Newbie Jitters
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Newbie Jitters
Hi Guys
I have recently started flying, both gliders and powered. I am LOVING it, completely obsessed and want to eventually buy into a syndicate. I have to confess though, I feel quite tense during lessons....now when I say lessons, I've had around a dozen winch launches in a glider and a single hour in powered.....but I do feel quite nervous to be up there at altitude. I hear myself saying 'don't worry it's completely normal, you'll just get used to it' Do I trust my inner therapist? Did anyone else wrestle with this to start with? I'm 52 so my sense of mortality may be slightly elevated because of my age, which makes me want to nail it even more !!
All advice to help quell the jitters gratefully received.
I have recently started flying, both gliders and powered. I am LOVING it, completely obsessed and want to eventually buy into a syndicate. I have to confess though, I feel quite tense during lessons....now when I say lessons, I've had around a dozen winch launches in a glider and a single hour in powered.....but I do feel quite nervous to be up there at altitude. I hear myself saying 'don't worry it's completely normal, you'll just get used to it' Do I trust my inner therapist? Did anyone else wrestle with this to start with? I'm 52 so my sense of mortality may be slightly elevated because of my age, which makes me want to nail it even more !!
All advice to help quell the jitters gratefully received.
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I started as a GA newbie with nothing more than a love of aircraft and a desire to try. It took me 5 hours to feel less claustrophobic and more comfortable inside the plane, and to trust it. Stalls at 3000 felt very low.
60 hours later, multiple airfields, new challenges and it's absolutely amazing. Worth every penny.
60 hours later, multiple airfields, new challenges and it's absolutely amazing. Worth every penny.
It’s worth remembering that it is fundamentally unnatural for a human to be up in the air.
What you’re feeling is the body’s normal response to a perceived danger. The three best strategies for overcoming this fear are:
1. Rational analysis (which is what you are doing already);
2. Knowledge of the theory and mechanics of flight and the risk management that should form an integral part of flight training. This can be accomplished through self-study and instructor briefings; and
3. Experience, for which there is no shortcut!
Everyone will overcome their fears and concerns at their own pace. Dont worry if you never lose these feelings completely: they may save your life one day!
What you’re feeling is the body’s normal response to a perceived danger. The three best strategies for overcoming this fear are:
1. Rational analysis (which is what you are doing already);
2. Knowledge of the theory and mechanics of flight and the risk management that should form an integral part of flight training. This can be accomplished through self-study and instructor briefings; and
3. Experience, for which there is no shortcut!
Everyone will overcome their fears and concerns at their own pace. Dont worry if you never lose these feelings completely: they may save your life one day!
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Under supervision, trim the plane for level flight. Then, take your hands off the controls. Yeah... I know you're paying to fly the plane, but allowing it to fly itself will show you that that is easy, and you don't have to try so hard. Then you'll learn a light touch on the controls, and it'll become easier. focus on having fun, and flying by looking out the windows
Welcome to PPRuNe!
Welcome to PPRuNe!
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Ah thanks everyone...I feel way better now. Got my lesson booked for Friday but looking v windy so doubt it'll happen. Appreciate your stories - 12 hours of puking localflighteast. I bet your instructor was as relieved as you!
When I was 19, I was lucky enough to be allowed to learn to fly in one of her majesty's aircraft. With all the safety equipment that she could offer, fire proof clothing, bone dome, parachute, life jacket etc, one would have thought that I should have felt safe. Alas I did not. When a couple of aircraft went in during my time, I felt even less safe. We didn't talk about our fears, just tried to understand what we could do to avoid such a situation. It wasn't until I was ten years older and wiser and paying for my own flying that I overcame those fears. In theory I was less safe. First time across the channel, single engine is always, I would argue, a good test of nerve. Some people never get over their fears. If it interfers with your learning and enjoyment ,it may not be worth continuing. It is only something you can decide on.
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Maybe instead of getting lessons you could do a few "Trial Introductory Flights" to get you accustomed to the sensation of flying. That way once you're acclimatised you can get on with the flying itself and really concentrate on what you're learning instead of the fear of flying.
I am about 25 hours in, have gone solo and heading for area solo. I still feel pretty sick up until the point I'm lined up on the runway to be honest. But as soon as the throttle goes forward it's almost like a release, best feeling in the world.
I am about 25 hours in, have gone solo and heading for area solo. I still feel pretty sick up until the point I'm lined up on the runway to be honest. But as soon as the throttle goes forward it's almost like a release, best feeling in the world.
Steve,
As I was preparing to reply, I've just noticed that I started my flying career the year you were born! I still enjoy flying, I still have a Class 1 medical and I still have the same number of takeoffs and landings in my logbook. Most of my flying these days is towing gliders and here in Alberta, that means no flying while there is snow on the ground, which can be anything from three to five months.
Consequently, each pilot in the club has to go though a "Spring Checkout" ritual. I must confess that I always have a slight case of the jitters before this flight, particularly when I know that my check pilot is going to pull the throttle on me at some awkward moment!
It is perfectly normal to feel jittery, particularly when you are just starting.
Try to follow Pilot_DAR's very good advice. Modern aeroplanes fly themselves quite well, when properly trimmed.
PS Since you are flying both power and gliders, let me give you a tip. In a powered aircraft, with a slip-ball, you use the appropriate foot to "push" the ball back into the middle. You can translate that metaphor to gliders, by looking at the front (fixed part) of the yaw string and treating that as if it was the ball.
