Salt Lake Pilot

Checkout in a Cessna 172P

2009-07-28T11:51:00.003-06:00

Well I have been wanting to try something new in flying for a while. So when I heard that Astral Flight Academy was opening at Salt Lake International I thought I would stimulate the economy and go try them out. So I got an appointment set up to get checked out in a Cessna 172P. I haven't flown a Cessna in years so it took some getting used to! It was a typical checkout and we headed out to the practice area over the lake and did some stalls, steep turns, and then headed to Tooele to do some landings. My first couple were...not the best. But after a while I got used to the approach and how much it would float during the flare if you weren't careful! Then I just started nailing the landings! It felt great. My instructor said that he couldn't have made better landings himself, and that my communications were better than his. This was a real confidence booster after the couple not so good landings. The skyhawk is a fun bird. I much prefer the Cherokee though. But its just a stepping stone and eventually I could grow to like it!

Fly-in Camping Trip-Southern Utah

2009-07-06T00:17:00.007-06:00

Well during a slower time at work I requested a couple of three days off and decided that now's a good of time as any to go on a spontaneous vacation! I called up a friend and the arrangements with the plane were made and we were going to spend three days camping and flying in the Idaho backcountry. Well in finishing up flight planning the night before the weather decided to be nasty to us. A little saddened to not be flying in the lush green mountain valleys of Idaho I started looking at other places to go to. We decided to go to beautiful Southern Utah. I went down to the airport and picked up Glen Hanselman's book "Fly Utah." Its awesome! He has put so many hundreds of hours into this book it was worth the $60 and more! So we found a couple of backcountry strips in southern Utah that I thought the Cherokee 180 could handle! So we packed up the plane...and I mean PACKED the plane. There was a lot of stuff for three days and two guys! But it all fit and we were well within weight and balance with the wonderful loading capabilities of the 180. So we took off and headed from Bountiful Skypark in the metro Salt Lake City area, and headed off to the beautiful forests and deserts of Southern Utah. We didn't really have a plan, this was just going to be spontaneous. Which was fun. We flew down to Bryce Canyon airport to decide what we wanted to do. We spent well over an hour digging through Glens books and decided to head over to the eastern part of the state to check out five different strips and see if I felt comfortable in my piloting skills and the airplane's skills going into these strips. Well the thing I didn't think about as much was taking off from Bryce Canyon. By the time we were ready to launch the Density Altitude at the airport was 10,000 feet, and the plane didn't climb like I wanted it to...about 200 feet per minute. It defiantly was.......fun...... But with some help from some updrafts we were able to gain altitude. I didn't feel comfortable flying out east due to our lack of performance at this time of day so we decided to head to Ibex (Tule Valley Hardpan). Ibex is a dry lake bed in the West Desert of Utah and is a beautiful (beauty is in the eye of the beholder) place. So we set up camp next to a small lake and then flew down to Milford for some last minute supplies. The airport manager was awesome! She ran us into town in her own truck and waited for us to get our grocieries. She then fueled up the Cherokee and we were off again! Ibex was a lot of fun and we went exploring during the evening. But when we got back to camp we were ready to cook dinner but the wind never died down...ever! So we cooked some beans and then gave up on cooking anything else. We went to the tent and spent the rest of the night there in the howling wind. We got up the next morning...still windy...and packed everything up. We wanted to go to another backcountry strip but due to the wind, I didn't feel comfortable. So we flew over to Panguitch and spent the rest of the vacation with my Great Uncle Vee. We did some hiking in the area and played poker and just had a jolly ol time. When we were packing the plane back up (in the podunk town of Panguitch) we heard a plane on final approach and to our amazment it was a King Air B200! After the passenger deplaned we took a couple of pictures and the pilot's invited us in. This was my first time in a business aircraft...and it was awesome! We talked for a while and then we were on our way. We had a wonderful flight home even though we were burned and exhausted. I cannot wait to do it again!

2009-06-17T15:56:00.002-06:00

Flying adventures

2009-06-17T15:56:00.000-06:00

Boy it has been forever since I have updated. I have been flying all over the west! In the next couple of days I will get the pictures posted! Blue skies to y'all!

