It Never Gets Old

Earlier this week I had the opportunity to fly this little 152 solo for the first time. You may recognize this plane from my spin training. I'd not flown it for anything but spin training and never solo.

I found a small break in my work schedule and went up. The winds were stronger than the usual at our airport. They started at 140@16 and then changed to 120@20 while I was flying. In spite, or maybe because, of the winds I had a great time.

We got bounced around a lot, the little plane and I, but it was fun, like jumping on the bed as a child. I stayed in the pattern because I didn't have a lot of time. The first takeoff I reminded myself I didn't needs as much right rudder as I'm used to flying more powerful aircraft. The plane climbed very well with just me and 16 gallons of fuel. Every landing was light on the mains, and right on the centerline. I didn't even need full flaps to nail short field landings with the strong winds.

There's a certain feeling a pilot gets when they fly a new plane solo for the first time, no matter how big or small that plane is. It never gets old!