quitter. The flight school had another instructor for me and wanted me to start with two hours of ground school and then 4-6 flights to get me to where he was confident enough to sign me off. That added up to a lot of money. Another option was to stick close to home and go train with the CFII who helped me out in the simulator. After one training flight in a Cessna 172 the CFII talked to a local DPE and he said there was no way any DPE in the area would allow me to just do the hold and the ILS and then sign me off with an instrument rating. There was no way I wanted to do the oral again. The fourth option was to go to another state and finish it up using a CFII that I had never met for one lesson and then immediately taking the check ride with a DPE who was recommended to me by a friend. One hour-long lesson, a DPE who was willing to sign me after one hold and one ILS and a half-priced charge looked pretty good. I chose door number four.
My buddy and I flew the Comanche the night before from our home ‘drome of El Monte to North Las Vegas airport, which took about an hour and a half. The next morning I was at the flight school bright and early at 7. The instructor texted me at 7:50 saying that he was sorry he was late, a student was squeezing in a few touch ‘n’ go’s before my lesson. The extra time was probably good for me as a super-cushy couch allowed me to calm down.

The lesson went great. We were in a Cessna 172 with a Garmin 430 so lots of things were different. I had prepared though. I had Googled “Garmin 430” and found some very helpful videos that clearly explained how it worked. I felt confident and the CFII only made me more comfortable. He had a can-do attitude and was full of helpful tips. We did the hold, did the ILS and I was good to go. No mistakes, practically perfect. He signed me off and the DPE showed up right on time. Back out to the same airplane and do the hold and the ILS again. Practically perfect again. No big deal, I felt like saying. The DPE signed me off and gave me my temporary airman’s certificate that identifies me as an Instrument Rated Private Pilot.

An hour later I was piloting the Comanche from KVGT to KEMT using ATC for flight following. I have nearly always used flight following when on cross country trips but this time I made sure of it because the weather back at El Monte wasn’t so hot and I wanted to be able to request the VOR-A approach if needed. Before we ever got near El Monte we could see that an instrument approach was going to be needed. The whole San Gabriel valley was under a blanket of fog. Thanks to the weather on the Garmin 696 in the Comanche we were able to get the weather at El Monte way before we could get a radio signal for the ATIS. Conditions improved during our flight from a 1700-foot ceiling to a 2000-foot ceiling.

We entered the clouds at about 4000 feet and the entire approach was in a thick blanket until we broke out as we got to approximately 2000 feet...and the airport was just in front of us and to the left a bit (just like it should be). It was an exhilarating experience. Well, that’s not true...it scared the living daylights out of me to tell you the truth. Flying for nearly six minutes in a solid cloud bank without an instructor in the right seat was a bit unnerving. I imagine that goes away after 50 or 100 approaches in “actual” IMC (Instrument Meteorological Conditions)...haha.

My plan now is to take a break for a few months and then hit the books for the Commercial rating. We’ll see how that goes.

Gee, has it been that long since I posted?

2010-09-09T20:05:00.001-07:00

February 21, huh? Well, I've been away from the blog but I wanted to provide an update. We did in fact get the Comanche back out of Napa after the bad weather. It was actually a harrowing experience as we came back a week later and found the fuel tanks full of water. It took a lot of work to get the airplane ready to fly out of the private air strip and it caused some puckering on the first take-off. But, everything worked out fine.

Tough Go/No Go Decision

2010-02-21T17:30:00.000-08:00

I flew up to Napa this past week with my buddy and his Comanche. We flew in to a private strip (Pope Valley, 05CL) that's in a vineyard. I've been there several times and it never gets less spectacular. We flew over Lake Berryessa and then a bit west to the landing strip. We flew over a lot of clouds on the way there but (just as our XM weather told us) it was clear where we needed to go.

Got picked up by Ron's brother who owns a vineyard and B&B (Rust Ridge in the Chiles Valley). We made an awesome meal of New Mexico style green chile with homemade tortillas. Lots of wine of course.

Got up the next day and had a great breakfast with the guests, fixed the ranch's powered gate, and a few other little maintenance items. All the while keeping an eye on the weather. The fog was supposed to burn off by 10 a.m. but by noon it was still not looking good.

After studying every weather site I know on the internet, we finally called the weather briefer. Icing at 6000 feet all down the valley. Winds gusting to 31 knots over the Gorman pass. Rain expected in about 3 hours. Conditions expected to be okay back at the home drome...and it looked like maybe we could get out of Pope Valley and then get up above all the nastiness. It was tempting.

But, we didn't get fuel on the way up and were planning to get fuel at Modesto on the way home. Ron was sure that we could make it back on what we had. But with IFR conditions most of the way down the valley I wasn't real comfortable with the idea. What if we got home and couldn't land and had to divert a long way away? And 31 knot winds aren't my favorite.

We really needed to get home though. I was supposed to pick up my daughter at school that day in the shiny new RV (it's a test one I'm doing a story on for a magazine) and go camping for her very first time. Ron had work to do at home.

Ron's brother and sister-in-law were leaving in an hour to go to San Francisco to visit her mother and attend some wine industry gala thing. We were either going to fly out of there or be stuck there for a couple of days. Oh, but there was one more option....the one we took. We hitched a ride to SFO and got on a Virgin flight home.

We'll go back to get the airplane this coming week.

A look at the new interior of N7720P

2010-01-14T19:06:00.000-08:00

Rock 'n' Roll Diner

2010-01-14T18:56:00.000-08:00

Flew to Oceano on the California coast the other day in the newly restored Comanche. Ron and I took my daughter Elizabeth and her friend Chantal along with us. We had breakfast at the Rock 'n' Roll diner. It was good and the ambiance was fun.

This is exactly why we wanted a bigger, more robust airplane. We took off with full tanks (90 gallons) and four adults...the Comanche climbed out at 1100 feet per minute like it was no big deal.

The Cherokee 140 that Ron used to own could only carry about a 160-pounder after the two of us got in it.

Landing Gear Checkout

2010-01-14T18:19:00.000-08:00

While Comanche N7720P was being worked on Ron and I went over for a landing gear "seminar". While the airplane was on jacks were were taught emercency procedures for when the landing gear won't go down. It's really a big help to be able to actually do it over and over until it seems like no big deal.

taking off from kemt (el monte) runway 1

2010-01-14T13:50:00.000-08:00

Landing the Comanche at Jean, Nevada's 0L7 Airport

2010-01-06T22:43:00.000-08:00

We finally got everything sorted out and took the Comanche on a cross country trip. From El Monte, California to Jean, Nevada took 1 hour and 18 minutes. That, my friends, is fast! (especially when you compare it to the Cherokee 140 we used to fly in).

Flying Again!

2009-12-19T18:01:00.000-08:00

After a grueling 5 month wait...I'm flying again! My flying buddy Ron sold his Cherokee 140 just after I completed my IFR cross country flight (that was back on July 29, 2009) and bought a Comanche 250. The Comanche needed a lot of work to get it back in flying shape as it had been sitting for 12 years.

The airplane has been repainted, had a new leather interior installed, the panel retooled, new fuel cells installed, and much more. I will be presenting N7720P as soon as I shoot some beauty shots of her.

My first flight was just the other day and it was with my CFII Steven Wilson to begin the familiarization process and get signed off to fly a Complex and High Performance airplane. That should take somewhere between 5 and 10 hours...but Ron's insurance company wants me to get 10 hours of instruction logged before they will let me fly the airplane anyway so we're going to have some fun and do some learning at the same time.

After the Complex and High Performance instruction is complete I will get back into the IFR training and finish that up as soon as possible.

2009 Miramar Air Show

2009-10-04T10:45:00.000-07:00

I attended my first-ever MCAS air show at Miramar in San Diego, California on Friday, October 2. The show ran from the 2nd to the 4th. Billed as the "World's Largest Military Air Show" but also considered one of the top 10 best airshows by those in the know, the amazing display of aviation hardware and flying skills is the kind of thing that everyone should attend at least once.

The Miramar flight line was filled with static displays ranging from current and historical military equipment to plenty of good food and refreshments...plus souvenirs galore. The U.S. Navy's legendary Blue Angels joined the Canadian Snowbirds (appearing for the first time at Miramar) as the highlight of the precision aerobatic demonstration.

Other performers, including civilians like Bill Leffin in his T-6, showed off the range and agility of their airplanes too. The static displays included the humongous C-5 Galaxy transport plane and even tiny Cessna airplanes that were used for training "back in the day".

Marine Corp Air Station Miramar strives to be a good neighbor in San Diego and participates in numerous community relations activities both on and off the installation. MCAS is open for tours through the Consolidated Public Affairs Office.

More miramar Photos

2009-10-04T10:26:00.001-07:00

more Miramar photos

2009-10-04T10:23:00.000-07:00

More Miramar Pics

2009-10-04T10:20:00.000-07:00

Cherokee 140 sold

2009-08-31T13:33:00.000-07:00

yep, the deal is done, and Ron sold the Piper Cherokee 140. got $33,000 for her (was asking $35,000). New airplane deal is in the works, more to follow.

