Kate's Aviation Journal

Labels: Iola

The instant I heard "two thousand, two hundred" I was like a horse out of the starting gate. I said goodbye to the people in the FBO. I called Sean, who confirmed that he wanted me to take the plane to Woodbine, New Jersey (1N4) instead of the west side of Philadelphia. (Whatever, just get me outta here.) I climbed into the Sky Arrow and was cleared to taxi to runway 33.

Since it was almost dark when I landed here three nights ago, today was the first time I got a good view of the landscape surrounding the airport. I snapped a picture after takeoff. Standing on the airport surface, you can't quite see beyond the plateau you're on. Fifty feet off the ground is a different story. If it weren't for the glare in my picture, you could really get a sense of the way the terrain drops off to reveal the valleys below.

I had studied the forecasts and satellite imagery before embarking on this trip, and everything suggested that the clouds would never completely fill in, leaving lots of holes. When faced with a decision whether to try and "scud run" over mountains or go way up high over the clouds, I shoved the throttle forward and aimed for the blue sky you see in my takeoff picture. This took me a little off course to start, but it was my only tunnel to get above those clouds. I thought 5,500 feet would do it-- ah, no. The cloud tops are always higher than they look. I kept climbing. Finally at 7,500 feet I had the required cloud clearance and could see forever. It was cold up there, probably about 45 degrees although I didn't have a thermometer. It was also almost blindingly bright and the sun kept me warm without the heater. I turned on course and checked in with a controller from Cleveland Center. *The Dynon EFIS and Garmin GPS screens don't show up in this picture because of the lighting, but they're there.

Near Harrisburg, which lies south of the last major ridgeline, I started having to weave among the cumulus buildups as their tops became higher. I knew I couldn't weave much longer without running through a wall of clouds ahead, so I requested an altitude of 8,500 feet. Yes, the "wrong" altitude for the direction I was heading, which is why I asked if I could temporarily have it. It took every ounce of power and patience for the little plane to struggle up to 8,500 feet. This solved my immediate problem, but I saw I still wouldn't be able to get over that last row of clouds because it would take a long time to climb to 9,500 feet. There was only one sure-fire way out: descend below the clouds, into the warmth, the haze, and the turbulence.

Down I went, aiming for the city, steering along a clear path between me and that big row of clouds. I wove around some lower ones, and by the time I was about 5,500 feet and about to run into clouds, I was above the city. The only thing I could do was spiral down through a huge opening in the clouds, and I let air traffic control know what was going on. I think they misunderstood at first, because I think they took my statement to mean that I was trapped above the clouds. No... not at all, I told them, and clarified that I was just fine and needed no help. I simply needed to make a U-turn, shed altitude, and get back on course. The bottoms of the clouds were at 4,300 feet and I descended to 3,500 feet, where I could see the Susquehanna River and lots of civilization.

Gone was my clear blue sky and now I was in some warmer, hazier air. It was so turbulent that I could hardly hold altitude, and the plane banked 30 degrees left and right. I still had at least an hour of flight to go and did not want to endure this kind of turbulence that long. I started considering taking a break at one of the nearby airports but knew I had an airline flight to catch soon. And then unexpectedly, a few miles southeast of the city, I was in luck: the clouds suddenly broke up again and the tops looked much lower. Whoo hoo! I shot right back up there, first to 5,500 feet and then to 7,500 feet. Now it was smooth sailing to my destination.

My toes were a little cold but otherwise I was fine up here in the smooth air again, trying to hide from the sun under my jacket and hat. Most of the scenery consisted of clouds, but I often got small glimpses of the landscape. The Delaware River appeared through a large gap in the clouds. A Philadelphia approach controller asked me if I would like to descend, but I said no, I'd rather stay up here at 7,500 as long as possible. My idea was to stay in this smooth air until very near the airport, and then to take advantage of the hopefully smooth air over the Delaware Bay.

