Newsgroups: rec.aviation.student
Subject: Night XC, and Class C jitters!!
From: jbolinger@lintek.com (J L Bolinger)
Organization: AeroFlex Lintek
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Date: 23 Nov 1998 12:43:49 -0500
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My night XC was this past Saturday.

It went pretty good.  At one point, however, my CFI chided me for being 
off course and missing a landmark (that I was not using as a checkpoint).
It was an airport that we were to pass almost directly over.  I was also
using an NDB on one leg to establish the correct initial heading, and
 he was telling me that the needle was not pointing correctly because
 we where off course.

The next day I checked my chart again, and I don't think we were as far off
course as I was saying---no more than 2 or 3 miles, but by that time I 
could see the destination airport anyway.

My biggest problem (from my viewpoint, not his) was when we went into a
class C airport.  I had no problem with the approach because there was no
other traffic, but after landing I said we wanted to taxi back for take
off with departure to the west (they had not turned us over to ground
control).  The tower rattled off a bunch of stuff, and I had _absolutely_
_no_ _idea_ what they said.  Good thing my CFI did.

My problem is that I am not looking foreward to my solo XCs, when I have to
go into a class C all by myself!  Particularly if I hit it at a busy time,
when there are DC9's and 737's buzzing around.

I have read about this---pilots who learned at an uncontrolled field being
'scared' of bigger airports.

How do others handle this problem?  Any suggestions?

Jim

