Welcome on in winter. Boy oh boy, have we had a couple of wet weeks. Well, the New Year seems to be welcoming us with a lot of rain. Good for the environment; horrible for flying hours. Obviously, as the rain besieges us, in order to reduce costs, we will be reducing the front desk hours on the particularly rainy days. No use in having people just watch the clock. If you have a later request, please make sure to phone the operations or the Palo Alto front desk as the main office remains open later in the day than satellite locations.

West Valley will be opening up flight operations in South County airport beginning January 1, 2006. West Valley will be working in cooperation with Magnum Aviation, which purchased 2Genes Aviation in November 2005. All membership privileges and currency will move from one operation to the other. There are currently five aircraft based there, a 1999 182T, a 2000 172S, two Warriors, and a Piper Tomahawk. To the question as to why to expand, really there are two main reasons. First, this was a really low risk opportunity at a turnkey operation, for which there is a growing market. Second, we are continuing to seek opportunities to provide our membership with additional services, facilities, and revenue stability through market expansion in the attempt to keep the member costs down while our operational costs continue to grow. In this year's business planning, there will be no continued proposals for expansion, instead we will continue to bolster up and expand our abilities to serve our customers' needs in our now existing four locations.

We are again offering members the pre-payment option for the monthly dues. Monthly dues via pre-payment are only $45/month. This saves you $60 by the end of the year. All safety incentives apply, so you can lower your dues to as little as $35/month. This offer ends January 31, and we are only taking the first 125 members who apply. If you have any questions, please contact accounting@wvfc.org.

And finally, big hearty congratulations to Dave Fry as CFI of the year. The basic selection criterion for CFI of the year is "who do you want other CFIs to aspire to?" This is determined through a handful of examples: whether the person comports him or herself professionally, whether the person handles escalations well, and how the person contributes to the club and, more importantly, to the greater good of GA. Dave is a safety counselor for the FAA and is a regular contributor to the monthly newsletter. He has done numerous safety seminars and volunteers for the club on a regular basis. Congratulations, Dave; this was well deserved.

The always appreciated:
Thanks to Cassandra Weideman who will be the new Safety Seminar coordinator for WVFC. Cassandra has been a WVFC CFI for about six months now and is a front desk employee at HWD. Thanks to Anna for helping schlep drinks at the holiday party and to all of you who attended and helped add to the holiday cheer.

For those who are interested in helping the club in 2006, there will be a host of airshows, seminars, and aircraft show days at the club. If you would like to be on the list of volunteers, please let me know. Feel free to email gm@wvfc.org.

Thanks for all of the members who joined and continue to be a part of the West Valley Flying Club experience in 2005; here is to a great flying year in 2006.

Happy New Year to all of you! Ken Frank and I would like to wish you all a year filled with love, happiness, success, dreams come true, and… lots of safe and good flying.

For those of you who did not attend, the holiday party last December was a success. Joel Harris, with the help of staff members and instructors, did a great job of having the back room well decorated and ready for the evening. Tammy Tran's catering was absolutely delicious, and the music was awesome. We were also fortunate to have Larry Shapiro open his hangar for us and allow for an extended place to make announcements and dance most of the night away.

However, best of all that evening was the announcement of the instructor of the year, Dave Fry, and the recognition of Ken Frank for his contributions to the club during the eight years he has been our Chief Pilot. Throughout all his years in this position, Ken Frank has shown relentless dedication to our club. His constant involvement with training and his tireless willingness to improve the flight operations have benefited the organization in many ways, and this recognition was long overdue.

When asked in a survey what were the two most important attributes they would like to see in the club's CFI of the year, our instructors replied (among other things) flying skills and experience, dedication to the club, safety focus and enthusiasm. There is no doubt that these are some of Dave Fry's attributes, and I would like to add a great sense of humor and very tasty banana bread! Congratulations, Dave!

