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| With Lisa to the coast... |
The weather cooperated today (barely) and we took a flight toward the coast. We didn’t have as much time as I hoped so we had to scrap the idea of landing in Astoria. But we flew out to Ocean Shores and back, just taking a scenic flight. It was a bit hazy, so the view wasn’t as great as I hoped.
Right before take-off, Lisa said she smelled something like an old heater. We found the cabin heat had been left on. We turned it out, and I told her to open her vent slightly for a minute to vent out the smell. She pulled on it and the whole vent came out. She tried to put it back in but it wouldn’t go. At that time, we were cleared for takeoff. I decided the vent wasn’t worth aborting over, and we tossed it in the back and off we went.
Well let me tell you, at 3,000 feet and below freezing outside, it gets COLD in the plane if the vent is out... That means the 100 knot wind is basically funneling unrestricted into the cabin. MAJOR BRR. I finally had to put my coat on backwards and use her gloves to stay moveable. When we got back to Olympia I didn’t go the touch and goes (for currency) I had planned because I was just too cold.
The haze and glare of the sun introduced a new problem: it was very difficult to gage the height and distance of the runway. I used the PAPI approach indicator to fly down to the runway (if that had not been available, I would have canceled and asked for the opposite direction approach - it was that bad), but once I was at the runway I couldn’t figure out my flare height. We actually had a relatively soft touchdown, although I had expected a rough landing. I guess it was chance or luck or maybe more skill than I thought I had in that case. After parking, I was able to reinstall the vent no problem.
So an ok flight; would have been nicer with no haze and no (can I exaggerate?) gaping hole in the fuselage gushing in freezing air.
all photos
The dreaded vent:
Right before take-off, Lisa said she smelled something like an old heater. We found the cabin heat had been left on. We turned it out, and I told her to open her vent slightly for a minute to vent out the smell. She pulled on it and the whole vent came out. She tried to put it back in but it wouldn’t go. At that time, we were cleared for takeoff. I decided the vent wasn’t worth aborting over, and we tossed it in the back and off we went.
Well let me tell you, at 3,000 feet and below freezing outside, it gets COLD in the plane if the vent is out... That means the 100 knot wind is basically funneling unrestricted into the cabin. MAJOR BRR. I finally had to put my coat on backwards and use her gloves to stay moveable. When we got back to Olympia I didn’t go the touch and goes (for currency) I had planned because I was just too cold.
The haze and glare of the sun introduced a new problem: it was very difficult to gage the height and distance of the runway. I used the PAPI approach indicator to fly down to the runway (if that had not been available, I would have canceled and asked for the opposite direction approach - it was that bad), but once I was at the runway I couldn’t figure out my flare height. We actually had a relatively soft touchdown, although I had expected a rough landing. I guess it was chance or luck or maybe more skill than I thought I had in that case. After parking, I was able to reinstall the vent no problem.
So an ok flight; would have been nicer with no haze and no (can I exaggerate?) gaping hole in the fuselage gushing in freezing air.
all photos
The dreaded vent:
