My first solo flight.....

[Night Wolf]

Well, as some know, I am a student pilot. I have been nearing the time for my first solo flight (need at least 3 take off and landings) and yesterday was the day!

it was kinda cloudy when I flew, the wind was nice, no air traffic at all... it was a great day for it. The instructor was with me, we did 2 take offs and landings, a simulated engine out, a go-around, another engine out and another go around, then we landed and he said "Well, do you feel comfortable doing a few of these on your own?" I said yes, so then he hoped out and told me to have fun and enjoy

my mother, her fiancee', aunt and uncle, father, his girl firend, and a friend from school were all there watching....

It was different, I didn't feel nervous at all, infact I was more nervous when I went for my driving test then when I flew solo, everyone said my voice was more confident and clear, and slower on the radio when I was alone, and both my take offs and landings were the best I have ever done. One thing I noticed, with only 1 person in the plane, it wants to fly so much better, it is a small plane and with 2 guys and full tanks of fuel, it is at the edge of the weight limit, but with just me, it took off sooner, climbed better, and was overall flying better.... not to mention I actually had some room to kinda strech out and stuff.... I really enjoyed it

I did my 3, but we had lots of time, so my instructor told me to do 2 more.... so I did 5 total, with 16.1 hours now, I only have another 16 or so to go, I am getting my recreational license, not private, only because I am running tight on time as it is... only another 5 weeks of school left or so... hopefully it'll go smooth now

the plane is a 1980 (IIRC) Cessna 152II, it really is a cool plane, so forgiving and easy to fly, of our 2, this is mine (as well as everyone else' ) favorite one "Cessna 920"..... it was fun

[Night Wolf]

Well, here are the pics.

There is my instructor on the right, this is my first solo take off













My face looks weird in this picture, but it is still a cool pic



Better pic with me and the plane:



my mother and my uncle had a regular video camera, my father had his miniDV, so he said he is going to put it on a DVD, maybe then I can get some parts of it and put them on my website, it is neat to watch

[Ralph]

WOW!! That's impressive! Do you have plans to be a commercial pilot in the future? My cousin flies for a major airline and he loves it.

Aren't Cessnas the ones that always crash?

[Stoneage_Caddy]

man ...thats a friggin small plane .....you got balls man ....im afraid to fly and afiard of airplanes (yet i was in the airforce)....but damn good work ....

[Night Wolf]

Cessna's? they are some of the safeest planes out there... VERY forgiving and very easy to fly.

It is pretty small, 2 seater, it is a 152. With me and the instructor and both tanks full of fuel, we are right at the edge of useful load. empty it weighs 1,100lbs or so, max takeoff wieght is 1,660lbs or so. It is powered by a horizontally-opposed 4 cylinder Lycoming that puts out a ground shaking 108hp at 2,450RPM

I love this plane though, it is great, it is a wonderful training airplane, and I wouldn't mind owning my own 152 some day, very efficent, fun to fly, you can do cool things with them, and they are cheap.... overall a solid plane.

I love flying... since I did my solo, I have a huge sesire to do more now, before I thought of it as a drag, but now.... man I love it. The take-offs and landings that I did solo (5) were the best I have ever done... I really enjoyed it.

I go up Tuesday again, that tiem the instructor will not even get in the plane, I will do everything fromt he start, same thing... take off and landings, staying in the traffic pattern about 10 of each or so.

The mechanic at the field is a very good guy, these planes are very reliable, and I have no fear of anything going wrong, there is always that possibility, but for now I will be i the traffic pattern, and I have practied engine faliure procdures.

I am going to FL to go to a tech school to be an aircraft mechanic (A&P) I have no desrie to fly commercially, but for fun and for myself. I want to fix planes for a living, not fly them. Plus when in the future I do get my own plane, such as the 152, or maybe the bigger 172, the cost to maintain the plane fo myself will be huge amounts cheaper then someone else, since I will be certified to do all my own work on it and fix it up

[D148L0]

Way to go, dude!
That is something I'd like to do...

[Ralph]

A guy I knew 10 years ago, well his roomate was an aircraft mechanic. He would go on and on about how he only made 7 bucks an hour when an automotive mechanic at that time made about 15. I'm not trying to be negative, just relaying what I remember. Maybe it pays a lot more in the U.S.. He sure got the ladies though!

Pilots make a ton of dough!

[davesdeville]

Cessnas, specifically 172 and to a lesser extent 182, really are the Honda Civic of the skies.

Room to stretch out in a 152? Really now?

