Flight Time–Labor Day Weekend

With my currency renewed, I was anxious to start building some flight time as pilot in command (PIC). This weekend was a great opportunity to get started.

Saturday, September 2

On Saturday morning, I got out of bed early and started planning a flight. I wanted to go somewhere new, but also close. I wanted to avoid all special use airspaces. And I wanted to avoid having to talk to air traffic control (ATC). I chose Palm Beach County Glades (KPHK), which is near the town of Pahokee.

With the planning complete, Susan and I headed to Valkaria. We arrived at the airport around 10:45 and started the pre-flight. Within minutes, we were ready to go. After take-off, we turned onto our route and headed for Lake Okeechobee. As we approached, I could see at least a dozen aircraft on my iPad. Okeechobee Airport is a popular breakfast destination for local pilots. When we reached the shoreline, I turned left and followed it to the South. As we approached the airport, I heard two other pilots in the traffic pattern. One was a Cessna Caravan on amphibious floats flying a low grid pattern over the lake.

After landing, we parked and walked to the FBO. There was a guy behind the desk and another guy in the shop next door, otherwise the airport was deserted. The FBO was nice looking, and the air conditioning felt good. There were nice chairs, a planning room, and showers, but not much more. They didn’t even have a vending machine. Luckily, I had a few peanut butter bars in my flight bag.

After a short break, we walked back to the plane and prepared for our flight back to Valkaria. The trip back was uneventful, but I couldn’t help thinking about how I confused Vero Beach and Fort Pierce back in my FlightSafety days.

Sunday, September 3

After the flight on Saturday, we drove to UCF to pick up Andrew. He was anxious to go for a flight, so we planned to go somewhere on Sunday. As the day progressed, we kept finding other things to do. But then, I remembered that there was a SpaceX launch planned for 7:25 pm. I thought, “Wouldn’t it be cool to watch the launch from the plane?” So that’s what we decided to do.

With plan in mind, we headed to Valkaria. On the way, we were notified that the launch was delayed until after 10:00. We were bummed, but we decided to make the flight anyway.

After take-off, we headed South along the Indian River to gain altitude before turning North towards the Cape. It was at this point that I realized that the door was not closed properly. I asked Andrew if he could close it properly, but there was too much air pressure for him to open the door enough to slam it shut. I slowed down as much as I could, but it was no use. Andrew held onto the door handle while I returned to Valkaria airport. On the ground, Andrew shut the door securely and we taxied back to the runway.

Back in the air, we repeated the plan. We climbed to 5,500 feet, which was higher than the nearby clouds. We flew high over Melbourne airport. While directly above the airport, I called Melbourne Tower and asked how they heard me and they responded, “Loud and clear”. Slowly, I'm rebuilding my confidence in the radios.

By now, it was 7:30 and the sun was scheduled to set at 7:42. I turned around and returned to Valkaria airport. Although I am now current, I am not current to carry passengers at night.

Back on the ground, we teamed up on the clean up tasks. Susan cleaned the windows, while Andrew wiped down the leading edge of the wings and I cleaned the struts and propeller.

Monday, September 4

On Monday, we planned a flight to DeLand to have lunch with Mom. This flight plan was the most challenging so far. It involved flying over three Class D airports, flying through an Alert area, avoiding Orlando’s Class B airspace, and avoiding Daytona’s Class C airspace.

With the plan in the iPad, we headed for Valkaria. We quickly prepared the plane for flight and were on our way. Along the way, the traffic advisor on the iPad reported nearby planes. In one case, there was a pair of planes heading in the opposite direction at our altitude. That may have been the closest I’ve come to another plane before seeing it.

Along the route, we listened to the control towers and to Daytona Approach. Andrew kept himself busy taking pictures of the Cape. We arrived at DeLand airport as a skydiver plane was releasing jumpers.

On the ground, we found a place to park near The Airport Restaurant and found Mom. As we ate lunch, we watched the skydivers gracefully fall from the sky and land nearby in the grass.

After lunch, we showed Mom the plane, then departed DeLand. The flight back was a little bit rougher than the way up due to the building convective activity.

Back in Valkaria, we cleaned up the plane and returned home. Andrew packed his things, then we were off to UCF (in the car) to drop him off.

Over the three day weekend, I put 5.8 hours in my logbook.