Long Cross Country For IFR requirement before Checkride

2009-07-29T23:24:00.000-07:00

Had a great time on the long cross country IFR trip today. Went north because the CFII wanted to make sure we got out of the TEC area (for whatever that's worth, decided to stop over-thinking it).

We took off at 9:00 am bound for Santa Barbara. Went well, minus the one time when I got all frustrated trying to figure out where I was (ATC took us off the eastbound EMT departure procedure and vectored us back westbound toward V186)...just a brain fart that was multiplied by my frustration. Funny how you can have 4 out of 5 things going right and you start focusing on that one thing that's not right and pretty soon you've got 4 things screwed up.

Anyway, I recovered from that and had a nice flight. A good portion of it was over a thick cloud bank. Did the ILS to runway 7 and had actual. Broke out about 400 feet above the minimums (actual, just what the Double Eye was hoping for).

We went to Atlantic to bring the fuel back to the tabs (we're both fatties so we can't fill 'er all the way up, so took off from EMT with fuel to the tabs) and, while they were exceptionally nice and the Otis Spunkmeyer cookies were delish, they were really busy and it took about 30 minutes from the time we pulled in till we pulled back out.

Next stop was Santa Maria. Was originally going to go to San Luis Obispo but realized they only had a VOR approach for me (can't do RNAV, no DME for the Back Course) so Santa Maria graciously offered her Localizer approach to runway 12. Nice, little flight there, interesting approach. Had lunch at Pepper Garcias. I've read both good and bad about the place on the Red Board, but we enjoyed it.

Took awhile to find someone to let us back onto the airport though as no one with a key could be found. Someone in operations pulled the short stick and had to come let us in. The longest leg of the trip was SMX to EMT and it was really nice to get that much time under the hood with time to think and plan. I could get 2 or 3 steps ahead and be ready to identify intersections, nail my altitude for giant stretches, hold my headings accurately...well, I'm exaggerating about the headings...the CFII told me I was busted once when I was blissfully tooling along 15 degrees off the heading (I argued that I was on the radial, was merely finishing up my course correcting, etc., etc....he didn't buy it).

Somewhere before Van Nuys we were vectored in a big 360 to make room for an Eclipse that was bearing down on us.

The VOR-A approach into El Monte was about as dead-nuts as I've ever done it. Right on course, timer went off at exactly the right place, I held my altitude and airspeed nearly perfectly the whole way...even joking with the CFII (when he mangled a sentence and used a wrong term I set him straight and said, "Don't worry, I'll get you through this.").

Total flight time 4.7 hours. Won't be flying for a couple of weeks as I'm heading out to Hawaii for vacation, but when we get back we'll be doing our Check Ride prep...I think I'm getting close to being ready....

Detail Photos of N6794J (for those interested in buying her)

2009-07-22T09:32:00.000-07:00

More photos of N6794J

2009-07-22T09:28:00.000-07:00

Put On Your Protective Armor...

2009-07-20T11:18:00.000-07:00

***From Stalls, Spins, and Safety by Sammy Mason***

The tail surfaces are all that are identifiable. The twisted and battered wings protrude from a blackened mass of melted aluminum. The engine and the mangled propeller have been shoved into the cockpit area by the authoritative hand of gravity.

The stall and spin and the resultant loss of life were inadvertent. The pilot of this airplane and the unwary friends aboard anticipated only the pleasure of flight, not the termination of their lives.

Only trained reactions and an educated basic intelligence can protect our fragile lives within the realm of flight. Pilots must not only be trained in the skillful manipulation of the controls but also know the deceptive areas of flight where they might become unwilling victims.

The essence of good basic flight training is to provide pilots with a protective armor of knowledge about-and dependable motor reactions to potential hazards in their incipient stages.

A pilot need not be haunted by a lack of confidence and by uncertain reactions. With a properly trained pilot, flying is a reasonably safe mode of transportation. It is certainly the most pleasurable. However, as with any other form of transportation, it is only as safe as the individual at the controls.

AN UNSOLVED PROBLEM

Unfortunately, the undesirable and often unexpected maneuver that killed many pioneer aviators is still killing pilots today. Most modern airplanes are spinnable. The knowledge and skill of the pilot should always match the airplane that is being flown. Because most airplanes are spinnable, spin training should be included in the preparation and licensing of pilots.
Some feel that more lives would be lost because spin training in itself is hazardous. This is true only because of the improper training of flight instructors. If all flight instructors were properly trained, spin training could be carried out with a high degree of safety. Properly implemented, spin training would undoubtedly save many lives. Also, there is a moral aspect to be considered. It seems criminal to license a pilot who has never experienced a spin to carry passengers. Far too many pilots experience their first spin at an altitude from which they are too low to recover.

UNNECESSARY FEAR BREEDS INCOMPETENCE

The fear of spins is understandable. We all fear the unknown. However, a good instructor can guide students through this initial fear and expose them to spins early in their flight training. It is senseless to continue flying with a fear that can be overcome in such a short time.

Pilots who have not been trained in spins and the recognition of incipient conditions from which inadvertent spins emerge develop grotesque flying habits. For example, they tend to fly their approaches with excessive speed, often overshooting runways and either colliding with obstructions at the end of the runway or attempting a last minute go-around, necessitating a steep climb at low speed to clear obstructions. Many accidental spins have been the result of aborted landings that were prompted by panic and incompetence.

Some feel that all that is needed is training in the manner in which inadvertent spins develop so that pilots will learn to avoid those conditions. They argue that there is no need to expose pilots to spins if they know how to avoid them.

This approach to the problem reveals a misunderstanding of how inadvertent spins develop. Simply knowing how to avoid a spin may not prevent a pilot from entering one when distracted by other things.

SPINS EVOLVING FROM ROUTINE FLIGHT SITUATIONS

Stall/Spin accidents occur more frequently than they should, and from everyday flight situations common to normal aircraft utilization.

The answer is not more knowledge, although this is important. Avoiding accidental spins cannot be accomplished through knowledge alone, any more than thinking about placing one foot ahead of the other will improve your ability to walk. The pilot who must devote excessive thought to the manipulation of the controls and maintaining proper flight attitudes has not yet learned to fly well enough. Deciding to not get anywhere near the stall is not the answer. Flying at high angles of attack is part of normal aircraft utilization. Short-field operations, for example, require approaches at minimum speed.

While flying at minimum speed, we might be required to make a sudden pull up, steep turn, or combination of both to avoid other traffic while on final approach. Or we might have to abort a landing well down the runway and pull up steeply at low speed to avoid hitting an obstacle. We may plan and hope that we never become involved in such situations, but flights do not always go according to plans. We must be able to fly an airplane through the complete range of its capabilities, and be able to do it instinctively.

Training in the conditions leading up to a spin and being able to recognize warnings that a spin is about to occur are important and should be a part of a pilot's stall/spin education, but these aspects are only part of the answer. The conditions leading up to the spin may be so completely camouflaged by other factors that demand attention that the pilot may not become aware of them.
Even experienced pilots have become stall/spin victims after complex emergency situations trapped them into hitting the ground in uncontrolled flight.

The answer is more thorough flight training, the type of training that gives one the ability to fly within the realm of a potential stall or spin instinctively and safely.

Incipient stalls and spins are common as acrobatic pilots practice their maneuvers. However, their recoveries are so instant and automatic that the incipient stalls and spins are scarcely recognizable. All the conditions may exist for a spin, but a touch of rudder and a flick of the wrist prevent even a small bobble in an attempted maneuver.

SPINS WITHOUT WARNING

The aerodynamic buffeting that is experienced during stall practice will probably not exist during an inadvertent spin entry. During a ball-centered stall, most wings will stall at the root section first. Because the tail of the airplane is directly behind the root section of the wing, the pilot can feel this disturbance, which results when the turbulent air strikes the tail. However, when the ball is not centered and the nose of the airplane is yawed one way or another, a spanwise flow of air causes the wing to stall in a different manner and the initial stall occurs at or near the wing tip. When the stall is excited at one of the wing tips, a quick spin entry without the benefit of stall buffet warning may occur. There is nothing behind the wing tip for the disturbed air to buffet against. A stall from yawed flight usually results in at least the start of a spin.

As I was writing this portion of the book, I began to wonder whether it was possible to enter a spin without sounding the stall warning. I selected a Cessna Aerobat in which the stall warning was set to go off very close to the stall. Sure enough, after a little experimentation, I was able to enter a spin without actuating the warning. The stall warning port was located on the left wing. By spinning to the right I avoided actuating the warning.

It is evident that in the absence of buffet or audible warning or through unawareness of warnings because of distractions, the first indication of trouble may be the spin itself. How well the pilot flies the airplane at this moment may mean the difference between life and death.

The stall that results in instant-spin aerodynamics also produces instant- spin dynamics. In other words, the yaw and roll that are common to spins are present at the onset.

The more pilots are exposed to these dynamics and correct for them, the better they will be able to recognize and react to them. The full dynamics of a spin can only be experienced when the spin is fully developed.

EXERCISING MENTAL AND PHYSICAL SKILLS

Flying involves mental and physical skills that must be exercised simultaneously. The flight instructor is the coach who should encourage the exercises that develop these abilities.

