I planned to visit the Eastern Shore airports today, KRJD, KESN, KCGE. Conditions on the Eastern Shore were marginal when I took off, but I was expecting improvement by the time I arrived, or maybe they would be better than reported, as has happened to me before. I also planned to turn around if I wasn't comfortable with the conditions.
I noticed that it was hazy as I climbed in the pattern at KFME, not great visibility, but OK to proceed. I left the pattern toward KANP and I decided to turn around if by the time I passed the drag strip I couldn't see the East River. I picked up the East River and continued the flight. As I approached KANP, I decided to turn around if I couldn't see the far shore of the bay. I picked up the far shore, including my usual landmarks at Kent Island and beyond, so I pressed on.
I arrived over Kent Island, checked in with ATC as clear of the SFRA, then switched to KESN tower and ATIS. At least I thought I had the ATIS frequency. After a minute of not hearing anything, I checked the frequency and saw that it was right. I fooled with the intercom system, checked the frequency again, and discovered that I was off because it's so hard to read that dim radio frequency in the bright sunlight. I had a 9 where I should have had a 4. I fixed it, and then the ATIS reported 1000 foot broken ceiling and ILS approaches in use. That did it. I turned around, called ATC and asked to return early because of poor conditions at my destination, got cleared for return to the SFRA, and returned to KFME.
I did three landings at KFME and called it a day.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Lesson 27
I've had about enough of these lessons. I'm anxious to finish!
It was a clear day, few clouds, winds mostly calm. Kind of hot.
The goal of today's lesson was to get closer to finishing my minimum IFR training requirements, along with check ride preparation. We took off and I put my foggles on almost immediately after departing the airport area.
I flew under the hood for a while, eventually climbing to 3000. Then the instructor told me to take the foggles off and he pulled the power and asked me where I planned to land for this simulated engine out landing. I looked around, pointed to a field, and then he said no, he wanted me to land at an airport that was nearly directly below us and that I hadn't seen. It turned out to be Bay Bridge airport. I did two complete cirles to lose altitude and then lined up to land. But I did a bad job of managing altitude and we wound up way high - I floated and got the wheels on the runway but we quickly decided that we had to add power and climb out again or risk running off the end of the runway.
Then I had to find Ridgely, where I entered the pattern and I did another power off landing. We turned it into a touch and go, and the next thing I knew we were on a collision course with a crop duster working a field to the west, so I had to dodge it, all the while looking for the other traffic in the area that included flights that were dropping parachute jumpers and an airplane towing a hang glider.
We departed to the south, contacted Easton, landed, taxied back, and took off again. We continued south, approached Cambridge, landed, turned it into another touch and go, and returned to Fort Meade with me under the hood.
So now I lack only 0.2 hours of hood time and that's the last of the minimums necessary for me to take the check ride.
It was a clear day, few clouds, winds mostly calm. Kind of hot.
The goal of today's lesson was to get closer to finishing my minimum IFR training requirements, along with check ride preparation. We took off and I put my foggles on almost immediately after departing the airport area.
I flew under the hood for a while, eventually climbing to 3000. Then the instructor told me to take the foggles off and he pulled the power and asked me where I planned to land for this simulated engine out landing. I looked around, pointed to a field, and then he said no, he wanted me to land at an airport that was nearly directly below us and that I hadn't seen. It turned out to be Bay Bridge airport. I did two complete cirles to lose altitude and then lined up to land. But I did a bad job of managing altitude and we wound up way high - I floated and got the wheels on the runway but we quickly decided that we had to add power and climb out again or risk running off the end of the runway.
Then I had to find Ridgely, where I entered the pattern and I did another power off landing. We turned it into a touch and go, and the next thing I knew we were on a collision course with a crop duster working a field to the west, so I had to dodge it, all the while looking for the other traffic in the area that included flights that were dropping parachute jumpers and an airplane towing a hang glider.
We departed to the south, contacted Easton, landed, taxied back, and took off again. We continued south, approached Cambridge, landed, turned it into another touch and go, and returned to Fort Meade with me under the hood.
So now I lack only 0.2 hours of hood time and that's the last of the minimums necessary for me to take the check ride.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Solo 6
My long cross country flight is done. I went from KFME to KSBY to KOXB to KFME.
The only part of the flight that went as planned was the fact that I landed at the airports that I intended to land at. The weather forecast called for hot, humid weather, but sky conditions mostly clear over the Delmarva and light winds. OK, I had the light winds. But there were so many clouds, what I would call a scattered layer, that I had to fly at 2000 for most of the trip when I had planned for 3000. So I couldn't see as far as I had hoped. And I didn't have that insurance altitude that I like to have.
The first leg to KSBY was uneventful, save for the lower altitude. I was able to stay on course, mostly, by watching the ground, referencing the map, and using the VOR on the field. I had a little trouble spotting the airport, but eventually I found it and landed. The controller sent me straight in. I need three landings at towered fields on my solo cross country flights, and on my last flight I did only one landing, so I did a trip around the pattern, landed, got my stuff ready for the next leg, and took off again.
I had never been to KOXB. It's a short flight from KSBY and the airport is right next to the ocean, so I knew that I just needed to look for it south of the hotel strip. I tuned the CTAF, learned that traffic was using 14, and then I had to find the airport. I decided to fly well south of the field and turn north to overfly it above pattern altitude and then set up for a 180 turn and arrival into the pattern. But there were clouds at 1000 so I found myself at 900, suddenly worried about staying out of the nature preserve. So then I turned north, at 900 feet, found the airport, skirted well west to avoid departing traffic, and once past the field turned back to enter the pattern, where I did an uneventful landing.
