We have been cleaning up and re-arranging the house some and I came across letters from my mission. I wrote letters to Grandma H. frequently from when I was little and this continued as I was a missionary. These appear to be from June - December 2000; the first six months of my mission.
You can download the PDF here if you want to read.
I have more to scan when I get some time.
R48
Friday, November 27, 2015
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Update (as in Here's what happened previously)
It has been a long time since I have updated, so here's what has happened since I last wrote.
R48
- GoFundMe - Only one person was generous enough to donate to my Go Fund Me campaign to get money for flight school. I have stopped accepting donations, but I may attempt it again to raise money for my commercial and instrument ratings. This means that it will take a little longer to get my ratings completed as I have to find financing and other financial aid. To the lone contributor: THANK YOU!
- Flight Training - I haven't been flying in a while, but I have connected with a different flight instructor and will be completing my private license with him. I still have to travel nearly 2 hours to meet with him, but it will be worth it.
- School - I am progressing with school. I am taking 6 credit hours per semester, which is kind of slow, but it is what my schedule allows me to handle with out being stressed out. I am working on the upper level classes and there is a lot of research and writing involved.
R48
Monday, August 25, 2014
GoFundMe (as in Please help me afford flight school so I can pilot an air ambulance!)
Greetings! It has been a while since I have posted. I haven't been flying much because of work and school. I have however determined that I need help paying for flight training. I setup a GoFundMe page and ask that if you are able to and willing, please make a donation. My goal is to get enough money so I can get my commercial license. This money will help me finish flight school in a reasonable amount of time so I can begin to build hours towards becoming a pilot for an air ambulance service.
With out these funds it will take longer to achieve my goal and there is a possibility that I will have to stop flying altogether. Air ambulance services provide quick transport for patients who need to get to a treatment facility. I want to help people get the help they need so they can begin to get better. The first step for me is earning my commercial pilot license. After I get my commercial pilot license, I will have to build hours and gain experience flying. I will have an array of jobs before I will meet the common qualifications to be hired by an air ambulance provider, but getting my commercial license is the first step. This first step is what I need help with.
Please share this with your friends and families. I will continue writing about my flight experiences as I complete flight school and begin flying and gaining experience. Thanks for the help and support.
Here is the link to my GoFundMe page.
R48
With out these funds it will take longer to achieve my goal and there is a possibility that I will have to stop flying altogether. Air ambulance services provide quick transport for patients who need to get to a treatment facility. I want to help people get the help they need so they can begin to get better. The first step for me is earning my commercial pilot license. After I get my commercial pilot license, I will have to build hours and gain experience flying. I will have an array of jobs before I will meet the common qualifications to be hired by an air ambulance provider, but getting my commercial license is the first step. This first step is what I need help with.
Please share this with your friends and families. I will continue writing about my flight experiences as I complete flight school and begin flying and gaining experience. Thanks for the help and support.
Here is the link to my GoFundMe page.
R48
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
Video (as in that video I shot is finally ready!)
I finally got the video I recorded of my flight on 29 June edited and worked into a format that I like (Since then I thought of a better way to present the videos, so I am working on them some more). I am going to begin with a picture of the dash of the Robinson R44.
I was working on the videos and realized it would probably be better to narrate what is going on in the video versus showing the video and writing about what is happening. I think it will be a better experience for those who view the blog.
Here is a video of me climbing to 2000 feet MSL and practicing a turning auto. As I climb the vertical speed indicator (gauge #7) shows a climb of over 1000 fpm and the Manifold pressure (gauge #5) shows about 25 inches, meaning I am at almost max power. The Altimeter (#4) shows the climb from 1000 to 2000 feet. The auto begins when the engine tach needle drops below 80%. The rotor tach needle stays above 90%. Although in the turn it drops below 97% which activates the Low rotor RPM horn and light.
The whole auto lasted 40 seconds and you can see the vertical airspeed indicator peg out at 2000 fpm descent and we lost almost 1200 feet of altitude in the process.