Race drivers who have never experienced spinouts endanger themselves and other drivers on the track. Going into the first turn in a competitive pack of cars, they can be the catalyst that activates a massive pileup.

Drivers who have practiced recovering from fully developed spinouts on slick pans have developed the reflexes that cause them to react instantly and skillfully when they sense an incipient spinout while rounding a curve within inches of other cars.

Flying skills are best developed when we practice maneuvers that stretch our ability. Our goal should be a proficiency adequate to any situation that we might face while pilot in command. I recognize that on rare occasions pilots are faced with impossible situations which are beyond human skills. However, this isn't the reason for most accidents. Most accidents are preventable. They are usually the result of a pilot's inability to think and fly the airplane at the same time. Often, simple distractions result in serious accidents.

I recommend not only spin training, but also a course in basic aerobatics. An airplane is an all-attitude vehicle, and pilots should be able to recover from any attitude. The elimination of unnecessary fears and the confidence gained will add to the pleasure of flying.

THE HAZARDS

The first step in flying safely is to have a thorough understanding of the hazards involved. You should know from the outset that most conventional airplanes are capable of spinning under the right circumstances. You should also know that most airplanes are not approved for intentional spins. The placards that read "Intentional spins prohibited" mean one of two things: either the airplane has not been spin-tested, or its spin characteristics have been observed only in their very early stages of development.

An airplane is an expression of freedom. It permits humans to ascend heavenward before they permanently leave their earthly station behind. However, a lack of training and knowledge can expedite their permanent departure.

Flying might be compared to a bug in a bun. It's perfectly safe until it's exposed to the teeth of the unexpected. The unexpected might be expressed as the sinister shadow that is reflected by complacent familiarity. The feel of controls that always respond, the soothing sound of an engine that has never failed, and the accumulated hours of uneventful flying that magnify each moment of deceptive intimacy provide a very fickle fortress against any deviation from characteristic routine.
If we spend enough time in a rocking chair, we become incapable of reacting property to even the minor disturbances of life. Vital living demands a constant expansion of the abilities of mind and body. So it is with flying. Real flying skills are developed through exercises that constantly stretch our abilities.

Even the simplest of flying tasks can be performed better if we have been involved in more complex exercises. For example, those who have been exposed to aerobatics feel perfectly comfortable in turbulence that might unnerve the pilot who never exceeds 30° of bank.

You never know when extra flying skills will come in handy. A friend of mine, Johnny Miller, suddenly found himself with a jammed elevator control after a midair collision. As the nose of the airplane pitched upwards, he rolled the airplane into a steep bank and, by the use of top rudder, entered a severe sideslip. He was able to control the nose attitude by the use of top and bottom rudder. When he hit the ground in a dry riverbed, the low wing absorbed most of the shock, and he walked away from the wreckage. I wonder how many pilots know that you can control nose attitude by rolling into a slip and using the rudder in place of the elevators? Johnny exhibited a really slick bit of flying, but he was ready for the unexpected because he had exercised his skills beyond that which is normally expected.

Just practicing stalls and spins will not provide all of the immunization you may need against abnormal flight behavior. A course in basic aerobatics is an excellent insurance policy against unusual and unexpected attitudes.
Flying is fun, but many pilots miss out on the greatest satisfaction of flying, and that is accepting the challenge of increasing and maintaining flying skills. Those who maintain only limited skills will be constantly haunted by the knowledge that they may suddenly and unexpectedly be called upon to do more than they are capable of. This fear is an unnecessary burden for pilots to bear. It can be eliminated with a little effort.

Why not resolve to enter into a flying fitness program today?

Chiriaco Summit

2009-07-13T12:39:00.000-07:00

Not too long ago my flying buddy Ron and I flew out to Chiriaco Summit (just past Palm Springs) to visit the Gen. George S. Patton tank museum and memorial. It was cool. Lots of tanks, lots of "stuff" and some interesting movies playing.

Flying over Los Angeles

2009-07-10T06:36:00.000-07:00

Flying over the California Desert

2009-07-08T22:41:00.001-07:00

One of the rare times when I have video of me in the left seat (I'm usually videotaping when I'm in the right seat)

It has been hot...

2009-07-08T10:29:00.000-07:00

So I thought I'd post this photo of a light dusting of snow that I shot a few months back while out in the California desert.

Modified straight-in for Runway 19 at El Monte Airport

2009-06-29T06:54:00.000-07:00

People always say that El Monte Airport (KEMT) is hard to find from the air. My instructor used to say that the river (concrete) is like an arrow that points right to the runway.

6794J is For Sale

2009-06-28T13:15:00.001-07:00

Ron has decided that it's time to step up and get an airplane that can carry more weight. He has his eyes on a Piper Pathfinder and has put the Piper Cherokee 140/160 up for sale on Trade-A-Plane. We'll see what happens...stay tuned.

$35,000 210hrs SMOH, 210 hrs SPOH

Downtown L.A.

2009-06-26T21:46:00.000-07:00

Father's Day

2009-06-22T06:20:00.000-07:00

I lost my dad on January 19th this year, so Father's Day was a bit tough this year. My two daughters and my fiance went with me to my dad's grave site with a picnic lunch and a blanket (her idea, and it turned out to be a good one). I wasn't sure that I could handle hanging around there...I just wanted to pop in and see if the headstone had been placed and if everything was spelled right. But, it turned out to be a good thing to do. Time to grieve, time to talk, time to laugh...in that order. I couldn't believe how many people were at the Riverside National Cemetery, it was PACKED.

In the "newer" areas there were lots of tears, in the more established areas you could tell that healing had taken place. That gave us hope for the future.

For dinner we recreated one of my kid's favorite old meals...creamed chicken on a puff pastry...it was awesome. (Oh, and on Saturday we went to a Johnny Cash Festival, that was fun).

I really wanted to take everyone flying on Father's Day but, alas, the airplane I use is awaiting magneto repairs (repairs to be started this a.m.).

All-in-all, it was a good day.

Rough Running Engine

2009-06-18T19:16:00.000-07:00

While on an IFR training flight today (on the 3rd and final leg) we did the usual runup and the left mag was running rough. Assuming it was a fouled spark plug from our 10-minute delay we did the normal "clean up the plugs" drill with a lean mixture. No improvement. Did the lean drill again. No improvement. Did the drill even longer...no dice. The left mag was dropping 750 rpm when it was isolated.

So, we went over to Howard Aviation (we were at Bracket airport) and they were nice enough to get right on it for us. The troubleshooter thought he had found the problem with the spark plugs as they were gapped way, way too big and after regapping them the test equipment showed dramatic improvement. But, alas, after re-installation the engine was still not perfect. Much better, mind you, but not perfect. It dropped about 200 rpm.

Has to be a mag or a lead problem, the consensus was, and the mags are covered under warranty since they were brand new rebuilts when the engine was rebuilt about 120 hours ago.

Tomorrow we will continue with our trouble shooting. It was a long enough day today, that's for sure.

The REST of the story...realized Lt. Col Brady Glick wasn't done yet...

2009-06-10T15:56:00.000-07:00

9. Admit When You Don’t Know Something
There are so many new systems, weapons, regulation changes, acronyms, tactics, and techniques that it’s becoming increasing hard to stay on top of all the things you need to know to do the job. It’s staggering when you think of all the layers of knowledge you are responsible for in the Air Force. You have know your plane, then the sub-systems of the plane (navigation computer, counter measures systems, displays), the mission planning software, the electronic briefing room, the simulator, and the new scheduling software. Add to that the volumes of regulations, the demands of your non-flying duties, death by PowerPoint, and the bombardment of emails from around the base. It’s amazing to me we can do our jobs at all.

The fact is…there is tons of stuff I don’t know. Even in the flying arena, all I have to do is sit through a briefing by a motivated young weapons officer and I’m lucky if I understand half of the material. It’s no sin to not know something. Ask questions and admit when you are clueless.

The same thing applies in flight. You’ve got lots of resources to draw on when you don’t know something. There are your wingmen, your SOF, ATC, Metro, FSS, and the RCO to name a few. If you don’t know something, there may be somebody else you can talk to that does.

10. Don’t Be to Proud to Change Your Mind
There are things that I knew to be true in the past that I can no longer call true. Your perspective can and probably should change with experience. It’s easy to become myopic and parochial. Every clothing outfit you’ve ever worn and every hair style you’ve ever sported, you must have thought was a good idea at the time. All I have to do is pull out pictures from the 80’s to see that I don’t possess perfect judgment and wisdom at all times. I think the ORM constructs we use now can help to put things in perspective in real time. I’m not as passionate about the need to train at 100’ AGL or knife fight BFM in a flat scissors as I used to be. You need to constantly challenge your beliefs and compare them to current realities.

11. When You Train…Make the Most of It
The government is only going to give you so much JP8 to burn in your career. How well you decide to use it is amazingly within your purview. How you train will largely determine if you are destined to be average or will actually be good. It’s easy to get into the rut of doing the same events or exercises every time you fly. In my community, it’s tempting to “mail it in” when you are going to the same weapons delivery ranges every week. Don’t fall into this trap. Push yourself to be really good in the airplane. Be proficient in all the weapons and deliveries, formations and tactics, and fundamental skills. Challenge yourself with difficult target acquisition, go to different airspace, and get realistic training.

