Night Flight in the Mountains
Flying VFR at Night in the Colorado Rockies
Simply from reading the headline some of you may respond "that's crazy." In reality night flight through the mountains can be more dangerous, but there are things a pilot can do to minimize the risk. If you pick the right night, night flight in the mountains can also be very rewarding.
I spent yesterday evening on a flight with a student traveling from Eagle Airport to Grand Junction and back. The flight departed and returned to Eagle in the dark. The flight itself was very enjoyable, and a pleasure to do.
In itself, night flight can be hazardous. Add a crossing of the Colorado Rockies and the hazards only increase. As I told my student, there are things a pilot can do to minimize these hazards and manage the risks; the following are my thoughts on night flight through the mountains...
Night flight in the mountains requires the pilot to be operating at their peak. This is the case for flying skills, planning skills, and medical/psychological condition. If you're not fully 100% up to the task then it's just better to stay home.
Planning...
Planning is essential. Get a weather briefing, file a flight plan, understand the conditions, look at charts, and review forecasts. Review your route, draw it on the map, have nav aid info ready. If you have a GPS, preload the route. Do everything possible to ensure your attention is on flight operations and not on trying to plan a flight as you fly it.
Weather...
In the mountains at night is no time to be second-guessing the weather. If it's not ideal, it's not a good idea. If you're new to night flying in the mountains you may want to make your first voyage on a clear night with a full moon. In the winter, with a full moon there is an amazing amount of visibility because of reflected light off the snow.
Flight Plan...
When you plan your route, plan it with possible outs by over flying many airports. Since airports are generally in the valley and not on the mountain doing so will also keep you over lower terrain where the visual reference of lights is below. Just before you launch open your flight plan. Also, if possible use flight following, ATC can help guide you and keep you out of trouble if problems do arise - remember they're a resource for you. If you paid your taxes then you paid their salary, you have a right to use that service.
Physical Condition...
Make sure you're rested, well fed, and up to the challenge. If that's not the case pick another night. At night I generally fly higher altitudes, crossing the Continental Divide at Corona Pass at night I might fly 15,500 east and 16,500 west. This means have Oxygen! Oh... and use it. Oxygen will make your night vision sharper.... if you don't believe me; go to the USAF Altitude Chamber Training. Another important consideration is to allow your night vision to adapt. I sometimes just sit in the car for 30 minutes in the dark before the flight to accomplish this.
Aircraft Condition & Preflight
Assuming you’ve done everything to mitigate the above risks, the largest remaining risk will be that of an equipment failure like an engine failure. For this reason it’s essential to do a very good job on the preflight inspection. The preflight can be a challenge at night, sometimes it’s helpful to do the preflight before sunset and then wait for it to get dark. Do the most through preflight you know how to do, and then do it again. It’s also a good idea to organize the cockpit so you can find things in the dark. Have lights available to see charts, etc.
The up side of night flight is that it’s easier to find airports, see traffic, and often the air is smoother. A night flight under a full moon through the snow covered Rockies is truly a unique experience that few people get to enjoy. It’s definitely worth the extra work.
Mountain Flying Instruction, Resources and Seminars
A great online resource for Mountain Flying
I frequently get e-mails asking for recommendations on the best books, online training and videos for the topic of mountain flying. Usually, whenever I schedule a student for the training they also ask... "Should I read anything before I come?"
In terms of books, Sparky Emerson has a couple great books, excellent detail. If you read his series of books on the topic you'll be well versed. If you don't have the time available then another resource I can't promote enough is the AOPA Air Safety Foundation online Mountain Flying Course.
This online course is fantastic. What's better, it can be completed in several hours. While it does not take the place of an in depth study, this online course is an excellent way to prepare for a mountain training course or a way to refresh your knowledge prior to mountain flight.
Of course the best training is by doing, and Alpine Flight Training provides mountain flying seminars of 1 and 2 days in length to give you the practical real-world experience of flying in the mountains. Call for more information at 970-401-5105
See Also
- AOPA Air Safety Mountain Flying Course
Mountain Flying online course
Mountain Flying Instruction
Mountain Flying Course in the Heart of the Colorado Rockies
Have you ever wanted to venture into the mountains with your airplane, but worried that you may not be ready for the challenge? If you want to fly in the mountains, the best idea is to get some mountain flight instruction from a qualified flight instruction that specializes in mountain flying. The team of instructors at Alpine Flight Instruction can provide just that training.
