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All great responses. Thank you all! I also get caught up in saying everything correctly, with all the correct phrases and such, and get so caught up in HOW to say it, that I forget WHAT to say. My CFI realized this, and at one point said to simply say what needs to be said, with no concern...

Just checked out FlightRadar24...very interesting site! Thanks! And yes, perhaps flying into the pattern at a non-towered airport with no intention of landing is a bad idea. Can practice on my own doing the old armchair flying, or using the x-plane flight sim. Seems my one big hurdle is...

OK, yes, good idea. A quick text message to my CFI would clear it up.

I completed my first solo a few months ago, and am working towards my first cross country solo. I know as a student pilot, while soloing, I can only takeoff and land at the airport I've been training at, and can also fly to the practice area. However, is it OK to fly into the pattern at...

The controller talk was the one thing that went pretty well today, except for the time he asked me if I wanted to switch to using 25 left instead of 25 right. He started off with saying I was cleared for the option, but then gives me the opportunity to switch runways, asking if I'd like 25...

Ok, so now I feel like I'm going backwards here. Went up for my 3rd solo, with the goal to just do some touch and goes. Well, I ended up doing one landing...not a touch and go and a landing, but just took off and landed. The wind wasn't that bad, being around 9 knots, but it must have been...

Thank you all who replied! Good to know I'm not alone in this fear, and the sense of being overwhelmed at times. A lot of good points were brought up. It does seem like we really only have, as one poster put it, so much brain "bandwidth", and with so much being devoted to flying the plane...

Just completed my 1st solo a couple weeks ago, then went up last Saturday for my 2nd solo, which was the first one to venture out to the practice area on my own. I can't believe how much more stressful it felt than the very first solo! I just practiced a couple basic maneuvers, then headed...

I'll take "less intimidating" any day! As for tracking, I've been using my old Magellan SporTrak Pro. Then I use the Windows program EasyGPS to download the track to m PC, then open it with Google Earth. And yes, that Google Earth program is amazing! Been looking at getting a portable GPS...

Just for an update, I did my first solo! With a tad under 25 hours under my belt, we went up yesterday, and after 5 touch and goes, we went to the parking area, where he hopped out the plane, gave me a few instructions, and away I went! Fortunately is was pretty calm...probably the calmest I...

Interesting...I've never heard of the presolo written exam. I asked him if I needed to first do the FAA written test, to which he said "no". As for the LiveATC site, it's great, as you can select any airport you want, and you can even download previous communications in MP3 format.

Have you checked out the LiveATC web site? I use that a lot, as it allows you to listen in on the tower communications. They have a web site, and an app that you can download on your tablet or smartphone. As for soloing, I think my instructor is thinking that I'm getting close to doing it, as...

Congrats on your lessons! Sounds to me you are doing pretty well. Love reading your experiences as I am about 20 hours into my flight lessons in a Cessna 172, so can relate to what you are going thru. You mentioned mistakes in flaring, and I'm thinking "wow, you too?" Glad I'm not the only...

Perhaps run a few scenarios by him and see how he fairs. Ask him about making a turn into the wind as opposed to with no wind, or with a tail wind. What do you do in a stall? What if the engine quits? Does he know about flaring for the landing? Sure, if the weather is perfect, and wind is...

First, congrats on your solo! I read this entire thread, and found it very encouraging. Unlike you though, I feel like I have a very good CFI. He's very patient, always offering good advice, and is quick to complement me what I do something correctly. However, I still feel overwhelmed with...

Good to hear that this whole "fear of talking to the tower" thing is very common. I had a flight lesson yesterday and voiced my concerns of tower communications, and my CFI also said that all students are apprehensive. Quite normal. He described what is needed to be said, and went over...

I'm only about 5 hours into training, so can't offer much, but I liked it when my CFI told me "Fly the plane, don't let the plane fly you". On a bit of a humorous note, I ran into a guy that's a retired airline pilot, and he told me that a good pilot is someone who has the number of landings...

Having completed two flight lessons, with slow flight, steep turns, and power-on stalls, along with piloting from takeoff to landing, I'm feeling a bit more comfortable with the plane. Obviously I have a LONG ways to go, but it's a start. I think at this point my main concern is talking to the...

Thanks for the input! Just completed my second flight lesson yesterday. At the start, he said we would just go up and do steep 45 degree turns. We completed that, then went into slow flight, followed by power-on stalls! I actually did pretty well in both...according to him. The stalls were...