My adventures as a private (PPL) pilot in New Zealand

Friday, June 23, 2006

Welcome

Welcome to my first ever blog. In time I will post the odd story about my adventures flying around New Zealand as a private pilot. But first a little intro:

I am a full time computer geek, specialising in .Net programming, but dabling in some other stuff, as all good geeks do.

I started learning to fly in May 2003 at Hawkes Bay East Coast Aero Club, and finally got my PPL in April 2005 after 64 hours of flight training, mostly in Piper Tomahawks. After getting my licence I went on to get type ratings in the Cessna 172 and Piper Cherokee.

Early this year I moved to Hamilton, New Zealand, and now am a member of Waikato Aero Club.

So far at Waikato Aero Club I have done a type rating in the Cessna 152 ZK-EOQ, and a few other flights in the Cessna 172 ZK-JGP and Piper Archer ZK-UFS, but other than that havent gotten very involved in the club social scene yet.

My total hours are now up to 135, and I try and fly at least once per month to keep current, even though the law only requires 3 takeoff/landings every 90 days. Luckily my job requires me to travel to Hawkes Bay and Tauranga often, so I occasionaly get lucky with the weather and manage to fly rather than drive.