Flight 2 of 5 · Approximately 1.5 hours

Wichita Class C

Your first tower visit. Request flight following, enter Wichita's Class C, transit or land at Eisenhower (KICT), and come home. This is the highest-workload flight of the five — and the one that makes talking to ATC feel routine.

B
Brenda· Pilot in Command
C
Chris· Right seat · Radios & avionics
What's in this playbook
  1. Before you go — aircraft, house rules, safety
  2. Phase 1 · Night-before brief
  3. Phase 2 · Cold cockpit & preflight
  4. Phase 3 · Avionics power-up & setup
  5. Phase 4 · Taxi & run-up
  6. Phase 5 · Departure from 1K1
  7. Phase 6 · Getting into the Class C
  8. Phase 7 · The handoff to Tower
  9. Phase 8 · Pattern & landing
  10. Phase 9 · On the ground at KICT
  11. Phase 10 · Departure & return
  12. Debrief checklist
  13. Quick reference card
Route
1K1→ Wichita Approach→ KICT→ 1K1
Distance
~25 NM round trip
Time
~1.5 hours with a full stop
Conditions
Good VFR, light winds preferred for a first tower visit
Airspace
KICT Wichita Class C — note where the shelf steps down between 1K1 and the field
Builds
ATC comms, Class C entry, frequency-lookup workflow, split-COM operation, squawk entry

Before you goBrief the airplane

Repeated on every flight page so you can brief one sortie standalone.

Verify everything · this is a study aid
Verify all frequencies, airspace, and fuel against current charts, NOTAMs, and ForeFlight. These are study/briefing aids, not flight plans. Fly with your CFI — Chris is a student pilot.
Aircraft
N199RF — 1979 Cessna 182Q · Continental O-470 (carbureted) · constant-speed prop
Base
1K1 Stearman Field, Benton KS · field elev 1,364 ft · KICT Class C just to the west
Panel
G3X Touch (PFD + EIS) · GTN 750Xi (GPS / NAV1 / COM1) · GTR 205 (COM2) · GFC 500 AP w/ GMC 507 · GI 275 standby · GMA 350c audio · GTX 345R (ADS-B In/Out) · CIES fuel senders
COM1 is not COM2
COM1 and COM2 are independent radios tuned at different physical locations. COM1 lives on the GTN 750Xi. COM2 is the separate GTR 205 box. Tuning COM2 means reaching for a different unit — and you pick which one you transmit on at the GMA 350c audio panel. This was the recurring point of confusion. Always know which radio is hot before you key the mic.
House rules · every flight
1Phase 1
Night-before brief
The evening before · Both of you · At the kitchen table
Write this on your kneeboard — comm sequence in order
ATIS→ Approach→ Tower→ Ground→ Departure
Wichita Approach → Wichita Tower → Ground (after landing) → Wichita Departure/Approach (leaving).
2Phase 2
Cold cockpit & preflight
~15 minutes · Master OFF
  1. Standard 182Q walkaround. Fuel to a known quantity and enter fuel-on-board into the GTN so the fuel-at-destination page is meaningful.
  2. Confirm the GTX 345R is set to ALT (Mode C) so ADS-B and the transponder are live before you ever talk to Approach.
3Phase 3
Avionics power-up & setup
~5 minutes · This is the skill of the day
  1. Let the G3X and GTN boot fully. Confirm GPS position and that ADS-B traffic is painting.
  2. COM1 (GTN): tune VerifyKICT ATIS___.___ in standby, flip to active, copy the ATIS letter.
  3. COM2 (GTR 205): tune VerifyWichita Approach___.___ in standby on the separate box so it's ready. Remember — this is a different radio, tuned in a different place.
  4. Practice the lookup itself: on the GTN, Nearest → Airport → KICT → Frequencies. This is the skill. Find ATIS, Tower, Ground, and Approach right there on the GTN.
Why the blanks?
The whole point of this drill is practicing the GTN frequency-lookup workflow. The numbers are intentionally left blank — look them up on the chart and on the GTN, and write them in. Only 121.5 (guard) is safe to memorize.
4Phase 4
Taxi & run-up
~8 minutes
  1. Standard run-up. Cycle the prop during run-up and confirm the RPM drop and recovery.
  2. Brief the departure: which way you'll turn out of 1K1 toward Wichita, your initial altitude, and that your first call to Approach happens shortly after departure — not on the ground.
5Phase 5
Departure from 1K1
~5 minutes
  1. Self-announce on CTAF (COM1):
Brenda · COM1 · Stearman CTAF
"Stearman traffic, Skylane Nine-Niner-Romeo-Foxtrot departing runway [XX], westbound, Stearman."
  1. Climb out: pitch for V_Y, power's already at full — adjust pitch to hold the speed, then trim it off.
  2. Level at your planned transition altitude. Stay below the Class C shelf until you're talking to Approach.
6Phase 6
Getting into the Class C
~5 minutes · The main event
  1. Switch COM1 to Wichita Approach (or talk on COM2 if that's where you staged it — your choice, just know which radio is hot on the GMA 350c).
  2. Initial call:
Brenda · Wichita Approach
"Wichita Approach, Skylane Nine-Niner-Romeo-Foxtrot."

