"Ice climbers have discovered what investigators believe are the remains of a World War II airman who crashed in Kings Canyon National Park and whose body -- still wearing an unopened parachute -- has been preserved in glacial ice for more than 60 years."
Click here for the article
Thursday, October 20, 2005
Sunday, October 16, 2005
Sporty's and the $200 cockpit poster
Well I finally made my cross-country down to Sporty's at Clermont County (I69) and it was pretty awesome! Flying down to Sporty's was a plan of mine ever since I learned they were based in
I also bought this recreation of the Phillips 66 "Airplane pilot on Duty" sign (I’ve always wanted one). Now my question is, do I hang it up in my cubicle at work, or keep it at home? I'm leaning towards work.
The flight itself was pretty good too; it was extremely clear out, unfortunately there was a lot of turbulence. It was pretty bumpy up there at times, one jolt knocked me an inch up out of my seat (thank god for seat belts). I did get an opportunity when it was smoother to practice flying hands-off (keeping a heading and altitude with just the rudder and trim), which is a great technique when you have to swap radios and manage maps. It’s also something you need for IFR flying if you don’t have an autopilot.
The Ryan International TAS is excellent! This was the first opportunity to really use it and appreciate what it was capable of. The traffic enroute was very light, but I was able to keep an eye on the few planes that were around, as I got closer to Clermont I was able to see the traffic in the pattern and spot the traffic leaving the airport. It only gave me the voice warning alert once, and that was for a plane I had not previously spotted that intersected my path about 500 feet below me.
The only problem I had that put a damper on the flight was at the end, landing back at OSU. I was assigned runway 32, which isn't a runway they often use and I don’t think I’ve ever landed on before. Needless to say I wasn't thinking straight (I was in a rush to get home since I was almost overdue to have the plane back) and I got confused at where the runway was (I didn't have an airport diagram print out of OSU either). I could have worked it out though if I had been thinking and if I had asked for help from the controller. Well I didn't and I lined up for the wrong runway (5), the tower caught it (and so did I when I saw the big white 5 on the concrete). I tried to get back to 32, however I was still unsure where it was and I overshot it. Finally the tower took me out West and had me turn a 180 back to 27L.
It was embarrassing, and unsafe (thankfully there wasn't any traffic at the time) and it really was a poor ending to an overall great flight. Fortunately I wasn't asked to call the tower and I didn't get an earful (even though I know I deserved one).
Flying is a learning process, so here are some things that I learned:
A) ALWAYS carry an airport diagram, even if it's your home base, one look at a diagram or even a drawing of the airport would have prevented the whole mess.
B) If you're unsure at what the controller wants you to do, ASK ASK ASK! I could have told the tower "I'm unfamiliar with 32, I don't have it in sight, can you tell me when to turn onto final?" Or I could have simply requested 27L (a runway I was far more comfortable with).
C) Finally, don't let the rush to get to the ground cloud your judgment. I was running late and I was letting that extra pressure keeping me from thinking clearly.
That's all for now, if you find yourself in
Clear skies!
Friday, September 30, 2005
Keep on Flyin'
Hey everybody, so in case anyone out there was wondering, yes I'm still flying. I've joined Capital City Aviation like I mentioned in my previous post and I love the club! It was a great experience climbing into Joe's Warrior again, it was like being reunited with an old friend.
An old friend with a new traffic advisory system from Ryan International! Have I mentioned what an awesome guy Joe is? He bought two systems, one for the Warrior and the other for his Arrow right before I took my first checkout ride with the new club in August. Ryan International even came in (they're based right here in Columbus) to give a two hour presentation on the system.
So I'm curious, how many 172's and Cherokees with traffic advisory systems are out there available for rent? I would have bet good money a month ago that I'd never rent a TAS equipped Cherokee.
I also attended Airventure for the first time this year, and I camped out at Scholler and got promptly rained out during the severe thunderstorm that hit on Monday (that's for a separate post though). I'll get photos up when I can pull them off flash cards.
Finally I'm going to build up some cross-country time, I've been meaning to check out Sporty's. It should be a good 45 minute flight both ways and it should be a great way to kill a Sat. afternoon.
Clear Skies!
An old friend with a new traffic advisory system from Ryan International!
So I'm curious, how many 172's and Cherokees with traffic advisory systems are out there available for rent? I would have bet good money a month ago that I'd never rent a TAS equipped Cherokee.
I also attended Airventure for the first time this year, and I camped out at Scholler and got promptly rained out during the severe thunderstorm that hit on Monday (that's for a separate post though). I'll get photos up when I can pull them off flash cards.
