Turn Coordinator
This isn’t about an IFR lesson, it’s about a flight to a maintenance facility instead. Last week in lesson three, instructor M and I found the turn coordinator was malfunctioning. Today I’m getting it replaced. It should be a quick in-and-out change. (Cue ominous music…)
I set this up last week and the guy who owns the avionics facility I was going to had ordered the turn coordinator and it should have already arrived. This should be a fast removal of the old, and put in the new, after all it’s just four screws that hold the instrument into the panel and the electrical connections on the back of the instrument. So no problem and I’d have time for an IFR lesson this afternoon. I should have known there are too many things to go wrong there!
The weather wasn’t great, but was flyable for me. The place I was going to was up against the mountains and was under an airmet for mountain obscuration. Eastern mountains many more modest than those out west but they still make for more interesting weather than flatlands. If that airport was obscured I would have to turn back and reschedule. But it was clear most of the way and I would try it. The trick is being willing to turn around and to be willing to do so early enough if necessary.
As predicted, the weather was good enough, if bumpy, most of the way. Later as I got close to my destination, the clouds lowered. But fortunately I still had enough room beneath them for me to fly both safely and legally. I flew through a light snow shower. My first! But I could see through it so could continue VFR.
I did have a high voltage indicator light up on the panel though, this is the second flight this has happened on now. I thought the first was due to a jump start I had to do. This indicator is like a car’s idiot lights that show a problem - this problem was that too high a voltage was charging the battery and can cause the battery to “boil” and expel battery fluid and potentially damage the battery.
The light going on just once might be random but twice is a problem. I waited till I was outside the class B airspace, turned off all my radios, the transponder, and the audio, then turned off the master power switch (we don’t have an avionics master switch). The engine has its own source of electrical power (magnetos) and so kept running. I turned the master back on and reset my radios, and the light stayed off. The reset procedure worked, but this needed looking into.
I landed in the gusts and turbulence from the hills at my destination and found the likely hangar - it was unmarked. But it was also the only one big enough for the shop at this small airport. Turns out that the landlord doesn’t let the shop put up any signs for some reason.
I went inside and soon found that UPS had messed up our schedule. The turn coordinator hadn’ t been delivered yet. After some calls, the guys at shop found out where the UPS delivery guy was and one mechanic spent a few hours to drive up the highway to meet UPS and get the t.c. before the now-scheduled late afternoon delivery time. This was very nice and unexpected. I would heartily recommend Todd Ott and Shenandoah Avionics at New Market (8W2).
Thanks to their help, this day, while longer than expected, was much shorter than it would have been! We had also cleaned and refilled the battery and adjusted the voltage regulator. And cleaned up the radio contacts too. That would solve the scratchy sound on radio #1 (and old Narco) as well.
The flight back was more turbulent. And I had to take the long way around some hills as the clouds were lower. More snow showers too - I got the hyperspace effect briefly. But, all still VFR fortunately. The only hitche was an issue in the pattern - the plane in front of me was doing a very long pattern, almost into the class B airspace. I didn’t realize they would be that long and didn’t slow soon enough and had to go around and offset to the right.
They were doing a touch and go and that put us close. So I extended my upwind to add more space. The second time - with someone behind me as well - I poked along at 80 kts to give them time for their wide and long pattern. I did hint on the radio that they were “way out there” which predictably didn’t do any good, but kept the rest of my comments to myself. It’s not my role to control the airspace but to control my plane in that airspace.
The plane is now ready to continue my IFR lessons. Maintenance is an ongoing task, fortunately it is one I have an interest in. I assisted with today’s work and the last several annuals as well. It’s interesting to not only know how to fly but to know how the plane flies and how it works too.