Pilot For Hire

Please Wait...

2010-10-06T19:56:00.002+01:00

Just thought I should post something to justify my long inactivity! Well these have been hard times with quite a rough sea for those who seek employment flying some kind of aircraft. Due to those hard times and the continuous "not interested" and "not hiring" catch phrases one has lost his desire and happiness to pass on the great flying experiences one has had. Well, to be truthful I have hardly had much flying adventures (still I had a few worth mentioning)... But the lack of imagination and resilience have made me drift away from the blog. Anyway,... I assure you guys I have not left the blog and I will surely post some more of my adventures in the near future, just let these bad times fade away and better days will come with much more stories to share with you guys.

So, as the title says please wait just a little bit longer and stay with me for I guarantee you some nice stories will come in the (near) future!

Thanks for keeping the bookmark on my blog!

Weekend Off at Nevada

2010-02-14T17:11:00.009Z

The hardest part of the trip was over we had made it to Las Vegas on time and with both aircraft working properly. No failures or unpleasant surprises took place and the Westbound leg of the journey had just gone perfect. After such an arrival to the "Sin City" (please refer to the previous post) we were of to a car rental to get a transportation for the next 2 days. It was a well deserved stop on the flying trip and we had a full agenda.

As we got to Hertz and since we were 5 guys with lots of bags we decided to get a big vehicle to cope with the requirements and after a long talk with the lady on the counter we settled on the Cadillac Escalade, the top american SUV. We jumped inside the Escalade and once aboard we set sail to the Cesar's Palace where we had a room waiting for us. As we drove up the Las Vegas Strip we were dazzled by all the light and glitz. We arrived on a Thursday and on Thanksgiving so our expectations were quite low, but we soon understood that the city never sleeps and there really is no difference between day and night, weekdays or weekends.

Once on the Ceasars Palace, our hotel for the nice we were given a suite instead of two separate rooms. So you have an idea, the suite they gave us had 4 bathrooms, 4 entrances, a piano, 1 roman statue, a bar and 2 floors! How nice is that?!

Ceasars Palace Casino & Hotel.

To enjoy the most of Las Vegas we had a quick snack decided to go out and stroll around "The Strip" going to the main casinos and points of interest. The most relevant places were the Bellagio (where we saw the well known water display) and the New York-New York Hotel & Casino where we rode the amazing Roller Coaster which is right outside and around the casino, with the city as scenery. To make things even nicer, this was done by night, which made the ride much more interesting.

After the nice tour it was time to hit the Ceasars' gambling rooms and do what one goes to Vegas for. We got back to the room at 4 in the morning after playing roulette, video poker, etc. and in fact we all made a few shy dollars.

On the next day we moved to the MGM Grand to know another hotel and experience a different atmosphere. Once we checked in we hit the streets once again and went straight to the Stratosphere and its well known attractions and views. We got over to the top and rode the 4 great rides they have there, at 350 meters above Las Vegas. To know more about the rides check out this link.

As the night came we went to The Venetian for dinner and then again back to gambling and night fun, this time at the MGM. I might had that the MGM is not as nice as the Ceasars Palace or the Bellagio but one can still have lots of fun and the next morning's breakfast was quite nice and really worth the money! En route to the airport we were still able to visit the famous "Welcome To Fabulous Las Vegas" sign.

MGM Grand Casino & Hotel.

The Team at Las Vegas Sign.

We got our things together and started our planning for the next leg of the trip, this time we would start moving East back to our home in Florida but first would spend a night in Mesa, close to Phoenix, where we had plans to visit a friend.

Planes loaded, refueled and planning done we decided to get on our way as we had a few hours ahead and the weather during the flight was not all CAVOK (Ceiling and Visibility OK) and Sky Clear. As the Cessnas departed Southbound leaving Las Vegas behind the rain and high terrain came to increase the pilots' workload. Although the departure was under the hood (using the planes' instruments) after an hour or so under moderate rain and across high terrain we got past the clouds and bad weather into a nice, clear sky over Arizona. The team made a nice landing in Falcon Field right at dinner time and after leaving all our bags at the hotel there was only time to have dinner and go grab a beer (or two) at a nice local bar, full of nice young people, music and with a great atmosphere.

This would close the Las Vegas chapter but would certainly bring much more adventures on what we thought would be an easy ride back home.

Falcon Executive Aviation FBO on the day of our departure.

Arriving in Las Vegas

2010-02-04T21:04:00.002Z

I know I've been failing on the blog and on you my dead readers but I must tell you I've been pretty busy since I've arrived in Portugal around a month ago. Only now things are getting on tracks and I'm getting back to my regular day by day routine and I shall now continue where I've stopped!

Since I've not yet posted my video regarding the arrival to Las Vegas I've decided to do it now on this shorter post, while I prepare the photos to include on the next posts.

Hope you all enjoy it, this is a video of a visual approach and landing at Las Vegas' runway 19R, for a better description please refer to the previous post.

Soaring over the Grand Canyon to Las Vegas

2009-12-12T16:20:00.018Z

The guys together for a group picture at Sedona.

This was the day! We were at Sedona during a beautiful fall morning with clear skies and that warm sun radiating with a cold morning breeze. We loaded the planes and made the general checks and once again studied the route for the day! The flight was to be full of eye candies, 100% scenic, starting with arizona's Mesas and valleys transitioning to the overwhelming views of the Grand Canyon and ending with Las Vegas' lights and glitz.

We did a quick review of the route to be flown and settled on a place for a pit stop to refuel. That place selected was H. A. Clark Memorial Field (KCMR), just 45 minutes away from Sedona at an elevation of 6680 feet (2000 meters) above mean sea level. We decided to take it low and slow, flying together from take-off to landing and without controllers nagging us with route constraints and altitude limitations. In a matter of minutes the run up was made, mixture was adjusted for the high altitude take-off and we lined up at the right side of the runway, followed the the other Cessna lining up behind to the left. A static take-off was done and as we lifted off we kept our rate of climb to a minimum gaining speed while still flying relatively low and enjoying one last view of the airport's Mesa. With maximum elevation figures higher than 9000 feet we decided to maintain 8500 feet and dodge the terrain enjoying the views and the great colours at a low altitude. As we got close to the pit stop we overflew the airport checking the wind conditions at 1500 feet above the field and joining the pattern for the runway in use while our "wingman" followed us behind.

Flying low at the leader's 4 o'clock.

After doing a landing together we refueled and got on the phone with Las Vegas to prepare our arrival to the airport and transportation to the hotel.

In less than an hour we were once again soaring, now at 10500 feet which would be the minimum altitude available to cross the Grand Canyon on a scenic flight.

One of those perfect pictures that just make the day!

Pit Stop for some fuel and planing to Vegas.

Billy doing some planning on his improvised navigation table.

In order for you guys to understand it let me put it this way, nowadays due to the excessive traffic flying over and along the Grand Canyon in Air Tours or just for fun the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) has decided to lay out some rules and create some preferential flying routes around the place. This has allowed to keep traffic organized and protect all the wildlife and nature around the park, which suffered due to the low level aircraft. So you readers have an idea, the Canyon is one of the busiest places to fly in the USA during the high season. Lucky us, we flew there during the low season and on Thanksgiving, so guess what, no one was flying there!

The view from our right window, while flying across the Canyon.

There are a few corridors going across the Canyon in different directions and altitudes. The Air Tour guys can always go lower, the general aviation goes higher. We decided to fly the corridors, first heading from South to North and then, proceeding North to South, while moving West. For those who know the place and the rules we flew first the "Dragon Corridor" and then the "Fossil Canyon Corridor". All the journey was done at 10500 feet and 11500 feet (3500 meters), with the scenery 3000 feet (915 meters) below. After crossing the designated routes we flew West descending inbound Las Vegas while the sun was fading ahead of us.

The routing we did.(This does not accurately depicts the corridors, it is simplified for better understanding)

The Canyon tour is better describer by photos, other than words. Please enjoy and bear in mind this is only a selection of a much wider, much bigger, collection!

Patches of snow could already be seen in higher terrain.

Westbound to Vegas down the Canyon.

