Ringing in 2015 with an octet of airplanes

Plane: Cessna 150 
Route: 40I-MWO-40I 
Weather: Clear, 25 degrees, wind 240 degrees at 15 knots gusting to 26

For the second year in a row, we took part in an old Stewart tradition - flying to breakfast on New Year's Day. Compared to last year, we doubled the turnout; eight airplanes flew this morning. I'm pretty sure that every one of Stewart's airplanes not currently in for annual took to the sky.

We lucked out, too. Although it was cold and windy there was not an ounce of frost, so we all avoided a lengthy deicing. Tommy hauled the preheater around the field to warm everyone's cylinders and all the engines were turning by 8:30. Within minutes, three Cubs, a Champ, the Arrow, the Fly Baby, and the 172 were airborne. We departed last in the 150.

We both got new Halo headsets for Christmas! :)

We were the eighth and final airplane to depart Stewart

Joining up with everyone else shortly after takeoff

Following a couple Cubs to Middletown

The third Cub, off our right wing

Entering the pattern at MWO in trail of all three Cubs

A different angle - us following the three Cubs from the ground MWO

Gina was quite excited that we could finally order some food

All eight planes on the ground in Middletown

I'm sure our eclectic formation was quite a sight from the ground - at least if anyone else was crazy enough to be up so early, looking skyward. We had a hearty headwind so the short 13 mile hop took nearly 25 minutes from takeoff to touchdown. I followed the three Cubs, landing last, with an absolute greaser in the shifty, gusty winds. The wheels touched so softly you could barely tell we had landed and I made the first turnoff. Definitely a good way to start to the new year!

Everyone parked on the edge of the ramp and walked through the gate to Frisch's next door. I'm not sure the staff expected 16 people to walk in together but our waitress was extremely cheerful and somehow kept our orders straight. I had an omlette and Gina had eggs and French toast; along with the coffee, it all certainly hit the spot.

We spent about an hour in the restaurant before heading back through the fence. I quickly preflighted the 150 and hopped in. I was slightly worried about the engine firing after spending an hour in the cold, gusty winds. Thankfully, she fired right up after three shots of primer. I taxied to the end of Runway 23, completed a runup, and was the first to depart. Everyone followed quickly behind and I soon joined up on the pack of airplanes flying eastward.

Flying back to Stewart at 2,500 feet following our hearty breakfast

Caesar Creek Lake, partially drained for the winter

In some spots, nearly all the water was gone

Even a small river has tremendous power to clear everything in its path

Foundations are still visible from buildings that were demolished when the lake was built

One final look at the low water on our way back towards the airport

Tommy and I were talking last night and he'd mentioned how low the lake was. They usually drain it in the winter (so there's greater capacity in the spring to hold snow melt and rainfall) but it seems even lower than usual this year. He said you could see some of the old foundations from the buildings that used to lie in the valley before it was flooded in the late 1970s when the lake was built. I hadn't seen that before so we continued east after the formation reached Stewart. As you can see above, it was definitely a unique view. Without question, it's a view that can only be truly appreciated from above.

Tuning in the AWOS at Wright Brothers, I checked the winds and noted that they had continued to pick up. They were gusting up to 25-30 knots but were at least only 20-30 degrees off the runway heading. I turned final for Runway 26 at Stewart and had to stay very active on the controls all the way down. Kicking in a little left rudder to counter a wind shift just as I was rounding out, I touched down very softly on the grass. Two for two to begin 2015. I'll take it.

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 1.1 hours
Total Time: 324.5 hours

Flying home from a great BBQ

Plane: Cessna 150
Route: AXV-40I 
Weather: Scattered clouds, 71 degrees, wind calm

After a very fun evening with friends we woke up and headed back to the airport. It was actually a pretty relaxing morning; I woke up around 8:45 and we were taking off about an hour later. Marty was up with a student in the Tomahawk so we said goodbye over the CTAF before taking the runway and heading south.

The hangar really does add an air of class to the mighty 150

Piqua and the Great Miami River

It was a seriously gorgeous morning to fly

The new ProLogis distribution center next to the Dayton Int'l Airport

Unlike the slightly bumpy ride up last night, the air was very smooth this morning. That's definitely one advantage of flying earlier in the day. I was getting flight following from Columbus Approach and they vectored us a couple miles west of a direct course to avoid departure traffic at DAY.

