# Nick Rae

> Commercial pilot and aviation workbook author based in Merced, CA. Publishing FAA-aligned pilot study workbooks on Amazon KDP while building side income to fund flight hours toward a flying career.

## About

Nick Rae is a Commercial Instrument Multi-Engine rated pilot with 391.3 flight hours, working toward a 500-hour planning threshold and eventually the experience required for ATP certification. His main public product lane is FAA-aligned aviation study material on Amazon KDP, including Clearance to Confidence: VFR Radio Calls Workbook. He documents the Flight Funded experiment at nickrae.net. OpenClaw is a retired runtime; the dated playbook remains available as a background digital product, not the primary offer.

## Key Pages

- [Home](https://nickrae.net/)
- [About Nick Rae](https://nickrae.net/about/) — commercial airplane single- and multi-engine land pilot with instrument rating; workbook-author background and dated Flight Funded context
- [Blog](https://nickrae.net/blog/)
- [Flight Resume](https://nickrae.net/Nicholas_Rae_Flight_Resume.pdf) — current generic one-page pilot resume with verified 391.3 TT, 272.8 PIC, 311.7 C172, and 221.6 C172 PIC
- [Flight Funded](https://nickrae.net/flight-funded/) — tracking flight hours and dashboard-estimated KDP aviation royalties: reconciled Jan-August tracking stands at 157 full-catalog books at August month-end; the August aviation proof shows 27 paid units, $235.09 USD + €24.64 EUR in estimated royalties, 1,187 KENP, and 0 refunds; cumulative March-August aviation tracking is 149 units, $1,282.32 USD + €71.47 EUR + A$9.49 in dashboard-estimated royalties, not settled payouts or Amazon Ads attribution
- [Aviation Pilot Workbooks](https://nickrae.net/aviation-workbooks/) — FAA-aligned workbooks for private pilot, instrument, commercial, multi-engine, and VFR radio calls
- [Free IFR Oral Exam Scenario Pack](https://nickrae.net/ifr-scenario-pack/) — free 10-card IFR oral exam scenario PDF; source-anchored study aid with chart-specific traps intentionally excluded
- [IFR Oral Exam Scenarios](https://nickrae.net/blog/ifr-oral-exam-scenarios.html) — 10-question blog bridge using the rule-risk-action framework for instrument oral practice
- [The Non-Developer's OpenClaw Playbook](https://nickrae.net/openclaw-playbook/) — background AI-operations kit built from documented 2026 OpenClaw operation; the runtime is no longer presented as current
- [FeedFare](https://nickrae.net/feedfare/) — walking goals and a personal screen-time budget (iOS); self-accountability, not system-level app blocking
- [Inflection Point](https://nickrae.net/inflection-point/) — coming soon and awaiting App Store release; preview page only

## Blog Posts

- [IFR Oral Exam Scenarios: 10 Questions That Prove Whether You Understand the Rating](https://nickrae.net/blog/ifr-oral-exam-scenarios.html) — bridge article for instrument students; routes to the free IFR scenario pack and aviation workbook shelf
- [How I Turned OpenClaw Into an AI Operations System — 2026 Archive](https://nickrae.net/blog/openclaw-personal-ai-operations-system.html)
- [I Built a Weather Prediction Bot. Then Live Trading Humbled It.](https://nickrae.net/blog/kalshi-weather-bot.html)
- [I Read Meta's Self-Improving AI Paper. Then I Implemented It.](https://nickrae.net/blog/self-improving-ai-agents.html)
- [OpenClaw Setup in 2026: Five Lessons From a Retired Runtime](https://nickrae.net/blog/blog-openclaw-setup.html)
- [How I Earned My Commercial Pilot License at 45](https://nickrae.net/blog/blog-commercial-pilot.html) — first-hand career-change story with verified 391.3-hour totals and current 400/500-hour paid-flying context
- [Cheapest Way to Build Flight Hours: 2026 Cost Guide](https://nickrae.net/blog/blog-cheapest-flight-hours.html) — cost comparison plus an interactive calculator for rental, club, safety-pilot, and paid-flying paths
- [How to Become a Commercial Pilot in 2026](https://nickrae.net/blog/commercial-pilot-career-2026.html)
- [The Ultimate Private Pilot Checkride Prep Guide](https://nickrae.net/blog/checkride-prep-guide.html) — FAA-S-ACS-6C source links, a visible checkride-week checklist, oral/flight guidance, and PPL-specific workbook path
- [Best Student Pilot Apps for 2026: What to Buy First](https://nickrae.net/blog/student-pilot-apps-2026.html) — five-tool buying order by training stage and budget, with written prep, E6B math, ForeFlight planning, debriefing, and digital logbooks
- [I Ran OpenClaw for 30 Days — Lessons From a Retired Runtime](https://nickrae.net/blog/openclaw-30-days.html)
- [How I'm Using AI to Build Side Income as a Pilot](https://nickrae.net/blog/ai-aviation-business.html) — current Hermes/Talos workflow, verified aviation-product revenue proof, parked app status, and closed legacy weather hypotheses; separate newer research is unproven and not live or funding proof

## Apps

- [FeedFare — Trade Steps for Screen Time](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/feedfare/id6758923557) — step-to-screen tracking for better phone habits
- Inflection Point — preview-only personal growth OS awaiting App Store release

## Current Revenue Proof

- Reconciled KDP tracking at August 2026 month-end: 157 full-catalog books and 149 aviation units. The August aviation dashboard proof shows 27 paid units, $235.09 USD + €24.64 EUR in estimated royalties, 0 refunds, and 1,187 KENP; March-August aviation tracking is $1,282.32 USD + €71.47 EUR + A$9.49 in dashboard-estimated royalties, not settled payouts. Amazon Ads scale remains HOLD until same-window Campaign, Search Term, Targeting, and Placement evidence proves otherwise.
- Legacy Kalshi weather hypotheses were closed on August 27, 2026 after failed market-relative and executable-evidence gates; evidence is preserved, legacy collectors are paused, and live trading is off. Any newer research is separate and unproven, not income or live readiness. WeatherNext remains parked.

## Background Digital Products

- [The Non-Developer's OpenClaw Playbook](https://nicholasrae.gumroad.com/l/openclaw-playbook) — 163-page guide plus Starter Kit ZIP documenting a retired 2026 OpenClaw operation; examples may differ from current interfaces and are not a validated current installation guide. Background offer while KDP aviation workbooks carry the main buyer path.

## Aviation Books (Amazon KDP)

- [Private Pilot License Workbook: 500+ Practice Questions](https://a.co/d/0hExZLaf) — representative private-pilot practice; check Amazon for current reviews
- [Instrument Rating Workbook: Complete IFR Study System](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GQH7QX62)
- [Clearance to Confidence: VFR Radio Calls Workbook](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H3KT5FHW) — paperback; [Kindle edition](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0H3HZ2BQG)
## Other Catalog Titles (Historical / Secondary)

- [Illuminating the Word: Bible Word Search](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DZY4C98F)
- [Aviation Word Search](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DZNXH78H)
- [Army Word Search](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DZTH7S3K)
- [Alaska Word Search](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DZTD4CQ8)
- [Bugs Word Search](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F18QX17H)
- [Amazon Author Page](https://www.amazon.com/stores/Nick-Rae/author/B0GDGY1DWX)

## Contact

- Website: https://nickrae.net
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickrae
- X: https://x.com/nickrae
- GitHub: https://github.com/nicholasrae