Big ridges and Mesas all around.

Close up on a big crack inside a valley.

Nature at its best, with the nicest light one could ask for.

The sun setting on the West, leaving the Canyon for Las Vegas.

After crossing such an overwhelming scenery from a bigger, higher and different point of view you get the feeling you are being spoiled because you're flying your own small aircraft with your best mates across one of natures' biggest achievements and you have the opportunity much people can only dream of. So once I left the mountains, valleys and canyons behind I was still stunned, amazed, to say the least and I was surely not asking for anything else other than a simple landing at Las Vegas. But then again, I was wrong. This was to become one of those flights one could never imagine of when he first flew for the first time.

Let me tell you, approaching Las Vegas on a clear fall evening with the sunset on the horizon has got to be one of the nicest things one might experience while flying. The controller took us from the West right over the big Hoover Dam and told us to proceed visual to the runway. So you guys have an idea, we were assigned a runway that makes you fly an approach path which is parallel to the Las Vegas Strip which is the main street in the city and the place where all the casinos and big hotels seat. So, as the video below might show, we had the best possible view over the city without paying a dime for a helicopter tour or something like that!

The arrival at Las Vegas came with a feeling of accomplishment and happiness since we had made it all work out just right. 5 guys, 2 aeroplanes, 2000 nautical miles (3700 km) and 22 hours of flying made us reach our destination and the most fantastic thing was that all worked out according to plan. But this was by no means the end of the journey, we were on ground to enjoy 2 full days of "sinful" party in Las Vegas. And then one would have to make the nice journey back! So there was still plenty to come but that is to be told on some other posts.

Flying in Arizona

2009-12-10T02:56:00.026Z

After reaching Tucson the goal of this trip was getting closer, the Grand Canyon was just a few hours to the North.

Pima Air and Space Museum.

Just as side note Tucson was a great stop because we were able to have a full day around airplanes in one of the biggest museums and air force boneyards in the USA. Pima Air and Space Museum has loads of Air Force aircraft (275 aircraft) on a static display in the Desert and also includes some nice hangars which contain some well preserved World War II birds! Furthermore they have put together a tour that goes inside the actual Air Force Base boneyard - the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (AMARG) - where you can see all the work that is done in preserving, storing, maintaining and destroying Air Force old and still in service airframes. The boneyard itself has more than 4000 airframes. After a day full of aviation related activities it was only right to go for a flight and so we moved to the airport to continue our journey to the Grand Canyon and Vegas.

The Famous BlackBird SR71 at Pima.

But before going there one should get used to flying in the mountains and valleys and so a stop was planed at one of the best known cities in Arizona, Sedona. Sedona seats in the middle of the arid Arizona and is best known for having the nicest views since it is right in a valley surrounded by red mountain tops with beautiful mesas and typical desert cactus. After reading about it on a guide book and learning a little bit more about the place on the internet it just sounded right to stop there on our way North. It was agreed that we would spend a night in Sedona to know the place prior to departing to the Canyon and so in the afternoon we departed Tucson inbound Sedona so we could do the 2 hour flight during the day in order to enjoy the most of the scenery. As Tucson seats at 2000 feet (610 meters) above mean sea level and it has mountains all around one had to climb to go past those mountain tops in order to fly the desired route to Sedona Airport which seats on top of the so called Airport Mesa (which is at 4830 feet (1450 meters) above mean sea level, but still is engulfed by the mountain tops) with a 180º view over the valley, to the opposite side of the town.

Our aircraft at Tucson prior departure to Sedona.

Departed from Tucson we started cruising at 10500 feet to clear all the terrain on our two hour flight. But somewhere in the middle it just felt right to go lower and enjoy a beautiful sunny afternoon and make the most of our scenery and so we cancelled the flight following and went down making our way visually at 3000 to 4000 feet down the valleys and rivers doing "slaloms" around the higher terrain. Elevations around us came to 10000 feet which made the ride quite interesting! After a while our friend caught up with us as they went through another valley which met up ahead with ours.

As you might understand the flight extended a little bit due to the fun we were having and we only landed when it was no longer worthy of enjoying the views due to the lack of sun rays and so we arrived in Sedona just after Dusk only to make a landing on runway 03, which has an upslope of 2.0% and at that time winds were gusting 26 Kts which accounted for some nice mechanical turbulence on final that put our skills to the test. It was the nicest ending for one of the nicest flights I have EVER had!

Enroute to Sedona flying in formation with the sunset behind.

We arrived at 6PM and the Fixed Base Operator (FBO) - the service provider on the airport - had just closed at 5PM but fortunately there was still a clerk inside to help us with our check in, even after hous! We got a car and moved down the road from the airport half a mile to the Sky Ranch Lodge which is a nice small and cozy lodge that has cool rooms and all an atmosphere of a mountain lodge with pool and hot tub. Obviously since it was kind of cold and windy it was only right to get the luggage to the rooms and jump to the hot tub right away. Yeah, one must relax after such a hard day, right?

We relaxed for half an hour on the tub doing the debriefing and planing our next flights and as the dinner time came we got ourselves some warm clothes and got down to the city for the first time, just to find a local diner which had a rather different motif based on area 51 and aliens.

The next day we woke up early in the morning to make the most out of our time in Sedona and got down to the town in search of a breakfast, which we were thinking it would be really hard since it was the day before Thanksgiving. We came across a place which was packed with people and instantly decided to stop there. We one knows, if it is packed, it has to be good! In fact it quite exceeded our expectations and I might say it probably was one of the best breakfasts I've had since I've been in the USA!

With our stomachs full of such a great meal it was only right to feed the remaining senses and so we drove around the Town going to the landmarks and in search of those great views that make Sedona well known, the result can be seen here:

General view from a Mesa with the city on the valley.

One of the many views from the roads of Sedona.

The Church of the Holy Cross, a building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

The team at the Church entrance.

One of the many elevations around.

Small monument close to the airport. At night the cross

is illuminated and can be seen from the town.

As our departure time approached we went up the Mesa to the airport to get the workhorses ready for the next major flight which was the main goal of our trip. The route would go through the Grand Canyon, after doing a refueling stop in Clark Memorial Field and would end in Las Vegas, the more Westerly point of our journey.

Parked at Sedona, getting ready for the next leg.

Further West - Arizona

2009-11-25T04:51:00.017Z

First of all sorry for the delay but I've experienced some problems with the internet connections in the hotels I've been to and was not able to upload new posts, which I had already written, so here it goes!

View from the left back window enroute to

Laurel Field, Mississipi.

The Crew after sunset, inbound Stephenville.

After a well rested night in Stephenville,TX, we woke up early the next day to get the most out of our flying day and to reach our destination, Tucson before sunset. Tucson is located in Arizona and it would take us 7 hours of flight to get there. This place was chosen because the other day when we went to Spruce Creek a former American Airlines pilot recommended us to go there and check out the Pima Air and Space Museum, one of the biggest aircraft museum in the USA.

As we got to the airport on our courtesy car, an old Police Interceptor which was once a real police car and after being stripped out was now doing the job of a courtesy car for the local airport, we quickly loaded and refueled the aeroplanes but as soon as we started the exterior inspection on one of the Cessnas we noticed that the right main tire was flat. Not a big deal as we contacted the local maintenance hangar and the guys promptly inflated the tire without any charge. That event delayed our departure slightly but once we were on the air to our destination Sierra Blanca, located in New Mexico, everything was going smooth and easy and our expectations were high since this would be our first "mountain flying" experience.

View from the left wing, as we cross the peak at 11000 feet (3300 meters).

Refueling at Sierra Blanca.

Sierra Blanca is a neat airport located at 6800ft (2000 meters) above mean sea level enclosed within a wide valley, just outside of Roswell, NM (By the way, I did not see any ETs!). This would be just a refueling stop to continue our flight down to Tucson. After stretching our legs and looking around we set sail to Tucson but instead of doing a dull flight and since it was such a nice sunny day we decided to fly slightly North to check out the mountains and scenery together with the other aircraft. When I mean together I mean flying in formation! Check it out...

Getting Close!

Zooming the guys!

