Passion for flying

My progress on my commercial license is on hold for the time being. I am right where I need to be concerning flight time; just about 10 hours shy of the minimum 250 hours required. This leaves me just enough time to really hit the commercial maneuvers hard and hopefully take my flight right at or very close to 250 hours. Between weather, the holidays and various family commitments I have decided the best thing may be to wait until after the first of the year and then rededicate myself to the task. In the meantime I am hitting the books hard and preparing for my written exam.

Even though I am not flying I still think about flying. Today I got to thinking about what got each of us into flying in the first place. Can you pinpoint a specific event or was it always a lifelong passion? I tend to believe each of us was born with the passion to fly. I know that everyone, especially as children are fascinated with and love airplanes, but what makes some of us go beyond just looking up at an overflying airplanes and go into insurmountable debt to get our rating just so we can work at or near the poverty level for years until building enough time to apply with the big airlines? I know there are a few out there who see it just as a job and a means to pay the bills but I think those types are in the minority.

So what follows is my story. If you would like to share yours or comment on this topic please leave a comment…..

Growing up, my dad worked overseas and traveled a lot. We were either picking him up or dropping him off at the airport. Looking back I felt like I grew up at Stapleton International Airport (the precursor to Denver International). I was destined to either grow up hating airplanes or loving them. Luckily for me it would be the latter. I can still remember the hours spent waiting for my dad, playing with my toy airplanes and watching those magnificent flying machines outside. I wanted so bad to be a pilot and work around airplanes all the time. I even thought the baggage handlers were cool because they were out there right next to the planes and they could even touch them.

My pilot dreams were dashed early. In 5^th grade, my mom got a call from my teacher who suggested that I get an eye exam. Seems that I was squinting a lot and he noticed that I had difficulty reading the blackboard. A few weeks later I was the proud owner of eyeglasses and I now had a lifetime of inconvenience to look forward to. At that time things like LASIK or PRK were just a dream. Heck I don’t even remember if they had contacts when I got that first pair of glasses. A visit from the Air Force Academy during 7^th grade dashed my dreams for good when I was told that I could not be an Air Force pilot due to my vision. My disappointment blinded me from the fact that getting a degree from the Academy would have been a great accomplishment even without becoming a pilot.

One day during my senior year of high school a friend of mine told me he was taking flying lessons at the local airport. I visited them and learned that they offered discovery flights for $30. I quickly signed up and was hooked after that short flight. My instructor was much kinder towards my dreams than the Air Force Academy recruiter. Instead of snuffing out my dreams like a burning cigarette he told me that I could fly for the airlines even with glasses. My new master plan was to get my license, build time utilizing Air Force flying clubs and then get out and fly for the airlines.

Mom and Dad paid for the flying lessons as a graduation present. The only catch was that I had to have my license by July since I was scheduled to leave for Air Force basic training on July 11th, 1991. That left just over 3 months to get my private pilot license. When I asked if it could be done my instructor told me that it was possible but I would have to be totally committed to the idea and fly as often as I could.

Thanks to some excellent advice from my older sister I had most of my high school requirements met by the end of my junior year. This meant that I only had to go to class in the morning of my senior year. This gave me plenty to time to fly and I did at least 3 times a week. I took that discovery flight on March 31^st 1991 and my private pilot check ride on July 9^th 1991. My sister was my first passenger on the 10^th and I left for Basic Training on the 11^th. 100 days and 53.5 flight hours from that discovery flight I was a licensed pilot.

What about that master plan? I’m still working on it; I just took a short detour for an Air Force career. My four years in the Air Force has turned into 16 and still counting.

Change of perspective

I was using the simulator at my flight school the other day and overheard an FAA examiner administering an oral exam to a perspective instrument pilot. Along with questions for the applicant he would inter-mix stories and examples from his numerous years of flying with the airlines. While listening to this I thought that here is a guy who I would like to sit down and have a beer with. Imagine the stories that he has to tell. Just a good lesson in how I feel we, as a society, do not take advantage of those who have gone before us. It is equally important for those of us who are experienced to share these stories before the time comes when you cannot share them. This is one place where I think the internet has really been a blessing to us. It is one of the reasons that I thoroughly enjoy the blog of Captain Rand Peck. Captain Peck currently flies for a major US airline and his blog is well written, entertaining, and contains fabulous photographs. In fact his blog was my inspiration to start my own. I encourage you to check out his blog at http://randsaviationphotos.blogspot.com/

Now let’s return to my original point of this story. It is amazing how quickly your perspective can change when you sit down and think about or analyze a situation. This particular examiner has an intimidating reputation and some may say he administers tougher exams than some of the other examiners my school uses. For these reasons I intentionally scheduled my exam with a different examiner. Here it is just a little over a year later and instead of avoiding him I am wishing I could sit down and have a beer with the guy.

My outlook on him changed when I began to think about my future life as a professional pilot. If I am going to fly for the airlines I will have to take check rides at least annually and they may be with some real tough instructors. I should get used to intimidating examiners now while I can still afford to learn from mistakes. You’re not always able to pick and choose your situations in life and I was doing myself a disservice by scheduling around the so called “tough” examiner. That all said I fully intend to schedule my commercial check ride with Captain Carpenter and I hope he has plenty of opportunities to share his pearls of wisdom with me during the exam.

Speaking of the simulator, my perspective on that has also recently changed. During my instrument training I hated the simulator and I had no problem spending the extra money to fly the actual airplane instead. Probably that is the reason my instrument rating seemed to cost more than originally estimated. I decided that I needed to embrace the simulator because again as an airline pilot most of your training is done on a simulator. Unlike taking a Cessna 172 up to practice engine out procedures you can’t very well take a Boeing 757 loaded with passengers up and shut down one of the engines for training purposes. Also, most airlines have a multiple stage interview process. You have an interview with the Human resource people, and then you have a session in the simulator to judge your flying ability and skills. Depending on the airline or the company the simulator I do this in may be exactly like the one at my school. I need to get used to it now while I can still afford to make mistakes in it.

