Lesson 43: Cancelled QXC and an Aborted Instrument Flying Lesson

Yesterday (Tuesday 3rd of April) I was meant to do my QXC but like so many before me, come the big day, the weather was borderline and ultimately,'twas not to be. My instructor was great and explained the area of high ground which was the concern. As it transpired he must have had a 6th sense anyway as more drama would have unfolded for sure had I progressed with the flight itself.

I had arranged beforehand though that in the event this would happen I would do a lesson around the Instrument Flying exercise. This is the 1 hour component of the ppl course which covers flying the airplane wearing "foggles" which prevent you seeing anything but the instrument panel. Of course, this is an alien feeling but a really enjoyable and challenging one.


Anyway, let me rewind a second and say that it's good I didn't do my QXC because the airplane my school gave me had a faulty transponder. The display was showing wrong digits for what you typed! Now how was that going to work when being given a squawk code from Farnborough Radar? It wouldn't have. This was a bit disappointing to say the least as it was not in the tech log for the airplane.

So, about the instrument lesson. I was really getting into it when the next problem came along! The vacuum pump failed, suction went dead and I lost the heading indicator and the attitude indicator (artificial horizon)! So , instrument lesson aborted I agreed to do some stalling and recoveries and then head back! The lesson was finished with a Practice Forced Landing (PFL).

The aerodrome was very quiet being a Tuesday. I have rescheduled my QXC for a couple of weeks time.

Logbook:

43. 03/04/12 C152 G-BNKV EGTO EGTO 09:55 10:55 1:00 EX19 (25 minutes), EX10B
HOURS = 37:15 DUAL + 09:10 SOLO

Lesson 42: Preparing For My QXC - A Couple of Circuits

Thursday 29 March, 2012

In preparation for my forthcoming Qualifying Cross Country (QXC) I booked in for a little refresher session. It was to be just a few circuits. We didn't have much time so I just did a couple of circuits with my instructor and then a couple solo. All passed off ok. I guess the main point was really to gain some confidence as I've not the opportunity to fly much lately. For this reason the lesson served me well. It was good to be in an airplane again!


Oh.. and it was a beautiful evening!! 

Logbook:

42. 29/03/12 C152 G-CEPX EGTO EGTO 16:45 17:05 0:20 2-2 EX12/13
42. 29/03/12 C152 G-CEPX EGTO EGTO 17:05 17:25 0:20 2-2 EX12/13
HOURS = 36:15 DUAL + 09:10 SOLO

Practical Radio Telephony Test

I sat and passed my Practical Radio Telephony test today. This was I have to say a lot tougher than I thought. In speaking with a couple of people afterwards they said it was the hardest one to prepare for out of all the PPL exams. I have to agree. I'd spent all week reading cap 413 and making notes but when I got given the paper I thought oh dear, this is going to be a bit stressful! And it was. It was about 100 degrees in this little portacabin as well, and I was sweating like the proverbial.

The reason why its a good test is because (well for me at least) the scenarios I was given in the test I had never done in practice! This was owing to the cross country routes I had previously flown in Kent.

The other reason why (again in my opinion) it's more difficult than the real thing is because you only have about 15 minutes to read the brief and "prepare". I'm quite a meticulous planner and so if I was to fly a route like the one the examiner gave me, I would spend a couple of hours the day before "walking the route" and working out who I was going to call and with what sort of thing. Test conditions and a bit of nerves and it's a different ball game!

Anyway, the test that I was given took me from the car park of an ATC Aerodrome, changing from tower, to approach frequencies, calling the MATZ approach, going across the MATZ, calling at a Turning Point, climbing to keep clear of high ground, asking for a true bearing from a different aerodrome, hearing a mayday call and then relaying this mayday call, asking for permission to enter controlled airspace, experiencing an engine issue and then making a pan pan urgency call, going across controlled airspace, changing frequencies to my destination, getting in the circuit of my destination only to find it then closed the runways! I then had to go back to an aerodrome I had previously passed. In between all that there are some position reports and various squawk codes to get down and tap into the software.

It's a good test I have to say. Apparently the software you can download from the internet and run at home. I will have to look into that as it could be a good little practice mechanism. Alternatively I suppose I could use my normal flight simulator and just do the radio calls.