Downtown Dayton and the seemingly never-ending construction on I-75

Looking past downtown, that's the USAF Museum and then WPAFB up top

University of Dayton Arena and UD's main campus

Even after flying over countless times, I still can't believe how massive this house is

With winds varying between calm and light out of the east, I wasn't 100% sure which runway would be in use at Stewart. I flew  in from the north preparing to enter on a 45 for the downwind to Runway 8 but saw someone in the pattern for Runway 26. The jump plane wasn't flying so I made a midfield entry to a left downwind for 26. Putting all 40 degrees of flaps in on final, we landed nice and short, and had a quick taxi back to the tiedowns.

We're certainly sad to see Marty and his awesome BBQ's go. However, we've enjoyed quite a few of them (mainly through flying, though we've driven up once or twice as well) over the years. Thanks again to Marty and Suzie for letting us crash at their place last night... and here's to many blue skies and tailwinds for them in their next adventure!

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 1.0 hours
Total Time: 308.9 hours

One final BBQ at Neil Armstrong

Plane: Cessna 150 
Route: 40I-AXV
Weather: Broken clouds, 76 degrees, wind light and variable

Good pilot friend Marty is moving back to the west coast and his birthday's tomorrow. I've flown up there quite a few times - both with friends and solo - to enjoy tasty grub outside his hangar. Today we decided to stay the night so I could finally enjoy a few adult beverages with dinner.

Gina and I headed down to the airport after a busy morning/afternoon spent buying plants and supplies for the yard and garden. We intended to be up there by 5:00 but that ended up being the time our wheels left the grass at Stewart. It wasn't too warm but the air was slightly bumpy most of the way up.

Landing on Runway 26, I taxied over to the large assembly of cars and people and shut down. It seemed like the entire small town showed up! A bunch of Marty's friends - and quite a few of his students - were there to wish him a happy birthday and safe move.

He pointed out a couple kids (the son and daughter of one of his students) who were eager to go for an airplane ride. Having just arrived, I was probably one of the few people legally allowed to fly! He asked if I would mind taking them up for a quick spin around the pattern and I happily obliged. It's always fun to take kids flying.

The little boy was first. He was rather quiet but definitely enjoyed the view. We flew around the pattern, landed, and I walked over to get his sister. She was a few years older and much more talkative. We briefly left the pattern, flying out to the edge of Grand Lake before turning back towards the airport. I let her "fly" a little bit and we made a couple shallow turns, followed by a couple steeper ones. She said she loved roller coasters and I'm not surprised - she was giggling all the way through those last two turns.

I felt like my little trainer didn't deserve to spend the night in such luxury!

This plane almost certainly hasn't seen a hangar this clean in decades

I landed and we pushed the plane into Marty's now-empty hangar. He flew his beautiful Bonanza out to California a couple weeks ago. Needless to say, the 150 looked highly out of place.

Everything secure for the evening, I wandered back over to next row the T-Hangars and grabbed a cold beer. I proceeded to stuff my face full of far too much food and chatted with a bunch of fellow pilots. Pretty much the ideal summer evening at any small, local airport.

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 1.6 hours
Total Time: 307.9 hours

Frosty wings and a slice of pie

Plane: Cessna 150
Route: 40I-I74-40I
Weather: Clear, 46 degrees, wind calm

Yesterday, I asked around (i.e. posted on Facebook) if anyone wanted to fly to breakfast this morning. A group (also on Facebook - common theme today) of Ohio pilots made plans to converge on Urbana. There would be a couple guys I know from the Columbus area, Lenny and Dave, along with plenty of other nice folks in airplanes. Anyway, Gary - who I met in Newark a couple months ago - responded that he wanted to tag along, so he drove down and met me at Stewart this morning.

Guess I can add 'Manual Deicer' to my resume

I soon ran into a wrench thrown into my plans to make it to Urbana by 9:30 - there was a ton of frost and ice on the airplane. We eventually came to the conclusion that there must have been a bit of freezing rain or mist that fell overnight, as there was a thick layer on the entire plane. The only solution was sunlight, scrubbing with the Official Deicing Brooms™ and plenty of patience. It was nearly 9:45 before the plane was ready to go and the cold engine was warmed up and running in the green.

I'm not sure why the altitude didn't record correctly on the way home

Still, there was no reason to scrub the flight. It was a beautiful morning so we'd absolutely be flying, even if our breakfast plans didn't work out. So we flew north direct Urbana as I pointed out many of the sights in the area to Gary - downtown Dayton, WPAFB, the Air Force Museum, even downtown Columbus, which we spotted rising on the horizon from over 50 miles away.