Central Colorado offers incredible natural beauty, from desert mesas to snow-capped 14,000 ft peaks. This landscape also presents a wide variety of challenges for all pilot experience levels. Narrow and sloping runways, one-way airports, density altitudes in excess of 10,000 ft and difficult-to-predict mountain wave will test your decision-making abilities and skills as a pilot.
Safe and enjoyable flying in the mountains requires the right perspective, solid understanding of aircraft performance, the operating environment and most importantly, your abilities as a pilot. The proficient mountain pilot will carefully assess each of these factors when planning a mountain flight.
Call and talk to the instructors at Alpine Flight Training. We will build a training plan ideally suited to any pilot's skill level and experience. Our instructors can provide mountain training in our rental aircraft or in your own aircraft. Additionally, we can arrange to meet you at an airport east or west of the Rockies on the way from where you are coming from.
Instinct and Intuition - A Recipe for Disaster
In the course of going through the most basic pilot training many of us learn that control inputs based on instinct or intuition are often wrong. Some examples of this are the graveyard spiral or recovery from a spin. In the case of each, the natural thing to do is not the correct thing to do. Mountain Flying is very similar, in that the natural and intuitive strategy does not always equate to a good strategy.
The goal of our mountain flight training is to help you develop a different perspective with regards to navigating your aircraft through the mountains. This new perspective will help you develop conditioned responses to keep your aircraft safe as you navigate the mountains. The basic premise is simple....(1) stay in a position to turn to lowering terrain and (2) never fly past the point of no return. While these rules seem simple enough, it takes some practice to develop them into conditioned responses. This conditioning takes time and effort, that is, practice with an experienced mountain pilot. It is not something you go out and do once or twice and figure you have "it." But it is something you can be aware of so that you condition yourself. Keep repeating the rules to yourself, "Stay in a position to turn to lower terrain," while constantly evaluating the flight situation.
Redefining Aircraft Performance and Weather
The second really large area we focus our time on when teaching mountain flying is related to the areas of aircraft performance and weather. With regards to the topics of aircraft performance and weather the goal is to thoroughly review the knowledge areas, and focus specifically on how they apply to mountain flying. Additionally, we'll show you some techniques you can use to improve your flying specifically related to aircraft performance and weather.
Mountain Flying Syllabus
Our mountain flying training is custom tailored to each pilot. Every pilot is different is terms of what they plan to do, and the sort of aircraft they are using, as a result every mountain flying training session is a little different. For this reason we don't have a set training syllabus, however the training syllabus below will provide an overview of many of the topics we cover during mountain flight training. The goal of this course is to provide the pilot with the basic tools of knowledge, skill and judgment to fly safely in mountainous terrain, while having a challenging and rewarding experience.
Course Outline
Mountain Flying Strategy
- Flight Planning
- Navigation Strategies
Takeoff & Landing
- Determining Density Altitude
- Takoff and & Landing Performance
- Climb Performance
- Takeoff Startegy...Ground Effect? Flaps?
- Engine Cooling Issues
- Cross Wind Review
- Runway Gradient & Effect on TO/Land
- Constricted Approches
- Determining Wind Direction and Intensity
- Proper Techniques for Leaning
Flying through Rugged Terrain
- Box Canyons
- Canyon/Valley Turns
- Evaluating and Crossing Ridges & Plateaus
- Weather Factors
Mountain Weather
- Circulation & Pressure Patterns
- Orographic / Solar Effects
- Winds and Mountain Wave
- Diurnal Effect
- Turbulence
Emergencies
- Precautionary and Forced Landings
- Surveying Landing Sites
- Survival Planning
Practice at Mountain Airports
- Leadville, Aspen, Telluride, Glenwood Springs, Steamboat Springs, Meeker, Grandby, Gunnison, Salida, and others depending upon student’s interest.
High Density Altitude Takeoff Tip
Flaps... more flaps does not equal more lift.
The other day I was at an FBO and I overheard a conversation between two pilots talking about flying to Denver in the summer. The one pilot who had flew to Denver last summer was relaying his experience. He was flying a 182 into Front Range Airport and said he had a heck of a time departing, because he couldn't get the plane off the ground. Finally, after using over 6,000 feet of runway he lifted off was able to just barely get a climb going.