With that in mind and because when I arrived at the airport this morning the wind gusts exceeded the limits of the school I booked a simulator session with my instructor. I was coming due on my six month instrument currency requirement anyways and the beauty of instrument currency is that you can accomplish it all in the simulator if you want. The instrument rating allows you to fly when you do not have the ability to see outside references such as the horizon. Clouds, fog, snow, and rain can all create a situation where you need to fly even though you cannot necessarily see outside. The FAA requires that at a minimum you fly at least six instrument approaches and you demonstrate the ability to navigate to a destination relying solely on your instruments, and that you practice holding over a navigation fix or other predetermined point. This all has to be accomplished every six months. If you fail to maintain this currency you cannot file an instrument flight plan and if you let it go over a year you have to accomplish an Instrument Proficiency Check which basically amounts to doing your instrument check ride over again.

For a pilot like me who does not fly into busy airports my holding skills deteriorate the fastest. I planned to work on those solely today and then planned to do another simulator session to knock out the approaches. Holding in its basic form is flying circles over a point. You typically fly a timed pattern which for my aircraft size amounts to flying one direction for one minute, turning to the other direction and flying to the fix and the turning around again and repeating until released by air traffic control.

The difficult part is determining how to enter the holding pattern. Your holding pattern is based on airspace that ATC has protected for you and means that you and only you have that particular area of airspace all to yourself. It is very important to understand how much protected airspace you have because at a busy airport there may be eight or nine airliners all flying the same hold over the same fix just at different altitudes. You must stay in the area ATC expects you to stay in because there may be an aircraft above and below you. There are three different ways to enter a holding pattern and depending on what side of the fix is the protected airspace and the direction from which you are approaching the fix determines the entry. The three entries are direct, parallel and tear drop. Direct is the easiest but really all three are no problem once you understand them.

For an hour and half I practiced each type of entry and flew at least 2 complete circuits in the hold. The other nice feature of the simulator is the ability to pause it if you have a question. That is not a luxury in the airplane since you very well can’t pull off to the side of the sky.

My next session I will get to do some approaches which are far more fun than holding, and unlike before I am looking forward to it.

Window on the world

I have recently realized that as a pilot I have a view of the world that few others have. This is especially true if looked at from a photographer’s point of view. I know a few professional photographers who pay big money for an opportunity to shoot from the air. With my pilots license I can take pictures from the air just about any time that I would like to.

With that in mind I started taking my camera with me each time I went flying. With the onset of fall I really wanted to catch some of the beautiful fall color of the Colorado Front Range.

October 29^th I took a short local flight with my instructor Justin. It had been a while since I last flew and I just wanted to practice some takeoffs and landings. On the way back to the airport from Ft Collins we snapped the following pictures that I hope you enjoy.

Calkins Lake, which is a major landmark we use to identify our practice area for flying maneuvers

Just a nice example of that fall color

Vance Brand airport in Longmont, CO. Brand was an astronaut with NASA who flew an Apollo mission that resulted in the first meeting in space between the US and the Soviets. He also commanded STS-5 which was the first operational mission of the Space Shuttle.

My favorite picture. This is looking west towards Boulder, Co and it shows how the Rocky Mountains dominates our skyline.

One of the many golf courses here in Colorado.

Interesting view of a local high school football stadium.

Being able to see the bottom of this small lake creates an interesting picture.

This is an aerial view of my flight school, McAir Aviation, located at Rocky Mountain Metro Airport in Broomfield, CO (KBJC).

This is the view on final for runway 29R at Rocky Mountain Metro Airport (KBJC). This is my home airport.

This is the view from what we call short final. Because I know you are wondering, my friend Justin is taking the pictures while I concentrate on the flying.

Vegas Baby!!!

Las Vegas has to be one of my favorite cities in the world. I have had the privilege of travelling all over the world and while I love the food in Paris, the beer in Germany, and the tequila in Mexico there is an energy in Vegas that is felt nowhere else in the world.

One of the things I don’t like about living in Colorado is that nothing is close by. Sure we have the mountains but even they get old after awhile, especially if you are not big into skiing. Now take a place like New York or Boston, you can drive 2 hours in any direction and be somewhere else. 2 hours in any direction from Denver and you are either still in Colorado or you’re in Kansas surrounded by nothing.

Las Vegas though is relatively close and accessible. It is a 1 ½ commercial flight and tickets can regularly be had for less than $150 round trip. I can fly myself in a small plane in just under 6 hours. Lastly, if you are really desperate you can drive it in about 11 hours although with the price of gas it really makes no sense to drive.

We went commercial airline this time around and it was miserable as usual. Because we flew Delta we had to go through Salt Lake which is really not on the way to Vegas from Denver. In addition for us to get the cheap fare that we did we had to leave Denver at 6am. Needless to say the getting there was the worst part. However, with the sun coming up as we approached Salt Lake City I was able to snap some dramatic pictures.

2007 saw me go to Vegas 4 times, easily a record for me. My most recent trip was over Veterans Day weekend and the trip was a combined birthday present for my wife and a celebration of our 4^th wedding anniversary.

With it being my wife’s birthday I told her the trip would be about her and what she wanted to do. All I asked was to squeeze in a poker game here and there. Of course after committing the trip to her I found out that we would be there during the Aviation Nation airshow at Nellis AFB. This annual show features the final show of the season for the USAF Thunderbirds along with many other performances and static displays. Luckily she was intrigued by the airshow and since she had never seen the Thunderbirds she was all for spending our first day out at the base.

