Cross Canada flight (part 3)
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Heading north from Creston up Kootenay Lake following low level VFR route to Nelson and Castlegar. |
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Westward from Cranbrook on return trip passing friend's home on Jack Lake and facing weather in passes. |
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A series of thundershower cells east of Cranbrook seal the pass to the prairies |
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Back home to a good weather sunset |
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Photo Credit to my friend Phil Lennox on this one. It is the only shot showing the motorglider's engine shut down. |
A thousand dollars in hotel and meal costs must have been the required tariff as we finally escaped into increasing strong headwinds and slightly improving ceilings.
We didnt really need a high cloud base as we flew at minimum altitudes across the prairies to Medicine Hat to minimize headwind and had an average ground speed of 75 knots in the 30+ knot headwinds.
As we approached Lethbridge, guess what? Another strong cold front was approaching from the north. This time, we used this shoddy systems approach to enhance our flight. We flew in the convergence zone where the energy effectively provided us with a tailwind.
Although the surface wind was westerly, we picked up 10 knots over our true airspeed with this occurrence as we approached Pincher Creek where there was a 26 knot gusting headwind.
In effect, utilizing this lifting phenomenon we gained 36 knots groundspeed! At 8,500 feet we were oblivious to that wind although we did lose the tailwind as we passed Frank Slide as the mountains blocked the cold south-sliding air.
The FSS briefer had advised that VFR flight was not recommended due to mechanical turbulence and potentially low ceilings; however, our passage was smooth and unchallenged by cloud.
We landed at Cranbrook and taxied over to Kootenay Air Services to once again sample their excellent service. I had learned not to park on the airport ramp as they charge a service fee (after three hours if my recollection serves me correctly).
Kootenay company president, Dale Pizzey, helped us rearrange the hanger to accommodate our soaring sensation to avoid overnight frost one cant effectively scrape any contamination off the wings of a fantastic plastic plane without potentially damaging the finish.
Dale is currently setting up above ground avgas and jet fuel systems and has been pricing his avgas a few cents less than the airport service. His charter and flying school businesses are going full bore and his operation reminds me of the joyous fraternity that was more common at airports in the past.
During our waits east and westbound for weather improvement, numerous locals popped in for a visit just to discuss aviation in this fertile aviation environment.
I dont know why, perhaps Im just becoming an old grouch, but, it seems more difficult to find caring service nowadays. Therefore, I was delighted to discover a number of good FBOs in the western half of Canada on this trip and will plan my future flights to benefit from these service providers.
If the next day dawned, we missed it. One would be hard pressed to observe the phenomenon as a dark layer of cloud spread across the eastern half of B.C. obscuring all the mountain tops and high passes.
A direct flight to the Okanagan was out of the question so we followed the VFR highway route southwest from Cranbrook and wended our flight every which way along the highway and then up Kootenay Lake to Nelson.
After refuelling at Castlegar we flew up the Arrow Lakes to follow the old VFR route along an abandoned railway. We had hoped to cut a few corners along the route from Cranbrook but in every case, we could see the passes were plugged with stratus. However, approaching Greenwood, the overcast broke up and we climbed on top for a nearly clear flight to Penticton.
Many thanks to the Penticton Flying Club for a tie down spot and our compliments on your clubhouse and excellent library.
At this point we took a planned break with friends in Peachland for a 60th birthday and Linda picked up the motor home we had left behind for the drive back to Victoria.
I had planned to attend the Rotech sponsored engine course at Vernon while staying in our motor home but, by the time we got through the prairie weather delays, the courses were over.
After filling the Xtreme with the most expensive fuel on the trip (must be heavy airport taxes at Penticton), I obtained a weather update before proceeding on the last leg to Victoria. Low level mung with 2,500 foot tops were forecast for the segment from Hope to Whiterock; however, it was forecast to be scattered and variable broken.
I elected to venture forth to look at the situation, with the option of returning to Princeton, which was forecast to remain CAVOK, if the lower mainland area looked impassable.
Unfortunately, for my flight from Penticton to Victoria, the Penticton frequency 122.5 was to be off the air and worse still, the RCO at Princeton, frequency 126.7 was also to be unserviceable.
Layers of cloud were forecast through the valleys and the absence of these frequencies, especially the RCO at Princeton for weather updates and passing pireps was an additional challenge. Luckily, the weather was better than forecast approaching Princeton clear in fact - so I was able to fly high enough to reach Kamloops for updates on the marginal Fraser Valley weather.
Still, having both frequencies off the air during marginal VFR conditions is not providing service.
On a side note, I must confess I learned something on this flight that may be common knowledge to many. In addition to RCOs, there are also DRCOs (Direct Remote Communications Outlets) in a number of locations. Essentially, a pilot can activate these remote devices by clicking his microphone button four times to open a telephone link that allows a direct connection to FSS.
There are a number of simple details involved in using a DRCO and I recommend pilots familiarize themselves with A75 in the General Section of the Flight Supplement to obtain the necessary details.
Conditions over the mountains west of Princeton were glorious as the fresh coating of snow and sunlight glistening on the scattered clouds below were the first pleasant sights in many hours of dreary winter flying in the western half of Canada.
