So today was fly some more approaches day. Instead of Kevin, I had Adam as my instructor, but Kevin had left him detailed instructions on what we were to do.
The plan was to go to Flint and do the VOR 36, circle to 27, then the ILS 27, then the 27L Localizer Back Course, and if time a 27L RNAV approach.
I preflighted N1689H and impressively, the seat location I selected didn't slip even once the whole flight - and there was much rejoicing.
I noted the left tire looked a little low, and the instructor, Adam this time, looked at it and said it was in the acceptable range and besides, we would just be doing one landing this lesson.
Jinxed it right there, he did.
Construction is occurring at KPTK, 27R is closed, everyone is getting routed to 27L and it is a bit of a mess. For now, we do run-ups on the ramp prior to taxi and then taxi to 27L and wait to depart.
We setup flight following and prepared for the first planed approach, the VOR 36 at Flint.
So off we go and head to Flint, and as I put the foggles on we almost immediately getting handed off to Detroit Approach and then we start getting vectors to the VOR 36.
So far so good. The sky is all sorts of busy and as we get passed of to Great Lakes Approach its apparent that it is a more than full day at Flint and within the GLA area. Hard to get a word in edgewise.
So we get vectored for the VOR 36, I get the localizer and start doing the approach.
Over to Tower, who is handling all sorts of activity on 36 and 27 and they check us in on the localizer and when we state we planned to go missed they then state the clearance is a full stop on 36, holding shot or 27, and not to go missed.
Ok, my first time landing at Flint it will be then. Overall a nice airport with a nice smooth runway and it is indeed pretty busy.
So we land and all is well, then we get to taxi to Runway 27 and wait a good long time to go along with everyone else. Get to watch a Southwest jet takeoff from 27 while we wait.
We then get to takeoff following a couple other aircraft and they have a new procedure at Flint of climb out to 2,500 feet and then turn, which we do.
Then we setup for the 27 ILS approach at Flint, and I do that approach and this time it is actually a missed approach as planned and we head back to Pontiac.
We request the 27L localizer back course for Pontiac and get it, and I bring us in to land and do that to a nice landing.
On the upside, I'm getting much more familiar with approaches and the procedures needed. I'm also getting pretty darn good at holding my heading and altitude.
On the downside, we left in a bit of a rush due to the mobbing at the ramp and I would have preferred getting a lot more pre-loaded than we did. Since the ramp and everything else was kinda jammed at Pontiac for the first day of construction, for flow we needed to go, so I just dealt with it and got it completed in the air.
That was 1.8 with 1.6 simulated instrument and 2 landings.
3 comments:
I *barely* scratched the surface of IFR training. I went in the back seat with a few friends who were doing it just so I could get a feel for it, bought some books, and that was about it. I wasn't that dedicated to flying, and couldn't justify the expense, so I never did much else with it.
Good job! Are you going for multi-engine in the future?
drjim: It's rather like learning via drinking from a firehose and involves a ton of information and actions. I'm getting the hang of some of it but there's still an absolute ton of things I don't know how to do yet - its one heckuva intensive rating.
I might do muiti or get a commercial rating maybe a year (to let my wallet recover) after getting my instrument ticket to keep adding to the skill-set and keep having challenges to keep improving my flying. Since I don't have a multi engine plane that one may go on the back burner all things depending - then again, I have a friend at the airport with a Piper Seneca so I may get to fly that with him and a multi rating could come in handy.
Oh, yeah....drinking from a firehose. The times I flew with friends into controlled airspace I was monitoring the radio, and had several charts out to see if I could follow the flight path assigned to us.
I probably would have been a better navigator than a PIC, as I had a knack for it.
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