Simviation Forum - Taking my first trial flight!

Reply #30 - May 6^th, 2005 at 9:13am

Hagar Offline
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I gotta go against the crowd on this one and say take the camera. You only get one opportunity to fly for the first time and I say make the most of it

I agree if the instructor is OK with it. Take a couple of shots by all means or ask the instructor to take them of you flying the plane. Depends what Jimbo wants out of his first flight. From my own experience I was too busy to think about taking photos even if I'd had a camera & been allowed to take it with me. I would say forget the photos & take full advantage of it. That 60 minutes will seem like 5 minutes anyway but you will remember it for the rest of your life.

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Reply #31 - May 6^th, 2005 at 10:38am

Jimbo Offline
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Thanks for the advice, we MIGHT and this is a very big might, we are considering having a 4 person cessna. So my father can come aswell, he wouldn't mine, well i hope!
Thanks!

Jimbo

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Reply #32 - May 6^th, 2005 at 12:26pm

beefhole Offline
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Thanks for the advice, we MIGHT and this is a very big might, we are considering having a 4 person cessna.

Probably a 172 Wink

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Reply #33 - May 6^th, 2005 at 1:10pm

dan741749 Offline
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I'm surprised about the 30min and 60min lessons. At my school we are in the air for about 1.5 - 2 hours 3 days a week.

Enjoy your flight and definitely take a few photos, you'll regret it if you don't.

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Reply #34 - May 6^th, 2005 at 1:22pm

C Offline
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I'm surprised about the 30min and 60min lessons. At my school we are in the air for about 1.5 - 2 hours 3 days a week.

Most places will do 60 minute lessons, partly as a/c hire is by the hour. Certainly in the training establishments I've seen, your able to fly two or three 1hr sorties in a day, which allows adequate time to reflect and debrief. 30 minute lessons are common only as tasters in the modern business, allowing people a cheaper way into the air.

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Reply #35 - May 6^th, 2005 at 2:01pm

Hagar Offline
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Unless you were reasonably well-off in the early 1960s when I'm talking about, 30 minutes would be all the average person could afford. Although you might not think so, flying is relatively much cheaper now & a Cessna 152 or 172 is much more economical than a Tiger Moth. One benefit of 30 minute lessons is that you get more take-offs & landings in a given number of hours. If it's planned properly by an experienced instructor I reckon you could learn almost as much in 30 minutes as in 1 hour in the air.

PS. I don't know how it's done now but flights were timed from chocks away to chocks under. There was much less traffic around then & not much time was wasted on the ground. I've noticed while hanging around on the runway threshold at Shoreham that some aircraft can hold for up to 15 minutes before taking off. I assume the pupil is paying for all this.

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Reply #36 - May 6^th, 2005 at 11:06pm

beefhole Offline
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30-60 minutes for the average lesson? Shocked

How do you get anything done?

My intro flight was scheduled for like an hour, anticipating 30 mins in the air. My lessons are scheduled for two hours. For my first few lessons we only got in an hour air time, but more recently, it's been more like 1.5 hours (Not including the x-country's, of course). I just don't see how I could get anything done in 30 minutes.

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Reply #37 - May 7^th, 2005 at 6:15am

Hagar Offline
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Quote:

30-60 minutes for the average lesson? Shocked

How do you get anything done?
My intro flight was scheduled for like an hour, anticipating 30 mins in the air.

As I said, less time was wasted on the ground. You could expect to have 25 of those 30 minutes in the air. This would be dual instruction & the majority of our pupils went solo in well under the 8 hours average. Cross country flights would obviously take longer.

PS. When you have a chief flying instructor of this calibre you can learn a lot in 30 minutes. Cheesy

Cecil Pashley was instructing from 1911 until his licence was withdrawn in 1967. He passed away in 1969 aged 77. He was probably the most experienced flying instructor in the world.

« Last Edit: May 7^th, 2005 at 9:01am by Hagar »

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Reply #38 - May 7^th, 2005 at 3:53pm

beaky Offline
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Thanks for the advice, we MIGHT and this is a very big might, we are considering having a 4 person cessna. So my father can come aswell, he wouldn't mine, well i hope!
Thanks!

Jimbo

Beware that a C172 will not really fit four adult-size people. That rear seat is OK for two kids, or one adult and a kid. Or maybe a couple of small adults who really like each other...
It's narrower than the back seat in an old VW Beetle.

BTW: My intro flight (in a Piper Tomahawk) was about 40 minutes on the engine... but I learned a little about taxiing, taking off, VFR navigation, turns, climbs, and descents, flying the pattern, and landing. My average lesson once I got started was about 1 hour...

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Reply #39 - May 7^th, 2005 at 4:01pm

Jimbo Offline
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I will take that advice, as from now my dads on weight watchers. ANd thanks for everyone else on the tips and support! And most importantly enjoy the weekend!

Jimbo Grin

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Reply #40 - May 7^th, 2005 at 5:19pm

C Offline
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And most importantly enjoy the weekend!

Jimbo Grin

Well said

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