Fumble In The Desert

Tuesday morning, my instructor and I were supposed to finish up the complex portion of my commercial training in the Piper Arrow. However, one of the Arrows was down for 50 hour maintenance and it happened to be the one we were scheduled in. Suddenly, I found myself with nothing to do. It was a slow work day and a perfect opportunity to knock out 4 or 5 more hours with a cross country.

The next planned cross country was with my better half over the weekend to Las Vegas, so Vegas was out. I have flown over Palm Springs several times but had never actually landed there, so PSP it was.

My parents were on a cruise to Hawaii and when my phone rang, it was my mother telling me that they were back in LA. They were going to be driving home to Phoenix via I-10. I told them that I was actually flying to Palm Springs and we decided to meet there for lunch.

I filed IFR, had the plane topped off and departed KIWA after a brief IFR clearance hold. It was a clear, calm day with excellent visibility. The flight took 2.4 hours and the approach to 31L was stunning. Palm Springs Approach vectored me over La Quinta & PGA West, Palm Desert and Cathedral City before lining up for final. On a 10,000' x 150' runway, it's hard to do anything but a perfect landing. It was much more impressive to see the King Air 200 land parallel to me on 31R, which is 5,000' x 75' and looks tiny in comparison. I taxied the tired old former UND plane to the slums at Signature Aviation.

This is the part of the story where the chain of stupidity begins...

The door lock on the aircraft I was flying was INOP. For whatever reason, I thought it would be prudent to take my Bose headset and Jeppesen IFR knee board with me. Usually, I just leave them in the aircraft. I know that a beat up old Cherokee is where I would look for quality gear to steal when surrounded by aircraft like Barons, SR22's and a TBM 700. So I strapped the headset case to the knee board and headed in to order fuel.

I ordered a top off and carried my stuff in to the pilots' lounge to wait for my parents to show up. I brought along a brand new issue of Road & Track to read as I waited. A few minutes later, my phone rang and they were pulling in to the parking lot. I was careful to remember my headset, knee board and R&T. When I got to their car, I found the back seat completely full. Things would have to be re-arranged. I carefully set my headset on top of the car, re-arranged the contents of the back seat and settled in for a quick ride to Fat Burger (really good burgers, by the way).

We chatted about Hawaii and enjoyed a nice lunch. When I got back in the car for the brief ride back to the airport, I reached for my headset. Then I reached again. I started to get a combination of a sick sinking feeling, tunnel vision and vertigo all at once as I realized my headset was not in my possession. I started hyperventilating and sounding like a cross between Felix Unger and Raymond Babbit as panic took control. Uh oh...time to go to Signature...time to go to Signature.

I had left the headset on top of the car. Yes. Really. When we got to Signature Aviation, I got out of their car and, like a scene from a John Hughes movie, noticed dusty skid marks the shape of a Jeppesen IFR knee board across the roof, down the window and trailing off of the trunk. It did manage to stick until we got out of the parking lot and on to a busy street.

As I drove out on to La Cielo Drive, about 100 yards down in the middle of the road was something flapping in the breeze. It was Road & Track with my name on it. It was nearly shredded and covered with tread marks. I looked around fully expecting to find a smashed headset but found nothing. My Bose headset was gone. I instantly had a mental picture of someone picking it up and grinning ear to ear. Christmas had come early for someone at my expense.

There I was in Palm Springs without a headset, low en route chart or sectional. I inquired at Signature's front desk and a a flight school. Nobody had turned it in. I needed a headset and at least a sectional to get home. I inquired at the flight school (The Flight School at Palm Springs) and the Andy, the owner/director said that he had an inexpensive headset for $100. I explained to him that I would only use them once and wanted to inquire with Signature about a rental. He didn't hesitate to hand me a headset and said, "Take this. If you need it, keep it. If not, send it back to me when you can." He refused to accept money from me. What a nice gesture. A good deed. Anyone in need of flight training in Palm Springs, make sure to check with Andy Dutzi at The Flight School at Palm Springs. Many thanks, Andy.

I made my way to aircraft, still mourning the loss of my Bose headset and departed VFR for Phoenix. A nice tailwind would get me home in just over 2 hours. As I approached Phoenix at 9,500' the most stunning moon rise I had ever seen came from the northeast. It was giant, completely full and the most beautiful shade of orange. Phoenix approach vectored me nearly direct to Gateway for a nice finish to a bad luck day.

