MCC check tomorrow, home in 48 hours!

Hello everyone!

Hope everyone is in the best of health and happiness!! So, tomorrow afternoon, I have my final check for the MCC course. It shouldn't be too difficult I guess. My final sessions on the A320 went pretty well so I'm hoping for the best tomorrow. Anyway, wish me luck!!

This check also brings me to the end of my long time abroad. Yes I'm finally heading back home for good on Tuesday evening.  I'm looking forward to it obviously and now, I'm not actually counting days anymore... I'm counting hours!!  It's so close!  I can't actually beleive that, in 48 hours, I will be back home with my family.  I've been away for nineteen whole months, so going back does feel a bit "too good to be true!"  But it's true and I can't wait for it!  I can't wait to see my family once again, especially my parents, and that cute little nephew of mine, whom I missed so much.  I'm also looking forward to see all my friends again, hang out with them, and have a couple of beers!  Yes peeps... soon!

Looking back at the past nineteen months, sometimes I find it hard to beleive I went through all this.  It wasn't easy at all, especially being away from home, from your closest ones.  I also saw some changes, which may have made it more diffcult.  Sometimes, it might have also been, too hard too hard to handle, perhaps.  But, I'm lucky enough to have had some very close people supporting me through all this.  First and foremost, my family, my parents;  without their continuous support, I wouldn't have made this.  They were my constant support, in every sense.  Thanks a real lot!  All my family... thanks for all words of courage.  All my dear friends, thanks for your support and interest!  All my colleagues here, thanks to you too for struggling alongside throughout the past months.  Also, all my instructors at school, who did their utmost to teach me this great art of flying!!  Thanks everyone!!  They were nineteen tough months, nineteen months of hard work, maybe stressful at times.  But I also had my good times, and I'm sure I'm going to miss those.  I also saw quite some changes going as well... but well, at the end of the day, I saw that major change I worked hard for... I learnt how to fly and became a licensed pilot!!  In a few months time, I'm about to set on a great career... being an airline pilot!

Anyways, I'm off.  I need to get a good rest before my check tomorrow.  This might be my last post from Belgium.  It sounds strange I must say, that whatever I'm doing here, I'm all the time thinking "this might be the last time doing this here!"  But anyways, I'm back home in around 48 hours, and I'm so looking forward!  See you fellow friends and family... see you soon Malta!!

Take care everyone!!

And the A320 takes off!!

And the A320 finally got an even step closer... this week I started my Full Flight Simulator sessions on the Airbus A320. Stepping into the simulator for the first time was something I will never forget. It is true that it is a simulator, but inside, it's a real thing! It's an A320 cockpit! And once you experience one session, it feels even more real. Below is a photo of me in the A320 simulator, today before "flying" from Charleroi Airport to Ostende Airport. Oh that seat is fantastic!! (Thanks to Andre for the photo, and for being a great flightmate!)

I had my first session in the simulator last Tuesday. It was supposed to be a "fixed base" session in which the simulator stays stationary, so you do not really "feel" anything. However, we were told that if the session was done with full motion, we could better understand what we're doing, especially during landings. And guess what, I did feel what I was doing... haha!! So yes, I took off from runway 25R in Brussels Airport and flew straight out. Flying the A320 is different. Being a 'fly-by-wire' aircraft, it doesn't behave like a conventional aircraft, which at first feels ackward, but starts feeling better once you get the hang of it. It's actually much easier to fly, as long as you know how the aircraft behaves. Anyway, my flight continued by turning back to 'Bruno VOR' for an approach on runway 25R, with a manual landing... my first simulator landing on the A320. I felt a bit anxious, but anyway, it's a simulator no?! I descended down to the runway and guess what... the first one WAS a hard one! Oh what a bang! Well, there's always the first time, but by the end of the session the landings were improving. It doesn't seem that difficult to land, and as long as you do a 'textbook' landing, you can get a really smooth one, but it takes practice. Well, overall, for a first time, it wasn't too bad at all!

Today I had my second session. I did a flight from Charleroi to Ostende. It already feels just like the real airline stuff, with procedures to do, and always being a two-men crew, taking it in turns to act as 'Pilot-Flying' and 'Pilot Monitoring'. Today's session went pretty well. Procedures were great and aircraft handling was pretty good as well. I also did some steep turns, and also tried to stall the aircraft, but guess what, it's an A320, and it says "No, you won't stall me!" So I could witness a bit the protections which the A320 has to avoid stalls and other ackward situations. Landings were a bit better as well today. First two weren't quite smooth, but much less harder than last time! But my last one was my best one so far I guess, which was a good way to end my session :-) Oh touching the runway smoothly feels so great... just like one of my instructors used to tell me "nice and smooth!!" ;-) Well anyway, I can summarise my simulator sessions so far in a couple of words... I'm enjoying it! And I just can't wait for the day when I step into a real cockpit and fly a real A320... a couple of months to go... but it will come!

Anyways, I'm soon heading to bed. Tomorrow I've got another session and I have to wake up early so better get a good rest! Tomorrow we should be having a demo of an engine failure during takeoff... should be interesting! Oh and by the way, my training is coming close to the end, and within less than two weeks I'll be back Malta... back home! I'm counting out the days!! Oh the future looks great!!

See ya soon boys and girls!!!

MCC kick off!!

Hello there!!
So my MCC course (Multi Crew Co-ordination) is going pretty well, and fast! I finished all the CRM (Crew Resource Managment) briefings and also had the technical briefings on the A320. Oh it's a nice little bird, and I can't wait to be flying it! On Thursday, I started the FMGS Trainer sessions. FMGS stands for "Flight Management & Guidance System" and its basically the whole system in which you would enter the route of the flight, and which guides the aircraft along the pre-programmed lateral and vertical flight paths. It's interesting, especially now that we are introduced to the multi-crew concept. It feels closer to "the real thing" so to speak! I have my last FMGS Trainer session on Monday and on Tuesday I have my first session in the simulator. I'm really looking forward to that. I'm so close to the Airbus cockpit now! Here's a picture of the my future "office!!" Thanks to airliners.net and the photographer, as always!

Last week I also made a flight in a Cessna 172 to get my SEP rating (Single Engine Piston). Oh that was fun!! That Cessna is a nice little bird to fly, and it feels much more like an aircraft than the Diamonds I flew during my flight training! It was great! This is the aircrat I flew on, OO-WIU. Thanks again to the photographer and airliners.net

Anyways, I'm done writing for today! I should continue going through the A320 procedures, as I need to prepare myself for the simulator sessions! Oh I can't wait for it!! And more than that, I can't wait for the real thing... stepping into a real A320 cockpit for the first time! And that's coming pretty soon!! :-)

Till next time!! Take care everyone!!

