Day 15: Another Cross-Country

     Lately I have not been learning anything new, but I have been practicing what I already know, and chipping away at the hours I need. If the weather cooperates, I should have all the required hours completed tomorrow. After that I will have to pass a stage check with another instructor and a checkride with an FAA examiner, and if I pass both of those, I will be a private pilot.
     This morning I flew around the practice area for a little over an hour to get some more solo time. The sky was clear, and the air was smooth, which made it quite an enjoyable flight. A low fog was hanging over the Ohio River below, and it would have made a beautiful picture in the sunrise.
     In the afternoon I flew down to Morehead-Rowan County airport in Morehead, Kentucky to get the last solo cross-country hours I needed. Some growing cumulus clouds kept me below my planned altitude for the first 15 minutes, then I flew out from under them to a mostly clear sky. There were some thunderstorms beginning to build in the vicinity, so there was moderate turbulence most of the way down and back.
     The aircraft I flew was equipped with a Garmin GNS430 GPS. I have always been fascinated with the 430, so I really enjoyed getting to use it and explore all its functions. For such a small unit, it can do a lot of things. Not only is it used for navigation, but it also contains the aircraft's primary radio.

     When I completed the round trip, I still had some time to burn, so I practiced a few landings at Clermont County before parking the plane. The lineman directed me to an open parking spot, and as soon as the propeller was stopped, he pushed the aircraft back into the spot before I even had a chance to get out. 
     Today's flying added 3.4 hours and 6 landings to the logbook, which brings the totals to 37.9 hours and 107 landings.

Day 14: Cross-Country Solo

     I was only scheduled for one four-hour block today, and none of that was instruction time. I spent the morning finishing up the flight plan for a flight to Fleming-Mason to Huntington, West Virginia and back to Clermont. At 2 pm, I was at the airport. Matt double-checked the fuel and oil, then sent me off. Unfortunately, I could not get the engine to start, so Matt hopped in and somehow got it running.
     The flight to Fleming-Mason is only about half an hour, and after landing, I taxied back around to take off again, admiring an old F-4 on the ramp as I passed. Huntington was farther away, and once in level flight, I began setting up the radios with their ATC frequencies.
     About 20 nm out, I contacted Huntington Approach control and requested permission to land. The controller gave me a transponder code so he could see me on his screen, then handed me off to the tower controller. Huntington is apparently not very busy, because he cleared me to land when I was still 13 miles away in the opposite direction of landing. After landing, I requested two more full stop landings and then a departure back to Clermont. He cleared me for two more landings, and on one landing, I had to wait to land so a small airliner could depart. The final landing at Huntington marked my 100th landing.
     When I was ready to leave the area, the controller gave me another squawk code for the transponder, and cleared me for takeoff. It was the longest leg of the trip back to Clermont, and Huntington Departure control gave me flight following, as well as Indianapolis Center and Cincinnati Approach. Flight following is when ATC stays in contact with you and tells you when other traffic is close by. I flew northwest alongside the Buckeye Military Operations Area back to Clermont, where I landed and parked the plane after nearly three hours of flight time.
     Today's flying added 2.9 hours and 5 landings to the logbook, which brings the totals to 34.5 hours and 101 landings.

First Solo Video

Day 13: First Solo

 

     I woke up this morning to a text message from Matt asking if I had my student pilot certificate. I said yes, and he told me not to wear my best shirt today. I put on my dear old blue shirt that has been with me through thick and thin over the past few years and drove to the airport.

     We boarded N9545F and took off. We made two landings and after the second one Matt told me to park on the ramp. I shut down the engine, and Matt mounted a camera in the cockpit. 

     When he finished, he said, "Give me three takeoffs and three landings," and began walking away.

     "Roger that!" I replied, and hopped in.

     "If you need anything, I'll be inside on the handheld radio."

