Hour 60

My 60th hour as a pilot was my first in a Cessna 182, my first with a broken leg, and my first with my parents and sister.

I had wanted to take them up on a scenic flight, but my broken ankle meant that I couldn't fly on my own and would need the assistance of an instructor.  That meant five people in a four-seat airplane, which meant two trips.

The average weight of our passengers was also higher than normal, so we were going to want the increased payload of the 182.

We elected to do two trips over SB towards Montecito, turning around just as we got to Carpinteria.  My father got the lucky draw and got to go on two trips while my mother and sister went on one each.

The combination of newness made for an unique flying experience.  The 182 is the first high-performance plane that I've flown.  I had read about stuff like manifold pressure and prop angle, but I hadn't actually managed it during flight.  The rest of the plane was similar to the 152s and 172s that I'd flown before but not exactly.

The broken leg meant that the instructor was managing the rudder while I handled the rest.  This is perhaps akin to driving a stick shift where you manage the pedals and wheel but someone else runs the shifter.  The instructor was a very experienced pilot and managed the rudder without any issue, but it was weird just "trusting" that the rudder would do what I wanted, particularly while setting up to land.

Having my parents in the plane was interesting as well, as I was trying to manage the new plane while pointing out landmarks while trying to look like I had any idea what I was doing.  My mother already thinks that flying is crazy dangerous, so I wanted to perform like I would with a healthy ankle in a plane I'd flown before.

All in all, it went pretty well.  I got to log some high-performance time and could probably get my checkout in the 182 with a minimum of additional effort.

More importantly, my family seems to have had a fun time seeing SB and its surroundings from the air.

My ankle is improving though, which means it's time for me to get current again and start working on hour 61.

Flying over Oprah's house... =)