The weather for this morning was forecast to be crud with layers of crap. In other words, not conducive to safe flying. Ceilings were to be 2000 or lower, and visibility severely limited by mist and haze. The forecast for Thursday looked much better, so discretion being the better part of valor, I decided to postpone for a day.
Naturally, conditions were far better than forecast when I woke up this morning, throwing me into the turmoil of having to make a decision as to whether to go or not. I checked the weather along the route and it was supposed to be pretty awful. Sometimes low clouds are ok, if they are spaced out a bit and it's clear above them. The problem is that ceiling reports (how high the clouds are above the ground) don't really paint the full picture. For example, if they're really tall clouds, you can't get over them. I looked on the weather radar and it looked like there was no avoiding having to deal with the clouds, so I decided to cancel the flight.
It was good that I did - I heard from another pilot that he tried to go, but was turned back at the Indiana border by a wall of clouds. No way through, no way under. By having avoided that, I saved gas money and a day of vacation, both valuable commodities.
Forecast for tomorrow is very good - it should be a very nice flight. I'm a little jittery about the crowd of planes that will be trying to get in line for the approach, but I'm really looking forward to the adventure.
I am not a pilot, but have a love all things aviation. I also think that the Oskosh gig is wonderful...all those radials. Heh. Iron with machineguns. And lots of horsepower.
ReplyDeleteAnd all of those homebuilts. Yes.
Anyway, hope you have a safe trip, there and back.
Durand
I call it Mecca for pilots. It really is an experience not to be missed!
ReplyDeleteNext year I might try Sun and Fun too.