March 20, 2011 - First Solo!
Finally, a calm, clear day. Ideal for soloing, even for a lousy pilot like me!!
The plane we flew was GHZL.
After 3 touch and goes, Lari declared me fit to fly my first solo circuit. The fourth landing was a full stop. He got out of the plane, told me to do one take off and one landing, and have fun. So, off I went.And I was surprisingly confident and calm. Even had a few moments in the Crosswind leg to think “Holy shit, I’m FLYING!!!” and then to say a little prayer of appreciation in the Downwind, before doing my d/w checks and calling base.
The plane we flew was GHZL.
After 3 touch and goes, Lari declared me fit to fly my first solo circuit. The fourth landing was a full stop. He got out of the plane, told me to do one take off and one landing, and have fun. So, off I went.And I was surprisingly confident and calm. Even had a few moments in the Crosswind leg to think “Holy shit, I’m FLYING!!!” and then to say a little prayer of appreciation in the Downwind, before doing my d/w checks and calling base.
A lot of people comment about the lighter take off in solo. I didn’t notice that so much, but the landing I found a little funky – there was traffic ahead, a just-complete city tour, and so I was a little tight behind them. Probably should have extended my downwind to leave a little more space, but whatever. I landed the plane and taxied off the runway. (Twr even congratulated me on my first solo.) It is tradition to baptise student pilots with a bucket of water immediately following their first solo flight. Korkka did not disappoint, and I got a nice, warm cup of water on the head. |
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