We packed quite a bit into this trip and each of got to do what we wanted. We both enjoy going to the various shows in Vegas and this time around we finally saw Mama Mia at Mandalay Bay. Las Vegas is home to some fantastic restaurants and for my wife’s birthday dinner we had steak at the Palm restaurant in Caesars Palace. We also made sure to have our requisite cheeseburger at In and Out which is a chain that does not exist in Colorado. Lastly, my wife got her shopping fix in at the Fashion Show mall while I spent some quality time photographing airliners at McCarran airport.

The airport in Las Vegas is one of the best I have seen at for spotting airplanes. The airport authorities embrace aviation and encourage people to spend some time viewing and enjoying the airplanes landing and taking off. Other airports please take notice of this. They have an area right off of Sunset Ave that you can park at and you have a fantastic view of runways 07/25, which are the most active runways at the airport. They even have a sign telling you what radio station you can tune to in order to listen to the tower. This reminds me of the old airport in Denver that had similar spots around the perimeter where you could watch planes. Nowadays airports spend huge amounts of money and time chasing away people and blocking off any views of the airplanes. Part of me understands their thinking but too often we use security as an excuse to just close off everything to people. When we do that in my opinion we have let the terrorists win. To me aviation enthusiast and spotters are an untapped and free resource to aid security. Local spotters are going to be the first to recognize anyone out of place or doing something suspicious. Instead of us having to sneak around, build dedicated viewing areas and let us police ourselves and report anything out of the ordinary. This would free up the security patrols from chasing off innocent photographers and allow them to focus on the real threats.

Since we had a rental car we took an afternoon trip out to the Hoover Dam. My wife had never been there so it was nice to be able to take her out there. I looked like a pro, easily getting us out there without so much as a map or any directions. Truth is I drove out there my last time so the route was fresh in my mind. In fact I think my wife is a bit troubled by how well I know my way around Las Vegas but that is the kind of knowledge you get with 4 trips in one year. The Dam was packed as usual but we found a place to park and got to walk across the Dam. We didn't do the tour but we snapped a few pictures and enjoyed the beautiful weather.

Lastly I did get my poker fix in. The last night I was there I played for 9 1.2 hours straight without a break. My skills had improved dramatically since I got fleeced at Caesars last time out. This time I was the threat at the table and I earned some respect from the other players at the table. I had my first big payday when I won over $500 with my straight flush.

As always I had an awesome time that was over far too soon. Luckily my wife has a conference scheduled in Las Vegas in January 2008 so I will be back very soon.

"Gear up and we’ll scare mom here ok"

announced Captain James “Whacker” Reeman of the 120^th Fighter Squadron as we rotate off runway 32 at Buckley AFB in Aurora Colorado. I’m in the backseat of an F-16D Fighting Falcon and we're doing 236 knots (354 MPH) 30 feet above the runway. Watching from the end of the runway are my mom, sister and her husband. Whacker points the nose of the aircraft directly at them, accelerates down the runway and then pulls up into a near vertical climb right above them. In mere seconds we are at 15,000 feet. We roll inverted to level out and turn southbound.

Less than 10 minutes later we are southwest of Colorado Springs where we plan to do some low-level maneuvering and sightseeing. Just how impressive was it to make this trip in 10 minutes? It would take you almost 1 ½ hours to drive that same distance without any traffic! Captain Reeman then makes the following radio advisory, "Any radio any radio, Redeye 1 is a single ship F-16 and will be flying VR413 for the next 20 minutes point C to point G, 500 feet at 500 knots. Redeye 1". I have to admit that is probably the coolest radio call I have ever heard while flying an airplane. My flying career thus far had been limited to Cessna's and Piper single engine prop airplanes so I’ve never come close to making a radio call like that.

We spent the next few minutes rooting around some valleys, staying 1,000 feet off the ground out of respect for the few homeowners in the area. We overflew eleven mile reservoir where I had camped a year or so ago. There was one brave soul on the water that, despite being late October, had not frozen yet. I’m sure we disturbed the fish he was hoping to catch that day.

After passing the reservoir and most of civilization we dropped back down to 500 feet and pushed it back up to 450 knots. "Whacker" told me to think of the movie Independence Day as we zig zagged through the canyons and valleys. As we approached the Sangre de Cristo mountain range he kicked in the afterburner and we climbed up the lee side of the mountain, rolled inverted and passed through the saddle between two peaks. What a rush it was to experience that kind of agility and power, especially when the aircraft you are used to flying have to go around the mountains instead of over the top of them.

For the next few minutes we took it easy and did some sightseeing as we flew to the practice area. I received a demonstration of the targeting radar as we locked up a small Cessna. As he passed off to our left I could not help to think that this poor guy had no idea that he was dead about 50 miles ago. Arriving to an empty practice area, we would have the whole area to ourselves and the plan was to do some high performance maneuvering to demonstrate the capabilities of the F-16.

It did not take long to experience the full capability of the F-16. After some tame barrel rolls and loops to warm up I was completely caught off guard by a split-S. Evidently we came very close to busting our assigned ceiling and Whacker used the airplane to its full potential avoid any airspace violations. Had I been prepared for the maneuver I could have used the G-strain technique I was taught to counter the G forces, instead I blacked out for a few seconds.

We continued with more sightseeing around the mountains to allow me some time to recover. We circled Pikes Peak, flew over the ski resort towns of Breckenridge, Keystone and Copper Mountain, and then up north to Longs Peak. Longs Peak is one of Colorado's 54 fourteeners, mountains that are over 14,000 feet tall, and I requested that we fly over the top of it for a personal reason. Earlier in the year my friend and I had attempted to climb this mountain. We made it to about 13,000 feet before weather and fatigue turned us back. Today in the F-16 I had no trouble reaching the top; there would be no stopping me this time.

