Into the Wild Grey Yonder
(continued) As the approach continued, the weather where I was flying remained scuzzy. When my ground prox said “500 above” (the ground) there was no runway in view even though the runway was only about a mile ahead. Then it showed up. In fact, the flight visibility on the approach was barely one mile.
So even if, as a new instrument pilot, you cut yourself a lot of slack on weather, the time will come, sooner or later, when you get to fly a lower approach than you anticipated. On this approach, the forecast and reported weather was good but the actual weather was much worse. The only way you learn to deal with such things is through experience. There is actually no way to know for sure what the weather is for any approach in marginal conditions until it is flown. Back to the departure, where something to consider on each and every IFR departure is a return and land. Such has happened to me most often after the airplane has been in for maintenance, but that isn’t always the case. If, as you start into IFR, you cut yourself some slack on acceptable weather for departure, any return for a landing will be that much simpler.
I had departed IFR one day and soon after takeoff started hearing an unusual noise from the vicinity of the engine. That meant a change in plan, but one that needed to be carefully crafted, so there would be no distraction other than the noise and no cutting of corners because while the ceiling was okay, the visibility was restricted.
I looked at all the engine parameters and everything was normal. I had the advantage of knowing what the noise probably was — a loose turbo hose, which had happened several times before — but I couldn’t be sure. I got a clearance for an ILS approach to an airport close and ahead and got the turbo hose tightened. Any time you tell a controller you are going to make a change, he is going to ask why and if you need special assistance. Be forthright and while there is not much the controller can do to make a strange noise go away, if you think he can help with something else, say so.
Weather might also be a reason for a return, or an early diversion in a flight. If, for example, all indications were for a relatively smooth flight but the clouds are extra wet and bumpy, maybe there is a better idea, like landing to think it over. Cloud flying in turbulence in light airplanes is challenging and not a lot of fun. Turbulence seems worse in clouds to most pilots and what you might consider light turbulence on a clear day can quickly escalate, at least in the pilot’s perception, to moderate when in clouds.
There’s another factor here, too. If your weather briefing and your estimation of the weather indicated a smooth flight but the flying is bumpy, then the general weather picture you left with is in error. When that is the case, you need to get a new picture. I headed out one day with a rosy picture of the weather and then started hearing pilots up ahead requesting deviations around weather. Because thunderstorms weren’t part of my picture, I landed at a nearby airport and did a fresh review of the weather. Storms were there, across my proposed path, but an hour or so later they had moved and I flew on unmolested. When we fly IFR we embed ourselves in the weather, and we feel things that aren’t usually there in VFR flying. If there is unanticipated turbulence it comes from one of two things. The clouds are cumulus types with the attendant churning that comes with those clouds. Or, there is wind shear, a change in wind with height or distance. Wind shear is likely associated with a weather system, with the strength of the shear being directly related to the strength of the system. If you weren’t ready for this, it means you weren’t aware of the system so, again, it might be time to land and regroup. That’s how you learn.
One thing here. Making the decision to return and land or divert is a definite distraction and can cause problems. A new plan has to be made. And while the autopilot should be used for all cloud flying, its use becomes especially important when making a new plan. As you sort things out it is essential to put the airplane in a “safe harbor,” a configuration and position where no harm will come as your attention is elsewhere. The configuration can be handled with the autopilot; the position and altitude should be handled by not deviating from the original clearance until a new one is obtained.
Every pilot is stressed by different things in different ways but the outcome is always the same when the stressor is removed. Whether it is worse than forecast weather or a close call on fuel reserve, or anything else like that, the stress level builds as the situation becomes closer or tighter. Then, when you make the decision to change the plan and land early or to get down where there is better weather, the relief is like a huge burden being lifted. Certainly if you are worried about some element of an IFR flight, the best place to take that worry is to a runway.
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