Sport Pilot Talk

As I mentioned in my intro thread, I've wanted to learn to fly for a long, long time. My coworker and I decided that now was the time for us both to start on our path to a SPL.

We have both scheduled a Discovery Flight tomorrow at Glendale (AZ) Muni Airport (KGEU).

I've done a little research, watched a few dozen online ground school videos, etc. Took a bit of convincing to get the wife on board with this idea, but I think she's almost as excited as I am now!

I'll report back with a post-flight debrief tomorrow with my thoughts on my first flight--hope I can sleep tonight!

Best of luck!

What sort of plane are you going to go up for the discovery flight ?

Warmi wrote:What sort of plane are you going to go up for the discovery flight ?

SportCruiser

It's easy to get overwhelmed during an intro lesson, especially if you are the sort of person who's intent on understanding everything that's going on. So, just accept that you won't, relax, look around, and enjoy the ride. Concentrate on looking outside, and getting the feel of the aircraft. Ignore all the pretty knobs, lights, and gauges (there'll be plenty of time for them later), and most of all, have fun!

It will be great. Have fun.

Awesome, I'm sure you will have a blast!

Wow - i'm excited for you! Have fun on this journey!

Outstanding! I had my first flight a couple months ago in an Evektor.

As mentioned - TRY to avoid fixating on the dash when you're giventhe controls and look outside - it isn't as easy to do as you might think to keep from staring at all them gizmos..

Keep your phone handy so your instructor can snap a picture of you & wife in flight!

Congratulations on deciding to follow your dream!

Like Jim says, have a camera handy so your instructor can take a photo of you flying the SportCruiser on your intro flight. If you don't, years from now you'll regret not having a picture.

Kayelbe wrote:I'll report back with a post-flight debrief tomorrow with my thoughts on my first flight--hope I can sleep tonight!

So, how did it go? I hope you had a great experience.

It went pretty well!

Weather was about as beautiful as could be: about 55degF, no wind, no clouds really.

For those who are familiar with the Phoenix Metro Area:

We departed KGEU runway 1, headed NE over the west valley and across Phoenix. We entered the B airspace at KPHX near Piestewa Peak and turned south, crossing the East VFR transition over Sky Harbor.

Travelling south, we followed I-10 more or less until we passed South Mountain at which point we headed back west. We watched some glider action as we passed over the Estrella Sailport. I got to practice my traffic searching skills there! We turned back to the north while passing through the Rainbow Valley practice area and I think we skirted the edge of the Goodyear (KGYR) airspace as we descended back down to land on runway 1 at KGEU.

The flight was a little bumpier than I thought, and I'll admit I felt a little queasy towards the end. The CFI remarked that it was indeed rougher than normally expected, given the overall weather. I didn't take the stick much--he told me once we got past the Bravo he'd let me, but I guess I waited too long and didn't ask until we were nearly all the way back. Average altitude was about 4500MSL.

We talked quite a bit before and after the flight (and a little during) about what sort of plans I had (SPL vs PPL, etc).

Well, I completely forgot to take any pictures during, but I got a couple after we landed. Here's one:

Awesome!
You'll get used to being bounced around a bit.

Sounds like you enjoyed it!