The New Pilot PodBlog

In this episode I welcome Alex Turnbull into the virtual hanger. Alex is a mountain flying instructor at the Wakatipu Aero Club in Queenstown, New Zealand. This is another episode of what you can do with your certificate aside from the typical $100 hamburger or pancake breakfast flight. Listen in as Alex talks about mountain and remote strip flying in this unique and challenging airspace. He also talks about the unique requirement of private pilot training in New Zealand, hint it involves mountain flying. I hope Steve and Grant from the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast don't get angry with me for encroaching on their part of the world. Below is information from Gareth Allen, in charge of promotion for the club, on the club itself and the area. The aero club flies four cessna 172s, a cessna 206, and a Tecnam P2002JF. Most of the club revenue comes from flights into Milford Sound, a popular scenic area, with a challenging approach and landing at Milford Sound airstrip. The strip itself is 1800ft long, at the intersection of two valleys and the sound itself, producing a washing machine of turbulence, and an awkward traffic pattern. On busy summer days the airspace can get quite busy, with Islanders, Caravans, and smaller planes shuffling tourists in and out from Queenstown. Weather in the area is quite changeable, making the flight impossible roughly a third of the days during the summer, as all tourism operations are done under VFR. Often when weather is marginal, some passes into the area will be closed, making local knowledge of the network of creeks and valleys in and out of the sound essential. Flight training makes up the rest of the club's income, with a mixture of overseas and local pilots earning PPLs, CPLs, and doing mountain flight training. There is no instrument flight training at Queenstown, as the IAFs are all at ~10k feet, and the DHs at 4000 (runway elevation is 1200ft). The specialty here is mountain flying, as every flight that leaves Queenstown interacts with the mountains, and there are an almost endless supply of new valleys to explore. A few dozen remote strips of ranging difficulty within a half hour's flight round out the saddle-crossing, low flight, and contour flight training. There's also a beach landing strip 40 minutes away, for beach operations training. Given Queenstown's reputation as the "adventure capitol of the world," many tourists want an aviation experience that is less scenic, and more exhilarating. The club gives trial flights daily during the summer months, mostly to foreign tourists, through the river valleys and back over the lake to Queenstown. At the high end of the adrenaline spectrum is the aerobatic flight, using a Pitts Special. The Pitts is known for being extremely difficult to fly, and especially to land. It can't be landed with a "wheel landing" and instead needs a three-point landing. At that flight attitude there is zero forward visibility, meaning that pilots must use peripheral vision to keep lined up with the runway and avoid ground looping.  You can find more about the Wakatipu Aero Club at their website http://www.wakatipuaeroclub.com/ You can Email them at  frontdesk@wakatipuaeroclub.com And you can follow them on Twitter @AirWakatipu  Here is a short video showing one of the local strips the club uses for advanced strip training: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hCZs91EYI-k https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Lucas+Place+Queenstown+Airport+Queenstown,+New+Zealand&hl=en&ll=-45.015727,168.74897&spn=0.040956,0.090895&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=46.677964,93.076172&hnear=Lucas+Pl,+Frankton,+Queenstown+9300,+Otago,+New+Zealand&t=h&z=14 Blue skies and tailwinds always. You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog And LIPilot on myTransponder.com Please join the myTransponder.com group Friends of The New Pilot PodBlog. The New Pilot PodBlog is now on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TheNewPilotPodBlog The intro and closing song is called On The Run 1 and it is by www.pacdv.com/sounds/ Direct access to the mp3 is here

On the third anniversary of receiving my pilot's license, I look back at 2011 to see if the goals that I had set at the end of 2010 were met. In 2011 I logged time in 2 different aircraft; Tecnam Sierra and of course the SportCruiser I logged 15 flights (7 less than 2010) 21.4 PIC hours (3.6 less than 2010) and all LSA PIC hours 9.1 XC hours (5.6 more than 2010) Landed at 6 different airports I went over 100 PIC hours  Had my first BFR So how did I do? Did I meet the goals I set out at the end of 2010 for 2011? Looking back, 2011 was a mixed year for me. I did get more XC hours but they were mostly from 2 flights to the UCAP meet up in Nashua NH. One we made and the other was aborted due to weather. That being said, they were the 2 longest flights since my long XC. And both were great learning experiences In 2011 I joined two volunteer organizations. I always wanted to use my pilot’s license to help others so I joined the Civil Air Patrol and Patient AirLift Services. Patient AirLift Services or PALS (http://www.palservices.org/), is an organization that arranges free air transportation based on need to individuals requiring medical care and for other humanitarian purposes. Overall, 2011was a good year. I continued to fly and meet new friends through aviation and my podcast. Have a listen to see if I met my goals and what my goals are for 2012. I would like to wish all of my listeners and your families, Happy Holidays and a safe and joyful New Year.  Blue skies and tailwinds always. You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog And LIPilot on myTransponder.com Please join the myTransponder.com group Friends of The New Pilot PodBlog. The New Pilot PodBlog is now on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TheNewPilotPodBlog The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here