Don’t make your training missions so complex that you never get really good at the core competencies. It’s analogous to practicing for a sport. A football team doesn’t go out and scrimmage every day. Although scrimmaging, a full dressed rehearsal for game day is important, most of the time you need to be doing drills; like blocking, tackling, throwing, and catching. It takes a lot of repetition to be good at something. Practice difficult maneuvers and deliveries over and over until you get them right. You’ll be able to do them better and safer during a complex scenario and be better prepared for game day.

It Can Happen To You
Sounds cheesy I know, but it’s true. This is an unforgiving business. Take an active role in your own safety. Supervision is important, but when you are strapping on that jet, mommy and daddy aren’t going along with you. Look in the mirror and make sure you like what you see. Be proactive in your squadron or wing. Pull a buddy aside and tell them if they are screwing up. Learn from other people’s mistakes, don’t get complacent, and listen to that little voice in your head.

You don’t want to be the guy who could have saved a squadron mate and didn’t…and you certainly don’t want to be an example in squadron safety meetings for the next 20 years.

Lt Col Brady Glick is command pilot and combat veteran with more than 4000 hours in the A-10. He is a graduate of the Air Force Weapons School, Advance Instrument School, and Flight Safety Officer Course.

Things I've Learned, Till Now

2009-06-10T06:48:00.000-07:00

1. It’s Usually the Second or Third Bad Decision that Kills You
On flying missions, even when you’ve made a bad decision, there’s usually still a chance to rectify the situation. Sometimes you just make a bad call. Your first bad decision might pertain to weather, fuel, mission complexity, or physiological factors. Don’t keep doing it. Get yourself back on a viable course of action. Flying is constant string of decisions that affect your outcomes. There is a lot of pressure to get the mission done. Sometimes the pressure is real and sometimes it’s perceived. Regardless…it can cloud your judgment.

2. Being a Little Bit Scared is a Good Thing
I don’t care who you are…this job is dangerous. I once saw Chuck Yeager in a television interview. He made a statement that struck me as profound. I can’t remember it exactly, but it went roughly, “Every time I strap on an airplane, I say to myself, be careful Yeager, this sucker could bite you today.” If Chuck Yeager is a little bit scared, it’s probably okay for me to be. Call it what you want, maybe it’s a self preservation instinct, or those little hairs on the back of your neck, but you have to have an internal fear mechanism to make it in the long run.

3. Even within the Rules, There’s Plenty of Rope to Hang Yourself
There’s no other type of flying that comes close to what we do in the military. Think about it. What other company is going to let you take out their planes and dogfight within 500’ of each other, or fly a low level at 300’ AGL, or roll-in and drop a string of bombs with a 60 degree dive angle. You don’t have to break the rules to have fun. When you step out the door, the Air Force gives you about a hundred feet of rope to wrap around your neck if you choose to. There’s a lot of trust inherent in that. I’ve broken rules, but as I’ve gotten older, and hopefully wiser, I’m able to see how stupid and gratuitous that is. It’s an insult to yourself and the Air Force. And…if you end up killing yourself while breaking the rules, they’ll make an example of you in safety meetings for a long time. If that’s not motivation to follow the rules, I don’t what is.

4. There is a Lot You Don’t Know
The problem is…you don’t currently know how much you don’t know. Take this simple test. If you a have several thousand hours, think back to when you had 500. If you have 500 hours, think back to when you were in UPT. At each level, you were probably pretty confident and sure of your knowledge. Guess what folks…it never ends. I like to attend forums where there are aircrews from other communities. For no other reason, I’m reminded of how much is going on in military flying that I don’t know about. It’s humbling. If you fly fighters, talk to an AFSOC helicopter pilot, or a C-17 pilot who’s just back from one of the “Stans,” or even a FAIP who puts his life on the line with some young punk who’s trying to kill him everyday. You’ll find out real quick that nobody has “cornered the market” on risk and danger.

5. It’s Best to Keep Your Plan Simple
Don’t make things harder than they need to be. This business is hard enough without incorporating the “double-rat’s-ass” plan for no reason. In my anecdotal experience, a tactical plan’s chance of success is inversely proportional to its complexity. Concentrate on basics and be really, really good at them. If you are a fighter pilot, those things are probably de-confliction, target acquisition, weapons delivery, and mutual support. Those basics apply to just about every type of tactical mission, whether it’s air-to-air or air-to-mud. Make those the tenets of your objectives for every training or combat flight. If you are good at the basics, you’ll be able to adapt to complex situations.

6. You Need to Visualize Yourself in Emergency Situations
We can all sight examples of pilots who have “screwed up” in emergency situations. It’s easy to point a finger. How does a seasoned veteran forget to jettison his stores after being hit by a missile, or forget to put his speed brakes in with a failed engine and stall the plane, or make a landing 100 knots too fast and go off the end of the runway? Guess what…emergencies are stressful. There’s time dilation and the possibility of having the proverbial “seat cushion” where the sun don’t shine. Go through your boldface frequently. Don’t just say the words; translate the words into the physical actions you’d actually make in the plane. Move your hands to the switches as you say the words. If you reinforce the words with the actions it will help prepare you to act in stressful situations.

7. Good Communication is Imperative
It doesn’t matter whether you are mission briefing, talking to ATC, or calling out a threat reaction…you have to be able to communicate well. You may be the smartest guy in the room, but if nobody else can figure out what the hell you are talking about, you can’t be totally effective in this business. Our job is very technical. It’s important to use the proper terminology and protocol. As an instructor if my wingman has a problem with his HUD, armament control panel, or navigation system, I can’t help him unless he can successfully communicate his problem to me and I can successfully communicate a solution.

Communication not only has to be correct, it has to be timely. CRM is here and it’s important. We need to take care of each other in flight and on the ground. In one of my prior squadrons, an A-10 flight lead flew into the ground while holding at low altitude. He hit the ground at an extremely low angle of impact. He was highly experienced, had flown three different kinds of fighters, and was also a major airline pilot. He essentially mis-prioritized his attention in the cockpit while attack planning and gently descended right into the ground. He had two wingmen with him in tactical formation. Neither one said a word. One of them, a very young pilot, actually admitted to watching lead descend the whole time—all the way to impact. Afterward, he said it looked wrong, but he didn’t say anything, because he figured the guy knew what he was doing. Now he has to live with that.

8. Don’t Get Too Married to Your Plan
Murphy is out there on every mission. If you are like me, it seems like the harder you work on your plan and briefing, the more chance that it will change. Plan properly, but don’t become emotionally invested in your plan. It can lead you to make bad decisions. For a particular mission, you may have created the greatest low altitude attack geometry ever know to man, but if the weather doesn’t cooperate, you may need to shelve it and go to plan B. It’s tempting to push weather or fuel in order to meet your objectives. One of the things that make our job so gratifying is that you can never totally predict what is going to happen. Flying is more like a chess game than filling out a tax form. Stay flexible, keep thinking, and don’t get too married to your plan.

Turn Coordinator Failed...or did it?

2009-06-08T22:24:00.000-07:00

So, while doing partial panel timed turns the other day with my CFII we found that the turn coordinator is way off. 2 minute turns, Started at a heading of 180 and ended 2 minutes later at 270. Did it 3 times. Tried making the turn a bit steeper, not enough to matter.

What now? Can that be "adjusted" or must it be rebuilt? I asked around and posted on my two favorite pilot boards, the Purple Board For Pilots, and the AOPA’s red board. Most people encouraged me to take the turn coordinator in to a shop and have it checked. The main fear was that it was an instrument that was on the verge of failing, and you don’t want that while in the clouds.

Ron, the airplane owner, remembered that the TC had been rebuilt by Skywest Instruments at Cable airport in Upland, California so we took it there to have it looked at.

It was tested on the cool equipment they have there...and it's just about perfect....argh....

Must be pilot error, we surmised...although I found that hard to accept. We reinstalled the TC and I headed back out with Steven the “Double Eye” for some testing in VFR conditions.

We did the 2-minute turns again and managed to get it near perfect by holding the little airplane wings on the bottom of the hash mark...that's within tolerances according to Skywest...so we're going with that...on to the clouds tomorrow....

FlightPrep ChartCase

2009-06-07T20:16:00.000-07:00

My flying buddy Ron bought the FlightPrep ChartCase Electronic Fight Bag with GPS and XM weather to use in his Cherokee 140 but the learning curve proved to be too much.

Ron is used to the Lowrance Airmap 1000 GPS and that’s a pretty simple to use GPS. The Chartcase is PC-based and runs on a tablet computer. After turning it on, you have to start the XM. Then you have to open up the ChartCase software. Then you have to turn on the GPS and make sure the computer is reading it. Then you have to go back to the XM weather and tell it what weather information you want downloaded. Then you can choose a flight path (like El Monte to Fullerton, for example). Then you go into the InFlight mode. Then you choose what charts you want to use (Sectional, Terminal, Low Enroute were what he had paid for and, thus, were available for selection). If you want weather info you click a couple more buttons to check that.

