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Yes I was with NorCal the whole way. Part of my stress was that at times I was low enough that they were losing radar contact and I was losing radio contact.

Thanks to everyone for their input. To continue the discussion, I'd like to clarify my route of flight and such. I was flying out of CCR and picking up a friend at PAO for a bay tour. I chose to fly through Walnut Creek, Dublin, Sunol, and then proceed direct the Dumbarton Bridge to avoid SJC...

Hey folks! So I just was given my temporary airmen certificate on Friday and I made sure to plan my first passenger flight the very next day. I usually fly out of a somewhat busy Class D that's far away from any Class C or B airspace. As my first flight I may have bitten off more than I...

I think I need a break. Almost had a nervous breakdown and cancelled my checkride on Wednesday and Thursday. :mad2:

I think this guy is particularly tough because my flight school has a huge Part 141 program with tons of international pilots. My instructor almost made it seem like I should prepare for a CIA interrogation with a potential death penalty at the end. Fortunately, that made this a little less scary.

Thanks to everyone for the help and advice. It's been a long road, but today I took my PPL checkride and passed. The other accounts of checkrides helped me quite a lot so here's my experience. I had my oral scheduled for 8AM this morning with the flight portion scheduled for 11AM. This...

Well, it's here. Tomorrow at 8AM I'll be sitting across from a DPE and chatting about things. I've had a rough couple of days. One rough flight where maneuvers seemed lacking in command and then a long ground session where I couldn't nail things on the advanced side. I was supposed to fly...

Hi folks, I'm about to get my PPL and need to have renter's insurance to carry passengers at my flight school after my exam. I see Avecmo and AOPA seem to be the two front runners. Does anyone have suggestions/experience about one versus the other? I fly Cessna 172R/S and will generally be...

I'm taking my PPL checkride this week. I have two pieces of advice for you to improve your landings: - as you round out, hold your altitude in ground effect. - As you begin to lose speed, keep your nose wheel exactly where it is by pulling back on the elevator. This should let you gently...

Be very cautious with the maps in the testings supplement. They are NOT to scale with what an official sectional would be. I think virtually all of them have a scale on the side, double check that against your plotter. I really screwed up a question on the exam because of this (and of course my...

Hello PPL ASEL folks! I'm gearing up for my check ride and I wanted to get any pointers on the preparation for the oral. I'm not as nervous about my flying, but the oral definitely freaks me out. I got a written score in the 90s, so I don't think the DPE will be hounding me on that front. I...

The King Videos + the Gleim PPL Written book got me a great score. Great investments.

I think I can help - I'm about to complete my PPL training and did it at Concord. I've trained at Pacific States Aviation and it's been an amazing experience so far. If you live in Lafayette, Concord is a no brainer. Weather is generally good and PSA has a great fleet of Cessna 172's. If you...

I really think you're way too early in your training to even worry about something like this. It takes repeated and consistent practice in the aircraft to master so many things. Takeoffs are no easy feat since the wind and temperature conditions change constantly. You need to take a deep breath...

Although I know King is a little quirky, I really find watching their explanations and to the point graphics were really useful for retaining information. The jokes are silly but I must confess, they really make you remember the material. I used King and then reviewed each major unit...

I have a Saitek Pro Flight Yoke/Throttle Quadrant and Cessna Rudder Pedals that I'd be willing to sell if you can't find something for free. PM me if interested. Very lightly used.

Great video. This perfectly demonstrates what happened to me. Thanks for sharing!

Thanks to everyone for the great input. I'm pretty sure it must have been a lack of wind correction in the ailerons combined with not enough right rudder for torque that led to the violent left side drift. I will definitely be reconsidering how I fly those touch and go's after this experience!

Hey folks! I hope those Northern California flyers out there can offer some advice. I'm trying to decide on a XC route and could use some input. I'm a 46 hour student finishing up the solo hour requirement for the PPL Check ride. Flying out of CCR and thinking of the following airports...

This was a Cessna 172R with a 180HP engine. This must have been a compounded event where the wind accelerated with a direction shift and as I rotated there probably wasn't enough right rudder or right aileron to prevent the aircraft from drifting to the left. I felt quite a lot of...