EMC2

After what seems like an endless amount of time I am going to start flying again. I am going to finish my instrument rating and get my commercial license as well. So I found a school and an instructor and am scheduled to fly tomorrow for the first time in a long time. I am very excited but nervous. I'm just wondering how hard it will be to do after so long.

runge

Cool, man, congrats. It's kinda tough at first, getting that first back-in-the-game lesson lined up and getting back in the swing of things, but within a few lessons you'll be just fine. How long did you quit for? What was your reason? I quit initially because of an issue with my medical (stupid AME screwed me over), and then financial reasons.

But after all that, coming back into it after a 2-year hiatus made me appreciate flying that much more, and I've found myself a better, more focused, and more studious pilot with a new appreciation and reborn love of flying.

The thing that was the hardest for me is, I had to quit almost immediately after I got my instrument checkride. I went from that, to 2 years of not flying at all, into training for my commercial, which is all about looking outside the airplane, so that made it a hard transition; I still have to consciously focus more on what's going outside the airplane during my commercial maneuvers.

EMC2

It has been ten years for me. I started flying in my early twenties. I got my private license fairly quickly (43 hours) and moved right into my instrument training. Unfortunately, I had to watch every penny I spent on my flying and had to make the most out of every hour. I had nothing to spare. I did this all under Part 61 rules so I had cross country time to complete as well. I did finish all my instrument training and then a few days before my already scheduled check ride my CFI came to my office and tells me he is leaving to move to another state. He has to leave that day. He had signed all the endorsements in my logbook but when I asked him to sign my application for the rating he said he didn't have time. He told me to go fly with another instructor and he said bye and left. I had just enough money to get through my check ride. And no instructor was going to sign my app unless they flew with me and were comfortable with what I could do. I had no money left to do that.

That pretty much broke my heart as I was a single mom with a job and full-time school. I had nothing to spare and my CFI knew it. So I just decided to focus on school and get my degree. Now, I am finishing up my PhD in physics and have a very good job with the DoD. And of course I have money to fly now. So here I am...

runge

I'd have kicked him in the nads. That's pretty messed up.

I was lucky to have a really awesome instructor for most of my private and instrument training, except when I was at school. I had one instructor at school who was a frat boy. He signed me off for a long XC at the frat house, during a party, hardly glancing at my meticulous flight plan. Another time the same guy brought a pillow to an IFR XC (it was snowing and cloudy outside) and went to sleep. One guy I flew with flat out refused to sit down with me and brief and debrief a flight, and he only showed me how to check the fuel in an unfamiliar airplane (DA-40) when I insisted and argued with him about the necessity of manually checking the fuel quantity. And, on the day of my instrument checkride, coming home from 80nm away, I had a quadruple radio failure. I don't even know what the odds of that are, but all of a sudden both comms and both nav's were out. Thank god I had my backup radio and the plane's GPS still worked. But my handheld was hard to hear, the batteries were dying, yadda yadda yadda.

It is very sad that some instructors and some FBO's are as bad as they are. The worst of it is when a new pilot comes in and has a bad experience. Hopefully they're smart enough to take their money elsewhere, but if not, then they end up becoming crummy pilots/instructors too, and either way it's a bad experience all around.

EMC2

I kind of feel that karma takes care of those people. I'm sure he had his reasons. It sucked, but I made out OK. I get to fly again now and I hope its going to be as fun as it was before (with the exception of the instrument check ride business).

shdw

Sounds like impulsivity is not a hazardous attitude you have to worry about. As for getting back into it, well your a PHD or going to be. Apply your everyday discipline towards your degree towards flying, get a few hours of refresher flights, particularly on the basics (both VFR and IFR), and you should do just fine. Welcome back.

EMC2

Well, the first flight went WAY better than I thought it would. I was nervous about nothing. The CFI put me at ease right away. We spent a little bit of time on the ground just talking about the basics and then he went over what we were going to do when we went up. Since the airport I am flying out of is in the DC SFRA we had to do file a flight plan to get out of and back into the area. But it wasn't bad at all. The airport is towered so I got plenty of comm practice!

I had a blast!! A lot of it came right back to me. I was surprised. Landing was a bit fun as I came in a little too fast, but other than that it was ok.

I fly again on Wednesday and then on the weekend again. Can't wait!!

Son of Chuck

Enjoy every minute of your new life.

EMC2

You bet I will!!!

Ewfflyer

Just like riding a bike.......going 100+mph and turning dinosaurs into noise!

Glad it went well for you, and good luck on continuing your training!