Extending new pilot comfort zone?

On Fri, 07 Jan 2011 07:19:44 -0800, tstock wrote:

Hi everyone, I've been reading "Advanced Soaring Made Easy" by Bernard
Eckey, and this is a fantastic book for a new pilot. It does discuss
learning to get out of the comfort zone of flying safely within glide
range of the airport. This is something I am just venturing into myself
and I was curious how some of you went about this when you were
learning?

In the UK we require pilots to complete the bronze badge and the Bronze
Cross Country Endorsement before going xc.

Bronze: 50 solos including at least two 30 minute soaring flights plus
flying and written tests.

XC endorsement: involves a 1 hour and a 2 hour soaring flight and spot
landings on an unfamiliar part of the airfield. In addition there are
three items that are usually flown in a motor glider: field selection,
field landing practise and a navigation exercise.

At my club we are also encouraged to do the Silver C height gain and 5
hour duration legs as part of getting the Bronze. As a result, once a
pilot has the Bronze XC Endorsement they are ready to do the Silver C
distance leg as their first solo xc flight. This is briefed and
authorised by an instructor, so the conditions should be suitable.

In my case I did the C height as part of the Bronze, followed by the
field selection. field landing and navigation exercises. Then, I did the
5 hours during a Regionals, launching after the pack and landing after
they were all back. I also was taken xc in our club's Grob Acro on one of
the tasks (Mike Young was P1 and won the day on handicap) and was P2 in a
Duo for two other tasks, both land-outs. I was also on the Grob's
retrieval crew: its usual for the Grob to be entered in the Gransden
Regionals to give near-xc pilots a first taste of xc flying. In return
they are expected to be part of the Grob retrieval crew. Its very good
experience and lots of fun.

The day after the Regionals was a great, though blue, soaring day. I took
an SZD Junior to Rattlesden (68 km) off the winch and landed there after
a mere 3.5 hours to get my Silver C. I carried an EW logger and GPS to
feed it, but did the navigation with a paper 1:500,000 map.

We like people to fly away from Gransden Lodge and land at a target
airfield when they do Silver distance on the grounds that landing at a
strange airfield is good practise for future field landings.


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martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. | Essex, UK
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