I have just started training towards my JAR PPL, had my 5th hour today... Its something i have always wanted to do and i am determined to do it. However, i seem to be nervous of the turbulence and and quite apprehensive and am concerned that this could get worse putting paid to the idea of gaining my PPL.
I did my second takeoff today and once near some trees the little C150 quickly banked to the left shocking me putting me on edge for the rest of the flight.
I would be grateful if anyone could advise me if this is common, does it go with time or could it just get worse and as said earlier stop me from the ultimate goal of gaining my licence?
After 5 hours your body is still not used to the environment and the visual picture can also be alarming
Stick at it - most people normally find their confidence grows when they realise that light turbulence doesn't make the aircraft fall out of the sky.
And remember, as my instructor told me, a key qualification to be a PPL is a large yellow streak down the middle of your back
There are old pilots and bold pilots, but very few old and bold pilots.
Good luck
I got my licence last year from DTV where there never seemed to be a smooth day...
I know exactly what you mean, being in charge of the aircraft and being bumped around a little bit.
In my case I just got on with it, and the feeling disappeared with time. I just remembered that the aircraft isnt affected by turbulence and I was in control, if something happened I corrected it.
On the other hand, if you are in turbulence its better to be a little bit on edge, as it stops the drifting off course and altitude changes.
Hope you feel a bit better on your next flight and get ur licence
No probs.... If you need any help with the PPL stuff give me a shout... Its all still pretty fresh in my mind.... I only did the skills test last October
I'm a low hours PPL student like yourself and I was thinking of posting the exact same thread when I got back from today's lesson.
We were flying at 2,000ft today due to cloud cover and there was a lot of turbulence. I spent the entire 75 minute flight being bumped about and not only that but we did the "slow flight" exercise followed by some co-ordinated turns. Sudden gusts really put me off balance and I do find my nerves getting the better of me. My hands were slipping on the controls towards the end from the sweat and being rocked about for so long made me feel queezy for the first time since I started my training. That all had a knock-on effect on my flying especially once we entered the circuit.
My instructor assures me that everyone gets affected by nerves and that they quickly fade as your confidence grows. Despite having many hundreds of hours he seems nervous himself at times, especially when there's traffic about... or when I'm in control .
Some nervousness can only be a good thing as it keeps you on your toes. When you get complacent you might let a 'situation' develop without realising.
I too am a relatively low hours PPL student. Just starting to bash the circuit working towards that ever closer first solo.
I am finding that my nerves are getting better with each flight. Last weekend I turned up at the airfield for a lesson and winds were gusting at 20-25 knots, right across the runway.
My instructor told me that it was not the kind of weather for me to be learning take-offs and landings just yet, but that if I was feeling brave we could do some work on keeping a rectangular circuit in relatively strong wind. It was definately very interesting. It is a little strange to be pointing in one direction but actually moving in a slightly different one.
The wind and the turbulance definately had me on edge, and I have experienced a few of those 'sudden banks' that you mention. Quite scary at 50 feet!
The biggest problem I have when I get nervous is that I hold on too tightly to the yoke and consequently apply back pressure, this means I screw up the trimming. I am getting better though. Whenever my instructor points it out, I always comment that it is a weird thing to do logically. If the aircraft falls, the yoke will be coming too right? . Human nature is a funny thing!
In the early days a great deal of nervousness ultimately comes from a doubt that the aircraft or your instructor can cope with the conditions.
After all you believe they should keep you safe - don’t you, but you find yourself wondering if they can cope with that sudden guest. It’s a long time ago, but I remember I felt like that anyway.
Well - you would be amazed at what light aircraft can cope with. You will not even come close to the conditions which are on the edge of the aircraft's envelope. Light aircraft wobble around. They don’t have the inertia and weight of larger aircraft, so that is entirely normal. In really turbulent conditions they will bounce around continuously a bit like a roller coaster ride.
.. .. .. and as far as your instructor is concerned, it is not always apparent how high their skill levels are.
Weather conditions would have to be really severe for either to start to struggle, and you will certainly not be flying in those conditions.
You may also worry about the engine stopping - do you?
Well as you probably know it is very unlikely - and if it does, it is very likely your instructor will do a very good job of landing the aircraft. You may not yet have realised but the average light aircraft can be stopped in a few hundred feet if you really have to, so it is amazing what little space is needed.
I'm also a low hours student. A few nerves are quite natural (at least I hope so!) there is a hell of a lot to take in. I think at times though what you assume to be nerves is just excitment at being let loose at the controls again. Although after being bounced around so much on Saturday my biggest fear was throwing up
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You may not yet have realised but the average light aircraft can be stopped in a few hundred feet if you really have to, so it is amazing what little space is needed.
I realised this during my last lesson when a dirty big A319 was bearing down on us. A C150 needs very little room!
I can't describe how reassuring it is reading these forums and realising people feel exactly the same way as I do.
One day I'm sure we'll all be "real pilots" and look back on our PPL training wondering how we ever found it so difficult.
Fortunately I'm still young enough to remember learning to drive. I remember thinking that a parallel park was impossible... how could anyone ever manage to do that? 5 hours later and I could do it in my sleep.
Turbulence is when you hit your head on the canopy - if you are not strapped in really well.
Bad turbulence is when you do it several times in the space of half an hour.
Another guide is when you are bouncing around so much that you cant adjust the pressure (or whatever) without steadying your hand or chosing the right moment.
Sometimes when learning to fly, and indeed flying, you will feel scared and uncomfortable.
Unfortunately it just goes with the territory.
Although the fear of turbelence will go over time there will be other things that make you feel uneasy. It's just part of "hobby"
don't forget, if you are diving then you shouldn't fly for 12hours if you dived less than 30ft, and you shouldn't fly for 24 hours if you were deeper than 30ft.
All pretty classic examples of low-hour training to-do-anything-new. I had this learning to drive, learning to drive lorries, learning to sail and I've taken a couple of flying lessons too - same thing. For me it disappeared pretty quickly and was replaced by the joy of getting better as the hours went by! In fact, provided it's not too mad, I prefer the slightly windier days.
If it makes you feel any better I have a long held (irrational?) fear of automatic car washes.....
I have several hundred hours and still feel a bit nervous on occasion.
One thing did make a lot of difference for me though - I started flying on low wings like Pipers rather than high wings like Cessnas. Not sure if in reality there was any difference to the way these aircraft react to turbulence (something to do with wing loading......), but to my mind it did ! So have a go in a Cheetah, and see what you think.
And that feeling? Like when you're at 2000ft and you want to say to the instructor - "I've had enough. Can we land please?"
Been there....done that. It will get better over time, but I promise you, when you have one of those evening flights in the summer when the air is cooling and slowing settling, and when the flight is as smooth as being on glass......you'll forget all about turbulence !
I remember being scared witless last summer when we climbed to 4000ft for stall training over water in turbulance, I thought "no way am I ever going to do this by myself", two weeks ago I did just that.
You might want to change to something a bit more stable/heavier. A warrior or C172 even. Those little 150's are like kites, they are light and generate lots of lift so you will feel just about everything. Try something heavier, you will feel the difference for sure.
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