Plane Song

     G'day folks! By the time you see this post, it's most likely Friday (TGIF!) Just wanted to pop-on to give a couple updates on my, our pilot journey (as it's only been possible with your emotional support along the way!) So, a few quick notes!

     Just prior to airshow, I was invited to join up with the Collings Foundation this summer for a few "tours of duty." The CF operates a superb fleet of WWII birds, including the B-17/B-24/P-51/B-25 of the "Wings of Freedom" tour. This goes from coast-to-coast, almost year-round. I am jumping at this chance, so stay tuned for updates! The opportunities it will bring to me will be huge.

http://www.collingsfoundation.org/events/category/wings-of-freedom-tour/

     As I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm "hitting the books" heavily for the Commercial Pilot written exam. My usual "cockpit view" is as follows, thanks to Wegmans' exquisite coffee and free WiFi...

It's all good

      I have nearly completed the 1st half of Gleim's online CPL course, I'd like to have it all done by next week, and then take the written exam within ~2 weeks.

      Lastly, I wanted to reflect a bit on another "relic from the past," which led me to the path I'm on today. As a toddler/young lad, my mother and I used to check-out a book titled Plane Song, from our local Avon Public Library. Written by Diane Siebert, Illustrated by Vincent Nassa, this book was a favorite of mine. It truly evokes the spirit of wonder, excitement, that is aviation. This past Christmas, I finally received my own copy of Plane Song, from my dear mum. The book is, undeniably, one of the main reasons I am a pilot today.

:-)

"Always," wonder why I love the A-26?

     A highlight of my past week included giving a tour of the B-17 to an interested-potential young volunteer and his father. I caught myself sitting in the cockpit, and found even more inspiration to keep on pushing. Until next time, "Keep 'Em Flying," and "Never, Never, Never Give Up."

Soon.

Commercial/Flight Instructor Training: Flight #1

      Hey gang! Happy new-week to you all. Hope Monday was "easy" on you. This past weekend, I really focused hard on the beginnings of my Commercial & Flight Instructor training. 

      I started by "hitting the books," preparing for the Commercial Written Exam. For this, I am using ASA's "Prepware" App, along with Gleim's online ground school course. As of today, I have the 1st 4 chapters complete.

      On Friday, I met with my CFI (Scott B.) to formulate the "action plan" for my training. We decided that it makes sense to tackle both the Commercial & CFI (Flight Instructor) at the same time. There are no additional flight-time requirements for a CFI, just a couple really tough written, oral, and flight tests. Our plan is to essentially "split" each training session into 50% Commercial, and 50% CFI work. I was (and still am) very agreeable to this plan!

      This past Sunday, Scott and I began on my Comm/CFI flight training. We knocked-out the 1st of 3 cross-country flights (100 NM length, 2 Hrs duration), by flying to Griffiss International Airport (KRME.) The flight went smoothly, even though I was a but nervous to be starting a new training endeavour. For me, when I get nervous, I tend to rush. This leads to little mistakes. So, my solution? Breathe. I just have to remember this from now on. In fact, I am adding it to my personal/custom checklist!

Our "steed" for the day, N998RA

7/24/16 Flight Summary: KROC>>>KRME

      Once we arrived @ KRME, we stopped at the beautiful FBO, there. Million Air, a 1st class Fixed-Base Operator, provided us with fuel, refreshments, and a free rental car. We took the car into town (passing the ultra-cool B-52 on display while en-route), and drove-thru McD's to grab lunch. What fun! :-) You may be wondering, why is a B-52 on display at KRME? Well, the airport used to be an Air Force Base, Griffiss AFB to be exact. From here, the mighty B-52 flew for many years, along with other unique aircraft (like the SR-71 Blackbird!) The base was retired from service in 1995, and since then, it has served as a General Aviation airport. Since the huge 11,821' runway still remains, KRME is a hub for airline companies to get there planes serviced & re-painted (such as the monster 747.)

The B-52 @ KRME

      Scott and I ate our lunch, and then bid farewell to the friendly Million Air crew. As we walked out to the plane, Scott informed me that I would be CFI on the way home, flying from the right seat! I was psyched. As we "mounted" up, I began to get a feel for what it's like to control the plane "wrong-handed." It took a little getting used to, and as per usual, I began to "rush" in my uncomfortable position. Yet, as I throttled up and took-off, I began to really get comfortable in my new throne. From here, the flight back to KROC went great!

7/24/16 Flight Summary: KROC>>>KRME

      As we neared KROC, I began to think about the landing. This was somthing I had always wondered about, "what is it like to land from the right seat?" It's not something I've been anxious about, just curious. Well, apparently it's no different, because I nailed the landing! I was very happy, tho it may have just been beginner's luck. ;-) We shall see! Until next time, "Keep 'Em Flying," and "Never, Never, Never Give Up."

