Just had my trial lesson, amazing!!!

[Lizz]

So I said I'd update when I did it and today the weather was on my side (pretty much) and I've just done my hour (and 20 minutes) trial lesson!

I can honestly say it was amazing, abit scary at first when the instructor was like "right taxi to the runway then when I say pull back pull back gently and aim for the pilon" I mean he'd gone over everything and I know generally how to do that but I was like whaaat! :eek: But I did it! We flew up to Southport with me pretty much in control for the most part. I control the turns etc and then when we came back most part of the decent. Obviously nothing techincal but I did better than I thought considering I've never even managed to play a flight simulator game with any success!
The weather further up north was abit cloudy but I was just open mouthed the whole time I think in sheer amazement!

I'll be honest, I think I've got 'the bug'. I know for a fact I simply now can't go well that was fun, anyway back to normality, oh no!

I tell you what as well, nothing like pushing the power up :ok:
I think I now need to do some serious math when it comes to wages and my outgoings!

[derekl29]

brilliant, the trial lesson is just the start of it.

Every lesson you do will get more and more fun, general handling, turns, then things like stall awareness and practice forced landings are all great fun.

One of the first big things that excited me was after a few hours being talked down on the approach and after landing glancing to the right and seeing the instructor had been sitting the whole time with his arms crossed, that's nothing though compared to the excitement of the first solo.

Get the next lesson booked... Quickly!

[Jan Olieslagers]

Thanks for the report - and with a nice title, too! ;)
Once you are hooked, controlling your budgets of time and money will be the hardest, but well worth the effort. Enjoy!

Think twice before embarking on "as quick as possible, now" - with any bad luck, you'll have ten or fifteen hours flown, perhaps just gone solo, and then flying stops because of poor weather/low ceilings/low visibility/water-logged runways, and when you can pick up again in spring half of your dearly paid learning has evaporated.

Perhaps better to spend autumn and winter studying, and perhaps now and then the odd little flying tour to keep up your enthusiasm; then start "for real" in spring.

[Mr_Grubby]

Lizz.

Congrats. You have been bitten by the aviation bug !!!!! No turning back now !!

Just keep us all updated with your progress.

Good luck,

Clint.:D:D:D

[DavidWoodward]

Lizz.

Congrats. You have been bitten by the aviation bug !!!!! No turning back now !!

Just keep us all updated with your progress.

Good luck,

Clint.:D:D:D

And there's no cure either!

[Lizz]

Jan, the title was especially for you ;)!

I was thinking about maybe spring, well after winter anyway, get some money together and yes maybe some reading up (although this morning I did do some googling!)
I mean there should hopefully be a point sometime this autum where the call finally comes that probate has been granted on the owner of the house that me and my better half are trying to buy so that's going to take time and money.
My dad though is very positive about it and was very glad I enjoyed myself and told me to go for it and that a few thousand is money well spent in the long run and I think exactly the same way.

The weirdest thing for me personally to come out of today so far though is that being a funny flyer in the past I never belived anyone when they said it's safer than driving a car. Having now driven to and from my parents (Manchester to Lancaster) I very much belive this now!
Best of all I've framed my certificate that I got to prove that I can do anything when I put my mind to it :)

[Echo Romeo]

Lizz, Go girl, I genuinely hope it works out for you :ok:

[jcr737]

Lizz,

Well done!! Brings back great memories.

Keep at it, finding the money and time is hard, but well worth the reward. :ok:

jcr737

[India Four Two]

Liz's,

I'll add my congratulations too. I also agree with the advice to wait until the spring. In all training, but particularly in your first few hours, continuity is the key to rapid progression.

This post is lovely! There's nothing better than go out there for the first time EVER!
I think there is one thing better. On the downwind leg, on your first solo, glancing over at the empty seat on your right. :)

[Pace]

Lizz

Really pleased you enjoyed the trial lesson! Even if you are cash strapped I am sure just hanging around the aviation scene and getting to know other pilots will get you other rides in privately owned aircraft and the chance to get some more hands on experience for free or for a small donation towards the flight!
For proper lessons do them as and when you can afford it but above all keep on enjoying yourself.

Pace

[BroomstickPilot]

Hi Lizz,

First of all, I'm glad to hear you enjoyed your first trial lesson.

Here, however, are some thoughts for you.

First of all, before you go ahead with an expensive course of training on Group 'A' aircraft, have a trial flight also in a glider, a three axis microlight and also a flex-wing microlight type. These are just as good flying fun, but are vastly less expensive to fly. Then choose which you wish to proceed with afterwards when you can compare them one with another.

