More Performance

N8454Y - PA32 - 1.2 hours

As I'm working my way through my training, I've been trying to figure out ways to use the flight hours to their fullest. Back in November, for example, I logged more simulated instrument time in a complex aircraft. That got me closer to the commercial requirement of the 10 hours in a complex aircraft, but also got me more simulated instrument time toward the instrument requirement.

Today, in order to try to knock out yet another requirement for the type of flying that I want to do, I figured I'd start getting into a high performance aircraft to get that endorsement, while also logging some simulated instrument time. The aircraft today was a Piper Saratoga, and is slightly larger than what I have been typically flying, with a much larger engine.

In order to get used to the aircraft, we took it just over the ridge to Winchester (OKV) to fly the VOR-A approach, land, and then back to Leesburg (JYO) for the ILS, and another landing. It was a simple flight, with nothing too spectacular. One thing I did learn, however, is that a smooth application of power goes a long way. I added power pretty quickly on the first takeoff, which contributed to some torque steer. It wasn't unmanageable, and I corrected for it, but it was a surprise nonetheless.

Since I'm getting to within 10 hours of the 40 required for the instrument rating, it's time to get more serious about getting that over with.

Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 0.0 - 128.8 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 0.7 - 32.6 (of 40)
Dual Complex: 0.0 - 7.7 (of 10)
Total Time in Aircraft: 1.2 - 198.7 (of 250)

To Grandma's House We Go

N172DR - C172R - 0.8 hours

Earlier this morning I'd gotten a message about a local flight school needing an aircraft moved from Warrenton (HWY) to Leesburg (JYO). I immediately jumped on the opportunity, but soon thereafter I got some unfortunate news about a family member's health. In an effort to keep my earlier commitment while also being able to stop by and visit with said family member, I rented the trusty N172DR so that I could fly to Winchester (OKV) and spend time with family that would have otherwise been spent driving nearly two hours round trip. Granted, the flights together took up nearly 50 minutes, but that extra time made all the difference. Additionally not having to worry about the stresses of traffic, and the traffic lights on Route 7 was a lot better for my own sanity.

While it's good to remember to run the IMSAFE checklist to ensure you're fit to fly before any flight, it was even more important to do so today given the reason for the flight. A flight such as this one could put several pressures on a pilot, while the potential to be upset by the state of a family member could also serve as a major distraction. In my case, I kept in mind that I could always drive. JYO is conveniently on the way out to OKV for me, so continuing the drive if I felt out of sorts was not out of the question. The flight was not a matter of seeing family or not. It was simply a way of spending more time out there. Additionally, despite the unfortunate news, other than wanting to be with family as soon as I could be, there was no immediately time-sensitive concern as there would be if there had been a car accident or similar.

The flight itself was pretty standard. It was a little hazy and there were a few low clouds for the flight out, but nothing major. Now, off to take a C172M down to HWY.

Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 0.0 - 107.0 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 0.0 - 22.9 (of 40)

Freezing and Flying

N172HF - C172S - 1.1 hours

When I went up for my BFR, my intention was to fly down to Raleigh (RDU) for another ice hockey game, but the weather didn’t end up looking too great. In order to make sure a plane was available, I had booked the flight well in advance. I felt bad having reserved the newest plane in the fleet for a flight I wouldn't be taking so I ended up just editing the reservation to push it back by about a week. Luckily, my pilot friend Katelyn wanted to join, so I could continue to get more simulated instrument time. We flew together nearly two years ago, on a quick flight down to Luray (LUA).  Even though she had flown more recently than that flight, it had still been a while so she wanted to go back up and get the feel for it again. That said, we worked it out where I would get simulated instrument time and approaches in between Leesburg (JYO) and Winchester (OKV), and she would get some landings in to get the feel for it again.

