AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 94

P&E

NEVER AGAIN

Big Sky mission
Impatience is not a virtue
BY ANDREW ALLEN

94 | AOPA PILOT April 2013

briefings simply mention the chance of
this phenomenon.
Early one morning in mid-July, my
boss and I set off for eastern Montana
to check the progress of a couple of construction projects. I fly a 1976 Cessna 172
that belongs to a friend and we are the

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JAMES CAREY

I LIVE IN BOZEMAN, Montana, with high
plains and big mountains. Summer is a
great time to fly; you just have to be very
careful in the afternoons, because the
thunderstorms are numerous and very
unpredictable.
Flight planning in the summer months
in Montana requires more than standard
fuel, time, and distance calculations. It
requires scheduling around the inevitable
cumulonimbus anvils that will randomly
appear in your path. It is hard to cancel
a trip on a clear morning, when weather

only two who fly it. The airplane is not
beautiful, but the mechanics are perfect
and the addition of new coms and a panelmounted Garmin 396 with XM weather
and terrain is awesome.
The flight east was uneventful. We
completed our business around 3 p.m.,
and I was anxious to get going. I had been
checking the weather all day and talking
with Flight Service. The weather was still
great in eastern Montana, but deteriorating closer to home.
Our route home took us direct from
Baker Municipal (BHK) to Billings
(BIL), and then direct over Big Timber,
Livingston, Bozeman Pass, and into
Bozeman (BZN). We departed around 4
p.m., filed a VFR flight plan once airborne,
and then enjoyed the smooth air and rising terrain from the eastern Montana
Plains with the Crazy Mountains out front
and the Missouri Breaks to the north.
Around Billings and a couple thousand feet above ground level, you can see
Bozeman Pass. It is 130 nautical miles
away, but on a clear day it will mark your
direct route from Billings to the Gallatin
Valley. Approaching Billings, I could not
see the pass, and the active weather on the
396 showed a line of thunderstorms cutting across from Yellowstone Park to well
north of our desired track. The weather
was beautiful in Billings, but we could
clearly see that there was no way through
to Bozeman. I decided to land at Billings
and wait it out. As we were descending
to land in smooth air, I could see that
the landscape of fast-moving clouds had
changed. These thunderstorms were moving fast to the northeast. Perhaps we could
get back tonight—I had plans, you know.
We tied down at the FBO and went
inside to get some coffee and check the
weather. My passenger, who knew very


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AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013

AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013
Contents
President’s Position
Visual Approach
Waypoints
Proficient Pilot
Foundation Focus
License to Learn
Pilot Counsel
Fly Well
History
Debonair Sweepstakes
Pilot Products
Fly-Outs
Milestones
Test Pilot
Letters
41 Ways to Save
Fun On the Water
Training the Best for the Worst
Finding Flamingos
This Bird Really Flies
Technique
Avionics
Proficiency
Efficiency
Never Again
Membership
State & Local Action
Member Products
AOPA Foundation
Pilot Resources
Fly by Wire
Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Cover2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Contents
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 2
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - President’s Position
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 5
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 6
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 7
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 8
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 9
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Visual Approach
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 11
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Letters
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 13
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 14
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 15
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Waypoints
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 17
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Proficient Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 19
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Foundation Focus
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 21
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - License to Learn
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 23
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Pilot Counsel
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 25
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Fly Well
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 27
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - History
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 29
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Debonair Sweepstakes
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 31
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Pilot Products
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 33
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Fly-Outs
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 35
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Milestones
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 37
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Test Pilot
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 39
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 40
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - I1
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Letters
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 41 Ways to Save
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 42
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 43
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 44
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 45
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Fun On the Water
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 47
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 48
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 49
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 50
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 51
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 52
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 53
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Training the Best for the Worst
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 55
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 56
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 57
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 58
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 59
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 60
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 61
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Finding Flamingos
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 63
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 64
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 65
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 66
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 67
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 68
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 69
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - This Bird Really Flies
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 71
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 72
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 73
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 74
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 75
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 76
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 77
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Technique
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 79
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 80
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 81
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Avionics
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 83
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 84
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 85
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 86
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Proficiency
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 88
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 89
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 90
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 91
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Efficiency
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 93
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Never Again
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 95
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 96
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 97
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Membership
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 99
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - State & Local Action
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 101
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Member Products
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 103
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - AOPA Foundation
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 105
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Pilot Resources
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Fly by Wire
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 108
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 109
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 110
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - 111
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Pilots
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Cover3
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2013 - Cover4
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