Do consider continuing your flying training DURING THE WINTER. People don't seem to realise it, but in the UK rainfall is heaviest IN THE SUMMER. That's when you are most likely to encounter low cloud and water-logged runways.

Furthermore, the atmosphere is that much more stable in the lower temperatures, so you aren't having to fight so much with turbulence when you are just trying to develop your basic stick, rudder and radio skills (which have to be developed simultaneously).

In addition, many other people will cease flying in the winter, which means there is that much less competition for the available aircraft and instructors.

The only disadvantage to winter flying is the shorter daylight hours. In late December, flying may be finished for the day by about 3:30 p.m.

Finally, be aware that of all the people who obtain their first flying licence, 70% fail to renew at the end of the first five years. So make sure before you start that you know what you will wish to use your licence for and that you will be able to afford whatever kind of flying you wish to do.

Good luck,

BP.

[Pace]

BP

Your last statement re 70% not renewing is relevant!

I have my own theory regarding that! At the end of the day an aircraft is a form of transport and being so expensive there has to be a practical use as with any other form of transport!

I know when I started I had little money and purely had a goal of being able to say that I had flown an aircraft on my own ie First Solo.
I would then pack it all in!

Then my goal became to get a PPL.

Then my goal became to show my friends how clever I was and take them flying with a real pilot:E

Then it was around the local area (all I could afford) Soon got bored!
Then longer distance flights on a shared basis ie 4 PPLs flying a leg each
But nearly packed it in many times enroute to getting an ATP and getting paid to fly Corporate jets.

Now I still dream of a house with a strip and a Husky sitting in a Barn to drag out on a day that takes my fancy and to get away from all the burocratic nonsense,hassle and regulations which make up flying today!

Pace

[Grob Queen]

Hi Lizz,
FANTASTIC! Glad you had such a good time, now the bug has bitten you, it won't let you go! Get a few hours in your logbook and you'll soon be just itching to go flying on every single clear blue sky day! :):)

I agree with Pace, hanging around the Club/School even if you can't/aren't flying is time well spent. Just getting to know the guys, being in teh aviation atmosphere, you learn an awful lot, such as paperwork requirements, procedures, listening to the RT, it all starts your learning and forms a base for when you start your PPL.

I can see both sides of the argument for starting now or not. As a PPL(A) student with 73 hours, this is my 2p for what its worth. I agree that, with the winter around the corner, it may not be wise to start training,, as continuity is most certainly the key! However, in the UK of course, the weather is so fickle that even in teh summer you cannot be guaranteed regular flying (look at this June!!!!) In the winter flying in beautiful clear crisp and cold mornings with hardly anyone about gives some fantastic flying, clear horizons and still air, these are actually one of my favourite times to fly. if you learn at a tarmac airfield, waterlogged grass strips are not an issue ;) (I don't think you have said where you hope to learn (if you have and I have missed it, I apologise).

As to which type of "flying machine" to go for, I wouldn't wish to disagree with BP, but if your heart is set on fixed wing SEP aircraft, go for it! Personally I ahev never wanted to fly anything else, as "proper" flying I consider can only be achieved in a fixed low wing aircraft. (Yeah I know many would disagree, but that is purely my personal preference ;)). My first flight in a small aircraft was with a friend in a Chipmunk, flying aerobatics as well as the more usual "first flight" experience; I too was hooked; had anyone even suggested anything else I would haev laughed out loud!

Hope this helps, but whatever you decide, above all HAVE FUN!!! :)

GQ

[Gertrude the Wombat]

"proper" flying I consider can only be achieved in a fixed low wing aircraft
If however you want to do the type of "improper" flying that involves taking family and friends for rides so that they can look at the scenery, then high wing has its uses, on account of when you look out of the window you can actually see the ground rather than just the wing ... you can learn on either, of course, it doesn't make any significant difference.

[Lizz]

Grob Queen, I would be learning at Barton, just because it's close to home, plus I liked it, it was alot busier than I though. I admit, I imaged abit of a field, some blokes stood about, and the odd plane. It really is a buzzing place and it really excited me to see everything - even the hellicopters! I hate helicopters! (something about it being so unnatural to hover in mid air!)

I'll be honest, I'm not sure gliders would be for me and not the open microlights, which I assume is the 3 axis one, I'm terrified of heights! But I don't know, I wan't a real proper plane! It may be cheaper but I understand all this comes at a cost, but like I said I know it would be money well spent.

I'd just like to ask about the medical side of things, I'm just currently looking up eyesight regs, and obviously I drive so should meet that 20m range, although I admit I struggle as I'm sure alot do when letters look similar, like D and O and M and W. That I see is for the NPPL and then it all gets a bit complicated for the JAA licence. I don't for the life of me understand my contact lense prescription! Now, from reading the stuff I got from LAC yesterday, a NPPL wouldn't be a problem don't get me wrong. I don't intend to go off flying around the world (I don't think!) however I was wondering who has what and what's really needed?

