Going solo

[Heliplates]

Hi All

This is my frist thread (so please be nice). I am currently working toward my PPL and hoping to go on and gain my CPL and FI, I am not far off going solo dont know if i am nervous or excited (maybe both). Can any of you share your experiences of your first solo with me and how many hours you had before you went solo. I was told of some one who went solo at 13 hours can this be true.

Thanks All
Heliplates.

[Whirlygig]

On the scale of things, the number of hours at which you solo doesn't really matter, especially if you're going onto higher things! It can be anything from 10 to 50!

One thing to beware of, is the lack of the couple of hundredweight of instructor next you; if you use the same power, you'll end up shooting skyward at a hell of a rate. Secondly, the hover attitude will be slightly different. I soloed in a left hand drive Schweizer which hangs left skid low anyway. Without my rugby-proportioned instructor next to me in the right seat, the aircraft really did feel as if it had a list to port!

Lastly, if you don't feel comfortable with your approach, go around. Even if you do feel comfortable, you can go around anyway - you're in charge! :E Wish I had!

I actually felt though that my first solo cross-country was the start of really flying.

Cheers

Whirls

[helicopter-redeye]

Enjoy the PPl solo elements. The CPL and IR are all flown dual.


h-r;)

[rattle]

I remember the joy of taking off, and then calling "downwind". It was then I looked at the empty seat and realised the hard bit was still to come.

It is the most amazing flight you will probably ever make, certainly one to remember! Good luck, and don't feel you have to do it just because the instructor says you can.

[Nigel Osborn]

I went solo in 5.30 hours in a Hiller 12E. As Whirly points out, when a 200 lb instructor gets out, the change in c of g & AUW is huge & took me by surprise as the point had not fully registered with me. With hind sight I probably wasn't ready for it. My instructor's confidence was higher than mine! Incidently he was tragically killed in the Paris air show in a Hiller 1100 many years later.

[md 600 driver]

whirlygig

wasnt ray was it

[TiPwEiGhT]

Firstly, don't be pressurised by the fact that some people solo in 15 hours or even 50 hours, it makes no diffence.

A good instructor will not worry about getting you solo by X amount of hours, but when you are ready and have proved you are able to. A good brief on the differences in handling technique will ease your mental workload during the flight.

All in all, enjoy the experience, you will only do it once and remeber your experience for when you are sending your future students on their 1st solo.

TiP:ok:

[O27PMR]

Hi Heliplates

I was ready for my first solo circuit after about 12 hours but for one reason or another I didn't actually do it until 22 hours.

It isn't a competition and doesn't matter if you do it sooner or take longer than anyone else. The main thing is that you are safe and comfortable and enjoy every minute!

I remember after climbing away on my first solo I looked across at the empty seat and just started laughing out loud and singing to myself (I was quite excited). I then swiftly got back to the job in hand and made sure I flew a great circuit. The one thing which took me by surprise was just how much I had to lower the lever to get myself back into the airfield!:eek:

Have fun, it's the best flight you'll ever make!!!

[Backward Blade]

Just what all the other guys said, take her slow, think it through and go around if you have to. Just like the rest of your career ahead of you. Fly safe and have fun CAPTAIN

[Whirlygig]

wasnt ray was it
No, he wasn't called Ray but I know my erstwhile instructor does reads Pprune and I thought that might tempt him out of the woodwork. When I said to him, "couple of hundreweight", he took it as a compliment!

Cheers

Whirls

[rotorvision98]

Hi Hope you continue to enjoy all of your training. Dont get hung up on people telling you how few hours they went solo in! The Course is a "MINIMUM" of 45 hours so use all of them and dont rush to get rid of your instructor he will tell you when your ready as he will have watched you develop into a competant pilot. As nerve racking as it is for you I can assure you that from my experience it is 100 times more worrying for the instructor as he is totally helpless when he gives you signal to lift off into the hover for the first time. I am CFi now with many thousands of hours but will let you into a secret. It took me ages to go Solo but it was the best feeling in the world better than when I did it in a fixed wing. Good luck and happy flying

[mylesdw]

The school I learned with had a policy that no-one went solo before 20 hours and for me that was just about right; I felt ready and it was an enjoyable experience.

