How I'm Learning to "Fly Safe" 

Looking forward to seeing this Scott! Don't be tempted by the rocket parachute ;)

My first flying lesson was with a bush pilot who gave me my first flight before any ground school. He taxied the Cessna 152 to the runway while communicating with the tower of the international airport we were at. Once cleared for take off he informed me that I was going to perform the take off and gave me precise instructions for every step in the procedure. He was ready to take control at any time but I did the take off and had the controls for the entire flight until it was time to come in for a landing. He contacted the tower who asked him if he could see the jet that was on approach and could he get the Cessna down and off the runway before the commercial jet got to the threshold. My instructor said yes. Tower said cleared to land and we rolled to the right and went almost vertical and made a perfect landing using only the last 1/4 of the runway and we were at the school's hanger before the jet has touched down. The whole experience is still crystal clear even after 25 years.

"Aviation adjacent" is a terrific term. I love the engineering and technology of aircraft, but I also have a fear of heights. My older brother is an amateur licensed pilot, and I nearly crapped my pants when he took me on my first (and last) voluntary helicopter flight from a small airport in Palo Alto. I immediately had a panic attack and told my bro to land. While we have joked about it since then, my brother mentioned "I have never seen you that scared before." It was the longest five minutes of my life while he circled the airport while he communicated with the tower and followed official landing procedures. I will stick with flight simulators.

Having flown for a living most of my life, it's fun to see your excitement and enthusiasm. One of the best things you'll discover, on your path through the world of aviation, is some amazing people. Very happy for you.

For those interested in learning to fly, I would recommend considering a soaring sport (Sailplanes, Hanggliders, Paragliders). Two reasons for this, firstly you will learn much more about the weather, so if you do powered flight later you will be a much safer and more knowledgeable pilot. But mainly because it's just way more fun. Learning to fly is fun, it's a structured mission, but once you have your PPL, you really have to make your own fun, come up with your own missions, the 100$ hamburger, flyins, etc. With soaring, the fun, the sport of it is built in and it comes with a community of other pilots as well. That said, soaring takes a much higher level of schedule flexibility and commitment, so it's not for everyone. However there are experiences to be had when soaring that you really can't get any other way.

This is great, looking forward to in-flight videos. "Fly safe" will be more than just your outro line.

I decided to stop flying a while ago, because I was only wasting fuel. I know the feeling now and flight simulators have become really good. I made a home cockpit. Even played Kerbal on it. I mostly use it for Star Citizen nowadays.

Looking forward to seeing more flying videos in the future, I was actually surprised to learn you couldn't fly already! If you're ever back in Scotland and want to experience flying flying a sailplane, feel free to give me a shout and I'll happily organise that for you!

I'm a Scenery Developer for X Plane 11 so good to see you using it! If you want any of our products We are Windsock Simulations. If you want any of our products hit me up. Happy to improve your experience.

I'm a military pilot and have been watching your videos forever, I'm really excited for you! If you ever have questions or just want to fly around on X-Plane or MSFS sometime let me know!

As a pilot myself, I’m glad to see you got the ball rolling on this, flying is SO liberating!

Love the enthusiasm. Totally agree about learning the RF comms. I qualified in Helicopters 15 years ago in Cambridge UK an thought it was the hardest part of ground school. Keep the faith and remember the 3 rules. Aviate, Navigate, Communicate.

We’ve changed a lot of CAPs parachute packs over the years at our shop. They get replaced every ten years. You used to have cut the composite fuselage to remove the assembly, but now you can remove them from behind the back seat. The line-cutters get changed more frequently and we get to discharge them in house.

Hi Scott! I’ve been flying for over 10 years now and I’m so excited to hear you’re starting to pursue piloting. Keep up the progress videos on your private pilot training, it’s so fun to hear the passion in your voice about the simple flying things long past for me.

Scott your enthusiasm for this has brought back many fond memories. I was a full time flight instructor in canada for a couple years, and now fly for the regionals. Instructing was a very rewarding experience (ok maybe not financiallly). Enjoy the journey and all the best for your training experience!