Dave and Jeff (back row), Jim, Rob, Len, Kristen, Rick, Dorrie, Jack and Rick  (Photo by Jeff Ward) In this episode, I talk with David Torrente about the recent flights we have taken together. All of them were up to Nashua NH to meet the gang at the UCAP meet-up. All three of them were somewhat adventurist and we learned a lot from them. We discuss what happened, our decisions, why we made the decisions and most importantly what we learned from each flight. So if you want to hear what happened along the way to Nashua, please join us in the virtual hangar. I hope you enjoy the discussion and maybe even learn something from it. As always, I had goals for this flight. One was to go on a cross-country flight. This is the one area where I would like to improve upon. Most of my hours up until this year have been either spent practicing or short sight-seeing trips around LI. I really want to fly more XC flights and get more comfortable landing at unfamiliar airports. As you will hear from this episode, Dave has more experience than me in XC flying and there is no one better to fly them with. A second goal was to meet the Jack and the gang for brunch at the midfield café. Isn’t that what getting your PPL is all about? Flying to an airport with a good restaurant to hang out with friends.  Not only were these goals met, but as you will hear, we had some practice de-icing a plane and diverting to other airports. Dave & Jack in conversation. Kristen and Len from the Stuck Mic AvCast. Myself, Dave and Jack. Dave, Rick and Dorrie in front of Rick's 172 The gang chatting after a good meal Waiting for take-off. (Photo by Jeff Ward) Rick next to his plane Shoutouts: 1)  David Torrente, an excellent pilot and great flying companion. I look forward to many more XC flights with him. Hopefully not as eventful as our last few. 2) Jack Hodgson for arranging the meetups. They are a lot of fun. A great opportunity to meet up with friends that you only see at aviation events. 3) Dave Pascoe from LiveAtc.net, Rick Felty and Len Costa from the Stuck Mic AvCast (it was also great meeting Rick’s wife Dorrie and Len’s girlfriend Kristen), Jeff Ward from behind the scenes at UCAP, Rick Sheppe and Jim Goldman who were at the meetup. 4) A big shoutout to Bradley approach who helped us find the airport when we needed to land. Podcast Promos: 1) Pilots Journey Podcast 2) Plane Crazy Down Under 3) The Aviation Media Network Blue skies and tailwinds always. You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog And LIPilot on myTransponder.com Please join the myTransponder.com group Friends of The New Pilot PodBlog. The New Pilot PodBlog is now on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TheNewPilotPodBlog The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here

Hello everybody. In this episode I have invited special guests to a round table discussion the Civil Air Patrol. I have always been interested in joining and had some questions. So I decided to invite some very special guests, who are all members of the Civil Air Patrol to answer some questions and talk about their experiences in the Civil Air Patrol. I figured if I was interested in joining and had some questions, some of the listeners of this podcast might also have questions and might be interested in hearing about the Civil Air Patrol. We discuss many different subjects including how to join, the different types of squadrons, the commitment level required, the aircraft, the different jobs, the history and the mission of the Civil Air Patrol. The listener who is a pilot will be interested in hearing about what he or she can do with his or her private pilot's license. For the student pilot or a person interested in becoming a pilot, he or she will interested in the discussion of whether he or she can get their Private Pilot's License through the Civil Air Patrol (hint: the cadet member can the senior cannot, but he or she can get advanced ratings). I learned a lot about the Civil Air Patrol and am planning to join (I will keep everyone updated). This is a great organization where young people can gain very important skills that will serve them well for the rest of their life and where anyone can do great work and server their community and country. For anyone interested please go to http://gocivilairpatrol.com/. As a note, everyone who participated in this discussion were speaking as individuals and their comments do not reflect the views of the Civil Air Patrol. Future Discussion This is first in a series of discussions I am planning to have on different things that a new pilot, or for that matter any pilot, can do in addition to the $100 hamburger.  Hopefully this will get the juices flowing of anyone thinking about getting their PPL or kick-starting a dormant pilot. If anyone would like to hear about a specific subject, please email me. I will try to set up a discussion about it. Shoutouts: I will like to thank my guests for spending 2 hours with me discussing the Civil Air Patrol. Steve Tupper from Airspeed Podcast and Acro Camp David Allen from The Pilot's Flight PodLog and Other People's Airplanes Nate Deuhr from The Mile High Flyers Podcast Rod Rakic from myTransponder.com David Crawford Podcast Promos:Airspeed Pilot's Flight PodLog Blue skies and tailwinds always. You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog And LIPilot on myTransponder.com Please join the myTransponder.com group Friends of The New Pilot PodBlog. The New Pilot PodBlog is now on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TheNewPilotPodBlog A Proud Member of the Aviation Media Network: http://TheVoicesInYourHead.com The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here