And... CPL IR ME rated!!!

So... finally... after ten whole months of ground school... eight whole months of flight training... I finally made it!! I am now a fully licenced commercial pilot with instrument and multi-engine rating!! I had my final checkride to get my instrument rating (IR) last week and I passed!! I'm very happy about that of course, and realising that I now have what I've been working so hard for during the past months, it's great!!

I haven't written anything here since I had my previous checride before leaving Arizona! Yes, apparently this blog is doomed to being updated only once in a while! Apologies again for the delay! Lots and lots of stuff happened since then. I left Arizona and came back to Belgium. Oh that was a day of mixed emotions. I was happy to move forward and get closer to home, but I new I was going to miss Arizona and my great time there... my instructors, my American friends there, all the good times, and the amazing last week of celebrating and partying... but unfortunately, all good things come to an end, and that had to be one of them. I arrived back in Belgium on the 30th of June (yes... time flies!!) after what seemed a never ending flight. (PS I'm definately not going to miss the "school" as such... well I guess that's easy to realise why!)

Fortunately, I had some free time when I was back in Belgium, so... what does a person who has been seven months away from his home country do? Go back there!! And that's exactly what I did. I went down to Malta the same week. I was so happy so see my parents again at the airport! I also saw my nephew... oh he's growing up so fast, and he is now quite chatty and talks all the time! Oh I had missed him so much and was glad to see him again. I had also missed my family and finally, I was back home. I also met a couple of friends while there and enjoyed some nights out with them too. Thanks peeps for a warm welcome! Unfortunately, that stay was only four days long; a short, but much needed break. The next week, I was back in Belgium.

I started flying again here a week after that. Unfortunately, things did not go as smooth as I wished they would. I found flying here quite different from Arizona and I had to get used to the new airspace, new instructor, and also, new methods of flying in a few hours, which I immeaitely felt they were not enough. But anyway, after some struggles, I managed to get to the day of my checkride, and I'm now very glad to have obtained my licence! The checkride was quite good, and I think it was my best flights from all the flights I did here in Belgium. I remember, back in the airport restaurant in Antwerp, I met one of the school instructors and ater congratulating me for my achievement he said... "You passed your check but it is not over. This is only the beginning. It is over only on the day when you last step down from the aircraft, the day you retire." Wise words I must say, and I'll try to carry that though with me throughout my career.

So having passed that checkride, I now have the required licence to be considered a commercial (instrument multi-engine) pilot. Lots of words and letters, which mean a lot, and nothing at the same time! But I've worked hard for them and I'm glad. And here I would like to thank all the people who have helped me get to this point; my flight instructors, both in Arizona and here in Belgium, who taught me how to fly; all my friends who have supported me throughout the my training; and finally, last but not least, my dear family, especially my parents, who gave me their utmost to help me get here, and who were constantly supportive with all means! Thanks a lot!

This week I started the very final phase of my flight training abroad; the Multi Crew Co-operation course (MCC). Since I'll be flying the Airbus A320, I'm obviously doing it on this aircraft. So far I had some CBT (computer based training) sessions which were quite interesting. Today I started the CRM (crew resource management) course which is also quite interesting. Next week I should have some briefings about the A320 and then starts the fun part; simulator training, and thus the first time I'll be handling a "bigger" aircraft, only in a simulator of course, for now!! The MCC course should be finished by the end of the month so at the beginning of September I should be back to my beloved Malta! I can't wait to be back there, with my friends and family... and looking forward to a great career!!

Anyway, I'm off for today. Tomorrow, it's CRM again!! Take care everyone, and to my friends and family in Malta... see you soon!!

CPL ME (VFR) rated!!!

Yes... I finally got my first official checkride done, and I passed!! I'm now officially, CPL ME (VFR) rated!! Yaayy!! Ok, what does CPL ME (VFR) actually stand for? It is "Commercial Pilot Licence, Mult-Engine" with a slight note that I can only fly in VFR conditions, the "good weather conditions" to keep it simple hehe!!

Basically it's the first step to officially being recognised as a licenced "commercial pilot." Yaayy!! When I go back to Belgium, I should be having a further three flights and then another final checkride to obtain my CPL IR ME, which stands for "Commercial Pilot Licence, Instrument Rating Multi-Engine" And that's when I could also fly in crappy weather and all that!

The checkride went pretty well. Take off from Falcon Field, transition through Mesa Gateway's airspace south bound, did the maneouvres (steep turns, slow flight, stalls, VMCA demo... and all that stuff) and then headed to Coolidge to start my navigation. Just before nearly completing the navigation part, the examiner told me to divert back to Coolidge directly. I estimated a rough heading and flew back to Coolidge. There I did some landings, and that's where the engine failure stuff started. The examiner "failed" my engine on upwind and immediately started with the re-call items, which according to him were a bit "on the slow side." But I think all went pretty well, and I think this was one of the best flights I ever had in fact. The only two main comments the examiner had was to be faster on the one-engine procedures, and that according to him I should use flaps even in one-engine approaches. But then again, that's up to the PIC's discretion no?! Haha, well over all it was a good flight, and as soon as I realised I passed I was... yaayyyy!! Obviously, a couple of beers HAD to follow in the evening!

Anyway after that checkride, my training in Arizona is now over and next Monday I'll be returning to Brussels. Ok I must admit, I am going to miss the place and the people. (Sidenote... definately not ALL people... some are just pure plain assholes!!) But I'm also looking forward to a well-needd break in Malta, and see my family again. However, for now, it seems that once back in Belgium, we will be flying immediately so I don't know whether there will be any room for Malta. I guess I'll just have to wait and see!!

Well for the time being, I just want to hang around and celebrate my first successful official checkride!!! Till next time folks!!

San Francisco...

*me* peeps out of a hole... *me* looks around... *me* shouts "ANYONE THERE???!!!"

