THE DAY IS HERE. 1st Sept 2009. CPL Flight Test. All the months of preparations have gone into making this day the real one.
At 10.30am all the relevant forms + Theory Exam KDRs + pilot log book are signed off. Flight route is given to me and a flight plan is filed. The Approved Testing Officer ATO gives me a English proficiency test and an oral test. All passed and ok. I must say I prepared this pasrt of the test well.
We take away packed cut sandwiches and water bottles and fire up VH-HAB, a CSU retractable single engine Piper.
I fly to the training area near Moorabbin YMMB and I am told by the ATO to do some general handling exercises to assess my flying skills. Firstly I do some steep turns (only 45 degrees, OMG what a luxury! Normally we do 60 degrees pulling 2G in my CPL training) and clean and dirty stalls. Of course HASELL check (Height, Airframe, Security, Engine, Location, Lookout) first. All good. No problem in this department.
At 10.30am all the relevant forms + Theory Exam KDRs + pilot log book are signed off. Flight route is given to me and a flight plan is filed. The Approved Testing Officer ATO gives me a English proficiency test and an oral test. All passed and ok. I must say I prepared this pasrt of the test well.
We take away packed cut sandwiches and water bottles and fire up VH-HAB, a CSU retractable single engine Piper.
I fly to the training area near Moorabbin YMMB and I am told by the ATO to do some general handling exercises to assess my flying skills. Firstly I do some steep turns (only 45 degrees, OMG what a luxury! Normally we do 60 degrees pulling 2G in my CPL training) and clean and dirty stalls. Of course HASELL check (Height, Airframe, Security, Engine, Location, Lookout) first. All good. No problem in this department.
This is the Nav Route for the day - see where I stray off the track and end up in Stawell rather than Ararat (follow the dotted line)
All general handling done we turn towards nearby Tooradin Aerodrome YTDN for touch and gos. Wind aloft is from 290 deg True at 15 Kts but at YTDN the sea breezes are dominant and we use Runway 22 after determining the windsocks direction.
The touch and gos get better and better, the first couple are not impressive due to the nerve playing tricks on me. Alas ATO is satisfied and we land to have our cut sandwich and a sip of water. He is talking to his mates at the aerodrome and I sneak up to my plane frantically checking on the next few sectors that I am to fly to, in the cockpit!
Then we set off on a long track along the coast for Torquey town in the west of Melbourne which is easy to find. I turn inland to track to Colac Aerodrome YOLA some 30 miles away. Somehow I am off track by a couple of miles, probably due to wind, and I sort it out using 1 in 60 rule. We find it. ATO wants me to touch and go with a straight in approach to Runway 27. There are a couple of aircraft doing circuits and low level approaches at the airfield but my straight in landing is easily done, no trouble to fit in to the circuit pattern. The wind is coming nice and straight on my nose. I take off and set course for Warrnambool Aerodrome YWBL which is more or less runway heading out of Colac.
About half way on my track to Warrnambool I am off course by 1 mile and tell ATO I am going to adjust my track. He tells me instead, to go overhead the town on my left which I tell him it's Cobden; and divert to Ararat YARA Aerodrome, some 60 miles away.
I complete my CLEAROF check (Compass/DG synchronized, Nav Log completed, Engine T's & P's, Altitude, Radio frequencies set, Orientation to way point, Fuel change) and set course...... to cut a long story short I should have used my WAC chart much much earlier but instead I am relying on my Visual Navigation Chart VNC chart. I stray off course by a big margin and drift to near Halls Gap with the fierce-some mountains. ... Shucks. It hurts. I re-direct to Stawell Aerodrome YSWL and from there find YARA. Not good! "This will come back to haunt me." I tell myself.
The touch and gos get better and better, the first couple are not impressive due to the nerve playing tricks on me. Alas ATO is satisfied and we land to have our cut sandwich and a sip of water. He is talking to his mates at the aerodrome and I sneak up to my plane frantically checking on the next few sectors that I am to fly to, in the cockpit!
Then we set off on a long track along the coast for Torquey town in the west of Melbourne which is easy to find. I turn inland to track to Colac Aerodrome YOLA some 30 miles away. Somehow I am off track by a couple of miles, probably due to wind, and I sort it out using 1 in 60 rule. We find it. ATO wants me to touch and go with a straight in approach to Runway 27. There are a couple of aircraft doing circuits and low level approaches at the airfield but my straight in landing is easily done, no trouble to fit in to the circuit pattern. The wind is coming nice and straight on my nose. I take off and set course for Warrnambool Aerodrome YWBL which is more or less runway heading out of Colac.
About half way on my track to Warrnambool I am off course by 1 mile and tell ATO I am going to adjust my track. He tells me instead, to go overhead the town on my left which I tell him it's Cobden; and divert to Ararat YARA Aerodrome, some 60 miles away.
I complete my CLEAROF check (Compass/DG synchronized, Nav Log completed, Engine T's & P's, Altitude, Radio frequencies set, Orientation to way point, Fuel change) and set course...... to cut a long story short I should have used my WAC chart much much earlier but instead I am relying on my Visual Navigation Chart VNC chart. I stray off course by a big margin and drift to near Halls Gap with the fierce-some mountains. ... Shucks. It hurts. I re-direct to Stawell Aerodrome YSWL and from there find YARA. Not good! "This will come back to haunt me." I tell myself.
