Bravo Zulu Aviation

I’ve been absent from this site for a while, but for good reason.  I have relocated to the left coast and have been busy running a full service aviation company in The Dalles.  We’re about 80 miles east of Portland, OR in the scenic Columbia River Gorge.  I’ve finally found the time to start blogging again and am happy to have the opportunity to share the wonderful aviation adventures we’ve been having out here.  Please check out our NW specific flying blog: http://www.flythenw.com.

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Doesn’t that just look like too much fun to be legal?  I decided to add a little thrill to one of my recent instrument training flights.  This particular student was looking to gain some experience with non-precision approaches in more remote areas.  These approaches are often more dangerous and harder to master due to more demanding descent schedules, and a need for increased situational awareness.  We left KRME on a beautiful morning and headed to KGFL for some fuel and a cup of coffee.  We decided to do the NDB approach into Laconia and make that a low approach only to venture to the southeast a little bit and check out the mythical B18 Seaplane Base.
During the winter they keep a FAA approved runway plowed, complete with a parallel taxiway.  With plentiful sunshine the runway was a bit slick, so we were certainly appreciative of the differential power on the twin we were flying.  David showed true mastery of his Beech Baron with a full stall touchdown right at the ‘numbers’ of this slick 2400′ runway.  Braking action was nil so we took advantage of aerodynamic breaking and a light touch on the throttles to negotiate the narrow taxiway.  After a brief tour of the bay we were lined up again for takeoff.  Smooth, matched application of the power is key to maintaining centerline, and this hot rod Baron soon launched from the runway for our next practice approach in northern NH.  We flew directly over Whitehorse and Cathedral Ledges in North Conway, just east of the snow covered slopes of Mt. Washington, and set up for the VOR approach into Berlin.  After a beautiful low approach and missed procedure, I gave the ‘clearance’ back to RME.  Even with a headwind we made approximately 180 Knots over the ground and enjoyed the beautiful White, Green, and Adirondack mountains on our journey back.  A smooth ILS approach guided us to the long runway at Griffis and we put the plane away until the next adventure…who says the winter isn’t any fun?

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This past week I spoiled myself and invested in some Cirrus transition training.  I rented a SR20 through Troutdale Aircraft Services at KTTD in Portland, OR.  I was professionally guided through the avionics and a thorough pre-flight before we launched into a typical Willamette Valley sky filled with intermittent rain showers.

The Cirrus is a pilot’s airplane.  I looked hard for flaws in the handling of the airplane and found little.  We climbed to the north at a rate more akin to a twin than a piston-single and negotiated with PDX for use of the only blue sky around which happened to be under their control.  The side stick control is a non-issue for transition; it is natural and intuitive.  You quickly become aware that trim is important in this airplane like any other high performance aircraft, this is easily managed with a light touch of the hat switch under your thumb.  Steep turns were fun and stable, and easily commanded with the flick of the wrist.  Next we cleared the area and explored the slow flight capabilities of the airplane.  There is a considerable difference in control feel due to the drastic change in airspeed, but it is predictable and easy to control.  Here is the statement you’ve all been waiting for…  the Cirrus is likely the most docile airplane in a stall that I’ve flown to date.  The ailerons fly in a full stall and it is possible to maneuver well past the break.  There are many myths about the Cirrus and it’s spin characteristics,  these are presumably derived from the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System which was used to meet the spin recovery requirements for FAA certification.  My understanding is that much like the Cessna Corvalis 350, the airframe was certified as spin resistant, due to a cuffed outboard wing and ailerons effective throughout the stall.  The CAPS is the only ‘approved and demonstrated’ method for spin recovery, that is much more likely an economic decision rather than an aerodynamic one.

After our air work session, we negotiated a quick IFR clearance for the GPS 17 approach to LPV minimums at KUAO.  This included an unexpected hold at the procedure turn and gave us a real-world challenge.  The approach was flown accurately by the autopilot, although it hunted a bit to hold the course while compensating for turbulence as we explored some pretty colors on the NEXRAD radar; this was easily calmed with a steady hand on the side stick to help it along.  I hand flew the final approach segment and prepared for my first landing.  The most challenging part of flying the Cirrus was the landing flare.  The approach is stable, and compensating for a stiff cross wind was a non-issue, but judging the flare attitude will take some getting used to.  Much of my recent time is in high wing Cessna’s and the Cirrus landing attitude seems more like an impending prop-strike in comparison.  By my third landing, I finally felt progress towards the greasers I strive for.  The Cirrus taxis a little bit like a tailwheel airplane with the castering nosewheel.  Differential braking is required to get the nose headed in the right direction.

