The textbook reactions of a low-hours pilot facing a deteriorating situation show how ab initio training works – if you listen and take its messages seriously.
During my PPL training, with only about 35 hours flying experience, I undertook my first solo cross-country flight on a humid spring morning.
I had planned to make what seemed at the time to be an epic long-distance flight in a mighty Cessna 152 from Wollongong. I was going to Canberra, Cootamundra, Young and back to Wollongong. Like all diligent student pilots, I’d checked the forecast to assess the likelihood of any bad weather which might affect my milestone flight.
The forecast showed a chance of thunderstorms for the Wollongong area, which was not uncommon for that time of year, but not until early evening. I assessed I’d be safely back home several hours before any likely storm formation. With the determination made that the weather would not affect my flight, I logged my flight plan with Airservices Australia and nominated a SARTIME. Then I headed off solo for my cross-country challenge.
Several hours into the flight, everything was going to plan. I’d successfully conducted touch-and-goes at Canberra, Cootamundra and Young and was now on my final leg towards Wollongong. About 30 minutes into that leg, I noticed the horizon ahead darkening and the cloud cover becoming denser. Undeterred and eager to get home, I pushed on until I was about 30 nm west of my final destination, approaching Moss Vale.
By this stage, the clouds were now clearly dark cumulonimbus! I realised I was about to catch up with a thunderstorm system which had developed hours earlier than I or the Bureau of Meteorology had anticipated. Then a lightning flash illuminated the sky just ahead of me! This showed I had no business attempting to continue my current course in my tiny Cessna 152.
Then a lightning flash illuminated the sky just ahead of me!
At that stage, and after more than a couple of nervous moments, my training kicked in. Even as a fledgling student, I quickly made the decision to change my flight plan and identified the need to seek an alternative airfield to wait out the storm.
I decided the best alternate was Goulburn and quickly plotted a new course there. I also reduced my airspeed and flew a couple of slow orbits to ensure I wasn’t going to run into the storm ahead of me. I called Melbourne Centre to amend my flight plan and notified them the change was due to the unanticipated weather system. Centre was amazing, quickly determining my location and accepting my plan.
I flew directly to Goulburn, entering the circuit and determining there was no local traffic. After landing, I waited out the storm at the local aeroclub with a cup of coffee and called my flying school to let them know that I was okay. My flight instructor had been frantically trying to contact me by phone as the storm approached Wollongong. He assured me I’d done the correct thing by not trying to persevere with my planned flight and adapting to ensure the aircraft and I remained safe.
When I was sure that the thunderstorm system had cleared, I completed a final flight check including fuel levels and continued to Wollongong. I arrived safely an hour or so later, a little weary but more than a little chuffed; I’d not only successfully completed my first cross-country flight but did so with a real-life opportunity to execute all I’d learnt during training. 
Lessons learnt
Be adaptable. Don’t slavishly continue to follow a flight plan. Situations, circumstances and information change. Be smart enough to recognise plans may need to be revised when new information comes to hand.
A forecast is exactly that – a forecast. It is subject to change and potential contingencies should be factored into your flight planning.
Log a flight plan. In a moment of stress, it was reassuring that ATC knew my location and situation and were there to assist if I needed it.
Weather and forecasting
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