Lessons learned?

[wants to fly]

I am curious. What are some of the bigger mistakes you have made early in your flying career or even when first learning to fly that have had the biggest impact on you? There is such a vast wealth of experience and knowledge here, it would be a shame to not try to learn something from it.

[Eric Hunt]

Biggest mistake was not finishing the ATPL subjects when still young. Would have been a retired airline pilot now with a pocket full of cash, instead of a retired helicopter pilot with a pocket full of holes.

[helonorth]

Get plenty of night time during training and instructing. 100 hours minimum.

[r22butters]

If you decide to take any of these "time building" offers, don't just sit there wiggling the sticks letting the other guy make all the decisions (i.e. telling you where to go)!

 

Insist on being the PIC of the entire flight! Plan the route, work the radios, etc...!

 

Even though you may think that, "since I'm paying for this the other guy may as well do something", don't be lazy, do it all yourself!

 

Getting into a frame of mind where I am just mindlessly wiggling the sticks while the guy next to me is in control is how I almost became another IIMC CFIT statistic!

[ARM_Coder]

I still was a student doing my PP course, so I'm not sure whether it really counts.

 

Never go fly tired or if you have the slightest feeling you're about to get ill. I did a night flight where my mind was so numb that the CFI prevented me from killing myself about 3 or 4 times.

 

I was thinking I was just a little tired then. The next morning I woke up with a severe cold and fever, and I had a hard time leaving the bed. The good news was that I was still alive and the bird was parked in the hangar in one piece.

 

A big lesson for me.

[r22butters]

 

Never go fly tired...

,...and if your boss says, "just suck it up and bear through it"

 

QUIT!

 

Just don't drown your sorrows in french fries and pizza, 'cause then the next time someone calls to offer you a job, you'll be too fat! :'(

[Wally]

Take notes and keep a journal, not just a logbook. Especially lessons learned, who, what where, when and why. Do this long enough and you'll plow the same ground many times. If you thought about it, whether it's wishing you had or hadn't done it, you'll have it fresh next time.

 

Oh, and NEVER pass up a chance to run a new airframe, do a new operation, or gain some knowledge from the guy fixing your ride.