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Today's flight for 2017


bonal

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We took Snoopy for an overnight trip to the coast at LLR and even though to some it sounds like a long flight we were only 25 minutes away the wind was really in our face getting only 120mph ground speed and we were at full gross with myself my wife her friend and our 70 pound pup Magneto plus a full load in the baggage area. As always one needs to pay close attention to the marine layer but with AWOS reporting favorable and an employee at the resort giving us reports from the location we were good to go. During our stay the weather just kept getting better with the fog out to sea our late morning departure today was in the most perfect flying weather you could ever hope for.  I let my wife's friend take control for a few turns and some straight and level flight and she really enjoyed being able to fly an airplane. Little River Inn is a great place to stay with great service and a nice looking golf course. They are both dog and pilot friendly and will pick you up and bring you back. I highly recommend it for anyone looking to spend some time on the California North Coast.

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This weekend we made the quick flight from Erie to CTYZ (Toronto City Airport) to catch the last weekend of the Toronto Film Festival.  I have a visiting medical student with me this week also, so we brought her along for the weekend.

It was easy to get attention from the lineman at the airport. :wub:

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I flew a mission for Operation Airdrop to move supplies into central Florida to aid in Hurricane Irma recovery.  I picked up 450 lbs of supplies at Tallahassee (KTLH) and flew it down to Lake Wales (X07).  I was delayed in TLH waiting for a delivery of baby formula, I did not realize that this was a live Face Book Feed at the time https://www.facebook.com/groups/operationairdrop/permalink/117928445559725/

Total was about 620 NM and had to spend the last hour on the way home avoiding thunder storms over the Florida panhandle.  But it was still a good day to fly.

 

 

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I flew down to Grand Rapids, MI this morning to pick up a young boy after his weekly chemo treatment (was dropped off yesterday by one of our other pilots but blood count was too low to allow same day return).   He gets really excited when he finds out he'll get a ride in the Lancair (this was his third flight in 4PT).  He's been on weekly treatments since December and will finally go down to monthly in another month.  One hour flight verses 7 hour drive each way so the family really appreciates it when we can fly them down.

Anyway, they parked me next to this Mooney.   Wondering if it belongs to anyone on Mooney Space?

Tom

 

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This weekend I managed to get four cross country's in with just about 6 hours of flying.

Flew up to Auburn Washington Saturday for a FATPNW fly in. It was great times other than the smoke... It was a short five miles visibility getting in and out and under the class Bravo. I was above 10,500 to get out of the smoke on the way there and home. What was really crazy there was so much traffic flying up there in that stuff. Those pilots are crazy or dedicated...:) I have an oil change planned in two hours and will be replacing my air filter because of the ash.

Sunday I took a friend and my girlfriend up to Pendleton for dinner and a little bit of gambling at WildHorse. It was kind of a cluster relaying on the casino picking us up and taking us back. The smoke was really setting in and there was a few rain cells moving in as well. After I did the preflight it was clear it would be night time when we got to John Day. I'm night current but this would be the first time I've landed with passengers. I told them because of the weather and added stress I was going to isolate them on the audio panel. Over the last month I've been doing a lot of flying dealing with low visibility due to forest fire smoke and getting some hood time in preparation to starting my ifr training. I was very glad I had for this flight home. We had to dodge a few rain cells and went threw one or two as well. I kept my instrument scan, with looking outside and when it came to it I made one of my best landing yet. I have spent this whole week briefing myself and how I handled it since I learned more on that flight than I have in a long time. I was able to keep my bearing and the little bit of radio work you have to while on flight following. But I feel I've moved my minimums and safety margins enough that I feel confident to start ifr training in my plane. 9142f75f743ff2510f7d081438bd636a.jpg7110209d08d1378ff187806d5cc2e29e.jpg835075db062fa3b15edcdb21773a7d24.jpg621a662492e5495bfb9f7c9fcceb446b.jpg1d03cc48ca16da49b4725c02b3c14f38.jpgf2021dce52cacfe4598e0607b831d507.jpg


