Did
I mention the emergency??? Coming back to the airport after
my
checkride. Lancaster tower changed my landing runway from 8 to 31 to 8
and back to 31. There was another twin inbound with an emergency that I
was unaware of, and I was busy changing the airplanes configuration
based on the landing runway. I joked that my instructor put him up to
all these changes, and then found out he had an emergency to deal with.
On the downwind for 31 finally - I remembered an accident report that spoke about landing gear up after so many distractions. That made me do a GUMPS check, find the gear still up on the midfield downwind to 31, when I knew it was already down. Holy cow! Thats what GUMPs checks are for!
The airplane inbound with the emergency was a Baron with the left engine out. I hope I do as well when its my turn. He landed as if nothing was wrong.
I was well prepared for my checkride by Pat Mannion at AeroTech. Mistakes I made during the ride included not remembering much about the drag demo, getting distracted and not bringing the gear up after the approach to landing stall, and intending to perform a power on stall using full power instead of 22". All things I'd been trained up on, but mistakes I made none-the-less. Joe Notarian, the examiner, didn't make too big a deal over it, but did review it with me. Landing a Carlisle, York, and Cap City the day before was a great idea. I ended up doing the ILS 8 into Cap City during the ride, and it was very familiar.
I was well prepared for the checkride. Well Done Pat!
SUCCESS!!!!
On
September 30th, I flew myself up to Lancaster in my Warrior II
(background) I was tired from nerves and ready to get this over with. I
couldn't read anymore because I'd been over it so many times. From the
practice John and I did, described below, to all the reading and
research, I had absorbed all I possibly could.
Suddenly - after the practice run with John - I had had enough. I knew the maneuvers and knew I was a good instructor already. It was time to just go do it. NO MORE STUDYING!
The checkride over at Capital City, Harrisburg, started an hour early when the examiner heard me mention his name to another pilot I was talking with. I had arrived early to be sure I account for delays, etc, but only ended up extending the time of the oral portion of my ride. No matter - I was tired of being tired and tired of being nervous about my performance. Alot of my identity is wrapped up in this.
The first thing I enjoyed was when he asked where my escort pilot was. I didn't understand what he meant. Then it dawned on him that I came alone (and therefore had enough hours to satisfy insurance), and it dawned on me that not everyone can. Yeah - I got a kick out of that.
This examiner, Joe Notarian, started the conversation talking to me like he fully expected me to pass. I thought what he was teaching me here was good technique for relaxing people. We talked for a good two hours, while he asked subtle questions and then expanded on them to see what I knew and how I explained it (like an instructor or like someone who wasn't altogether sure). These conversations were good - and several of the techniques we discussed were counter to what I'd been taught. That does not make Pat wrong (Pat Mannion is and instructor I go out of my way to fly with), and the examiner acknowledged this. This morning - he asked me specific questions to uncover areas of my knowledge not often used on students, and we explored those together. Yet one more checkride where the man doing the examining was taking the time to show me how to teach. That means they trust me to do it, and respect the skills that I have. I'm lovin' that.
The examiner explained that the Drag Demo may be more important than the Vmc Demo. The later is intended to show how to react at low altitude, should an engine out occur. He disagreed with Pat's method of recovery from a loss of directional control in the demo (reduce significant power at the onset of a stall or loss of direction control beyond 10 deg; and then immediately restore full power).. He would like to see me pull of just 2" of power and then back, since what your practicing is how to save your bacon if this happens down low. The Drag Demo entails showing the student the effects of zero thrust versus windmilling; gear down versus up; flaps down versus up. We didn't get in a good demonstration today, as the updrafts among the ridges near Carlisle, PA were considerable.
I also learned not to go tooling around with a feather prop for too long. Funny that I was going to do this with John, but decided not to as I was too dog tired after 2 hours of flying Saturday. His experience was that sometimes the accumulators that unfeather would lose their charge after awhile. Then you are doing a single engine landing, and the FARs require you to declare an emergency.
Out to the airplane. I get my taxi clearance and start teaching him how to taxi the airplane. I talk him through the runup, and he accidentally turns off the master switch. I get the radios reset and complete the checklist; then line up for departure on 30. Runway 30 has you looking at a hillside - and you'll meet that hillside head on if you lose and engine and don't react. I announce I'll do a high performance takeoff, and get that done.
