Monthly Archives: April 2015

First Cross Country Flight Video – Carlsbad to Lancaster

Posted on 27 April, 2015 in Cross Country Flying, Flying Lessons, Private Pilot Exam


For those interested, here is video from part of yesterday’s cross country flight,  – my first ever – from the takeoff at Carlsbad’s Palomar Airport (KCRQ) out to Bonsall and then the landing at Fox Field (KWJF) – and spotting two landmarks, “the prison” and “the racetrack”. I learn something every time I fly. Yesterday, I filed my flight plan under the wrong tail number. It wasn’t that big of a deal, but I know I will never do that again!  Thanks to my awesome instructor Andy for letting me bring the GoPro up and being patient with all my questions.

Tags: , , ,

Understanding Pressure Altitude and Density Altitude

Posted on 23 April, 2015 in Aviation Weather, Cross Country Flying, Flying Lessons, Private Pilot Exam


At my next stage check, I know I’m going to have to explain pressure altitude and density altitude. And when I become a CFI I’m going to have to teach other people what they are, so I need to learn it. And understand it. And most importantly, be able to explain it. Thank goodness for Youtube videos, I can get some free education that will supplement everything I’m paying to learn at Pinnacle.

Pressure altitude is simple – it’s what you get when you dial 29.92 in your altimeter.

Density altitude is pressure altitude corrected for temperature and humidity. Or, pressure altitude corrected for nonstandard temperature. Another way of thinking about density altitude is this: Density altitude is the altitude the airplane feels like it’s at.

At some point my examiner is going to ask me to calculate density altitude. I know there are two pieces of information I need to figure this out. Pressure altitude and temperature. I can get the temperature right off the thermometer. I can find the pressure altitude by setting the altimeter to 29.92 and reading the altitude off the altimeter. Another method of calculating pressure altitude: take standard pressure, subtract the current pressure, multiply it by 1,000 and add the field elevation.

If you don’t have a flight computer, or an E6B, you can find density altitude using this formula:

Density Altitude = PA + (120 x (OAT – ISA Temp)

PA = 120 x (Outside Air Temperature – Standard Temperature (always 15))

In the wintertime, when it’s cool, and especially near sea level, density altitude isn’t really a big deal. In the summer time, when it heats up and air is humid, density altitude can be a big deal. Not so much here in Carlsbad, but in other areas, particularly high elevation areas where it gets hot, density altitude is very important. Remember, a high density altitude is NOT a good thing.

A surprisingly accurate rule of thumb (usually any error will be less than 200-300 feet) for determining the density altitude is easy to remember. For each 10-degrees Fahrenheit above standard temperature at any particular elevation, add 600 feet to the field elevation. (And, conversely for each 10-degrees F below standard temperature, subtract 600 feet from the field elevation.)

Example: It is 79 degrees Fahrenheit at Carlsbad, so that’s 20 degrees about standard temperature (standard temperature is 15C/59F) Add 1200 feet (600×2) to the field elevation of 330. Density altitude calculated by the rule of thumb method would be 1550. Using the 29.92 barometric pressure calculated on a flight computer, density altitude would be 1,673. So, pretty close.

Tags: , ,
[Top]

Understanding True Course, True Heading and the Wind Correction Angle

Posted on 19 April, 2015 in Aviation Weather, Cross Country Flying, Flying Lessons, Private Pilot Exam


I am prepping for cross-country and beginning to think everything would be easier if wind didn’t exist. When you’re planning your route, you have to constantly correct for wind. And this involves something called the wind correction angle. It is the difference between the magnetic course you want to fly, and the magnetic heading you actually fly. In order to stay on course to a point, you need to compensate for the effects of the win, and steer the nose of the airplane into the wind. We use our E6B flight computer to find the effect of the wind in regard to ;

Groundspeed (rate of airplane’s progress over the ground)
Airspeed (rate of airplanes progress through the air)
Drift angle (angle between course heading and track)
Heading (the direction in which the nose of the airplane is headed)
Course (the intended path of the airplane over the ground).