Finally I'm going to build up some cross-country time, I've been meaning to check out Sporty's. It should be a good 45 minute flight both ways and it should be a great way to kill a Sat. afternoon.
Clear Skies!
Sunday, June 05, 2005
It's IFR, do you know if your transponder is working?
Well I didn't go down to the AOPA fly-in on Saturday after all. We got into the air and proceeded as far as Zanesville before having to turn back due to mechanical issues. Here's the story.
My flying partner for the trip was a CFI (certified flight instructor) based at the NFA in Bolton. Let's call him X. Having a CFI along as a safety pilot is an excellent idea, they can fly in instrument conditions and they can give you decent advice during the flight. We met twice last week and went over the flight and despite some communication problems early on I made sure we were on the same page as far as the trip and the special procedures of the fly-in (in VFR conditions). We agreed that if there were any IFR conditions along the route then X could take over the flight.
Saturday morning I checked the weather with the briefer, and it was IFR conditions east of Zanesville, marginal VFR over Columbus. I gathered the information and met X at OSU at our designated time of departure. I met my partner at OSU and we pre-flighted the plane (the club’s Cherokee 180), planning on stopping at Marysville for fuel then heading on our trip, possibly filing IFR in mid-air. We taxied to the active runway at OSU and completed the run-up when suddenly the tower refused to allow us to takeoff. The conditions at the field changed from MVFR to IFR, and we had not filed an IFR flight plan. With some initial confusion between us and the tower we taxied back to the ramp to get fuel from OSU's FBO.
After getting the fuel, X wanted me to call the tower for some pretty strange requests (I was handling the radio communications, talking on behalf of X):
A) Call OSU tower for weather in Frederick Maryland
B) File an IFR flight plan (on the ground)
Okay, here's what's wrong with those two things. Both of those functions are usually performed by Flight Service Stations (FSS) not control towers. Control towers are just there to provide traffic separation, and weather at the airport under their control. A control tower can and will open an IFR flight plan, but they won't file one for you unless you're in the air.
I'm not IFR certified, but even I could tell that these were off the wall requests, or at least something the tower was unlikely to give us (especially the weather in Maryland). But I went along with X's request; I mean maybe there's a loophole I don't know about. Well there isn't and I received a pretty icy response from the tower:
"52 Tango call Dayton FSS for those requests"
Written down it doesn't sound bad, but with ATC its all about HOW they say things. Factoring the tone of voice you get something closer to this:
"Are you some kind of idiot 52 Tango? Call Dayton FSS like you're supposed to and stop wasting my time!"
So we walked back to the NFA office and I called Dayton FSS to file the IFR flight plan. Right now I'm still handling the communications, and I figure X's just preparing me a little bit for the IFR world (which I understand). After the call to the tower though I can't help thinking this guy doesn't exactly know what he's doing, I had a hard time imagining my two previous CFI's (Bob and Matt) asking for the same thing.
So I talked to the briefer, scribbled down any weather information I could catch, and filed the IFR flight plan. It’s not too different from filing VFR, although the cruising altitudes for IFR don't have the extra 500 ft (in VFR, cruising altitudes going East are odd thousands, plus 500 ft. ex. 5500).
After filing we got back into the plane, I called OSU tower again (making sure to tell them I filed IFR) and copied down their instructions. I had to ask them to repeat a few things, multiple times and finally I got the clearance. As I was taxing they asked me if I was IFR certified (gee how'd they guess I wasn't ? :P). I replied I had a CFI with me (self conscious of the fact I never really verified X's word by looking at his license).
So we took off, X took care of the controls and started navigating the route and talking to ATC. I relaxed because it seemed like once in the air he did know his stuff; he controlled the airplane well and got us on course in short order. I helped by jotting down ATC instructions and helping keep an eye on the instruments (engine, fuel, oil pressure). We climbed and leveled off at 5000 on a direct route to FDK.
A half hour into the flight, about at Zanesville, ATC called informing us that they were having problems picking up our transponder. At their request we recycled the device (switching it off and then on). This repeated a few more times; ATC would pick us up for a few minutes then loose us again. Finally ATC asked us if we could safely continue. I gestured to X that I agreed (with some disappointment) we should scrub the flight and turn back.
We turned around back to OSU, and it was at this point our number one radio, Comm1 started to fail. Whenever X tried to transmit, ATC and I could not hear him. We switched to the second radio, which seemed to work better. At this time though ATC was concerned and suggesting our alternator might be failing. ATC told us to stay on course while they worked out a closer airport with better conditions we could land, and came back with Port Columbus (KCMH).
