Post by Scott Anderson on Dec 14, 2013 12:05:30 GMT -5
Yesterday was the first day for the FlightSim.com Multiplayer Adventures Holkham Bay for the Holidays Dash. It was a non-competitive flight for me to begin with, so I was going to fly our 'flagship' Cessna T-50 Bobcat to Alaska, but on reflection it's better suited for Bluegrass's short hops across Kentucky... so I acquired a Boeing 247D in Detroit and had the Bobcat ferried back to KBWG. Other than adding the avionics (the BC-45 radio range selector, and a Sperry autopilot) and getting the panel rearranged to suit me, the biggest problem I had was finding the right color of paint that actually represents true bluegrass (it's a Kentucky thing...).
The 247D has about the same range and performance as the Cessna, but has seating for ten passengers and/or cargo space, so it's better-suited for the Foreign Air Mail 20 route (Seattle-Ketchikan-Juneau-Whitehorse-Fairbanks) that I'm taking over. It's also a fairly-decent short-field aircraft (as I found out on this flight-- no flaps, but that wide-chord wing and some aerodynamic braking work wonders), and can turn inside a DC-3 (ask a Pennsylvania Central Airlines pilot if you don't believe me), although it's notorious lack of braking ability had to be modified before I could leave.
I had three goals: to make the whole flight in one day (in real time if I could), to get to PAHB in daylight, and to survey the southernmost part of the FAM 20 route. What I decided to do was fly as direct as possible from Detroit to Seattle, utilizing the most convenient radio range stations and marker beacons (that's 1940s-speak for NDBs), and then head north, picking up mail at Ketchikan en route.
Leaving Detroit at 0130 Eastern time, I flew via Minneapolis and Dickinson, North Dakota toward Helena, Montana. In the vicinity of 8U6 (Terry, Montana), ATC warned me that there was a Cub that just *happened* to be in *my flight path*, at *my altitude* (I was at around 4,500' at the time). I never saw him due to the cloud cover.. but if you find yourself in the vicinity, keep your eyes open. I think he has radio problems, because he never responded to ATC telling him to get the hell out of my way.
I arrived at Helena just at sunrise (about 0815 Mountain time, 1015 Eastern), and then headed out for Seattle.
]
It was my idea to take twenty minutes at each refueling stop, since it was going to be a long day (I had fuel aboard for 3 hours 10 minutes at 155 knots-- that's in zero wind, which I knew from the beginning was a pipe dream for this flight). I didn't allow for an IFR reserve, because it was only myself (and Bluegrass's airplane) on the line, with no passengers on this trip, and if I had to land short of my intended stop, it wasn't like the world was going to come to an end, as long as they had aviation fuel. As the flight progressed, and the winds got worse, I was worried about making Holkham Bay before dark, so every time I stopped for fuel it got to be an increasing hurried process servicing the aircraft. I am sure I took off with more than one line boy calling me no telling what kinds of names....
Boeing Field... well, there were three takeoffs there, because, as ashamed as I am to admit it, I forgot to start the Duenna on the first two-- but I finally got away around 1045 local time.
North of Seattle is where it got interesting... the views were breathtaking, *when I could see them*:
The winds were at their worst in this part of the flight. North of Puget Sound I noted winds of up to 41 knots, though thankfully they weren't headwinds.
I couldn't carry enough fuel to fly direct from Seattle to Ketchikan, so I had to make a refueling stop at CAF2, in Bella Bella, British Colombia, which was an 'experience' (remember what I mentioned about short-field performance earlier?) At least there just happened to be a break in the clouds and the winds at this moment.
When you are in this part of the world, if you're in a landplane, *this* is your option. It's a bit disconcerting to check the "nearest airport list" and find out that the only option is "back".
Now, I *know* the line boy is pissed at me here-- I taxied up to the pump and only shut down the number one engine during refueling. I was thinking about leaving one idling for the generator, but why I chose to shut down the engine *away* from the pump is indicative of how much of a hurry I was in. I even have a photo to prove it:
North of Bella Bella the winds were better, but the visibility in heavy rain was worse. I missed my approach at Ketchikan and made a fighter-plane turn (remember what I said about PCA pilots?) over the river north of the field because I was afraid of losing sight of it and wasting *even more* time. I had enough fuel aboard to make Holkham Bay, so when I taxied up to the terminal to load the northbound mail I didn't even shut down the engines at all.
Fifty-eight minutes to PAHB. Picked up the marker beacon twenty-one miles out, and made the landing at 1450 local time (50 minutes before sunset) in moderate visibility and light rain.
My elapsed flight time, if my math was correct, was 2469.9nm in 16 hours 06 minutes 03 seconds, for an average of 153.40 knots (not bad considering my preplanned cruise was 155 knots).
Leg 1 (KDTW-KMSP): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=sL71mXvIDvNUGUfXmEyAihdnyd0
Leg 2 (KMSP-KDIK): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=oBwdNKcdrW2Mjdm3XUBaOrxAsM
Leg 3 (KDIK-KHLN): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=2ItbxQa6r5Cupmd9RnuV94qJt7M
Leg 4 (KHLN-KBFI): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=voU3nfWhMu0NnAFC0kpwe2WkluQ
Leg 5 (KBFI-CAF2): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=trabnL5oiMGVG5bwGmHf0ijz70
Leg 6 (CAF2-PAKT): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=RmVesabMXGybB6ueZc6NYezEiTo
Leg 7 (PAKT-PAHB): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=Xlpcjtv90RMJ5DBT1crqAMYQU
I put extra blankets in the plane at Boeing Field. In this weather, the FlightSim guys can keep the cot on the porch of their clubhouse. Oh, and another thing-- someone there owes me 45 cents postage due!