On the ground (boy that's a long taxi on the runway to the midfield turnoff), I set up for my flight home. I got my flight log out, got some water, taxied back to the departure end of the runway, and took off. First time ever over the ocean.
I turned downwind in the pattern, then departed to the northwest. I was hearing all sorts of chatter on the radio, including some discussion of parachute jumpers in the area. And I had to dodge a small flock of birds. And I had to dodge a banner-towing airplane. Then it got interesting.
Going to and from KSBY, I had the luxury of following a VOR radial. But not from KOXB. I set out on my heading, only to realize that the gyro had drifted. I then went through a series of attempts to get the compass and gyro aligned, only to realize that I wasn't waiting long enough between turning to the compass heading and setting the gyro - the compass turning errors were getting me. All the while I was hearing all of the activity at KOXB, and surprisingly also the traffic at KFME. By the time I sorted out the compass/gyro situation, I had lost my ability to pick out my selected landmarks for navigation and I realized I was not on the course I had planned. I turned west, knowing that I would eventually reach the Chesapeake Bay if I didn't sooner or later figure out where I was. I was also worried about drifting into KSBY or KESN class D airspace and I couldn't climb above their airspace because of the clouds, so I was looking around a lot to find the airports or other traffic.
Well I eventually was able to orient myself with landmarks and the flight was uneventful from that point on. I reached the area between Easton and Cambridge, called Potomac approach for my transponder code, entered the SFRA, and cruised into Tipton's pattern where traffic was taking off to the east for a change. I made a nice landing with the stall horn coming on and was relieved that my long cross country flight was done without any more drama.
I take my hiking GPS receiver along on these trips. I can't use it in flight; it's not approved for aerial navigation. But it does a nice job of recording the track. It turns out I was (mostly) headed in the right general direction for that period when I was unsure of my exact location, but the track isn't quite straight for that part of the trip when I was messing with the gyro.
OK, now I need more simulated IFR time, check ride prep, and then I can go for my FAA check ride.
The only part of the flight that went as planned was the fact that I landed at the airports that I intended to land at. The weather forecast called for hot, humid weather, but sky conditions mostly clear over the Delmarva and light winds. OK, I had the light winds. But there were so many clouds, what I would call a scattered layer, that I had to fly at 2000 for most of the trip when I had planned for 3000. So I couldn't see as far as I had hoped. And I didn't have that insurance altitude that I like to have.
The first leg to KSBY was uneventful, save for the lower altitude. I was able to stay on course, mostly, by watching the ground, referencing the map, and using the VOR on the field. I had a little trouble spotting the airport, but eventually I found it and landed. The controller sent me straight in. I need three landings at towered fields on my solo cross country flights, and on my last flight I did only one landing, so I did a trip around the pattern, landed, got my stuff ready for the next leg, and took off again.
I had never been to KOXB. It's a short flight from KSBY and the airport is right next to the ocean, so I knew that I just needed to look for it south of the hotel strip. I tuned the CTAF, learned that traffic was using 14, and then I had to find the airport. I decided to fly well south of the field and turn north to overfly it above pattern altitude and then set up for a 180 turn and arrival into the pattern. But there were clouds at 1000 so I found myself at 900, suddenly worried about staying out of the nature preserve. So then I turned north, at 900 feet, found the airport, skirted well west to avoid departing traffic, and once past the field turned back to enter the pattern, where I did an uneventful landing.
On the ground (boy that's a long taxi on the runway to the midfield turnoff), I set up for my flight home. I got my flight log out, got some water, taxied back to the departure end of the runway, and took off. First time ever over the ocean.
I turned downwind in the pattern, then departed to the northwest. I was hearing all sorts of chatter on the radio, including some discussion of parachute jumpers in the area. And I had to dodge a small flock of birds. And I had to dodge a banner-towing airplane. Then it got interesting.
Going to and from KSBY, I had the luxury of following a VOR radial. But not from KOXB. I set out on my heading, only to realize that the gyro had drifted. I then went through a series of attempts to get the compass and gyro aligned, only to realize that I wasn't waiting long enough between turning to the compass heading and setting the gyro - the compass turning errors were getting me. All the while I was hearing all of the activity at KOXB, and surprisingly also the traffic at KFME. By the time I sorted out the compass/gyro situation, I had lost my ability to pick out my selected landmarks for navigation and I realized I was not on the course I had planned. I turned west, knowing that I would eventually reach the Chesapeake Bay if I didn't sooner or later figure out where I was. I was also worried about drifting into KSBY or KESN class D airspace and I couldn't climb above their airspace because of the clouds, so I was looking around a lot to find the airports or other traffic.
Well I eventually was able to orient myself with landmarks and the flight was uneventful from that point on. I reached the area between Easton and Cambridge, called Potomac approach for my transponder code, entered the SFRA, and cruised into Tipton's pattern where traffic was taking off to the east for a change. I made a nice landing with the stall horn coming on and was relieved that my long cross country flight was done without any more drama.
I take my hiking GPS receiver along on these trips. I can't use it in flight; it's not approved for aerial navigation. But it does a nice job of recording the track. It turns out I was (mostly) headed in the right general direction for that period when I was unsure of my exact location, but the track isn't quite straight for that part of the trip when I was messing with the gyro.
OK, now I need more simulated IFR time, check ride prep, and then I can go for my FAA check ride.
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