A SLIM LOGBOOK - JOHAN WALDEN
THE
DOUBLLEE DOUB LIFE Every student pilot leads a double life. In one you get to fly aeroplanes, wear Ray-Bans, and think you’re Tom Cruise. In the other, you spend months crawling your way through that insurmountable pile of textbooks that dominates your shelf. FOR TWO YEARS MY STORIES have been dedicated to the former; flying adventures of PPL and CPL training. But today that must be fixed and balance restored to show the true picture every student pilot faces. So I’m going to deviate from my usual ‘story’ and get into the nitty-gritty of exams, books, and ground-school. What follows is simply my own experience and the information as it revealed itself along the way.
What is the problem? Why solve it? How do I solve it? Where and who can I go to for help? And when do I need to do it?
The What What is the “problem”? Well, it’s a very big one… a 10 exam problem. The hard truth of the CPL is that there are eight exams, all of which you must pass within 18 months of your first. If you don’t, you’ll have to start all over again – a fate more common than you might think! In addition, there are the Night Rating and General Radio licence exams. And if you want an Instrument Rating with your CPL then you can add that to the pile as well.
I T ’ S CL E A R WE ’ R E GOI NG T O NEED T HE R I GHT S UP P OR T
I was very fortunate to have an “aviation Gandalf” in my life who looked out for me. Owen didn’t have a pointy hat or a flowing grey beard, but he always gave me a steer where I needed one. Whenever I faced a problem or task, he would tell me to ask the “what, why, when, where, how, who?” questions. If you say them quickly it sounds professional.
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June 2021
Just breathe...
