While the midwest is soaked and flooded, Northern California is choked with smoke. Here's a listing of today's TFRs (Temorary Flight Restrictions). All but one of the blue dots that depicts the various TFR are associated with a wildfire. From Big Sur (just south of Monterey) to Mt. Shasta, over 800 fires are burning and most are less than 40% contained.Low winds have kept the fires from getting eve...

At the end of any trip comes the inevitable realizations about lessons learned as well as the comparisons and contrasts. Before I get to that, I'd like to ask readers who find my blog useful to consider making a donation to support my continued efforts. Over the last two-plus years, I've been writing regular blog entries that I hope are informative, useful, and entertaining. Writing takes time and,...

Today's flight was to be the last one and would allow the airplane's owner to meet his insurance requirements for dual instruction. Our destination was Point Salines International Airport in Grenada with the contingency plan being a second, shorter VFR tour of Montserrat if we needed to log a bit more dual. I forgot to install the rechargable battery in my camera, which was still in the charger at...

The abbreviation for thundershowers in aviation weather reports and forecasts is TSRA, which stands for "ThunderStorms and RAin." As boring as that little bit of trivia may be, real life thunderstorms certainly get your attention when you are airborne or planning to become airborne. TSRA figured into today's return flight Grantley Adams International Airport in Barbados.The replacement starter for...

This morning we confirm that the starter bendix on the right engine is toast. I helped a local mechanic remove the right engine cowling to inspect the starter and then remove it. He tried in vain to locate a replacement starter bendix at one of the two sources on the island, but no dice. The right engine is counter-rotating, so quickly locating a replacement bendix is unlikely.The aircraft owner ca...