Flying Across America - Planning Stage

On September 28, I plan to start the biggest flying adventure in my life. I plan to fly N4857W, the airplane that I've been a 1/3 partner in for four plus years, from Seattle to Melbourne. But the actual flight itself will be the final, but certainly the most exciting and interesting step in this adventure.

Before I can enjoy the flight, I have to take care of dozens of details. Some of the more mundane details include: modifying the insurance policy and deciding where to park the plane once it arrives in Melbourne. But even the latter has been more challenging than expected. If I decided to keep the plane at Melbourne International Airport, then I need to get a badge to enter the gate, which involves getting fingerprinted and background checked, then (hopefully) TSA approved.

Planning the route has been pretty interesting as well. The direct route is 2,255 nautical miles. If the plane was capable of flying this route non-stop, it would take a little over 17 hours to complete. The plane, however can only travel about 500 nautical miles per full fuel load, with an hour of reserve to account for unexpected head winds or route diversions. So, I've decided to break the route up into five legs, each a little under 500 nautical miles. I plan to fly no more than two legs per day, resulting in a trip that will take at least 2 1/2 days to complete. Choosing the route for each leg has been time consuming; some of the legs are on their fourth revision.

Leg 1 - Renton, Washington to Bozeman, Montana
The first leg promises to be the most visually stunning as well as the most challenging. The flight path will basically follow Interstate 90 over the Cascade Mountains at Snoqualmie Pass, across the dry farmland of central Washington, over the Western Rocky Mountains in Idaho at Mullan Pass, then continuing over the Rocky Mountains past Butte and on to Bozeman, Montana. This is the same route I drove when moving to Florida in 2008 - almost to the day.

Leg 2 - Bozeman, Montana to Oshkosh, Nebraska
This leg continues out of Montana, across Wyoming, and into Nebraska. During this leg, we leave the Rockies behind and enter the plains.

Leg 3 - Oshkosh, Nebraska to Nevada, Missouri
This leg continues southeast across Nebraska, down into Kansas, and finally into Missouri. This leg is currently being discussed and may change a little to incorporate a visit with my co-pilot's family.

Leg 4 - Nevada, Missouri to Pell City, Alabama
This leg continues across Missouri, into Arkansas, over the Mississippi River near Memphis, Tennessee, and into Alabama. I considered stopping in Decatur, Alabama, which is where I took my first official flight lesson. Depending on what happens with Leg 3, we may end up in Decatur after all.

Leg 5 - Pell City, Alabama to Melbourne, Florida
The final leg continues across Alabama, over Georgia, and finally into Florida. This leg will also be difficult because the dreaded, deadly attitude known as "Get-there-itis" will try to kick in and ruin our day. If all goes well, we will arrive ahead of schedule and relaxed, and the weather will be perfect.

Proposed route across America

View Flight Across America in a larger map

Another important detail was the choice of co-pilot. I was very excited when my first choice accepted my invitation and started providing input into the route planning. He is a very accomplished pilot who holds a Certified Flight Instructor certificate and has experience in the Commander. He also has an iPad with ForeFlight, which is a bonus. Welcome aboard, Todd.

When the time comes, you can follow our progress on the computer. Click on the following URL and you will see our current and past flights. If we are airborne, you will get near-real-time updates. The URL is:

http://flightaware.com/live/flight/N4857W.