Coordinated right turn.

Breaking off Formation - 1.

Breaking off Formation - 2.

Breaking off Formation - 3.

The flight ended in the best possible way, for the first time we were able to land in formation and we did so at the invite of the controller in the Tucson International Airport. It was quite an eventful day with lots of flying and new experiences which naturally drained our energies out and so it was only wise to go to bed and rest, since the next day would be even more exciting!

Trip to The West - Destination Las Vegas

2009-11-23T23:55:00.003Z

Dear readers, today a new adventure began, I’m currently on a Cessna 172 at 10500’ flying inbound Stephenville, Texas. Last Friday the 20th of November my long time friend Francisco arrived at Orlando to spend a few days with us. We got there and picked him up at the airport on 2 convertible Ford Mustangs which we drove back to the terminal where our Cessnas were parked for our flight back to Daytona. While on the move back to Daytona we got into a conversation about where we should fly to so that Francisco could experience the most of is trip. The route we decided upon after Francisco’s insistance shall take us to the West into the great american Desert and Mountains flying over Georgia, Alabama, Mississipi, Louisiana and stopping at Texas, Arizona and Nevada. The great landmarks to visit include the Grand Canyon, The Death Valley, Hoover Dam and Las Vegas.

Planed stops along the route to Las Vegas (click HERE to follow to google maps).

The planed route will give us approximately 50 hours flying roundtrip time and more than 5000 nautical miles (nm) of ground distance, all that to be done in around 6 days. Regarding the stops depicted above, there might still be a few changes, mainly on the Grand Canyon Area, where we want to do a few touch and goes and landings on peculiar strips which have not yet been chosen.

After doing all the planing and since the weather was not in its best conditions we decided to set sail Monday, the 23rd of November. And now here we are, the first leg of our journey was about 480nm long and took us from Daytona to Laurel Field in the Mississipi in 4h55min. After a pit stop to refuel and stretch our legs we are now on our second leg of today’s trip which is taking us to Stephenville in Texas. Curently Francisco is the Captain, flying left hand seat on the Cessna, taking care of all the flying and navigation. It will take us about 4h and 30min to go along the 450nm that set both places apart and we are estimating Stephenville at 10pm, local time. By the time we arrive we shall have a car with keys on the ignition that we’ll use to go to the hotel to grab something to eat and have a good night´s sleep because tomorrow we will have another long day.

I’ll keep you all posted and photos shall follow in a near future and as the guys have been saying, this might whell be the journey of a lifetime.

Go West - Key West

2009-11-18T05:20:00.015Z

View from the Pier Bar at Key West by the sunset.

As a few of you guys might already know I've been down to the Keys during the end of September for the first time while the sun was high and the temperatures were hitting 35ºC and the beach was just awesome. After the first time almost two months have passed and along came the Winter which made the Keys look like a distant, old dream. But last week, as our friends were around and since they were out from a cloudy, dull winter back in Europe we decided to satisfy their biggest desire and lead them SouthWest, down to the Florida Keys Islands.

Unfortunately the weather was not as good as expected and low overcast ceilings with rain and gusty winds amid made the trip impossible during the first days and by Thursday we had almost given up on the idea of going down to "paradise". Still, Friday morning came up with a crystal clear blue sky, calm winds and temperatures of around 25ºC. With these great conditions available we hurried to the airport and got 2 aeroplanes and even lost our minds for a moment and decided to rent 2 C172SP G1000 to enjoy the most of the experience as possible and give the first flight chance on a G1000 glass cockpit to our friends.

Walkaround and refuel was complete in a matter of 15 minutes and after getting the guys at controls, flying left-hand seat (they are pilots, it was only fair to let them fly for themselves and experience the flight in the first hand) we took off from Daytona bound to Homestead, a small local airport close to Miami, which was chosen as a fuel stop due to its nice fuel price (much cheaper than the Keys). This leg was flown with the Auto Pilot ON, making full use of the G1000 capabilities - which included Flight Level Change for en route climb to 9500ft, Vnav profile descent into destination and GPS Flight Plan navigation - just like an airliner.

After Homestead we moved further South to Key Largo, the first island that makes the Keys and decided to start a scenic tour from there to Key West at low altitude, flying VFR by hand. And so we did, taking pictures of the scenery and enjoying the amazing coloured waters. But after a while we noticed that something was missing... "Wait a minute! We have 2 aircraft, we should be enjoying this tour all together!" One of us got on the radio and quickly solved the problem saying: "Hey guys, wait up and we will get together and fly in formation down to Key West! Maybe we will even be able to get some nice pics on the way!"

The result is better described by these photos below other than by text!

General View of the scenario en route.

Check out the shadows that the aircraft were casting as we were approaching each other.

Head photo taken from our right wing.

Catching up with the guys, slightly above their altitude.

Spot the US1 down there!

Once we got to Key West we hastily moved to the beach to take some baths and lay on the sun watching the speed boats race go by across the shore (it was speedboat race's weekend at Key West)! This felt beautifully regarding it was winter and just a week before it had been raining!

As the evening came it was time to grab something to eat by the dock to the north of the beach and so we walked through the streets and got there just in time to enjoy the sunset over a few drinks and snacks. Once we were satisfied we strolled down Duval Street, which is the main street in Key West, where the Speedboats' parade was being held. At the end of the street we got to the Southernmost Point of the continental USA which is perhaps the biggest icon in Key West.

The gang together at the Pier Bar.

Southernmost Point of Continental USA.

The Team all together after a great day!

After such a great day we jumped on the Cessnas for a 4 hour flight back do Daytona, this time on a more direct route only stopping to refuel at Airglades Airport, which is close to the well known Okeechobee Lake. On those four hours we were still able to do an RNAV Approach, an ILS and a handful of touch and goes. Our friends got to our place with only one hour to prepare the bags, eat something and take a bath, after that they were back on the road to Orlando for their flight back to the Old Continent.

Extra: For those interested in a video compilation summing up the flight check out this one made by my friend Vieira,

Friends' Arrival

2009-11-16T04:21:00.009Z

Been having bad weather for a couple of days which delayed flying a little bit and furthermore all the aircraft got into 100 hour checks last week which made my life quite dull. Nevertheless to get some excitement into my life and keep my spirit high we got two friends over last week right from across the Atlantic. They got to Orlando International airport on a Jet Blue flight from New York where they previously arrived from Lisbon on an Airbus A330. They got pretty late into Orlando and had already flown 9 hours and two legs so in order to save them some time on the journey to Daytona we decided to fly and pick them up at Orlando International. Since all aircraft were in maintenance we had to take a Cessna 182T G1000 together with a C172SP. I was flying left hand seat to Orlando on the 182 and then back right hand seat on the 172. We arrived in Orlando 10 minutes past their landing time and after leaving the aircraft on the FBO (Fixed Base Operator) we rushed to the main terminal to pick them up on a designated van we got on the FBO.

Our Aircraft on the ground at Orlando.

After 9 hours flying they still had to fly 45 minutes more to Daytona on these small machines, lucky them, they had 2 designated pilots to fly them to their final destination!

We got back and loaded the planes just in time to get on the air prior to 1A.M.. After a short hop and an uneventful flight we got to our place at around 2A.M.. It sounds kind of late but for us it was like early morning and we still had time to enjoy a fresh bottle of red Portuguese wine brought by our friends as a gift. For us it was a simple flight but unique flight, but for them the adventure had just begun with a 1 hour night flight on a Cessna for the first time.

They spent the last week with us and during those 7 days they "logged" almost 18 hours flight time and had quite a few surprises and adventures, from flying VFR at night, to flying full IFR under rain and even shooting ILS approaches or doing formation flying at 500 feet enroute to Key West.

I just posted this to explain why I've been away last week and to get you ready for the next post describing the adventures during our last week. I will include photos and probably video footage to enrich the next post!

La Nouvelle-Orléans

2009-10-28T04:40:00.008Z

New Orleans Skyline View.

