Passed my V3...better yet gained confidance on the mic.

[stealthbob]

This post is more about me wanting to say thanks for the great support from those out there who take the time to share their knowledge about the world of flying with ATC.

Tonight I passed my V3 on my first try, all due to the wealth of information on how to do it. I actually made a mistake by switching to Torrence too early but it would seem the fine folks at the scopes were very forgiving...thanks guys!

I have in the last two weeks been drinking from the fire hose so to say, going from my first words to a controller, moving through all 3 VFR exams...now I want more!

I can now confidently say I am N82SB...and not have it attributed to "You Failed" (I failed my first attempt at my V2, apparently it made it on Kevins live stream lol)

[Nelson L.]

I actually made a mistake by switching to Torrence too early but it would seem the fine folks at the scopes were very forgiving...thanks guys!

Oh come on, thats favoritism. Who was the controller? It does feel good to be able to talk on the radio after a long learning process though, so congrats on that and the pass. When you're done feeling good, take a look at the I10

[Bidimus]

That is so awesome! Grats!

[mmerelles]

congrats on your v3! keep pushing

[stealthbob]

Funny you post this today, I am past my I4 now and just tried the I5 flying /A. It was an epic display of navigational work and flight control...except for one problem!

I climbed to the wrong alt.... :facepalm:

This is a perfect example of expectation bias...I typically fly the B1900D @18000 (offline) so I filed a flight plan with the same alt. It was corrected to 17000 from clearance and I read back 17000. Then when the call came to "Climb and maintain 17000" guess what I put in the setting...lol. Instant fail called over the airwaves with Beach82SB tagged to it.

Oh well, it still allowed me to gain some confidence...I am getting more and more comfortable on the mic (I did fumble the clearance read back however)

I will do it over, this time with a little more attention to detail....

[Nelson L.]

Haha, I heard that (I was the Dynasty flight). I also failed my first I5 attempt for misinterpreting "resume the departure". The first thing I thought when I heard the controller fail you was - I feel bad, now he has to sit for another hour with the knowledge that its all for "nothing" (and for the wrong altitude too....). I, for one, chickened out when I failed and asked for vectors back to Burbank; you're definitely more dedicated than I am. Your speed on the ratings is quite impressive Good luck on your retry and future ratings!

PS - The clearances get easier once you become familiar with that airport's departures - I can fill in everything from LAS except the squawk. Always MCCRN3.HEC, CVS, 125.02 - freqs are then 126.35, 133.55, then back to 26.35.....

Anyone know why 26.35 is used in two sectors? Is it just a PE thing for controller purposes?

[stealthbob]

Truth be told I pondered how I could get out of it, thought about pulling the ejector seat until I remembered there wasn't one in this plane

I flew the rest cause....why not, the ratings are nice to achieve but the end goal is to fly on the system.

I was glad it was pretty quiet, only you to share in my failure lol...thanks for the support.