     I started up and taxiied to runway 4. After completing the run-up, I took off, flew a circle around the traffic pattern, and landed. After taxiing back to the runway, I did another 2 takeoffs and landings, then parked the plane. Matt and a lineman were waiting on the ramp, and they pushed me back into the parking spot while I took off the seatbelt and put away my headset.

     I hopped out, and Matt said, "Congrats, man!"

     "Thanks!" I replied.

     The lineman took a picture of us in front of the plane, then we walked inside the terminal. As I stepped through the automatic door, I was greeted by a round of applause from a crowd of people from Sporty's. One by one they all shook my hand and congratulated me. Then Matt; Paul Jurgens, Vice President of Sporty's Academy and Chief Instructor; Charlie Masters, Flight School Manager; and I went into the Eastern Cincinnati Aviation office where Matt cut off my shirt tail and presented me with a solo certificate. Paul Jurgens gave me a challenge coin and explained the story behind the traditional cutting of the shirt tail.

     Years ago, before the days of headsets and cockpit intercoms, many pilots learned to fly in tandem cockpit airplanes, with the instructor sitting behind the student. The instructor would have to yell to communicate with his student, and to get his attention, the instructor would yank on the student's shirt tail. Upon completion of the student's first solo, the instructor would cut off the student's shirt tail as a symbol showing that he no longer needed to be pulling on it. Even though we now wear headsets and can hear each other in the cockpit, the tradition is still practiced to this day.

     Then Mr. Jurgens gave me a Sporty's Academy T-shirt to wear instead of the one that was cut and welcomed me to the Pilot in Command club.

     At 4 pm, Matt had the plane scheduled again, and he said I could go by myself and knock out some solo hours. I asked if I was supposed to practice any maneuvers, and he replied, "You can do whatever you want! You can go out to the practice area, you can stay in the pattern, you can fly down to Fleming-Mason. Or you can just fly around. Whatever you want to do."

     That was cool to hear! I decided to fly down to Morehead, Kentucky again, but some thunderstorms popped up on the route at the last minute, so I just flew around the practice area for a little over an hour. Then I came back to the airport and made a several landings before parking again.

     The third and final flight of the day was with Matt again. We got all but 0.3 hours of the required simulated instrument time done and also finished all the night hours.

     Today's flying added 4.2 hours and 13 landings to the logbook, which brings the totals to 31.6 hours and 96 landings.

Austin Miller soloed in a single-engine aircraft on August 29, 2016. This was Austin's first flight as a student pilot without his instructor in the aircraft. Austin, a resident of Michigan, is studying to obtain his Private pilot certificate with Sporty's Academy at the Clermont County Airport in Batavia, Ohio. A video of his flight is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgjRQ1tPYYA. Austin is pictured with his instructor, Matt Safriet. #Congratulations #FirstSolo

A photo posted by Sporty's Academy (@sportysacademy) on Aug 30, 2016 at 7:17am PDT