I was able to escape work a little early to make the long trek out to JYO (it takes forever now that my office is in DC), but Katelyn ended up getting stuck in traffic. Jokingly, I told her that I would sit there and pass the time taking pictures of myself with the plane. Once I finally got to the plane, however, that joke actually sounded like a good idea since I’m pretty sure this blog now has over 200 photos in it (the videos take that number even higher), and I’m pretty sure I’m in maybe 10 of them. In an effort to make said author less faceless, here’s a picture of me and an ironic statement all in one.

If you're not getting the ironic statement, look at the tail versus my apparel

I was able to get the plane all set up prior to her getting there, which ended up working out, as we departed as night time officially started (for logging it, anyway). As soon as we departed, we went directly to CLADD to fly the ILS Runway 32 approach into OKV. On the way, I pointed out some of the features of the G1000 as we both joked continuously about how it really felt like cheating based on the equipment we learned to fly with. Since she’d flown with Garmin equipment, though, she picked it up pretty quickly.

I flew the approach down near the minimums, but with the flight path vector (FPV) and runway showing up on the Synthetic Vision display, it really felt like I was just flying in a low detail version of Flight Simulator (side note, I was recently part of a Washington Post article on that very topic). I made the first landing since I flew the approach down so low.  After the landing, I took back off, and passed the controls over to Katelyn for a few laps of her own.  Three landings later, I took the controls back to fly the LOC Runway 17 approach into JYO (the glideslope has been out for a while, so it’s LOC only for now).

Compared to the approach I flew at the end of my BFR, this one looked really good. Then again, the approach I flew during my BFR wasn’t aided by Synthetic Vision displays, or a cue that factors in wind drift for you. I seriously feel like I’m cheating using something like that. Don’t get me wrong – I think it’s an awesome tool for the practical environment, but I think I’m going to stick to doing it the hard way for my training. It’ll help me appreciate the G1000 with SVT more, and it’ll keep my skills sharp for all of the fleet.

In the end, it was 1.1 total and 0.7 of that with the blinders on. Not bad since the only major obstacle between me and the instrument rating is all of the simulated instrument time.

Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 0.0 - 88.2 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 0.7 - 14.7 (of 40)

More Instrument Time

N172DR - C172R - 2.1 hours

As somewhat of a last minute thing, a coworker of mine asked if I wanted to go flying so he could get his night currency back.  I almost declined, having just gone last weekend, but since Eric is a CFI and I need to continue chipping away at the instrument requirements, I figured it was a good opportunity.

Since I didn't get my Grant County (W99) flight in last weekend, I figured I would fly the approach there, stop through Winchester (OKV), and then head back to Leesburg (JYO).  That would give him three takeoffs and landings, and it would get me a decent amount of simulated instrument time.

Departing to the west, I put the blinders on and picked up the Linden (LDN) VOR, which is the initial approach fix for the LDA/DME-B approach to W99.  Since LDN is pretty far away from W99, it gave Eric plenty of time to ask general flying questions before we concentrated on the actual approach.  Unfortunately, in order to keep the localizer in the NAV1 spot, I had to put LDN in the NAV2 spot which was unlit.  You can see the oscillations in the track as I wasn't as on top of it as I should've been (first going southwest towards LDN, and then I turned too early to the west, away from LDN).  In any case, I made it onto the localizer in the end, which put me right on top of the field.

As you can see on the chart, the airport is surrounded by terrain, so much so that a straight-in approach cannot be made with the necessary safety margins required by the FAA.  For this reason, the LOC is offset 25 degrees from the actual runway heading.  Moreover, this is also why it is a localizer-type directional aid (LDA) approach instead of being a localizer (LOC) approach.

For those who aren't pilots, localizers are normally placed at the far end of a runway and provide lateral guidance to it.  In this case, the localizer has been placed to the left of the runway, on the near side, because of terrain.  Being on the near side means that it is more sensitive, and therefore slightly more difficult to track, when compared to a normal LOC approach at similar distances from the field.  Additionally, because of the offset and the terrain, the minimum altitude you can descend to on the approach is 1540 feet above the elevation of the airport.  Because you're so high, so close in, it is designed as a circling approach, where you wouldn't normally immediately line up with the runway to land (note that the chart only lists "circling" at the bottom, with no "S" - or "straight-in" - minimums); rather, you would spot the airport closer in, circle around the airport to lose altitude, and then to land.  You can see this in the CloudAhoy track below (the knot at the far left of the blue line).  While the concepts of the various approaches are similar, approaches like this offer somewhat of a challenge, when compared to those offering straight-in procedures (which is what you experience on 99% of commercial flights if the weather is poor).

