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markb5900

markb5900

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Mark B
Will be going to New Orleans for the college championship game in January.

Any advice/help would be appreciated.
What airport to go into?
Where NOT to go?

Thanks
Mark B
 
markb5900 said:
Will be going to New Orleans for the college championship game in January.

Any advice/help would be appreciated.
What airport to go into?
Where NOT to go?

Thanks
Mark B
Click to expand...

If you've been paying attention, you don't want to wander around too far from the beaten path in town. Stay with the crowds. Stay near the downtown and the French Quarter.

I only recently remembered that when I went down for New Years long ago, an old guy we asked for directions was giving strong indications that we didn't want to go in certain directions. I'm such a city kid it barely registered why he was saying that. NOW I get it.

It's a LOT worse post-Katrina.
 
Just got back from the Big Easy.

Actually, it seemed to me that the undesirable element was much reduced from my time there in the past.

No aggressive panhandlers. Could actually walk around City Park and the Garden District without fear of mugging. Quarter looked almost normal again post-Katrina.

St Charles trolley line only goes as far as Napoleon Ave before turning around while they continue to repair tracks post-hurricane (free bus transfer.)

If you aren't familiar with the N.O. tourism culture, DON'T schedule any have-to-see activities on Monday - many venues, stores, and attractions are closed on Monday. Always been that way, even worse now with employee shortages.

Anyway, don't know anything about the airports, but try to spend some time outside the Quarter. City Park has a nice art museum, sculpture garden, and botanical gardens. You can take the Canal Street trolley line from the riverfront to the front gate of the park. The riverfront aquarium has mostly recovered from the loss of almost 11,000 fish when the generators failed after the storm. There is the zoo out Magazine Street (take the trolley and bus transfer out St. Charles then a 1/2 mile walk south through Audubon Park.)

And IMHO you can have a great time without ever even setting foot on Bourbon Street itself, too many t-shirt shops and t***y bars (unless you go in for that kind of thing :D)

Two restaurant recommendations for some good food: Pascals Manale in up-town (fast becoming my favorite restaurant in NO, been there three times now), and the Pelican Club in Exchange Place alley at Bienville in the Quarter. Also if you like good hollandaise sauce you will enjoy Brennans breakfast (in the Quarter, on Royal Street.)
 
Thanks so far.
Right now the plan is to fly down on Saturday. Go to the game Sunday and then fly back Monday.
Not really a lot of sight seeing going to happen.
But never been in that part of the country flying GA and don't want scare my passengers with an "oh ****". LOL

mark b
 
Mark, you may want to PM Danielle (aka Pookies) as she lives and flies out of N.O.

You may also catch her on flash chat most evenings.

Good luck!
 
Hmm, Sue and I and another couple are flying there Dec 30 for 3 nights to do something interesting for New Years. I plan to use Lakefront airport. I don't think having a car is necessary for what we're going to do, so we'll just take a cab to and from the airport. I'm looking forward to the trip.
 
KNEW

The tower recently reopened and Millionaire is open, as is a new FBO FlightLineFirst. I've parked at Millionaire recently and they were very courteous.

KMSY

Class B is GA friendly. I've only used Signature since Katrina and they were very accomodating.

Avgas is > $5 either airport. Taxi fare is about the same either way.
Mary goes down to the CBD regularly (usually by train) and stays several days at a time. It not bad in that area during the day.

I'll be glad to help if you get in a bind down this way.
 
Only advice I'll offer is the advice I was offered: "Don't go flying around at night down there", and something I discovered for myself approaching Lakefront from the north on a less-than-perfect VMC afternoon: you will notice a comment on the chart regarding "loss of reference to horizon" or somesuch as one flies over Lake Pontchartrain... believe it. I've done plenty of coastal flying but I've never seen "gray-out" like I saw there when looking west as I followed the Three Bridges into town. The lake and the sky were precisely the same shade of slate gray, with no horizon line whatsoever. In marginal VMC it must be really bad.
But there's the bridges, the skyline, etc... it's not a hazard if you don't stare at it. And I also found ATC and the folks at KNEW to be friendly and helpful (back in 2000).

Be sure to have a bite over at the Camilla Grille over in Carrollton if you can (breakfast is awesome there), and rather than go to some dumb tourist trap on Bourbon Street (although LaFitte's is fun), take the 30-second ferry ride over to Algiers and see a band at the Old Point, right by the ferry landing.
 
rottydaddy said:
something I discovered for myself approaching Lakefront from the north on a less-than-perfect VMC afternoon: you will notice a comment on the chart regarding "loss of reference to horizon" or somesuch as one flies over Lake Pontchartrain... believe it. I've done plenty of coastal flying but I've never seen "gray-out" like I saw there when looking west as I followed the Three Bridges into town. The lake and the sky were precisely the same shade of slate gray, with no horizon line whatsoever. In marginal VMC it must be really bad.
Click to expand...

