Ned Gravel

I use the screwdriver bit on the end of my fuel tester. It is like the one shown here but mine has a metal probe for the drain valve. It appears it is not sold anymore with the metal probe.

Alan: Did Brenda go with you this year? If so, tell her Ute and I miss her.

We saw the landing on youtube yesterday. It was in two separate videos. Well done. Predator looks good in A element. Was Hoser the lead this year as designated from last year? If so, good job Hoser.

+1 The only benefit. Ok, also no hangar fees. But on the days when my bird is disguised as a snowbank, I would give all those up. Just sayin’.

I had no name for mine for the first ten years of ownership. Then my wife started calling her “Baby.” Ok - but she picked it. For me, the girl is Baby, not the airplane, but I will not argue with her on this.

Kirk: last I saw of them, they were in Clarence’s hanger. @M20Doc. Don’t believe he will have kept them for so long, but it never hurts to ask.

Don’t recall if St. Hubert is a port of entry. They are still not all back after COVID. You may be required to use Dorval because it has an on-airfield customs post with CBSA folks for clearing international flights.

The I'M SAFE mnemonic used to be almost a perfunctory exercise in flight planning for me. When was I ever not ready to fly? Hmm...? Now it is not so perfunctory. Since last summer (I am now 70), I have scrubbed two sorties because I knew I was just too tired to really stay ahead of the airplane. It may cut back my flying hours on those days when I have set aside the time because the weather is cooperating, but better that than the alternative. I really do not want to be "that guy." In the pattern, talking to no one and oblivious to a lot of the situation around me. I have seen it in others and read more than one resulting accident report. Even a fixed gear aircraft will not solve that problem. I think we have to be willing to tell ourselves when it is not a good day to fly because of how we feel. Pisses me off that age is creeping up and may be doing this to me. I was a warrior and we are indestructible!!!!! Then, but maybe not so much today. Still instrument current and still Class 1 medical. But I am ready to determine when my A game is no longer good enough. Then it will be time to hang up the spurs. But not today and not while I have the tools and QC checks to help me make good decisions. BTW: tomorrow is four practice approaches to local airports.

Ever heard of cow tipping? Time spent playing football as a defensive back or rugby as a prop (preferably at varsity level) helps. Signs of a misspent youth. Otherwise best to leave them to the farm (or ranch) hands.

Yup. Our guys can be unprofessional too. Customs clearance going in either direction across our "longest undefended border" is still a crap shoot. In most instances both CBSA and US CBP officers are good and professional. They have a job to do, but are not acting stupid about it. As of today, my instances of running into martinets is about even for y'alls and ours. Once had a CBSA supervisor officer tell the new person to settle down and let my wife go to the washroom. Once had a CBP guy tell me to make sure I trained enough US folks to be able to replace me so I did not have to cross the border so often. Once had a CBSA officer try and tell me that I was 15 minutes early (instead of them being 15 minutes late) when I showed him the time on my iPhone synced to the iridium clocks on the GPS satellites and asked to see his watch for comparison. Once had a CBP officer start going through the baggage compartment because he said he had to make the trip from the border control point on the bridge to the airport worthwhile. Today, I only fly into airports that have permanent CBP Customs posts or CBSA Customs posts. Don't need the agro.

When deviating, I change my heading bug to the course deviation assigned by ATC and set George to follow that. HSI and compass both have centered needles at that point. I am good. NORDO or loss of comms procedure is a separate issue. Made easier by their knowing I have wx on board (albeit 6 to 12 minutes behind). They will expect me to turn to the last expected waypoint when I feel it is safe, if I am squawking 7600. I can do that.

And here I thought my own 20G30 with an 18 Kt direct crosswind was something to crow about. My POH says 11 mph is the max demonstrated crosswind. I guess Kerrville was not as windy as Tucumcari that day. I knew I was a test pilot that day on a 3800’ X 150’ runway. My out was our local international airport with 4 runways so it was going to be a relatively safe learning experience. Worked out good. Upwind wheel down first. Then the other side followed very quickly by the nose wheel. This 12 years ago. Never had to try it since. Crosswind landings in my 65 E model are pretty non eventful.

And that is perhaps the level of discretion that is now more important than ever. Well done.

I am reminded of the one simple requirement my instrument instructor called to my attention as I was finishing my instrument rating some 14 years ago. “You are flying IFR only when a needle is centred.” All we have to do is pick the device that will do that for us. But no one will get criticised for being creative and saving lives when SHTF. For example, if an iPad is all that is left and it provides a bearing, or a track, or a heading to safety, I would follow that on my compass. It is certified to do that very thing. But that is just me.

There are about five or six of these still posted somewhere. They date back from the 60’s. Best gobbledegook you can listen to. This is the first one I have heard that doesn’t take the lab coat with a slipstick approach - more salesman than scientist. Third one today on YouTube to celebrate April fools. Sampson boat builders did a whole episode on the front door of a cutter and one of the history storytellers did the whole “hunt for red October” schtick as if it was real. interesting day.