Ok... it's quite! Well yes here comes a post after nearly three whole months without anything new on this blog!! Ok, I apologise... I will not do it again... but I know I eventually WILL do it again :-) You see, at first I spent some weeks not updating it, because of two main reasons; a) either not finding enough time b) pure laziness!!... (some say B is more like it! could be true!!) Then I realised, I had loads and loads of things to add, that eventually I always found it hard to start adding all things that I did during those past weeks. After about two months not writing anything, I said "ok.. just do it" but guess what... I didn't!! And another month passed... so... there are now loads of loads of loads of things to add here! And also, guess what..... I forgot most of the things!! Well, not forgot... but there's so much to say that something will sure slip away!

And that's because these were three fully packed months... and, no not with flying. I'll talk about that one day. All I can say is folks... if you want to learn to fly in a good school... do not choose THIS school :-) But anyway, let's not talk about the flying for now; well other than I'm now flying the twin-engine DA42 and I'm soon finishing my flying here!! Yep, I had passed all my DA40 checkrides and moved on to the DA42. I wish things are going a bit better with my flying because sometimes I'm feeling a bit behind. But I hope all goes well for my final flights. I have one more flight to do here and next week I should be having my official CPL VFR ME checkride. After that, I should be back in Europe to finish off with the final CPL IR ME checkride. But more of that later on!

Rather than flying let me concentrate on the pleasurable free time of the past few months. They were three packed months! Let me try to remember a few events; the musical "Cats", NASCAR races, hiking... (ye I hiked Camelback Mountain, Sedona and part of the famous Grand Canyon!! I can now say "been there, done that!"), the Apache Trail and a more American version of the Apache Trail involving a "Hummer H3", a visit to Lake Saguaro, oh and an unforgettable night flight to Las Vegas!! How can I forget that?! Well these were some of the main events I had happening over the past weeks. I won't talk about them today however cause it will take too long! But, I have put up some photos on Picasa from three of these events; Saguaro Lake, The Apache Trail (1st Edition, Special "Hummer" Edition still need to be posted!) and The Grand Canyon. Enjoy the pictures by clicking on the links below!

Saguaro Lake	The Apache Trail	Grand Canyon

And now, to the title of this post... my most recent great time was in... San Francisco!! Basically, we knew we were not flying for four days (quite common here... o what a "flight" school...) and so what better way to spend a weekend... head to San Francisco!! We went last Friday, by plane, and spent a good three days going around the city. On Friday, we visited the famous Alcatraz island. Quite a place to visit! On Saturday, we visited "The Fisherman's Wharf", which is an area around the coast, full of piers, boats and sea lions!! There, we visited "The Aquarium of the Bay", which is a small place full of live fish and stuff! It was nice, but a bit short. I thought it would have taken longer to see. We also visited a World War II US submarine there, the USS Pampanito. That was quite an interesting visit! We then walked all the way to the Golden Gate Bridge, (See picture below) Oh it's huge... a great scene to see! On Sunday, we spent the day going around the city. We walked a bit over San Francisco Bay as well and then headed to the Golden Gate National Park. We returned back to hot Arizona on Monday morning. Well it was a good break and a well-needed holiday too! I'll try to upload some photos on Picasa as soon as I can!

I'm stopping here for today. I'll try to get into the habit of updating my blog more often (ye right!) So much happened over the past weeks and my stay here in Arizona is now coming to an end!! Basically I have one flight left (which according to the schedule I should fly tomorrow) and then I should be doing my first official CPL ME checkride at the beginning of next week. So hopefully by the end of the week I'll be back in Europe!! Yep that's right... maybe I get a small break in Malta, maybe not. It all depends whether we can start flying immediately in Belgium or not! As for me, well I do need to see Malta badly!! Need a break there!! And I need to see all my family, and that cute little nephew of mine, as well as my friends! So I hope that within a week or two, I'll be back in Malta for a little break! Then again, I have to admit... I'm going to miss Arizona!! Definately I'm not going to miss the school and it's... incompetence?!! Well ye that's a good word! But I'm definately going to miss all my friends and flight instructors, who have all made my stay here, one to remember!! I'm off for today!! Till next time... hopefully soon!

Thunder in the Desert 2009...

Hello from far far away... hope everyone's doing well!! So, I was supposed to post this piece a few days ago but I still had to upload some photos on Picasa before, but as always... I tend to procrastinate things!! (Hey no one is perfect... right?! :-p)

As you can see from the photo above, last weekend we went to see the airshow at Luke Air Force Base - 'Thunder in the Desert 2009'. No, those are not two aircraft stuck to each other in mid-air. They're a pair of F-16's from the US Air Force aerobatic display team, the 'Thunderbirds', performing breathtaking aerobatic precision formation flying. They really put up a great show despite the strong gusting winds! It was a great day and a great show. There were a lot of aircraft at the static display and the flying display was great as well... an airshow worth going to. It was very very windy and there was dust blowing all over all the time which was quite annoying unfortunately... but ye it was a good day. I've posted some photos I took; just click on the link below to have a look! Next time I will try to put up some photos from the Yuma Airshow, which I had been to the week before.

Thunder in the Desert 2009 - Luke Air Force Base Airshow

And what else was going around over here? Yesterday evening we had great night out with my VFR flight instructor and a couple of friends. We went to eat at Maggiano's in Scottsdale (great restaurant, delicious food!!) and then headed to a club in Scottsdale. I really enjoyed myself; I needed some good time out hehe! Thanks to all for a great night. And today, I spent a day at the Renessaince Festival. It's a festival held annually I think here in Arizona. The theme is, the Renessaince Period (duh!!). It was quite good; well good enough to spend a day out! :-)

And flying... oh yes the main reason I happen to be here is, to learn to fly, but guess what... I spent a whole week without any flying! Ye I'm quite pissed off about it at the moment. And it's all thanks to the whole disorganisation at the school. The last time I had flown was Friday 20th March. Then, I had a simulator session on Monday 23rd. Then, I flew again yesterday, and obviously, things didn't go as good as I was hoping for. It wasn't bad (especially considering the bumpy conditions we're now facing in flight because of the increased temperatures... yes it's becoming a hell) but I'm sure a week long break from flying is unhealthy during training. And... tomorrow I'm not flying AGAIN! It's going too slow and I can't wait for my training to be over. Ye I do need to get my life back hehe... and I do miss Malta as well. So, ye, I can't wait to be back!

Anyway, I'm really tired tonight so I think I'm going to call it a day early tonight! Big hello to all my family and friends back home!! See you soon hopefully!! Take care everyone... till next time...

Flying the DA-40...

Hey everyone!