La Nouvelle-Orléans, also known as New Orleans is the largest city of Louisiana and it is considered one of the oldest and most unique cities in the United States. Built in the shores of the Mississippi river by a french settlement it is known for its multicultural and multilingual heritage which provided the city with a unique cuisine, architecture and musical background which is most uncommon in the United States.As you might have seen this makes the city quite an interesting place to visit, even more if you are European, since you might identify yourself with the city and its history. As we are 4 European guys on vacation this seemed as the right place to go and so we got on our 2 Cessnas and set sail to Louisiana which we reached after crossing 2 states (Florida and Alabama), flying over the Gulf of Mexico and one time zone, all that done in slightly more than 5 hours of flight. We landed on the Lakefront Airport which is quite close to the city and after getting a map and directions we jumped on a brand new Chrysler Seabring with only 200 miles and went downtown. The nicest and oldest zone of the city is Vieux Carré (French Quarter) which is the place where all the Spanish and French influence can be found. All the tourists go there and can tour around by foot checking the Voodoo stores, Jazz Cafeés or the typical architecture of the quarter.

The guys walking around the French Quarter.

New Orleans Streetcar.

Since we were hungry the first thing we did was to get inside Central Grocery, an Italian shop, to grab a Muffuletta.

Inside Central Grocery Store.

Back on track we strolled around the French Quarter, the Jackson Square and the Saint Louis Cemetery which is the oldest and most popular cemetery in New Orleans.

Jackson Square general view. Saint Louis Cathedral can be sean in the background.

General Jackson. War hero of the battle of New Orleans.

Saint Louis Cemetery.

This is a Roman Catholic Cemetery which was greatly influenced by the Spanish and French and has above ground tombs, not common to the Americans. These tombs are also above ground level due to the usual floods of the Mississippi.

Me stranded on the railroad, ready to be run over by a Streetcar.

Mississippi Shore.

Sidewalk on the shore of the Mississippi. Spot the guy playing his guitar.

Once all theses historical places were seen we decided to tour the Mississippi River with style and got aboard the last Steamboat which still sails the Mississippi River nowadays. We did a 2 hour ride in the Natchez Steamer and while on that tour down and up river we saw Domino's Sugar Factory, one of the oldest and biggest Sugar factories in the World, the docks extending over New Orleans harbour, the Navy Reserve Base, one of the biggest oil refineries in the Western Hemisphere, a few houses that were torn down by the Katrina, the destroyed levee system that failed during the hurricane and flooded the city and the last but not least we had a privileged view over the city.

Natchez Steamer.

Detail on the Natchez big paddle.

Domino's Sugar Factory.

Back on the dock it was time to grab an espresso at The Market Cafe and listen to some live Jazz (what else in the birthplace of such a beautiful music style?). We sat there for a while enjoying some well known hits like "The Girl From Ipanema" and "When The Saints Go Marching In" and my friend Nuno even bought a CD from the band. To finish up and get a broader idea of the city we got on the car and while the sun was setting we drove through the business district, through all the tall buildings and past the Louisiana Superdome, the home of "The New Orleans Saints" which is the local American football team.

General View of a business district street.

Louisiana Superdome.

As a footnote, after the hurricane Katrina, all the people were gathered at the Superdome and an operation basis was mounted there to rescue and feed all the ones in need. After such a long touring day it was time to it the "road" and so we got back to the aeroplane and after taking care of all the paperwork, fees and doing the walkaround we were back on the air for a quite dull and uneventful flight back home. We reached Daytona Beach at 3 A.M., just in time to get the same departure controller that released our flight to New Orleans back on his workstation. He was the one who did recognize us and impressed by the late hour said:

- "Were you the guys that were heading out to New Orleans this morning?"

- Yes We were sir!

- "And did you ever make it there? I heard the wind was quite strong today..."

- Yes We did, 5 hours of flight time each way.

- "Geez..."

- Yeah, long day at the office!

After 22 hours and 30 minutes awake we finally got home almost sleepwalking. We were quite exhausted but I can assure you it was one of the best flights and adventures I have ever had and it was the longest for sure.

Regarding New Orleans, it is quite often said to be one of the poorest cities in the USA but I must tell you that is not true, the city is full of life, colour and history, it has European heritage and style and it is surely one of the most ethnic cities I've seen. On a sunny day you will surely enjoy New Orleans as I did, with its greatness and grace!

Windy Days

2009-10-20T04:12:00.008+01:00

I've been lacking posts regarding my USA adventure but I must say we've not been lacking adventures on the New Continent. These last few days we've had quite low temperatures and lots of wind across all the state of Florida. So you guys can have an idea of how windy it got, the other day we had 60 knots headwind at 9500 feet and while landing at a few airstrips to the North we experienced more than 25 knots of wind with gusts. To demonstrate what it was like I decided to post the following video which also has the interesting fact of being on a grass airstrip surrounded by tall trees everywhere which made it much more bumpy and much nicer. Still we managed to do a few touch and goes and put our skills to the test. Hope you like it, as usual, comments are welcome.

(By the way, grass airstrips rock!)

The Journey of a Lifetime

2009-10-16T04:24:00.004+01:00

This is a post for those who really love aviation and the freedom of it! I came across one of the best photoblogs I've seen almost a year ago and since then I've changed my way of seeing aviation. Probably you already know this blog since it is quite well known and/or maybe because I've given almost all my pilot friends the link. This is the blog of an american pilot which left to Alaska to fly his Piper Cub for a few months on the wilderness and unexplored terrains of North America, without any assistance, prepared route or goal. The sole objective was to fly freely, just by feeling, having the freedom and peace of mind one can get on the far most remote places of earth. The pictures you will find are breathtaking and will make you wanna live the very next second to go and feel the thrill of flying for pleasure. For those who enjoy nature and wildlife this is a must see, for those who love aviation, well... I think you will be quite impressed.

Unfortunately Shaun Lunt died when his aircraft crashed while he was circling at low level watching some whales. That must be the saddest end one could have, still he might have had the ride of his life and it is a pleasure and honor he could share all the great moments pictured in the blog with us. I wish one day I could experience even half the joy or freedom he must have felt while exploring Alaska.

Check the Blog on: http://shaunlunt.typepad.com/

The African Success

2009-10-15T23:40:00.007+01:00

This post is coming a little late in time but it is a thing I decided to do a few weeks ago and only now had the time and "inspiration"(?).

After more than 9 months struggling to start flying a great friend of mine finally made it to the right side of a big turbine driven aircraft. João Ribeiro (pictured below) got is first aviation job flying an Embraer 120 Brasilia for Air26 in Angola, Africa. He made the Type Rating for the aircraft 8 months ago and after half year of endless paperwork and hard times getting the licenses ready he flew his first commercial flight in Angola. Meanwhile he jumpseated and enjoyed himself around Luanda but now the work has begun and he is doing what he loves the most, flying for real! Furthermore he is flying in one of the most interesting and richest places in the world, Africa, that is why he has a website where one might learn about his adventures: www.voaralto.com

João flying the Embraer 120.

João, I seriously hope you enjoy yourself and get the best out of it, just like Valter and only a few more, you deserve it! Once again, as you guys make it through the tough aviation business you give the others strength to continue!

I hope for the best and wish him the greatest success one can get!

The Thrill of Flying a New Aircraft (...or Two)

2009-10-11T22:08:00.003+01:00

Cessna 182T Skylane - Cessna Promo Picture.

As you might already know the four of us spent the last weekend in Miami partying and relaxing from those flting hours we've been building, the weekend was great and Miami was able to meet our high expectations! But was described in the video you saw on the last post. After all those party days it was only fair to get to work as soon as possible, but since the aircraft have been in maintenance during all week we decided to spend extra money and fly a more advanced machine which has been teasing us since we first saw it parked at the ramp, close to our C172. I'm talking about the Cessna C182T Skylane, a 230Bhp, 6 cylinder, Variable Pitch Propeller machine fully equipped with G1000 avionics and only 4 years old. This beauty does not fly much because it is quite expensive once compared to the C172's, so we decided to go for a checkride on it with the instructor, since our Cessnas were lingering in maintenance.

N65306, the Skylane I've flow seen from a different angle.

G1000 Avionics on the Cessna 182 Skylane.

