MS Flight Sim - NDB RWY 8R KSUS

I practiced the NDB RWY 8R on my MS Flight Sim tonight.
Here are the steps I took:

1. Departed from 3SQ direct to FTZ VOR.

2. Arrived at the hold heading 240 degrees and made a teardrop entry.

3. Crossed over the FTZ VOR and continued heading 240.

4. Started time for one minute and flew outbound.

5. At one minute, turned right for 100 degrees heading and centering my VOR needle.

6. Once returned to the FTZ VOR, turned right for 280 outbound for one minute.

7. At one minute, turned right for 100 degrees heading and centering my VOR needle.

8. Descended to 2400 ft, twisted #2 NAV to 128 FROM 110.8 FTZ for lead in radial to approach.

9. Once returned to the FTZ VOR, turned right to 128 FROM FTZ centering the VOR needle.

10. Twisted #1 NAV to 076 for inbound course heading.

11. Twisted ADF to 128 heading.

12. At 6.4 nm from 110.8 FTZ VOR and ADF needle pointed to 076, turned left to 076.

13. Twisted ADF needle to 076 and flew the needle inbound 076.

14. The entire time I had the NDB volume turned up in order to hear the code.

15. Once the LOM SNOOP alarmed, descended to minimum of 1200 ft and began timing for 3:28 which was the MAP.

16. Rather than completing a missed, I decided to make a full stop as I was cleared for the option. Plus, I was ready to call it a night.

DME ARCs and HOLDS

DME ARCs are "The track over the ground of an aircraft flying at a constant distance from a navigational aid by reference to distance measuring equipment.", and HOLDING FIXES are "A specified fix identifiable to a pilot by NAVAIDs or visual reference to the ground used as a reference point in establishing and maintaining the position of an aircraft while holding.", according to Rod Machado's Instrument Pilot's Handbook. On 8/18/08, I practiced flying a DME ARC and 2 HOLDS:

1. Fly the 16 DME ARC from 330 degree radial FROM STL VOR to track outbound on the 270 degree radial.

2. Hold West at 20 DME on the 270 degree radial from STL VOR standard turns (right).

3. Hold East at 7 DME on the 270 degree radial from the STL VOR non-standard turns (left).

Since I didn't have a DME (distance measuring equipment) in the plane, I used the GPS TO STL VOR 117.4 which listed the distance from the STL VOR.

Here are the steps I took in order to complete the DME ARCs and HOLDS:

Set up and flying to the DME ARC

Comm 1 tune 123.0 for 3SQ
Comm 2 tune 123.0 for 3SQ

NAV 1 tune 117.4 twist FROM STL 270 (once the DME is completed, this was to be the outbound 270)
NAV 2 tune 117.4 twist FROM STL 330 (this was the outbound to intercept the 16 DME ARC)

Departed 270 and fly runway heading until reaching 1100 ft.

Turned right crosswind heading 360 which happened to be a 30 degree intercept for the 330 radial.

Made positive transfer of controls by stating, "you've got the controls", the instructor in return stated, "I've got the controls", followed by my stating, "you've got the controls". At this point I was free to apply my foggles (view limiting device). When placed correctly, all I could see were the instruments, thus, instrument flying as if I were in the clouds.

Once the foggles were in place, I took back the controls by stating, "I've got the controls", the instructor in return stated, "you've got the controls", followed by my stating, "I've got the controls". The instructor was my eyes for traffic and/or obstacles.

I was instructed to climb to 1500 ft and continue heading 360 watching the NAV 2 to start centering on the 330 radial.

Identified NAV 1 and NAV 2 for their morse codes.

Once the NAV 2 needle came close to centering, I turned left to intercept the 330 degree radial and flew outbound.

Once I reached the 15.5 DME, I turned left 90 degrees (heading 240) to intercept the 16 DME ARC.

Flying the DME ARC
Twist NAV 2 from 330 to 320 and continued to fly heading 240. Minor adjustments were made in heading keeping the DME distance as close to 16 nm as I could. The goal was to stay within one nm of either side of 16 nm.

Once NAV 2 centered, twisted 320 to 310 and turn 10 degrees left heading 230.
Once NAV 2 centered, twisted 310 to 300 and turn 10 degrees left heading 220.
Once NAV 2 centered, twisted 300 to 290 and turn 10 degrees left heading 210.
Once NAV 2 centered, twisted 290 to 280 and turn 10 degrees left heading 200.
Once NAV 2 centered, twisted 280 to 270 and turn 10 degrees left heading 190.

Just before the NAV 1 (270 FROM) centered, turned right to intercept outbound 270 degree radial.

Set NAV 2 to 090 TO STL for the "hold" to follow.

Hold West at 20 DME on the 270 degree radial from STL VOR standard turns (right).

NAV 1 was already set at 270 degree radial FROM STL VOR (this was to be the outbound)
NAV 2 was set to 090 TO STL VOR for the inbound 20 DME.

Since I was at the completion of the 16 DME ARC heading 270 and needed to hold at the 20 DME (West), I needed to continue flying West.

My hold entry was a parallel entry, so, I needed to turn around.

At 20 DME, I continued on the 270 degree radial for 1 min.

At 1 minute I turned left 210 degrees (180 degrees + 30) to 060 which set me up for a 30 degree intercept to 90 degrees TO STL.

Once the NAV 2 started coming in, I turned right TO 090 to center the needle. At this point, I was turned around and flying inbound to the 20 DME.

Once at 20 DME, I simulated a call to approach and stated, "N#, established in the hold", turned right 180 degrees heading 270 outbound. When at 20 DME, started my time for 1 minute for the outbound leg.

At 1 minute, turned right 180 degrees heading 090 TO inbound and remained on the 270 degree radial.

Once reaching the 20 DME, I continued inbound to the 7 DME for the next hold.

Hold East at the 7 DME on the 270 degree radial FROM STL non-standard turns (left).

NAV 1 270 FROM STL remained the same which was my inbound to the fix 7 DME
NAV 2 090 TO STL remained the same which was my outbound FROM the fix 7 DME

Since I was to hold East of 7DME and I was coming from the WEST, I needed to turn around, so, my entry was to be a parallel entry.

Once I reached 7 DME, I continued for 1 minute 090 TO.

At 1 minute turned right 210 degrees (180 + 30) for a 300 degree heading.

As NAV 1 270 FROM began to center, turned left to intercept the 270 degree radial heading 270 to 7 DME.

Once at 7 DME, turned left (non-standard turn) heading 090 which was outbound.

Started my time at 7 DME/level wings.

Simulated a call to approach, "St. Louis approach, N# established in the hold."

At 1 minute I turned 180 degrees left heading 270 inbound to 7 DME.

Once reaching 7 DME, I was exhausted and made a 180 to head back to 3SQ.

Approaches on my own..... wooo hooo

Monday, June 2nd was the first time experiencing practice approaches without an instructor!!! (no foggles used, of course) I considered it a big milestone for me to set my instruments, communicate with Air Traffic Control (ATC) and fly 3 different types of approaches without any assistance. If I didn't understand any part of ATC's directions, I knew to repeat what I understood and to say "say again altitude" (for example) if I needed to. I didn't need any directions repeated though.... I felt good about that..... It also helped me to talk out loud when getting weather, checking frequencies, briefing the approaches, watching the needles come in, etc. or making any type of corrections during the approaches.

