We've had a wonderful winter so far with clear skies, some wind, a few cloudy days, but none of the typical winter nastiness we've experienced the last few years. We have had a few cold days, and this morning was one of the coldest.
I checked the weather Sunday evening and the winds were forecast to die down over night. I rode bicycle Saturday and Sunday and both days had to fight a stiff Northwest wind on the return leg. Flying the Chief in a strong wind isn't much fun.
The alarm went off at 0545 and I was up, showered, dressed, fed, and out the door by 0640. It was still dark on the ride to the airport but in the morning twilight I could see some flags flapping in the breeze. High above the sky was clear with not a single cloud. Unless the wind picked up significantly I'd fly and land on the pavement on Runway 10.
The Hangar was cold but the cowling tepidly warm from the Aerotherm Deuce engine heater. I turned it up and did a preflight. By the time I opened the doors, completed the preflight, and pushed the airplane out the engine was warm and the sky bright with sunrise.
There are some who claim leaving the engine heater on will cause condensation and premature wear. But here's a relevant quote From Mike Busch:
A couple of years ago when I was in a hangar at Connellsville Airport with no electric I made one of these DIY jobs:
....but it really wasn't the safest or even most effective solution. I used it twice. The first time the heat was too much for the dryer tubing. The second time the cowling paint started to blister.
Before Bill kindly gave me the Aerotherm, I used 100w Light Bulbs inside the cowling. As long as the bulbs worked, it was a cheap way to keep the engine above 40 F. But more than once I arrived at the airport one cold morning to find one or both bulbs had died.
So the Aerotherm is the best option, and I'm very thankful for a hangar with electricity!
Four shots prime, six revolutions of the prop, she starts on the second throw. I reach in and add throttle until she fires steady at 1000 RPM. I hit the timer and wait. The prop blast is cold against my legs, but wait until she runs smoothly before thrttling back to untie the tail and pull the chocks. I climb aboard happy to be out of that icy cold.
I start to taxi to 28 but the mostly limp wind sock favors a takeoff to the east. I taxi across the runway, sit for a bit until it's running warm. Runway 10 has a displaced threshold so I taxi to the end, straighten out, add power, confirm all is well, then push throttle all the way in. I'm airborne before I'm past the runway numbers -- gotta love this cold, dense air!
I climb to 2000' in the pattern, then head south and west. It's a bit bumpy down low so I'll stay higher and enjoy the view. I fly south of Lancaster, then head north over Manheim, then east along the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The wind is strong from the south and my groundspeed is 30 MPH slower than my airspeed.
The view from here is spectacular -- pictures can never capture the vastness of the sky above and the immensity of the earth below, especially on a clear day when the curvature of the earth is the only limitation. The ridges near Scranton are visible from here, as are the taller buildings in Philadelphia. I cruise along, nudging back on course from time to time, enjoying the sensation of flight.
By now 45 minutes have passed since startup and I have an early conference call. I reduce power a bit and let the nose drop. Soon I'm over the Smoketown airport. I'm to high to land so I slip and do a low pass over the grass. It's very frosty so I'll land on the pavement.
I go around, stay lower, slip a bit, and make it just past the numbers. I'm a bit fast an after touching get airborne again and touch down nicely a second later -- I need to practice my pavement landings -- I've been spoiled!
Fuel off, taxi to the hangar, open the doors, pull the bird back in, wipe off the tiny drip of oil, close up, make my phone call and drive east to Exton. How much better would this day be if I could just keep flying?
I checked the weather Sunday evening and the winds were forecast to die down over night. I rode bicycle Saturday and Sunday and both days had to fight a stiff Northwest wind on the return leg. Flying the Chief in a strong wind isn't much fun.
The alarm went off at 0545 and I was up, showered, dressed, fed, and out the door by 0640. It was still dark on the ride to the airport but in the morning twilight I could see some flags flapping in the breeze. High above the sky was clear with not a single cloud. Unless the wind picked up significantly I'd fly and land on the pavement on Runway 10.
The Hangar was cold but the cowling tepidly warm from the Aerotherm Deuce engine heater. I turned it up and did a preflight. By the time I opened the doors, completed the preflight, and pushed the airplane out the engine was warm and the sky bright with sunrise.
There are some who claim leaving the engine heater on will cause condensation and premature wear. But here's a relevant quote From Mike Busch:
"In fact, using an insulated cover and a multipoint preheating system that is plugged in continuously is one of the most effective methods of eliminating internal engine corrosion, particularly if the aircraft is kept in an unheated hangar rather than outdoors. If the entire engine is maintained above the dewpoint, condensation simply cannot occur."Makes sense to me!
A couple of years ago when I was in a hangar at Connellsville Airport with no electric I made one of these DIY jobs:
....but it really wasn't the safest or even most effective solution. I used it twice. The first time the heat was too much for the dryer tubing. The second time the cowling paint started to blister.
Before Bill kindly gave me the Aerotherm, I used 100w Light Bulbs inside the cowling. As long as the bulbs worked, it was a cheap way to keep the engine above 40 F. But more than once I arrived at the airport one cold morning to find one or both bulbs had died.
So the Aerotherm is the best option, and I'm very thankful for a hangar with electricity!
Four shots prime, six revolutions of the prop, she starts on the second throw. I reach in and add throttle until she fires steady at 1000 RPM. I hit the timer and wait. The prop blast is cold against my legs, but wait until she runs smoothly before thrttling back to untie the tail and pull the chocks. I climb aboard happy to be out of that icy cold.
 |
| Lancaster County at 8 AM |
 |
| Reading in the distance |
 |
| You can't see the ridges near Hazelton and Scranton in this picture, but I could from here |
 |
| The insanely immense parking lot at the Manheim Auto Auction |
 |
| 2450 RPM, 80 MPH |
I climb to 2000' in the pattern, then head south and west. It's a bit bumpy down low so I'll stay higher and enjoy the view. I fly south of Lancaster, then head north over Manheim, then east along the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The wind is strong from the south and my groundspeed is 30 MPH slower than my airspeed.
The view from here is spectacular -- pictures can never capture the vastness of the sky above and the immensity of the earth below, especially on a clear day when the curvature of the earth is the only limitation. The ridges near Scranton are visible from here, as are the taller buildings in Philadelphia. I cruise along, nudging back on course from time to time, enjoying the sensation of flight.
By now 45 minutes have passed since startup and I have an early conference call. I reduce power a bit and let the nose drop. Soon I'm over the Smoketown airport. I'm to high to land so I slip and do a low pass over the grass. It's very frosty so I'll land on the pavement.
I go around, stay lower, slip a bit, and make it just past the numbers. I'm a bit fast an after touching get airborne again and touch down nicely a second later -- I need to practice my pavement landings -- I've been spoiled!
Fuel off, taxi to the hangar, open the doors, pull the bird back in, wipe off the tiny drip of oil, close up, make my phone call and drive east to Exton. How much better would this day be if I could just keep flying?
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for taking the time to comment!