So, as I said last time, I'm now flying on the Diamond DA-40 and have started my IFR phase. At the moment, the flights are pretty much familiarisation flights to get used to the aircraft, especially landing the little bird. I think it is slightly different from my previous aircraft, the DA-20. I think smooth landings are easier to make in the DA-40, than in the DA-20, but if a landing is destined to be "hard" then yes, it CAN be hard! If you flare too much, or too early, the aircraft just sinks down into the ground. But anyway, slowly slowly I got the grip of it, and I'm happy to say I've started to like this aircraft. The photo below, that's me with N4174B parked at Casa Grande Airport, after a (bumpy) flight from Falcon Field last week. For those of you who wanted to see a photo of the DA-40 only, sorry but you have to put up with the fact of me being in the picture :-p

Last Friday I also started night flying. It's cool, you see all the lights and stuff at night. It feels very different, and a bit strange until you get orientated to the fact that you are flying in pitch black at night. On Friday, I flew to Phoenix Mesa Gateway Airport and made a couple of touch and goes there. Ye landings at night do feel different, but I did get the grip of it. And yesterday night, I had my first night VFR cross-country flight, (yes I'm still stuck with some VFR flights!!) I flew to Tucson International Airport and it was a nice flight. Winds were relatively calm, and the air was so smooth. When we arrived at Tucson Airport, I made a couple of touch and goes there. It's an intenational airport there, and so you get some airliners going there. I was thus making touch and goes with a couple of nice big birds landing on the other parellel runway. It was cool and I enjoyed it. I'm also pleased with my landings :-) Today I have another two flights in the evening; a couple of landings with my instructor, and then, for the first time ever, a solo night flight! Yep, it's the only solo flight I'll be doing in the DA-40, during which I should be doing five landings in all, as a requirement to get your night rating. I'm really looking forward to it!

Anyway... besides flying... last weekend I went to an airshow in Yuma, which is a Marine Corps base. It was great! I took loads of photos (perhaps too many!!) and I enjoyed every part of the display! Next Saturday, I should be going to another airshow at Luke Air Force Base, which is said to be the greatest F-16 base in the world. The US Air Force display team, the 'Thunderbirds' will also be performing a display so it should be another great day! On Sunday we also sent to see a show with horses called 'Cavalia'. It was very good, a great show!

Anyway, I think that's just about it for today. Ah yes, one last thing... lately I've been behaving much like a typical American as regards food... yep, over the past five days, five 'fast-food' meals. It's crazy here eh... there's a fast food outlet in every corner and since it's so easy to get, you'll get it! But ye, I'm still carefull... don't want to end up like most of the population here... big'n'fat! Sorry peeps but I think you must do something about your diet here ;-)

Till next time!!

Busy February... long time no see!!

Hey there everyone!

So, yes, my "New Year's Resolution" of updating my blog regularly has long way been gone! I realised I haven't written anything in February! That's because February was quite a busy month here... with a couple of ups and downs along the way as well, both in my training, and in general.

After my first solo flight, it was one straight run towards my Pre-Solo Cross-Country Navigation checkride. I was enjoying the cross country flights because I was finally getting away from our home base in Falcon Field. However, things were not going so smooth and I was finding it a bit hard to get the grasp of navigating around by reference to visual references on the ground... I really prefer the idea of flying on instruments! Anyway, in a couple of days I went for my Pre-Solo Cross-Country Navigation checkride and... I failed! Ye I wasn't pleased at all about it, but that checkride was a whole mess for me so ye... I had to fail. And anyway... nothing comes easy in life, so I guess this was one of them. I then did an extra mission with my instructor and then had a re-check, which, I passed!

So, having passed that check, I started my solo VFR cross-country navigation. I had some flights with my instructor but then most of them were solo flights. The flying was really cool, but the planning was really keeping me busy. Most of my flights were being scheduled early morning at 0730, which meant that I had to wake up early most of the days to check out the latest wind forecasts. Ye I was waking up at 4am! And that also meant that I had to sleep early the night before, and the night before, I still had to plan out my flight. So, it was one whole cycle, wake up at 4am, go for the flight (some of which were 3-4 hours long), get back home, plan another flight, sleep, wake up... repeat! And that left me with little or no time at all. Well sometimes I did laze about as well, but ye, time was quite limited.

But anyway, one flight after another my solo cross-country flights came to an end last week, but there was one particular flight which I remember well. It was a Saturday and I had planned a flight to Kingman Airport (an uncontrolled airfield up north) and then to Lake Havasu Airport. It was a great day, weather was very good, winds were calm... the kind you'd wake up in the morning and say "This is a good day for flying..." And yes it was... I was sitting there in my little Diamond DA-20, floating in calm air... doing what I like most... flying. I made a touch and go at Kingman and then headed to Lake Havasu where I stopped for fuel. And, Lake Havasu is one of those really poshy airfields, in which, after you land you get about three "follow-me cars" waving at you to follow them to their hangars to give you fuel. I followed one of them and parked my aircraft. Speaking of "poshiness", the guy in the follow-me car went out and put carpet near my aircraft... I was like "wow" :-) The guy gave me fuel and I went in to relax a bit. Wow it was so poshy there; the pilot's lounge was so welcoming, there was a big screen where you can watch movies on, internet, and complimentary coffee/tea/cookies... and even their restrooms were also like, the poshiest place you could imagine... yep it was one really nice place to spend a couple of minutes in, on a Saturday afternoon. Anyway, once I was ready, I headed back home and it was another great flight, with me sitting there singing along the way... (yes... no comment :-)

Well, some of the flights also had some minor problems in them as well, but nothing really serious.. but ye, once I had an Exhaust Gas Temperature gauge going nuts during flight which worried me a bit... you know, sitting up there all alone and getting weird indications from a gauge does wory you a bit. But then I realised it was all about wrong indications from a gauge. In another flight, something similar happened with the Fuel Quantity gauge. It decreased all of a sudden and at one point in time just went to Empty... I was like... "ok what's next?" Again I suspected a wrong indication but I still landed in a nearby airfield to check out the fuel tank, which still had more than half a tank of fuel so again... wrong indications! But ye, nothing goes so smooth so you get these "glitches" every now and then, just like everything in life I guess.