Paraphrasing a well-known title, I would say: "Oops, we did it again!" After Hayward in 2004, we have now opened our fourth location in South County. When Magnum Aviation decided to take over the 2Genes FBO/flight training/maintenance operation, they approached Josh Smith and West Valley to manage the flight training side of the company. Since signing the agreement in mid-December, we have been busy getting organized on the operations, maintenance, and training sides. Two instructors already in place at then 2Genes have joined the ranks of West Valley Flying Club: we welcome Ryan Dugan and Lars Fore as well as the staff and maintenance members. We are looking forward to a fruitful cooperation and development of the operation. Already one of the FTDs has been moved down to South County as well as a Warrior. There will be more to come, and we will keep you informed.

The last few weeks have brought some bad weather and, subsequently, a couple of accidents (not at our club, fortunately) related to flying in low visibility, low ceilings, and scud-running. Winter time is a good opportunity to refresh or consolidate your instrument skills with one of our instructors either in flight or in one of our FTDs. Now, if you are not yet instrument rated, this is the perfect time to get a new rating and widen your flying knowledge and skills. Also, along with rainy days, we have experienced extremely high winds; the roads leading to the Palo Alto airport control tower on January 1 were blocked by fallen trees. So, more than ever, it is important to remember to ensure the airplane's postflight is complete: set the control lock; tie the airplane down properly; and ensure that all windows, storm windows, and air vents are tightly closed to keep humidity to its minimum.

As usual, fly safe and have fun!

Are You Sure?
A short while ago, I was giving an instrument checkride in a GPS equipped airplane at Palo Alto. The test was in VMC conditions, and I gave the simulated clearance to Salinas: "Cleared to the Salinas Airport via on takeoff fly heading 320 for radar vectors Woodside V25 Salinas Direct. Maintain 2000, etc."

The applicant programmed the following flight plan into the Garmin 430: KPAO; OSI; SNS; KSNS. If you are familiar with V25, you know that it bends at SANTY. SANTY was not included in the GPS flight plan. Thus, it did not reflect the clearance.

While we were still in the run-up area, I asked whether we were ready to depart. The applicant said "yes." I asked "Are you sure?" He said "yes."

After departure, I gave vectors to V25. He turned onto the programmed route between OSI and SNS. At that point, I had him do recovery from unusual attitudes with the PFD dimmed all the way. When that was complete, we were West of his programmed route and East of V25. Simulating an ATC call, I told him that I showed him East of V25. He advised that in fact he was West of V25.

We continued to follow the GPS programmed route toward SNS. When we were abeam SANTY, I asked whether he was sure we were on V25. He pointed to the display to show that we were on the GPS route. At that point, I advised that the navigation was unsatisfactory.

When you are taking a practical test (checkride), and the DPE asks you "Are you sure?" he/she is not necessarily trying to see whether you have the courage of your convictions. The DPE is saying that he/she is not so sure. That is your cue to immediately rethink your situation. To stick to your guns is to invite an unhappy test result.

Digging into a topic
As previously mentioned in this column, your DPE hopes that you will pass his/her test. However, if you perform a task unsatisfactorily, you cannot pass. Theoretically, one incorrect answer to an oral question results in failure. Both you and the DPE (well, at least you) are human. Human beings make mistakes. So the DPE has to include the human factor in his/her assessment.

Sometimes, after a checkride, the applicant will say something like: "During the ground portion, he really started digging into VOR procedures. I know he was trying to trap me, but I came through."

Boloney. When the DPE starts digging into a topic, it is rarely to trap the applicant or to find some wrong answer. The DPE is looking for a right answer. What triggers the digging process usually is a wrong answer.

In the VOR example, the DPE may have asked "What OSI radial is SANTY on?" The applicant might have answered "The 321° radial."

Now the DPE needs to know whether confusing a course-to with a radial was just momentary brain flatulence or whether the applicant has some real VOR knowledge issues. So the next question is likely to be: "Just what is a VOR radial, in general?" After receiving a right answer followed by a few more correct VOR answers, the DPE feels warm and fuzzy.

