HOLY COW have I been busy! Finally have a brief moment, and very brief at that to catch everyone up on the progress!
4/21 Thursday - Day 53
Phew, got a day of rest today. I'm working in the yard and then studying the materials for the Commercial multi ride, which I have scheduled for Sunday!
4/22 Friday - Day 54
My last cross country! Flew down to PNS (Pensacola, FL). We had a line of thunderstorms headed for ATL this afternoon. Dispatch figured if we raced to PNS and did a quick turn we could beat them home. No such luck. We did a lightning fast turn at PNS, filed, fueled, and headed back for FTY. By the time we reach LaGrange, I talked to FSS and they said the storms would be hitting FTY within 10 minutes. We were still 40 minutes away. Sooo, we had to divert to CSG and tie up the plane to let the storm front pass over us. We killed several hours in Columbus while a nasty TS passed over, then headed home. Cool thing was when I called ATC and requested a diversion to CSG, all of a sudden like 6 other planes did the same thing. It was like everyone was waiting for the first pilot to do it, then everyone followed suit. Guess I'm a trend setter!
Met some corporate pilots for Wal-Mart while we waited. They were really cool and I think that would be a cool place to work after talking to them.
4/23 Saturday - Day 55
Did my prep training for the commercial ME checkride today. Nothing new, just the maneuvers to tighter standards. I think I'm ready, but still have the little bit of nervous feeling you get, wanting to pass. We'll see...
4/24 Sunday - Day 56
WOW! What a long and unusual day! Had my checkride with Clyde in Madison Co (Huntsville, AL). Everything went great until the last landing, a short field. We come in, I put it down on the numbers and stop it before the 1,000' marks. Come to a complete stop, then start to taxi and POP, cathump, cathump. We blew a tire! Had to roll it just clear of the runway. Then a guy at the FBO had a piper lance that he took a wheel off of and put it on the seminole so we could pull it down to the FBO ramp. We then had to wait while ATP sent a wheel with a fresh tire on it over to us. There was a mechanic at the hangar who hasn't yet finished his A&P who put the new wheel on for us, but ATP wouldn't let us fly until we had an official A&P sign off on it (it's not required by the FAR's but they like to err on the safe side). Soooo, we had to sit at the FBO from about noon until 8:30pm waiting for the A&P to show up on his day off and sign us off! But, I passed my checkride, so it's all good!!!!
4/25 Monday - Day 57
Day one of CFI school. First day is 8am to 9pm. Very long and, honestly, very boring. But we covered all the stuff we need to know in the FAR's and zipped over to maintenance for another guided tour of the Seminole and its systems, which is always interesting. I learn something new about it every time I get to talk to the A&P's over there.
4/26 Tuesday - Day 58
Day two of CFI School. Same stuff, different day! 7am-9pm of FAR's, endorsements, AIM stuff. My eyes are starting to bug out!!!!
4/27 Wednesday - Day 59
Day three, CFI school. I am out of new ways to put it already. Lots of lecture, lots of stuff to cover. You'd better be on top of your book work before showing up or there's no way you'll know it for the check ride! They highlight what's important for you to know and move on. Its up to you to know it already or learn it on your own.
4/28 Thursday - Day 60!!!
Finally got some time in the plane!!! We first did spin training in the morning, which was only .5 in the Cessna to fly to the practice area, have a spin demonstrated, then practice 3 yourself, then back to the airport, climb out with the engine running and the next guy jumps in and whisks off for his .5! I have to say that spinning really is fun, though.
Then, in the afternoon I did 2.0 in the seminole running through the maneuvers for the CFI initial checkride. I have to say that I felt pretty good doing them. Doing the steep turns from the right seat was a little different. I had done some cross country flying in the right seat to practice, which was good, but the sight-picture for the steep turns from the right seat seemed really different and strange. I did them to commercial standards, barely, but feel like with another training flight I'll have them polished and up to par.
4/29 Friday - Day 61
A good day today! We found out who our examiner will be for our CFI initial and I drew Dave Gardner in Tampa, FL. I hadn't heard anything about him before, but upon reading some gouges on him, he seems like a really nice, fair, examiner. I'm really thankful I didn't draw one of the examiners renouned for being butt-heads!
However, I also found out that my checkride is the first one scheduled, on MONDAY! I guess this is a blessing and a curse. While I have less time to study, many of the other guys in class don't have their rides scheduled until Friday. I was told it typically takes about 3 days after your initial ride to complete the other rides. So I could be finished before some of the have completed their first ride!!!
Did 2.0 more hours in the seminole in prep. I actually felt like my steep turns were better yesterday than today. But overall, I feel like I'm ready and can perform all the maneuvers to commercial standards. The hardest part for me is talking through the maneuvers. In thinking about what you're going to say next, it's hard to also be thinking about what you need to be doing next and stay ahead of the plane. But, with a little practice, it comes naturally. I would highly recommend anyone in the program to start not just right-seat flying on the cross country phase, but also to be talking through every phase of flight, particularly the landing and approaches, as if you're teaching them to your flight partner. It really is weird until you get used to it.