ATC gave us the ILS approach for 28R, I flipped through the approach plates for X while he was busy controlling the aircraft. We descended to 3000, and at this time we noticed the door was ajar in the plane.
Now a loose door in a small airplane is not really a big deal. Most light GA are not pressurized so when a door opens you don't get explosive decompression with gas masks and stuff flying around like in the movies. A door open in a light plane is like driving really fast in your car with all the windows rolled down. It’s distracting and very loud, but not dangerous. Plus the door doesn't get to open all the way, because the outside air is keeping it firmly shut.
That said the distraction was pretty unwelcome with all the current drama happening around us, I reached over and held the door shut just to keep X from getting too distracted while he was flying (he was right next to the door and I could tell it was having some kind of effect on him). The drama with the door caused us to overshoot the ILS approach (X didn't have the right frequency dialed in on the Nav equipment). He got it straighten out a bit and ATC informed us we were right on course again.
This next part is a little confusing, I'm not sure how it happened but we went from maintaining 2500 feet to descending below to 2000/1800. I think X misheard the instructions, I believe ATC told us to start descending when we had the airport in-sight. Instead we started descending way too soon, still in the soup. ATC immediately called us up urgently with a ground proximity alert (did you know they also sound an audible alarm through the radio when they give you the warning?).
It was at this point, in the soup, door ajar, ATC with the proximity alert, X having some problems with controlling the aircraft (I think he was just trying to do too much) that I thought to myself:
"I could die today, right now, in this airplane"
I've been in some tight situations before, like when I got disoriented coming up from the Louisville trip at night. I never had the clear thought "I could die" before, mainly because those times I had some options in front of me and I was in control of the plane. This time I could really only watch it unfold and do my best to help X as much as possible.
I focused on the fact that while I wasn't in control of the plane, there were things I could still do. I alerted X when we deviated off course and when the altitude dropped, I put myself behind the stick even though I was not the one actually flying. I paid closer attention to ATC and above all I prepared myself to spot the airport when we broke out of the clouds.
Breaking out of the clouds and seeing the airport in front of us was a relief. X had done well and put us on final for 28R, 10 miles out. As soon as I saw it, I called "I have the field," snapped my fingers and pointed it out.
Things got a lot better once we had the airport; I had the landing checklist out and pointed out our target approach airspeed. We landed and got progressive taxi instructions to Lane Aviation (the FBO for the general aviation traffic), since Port Columbus is a large international airport and neither of us had been there before.
At Lane we parked, went inside and chilled out for an hour and a half relaxing, talking about the flight, and waiting for the weather to get better so we can make the short hop back to OSU in VFR conditions.
We made it back to OSU at 11am without incident, after leaving at 7 and only putting on 1.9 hours on the aircraft. I wrote up the mechanical issues of the flight and placed it in the aircraft's book and photocopied it to place in the NFA's drop box.
The president of the club called me the next day today we talked about the mechanical issues with the plane we had during the flight. Unfortunately he wasn't able to reproduce the transponder problem, but did admit that the Com1 problem was an intermittent problem they've had before but have not been able to solve.
X had suggested we shouldn't have to pay for the flight time because of the mechanical problems and we never actually completed our trip. I agreed with him at the time (mainly because I was tired and just wanted to get home), to bring it up with the president. After talking it over with him though I realized that wasn't going to happen, mainly because the planes are privately owned aircraft so the club doesn't have a say when it comes for comped time. Plus since the transponder issue couldn't be duplicated its a hard case to argue to the owner. I can see where the flying club is coming from, and I'm not going to press the issue, if X still wants to get his money back then he is welcome to try.
The president and I also talked about X, he confirmed my suspicion that X didn't have a lot of experience as a CFI. Also he's based at different, smaller airport and pretty unfamiliar with the operations at OSU and CMH.
Here is what I've learned from the misadventure Saturday:
A) Check out the experience of my flying partner beforehand
B) If I'm uncomfortable before the flight, express my concerns ahead of time, or cancel and not "hope things work out in the air"
This experience has convinced me to also checkout Capital City Aviation, the other club on the field. I know the owner of the Warrior and the Arrow in that club, and my first CFI here (Matt) also works there on the weekends. They have better quality aircraft (abet at a greater price) but I really think I would have had photos and stories of the AOPA fly-in for this post instead of a scary life and death experience if we had used one of those airplanes instead.
