A Man and His Airplane

I got a call today from the shop out at Harvey to let me know that work is starting on my plane. If I understood correctly, the engine mount has already been removed and sent off for refurbishment. They've started on the annual inspection while they wait for the mount to return. Once it's back, they'll re-assemble everything, inspect the engine to finish the annual, and then it should be ready to fly again. Assuming nothing is found in the annual that requires major work, it's possible that it'll all be done within a couple of weeks. Alex said they still have to inspect the engine, even though it's been freshly overhauled, Presumably it's part of the required procedure, and must be done regardless. It's probably for the best; if nothing else it'll make absolutely sure that it's in good shape and runs well. In the meantime, I did purchase the Turtle Beach Velocity One yoke. It's mainly targeted at Xbox owners, but it works with a PC as well. I...

Nothing new to report on the status of Ariel. She's still sitting in the shop hangar at Harvey Field waiting to be put back together. In the meantime, I've been trying to keep from getting too rusty. About a week and a half ago, I rented a 172 for a couple of hours and just flew around the area. After landing, I did two more takeoffs and landings. It didn't surprise me that my skill at landing an airplane had atrophied the most, but I also improved again by the third one. The skill fades quickly, but also comes back quickly with renewed practice. I've also been doing a bit of "flying" in Microsoft Flight Simulator. I currently use a Thrustmaster Hotas and a pair of Thrustmaster rudder pedals. For those unfamiliar with the term, "hotas" stands for "hands on throttle and stick". It's a combination of a throttle lever and a joystick, both of which have a bunch of buttons that can be mapped to additional actions like toggling the parking br...