My Nav Log for the day
Total distance traveled: 303 NM (560KM)
Total time: 4.0 VDO HRS including general handling, taxi, touch and go times.
This is first big mistake of The Day. Pilots say there is " no such thing as a perfect flight" and this is it! This is the dreadful moment. Hopefully my overall test performance is able to cover for this sin.
However I muster up my will power and power on to Ballarat Aerodrome YBLT when overhead YARA. This is easy enough and I land HAB on Runway 23 for a much deserved cup of tea and a leak.....
While the ATO is on the mobile phone and having his cup of tea I sneak out back on HAB and review the next legs. He comes back on and tells me to be careful of the air spaces coming up from YBLT back to Moorabbin. I assure him and tell him I will track to Baccus Marsh Aerodrome YBSS and track via the VFR flight corridor there to YMMB. He seems relaxed about that and I am relaxed, too. I know the area well and I am confident it will all be good.
On route from Ballarat to Baccus Marsh the track is out a little bit I see Beaufort is on my left whilst it should have been on my right. Nothing that cannot be corrected once you have a positive i.d. so on we go, back on my track to YBSS. From then on it is relaxing. Just a matter of switching on my "inner autopilot" (not HAB's autopilot which is unserviceable) and find Laverton airfield, Williamstown, Brighton, Moorabbin Oval and home to land on Runway 35 Left.
YMMB tells me I am "number 1" when I am downwind. Music to my ear, no other traffic to contend with. The airfield is all mine. I am on my home stretch. The wind now coming to wards me on final, no cross wind. Just me and HAB, finally making peace and kissing the ground of Runway 35 Left.......
I am home.......
I have made it.
I go through the "fire" and come out in one piece. It's been tough to want to persevere and achieve my dream primarily because I am a mature age student and except in the last 18 months this is just a hobby for me.
Now I can say that all the hard work of sitting for theory exams, clocking enough flight hours, battling mental blocks in my flying training especially night flying, instrument flying and navigation exercises; have now paid off. This is not a big deal for many professional pilots , I know, but this is a big deal for me.
I cannot help but when the ATO has taken my photo of me by HAB and walk back to the Club; to smile and even laugh to my self about my experience. I am ecstatic. It's like..... happiness; and a huge relief, if one understands what that feels like.....
At 4.45pm I come in to the Club for the ATO briefing. We finish up the paperwork and the ATO sign off on my application for CPL. That's it*
From the time I rise this morning at 6.15am and now 4.45pm it's been a long day but one that is worth remembering for a long time.....
And.... for good measure I have my copy of the theory exam results here. The KDRs that I submit during the earlier oral test is the key deficiency reports on those questions that I did not pass in the 2008 theory exams.
However I muster up my will power and power on to Ballarat Aerodrome YBLT when overhead YARA. This is easy enough and I land HAB on Runway 23 for a much deserved cup of tea and a leak.....
While the ATO is on the mobile phone and having his cup of tea I sneak out back on HAB and review the next legs. He comes back on and tells me to be careful of the air spaces coming up from YBLT back to Moorabbin. I assure him and tell him I will track to Baccus Marsh Aerodrome YBSS and track via the VFR flight corridor there to YMMB. He seems relaxed about that and I am relaxed, too. I know the area well and I am confident it will all be good.
On route from Ballarat to Baccus Marsh the track is out a little bit I see Beaufort is on my left whilst it should have been on my right. Nothing that cannot be corrected once you have a positive i.d. so on we go, back on my track to YBSS. From then on it is relaxing. Just a matter of switching on my "inner autopilot" (not HAB's autopilot which is unserviceable) and find Laverton airfield, Williamstown, Brighton, Moorabbin Oval and home to land on Runway 35 Left.
YMMB tells me I am "number 1" when I am downwind. Music to my ear, no other traffic to contend with. The airfield is all mine. I am on my home stretch. The wind now coming to wards me on final, no cross wind. Just me and HAB, finally making peace and kissing the ground of Runway 35 Left.......
I am home.......
I have made it.
I go through the "fire" and come out in one piece. It's been tough to want to persevere and achieve my dream primarily because I am a mature age student and except in the last 18 months this is just a hobby for me.
Now I can say that all the hard work of sitting for theory exams, clocking enough flight hours, battling mental blocks in my flying training especially night flying, instrument flying and navigation exercises; have now paid off. This is not a big deal for many professional pilots , I know, but this is a big deal for me.
I cannot help but when the ATO has taken my photo of me by HAB and walk back to the Club; to smile and even laugh to my self about my experience. I am ecstatic. It's like..... happiness; and a huge relief, if one understands what that feels like.....
At 4.45pm I come in to the Club for the ATO briefing. We finish up the paperwork and the ATO sign off on my application for CPL. That's it*
From the time I rise this morning at 6.15am and now 4.45pm it's been a long day but one that is worth remembering for a long time.....
And.... for good measure I have my copy of the theory exam results here. The KDRs that I submit during the earlier oral test is the key deficiency reports on those questions that I did not pass in the 2008 theory exams.
My Theory Exam Results. All exams were completed on 16 June 2008.
* In the end I have to do a supplementary diversion flight to completely erase my sin of not finding Ararat on the test day.
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