I did most of the flying up to Longs Peak, which helped calm me down. While I was flying Whacker commented that it was evident I had flying experience. He said most people cannot keep the airplane straight and level and are constantly fighting the airplane. The stick in the F-16 is very sensitive and the slightest movement can result in a drastic change in attitude. You pretty much just have to “think” what you want to do next and the aircraft will respond. After the compliment my chest puffed with pride. It’s not everyday you get to hear an Air Force Fighter Pilot call you a good pilot. As we finished circling Longs Peak we got our first low fuel warning so we turned back towards the base. Before the flight, Whacker asked me what I wanted to make sure we got to do during the flight. I had told him that I wanted to make sure that we did the Sandbox arrival when we returned to the base.

The Sandbox arrival is a high performance arrival that serves two purposes. First it keeps the F-16’s from Buckley AFB clear of the landing and departing aircraft from nearby Denver International Airport. Second, this type of arrival protects returning aircraft from ground fire by eliminating a long and slow final approach. During this arrival the aircraft approaches the base at about 15,000 feet and when over the numbers roll inverted, dive towards the runway and then roll back over just before touching down.

After this amazing arrival, which words really don’t do any justice, we did some turns around the pattern finishing each time with a low pass over the airfield and then finally landed. I have heard people compare an F-16 ride to that of a good roller coaster but I have yet to find a roller coaster in the world that comes close to what I experienced that day. Next to my first solo this was the most exhilarating flight I had ever been on. I got the opportunity to fly the aircraft for a significant amount of time and I traversed the entire state of Colorado in just 1.4 hours of flight time. I am forever grateful to Captain Reeman, the 120th Fighter Squadron and everyone with the Colorado Air National Guard that made this joy of flight possible.

Pancakes and Skyhawks

As summer comes to an end so does the pancake fly-in season. The pancake fly-in is probably as old of an idea as the airplane itself. Airplanes and food seem to go hand in hand as far as pilots are concerned. Maybe it is because we view them both as necessity. To a pilot the only thing better than airplanes and food is airplanes and free food. What a perfect justification for owning a small airplane. Never mind that it costs 10 times in gas what a short stack would cost at the local IHOP. Details like costs are unimportant and best left undisclosed, especially with our spouses. What is important is the opportunity to share some good food with good folks who share a similar passion.

The weekend of September 22nd saw me participate in my first pancake fly-in. I know I know, I have been flying for many years now and it is just now that I am going to a fly-in. I have recently rediscovered my pilots license and have promised to put it to good use from now on. Cessna Aircraft Company sponsored their 2^nd annual fly-in pancake breakfast at their Independence, Kansas factory. The Independence factory is the home to the 172 Skyhawk which is exactly the plane I would be flying to the event.


This would be a solo trip and would be the farthest I have ever flown cross-country. The trip checked in at just over 450 nautical miles one way. Depending on winds I figured the trip would be between 3 ½ and 4 ½ hours. I planned it as a non-stop flight but a stiff headwind might require a precautionary fuel stop somewhere along the route.

I filed an Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) flightplan. Continuing with the theme of flying firsts this would be my first solo IFR flight since getting my instrument rating. Heeding the advice of people wiser than me I chose a beautiful sunny day for my first instrument trip. I would be busy enough without having to deal with weather as well.

Evidently I picked a busy time to depart because ATC took me north about 40 miles before ever turning me on course to the east. Nobody said IFR was always efficient. ATC did make up for taking me so far north as once they turned me east they cleared me direct to Goodland, KS and then direct to Independence. Combine this with the 30 knot tailwind I was getting and things were turning out nicely for this trip.

If you have ever drove across Kansas, you probably understand just how painful that can be. Flying across Kansas is not much better but it is mercifully faster. Time went quickly enough and before long I could see the Independence airport in the distance.

Not easy to get good pictures flying eastbound in the morning

Kansas flatlands

My first IFR flight was winding up very nicely. Overall it was very smooth and ATC did not throw anything at me that I could not handle. Even the brief times that I was not under radar coverage I handled like a pro and made the mandatory reports as needed. Only as I approached Independence did the trip suffer it's first hiccup. After passing through the Wichita area I was handed off to Kansas City Center and it took about 9 tries to get them to acknowledge me. I was just about to revert to the previously assigned frequency when they finally responded. They acknowledged the handoff but failed to give me any type of descent into the Independence area so I was extremely high when I got to the airport. Not being sure if it was because I did something wrong or an oversight by ATC I decided to cancel IFR and do some descending 360’s over a nearby lake to get down to pattern altitude of 1600 feet.

After a normal landing and a short taxi I tied down outside the FBO and requested fuel. One less thing to do in the morning and I expect there will be quite a demand for fuel from all the fly-in traffic. It is not normal to fly-in the night before a pancake fly-in but then again it’s not normal to travel 450 miles for pancakes either. John and Martha King of the King Schools have already reserved the courtesy vehicle so I am left take a cab to my hotel in town. Independence has quite a reputation for a raging nightlife so it is hard to resist the temptation but I do. A quick dinner and a little television and I am fast asleep.

Cessna's Independence Factory


John and Martha King's Falcon 10

The photo below from flightaware.com shows my flight from Rocky Mountain Metro (KBJC) to Independence Municipal Airport (KIDP). FlightAware is a fascinating website that allows you to track any IFR flight from start to finish. In addition it maintains them for a period of time so if you recently took an airline trip you can bring it up on the website and see the routing you took. Pretty cool if you ask me.

The fly-in itself was very fun. Events kicked off around 0730 under cloudy skies. It had rained the night before and was still misting occasionally. The forecast called for it to clear quickly but I suspect the weather kept some folks home as the attendance numbers were down from the previous year. Cessna gave us a good look at the new Mustang jet, fed us a fantastic breakfast and gave us tours of the assembly line for the Mustang and the Skyhawk. As a benefit for the Kansas food bank they held some raffles for door prizes and I walked away with a very nice stadium blanket. Considering that summer was coming to an end and another Colorado winter is just around the corner I think I won the best prize.

