Friday, November 30, 2007

Success!

I passed! 90%

Actually the test was rather easy... but I'm sure that has to do with a lot with the training and studying. The test consisted of 20 questions taken from the "Test Prep - Private Pilot 08" manual. I missed 2 questions. One of them I had no possibility of answering as it was not a rotorcraft:helicopter question - it was mis-selected for the test. But, it was on the test, and I guessed and got it wrong. The other one - well, I got sucked into the classic standardized test question trap - while I selected the correct answer, I did not select the most complete correct answer. Pfft!

What did I win? I get to move on to the next portion of the Stage 1 test... the take-home. This part consists of 58 questions relating to questions about flight, airport operations and other tidbits of information that one would have gained coming this far in the course and paying attention. The test was really well written - mainly because none of the questions were direct... they required taking learned facts and applying them to real world situations. Really had to think. Took much longer than I expected.

Taking it in to be graded Sunday morning... we'll see.

Thursday, November 29, 2007

Ground training & Stage 1 written test

Weather had been really windy over the past few days and we've opted to get well ahead of the curve with ground training lessons. It's cool and interesting... but no where near as fun as the flights themselves.

With the end of today's lesson, I'm ready to take the Stage 1 written test. Basically this is one of the two events that need to happen before we can move to Stage 2 of the training. So, I'm going to spend some time studying.

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Gobble-gobble, not thup-thup

Happy Thanksgiving.

Been a while since a flight, but had the chance to take my Dad to the airport to give him a bit of tour of the school an the helicopters. We happened to get there just at student-change-over... and got to see a good number taking off.

Still love the sound.

Sunday, November 18, 2007

Repetition...

Flight #: 017
CFI: Kristie H.
Aircraft: Robinson R22 Beta II
Aircraft ID: N2548S
Duration: 1.1hrs
Cumulative Time: 18.3hrs

Today's flight was really good. I can tell that I'm really starting to remember the feel of the helicopter. We are still re-doing the same maneuvers as before, and I think that is the point... repetition.

Not going to have a flight in a while... holidays coming up.

Friday, November 16, 2007

Great resource for Helicopter info...

My buddy Bob suggested that I check out Pilots Of America. It is an online community dedicated to pilots of all type - I'm interested in heli pilots, obviously.

So far, pretty cool place. Recommend it for information, questions or just plain pilot fun.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Fumbling and Rusty...

Flight #: 016
CFI: Kristie H.
Aircraft: Robinson R22 Beta II
Aircraft ID: N8361N
Duration: 1.4hrs
Cumulative Time: 17.2hrs

It's been 10 days since my last flight... and it shows! I had an off site meeting last week, friends for the weekend, and very windy weather... and that meant no flights for 10 days.

The skills come back fast, but I was pretty rusty. It is all about feel and muscle memory and you need constant repetition to make that stick in your brain. My approaches were jerky and I had a few times where I ballooned up or descended too quickly due to being overly reactive on the collective.

To top it all off, I was fumbling all over my radio calls. Yes, it was an uncontrolled airspace, but still... I need to get it right. Total amateur mistakes; forgetting to say my altitude or my intended path, etc.

Overall it was a good flight, but I really need to keep in practice to make sure I don't lose ground.

Tuesday, November 6, 2007

The coolest brother in the world!


You know, what they say... it is good to have friends in high places. It is actually even better to have them in geeky places.

If you remember, I asked my brother for a feature to be added to Google's SMS toolkit - a METAR keyword. This would allow anybody with a SMS capable phone to check weather before a flight... basically something every pilot does. Now it happens either via radio in the cockpit right before a flight... but it is nice to know before you have the engine running. You may not be able to fly.

Currently, many of the HIO pilots use some PCs in the dispatch room to do this check. It is kind of a pain... this would make things much faster and more efficient. Google's primary reason for existing.

Well, he did it... it's live!

Thanks Charlie!

How cool is that?



Being a geek... Charlie had to hide a few easter eggs in this.

Every time it references an airport in an example or as as the usage statement in an error response, it will use my local airport, KHIO or EHAM. I understand KHIO... but EHAM? That is Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam. It is often wise to not question the mind of a geek... but hey, brotherly privilege. So, at 11:59pm I speak to Charlie and ask:

Chris: "Hey Char, what's with EHAM? I get KHIO, thanks... but EHAM."
Charlie: "Yea, I picked that."
Chris: "Why EHAM, have you ever been to Amsterdam?"
Charlie: "No, I like bacon. So, ham... EHAM."

At 12:01 AM it went live to the world... adding an amazingly valuable feature to Google SMS and proclaiming by brother's love for Ham.

Spread it around. People need to know about this... it is awesome.

Thanks bro!

Sunday, November 4, 2007

Photo Tour - R22 N8361N

A few quick shots...


