Learning to fly, it's hard!
Join Date: Jun 2001
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Of course its hard, otherwise we would not all be so proud to be noble knights of the sky. People who don't fly do not understand what it means to be able to say 'I am a pilot'.
The great thing is the opportunities for learning never ever stop. Aeros, Instruments, Night, Nav competitions and the eternal what will the weather do next connundrum. If you really want to start learning become an instructor.
From what you said in your post you seem to have a good grip on what is happenning, you will do well.
The great thing is the opportunities for learning never ever stop. Aeros, Instruments, Night, Nav competitions and the eternal what will the weather do next connundrum. If you really want to start learning become an instructor.
From what you said in your post you seem to have a good grip on what is happenning, you will do well.
Last edited by 18greens; 1st Jan 2007 at 12:57.
Join Date: Aug 2006
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Great to read all your posts, with 11 hours and the temptation to bang my head against the control column over getting the landings right its nice to read the same type of stuff that my instructor is telling me!! 
(Learning to fly is a bit like riding a bike - utterly impossible until you can do it, and then you wonder what on earth all the fuss was about.)
Can't wait until it happens and definitely keeping at it, enjoying the other 3/4's of the circuit anyway!! Hard to believe we only started 2 weeks ago, but still impatient to get it sorted.
If anyone has any links to online video's or tips re: approaches & landings would be great to hear about them, could definitely help with the whole visualisation thing!
(Learning to fly is a bit like riding a bike - utterly impossible until you can do it, and then you wonder what on earth all the fuss was about.)
Can't wait until it happens and definitely keeping at it, enjoying the other 3/4's of the circuit anyway!! Hard to believe we only started 2 weeks ago, but still impatient to get it sorted.
If anyone has any links to online video's or tips re: approaches & landings would be great to hear about them, could definitely help with the whole visualisation thing!
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http://www.g-bhjk.co.uk/Hit%20the%20Spot.htm
this any good
this any good
Join Date: Aug 2006
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Yeah thanks for that, kind of clarifies what we've been seeing, nice to see it when its not rushing towards you (or away from you) in a way!!
Anyone have any tips on getting the flare right? I know from levelling off it should just be a nice simple matter of touching down... but unfortunately knowing what to do and doing the right thing aren't happening at exactly the same time at the moment! DOH!
Anyone have any tips on getting the flare right? I know from levelling off it should just be a nice simple matter of touching down... but unfortunately knowing what to do and doing the right thing aren't happening at exactly the same time at the moment! DOH!
Join Date: Aug 2006
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There are many posts and articles about the best way to land and there is no absolutely foolproof method that works every time. However the following (usually) works for me (tricycle gear by the way):-
1. Make sure the approach is set up properly - i.e on the correct glide slope at the right speed (Vref) with (any) flaps set - so the aircraft will fly "hands off" down the glide slope. This is vital to a good flare and landing.
2. Keep you eyes on the landing point until just short of the threshold (altitude about 50 feet) and then raise your eyes to the far end of the runway - from now on look forward to an aiming point on the centre line but in the far distance.
3. As you raise your eyes is about the time to close the throttle (depends on aircraft) completely, and gently round out so that you are flying the aircraft towards where you are looking - i.e.horizontally a foot or so above the surface.
4. From now on all you are trying to do is keep the aircraft in level flight - to do this you will need to increase the angle of attack as speed (and hence lift) bleed off - by pulling back on the yoke (or stick) - gently.
5. Keep pulling back (smoothly) as the aircraft tries to touchdown - if you overdo it then sightly relax the pressure on the yoke - the nose will keep rising and the visual cues come from your peripheral vision - but do not look sideways - keep looking at the far distance. You will get the feeling of the ground rising up around you.
6. Eventually your efforts will be in vain (as lift is lost) and the aircraft will settle onto the ground (with stall warner starting to wail).
A good way of getting the right landing "picture" is to sit in the aircraft whilst someone else pushes the tail own to lift the nose (if possible in your a/c) into the touchdown attitude. This is the picture you want when landing.
Hope this helps
1. Make sure the approach is set up properly - i.e on the correct glide slope at the right speed (Vref) with (any) flaps set - so the aircraft will fly "hands off" down the glide slope. This is vital to a good flare and landing.
2. Keep you eyes on the landing point until just short of the threshold (altitude about 50 feet) and then raise your eyes to the far end of the runway - from now on look forward to an aiming point on the centre line but in the far distance.
3. As you raise your eyes is about the time to close the throttle (depends on aircraft) completely, and gently round out so that you are flying the aircraft towards where you are looking - i.e.horizontally a foot or so above the surface.
4. From now on all you are trying to do is keep the aircraft in level flight - to do this you will need to increase the angle of attack as speed (and hence lift) bleed off - by pulling back on the yoke (or stick) - gently.
5. Keep pulling back (smoothly) as the aircraft tries to touchdown - if you overdo it then sightly relax the pressure on the yoke - the nose will keep rising and the visual cues come from your peripheral vision - but do not look sideways - keep looking at the far distance. You will get the feeling of the ground rising up around you.
6. Eventually your efforts will be in vain (as lift is lost) and the aircraft will settle onto the ground (with stall warner starting to wail).
A good way of getting the right landing "picture" is to sit in the aircraft whilst someone else pushes the tail own to lift the nose (if possible in your a/c) into the touchdown attitude. This is the picture you want when landing.
Hope this helps
Join Date: Sep 2006
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Dunno why I'm positing this. My first FI said "just keep trying to enjoy your flying" and now I understand why. The whole thing is feeling like to much. I'm going to stick at it, but I'm hoping it's like learning to drive. You'll have times where you wonder if you'll ever get the hang of it.