Short term I'm not renting the Cherokee 180 again, and I'm not flying with X again either. I’m grateful because at the end of the day he saved both our asses, and he’s a nice person and everything, but I don’t trust him enough to put my life in his hands like that again.
So I learned some things, got some unintentional first hand experience in an actual emergency situation that I was able to walk away from. At the end of the day this doesn’t change my love for flying, because like anything else the failures are just as important as the successes.
Until next time, Clear Skies!
My flying partner for the trip was a CFI (certified flight instructor) based at the NFA in Bolton. Let's call him X. Having a CFI along as a safety pilot is an excellent idea, they can fly in instrument conditions and they can give you decent advice during the flight. We met twice last week and went over the flight and despite some communication problems early on I made sure we were on the same page as far as the trip and the special procedures of the fly-in (in VFR conditions). We agreed that if there were any IFR conditions along the route then X could take over the flight.
Saturday morning I checked the weather with the briefer, and it was IFR conditions east of Zanesville, marginal VFR over Columbus. I gathered the information and met X at OSU at our designated time of departure. I met my partner at OSU and we pre-flighted the plane (the club’s Cherokee 180), planning on stopping at Marysville for fuel then heading on our trip, possibly filing IFR in mid-air. We taxied to the active runway at OSU and completed the run-up when suddenly the tower refused to allow us to takeoff. The conditions at the field changed from MVFR to IFR, and we had not filed an IFR flight plan. With some initial confusion between us and the tower we taxied back to the ramp to get fuel from OSU's FBO.
After getting the fuel, X wanted me to call the tower for some pretty strange requests (I was handling the radio communications, talking on behalf of X):
A) Call OSU tower for weather in Frederick Maryland
B) File an IFR flight plan (on the ground)
Okay, here's what's wrong with those two things. Both of those functions are usually performed by Flight Service Stations (FSS) not control towers. Control towers are just there to provide traffic separation, and weather at the airport under their control. A control tower can and will open an IFR flight plan, but they won't file one for you unless you're in the air.
I'm not IFR certified, but even I could tell that these were off the wall requests, or at least something the tower was unlikely to give us (especially the weather in Maryland). But I went along with X's request; I mean maybe there's a loophole I don't know about. Well there isn't and I received a pretty icy response from the tower:
"52 Tango call Dayton FSS for those requests"
Written down it doesn't sound bad, but with ATC its all about HOW they say things. Factoring the tone of voice you get something closer to this:
"Are you some kind of idiot 52 Tango? Call Dayton FSS like you're supposed to and stop wasting my time!"
So we walked back to the NFA office and I called Dayton FSS to file the IFR flight plan. Right now I'm still handling the communications, and I figure X's just preparing me a little bit for the IFR world (which I understand). After the call to the tower though I can't help thinking this guy doesn't exactly know what he's doing, I had a hard time imagining my two previous CFI's (Bob and Matt) asking for the same thing.
So I talked to the briefer, scribbled down any weather information I could catch, and filed the IFR flight plan. It’s not too different from filing VFR, although the cruising altitudes for IFR don't have the extra 500 ft (in VFR, cruising altitudes going East are odd thousands, plus 500 ft. ex. 5500).
After filing we got back into the plane, I called OSU tower again (making sure to tell them I filed IFR) and copied down their instructions. I had to ask them to repeat a few things, multiple times and finally I got the clearance. As I was taxing they asked me if I was IFR certified (gee how'd they guess I wasn't ? :P). I replied I had a CFI with me (self conscious of the fact I never really verified X's word by looking at his license).
So we took off, X took care of the controls and started navigating the route and talking to ATC. I relaxed because it seemed like once in the air he did know his stuff; he controlled the airplane well and got us on course in short order. I helped by jotting down ATC instructions and helping keep an eye on the instruments (engine, fuel, oil pressure). We climbed and leveled off at 5000 on a direct route to FDK.
A half hour into the flight, about at Zanesville, ATC called informing us that they were having problems picking up our transponder. At their request we recycled the device (switching it off and then on). This repeated a few more times; ATC would pick us up for a few minutes then loose us again. Finally ATC asked us if we could safely continue. I gestured to X that I agreed (with some disappointment) we should scrub the flight and turn back.
We turned around back to OSU, and it was at this point our number one radio, Comm1 started to fail. Whenever X tried to transmit, ATC and I could not hear him. We switched to the second radio, which seemed to work better. At this time though ATC was concerned and suggesting our alternator might be failing. ATC told us to stay on course while they worked out a closer airport with better conditions we could land, and came back with Port Columbus (KCMH).
