hoverlover’s “there are many like it, but this one is mine” extra long title bs thread and build too

Good mornin! I didnt realize they were that quick, that's pretty cool. Id imagine the view is much more entertaining up there as well

 

Morning Matt!

Morning Maner!

Morning Robert!

Yea they boot scoot pretty good with the tailwind. Without we'd have been cruising about 145mph. But it's a straight line and there's no traffic slowing down or stopping to deal with. We're much lower and slower than a jet and the windows on that one go from below your feet to over your head; the view is unsurpassed.

 

Good Morning Alex

 

Morning, Alex

 

Good evening Alex! That sounds incredible! I can only imagine the view, id have to tell myself to not look down though.. im skeered of heights

 

Haha funny thing, I am too

 

Does it get easier the more you fly?

 

Oddly enough the flying doesn't bother me. There is one maneuver I have to teach that will trigger it though. Helicopters can get into a situation where they can more or less free-fall into their own downwash. To instruct the recognition and recovery technique, we go 2,500 feet up and come to a hover, that gets me every time. Flying that high doesn't bother me. Hovering does.



I've had tons of people tell me they're afraid of heights and none of them have ever freaked out.

 

Morning Alex

 

Good Morning Alex

 

Afternoon guys, how's it going?

 

Good just ate and it’s my Friday
How about you?

 

Tired. Exhausted. Starving. Monday can't come soon enough.

My chief pilot said he was surprised they called me back at all. The company I'm interviewing for is very picky about who they hire. He said they wouldn't hire anyone without 500+ hours flying in the gulf already.

 

That sucks man but good news about the job. I really hope you get it.

 

Headed to Lake Charles. Hoping this is the first of many trips to and from

 

Good luck brother! Drive safe

 

Safe travels Sir

 

Thanks guys

Not a bad drive to be honest, 202 miles from my house to the airport. Did it in a tank and about 5 hours. Truck was getting just shy of 16mpg. I did some last minute studying and more I'm going to get whatever sleep I can. Talk to you tomorrow

 

What a day! Just getting back home. That Houston traffic added TWO HOURS to the trip!

Overall, the interview went really well. The written test was easy and I got it done pretty quick. In the simulator they had me take off in absolute shit weather in an airframe I've never flown and as soon as I got to my cruise altitude they dropped the clouds on me and I couldn't see anything outside. Since the flight was to be under visual flight rules and I inadvertantly flew into conditions where I could no longer see where I was going I had to declare an emergency and make an approach to land back at the airport I had taken off from. It's not as simple as turn around and go back though. The instrument approach requires flying out several miles to line up with an instrument landing system before I can turn back in. With zero reference to the horizon, it's incredibly difficult to tell which way is what and it's incredibly easy to get yourself killed. Many pilots die unnecessarily each year by flying into conditions of poor visibility

Spoiler: Warning: distressing video

https://youtu.be/IRrYzII86aY

I haven't done any flying under instrument flight rules since 2016 and it showed. But, the test was all about my decision making and not so much nailing the procedures. Regardless, I handled it well and made all the right decisions, even though I screwed up some of the procedure, the examiner said it was clear I would have made a safe landing and could overlook my mistake (forgot to push ONE button!). The lead instructor said he doesn't compliment very often and from his initial demeanor I'm inclined to believe it. Still, he had a lot of good things to say about how I dealt with it. The final interview went well, they all said I'm exactly the type of person they want to hire. But I need more experience, specifically in the gulf. They want me to go work for another company, Rotorcraft Leasing Company (RLC) for about a year to build gulf experience then go back and reapply. They had a number of side conversations between themselves at my exit interview about how I'm right on the edge of the required experience and it might be worth it to hire me now. In the end they decided to err on the side of caution and did not. However, they made it abundantly clear I've got a spot there in the future. Overall I'm actually very happy with how it all went, despite not getting the job. A little gulf experience and I'll be a shoe-in. Guess I'll get started on that other application.

 

Full story above, @Oldie2007