So Becki did lots of exciting flying in America...

....... what did Matt and Bethan get up to you might (but probably won't) be wondering?

Our first 2 weeks were spent staying with my uncle Kit, Angie, Joe, Ivan and Katherine, plus Trapper the dog and Juliette the cat. Being school holidays it was great to spend time with them. Bethan and I took trips down-town on the bus, visited a water park, children's museum and fairground among many other adventures. We loved Portland and had great fun seeing family and meeting new people there.

A short flight over to Nampa in Idaho and we settled into our MAF studio appartment, which would be home for 4 weeks. Becki had a busy schedule of groundschool and flying but we weren't allowed to be passengers (something about making the aircraft too heavy to take off again from the short strips) so Bethan and I made a 4-week plan. I found the only 2 places of interest in Nampa to visit (children's play centre and the most awesome water park) while Bethan thought time would be best spent in the sandpit or being pushed around the block on a variety of toddler-sized vehicles by her Dad.

So week 1 in Nampa meant I finally had to get behind the wheel of the car (smallest available was a 7-seater), which was a scary experience. It probably didn't help that the road I chose to drive on (Happy Valley road) was used by Becki's flying instructor to illustrate how we have to manage risk in everyday life. Anyway, Bethan and I did successfully get to our destination and I'm glad we did as it was a toddler paradise with a race track, pretend shopping and slide, which we went on again and again...and again!

Lakeview water park was going to be our second home as far as I was concerned, with the temperature in Idaho being consistently in the 30's. Exact temperature unknown as the Americans use Fahrenheit, which I believed (and taught Holsworthy students) to be extinct nowadays! Unfortunately, mid-August signalled the end of summer season and a few days into our stay the pool closed so that was a blow! Our studio appartment had a sink however, so Bethan did get to do plenty of splashing around!

Fortunately, Bethan didn't just have me for company, she made great friends with Adah and Laron and looked up to the older kids with awe. Many an hour was spent in the paddling pool, giant sandpit, on a trike or running away, squealing in delight when an older child came round on a scooter who was (albeit unknowingly) chasing Bethan! Usually tired out after lunch (or on one occasion during - photo below), Bethan would have a nap and I would hone my domestic skills ready for being a house-husband in Africa. Cooking was a bit hit and miss, with the rice pudding hitting the floor and smashing its glass bowl being a low-point. After that I gave it a miss and made myself useful by catching up on the new football season via the web!

Living next to the airfield meant that Bethan quickly developed a love of aeroplanes. We went to the hanger to watch Becki take-off one morning and from then on, Becki was told in no-uncertain (sign-language) terms, that she should (at all times) go up in the air. Equally, all overhead aircraft were told to land at Bethan's feet so she could have a go. Being co-pilot in the simulator wasn't enough to satisfy her!

We were kindly taken out to Snake river by Becki's instructor, Tim and his family for a lovely evening. I was glad to see a little more of Idaho than Nampa, which was a very disappointing city compared to Portland! We spent a few hours one day hopelessly looking for an interesting feature of the city but alas, it hasn't yet been built!

One thing that Idaho does well is rain, it didn't happen often but for a couple of days we had fantastic storms, giant raindrops, hail and the most beautiful double rainbow I've ever seen. We watched this unfold from our apartment, another downpour coincided with our visit to Jump Creek to see a waterfall. It was great fun but we all got soaked.

All too quickly, our time in Nampa came to an end and we said farewell to our MAF neighbours. We felt that it certainly wouldn't be the last time we saw most of them even though they are now travelling all over the world to begin life as missionary families. Before travelling back to England, we took a few days to visit some of Becki's friends in Vancouver, stopping in Seattle on the way. We had a great few days socialising, relaxing and sight-seeing in a beautiful city.

Bethan slept for most of the 6 hour drive back to Portland, clearly worn out from all the excitement of her American adventure.

MAF Standardization

What does 4 weeks of MAF flight training in Nampa, Idaho look like? The answer is this:

To start with, we spent a week in the classroom:

We covered aerodynamics of flight, which wasn't just restricted to aeroplanes, we also learnt how to fly a screwdriver! We also went on to learn how to safely load and tie down cargo into the aircraft and how to make an air drop so packages can be safely delivered without landing if needs be. Most excitingly we were taught how to safely fly through valleys and over mountain ridges in bad weather.
Week two and I got to go in the aircraft. This first week was spent putting in to practice everything we had learnt in the classroom without being sent anywhere too challenging. First a thorough pre-check of the aircraft (which Bethan came over to help with one day)

I spent a few days doing 'Airstrip Evaluations' which involves assessing a landing area from the air to determine if it is safe to land. First you fly over the area at 1000' and decide which direction the wind is from and look for any obstacles (such as trees/mountains/buildings).
Next you fly at 50' above the ground and calculate the length of the runway and the height of the ground above sea level (as well as checking for any obstacles)
Finally you fly 5' above the ground and check the condition of the landing surface and whether there is any slope.

Having established a length, altitude, wind direction, slope and if it is safe to land - you land! 

Safely on the ground at Duster East after my first Airstrip Evaluation

This airstrip definitely has an obstacle at one end! A mountain at the end of the runway means you can only land in one direction and take off in the opposite direction.

Week 3 and the airstrips got more challenging. Below is Johnstone, which has a curved runway. In the far left you can just see my aircraft parked in front of a hanger at the start of the runway!

I also got to practice flying the aircraft with various amounts of cargo to see how the weight affected the aeroplane's performance. To make sure it's safe to take off from a short airstrip you have to calculate the 'weight and balance' to make sure you can take off with the amount of cargo and fuel on board without running out of runway! 

Here I am calculating our weight and balance before departing from Owhyee Bend Airstrip which is 1200' long and surrounded by mountains.

The flight training ended with a cross country flight where I got to put all my newly learnt skills into practice, flying along narrow valleys into challenging airstrips. It was fun to put everything into practice. 

Above is Deadwood Airstrip, it is surrounded by trees, has an 8% slope and is only 20' wider than the aircraft's wingspan. To add to the challenges, the road to the lake crosses the top of the runway so you need to check for cars before going over to the parking area!