ATC gave us the ILS approach for 28R, I flipped through the approach plates for X while he was busy controlling the aircraft. We descended to 3000, and at this time we noticed the door was ajar in the plane.
Now a loose door in a small airplane is not really a big deal. Most light GA are not pressurized so when a door opens you don't get explosive decompression with gas masks and stuff flying around like in the movies. A door open in a light plane is like driving really fast in your car with all the windows rolled down. It’s distracting and very loud, but not dangerous. Plus the door doesn't get to open all the way, because the outside air is keeping it firmly shut.
That said the distraction was pretty unwelcome with all the current drama happening around us, I reached over and held the door shut just to keep X from getting too distracted while he was flying (he was right next to the door and I could tell it was having some kind of effect on him). The drama with the door caused us to overshoot the ILS approach (X didn't have the right frequency dialed in on the Nav equipment). He got it straighten out a bit and ATC informed us we were right on course again.
This next part is a little confusing, I'm not sure how it happened but we went from maintaining 2500 feet to descending below to 2000/1800. I think X misheard the instructions, I believe ATC told us to start descending when we had the airport in-sight. Instead we started descending way too soon, still in the soup. ATC immediately called us up urgently with a ground proximity alert (did you know they also sound an audible alarm through the radio when they give you the warning?).
It was at this point, in the soup, door ajar, ATC with the proximity alert, X having some problems with controlling the aircraft (I think he was just trying to do too much) that I thought to myself:
"I could die today, right now, in this airplane"
I've been in some tight situations before, like when I got disoriented coming up from the Louisville trip at night. I never had the clear thought "I could die" before, mainly because those times I had some options in front of me and I was in control of the plane. This time I could really only watch it unfold and do my best to help X as much as possible.
I focused on the fact that while I wasn't in control of the plane, there were things I could still do. I alerted X when we deviated off course and when the altitude dropped, I put myself behind the stick even though I was not the one actually flying. I paid closer attention to ATC and above all I prepared myself to spot the airport when we broke out of the clouds.
Breaking out of the clouds and seeing the airport in front of us was a relief. X had done well and put us on final for 28R, 10 miles out. As soon as I saw it, I called "I have the field," snapped my fingers and pointed it out.
Things got a lot better once we had the airport; I had the landing checklist out and pointed out our target approach airspeed. We landed and got progressive taxi instructions to Lane Aviation (the FBO for the general aviation traffic), since Port Columbus is a large international airport and neither of us had been there before.
At Lane we parked, went inside and chilled out for an hour and a half relaxing, talking about the flight, and waiting for the weather to get better so we can make the short hop back to OSU in VFR conditions.
We made it back to OSU at 11am without incident, after leaving at 7 and only putting on 1.9 hours on the aircraft. I wrote up the mechanical issues of the flight and placed it in the aircraft's book and photocopied it to place in the NFA's drop box.
The president of the club called me the next day today we talked about the mechanical issues with the plane we had during the flight. Unfortunately he wasn't able to reproduce the transponder problem, but did admit that the Com1 problem was an intermittent problem they've had before but have not been able to solve.
X had suggested we shouldn't have to pay for the flight time because of the mechanical problems and we never actually completed our trip. I agreed with him at the time (mainly because I was tired and just wanted to get home), to bring it up with the president. After talking it over with him though I realized that wasn't going to happen, mainly because the planes are privately owned aircraft so the club doesn't have a say when it comes for comped time. Plus since the transponder issue couldn't be duplicated its a hard case to argue to the owner. I can see where the flying club is coming from, and I'm not going to press the issue, if X still wants to get his money back then he is welcome to try.
The president and I also talked about X, he confirmed my suspicion that X didn't have a lot of experience as a CFI. Also he's based at different, smaller airport and pretty unfamiliar with the operations at OSU and CMH.
Here is what I've learned from the misadventure Saturday:
A) Check out the experience of my flying partner beforehand
B) If I'm uncomfortable before the flight, express my concerns ahead of time, or cancel and not "hope things work out in the air"
This experience has convinced me to also checkout Capital City Aviation, the other club on the field. I know the owner of the Warrior and the Arrow in that club, and my first CFI here (Matt) also works there on the weekends. They have better quality aircraft (abet at a greater price) but I really think I would have had photos and stories of the AOPA fly-in for this post instead of a scary life and death experience if we had used one of those airplanes instead.