Very proud of you, Scott. I’m on my second Cirrus and love them. Welcome to the club! I love your excitement. I soloed in 1972 at the Air Force Academy and have been flying ever since. I have camera mounts on my wings and have some videos on my channel. Fly safe!

Got my PPL almost 2 years ago, and I gotta say it's been some of the most fun I've ever had. I wish you luck!

When I switched from a basic headset to a ANR headset, my radio work instantly got better and I was more relaxed in the pattern. There must be some subconscious effort to listen through the noise which is notably alleviated by the improved audio. Probably would be no big deal with more experience but I was surprised by the change as a task saturated student. I'm using the ONE-X which is a still made by David Clarke.

Scott, I was pleased to know you've started taking flight lessons "for real". When I was a current CFII, I owned a Cessna C-120, which I used to offer tail wheel instruction. I also offered free flight instruction for me three sons, although they had to pay for fuel. Soon after he started taking lessons, my son Ethan wanted to know what spins were like. Most airplanes are not approved for intentional spins. C-120s are. Spins are…the best, but they’re not for the faint of heart. You have to have a special attitude (pun intended) to appreciate them. Ethan once mentioned that he and a friend used to drive to distant amusement parks just to check out the roller coasters. When the boys were about eight or nine we drove down to LA one summer. Ethan liked the big rides at Disneyland and Knott’s Berry Farm. I figured he had the right stuff. You start a spin with plenty of altitude. At least 3000’ above ground level. You note your initial heading. Look around, behind, and below you to clear the area. Pull the power back to idle. Maintain level flight and bleed off airspeed by pulling back slowly and steadily on the yoke. Your angle of attack increases. You see nothing but sky as the horizon drops away. The controls become increasingly sloppy as you lose airspeed. You have to increase your effort to keep pulling the nose up. Finally the airplane starts shuddering. The wing is producing very little lift, but lots of drag. You’ve entered a stall. The nose wants to drop, but you can still hold it up, seemingly against the airplane’s will. Normally at this point you’d do a stall recovery, but not this time. This time, you kick in full left rudder. The yaw to the left causes the left wing to stall more severely while the right wing momentarily produces a little more lift than the left. Quickly, the left wing and the nose both drop as the right wing arcs overhead. Suddenly you’re falling vertically out of the sky, spinning counterclockwise, seeing the whole world turning clockwise around a point on the ground which is getting bigger, rising straight up to meet you. That’s where you’d impact the ground if you continued the spin. You’re nearly weightless as you fall, and your stomach may not have caught up with you, but you hardly notice because you’re busy right now. As you continue holding back pressure and left rudder the rotation rate increases. Things on the ground are rapidly getting larger. You should start your recovery now. You relax your back pressure on the yoke and kick in full right rudder until the rotation stops. You’re vertical, but picking up airspeed quickly. The plane starts flying again, but in a steep dive. You pull back steadily but not too fast on the yoke, increasing the G force until you’re level again, maybe 500’ or 1000’ lower than when you started. If you recovered as well as the stunt pilots, you’d be back on the same heading you had when you started this insanity. Restore power and breathe again. You feel fully alive - much more so than what you experience day-to-day. Ethan was stoked. I didn’t bother to ask him if it was better than a roller coaster.

