How To: Mountain Flying - A (don't) Crash Course
In this video I share my personal go/no-go checklist for Mountain Flying along with a number of resources to help keep you safe in the Mountains.
Colorado Pilots Association Mountain Flying Ground School:
coloradopilots.org/content.as...
Winds Aloft Forecast Chart:
www.aviationweather.gov/windtemp
Mountain Flying tips, Mountain AWOS information, and a host of other good information:
www.codot.gov/programs/aerona...
Colorado Pilots Association - Mountain Flying Tab
coloradopilots.org/
THE DONT’S OF MOUNTAIN FLYING - SINGLE ENGINE AIRCRAFT
• Do not attempt night operations - EXTREMELY DANGEROUS
• Do not attempt IFR operations SINGLE OR LIGHT TWIN ENGINE AIRCRAFT
• Do not attempt mountain flying if the 9,000 and 12,000 foot winds are forecast to exceed 30 knots. Winds aloft may be accompanied by severe turbulence, with downdrafts exceeding the climb capability of the aircraft.
• Do not attempt a takeoff unless the loaded aircraft is at least 10% or more below the FAA certified gross weight, and the CG is within limits.
• Do not attempt a mountain flight unless the ceilings are at least 2,000 feet above the highest terrain and visibility is at least 15 miles Night and IFR operations are best left to airlines, medical evacuation and corporate crews using fully capable and equipped aircraft. All other pilots should operate in day, VFR conditions if safety is to prevail.
THE DO’S OF MOUNTAIN FLYING
• Do plan the fuel load to arrive at the destination with a minimum one hour fuel reserve. Strong crosswinds or a disabled aircraft on the runway may require a diversion to an alternate airport.
• Do plan a definite altitude to be flown on each segment of the flight. Consult the sectional chart.
• From over a plotted checkpoint, turn the aircraft to the next planned magnetic course and make a mental note of the observed features along that course. Movement from one ridge line to another may be necessary in climbing toward the pass. Some zigging and zagging across the ridge line you are following may be needed to remain in the best updraft along a ridge. Do not lose sight of the desired points along the segment being flown.
• Always file a flight plan, keep a flight log and make position reports at every opportunity. Close flight plan after arrival at the destination.
• Do have an operable ELT on board.
• Do have a suitable emergency kit to include a supply of water, signal mirror, whistle and extra clothing as appropriate.
• During the summer, terminate flying activities no later than 1:00 PM MDT.
• Do ask for advice and assistance from FBO, FAA personnel, local mountain qualified flight instructors and pilots. These individuals will be friendly and willing to help.
ITEMS FOR EXTRA ATTENTION IN MOUNTAIN FLYING FLIGHT PREPARATION
• Get a complete weather briefing, including pilot reports for your proposed route. Make note of the winds aloft, altimeter settings, surface winds and NOTAMS for all en route airports and destinations.
• Consult POH for takeoff, climb and ceiling capabilities of the aircraft being flown. When calculated climb rates are less than 200 feet/NM, do not depart.
• A high density altitude may prevent you from reaching the altitude listed in the POH as the service ceiling.
Video Content
00:00 - Intro / No-go Checklist
1:00 - No-go item #1
8:40 - No-go item #2
12:25 - No-go item #3
15:04 - Summary
Good! Thx for sharing
Great video! Thank you for making and posting it!
Well done! One of the best and easiest to understand summaries I have ever seen about mountain flying! I enjoy your channel.
Thank you George, that means a lot. Glad you're enjoying the videos.
Thanks for sharing. I'm a low time private pilot (127 hours) Most of my flying is in Georgia and I want to start flying out West. These types of videos are very helpful
Thanks for the feedback Nomad Nurse. Glad they're helpful!
Great job man! Thanks!
Awesome video
Really like your videos and appreciate the way you chunk your video timelines into segments for easy navigation!
Thanks Sean. Glad you like them.
Clean and crisp. Great info.
Thanks SpinFast. Glad it was helpful!
