To Tuscaloosa and Back

N-71317 is finally finished with her annual.  She had been moved to her new home in Rostraver, PA (KFWQ) in a heated hanger with lights, curtesy of my friend Dennis Tolkach.  I took the opportunity to do my first annual under the guidance of an A&P who would inspect the work and sign off that it had been done to FAA specifications.

Also, in preparation for new regs and ADS-B, the Garmin 530 was upgraded to WAAS.  Sounds technical, and it is, but the upgrade is very nice to have when navigating.  The big change is that GPS approaches now have vertical guidance instead of 'drop and scoot' and and I have traffic on the GPS screen, which is very handy.  And lastly, and perhaps most importantly, I am ready for the ADS-B mandate ahead of schedule.

Mechanically, the list of minor replaced parts and fixes was long and varied and it gave me a great chance to get under the hood, dash, in the tail and fix minor annoyances that needed fixing.  I also got some great, new LED landing, taxi, and position light.  It's good to be seen.  The experience and time spent gave me new insight in to how simple and beautiful this plane really is and it gave me confidence in the condition that she's in - which is great for her age.

The first long trip after the annual was to Tuscaloosa to visit the college kids and for the 'Parent's Weekend' for Jessica's sorority.  The flight was on a beautiful day, although we were bucking a 50+ mph headwind which slowed us to 70-80kts for the majority of the trip.  We stopped in Scottsboro, AL for gas.  We probably would have made it all the way to Tuscaloosa, but while close counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, it doesn't count in airplane fuel.  This added another hour to an already long trip, but we did get in before dark.

Flight back from Tuscaloosa to Rostraver

The trip back to PA was planned for the afternoon.   We had rain storms overnight  with clearing in the morning, but the weather was moving north.  This meant moisture, clouds and colder temps, which might mean freezing rain and icing conditions.  The window to get home on Sunday was pretty wide, but it would close if we didn't get moving.  Allison and I got up early, filed a flight plan, and headed out.  Above is the radar track of the trip we made. We were in the clouds at Tuscaloosa at 1200', but popped out on top at about 3500'.  We climbed on to 9000' and had a smooth ride on top until KY, when we were back in the cloud cover for about an hour.

Huntingdon approach told us there was freezing rain at the airport, and we saw a little snow, but there was no ice forming on the wings.  The headwind that haunted us on the way down was our friend on the way home and granted us 160kt ground speed for parts of the flight.  I kept the portable GPS showing 'Nearest Airport' most of the way, occasionally checking the weather at a nearby airport in case we got into ice and needed to divert.

We arrived a little early, and put her back in the hanger.  Hopefully she will be our ride for another 5 trouble-free years.

Flying in a King Air 100

Recently, I've moved N-71317 from Steubenville, OH (2G2) to Rostraver, PA (KFWQ).  Rostraver is much closer to home.  I've friended and been befriended by Dennis Tolkach, who is owner of Hollywood Air Services t FWQ.   Houston (71317 is Houston, TX area code forward and backward) likes her new home. She's warm and it's much easier to work on her in a well-lit place.

Long story short....  Hollywood Air Services houses a King Air that belongs to a local contractor and the copilot was not going to be able to make a flight to West Palm Beach.  Pilot John Masters was in need of someone to sit the right seat. This was a private flight, so no real pilot duties required, but he needed some help closing the door and making sure the owners are comfortable. AND, it's always helpful to have someone familiar with cross-country navigation/flight to help with the COMMS and NAV radios and flight planning.

Dennis, good man that he is, suggested to Pilot John Masters that I might be able to fly with him.  All was agreed, and I put on my first tie in years, a white shirt, and nice blues and headed to the airport.

The experience was awesome.

Our route on the way down. 230 kts for 4:06

A beautiful sunset just off the east coast of FL.

The King Air sits in Ft. Meyers where it's 80 degrees. 

 The panel is familiar with a Garmin 530/430 for navigation.  It also sports radar, if necessary.  The 10 smaller dials to the left of the Garmin are for the turbine engines powering this beast.  If I fly with Captain Masters much, I will need to learn how to properly care for the turbines.

