Flying in the Rain 5-29-00

The forecast for this morning was for partly cloudy so I got up early and headed up to Madras. Took off just before sunrise into mostly cloudy conditions heading to a small dirt airstrip about 15 miles out and across lake Billy Chinook.

There was a little turbulence flying over the lake that lies at the bottom of a deep canyon but once on the other side it smoothed right out. I always choose a narrow spot to cross the lake, and fly high enough that I could glide to a safe landing if necessary.

Since the SR7 now has a plastic mesh thingee under the prop to protect it against debris, I landed. As I was stretching my legs I noticed some virga under the clouds in the distance, between me and my truck. Bummer!

Setting the GPS to point toward Madras Airport I took off and gained altitude before crossing back over the lake. Dropping down on the other side I began to feel a few small drops of water hit my face. Time to take a picture before it begins to rain too hard.

The camera now tucked away inside my flight suit, I'm trying to figure out how to cover my instruments and radio. Turns out I can use one of the bungies that hold my ditty bag to secure one of my gloves over the instruments.

Now it's coming down harder. My glasses are wet and it's as if I'm looking through the bottom of coke bottles. This is going to complicate things if I have to spot an emergency landing site. But the engine is running fine, the chute doesn't appear to be filling with water, and it's only 5.4 miles to the airport.

By the time I get back to the airport the rain has stopped. The PPC has proven that it can indeed be flown in the rain, at least for a short time.