After tying down the aircraft, it was no surprise to see that I had about 10 voice mails waiting for me. I checked the missed call log before listening to the messages and noticed a missed call from the 760 area code, the area code for greater Palm Springs. A glimmer of hope. The next to last voice mail was from a man that just asked me to call back...at a 760 number! I stubbed my finger dialing. When he answered, I told him that I knew why he had called me. He said, "Tell me". I told him that he probably had a Bose headset in a black case and a black tri-folding navigation book that said Jeppesen. He had indeed found my headset and wanted to return it to me.

He volunteered to take it back to Signature Aviation so they could ship it back to me. He flat out refused a reward and just wanted to do a good deed. He said that when he found it, he knew it belonged to a pilot and must be important. What a good, honest man. Thankfully, I am obsessive about putting my name and phone number on everything. Someone could have just as easily pawned the headset.

So here I stand, totally impressed by being the recipient of not one, but two good deeds in one day from perfect strangers who went out of their way without seeking reward. My faith in humanity is fully restored and am finding myself more in the holiday spirit.

Jeff, the GM at Signature in Palm Springs, called me this afternoon to inform me that the headset was dropped off, was undamaged and was being shipped to me priority overnight today. It will be in my hands tomorrow morning. How lucky am I to be saved from such a stupid mistake?

Longbows & Arrows

One of the neat things about flying at Gateway is the variety of aircraft flying in and out. At any given time in the pattern you'll find: C-17's delivering Israeli Longbows to Boeing for refurbishment, C-130's, Justice Department/Homeland Security MD-83's deporting illegal aliens and transporting Federal prisoners, Air Force and NASA T-38's, Navy T-45's, F/A-18's, AV-8B Harriers, US Airways aircraft doing touch and go's, KC-135 tankers, plus passenger planes such as Embraer ERJ145's & Brasilias, 737's, chartered 757's & A320s, Dash 8's and more...and that's just fixed wing aircraft! It really is neat to be on final, parallel to a C-130.

It's been pretty busy the last few weeks. Changing from Part 142 training to Part 61 training has required some significant work. In addition to a considerable amount of required time building, a new aircraft has come in to the mix. Part 61 training at my flight school requires initial single, then a multi add-on. The check ride for commercial single engine will be in a Piper Arrow, which I had exactly zero hours in.

During the past week, I've had to learn procedures and V speeds for an entirely new aircraft and then re-learn the differing procedures for all of the commercial maneuvers. Nothing has really been difficult, just time consuming. As a matter of fact, the Piper Arrow (PA28R-200) is pretty fun to fly. I especially enjoy power off 180's. With best glide at about -1500'/min, the landing point comes pretty darn fast. The school has two Arrows in the fleet and both have very different personalities. One has a 2 blade McCauley prop and the other, a 3 blade Hartzell prop. The one with the Hartzell prop sinks like a rock. Aim straight for the numbers! The other day, I did 8 power off 180's and hit my point 6 out of 8 times and made the runway for all 8. Hopefully on check ride day, it will come just as easily. Need more practice. Other than the nose heaviness in power off 180's, it's a very forgiving, easy to fly aircraft and cruises along nicely at about 140 knots.

Besides learning the Arrow, time building has been on the forefront. San Diego Montgomery Field won out for the long solo cross-country. The people at Gibbs Aviation were very nice and lent me a courtesy vehicle so I could grab lunch at Point Loma Seafood Market.

Sunday, I did a night trip to Tucson International. A high pressure system centered over central Arizona was making gusty Southeasterly winds in Tucson, but they were forecast to be right up the runway. Winds aloft were wicked, it took 1.5 hours to get to Tucson with ground speed never exceeding 80 knots. On approach, there was a 20 knot direct headwind, gusting to 26. I came in fast and landed smooth. After dinner, the winds had picked up to 32, gusting to 40. If I were flying a Cessna, it would have been time for a quick call to the Hampton Inn. The Cessnas on the ramp were rocking all over the place, but the low wing aircraft were all pretty stable. Winds at Gateway were reported to be 030 at 8, no big deal at all. I taxied out, accelerated to 90 knots indicated and held on tight. The first half of the ride home featured a 35 degree crab angle and some moderate turbulence. After that, it was smooth and enjoyable all the way back to Gateway.

