Module 1 revision week and exams

Firstly, apologies for the lack of updates from me, hopefully the blog post gives you a reason why this might be! 

Since finishing the reading of BGS Module 1 which includes 4 subjects, I've been working flat out on revision towards the first set of exams- General Navigation, Meteorology, Instruments and Human Factors and Performance. 

During the last week of May I packed my car up with a two weeks worth of clothes, revision books and some food and set off to a lovely village called Churchill, south of Bristoll where I would stay whilst attending the brush up revision week and exams at Bristol Ground School. 

The brush up week consisted of revision sessions from 8.45-17.00 Mon-Fri in all four Mod 1 subjects. I found this week extremely beneficial to help prepare us for the forthcoming exams, we studied aspects of each topic in detail, especially if it's notoriously tricky aswell as plenty of past exam questions.A lot of people brought lunch with them but there is a Tesco about 10mins walk/2 mins drive away for those who wish to buy lunch. I was thankful that tea/coffee and water was available all day at BGS which certainly helps when my brain was starting to fry!!

The instructors were first class, extremely knowledgable, passionate and provided plenty of hints and tips for the exams! Help and support is in abundance at Bristol whether that be through the instructors, admin staff or amongst other students, where I made some great friends. Instantly I knew all the previous self study at home for Mod 1 was worth it! 

Books open ready for study! 

After an intense but enjoyable week of revision courses, it was time to face the exams!  I'd chosen to do my exams at BGS straight after revision as I wanted to retain the continuity which meant I took less time away from work,plus it was reassuring to take exams in a location where  I was already familiar with . The exams are conducted electronically with each workstation equipped with a laptop. 

A lot of my fellow students did the same as me whilst some were to take the exams in future sittings. 

I sat my Mod 1 exams over three days, Gnav on Tuesday, Met and Human Performance on Wednesday and Instruments on Thursday I found all exams very challenging and tough, particularly Gnav and Instruments! Now I'm just (anxiously) awaiting to hear back my results from the CAA!!

 

Until next time, thanks for reading! 

Revision at the ready...

Just a quick update from my world amongst the ATPL study folders! I've now read and completed all progress tests for the four module 1 subjects after 5.5 months of study! But the work is by no means coming to an end, I'm now into the revision stage, preparing myself for the four exams in early June!

Together with the revision, the progress tests have been extremely beneficial to indicate my strengths and weaknesses, allowing me to focus on areas which need more work alongside hitting the question bank daily.

A little over a month from now, I will pack my bags for Bristol and attend the brush up revision week before the exams. I'm looking forward to this as it will help fine tune my revision and understanding as well as meeting other BGS students! 

Until next time...thanks for reading 

Progress so far...

Essentials for revision, thanks Wilko, top bargain! 

So, nearly two months into Module 1 now and the work pace and content is really picking up, with constant flow of lessons and progress tests. I feel like I am learning more facts, acronyms, diagrams than anything ever before, my poor little brain is beginning to fry! But as I've heard from many other ATPL 'graduates' it's to be expected and to be honest I'm finding it all very interesting and enlightening even if I grumble when attempting to read through 'Polar Stereo chart projections' in a Friday night after a day of work! 

As a very basic list, I have touched on 3 of the Mod 1 subjects-Met, GNav, Instrumentation and studied aspects like;

 

Pressure instruments 

Gyroscopes 

Moisture and convection 

Chart projections 

Distance calculations-rhumb lines, great circle tracks  

...To name but a few. The learning curve is steep but I'm determined to achieve first time passes in the exams so I am throwing in the hard work and effort! 

I am working to a loose schedule, so I plan to attend the revision/brush up week in lovely Somerset around the end of May and immerse myself into the first batch of exams in early June...gulp!! 

As you have probably seen in the opening picture, I bought myself some revision essentials. I have been recommended using a whiteboard to scribble down various diagrams, facts etc- basically any way to drum it into my head! And ofcourse plenty of high lighters and post it notes to litter the walls of my room in revision goodness! 

Till next time...

In the beginning...

In March 2015, I was fortunate enough to win The Air League / Bristol Ground School ATPL (A) scholarship. These are the 14 ground exams I need to pass in order to reach my goal of becoming a commercial pilot. 

In the beginning: ATPLs unwrapped! One BIG parcel! 