Anyway, all these "adventures" brought me to my final VFR navigation checkride last Friday. I was a bit tense about it, especially having had a re-check in my previous check. But anyway, I went for it, and during the flight I felt it was going ok. But, the typical examiner... absolutely no comments during the flight! But at the end, I was on downwind entering into Falcon Field, with my checkride coming to an end and my examiner said "So you realise this is your last flight on the DA-20" I was like "So... I passed.... wuhuuuu" And yes... that WAS my final flight on the DA-20! And in a couple of seconds I was doing my final landing in the DA-20. Actually, I'm glad it's over on that little DA-20. I want to move on!

Having passed my checkride I'm now ready to start instrument flying on the DA-40. Yesterday, I had a briefing about the DA-40, and today I'm scheduled for my first flight on it! I'm looking forward to it... it's a new phase, and it also means I'm nearly half way through in my flight training! Yes I want to be back in Malta ASAP!! :-)

Anyway, I'm off because I have to start preparing for my flight (and start all over again learning new flows and checklists!) It was a long post today... but ye had to update a bit on the happenings around me. Next time I'll ry to update more often :-) Another sorry to all my friends whom I haven't been in contact with for some time... Anyway... till next time!!

Johnny goes Solo!!!

Ye that's it... I finally went solo in the air!! And this picture says it all... that's me taking off from Falcon Field, all on my own for the very first time!! Wuhh what a day to remember!!

Ye I know I should have written something immediately after my solo, but time here ran so fast during this last week! Basically it was one whole run from my solo at Mission 32 to Mission 41, where I stand now.

But ye... let me talk a bit about one of my unforgettable days in all my life! Initially I was supposed to do my first solo flight on Monday 12th January, but the winds were a bit too much for a first solo so I had to postpone to Tuesday 13th January, and that's where I left my blog. Well gues what... no, 13th January wasn't the big day either! It was windy again, and I was so pissed off! So I had to wait for another day!

But, 14th January 2009 then became a day to remember! I was scheduled to fly early morning, at 0730 local time. So ye, I had to wake up at 0500 (something which I have been doing everyday since then!) Anyway, when I got at the school I met my instructor and prepared the weather briefing. The winds were finally withing my limits and my instructor said, ye we can fly. I then made the pre-flight inspection of the N4107F, which was going to take me solo to the skies for the very first time! The birdie was airworthy so off we went!

First, I had to make three full-stop landings together with my instructor. Those seemed quite normal, as I had been doing landings with my instructor for quite some time now! But then it was time... I landed and taxied back to the ramp and my instructor left. It did start to feel a bit tense, you know, looking at that right seat, seeing it empty, and thinking "What if?!..." But ye, I was looking forward to get back in the air and do my first solo flight. I taxied out to the runway and then... "Diamond 4107F, runway 4R cleared for take off..." Wuuu here we go... I pushed the throttle lever and there I was, rolling on the runway... going solo. It really went fast but I remember actually taking off, leaving the ground, and me just going WAAAAAAAAAAA in my head :-) At time I couldn't beleive I was actually flying the bird all on my own! After take-off, I joined the traffic pattern on the North runway to come in for landing. Everything went so fast... but everything was so cool. I kept a sharp lookout for the other traffic, more than ever. Normally, there used to be two pairs of eyes watching out, but now... there I was all on my own. As I approached the runway for my first solo landing, I was concentrated on getting the landing right, but at the same time I was still thinking "wuhh am I really doing this?!" Anyway, in a few seconds, there I was, flaring on the runway to put the bird on the ground. The landing was quite decent as well! It just felt great! I repeated two more patterns, and then landed, and taxied back to the ramp. My instructor and my friends were waiting for me there and soon, the "after first solo ceremony" was about to start!

Basically, after your first solo, you're not allowed to touch the ground! So what happens is that, your friends push the aircraft back in its place and then one of them, carries you on his shoulders (the unlucky guy who had to carry me was Josef :-)) Then, you're dumped in the trunk of the car and driven back to the residence. No, you don't touch the ground... but, you're taken out of the trunk and thrown in the pool! And ye it all happened and withing twenty minutes after landing, I was all soaked in the swimming pool! Everything went so fast... but ye, it's one of those unforgettable days!! There are some photos of my solo online. Just click on the album below!! I also have a couple of videos of the big day but I still need to edit them to make one whole video. Ye I want to get it done as soon as possible but this week was very busy!!

My First Solo Flight!!

Here, I would like to take the opportunity to thank everyone who made this day possible! Thanks to all my friends here for making this day a special one, for all the photos and videos, for throwing me in the pool and stuff :-) Thanks to my instructor, for getting me ready to solo! Thanks to all my friends who e-mailed me wishing me luck and thanks for all your support (I still have to answer your e-mails!). Thanks to anyone who in some way brought me to this day, and finally, most specially, thanks to my family... especially my parents for all the support, each and every single day, and also my sister and her family! Thanks people!!

Anyway... and after my first solo? Uuh it was one whole busy week!! I flew everyday since then, except on Sunday. Thursday and Friday I made two flights, half an hour with my instructor and an hour solo each time. I stayed in the Falcon Field pattern practicing my landings. On Saturday, I flew again, and had two missions, all solo, and went over to Gateway airport! On Monday and Tuesday, I flew with my instructor in the morning and solo in the afternoon, and finally today (or rather yesterday, now) I had another solo flight. So ye, one busy week, and everyday waking up at 5am... ye I'm getting tired :-)

What's next? Today we had the navigation briefing, which means that tomorrow I'm going for my first cross country with my instructor! That's right, I'll be leaving the Falcon Field area and fly over to Gila Bend, south west of Phoenix. It's a whole lot of preparation; today I spent a lot of time planning the flight, and tomorrow I have to wake up early again to check the forecasted winds! Ye busy busy busy... but... fun!

Well, that was a long post for today, and now it's time for me to go to bed and get some sleep! I really need it! Anyway, take care everyone! See ya!!

First solo flight postponed...

Hey!

Unfortunately my first solo flight had to be postponed today! Why?! Too much crosswind! I was very eager to go but as soon as I arrived at dispatch, I found out the wind was at 15kts, with a direction of 020. I met my instructor and he told me we had to delay the flight and wait for the wind to calm down a bit. Ye... I was pissed off, but there was nothing else to do! Unfortunately, the wind wanted to keep me on the ground. I waited and waited, and the wind slowed down to 10kts later on during the day, but it became more of a crosswind! We decided to postpone the flight to later in the afternoon, so I went home. My instructor called later and he told me we would cancel the flight, since the wind ended up giving an 8kts crosswind, which for a first solo flight is a little bit too much!