Hello Everybody! In this episode I take you along on my first aerobatic ride. On September 5, 2010 I go flying with Mike Bellenir in Mike Mancuso's Extra 300L for some aerobatic flying. We did aileron rolls, loops, hammerheads, Cuban eights, 90 degree hesitation rolls and Immelmans. It was absolutely INCREDIBLE! I take you into the cockpit with me as Mike takes me through all of the maneuvers. Mike is a great instructor and an accomplished acrobatic pilot and he really made the flight enjoyable. The day was picture perfect, blue skies, puffy clouds and a nice little crosswind. We flew for about 20 minutes and just about all of that time was filled with aerobatic flight. My favorite maneuver was the hammerhead. You climb straight up vertical until the plane runs out of airspeed and begins to stall, you then kick the rudder and the plane pivots to the side of the rudder used and dives straight down towards the earth. You the pull out from the dive to go to straight and level flight. It was absolutely amazing. Aerobatic flight is one of the goals that I laid out in episode 1 - Goal Setting. It is part of the New Experience category and I plan to do more this summer. I hope to add spins into the mix. Have a listen and join me in the cockpit for some aerobatic flight. Don't worry, I didn't hurl! Shout Outs: Mike Bellenir for taking me up and getting me hooked on aerobatics. If you are on Long Island and would like to go up for the flight of a lifetime with a great instructor, please stop by Mid Island Air Service at Brookhaven Airport (KHWV) and sign up for a flight.   http://mmairshows.com/  http://www.midislandair.com/COMPANY-INFO/Locations.html#location2 Checkout these two airspeed episodes where Stephen Force interviews Mike Mancuso  Airspeed - Aerobatics and Airshows with Michael Mancuso Aerobatic Ride with Michael Mancuso in the Extra 300L Blue skies and tailwinds always. You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog And LIPilot on myTransponder.com Please join the myTransponder.com group Friends of The New Pilot PodBlog. The New Pilot PodBlog is now on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TheNewPilotPodBlog The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here

