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May 05, 2005
Night Cross Country
Hmm, so a few days back I made my "long distance solo cross-country". That is a cross-country trip with more than one stop. There's a distance requirement for defining exactly what is cross-country, but I can't be buggered to look it up for my internet friends. Anyway, that LDSXC (haha, a new acronym!) was from Easterwood to Waco then down to Taylor and back to College Station. It was in N9925Q, a very nice plane with an IFR-approved GPS. Flying with a GPS was sexy after doing my first solo xc using ded reckoning and waypoints. So anyway, very few problems indeed. I wouldn't say I was competent on the radio with Waco approach, Gray approach, or really anyone in-between, but I got my point across eventually and they didn't curse at me.
Tonight, I went on my night cross country with an instructor named Mick (Bill was a bit tired from students during the day and begged off). It was a simple straight shot from Easterwood to Austin-Bergstrom. I flew visual waypoints to AUS, which sucked mightily. It sucked even writing them down. "Well, I assume and hope this city will be visible at night." Made my first couple of checkpoints (and verified I wouldn't be far off the time estimate in my filed VFR flight plan) and then rode the GPS into AUS. Mick was great at helping me get ready for my radio calls, although he fiddled with buttons quite a bit (dangit, I like to fiddle with the buttons grin ). He mainly teaches and flies IFR, so he had practical tips for the various callups that I wouldn't normally get. It sounds like he'll soon be leaving for the high-stakes world of regional jet piloting.
The landing at AUS stank. The FBO was nice (I got a coffee, Mick got popcorn). The return trip was all GPS (because I didn't feel like fiddling the radios for a VOR trip) and wildly variant around the intended course. The landing at CLL wasn't terrible.
Now that that's done, I mostly need to get my solo flying out of the way before my checkride. holds hand over head mysteriously I foresee... lots of turns about a point... in my future.
Posted by jeff at May 5, 2005 02:06 AM