This pilot had stated that he couldn't understand how any aircraft could ever fly in or out of an airport like Leadville since he had so much trouble going to Denver.
I was intrigued by this conversation and decided to introduce myself as a pilot from Colorado and ask some questions. It turns out the plane was loaded properly, well below gross, the pilot, his wife, and maybe 75-100 pounds of bags. He had taken off into the wind of 7 kts. The temp was 95, and that was a factor to the performance, but as I asked more questions the real problem became evident. This pilot had used 20 degrees of flaps. His thinking was that more was better, and a short field procedure of 10 degrees should be adapted to high altitude procedure of 20 degrees of flaps. WRONG!
The reality of the situation is just the opposite. Generally speaking, the first flap setting usually adds more lift than drag, the second, third or even forth flap settings on most aircraft add more drag than lift. The better procedure would have been to use no flaps, or at the most use the 10 degree setting.
I explained that the 182 is a very capable machine, he just needed a different procedure. I also explained that I had flown 150hp 172's to and from Leadville (not in 95 degree temps though).
So what is a good procedure for takeoff from a high altitude airport? First we'll assume you have evaluated the wind, temp, aircraft performance, weight and balance and have concluded that the attempted takeoff is within the capabilities of the aircraft.
If that's the case then the procedure I like to use is to taxi into position using every available foot of runway, lock the brakes, engine to full power, and flaps in the up position (i'll get to using flaps in a second). When you're ready for the takeoff run, release the brakes. Once you get the aircraft in the air keep it close to the ground to use ground effect to accelerate (Ground effect is a reduction in drag caused by being close to the ground in flight). Once airborne in the ground effect you may want to retract flaps if you had used them as well as landing gear. As the plane accelerates past Vy then it will handle and climb better than if it were at or below Vy.
As you were doing the takeoff run, if you got to the 1/2 way point of the runway and you're not airborne or close to airborne then you can extend the first setting of flaps. The benefit of doing this during the takeoff run is that the aircraft will initially accelerate faster without flaps.
Every aircraft is different, this procedure may not be correct for some aircraft, but this will work well for many small single and multi-engine aircraft.
Winter Mountain Flying Courses
Different Seasons Create Different Experiences for Learning to Fly in the MountainsThe ceilings are low, the visibility decreasing. I look out at the airfield and a winter storm is rolling in... Not early, not late, just when we would expect to start seeing regular snow. There will probably be no flying for the rest of the day, but the next weeks and months will transform the Colorado Rockies to a winter wonderland.
With each season, the flight experience, challenges, issues, planning, even the survival gear that a pilot should carry changes. In the summer we high density altitude to contend with, in the winter we have pre-heating and icing considerations among others.
I offer mountain flight training for pilot/owners all year long. If you've ever considered taking some mountain flying instruction, winter is a great time, especially for those that have an airplane that doesn't have the performance capabilities to enjoy the mountains in the summer. I frequently have students that take a lesson in one season and come back in another season to receive the training and experience of flying through the Rockies in winter vs. summer or vice versa. We offer 1 and 2 days mountain flying courses based from Eagle Colorado. We can even arrange for a pilot to meet you east or west of the Rockies. Call us today for more information.
Glenwood Springs Flying Club
Depending upon what your specific goals and plan is, joining the Glenwood Springs Flying club may or may not be right for you.
Essentially, the club has about 15 members and 2 early 70's aircraft. Both aircraft are Cherokee 235's. The aircraft are older, and given the small number of users they are readily available. Buying into this club (a 1/20th share) is about $3000, and once you are a member you operate the aircraft for cost (roughly $120/hour fuel included), you'll also be responsible for monthly minimums, and quarterly fees.
Now the benefit of this club is that their aircraft, Cherokee 235's are very capable, and after you have your license then you'll have a plane to fly.
Unfortunately, many people join this club just to learn to fly, thinking that they can sell their membership later - very few ever do, finding a buyer for your membership if you want to get out of the club later is nearly impossible.
Now if your entire goal is to just learn to fly, and you're really not interested in owning an aircraft there are better avenues that will cost you less.
