Part two...
So, I forgot to mention, it's always a good idea to eat before a flight. I eat a LOT lol. Usually two to three of the smuckers uncrustable peanut butter and grape jelly sandwiches, plus maybe a rice crispy, or a bag of chips, all before the brief.
So, we briefed up, got our jet, 263, and went down to maintenance control to sign it out and call in our flight plan. Every flight is IFR, regardless of what we're doing. It's a safety issue, as IFR guarantees a flight following. Additionally, we use a lot of the same flight plans over and over, so we have what are called "canned routes" with individual names. So, for today instead of filing "Hawk 263, NQI-Kings 2 departure-RICTO at 9000-MOA at 23000-BALTS 3000-NQI", we just have to call in "Hawk 263, Premont 2" and all of that is automatic. So, we file and gear up.
Before the flight, bright eyed and bushy tailed
We walk to the jet, and run through the startup. It's still a little slow as I have to actually read the checklist (This is only my third startup in the actual jet). We get all started up, and right before we taxi out of the line, the plane captain gives me some weird hand signal I don't recognize. After he repeats it twice more and I'm still confused, he yells at the IP "You've got a loose fitting!" So, I retract the flaps, and a troubleshooter comes out to tighten it down. Well, it's tightened up, he gives me flaps half again and clears us out. We taxi out of the line and to the final checker. All good, out to marshal. Knock out our instrument comparison checks and takeoff checks, and check out with strike on button one "263 out of chocks", and over to ground on button two "Ground, 263 taxi with hotel". "263, taxi 13 right via bravo alpha". We roll out of marshal, and passing the arresting gear, switch button 3 and call tower for departure. "263, cleared for takeoff 13 right, switch to departure". It's worth noting, we change off of tower frequency before even entering the runway. As we cross the hold short, SPIT checks are done (Strobes-On, Pitot Heat-On, IFF-On, Taxi/Landing Lights-On), then MRT and Washout (Throttle to max, controls through the full range of motion, engine instruments checked, hyds checked, voltage checked). "Ready in the front" "Ready in the back" "Rolling". Brakes release. As the HUD speed comes up off of 50kts (The min number) "airspeed alive". Passing 80kts "High speed" (below 80kts, any abort is considered low speed, and we'll abort for basically anything. Above 80kts, it gets a bit more tricky to abort, so our abort criteria gets more limited). Crossing the arresting gear, 106kts indicate "Good line speed". 115kts rotate and climb at 17 AOA. "Two positive rates, above 140, gear and flaps" and we clean up. "Clean below 200, good handle in the front" "Good handle in the back" and checking in with departure "Departure, 263, airborne climbing through 600 ft". "263, radar contact".
As we climb through 2,500 feet, we're still VMC and read to do our thing, so we call up departure "Departure, 263, VMC terminate, request direct". "263, terminate". "263 terminate". We're now cleared to head into the working area, maintain our own separation, and check in on the MOA freq. Climbing through 5,000ft I reset the LAW (RadAlt) to platform, 5,000ft. "99 Alpha, who's working?". Silence. "99 Alpha, single fam taking benevides". So, our working areas in the MOA depend on whether we can see the ground or not. If we can, and today we could, working areas are broken up by the towns they're over, and we have seven. Laguna Salada and Falfurius to the south. Premont right under RICTO. Concepcion in the center. Benevides to the north. Rialitos and Hebronville to the west. We climb to 10,000 and complete our 10,000' checks. Engine instruments good, flight instruments good, hyds 3 x 3, good voltage, cabin altitude 7,000 pressurized, 2.5 (2,500lbs of gas) remaining. We're alone, so we don't have to get to benevides before climbing, so we complete our vertical recovery. With a nice smooth pull up to 60 and a good pushover recovery, we level off at 13,500', right where we wanted to be. We push toward benevides and accelerate to 300kts. "Loose items stowed, map case secure, 2.4, area clear, I'll be ready for the min radius at 300, you ready in the back?" "Stall aerobatic checks complete, I'll be ready at 300" the IP responds, and as we hit 300kts I roll hard left and pull.
The min radius turn is a bit tough, because finding that 17 units is a bit tough at first, and you get what they call the "dirt road effect", where the airframe buffet starts and things feel a little rough. But we hold 300kts nicely, and since the IP didn't feel like wasting gas, we only turned for 180 degrees, rolled back and completed. We came out straight and level on our original heading at 11,300. From there we climbed up to 12,500 and executed our stall series. Recovering from the break turn stall... "deedle deedle" goes the master caution. I look down and the Hyd 2 caution light is on, as is the RAT. So, some engineering here. If hyd 2 pressure drops below a certain point, the RAT, or Ram Air Turbine, extends. It's basically a fan that uses the forward motion and air pressure to run a pump and pressurize hyd 2. As it comes online, the hyd 2 warning light goes out, and we bust out the checklist. Hyd 2 is reading about 2500 lbs, normal for RAT pressure, below normal for normal function. As per the checklist, we reset the hyd 2 system, which brings it back up to pressure and the RAT retracts. We'll monitor that throughout the flight. So, we complete our stall series. From there, it's a wingover for area management, an aileron roll, a barrel roll into another wingover, and a second barrell roll because I wanted to clean it up. From there, we go into UAs, or Unusual Attitude Recovery.
For UAs, the IP takes the stick, you close your eyes, he puts the plane into a weird place, and you open your eyes and recover. The first one was nose low and FAST. 30 degrees nose down, 340kts and accelerating. I bring the throttle back to idle, boards out, and 17 AOA climb back to the horizon. Recovered. Eyes closed. He sets us up again. Eyes open. We're nose high, but with speed, 220kts. Roll inverted, throttle to MRT, and 17 unit pull. Crossing the horizon, roll up right and pull back up. Recovered. That was good enough for him, so we head home. Idle and spiraling down to 9000, we grab ATIS, check out on button 5, and leveling at nine, check in with approach on 13. "Approach, Hawk 263, 9,000, juliet with request". "Hawk 263, ident and say request". Now, we needed a precautionary approach today, and we're still on an IFR clearance wanting a VFR recovery. "Approach, 263 would like to cancel IFR, monitors to high key". "263, maintain VMC to high key, contact tower button 3". We set our 80% power for simulated engine trouble, and maintain 250kts down to 5,000'. We report in to the tower and drive right toward the field. Boards out slightly to slow to 199kts, and crossing the the runways perpendicular, we report high key, and configure. "Below 200, gear half flaps". "Clear". We nose down to hold 175kts, 30 degree angle of bank, and drive down to low key. We report to tower "263, low key, gear". "263, cleared for the option, 13L". In the grove at 1,000ft, we're a bit fast, so we go full flaps and boards. 300', idle, flare. Nice touch down, just before the wires. Boards in, MRT and go. We run about 5 more normal approaches, one without the HUD, and other than waving off once for a bird on final, nothing exciting.
We make our final landing, roll out, and start shutting everything off taxiing back to base. This IP isn't a fan of a long debrief, so we talk about everything during the taxi. Back in the line, shut down, and of course, no one brings us a ladder. Damnit! I hate having to use the built-in steps. It's NOT easy lol. I make it down without killing myself, walk back inside, and take my gear off.
Tired, sweaty, you can see the mask lines around my face.
Well, we're done for the day, off home, and check my schedule for tomorrow. I've got a ground school class in the morning, and a flight in the afternoon.
