Tag: PPL

  • Exploring Karlovy Vary from the Air: Flying to the Controlled Airspace

    Karlovy Vary is a stunning location, with its lakes and buildings appearing even more breathtaking from a bird’s eye view. As part of my private pilot training curriculum, I had the opportunity to fly to the CTR (control zone) today, and I was taken aback by the high workload. Although the flight was almost identical…

  • Exploring New Aerodromes: A Pilot’s Perspective on Grass Runways

    I enjoy exploring new aerodromes as they may appear similar, but each one has its unique characteristics. While I acknowledge that my experience as a pilot was still limited when I wrote this post, I believe this holds true for much more experienced pilots as well. I’ve already shared my thoughts about grass and concrete…

  • Grass or Concrete: Which is Better for Landing and Why It Matters

    Grass or Concrete: Which is Better for Landing and Why It Matters

    Which surface is better for landing? For some reason, I prefer concrete. While grass is softer and results in an easier and gentler touchdown, concrete is flatter and smoother. Moreover, taking off from a concrete runway is definitely better. However, I understand the importance of gaining experience on grass strips, particularly for bush pilot jobs.…

  • Leveling Up: Improving My Landings on a Grass Strip

    I had a lot of landings on the grass. In fact, I had REALLY a lot of landings on the grass. Today, I flew patterns on the aerodrome with a grass strip. During my flight today, I made many landings. The main takeaway is that I finally feel like I am in control of the…

  • New Instructor, New Experiences: Navigating Towards Successful Landings

    I have a new instructor again, and I’m hoping that he will stay with me until I pass my checkride. While it can be fun to fly with different people, I’ve noticed that there’s a lot of overlap between exercises, which means I end up flying more hours than necessary. While the experience is valuable…

  • Emergency Landings and Partial Panel Simulations

    This morning visibility was terrible. It was so bad that I almost lost hope of flying today, but in the afternoon, it improved, and the weather became flyable. Let’s go! Today we’re moving on to circuits, but sometimes the instructor sets the power to idle and says, “emergency landing.” He usually does this when I…

  • Taking Flight: Exploring the Different Approaches of Flight Instructors

    Today, I would like to share my personal opinion on flight instructors. When I started my PPL training, the training base was just established and did not have permanent staff, so I flew with different instructors. Firstly, I want to discuss some aspects that I knew in theory but did not always follow in practice,…

  • Weathering the Skies: A Welcome Change from Bumpy Rides

    When I used to fly short cross-countries, it was a bumpy ride. After takeoff, I would climb through a rollercoaster of turbulence, turn to the desired course, and try to maintain straight and level flight while constantly adjusting the trim and RPM. Suddenly, the VSI would show +5, so I would correct and trim, only…

  • Finding the Silver Lining: Perfect Weather for Practice Landings

    Today, the weather is gloomy with wet, cold, and misty precipitation. In fact, it even snowed yesterday! The heavy gray clouds create a dark and dull atmosphere. However, there is an advantage: there is absolutely no wind. The ceiling is higher than pattern altitude, making it the perfect weather for practicing landings. I am starting…

  • EASA PPL Written Exams Reflection: Areas for Improvement

    Today, I took a written test. Actually there were multiple exams covering nine subjects. I couldn’t help but remember my student years when I used to stay up all night before an exam, trying to fill every gap in my knowledge. Generally, I am a passionate learner, especially if I find the subject interesting. That’s…