On the other hand, the subsequent answers may indicate that the applicant is not ready to navigate using the VOR. So the DPE does him/her (and the primary CFI) the often unappreciated service of delaying the time when the applicant will need to use the VOR to carry his/her passengers safely to a destination. The DPE issues a notice of disapproval (pink slip).

Flight Training Devices
Remember that there are no flight simulators as defined by FAR 61.1(b)(5) at WVFC. Even the new G1000 FTD, although colloquially called a "sim" is not a flight simulator. So don't get confused on the bottom of your 8710-1 Airman's Application. List the time as FTD or PCATD unless you were able to train in a true flight simulator somewhere.

Your CFI may, however, use up to 20 hours of FTD time to meet the 40 hours of instrument time mandated by FAR 61.65(d)(2). In addition, you and your DPE may agree to do some of the FAA Instrument Airplane Practical Test in a device such as the G-1000 FTD.

Spin Recovery
Unfortunately, I am still getting applicants who aren't clear on spin recovery for the airplane they are using for the Private Pilot Practical Test. In the latest case, the applicant had actually done spin recovery with her CFI. However, she had been taught that just letting go of the controls would suffice. That worked with the forward CG configuration they were using. The POH, however, gives the procedure that you would use in any normal weight and balance situation. It is possible (not intentionally) to develop a spin with passengers in the back seat.

Please learn the manufacturer's recommended spin recovery. Please learn the manufacturer's recommended emergency procedures for all listed emergencies and abnormal situations. The procedure may save my life.

It's not every day you get to write an article with a title like "Boiling Frogs," even when you pick the topics and titles yourself, so I just couldn't pass on this one. And a caveat is in order, here. I haven't actually done it, but it makes too much sense not to be true, so here goes.

If you want to boil a frog, the correct technique is to place the frog into water at the same temp as the frog, then heat the water gradually to boiling. Since the frog is heated gradually, it can't tell that the water is hotter. If you drop the frog into boiling water, or even into hot water, it will sense the heat and jump out. People, on the other hand, are warm-blooded and can tell the temperature of the water compared to 98.6F, so gradual heating still lets us know when we're in hot water.

Yet, when we're flying, we're just like the frog. If we're suddenly thrown into a dangerous situation, we'll almost always recognize it for what it is and will successfully get out of it. When an instructor presents a student with an iffy scenario, the student will almost always see the problem and arrive at the safe solution. But in the real world, when the situation arises gradually, we become adjusted to it and eventually find ourselves in hot water without knowing how we got there.

Typical scenarios include decreasing visibility, descending ceilings, increasing crosswinds, icing build-ups, and fuel usage. Pick any of those and follow through the scenarios that cause people trouble.

It's a typical winter day. The ceiling is 2500 overcast with pretty good visibility, and things look (according to the METARs and TAFs) better over at Livermore. So you ask for a right Dumbarton from PAO, then remember how foolish that request is, since 13 is the active runway. You quickly change the departure to a left crosswind. Heading toward Sunol, you start your en route climb. The clouds start looking a bit closer than they should if they're really at 2500, but things look pretty good through the pass at Sunol. The ground is rising now, and the clouds may not be as high as forecast, but when you get through, things will obviously be better. Heck, you can see the sun shining on the hillside near Del Valle. So you motor along, not realizing that you're already in hot water and that you'll soon be a boiled frog. About in the middle of the Sunol pass, you happen to glance back toward PAO and notice that you can't see the airport anymore. There are clouds in the way (which means they are below your altitude). Ahead, that sunlit hillside isn't getting any sun, and the clouds ahead are getting lower, but the ground isn't. As Kermit said, "It's not easy being green," especially if you're in hot water.

Another of my favorite scenarios is the one in which the pilot gets onto downwind and begins descending then is asked by tower to extend to turn base abeam Kaiser (at SQL). When the pilot continues descending, it can result in a VERY shallow angle back to the airport. A 2 mile final at 200 feet?