As an example, we rent our Diamond Katana DA-20-C1 Katana Evolution for $129 per hour, fuel included. If you purchase in a 10 hour block you can rent the Katana for $119/hour. As you can see, as a member of the club you'll be paying nearly $120 per hour to fly a 40 year old airplane, mean while you could be spending the same and flying a thirty year newer aircraft, and you didn't have to buy-in for $3000, and you don't have monthly minimums, and you don't have quarterly dues.
There are some other advantages learning in the Katana at Eagle - First, students in glenwood spend a good deal of time travelling to the larger runways of Eagle and Rifle to practice landings because student practice is difficult and time consuming at Glenwood Springs because of it's runway length and placement in the valley. Learning at Eagle means you spend more time practicing and less time commuting to other airports. The result is that your training time is less, and therefore the cost is less. The second major advantage that the Katana provides is a simpler aircraft that is easier to learn in. This means you get through your training faster as well.
If you're considering learning to fly, we would like to invite you to come out to Eagle airport and take a discovery/intro flight. You'll have a chance to meet our instructors, fly the plane for an hour, see our training curriculum, and get all your questions answered. We offer discovery flights that are 1 hour of flight time and 2 hours of instructor time for $199.00. Call 970-401-5105 to schedule one today.
Density Altitude and Mountain Flight Training Courses and Mountain Checkout
Alpine Flight Training in Eagle Colorado provides year-round mountain flying instruction and mountain checkout. We have options for a 1 or two day course. No matter what time of year you come, we'll always we talking about density altitude, even though, the influences of density altitude are most significant in the summer. If you're interested in learning mountain flying and getting a mountain checkout then come to the heart of the Colorado Rockies and fly with Alpine Flight Training.
There are more factors than just Altitude and Temperature
Most people commonly believe there are only two factors related to determining density altitude: field elevation and temperature. The belief that these are the only factors stems from the age-old use of the “density altitude chart” that every pilot encounters in textbooks, on tests, and in aircraft performance manuals.
This chart doesn’t tell the whole story, a pilot also needs to determine the effect on density altitude of humidity and atmospheric pressure.
In reality, humidity and air pressure also impact density altitude, however not to the extent of temperature and field elevation. Combined however the impact of these two factors can be significant.
Today, many of the electronic flight calculators include functions for calculating the actual density altitude. Additionally, there are several web sites with complete density altitude calculators such as the one created by Richard Shelquist that can be found at:
http://wahiduddin.net/calc/calc_da.htm
See Also
- Richard Shelquist Density Altitude Calculator
Density Altitude
Mountain Flying Courses - Eagle Colorado
Have you ever wanted to venture into the mountains with your airplane, but worried that you may not be ready for the challenge? If you want to fly in the mountains, the best idea is to get some mountain flight instruction from a qualified flight instruction that specializes in mountain flying. The team of instructors at Alpine Flight Instruction can provide just that training.
Central Colorado offers incredible natural beauty, from desert mesas to snow-capped 14,000 ft peaks. This landscape also presents a wide variety of challenges for all pilot experience levels. Narrow and sloping runways, one-way airports, density altitudes in excess of 10,000 ft and difficult-to-predict mountain wave will test your decision-making abilities and skills as a pilot.
Safe and enjoyable flying in the mountains requires the right perspective, solid understanding of aircraft performance, the operating environment and most importantly, your abilities as a pilot. The proficient mountain pilot will carefully assess each of these factors when planning a mountain flight.
Our course is taught by Loren French, our instructor with over 2500 hours of mountain flying time. He has ATP rating in single engine airplanes and is a commercial pilot in multi-engine land airplanes, single engine sea airplanes, and gliders.
2 Day Mountain Flying Courses
$749 (your own aircraft) / $1499 (Diamond DA-20)
The two day course includes two full days of instruction, approximately 8-9 hours of flight and 4-5 hours of ground training. Come and visit Colorado and fly into some of the most majestic mountain areas.
The Course Lecture
Our Mountain Flying Course consists of 4-5 hours of ground training spread over two days where you will learn the basics of how to fly in the mountainous terrain. You will learn the fundamentals of performance considerations, mountain weather, navigation, strategies for terrain flying, and perspectives to help you develop a good Go-No-Go Judgment. We'll also cover aspects of mountain flight planning and instrument considerations for mountain flying.
