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Old 27th Jan 2010, 18:16
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joelgarabedian
 
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Horsham
Age: 42
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Don't panic aerofoil!

When I was first in the circuit, I just couldn't get the hang of the touchdown - Every landing seemed to involve dropping onto the runway from about three feet! I did exactly what you're doing now - looking on the internet to see how long other people had taken to go solo (which is incidentally how I found pprune), and worrying that I'd never get the hang of it. I had been through emergency procedures, flapless and glide approaches already, but I felt a million miles away from my first solo.

Then, one afternoon, when I was expecting another hour of shoddy circuits, it all just seemed to click. I don't know exactly how, but my landings were suddenly consistently much better. My instructor sent me solo that afternoon.

So don't worry - your instructor will know your strengths and weaknesses better than you do. And you're probably closer to that first solo than you think! Apart from checking (weeks earlier) that I had the necessary exams and medical, my instructor didn't mention going solo until it happened. Hinting that you were almost ready would probably just add to your stress. As 3 Point says, have a chat with your instructor if you're not happy.

All the best, and best of luck with that first solo

Joel.
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