Gft

[VIKKI]

hi,

im gonna be doing my GFT soon and i wondered if anyone who has already done it could give me any advice ?

im a bit nervous about what to expect cos ive heard various horror stories about examiners asking you to do things you wernt prepared for

cheers



vikki

[Select Zone Five]

VIKKI

I did mine a couple of weeks ago and the best advice I can offer is to keep up a running commentary. This helps you get straight in your head what you're doing and at the same time shows the examiner too. For example...

When I took off the cloud was getting quite low and I couldn't climb to my planned altitude so I levelled out lower and told the examiner I was adjusting my cruise altitude for the cloud base and that I was still OK on the MSA.

You shouldn't be asked to do anything you're not prepared for. Your instructor would not put you forward until everything is covered. Just make sure you know things like the aircraft all up weight, approach/climb speeds, crosswind components and stuff like that for the type rating.

He/she will expect you to be nervous. Fly accurate and safe and don't rush anything.

I hope this helps...good luck and let us know how it goes!

[ChiSau]

As I have mine coming up too - any tips or advice would be very helpful!

:) :)

[sennadog]

A couple of tips that I can think of:

When you are asked to go through the Stall/Wing drop sequence make sure you have sufficient height. I started to do the HASELL checks having been asked at just above 2000ft. Luckily, I remembered and said that we were climbing to 3500ft before doing anything!:D

Take your instructor up for a mock exam as close to the GFT as you can.

[Grim Reaper 14]

Relax. Relax.....and er, relax.

Remember to do what you would normally do. i.e. If you'd normally fly around a cloud instead of through it, do as you normally would, fly around it. It's as much about good airmanship as ability to make the aircraft do what you want it to. Ask for clarification whenever given an instruction, even if only to give yourself thinking time. Ditto when asked questions. If you make a mistake, stop what you're doing, recover and ask for a second go. You may still have failed, yet to prove that you recognised when things were going wrong and restored 'order' rather than blindly continuing, hoping to get yourself out of the cack, can speak volumes about your ability, reasoning and calm thought.

Purely on a personal level, I found giving myself a running commentary very useful. As well as letting the examiner know your thought processes, it makes doing things seem more structured, and actually slows and calms you down (well, me).

Let us know when you pass, I've said it before and will no doubt say it again, but everyone here knows you'll pass, we only have you left to convince. :D :D :D ;)

[drauk]

Relaxing is definitely good advice, but I reckon most people would struggle to follow it. My examiner was actually much more tolerant than my instructor ever was (both were nice guys but my instructor wanted everything as close to perfect as possible) - I'm not saying that this will be the case for you, but I found it a pleasant surprise at how flexible the examiner was and is legally allowed to be.

What tips can I think of?

Examiners I've heard from seem to like students that do the various instrument checks (ADF tracking, DI/Compass turning etc.) during turns on the taxi out - it gives them the impression the student is on the ball. Also watch out for things like a captain's brief before t/o, which your instructor may often skip.

A WindProtactor makes a fantastic tool for in-flight planning of your diversion - one dot (before you take off) placed over your present location and it'll give you a precise wind-adjusted heading and an estimated arrival time.

Just as you hopefully did when you were learning, trust the system. Once established on a track, after a few minutes check something on the ground against the line on your map. If you're on track it means the wind is doing what you hoped it would, in which case just concentrate on flying that heading - don't "feature crawl". This then lets you relax a bit and means that you don't have to start panicing every time you cross a road or a railway track, trying to out every little landmark to the examiner. Believe in your time estimates so you're not looking for something before it is due.

If an examiner seems to over stress "at the first sign" when he wants you to recover at "the first sign of the stall", watch out: he may have pulled the circuit breaker on the stall warning. In this case the first sign will NOT be the bleating of the stall warner.

I've seen it suggested that if you keep your hand on the throttle during the climb out from your PFL the examiner won't be able to rush you in to doing an EFATO (which is the time they often do it, if the home aerodrome isn't suitable), but I reckon just knowing he might do it then is good enough.

If a particular procedure seems excesive (full 180deg clearing turns for your second stall for example), say that you are about to do them and let him say "no need", rather than just not doing them because they seem excessive.

Good luck.

[Julian]

My 2p worth....

- Make sure you have your s*** together in the cockpit, i.e. doesnt look like the inside of a Grundon!

- If you are unsure about something SAY SO!

- Watch out for him engaging in idle conversation, he may be upto something! My examiner did it, apprently liked to 'simulate' your mates chatting to you whilst under heavy workload to see how you would respond!

- RRRREEEEELLLAAAXXXX!!

:D

Julian.

[juliet romeo hotel]

Hi

>"If an examiner seems to over stress "at the first sign" when he wants you to recover at "the first sign of the stall", watch out: he may have pulled the circuit breaker on the stall warning. In this case the first sign will NOT be the bleating of the stall warner"

Is the circuit breaker stunt a common trick by examiners? I can understand that they might want to test you on the unexpected but what other 'dirty tricks' can you expect?

:confused:

[Grafter]

Enjoy it, that's the main thing :cool:

Always know where your position is just as drauk said earlier, that's half the battle.
If you do happen to be off course or at the wrong altitude, tell your examiner that you are climbing or descending or that you are going to change heading.If you don't say anything he/she may think that you can't hold your position.

Don't worry yourself about everybody else's horror stories, if you have got this far the rest is just a walk in the park!!

Let us know how you get on


Grafter

[AerBabe]

JRH - There are lots of nasty tricks examiners can play! A favourite of mine was pointing out a land feature, then moving the DI while you're distracted.

I really enjoyed my GFT, mainly because I knew my examiner really well. He made the flight a joy. In fact he laughed at me, because he said that he was asking me questions because he was interested in the answer, but I kept giving him suspicious looks as if I thought he was trying to catch me out.

Just remember that your GFT is to make sure you're safe, not to try and trip you up. You are allowed to make mistakes, just make sure the examiner knows you have realised you've done so. :)

Good luck ...

[VIKKI]

cheers guys you have made me feel alot calmer now im not sure when im taking the test but ill let you all know when i do



vikki