UPT Week 11 (Novemeber 16-20, 2009)

Monday November 16, 2009 ( Day 48)
Had a busy day today - 1 instrument sim (I1001) where I flew using strictly instruments without any outside visual references, then an hour later flew a full real flying mission profile (C4102). It went well!

I did my first full spin series in the "high MOA" ranges 15,000ft - 22,000ft. Starting at the top of the area, I stall the aircraft THEN add full rudder to either left/right side, which the causes the aircraft out of control like a falling brick in the sky. We did 4 full rotations and its a very akward, and scary. But the recovery is quite simple: nothing! Literally. I neutralize the controls (aka don't pilot it one bit) and the plane will recover itself! Fannnntastic!

Plus I had 3/3 goooood landings! Which is great because I realllllly sucked last friday! So its a good feeling to recover! SCORE!

Spin Video: (NOT ME!! But I did exactly that! 4 rotations then recover).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaIt7ybwEe8

OCF = Out of Control Flight

1.3 hour flight (11.7 hours total T-6 flying time)
22 Total landings

Tuesday November 17, 2009 (Day49)
No fly

Wednesday November 18, 2009 (Day50)
1.3 hour flight - it went good. (C4103)

1.3 hour flight (13.0 hours total T-6 flying time)
27 Total landings

Thursday November 19, 2009 (Day51)
Went on a flight (C4104) and it went pretty damn good! It was with a new IP (actually my 2nd flight with him) but it was different because he is from "Check Flight" - also know as "Vulture Flight." They are ones that will fly with me and do the grading for my "check ride" - which are my big midterm exams. The Vulture is significant of bad - dead animals, with vultures flying above them. That is to represent that ugliness of those check rides.

Moving along, today was the first ride where I really flew mainly alllll by myself. Usually flights are filled with IP comments and snaps, telling you what you are messing up are what you are doing wrong. Today my IP didn't say anything up until we got all the way out to the alternate airfield (about 10 minutes away) and simply told me to "Pull closed and do a No-Flap" on my second landing. It was kinda eerie, and kind of nerve racking as well, but it was good to get that bold step of confidence to fly that plane on my own! YEE HAH!

Also, I had the great opportunity to fly in the clouds today!!!! I'm not gonna lie, I wasn't super excited to go up today - I had a blah morning, and was feeling like I just wanted the day over with. However, I got the boot kick out door, and they sent me up! After the alternate air field, I took off and was climbing up to 13,000ft to go to the "Low" MOAs to do some area maneuvers. At 6,000 ft there was a pretty big cloud layer that was covering southwest Texas (storm front is on its way over)! Since I had already established radar contact with the controlling agency, I was able to go right up through the clouds!!

From the ground looking up, they were just blah-looking overcast clouds doing nothing but blocking out the warm sunshine. However, once climbing up and breaking through them, it was yet again - heavenly. At 5,500 ft it was gloomy and overcast. At 6,000 ft I was fully submerged in the clouds. And at 6,500 ft I was in a different world! It was like entering a secret cloud city! Everything became very bright with majestic sunshine, super blue sky, and extravagantly white puffy clouds that were now below me and served as my new ground (since the real ground was no longer visible). And it was also crazy because beautiful sights like these simply can't be seen from the ground, its almost like I was dreaming! So my blah-day turned into another surreal experience of seeing our everyday world/earth in a totally different perspective, and became super happy I "got the boot out the door"and to go fly, for this is the kind of stuff that can really jump any blah-day!

When I was flying, strapped into the plane (and ejection seat) at 6 different points, control stick in my right hand, throttle being controlled with my left, with me being in complete control of this aircraft; FLYing this aircraft, and then looking outside to the left wing, and then outside to the right wing, and entering this unseen beauty was just soul-quenching-satisfying. No matter where I go in life or what becomes of my pilot-fate, I can say that:

"Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up the long delirious, burning blue,
I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew -
And, while with silent lifting mind I've trod
The high untresspassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand and touched the face of God."

Pilot Officer Gillespie Magee, RCAF, Killed 11 Dec 1941

New thought of mine - "You don't have to be an astronaut to be able to leave this world; Just find that secret cloud city!!!"

1.3 hour flight (14.3 hours total T-6 flying time)
31 Total landings


Friday November 20, 2009 (Day 52)
That weather front weather-canceled all the flights in the morning, so I just had another sim today. No big deal.