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Bill Nichols
10-23-11, 09:37 AM
After 19 months and over 100-hrs in the air, I passed my Private Pilot's License checkride on my first try yesterday!

Yippee!!! Look out, fellow aviators :Kaleun_Party:



http://subguru.com/bill-nichols-ppl-checkride-10-22-11.jpg
kranz
10-23-11, 09:38 AM
congrats:Kaleun_Applaud:
BossMark
10-23-11, 09:39 AM
Well done mate :salute:
Oberon
10-23-11, 09:40 AM
Alright! Well done :yeah:

Just remember the three most useless things
1) The Altitude above you
2) The Runway behind you
3) A Tenth of a second ago
Gerald
10-23-11, 09:40 AM
Congratulations, :up:
Torplexed
10-23-11, 09:43 AM
Congrats! Time to sport those aviator glasses. :cool:
Alex
10-23-11, 10:19 AM
Congratulations. :know:
Dowly
10-23-11, 10:23 AM
Congrats! :up:
Sailor Steve
10-23-11, 10:55 AM
WOOHOO! :rock:
Platapus
10-23-11, 10:58 AM
Conga rats.

Especially getting it on the first try. Took me two. :oops: I blew the soft field take off. :oops::oops:

Just remember that landing is easy. All aircraft are capable of landing themselves. :D
TLAM Strike
10-23-11, 11:48 AM
Uh oh! The skies are no longer safe... :shifty:

Better go out and get an Anti-Aircraft gun for my backyard... :O:


Way to go Bill! :yeah:
Takeda Shingen
10-23-11, 12:10 PM
Congrats, Bill!
Highbury
10-23-11, 12:50 PM
Congrats!


I still have some way to go. Just under 17hrs flying, 10 in GS.
Jimbuna
10-23-11, 12:56 PM
Congratulations Bill...I was going to buzz you on TS but I can't find your card :-?
Penguin
10-23-11, 01:22 PM
Congrats and fair winds and following clouds :salute: - or whatever the aviators say
Jimbuna
10-23-11, 01:37 PM
Tora! Tora! Tora!
TarJak
10-23-11, 01:44 PM
Tally Ho Bill! Congratulations.
Onkel Neal
10-23-11, 04:34 PM
Dang, Bill, you continue to amaze. :Kaleun_Salivating:
ajrimmer42
10-23-11, 05:45 PM
Congrats mate! :salute: No mean feat, I know a few guys who are working towards theirs atm.
Tchocky
10-24-11, 06:10 AM
Yippee!!! Look out, fellow aviators!



Traffic in sight, maintaining visual separation.

Congrats :)
CaptainHaplo
10-24-11, 09:52 AM
:yeah::up::|\\
Alex
10-24-11, 10:28 AM
@ Bill, Platapus, Highbury & other aviators : By the way, just out of curiosity, what is the average number of lessons/hours of training required before taking the pilot exam ?
AVGWarhawk
10-24-11, 10:39 AM
Congratulations Bill! If you want to see a F-16 up close and personal find a no fly zone ! :O: Have fun!
Sledgehammer427
10-24-11, 10:51 AM
Congrats Bill!

:yeah:

I'm working on getting some schooling for a pilots license too
August
10-24-11, 11:22 AM
Good job Bill! Congratulations! :up:
joea
10-24-11, 01:01 PM
Well done Bill! From beneath the waves to the skies! :yeah:
Bill Nichols
10-24-11, 06:05 PM
@ Bill, Platapus, Highbury & other aviators : By the way, just out of curiosity, what is the average number of lessons/hours of training required before taking the pilot exam ?


U.S. legal minimum is 40 flight hours, but the average is closer to 80. Living in the Washington, DC area is worse because it takes me 20-minutes to get outside the restricted area before I can do any training maneuvers. That means 40 minutes 'wasted' each time I fly.

I had 115 hrs when I took my PPL checkride.
Platapus
10-24-11, 06:33 PM
@ Bill, Platapus, Highbury & other aviators : By the way, just out of curiosity, what is the average number of lessons/hours of training required before taking the pilot exam ?


I am not a good one to ask as it took me a lot longer as I started lessons when I was stationed in Colorado and finished when I was stationed in Nebraska probably a 2-3 year period.

And to be honest, I was not exactly a stellar student pilot. It took me a while to get the hang of it.
GoldenRivet
10-24-11, 07:02 PM
Congrats Sir!

your hard work and effort has paid off.

:salute:
Alex
10-25-11, 07:58 AM
@ Bill & Platapus : thanks for letting me know. :yep:

@ Bill : training manoeuvres being very simple ones (to experienced pilots I mean) I'm sure, and thereby considered as safe ones, may I ask you what would happen if you ever practice them in one of your so-called restricted areas, concretely ? :ping:
Just out of curiosity, once again.

Take note, Achmed. :har:
Osmium Steele
10-25-11, 11:24 AM
Did you find that a 360 deg. coordinated turn is much easier to do IRL than on Microsoft Flight Simulator? :doh:

Congrats! :salute:
mookiemookie
10-25-11, 11:37 AM
Well done!
Bill Nichols
10-27-11, 08:08 PM
Did you find that a 360 deg. coordinated turn is much easier to do IRL than on Microsoft Flight Simulator? :doh:

Congrats! :salute:


Yes. Landings, too!
Bill Nichols
10-27-11, 08:13 PM
@ Bill & Platapus : thanks for letting me know. :yep:

@ Bill : training manoeuvres being very simple ones (to experienced pilots I mean) I'm sure, and thereby considered as safe ones, may I ask you what would happen if you ever practice them in one of your so-called restricted areas, concretely ? :ping:
Just out of curiosity, once again.

Take note, Achmed. :har:

Nothing specifically prohibits training maneuvers in the Washington DC Special Flight Rules Area. However, my airport is situated between DC and Baltimore-Washington International. The BWI Class B controlled airspace extends from 1500 ft upwards over my airport and out to the Chesapeake Bay. Most training maneuvers are performed at 3000 ft (for safety reasons), hence the neeed to fly 20-minutes to get into clear airspace.
Platapus
10-27-11, 08:15 PM
One of the reasons I stopped flying was that upon moving to North Virginia it did not seem that flying would be as much fun as in the unrestricted airspace over Nebraska.

Did you find things different up there in MD?
Bill Nichols
10-28-11, 05:47 AM
One of the reasons I stopped flying was that upon moving to North Virginia it did not seem that flying would be as much fun as in the unrestricted airspace over Nebraska.

Did you find things different up there in MD?


There is a pain-in-the-butt factor about all the various restrictions in the DC area. I've enjoyed flying on the other side of the Chesapeake, over the Maryland Eastern Shore region.

I'll soon be moving to northern Alabama, where flying should be a lot less of a hassle.
Platapus
10-28-11, 05:50 AM
If I ever get lucky enough to be able to move out of North Virginia, I might take it up again.

Life is so unfair

When I was younger I had the time but no money for flying
When I am older, I have the money but no time for flying

:wah:
Alex
10-29-11, 04:34 AM
Nothing specifically prohibits training maneuvers in the Washington DC Special Flight Rules Area. However, my airport is situated between DC and Baltimore-Washington International. The BWI Class B controlled airspace extends from 1500 ft upwards over my airport and out to the Chesapeake Bay. Most training maneuvers are performed at 3000 ft (for safety reasons), hence the neeed to fly 20-minutes to get into clear airspace.That makes sense, thanks for your clear explanation Sir !