FTY to LGC (Fulton County Brown Field - LaGrange Callaway Airport

I came home to Atlanta for the Christmas/New Year Holiday. As I'm sure you know I could not pass up this opportunity to fly with the nice warm weather down here. I got checked out in a Cessna 172 and rented it to fly down to LaGrange.

The 172 is a high wing plane so it's pretty different to fly. It was a fun experience. The visibility was great. I couldn't have picked a better day to fly. Check out a few of the best shots my friend took above. The lakes in the picture are part of west point lake along the Georgia/Alabama state lines.

Christmas lights!

Last night I braved the 5degree weather and went flying. It was amazing!! The plane performed like a jet. I climbed to pattern altittude before I was on my downwind leg. On a hot summer day I could spend the entire pattern climbing and land before I reach 1000ft agl.

The coolest part of last nights flight was seeing all of the ground covered in snow and the Christmas lights. I wish I had a camera that could show you guys the pictures. Now I see why pilots say cold weather flying is great. No turbulence no bumps.

Winter Blues

The midwest has gotten dumped with snow. Consequently I haven't flown. Not because the runway is full of snow because it's plowed. But because its COLD outside. I'll try to get out to airport and take some pictures. Flying with snow on the ground is a lot different than when you can see the ground. The landmarks and references are all covered in snow. The lakes that you use for references are now frozen over and look like fields....

I'd better be good at using my radio navigational devices.

Official License

Today I received my official license in the mail. It only took about 4 weeks surprisingly. It's pretty cool to actually hold it in my hand. It feels kind of like when you graduate from college. You know you have a degree but it's not the same until you are physically holding it in your hands.

For some fun facts....
According to the AOPA Jan. 12, 07 newsletter.
84,866 student pilots
242 recreational pilots
939 sport pilots
236,148 private pilots
130,234 commercial pilots
144,681 airline transport pilots
 Due to the economy these numbers have been declining. I wouldn't be surprised if the numbers are now 10% lower!

To get my commercial I have to have 250hrs**. To get my ATP I have to have 1,500hrs**! I've got a long way to go. One step at a time.


**Obviously it's more than just the hours but that's just a simplified reference point.

Google Maps

Check out the map of the places I've flown.



Google Maps of Airport Locations

Weather and TFR's

The weather has been pretty crappy lately. Lots of low clouds, rain, cold, fog etc. I've been grounded for the past week and a half. So no real updates going on here. The president is coming to Indiana today so they have a TFR (Temporary Flight Restriction) set up over Kokomo, Indiana just north of Indianapolis. So unless I want some f-16s on me I'd better avoid that area.

Thanksgiving is coming up and there are a few things that I am thankful for. Number 1 I'm thankful for my friends and family. They have supported my addiction to airplanes and even this blog!!! Number 2 are all the fellow pilots that have helped teach me, and continue to teach me things. But most importantly I'm thankful for the opportunity to have found something that I truly love and enjoy. It's nothing like having a bad week at work and be able to go for a flight and have all your troubles left on the ground.

My quest for all of you guys and gals out there is to reflect on your life this weekend. Yes the economy sucks, things are bad, but really sit back and realize even though you may have it bad a lot of people have it a lot worse. Be thankful that you have a computer, a home, a warm plate in front of you. I know I certainly am....

God bless the world, and have a safe Thanksgiving Holiday!

Cross Country Time Terre Haute, Indiana

My next goal is to add an instrument rating to my private pilot license. This will allow me to fly into weather that a VFR only pilot cannot fly. In controlled airspace I have to have at least 1,000ft ceilings and 3 miles visibility under 10,000ft. Above 10,000ft I have to have 5 miles visibility. These are the FAA minimums. My personal minimums are 6 miles and 3,000ft ceilings.

Tonight I flew to Terre Haute. Its about 52nm from Eagle Creek Airport. I need to log cross country time for my instrument rating and Terre Haute is right on the border of cross country. A cross country flight is a flight of 50 nautical miles or more. It's also good practice for me because I call up Air Traffic Control and request VFR Flight Following. What this does is puts my aircraft's unique transponder code up on the controller's radar scope. He can then talk to me and advise me of traffic in my area. It's a great thing to do from a safety stand point.

On my way back the sun set and by the time I made it back to EYE it was dark. The air is always so smooth at night. I love flying at night. Plus it's easier to see traffic. I made a firm landing but decent landing, filled the plane back up with fuel, and put the plane away for the next pilot.

Now that I'm safely on the ground. Its time to grab a cool brew and enjoy Monday night football!

Crosswind Landings Explained

To understand what a crosswind landing is you must first understand wind. I'm going to leave out lots of theory and facts to try and keep it simple. So for the techies "Pilot Stig" please excuse me.

Planes prefer to take off and land into the wind. In a perfect world the runway will be aligned with the direction the wind is blowing. When the wind is blowing off center of the runway a crosswind condition exist. The farther the wind's angle between the runway heading and the wind's heading the greater effect the wind has on an aircraft. This effects all aircrafts BIG and SMALL!

