I wanna be a pilot! » Hangar flying http://www.iwannabeapilot.net Story of chasing Icarus' dream Wed, 21 Dec 2011 22:08:13 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 IFR ticket cross country requirement http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2011/02/04/ifr-ticket-cross-country-requirement/ http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2011/02/04/ifr-ticket-cross-country-requirement/#comments Fri, 04 Feb 2011 16:49:18 +0000 admin http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/?p=446 One of the requirements to get IFR ticket is to show at least 50h of cross country flights preferably to the airport at least 50nm from your home airport. As of now I’ve got only about 12h fitting into this requirement so I’ve created a map of airports just outside 50nm radius from my home base to which I’m going to fly from time to time no matter if I have any other reason :-) Airports marked green are those that I’ve already visited. For obvious reasons I’ll try to fly to airports I have not seen yet first.

IFR flights map

]]> http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2011/02/04/ifr-ticket-cross-country-requirement/feed/ 0 Quite disturbing http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2010/02/11/quite-disturbing/ http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2010/02/11/quite-disturbing/#comments Thu, 11 Feb 2010 17:11:02 +0000 admin http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/?p=390

How many of us fly commercially and don’t even think about how safe it is? We think we know it, we are pilots after all. But is it really as safe as we think it’s there? Were those pilots pushed beyond their capabilities in the name of keeping the business profitable?

And how much they made? $16k a year…

]]> http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2010/02/11/quite-disturbing/feed/ 0 No flying? Let’s take some pictures! http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2009/11/23/no-flying-lets-take-some-pictures/ http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2009/11/23/no-flying-lets-take-some-pictures/#comments Mon, 23 Nov 2009 20:00:59 +0000 admin http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/?p=372 As I’ve mentioned Saturday wasn’t the best day for flying. But we spent three hours at the airport shooting pictures of our Cherokee and Citabria. Some of them came out really nice. Or so I think. You may check them out yourself here.

Cherokee

]]> http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2009/11/23/no-flying-lets-take-some-pictures/feed/ 0 Weathered down http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2009/10/01/weathered-down/ http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2009/10/01/weathered-down/#comments Thu, 01 Oct 2009 15:37:32 +0000 admin http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/?p=334 I was late. One day. During the whole month of September there were just about 3 days not flyable and maybe 2 more that I wouldn’t like to take a checkride on. All the rest, including the 30th, were beautiful. I flew 20.7 hours total on 13 different days during September. And yet, the very moment I was scheduled to take my checkride on the very first of October the weather came in with overcast at or below 1000ft AGL, massive rain showers and even some thunderstorms. So no joy.

My designated pilot examiner works as an airline pilot in his ‘day job’ so he is available only on limited numbers of days when he’s actually in town. Next such possibility happens next Thursday, the 8th. Now all I can do is wait and hope that current forecast for it will hold up.

]]> http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2009/10/01/weathered-down/feed/ 0 Problem found http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/09/10/problem-found/ http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/09/10/problem-found/#comments Thu, 11 Sep 2008 03:10:37 +0000 admin http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/?p=156 It turned out somehow oil was able to get into heat exchanger, where it evaporated and entered the cabin through windscreen vents as a white smoke. Apparently wasn’t as dangerous as smoking electrical cables, nevertheless it could cause some poisoning if I didn’t noticed it and flew much longer.

I’m happy they found it and will have the fix ready before the end of this week.

]]> http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/09/10/problem-found/feed/ 0 First real solo http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/09/01/first-real-solo/ http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/09/01/first-real-solo/#comments Tue, 02 Sep 2008 03:01:46 +0000 admin http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/?p=134 Excited about in flight charging failure I totally forgot about the most important thing that happened today. It was my first real solo. My CFI wasn’t even there at the airport. I did the preflight, all checks, procedures, everything by myself without Terry’s careful eye watching at me. Quite strange feeling, and I’m very pleased considering all that happened today.

And the airplane is still usable! Well, when they recharge the battery and find the cause why this circuit breaker popped up it will be.

Looks like I becoming closer and closer to be a pilot.

]]> http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/09/01/first-real-solo/feed/ 0 Six out of ten quits! http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/09/01/six-out-of-ten-quits/ http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/09/01/six-out-of-ten-quits/#comments Mon, 01 Sep 2008 15:16:34 +0000 admin http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/?p=128 Today I’ve read newest number of the Over The Airways bulletin and I was shocked. Statistics say that every six out of ten student pilots quit their training before checkride.

Unbelievable.

]]> http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/09/01/six-out-of-ten-quits/feed/ 0 Returned a favor http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/08/30/returned-a-favor/ http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/08/30/returned-a-favor/#comments Sun, 31 Aug 2008 02:35:40 +0000 admin http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/?p=124 She was so nice to me during last three lessons that I figured out something nice has to happen. So today I went to the airport and washed her.

A little bit of polishing on leading edges, thin layer of wax and she’s beauty again. I hope she will still be so nice to me on my real solo next time.

]]> http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/08/30/returned-a-favor/feed/ 0 I broke this damn thing again! http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/08/19/i-broke-this-damn-thing-again/ http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/2008/08/19/i-broke-this-damn-thing-again/#comments Wed, 20 Aug 2008 02:30:24 +0000 admin http://www.iwannabeapilot.net/?p=115 Today while doing preflight I noticed that one of the oleo struts are almost bottomed. Quick check with the POH and surprise – the oleo struts in main gear should be extended at least 4.5 inches with static load (empty airplane with full fuel and oil). Mine was extended about three quarters of an inch in right gear and less then a quarter of an inch in left. Definitely no flying condition. Nothing interesting I hear you say. So haw about – ‘it was like this since May when I started to fly this plane and nobody caught it before?’. If it wasn’t the left one different than the right one I’d fly it again…

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