Study, Study, Study!

I was really excited about getting my Private Pilot License. No one on my dad or mom's side of the family had ever learned to fly. So, if I was able to accomplish this I figured it would be really cool. I studied for the exam but I had received some basic pilot training while in the Civil Air Patrol and had flown some old WW11 simulators to get some stick and rudder time and was a bit overconfident. The Civil Air Patrol also taught me navigation and how aircraft navigation was relevant to finding downed airplanes. I was to find this did not qualify me to pass the exam. 

What I discovered after taking the exam was how much I did not learn. And that was because I didn't take the time to study hard enough and with the proper materials. I am my own worst critic and I was so angry at myself for flunking the exam I was inconsolable. It was at that moment I realized enthusiasm and an insatiable desire to fly did not qualify me to take the exam. Desire alone is not qualification and no matter how determined I was, without study, there was no way to pass the test.

So, here is what I did. I assembled everything I needed. My E-6B, a calculator, Plotter, VFR Charts, Aircraft Performance Manual and for that time it was for an old 1972 Cherokee 140. I purchased an Airman's Information Manual, FAA questions and answers and set to work. I blocked out my friends and even my girlfriend at the time to concentrate on one thing, passing the Private Pilot Exam. I studied, practiced, studied, plotted courses and studied, read the reg's and studied. I studied like a man possessed because I was. I had but one goal in mind. A private Pilots License.

So, what happened? It worked! I had slain the dragon that would harness me as a student pilot forever. Now I was able to pursue the fun stuff. The Flying.

Few things are more gratifying in life that accomplishing a goal. Set your goal and pass your exam.Click Here!

Passing Your FAA Written Exam

Passing your FAA Private Pilot Exam could possibly be the most difficult part of getting your Private Pilots License depending upon who you are. It was said during WWII that farm boys from west and midwest quickly adapted to a stuck and rudder from their experience running farm equipment. Farm equipment back then required a lot more fancy footwork, dexterity, and muscle to operate.

Navigation, especially dead reckoning has been around since the time of the first sail in sea. Dead reckoning is either short for an original acronym called "deduced reckoning" or "ded, reckoning" for short. Others think it was from a position being, "dead" in the water, dead level, dead even, dead ahead, and so on. Dead reckoning for pilots hasn't changed much and nor has the equipment used to figure it out. The old E-6B is fairly simple to use and requires no batteries. I have a small one in my flight case I've had for over 34 years. This is something you will need to master to figure speed, time, and distance considering winds aloft and mag variance.  

Aviating gets easier as time and experience goes by but in order to fly as a private pilot you have to pass the FAA exam. Well, actually you can fly solo after your first solo but you are still restricted by FBO, FAA, and insurance policy. So, concentrate on getting through that written exam and get that behind you so you can put that bookwork into practice. You will need it in everyday flying anyhow.

Some people can study and learn easily with little study and can't dance. Some people are great with a stick and rudder but have to study long and hard to get through material. I am one of those who has to study like crazy. One thing I have found useful however is to do what you just figured out over and over and over. Take weight and balance for example.

Weight x arm = moment is a formula used to figure weight and balance for airplanes and is something far too many pilots take for granted and don't run before flight. However, there are performance charts in the airplane that will help you. But, you have to learn it. It could be painfully evident if you don't learn it and bend a prop.

If you are one who procrastinates on studying you have to buckle down and do it. I sometimes went to the FBO and studied there because of the aviation environment.

The exam has 60 questions from a host of hundreds. You only need 70% to pass. That leaves a lot of room for failure. After you get through the exam you need to go over the areas you got wrong so you get 100% of the knowledge needed to fly. If the questions you missed were all weight and balance or weather interpretation, you could be an accident waiting to happen. So learn it all even if you got it wrong. 

Learning On Your Own.

A lot of learning about flying you must do on your own and every flight is a learning experience. I recall learning that even though the winds were west to east at Tucumcari one hot Sept. afternoon when Avgas there was only $1.33 a gallon, the local FBO said to use the north south runway even though the wind sock was almost flat out.

This was going to be a real test of my crosswind ability. First, I accepted the runway and the challenge. Then I began to stabilize the approach but the air was bumpy and this was difficult. The second thing I did was use only 10 degrees of flap to land a bit faster but have more control effectiveness. The third thing I did was aim for the upwind side of the runway so I would have room to drift a bit if I ran out of rudder and aileron, which I did.

The only thing I had left was power which I used to keep the nose over the runway. Mercifully, the wheels finally chirped, grabbed some pavement and I was able to keep my plane out of the runway lights and weeds. It was a good refresher but I found out later that the gal operating the radio at the FBO just "picked" a runway. I could have used the east west runway.  

Some of these techniques came from the aircraft performance manual, a bit from experience and and little from bravado. By that I mean I didn't want to sissy out and ask for an easier runway to land on. I know I've tried to land at airports where the wind easily exceeded me and my aircraft performance and believe me, you can't wish your plane onto the runway when nature says no.

