Switching FBO's and a New Airplane!

     Flash back to 2010, and I was a 13-year-old boy who was absolutely in love with aviation. I was heavily involved in flight simulators and the online community that surrounded it. My parents recognized this deep interest in aviation, so they brought me to a local grass strip for an airplane ride. As if I did not already have a passion for flying, my interest spiked further. Following this first ride in Piper Cub, I went on to solo on my 16th birthday and eventually earn my Private Pilot License in a C172H. Those years of training and countless hours of flying took place at Red Stewart Airfield(40I) in Waynesville, OH and I absolutely loved it.

     Despite the genuine, good-natured, and friendly people at the airport...Despite the knowledge, passion, and community I saw there...there was always one thing that made me feel some level of discomfort. By lack of surprise, it was the airplanes Red Stewart had to offer. The following is the current fleet of the flight school and associated prices.

• N77500 - 1946 Piper J-3 Cub 65hp
• N98286 - 1946 Piper J-3 Cub 85hp
• N1798E - 1946 Aeronca Champ 7BCM
• C150
• C150
• N2814L - 1967 Cessna 172H
• N9080L - 1970 Citabria 7KCAB
• N3701T - 1967 Piper Arrow PA-28R
• N510N - 1941 Boeing Stearman PT-17
• Taylorcraft

     From that list, I certainly find it troubling that the airport does not own a single airplane newer than 1970. A fleet that consists of nothing less than 46 years old is not a solid basis to build a reputable business off of. Despite this, in my head I always had faith in the airport's mechanics and therefore the condition of the their aircraft. Perhaps it was my young age and sense of invulnerability associated with that, but in retrospect I am troubled by the thought of flying some of Red Stewart's aircraft confidently. I can clearly remember that almost every flight there was always some type of issue with the airplane of choice that day. The transponder, the brakes, the radios, the push-to-talk, the battery, the starter, the fuel gauge... there was always something wrong and often it was glossed over. 

     After flying at Red Stewart Airfield for over 6 years, I finally had a moment of exigence. After returning home from a 6-week trip to Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and Czech Republic, I was extremely eager to fly. When doing the run-up in N77500, a 1946 Piper Cub, the engine actually quit when checking the magnetos. Perhaps I had simply counted the clicks wrong and switched the ignition to off? However, I was 99% sure I had the right magneto selected before quickly switching back to both in an attempt to save the engine. I got another prop, the engine started fairly rough, and I further analyzed the situation with an instructor onboard for good measure. Both magnetos performed fine this time, but I was told this was a known issue, but the airplane was still being flown by others. 

     Please do not misconstrue my message, but allow me to explain why I felt this was the best time to switch to a new, reputable FBO. I am well aware that Red Stewart is proud of its history as a grass roots aviation establishment. They love classic aircraft and enjoy keeping alive the tradition of taildraggers and stick and rudder skills that accompany them. However, there is a fundamental issue when maintenance can be so easily called into question and business practices ignore them. If your business cannot afford or is not willing to keep your fleet well-maintained, reliable, safe, and relatively adjusted with the current times, your business needs to change. I love the people at Red Stewart, especially my instructor, but I am simply not comfortable in their airplanes. When it comes to Aeronautical Decision Making, the pilot in command should have full faith in the reliability and safety of an airplane before ever flying it, and I will not make the irresponsible decision of putting my life or the lives of passengers at risk against my better judgment. 

     In conclusion, I have decided to relocate my future flying to Dayton-Wright Brothers Airport(MGY). More specifically, I will be renting and continuing any future flight training with Aviation Sales Inc. in their fleet of Cessna 172's that range from 1979 to 2001 C172 Ns, RGs, and SPs. I have completed my check-out there and am strongly looking forward to their modern display of professionalism, structure, and attention to aircraft maintenance. 

Another Solo Flight and Exploration!

     On 3/1/14, I got a call from the airport telling me that N60338, their C150, was back in service after a brake malfunction. 45 minutes later, I got to the airport and was ready to go flying. It had been a while since I had flown the C150, so Joe would be accompanying me for some of the time. I went to the airplane to preflight as well as refuel the airplane. Joe came out after I was done, and we went flying.

     After completing the CIGAR checklist, we departed runway 26 with relatively gentle winds and headed direct to Dayton Wright Brother's Airport(KMGY). There, I entered the left downwind for runway 20 and made a full stop, taxied to Aviation Sales Inc, and shut it down. Joe decided that it would be a time to show me where I will be taking the Private Pilot Knowledge Test("the written") next weekend. After showing me around a little bit, we hopped back in and headed back to Stewart. Once we exited runway 26, Joe hopped out and told me to just go on a mission and explore. He suggested that I fly to my house and back, and I thought that would be pretty fun.

My neighborhood from about 1100 AGL

     I departed runway 26 on my own and exited the pattern on the left downwind towards Caesar's Creek for a little sight seeing. I then continued down I-71 until I hit the Little Miami River, which I followed to my house. I did a few turns around a point(my house) until my family noticed and came outside. They even shot me a quick text telling me that they could see me. Eventually, I returned to the airport by following familiar roads and flew over a couple other familiar landmarks I could see from the air. After about 45 minutes, I decided to return back to Stewart and land once again on 26.

