ET's Info-Stew

Today I finished my bi-annual flight review with the local instructor, so now I'm able to get back in to flying for the fun of it. It was a good learning experience, as expected. Tom gave me some things to think about, particularly with having systems for memory. Acronyms are overused everywhere, but they are effective. For example, the 4F's for emergency engine failures: (Fly the plane, Find a suitable field, try to Fix the problem, and Fly a normal pattern). In today's flight I did the first three just fine, but Tom said people get much better results if they fly a typical pattern, at least with downwind, base and final. If you try to go straight in, like I did, you are more likely to have misjudged height and distance, and will more than likely not end up where you wanted, like I did.

Another one is LATCH, a short checklist to perform when taking a runway. Lights, Action (stuff like pitot heat, boost pump, mixture, etc.), Time (record the time of takeoff), Camera (transponder to ALT), and Heading (verify heading 3-ways: DG, compass, and runway numbers). Having a system for duty intensive situations, particularly airport operations, helps things go smoother. For example, when cleared to land Tom turns on the landing light so that later in the pattern, in case he forgot, he can look down to see that, yes, he has been given landing clearance. Similarly he has a short checklist he performs when turning upwind to crosswind, checking lights, flaps, and anything else that makes sense for when you commit to proceeding in the pattern.

Flying is still an expensive hobby so I can't really do it much, but at least now I have regained confidence in my skill. I'm hoping to take up Cy and Liz, if they are willing to go. I hope they are because it would be a shame if I couldn't share this passion of mine with my friends.