[loggerman]

heliplates i have about 20 or so hrs and last thursday we had done about 20 mins dual then my instructor got out and told me to do a couple of take offs and landings (solo first time) while he watched from a distance.I was chuffed when he got out i thought here we go. As he walked away from the aircraft (h300c) reality set in and my arse started to twitch a bit,but i thought i got to give it a go and within about 10 seconds of pulling the collective up i was fine and felt quite confident,it was one of the best moments of my life.
As whirlygig said the one thing that took some getting used to was the c of g without my instructor sitting next to me its amazing how much it leans to one side.
Done some mini circuits then on saturday for a couple of hours and loved every minute of it.

PS MD 600 DRIVER funny you should mention that name !!!!!!!

[kiwi chick]

It all differs too, depending on experience, and when they think you are ready.

I went in average time for my fixed wing solo, but for helicopter I went a lot earlier as I already knew how to fly a circuit, make radio calls, lookouts etc - just need to learn the machine.

There are numerous threads on here with all sorts of advice, but I think the overwhelming opinion is: when you are ready, your instructor will know and you have to take comfort in the fact that they have confidence in you - even if you don't, lol! :ooh:

I could write all about both my first solo's but it'd be a long read and I think there's probably already ****loads of threads on here more interesting than mine!

Enjoy and look forward to hearing about it!!! :ok:

[IFMU]

As Whirlygig and Nigel Osborne pointed out, the trim change can easily catch you off guard. I soloed in an Enstrom, later I learned when the instructor hops out beep toward the empty seat 3 seconds or so. My first solo pickup I translated left (left seat solo in the F28A) quite a bit before I got my act together. On the good side, if your instructor stays on the side he hopped out of, you probably won't run him/her over.

-- IFMU

[MLH]

I left my instructor with his hands full on my first solo, a handheld in one and a video camera in the other. I still get a kick out of watching that video many years later, get it on tape if you can. I also remember looking over at the empty seat during the flight and thinking, all I need to do is fly the aircraft just as I had been taught. Enjoy the experience, you'll never get a second chance at your first solo.

[spencer17]

I did my first solo with 14 hours and emotions between heaven and hell.
It was one of the flights I will ever remember. Beautifull sunny day, calm and all the other guys watching. The c of g change was no problem: Alouette II and FI about 160 lbs. The only problem occured was a sitting problem after the celebration (20+ guys incl FI's). Red :mad: day.

Happy landings
spencer17

[kiwi chick]

Sorry to question you, Spencer17, but, really?!!

U didn't notice the CoG change? U didn't skyrocket towards the atmosphere at an alarming rate whilst crapping yourself and trying to work out how to smoothly integrate yourself back into the circuit of 1,000ft AGL from your slightly inaccurate 1650 AGL? All the while drifting to the left because of too much cyclic?

Err, Ahem. Me neither. :O ;)

[spencer17]

Maybe in a Robbo or a Schweitzer you will experience the C of G change but in an Alouette II and a really lightweighted FI there was no significant change. We really don't talk about circuit altitudes;)

Spencer17

[kiwi chick]

Hahaha, touche!!

(I was trying to be funny though, it wasn't QUITE that bad... truly... :O)

Yeah, I was in a H269... am off now to Google a picture of an Alouette II...

[kiwi chick]

You started flying and soloed in a Turbine?????!!

[Tangoromeo]

The big surprise for my first solo , (in an R22), was the amount I had to move the cyclic left and slightly forward to centre the C of G once my beefy instructor had removed himself! It was a lot more left than I had predicted beforehand! 'HMM,' I thought, 'so-and so does enjoy his roast beef!!'

The other thing was the the increase in background noise once in the circuit because one was alone. Every little squeak and whistle became more apparent.

That was St. Paddy's day 1989 at the sadly long gone Doncaster!

Hope you enjoy it as much as I did!!

[Impress to inflate]

Solo in 5 hours and loved it. 200lb plus instructor lept out and boy oh boy did it feel different. Just go and enjoy, then pinch yourself when you land.

[dubster]

Kiwichick,
UK military do all training on turbines(AS350) from basic to advanched rotory. I went solo in 13 hrs.:) best day of my life .

[RINKER]

Enjoy your first solo as they say you can only do it once. I certainly remember mine with fond memories at Sywell 1997, my instructor got out after asking for the first time if I felt ready for first solo.I said I was quite happy and I was quiet happy and emotional at the same time as I trasitioned away, remember looking at the empty seat too ! and how much power the R22 suddenly had.The last thing he said before he got out ? " remember it's a big airfield don't feel you have to land too close to me when you land ! " got my own back I purposley landed VERY far from him.He did see the funny side.
R

[spencer17]

@ KiwiChick: That's the advantage of military training :ok:

Spencer17

[Heliplates]

Thanks for all the storys so far did'nt expect so much response, I find it hard to believe some one could go solo in 5 hours in such a complex machine though.

