Unusual Florida Weather

Alberto: a subtropical system that spawned in the Gulf of Mexico and traveled north staying about 100 miles off the Tampa coast. Winds reached about 65 mph. Not much of an event except for one thing: RAIN. The eastern side of this system sucked warm moist air from the gulf and deposited rain all across the Florida peninsula. It must have triggered a weather pattern. We were grounded for 3 solid weeks. Lakeland reported the wettest month of May in history.

While waiting I decided to have some maintenance done on my LightSpeed Zulu headset. I like this headset but after 7 years it was starting to show age. I learned that for a very reasonable fee the company would refurbish the unit. If I had a Zulu 2 they would upgrade to a Zulu 3, but mine was older than that so I just got it reconditioned. GREAT! customer service, I would advise anyone to get this done.

I got a call from a prospective client about starting his training for his Sport Pilot Certificate. We waited for the weather to change. When I checked the maps yesterday it was marginal. Foggy mist in the early morning followed by a 60% chance of strong convective rain and thunderstorms in the afternoon. But there was a gap, a small possibility of mid-morning fair weather that might work. I asked him to meet me at the FBO at 9:00am EDT.

I did a thorough preflight on Sally the day before, noting that she could use a good cleaning. Mechanically she was sound, cosmetically she had killed a lot of lovebugs on the previous flight and needed the remains to be cleaned off the leading surfaces. She would go "as is". I burped her again for this flight and sumped the fuel. Next, I pulled her out of the hangar and attached the cameras. I enjoyed the brief taxi over to the FBO. Bruce was waiting for me.

We discussed what a Discovery Flight is, what he should expect and some basic instructions for the flight. I told him just a bit about Sally as we walked to the airplane, then instructed him how to get in and adjust the straps. I adjusted the rudder pedals and made sure he was comfortable before I got in. I suggested his polarized sunglasses might now work with the LCD displays. After a basic brief, we taxied out to RWY23 for takeoff.

The flight went well. We had to avoid some scud and a few scattered clouds at 1,000ft but the air was smooth. We accomplished what we needed and returned home. We are both ready for the next flight, weather permitting.

June 1st is the start of Hurricane season.

Video Notes: Discovery Flight