I touched down quite softly on Runway 20 and we were parked on the ramp before 10:30. There was no time for a full breakfast but we chatted with Dave and Lenny for a few. Dave brought his just-painted RV-12, which is even more gorgeous in person than in all the photos. Gary was kind enough to buy us each a slice of black raspberry pie from the Airport Cafe so at least we got a little nourishment in Urbana!

Soon after, we were back in the 150, ready to fly back to Stewart. Someone had the airplane at 11:00 so we couldn't dawdle; we did get back a few minutes late but it didn't interfere with their lesson, thankfully. Gary and I chatted on the way home about locating airports and other flying stuff. His flight training's still on hold but I'm pretty sure he'll finish and get his license one of these days. You can just tell when flying's in someone's blood and they'll do anything to make the dream come true. Gary's one of those guys.

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 1.5 hours
Total Time: 294.0 hours

One approach + two more years' currency

Plane: Cessna 150
Instructor: Jamie
Route: 40I-SGH-40I
Weather: Scattered clouds, 82 degrees, wind light and variable

Two of my aunts were down in Dayton this morning helping my cousin move into her dorm at the University of Dayton. We went out to lunch in Waynesville (at the Cobblestone Cafe, which I'd never been to before, but highly recommend - great food!) before they drove home to Akron. Anyway, it's not like I'm going to pass up an opportunity to fly when I'm less than five minutes away from Stewart... so I drove down to the airport after saying goodbye to the family.

Jamie had time to tag along so we could complete the final flight activities for my WINGS phase. If you're not familiar with the FAA's WINGS program, I explained it in a post a couple years ago. For the current phase, I've had the knowledge activities completed for a while. Jamie and I crossed off most of the flight activities back in June during my checkout in the T-Craft; we just had to finish the simulated instrument work in a properly-equipped airplane.

We departed on Runway 26 and I had the hood on before we'd left the pattern. Side note - I bought a Francis Hood in anticipation of working on my instrument rating (yes, still slacking on that!) and today's the first time I tried it in the air. Thus far, I'm a fan. It does a very good job blocking everything but the panel. Not ridiculously uncomfortable, either.

I looked like this, shirt and tie aside (Stewart's not nearly that formal!)

Under the hood, we started with the basic stuff - straight and level flight, then climbs, turns, descents, and combinations of everything. I did a relatively decent job keeping up my scan and not wandering too far from where I was supposed to be - especially considering I last flew under the hood two years ago. I really liked how Jamie was explaining things and feeding me tips and reminders as I went along... it was extremely helpful.

Next up were unusual attitudes. The idea is to be able to recover if you find yourself in a bad spot, solely by reference to the instruments. I closed my eyes, put my chin on my chest, and Jamie flung the airplane all over the sky - turns, climbs, descents, floating out of my seat, pushed into my seat. Once he was satisfied I was disoriented he called out, "your airplane!" and I had to recover. There are two basic tenets - you always look at your artificial horizon / attitude indicator and if you're nose-high, immediately add full power, lower the nose, and level the wings. You simply do the reverse (retard the throttle, level the wings, and raise the nose) if you're nose-low. We did it four times, the first being quite gentle and the last starting from a roughly 60 degree left-turning nosedive. Fun, fun. All my recoveries went well, too.

I had asked him about the graveyard spiral, which has killed more than a couple pilots. The gist of it is that you lose visual reference to the horizon (in clouds, in fog, at night, etc.) and think you're level when you're actually turning. So I closed my eyes for a while and he got us into position. I could tell we were turning slightly (I could feel the sun moving across my face) but was still all screwed up. I would've bet $100 we were turning left - and would have turned right to recover. But when I opened my eyes we were in a 30+ degree bank to the right! Just another reminder why you always have to trust your instruments - the human body is not designed for flight and trusting your senses is about the most dangerous thing you can do when flying IFR.

Finally, he asked if I wanted to fly an approach - something I'd never done before (other than monitoring as a safety pilot). He pulled up the SGH VOR 33 Approach plate on his iPhone and we dialed in the SGH VOR on the Nav radio. Jamie talked me through the altitudes and explained a few important things as we got closer to the airport. When he told me to look up, sure enough, there was a runway right in front of me!

Not too bad for the first approach I've ever flown, right?

