I passed my pre-solo stage check! My first solo is on Saturday!!!

Ive been flying for the last six days straight!

Okay, so this is my sixth straight day of flying. So far Ive logged 7.8 hours, and I'm having a total blast. When I first met my instructor I was a little bit hesitant because he was so foreign and seemed a bit shy. Luckily he has really opened up and has helped to push me at a pace that continues to challenge me everyday. I was surprise to actually be able to hold a pretty decent hover on my first flight. The Schweitzer is a little bit more forgiving and it makes it a fun helicopter to train in. Every day here is Florida is about 100 degrees and high humidity so we always fly with the doors off. This seems to give every maneuver a "real" feeling. So far my favorite thing to do besides hovering are simulated engine off auto rotations. The Schweitzer doesn't glide too much in an auto and falls about 3000 fpm, this tends to make the ground rush up at you super fast, but with a nice aggressive flare at 50 feet you can level off in about a 3-5 ft hover....what a riot! Below are some pictures of me hovering and flying, yes I do have a bit of a jarhead cut but it should grow out soon....

Groundschool

Hovering on the tarmac

My roommate sure can cook a mean English roast!

Space shuttle launch!!!!

Below is a sideshow from yesterdays rocket launch and a bit of fun we had afterwards....

Welcome to Bristow Academy!

My future office in the sky!

My new instructor and I. His name is Ingar from Norway and he's pushin 7 feet tall!!!

Me and my new flat mate Paul from England

These guys like to fly helicopters and hang out by the pool...and their all from England....too many bloody Englishmen! Is there anyone here who is American????