Neat poster on the side of the assembly hangar

One of the new Cessna Mustangs

Aurora reservoir south of Denver

First flight

I got a late start into the world of blogging, therefore this blog is not going to be in any type of order. I am using this as my creative outlet and as I recall interesting stories I will be sharing them here. That said today I am going to share the story of my daughter's first airplane ride and the opportunity I had to be the pilot of her first flight.

When my daughter was born in 2003, I was not flying. I had earned my license back in 1991, but had not used it much since then. Lack of money was a convenient excuse but the truth was that I had lost my passion for flying. The birth of a child in itself was an awesome gift but I quickly discovered that each and every day is a gift as you share new discoveries. Somewhere during these discoveries she restored my passion for airplanes and flying.I had noticed that from a very early age my daughter Syrena was fascinated with airplanes. Each time we would see one in the air, which was often since we lived near an airport, she would look up, point and get very excited. I am sure all kids do this at her age, but since I was a pilot I thought (maybe willed) that it was more than just a passing fascination. My parents confirmed that I did the same thing as a child. I believe that once a pilot you are always a pilot and for me the bug was back!Now I had no idea if Syrena's excitement over airplanes would last, but I thought to myself that if it ever became more than a passing fancy I would want her know that her dad was a pilot. I found a local flight school and began the process of getting current again.

Like riding a bike, you never forget how to fly. I was extremely surprised that my first flight after such a long layoff went as well as it did. I was no way prepared to fly solo, but the procedures and motions were all still there. A lot of regulations had changed, the airspace had been reclassified and there were these things called Temporary Flight Restrictions to worry about, but pitch still controlled speed and power still controlled altitude.

Biannual Flight Review complete and knee deep in my instrument training we fast forward to January of 2006. We are preparing to visit my mother in-law in Tennessee. This is going to be Syrena's first airplane ride. I told my wife that it would mean a lot to me if I could be the pilot on Syrena's first flight. She knew that American Airlines was not going to hire me in the next two weeks so she asked me what I had in mind. I suggested that Syrena ride along during one of my next lessons. The only problem was that I needed my wife Lisa to go along in case Syrena had any problems during the flight. Syrena would be in the backseat and I would not be able to get to her during the flight in the event she got scared.

From the start of my renewed enthusiasm for flying, my wife had expressed to me her aversion to small aircraft. It was nothing personal she assured me, it was the plane and not my flying skills that she doubted. I understood as my mom had told me the same thing when I first got my license. I have never believed in forcing anyone to do anything they are uncomfortable with, especially with flying. It's better to let them comes to terms with it in their own time. This time however, I was in a time crunch . I did not force her, but I expressed to my wife just how much this would mean to me and eventually to Syrena. That's right I played the kid card, I was desperate.

A few days later she relented and agreed to ride along. We agreed that we would keep it short and simple and just go up in the pattern, do a touch and go and return to the airport. I would then drop her and Syrena off and then go continue with my lesson. As added incentive I reminded her that there was a mall near the airport and she could wait for me there as I finished my lesson.

The planned day turned out to be cold and clear. Perfect conditions for our flight as cold air is much more stable than warm and usually results in calm air. I preflighted the Cessna 172S and snapped a few pictures that I would use later in a first flight certificate.




The flight itself went very well, we took off on runway 11L at Jefferson Country airport KBJC. We made a right turn for a crosswind entry for runway 11R. Syrena was having an absolute blast. I could her saying "wheeeee", especially when we would make a turn. I brought us in for landing, trying especially hard to make it smooth and perfect, which I did. Sensing that was enough for my wife (looks can tell an entire story), I told the tower that we would make this a full stop. We then taxied back to McAirAviation and I dropped my wife and daughter off.

The lesson that day was a blur and I doubt I was even into it. I was on such a high from flying my daughter for the first time. I truly believe that being a pilot is a gift and if given the opportunity you should share that gift. I was just honored to be able to share it with my wife and daughter.

Two weeks later when we flew to Tennessee Syrena was confused. She did not understand why Daddy was not doing the flying. To her, me flying her was the only true flying she knew. I was both flattered and proud. She learned at a very young age what real flying was all about. Truly she was Daddy's girl!

A special thanks to my lovely wife Lisa for making this entire experience possible. Not only did she conquer her fear of small airplanes and is now a regular passenger but she continues to support my flying activities often at the expense of pursuing her own dreams and desires.

Vegas by Cessna 182

For anyone who doesn’t think having your pilot’s license and using general aviation aircraft to go somewhere is a viable alternative to the airlines consider this. I live 45 minutes and $4.75 from Denver International Airport (from my house a toll road offers the only direct route). You need to arrive at least 2 hours prior to your flight to account for parking, check in and security. Then there is your flight time, Denver to Las Vegas is 1 ½ hours. Then with your fingers crossed you get the joys of waiting 45 minutes for your bags. Finally add in 30 to 90 minutes for getting a shuttle van, taxi, or a shuttle bus to an off airport rental car lot. All together that comes out to somewhere between 5 ½ and 7 hours. Now I understand why most folks feel the worst part of their vacation is getting there.

Since I am working on my Commercial pilot’s license and I still need 40 hours to meet the minimum flight time requirement I decided that I was going to fly myself to Las Vegas. Making a long distance trip or two seemed like a better alternative to 40 one hour flights to the practice area. Time is time, and I figure it’s time to use my license for some fun rather than just training. The airplane I would be using for this trip was a Cessna 182. This airplane is built for cross country flying. Roomier and faster than a 172 and it is outfitted with the Garmin G1000 system. This glass panel cockpit looks like it belongs in an airliner or military aircraft not a single engine Cessna. This totally integrated system not only makes cross country flying easy but also extremely safe and efficient. With apologies to any Hummer and Suburban drivers out there, the 182 is truly the Ultimate SUV! Flight time was estimated to be around 6 hours so I planned one fuel stop at about the half way point. The airplane holds enough fuel to fly for over 7 hours so this fuel stop would be more for the benefit of my bladder than for the airplane.