Ask your favorite instructor, and I'll bet he or she has seen these and hundreds of other situations in which the CFI is waiting for the student to notice that something is amiss and start correcting. A game we play with ourselves is the 15 second count. In the pattern, if not elsewhere, when we see something that will need correcting, we count until the student notices the problem and takes corrective action. When the count exceeds 15 seconds, we usually call it to the student's attention but hope it will get noticed first.

The way in which we avoid becoming a boiled frog is two fold: First, we have to have a set of absolute standards. For example, we might say, "If the reported ceiling at my airport isn't at least 200 feet above the approach minimum, I'll divert to an alternate." Or, "If I can't maintain both 1000 feet ground clearance and 500 feet below clouds, I'll go back." "I'll always leave myself a way out." If you don't have limits, it's really easy not to exceed them. These absolutes act like our warm-blooded body temp and can always give us reliable warning that action is required. We MUST NOT accept a deteriorating situation as normal and think, "Just a little further." We can talk ourselves into all kinds of hot water that way.

Second, we have to notice that things are getting worse. The best bet is to notice that BEFORE things get to our absolute limit. That way, we can prepare mentally for the decision to turn around, go around, divert to an alternate, add power, turn early…. This goes back a bit to the last two articles. Noticing things early and anticipating what's going to be required are part of the Master's touch.

Then, when the time comes and the limit is reached, we take the action we've already decided on.

And frogs don't get boiled. And our geese don't get cooked.

On Stearman Day at WVFC PAO November 19, Al Wilson returned to the air with Andy Geosits.

Al joined the Navy V5 pilot training program in 1946 just out of high school. The Navy created the V5 pilot program to quickly train Naval aviators for WWII deployments and provide at least three semesters of college. Al's first assignment was at the Livermore Naval Base (somewhere near the current Livermore Rad Labs) in the fall of 1946. With fewer than ten hours of training in one week, Al soloed in a Navy N2S Stearman with three landings if you include the bounces. There were two versions of the N2S, with and without a steerable tail wheel.

Late in 1946, the Navy began to reduce the number trainees in the V5 program. Those who did not solo in ten hours were eliminated from the program. After Al soloed in Livermore, he was assigned to ten additional weeks of pre-flight training in Ottumwa, Iowa. WWII was over and the Navy had an excess number of pilots, so Al decided to accept the Navy's early exit option and returned to school to complete his undergraduate engineering studies at Cal Berkeley.

Al was smiling ear to ear when the club's beautiful yellow and blue Stearman touched down at PAO. Al said "I'm ready to go again anytime with Andy. Why did I wait 59 years between flights?"

   
Click Photos to Enlarge

After hearing everyone tell me "It's like learning how to fly all over again" about getting an instrument ticket, I had the sneaking suspicion that I would have plenty to write about for this column that would still be totally applicable to student pilots and their trials and tribulations. During my first instrument lesson, I found out that I could not have been more correct in my assumption.