The Course Flight
Each student will then fly two separate routes, one route on each day. The first day, we'll depart Eagle, fly to Steamboat Springs, then to Meeker, Glenwood Springs (depending upon aircraft landing capabilities), and finally Aspen before returning to Eagle. The second day, we will depart Eagle, fly to Leadville, the highest airport in North America, then to Gunnison, North Fork Valley before returning to Eagle. There will also be an option for visiting Telluride along this route.
1 Day Mountain Flying Courses
$399 (your own aircraft) / $799 (Diamond DA-20)
The one day course includes a full day of instruction, approximately 3.5 hours of flight and 4.5 hours of ground training. Come and visit Colorado and fly into some of the most majestic mountain areas, you'll visit four of the most diverse mountain airports that Colorado has to offer in this condensed one day course.
The Course Lecture
Our Mountain Flying Course consists of 4 hours of ground training where you will learn the basics of how to fly in the mountainous terrain. You will learn the fundamentals of performance considerations, mountain weather, navigation, strategies for terrain flying, and perspectives to help you develop a good Go-No-Go Judgment. We'll also cover aspects of mountain flight planning and instrument considerations for mountain flying.
The Course Flight
Each student will then fly a route starting from Eagle flying Tennessee Pass to Leadville, the highest airport in North America, then crossing Hagarman Pass to Aspen, and finally Glenwood Springs before returning to Eagle over Cottonwood Pass. This route crosses the Collegiate mountain range, some of the highest in Colorado between Leadville and Aspen.
Mountain Training Plans
Call and talk to the instructors at Alpine Flight Training. We will build a training plan ideally suited to any pilot's skill level and experience. Our instructors can provide mountain training in our rental aircraft or in your own aircraft. Additionally, we can arrange to meet you at an airport east or west of the Rockies on the way from where you are coming from.
Instinct and Intuition - A Recipe for Disaster
In the course of going through the most basic pilot training many of us learn that control inputs based on instinct or intuition are often wrong. Some examples of this are the graveyard spiral or recovery from a spin. In the case of each, the natural thing to do is not the correct thing to do. Mountain Flying is very similar, in that the natural and intuitive strategy does not always equate to a good strategy.
The goal of our mountain flight training is to help you develop a different perspective with regards to navigating your aircraft through the mountains. This new perspective will help you develop conditioned responses to keep your aircraft safe as you navigate the mountains. The basic premise is simple....(1) stay in a position to turn to lowering terrain and (2) never fly past the point of no return. While these rules seem simple enough, it takes some practice to develop them into conditioned responses. This conditioning takes time and effort, that is, practice with an experienced mountain pilot. It is not something you go out and do once or twice and figure you have "it." But it is something you can be aware of so that you condition yourself. Keep repeating the rules to yourself, "Stay in a position to turn to lower terrain," while constantly evaluating the flight situation.
Redefining Aircraft Performance and Weather
The second really large area we focus our time on when teaching mountain flying is related to the areas of aircraft performance and weather. With regards to the topics of aircraft performance and weather the goal is to thoroughly review the knowledge areas, and focus specifically on how they apply to mountain flying. Additionally, we'll show you some techniques you can use to improve your flying specifically related to aircraft performance and weather.
Mountain Flying Syllabus
Our mountain flying training is custom tailored to each pilot. Every pilot is different is terms of what they plan to do, and the sort of aircraft they are using, as a result every mountain flying training session is a little different. For this reason we don't have a set training syllabus, however the training syllabus below will provide an overview of many of the topics we cover during mountain flight training. The goal of this course is to provide the pilot with the basic tools of knowledge, skill and judgment to fly safely in mountainous terrain, while having a challenging and rewarding experience.
Course Outline
Mountain Flying Strategy
- Flight Planning
- Navigation Strategies
Takeoff & Landing
- Determining Density Altitude
- Takoff and & Landing Performance
- Climb Performance
- Takeoff Startegy...Ground Effect? Flaps?