I deviated from course just a hair in order to put myself over the bay. This was west of Cape May, a peninsula on the other side of which lies the Atlantic Ocean. The airport I was heading to is not far southwest of Atlantic City, New Jersey, and it was the Atlantic City controllers who worked with me on the way into Woodbine. The picture to the right shows the Delaware Bay ahead of me in the haze, and the edges of the cumulus clouds along the shore. I flew beyond the shoreline and turned along it, finally beginning a descent in what was thankfully smooth air.

Once below the bases of the clouds, I turned inland over the marshes and forests. I made a radio call to announce my position. Someone in the FBO responded back that Sean was there waiting for me. That was pretty exciting... I knew I was minutes away from completing a nearly 800-nautical-mile journey and a friend was there waiting for me. I touched down on Woodbine's runway after 2.4 hours in the air today. Sean and I put the plane away and headed for Philadelphia International where I took the airlines to Milwaukee. Had it not been for all the weather delays, I would have had more time for sightseeing.

I logged a total of 9.6 hours on this trip and chalked this up as the third time I have flown a Sky Arrow on a long cross-country. I have learned the plane's limitations as well as my own, and have seen how important it is to plan a lot of extra time into your trip in these limited airplanes. Had this been an IFR-equipped Cessna 172, I could have made the trip in a day or two. But had it been a Cessna 172, it would have been too easy. And as far as the view, I had the best seat in the house.

Labels: Sky Arrow

I can't help but think of the movie Groundhog Day, where the main character is stuck in a day that repeats itself.

Another shuttle to the airport, another day of waiting, and I'm going stir-crazy. I can only take so much of the Olympics on TV and even the computer isn't entertaining anymore. I went to the airline terminal restaurant for a burger for lunch and a waitress said, "Oh, you're still here."

Yes, yes I am. Ugh. Sean told me it's clear and beautiful where he is. If I could only get out of these mountains... And later in the day, there were showers showing up on the radar west of here.

Hmm, $60 to rent a car for the afternoon. Had I felt like spending that, I would have driven around just for something to do. It was very tempting. But I was already volunteering my time on this trip and didn't want to volunteer any more money.

After lunch, I couldn't stand to sit anymore so I went for a walk along the road that borders the airport. It went downhill quite a bit and came to an intersection, where I turned left and continued for a while. I took a picture of a sign for the steepest grade I've ever heard of. Too bad I didn't feel like walking an extra four miles round-trip to find out what 14% looks like. I turned around and made the uphill trek back towards the airport.

And here is a picture of the view before I got poured on and drenched head to toe. Five more minutes would have saved me. Luckily I still had clean clothes to change into, and I sat in the FBO to dry off. More of the Olympics.

Labels: Sky Arrow

Labels: Sky Arrow

I was off the ground and headed east somewhere around 8:00 a.m. -- which was Eastern time and more like 7:00 a.m. to me. (Yikes.) The air was wonderfully smooth and cool. I flew almost directly east into the sun over endless green farmland. I tipped my hat forward and flipped up the collar of my polo shirt to keep the sun off of me as much as possible. I was already wearing my jacket, and my arms were actually cooler under my sleeves than my hands that were in the sun. Overall it was pretty comfortable because cool air came in through the vents. Not far east of Goshen, I shot a picture of what was either fog or smoke stretching for a few miles, unable to rise because of a temperature inversion. Later I saw a farmer stirring up dust in a field.

Labels: Sky Arrow

Labels: Sky Arrow

I'm all Oshkoshed-out and don't feel like spending any more time at the show.  This morning I gave a ride in the Ercoupe and then sat around to watch the Lambada motorglider and Flight Design CTs fly. Last night a pilot in a Swift had to keep his plane here overnight because the Oshkosh airport closed at 8:00... and he was a little too late. I watched the Swift depart today.

Later in the evening I finally flew with Todd in his Ercoupe, for the first time since he bought the airplane (this was only his second flight in the plane).

Then I flew an introductory flight in the Sky Arrow with a potential Able Flight scholarship applicant. He had never flown in a small airplane so this was quite an experience for him.

I rounded out the long day with a night flight to Clintonville for landings with my student Tony.

Labels: Ercoupe