Hey, Scott! Glad to see you pursuing your PPL! A little bit of advice from one pilot to another, don't rush when you're going through the exams and check rides. The Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3A) is your friend, as are all the other official FAA publications, including your Advisory Circulars (ACs), Airworthiness Directives (ADs) and of course NTSB accident investigations. Non-FAA materials such as Boldmethod are also good resources. Podcasts are also frequently informative, as you mentioned. LiveATC is an excellent resource for getting your tower/ATC communications in line. I trained extensively in the SR-20 airframe, it's a comfortable, sleek, loud (Active noise reduction is 100% worth it), and fast airplane. My best advice to adapting to it quickly is to chair fly it. If you can sit in the airplane(s) that you're flying in that's even better. Trim is your best friend. Don't fight the aircraft, don't choke the stick. Fly it every second you're in motion. Ask your instructor about flows (related to checklists). Don't step on the cupholder. Procedure is your friend. If you drill procedures then you're going to be better at dealing with variables. Finally, have fun, take a few moments every flight to look outside and enjoy the view. You're drinking from the fire hose now trying to put however many years of book knowledge into real hand-eye and foot-butt coordination. Lots of firsts are running past you at the moment, and that's not going to stop for a good while if you intend to get your Instrument and Commercial ratings. (Disclaimer: This is not intended to be flight or ground instruction. This is advice to a fellow pilot from one who has recently come out of an SR-20 training pipeline. Any questions about advice above should be brought up with your CFI)

Scott, I have always loved your videos and I'm thrilled that you're getting your license. I'm down in the Los Angeles area and did my training a couple years ago at Van Nuys, KVNY. A fantastic book to check out (if you don't already have it) is Stick and Rudder by Wolfgang Langewiesche. It's an old book that is considered essential reading by most pilots. Also, for radio work practice I love to listen to Live ATC (the website) and I try to respond to all the radio calls out loud while driving or whatever. Good luck and have fun!

Had my ATP since 1975. 22,000 hours many types. Keep going!!!

I was a CFI for several years until covid mixed things up. Passionate, curious, intelligent students like you are the absolute best and most fun to work with- regardless of their stick and rudder skills. I'm sure your instructor is stoked to be flying with you. Enjoy the experience and stay proficient!

Scott, I was a private pilot that did 15 years of search and rescue. Advice: Go to FAA flight safety programs, they have a lot of good info about the physics of flying, but more importantly, the psychology of flying (and flying mistakes). Study SEL crashes-you need to see the thinking behind the mistakes (plural) that led to the crash. You need to figure out where an accident happens, and it's long before the "aw-s**t" moment. Darkness aside, it's really addictive and inspiring, enjoy and "fly safely."

Outstanding. The solo is something amazing I wish more people could experience. When I learned long, long ago, I had been spending a lot of time playing MS Flight Sim. moving into the real plane was fairly easy, and I was even able to handle IFR pretty well. The simulators are invaluable and absolutely do save you a fortune.

Congratulations Scott! Love flying, but it’s an expensive hobby, so I don’t do it anymore. Top priority - fly the airplane. AVIATE, NAVIGATE, COMMUNICATE…in that order!

When you have the time you should definitely try gliding. It's a great experience flying without the need for an engine and definitely worth a try

Great to see your enthusiasm Scott. As a 24,000 hour pilot for 44 years I have some wisdom to pass along. Remember this: Good judgement will get you through times of poor skill better than good skill in times of poor judgment.

Just finished watching FlightChops crossing the Atlantic, and now Scoot Manley is flying. Awesome. :)

When I went thru Private Pilot training (decades ago), the most terrifying thing I was ever asked to do was talk on the radio! Thanks for mentioning Oshkosh. I camped at Oshkosh last summer for the first time during the airshow and can't wait to go again this year. Several hundred thousand like-minded people enjoying a celebration of flight! It doesn't get any better than that.

Got my PPL in December and working on my instrument right now at a part 141 school and let me tell ya it has been the most rewarding experience of my life. I’m happy you’re working on your license right now. Keep up the good work!!!

Welcome and congrats, Scott! In my younger and healthier days, I owned a 1964 Piper Cherokee 140 which I flew over 400 hours. Some of my best memories involve me and my family flying around in that plane.

I started taking lessons in December and it’s always the most thrilling experience. seeing the New York skyline from 90 miles away was a surreal sight.

I'm in the middle of cramming for my PPL checkride this video is extremely relatable. Learning to make radio calls was the most stressful part for me as well, but as some point you get familiar with all the standard radio calls and the ATC procedures, then it's just second nature.

