While my parents have, in the past, given me money towards flying for my birthday, they've never joined on one of those flights. This year, though, the present was a flight to one of the local airport food spots for lunch. While my dad has flown with me before, this year also added the opportunity to bring my stepmom along.
It took me a little while to figure out where I wanted to go, since the logistics of getting to spots surrounding an airport can occasionally be tough (or expensive, as Phil and I found out a few years ago), but I eventually settled on Kay's At The Airport. I'd never been, but the DC-3 crew went there a little while back, and they gave it a good review so I thought we should try it out. As the name implies, it's at the airport, which in this case is Cambridge (CGE).
The flight out was a little bumpy in the climb out, but once we got a little altitude we were fine. It was in the climb that I decided against the VFR corridor between DCA and BWI, as that wouldn't have been pleasant. Instead, I asked Potomac for a Class B transition over Baltimore (BWI), which was approved and we were on our way.
Closer to CGE, we had to time our approach in between some jumpers using the landing area adjacent to the runway. I've never had to do that before, so that was new. It added a little stress to the approach, but having my parents tasked with sky watch made things easier.
Lunch took a little while since I hadn't called ahead for reservations, but it was good. Being in Maryland and quite near the Chesapeake Bay, I had to go with crab cakes. I highly recommend them.
After lunch, we jumped back in the plane to head home. This time, though, I decided to take the southern route back home, slipping between Patuxent River airspace and the SFRA. Unlike the VFR corridor, it has no altitude restrictions, and it avoided the alternate attempt to get a Class B clearance during the busy international arrival times for Potomac. It was slightly longer over the ground, but it didn't add to much more time in the air.
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| So. Much. Airspace. |
Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 2.8 - 114.5 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 0.0 - 28.8 (of 40)
Dual Complex: 0.0 - 5.0 (of 10)
Total Time in Aircraft: 2.7 - 185.9 (of 250)