Check out the youtube link below to see what it looks like. Notice how the pilot lowers the wing and lands on one wheel first, while using his rudder to align the nose down the center of the runway. This is the proper technique. So next time you land commercially and say "man that pilot came down hard" 9 times out of 10 it was done on purpose and was a very well executed landing.

Crosswind Landing

Hawaii (OGG) Kahului Airport, Maui

This airport was awesome! I was still a student pilot at the time so I had to have a CFI on board. It worked out cool because he ended up being a tour guide for my wife and I pointing out all sorts of things as I flew the plane. Pictures don't do Maui justice, but hopefully these videos can give you some sort of idea of the beauty that can only be seen from an airplane.

I have three videos. This is the one of me departing OGG. If you pay close attention you will see me put the aircraft in a crab as soon as I'm airborne due to the 20kt cross winds!!

This video is me doing a touch and go at LUP Kalaupapa Airport. This island is NW of Maui across the channel. It is on the Northern half of the island surrounded by a beautiful national park.

This last video is me landing back at OGG. The controllers told us "Maintain maximum forward speed there is a 767 on 10 mile final behind you". As soon as we landed we turned off on the first taxiway and sure enough the Boeing was plowing right behind us. The crosswind on the landing wasn't as bad, but notice there is definitely a cross wind. The rear passenger can clearly see the center line of the runway. For the non aviators that means the plane is coming in at an angle due to the winds.

First True Passenger Flight

This post is named "true" because technically 2 passengers have already flown with me. The 1st is the good man upstairs. The second is the flight examiner. While being a pilot he is legally a passenger on the checkride flight. If anything happens I was the PIC and he is not at any fault.

 I flew my wife to Muncie (MIE) afterwork. It was a textbook VFR flight. I filled my flight plan, opened it up in the air, got radar flight following to MIE and landed perfectly. They have a restaurant on the field called "Kacy J's". It was okay. A little pricey but the service was really nice. They saw us park on the ramp and they came and opened the door for us and offered to close my flight plan for me. Very nice people.

As I did my preflight I saw the sun sinking below the tree line. I new we'd get some awesome shots from the sky. Landing at Eagle Creek (EYE) was nice. Calm winds and the twinkling of the city below. I'll upload some pictures of the flight for you soon. She survived her first flight with the kevster....

WHO"S NEXT!!!!

Next Flight

Many people have asked me "Where are you going for your first flight Captain Kev". Well I'm trying to figure that out myself. It's odd now because I don't have an instructor saying "Plan a flight to Muncie, or Plan a flight to Lafayette". The entire world is literally at my finger tips. Or at least my wallet haha. I'm thinking maybe flying down to southern Indiana and viewing the Ohio River. Or perhaps a short hop up to Muncie and grabbing some lunch. Any suggestions? I'll have my official photographer @nikki0j3 document it for you guys to see

Official Like a Whistle

Well folks. I've done it. I'm a United States Department of Transportation Federal Aviation Authority, Licensed and Registered Private Pilot. This is one of the most exciting moment of my life. The check ride was very intensive. It consisted of an Oral and Practical Exam. The test is given by a Designated Pilot Examiner. This is a guy the FAA appoints to give exams. It's basically someone who has a great reputation in the aviation industry and years of experience. This is a guy that's been in the game so long that he can basically fly a plane blindfolded with one arm.

My big day went like this....
6:30am
I woke up, washed up and headed to the airport.
7:00am
I decided to stop by BK to try out those new pancakes. I got to the hanger and ate the pancakes. They were kind of hard on the outside. I think burger king cooks all there food in the microwave. It wasn't good at all. But it got food in my stomach. I taxied the plane from the hanger to the terminal building to find a good spot. But to my surprise the terminal didn't open until 8am. So I sat in the plane for about 30 minutes killing time.
8:00am
The terminal opened and I went inside to secure a table in the breakroom for my exam. The weather still looked crappy. Isolated thundershowers, gusting winds, icing conditions at the freezing levels, and low level wind shear. Yeah, not very good. The examiner was running a few minutes late and my CFI came to make sure all the paper work was squared away and wish me good luck. The examiner explained the ground rules and how the process would work and began the exam.

The oral was about an hour and half long. He asked me questions about everything I've learned, and stuff that I didn't learn. It was almost like a conversation. We reviewed my flight plan from Eagle Creek to Chicago Midway and discussed different airspaces, restrictions, flight minimums, etc. After we completed the exam he told me to check the weather and see if we could fly.

10:00am
I called Flight Services and got a full weather briefing and determined that the storms were isolated far enough apart that we would be okay. I preflighted the aircraft and we departed. We began flying to Chicago then just north of Lebanon, Indiana what do you know. A simulated engine failure. I performed my checklist by memory then reviewed it to make sure I didn't forget anything. I found a suitable spot to land and prepared the cabin for an emergency landing. Once the examiner saw that I could land the plane safely we climbed back up to a safe altitude. We did some ground reference maneuvers, lost procedures, and the fun part simulated instrument work.