Hence my comment about flying the ILS into KNEW as being challenging. It is bad in marginal VMC, and requires close attention under IMC.
 
wsuffa said:
Hence my comment about flying the ILS into KNEW as being challenging. It is bad in marginal VMC, and requires close attention under IMC.
Click to expand...

Apparently, not a problem anymore; they stopped publishing the ILS procedure completely. The LPV minimums are 345' MSL; what were the ILS mins?

---

Edit: And you are right; it is strangely unsettling to fly in hazy conditions (i.e., typical New Orleans summer WX).
 
SCCutler said:
Apparently, not a problem anymore; they stopped publishing the ILS procedure completely. The LPV minimums are 345' MSL; what were the ILS mins?

---

Edit: And you are right; it is strangely unsettling to fly in hazy conditions (i.e., typical New Orleans summer WX).
Click to expand...

200 and 1/2.

I'm guessing that ILS isn't coming back. Too bad - I've been there several times where the weather was below LPV mins.
 
I've seen that effect driving on I-55 in late afternoon looking west. The horizon just disappears over Lake Maurepas.

rottydaddy said:
Only advice I'll offer is the advice I was offered: "Don't go flying around at night down there", and something I discovered for myself approaching Lakefront from the north on a less-than-perfect VMC afternoon: you will notice a comment on the chart regarding "loss of reference to horizon" or somesuch as one flies over Lake Pontchartrain... believe it. ..
Click to expand...
 
alaskaflyer said:
Two restaurant recommendations for some good food: Pascals Manale in up-town (fast becoming my favorite restaurant in NO, been there three times now), and the Pelican Club in Exchange Place alley at Bienville in the Quarter. Also if you like good hollandaise sauce you will enjoy Brennans breakfast (in the Quarter, on Royal Street.)
Click to expand...
I'll second that recommendation for Pascals Manale. To that I would add the Verti Marte in the Quarter. It's just a deli/micromarket, but I love their muffalettas - drove from the SF Bay Area to New Orleans for one in 2004! (Some day I'll fly there, but probably not before the Conus Challenge closes. ;)) They'll grill the sandwich for you which is to die for. K-Paul's for jambalaya is a good choice -- I can't believe how many poor jambalaya's I've had at other places. Jacques-Imo's serves great food and is a happening place at night, out on Oak Street, but you'll need some sort of transportation to get there since it's nowhere near the Quarter/downtown.
 
There is a good chance I'll be in NOLA at the same time... Seems we have quite a few clients who will be heading over for the game....

Maybe we'll need to coordinate a little closer in, and maybe have a mini-gathering...

Can everybody say "PUB CRAWL" !!!! lol
 
rottydaddy said:
Only advice I'll offer is the advice I was offered: "Don't go flying around at night down there", and something I discovered for myself approaching Lakefront from the north on a less-than-perfect VMC afternoon: you will notice a comment on the chart regarding "loss of reference to horizon" or somesuch as one flies over Lake Pontchartrain... believe it. I've done plenty of coastal flying but I've never seen "gray-out" like I saw there when looking west as I followed the Three Bridges into town. The lake and the sky were precisely the same shade of slate gray, with no horizon line whatsoever. In marginal VMC it must be really bad.
Click to expand...

I just looked at the chart, and sure enough, that is mentioned. I can't imagine what that looks like. I'd kill to see a picture out of the cockpit.
 
SkyHog said:
I just looked at the chart, and sure enough, that is mentioned. I can't imagine what that looks like. I'd kill to see a picture out of the cockpit.
Click to expand...


Nick, it looks like a whole lotta nothing. Very disconcerting, and a good place to get the leans in VMC.
 
Why are you going to watch WVU and OSU play in New Orleans?
 
I flew to New Orleans a couple of weeks ago. I was cautioned by a friend who flies corporate jets to not go into Lakefront, that the infrastructure was not yet rebuilt.

Nevertheless, I did go into Lakefront (being a FLIB'er, I do not care to go into Class B airports). Millionaire is there, as is a new upstart FBO, both operating out of trailers. I used Millionaire, and I thought everything was fine. They are doing a remarkable job there, dealing with the devastation. The ILS is still not functional, but there is a GPS approach to both ends of the runway. The only problem I had was when I was ready to leave, the plane was tied down in an area from which I could not taxi, so I had to wait for the linemen to move a plane and to pull me out. (This taught me to call ahead so the plane will be ready--simply putting departure time on the slip one fills out upon arrival is not enough).

Wells
 
Thanks for all the suggestions and help everyone.
But as Ed put it, no reason to go and watch Oklahoma play.:(
 
Is Pascals Manale a place you need reservations (4 people)? What's best - lunch or dinner? Thanks.
 
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