It was a beautiful March day in 1976 in South Texas, and I was excited to be flying my Sweet Adeline women’s barbershop quartet from San Antonio to Amarillo, Texas, for our regional barbershop singing contest. My husband and I owned a 1965 Mooney M20C—yes, with a Johnson bar—and we flew it quite a bit just for pleasure, always alternating as pilot in command. I was really happy that Julie, Carole and Kathy trusted me enough to fly with me. After all, at that time, a woman pilot was a member of a rare breed.
Clouds From Both Sides Now
Key Takeaways:
- A VFR pilot inadvertently entered Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC) after attempting to climb above an overcast layer through what turned out to be a "sucker hole."
- Despite being scared and not instrument-rated, she maintained composure and, after receiving a pilot report, descended safely back under the clouds.
- The flight was ultimately aborted due to unexpectedly high cloud tops and severe weather at the destination, leading the pilot and her passengers to switch to a commercial flight.
- The experience taught the pilot a critical lesson about the dangers of "sucker holes" and the importance of comprehensive weather awareness, especially when flying VFR.
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