Heading west - we get beyond Carlisle before starting maneuvering. There is tension between the controllers and the examiner from earlier interactions. I am lucky that the controllers I am talking with are the same ones I talked with yesterday. I mentioned that I was preparing for my checkride - and they all remembered. They were professional and courteous to me, and made my life easier with simple clearances and cooperation.
I teach him steep turns to the left, and then have him do one to the right. I am relazed and all nerves are gone. I use my own instructor style, and treat him like one of my students; issuing corrections while monitoring checklists, power settings; bank angle; traffic; obstructions; radio calls; airspeed; and altitude. Its easier than it sounds. I'm in my comfort zone.
Next comes a Vmc Demo, which goes smoothly. I use his method where the power reduction is just enough for me to regain control. It makes sense and I'm blown away by how comfortable I'm getting in this airplane. We do an approach to landing stall, and then a power on stall. Note that the power on stall should not involve FULL POWER. The deck angle gets too high. Instead, announce to the student that you are using simulated full power, and limit power to 22". the effect and the recovery are the same. More clearing turns and next we do a drag demo. This wasn't the most effective, as the updrafts around the ridgelines made it possible to add drag and still achieve a single engine climb rate. Unrealistic in normal conditions.
Finally - he asks me to perform, no - let him perform a single engine ILS 8 into Capital City. I teach him through the entire process, and use my own intrument techniques for the approach. My hands were moving all over getting set up, and I was all the while talking him through the finer points of the procedure and set up. I made some points here and consider instrument flight a strong suit.
We did a circle to land on 30 along the ridges. I have to say that was a dangerous and unusual situation, and I got more points (I think) by pointing out that we'd be turning or climbing rather than following this controllers instructions to the letter. We got our turn in time, and landed without further adue.
On the ground again - we had a good talk for at least another hour. He was teaching me and I was taking it all in. This was a nice ride.
I departed back to Lancaster, and the controller changed my landing instructions 3 times. I have read reports of people landing gear up when this happens, and damn it if I didn't find my gear still up when I thought it was down. NOW DON'T bust my chops when you see me - I was downwind midfield when that thought occurred becuase of the continuous changes in plan. I did my first GUMPS check - and caught it on downwind. The reason for all this was that another twin was inbound with the left engine out. I held on the ground for Fire Trucks to get there, and reflected on the significance of what I was watching.
Thats all I feel like talking about at the moment. My landing in the warrior back home was mediocre - but I don't care. I am going to finish my beer and eat chinese and sit in Martian Melon Bubble Bath(grandkids supply) for awhile. I look forward to sleeping all night.
fed
*** additional items discussed:
Checkride Preparation: John Dowling and I launched for Lancaster yesterday (Saturday, September 29th) to practice for my Checkride the next day (later today, in fact). John seems to always be there for firsts! First IMC after my intrument ticket. First thunderstorm encounter (stuck with me for 3 days); first Oshkosk trip; first Carb Ice encounter; first inflight icing encounter; first twin passenger; and the list goes on.... John has no problem telling me when I don't meet my own standards... and I use him often to tune up my approaches when a big trip is coming up. He also doesn't mind being growled at....
I flew with two students early Saturday morning, and then departed in my cherokee for Lancaster. John was incredibly helpful as an objective observer; and extra set of eyes to scan for traffic; and just as a knowledgable person to share all this excitment with. Its hard to descibe how cool this really is with non-pilots at times. John and Kate King get it - so I'm glad I have them to talk with...
I'm having a good time...... Look for an update to my checkride notes.... hopefully successful.
fed
On the downwind for 31 finally - I remembered an accident report that spoke about landing gear up after so many distractions. That made me do a GUMPS check, find the gear still up on the midfield downwind to 31, when I knew it was already down. Holy cow! Thats what GUMPs checks are for!
The airplane inbound with the emergency was a Baron with the left engine out. I hope I do as well when its my turn. He landed as if nothing was wrong.
I was well prepared for my checkride by Pat Mannion at AeroTech. Mistakes I made during the ride included not remembering much about the drag demo, getting distracted and not bringing the gear up after the approach to landing stall, and intending to perform a power on stall using full power instead of 22". All things I'd been trained up on, but mistakes I made none-the-less. Joe Notarian, the examiner, didn't make too big a deal over it, but did review it with me. Landing a Carlisle, York, and Cap City the day before was a great idea. I ended up doing the ILS 8 into Cap City during the ride, and it was very familiar.