I ended up overflying the field, and passing the controls to Eric so that he could make his landing.  After a quick full stop landing with a taxi back, we departed to the north to avoid terrain.  If you look back at the approach chart, you'll see that there is a valley north of the field to follow until you clear the mountains.  Once above the terrain, I took the controls again with the blinders on to log more instrument time towards OKV.  After Eric had OKV in sight, I passed the controls back to him for a lap around the pattern and a full stop landing.  Since the weather was nicer, a few others were taking advantage of it for night currency as well, so I called traffic with the blinders off while we were in the pattern.

One of the pilots who landed before us decided to stop right next to the taxiway for some reason, but we managed to get by.  After the departure, I put the blinders back on and took us back to JYO.  Once again, Eric called the field in sight, I passed him the controls for the landing, and that was that.  By the way, if anyone wants to see the perfect example of a full stall landing, see this guy.

From all of the questions throughout the flight, it seems I need to dig back through the books to brush up on some of the items I've forgotten over the years.  It was a great flight, though.  He has his night currency back, and I have 1.6 more hours of the instrument requirement (not to mention 1.6 more instrument dual).

Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 2.1 - 84.1 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 1.6 - 13.7 (of 40)

Betraying My Past

N571DS - DA40 - 1.2 hours

If one were to take a look at my logbook, or even the posts here, one would not find very many manufacturers listed.  With one exception - a Piper Cherokee - you won't find anything other than Cessna.  For the longest time I stuck with what I was used to, but recent plans and a nudge from Phil made me reconsider.

I was told that I should look into a Diamond, and more specifically, the DA40.  Since some of my flying has been more destination-based for time building, a faster aircraft would be desirable to make the trips cheaper.  While the DA40 rents for just about $20 more per hour than the C172R I normally fly, it also flies at least 20 knots faster.  For longer flights, that actually saves me a little money.  Since I have a few major cross country flights coming up, the math worked out such that getting checked out in the DA40 made sense, so I went for it.

I had intended to book the flight for today, but somehow ended up booking it for Sunday.  When I showed up at the airport, I was met with "hey - what are you doing here today?"  As it turned out, I made a mistake when booking the flight, and booked it for tomorrow.  Luckily, the plane was available and Tim was able to fit in one more flight before calling it quits for the day.

Since I'd done the written exam portion of the checkout beforehand, I was able to save that time and jump right onto the preflight.  Even though I'd read the checklists several times over, even some of the simpler tasks seemed more difficult as I hadn't worked with the plane directly.  I could run through all of the things that were different, but I'll just say that even finding the pitot tube was somewhat of a challenge at first.  Differences aside, I was able to finish the preflight just as Tim was walking out.

Starting the plane is very similar to C172R models in terms of priming the engine, but taxiing was rather different, as steering is accomplished via differential braking.  The runup was only slightly different as that's where flap operation and the constant speed prop are tested.  Taking off, however, was very different.  Without nosewheel steering, keeping the nose on the centerline was a challenge.  The rudder pedals that power the giant rudder have a much longer throw than the Cessnas I'm used to, and I wasn't adding as much rudder as I could have.

Image from DiamondAircraft.com

The engine rocketed us up to altitude quickly, where I turned out west to maneuver in the practice area.  In the practice area, I put the aircraft through slow flight, power on and power off stalls.  After getting a feel for the aircraft, I took the plane over to Winchester (OKV) to practice landings.  The first landing ended up just being a landing attempt, as I flared too early, heard the stall warning horn go off a little higher than I would've liked, and punched the throttle in to go around and try again.  The second attempt actually ended in a landing, but I would say that it was more of a controlled impact.  Oddly enough, the feedback that I received was that I was flaring a little too early and getting the nose up too high.  Yeah, I got the nose up too high.  That's something I never thought I'd hear someone say.  For the third landing, I flared later and didn't bring the nose up as much, yielding a very smooth landing.