The flight itself was quite simple, the airplane handles really easy like a Cessna 172 on Steroids with a heavy nose but it made me remember those old days when I flew the TB20 which has 250Bhp. The main difficulty was getting used to the G1000 avionics, which didn't take that long since the Flight Simulator hours kicked in and made me remember those Airbus style displays and glass cockpit information displays. After an hour and a half, 4 landings and a few stalls and turns I was set to go on what the FAA calls a high performance aircraft (since it has more than 200 Bhp).

Since I was feeling good and into the flying mood I eased back to Air America's office and decided to schedule a Cessna 172 G1000 avionics equipped just to feel the difference between the ones I fly and these new machines which have the same exact engine and dimensions but are fitted with those TV's and playstation like instrumentation. I was lucky enough to get the newest aircraft on the fleet which is less than a year old and still has that "new car smell". Needless to say that everything on this aircraft worked and felt like new, it flew flawlessly and it had an integrated AutoPilot with Flight Director and Go Around mode (those who understand aviation will know how fancy this is for a Cessna 172). I hoped in for a 5 hour flight to the middle of Georgia and back just to get used to the avionics and the systems of this aircraft and once I landed it felt like a candy was taken from me since I now have to get back to those "old" round dial gauges which are only 5 years old but feel like rags and aircraft from the 70's. Anyway, they still fly quite well and have never let me down and one can not be used to flying only state-of-the-art machines!

I leave you all with this promo video from Cessna...

Photos were taken from the following websites:

Air America Fc

Cessna

Weekend at Miami

2009-10-10T18:55:00.004+01:00

As the previous videos have had quite a good acceptance and your feedback has been quite good I've decided to post this party video which sums up the weekend we've spent at Miami, South Beach. It has nothing to do with aviation but it is part of our American Trip. As you might notice by the outcome of the video it was a really nice weekend and a good experience! Hope you like it! As always, comments are welcome!

Formation Flying

2009-09-29T23:15:00.007+01:00

Just enjoy the pic, it was taken flying inboud Suwannee flying together with my friends... The picture was taken from their Cessna 172 close to mine, can you spot me on the window having a nice, BIG view of their aircraft? (note: enlarge it to enjoy the most of it!)

Click here to enlarge.

Flight to Paradise

2009-09-24T03:36:00.010+01:00

It was not our first navigation flight in the US, to say the truth, it was our last flight, a day ago. We were planing a flight up to Georgia (GA), the state above Florida (FL), that would take us 5 hours of flight time. We were to depart from Daytona at 14.00 local time (LT) and fly North bound to Baxley Municipal Airport in the middle of Georgia and in the meantime we were to stop at Jekkyl Island a small aerodrome on an island North of Jacksonville. But prior to departure we changed the day plan and decided to go to the Northwest coast of Florida, to an even smaller airfield than Jekkyl Island. That was only decided because we wanted to fly more than 5 hours that day and since we had that field already on our "Airports to go" list, it seemed like a good choice. The place I'm talking about is Cedar Key which is only 104 nautical miles away from Daytona, but this little detour would prove itself to be the right choice, not only because it would increase our trip time by 1hr and 30 min but also because it would turn out to be the most exotic place, quite above our expectations.

Here is the re-planed route for that day, from Daytona Beach to Cedar Key on the West and then Baxley to the North.

Me taxying the plane at Cedar Key.

After 1 hour and a half flying west we arrived at Cedar Key and instead of reading, I think you should see it the way we did!

After this trip to paradise the remaining 5 hours of the flight to Baxley, GA and back to Daytona were seen as rather dull, but once we arrived in Baxley, there was another surprise. We arrived at Dusk, just in time to do a few touch and goes and taxi to the ramp to refuel our work horses. Once we did that we went inside to enjoy the unexpected coziness of the Baxley Municipal Airport facilities.

General view of Baxley.

Me, John -"The Fuel Guy".

Baxley pilots' lounge at Dusk.

Confy hey? Baxley pilots' lounge.

After enjoying Baxley's above standart conditions and resting a little bit it was time to jump on the plane and "drive" back to Daytona doing night VFR (Visual Flight Rules). And then it suddenly it hit us, why are the runway lights off?! It is past dusk and the aerodrome charts says there are lights on the runway, something's wrong. But it was just a matter of seconds, we remembered what we were once told about those runways in the middle of the USA where the pilot could activate the lights just by clicking on the radio transmitter of the aeroplane in a given sequence. We jumped on the flying machine and tried it out. After 5 clicks the runway illuminated and the airport came alive. It was time to leave and what a better way to say goodbye than performing a handfull of touch and goes during the night at such a nice place?

Runway lights at Baxley.

Maiden Flight

2009-09-23T06:35:00.009+01:00

As it is said, "The first flight of a new aircraft type is always a historic occasion for the type", that is called the maiden flight of the aircraft. Since we flew for the first time in the USA last Wednesday that was our first historic flight, our maiden flight in the States. I know you guys have been waiting for a while but I can assure you the waiting has not been in vain! I decided to express our first flight through a different kind of post, a video post. That is why it took us a little while to work the post out, since my friend Vieira has been working on this eye candy to you faithful readers.

The video is a compilation of the checkout flights made by the four of us out of Daytona International Airport to an aerodrome to the south of Daytona called Massey Ranch (X50) where we did our landing practice and manouver training with an instructor prior to getting the green light to fly the 172S solo. Hope you can feel the good vibe as we felt during the flight, hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

By the way, we've been flying quite a lot, logging more than 20 hours since we made this flight, so believe me, there are a few nice surprises coming up! Feel free to comment!

Moving North to Daytona

2009-09-17T22:19:00.015+01:00

I've been delaying this post for a few days to get enough information together and to also attach some nice pictures to the post instead of making it just plain text. And now, after these four days without posting a thing I now have some new stuff to share with you guys! After a few days in Orlando getting used to the US and taking care of the paperwork the FAA(Federal Aviation Administration) has given us authorization to fly in the United States and so we decided to move north on the same exact day, the 14th of September. And so we did, heading north towards Daytona took us something like an hour driving time and we arrived just in time to rent a room at a local hotel on the South Atlantic Avenue at Ormond Beach.

Daytona Beach entrance sign on Daytona Beach's Speedway Airwalk.

As you might be guessing by the name, this place is right in from of the Atlantic Ocean west end, so to go to the beach one just needs to go down the hotel stairs right into the light clear sand beach. The water is at 28ºC and the sea is quite calm when compared to the other end of the Ocean. Due to those high temperatures I was told that Florida is the zone where most shark attacks take place which doesn't sound quite good to me. Anyway, as I am portuguese, that didn't stop me from taking a longggggggg, relaxed diving for quite a few times. And as we got back to the hotel it was just the right time to have dinner.

Ormond Beach view from the place where we were.

My three friends on the crest of the wave at Ormond Beach.

As we have been moving quite a lot we have been eating quite a few bad meals based on Pizzas and Hamburgers and so all the crew decided to go out and have a better yet more expensive meal, but still be on with the American culture it seemed right to go to TGI Fryday's to go and grab a nice full meal.

TGI Fryday's at Ormond Beach.

Detail of TGI's sign illuminated at night.

All this arrival scene into Daytona Beach made it look like quite a nice place to live for the next 3 months. Daytona is much smaller than Orlando and as far as nightlife is concerned, from what I've seen, it seems that there is not much activity, yet everyone seems nice and it seems like quite an exotic place to be at this time of the year. Nevertheless I must confess that on the last days we still haven't been able to experience the nightlife quite right. Anyway,.. the next day we went looking for a place to live during the next 3 months and we found quite a nice place with 2 bedrooms, kitchen, AirCo, cable TV and wireless! As well as a pool and gym for all the renters. I'll be posting a few photos of our place later on. After getting this nice apartment and buying tons of groceries to fill up the fridge we were still able to make it to Air America, the school where the four of us have decided to build flight time. As we finished our sign up they scheduled us to fly with an instructor the next day so they could check us out on the Cessna C172SP prior to lending us the plane. But that... That I shall leave it to my next post as all of us have been quite busy around Daytona.

Detail of Daytona's wildlife.

