Flying to Baltimore\DC

texasag93

texasag93

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texasag93
My wife has a conference in Baltimore in April. I am flying up from Sun N Fun to meet her and attend a conference.

We are then going to stay in DC for a few days and sight see.

Any input on what airport would be good to park the airplane?

Thanks.
 
do you need a hangar....a rental car.....or other needs?

Are you going IFR....or VFR. That will make a big difference where you'll want to arrive.
 
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Baltimore and DC? Tipton (fme) is probably your best bet, unless you have an irrational fear of the SFRA (take the online FAA course) in which case you could do Bay Bridge (w29).

I recommend Uber for getting around up here. It's plentiful, cheap, and nicer than the cabs. If you're new to uber, be sure to get a referral from another Uber user; both will get credit for a free ride.
 
I will need a rental car. I do not need a hangar, a tie down would be fine.

We are staying at the venue for her conference. I do not know where we are staying in DC.
 
If you are staying at the venue, you may be better off without a rental car. Parking a plane at Signature BWI probably costs about the same per night as parking a car at any of the downtown hotels. Just take a cab/Uber/Lyft to get to your hotel. To get from Baltimore to DC during the daytime, the commuter rail or even Amtrak are good options. Both stop at BWI so when you return from the DC part of your trip, you just get off the train and take a cab up to Signature.
 
Tipton is good....File IFR and never squawk 1200, even on the ground. Also, do your SFRA training.
 
Lee airport (ANP) is another option and is an easier commute to DC than the other airports plus if you plan on sightseeing afterwards than Annapolis is a good place to start.


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Doubt you could get a car at Lee, Tipton, or Suburban. GAI may be a better bet for that.
 
texasag93 said:
I will need a rental car. I do not need a hangar, a tie down would be fine.

We are staying at the venue for her conference. I do not know where we are staying in DC.
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Do you really need a rental car or will the Metro suffice?

Since you mention doing Baltimore and DC in the same trip, BWI is very convenient. There is a train station right there at the airport than for like $5 will take you in to Union Station where you can Metro anywhere in DC. The money you save in rental car fees will more than make up for the ramp fee at BWI.
 
Prefer BWI if your doing Baltimore ,DC ,the public transportation works fine. I have used Leesburg when visiting DC ,not very convenient to DC and the train hasn't gotten that far out yet.
 
flyingron said:
Doubt you could get a car at Lee, Tipton, or Suburban. GAI may be a better bet for that.
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I've flown into Tipton (FME) a couple of times and had no problem at all getting a rental car (Enterprise) when arranged in advance. In the very worst case, FME is so close to BWI that it's a very short cab/uber ride to the rental car facility at BWI.

For doing both DC and Baltimore, FME is probably best. If you can do IFR, it's a piece of cake (but don't brush the FRZ). BWI is pretty pricy, and GAI is kinda far for Baltimore.
 
I assume I will be flying IFR, I generally file if I am flying outside of the DFW area.

I am going to take the DC SFRA course in the next couple of days.
 
texasag93 said:
I assume I will be flying IFR, I generally file if I am flying outside of the DFW area.

I am going to take the DC SFRA course in the next couple of days.
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Take the course - under IFR is no big deal (except that you 1- can't ever squawk 1200, and 2 - can't launch VFR without a squawk code).

On one of my trips, they pointed me toward the FRZ on a vector, and had me turn to FME within about 2 miles from the FRZ border. Only a tiny bit uncomfortable if the frequency is busy, but they will help you avoid the FRZ when IFR.

At one time, there was an RCO (privately maintained) at the field. You might enquire as to whether that's still the case.
 
VFR, FME is in a bit of a virtual canyon. FRZ on one side, bravo on the other. Also a wildlife refuge and lots of birds. If you dont know the landmarks, try to arrive IFR.
 
Thank you for the PIREP on FME. I plan on being IFR due to being unfamiliar with the area, even if severe clear.

I went ahead and took the DC SFRA class.
 
