Long Wait!

     
     So I began summer jumping right into CFI flight training. Overall I have learned a lot going through CFI, instead of just having the knowledge you need to learn how to teach the knowledge you learned. The most time consuming part about CFI is developing lesson plans. You can easily find lesson plans on the internets but developing your own helps immensely. It gives you a chance to review all the knowledge you may have forgot since your last check ride. During training the hardest part for me was transitioning back into "the old faithful" Cessna 172; not only had it been over a year since I last flew an aircraft but almost 2 years since flying the 172. Flying from the left seat didn't really help either and it felt like I was learning to fly all over again. I was moving through training a lot slower then I really wanted to be but I knew once I was finished I would be a better pilot than I was before I started.
     Doing my training at a Part 141 school is a little different then flying at a Part 61 school, basically the course is split into three stages, basically at my school stage 1 & 2 are CFI and stage 3 is CFII and each stage has a check ride component attached. Once you complete all three stages you get your CFI and CFII certificate. After finishing Stage 2 and only having the final stage ahead of me was very exciting. Though, it had been slow through Stage 1 & 2 I knew Stage 3 would be easier for me. I was hoping that I could be finished in about three weeks, but alas it wasn't meant to about a day before I started stage 3 training I was riding my bicycle [I secretly want to be the next Greg Lemond] my front tire popped and I went over the handle bars. I ended up taking myself to the hospital and after a few x-rays I ended up having a broken collar bone.
     That incident happened back in August, I ended up going back home to stay with my family since I couldn't fly. I was basically out of commission for two and a half months, I restarted my flight training at the beginning of November from where I left off. Right now I am about a week away from my final check-ride, and in preparation I have a lot of studying to do. I am still guaranteed an interview when I finish, I just hope my school still has an instructor spot available when the time comes. 


Safe Flight.

My Status

     Well it has been over a year since the last time I posted here and overall it has been a roller coaster of a year. Highlights include traveling the world, graduating college, and learning more about flying in the past few months than I have in the last four years. Last time I checked in I was near the end of the of internship with Continental Airlines [now United], I would consider the internship one of the best experience of my life. If you are looking to becoming an airline pilot and have the opportunity to do an internship with an airline, there should be no hesitation. Not only will you gain valuable experience into the inner workings of an airline, but you will also meet  people who could be of help later in your career. Not to mention perks like free flights around the world and getting time in advance flight simulators. Since my last update I traveled to Frankfurt, Germany and Dublin, Ireland. Both trips were very short but the fact that I could fly to those places first class was amazing. 
     After returning back to school it was a pretty uneventful senior year. I decided that I was going to take a break from flying and just be a normal college student with 5 classes. In hind sight that was not one of my smartest decisions. All in all it was a year filled with classes, girls, parties, and adventures. The only flying related thing I accomplished during this past school year was completing CFI/II ground school in which I took the FOI, FIA, and FII written test. Graduation is exactly what you would expect it to be so no further information there. Big news at the beginning of summer was being excepted into the CFI Fast Track Program [less prestigious than it sounds]. Basically over the summer you were to complete CFI/II training when you finished you were guaranteed an interview for a flight instructor position. I wanted to become a CFI for many reasons, first and foremost was it was a job. Secondly, I would be getting paid to fly while building hours. Lastly, it would give me a chance to give back to aviation and maybe help a young pilot fulfill his/her aviation dream.  Ok that last part was really corny but what is cooler than talking all day about something you love.
     More to come I figure life is actually a little more interesting now that I have more aviation related things going on in my life.


Safe Flight.

Life as an Intern

Yea its been a while, but I have been busy with work and working on school work for the internship. I have to write a 10 page paper on what I have been doing during the internship and I am on page six and trying to figure out how to fill the next four pages. Life as an intern has been exciting two weeks ago we went to the Boeing wide-body factory in Everett, Washington. We had a VIP tour where we walked around the factory floor ducking around partially built planes. We also drove around the delivery ramp where we saw plane awaiting delivery. In fact we saw two Boeing 777 awaiting delivery to be used by Continental Airlines, though they would not let us take them back to Houston.
   Last week I got to walk around the airport putting new charts in the aircraft. It's really eire when you walk on to an empty aircraft early in the morning knowing that you could start it up and take a joy-ride. All we needed was someone to push the aircraft backwards.Though, this job was tough than it sounds because it was a lot of walking around from one side of the airport to the other side and back again but after that you would wait around for two hours before the next aircraft that needed a awitch landed. Toured Houston Tower and TRACON facility today, tower was awesome because you could see the entire airport from 350 ft. up. While we were at TRACON they made an aircraft "ident" so we could see what they see when we ident in the plane. Really was not what I expected kinda uneventful but funny cause we made some Continental crew ident for know reason.
  Well school starts in about three and a half weeks or so and I only have two and a half weeks more of this internship. My travel priveledges will last until the end of Spetember so hopefully I can get somewhere without missing to much school.


