Fly-Out to Halter Ranch Winery: Dana and Theresa on short final to a slice of paradise between the vines(see Grace’s trip report below)
The mission of The Ninety-Nines is to promote the advancement of aviation through education, scholarships, and mutual support while honoring their unique history and shared passion for flight.
Letter from the Chair
By Dana Davis
Welcome to the second half of 2023! What a great start we have had this year: a spectacular fundraiser and community building educational event; super bloom fly overs; and now, wine tasting at the narrowest runway most of us have flown into. I can’t wait to see what exciting adventures the rest of the year will bring.
After some airplane maintenance, combined with some personal travel, it had been over a month since I had flown. And like many pilots, after a month off, I was sure I had forgotten how to fly. So, starting slowly, I reviewed some landing technique videos that I was fond of from my training, then I went out and did some touch and goes. Surprising mostly myself, I had not forgotten how to fly, and most importantly, land an airplane.
With Theresa at Halter Ranch
I practiced the basic landing pattern with a stabilized approach, I practiced soft field landings(in anticipation of flying to Halter Ranch), and I practiced a power off landing and safety procedures. Both of the last two proved to be useful when Theresa and I flew into Halter Ranch, 89CA, with a 3353’ x 25’ runway.“Dropping in” over the tasting room is exactly what it felt like, as we slipped down to the runway, then focused on staying centered. It worked pretty well, until we saw an animal on the runway staring back at us as we were utilizing a soft field landing technique. With a coyote staring us down, I decided brakes were a better idea than letting the plane slow on it’s own. If there was ever a time I wished the GoPro had been on the wing, this was the day. Luckily, when we put on the brakes, the coyote turned and ran into the vineyard and we resumed our roll to parking, with our hearts beating a little faster. What an exciting start to lunch!(see the article below for more on Halter Ranch). It was a beautiful day and we enjoyed great camaraderie with our 99s.
Today, I had the pleasure of flying my husband, Tim, to San Diego—a first for both of us. We haven’t been to San Diego in over 20 years. It was my first time flying south of LA, through both the Class Bravo LA and San Diego air space. We flew via the LA Coastal Route, right along the beaches, all the way down to San Diego. It was beautiful, easier than expected, I was quickly cleared into both LA Bravo and SD Bravo, and very busy between LAX and San Diego. Tim and I were constantly looking for and spotting traffic we saw on our iPads, and from ATC. In preparation for the flight, I watched videos about flying through the LA airspace, and about flying into Montgomery Field. Specifically helpful was the FAA“From the Flight Deck” YouTube video(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgEoPnGRPg4).
The“From the Flight Deck” series was created to provide information about safely flying into congested airports. They are designed to help reduce accidents.[I also found the“From the Flight Deck” video about Palm Springs International very helpful before flying in there.] It’s amazing how much information is available on line to help you plan and prepare for flights into new airports. All the preparation helps to make flying into new locations and new airports less scary, and more approachable(Erin, thanks for the great training and tips on preparing for new airports).
In June, officers for 2023-2024 were elected. Dana, Anêle and Janice will continue to serve as Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer and Susan Conner-Steeb will step into the role of Vice-Chair. Maureen continues to chair the Scholarship committee and Theresa has stepped up to fill Charly’s big shoes with the Slipstream, with Grace’s back up. We always welcome your help with any of these roles, writing articles for the newsletter, and we’ll count on your help with upcoming events. See the Minutes below for updates from the last meeting including exciting news about future events.
Registration is open for the fall Southwest Section 99s Meeting to be held in Ventura. Here’s the link:
Letter from the Chair
SLO 99s Meeting
AI Generated Haiku
2023 Fly-Out Schedule
2023