Short term I'm not renting the Cherokee 180 again, and I'm not flying with X again either. I’m grateful because at the end of the day he saved both our asses, and he’s a nice person and everything, but I don’t trust him enough to put my life in his hands like that again.
So I learned some things, got some unintentional first hand experience in an actual emergency situation that I was able to walk away from. At the end of the day this doesn’t change my love for flying, because like anything else the failures are just as important as the successes.
Until next time, Clear Skies!
Saturday, May 28, 2005
AOPA Fly-In June 4th
It's been a while since I posted anything on here (I've been flying, just boring touch and go stuff). Currently I'm attending IFR ground school at the NFA every Thursday night. I don't think I'll actually do any flight training for my IFR rating for a while though, probably after I take the written exam (which the ground school stuff is preparing me for).
Hopefully this Saturday I'll be attending AOPA's open house/fly-in in Frederick Maryland. Since its a three-hour flight I'm going to split the flight time/cost with another pilot (he's a CFI too, so if I get into any trouble I've got an experienced pilot along). I'm looking forward to it, and hopefully I'll have a bunch of photos I can post.
Oshkosh 2005 is coming up, and I really want to go to it as well. I actually think I'll drive up and camp out for that trip. If I find a couple people to fly up with me though I might change my plans.
That's it for now, Clear Skies!
Hopefully this Saturday I'll be attending AOPA's open house/fly-in in Frederick Maryland. Since its a three-hour flight I'm going to split the flight time/cost with another pilot (he's a CFI too, so if I get into any trouble I've got an experienced pilot along). I'm looking forward to it, and hopefully I'll have a bunch of photos I can post.
Oshkosh 2005 is coming up, and I really want to go to it as well. I actually think I'll drive up and camp out for that trip. If I find a couple people to fly up with me though I might change my plans.
That's it for now, Clear Skies!
Saturday, April 02, 2005
Snowed In
Well I was supposed to go flying today but the weather had other ideas.
KOSU 021753Z 35015G24KT 1/2SM SN FG BKN007 OVC010 01/01 A2948 RMK AO2 SLP987 P0001 60015 T00060006 10022 20006 53006
Here's a brief translation of the above METAR:
KOSU - The airport I fly out of, Ohio State University (K is a designator for all US airports), and the place where the METAR report was generated for.
021753Z - The date and time, 02 is the second day of the month, 1753Z is 12:53 PM EST when the METAR was issued.
35015G24KT - The current winds, 350 is the magnetic heading where the winds are coming from (360 - N, 90 - E, 180 - S, 270 W). 15G24KT means that the wind speed is 15 knots, with gusts up to 24 knots.
1/2SM - Visibility, which is currently half a mile (SM is statue miles, which is the US standard mile). To fly legally VFR the visibility has to be greater than 3 miles (which still isn't alot).
SN - Snow
FG - Fog
BKN007 OVC010 - Clouds/Sky conditions, currently the clouds are broken at 700 ft AGL (above ground level), with an overcast layer at 1000 ft. Since to fly legally VFR I have to stay 500 ft below clouds, that means I have to fly 200 ft - 500 ft above the ground. Far too low for safe flying (rule of thumb for pattern altitude at an airport is 1000 ft AGL).
01/01 - Temperature and dew point in Celcius, the temp is just above freezing. The higher you go of course the colder it gets (SIGMETS show icing conditions at 3000 ft).
That's a short translation of the most critical pieces of information in a METAR, which is just one of the pieces of weather information available to pilots. It's usually the first thing I check when I make a go/no-go decision for flying.
Clear Skies (eventually)!
KOSU 021753Z 35015G24KT 1/2SM SN FG BKN007 OVC010 01/01 A2948 RMK AO2 SLP987 P0001 60015 T00060006 10022 20006 53006
Here's a brief translation of the above METAR:
KOSU - The airport I fly out of, Ohio State University (K is a designator for all US airports), and the place where the METAR report was generated for.
021753Z - The date and time, 02 is the second day of the month, 1753Z is 12:53 PM EST when the METAR was issued.
35015G24KT - The current winds, 350 is the magnetic heading where the winds are coming from (360 - N, 90 - E, 180 - S, 270 W). 15G24KT means that the wind speed is 15 knots, with gusts up to 24 knots.
1/2SM - Visibility, which is currently half a mile (SM is statue miles, which is the US standard mile). To fly legally VFR the visibility has to be greater than 3 miles (which still isn't alot).