Tuesday a maintenance cancellation provided a perfect opportunity to fly to Palm Springs, but that's a story all of it's own.

61 Reasons To Be Happy

Who am I kidding? Nobody is that happy. But I do have reasons to be happy. Things are finally going my way at school. That means no more training under CFR 14-142. No more waiting for a Seneca (of which both are down again as of today) to train in. The new chief flight instructor at the school lasted all of two months. Today his replacement turned out to be the previous chief, who hated his cargo job and decided to come back. He is much more competent and not a micro-managing control freak. Morale with the school's flight instructors has noticeably improved. There are now many reasons to be happy at flight school.

I feel like I've been unshackled from a 500lb weight. Today was lesson number one with new instructor, another really good guy. He had planned on introducing me to commercial maneuvers, not knowing that I had already done them and was proficient with all. Then he started planning for our dual day & night cross country flights. Already done.

After finally getting to communicate with someone at The School about where I stand, it appears that all I really need to do is one long cross-country and about 10-12 hours in a single engine Piper Arrow to get proficient with it's "complex" systems. I have a little time in Arrows, but have never done commercial maneuvers. From what I understand, the really tricky one is the power off 180. Arrows are pretty nose heavy, so I'm sure it will take some practice to master them. Having not done them in an Arrow, I can only guess that it's pretty much turn straight for the numbers. I doubt there's much of a base. We'll see.

Since he hadn't flown with me before, we went up for a mock check ride so he could evaluate my flying progress. We did Chandelles, Lazy Eights, a Steep Spiral, Eights on Pylons, short & soft takeoffs and landings a couple of power off 180's and some emergencies. Pretty basic stuff. When we landed, he said he had no concerns about cutting me loose for the cross country and time building needed to reach 250 (not that much).

I've decided to do the long cross country on Friday. According to 61.129, it requires three points with a minimum of 300 total nautical miles and one leg of at least 250 nautical miles from the departure point. From KIWA, here are the options I have:

• El Paso - Tucson - I lived there for nearly a year, but it seemed like a decade. Blech. Sorry (or perdon) if that offends any UTEP fans or El Paso natives.
• North Las Vegas - Laughlin/Bullhead or Saint George, UT - VGT is almost exactly 250 nautical miles, plus there's a free shuttle to the strip. Hmm...a free ride to the blackjack tables. That could be dangerous.
• San Diego, Montgomery Field - Carlsbad or Palm Springs - This is a nice trip. I've done it before. Fuel is inexpensive there and they usually have a courtesy car. Top contender.
• Albuquerque - Flagstaff - This time of year can make that a touchy trip to plan in a puddle jumping Cherokee with nothing but carb heat and a defroster.
• Van Nuys - Palm Springs - I have yet to fly to Van Nuys and if I don't make it this time, will definitely plan to go there.
• Long Beach - Ontario - This one might be fun too. Get right in the thick of it with SoCal. A diversion to Catalina Island might become necessary too.

Well, those are the choices I've given myself. Except for El Paso, they all have certain merits. If anyone wants to sell me on El Paso, feel free. I'm listening. Other than that, which one sounds like the best trip? Any suggestions on destinations not listed?

I still have to time build for another 20-25 hours, so which ever ones don't get selected will be open for future flights. I wish the Bay Area was just a little closer. Now that would be fun.

Keeping An Eye On The Prize

In the process of getting ready to do a bunch of cross country flying, I stopped by a new pilot shop for some new TAC and Sectional Charts. I've been meaning to stop by for quite a while now and was glad that I did. They sell 1:80 aircraft models and they're reasonably priced.

Since my first job will most likely be flying either CRJ's or ERJ's, I picked up a nice ASA/Delta Connection CRJ-700 model. It was only $23 and now when I'm in my office working and studying, I can keep my eye on the prize.

The store is called "Pilot Shop". They have a location in Tempe, AZ and one in Albuquerque, NM. They also have an online shop. Their prices are good and the salespeople are very knowledgeable.

The models are from a company called Sky Marks. They have virtually every commercial aircraft in service and most liveries. Great Christmas gift idea for the pilot in your family (hint hint)

Happy Thanksgiving

Wishing everyone short lines and freedom from delays this Thanksgiving.

