Check and Solo

I had my final instrument checkride on Monday. It was fairly straightforward and everything went well. We flew down to the Valley for some McAlister's. I flew a circling approach, vectors to an ILS, and a VOR procedure turn. We finished up with vectors to an ILS back at the homefield. That's a weight off the shoulders!

Yesterday's airnav solo went alright as well. I didn't get to go out and back, because my CP wasn't flying the same sortie. He was already syllabus complete, so I just flew a big circle up to San Antonio, over to Houston and back down the coast for vectors to an ILS final for a full stop. Still, it was a solo with 2.2 hours of PIC (Pilot-in-command) time!

I'm flying an airnav solo today as CP. Should be fun.

The View from the Right Seat

Yesterday I flew my right seat rides. All the Air Force students get two extra right seat rides in preparation for years of flying copilot in the C-130. The rides are low threat, but it really felt weird sitting on the opposite side of the cockpit. I flew two of the cross country flights from the right seat, but yesterday still felt weird. It may take more time for me to really get used to it. I've become much more comfortable in the left seat. My landings were a little rusty, but other than that both events went ok. I couldn't wait to get back though, because my wonderful fiancee had made dinner for me - lemon pepper chicken with potatoes and squash.

No flight today, but I start review stage tomorrow. Review stage is pretty much what it sounds like - a comprehensive review of instrument flying complete with multiple malfunctions and ambiguous scenarios. So close!

My final instrument checkride should be next week.