I was quite busy in July; not only did I schedule several flight lessons, but I also had to fill out a lot of paperwork such as the rental airplane and pre-solo exam, as well as complete the Washington DC Special Flight Rule Area (SFRA) training to prepare for my final solo. At the same time, I worked part-time for my summer jobs and supported my drone team to prepare them to compete in the UAS4STEM competition hosted at the 2025 EAA Airventure.
Just about every day I was able to fly (for two main reasons): 1) My work schedule at the time conflicted a lot with my flight instructors Nick and Zac’s schedules, and so with their recommendation, I had CFI Mitch join the instructor crew to support my flight lessons. With three instructors, it was much easier for me to find a suitable time slot for my flight lessons. 2) Aero Elite acquired a new Cessna 172N with tail number N50906. Due to the plane being a new addition, as well as a much older model with more modest avionics, I was able to fly this airplane a lot in July.
During my flights, I mainly practiced pattern work – touch and gos, radio communications with the tower – and reviewed stalls and slow flights. After several solo flight mockups, I was ready for the real one.
