Labor Day Flight To Jackson

Got up this morning and headed out to the airport.

First of the month, so as the Flying Club Secretary, I did the first of the month tasks at the hangars such as retrieving all the fuel receipts, getting the log pages from August form each aircraft and transferring the Hobbs time, Tach time, and the Time before Next Oil Change to the September pages so all was in order for the month.

The I had to wait for fuel as one of our more special members hadn't refueled the plane last night after flying it and had been late this morning to call for fuel.

Then I had to reprogram the radios as the same special member had decided to use COM 2 instead of COM 1 and of course flip flopped all the frequencies.

 Then with the preflight complete, I got my taxi clearance, did the run up, and was on my way to the southwest.

 Beautiful day to fly.

Not a cloud in the sky, and the tiniest of crosswinds.

Keeping the power in I was soon cruise climbing at 114 knots and 121 knots ground speed.

 

Leveled off at 6,500 feet, and was heading to Jackson at 130 knots ground speed which isn't bad for an Archer at all.

Arrived at Jackson rather quickly, and entered the downwind for Runway 7.

I had a nice pattern going and then the tower wanted me to make a tighter base turn for traffic and keep it going into a final, which I did. But this meant I was a tad high on final and had a lot of speed to burn up as a result.  A very nice if both a high descent angle and high speed long landing. 

There in .7 from engine start at Pontiac to shut down on the ramp by the restaurant in Jackson. Not too shabby.

I then met Mr. B., who had arrived before me and saw my high angle of approach and my long landing. There's always an audience when it is less than perfect.

We had a good breakfast and even better conversation.  

The restaurant at Jackson is under new ownership and instead of The Apron is now known at Taildraggers - but the same favorites such as the Pilot's Omelette are still on the menu, the staff is much the same and it is still a great place to go.

After breakfast, we walked around a bit and then headed back to our respective aircraft to get them ready to depart. 

We started up and headed out at the same time and I followed Mr. B. on the  taxi to the runway and we both did our run-ups and took off in sequence.  He departed to the West, and I flew to the East.  

Again I made good time back to Pontiac.  A few clouds and some minor bumps but nothing serious and just another lovely flying day. 

The GM Proving Ground in Milford makes for both a great landmark and a great potential emergency landing location.

I soon had Pontiac Airport in sight and they had me cross over the departure end to the north and then enter the downwind for Runway 27R.

 

 I then entered the right downwind and got landing clearance and did a good landing with 0.8 from startup at Jackson to shutdown at the hangar.

It was a great time to get out and meet up with Mr. B.

That's 1.5 and 2 very nice landings.

Memorial Day Flying

I had planned to fly to Mackinac Island yesterday, but complications and circumstances intervened to prevent that.

Instead I flew a friend in the Dakota from Pontiac to Jackson for their first flight ever in a small aircraft.

I did a thorough pre-flight as usual, and explained everything I was doing. I did the same with the run up and had my passenger read the checklist out so they could participate and see what I was doing.

An absolutely gorgeous and perfect day to take someone up for the first time.

Winds were light and variable and it was pretty much CAVU when we took off at 9:00 am.  I had flight following setup.

Flying along at 4,500 feet we soon got close to Jackson.

I soon had the field in sight, pointed it out to my passenger, and let Great Lakes Approach know I had it, they cancelled flight following and had me contact Jackson Tower, which I did.

Jackson tower had us enter a left downwind for Runway 7 and I did a nice landing. We then got to taxi to the apron and he stated I could park by the restaurant fence right at the front, and I stated I appreciated the premium handling.

I parked perfectly lined up on the fence, and Tower complimented me on the parking job. 

Jackson tower is always awesome.

Some kids at the fence were waving as we pulled up, so after I had shut down and got out, I walked over invited them and their parents to see the plane. The kids got to sit in the plane and play with the yokes and had a good time.

The two of us then went in to have a late breakfast.

I had a coffee and the Pilot's Omelette, of course. 

Outstanding as usual, and I tried the sourdough bread rather than my usual rye this time.

Suitably personally fueled up, we headed back to the aircraft.  I did a preflight and we were soon off again.