All of my covers are from them. Winter cowl cover. Canopy cover to protect the windows and windscreen. Wing covers for winter and elevator covers also for winter. Great people to deal with and good products. My canopy cover lasted 15 years before this winter totalled it.

In 1988, for my sins, I was appointed as the Joint Task Force Signals Officer for a SNFL-turned-op headed to the Caribbean. Being a qualified sailor should have made this a breeze. But it was not. On board one of the "Cadillacs" (a destroyer from the Canadian DDH 280 Iroquois class) in sea state 10 with Force 9 winds I was done and down within 24 hours of slipping the lines. My Chief Comm Op and I were working to the get the SOI published within 48 hours of departure so that everyone would know the Ground, Air-to-air, air-to-ground and Link 11 connections that were needed before any bad stuff happened. Typing the SOI on an Apple IIc in my stateroom until I could stomach it no more, my Chief Comm Op would take over and, from my bunk (with a solid lee board) I would see him stop typing, get up and puke in the sink and go back to work. We were both on the ear patch. Being onboard one of the 280's as she plows through the crest of a 10 meter wave, only to have the bottom drop out from under her and slap down into the trough was hard on the body. Those of you with Navy time will already know this. On day 2, before the SOI was published, the JTF Commander had an Orders Group in his cabin. It included Signals, Naval squadron staff, Log, Air support, and reps from the designated infantry units. The infanteers were the first to bug out to puke, then the log offr, then the air support reps (transport first, then Tac Air rep, then heli det comdr), then the naval squadron staff. I was the last to leave to go and puke. We entered gentler weather on day 3, abeam Bermuda. Fortunately, that rough start to the op allowed me to not get sea sick for the remainder of the cruise. About 8 years ago, we rented a Hunter 31 out of Gore Bay on Manitoulin Island (after a nice Mooney trip to the island) and both my wife and I found the wrist bands worked well (pressure only - no electrics). Never had a problem for the week we rented the Hunter. Today, neither of my sons can take long rides with me in the Mooney - they both get airsick - and I think they got it from me. But my wife and I are fine with flying - no airsickness.

I have a nail through the end of mine. Acts like a cotter pin and prevents it from coming out. Pain in the behind to use sometimes though. Pin is tied to the bar with a bungie cord.

Those are lines predicting the path of the storm cell shown at the current point of origin. The dots indicate time of travel. I think they indicate predicted locations in 20 minute increments, but I could be wrong on that.

I got a bank loan in 2004 for my Mooney and I paid it off 8 years later. The bank advertised the purchase of an aircraft as a "line of credit" item and I took them up. Today I keep that line of credit open but I reduced its limit to $10K ($7.5K USD), just in case I am AOG. It will not fund big things, but it will fund the exchange of a fuel pump or new tires and necessities of that magnitude. And as close as I am to retirement, my experience mirrors Hank's - so I would not recommend dipping into retirement savings to do this.

I bought a G5. Installed it as an HSI. If the AH fails, it can be switched to take over that function. And it still retains the HSI info and drives my STEC autopilot.

For those of us who have qualified for formation flying, we always hear of the story. Lead: "Sh**", followed in very quick succession by - "2," "3," "4."

Don: Ouch! I know where you are coming from. When I was doing my IFR in my E-model, I lost everything during a practice approach into one of our local dromes. I was still mostly vacuum driven in those days but, this happened more than once and the faults were turned out to be, in order, a faulty regulator, a faulty generator and some not-very-good wiring. Today, I have an alternator, a Zeftronics regulator, a Concorde battery, a Skytec starter and a correctly installed avionics bus (that was not there when I bought the aircraft). The panel is also much different, but this summer, going to and from Oshkosh, I lost everything again. The first time was on departure from Wayne County and I declared an emergency with Ute holding the breaker in and landed at Ypsilanti. The second time was during the run up on the way home from Saginaw, MI. Flew home VFR because engaging pitot head was causing the generator breaker to trip. It turned out to be the main generator breaker (50 amps) on the right side of the panel. It was giving up the ghost and took quite some time to troubleshoot. Good luck on figuring out the cause. Once that is done, I have every confidence that the Don Kaye logic machine will easily determine an appropriate solution.

Eric: Mine is not as cute as yours, but I did the same thing about 6 years ago. Door is latched during the walkaround but not locked because this door provides an exit "in case." I may put some red tubing on the wire that will allow me to also confirm the door being latched as part of the run-up.

+1 with @Pinecone. Had friends that flew ASW aircraft (Aurora = Canadian version of the P3 Orion etc) and commanded one of the ASW squadrons on the East Coast. Also have one niece that used to fly as a geologist. Magnetic Anomaly Detector (MAD) used in both applications.