What a great series you have! I discovered your channel just a couple of days ago and it has become a favorite for me...can’t get enough! My home airport is the airport formerly known as Front Range and now we are a Spaceport.... oooooh aaaaaah...so goofy. I’m enjoying learning about out west from you! Those lower passes and the weather aids are things I hadn’t learned about after a mountain flying ground course. By the way, congrats on the new little boy!
Thanks Dr. Bruce Lee. I appreciate the kind words. I've been in and out of Front Range a number of times. The last time I was there they had banners all over the terminal advertising the soon to be rebranded airport: "The first mile is free..."
You need to do a video on flying a Gyro copter in the mountains
Great video, good mountain “no go” checklist. I’m a Mooney driver out of KBJC in an M20J, and I run up and over Rollins Pass quite often. Enjoy your channel...
Thanks Rob, for us front-rangers Rollins is one of the best places to cross. Glad you like the content. Give me a holler if you ever see me flying around.
@@ManandaMooney Will do...we should connect (not sure the best way to do that via YT), but there’s another Mooney driver just behind my hangar in a 252. Here’s a glimpse of my bird in flight - kzhead.info/sun/o7Ntoc2lp5qOYHA/bejne.html
@@RealRobSwanson Sweet! If you have an Instagram account, you can shoot me a DM on there @Man_and_a_Mooney
great primer for us flatlanders we are planning a trip west this summer thx for the info & planning tips!
My pleasure. Fly safe!
You presented this as though you were briefing a friend on what is important when planning a mountain flight in a single engine piston airplane. Nicely done.
Thanks Blue Yonder. That's the goal. I'm putting these videos out there to help the GA community.
Amazing, thank-you SO MUCH for doing this. Until you actually get caught in turbulence near mountains, it’s frightening. You are saving lives sharing your experience and knowledge of flying conditions where you live.
Thanks Pilot-Plane-Coffee, glad you found it helpful!
I enjoyed your video very much. I live in the Boise, Id. area and looking for a mountain flying course. The covid has put the brakes on instructors, so your video has helped me to understand the hazards a lot better. Looking forward to more of your videos.
Thank you Roland Robertson, I'll try to get more of these out as time allows. Glad they are helpful!
Thank you, very informative!
My pleasure. Thanks BRG327
This is awesome. Thanks for making it easy to relate to :)
Thanks Colin! I just had a peek at your channel; awesome footage of the Canadian Rockies. You're making me want to fly up there...
very helpful, thank you!
You're welcome Eric! Thanks for letting me know.
Nice job, beautiful backdrop (nice video camera)
Thank you very much!
Great video. I took a mountains and canyons flying course in a Mooney Ovation in Idaho. Not the best plane for it. But I learned a lot and landed that Mooney in places where no Mooney had gone before! And everything you say is true...assuming a normal airport at departure and arrival!
Very cool J Smith. I want to get out to Idaho soon with my Mooney.
Good video- I'm also a Front Range pilot (KCOS), with 275 hours. My limit is 25 knots, as the turbulence on the leeward side of some of the passes I have flown can be quite violent. In particular, Marshall pass, as it is one of my common crossing points for Gunnison and Telluride. Your presentation was right on- I could relate to everything you said. Thanks, and Happy New Year!
Thanks RJ, it’s always good to meet another Front Range pilot. I appreciate the affirmation and Happy New Year to you too!
This was awesome! Thanks for sharing. I sure wish more mountain passes had reporting stations. Unfortunately, here in the Utah, we don't have many (if any) of those. Otherwise, all very applicable for me as I venture out around Utah. Thank you!
You're welcome Austin. Glad it was helpful. I've got some Utah airports on my list to visit soon...
@@ManandaMooney any in particular?
Loved it dude! Thanks for the tips!-Bcoop56
Thanks Ben. Hope the flying is going well :)
Nice video! I just flew back from Telluride after staying an additional night due to winds (better to be safe). Also, i'm your hangar neighbor, just around the corner from you (in hangar facing FBO and flying RV6 - 4JB). Give me a shout if you see me in my hangar
Thanks Dean, glad you had a good trip to TEX. The winds have been whipping in the mountains the last few days. Hope your trip back wasn’t too bumpy. I’ll keep an eye out for 4JB.
