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Follow along with US Navy veteran Ken Hendrickson's blog as he learns to fly with LSA North, Stick-n-Rudder Flight Training. Ken was wounded in Iraq in 2006 by an I.E.D. and is on the road to recovery. Able Flight, and the East Cooper Pilot's Association, has awarded him a full flight training scholarship. Ken is training in a Flight Design CTsw and an Evektor Sport Star Plus, light sport aircraft. He is working toward his initial pilot license, the Sport Pilot certificate. With continued training, exercise, good health, and his perseverance, he can apply this training to successive pilot certificates, such as the Private Pilot, Instrument Rating, Commercial Pilot, and Flight Instructor. Ken is working with LSA North, Stick-n-Rudder Flight Training instructors Tyra Cerny and Scott Johnson on his Sport Pilot certificate. Ken's Journey from the Navy to Flight Training starts here: For those of you who don't know, I've been asked to inform you of my story of how I came to be here. I joined the Navy in 1980 right out of high school. I was a Weapons Technician on board the USS America Aircraft Carrier from 1980-1983. On board I had many opportunities to watch flight ops. Mainly F-14 Tomcats, A-6 Intruders, and A-7 Corsairs. That was when the flying bug was instilled in me. To watch these pilots land and take off from a bobbing floating landing strip and have to grab one of four cables in order to stop, was impressive in it's self. But, to watch them do it at night, I knew they had to be the best of the best. I wanted to fly too, maybe not like that, but, fly anyway. I was then rotated to shore duty (click to follow the story on page 2) Feb. 05, 2009 Today was my first day of lessons and actually getting to fly the plane. What a thrill to have complete control of an airplane. Today we flew the Flight Design CTsw. A really fun and responsive plane to fly. However, with my height the rudder pedals were hard to reach. My right leg is significantly weaker than the left, so, it was with great difficulty pushing the right rudder pedal. I am in the process of performing physical therapy and exercises designed to help strengthen my leg and foot muscles. My instructor, Scott Johnson, from LSA North out of Lakeville (Airlake KLVN) is a joy to fly with and is a great instructor, and at ease introducing me to the dynamics of flying a plane. I was a little overwhelmed by all the instruments and knowledge a pilot has to know. I hope I can remember all this. Thank God for checklists. All in all, I can't wait to get in the air, and for my next lesson. Feb. 06, 2009 Today was round two. We decided to try out the Evektor Sport Star Plus to see if it was a better fit for me. The Evektor is a really cool plane with a bubble canopy and all glass cockpit instrumentation. Although it is a little harder for me to get into, it was a better fit. I could reach the rudder pedals easier and have more control of them. Today we practiced turns, stalls, slow flight, climbs and descents. I was a lot smoother on the controls today. The sky was kind of hazy which really gave a kind of disorienting perspective on visibility and levelness of flight. We managed to get a couple of pictures while in flight. I need to work on looking outside the plane more than concentrating on the gauges inside, Hopefully, I can accomplish this on my next lesson which is on the 8th. I want to try and fly at least 3-5 days a week weather permitting.
Feb. 8, 2009 Today was my third lesson. We flew the Flight Design CT today because the Evektor Sport Plus was being serviced. The CT is still a challenge for me because of the rudder pedal reach. We worked on slow flight, stalls, what to do in case of a spin, how to maintain level flight, and maintaining a constant air speed during climbs, turns, descents, and with various power settings. The skies were perfect today being clear below 12,000 feet, with visibility to 10 miles. There was a lot of traffic today due to the balmy 37 degrees and many other pilots flying. No jacket was needed today.
2/14/09 Today was lesson 4. We worked on steep turns, ground reference maneuvers, and touched on radio calls. Today we were back in the Evektor Sport Star Plus. It was cooler, about 20 degrees, so our feet got cold today. We planned a short cross country trip to Fleming Field in South Saint Paul. President Bush Sr., Charles Lindberg, and my instructor Scott Johnson learned to fly here. I got to meet some of the local pilots there and check out their pilots' lounge and weather room. It was also interesting to learn about flying into different airspaces (Minneapolis Class B) and traffic while maintaining proper altitudes. I need to work on my radio calls and procedures, but, am confident that will come with practice. 2/15/09 Today's lesson was with another instructor, Dan Boerner, seeing that Scott is on a cross country trip with another of my class mates. We will have to be in the CTSW today. Dan and myself worked on emergency procedures, and operations. It was another balmy 20 degree day, so doing the pre-flight was cold. Once we closed the doors, it warmed up quickly. Today I practiced radio calls, slow flight, stalls, and emergency descent with a landing zone spotted. I also practiced flying in a rectangle maintaining altitude, speed, and heading. With Dan assisting, I made a take-off and landing. I can see it will be awhile before I am comfortable with that. I hope the weather keeps cooperating. The visibility has been great, between 6-10 SM, clear below 12,000 feet, with light winds 3-7 KTS. 2/17/09 Today we were back in the CT. We worked on turns to a heading while maintaining proper altitude and air speed. The conditions today decreased pretty rapidly. A lot of haze at 3000 feet, plus, this is Minnesota and snow was moving into the area. I learned a valuable lesson today, FATIGUE! I had never flown previously under these conditions, so, I didn't know my capabilities, or limitations. I had some early appointments at the VA Hospital with blood draw. I didn't really feel like I wasn't 100 percent. But, once we were in the air, I found I had a really tough time concentrating. I am sure my instructor did too. That and on top of the overcast skies coming in, we ended early. I know now, how my body should feel before a flight, and will not make that mistake again. Luckily, I had an instructor with. I am confident I will be able to identify the fatigue symptoms in the future, so I will not be wasting mine or my instructors time again. Today is March 03, and I have not flown