Winter flying in Michigan. Lake-effect snow has hit Western Michigan hard and fast. Our first snow of the year has come later than usual. However, with as much as a foot of snow in some places it has been a significant event. Lake Michigan is still fairly warm compared to the surrounding land. As cold winds move across the long expanses of warmer lake water the air picks up water vapor which freezes and is deposited on the leeward shores. This results in a unique phenomenon where very heavy snow falls in localized areas. Large parts of Michigan saw almost no snow while some cities close the the lake got dumped on in a big way. As I am toward the center part of the state we saw a lot of snow but just a short distance south or east of here very little snow fell. Grand Rapids will often receive twice the amount of snow as Lansing even though these cities are not far apart.
In flight snow does not stick to an airplane very well. This means that a fair amount of flying can still go on even with scattered snow showers. However, great care must be taken to insure that all snow, ice or frost is removed from the aircraft before flight as even a small amount of contamination will add significant drag and destroy lift. Even large airliners must be very sensitive to ice contamination or they could crash on takeoff as happened to Air Florida Flight 90 which crashed in the Potomac river in 1982 from ice on the aircraft. Flying at night in these conditions poses an even greater challenge. A student and I flew down to Ft. Wayne a few nights ago, avoiding the locally heavy snow on our way.
The not so nice weather and long nights has given me a chance to catch up on some reading. I just finished a book written by a British Apache helicopter pilot. It covers the two tours he spent flying in Helmand province in great detail. It is called 'Apache' and is by Ed Macy. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the current conflict in the middle east.
Thanksgiving back home was great. I put on 10lbs from eating Turkey. Home for Christmas in the near future and the possibility of a hunting trip to see family in Kansas are both events to look forward to soon.
JMG
In flight snow does not stick to an airplane very well. This means that a fair amount of flying can still go on even with scattered snow showers. However, great care must be taken to insure that all snow, ice or frost is removed from the aircraft before flight as even a small amount of contamination will add significant drag and destroy lift. Even large airliners must be very sensitive to ice contamination or they could crash on takeoff as happened to Air Florida Flight 90 which crashed in the Potomac river in 1982 from ice on the aircraft. Flying at night in these conditions poses an even greater challenge. A student and I flew down to Ft. Wayne a few nights ago, avoiding the locally heavy snow on our way.
The not so nice weather and long nights has given me a chance to catch up on some reading. I just finished a book written by a British Apache helicopter pilot. It covers the two tours he spent flying in Helmand province in great detail. It is called 'Apache' and is by Ed Macy. I would recommend it to anyone interested in the current conflict in the middle east.
Thanksgiving back home was great. I put on 10lbs from eating Turkey. Home for Christmas in the near future and the possibility of a hunting trip to see family in Kansas are both events to look forward to soon.
JMG