I was well prepared for the checkride. Well Done Pat!
SUCCESS!!!!
On
September 30th, I flew myself up to Lancaster in my Warrior II
(background) I was tired from nerves and ready to get this over with. I
couldn't read anymore because I'd been over it so many times. From the
practice John and I did, described below, to all the reading and
research, I had absorbed all I possibly could.Suddenly - after the practice run with John - I had had enough. I knew the maneuvers and knew I was a good instructor already. It was time to just go do it. NO MORE STUDYING!
The checkride over at Capital City, Harrisburg, started an hour early when the examiner heard me mention his name to another pilot I was talking with. I had arrived early to be sure I account for delays, etc, but only ended up extending the time of the oral portion of my ride. No matter - I was tired of being tired and tired of being nervous about my performance. Alot of my identity is wrapped up in this.
The first thing I enjoyed was when he asked where my escort pilot was. I didn't understand what he meant. Then it dawned on him that I came alone (and therefore had enough hours to satisfy insurance), and it dawned on me that not everyone can. Yeah - I got a kick out of that.
This examiner, Joe Notarian, started the conversation talking to me like he fully expected me to pass. I thought what he was teaching me here was good technique for relaxing people. We talked for a good two hours, while he asked subtle questions and then expanded on them to see what I knew and how I explained it (like an instructor or like someone who wasn't altogether sure). These conversations were good - and several of the techniques we discussed were counter to what I'd been taught. That does not make Pat wrong (Pat Mannion is and instructor I go out of my way to fly with), and the examiner acknowledged this. This morning - he asked me specific questions to uncover areas of my knowledge not often used on students, and we explored those together. Yet one more checkride where the man doing the examining was taking the time to show me how to teach. That means they trust me to do it, and respect the skills that I have. I'm lovin' that.
The examiner explained that the Drag Demo may be more important than the Vmc Demo. The later is intended to show how to react at low altitude, should an engine out occur. He disagreed with Pat's method of recovery from a loss of directional control in the demo (reduce significant power at the onset of a stall or loss of direction control beyond 10 deg; and then immediately restore full power).. He would like to see me pull of just 2" of power and then back, since what your practicing is how to save your bacon if this happens down low. The Drag Demo entails showing the student the effects of zero thrust versus windmilling; gear down versus up; flaps down versus up. We didn't get in a good demonstration today, as the updrafts among the ridges near Carlisle, PA were considerable.
I also learned not to go tooling around with a feather prop for too long. Funny that I was going to do this with John, but decided not to as I was too dog tired after 2 hours of flying Saturday. His experience was that sometimes the accumulators that unfeather would lose their charge after awhile. Then you are doing a single engine landing, and the FARs require you to declare an emergency.
Out to the airplane. I get my taxi clearance and start teaching him how to taxi the airplane. I talk him through the runup, and he accidentally turns off the master switch. I get the radios reset and complete the checklist; then line up for departure on 30. Runway 30 has you looking at a hillside - and you'll meet that hillside head on if you lose and engine and don't react. I announce I'll do a high performance takeoff, and get that done.
Heading west - we get beyond Carlisle before starting maneuvering. There is tension between the controllers and the examiner from earlier interactions. I am lucky that the controllers I am talking with are the same ones I talked with yesterday. I mentioned that I was preparing for my checkride - and they all remembered. They were professional and courteous to me, and made my life easier with simple clearances and cooperation.
I teach him steep turns to the left, and then have him do one to the right. I am relazed and all nerves are gone. I use my own instructor style, and treat him like one of my students; issuing corrections while monitoring checklists, power settings; bank angle; traffic; obstructions; radio calls; airspeed; and altitude. Its easier than it sounds. I'm in my comfort zone.
Next comes a Vmc Demo, which goes smoothly. I use his method where the power reduction is just enough for me to regain control. It makes sense and I'm blown away by how comfortable I'm getting in this airplane. We do an approach to landing stall, and then a power on stall. Note that the power on stall should not involve FULL POWER. The deck angle gets too high. Instead, announce to the student that you are using simulated full power, and limit power to 22". the effect and the recovery are the same. More clearing turns and next we do a drag demo. This wasn't the most effective, as the updrafts around the ridgelines made it possible to add drag and still achieve a single engine climb rate. Unrealistic in normal conditions.
