flightygirl

congrats darky!

Just flew to Brewarrina and back and not a sign of a locust... yet....

hey Alan, it was a pleasure to meet with your and your princess and to give you a fly in our pride and joy. and a big thanks to all those who have supported and cheered me on during my flying training. Rach

thanks Relfy, though cant take credit for the video or the music... all done by my instructor. i just get to do all the flying!:big_grin: the landing was a good one though hey!

well guys... i did it! took off for goulburn from wollongong at 1200 today. conditions at ywol were lovely... bit of a sea breeze nice and clear and smooth. I overflew the airport and flew over the escarpment and the whole flight from there on in was like being in a washing machine. it was bumpy all the way to goulburn. I managed to keep accurate time (something i thought i would not do properly) and was able to fly map to ground all the way. Whilst i am familiar with the area, being up there all on my own was certainly nerve wracking! the most difficult thing i found was flying straight and level. a task i find difficult enough while managing maps. but the wind made it almost impossible... so my flight to goulburn was up and down (the video will be proof of that!.. it will be posted in next day or so) my clearoff checks were all fine and i think my very meticulous planning really helped to steady some of my nerves. i had pretty much every bit of information i needed on my map, and all details highlighted in yellow, which was great as the bumpy ride made it even harder to read the map! i have to admit that i was relieved to see ywol and landed beautifully with a big woohoo on landing. i hadnt realised how nervous i had been until i was to get out of the aircraft and found that i was shaking quite considerably. it was scary being up there all alone, but it has made me realise i can manage a long trip and that i have learnt more about navigating than i had thought. next nav will be on a less bumpy day.... im glad i did it but could have done without the bumps!

gee i hope thats what it is BlackRod! lol

i will swear AND cry. i wont get lost though... i know where Goulburn is. It should be a relatively easy one for my first go. im sure the second nav will be more challenging. my worry is not getting lost but just being so alone up there. it sounds like i will be too busy to be worried about being alone though.

ummm... if i get lost i will cry planning on friday will include that. im going to be spending a lot of time making sure i have covered everything.

No Nev, Rob cant spell... he meant Cootamundra.

Noooooooooo!!!!!!!!:ah_oh:

thanks so much everyone for your advice! i will definitely be taking it all on board so to speak and will do all i can to make sure my solo nav is fun fun fun! knowing me i will be singing away up there ( come fly with me come fly lets fly away....) and will talk my own head off.... CLEAROFF checks, map folding, keeping it as simple as i can and being as prepared as i possibly can be will hopefully get me there and back without too much stress!. i am putting a camera on the plane (think rob doesnt trust that i will go all the way to goulburn!) so i can post a video of the flight and let you all know how it went. just gotta keep the anxiety under wraps! Goulburn here i come!!!!!

Hey..now there's an idea.. Google Earth! hadnt thought of that. I will be flying to goulburn and back, and i am familiar with the area somewhat, but i think what is scaring me is just the aloneness of such a big flight. when i was flying local solo flights i found that after a while i was feeling like i needed the company and would fly back to the airport. so far during my training i have been using a knee board but find that after a while that gets discarded. but i am down to just the map and one sheet of paper with all flight details on it. Ersa and other necessities in the wing pocket. i am putting as much detail as i can on the map and it seems to be working for me.... at least im not as confused as i was at the beginning. my biggest problem is keeping the plane straight and level while im reading the map and concentrating on other things. i know... i need to trim the plane better... but still...its an art i think to juggle the maps and manage everything in the aircraft and still fly straight and level. well done on your first solo nav!

hey bill! so great to hear from you! happy to hear you have your brand new savvy all up and running. must have been a great moment taking her up for the first time! will be interested to see what colours you put on the new savvy. take care Rach

Its time for my final flying hurdle to be overcome! time to fly off by myself and find another airport or two outside my 25 nm range and then find my way back. my training has been going well... i successfully found cessnock yesterday and made it back (though gotta admit when you're on the coast how hard can it be!!) Whilst i am excited at the prospect i am also a little scared and just dont seem to be able to muster the same level of enthusiasm (ok...obsession) as i have done with my other flying accomplishments. So im interested in hearing from others who have recently done thier first solo nav or are about to and what they did or plan to do to make it a fun exercise. Rach

YAY! so happy for you Pow! Go for it!!!

Hey Darky I was advised to wait until all paperwork had gone through and i had received the official go ahead, which after some phone calls was emailed to me by a lovely person at RAAus just in the nick of time. The plastic card came a while later. the important bit was the piece of paper with details of the endorsement on it from RAAus, which it sounds like you have. i'd contact RAAus and ask them if you're still not sure. Rach

oh... and one helpful tip from my instructor was to look to the end of the taxi way...... it helps with over corrrection. bit like looking to the end of the runway when landing. makes all the difference.

i found taxiing a nightmare... but kept at it and one day realised i was doing it without problem. like most things to do with learning to fly, it will just click in. personally i wouldnt waste a whole hour on the ground. flying is expensive enough as it is. Rach

The OAT (im assuming that is Outside Air Temp) while flying over Kosiosko was -1. the cabin heat isnt great in our savvy but he were rugged up well so didnt feel the cold at all really. Or maybe we were so distracted by the scenery to feel the cold. either way it wasnt too bad at all.

hey look... thats me! really enjoyed trip to Tumut. Nav training coming along nicely after finding Tumut with little trouble. Then on to the snowys the following day for some terrific sight seeing.

Hey Andrew, we are not likely to fly until sunday... but are thinking now we might try for saturday but havent organised accomodation, so chances are it will just be a very early fly in on sunday morning. keep an eye out for the savvy if you're about. Rach

we plan to go down to Tumut if the winds are calm enough to fly. so maybe see you there!

welcome aboard Rat!

well done dave!! sounds like you'll be doing your test in no time! :big_grin:

hi sammuell i have a savvy and love it. its good to see another interesting looking one! welcome aboard! Rach