2014 Aviation Update

This year my flying was significantly different than in the prior couple of years.  In retrospect there are a few reasons for that.  For one, we moved to Virginia and many of my flights have been local or to closer airports getting familiar with the area.  Secondly, I sold N2893Z and purchased a new airplane this year – N111RW – a 1981 Piper Saratoga.  I had to spend a considerable amount of time locally getting training in the new plane since it has retractable gear, a constant speed prop and is high performance.  My 3rd excuse is a very demanding year at work had the plane sitting longer than normal.  All that being said I still consider 2014 a very successful year from an aviation perspective.  I look forward to setting some goals for 2015 and really spreading our “wings” in our new and very capable airplane.  The new plane will fly us faster and higher than we have previously had the capability to fly.  This will of course get us to our destinations quicker but also allow us to get above some of the weather and be more comfortable since it has 6-seats.

Here is a summary of 2014:

2014 Hours: 57.8

Total Hours: 757.9

2014 Approximate Mileage: >6,500 miles.

New Airports: 10 – KRIC, KFYJ, KPGD, KAQX, KART, KHRJ, KEMV, KSHD, KMMU, KUNV

Map of all the flights made in 2014:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New States:  No new states added in 2014.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Year in review:  January and February I had just a couple of flights to places relatively close to Richmond.  The family flew a very short trip to see Colonial Williamsburg on a beautiful day in early March.  Also in March I flew up to Lancaster, PA to spend time with my Pap in his last days while he was in hospice care.  In April the family spent Spring Break in Myrtle Beach with Jeff’s parents at their new beach house.  N2893Z was sold in May and N111RW was purchased in June.  On June 17th (my birthday) I flew N111RW from Punta Gorda, FL to Richmond, then to Watertown, NY and back to Richmond in one day.  I wasn’t able to log all of this time as I flew with the prior owner from Punta Gorda up to Richmond and then picked up my instructor who spent time learning the systems on the way up to Watertown, NY.  My first logged flight in N111RW was from Watertown, NY back to Richmond and it was quite a memorable experience!  The next few weeks were spent with my instructor learning the new airplane.  The family flew in N111RW for the first time  in the end of July when we took an overnight trip up to the Shenandoah Valley.  It was a very quick flight but a milestone for the family.  In August we flew up to Morristown, NJ where enjoyed our good friend Bobby James’ wedding.  We dropped the kids off in Lancaster, PA and they spent the weekend with Jeff’s parents.  At the end of August Jeff flew up to Cambridge, MD with new friend Kevin R. to meet up with old friends Gary Mascelli & Frank Dorrin to show off the new airplane.  In November Jeff flew up to Penn State University with his friend Jeff G. to pickup his son David for Thanksgiving break.  Finally in December the family again flew to Myrtle Beach for a weekend trip over Christmas Break.

So even though I didn’t accumulate as many hours in 2014 we still got good use out of our airplanes.  We are starting to plan our adventures for 2015 and look forward to a productive year.

Here is more data for my pilot friends (2014/Total):

Cross-country: 45/508.2

Night: 1.5/59.9 (Didn’t even try to stay night current in 2014 – wanted to get more familiar with new plane)

IMC: 5.9/47.9

Approaches: 21/190

Landings: 47/994

Click here to last years update:  2013 Aviation Update

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