Structured Hour Building Web App

Pre Flight and Departure

Try and get into the habit of completing these items meticulously each time you go flying. The more disciplined you become during hour building the easier your CPL course will be.

• Pre-flight, including: Flight planning, Aircraft Documentation, Mass and Balance Determination, Weather brief, NOTAMS
• Aeroplane inspection (as per POH/Approved checklist) and if you ahve not already, get used to completing the Techlog
• Taxiing and take-off (including checklist discipline)
• Performance (including factors) & trim. If you are based at an airfield with 3000m runway, you may thing this is unnecessary. It remains a legal requirement, so keep practicing
• Aerdome and traffic pattern operations including different joins
• Departure procedure, altimeter setting, collision avoidance (lookout). The more you get into the habit of keeping your head 'outside', the safer your flying will be and the easier the CPL course too
• 0-25hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Enroute
• Approach and Landing

Enroute

Get into the habit of creating a written fuel plan on the ground and keeping a record going in the air.

• Get used to flying to CPL tolerances. Height: +/100" | Heading +/-degress | Take off / approach Speed: +/-5knots | Other flight conditions +/-10knots
• Practice map reading, track correcting using dead reckoning. Skydemon makes life easier for off. It remains important to maintain your basic navigations skills though
• 0-25hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Enroute
• Approach and Landing

Approach and landing

Having good, accurate and disciplined circuit work will help you during your CPL course. Circuit work is a good option when the weather is not good enough to go cross country but safe for circuits.

• Go arounds. Go arounds are quite often rarely practiced so make a point of integrating low approaches to go around into your hour building
• Normal landing
• Crosswind landings. Start small and then build up. Remain safe and legal at all times.
• Short field landings. If you have a long runway, give yourself a target to touch down at and stop by a given point e.g. taxiway exit, a marking on the runway etc. As you become more confident, adjust the target
• Flapless landings
• 0-25hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Enroute
• Approach and Landing

Pre Flight and Departure

By now, you should be proficient and be in the habit of completing the Pre Flight and Departure tasks from your first 25hours of hour building. Keep practicing, and stay disciplined.

• Pre-flight, including: Flight planning, Aircraft Documentation, Mass and Balance Determination, Weather brief, NOTAMS
• Aeroplane inspection (as per POH/Approved checklist) and Techlog
• Taxiing and take-off (including checklist discipline)
• Performance (including safety factors) & Trim
• Aerdome and traffic pattern operations including different joins
• Departure procedure, altimeter setting, collision avoidance (lookout)
• 25-50hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Instructor Led
• Enroute & Airwork
• Approach and Landing

Instructor led

It is appreciated that 1-2hours with an instructor will cost you more during your hour building. You will get the benefit of good feedback to reinforce good behavour, and if bad habits have started developing, these can be corrected early.

• Practice approach to stall and stall recovery exercises. *This is recommeded to be with an instructor for safety reasons*
• Practice spiral dives and recovery *This is recommeded to be with an instructor for safety reasons*
• Glide approaches *This is recommeded to be with an instructor for safety reasons*
• Practice forced landings & engine failure after takeoff *This is recommeded to be with an instructor for safety reasons*
• 25-50hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Instructor Led
• Enroute & Airwork
• Approach and Landing

Enroute & Airwork

Hopefully you are becoming proficient in some of the earlier tasks. This section is to consolidate those and revise some of the PPL items that may not have been touched for a while!

• Fuel planning before flight and keeping a fuel log in flight
• Flying in controlled airspace. When safe and legal to do so, try and chhallenge yourself to fly though controlled airspace e.g. zone transits, or visiting airfiels within controlled airpace.
• Practice tracking and positioning using VOR & NDBs. If you have forgotten how, revisit your PPL notes
• Keep working hard to fly to CPL tolerances. Height: +/-100". Heading: +/- 5 degress. Take off/approach speed: +/-5 knots. Other flight conditons +/-10knots
• Practice map reading, track correcting using dead reckoning. Practice a few diversions as you did during your PPL. Start with big targets e.g. large cities
• Practice accurate steep turns (when safe to do so)
• 25-50hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Instructor Led
• Enroute & Airwork
• Approach and Landing

Approach and Landing

Consolidating the first 25 hours, it is important to keep your skills up and fly accurate circuits. You will find that you perform some of these tasks regularly (e.g. normal landing), but for the items that you do not, force yourself to practice them from time to time.

