Private Pilot Life

PPL written exams: The results

2011-12-05T23:37:00.001+01:00

As I promised I'm sharing with you the results of the nine exams I took. It went better than I expected, I wished to pass four and I passed FIVE!! I'm more than happy with that, it means I'm in the good path.

Here are the full results:

Failed

==========

Air law 68%

Performance 72%

Navigation 46%

Operational procedures 73%

Passed

==========

Aircraft knowledge 85%

Human factors 100%

Weather75%

Flight Theory 94%

Communications 77%

But there's more. Three days ago we took the preflight test. This is an internal school test to see if we are ready to start flying. There were almost twenty questions, some related with the aircraft (speeds, weights, ...) and some others with weather and procedures in flight.

Now I have the results.... 98% passed!

So the last impediment that lies between me and my first flights in the course is the annual inspection. The Katana is almost ready but not yet. I'll have to wait at least one more week. I'll keep you informed.

And because I love airplanes as I think you do I'm showing you some pictures I took in a visit to the LEBL El Prat (Barcelona, Spain) airport. We visited the control tower and the firefighters central. It was awesome! I have to tell it in depth in a new post. Meanwhile, the pics:

PPL Written Exams

2011-11-05T12:57:00.000+01:00

I started the PPL course on early september at Aeroclub Katana in Sabadell Airport LELL (Spain). All I have to say is: "I love it!". I'm enjoying this experience so much that I don't know why I waited so long to do it.

The club is a young one, they are working for less than two years and they have a single Diamond DA20 A1 Katana. It is the plane I flew for the first time and I felt in love with it. I also like the club's philosophy and the people in it.

So we started the classes in september and we aimed to pass the exams in february. We do three classes a week and if we have time at home we do some tests, but not much. What happened? We all tried to go to the november exams that took place the 3rd and the 4th (yes, yesterday) to give them a try and see what happens. If we achieve to pass one or two exams the better for us, we won't have to take them in february.

Loli, Guille (instructor) and Javi in class

And we did it. Now we have to wait for the results next week, but I feel great for doing it. Some exams I thought wold be easier, others just the opposite. We'll see. Now I just want to rest a little bit. Nine exams are too much. I thought it wouldn't be so tiring, maybe the fact that I had to work in the afternoon both days made me feel it thoughter. Now I'm a little bit tired ... but happy!

Next week the results...

My first flight

2011-05-25T15:11:00.001+02:00

I was waiting 29 years and 11 months to get into a light airplane but at least it happened. I ever thought about getting my first flight in a Cessna (I was looking to start the ppl course in a 152), maybe because there are tons if it in my region, but it was not the case.

My first flight was in a shiny Diamond Katana DA-20 A1 powered with a 80hp Rotax. All I have to say is: I love it! At first it seemed to me that with 80hp it would be a little underpowered because I know even the smallest Cessna have 100hp, but I got surprised by the performance of the Katana. It must be that being a relatively new design (introduced in 1992) it is cleaner and more effective than an airplane designed in the beggining of 70's.

Flying the Katana is a great experience. It has an exceptional visibility due its canopy and low wing configuration. The noise level inside is very acceptable, with low end headsets I had no problem in hearing radio communications and the engine sound is not a hassle, we will see what happens in long flights but my perception is that is relatively quieter.

What about my sensations? Well I think I have to multiply what I thought they would be for 100 times and it would be close to wait I felt. After some hundreds of hours in the simulator (X-Plane) I was prepared for what I would experience, or that was what I thought! The aircraft is much more sensible than I expected, in fact the instructor told me not to catch the joystick with all the hand and instead control the plane with to fingers and with the hand much more relaxed. After that the flight went smoother.

I really enjoyed the flight and after landing I confirmed that I would start with the private pilot license course soon. Maybe it is a lot of money but as the slogan says: "Achieving a childhood dream, priceless".

Just starting

2011-05-22T21:13:00.001+02:00

As my pilot's life, this blog is now just starting. I want to share with you my long road to become private pilot, thoughts, fears, questions, pictures, videos... all that I have been searching for since I decided I would be a pilot many years ago.
I think this material will be useful for people in the same situation as me and I'll be happy to know that someone makes a good use of this information.
So let's start with this, see you up there!