K
KennyFlys
Guest
I have a hard time believing you were content with sleeping in the cockpit.
Your most difficult approach.
- Thread starter AdamZ
- Start date
jwriteclub
Line Up and Wait
Late Evening. Earlier in the day I had flown down California to visit a friend in San Luis Obispo. We decided to take a jaunt down to coast to Santa Barbara for Dinner. After doing a quick fuel calculation, I determined that we had enough fuel on board to make it to SBA with IFR reserves (at the time SBA was calling VFR) without having the plane refueled. We did a quick night preflight and although one of the lights was out, the other was on, and you only need one, right?
My friend is a student, and I, a newly minted CFI (but not I-I) was happy to sit in the right seat and let him log the hours. The winds on the trip down were significantly higher than expected (as high as the mid 60s, right on the nose). By the time we got to SBA it was IFR. I had the plate in the back, so I put it on my yoke, and went to set myself up for the approach. Unfortunately, I've never actually landed out of an ILS from the right seat before. In addition fuel is at an interesting state: we have plenty to fly a couple of approaches, but not enough to get back to San Luis with and IFR reserve, and the whole region is now IFR.
My friend starts looking for possible downwind and inland alternates and I start the ILS. Much to my dismay, when I turn the landing light on -- nothing.
"Oh, well", I say, "the ceiling is at ~ 1000" I should see the airport in plenty of time.
I fly the ILS beautifully (if I do say so myself) -- needles perfectly centered, etc. Upon reaching the reported ceiling, I can see the city lights, but I cannot see the airport lights. I ask the tower to "give me all the lights you can" and both my friend and I keep scanning, neither of us acquiring the runway. As I got closer to minimums, I started checking that I was looking at the right nav signal etc. Finally right at minimums, I can just make out the green threshold lights. I make far from by best landing and from the ground we can see that runway lights are on, but very dim. Quite literally, my friend's flashlight stuck out the window to taxi by is brighter than the runway lights. In addition, the approach lights, VASI, REIL and many other lights are not lit.
Upon reaching the terminal, I called the tower, who informed me that "due to light pollution complaints, we only turn on the approach lights for large aircraft unless the weather is at minimums".
In any case, we went to the delicious bar on the beach right at the end of the runway (beachhouse? beachcombers?) and mumbled angrily to ourselves about an idiot who didn't seem to understand that "all you can" doesn't mean "all you feel like".
~ Christopher
My friend is a student, and I, a newly minted CFI (but not I-I) was happy to sit in the right seat and let him log the hours. The winds on the trip down were significantly higher than expected (as high as the mid 60s, right on the nose). By the time we got to SBA it was IFR. I had the plate in the back, so I put it on my yoke, and went to set myself up for the approach. Unfortunately, I've never actually landed out of an ILS from the right seat before. In addition fuel is at an interesting state: we have plenty to fly a couple of approaches, but not enough to get back to San Luis with and IFR reserve, and the whole region is now IFR.
My friend starts looking for possible downwind and inland alternates and I start the ILS. Much to my dismay, when I turn the landing light on -- nothing.
"Oh, well", I say, "the ceiling is at ~ 1000" I should see the airport in plenty of time.
I fly the ILS beautifully (if I do say so myself) -- needles perfectly centered, etc. Upon reaching the reported ceiling, I can see the city lights, but I cannot see the airport lights. I ask the tower to "give me all the lights you can" and both my friend and I keep scanning, neither of us acquiring the runway. As I got closer to minimums, I started checking that I was looking at the right nav signal etc. Finally right at minimums, I can just make out the green threshold lights. I make far from by best landing and from the ground we can see that runway lights are on, but very dim. Quite literally, my friend's flashlight stuck out the window to taxi by is brighter than the runway lights. In addition, the approach lights, VASI, REIL and many other lights are not lit.
Upon reaching the terminal, I called the tower, who informed me that "due to light pollution complaints, we only turn on the approach lights for large aircraft unless the weather is at minimums".
In any case, we went to the delicious bar on the beach right at the end of the runway (beachhouse? beachcombers?) and mumbled angrily to ourselves about an idiot who didn't seem to understand that "all you can" doesn't mean "all you feel like".
~ Christopher