Circuits again

More circuits last Tuesday and last Sunday. Had been out cycling with my family earlier so a mad dash to the airfield, to find a relaxed conversation going on in the clubhouse about the best route to be a commercial pilot. Airlines don't pay for pilot's training any more, apparently, so aspiring cp's generally get a Private Pilot's License (PPL) at their own expense first. After that, the training cost to make the grade as a commercial pilot is €80,000 min so it's a big investment by a young person.

After a half-hour of blackboard diagrams about drag curves, glide angles and graphs, it was time to get on the merry-go-round. Managed about 4 or 5 wobbly take-offs but at least they were my own. Two needed help - if the wings tip in a crosswind then you need to be quick to compensate with aileron (sideways movement of the stick) and rudder pedals (opposite direction). I could detect the out-of-balance condition as the plane hurtles down the runway but not correct it quickly enough - yet.

Landings still elude me. I'm getting better at lining up and swooping down to the ground but I still can't round out (judge when to stop diving and start to fly level) or flare (point the nose up in the air a little so the plane sinks onto the runway) at the correct height.

A rule of thumb is that this should happen at the height of a horse, apparently! Like many inexperienced students before me, I begin to pull back on the stick too soon - a natural reaction to seeing the ground looming up in front of one! Still, I enjoyed trying, especially the last one. It was a power off landing (no engine) from 3,000 feet. Having the engine off concentrates the mind wonderfully, as you only get one shot at it....