R48
I have numbered some of the gauges on the instrument panel. They are:
- Tachometer - The needle on the left is for the engine and the needle on the right is for the rotors
- Airspeed - This shows the airspeed of the helicopter.
- Artifical Horizon - This is primarily used in Instrument flights with little or no visibility.
- Altimeter - Indicates your elevation above sea level.
- Manifold Pressure (MAP) - This shows the air pressure in the intake manifold. The higher the indication the more power is being demanded from the engine. There is a limit on how much power you can safely pull.
- Low Rotor RPM light - This is light and a horn activate when the rotor system drops below 97%.
- Vertical Airspeed Indicator - This shows the rate at when you are changing elevation in feet per minute either up or down. It maxes out at 2000 ft/min.
- Clutch Light - The drive belts are tensioned automatically; when the light is on the tension mechanism is active.
I was working on the videos and realized it would probably be better to narrate what is going on in the video versus showing the video and writing about what is happening. I think it will be a better experience for those who view the blog.
Here is a video of me climbing to 2000 feet MSL and practicing a turning auto. As I climb the vertical speed indicator (gauge #7) shows a climb of over 1000 fpm and the Manifold pressure (gauge #5) shows about 25 inches, meaning I am at almost max power. The Altimeter (#4) shows the climb from 1000 to 2000 feet. The auto begins when the engine tach needle drops below 80%. The rotor tach needle stays above 90%. Although in the turn it drops below 97% which activates the Low rotor RPM horn and light.
The whole auto lasted 40 seconds and you can see the vertical airspeed indicator peg out at 2000 fpm descent and we lost almost 1200 feet of altitude in the process.
R48
Monday, July 28, 2014
Passengers (as in I brought a sibling)
Today's flight (20JUL14) I brought a sibling from out of town with me and because I had a passenger we couldn't do some of the riskier maneuvers. We didn't do autos or slopes, I can't remember if we did run on landings. So it was mostly normal take-offs, normal landings, steep approaches and max performance take-offs.
I setup the GoPro and had configured it to record in 720 because my computer struggles with resolutions above that, but it defaults to time lapse so I got a time lapse sequence and I didn't think it showed anything interesting or was particularly neat. I am almost done editing the videos from the only flight I have recorded. In fact, a video is rendering right now!
I did pretty good with the flight today. Having a passenger was a good experience as to how the balance and performance change. Hovering took more power, which meant I was up to max continuous power quicker and even used into the power available for 5 minute take off. What it translated into was that I had to fly more like an airplane than a helicopter. The rotors produce lift but when the helicopter is moving the increased airflow across the rotor disc produces more lift. It was something I can't remember experiencing; the other helicopter I had flown with passengers was fuel injected and had more horsepower available because of it.
I had to abort one of the max performance take-offs because I was the 5 minute take-off power and stopped climbing. After slowly lowering back to the ground, I made a normal take-off. I thought I was going to be nervous with my sibling riding along, but she was so quiet I basically forgot she was in the back.
Over all it was a good flight and I experienced a few things that I don't think I would have experienced until much later in my training.
R48
I setup the GoPro and had configured it to record in 720 because my computer struggles with resolutions above that, but it defaults to time lapse so I got a time lapse sequence and I didn't think it showed anything interesting or was particularly neat. I am almost done editing the videos from the only flight I have recorded. In fact, a video is rendering right now!
I did pretty good with the flight today. Having a passenger was a good experience as to how the balance and performance change. Hovering took more power, which meant I was up to max continuous power quicker and even used into the power available for 5 minute take off. What it translated into was that I had to fly more like an airplane than a helicopter. The rotors produce lift but when the helicopter is moving the increased airflow across the rotor disc produces more lift. It was something I can't remember experiencing; the other helicopter I had flown with passengers was fuel injected and had more horsepower available because of it.