Passengers and Trips

2009-01-14T16:16:00.005-07:00

Well it has been a couple of months since I got my ticket and have been trying to get anyone who wants to go flying up there. It has been so much fun. Utah is absolutely beautiful with the snow and has been a lot of fun to fly and see the beauty of it. I haven't gotten many pictures from actual flying but did manage to get some my last trip down to the southern part of the state around Bryce Canyon. If anybody reading this has a chance to go down there...do! It is spectacular! I cannot wait to go a little further south to monument valley.

DONE!!!

2008-10-29T15:34:00.002-06:00

It has been too long since I have updated my blog but I finally passed my checkride! After a lot of rescheduling I finally did it! I am a new private pilot! Pictures to come...hopefully

Checkride Prep 9/30/08

2008-09-30T18:33:00.002-06:00

Well after not being in the air for over a month, it was sure good to get back up! And I feel really good about my checkride now...with the exception of landings. After not having been up for so long, I have lost my touch. Almost every one of my landings had something wrong with it! I was not happy, but practice makes perfect. My airwork as well as my ground reference maneuvers were all within standards, and I feel that I could easily pass my checkride. So now its back again tomorrow to stick those landings! ........three days and counting.........

Checkride Scheduled!

2008-09-09T16:55:00.001-06:00

I finally heard back from the DPE I am going to be using. We scheduled my checkride for the 4th of October! I am so excited!

Solo Cross-Country 8/20/08

2008-08-21T10:52:00.003-06:00

YES!!! I did it! I made my first solo cross-country. A total of 7.2 hours across Northern Utah, Western Wyoming, and Eastern Idaho. My route took me from Bountiful Skypark up to Pocatello Idaho to Blackfoot Idaho, where I was just in time to have lunch with some family. I then took off a little later and flew to Afton Wyoming, then back over to Idaho Falls, then across the desert and lava fields to Twin Falls Idaho. After a fueling stop there I headed back home to Skypark. It was amazing!!! There were some pretty good bumps and some pretty strong winds but we made it just fine! It was so cool. I am getting so close to my checkride I can feel it...and I am terrified!

Night Cross-Country 8/19/08

2008-08-19T09:31:00.002-06:00

...Wow! Well it was not as hard as I thought it was going to be! We took off from Bountiful in nice and hot 92 F and climbed out north towards the practice area. We tried to do some ground reference maneuvers but with no wind it was not doing me any good. So we landed at Ogden to fuel up. To try and kill time until the night, my instructor called Ogden tower to see if we could come up and see what it was all about. We went up and met Steve, a very helpful controller. He told us how he did his job and showed us how everything worked. All in all we were up there for about two hours! It was really neat to see everything on that side of the radio. We departed Ogden and set out on our night cross country. We tried to get flight following but it was then terminated, so we continued on our way. It was spectacular. The air was calm, no traffic, and the lights were breathtaking. I now can see why my instructor loves night! We head to Blackfoot Idaho and make a full stop and taxi to the ramp. After a bathroom break we head off again to Idaho Falls, then to Pocatello, making full stops at each airport. We then decided to change our plans a bit and we flew down to Malad, Idaho and did a full stop. I have to say that is the roughest field I have ever been to. After taking off we flew to Logan then back to Brigham City and then again to Ogden for more fuel. We did a couple of more landings there and we finally (at 1:20 in the morning) went back to the home drome. He said to turn my lights off and not to turn in the airports lights on and to see how I do. It really was not as bad as I thought it was going to be. After landing we turned the lights on and taxied to the hanger. We put her away and did the logbooks and sauntered very slowly back to our cars.

Solo Practice 8/12/08

2008-08-12T10:23:00.002-06:00

Today was excellent! I was able to nail all of my altitudes, airspeeds, headings. It was great! My steep turns were done within standards, my stalls were good, and my slow flight...finally...excellent! I found my problem. I always seemed to rush everything. But if I just entered it slow and easy, it worked. It was great! I cannot wait to get my licence! I then headed back to Bounitful to practice some touch and go's. My first couple of landings were textbook while my 3rd was...we wont discuss that! The fourth was a wonderful full stop. Today was great and I feel really really confident about my flying abilities now! I have found that if I just talk myself through everything, I can do it better.

