How It Flies

Sunday tested my flying endurance.

I got a call Saturday night from CAP saying that an aircraft was missing in western Virginia and they needed crews to help search.

I launched around 10 from Richmond for what is usually about a two hour flight to Wise, VA. Headwinds turned it in to a 2.6. After after a quick lunch we took off to relieve another plane and ended up spending another 2.6 in the air, mostly circling.

Then there was the 2 hours on the way home for a total of 7.2.

One of the really big problems with using GA for transportation is being able to get around once you get there. Perhaps someday something such as this will provide an answer:

The Commemorative Air Force (CAF) has lost it's court case to retain possession of a F-82 that it has owned since 1968. For reasons unclear a general at the U.S. Air Force Museum decided he wanted the plane back. This is despite the Air Force having donated the plane to the CAF over 30 years ago. When I was a kid, we called such transactions Indian giving, but I imagine that's not an appropriate thing to say anymore.

Three and a half years ago I went through a course and a couple of flights to transition to a Cessna 182 G1000. I remember studying all of the menus and which way to turn this or that knob to get the thing to do what you wanted it to. The most difficult part was the autopilot, which was before the current Garmin integrated one. It was an obvious flaw in the system and, while I'm glad it has been corrected, it's a shame how many almost new planes are flying around out there with something so much less than it could be.

Air Charter Executives Face Criminal Charges In 2005 Crash - Six executives who ran Platinum Jet Management, based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., are facing federal criminal charges in connection with the crash of a Bombardier Challenger CL-600 . .