7/24 Flight Time Logged = 2.6 Hrs

Total Flight Time = 239.7

Total Flight Time to Commercial License = 10.3 Hrs

It's Time...

Commercial Pilot's License, here we come...

Post-IFR Celebration

Greetings, comrades! Hope you are each having a restful Sunday. Personally, I'm taking every second I can today to rest and do nothing, well except for blogging. The last 2 weeks have been rather action-packed for me, between airshow and passing my long-awaited Instrument Checkride. So, today I write to y'all about a little adventure from yesterday.

My good friend, Corey, is a fellow student-aviator. He is currently working on his Instrument Rating, and asked me to serve as his safety-pilot yesterday. I was honored to be asked, as so many of my pilot friends did this for me as I flew towards my IFR rating. Corey trains with OnCore Aviation (https://www.facebook.com/oncoreaviation/?fref=ts), also based @ KROC. They offer a Diamond DA-40 aircraft as their training platform. It's a VERY cool airplane, and I even got some stick time in her yesterday. 

The Diamond DA-40

We flew to Cortland Airport (N03) for the Cortland Airfest, to check out the cool planes and visit our museum's birds as well, as they sold rides. Our good buddy Robert tagged along, as well! We picked him up in Canandaigua (D38.) The clouds were a bit "iffy" in the AM, when Corey and I met @ KROC. So, we waited about an hour for them to rise a bit. Luckily, we had some non-in-flight entertainment to hold us over, the MiG-17PF that flew in our show. She's hanging out @ KROC until Oshkosh Airshow, next week, where she will go to be "judged," and hopefully win "Best in Show" for Classic Jets. She sure deserves it...

Once the clouds lifted, Corey and I were on our way to D38 to pick up Rob. The DA-40 is such a smooth, fast plane. I immediately fell in love...

Corey & I in the DA-40

We were doing 120-130 KTS en route to Cortland, and arrived within 25 mins of departing D38 (wow!) The show in Cortland was a great time, good food, cool planes. The museum folks seemed to be having a good day as well. We stayed for about an hour, and then departed to come back to D38 to drop Rob back off.

Robert J. flying the Diamond

After we dropped Robert off in Canandaigua, I hopped back up into the front seat. I taxied, took-off, and flew the DA-40 all the way back to KROC, and let Corey handle to approach/landing. What a nice piece of aircraft. The stick is located between your knees. This is my favorite feature, as it feels as though you're flying a WWII warbird. ;-) I loved flying the Diamond, and plan to do so again soon. Thanks again, Corey, for inviting me along! To loosely-quote Top Gun, "I'll be you're (safety pilot) anytime."

Before I end this post, I'd like to also thank my dear friends Al & Anne Fields'. Your continued support of both the "Lucy Gal" project and my flight training has meant more to me than I can relay. Thank you all for reading and following my pilot journey! As always, "Keep 'Em Flying," and "Never, Never, Never Give Up."

7/16 Flight Time Logged = 2.0 Hrs

Total Flight Time = 237.1

Total Flight Time to Commercial License = 12.9 Hrs

Instrument Rated

Happy Friday, folks! It's with great pleasure and excitement that I announce, as of today @ 10:00am, I am a qualified Instrument pilot! That's right, this morning, I passed my FAA Instrument Rating Checkride.

I want personally thank each and every one of you for your support and help along the way. This would not have been possible without your assistance! Special thanks to Chris H., Robert J., Naomi W., Patrick C., and John P. for your "safety pilot" services. Also, thank you to Isabel, Shawn, Scott, and Ken at the RAC for your awesome services and guidance along this journey. On to Commercial Pilot training!

Until next time, "Keep 'Em Flying," and "Never, Never, Never Give Up."

7/15 Flight Time Logged = 1.1 Hrs

Total Flight Time = 235.1

Total Flight Time to Commercial License = 14.9 Hrs

Free to Fly

      Greetings, comrades! Happy (belated) Canada Day, to my friends up North, and Happy 4th to all of those here in the US of A. What a beautiful week/weekend it has been for celebration! One of the great benefits of both Canada and the US is, our freedom allows us to commit aviation. I have done just that...

7/2/16:

      This past Saturday, I flew the Cessna 172 from Rochester to the Chautaqua region, to pick-up my friend Jim N. A fellow pilot, Jim wanted to ride along with me back to Lakeville, where his plane was hangared. This would allow him to fly his own plane back to it's new home. Initially, we had planned for me to pick Jim up at Dart Airfield (D79.) A unique place, Dart is a grass-strip airfield with 2 runways. The airport is home to a small museum, glider school, and parachutists. Also, they host antique shows often. The two runways measure 1,840' and 2,750'. Knowing that I would need more space to land, I planned to land on runway 13/31, the longer of the two.

