Flight Training – FunkyPilot

Artificial Intelligence (AI) as an Air Traffic Controller?
Gallery
Artificial Intelligence (AI) as an Air Traffic Controller?
Aviation, Flight Training, FunkyPilot Academy

Artificial Intelligence (AI) as an Air Traffic Controller?

By FunkyPilot - Vesa|2023-06-15T20:42:26+08:00June 15th, 2023|Aviation, Flight Training, FunkyPilot Academy|

01001000 01100101 01101100 01101100 01101111 00100001! In case you are wondering, my keyboard didn't get stuck. That was "Hello" in binary code consisting of ones and zeros. There is a lot of buzz about artificial intelligence (AI) these days... Maybe AIs could handle air traffic control one day? Or at least they could act as ATC in flight simulators? What do you think? FunkyPilot Academy Issue 4 introduces another central character to the series; an AI called Simmy. I wrote the Issue/Episode 4 a couple of years ago, but it has taken a long time to get it drawn, and it's taking even longer to get it published. FunkyPilot Academy Issue 4 is titled: Rise of the Machines. Yes, Rise of the Machines... Original, right?? In this issue, Captain Jack and his students build a simulator that they will use during training. It turns out one of his students, Victor, [...]

Let’s talk about First Officers
Gallery
Let’s talk about First Officers
Aviation, Flight Training, FunkyPilot Academy

Let’s talk about First Officers

By FunkyPilot - Vesa|2023-06-10T21:22:11+08:00June 10th, 2023|Aviation, Flight Training, FunkyPilot Academy|

Let's talk about First Officers, There is a lot of public misconception about first officers and captains. I remember one time I was still a first officer having a drink with the captain I was flying with. We started talking with some people sitting next to us, and one of them asked: "So, which one of you is the pilot?" At first, I didn't understand what his meaning was. Didn't everyone know it takes two pilots by regulation to fly most passenger jet airplanes? Apparently not, because we had to explain we BOTH were pilots and that we normally alternate who is flying each leg. Another time, we were flying a Challenger business jet from Seoul, South Korea, to Jeju, South Korea. It was a short flight. An hour or so. One of our passengers wanted to sit in the cockpit during the flight (it's allowed in private [...]

FunkyPilot Academy! Introducing a Comic book series about Aviation
Gallery
FunkyPilot Academy! Introducing a Comic book series about Aviation
Aviation, Flight Training, FunkyPilot Academy

FunkyPilot Academy! Introducing a Comic book series about Aviation

By FunkyPilot - Vesa|2023-06-02T22:01:19+08:00June 2nd, 2023|Aviation, Flight Training, FunkyPilot Academy|

Wow, almost two years since my last post! I better get this site active again... I have some exciting news, which is why you can expect more frequent posts from now on. I'm launching a comic book series celebrating the joy of flight! Welcome to FunkyPilot Academy, a comic book series that combines humor, action, and adventure in the world of aviation! Comics have been around for ages; they are essentially sequential pictures combined with words and depict a story. Even ancient cave paintings or Egyptian hieroglyphs depict stories, so they can be considered the first forms of comics. Today everyone is familiar with movies based on comic books, and thousands of comic books are available for adults and children. While some comics are educational, most of them are not. So, I thought combining education and entertainment in one medium might be a good idea. My stories' [...]

What to Expect from the Chinese ATP Knowledge Test – And Why Fly in China?
Gallery
What to Expect from the Chinese ATP Knowledge Test – And Why Fly in China?
Aviation, Flight Training

What to Expect from the Chinese ATP Knowledge Test – And Why Fly in China?

By FunkyPilot - Vesa|2018-05-09T15:33:58+08:00May 9th, 2018|Aviation, Flight Training|

Taking the Chinese Airline Transport Pilot Knowledge Test Every pilot who wants to fly a Chinese registered aircraft needs to have a pilot license issued by the Civil Aviation Authority of China (CAAC). Until last year I was flying with my CAAC Commercial Pilot License (CPL), but our company required me to get an Airline Transport Pilot License (ATPL) in order for me to upgrade to a captain. To get the license I had to take a computer based knowledge exam followed by a practical exam at a later date. In this post I will share my experiences studying for the knowledge exam and taking it. I hope other pilots thinking about relocating to China find this post helpful, and I hope other readers find it informative about pilot life. But first, why would pilots from other countries want to come to China? Why Would [...]

Flight Experience 9 – Flying Over Gobi Desert – Flight of the Phoenix Style!
Gallery
Flight Experience 9 – Flying Over Gobi Desert – Flight of the Phoenix Style!
Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training, My Story

Flight Experience 9 – Flying Over Gobi Desert – Flight of the Phoenix Style!