Finally - he asks me to perform, no - let him perform a single engine ILS 8 into Capital City. I teach him through the entire process, and use my own intrument techniques for the approach. My hands were moving all over getting set up, and I was all the while talking him through the finer points of the procedure and set up. I made some points here and consider instrument flight a strong suit.
We did a circle to land on 30 along the ridges. I have to say that was a dangerous and unusual situation, and I got more points (I think) by pointing out that we'd be turning or climbing rather than following this controllers instructions to the letter. We got our turn in time, and landed without further adue.
On the ground again - we had a good talk for at least another hour. He was teaching me and I was taking it all in. This was a nice ride.
I departed back to Lancaster, and the controller changed my landing instructions 3 times. I have read reports of people landing gear up when this happens, and damn it if I didn't find my gear still up when I thought it was down. NOW DON'T bust my chops when you see me - I was downwind midfield when that thought occurred becuase of the continuous changes in plan. I did my first GUMPS check - and caught it on downwind. The reason for all this was that another twin was inbound with the left engine out. I held on the ground for Fire Trucks to get there, and reflected on the significance of what I was watching.
Thats all I feel like talking about at the moment. My landing in the warrior back home was mediocre - but I don't care. I am going to finish my beer and eat chinese and sit in Martian Melon Bubble Bath(grandkids supply) for awhile. I look forward to sleeping all night.
fed
*** additional items discussed:
- Advisory circular checklists (AC-00 I think). Joe told me to look into ordering the free ones for my students. This is a great idea. I normally have only picked these up at meetings and read them myself. I am going to follow that advice and be more of an advocate for this educational material.
- There is a FAR that requires the use of a checklist. 91.503 maybe? I have to find this again....
Checkride Preparation: John Dowling and I launched for Lancaster yesterday (Saturday, September 29th) to practice for my Checkride the next day (later today, in fact). John seems to always be there for firsts! First IMC after my intrument ticket. First thunderstorm encounter (stuck with me for 3 days); first Oshkosk trip; first Carb Ice encounter; first inflight icing encounter; first twin passenger; and the list goes on.... John has no problem telling me when I don't meet my own standards... and I use him often to tune up my approaches when a big trip is coming up. He also doesn't mind being growled at....
I flew with two students early Saturday morning, and then departed in my cherokee for Lancaster. John was incredibly helpful as an objective observer; and extra set of eyes to scan for traffic; and just as a knowledgable person to share all this excitment with. Its hard to descibe how cool this really is with non-pilots at times. John and Kate King get it - so I'm glad I have them to talk with...
- Chocked the Warrior next to where the Cougar would be, as we heard it call in south of the field as we landed
- Met Dan and his wife returning in the Cougar. They own of the Cougar I rent.
- Loaded our gear into the Cougar and fired it up. I gave John a pre-departure briefing as we taxiied out, and performed a runup.
- Walking through the checklists - I became aware of the nose gear down indicator light had gone out. I hope I would have noticed it had it been out from the start. I so much wanted to get on with this long flight, but clearly this was a no-go item. I taxiied back thinking my checkride might not happen tomorrow. Fortunately, Dan and another instructor familiar with the aircraft obtained some tools and repaired the lights. After about a 40 minute delay, we were off again.
- I was much more meticulous on this next departure preparation, and we were off uneventfully.
- I contacted Harrisburg approach and requested the VOR-A into Carlisle, PA (N94) ; Full approach from HAR. He gave me that right away, and then I informed him I was preparing for a checkride the next day, and that I'd be performing an approach into York and then Capital City after this. Additionally, each approach would culminate in a full stop/taxi back. The controllers went out of their way to accomodate me, and each approach went very well.
- John is not a multi-engine pilot, so all approaches had to be done visually by me - no foggles. They don't count for recency or IFR proficiency.
- VOR-A into N94 I got to see HAR VOR sitting on a ridge. I put the gear down on the inbound turn and not at the FAF. You put the "gear down to go down", and I knew I made a minor mistake as soon as I did it. Neither John nor I could see the airport (we were approaching it perpendicularly) until we were 5nm out. Since it was only 40' wide - I presume this was Pat's idea of humor (Pat is my instructor - highly recommended). I slowed the airplane and entered a left downwind from the midfield entry. Landing was uneventful. I kept the nose down longer than John would have liked; probably longer than I normally would at an airport with a more substantial runway. The landing was normal though, and necessary to get the airplane on the ground with the most runway in front of me as possible.