It was a little bumpier on the way back, and we flew at 3,500 as there was a scattered layer of clouds at about 4,500.  Even with the bumps, my passenger reelaxed enough to have a small nap.

 

Still a gorgeous day.

We overflew the President of the Flying Club's house and he got a suitably patriotic picture of us.

 

Yeah, that speck to the upper right of the flag above the cloud is us.  Next time, I need to try to overfly his house as its just inside Pontiac's Delta airspace.

Pontiac Tower first had me line up to enter the left downwind for 27L, whcih i did.

Then, he changed his mind and had me overfly the field and enter the right downwind for 27R.

Then he stated I should extend the downwind and he'd call the base turn.  So, I stayed up at pattern altitude motoring along.  He then calls my base right at the normal base turn location.

A bit of a diving turn ensued as I hadn't lost any altitude on the downwind and had kept my speed up on the downwind as he had been seeking to extend me for spacing before he changed his mind.

I then still made a good landing.

My passenger stated that the runways looked rather small as we came in to land, but was impressed with how smooth the landings felt and my passenger said they would fly with me again without any reservations.

I then taxi'd to the hangar, got the plane refueled, and cleaned off and that was the experience. 

That's 1.4, and 2 very good landings, and the first flights ever for a friend in a general aviation aircraft.

Flying - A Solo Brunch Flight To Jackson

The weather was perfect for flying today.

Light winds of 7-11 knots out of 080-110 at Pontiac and similar at Jackson.

So I get the Archer all pre-flighted and was soon had picked up flight following and was up and away. 

Over the auto proving grounds I went.

 Sky was completely clear, and I got routed around some glider activity by Detroit Approach on the way to Jackson.

The heading change put me right due East to Jackson and I soon had the airport in sight.

 

I told Approach I had the ATIS and Jackson in sight, and was told to contact the Tower.  Called them up and they set me up to enter the right downwind for Runway 7.

Entered the downwind, turned base and landed on Runway 7 a tad fast and long, yet smooth. Not my best visual approach by any means, but it worked. I got to report a bunch of ducks waddling across  the runway for the next pilot who was about to take off.   No ducks were harmed during the landing nor the other plane's takeoff.

Had a nice brunch, albeit with quite a wait as they were slammed with people for Mother's Day, and then headed back to the plane and did a pre-flight before departure. 

Jackson Tower was having radio issues with their Tower frequency so they kept me on Ground for the takeoff clearance.  No problems, and they even set me up with flight following.  Always a great and friendly bunch at Jackson Tower.

A nice departure and I headed straight out from Runway 7 towards Pontiac.  

I then flew past Brighton airport.

 Flight following was useful as Detroit Approach warned me of some traffic, and then, as I got closer to Pontiac, requested I descend from 5,500 to 3,500 for traffic, and I was happy to oblige that request.  So, I descended earlier than expected but it was fine and actually got me in a nice position for the approach to landing.

Then I got handed over to Pontiac Tower who had me head straight in for Runway 9R, which I did. For practice, I backed up my visual approach with the RNAV 9R approach, and did an excellent and smooth landing. I mean, it was a very nice landing.

Then they had me roll down the runway to Juliet taxiway, cross Runway 9L without delay, and back to the hangar I went.

A great day to fly.

That's 1.5 and a good landing and a great landing. 

Saturday Flyday

Got in a quick flight in the Dakota to Jackson on Saturday to meet up with Mr. B and his friend Mark.

I hand flew it all the way as the Dakota is still having the Pitch/Trim servo issue with the autopilot.

 I was making good time at 132 knots ground speed.

Wind was blowing from 120 degrees at Jackson so I got to land on Runway 14 for the first time.  I've now landed on all of Jackson's runways.  It was interesting as I was coming in from about 250 degrees and Jackson tower first was going to have me enter the downwind and then changed it to a leg base entry which was quite helpful.

The landing was excellent.

Mr. B and Mark arrived in the pattern as I was shutting down on the ramp.

As Mr. B's plane is having it's annual inspection done, they took Mark's Archer.

Mark has quite a nice plane.

We were soon seated at the restaurant and we all ordered  the Pilot's Omelette, as one does.

Had a great time chatting with them both and enjoying a nice meal, and it was good meeting Mark.