     If you live in Ohio or anywhere else in the Midwest, you know just how much snow we had received prior to this flight. Therefore, the ground was still rather wet which made it very difficult to push the plane back onto its concrete pads to tie it down. It's difficult enough when it's dry, let alone when you are trying to push it through mud! This is yet another flight that I think I will always remember. Being able to just go out and explore was very liberating. The fact that it was during sunset made it just that much better.

Private Pilot Knowledge Test Prep!

     I have been doing a lot of studying lately and have just been signed off by my instructor today to take my Private Pilot Knowledge Test(written). Recently, I've been using the following to study:

• Jeppesen Private Pilot Book
• FAR AIM 2013 (ASA)
• Private Pilot Test Prep (ASA)    

     I was wondering if anyone has any tips for studying as well as taking the actual exam. I will be taking it either this weekend, or the next at Dayton Wright Brothers Airport(KMGY). Thank you very much in advance.

Pre-Solo, loops, and skydivers

     With my 16th birthday being less than a month away, it was time to start preparing to solo. We took the Cessna 150 up once more to practice as many takeoffs and landings as we could do. After a normal preflight of N3718J, we took to the skies.

     First, Joe told me to go around the pattern a few times at Red Stewart before we went to Dayton Wright Brothers. I went around the pattern two or three times. The first approach was extremely high, but instead of going around we just landed long. The landing wasn't too bad though. Each approach after my first one kept getting better and better. After the last landing at Red Stewart, we went over to Dayton Wright Brothers for a bit. We did a few normal landings there and did one exercise that I found to be a bit more challenging than what I expected. I also got to do my first go around. When we were about to turn base for runway 20, another Cessna came barreling below us to land on the same runway. He just cut right in front of us and took forever to get off the runway, forcing us to go around.

Video from my flight lesson on 8-6-12

     For the exercise, I just had to keep enough power in to stay 1-2ft off the ground and fly down the center line of the entire runway. When I did it, I let the aircraft touch down for a moment by accident. I don't know why it was so hard for me...

     We finally decided to head over to Middletown Regional Airport(Hook Field) to do a few more takeoffs and landings there. I entered a straight in approach for runway 23 from about 5 miles out to. It was nice to have a long stabilized approach. I carried in power in all of my approaches there and my landings seemed to have improved when I did that. On our first pattern there, there we skydivers coming down right above us so I opted to widen our pattern because they were landing midfield. When we taxied by them on the ground, they all gave me a wave which felt pretty cool. We realized how long we had been gone when we looked at the hobbs meter so we went back to Red Stewart.

     The next two lessons before my birthday will be back in the cub so that I can get used to the plane again before I solo. This was definitely one of my more interesting flight lessons!

This Flight: 1.8 hours N3718J, 40I-KMGY-KWO-40I
Total hours to date: 16.2

Taking the C150 to Dayton Wright Brothers

     On the 16th of July, I made my second flight in the Cessna 150. Once again, this was N3718J. Today was a pretty simple lesson. This time, we didn't do any ground school stuff. Joe and I just went straight out to the plane.

     I pre-flighted the Cessna 150 and mounted my GoPro on the windshield while Joe talked to another pilot at the airport who was getting his glider ready for a short flight. The plane had more than half of its 26gal combined tanks, plenty of oil, and everything was looking good. We were good to go! Instead of borrowing a headset from my flight school, I used a David Clark H10-13.4 headset that I borrowed from my dad's friend who owns a Bonanza. It was very comfortable and worked great. Hopefully I'll be getting a pair for my Birthday in September. Moving along, I started it up and we had a short taxi to runway 26 after the run-up.

     Because the president was in town at CVG, there was a TFR set up just south of Waynesville. So, we decided to head up northwest to Dayton Wright Brothers(MGY). Once we got close, we looked at the windsocks on the ground, and each one was pointing in a different direction. Moments later, the winds calmed down and favored runway 20. I entered the left downwind on the 45 degree entry. I came in a bit low on my first approach, and having not been used to the C150, made a pretty ugly landing. This wasn't the pay to start off! I improved on each landing and after a while, a slight crosswind started to form. I made 3 full stop landings and 1 touch and go at MGY. After the touch and go, we were closely followed by an Aero Commander departing right after us. Then, it was time to head back to Waynesville.

YouTube video of the flight with the GoPro HD Hero 2

 
     As we neared Waynesville from the north, I decided to cross over the field and enter the left downwind for runway 26. After a normal, but high, approach I made a smooth landing. It was nice to be back on grass, it's very forgiving! On the way back to the parking spot, my camera battery died with pretty good timing.

     We shut down, tied the plane down, and wrapped up the flight. Joe and I talked about getting my Student Pilot Certificate soon so that I can reach my goal of soloing on my 16th birthday. I'm not sure if you have to be 16 when you get it. Overall it was a great flight. I learned a lot and got much more comfortable with the Cessna 150. This flight was also my first time talking on radio which was really easy. Next lesson will be in the Cessna 150 again, so look forward to it!

P.S. Next time, I'll try to mount the camera lower. I'll master the GoPro eventually!

This Flight: 1.0 hours, 5 landings, 5 takeoffs, N3718J, 40I-MGY-40I
Total hours to date: 14.4