I had to abort one of the max performance take-offs because I was the 5 minute take-off power and stopped climbing. After slowly lowering back to the ground, I made a normal take-off. I thought I was going to be nervous with my sibling riding along, but she was so quiet I basically forgot she was in the back.
Over all it was a good flight and I experienced a few things that I don't think I would have experienced until much later in my training.
R48
Monday, July 21, 2014
Break (as in no flight this week)
Today (06JUL14) I spent C2 working on ground school, reviewing all the things I need to know for the oral part of the check ride. Aerodynamic, emergency procedures, rules and regulations. I need to study some, but know most everything I should.
R48
R48
Monday, July 14, 2014
Prep (as in Check-ride prep)
I am a little late this week with this post; school and work have been taking all my free time.
Today's flight (29JUN14) was longer and it was working on maneuvers for the check ride. Working on the maneuvers that I can do well to maintain the skills I do have and improve the others. Overall, I am getting better at doing the maneuver on the first try. I brought and mounted my GoPro camera (Full disclosure: I own GoPro stock); I was able to capture video of the flight, but because we had the doors off and I haven't bought an adapter cable, you can only hear the audio when the engine is idle and airspeed zero. I will eventually buy an adapter cable that will capture all the intercom and radio communications.
After getting the helicopter started, we headed out toward the TV station again. Being the only off-airport location they have permission to land at, we went there to practice off-airport operations. I made my assessment of the area and began my approach. I wasn't descending like I needed to, so I went around again. I made a better approach the second time and landed as needed in the field. The field at the TV station has some slopes that are not as steep compared to the Quincy airport, so we tried a new technique for landing on slopes. I did better at slopes on the first try and the new technique helped overall. I made a max. performance takeoff from the field and headed towards Quincy.
As we were approaching Quincy we heard the jump plane call "4 parachutes out over Quincy", so we flew towards town and climbed up to 2000 feet for some turning auto-rotation practice. I entered the auto, established the glide and properly managed the RPMs as we entered and exited the turn. I rolled the throttle back on and flew towards the airport. The jumpers were on the ground, so we made a normal approach.
I did the approach fine on my first attempt. I took off again and landed with a steep approach. Performed an air taxi, followed by a quick stop. A trip around the pattern for a running landing. A running (sometimes called a run-on) landing is used when you don't think the helicopter can hover. Maybe one magneto is malfunctioning, you are at a high gross weight, or at a location with high density altitude. A running landing is also one of the components used if I had to make a real forced landing; after the auto-rotation you flare to reduce descent and airspeed, then you let the helicopter settle to ground and touchdown with the skids level, running on them until the helicopter stops.
After running landing, we moved to the slopes. The slopes at Quincy are pretty steep, nothing outside the limits of the helicopter, but probably close to them. I did OK, on the slopes at Quincy, better than the last time.
After slopes, we waited for the jump plane to take off, then I went around the pattern and setup for a straight in auto-rotation. I entered the auto slower than normal and lost additional airspeed as I descended. You need the airspeed to have energy to use at the end for the flare and touchdown. I got the airspeed back, but I lost RPMs. The maneuver was recoverable, but in the interest of safety, both C2 and I at nearly the same instance said to add throttle and go around. Went around again and had a successful auto.
I setup for a turning auto. Sometimes the best place to land isn't in front of you, so you have to turn to land safely. The first one went OK, I did pretty good. I turned kind of tight so I had to adjust to make my spot. The second one was good, but I turned very steep, which drove the rotor RPM almost to max. With jumpers on their way up we taxied to the fuel pump, shutdown and got fuel. After a short break, we started up with an airplane really close to the tail rotor. It made us kind of nervous, so we quickly started and hovered away from the fuel pumps.