Since we were getting closer to the time we needed to have the aircraft back, I brought the plane back to Leesburg (JYO) for a final landing.  That landing was similarly smooth, ending the flight on a nice high note.

After shutting down and walking inside, Tim and I recounted the flight just to make sure I had the numbers right.  Apparently the way in which I recounted my landings - "first was missed, second sucked, third was nice, and fourth was nice" - drew a laugh out of a lady who was working at a nearby table in the terminal.  The people using the plane next walked up right as we were about to leave, which helped us avoid walking back out to the box to drop it in there.

While I didn't unleash my array of electronics on this flight, I'll have them next time.

That plane is awesome.

Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 0.0 - 76.2 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 0.0 - 10.5 (of 40)

Going Solo for Currency

N96178 - C172P - 0.9 hours

One of the facts of life when it comes to flying is currency.  Since I've been flying regularly since I had my biennial flight review (BFR), it hasn't been much of an issue.  I haven't been flying much lately in order to save for a trip to Italy in two weeks.  I needed to fly before the trip, though, in order to keep my currency with the flight school.  If I didn't, my currency would've expired in the middle of the trip, requiring me to fly with a flight instructor the next time I went flying, to meet the flight school's requirements.

As I mentioned in my last post, I used this excuse to schedule a short flight out to Winchester (OKV), except this time the wind cooperated.

The preflight was one of the coldest excursions I've been on lately, but it was somewhat negated by new gloves I got for Christmas.  As I got everything set up inside, I tried to set up the ContourROAM on the headband for my head lamp, but the band wasn't strong enough and it got in the way of my headset.  I left it there and got some video from it, but nothing interesting came from it.  I'm thinking of hooking it to my headset somehow for future flights.  A daylight flight wouldn't hurt, either.

The departure was pretty standard, apart from me forgetting to check the carburetor heat initially.  As I cleared the Class B airspace to the west, I noticed my groundspeed was about 80 knots, which was about 30 knots less than my indicated speed, meaning I had a significant headwind.  If the wind is fast enough, you can drop your speed, put the flaps down and fly backwards.  For those of you who can't comprehend that, the plane is still moving forward, but the Cessna 172 can still remain airborne down to about 40 knots.  If the wind is faster than 40 knots opposite the direction you're travelling, you're actually moving backwards over the ground.  Unfortunately the wind wasn't strong enough, so I only got the plane down to about 18 knots across the ground, but it looked like I was sitting still at 5000'.

I ended my experiment when I realized I was at 5000' only 15 miles away from OKV.  Closer in, I lined up with the runway and brought it in.  You can actually see a glow around the approach lights because they're reflecting off of some snow that had melted and frozen earlier in the day.  Later on, as I was in the middle of my flare, I apparently had a subconscious thought to get the nosewheel up, which you can see in the video.  That caused me to float, which I luckily salvaged by adding a little throttle.  I have to say, I'm actually kinda proud that I got the nose up.

[Video was here until Contour closed down for a bit, and they went missing.]
After fully stopping - the FAA requires three full stop landings at night, after all - I went around for another landing.  The second landing wasn't nearly as good as the first.  If you watch the video, make sure to have the sound on so that you can hear a sound an airplane shouldn't make.  As I cross the threshold, some wind kicked the plane around a little.  I didn't think much of it after that because it hadn't been gusty, but as I was in my flare and settled on the runway, another gust pushed me to the right some, sideloading the right tire.  It wasn't a pleasant noise.

[Video was here until Contour closed down for a bit, and they went missing.]
The flight back home was amazingly quick, mostly due to the wind that was now at my back.  I hooked in from the northwest to land on Runway 35 and call it a night.  This one was much better than the second landing.  I touched down on the aiming points, and vacated at the first available exit.  I'm not sure why I chose to jump off so quickly, but I did.

