Tennessee and Coming Up

My flight yesterday went just fine. The runway was only a little slick that morning, while the ramp was icy, so it was harder to turn off the ramp then it was to takeoff, but it was all right. Our first stop was canceled because the guy was sick, so we just went on down to Tennessee, where it was cold but decent weather. Nothing exciting. Good trip after all.

Today I'm trying to get ready for Puerto Rico, and it's a Truly unpleasant looking weather day. We've got snow tonight, then freezing rain moving in in the middle of the night, then moving to rain after that.  I've got multiple problems. 1) If it's a sheet of ice there may be a problem getting the plane out of the hangar. Nick sent one of his guys down to Indy to pick up "magic salt" that you can use at an airport and he thinks that will make it so we can get out of the hangar. 2) If it's a sheet of ice, the winds are a direct crosswind tomorrow and that's a problem taking off. I'll try to use differential power and I think I should be able to get off okay since it's only 12 knots or so, at least not 25 or something stupid. 3) The temps are hovering right about at freezing and it will be cloudy and rainy, actively raining, when we take off and all the way down to Georgia, basically. The icing forecast is saying it's a fairly low probability of bad ice but I don't logically see how that's possible. I just need a way, a window, to get out and be able to climb up above the icing temps as quickly as possible, but if it's active sleet or SLD... This one I'm not going to know until tomorrow. We are scheduled to leave at 7 am. If we can't, we have until 10 am to get off the ground. If we don't make it by then, we won't make it to Puerto Rico by dark. We can't land there after dark, and that means they miss their pre-arranged cruise with friends, plans made months ago. So it's one of the few trips that if it can be done, Really needs to be done.

I've also got three flight plans. One goes non-stop from Frankfort to Puerto Rico pretty direct. It would take 5 hours and 8 minutes, and I could do it non-stop with the fuel we have, easily, with good reserve. However, it takes me like 300 miles out into the middle of the Atlantic Ocean with no land in sight. I've never done that. I don't know if I CAN do that. Do I lose radio communication? Do I have anyone to talk to? God forbid I have a mechanical issue too, man. And I don't have great charts out there either. Second plan goes non-stop from Frankfort to Savannah, GA and then on direct over. That keeps me within like 75 miles of land at all times out there. But it also takes longer, and now my 1.5 hours of fuel reserve is down to 1 hour, or minimums for what I want...ending up over the ocean and going somewhere I've not been and not sure how it will go. It's also a long time to sit, but they want to go non-stop if they can, which I could. Third option, stop in Savannah. Top off with gas. Go out from there. Downside is that it takes including ground time, arrival and departure, about 1.5 hours longer than just going non-stop direct. So if we get a late departure, we may not have time to stop. Upside is, of course, I'll have a full tank of fuel with which to do that last 3.8 hour flight leg over the ocean to Puerto Rico, and an ability to stretch our legs and pee to boot.  I've eliminated the first one. I'm just not comfortable going out that far when I don't know what I don't know. The clients want to go non-stop with the option to change their mind and stop if they want to. I said we could do that until we hit Savannah then there'd be nowhere to stop unless we turned around. They said fine with them. Steve wants to just stop. I want to both just go, and stop. I'll wait a little later, keep an eye on the weather, and winds, and just try to figure out what my gut is saying is doable or best. All that's assuming we can get out of here in the morning in the first place. This is not a relaxing trip so far. ;)

I just packed my passport too, because even though I won't need it going to Puerto Rico, if I end up having to land somewhere else, or we go to St Barths, or whatever, I want to have it on me.

It's Valentine's Day, but nobody here cares enough. Kaylee is chewing on a job offer she just got in Carmel for an Eating Disorder place, and she wants it very badly, but told them she also feels the need to stay with her current place until at least August, which they appreciated because they said they wouldn't want any of their people to just up and leave them, either.  They would like her to come on slowly, on a contract or part time basis first, to see how they fit together, and she's trying to figure out how to do that with her full time job already. So that's what she's chewing on. I'm chewing on this trip and everybody's lives in my hands in the midst of another winter storm moving through my half of the country. And that I still don't have island clothes to pack and be appropriate where I'm going. I do have good sandals and shoes though. ;) Steve is chewing on trying to get airplane maintenance done, his student on a checkride (he just passed, yay!), and a bunch of organizational stuff. Along with trying to get ready for this trip too. So none of us is just besotted with Valentine's Day right now. Best thing about it is the candy that goes on sale the next day. ;)

And the political stuff is still quite a whirlwind. I mean...wow, man. Have I said 'crazy' yet?

And on that note, I'm going to try to pack some more, and stare at the weather some more, and work on my plan some more, until I'm tired of it and hope something good is on TV tonight. And then we'll be up at 5 am at the latest, to get up and head out of here by 6 at the latest, to get to the airport and try to get out of here by 7. We shall see...