The Student Solo Cross-Country and Five Miles West over the Pacific

Planning the Triangle Route

• Flying out of Eagle Flight Center at Hillsboro Airport in a Cessna 172, my planned triangle route took me: 1. South down the Willamette Valley to Eugene Airport (Mahlon Sweet Field). 2. Directly west from Eugene, climbing over the rugged peaks of the Oregon Coast Range toward the Pacific coastline. 3. Landing at Southwest Oregon Regional Airport in North Bend, Oregon—notable as the only towered airport on the Oregon Coast. 4. Heading back north up the coast and valley to return to Hillsboro.
• Because it was a student solo flight, the flight school called ahead to all the air traffic control facilities along the route to alert them to expect a student pilot.

"Five Miles West..."

• Having completed the leg to Eugene, I flew westward across the Coast Range toward North Bend.
• As I drew near the airfield, about five miles out, I keyed the microphone to make my initial inbound call to North Bend Tower:

  "North Bend Tower, Cessna 5318 Mike, five miles WEST."

• A moment of dead silence followed, replaced by deep concern from the controller on the other end of the radio.
• Located on a peninsula right at the edge of the coastline, being five miles west meant I was declaring myself flying low over the open, freezing waters of the Pacific Ocean.
• The tower controller immediately asked:

  "Cessna 18 Mike... verify FIVE miles WEST?!"

• I paused for a split second, looked down through the windshield at the fir trees and mountains beneath me, and had a sudden realization of my cardinal direction swap.
• "Oh no! Five miles EAST inbound!" I quickly replied.

Safe Return to Hillsboro

• It gave the tower controller a momentary fright, but with my position clarified, I was cleared to land on the runway.
• I touched down smoothly at North Bend, had my paperwork endorsed, and took off on the final leg back to Hillsboro Airport—making sure to double-check every compass heading and position report for the rest of the day.