[Video was here until Contour closed down for a bit, and they went missing.]

Luckily the planes on the row behind the spot for N96178 weren't there, so I was able to just pull the plane through.  In the end, the flight was only 0.9 hours, which surprised me.  The Hobbs meter's last hours digits were 64 when I left, and when I landed it was still 64.  I thought the Hobbs didn't even record the hours until I realized that I'd gotten back within an hour, having left at 64.0 and gotten back at 64.9.

So, now I have my my night currency, flight school currency, and sanity back.  We'll see what 2013 brings.

Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 0.0 - 74.2 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 0.0 - 9.6 (of 40)

A Stormy First

N5294W - C172R - 1.7 hours

Earlier this week, Ashley asked if I wanted to go flying soon.  Of course, I'm always up for a flight and we both had time tonight, so I set us up with a plane for some flight maneuvers and perhaps an approach.  Her friend Greg also joined us to get a feel for flying the smaller stuff.  As far as flights in small planes go, this would be his first.  Unfortunately, throughout the week, the forecast had a decent chance of storms in the evening.  Leaving work, I could definitely see some convection that could get in the way, but summer storms are spotty and I know there are a good number of airports locally should we need to get down quickly.


While Ashley and Greg were caught in traffic, I got the plane all set up, and then relaxed in the shade under the wing for a few minutes.  Once they got there, Ashley ran through her own checks of things, explaining them to Greg.

I-66 below and 522 in the distance

After we all got situated, we departed to the west so that we could fly around the practice area (out by Winchester, VA).  On the way out, I took advantage of the fact that there was another pilot on board and got some hood time until we got out there.  Once there, Ashley took over to get some time at the controls to brush up on turns around a point and s-turns.  After a few attempts, hindered by the wind of a storm a few miles to the northeast of us, I was given the controls again for some hood work.  Ashley called out directions and I followed them to the best of my ability.



Of course, even though I checked to make sure the camera started the recording, it apparently died before I plugged it in after starting the plane, so I caught the few moments up to starting the engine and that was it.  The hood work, rainbow and lightning all went unrecorded.  Unfortunately, all of these issues were brought on by myself.  I never charged it after using it last, figuring I had enough time left to run it until I had a chance to plug it in.  Oh well.  Greg caught the rainbow with the still camera, so all wasn't lost.



In the end, Ashley directed me closer and closer to Winchester (OKV), where she could practice a few landings.  Since it had just rained and the runway was recently grooved, it was actually pretty cool looking.  The last few feet on either side didn't have grooves, so the rain made that part shiny, while the middle appeared perfectly dry.  After a couple trips around the pattern, I was handed the controls again and took us north towards the Martinsburg VOR (MRB).  Even though I didn't have my charts, my ForeFlight trial had expired, and I didn't want to look the chart up on my phone, I was still able to fly the approach by pulling it up in the KLN-94 GPS.  As opposed to the last logged approach, this one was a lot better.  We'll see how it looks next time.

I'm still trying to get over the fact that I need the same amount of time that it took to get my private pilot license under the hood for my instrument rating.  At least this flight took a full hour out of that total.

Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 0.0 - 56.3 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 1.0 - 6.6 (of 40)

A New Checklist Item

N172DR - C172R - 1.6 hours

First, I must point out why the title is what it is:
For the second time I've made a mistake with the video camera that has cost me some valuable footage.  Today, I somehow managed to turn the camera off instead of on, so I captured absolutely nothing today.  I missed two approaches, a whole bunch of pattern work, and a few other cool things that I guess I'll just try to convey via text.  The new checklist item, however, is "camera on and recording."

I only think it's recording right now

Camera issues and related frustration aside, it was actually an awesome flight.

My friend Ashley asked me yesterday if I would like to go flying sometime soon, and after telling her when I had time, she said "tomorrow?"  You all know I'm not one to turn down a flight, especially when it's with a fellow pilot I can split time with.  She's been wanting to find a pattern to get a few landings in for a while, so I began flipping between the hassle of staying here (JYO) or going to Winchester (OKV).

