Looking Back on a Long Journey

This is my fourth year with the Baron.  I now have 719.5 Baron hours and 745.5 Total Multi time.  Overall I am just shy of 3300 hours total time.  When I started flying  in the 80s, I just knew that I wanted to fly.  After my first lesson, I was totally hooked and looked forward to any flight time I could get and frankly just enjoyed flying around for no particular reason.

After getting my private, I started working on my instrument and this lead to the commercial, not becasue I wanted to fly for money but because I wanted to get better.  I have yet to make a single $ as a pilot, I have spent a few though.  I got my multi in the early 90s as part of my learning journey but did not really want or need a twin back then.

Like most people I started with trainers, 152s, 172s, warriors and the like.  My first plane was a fraction of a Mooney.  The Mooney moved me to a 145 knot cruise and openned up many more adventures.  I sold my original share bacause I moved and bought into another mooney which I flew for 17 years until my partner stopped flying.

By this point my flying had started to evolve and I was doing more public interest flying and travel.  I chose to step up to the F33A Bonanza which meant 170 knot cruise, more comfort, and more capability.   I ended up selling this plane and buying another F33A as work forced a minor detour in my flying.  I flew about 1200 hours in the Bonanza and it increased my horizon, literally.

I had been eyeing twins for quite some time.  You know, clicking through the ads, reading articles.  It was a big jump becasue I was not initially convinced the twin would be safer for me.  I knew that Piston Twins are marginal performers after losing an engine and that the joke about a twin having a second engine to get you to the crash site had a bit of truth.  Twins were also a bigger investment and cost more to fly.

As my career was winding down, I made the leap.  I finally had the time to devote to training and proficiency and a mission to make the twin worthwhile.  I remember one trip crossing the Appalachian Mountains in the Bonanza and thinking my emergency landing options were pretty slim.  So in 2020 I started looking at those ads a bit closer and in December 2020 one plane caught my eye.  I was not sure about it but it was only 30 minutes South.  My wife said what do we have to lose, let's go see it, so we flew down and in 2021 I had the Baron.  As a bonus I was now moving 190 knots.

Looking back I am pretty happy with the numbers this year.  I stayed instrument and night current/proficient.  I flew 13.3 instrument hours with a good bit of actual and 13.6 hours at night.  I shot 34 instrument approaches and completed an IPC.  Trip wise I did fast trips to Pensecola, Savannah, Misouri for the eclips and Washington DC to see my daughter graduate.

We also did the our big cross country of over 5000 miles and touched 13 states along the way.  I clocked 213.7 total hours in 2024 which was down 3.3 from 2023 but I did have some downtime with a leaking fuel cell.  Overall a great year and a continuation of my journey.  Airplane is in annual now but already planning new adventures for 2025.  Wishing everyone a Happy and Healthy New Year!

One Last Approach

 

I took the plane down for annual this morning.  The plan was to do it around 10 AM but after the front came through Sunday, the weather was terrible this morning.  Low IFR everywhere.  Ironically I awoke to blue skies at my house.  While I could look up and see the sun shine that was not the case at departure or arrival.  I had a good sense that things would clear though.

It cleared on the North end first and I worked on stuff while refreshing the New Smyrna weather every so often.  Around 10 AM Daytona went to 1900' and New Smyrna was up to 600'.  I figured it was time to get going.  Departure weather was basic sunny and arrival had bumped up to 900'.  This was good enough for the minimums on all of the possible approaches so off I went.

The flight down is a short 82 miles but with the instrument approach it would be close to 100.  I levelled at 6000' and as I passed Saint Augustine the clouds started to fill in.  I picked up the AWOS, configured for the 25 approach and briefed the plate.  Checking in with Daytona they told me to expect 25.  A short time later they said, just kidding, they were switching to 7.  

The minimums on 7 are 500' vs. 303' but I figured that meant the weather was holding.  It was also better in that it would allow me to roll out and turn onto the mechanic's ramp.  After some quick vectors I was intercepting final.  I was expecting 900' but broke out at 1500'.  The visibility was excellent and I made a smooth touchdown to cap off my 2024 flying.  A quick review of my annual list with the mechanic and then I waited a few minutes for my buddy to pick me up.  We had a quick pop through the clouds and a nice ride home.