I took off from 3SQ, intercepted the 031 radial remaining under Class B airspace at the altitude 1500 ft. The weather "Lima" was obtained from ATIS at 128.0, then St. Louis Approach contacted on 124.2 as I flew over KSET and then the Mississippi River seen in the picture. At that point I ascended to ~2300 feet which still kept me under the Class B airspace surrounding KSTL (St. Louis International Airport).

My request was to practice the BC LOC 11 (back course localizer) and the ILS 29 (instrument landing system) at KALN (Alton, Illinois or St. Louis Regional Airport). The BC LOC 11 is tricky because the LOC needle moves in the opposite direction (opposite of ILS 29 using the same frequency and runway just opposite ends, thus, back course). So, when the needle moved to my right, I had to make corrections to my left to pull the needle to the center. When the needle moved to my left, I had to make corrections to my right to pull the needle to the center.

Next, I was vectored to the opposite end of 11 which was the ILS 29. The localizer frequency I-ALN 108.5 was the same, however, a completely different approach plate was used called ILS or LOC RWY 29. It is a precision approach meaning the glide slope is available giving not only vertical guidance, but, horizontal guidance as well.

Now with the ILS 29, when the needle moved to the right, I had to make corrections to the right as if I was trying to "get back to the road". When the needle moved to the left, I had to make corrections to the left. At the same time I had to follow the horizontal needle (glide slope which gives the vertical guidance). If it moved up above center, I had to make corrections by lifting the nose a tad or discontinuing the descent for a bit until it centered. Or, when the needle moved below center, I had to make corrections by lowering the nose a tad or increasing my descent.

As you can see in the picture, I was just above the glide slope that was leading me vertically to the runway. My adjustments at that time was to lower the nose slightly which centered the needle.

Last, I received vectors to KSET (St. Charles County Airport) to complete the VOR RWY 18 which was back over the Mississippi. Flying a VOR approach is similar to flying to a VOR, but, you descend to the runway while keeping the VOR needle centered. Picture the instrument above without the glide slope. (horizontal needle which gave the vertical guidance). Once the approach was completed, it was time to head back to "home sweet home", 3SQ.

After all of my flights I jot down things I need to work on. Identifying NAVAIDS is one very important item sometimes missed. Also, I use my checklist for pre-flight, run-up and taking off..... but then I slip it under my leg and it's not referred to until after I land to "clean up". And last, GMC or Gas on/Mixture rich/Carb Heat on is missed during approaches, but, used when I actually land somewhere.

In summary, I practiced approaches on my own!!!!....... wooo hoooooooo

NDB RWY 8R Approach Practice at KSUS

On 5/19/08 I flew from 3SQ to KSUS to practice the NDB RWY 8R approach. Before I list the steps I took to complete it, I'd like to list various notes regarding NDBs.

1. Homing: Tracking to an NDB by keeping the ADF needle centered at the top of the display will take you directly to the NDB. Getting to the NDB in this case is not by tracking any specific course.

2. To intercept and track magnetic bearings directly to and from an NDB (as in the KSUS NDB RWY 8R approach) :

a. turn to inbound course heading 256
b. ADF needle is pointing to the nose of the display while heading 256

3. To know your tracking directly along the 256 degree radial:

a. when heading 256, ADF needle is pointing to right, then you're parallel and right of course
b. when heading 256, ADF needle is pointing to left, then you're parallel and left of course

4. Making corrections to get back on course you must double your corrections with wind/no wind situations:

Example for TO the NDB
a. If head of ADF needle is 20 degrees left, turn 40 degrees left.
b. When needle head is to the right 40 degrees from where it was off, you're back on course.
c. Turn back to course heading, 256

Example for FROM the NDB
a. If tail of ADF needle is 20 degrees left, turn 40 degrees right.
b. When needle tail is to the right 40 degrees from where it was off, you're back on course.
c. Turn back to course heading, 256

OR to simplify things for the FROM...Look at the head of the needle (points at tail once flown over the NDB)and make corrections the same as TO.

5. Interpolate winds on ground and at 3000 ft for approaches. Adjust approach time accordingly. For this approach I added ~12 seconds for the winds increasing my time from FAF to MAP from 3:28 to 3:40.

Flying the NDB RWY 8R approach at KSUS
Preflight Complete
Up to Takeoff
-Set Altimeter to reported Alt or airport elevation
-Set DG before and after starting the engine
-Master switch and avionics on
Comm 1 123.0 CTAF 3SQ
Comm 1 126.5 STL approach in standby position
Comm 2 134.8 ATIS
Comm 2 124.75 Spirit Tower in standby position
ADF to 326
DME to 117.4 if have one in plane
-Avionics/Master Switch off - Start engine

Me: St. Charles Muni Traffic, N# ramp to 09
-Complete Run-up at holding position for 09
-TILT completed: Time, Instruments Set, Lights on for takeoff, Transponder to ALT

Me: St. Charles Muni Traffic, N# departing 09 Southwest
-Back taxi 09, turn to position and takeoff.

Flight
-At 800 turn L crosswind, then L downwind, depart pattern heading 240 and climb to 1500 ft to remain under Class B.
-Listen to ATIS by pressing Comm 2 receiving button
-toggle Comm 1 and Comm 2 frequencies to 126.5 STL approach and 124.75 Tower

Me: St. Louis Approach N#

ATC: N# go ahead

Me: N#, at 1500 for 2400 5 miles NE, request practice approach NDB RWY 8R at Spirit w/info Alpha

ATC: N# squawk 0234 & ident

Me: N# 0234 (tune in 0234 & press the ident button)
-At that point I climbed to 2400, making heading changes as received from St. Louis Approach.
-ID'd NDB by pushing ADF button and turning up volume keeping loud enough to hear it throughout the approach making sure it continued to work.

ATC: Cleared for KSUS NDB 8R approach, contact tower on 124.75

Me: Cleared for KSUS NDB 8R, tower 124.75
-Once on ~30 degree intercept, dial ADF to current heading. When ADF needle points to inbound course 076 at nose, turn to that heading and redial ADF to 076.
-Watched head of needle. When 10 degrees to left, doubled it and turned 20 degrees left. When head of needle moved 20 degrees right from where it was, turned back to inbound course 076.

Me: Spirit Tower, N# outside SNOOP

Tower: N#, Report SNOOP

Me: N#, Report SNOOP
-Continued to make adjustments in heading as needed, keeping on course
-Observed ADF needle flipped to point behind me

Me: N#, at SNOOP
-Turn, Tune, Time, Throttle, Talk & GMC (Gas on, Mixture rich, Carb heat on) : There weren't any turns or tuning at this time, I started my time, pulled the throttle to 1500 RPMs/90 Kts for approach speed, decending at 500 fpm to 1200 ft MDA.

Tower: On missed, turn left heading 080

Me: On missed, Left for 080, N#
-At 1200 ft, leveled off, waited out the time to adjusted time of 3:40
-Missed by full throttle/carb heat off, runway heading 080 to 1500

Me: Spirit Tower, N# missed

At this point, I was vectored for the same approach for the second time, cleared for the option which allowed me to complete a "touch and go" and then headed back to 3SQ. I logged 1.1 flight hours during this flight.

