The fun in going small

 Last night we flew back from Bloemfontein. The plane was mostly empty so they sent a small one. Beechcraft 1900 to be precise.

But I have to admit, I thoroughly enjoyed the flight. There is just something different about smaller aircraft.

And then, of course, there is the view. The 1900 does not have a door between the pilots and the passengers so you are blessed with a ‘pilots eye view’ of proceedings. Truly remarkable experience.

Early morning to Bloemfontein

 Currently working on a project in Bloemfontein. By default, this means traveling to Bloemfontein on a regular basis. With onset of autumn the sunrises later and being that the flight this morning was slightly earlier than usual, i was treated to a nice sunrise flight.

This picture was taken passing the Vaal Dam. World of wonder!

Like a Kid before a holiday

 Just a quick note. Had to share. I have a rare day off on Friday. 

Won’t be available, though.

Nuff said.

C172 Endorsement in the bag

 Happy days!!!!

At the end of last year I saw a clip of some spinning training done in a Cessna. My comment at that stage was that I probably need to do a conversion to the Cessna… cause the Piper does not spin!

Well, all thing said, being at altitude, the Cherokee range is not the best choice if you want to carry more than two people. Therefore, in January, I decided to take the step and do the conversion to the Cessna 172.

And so it happened that, on a sunny, South African day, I started with my conversion to the C172. Everything being equal, I probably like the Piper more, but that said, the additional power and the fact that site seeing is much easier when you do not have to peer over the wing, makes for a fun ride. 

She is much more difficult to fly than the piper and the prop wash hitting the tail has you constantly standing on the right rudder, but once you have mastered that, it is a nice little plane to fly.

So…. (drumroll)…

After a couple of months (almost five, I will have you know) I got the endorsement for the C172 today. 

I’ll stop smiling next weekend… maybe.

So what next?

Financial recovery, for one. And some hour building. As with everything, practice makes perfect. I intend to get alot of practice.

Then possibly a night rating. Would dearly love to have a night rating. But until then, I want to take Enzo flying. And maybe even Nariko. She enjoyed the trip on the Boeing down to PE immensely. Who knows, maybe she has a little pilot in her somewhere…

Nasty Crosswind Landing

I went flying last week Friday. Nothing funny there.

Then a storm happened. I was turning final and ready to land when I was told to Go Around as there was a vehicle on the ground doing safety inspections on the runway.

No problem. Go around.

All this time I am keeping an eye on the storm to the south of the airport, hoping against hope that it will give me time to land before it hits the airport.

I turn base. All is well.

I turn final. ATC announces “The storm has just hit. Surface wind 240 Gusting 35 Knots.”

That’s bad.

I’m lined up for runway 29. That means the wind is coming from the left. Almost 90 degrees from the left. And 35 knots gusting is strong.

The Piper I am flying has a 10 knot crosswind limit.

But I need to land. The storm will keep me in the air for another hour and a half, and I am running out of daylight. Not good, especially if you do not have a night rating.

“JTO. You may go around and rejoin at a later stage if required.”

Nice. But no.

“Tower. JTO. For a full stop please.”

“Copy full stop. Clear to land runway 29. Surface wind 240 gusting 35 knots.”

Deep breath.

Crabbing works like this; You fly semi into the wind, lining your approach up with the runway. Ailerons controls drift, rudder controls direction. I’ve never landed in a strong crosswind like this. Especially one that is not constant. But I bring it in. As I come in I notice a funny phenomenon. The crosswind is so strong, I cannot get the plane lined up with the runway. If I turn any more to the left, I will be flying into the wind, and not closer to the runway.

Bummer.

Wait a second!!! Throttle!!! I have a very long runway to play with. If I slightly overshoot the threshold… no biggy.

More power and she starts lining up.

Now for the easy part. Down to the runway, and at the last moment ailerons into the wind and opposite rudder. No problem.

It’s funny how the repetition of training kicks in when you need it most. I slightly overshoot the threshold but put her down and evacuate the runway well before the halfway mark.

ATC: “JTO. Nice landing. Evacuate Charlie. Hold short Bravo.”

“Nice landing…” I smile.

I had to sit short of Bravo for a second or two just to catch my breath. That was epic!! Do I want to do it again? Not if I can help it. But, at least, now I know I can.

It’s difficult to explain how a severe crosswind landing looks and feels like, but the following video has some nice examples. Enjoy.