timwinters
Ejection Handle Pulled
So, yesterday, I wanted to fly to Gaston's or Tan-Tar-A for Sunday brunch. There were low clouds, fog and mist in our area early in the morning left over from the previous evening's rain but it was clearing off nicely at the farm as I left for the airport at 0800 and it was clearing at the airport (KCGI) as I rolled in.
I had preflighted the night before so I pulled the plane out, fired it up and taxied away.
ASOS was reporting 600 broken (even though it wasn't).
I called ground, tell them I'm VFR to the west. I'm cleared to taxi to runway 20 but then...
ground (who's the same controller that mans tower): "57D, I can't release you to depart VFR when we're reporting IFR conditions."
me: "Really? What about that hole the size of Rhode Island that's sitting right over the airport?"
ground: "Sorry, can't do it."
I let my instrument currency lapse so I couldn't ask for a local IFR just to get above the clouds...clouds that stopped within 30 miles on a westerly heading. Besides, quite literally, the hole was about 2 miles in diameter (and the clouds 500' thick at the most...lifting fog basically). I would have made a perfectly legal departure relative to cloud clearance.
So, I hung out for about 30 minutes, conditions didn't change much, so I put the plane away and went home. At any time during that 30 minutes I could've made a legal departure, big holes were scattered about, but ASOS kept reporting "broken" though it was gradually raising...900' when I left.
I'm sure this is in the regs and he literally couldn't let me take off, but...really? No common sense is allowed I guess.
Just one more time when I miss being at an uncontrolled field so I can do stoopid chit when I want to!![Wink ;) ;)](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
I had preflighted the night before so I pulled the plane out, fired it up and taxied away.
ASOS was reporting 600 broken (even though it wasn't).
I called ground, tell them I'm VFR to the west. I'm cleared to taxi to runway 20 but then...
ground (who's the same controller that mans tower): "57D, I can't release you to depart VFR when we're reporting IFR conditions."
me: "Really? What about that hole the size of Rhode Island that's sitting right over the airport?"
ground: "Sorry, can't do it."
I let my instrument currency lapse so I couldn't ask for a local IFR just to get above the clouds...clouds that stopped within 30 miles on a westerly heading. Besides, quite literally, the hole was about 2 miles in diameter (and the clouds 500' thick at the most...lifting fog basically). I would have made a perfectly legal departure relative to cloud clearance.
So, I hung out for about 30 minutes, conditions didn't change much, so I put the plane away and went home. At any time during that 30 minutes I could've made a legal departure, big holes were scattered about, but ASOS kept reporting "broken" though it was gradually raising...900' when I left.
I'm sure this is in the regs and he literally couldn't let me take off, but...really? No common sense is allowed I guess.
Just one more time when I miss being at an uncontrolled field so I can do stoopid chit when I want to!