Flight Journal: flight 13
Posted: Sun Jan 21, 2007 9:01 amFlight 13
04-17-95
1975 C-172M
TEB
Local
Sky clear; wind 030/06; temp 49F
1.0 dual
1 landing
"Normal t.o. and landing, ground reference man., s- across road, turns around a point"
The school has just purchased a 1975 Skyhawk with a spiffy new paint job. I do a long, leisurely preflight, noting the differences between this bird and the now-familiar 150.
Not much difference as far as the basics go, and I decide that, despite their common-ness (I'd always seen more of them than even 150s), 172s are pretty cool. Maybe that's why they're so common...
453's interior shows its age, but who cares? No overhead glass, but I've found that doesn't help very much anyway. The radios look very old, but they work. The panel layout is slightly different than the 150 and the other 172 I've flown, but I think I can handle that.
One thing I really like is the old-style microphone... if I need to use the mic, I'd prefer grabbing the big round police-style mic over the newer-style one, which is more like the type that comes with a cheap cassette recorder.
Takeoff is from the far end of runway 6, requiring a long taxi around the airport. I notice that taxiing a 172 is more like walking a thoroughbred compared to a 150, which is like walking a burro.
I rotate well, at the correct speed, and climb in a nice stable attitude at Vy. I'm still not used to the view over the nose, however, and throughout the flight I will have trouble visualizing pitch properly.
But I'm sure I'll get used to it...
Today, M. introduces me to ground reference maneuvers- due to my limited funds, we will skip review of stalls and slow flight and move on to these new exercises.
On the way to the practice area, I smile as I watch 453's shadow race down a street in Hackensack. She's galloping along at about 120 mph... I'm learning to appreciate the advantages of the better cruise speed of the 172: maneuvers are fine in the 150, but the 172 is better to get somewhere without dawdling.
Soon we're past the Oradell Reservoir, with M. all the while lecturing and fiddling with things. Finally, Tower turns us loose, and in blessed radio silence we head towards the Sheraton Hotel in Mahwah to practice turns around a point.
It goes well, except that I keep letting 453 climb a little during the turns. I'm within the accepted 100-foot margin, but I'm not fully in control as far as I'm concerned. But this is to be expected when trying, for the first time, to maintain a set distance from an object on the ground, while turning... in moving air.
Next task is S-turns across a road, using a straight stcretch of route 59 as a reference. This is easier for me, but still tricky, even with only a little wind. But I'm very pleased, having just tried two new maneuvers, and I'm sure I will be able to improve on my performance.
Eventually, as always, it's time to head back. But before we do, M. pulls back the throttle and says:
"Your engine just quit. What do you do?"
I pull back a hair, to keep 453 from descending too rapidly.
"Okay, I gotta maintain best glide speed- about 70," I answer nervously. The engine is very quiet now; the prop becoming more visible. I start looking for a place to land.
"At this altitude", M. inquires, "would you have time to try a restart?"
Stupidly, I waste a precious second looking at the altimeter. Why am I doing this when I know I'm at 1500 feet?
"Uh... I think I could try it while I look for a place to land..."
"Where? Where would you land?"
I see two small fields nearby: the longer one has a road cutting through it. Could be a ditch or fence alongside... the airplane might glide a few miles farther, but there's no guarantee that anything better will present iself. Got to go with the first viable spot that I'm certain I can reach... in a real emergency (like a fire!), time is precious....
I choose the other field, and tell M. my plan.
He shakes his head. "What about the road? You've got a nice highway right there."
Indeed, there's a nice straight stretch of paved 4-lane; no wires, no overpasses, just... traffic. Lots of traffic. M. explains that despite the obvious hazard of tangling with moving ground vehicles, it would generally be safer to put an ailing 172 down on a paved road than in a field.
"From here, the field looks good", he points out, "but when you're down there, you'll see that it's probably not so good..."
That's true. The field might contain hidden obstacles, not seen until it's too late, but the road's hazards are obvious from far away. The only catch, of course, is that the traffic may not yield for me... what would the average driver do, I wonder, if an airplane suddenly glided past, about to settle on the road just ahead?
We're back in the Delta airspace in no time... I bank right and circle until I can get a word in on the Tower frequency. I'm cleared to follow another 172... we can't find him.
I spot it just as we cross Route 80... it's on a long final for 19. Then I see it touching down as I descend, a tiny white toy on that vast stretch of pavement. Fortunately, I'm still too high.... and too fast... I touch down at the intersection. That was much farther than I intended to go- I flare well, but I'm annoyed at myself.
Once inside the school, M. announces that next lesson we'll be doing touch-and-gos (sounds like fun if a little scary), review ground reference maneuvers, then try some pattern work and a few landings at Lincoln Park.