I just had no idea that learning to fly was SO difficult. Goodness knows how those people in the states get a PPL in 3 weeks flat!
I just had no idea that learning to fly was SO difficult. Goodness knows how those people in the states get a PPL in 3 weeks flat!
hi paul...
to be honest neither do i...when you have said it all yourself and so has your wise instructor...
and for gods sake throw away all but your first book on aerodynamics.stop reading books about air law at this stage.there will come a time for that.
you are overloading yourself...to the point where YOU are making difficult something which IS NOT in itself difficult.
you are learning to fly...that means how the plane flies...how it / you act and react in the air and all which that entails.that is enough for the moment. the great thi9ng about learning to fly is that it is essentially ( at your stage ) a very practical thing and most of us were very grateful for that ( unless you like theory ).
in a few hours things will ( even as you say you are now finding ) start falling into place.
you have enough to do at the moment with understandiong and handling. leave any more theory for later.there will come a time for exams and books.at that stage you will not be concerned with handling as is will come second nature.
if you try to crowd too much useless ( at this stage ) information at this important time your understanding of the flying side may suffer...thus delaying your progress.
as the instructor said..try to enjoy what you are doing. your flying will be the better for it.
ok...now back to the basics...the effect of controls..
very soon you will be introduced to the circuit and how exciting that is...
we all have good days and bad days...but thats all part of the fun.
gear up...
the dean.
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I think its' true that for most people learning to fly is difficult, and often not exactly pleasant and often extremely frustrating. And it gets worse if you are "getting on a bit". The radio makes it much harder (due to brain overload) but one has to learn it sometime.
At some point is clicks though.
I started at about 43 and found it really hard; in fact I hated most of it. Flying solo, even within the PPL, was a fantastic liberator. But I still hated the cr*p aeroplanes I had to fly.
One could make it a lot easier and much more pleasant if one rented a better-than-normal plane, threw a bundle of £££ at a nice instructor (preferably an airline pilot, serving or retired) and told him to take you to interesting far away places (e.g. France or Spain) and you learn to fly gradually on the way. This is sometimes done in the USA, especially at the instrument rating level, made easier by the ability to get trained by freelance instructors (a much better system than the rigid JAA "flying school" thing). But this is a much more expensive option; probably 50% to 100% more expensive than going the standard intensive "45 hour" PPL, and most people learning to fly in the UK are verging on being skint, with many having only just enough to pay for the next lesson. So there is little demand for making the training more pleasant. Instructors would love it of course - they rarely get a chance to go anywhere.
At some point is clicks though.
I started at about 43 and found it really hard; in fact I hated most of it. Flying solo, even within the PPL, was a fantastic liberator. But I still hated the cr*p aeroplanes I had to fly.
One could make it a lot easier and much more pleasant if one rented a better-than-normal plane, threw a bundle of £££ at a nice instructor (preferably an airline pilot, serving or retired) and told him to take you to interesting far away places (e.g. France or Spain) and you learn to fly gradually on the way. This is sometimes done in the USA, especially at the instrument rating level, made easier by the ability to get trained by freelance instructors (a much better system than the rigid JAA "flying school" thing). But this is a much more expensive option; probably 50% to 100% more expensive than going the standard intensive "45 hour" PPL, and most people learning to fly in the UK are verging on being skint, with many having only just enough to pay for the next lesson. So there is little demand for making the training more pleasant. Instructors would love it of course - they rarely get a chance to go anywhere.
Join Date: Aug 2006
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Solo'd today Big thanks to everyone for all the tips and hints... long road ahead but at least now I feel that things are on the right track! (And that if they get off track again its not the end of the world!)
So thanks again!
V.
Big thanks to everyone for all the tips and hints... long road ahead but at least now I feel that things are on the right track! (And that if they get off track again its not the end of the world!)So thanks again!
V.
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Paul,
I remember becoming quite panicky one day when I had just started doing solo circuits. Talking to our CFI afterwards, he thought that the combination of only slightly challenging conditions (they were safe - probably better than recent weather) and my low hours caused a certain about of disorientation and, thus, panick.
Take things slowly. This is definitely a hobby where you have bad and good days. Even at 60 hours, I still found myself trying to steer a PA28 whilst taxying with the yoke one day!
It really is like riding a bike or driving a car though - as Whirly says. You focus like hell for ages. Then you stop thinking about it and suddenly you can do it, wondering what all the fuss was about.
Keep at it.
HH
I remember becoming quite panicky one day when I had just started doing solo circuits. Talking to our CFI afterwards, he thought that the combination of only slightly challenging conditions (they were safe - probably better than recent weather) and my low hours caused a certain about of disorientation and, thus, panick.
Take things slowly. This is definitely a hobby where you have bad and good days. Even at 60 hours, I still found myself trying to steer a PA28 whilst taxying with the yoke one day!
It really is like riding a bike or driving a car though - as Whirly says. You focus like hell for ages. Then you stop thinking about it and suddenly you can do it, wondering what all the fuss was about.
Keep at it.
HH
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Loved it!! Still having to remind myself that it actually happened. Feel more in control of things now that I've actually seen that I can do it. Now comes working on the finesse....
Still having to remind myself that it actually happened. Feel more in control of things now that I've actually seen that I can do it. Now comes working on the finesse....
Join Date: Nov 2004
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hey there, only 7 hours myself! have not flown in a few months but i found that it took a long time for things to sink in because i was so nervous for the first few flights that everything the instructor said went in one ear and out the other! but now i`d feel comfortable doing it. I was flying from EIWT and with the noise abatement procedures they have there is no simple straight in long approach! hoping to hit florida in april to finish my ppl training!
can anyone recommend a good flying school in Jacksonville?
can anyone recommend a good flying school in Jacksonville?
