Get the rust off - June 30 2008

And so I am going flying again, after nearly 10 months (August 8 - June 30).

The checklists used to flow. I still know what each item is, but it's like playing the piano one note at a time... plunk plunk plunk, with no melody. Don't think, be methodical, trust the checklist.

I get in and out of the plane easier - the exercise helps. A lot. Thanks Craig.

The radio calls are not that hard, but I had to think and compose before each.

The Garmin 430 was a mystery. Time to get out the manual and PC emulator.

Taxi wasn't bad. I had no idea which direction to hold the stick to minimize the effect of the crosswind on the Eclipse - one of the many little details forgotten. At least I remembered that I was supposed to do something, and not just leave the stick centered.

Takeoff was OK, but tentative. I expected to have directional control issues, and we had lots of runway, so I advanced the throttle slowly and made sure it didn't get away on me. Right rudder, maintain control, push to full throttle, keep the pointy end more or less at the end of the runway and get airborne. I still yanked it into the air rather than rotating and letting it climb when ready.

Reviewed side- and forward-slips from the one lesson I saw them last year. I remembered little from last year, so some day when we're sick of circuits I'll review them again.

Lots of slow flight, climbing turns, level flight, etc. All the basics. Altitude holds were not bad, but rough.

Then we did four landings. One was rejected (too high and not worth saving), one I was high and so the instructor demonstrated a forward slip, one touch&go was rough, and one landing.

Overall, I was pleased. Flying was not slick, but I did much better than I thought I would after a 10 month layoff.