USA Travelreport 1996
USA Travelreport 1996
The pictures are linked to a full size version, just click on them
Hi everybody !
As promised, here is a short report on my trip to the States:
I started my journey on May, 18th from Munich, Germany on a Delta Airlines
flight to Phoenix, Arizona stopping at JFK, New York.
The route from Munich was via Frankfurt, Amsterdam, Newcastle and Glasgow
crossing the Atlantic at FL310 and a GS of 530 mph. At Goose Bay we climbed to
FL370 passing Presque Island and Boston before landing at JFK on Rwy 22L after
8 hours flying time having covered 4000 miles.
At JFK we departed from Rwy 22R westbound and arrived at Phoenix Skyharbour
after a 4.5 hours flight at FL310 and a GS of 500 mph.
In Phoenix I met my friend Robert who is a 1st Officer flying DC9s with
Austrian Airlines. Together with him I wanted to visit the southwestern part
of the USA.
The next day (Sunday,19th) we went by car to Falcon Field (FFZ) to the flight
school "Prism Aviation" where we chartered a Cessna 177 Cardinale with retractable
gear. Having checked out the Cessna we flew to Scottsdale (SDL) in the NE
of PHX where we faced a problem during approach: the flaps didn't work!
Our flight instructor put her down on the runway with app. 80 knots - it was a
very 'postive' landing.
Robert in front of the Cessna 177 Cardinale
As you can imagine we lost our confidence in that plane after such a serious
malfunction. Back at Prism Aviation we were lucky that there was another plane
available for our trip, a Cessna 172. Although this plane had no retractable
gear and was therefore about 20 knots slower than the 177 it was fully IFR
equipped and apparently in a good condition. In addition to this, it was a
real bargain costing only USD 48 per hour including fuel.
Thats me in front of the Cessna 172
On Monday morning our big adventure began. We departed from Falcon Field(FFZ) to
Sedona (SEZ) in the North where we had breakfast. From Sedona we had a look at
the Meteor Crater and the Sunset Crater National Monument. Further on we climbed
to 11500 ft which is the minimum cruising altitude for the northbound Grand
Canyon Corridors. Due to some crashes between private pilots and commuter
airlines which do sightseeing flights in this area, the whole Grand Canyon is
subject to special flight rules.
We passed the Grand Canyon Airport(GCN), Dragon Corridor to the North, the Colorado
river, went to Marble Canyon and onto our destination of that day: Page
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| Meteor Crater |
Grand Canyon Airport |
Marble Canyon |
As Page is located on the banks of Lake Powell we took the opportunity to rent a
boat for a trip.
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| Approach to Page |
Robert and me on the banks of Lake Powell |
Rainbow Bridge - Mexican Hat
The next day (May, 21st) we departed from Page early heading Lake Powell and the
famous Rainbow Bridge. We then flew westbound to Monument Valley and a village
called Mexican Hat with a stone sculpture which resembles a sombrero.
From there we headed NE to our destination of Salt Lake City.
Before getting to SLC we had to climb to 11500 ft in order to get over some high mountains
Shortly before the descent to SLC we went through our worst experience in this fortnight:
we encountered a very strong turbulence causing our luggage to be thrown against
the ceiling of the plane. If we hadn't fastened our seatbelts really tight
we would probably have broken our necks. After such an experience I would
strongly recommend everyone to fasten their seatbelts during any flight, even if
the "fasten seatbelt" sign is switched off, as one cannot see these CATs which
can be really harmful. Soon after that bump we encountered another problem
during our flight; the GPS which had led us reliably to all our waypoints failed
exactly when we needed it most on our approach to SLC.
SLC International has a very large Class B Airspace which we didn't want to
enter, as it was our intention to land on the Bountiful Skypark Airfield (BTF)
north of the SLC International. In order to achive this a very steep descent was
required after passing the mountains on the east side of the city. In such cases
a GPS is realy useful during an approach, it gives you the exact direction to
the airport as well as a moving map display with all relevant airspaces.
In the situation when we relied on the GPS most it failed due to poor GPS
coverage!
In the end we found our way home, but it was a quiet busy approach as
the airport came into sight very late and - to our surprise - it was located in
the middle of some refineries and between large gas tanks ! Could you imagine a
European airport having such a location ?
After this turbulent flight we spent the evening in the hotel and tried to
relax and prepare the days ahead.
Approach to Bountiful Skypark Airfield
Wednesday morning (May, 22nd) started with bad weather; the sky was obscured and
the mountains in the North of SLC were in clouds. Therefore we had to abandon our
plan to go to the Yellowstone National Park and consider an alternative.
Las Vegas seemed to be a suitable alternative as the weather forecast was encouraging.
We departed from Bountiful Skypark following the southbound transition which led us
west of the SLC International passing over Lake Utah to our first stop Cedar City
(CDC), where we experienced a lesson in American hospitality. Having fount there
was no restaurant at the airfield we were generously offered a car to go to the
nearby city to eat. The operations manager gave us the keys and we set off. No
deposit, no forms, just some suggestions where to eat best and a friendly 'Have fun'-
this was a pleasant surprise for us Europeans.