I'm an aerospace engineer by education and experience. In my last couple years in the Air Force, I took ground school and started getting some 'stick time' before the aero club closed down. After that, kids and life kind of got in the way. I enjoyed my experience, and I'm glad to hear you're enjoying yours.

Scott, I'm glad to hear you did not wait any longer. I started with an ultralight, moved on to a Cessna 172, then enjoyed years at that level. I eventually rented a 172 on a vacation to Hawaii and gave my family a nice trip to another island. Age crept up on my and I no longer fly, but have fond memories.

Great to see your passion and that you decided to take up flying! and if you ever get bored about being dependent of airfields, availability of planes and cost, I can advise also learning to fly a paraglider, which basically allows you to fly for free anywhere. Fly safe!

Welcome to the sky! Flying is some of the most fun you can have. Highly recommend getting some glider time in too, it's ridiculous how much you can learn from flying without an engine. But yah, have fun, and fly safe!

You bring back wonderful memories. I was a frustrated Air Force non-pilot. When it became clear that in the Air Force 'pilot' = 'potential leader', and I didn't fit in the latter category, and would not be chosen to be in the former, I marched down to the then-prevalent Aero Club, and signed up for my Private Pilot. This was in Ohio, which was a wonderful place for much flat land, low traffic, and rich aviation history (Wright brothers had their bicycle shop in Dayton). There was a former SAC base in Springfield with a 10,000 ft runway and little traffic. After five hours, the instructor had me taxi to a taxiway about mid-field, and said, "Stop here." He got out, and I thought there was something wrong with the plane he was checking. He said, "You can do this without me. Please take off, go around the pattern, and come back and pick me up." One of the greatest thrills of my life. And tradition back then, was to cut off the back of the shirt of the successful solo pilot, and with a large marker, print their name and date, and hang it on a designated wall in the FBO. I would later go on to practice aerobatics, and was scheduled to demonstrate my skills for an FAA Examiner for my Altitude Waiver. She flew in, and as she did so, the ceiling closed in. And that was that. Eventually, the cost of flying - I found that to remain current, I really needed to fly once a week - on my government pay - had too high an opportunity cost, and I just stopped flying. Logged ~400 hours when all was said and done. I hope, and wish you similar positive feelings and experiences, and thank you for sharing !

Scott. DO IT! Got my pilot's license probably 30 years ago -- just for fun, not a career path. Awesome hobby. So much to learn. So much to do. So many stories to tell! Losing all electrical in the plane while on an IFR flight plan in IMC is quite the experience!

Congrats on your decision! I finished off my PPL last summer, and it has been the best decision of my life. The places I have seen already just made me love aviation even more, and it has made me a better Air Traffic Controller, which is my day job. Not to mention that you're in California, which has so many awesome places to fly to, happy flying and good luck!

Since I'm now starting my Glider Pilots License, it's really fun seeing Scott doing this at the same time. Glider flying needs to worry less about control zones and the like.

It's great to see you being happy, man! ❤

Scott, been a huge fan for years! As a pilot who does this for a living, it's great to see your enthusiasm. Have a ton of fun in the process! And take the trip to Tahoe when you're ready - you won't regret it!

There's something real special about someone talking with pure, fiery passion about what they love. Glad you found your calling, Scott!

That's awesome that you are finally getting the chance to fly for real! I've been a career pilot since college and you've joined what's really a pretty small community relative to the population. Welcome to the family and fly safe!

I obtained my pilots license in 2002 and it’s truly one of the most challenging and satisfying things you will ever do. I learned that anyone can take off an airplane, anyone can fly a airplane in flight. You need a pilot to land! You will be that pilot! Best of luck!

