AOPA Online Members Only -- AOPA ePilot Flight Training Edition -- Vol. 6, Issue 7

DO YOU REVIEW?
You've heard it said that learning to fly starts with a foundation of knowledge on which new blocks of learning are built. First learn basic flying skills, then apply them in various combinations. Flying the traffic pattern at the right speed, altitude, and configurations, for instance, combines numerous aircraft-control skills. And by maintaining the aircraft at the correct distance from the runway while flying the traffic pattern in the wind, you are applying skills learned during past practice of ground-reference maneuvers.

Suppose that last traffic pattern did not go so well-what went wrong? Chances are you were only off on one element. Was the wind stronger than you thought, so you drifted too close to the runway during the downwind leg, causing you to overshoot the turn from base to final? What's needed here isn't just more practice in the traffic pattern. Go back and work briefly on ground-reference maneuvers such as the rectangular course. Download Chapter 6 of the Airplane Flying Handbook.

Especially after you have soloed and can practice maneuvers alone, use what your growing experience teaches you about your piloting strengths and weaknesses to shape your training. Tell your instructor what you are seeing. "A good way to organize your study and preparation for each lesson is to build your own lesson plan for the next lesson's objective-or FAA task-and use this as a study guide before you meet with your instructor at the airport. You'll save time and money by being prepared for what's to come," Joel Stoller suggested in the May 2004 AOPA Flight Training article "Preflight Prep: Five Steps to Efficient Flight Training."

Stage checks, formal or informal, help keep previously learned skills fresh. Other methods of review include riding as an observer on another student's dual training flight, or going on an occasional outing with a pilot/mentor. All these methods are described in the November 15, 2002, Training Tips article titled "Measuring Your Pilot Skills."

Don't save the review for the end of training under the three hours of "test prep" you must log within 60 days preceding the date of your flight test. Dedicate some quality time to revisiting the basics, keeping your foundation of learning rock solid and your flying sharp.

MANEUVERING FLIGHT DVD AVAILABLE NATIONWIDE
In the wake of the horrific Roseville, California, maneuvering flight crash last Sunday that has generated so much anti-GA publicity, the AOPA Air Safety Foundation is encouraging pilots to review the basics of low and slow flight. The foundation's full-length Maneuvering Flight: Hazardous To Your Health? DVD and a free companion Safety Advisor are both available to pilots nationwide. The DVD is sold for $19.95 through Sporty's Pilot Shop, and the Safety Advisor is available for free download from the Air Safety Foundation's Web site.

AOPA EXPO RETURNS TO NORTHEAST IN 2007
Northeast pilots, AOPA Expo is headed your way in 2007. The association has chosen Connecticut's capital, Hartford, to host AOPA Expo 2007, general aviation's premier convention and trade show. Expo will run October 4 through 6, 2007. AOPA President Phil Boyer cited two key reasons for the choice: The large concentration of pilots in the area for whom Hartford is easily accessible by car or light airplane, and what he termed the "ideal airport environment for the world's largest general aviation organization to host its annual convention." For more information, see AOPA Online.

HAVE YOU UPDATED YOUR AOPA MEMBER PROFILE?
To make the most of your membership and allow us to serve you better, please visit AOPA Online and update your personal member profile.

WEATHER INFO, DIRECT TO YOUR CELL PHONE
eMETAR.com is a free weather service that sends METAR and TAF weather reports to an e-mail address or cellular phone. Pilots also can sign up for a "wake-up" service that is programmed to call a cell number at a preset time, or to send updated METARs when the report hits selected weather minimums. For more information, see the Web site.

Note: Products listed have not been evaluated by ePilot editors unless otherwise noted. AOPA assumes no responsibility for products or services listed or for claims or actions by manufacturers or vendors.