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jkcook28
October 28th, 2009, 14:02
Departing EGUN for LRSB. May divert shorter or longer depending on fuel. Not much flight planning for this run; gonna wing it! :gameon:

jkcook28
October 28th, 2009, 17:39
OK, feeling lucky so I'm diverting farther downstream to LROP with 4mi of gas in hand. Hope the wind sticks 'cause there is no other airport before there...

jkcook28
October 28th, 2009, 18:07
Down safe @ LROP, stuff to follow.

3 Gal. left over. Should have gone on to LRBS 5mi south. :d

Moses03
October 29th, 2009, 05:11
3 Gal. left over

Phew! Way to wring it out JC.

srgalahad
October 29th, 2009, 09:32
Phew! Way to wring it out JC.


PFFFFFT!!! lots left!.. just use the NASCAR 'wiggle' to get the last few drops out of the tank and into the pickups. 3 Gal. should be enough for one lap!

jkcook28
October 31st, 2009, 09:49
Time to move onward. LROP-->ORBS.
Really no way to make Baghdad with this wind but see how close I get.

jkcook28
October 31st, 2009, 11:06
Divert -->LTCH. :running:

jkcook28
October 31st, 2009, 12:52
Down and green @ LTCH

Stormy below near the whole route; and bumpy. Wind no friend.

jkcook28
October 31st, 2009, 16:35
Heading on into Baghdad. LTCH-->ORBS.

jkcook28
October 31st, 2009, 18:03
Down safe ORBS.

jkcook28
November 1st, 2009, 06:38
Well this leg makes or breaks me. ORBS-->OP1D. If I come up short of fuel, I go down in Iran with associated penalties. At the mercy of the Wind Gods! :kilroy:

EasyEd
November 1st, 2009, 07:10
Hey All,

Fly little Songbird fly...

Hey how come you don't have a Songbird paint on that plane? :mixedsmi:

-Ed-

jkcook28
November 1st, 2009, 07:22
Hey All,

Fly little Songbird fly...

Hey how come you don't have a Songbird paint on that plane? :mixedsmi:

-Ed-

Because I have no artistic ability!:d

Finally out of the stormy Baghdad area into the clear.
About 35mi to the good at the moment...

jkcook28
November 1st, 2009, 10:08
Down green @ OP1D.

4 gal. left over this time.

MM
November 1st, 2009, 12:20
Great flight-maximizing performance right to the edge.

But note maximum altitude...ouch! :eek:

jkcook28
November 1st, 2009, 16:05
Great flight-maximizing performance right to the edge.

But note maximum altitude...ouch! :eek:


Oh my, I didn't see that. It doesn't show in the text file, but I can guess where it happened in there. AP was set at 17,800 for entire leg. I normally sit and monitor the flight updating the altimeter every few minutes to avoid this. Turbulent and stormy in a few portions of this leg, and I stepped away for 20min to walk my dog. Had to be then.
I'm going to beg for mercy in court here. Don't know now if the weather (or my time) will allow a refly and re-route adds 100mi.
1 hour penalty eliminates me.
22ft blip in a pressure change isn't like trying to cruise above 18K to defeat the rules.
I rest my case.

Judges?

jkcook28
November 4th, 2009, 04:16
Well, I'll assume penalty applies for busting the ceiling so with a R/L plan change this morning I have some time to refly it.
ORBS-->OP1D.

MM
November 4th, 2009, 04:56
John, the Committee has extensively discussed this case and decided to apply the rule as written.


Flights for which the Duenna records an altitude exceeding the hard ceiling (General Aviation 18,000'; Golden Age 15,000') will automatically require the pilot to repeat the flight from the original departure airport—without penalty. (Pilots, at their own option, may choose to accept a penalty and go forward without repeating the flight. The penalty is 1 hour on the first violation and 3 hours for each subsequent violation.)
The rule does not penalize violations--it merely cancels invalid legs. Understanding that MSFS weather can generate severe weather transitions, the rule treats inadvertent ceiling transgressions as though they were computer failures—as something beyond the pilot's control.

The hard ceiling of 18,000 feet governs Modern General Aviation aircraft. The pilot who seeks to fly fast and efficiently at a high cruising altitude must judge the tradeoff between flying near 18,000 feet and flying somewhat lower to guard against unexpected air pressure changes and storm turbulence. The MSFS weather engine can produce very sudden weather events so this is a matter of real concern.

There is a risk-reward factor here: the structure of the contest allows the pilot to choose a strategy that makes the best time possible while not busting the ceiling.

We understand that you were not aiming to fly above the ceiling. This is not a matter of intentionally violating the rules. Let us be clear about that.

Instead, you were making a perfectly legitimate strategic calculation about the safety margin. You were cruising at 17,800 feet--a margin of 200 feet. You guess that the event occurred when you were away momentarily and were unable to monitor the weather continuously. All this seems within the range of normal MSFS weather fluctuations where unexpected altitude shifts of 200 feet or more are part of the way things work.

It appears that you took a "racing" risk here to catch the tailwinds and fly the Cessna fast and far. With no margin to spare, you executed a spectacularly successful leg. But in doing so, you inadvertently busted the altitude ceiling--making this an invalid leg.

You may re-fly the leg now. With favorable winds, it is quite possible that you might achieve a better time than the first ill-fated attempt.

