AOPA Pilot Magazine - September 2021 - 103

Recently I asked Dave if he had been worried. His laconic
reply was, " A little but that runway is short and the trees! " Dave
has added more ratings and has flown hundreds of hours in the
years since. He added, " I've been more scared since then. LOL. "
Later, I reviewed my decisions that day.
First, Runway 7/25 at Corona is 3,200 feet long, which is
plenty of runway for my little Comanche. According to the
pilot's operating handbook, at the airport altitude about sea
level (533 feet) it should only have taken a little more than 800
feet to break ground. The handbook also indicates that the rate
of climb should exceed 800 feet per minute. I can guess that
clawing my way skyward at 80 mph instead of the best rate of
climb speed of 96 mph greatly slowed the climb.
So why did the runway seem so short?
My decision to rush to takeoff had a lot to do with it. The
paved hold short area at the end of Runway 25 is wide. It's
possible that instead of using the full length of the runway
that day, my turning onto the centerline cut off a couple of
hundred feet.
My leisurely application of throttle indicates that I thought
we had plenty of runway. In reality, I was behind the airplane
from the minute I accepted the quick takeoff clearance.
When the Sparky Imeson rule of thumb for density altitude
(subtract 600 feet from the runway length for every 10 degrees
Fahrenheit above the standard temperature for the airport eleIt's
possible that instead of using the full length of
the runway that day, my turning onto the centerline
cut off a couple of hundred feet.
vation) is applied for that 90-degree day, the short runway is
no longer a perception, it's a reality.
Here's what I should have done: taken my time to complete
the preflight check list; waited for the incoming airplane
to clear the runway; and then lined up on the centerline and
completed my engine checks at 2,000 rpm before releasing the
brakes. Steve Ells is a freelance aviation writer, commercial
pilot, and A&P mechanic based in Paso Robles, California.
103
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AOPA Pilot Magazine - September 2021

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