It has been so long since I have talked about flight school on here, so I thought I would share while I had the time. Recall that back in January, I initially had big problems flying a helicopter...thankfully, that passed, and I became pretty comfortable in one and was able to make it do what I wanted it to...all that to say, I was successful. The next phase was instruments, during March and April. I just thought that I had had problems in the first phase. No doubt, without question, it was only by the grace of God that I got through this phase successfully. The month of May brought my final course of Initial Entry Rotary Wing training, Basic Warfighting Skills. It was only a month long, and the last two weeks of it were the first time that I had fun since being here. Sad, huh? Anyhow, BWS was flying low and fast, landing in fields, etc. and I had a really fun stick-buddy and instructor.
Now, when I got here in May of 2009, the wait between BWS and the Blackhawk course was 4-5 months, but it has been dwindled down drastically. At the end of May, I was given a Blackhawk start date of July 9th. So, as you probably know, I was home for 3 weeks, which gave me 3 weeks to be back down in Fort Rucker and learn the things that I need to know before I started the course...which was a lot. So when I got back on Saturday, I took time to get back settled, and I started casually looking at the information Monday night. On Tuesday afternoon, 4:00, I got a call that I was to start the Blackhawk course the next day at 7:30 am. My 3 weeks became 2 days, which were gone, and I hadn't used them to accomplish a thing. I sat in class Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, and was not in the mental mind-set to be in academic classes...at all.
Panic sat in. I had a test on Monday morning over the limitations and emergency procedures of the helicopter. I had to know the startup and runup procedures, with about 50 associated notes, cautions, and warnings...all of this while not knowing what the inside of a Blackhawk looks like. Now throw in the fact that I was lost in academics (the hydraulics system was greek to me, yet it is very very very important, as it is impossible to control the helicopter without it), and I was very frustrated and scared. I studied like I never have...I didn't know that I had the ability to do what I did, but I caught up, passed every test they threw at us and made it to the flightline last Friday.
This study guide is about 2 inches thick with note-cards, each card being one piece of info I had to know for my test on the 4th day of class.
So last Friday, July 9th, I flew a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter, albeit very poorly. I went from a helicopter that cannot takeoff if it weighs 3,500 pounds because it's too heavy, to one that carries 3,000 pounds of fuel. It can weigh up to 22,000 pounds, but the ones here are stripped of most mission equipment, and we weigh in about 15,000 pounds daily.
Now, in addition to the weight, the change is like you have been driving a Geo Metro without power-steering for a long period of time, and then hopping in a decked-out Cadillac. Remember, helicopters don't want to fly...airplanes do. So the little helicopter I flew in for 5 months was constantly fighting to go to the ground, which required a constant fight from the pilot. The Blackhawk is, in some respects, like an airplane. You don't have to fight it to fly...it's smooth...it's fluid...it's awesome.
It is still like learning to fly all over again, though, and in my first 4 days of flying, I have had one good day, which was the second day, making it all the more frustrating. The first phase that I am in is only one more week long, and then I have a check-ride. This next week has to be a good one, or I'm not sure what will happen. Scary thing, they are sending people home from here...after being here a year and a half...if you don't have it, they don't have the time for you to get it. It is a real enough consideration for me that I am putting off buying plane tickets to fly home the first two weekends of September, because I may already BE home! If I were to get through each course successfully, no hiccups, I will be done at the end of September, and home about mid-October. It can't get here soon enough.
In the meantime, I am going to do the best I can, not worry about it, pray heavily, and ask my friends and family to pray for me.
Caroline checking out the paisley design...she approved!