However, my reverie is interrupted when I tune in Abbotsford ATIS to hear: Due to reduced system capacity, VFR aircraft planning flights into Vancouver Terminal Class C airspace can anticipate restrictions until 0400 Z tonight in other words 9 pm and well into darkness.
On the final segment of my return flight to Victoria I establish contact with Vancouver centre for flight following abeam Hope and am advised to remain clear of Class C airspace.
So, I make a diversionary track adjustment to avoid the Class C. It would have been nice to have had this advice in my NOTAM briefing so I wouldnt have to dogleg around the airspace and could have more efficiently placed the diversion in my initial track.
Its interesting as I write this article, five months after the flight, that the Class C airspace is expanding once again around Vancouver. Why?
Communications I have read point to a number of near misses caused by NAVCAN errors that have prompted that agency to expand the airspace to provide larger margins to make up for their mistakes.
I dont think Im the only one who sees the continuing error in their logic. NAVCAN is continuing to further impede traffic flow when there are fewer aircraft flying in their airspace. Moreover, they are the ones creating the problems in the first place.
SUMMING UP THE RETURN TRIP
The flights from the Winnipeg area westward were likely the least pleasant cross country jaunt I can recall. Although weather and the attendant forecasting were the primary issue, I am also disappointed with NAVCAN services.
VFR flight not recommended warnings were common in perfectly good flying conditions and even worse, the inverse was true when VFR weather was forecast and IFR conditions subsequently prevailed.
In Canada, on occasion I would ask an FSS with virtually no traffic activity for weather reports ahead only to be told to contact a different frequency to reach a Flight Information Center (FIC).
On several of these occasions, I was unable to reach the FIC frequency due to my altitude and was met with begrudging assistance when I called back on the FSS frequency. At other times, I was abundantly aware that many of the FSS specialists really didnt know much about aviation, although they were quick to recommend weather was good or bad for a planned VFR flight.
We almost lived on the phone during our lengthy weather grounding and while a few of the briefers were excellent, many missed the mark.
So, my overall opinion of services during flights in Canada is that the meteorological system performed pathetically because forecast winds and weather often bore little resemblance to actual conditions.
By comparison, American weather forecasting was far more accurate with the FSS specialists generally much keener to provide service.
While I realize that weather prognostication is not an inexact science and that the computer weather programs arent as knowledgeable as we would like, and there will be variations that the forecasters miss or dont understand, I also realize that it is common practice to generally forecast worse weather than will typically occur under given air mass conditions.
Commonly we assume this is to cover liability for the aviator who gets caught in poor weather and perishes. I suggest part of the reason for pessimistic forecasts with risk and probability statements allows forecasters to appear to be more accurate than they are.
In other words, they cover all the bases by adding their magic buzzwords to cover all the exigencies. I have been keeping tabs on forecasts in the Victoria area for more than two years on a daily basis and received more misleading information from the briefings than accurate forecasts.
I have commonly cancelled planned flights that could and should have been undertaken and at other times found conditions that were considerably below those put forth by the men in the windowless offices.
I have no idea how they determine their accuracy figures whereby they claim high accuracy; however, in truth, their work is inadequate for both aviation safety and useful flight planning.
Perhaps part of the problem stems from the fact that NAVCAN pays for met services and since they have been losing money as a not for profit organization (also means not for loss) they cant afford to pay for good weather forecasting.
Moreover, there are fewer manned reporting locations (to save money) so forecasters have to guess even more with their coin tossing. Cost cutting has resulted in the closure of many services between the big centres and it seems to be part of an undeclared program to exchange lives for lower system costs.
However, when one is flying into an unforecasted snow storm, well below the towers, it gets rather personal and to be honest, I wonder how a low time pilot might have fared in these conditions.
By the way, readers can likely anticipate a future response from NAVCAN with platitudes and excuses with regard to weather services and such, but, the bottom line is we are not getting good value for our NAVCAN yearly fee.
There have already been discussions and admissions of failure with NAVCAN on this issue but it is unlikely they will be able to improve there service anytime soon with their huge operating expenses and operating deficits.
Similar to advice given to purchasers, Buyer Beware, my advice with our current NAVCAN services is Flyer Beware.
TRIP DATA (Some apparent errors due to rounding)
Total Round Trip Distance Straight Line (nm between Victoria & London).. .3540
Total Distance route flown (nm) 4160
Total Flight Hours ... 42.2
Total Fuel used (avgas and mogas, litres) .. . 607
Total Fuel used (imperial gallons) .133.7
Average Mileage (statute miles per imperial gallon) .35.8
Average Fuel Flow (litres per hour) .. .14.3
Average Fuel Flow (imperial gallons per hour) ..3.2
Average Speed in knots .98.6
Average Speed in mph ...114
Least Expensive Fuel (mogas from gas stations in prairies per litre) .. $0.73
Least Expensive Avgas at an Airport (Anoka MI, $U.S. per gallon) $2.31
Total Fuel Cost in Canadian dollars .. $555.64
Cost of food, motels, transportation during lengthy weather delays . $1000+
Trip cost as a life experience Priceless