When they answer:

Brenda · Wichita Approach
"Wichita Approach, Skylane One-Niner-Niner-Romeo-Foxtrot, Cessna One-Eighty-Two, off Stearman, [altitude], request landing at Kilo-India-Charlie-Tango with information [ATIS letter]."
Two-way contact is your clearance
Listen for your callsign before entering the Class C. Two-way radio contact — them saying your tail number — is your clearance to enter Class C airspace. They'll likely assign a squawk: read it back and enter it in the GTX via the GTN transponder page.
7Phase 7
The handoff to Tower
~5 minutes
  1. Approach hands you to Wichita Tower at some point. Tune it (they'll give the frequency) and check in:
Brenda · Wichita Tower
"Wichita Tower, Skylane Nine-Niner-Romeo-Foxtrot, [position/landmark], inbound, with [ATIS letter]."
  1. Tower sequences you and clears you to land. Fly the numbers — KICT has a long runway, no need to rush the approach.
8Phase 8
Pattern & landing
~5 minutes
  1. Prop full forward by midfield downwind.
  2. Manage the descent in steps — don't let manifold pressure surprise you on final (your Flint Hills debrief flagged this).
  3. Flare slow, a 3–4 second motion, back pressure increasing through rollout.
9Phase 9
On the ground at KICT
Take a beat — you just flew into Class C
  1. "Turn off at taxiway, contact Ground." Switch to Ground, get your taxi instructions, and write them down before you move.
  2. If full-stopping: taxi to transient/FBO, shut down, take a beat. You just flew into Class C.
10Phase 10
Departure & return
~20 minutes home
  1. Ground → Tower → Departure (Approach). They'll walk you out. Keep flight following home if you like the practice.
  2. Cancel / say goodbye to Approach when clear of their airspace, switch COM1 back to Stearman CTAF, self-announce inbound to 1K1, land, taxi in.
Brenda · COM1 · Stearman CTAF
"Stearman traffic, Skylane Nine-Niner-Romeo-Foxtrot, [distance/direction] miles, inbound for full stop runway [XX], Stearman."

After you landDebrief checklist

Answer these out loud to each other while it's fresh. Best flown twice — fly it, debrief, then swap seats.

ReferenceQuick reference card

Look every frequency up on the current chart and the GTN — that's the drill. Write them in.

Frequencies

N199RF V-speeds (verify POH)

Airport quick reference

Next flight
Flight 3: Beaumont Hotel Pilgrimage. The fun reward flight — ~35 NM southeast to the grass strip at the Beaumont Hotel, where pilots taxi down Main Street for coffee. Direct-To from memory, synthetic vision, ADS-B weather, and in-flight flight-plan editing.