I know what the pundits are saying about now. "Southwest and Frontier have cheap flights to Vegas from Denver." This is true, but those deals are not always available and when they are it is only for certain days and times. You better be constantly watching your email and quick on your keyboard if you want to catch those fares. Flying yourself on the other hand allows you to go when you want. How much is your time worth to you? That cheap ticket price is only for the 1 ½ hour flight. What about the other 4 hours you spend in a line or circling the parking lot. By the time you arrive you are so upset dealing with other passengers and employees, who over the last few years have been shafted by their employer, that you want to be anywhere but on that plane. In the end you need a drink from the hotel or airport bar before you can start to enjoy your vacation. Now I will grant you that my trip was not cost effective but that's because I do not own the airplane. However, since I am working towards a rating I would have spent the rental fee anyway. I might as well have some fun while I am at it. This experience however just increased my resolve to someday own my own airplane.

Friday 20 July 2007

The weather at my house south of Denver was calm and beautiful. However, the weather at my home airport, Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport (KBJC), on the other side of town was reporting patchy fog and low ceilings. I was prepared to file an Instrument Flight Plan if I had to, but when I arrived the whole area was clear of clouds. It looked to be smooth sailing all the way to Vegas. I had planned an early morning departure so as to beat any afternoon thunderstorms that are ever so common in Colorado and the southwest. The airplane I was flying is not pressurized and the regulations state that without supplemental oxygen I cannot fly over 12,500 feet for longer than 30 minutes. Colorado as you know has some pretty big hills to the west and it would take significant altitude and time to clear them direct. Therefore I planned my route to go around them down to the south and then turn west. My filed flight plan was as follows

KBJC V81 BRK PUB V611 CIM FTI V190 ABQ KAEG

This would take us (my friend and fellow pilot Justin was coming with me) to Double Eagle II (KAEG) airport in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Takeoff from runway 29R occurred at 0715 local time, 30 minutes later than I had originally hoped for. No problem though since I am flying myself its no big deal to be a little late. Turning south we contact Denver departure on the radio and request traffic advisories through the busy Denver and Colorado Springs airspace. Denver cleared us to our filed altitude of 11,500 feet and we headed south towards our first navigation fix the Black Forest VOR. VOR's, such as BRK and PUB, are navigation aides positioned throughout the country. Victor airways, like V81 and V611 are "highways" that connect the VORs. The aircrafts navigation radio receives a signal from these ground based stations and then transmits that signal through an instrument in the cockpit that allows the pilot to track this "highway" and navigate across the country. The G1000 system on my airplane allows me to use GPS naviagtion which is extremely simple and much more accurate however, I am using the VOR system as a backup in the event of a GPS failure or outage. As we approach the Colorado Springs area the fog and low ceilings that were forecasted earlier for Denver are a reality down here. Flying along at 11,500 we were on top of a nice cloud layer that blanketed the Colorado Springs area.

A blanket of clouds over the Colorado Springs area.


Looking east over Colorado Springs.


This is Pikes Peak, one of 54 of Colorado's fourteeners (mountains that are over 14,000 feet tall).

Once clear of the Colorado Springs airspace we are cleared direct to the Pueblo VOR and then on course. The clouds became patchy at best and then pretty much disappeared completely. It was a perfect day for flying. After crossing the Pueblo VOR we made the decision to use a shortcut through LaVeta pass. For those unable to climb to 16,000 feet and go directly across the Rockies, LaVeta offers the best route between Colorado and New Mexico. If the weather and winds are not cooperating you still have the option to go farther south before turning west. Today was a perfect flying day with clear skies and little wind. La Veta pass opens up into the San Luis Valley which is very wide and offers a pilot many escape routes such as two nearby airports and highway 160 should conditions worsen or you have engine problems. Not longer after crossing the pass do we turn southwest and head towards Los Alamos. From there it is GPS direct into the Albuquerque area. We landed at the Double Eagle II (KAEG) airport just after 10 A.M.


The Spanish Peaks. These landmarks guided Native American tribes, Spanish and French trappers, gold seekers, hunters, and American Settlers. The early Indian tribes held them in religious awe and named them Wahatoya, meaning "Breasts of the Earth".


Another view of the majestic Colorado mountains


Isn't Colorado beautiful?


Looking north as we pass through LaVeta.


Los Alamos, NM.


On the ramp at Double Eagle airport in Albuquerque, NM.

After refueling, a bathroom break, quick snack and a weather briefing we were on our way to Las Vegas. The filed route for this portion was

ABQ V12 ZUN INW V291 FLG PGS KADDY.KADD1 KHND.

This portion of the trip is pretty much a straight shot west across the northern portion of New Mexico and Arizona. I think the landscape in this part of the country is gorgeous. It may not be big beautiful mountains and trees like in Colorado, but the desert has its own charm. There certainly is not much out there although it is relatively flat and therefore offers some options for an emergency landing. One of the things I do on a long cross country is to constantly scan and pick out where I would go if the engine quit or I had an emergency. I want to immediately begin dealing with the problem and know where I am going to go. Also, I don’t want to be one of those pilots who in an emergency did not remember that they just passed an airport and instead put their airplane down in a field.


This is the area known as the painted desert.

As we approached Winslow, Arizona I can’t help thinking of the song Take it Easy by the Eagles. Apparently they have a park in Winslow that is the Standing on the Corner Park and you can have your picture taken by the sign. Maybe I will do just that my next time out this way. I find myself humming the song as we fly over Winslow.