We did a short field landing at SGH and a power-off 180. On the latter, I pulled the power abeam the numbers, slowly brought in the flaps while making a continuous turn from downwind to final, eventually dumping in all 40 degrees of flaps maybe 100 feet up. We touched down just past the numbers. Had I put in full flaps about five seconds sooner, I would've nailed it perfectly. Still... it was a darn good landing!

Neither of us had checked our watches and soon realized we were due back at Stewart, so I pointed the nose straight at the airport and put in Full Rental Power™. It took 10-15 minutes to fly there from SGH and I crossed midfield to enter a left downwind for Runway 26. Full flaps on final, 50-55 knots, I drug 60338 in over the trees for a final short field landing. We were turning off abeam the end of the row of hangars so we landed in roughly 500 feet.

With that, I'm 100% good to fly for another two years. I renewed my medical last month (which is good for another 5 years) and this checks off the flight review requirement for 24 more calendar months. Not that I don't hope/expect to spend plenty of hours in training during that time period - but it's always nice to know all my I's are dotted and T's are crossed in the FAA's eyes.

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 1.5 hours
Total Time: 280.6 hours

338 is back!

Plane: Cessna 150
Route: 40I, Local 
Weather: Clear, 76 degrees, wind 070 degrees at 6 knots

It was another beautiful summer day so flying was certainly on the to-do list. Couple that with the fact that I could fly my most-flown airplane again and it was a perfect evening to take to the sky. Why so long since I last flew N60338? She got damaged while tied down when that massive derecho moved through the area last summer. But the plane's back on the line and flying great. It looks like I'll finally be able to accomplish my goal of 100+ hours underneath her wings!

My time was limited so I just hung around the pattern

We're headed to California for a weekend in Napa tomorrow so I had to mind the clock. I went around the pattern six times, then headed home to mow the lawn before flying across the country. I mixed up the takeoffs and landings to get in a bit of practice with everything - normal, short field, soft field, and simulated engine-out. I've forgotten how good that plane makes me look sometimes; it seemed like every landing was silky smooth.

Oh yeah - I've already bested 2011's dismal hours total!

The only thing I noticed was that the airspeed indicator appears a tad inaccurate at high angles of attack. It was showing me quite slow (below the white arc) as I began my flare - even though I clearly had more airspeed to bleed off before the stall. Not that it's unusual for an airspeed indicator to require some sort of calibration.

Either way, fly the airplane, and being light and solo it does land a little slower. After over a year, I'm still totally at home in 338's left seat. Now it's time to cross that 100 hour mark.

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 0.8 hours
Total Time: 279.1 hours

Brushing up on the basics in the 150

Plane: Cessna 150
Route: 40I-MGY-40I
Weather: Clear, 41 degrees, wind 210 degrees at 5 knots

Some solo flights call for nothing but a bunch of practice. Especially when you're trying to stay current in an airplane. I actually enjoy such things (not sure if all pilots feel this way?) so tonight was a bunch of fun.

Video of nearly everything I practiced tonight - my first edit in Premiere Elements 11

I took the 150 up and practiced most of the Private Pilot maneuvers, leaving Stewart's slightly squishy turf behind with a soft field takeoff. Then it was direct Wright Brothers for three trips around the pattern. I made two normal landings, a normal takeoff, a touch and go, short field takeoff, and did a simulated engine-out. Pretty much the whole gamut in about 15 minutes!

After a climb to 3,500 feet I ran through the rest of the maneuvers - steep turns, slow flight with the stall horn blaring, and a power-off stall. Then I quickly descended the 1,700 feet to Stewart's pattern altitude with a steep spiral. I made one low pass over the runway to confirm all the airplanes were away - we'd been using Runway 26 but I prefer landing on Runway 8 at sunset so the sun isn't directly in my eyes - and saw the Cubs and Champ were tied down. Pattern clear, I made one final soft(ish) field landing and shut down.

Patterns, turns, climbs, and descents...

Overall, every maneuver was certainly up to Private Pilot Practical Test Standards. My steep turns were held within 100 feet (I try and keep them tighter) of my starting altitude; I was satisfied though, especially having not flown the 150 in a while. It was definitely a good, thorough workout in only 0.9 on the Hobbs.

When's the last time you went up for a similar practice session?

