Category Archives for flying
Lesson 9 – More Practice
Yesterday was clear but very cold. Unfortunately, the heater in the airplane we flew seemed to be slowly going bad. The longer we were up, the colder it got in the cockpit. No icicles actually formed but, it was a little distracting. We also had gusty winds and bumpy air that made forward and side […]
Continue readingGround School and My Study Resources
Yesterday was a ground school day. We covered aircraft systems, required documents, required equipment and did a quick review of aerodynamics. I haven’t said much about how I am studying for the written. I guess this is a good time to bring it up. The main books that Waukegan Wings uses are the Airplane Flying […]
Continue readingLesson 8 – Low Approaches
If anyone is keeping score, yesterday’s flying lesson really was the fourth one in a row. We couldn’t get above 2500 feet, but we did fly. Today was supposed to be power-off stalls, steep turns and slow flight – again. We started with three power-off stalls. I’m getting better at these. I kept the rudder […]
Continue readingLesson 7 – Slow That Airplane Down
I got to fly again yesterday. That makes three lessons in a row without getting weathered out - amazing. If this keeps up, I will get way more hours in February than in December and January combined. I did all the radio work for both departing and arriving back at the airport. I only had […]
Continue readingLesson 6 – Two in a Row
The weather held for two lessons in a row! That’s a pretty rare circumstance for me this winter. It was a lot colder yesterday than it has been so; we sat in the airplane and let it warm up for a couple minutes before we taxied. While we waited, Sandy started to quiz me on […]
Continue readingLesson 5 – In the Pattern
Yesterday we finally got a day when the weather was good enough to fly – barely. I made my first call to Flight Service for a weather briefing. I don’t know the name of the person I talked to, but thank you for your patience. Visibility was 3 miles in haze which wasn’t quit good […]
Continue readingGround School and Tower Visit
My last lesson for January turned out to be a ground session – of course. A low ceiling and rain get the blame today. We did a tower visit and an hour of ground school. I have gotten in a whopping 4.4 hours for December and January combined. I hope February will be a lot better. My first training goal […]
Continue reading40 MPH Wind Gusts = Ground School
Yesterday was another day on the ground. Between the weather and changing schools, I am going to have very few hours logged for January. I do have a lesson scheduled for Sunday morning so I might be able to get one more flight in this month.
Continue readingLesson 4 – The New School
I had my first lesson at Waukegan Wings last Thursday. I think that it went very well. Making the change feels like the right decision. Sandy, who will be my lead CFI, took care of the paperwork to get me enrolled in the private pilot training program and then we spent some time going over […]
Continue readingA Big Change
A major change has occurred since my last post. I have switched flight schools and I am now at Waukegan Wings at Waukegan Regional Airport. I really like the people at Campbell and the decision to change was not an easy one. In the end, it came down to what training environment I feel most […]
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