The EASA ATPL (A) includes the study of the following;

- Aircraft General Knowledge- Instrumentation 

- General navigation 

- Meteorology

- Human Performance 

-Radio Navigation

-Aircraft General Knowledge-airframes,systems,powerplants 

-Air Law

-Flight planning and Monitoring 

-Operational Procedures

-Principles of flight 

-Performance

-Mass and Balance 

-Communications-VFR/IFR

Alongside the hefty study folders below, I plan to undertake the online lessons and progress tests (through ATPdigital)  on my iPad mini. The advantage of this being I can study away from home, on the move, or even at work! (During those glorious washout days the airfield!!) The huge advantage being that the software and content can be automatically synched over an Internet connection. Whilst studying alongside my full time job, as an estimate I should complete my ATPL studies by spring 2017.

The exciting contents of the parcel 

All logged in! Time to tackle the maths 

So, before I tackle the first subject (AGK-Instrumentation), first job is to complete the maths and physics module.Since being out of education since only this summer I think refreshing my amateur maths skills can only be a bonus!!  This introductory module is extremely beneficial as it will allow me to form a solid foundation before tackling the more technical elements of the studies. 

That's it for now, I shall be keeping this blog updated during my ATPL studies , when time and brain power allows!! Once again I am extremely grateful to The Air League and Bristol Ground School for this scholarship and opportunity to reach one step closer to my aim of gaining a commercial license. 

Thanks for reading 

Short hop to Bembridge

I had a couple of hours spare on my Saturday off so I took G-BNKH a short hop across the Solent to Bembridge on Isle of Wight (EGHJ). It was a pleasant short trip, just a good excuse to get up in the air and fly to a new airfield, a new one for the logbook. 

First landing on a hard runway in 'KH! 

Looking towards Southsea (home!) and Portsmouth on a murky return to Goodwood 

The airfield was very quiet for a decent Saturday maybe they're all at Sandown? ;) 

CPL hour building...the start

This little chap came along for the ride!

Abeam Beachy Head, East Sussex

Looking South East towards Brighton 

After finishing my BSc Open University degree it meant I could start to plot out a plan to work towards the next step on my career ladder, the commercial pilot's license (CPL). As part of the requirement for the CPL, I need to build a further 50+ PiC (pilot in command ) flying hours. 

With high pressure in charge at the moment meaning some good flying weather I took the opportunity to fly a small nav flight in G-BNKH PA38 not landing away 

Goodwood > Keymer > Beachy Head > Haywards Heath > Petworth > Goodwood

It is days like that day that remind me just why I got a PPL, yes flying is expensive and I haven't been able to fly as frequent recently due to time, uni and work but being airborne is second to none and I wouldn't have it any other way! Anyway philosophical musings over! Enjoy the few pictures! 

Rich 

Night Rating

G-CBLE before being put through her paces for my solo night flying 

Yes, it seems like a eternity since the last post, but work, moving house and the final year of university have all contributed to make me more ground-bound as opposed to air-bound! 

However, I havnt been away from flying for all this time as I was fortunate enough to be awarded a flight bursary through The Air League in 2014, so I used it to gain a night rating onto my PPL over the winter months. 

Coastline of Bournemouth at night from 1200ft 

The night rating comprised of 5 hours flying to include, a dual (with instructor) night familiarisation flight, a dual cross country navigation exercise, dual circuits and finally 1 hour of solo circuits. 

I decided to conduct my training at a fantastic school at Bournemouth Airport because I wanted to experience flying out of a commercial airport, all good for refining my radio skills and accurate flying. It gave me the opportunity to fly in a new aircraft- Robin HR-200 and lastly because I have aspirations to fly commercially in the future. 

The dual navigation leg was highly interesting and beneficial. We flew from Bournemouth Airport (EGHH) -Blandford Forum-Crewkerne-Dorchester-EGHH over a variety of small settlements each identified by the patterns of lighting they use. The weather needed to be perfect for this-good visibility and high cloud base as it was vital to be in sight of the ground at all times! It made me think about possible areas to land, if for example the engine failed, because without daylight, dark areas on the ground could be water, vegetation, high ground, and that perfect field next to a pub is harder to spot, should the unthinkable happen! 

The night rating will benefit me because I can now fly legally after dark whilst building my flying hours. Secondly it has opened my eyes to flying out of a fully air traffic controlled airport, sharpening my RT ( Radiotelephony) skills and lastly the rating is a pre- requisite before going onto to the CPL ( Commercial Pilots Licence).

Thanks for reading, until next time!