Saturday, March 31, 2007
So Close
Its a Saturday Morning, and I don't feel so great. This is pretty standard around here, but sadly, I am not hungover.
I've been sick for the three days, but it seems the antibiotics they gave are working! I slept through most of the night, which I thought was a thing of the past. This cold is like Brannigan's love: hard and fast.
So I've been sitting at home, watching TV. A lot of quality TV can be watched when there is literally no way you want to get up from your chair. The Daily Show/Colbert Report is good stuff, kept me much amused. Dennis Miller was on the Daily Show, that guy is way too smart. I had to look up 4 or 5 words after his speech, though in the rages of my cold, I do not recall which words those are. Kinda odd to think about it, Smart Americans, you'd figure they'd have all died out by now. Alas, those two Shows give me hope...hope that the Yanks will one day unfuck themselves.
Speaking of Unfucking. I passed my 4th flight test. I had Captain Hirt (aka the Hurt Locker) for this test. I also had him for my first flight test, the IIT. They were both the same sorta test, doing the same sorta things, so I knew he could see directly improvement on my part. This Test involved flying to Swift Current. Which is pretty cool, cause this test was actually useful. I can now go from point A to point B. Its pretty cool, having a clue what you are doing on the Radio. Instead of Air Traffic Control, being this horrible machine, they are just another instrument. Something the pilot must use and listen to if the flight is to go according to plan.
The flight went great, coupla silly mistakes, but it was a pass. I have 9 flights to go. As soon as i get better, I can finish this freaking course off.
9 flights for a mortal man, destined to fly
7 form trips needing an IP with stoney resolve
2 Xs for the student under a sunless sky
In the land of Moose Jaw where pilots toil
100 events in all, 1 Aves to fly them,
1 course to test them all and in its completion bind them
In the land of Moose Jaw where pilots toil
I've been sick for the three days, but it seems the antibiotics they gave are working! I slept through most of the night, which I thought was a thing of the past. This cold is like Brannigan's love: hard and fast.
So I've been sitting at home, watching TV. A lot of quality TV can be watched when there is literally no way you want to get up from your chair. The Daily Show/Colbert Report is good stuff, kept me much amused. Dennis Miller was on the Daily Show, that guy is way too smart. I had to look up 4 or 5 words after his speech, though in the rages of my cold, I do not recall which words those are. Kinda odd to think about it, Smart Americans, you'd figure they'd have all died out by now. Alas, those two Shows give me hope...hope that the Yanks will one day unfuck themselves.
Speaking of Unfucking. I passed my 4th flight test. I had Captain Hirt (aka the Hurt Locker) for this test. I also had him for my first flight test, the IIT. They were both the same sorta test, doing the same sorta things, so I knew he could see directly improvement on my part. This Test involved flying to Swift Current. Which is pretty cool, cause this test was actually useful. I can now go from point A to point B. Its pretty cool, having a clue what you are doing on the Radio. Instead of Air Traffic Control, being this horrible machine, they are just another instrument. Something the pilot must use and listen to if the flight is to go according to plan.
The flight went great, coupla silly mistakes, but it was a pass. I have 9 flights to go. As soon as i get better, I can finish this freaking course off.
9 flights for a mortal man, destined to fly
7 form trips needing an IP with stoney resolve
2 Xs for the student under a sunless sky
In the land of Moose Jaw where pilots toil
100 events in all, 1 Aves to fly them,
1 course to test them all and in its completion bind them
In the land of Moose Jaw where pilots toil
Sunday, March 04, 2007
For all those keeping track
Apparently this is my 114th blog. That seems on the high side, but I never was one to count so good. Sadly my English is worse, yet people still read this thing, so I will continue to post.
I just updated a few days ago, but the next coupla weeks will be hectic for me. Im on the BIT run, and it is very much a run. A sprint, with a flight and a sim scheduled for the next four days, and the Basic Instrument Test as close as next wednesday (assuming the weather holds, naturally). Sadly, having good hands and feet is only part of the battle for this test. The BIT is all in the mind, Calculations, Situational Awareness (SA), fighting with ATC, overcoming "the leans", and trying not to violate your instructors tickets (which isn't as fun as it sounds).
The calculations arn't so bad, I've been doing them since the start of the course, and the numbers eventually start to make sense. The problem is flying to other airports. On friday I flew to regina, its about 13 minutes away by flight, which is great. The sucky thing is, Regina is only 13 minutes away by flight. You have no time to prepare, get set up, push buttons. You would think, as the nintendo generation, that button pushing would come naturally, this is not the case.
Luckily you have an instructor there, telling you exactly would you should have already done.
"Jayson you missed your level off check...and now you missed your pre-descent...you should have already gotten ATIS from moose jaw....".