Scott, your comment about getting a 70 before you have had ground school caught this old pilot's attention. At the beginning of my career, I was an instructor. Of the UK students that got their PPL during my two years of instruction, just shy of 2% of them have my signature in their logbooks. The students that had the most issues were the ones who thought they already knew about flying. They were cocky, hardheaded, and thought they had a better way of doing things. Very often, their better way would end up in a cross control stall and incipient spin. The best pilots I flew with were generally humble. They knew they were smart and had experience, but they also knew there was always more to learn.

Welcome to the club. We generally don’t tell people how easy it is. I started driving and fly at the same time and I think Flying is much easier than driving. Please promise you will get your instrument rating as fast as possible as without it, you will be missed.

Best of luck! I've been flying for 20 years since I was 15 and am now a flight instructor. You'll enjoy flying the Cirrus; even at the higher expense. Best way to save money is to show up at each flight fully studied and ready to go. The flight lessons are for practice; learning should happen primarily on the ground (where it's cheaper). Fly safe!

As a pilot and instructor my self for more than 30 years, I am absolutely delighted that you finally took the step to learn to fly your self. It is without a doubt the greatest past time ever. You will not regret it. I still get a kick out of it sending my students solo and seeing them succeed, so happy flying, and I have to say it:), FLY SAFE.

Congrats and welcome to the community! From the back of my old Cessna Cleared for Takeoff textbook, here is a great quote from none other than Charles Lindbergh, “Science, freedom, beauty, adventure-aviation offers it all.”

This is awesome! Where was something honestly really inspirational about hearing you say the actual takeoff phrases, especially in contrast to just messing around in games and sims years ago. Can't wait to see where this goes!

I'm so glad you're finally learning to fly, Scott. I started my training recently as well and I've finished my online ground school and need to take my written. I've just gotten a little busy lately planning my wedding, but I'm definitely going to focus on getting my certificate again once I'm done with that.

Welcome to the aviation community. I'm a retired corporate pilot (31 years). I was one of those lucky guys that actually grew up in an airplane. My Dad learned to fly in the late 1940's and I got the flying bug real early. My formal flying education began in 1960. Things were a lot simpler back then and some of the aircraft I trained in didn't even have electrical systems. I even flew 20 hours in a Stearman biplane with the leather helmet, googles and parachute. I saw lots of changes during my flying career in aircraft, technology and training. You've got a good attitude about learning all you can; your education will (should) never end. Always strive to do your very best to hone your mental preparation and flying skills. I look forward to hearing about your progress. Happy landings! Bye the way, I did fly under the Golden Gate bridge in a Citation simulator to demonstrate the full visual system of the simulator. And, I got to fly Neil Armstrong several times in our Challenger. Pretty cool guy and I treasure his autograph.

After decades of flight sims, I just recently realized how much it has trained my brain to multitask and switch tasks quickly. Cross read instruments, make input corrections, interact with the cockpit, listen to radios, talking on radios, converting units. If I need to memorize numbers, I remember about half of the numbers as actual numbers and the rest as a picture. Now that I've looked at what I learned and trained over 30 years, I understand why people say piloting is such a demanding task. Time for a PPL I think, if it wasn't so damn expensive.

So cool! I fly gliders my whole life basically, flying hundreds of kilometers on pure solar energy is the best!

I recall my dad saying his flight instructors always told him to "beware of cumulo-granite" clouds. Dad was a co-pilot in a B-17 over Europe

My dad also took me to see the Concorde at Prestwick airport - I still remember those afterburners kicking in at takeoff - what a sound!

Great stuff! Looking forward to watching your conquest of the skies 👍 Years ago, in the black and white days, I was about to take off from Southend Airport (UK) in a Cessna for a 40th birthday present lesson and I told the instructor I'd been practicing on MS Flight Simulator the night before, but had crashed it. "Don't worry," he said, "I do that too".

As an airline pilot, I understand the addiction. Welcome aboard! Love your videos BTW, stay active in that passion as well for my benifit 😁

So happy for you. I'm on the outside looking in, but it seems it takes a lot of work to get yourself set up to learn how to fly both financially and mentally. Fly Safe!

