Flight Lesson: More adventure than I wanted

A few days later, we reviewed my flight plan. My CFI reminded me that he expects his students to keep track of where they are at all times by hand-plotting their position on their sectional chart, and not to rely on the GPS. When I called him to receive final clearance, he said again, “always keep track of where you are—I don’t want you relying on that GPS.”

My flight to Abilene was normal, and after landing and refueling, I headed for Lubbock. Things were proceeding normally along this leg, too, and I was beginning to feel pretty comfortable.

Then, somewhere north of Snyder, Texas, my GPS unit lost its satellite signal. Suddenly, I understood the wisdom of always knowing where you are, regardless of how much instrumentation might be installed in the airplane. Even though I had been tracking my progress fairly well on my sectional chart, I felt the sudden urge to tune immediately to a couple of different VOR signals, cross-plot my exact location, and mark it on the sectional. I continued to do this every two minutes or so, in between wiping perspiration from my forehead.

After about 15 to 20 minutes the GPS unit reacquired its signal and began operating normally. However, this latest turn of events, coupled with the thought of flying into a relatively busy, new-to-me Class C airport, had caused my stress level to rise. I contacted Lubbock Approach and was given vectors that would put me on a left base for Runway 17R. The airport was relatively busy with jet traffic and I could feel my tension rising further. Fortunately, my landing was decent.

However, upon touchdown, Tower said, “Skyhawk Five-Four-Two, take the first taxiway to the left and contact ground.” I had a moment of slight panic: The main airport terminal was to the left but the FBO to which I was headed was to the right. It occurred to me that he probably had no idea where I needed to go, so I took the first taxiway to the right. Instantly, he was back on the radio: “Or, take the one to the right, whichever your little heart desires.” The taxiway leading to the FBO was closed.

I quickly stopped, got on the radio, and stated, “So sorry about that—student pilot needs progressive taxi instructions to Lubbock Aero.” Without a single note of sarcasm he said, “No problem Five-Four-Two; just turn around right where you are and we’ll get you back to where you need to be.” Thank you, Lubbock Tower.

The rest of the trip was, thankfully, uneventful. I learned a great deal: Always know your position by relying on your own navigational computations; GPS is fabulous, but it doesn’t always work; always check and pay attention to all notams along your route; and never be afraid to admit you’re wrong and notify ATC you’re a student pilot.

By the way, upon telling my instructor about the GPS going out, he laughed and said, “Yeah, I know, it always goes out in that stretch. Why do you think I reminded you to always know where you are?”