Thats me with the operations managers car
We set off after a good lunch and had a look at the ZION national Park with all its
great monuments and arches. From there we flew SE to Lake Mead and had a spectacular
view of the Hoover Dam. We contacted ATC for a Class B transition to our destination
North Las Vegas (VGT). Fortunately we were vectored north of the Mc Carran Intl.
A/P directly over downtown Las Vegas where we had a nice but misty view onto the
Strip. After 3 ½ hours flying time we arrived then at North Las Vegas A/P.
As you can imagine, we spent an exiting evening in Las Vegas. The next day we joined
a guided tour of the Hoover Dam and in the afternoon we visited the Stratosphere
Tower before going for a walk along the Strip.
Hoover Dam
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| Las Vegas Strip |
Stratosphere Tower |
Las Vegas at night |
The next day (May, 24th) we headed for San Diego. We departed from Las Vegas SW
bound over the Hoover Dam again, then southbound via the Colorado river to Needles.
From there, SE towards San Diego where we chose the Montgomery Airport (MYF) as our
next destination because our IWA companion Kevin Trinkle lives nearby. When I called
Kevin in the evening he gave me some suggestions for our planned visit to Seaworld.
Seaworld - San Diego
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| Robert , Kevin and Erich |
Erich and Kevin |
Los Angeles International |
On Saturday we had a great day at Seaworld before meeting Kevin Trinkle at the
airport in the afternoon - the first intercontinental meeting of two IWA members!
Thereafter we departed form Montgomery Airport northwest bound to the shore, from
there onto Los Angeles. We passed Los Angeles International on the coast in the West before flying via
Santa Monica and the Hollywood Hills to Van Nuys (VNY).
Waterworld - White Shark
On Sunday (May, 26th) we spent some time in the famous Universal Studios in Los
Angeles which is worth visiting because of the attractions offered there. What a
brilliant day we had !
On Monday morning the weather was bad again (2000 OVC), so we were unable to go
directly to the North.
Instead, we flew through the valley and along the shore before going via Santa
Barbara to Half Moon Bay (HAF) where we refuelled and got some information on the
San Francisco approach.
After depature from HAF our request for a Bay Tour was granted by ATC. So we headed
directly to the Golden Gate Bridge and onto Alcatraz and Treasure Island before
passing the Oakland Bay Bridge and reaching our destination at Oakland Intl (OAK).
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| Golden Gate Bridge |
Over Golden Gate Bridge |
Alcatraz |
Cable Car - San Francisco at night
On Tuesday we spent an enjoyful day in San Francisco, visiting Fishermans Wharf,
Hyde Street Pier and the famous Lombard Street, the most winding street in town.
Of course, we could not resist a ride on the Cable Car and a visit to the Cable Car
Museum.
On the next day (May, 29th) we said goodbye to San Francisco and left for Yosemite
National Park. We flew via Livermore which is a restricted area due to national
security regulations - guess why ! - and onto Modesto where we landed on a little
airfiled called Mariposa.
Having been previously told that it would be possible to rent a car there for our
visit to the National Park we were disappointed that this was not the case.
As a consequence of this we flew to Merced (MCE) from where we headed back to
the Yosemite National Park.
Yosemite Falls - El Capitan
Having driven along the Merced River into a beautiful valley with many scenic
highlights I can now unterstand why this park is considered by many to be the most
beautiful National Park in the United States.
It is here where you can find the biggest granite rock in the world, called
'El Capitan' which is an Eldorado for climbers.
Nearby are the 'Yosemite Falls' where the Yosemite Creek drops into the valley
of the Merced river in three stages by over 740 metres.
In addition to this you can see the Mariposa Groove with the Giant Sequoias, the
Glacier Point offering great views of the Yosemite Valley and many other wonders of
nature.
On Thursday we completed the final chapter of our journey. It was our longest trip
so far taking 5 h flying time and bringing us from Merced via Bakersfield to
Palmdale which is adjacent to Edwards AFB with a runway of 15000ft, making it one
of the possible landing sites for the Space Shuttle. Furtheron we flew to Twentynine
Palms before reaching our final destination Falcon Field in Phoenix.
The last approach to Falcon Field / Phoenix
In Phoenix we decided to do some traffic patterns. Having flown our Cessna 172 in
cruising altitudes I now had the chance to do even some takeoffs and landings which
I found very exciting. Flying the Cessna 172 on the flight simulator is good but
cannot compared with real flying.
Next time I make such a trip, I will definetly take some flying lessons beforehand
because flying is great fun for me.
So folks - I finally reached the end of my travel report and I hope that some of
you will get the opportunity to take a similar journey. This really was the most
exciting holiday I've ever experienced so far.
Best wishes from Erich Nager
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