Much of the safety afforded by the Cirrus is built into the panel.  A full glass cockpit designed with the pilot in mind is a tremendous safety advantage over the traditional steam gauges.  A proficient pilot will find they have much more time to look outside, enjoy the flight, and spend more time on the important aspects of flying: decisions.  The pilot of a Technically Advanced Aircraft has a tremendous amount of information at their fingertips.  Imagine having weather radar, METARS and TAFS for your entire route of flight, a complete set of approach plates, and an accurate fuel monitoring system to help you complete your journey. All of this information can be pondered while the S-Tec 55X auto pilot aptly follows your planned (or unplanned) routing.  This experience in the Cirrus was my first chance to work with the Avidyne Entegra suite.  This flight deck is driven by redundant Garmin 430W WAAS-enabled GPSs and a smartly integrated autopilot and audio panel.  My initial reaction is that the Entegra suite is slightly less ‘powerful’ than the G1000, but that comes with a huge benefit: Simplicity.  I found navigating the unit with the soft keys to be intuitive and the knobs are simple to use.  The G1000 navigation is a little bit dependent on dual-knob navigation due to the chapter/page layout, while the Avidyne is much more straight-forward.  I especially liked the single press Heading Sync feature. This syncs the heading bug to the present heading with a single button press.  This can be combined with two more button presses: HDG and ALT on the autopilot, and *poof* the airplane is flying itself.  Continue this one step further, and turn the heading knob 180 degrees and you’ve just prevented one of the most fatal general aviation accidents: VFR into IMC.  This simple sequence would also be a powerful tool for a non-flying passenger if the pilot were incapacitated.  I could go on and on on how easy it is to use this panel; other highlights include Traffic, Weather, CMax approach plates (with real time aircraft position on the plate!).  There is plenty more information about the Entegra Flight Deck on Avidyne’s Website.  The main shortfall to remember is that the MFD is mostly for information only on the Entegra, all of the real data entry and flight planning info happens on the 430’s.  This task is made much easier with the Flight Director, but is not as streamlined as the G1000 when it comes to automated data entry from the MFD.

This is a great airplane backed up by a strong factory training and ownership program, with Flight Into Known Icing certification due this spring, this could be the airplane that gives general aviation a much needed shot in the arm.  More information at http://www.cirrusaircraft.com

Many thanks to the Cole, the chief flight instructor at TAS for his time and professional instruction.

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First off I will strive to post to this blog on a more regular basis this year.  Here are some posts to expect:

• PIREPS: Pilot reports on specific airplanes
• Destinations
• More recounts of past and present flying adventures
• Advice for student and certificated pilots

I am hoping to involve more of you readers in this site, don’t forget the comment box below each post is there for YOU!
As are the Forums available from the link above.
I hope 2009 provides many exciting flying opportunities for everyone!

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It seems that I spend a fair bit of my time on this blog apologizing for tardy posts, or a lack of new material.  So to remain true to form, here is a quick update on how 2008 finished up:

• Finished my MEI/CFII training at MN Aviation.
• Prepared my first instrument student to a successful check ride, in a Beech Baron.
• Made progress on the Build to Fly, Inc. Sonex project.
• 100 Hours Dual Given.
• Now flown over 20 different types of fixed-wing aircraft.
• Had a ton of fun!

Thanks for reading!

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My apologies for such a tardy post…so much to catch up on.  I should be able to catch up on life in the next year or so.  The short version of the story is that I received my CFI ticket during Oshkosh week, and headed directly there to celebrate.  I enjoyed a great 3 days there followed by an uneventful drive home.Since then I’ve gotten tailwheel current, given almost 20 hours of dual, rode as safety pilot in a Baron, flew a Navajo into JFK, and put 7 wonderful hours in an AirCam.  I am getting ready to drive back out to MN for the last push: MEI/CFII.   Thanks to those who stop by here and follow along, expect a detailed pilot report on the AirCam, and more details about my CFI adventures. 

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Bad Blogger…I mentioned a couple of weeks ago that I started at an accelerated flight school, and that I’d post my experiences here.I’ve now learned exactly what accelerated means:  Work your butt off 24-7 until you’re done.  I prepared for and passed three check rides in 8 days. 3 of those days were almost entirely spent on check rides.  I unfortunately did not have much time to update my blog.  I took two weeks off, and am now back at the flight school half way through my CFI coursework.  I have a ride scheduled with the FAA this Wednesday, with plans to head straight to Airventure, Oshkosh as soon as I’m done.  Then back for my CFII, MEI.  So unfortunately this post is all I have time for right now, as I’m off to the swivel chair in the next room to ‘chair fly’ lazy-eights and chandelles, while teaching my imaginary friend. 

