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Here are a very low hours pilot’s non-technical inexperienced first impressions of ‘down grading’ from training for a JAR-FCL PPL(A) licence to NPPL(M). Changing from a Cessna 152 to an Ikarus C42
I wrote this very quickly and it probably has lots of grammar and spelling errors, and may not flow too well.
I am 15 hours Cessna 152 student pilot. The rising costs of training prompted me to check out 3-axis microlight. But I have always been put off a little because most people hear the work microlight and thing of the flex-wing type. Nothing wrong with those, but I always wanted a licence in a ‘real plane’.
I also realised I would lose certain benefits if I went for an NPPL licnce instead of the JAR PPL. But after some thought I realise that perhaps I would not use those benefits anyway. Like the possibility of IMC training. Worthwhile doing, though EASA might be scrapping that anyway. Flying abroad is something I like the idea of but probably would never get round to doing.
It was a little disappointing that my JAR training hours will not count towards my NPPL(M) licence. The experience counts, and after my first C42 check flight hour, my instructor was certain that I could get the licence in minimum hours, so all is not lost.
Outside
First impressions from the outside you can see the C42 is a little smaller and thinner in places but has essentially the same type of shape and design. The wing struts and tricycle gear are thinner,. To the untrained eye (like mine) and squinting a little, you might mistake the two.
Inside
Sitting inside for the first time you notice that you have more shoulder room and probably because this one has a sun roof, seemed more spacious above. Leg room to me seemed about the same. The seating height seemed just right and I could look over the nose better than in the C152. You can look through to the rear of the aircraft like you can in the Cessna, so looking over your shoulder and seeing a blank screen makes you feel like a van driver. You need to check your elevators and rudder movement on the ground externally as you can’t see them from the cockpit, though you can roughly check the elevators a little via the prop slipstream.
Cockpit is sparser than what I am used to. Three engine gauges, compass, ASI, Altimeter, radio, tacho, and a few others, plus various switches.
If you’ve flown a 152 you might find it odd at first to see no Carb heat, no mixture, less switches. The elevator trim is 2 buttons on the control stick. Flaps is controlled manually by a big lever over your head. Throttle is a lever between your legs. No yoke, but a shared joystick type control lever between the pilots. This is comfortable to use and you your arm gets an arm rest. No differential brakes, but you get a motorcycle type brake lever on the back of the joystick.
Control differences.
There was no perceivable difference to me switching from the C152 yoke type control to the C42 joystick control. Position of the throttle, break and other controls were handled naturally. For the most part, nothing felt strange. Controls did not have to be re-learnt. In fact I preferred the breaking system on the C42. (Perhaps that’s because I ride a motorbike). The flaps take a little getting used to though. You need to reach over with your left hand, partially across you vision, depress a lever then clunch the control into position. But I am sure you will get used to this soon enough.
I was sitting inside wondering where the petrol tank was, assuming they weren’t in the wings. I was told to lift a flap of velcro’ed material behind me and there they were, two fuel tanks right behind the seats. Somehow it was reassuring to clearly see the fuel in there (something you could do in flight).
Flying.
We did about 1 hour running through all the basic exercises, like turns, decending, climbing, climbing and descengin turns, straight and level at various speeds, stalls, landing, two circuits, take off, taxiing. Just about everything you would do before your first solo (except emergency stuff). This was a chance for my instructor to access my level of training I had achieved in the Cessna so he could ascertain what I needed to work on in the C42. It all went smoothly. No real problems controlling the plane. I instantly adapted to the different characteristics of the plane. My only problems where learning the new typical RPM settings and speeds you would use in this type of plane compared to another. I am sure once one has re-learnt key flying speeds and RPMs then the flying can then proceed just as if you were still in your old C152. A pilot with experience could handle it no problem.
I have to say once I was running down the runway for that first take off, I soon forgot that I was in a microlight and might as well have been in a ‘real plane’. And once we had run through all the basic excercises in the air, all my misgivings about whether you could consider a 3-axis microlight as a ‘true plane’ were gone. I felt I could truly let the C152 go (for now at least) and reap the benefits of around £30/hour cheaper flying costs.
I figured that if I ever wanted to get my licence in a Cessna at some time in the future, then I could always do the little extra training (and it isn’t that much really) to get the Simple Single Engine Plane rating. And in turn that can always count towards a JAR licence sometime in the future should I wish.
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