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From: rje@cae780.UUCP (Bob Evans)
Newsgroups: net.aviation
Subject: Grey skies and OOPS !
Message-ID: <1951@cae780.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 12-Mar-86 23:30:29 EST
Article-I.D.: cae780.1951
Posted: Wed Mar 12 23:30:29 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 15-Mar-86 02:41:14 EST
Distribution: na
Organization: Tektronix, Inc. (CAE Systems Division), Santa Clara, CA
Lines: 39
Keywords: nervous excitement


I went flying last weekend for the first time in a month, and had an
'interesting' ending to the flight. I was on about a three mile final,
with the airport in sight, when visibility went to zero !  No view
ahead, or below. The clouds above had opened up with a rain shower
that was _heavy_ !

I transitioned to instruments immediately, (bless my instructor for all 
that hood time), got straight and level, (the downdraft was about 400 FPM)
and called the tower to to report that I 'no longer had the airport in sight'.

The tower responded that 'visibility to the east was currently less than 
3 miles'  :-)  (a mild reproval ?),
and to maintain present course and altitude until overhead the field.
I just hoped I'd be able to tell when I _was_ 'overhead the field' !
After about 90 seconds I flew out of the shower and found myself just 
short of the approach end of the field. I made a normal overhead entry to 
right traffic, and had a nice normal landing.

The weather had been light showers around the bay area most of the day,
with occasional thunder showers reported. I hadn't seen any shower 
activity for 20 - 30 minutes. Now, I'm not instrument rated, nor have
I ever flown in anything like this before (or again soon, I hope).
But ...

I was lucky that the shower was small, even though very heavy. What
do you do if it isn't small ? I was also lucky to be over the flat
surface of the bay rather than coming through a pass in the hills.

That was the first time I ever felt _really_ unhappy about being in
the air instead of on the ground !


FROM:   Robert J. Evans, CAE Systems Division of Tektronix, Inc.
UUCP:   tektronix!teklds!cae780!rje
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