Len Lanetti
Cleared for Takeoff
Good News First
Friday night while talking about my flying plans for Saturday morning with Karen (wife) my oldest boy (David - soon to be 10) chirps up and says "I'll go flying with you dad.". In the past David has has been "iffy" about flying as he's gotten air sick a few times so I was very excited to have him ask to go flying. He did ask if we'd be able to climb to avoid the bumps down low...I told him we'd have a smooth flight or we wouldn't go.
We got to the airport bright and early Saturday morning, stopped by at hanger #5 to say Hi to a fellow who has been busy building an RV (he's there when ever I arrive and there when ever I leave).
David helped with the preflight. I call for a weather briefing that includes "occasional moderate turbulence below 8,000" but there are no clouds so I figure I can climb to find a smooth ride. I draw a line on the sectional from Pottstown PA to Ocean City MD and show David the bigger things we will pass like Wilmington Airport, Dover AFB, the Delaware River.
We put David's booster seat and headset in the right front seat. This is his first time in the "copilot" position that Mom usually occupies. I can tell he is excited to be up front and it looks like he can see pretty well over the nose. We blast off and everything is going well with a quick climb to 2,900 feet while I try contacting Philadelphia Approach. It sounds like the fellow on the other end is busy working several sectors. It is a little bumpy at 2,900 and a quick check with David tells me he's OK. I get through but I've crossed over into the next sector where the fellow on that frequency has me try yet another frequency, once talking to the right person I get permission to enter Bravo airspace with a climb to 5,500. As soon as I pitch the nose up for a cruise climb the ride gets smooth and David is all smiles. We're at 5,500 feet by the time we get to Wilmington and I let David follow through on the controls. He's not interested in flying and lets them go after about 5 minutes and looks out the window as we cross Dover AFB. We're doing about 155 KTAS (rough estimate based on rule of thumb) at 24 squared, covering ground at 170 knots. The new engine is running nice, cylinder head temps are all pretty even on the bar graph well under 400 degrees.
Pretty soon it is time to head down. I like coming down at 250 FPM, passengers hardly know you are going down. It also gives me plenty of time to pull the power back at 2 inches every 2 minutes. I forewarn David that it will get bumpy again as we get low and he's all set. As we get lower we must have flown under a seagull as he makes a deposit on the windshield right at my eye level, David thinks this is the funnest thing (it is the first thing he tells his mom about the flight). Winds on the ground have picked up and shifted a bit since the weather briefing but steady at 10 knots, about 60 degrees off of runway heading. Smooth landing and we head towards parking.
Biology break for pilot and young copilot, a preflight (teach good habits early) and it is not too long before we are heading back home. The tailwind we had on the way down is on the nose now and we are only doing 130 knots across the ground at 4,500 feet for the trip home. The ride is smooth but I can tell David is bored. About half way home he's figured out the ETA display on the GPS so he knows home is getting closer. We talk about stuff we are passing over and a little bit about school (he's doing really well at this point after a rocky start to the year). After a bit we fly over our house and start descending into Pottstown. Speed in the descent and power reductions work out well, David handles the bumps well. An Archer is on departure climb out doing closed pattern work at the home base so I level off at pattern altitude, drop the gear and follow the Piper around the pattern. Another nice landing and we head to the barn.
David "helps" put the plane away by spotting wing clearance vs hanger wall and places the chocks. I give him the cell phone and he calls mom to say we are back while we wait for the fuel truck.
All in all a great father son outing!
Bad News Next
A relative of my wife from the greatest generation passed over the weekend. He was not a close relative but a nice guy and a very young 85. He was an Army glider pilot during WWII, he had a least one landing in occupied territory during the war and earned a Purple Heart. I got the feeling he didn't want to talk about his Army flying (I learned he earned the Purple Heart from his obit). I don't think he ever flew as PIC after WWII but he liked talking about what the Mooney could do and GA flying when we'd see each other. Unfortunately the chance to give him a ride never materialized. I will miss seeing him at the annual family reunion this year and I wish him God speed.
