Just started my PPL (A)

[Andy F]

Hi, have just joined this site and am also a rooky PPL (A).
My flying school is Devon & Somerset flight training down at Dunkeswell
near Honiton south devon. If any of you nice people out there can offer me any help and advise above and beyond the call of my flying instructor
then I will be indebted to you.

Andy F.

[eoincarey]

Hey there. Congrats, youre embarking on a really worthwhile thing (that sounds really cheesy I know!)

Seriously tho, my few tips would be these.
1. Actually pay attention in groundschool (if youre FTO does groundschool). Always clarify something you dont understand (cos I wouldnt like to fly around someone who didnt understand something pretty integral, like altimetry!). Study the stuff well on your own as well. I know it looks like a lot, but you will get there and it'll be worth it.

2. Relax! God knows how many hours I wasted in my PPL by just being nervous all the time. I think its a well known fact that no info can go in if you're too nervous. If you cant relax with your instructor, try changing.

3. Know your aircraft and your checks. Understand what it is you're flying in (things like fuel systems etc), and certainly get emergency drills learnt by heart at some stage.

4. Enjoy! Too many people seem to finish their PPL without really enjoying it, and so give up quite soon after (typically within 3 years). The learning can be fun, but the bit after is soooo much more fun. Go touring and exploring, visit cities, have fun with your flying!

Regards

ETC

[BEagle]

Just ask away - we're here to help!

A fine old aerodrome, Dunkeswell!

[Andy F]

Warms the heart to know that there are pilots out there willing to help with advise for us rookies. Yeah Dunkeswell is in deed a fine old airfield,
during world war 2 it was home to an Amercan B24 Liberator squadron and the American 101st Airborn departed dunkeswell for the D-day landings. Will take your advice onboard please keep it coming.

Many thanks again.

Andy F :D

[Jo Cover]

I fly from a very nicely located club in Lincs, with a wonderful atmousphere and with some of the best pilots in the UK!! If there is anything you want to ask but are unwilling to post through fear of embarassment, feel free to PM me and if I dont know the answer straight away, I will endeavour to get one for you asap.

Good luck with the PPL and please remember, don't pay in advance for the whole of the flying training!! The school can go tytsup and run off with your hard earned dosh over night! I know, it happened to me before I found Pprune!! :{ :{ :{ :{

[BRL]

Hi and welcome to the forum. You could have a look at this thread, (http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=138022) it is the diary of a ppl who is almost there. It will take a while but it is worth reading, it has helped quite a few people who have posted on it and are in the same boat-or aeroplane!

Good luck with your training and keep us posted how you are getting on and remember, there is no such thing as a stupid question, only stupid answers... :)

[Whirlybird]

Whirly's ten tips...in no particular order.....

1) Remember that everything in aviation takes twice as long as you expect and costs three times as much.
2) Make sure you get on with your flying instructor, or life will be miserable. You're the paying customer; if you don't like him/her, change. Ditto for the school.
3) Don't be in too much of a hurry to get your PPL. What will you do when you've got it? Fly. What are you doing now? Flying.
4) Bear in mind that the weather will be lovely throughout your PPL....except on the days you're booked to fly. :{
5) Landing an aeroplane is impossible. You will carry on believing that for ages, and be convinced you're having more difficulty than anyone before you in the history of aviation. Don't worry; we've all been there.
6) Take it all seriously, but don't be solemn about it. There's a difference. Flying is fun. Why do it if it isn't?
7) The radio is designed to terrify new PPLs! Just remember that the person on the other end of it is a normal human being who will understand if you um, ah, and don't use standard terminology. He/she will actually be quite please to have something different happen.
8) Those people in the flying club with hundreds or thousands of flying hours were once very new students, and it probably doesn't feel like very long ago to them. They'll be happy to help or chat.
9) PPRuNe is wonderful; don't believe those who say it's all rubbish; there is good stuff and good people on here.
10) And as others have said - enjoy, enjoy, ENJOY!!!! That's an order.

Looking forward to seeing you at a fly-in some day. :ok:

[Lister Noble]

The one thing that most of us found really difficult is landing,estimating how far you are from the runway before the roundout and touchdown.
I was told imagine the height of a first floor bedroom window,a double decker bus etc but still found it very difficult to judge my height above the runway.
Then someone told me to get into the cockpit on a quiet day,and while on the ground spend some time just looking around ,see how the grass looks ,how the tarmac appears and the height of hangars,buildings around you etc.
That cracked it for me, and hopefully maybe some help for you.
Good luck.
Lister:)

[Penguina]

Hello and welcome!