Cross-Country to Fort Smith Arkansas (KFSM)

On Saturday, May 3, I went on a Cross-Country flight from 3SQ (St. Charles Municipal Airport) to KFSM (Fort Smith Regional Airport). The first leg to M48 (Houston Memorial Airport) was 114.6 nm. It was cheaper to fill up with fuel at M48 than at KFSM. The airstrip had just been extended to 3500 ft. on grounds that used to be a golf course and they plan to add a VASI (Visual Approach Slope Indicator) or PAPI (Precision Approach Path Indicator) lighting in the near future. I could hear cows in the pastures nearby. It was a nice little friendly airport. The second leg was from M48 to KFSM stretching 166.4 nm. Both legs were during the day and in VFR conditions. Flight Following was utilized during the entire trip, so, by the time I reached Fort Smith, I was already in contact with Razorback Approach on 120.9.

Razorback Approach vectored me to the ILS RWY 25 approach and handed me off to Fort Smith Tower on 118.3. After landing, we parked at the general aviation section of the airport called TAC AIR. There was a $10 parking fee and after 0300 Z there was a $35 "call in" fee. Another words, if we planned to take-off after 0300 Z, we had to call someone to open the doors to let us through the terminial to get to our plane, as the tower closes and becomes a non-controlled airport. That's what I ended up doing. I returned to 3SQ at night after 0300 Z. The return trip was non-stop stretching 280.4 nm. I completed the VOR RWY 09.

There were several tidbits of information on several different topics I jotted down about the trip, so, I'll just list them below.

Communications: When ATC comes over the radio and says "carrier", they are hearing someone click their mic as if they are saying something, however, all they hear is clicking. Check your headset "plug-ins" - one may be out of its port.

VOR's: (Very High Frequency Omnidirectional Range)
TO:
Dial in NAV frequency; ID it
Center needle
Fly whatever heading needed to keep the needle centered
From:
Dial in NAV frequency; ID it
Turn NAV/VOR to outbound course
Fly that course/radial adjusting for winds

Terminal Radar Service Area (TRSA):
According to the "Dictionary of Aeronautical Terms" compiled and edited by Dale Crane, a TRSA is Airspace surrounding designated airports in which ATC provides radar vectoring, sequencing, and separation on a full-time basis for all IFR and participating VFR aircraft. Service provided in a TRSA is called Stage III service. The Aeronautical Information Manual contains an explanation of TRSA, and TRSAs are depicted on VFR aeronautical charts. Pilot participation is urged, but not mandatory.

According to the Aeronautical Information Manual 2008, 3-5-6 b. TRSAs. The primary airport(s) within the TRSA become(s) Class D airspace. The remaining portion of the TRSA overlies other controlled airspace which is normally Class E airspace beginning at 700 or 1,200 feet and established to transition to/from the en route/terminal environment. d. Charts. TRSAs are depicted on VFR sectional and terminal area charts with a solid black line and altitudes for each segment. The Class D portion is charted with a blue segmented line.

Take a look at the sectional clip above and note the black line.

Cockpit Management:
-Carry a lighter flight bag. If it's that heavy, make sure you include it in your weight & balance.
-Charts: Only bring the ones needed; Sectionals-fold each one to beginning course; keep accessible.
-Flashlight: Use one which allows intensity to be changed for night.

Pilotage:
Night: choose checkpoints that can be see at night. (even if the lakes are huge... they won't be seen) Good examples are large cities, airports....... look at the "big picture".

2 Commercial Requirements met:
One cross-country flight of at least 2 hours in a single-engine airplane in day VFR conditions consisting of a total straight-line distance of more than 100 nauticle miles from the original point of departure: Met on 5/3/08, 3.5 hrs, Day VFR-114.6 nm 3SQ-->M48 and 166.4 nm M48-->FSM.

One cross-country flight of at least 2 hours in a single-engine airplane in night VFR conditions, consisting of a total straight-line distance of more than 100 nautical miles from the original point of departure: Met on 5/4, 2.8 hrs, Night VFR-280.4 nm FSM-->3SQ.

This trip was a great experience.

I Can Do It: Practice Approaches

When I'm ready to take the Instrument Checkride, the examiner will expect me to fly to another airport, complete approaches and fly us back to our departing airport without their assistance.

So, Thursday, May 1, that's just what I did. I flew to KSET, completed the VOR RWY 18 approach twice and flew back to our departure airport. For the first time I felt I could say "I can do this" after this flight.

Here's the process I went through:

Pre-flight Inspection Complete

Before Starting Engine
-Master Switch on
-Avionics on
-Com 1 123.0; departing airport frequency; set squelch & volume
-Com 2 118.075; KSET local weather (ASOS); set squelch & volume
-Nav 1 117.4 STL, dial 031 outbound radial, (once receive vectors, dial 208 for app crs)
-Nav 2 116.0 TOY, dial 303 intercepting radial & IAF BYRNS 10 DME from STL DME 117.4 STL, matching NAV #1
-Comms on phone (as opposed to overhead speaker)
-Avionics on phone (as opposed to overhead speaker)
-Master Switch off
-Set/Check Instruments:
Set Altimer to airport elevation of 442 or current pressure altitude
Set attitude indicator to white line
Set heading indicator to compass

Starting Engine
Once Engine started, Set/Check Instruments again:
Set Altimer to airport elevation of 442 or current pressure altitude
Set attitude indicator to white line
Set heading indicator to compass
Communications:
Me: St. Charles Muni Unicom, N# on ramp, taxi to 09 (set ailerons according to wind, watch correct turn coordinator/ skid/slip and attitude indications)

Before Takeoff Complete
Communications:
Me: St. Charles Muni Traffic, N# back taxi 09, St. Charles Muni (continue to set ailerons according to wind)

Takeoff
TILT check
T=Time: record time taking off
I=Check instruments: attitude indicator, heading indicator w/compass, oil temp/pres
L=Lights: on
T=Transponder: to ALT

Communications:
Me: St. Charles Muni Traffic, N# departing 09 North, St. Charles Muni (continue to set ailerons according to wind)

Enroute
-Head for STL VOR remaining under Class B airspace, to 1500 ft.
-Identify and listen to ASOS on 188.075 (comm #2): obtain weather
-Identify NAV #1 and NAV #2
-Tune Comm 1 to 124.2. STL Approach
-Brief the approach VOR RWY 18

Communications:
Me: STL Approach, N#
STL Appr: N# go ahead
Me: STL Appr, N# over St. Charles Co Airport, 1500 ft, climbing 2,300, request practice approaces VOR RWY 18 St. Charles County with ASOS (if listened to ATIS, will have weather identifier to give; ex: information Lima)
STL Appr: squawk 0246
Me: 0246, N#
STL Appr: N#, turn right 040, how many approaches and what is your request after approaches?
Me: right 040, 2 approaches, then return to 3SQ, N#

-Dial VOR #1 to appr crs 208

STL Appr: N#, turn left 330
Me: left 330, N#
STL Appr: N#, turn left 300
Me: left 300, N#
STL Appr: N#, turn left 270
Me: left 270, N#
STL Appr: N#, turn left 240 (~30 degree lead-in to approach course), cleared
straight-in VOR 18 at SET, join, maintain 2,300 until established, remain VFR
Me: left 240, cleared VOR 18 SET, join, N#

VOR RWY 18 Approach KSET
-Watch VOR #1 to start moving to center, complete T's:
Turn: to 208 adjusting for wind
Tune: check #1 NAV dialed for 208
Time: none yet

-GMC: check gas on, mixture rich, carb heat on

Throttle: 1500 rpms, 90 kts, descend 500 fpm for non-precision (700 for precision)
Talk: no need to talk yet

STL Appr: N#, on the missed, turn left 360, climb and maintain 2,300, change to advisory frequency approved
Me: Advisory approved, on the missed, turn left 360, climb and maintain 2,300, N#

-Prior to 2,300 and FAF, lift nose and add power simultaneously for 2,000 rpms/90 kts to remain at or just above 2,300.
-Watch NAV #2 center.
-Watch DME for 10.