After breakfast, we got set to go, and I was soon holding short of Runway 14, waiting to take off.

Got clearance and Jackson Tower was excellent and friendly as usual, and even knew I liked flight following and they got that set for me without my even having to request it.  Great service indeed.

Great Lakes approach was kinda busy so they dumped me off flight following had me squawk VFR and said I could contact Detroit Approach if I wanted to do so.  I did and Detroit Approach, while they never gave me a new squawk or confirmed my request for flight following did give me traffic info as I was flying which was helpful on quite a busy day. How they kept track of me among all the other VFR targets with the standard VFR transponder code is a fun question.

Pontiac was landing on the 9 side, and I soon had it in sight. I let Detroit Approach know I had it in sight and they had me squawk VFR, which I was already doing, and call the Tower, which I did.

I then got assigned a straight-in approach following another couple aircraft, and did another darn nice landing on 9L.

A great time for breakfast with a great friend, and a new friend.

That's 1.4 (0.7 each way) and two great landings.

Flying: Saturday Brunch In Jackson

Today was yet another beautiful day for flying. Well, it was once the fog burned off anyways. Solid Low IFR until 10:30 am today both here and at Jackson, my planned destination.

But, by the time we were ready to go, the fog was burned away and it was VFR so I just requested flight following and we were off.  

Pontiac was busy as everyone was flying today, so they went to split towers, with a different frequency for each runway.  Always interesting when they do that.  Busy airspace but they handled it with aplomb as they always do.  Mighty fine controllers there.

It was a glorious day to get in the air.

With winds out of 330, Jackson was using Runway 32.

My first time landing on Runway 32 in Jackson. I did the RNAV approach, which was fun, especially as I got routed around parachute jumpers so it was an interesting and somewhat tight approach vectored right to the final approach fix.

Darn good landing there. My passenger was pleased.

Had lunch with a delicious burger and I then took to the air again.

Flew back to Pontiac and did a visual, entering the downwind, with Tower calling my base for traffic.  Tower then requested an immediate base turn and switching from 27L to 27R, which I did and came in for a great landing that was again a passenger-pleaser.

That's 1.6 and 2 great landings.

Sunday Flyday - Getting Some Approaches In

This morning I met up with James at the airport.  He would fly us to Jackson, then I would do the flight back and get in some approaches at Jackson and Pontiac to keep up my instrument currency.

We headed out with flight following and I handled the radios as he flew. We took the Dakota as the Archer is getting its annual done.

It was a gorgeous day for flying.

Ceiling and visibility unlimited.  A few bumps as we flew over bodies of water but that is to be expected.

James made a great landing at Jackson and we headed in and had breakfast. We both had the Pilot's omelette, as one does.

Then we headed back to the plane and we got ready for the departure.

I called Jackson Ground and got flight following and setup to do approaches first at Jackson and then Pontiac.

I took off and first did the ILS Runway 25 approach and then the RNAV 25 approach at Jackson and both went quite well.

I  then flew us back to Pontiac.

161 knots ground speed was rather respectable.

I then did the RNAV 27L approach into Pontiac.

The approach starts east of the airport so we actually flew past it.

There it is across the lake.

I then flew the approach and did an excellent landing.

 Just a perfect morning to get in the air.

That's 1.5 for me, 1 landing, 3 approaches, and .9 simulated instrument time.

Saturday Fly Day

So yesterday I had planned to depart Pontiac at 9:15, in order to meet Mr. B. and Eaton Rapids Joe at Jackson for a breakfast get together.

I arrived early at the airport, entered the hangar and the lights would not turn on.   Strange.

More importantly, the hangar door would not open either.  Not good.

It turns out that all the hangars on the north side of the field had no power and maintenance was coming by with a generator to open hangars in the order that calls were received.

So, I had plently of time to preflight the aircraft with the man door open for light, and to even wax the leading edges of the plane wings, cowling and stabilator using a wax suggested by Mr. B. to make bug removal easier on my return.   Turns out it's not just good stuff, but fantastic stuff, great for your car, too.

9:15 was clearly not going to happen, so I waited patiently, got everything ready to go, and finally at around 10:10 they came by and I was able to open the hangar door, pull the plane out, close the hangar door and get on my way. I already had the ATIS for Pontiac and got moving in very short order.