That's a 650 HP turbine on the wing there.  

After reaching altitude (21,000' or Flight Level 210) on the trip home. 

N945WS is inside the hanger keeping warm.   You can see Dennis Tolkach's Lamborghini in the background. 

The flight back home: 

I actually hand-flew until we reached cruise altitude of FL210. Again, what a hoot!

I'm not sure it will be as much fun flying N-71317 now. ;-)

N-71317 Gets an Annual

Got the first annual on N-71317 done at her temporary home in the NE.  Had to go to Canton (CKAC) to Castle Aviation to get it done.  Not quite the attention I got at Mesa, CO at Monument Aircraft, but a good job, none-the-less.

I'm loving the PPonk conversion engine (http://www.pponk.com/HTML%20PAGES/engine_overview.html) that Dana installed at overhaul. The extra power was really helpful in the mountains, climbing to Victor Airways altitudes when headed east.  

I'm temporarily located near Pittsburgh, so here it's useful to arrive a little early on a long flight... and if you really want to burn a little more fuel, it's *really* helpful at that. ;-)

Steelhead Trout fishing in Oregon

Last year, a group of guys from our church had put together a trip to go steelhead fishing in Oregon and Idaho. No sooner had the plans been made than I had to start picking up my paycheck in Pittsburgh. In September last year, I was graciously given the chance to move back to Colorado and work in Denver. This put me closer to my family and I accepted.

Mike Schulte had put the original trip together, and this year, everyone else had been transferred out. Since it was just Mike and I, we decided to take good old N71317 to make the trip much shorter. Originally, it had been about an 18 hour drive thorugh and around the mountains. We fairly well went in a straight line, this time.

We had a fuel leak when we arrived at the airport, but my A&P, Dana Brewer at Monument Aircraft came down on a Sunday morning and spent a couple of hours getting us up and running.

The trip out was beautiful, as most flights over the mountain are. We encountered some moderate turbulance over the mountains just west of Salt Lake City, but nothing that was a problem.

There was a low pressure system north of SLC that brought a few clouds and haze, but at 14,000', we were above the most of it.

The airport was a slam-dunk from 14,000', but we made it.

Yes, we caught some fish:

Mike's brother-in-law, Ronnie is the real master. He had us 3-to-one:

Mike caught quite a few, as well:

Our cabin was pretty primative with no running water or plumbing. It did have electricity and the heat was much appreciated.

The view out the front of the cabin:

Mike with our day's catch:

The trip back was pretty much the same as the trip over. Nice weather and just a few bumps over the mountains, which is to be expected.

At cruise altitude on the way home. Very happy to have had a shower and a hot meal.

The Garmin 530 showing the Great Salt Lake:

The Garmin 496 showing the winds aloft (weather):

If you can read the altimeter below, it shows 13,000', our assigned cruise altitude.

Crossing Salt Lake City airport as we turn the corner towards home:

Viva Las Vegas!!!

We became good friends with Jessica's boyfriends' parents and they decided that we should all go to Las Vegas and they could show us the ropes. The Bell Family had never been.

As fate would have it, the Jeremy (Jessica's boyfriend) who is the high school team's pitcher, had a game in Gunnison, CO on the Saturday that we were to leave for Vegas. After some consideration, we decided that the girls should go ahead and leave early, and John (Jeremy's dad) and I would fly to Gunnison and watch the game. We would pickup Jeremy and go on to Las Vegas.

Since there was some weather between Grand Junction, and Gunnsion, we filed IFR.

On approach, there was enough weather to keep from seeing the runway, so we shot the ILS-06 approach. After we were established, there was a Learjet on its way into the airport. ATC told them to go to Blue Mesa VOR and hold. In about another minute, I could see the airport and could see that there was clear skies between me and the runway. I told ATC that I would cancel to keep the Lear from burning more kerosene.

We followed him in (since he was so much faster than me). After landing and tying down the plane, the co-pilot came out of the cockpit with 2 lunch plates for us. We had saved him some money, time, and having to make laps around the holding pattern.