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It was a very strange day indeed.  I got up early and headed out to the airport with a full day of plans.  I was heading down from KRUT to KAVP to buy a C172 that I have been looking at for my youngest son to get his license in.  I had a second pilot lined up to fly it back to Rutland and we were set to go.  Pulled the Mooney out of the hanger and fired it up.  It hit on the first roll and we taxied out to the run up area.  Mag check really rough on the left.  Lean to burn it off. and the left clears off.  Check right........plane drops dead on the right mag.  Look across the airport and my mechanic just happens to be working on a Saturday.  We taxi over and have him take a look.  Pull the cowl run it up for him and he pronounces the right mag dead.  Taxi the Mooney back over to the hanger and put it away with the days plans now in tatters.  I call my wife to explain why I'm not in in the air on my way to PA and all is good there.  Being the fully invested airplane wife she insists that it was better it died in Rutland than in PA.  I agree and tell her that I need to call the guy with the C172 and let him know that I can't get there and we will have to work something out.  He queries my intent to purchase the airplane and I explain that I was indeed very serious.  Upon hearing that he let's me know that he is in Montpelier, VT doing a dog rescue trip and asks where Rutland is from where he is.  He has to fly directly over me to get home to PA.  Yeah we are back in business!.  I call my second pilot and turn him around.  We get picked up in style and get a ride in a very pretty M20E down to PA.  We start going through the C172 and a guy come pulling up in a golf cart.  It turns out to be a old friend of mine from when I lived in Florida who I haven't seen in 16 years.  Suddenly it's old home day at KAVP.  We trade updated information and get back to the business at hand doing the paperwork.  All signed over and we are ready to to go.  The seller comes up and asks where the check is ???? we proceed to start tearing through all of our assorted paperwork looking for the check.  The check had blown out of the airplane was blowing across the ramp.  Check found, crisis averted, we launch.  I'm not sure how many of you have time in a 1965 C172 with the O-300 in it but it is not knows as being a speed demon even with a tailwind.  When you put 16kts directly on the nose the groundspeed really suffers.  2.something back to Rutland while watching a very nice sunset in smooth air all tied down and put away.  Tomorrow I'll go clear out the airplane stuff from the back seat and cargo area but I hadn't eaten anything since dinner last night and was a bit hungry.  All is well that ends well.  My F will get to start it's annual a week early and I guess I'm getting the mags overhauled.   I need a drink.

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Made a milk run to WLW and first flight from a new hangar located across the field from where we were located before. Had to move since the one we were using got sold and the new owner wants to use it for vintage cars. Well it was interresting when we arrived there were a couple crop dusters staging there in front of the hangar and we had to get ours out in between their refills of what ever they were dusting. I have seen them there before and they come in and out real quick. Kind of dangerous though since they don't make any radio calls . Any way the flight was uneventful accept for a rough mag that cleared up and flying home heading into the sun.  Had Chrixxer event on my mind increasing my looking down and picking spots for the possible forced landing. As always Snoopy delivered us safely but there really is a trust we put in our airplanes and our ability to fly them that goes beyond what most would think normal.

Good to be flying 

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Thank you, my dear, it was a squeaker, wasn't it?

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The Mistress only puts down the step if the landing is good. Must be the new donuts!

Flew KBPT<->KBPT for an hour today. Texas flying season is finally here again! Hazy as all get out ;)

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Jim (@bluehighwayflyer)--you went right over my new home field! And the blue circle around your plane is right over my house, just south of the bridge over the Lake. Somewhere i have a picture of the Historic Marker in sight of the bridge for the cabin that Hank Williams wrote his song "Kaw-lijah" in, which is the Kowaliga Bridge. I buy full serve fuel at 06A when they're open, and self serve at ALX when they aren't. Let me know next time you come up this way, there's good eating in Alex City.

See you this weekend at Summit! 