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For a long time now I have thought that immersion in a subject is the best way to learn it.  I have been making strides to integrate more aviation into my daily life, hoping maybe to learn by osmosis.  Unfortunately the schedule at home always tends to fill up no matter how hard I try to prioritize working towards that instrument ticket.  I finally made the decision to force the stars into alignment, and upon a recommendation, enrolled in a flight school. I write this post from the Albert Lea Inn, in Minnesota.  I have just finished my second full day of training at M N Aviation.  I haven’t yet been in an airplane, but have made great progress towards my goals.  My check ride is already scheduled for this Sunday, so that means I have some intensive studying and practice until then.  So far I’ve spent most of my time here doing ground instruction to assess my current knowledge and fill in gaps, with about 5 hours in the simulator.  The simulator is an evil concoction that takes away all of the joys of flight, and magnifies all of the pesky details.  Once mastering the skills in the simulator,  flying an airplane is easy.  Tomorrow morning will start out with my written test, which I plan to ace.  Then we’ll check the weather (pray for IMC conditions) and do a round-robin 250NM+ tour of the local area including 4 approaches along the way.So, I’ll try to keep up with the blog during these fast-paced weeks, but my Commercial and Multi check rides are tentatively scheduled for July 7th;  which means I’ll have only a few spare moments. Back to the books for me…

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This past Friday I had planned to use my shiny new complex endorsement to fly with my wife up to Maine in our club Arrow. My early preflight planning showed the ugly weather that had passed through upstate New York earlier in the day had not made as much progress east as I hoped it would. The TAF at PWM (Portland Jetport) showed a stubborn overcast layer at around 3-400 feet. I looked at some other airports nearby and realized that my sister-in-law was driving near an airport near Boston that was showing a little better weather. So I picked my wife up in Syracuse and hit the sky with the goal of Minuteman Airfield (6B6) where her sister was waiting to drive us the rest of the way.

The first part of the flight was beautiful. Smooth air awaited us up high (9500′) and a tailwind boosted our groundspeed to 165-178KTS…great! This lasted for the first 100 miles of the flight.  Just as we entered eastern Mass however, a low overcast layer crept underneath us. I did some math for fuel planning purposes and concluded that we had plenty of fuel to fight the tailwind back if were not able to find a hole through the clouds at our destination.  30NM from 6B6 I stepped it down to around 5000′ to try to pick my way down.  Unfortunately the overcast was solid. I monitered the AWOS/ASOS at all of the nearby airports and discovered that BED was calling only a low broken layer. I arranged a clearance into the Boston Class B to have a look. A couple of pilots on the frequency in bigger faster airplanes piped up with their advice that there was no hole over Bedford.

Some pilots choose to never put themselves in the situation of having to make difficult decisions. I feel that you should be able to make the smart decision in any situation. This is possible if you identify what external pressures might push you towards an unsafe decision.  I had people waiting, a passenger who was more than happy to get on the ground, and the personal desire to get there. All of these can be hazardous if you allow them to sway your decision.  The weather at Minuteman was above the minimums for the NDB/GPS-A approach. I had the current approach plates, an IFR capable airplane, and have done 18 approaches in the last six months. So when Boston approach asked my intentions and if I was IFR capable…what was my answer?

Negative.

I still do not have an instrument rating. I had a number of great, safe options to descend through the overcast layer between our beautiful blue sky above and the runway below, but no legal way to do it. So I did what I was able to do as a VFR only private pilot: Turned west, thanked Boston approach for their help and went on my merry way.

I took this opportunity to check out an airport near my little sister’s home in Troy, NY. I managed to stick a great landing where the numbers once were on this run-down strip in Rensselaer. 5B7 is a cute little airport set in the hills near the NY/VT border. Make sure your first landing here is during the day! Trees on both ends and a runway that could use some love kept me on my toes. The Arrow proved to be a great short field performer as well as a traveling airplane.  We had just enough time to give my sister a hug before we headed back to Syracuse for the evening.

I hope to have my instrument ticket by the end of this month and I look forward to a little bit more flexibility for family trips. We may have missed a great reunion in Maine this weekend, but we’ll make the next one…

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FINALLY! I got up in the air.  It seems that the weather has been plotting to keep me on the ground just to rub in the fact i’ve not yet earned my instrument rating.  I managed to coordinate some free time with a decent weather window and took to the sky to work off some rust.  Some high school classmates of mine were having a dinner party in DC this past Sunday, which made for a great cross country destination.  I enjoyed a great tailwind on the way down and mostly smooth air despite an AIRMET for turbulence.  The fun part of the flight was the last 20 minutes.  My destination for sneaking into DC was Freeway airport.  This great little 2400′ strip is tucked right in close to the Flight Restricted Zone, which is the inner sanctum of the Air Defense Identification Zone.  Not to mention underneath the complex Class B airspace for BWI airport.  So some careful navigation, and good communication with Potomic Approach led me right into the heart of the Baltimore/DC metro area and onto downwind for runway 36 at Freeway.Now I had to quickly remember how to deal with a crosswind and made a respectable approach despite a gusty crosswind component close to the limit of my trusty 172. My friend was waiting to pick me up and drive me into the city. My trip home the next morning was a little more exciting and involved a stop about half way to check the weather. There was a little more cloud cover than forecast, but the layers petered out by the time I got back to PEO and landed under blue skies.

 Things to remember for the ADIZ:

• Plan ahead!
• File an ADIZ flight plan from your ‘gate’ of entry (Wooly in my case) to your destination airport within the ADIZ.
• Open your plan with Potomic Approach before you enter. Obtain a discrete squawk code and clearance.
• Enjoy your flight!
• More information here: http://www.aopa.org/adiz/adiz.html
• And here: FAA Safety

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