Well, I haven't been able to do much flying recently. As you may have noticed, it has been rather windy recently- gusting up to 40 knots. Not particularly useful as the next lesson is a solo nav ex and I can only fly in 10 knots solo. This is becoming a boring waiting game. Any way, in the last week or so I have managed to go flying a couple of times, mainly finishing off the last bits of nav including VORs ( a useful navigation aid to stop you getting lost) and a landing up in Gamston. It was definitely interesting to land in and see a different place, as well as speaking to someone else on the ground. Notable differences included having to do a right-hand circuit when joining ( backwards to what I'm used to), adhering to a different set of noise-abatement parameters (mainly a nearby mansion) and a circuit height of 1000ft. All went smoothly save for a couple of stupid radio calls- I asked for basic service from Gamston when they can't provide it, d'oh.
I've also been flying with the old man, Captain Law himself, which was rather entertaining. On approach, he's used to flaring much higher in his B777 than in a light aircraft and almost had to change his trousers after rounding out with the texture of the tarmac visible. Priceless. To accommodate 3 of us, we had to take a four-seater PA-28 which was brilliant. Not only was it fun to fly something much more docile and accommodating, but seeing a different cockpit and having to adapt was a fun challenge.
In my down time, I've been studying "The Aeroplane Technical" book from which I can take 2 exams. Those are coming on Saturday so I'm studying hard to get all the knowledge crammed in- it's like GCSE Mechanics all over again! Also, with consideration to the future, I've been exploring options for hours building. Current runners are a) going to America b) going to New Zealand c) buying an aircraft here and selling it after and d) flying out of Stapleford down South for £79/hour. All have their pluses and minuses with a convenience/price trade-off but right now New Zealand is looking pretty damn good. We'll see.
Next lesson is booked on Thursday; fingers crossed I can fly!