Just outside of Winslow, Arizona I look left and see this huge hole. We look at the sectional and amazingly enough it is on the map. It is labeled meteor crater. After I got home I looked up this place on the Internet and evidently it is a pretty popular attraction complete with a visitor’s center and a museum. The crater itself is very impressive especially from above. It is nearly a mile wide and almost 500’ deep. Could the meteor that made this crater be the the one that killed the dinosaurs?


They say this is the first proven, best-preserved meteorite crater on Earth.

There was no mistaking that we were rapidly approaching Flagstaff as Mount Humphrey, Arizona’s highest peak at over 12,000 feet, started to fill the windshield. I regret not getting a picture, but I was busy picking up our IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) clearance into Las Vegas. This clearance would give us the added benefit of being under constant radar coverage by air traffic controllers. When under radar coverage you can fly when you do not have any reference to the ground such as when in a cloud. The IFR system allows you make a trip when weather conditions are not favoring flying. While there were no clouds to hinder our visibility there was still a benefit to having the IFR clearance. While under IFR air traffic controllers are responsible for keeping you separated from other air traffic. This would be like having an extra set of eyes inside the extremely busy Las Vegas airspace.

Our clearance had us flying V291 towards the Peach Springs VOR and then continuing on V291 for radar vectors to Henderson Executive airport. The controllers had us climb to 12,000 feet until after Peach Springs and then we started a systematic descent to 6,100 feet. Our last descent to 4,500 feet just cleared us over a ridge south of the Henderson airport. It was a very impressive sight as we skimmed across and then saw the Las Vegas strip come into view. After clearing the ridge it was a rapid descent to pattern altitude and then into a left downwind for runway 17L. There was a gusty crosswind during our landing but it was easily manageable. As we taxied in we noticed the winds died down to practically nothing as the Pilatus PC-12 who had been on our tail the whole way in made a easy or "greaser" landing.


The outskirts of the Grand Canyon.


Finally nearing Las Vegas. That is Lake Mead in the distance.


A closer look at Lake Mead.


This is the view behind us as we crossed that final ridge into the Las Vegas area.

The folks at the Henderson airport could not have been more professional or friendly. You would have thought we flew in on a Gulfstream instead of a little Cessna. The line person greeted us at our plane and helped us tie down. She gave us a bottle of cold water and drove us to the terminal. The airport folks just needed my cell phone number and gave me a card with the number to call for fuel when we were ready to depart. The folks at Enterprise had all the paperwork for our car ready, all I had to do was sign. Within 15 minutes of shutting down the engine we were on the road to our hotel.

To be honest as much as I love Vegas, the trip in was more exciting than the time in Vegas. As I was bleeding chips at the Poker table in Caesars I couldn't help but think that I was probably the only person at the table with their own plane waiting for them at the airport. Unlike when you travel by the airlines the best part of my vacation was getting there. Everyone else had an itinerary to keep and I had the freedom to leave when I wanted. For those flying the commercial airlines the shuttle service from the hotel to the airport is never convenient and usually results in you sitting around the airport for hours before your flight. If I wanted to sleep a little longer on departure day I could. Heck, if I won big at the poker table I could even stay a few extra days if I wanted.

Sunday July 22 2007

Win big I did not, but sleep in I did. It was a longer night before than I had planned and I wanted to make sure I got at least 8 hours of sleep before flying home. It wound up being about 10 which was a good thing. I had a long day ahead of me. I had my fingers crossed for a tailwind, but even then I knew I was going to lose an hour due to the time change flying eastbound so it would be a long day no matter what.

After topping off the rental car and grabbing a quick bite at McDonald’s we returned to Henderson airport. Before leaving the hotel I called and had them top of the 182’s tanks so upon arrival all I had to do was turn in the car. The weather briefing was all good news and contained all the usual warnings about scattered thunderstorm activity. Flying in Colorado and the southwest you quickly learn that every day in the summer they forecast thunderstorms. The conditions are perfect for storms every day but that doesn’t mean they always materialize. If I choose not to fly based only on the forecast I would probably never leave the ground in the summer months. I paid for the fuel and we got another bottle of cold water and a courtesy ride to our airplane. We did a preflight inspection of the airplane and then started the engine. Justin programmed the flight plan in while I taxied us to runway 35L for departure. We departed VFR because I had heard horror stories of waiting up to 30 minutes waiting for an IFR release from Vegas departure control. We took off to the north and immediately turned left to avoid entering McCarran’s airspace and began climbing in order to clear the ridge to the south. We had to stay under 5,000 feet until the ridge to stay clear of Class B airspace. This meant flying south a little farther before turning east so as to pass the ridge at its lowest point. Once clear of the ridge we could climb to 5,900 and 5 NM later we could go to 7,900. By this point we had begun our turn on course southeast bound. About 20 NM outside of Henderson we were free to climb to our filed altitude of 10,500.

Again as we approached Flagstaff we called to pick up an IFR clearance. We were noticing some buildup of clouds in front of us and we did not want to have to be constantly flying over, under or around them. Los Angeles center at first did not seem to want to give us a clearance. They kept asking if we were still in VFR conditions and we were but the clouds were getting heavier so we told them that if we continue on our present course we would not remain VFR and they finally granted us a clearance. The routing they gave us mirrored our filed VFR route except they had us climb to 12,000. We were ok with this because it meant that we were guaranteed some actual instrument time because the cloud levels seemed to start around 11,500 feet.


Afternoon storms are brewing.



This cloud ahead turned out to be my first actual instrument experience.