Take, for instance, my instrument clearance from SQL tower. I thought my instructor would be doing all this stuff as he did on the first few Private Pilot lessons. All this instrument stuff is, after all, a whole new language, much like that weird sounding stuff when you took your first lesson. He was telling me what to say, how to request the clearance, etc. I opened up my notebook that I've previously used to write ATISs on, each ATIS only taking up one line, so one page could last for weeks. I had about half a page left. Upon seeing this, my instructor informed me, "You'd better turn to a new page; you'll run out of room on that one." Red flag number one. "Zero Sierra Papa, ready to copy." I had heard these clearances before and figured if I can just write in shorthand and use abbreviations (after all, isn't flying all about knowing abbreviations for everything?) that I could keep up just fine. "Zero Sierra Papa, cleared to Watsonville via something something something, Woodside, something something something, until Oakland something radial, Victor 25, something something something, localizer, something something something, contact somebody (this point should have been easy, but by now, I was still on the first instruction), squawk 4245." This felt just like when you're in the car alone listening to the radio and you're singing along, and then some lyrics come up that you don't know, so you just kind of vaguely hum along until you know the words again. Except that I had to repeat everything verbatim that this guy just haphazardly spewed out. I figured if I ran into trouble, my instructor would just read back the whole thing and explain it to me later. I looked and him, and he said, "Well, he's waiting." So am I! I'm still waiting for him to repeat what he just said and much slower than that. And nevermind that this is the same controller who I often fancy as a fellow Southerner since he speaks so slowly. This must be some conspiracy among the controllers and CFIIs to have a second round of embarrassment in flight training. Would it be horrible to say "Uh, Zero Sierra Papa, can you repeat everything after Zero Sierra Papa?" My instructor finally asked him to repeat it (god, I'm embarrassed, that whole feeling of being a student pilot all over again with your instructor saying word for word what you should say on the radio). Okay, this time I got it. "Read back correct." Whew! Good lord, man, lay off that coffee tomorrow so maybe you won't talk so fast.

Now I was faced with the problem of actually doing what that guy had just told me to do and to do it within very specific parameters. Plus, the final approach fix for Runway 2 at Watsonville is a crossradial. Luckily, my instructor warned me when the approach controller says "fly heading XXX until intercept localizer" that that doesn't just mean to sit on your butt and fly a heading. Here I am flying along, proud of myself for actually doing what the guy said to do, and my instructor said "What are you doing?" Geez. I looked at all my instruments. I was on heading, on altitude, and the plane wasn't on fire. What on earth could he want from me now? "You need to tune in and identify two VORs, one localizer, set your radials, start the timer, something something something." Here we go again with the laundry list of demands. Look, gentlemen, I don't pay a ton of money for you to make me feel like I'm at home on chore day, okay? I can get this kind of treatment at home and for free (well, if you exclude all the emotional trauma). I think all instructors and controllers were drill sergeants in previous lives. Start the timer for what? I'm not baking brownies here. Oh, this is a timed approach. Well, I'll approach it when I'm damn well ready. Needless to say, that didn't fly (ha). Note to self: sarcasm is even more frowned upon during instrument training and when in IMC. It's about this time I'm wondering whose brilliant idea it was to have people fly around when they can't see anything. Am I the only one who thinks that seems unnatural? You sure as heck don't drive a car when you can't see anything. In fact, the second a drop of rain hits someone's windshield here, he/she slams on the brakes. But let's add a hundred or two miles per hour and go hurtling into grey viscous voids based on some intangible points in the air. However, I must say that figuring out this complex system of pretend points in the air promises to be quite fun. I just need to go to auctioneer training to understand these guys.

I just returned from a flying trip to Baja, a wonderful experience; I highly recommend it.

Flying in Baja is very similar to flying in southern Utah or northern Arizona: vast expanses of uninhabited territory, no radar coverage, no flight following, limited fuel, and a good number of dirt strips. You are on your own with charts and GPS. The only differences are border crossings and the associated paperwork.

I flew from San Diego to San Felipe, Alfonsina and Bahia de Los Angeles, roughly half way down the Baja peninsula on the Sea of Cortez. This stretch of Baja is not Cabo San Lucas. Development is minimal with miles of pristine coastline that has not changed in the past thousand years. I had blue sky and minimal wind for the entire trip - truly a fabulous place. This area is ideal for camping and fishing. Hotel accommodations are limited or non-existent. I found nice hotels in San Felipe and Bahia de Los Angeles only.

Flying to and from Mexico is straightforward as long as you do the homework and follow procedures carefully. Basic requirements are Mexican aircraft insurance and a notarized authorization from the aircraft owner to operate in Mexico. Flight planning is also important due to limited availability of fuel, on/off status of some airstrips, etc.