This is "six-one-november" and she is my helicopter. We alway get paired and so far I like her. There is real value in getting used to one machine, you start to feel vibrations and notice small changes in the machine. For instance, 61N is an oily little biatch... and when you know that, you look an notice small changes in the drip patterns.



Right side of the engine. You can see some of the results of the oil drops on the bottom of the fan scrolling - dust. The engine is in great condition, and the mechanics do a good job of keeping an eye on it all... but, as I said, it is good to know what normal is.



The instrument panel.

Top Row, left to right:
  • VSI - Vertical Speed Indicator
  • Artificial Horizon / Turn Indicator
  • Airspeed
  • Tachometer. Left needle, Engine RPM. Right needle, Rotor RPM
Bottom Row, left to right:
  • Altitude
  • Manifold Pressure


Gauges.

Left column:
  • Clock
  • Carburetor temperature
Right column, left to right, top to bottom:
  • Amps
  • Oil Pressure
  • Auxiliary fuel tank gauge
  • Oil Temperature
  • Main fuel tang gauge
  • Cylinder Head Temperature


  • OAT - Outside Air Temperature
  • GPS
  • Radio
  • Transponder



  • POH - Robinson R22 Pilot's Operating Handbook
  • Circuit breaker pannel



  • Cabin Heat
  • HOBBS Counter


  • Zoe & Dad in an R22.

Saturday, November 3, 2007

Ace!

Flight #: 015
CFI: Kristie H.
Aircraft: Robinson R22 Beta II
Aircraft ID: N8361N
Duration: 0.8hrs
Cumulative Time: 15.8hrs

Best session to date. Well, eventually.

Things started out rather messy. 61N was to be used, the previous night, for an aerial photography session. As such it had the left door and left controls removed to allow for a passenger with a stack of cameras to move freely about. Apparently they also were planning a significant flight since the tanks were maxed out on fuel.

So, it spend the night out in the open, no door in the freezing cold. The windows were covered in condensation and everything needed warmed up before we could start. During the oil check I found that we were a little low and I had to go get some to get back to the school's 5 quart minimum. Line service had not had a chance to replenish the engine oil stash so I had to walk all over the place to find bottles with any oil in them.

Line service is responsible for general maintenance on the aircraft and they are the ones you are supposed to call for any fuel issues. So, I called them and asked to have fuel taken out (as I'm only allowed to fly with 16 gallons. They want to get people flying as fast as possible and filling takes priority. So we had to wait.

Once we had everything checked out and were ready to go we tried to start 61N. No go. Nothing. Starter would turn over, but the engine would not catch. Clearly it was because it spent the night in the cold, wet air. After the 6th try we got it rolling.

Once we got into Charlie pattern we ran a few laps and each one was spot on. I really think the key to it was recognizing ETL... both for take off and for landing. The only way to describe it is that you want to keep in the sweet spot... and that happens to be ETL. You can tell because of the slight vibrations felt through the helicopter. It is very slight at the beginning, builds to a max, and then trails off.

It was easiest for me to Imagine a bell curve. As you approach ETL you start getting small vibrations. You know you are headed the right way or doing the right thing when they build little by little. You want to stick to the green section and ride the vibrations all the way in/out. If you end up doing the wrong thing or don't act fast enough you will end up out of the green.

Ride the vibe all the way and you are good to go. One thing to note is that the helicopter also tells you when you are doing something very wrong with vibrations as well. I'm told they are not little or slight... but really hardcore and bone wrenching. As I said... it is all about feel.

Friday, November 2, 2007

Get back behind the stick! a.ka. New Page.

Flight #: 014
CFI: Kristie H.
Aircraft: Robinson R22 Beta II
Aircraft ID: N7526S
Duration: 1.4hrs
Cumulative Time: 15.0hrs

I got the opportunity to get back into the seat twice in one day... and I'm glad I did. I'm not sure what it was, but I was definitely off my game this morning. Today felt great.

It was all due to a passing comment of Kristie's... "pre-ETL vibration". I feel it now, and know when ETL is coming. Feel the vibration and get ready... 1/2 second later and it's here.

What a huge difference. I'm not smooth yet, not even a little... but at least we're not flopping all around like a fish anymore.

I'm so glad I got the chance to try this again today... it was fresh in my mind, and I really got a lot out of today as a whole.

Also, I had to flip to a new, blank, page in my flight log... racking up the flights. Feels like a physical milestone.

Another milestone; I'm doing many of the radio calls.

Tower / radio communication is essential and I've finally memorized the tower frequencies for HIO. You need to change things relatively frequently and I'm tired of asking.
  • Air Traffic Control Tower: 119.3
  • Base / Line Service: 122.85
  • Automated Weather (ATIS): 127.65
As such, it makes it a lot easier for me to do the tower communications since I don't have to keep asking Kristie which channel to use.

