> I am having my Ercoupe ferried from Iowa to Greensboro NC, actually to > KSIF. I wanted to give some advice to my ferry pilot about flying over > the Smokeys.
Paul, My experience in mountain flying is limited. But I have a few observations based on my one trip each to the east and west coasts. When you fly high enough, even the Rocky Mountains look kind of small down there and the air is smooth. Those little rocky bumps way down there don't affect the airflow way up high (unless there's a strong wind that makes mountain waves). Mountains and the airflow over them DO make a huge difference when you are down near them. Down low, especially in the lee of mountains, you can get into huge downdrafts - again, if the wind is strong. So, I'd urge your ferry pilot to fly high and watch the wind forecasts and reports and don't fly in the mountains if the wind is strong. If there's some real mountain flying to be done, then reading a mountain flying book is a good idea. I learned some critical things from the book that you do NOT want to learn from (one-time) experience - like never fly UP a valley, always fly DOWN valleys, etc. Having said that, if the winds are light, flying down among the mountains is a really wonderful experience. Make sure you have a place to land underneath you at all times. Ed Ed Burkhead http://edburkhead.com/Ercoupe/index.htm East Peoria, Illinois ed -at- edbur???khead.??com (remove the ? marks and change -at- to @)
