Solo Flight for the first time for a student pilot is nerve racking already, imagine flying solo cross country for the first time even more nervous than anyone can handle.

I was on my first solo cross country flight from Promona (KPOC) to Camarillo Airport (KCMA) in Southern California. I did all my flight planning and my CFI checked it and gave me an OK to go fly. I planned my cruising altitude at 6500 ft., direct to Burbank Airport (KBUR) and direct Van Nuys Airport (KVNY). My cruising altitude will clear both KBUR and KVNY class C airspace. My descending point was planned at 12nm from KCMA.

The flight was fine and smooth, all my check points were on schedule. About 10 mins after I flew over KVNY I spotted the runway and I realized it was KCMA airport. I was still at 6500 ft and I felt the runway coming up closer and closer. I started the descend, when I descended down to 4500 ft, I started to call KCMA tower and checked in with them. I remembered I sounded little nervous and I told them I have runway in sight east of the airport. KCMA tower asked me how far I was, and I replied I was 3 miles E of the airport. Tower clear me for the approach and make left traffic for runway 26.

I continued to descend and I felt I was still high and runway coming up faster. I called tower again and reported one and half mile east of the airport. Tower asked me if I saw an airplane short final runway 26 and landing runway 26. I replied traffic in sight. Then tower instructed me follow traffic and clear to land runway 26 straight in. I landed safely and tower cleared me taxi to parking and also asked to to call the tower after parking. I had a bad feeling at that time didn’t know why the tower asked me to call them. I called them and they told me they had instructed to make left traffic for runway 26 and I didn’t make left traffic and made straight in landing and it was very dangerous due to another traffic in front of me. They have called my flight instructor and let her know what happened. I apologized to the controller and told him I was too concentrate for the descend thought I was too high and too close to the runway and forgot the approach and landing instruction.

This is what happened with Visual Illusions. When I was still at 6500 ft the runway looked closer than I thought and in fact it was still far away. I should trust my flight plan and start my descend as planned and pay a lot more attention to control tower’s instructions.

I was too nervous and fixated on one thing only and forgot others. Good lesson to learn.