Q and A

As mentioned in my last post, I said I would be fielding some questions that anyone had in today's post. Without further ado, here they are...

--What are COMM and NAV radios? VOR receivers? What does all that mean...

COMM is short for COMMunication - COMM radios are what we use to talk to air traffic control, or on "walkie talkie" sort of communication frequencies called UNICOM at airports without control towers.

NAV is short for NAVigation - NAV radios are tuned to certain frequencies of navigation aids, like VOR's. These frequencies are typically used by pilots who fly on instruments only, but they are also helpful for private pilots as well.

VOR stands for Very high frequency Omnidirectional Radio range - they are stations located all over the world and are used by tuning the NAV radio to their corresponding frequencies. To use a VOR for navigation, first tune to it's frequency and then turn the receiver to the radial that it corresponds with. It's pretty hard to explain on here just in writing so if anyone's interested in actually finding out more about how it's done, just click on this link HERE

--What kind of planes can you fly with your license?

Well...even though I don't have my license quite yet (5 hours to go...), I am currently limited to piston single-engine planes that weigh less than 12,500 lbs. In addition, I can only operate planes with fixed propellers, an engine less than 200 hp, but I can also technically carry as many people as I want in my plane.

--How high can your Cessna 172 go?

As far as I know, the "ceiling" in the C172R that I rent is 13,500 ft, while the ceiling in the C172SP that I also occasionally rent is 14,000 ft - if anyone finds anything different please let me know. This is convenient because if you're in a C172 above 12,500 ft for more than 30 minutes, than the crew needs supplemental oxygen on board. Also, if you're above 14,000 ft for any duration, it's mandatory that the crew have supplemental oxygen. Thankfully, I don't plan on going above 12.5 or 14 any time soon so I won't have to drop any more $$$ than I already spend on flying as it is, which leads me to the next question...

--How much does it cost to get a private pilots license?

To answer simply? A lot... The flight school that I fly out of has a price which I think is pretty standard for most flight schools around the country - it's in the neighborhood of $6-7 thousand, depending on the type of plane that you rent. For example, I could have rented a smaller, two-seat Cessna 152 for about $30 less per hour, but it would have been incredibly cramped with an instructor next to me. Also, a good amount of our weight would be taken up with human weight instead of fuel, which would severely limit our time actually up in the air. 

One must keep in mind that the $6-7 thousand figure is usually for the minimum 40 hours required by the FAA. For example, those that don't grasp flying right away may take up to 60, 70 or more hours to become fully licensed and will be paying for those extra 20 or 30 hours as a result. So not only can staying on top of your training can help you get your license quicker, but it can also save you some serious $$$ too.

 --How far along are you in your training?

As of today, I currently have: 35.3 hours, 96 day landings, 11 night landings, and 7.3 hours solo. The FAA has certain minimums set, which I will outline below, for obtaining the 40 minimum hours. I will also include the number of hours I have for each category. 

• 20 hours of flight training with an instructor which includes
• 3 hours at night (I have 3.2)
• One night cross-country with total distance of 100 miles flown (Done)
• 10 takeoffs/landings (11)
• 3 hours of cross-country time (flight to an airport of more than 50 miles away) (5.4)
• 3 hours of simulated instrument time (more on this in a later post) (3.0)
• 3 hours of training within 60 days of taking the practical (in-flight) test (N/A)
• 10 hours solo (7.3)
• 5 hours of solo cross country (Only part I haven't accomplished yet, despite being signed off for solo cross-country flights)
• One solo cross-country over 150 miles in length with 3 stops along the way (Nope)
• 3 takeoffs/landings to a full stop at an airport with a control tower (3)

As you can hopefully see here, I really only have to accomplish the 5 hours of solo cross-country time before I'm able to be signed off for my practical test. I tried to get those hours out of the way during winter break before coming back to school, but unfortunately lost about two weeks worth of time due to some awful Chicago weather and scheduling issues. 

--Do you take a parachute when you go up with you?

Nope - and frankly, I don't expect to take one up with me for as long as I fly. I have faith in the planes that I fly and I know that if anything is to happen to my single engine that my plane is actually a decent glider as well. Trusting in your plane is key, because who else is a pilot supposed to trust besides himself when he's up hundreds or thousands of feet in the air?

--Do you need 20/20 vision to fly?

No you do not! FAA medical certificates only specify that your vision be 20/20 correctable for distant vision, and 20/40 or better (with or without correction) for near and intermediate vision. Color blindness is also a factor, as the FAA states that pilots must be able "to perceive those colors necessary for safe performance of airmen duties."

--What has been the hardest part of training so far?

While I haven't gotten too much into it yet, I know that the hardest part will definitely be prepping for my practical test. I need to know the electrical, fuel, engine, and avionics (instrument) systems for the C172 like the back of my hand, in addition to knowing everything else not having to do with the plane like airspace regulations, weather, minimum weather requirements, communications, etc. or else I will fail my test and have to take it again - costing some serious $$$ and putting a "black mark" of sorts on my instructor's record.

--Dream plane and place to fly in to?

My dream plane would either have to be the Cessna 206 Skywagon or the Pilatus PC-12. The Skywagon is the newer, bigger brother of the C172 - able to carry twice the amount of passengers in addition to an engine that's twice as powerful. The Pilatus is also a single-engine plane as well, with incredible performance characteristics that all pilots would surely love - incredibly reliable, powerful engine, ability to get in and out of small runways, and great payload capabilities.

Both cost a pretty penny, so I guess I should start saving now...right?

C206 Skywagon

Pilatus PC-12

As far as a dream place to fly in to, I have long dreamed of flying into Chicago Midway (MDW), which I was able to accomplish (more on that in another post). I wouldn't necessarily say that I have a dream place to fly to, but I do have dream places that I'd like to fly over/around: my house/neighborhood, along the Chicago lakefront, along the dunes in Southwest Michigan, down the Hudson river corridor to NYC, over my college campus - the list goes on.

--What have your parents thought about the process? Are they nervous?

They have been very supportive! Not financially, however - that burden falls on me. I have talked about it with my mom before and she says that she's nervous sometimes, but that the more she thinks about it the more nervous it makes her, which I totally understand. I feel like my dad has the same sort of feeling, but I just haven't gotten it out of him yet.


Hope these questions helped you understand the nature of my training and flying as a whole better than you did before! My next post will be on what it's like flying only on instruments without being able to see out the windows - better known as flying "under the hood."