Thankgiving Trip part 1

Thanksgiving Trip

Tuesday might I returned to Texas after a trip to Virginia for Thanksgiving in my RV-4. I checked the GPS log and put 17 hours on the bird over the course of 6 days. The following are my observations of the experience.

Departure was from Airpark East near Dallas at 8:10AM Local on 11/24 with a first destination of Pine Bluff, Arkansas for fuel. I had burned about 0.7 hours worth of gas out of the tanks a couple of days before wringing out the bird after some routine maintenance sorts of things and had more than enough fuel for the approx. 1.5 hour flight to PBF. The weather was chamber of commerce quality and after climbing to 9500? for a cruising altitude saw groundspeeds approaching 200 kts given the prevailing winds this time of year. After a fill up ($3.18/gal I recall) and a recharge with some peanut butter crackers from the machine my nephew settled into the rear seat and we pointed east to Knoxville. Everything was routine and I called the field about 10 out and as Approach had us squawk VFR we landed in some light gusts at the downtown airport. A courtesy car provided he means to have a nice lunch on the river and we launched northeast at a little after 2PM local for Blacksburg, VA enroute to final destination at Lynchburg. Blacksburg was the choice as Jason had recently graduated from my alma mater and wanted to show me the house he had lived in. That accomplished we headed east and contacted Roanoke Approach to transit their Class C enroute. Landing at Lynchburg was eventful as the PIC was tired, lazy, stupid or all of the above as I managed to stall about 3 feet off the runway. Haven?t had a bounce like that in years! In any event all came out in one piece and the tower controller didn?t even comment except to have a ?144KT Radio Check? call as I taxied in as I had managed to hit the frequency toggle switch on the stick while wrestling control of the bird as it flailed around during the ?crash that imitated a landing?. Some 7.5 hours after departure with tow fuel stops and an hour or more taken eating lunch and we were at our destination.

Two days of Turkey feasting at my Mom?s with family and I bid adieu to Jason who was driving a U-Haul back to Texas and headed north again to KHWY at Warrenton, VA to meet my fianc? who had met me in Lynchburg and was driving back to Northern, VA to her home. I decided on HWY as destination to avoid the whole ADIZ mess and we had plans for Barbara to drop me back at HWY early Monday AM for return to Texas on her way back out of town on business. If this hadn?t been the plan I would have flown into Manassas (HEF) by filing the ADIZ flight plan and dealing with the irritating but manageable procedures for flying in the ?armed camp formerly know as the DC area?.
The weather for the short flight from Lynchburg was the kind you seldom get back east. Visibility had to be over 50 miles and the blue sky just went on and on. Looking down on the Civil War battlefields and historical sites like Jefferson?s Monticello and Madison?s home made me miss Virginia and the incredible beauty that is the Shenandoah and Piedmont regions of the Old Dominion. Since I was traveling about three times the speed of Barbara in her car I took the ?long way? by zigging and zagging my way northeast. I?ve flown this route so many times I don?t know why I even bothered to activate the GPS. I think I recognized every hill and crossroads along the way. Flying at 5500 I had a great view of all below me while still managing to see the Chesapeake to my right and the Blue Ridge snuggling under my wing on the left. Landing this time was uneventful and I regained my shaken confidence that I actually know how to fly this thing.

The airplane stayed parked and come Monday an advancing Alberta Clipper had punched all remnants of the good weather out of the area with ceilings of less than 300 feet combined with gusty winds to 20 mph. Barbara left on her trip without taking me o the airport and I was resigned to doing what all pilots in VFR airplanes do in such situations end up doing ? sitting.

About 10AM the sun was shining. The overcast had given way to scattered layers ? something like 1500-2000 AGL but scattered and bright sunshine showing the promise of clearing ahead. Given this I decided to launch. I had the very real problem of getting across the Appalachians who the forecast was promising more clouds and snow showers throughout the day into the night. Having flown the eastern seaboard quite a bit I decided to launch but the head southeast on the leeward side of the mountains and to cautiously evaluate my ability to get over them into the flatlands of Tennessee, Arkansas, and then home.