-Tune Comm #2 to 122.7
Me: St. Charles County Traffic, N# on VOR RWY 18 approach, touch-n-go, St. Charles County

-When NAV #2 centered and DME at 10, complete T's:
Turn: no change
Tune: no change
Time: start timer, monitor for 3:20 min (MAP time) in case DME lost (adjust time for wind)
Throttle: 1500 rpms, 90 kts, descend 500 fpm to 1160 until DME at 6.7 NUPDE, then continue to 800, level off at 800, at 6.0 DME land if able or decide to miss. If unable to land, continue to 5.0 DME at 800, complete missed as instructed.
Talk: No communications needed here, as Appr didn't ask to report BYRNS

-Complete missed instructions (in my case didn't complete the entire missed as I was to obtain vectors to complete the approach the second time.
Me: St. Charles County Traffic, N# going missed VOR RWY 18

-Climb straight to 1,000, then climbing left turn to 2,700 via heading 360

-Tune 124.2 Appr
Me: STL Appr, N# heading 360, 1,500 climbing 2,700

At this point, STL Appr gave me vectors to begin the approach all over again instead of holding at FASHE at 19.4 DME.

Returned to 3SQ
After completing the VOR RWY 18 approach for the second time, Appr requested I squawk VFR (1200) advisory frequency change approved, and remain VFR. I flew back to my departure airport 3SQ and landed.

After this flight I truely felt I was making a great deal of progress. I knew what to dial in and where on the radios. I was at ease talking to approach. I stayed ahead of the airplane by planning my "next steps". It felt really good for a change. I look forward to taking along a "Safety Pilot" to practice approaches on my own.

Cross-Country to Jefferson City, MO (KFEF)

On Friday, April 25, I went on another cross-country (2.3 hrs) from 3SQ (St. Charles Muni) to KJEF (Jefferson City Memorial) Class D. I practiced instrument flight planning with flight following and flew the LOC RWY 30 approach at KJEF. On the return, I practiced the VOR RWY 09 at 3SQ.

Cross-Country to Minneapolis

On April 20th, I flew in a 172 from 3SQ (St. Charles Municipal) to KSGS (South St. Paul Fleming Airport just outside of Minneapolis, Minnesota). The entire trip was 8.7 cross-country hours. It required my using 4 charts with one of the sectionals front and back. (5 sides basically).

Here is how I was shown to complete the dreadful task of plotting the entire route on so many charts.

1. Locate a nearby VOR to the departure airport.

2. Place a piece of papers edge on the center of the VOR and over your course. In my case it was 159.

3. Draw a parallel line to the papers edge from the departure airport as far down the sectional as needed.

4. Line up the next sectional and use the overlapped spot as your starting point for your next line.

5. Repeat 1-4 up to the destination airport locating a VOR near the starting point for your next line.

I filed IFR, flew "VFR On Top" and experienced 1.3 hours of "actual" to Minneapolis with one stop at KBRL (Southeast Iowa Regional Airport). I filed and flew non-stop VFR returning to 3SQ.

The purpose of the trip was not only for my Instrument training, but, my brother was to obtain recurrency training in the CRJ Simulator. I had the pleasure of sitting in on all of his recurrency training. It consisted of a written and a "Walk-a-Round". That entailed looking at a slide presentation of the CRJ and identifying and discussing the purpose of items on the outside of the plane. After a lunch break at "Jimmy Johns", we returned for the last part of the training, a 3 hour CRJ Flight Simulator training. Again, I was able to "sim along". I could feel everything from running over the cracks while taxiing to taking off, steep turns, stalls, approaches, emergency landings and more. And, I could see everything out the window...... buildings, runway, lights, ground.

The next day I completed flight planning for our return home while my brother completed his checkride. He passed with flying sim colors.

Chart Tips from FAA Safety Meeting

I attended a FAA Safety Meeting a while back about charts and I jotted down some interesting tips:

• All visual charts have edition #'s. (Sectionals, WACs, TACs).


• On WACs, purple shaded areas are the TACs.


• TACs have 2 sides: #1: Navigation side with details in vairous colors; #2: Flyway Planning Chart depicts same as from without color, B airspace leaps out used for flight ops in and around Class B. A Flyway is a suggested way around large metropolitan areas, use driving rules - stay on right side

IFR Insights: Charts Online Course by AOPA

One of the many benefits of becoming a member of the AOPA is having access to the AOPA Air Safety Foundation. It offers online interactive courses that are excellent!

The most recent course I took online was: "IFR Insights: Charts- From departure procedures to instrument approaches, this course will get you up to speed on NACO and Jeppesen instrument charts and provide helpful tips for using them in the system."

It was supposed to take 60-90 minutes. For me, it took several hours as I like to take notes. There is a quiz at the end and a certificate is issued when completed.

Aeronautical Charts and Publications

Although purchasing charts can become very expensive, it's oh so important to have current charts when flying. Why?

According to: FAR 91.103 Preflight action:
"Each pilot in command shall, before beginning a flight, become familiar with all available information concerning that flight." Obtaining the needed information is found in Aeronautical Charts and Publications from NACO.

According to the National Aeronautical Charting Office (NACO):
"NACO charts and related products are continually updated to reflect current aeronautical, terrain and cultural information." The following table shows the average number of changes per product type per cycle:









Here is a nifty form listing all of the charts with their Current Edition Number and Dates/Next Edition Dates. I print and keep the .pdf's in my cross-country planning folder.

Cross-Country Flight to Memphis (MEM) from 3SQ

Flying to Memphis International Airport (MEM) was my first experience arriving at and departing from a Class B airport. It took 2.35 hours to get there (5.3 hrs logged total) in a 172 Cessna Skyhawk with 180 h.p. and winds. I wanted to visit the FBO called Wilson Air Center which was located near 27. So, the runway of choice to land was 27. Unfortunately, my choice was declined and I had to land on 18R. No problem..... I just had a nice little jaunt to taxi over to Wilson Air. If you need assistance getting to where you need to be, which I did, request "progressive taxi" and they'll give you directions a couple of steps at a time.

Wilson Air made us feel special. They parked my plane, added fuel to my specifications (no overnight fee with minimum 10 gal), provided a shuttle to Enterprise and more. When it came time to depart, a phone was provided designated for obtaining ground clearance. The other phone was designated for ATIS. I listened to ATIS and jotted down that I had information "kilo", as I needed that information when I called for clearance. My call to clearance delivery sounded like this: "Memphis Clearance, Skyhawk N# request clearance, northbound, 6,500 in 1/2 hour, kilo". They asked for a specific heading, so, I gave them 345. They came back with the clearance: "Cleared as filed, direct to 3SQ remaining VFR, climb and maintain 3000, squawk 1653, contact departure 124.65." Next, their clearance had to be read back. And last, I waited for them to state "readback correct". All of the "back and forth" requesting and repeating, etc. serves as a purpose, aircraft separation. If you'll notice, there are 4 runways that Air Traffic Controllers coordinate flights arriving and departing simultaneously. It's imperative pilots know exactly what the controllers want them to do and they do it, otherwise, things could get ugly. Once in the plane, I contacted ground stating I was ready to taxi to 27. We were cleared to taxi to position. Once in position, I contacted tower to let them know I was ready for takeoff to which they cleared us for takeoff and requested we contact departure control. Once in the air, departure control was contacted: "Departure Control, Skyhawk N# at 1,300 for 3,000." After a while, I was then instructed to contact Memphis Center. Throughout the flight, I was handed off to another Center as I forged ahead.

