Riding on the train they call the Surfliner!

[Vance]

Thrusday: Up at six again and off to John Wayne Airport for a flight to Newark on Alaska Airlines.
I had not flown comercial since 1994 and I found TSA a challenging experience.
It did not prepare us for the chaos in Newark where we expected to miss our hour long connection. Fortunatly our next plane was late so we made the flight, tired and hungry for food we could recognize as food. My friend is off to eat and I am munching on jerky having traveled enough for one day.
Friday up at six again and we arrived at the Chatham Municipal airport and slowly answered some questions.
Will the head sets and active noise reduction work in the Cavalon? Yes!
Will our bagage fit in the aircraft? Yes!
Does the instructor package work? Not exactly!
The throttle hit my leg on the left side and after more than an hour of fussing and help from a mechanic we managed to get it working well.
The airport resteraunt was great (Hanger B).
People have been helpful and friendly.
We performed a carefull preflight.
We installed horizantal and vertical lines on the windshield.
We mounted SPOT.
We sent a box of stuff out by UPS back to Oceanside.
We did a practice start up and pre-rotation.
The rain came.
We finished off the day with the seller at a great resteraunt (Del Mar) and are checked into a comfy motel (The Chatham Inn).

 

[Tyger]

Glad to hear you made it before the rains came. It looks like tomorrow won't be a great day for flying – more rain and lots of wind.

 

[DavePA11]

Glad to hear you made it before the rains came. It looks like tomorrow won't be a great day for flying – more rain and lots of wind.

What a party pooper Tyger…

 

[dabkb2]

I asked him and he is out of room.

Good for him, bad for me.

 

[Kevin_Richey]

Are tie downs available @ Oceanside?
If so, are enclosed trailers "allowed"?

A trailer tall enough to accommodate mounted rotors, yet having a low floor for ease of rolling the aircraft in & out might be a solution to an extremely convenient airport w/in ten minutes of home!

 

[DavePA11]

It’s always fun to fly around the Cape. I flew into a Chatham a few times, but first time I figured I would walk to town! It’s a long walk so get a Uber.

Regarding end t-hanger units, have to ask the manager/owners since they often don’t know that you are asking about the small non hanger space at the end.This is where I rented space for my gyro, and at first the hanger owner didn’t know that I wanted the end space…. They think airplanes and not gyros…

 

[Tyger]

Regarding end t-hangar units, have to ask the manager/owners since they often don’t know that you are asking about the small non hangar space at the end.This is where I rented space for my gyro, and at first the hangar owner didn’t know that I wanted the end space…. They think airplanes and not gyros…

Ya, when I first called the owner of my airport and told him where I wanted to put the gyro (I told him it was a gyro, but he hadn't seen it), he said,
"You think you can fit it in there?"
"Yes."
"Well, what's the wingspan on that thing?"
I said, "Well, it's about six feet wide, but that's because of the wheels."

That's when the light bulb came on for him. 😊

 

[MTO Flyer]

I hanger my AutoGyro MTO in a tall trailer on a tiedown at the airport (BxK). The trailer is tall enough and
long enough to roll the Gyro in with the rotor installed. Easy in, easy out and only $36 / mo fee for the tiedown !
I use a winch to pull it in, but really don't need it.

 

[Vance]

Saturday was another idealic day spent at Chatham Municipal Airport.

300 foot ceilings with drizzle in the morning and wind in the afternoon.

Several people suggested that gyroplanes handled the wind well and 18kts gusting to 28kts was fine for teaching someone to takeoff and land with a gyroplane.

We practiced some pre-rotations and fueled her up learning to program the totalizer.

Somehow we lost our connection with ADSB in. We eventually resolved the issues without achieving an understanding.

We have uploaded the latest update in Garmin.

As we were walking to the exit the windsock went flaccid, before we could get back to the hangar it had become fully erect and stayed that way until our departure,

We caught an uber ride from Roger and I was surprised at how easy and inexpensive it was.

Dinner was great.

I have my own room tonight because apparently I am not a quiet sleeper.

We are still very excited about the wonderful adventure we are on and only slightly disappointed at our lack of perceived progress.

It has been a great test of my ability to give flight instruction without flying.

As I write this and recall the details of the day I realize I am down playing our progress.

My friend in his separate room is redoing the check lists and reviewing the POH.

 

[Rattler 1]

You know if it takes longer than you have time and have to get back for some reason you can always ask someone on this forum (me) to come and fly it back for him. Ha!!!!!

 

[Vance]

I looked at the weather forecast for Chatham, Massachusetts and concluded it might not be the best place to teach my friend to takeoff and land in his Cavalon with low ceilings in the morning and strong winds in the afternoon. I had the first leg of our flight back to California in Weathermeister and it appeared to me the winds calmed down as we went further west.

My friend had reached a similar conclusion so we decided to start our journey to the west.

We often were making over a hundred knot of ground speed at between 70 and 80kts of indicated air speed.

As is so often the case things didn’t go according to plan and the winds remained strong all the way to Fredric, Maryland.

We ended up in Charleston, West Virginia where we have been treated as honored guests.

My friend flew some of the way and flew to commercial standards.

I feel he will be a quick study.

We just need to find the time and the place.

I will write about the fun later because I need take a shower and get to bed now.

 

[Guv'nor]

Everyday is a new adventure. Enjoy live. Live life one day at a time. Be safe and "blue skies" to you!

 

[Tyger]

That's a pretty long one-day leg. No wonder you are tired.
It looks like the weather will be pretty nice in WV tomorrow. Will you tarry there to train a bit, or continue to push west?

 

[Vance]

That's a pretty long one-day leg. No wonder you are tired.
It looks like the weather will be pretty nice in WV tomorrow. Will you tarry there to train a bit, or continue to push west?

We will decide tomorrow morning. West Virginia International Yeager Airport (CRW) is a Class C airport but they were very accommodating and it is a very nice facility.

 

[Tyger]

Nothing heard in three whole days...
Vance, did you accidentally smash your laptop or something??

 

[Vance]

The famous Hercules is guarding the Cavalon at Yeager Airport.

Our journey ended peacefully in Chalet, West Virginia.

My friend and I are OK and the aircraft is still pristine and sitting wrapped up to protect it from the birds in a hangar in Chalet, West Virginia waiting for a ride to California.

Both of us feel it was a great adventure and are looking forward to part two.

I am writing about it and will post it soon when I figure out how to describe the odyssey properly.

 

[DavePA11]

Lots of water and bird poop in that hanger!

 

[Aerofoam]

Lots of water and bird poop in that hanger!

Maybe they "Rode it hard and put it away wet!"

 

[Vance]

Maybe they "Rode it hard and put it away wet!"

Birds are a problem at CRW to the point that they use Hercules daily to chase them away. The Birds have come to take refuge in that particular hangar. Many of the other hangers along the same row with their doors open do not have so many birds.
They have a machine that makes predator sounds and things that move. It appears they become accustomed and move back in. It is the worst bird problem I have seen in a hangar.

 

[j4flyer]

this is where a go pro would be nice ! I would love to watch a YouTube series on this flight. Gyros have come a long way in the few years I’ve been involved. I remember when you were a stud if you flew a 20 mile cross country in your Mac powered Bensen. Go Vance !