Do you remember when you first got your driver's license? I do. I had to take the driver's test the second time because the examiner said I didn't slow down to 15 mph by the time I hit in the school zone by Meadowlark School (I believe that was a parallax error on her part) and I hit the curb while parallel parking. But, after passing the second attempt, that feeling of independence struck as soon as the temporary license was given to me. To be able to drive yourself to youth group, to a friend's house, or to McDonald's. That was pretty cool.
That feeling of excitement that you have when you first got to drive on your own is compounding when you get to go flying on your own. There is also trepidation that comes along with knowing that you're all alone in a vehicle. You have to follow the rules of the road and drive responsibly, especially if there are others in the car. But, in a car, you can always just pull over if you need to slow down and think. In a plane, it's a little more difficult.
I had the opportunity to solo a flight student last Sunday afternoon. It was outside of our normally scheduled flight block because it was his 20th birthday and he thought it would be neat to solo on his birthday. I couldn't have agreed more.
After waiting to see what the wind was going to do as the forecast was for winds that would exceed the school's SOP stipulations for solo flight. But, as I was picking up a late lunch, we found that the winds were a lot calmer than the forecast, so we both headed for the airport.
The lesson is set up so that you first go up with the student to allow him to a few flights in the pattern to get comfortable (and to make sure you as the instructor are comfortable with the student's abilities). I told him beforehand that we'd plan on three or four landings, see how he we were both feeling at that point and then also see if the winds would still cooperate.
After the student pre-flighted the airplane and I did my walk around, we when through the requisite checklist, got our clearance to taxi and headed towards the run-up area for 28R. Despite it being a Sunday afternoon, which are normally light days for air traffic in Billings, we ended up having ATC given us various directions to accommodate a smooth flow of traffic. The student was handling things fairly well, but he decided after the third landing that he wanted to do a few more before we headed back to Flight Ops. The fourth pattern was a left hand pattern, which although normal for most runways is an exception for landing on the right side of parallel runways.
The fifth landing was a greaser, and I told the student to take me back to the Ops building. After shutting the engine down, I filled out his logbook with the required endorsements, talked about the preference for his doing stop and go landings and to remember that he could always go around. With no final questions, I wished him well and shut the door.
To say that there isn't an bit of fear as an instructor when you cut a student loose for the first time would be lying. I wouldn't let him go if I didn't think we had covered everything required to review by the regulations and for safe operation of the aircraft. But, you always wonder if he'll remember what you've taught him when you're not there to take over. It's like handing the car keys to your child for the first time. I've done that three times now, soloing students only twice.
I soloed in a Cessna 152 at Harvey Airfield in Snohomish, WA, on August 4, 1995. The two-seat 152, which has a gross takeoff weight of just over 1600 pounds, is not a big plane. And, the difference in climb performance when you suddenly lose 150 pounds was pretty astonishing. The plane departed the runway and climbed towards the heavens like a homesick angel. It was weird to not have an instructor sitting to the right of me. And yet, it felt right. It felt good.
To make a long story short, my student successfully did three solo takeoffs and landings on that beautiful late Sunday afternoon (over 21 years after my solo--my student is 20; yes, I felt old). I was able to get a video of his first takeoff, and shot some pictures as he was taxiing back to the ramp. The look on his face as he was shutting down the engine was one of pure joy. That look was on his face for the next 20-30 minutes. I remember that feeling. It's exhilarating. It's one unlike few others.
We then followed the tradition of cutting the shirt tails of the student (although in hindsight I did that wrong). I signed his shirt and it's now hanging on the wall up at Flight Ops. What a day it was. The student was excited and I was happy for him. What a way to spend a birthday. I don't think that feeling will ever get old, as a solo student or as an instructor.
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