I don't know who he was piloting for, but they were eating off of real china. The chicken they gave us was very good and still warm and well worth the extra 2 minutes it took us to give up our spot in line (and the 1/2 hr it saved them).

We borrowed the crew car and drove to the baseball field. There was still snow in the dugout, but the boys played a good game, even if they did lose.

After the game, we loaded Jeremy into the plane with a blanket and he took a nap. We filed IFR for Henderson airport in Las Vegas at 14,000'. It was a great flight over with quite a few clouds to look at...

The scenery was beautiful:

The trip into Henderson airport was uneventful. We stayed in a private house in Las Vegas. It has a pool and BBQ with plenty of bedrooms. Quite nice.

The lights are unbelievable.

The trip home was quite another story. The wind was blowing about 20 kts on the ground and 70 kts on the way home. I checked with weather briefer and he suggested an alternate route headed south of the direct one I had filed, due to expected freezing rain. I agreed and re-filed.

Problem was he didn't cancel the earlier flight plan, and when we left the last assigned waypoint to head south on the new route, the controller called me and asked what was up. I explained what I though the problem was, she was nice, and we agreed on a hybrid route.

70 knots tailwind can be a good thing, and a bad thing. It cuts a 4 hour trip by over an hour. But on the up-wind side of the mountain peaks, you find yourself staring at the ground as you try to keep from flying in to Class A airspace. On the downwind side of the peaks, you point the nose to the sky and do all you can to to maintain altitude. I had 15,000' assigned, but on the backside of the mountains, there was no way I could hold that altitude. ATC gave me 14,000. Try as I might, I couldn't keep even 14,000' that as we crossed a peak. She topped falling at 13,500'. Those of you who have read Sparky Imeson's 'Mountain Flying Bible' know that these downdrafts do extend all the way to the ground.

See the Tracklog for a look at how much trouble I had holding altitude.

We arrived safe and sound in Grand Junction, with a nice practice of x-wind landings in the trusty C-182.

A great trip and one I'm sure we will make again.

Flight to Telluride!

Allison's brother John came for a few days of skiing over his spring break. By Saturday, he had enough of the close encounters with the white stuff.

He wanted to make a trip to see some mountains from the plane, so we drove to Junction and pulled the Cessna out of the hangar and flew to Telluride for a very expensive diet Coke and an interesting flight back.

John-John was my co-pilot. This was his first trip up in a small plane. We flew over the Uncompaghres mountains, which were quite beautiful.

The approach to Telluride (KTEX) is pretty much one-way in, one-way out with a drop-off on either end.

You can see the ski areas in the back on the right.

Here we posed for our picture after a safe landing....

Fight to Pasadena.... Roll Tide Roll

My son Josh had been working on getting tickets to the college football national championship game in Pasadena. He came up with 2 tickets (thanks papa Teague) and we set plans in motion to get us both there. I live in Grand Junction, and Josh is recently re-enrolled at The University of Alabama, so he would fly commercial, and I would fly Cessna. 

After careful consideration, I decided that I would bring Jessica along and give her the ticket. I would find a pub to watch the game. As luck would have it, another ticket came available and we were all 3 set to go.

The day before the game, I was as sick as I have ever been. I had a fever and got out of bed at 9:00. I took a shower and decided to head home (200 miles over the mountains). I had no idea whether I could fly to Pasadena. My head was completely plugged and I felt rotten. It was looking like our tickets would become  some very expensive wall ornaments. I got Allison to get me a Dr. appointment at 3 PM.

I told the Dr. that I had to fly the next morning if at all possible, and I felt terrible. She gave me an antibiotic because I had some infection in my ears, a nasal spray and and antihistimine. I told her this all had to be out of my system in the morning so I could fly with a clear head. She seemed reasonably sure this could happen. I went straight to bed and woke up early on Thursday, the day of the game.

Just off the ground in Junction.....

