OK one more catch-up post...
After passing my knowledge test three weeks ago--and spending all the study time preparing for it--I decided to do a little for-fun reading.
There is a nice ongoing thread on the Pacific Northwest Flying forum about aviation books, and from that I got a favorable impression of Ernest Gann. Gann was an early airline pilot (for American) and also flew transports during World War II, mostly across the north Atlantic. I checked out a copy of Fate is the Hunter from the library, and thoroughly enjoyed it.
I'm sure glad the reliability of aircraft engines has improved!
If you're interested in aviation and adventure, I recommend the book!
Saturday, April 24, 2010
FAA Wings
This morning I'm catching up on blog topics. Apologies for the stream-of-consciousness.
The club (meaning, Center O Flying Club, at KOLM, of which I'm now a member) offers a discount off the monthly dues for attending safety seminars or courses. Online courses count. With the end of April approaching, I thought I'd take a course, learn something, and secure my discount.
I signed up for the FAA Wings program, which provides pilots with a portal through which they can obtain online training and other resources. The FAA partners with AOPA so that AOPA safety courses (free to members, like yours truly) count towards the Wings program. It's an overall effort to provide quality continuing education in a cost-effective manner, which is a great idea.
I took a "GPS for VFR" course last night, which I thought would be valuable as I'm still getting used to the Garmin 430 GPS in 898. It was well-done and informative.
I'll look forward to using this resource and building a nice transcript at Wings. And the discounts at Center O won't be too shabby either!
The club (meaning, Center O Flying Club, at KOLM, of which I'm now a member) offers a discount off the monthly dues for attending safety seminars or courses. Online courses count. With the end of April approaching, I thought I'd take a course, learn something, and secure my discount.
I signed up for the FAA Wings program, which provides pilots with a portal through which they can obtain online training and other resources. The FAA partners with AOPA so that AOPA safety courses (free to members, like yours truly) count towards the Wings program. It's an overall effort to provide quality continuing education in a cost-effective manner, which is a great idea.
I took a "GPS for VFR" course last night, which I thought would be valuable as I'm still getting used to the Garmin 430 GPS in 898. It was well-done and informative.
I'll look forward to using this resource and building a nice transcript at Wings. And the discounts at Center O won't be too shabby either!
Armchair flying
My flying has been plagued by two problems lately. First, I haven't been home very much...I've had a lot of business travel. Second, when I've been here, the weather hasn't been conducive to flying.
I did go up with Joel two weekends ago, and tamed the beast that is 75898. I focused on cutting back the power more, and also using more elevator trim. That combination allowed me to stay ahead of the airplane easily and not get so tensed-up with pitch control. Joel signed me off to solo in it. We also went back to Tacoma Narrows and I had no trouble with the pattern there. So I am now able to fly to Tacoma, Shelton, and Chehalis in 898.
But since then, no flying.
Since I can't be up in the air, I've been trying a technique that a former instructor once told me was quite powerful, despite how silly it can feel: visualization. Pilots call it "armchair flying". Basically, you sit in the recliner or on the sofa, close the eyes, relax, and visualize flying a pattern. I've been trying to do it once a day or so for the past couple of weeks, and it is really helping to smooth out my flow of activities in a full pattern. It forces a level of concentration that flying with a simulator doesn't quite produce.
Interestingly, in my other hobby--classical guitar playing--many experts recommend the same technique for training the mind to handle challenging fingerings and passages. While both flying and guitar-playing require some muscle dexterity, the vast majority of tasks in both activities are well within the raw muscular capabilities of most people. What slows us down is the mind sending the right signals through the synapses to drive those muscles, and visualization really helps the mind to get better at this job.
I have time scheduled in 898 tomorrow, so we'll see how much this has helped! I'm going to try to capture some video, too.
I did go up with Joel two weekends ago, and tamed the beast that is 75898. I focused on cutting back the power more, and also using more elevator trim. That combination allowed me to stay ahead of the airplane easily and not get so tensed-up with pitch control. Joel signed me off to solo in it. We also went back to Tacoma Narrows and I had no trouble with the pattern there. So I am now able to fly to Tacoma, Shelton, and Chehalis in 898.
But since then, no flying.
Since I can't be up in the air, I've been trying a technique that a former instructor once told me was quite powerful, despite how silly it can feel: visualization. Pilots call it "armchair flying". Basically, you sit in the recliner or on the sofa, close the eyes, relax, and visualize flying a pattern. I've been trying to do it once a day or so for the past couple of weeks, and it is really helping to smooth out my flow of activities in a full pattern. It forces a level of concentration that flying with a simulator doesn't quite produce.
Interestingly, in my other hobby--classical guitar playing--many experts recommend the same technique for training the mind to handle challenging fingerings and passages. While both flying and guitar-playing require some muscle dexterity, the vast majority of tasks in both activities are well within the raw muscular capabilities of most people. What slows us down is the mind sending the right signals through the synapses to drive those muscles, and visualization really helps the mind to get better at this job.
I have time scheduled in 898 tomorrow, so we'll see how much this has helped! I'm going to try to capture some video, too.
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Knowledge test
The weather in the northwest has been awful for flying for more than a week now. So I decided to take this opportunity to get the mandatory FAA "knowledge test" under my belt.
This is a 60-question, computer-delivered, multiple choice test on the full range of private pilot subject matter. A score of 70% is technically a "pass", but any missed questions are likely to be "explored in depth" by the examiner during the "practical test" (aka checkride) later on.
I drove up to Tacoma Narrows (KTIW), the nearest testing center to home. After the staff at Pavco (the KITW FBO and test provider) resolved a few technical difficulties with the exam workstation, I finished the test and got 59/60 correct. Certainly a score I can live with!
Hope to go flying next weekend with Joel in between trips to DC and Honolulu. We'll see if the weather cooperates.
This is a 60-question, computer-delivered, multiple choice test on the full range of private pilot subject matter. A score of 70% is technically a "pass", but any missed questions are likely to be "explored in depth" by the examiner during the "practical test" (aka checkride) later on.
I drove up to Tacoma Narrows (KTIW), the nearest testing center to home. After the staff at Pavco (the KITW FBO and test provider) resolved a few technical difficulties with the exam workstation, I finished the test and got 59/60 correct. Certainly a score I can live with!
Hope to go flying next weekend with Joel in between trips to DC and Honolulu. We'll see if the weather cooperates.
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