LESSON #9

Today we talked about air medical factors that can happen when flying.  One thing I have noticed about all this training is that they truly do try to point out all the ways you can die in air to make sure you're cautious and not overlooking things on your pre-flight check and so many other areas.  But then follow it up when you're in the air with stuff like "the plane wants to fly -- let it."  

And they say women send mix signals...

So one of the "fun" things that can happen to you when you fly is hypoxia.  Do you know what that is?  It's when your body doesn't get enough oxygen, but you can have several different forms of hypoxia.  One is due to altitude, one due to carbon monoxide poisoning, one if your body is slightly intoxicated and therefore the cells themselves are not taking in oxygen like they need to, and one is due to actual circulation (either due to something like pulling gs -- g force or like when your leg or arm fall asleep).  In fact, we even learned today -- maybe some of you know this already, but I didn't -- that our Air Force pilots who fly in these amazing jets have to wear special suits.  But did you know one of the components of the suits?  (Other than making Tom Cruise look hot?)  There are places in the legs of the suits that the pilot actually hooks up to the plane and then the plane squeezes the legs of the pilot to help with circulation based on altitudes and g-forces.  When I learned this, I felt a little bit closer to Mr. Cruise.  When I gave birth via c-section to my boys, the hospital put those things on my legs to keep the circulation going.  I couldn't feel anything past my waste due to the epidural, so until I could move and walk again on my own, those things stayed on my legs.  

Also, with hypoxia... you typically notice some mild symptoms at 5,000 ft.  So some pilots will perform a little "test" when flying at night to see how bad (if any) hypoxia symptoms they have.  While flying at 5,000 feet, they will fix their gaze on a light and then take a "hit" of some oxygen in a canister and then watch the light become much brighter.  Proving that they in fact were suffering slightly from hypoxia.

There were several other air medical issues that we discussed but this seemed to be the one they were most concerned about (with good reason) along with spacial disorientation.  This comes into play more when you're just flying with instruments.  For instance, I am learning VFR which is visual flight rules, but hopefully eventually, I will learn to fly IFR which is instrument flight rules.  This means, I'm only looking at my instruments not out my windows.  Due to g-forces or turns or other little things that you feel/experience in a plane (especially when flying through clouds) you truly have to trust your instruments so that you don't pitch down when you should pitch up or stay in a turn, when you need to straighten out.  How the plane makes you feel can mess with your senses and equilibrium.

Finally, we went out to the hanger and took the hood (cowling) off the engine and looked inside!  It's actually very similar to our car engines and everything is very simple.  The other thing that just amazed me -- and I guess I never really thought too much about it -- but the rudder, flaps and ailerons are all controlled by cables and pulleys.  That's it.  From my foot pedals to the rudder of the plane -- it's just a cable.  My controls are cables to the ailerons.  

Here are some pictures for you to enjoy!

See above the right pedal there's a pulley and cable?  This goes back to the tail and controls the rudder.  It's that simple!

This engine (though smaller) has pistons and cylinders just like our cars!

Just a few screws were taken off to reveal everything underneath!