Oh, I don't know. Glad that's over!

Lesson 41: Rochester to Chichester Goodwood

Sunday 26, 2012 and my instructor and I headed down to Goodwood for some familiarization. It was the first good weather weekend for a while and it seemed everybody was out and about. Visibility was OK. I was in a different aircraft, a recent arrival to the fleet which was being run-in. This meant cruise RPM was about 2,400. This is G-BNKV, a lovely aircraft with a nice clean dash and cockpit array. That said the Radio played up a bit and the transponder seemed to be Mode Alpha only as Farnborough Radar asked us a couple of times to ident to no avail.

It was the first time for me to Goodwood and it looked a lovely airfield. Lots of grass and a wide runway. On the way down we went down to Heathfield and turned west direct to Goodwood. On the way across I tracked to the beacon at the airfield, passing south of the Parnham Glider site and north of Arundel and Tangmere. I joined overhead at 2000 feet and descended to a circuit height of 1200 feet. We were on Runway 14. The landing was OK.

Coming back home we headed north to Midhurst and Ockham / Guildford and then turned east passing south of Biggin Hill before joining downwind at Rochester. Runway in use was 34, again the landing was OK.


The next step then is to do my Qualifying Cross Country. This is to be Goodwood, Lydd and then back to Rochester. For this the weather needs to be good in each area. I have been a bit unlucky recently with the weather and also with my instructor being away. I was also ill (last weekend) with flu like symptoms. We shall see what the weather has in store. 

Logbook:
 
41. 26/02/12 C152 G-BNKV EGTO EGHR 10:45 11:45 1:00 1-1 EX18A
41. 26/02/12 C152 G-BNKV EGHR EGTO 12:30 13:25 0:55 1-1 EX18C

HOURS = 35:55 INSTRUCTOR + 08:50 SELF

Lesson 40: More Cross Country Navigation

Jan 15th 2012 and I was doing another navigation exercise. This time it was SSE down to Heathfield before turning east to head over to Lydd and then onto Ashford. The flight passed without incident until I got back to Rochester where I should have gone around when I found myself following somebody on final approach. I had not found myself in this situation before and was not sure of the best course of action. I was concerned that if I went to pass on the right hand side by going around, if he did the same then that would not be good. In the end I tried to keep my distance and did a "land after". This I now know is not the best course of action and so next time I will take a different option, and go around. You learn by your mistakes.I think I should have been more diligent in general when entering the circuit and tracked better the person going downwind who seemed to go long and come back very high. This would have avoided the situation where it got congested on base/final. 

The only other thing to say was the visibility generally around the south coast was not very good, especially true when heading East into the sun. 


The next step after this is a trip down the Goodwood with my instructor. This is in preparation for the Qualifying Cross Country trip which apparently is to include this airfield.

Logbook
 40. 15/01/12 C152 G-CEFM EGTO EGTO 09:30 10:40 1:10 1-1 EX18A/C

HOURS = 34:00 INSTRUCTOR + 08:50 SELF

Book Review: Sagittarius Rising - Cecil Lewis

Amazing story, superbly written.

First published in 1936, this is an autobiography of the author set during the first world war. That said, it also includes some of his time after this when he went to China to teach flying. It is an amazingly well written book. During the time of his story, he studied poetry and in my opinion it shows in his intelligent and melodic writing style.

Sometimes I like to 'dog ear' pages or underline things if I think that in the future I would like to pick up the book again and go find something striking, something profound or poetic. I didn't bother with this because after a few pages I just knew this was a book that was going to be full of such things.

In terms of an autobiographic story it flows with a lively pace and is graceful and humble in many ways. Cecil appears to have lived a charmed life. After everything, the war ended when he was 20 .... when the average lifespan of a pilot was measured in a few weeks and days ! He went through so much and lost many friends.

Some of the scenes stay with you long after you have closed the book and nodded off to sleep! I was flying over the Somme most nights while I was reading this. I was also flying back to England without telling anybody, or I was cloud scudding at 300 feet over the beaches looking for an airfield.

