First solos suck

[Doozer]

My first solo was in military flight training, & I was pretty apprehensive, to say the least.

I don't remember having any fun--just being immensely relieved when I landed back at home field.

I was worried I'd forget some aspect of our course rules--how we exited & entered the airspace surrounding home field, which has more traffic than Chicago O'Hare.

I was worried something would happen to the airplane that I couldn't handle.

I was worried that I'd get lost.

I was so worried that I couldn't figure out why the airplane wouldn't go any faster than about 120 KIAS, when I was used to seeing about 150 - 160. Then I realized that I had forgotten to retract the landing gear...

I raised the gear & accelerated to 'normal' speed & began worrying about what else I might have forgotten.

Yeah, my first solo was pretty much miserable.

How far I've come...

 

[tarp]

Re: Re: First solos suck

Just curious, who's fault was this?

I'm sorry I just can't resist...........


I believe it was the asphalt's!


[drumroll] Thanks for the great straightline, Falcon Capt.

Congrats flightgeek on getting back on the horse. I have seen some pretty ugly first solos including two that bent metal. The first was tragic in that I think one of the prettiest C-152's I ever flew was turned into scrap metal by a student who shouldn't have ever soloed and an instructor who shouldn't have ever signed this guy off (two doctors - one medical, the student and one PHD, the instructor). The winds were too gusty that day as I was sitting in the runup pad, listening on CTAF to the conversation between student and instructor. Basically, the student gave up because he didn't have the skills to cope with the gusts. He kept his speed up on short final which probably saved his life, but just drove the nose of the airplane into the runway (I mean no flair whatsoever). The airplane hit prop which just shattered and nose wheel which just collapsed (all this right in front of my windscreen) and the momentum carried the plane up and over on its back, crushing the tail. It took me 3 minutes to shut down, secure my brakes and get out of the Cherokee to race over and release the student from his upside down position. Officially diagnosed with a sprained hand and shoulder but no other injuries which I was thankful for. I was so glad that guy asked for his money back to get out of our little flying club.

The second that bent metal was unfortunately my student. He ran hot and cold on our sessions. One day he was Superman, the next he was Beetle Bailey. I thought I had beaten all the ups and downs out of him, but he managed to fool me by stringing three good sessions together and a great pre-solo practice. But when I stepped out of the plane, Private Bailey returned and he also just gave up on his third landing. It was funny because all that was required was just a little rudder (steering) after the touchdown - I think he just went into car transferrence, because the plane landed perfectly square and under control and then just slowly drifted off the runway, through the grass and onto the parallel taxiway where it finally stopped - while I am yelling at the top of my lungs into my handheld and trying to run at breakneck speed to the airplane (PS. a 5000ft runway means you are running a mile to catch up to the airplane, not recommended!) The plane caught a runway edge light and flipped the lense into the elevator or the plane would have been perfectly unscathed. My student also gave up flying shortly after that and I always blame myself for not reading him carefully enough. He was a pretty busy self-employed type who was basically a perfectionist in all he did. He couldn't face the fact that he had actually bent an airplane and messed up - I should have paid a lot more attention to his life outside of flying and basically should have asked point blank was this a "good" day at work or not.

 

[Ryan]

I will never forget the icy cold feeling of terror that was in my stomach as I accelerated down the runway for my first solo. I actually said aloud to myself "what the hell am I doing?"

I will also never forget the calm that came over me the moment I left the runway and my hours of instruction all came back to me. And then I said aloud "oh yeah, I can do this!"

And even though my solo was completely "uneventful", like the rest of you I will never forget that day.

I owe 100% of that to my great instructor.

Ryan

 

[Flying Illini]

I still remember that day. I was grinning like an idiot from the time I picked up the plane from dispatch, through 3 landings, till I shut down and walked back into my instructors office. I may have had that stupid grin on my face the rest of the day, I'm not sure! I do know that I did some singing as I lifted off alone for the first time, you know, that nervous type of singing!

 

[hydroflyer]

I was really fortunate in that I had a great instructor and also had been in an introductory flight program at our school that took care of ground school and gave me some flight time. As a result I had more time than usual (I think, don't really know what is "average"), and I had the luck of a really nice March evening, probably within 2 hours of sunset, literally no wind and an empty pattern, which is really rare. I too was nervous but was also really excited when I made that first turn to crosswind and saw how well that 152 climbed without the instructor. The first landing was amazingly good (most likely due to the fact that there were almost no distractions) and the second wasn't bad either. Our school only allowed 2 landings on the first solo because statistics have shown that if there is to be a problem on the first solo, it will be on the 3rd landing. Now to prove that I am a true pilot, my first flight and landing after I got my private and took my sister up was one to forget. Busy pattern, too much speed and trying to make a turn off made for an interesting tire squealing and smoking landing/runway exit, right in front of one of the instructors no less.
Some interesting things I've seen my students do on their first solos include: performing a forward slip on their very first approach (I think I mumbled to myself "You ballsy son-of-a-b!t@h"). I also had a student forced into a go around on his first solo when someone pulled out in front of him while on short final.

 

[laker inbound]

My first solo went pretty good. Four landings, the last of which was pure textbook. It wasn't until I was in the car driving home that it finally dawned on me -- that noise I heard on one of my trips around the pattern (turning base) was the stall horn. To this day it kind of gives me the creeps every time

 

[U-I pilot]

uneventful here too....3 full stop taxi backs with thumbs up each time from the instructor with a reciever on the tarmac....one planned go around for practice....lucky there were no jets on the paralell which usually happens at PTK.

that noise I heard on one of my trips around the pattern (turning base) was the stall horn. To this day it kind of gives me the creeps every time

Man...that would give anyone the creeps.... i swear i was almost staring at the airspeed indicator to prevent a stall....

 

[trybysky]

tower humor

Let's just say I gave the tower a good laugh. I think they need it every once in a while, that's the only reason I bounced my way down the runway....really

 

[flipflyr]

MY first solo at SNA was pretty uneventful, BUT...

When my instructor and I were practicing before my solo, we saw something that will stay with me for the rest of my life...

I'm sure some of you who fly out of SNA know that there's that Taxiway that everyone holds short of 19L on, just west of the terminal. Well, we were #3 for departure on 19L, facing North, when a TWA 757 goes to turn into the terminal and powers up "just a little bit" (to him). Well, in any case, we saw the airplane #1 for departure get lifted off all 3 of its gear (it's a C-152), ONTO its left WINGTIP -- we thought it would flip over! The 2nd airplane started shaking, then our plane started shaking too (mind you it takes a LOT of thrust to move a 757!). Well, we ended up moving up and facing westbound and adding thrust to "counter" the thrust/wind that the 757 created. It worked. The plane that was on its left wingtip ended up falling back onto its landing gear all at the same time.

So tower controller asks the C-152 if she's OK. Turns out she's on her FIRST SOLO! She sounded a little shaken, but she asked to go to back to her FBO to go check it out. Pretty good decision...

Hope I conveyed in words what I saw in real life... Pretty amazing if you ask me.

 

[jumppilot]

I knew the day was coming, but I honestly don't remember much about my first solo, I guess I was just very nervious.

Although I do remember on, distinct feeling about the first solo...."Holy shít, I gotta land this thing".....Priceless feeling.