I took the unit with me for 3 days to try and get it all figured out and to be able to make it seem simple for him, but the bottom line is that it’s not simple. I can’t say that it’s extremely complicated, but there’s certainly a lot more to do to get ready than when using the Lowrance.

In the end...Ron’s head was spinning. Too much stuff to do in order to get it ready to go flying. He’s going to return it on Monday.

Might be ordering a 696, but I’ve encouraged him to find someone on the field who has one and see how it works before buying one.

(The photo was taken when I was using the GPS in my car to get used to it.)

2009-05-29T18:20:00.000-07:00

Jim Fackler came out to hangar Tango-4 at El Monte airport to perform a dynamic prop balance on the Cherokee 140. Most props are balanced off of the airplane and that's just fine and dandy. But if you perform a dynamic balance with the prop on the airplane and spinning, you can balance it to include all the rotating parts.

Jim hooked his sensors up to N6794J and then attached his Vibrex 2000. He had Ron run the engine up (I think it was 1000 rpm, then 1500 rpm, then 2000 rpm) and then analyzed the results.

He added a small weight to the outside of the spinner (temporarily) and then ran the engine again. The computer told him what needed to be done, and then he added some more weight in another area. When he was done, the balance was within 0.02!

Jim then took the spinner off the prop to mount the weights on the inside...only to discover that the prop's bulkhead (backing plate, some call it...or dam, others call it) was cracked! Rats! Now the airplane is grounded until we can get another one. Several attempts ended with the part being shipped from the east coast, arrival in 3 days (since we paid the extra 50 bucks).

Jim Fackler Dynamics, 626/358-7568, jfdynamics@verizon.net

DYNAMIC PROP BALANCING

2009-05-29T18:09:00.000-07:00

Jim Fackler Dynamics, More photos

2009-05-29T18:05:00.000-07:00

More photos

Pilot Group at The Art Of Manliness

2009-05-26T20:54:00.000-07:00

The Art Of Manliness
www.artofmanliness.com

I’ve been paying attention to the web site www.artofmanliness.com for awhile now and they always have interesting articles (How To Dress For An Interview, What A Best Man Should Do, that sort of thing). Recently they added groups to their site so that guys (and girls) can share info/photos/videos with people of like interests.

I started a group called Pilots. I think you should go to The Art Of Manliness and join the Pilots group. Right Now. Do it.

1-Year Anniversay of Flying37 Blog!

2009-05-26T14:03:00.000-07:00

Today marks one year since I started this blog and I'm very happy about that. I love having a place to talk about my aviation experiences and share photos and videos with others who love flying. I posted 109 times in the past year. I'm going to keep on going and add more posts. I'm currently deep into the process of learning how to fly on instruments so I can get my IFR ticket and fly through the clouds.

Today was a perfect example of why I need the IFR rating. It was cloudy down to about 1500 feet, making it practically impossible to get out of the airport and get anywhere without encountering clouds. But, the tops of the clouds were at 3500 feet. Which meant, with an IFR rating, I could have just taken off, popped through the 2000-foot layer of clouds, and then gone anywhere I wanted to. I'm hoping to have it all wrapped up by my birthday on June 29. We'll see....stay tuned!

Renting A Plane

2009-05-21T12:11:00.000-07:00

I've been training for my IFR certificate in Ron's Cherokee 140 but, unfortunately, the airplane isn't capable of lugging me, the flight instructor, and Ron all at the same time (none of us are under 200 pounds...not by a long shot).

So, in order to give Ron a taste of what the IFR learning environment is all about, I rented N38700 from Universal Air Academy at El Monte Airport. This Cherokee 180 can carry all three of us with room to spare. We headed over to the Chino ILS 26 (with the course reversal) and then back to El Monte for the VOR-A approach.

It was interesting to fly IFR in a different airplane (gauges are located in different places) and it was a lot of fun. Now, back to N6794J for the serious training.

Landing at Santa Ynez, California

2009-05-18T21:56:00.000-07:00

Flew with Ron to Santa Ynez. We landed straight-in on runway 26. You won't find many more beautiful places. Both of my kids (independently of each other) said, while they were watching this video, "that looks like it was in the 1900s."

2009-05-17T12:01:00.000-07:00

Taking off on runway 12 at Whiteman Airport (KWHP)in Pacoima, California, heading toward Burbank.

View Limiting Device

2009-05-17T00:08:00.000-07:00

This is the hood I wear when learning how to fly the airplane with reference to instruments only. I've had about 5 flying lessons with my instructor so far.

Simulator Class Final Exam

2009-05-12T06:23:00.000-07:00

The final exam for my IFR simulator class was held last night under the watchful eye of the instructor (and department chair) Jerry Houser at Palomar College. The test was to take off from Burbank airport, navigate to the Van Nuys VOR, fly out on a radial to the Canoga intersection, perform the course reversal, land at Burbank airport...well, not exactly land, as you were then to perform the missed approach proceedure. When it was all done Jerry said, "That was flawless."

OUCH!

2009-05-11T13:06:00.000-07:00

When N6794J's owner Ron went for a pleasure flight with a buddy, he let the buddy fly left seat on the way home. Ron, in the right seat, didn't put his seatbelt on. The buddy didn't notice (hey, isn't that one of the jobs of the PIC?) and they took off with the buckle outside the door. About 1/3 of the way home then heard a noise and wondered what it was...figured it out and decided to continue on home. Look at the damage the buckle caused on the side of the airplane!

Instrument Rating Checkride Reviewer

2009-05-10T19:46:00.000-07:00

I was searching on the internet for a syllabus for the Instrument Rating and I came across a good one written by Darren Smith. That led me to check out his web site and I saw that he had a book called Instrument Rating Checkride Reviewer. Darren's web site is very complete and I was convinced to buy the book. I was not disappointed. His book is exactly what I need to track my progress while working toward the instrument rating. You can check out his stuff at http://www.geocities.com/cfidarren/

100th Post!

2009-05-06T06:31:00.000-07:00

With just 20 days to go until my 1-year anniversary of starting this blog, this post represents the 100th post I've made. I've enjoyed getting my thoughts and photos out into the world. Most of the posts have been aviation related, but a few were strictly about me, my family, or my world (gotta love the "Happy Ho" song from Christmas). I expect the same ratio to continue into year number two.

New P-38

2009-05-05T21:30:00.000-07:00

Lightning Aviation at El Monte airport has been working on their P-38 for quite some time. It's a slightly scaled down version of the original. They will make it into a kit and then assist the owner in building his own.

IFR Training In The Airplane

2009-05-04T21:40:00.000-07:00

Now that I have almost 15 hours in the simulator with a CFII I am transitioning into flyhing IFR in a real airplane. Ron let me use the Cherokee 140 to go "get some learnin'" with CFII Steven Wilson. Here we are in the mighty N6794J about to go out for our first lesson. We kept it simple, just tracked VOR radials, flew assigned headings, maintained altitude, constant speed climbs, constant rate decents, and more...ok, so not SO simple...but really just the basics of IFR flight.

In The Simulator

2009-05-04T06:45:00.000-07:00

I've been training in the ATC 610 simulator at Palomar College in San Marcos for a few months now. It's a fully FAA authorized simulator so when I have a CFII with me I can log the time. I can log up to 20 hours in the simulator and I am already at 14. My CFII (Certified Flight Instructor, Instrument) is Diane Hager and she has been great. She lets me do the flying and she lets me make the mistakes...THEN she adds a comment or two to help me understand why I got into trouble. Although I must say I've only been in trouble once or twice. Mostly it has been about fine tuning and gaining a higher level of understanding.

Most people say that the simulator is harder than an actual airplane and that's fine with me. My thinking was to tackle the hardest thing first. Theorizing that if I could master the simulator first, when I got into the airplane it would be far easier and I wouldn't be wasting any valuable air time. The reason people say the simulator is harder is because you don't get any sensations when flying it, no "seat of the pants" feel. I think that's a bit odd to worry about since one of the biggest things about flying on instruments (especially when you are in the clouds) is that you've got to train yourself to ignore the sensations and trust the instruments. Many times in an actual airplane, in the clouds, you will get false sensations and can really screw the pooch if you don't lock on to the instruments and interpret what they are telling you.

So, I've been able to fly the simulator without having to fight any wrong sensations and I've learned to fly solely by what the gauges are telling me. Next up: Getting into a real airplane and putting on a "view limiting device" while flying with a CFII.

Simulator Class

2009-04-30T13:44:00.001-07:00

I finished up my IFR ground school class at Palomar College in San Marcos, California and took the written test (passed with an 80). Now I'm enrolled in their simulator class. We get the wisdom of Jerry Houser (the stories he tells!) and then we also get unlimited use of the 3 simulators on campus(ATC 610 trainers)

This photo is of Jerry explaining the details of an approach. Jerry doesn't simply explain what's on the page, however, he talks about what to look for- and what to look out for.

Oceano

2009-04-26T21:08:00.000-07:00

Leaving Oceano you take off over the Pacific Ocean, then turn south along the coast. You can see Pismo Beach in this video.