A word about my airplane. It is a simple RV-4. Plain Jane VFR. No gyros, no glass, no autopilot. Not that there is anything wrong with any of that. My plane doesn?t have them because of one simple reason. I am broke and can?t afford them. The only item on the list I really wish I had was an autopilot because if you have ever tried to unfold and refold a sectional in an RV-4 in flight you know what I mean. I do have a Garmin 196 which is a godsend. Other than that it is all old school.

After launching I planned to head towards Lynchburg. My reasoning was that I had a good place to stay if I decided to bag it and wait another day. After departure I was able to climb above the scattered layer but the bright blue skies had given way to broken layers high above with streaming columns of sunshine penetrating the darkness at regular intervals. Heading toward Lynchburg he skies turned more ominous so I decided to head further east as I know that the ?coast was clear? and I could always head east if needed to avoid the weather. This is my way of safely flying VFR in less than optimal weather. Always know which way you have to go to get to good weather and have enough fuel to get there. The big difference in going back from coming up was now I was heading into the teeth of the winds. Not bumpy mind you. Surprisingly smooth at 5500 where I ended up settling. But where I had seen 200 knot GS coming east I was now seeing 110 KT GS! That works out to over 55KTS on the nose at only 5500?. Ah the joys of flying in the winter!. As I kept skirting eastward and looking for the opportunity to hop the Blue Ridge and settle into the Shenandoah Valley (having grown up here I really know the terrain which helps) it looked like that wasn?t going to happen. Hopes to head around Lynchburg and cross into the valley near Roanoke were dashed when I saw a lightning flash in the clouds some 30 miles off my right wing as I droned on near Farmville. This called to finding a place to land to sort out the weather and to plan a new route as Knoxville look unachievable given the situation. I picked Burlington, NC as a stopping point because a) I?d never landed there and b) it was more or less on my nose at the time I decided to bail. After almost two hours of flying in what would have normally been about an hour and fifteen minutes I landed in Burlington surviving a fun approach with gusting winds over 20 miles an hour making my level of attentiveness very high during the approach phase. A couple of bounces later and I had it on the ground.

Thanksgiving Trip Part 2

After surveying the weather and topping off fuel I decided to press on. Plan was to attempt to cross the mountains near Asheville and head across flatlands of TN toward home. Once airborne it became clear that this might not be such a good idea.

Once pointed west my groundspeed settled in at around 105 kts. And the scattered clouds continued to thicken. No problem getting up through them as there were many many holes but as I proceeded west past Greensboro and then Hickory the clouds kept getting higher. That was expected as the winds would tend to push the clouds higher over the hills but it increasingly looked like I was going to need a plan B. I pressed on further because I didn?t want to give up prematurely but suddenly found my self being pushed up to almost 12,000? by ever rising clouds. The holes started to become fewer and farther apart so I decided to throw in the towel and descend below them at the next hole. I ended up having to spiral down but had the ground well in view the entire descent. Once down below I was still well above the terrain but could see snow showers further west starting to block the higher elevations. I quickly backtracked east of all the terrain and headed southwest toward Atlanta well away from the troubling weather.

At this point I knew I was going to have to stop for the night and decided to just get on the ground at the first convenient place as I was tired of covering as much ground as a Super Cub on a calm day in what normally is a fairly good traveling machine. Considering my options I picked Greenville, SC Downtown Airport as my reasoning was it would provide numerous hotel options with likely shuttle service to choose from. Checking in with Approach and listening to ATIS confirmed the winds had not died down and I was in for some quartering crosswinds gusting over 20kts. I came in a little hot with half flaps and used what seemed like half of the 5398? main runway before I managed to set her down between fighting the gusts with bursts of power as needed. It wasn?t fun but wasn?t all that bad either ? just no time to get lazy or get behind the airplane.

Taxing in I could feel the temps had fallen and I met a guy on the ramp that just came in a nice looking Falco that was having alternator trouble. I tied down just as mechanics arrived to try to get him on his way.

The hotel bar served up a nice tasting beer and after getting dinner and walking to a nearby convenience store for some munchies I settled in to watch football and vowed to leave in the AM.