I was finally airborne at 10:20. Clearly not going to arrive at the planned 10 am time.

I got flight following from Detroit from a very helpful and friendly controller and who helped me and a jet keep separation routed around some glider activity which was helpful.

See the jet in the picture? We had been on a much closer and converging course before he carefully adjusted our flight paths.  This is why flight following pays off.

Running at 130 knots indicated and 146 knots ground speed,  or a lovely 168 miles per hour, I got to Jackson in good time, and arrived to hear Mr. B's callsign on the radio.

The airport was pretty busy and the controller was doing a great job of coordinating aircraft coming in from all sides.

I was setup to land on Runway 7 and Mr. B was slotted in right behind me.  He courteously let the tower know he'd do his best not to collide with me, being a friend and all that. This was comforting.

I landed, coming in with a bit too much speed trying to move along and keep separation, so it wasn't the best landing, but I got off the runway quickly and headed to the terminal parking area, and Mr. B followed right behind.

We met up with Eaton Rapids Joe and had a great breakfast and conversation.  Always good to see them both.

Then I and Mr. B. both took off, I back to Pontiac, and he to Mr. B. Land.  We took off after a cheerful departure from Jackson Tower - the controllers there are really great folks.

I then got flight following from Great Lakes Approach that lasted for some traffic advisories for just the immediate Jackson area, and they held me at 3,500 feet to avoid traffic for a bit, and then they dumped me as VFR with no further radar services.    No handoff to Detroit or anything.  Great Lakes must have been busy with IFR services and were dumping  their VFR traffic (VFR flight following is a as available service - and  a very useful one for everyone's safety but it is as controller workload permits) as they did it to a few other planes. 

I then came into Pontiac VFR, was given a downwind entry to 27L and did a darn nice landing.

Thankfully, power had been fully restored by my return and all was well.

The bugs came off a lot easier after the wax application and I saved a fair bit of time cleaning the plane. 

It was a  gorgeous day for flying, and a very good time having a great breakfast with two real great people.

That's 1.4 and 2 landings.

Took The Piper Dakota Flying T'Other Day

Yesterday morning I got up, did the weather brief and headed off to the airport.

After the preflight, I started up the Piper Dakota and arranged for flight following and headed to Jackson.

Flying at 4,500 feet, I had a bit of a headwind but it was very calm and beautiful out with only a light wind of about 7 knots from 260 or so.

A gorgeous day for flying. 

I flew with the autopilot, really working on gaining competency with it.  

In NAV mode it seamlessly followed the track to Jackson. And with the Alt mode enabled it captured 4,500 feet perfectly.

I then had to switch to HDG (heading) mode, as Detroit Approach routed me around an aircraft that was not communicating and seemed determined to merge with my aircraft on their radar. That worked, and after a few heading shifts I was able to get back on NAV mode to Jackson.

I then did a practice approach to Jackson's Runway 25.  Not for IFR currency, as it doesn't count, as it was clear conditions and I was the only one in the plane. But, I used it to remain sharp with the approach procedure and also to use the autopilot on the approach to gain further competency with that in a safe environment.

Autopilot worked well, and I easily adjusted the descent using the vertical speed mode to follow the approach path down and stay on the RNAV glideslope. Then I disconnected the autopilot and hand flew the last portion of the approach and did a good landing. Jackson Tower is a really friendly and hospitable controller and I passed along greetings from a Pontiac controller to the Jackson controller.

I then taxi'd to the ramp, parked the plane and headed in to the terminal building.

I then met up with Mr. B., who had also flown in for breakfast, and we had a very enjoyable time.

We each had the Pilot's Omelette and it certainly fit the bill.  It was a lot of food and real good.  Service was great, the food delightful. So, if you're ever in the Jackson area, eating at The Apron is highly recommended. 

We then preflighted our aircraft and got ready to depart.

Again the weather was nice and clear, but a tad bumpier as the ground had been heating up, and I climbed to 5,500 feet for the return trip.

I then got routed around some glider traffic, and got a practice approach for the RNAV 27L and I soon had Pontiac airport in sight (top center of the photo below).