Not clearing till afternoon

I had planned to fly mid day but awoke to fog and a forecast for IFR through early afternoon.  CC was going to come along so I told her we would likely have to scrub the flight.  I still needed to be at the airport for a 9 AM meeting so off I went. The weather I was seeing was a lot better than forecast.  I called CC and said we were on for 10:30.

As the picture shows, not very IFR at the airport.  I finished my meeting and headed over to the plane to get ready.  The coast was clear but inland was still cloudy.  I figured this would make for a picturesque flight.  On departure I pulled the power way back and started a slow climb.  When flighttseeing, no need to burn a lot of gas and go fast.  As advertised the weather was clear by home but cloudy around the rest of town.  Leveling at 3000 we slid over to the West side and passed over Cecil field.  

The smooth air and puffy clouds were crying out for a practice instrument approach.  I already had flight following so after briefing the plate, I called approach and asked for an IFR clearance.  I was soon cleared and vectored for the GPS 36R.  The controller kept me high and tight so it was good practice.  The clouds were soft and not too deep.  We broke out at 1,200' and soon went missed.  Tower had us fly runway heading for a bit but we soon had a left turn to 270 and were back on approach.

Approach was busy so we waited our turn and climbed to 3,000' where we were able to check in and cancel IFR.  We then enjyed flying back to the coast and CC did some practice followed by a return to the airport.  I had an acceptable touchdown and we were soon pushing the plane back into the hangar.  Forecasts are great and all but you need to not be too reliant on them.  I was supposed to fly Saturday and the forecast was for good weather.  Well that didn't happen and I spent the day on the ground.

Up and Back

I needed to head up to Chesapeake, Virginia for a meeting Tuesday morning.  It’s about a 10 hour drive or 4.5 hours via Breeze Airlines. That’s not bad but the return flight is at 6AM so that won’t work.  The other airline options include a stop and take closer to 8 hours door to door.  Of course I didn’t consider any of these options, I flew.

Flying myself averaged 4 hours each way and the plane left on my schedule.  The trip is 466 nm so airtime at normal cruise is 2:30. With a 25 knot headwind it’s 3 hours.  On Monday when I headed up I had a slight headwind until Savannah which then became a few knot tailwind which became a headwind as I approached Chesapeake.

As flights go this was pretty simple.  I filed 9,000’, direct CATHY direct.  This keeps me over dry land and sets up a 350 straight in approach to runway 5.On departure I did spend a short time climbing through some clouds but then it cleared and was extremely smooth.    The scenery starts nice with the coastal view but after Charlseton, it’s mostly just flat green and with the haze, was not much to look at.

I spent the flight looking around for traffic, watching the temperatures, pressures and making sure that the flight was as humdrum as it seemed.  I also kept watching the winds aloft to see if my promised 10 knot tailwind would magically appear. Spoiler alert, it did not.

The days are getting much shorter and by the time I was descending to land, the sun was starting to dip and combined with a high overcast, made for a dusky look.  The airport is busy with training and I was lucky and arrived at a lull in the action which allowed me to slide in for a nice touchdown.  

Overall this was an easy flight.  I had flown the route before, there were no enroute obstacles at 9,000’ and the weather was almost perfect (not the winds aloft). Even on these easy runs, I still review the route, the airports, the NOTAMs and the weather but with our modern tools that can be done rather quickly compared to the olden days of paper charts.

I had squeezed the trip in Monday to Tuesday because a front was moving across the country and promised to make Wednesday much more challenging with IFR and weather in the Chesapeake area.  Heading home I wrapped up a bit early and was in the air just after 11 AM.  Departure was easy and I was once again direct to CATHY at 8,000’.  My headwind had no issue showing up and I enjoyed 25 knots on the nose most of the flight.  That equates to an extra 75 miles to fly. 

Typically I run around 25 gph for 185-188 KTAS.  Today I ran a bit over 26 for 191-192 KTAS.  With the headwind the fuel burn difference was negligible. 

