Hesperia Despairia

[Talan2000]

Ok Guys,

I knew it was only a matter of time before I took off and landed after another thrilling but taxing FSE flight...and realized I had forgotten to click "Start Flying" on the applet...

Last night was the night. As I turned off the turboprops on the Kingair C90 on the GA Ramp at KSAN...then nothing.showed.up...

I vowed "Never Again" reset my location to lovely L26 restarted, filed and waited for LA Center to clear me out of the uncontrolled field...Took off in my own spiraling ODP up to 8000 and promptly cancelled IFR and returned to L26...I had forgotten the @#$#@ passengers. AGAIN!

Probably a sign of fatigue that indicated maybe I shouldn't be flying again but I brushed off that conservatism and returned to L26 -- no cheating by restting. Integrity!

This time, I immediately loaded the passengers on the runway, daring the drone to hit me, before re-filing a NEW flight plan to KSAN and waiting...I think almost 15 minutes to get the release. But stupidity deserves to be punished so I grimly watched the hobbes meter spinning and the Jet-A evaporating. Another beautiful night flight to KSAN.



Todd

[wmburns]

I was monitoring PE on Sunday night and heard the request to return to the field to pick up forgotten passengers. So I'm assuming this was your flight.

I'm sorry to say that I burst out laughing so hard that my Wife thought someone was hurt. Thanks for sharing.

I personally have a love/hate relationship with FSE.

LOVE:

• That making mistakes have consequence
• The challenge of planning flights to different airport pairs
• The weight, balance, and fuel load is likely different for each flight. On a larger airplane this make the weight/balance calculations necessary.
• The idea that HOW the airplane is managed does make a difference

HATE:

• That making mistakes have consequence
• How long it can take to find assignments, find a rental airplane, make sure that you don't "strand" the airplane with no gas AND plan the route. Back when I was flying the JS42 (29 PAX) there were times that I planned a loop with 6 stops. Picking up and dropping off all along the way. There were a few times where I miss counted and had to "leave" PAX at a different airport that was NOT their destination. More than once I planned a multi-legged flight ran out of time. Came back later and found that someone else had rented the plane and moved it.
• The urge to "cut corners" to save HOBBS time is very strong. It's like I become a different pilot while on FSE. Building bad habits.
• the urge to carry only the minimum amount of fuel to save costs.
• operating the airplane differently if renting wet or dry. A good pilot should always operate the airplane like they own it. Again building bad habits.
• under FSX and offline using time slewing during cruise. At least flying on PE takes this option away.
• The FSE "trolls" that run around looking for airplanes with low fuel and then filling them up to 100%. I don't understand why this is done. There must be some angle/loop hole or it would be so common?

Of course most of the problems are of my own making. I'm going to try and break some of my bad habits from before.

The good news is after more than a year of not using FSE, all of my $$ is still there. Further I'm flying a much smaller plane now (BE58). Much easier to find 5 PAX assignments. The legs are much shorter as well.

Now if I could just find a way to combine FSE with the Alphabet challenge.............

[snglecoil]

Now if I could just find a way to combine FSE with the Alphabet challenge.............

Ha! I JUST started with FSE a couple of days ago and was thinking the same thing! Between the two, I'm going to end up divorced

[Keith Smith]

It helps me to think of it this way. FSE is really great when you need ideas for where to fly. The Alphabet Challenge gives you plenty of ideas of where to fly.

If you become obsessed with the mighty dollar on FSE, the fun can go out of it quickly. I can make large volumes of cash (and have done so in brief spurts in the past when needed to speed a process along) by doing short hops in a fully loaded King Air, offline, doing silly takeoffs and landings that may or may not have broken most, if not all of the FAR's. It's really not fun. It gets you money you need quickly to move to another side of the FSE experience....but without question, the biggest joy in FSE so far has been saying, "I think I feel like flying a Baron...where should I go?" Then I find a Baron to rent, or use my own, pick some jobs, and get it done. The money comes in at a slower rate, but that's ok. FSE did it's job of finding me a flight to do that I probably wouldn't have thought of, and gave me a mission to do it efficiently while I was at it.

The Alphabet Challenge is another type of FSE.

I tell myself this so I don't weep about not having jobs along the route

[trigger_fsx]

Last night was the night. As I turned off the turboprops on the Kingair C90 on the GA Ramp at KSAN...then nothing.showed.up...

Oh this is by far the worst feeling. Been there....a couple of times.