A December to Remember Aviation Log

In late November 2023 I decided to keep a log of my activities for a month to document the role aviation plays in my daily life.

I began my self-titled “December to Remember Aviation Log” Nov. 30, 2023, by taking stock of my flying so far in 2023. My logbook showed 120 hours since Jan. 1. Nearly all of that time was in 2263C, my 1953 Skywagon.

In South Carolina there is literally no winter flying interruption, so the time and expense record for December, I reckoned, would not differ much from other months.

So, at the close of day on Nov. 30, I topped off my tanks with 34 gallons ($195.23) at Marion County Airport (KMAO), my home airport, and began my 31-day log.

I learned some valuable lessons from the daily log, which also tracked all my aviation-related expenses for the month.

Here are just a few excerpts from the month:

Dec. 1: At daybreak I read The Pulse of Aviation, the daily newsletter from General Aviation News. Learned from a story that the average age of pilots now is 39.6 years. Also read that in 2022 there were 589,242 medically certified U.S. airmen age 16 and older. I am 78 with a commercial certificate and instrument rating.

At 4 p.m. the AWOS promised overcast at 12,000 feet and no precipitation. Sunset was an hour and five minutes away by the time I left the pattern. My destination was S79, Green Sea Airport, a 3,600-foot grass airfield 18 miles distant in neighboring Horry County.

I planned to shoot three or four landings, then return at dusk. Seconds after the second landing the first raindrops splattered onto the windscreen. Time to go. On the return the clouds closed up around me and the ceiling dropped precipitously. Just like that I became a scud runner.

Made it back, barely legal, then closed the hangar door just as dusk, darkness, and rain followed in quick succession.

1.0 flying time, 2.0 total time on aviation

Dec. 4: Civil Air Patrol meeting at 6 p.m. Conducted the safety briefing, talking about carbon monoxide poisoning and exhaust system failures.

0 flying time, 3.0 total time on aviation

Dec. 5: Blue skies, light wind, brilliant sunshine. Flew 28 miles to Adams Airport (NR08), a 3,600- x 80-foot grass airport near Rowland, N.C. Longtime friend Jim Adams’ airport is flanked by tall pine trees that put you in shadow much of the day.

“My 172 is back from annual and ready to fly, but I’m flying agricultural drones right now,” he announced as soon as I arrived.

At his storage hangar Jim rolled out a DJI T40 drone, which has four dual rotor arms. Adams uses it to spray his pines and other crops.

The D40 weighs 102 pounds, including a 26-pound battery, and can lift a load of about 100 pounds of liquid for aerial applications.

“I think it’s the future of agricultural spraying,” Adams said. “I ordered one and the company, Agrispraydrones, asked if I would be a dealer for them in this region.”

On my return, above KMAO, I saw a paving company truck driving down the newly-resurfaced 5,000-foot runway. I announced on 122.8 and the truck exited quickly.

Two minutes later I was down and minutes after that it was dark when I winched Six-Three-Charlie into the hangar.

1.0 flying, 2.0 total time on aviation

Dec. 6: Wind gusting 30. In front of the fireplace continued my third reread of Passage of Flight. One of my five favorite aviation books (with Fate Is The Hunter, The Cannibal Queen, Three-Eight Charlie and Yeager).

0 flying 2.0, total time on aviation

Dec 7: Pearl Harbor Day. No time to fly. Busy with American Legion Post 82 work. Two of our members, World War II Navy veteran C.P. Mincey and Korean War Army veteran Euel Shelley, were honorary marshals in our town’s Christmas parade. Euel, 96, is a pilot and still flies with me occasionally.

0 flying, 1.0 total time on aviation

Dec. 8: At Myrtle Beach International Airport (KMYR) picked up N332CP, a Cessna Skyhawk operated by the South Carolina Wing of the Civil Air Patrol. Relocated the aircraft to KMAO with squadron commander and CFI Mark Jenerette, then flew for 90 minutes on a practice search mission with Mark.

1.5 flying, 3.0 total time on aviation

Dec. 9: Saturday afternoon I flipped the toggle switch to turn on my avionics and the toggle broke off. Instant NORDO.

Plugged my headset into the Sporty’s PJ2+ handheld and made my radio calls to the airstrip on my farm and back. However, gave up on a cross-country. No more flying until the switch is repaired.

.5 flying, 1.5 total time on aviation

Dec. 10: Called my A&P, Ken Hanke of Clio, S.C., and he rummaged through the parts bins at Clio Crop Care Airport (9W9), found what he needed, and drove 40 minutes on a Sunday morning to make the toggle repair.

No flying afterwards — heavy winds, rain and a report of tornadoes.

0 flying, 3.0 total time on aviation

Dec. 14: Another CAP sortie to practice search and rescue techniques using the G1000 search functions.

In my dad’s day as a CAP pilot, all search flying was done with one hand on the stick and the other on the sectional.

1.5 flying, 2.5 total time on aviation

Dec. 15: CAP Mission Pilot training again with CFI Mark Jenerette. Normally a right seat mission pilot or observer would work the G1000 to input lat/long coordinates and select the type of search. And the left seat mission pilot would do only the flying. But to test for proficiency Mark has the pilot fly the mission and also do all the G1000 inputs.

