Flight Training - September/October 2022 - 16

PREFLIGHT FLIGHT LESSON
BY JIM PITMAN
MOUNTAIN MINIMUMS
ALWAYS LISTEN TO YOUR INNER VOICE
WHAT HAPPENED
The mechanic later told
me that the carburetor
was basically falling
apart from the
inside out.
Phoenix (DVT). I would spend the night
in my own bed, fly the last short leg to
the private airstrip the next morning, and
deliver the airplane to the new owner.
The morning was a beautiful, clear,
hot summer day in Phoenix. After doing
my best to clean 1,240 miles worth of our
nation's finest bugs off the leading edges of
the Ercoupe, I departed for the last leg of
the trip. Unfortunately, engine trouble led
to two rejected takeoffs that both ended
without incident (see " Flying Carpet:
Powerless " July 2018 Flight Training).
The mechanic later told me that the
ONE OF MY PERSONAL MINIMUMS IS TO NOT FLY SINGLE-ENGINE
piston airplanes over high mountains at night. This is not based
on FAA requirements or any other rule. It's just one of my personal
standards.
I was scheduled to conduct a ferry flight the week of August
28, 2017. The job was to safely transport a 1946 ERCO Ercoupe
from the seller at Rice Lake Regional Airport in Wisconsin (RPD)
to the proud new owner at a private airstrip about 80 miles west
of Phoenix, Arizona. The 1,320-nautical-mile trip would take
about 16 flight hours over two and one-half days.
With thunderstorm season still in full swing, I knew it would
be no small miracle to make this trip without weather delays.
Fortunately, as launch day approached, the multi-day forecast
showed an unusual strip of clear weather stretching all the way
from Wisconsin to Arizona.
The seller had lost his medical certificate several years before.
The Ercoupe had been well-maintained, receiving regular engine
runs and an annual inspection every year, but had not actually
been flown for a few years. After reviewing the maintenance logs,
conducting a thorough preflight inspection, and carefully performing
the run-up, I took the 71-year-old beauty to the skies.
One day and four fuel stops later, I found myself at Belen
Regional Airport (BRG) in Belen, New Mexico, discovering that
the afternoon thunderstorms between there and Phoenix were
more active than expected. I quickly assessed the situation,
prepared plan B (and plan C), and took off for my home airport in
16
FLIGHT TRAINING SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2022
SAFETY TIP
PERSONAL
MINIMUMS
The best type of
accident is one that's
avoided. Are you
prepared to make the
right choices for the
best outcome next
time you fly? The
AOPA Air Safety Institute's
online course
Do the Right Thing:
Decision Making
for Pilots will help
you sharpen your
decision-making
habits and develop
a personal minimum
checklist.
aopa.org/ft/
decisionmaking
carburetor was basically falling apart from
the inside out. It was replaced and I eventually
delivered the Ercoupe to the happy
new owner without incident.
The actual engine trouble really didn't
bother me that much when it happened.
What kept me awake at night was the
" what-if " questions. Were there any other
clues that the carburetor was failing? Had
I missed something? The answer was no.
There's really no earthly explanation as to
how that carburetor worked flawlessly for
more than 15 hours before failing when
and where it did.
I had disregarded my personal minimum
of not flying single-engine piston
airplanes over high mountains at night.
The evening before the engine failures, I
had to circumnavigate the thunderstorms
between New Mexico and Arizona. I
should have stopped short at an airport
in northeast Arizona to spend the night.
But after 14-plus flight hours with this
smooth-running engine and the thunderstorms
behind me, I failed to follow
my personal minimums by flying the
Ercoupe over high mountains at night,
only to find out later that I had done so
with a failing carburetor.
TOP LEFT: SARAH HANSON; ABOVE: STEVE KARP
http://www.aopa.org/ft/decisionmaking http://www.aopa.org/ft/decisionmaking
Flight Training - September/October 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Flight Training - September/October 2022
