My name is Update…Major Update

Ok, there hasn’t been much activity lately during the past month, as you might’ved noticed. I’ve just been busy with…stuff. And lost my energy to write. But now I’m back on track and I have lots to tell you.

One factor to the lack of updates was a ski trip in february, to Livigno, Italy. All and all a nice trip except for the fact that I managed to twist my left knee during the middle of the week. This was followed by a number of phone calls to my insurance company. Yikes! It went smoothly after all. I had to hop around on cruches for a couple a weeks or so but that was it. We flew from Landvetter to Innsbruck via Sturup. I have to tell you…the final approach to Innsbruck airport is just beautiful. The whole town rests in a mountain pass, and landing between (and below) the mountain peeks on each side was just breath taking! I have a couple of pictures and I’ll upload them as soon as I can.

At flight school the main focus have been meteorology. And it’s kind of heavy on you as well. It’s not very hard to understand but this subject is just huge. One has to learn the complex behaviour of weather phenomenons and how they are made from the beginning. Fun…but tough! ….want to get on with it….

Oh, and I’ve done the medical exam, without any fuss. Top shape, well…I paid 350SEK extra for a more detailed test to check my blood values and other things. Too high colesterol was the answer but nothing to worry about. And after waiting a couple of weeks, I actually received my students permit today so now I’m offically a pilot in training! Hooray for me! We’ve also started to have performance and flight planning lessons. They are tricky as it involves lots of calculations of weight and fuel and balance and all that crap you never care about when you’re just a normal passenger. But when you’re the pilot in command, things get real!

Failed the second progress test….but passed the real radio communications test last week. So I’m not bummed in any way. Nosireebob! Visited the local tower at Säve and met two of the traffic controllers there. They really have a nice view from up there…honest.

I think that’s all for now…will update if I might’ve forgotten something. Cheers for now!

Cash spent so far:

• Tuition and books: 9900 SEK / 1025 €
• Medical exam: 1600 SEK/ 170 €
• Peltor headset: 1000 SEK / 105 €
• Student permit: 1340 SEK / 141 €

Test completed!

Sunday morning consisted of a normal theory lesson. We learned how to use the flight computer to calculate, and convert, things like fuel consumption, drift, altitudes, temperatures and such. Really fun actually (and very very very useful). I haven’t done so much math in one day since high school. The good old grays got some good exercise!

And yes! We finally had the progress test this Sunday. I was actually surprised that it only consisted of 20 questions from all different areas. I imagined that it would be three or four parts with 20 questions each. The purpose of the test is (I’m guessing) to check your knowledge and get the chance to see what one needs to study more, but that will be hard with so few questions. Anyway, I think I only got one or two errors. I reckon it was one regarding trim rudders. Got an email from J-O and everything seems ok to start doing some actual flying! As soon as I get my student pilot license…which…is not anywhere near aqquired. Because today I finally got an appointment for my medical exam. 26th of march. So it’s at least another three weeks worth of waiting.

Some good news instead though, I bought a used (allthough brand new) headset. Peltor Aviation 8006 for 1000SEK (aprx €110). Which is a bargain if anything!

Test cancelled (briefly)

Went out to SPU last Sunday to write the first progress test. Everybody seemed a bit nervous. Haven’t you all studied? Me and Jonas arrived with five minutes to spare, only to receive the news that Kalle was ill, which meant that both the progress test and the afternoon lesson was cancelled. We thought it was some twisted joke at first but it turned out to be true. So…we’ve got an extra week to study! (thank you, thank you, thank you!)

Everybody decided to study a bit in the briefing room, allthough general aircraft conversations were more popular. Lasse, the mechanic, came in after half an hour or so and introduced himself to those he hadn’t met. He was going to change a vacuum-meter in one of the Cessna’s, can’t remember which one though. Lasse said that we could come with him to the hangar and check the planes out, he shouldn’t have said that. Everybody rushed out.

Jonas helped him out and after loosing a screw and looking for it for half an hour…mission complete. The weather was getting slightly better, BKN at 16 and wind at 14kt meant that Lasse could take it out for a short test flight with Jonas and some other student (sorry, I’m bad with names). We ended the day with Pizza back in Torslanda at San Remo’s. All in all, a very good day actually.

Took some photos with my cell phone…

Hey! Let me see!

What’s this thingy here?

Enthusiastic students

Lesson #4 VFR Phraseology

I haven’t updated in a week as you might’ve noticed. We didn’t have any lessons last week because of the winter break (sportlov) in all of Sweden. This meant self studies once again. I think I’m getting quite good in airplane general knowledge.

Anyway, today was our first lesson in VFR phraseology which I’ve dreaded for some time. It all had seemed as such a blur in the beginning but it got so very clear when we got past the basics of using frequencies and procedures, and started some practical training, simulating communication with the control tower. We learned most of the basics this time, requesting clearance to taxi…and such. Just need to really spend some time trying to understand the communication, rather than just memorizing phrases.

Below is the swedish ATC alphabet and here’s the english if you need to refresh your memory.

A = Adam B = Bertil
C = Cesar D = David
E = Erik F = Filip
G = Gustav H = Helge
I = Ivar J = Johan
K = Kalle L = Ludvig
M = Martin N = Niklas
O = Olof P = Petter
Q = Quintus   R = Rudolf
S = Sigurd T = Tore
U = Urban V = Viktor
W = Wilhelm X = Xerxes
Y = Yngve Z = Zäta
Å = Åke Ä = Ärlig
Ö = Östen

Note that ÅÄÖ is rarely used.

Over 500 visitors!

I’ve just checked the stats and I noticed that there are already over 500 unique visitors to this blog (524 to be exactly). This in only two and half weeks. 500 may not sound much with todays multi million sites like facebook for example, but picture shoving five hundred people into a room, and then hand them a piece of paper, forcing them all to read it.