One bit of advice would actually be to read this forum from time to time, actually. As well as keeping you keen during the months of frontal weather hoving into view every time you book a 'plane, you can also pick up knowledge and begin to think around the subject of aviation. I'm always amazed that I (artyfarty background, hated science at school, very very un-geek-like except about music) know things that many people down the club who seem much more like your typical aviator don't, which I would consider to be essential knowledge. However, the caveat is sometimes things can get a bit pompous, especially when there are disagreements, so know when to stop reading and go flying!

Learning to land - groooaaaan! :ugh: It does end after a few hours, is all I can say. And make sure you understand exactly what you're trying to do before you start trying. I didn't, and wasted time just aiming for the ground and hoping for the best until I went away and had a think about it.

If the radio bothers you, write down calls before you make them. It helps.

[maxdrypower]

Andy I have just recently completed the PPl at Liverpool , welcome to the best thing a person can do in his spare time . The best advise I can give you is Continuity. Try and be as frequent a flyer as you can be and dont worry about trying to get a PPL in 45 hrs . This is possible but at the end of the day if you do struggle on something ie nav you may need a few extra flights trying to get it all in inside 45hrs will just stress you and make you nervous . Obviously the longer you leave it between flights the more revision you will have to do during the next lesson and the longer the process will be . Never be afraid to ask questions if you dont understand then ask make sure you know everything you can about your new steed cos in a few hours time youll be at 1000ft , get too hatches and harnesses on your pre landings look across and there will be no one there . Im sure everyone here will agree that is the best feeling in the world but when you suddenly see your oil temp in the red and the pressure buliding you may be thinking "bugger" . And as has already been said enjoy every minute of it dont let nerves affect anything , your there to enjoy yourself .
I have taken up four friends since qualifying and to watch the look on their faces after takeoff is worth every penny
good luck and enjoy
P.S get your ground exams out the way as quickly as you can the flying is a lot more fun if your not worrying about exams

[shortstripper]

Good for you!

You're at a great stage in anyones flying career; nobody expects too much of you and everything is new! You soon pick things up, and what may appear overload now will soon be second nature. My advice, you can't beat just sitting in the aeroplane and getting used to where everything is, also going through all the stages of the flight over and over in your mind. Don't be afraid to ask if it's ok to just go and sit in the aeroplane when it's not in use ... it might sound silly, but it really is a worthwhile excercise ... actually it's hangar flying that keeps all us PFA builders going as well!!!

SS

[stue]

Welcome on board mate! Its the best thing that you will ever do!

Apart from the advice given above, all i would add is make sure that you take a camera with you on every flight. Even if you only think that you are doing circuits. I didnt on my last flight, and i ended up going to the south lakes and it was lovley! and i had no camera because i though i would only do circuits for a bit, DOH! You never know when you will need one.

Keep at it mate and good luck!:ok:

[RudeNot2]

I too have finally taken the plunge into the PPL after years of procrastination!!
Although I have only done a shade under 5 hours, I am enjoying it immensely. The only real gripe my instructor has is that I am a bit hesitant on the throttle, whereas I am doing ok with the rest of the controls, checks etc. Slowly getting into the RT - just trying to ensure that no brain farts get in the way!!!
Looking to sit the Air Law exam in the near future but still got some brushing up to do..
In Nike's words "Just Do It" but as said in previous posts, enjoy it at the same time.
Dave
My Flight Log (http://www.logshare.com/[email protected])

[mazzy1026]

Hey Andy - welcome !

I mirror what is said above - plenty of good people here always offering advice/help etc, including me! Feel free to join the party in the diary thread (but be warned, once in, you cannot leave) :ok:

Best of luck,

Lee ;)

[Hour Builder]

My Flight Log (http://www.logshare.com/[email protected])
you dont wana be dual logging like that for info :)

[RudeNot2]

Say What HourBuilder??

[splang]

He may mean that you either log P1 time or dual time - not both?

Steve

[RudeNot2]

Ah I follow. Have already amended the log..

[Hour Builder]

He may mean that you either log P1 time or dual time - not both?

Steve

Thats what I meant, you are either dual or PIC not both....

Very good, I see you've ammended it. Always best to get into good habits at the begining. Enjoy your training

HB

[captain_flynn]

Hey

Good luck to you! :} I'm doing my PPL a little further south west from you, at Perranporth Airfield.

I hope it all goes well.

[oldfella]

Hi Andy

Welcome to the world of aviation. No question is too stupid so if you are unsure, just ask. The only thing that can be stupid are some of the answers so be careful of some advice that you may be given on this or any forum, not everyone speaks from knowledge in any open forum so just because it is written it doesn't mean that it is true.

Enjoy your flying - whether for fun or as a job it's the best thing around.