At 4:30AM I got up and felt much, much better. Not great, but certainly ready to fly. I checked weather. Clear with the exception of some light icing potential just on the Colorado side of the border. I filed KGJT JNC V8 MMM V394 BASL V12 V201 BERRI KBUR at 14,000' This should have taken us directly over Las Vegas with a view of the Grand Canyon, then across the California mountains and into Burbank, CA.

Jessica got up at about 5:30 and we left Parachute, CO for the Grand Junction airport. She helped me drag the Mooney that I am parked behind out into 6" of snow. We did a thourough pre-departure check while still in the warm hangar and rigged up the O2 bottle. 'Houston' came out next and we parked the truck in the hangar and put the Mooney back in it's place.

14,000' and cruising to Pasadena!

Just at sun-up we fired her up. Next, we tested the O2 connections, got our clearance, and entered the route into the GPS.  Ground gave us a modified departure as the wind changed just at sun-up, but no worries. We joined V8 and headed toward Vegas. The snow and light clouds were beautiful just after takeoff. We open up the oxygen bottle after reaching 12,000' and continued to climb 14,000'.

Click picture to view larger

To see the radar track, click here

Oututside of Las Vegas

At Mormon Mesa VOR, ATC amended our route to go south of Vegas. We should have been high enough, but I guess they didn't want any slow blips on the screen over Vegas. No worries. We made the change without problems. We rejoined our original planned route at Palmdale, CA and headed on to KBUR.

Near Burbank, ATC gave us the Lynxx Eight  standard arrival. The GPS had the arrival, so it was straight forward. Before hitting the mountains, though, we got vectored away from the airport as a 737 made it's approach. From there, it was vectors to the airport.

Several of the pilots had southern accents on the way in. I heard a pilot complete his transmission with a 'Hook 'em'. Not being one to let it lie, I ended one of mine with a 'Lets Roll 'em'

7 miles out ATC told me to stay above 4000' till established on the base for RW 15, since it was near the mountains. Getting close, they asked if I could 'get down from there'. Of course I could and did, hitting the mark just right.

The air was a little thicker than I was used to, so she floated down the runway a little longer than I was used to, but no factor.

We parked our little 182 right next to the Texican's Lears and Citations. We took a bit of ribbing from all of the burnt-orange clad rich boys, but we grinned. They had no idea what was about to happen on the football field in about 4 hours.

Outside of the Rose Bowl

What happened next was the game.... and Colt McCoy missed it. I would go into details, but that would take up a whole blog of its own and this is about flying. Which gives me and idea.....

Josh, Jessica and I meet up outside the gate. First time we had seen Josh in months.

The game was over (of course Bama won) and we headed to Josh's hotel near LAX. We got about 4 hours sleep and headed back to Burbank airport.

Before gametime...

EVERYTHING is slow in Los Angeles. It was slow to check out, Josh was 1 mile from his airport (LAX), took us 1/2 hour to get him dropped off. The 20 mile drive to Burbank airport took about 45 minutes, then at the airport those pissed off Texicans were awake and hung over and wanted to take their dear sweet time paying for their fuel and rental cars. Almost an hour in the airport before we could leave.

Yep... the Tide prevailed. 

I amended the return trip flight plan to avoid Las Vegas. No sense in being re-routed  again. We sat idling for 20 minutes on the gorund in Burbank as 6 Lears took off from both Burbank and Van Nuys airports (in the same flight path). We were given the Van Nuys Seven Departure Procedure, but vectors were given and we climbed over the mountains and headed back to Palmdale where we resumed our own navigation.  ... and Jessica slept.

You can just see Corso and gang in the lower right part of the picture.

The only hiccup came near Las Vegas. The GPS stopped working. The integrated radios worked, but it couldn't see any satellites. The hand-held was still working like a charm. I started navigating with the VORs  and amended my aircraft suffix to /U instead of /G so they wouldn't give me a routing I couldn't accept.

The trip back was uneventful. 4:30 minutes.

Back in Grand Junction, I contacted Steve Bottom, my trusty avionics guy. The heater had shorted the coaxial cable to the antenna. He had it operational in about an hour.

Great trip to LA. Vegas is now on my list, too.

Come see us...

KB