wsuffa
Touchdown! Greaser!
I got a call yesterday afternoon around 4:30 PM from someone starting a new business in Dallas. He says "The venture capital principals that are funding my deal will be in town tomorrow. Can you come up for a lunch meeting?"
I have a meeting here in San Antonio at 5:30 PM today on charter reform that I need to attend.
Can I do it? Quick look at weather leads me to believe that there will be isolated summer airmass TSRA over part of the route. Shouldn't be a big deal. So I say "Yes, I'll plan on arriving at Love about 10:30." (SW has a couple of morning flights, the first was way too early, the later one was pretty close to full - and who wants to deal with the hassle of a last-minute ticket). I plan on 1:35 enroute with the forecast winds last night, so I'd want to be wheels-up by 8:30.
I get up this morning around 6:30 to the sound of rain outside (don't get me wrong, we need the rain...), and the sound of thunder shortly later. I pull the weather.... there is a big, ugly mass of thunderstorms along the route. And I have to contend with the Bush Ranch TFR (P-49 expanded to ADIZ-dimensions). Going east, then north toward Austin, then west should work. BUt the storms are moving southwest-to-northeast, very slowly.
(The normal route from San Antonio to KDAL is V-163, Glen Rose VOR, Knead5 Arrival... THe southbound route from KDAL to San Antonio is RV, Waco VOR, V17, Centex VOR, Marcs7 Arrival... both of those airways cut through the 30-mile outer ring of the TFR/ADIZ by Crawford).
The afternoon forecast looks better, with ISO TSRA near San Antonio, clear or high cirrus elsewhere.
I make the call: GO, provided XM Nexrad is working. I left the house in pouring rain, by the time I get to Stinson on the south side, it's partly cloudy. Go figure. Get my clearance, and tower clears me for takeoff at 8:30 on the nose with full fuel. Check in with Approach, and tell 'em that it looks like I'd be best going east a bit, then north, then cutting west to the route. The stuff near Waco is moving pretty quickly to the east. Approach concurs and gives me good vectors around most of the stuff. Everything out of KSAT (including Southwest) is delayed because the storm is over the departure end of the field. Handoff to Austin Approach near San Marcos, and get a turn to the west, direct Llano when able.
Nexrad is showing the "hole" between the Waco storms and the San Antonio holes are starting to close. Stormscope shows no convective where the hole on Nexrad is, so I made tracks for the hole. Houston Center says "10 miles you should be through it", I concur, but pretty good buildups ahead. I get deviations as necessary, direct Glen Rose when able. A 45-degree left turn for 5 miles, a right turn 90 degrees, 2 miles of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, and I'm in the clear.
Score one for XM weather - and the stormscope. Kudos to ATC.
Dallas is showing IFR, and is using the ILS. I get vectors across the airport, left downwind, then join the ILS. I break out just as I join the approach course, and get the visual to 13R. I'm at the FBO at 10:35 AM.... close enough to schedule. Interesting.... I followed the SWA flight from SAT into the airport.
Score one for GA.
I left the meeting at 1:45, and I was in the air by 2:30 on departure. That time includes the wx briefing and a good look at the FBO weather terminal. The storms south of Waco are still there, but dissipating. I get the expected V17 routing, and verify with both Regional Approach and Waco Approach that I'm OK going through the outer ring on the IFR plan. THey concur.
I saw no weather until I got near San Antonio. There was stuff east of town, and a precip 10 miles south of Stinson, moving north. Stormscope shows stuff about 20 south of Stinson. Approach kept me west of the normal arrival routing to avoid weather east of town, and I got the visual into Stinson. It was a slam-dunk approach - lose 5500' in 14 miles. A little slip, flaps, and gear gave me a good descent rate. I got on the ground in light rain, about 10 minutes before the skies opened up. I was on the ground at 4:30 PM, and made it to the evening meeting here by 5:15.
Score another one for XM weather and GA.
