Looking to get back in the cockpit

Jim Gillespie

Jim Gillespie

Filing Flight Plan
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Nov 5, 2020
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Rocketman
It's been a while is an understatement. I'm 60 years old, got my private when I was 17, instrument rating when I was 20. Accumulated a little over 400 hrs, most of the time in a well equipped Piper Arrow IV. I learned to fly in a 1954 Tri-Pacer that my father purchased for $2450 in 1975, 80 Octane fuel was less than $0.30/gallon, and instructor time was $10/hr.; economics of aviation have changed a bit since then. Have not consistently flown since I was 26 years old and I've missed it. Career and raising a family took precedence over spending time and money flying. If I don't take steps now to get back in the left seat I'll miss my opportunity to fly again.

I realize I'll need to come up to speed on all the changes in regulations, avionics, terminology (no more TCAs, Class A,B,C airspace instead). Looking for recommendations on resources I can leverage to refresh/renew my aviation knowledge. i.e. any online courses, videos, or other tactics to get back in the cockpit. Really looking for basic refresher resources, as well as anything to bring me up to speed on modern avionics as opposed to steam gauges. I expect to have at least 50 hrs. of time w/an instructor to become instrument proficient again, as well as time specific to the plane I purchase. Looking to purchase a Piper Lance/Saratoga before stepping into a Malibu.

Any suggestions on strategy and tactics appreciated.
 
So much has changed, maybe to an online private pilot ground school course to brush up on knowledge?
 
Resources:

There were no YouTube videos back then. Start your journey there to get a “feel” for what’s different. Subscribe to the YouTubers that you end up liking. It’s just another new resource, that’s free, and some of the content is good for learning; You’ll be able to sift the wheat from the chaff pretty easily.

Also, free electronic versions of the FAA books are nice to have on iPad/tablet.

And speaking of tablets/phones, get a free EFB, or even a paid one, to play with.
 
Well, I didn’t take quite as long a break as you, but I got my Private certificate in 1989, moved from Tennessee to California and didn’t fly again until 2011. The biggest challenge of getting back into flying is learning all of the new regulations, airspace, etc. The mechanics of flying will come back very quickly.

I took the online Gold Seal private pilot course https://groundschool.com/# to learn about all the rule changes. I also bought a course in radio procedures. I learned out of a little rural airport in Tennessee, and the complex airspace and radio calls in the Bay Area were very intimidating to me. That may or may not apply to you.

I would suggest starting by getting your medical renewed. I had some previous medical issues which had me going back and forth with the FAA for a while before getting cleared. I wanted to make sure all of that would be okay before getting flying again.

I got back in an airplane with an instructor for a tailwheel endorsement and flight review. It was a good way to get the rust off my flying, and staying in the pattern at a busy towered airport for all of the circuits required to master (or at least not suck too bad) tailwheel landings gave me lots of radio practice.

Since then I’ve gotten my Instrument rating, commercial in single engine land and sea, and bought a plane. I’m averaging about 110 hours per year. It’s been great. Good for you for getting back to it!
 
I'm currently knocking the rust off after an 11 year gap. The actual flying skills have come back very quickly. The knowledge skills are where you will require more time as others have said. AOPA has a lot of great Rusty Pilot/Scenario resources if you are a member. The FAA also has all of their publications available online for free. Paid courses are also great resources if that is your preferred method. Really just focus on picking the resource that best fits your learning style and then dig in! Welcome back!
 
Jim Gillespie said:
It's been a while is an understatement. I'm 60 years old, got my private when I was 17, instrument rating when I was 20. Accumulated a little over 400 hrs, most of the time in a well equipped Piper Arrow IV. I learned to fly in a 1954 Tri-Pacer that my father purchased for $2450 in 1975, 80 Octane fuel was less than $0.30/gallon, and instructor time was $10/hr.; economics of aviation have changed a bit since then. Have not consistently flown since I was 26 years old and I've missed it. Career and raising a family took precedence over spending time and money flying. If I don't take steps now to get back in the left seat I'll miss my opportunity to fly again.

I realize I'll need to come up to speed on all the changes in regulations, avionics, terminology (no more TCAs, Class A,B,C airspace instead). Looking for recommendations on resources I can leverage to refresh/renew my aviation knowledge. i.e. any online courses, videos, or other tactics to get back in the cockpit. Really looking for basic refresher resources, as well as anything to bring me up to speed on modern avionics as opposed to steam gauges. I expect to have at least 50 hrs. of time w/an instructor to become instrument proficient again, as well as time specific to the plane I purchase. Looking to purchase a Piper Lance/Saratoga before stepping into a Malibu.

