Saturday, January 26, 2013

Sky time in the Skyhawk

Plane: Cessna 172
Route: 40I, Local 
Weather: Scattered clouds, 28 degrees, wind 350 degrees at 6 knots

Somehow, it's already been over four months since we took the 172 up to Michigan. With a one-day jaunt over to Evansville, IN in the near future (that's plan, at least) I needed to get current. So I bugged out of work a little early for some Friday flying in trusty old 14L.

Other than the cold, it turned into a nice afternoon to fly. I thought about heading over to Wright Brothers to stay off the grass, but in the end decided to stay at Stewart. The ground wasn't too soft and I didn't have a ton of time; five trips around the home patch would have to suffice.

A lightly-loaded 172, with only a pilot and 20 gallons of fuel performs quite admirably when it's 28 degrees outside. I was climbing fast and had to remind myself to knock a few knots off my final approach speed. The first couple of landings were a tad long, though smooth. I didn't like my third or fourth approach and went around. The final landing was a total short-field greaser, with little float and as gentle of a touchdown as one could ever hope for on frozen turf.

I recorded video but, over a week later, haven't had a chance to touch it. Editing software is still on my to-buy list for the new PC. Not that watching me take off and land is particularly exciting, but it's nice to have more than text to share sometimes. I guess that will have to wait until the aforementioned trip!

Flight Track: Google Earth KMZ File 
Today's Flight: 0.8 hours
Total Time: 251.8 hours

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