Hello everybody. In this episode I invite a group of friends into the virtual hanger for a discussion on using the iPad in aviation. I recently purchased one and was trying to figure out how best to use this new, exciting tool. I took it up with me during a flight in the PiperSport and was very impressed with it. I immediate knew that the iPad will be great tool in my flight bag but I was unsure how best to fit it in my workflow, from preflight, enroute and post flight. To get a better understanding on how others use this cool, new toy, I decided to ask some friends who have already been using it. I figured that if I had these questions, others might have the same questions or at least be curious on using the iPad. So I decided to invite them to a round-table discussion to learn how they use it, what apps they use and to get any tips that might help me figure out how to use it in my flying. I hope you enjoy it. Show Notes: Highlight of what was discussed: How reliable is the GPS What apps does each guest use and how the use them Will the iPad replace paper charts Until the chart margin information is included in the apps it will never replace paper charts A side note: after the episode I tried Flight Prep iChart and found that it displays the margin information The stitching of different charts and from TAC to Sectional The utility of being able to see where you are on a section/TAC and not just on a topographical map There is a concern that pilots will be looking inside the cockpit instead of outside even more with the iPad Concern about the simulated flight instruments and pilots relying on them The iPad as n educational tool FAA PDFs eBooks Jason Miller's (The Finer Points) communication app How to mount the iPad RAM mounts kneeboards Anti-glare screen protector Adam's custom pre-flight checklist that includes the iPad  Social Networking How myTrasnsponder.com and OshPlanner.com fit in Logbooks Log Ten Pro Logbook Pro JetRecord.com How we use the iPad for fun Angry Birds X-Plane Is it a legal Electronic Flight Bag Below are the guests who sat at the round table in the virtual hanger. I have listed the apps that they use and a little information about them so that you get an idea how others are using the iPad. Adam Fast @adamcanfly Private Pilot Creator of OshPlanner.com Used iPad on flight to Oshkosh Apps: ForeFlight SkyCharts Pro Mike Miley @mike_miley Co-creator myTransponder.com CFI/ME/Commercial Apps: ForeFlight External GPS GNS5870 with Blue Tooth Larry Overstreet @larryoverstreet PPL/Instrument/Glider uses iPad in Piper Cub Apps: ForeFlight Pilot FAR/AIM Mike Daniels @Mike_Flys Crew member of the Mile High Flyers Podcast PPL uses it to plan dream flights Apps: ForeFlight Log Ten Pro Air Navigation Pro Motion X  Rick Felty @rfelty PPL Aviation Videos on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/user/rdfelty) Apps: ForeFlight Checklists Bookmarks weather websites Weather apps Darren @Shotgun15e Military (2000 hours F-15) and GA pilot (1000 hours SEL) Has taken the iPad to FL350 Apps iFlyWhere ForeFligh Skycharts Pro Air Navigation Pro Wing X Pro 7 I use the following apps:Air Navigation Pro iChart Duat AeroWeather AOPA Airports iFlyWhere WingC Pro 7 (only for the AFD) Thanks for listening. Blues skies everyone! You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog And LIPilot on myTransponder.com Please join the myTransponder.com group Friends of The New Pilot PodBlog. The New Pilot PodBlog is now on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/TheNewPilotPodBlog The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here

Hello Everybody. This episode is my recollections and imperessions of my first trip to Oshkosh. We spent 3 days at AirVenture, camping at Camp Scholler. I participated in Podapalooza on Friday night along with other aviation podcasters. This trip was very special for me since I was able to share my passion of aviation and my first trip to AirVenture with my sons. This was our first "boys" trip together and what a trip it was. The one thing that I will take from this trip is how social media is helping to bring people together, especially the aviation community. I met many of my "social media" friends for the first time in person at Oshkosh. We have all become friendly through Twitter, forums and listening to each other's podcasts. Even before I arrived at Oshkosh I already had meetups scheduled with my friends. So instead of not knowing anyone there, I had parties and meetups to go to. This is what our small community is all about. Strangers coming together with a single, common interest and hanging out like we knew each other for years. You can see my pictures from Oshkosh at http://www.flickr.com/photos/robertcigliano/sets/72157624676352535/ Some housekeeping, The URL for the web site has changed to be less of a mouthful, TheNewPilotPodBlog.com (removing blogspot from the name). The old URL will still work. I am using new equipment, a Behringer XM8500 microphone and Behringer Xenyx802 mixer. I hope the audio quality has improved. I plan to make some more equipment purchases. Please let me know if you hear any improvements. I also have finally created a logo. Please let me know what you think of it. Shutouts: Uncontrolled Airspace (uncontrolledairspace.com) Jeb Burnside @burnsidejJack Hodgson @jackhodgsonDave Higdon (twitterless) Steve Tupper @StephenForce Monika Petrillo @Flyabout Twitter Friends@juliewillfly @adamcanfly @PilotRob950 @TwiliteFlyer @pilot2b @PilotConway @scofreyjet @JHWellington @rfelty Pilot Tony from UCAP forums and myTransponder. Podapalooza Participants Pilots Journey Podcast (pilotjourneypodcast.com) @pilotsjourneyStewart Stoll @CFIStewStuart Stevenson @PilotStuMike Hart @IDMikeAirplane Geeks (airplanegeeks.com)  @airplanegeeksRob Mark  @JetWhinePilotcast (pilotcast.com) @pilotcastKen Shook  @flyingcheezheadTiffany Wolf  @tiffanykwolfBill Williams  @billwilAirPigz (airpigz.com)Martt Clupper @AirPigzMile High Flyers (milehighflyers.com)Nate Duehr @denverpilotMike Daniels @Mike_FlysElisabeth Daniels @LVMoxieGirlDoug Hindman, Jr. @dhindmanjrSpecial Shoutout to Zyola @SupovadeaPlane Crazy Down Under (planecrazydownunder.com) @pcdu (via recording)Steve Visscher @stevevisscherGrant McHerron @falcon124 myTransponder Team Mike Miley @mike_mileyRod Rakic @rodrakic Jason Miller @OnTheFlightLine Special Shoutout to my sons, Robert and Joey. Thanks for listening. Blues skies everyone! You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog And LIPilot on myTransponder.com Please join the myTransponder group Friends of The New Pilot PodBlog. The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here

