Feb/Mar Florida Flying Tips

[Amadeus]

The Lockwood Aviation Rotax Maintenance class is being held Feb 28 & Mar 01. I would like to fly my RV-12iS from Lexington, KY to attend the class. Having never flown in the state of Florida I thought it might be best to be informed by locals!

Is there a time of day that is best to avoid flying due to winds, storms or other weather patterns that prevail in late February/early March? I've found that KGIF has mogas but cannot find others - are there more mogas outlets? There are many Restricted airspaces throughout Florida, even KSEF sits in the middle of one, can VFR get easy clearance through these Restricted areas? Is it better to fly right down the center of the state or along the east coast and cut in to get to KSEF? Should I check on hangar storage while there or is it safe for a Light Sport to tie down outside for a few days?

It appears to be about 7 hours of flying time but depending on headwinds and ATC route arounds there will be possibly two fuel stops along the way extending wheels up to destination to perhaps 9 hours (or more). Are there any hotels on airports (like at KSEF) or directly adjacent where I could easily spend the night if the day gets too tiring?

Should I just take Delta Airlines in Fort Myers and rent a car?

[MarkW]

That time of the year the fronts are our biggest issue. If you are able to time it between fronts you will be fine.
No time of day is better since you would not have to deal with our summer afternoon thunderstorms.
Routing - I usually stick to the airways. They will keep you out of the MOA's and restricted areas. Flight following would be advisable.
There is a nice hotel right at the airport since this airport also has a car race track.
You should be good with tie-downs unless one of the nasty fronts is on the way. Then a hanger might be hard to find.

[mturnerb]

Originally Posted by MarkW

That time of the year the fronts are our biggest issue. If you are able to time it between fronts you will be fine.
No time of day is better since you would not have to deal with our summer afternoon thunderstorms.
Routing - I usually stick to the airways. They will keep you out of the MOA's and restricted areas. Flight following would be advisable.
There is a nice hotel right at the airport since this airport also has a car race track.
You should be good with tie-downs unless one of the nasty fronts is on the way. Then a hanger might be hard to find.

Occasionally - more in March than in February - between fronts there will be afternoon cumulus with bumpy air. Typically fronts come through every 3-4 days, best flying is typically 2nd day after the frontal passage as winds are higher day of / day after. As fronts approach usually not too bad - winds usually S - SW and only get gusty very close to frontal passage. Some fronts are dry, some have very sporty (deadly) squall lines with T-storms.

If you're comfortable with flight following and flying in Bravo airspace routing not a big deal - they'll vector you as needed. Many of the MOAs are cold on a given day - I've often been on a planned route to go around them and offered direct by ATC.

If you prefer not to deal with the airspace, there's plenty of room on the west side of the Orlando Bravo to get through without using flight following. Coming into North Florida, something like OCF CHN SEF will keep you in the clear. SEF is in a MOA but it's legal to fly in the MOA.