I'm a pilot!

I kept myself so busy over the last week, I haven't had much time to add to the blog. I was late in getting my solo cross countries posted up, and now I'm late getting this posted up.

Basically, after my solo cross countries, I spent the next two days (Monday and Tuesday) going over what I needed for the check ride. We flew maneuvers until they were satisfactory, and we went over concepts, instruments, and weather in the office until I felt comfortable enough.

I had been scheduled for my practical test and check ride on Wednesday, but late Tuesday night I received a call letting me know that my examiner had fallen ill over something he ate that day. I called him Wednesday morning to see how he felt, and we rescheduled for Thursday, July 3rd.

This reschedule made things a bit difficult... my airplane, N43839 was not going to be available for me that day. However, my examiner, Dick Miller, had another Archer, and it was set up in almost identical fashion. It would just have some quirks that might make it *feel* a little different, and it had no electric trim. Dick was going to let me borrow his plane.

After two days of butterflies, my stomach had beaten the powder right off of them so they weren't so strong, but the idea of flying a plane I was unfamiliar with, that I was going to be taking a "test" in, brought on some new ones.

Luckily, Dick Miller has a way of making people feel comfortable, and when I got there, my nerves subsided somewhat.

We started by going through the paperwork, making sure IACRA was set up properly, and then proceeded with the oral exam. When I talked to Dick on the phone, he had me prepare a flight plan from Boise, to Murphy, and then to Jackpot. During the oral, we went though this, and then we went straight into questions on reading a sectional. After that, we proceeded to airspaces, VFR minimums, and FAR regulations. Pretty soon we were talking about weather, and then went into specific questions about the aircraft I would be flying. He brought out his logbooks and asked me to read them, at which point I told HIM he was due for an ELT battery. He blushed, told me he'd make a mental note to replace it, and then we went through the FAR's to make sure that we were legal to fly that day. The FAR states:

(a) Except as provided in paragraphs (e) and (f) of this section, no person may operate a U.S.-registered civil airplane unless --

(1) There is attached to the airplane an approved automatic type emergency locator transmitter that is in operable condition for the following operations, except that after June 21, 1995, an emergency locator transmitter that meets the requirements of TSO-C91 may not be used for new installations:

(f) Paragraph (a) of this section does not apply to --

(3) Aircraft while engaged in training operations conducted entirely within a 50-nautical mile radius of the airport from which such local flight operations began;

This means we were ok to fly, so after the preflight which included me making sure all the required paperwork was in the aircraft, we began the check ride.

We began with soft field work, and Dick let me do this twice as the plane was unfamiliar to me. Then we set off for some under the hood work, which included turning to headings and using the VOR. We then practiced slow flight, stalls, and steep turns. Then, Dick pulled my power back and asked me to perform an emergency engine out procedure. Just as I was SURE we were going to land in the field I chose, we pulled out and headed over for some ground reference. After that, he asked me to get him back to Caldwell using the GPS, and then he asked me to perform a short field landing.

We were taxiing back to his hangar when it occurred to me that the check ride was over, and he didn't once take the controls, or give me a fail. I was secretly cheering inside, but I figured I'd wait until he shook my hand to be sure.

We sat back down at the table, and he said, well, let me get back online here, and let's print you out a ticket!

When everything was done, I had my backpack on and was ready to go. Dick shook my hand, handed me my temporary certificate, and said congratulations, pilot.

I left elated and in shock. I think in some ways, I'm STILL in shock, that it hasn't hit me fully. And now I'm kind of unsure what to do with myself, now that my lessons are over with.

Guess that means I'll have to get some check outs in different aircraft, and more ratings!



Thanks for reading, folks! I'll keep this blog updated in my adventures, my flights, and other future endeavors.

Solo XC Boise -> Twin Falls -> Jackpot

On Saturday, June 28th I performed my second cross country. This one was from Boise, to Twin Falls and then to Jackpot. In comparison to the last one, this one was a breeze. It was also very smooth air the whole way, albeit, HOT.

I didn't have to worry so much about mountains or refuges, but there was more traffic this way. It's a good thing there are set altitudes one should follow when traveling east or west - as I was calling out my position relative to mountain home while on my way to Twin Falls, a Cessna flew right below me going the opposite direction. I needed to keep my position reported as I passed most of the small airports during my trip; with the amount of traffic this day I wanted collision avoidance.

The Twin Falls FBO was very nice, and I actually had someone flag me in and park me when I arrived. He also added a quart of oil, as I saw when I arrived that it was about 5 1/2 quarts on the dipstick. Very cool.

It was HOT in Jackpot, and it was one SKINNY runway. Cactus Pete's casino was located right across the street from the little parking area here, so I went in to cool down, get a couple of mementos, and try my luck with about five bucks at the slots. I didn't win much, just enough to keep me going for a couple minutes.

Here's a couple pictures and a video I collaborated for the trip.