Hello Everybody, in this episode I interview Bart Jones Chief Pilot of Piper Aircraft about the PiperSport.  The PiperSport is Piper's new Light Sport Aircraft which has captured the attention of the aviation community. As most of you know, this is the plane that I personally fly. Bart shares his insights about this exiting new plane. So sit back and listen and enjoy the interview. I will be at Airventure 2010, arriving Thursday morning and staying until Sunday afternoon. I will be camping at Camp Scholler with my two sons, Robert who is 20 and Joey who is 15. One thing I am excited about is that I will be participitating in Podapalooza along with 20 other podcasters. It will be Friday night beginning at 7:00 PM at the Forum Pavillion 07 mainstage. So stop by and listen live to the voices in you head. Shoutouts: Bart Jones for taking his time out of his busy schedule to talk to me.  Piper Aircraft for allowing Bart to do the interview and for being very helpful and supportive in getting this podcast published.  www.OSHplanner.com, a great website where you can plan your time at Oshkosh. You can view my schedule at http://www.oshplanner.com/schedules/share/RobertCigliano/.  Promos: The Pilot's Journey Podcast - www.pilotsjourneypodcast.com  Plane Crazy Down Under Podcast - www.planecrazydownunder.com The Pilot's Flight PodLog - www.pilotsflightpodlog.com Thanks for listening. Blues skies everyone! You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog And LIPilot on myTransponder.com Please join the myTransponder group Friends of The New Pilot PodBlog. The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here.

In this episode follow Colleen and I as we take a sight-seeing flight along the south shore of Long Island. We start of from Brookhaven airport (KHWV), fly along the south shore beaches and then circle the Montauk lighthouse. This was Colleen's first flight in the PiperSport and her first time flying with me since I received my private pilot's license. I try my hand at recording in-cockpit audio. I hope to show everyone how to get flight following and how easy it is. Even in the busy New York airspace. During my flight I make 4 mistakes. Have a listen to find out what they are and I hope others will learn from them. Shoutouts: 1) PJ Gustafson and The 1940 Air Terminal Museum in Houston, TX. Each year the museum gives away a vintage Cessna aircraft in a raffle to raise money for the continued operation and restoration of the museum building. The airplane is given away on the 3rd Saturday of July each year. Please support this cause and maybe you might win this beautiful airplane. For more information on the museum and the raffle, you can visit their website at http://www.1940airterminal.org, on Facebook by searching for The 1940 Air Terminal Museum, or Follow the museum on Twitter at http://twitter.com/1940ATM. The raffle plane also has its own Twitter account at http://twitter.com/N9379B. 2) Jones Beach Airshow. http://jonesbeachairshow.com Each Memorial Day weekend there is an airshow at Jones Beach in Wantagh Long Island. It is a spectaculart show. This year the Blue Angels are the headlining show. Also performing will beUS Army Golden Knights, Canadian Forces CF-18 Demonstration Team, Sean D. Tucker and Red Bull Air Force to name a few. 3) Joe Rejeske Joe is a new private pilot. I look forrward to many $100 hamburgers with Joe. Congratulations to Joe. 4) Piper Aircraft. Thanks for bringing the PiperSport to the market. Also, personal shoutouts to Mark Miller, Chief Corporate Spokesperson and Bart Jones, Chief Pilot of Piper Aircraft for taking time to tlk to me about the PiperSport. This will be in the next episode. 5) Our Military personnelOn Memorial Day we should all think about the sacrifices they have made to preserve our way of life and allow us our freedoms and to thank them. My prayers and best wishes go out to them. Thanks for listening. Blues skies everyone! You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog And LIPilot on myTransponder.com Please join the myTransponder group Friends of The New Pilot PodBlog. The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here.