Thanks
Heliplates.

[Whirlygig]

Those who solo in 5 hours or less probably a) have a fixed wing licence or b) come from a a military training background where, if you can't hover within the hour, you're chopped!:}

Don't be disheartened by it at all; they're proably over-compensating!:E

Cheers

Whirls

[outofwhack]

c) Learnt to fly radio controlled model helicopters first :)

[IFMU]

c) Learnt to fly radio controlled model helicopters first
Actually, I recommend doing it the other way around. Much easier to learn to hover in the machine than out of it. Hovering/flying an R/C is everything that hovering a real machine is, plus the additional skill of flying by remote reference. I learned to hover r/c in about 3 tanks of gas, some guys never learn. Of course, the penalty for screwing up is less, assuming you don't get yourself.

-- IFMU

[kiwi chick]

Those who solo in 5 hours or less probably a) have a fixed wing licence or

Dead right, Whirls. I was about to comment about that - I had about 350 (?) hours fixed wing time - and even then I totally crapped myself, lol!

(but I promise I'm not overcompensating, I don't have a small willy!) :E


PS: u military guys - I'm SOOOOO jealous!!! :{ Lucky things :ok:

[John Eacott]

You started flying and soloed in a Turbine?????!!

One of our local pilots was the beneficiary of some local tax/training requirements, working for a large company who had to spend $$ on training or face a tax penalty.

He got to do his complete training (PPL, CPL, IR) through to QHI on an Agusta A109C :cool: For the autorotation part of the syllabus, CASA required him to get into a single, poor chap ;)

[Impress to inflate]

Whirls, no fixed wing licence for me, I would rather chop my old boy off than fly a plank and not ex mil either.

[VfrpilotPB/2]

First Solo 10 hours at EGNH bril Wx and 15 knt wind from the west, felt like I could imagine winning the lottery, didnt stop smiling for days.:ok:

Peter R-B
Vfr

[Whirlybird]

The number of hours to solo probably says at least as much about the type of helicopter, the instructor, and the school, as it does about the student. R22s are incredibly twitchy and people take a long time to learn to fly them...but after that they can convert to any other type easily. :ok: However, this means time to solo tends to be longer than with other types. In the USA, I believe you're not allowed to solo an R22 with less than 20 hours on type, and some flying schools elsewhere have decided on that too. Also, some instructors/schools are happy to send you solo when you can just about totter round the circuit and hover, while others want to make sure you can do engine-off landings safely, and handle other emergencies. Then there's the weather, how busy the airfield is, availability of instructors and machines etc etc. This means that some people do most of the course before going solo. I did, and it meant I kept getting sent out afterwards to make up my solo hours, being told by my instructor, "Go where you like, but fly slowly as you need the hours!"

But whatever you do, please don't get hung up on hours to first solo; it'll make your flying training very miserable when it should be great fun

[Thomas coupling]

Whirly - far too many posts!! Hope all is well with your activities re: 007.

I have never flown a piston helo! I'm so proud of that!

30yrs later and 7000hrs - my first solo is always my fondest memory.

Let's see now: The average price for a single turbine (per hour) is what: £150. A twin: £400. Average say £300. [Forgetting the big heavies].
That makes Just over 2 million pounds spent.
290 days continual flying.
200lts/hr fuel used = 1.5 million ltrs kerosene.
100kts average = 700,000Nm covered = 30 times round the world.

Not bad considering all that was for FREE:D:ok:

[scruggs]

TC - Rub it in why don't ya :}

S

[Ms Squirrel]

I am learning in an AS350 and did my first solo at 30 hours. This involved going into a hover for about a minute or so and then landing. I find the aircraft tricky to land so this was probably the most hair raising moment for me thinking that I was never going to be able to come down again (!) Coupled with this I was terrified of being alone, but this has got alot better as I was told it would. I felt the difference in weight quite substantially at first, even though we have alot of weights in the aircraft to try to couteract this. Have now completed just over 4 hours in the circuit and looking forward(!) to the first time outside.

