Tacos for dinner, Checkride for Desert

Hero shot overlooking a canyon near Del Rio

Since my last post, the weather patterns here in Del Rio, Mexico have changed.  The mornings are usually associated with heavy fog or low cloud layers.  This kept me from flying as much as I had hoped...oh well.

During my training and for the rest of my flying carer, I will always have to be formally evaluated on my progress and performance.  This is done in a form of a 'check ride'.    They sample your general knowledge, handling emergency procedures, and finally...flying the aircraft.  The whole process is quite simple really.  Yet, its impossible to avoid the stress and nerves that come with a check ride.

I returned from a really nice Thanksgiving break at home.  It was so nice to get a glimpse into the 'real world' which I miss so much.  It was so nice to see Stephanie again.  She picked me up from the airport and we both felt like kids on Christmas morning.  It was very exciting to be home.  We enjoyed many Thanksgiving dinners where we were able to catch up with friends and family that I have had not seen in quite a while.   It was not fun leaving after a short visit.  However, the good news is I will be home in a few short weeks for Christmas!



Returning to flying was very very interesting.  They gave me a flight which didn't count for any grade simply to get my stick and rudder hands back.  That flight went really well I thought.  Its nice not having any pressure.   As the flying continues, the standards are quickly going up.  Especially as our Flight approaches its first check ride, Mid-Phase.  This week I struggled to keep my flying up to standards.  Its strange, I feel like I am doing well...but when we land and debrief, I am told of my wrongful aviation deeds.  Needless to say, I ended up "Hooking" or "Taco-ing"  my 2 flights before my Mid-Phase.  No Bueno.  In pilot training, if you don't pass a ride, your grade in your grade book is a "U"...which looks like a hard shell taco or a fish hook...take your pick.  LOL.  Because I hooked 2 rides in a row, I was given an extra flight to get my act together.  Success!  I pulled it together and actually had a good flight.  It was a good feeling going into the check ride the next day.

The check ride was actually much less involved than I had made it out to be.  Don't get me wrong, their standards are high.  But I had to find a way to deal with all the stress and nerves.  It wasn't easy, but I studied hard and went into it with a positive attitude.  I suppose that attitude paid off (in addition to the family and friend support)!  I ended up passing with a final grade of "Excellent" and only 7 downgrades.  I totally outdid myself.  Its such a relief to have that monkey off my back.

Next up:  Instruments 2 exam and advanced aerobatics with much more area solo time :)

SOLO Complete!

So today I FINALLY soloed!  The weather was awesome this morning.  The sky was clear and the wind was light and variable.  Perfect.  Flew a few laps around the pattern all my by self and called it a day!  Such a crazy feeling flying $5mil all by yourself.  After you land, they chase you down and throw you into the solo pool as a tradition.  The weather here has been a bit chilly...so that water was FREEZING!.  It was truly an experience to remember.  See the pics below. 

Wait for it....

So my initial solo did not come last week.  I had a horrible start to my week.  For some reason I could not fly the T-6, it flew me.  Needless to say, after a few flights between Monday and Tuesday, I ended up 'hooking' my first flight.  Hooking means that I didn't pass the flight and my IP wants me to do it over again.  It was very disheartening, but I took my next few days off from flying to regroup and get my act together.  Because I had to repeat a flight, it caused my initial solo to be pushed back.  I flew again Friday and WOW!...I was a completely different pilot.  I dunno why I struggled so much earlier in the week, but it seems that I have fixed it...PHEW!

Now that I am back on track, my Solo has been rescheduled to Monday afternoon.  I am very excited and just cant wait!


More to follow after the Solo...

Preparing for Solo

We finished the first "block" of flying last week and started the block which is meant to prepare us to fly solo. This is done in a very short amount of time. So the pressure is on to get things right on the ground as well as in the cockpit. The flights focus on basic aircraft control, radio work, and basic navigation. All of which is enough, in the eyes of the Air Force, to fly a 5-million dollar aircraft all by my lonesome. I'm pumped! Flying is not the only thing they have us focusing on...academics are still something that we must give some due attention. On Monday we are taking our Instruments 1 exam. It should go fine, I have been able to study this weekend, so I'm not all that worried about it. The picture to the right is all the academic material that I am responsible for during my time flying the T-6. It's quite daunting, but manageable.

Our scheduler told me that I could be one of the first few students to solo in our flight. They have been flying me pretty hard, which has led to me being ahead of most of the class. This being said, I should expect to solo on Friday, November 12th. That could change due to weather and other factors, but I would say there's a strong possibility that Friday will be the big day.