But anyway, I should now be doing my solo tomorrow, Tuesday 13th January at 1115 local time (1915 Malta time). The aircraft was also changed. I will now be flying the N4107A for my first solo. This aircraft seems to accompanying me on these special events... I had my first flight on it, I also had my pre-solo check, and tomorrow, I'll go solo for the first time on it! My companion in flight!!

Anyway, I'm now off to bed. Tomorrow will be the big day... (and I hope the wind allows it to be so!!) I would like to thank all those who are wishing me luck for my first flight. Thanks a lot for all your support everyone; to all my friends, and especially to my family, most of all, my parents... tomorrow's solo is all for you!

I'm off to bed... for tomorrow, the skies await me!!

Pre-Solo Checkride... PASSED!!

Yes... my Pre-Solo checkride is over and done with, and I made it. I passed my first check and so my next flight is my first solo flight!

The Pre-Solo check went pretty well. As usual, I went through the weather briefing and prepared the mass and balance and performance documentation, and then went down to the aircraft to perform the pre-flight inspection. I then met my examiner and we boarded the aircraft. I took off and then joined the traffic pattern to perform the touch and go's. First one was a normal traffic pattern. It went pretty well but I cut the power slightly too early and so the landing was not that smooth, but well, not as hard as they used to be still!! The second pattern was a flapless pattern. I extended the downwind land to gain more distance and made my approach below the normal glide. Otherwise, it's much more difficult to land; these Diamonds simply want to fly! The flapless landing was quite smooth. Back in the air, I asked the tower for a short approach to do a power-off landing (landing with idle power from abeam the touchdown point). All looked pretty well, until I decided to put down the last notch of flaps! It was a bit too early so I screwed it up and started to sink rapidly... so... go around!! Well, I still had to do at least one go-around during the check ey! Anyway I repeated the pattern and made a short approach again. This time, it was much much better and I landed very smoothly. Taxiing back to the ramp, I had one question in mind, passed or failed?! Well, my flying was ok so I was hoping it was a pass but ye the tension started to build up. After parking and shutting down the engine, the examiner said nothing other than, "I'll meet you upstairs." I was so anxious to get to know! But anyway, back upstairs, the first thing he said was "Congratulations... you passed" I was WIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!! :-) So ye, finally it was over, and I passed my first check!

And now... well having passed the pre-solo check, next on the line is one of my historic events in my training, the day every pilot never forgets... my first ever solo flight! I'm scheduled to fly tomorrow, Monday 12th January at 0915 local time, 1715 Malta time. The aircraft is the N4110R. First I will do three take-offs and landings with my instructor, and then I'll taxi back to the ramp, leave my instructor behind and taxi once again to the runway, and take-off on my own for the first time! Then I'll do three traffic patterns with three fullstop landings with taxibacks. I'm really looking forward to it! After landing, there should be the traditional first solo ceremony. You're not allowed to touch the ground. From the plane, you go on top of someone's shoulders and then to the trunk of a car. Then you're driven to the apartments and thrown into the swimming pool, in full uniform, and without touching the ground! Well, I'm also looking forward to that!!

I can't wait for tomorrow. It' going to be a great day for me, I'm sure! My first solo flight!! I'm off for today... take care everyone!!!

Pre-solo Checkride tomorrow...

Hey there!

It's been a while since my last post. Actually I now realise it was last year :-p Ye I spent a nice New Year's Eve in Las Vegas, seeing David Copperfield perform some impressive illusions, and going around the luxurious hotels at the Las Vegas Strip.

But now, back to business... tomorrow I'm scheduled for my Pre-Solo Checkride, in which I should fly some traffic patterns and from then on, if I pass, I can go for my first solo flight. If I fail the first attempt, I'll have to do an extra mission and then have a re-check. But we'll see how it goes. I'm trying to be optimistic.

My performance during my last three flights varied a lot. Last week, on Tuesday, I flew but it was quite messy. Then I had another week without any flying and then flew again last Tuesday, and that was a good flight in which I improved a lot. My landings were finally taking shape and I was "landing" the plane, rather than "banging" the plane on the runway! I flew again today but I think it wasn't as good as last time. So ye, mixed feelings for tomorrow... but we'll see how it goes. It's all up to tomorrow's flight. I hope it goes well and I'll fly good enough to convince the examiner! I should be flying on the N4107A which is also the first aircraft I flew on. I hope it brings me luck ;-) Wish me luck!!

I'm off because I need a good rest tonight and I have to wake up at 5am tomorrow morning!!

Take care everyone!!

A week on the ground...

Heya!!

Today I realised I haven't updated this blog for more than a week, so it's about time I give some updates. I wasn't at all busy with flying during the past week. My last flight was on Friday 19th. December, so it's been quite a while now. I'm flying again tomorrow and I hope I'll manage to get back to normal as soon as possible. It's not healthy to spend so many days without any flying, especially knowing I have to improve those landings! Yep, last time I had a couple of hard landings unfortunately, so I'll hope to improve them tomorrow. I also visited William's Gateway Airport last time, where I made some traffic patterns alongside some departing 707's! Anyway, we'll see how it goes tomorrow.

This week I also uploaded some photos of my first few days in Arizona. I know I had to upload them before but I've got quite a lot of photos to sort out. (And really, I'm not the type to get things done immediately ey! :-p ) Here's the link to the album.

First few days in Arizona

During the past week, I found some time to go a bit around the place; (which adds to more and more photos to be uploaded). On Sunday, we visited the Commemorative Air Force Museum which is here in Mesa. It was a great day and I enjoyed every minute of it. It's a museum full of old aircraft, some of which are also in flying condition. Below are two photos, one with a P-51 Mustang and the other on the rear side guns of the B-17 Flying Fortress (which is also in flying condition) We also got to know about another aviation museum in Tucson, which I want to visit one day.