On the drive out, I'd been thinking more of flying out to OKV for a relatively empty pattern and not having to worry about special procedures.  When I got to the airport, I had time to kill, so I sat down and continued plotting.  That plotting included throwing in an instrument approach so I could log some more simulated instrument time and chip away at the rest of the 35 hours I still had left, so I bought a current copy of the Virginia and Maryland approach charts.

I settled on the OKV idea, and the Instrument Landing System (ILS) approach to Runway 32 at Winchester.  It was really convenient because it was in line with our route to the airport, and it put us out at an airport where we could run laps around the traffic pattern undisturbed.  On the way out I called up Potomac TRACON, who accommodated the request via radar vectors.  After a few heading changes, I was cleared direct to CLADD to shoot the approach.  Nearing CLADD it seemed like the localizer (the part of the ILS that guides me laterally) was reverse sensing (it was showing me right of course, when I was left), but it seemed more normal as I got to CLADD and continued inbound.  Ashley called out altitudes and watched for traffic while I had the horse blinders on, attempting to follow radio beams to the runway.  For one of my first times flying an instrument approach, it wasn't bad.  I was tracking the localizer well, but there was a mix up with the frequency set in the second nav radio, so I wasn't able to pick up the necessary cross radials off of Linden to determine my steps down in altitude before intercepting the glideslope (the part of the ILS that guides me vertically).  That put me above the glideslope, but after checking how far I was from CLADD on the GPS, I found that I was near the point that I should be following the glideslope and descended to capture it and follow it all down to the runway.  I took the blinders off just above the minimum descent altitude (MDA) for the approach and landed with a little bit of a gusty wind from the north.

After landing, we taxied back to Runway 32 to do some pattern work.  Ashley took the first lap around and opted for a go-around after the wind tossed us around some on short final.  On climbout, I was handed the controls again to give her a break from fighting the wind for a lap.  My first trip around the pattern wasn't too bad, but the wind did distort it slightly.  The strong wind from the north meant there was a decent crosswind, but it also meant that we had to turn to base and final closer in to keep the same descent angles.  If you're not used to adjusting your pattern for wind, it can definitely throw you off.

Ashley took over again for a few more trips around the pattern with better results.  For not having flown in a while, the landings were on point, and they only got better with each pass.  I made a few more landings of my own, and I remember thinking that I was glad I had the camera to record some of them.  Right... Taxiing back for the last departure, I pulled out the approach plates again to get set up for another instrument approach heading back into JYO.

After departing OKV, I turned north towards Martinsburg (MRB) to pick up the VOR (navigation radio) there as it's the initial approach fix (IAF) for the ILS Runway 17 approach into JYO.  Potomac again got me situated on the approach, and provided traffic advisories.  Over MRB, I was switched from 120.45 (MANNE) to 126.1 (MULRR), and then over to ASPER (125.05) as I got closer to getting established on the localizer.  The controller saw that I was established on the approach and told me to switch over to JYO's CTAF so that I could let them know what I was doing.  He also, however, told me to remain outside of the Class B airspace, which annoyed me to a certain degree.  I understand the controller had a job to do that was a lot more important than VFR practice approaches, but it put me in a tough spot not knowing specifically that the approach in itself would keep me out of the Bravo airspace.  I'll readily admit that I didn't cross-reference the approach chart with a sectional to see if the approach remained clear of the airspace, but finding that information out is not as simple as you'd think.

The approach chart clearly shows the SFRA, but nowhere does it show the overlying Bravo shelves (it wouldn't need to if you're IFR, anyway).  The Sectional Chart also clearly shows the SFRA and the Bravo shelves, but not the instrument approach, or the fixes on the approach.  You'd think the FAA would design approaches with things like that in mind, but that's not the case.  There was a big issue a few years ago where one of the missed approach procedures at Frederick (FDK) placed you inside of the ADIZ (precursor to the SFRA).  If you were flying VFR practice approaches and you ended up flying the missed approach, you would bust the airspace.  Despite this, there was very little understanding from the FAA.  The AOPA fought hard against it so the FAA, as a result, began depicting the ADIZ (and later the SFRA) on the charts for situational awareness, but the stance remains: bust the airspace, and we'll bust you.

