Almost!

Like I mentioned in the prior post, my CFI thinks I’m ready to solo. Well, my last two flights were canceled due to weather, so I was itching to fly. Today was nearly canceled again due to threats of storms. At the last minute I got the call that said the storm was headed a different direction. Great news!

As planned, I was to execute a few take offs and landings with my CFI and then drop him off and fly on my own.

Had a couple of unusual events with my flight with him… First, I followed the taxiway directions given to me by ATC and came upon another plane going in the opposite direction on the same “Juliet” taxiway. I guess he had planned to divert me to a different taxiway but never told me. It wasn’t a big deal, but it did take me back a bit seeing a large plane headed my direction. First for me.

Next, I was given clearance to land on runway 19 behind a Cessna. I gave him plenty of time to land, but he still hadn’t cleared the runway by the time I was nearing the end of the final approach. I was ordered at the last minute to abort the land and fly a go around. I had anticipated it so, once again, it wasn’t a big deal. It did remind me to stay vigilant of other traffic regardless of what instructions I receive from ATC.

When we first went up, the wind was about 7 mph. After being up for about 10 minutes, the winds had changed to about 23 mph. Not knowing how much more the wind would pick up, it was unwise to solo (at the time of typing this post the wind are at 31 mph). Disappointed, yes, but my main concern is always safety. We stayed in the traffic pattern and I did 6 take offs and landings. I was a bit rusty, but was very pleased by today’s performance. I did feel the effects of the wind, which made flying more challenging, but I am growing more confident in my skills with each flight.

Since I haven’t mentioned it lately, I just wanted to note that my taxiing skills have greatly improved. It can still be awkward at times (especially at slower speeds) but I’m able to keep the aircraft in a somewhat straight line while on the ground.

I’m very blessed to have such a wonderful wife that supports me reaching for my dreams. Kate and Rome drove out to the airport in hopes to witness my first solo flight. The solo didn’t happen, but I was able to show them around the airport and provide them with a tour of the plane. Kate was even able to take a picture of me landing.

It meant the world to me that Kate and Rome were there.

Flight time: .9 hours
Cost: Plane rental - $103.00, Instructor Fee - $40.00