Any suggestions on strategy and tactics appreciated.
Click to expand...
I've been where you are. Recently. When I'd stopped flying, GPS had barely been invented...was not a part of aviation at all.

Google "rusty pilot" .....There are "rusty pilot" courses, videos, tutorials all over the internet. I used them all, took a ton of notes....breezed through the oral portion of the BFR. The flying also went well...2.5 - 3 hours, about 30 touch and goes in a 172. Once I'd nailed a few landings, my CFI took great pains to make me land on the runway with the worst crosswind. Hard to imagine that it will take you 50 hours in the air to become proficient. After he signed me off, I bought a plane and did transition training, which the insurance company required. They wanted two hours, but I went about 15 hours...with the focus on refining all the little sloppy habits that 172's had let me get away and which a Van's RV wouldn't. Getting used to a modern glass cockpit had a bit of a learning curve...there is a LOT of information there to sort out, but once you learn how to integrate it, it's a great thing.
 
Get yourself a current AIM and start reading.
 
Airplanes are the same. That Piper Arrow is probably still flying,
Runways are the same.
Sectionals are the same. Magenta line is new.
Depending on what you get, panels aren't that different.
Radio stuff is pretty much the same, only the names have been changed. And pretty much no ADF.
Aerodynamics are the same. And so are the fairy tales told by instructors.
That TFR crap is new. Don't fly without a briefing. That's changed.
Flight service has been privatized. But they still tell you "VFR not recommended."
 
Well as far as terminology goes... It's apparently no longer a cockpit. Rather a flight deck. Steam gauges are still a thing and probably still more prevalent.
 
Medical first, make sure you will pass before you go live with the exam. I came back about 4 years ago after about 25 years off. Good stuff, but if you have an issue with the medical and don't handle it correctly, you can end up grounded.
 
PaulS said:
Medical first, make sure you will pass before you go live with the exam. I came back about 4 years ago after about 25 years off. Good stuff, but if you have an issue with the medical and don't handle it correctly, you can end up grounded.
Click to expand...

And don’t assume anything you answer yes to or might possibly need to answer yes to on the Medexpress form will not be an issue. There are a number of ways to mess up the medical certificate application that are not reversible and might prevent you from flying.

If any question consult with aeromedicaldoc.com before proceeding. Don’t assume your average AME will give you answers that won’t come back to haunt you.

I know a CFI that has probably just retired from flying because he didn’t follow the advise above.

Brian
CFIIG/ASEL
 
Thanks for all the recommendations. Was planning on getting my medical prior to investing significant time and money; will do the research on the Medical prior to moving forward.

Watched a couple Rusty Pilot videos on YouTube last night and created a Rusty Pilot Playlist to capture relevant videos. Watched Sportys Rusty Pilot Webinar that was very good.
 
The FAA's Wings Courses as part of their FAAST program are pretty good. You can go here and sign up. https://www.faasafety.gov/gslac/ALC/course_catalog.aspx#catalog . They have a Flight Review Course.

Also, from Sporty's, you can take their Flight Review Course ($$) and actually get a certificate signed off by their CFI that you have done the oral portion of the flight review. Naturally, it's not incumbent on your own CFI doing the BFR to let you skate on any of the oral stuff, but it may help.
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
Airplanes are the same. That Piper Arrow is probably still flying,
Runways are the same.
Sectionals are the same. Magenta line is new.
Depending on what you get, panels aren't that different.
Radio stuff is pretty much the same, only the names have been changed. And pretty much no ADF.
Aerodynamics are the same. And so are the fairy tales told by instructors.
That TFR crap is new. Don't fly without a briefing. That's changed.
Flight service has been privatized. But they still tell you "VFR not recommended."
Click to expand...

I would say GPS navigation is the biggest change in the last 25 years. In 1997, I used to fly with a handheld GPS that had no database (you had to type in the lat-lon of your destination), but I thought it was the coolest thing ever. It took forever to get a fix after it powered up, and it would run out of batteries after every flight. Pilots were arguing if GPS can be trusted by real pilots. Now, we can fly down to 200 ft minimum with a GPS.
You also don't need to carry a suitcase full of charts. You can have the whole country's charts on your phone.
 
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