7/2/16 Flight Summary: KROC>>>D79

1.) Depart Rochester (KROC)

2.) Arrive Dart Airfield (D79)

      Saturday was windy, making the flight down to Chautaqua rather bumpy. Also, the headwind limited my groundspeed to about 90 KTS (usually fly around 100-110.) Despite this, the flight was fun the whole way! It was a beautiful day, besides the winds.

      Once I did arrive at Dart Airfield, I saw something that made me, well, think. I could spot Runway 13/31, yet it appeared to be torn-up to dirt with "X's" on it. I had checked the NOTAMs and AF/D prior to making my departure, and nothing indicated that this Runway would be, or should be, closed. I decided to proceed inbound for Runway 6/24, and executed a "low approach" to see if it would be adequate enough for me to land and (most importantly) take-off from! After making my approach, I concluded that I was not comfortable with it at all. So, I proceeded onward to my alternate airport, Chautaqua County/Jamestown Airport. 

7/2/16 Flight Summary: D79>>>KJHW

3.) Overfly D79 (Dart Airfield), execute low approach = NO GO

4.) Divert to, and land @ Chautaqua Co./Jamestown Airport (KJHW)

      After I landed at the more than adequate runways of Jamestown, I was met by a friendly FBO attendant. I explained to him my need to borrow the "crew car" to pick up my friend Jim, who was still waiting for me over at Dart. He was most helpful, and moments later I was driving a "Swagger Van" to pick up my buddy!

An awesome, silver, Chrysler T&C. Be jealous.

      A short time later, I met Jim at Dart. He showed me around the airfield a bit, and I was really taken by it all. I will have to make a return visit one-day-soon, when I have more time to linger. After a quick lunch, we headed back to Jamestown Airport. When we arrived, we were met by Jim's friend. I agreed to fly her back with us, so that she too could ride back in Jim's Aeronca 7AC "Champ." It was a nice logistical coincidence. I was sure to thank the FBO attendant before we left, and a short time later, we were airbourne once again. 

7/2/16 Flight Summary: KJHW>>>NY15

1.) Depart Jamestown (KJHW)

2.) Arrive Lakeville Airfield (NY15)

      The flight back was much smoother, and faster! I had a groundspeed of ~106-110 KTS, and we arrived in Lakeville about 45 minutes after takeoff from Jamestown. Believe it or not, for all the time I've flown in the area, I had never previously flown into Lakeville. It, like Geneseo, is a grass-strip. It is 2,800' long, plenty long enough. The approach and landing was a challenge, as I had a stiff-crosswind coupled with a narrow-strip to land on. However, I was able to "set her down," and landed just fine. I helped Jim push his plane out, and shortly after, he and his friend were airbourne in the "Champ," en route back to Dart Airfield. I departed NY15 right after them, and landed @ KROC about 15 minutes later. The trip was a success!

7/3/16:

      Yesterday, I filled-in on the front desk for the Air Center (where I flight train.) The day was plenty busy, and I had some great networking/convo with my fellow avgeeks as well (more details to come, shortly!) At the end of the day, I got to stick around and watch an early arrival to our Geneseo Airshow. The MiG-17PF came in early, for next weekend's show. Flown by the apt-aviator Randy Ball, this very same MiG-17PF once sat in our hangar, in Geneseo. Owned by Jon Blanchette, the MiG eventually was moved to Elmira, NY, where she was restoresd (and is currently based.) 

      I was reunited with the MiG yesterday, it was the first time I had seen it since it was in pieces in our hangar! What a cool experience...

Reunited!

      The MiG will be "staging" out of KROC (Rochester) for our airshow, in Geneseo, because it cannot land on grass. I encourage you to attend our show this year, more info here! (http://nwmairshow.com/) It is this coming weekend, July 8 (arrival day), 9, and 10.

7/4/16:

      This morning, my friend Don H. and I celebrated our freedom to fly! We took our museum's Piper J-5A "Cruiser" on a hop around the Finger Lakes. This was my 1st time in the Cub, and I loved the time I had flying it. Thanks again for asking me along, Don! It's a bit faster than the L-16.

7/4/16 Flight Summary (J-5A)

Me at the controls, from the back!

'Merica

      Until next time, "Keep 'Em Flying," and "Never, Never, Never Give Up."

FAA Instrument Rating Checkride = Super Double-Secret Date

7/2-7/4 Flight Time Logged = 5.6 Hrs

Total Flight Time = 234

Total Flight Time to Commercial License = 16 Hrs