Taking Small Steps Towards the Dream: Studying Principles of Flight

When you have a goal, it’s better to take small steps towards it regularly, ideally every day.

As you may already know, my goal is to become a pilot. Currently, I have a private pilot license, but I don’t have the opportunity to fly due to my day job, but I am using my free time to study the EASA ATPL subjects.

Currently, I am focusing on Principles of Flight. This subject requires both critical thinking and memorization. I must admit that I struggle a bit with subjects that involve extensive memorization, so I decided to tackle them before moving on to subjects that require more calculations, which I enjoy some more.

In my personal ranking of the most challenging subjects, Air Law, Operational Procedures, and Meteorology top the list, with Principles of Flight following closely behind.

To evaluate my progress, I use question banks. When I start a new subject, my results are around 60-70%. I read the books, take tests, and review all the wrong answers using the books. Soon enough, my results improve to 90% and above, and when it happens consistently, it’s time to switch to the next subject.

I must admit that I am progressing slower than I initially planned. My original goal was to take the exams this summer, but currently, I feel confident in only four out of the fourteen subjects. However, I believe it’s not too bad considering that some subjects are relatively easy, such as VFR/IFR Communications. Nonetheless, it’s still behind my initial schedule.

On the bright side, I am still working full-time, I hold a valid FAA IR with flight experience in the US, and I have a total of 150 flight hours. I am also prepared for the FAA CPL written test.

Making progress can still be challenging. I’ve heard that the EASA ATPL theory is the most difficult part of the EASA Commercial Pilot study path, and I tend to agree with that statement. Nevertheless, my motivation remains strong, and I have always excelled in subjects I find interesting. Though progress may be slow, it is still progress, and it is absolutely worth it. The reward of achieving my goal will be one of the most exciting moments in my life!


Posted

in

by

Tags:

Comments

Leave a Reply

Specify Instagram App ID and Instagram App Secret in the Super Socializer > Social Login section in the admin panel for Instagram Login to work

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Enter your email for getting notifications about new posts
Loading

airports approaches ATC ATPL BE76 C150/C152 C172 Canada check checkride complex CPL cross-country EASA endorsement Europe exam FAA FAA/EASA FI flight time Icaro IFR IR Italy landings logbook malfunction maneuvers ME medical mood navigation night paperwork plans PPL rating study resources tailwheel TCCA theory thoughts USA weather

Milestones

04/09/2017: My First Flight
04/25/2017: EASA PPL written exam (6 exams passed)
05/21/2017: Radio Operator Certificate (Europe VFR)
05/22/2017: EASA PPL written exam (all passed)
05/26/2017: The First Solo!
05/28/2017: Solo cross-country >270 km
05/31/2017: EASA PPL check-ride
07/22/2017: EASA IFR English
08/03/2017: 100 hours TT
12/04/2017: The first IFR flight
12/28/2017: FAA IR written
02/16/2018: FAA IR check-ride
05/28/2018: FAA Tailwheel endorsement
06/04/2018: FAA CPL long cross-country
06/07/2018: FAA CPL written
07/16/2018: FAA CPL check-ride
07/28/2018: FAA CPL ME rating
08/03/2018: FAA HP endorsement
06/03/2019: EASA ATPL theory (6/14)
07/03/2019: EASA ATPL theory (11/14)
07/15/2019: FAA IR IPC
07/18/2019: FAA CPL SES rating
08/07/2019: EASA ATPL theory (done)
10/10/2019: EASA NVFR
10/13/2019: EASA IR/PBN SE
11/19/2019: Solo XC > 540 km
12/06/2019: EASA CPL
12/10/2019: EASA AMEL
02/20/2020: Cessna 210 endorsement
08/30/2021: FAVT validation
05/27/2022: TCCA CPL/IR written
05/31/2022: Radio Operator Certificate Canada