Communications has been mind boggling for me and what has helped and I still use is the COMM 1 Radio Simulator: IFR Pilot Communications Training on CD-ROM. It teaches how to use the radio, provides lessons using IFR scenarios, records and plays back interactive audio exercises and more. It allows talking to Approach, Departure, Center, and FSS when flying through controlled and uncontrolled airspace. I highly recommend this product if you're having troubles in this area of your training.

I look forward to making this trip again.

What's in your Flight Bag?

• Charts: VFR & IFR w/current date and time. (0901Z)
• E-6B Flight Computer: w/directions in case of brain freeze
• Plotter: VFR & IFR
• Log Book: Kept up to date after each flight
• Medical Certificate: Taped inside cover of logbook & current
• Fuel Gauge X 2 (152 & 172): beats having to guess
• Safety Kit: alcohol prep pads, pvp iodine prep pad, sting relief pad, antiseptic towelettes, lip ointment, non-aspirin tabs, bandages, gauze pads, cold pack, burn cream, antibacterial ointment (believe it or not- all this is nicely packed into a 3X4X2 case
• Headsets: I have a nice DC-X11 for myself and a Sigtronics and Flightcom for my passengers. I obtained the passenger headsets at a discount rate as they were used.
• CX-2 Pathfinder: This computer has zulu time too!
• Fuel Tester: On one end is a screwdriver and the opposite end a "push-in adapter" for recessed drains. During a preflight one day I noticed my "push-in adapter" was missing from my fuel tester right after I check the fuel in the nose of the plane. I thought maybe it fell off when I discarded the fuel...... so, I searched the grass for about 1/2 hour. Not sure what made me look, but, there it was stuck on the plane where I obtained my sample. If you loose your adapter, look where you last obtained your sample before searching the grass. You may save time.
• Pliers: I use these to loosen the oil cap, as someone before me always tightens it with brute force.
• Timer w/directions: It's so few and far between when I use the timer, I forget how to use it. So, I carry the directions.
• Yoke Clip: I carry it with intentions of using it, but, I always forget I have it.
• 2 Flashlights w/batteries: Batteries are checked prior to flight.
• Flashlight-solar windup: This flashlight requires winding every month. It's great because batteries are not needed. It serves as a great backup.
• Antibacterial waterless soap: Invariably, I get oil on my hands after checking the level.
• Paper towels in zip lock: Used for oil on hands to sweat on forehead.
• Highlighters: One end is a highlighter for maps, the other end erases the highlighter marks. They work great!
• Pens/Pencils: Can't have too many. I carry black for my logbook.
• Kneeboard: I use the VFR kneeboard because it's what I started out with. I'm not too sure I need the IFR board. It's nice to have a solid surface to write on and it's small enough.
• Sic Sac: As a precautionary measure.... never had to use one.
• Memo Notepad: For blank paper.
  
  

Facing Your Fears

Do you have a fear you have no intensions of facing? Imagine facing that fear and it ended up being one of the best things you’ve ever done in your life.

On Saturday, June 21st, I went to the Bowling Green Airport (KH19) in Missouri. I went with my son to spend a relaxing afternoon watching people parachute from a plane. The thought of being out there in the middle of farmland, the only sound to hear would be the faint hum of the airplanes off in the distance. I looked forward to the smells of freshly cut wheat and feeling the crisp cool breeze brush against my face. I looked forward to seeing the parachutes pop open, displaying their brilliant colors. They’ll soar through the sky as bird’s do, swooping in graceful circles, and finally, gliding to a smooth and precise landing.

It just so happened my brother had built up enough flying hours to earn a free jump. Since he was the pilot for the day, rather than jumping himself, he offered the free jump to me. I said, “OH NO! That’s OK, I’ll just watch… but thanks anyway”. My son tugged at my shirt tales saying, “Come On! Mom! It’s a chance of a lifetime! I’ll have a Cool Mom, I’ll buy you a Tee Shirt!”. I told him, “Absolutely not! And I’ll give you 3 goods reasons why not……I don’t want to die yet, It’s insane to jump from a perfectly good airplane…you’d have to PUSH me out. And……. Did I say, I don’t want to die yet???”.

Before I knew it, I was watching instructional video’s, signing papers (hmmm, signing a will, oh THAT’S encouraging!), and gearing up into mechanics overalls, paratrooper boots and motorcycle goggles. How lovely! No fashion statement there!

“What in the world did I get myself into?” I wanted to back out right then and there. The excuses start rolling in my head….”It’s getting late, I need to get home to make dinner.”, “I’m not sure I’m in good enough shape to handle the landing, I might sprain an ankle.”, “If I hurt myself, who would drive my son home?", “I didn’t bring a change of clothes, as I’m sure I’ll soil my pants.”……………or how about, “I’m just plain scared to DEATH!?" I knew using any of these excuses would be brushed off as silly. Thus, my instructions continued.

I went through the motions of jumping from the ground. As soon as we were to reach 10,000 feet, the door will be opened. I was then to pivot on my butt and place my feet out on a platform that measures a mere 8X8 inches. The instructor, being strapped to my back, will of course follow. Next, I was to let go of the plane, fall to my right, turn just enough to be falling backwards and give a little wave to the pilot, “As if to say, weee, look at me….I’m having fuuunnnnnn.” As soon as we were cleared from the plane, I was to arch my back to force us to flip over and then proceed to fall face first. The instructor will then reach over my shoulder from behind, pointing to a gauge strapped to me, which will tell me how high we will be. He’ll do that at 7,500 feet. That will be my cue to pull the ripcord. If I don’t pull it, he will.

The more I became familiar with the steps to take, the more at ease I was with the idea of jumping from a plane. I felt confident, trustworthy, assured, excited! “This won’t be so bad after all." “It’s pretty interesting and this guy seems really knowledgeable about what he’s doing…. I actually feel safe now." “Let’s go! Let’s do it!”

Next thing I knew, the instructor was strapped to my back and we’re sitting on the floor of the plane, in “Indian Style”. I can remember thinking to myself, How much higher do we have to go?, Why is this guy still tightening the straps that keep us connected, Is there something wrong with them? Won’t they stay tight?

WHOOSH!! The door opened! My thoughts...... "I’m going to die! The wind!…. Oh my Gosh! I’m looking at the ground…. It looks like a puzzle or a monopoly board. The platform….only looks like 4 inches. I can’t believe how windy it is. I’m trying to let go of the plane but my hands are glued to it. The instructor is peeling them off so we can move on."

We fell backwards as directed and waved to the pilot. The pilot had a grin on his face…..geez! what did that look mean? I arched my back to flip us over face first. We moved our arms to direct us left and right………ok, that’s nice, now when will we open the chute? The instructor reached over my shoulder, pointing at the gauge. I KNOW I KNOW we are thousands of feet high! Why does he keep pointing that out….I can hardly read the darn thing…it keeps flopping around from the wind, ………………… SWISH!!