First Day in Orlando

2009-09-14T03:37:00.008+01:00

Yesterday we had our first day out in Orlando. To start with we decided it would be perfect to start the day with a real american breakfast and so we crossed the street over to the waffle house in front of us. Instead of writing about it, I'll leave the photos talk by themselves.

Table for four, please!

General View of half the breakfast. Yes, half, do not forget the waffle!

After breakfast it was time to hit the road, destination? Kennedy Space Center, Nasa's Launch Site in Cape Canaveral.

Crusin' the Chevy.

After a 50 minute cruise in our Chevy we got there. Tickets bought and tags on the chest we were ready to go for the Nasa Up Close tour!

Nasa's Visitor Center.

The tour took us about 3 hours and we went from the visitors' center to the Vehicle Assembly Building (VAB) where they assemble the shuttle, then to the Launch Pads and to the Apollo/Saturn V center where there is a museum describing the various Nasa missions across the past decades and also to the International Space Station Building, a sterilized facility where they complete the assembly and constructuion of the various parts used in space, like shuttle modules, satellites and stuff. We also saw the shuttle transportation vehicle, the crawler which moves the shuttle from the VAB to the Launch sites.

The massive Crawler that carries the shuttle.

Launch site L39-B.

Besides the nice buildings and sites inside Nasa's facilities we also had quite a nice wildlife tour since we were able to see Aligators, Bald Eagles' nests, Turtles and Vultures all of that courtesy of the Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge. I must surely confess that the VAB is the nicest, biggest and most impressive building in there, sure the Launch pads are quite nice and the lightning masts on top of the structures are quite impressive, yet the VAB is the top notch if you consider the following four facts.

Vehicle Assembly Building.

See the pic? Consider this, we seem quite big close to the building right? Well, here are the following facts... See the flag? Each star has 6 feet (1.80m) from each point to another and the blue rectangle of the flag is the size of a basketball court. The building itself is higher than a 60 store building. And to finish up, the side doors on the left take a "mere" 45 minutes to open up! After the sightseeing tour on the bus through all the complex we finished up with the Shuttle Launch Experience, a simulator ride that simulates the launch of a shuttle! I must confess I was a little bit disapointed, but only because I had quite high expectations since during all the tour all the workers and guides kept on talking about the amazing experience it would be. I must say, during the all visit all the people were amazing, funny and full of life, cooperative and dedicated which made the visit quite a nice experience.

Apollo landing capsule.

After the visit we went back to the hotel and there was only time and patience to go to the Florida Mall at dinner time to grab something to eat at check out the Apple store to grab a Macbook Pro! It was quite a busy day...

First Impressions

2009-09-13T02:52:00.011+01:00

Lisbon Airport, after the check-in with 2 close friends.

Departed from Lisbon on the 11th of September at 8.00LT (40 minutes delay) we headed to Frankfurt on a Lufthansa Airbus A321-200 where we arrived with only 20 minutes of delay after landing on runway07L. The flight from Lisbon to Frankfurt was quite boring and the four of us spent the time sleeping due to the fact that we hadn't slept that night because we attended a big friend's party at Silk Club in Lisbon and went directly to the airport for a 16 hour adventure to Orlando. Well on the ground at Frankfurt we had almost 3 hours to hang around, check the shops, eat something and look at a few planes. We did so and at 14.00LT we were inside an Airbus A330-300 bound to the US. After a 1 hour delay for pushback and start up due to excessive traffic (our flight was number 35 for push and start) we were able to taxi to the runway and takeoff bound to paradise. Once again a pretty uneventful flight, still, all of us had PTV's and we watched quite a few movies, had some nice meals and tried to sleep a little bit more. At 18.35LT at Orlando (23.35 in Lisbon) our aircraft touched the Orlando's Airport runway and after a few minutes the group was off the plane and on to the customs and immigration officers. All was cleared in a matter of half an hour and after catching the train to the main terminal we collected the bagagge and decided to go on and rent a car.

General View of the Impala.

Chevy's Engine. V6 with 3900cc and 240bhp.

After searching around and discussing prices we settled on for a month rental on a red Chevrolet Impala, a real american car with automatic gear box and a V6 with 3.9L and 240bhp, quite appropriate for the adventure ahead. Loading the car was the hardest part, considering we are four guys and each one of us has 3 bags. Doing the math we had to carry 12 bags so as you might understand it was quite an adventure to load the Impala. Nevertheless after a 15 minutes Tetris game the loading was complete. It was time to head to the hotel after spending 3 hours inside the airport taking care of all the things mentioned above. With no map and a GPS with no satellite signal we hit the road to the unknowned address of our hotel! The only thing that was working right and was setting the pace was the latin music that the radio station was playing. Windows wide open to feel the 30ºCelsius with 90% humidity and light warm rain and the radio blasting to set the mood, the chevy was on the move. With a big load on intuition and an even bigger load of luck we made it to the hotel in less than 15 minutes and checked in right away to unload the car and take a bath. You might think the day was over but not at all, after a quick pit stop the group was on the move again to hit a burger king on Orange Avenue since our stomachs were aching for food. I decided on a $7.49 medium american double whopper which almost looked like a king size portuguese burger king meal.

Burger King Menu.

With a full stomach a need for a BUD (Budweiser american beer) arose and we hit the Orlando night for the first time. Prior to hitting the party area we went for a ride along Orlando downtown with no particular destination, just to sightsee the areas and then, once a destination was determined it took us 20 minutes to reach it. The Universal city walk on the Universal Studios was the place, it looked appropriate since the car rental employee recommended that to us. To say the truth we got there a little late and it looked a little bit empty but we did not enter the clubs and discos (which seemed to have clientele) and decided to get a beer and strolle around the city walk. At 2 o'clock in the morning the BUD was up and it was time to get back to the hotel to recharge for the next day.

Status: Established in Orlando

2009-09-12T14:26:00.003+01:00

To all of you wanting to know my status I decided to make this small post, just to keep you up to date. We've landed in Orlando at 18.35 after a 9.30 hour flight from Frankfurt. After clearing imigration and customs and collecting the bags we went to the car rental facilities to get us a car. After getting the car and loading it with all the baggage we got on the road for a 10 minute drive to the hotel, where we currently are. The weather is tropical style with thunderstorms and light rain forecasted for the next days! This is only to let you know how things are going, if you happen to be a friend of mine in facebook I have shared a few photos on my profile, just go there and take a look. Those of you who are not my friends just don't panic, I'll post a big message later on to let you know about the journey from Lisbon and the first impressions and photos!

The Dream Comes True

2009-09-08T00:33:00.010+01:00

Today's a very special day! One of my great friends and once an instructor of mine has reached his goal and greatest dream. He has made it through the Line Training of an Airbus flying for TAP Portugal, the flagship carrier of Portugal. Valter, my friend, has become the latest and most recent TAP pilot having completed his exam today on an Airbus A321 flying the Lisbon-Amesterdam-Lisbon route at the age of 23.

This post is dedicated to him and all of those who sometimes along the way have second thoughts and doubts while walking the stair towards landing that much desired job flying the big jets. Valter was able to get it and since that made me quite happy (probably as much as him!) I decided to post this up to let you all know it is not impossible, just difficult, but certainly most rewarding!

Back in the days, when we were flying the Seneca. Valter is the one on the left, the instructor.

Valter, keep up the good work!

Countdown Begins...

2009-09-04T21:40:00.007+01:00

T- 6 days, 9 hours and 30 minutes

That's right guys, countdown has begun two hours ago when I finally bought my ticket. The departure date has been set to Friday the 11th of September 2009 at 7:20am.

Our route will take us from Lisbon International Airport, in Portugal to Frankfurt am Main Airport, in Germany, where we will spend 3 hours in transit before jumping on another aeroplane to the States, more exactly to Orlando International Airport, in Orlando - Florida. We will be traveling through Lufthansa and after those two flights we expect to arrive in Orlando at 18:05 Local time, which will give us something like 23.05 in Lisbon. So it will be a hard day, but it will most certainly be quite exciting! To all of you who were asking me when I was scheduled to depart, there you go, I now have a clear answer since all the documents have come through, the ticket has been bought and all the paperwork is finished! Now the only thing needed is to start packing for a 3 month leave to the USofA. Will be posting soon, keep up with it if you can!

