First BFR in 20 years

[Terry Carraway]

Thank you kind sir.

It is amazing how little most people pay attention to the vehicles around them.

Since my cars tend to be somewhat unique, I notice them, and I come up next to another one, and can drive for miles and the person never notices.

[Ray Tackett]

I am that type of guy. I have never owned a car with an automatic transmission.

Definitely that type. You are the only living person with whom I am completely comfortable riding in a car. You bring that combat pilot scan and situational awareness to driving.

I owned an automatic just once, used clunker on a clunker budget. Worst car I ever owned for several reasons, one of which was the transmission. However, during its six month lifespan, I did get spoiled on air conditioning. This was back when A/C was an expensive option.

[Terry Carraway]

I am that type of guy. I have never owned a car with an automatic transmission.

Although my 2002 M3 is not a full manual.

For April instrument proficiency flight, I will try to do it in a G1000 equipped C-182. Have to maintain my TAA skills also.

[Ray Tackett]

This time was steam gauges, Even DG, not HSI.

Good for you! It's an arcane art which takes real skill, like driving a car with a manual transmission. Such skill is part of mastery.

[Terry Carraway]

The IPC was 1.8 in sim, 1.3 in plane in Dec.

This was just a practice flight to build skills and maintain legal currency. I did another one for 1.8 in Feb. I was safe, but not relaxed and comfortable. This time I was.

I am mixing it up between steam gauges and TAA. This time was steam gauges, Even DG, not HSI.

[Scott Dyer DXR/CT]

Congrats! 1.3 is right quick for an IPC.

[Terry Carraway]

Flew an instrument proficiency flight yesterday evening. The flight went very well, and I actually feel current and confident to fly some actual IMC where an approach is required to get back down. I knew after my IPC, I could have done it, but felt quite rusty. Not where I want to be now, but feel pretty good.

I went up to KLNS to shoot a couple of approaches. First was the RNAV (GPS) Runway 31. It started as a LPV approach, but between the IAF and FAF I lost the GPS lock, and when it came back after a few seconds, I had no vertical guidance, so I switched to LNAV minimums and completed the approach.

Went around to the ILS Runway 8. Nailed the GS all the way down, and bit of weaving around the localizer, but part of that was the DG is getting to need to be overhauled, as it was precessing a bit. After the flight, the safety pilot commented he was watching the visual approach slope, and thought to himself that most people he had flown with did not hold the approach slope that well when VFR.

Back to 0W3 and shot the RNAV (GPS) B to a circle to land.

1.3 total time, 1.1 under the hood.

And to top it off, it was a CAP funded flight.

[A. Niemyer]

Ray,
What a great story, and great way to teach them to the hesitant, too!

Very best,
Andy

[Ray Tackett]

WooHoo, aerobatics. Need to get my CFI renewed so I can do some teaching.

Here's an aerobatic teaching tip I discovered accidentally. A family friend was my instrument student. Come BFR time, I found out he was deathly afraid of stalls. I invited him to come out to Van Sant for a Stearman ride. My intent was to do loops and spins with him in that very tame bird. However, the usual preflight briefing, "Today we will do loops. To loop an airplane ...", was going to do nothing but cause panic. Instead, I told him we'd get him some tailwheel time, and a feel for an airplane rather different from Cessnas and PA28s.

We went up, and I had him do the standard PPL maneuvers. Then, a power-off stall. A Stearman is a total pussycat in that condition. It just kinda floats around waiting for you to do something else. That calmed him down where I wanted him. For the power-on stall, I had him put the nose down just a touch to pick up an extra 10 MPH, then pitch up aggressively for the stall. Coming over the top of the loop, he let out a cheer and had a big grin. "Keep some back pressure, and maybe it will stall nest time around." Swindle accomplished.

After that, spins were easy. A Stearman's spin entry is so slow you can narrate it, and any relaxation of pro-spin controls gets you out.

His first words after we landed and parked were, "What was I so afraid of?"

[Terry Carraway]

Just added tailwheel currency and a checkout in the local 7GCBC. 180 HP Citabria. And the FBO has an 8KCAB Super Decathalon that they bought damaged. They are going to put the aluminum spar wings on.

WooHoo, aerobatics. Need to get my CFI renewed so I can do some teaching.

[Terry Carraway]

He can use a CAP instructor from any squadron in the wing. It only gets complicated if he goes outside the wing. He may have to drive to get to the instructor and airplane.

[Scott Dyer DXR/CT]

Thanks, Terry. I've pass on the app idea! His CAP G1000 TAA checkout may be tough, they've got on CFI and I hear he's pretty fully booked. So he'll have to rent a G1000 172 and go from there.

[Terry Carraway]

Not only that, he gets two flights to transition, that are free to him.

The CAP online training is basically some You Tube videos. They have good info, but are not enough to learn the G1000.

The SIMiONICS iPad G1000 apps are very good. With 2 iPad you have your PFD and MRD and they are linked. And you can link them to a PC based sim. I know you can link them to XPlane.

[Scott Dyer DXR/CT]

Great news Terry. I've got a commercial student who had checked out in a CAP 182 (round gauges) and then they changed to G1000 airplanes. Now he can get the G1000 182 checkout and satisfy the TAA commercial requirement (yeah, he'll fly with a CAP CFI for that).

[Terry Carraway]

Get Flight Reviews.

So I just passed my CAP Initial Checkride. And it was also a G1000 qualification (VFR and IFR).