As I panic in the back, Captian Combe (an Old SAR guy who has been flying 15 years) calmly does everything in about 2.4 seconds, and rectifies the problem. Im still "flying behind the aircraft", I try desperately try to just start doing something...anything. I decide to fly the aircraft, thats rule one, fly the aircraft. I settle down the plane, and decide that flying to where Im supposed to be flying would be a good idea. So I push a few buttons and start steering towards Esrub, a mythical point in the sky that GPS can go to. Rule two is navigate, so Im actually doing useful things in the cockpit, Im starting to feel pretty good about myself. Sure I havnt done half of what Im supposed to be doing, but atleast Im going somewhere, with a modicum of confidence its where I should be going.
The GPS is a great tool, it tells you when to turn normally. When you get to ESRUB, its supposed to turn to RERAR, which I know to be a left turn. The GPS starts flashing "waypoint waypoingt", which is a good sign, I should turn soon. I watch the numbers tick down close to 0, getting ready for my left turn, proud that I have calmed the Harvard down and myself.
Its when the pilot is most smug, that things are actually going the most wrong.
The numbers start counting up...I look at the map, I have passed ESRUB, the GPS will not cycle to the next waypoint.
Capt Combe patiently waits for me to panic again, and sort myself out. I forgot to push a button, to let the GPS cycle to the next point. Combe had warned me twice on the ground, and twice in the air, my smuggness rapidly decreases.
This is how the rest of the flight went
"Fuck...okay fixed that....fuck..."
We got down, I was wiped out, completely exhausted from the trip. Actual time in the air? 68 minutes. I figured I might get a low standard...if Im lucky, but Combe gave me a High Standard.
He told me "we succeeded in the missions aim". The aim was to give me "exposure" to flying to other airports, and seeing if I ever gave up and stopped trying to catch up. The fact I kept screwing up was okay, Combe just wanted to see me sort it out and move on.
For the next trip, I have to know what Im doing, and actually do it. Im sure Captian Combe will enjoy the flight, students constantly suprize istructors with new and instersting mistakes.
I just updated a few days ago, but the next coupla weeks will be hectic for me. Im on the BIT run, and it is very much a run. A sprint, with a flight and a sim scheduled for the next four days, and the Basic Instrument Test as close as next wednesday (assuming the weather holds, naturally). Sadly, having good hands and feet is only part of the battle for this test. The BIT is all in the mind, Calculations, Situational Awareness (SA), fighting with ATC, overcoming "the leans", and trying not to violate your instructors tickets (which isn't as fun as it sounds).
The calculations arn't so bad, I've been doing them since the start of the course, and the numbers eventually start to make sense. The problem is flying to other airports. On friday I flew to regina, its about 13 minutes away by flight, which is great. The sucky thing is, Regina is only 13 minutes away by flight. You have no time to prepare, get set up, push buttons. You would think, as the nintendo generation, that button pushing would come naturally, this is not the case.
Luckily you have an instructor there, telling you exactly would you should have already done.
"Jayson you missed your level off check...and now you missed your pre-descent...you should have already gotten ATIS from moose jaw....".
As I panic in the back, Captian Combe (an Old SAR guy who has been flying 15 years) calmly does everything in about 2.4 seconds, and rectifies the problem. Im still "flying behind the aircraft", I try desperately try to just start doing something...anything. I decide to fly the aircraft, thats rule one, fly the aircraft. I settle down the plane, and decide that flying to where Im supposed to be flying would be a good idea. So I push a few buttons and start steering towards Esrub, a mythical point in the sky that GPS can go to. Rule two is navigate, so Im actually doing useful things in the cockpit, Im starting to feel pretty good about myself. Sure I havnt done half of what Im supposed to be doing, but atleast Im going somewhere, with a modicum of confidence its where I should be going.
The GPS is a great tool, it tells you when to turn normally. When you get to ESRUB, its supposed to turn to RERAR, which I know to be a left turn. The GPS starts flashing "waypoint waypoingt", which is a good sign, I should turn soon. I watch the numbers tick down close to 0, getting ready for my left turn, proud that I have calmed the Harvard down and myself.
Its when the pilot is most smug, that things are actually going the most wrong.
The numbers start counting up...I look at the map, I have passed ESRUB, the GPS will not cycle to the next waypoint.
Capt Combe patiently waits for me to panic again, and sort myself out. I forgot to push a button, to let the GPS cycle to the next point. Combe had warned me twice on the ground, and twice in the air, my smuggness rapidly decreases.
This is how the rest of the flight went
"Fuck...okay fixed that....fuck..."
We got down, I was wiped out, completely exhausted from the trip. Actual time in the air? 68 minutes. I figured I might get a low standard...if Im lucky, but Combe gave me a High Standard.
He told me "we succeeded in the missions aim". The aim was to give me "exposure" to flying to other airports, and seeing if I ever gave up and stopped trying to catch up. The fact I kept screwing up was okay, Combe just wanted to see me sort it out and move on.
For the next trip, I have to know what Im doing, and actually do it. Im sure Captian Combe will enjoy the flight, students constantly suprize istructors with new and instersting mistakes.