The Flying Machine - Cessna 172SP

2009-09-03T20:56:00.023+01:00

While we are waiting for the green light to come and departure date to get defined I decided to write a new post to keep the spirit alive. Since a few of this blog's followers are not well inside the aviation world and since others that are keep on asking me which aircraft will I be flying once I get there I decided to publish this post so you can learn a little bit more about the aeroplane I'll be on for the next few months while on the USA.

The aircraft is a Cessna 172 Skyhawk version S or SP, as both denominations are valid. It is one of the latest Cessna products there is, but prior to talking about the S version let me tell you a little bit more about the Cessna 172 in general.

"With more than 43,000 delivered, the Cessna Skyhawk is the best-selling, most-flown airplane ever."[1]

The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is a single engine piston, four passenger, high wing, fixed tricycle landing gear. It was first built in 1955 and production lasted until 1986 when in came to a halt. After that it was brought back into production in 1997 and it is still produced today.

This aircraft is the most popular aircraft ever, with more than 43.000 units built until today. Since 1955 there have been many versions of the aircraft which first had no version but later, as improvements came along, versions were introduced, to distinguish them.

I will prevent myself from talking about the past versions in order to keep it simple but if you want to learn a little bit more about those you can check the wikipedia link at the end of the post.

The S version was first introduced in 1998, it is equipped with a Textron Lycoming IO-360-L2A engine which produces 180Bhp at 2700Rpm, compared to the 169Bhp at 2400Rpm of the R version. This power increase has made it possible to increase the maximum takeoff mass to 2558lbs (1160kg). The reason it is sometimes called SP is because the market name of the aircraft is Skyhawk SP, although the type certification data sheet specifies it is a Cessna 172S.

In 2005 there has been the introduction of the Garmin 1000 concept, with a glass cockpit equiping the light 172. As from 2009 only the SP version is being produced, with Garmin 1000 avionics as standart equipment.

2. Garmin 100 Avionics on a Cessna 172.[1]

The Cessnas I'll be flying are full IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) equipped, with ILS (Instrument Landing System), GPS with moving map display, Honeywell Autopilot, Dual Radios, Dual VORs and Leather Seats (uh, fancy!). They were all built from 2002 to 2004 and are not Garmin 1000 editions!

3. The one I'll fly![2]

4. General view of the aircraft.[1]

For those who like numbers and performance data I decided to include the following specifications table:

5. General Specifications Table.[4]

I now hope you know a little bit more about the flying machine that I will deal with! Hope you enjoy it!

References:

[1] www.cessna.com

[2] www.airamericafc.com

[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cessna_172

[4] http://www.fsinsider.com

Departure Gets Delayed

2009-08-26T14:19:00.002+01:00

Dear Followers, as I mentioned on my last post we were supposed to leave on the 2Nd of September but due to some paperwork delays from the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) one of my friends' Visa has been put on hold until that document comes through. So, since we have to wait for his Visa, a delay on the departure date will be required! Till when? Still don't know, but we are expecting to depart no later than next week's end. As soon as I have new details on the departure date I will let you know. For now, since I'm ready to go, I'll seat and wait, wait, wait...

USA Goes Forth

2009-08-21T02:15:00.026+01:00

This morning I woke up to the sound of the mailman ringing the doorbell to deliver me my USA Visa. It most obviously the day started out in the best possible way. After my interview in the United States Embassy last Wednesday I was given a Visa issuance clearance and only two days after I have it my hands. What does that really mean? As simple as this, I now have clearance to go to the United States with my teammates and start building my flight time!

By the way, did I mention I am not going alone? I almost forgot, I am going with 3 friends of mine which are also low hour unemployed pilots, meet the Team:

- Costa, Duarte

Age 24
Nickname Dudomix
Likes Mechanics
Dislikes Running
Flight Hours 180:00 h

- Lameiro, Nuno

Age 24

Nickname Zica

Likes Agriculture

Dislikes Cucumber

Flight Hours 200:05 h

- Sales, João (Myself)

Age 23

Nickname Saletti

Likes Squash

Dislikes Waiting

Flight Hours 232:15 h

- Vieira, Luís

Age 32

Nickname Billy

Likes Kitesurfing

Dislikes Liver

Flight Hours 204:00 h

The four of us are going to Daytona Beach, Florida, where we have found a place to build flight time in order to enter the aviation business by earning the required experience to start working. We will be flying a Cessna 172SP fully equipped to fly IFR (Instrument Flight Rules). Since all the paperwork is done we have now scheduled our departure to Tuesday, the 2Nd of September. We will be buying the tickets soon! Countdown starts today...

USA Visa

2009-08-18T02:45:00.005+01:00

Now the time has come to take care of the Visa to the United States of America. After receiving my FAA acceptance letter and getting the paperwork in place I've been taking care of all the required forms, papers and documents that are required for a non immigrant to request a Visa to enter the United States. After lots of forms with many questions regarding your past,present and future as well as family, educational and economical background I've now scheduled an interview at the United States Embassy in Lisbon for tomorrow. Let's hope for the best!... I will let you know how it was later on!

Jumpseating The Caravan

2009-08-14T16:03:00.008+01:00

Last year when I was still in Évora finishing my commercial pilot licence I got in contact with a pilot who was working there flying parachuters. This guy flew a Cessna Caravan C208 a few times a day, taking the divers for their jumps. A few days after meeting him and after several "walkarounds" to the plane and lots of take-off and landing observations from the ground I decided to take a shot and have a talk with him. After finishing my instruction flight on the Socata TB20 I strolled to the parachuters hangar and looked for the pilot. We chit-chatted a little bit and after asking his boss for permission I got the thumbs up to join him on the right seat of the Caravan.

I jumped in through the ladder on the back of the plane and moved forward to the right seat, plugged in my headseats and in a couple of minutes the guys were on board and the engine was roaring. We moved to the active runway and lined up for departure. At this moment I was amazed with the size of the "Van", it was like riding a really big Cessna 172. I was seated 2 meters above the pavement and the engine idling in front of me was impressively silent.

As the pilot eased the throttle forward the engine came to life plunging me to the back of my seat and making those 3 tons of aircraft lift easily into the air. From what I recall it took us something like 10 minutes to reach Flight Level 150 and once there and over the aerodrome the 12 sky divers jumped out of the aeroplane and we started our impressive descent! Descending at 4000 feet per minute we entered downwind at FL080 and turned base at 3000 feet only to be established on a very short final quite close to the runway and only at a few feet over the ground. Once on the runway the braking action became apparent with the reverse being engaged and the aircraft stopping in less than 500 meters.

That was about it, in just 15 to 20 minutes of flight I was overwhelmed with the performance display and added the C208 to the "Favourite Aircraft List". I now seriously hope I have the chance to fly one myself one day!

The aircraft I flew in was N9347B, a Cessna Caravan C208B built in 1988 and leased to a portuguese company to perform sky diving activities.

1. N9347B loaded and ready for another flight, taxying to the active runway at Évora (LPEV).

I seriously recommend every pilot and aviation lover to try and fly a Caravan at least once, it is an amazing experience!

References: Photo copyrighted by www.planepictures.net.

Aircraft I've Flown - New Addition

2009-08-12T00:27:00.009+01:00

After all those aircraft described on the other post I've recently flown another one, an "old lady" with more then twice my age. I'm talking about a Morane Saulnier MS 880 Rallye with 100bhp. I've had the chance of flying such aircraft for 3 times now since it was bought by a friend of mine last year. The aircraft flyes smoothly and apart from lacking advanced navigation instruments it is a very nice machine to fly low and slow with the sunset on your back. The interior has been refurbished and the engine overhauled, its registration is D-EPOR and it is based at Évora Aerodrome (LPEV).

Since I do not have photos of the aircraft I've decided to post a photo of another MS880 Rallye. (Note this one is a Rallye Club, but they are quite similar)

1. Morane Saulnier MS-880 Rallye Club.

By the way, the black and white seemed appropriate since this lady is from a much classic era.