The day before, on Saturday, we went to a place called 'Fountain Hills'. There's a huge fountain which goes off every hour, and overall it's quite a nice relaxing place. As regards Christmas, (btw, Merry Christmas to everyone... belated I know, but better late than never :-p ), basically I spent Christmas here with some of my mates. We went to Midnight Mass together (for a change, I slept) and then had Christmas Breakfast here together. On Christmas Day we also made a meal here together, so basically I spent my Christmas at our flat with my friends. But I enjoyed it. The day after Christmas, we went to the Apache Trail, which is a road going through mountains and valleys, with very nice scenic views. We spent a whole day there and we only managed to see part of the whole trail. So we might go again one day. Below is a photo of me out there.On Sunday we went to a theme park called 'Castle Coasters'. It was fun, even though the rides weren't so 'thrilling'. There was also a go-kart race (which was too slow, but still fun). We enjoyed it. In the evening, I discovered that I wasn't flying on Monday (today) and so I decided to go to 'Out of Africa' with Josef. It's a wildlife preserve with a lot of animals running around (behing fences of course!!). There was a sort of Safari tour around some animals and it was great. There also was a show, 'Tiger Splash', with tigers playing around in a pond of water. And, there was also a 'Giant Snake Show' which I thought it wasn't a very good idea at first :-) But ye actually we ended near two big 'friendly' snakes. Below are two photos; one at 'Castle Coasters' and the other at 'Out of Africa'.

So, that was a bit of an update of what happened during the past week. I have loads of photos to sort out which I'll try to do as soon as possible. I need to get them organised in different albums on PicasaWeb. I'm also going to be away for New Year's Eve. We're going to Las Vegas!! So, not to be late again, Happy New Year to all of you in advance!! I'm off now because tomorrow I have to wake up early o prepare for my flight

Till next time!!

Weather cancellations... but the skies are clear again

Hey there!

Things are getting quite busy over here. This week I was scheduled to fly everyday but unfortunately the weather wasn't quite good. In fact, on Tuesday I had my flight cancelled. Visibility and cloud ceiling were low and so I had to stay on the ground. I was pissed off because I had waken up at 5am since I was scheduled to fly at 0730 and then I had to cancel my flight. And I really wanted to fly!

I got back to flying yesterday but the weather wasn't so good either. Yesterday I made some S-turns and turns around a point as well as a sort of traffic pattern on a road so as to practice for the actual patterns at airfields. And today was the day for touch and go's. I took off from Falcon Field and stayed in the pattern and did some nine touch and go's. The first few landings were quite hard but they got better by the end. However, I have to get my approaches stabilised because they were too flimsy! By the end of the flight, the ride became more and more bumpy with clouds closing in. But it was great and I enjoyed it as always! I'm flying again tomorrow and the weather is now back to normal so hopefully tomorrow I'll go to Mesa Gateway Airport for some touch and go's there. Gateway is an airport with three infinite runways, with big birdies landing there. So it should be fun. I'm really looking forward to it.

I think that was all as regards flying. Tuesday we decided to go to a shooting range nearby and shoot a couple of rounds. It's incredible here; you just go, rent a lane, a firearm, buy ammo an targets and you're all good to go and shoot. We had a great time and I'll go another time for sure. I actually discovered a sort of "hidden" talent in me hehe. I actually got the aim right!! So beware if you ever get in my sights ;-) heh!! Below are some pictures.

Anyway, I'm off to sleep because I actually have to wake up very soon for my flight!! I have to take the 6am van... take-off at 0715. Hope everyone's doing great!! Till next time!!

First Landing!! Still alive to tell the tale :-)

Hello everyone!

I had two more flights since my first flight and today I also did my first landing! As you can see, I'm still alive... no injuries, no damages :-) It wasn't bad, but quite far from a soft landing. Well, practice makes perfect and I wasn't expecting my first landing to be smooth!

In these last two missions, I practiced steep turns, slow flight, trying to track over a road, crabbing and side slipping in the wind, stalls and other basic flying stuff. Slow flight today was quite cool, especially when turning. It feels like you're coasting freely above a point. Stalls were great as well but rather a bit "uneasy" until I got the feel of it. Steep turns were better last time so I have to try and improve them. And radio communications are getting along quite well as well (apart from one minor glitch of calling the dispatch frequency with a practice area call! Ye I can't imagine the flight dispatcher's face hehe)

But ye, overall, I'd say "so far, so good." I'm really enjoying flying. Before the flights I'm always thinking "Let's go flying! Let's go flying!" Up there it's just great. You people on earth are really missing something! :-p

Below are some pictures of today's flight. First one is me taxiing to the runway for departure on N4110R, and second one is me taking off!

I'm really looking forward to fly again and I'm scheduled to fly tomorrow morning (that's in eight hours time!) but most probably the flight will be cancelled due to weather! What?! Here in Arizona?! Yes unfortunately, the weather isn't too good here at the moment. Today it was very cloudy with low cloud ceiling and tomorrow it is forecasted to be worse. So most probably I'll have to end up cancelling the flight. This is the current TAF for William's Gateway Airport, (which is very close to Falcon Field)

KIWA 160548Z 1606/1706 10007KT P6SM VCSH SCT045 BKN060 OVC100
FM161200 12006KT 6SM -RA SCT020 BKN030 OVC060
TEMPO 1614/1618 3SM SHRA SCT005 BKN010 OVC030
FM162200 22006KT P6SM -RA SCT030 BKN050 OVC070
FM170300 27005KT P6SM VCSH SCT040 BKN070 BKN100 LTD TO CLD VIS AND WIND TIL 161300

Basically that's a lot of letters and numbers which says that at the scheduled time of my departure, visibility can be as low as three statute miles with clouds as low as 500 feet above ground level. If the weather forecasting is right (which normally is), I'll be staying on the ground tomorrow unfortunately! But anyway we'll see how it goes.

I'm off to sleep now! I still need to get some rest and I still have to wake up early! Till next time!!

FlyingJohnny is now FLYINGjohnny!!

This has got to be one of the "historic" posts... why?
Because... I'm finally up in the air... I'm FLYING!!!

Yep... I had my first flight yesterday and there's one word to describe it... AMAZING!! Finally I witnessed for real what flying really is. Really, I think I can't actually describe the real feeling I had up there. It just feels great... you're free... floating freely in mid-air... as if nothing and no one can bug you... up there, it's just you and your aircraft (well and your flight instructor telling you to watch your altitude speed etc. heh!) But ye, it's one great sensation!

I was really excited and looking forward to my first flight. I went quite early to the Flight Dispatch to get things done as early as possible. I went through the weather briefing and prepared the mass and balance and performance documentation. I then met my flight instructor who gave me a short briefing of what we will be doing during our first flight together. He would do the take-off and landing (first time ey!!) and then I would fly to the south-east practice area for some turns, climbs and descents and familiarisation with the area. We picked up the aircraft keys from dispatch and off we went to our aircraft, N4107A. We performed a walkaround together and the little birdie seemed good enough to fly. And then, it was time to get in the cockpit and kick off!! I plugged in my headset, sat in the cockpit and my instructor helped me out with the cockpit flows (which I still had not yet studied well!)