Great video! What about flying at higher altitudes? 16500 or 17500 Is the strategy different? Or do you still use 30 kts as a rule of thumb? I have a 22k service ceiling so could avoid flying passes. I plan to fly my RV-7A coast to coast so I’m exploring what others do. And certainty not limiting myself to this advice.
Thanks Bob. In my experience, flying higher can put you in laminar flow, but it's definitely a gamble. The winds are typically blowing faster the higher you go, and mountain wave effects can extend all the way up to the stratosphere (you're not going to outclimb that). I've personally found the smoothest air is between 2000-4000 ft. above the terrain but there's no hard and fast rule.
Great job I so wish people flying up from the flat lands would listen we have lost 2 planes in telluride last year because of lack of training /planning And flying mountains here in the afternoon in high density altitude , my heart goes out to the family’s so sad . But it’s all preventable . I was thinking maybe the mountain air ports could provide some kind of warning hand out or broadcast to warn ga pilots . Example : Telluride awos broadcast ,Like yellow alert caution today density altitude alert to all light aircraft between 11:00 am and 7 pm . But thanks for your vids keep up the good work.
Thank you Kirby. It's terribly tragic. I published this video only a week before the newlyweds incident. In my mind that was completely preventable. The other crash could have been mechanical but who knows at this point? Both highlight as you said the importance of experience (and I don't mean an ATP rating). I would NEVER depart telluride and fly east under any circumstance. I encourage all pilots to review ODPs and SIDS for sound departure advice.
@@ManandaMooney yes for sure your videos will save a life I’m confident. We fly a turbo 206 310 hp and almost bought it this year 2 in plane and 2hrs of fuel ....we were climbing off U96 utah 8:00 am ..3600 field elevation o wind at the field , when wind sheer got us 5 miles from the airport full power climb and falling 2000 ft per min had 500 ft left before we got her turned around got out of it back to the airport to clean out our pants. but the summer smoke concealed the small weather head and we flew right into it. So your absolutely correct do your weather home work no matter where you fly never assume ........ Keep up great work ... I just found your vids can’t wait to watch some more ( we never stop learning in aviation) Kirby
Just bought a Moonie M20e. It is it front range “space port”my insurance requires 10 hours of flight in a like airplane? They won’t have my ADSB installed until may. Let me know if you have a spare seat I’d love to go up with you. You’re videos are very informative. Thank you
Wade, typically that 10hrs is to be completed with a CFI. In my experience, that requirement states 10 hours of DUAL. I could be wrong in this case, check the fine print.
Hi, thanks for the video.. please tell me if I'm wrong: the relationship the wind at high altitude and air pressure is in the shape of the mountains. Imagine a canyon shaped like a venturi tube where the air speed is high and the air pressure becomes low "from high to low look out below ..
TreeTop Flyer, the adage “high to low, look out below” refers to barometric pressure changes. When you fly from an area of high-pressure to that of low-pressure, your altimeter will read higher than it should. While it’s true that barometric pressure in the mountains is typically higher than that of the plains, I’m not sure we can credit Bernoulli. Looking at a venturi, we would expect the opposite - lower pressure over the mountain tops as the air is accelerated. I rarely see this.
@@ManandaMooney Yes but in the case of a venturi canyon the problem subsist again because the pressure of the air in a venture tube "the shape of a canyon gorge" decrease. YES in any case very rare!!!
So how much do the down drafts etc effect/affect the front range? Or how far from the edge of the mountains does it differ from flat land?
Hi Alex, the short answer, it depends. The longer answer, there are many factors which contribute: speed of the winds aloft, the wind direction, distance from terrain etc. I’d encourage you to look at the winds/temps charts over a given airport. That will help to provide a better sense of atmospheric instability. When you see rapid changes in temperature, wind direction, or speed from one altitude to another you can expect some turbulent and/or lifting/sinking air.
Best time to mountain fly in New Mexico is late August thru early/mid October/
Thanks for the info Gwen. That’s very similar to Colorado.