IFR Training

2009-04-21T06:21:00.001-07:00

I've been studying for my IFR rating for more than a year now, all on my own. It's not easy to read books and totally understand the concepts. So, I enrolled in an IFR ground school class at Palomar College in San Marcos, California to help move the process along. It was a great experience. I boosted my knowledge greatly, plus I had an expert to ask questions of when I was stuck on something. When the class ended I took the FAA written knowledge test and passed with an 80% score. I wanted to be in the 90s, but...I decided to not worry about that anymore. Next up was the simulator class that the school offers. More on that later.

More photos for the fuel line replacement post...

2009-04-20T15:05:00.000-07:00

More photos for the fuel line replacement post....

Replacing Fuel and Brake Lines on the Cherokee 140

2009-04-20T14:51:00.000-07:00

It has been awhile since I last posted on the Flying37 blog. Some time off after my dad's death was apparently needed. I have been flying a lot and hiking a lot and I'm going to get back into the swing of blogging starting today. First, my flying buddy Ron decided to replace the rubber fuel lines on the Cherokee 140 just because. He also figured that while the tanks were out it would be a good time to replace the brake lines. Nothing indicated that either of these lines needed to be replaced but since they were original factory items from 1968 it certainly wouldn't be a bad idea. There's a lot of screws to be undone to get the tanks out but with a powered screwdriver it's not such a bad job.

After getting the tanks off it became evident that the fuel sensors had been leaking at the seal for quite some time. Not a big leak, but who wants Av Gas in their wing? The fuel lines were pretty shabby. The rubber was rotten (the steel inside was fine) and they looked worse for the wear. The brake lines looked fine, but it felt right to replace them. The local A&P made up new fuel and brake lines and the fuel sensors were sent away to be rebuilt.

With everything else checking out okay, the airplane was put back together when the sensors returned just a few days later. That first test flight after maintenance is always a bit of a nervous time, but N6794J performed flawlessly.

R.I.P Dad

2009-02-02T21:21:00.000-08:00

My dad was a lot of things to a lot of people. First, he was a son. Born in Black Earth, Wisconsin in 1918. He was a brother, with 3 brothers and 3 sisters. He was a husband, married to my mom for 68 years. He was a father with three children. He was the grandfather of 5 and the great-grandfather of 2.

He was a World War II combat veteran, fighting in 5 major battles including D-Day when he drove an ammunition truck up onto the shore of Omaha beach. He was a gifted craftsman working for the Gisholt Machine Tool Company for many years. He was an adventurer, moving his family to California and starting his own business.

And he was a friend. If you were one of his friends, then you held a special place in his heart. You know what I’m talking about. You needed someone to come pull your car out of a mud bog at 2 o’clock in the morning? He’d be there. Oh wait, that was me. But I’m sure you all have your own memories of him and how he treated friendship as a special bond.

My dad was an active hobbyist. Maybe active is too passive of a word. Maybe “obsessive” would be more appropriate. He just didn’t do things in a small way. When he got into model railroading back in Wisconsin he hand-built his own trains, even casting many of the parts himself. The track’s layout eventually took up most of the basement. His obsession with airplanes led to some incredible giant scale models and even a national championship in that hobby. When he got into slot car racing he was factory sponsored and raced multiple nights a week, winning championships and even a motorcycle as a prize.

Ah, motorcycles. That became the thing for a lot of years. But he wasn’t content with just riding around in some dirt lots. We got a motorhome and went to the desert to race, eventually competing in the legendary Barstow To Vegas race several times. Along the way he decided to recreate the ’55 Thunderbird that he had back in Wisconsin and restoring classic cars became the object of his passion. He couldn’t just build a nice one and drive it around. No, he competed on the national level and started his own local club so that he could hang around with others who had the same interests. And then there was the dirt track stock car. He built and maintained it, I raced it. It was really the only hobby that put us on equal footing. We each had mutual respect for the other’s abilities.

So let’s see….planes, trains, automobiles, motorcycles. Did I miss something? I’m sure that he didn’t. He did what he wanted and he never forgot to provide for his family.

The last words my dad said to me were “We had fun”. How perfect was that? I only hope that when it’s my time I can say the same thing.

Happy Ho!

2009-01-01T10:05:00.000-08:00

Desert Takeoff

2008-12-25T10:05:00.000-08:00

For those of you who haven't seen the SoCal desert this view might be interesting. We found Apple Valley airport to be very nice. Friendly folks and long runways.

Leonard's Airport Cafe in Apple Valley

2008-12-17T08:20:00.000-08:00

I almost forgot to mention that last week I got to add a new airport to my list of 45+ airports I've flown to. Apple Valley is in the SoCal desert and it's a pretty sweet airport with multiple runways. We went there because we heard the food was good at Leonard's Airport Cafe. It was. Ron got a burger and I got a tuna melt. Very happy with the food. But the service was a kick. Leonard is a bit of a wry comedian and his cook goes back and forth with him endlessly. We were entertained and part of the entertainment as the subjects ranged from which airport cafe had the best burgers to world events. We'll be back.

Hangar Wreath

2008-12-15T21:59:00.000-08:00

Ron drilled a hole in his hangar door and hung a wreath from it. I think it looks cool!

Want to learn how to fly?

2008-12-09T07:53:00.000-08:00

Learn to fly!
Click on the link above...

2008-12-07T16:46:00.000-08:00

Here's our landing at Riverside for our Saturday breakfast. Ron came in a little fast so it bounced j u s t a little bit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxpqsHhMVA0&eurl=http://uk.youtube.com/my_videos_edit2&feature=player_embedded

Riverside For Breakfast

2008-12-06T21:17:00.000-08:00

A bunch of pilots at El Monte airport get together every Saturday morning and decide where to fly for breakfast. This was the first time I joined them. They picked Riverside.

You're not SERIOUS...are you?

2008-11-21T15:41:00.000-08:00

My flying buddy Ron can't stop talking about getting a bigger, faster airplane. We looked at this Beechcraft Duke when it was at the hangar at FAST Aviation in El Monte. Then we saw the owner at the fuel pit and started talking to him. He sells airplanes. He's selling this one. There isn't a prettier airplane on the planet. Ron and the guy started talking numbers...trade in the Cherokee 140, carry the 2, devide by 7.....hummmm....Ron's starting to think he can afford it....there's a doctor who was interested in it but backed out...maybe he could become a partner....hey, this isn't so expensive after all! Who knows what will happen?

Santa Paula valley

2008-11-19T09:44:00.000-08:00

Here's a short video clip of flying over the Santa Paula valley en route to the local airport.

A reminder to NEVER run out of fuel

2008-11-18T10:13:00.000-08:00

I filmed the crew dismantling a 152 that ran out of gas over Burbank airport, they landed short of the field and ended up upside down on top of a car. They were trying to get to El Monte.

Chino for Breakfast

2008-11-15T10:12:00.000-08:00

Ron and I were planning to go to Las Vegas today but high winds forced us to reconsider. So, we just hopped over to Chino airport for breakfast. The view of downtown Los Angeles in the early morning was certainly pretty.

Flabob, more photos

2008-11-14T18:42:00.000-08:00

Flabob Vets Day

2008-11-13T22:50:00.003-08:00

Last weekend I went to Flabob airport in Riverside for their Veteran's Day celebration. Had a great time. Here's some photos...more to come...

More photos from KSBD

2008-11-10T18:42:00.000-08:00

San Bernardino International Airport Tower Tour

2008-11-10T18:28:00.000-08:00

KSBD is the old Norton Airforce Base. It has been left open but the tower was not manned. That's changing. Rumors of FedEx increasing operations there have flourished after it was announced that the tower will soon be manned. An open house on Saturday, November 8 brought more airplanes into the 10,000-foot runway in one day than it has seen in several months.

Santa Paula Hangar Tour

2008-11-07T23:02:00.000-08:00

Flew to Santa Paula today (KSZP) and walked around the hangars until someone invited us in. Pat Quinn was proud of his '46 Luscombe 8A but he really loves his '39 Bucker Jungmann (pictured here). "It's the love of my life," he said, adding "It's the one I'll die with."

Beer Run!

2008-11-05T14:36:00.000-08:00

My flying buddy Ron and I flew from El Monte to Redlands, California yesterday to visit the Hangar 24 Brewery. They make their own beer there and we like it. I had my Growler (holds about a six-pack) refilled and Ron bought a Growler. After we got back home it sure tasted good!

It was a cloudy day, we stayed low all the way there and had a great flight.

Michigan Flying

2008-11-05T08:05:00.000-08:00

Did I forget to mention that I went flying while I was on business in Lansing, Michigan? I did! So, knowing that I would be in Lansing for 7 days, I contacted Foxbat (Kannan) from the AOPA message boards and asked him if he'd take me for a spin around the Lansing area. He agreed, so we took a little sightseeing trip around the capitol, Michigan State University, and some cool areas.

Wine Trip 2

2008-11-03T14:13:00.000-08:00

Here's some photos of the wine crushing process at Rust Ridge. We pitched in a little (very little) and helped out.