I'm going to work on getting my sport pilot license towards the end of the summer. Eventually I hope to be flying commercially but an ATP is expensive to get.

[c5 rv]

Congrats! My father used to have a commercial pilot's license back in the '50s. The small amount he made paid for his recreational flying. He eventually stopped flying because between work and winter weather, he couldn't keep up his hours. He considered taking up flying again when he retired, but the costs, especially compared to what he remembered from the past, probably changed his mind.

[airbalancer]

that is so cool to get your flying license

[slk230mb]

Sweet,

[Night Wolf]

The 172 is the universal trainer, private owner plane, cross country, day flight....anything plane.... like Dave said, the honda Ciciv of the sky.... but alot of people forget the little 152..... it is just as reliable and all, just smaller etc...

room to strech...

well, when it is me and the instructor, when I would go to move the flaps, my hand would hit is leg, we are pretty much right against each other when inside it etc.... with just me, I could move around and stuff, it was rather neat....

Yeah, they have the new sport license.. I thought you only needed a driver license? then you can fly the ultralights... I think a 150 just squeezes in there too? I know the old Aeronka Champs and Piper Cubs make the cutoff....

I am not going to be able to get enough time for my full private license, so I am getting my recreational (well, trying to atleast) the priveate would be nice, but I really will not be doing anything I can't do with a rec. (fly airplane of more then 180hp, bring more then 1 passenger along, go more then 50miles from the airport) etc.... plus, if I do get the rec, then when I go for my private rating, it will be very easy and cost me near nothing... only real difference is the cross country and navigation work.

When I graduate, I will be starting out making $13-$17/hour, but I will also have no expeirence except what I learn at the school. Once I get a few year experience, there will be quick increases in salary. Between a federal grant, and money we have saved up, I am not going to be paying all that much for my schooling, the remainder will be student loans. I will graduate from the school January 31st, 2007. I turn 20 y/o July 1st of that year I will not even be 20 years old, and ready to enter the work force.... so in that case making somewhere around $15/hour full time isn't too bad, I will be able to live off that comfortably until I get increase in pay etc...

Between me getting my pilots license now, my general knowladge of planes and flying, and just fixing things in general, and my abaility to work on things (and enjoy it!) makes me believe that I will not have a hard time finishing at the top 10% of my class, the school was saying if you do good and finish at the top of the class, you will have so many job offers that you won't know what to do with them. That is another thing, I will not have to go look for a job, as many companys... Boeing, Cessna, Lockeed, as well as the company for the GoodYear blimb, Gillete razor company etc.... many compaines come to check out the graduating classes and hire new people.

Plus, if I enjoy the job and I am good at what I do, the money will come later, the inital salary is only part of the deal in a situation like this.

[Stoneage_Caddy]

you might talk to dkozloski hes a aircraft mechnaic in fairbanks alaska , you can earn pretty good money up there

[Kev]

That's great Rick! It's a kick in the seat of the pants to fly solo for the first time!
I came within 1.6 hrs of my private pilot's license back in 1981. I ran out of time and money and realized that it was not practical
for me to continue. It would have been nice to complete my training but I have good memories from it.

I did my training in Santa Barbara in a 2 place Beachcraft Skipper. Very small, very slow. On my solo I had to use the main
runway because of wind direction. I was only a bit nervous the first time out. I did my 3 touch 'n go's, the third and last, I called
in abeam the tower and was given clearance to land and then heard the controller call to another flight telling him that he was
#2 behind the Skipper.



Next thing I heard was, "A Skipper huh, roger that." (in a snide, sarcastic tone) Then the tower calls back to me and asks if I
would make short approach. I affirmed and started my descent and turned base leg. Well, I flew that little plane down and made
my landing as soon as I could, I felt like I was coming in pretty hot so I was trying to scrub my speed so that I could pull off
the runway.



The tower called as I approached the first taxiway and asked me to pull off right away. I was going too fast to comfortably exit
and passed it right up so the controller says, “Ah, well, exit the runway as soon as you can.” So I pull off the next taxiway and
taxi over to my tarmac. Then #2 comes in for landing, a United 727. The poor guy had to execute a few holding maneuvers to
give me time to land. My instructor was listening on the radio, he congratulated me as he ripped off my shirt and was laughing
about the jet pilot’s annoyance at having to wait for me.



Good times.

[Playdrv4me]

Congrats! I guess its both a happy and sad day for flying! I just heard some snippet about a training flight that went down on Coney Island... Luckily the beach was mostly deserted still.