Hello again! I finally have another update about my training. Since my last post, I took my first stage check for my Private Pilot course, and I performed very well for where I am at. The stage check consisted of an hour and a half oral test, and then an hour and a half flight review of maneuvers, and procedures specific to Kent State’s guidelines. I did very well on the oral portion of the test, but the weather that day (winds aloft of 30-35kt) made it a bit more difficult to perform all of the maneuvers to my true ability, though I was able to do well. After I completed this stage check, I was able to move onto the next phase of my Private course. I have flown into Akron Canton (KCAK), which is a class C airport, and am practicing for my solo flight to KCAK which will hopefully be able to happen in a few weeks. In addition, I have been able to use foggles to track to a VOR which is a whole new experience in itself. To me, the hardest part about doing simulated instrument training was keeping a constant heading. I am also preparing to do my first night flight and my first cross-country flight. Unfortunately, the weather has been holding me back because during the winter, Ohio has low cloud cover almost all day. I wish I could have more updates about my progression, but hopefully, I will have more to tell you soon once the weather gets better.
In addition to my flight training, I have product updates from both Flying Eyes Optics and Sporty’s Pilot Shop. I received sunglasses from Flying Eyes and a new flight bag from Sporty’s. The sunglasses (Golden Eagle Sport) from Flying Eyes are perfect for flying. Unlike most sunglasses that have a glossy or metal finish, these have a matte finish. The matte finish allows the sunglasses to slide with almost no resistance under a headset. These sunglasses were so easy to adjust on my head and on my nose with the adjustable nose piece. They also are advertised to work very well under helmets which I will be testing once the weather gets nice again and I can do some biking again.
In addition to the sunglasses, Sporty’s Pilot Shop sent a new flight bag (Flight Gear HP iPad Quick Case). This flight bag has plenty of room for a headset, sectional charts, pencils, POH, and much more. In addition, it has some pretty cool features. This flight bag has Velcro in the middle which can be pulled apart so you can put it over the seatback of another chair in the cockpit. Overall, both of these products are great and I would recommend them to anyone who needs a new flight bag or pair of sunglasses.
-Jacob Burdette
Sounds awesome! You’re moving right along for sure man!
A great post.
Congratulations on your success.
Thanks for posting your comments on the college v private flight school. very helpful
Wow it sounds like your experince has been pretty incredible so far! I just read your other posts as well, congratulations on all of your accomplishments! How do you think the FMA solo program has helped you the most in your journey of flight training?
Beside the resources and the financial side of things, the community has been the best part about FMA. Everyone is so supportive and encourages you to push yourself farther. In addition, there are so many pilots in this group will all types of backgrounds. If you ever had a question about a certain type of flying, there is someone in this group that will be able to answer your question.
That is a smart thing to do, meeting all the people you can in college will only produce more options for you in the future! Good luck!
Hi Jacob, I’m one of the nominees this year, and I think it’s so cool that FMA could help you out so much. Do you have a specific reason why you chose to go to college for aviation rather than doing it all privately?
I do have a reason why I chose to go to college for aviation rather than privately. One of the biggest reasons is for the R-ATP which lowers the required number of hours to fly for commercial airlines from 1500 hours to 1000. In addition, I will have more opportunities to make connections with corporate and commercials airlines. For example, Kent State has partnerships with Mesa Airlines, Endeavor Airlines, Castle Aviation, Republic Airways, and is part of the Delta Propel program. FedEx also built a new aeronautics building at Kent’s airport (1G3). I also went to college for aviation for the “college experience”. I know I’m not getting the true college experience right now with covid and everything going on but I’m making the best of it. Kent also has aeronautics and flight majors specifically take an, ATC course, aviation weather, aviation management, elements of flight theory and probably a few more that I can’t remember. Lastly, I think that university flight schools are better for flight training in general. They will teach you a more in-depth view of topics to make you a better pilot. If you want to check out Kent State’s program you can follow this link. https://www.kent.edu/cae. I hope this helps and if you have more questions feel free to ask!
Edit: I also have a post talking about Kent’s program if you’re intersted.
Thank you so much for the information, right now I am accepted into Western Michigan University for Aviation flight science. It looks like the programs
Congratulations on getting into WMU! They have a really good program up there.
That’s a great update Jacob! Nicely done and thanks.