Yupp…feels good. Thank you all for reading!

Weekend of sun and fog

The weather has become a central part of my life since I began my PPL training. I’m checking the metar all the time, hissing at the bad prognosis constantly (trust me, the Gothenburg weather is not very nice). Went out to AKG this saturday to do some studying on my own. The weather was great then (wow), sunny and not very windy. This meant of course that a lot of people took the chance to log some flight hours, with me still on the ground longing after air time. Really…I couldn’t have chosen a worse day to go the airport. I did meet Lukas, an old colleague that first got me in to flying.

Sunday gave us the normal weather back with the fog from hell and everybody was grounded which would’ve been better for self studies but as you might now, we have normal lessons on Sundays. We continued with more aircraft knowledge and aerodynamics during the day. Ivan took us out to the hangar and we got to check out all the different flaps and parts of an aircraft and how they might behave during certain circumstances. I missed quite a bit of this as my eyes (and ears) caught the attention of a starting turboprop, truly wonderful sound!

Read about a DVD in the forum at Flygfyren called “One Six Right: The Romance of Flying”. A documentary about “the local airport”, in this case: Van Nuys airport in southern California. 73 minutes of astonishing photography and beautiful aircraft. Check out the vids at their web site yourself if you don’t believe me! Too bad they decided to go for HD-DVD and not Blu-ray for that 1080p experience. The regular DVD goes for $19.95. Buy it! Now!

Students permit

I need a permit to officially become a student, and to be allowed access to the tarmac at Säve. This is quite complicated in the land of bureaucracy , also known as Sweden.

First of all, I’ll have to complete a medical examination, which costs a bit. Haven’t scheduled an appointment for this just yet. Then I need to file a background check of myself to the Swedish police which they in turn send to the civil aviation authority. Finally a birth certificate needs to be acquired from the tax office. Yes…they handle the national registration, scary! I can apply when this mother of all processes is completed!

Yaaay!

Here’s a pic of the airport. The blue dot marks the main terminal and the red dot is our HQ. (click for full size)

Current METAR ESGP

080950Z 21006KT 4100 OVC002 06/06 Q1031= <— crap!

Lesson #2 - Aircraft General Knowledge

Wednesday night, one three hour session of nice theory. And what couldn’t be better then some basic aircraft knowledge? I was surprised to see that only about half of the group had arrived. Isn’t there any interest or what? Oh well, it’s their loss! Bengt presented the layout of both a Cessna 172 and Piper PA28 and the differences between them. There aren’t many actually as long as you understand the pros and cons of each craft. Felt good reading about controls and engines, being a petrol head and all. I even noticed a Daimler-Benz 601 among the slides and felt a warm feeling running through me and…ah we’ll stop there. You have to be from another planet if you don’t know the DB 601.

We continued with the fuel and electrical systems which aren’t very complicated actually, the electrical that is, really…I expected more . Engine layout/components and fuel system is like in any engine. I didn’t know that these aircraft uses boxer engines (flat engine) though, even less that one of our Cessna’s has a H-layout…very cool!

Sittig here at Lindholmen now after lunch and watching the metar of ESGP: 071150Z 30008KT CAVOK 05/01 Q1026

Hate being stuck here during fine WX. *sigh*

Lesson #1 - Aerodynamics and Aerial Law & Operations

Alright! First lesson done! Six hours of brain pounding, but fun as hell! Jonas came by and picked me up at 8.30 and then fast off to Säve. We met up in the AKG briefing room and then headed to SPU together, as all lessons are held in their building. We started with the basic laws and physics around aerodynamics which was managed by Ivan Hedin. I experienced several “aha’s” during the three hours but never once did I eye the clock. Time litterally flew by! (See I made a flight pun). I wont get into details into the subject as you’re surely quite familiar with the concept aerodynamics and its contents. Very fascinating in several ways though!

We headed to the restaurant in the terminal for lunch at 12.00 which was much needed after the lack of breakfeast. Well, if you don’t count breakfeast as three glasses of water and a Panodil. (guess what I’ve been up to). The restaurant was quite nice actually. I’m guessing this will be our standard dining place from now on.

Back to the benches at 13.00 for the next session with Kalle Kritz. We’d been warned about Aerial Law & Operations that it would be THE most boring subject during the course. I can’t wait to get into the next subject if this is considered boring. I enjoyed it very much as Kalle is kind of a witty guy wherease everything was made fun. Tempo was a bit faster also which added up to many questions, all answered of course. We ended at 15.30 and called it the day.

We want more!

And so it begins

Yesterday was the official introduction. We, 17 of us I think, met up at 19.00 (7 p.m) in the “briefing room” for our first introduction to Aeroklubben (from now on known as AKG in this blog). It started out really nice with a traditional swedish “fika”. Everybody seemed to be in good spirit and, from what it looks like, we’ll all get a long just fine! Hasse (chairman) and Kalle (teacher) presented what the theory course is made up off, its content, tests and everything. Looks like I wont be having trouble to find good reading for some time. They also gave us short description of some practical things like the intranet and other procedures as well as presenting the organization itself and how it’s managed, all the basics…basically. As I said, the litterature is quite heavy, but it’s something I want to read nevertheless. The rest of the group eventually went out to take a look at the aircraft and hangar. I skipped it as I was in a hurry to get in to town for a beer (one has to prioritize), and that I’ve already spent some time with friends at AKG before.

I took some pictures with my cell phone but they’re just to dark and blurred to show anything of interest. I’ll put up a group picture that Peter (mofly responsible) took when, and if, I get permission to use it.

The first lesson is this Sunday at 09.00. I look forward to it!