By FunkyPilot - Vesa|2018-03-17T09:50:02+08:00March 16th, 2018|Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training, My Story|

Flight Experience 9 - Diamond DA40-180 This is a post about my experiences flying a Diamond Star DA40-180 airplanes in China. I also talk about moving to different cities in China during my first year in the country. My First Job in China When I first moved to China back in 2007 I was hired to fly and teach pilot students in Diamond Star DA40-180 airplanes. They are single engine, four seat, airplanes used by many flight schools for pilot training. It had a 180 horsepower Lycoming gasoline engine. I had never flown this specific aircraft type at the time although I had close to 2000 hours flight experience in similar size airplanes. Getting ready for my first Diamond Aircraft DA40 flight in Shijiazhuang Airport, China. Diamond Star DA40 The major difference with the Diamond Star was that it was the first “glass cockpit” airplane I [...]

Flight Experience 7 – Look at ’em Puppies! – Ready for a Seaplane Flight?!?
Gallery
Flight Experience 7 – Look at ’em Puppies! – Ready for a Seaplane Flight?!?
Aircraft, Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training

Flight Experience 7 – Look at ’em Puppies! – Ready for a Seaplane Flight?!?

By FunkyPilot - Vesa|2018-02-19T20:18:38+08:00February 15th, 2018|Aircraft, Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training|

Flight Experience 7 - Maule M7-235B Super Rocket Seaplane Few weeks before I moved to China in March of 2007 I was still in Florida. I was working as a flight instructor but I also wanted to get one more pilot rating under my belt before leaving the country. Florida is full of flight schools and the weather is normally good for flying all year around. Not only land based aircraft pilots are trained in Florida but there are also several seaplane flight schools. The thought of flying a small seaplane somewhere in the Alaskan wilderness or in the tropics of South America had always exited me. Although the prospects of getting a seaplane job with just the license sounded slim I decided to get the license anyway. Maule M7-235B Super Rocket Amphibian Florida Seaplanes Flight School I was living in [...]

Flight Experience 5.1 – Spinning a Diamond DA20 in China – Video Blog
Gallery
Flight Experience 5.1 – Spinning a Diamond DA20 in China – Video Blog
Aircraft, Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training

Flight Experience 5.1 – Spinning a Diamond DA20 in China – Video Blog

By FunkyPilot - Vesa|2018-02-15T14:31:34+08:00January 28th, 2018|Aircraft, Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training|

Spinning a Diamond DA20 Aircraft Short video of spin flight training in a Diamond DA20 Aircraft in Chaoyang, China. For more information about spin training check out my related post: Aircraft Experience 5.0 - Spinning Diamonds. If the video doesn’t work in China you can see it in YouKu at Spinning a Diamond DA20.

Flight Experience 5.0 – Spinning Diamonds
Gallery
Flight Experience 5.0 – Spinning Diamonds
Aircraft, Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training

Flight Experience 5.0 – Spinning Diamonds

By FunkyPilot - Vesa|2018-03-02T17:10:44+08:00January 27th, 2018|Aircraft, Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training|

Flight Experience 5 - Diamond DA20 I first flew the Austrian designed, Canadian built, two-seat Diamond DA20 aircraft in Florida back in 2001. The DA20-A1 models back then were also called Diamond "Katana's". That time I used it for teaching private pilot students and I flew the plane for about 100 hours. Next time I had an opportunity fly the aircraft was ten years later in 2011. At the time I was living in Chaoyang, Liaoning Province, China. The DA20's we had in China where slightly improved DA20-C1 models that had dropped the Katana designation. For now on I will just refer the aircraft as Diamond DA20's. Chaoyang, Liaoning Province. About 500 km northeast of Beijing, and about the same distance to North Korea. Working as a CFI I was working as the Chief Flight Instructor in a Chinese government owned flight [...]

Flight Experience 4.1 – Formation Flying 101 – Video blog
Gallery
Flight Experience 4.1 – Formation Flying 101 – Video blog
Aircraft, Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training

Flight Experience 4.1 – Formation Flying 101 – Video blog

By FunkyPilot - Vesa|2018-02-15T14:32:57+08:00January 21st, 2018|Aircraft, Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training|

Short video of our formation flying experiment I did with another pilot in a Cessna 172. Events of the day are described in my Aircraft Experience 4 - First Flight to Kill Devil Hills post. If the video doesn't work in China you can see it in YouKu at Formation Flying in Cessna 172

Flight Experience 4 – First Flight to Kill Devil Hills
Gallery
Flight Experience 4 – First Flight to Kill Devil Hills
Aircraft, Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training

Flight Experience 4 – First Flight to Kill Devil Hills

By FunkyPilot - Vesa|2018-02-15T14:33:42+08:00January 19th, 2018|Aircraft, Aviation, Flight Experience, Flight Training|

It was the closest I have been to another aircraft while flying one. ∼Vesa Aircraft Experience 4 - Cessna 172 I did my flight training in a flight school called North American Institute of Aviation (also called NAIA). The school was located in small town called Conway in South Carolina, United States. I spent about a year there starting with private pilot training, then instrument rating training, followed by commercial pilot, multi-engine, and flight instructor license training. Private pilot training was done in a two seat Cessna 152. Once I received my private pilot license I moved on to a slightly bigger Cessna 172. It had a more powerful engine and could carry four people instead of two. Unlike most of the C152's that we had, the C172's were approved for instrument flying; meaning we could find our way to different airports just by using different navigational instruments instead of [...]