As I was preparing to reply, I've just noticed that I started my flying career the year you were born! I still enjoy flying, I still have a Class 1 medical and I still have the same number of takeoffs and landings in my logbook. Most of my flying these days is towing gliders and here in Alberta, that means no flying while there is snow on the ground, which can be anything from three to five months.
Consequently, each pilot in the club has to go though a "Spring Checkout" ritual. I must confess that I always have a slight case of the jitters before this flight, particularly when I know that my check pilot is going to pull the throttle on me at some awkward moment!
It is perfectly normal to feel jittery, particularly when you are just starting.
Try to follow Pilot_DAR's very good advice. Modern aeroplanes fly themselves quite well, when properly trimmed.
PS Since you are flying both power and gliders, let me give you a tip. In a powered aircraft, with a slip-ball, you use the appropriate foot to "push" the ball back into the middle. You can translate that metaphor to gliders, by looking at the front (fixed part) of the yaw string and treating that as if it was the ball.
As a fellow newbie I can sympathize. It still amazes me how difficult I find it to do the right stuff in the right sequence while in the air. Let's face it, none of it is 'intellectually' difficult, it's just that the brain seems to be spending 95% of its resources saying to itself 'oh !@#$% I am going to die'. Although I was not aware of actual fear as such, I was clearly incredibly stressed so that I was failing to take-in pretty much anything for the first few lessons. It seems to me that the learning process is initially about learning to relax and trust so that the brain can start to devote a few more neurons to processing what is happening.
(one piece of advice - get a decent noise cancelling headset. I flew for the 1st time with the BoseQC35/Avee system last weekend, the difference was astonishing. In a very busy and chaotic ATC environment, for the 1st time I was able to form a picture of the other aircraft around me and hear calls to my aircraft. Also I suspect that the noise reduction itself may reduce the stress levels. I delayed buying my own set, I thought it would be uncool to turn-up on day 1 with all the gear and no idea. Big mistake - I wish someone had taken me aside earlier and said the school headsets are crap, get yourself a decent set.)
(one piece of advice - get a decent noise cancelling headset. I flew for the 1st time with the BoseQC35/Avee system last weekend, the difference was astonishing. In a very busy and chaotic ATC environment, for the 1st time I was able to form a picture of the other aircraft around me and hear calls to my aircraft. Also I suspect that the noise reduction itself may reduce the stress levels. I delayed buying my own set, I thought it would be uncool to turn-up on day 1 with all the gear and no idea. Big mistake - I wish someone had taken me aside earlier and said the school headsets are crap, get yourself a decent set.)
Last edited by double_barrel; 20th Sep 2018 at 06:43.
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More than most activities, flying involves a lot of trusting that other people have done, or are doing, what they should to at least an adequate standard. Just trust. Sure, people can make posts citing examples where something went wrong, and I certainly could, but that's not the point. If you aspire to anything involving more than going out your front door, you're going to have to trust that other people are as diligent as you are - and you are as diligent as you should be too!
Aviation has many layers of safety redundancy built into it. The layers which interest you most at this point in your flying are airplane design, and maintenance. Have confidence that the design of the airplane, and the margins of safety will keep you out of trouble, in the air. With the exception of being too close to the ground (or another plane), generally, you can let go of the controls for a moment, the plane will sort itself out. Not that you should be in the habit of letting go of the controls, you should be flying, but know that your applying your modest skills to try to muscle a plane against its natural stability generally won't make the flight better, and just frustrates you.
Of course, you want a well maintained plane. They won't be perfect, its unlikely that you're learning to fly in a very new plane, they're just too costly for primary training. So, you'll see some wear and tear, that's probably okay, aircraft design includes a lot of margin for the airplane being safe, without being mechanically perfect - what's known as "service limits". Trust in the maintainers of the aircraft, it's safe. If you have a maintenance concern, express it as a question, rather than a challenge, you'll probably learn something (and be reminded that the plane you're flying may be 40 years old!).
Aviation has many layers of safety redundancy built into it. The layers which interest you most at this point in your flying are airplane design, and maintenance. Have confidence that the design of the airplane, and the margins of safety will keep you out of trouble, in the air. With the exception of being too close to the ground (or another plane), generally, you can let go of the controls for a moment, the plane will sort itself out. Not that you should be in the habit of letting go of the controls, you should be flying, but know that your applying your modest skills to try to muscle a plane against its natural stability generally won't make the flight better, and just frustrates you.
Of course, you want a well maintained plane. They won't be perfect, its unlikely that you're learning to fly in a very new plane, they're just too costly for primary training. So, you'll see some wear and tear, that's probably okay, aircraft design includes a lot of margin for the airplane being safe, without being mechanically perfect - what's known as "service limits". Trust in the maintainers of the aircraft, it's safe. If you have a maintenance concern, express it as a question, rather than a challenge, you'll probably learn something (and be reminded that the plane you're flying may be 40 years old!).
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If you enjoy gliding book yourself a weeks course in the spring with a good instructor you will get 30 or 40 launches for not much cash then decide what to do from there. If you can only commit time at weekends then power makes more sense, you can book a slot and most times you will fly, again make sure you have a good instructor - and a deep pocket.
i would advise against doing abinitio flights in poor weather, get used to flying in good conditions plenty of time for challenging conditions later.
Warning flying is addictive, it can seriously damage your wealth, and if you think gliding is cheap look at the cost of a decent single seater, new or S/H.
i would advise against doing abinitio flights in poor weather, get used to flying in good conditions plenty of time for challenging conditions later.
Warning flying is addictive, it can seriously damage your wealth, and if you think gliding is cheap look at the cost of a decent single seater, new or S/H.
