Jumping into the aviation deep end
Two weeks ago I temporarily resumed flying with Skybound Aviation in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, because the Stoddard County Flyers’ Cessna 172 has been grounded for repairs. The damage caused by a goose strike in February knocked our club’s plane out of commission. After nearly three months of no training I was beginning to feel more than a bit rusty. Getting a few lessons in the Remos GX would not only help me scratch my aviation itch, but also give me a chance to practice operating in a towered airport environment.
Overall, my first flight with Mike McCrate went fairly smoothly. Despite a few struggles on my part, Mike was willing to fly with me again and we scheduled another lesson for the Memorial Day weekend. Ultimately, emergencies at church caused me to have to reschedule lesson number two. My military schedule delayed things even further, and it was not until Monday, June 6, that we had the chance to fly together again. This lesson proved to be very different than two weeks ago.
We met at the airport and talked through the agenda for the lesson. The weather was absolutely perfect with light winds and clear blue skies. The plan for the afternoon was to do a bit of slow flight, steep turns and stalls to help me get the feel of the Remos once again. Afterwards, we would do some ground reference maneuvers. The final part of the day would be some touch and goes with me talking to the control tower all the way. It seemed like a straight forward plan that should have gone just as smoothly as my lesson two weeks ago.
In the end, this flight turned out to be quite a different experience. Rather than having the controller’s undivided attention, this afternoon the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport was as busy as I have ever seen it. We shared the pattern with crop dusters, a helicopter, a gyroplane, and a handful of Cessnas. The ag pilots were busy working and landed repeatedly to refill their hoppers. Student pilots were practicing instrument approaches and the tower controller was doing a great job of keeping the entire circus moving. Aircraft seemed to be coming from all directions at once and I was very grateful to have Mike’s guidance as we made our way around the pattern.
The truth of the matter is all that frenetic activity left me nervous from the time I released the parking brake. Repeatedly I forgot to identify myself on the radio. In the air I over-controlled the plane and struggled with the rudder the whole time. My S-turns were either too steep or too shallow and I had trouble holding airspeed on my first approach to landing. Obviously, Mike never let me get into a dangerous situation, but he had to coach me far more this time around than he had on our first flight. The combination of high traffic volume at unfamiliar airport while flying a new airplane was enough to make me constantly feel about a half step behind the airplane.
Fortunately, the afternoon was not a total disaster. My steep turns were better than they had been the last time around. I was able to roll out on the proper headings and my bank angles were far more consistent. Emergency procedures were much smoother and we made two engine-out practice approaches. My power on and power off stalls had improved as well. The high point of the lesson was getting a chance to triangulate our position using VOR’s.
After five safe, but far less than perfect, landings Mike and I taxied back to the hangar. Climbing out of the plane I felt like I had been to the gym. My muscles were tense and I was physically drained. The hour and half of extreme concentration left me emotionally exhausted. The number and diversity of aircraft types all operating together was unlike anything I have experienced before. It was quite simply the most intense flying I have ever done. My goal for the lesson was to practice operating in controlled airspace. This afternoon provided a far better training opportunity than I could have imagined.
More than anything, I am glad that I got the opportunity to try this as a student pilot. Despite my stumbles and nervousness, Mike talked me through every moment. He helped me learned from my mistakes and made sure that I did not get into anything too far over my head. Apparently I did not scare him too badly, because he agreed to fly with me again next week. By then I will have had a chance to reflect on this experience and it will make me more prepared to handle a busy tower controlled environment.
