While I was sitting on a Westjet flight from YYZ to YYG, my girlfriend decided to WALK HOME from the airport, lol! Below are a few of the shots she got on her way out, on foot, of Pearson...
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My first commercial flight since passing my flight test last week took me to Charlottetown, PEI, where I'll spend the rest of this glorious summer! Some pretty crazy small aircraft crowded (and extended) the apron... "a Century of Flight" celebrations were in town, and I was lucky enough to have a friend greet my flight and take me over to the "parking lot", where we spent half an hour walking amongst the planes. Among other things, we saw a Pilatus, a de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver, a Flight Design GmbH CTLS and Spencer Air Care!
Some people go out drinking after they pass their flight test, but we decided we'd go plane watching -- Hanlan's Point style... There is a beach on the Toronto Islands that borders the airport. It is "clothing optional", tee hee. Ideal conditions are when rwy 08 and 06 are in use, as you can see the heavenly bodies on approach. But winds were from the west, and strong at that, so 26 was in use, and there was not much Cessna traffic. Nevertheless, we set out to do what we intended... First, we walked in awe past the great variety on the clothing optional beach, on towards the amazing parasailing/surfing club and onwards still to the fence that divides the public island from the airport. It was pretty neat to be that close to the departing Dash 8s!!! We watched for a bit, and took some photos; then we went for the "option" (wink wink), swimming in the cool lake to get some relief from the heat. As we were plane watching, we were blessed with a Cessna. And not just any Cessna, but the 150 that had so recently carried me bravely through my PPL test. Wow! Neat!! We waved like mad, jumping up and down in the water and on the beach as GFDH did circuits, but whether the poor folks inside saw us, who knows, tee hee.
I want a record of my flight test, and I suspect others who are still working towards theirs might be interested to hear what it was like.
I realise this is just one person's take on a PPL check ride, and it is affected by an infinite number of variables, not the least of which are the conditions of the day and my style as a learner. I am also acutely aware that already 24 hours after the event, my memory is starting to waver on some of the finer details. Nevertheless, I offer below my acct of my PPL flight test on a Cessna 150.... For a long time, I was "married" to GGNJ -- she was the first bird I ever flew, back in July of 2010, and I felt a special bond to her. (I remember how frustrated I was to find out I was scheduled to solo for the first time in HaZeL!!!)
But, ever since GNJ's new engine installation, her RPMs leap terrifyingly close to redline, and one almost has to come out of a climb with power first, then attitude - trim in order to avoid overspeeding the engine. So, I was quite happy to plan for and fly my PPL flight test in GFDH, despite its wonky fuel gauges. And he served me well, this winged animal, for as you can see in the photos above, I am safely landed on the ground again, after a 1.4 in the air, having successfully completed my test. Last year around this time I was celebrating the successful conclusion of the written exam, in Moncton, NB. On to Toronto, and summer 2013: Not only did I pay my flight examiner yesterday as evidenced in the rec't to the left, but I actually passed my PPL flight test!!! The last week has been a bit of a blur, but I have tried to summarize yesterday's ordeal here. More coming soon, but first, I need a break.... Those familiar with CYTZ will know there is a "clothing optional" beach on the approach path of 06 and 08. My girlfriend and I are biking to the island today to go skinny dipping there and watch the planes fly overhead, tee hee! P.S. No, I am not yet a liscenced pilot -- readers may recall that my solo x-country west was nixed due to.... WEATHER!!!! So, I will have to do that, as well as an English proficiency test, when I get back to Toronto in Sept, before we head off to Argentina for the year. But the test is a MAJOR hurdle out of the way. Eons ago, one of my early instructors encouraged me repeatedly to read my POH. Alas, I couldn't bring myself to become absorbed in its visually unaesthetic layout. So often I opened it, with good intentions, and then quickly closed it again. As if the many numbers and charts were not overwhelming enough, the font and layout were just such a turn off, I couldn't do it! But now it's crunch time... I'm days away from my PPL flight test, presumably, and I actually need to know this document inside and out! So I am forcing myself to read it, really read it, not just look up numbers I need quick for a nav log or something... and, you know what? It's not that bad! The sections often overlooked give good info for the material you need to know for the ground portion of your test. And the amplified procedures really explain things in a little more detail, which actually makes sense to me now that I know what many of the words mean! If you're a newer student reading this blog, may I encourage you to review your POH. Just read a chapter at a time, and talk it over with another student pilot, or take some time to review it with your instructor. Make the POH for your aircraft and integral part of your flight training early on -- I wish I had! Now there's a phrase you don't hear very often, lol! And yet, it was the case tonight, with three Cessna 150s in the circuit, and a steady stream of arriving Dash 8s at CYTZ. As our trusty tower guy tried his best to squeeze in everyone's needs commensurate with safety, he could frequently be heard on the radio, asking the bigger, faster planes to slow it up a bit, for spacing.
Finally, at one point, a Dash 8 Captain responded with, "We're going about as slow as we're able", and ultimately, I -- who was just about to touch and go on 08 -- was instructed to pull up and go around. Overall, though, we three wee ones got a number of good circuits in, and we got to practise last-minute overshoots, too! And, Porter and Maple traffic still did what they needed to. My flight instructor greeted me this morning with the news that he had procured a flight test date for me, and it's the end of next week!!! I'm only three days into my two weeks straight of flying every day (weather permitting), and so I was a little taken aback. To be honest, I feeling a little overloaded. On the other hand, having a date etched in stone makes it very real, and gives me a very specific goal to strive for!! |
Welcome to Vera's Flight Brain...Here I will attempt -- hopefully not in vain -- to share my connections to previous knowledge. Or I might share a few random thoughts loosely connected to flying, too, as well as any useful resources I may stumble across in my studies.
AuthorVera C. Teschow is a certified teacher and mother of twin boys Alex and Simon. In addition to documenting her flying lessons, she also blogs about babies, teaching and life in general. Categories
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September 2013
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