Solo Practice 8/9/08

2008-08-12T10:16:00.002-06:00

Today was horrible! I just could not nail anything! If I was trying to get a heading I would bust my altitude or other things like that! I feel like I want to give up! AHHHHHHHHHHH! :(

Cross-Country 8/6/08

2008-08-06T19:22:00.002-06:00

Today was awesome!!! I spent the last two days planning a dual cross country from BTF to KNB that I would complete this morning. I was really hesitant when I was planning my flight because of rain showers and thunderstorms. But after getting the weather briefing from Flight Service I made a "go" decision. We departed Bountiful at about 1220 Z (6:20 AM) and climbed to 7500 and opened our flight plan. We headed around the class B and started our pilotage/dead reckoning navigation. Everything was perfect! The air was smooth, great visibility, no traffic all the way to Kanab. We flew along and talked about aviation, and enjoyed the spectacular Utah scenery. We made a position report at Richfield airport and they let us know once again about possible "mountain obscuration," and that VFR flight was "not recommended." My instructor laughed and said if there is one tiny cloud against a mountain they call it obscuration. And that was exactly what it was. We joked and continued on our way. Kanab came up faster than I anticipated so I hurriedly ran through the checklist and entered the pattern. We landed perfectly and taxied for fuel. The airport manager came and greeted us and filled us up. We used the restroom, payed the bill, and were airborne again. My route that I planned back was using radio navigation (ADF and VOR's). I picked possibly the ugliest route home but it was fine. I learned valuable knowledge about VOR navigation. We finally got back to the Wasatch Front and we called for a transition through Bravo airspace which was granted and we descended to land at BTF. It was not the best landing in the world but we got down. I did it! I was really happy and my instructor commented on what a great job I did planning the flight! I added up the total damages for todays flight...$610.00. But...it was worth it! :)

Solo Practice 8/4/08

2008-08-04T10:26:00.003-06:00

Today was a another great day of flying. Honestly I don't have much to say about it. Everything was normal and I practiced everything that I have been practicing before. Now I am just planning my cross-country that I will be taking sometime this week.

Solo Practice 8/2/08

2008-08-02T21:45:00.003-06:00

Wow! I got to the airport today and there was no wind. I check SLC's ATIS, and there was no wind there either. It was an amazing day of flying. I flew around the mountains, valleys, and lakes of the Wasatch Range in awe! It was great! Practice was excellent as well. During my steep turns I stayed in minimums 90% of the time. I even caught the bump at the end of the turn. I was very happy. It was just really a great day of flying!

Solo Practice 8/1/08

2008-08-01T10:32:00.003-06:00

Got up early today to hit the skies! Preflighted the aircraft and taxied out to the runway. Took off in the beautiful morning. First headed north to the practice area and practiced slow flight and stalls. I then wanted to do a quick sightseeing tour around Antelope Island so I dipped down to 5500 and flew around the Island. Not to much to see but that was ok. I then went back to the practice area and did turns about a point. I really need to do more of these with my instructor! I also tried the S-Turns across a road...and...we wont talk about that! I then flew down to Bountiful and I snapped a couple pictures. After clearing the mountain into Salt Lake I took a few more pictures and practiced some more maneuvers. With one more sightseeing trip up a canyon it was about time to head back to the airport. I went back over the mountain and set up for the 45. I made a standard pattern when the wind really started to gust. I made a touch and go and went around the pattern for a full stop. It was one of the worst landings I have had in a while. But the plane is still flyable so that is a good thing! I fueled her up and put it away. In the hanger across from the Cherokees a couple of guys were working on a Cessna Turbo 210. After I shut the hanger doors I went over and introduced myself. The guy I talked to was a very nice man by the name of Glenn Olson. He asked if I had a minute to come and take a look at some planes. We talked for a bit while he showed me his Bonanza and a homebuilt aerobatic. He told me he just came back from Oshkosh yesterday. He also wanted to show me the plane of a friend of his, Sheridan Owens. I saw his 3/4 scale P-51 on the news (http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=148&sid=3621748) and Glenn let me sit in it while we talked for a little while longer. He was an amazing man and hope to get to know him better!