SN - Snow
FG - Fog
BKN007 OVC010 - Clouds/Sky conditions, currently the clouds are broken at 700 ft AGL (above ground level), with an overcast layer at 1000 ft. Since to fly legally VFR I have to stay 500 ft below clouds, that means I have to fly 200 ft - 500 ft above the ground. Far too low for safe flying (rule of thumb for pattern altitude at an airport is 1000 ft AGL).
01/01 - Temperature and dew point in Celcius, the temp is just above freezing. The higher you go of course the colder it gets (SIGMETS show icing conditions at 3000 ft).
That's a short translation of the most critical pieces of information in a METAR, which is just one of the pieces of weather information available to pilots. It's usually the first thing I check when I make a go/no-go decision for flying.
Clear Skies (eventually)!
Saturday, January 15, 2005
Flight Review
So I completed my club's flight review today. Basically me and a CFI (another Matt) just poked some holes in the sky. Okay we did a little more than that, a couple landings at Marysville and some slow flight. I hadn't been in a cockpit for nearly two months but everything worked out (on one landing the CFI exclaimed "oh my God that's a great landing"). The weather was pretty good too, since December the weather in central Ohio has been a mix of snow and rain and even though it was pretty cold the sky was clear and a lot of airplanes were up.
I also got to use a couple of Christmas presents, the Noral flight bag and ASA's tri-fold kneeboard. They worked out great, I didn't loose any pens, I didn't have to fumble around with the map, and I felt more organized and professional.
Until next time, clear skies!
I also got to use a couple of Christmas presents, the Noral flight bag and ASA's tri-fold kneeboard. They worked out great, I didn't loose any pens, I didn't have to fumble around with the map, and I felt more organized and professional.
Until next time, clear skies!
Monday, December 20, 2004
Twas the night before Christmas
'Twas the night before Christmas, and out on the ramp,
Not an airplane was stirring, not even a Champ.
The aircraft were fastened to tiedowns with care,
In hopes that come morning, they all would be there.
The fuel trucks were nestled, all snug in their spots,
With gusts from two-forty at 39 knots.
I slumped at the fuel desk, now finally caught up,
And settled down comfortably, resting my butt.
When the radio lit up with noise and with chatter,
I turned up the scanner to see what was the matter.
A voice clearly heard over static and snow,
Called for clearance to land at the airport below.
He barked his transmission so lively and quick,
I'd have sworn that the call sign he used was "St. Nick".
I ran to the panel to turn up the lights,
The better to welcome this magical flight.
He called his position, no room for denial,
"St. Nicholas One, turnin' left onto final."
And what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a Rutan-built sleigh, with eight Rotax Reindeer!
With vectors to final, down the glideslope he came,
As he passed all fixes, he called them by name:
"Now Ringo! Now Tolga! Now Trini and Bacun!
On Comet! On Cupid!" What pills was he takin'?
While controllers were sittin', and scratchin' their head,
They phoned to my office, and I heard it with dread,
The message they left was both urgent and dour:
"When Santa pulls in, have him please call the tower."
He landed like silk, with the sled runners sparking,
Then I heard "Left at Charlie," and "Taxi to parking."
He slowed to a taxi, turned off of three-oh
And stopped on the ramp with a "Ho, ho-ho-ho. "
He stepped out of the sleigh, but before he could talk,
I ran out to meet him with my best set of chocks.
His red helmet and goggles were covered with frost
And his beard was all blackened from Reindeer exhaust.
His breath smelled like peppermint, gone slightly stale,
And he puffed on a pipe, but he didn't inhale.
His cheeks were all rosy and jiggled like jelly,
His boots were as black as a cropduster's belly.
He was chubby and plump, in his suit of bright red,
And he asked me to "fill it, with hundred low-lead."
He came dashing in from the snow-covered pump,
I knew he was anxious for drainin' the sump.
I spoke not a word, but went straight to my work,
And I filled up the sleigh, but I spilled like a jerk.
He came out of the restroom, and sighed in relief,
Then he picked up a phone for a Flight Service brief.
And I thought as he silently scribed in his log,
These reindeer could land in an eighth-mile fog.
He completed his pre-flight, from the front to the rear,
Then he put on his headset, and I heard him yell, "Clear!"
And laying a finger on his push-to-talk,
He called up the tower for clearance and squawk.
"Take taxiway Charlie, the southbound direction,
Turn right three-two-zero at pilot's discretion"
He sped down the runway, the best of the best,
"Your traffic's a Grumman, inbound from the west."
Then I heard him proclaim, as he climbed thru the night,
"Merry Christmas to all! I have traffic in sight."
