Florida

This was a long one, but not a bad one.  I woke up at 5:10 am, didn't have to get up until 6 (oh yay). Drove to Frankfort and got out the 340, flew to Kokomo, and topped it back off with every gallon I could squeeze into it.  Picked up Morgan and a Hewitt, and we flew down to Crystal River, Florida.  It was about a 4 hour flight, which is pretty much the end of the range of the 340.  I had some weather and airspace to go around, leaned out, up high at 21,000', and had to use every single gallon out of the aux and wing locker tanks.  Landed with 45 minutes reserve at that power setting which is not a ton of gas, but safe and legal, just tiring, to be constantly monitoring.  The weather was firing up and solidifying so I was worried about our trip home, but while there was a bunch of it, up at 20,000' on the way home, we were above a lot of the scuzz, and could clearly see the convective storms and to stay out of them.  More re-routes for traffic, airspace and weather, and somehow a head wind both directions, and it was another 4 hour flight home.  I read questions out of the Commercial Oral Prep book for Morgan, as her checkride is coming up soon.  I tweaked and futzed with the fuel all the way home again, landing again at fuel minimums.  Weather at our destinations was good enough for that, VFR, no approaches needed, plenty of stops nearby if needed.  I called ahead on the radio and asked our line guy to stay after and fill me up so I could get the plane back to frankfort, which he did (thanks Greg).  Dropped everyone off, fueled up, flew to Frankfort, put the plane back into the hangar, then drove an hour back home.  It was 8.5 hours on the hobbs, in the air, started at 6 am, ended at 7 pm. 

The Bonanza clinic guys are here, they had their ground school and their first sorties tonight. Tomorrow is a busy day for them. I'll go out there, but I'm sleeping in if I can, first.  I'm pooped. It's been a busy couple of days.

Reading about avoiding thunderstorms while flying next to a thunderstorm cell

Morgan and me.