Come morning I?m greeted with 28 degrees temps, calm winds, and about ?? of ice crystals on the control surfaces. By about 9 the temps had risen a bit and by rotating the plane so the sun hit full force I was able to enjoy scanning though a nice coffee table book in the FBO about aces and their planes (the Mustang still has to have some of the best lines ever while the Spitfire gives it a run for its money) while drinking some not-half bad free FBO coffee and waiting for the sun to do its thing.

By 9:30AM I?m at the plane, wiping what is left off the wings and canopy, settling in and firing up. I give the plane about 10-15 minutes time to warm up and as the gauge moves off the peg call ground and request to taxi for VFR westbound departure. I climb to 4500 and then 6500 just over a scattered layer and enjoy bight sunshine, unlimited visibility, smooth air, and headwinds approaching 50 knots again. It is going to be a long day but without the drama of ever more threatening skies. In fact once I clear the remnants of the Appalachians in Northern Georgia I expect to find nothing but blue skies all the way to Texas.

I resigned myself to just enjoy the ride and to take whatever came as far as groundspeed and reminded myself that I always could have taken the Airlines and could have enjoyed, yet again, the experience of seeing our taxpayer?s dollars spent in the politically correct PR dance that only the manufacturer?s of cigarette lighters, nail files, and various cosmetic products could love that is our beloved TSA in action. End of rant. Now 105 knot GS doesn?t seem so bad after all?.

I drolled along and enjoyed things that very rarely happen to me in a long cross country flight. I saw other airplanes, up close even. The first encounter was when I was about 20 miles or so north of Marietta and two C-130?s passed just behind me at 7,000 out of Dobbins. Couldn?t have been more than a mile and I saw them coming for about 10. It was a neat sight and if I carried a camera I could have taken a nice picture of them above the mostly white cotton layer below. I wasn?t talking to ATC as I just wanted to enjoy the solitude so I don?t know if they got a radio call or jus saw me on TCAS. It was the closest I?ve ever been to anything military in flight other than the time I was IFR, in and out of clouds over Virginia ? probably in the Farmville MOA but then I was IFR and being told where to go so to speak when a flight of 4 F-15s shot up literally all around me. I asked the controller at the time if he was talking to them and got some vague reply. All I remember was it wasn?t a very pretty formation so they were either goofing off or had just about lost it when I appeared inside their comfort zone. But I digress?.

Soon after the C-130s passed by I was looking at the horizon to the south and I spotted another spec on the horizon that I first thought must be another flight of C130s but proved about 10 minutes later the be a Cessna 206 converging at my exact altitude. I could tell he was going to cross behind me and did about ?-3/4 mile in a few minutes. That was more airplanes I had seen in the enroute phase of flight in a long time. Its nice to see other people flying, too.

Thanksgiving Trip Part 3

After about an hour more I was north of Birmingham and made a snap decision to abandon my initial destination of Louisville, MS and to divert to Pell City, AL as I once ate at the on field BBQ place when I was being checked out in a T6 there and really enjoyed it. I landed at Pell City but the place was closed. I quickly took off again as I had plenty of fuel to make it to Louisville and it was only after I was on my way that I realized I was looking at a watch still on EST and I had expected the BBQ to be open for Breakfast as I was at their door at 10:30AM. Oh well. Louisville was about an hour down the road so I settled in for the next leg. After passing over Birmingham I encountered my next enroute aircraft sighting. I was droning alone, playing the game of trying to keep the RV right on 6500 +/- ZERO just to see how long I could do an imitation of a microprocessor controlled autopilot when suddenly seemingly out of nowhere a Cherokee appeared off my nose about 1 mile away. He was at the exact same altitude and at about the exact same heading as me ? maybe a few degrees different. I have never had that happen before. I was no big deal as I slid out in the passing lane and saluted as I went by. By now my GS as up to 130 kts and I really felt for the Cherokee driver who looked like we wanted to get out and push. After safely passing him and with over a mile distance between us I saluted him with a roll just to rub it in a little more. Hope he enjoyed it half as much as I did.

