Page 37 - March 2015 Volume 19 Number 3

former Marine carrier pilot, and, boy, did it show. “Come back tomorrow r r e e s s t t e e d d a a n n d d r r e e a a d d y y t t o o d d o o b b e e t t t t e e r r. .” ”
Attaining one’s first type rating is truly a test of character. It takes more than aptitude, endurance, and assimilating information quickly. Unlike slower-paced flight training, in type-rating school the compressed calendar and voluminous subject matter make it nearly impossible to achieve satisfactory performance before the checkride. Gaining proficiency and passing depends on the client’s ability to comprehend and correct deficiencies communicated during debriefings. There isn’t enough simulator time to perfect every maneuver.
Day Five
Simulator Day #5 was exceedingly difficult. Most of the flying involved a hot-and-heavy profile with engine fires and other failures degrading performance; mistakes yielded a fatal outcome. The worst emergencies started with two failed generators (the airplane only has two), IFR at 41,000 feet. In the CE 525, multiple systems depend on electrical power. When both of the CJ’s generators fail, all that’s left is the battery, leaving about ten minutes of power unless immediate a a c c t t i io on n i i s s t t a a k ke e n n. .
If neither generator resets (and they never do in the simulator), you flip the switch from “Batt” to “Emer-power” to decrease the load. The challenge is to get to an airport with the 30 minutes of endurance of Emer-power. In the simulator, of course, the available airport is a a l l w wa ay y s s l l o ow w I I F F R R . .
It takes an awfully long time to get down, more challenging with spoilers in-op. At 3,500 ft/min, it took ten minutes to reach Reno’s IAF altitude. That left twenty minutes to set up, shoot the approach, and land. Plus, the steam-gauge emergency instruments are scattered across the panel. Available instrument
approaches are limited to the VOR and ILS, all hand-flown, since t there’s no autopilot.
Astonishingly, the approach and landing were successful, even though I nearly crashed when I looked down to switch to “Batt” for gear and flaps. Returning to level flight effectively centered us on the localizer, a lucky break. Breaking out, the panel flicked to black; emergency braking ensued.
During debriefing, I asked Norwood if the dual-gen failure m might come up during the test. He e replied, “Everything we do is fair game.” I muttered something about being doomed.
I began to suspect that Simuflite instructors viewed owner-pilots less than positively. It wasn’t so much about the stereotypical Type-A pilot writing out a personal check for the airplane, but the experience
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MARCH 2015
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