Scott, for years I've been among the voices in your chat that say you really need to take the yoke in your hands for real at least once in your life. Glad you're finally doing it. Most of my Air Force career is now becoming a blur, but I still remember those Cessna 152s at the Keesler AFB Aero Club I learned to fly in. I was a broke airman, so I had to trade flying hours for working as a dispatcher. Met the Thunderbirds when the lead and two solos came in to rent a 172 to get their nav points for the show one weekend (lot cheaper flying hours than an F-16). Talked a lot with a WWII P-51 pilot who was one of our CFIs. Had some... memorable... encounters with military aircraft in the pattern (P-3 pilots... grrr). Great times. For anyone else considering this, you don't have to go all the way to getting your pilot's license. You can take an introductory lesson relatively inexpensively and a CFI (certified flight instructor) will show you the basics and let you do a few simple maneuvers. Everyone should do this at least once. It's something you never forget. Notice you don't spend very long flying before you have lots of stories and stuff you really get jazzed about... :D

Scott, your astro intelligence is much respected. And I love to see your enthusiasm of the realism of actually flying vs sim! It's much different and only those that have had to keep up with the multiple inputs/outputs that you mention will get it. Keep up the training, and fly safe!

Go man go! 15 years ago I grew tired of the land locked rat race and decided it was time for a change. I learned to fly airplanes and now I am an airline pilot. Without a doubt, it was the best decision of my life. I hope you enjoy flying as much as I do. The best of luck to you and don't be surprised if you become addicted. I certainly am.

Love you man great job. Since I was a kid I was playing in simulators and was fascinated with aircraft. Watching you make the step towards making it real gets me thinking I should go for it. Im only 30 whats stopping me!

thats great Scott. best thing anyone can do...happy flying

As a lifelong private pilot (been in them since i was a baby, got my ticket when I was 19), I'm excited to watch you on this journey. I think you have a great opportunity to be an ambassador for general aviation (by making videos like this lol). Enjoy the trip, never stop learning, and fly safe!

If you get a chance, take a flight in a glider. You'll be amazed at the thrill and challenge of it compared to powered flight. From the puzzle of thermal hunting to the constant maneuvering you actually have to "fly" 100% of the time. Oh, plus you only ever get one shot at every landing 😁

When Scott manly has approval from the law to say “fly safe”

Great to see you are getting involved into aviation Scott!! When I started watching your videos I was in highschool, nowadays I am a CFi and a bachelour at Aeronautical Sciences. The best part of your training is yet to come! Night flying, cross country, IFR and multiengine flights are really the best thing ever, I remember enjoying them very very much, hope you will too.

That option to practice talking with ATC is huge. I got my PP certification about 25 years ago in Alaska, so almost never had to fly into controlled airspace, so I never learned to do it well and was extremely intimidated to do so. Will enjoy following your progress, flying is something that is always with you.

Good luck! I got my private pilot's license when I was 19. I hope you have a good instructor. It wasn't until after I started flying aerobatics that one of my instructors taught me the difference between "driving" and "piloting" a plane. I was originally taught the driving approach (throttle = speed, elevator = altitude). The piloting way requires thinking about your controls differently (elevator trim = speed, throttle = altitude). I hope you have a chance to fly a high-wing plane like the Cessnas. Low-wing is fun, too, but the outward visibility experience is very different on a high-wing.

It's great seeing you as a pilot. I really want to fly a paramotor.

Fantastic! I also waited far too long to get my private pilot's certificate, but I finally got it a year ago this week. Getting my complex endorsement now. It's so incredibly satisfying for an aviation geek like me. I hope you have a great time with it, and fly safe!