In any case, my distraction with trying to remain under the Bravo, while also flying the approach took its toll and I ended up right of course.  That all worked out in the end, though, as that put me in the right spot to enter the traffic pattern for Runway 35.  As we arrived in the traffic pattern, though, a helicopter based at JYO called inbound for a non-standard entry into the pattern.  Luckily, we spotted it pretty far out, and they called us in sight soon after.  Even so, it was unnerving turning towards it on base, and even more so knowing it was also going to approach over the taxiway parallel to me.  When I turned final, I attempted to just lock everything else out of my head except landing, and because of that, I pulled off one of my best landings ever, celebrating in my mind that I just caught it on camera.  Again...right... I even managed to have the nose up (a rarity for me, as you know) and the stall warning as I touched.

As I taxied off, I got buzzed by the helicopter, which I wasn't so pleased with, but it's not like it was too close for comfort.  It's just startling to have a large bright yellow thing pass just ahead of and above you.  After parking, we put the plane back in its spot and set off for a much needed dinner.

For those of you who fly out of JYO and are wondering what I found out about the ILS Runway 17 approach, it does actually remain under the Bravo.  I made the chart by superimposing the approach chart on top of a sectional and copying the Class B lines over.  Obviously, it's for reference only, and don't come busting down my door if the FAA comes busting down yours.  If you're still unsure, you can go to SkyVector.com and enter the approach fixes to see where they're depicted on the sectional and you can check the altitudes on your own.




Let's see if I can actually remember to turn the camera on next time.





Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 0 - 50.4 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 0.7 - 5.6 (of 40)

A Cloudy Sendoff

N172DR - C172R - 1.2 hours

As sometime occurs with my flights the intentions are to go one place, but in the end you go where the weather takes you.  Oddly enough, the reason I'm trying to fly so much recently is to work towards a rating that would help me avoid the weather issue.  In any case, despite a nice forecast, the weather this morning was pretty low and hazy.  Every weather station in the area, and those as far away as Charlottesville (CHO), Baltimore (BWI) and Martinsburg (MRB), reported low clouds that would just about prevent me from flying.

To a certain degree, it was somewhat of a sendoff, as my boss Jason (of the Bridgewater trip fame), and his wife Vanessa will be moving out of the country at the end of the week.  The original plan was to try to pull off what I did on my last flight, but fly into BWI this time.  BWI has a smaller runway that's really only used for smaller planes so I wouldn't be too much of a pest trying to fly in.  Unfortunately, I don't exactly have connections there like I do at Dulles, so the ramp and landing fee would've been around $80.  Added to that was the fact that the ceiling (lowest broken or overcast cloud level to the ground) this morning was at 900 feet.  Needless to say, I quickly tossed that idea out.

Martinsburg's weather showed the most hope with a high ceiling and some low spotty clouds, and the terminal aerodrome forecast (TAF) supported that, with that weather eventually heading towards Dulles.  That in mind, Jason and I looked west for a few spots just so we could go flying before he leaves.  In the end, we decided on Winchester (OKV) and Front Royal (FRR).  Winchester is an airport I'm familiar with, so if the weather didn't improve, finding it wouldn't be as bad as finding an airport I hadn't been to before, and it's relatively clear of mountains (at least more so than the other airports I fly to).  I added FRR to keep it interesting, since I'd never been there before, and it was still pretty close to home if the weather didn't live up to expectations.