There are a couple of passages where I couldn't breath through laughter. His first loop the loop, the time one of his inventor gadget loving fellow pilots made a grenade launcher (oh how I cried at this) and the time he tried to swing his own prop.

Oh yes,  for sure, I will be reading this book again.

I wholeheartedly loved this mans story and in particular the poetic way he delivers it to the reader......What an amazing life a man can lead.

Lesson 39: Solo Cross Country Navigation Excercise

A good day today, visibility was fine with (the stratocumulus and cumulus) cloudbase all round kent being at about 3,500 ft. I was on a solo nav ex going down to Manston and then turning overhead Manston tracking to the Dover VOR beacon and then once on that, heading back up tracking to the Detling VOR Beacon. QNH was 1025 and the wind was about 315 degrees , 25 knots. I didnt experience any gusts. Runway in use was 34 at Rochester (the one with the lift off chute in the middle). However with the wind locally on the airfield 320 / 10 I was down on the ground before the lift off point for a good landing.

Whoever cut the tall tree down which overlooked the south park (the one that used to visibly kiss the threshold for runway 34) - THANK YOU! I used to hate that dam tree. Sometimes it felt like it had a hypnotic hold over me, drawing me in like some silent assassin but then saying at the last minute ... "GOTCHA FOOL ! just kidding - you are too close - now climb, throttle in... go way over me so I can turn and watch you struggle trying to wash off the airspeed in time and land before the bump in the runway!". Maybe the lift off chute (apparently it's a buried gas pipe) and the tree were in league together. Not now though... thanks to that tree being gone!

Prior to going out on my own I did a quick circuit with my instructor and he jumped out after that. Comically, we nearly had a bird strike just at the time of touch down from one of the crazy seagulls who was strictly out of order. He had clearly not done his Air Law exam! He was using the same "runway strip" but going in the opposite direction [to the unitiated thats runway 16 , i.e. 340 - 180 degrees! As for the trip round Kent, all went well, I thought I tracked to the needle well enough. Manston Radar was busy with lots of RT chatter and so typically just as I was waiting for a gap in the RT calls in order to call (as requested) ten miles from Detling... she asked me to confirm position! Apart from that the RT was fine.

Good day really, cockpit was comfortable, flight was smooth and you could see the coast from Rochester when turned Downwind for runway 34.

Have booked another slot for next weekend. My instructor told me to go via Hailsham & Lydd turning points.

Have posted a couple of pictures here after I parked up. iPhone + Motion X GPS Tracker failed again with its GPS signal so can't post a track. I would like to buy myself a Sky Demon Mobile or Air Box device later in the year if all goes well. I'm leaning towards the former as I like thieir flight planning software.

I renewed my flying club membership for 2012.

I finished an absolutely wonderful book the other day about Cecil Lewis's early flying experiences (WWI). It's called Sagittarius Rising. I'll post a review here in the next couple of days. Oh my... how well it is written and oh my ... what a life he had!

39. 08/01/12 C152 G-CEPX EGTO EGTO 09:55 10:10 0:15 1-1 EX12/13
*39. 08/01/12 C152 G-CEPX EGTO EGTO 10:10 11:15 1:05 1-1 EX18A/C

HOURS = 34:00 INSTRUCTOR + 07:40 SELF

Goodbye 2011... Hello 2012!

Well that's the end of 2011. Goodbye and thank you so much. 

Hello you.... Mr 2012. So then, where are we heading? 

I should tell you.. 2011 was a kind year and you have a lot to live up to.

... she gave me the birth of my son Oscar, my first year wedding anniversary, my wife's good health, my good health (it will be two years February since I gave up smoking), my two beautiful daughters growing up  and doing so well at school, my mum still with us in reasonably good health, and 2011 gave me good fortune in that I could continue to learn to fly. Last year I had my first solo flight in the circuit, and then away from the aerodrome.... All these wonderful memories.

I hope this year is as good.. I hope everybody who I love and care about can remain healthy and safe. For me, I hope I can remain lucky enough to build some more wonderful memories. And .. of course, I really hope I can get my Private Pilots License. 

So then Mr 2012, lets go together into the unknown. Let us see what you got.

Happy New Year