ME: "Hillsboro Tower, helicopter 7526-Siera at HAI with information Kilo, request Charlie."
TOWER: "26-Siera, cleared to cross both runways at intersection for Charlie."
ME: "Cross both at intersection for Charlie, 26-Siera"

Seems complicated but here is the reasoning for it all. For a controlled airspace you need to say:

(To) Who I'm addressing.
(From) Who I am.
(Where) Where I am.
(Info) The current information letter. This is a "code" to let the tower know that we've listened to the most recent weather update. Each time they change the weather (ATIS) information, they assign a new information letter. If we've got the wrong letter, then they will tell us and we can either get the new letter or land.
(Request) What I'm asking permission to do.

Once we are giving instructions, we are required to repeat them back and sign off with our identifier. This ensures that we heard the instructions correctly. A three-stage communication. Request-Response-Acknowledgment.


For uncontrolled airspace, meaning there is no tower controlling traffic:
(To) Who I'm addressing.
(From) Who I am.
(Where) Where I am.
(Altitude) How high I am and any short term changes.
(Request / Statement) What I'm going to do.
(To) Who I just addresses.

For example:
ME: "Scappoose Traffic, helicopter 7526-Siera entering left base at the 45 at 700feet turning final. Scappoose Traffic."

Early patterns... poorly.

Flight #: 013
CFI: Kristie H.
Aircraft: Robinson R22 Beta II
Aircraft ID: N7526S
Duration: 1.4hrs
Cumulative Time: 13.6hrs

Not a good session at all. Actually Kristie did not say that it was horrible, but it felt all wrong. I just could not get into my groove. I really don't know what it was but this morning was a step backwards in my mind. I missed all of my approaches - too steep or too shallow. Every set-down was hard and bumpy. Each pick-up was one-skid-high... significantly too high. And, to top it all off, I don't think I anticipated ETL once.

Should have just stayed in bed this morning.

Lucky flight #13, I guess.

During our post-flight debrief Kristie commented on my miss of ETL. And that I was just (over) correcting and that it will come with practice. She said that I should really heed the pre-ETL vibration. Huh? "pre-ETL vibration"?!? I had not noticed that at all and had just been trying to correct it all after it happened. If there is a helicopter tell, then vibration is it.

Thursday, November 1, 2007

Charlie Pattern @ 5:55a

Flight #: 012
CFI: Kristie H.
Aircraft: Robinson R22 Beta II
Aircraft ID: N7526S
Duration: 1.5hrs
Cumulative Time: 12.2hrs

I learned my lesson... without a pattern I'm just touring - no time to learn anything. So I took that to heart and was out of bed at 5:30am to get to the door in time to get a pattern. Turns out, I was ahead of the game by about 20 minutes since I was standing in front of a locked door in the cold for 15 minutes before the next student arrived to get in line. Oh well, que sera. And I got myself Charlie pattern so it was all good. Plus when you are anxious to get out there 5:30a is tough, but completely worth it. As my buddy Tim said... "I can get up at 3am if I'm fishing. I even whistle on the way to the shower." 100% agree.

We spent time today focusing on hovering. I really think I've got it down. No more death grip, no wild wobbling or pendular action. Low wind does not seem to be a problem either. Gust... well, I'm 10 feet away from my point in about 5 seconds... but I'll work on that.

After that, Kristie had me run "laps". Well, not really, but they consisted of:
  • pick-up
  • hover
  • hover taxi (3 feet off ground @ a walking pace) or air taxi (20 feet @ 40knots)
  • quick-stop
  • hover
  • set-down
A lot to think about, and there is not much time between each action... so I felt a little rushed. Practice makes perfect, thought, and I could tell I was getting better on the pick-up / set-down legs each time.

Hover taxi and air taxi are a b!tc# though. I know exactly why... I feel funny pushing my face into the ground at 40 knots. Once you start moving you 'float' on a cushion of air at about 3-5 AGL before you lift up. It just feels wrong. I keep feeling like I'm going to snag a skid on the runway and end up with a mouthful of tarmac. Practice, practice, practice.

Quick-stop is, as explained before, a fast stop into hover. You slow yourself by "leaning back" and flaring the helicopter so that your horizontal thrust vector is providing backwards force... slowing you down. Problem is that this also means you are pitched up and will gain altitude if you don't lower collective. My first 5 attempts ended up having me balloon up to well above 50 feet or sinking like a rock to the point where Kristie had to keep us from planting ourself in the taxiway. (Not really, but I was sinking pretty fast.)

One thing I'm noticing is that helicopter piloting is about 10% instrument reading and 90% feel. The less I look at the instruments for information the better off I am. You just have to feel your speed, altitude and attitude. Things happen so fast that you don't have much time to verify them by reading the gauges. "Hmmm... it feels like I'm descending too fast... let me check the vertical speed indicator (VSI)". Nope, does not work like that. By the time my eyes are inside I'm already sinking and have to over correct on the collective.