learning-to-fly Archives

Learning to Fly: Lesson 25 (Video)

Posted on June 9, 2025July 2, 2025 by rich

This weekend I took to the (moody) skies again in the brilliant Aquila A211 at Teesside Airport. After a very dodgy takeoff on my 1st lesson in the Aquila, and a landing that required instructor intervention to arrest our descent rate over the runway, I approached this lesson with some trepidation – and a lot of humility.

Learning to Fly: Lesson 24

Posted on June 5, 2025June 9, 2025 by rich

This lesson is a big turning point in my journey towards my pilot’s license. First, I’m moving flying schools and, second, I’m changing aircraft!

Learning to Fly: Lesson 23 (Full Flight Video)

Posted on July 10, 2024July 11, 2024 by rich

After just over 4 months since my last flying lesson I’m resuming my navigation training, this time with a solo navigation to historic Durham City. I brought the GoPro with me so you can join me on this flight from Eshott in Northumberland to Durham and back, through the controlled Class D airspace of Newcastle […]

Learning to Fly: Lesson 22

Posted on February 20, 2024February 20, 2024 by rich

My 22nd lesson turns into a photo blog of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and Durham from the air at sunset

Decarbonising General Aviation (Oct ’23 Update)

Posted on October 16, 2023October 16, 2023 by rich

I recently wrote about decarbonising General Aviation (GA) under the heading of “Futurology”, but it turns out that that future has already started to arrive, and our travel to a future of carbon-neutral GA is accelerating.

Learning to Fly: Lesson 21

Posted on September 8, 2023September 8, 2023 by rich

My first solo navigation exercise, 61 nautical miles through the afternoon September sun, with a nice surprise afterwards.

Learning to Fly: Lesson 20

Posted on July 2, 2023July 11, 2023 by rich

The night before this lesson I checked the weather. It said the skies would be clear but the wind would be 13 knots (~15mph) gusting to 22 knots (~25.5mph) from a heading of 250 degrees (i.e. from the west-ish). When I arrived at the airfield the wind had picked up considerably and there was a […]

Learning to Fly: Lesson 19

Posted on June 25, 2023July 11, 2023 by rich

As usual, I had been glued to the weather reports for the days leading up to this lesson and, as usual, the weather forecasts were completely wrong. The Plan (A) Over the past 6 hours of flying I’ve stayed within the circuit at the airfield, going around and around and around. I estimate I’d around […]