This week I got to do my second commercial lesson, where I learned how to do a steep spiral and "eight's on pylons". I got to demonstrate all the maneuvers, and they were all done fairly well (although my CFI talked me through the eight on pylons). I think I'm going to stop booking flights for 1pm. The midday temperature is stupidly hot. By the time you get back on the ground, your clothes are soaked in sweat and smell like a pig. I have a lot of respect for the ramp personnel who work in this heat all summer long to ensure that flights move on time. I salute all of you.
After spending the next few hours at the airport, I finally got to ride in the back seat of the Seminole I'd use for my training. On the climbout, we were getting just about 1000fpm, which seemed respectable given the temperature. I observed some steep turns, Vmc demonstrations and engine out procedures. The procedures are a fair bit more complicated than those of the 172 I'm used to flying, so they'll take some getting used to, but I'm still looking forward to it. As we went back to the airport, night was falling and the student prepared for an instrument approach. This is where the plane really interested me, as it had backlights for all the instruments, a Garmin 530, plus a Horizontal Situation Indicator (HSI). It really looked like it would be a joy to fly under IFR. This was to be the student's first night landing and it was, umm, firm. Let's hope I fare better when my turn comes around. Once we got in, I scheduled the plane for my own lesson. I'm looking forward to writing in that MEL (Multi-Engine Land) column of my logbook. See you next time!
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