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I had to fly to Wickenburg on last minute's notice today. I forgot that it was the day before Thanksgiving.

Today is one of those rare days that I'm thankful for the ability to speak so fast. Most of the time, it's nothing but an annoyance to my friends and family. "What?!?" is the usual response to anything I say. Getting through Phoenix airspace today involved patience, good timing and some empathy for the grouchiness being handed out by ATC.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone.

Persistence Pays Off

Today I received a phone call from the VP in Florida of the flight school that I attend. After a week of vacillating, the finally agreed to move me from Part 142 commercial training in to Part 61 training.

I don't know if I covered the differences between the two before or not, but there are many. Part 61 training is less structured and requires more hours of experience to achieve a specific rating. Part 142 training utilizes a lot of time in an Flight Training Device (FTD). The FAA recognizes a significant amount of FTD time which allows a pilot to earn a commercial license in 190 hours, including FTD time. Part 61 training requires 250 hours total time, with a recognition of 20 hours FTD time.

For now, I'm free from flying the Senecas (at least trying). Starting next Monday, I'll be assigned a new instructor and begin the time building phase. A few long cross country flights should get me there. Then it will be about 15 hours in a Piper Arrow for the complex portion. Part 61 check rides are done in the Arrow and the maneuvers, especially power-off 180's, are quite different than in a standard Cherokee. Once that is done it will be time for the single engine commercial check ride. Following that, it will be time to get back in the Seneca and finish up about 10-15 more hours for the Commercial multi-engine add-on. Hopefully all will be done by the end of December.

I have to say that I'm impressed that the flight school chose to do the right thing. I really didn't expect them to, but am glad they did. Changing flight schools is not something I was looking forward to doing, but would have done if necessary. They knew it and thought better of calling my bluff.

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I need a new instructor. ExpressJet has claimed my friend and instructor, Mike. He interviewed on the 20th and has a class date of 11/27! ExpressJet is hiring like crazy and I'm glad to have several good friends there now. I think that having several letters of recommendation will definitely come in handy next year.

Congratulations, Mike! You deserve it.

It Was Bound To Finally Happen

The Law of Averages finally ruled in my favor. There was actually a flying Seneca at school today. The window was only 2 hours long and the lesson called for 8 approaches: ILS, VOR, NDB & GPS first normal, then single engine. There's absolutely no possible way that that many approaches can be completed in about 1.6 hours, but it was a chance to fly.

We accomplished 3 multi-engine approaches: VOR, GPS and ILS. I was surprised how much was retained, not having flown a multi-engine aircraft in four weeks. All three approaches went perfectly. Following the approaches, there wasn't enough time to set up for a fourth, so I just made closed traffic for some touch & go's.

It felt good to be back in the aircraft, but my feelings about moving to Part 61 have not changed. Just because the plane started flying today doesn't mean it's going to stay up. Recent history has proven how unreliable these old Seneca I's are. I think the school's biggest dilemma is that 142 training is aircraft specific. If they change to Seminoles, or even Seneca II or III, the have to get an entire syllabus re-approved by the FAA. I'm sure that involves considerable time and money.

I'm scheduled to finish the lesson tomorrow in another two hour flight window. I doubt there will be enough time to complete 4 single engine approaches and an NDB multi-engine approach, which means another incomplete and another flight to schedule before we can progress.

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Two of my friends were just hired by ComAir with a December 7th class date. Congratulations to RJ & Mike.

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Other than another flight being cancelled, yesterday was a great day. My friend Alex and I drove out to Phoenix International Raceway to participate in Bondurant School of High Performance Driving's Lap The Oval. It was a 3 hour event where you get to drive a Formula Ford race car around PIR's 1 mile tri-oval. A Formula Ford is aan SCCA sanctioned open wheel race car with 115 horsepower Cosworth engines and a 4 speed non-synchro racing transmission. 115 HP doesn't sound like much, but we're talking about car that weighs just over 900 pounds. They top out at about 145 miles per hour. Bondurant has rev-limiters installed that limit top end to about 130, which is still quite fast when you're sitting four inches above the track. Here's a picture of me heading into turn 3 , with the tach bouncing off the rev limiter at about 130 at PIR yesterday.

If you're even in Phoenix during the two weekends per year that Bondurant offers Lap The Oval, don't miss out.