Last week, I had to cancel my flying lesson due to illness. It was my first time cancelling, and I realized it was a bad idea to fly with phlegm, a runny nose, and a cough in a small cockpit with another person. The weather wasn’t promising either, with very low clouds at 1400ft overcast and winds of 15kt, gusting higher. So, I wasn’t surprised when I was told that no flying would take place when I arrived. My CFI landed with another student after a few minutes up there; it wasn’t worth it with the visibility and turbulence.

However, the journey wasn’t wasted because I decided to take my Navigation theory exam. After six weeks of studying, I finally felt confident in this subject. After taking 20+ mock tests, the questions were now very repetitive. I completed my test with 16 minutes remaining (of 45 minutes). As I’ve learned to recheck all calculations to spot mistakes, there were only three questions needing some math. It was very straightforward, and I duly passed with 100%.

On exiting the school, my CFI took time to show me G-BAXY as it was undergoing an annual inspection. A lot of innards were on show, and while I didn’t get to take many pictures, I gained a great appreciation of how compact the air-cooled 4-cylinder Lycoming engine is. Andy’s very passionate and motivated to share his knowledge, which i appreaciate a lot.

What surprised me was the simplicity of the pulley system. With the inspection hatches all opened, I noted that the wire diameters were roughly 4mm and that they extended from pilot controls (yoke & feed pedals) to control surfaces (aileron, rudders, trim, tailplane). Notably, there are no redundancies on the pulley system. G-BAXY is 50 years old, and I really like how clean and pristine it looks with the panels removed.

I also booked out my weekly lessons all the way until the end of November, with a special treat of flying the bigger Cessna 172 G-BAXY on that final week