As for the flying so far: It is fun, but comes at a price. Every minute of every day feels like its devoted to studying SOMETHING. LOL, at this phase of flying, you always feel like you are behind and screwing things up. Last week I flew with with my regular IP, a LtCol who works for the wing staff here, and a full bird Col who is a commander from Randolph AFB. Both have been a lot of fun to fly with. They have 'been there and done that' so they bring a lot to the table for me to learn as well as have fun doing it. However, you do not have a choice in your IP and the IP I flew with Friday was definitely had a different approach. Lets just say you have to have a thick skin to fly with him...(What the F*** are you doing?! You are too high! Get on glide path! Are you F***ing awake up there?! , are some examples of my Friday flight...quite comical if you ask me) but nonetheless during the debrief, he had many good comments and suggestions to improve my weak areas. I took it as 'tough love' haha. Told me that for this phase of flying that I am ahead of the curve and progressing very well. It was a great way to transition to the weekend to catch up on my rest and sanity.

I look forward to another week of flying and getting paid to do it. It's a great feeling coming home at night feeling completely exasperated, knowing you just gave it your all. And to wake up the next morning to do it all over again.

NEXT: Solo!

Some Catching UP....

Hello All!

First let me apologize for not getting this out sooner. It was my intention to send out letters every few weeks to keep everyone in the loop…I have been a slacker! Some of you may be caught up on whats going on, others not so much…I’m going to give the quick and dirty to get all of you caught up to what’s happening now...

I graduated from Officer Training School (OTS) May 28^th, 2010. It was 13 long weeks of sleepless nights, lots of yelling, lots of running, and academics/leadership studies. I felt like it was more difficult than Basic Training back in 2003. It was awesome to have so many family and friends down for the graduation. It truly meant a lot to me. Needless to say, the time did fly and before I could realize it, I had Maxwell AFB in my rear view mirror heading back to NJ.

In the middle of June, I went to my first pilot training school in Pueblo, CO called Introductory Flight Screening (IFS). It was a 4 week program which ‘screens’ pilot candidates and determines if they have the tools for success when they report to their primary flight training school. It was 1 week of intense academics ranging from basic aerodynamics, military procedures, and other aviation topics. They flew you hard out there. Almost every day I flew twice, which was a lot of work. I didn’t get much sleep the night before because I was studying what I needed to know for my flights the next day. The good news about flying me twice a day was that I graduated the program a full week early. This was very special because I was able to surprise Stephanie and my family by showing up at home unexpected. It was worth all the work!

The time at home was spent reporting to McGuire AFB to take care of some admin and other duties. It was very laid back and I ended up taking many days off to enjoy almost 6 weeks of summertime in NJ.

On August 21^st, I got down on one knee and asked Stephanie to marry me. It took her a few minutes to get her whits about her but she did say YES! Stephanie and her family have been nothing short of extraordinary; a true blessing which I look forward to cherishing forever. So we are super pumped and excited and look forward to having all of you at our wedding! Details to follow…

Shortly after, Stephanie and I made the long road trip to Del Rio, Texas, Home of Laughlin AFB, where I will be spending the next year of my life training for my silver wings. It was a great trip with stops in Birmingham, AL, New Orleans, LA, and Houston, TX. Del Rio tends to lack some of the creature comforts that we are used to back home. It will do and we always have San Antonio which is a few hours away.

I started pilot training on September 8^th, 2010. Right away they hit you hard with academics. They range from aerodynamics, aircraft systems, survival, weather, instruments, etc.

This academic phase lasts about 6 weeks. Last week our class started Phase II, which is the flying portion. Monday I had my “dollar ride” which was very very cool. The dollar ride is a ‘freebie’, where all you really need to do is show up with a good attitude and be ready to fly. The pressure is off because nothing is graded on the first ride. So all I had to do was hang on and enjoy the ride. Following the dollar ride however we are expected to handle much of the flying and procedures ourselves. So there have been many sleepless nights of studying and preparing for the next day’s flights. The T-6 is a lot of fun to fly! It is a high performance aircraft that will do almost anything you ask it to. It can fly fast, go upside down to name a few. So far, the first week was full of ups and downs. You realize that there is so much information that is required of you to know. It seems that it isn’t long before you get caught up to the power curve. I feel like I discovered much about myself last week regarding dealing with stress and how to study. Hopefully it carries into the following weeks and I do well on my future flights.