- Engine Cooling Issues
- Cross Wind Review
- Runway Gradient & Effect on TO/Land
- Constricted Approches
- Determining Wind Direction and Intensity
- Proper Techniques for Leaning
Flying through Rugged Terrain
- Box Canyons
- Canyon/Valley Turns
- Evaluating and Crossing Ridges & Plateaus
- Weather Factors
Mountain Weather
- Circulation & Pressure Patterns
- Orographic / Solar Effects
- Winds and Mountain Wave
- Diurnal Effect
- Turbulence
Emergencies
- Precautionary and Forced Landings
- Surveying Landing Sites
- Survival Planning
Practice at Mountain Airports
- Leadville, Aspen, Telluride, Glenwood Springs, Steamboat Springs, Meeker, Grandby, Gunnison, Salida, and others depending upon student’s interest.
Alpine Flight Training offers private pilot ground and flight training as well as instrument training at the Eagle County Regional Airport located in Eagle Colorado. Our training features a Diamond DA-20 Eclipse, one of the safest training aircraft in the industry, The DA-20 is the primary choice of flight schools through the nation as well as the training airplane for the US Air Force initial flight screening program. We are conveniently located within a short driving distance from Eagle, Gypsum, Glenwood Springs, Avon, Minturn, Vail, Beaver Creek, and Edwards.
Mountain Flight Instructor | Mountain Flying Courses
I figured I would dedicate this blog post to telling a little about our mountain flying courses. We frequently instruct pilots who own their own airplane, and are from areas without mountainous terrain. One of the first questions that comes up, is how do I get to Eagle Airport to fly with you in my airplane given that Eagle is in the mountains and my reason for coming is that I don't know how to fly in the mountains. We can and do frequently fly our airplane to the front range to meet pilots. Generally, if you’re coming up for a couple days of training then what we do is fly our plane to an airport east or west of the Rockies, and we just park our plane there for a couple days and then ride back to eagle with our student. There are a couple airports where parking is free or cheap that we generally use. In that type of scenario we charge a flat fee of $200 for the round trip just to cover the gas and time on the airplane. When you’re ready to depart to go back home you would just drop our instructor back at the airport where we left the plane.
In terms of a mountain flying course, we custom tailor the course to a pilot's experience, goals, and their airplane. In most cases, pilots will spend two days flying with us. Sometimes we have students that want more, others want to simply limit it to a half day or 1 day. So in that regard a pilot can really determine how much time you want to spend.
As we're planning your training it helps to know a little more about the student... their goals for the course, as well as future goals for your flying. For example some people come to us as a prep for flying to alaska. Are there any any specific airports you want to be sure to visit – resorts you like going to etc. Are you an instrument pilot? How much time, ratings, how much time do you have flying your airplane?
On the typical 2 day plan, we generally start off with a couple hours of ground instruction/discussion on the basics. Following that, we work through a variety of scenarios basically navigating to and from different mountain airports, pass crossings, and mountain corridors. Throughout the training we mix in additional discussions and ground instruction. The goal is not to bore the student with hours upon hours of ground, and instead have an integrated learning experience. At the end of two days most pilots will have landed 10-15 different airports with different challenges, flown most of Colorado’s major mountain corridors, and tackled the major passes generally used to navigate east to west in the central Rockies.
Occasionally we have students that simply want a 1 day, or a half day because they maybe have a 2nd home in a certain area, like Telluride, but live in Texas. In those cases they may only be interested in flying that route with an instructor and learning the most basic knowledge. We’re happy to do this type of training also.
In terms of cost, Our instructors bill hourly @ $75.00/hour for mountain flight instruction in customer aircraft and $40/hour for ground. If you’re flying with us 1 full day or more we provide a 20% discount. The two day courses generally work out to around $700-$1000. In most cases we have a total of 4-5 hours of ground and 10-12 hours of flight.
Mountain Flight Training in Colorado
If you're interested in flight training with an emphasis on extending your knowledge with some mountain flight training then Colorado is the place to come to, and Alpine Flight Training can provide the instruction. We operate from Eagle County Regional airport, located in the central Colorado Rockies. Whether for several hours, or for several days, Alpine Flight Training instructors will show you what it takes to fly safely in the mountains. Each mountain flight training instruction session is specifically tailored to the student. We can provide training in your aircraft or our rental Katana.
Throughout each session, we will build on your aviation knowledge and airman-ship by presenting opportunities for hands-on practice and application of learning on some of Colorado's mountain airports including Steamboat, Eagle, Aspen, Telluride, Glenwood Springs, Gunnison. We'll also show you how to navigate the mountain passes and give you strategies for dealing with mountain weather in a small aircraft.