Day 12: Stage Check

     As I was getting ready to leave the hotel for the first block today, I suddenly remembered I had forgotten to check the weather. I no longer had time to do a complete and thorough self-briefing, so I just listened to the airport weather broadcast to see what the current conditions were. They looked just good enough to go out to the practice area.
     I met up with Matt in Sporty's Cafe as usual, and we watched a nice looking TBM depart before deciding what to do.
     "What do you think about the weather?" Matt asked.
     "I forgot to check the weather, so I just listened to the AWOS. The clouds are scattered at 4,000, so we could go out to the practice area."
     "What else?"
     "Well, the air appears to be unstable," I said, noting the towering cumulus clouds.
     "I agree with that statement. What else can you tell me?"
     "That means we could expect some thunderstorms later on."
     "I agree with that statement. Anything else?"
     "Ummm..."
     Matt grinned. "You're not catching on to my hints, are you?
     I shook my head. He pulled out his iPhone and showed me the weather radar. There was a decently large thunderstorm system headed our way, and not very far out.
     "Oh! I see," I said.
     "So, we can either stay in the pattern and practice landings or we can go out to the practice area and do a few maneuvers and hightail it back here before it rains."
     "Yeah, let's do that."
     We took off and practiced some stalls and slow flight in the practice area. Soon we could see an area of rainfall in the distance, slowly creeping toward the airport.
     "Let's head to the airport, and maybe we'll have time for one more stall on the way back," Matt said.
     I nodded and keyed the radio, "Clermont practice area, one uniform charlie is over East Fork Lake at three thousand feet, northbound back to india six niner."
     It quickly became obvious that we did not have enough time for another stall, so we headed straight for the airport at 135 mph. We landed and just as we were parking it began to rain. We tied down the aircraft and went inside to wait it out. It continued to rain for several hours, right up to the time of my stage check.
     A stage check is when a different instructor goes up with you and instead of teaching, grades you on how well you learned the maneuvers and how safe you are. Since there was still rain in the area, Tim, the other instructor, said to skip the maneuvers and just do three landings.
     "I'm not looking at how smoothly you land or how your traffic pattern looks, I'm just looking to see if you're safe enough to send out on a solo," he said. "You just fly the plane and pretend I'm not here, because that's how it will be when you're flying solo."
     I did just that, and made two of the smoothest landings I have ever done. On the third time around, we were up in the pattern, and he pulled the throttle out to simulate an engine failure. I got the plane set up for the best glide distance and asked if he wanted me to go through the engine restart procedure. He declined, so I glided to another relatively smooth landing. Tim was impressed, and I got a good score on the stage check. With that passed, now I just need to get my student pilot certificate in my hands, and I can knock out the 10 hours of solo flight I need.
     Today's flying added 1.4 hours and 4 greased landings to the logbook, which brings the totals to 27.4 hours and 83 landings.

Day 11: VORs and Visitors

     This morning Matt said it was time to learn how to do a diversion so when something happens that keeps us from making it to the destination, such as bad weather or a passenger having a medical emergency, I'll know what to do.
     We started off using the same flight plan we flew earlier down to Fleming Mason. Part way there, Matt told me I needed to divert to Wilmington. He showed me how to go through several steps to find the proper direction to the airport, make sure we had enough fuel, et cetera. After everything was under control, and we were established on course to Wilmington, the time was almost up for our flight, so we returned to Clermont County.
     The next flight was at 2 pm, and we started off with more hood time. After several turns, climbs, and descents, he had me track to a VOR at the same time, which added another instrument to watch. We tracked several different VORs, then Matt said, "Take off your foggles."
     When I did, he pulled the throttle to idle, and said, "You know what time it is."
     I began looking for a suitable emergency landing site. Matt gave me a hint, "Check your seven-o-clock."
     I did, and there was Brown County airport. Turning the plane around, I began going through the checklist to restart the engine. Since the engine "didn't start," I set up to land at Brown County. I tried to judge my descent so that I would glide right to the runway. I did not want to be too high, or we would go off the end of the runway, and I did not want to be too low, or we would end up in the trees just before the runway. Of course, Matt would push the throttle in if it appeared we were going to do something like that. I lined up with the runway and glided about 40 feet above the tree tops before the runway, and set the wheels on the ground about half way down the runway, which left plenty of room for stopping. We took off again and made three short field landings before returning to Clermont.
     I was hoping debriefing would not take too long, because Galen, Dad, and Alex were already in the air in Galen's Mooney, on their way down from Sturgis to have supper with me in Batavia. I executed a soft field landing on runway 22, and rolled clear of the runway.
     "Clermont traffic, Skyhawk seven echo sierra is clear of two two, Clermont," I announced on the radio.
     I continued taxiing toward the ramp, and I heard a familiar voice on the radio.
     "What are the winds like there at Clermont, Austin?" It was Galen.
     "Winds are calm," I replied.
     "Alright, we're diverting around this storm. We'll be there soon."
     "Roger."
     We parked and secured the aircraft and began debriefing, and I kept watching out the window. Soon I saw the gray and blue Mooney taxi up to the ramp. As soon as debriefing was over, I walked out on the ramp to meet them. The linemen parked the plane, and we hopped in my car and went to a restaurant for supper. They were not able to stay very long, because some storms were encroaching on their planned route home, but I really appreciated the visit while it lasted.