Wine Trip 1

2008-11-03T14:10:00.001-08:00

Ron and I flew up to his brother's vineyard (Rust Ridge) in Napa (actually, to be more precise it's in the Chiles Valley). This is a diagram of the vineyard we landed in (next door at Eagle & Rose). It's an asphalt runway, I think it was 3500 feet long. Decent shape.

2008-10-26T10:35:00.000-07:00

I'm in East Landing, Michigan for work but I was able to fit in some fun too. Cessna was having an "Event" in Grand Rapids where they brought several of their airplanes for show. It was raining so they put them all inside a hangar. The Citation Mustang was there, the Stationair TC, the Cessna 400, and a Caravan.

Catalina! With Passengers! WooHoo!

2008-10-19T19:45:00.000-07:00

I've been to Catalina multiple times with my flying buddy Ron but this time it was a special trip. My youngest turned 16 and she asked me to fly her and a friend (plus my fiance) to Catalina for the day. I was like "Are you sure that's what you want for your birthday?" I thought she was picking the trip more for my sake, but that's what she wanted since she had never been there.

I was all geeked up for the trip. Since I usually fly with another pilot a trip like this is far different. It's all on me. Aviate, Navigate, Communicate. And don't forget the fuel pump, and don't forget to switch tanks, and don't forget the frequency, etc., etc., etc. Plus, the daughter's friend has never been in a small airplane before.

Fog threatened to be a problem but it worked out just fine. Took off around 10:30, from El Monte. Headed west toward the Hollywood sign, then over Santa Monica, straight over LAX (in the Special Flight Rules Area) and then direct to Catalina. We were about 1500 feet over a fairly thick blanket of fog from the coast all the way out until about 5 miles from the island. Later the daughter and friend said they were less nervous than they expected over the water because they couldn't see it thanks to the fog. Fiance said she was more nervous because there was fog under us. Someone always has to be nervous!

I was nervous about landing. For those that don't know, Catalina is carved out on the top of a hill. They actually blew two hill tops to smithereenes and used the rocks to fill in the middle. The runway is convex so you can't see the other end when you're on it. It's uphill when you land on 22 (most often) and it's bumpy as heck.

My first attempt was definitely too high. Didn't take me too long to decide that a go-around was the prudent thing to do. The second attempt was too fast. I touched down and the plane porpoised once...twice...and I wasn't about to get to #3 so I pinned the throttle and did another go around. Oh well, I guess the third time's the charm. I never felt any embarassment or worrying about what the passengers were thinking (although I explained what I was doing and why, and prepped them for a potential go-around before we landed the first time) so I was happy with myself. The third attempt was practically flawless.

We took the shuttle down to Avalon and walked around town. Got lunch, bought a shirt and a sweatshirt, took the submarine tour (cool!) and then putzed around some more. The 4 p.m. shuttle gets you back to the airport at 4:30 (more like 4:36 this time). The airport closes at 5. I was checking my watch over and over. Quick bathroom break for everyone and we were back in the airplane.

And it wouldn't start....heck! Cranked it. Cranked it some more. Nothing. No pops, no faint glimmers of hope. I let the starter cool off. With sweat streaming down my face and the thought of having to spend the night on Catalina island (work and school the next day!) starting to look like a real possibility...it finally came to life. Whew!

We took off at 9 minutes till 5. Had a nice flight back. Lots of airplanes headed our way through the Special Flight Rules Area (at least 2 that I recognized from having seen them at the airport, one was a Seneca).

Daughter fell asleep on the way back. We were all tired It was a big day.

PHOTOS:
First one is Two Harbors, we aimed for that and then turned left to head for a 45 degree entry into the downwind for a right pattern entry to runway 22.

Second one is Me and my daughter at lunch (Pizza!)

Third one is inside the submarine trip we took (thanks to the Purple Board for the suggestion!).

Fourth one is a view of the TON of fish that swarm the boat.

Fifth one is the Hollywood sign

Ron's "Not So Good" landing at Catalina

2008-10-16T22:01:00.000-07:00

Catalina Island is not the easiest place to land an airplane. Especially when you are not lined up with the centerline, and overcorrect, and are too high, and are too fast, and land anyway....
http://www.flickr.com/photos/28343733@N03/2947451973/

Ground School for IFR

2008-10-12T22:13:00.000-07:00

Did I mention that I'm studying for my Instrument Flight Rules ticket? Okay, well, I am. I studied on my own with a variety of books for almost a year. Got to point where I just couldn't grasp some concepts so I've enrolled in ground school at Palomar College in San Marcos, California. It's already helping a lot. Hearing someone explain something that you don't understand in a different way (and then being able to ask questions) has spurred me on to get moving ahead with this giant leap.

Henderson Executive Airport in Las Vegas

2008-10-10T22:04:00.000-07:00

Monday Ron and I flew out to Las Vegas, but with a couple of twists (for us anyway). I was in my office in Anaheim so Ron came down to Fullerton (KFUL) and picked me up. We then headed out straight through and over Ontario airport (KONT) with Flight Following. We've flown to Jean and North Las Vegas before but this time we went to Henderson Executive (KHND). It was fun to go somewhere different. Henderson has a shuttle van that will take you to just about anywhere in Vegas, so we went to Mandalay Bay for lunch. Interesting place. Expensive, above average food was our take. But it was fun.

2008-10-10T12:31:00.000-07:00

Went to Agua Dulce last weekend for the Fly-n. Only the clouds prevented most people from flying in. They jokingly called it a "Drive-In".

Flabob Movie Night

2008-10-09T17:52:00.001-07:00

Last Friday night I went to Flabob airport in Riverside for their Flabob Fabulous Friendly First Friday Film Festival monthly movie night put on by their EAA chapter one. It was a fun night with a bunch of aviators looking for a good time. First they showed an episode of "Sky King", which I had never seen so that was cool. And then some footage from the 1929 air races. The movie, Angel Flight (or something like that) was your typical '50s B-movie, but it was fun to see it with a bunch of airplane nuts. They are planning to have another movie night on October 17 in conjunction with the aircraft display day and car show on the 18th (don't hold me to this, call them before leaving for the field. I can't find any mention of an additional movie on their web site, www.eaach1.org).

Flying37.com

2008-10-02T11:57:00.000-07:00

In a letter to a fellow business owner, I recently wrote about www.Flying37.com...."I just want pilots to find my site. If they buy a shirt, great. If you can tell others about the site, that would be wonderful. It has been a huge learning experience getting the site set up, learning Photoshop, getting the word out (learned about Google ads and spent some money with them), trying to figure out what people like, etc., etc.. I was originally planning to have a separate web site and sell shirts, maybe go to air shows and sell them. I quickly realized I didn't want to stock dozens of shirts that might not sell and I didn't want to spend my weekends behind a card table on the tarmac. So, the CafePress deal solved a lot of issues for me. I make a design, I put it on the site. If someone orders it, they take the credit card payment, make the shirt, ship it to them, and send me the profit. It's not a perfect situation, but at least I'm up and running and trying to see if there is a market for these types of shirts. Which, I have to say, isn't impressing me yet. I thought there were a lot of others like me that would think wearing a shirt that says "Say Intentions" is kinda witty and smart and creates an instant bond with any pilot who sees me wearing it. But, sales have been pretty darn slow. I'm starting to think that maybe I need to come up with some new designs. We'll see. More learning to come."

My Flying Life....So Far

2008-09-25T17:09:00.000-07:00

My Flying Life...So Far

I began my flight training in April '06 at Universal Air Academy at
the El Monte, California airport (KEMT). I trained in a Piper Archer
II low-wing airplane.

I passed my Private Pilot Certificate checkride in November '06. Just
before getting PPL my flight instructor Camron introduced me to Ron.
Camron had been training Ron in Ron's Piper Cherokee 140. Camron told
me it was a good, solid airplane. Ron and I started studying together
(pretty much 4-5 nights a week for a month).

After getting our licenses, Ron and I started flying together in a
quest for learning. Ron does not like to fly alone and had been paying
instructors to go along with him on joy rides. I have a very flexible
schedule and was looking to fly anytime, anywhere. The fact that I
have a relatively small amount of discretionary income and Ron was
enjoying an upsurge in his business was a perfect combination. Ron
won't even let my buy him lunch. I worried for awhile that maybe I was
taking advantage of him but he made it clear that he is getting more
out of it than I am.

I do all the flight planning, weather checking, flight plan filing,
cockpit cleanup, hangar door opening and closing, airplane pulling in
and out of the hangar, and more. I love doing all that stuff anyway.

Ron and I GO places. We've flown the Cherokee more than 200 hours in
less than two years (ah! My bi-annual is coming up!). We've been to
more than 45 airports. We've gone to Mesa and Yuma, Arizona. We've
gone to Jean, Nevada several times. North Las Vegas too. We've gone to
Modesto, Placerville, Napa, Santa Ynez, Santa Barbara, Palm Springs,
Gillespie Field, Ramona, and on and on and on. Next up on the list is
Salt Lake City and then, hopefully in October, we are planning to go
to Lake Of The Ozarks, Missouri to visit Ron's daughter.

