Flight Home From New Orleans

We got up Monday morning and took our time getting ready.  We had breakfast again at IHOP and after went back to the hotel to check-out.  We were able to get everyone and everything in Papa's car so Papa & Granny took us to the airport to see us off.  I called Flightline First when we were on the way and they had our plane ready for us on the ramp when we arrived.

We were able to drive right up to the plane which made loading really convenient.  The fuel and tie-down fees were very reasonable, especially considering the great service we received and the use of their wonderful facilities.  Asking for the "Airnav" discount got us 50 cents/gal off the full serve price and the tie-down fee was $10 per night.   With the pre-flight complete and everything stowed, we said our goodbyes.  I filed for the reverse route from our trip out and was approved "as filed" at an altitude of 7000 feet.  As usual the headwinds we fought on the way out no longer existed to give us some tailwinds home.  The winds were about 15-20 knots off our right wing.

Shortly after leveling off above an overcast layer, Mary quickly went to sleep and Kristi finally got to relax and play on her iPad for a bit.  Abby played on her DSi and I flew the plane jumping back and forth between various XM radio stations.  The new audio panel works great!  I had to turn the music down a few times since I had the mute function off and I didn't want to miss an ATC call.

The clouds finally cleared and I found a few interesting things to look at below.  The sun was in a perfect spot to see Glory in the clouds every now and then.

Mary had a nice long nap.  When she woke up, Mom was ready with movies and treats.  At least she wore her headset again for a little bit.

Abby and I just discovered Mary got the only chocolate chip cookie in the plane!

NOT FAIR!!!!!!!

At least we weren't in charge of the cleanup!

Before GPS, most IFR cross country flying was done via Airways or "Highways in the Sky" that are mostly connected via radio navigation aids know as VORs.

The Taylor VOR

Finally a nice and smooth descent into Jacksonville.  I was able to keep the speed up nicely which of course earned me a request to slow for spacing.  Ugh!

Here are a few shots of the ships on the St Johns River where I work.  Just before we reached the Dames Point Bridge in the second picture we turned right for a stright in landing on Ruway 14 at KCRG.

We had a great trip. We flew over 1000 miles total. It took about 3h 30m to get to New Orleans and about 3 h 15m to get home.  Not bad at all!  We are truely blessed.

Flight To New Orleans for Abby's Dance Competetion!

With my medical firmly in hand and a few flights back under my belt, it was time for a trip. Abby has a dance competition this weekend in New Orleans which is a perfect trip for us to make with the plane. Since we are fortunate not to have to drive to New Orleans, having N424RM and good weather allowed us to let the girls attend school and take off just after lunch. We were wheels up around 1:45 pm and headed west.

I wanted to file direct, but didn't figure I'd get it because of the numerous MOAs, Alert, and Warning areas around the Florida Panhandle.  I didn't want to file an airway either so I filed direct to MAI then direct to SJI then direct KNEW and got it!  It still added a few miles to the route, but it was an easy route to fly. 

As usual with this time of year we were bucking some headwinds flying west so I filed for 4000 feet.  That kept us under an overcast layer and punching through a few small clouds every now and then.

As we approach NAS Whiting  Field the clouds at our altitude started to increase so we were cleared to climb to 6000 feet which put us on top for a while.  Even though the headwinds were a little stronger, the increased altitude was liked by the engine and our increased TAS easily offset them.

We had high hopes that Mary would quickly fall asleep after we took off since it was past her nap time.  Unfortunately she didn't want to cooperate and became quite an unpleasant handful for Mom!  Finally she relented and fell asleep in Mom's lap.

As we cleared Florida and approached Mobile, AL we were back in the clouds for about 10 minutes.  At least it was a very smooth flight and with Mary asleep and Abby watching her DVD player, we cruised along in peace.

As we approached Gulfport, MS we flew into clear skies and prepared for our descent and arrival into New Orleans.

As we descended into New Orleans Lakefront Airport (KNEW), we could see some rain showing up to the west on XM weather.  We could also hear the controllers diverting planes around New Orleans main airport (KMSY) due to heavy rain in the area.  We flew through a very light shower on approach and easily arrived into the airport well before any weather did.

The ground crew at Flightline First marshaled us to the front of the FBO and stood by to assist with any of our needs.  We felt like the Clampett's unloading the plane, but JP kindly said he'd seen much worse for fewer people!  They called a taxi for us and like it had all been pre-arranged were were loaded in the taxi, the plane was secure, and they were taking care of our fuel order as we drove off.  Their service and assistance was excellent!

We checked in to the hotel, had an easy, quick bite at IHOP down the street, and went to bed.  Tomorrow is going to be a long and exciting day!