Have I flown before?

[Mudge]

You wouldn't think so after my "excursions" on Saturday and Monday.
Saturday I went with a chief instructor for my "Stage one" check. You'd have thought I'd never seen the inside of an airplane before. It was actually embarassing. I literally screwed EVERYTHING up. She'd tell me to execute a maneuver and I'd go almost blank. I struggled with even the simplest things.
I'd like to blame it on the most uncomfortable headset I've ever worn. (Had to send my X-11 back to David Clark to get the right earpiece to work. It had gone dead.) I'd also like to blame it on the fact that the a/c intercom was almost FUBAR and I could barely hear her. I'd also like to blame it on the fact that she's a rather attractive young lady with a rack you can't believe and a blouse that proved they were hers.
I know I'm supposed to be able to fly the thing while dealing with distractions BUT....
She must have gotten in my instructors face pretty good 'cause when I went in Monday, he was not happy. Then I had to go do the same maneuvers while he wrote down what I was doing wrong. Fairly long list.
OK...I know how to correct SOME of the things I was screwing up, but with some of the other stuff that he said I was doing poorly, he gave me no explanation as to HOW to correct them. (That IS his job ain't it?) We're gonna' have to have a talk about those tomorrow.
After those two sessions, I ALMOST said, "fuggedaboudit". Mrs Mudge told me if I did that, I'd be a quitter. (She's sometimes a bit harsh. Always right, but harsh.)
I'll try it again tomorrow.

Mudge the angry

[Ztex]

Sounds like the combination of rust, hormones, newness and nerves got the best of you...try again you'll learn form this and be better next time.

Happy Landings!

[bdk]

Have any pictures of the rack? Maybe an excuse to fix all this stuff and go for another checkride?

[Obergrafeter]

Forget the flying problems, send pictures of the rack and I am sure we can help you through your problems.

[phil65]

Maybe its time for a new instructor and you can tell Mrs Mudge that finding a good instructor is like finding a good wife.

Good luck Phil

[L2Driver]

Mudge,
Sounds like you've arrived at Plateau #2 in your training. Shake it off and press on. Absolutely normal and I wouldn't get too worked up about it.

[RyanShort1]

Mudge,

Guess you're doing a 141 program. Hang in there. Stage checks are a necessary evil that you will appreciate later. Kind of gets you used to things that might happen on the actual checkride... I've got a stage one check tomorrow (scheduled - we'll see if it actually happens) for the instrument rating, and hopefully a written test on Friday. It was frustrating today because we had nasty thunderstorms all day, and we couldn't fly. I only need two more flights before we can start doing stuff in actual conditions.

One thing that I've been doing this go around in flight training that really has helped has been that when I know what the correct procedures are for the stuff you're messing up on (for me that was unusual attitudes last week) - write them down (get your instructor to help you get them right if need be), and between lessons, repeat them back to yourself until you can do it without reading, or spontaneously! If you can try and manipulate the controls (air!) while practicing, that might help, too.

Example: for a nose-high attitude with airspeed dropping, you quickly and smoothly go to full power (that includes throttle, carb heat in, and mixture rich), lower the nose, level the wings, and raise the flaps in increments looking for a positive rate of climb... I wrote that out with nothing here to cheat with.

Hope it goes better next try!

Blue skies (I think we've got all the gray ones here),
Ryan

[Mudge]

Ryan...That problem sounds like a simple stall. Those I can do. Power on or power off I've got no problem. Well...that's not quit true. My problem is, with my hearing deficiency (high frequencies), I have trouble hearing the stall warning horn. It's just a high pitched squeal. If it was something a bit more "manly", like a klaxon, I'd be able to hear it. I have to wait for the stall "shudder" before I start my recovery.
I'm off again tomorrow.

Mudge the determined

ps. To all you "voyeurs". No pictures. Just imagine Pamela Anderson and then add a cup size.

[K5DH]

Just imagine Pamela Anderson and then add a cup size.

[RyanShort1]

Ryan...That problem sounds like a simple stall.

Yeah, but not to the point of being a stall! You're wearing a hood, the instructor covers up your AI and HI and makes you put your head down, then flies around for a few minutes to get your body thoroughly confused, then tells you to look up and recover! You've got a very short amount of time to scan and cross check the instruments, interpret them, and act appropriately... Don't worry, this is instrument stuff.

Ryan

[Randy Haskin]

If you can try and manipulate the controls (air!) while practicing, that might help, too.

In the USAF, that's a technique we call 'chair flying'. Sounds a little stupid, but it actually works well. This not only helps work through normal procedures and practicing radio calls, but ESPECIALLY helps with emergency procedures.

You sit down in a chair, perhaps in front of a poster of the instrument panel, and have the actual items you would have with you in flight -- maybe that means a kneeboard with a checklist.

You physically work your way through the checklists -- reading them and performing the actions with your hands moving. Many students also verbalize the checklist (or radio calls, or whatever) while they're pretending to execute it. Many pilots learn best by doing, and it's much easier to 'do' at zero knots and one G than it is at 100 knots and....1.2G (that's a much better expression when you're talking about a task to be performed under many Gs, but you get the idea). It's even better if you can perform the actions while you hear yourself say the steps -- that's the best combination of the auditory, visual, and procedural learning styles.

[Randy Haskin]

You'd have thought I'd never seen the inside of an airplane before.

No worries. There's no pilot this side of Bob Hoover who hasn't felt exactly that same way at one time or another.

[Second Air Force]

Mudge,

It's all part of the process to have things like this happen. I took a checkride with a similar rack many years ago:tonqe: --that's all I remember about the flight, and I still smile when I see the endorsement in my logbook. Keep on plugging!

Scott

[Mudge]

Randy..."Chair flying" was suggested by the chief instructor some time back. I've done it a lot. I can go through the maneuvers in the chair 'cause I can't lose any altitude or airspeed, but in the plane I react quite differently. I can do the checklists for the procedures without a "cheat sheet". That's not the problem. F'rinstance..."Steep turns"...Too much or too little bank.
too much or too little power. Too much or too little nose up or down. Got the picture. I worked on steep turns for an hour today and was only just beginning to get the feel for them. My turns around a point still suck.
I AIN"T GIVIN' UP, THOUGH. I'm gonna' learn it if it kil....NO...that ain't the right phrase.

Mudge the persistent

[Michel C-GNCJ]

Dunno how many hours you have done yet Mudge but eventually, those things do become second nature and you do feel the aircraft which makes it easier to fly.

But then again, some days, you are just a passenger hangin' to dear life... And don't feel a thing ! Actually, your instructor is probably happy it happenned. I remember mine telling me she was wondering when it would hit me. When it did, she emphasized the fact that it is much better for that to happen while in dual than to find out while solo ! That made it easier to accept for me.

All part of the great experience of learning. Hang on pal ! You will get there and eventually look back with an understanding smile...