since February 17th. I must apologize to my scholarship sponsors and all that read this blog. I should have posted what I have been doing since Feb. 17. My instructor was in Texas for family matters for a week and there was not an instructor available with knowledge and experience on the Evektor. We decided that I am at a point in my training where I really need to have control of the rudder pedals. As you all know from reading previous reports, I cannot push the right rudder pedal in the CT. Which could be very hazardous or detrimental in the case my instructor becomes incapacitated, or so that I can land airplane solo. So, I spent the week studying for my written test, which I plan on taking very soon, and familiarizing myself with the checklist for the Evektor. Keep in mind this is Minnesota, and we are not out of blizzard season yet. We just got nailed with six inches of snow on the afternoon of Feb. 26. I was busy plowing out my driveway and a couple of older neighbors that I like to help out. This week it is raining. I then got to do it again the next day, because our snowplows love to fill our driveways back in with snow from the road. While having fun in the snow, I contracted a stubborn cold. Using the IMSAFE acronym, I knew I couldn't fly. My cold and head congestion are better and have scheduled flights for the next nine days. I look forward to furthering my flight training and reporting on my progress. Again, I apologize for not updating the blog on a regular basis. March 06, 2009 Today was a no fly day due to overcast skies and low ceilings. Scott Johnson, (my instructor) and myself went through the checklist and weight and balance sheet for the Evektor and implemented the new revisions to both. We also trained a little on a flight simulator that Scott put on a laptop that is available for students to use. I wish the software had either the Evektor or the CT in it's library of planes, but, you can get the basics of flying. It was a no charge day, so we decided to take advantage of the time for updates and fun training on the new simulator. March 07, 2009 Today marks the return to the airways above Minnesota. Today's weather was questionable in the morning but, cleared up nicely in the afternoon. We were back in the Evektor Sport Plus today and it felt great. The weather was 32 degrees and partly sunny, we were very warm in the air as the Evektor is like flying in a terrarium, I love it. Head winds were almost straight down the runway at 03 KTS. We were working on turns maintaining constant elevation and speed, emergency procedures, emergency descents, approaches, landings and take offs, and radio calls. While practicing maneuvers we encountered a weather front coming in, so we had to climb to 7300 feet to get above the clouds. That was pretty cool, I have never been above the clouds before in a light aircraft. Check out the Pics. After our photo op and some maneuvers, we headed back to clear skies and practiced emergency descents. I was amazed at how long the plane could stay in the air and circle a landing strip with the engine at idle while at best the best glide speed. That gives me a little more confidence as far as no need to panic right away in case of an engine failure. We practiced landings with me controlling at least 75% of the controls. I was a little nervous, no, a lot nervous about that. The second and third time I felt a little better. I'm sure my comfort level will increase with practice.
March 08, 2009 Another no fly day due to our infamous Minnesota weather. Snow and low clouds have moved into the area. Welcome to March madness. This is our most unpredictable and taunting month. One day it is in the 40's and melting, the next day we are getting six inches of snow. You never know what to expect. March 09, 2009 Another no fly day due to heavy fog and low ceilings. Layers of mist were as low as 200 feet at times. March 10, 2009 We had another snow storm rip through the area today. Temps dropped from a balmy 34 Degrees to a chilly 0 degrees with a steady 18 kt. wind gusting to 30, which dropped the wind chill to about -100 degrees with almost white out conditions with the blowing snow. Tomorrow should prove to be better but colder. March 11, 2009 Clear sky, but cold and howling wind. A good day to stay indoors and read the FAR/AIM and study charts and airspace. March 12, 2009 Unable to fly today due to low clouds and minimal visibility and misting. March 13, 2009 I decided it better not to fly today due to lack of sleep and early physical therapy session. I did not want to get into the same scenario as last time I was tired, having difficulty in concentrating. March 14, 2009 I was ready to get up in the air today, but, my plane had other ideas. The airplane sat outside in the cold wind a few hours to long and the battery was to low to crank the engine fast enough. We decided to take a complimentary familiarization flight in a CTLS. They were getting ready to demo it for a prospective buyer. A real difference in landing and handling. Much smoother than the CTSW due to the higher empty weight, longer empennage and winglets. Check out the pics and videos. March 15, 2009 Another windy day. Gusts were 20 KTS. 60 degrees to the runway. Winds aloft at 3000 feet were 37 KTS. Too high for the sport planes. I instead made good use of time by scheduling a two hour ground session with Tyra Cerny my ground instructor. We went over cross country planning, charts, and weight and balances computations. Tyra assigned me homework to complete for the next session. March 16, 2009 The temperature is a steamy 62 degrees today, however, the winds are gusting over 24 KTS. again, winds aloft are 46 KTS. at 3000 feet at noted by a student on the earlier lesson today. We won't be flying today again. This warm front is really hurting our flying time. I will work on my homework assignment. I am hoping we can get up tomorrow. March 17, 2009 Ken's flight training is on hold while his instructor recuperates from an accident with another student. The Evektor Sport Star is permanently out of commission. April 1, 2009 Still no word on a replacement airplane. Although we may be looking more at the Gobosh 800 XP. My instructor and classmate are recovering well, but will still be several weeks recovering. As for me, I am working more intensely on ground school subjects such as cross country planning and working on computations with the E-6B with Tyra. Hopefully, the investigations will be over, the insurance claim filed, and we get a plane real soon.
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