Len
Friday night while talking about my flying plans for Saturday morning with Karen (wife) my oldest boy (David - soon to be 10) chirps up and says "I'll go flying with you dad.". In the past David has has been "iffy" about flying as he's gotten air sick a few times so I was very excited to have him ask to go flying. He did ask if we'd be able to climb to avoid the bumps down low...I told him we'd have a smooth flight or we wouldn't go.
We got to the airport bright and early Saturday morning, stopped by at hanger #5 to say Hi to a fellow who has been busy building an RV (he's there when ever I arrive and there when ever I leave).
David helped with the preflight. I call for a weather briefing that includes "occasional moderate turbulence below 8,000" but there are no clouds so I figure I can climb to find a smooth ride. I draw a line on the sectional from Pottstown PA to Ocean City MD and show David the bigger things we will pass like Wilmington Airport, Dover AFB, the Delaware River.
We put David's booster seat and headset in the right front seat. This is his first time in the "copilot" position that Mom usually occupies. I can tell he is excited to be up front and it looks like he can see pretty well over the nose. We blast off and everything is going well with a quick climb to 2,900 feet while I try contacting Philadelphia Approach. It sounds like the fellow on the other end is busy working several sectors. It is a little bumpy at 2,900 and a quick check with David tells me he's OK. I get through but I've crossed over into the next sector where the fellow on that frequency has me try yet another frequency, once talking to the right person I get permission to enter Bravo airspace with a climb to 5,500. As soon as I pitch the nose up for a cruise climb the ride gets smooth and David is all smiles. We're at 5,500 feet by the time we get to Wilmington and I let David follow through on the controls. He's not interested in flying and lets them go after about 5 minutes and looks out the window as we cross Dover AFB. We're doing about 155 KTAS (rough estimate based on rule of thumb) at 24 squared, covering ground at 170 knots. The new engine is running nice, cylinder head temps are all pretty even on the bar graph well under 400 degrees.
Pretty soon it is time to head down. I like coming down at 250 FPM, passengers hardly know you are going down. It also gives me plenty of time to pull the power back at 2 inches every 2 minutes. I forewarn David that it will get bumpy again as we get low and he's all set. As we get lower we must have flown under a seagull as he makes a deposit on the windshield right at my eye level, David thinks this is the funnest thing (it is the first thing he tells his mom about the flight). Winds on the ground have picked up and shifted a bit since the weather briefing but steady at 10 knots, about 60 degrees off of runway heading. Smooth landing and we head towards parking.
Biology break for pilot and young copilot, a preflight (teach good habits early) and it is not too long before we are heading back home. The tailwind we had on the way down is on the nose now and we are only doing 130 knots across the ground at 4,500 feet for the trip home. The ride is smooth but I can tell David is bored. About half way home he's figured out the ETA display on the GPS so he knows home is getting closer. We talk about stuff we are passing over and a little bit about school (he's doing really well at this point after a rocky start to the year). After a bit we fly over our house and start descending into Pottstown. Speed in the descent and power reductions work out well, David handles the bumps well. An Archer is on departure climb out doing closed pattern work at the home base so I level off at pattern altitude, drop the gear and follow the Piper around the pattern. Another nice landing and we head to the barn.
David "helps" put the plane away by spotting wing clearance vs hanger wall and places the chocks. I give him the cell phone and he calls mom to say we are back while we wait for the fuel truck.
All in all a great father son outing!
Bad News Next
A relative of my wife from the greatest generation passed over the weekend. He was not a close relative but a nice guy and a very young 85. He was an Army glider pilot during WWII, he had a least one landing in occupied territory during the war and earned a Purple Heart. I got the feeling he didn't want to talk about his Army flying (I learned he earned the Purple Heart from his obit). I don't think he ever flew as PIC after WWII but he liked talking about what the Mooney could do and GA flying when we'd see each other. Unfortunately the chance to give him a ride never materialized. I will miss seeing him at the annual family reunion this year and I wish him God speed.
Len