The 247D has about the same range and performance as the Cessna, but has seating for ten passengers and/or cargo space, so it's better-suited for the Foreign Air Mail 20 route (Seattle-Ketchikan-Juneau-Whitehorse-Fairbanks) that I'm taking over. It's also a fairly-decent short-field aircraft (as I found out on this flight-- no flaps, but that wide-chord wing and some aerodynamic braking work wonders), and can turn inside a DC-3 (ask a Pennsylvania Central Airlines pilot if you don't believe me), although it's notorious lack of braking ability had to be modified before I could leave.
I had three goals: to make the whole flight in one day (in real time if I could), to get to PAHB in daylight, and to survey the southernmost part of the FAM 20 route. What I decided to do was fly as direct as possible from Detroit to Seattle, utilizing the most convenient radio range stations and marker beacons (that's 1940s-speak for NDBs), and then head north, picking up mail at Ketchikan en route.
Leaving Detroit at 0130 Eastern time, I flew via Minneapolis and Dickinson, North Dakota toward Helena, Montana. In the vicinity of 8U6 (Terry, Montana), ATC warned me that there was a Cub that just *happened* to be in *my flight path*, at *my altitude* (I was at around 4,500' at the time). I never saw him due to the cloud cover.. but if you find yourself in the vicinity, keep your eyes open. I think he has radio problems, because he never responded to ATC telling him to get the hell out of my way.
I arrived at Helena just at sunrise (about 0815 Mountain time, 1015 Eastern), and then headed out for Seattle.
]
It was my idea to take twenty minutes at each refueling stop, since it was going to be a long day (I had fuel aboard for 3 hours 10 minutes at 155 knots-- that's in zero wind, which I knew from the beginning was a pipe dream for this flight). I didn't allow for an IFR reserve, because it was only myself (and Bluegrass's airplane) on the line, with no passengers on this trip, and if I had to land short of my intended stop, it wasn't like the world was going to come to an end, as long as they had aviation fuel. As the flight progressed, and the winds got worse, I was worried about making Holkham Bay before dark, so every time I stopped for fuel it got to be an increasing hurried process servicing the aircraft. I am sure I took off with more than one line boy calling me no telling what kinds of names....
Boeing Field... well, there were three takeoffs there, because, as ashamed as I am to admit it, I forgot to start the Duenna on the first two-- but I finally got away around 1045 local time.
North of Seattle is where it got interesting... the views were breathtaking, *when I could see them*:
The winds were at their worst in this part of the flight. North of Puget Sound I noted winds of up to 41 knots, though thankfully they weren't headwinds.
I couldn't carry enough fuel to fly direct from Seattle to Ketchikan, so I had to make a refueling stop at CAF2, in Bella Bella, British Colombia, which was an 'experience' (remember what I mentioned about short-field performance earlier?) At least there just happened to be a break in the clouds and the winds at this moment.
When you are in this part of the world, if you're in a landplane, *this* is your option. It's a bit disconcerting to check the "nearest airport list" and find out that the only option is "back".
Now, I *know* the line boy is pissed at me here-- I taxied up to the pump and only shut down the number one engine during refueling. I was thinking about leaving one idling for the generator, but why I chose to shut down the engine *away* from the pump is indicative of how much of a hurry I was in. I even have a photo to prove it:
North of Bella Bella the winds were better, but the visibility in heavy rain was worse. I missed my approach at Ketchikan and made a fighter-plane turn (remember what I said about PCA pilots?) over the river north of the field because I was afraid of losing sight of it and wasting *even more* time. I had enough fuel aboard to make Holkham Bay, so when I taxied up to the terminal to load the northbound mail I didn't even shut down the engines at all.
Fifty-eight minutes to PAHB. Picked up the marker beacon twenty-one miles out, and made the landing at 1450 local time (50 minutes before sunset) in moderate visibility and light rain.
My elapsed flight time, if my math was correct, was 2469.9nm in 16 hours 06 minutes 03 seconds, for an average of 153.40 knots (not bad considering my preplanned cruise was 155 knots).
Leg 1 (KDTW-KMSP): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=sL71mXvIDvNUGUfXmEyAihdnyd0
Leg 2 (KMSP-KDIK): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=oBwdNKcdrW2Mjdm3XUBaOrxAsM
Leg 3 (KDIK-KHLN): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=2ItbxQa6r5Cupmd9RnuV94qJt7M
Leg 4 (KHLN-KBFI): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=voU3nfWhMu0NnAFC0kpwe2WkluQ
Leg 5 (KBFI-CAF2): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=trabnL5oiMGVG5bwGmHf0ijz70
Leg 6 (CAF2-PAKT): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=RmVesabMXGybB6ueZc6NYezEiTo
Leg 7 (PAKT-PAHB): fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?flight=Xlpcjtv90RMJ5DBT1crqAMYQU
I put extra blankets in the plane at Boeing Field. In this weather, the FlightSim guys can keep the cot on the porch of their clubhouse. Oh, and another thing-- someone there owes me 45 cents postage due!