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 0.9 hours
Total Time: 257.8 hours

MERFI 2012, a precautionary landing, and carb ice

Plane: Cessna 150
Route: 40I-I74-40I
Weather: Scattered clouds, 80-90 degrees, wind variable at 5 knots

Unable to attend for the past two years, I marked MERFI 2012 on my calendar many months ago. Somehow time has flown by and it was already three years ago that I last landed in Urbana during the regional EAA fly-in. Gina made the trip with me this year. We took off from Stewart around 9:30 in the morning and were in the pattern at Grimes Field just over 30 minutes later. The place was hopping, the pattern full, and the CTAF clogged, but we sequenced in nicely and I made a safe landing.

2012 or 1942? Just your average summer morning in Waynesville... 

First on the agenda was breakfast. It's not a proper fly-in without pancakes and sausage, now is it? Both of us scarfed down everything on our plates and then wandered around for a while.

The entrance, a nice homage to the infamous Brown Arch

Quite the tasty spread, especially for five bucks!

I went to an FAA Safety Team seminar at 11:00 about runway incursions that counted towards my WINGS credit. Gina wasn't very interested in the merits of proper phraseology on our taxiways so she continued to roam around the airport. After the seminar, which was pretty good, I had the chance to meet up with Samuel. He's another pilot who flies at Stewart who I'd only spoken with electronically up to this point. It's always enjoyable to meet folks who fly there and read the blog!

Gina wandered back over and I said goodbye to Samuel. My bride and I then headed over to the Champaign Aviation Museum for a few minutes to escape the heat and look at their B-25 and B-17. Eventually it was time to head home so we walked back over to the 150 around 1:00.

Here's where the day got interesting...

We took off and I noticed a weird sound shortly after leaving the ground, but beyond the point when I would have landed back on the runway. It quickly became an extremely loud banging noise. At first, I thought it might be an engine problem but all the gauges were in the green and I didn't see anything odd outside. Then I figured it was probably something hanging out the door, but we both checked our seatbelts and headsets and it felt like everything was inside the airplane.

Still, something wasn't right and the noise was really loud. I immediately decided it was best to sort this out on the ground and made a quick lap around the pattern, returning to land on Runway 20. In the end, it was my seatbelt; the very end of it, only an inch or so, had gotten stuck in the door when I pulled it closed. It was so small that I couldn't tell it was caught when I tugged on the belt to check it. But it was certainly big enough to make a heck of a racket banging against the airplane in the wind.

Unedited (other than some added commentary) video of the takeoff and precautionary landing

Problem solved, I started the airplane back up and we again taxied down to the end of the runway for departure. There were about four planes in front of us so we were sitting there at idle for a few minutes before it was our turn. Onto the runway, full power, and...

Well, just watch the video below.

Our second attempt to leave resulted in an aborted takeoff - here's the unedited footage

My best guess, as narrated in the video, is that we were in that magical temperature/humidity range and carburetor ice formed while we were waiting in line for takeoff. I had done a run-up and checked the carb heat; everything performed normally. However, it was a few minutes later that we finally rolled onto the runway for takeoff. Thankfully, it happened within seconds of pushing the throttle in and we were still on the ground.

You may be wondering if I felt we were doomed at this point. Honestly, I wasn't. Although at the time I was thought it was an issue with the carburetor accelerator pump (the carb ice idea didn't cross my mind until discussing it with other pilots later) everything else appeared normal. I did two extended, full-power run-ups and had no issues so I felt confident that everything checked out mechanically. We took off and - finally - headed home on an uneventful, 30-minute flight. Third time's the charm, eh?

More of Stewart's unique normalcy - all these planes were preparing for a stadium flyover

As you can imagine, this was a great learning experience. I feel as though I did the right thing in both instances. Diagnosing a problem on the ground and flying the airplane first (aviate, navigate, communicate!) is always the best option. I'm also a bit surprised that carb ice didn't cross my mind when the engine lost power and ultimately died. Still, I checked everything I could check prior to deciding to fly home and it all checked out. I also know that I'll likely never forget to consider carb ice in the future if I experience anything similar.

And lest I forget, the fly-in was a lot of fun too! :)

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 1.7 hours
Total Time: 235.7 hours

Too nice an evening to not be flying

Plane: Cessna 150
Route: 40I, Local 
Weather: Clear, 83 degrees, wind 290 degrees at 3 knots

Look at that weather listed above. I honestly don't even need to write a post, do I? This was one of those nights any pilot loves - great visibility, comfortable temperatures, and light winds.