• Go arounds
• Normal landings
• Crosswind landings
• Short field landings
• Flapless landings
• 25-50hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Instructor Led
• Enroute & Airwork
• Approach and Landing

Pre Flight and Departure

With all the work you have been doing in the first 50 hours, this section should now be automatic.

• Pre-flight, including: Flight planning, Aircraft Documentation, Mass and Balance Determination, Weather brief, NOTAMS
• Aeroplane inspection (as per POH/Approved checklist) and Techlog
• Taxiing and take-off (including checklist discipline)
• Performance (including safety factors) & Trim
• Aerdome and traffic pattern operations including different joins
• Departure procedure, altimeter setting, collision avoidance (lookout)
• 50-75hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Enroute
• Approach and Landing

Enroute & Airwork

• Consolidate fuel plan and fuel plog
• Plan more flights that require you to fly into controlled airspace (provided it is safe and legal to do so)
• Keep working hard to fly to CPL tolerances. Height: +/-100". Heading: +/- 5 degress. Take off/approach speed: +/-5 knots. Other flight conditons +/-10knots
• Practice map reading, track correcting using dead reckoning. Continue with practicing diversions periodically. Now start to select smaller targets e.g. smaller towns
• 50-75hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Enroute
• Approach and Landing

Approach and landing

• This section is about maintaining the standard of your circuit work
• Go arounds
• Normal landings
• Crosswind landings
• Short field landings
• Flapless landings
• 50-75hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Enroute
• Approach and Landing

Pre Flight and Departure

This stage now is about completing your hour building and sharpening up to prepare for your CPL Course

• Pre-flight, including: Flight planning, Aircraft Documentation, Mass and Balance, Weather brief, NOTAMs. Key focus not is to make sure all the information is from official approved sources
• Airplane inspection (as per POH/ Approved checklist) and Techlog. Find out the type of aircraft you will be flying for CPL and start the read the POH for that type
• Taxiing and take off (including checklist discipline)
• Performance (including factors) & trim
• Aerodrome and traffic pattern operations including different joins
• Departure procedures, altimeter setting, collision avoidance (lookout)
• 75-100hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Instructor Led
• Enroute
• Upper Air Work
• Approach and Landing

Instructor led

Led your instructor know you are nearing the completion of your hour building and need 1-2 hours to check your flying and perform some of the below instructor led activities. Feedback from your instructor is key to your improvement.

• Approach to stall and stall recovery exercises
• Spiral dives and recovery
• Glide approaches
• EFATO & PFLs
• The tasks listed are the safety critical items that require an instructor. Feel free to extend what you cover with the instructor to include some of the other items you have been working on during hour building
• 75-100hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Instructor Led
• Enroute
• Upper Air Work
• Approach and Landing

Enroute

• Fuel Planning log
• Practice going into and out of controlled airspace
• Practice tracking and positioning using VOR & NDBs including position fixes
• Keep working hard to fly to CPL tolerances. Height: +/- 100" Heading: +/-5degrees Takeoff/ approach speed: +/-5 knots. Other flight conditions: +/10knots
• Practice map reading, track correcting using dead reckoning. Continue with practicing diversions periodically. Now start to pick difficult targets i.e. tiny villages, disused helicopter pads etc to build the confidence in your basic nav skills. Stay safe and legal at all times
• 75-100hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Instructor Led
• Enroute
• Upper Air Work
• Approach and Landing

Upper Air Work

• Practice steep turns
• Practice steep turns
• 75-100hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Instructor Led
• Enroute
• Upper Air Work
• Approach and Landing

Approach and Landing

• Go arounds
• Normal landing
• Crosswind landing
• Short field landing
• Flapless landings
• 75-100hrs P1 Tasks
• Pre Flight and Departure
• Instructor Led
• Enroute
• Upper Air Work
• Approach and Landing