The Cessna Citation that took Jake Green and Robert Hawkins to Texas.

Jake Green finally made it to an airplane again. I always pictured that he'd figure out a way to get his grandfather's old cropduster to work (maybe its instrumentation would have been too primitive to get fried by the EMP, like a lot of the planes we all fly).

The storyline this season went differently, as Jericho got a lot of attention from the Cheyenne government and got power and a lot of normalcy back. Still, I was glad it finally happened.

Exercises for new pilots

Here are some more rainy-day practice missions.

Weather and wind: Print off a page of metar/tafs for local airports. Go thru with a pencil. Convert all the times to local. Figure X-wind component for landings on 2 runways there, best and next-best. (Sketch wind and runway angles.) (Look up and translate any unknown weather codes.)(Check airport & other pertinent information, ie. very short runway, obstacles, bad approach.)

Compass turns: Roll two dice.
Die one mod 3 = first digit of heading, die 2 =second digit. Third digit = 0.
Roll again to get a new heading.
Just figure out the answer to one question. Do you turn L or R?
Do it again. And again.


Compass turns: Roll two dice. Die one mod 3 = first digit of heading, die 2 =second digit. Third digit = 0. Do as a simulator exercise to turn, time, figure rollout. Or do it on paper. (L or R? Number of degrees to turn? Number of seconds?)

Pilot's logbook

3/26 Check-in ride with T.

Beautiful day, perfect weather, surprisingly, since rain and TS had been forecast.

We should have sat down and talked first. T was with another student, so I went on to preflight. Also, I didn't bring my computer bag with all my books, flight plans, etc. so I wouldn't have had what we needed, anyway.

First time in 011 in several months. Only the third time in any plane in 6 or 7 weeks.

Preflight-I saw T flip a little toggle switch (one that I never use, guess what? it's radio.). Then when I tried to get myself on the headset, it didn't come in. It was the switch. Now I know that switch.

Taxi OK. Runup OK, just don't check the carb heat. Stay with the checklist.

Takeoff ok. Tower didn't specify right turn, and I took it anyway without verifying. It's what we usually do. Should've checked.

At some point we figured out that T thought we were recreating a cross-country, and I wasn't. I didn't even have an older one since I'd just reorganized my kneepad stuff to keep having junk that might fall out.

Clearing turns. I'm still not used to them.

We were doing slowflight exercises, and I couldn't get it right. I wasn't always sure what he was asking me to do. Usually I'm pretty much on the money with slowflight. I am NO GOOD at flying with somebody else in charge. I'm trying to figure out what they're getting at, and tuning in on the wrong things, I guess. Need to get a fool-proof pattern established (for all my planes) for each of the standard check-ride procedures.

Then T tried to save the day with an engine-out exercise right near Lee Bottom. I knew we should take the airport. I couldn't see where it actually started, and aimed for a point that turned out to be about 1/2 mile north, with trees between us and the threshold. I certainly didn't make any radio calls. T had the throttle. We went too low, I should have told him we needed to pull up.

Coming back, it was hard to see Bowman field. Then, when we finally got to 6-mile, the radio wasn't working right so I embarrassed myself by not being able to hear Tower (or anybody else) and not seeing Todd in 16T or a bird.

Landing was cross-wind, and I let the wind push us. T offered to fly with me one day to just do cross-wind landings, and it would be a good idea. Probably. When I first got my license, I had practicing cross-wind landings at the top of my list. It's still there. Why can't I null this out?

I didn't call in for touch-and-go, so we had to full stop. Off at Kilo, and there's that runway hold-short line that you have to not cross.

So, a good time was had by all.

Also. I still don't have a permanent copy of my license. FAA thinks I'm still a student. Peyton has more than one that are "lost." He says the FAA people can just print me another temporary, and they will. Still, it has to be mailed. I'm calling him again tonight.

Pilot's logbook

3/24 N16084 EKX-2I3-EKX Flight review for rental of C-150 2.3 Jim G.

Collect key, POH and clipboard.
Pre-flight the plane in the hangar, then go in for last weather check.
Hangar door: open partway, about 6 in. from the cable, pull out. Leave tow bar in the hangar beside the door or in the plane.
OK to turn on master switch and set radios and LORAN before engine start.
Ask for radio check before taxi. "Elizabethtown Unicom, Cessna 16084, radio check. Elizabethtown"
"Elizabethtown traffic, Cessna 16084 ready to taxi to 05. Elizabethtown."
Keep a close eye on heading indicator.
"Tower" between E-town and Rough River is a green silo-thingie near a tall red-and-white tower.
At Rough River it's best to use runway 2, since there are mountains at the approach to 20. If you must use 20, stay right of the white cliff.
Use short-field landing.

Coming in to E-town, there are two water towers near the airport.
There are two towers to the left. The leftmost of those is Vine Grove.
Pull up to gas pumps, leave the plane there, then check in and pay.

Want to do T&G's at E-town, then take Frank to Rough River.
Next time, TRANSLATE in writing the times on the TAF.
Want to go with Jim to Vine Grove.

Aviation education sponsors and opportunities

federal Credit Union
Matt Miller--A World inMotion: materials, program, training and partnership with volunteers from industry. STEM (science, technology, engineering & math). Balloon cars. Gliders.

NASA Smart Skies. ATC-related setup. Gr. 5-9. Fly By Math. Line Up With Math.
www.atcsim.nasa.gov Needs Internet access, demo is standalone.

Rol Murrow (Wolf Aviation Fund)
National Coalition for Aviation Education
www.avuationeducation.org
Index of Aviation Ed organizations

Judy Rice Careers in Education

FAA.gov/education

Girl Scout:
V Daugherty see contacts

San Diego desert blooms

Traveling

I'm in Chicago O'Hare airport. San Diego is next. We just got here by American Eagle. This is the first time I've flown airline since I've been flying. It's even more interesting. We flew overtop Bowman Field. I couldn't see anything going on or anybody out flying. We also flew over Clark Co. and the two airports at Columbus, Indiana.

The plane to San Diego is running about an hour late. I'll call Bill when we actually get on the plane.

pencil flying holding patterns practice

Holding patterns -- just draw the holding pattern

Hold West ABB std turns
Hold North 030º ABB VOR std turns
Hold East ABC VOR
Hold West ABC VOR non-std
Hold N ABC VOR std
Hold SE ABC 2 mi. legs
Hold South ABC
Hold NE 300º ABC VOR non-std turns
Hold SE ABC VOR 150º non-std turns
Hold SW ABC VOR 230º
Hold W ABC VOR 285) non-std

Draw holding pattern, label radials and headings, mark entrance areas (direct, parallel, teardrop), and draw teardrop.
Hold N ABC VOR, 360º radial
Hold E ABC VOR 090º, non-standard
HOld S ABC VOR 180º, 2 minute legs, non-standard
Hold W ABC VOR 270º std turns

5 T's & Holding Speeds

For holding patterns:
Turn
Time
Twist (OBS to inbound course)
Throttle
Talk

Holding speeds:
MHA-6,000 200 kts.
6,001-14,000 230 kts.
14,001-^ 265 kts.

Re: Zach

Amy and her music

Amy has posted some of her songs. I like them.

Like her, too.