Sport Pilot Talk

MikeM · Joined: 17 Nov 2007 Posts: 44 Location: Bucyrus, Ohio

I need about 1 more hour of dual with my instructor to prep for my checkride. He called and said he was on his way back from getting the 100 hour check on the CT and he would meet me at the airport. I arrived before he did, so I spent the time going over the practical test prep book. He finally landed and we went up for some training. Unfortunately he had a ground school class at 5:00 so that only gave us about a half hour flying time. We did a few maneuvers then I landed and let him out. He told me to go and do some solo take-offs and landings if I wanted to. If I wanted to? Of course I did!

I lined up on the runway (we were using 04), gave it the gas, and took off. As I was climbing up to 1,000 AGL I noticed an aircraft approaching from the northwest. It looked like he was going to pass to the west of me and at a slightly higher altitude. I turned to the southwest to stay in the pattern, all the time keeping an eye on the other airplane. I announced my intentions on the airport frequency, 122.80. I didn't hear anything from the other airplane and it looked like he wasn't intending to enter the pattern. When I was on downwind I was twisting all around looking for the traffic and managed to lose about 200 feet, which didn't bother me at all since when I looked up through the skylight the other plane went right over me about 400 feet above me. The other airplane was a high-wing twin engine piston type. He was flying about 1200-1300 AGL and never said a peep as he over-flew the field.

After all that I still managed to make 5 decent take-offs and landings. When I landed and was putting the airplane in the hangar a pilot friend came out to help. When I told him about what had happened he told me the Ohio Department of Natural Resources uses planes like that for wildlife surveys although I have no proof that it was one of their planes.

I didn't get a chance to talk to my instructor about it since he was still teaching gound school. I'm supposed to go back tomorrow and finish up my dual time and I will talk to him about it then. So, did I do right staying in the pattern, stating my intentions on the radio or should I have done something else?

Jim Stewart · Joined: 12 Oct 2006 Posts: 43

It is disconcerting to deal with traffic that won't or can't communicate. The guy across from my hanger has 3 open-cockpit planes, presumably without radio and electrical systems and I never hear him. I've never seen him fly even a part of a standard pattern. The cropdusters that sneak in and out at 500' rarely talk. As my instructor says, they have the right to fly without a radio at an uncontrolled airport. Just keep your eyes open and fly the plane first.