Lesson 27: Grass field take-off and landings

Kentmorr Grass Airstrip: about five nautical miles south of bay bridge airport. This would be my first time seeing a grass runway and landing on one. When my instructor pointed out the wind sock I couldn’t believe that I was looking at a runway as it looked just like a farm field or a grass lawn. This runway has houses along the edge with hangars as garages. It would be really awesome to live on a runway, get up in the morning and roll your plane out of the hangar attached to your house onto the runway and take-off for work. Once I had the runway in sight, I had to get down to traffic pattern altitude (TPA). As I came in to land, I had to overfly the runway to get a good look at the condition of the turf to locate potentially moist areas as well as large divots or ruts. The second time around I flared the nose and the main gear touched down and I remembered to hold the nose wheel off the ground until the plane slowed enough to drop the nose down naturally. WOW it was a bumpy ride. I had to keep full back pressure on the stick the entire time just in case we hit a bump. This will hold most of the weight of the plane off of the nose wheel since it would be the most vulnerable to breaking if the plane ran into a ditch or rut. We taxied around for take-off. Ten degrees of flaps, full back pressure on the stick, and immediate take-off once lined up with the runway. The minute the plane hopped off the ground I had to dip the nose back down and establish a level flight about five feet above the ground until the plane reached a 60kt climb. I did this a few times until I had it down. The most difficult part about landing on a grass runway is knowing if the grass turf is safe for landing as well as keeping the plane moving during taxi as it is hard or sometimes impossible to get the plane moving again in the soft turf. The wonderful thing is, the airports that I can now land at are endless!

Lesson 26: Soft field take-offs and landings

Flaps set to ten degrees. Full aft pressure on the stick during taxi and continuing through takeoff is necessary to get the plane off the soft field runway as soon as possible. Apply full power.

As soon as main wheels leave the ground, lower nose to a level attitude and fly the aircraft five feet off the ground until a 60kt airspeed is attained. Climb out at 60-70kts. This is a thrilling maneuver because the plane is just soaring over the ground and it feels like the wheels are going to touch down again at any second. The reason behind this maneuver is to get the plane off the soft field runway as soon as possible due to the damage that could occur to the landing gear as it bounces along the uneven terrain. The problem is that in forcing the plane to get airborne in ground effect is that it could easily stall back onto the ground. This is why it is important to tip the nose level and fly the plane five feet above the ground to “recover” to prevent from stalling the plane until 60 kts is achieved. When it is time to land on a soft field runway it is important to keep the nose wheel off the ground for as long as possible. It is important to allow the plane to slow down long enough for the plane to naturally lower the nose to the ground. If the nose drops to the ground at a higher speed it could damage the caster nose wheel or cause the plane to skid around in the soft terrain. Once all three wheels are on the ground the plane should keep moving until parked to prevent from getting stuck in possibly moist conditions but the terrain can also cause drag that requires the plane to work harder to start moving again. I look forward to testing out my training on a real grass runway.

Lesson 25: Instrument Flight

Today was an interesting lesson. Since December 29^th, I had flown a plane and been able to see out the cockpit. If I ever happened to accidentally fly into a cloud I could virtually lose all sight. I experienced a virtual cloud today. When learning how to fly via instruments, pilots must wear goggles or a sort of a visor which shield all of the glass so that the only thing in view is the instrument panel. The Sky Arrow has a huge plexiglass cockpit with amazing visibility. The instrument visor that blocks a pilot’s vision does not block out everything in a Sky Arrow. We brought on board a portable cloud. Basically a couple pieces of poster board cut into triangular and trapezoidal shapes taped to the inside of the cockpit to block out all view of the outside world. It was very nerve racking seeing only my instruments. My instructor would have me close my eyes so I couldn’t see my instruments. She then slowly changed the planes pitch or bank or speed slow enough that I wouldn’t feel a change. Once I opened up my eyes I realized that all was not well. The plane was spiraling downward. I knew that I needed to level the wings and pull up the nose. I had to trust my instruments. I closed my eyes again. I heard the stall warning horn sound so I knew that when I opened my eyes I would need to push the nose down to recover. I opened my eyes and not only were we in a power-on stall but we were in a turning stall. I had to level the plane lower the nose and establish a stable climb. This all required me to trust my instruments. Even though I felt like the plane was doing one thing or another, my instruments told me the opposite. The most important lesson was to trust my instruments. I instructor gave me a heading to fly and then began to take down the portable cloud. I finally looked out the cockpit and saw Bay Bridge airport. It was an awesome experience and I couldn’t believe that I made it back to the airport without being able to see anything but my instruments.

