Today and tomorrow I'm at the AOPA Summit in Florida. Walking around the exhibit hall today offered me the chance to fly a Fresca simulator setup for a Cirrus SR22.
This thing has a wraparound screen that probably covers 180 degrees of your forward view (so nearly total side-to-side coverage) and maybe 40 degrees up-and-down (so plenty). I kept my flight short, but just after takeoff I rolled over into a steep bank and felt a little disoriented. It was kind of cool, but something that I'd have to get used to as getting all that visual input with no seat-of-the-pants input was a touch strange.
The graphics looked like MS Flight Sim, so I assume that is what was driving the view, and the avionics were near-real-life mockups mounted in a cockpit setup not too different from the real SR22. Very very cool.
To end the flight I did something unique. I slowed down, reached up, and pulled the chute. The sim seemed to do a decent job simulating the event, and it was a bit of an eye opener. The initial pitching moment from the chute deployment didn't look as extreme as I imagined it might, but the descent rate looked more, umm, "intense", than I had previously imagined it would be. That told me that I really don't want to ever pull the chute in real life (unless that's my best option of course).
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Morning fog
This morning I made a quick flight before the fog had a chance to lift off of the local lakes and rivers. I managed to capture a bit of it with my iPhone.
That factory in the video is near Lancaster, SC - from there I flew NW out to Crowder's mountain to see the leaves turning yellow along the ridge-line as the sun had risen just enough to skim down the slope through the trees. Amazing. That was one of those sites that only your mental camera can capture, unfortunately.
That factory in the video is near Lancaster, SC - from there I flew NW out to Crowder's mountain to see the leaves turning yellow along the ridge-line as the sun had risen just enough to skim down the slope through the trees. Amazing. That was one of those sites that only your mental camera can capture, unfortunately.
Friday, August 28, 2009
My last few flights
My last few flights have included a bit of time flying behind a "six-pack" of "steam" gauges again.
After having spent so much time with the G1000 over the last few months I figured I'd have some trouble re-adjusting to the older indicators. I actually found that I automatically adjusted and didn't really notice the fact that I was getting my flight info in a different manner. No doubt the fact that I have hundreds of hours on steam gauges was the reason, but it still surprised me how automatically my brain adjusted. If I was flying hard IFR for an extended period I would certainly prefer to be watching a PFD for attitude info (with the major bonus of its automatic cross-checking) but for 95% of my flying there's little difference.
I've been looking more closely into owning part of an airplane again and will post more about that once progress is made. So far it seems to be going quite well though. Regardless of what type of airplane I eventually buy part of, I truly look forward to it.
Renting an airplane just can't compare to ownership. I even enjoy the mundane tasks of keeping the plane clean and tidy when I know it's "mine". It's almost like having another family member - like a super-awesome pet that you can ride. :) Take good care of her and she'll take good care of you.
After having spent so much time with the G1000 over the last few months I figured I'd have some trouble re-adjusting to the older indicators. I actually found that I automatically adjusted and didn't really notice the fact that I was getting my flight info in a different manner. No doubt the fact that I have hundreds of hours on steam gauges was the reason, but it still surprised me how automatically my brain adjusted. If I was flying hard IFR for an extended period I would certainly prefer to be watching a PFD for attitude info (with the major bonus of its automatic cross-checking) but for 95% of my flying there's little difference.
I've been looking more closely into owning part of an airplane again and will post more about that once progress is made. So far it seems to be going quite well though. Regardless of what type of airplane I eventually buy part of, I truly look forward to it.
Renting an airplane just can't compare to ownership. I even enjoy the mundane tasks of keeping the plane clean and tidy when I know it's "mine". It's almost like having another family member - like a super-awesome pet that you can ride. :) Take good care of her and she'll take good care of you.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
19th first-time flier
This evening I got the chance to fly with a family I met recently.
Their son was out of town so we filled the C172 up with the Dad, Mom, and daughter. The daughter flew right seat and got a bit of time at the wheel. She did a terrific job and seemed to have fun doing it! She was my 19th first-time-in-a-small plane passenger! I truly enjoy being a GA (general aviation) ambassador. It's just too much fun not to share. :)
The weather was very cooperative for the flight - I was expecting a few bumps from thermals but we actually found very few.
Their son was out of town so we filled the C172 up with the Dad, Mom, and daughter. The daughter flew right seat and got a bit of time at the wheel. She did a terrific job and seemed to have fun doing it! She was my 19th first-time-in-a-small plane passenger! I truly enjoy being a GA (general aviation) ambassador. It's just too much fun not to share. :)
The weather was very cooperative for the flight - I was expecting a few bumps from thermals but we actually found very few.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
About 5 quality seconds of landing practice
This morning's flight was meant to get me up and down before the winds started picking up. I've not been thrilled with my last few landings (tending to float) so I wanted to give myself no excuse today - no winds means it's all the pilot's fault.
I've gone through phases in the past where my landing consistently seem to fall short (not literally, thankfully). But today I did a good job with my one landing - hopefully ending this most recent streak.
As usual, I think my problem has been bad airspeed management (flying a bit too fast). I can give myself a pass on that type of mistake when the winds are playing around, but not when they are just a few knots.
Before takeoff today I pulled out my new iPhone 3GS (for ForeFlight testing of course!) and took this quick video. I uploaded it to Vimeo since they seem to provide better quality viewing. The video is nothing special but did show me that the 3GS takes great video, especially if you can keep from shaking your phone when filming.
I've gone through phases in the past where my landing consistently seem to fall short (not literally, thankfully). But today I did a good job with my one landing - hopefully ending this most recent streak.
As usual, I think my problem has been bad airspeed management (flying a bit too fast). I can give myself a pass on that type of mistake when the winds are playing around, but not when they are just a few knots.