Anonymous
Not an airplane was stirring, not even a Champ.
The aircraft were fastened to tiedowns with care,
In hopes that come morning, they all would be there.
The fuel trucks were nestled, all snug in their spots,
With gusts from two-forty at 39 knots.
I slumped at the fuel desk, now finally caught up,
And settled down comfortably, resting my butt.
When the radio lit up with noise and with chatter,
I turned up the scanner to see what was the matter.
A voice clearly heard over static and snow,
Called for clearance to land at the airport below.
He barked his transmission so lively and quick,
I'd have sworn that the call sign he used was "St. Nick".
I ran to the panel to turn up the lights,
The better to welcome this magical flight.
He called his position, no room for denial,
"St. Nicholas One, turnin' left onto final."
And what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a Rutan-built sleigh, with eight Rotax Reindeer!
With vectors to final, down the glideslope he came,
As he passed all fixes, he called them by name:
"Now Ringo! Now Tolga! Now Trini and Bacun!
On Comet! On Cupid!" What pills was he takin'?
While controllers were sittin', and scratchin' their head,
They phoned to my office, and I heard it with dread,
The message they left was both urgent and dour:
"When Santa pulls in, have him please call the tower."
He landed like silk, with the sled runners sparking,
Then I heard "Left at Charlie," and "Taxi to parking."
He slowed to a taxi, turned off of three-oh
And stopped on the ramp with a "Ho, ho-ho-ho. "
He stepped out of the sleigh, but before he could talk,
I ran out to meet him with my best set of chocks.
His red helmet and goggles were covered with frost
And his beard was all blackened from Reindeer exhaust.
His breath smelled like peppermint, gone slightly stale,
And he puffed on a pipe, but he didn't inhale.
His cheeks were all rosy and jiggled like jelly,
His boots were as black as a cropduster's belly.
He was chubby and plump, in his suit of bright red,
And he asked me to "fill it, with hundred low-lead."
He came dashing in from the snow-covered pump,
I knew he was anxious for drainin' the sump.
I spoke not a word, but went straight to my work,
And I filled up the sleigh, but I spilled like a jerk.
He came out of the restroom, and sighed in relief,
Then he picked up a phone for a Flight Service brief.
And I thought as he silently scribed in his log,
These reindeer could land in an eighth-mile fog.
He completed his pre-flight, from the front to the rear,
Then he put on his headset, and I heard him yell, "Clear!"
And laying a finger on his push-to-talk,
He called up the tower for clearance and squawk.
"Take taxiway Charlie, the southbound direction,
Turn right three-two-zero at pilot's discretion"
He sped down the runway, the best of the best,
"Your traffic's a Grumman, inbound from the west."
Then I heard him proclaim, as he climbed thru the night,
"Merry Christmas to all! I have traffic in sight."
Anonymous
Sunday, December 12, 2004
High Flight
A posting to rec.aviation.piloting noted the following.
This was the first time I've heard of John Gillespie Magee, Jr. or of the poem "High Flight", fortunately it was also a part of the post.
High Flight
by John Gillespie Magee, Jr.
Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth
and danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
you have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung
hung in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
my eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace
where never lark, or even eagle flew.
And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
the high untrespassed sanctity of space,
put out my hand, and touched the face of God.
"On September 3rd, 1940, Pilot Officer John Gillespie Magee, Jr., wrote his now famous poem "High Flight" while training with the RCAF. A scant 3 months later, on December 11th, 1940, he was killed while flying a Spitfire in the war-torn skies of England. He was 19 years old."
This was the first time I've heard of John Gillespie Magee, Jr. or of the poem "High Flight", fortunately it was also a part of the post.
High Flight
by John Gillespie Magee, Jr.
Oh, I have slipped the surly bonds of earth
and danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
you have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung
hung in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
my eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace
where never lark, or even eagle flew.
And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
the high untrespassed sanctity of space,
put out my hand, and touched the face of God.
Saturday, December 04, 2004
Abandoned & little known airfields
Interesting site of closed or little know airfeilds, alot have very interesting histories.
http://members.tripod.com/airfields_freeman/index.htm
http://members.tripod.com/airfields_freeman/index.htm
Santa's Sleigh on ASO
It's a pretty sweet ride, especially with the upgraded Claus II Nav package.
http://www.aso.com/i.aso3/aircraft_view.jsp?aircraft_id=86820
http://www.aso.com/i.aso3/aircraft_view.jsp?aircraft_id=86820
Saturday, November 20, 2004
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