Hey just a few thoughts from a German relatively new (since 2 years) pilot. First of all: Enjoy every second. Flying is amazing and the flying community is a great one. Always ready to help you out. - Headset: I own a Bose A20, but I mostly fly planes with relatively high rpm and cockpit noise. So for me the noise cancelling is more important. Although when transitioning to other aircraft or flying longer legs, you might find that a noise cancelling headset is much more comfortable as it does make a big difference. - Written Tests: The tests are relatively easy and only give you the bare minimum to "survive". So it is very important to keep learning. Especially the accident reports. They have taught me to be very very cations of CFIT. - Cirrus: The closest plane to a Cirrus I ever flew as PIC was a DA40, which is a wonderful plane. I still want to do my Cirrus transition training some day. It definitively is not a bad choice of aircraft. - Taildragger: Just get checked out in one. It will take time but it will improve your stick and rudder skills by a bunch and it's a zen like experience. I got checked out in a 60yo PA18 and have taken her to the north sea 2 times already with my gf. It was a wonderful adventure both times. - RU-vid channels: There are a few aviation youtube channels I have collected over the years that have shaped me as a pilot and that I'd recommend as informative but also enjoyable: - Flight Chops (PPL, Tries everything) - The finer points (FI, tips and tricks) - Aviation101 (FI) - Backcountry 182 (Backcountry flying and lessons on aircraft envelope) - Blancolirio (ATPL + Accident Report) - Elliot Seguin (Test Pilot with amazing debriefs) - Guido Warnecke (CPL, very by the book) - Pilot Yellow (for anything Helicopter) - Pilot Bambi (Story Telling, Ferry, Fixed and Helo) - Air Safety Institute (Air Safety [Duh!]) And here is a complimentary RU-vid proof of me being a pilot. GF filmed me landing an Aquila 210 on a short sloped runway with a kink during crosswind on the lee side of a hill. (You land after the kink): i-I3X4ShZcI (replace the video id in the url with this, I don't know if urls in comments are filtered here)

Scott congrats! Your videos really fueled my aviation bug which I've had since I was a child. Learning how CG effects aircraft and building planes in KSP etc. I've taken that knowledge and when the time was right got my PPL in 2020, IR, Advanced Ground, and Instrument Ground Instructor certs in 2021 and working on my CPL now in 2022. Family bought a T-Tail lance and been enjoying the hell out of it. My channel has some fun aviation adventures on it, maybe we could go for a flight sometime and colab! Would be a dream come true.

I'm so proud of you, Scott - going after your dreams, wow. Also, you're a lucky man to have a wife that supports you in a hobby like this 😄

Years ago as a flightsim nerd kid I found that all those hours in flightsim had distinct advantages and disadvantages. It certainly gave me an edge in learning to land and other things, but it also created some bad habits that my instructor had to break me of, for example looking at the instruments too much when I was doing VFR flight training. My advice would be embrace what you’ve learned from flightsim and continue to use it as a learning tool, but if you instructor tells you you are doing something that isn’t right drop that habit fast! Excited you’re learning to fly safe Scott and I’ll see you in the friendly skies!

I'm currently training to be an ATC with VATSIM and did my first couple of VFR flights on the network yesterday. It's an incredibly awesome tool and community.

There's been 4 releases of the Dave Clark headset Scott showed. I'm looking forward to the next upgrade: The Dave Clark 5

When I first was allowed into the Training Area Solo during my training. I just couldn't quite believe that I was allowed to go out to a country area and fly around in a plane with no one else on board. Something in me just couldn't accept this was real. So I decided at 5,000 feet to do a reality check! So I made sure my seat belt was tight, Grabbed a hand full of the panel, opened the door and bent down to look under the plane. Holy shit. Yep. I was flying it alright. lol Weirdest experience of my life being in a situation where you doubted reality.

Mr Manley, I remember being told that when trans Atlantic passenger flights became common in the 50's and 60's, and before safe instrument landings were possible, the UK government wanted to ensure that there was an airport where planes could land when other airports were fog bound. Prestwick was chose for expansion because it only had one or two foggy days per year. And because it was a fairly quiet airport, it was often used for "touch and goes" before flight simulators took over. Preswick Airport is also famous for being the only place in the UK Elvis Presley visited. When in the army en route from Germany to the USA, he changed planes there.