Landing a Louisville, MS for gas was uneventful and save another Cherokee drive who was taxing out from the pumps as I pulled in there wasn?t a soul in sight. Hm. I wanted to eat something other than stale crackers from the machine. Then I noticed the sing in book for the courtesy vehicle. Ok so far so good. Then I went in the ht next door and saw the van with the magnetic sign on the door identifying it as the airport courtesy vehicle. Taking a chance I looked inside and there were the keys. Problem solved. I headed into town and ended up driving around awhile looking for a BBQ place (there has to be one in every southern town) but finally gave up and headed to the Golden Arches as I really wanted to get back in the air again. Heading back I started thinking how I has driven out through a security gate with a keypad lock entrance. How was I going to get back in as I didn?t know the code, there wasn?t anything in the van, and I had not seen any signs in the shack that served as the ?FBO? at the airport? Pulling up I thought well maybe the Unicom frequency and, it just worked. The gate rambled open; I parked the van, fueled the plane and headed west.

The rest they say was more of the same. Droning along at 130 kts GS, seeing the flatlands of MS give way to the flatlands of Arkansas and LA as I headed home to Texas. It amazes me just how big this country is and how little of it actually has anybody living on it. I used the hours to think about what I want to do with the rest of my life. Heavy stuff. You see my company is struggling and I fear he economic downturn might prove fatal. I know that just about the only time I gain any perspective is when I?m up there looking down with a stick in my hand. It is all just so better there literally being above it all.

I arrived back in Dallas and landed at Airpark East at around 4PM local. Winds we gusting badly although mainly down the runway and I was glad to put the plane away in the hanger and to head to the kennel to retrieve my dog. All in all I put 17 hours on the tach and flew something like 2400 miles in that 6 day period. It cost more than a cheap airline seat and there were uncomfortable moments when the cold was creeping in and the pucker factor was elevated fighting nasty gusts on landings. But it was living in a way precious few get to ever experience and I was Thankful, yes even very grateful I have had, and hopefully will continue to have, for a long time to come. Yes my plane has steam gauges and I had to hold on the stick the entire time; and while all the glass goodies would be nice to have the smell, the vibration, the incredible sights and sensory stimulation that is enjoyed by all of us who fly is the same no matter.

My troubles are nothing as long as I can fly?.

Sounds like a fun trip

even if you had to fly the darn thing all the way!
I think I must have passed you going the other way. I flew from Dahlonega Georgia to Austin Texas and encountered those nasty winds you had. I flew from Dahlonega to Brookhaven MS at about 500' just to stay out of the winds. Had about a 125kt GS but the gas was really cheap there. Kari had never done an entire cross country leg at low altitude and we both really enjoyed it. From there to Breakaway Airpark in Austin I climbed up to 45oo and powered through the wind.
Of course the return trip on the 2nd of December had me smiling along at 190kts GS all the way home. Stopped at KMEI for fuel and had a great experience there. Friendly FBO, free hot dogs and ice cream and $3.65 fuel made for a nice stop.
Aren't these little airplanes a great way to see the country? And I could agree with you more about being so glad to bypass all the politically correct junk at the so called security lines.

Trip

Thanks for posting your trip. That was a very interesting read.

If you think 110-125kts GS is bad, you should fly an Aeronca Champ coast to coast and back. Aeronca's have built in headwinds! When you have Semi-Trucks passing you on Interstate 10 from Palm Springs, California up the grade to Banning---you really wonder; Is this worth it??? Oh yes!! It was completely and totally worth it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ditto's on the reflection on life's problems when flying. We are such lucky people to be able to do this. On the nose of my RV-8 is the phrase "Laus Deo", which translated from Latin means; "Praise be to God".

Best wishes on your job. With the attitude that I noted in your posts in dealing with the weather and other adversities, I believe that you have the perseverance to succeed.

The Champ

I soloed in and learned all I know about battling crosswind landings in my Dad's 7AC that I helped (watched mostly and held the troubkle light as needed) rebuild in 1967 when I was 12 years old....

The Champ is a real airplane that will make a real pilot out of you,

Sweet write-up.....

.......to read on an early blue-sky day as I contemplate launching for the BBQ at PXE, Georgia

Thanks,