I have had my instrument rating over a year now but have never logged actual instrument flight time. It has all been simulated either in a flight simulator or “under the hood”. Flying in Colorado makes it very difficult to get actual instrument time because when you have clouds in Colorado it is either too cold and you have the threat of ice or it is the middle of summer and those clouds all contain thunderstorms. I felt both excitement and trepidation as we approached the first cloud that we would be flying through. One of the additional features available with the G1000 system is XM weather. After this experience I believe that onboard weather radar such as XM is a must have. Most of the clouds in front of us were pretty menacing looking on the outside but they were not even registering on the radar which meant they did not have any rain showers or lightning in them. Without the benefit of radar I would have more than likely avoided them and flown around them. I learned also that even the ones that show up as green on the radar are ok to fly through. Green indicates light precipitation and probably no turbulence. Yellow on the radar would indicate a bumpy ride and defiantly some rain but again safe to fly through. Orange and red are definite no no’s and you divert around those every time. Even the airliners will divert around those types of clouds.


The view from inside the cloud. Trust your instruments, trust your instruments!!!



We had planned a side trip to Sedona, Arizona on our way home. Sedona is a very beautiful area and the airport is one of those that you just want to add to your list of places you have flown into. The airport sits atop a 400’ mesa and looks rather challenging but I have been told it is not a difficult approach. The radar showed Sedona getting all sorts of precipitation and after talking with a friend of mine who lives in Flagstaff he confirmed that Sedona did indeed get pounded that day and that even if we wanted to we would not have gotten in there.


This is the XM weather display. You can see the storm pounding Sedona, AZ at the bottom right.

We passed the next hour or so listening to all the airline traffic dodge the storms we could see to the south and north. It made me feel a little spoiled when I would hear the regional airliners call up and ask for weather updates because they did not have radar on board. The spoiled feeling quickly turns to a feeling of relief as I heard the controller tell them that their equipment is only about 50% accurate so don’t believe everything that I tell you. I was also feeling a bit privileged to be able to just fly through the clouds rather than dodging them like we saw and heard the VFR traffic doing. After this trip I felt that getting my instrument rating was the best decision I ever made. I certainly felt a higher level of safety and confidence while flying in and around the weather.

As we approached Albuquerque we finally had to divert to the south a bit to get around a pretty good sized cloud. We could see the rain coming down from it and just did not feel it was worth the risk and the discomfort in flying through it. It was during this diversion I encountered my first “sucker hole” and it was here that I was most thankful for the onboard weather equipment. A “sucker hole” as its title suggests is a hole in the cloud that normally suckers pilots into bad situations. Typically the hole closes around the pilot after he enters it and now he can’t see where he is going. If not properly trained in this situation you can very quickly wind up in a stall/spin situation and those are usually fatal in the clouds. This particular hole was a perfect window through the cloud and the perfect size for our 182. In fact as you looked through it you could see Albuquerque and sunshine on the other side, very, very tempting. As I was admiring the view and thinking we should go through there, the lightning detector on the radar registered a strike right in the center of the hole. Now I understand why they are called “sucker holes”. A VFR pilot or someone without onboard weather would have probably flown right towards that hole hoping to save some time. They probably would have made it ok but then again they might not of. I love to gamble and play poker but I don’t like to gamble with my life. “Sucker holes” had to have gotten their name somehow and I think I understand how. We continued on our diversion, came around the backside and then were able to turn back north towards Albuquerque and Double Eagle II airport.


These clouds and the rain coming from them finally forced us to divert a bit to the south.


The storm is passing behind us finally as we start to turn back towards Albuquerque

Based on our experience on Friday we chose to stop at Double Eagle again. The cell we had diverted around had dumped a good amount of rain on the airport and the ramp was still wet. They were not busy and after fuel, the restroom and a snickers we were on our way. We took off VFR but being greedy for actual instrument time and seeing so many great clouds in front of us we called up center for an IFR clearance. We got one and they sent us up to 13,000 to clear some terrain. We advised them we could only be over 12,500 for 30 minutes and they promised to have us back down after we cleared the terrain. 20 minutes later we got a descent to 12,000 and we flew that the rest of the way home. We chose not to do the shortcut over LaVeta because the radar showed a lot of activity over that way and because it is in the mountains you have limited options when it comes to going around the cells. Turned out to be a good decision because there was a major cell over the Alamosa area and it was causing even the airliners to divert and take our routing. The remainder of the trip was pretty uneventful although the sights were all gorgeous. The sun was slowly setting to the west and the areas all seemed so fresh and clean from the rain. We eventually got on with Denver approach and received vectors right over downtown for Rocky Mountain Metro. One last visual landing, this time on 11L and we were home.


Afternoon thunderstorms brewing over the Colorado Rockies.


Impressive to look at but only at a safe distance. This baby parked over Alamosa, CO was causing all sorts of airline diversions.


Smooth flying for us but it looks a little rough to the west.

Late afternoon in Colorado can be so beautiful.

Finally home. We are about to pass over downtown Denver on our way to Rocky Mountain Metro airport.

This trip may not have been cost effective when compared to an airline ticket but it was certainly more fun. The experience was so cool that I doubt if I am giving it the justice it deserves with these words. This was the first time other than my training cross countries that I have used an airplane to go somewhere distant. I have the confidence and the knowledge that General Aviation is a viable alternative to the airlines. I may not take a 182 to New York, but I can see myself taking my family to Santa Fe, Albuquerque, or Phoenix for the weekend. The experience that I gained flying with the weather on the return trip was invaluable. You can read all you want about weather flying but until you experience it you never truly understand or appreciate it. I certainly am not saying that I am now experienced to fly anytime, anywhere and in any conditions, but I do know that I will not be so quick to cancel a flight just because of a couple of clouds. If you’re a pilot and you read this story I hope that it inspires you to get out and use your license if you’re not already doing so. I am just sorry I waited so long to experience the real joys of flying.

The gorgeous 182 used in this story was courtesy of McAir Aviation, the premier flight school in the Denver metropolitan area. Please take a moment and visit them at McAir Aviation.com