Lesson 24: Crosswind landing practice

Well...today I found out that my feet are connected to my brain. My feet woke up and started controlling the rudders! I just needed a good crosswind, some excellent instruction and I was back fighting the winds using my feet on the rudders in coordination with the ailerons. It was a gorgeous day and just the right amount of crosswind to get me back on track. Soon I will be working on short and soft field landings on a grass runway as well some instrument work. I learned that you must be able to recognize when you have become rusty and to get in some lessons with an instructor to get back on track. Crosswinds are one of the most important maneuvers to have under your belt at ALL times as a sport pilot due to the light nature of the planes. The winds can more easily push the LSAs around so you have to become a better pilot and be able to control the plane in crosswinds. You must remain the pilot-in-command at all times and never allow the situation to become airplane-in-command.

My instructor also mentioned today that flying can help you in many ways. One way can be best stated by Jamie Beckett. He recommends that job seekers learn to fly as a way to make their resume stand out. "Being able to include the word 'pilot' on your resume tends to separate you from the crowd", he writes. "It's an accomplishment that not only has practical value, but it says something about the person who carries it."

In addition. This is a message to my SRHS students. Please remember to call CSP to schedule your free flight on June 3rd for the Young Eagle's event.

Lesson 22 + 23: Short field take-off and soft field landing

Today I learned how to take off on a short field as well as how to execute a soft field landing. The short field take-off is necessary if you have an obstacle to clear at the end of a runway, or if you need to establish a best angle of climb to gain altitude quickly. For starters, I had to align the plane with the end of the runway to establish the largest field possible for take-off. I held in the brakes as far as they could go and I pushed the throttle forward until I read 4,900rpms and I released the brakes. The plane lurched forward and began the ground roll. With 10 degrees of flaps and full throttle the plane popped off the runway and I established a 55knot climb. Once above the tree line I pushed the nose down slightly and established a 65knot climb and finally removed the 10 degrees of flaps. After flying the downwind I began to set-up for final approach. On the base leg I deployed 20 degrees of flaps with a 60knot decent. Upon final approach I put in the last notch of flaps and the plane slowed down to 55knots. On final approach my flight instructor asked me to land on the first centerline stripe after the numbers on the runway. I had to then pick a landing spot and aim for it so that during my flare over that spot I would eventually land over the first stripe. The first couple of attempts I passed up my mark. I had to figure out how to judge my landing and the amount of flare so that I could land on my required stripe on the centerline. Each time I attempted this landing I was able to practice my short field landing. It was tough working on the landings and I needed to knock the rust off due to the lack of flight time I had in the past couple of weeks. This was especially true for my feet. I needed to work on controlling the plane in the crosswinds. It was time for me to land and work on crosswinds for another day.

Lesson 21: Stage One Check

Fail :( The stage one check is an opportunity for a second opinion. A secondary flight instructor checks to see if a pilot is ready to practice maneuvers and flight solo. If they agree with the primary flight instructor then the student pilot passes the stage one check and continues practicing solo. I have practiced, I have done the homework, but there are no exceptions and there are no short cuts to becoming a pilot. You are either ready to fly solo or you are unsafe and need more instruction to be on your own. A close friend of mine, basically a brother to me, told me this today, "if it wasn't hard it wouldn't pay off". Learning how to fly requires dedication, skill, practice, determination, but most of all, an excellent flight instructor who knows when you are ready.