Engine startup... few rounds and the engine came to life!! Then came the first radio call... "Sabena Dispatch, Diamond 4107A is leaving the ramp..." For some time, I couldn't really beleive I was actually going up in the air! Then, a taxi clearance to the run-up area, then to runway 04R and... "Diamond 4107A cleared for take-off, runway 4 right..." Full power and off we went! I was finally in the air! After take-off, the instructor gave me the controls and we proceeded to the South-East Practice Area. I couldn't beleive I was actually flying... for real!! But I was! I then performed some basic turns, climbs and descents and the instructor also showed me some visual reference points on the ground. We flew for about an hour, but really time passed so quickly up there!

We flew back towards Falcon Field where I handed over the controls to my instructor. He performed the landing and then we taxied back to our parking position. My first flight was over. Later on I had a de-briefing with my instructor and he signed my logbook. I now have my first flying hour for real!! Below is a photo of me and my instructor taxiing back to our parking position after the flight. Thanks to Andre' for the photos!!

And now, I can finally say it myself...

"When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skyward, for there you have been, and there you will always long to return"

It is a quote attributed nearly everywhere to Leonardo Da Vinci. Some dismiss this however, including an expert on Leonardo Da Vinci (according to http://www.spacequotations.com/). Whoever said it, I think it's true...

And now... next flight, tomorrow (or rather today now) 12th December at 1115 local time (1915 Malta time). Obviously, I'm looking forward to it... I want to fly!!

Till next time!!
FLYINGjohnny!!

Delayed on the ground... but tomorrow we take off!!

Hi all!

After several delays and delays, and more delays, the big day has finally arrived! Tomorrow, I should start flying!! Wuhuuu!!! Finally, we beat gravity and take off to the skies!!

I was so anxious to start flying this week but at first it seemed we were never going to get started! I was getting annoyed hearing "maybe" and "but" all the time! Now that I'm here, I just want to fly ey! But finally, I was given a date and time, and a plane, and hopefully it won't change and so, I'll start flying.

I should be taking off at 1145 local time and the first birdie to take me to the air should be N4107A, a Diamond DA-20. Most of the flight will be a demo by the instructor and I will only have the controls for a short time when airborne. But it's the start, and I'm really looking forward to it.

Anyway, that was a short post for today because I'm soon going to sleep. I need a good rest! I hope everyone's doing well down there on the little rock. Over here, things are going pretty well so far, and tomorrow they should get better! I'm finally flying!! Anyway, I'm off to sleep!! I'll try upload some photos as soon as I can!!

Take care everyone!! Till next time!!

First week in Arizona

Hello all!!

A week has already passed since I arrived here in Arizona. Well, a week and two days to be exact. I wanted to update this blog earlier but I wanted to get some pictures organised before posting, something which I still have to do. Besides, I also had some problems with my laptop, which are now hopefully fixed.

During this week, we were supposed to have a number of briefings in order to get ready to fly but... surprise surprise, the whole briefings schedule was messed up! Why?! Organisation... as usual. But you know, "these things do happen sometimes." So yes, most of our briefings were cancelled, which left us with quite an empty week as regards our training. We were told we will be having these briefings during the weekend. So tomorrow, Saturday, we'll be having these briefings. We were supposed to start flying as early as next Monday and hopefully we'll get these briefings done so that I can finally start flying.

The week was still busy however. We got a car, a 1997 Chevrolet Malibu, and so we had quite a number of stuff to settle. And then I also had to fix my laptop. In the meantime, I also found some time to go enjoy the pool and jacuzzi... busy ey?!

Anyway, it's 2230 here and I'm really tired today so I'm calling it a day. Tomorrow I have to be up by 7am and I better rest. I hope I'll get some pictures sorted by next time!

Take care everyone!!

Johnny in Arizona!!

Hey all,

Finally, I'm now sort of settled here in Arizona and I can write my first post from here! I was trying to find some time to update the blog but I've been quite busy settling in, in the past three days. I arrived last Wednesday at 8pm local time. The flight was very tiring. First an eight hour flight from Brussels to Washington DC, and then, after passing security and immigration checks, we had to walk all the way through the terminal to get to our gate which of course, was the last one at the end of the terminal, and then another five hour flight from Washington DC to Phoenix.

At the airport we were met by the other Maltese guys from our previous prom and by a guy from Sabena Airline Training Centre who took us to our apartments. I'm now living in "The Springs" at Alta Mesa which is a sort of complex of "luxury" apartments. It took us a while for us to settle in but as days go by, I'm getting used to the place.

I've got a few words to describe the USA so far... BIG, HUGE, INFINITE... Ye, everything's so big over here; the roads are big and wide, the cars are massive (no you won't find any Fiat Punto romaing the sreets here!) everything is big and exaggerated... mind you, even women!! Sorry US citizens but you really need to start working out on your fat bellies ehh!! And no, BigMac's won't help!! Ye, welcome to the US. But so far it's all going well. Thursday was also Thanksgiving Day which is a well known and celebrated holiday here in the US. We "celebrated" it by eating out at a steak house; typical American food, BIG steak, BIG plate... ye you can easily gain on weight over here! But anyway, it was good.

On Friday we had our first day at the school. We had a welcome briefing and oun fingerprints were also taken for the FBI. Now, the FBI will decide whether they will allow me to fly in US airspace!! Yes my fingerprints will actually tell them whether they can trust me or not!! Then again, welcome to the US! We were then taken around the school; administration offices, flight dispatch, the hangar, and then out on the apron!! It was cool going around the aicraft, thinking that in a few days time, I will be flying in one of them! I can't wait to start flying!! We were shown the Diamond DA-20, which is the aircraft I will start flying on! I've got a couple of photos of my first day but I will upload them next time until I get them sorted out. The following are two of them; me and Josef in the DA-20, and me next to a photo of an aircraft I'll be flying in a couple of months!!

Speaking of photos, I have also uploaded some photos of my visit to Malta, with various farewells with friends and families. Click on the album below to see the photos!!

Farewell Malta!!

Anyway, I'm calling it a day today. It was quite a long post but I had to give some updates! Next time I'll upload some photos of my first days in Arizona! I'm now off to sleep because I'm qutie tired and I'm still trying to get into the local time here.

Until next time... take care everyone!