4/30 Saturday - Day 62
No flying today. Just studying, making lesson plans, going over questions with the other CFI classmates and the instructor. I feel like I'll be ready, but I also feel like my brain is full!
5/1 Sunday - Day 63
Day before the checkride, report for duty ready-to-fly at 8am. We showed up ready to roll, expecting to fly out immediately and then settle in at Tampa and study with the other student in my class who also drew Gardner. No such luck. Weather was spotty in Tampa, so we were told to check back in at around 3pm with dispatch for a release. My brain was shot and I hadn't spent any time with my wife, so I took the time to have a break and went home to hang out with my wife for a couple of hours before leaving. 3pm, we were on our way to Tampa. The Peter O Knight airport is one of the prettiest I've ever seen, on an island with sailboats docked all around it. We even saw dolphins swimming around right off the parking lot! Very nice. Out for a quick bite to eat at a really nice restaurant the hotel driver recommended (Jackson's), and then back to the room to study till bed time.
5/2 Monday - Day 64 - D-Day CFI initial checkride!
The day everyone fears, the day you take the hardest checkride of them all, the CFI initial. The CFI instructor told us that the nation-wide first time pass rate on the CFI initial was around 45%, yikes!!! So, needless to say, I was a little anxious.
But, upon meeting Dave, he was very nice and pleasant to work with. The oral portion was very thorough, lasting 4 hours with some really in depth and tough questions. After that, we took to the flight portion, where I have to say I had one of the best flights of my career. I nailed all the maneuvers and felt supremely confident and on top of the world after my last landing as we stopped at the ramp, shut down the engines, and Dave stuck out his hand and said, "Very good job. Congratulations, you're now a CFI!"
Woohoooo!
Jon, the guy that I came down with, also passed his and we were floating on air the whole ride home from Tampa. We didn't get home till around 11:30pm, but we were both so excited we probably couldn't have slept before then anyway!
5/3 Tuesday - Day 65
Phew, I've got two whole days off, YES!
My SE Commercial and CFI checkrides are both on Friday. We're going to do the practice ride the day before on Thursday, so I've got two days to get some much needed rest, catch up on some honey-do's around the house, and study some book work for the upcoming checkrides.
Took advantage of the time off to also polish up my resume and send it in to ATP to let them know I'd like a job when I'm finished. Here's crossing my fingers, hoping I'll get hired by ATP and not have to stand on the street corner to makes ends meet!
5/4 Wednesday - Day 66
Just some housework and studying today.
Cinco de Mayo Thursday - Day 67
I did 2.8 in the 172, practicing the maneuvers for the Commercial SE and CFI SE add-ons. We headed over to McMinn airport (25A), a legitimate short field with only 2,600X30 runway. Very cool place to practice short field landings and t/o. Went through all the maneuvers and feel like I'll be fine on the ride tomorrow. Here's to positive thinking!!
5/6 Friday - Day 68
Woohooo! I'm now a CFI, MEI, and Commercial SE & ME pilot!!! The ride went off without a hitch. Clyde has to be the coolest 73 year-old you'll ever meet. He showed me a 0 KIAS steep turn in the 172! If you fly it in just the right bank, the ram air will be obstructed on the ASI and will indicate 0 while turning through the steep turn, it was really cool. The ride went very well and Clyde was as good of a teacher as an examiner, giving me pointers on ways to teach and things to look out for, once I'm really instructing.
Then for the best part...My wife's hospital rented out Six Flags for their staff from 6pm-midnight. We both needed a break and some QT, so we went off to enjoy some coasters and fun together for the evening. After getting off of Deja-Vu, an insane coaster that you'll regret not riding if you ever go to Six Flags Atlanta, I hear my phone beep a missed call. I check my voice-mail to find a message from Jim at ATP! I call him back (I can't believe he was still in the office at 8pm on a Friday! Jim, if you read here secretly, dude, you're an animal!) and he jumps into a phone interview while my legs are still wobbling in the middle of Six Flags! After a few questions about how I would handle some common teaching scenarios, Jim tells me that he's heard nothing but good things about me from my instructors and that one of my examiners told him that they should hire me and that he has no hesitation offering me a job at ATP!!!!!!!! Boooyah, baby!
Crazy thing, I start in JAX on Wednesday at 8:45 am. My CFII checkride is Sunday, so I've got Monday and Tuesday to get my affairs in order, pack, and drive to JAX!
I'm just sooo stoked to know that I got hired before I'm even finished!
5/7 Saturday - Day 69
Day off to study. My CFII checkride is tomorrow. Talked to my training buddy today. He passed his initial CFI yesterday on the first attempt, congrats, Brian!
He also informed me that they told him his Citation ride is Monday. So I'm sure that when I check in tomorrow I'll be told I'm doing it Monday, too!
Wham, that means Monday I'll be flying the jet, so I've got today and Tuesday to pack and get to JAX, and squeeze in all the possible QT with my beautiful wife before I leave and don't get to see her for a few weeks at best!
Ahh, the crazy life of an ATP career pilot student, er, ah, instructor!
Gotta run, got a million and one things to do before Tuesday.
Clear skies,
Heath