--The Organizing Committee

jkcook28
November 4th, 2009, 05:33
Roger that Mike. I understand the rules, it's just that these wx fluctuations can only be caught if you are sitting there monitoring the flight start to finish; and one needs a break from time to time on a 4hr leg. (even longer for Golden Age!) I'd rather not pause everytime something comes up and send a shotgun blast of numbers your way to calculate legs.
Myself, I consider reflying a 4hr leg a penalty; for my backside if nothing else! :d

epwatson
November 4th, 2009, 06:48
In FS9, if you have a registered version of FSUIPC, it can make the transitions between pressure zones more gradual, there is a setting that can make the pressure change slower allowing the autopilot to adjust for variations in the pressure.

When your weather program (Active Sky for example) suddenly changes the pressure, FSUIPC catches this change and applies the change slower (over several seconds) instead of instantly.

This is not fool proof however, and i usually fly at cruising altitude with an altimeter setting of 29.92" so i dont' have to constantly adjust it. This means that I can't cruise very close to the ceiling, I will fly about 500' - 1000' below it.

Sorry for your luck but who knows, your refly may be better time. :)

jkcook28
November 4th, 2009, 07:40
Down again @ OP1D.

MM
November 4th, 2009, 09:14
Six minutes faster!!!

:icon29:

jkcook28
November 5th, 2009, 04:25
On to India. VIJP

jkcook28
November 5th, 2009, 07:33
Arrived VIJP.

1.5mi vis but a snap with GPS approach to ILS. No sweaty palms groping for the runway! :d

srgalahad
November 5th, 2009, 07:56
No sweaty palms ??? groping??? for the runway! :d

No, we're not going to ask....

:monkies:

jkcook28
November 7th, 2009, 08:03
A shorty into VIAL.

jkcook28
November 7th, 2009, 09:24
Arrived VIAL.

jkcook28
November 7th, 2009, 11:03
Onward to VYSW.

jkcook28
November 7th, 2009, 12:37
Contemplating stretch to Rangoon...too soon to commit just yet...:kilroy:

jkcook28
November 7th, 2009, 14:00
Confirm divert to VYYY. Close on gas...

jkcook28
November 7th, 2009, 14:41
Landed at VYYY.

jkcook28
November 19th, 2009, 06:49
Heading out again VYYY-->VTSF or further...

jkcook28
November 19th, 2009, 08:56
Diverting to VTSK.

jkcook28
November 19th, 2009, 09:40
Down at VTSK. Winds and weather not even close to forecast. Jepp must be making this up.:isadizzy:

jkcook28
November 19th, 2009, 10:01
Having given up on wx man, I forge on to Singapore (WSSL).

jkcook28
November 19th, 2009, 11:42
Well that leg will probably take me out of contention for any win. Chasing crappy winds killed the speed.:frown: Oh well.

jkcook28
November 19th, 2009, 12:58
This one will be optimistic; WSSL-->WRRR. Options shorter.
Hi Mom! Send tailwind. :d

jkcook28
November 19th, 2009, 15:51
Little bit of wind and really lean mixture so I'm diverting to WRRA for a bit longer leg.

jkcook28
November 19th, 2009, 16:45
Wheee, made it with 2.8gal to spare.

Volcanos on north coast of Bali.

jkcook28
November 21st, 2009, 14:11
Striking out for WRKK. Winds just won't allow a stretch to Darwin, I don't think.......

jkcook28
November 21st, 2009, 16:05
Divert to Darwin (YPDN).

jkcook28
November 21st, 2009, 17:53
Arrived DArwin

Milton Shupe
November 21st, 2009, 18:07
Yeee Haaa! Welcome to the Oz! :applause:

jkcook28
November 22nd, 2009, 08:14
Thanks Milton, time to see some of it!
Off for Mt. Isa(YBMA) or parts unknown. (depending on wind and fuel):running:

jkcook28
November 22nd, 2009, 11:29
All green at YTEE.

EDIT: BTW I diverted to YTEE.:redface:

Edit2: Moved to the back seat to watch the sunrise out of Darwin.

jkcook28
November 22nd, 2009, 12:20
Onward to Charleville.(YBCV)

MM
November 22nd, 2009, 12:56
John, nice photo of the Cessna and Aussie sunrise.

jkcook28
November 22nd, 2009, 13:57
Safe at YBCV

jkcook28
November 22nd, 2009, 15:07
Gonna wrap it up. Off to YMEN.
My wild guess-shot in the dark-no idea on ETE number is 2:32:32 :gameon:

jkcook28
November 22nd, 2009, 17:42
Down and done YMEN.

Lost the good tailwind for last third of leg, so no wiggle room on the timer. Looks like 00:01:15 late. Fairly close for as little effort as I put into calculating it! :d

Thanks to the organizers for a fun event that included Modern GA.
Time to rest.

Dangerousdave26
November 22nd, 2009, 17:57
Excellent Work

:ernae:

MM
November 22nd, 2009, 18:56
Hooray, John.

Welcome to the Windsor...to tell a few tales.:icon29:

Great Ozzie
November 22nd, 2009, 19:18
Huzzah! CG John! :ernae:

arrvoo
November 23rd, 2009, 01:21
Nicely done John. Welcome!

Milton Shupe
November 23rd, 2009, 03:18
Great work John ... welcome to the final destination. :ernae: :applause:

Moses03
November 23rd, 2009, 05:35
Good deal!:icon29:

srgalahad
November 23rd, 2009, 13:56
good stuff John!!!:icon29:

EdGeneer
November 25th, 2009, 18:17
Welcome to Melbourne John.... Congratulations...

Have a beer!!!! :icon29:

donlimpio
December 1st, 2009, 05:48
Good stuff! Welcome and congratulations