IFR Ground School Starts March 25

IFR Ground School's spring session begins this week at San Carlos Flight Center. Whether you have just finished your private pilot certificate and our looking to continue training or you need a refresher, the IFR Ground School is a great way to accomplish your goals. Join CFI Brian Eliot for this 12-session course which covers the aeronautical knowledge included in the FAA knowledge test for the airplane instrument rating.

Classes begin Monday, March 25th, and will happen every Monday and Thursday evening through May 1st. The classes start at 6:30pm.

To sign up, or for more information, go to our website here.

"Cleared for Capture" Photo Challenge

Attention all photographers! Get ready to take your photography skills to new heights with our new "Cleared for Capture" photo challenge.

At SCFC, we love flying, and we also love capturing photos about flying. Whether you're a seasoned pilot, a student, or simply someone who loves aviation, this challenge is for you. Every month will have different challenges and themes, so keep a lookout on our social media and around the office!

How It Works

• Grab your camera or phone and head to the skies (or maybe the ramp!)
• Share your best shots with us on social media using the hashtag #SCFCCapture and tag @sancarlosflightcenter and/or upload pictures on our website here to be featured!

Stand a chance to win prizes every month and have your photo featured on our social media and our office!

We look forward to seeing your submissions!

Safety

Baseball Opening Day is Coming – Don’t Strike Out!

Opening day for baseball is like a national holiday for some. The San Francisco Giants opening day is April 5th and the Oakland A’s opening day is March 28th.

For pilots, it means that we need to pay attention to NOTAM FDC 0/0367. What is this cryptic NOTAM? Referred to as the sporting events TFR, it prohibits flight within 3,000 AGL in a 3 NM radius over a “qualifying stadium” during a “qualifying event”. It is effective one hour before the scheduled start to one hour after the end of the qualifying event.

What is “qualifying stadium”? In the SF Bay Area there are a few locations that meet this definition. These are depicted on our VFR charts with this stadium symbol. 

A qualifying event is an MLB, NFL, NCAA Division I Football game or NASCAR Cup, Indy Cup, or Champ Series race. This is the challenging part as keeping track of this is not always easy. These events aren’t included in an FAA briefing but thankfully products such as ForeFlight and SkyVector graphically depict these.

Remember that the TFR extends until 1 hour after the event actually ends. If you want to transition via Oakland during an Oakland A’s game you might be better off transitioning overhead Hayward to avoid the TFR.

Lose Something – Gain Something

With all this wet weather in the past month, we are all probably looking forward to spring and a great summer. The first day of spring is March 19th. But one other thing is going to occur prior to that. On Sunday, March 10th at 2:00 am clocks will officially spring forward an hour. Many people dread this day because we lose an hour of sleep. But with that loss comes a benefit.

The benefit is that sunset magically occurs one hour later. Sunset on the Saturday before is 6:11 pm, while sunset on Sunday will be 7:12 pm.

This means an extra hour of daylight time for flying after work. It also means that if you need to get night experience, you will need to start an hour later. Night, as officially defined by the FAA, is the end of evening civil twilight. In the Bay area, this is about 30 minutes after sunset. However, for the purposes of flying with passengers, remember that you need to do three takeoffs and landings to a full stop, one hour after sunset.

SCFC Member Profile: Nick Morris

SCFC: Congratulations on your recent checkride success. How does it feel to be across the finish line as a Private Pilot?

NM: I'm satisfied in accomplishing what was a year+ journey, excited to explore more airports, and relieved that the weather finally held up after the 4th checkride reschedule!

SCFC: Flight training is a combination of book learning, skills acquisition, and risk management. Which of these dimensions came easiest to you and which was the biggest challenge??

NM: Biggest challenge? That's easy, landings! It took a bunch of trips to good ol' KHWD to develop the muscle memory to finally butter up those landings. I found the ground work came a lot easier given that my CFI Shelby, BoldMethod, Sporty's, YouTube, and the San Carlos Flight Center workbooks had my back.

SCFC: How did you decide what aircraft to do your training in and what path to take to Private?

NM: I tried out both the Cessna 152 and 172 at the start of my training and decided on the 152, mainly due to the lower hourly rate. Also, Shelby let me know that he found the 172 way too comfortable and that the 152 "builds character" or something like that.

SCFC: What one or two things would you tell to someone about to take their Private Pilot Checkride to help prepare them for the experience?

NM: 1) It's better to have your CFI grill you than the designated pilot examiner (DPE), so run through some mock orals beforehand and buy the ASA Oral Exam Guide. 2) Chair flying is free and invaluable! When I had my actual checkride, nothing came as a surprise given I had run through it dozens of times in my head.

SCFC: What flying adventures will come next for you?

NM: Where to start... Columbia (O22), Shelter Cove, Napa, Santa Barbara, Catalina Island, Palm Springs, getting some mountain training to do Tahoe, a bunch of Bay Tours, and of course, finally, some solo touch and gos here at KSQL.

Upwind Wine & Cheese - Mar 15 6:30pm

Upwind invites you to a fundraising Wine and Cheese Party on Friday, March 15th. All are welcome. Wine starts pouring at 6:30 pm. Silent auction ends at 7:30 pm. As a special treat we will meet the Upwind Class of 2024. Join us to celebrate with the winners and their families.

Be prepared to bid hard to win great auction items such as

training time with your favorite CFI, lifetime membership to SCFC, unique flight experiences and much more! Check out all the online auction items at Bidding Owl.

Everyone is welcome. Please RSVP here so we can plan for enough food and drink!

Full-Moon Flyers - Lampson - Mar 25 (Mo)

This month, join us as we head into Lampson Field (1O2)! Lampson is located just south of Lakeport, right next to Clear Lake. The airport is relatively quiet, and is a great place to practice landings after a cross-country flight.

At the airport, we will enjoy a dinner at Red’s at the Skyroom. This restaurant features West Coast fare with a variety of entrees and drinks for you and your passengers. With patio seating, this is a great place to replenish after a training flight or as a break on a long cross-country trip to the north. After your meal, venture around the ramp area to see a collection of vintage aircraft from a variety of eras.

After landing and securing your aircraft in transient parking, Red’s is just a quick walk outside of the gate. If you are interested, make sure to sign up here so we save space for you! We’ll see you at 7PM on March 25!

FOG Lunch - Stockton - Mar 30 (Sa)

This month, join us on a fly out lunch to Stockton! We will be dining at Top Flight Grill, located in the airport terminal building and a quick walk from transient parking. Top Flight has a variety of options including burgers, salads, and wraps.

Stockton Airport makes for an easy cross-country destination for students, located in the Central Valley minimal terrain enroute. Instrument students can utilize the ILS to throw in an approach. You might even get lucky an spot an Allegiant A320 or a Boeing 767 freighter! After landing, taxi to transient parking, walk through the pedestrian gate and into the main terminal.

Interested in going? Sign up here so we can get a headcount. We’ll see you in Stockton at 12:00 PM on March 30!