I called Signature. $37 handling fee waived with 7 gallons. $44 landing. $36 per night for tie downs. Online, the comments say $13, I could have lived with that, but $200 for the week to tie down is a bit steep. I understand making a profit.

FME is $10 a night plus , over 5 nights it goes to $7.50. Taxi/Uber to BWI to meet the wife and take public transportation to the venue.
 
texasag93 said:
I called Signature. $37 handling fee waived with 7 gallons. $44 landing. $36 per night for tie downs. Online, the comments say $13, I could have lived with that, but $200 for the week to tie down is a bit steep. I understand making a profit.
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Does your trip include a weekend ? I have found that Signature will at times waive the parking fee on weekends or waive additional nights if you take more of their ridiculously overpriced fuel.

I have only been to FME for CAP activities. Their FBO operation is quite limited, call ahead and make sure they are open when you intend to arrive and depart.
 
If you're talking about BWI, there's Signature's "handling" fee which they are free to waive, but the Maryland DOT wants the parking no matter what if you stay longer than 4 hours (signature just handles it for you).
 
weilke said:
Does your trip include a weekend ? I have found that Signature will at times waive the parking fee on weekends or waive additional nights if you take more of their ridiculously overpriced fuel.

I have only been to FME for CAP activities. Their FBO operation is quite limited, call ahead and make sure they are open when you intend to arrive and depart.
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I am arriving on Friday or Saturday and leaving the following Friday or Saturday (both depending on weather). The person I talked to said nothing about a weekend discount. I then asked about a weekend discount and he said there was none.

I understand costs of running an airport, so I am not offended by the fees. If FME was not so close, I would be paying them.

If the parking fee were DOT, why doesn't FME charge them? (I better not give Maryland DOT any ideas)
 
texasag93 said:
I am arriving on Friday or Saturday and leaving the following Friday or Saturday (both depending on weather). The person I talked to said nothing about a weekend discount. I then asked about a weekend discount and he said there was none.
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Some Signatures have it, some don't.

I understand costs of running an airport, so I am not offended by the fees. If FME was not so close, I would be paying them.
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Well, Signature seems to top all the other FBOs in their fee structure. Otoh they have to lease their ramp space from the airport authority, build the snazzy facility, pay all the guys with their spiffy uniforms etc. So I do understand why they have to charge for handling and parking.

If the parking fee were DOT, why doesn't FME charge them? (I better not give Maryland DOT any ideas)
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BWI and Martin State are operated by the Maryland Aviation Authority (an office of state DOT) which sets some of the fees. There is a landing fee and a daily parking fee and they are published by the MAA.

FME is operated by the 'Tipton Airport Authority'. When the airport was surplused by the Army, the authority was formed to operate the field (and to have an entity that is eligible to receive FAA funding, there is no municpality of 'Fort Meade' and as it is federal land, the county would not have been able to take jurisdiction).
 
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Well, I went to KFME. They are a bunch of friendly people.

I arrived a day early, left 3 days earlier than expected due to an office issue, and it was all very simple.

I flew IFR all the way in and out. No issue with the SFRA. I took a taxi to and from Baltimore.

I put 22 hours in the logbook.

Flying from KSAV to KFME, I was handed off about 15 times. About the same number of times as going from KLAL to KSAV. I did a 434nm night flight going home.

It was a great experience.

I plan on going back to the northeast in June or July with my son.
 
texasag93 said:
Well, I went to KFME. They are a bunch of friendly people.

I arrived a day early, left 3 days earlier than expected due to an office issue, and it was all very simple.

I flew IFR all the way in and out. No issue with the SFRA. I took a taxi to and from Baltimore.

I put 22 hours in the logbook.

Flying from KSAV to KFME, I was handed off about 15 times. About the same number of times as going from KLAL to KSAV. I did a 434nm night flight going home.

It was a great experience.

I plan on going back to the northeast in June or July with my son.
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Glad to hear the trip went well. As you discovered, the sfra is a non-event.
 
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