Second Flight, First Real Lesson

Today was my first real full lesson and I scheduled a 2 hour block of time with my flight instructor. I'm continuing my training with Theresa and she is now my official instructor. This was also my first official plane rental which took at little extra time...but now I'm in the system it will be painless from now on, especially now that I have access to the online scheduling system for renting planes and instruction times. Before we checked out our C-150, Theresa showed me how to review the maintenance logs to see if there were potential problems with the plane that would make if unsuitable for training flights...we're all good.

Restricted airspace around PDX.

Pre-flight Briefing
We reviewed the navigation map and discussed today's flight plan. Being as close as we are to Portland International Airport (PDX), flight is very restricted. It's all about altitude. On the map to the right you can see 2 concentric circles; the inner circle belongs to PDX from the surface up to 4,000 ft. The little pie shaped wedge in the NW quadrant is the airspace exception for Pearson (VUO) up to 1,100 ft. PDX owns the outer NW quadrant from 1,800 ft to 4,000 ft. Outside the circle is unrestricted air space. Theresa uses Vancouver Lake and a distinct pair of  lakes as markers for elevation restrictions on NW departures and approaches. We talked a bit about the pre-flight walk around we would perform to ready the plane for flight. Mostly to advise me that the check list provided for the walk around is not well organized and Theresa suggested I create my own version of the check list to make it more efficient and better suited to my own personal quirks.

Today's Cessna 150.

Walk Around
We headed out to the tarmac to inspect our aircraft. Normally, a walk-around will take around 15 minutes, today was my first, so it took about 45 minutes to complete the walk-around this time. We use a little half-sheet sized check sheet to guide us around the eight general check points.

The cabin well.

First stop is the cabin. After stashing our stuff behind the seats, we begin our inspection. We're checking to see if the seat rails are clear and there is nothing loose rolling around on the floor of the cabin that might interfere (we found an empty coffee cup). Same check of the pedal area. Turned on the Master Switch and checked that the gauges were working and lowered the flaps all the way. Turned on all of the navigation lights and walked around the entire aircraft, making sure they were all working properly.

The rudder actuator.

Second check point is the tail or empennage (is that French for ass-end?). As we walk towards the tail we're looking for popped rivets or lose screws on inspection panels. After untying the tail tie-down, we inspect the control surfaces, by simply grabbing hold a moving them through their full range of motion. We are looking for any binding or other interference with smooth movement. We check the connections and actuators to see if everything is bolted and secured.

Spill test. Note water puddled in the
middle...not what you want to see.

Third and fourth inspection points are the trailing edge and leading edge of the right wing. After disconnecting the tail tie-down, we inspect the right flap by making sure it is locked in place and don't move in the direction of airflow when you push on it. We also inspected all of the connection points, piano hinges in this case, and the actuator to see if was binding.  Next is the aileron, same connection checks as the flaps, but this time also inspecting the full range of motion (grabbing and moving by hand). We inspected the wingtip light fixture. Moving around to the lead edge, looking for fresh damage.We used a special cup and drained a small amount fuel from the bottom of the wing tank to see if it was contaminated in any way.

Very simple dipstick for checking
fuel quantity.

The aviation fuel is tinted blue, if other fuel types are mixed it changes to clear. Water being heavier than aviation fuel, you would see a layer of water under the layer of fuel. Theresa added some water so I could see how it's not supposed to look. Another option is to drain some fuel onto the tarmack and check for water in the fuel that way. We checked the amount of fuel in the wing tank, as we need to make sure we over 1/2 full before flying. The right wheel assembly wraps up this inspection point. Tire wear and pressure, brake pads, rotor and finally the bolt holding the wheel on.

The engine...well the back of it.
Mostly avionics leads and the
battery and oil cap/dipstick.

Fifth inspection point is the nose. Popping open a tiny little hood panel on the engine, we check oil and drain the fuel strainer...plus lots of looking around for loose leads and wires. After checking the engine cowling, we "petted" the propeller, as Theresa likes to put it. Inspecting the leading edge for nicks or cracks by rubbing the palm of the hand along the length of it (its all covered in bugs too, ew!), then rubbing the palm of the hand along the back side of the blade, looking for the same. Inspecting the spinner (the cone that covers the prop mount) for secure connections and the air filter for debris. Finishing with the nose wheel: tire wear, tire pressure and checking the shimmy suppressor - a device that stops the front wheel from performing like a busted shopping cart.

Final inspection points are the left wing leading, trailing edges. Essentially the same as the right wing inspection with the addition of checking the air speed indicator pitot, the stall warning (a whistle that blows when air is moving the wrong way over the wing), and the fuel vent opening.

Flight Number 2
We climbed in and ran through the pre-flight and start check lists which I'll detail in future posts. After checking the wind sock to see which runway to use it was time to start driving. I taxied to runway 8, which was kinda hard. The steering is all feet and so are the brakes, it is not easy to get used to, that's for sure. I even rode one wheel into the grass on my way. Theresa says it only takes a few times to get used to it...I hope that's true.

Stopping in the staging area, we performed the Run-Up and Pre-Takeoff check lists. I taxied onto the runway and realized Theresa was going to let me take-off. Oh boy. Afterwards I can see why...take-off is really easy. No hands even. Just steering with the rudder pedals and a slight pull back on the yoke when it gets to 50 mph or so. The trim setting just lifts the aircraft gently at the correct angle.

Our flight took us out towards Scappoose again and I was at the controls almost the entire time. Theresa ran me through some Pitch, Power and Trim exercises. We buzzed the air field at Woodland and I practiced a few rudder assisted turns, but as our inspection was so long this time, we were soon headed back to the barn.

Theresa has been getting me familiarized with all the landmark references that pilots use for visual navigation all the time we've been flying. To approach runway 8, I simply followed railroad tracks right to the runway...nice and easy. Theresa walked me through the approach and I was hands on all the way in until we were just about to land, then she was in control and landed the aircraft. I would guess that during the entire ~50 minute flight, Theresa had the controls for barely more than a minute - I was in control the rest of the time; that's why there aren't any pictures after the walk-around - I was too busy flying!

Afterwards I purchased my own C150 Aircraft Check List ($8.00) and current aeronautical map ($9.75). Now I can practice some of this stuff on my home simulator.

Hours of flight logged this lesson: 0.8 Dual Received (DR)
Cost of this flight lesson, checklist and map: $158.22