C-210 Checkout pt 2

Finished! Not without some obstacles, but the checkout is complete and the paperwork submitted.

Tower tried to get in the way. Not sure why, but they told us they were unable to approve flight in the local area due to weather. Huh? The weather was decent VFR. Besides, that's not their call, that's the pilot's call. Anyway. We filed a flight plan and went to Magadi, and played with the flamingos. (There was a big flock of them on Lake Magadi that we overflew on base leg).

Denny Dyvig did the checkout for me. He's a great pilot, I always learn something when I fly with him. Probably the biggest learning experience this time was an attitude thing. He reminded me that the reason to do my best isn't the next check ride, or anything else like that. It's that I've got missionaries (and their children) in the back of the plane depending on me to get them where they're going, safely. A good reminder. It's easy, here, to get complacent, and to forget why we do what we do and why we take such care.

Anyway, a good flight, and a good lesson. Oh, his biggest critique on my flying was some suggestions to make radio calls more concise (that's what lead to the rest of the discussion on safety).

210 Checkout

I'd gotten used to the 206....A flying pickup truck. The 210 isn't really a sports car, but it's nearly half again as fast as the 206. So I spent about half the flight catching up to the airplane. It's easy to fly, a bit heavier in pitch, much lighter in roll. Zipping across the ridge line south of the Ngong hills is alot of fun at about 100 feet above the ground.

Tomorrow it's more 210 checkout: Short and soft field take offs and landings. The 206 is very capable with short, rough runways. Should be fun.

Next week it looks like I'll be up to Marsabit in the 210, and to Mfangano Island. We're trying to make 1 C210 do the work of 2 C206s. It's going to be a busy plane the next couple months.

Stuff

Just stuff. This week is pretty slow. I check out in the C-210 (retractable landing gear, similar to a C-206 but faster, not quite as good on rough runways). Just in time, too. We're losing 2 of our C-206s for a couple months while the registry is changed from US to Kenya (a Caravan also). AIM Air is hurting a bit for airplanes at the moment. Our one Kenya registered 206 is up in Lokichogio for the most part. We're down to 2 Cessna Caravans, one of which is in Loki, so... Looks like the C-210 will be getting a workout for the next couple months.

I'm finished up with route checks, and about 3/4 of the way through new pilot status. Of 150 hours I have about 115. I need to renew my Kenyan pilot license this month...when you're over 40 the license is only good for 6 months. Hard to believe it's already been that long.