Ideally it would've been a Cub night but - if you read what I just said - you might imagine I wasn't the only one with those thoughts. And you would be correct. So even though the fun yellow plane was already reserved I had to figure out some way to take to the sky. Tiny Cessna to the rescue!

By the time I got to the airport, there was only about an hour before sunset. Honestly, I just wanted to get up and enjoy the sunset from the air. With nowhere to go and limited time, I figured I might as well just stay in the pattern and practice a few takeoffs and landings.

So that's what I did. Regular. Short field. Simulated engine-out. Just the basics while enjoying the wonderful view from the air. About the only thing that could've been better is if the winds were out of the east - then I wouldn't have been landing directly into the sun. But who am I to complain? It was a great night to fly.

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 0.5 hours
Total Time: 226.3 hours

A new airport and some serious crosswind practice

Plane: Cessna 150 
Route: 40I-HAO-40I
Weather: Overcast, 70 degrees, wind 020 degrees at 10 knots gusting to 16

I originally had the 150 booked tonight to fly up to Wapakoneta for one of my friend Marty's famous BBQs. However, that got postponed and I was left with a few unplanned hours in an airplane. A quick glance at the weather - or trees, for that matter - got the gears churning in my head and it wasn't long before I figured it would be a great evening for some crosswind practice.

Late in the afternoon I glanced over my Sectional and saw that Butler County Regional Airport in Hamilton had a perfect runway alignment, oriented directly perpendicular to the winds. Although I've flown over top of HAO before, I never had landed there. Crosswind practice and a new airport? Sounds good to me!

A good workout under the semi-low ceiling (about 1,000 feet above pattern altitude)

It was a quick flight over from Stewart, especially with a slightly quartering tailwind. I was entering the pattern on a 45 for a left downwind to Runway 11 less than 15 minutes after takeoff. There's a hill just NW of the airport that you sort of fly around during your base-to-final. With the strong winds out of the north, this made for some good bumps and swirling air currents on final.

I ended up making four landings at Butler Co. Three were good - firm, but perfectly acceptable for crosswinds close to the little 150's demonstrated limits - and the fourth (which was actually my third in sequence) was... well, I got the airplane on the ground safely. I enjoy a good crosswind landing so tonight was lots of good practice. It was certainly a night where you couldn't shy off in making the airplane go where you wanted it to go. If any students are reading this, pay attention - instructors aren't kidding around when they teach you that!

Practice complete, I departed straight out for the short flight home. I actually passed through some light rain in two spots while cruising at 2,000 feet. The clouds looked pretty low but I checked the local AWOSs and they were indicating ceilings around 3,000 feet. It's fun to cruise along relatively close to the clouds, though - gives you a nice sense of speed. Nobody else was flying at Stewart so it was a quick entry into the pattern followed by one final crosswind landing.

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 1.2 hours
Total Time: 221.8 hours

Sporty's, Stalls, and a Sunny Saturday

Plane: Cessna 150
Route: 40I-ISZ-I69-40I 
Weather: Scattered clouds, 86 degrees, wind 190 degrees at 3 knots

Freshly checked out in the Cessnas again, I decided to waste no time in hopping in one and going somewhere. Originally I had planned on flying down for a glider course that Sporty's was offering for WINGS credit, but I realized it was an all-day (9 to 5) course... and I simply didn't have time to be gone that long. Still, the weekly free cookout is always reason enough to stop into Sporty's and I decided that would be today's mission. I texted Jon (who I first flew last fall) to see if he was free yesterday night; he was, and thus I had a passenger for today's adventure.

Highlights of the flight, including the infamous wooded taxiway at Blue Ash

We left Stewart shortly after 11 and first headed towards King's Island. I figured Jon would enjoy the view of the theme park from above and he did. As he said, "it's like RollerCoaster Tycoon!"

After passing over the park, I pointed the nose towards Blue Ash Airport. Although it's very close to Stewart - only 20 nm - I had never landed there before. Unfortunately, due to ongoing squabbles between the cities of Cincinnati and Blue Ash, there is a good chance the airport will soon be closed. While I certainly hope that outcome can be avoided, I also wanted to be sure to land there before I no longer had the opportunity.

A twin was departing Blue Ash as we approached, so I entered the pattern in an upwind over Runway 24 then flew right traffic for a smooth landing. I enjoyed the long journey back to the runway down their well-known, very wooded taxiway before we continued on our way. If you're interested in helping to preserve this great local airport, visit http://preserveblueashairport.com.