Ahhhhhh….. the instructor pulled the ripcord. We jolted to a calm freefall. The wind was smooth and peaceful. We’re in an upright position and steering left and right by pulling on the cords attached to each side of the parachute. We sored like a bird. The feeling was unimaginable, peaceful, beautiful.

I could hear the instructor talking now. He was telling me to move the straps around my buttocks to the middle of my thighs. It would allow me to sit in a cradle position similar to sitting in a swing. That would have been “fine and dandy” had he not tightened them so much. I couldn’t budge them. I pretty much looked like a stick figure at that point.

Just before touching down, I was told, “DO NOT REACH FOR THE GROUND" (uh, did he forget? stick figure here....) pull on the chute cords on each side to slow us down and at the same time, lift your knees. This was to ensure scooting to a landing rather than landing abruptly which can cause you to break an ankle or leg. Well, guess who couldn’t LIFT their legs because the straps were too tight? ME! Stick figures can't bend.
I pulled on the cords, trying my best to lift my knees……and abruptly hit the ground.

I laid there for a few seconds, picked the wheat out of my teeth, and wondered if I was alive. I could hear my son running to me and yelling, “You did it MOM!, that was so cool!, You did it!” I managed to get to my feet. The instructor freed himself from me. I checked my pants to make sure they were dry, and they were. What an amazing experience! The feeling was indescribable; you would have to experience it for yourself. I was glad I could put my fears aside and tried it anyway.

Next time you’re challenged to face your fear, put your fears aside and do it. Just remember, it could end up being one of the best things you’ve tried in your entire life.

Once was enough though......... I prefer flying the airplane. I like having an engine.

Flying Games - Study break

I've been studying so much my eyes are crossed. I escape to this nice little "flying" flash game (used to be at http://www.flyboysnthehood.com/) from FlyBoys when I'm ready for a break. Give it a "fly"! Be sure to crank up your volume. Unfortunately, that link takes you to a store. sorry.

A Pilot Hand/Eye Coordination Training Game can be found at: http://www.winterrowd.com/maze/.

The object of the "Red Square"game is to move the red block around without getting hit by the blue blocks or touching the black walls. If you can go longer than 18 seconds you are phenomenal. It's been said that the US Air Force uses this for fighter pilots. They are expected to go for at least 2 minutes. It can be found at:
http://members.iinet.net.au/~pontipak/redsquare.html.

Now.... back to studying.....

Ninety-Nines Women Pilot Organization

Before I started flight training I looked for an organization of women pilots for the mutual support. I not only found new flying friends locally, but, all over the world. I highly recommend becoming a member of the following:

• The Ninety-Nines, International Organization of Women Pilots (International Chapter)http://www.ninety-nines.org/


• North Central Section Ninety-Nines (section chapter) http://www.ncs99s.org/


• Greater St. Louis Chapter Ninety-Nines (local chapter)
  http://www.st-louis-99.com/


• Ninety-Nines email Network (email forums for women pilots)
  http://www.ninety-nines.org/networks/index.html


• The 99s Professional Pilots Leadership Initiative (PPLI) (mentoring for women pilots)http://www.ninety-nines.org/careers/mentoring.html

May Day, May Day

10/07/06 I took my sister flying for the first time. I rented a 152 and we flew to Sikeston, Missouri (KSIK) where we were to have lunch at Lambert's. You may have been there? They are well known for hurling rolls across the room to customers. I showed up in my pink outfit and the restaurant made a short announcement about the event I was participating in, "The Ninety-Nines Fly for Breast Cancer Cure".

Anyway, just before our destination was a class C airport (KCGI). I didn't want to break the airspace so I went off course to the right to avoid it, however, that move caused me to pass up my destination. I called for vectoring. We landed and my sister was quite amazed at me (her little sister) and how professional I flew. It was nerve racking being her first time with me, however, my demeanor helped make her feel more relaxed. I tried to keep her involved by having her find checkpoints and various other landmarks. I could see her taking deep breaths, so, I knew she was nervous.

Not sure why, though, she seemed a bit more nervous heading back. She asked if it was necessary that we fly so high. I told her "altitude is your friend and if for any reason we would need to glide somewhere, we would be able to glide farther being higher."

We were tooling along at 6500 ft. The plane was pleasantly trimmed out, gages were all reading normal, checkpoints were appearing on time. Then, I noticed a slight power reduction as if someone was tugging on the throttle and pushing it back in. My first instinct was to look for an airport or landing spot. It just so happened our next checkpoint was an airport. It was the same airport we didn't see flying to Sikeston at 5500 feet. I don't know if we could see it this time because we were higher or because we were on course, or both. At any rate, it was reassuring I had it in site right when I felt the tug. I didn't say any thing to my sister. She was nervous already and I could see she didn't notice anything different. At first, I headed right for the airport. I contemplated on getting back on track because my course was to take me between class "D" and under "B", but,...........there it was again. I wasn't imagining things. I definitely felt loss of power. I definitely heard loss of power. What's baffling was the gages didn't read as such. RPM's remained at 2300. Oil pressure and temperatures were in the green. Suction was working. Magnetos checked normal. Fuel tanks were filled before leaving.

My sister asked, "Aren't we supposed to be going that way?" as she pointed north and looked at the map. I calmly responded, "No, we're going to land." Again, the loss of power reared it's ugly head, only my sister felt it that time. I tuned in to 7600 (as opposed to 7700 duh... a bit frazzled was I?). For the life of me, I couldn't think of the radio frequency 121.5. I found it on my trusty knee board. I claimed Mayday Mayday, 714 Zulu Gulf at 6500 ft just outside of Perryville Airport with impending engine failure. Even though I was transmitting on 7600, I received numerous responses. In the meantime, I reassured Sue that we had plenty of altitude to glide to the airport without any power.

I remained at 6500 ft until directly over the airport and circled the runway to pattern altitude. I positioned myself to land on runway two zero. The thought ran through my head, "hey, wait... where's the wind coming from, would it be better to land on zero two?" But then the thought left my brain at Vne (never exceed speed). I just needed to land the sucker.

There was an A&P (airplane/power plant mechanic) on duty and he briefly checked out the plane. All seemed normal. The right sump had some debris in the fuel, though. When I fueled up at Sikeston, maybe their tanks were low and I picked up some debris? (yes, 100LL w/blue tint... I pumped the correct fuel) Others asked if I leaned the mixture. I was told it's good practice to lean the mixture over 3000 feet. It didn't dawn on me at the time. I've not leaned the mixture any other time at that altitude. I guess that could have been the problem. Or, carburetor ice could have been the culprit.....

I called the airport where I rented the plane and requested someone pick us up and fly the plane back. They obliged without question. The 172 nicely equipped with a GPS, auto-pilot and plush seats engine cranked and cranked and cranked. We sat flooded while the plane I had problems with circled the pattern waiting for us. How ironic. After some 15 minutes or so, we were off. The pilots knew the controllers in class B and prearranged our getting vectored to our destination.

All in all, the flight was a great experience. I logged 2.9 hours of cross country time as PIC. I have several tips to enter into my "Flying Tips" list. And, I spread the word about "The Ninety-Nines Fly for Breast Cancer Cure" event. Best of all, I'm here to talk about it.