Simulated instrument is when a pilot puts on "foggles" which limit his view from the outside. They look like safety glasses with blinders on them so they can only see the instrument panel and not the outside. We did some unusual attitudes recoveries, and heading changes and altitude changes etc.

Then we headed back to the airport. We performed soft, short field, take off and landings and no flap landings, go arounds etc. Then he told me to perform a normal landing. After I touched down he told me to taxi to the ramp in a serious voice. I got nervous thinking ooo crap. What did I do wrong. Then I parked, shut the engine down. His words were "Okay let's get this paper work filled out, we are done, you passed".

A weight of a thousand lbs lifted off my shoulders. I couldn't believe it. I looked at my clock and was like "WHOA!! Its 12pm lol". We went back into the terminal, found a computer and completed the paper work and he printed out my Temporary Pilot Certificate. He explained to me that my permanent one would come in the mail. He said it could take a week or 6 weeks. It just depends on the feds.

I called my wife and she was more excited than me. She made me a big ol feast. T-Bone steak, mac n cheese, she layed it down.

The weirdest thing now is the feeling of "Wow, I did it. I'm done". But really the journey has just begun. In the spring I hope to start my instrument training which is just as intense as the private license. Instrument flying allows me to fly in less than perfect visibility, in the clouds, etc. It's how all the airliners fly. But for now I'm going to take a much needed break from training and enjoy all that my Private Pilot Certificate has to offer.

When I was in Denver a few weeks ago I decided to rent a Cessna 172 and do some sight seeing. Check out some of my favorite pictures. Denver is a beautiful city.

Paper Work

The paper work has been completed!! My endorsements have been made in my log book. Its about to go DOWN!!! Now I need everyone to cross there fingers and pray for good weather. By good weather I want the winds to be 5 knots or less at a heading of 030 or coming out the NE, 15 miles or great visibility, and few to no clouds :) .

To be honest with you I'm more nervous about the oral part of the checkride. It can be anywhere between 1-2hrs I've heard and the examiner will throw all kinds of questions at you. Hopefully I'll do well because if I don't make it past that part we won't even get into the plane lol.

Stay tuned folks.....

As the big day approaches I take a look back at how far i've come....

Wow...it's been an extrememly long journey. I remember back when I was 8 years old. I went to Hartsfield-Jackson Airport (ATL) with my uncle. It was a typical Saturday afternoon. We went through security (without an airline ticket) and went to the international terminal. This was where all the big planes were. There we walked up to the windows and watched the big 747's come in and pull into the gate. While random people and kids waived their loved ones goodbye. It was an awesome site for an 8 year old. Then after the 3 story tall airplane pushed back from the gate we walked to the end of the terminal to watch it take off. From that day forward I new that I wanted to learn to fly.

I think every pilot has that memory of when they knew they wanted to make that dream come true. That "bug" that bites them. The opportunity to learn to fly did not come until after I graduated from college. I was at the Mount Comfort Indianapolis Air Show back in June 2008. The local FBO (Fixed Based Operator) had a tent set up and some of there aircraft on display. A friend encouraged me to go sit in the plane and play with the controls. I didn't want to be a groupie or anything so I said "naw I'm good". But my friend peer pressured me into sitting in it. So I jumped into the Cessna 172 and a feeling took over me. I new this time was for real and I had to do it.

So I scheduled a discovery flight and took a test flight. I'll never forget that day. It was the strangest feeling. I was defying gravity. I felt the vibration from the engine, I felt my weight of gravity increase as I was thrust back into the seat. Then I felt the wind. I thought to myself wow this is a surreal feeling. We flew north of the city and over my apartment complex and even got to see Ron Artest's former house. He has his name boldly plastered across his tennis court in his back yard. Cool stuff. We then climbed to about 2,000 feet above the ground and the instructor let me take the controls. It felt oddly familiar. It felt JUST like flight simulator. I had probably logged over a thousand Flight Sim hours having have had it since Fs98. I felt like I was a natural at it. But before I knew it my 45 minute discovery flight was coming to an end. We headed back to Mount Comfort and made a smooth and safe landing and taxied back.

After we landed the CFI (Certified flight instructor) gave his typical spill and sales pitch. I had sticker shock. This would not be cheap!!! But by then the bug had hit me and I knew this was something to do. Rather than dive into something blind I did some research and networking. I met some local guys at Eagle Creek Airport. They introduced me to one of the top CFI's in the city. He was a former professor and an experienced aviation professional. He took me through the ground school that is required and prepared me for my written exam. After 6 months of studying I took my written exam and passed with flying colors (pun intended).

The next step was to get some flight time. I joined a local flight club with a Piper Warrior II (PA-128-161). I had the intitial impression that it would take me about 4-6 months to get my required hours. However like most pilots know "Life Happens". 1 year and 4 months later here I am today. On the eve of making my dream come true....

But you know what. Without some very important people I would not have made it this far. Those people are number 1 my faith in God, 2 my lovely Wife, and 3 my praying and loving family and friends...

Stayed tuned for more. This will be the official spot to find information about my flying adventures...