It was another short hop from Blue Ash to Clermont Co. Airport, home of Sporty's. Traffic was light; we were the only plane in the pattern. I touched down just past the numbers and taxied to parking, where a lineboy was waiting to push our little 150 into a parking spot. Gotta love that kind of service!

We definitely flew all over the general Dayton/Cincinnati vicinity today

We spent 45 minutes or so on the ground, filling our stomachs with the always-delicious free hot dogs and brats and re-hydrating with something from the vending machines. I got the fan turning as quick as possible to stay cool in the heat and soon we were taking off on Runway 22. We continued out of the pattern from the downwind, headed north, while climbing to 3,500 feet.

Jon is quite interested in flying and I think he'll eventually get his pilot's license after he graduates from college. He flew the 172 for a while when we went up last fall and did a great job. After we left Sporty's he asked about doing some maneuvers so I handed over the controls for a bit. Then I asked if he wanted me to demonstrate and explain a couple things. He was all for it, so I showed him some power-off stalls and a forward slip - you can see both in the video below. I'm certainly no CFI but I think I did a decent job!

I demonstrated power-off stalls and forward slips to Jon on the way back to Stewart

Once the educational part of our flight was over, we made a scenic detour on the way back. Jon's a student at the University of Dayton so he wanted to fly over campus. I obliged - we flew up towards downtown Dayton, circling over campus. He really enjoyed the view and I'm glad I was able to play tour guide.

As a final way of showing him something new and different, I set up for a short field landing upon our return to Stewart. I explained the differences - slower airspeed, using more power, etc. - and managed to touch down a couple hundred feet past my aiming point. Darn thermals on short final for Runway 26! Regardless, it was a great day of flying... I always get the most enjoyment out of showing other people the many cool things aviation has to offer!

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 1.8 hours
Total Time: 218.2 hours

A brief, barbecuey break from wedding planning

Plane: Cessna 150
Route: 40I-AXV-40I
Weather: Clear, 75 degrees, wind calm

Well hello there! You say this is a flying blog? Nah, can't be... nothing new or aviation-related has appeared on here in over a month!

I know, I know. Sorry about that. As I mentioned a couple posts ago, wedding planning (45 days to go - eek!) is consuming nearly all of my time right now. Still, a full month is a long time to go without flying. Also, the weather is finally traditionally fall-like - a.k.a. the best flying weather of the year around here, just absolutely gorgeous.

That means I had to find some excuse to hop in the left seat. So Gina and I took a 150 up to Wapakoneta for one of Marty's famous Wednesday barbecues this evening. Had to get at least one in before we completely run out of weekday daylight again until spring!

A little bit of footage (at 5x actual speed) from tonight's flying

Takeoff was about 4:30 pm and it we were on the ground at Neil Armstrong Airport roughly 50 minutes later. The flight was uneventful - I had to deviate slightly east of DAY per Columbus Approach's request to avoid their departure corridor but otherwise it was quite peaceful up there. The trees are starting to turn and we spotted some bright patches of color here and there.

Dayton International Airport

As is always the case with Marty's shindigs, the food was delicious and company friendly. We had about an hour and a half on the ground and enjoyed the meal while saying hello to some pilot friends we haven't seen in a year or more. I did a quick preflight while Gina finished eating and we were back in the air at about 6:45 pm. That was about 15 minutes later than planned but we'd still make it back before dark... barely.

Fall colors near the Benchwood Road exit off I-75

Approaching downtown Dayton around sunset

The sun dipped below the horizon about when we passed by downtown Dayton. It's only another 10 minutes or so to Stewart from that point. I slipped off my sunglasses and enjoyed the nice colors reflecting from the sky to the ground as I descended from 3,500 feet down to pattern altitude.

Since the light was fading and I hadn't practiced one in a while, I did a simulated engine-out landing. If you watch the video above, you'll see how nice the 150's full 40 degrees of flaps are when you're high on final! We landed about halfway down the runway to facilitate a short taxi back to the parking spot.
 

The sun drops below the horizon on this perfect fall evening

 

I might as well include the "it might be a while before I post again" disclaimer here. While I do hope to get in at least a couple flights this month to enjoy the fall colors, I can't make any guarantees with how busy my life has become. That post about how I capture and edit my videos is still in the works so I hope to at least use that as filler if I'm not able to take to the sky!

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 1.8 hours
Total Time: 208.8 hours