My backyard

1.) What airport & city do you fly out of?
I fly out of St. Charles Municipal (3SQ) E airspace tucked under St. Louis International - Lambert (KSTL) B airspace. The little podunk airport sets at an elevation of 442 feet beside it's 3400 feet of asphalt that's rough, rolling and uneven. After many takeoffs and landings over cracks with grass and weeds growing in them, the two grass strips perpendicular are not much of a shock. I utilize the grass strips when cross winds are above my personal limit on the asphalt. The mighty Mississippi River is within 2 nautical miles separating Missouri and Illinois. So, when I say the winds were so strong they blew me into the next state, I mean it. The area is lined with never ending corn fields, soft rolling hills, scattered bird sanctuaries, lakes, railroad tracks and highways.

And, I fly out of Spirit of St. Louis (KSUS) D airspace also tucked under B. It's the second busiest airport in the state of Missouri with the overhead (KSTL) being the busiest. I have mixed emotions landing there because it is so busy and towered, but yet, the 7400 and 5000 feet of concrete are a nice change..... huge and smoothe as glass. It's so smoothe you have to take second look to make sure you've really landed.

2.) What are you flying?
I flew Cessna's 152's to my Private Pilot License. I'm flying 172's for my Instrument Rating. And I fly my brothers Travel Air B-95 (below) for building multi-engine time.

3.) What type of flying do you do?
My flying consists of practicing on what I've learned thus far, to building time and to learning instrument flying, as I am working on my Instrument Rating.

4.) What type of weather or other things keep you grounded?
St. Louis Missouri gives us the pleasure all four seasons to the fullest making flight planning challenging from day to day. October rains gets windy, and then becomes calm and foggy. November makes us wait for frost to melt and fog to disappear before flying. In winter we awaken to ice and then springtime there's more rain. Usually the spring darts right into smoldering heated summers making flying over the fields so bumpy it's like riding the waves in the sky. The 90 - 100 degrees weather deturs me. I don't like sweat in my eyes. It burns and makes it hard to read maps. In a nutshell, the weather that keeps me grounded is wind, fog, ice and smoldering heat. The only other things that keep me grounded is working long hours and limited funds.

5.) What type of terrain do you fly over and how does this effect how you fly?
The terrain is filled with flat crop fields to rolling hills. It's nice to fly in October to see its mark of pumpkin patches surrounded by brilliant orange, yellow and red trees. During the smoldering hot season, I make sure I gear up in cool clothes, there is a wet washcloth draped on my thigh, a rubberband in my hair and a rag handy to wipe off the sweat from my eyes. I also make sure my food is digested prior to flying, as it will be bumpy. I will fly higher to get cooler. I keep the Mississippi in view when I can as it's a reassuring landmark. Otherwise, there's not much to see until you come up to a large lake, airport or city.

6.) What do you look forward to as the seasons pass?
I am enjoying every minute of flying and look forward to many seasons to come. Especially, I look forward to the day I no longer miss out on flying because of long work hours in a nonflying job.

1st Solo X-Country Wx

9/17/04 Forecast for 1st Solo X-Country from (3SQ) to (KIJX)

St Louis MO (Spirit Of St Louis) [KSUS] terminal forecast issued on the 17th at 5:36pm CST (2336Z), valid from the 17th at 6pm CST (00Z) through 6pm CST (24Z)
6pm CST (00Z) wind variable at 4 knots, visibility greater than 6 miles, sky clear
8:00pm CST (0200Z) wind calm, visibility greater than 6 miles, 25,000 feet scattered
3am (09Z)-6am CST (12Z) temporarily visibility 4 miles, mist
6:00am CST (1200Z) wind 120° at 5 knots, visibility greater than 6 miles, 12,000 feet broken
12:00 noon CST (1800Z) wind 120° at 7 knots, visibility greater than 6 miles, 12,000 feet broken.

Springfield IL (Capital) [KSPI] terminal forecast issued on the 17th at 5:30pm CST (2330Z), valid from the 17th at 6pm CST (00Z) through 6pm CST (24Z)
6pm CST (00Z) wind variable at 3 knots, visibility greater than 6 miles, 25,000 feet broken
3:00am CST (0900Z) wind variable at 3 knots, visibility greater than 6 miles, 10,000 feet scattered, 25,000 feet broken
5am (11Z)-7am CST (13Z) temporarily visibility 4 miles, mist
8:00am CST (1400Z) wind 140° at 12 knots, visibility greater than 6 miles, 10,000 feet broken.

Winds aloft forecast based on observations taken on the 17th at 6:00am CST (1200Z). Forecast valid on the 18th at 6:00am CST (1200Z), for use from 12:00 midnight CST (0600Z) to 11:00am CST (1700Z).

Temperatures are negative above 24,000 feet.

FT 3000 6000 9000 12000 18000 24000 30000 34000 39000

COU 2113 2916+18 3116+10 3114+04 3110-10 2708-21 291538 312447 292854

Columbia MO [COU]

SPI 9900 3208+16 3415+10 3222+03 3420-09 3118-21 301938 291947 292755

Springfield IL [SPI]

STL 1505 3107+17 3316+11 3320+04 3516-09 3213-21 301538 291347 292354

St Louis MO [STL]

Private Pilot check ride took 2 days

4/23/05 Good news and bad news about my Private Pilot check ride today.

First, the bad news…. I hate ST. LOUIS WEATHER!! I could not fly as planned. Or, I should say I made the assertive, confident, safe and executive decision to decline flying on 4/23/05. Using all my learned skills in evaluating weather, I pulled aside the enormous bags under my eyes caused by lack of sleep from studying/worrying/chair flying, then, glared out the window and sighed, “Nope…. It ain’t gonna happen, again.” My wise decision was confirmed a good one by coded and decoded reports printed out in the quantity equivalent to two large oak trees. Clouds were copious and low, winds were – 18 kts w/gusts to 27 kts (headwinds or not, here’s a visual…. S-turns: beginning maneuver in Missouri, leveling out nicely through Iowa, completing the maneuver in Michigan and with precision), light rain…. Need I say more?

Second, the good news…. I PASSED THE ORAL portion of the Practical!!!!!! I’m half way there! Boo-yah! Who-ah! Hal-a-loo-yah! Hot Damn! And all that….. I didn’t realize the examiner was finished questioning me until he said, “Well, I’ve heard enough, you passed.” On the verge of seizuring from excitement, I through up my hands with joy and belted out YES!….. I’m so happy THAT’S over…… I think I startled the examiner a tad. I must say, the octave of my voice was a bit startling to me, too. Anyway, I immediately called everyone listed in my cell phone to spread the news while driving home.

05/04/05 I passed the flight portion of my Private Pilot exam. A temporary license was issued until I received the real thing in the mail. I'll never forget those 2 days.

Glider Day

6/24/05 WWW Glider Day at Highland Winet Airport (H07) St. Louis Soaring Association; Check out their website @ http://www.stlsoar.org/. I enjoyed going up in a glider, however, I still like having an engine.

Air Traffic Controllers

5/25/04 Air Traffic Controllers of the Gateway TRACON (Terminal Radar Approach Control) “Operation Raincheck”

I took a tour of TRACON (Terminal Radar Approach Control) met the Air Traffic Controllers and learned how to communicate more effectively on the radio, how weather can affect air traffic flow and what tools can minimize disruptions.

I tried my hand at tracking traffic on the radar screens.
Having good communication is key to what ever you are trying to accomplish. More on ATC later. Over.

