He named himself, "Banana Tree"

The cool morning air teased me as I closed the front door to my house. In the air, the faintest hint of fall lingered for a moment, then slipped quietly away. Not yet, old friend, I thought. Not yet.

My lesson was scheduled for three o'clock in the afternoon, and I assure you, the cool air was a forgotten dream. Air, to be sure, and plenty of water suspended in it. It coaxed the sweat from my hide easily, and miserably. Yet my mood couldn't be dampened - I was to be checked out in a new type of plane - larger, more powerful, and longer range. The Piper Warrior II.

Part of me was a bit frustrated, though, as this change in airplane type was hindering my training schedule a bit. No matter, there was nothing to be done and the future cares not for our present tears. Onward, lads, to the undiscovered country!

The preflight checklist was similar to the old 152, and the differences were easily noticed. I then grabbed my CFI and off we went.

I'm aware of the high wing / low wing debate, and having only flown a high wing Cessna 152 prior to today, I was ill prepared to venture an opinion. But, I would have to say that the visibility in the Warrior is better, and looking for traffic is a bit less stressful.

Overall, the maneuvers felt familiar, but a little different. The biggest thing I noticed is elevator pressure - you need a lot of it in certain situations, such as rotating for takeoff, and getting the nose down for landing. I found myself using trim a lot more than in the 152. However, I made three good landings without assistance from my CFI so he marked me as checked out on the Warrior.

Overall I think things turned out for the best. The Warrior is a better plane for cross country flights and it's a good plane to use for when I get my certificate.

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