No matter where you are in your flight training envelope, basic written instruction has to be overcome. You have to get your written exam completed. For that, check out joepilotecourse.com for your written study needs.

Another Inexpensive Way To Learn To Fly

When I was working on my instrument ticket I had already installed Microsoft Flight on my PC. With a joy stick and simple controls here is what you can do for about a hundred bucks.


A joystick can show you the input needed to maneuver and the flight program can do a number of things. One of which was set up the program so you can fly the exact route you will be actually flying. This allows you to familiarize the headings, altitudes, frequencies, and aircraft performance. Don't just use a keyboard, it is awkward and confusing.

Although there is a significant difference between real flying and your home computer the basic procedures can be learned and practices like plight planning, checking weather, running weight and balance, basic aircraft procedures like setting up the radios, headings, and frequencies.

You can learn a lot at home and save a lot of money for the fun part, actually flying the plane. I highly recommend a good Flight software program and a decent joystick for your flight training.  Most of these programs have your current airport environment so it all feels familiar. Use these tools and it can save you time and money.
  

I Thought I Knew It All

I flat flunked my first private pilot exam. It was one of the most humiliating experiences of my life. "Why?", well, I really thought I knew all I needed to know. What I did was study like a madman every chance I got for the exam. You can find the actual exam and study all the questions and answers without really knowing how to solve real problems or employ mathematical formulas to get at the answers.

Remember, there are 60 questions and all you need to pass is a 70%. But, if you pass with a 70% and the 30 % you flunked dealt with weight and balance calculations, pressure altitude calculation, and magnetic variation calculation, you could potentially be a licensed problem.

One thing you need to do after passing the exam is have your instructor go over everything you got wrong and fix it. Most instructors will do this anyway but some will not. I know because I have flown with many of them.  Most instructors use this time to build time to more lofty goals and you could be losing valuable information. If you do not have an instructor go over this with you do it yourself.

Things like weight and balance are important, if for no other reason you were ramped. Having that information handy and knowing how to use it can keep you out of trouble.

US Private Pilot Ecourse Under $40

Wow!, Have things changed since I started flying back in the mid 1970's. Glass cockpits, ICAO rules, Light Sport Aircraft, and TFR's to make you dizzy.

But, getting there is half the fun, right? I have taken the private pilot exam once or twice, my instrument exam once, and I've passed the commercial over 3 times. I passed the commercial exam every time but you have to get the rating within a couple years or it lapses.

Now, to pass these exams I have rendered the services of Gleim books, FAA Aeronautical publications, King Schools, Sporties Pilot Shop, Cessna, Piper, Beechcraft, and ASA publications for various information.

Needless to say I've spent a bunch. I've purchased VHS Tapes, CD's and mostly books. I even purchased the questions and answers to the Commercial Exam which helped a lot. The FAA Private Pilot Exam has hundreds of questions but you will only get 60 and about hours and thirty minutes.

If this is the first time you are taking a written exam you must have a written endorsement from a flight instructor or training facility to take the written FAA private pilot exam. If you let it laps you can use the old exam results to take the test again.  Here are the regs for flight time requirements;

(a) For an airplane single-engine rating. Except as provided in paragraph (k) of this section, a person who applies for a private pilot certificate with an airplane category and single-engine class rating must log at least 40 hours of flight time that includes at least 20 hours of flight training from an authorized instructor and 10 hours of solo flight training in the areas of operation listed in §61.107(b)(1) of this part, and the training must include at least—
(1) 3 hours of cross-country flight training in a single-engine airplane;
(2) Except as provided in §61.110 of this part, 3 hours of night flight training in a single-engine airplane that includes—
(i) One cross-country flight of over 100 nautical miles total distance; and
(ii) 10 takeoffs and 10 landings to a full stop (with each landing involving a flight in the traffic pattern) at an airport.
(3) 3 hours of flight training in a single-engine airplane on the control and maneuvering of an airplane solely by reference to instruments, including straight and level flight, constant airspeed climbs and descents, turns to a heading, recovery from unusual flight attitudes, radio communications, and the use of navigation systems/facilities and radar services appropriate to instrument flight;
(4) 3 hours of flight training with an authorized instructor in a single-engine airplane in preparation for the practical test, which must have been performed within the preceding 2 calendar months from the month of the test; and
(5) 10 hours of solo flight time in a single-engine airplane, consisting of at least—
(i) 5 hours of solo cross-country time;
(ii) One solo cross country flight of 150 nautical miles total distance, with full-stop landings at three points, and one segment of the flight consisting of a straight-line distance of more than 50 nautical miles between the takeoff and landing locations; and
(iii) Three takeoffs and three landings to a full stop (with each landing involving a flight in the traffic pattern) at an airport with an operating control tower.

The regs have increased a bit in the type of flying required like the instrument part but it is all still fun flying.

Have a look at this link for some good information.