It seemed as if everyone saw that the weather was improving and jumped at the chance to get up and out, so we joined a line of aircraft ready to depart.  Luckily, we were number two in a line of four or five.  As usual for a Runway 17 departure, we turned west as soon as possible in order to avoid busting the corner of the SFRA, but this time we just headed directly to OKV.  The Class B airspace kept us low initially, but the clouds ended up keeping us low in the end.  As we crossed over Blue Mountain, I brought up the old joke that IFR really stood for "I Follow Roads," as we were essentially following Route 7 all the way.  Getting closer to OKV, I attempted to call in a position report, but had forgotten I was still listening in to the MANNE sector of Potomac Approach.  Since that was the active comm frequency, I ended up transmitting my location and intention to Potomac, who was slightly caught off guard by the remark.  Being me, I apologized, took a jab at myself, and ended with "hey, April Fools, right?"  Humoring me, the controller responded "yeah you got me good there," and off I went.

The landing wasn't too bad, but I'll let the video speak for me.


[Video was here, and then Contour went bankrupt for a while, and it got lost]

If you turn the volume up on the video, you can probably hear me ask Jason if we were going to stop in Winchester to do anything, or if we were just going to head back out.  Because we all had plans after the flying, we opted to just continue on to FRR and then home so we weren't rushed.  After taxiing back we departed Runway 32, climbed over Interstate 81, and then headed southeast to FRR.  Since it's a short flight, I switched directly from OKV's common traffic advisory frequency (CTAF) to FRR's CTAF.  As soon as I tuned it in, I could hear a glider pilot coordinating with a tow plane which wasn't too comforting.  I don't have anything against gliders, but they're higher in the pecking order, so I have to stay out of their way.  They're also frequently white, which doesn't contrast too well with clouds.  We ended up spotting the glider circling well above pattern altitude when we were a few miles out so it wasn't too much of an issue in the end.

I entered on a right 45 for Runway 28, turned in slightly early and ended up high on the approach.  Despite the runway's shorter length compared to the runways at most of the airports I fly to, the high approach didn't cause any trouble.  The landing actually turned out pretty nice, though it was my signature flat landing.  You can hear it in the video as all three wheels make contact at about the same time.  You can also see the approach path alignment panels (APAP) to the left of the runway, which you may remember I talked about in one of my posts about Luray (W45).  I laugh at them every time, but they're effective enough.  In all, the flight took 12 minutes.


[Video was here, and then Contour went bankrupt for a while, and it got lost]

Whenever I fly, I make it a point to avoid doing anything that would scare passengers, or make them even more uneasy than they already are.  I try to make turns shallower, transition from level to climbs and descents more gradually, and so on.  One of the first things to go is the short field takeoff that I occasionally do, just to keep things interesting.  I didn't it at JYO because it was the first time Vanessa flew with me, and I didn't want that to start things off on the wrong foot.  At OKV I didn't do it because it wasn't necessary.  At FRR, however, it wasn't entirely necessary, but it wouldn't hurt, so off we went.  For the record, yes, I know I drag out the ground effect acceleration longer than I need to, compared to the 'proper' procedure.  If I was really pressed for space, I'd climb out at the proper speed, but in this case I wasn't too pressed for space.


[Video was here, and then Contour went bankrupt for a while, and it got lost]

After departing, Jason flew the last leg back into JYO with a little guidance from me on how to get there.  The clouds kept us low again, but it wasn't a big issue.  As we were getting closer I attempted to call JYO's CTAF, but I was still on Potomac's frequency again, having just sent them a pilot report (PIREP) about the weather for a flight going into Martinsburg (MRB).  For the second time in an hour, I called Potomac like it was a CTAF.  I shook my head a bit, as I'm sure the controller did a little as well, and switched over to JYO CTAF to let them know I'd be arriving in the pattern shortly.  Closer in, I took over the controls and maneuvered north of the field, entered the left 45 for Runway 17, landed and taxied in.


[Video was here, and then Contour went bankrupt for a while, and it got lost]

Despite my frequency issue, it was a great flight.  While I didn't make any progress towards my instrument rating, it was still nice to be able to go flying with a pilot friend (and company) who won't be able to fly for a while.

Hours:
Pilot in Command Cross Country (PIC XC): 0 - 50.4 (of 50)
Actual/Simulated Instrument (Act/Sim): 0 - 4.9 (of 40)