Brand New PPL. How to challenge myself but stay safe.

[luvflyin]

I've done all my training out of Montgomery - Plus One Flyers. I'm thinking I'd like to fly out of SEE just because less worries about the marine layer.

I’m in Plus One. I’ll probably get down there in January for a few months and will go fly around with you. There are others here also. Take them up on their offers. It’s kinda like a CFI that doesn’t charge you and may even pay for half the gas if you let him fly half the time

 

[Huckster79]

I know one thing I plan on doing now that flying often will be much more convenient is now and again grabbing my CFI and go do some things that aren't fully part of the course or just touched. One area I would really like to work on is emergency situations, from my understanding airline pilots must on a regular basis. We do a few engine out procedures during training and maybe one at bi-annual... Thats not enough in my opinion. I want to simulate multiple emergencies, so if the day ever comes it won't have been years since I practiced...

Another good thing to do it is if you can't fly for a minute, cash or weather issues or whatnot.... Go sit in the plane with your eyes closed reaching for different things until you no longer have to look for the flap switch/bar, the carb heat, etc... The better muscle memory you have of your cockpit the better off you are for those demanding times of flying because you don't need to distract yourself looking for a switch or button or bar that you may need while you can't afford to be looking...

 

[PJakes]

Welcome! What part? There's a pretty vibrant and active GA community out here, especially at MYF. Where are you based?


Ugh. This seems to be sort of common, at least around here. Our club FB page even had a thread on it. I can understand not endorsing your student for a XC through it.. but to earn a license to fly an airplane without *any* Bravo experience is crazy in my book. Especially in Southern California. But really actually, it's not that scary. Like someone else said, just get on flight following, make sure you have permission to enter the Bravo, and follow their directions (IE, keep the heading and altitude they told you to ACS standards). For how busy SoCal is the ATC guys here are some of the friendliest and most easy going.


I could not agree more. I feel like a lot of people bring a friend because they're nervous, so somehow having someone else in the plane is going to help, it's a psychological safety blanket.. but really, it's just a distraction and God forbid anything goes wrong you now are responsible for someone else's son / daughter / dad / mother etc. Plus, it's good to get sharp before you bring friends, you may miss something in the run up, forget a checklist item, etc., if you are busy talking to Timmy in the right seat. Go solo and give yourself small missions.. redo your long cross country first, then pick an airport a little further. If you are at KMYF for example then Camarillo is great.. then you have San Luis Obispo little beyond.. SBP is a great decently long cross country.. just give yourself missions to fly, each time expanding your comfort zone


Might hold off on that for a bit. Depending on visibility I've been out there where thanks to haze or whatever I could not actually see the island. Intimidating flying out to sea not seeing land. Psychologically you don't want to put someone fresh and new in a position where they may freak out.. if they're brand new. Plus, that airport, while the runway is perfectly long for most SE GA, does look intense from the air and (until the repave it) is is pretty fair shape.. many people come in high and fast and end up going around, or bending metal. Unfortunately bent metal is common there, I feel like we get at least one bang up there every year


YES!!


I think the thinking is that you JUST did all this training and passed your checkride, you probably are safe with these things.. nice as a PPL to pick some airport 75 miles away and just go fly there.. because you can. Depending how often you fly it is good though to practice these maneuvers at least every 90 days or so. Anytime I'm up alone I'll throw in a few steep turns, falling leaf stalls, etc. A, they're loads of fun, and B, they do keep you sharp. Especially steep turns.. fun to see how well you can keep that altitude pegged, and how many 360s can you do with it pegged.

This is all good stuff and mostly along the lines of what I was thinking anyway, just looking for confirmation of my thought process. I'm at MYF but thinking I'd like to fly out of SEE more just to avoid the worries about the marine layer coming in. I'd really like fly out of a small quiet airport but I'm realizing that's a fantasy in SoCal, at least in the San Diego area. And I can't afford to live at Blackinton - Ha! Thanks for your reply.

 

[Huckster79]

Oh and when you do get around to taking friends, add to the briefing that professional pilots all use checklists! I scared the heck out of a couple of my friends when we went to go, and they thought I was reading a "how to" manual when I got the checklist out! A simple explanation could have put their mind at ease before they were scared I needed a manual on "how to fly the plane" for our trip. lol

 

[Tantalum]

I'm at MYF but thinking I'd like to fly out of SEE more just to avoid the worries about the marine layer coming in. I'd really like fly out of a small quiet airport but I'm realizing that's a fantasy in SoCal, at least in the San Diego area. And I can't afford to live at Blackinton - Ha!

Nice! MYF is a little more vibrant, so I prefer that airport. That's where I am based as well. Even the uncontrolled airports here are not that quiet!

you might want to take a look at Plus One Flyers, even if you have access to a good plane and rental, the guy who runs the Facebook page puts together fly outs, usually once a month, and those are a great way to give yourself missions and meet other cool people

Happy flying! Maybe I'll see you at Montgomery, I'm usually either by Gibbs, or down by the hangers at National Air College

 

[davidgfern]

For all my flight training all I was focused on was passing the checkride. Well I did that last week, and honestly, I don't know what to do next. I feel a bit intimidated now that no one is looking over my shoulder on every flight. For now, my best idea is to go over a couple of local sight seeing routes and take along some friends and such but I want to start stretching out my comfort zone before too long. I live in Southern California where airspace and terrain can be a bit intimidating so apart from detailed planning, is there any advice you could give to get me out of the neighborhood without over-extending my abilities? For example I'm surrounded by Bravo airspace but never received a clearance to fly through it. (CFI didn't think students belonged in B). Thanks

Where in SoCal are you located? My plane is based at KSEE ------ I'd be happy to fly with you anytime if you'd like some emotional support.

 

[davidgfern]

I am also a member of Plus One Flyers.

 

[davidgfern]

Someone else said it before, but get your instrument rating. It will potentially save your life. I learned to fly out of CRQ and that marine layer can move in pretty quickly. There’s a reason insurance premiums are substantially lower for pilots with instrument ratings.

I recently met an owner of a tubo Mooney with TKS that told me he was thinking of getting an instrument rating. Don’t wait that long. There is no benefit to waiting to get the rating! You’ll also notice it makes you a more confident pilot and things like taking to ATC or transitioning a Bravo will be no big deal.

Haven’t flown down in San Diego for a while. Do they still let you fly all the way up the coast as long as you stay below 500’? Blacks beach was always nice at that altitude...

Flying up the coast at or below 500 is a great way to get Class Bravo practice...... If you are heading south just call up Lindbergh tower on 118.3 when you are north of Crystal Pier and request a Class Bravo clearance along the coast at 500 or below. Once you get past the OB pier and close to the end of Point Loma, call North Island tower on 135.1 and ask to transition their Class Delta along the beach at 500 or below. Lindbergh tower will let you fly a "Harbor transition" at 800 feet if you like ---- that's flying right over San Diego Bay in between Lindbergh and North Island.