Lesson 20: Practice Maneuvers for Stage One Check

Fridays are wonderful for flying. It is the end of the work week, the beginning of the weekend, and there always seems to be gorgeous weather. May the 4th was a stormy early morning with a hazy cloudy afternoon. There was 7-20 mile visibility but I would need to get used to flying in a haze. The objective of the day was to review the maneuvers I had been taught many lessons ago to prepare for my stage one test. I will fly with a different instructor and they will be checking to see if I can demonstrate control of the aircraft in all of the maneuvers in order to be given the privilege to practice these maneuvers solo. My instructor and I would be reviewing these and if I pasted my instructors test I would be granted my stage one check. If I pass that I begin my solo work in preparation for my final check ride to get my license. Now, I still have a few other maneuvers as well as doing cross-country flying prior to my final check ride but I am moving along in the syllabus. I was eager to get up in the sky and demonstrate my ability to do the required maneuvers. I had been studying and doing my homework and I wanted to pass my instructors test to move on to my stage one check. We left the traffic pattern and headed out for the practice area over the eastern shore. She asked me to begin with a slow flight and climb to 4,000 feet in slow flight. This required me to control the plane at almost it's stall speed. I pitched the nose up to set an airspeed of about 45 knots just almost a stall (during the entire climb the stall warning horn was going off due to the low airspeed). I added my flaps to maintain enough lift and I gave the engine enough power to inevitably climb the required 3,000 feet in slow flight. Once there I leveled off and cleaned up the plane from slow flight. I was asked to execute a power-off stall. Ok, throttle back 3,500 rpms, pitch up for a 60 knot glide, add flaps, descend 300 feet, pull throttle back to idle, and pull back on the stick. This is to represent a stall when coming in to land. I pulled back on that stick until I was pointed at the ISS. Before you know it the plane starts to bounce and it drops slightly and the left wing dropped slightly and I calmly leveled the wings and pitched the nose down simultaneously adding full throttle. Alright now for the power-on stall representing stalling at take-off. 3,000 rpms, 45 knots, 10 degrees of flaps, add full throttle and pull back. The power-on stall was not exciting. The plane kind of buffeted but that was about it. I pitched back down to establish a 60 knot climb and I asked if there was a way to get the plane to drop more and have a more dramatic stall. My instructor said, sure, don't slowly ease back on the stick. So I set up for my power-on stall again except this time I pulled back hard on the stick and shot up towards the ISS and yep, the plane dropped a bit that time. We then did turning stalls to add to my experience of controlling the plane during a stall as well as in a weird maneuver. I needed to demonstrate steep turns next. 80 knots, level wings, pick a landmark, bank 30 degrees, add 100 rpms of power, enter 45 degree steep bank and maintain altitude. My first steep turn I lost a lot of altitude by not pitching the nose up enough prior to entering the steep turn. The second turn I passed up my landmark (the Bay Bridge off about 15nm in the distance) but it was still check ride worthy, but my third and final steep turn was within commercial pilot check ride standards! Now I'm happy and excited and seeing the payoff of all the studying and homework. All good things must come to an end. My instructor pulled back the throttle to idle and said I was having too much fun with the plane and caused the engine to fail what are you going to do now in this simulated engine failure, she asks me. I pitch for a 60 knot glide slope, find a suitable emergency landing field near a road or farm, mayday on 121.5 and set 7700 on my transponder, and attempt engine restart. In this simulation my engine failed to start so I began to circle my field losing altitude slowly and I looked at the wind direction on a nearby lake to figure out at which heading I should be entering the downwind leg for landing on the field. At about 500 feet I was on final approach for the field would have had to do a forward slip to make the field but we had to add full power and climb since I was at the minimum safe altitude. We headed back to the airport and practiced a few forward slips upon landing since it was fresh on our minds. It is always awkward approaching the runway with full left rudder and full right aileron. The plane is basically sideways and facing the runway perpendicularly and it is descending at a very fast rate, like riding an elevator. The intense sideways motion of the airplane adds so much drag that it maintains the current airspeed while losing altitude quickly. We did this three times to make sure I had it down. What a wonderful day and I was thrilled to have successfully executed the maneuvers so well and it truly was due to studying and reviewing homework. I was confidant and ready for my stage one check. It is scheduled for this coming Monday. I am ready!