Today was my very first solo flight. It started out just like any other flight, except this time when I filled out the sheet for weight and balance I only had to put down 240lbs for the front seat instead of the usual 390lbs.
First things first, my instructor wanted to make absolutely sure I was ready, so he had me do three laps in the pattern without any commentary from him. I did okay on those three landings, and he seemed confident that I could do them on my own. So I taxied over to the ramp and he hopped out and stood with my parents and fiance.
For the first time, I was alone in the plane. I contacted ground and asked to taxi to the runway. Once I reached the runway, I contacted tower and I let them know that I was a student pilot on my first solo and asked for takeoff clearance. Without all that extra weight, takeoff was much smoother, and the plane climbed faster. I did my first lap and came up on my first landing. Considering that the plane weighed significantly less, I was prone to floating and balooning on the flare (which is when the plane starts flying again instead of touching down). I bounced a little. But, it wasn't a hard bounce like usual (probably due to less weight), and I still touched down nice and smooth.
My second landing was better, and my thrid landing was once again a little bouncy, mainly due to the floating. But its like they say, "A landing you can walk away from is a good one. A landing that doesn't break the plane is a great one." I taxied back to the ramp to pick up my instructor and we taxied back to the NAEC where he cut up my t-shirt.
Today was fun! My next solo will come right after my stage check (which should be fairly soon)...
No comments:
Post a Comment