170A (aka Mock Test)

Finally the weather is suitable again and the CFI is available, so we're a go for the 170A!

Arrived at the airport and was given a route up to Stanhope with circuits at Teeside (the same as before) which I duely planned, along with the mass & balance and performance calculations. He left it to me to decide which VRP to enter by which I'd not decided on before the preflight briefing (more on that later). I felt a little rushed on this aspect of things and figured I'd decide when the time came because that's what a diversion would be like. After the preflight briefing in which the CFI outlined how the test would be conducted (which items & in what order, and what he was expecting of me) I went out and checked out and started he aircraft, shortly after which the CFI joined me.

I gave him the required passenger briefing though it was poor, shaky and incomplete (and I knew it - nerves clammed me up and I wasn't confident about it anyway). Completed the starting checks and taxied to the hold and did my power up checks. Then lined back up at the hold and started my captains brief. ATC interupted asking if I was ready for departure and I told them to sod off (figuratively of course - ie. "standby"), and completed the brief which went much better than in the previous flight which was faltering and lacking in confidence.

NB. some of the critiques of the flight in the following are as a result of the postflight briefing and some my own personal views on my performance.

Got my clearance, lined up and took off. Did all my after takeoff checks ok and headed for Harrogate and requested further climb to 4500 feet which was my planned altitude. On leaving the zone I made unnecessary work for myself by requesting flight information service but not requestion a change to Leeming Zone. They gave me a next frequency of Linton Zone and I had to come back to them to say I was going to Leeming. On setting the initial heading at altitude everything worked out ok, though initially I didn't get it in trim properly and my height ballooned to 4700 feet before I got settled down. The nav went pretty well, noted that I was 2nm left of track before arriving at my half way point of Catterick and made a heading correction and noted it down on the plog. The rest of the leg went fine and I was on track and on time. I got handed over to Teeside and requested the Tyne pressure from them and asked them if they could clear me with Newcastle which they duely did and handed me over. Arrived at Stanhope on time with no ETA revisions required.

Decided to enter via Sedgefield as I'd not done too well on my entry previously via the A1M Junction VRP. In hindsight this was a poor decision as we'll see. I requested descent to 2000 feet with Newcastle and was cleared before they handed me back to Teeside. It wasn't so easy to see with the glare from the sun now reducing visibility. I thought I had spotted Sedgefield and continued my descent towards my Teeside zone cleared altitude of 1500 feet, but it turned out not to be as they told me it was still 5 nm to the south when I called overhead. This threw me and I couldn't spot it and it started a chain reaction of events that caused me to get behind the aircraft and cock up the join.

I then climbed back up to my previously cleared altitude which was stupid and baffled the CFI - I should have continued down to 1500 feet and then I would have been fine on entering the zone. Finally spotted the windfarm that is to the north east of Sedgefield but it was on the nose so I was clearly off track (and incidently should have picked up on this when they said Sedgefield was 5nm to the south). Turned roughly south, now directly into the sun and tried to pick out Sedgefield of the airfield or anything! The CFI asked my what my cleared altitude was and I told him 1500 feet, but I was still at 2000 feet so had to hot-foot it down to 1500 feet. I also had failed to get the ATIS.

Entered the zone for a right base join for runway 23 and eventually picked out the large factory on left base and suddenly realised that I should now have been at circuit height so had to get more height off quite quickly. This meant my field approach checks were rushed and only partially complete, as were my downwind checks. I also failed to get and set QFE which, while there was only one millibar (30 feet) difference between them, was a Bad Thing (tm) - at Leeds there is roughly 22 mb difference which equates to about 660 feet! I turned onto finals without having put my props to 25 as I should have done on my downwind checks, and had to be prompted for them. Fortunately the first circuit was a flapless so I didn't have to deal with getting the flaps down which helped. Finally got myself sorted and did a decent landing.

***TBC***

So effectively the result of the 170A (Mock Test) was a ...