Back to the basics... night flying...

[Boss_BlueAngels]

Last week I started doing some night flights with my instructor.  I hadn't flown at night since my PPL training back in the 1900's.    (Dude, I can actually say that now)  And that was only the minimum hours.  So, this was a good review.  My home airport is a black hole approach and was foreign to me even from my very limited earlier flights.  Man, I have to say, I was kinda freaked out about it!  I'm in a college town just on the east side of the cascades where towns are very far appart and I'm used to flying on the very well lit Seattle area.  

Anyway, the first landings were quite terrible, as one could imagine.  The one greaser I did have that night, I couldn't see anything but pitch black sky and really didn't know what I did, "right".  It was a good flight overall and was quite entertaining for my instructor.  

I did one more flight to another airport about 30 nm away and landed at their larger runway.  That was cool, did pretty good.  Then came back and did one landing at the home base.  

I had the usual problems of flaring too late at the home base with the narrow runway, and flaring way too early at the wider one, dispite the fact I had studied the expected illusions.  I still wasn't really ready to go out and solo at night yet.

So, this Thursday I had a two hour slot from 5-7 with sunset being 6.  My instructor gave me permition to call it quits early before it gets dark, or to stay out.  Well, I practiced my comm. maneuvers for about 40 minutes, then came back at 6 and started doing T/G's.  About 12 of those later, it was completely dark out.  Since I absolutly HATE feeling uncomfortable having to do something in an airplane, I decided to stick it out and practice the night landings.  It worked to be a great idea as each time around it got darker and darker, allowing me to gain a bit more confidence with the darkness each time around.  By the time I was done I was greasaing nearly every landing and man did it feel GREAT!  

I now feel fully confident in my night landing skills and will start doing my cross-country flights at night to gain experience with the night environment, and it helps with aircraft availability issues.  

Ugh, I hated that feeling of almost being afraid to fly at night.  Even with my first solo at my home airport five years ago (16 feet wide by 1,700 feet long, approaching over a 150' hill, and two 50 foot barns and a road) I was extremely nervous after my first landing.  But shaky knee's and all I went around four more times untill I got over it.  

[Brett_Henderson]

When I was a student , circa 1982.. I avoided night flying out of shear fear (not wind shear  ;)   )

"ALL" the airports anywhere near my home airport were pilot control lit and I'm here to tell you, those lights worked about 1/2 the time. Flying near large bodies of water on even the slightest of hazy or overcast nights, SHOULD be IFR. With no major freeways or large towns.. sky/water/horizon become one  :o

The last few years, I've been living in and flying out of a pretty good-sized airport (KOSU) in Columbus, Ohio. It's a huge city with a whole bunch of interstate highways and KOSU is a class "D" airport.. so it's always lighted. The primary runway (9R/27L) is 5000 X 150, but even that big a target can be difficult to orient, if you aren't night current. The only thing that kept me from knee-knocks on my first night landing there was, knowing I could come in a little high and fast with runway to spare.

I passed 500 hours total time long ago, but if it's been a while since a night flight... I'm still a little edgy on final.

Aside from all that ?  Good, clear, VFR night flying is great fun. You sure can spot traffic  ;)

[BFMF]

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[beaky]

Sure can be spooky the first time you rotate into... blackness. Being aware of the possible illusions doesn't stop that first moment of: "ulp!"
Haven't flown much at all at night, but departing and arriving at N07, even on a clear night, was very interesting. Once you're over the urban areas, highways, etc., though, it's much more relaxing for the newbie... and beautiful. I like the (usually) smoother, clearer air at night, too. Also much much easier to spot traffic at night...

[MadDriver]

I love the smoothness of night flights.  Nothing beats taking off and having a nice, calm flight around the city and surrounding area.

[Hester]

Ahhh, night flying is lovely!  Toronto looks beautiful all lit up in the dark.  Nice smooth air, lots of cargo traffic to listen in on... and I always get a kick out of the red panel instrument lighting.  It really is the seediest colour.  My instructor refers to it as the 'Brothel Lighting'.  I will never get that description out of my head now  ;D.

[Boss_BlueAngels]

"Brothel Lighting"  That's funny!  Dang it man, now that's all I'll ever think of!