Solo Practice 7/26/08

2008-07-26T09:37:00.002-06:00

Flying is way too much fun! Today I went out for my second solo flight. I departed Bountiful and proceeded northbound to the practice area. I practiced my slow flight, power off and power on stalls, and ground reference maneuvers. After that I headed towards Weber Canyon to fly up on the majestic east side of the mountains. I got clearance and headed through Hill AFB's airspace up the canyon. There was a lot of turbulence! But I got up the canyon just fine and practiced a little more around the Morgan area. I then climbed to an altitude to pass over the mountain were I then headed back to the airport. To my surprise the traffic pattern was empty. So I set up for a 45 and did 8 landings, practicing short field procedures on some. They were all really good! I was happy! I then had to go see my house in Salt Lake from the air so I flew over the hill to go find it. I found the house and took in the area from a whole different perspective. I then went back to Bountiful where I heard my instructor on the radio with another student. We greeted each other and I set up for the 45. By this time the wind got stronger and had turned to a bit of a crosswind. I have had very little crosswind training so this was a new experience for me! But the landing was...fine (airplane still flyable), and I taxied over to the fuel pumps. After filling up I went and put the bird to rest in the hanger! I am so glad I am a pilot!

Flight Lesson 7/25/08 FIRST SOLO

2008-07-25T09:00:00.003-06:00

I DID IT!!!!! The day I have been waiting for for 3 years. My solo was today. I got to the airport at 6:30 and used the POH to finish up my pre-solo test. I preflighted the aircraft and taxied out. My instructor finished up the demonstrated stalls and we went back and entered the pattern. After six touch and go's he told me to do one more full-stop and taxied to the hanger. He signed my logbook and asked if I was nervous. I said just excited and he got out and shut the door. I taxied back to the active and held short for landing traffic. The traffic landed and I made my first solo takeoff. I was alarmed at first because I have never seen the Cherokee climb this fast! I hit some nasty winds on crosswind but then got it under control. I flew the pattern and then turned final. I was on the glidepath making an excellent approach. Flew over the threshold and made a perfect landing, although slightly to the right of the centerline. Full power and on the go again for two more landings, which were perfect. After the third I taxied to the fuel pump to meet my instructor. He asked how I did and I said great! I told him I got a little worried with the gusts of wind on crosswind and he laughed and said they were better there than on final! I concurred and we fueled the plane. He told me to taxi it to the hanger while he walked over. I secured the plane and signed my logbook with my first pilot in command time. I cannot wipe the smile off my face! This is truly the best day of my life!

Flight Lesson 7/19/08

2008-07-19T22:40:00.003-06:00

Well I finally got to work a lesson into my time schedule! Today we took off from KBTF and did one touch and go and then headed over the mountain into the Salt Lake Valley towards Provo KPVU. During the route out there we practiced some airwork. Both my slow flight and stalls were pretty good. He then asked me to put on the hood and he took control of the airplane. He then set up the ILS and had me track inbound to PVU with it. We made our calls to the tower and we were number two cleared to land. But he then told me to call the tower and terminate from the approach. I was a bit baffled by this at first. He told me to look up and half a mile in front of us was a Mooney. I immediately made a right turn and broke off from the approach. We then did it one more time and came in ok on the ILS. It is just so awesome to take the hood off and see the runway right in front of you! After that we practiced some normal touch and go's. The controller was great and was making jokes with all the pilots. He was awesome. We then turned northbound back up to Bountiful for a full stop. After we put the plane away he printed off for me a pre-solo test. I will complete that and hopefully next lesson...SOLO!!! :)

Flight Lesson 7/11/08

2008-07-11T09:56:00.002-06:00

I went flying this morning...FINALLY! It has seemed like forever. We took off runway 34 and departed over the Great Salt Lake to practice maneuvers. We did a lot! Steep Turns, Stalls, Slow Flight, Emergency Procedures, Ground Reference maneuvers, with others. I feel that overall I did pretty well. I do need to work on holding my altitude during steep turns but I felt a drastic improvement over previous lessons. I was introduced to ground reference maneuvers and know that I need a lot of work on S-Turns across a road, but I find them enjoyable and something that will be fun to work on! Now I am just waiting on insurance to see if I will be able to fly this plane solo. That will be next week and I am very excited.