1.6 flying, 2.5 total time on aviation

Dec. 16: Flew the 29-mile route to Stanton’s Barbecue near Bennettsville, S.C., for my $100 barbecue sandwich fix.

One other plane was in the airport parking area, a familiar 1946 415-C Ercoupe, N94352.

Inside I met Claude Burkhead III and his passenger Norm “Otto” Samuelson. I first met Claude at a nearby airfield nearly 20 years earlier, along with his father, and reported on their Ercoupe.

It didn’t take long for Claude to tell me “I know Ben Sclair.” Ben, the publisher of General Aviation News, met Claude and his father several years ago at Gilliam-McConnell Airport (now BQ1) near Carthage, N.C. Gilliam-McConnell is another great aviation destination.

1.5 flying, 3.5 total time on aviation

Dec. 20: Cold, clear, light wind. Fueled Six-Three Charlie (34 gallons, $195.40) for the 38-mile flight to Kingstree in neighboring Williamsburg County.

Made the flight mostly using the Skywagon’s GFC 500 autopilot, practicing flight level changes and heading and nav mode flying.

1.2 flying, 1.5 total time on aviation

Dec. 21: Flew twice today. First in the CAP 172 with Mark. More search and rescue practice.

Then to Clio Crop Care to pick up Mark, who dropped off his Cessna Skylane at mechanic Ken Hanke’s shop for its annual inspection.

2.3 flying, 3.0 total time on aviation

Dec. 22: Drove 70 miles roundtrip to take my longtime A&P Ken a Christmas gift card and wish him well for the holidays. Later flew 332CP with Mark on a practice search mission.

1.0 flying, 3.0 total time on aviation

Dec. 23: Flew with longtime CAP pilot Dan Farrow on practice searches over local rivers.

1.0 flying, 2.2 total time on aviation

Dec. 24: A deserted airport on Christmas Eve. Attached two Go Pro cameras and flew to the strip on my farm and landed, then on to S79.

The turf at S79 looked too soft to land, so I flew back via Nichols, the little town of 300 souls where I grew up near the town airport.

At home my wife Elizabeth suggested I order a new flight bag because, she said, my old one, in use since my Alaska trip in 2015, looked shabby. How could I say no?

.8 flying, 1.5 total time on aviation

Dec. 26: Daylong drizzle. Two hours editing aviation videos. Working on clips to use in safety briefings for the Civil Air Patrol. After watching YouTube reviews of the Insta 360 X3 camera I ordered one ($406). Finished Flight of Passage.

0 flying, 4.0 total time on aviation

Dec. 28: Flight to the farm. Return to Marion and a rare greaser landing. Most Skywagon drivers will tell you the perfect no-bounce 180/185 landing on pavement can be an elusive, almost mythical, occurrence.

.5 flying, 1.5 total time on aviation

Dec. 31: Flew with Mark Jenerette as examiner in 332CP on the Form 91 checkride, the Civil Air Patrol mission pilot test. Passed.

1.4 flying, 2.6 total time on aviation

What I Learned

In total, I flew 14 of the 31 days and had some type of aviation activity every day. My total time involved with aviation was 67 hours and 16.8 hours of that was in the air.

During the month I spent $546 on fuel and at least $250 more fueling the CAP aircraft.

Later, I’ll get a bill for the hours on the CAP aircraft. It should be somewhere around $500.

With gift money received for Christmas I ordered a flight bag ($210 for a Brightline B4) and an Insta360 X3 camera for $406.

I came up with about $1,900 spent on direct expenses for aviation during the month. In an average month I would not have needed the approximately $750 spent working on my CAP rating.

Even so, subtracting the bag and the camera bought with gift money, I was below my expected monthly budget total of $1,500. Within that figure I put aside $200 for insurance and $50 for maintenance.

Clearly, I’m spending a lot of money on flying. But I am at a point in life where I choose to do it freely. The satisfaction for me derived from flying a vintage taildragger like the Skywagon is priceless. So is the freedom to fly when I want, where I want.

And the money spent in acquiring new skills as a CAP pilot in a technologically advanced aircraft leaves me with zero regret.

And, finally, here are observations gleaned from my December aviation log experiences:

• Try to learn something new every day about aviation and life.
• Become a student again and try for a new rating or additional qualification.
• Something is always going to happen you are not expecting. Be prepared, as best you can, to deal with it.
• If you have a good A&P, maintain that relationship to include sending along a Christmas present and always a thank you for services rendered. The same goes for your airport director.
• Keep a detailed log of your aviation expenses for more accurate budgeting.
• Fly with friends who also enjoy aviation. It adds to the enjoyment.
• Take that $100 hamburger flight at least once every month.
• Don’t scud run, even in your home area where you think you have ultimate local knowledge.
• Recognize that the aviation world is small. So, try to be nice to everyone you meet. You don’t know whose help you might need down the line. That goes for all your work and free time pursuits.
• Strive to stay fit mentally and physically.
• Fly every chance you get as long as weather permits.
• And remember that none of us come this way again, so get airborne when you can.