The Successful Cross-Country

8/27/05 Aviation Safety-Education Seminar
This seminar put on by http://faasafety.gov/ was about making Cross-Country trips. They discussed understanding the A/FD, airport diagrams, various types of airports, airways, pre-flight planning, runways and more. I soloed 20 days prior to this event, so, it was right up my alley. I’m grateful these seminars are free. The speakers were excellent. I took numerous notes and obtained a great resource for online training at: http://flash.aopa.org/asf/runwaySafety .

Fly-In to Woodliff grass strip

On 8/20/05, I participated in a Fly-In to Woodliff (Pvt- 98M0)grass strip 6 miles (north) on the 006 Radial of the Foristell VOR. The runway is 2800 feet of turf and runs NORTH/SOUTH. Use 122.9 and the LEFT pattern altitude for both is 1700ft. A friend lives on the strip. Everyone was invited to either fly-in or drive-in and bring a dish.

It’s always been hard for me to venture away from the airport. The thought always was in the back of my mind, what if I couldn’t find my way back??? I can remember when I practiced maneuvers by myself…. I’d look back to make sure I didn’t go too far as I wanted the airport to remain in my sight. Each time I practiced, I’d push myself to fly farther and farther away, weaning myself from the airport. Now, by just making the mere decision to fly (I had the choice to fly or drive) and then committing to the group that I’d fly-in was a huge step for me, let alone actually following through with it. I battled with self-doubt and very little confidence. My thoughts were, “Yeah, I passed my check ride, but am I truly capable… I was taking my first passenger, am I safe enough… I was going to another location, will I be able to find my way back. … It’s a grass strip of all things, will I be able to find it… What’s the weather like, hope there’s a storm coming in so I can back out…My son’s in town visiting from the Air Force, I’ll just tell them I wanted to spend more time with him… I do have the option to drive, why don’t I just drive. It would be cheaper.” I told myself, “I made a commitment. I’m capable. I’m safe. It’s practically on top of a VOR. I’ll find it. If not, call it a joy ride and go back. The weather is “good to go”. I’m taking my son as my first passenger and he’s tickled pink to go. It’s only 21 nautical miles away!!! Get a grip!” You’ve heard of people flying somewhere for their one hundred dollar hamburger? Well, I flew in for a one hundred dollar potluck lunch and enjoyed a “priceless” experience.

This opportunity has given me the self-confidence to step out of my comfort zone and go for it!

My experience with CFIT (Controlled Flight Into Terrain)

Thursday, March 13th was clear... not a cloud in the sky... at least 10 sm visibility... without visible moisture... no reports of water, ice, snow, mist, haze or fog. It was a perfect day, just cold. I made my choice between "go" or "no go" and I chose to "go". Then it happened. I had my first experience with CFIT (better known in my case as--cluts falls into terrain) upon returning to the house after warming up my jeep. I've taken this route many, many times before. I was very familiar with it.

One second I was walking back to the house and the next second I was soaring through the air at Vne (velocity to never exceed) speed.......could have broken the sound barrier, not sure. I landed hard on the concrete with gross weight on my elbow, which proceeded to ram into my ribs. It took a moment for me to finally catch my breath. When doing so, I could taste exhaust fumes, as I was staring directly into the tailpipe. To avoid the likeliness of Carbon Monoxide poisoning, I had to make a move. Not without looking around to see if anyone saw me wollering in the driveway, I gimped back into the house.

Faced with another choice between "go" or "no go", I chose to "go" to work. Since breathing wasn't optional, and I couldn't, I determined 7.5 hours was my cut off point for working as I was in a lot of pain. I thought I better get an x-ray to obtain the damage. Inspection revealed a fractured rib. Very little moving (breathing) was prescribed along with a constipating pain reliever called Darvocet. (Just what someone needs with a broken rib....something to cause straining to eliminate....sigh.... needless to say I didn't purchase the grounding drug.)

The incident occurred at 5 a.m. in the morning. Next time I make the same familiar venture out to my jeep that early, I will make sure not to take the attitude of "it won't happen to me", as it has happened. I will also complete a "self evaluation" as to whether I'm "safe" and can make such a venture... Am I awake, am I alert enough to plan my moves and stay ahead of my feet, am I situationally aware of where I'm going and am I going to make each movement with purpose?

With time, all will heal. However, I'm left with having to re-evaluate whether I should continue warming up my jeep. It's been my passion in life...... I can't imagine discontinuing it completely. Cutting back may be an option, we'll see.

I hope that's the only experience with CFIT (better known as in my case as--cluts falls into terrain) I'll ever endure.

Husbands first flight - Mexico, Missouri

It wasn’t until 1 year and 4 months after earning my Private Pilot License before I took my husband up for his first flight. He simply didn’t have the interest. He said, “It would be just like taking a Sunday drive.” I guess that’s better than hearing him say, “I never fly on days that end in “Y”, or something of that nature. Until he was ready, I utilized my time to gain more experience and improve my confidence.

Much to my surprise on September 2006 my husband said yes to flying. So, we headed to Mexico…….. Mexico Missouri (KMYJ) that is, 64 nautical miles away.

All the while during pre-flight of a Cessna 152, I kept saying to myself, please…. don’t let anything go wrong or he’ll never fly with me again. Larry is 6 foot and weighs 200 pounds so I had to have some fuel removed from the plane. While the line service attendant was trying to figure out how to remove the fuel, my husband was adding 1 quart of oil. I was glad to see him take part in this event. I wanted this day to be perfect. In the meantime, another Cessna 152 came in and was offered to me so all I had to do was add fuel. I took them up on the offer, did a new pre-flight and next thing I knew I was plugging away at my checklist. “Up, down, left, up, down, left, right”…..yes, the controls checked out good. I had to apologize every time I moved the yoke as it hit Larry in the knees. Ouch! Poor guy was packed in like a sardine. I noticed the suction gage looked a little funny, but it was in the green. I tapped on it and it remained a little “cock-eyed”. Everything seemed to be working properly. I kept looking back at the suction gage, though, as something just didn’t see right.

Off we went. The take-off was smooth. I dialed into flight service to activate my flight plan, however, no one answered. I kept my cool and said to myself, “It’s not the end of the world. I’m flying VFR and it’s not required to file." Although, I would have preferred to.

We were tooling along and looking for the sparsely placed checkpoints; a lake here, a highway there. It would have been easier to see them if it wasn’t for the haze. At this point, my nerves were starting to frazzle. I begged for this to be a trouble free flight. First the fuel, then Larry’s knee bashing, then I couldn’t get a hold of Flight Service to activate my plan, now the haze, what else could go wrong. I dialed in a VOR and it was working like a champ. Yeah!!! Something was working. Larry was busily looking at the map and finding landmarks. He was folding and refolding the map and had no idea at this point we were without an attitude indicator and a heading indicator. GREAT!! I just had a vacuum pump failure. I wasn’t about to say the word “failure”, as that word could take on many meanings to someone who didn’t fly. I lightly mentioned, “Oh, looky there, my attitude indicator is spinning in circles and the heading is off, oh….. a few 100 degrees. I’ll just use these three other instruments. We’re good. Is that the runway up there?”

Yes!!! Victory! Five thousand one hundred wonderful feet of concrete was lying up ahead! After landing my husband reached over and patted me on the knee saying, “You did good dear”.
Although my husband’s first flight was not a perfect one, it was overall a great one. As, he’s interested in going again real soon. His only request was to rent a 172 next time.