- Departing N94, I contact Harrisburg approach again, and request the full GPS17 into York (THV) from Kolbe (I think thats the fix). On this one I hear John call traffic and am in the middle of trying to do a cruise checklist while the airplane goes up and down in thermals. Basically, I'm behind the airplane; holding onto the tail and trying to crawl my way back into the cockpit. I just get back inside and determine the traffic (flight of three military helicopters) is far enough out to not be a concern for now, when I realized I haven't slowed down to approach level (21" / 2300 RPM) when I blow through my waypoint. !@## Throttle back and recapture my course - get the hsi setup - and .... there is the airport off to my right. Its still about 6 nm off, but remember, I'm flying visually today. I'm still too fast when I hit my inbound course, but see the waypoint and keep slowing down. Inbound to York, the helicopters are in the way and we start talking with them. We are in the same vacinity, and they tell me that they will stay clear of us. We see a jet blast deflector at the end of the Runway 17 - who thought to put that there???? Over the deflector and land just a bit crabbed. I taxiied back for a 17 departure, accepting a tail wind of about 6 knots. Having to listen to both John and another pilot whom just landed. There was plenty of runway and a light wind, so I stuck to my guns and departed 17 for the convenience.
- Next up was a simulated critical engine failed (simulated feature) and an ILS into Cap City (CXY). This all went very well, and I even suspected my ILS was broken. No kiddin' the needles didn't move. Due to traffic - I aborted the approach a bit earlier, brought the failed engine back, and did a normal landing on 30. Had a nice talk with the controller, who had me back taxi for departure. Take off was uneventful, but the windscreen was full of mountains on departure. Had I had an engine failure here - I would have had to improvise off to the right. would have been exciting.
- Now we head to the practice area south of Lancaster. I configure for slow flight and that goes well. I move right into a power off stall and that goes well. I configure for a Vmc Demo to the point where I'd retart the throttle and climb on one engine - but discontinue per the plan at that point. I'm too tired to continue, so I announce we are headed to Smoketown for a shortfield - uphill landing to get fuel.
- We took on 40 additional gallons (119 total !!) and departed downhill on runway 10 with a high performance takeoff. Think about it - had I lost an engine on takeoff - I'd have only the same engine I have in the Warrior (160hp), but I would have 1800lbs of additional weight and more drag than the Warrior. In that condition - John and I would have landed in a field straight ahead. Not much different than single engine unless you don't have the training or tenacity to NOT try to fly on one engine when it won't.
- Landed at LNS - ate dinner - had john fly me home - flew myself back up to Delaware airport, and went home.
I'm having a good time...... Look for an update to my checkride notes.... hopefully successful.
fed
MAN
- did I have a good time on Saturday. I tried to fit in a GED
Pilots meeting in the morning, but it got started late and I had an
opportunity to fly
a Falcon Jet simulator that got moved to an earlier time. I bailed on
the meeting when
it was clear my 'make-it-fit' button wasn't up to the task, so I
departed IFR for KILG.
The instrument flight on the way to Wilmington was a bonus. I climbed into IMC at 700', and was in and out on the way to 3000', where I leveled off and set the autopilot. I changed my mind, and turned the autopilot OFF in IMC to fly those legs by hand. I'm in IMC and tooling up to Philly. Their weather is reporting 1800 overcast, so I may actually get an ILS for practice. If I break out before the final approach fix - I won't count it. I'd like to hear your comments as to what determines when you count an approach in actual. As it were, it was a moot point for today. Philly vectored me for the visual, and descended me in stages down to 2000'. The controller was busy, and told me to call the field in sight.
Before I could tell him I was still in IMC and had no chance of seeing the field, another guy called him VFR off of Summit airfield; looking to pick up an IFR clearance to GED. That guy wasn't getting there without an IFR clearance. Picking up a clearance in the air while VFR is something I do routinely, and even teach my students to do. Philly turned him down and told him that he departed VFR , so it was on him to maintain VFR. The only way he was getting other than VFR flight following was to land and use the phone. STUDENTS: remember this! If you attempt to pick up your clearance in VFR, you may not get it and must have a Plan B. I still suggest it is acceptable to pick up clearances in the air when it makes sense, but be ready for it not to work. It does not make sense when you have an overcast layer that significantly limits your options, and your destination has significant clouds as low as 700'.