Safe Flight

Red Light District!

So this weekend I went to Europe for the first time, and where did I go in Europe but Amsterdam. Hoped on a plane friday afternoon and flew for 10 hours and landed in Scipol airport. I was on the ground for about 24 hours before it was time to head back. Amsterdam was really fun there were about as many bicycles as there were people in the city and roads had dedicated bicycle lanes with traffic lights and everything. Amsterdam is not as crazy as people think it is people aren't walking around every where high off their ass and not every window has a girl in lingerie looking out of. It is still crazy to see the coffee shops with the smell of canabis emitting from the shops and there are plenty around. Though, I am not going into detail about all that I did except for I saw Anne Franks house, Van Gough Museum was pretty interesting, and the Heineken tour was really fun.

All in All fun trip can't complain. this weekend maybe Chicago?

Safe Flight

As the Turbine Turns!

Life as an intern continues, I have just finished the training portion of the internship and starting tomorrow its back to a normal work schedule 0600- till whenever the boss leaves. Through training I got to spend 28 hours flying the 737-800 full flight simulator, learned how to operate the aircraft's flight management computer [FMC], and spent the past two days learning about ETOPs operations. The training was really exciting because it gave a first hand account on what I want to be doing the rest of my life, and this only makes me want to get there quicker.

So World Cup has been exciting not sad about USA not going very far but I really could care less about US soccer. I am glad its and all European final hopefully Germany vs. Netherlands would be a fun final, and hopefully I can be in Europe this weekend for the final. Also the Tour De France is on and its been a crazy one, though I am not disappointed by anything that has happened so far. I want Cadel Evans to win, or Shelck, and as long as Cavendish does not win the green jersey I would be happy.

Safe Flight

"TOGA, Flaps 15, Check Power..."

Right now I have reiderated to myself that flying airplanes is fun, and I know exactly what I want to be doing for the rest of my life. Since Monday I have been in training sessions in the full motion simulator or the 737-800. This is the best thing I have done in a long time and it is so much fun, and I personally think the larger the airplane gets the easier it is to fly. Flying a commercail jet I believe as for stick a rudder flying is a lot easier then flying light aircraft, because it is more stable maneuvering happens at a slower pace [ie you are not rolling as fast as you can in a light aircraft] so you can be more precise. The hard part about flying commercial jets are the "callouts," there are so many and the checklist are longer so that adds to what you have to know when flying.

The training has gone really well except for I am having trouble with the callouts, especially when stuff goes wrong like engine failure.  Once I get those down I think it will make things much easier.

As for the rest of my life well for now that is my life work is slow because the bosses want us to concentrate on are training and other then traveling I nothing much is going on. I here some airlines are hiring pilots which is a good sign I just wish I had enough hours to apply for them but hopefully this means in the next few yeas more airlines begin hiring again.

As for traveling I went to Toronto which was fun first time to Canada saw some stuff walked around. For this week as of now Chicago looks open so I may go there this weekend. Chicago has been on my list since the start so hopefully I get to go I really want authentic deep dish pizza [Uno's can't wait]. I will keep this posted with new stuff

Safe Flight

Flight Training....and Traveling

I am currently on a plane right now Flying from Houston to Toronto, Ontario. Don't worry I am not flying I am a passenger on this flight. I decided to go to Toronto last night at about 6 or so I really don't know what I am going to do but I will figure things out. I also went to Cleveland to have dinner with my friend a couple days and the week before that I went to Seattle. I also got first class tickets for Seattle and that was nice it was my first time flying first class so I enjoyed that trip. 


This past Monday I started the training process of the internship. We learned how to use Flight management computers [FMC] and the last couple of days we have been in a a flight training device and those are real fun especially the newer one cause we could see stuff. It was really awesome being in it cause it was actually like flying. Monday we will be in the full flight simulator and I am excited out of my mind, because this is as close as you can get to flying the real thing. I hope I do well I have been studying even though a lot of the other interns are unsure of if they are grading us or not. We have heard that when and if we apply later for a real job they will be reviewing are training results from the internship. Other than that I have not been really busy this week since our bosses want us to concentrate on training though as I am writing this I have just remembered that I have to go to work on Monday...


So thats been my life lately maybe I will see someone at an airport the benefits of working for an airline are great 5 round trip tickets in four weeks is not bad some think thats to much but I like being in the air. Oh and guess what I am sleeping in the airport now after an interesting day in Toronto and I have found internet so i post this now.


Safe Flight