Flight Lesson 7/8/08

2008-07-08T11:34:00.002-06:00

Today was great. I showed up a little late to the airport but we immediately went and preflighted and started. We took off runway 16 and departed north to Ogden. On our way out we flew to the west to steer clear of the Hill AFB airspace. We practiced slow flight, Stalls, and Steep Turns. I still am having trouble with staying within standards but I am getting better. We called Ogden Tower and the gave us clearance to make right traffic for runway 16. I turned downwind, base, final and my first landing was a greaser!!! It was great. We did some more landings before requesting to head south via I-15 back to Bountiful. We got clearance through both Ogden and then from Hill. It was awesome to watch the F-16's do there maneuvers! That was cool. We set up in the pattern and landed full stop at Bountiful. A pretty good day. Unfortunately I don't get to fly tomorrow but will be back up on Thursday. He said that I am practically ready for solo so I am hoping will be able to do it Friday!

Flight Lesson 7/7/08- Cross Country

2008-07-07T11:18:00.003-06:00

Well I got discouraged today. As we departed from Bountiful my takeoff and climbout were good until I was supposed to maintain 6000. I am having a really hard time maintaining my altitudes. The sight picture in the Cherokee looks like a nose down attitude so I pull up and continue to climb. I was finally able to intercept and maintain it though. We then practiced some air work slow flight, stalls, steep turns, and then he showed my how to intercept a radial and track a VOR. I did this with both the Ogden and Malad VOR's. And after a while I finally got the hang of it. We then turned the plane towards Brigham City for a quick touch and go. We entered the pattern and I got really messed up on final. After I passed the threshold I was still high so I decended and then flared too early! I then somehow got the plane on the ground. I felt horrible! I felt that I had to relearn everything I had learned. We departed the pattern and then climbed to 6000 to land at Logan Cache Airport KLGU. The pattern was a slightly busy with Utah State University students but we slipped in just fine. I made a perfect approach and an ok landing. After the touch and go we departed the pattern towards Morgan County 42U. This is now one of my favorite airports! Even though the approach can be very tough, it is rewarding to get on the ground. During downwind my instructor asked me what I think I need help on. I asked him, "how are my patterns and landings?" He responded saying, "that my patterns were good and overall my landings were not too bad." As I turned final, it was a perfect approach and a perfect landing! I was ecstatic and my instructor was thrilled. We went around for one more touch and go and then we departed back towards Bountiful. In the end the lesson ended better than it started. And even the helicopter in the pattern was nice enough to do a 360 to let us enter the downwind. I talked with my instructor and he said with the way I am going now he could probably solo me by the end of the week! Great lesson and my first real cross-country!

Flight Lesson 7/3/08

2008-07-03T11:02:00.005-06:00

Oh boy! Yet another day of flying! It was an ok day. We departed BTF and flew under the shelf of the class B airspace up Parleys Canyon. The canyon was beautiful but we hit some pretty good bumps on the way up. We continued up through the Park City area towards Heber 36U. As we were over Jordanelle Reservoir cruising @ 8500 my instructor asked if I have done any zero g's. I replied I had not so he took the controls and showed me how to do that. I have to say I had way too much fun with those. We finally were able to get reception for the CTAF @ Heber. When we started listening we heard a Husky tailwheel pilot arguing with a Robinson helicopter doing right traffic in the pattern. The Husky pilot did nothing but scold the helicopter for not flying the right pattern. He kept yelling at the helicopter instructor to teach by the AIM. Finally the helicopter departed the pattern. I just cannot believe that all of us in the world of aviation cannot get along. The Husky pilot could have handled that a ton better! But we entered the pattern and practiced some touch and goes. They were all a little rough but I am slowly getting better. Then another airplane entered the pattern and I was sooooo jealous. Citation N550MX entered and I was dreaming I was flying that. After about seven touch and goes we departed back towards BTF. We practiced some airwork and then I went under the hood for the way back. I had the hardest time. I would stray from an altitude and as I try and recover I lost my heading and I was fighting it all the way back. I am excited for an instrument rating but also nervous. Hood flying is tough work!!! We landed did a touch and go and returned for a full stop. This weekend I am going to be studying for my written which I will take next week...I hope!