I had left early to stay ahead of all the weather but near Myrtle beach I was showing some rain.  My onboard radar confirmed it and I was cleared to deviate.  The trip up and back had been perfectly smooth up to this point and even though my radar was just showing light rain above my altitude and off to the side I didn't expect much turbulence.

As I passed this disturbed area I had about one minute of turbulence with alternating up and down drafts which gave me airspeed fluctuations +/- 15 knots.  I was watching closely and ready to pull back the power but just as quickly as it came, it was gone.  The rest of the flight was smooth and after a quick dive through clouds at 4,000’, my home airport appeared and I took the visual to 14.

I don’t use any fancy flight planning forms, just a pad of paper where I record clearances and frequencies.  The flight took 16 frequencies starting with ground and ending with CTAF.  Typically on such a short flight I might have half that but the route cuts through a bunch of approach controls so you don’t spend much time with center.  Overall a good trip and glad I am home with the rain forecast for tonight.

Cross Country Flying

Generally the FAA defines a cross country flight as greater than 50 nautical miles.  As a student flying my C-152 over central Tennessee, this seemed like a long way to go and find my way home.   These were the days before GPS, we were using paper charts, the trainers had questionable avionics and the visibility was often less than 10 miles.  Somehow we found our way.

My first solo cross country was 57 miles from Smyrna, TN to Bowling Green, KY.  I did a touch and go at Nashville International on the way home bringing the total distance to 120 miles and it took me 2.1 hours.  Thats 57.1 kmph which is a bit worse than a car.  The Baron could do that in 40 minutes air time plus say 10 minutes for manuevering.  

Our basic training teaches us to fly "Cross Country" but it is clear that a my first solo trip was nothing like the trips I fly now.  So what does it take to go truly long distances and how do you plan for weather weeks away when the technology to forecast simply does not exist?  What I have learned over the years is that there are cross country flights and there are cross country flights.

The simple ones are like my first solo or other flights I took during my FAA training.  These are shorter routes typically less than 250 nautical miles and are completed the same day.  With modern flight planning tools, onboard data link weather and the current forecasting, these are all about not taking off when the conditions exceeed the skills of the pilot and/or the capabilities of the airplane.  Gone are the days of unforecast significant widespread weather.

The next level of cross country are trips in the 200-300 mile range where you stay a few days.  These were my most frequent types of trips for many years, basically flying down to see the grandparents or having a quick getaway.  These are not as simple as the day trips but the two and three day forecasts are pretty good and if you build in a few hours flexibility you can pick your weather.  

Picking your weather is a pilots greatest tool.  Most reservations can be cancelled 24-48 hours out without penalty, some with even less notice.  I am not ashamed of the many trips I didn't take.  A few I probably could have made as the weather was not as bad as forecast but many that were cancelled were just not going to happen.

The next level of cross country flying is stretching out to 500+ miles.  The further you go the more different weather systems and possibly terrain you may encounter.  Add to this longer durations where you are less certain of the weather coming home and you hit your next set of challenges.  I find that "Weatherstreet" and "Windy" do a pretty good idea on long range forecasting out to 10 days.  You just have to realize that the farther you go, you are really looking at more of a trend than a forecast.  If it is showing building high pressure and clear skies, it's unlikely you will have a deep low but it's not giving you a lot of detail.

On these trips it becomes more about skills, training, proficiency and equipment.  You also need flexibility.  It is amazing how a little flexibility goes a long way.  For example I have come home and found a thunderstorm on my home airport but landing nearby and tanking up was enough of a delay to allow me to return home in clear skies.  I have stopped for ice cream when there was a line of storms ahead.  An hour later I was on my way in sunny skies.

Equipment and proficiency also come into play.  We have diverted more than 150 miles out of the way on many occasions to pick the weather we wanted to face, having a fast plane makes this less than an hour detour.  Having onboard radar is also a huge advantage when flying in areas of convection without great visibility.  Sometimes a little flexibility is not enough.  We were in Niagara Falls and planned 3 days but a strong front was coming.  We chose to leave a day early to avaoid the weather and made it to our next stop in nice weather.  We often flex for weather.  In the Niagara falls case the rain came in soon after we left, we would have been hiking in the rain which I don't like so leaving early had several advantages.