I came back to Philly and told him I'd need lower (at this point I wondered how graceful I'd be in setting up an ILS I wasn't ready for; Philly clearly expected to get rid of me without a fuss). All the sudden Philly become matter of fact and got a bit more polite. He told me, "Let's see - you can descend down to 1600' at this point, 60Yankee, descend and maintain 1,600'; call the field". I was reading back his clearance when I started my descent, and before I finished my sentence I saw the field and told him so. He cleared me for the visual, and then totally forgot about switching me to the tower. I reminded him about 4 miles out, and then landed. Parking is available at ILG at the Terminal ramp for no fee up to 11pm. Thats quite handy, allowing me to walk over the Flight Safety - on a beautiful morning.
My buddie Rink (blue shirt) is the guy who really tuned up my instrument flying while helping me to prepare for my CFII ride in 2001 or so. He and his friend Jack are new to Jet Simulation Instruction, but are experienced pilots/instructors otherwise. They were here today to practice being instructors in these simulators. I envy them their jobs! Rink gave me about an hour of ground while we waited for a paying crew to finish. Then I got 90 minutes of 'air' time in the simulator while Rink and Jack had their way with me. I learned an awful lot, and had a wonderful time.
We did approach and departure stalls, steep turns, use of the Flight Management System; lost Engine #3 to a fire, which we (Rink) successfully extinguished; made an ILS that ended in a missed approach due to China Airways getting lost on my runway; and a complete ILS with a circle to land to a full stop at JFK. The entire flight felt like it lasted only 30 minutes instead of 90; I had a ball. I flew it by hand throughout.
The instrument flight on the way to Wilmington was a bonus. I climbed into IMC at 700', and was in and out on the way to 3000', where I leveled off and set the autopilot. I changed my mind, and turned the autopilot OFF in IMC to fly those legs by hand. I'm in IMC and tooling up to Philly. Their weather is reporting 1800 overcast, so I may actually get an ILS for practice. If I break out before the final approach fix - I won't count it. I'd like to hear your comments as to what determines when you count an approach in actual. As it were, it was a moot point for today. Philly vectored me for the visual, and descended me in stages down to 2000'. The controller was busy, and told me to call the field in sight.
Before I could tell him I was still in IMC and had no chance of seeing the field, another guy called him VFR off of Summit airfield; looking to pick up an IFR clearance to GED. That guy wasn't getting there without an IFR clearance. Picking up a clearance in the air while VFR is something I do routinely, and even teach my students to do. Philly turned him down and told him that he departed VFR , so it was on him to maintain VFR. The only way he was getting other than VFR flight following was to land and use the phone. STUDENTS: remember this! If you attempt to pick up your clearance in VFR, you may not get it and must have a Plan B. I still suggest it is acceptable to pick up clearances in the air when it makes sense, but be ready for it not to work. It does not make sense when you have an overcast layer that significantly limits your options, and your destination has significant clouds as low as 700'.
I came back to Philly and told him I'd need lower (at this point I wondered how graceful I'd be in setting up an ILS I wasn't ready for; Philly clearly expected to get rid of me without a fuss). All the sudden Philly become matter of fact and got a bit more polite. He told me, "Let's see - you can descend down to 1600' at this point, 60Yankee, descend and maintain 1,600'; call the field". I was reading back his clearance when I started my descent, and before I finished my sentence I saw the field and told him so. He cleared me for the visual, and then totally forgot about switching me to the tower. I reminded him about 4 miles out, and then landed. Parking is available at ILG at the Terminal ramp for no fee up to 11pm. Thats quite handy, allowing me to walk over the Flight Safety - on a beautiful morning.
My buddie Rink (blue shirt) is the guy who really tuned up my instrument flying while helping me to prepare for my CFII ride in 2001 or so. He and his friend Jack are new to Jet Simulation Instruction, but are experienced pilots/instructors otherwise. They were here today to practice being instructors in these simulators. I envy them their jobs! Rink gave me about an hour of ground while we waited for a paying crew to finish. Then I got 90 minutes of 'air' time in the simulator while Rink and Jack had their way with me. I learned an awful lot, and had a wonderful time.
We did approach and departure stalls, steep turns, use of the Flight Management System; lost Engine #3 to a fire, which we (Rink) successfully extinguished; made an ILS that ended in a missed approach due to China Airways getting lost on my runway; and a complete ILS with a circle to land to a full stop at JFK. The entire flight felt like it lasted only 30 minutes instead of 90; I had a ball. I flew it by hand throughout.