Usually, Ron flies to wherever we're going while I navigate and do the
radios. Then, I fly back while he takes over the Nav/Comm duties.
We've learned each other's tendencies, habits and weaknesses. We push
each other to be better. It has worked out very well.

Ron and I have talked about me buying his airplane (and then he would
buy a bigger one...something he talks about almost daily). He won't
allow a partnership though. It's all or nothing. So I was planning to
start saving up, borrow some money from my mom, maybe also from my
best friend who's a Southwest Airlines pilot...whatever I could do to
make it happen.

But there is another airplane that will be for sale soon that might be
the perfect entry into airplane ownership for me. My CFI Camron has
been training a guy in the guy's own 140. He wants to sell it as soon
as he passes his IFR checkride. The owner told Camron he wants $26,000
for it. Camron and I could bring one other person into the deal and it
would be very affordable. We'll see.

Ron has no interest in trying to get his instrument rating. He's
annoyed by some of the things you have to do (fly to Paradise VOR
first, then on a Victor airway). He likes to cut corners, go direct,
get there faster. I've tried to set up flights that simulated an IFR
path but he doesn't want to climb that high (10,500 feet to cross the
mountains?! We only need 6500! No Way!) So I gave up on that idea. I
think the only thing that would be attractive to him about an IFR
rating would be the ability to get out of El Monte on the endless
foggy early mornings.

I, on the other hand, am attracted to the challenge of being a better
pilot. I started studying IFR on my own almost a year ago. I've bought
and read lots of books. I got to a point where I was not getting any
better though. I kept getting 82s and 83s on the practice written
test. That would pass, but I want to be in the 90s and, more
importantly, really understand the concepts. In order to jumpstart my
learning and get a better understanding of IFR flying I enrolled in an
IFR ground school class at Mt. Palomar college in San Marcos.

Fun Flying

2008-09-23T18:58:00.001-07:00

A nice, leisurely flight from the San Gabriel Valley over to the San Bernardino Valley ended up with two stops. First, we went to Redlands and checked on the progress of our favorite brewery, Hangar 24. They need about 30 more days before they will be bottling their beer. We'll be back. Then we hung out in the pilot's lounge and ended up talking to a guy named Eric. He was funny, interesting, knowedgeable and not at all full of himself. He flies Citations for Clay Lacy's place and has a Citabria. We picked his brain about routes for cross countries, airspace trivia, and more. He recommended we try the (fairly) newly renovated Manica-Mike's restaurant at Cable airport in Upland. So we did. Here's a picture of the place. Fun. Good food too.

Nice People

2008-09-17T08:49:00.000-07:00

Hung out and talked to Henry for awhile when I was at the Placerville airport. He was a nice guy and not only answered questions about the various airplanes in his shop, but he even volunteered some fascinating info. It sure is fun to hang out at the airport.

Placerville

2008-09-16T23:29:00.000-07:00

It was about time to get out and stretch our legs a little. Ron and I fired up the Cherokee and headed out to Placerville, CA. We went to look at this nice Cherokee Six, but in reality Ron had already convinced himself that he didn't want the lower horsepower version, so this airplane would not do. Still, it was a nice one.

Got Jumper Cables?

2008-09-15T19:58:00.000-07:00

While at Aqua Dulce airport today a Cessna 414 had some trouble. They flooded the engines trying to start them and then ran the battery dead. What the heck do you do at a sleepy little airport with that situation? Well, luckily, the airport has some nice people there and ingenuity to boot. With no 24-volt starter in the area, the collective assortment of hangar hanger-on-ers came up with a plan. The golf cart had multiple batteries wired in sequence. A quick check with a voltimeter showed 25 amps. A set of automotive jumper cables were found and voila! The airplane started, cleaned up, and got out of there. It was fun to hang out and help a little. The two guys in the Cessna were certainly relieved...

Airdog

2008-09-15T19:55:00.001-07:00

Finally got to go flying today and so we took a short jaunt out to Aqua Dulce airport. Airdog was there being scooted back and forth from one end of the runway to the other on an ATV. Gotta love those goggles!

No Flying....4 days in a row

2008-09-11T14:01:00.000-07:00

This week was going to be the one where I got to fly every single day. That is, until the weather had its say. Every morning, starting with Monday, I was planning to go somewhere early with my flying buddy Ron. And every morning the fog kept us on the ground.

Finally today it looked like we would be able to get out of El Monte and go somewhere. But the fog lingered until around 11. So Ron spent the morning redoing the gold stripes on the blue and white Piper Cherokee 140. It looked great when done and when I arrived at around 11 Ron had just noticed that the front strut was sagging again. Again! We've had it fixed, resealed, jimmied and more at least three times in the past three years. In between we were constantly having it filled with nitrogen.

Enough is enough. Ron took the airplane down to Dick at FAST Aviation at the KEMT airport and Dick is going to completely rebuild the strut. It might be ready Friday around 11...about the same time the fog is supposed to be burned off....let's hope!

A Better View

2008-09-10T15:20:00.000-07:00

So, the Angels were playing the Yankees today in a day game....it was too tempting....

The View Out My Office Window

2008-09-10T15:12:00.001-07:00

I recently moved up to the 11th floor at my work. They gave me a nice, big office with cool furniture. I've never had it so good. This is the view from my window.

More Barry Schiff Wisdom...

2008-09-06T08:37:00.000-07:00

Another great piece of advice from Barry Schiff's seminar I attended. As most people know, when you fly into a high altitude airport everyone is thinking about the takeoff that you will be making when you leave. Will the plane have enough power, is the runway long enough, etc., etc.

But one thing they don't think about is....what if my landing attempt is messed up in some way and I need to make a missed approach (or a go-around for VFR pilots)? You will be in much worse shape for your missed approach because you have not leaned the engine for max power and you have your flaps down. It is all to easy to try a missed approach by shoving the throttle forward, dumping the flaps and then sinking into the runway.

So Barry offers 2 pieces of advice. Number 1 is to practice a missed approach on the downwind leg. Yep. Throttle back to landing power, set your flaps, and then pretend like you're going to do a go-around. Note if the airplane sinks, or mushes, or climbs just fine.

Tip Number 2 was: Maybe you shouldn't use all three notches of flaps. Now this entrigued me because my flying buddy likes to land with 2 notches of flaps and a little faster than me. I've always fretted and worried about this because I didn't know how much this would affect the stall speed. The book only tells you a stall speed for no flaps and full flaps. But Barry explained that the flaps achieve almost all of their affect after you go to the first notch. The next notch only improves the stall speed about 10 percent. The added flaps do contribute to drag and slow the airplane though. The third notch of flaps basically don't help your stall speed, they just add more drag.

So, Barry says why not use one notch of flaps until you are almost to the runway (I forget the term he used...something like "on the property") and then pull the 2nd notch of flaps. So, if your landing is screwy before you get too close to the airport you can do your go-around starting with only one notch of flaps down. And if it goes bad near the runway you're still better off with only two notches instead of all three.

Mountain Flying Seminar with Barry Schiff

2008-09-05T10:50:00.000-07:00

I went to a seminar sponsored by the San Fernando Valley 99s at Van Nuys airport last night. It was part of their Pilot Proficiency Seminars series. The speaker was Barry Schiff, he of more than 27,000 hours logged in more than 300 types of aircraft.

Barry spoke about Mountain Flying. Since I live in Southern California there are many, many mountains to be concerned about. I wanted to see what the guy had to offer. I was hoping to pick up a thing or two that would help, or save, me.

I was not disappointed. Barry is a likeable guy and his vast experience has armed him with lots of stories and funny comments. Here’s one, loosely quoted, “My instructor got out of the airplane as he sent me off for my first solo with this comment, ‘Get me out of this airplane before you kill me!’“. Okay, I got that one from his book “Test Pilot: 1001 things you thought you knew about aviation” that I bought at the seminar. But he had plenty of interesting tidbits live at the seminar too. He described why we say an airport is “socked in” and how the Pitot tube was invented, and more. If you want to know the answers to these two, send a message.

Anyway, here’s a couple of things I came away with. When flying into an airport with a high elevation (use Big Bear California as an example at 6752 feet) you should fly the airplane at the indicated airspeeds you normally do. For example, in my Cherokee 140 (it’s a hot rod though) I usually slow to 100 on the base leg, then slow to 80 on final and touch down at maybe 70ish. That wouldn’t change at a high elevation airport. However, the density of the air up there is much different and what your airspeed indicator reads is much different that your true airspeed. You are actually going much faster through the space of air (or, compare groundspeeds) than normal. So, when you make your turn from the downwind leg to the base leg and then continue on to final, you will oftentimes find yourself overshooting the runway’s centerline significantly. You might think you just screwed up your turn but the reality is that the airplane is going faster through the air and it takes more room to turn a faster airplane (I’m using simplified terms here, and hope to God I’m not screwing any of it up). Solution: When flying into a high-altitude airport you need to give yourself more room on the downwind leg. Just 6 weeks prior to this seminar I did exactly as described at Big Bear airport (KL35). Was surprised I was off centerline. Now I know why and won’t do it again.

He, of course, went into great detail about density altitude and performance degradation. And an interesting talk about flaps on landing. I’ll get into that next time...