     Today's flying added 2.7 hours and 7 landings to the logbook, which brings the totals to 26.0 hours and 79 landings.

Day 10: Landings

     I was scheduled for two two-hour blocks today, but we cancelled one because Matt says it's not worth going out to practice things I already can do well enough to pass the stage check. On the drive to the airport, I listened to the weather broadcast which reported an overcast layer of clouds at 1,900 feet. That is too low to fly out to the practice area, but still high enough to stay in the traffic pattern at the airport and practice landings. So that is what we did for a little over an hour.
     The wind was straight down the runway at 10 knots, at times gusting to 14 knots, so it was a challenge to bring the plane down smoothly. Out of 10 landings, only 2 were what I would call a smooth landing. One of the approaches was going well considering the windiness, until we descended below the tree tops. Then the wind suddenly almost stopped, and we sank like a rock toward the runway.
     "Add power!" Matt said.
     I pushed the throttle in part way, then decided not to salvage the landing, so I jammed the throttle all the way in and climbed out.
     On another approach we encountered some wind shear as we passed through an area where the winds were blowing different directions. The approach was proceeding normally, when suddenly we appeared to be lower than necessary. I added power to compensate; however we began sinking even faster. I kept adding more and more power until we reached a normal descent rate. It was a bit disconcerting to sink that fast, and now I was using way more power than normal. After a few seconds of flying like this, we must have left that area of sinking air because we began climbing. I pulled the throttle back out, and ended up leaving it on idle for the rest of the landing.
     It was a very challenging day to fly, but it was good to get experience in those conditions. If flying in challenging conditions has taught me one thing, it is that sticking my hand out the window will dry the sweat off my palm.
     Today's flying added 1.3 hours and 10 landings to the logbook, which brings the totals to 22.3 hours and 72 landings.

Day 9: Hood Time

     This morning I flew with a different instructor, Nathan. He was very easy to get along with, and it was a very relaxed atmosphere during the flight. The objective for this lesson was to learn basic instrument flying. With the license I am training for, I will not be certified to fly solely by reference to the instruments, but students are taught the basics so we can fly out of any bad weather we my inadvertently enter.
     Obviously to practice flying by the instruments I should not be able to see outside the aircraft, or that could become my focus instead of the instruments. The solution to this is to wear "foggles." Foggles are glasses that are not transparent except for a small area on the bottom of the lens. That way all I can see are the instruments in front of me. Flying while wearing these is sometimes called flying under the hood.
     Nathan had me do some climbs, descents, and turns. These were actually easier than I expected which I assume is due to the the time I spent on the flight simulator at home. On the flight simulator, you are getting most of your information from your vision. In other words, you cannot feel what the aircraft is doing; you can only see it on the screen. When it came to instrument flying, I approached it in the same way, trusting what my eyes were seeing on the gauges and mostly ignoring the movement I could feel.
     The next flight was with Matt, and I chose to put the foggles on again. After some more climbs, turns, and descents, it was time to learn how to recover from unusual attitudes. Matt took control of the aircraft, and I looked down and closed my eyes. He flew some maneuvers do get me disoriented, then put the plane in a deteriorating situation. Then he would tell me to look up, and I had to get the plane back to straight and level flight using only the instruments. Once the nose was pointed up, the engine was idling, and the aircraft was turning. Another time, the wings were banked way to the left, the nose was pointed down, the engine was at full power, and the airspeed was rapidly approaching the maximum speed the airframe could handle. We did several of these recoveries, and it became almost like a game, trying to get the airplane back under control as quickly as possible.
     Today's flying added 2.5 hours and 6 landings to the logbook, which brings the totals to 22.0 hours and 62 landings. 40 hours are required before taking the test, which means that today I passed the halfway point.