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So, today I had to take a commercial flight to Denver, well I didn't have to, but after checking the weather I think I would have likely needed a turbo and Known-Ice to make it. So, instead I flew from CVO to PDX to get on the commercial flight. The original plan was to go get a couple more approaches on the Oregon coast on the way, but for once, it wasn't cloudy enough. So I flew around Mount Hood at 9500 instead to waste a bit of time, since I plan the trip so if I have to drive I won't miss my flight, if I can fly then I get to PDX really early. The smoke is mostly cleared and visibilities are back into the 50+ mile range. ATC kept me high for the TFR coming back into PDX so I got some speed brake practice in.

 

 

 

 

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Edited by Steve W
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Went for a flight yesterday to some new airports and worked on tracking VOR's for part of the flight just for fun. Went Corona (KAJO) -> Apple Valley (KAPV) -> Borrego Valley (L08) -> Corona. It was good to get a little Solo time in (I can't remember the last time I flew Solo) to work on my focus, checklist use, and flows. It was a great morning of flying.

http://intothesky.us/2017/09/23/apple-valley-borrego-valley/

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Very satisfying flight today.  I hadn't flown a Hope Air (patient transfer) flight since last year because at the end of that flight, the mother and young daughter got out of the plane at the end without even a thank you.  I was really p*ssed.

Today was different.  I picked up a patient in Ottawa who was very nervous and hadn't flown in a small plane before.  She said she had cried in fear when she was last in a commercial flight.  I was probably as nervous as she was but tried to keep calm and act confidently.  Continued to talk to her after we took off and between controller talk, explained to her what I was doing with any prop/throttle change before I did it and told her what to expect with the change in sound.

After a half hour or so she was starting to enjoy the conversation and view.  Then I got what I considered to be a real compliment;  she fell asleep in the back seat!

I had to wake her up approaching Toronto.  We did a tour around the CN tower to land at the Toronto City Centre airport while she was snapping pictures with her Iphone.

Now she's looking forward to more GA flights....  Yay, a convert!

 

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Took a little trip over the Grand Canyon and Bryce Canyon today!  Came back over Lake Powell.  Beautiful flight.  

Density Altitude was quite high at KBCE.  9600'.  Took 2900' of runway to get off the ground.  Full fuel and 2 adults.  Compare that to my departure from KAVQ earlier in the day that took 1100' to get off the ground.  I was prepared to abort the T/O at the midway point of the runway, but was actually off the ground about 1000' before midfield.  Once off, it was no problem climbing out around 90mph at 600FPM.  

If you have any questions about the Grand Canyon SFRA, ask away.  It was very simple.

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Return flight after bird hunting at in-laws cottages Friday and Saturday.  Had wife and two English Pointers on board.  Had a second in my ownership.  Rough Mag.  Had to work it a couple minutes to get the plug un-fouled.  I am an aggressive ground leaner.  Who knows?  Maybe a plug is on the way out?  Stayed low as a wind out of the south was blocking speed.  Level at 4500.  No chop.  Listening to #1's (no name songs on my phone that were at one point favorites, but are a mystery until they play) kept us company on a 2.4 hour flight.  13 on landing.  Winds were 160 at 12 gusting to 20.  Wife said "nice landing" which is high praise indeed (on both legs).  It's the little things...

Love my Mooney.  Love GA.

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Flew Cincinnati to Ohio State and back for Cross Country meet yesterday - 40 minutes in the air beats 2+ hours on the ground - even with a required Uber ride.  3,000 feet, 61% power at about 6.5gph. Added about 5 minutes to the flight.  Altimeter was 30.41 - I'd never heard that high before - got several remarks throughout the flights as others were checking in.

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Decided to waive the 3hr drive to meet the girlfriend for dinner and flew instead . Took 1.4hrs due to a 30kt headwind. Return flight was amazing; broke 200mph groundspeed cruise for the first time. Nice 115mph IAS climb at 175mph ground. That damn moon tonight is bright! Almost had to put my sunglasses back on.

 

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Flew down to Sunriver this weekend and enjoyed a great evening with some friends. Was beat down with a good 20-30 knot head wind there. I almost forgot what it was like to fly a Cessna and since my electric trim switch isn't working I actually had to work flying it. But at least I was flying. And it still gives me a smile thinking about it even as I'm typing this......

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