I did another running landing in preparation for a hydraulics off landing. The R44 has hydraulics to reduce the force from the pilot needed to control the helicopter. When the hydraulics fail, hovering will be practically impossible. After a successful running landing, I took off for the pattern and once I was in the downwind leg, the hydraulics went off. Controlling the helicopter without hydraulics is not hard, sort of like driving a car without power steering. Fine until you need to travel through a parking lot at low speed. The camera battery ran out as I was on final. I landed perfectly and was happy to have the hydraulics back.
After this, I am pretty sure we took off and went back to Tallahassee.
R48
Today's flight (29JUN14) was longer and it was working on maneuvers for the check ride. Working on the maneuvers that I can do well to maintain the skills I do have and improve the others. Overall, I am getting better at doing the maneuver on the first try. I brought and mounted my GoPro camera (Full disclosure: I own GoPro stock); I was able to capture video of the flight, but because we had the doors off and I haven't bought an adapter cable, you can only hear the audio when the engine is idle and airspeed zero. I will eventually buy an adapter cable that will capture all the intercom and radio communications.
After getting the helicopter started, we headed out toward the TV station again. Being the only off-airport location they have permission to land at, we went there to practice off-airport operations. I made my assessment of the area and began my approach. I wasn't descending like I needed to, so I went around again. I made a better approach the second time and landed as needed in the field. The field at the TV station has some slopes that are not as steep compared to the Quincy airport, so we tried a new technique for landing on slopes. I did better at slopes on the first try and the new technique helped overall. I made a max. performance takeoff from the field and headed towards Quincy.
As we were approaching Quincy we heard the jump plane call "4 parachutes out over Quincy", so we flew towards town and climbed up to 2000 feet for some turning auto-rotation practice. I entered the auto, established the glide and properly managed the RPMs as we entered and exited the turn. I rolled the throttle back on and flew towards the airport. The jumpers were on the ground, so we made a normal approach.
I did the approach fine on my first attempt. I took off again and landed with a steep approach. Performed an air taxi, followed by a quick stop. A trip around the pattern for a running landing. A running (sometimes called a run-on) landing is used when you don't think the helicopter can hover. Maybe one magneto is malfunctioning, you are at a high gross weight, or at a location with high density altitude. A running landing is also one of the components used if I had to make a real forced landing; after the auto-rotation you flare to reduce descent and airspeed, then you let the helicopter settle to ground and touchdown with the skids level, running on them until the helicopter stops.
After running landing, we moved to the slopes. The slopes at Quincy are pretty steep, nothing outside the limits of the helicopter, but probably close to them. I did OK, on the slopes at Quincy, better than the last time.
After slopes, we waited for the jump plane to take off, then I went around the pattern and setup for a straight in auto-rotation. I entered the auto slower than normal and lost additional airspeed as I descended. You need the airspeed to have energy to use at the end for the flare and touchdown. I got the airspeed back, but I lost RPMs. The maneuver was recoverable, but in the interest of safety, both C2 and I at nearly the same instance said to add throttle and go around. Went around again and had a successful auto.
I setup for a turning auto. Sometimes the best place to land isn't in front of you, so you have to turn to land safely. The first one went OK, I did pretty good. I turned kind of tight so I had to adjust to make my spot. The second one was good, but I turned very steep, which drove the rotor RPM almost to max. With jumpers on their way up we taxied to the fuel pump, shutdown and got fuel. After a short break, we started up with an airplane really close to the tail rotor. It made us kind of nervous, so we quickly started and hovered away from the fuel pumps.
I did another running landing in preparation for a hydraulics off landing. The R44 has hydraulics to reduce the force from the pilot needed to control the helicopter. When the hydraulics fail, hovering will be practically impossible. After a successful running landing, I took off for the pattern and once I was in the downwind leg, the hydraulics went off. Controlling the helicopter without hydraulics is not hard, sort of like driving a car without power steering. Fine until you need to travel through a parking lot at low speed. The camera battery ran out as I was on final. I landed perfectly and was happy to have the hydraulics back.
After this, I am pretty sure we took off and went back to Tallahassee.
R48
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