It was a clear but chilly January morning when I arrived at Madison County Executive (MDQ) in Huntsville, Alabama, to return home after my first “real” cross-country flight. Three days earlier I had made the 462 nm journey from my home airport in Liberty, Missouri, to Huntsville. At this point I had roughly 95 hours in my 1977 Cherokee 140 and was thrilled to put my new ticket to use for something that was both practical and fun. The flight in was utterly uneventful, and I had every expectation that the return trip would be the same.
After loading my luggage I preflighted the airplane. Everything looked good — the FBO had filled the tanks, the tires and struts were properly inflated, the oil level was good, and the controls were free and clear. The air temperature was just a bit above freezing, so I let the engine idle for a few minutes after start-up, waiting for the oil temp needle to come off the floor. Once the oil was happy I taxied out, did my run-up and was off.