The final type of trip is when you head out for a few weeks and really go across the country.  You will cross multiple weather systems, you will have no idea what the weather will be later in the trip at the beginning.  At this point it really is about equipment, proficiency and flexibility.  The more you have of the first two the less you need to rely on the third.  Luck is also a factor, for example in 16 arrivals we only shot one relatively easy instrument approach, one visual approach in 6 miles visibility and the rest were good VFR.  That said, I was prepared to alter our route as needed, change our reservations or just wait out any truly adverse weather.

The segment that casued me the most concern on the trip was Billings, MT to Idaho Falls, ID.  The combinations of fires producing low visibility, possible mountain obscuration, possible low clouds and some really tall rocks meant I needed some pretty good weather to fly my preferred route.  It all worked out for us but I had in my back pocket 3 back up routes.  The worst case route added well over an hour of flight time to a flight that was only 1:15 long.  We also had time to burn and could have waited hours for the right weather.

The real takeaway after flying to all 48 states has been, train, train, train, like your life depends on it, it does.  Expect to have to alter plans.  Make sure your travel companion(s) also know this and are on board, it makes it so much easier.  Be ready to cancel some trips.  Our first attempt to go to Arizona We cancelled a few days out becasue the weather just wasn't what we needed.  Same with one trip we planned to Utah and California.  This was the year we had atmospheric rivers that never ended.  I was very happy we cancelled as some of the places we wanted to visit closed due to the weather.

No matter where you are in you pilotimg journey, Cross Country flying can be quite rewarding.  Whether you choose to make a quick run for BBQ or stretch your wings and see our amazing nation, there is a sense of accomplishment reaching your destination and returning safely.   

Gone West

My father A Jay Cristol passed early on October 21, 2024 at the age of 95.  In addition to being a husband, father, grandfather, judge, retired USNR Captain, bullfighter, water skier, world traveler, all around good guy, he was a pilot. 

He started flying at the age of 15 in a Piper J-3 cub on floats in Biscayne Bay. His lessons ended when his mother found out. He would begin again as a cadet and earn his Navy wings.  He went on to fly off carriers in the Korean War zone.  As a Navy reservist he flew transports to Vietnam.  Though his career turned to the law he had a short stint as a copilot for Eastern airlines. 

His wife, my mom, was not a fan of light aircraft and for a while he was less active but after I became a pilot, he dusted off his certificate and began flying again.  I had learned from his mistake and waited until I had my certificate to inform my mother.

We got to share some great aviation adventures.  When he was 70 we went to California to check out in a Martin 404, one of the planes he had flown for Eastern.   I got to take him on a pilgrimage to First Flight where we stood at the birthplace of powered flight and touched the big rock that famous pilots preceding us had touched.

For many years we had a tradition of heading out on Thanksgiving for a quick flight before settling in to feast on Turkey.  He flew with me in both my Mooney’s, my Bonanzas and my Baron as well as many other planes .  We snuck off to dogfight each other at Sky Warriors in Atlanta and no we did not tell mom.

Mom softened a bit when the grandkids came along and she took a few flights with him to meet up with the girls.  I think she was still terrified of heights, but she loved the kids more.  He had flown a wide variety of aircraft and because of him I got some rides in some very cool aircraft like a very cherry C-195. 

A few years back I was able to get him into a Stearman.  He had trained in the Harvard and lamented that he had never gotten to fly the classic bird.  I found one in central Florida and we headed down and took turns getting a ride.  It was a stretch in his late 80s getting into the cockpit but he pulled it off.

He flew as PIC into his 90s but realized his limits as he aged.  In his early 80s he quit flying solo and would either bring an instructor to watch over him and any passengers or another qualified pilot.  He loved helping people and even flew Angel flights. His last flight was at 94 and getting into and out of the plane was more of a production.  He flew the G1000 but I think was more comfortable with steam gauges than my glass panel.

Heck, he flew Aural ranges and told me about the excitement of being one of the first planes in his squadron to get a DF.  Not an ADF which did all the work for you.  Somehow he found his way back to the boat and other destinations with this crude equipment though I think the magenta line helped him out in later years.

He lived an extraordinary life, and did many amazing things, yet at his core he was a pilot and loved flying.