Day 8: Talking to ATC

     "Do you want to fly over to Lunken today?" Matt asked me when I arrived for the first lesson today.
     "Sure!" I replied.
     Lunken airport is a mid-size airport on the east side of Cincinnati. It has 3 runways and handles many private jets and smaller aircraft. The thing that makes this airport different from Clermont County airport where I normally fly, is that it has a control tower. Rather than announcing our position on the radio, we have to ask the air traffic controller for instructions.
     We took off in N377ES and headed direct to Lunken. Once clear of the Clermont County airport area, I switched the radio over to the tower frequency. Matt and I had practiced what to say to the controller earlier, so I keyed the mic and went for it.
     "Lunken tower, Skyhawk three-seven-seven echo sierra is just off Clermont County inbound for landing, information Bravo."
     ATC replied, "November three-seven-seven echo sierra, Lunken tower, report a left base runway two-one left."
     "Report a left base two-one left, seven echo sierra."
     We entered the traffic pattern and set up for landing. Once we began the turn toward the runway, I gave tower a call, "Seven echo sierra is on a left base for two-one left."
     "November three-seven-seven echo sierra, runway two-one left cleared to land."
     "Cleared to land two-one left, seven echo sierra."
     We landed and with ATC's permission, taxied around the airport to take off again. We took off and did one more touch and go before flying back to Clermont County. Clermont was the busiest I've ever seen it with about 4 other planes lining up to land. In fact, one plane had to go around the pattern three times, because the aircraft ahead of them was still on the runway each time they tried to land.
     Matt told me to do a short field landing, so I set up for it. About a half a mile from the runway, we were still quite high, and I could tell I would have a hard time touching down in time. I asked Matt if it was ok if I aborted the landing.
     "A go-around is always fine with me," he replied.
     I applied full power and started climbing. After going around the traffic pattern again, I managed to execute a short field landing.
     That concluded the first lesson, and the afternoon was spent making a flight plan for a night cross-country flight. Then at 8 pm, we got in N121UC and took off into the twilight. The plan was to use landmarks to guide us to Richmond, IN. Once airborne, I called Dayton Flight Service Station on the radio to open the flight plan I filed with them earlier over the phone. Once our flight plan was activated, I called Cincinnati Approach control for permission to fly through their airspace on the way. They cleared us in, and I started looking for the first landmark I had written down. We were over eastern Cincinnati, and below us was a sea of lights. I scanned all over looking for the airport beacon that was supposed to be off the left wing. For several minutes I was unable to locate it among the thousands of other lights glimmering on the ground.
     Matt asked, "At what point do you want to abandon your landmarks and use the navaids?"
     "Right about now," I said.
     Matt dialed the proper numbers into the navigation radio, and I began following the indicator. We used the navaids for the rest of the trip, and I learned that finding landmarks is much more difficult at night than in daylight. However, as Matt told me, "We are never lost, we're just unsure of our position."
     After landing at Richmond and taking off again, we headed back south toward Clermont. I gave Columbus Approach a call.

     We leveled off at 3,500 ft. and continued on our route. Soon the Columbus controller handed us off to Cincinnati Approach.

     Clermont County airport was deserted, except for the security guard who drives around in his little patrol car all night and shines his headlights in our eyes while we are landing. We set it down uneventfully at 10:10 pm, tied down the aircraft, and called it a day.
     I know I've already said it, but flying at night is incredibly beautiful. Tonight it was especially so. Because tonight while buzzing along over southwestern Ohio, it suddenly hit me, that this is all reality, that I am finally earning a pilot's license, chasing after a dream God planted in me when I was younger. As I gazed out at the city lights reflecting off the cowl of the plane, ATC talking in my headset, I felt a deep sense of satisfaction knowing that I am doing God's will.
     Today's flying added 2.5 hours and 6 landings to the logbook, which brings the totals to 19.5 hours and 56 landings.