Before takeoff today I pulled out my new iPhone 3GS (for ForeFlight testing of course!) and took this quick video. I uploaded it to Vimeo since they seem to provide better quality viewing. The video is nothing special but did show me that the 3GS takes great video, especially if you can keep from shaking your phone when filming.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Recent flights
I've flown a couple of times since my last post - both solo and both just local flights.
The first was to check out the infestation of duckweed on the pond we have down in Fairfield county. We had plans to get down there for the weekend and I wanted to learn how much duckweed we'd have to treat. I found it about 60% covered which wasn't great. After talking to my Dad about it, we decided to buy some Talapia fish to stock the pond. The hope is that after putting 1000+ small Talapia in the pond they will start to eat the duckweed and make a dent in it. We've been spraying chemicals for years with only minimal benefit. Hopefully the au-naturale method will work. Either that, or the bass will get lots of fish food.
This morning I went out early to visit an old haunt - KFQD in N.C. It is just south of the mountain foothills so there's some very nice scenery to take in. The flight went great, especially my landing at FQD. Unfortunately my landing was less than perfect back at KUZA as I had a little bounce. And, of course, people were watching me do it - people NEVER airplane watch there, but they caught that landing! :)
My desire to own an airplane is starting to ramp up again. i am renting a wonderful plane now, but it is still renting. That means scheduling is a bit annoying - no last minute decisions to fly after seeing that you have 2 hours to spare when the wx is wonderful.
How does one quantify their desire to own an airplane? I judge it by the number of times I window shop on controller.com. And that number has been rising. :)
The first was to check out the infestation of duckweed on the pond we have down in Fairfield county. We had plans to get down there for the weekend and I wanted to learn how much duckweed we'd have to treat. I found it about 60% covered which wasn't great. After talking to my Dad about it, we decided to buy some Talapia fish to stock the pond. The hope is that after putting 1000+ small Talapia in the pond they will start to eat the duckweed and make a dent in it. We've been spraying chemicals for years with only minimal benefit. Hopefully the au-naturale method will work. Either that, or the bass will get lots of fish food.
This morning I went out early to visit an old haunt - KFQD in N.C. It is just south of the mountain foothills so there's some very nice scenery to take in. The flight went great, especially my landing at FQD. Unfortunately my landing was less than perfect back at KUZA as I had a little bounce. And, of course, people were watching me do it - people NEVER airplane watch there, but they caught that landing! :)
My desire to own an airplane is starting to ramp up again. i am renting a wonderful plane now, but it is still renting. That means scheduling is a bit annoying - no last minute decisions to fly after seeing that you have 2 hours to spare when the wx is wonderful.
How does one quantify their desire to own an airplane? I judge it by the number of times I window shop on controller.com. And that number has been rising. :)
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Getting my fix again
After a full month of no flying (as PIC) I was starting to really itch to get back in the air again. My schedule and the weather had conspired against me for a while, but today I was finally able to get 1.2 hours in.
In addition to testing some of the latest ForeFlight software, I was able to grab a few pictures of the family's newest addition - an aluminum dock at the lake house. The dock was built and installed by Alumadock of Henderson, NC.
It should come in handy for docking the newest edition to our family's transportation collection - the good ship USS ForeFlight:
We've had that jet ski up to about 65MPH so far - on calm water. I don't think it will go any faster than that, but I'm quite fine with that. :) The previous owner said it will tow skiers nicely and the little bit of knee-boarding we've done with it so far confirms that.
I flew down to the lake area at 5,500' - just enough to remain under the clouds. This had at least 2 benefits - the first is that I could glide farther if I had engine trouble (helpful since there are few good landing spots in that part of the state) and the second is that it was a good bit cooler up there (and shadier) making the vent air feel like air conditioning.
I took quite a few shots of the dock once I was within visual range of it. Here's one of the better ones. I'll let you guess which dock is the new one - hint: look for the blue.
The winds were calm today but the ride was a bit bumpy. I attribute the rough ride to rising thermals - the autopilot was definitely working hard for me today. I kept adjusting the throttle to keep RPMs in check and make sure I wasn't going too fast through the heavier bumps.
I ended the flight with a fairly tight pattern. I crossed the threshold a bit slow though so touched down a little firmer than I wanted. I truly hope it won't be another month before I get more PIC time.
In addition to testing some of the latest ForeFlight software, I was able to grab a few pictures of the family's newest addition - an aluminum dock at the lake house. The dock was built and installed by Alumadock of Henderson, NC.
It should come in handy for docking the newest edition to our family's transportation collection - the good ship USS ForeFlight:
We've had that jet ski up to about 65MPH so far - on calm water. I don't think it will go any faster than that, but I'm quite fine with that. :) The previous owner said it will tow skiers nicely and the little bit of knee-boarding we've done with it so far confirms that.
I flew down to the lake area at 5,500' - just enough to remain under the clouds. This had at least 2 benefits - the first is that I could glide farther if I had engine trouble (helpful since there are few good landing spots in that part of the state) and the second is that it was a good bit cooler up there (and shadier) making the vent air feel like air conditioning.
I took quite a few shots of the dock once I was within visual range of it. Here's one of the better ones. I'll let you guess which dock is the new one - hint: look for the blue.
The winds were calm today but the ride was a bit bumpy. I attribute the rough ride to rising thermals - the autopilot was definitely working hard for me today. I kept adjusting the throttle to keep RPMs in check and make sure I wasn't going too fast through the heavier bumps.
I ended the flight with a fairly tight pattern. I crossed the threshold a bit slow though so touched down a little firmer than I wanted. I truly hope it won't be another month before I get more PIC time.
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