Sorry, friends in Dallas, this was a last-minute deal and I didn't have time to meet up with any of you.
Another good day....
I have a meeting here in San Antonio at 5:30 PM today on charter reform that I need to attend.
Can I do it? Quick look at weather leads me to believe that there will be isolated summer airmass TSRA over part of the route. Shouldn't be a big deal. So I say "Yes, I'll plan on arriving at Love about 10:30." (SW has a couple of morning flights, the first was way too early, the later one was pretty close to full - and who wants to deal with the hassle of a last-minute ticket). I plan on 1:35 enroute with the forecast winds last night, so I'd want to be wheels-up by 8:30.
I get up this morning around 6:30 to the sound of rain outside (don't get me wrong, we need the rain...), and the sound of thunder shortly later. I pull the weather.... there is a big, ugly mass of thunderstorms along the route. And I have to contend with the Bush Ranch TFR (P-49 expanded to ADIZ-dimensions). Going east, then north toward Austin, then west should work. BUt the storms are moving southwest-to-northeast, very slowly.
(The normal route from San Antonio to KDAL is V-163, Glen Rose VOR, Knead5 Arrival... THe southbound route from KDAL to San Antonio is RV, Waco VOR, V17, Centex VOR, Marcs7 Arrival... both of those airways cut through the 30-mile outer ring of the TFR/ADIZ by Crawford).
The afternoon forecast looks better, with ISO TSRA near San Antonio, clear or high cirrus elsewhere.
I make the call: GO, provided XM Nexrad is working. I left the house in pouring rain, by the time I get to Stinson on the south side, it's partly cloudy. Go figure. Get my clearance, and tower clears me for takeoff at 8:30 on the nose with full fuel. Check in with Approach, and tell 'em that it looks like I'd be best going east a bit, then north, then cutting west to the route. The stuff near Waco is moving pretty quickly to the east. Approach concurs and gives me good vectors around most of the stuff. Everything out of KSAT (including Southwest) is delayed because the storm is over the departure end of the field. Handoff to Austin Approach near San Marcos, and get a turn to the west, direct Llano when able.
Nexrad is showing the "hole" between the Waco storms and the San Antonio holes are starting to close. Stormscope shows no convective where the hole on Nexrad is, so I made tracks for the hole. Houston Center says "10 miles you should be through it", I concur, but pretty good buildups ahead. I get deviations as necessary, direct Glen Rose when able. A 45-degree left turn for 5 miles, a right turn 90 degrees, 2 miles of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, and I'm in the clear.
Score one for XM weather - and the stormscope. Kudos to ATC.
Dallas is showing IFR, and is using the ILS. I get vectors across the airport, left downwind, then join the ILS. I break out just as I join the approach course, and get the visual to 13R. I'm at the FBO at 10:35 AM.... close enough to schedule. Interesting.... I followed the SWA flight from SAT into the airport.
Score one for GA.
I left the meeting at 1:45, and I was in the air by 2:30 on departure. That time includes the wx briefing and a good look at the FBO weather terminal. The storms south of Waco are still there, but dissipating. I get the expected V17 routing, and verify with both Regional Approach and Waco Approach that I'm OK going through the outer ring on the IFR plan. THey concur.
I saw no weather until I got near San Antonio. There was stuff east of town, and a precip 10 miles south of Stinson, moving north. Stormscope shows stuff about 20 south of Stinson. Approach kept me west of the normal arrival routing to avoid weather east of town, and I got the visual into Stinson. It was a slam-dunk approach - lose 5500' in 14 miles. A little slip, flaps, and gear gave me a good descent rate. I got on the ground in light rain, about 10 minutes before the skies opened up. I was on the ground at 4:30 PM, and made it to the evening meeting here by 5:15.
Score another one for XM weather and GA.
Sorry, friends in Dallas, this was a last-minute deal and I didn't have time to meet up with any of you.
Another good day....
