On 01/09/06 13:09, Bryan Porter wrote:
Salutations All,

After years of playing in Microsoft Flight Simulator/X-Plane, reading
the rec.aviation newsgroups, and staring longingly out the window of
Southwest Airlines 737's whenever I go on business trips, I've finally
swallowed hard and taken the plunge - my first introductory flight is
this Saturday with Skyline Aeronautics out of Spirit of St. Louis
Airport (KSUS) in St. Louis, MO. The scheduler said I'm scheduled in a
Diamond Katana two-seater, tail number 227RD.

Obviously, I'm nervous and excited about my first time up, but what
things should I know? Is there really anything, or should I just show
up expecting a good, relaxing time? I'm a software engineer, so most
things in my business require a lot of upfront planning, reading, and
work. Is there anything I should make myself familiar with? Questions I
should ask when I get there, etc?

Any advice anyone could give would be most appreciated!

Regards,
Bryan Porter


First, Congratulations for taking the most important step: That first
lesson. There's really nothing you need to do to prepare for this, other
than relax and look forward to it. Your instructor will discuss all the
pertinent information with you, and will even let you do a lot of the
flying (except for those cases where you prefer not to, of course).

That first take-off can be quite exciting, and you'll likely never
forget it!

Once you've had a chance to talk to your instructor, he/she will tell
you what is expected of you before each lesson. You will want to be
studying what you've learned, what you're going to do next, and preparing
for the knowledge test. There's a lot of information available to help
with this, so see what you're instructor wants you to do, then just go
do it.

The biggest point I can make about the various stages of flight training,
is that they are never as big a deal as they initially seem. For example,
you may have the following concerns early in your training:

- Will I ever be able to land this airplane without help from the CFI?

- Will I ever be able to learn all I need to pass the knowledge test?

- Will I ever get a handle on radio communications?

- etc.

Trust me when I say that these all come together in their own time. As
long as you stick with it, you will do just fine.

And, of course, you can come back here for help or a shoulder to cry on
any time!

Best of luck and please come back and let us know how your first lesson
goes!

By the way, for student issues, rec.aviation.student is probably good
enough, but as these are free-form groups, you can cross-post if you
feel it is needed. There are a lot of folks on the .student group.

--
Mark Hansen, PP-ASEL, Instrument Airplane
Sacramento, CA