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Some cool things going on around the ranch lately:
Congratulations to Joe C. for completing his Private Pilot checkride!
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Behold the mighty wing spar!Squawkapalooza!
We are taking advantage of the very-hot weather to get some squawks going, including:
Cessna 68U has had her Generator replaced.
Cessna 20U has had her Generator replaced
Cessna 08V is at Procraft for her 100hr inspection, which is expected to take the better part of this week.
Cessna 04H will be at Procraft later this week to clear up all manner of squawks that have accumulated.
Cessna 17J is going in for warranty squawk repairs on Thursday. That's just fun to say.
Cherokee 08F is humming along.
We have about 40 known squawks right now, and every plane in the fleet is going down for clean-up this week. If there is something that has been annoying you lately, or could be better -- please let us know with a quick Squawk Report!
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the only cooling method dorkier than a misty mate.Hot weather has been coming and going, but I'm confident that we won't be seeing 60 degrees anytime soon. That said, here are some ideas for beating the heat:
Drink lots of fluids! -- This should be a no-brainer, but we see lots of pilots take off without water, only to return from a long flight dehydrated and completely mush-brained. I can't think of anything more exciting than tackling that bumpy slight crosswind final approach with no brain! The back fridge is stocked with water, our cooler is almost always ready to go with ice cold water, and we even have otter pops -- no need to ask, just grab and go!
Bring a Mister! -- this one annoys a few people because it's pretty dorky. I won't lie - it's dorky, but we have that star of bingo halls everywhere -- the Misty Mate, available to borrow. A puff of misty water in a cockpit can make even the longest wait on the ramp into a pleasant one. Feel free to ping the office if you'd like to try one. (we won't tell anybody)
Climb! -- Of course those poor heat-soaked planes just don't climb as well as they do when it's colder than standard day -- but the temperature cools appx 3.2 degrees F per thousand feet of altitude.. if the only maneuver you can manage at 2,500' is "sizzle", try 5,500! the 5 minutes spent climbing might make the difference between success and failure on a lesson!
Go West! -- The inland area is notorious for being warm, and North, East, or South are all even worse -- I guess you'll need to head for the beach! Need to do maneuvers? Try El Toro practice area! It might give you those 10 degrees you need, and once more, it's only about 5 minutes away. You can even do maneuvers over the ocean if you like (guaranteed to be cooler), but that's a bit more of a hike (plan about 15 minutes to get to San Onofre/Oceanside). Ask your instructor if he thinks 5,500' at El Toro might be a nice change of climate -- I doubt you'll get many refusals :)
Stay cool out there!
- Mike
