The One Where Day Four Wraps Up Ground School and Gears Up for Sims
Today marked our final day of ground instruction for ATP-CTP at FlightSafety before heading into simulator sessions tomorrow. We kicked off the morning covering aerodynamics, stall recovery, and upset recovery techniques. We also went over takeoff performance and different weight categories—pretty practical stuff.
Knowing it was our last day in the classroom put us all in the mood to just power through and finish strong. Lunchtime was a pleasant surprise: I had a chicken enchilada that was actually pretty tasty (the grilled chicken earlier in the week wasn’t bad either, but this was definitely a highlight). I scarfed it down quickly so I’d have time to review the hundred or so practice questions for our end-of-day ground test. One of my classmates made a handy Quizlet that saved me a ton of time.
In the afternoon, our instructor, Bruce, walked us through the key points one final time. He offered a break before the test, but everyone was so eager to get it over with that we skipped it and dove right in. I finished in about five to ten minutes, turned it in, and didn’t hear anything back—always a good sign! Sure enough, all of us passed. It’s comforting to know this course is really designed to bridge the gap from GA to airline flying, rather than trip us up.
Overall, these four days of ground were pretty valuable. We got lots of insight, heard some real-world stories from the instructor, and picked up solid airline-oriented tips. Tomorrow, I jump into the sim sessions for the Falcon 900EX with a classmate. I’m not entirely sure what to expect, but I might check out a few YouTube videos to get a rough idea. Since my sim slots are at night, I’ll have most of the day free to prep for the ATP written.
Our group has really started to bond, and I can tell we’ll be supporting each other through the rest of our training. Everyone’s laid-back, friendly, and grateful for the opportunity to learn here. It’s a good vibe, and I’m happy to be a part of it.