Next: flight 14
04-17-95
1975 C-172M
TEB
Local
Sky clear; wind 030/06; temp 49F
1.0 dual
1 landing
"Normal t.o. and landing, ground reference man., s- across road, turns around a point"
The school has just purchased a 1975 Skyhawk with a spiffy new paint job. I do a long, leisurely preflight, noting the differences between this bird and the now-familiar 150.
Not much difference as far as the basics go, and I decide that, despite their common-ness (I'd always seen more of them than even 150s), 172s are pretty cool. Maybe that's why they're so common...
453's interior shows its age, but who cares? No overhead glass, but I've found that doesn't help very much anyway. The radios look very old, but they work. The panel layout is slightly different than the 150 and the other 172 I've flown, but I think I can handle that.
One thing I really like is the old-style microphone... if I need to use the mic, I'd prefer grabbing the big round police-style mic over the newer-style one, which is more like the type that comes with a cheap cassette recorder.
Takeoff is from the far end of runway 6, requiring a long taxi around the airport. I notice that taxiing a 172 is more like walking a thoroughbred compared to a 150, which is like walking a burro.
I rotate well, at the correct speed, and climb in a nice stable attitude at Vy. I'm still not used to the view over the nose, however, and throughout the flight I will have trouble visualizing pitch properly.
But I'm sure I'll get used to it...
Today, M. introduces me to ground reference maneuvers- due to my limited funds, we will skip review of stalls and slow flight and move on to these new exercises.
On the way to the practice area, I smile as I watch 453's shadow race down a street in Hackensack. She's galloping along at about 120 mph... I'm learning to appreciate the advantages of the better cruise speed of the 172: maneuvers are fine in the 150, but the 172 is better to get somewhere without dawdling.
Soon we're past the Oradell Reservoir, with M. all the while lecturing and fiddling with things. Finally, Tower turns us loose, and in blessed radio silence we head towards the Sheraton Hotel in Mahwah to practice turns around a point.
It goes well, except that I keep letting 453 climb a little during the turns. I'm within the accepted 100-foot margin, but I'm not fully in control as far as I'm concerned. But this is to be expected when trying, for the first time, to maintain a set distance from an object on the ground, while turning... in moving air.
Next task is S-turns across a road, using a straight stcretch of route 59 as a reference. This is easier for me, but still tricky, even with only a little wind. But I'm very pleased, having just tried two new maneuvers, and I'm sure I will be able to improve on my performance.
Eventually, as always, it's time to head back. But before we do, M. pulls back the throttle and says:
"Your engine just quit. What do you do?"
I pull back a hair, to keep 453 from descending too rapidly.
"Okay, I gotta maintain best glide speed- about 70," I answer nervously. The engine is very quiet now; the prop becoming more visible. I start looking for a place to land.
"At this altitude", M. inquires, "would you have time to try a restart?"
Stupidly, I waste a precious second looking at the altimeter. Why am I doing this when I know I'm at 1500 feet?
"Uh... I think I could try it while I look for a place to land..."
"Where? Where would you land?"
I see two small fields nearby: the longer one has a road cutting through it. Could be a ditch or fence alongside... the airplane might glide a few miles farther, but there's no guarantee that anything better will present iself. Got to go with the first viable spot that I'm certain I can reach... in a real emergency (like a fire!), time is precious....
I choose the other field, and tell M. my plan.
He shakes his head. "What about the road? You've got a nice highway right there."
Indeed, there's a nice straight stretch of paved 4-lane; no wires, no overpasses, just... traffic. Lots of traffic. M. explains that despite the obvious hazard of tangling with moving ground vehicles, it would generally be safer to put an ailing 172 down on a paved road than in a field.
"From here, the field looks good", he points out, "but when you're down there, you'll see that it's probably not so good..."
That's true. The field might contain hidden obstacles, not seen until it's too late, but the road's hazards are obvious from far away. The only catch, of course, is that the traffic may not yield for me... what would the average driver do, I wonder, if an airplane suddenly glided past, about to settle on the road just ahead?
We're back in the Delta airspace in no time... I bank right and circle until I can get a word in on the Tower frequency. I'm cleared to follow another 172... we can't find him.
I spot it just as we cross Route 80... it's on a long final for 19. Then I see it touching down as I descend, a tiny white toy on that vast stretch of pavement. Fortunately, I'm still too high.... and too fast... I touch down at the intersection. That was much farther than I intended to go- I flare well, but I'm annoyed at myself.
Once inside the school, M. announces that next lesson we'll be doing touch-and-gos (sounds like fun if a little scary), review ground reference maneuvers, then try some pattern work and a few landings at Lincoln Park.
Next: flight 14