Using the wind correction angle and your E6B flight computer, you can convert your true course to your true heading, and also find out what your ground speed will be for your flight. So again in summary, the difference between the magnetic course and the magnetic heading is the wind correction angle.

[Top]

Carlsbad Solo Flight Video and Cross Country Flight Scheduled for Monday

Posted on 16 April, 2015 in Flying Lessons, Private Pilot Exam

I meant to share this last week, but didn’t get a chance to because I went to Arizona. I went up and did my third solo flight and first solo “out of the pattern” last week. I brought the GoPro along and got this video in my favorite airplane, N9897F, heading out to Bonsall and the Pauma Valley practice area.

My first cross-country flight is scheduled for Monday! I will be flying from my home airport in Carlsbad to William J Fox Airfield (KWJF) in the Antelope Valley – the northern tip of Los Angeles County. I’ve never been to Fox Field and neither has my instructor, so it will be fun to find it using maps, the iPad, GPS, and good ole’ VORS. I’ve been looking forward to cross-country flying since I started and am so excited it is finally happening!

Tags: , ,
[Top]

Easter Egg Decorating Fun – PAAS Volcanic Eggsplosion Video

Posted on 4 April, 2015 in Holiday Fun, Life with a Toddler


Today, I was supposed to fly solo for the third time. I was excited to use my new GoPro! But due to 10 knot winds, it got postponed. So Caroline and Ava and I had fun decorating Easter Eggs. We used a dye kit called the PAAS “Volcanic Eggsplosion” and melted down crayons on top of the freshly boiled (still hot) eggs. After the melted crayons cooled we dyed them the traditional way using the dye kit and vinegar. It was a lot of fun and the eggs came out great! In the video (sped up) you can see how quickly the wax melted. We used tongs to transfer them from the boiling water. Always use caution when handing hot eggs.

Tags: ,
[Top]

More Xarelto Bleeding Lawsuits Filed in California Federal Court

Posted on 1 April, 2015 in Dangerous Drugs

xareltophotoBack in January, I blogged about the status of Xarelto lawsuits, a legal matter I’ve been closely following since the FDA first issued a warning letter to Johnson & Johnson back in June 2013. In that post, I mentioned that we would likely be seeing news of more lawsuits being filed as the MDL moves along. On March 20th, another case was filed in CA, on behalf of 12 Xarelto patients who allegedly suffered either gastrointestinal or rectal bleeding as a result. Some of them were hospitalized, including one man who had a stroke.

Xarelto, of course, is an anticoagulant, a drug better known as a “blood thinner”. Xarelto has only been on the market since July 2011, when it was first approved by the FDA.

The drug was initially approved to prevent blood clots in patients undergoing hip replacement or knee replacement surgery. The FDA later approved it in November 2011 to reduce stroke risk in people with atrial fibrillation. In November 2012, the FDA approved Xarelto to treat deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism.

For many decades and until a few years ago, the “gold standard” blood thinner was Coumadin (aka warfarin). The downside of warfarin is that patients have to do rigorous and ongoing blood testing to see how long it takes your blood to clot and to make sure you are taking the right dose. Patients taking Xarelto do not need to undergo routine blood tests. The most recent lawsuit filed in CA federal court alleges that Johnson & Johnson was misguided when alleging that testing was unnecessary.

Bleeding events can occur with both Coumadin and Xarelto. When patients are taking Coumadin, doctors can give patients Vitamin K, which swiftly counteracts the thinning properties and essentially stops the bleeding. There is no antidote for Xarelto patients. Bleeding in a Xarelto patient can be life-threatening and fatal.

Back in December, about two dozen lawsuits were consolidated into Multidistrict Litigation in federal court in Louisiana. In Jaunary, a new mass tort was created in the Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas. The California Xarelto lawsuit suit is Walker et al v. Janssen Research & Development LLC et al, Case No. 2:15-vc-01971, in the US District Court for the Central District of California.

Tags: ,
[Top]