http://www.flyaboutmovie.com/ In this episode I do things a little bit differently. I don't talk about one of my flights; instead I have invited Monika Petrillo into the virtual hanger to chat about her documentary film, Flyabout. As a relatively new pilot, Monika decided to fly around the continent of Australia with her father, brother and father's wife.  Flyabout is the inspirational and beautiful film which chronicles her flight around Australia. It is not a travel log, it is more than that. It is her personal journey as she grows from a young woman into adulthood. For the pilot or aviation lover, there is a lot of flying in this film. You follow her flights around Australia. You see the beautiful scenery, the wildlife and the people she meets along the way. You see her deal with formation flying, IMC weather, dirt runways and an extreme crosswind landing. You get to see Monika grow as a pilot. This is a must see movie and has a spot on my shelf right next to 16 Right. You can purchase the DVD, read about the movie and watch the trailer on her website http://flyaboutmovie.com/. You can follow Monika on Twitter at  http://twitter.com/Flyabout. Show Notes: Interview with Monika Petrillo about Flyabout the documentary chronicling her flight around the continent of Australia Issues with being the least experienced and the only female pilot Why Australia Her growth as a pilot and a person Her struggles with IMC, crosswind landings, back-country runways and formation flying Her flight to Oshkosh as part of Bonanzas to Oshkosh Discuss each of our trips of Oshkosh 2010  What is a walkabout and is there a connection with Flyabout and what Monika learned about herself The shifting of generations and her conflicts with her father because she is the  more experienced pilot Celebrating the centennial of the first woman to get a pilot's license by setting a record for the most woman being introduced to flying in one single day - March 8, 2010 Her daily prep for each leg of the journey How she conquered an extreme cross-wind landing The 3 Question Segment 1) What do you most like about flying? 2) What do you want to do next? 3) How has flying changed you? Monika's Shoutouts: 1) Will and Dave of The Pilot's Flight PodLog - http://pilotwill.libsyn.com/ 2) Bonanza's to Oshkosh - http://www.b2osh.org/Home_page.htm 3) Lynda Meeks of Girls With Wings - http://girlswithwings.com/ 4) The Ninety-Nines - http://www.ninety-nines.org/ Please go to The Centennial of Woman Pilots website http://centennialofwomenpilots.com/ to celebrate the Centennial of Licensed Women Pilots and Women’s Day, women pilots from around the world will attempt to set a new worldwide flying record: the most women pilots introducing a woman to flying in one single day, March 8, and in one single week, March 6 to March 12. Please visit this site to register and be part of the event. My Shoutouts: 1) Monika Petrillo - Thank You for taking the time for talking to me -  http://flyaboutmovie.com/ 2) Will and Dave for introducing me to Monika's DVD on Episode # 54 Monika Petrillo & Flyabout of The Pilot's Flight PodLog 3) Dave Crawford for helping me test my Skype Connection 4) Plane Crazy Down Under - An aviation based podcast with a focus on the Asia/Pacific area. They are a couple of crazy Aussies (with even crazier accents) talking about aviation - http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/. Thanks for listening. Blues skies everyone! You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog And LIPilot on myTransponder.com The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here.

Happy Holidays! In this episode I look back at my first year as a new private pilot and forward to my second year. It has been an interesting first year for me. I have changed flight schools, got checked out in a new plane, started new training and introduced my 14 year old son to aviation. Heck, I even started a podcast. As good as my first year was, I am looking forward to next year as I continue reaching my goals and experiencing new things. Thanks for listening and  Happy New Year. Blues skies everyone! You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here.

In this episode I discuss my first flight taking up a passenger, my 14 year old son Joey.  Which also happens to be his first General Aviation flight. I wanted to make this flight fun for him so that he would continue to fly with me.  I felt it was important to keep Joey involved so that he would be part of the experience and not just a bystander, hoping that this would keep him relaxed and more interested in the flight. So my goal for this flight was a New Experience. A new experience for me, taking up a passenger and a new experience for my son, flying in his first GA airplane. So at the end, the flight was a success. My goal was met. Not only did Joey enjoy the flight and wants to keep flying with me, but he wants to start taking lessons. We are already planning and looking forward to our next flight together. Now I need to work on his sister, brother and mother. Shout Outs: Uncontrolled Airspace - the best hanger flying podcast myTransponder - the social networking site for pilots, aircrews, maintainers, controllers, instructors, owners, and enthusiasts Thanks for listening. Blues skies everyone! You can reach me at TheNewPilotPodBlog@gmail.com Please send comments and suggestions. You can follow me on Twitter at twitter.com/NewPilotPodBlog The intro and closing song is John Mellencamp's My Aeroplane. Direct access to the mp3 is here.