My last dual flight in 1960 was the first one where the instructor marked it as preparation for the flight test. As 1961 got underway I was getting quite a lot of dual and the emphasis seems to have been on low altitude maneuvers, all the different kinds of landings, and 720 degree turns. One cold winter day I was doing S turns across a road several miles from the airport when there was this bang and the engine started running rough. We were at 600 feet AGL and the first concern was finding a suitable field for an emergency landing. After the instructor agreed on the one I picked, I circled the field while he did the few things available to us in a simple airplane like the Taylorcraft. Check the mags — no changes. Check carb heat — no changes. Full throttle stopped our slow descent and the decision was made to head back to the airport at 500 AGL. The roughness never changed and we landed and taxied in sounding like an old John Deere tractor. A look under the left cowl showed everything in order. Opening the right cowl we found one top spark plug still hooked to the ignition wire lying between the two cylinders. A spark plug had come out. We were on the first flight after a 100 hour inspection and that was another lesson for me — always treat a plane that has been in for maintenance with suspicion. Years later I was preflighting a Cherokee just out of a 100 hour inspection and my passenger who was in the same flying club thought I was a bit paranoid when I removed the cowling for a better inspection. We found the ignition wire nuts on all the top plugs only finger tight.

In 1961 Piper made the high compression Lycoming 0-320 of 160 hp standard in the Tri-Pacer. The FBO was a Piper dealer and soon had one on the line. I was talked into flying it for a check out at the high price of $15 per hour. It was the first nose wheel plane I had flown and it was one of those cold clear days in early March. The plane had about half fuel and I remember being coached on the need for a lot of right rudder on take off and to hold 80 mph in climb. Wow. It seemed to go straight up and I kept lowering the nose to get a sight picture like I was used to in the Taylorcraft and he kept hollering to hold 80. I was impressed. I got 45 minutes of dual and the few 15 minutes solo. I was really impressed by the Tri-Pacer.

By the end of March I was ready for the private flight test and was advised to take it from a designated examiner, to avoid flying into Muskegon or Lansing which had control towers. I could have taken the test from the FAA at no cost. Well, the designated examiner was not a good idea. I flunked the test because he claimed I was holding aileron against the turn in climbing turn stalls. The control wheels were slightly misaligned and it did look that way and it looked the same way when he demonstrated one at my request. But it was a lost cause. I flunked. And I had flown the four course low frequency range under the hood perfectly. We later learned that he flunked everyone on the first try so he could collect his $15 fee two times. As I flew back south from Gaylord I was very disappointed. I flew over my home, saw that the folks were making maple syrup and dropped them a note that I had not passed the flight test. I continued to work on the private test maneuvers but was unable get back to take the test before school ended.

Over the summer the club sold the Taylorcraft and bought a 1947 Cessna 140. It had an electrical system, with a 15 amp generator, a starter and a retractable landing light. It also had a low frequency transmitter/receiver. The fabric covering on the wings had been replaced with aluminum. It was quite a step up from the Taylorcraft. At least it was in my mind. On September 2nd, as soon as I got back to school, I got checked out in the Cessna 140 – the log book shows that took 20 minutes. I spent several hours practicing the private maneuvers and about three hours with an instructor before heading back to Gaylord to take the test again on September 13, 1961. A frontal squall line was fast approaching from the northwest and we did a very abbreviated flight test and he gave me my ticket and sent me off to the south and home without charging me the $15 fee. I passed. I had 92:25 hours total time, 31:05 dual, 3:35 instrument instruction, and 9:05 in the Cessna 140. I really could not fly it anywhere near as well as I could the Taylorcraft. In October I got a night check-out. I gave lots of people rides that fall and got to appreciate the Cessna 140. The ailerons are not as effective on the 140 as they are on a Taylorcraft. I soon learned that the 120 mph it indicated was about 15 mph too high — but it looked impressive. I ended 1961 with a private license and 113:15 hours TT, of which 35:05 was dual. To be continued...

Copyright © 2001 by Gary Collins.  All rights reserved.

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