Friday, March 22, 2013

Brushing up on the basics in the 150

Plane: Cessna 150
Route: 40I-MGY-40I
Weather: Clear, 41 degrees, wind 210 degrees at 5 knots

Some solo flights call for nothing but a bunch of practice. Especially when you're trying to stay current in an airplane. I actually enjoy such things (not sure if all pilots feel this way?) so tonight was a bunch of fun.

Video of nearly everything I practiced tonight - my first edit in Premiere Elements 11

I took the 150 up and practiced most of the Private Pilot maneuvers, leaving Stewart's slightly squishy turf behind with a soft field takeoff. Then it was direct Wright Brothers for three trips around the pattern. I made two normal landings, a normal takeoff, a touch and go, short field takeoff, and did a simulated engine-out. Pretty much the whole gamut in about 15 minutes!

After a climb to 3,500 feet I ran through the rest of the maneuvers - steep turns, slow flight with the stall horn blaring, and a power-off stall. Then I quickly descended the 1,700 feet to Stewart's pattern altitude with a steep spiral. I made one low pass over the runway to confirm all the airplanes were away - we'd been using Runway 26 but I prefer landing on Runway 8 at sunset so the sun isn't directly in my eyes - and saw the Cubs and Champ were tied down. Pattern clear, I made one final soft(ish) field landing and shut down.

Patterns, turns, climbs, and descents...

Overall, every maneuver was certainly up to Private Pilot Practical Test Standards. My steep turns were held within 100 feet (I try and keep them tighter) of my starting altitude; I was satisfied though, especially having not flown the 150 in a while. It was definitely a good, thorough workout in only 0.9 on the Hobbs.

When's the last time you went up for a similar practice session?

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 0.9 hours
Total Time: 257.8 hours

4 comments:

  1. Last time? Oh, about six days ago (w/ night currency thrown-in, too). There's nothing better than a good workout!

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    1. I suppose I should get caught up on everyone's blogs, huh?

      Good work! :)

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  2. Watching your video was almost as good as a real flying fix! Did you find Premier Elements 11 to be as easy to use as touted? I'm thinking of adding a video camera to my aircraft gear, so will need to edit..out those ugly parts..smile.
    Like Chris, I was up recently for a good practice workout. Flying alone with no particular place to go so put myself and Path through our paces.

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    1. Thanks! I have some experience with a variety of editing software over the years, but I do think it's pretty darn simple. I use it in Expert mode since I like to have more control (and I need it to match audio how I do with sped-up clips) but, if you just want basic editing, Quick mode is super-simple and still gets the job done. If you buy a camera, download Elements (they have a 30-day free trial) and give it a whirl.

      Glad to hear you've still been able to get up and have some basic flying fun. You're quite the traveler in retirement!

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