How I Became a Pilot: Part 3 — First Flights with the Instructor
In the U.S., the air traffic control system is very well-designed and highly efficient. Flight training here is also well-structured, standardized, and streamlined. As of 2017, there were over 600,000 active private pilots in America! Many Asian airlines send entire groups of prospective pilots here for intensive courses. Then they return to their countries and almost immediately start working as airline pilots for major companies. My instructor mentioned that he occasionally receives requests from airlines to write a reference for a former student being considered for a first officer position on a Boeing 737, for example. I’ve heard that China’s aviation code is nearly a direct translation of the American code, with even the section numbers often matching.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the U.S. recognizes two primary training paths: Part 61 and Part 141. Part 61 is more flexible, focusing mostly on certification requirements. Instructors under Part 61 have the freedom to develop and conduct customized lessons based on FAA guidelines. Part 141 flight training is designed for those pursuing a professional aviation career, offering a more formal and regulated learning environment.
My flight training was in accordance with Part 61. However, the school decided to follow some of the more stringent guidelines of Part 141, so they divided the training process into three stages. The first stage is preparation for the solo flight, the second is preparation for solo cross-country flights, and the third is the refinement of all skills and preparation for the final exam, the Checkride. Each stage culminates in an exam (stage check) where a different instructor acts as an observing passenger, intervening in the controls only in case of real danger.
In the initial lessons, a future pilot learns to “feel” the airplane, perform simple maneuvers, and maintain level flight. One must get used to the airplane’s delayed response to yoke movements and learn to visually catch the balance between the ground and the sky to maintain a constant altitude. The basic piloting skills are much like riding a bicycle, relying largely on muscle memory.
Our training flights often took place south of San Jose, near the small town of Gilroy, which is known as the garlic capital of America. On hot summer days, the smell of garlic from the fields is so strong that it fills the airplane cabin even at an altitude of 4,000 feet. We used to joke that this was a vampire-free air zone. Every year at the end of August, the Garlic Festival is held there, offering a variety of signature garlic dishes. How about garlic ice cream or garlic beer, for instance?
The most difficult part of flying an airplane is the landing. Pilots joke that a good landing is one after which you can still walk, and an ideal landing is one after which the plane can still fly :)
One of the main exercises for learning landings is called “flying the pattern”. These are training flights where the airplane takes off, makes four 90-degree turns, and lands. The pattern usually takes 4–7 minutes and resembles more of a rectangle or a “box”.
For a successful landing, it is crucial to learn how to control speed and altitude. When the ground is close, there is a natural instinct to pull the yoke back, but this quickly slows the plane down, which can lead to an uncontrollable stall. A stall occurs when an aircraft’s wings stop producing lift due to an excessive angle of attack, causing the aircraft to sink. Therefore, before starting to practice landings, the instructor deliberately brings the plane into a stall and teaches how to recover from it. Of course, this exercise is performed at a high safe altitude.
Imagine this: the engine is almost off, the cabin is silent, the nose of the plane is pointed upward, a vibration starts, and an ominous stall warning alarm begins to beep. The speed is so low that the wings can no longer keep the plane in the air, and it suddenly noses over and we plunge down with it. The first time we did this exercise, it felt like my whole life was beginning to flash before my eyes :) At that moment, I couldn’t imagine ever doing it without the instructor on board. However, as I developed my skills, my confidence grew. Eventually, I practiced this exercise dozens of times on my own to make the recovery actions automatic.
Once Cecil was sure that I had firmly learnt what absolutely must not be done during a landing, we moved on to what should and must be done. We began the training flights in the pattern. And from the very first attempt, I made a perfect landing. Americans always express their emotions very enthusiastically. Cecil must have said “amazing” and “unbelievable” about twenty times in various forms, and then he went on to tell everyone at the flight school how his student had made a perfect landing on the first try. That’s how I became “famous” :)
It took many hours of training to repeat that triumphant landing. In general, it is extremely difficult to achieve consistent and confident landings — one might go well, while the next is a “disaster”. The thing is, the most critical moment is just before touchdown and only lasts a few seconds. Here you are on final approach — the speed is correct, the descent profile is right, and you are ready to make a perfect landing, but something still goes wrong. And you can’t press “pause” to calmly think things through. Then you have to take off again, make all the turns before you have another chance to practice those few critical seconds. It’s frustrating!
The story continues in Part 4 — First Solo Flight
All Links:
Part 1 — Russian Origins
Part 2 — New Page in America
Part 3 — First Flights with the Instructor
Part 4 — First Solo Flight
Part 5 — Cross-Country Flights
Part 6 — Night Flight
Part 7–100% on Written Exam
Part 8 — Checkride and I am a pilot!
