Every pilot, sooner or later, approaches the day when he stands quaking before the flight examiner for his private passenger-carrying certificate. "Will this guy eat me alive? Is he a good Joe or a tough cookie?" Well the chances are he is both a good Joe and a tough cookie.

He is interested only in your ability to fly safely. It is no money in or out of his pocket whether you fail or pass the exam. If you know what is expected of you in the examination, if you can do it reasonably well, if your attitude and temperament are suited for safe flying, he'll probably pass you.

Many students own their own airplanes, or at least are flying their time from solo to private without close supervision. Therefore it is well to go through the procedure the flight examiner expects of you, to know it thoroughly. Knowing the procedure promotes confidence. Let's pass through it quickly.

 

To take your test for private certificate, wear a parachute. You will be doing maneuvers that are classed as aerobatics. Naturally, then, the first thing is to inspect your parachute. Don't forget to glance at the card in the pocket of the 'chute. See if the 'chute has been inspected and re-packed recently. Make sure the harness is adjusted so you could use the 'chute if you needed it.

A line inspection of the aircraft is next in order. Don't miss anything. Check gas, oil, prop, control hinges, tires, cowling fastening. This habit may help make you an old pilot.

You'll go through your oral cockpit procedure before take-off for the inspector's benefit-and your own. Climbing in pattern, keep your neck on a swivel. Never make a turn without looking around for other traffic. Make definite, sure turns, but do not slam the airplane around, be a fighter pilot on a binge. That denotes a certain cockiness, a temperament unsuited to a good civilian pilot. Fly surely, but gently.

You'll do your three spot-landings, one of which may be a slip. I like to make the slip-landing first because that's the one you know you are going to make, gives you a chance to feel the air, the wind, the "humps" and still make it. Then do your other two.

When you climb out after the last spot-landing (you passed it, keep going), pick two pylons. The pylons may be trees, poles, anything the correct distance apart. They should lay crosswind, so you can enter the figure 8 pattern flying down-wind. You are going to do eight's around pylons, making good an even track on the ground, regardless of the attitude of the airplane. You fly pylons at five hundred feet. The inspector will expect you to make three eight's around. He'll watching you feel-out the wind on the first one and will be much interested in what you do about it on the next two. Watch your altitude. Don't gain, don't lose-anymore than you can help!

Now we start our high-stuff. Climb to 2,000 feet in a series of 90-degree climbing turns. That isn't to find out if you can do climbing turns. It's the safe way to get there. It widens your visibility, keeps you from colliding with Dilbert, who isn't looking.

At 2,000 feet you do two power-turns of 720 degrees each way with a bank of more than 45 degrees. Here is where he finds out whether you can hold a bank without slipping, without stalling. Get your angle and your turn, hold it.

Now comes our series of stalls, power on, partial stall, normal stall, complete stall and climbing turn-stall. Now the same with power off. Use your throttle at the bank of the stall, except in your gliding turn stall.

At 3,500 feet, we'll do our spins. Do at least one complete turn each way. Do a precision spin, show the guy you can control it. Head down a road, pull it up into a stall, kick into the spin, bring it out on the same road. Easy? Sure you made it!

Coming down, the inspector wants to see your slow-flying procedure. That is you maneuver the plane right at stalling speed, but don't stall, don't let it fall off, just keep it flying-slow, but safe.

At 2,000 feet you do slips both ways, then your spirals. Don't let the wind blow you away in the spiral. Plan your spiral shallow into the wind, Stephen it up down-wind.

Come back toward the field doing coordination exercises. This is that little rollicking and rolling bit of flying where you find out whether your hands and feet will coordinate in a turn.

That's all there is to it, except you will get a forced landing anytime during the test. Don't let it worry you. Just pick a field you know you can make, then don't change your mind and head for a better one. During the test a cross-eyed man has a slight advantage. He can fly with one eye, while he keeps the other eye on a good field.
Quit shaking, brother, you passed it! You're a private pilot now!

Tampa to Munich
Speaking of overnight hops, Lt. Al Catallo, husband of Warsawan Al Bowman's daughter, Betty, is now in Munich, while Betty and the two little Catallos keep the home fires burning in Rapid City, South Dakota. Lt. Catallo pilots a bomber for the air corps, left Tampa, Florida, on Monday to arrive in Munich, Germany on Wednesday. He will be gone 30 days.

Down Mexico Way
I am trying hard to get our Silver Lake friend Bog Hogue to jot down a few facts about his flying vacation to Mexico. Pretty wife, Marthellen, went along. They flew a two-place Ercoupe all the way; had a grand time and some wonderful experiences. If bashful Bob will tell us more about it, we'll pass it on to you. Come on Bob, let us all in on it.

Duel in the Wind
Now is the time for all pilots to take a few minutes dual time (with instructor) in these fresh, gusty winter winds. A check on your procedure now may save a sizable break in your neck.

Warsaw Daily Times Wed. Nov. 12, 1947

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