I then got a landing clearance to be number three after a few other aircraft.  I kept on coming in, and then they cancelled my landing clearance but also told me that the aircraft would continue to hold short and I was to keep on coming in.

That was a bit confusing, as I was very much on final by that point.  So, I kept on approaching and was ready to do a go-around if I didn't get a landing clearance.

Coming up on the airport fence I then got my landing clearance and I continued the final approach to land and did a good landing.

I then put the plane away and got it refueled and washed all the bugs off, and it was the end of a very enjoyable morning. Always great to get in the air and meeting up with Mr. B. is always a good time.

That's 1.8  (1.1 there and .7 back) and 2 good landings.

Sunday Fly Day - Meeting Mr. B

Today was yet another fantastic day for flying.  Winds out of 070 at 8 knots or less, so it was a takeoff from 9L.

I had arranged yesterday with Mr. B. to meet at Jackson to have a brunch at the airport's restaurant.

It was a beautiful flight, couldn't ask for better weather.  Flew out there at 6,500 feet.

On the way up, I needed to divert a bit due to some glider activity.  Thanks for Detroit Approach with flight following for the heads up about that.

I landed just a few minutes before Mr.B. on Jackson's Runway 7, hearing him check in on the radio.

We were the first two planes on the ramp, but quite a number more came in for the brunch. I shut the plane down and saw him taxi in.

We then had a most excellent brunch and caught up on stuff.

Then we headed back to our planes but didn't immediately head out.  A family was there with some young kids at the fence between the restaurant and the planes, so we asked if they wanted to see the planes. So we showed the kids around the planes, let them sit in the pilot's seat and handle the controls. The kids really enjoyed it, so always good to get a chance to do a good deed for the day.

Then we started up our planes.  I taxi'd first and headed to the run up area and did the run up and started for the runway as Mr. B came along to do his run up.

I got clearance to takeoff and it was a good takeoff, but as I left the runway and was climbing I encountered a flock of rather good-sized birds which was rather alarming.

Birds flew by on both sides of, and above and below the plane. At that moment I thought I was going to have a bird strike. That will wake you up if you weren't awake before. I let the tower know and I headed on my way.

Mr. B. was having issues with his GPS, and I was having what was a minor issues with something as well, but it did not interfere with the flight. See if you can spot the issue:

I then got flight following and had an uneventful return to Pontiac, first being told to land on 9R but then switched over to 9L as they often will do.  Did a great landing and taxi'd back to the hangar and put the plane away, after washing off yet another ton of bugs.

That's 1.5 and two very nice landings and even more importantly, a couple good hours hanging out and catching up with Mr. B.

 

Flying IFR - Lesson 18 - Cross County Approaches

Today I was with Kevin again and the weather was good but it promised to be a bumpy ride.

I filed an IFR flight plan to Jackson, and then after landing in Jackson from Jackson to Ann Arbor and then back to Pontiac.

I go the clearance, did the run-up on the ramp and then joined the gaggle to depart Runway 27R as 27L is still closed for construction.  I took off with the foggles on.

A little bumpy air and some gusts with a lot of haze, but no big deal.  I flew to Jackson and did the ILS 25 approach and landed nicely.

Then I did a taxi back to 25 and took off for Ann Arbor.  Given the air show this weekend, lots of interesting traffic was heard on the radio, including some B-25 Mitchell Bombers.  It must be rather cool when asked by Detroit Approach to say type and to get to respond "B-25".    More on the air show to come.

So we went on to Ann Arbor, diverting a bit for some parachute activity, and I did the VOR 24 and ending with a missed approach, never taking the foggles off.  I still need to work on my VOR approaches as I feel like I'm missing something, but we will keep on it.

Then off to Pontiac where I did the 27L RNAV which given the ILS and localizer is out due to the construction, the RNAV is the only approach they've got, well, and its opposite the RNAV 9.  Got vectored to the final approach fix after getting vectored around a bit for traffic and then in to land in rather gusty conditions.

Overall I'd say I'm getting better at it and it was a nice flight. The cross country nature gave a lot of time to have the approaches all loaded, planned out, and dialed in, so that went rather smoothly.

That's 2.4 with 2.0 simulated instrument, 3 approaches and 2 landings.