Excellent. As a CFI myself and a licensed pilot for 13 years at this point, I can tell you that you are at the start of an incredible adventure. Enjoy the journey!

"I fly because it releases my mind from the tyranny of petty things . . ." -- Antoine de St-Exupery (author of The Little Prince)

My old man taught me to fly in his Cessena 152 Aerobat he had at the time. Then I went and did official lessons. Did about 12 hours of the 20 hour minimum course. I had to do 10 hours with an instructor before I was allowed to fly solo and because I already knew how to fly I started flying solo at the minimum hours. I was early 20's at the time though and endlessly drunk. Most of the time I was getting lessons on a Saturday morning, so I was really hung over every time. I gave it away after 12 hours though as the partying took precedence. Another bad decision in my life.

As an airline pilot who started flying in 1997, and has been following you since KSP 0-point-something… then stayed for the space geekdom… I love seeing you geeking out as a noob at something I know well. Enjoy! & of course, fly safe. 🤘🏼

I gotta agree with you 100% about exams vs coursework! Never heard anyone describe it better. Thanks.

A good RU-vid pilot to pick up good habits from is Juan Browne on his Blancolirio channel. While he’s not flying tail draggers around Nevada County, he’s a long haul first officer for AA.

Fly safe!

I'm a controller over at SMF, and have been a longtime fan of your content and work. If you're ever passing through stop on by for some touch and goes. Getting your ppl is such a wonderful experience. For the vatsim side I'd highly recommend the ZBW area. There are some fantastic Sim controllers and training programs in that area and lastly, yes irl we would have "something to say" if you just decided to head into sfo without talking to anyone, but if you had an emergency that warranted it we would do everything we could to get you on the ground safely.

I'm an air traffic controller at the Northern California Tracon. The B airspace looks confusing, but there are transitions and directions we give VFRs to make it manageable. I look forward to hearing your voice on the other end of the frequency if you ever fly into the bay area for a tour.

this friend of my dad's has a 1957 Cesna, there's probably something to be said about glass cockpits compared to how basic things used to be. Id be scared to get in that thing with him

Good for you. Ive been flying for 45 years and it is one of the most satisfying aspects of my life. Between Purdue and other collegiate programs, I’ve taught many men and women too share the experience. I’m now an air ambulance pilot in AZ, near the crater. If you ever come by this way, I’ll take you through out PC-12 and perhaps go up in my 1941 Piper Cub. Fly safe…

The flight training for my various ratings were some of the greatest highlights of my life so far! There is nothing like the feeling of flight and the view from the front office when you are the one in full control of your 3D destiny. You are a techie and you like exams, so when flight training is done, you may also like to pursue the various FCC Amateur radio licenses. It is a great hobby that you can do from home or field and I actually made several contacts with Scotland (from Atlanta) yesterday. Good luck with flight training and cheers!

This video is awesome because it's a happy guy telling about his new old hobby. Keep flying safe, Scott.

Good luck, Scott! Earning my private pilot certificate was one of the proudest moments of my life. I would definitely recommend going for it.

I am very excited about you experiencing the practical aspects of all the theory you are so obviously well versed in and your excitement is very contagious. When my company had a couple of planes and a pilot, I grew to particularly appreciate general aviation. Leaving my house at 7AM and being in the air and on my way to one of our stores by 7:30 made me a BELIEVER! Plus, I parked my car *in the hangar* while we were gone. Contrast that to my trip from DFW to Anaheim last week where I had to get up at 5AM for a 9:30 departure and parking was only a little short of $200, on top of hotel, car rental and everything else... hehehe

So envious!! Not of flying, but of your projected excitement of feeling like a kid again.

I took a flight lesson (just one) for fun a few months ago, and the instructor was very impressed. He asked how I know all this stuff and I said it's thanks to KSP and Scoot Manley :D. (I never played any flight sims other than KSP if you count it). Thanks Scott!