I also did a Mexico checkout with the Golden Wings Flying Club based at Montgomery Field in San Diego. This checkout consists of a ground review of necessary paperwork, border crossing procedures, general tips on flying in Mexico, and an actual flight to Ensenada, Tijuana International, Brown Field, and back to Montgomery. This checkout took 2.1 hours of Hobbs time in a C172 and 4~5 hours to complete. The checkout is a nice way to get comfortable with flying into Mexico; you can do without it, but I think it is useful.

I rented a C172 from Golden Wings Flying Club for a few reasons. Golden Wings is one of the few clubs/FBOs that rent aircraft for Mexico; they do it all the time and are properly set up for it. You are allowed to land on dirt strips, and one of their C172s has 64 gallon extended range tanks that make a big difference when flying in remote areas. Also, I figured that flying commercially to/from San Diego would cost less than flying GA and would limit my exposure to possible Northern California hard IFR days in late December.

Overall, Baja is a perfect holiday destination, a nice escapade away from the rainy doldrums of winter in the Bay Area. I found costs to be reasonable, local folks friendly and helpful, and Mexican officials and controllers courteous professionals.

The following resources useful were and informative:

• Baja Bush Pilots - http://www.bajabush.com
• "Air Baja," by Galen Hanselmann
• "GH 22" unofficial WAC Baja chart by Galen Hanselmann (it's outdated but useful)
• CH 22 WAC chart (the current chart is inaccurate, missing most strips, hence the "unofficial" GH22 chart)
• San Diego FSS Handbook of Services - Call 858-277-3493 to get a copy

Member Steering Committee Meeting
Tuesday, January 24, 6:00 pm, PAO back classroom.

Both the Activities and Member Steering Committees are seeking new chairpersons. The Member Steering Committee meets the fourth Tuesday of every other month at 6:00 pm. The Activities Committee is not currently meeting. If you are interested, please contact Patti Andrews at pandrews@wvfc.org.

Board of Directors Meeting
Tuesday, January 24, 7:00 pm, PAO back classroom
Quarterly board meetings are open to all members. Contact Josh Smith if you would like to see what's on the agenda for the January 2006 meeting.

LEARN FROM OTHERS' CHECKRIDE MISTAKES!
Wednesday, January 11th, 7pm, Palo Alto
Presenter: Mike Shifflett
A laugh out loud look at how you can never be this bad on your test! Whether you're preparing for your first checkride or have several under your belt, you'll be both entertained and enlightened by these checkride bloopers (and perhaps learn to avoid becoming the subject of Mike's next seminar.) A question and answer period follows the presentation.

EVERYTHING YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO KNOW ABOUT AIRCRAFT ICING...
Wednesday, January 18th, 7pm, San Carlos
Presenter: Derick Day
...but were afraid to ask. What do you really know about aircraft icing? Derick will cover it all, including a review of the different types of icing, how to glean important information from your weather briefings, and what to do if you inadvertently begin to accumulate it.

THE RAMP INSPECTION!
Wednesday, January 25th, 7pm, Hayward
Although many of us have never experienced it firsthand, there is no shortage of stories about the dreaded ramp inspection. Are they really all that scary?!?! Come find out how to prepare yourself and your aircraft so that you won't be caught with your (wheel) pants down next time you're approached by your friendly FAA inspector.

SQL Private Pilot Ground School meets Tuesdays 6:30-9:00 pm with instructor Dan Dyer. The cost is a $200 one-time fee, after which you may re-attend as often as you like. For information, contact Dan Dyer at dan@dkdyer.com.

PAO Private Pilot Ground School meets Thursdays from 6:30 pm with instructor Kyp Kypta. The cost for the course is a once-only charge of $100, after which you may attend any and all sessions as often as you like. The next session begins Thursday, January 5; however, you may begin the course at any time. Contact Kyp at lkypta@earthlink.net.

HWD Private Pilot Ground School meets Tuesday nights from 6:30-9:30 pm. The cost is $200 per student. Contact instructors Sandy Wiedemann at syzygy2002@mac.com or Eric Jewell at eric@flywitheric.com.