An old pilot returns to the fold. A ramble from the past

[ElderlyGent]

That nasty moment when the engine nearly stops

THAT NASTY MOMENT WHEN THE ENGINE NEARLY STOPS.

It was the time when I was the proud owner of the Falco and the hours were racking up nicely.
But the weeks were flying by and it was now time to do the check ride for my night rating renewal.
I had done not too many night flights in this aeroplane since my rating exam, but full of confidence I took off with the CFI examiner sitting beside me.
He was a hard but fair tasknaster but he really put me through it.
We had stayed close to the airport so I couldsee the runway lights at all times.
All the usual stuff, timed turns, set rates of climb and decent, well I suppose you all know the drill so I won't bore you with it.
The time passed quickly and as it turned out this was fortunate. to get it out of the way we had done the simulatd engine failure and at 500 feet with the runway nicely positioned for a landing away we went and on with the test.

OK he said, let's call it a day, so take me back. At that point i had been so engrossed in what I was doing flying the plane that I had completely forgotten to pull the carb heat to check for ice. Now whether he also had not noticed that I had not done it, or was waiting for me is a moot point, but the result whne I did do it was alarming. The engine did not like it at all. Coughs and splutters from up front. Crap, nose down a bit anfd trim out fast
The natural reaction is to ram the carb heat back in, but this must be denied. So we sat there for what seemed an etenity until the ice melted and the engine ran smoothly once more. He said nothing, I said nothing, so I think that we both had been a tad forgetful.
I do remember a time when we had just landed at one of those flyins and were parked up but had the radio on when there was a frantic mayday call.
A visitor who had come from Ireland had just joined the circuit and had an engine failure. ATC just cleared the circuit and the visitor just managed to get the plane down in one piece.
How strange that an hour late when a mechanic came to look at it the engine fired up without any problems at all. The evidence had melted away. Just ice.
But ice is tricky stuff whether it is in a carb or in a cloud.

As this tale is about ice then I can add a little footnote.
On aother of those glorious winter days when the sky is blue, just asking to be flown in I went fo a local hop. Just me and the plane way up in the sky practicing all the bits you seldom use. But time wa passing and I saw a very thin layer of cloud starting to gather below me. It looked thin enough so I called ATC for clearence and started back.

On the way back I had to get to the circuit height, so do I find a hole in the cloud or just go straight through. Its only thin methinks. Down into the clooud. It was thin but seconds later the windscreen is iced up and I can't see a thing out of it.
Again fortunately the cabin heater was working and as I levelled out, still on instruments a small hole appeared in the ice so I could see enough to fly by.
My pulse wa still a bit on the high side as I landed and taxied back to the hangar.
As I stepped out, the wing leading edges and the tail were still bearing a coat of ice. The metal had ben way below freezing point even tjough I was in bright blue sky, and being warm ion the coclpit I had given no real thoughtto the icing possibility. Silly me, there is an outside temperature thermometer looking at me and it is telling me to wake up. That is smoething you don't do twice, well I didn't do it again, so I put it down in the brain memory baks for immediate recall as and when necessary.

Happy flying chaps, but it is still winter out there so be careful

EG