[riverrock83]

Lizz
It depends entirely on what sort of flying you plan to do. If you think that there is the slightest chance that in the future you might add an instrument rating, fly at night, fly outside UK (although there is the odd other country you can use an NPPL in) or want to fly a more complex or larger aircraft, and you can pass the class 2 medical, a full PPL is probably better. You could go and try to get the medical first before deciding. The doctor who did my Class 2 was very friendly, a GA pilot himself and more than happy to discuss all the details, and you never want to have that "what if" moment.

The fine details are still being worked out (I believe), but very soon there will be another option - the LAPL (http://www.iaopa.eu/mediaServlet/storage/gamag/feb12/p16-18.pdf). That link is a few months old (search on here for more up to date info). The medical requirements are pretty much the same as the NPPL (signed off by a GP) but it will allow you to fly across Europe. Also, in 2015 most NPPL holders will need to move across to the LAPL to continue to fly most of the aircraft that are used in the UK (you'll soon start to grumble about the European regulator EASA as much as everyone else).

Good luck with your decision making (don't be afraid to ask specific questions here). I'd try and fly during the winter. Unless you are going for a commercial job then the learning to fly is much of the fun - so spacing it out over a longer time isn't an issue. And as someone previously said - we actually get less rain over the winter months!

And 3 axis microlight means that it isn't a weight shift microlight. That means that you have a yoke or stick like a "proper plane". They can have better performance than typical normaltraining aircraft as they are lighter, and use up less fuel - hence cheaper. In some examples, the difference is pretty much just the certificate that airframe has (such as the Eurostar - add a fuel pump and it becomes a "proper plane"). Try going to https://www.google.co.uk/imghp?hl=en&tab=ii and searching for "3 axis microlight" to get a flavour of the many many varieties.
There are many advantages of both - so I wont start those debates here, but its an easier conversion from PPL to microlight than the other way round from a licencing point of view.

[pshz11]

This post is lovely! There's nothing better than go out there for the first time EVER!

The only thing better than first flight is a first SOLO flight :} Gratz, Lizz!

[BroomstickPilot]

Hi Lizz,

"and not the open microlights, which I assume is the 3 axis one,"

No, Lizz, 3 axis are not 'open microlights'.

Take a look at the Ikarus, the Jabiru, the Eurostar. These are all exactly like the 'Sep A' aircraft in terms of creature comforts, but have MODERN airframes and MODERN engines and OUTPERFORM the 'Sep A's in almost every respect except perhaps load carrying.

Then there are the VLAs like the Technam Sierra, also superior to the Sep As which are also gradually finding their way into the clubs.

By comparison, the Sep A's in use by the clubs are nearly all C152s that were built in the eighties and Pa28s built in the nineties all of which use engines developed in the thirties.

Regards,

BP.

[Lizz]

I do apologise for my lack of microlight knowledge! I'm putting 2 and 2 together and getting 5! I'm in work at the month but ill have a proper look when I'm home.

I carroed on looking last night and as it stands my vision would only get me an ,NPPL as my left eye is 20/200 blind apparently! I've been debating getting it looked at, but now I have more reason too. An NPPL would suit me for the time being however I'd be gutted if I didn't have the choice to go commercial. However I accept this may be the case!

Anyway I've decided for definate that I'm going to go for the NPPL I'm sure I cn find that 8k from somewhere. I'm probably going to go back up to LAC and get some more detailed info. Ill wait now for people telling me others are cheaper but I was really impressed on saturday by the fact that even on a trial lesson I was given so much encouragement and control.

I will probably go through the winter as you guys say the weathers sometimes better, today for example! Plus I was told if the weathers not as good there's the ground work.

Also I forgot to mention in my origional post, the runway at barton isn't so bad!

[Pace]

Lizz

Do get your eyes checked as things maybe not as bad as you think?
I have a good friend who has bad eyesight which allowed him an FAA class 1 but he thought he would not get a JAA class1! It turns out that he can get a JAA class one.
If you do want to go commercial at some time then look at what can be done to improve your eye.
Post in the medical section here at pprune as there are people in that forum who will be able to advise and assist and point you in the right direction to start getting things sorted.

Pace

[Lizz]

Thanks for that Pacr :)

My last eye exam was a couple of weeks ago, my left eye really is awful, thing is they don't correct it because its bad and my brain (apparently) has adapted to use only my right eye for main vision!