Selection Flight

Small cumulus clouds at 4000 feet, wind from 240° at 10 knots. Perfect weather for the selection flight! I arrived at the aero club at 2:30 PM and set up my belongings in an office. An envelope was waiting for me, containing the eight mandatory waypoints for this navigation. After about an hour of calculations and sketching, I was ready. I printed out the weather report and NOTAMs, sent an email to the FFA with my departure time and fuel consumption details.

I topped up the fuel and performed the pre-flight checks. After boarding, I turned on the FFA flight recorder. The engine started at 4:30 PM. I sent a radio message to the tower and taxied to holding point B28. With successful engine tests, I aligned with the runway and took off. At 700 feet, I turned towards the first waypoint. The various waypoints followed one after another; I focused on maintaining my altitude and headings.

The seventh waypoint marked the end of the “navigation” portion. I headed towards the eighth waypoint, which signaled the start of the “maneuverability” section. This involved following a straight course and executing perfectly round turns. Then, I returned to the airfield. The tower cleared me for a long approach on runway 32. I landed smoothly and taxied to the club’s parking area.

I refueled. To document the amount of fuel added and the navigation documents, I asked André (the instructor) to add the aero club stamps and his signature. Thank you, André! Next, I sealed the envelope containing the flight recorder and the documents. It will be sent to the FFA tomorrow for processing.

Flight Summary

The weather conditions were ideal; I think I had a good navigation run. We’ll see the results on May 22nd – whether or not I’ll continue with this endeavor! I also posted a short video summarizing this flight.