https://youtu.be/BFL6eDEdCDgFog. Low ceilings. Gusty wind. Broken Airplane.Student unavailable. CFI unavailable. All of these "reason codes" kept me on the ground for a month. Finally, we had a "Go" day.
It was a "BIS" (Back In the Saddle") Flight so I wanted to make it an easy flight for the student to recover the feel of the airplane. Skip had previously been based at Peter O. Knight (KTPF) just south of Tampa and north of MacDill AFB. So I decided to let him fly me to a familiar airport.
Peter O. Knight Airport is an airport on Davis Islands, five minutes from downtown Tampa, Florida. Built as a Works Progress Administration project, it was Tampa's main airport from 1935 to 1945, and is still used by general aviation operators today because of its proximity to the central city. The airport was named for prominent attorney and businessman Peter O. Knight, namesake of Holland & Knight.
Tampa's annual Gasparilla Pirate Fest- a Mardi Gras-like festival held in January, includes a Pirate Flotilla that sails up the channel into Tampa - the symbolic beginning of the Pirate's reign over the city. The flotilla passes directly alongside the airport, making the airport an ideal viewing area for this event.
The winds were from the south so we took off already heading in the right direction. I told him to stay to the east side of I75 until we were ready to cross the bay. Since we would be under the Class B shelf I reminded him to stay under 1200Ft.
I learned something. I thought you had to be in contact with ATC to be tracked on FlightAware. Nope. We went from one "uncontrolled" airport to another and only made our normal position reports. No ATC. I was surprised to find this: https://flightaware.com/live/flight/N674PS
Be careful out there. Don't bust any airspace. Somebody IS watching!
We did a few landings then departed to the west toward Plant City. We practiced a Simulated engine failure (3Ps) then headed for home. A VERY nice landing back at home plate.
He's gettin' it.