Flight Lesson 7/1/08

2008-07-01T10:46:00.002-06:00

Today in the Cherokee we focused mainly on landings. He showed me how to transition from BTF through the Salt Lake Bravo Airspace and we headed outbound on a BARN Transition. After we cleared the class B we went over to Tooele Valley Airport KTVY and focused mainly on landings. After a couple of regular landings we tried some engine out approach and landings. The first two were not good at all. But third time was the charm. Although my landing was a little rough, we made it to the field safely! So after one more touch and go after that we departed the pattern back towards Antelope Island and practiced slow flight. The first time I tried I was able to hold my heading great but I put in too much flaps too soon and I broke minimums so we tried it again. He simulated the correct way to do it and then I was able to do it. After that we flew to the north tip of the island and continued back over to Bountiful. We flew right down the I-15 corridor after passing over Lagoon and set up for a right downwind. I blew the approach. I turned base too early and then was way too high on final. It was not good! But I will work on that! But overall a fantastic day of flying!

Flight Lesson 6/30/08

2008-06-30T11:35:00.002-06:00

Today I had my first flight lesson in about eight months! It was amazing I forgot how much fun it was to fly. We had a great lesson departing from runway 16 @ Bountiful Skypark then heading over the Great Salt Lake to practice slow flight, power on and off stalls, and steep turns. Then we flew to Brigham City airport KBMC and practiced a few touch and goes on their nice 7500 foot runway. My first touch and go was absolutely textbook! It was a real confidence booster after not having flown in eight months. After two touch and goes we headed down to Ogden's class D airspace for two more touch and goes on runway 16 and then requested to head up Weber Canyon en route for Morgan County with Hill AFB Tower. The canyon was stunningly beautiful with bits of snow still evident. As we approached Morgan my instructor told me about the unique location of the airport. It is a very challenging one to get into as it is right up a small canyon. Its runway is only 50 ft. wide and 3900 ft. long with a runway gradient of 2%. It was quite a challenge but a good learning experience. As we headed back to Bountiful we flew over beautiful Francis Peak! I cannot express in words the beauty Utah is from the air! We then flew down Farmington Canyon following a Cessna 172 and followed them into Bountiful. We followed them on the 45 for the downwind and flew the pattern. None of my landings were as good as the first one in Brigham City but all of my approaches were pretty good. Overall I was happy with the flight. We taxied up to the Self Service fuel pump and I found that they lowered the price by 26 cents which was great! We then taxied to the hanger and put the bird to rest. I am now preparing for another flight lesson tomorrow!

Medical

2008-06-25T20:12:00.003-06:00

Well today I finally got my third class medical. I had my examination on the 10th of June but their was a little mix up with my AME (long story) but I finally got my certificate tonight! I am so happy. I also tried to go flying on Monday but the left strut needed nitrogen and we were unable to get to an A&P. Oh well...next flying lesson is Monday! Good Day! Wish me luck! I am studying for written soon!

I have a plane!!!

2008-06-10T11:44:00.003-06:00

I just talked to a family friend of ours and got a plane secured for my flight training! I am so excited! The only thing thats disappointing now is that it is all torn apart for its annual inspection. That is cool though! I cannot express in words the excitement that I have right now! I want everyone to know how generous this man is for letting me use his plane and only have to pay for fuel. It is beautiful! A 1965 Cherokee 180 based @ Bountiful Skypark Airport (KBTF).