After this new addition, you now can see all the planes i've flown.

Hope you like it!

References: Photo copyrighted, taken from www.airliners.net.

Hour Building, a Way to Increase Your Flight Time...

2009-08-09T14:02:00.004+01:00

Hour building programmes are a common thing for low hour pilots who want to increase their flying hours quickly, while paying for it. This is mostly found in the United States, where general aviation is far more developed and cheaper than the European light aviation. Since a pilot needs something from 300 to 500 flying hours to land his first job in aviation and jump the barrier of "Paying to Fly" to the side of "Getting Payed to Fly" but the ATPL Courses include only 150 to 200 hours of flying one must get the remaining hours by flying on his own.

Naturally this is my case, I am missing a couple of hours to start looking for a job in the aviation business and since I've been unemployed for almost 8 months I feel the timing is right to start doing something about it.

So, the questions are, how many hours shall I do? Where shall I do them? and In which aircraft? I've been studying the situation and hopefully will come with a solution in the following days! Then, I will let you know!

Meanwhile, I've sent a letter to the FAA to convert my European CPL(A) licence into an American PPL(A) licence so I can fly in the USA. The answer as already came through a letter allowing me to go to the USA for an interview in Orlando to deal with the paperwork! Sweet!...

Aircraft I've Flown

2009-07-23T12:58:00.014+01:00

To give you a better idea of my flying experience I've decided to write this post, including photos of all the aircraft types I've flow so far! In order to make it user friendly I've decided to keep the writing to a minimum and instead make a photo post!

1. The first type of aircraft i've flown was the Cessna 152.

I've flown this one several times.

Almost all my PPL instruction was done on the Cessna 152, in the following aircraft: CS-AYU, CS-AYX, CS-DDJ (1) and CS-ASO.

2. CS-DIH is a Cessna172R, the only one I've flown so far.

A few flights prior to my PPL exam and the exam itself were made on the Cessna 172 depicted above (2).

3. Piper Colt with more than 11.000 hours flying time and almost 50 years old.

I was able to fly this aircraft only once after finishing my PPL because a few months later the aircraft was sold to "Museu Aerofénix" a portuguese association responsible for keeping the "old gracious ladies" such as the Colt flying. Still it was the eldest aircraft and the eaiest i've flown so far.

4. Piper Cherokee 180.

I've made a few IFR flights on G-AWXR with a couple of friends after having completed my CPL licence.

5. Piper Cherokee Arrow 200, a nice machine fit wth retractable gear and constant speed propeller.

One of my last flying experiences was taking the Piper Cherokee Arrow 200 for a couple of circuits. It is a neat machine with all the things one might need for a nice IFR navigation at a cruise speed of 140ktas (Knots True Air Speed). Unfortunately I haven't been able to fly it again, YET! :)

The aircraft described above are those I've flown for pleasure and entertainment, the ones below are those flown during my ATPL integrated course.

6. Socata TB200, 200bhp and constant speed propeller.

The TB200 is the starting aircraft for the flight instruction phase. There are roughly 75 hours to be flown on this aircraft, the majority of those are VFR. Only the last 3 flights are an introduction to IFR flying.

7. Socata TB20, 250bhp with retractable gear and constant speed propeller.

This is the aircraft used for advanced IFR flights, including many IFR manouvers and navigations. The students usually fly this aircraft for around 55 hours, which include the Intrument Rating examination and the Commercial Pilot Licence examination.

8. Piper Seneca V.

The last 20 hours are completed on this twin-engined "lady" which is capable of an economic cruise speed of 160Kias (knots indicated airspeed). Those 20 hours are done in order to obtain the Multi-engine rating. This is the flagship of the school and is a really simple thing to fly, regarding the size and the fact we have two engines to manage! It flyes smoothly and it is as simple to land as an aircraft can be.

The aircraft depicted on these 8 pictures are examples of the 8 types of aircraft I've flown. Naturally I've flown these and much more of the same type differing only on the registration marks.

References: All the photos are copyrighted by www.airliners.net.

A Little Bit More About Me

2009-07-15T12:21:00.009+01:00

Hi guys,

After the first post introducing the blog and myself I felt the need to let you know a little more about me, giving you an insider point of view on my aeronautical background and on my progress so far.

I was born in Lisbon on the 31st of August 1986. The passion for aircraft soon came as a natural result of being the son of an Airline Captain for TAP Portugal. Since the beginning I got used to fly on the cockpit of big airliners such as the B727, B737 and the Airbus A310 while accompanying my father in his different flights around Europe and The Americas.

As an obvious consequence of this premature contact with aviation I soon became passionate about flying and it was a natural decision to follow a career as a pilot.

Still, prior to starting my commercial pilot instruction I graduated in Materials Engineering in Instituto Superior Técnico, Lisbon in 2007. But meanwhile in 2005 I was granted the possibility of getting my Private Pilot License by my parents. And so, there it was, the long awaited moment had come to life, flying was no longer a distant hypothesis but a real thing. I rushed to the Aeroclub de Portugal and got my Private Pilot License after a 6 month theoretical ground school and another 6 month flying period in LPCS- Cascais Aerodrome ( Yes, it took that long because I was attending University at the same time). After 45 hours flying time, flying Cessna 152 and Cessna 172R I finally had my exam in October 2006 and passed!

1. LPCS - Cascais Aerodrome as it is today.

2. Just after my PPL exam, October 2006.

I could now fly around in a wide range of Single Engine Piston aircraft and enjoy the pleasure of flying. After something like 40 hours after finishing my PPL a new opportunity came in August 2007: Integrated ATPL Course.

I did my Integrated ATPL Course in Évora, Portugal, at the Aeronautical Academy of Europe. Évora Aerodrome is much smaller and less crowded than Cascais and it was much easier to do instruction flights in here than back in Cascais.

The course comprised 150 flying hours plus 50 simulator hours (20 of which in Multi Crew Coordination environment). The ground school was completed prior to start flying and it took me about 9 months to go over the 14 subjects that make up the ATPL Theory. After that I started flying and in only 8 months I was an endorsed Commercial Pilot with Instrument Rating in multi engined aircraft, that happened in December 2008.

3. Flying in Évora - Aeronautical Academy of Europe - 2007.

Since then I have been trying to build flying time and have been looking for my first job in the aeronautical industry. I hope you now know a little bit more about my flying background and I will surely describe some of the flights I have made during my PPL and ATPL Courses, as well as the leisure flights I have been doing since 2006.

Hope to post again soon,

Greetings!

Pilot For Hire

2009-07-15T02:04:00.010+01:00

Dear Readers,

I have decided to start this blog a few months ago, before I even have finished my commercial pilot course back in 2008, but only now I have felt the real need of creating a nice place on the net where I could share my ideas with other bloggers, pilots and aviation enthusiasts. After serious thinking and lots of courage (yes, courage... I must admit I am the worst writer in the whole world) I decided to create this space and call it pilotforhire.blogspot.com. Before going into details about the time of the blog I must first introduce myself to all of you who might come wandering around this way.

I am a new, low hour, low experience, recently graduated pilot who's wings have been received no more than 6 months ago. I currently live in Lisbon- Portugal and since I've finished my ATPL (Air Transport Pilot License) Integrated Course I have been struggling to get a job anywhere in the aviation business, flying anything, from a small Cessna to a big Jet. Since then I have not succeeded and have felt for more than once frustration, disappointment and have constantly had excessive free time. In order to try and reduce my free time and share all the failures, or possible future achievements, but above all share my flying "adventures" I have decided to create this blog.

Once the blog idea was on the roll, the name problem struck me,... but not for long... After a 5 second thinking marathon the simple and most obvious idea came to me! "Let me see, low hour pilot, NO JOB..., aviation related name?..." The name popped out,... "what about pilotforhire?".

And there it was, 10 seconds more had passed and the blog had come to life. As simple as this! Now, the next, much harder task: Keeping the blog alive!

For all of you who might come in contact with this blog, on purpose or accidentaly,

WELCOME!

Pilot For Hire

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