I am very fortunate to have an excellent Instructor who never pushes me beyond what I believe to be my personal limits, that has been essential for my progress.

[Bullethead]

Although your flying career has only one 'first solo' which you never forget there are several other significant equivalent 'first solo' flights along the way.

My first 'first solo' was in a PA28 Cherokee on 30Nov1973 at Bankstown near Sydney. Next was first solo in a Winjeel after I joined the RAAF, then first solo in a Macchi MB326 jet trainer followed by first solo during my helicopter course in a UH1H Iroquois. All these took place in a single place aircraft, though on the helo flight we all had a course mate come along for the ride. Brave man.

All the other types I've flown have been multi-crew aircraft but your first trip in command in them is always a memorable event and a lot more involved than a lap around the circuit. For example my first command trip in a Herc was a multi sector day with eight hours of flying, some at night and several instrument approaches.

Later in my airforce career my first command trip in a B707 was a multi-sector trip over a week, up through the tropics, to Butterworth in Malaysia. The first day of which was like a sim ride from hell with all manner of things going wrong and resulting in a one engine INOP landing in Butterworth.

The next first solo wasn't until years later after I'd left the RAAF and joined my present airline and, on my first trip in command, was faced with an approach right to m . m . minima in a driving tropical rainstorm, in Cairns, followed on the next sector by another approach right to minima at night in a snowstorm in Narita.

These things you never forget but nothing replaces the feeling of your very first solo flight.

Regards,
BH.

[Sgtfrog]

I remember my right leg twitching around the entire circuit! :E

[Whirlygig]

One other thing to consider us a definition of first solo. For me, it was a complete circuit of Norwich but for others, it appears to be a hover solo.

Thomas, I've just audited your figures and I suggest you want to revise amount spent upwards! Are you looking at sales price or running cost? A single turbine is nearer £500 now with twins at £800-£1,500 per hour to fly.

Anyway, don't rub it in!:E

Cheers

Whirls

[ariel]

My solo was 3 years ago almost to the day, after 22 hours, in an R22. (24th Sept - my mums birthday)!

At the place I trained, NOBODY was allowed to go solo until they had completed at least 20 hours, sort of took the pressure off.

I turned down the chance to solo initially - didn't think I was ready, so I wouldn't go, but went off the very next lesson.

Amazing experience, which really hit home after the landing. Was on cloud 9 for days afterwards

ariel

[FAR CU]

Just interested to know if anyone has anything interesting or of value
to say about recent training experiences (theory and practical) that might add to the useful (and entertaining) comment and opinion of prior
postings here.

Shortly I shall be embarking from scratch on the
CPL - H with no previous experience apart from flying round in AS350s
doing parks and wildlife stuff. Being now 29, female, and out of
the nappy stage (well that's what my mum says, not my brothers) I've little doubt I will be able to hack it out there in the rough and tumble of real life
where low hour helicopter pilots strain and jostle for a start.

[Thomas coupling]

Attract the attention of Whirlygig - she's done it from the ground up and could tell you a thing or 2! Good luck - you're going to need it. {Not the course but what you do after you've got it in your hand.................}

[500guy]

My solo was in R-22 about at about 20 hours, I was fairly comforable by then. That Day I did a pattern with the instructor, he got out and I did 3-4 more. I definately notices a CG and power needed to takeoff change.

[readgeoff]

My instructor put a 20kg weight in the passenger footwell of the R22 to try and even out the weight inbalance issue. This did the trick as I didnt notice much difference at all (even though my instructor weighed a whole lot more than 22kg).

The key is to ensure that you are lifting to "light on the skids" where you balance the cyclic and then lift from there slowly. That way you should have compensated for any C of G issues prior to getting in the air and you shouldn't have any excess power issues as you gently bring it up. Easier said than done of course at 20ish hours.

[Peter-RB]

Your first solo flight will be over in what seems like seconds, but the smile will last for weeks.. after that it gets harder.!
Peter R-B
Lancashire

[bladegrabber]

Enjoy it, its over all too quickly. Mine was in an R22 at Aberdeen and I can remember thinking how little MP was required to hover taxi and trying to slow the damn thing down as I was only cleared to W5 hold.....anyway the nice man in the tower spotted the problem and was heard to say " see your making good progress cleared to line up on 32 and immediate take off " phew what a relief!
Once round the circuit and it all sorted itself out and they practically needed a SAM missile to get me down again. Hope all goes well.

BG