I'm now officially a Private Pilot

[dmcummins]

Well I passed the oral exam and check-ride today. I put a lot of time, effort, and money into getting this and I'm very relieved that I passed.

Now I need to get the high performance and complex endorsement.

[9dreizig]

do yourself a favor,, get your instrument next,, most valuable ticket you can have..

[Dantilla]

Congrats!!

Nothing is as challenging, yet relaxing, as flying the airplane.

Hurry up and get a bunch of hours in the Debonair so your insurance rates drop!

[944Larry]

Congratulations! You now have something that will bring a lifetime of pleasure......and pain. Financial pain mainly.

[tevake]

Thats good news. Its been fun following you in the process so far. Love that plane you got. I think you were right in getting the type of plane that is capable of doing the kind of trips you intend to do.
Please keep us post on your continued training and getting into flying that great machine you now have.

Cheers Richard

[onewhippedpuppy]

Congratulations, you lucky SOB! Have fun and remember that your private pilot is just a starting point.

[slodave]

Congrats!

[crustychief]

Congratulations! Well done.

[Hard-Deck]

Excellent! An instrument ticket should come when it can be done. I HIGHLY suggest that GA pilots get aerobatic training as well. That will boost your knowledge/confidence greatly. Have fun. Be safe.

[dmcummins]

Thanks guys, I need to put in 25 hrs dual to meet insurance requirements and some of that will count toward the instrument rating . It took me 6 months, I was scheduled for three times a week, but weather put me back some. Id just like to get the time in so I can then fly when I want. There were so many days that the weather was great and I couldn't fly due to someone else in the rental plane or the instructor was busy. And it was always windy on my days.

I'm going to try and get the next 25 hours a little quicker. I would think the instructor wouldn't mind. He's getting $55 a hour to ride around with me.

[recycled sixtie]

Well you seem to be coming along well. A couple of posters suggested instrument ticket. That is an excellent idea - kind of like cloud insurance and helps "blind flying" because you can then fly through a cloud successfully without going upside down!

If you spend 25 hours with an instructor make sure he is one you enjoy flying with. $55 an hour may seem like a lot but don't forget he gets paid well for a reason. The reason being that he is a decent human being who has hopefully good people skills and can teach u things. If he is a crusty SOB fire him asap because you won't learn much from him. When you have 500-1000 hours you may think you know everything but there will always be the unexpected. Be alert and stay keen. Enjoy

[Jim Richards]

Congrats, dmc!

[Don Plumley]

Well done (and envious!)!

[dhoward]

Good job Mark!

[vash]

mmmmmm!

hundred dollar burgers!! have fun.

i need to do this one day. maybe not the airplane purchase part.

[304065]

Congratulations on losing your shirttail.

Next, start logging 50+ XC as PIC-- find the max fuel economy speed and set it there. It takes a long time to get your Instrument Rating, which is a GOOD thing. When you poke your head in the clouds solo for the first time you will be very happy that you took the time to do it right. I would love to be an instructor-- lots of hood time, one systems "malfunction" per leg, "quick returns" and changes of destination. . . if it feels like you're just sitting there, OK, developing situational awareness is great, but flying is hours of boredom interrupted my moments of stark raving terror and you want to get your $55 worth. . . Congrats again.

[Seahawk]

Really well done.

Fly as much as you can...once you get comfortable, aviation road trips are adventures without parallels.

Fly the plane, learn. I am, as are the other pilots here, proud of you.

[widgeon13]

Congrats, great job. Now the real learning begins.

[gshase]

Good job. Tell us about the check ride. And as a CFII I can give you a High Performance Sign off. Enclose a check for $50, a picture of yourself in a H.P. aircraft, and a 1 paragraph explanation about your flying skills.

[Dantilla]

Originally Posted by 304065

-- find the max fuel economy speed and set it there.

....And after about 30 seconds, you'll think "Enough of this" and you'll push the throttle back in where it belongs!

Max fuel economy speed is agonizingly slow- Closer to stalling speed than normal cruise.
The only time I fly that slowly is when I'm getting ready to land.