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have two departure options: into the wind on Runway 08, with the takeoff immediately followed by a sharp right turn in low IMC conditions back to the west to avoid the mountains on all three sides. Or to make a downwind departure on Runway 26, then go straight out over salt water to the BARLO intersection, then the SSR VOR. Obviously, we want to choose the lowest risk departure possible, but there are no clear right or wrong answers in this kind of situation – it is all a matter of pilot judgement. We look up the airplanes performance numbers and decide the lesser of evils is to depart downwind, which the tower readily allows, there being no other traffic within 100 miles. Five minutes later, we are climbing through FL180 over SSR and turn direct to Annette Island (ANN) just south of Ketchikan, and from there to the Victoria VOR (YYJ), about 700 nm to the southeast.
We had told our passengers we would be in sunlight short- ly after takeoff, but that turned out to be overly optimistic. Often in Southeast Alaska, a low-pressure system over the Gulf of Alaska to the northwest will push moist air well up into the flight levels as it comes ashore over the mountain- ous terrain which makes up a good deal of the area. Finally, climbing through FL360 we get ourselves clear of all the cloudy mess and potential ice to see the promised sunlight. The pas- sengers, however, are not paying any attention as they are lost in the box of fresh apple strudel and hot coffee we had boarded earlier. An hour later, we pass over Victoria, BC, set up for the GPS approach into our home airport, break out at 4,000 feet and land without a problem.
The warm cabin has dried out our passengers and having eaten their fill of strudel, they are feeling much better about life as we pull up to our home FBO’s door. They energetically haul out their suitcases from the back, while the line guys start to unload the fish boxes from the baggage compartment. There are a dozen or so boxes each with blue “Fresh Alaska Fish” signage on them, and labeled with the passengers name, which they each promptly carry out their cars. Everyone departs for home, leaving•one unclaimed fish box sitting on the ramp alone. Upon inspection, it has “PILOTS” written on it. Apparently the “fish box tax” is about 8 percent, and it seems to actually work. Maybe I didn’t need to buy that extra fish that I left in the old freezer after all. T&T
Kevin Ware is an ATP who also holds CFI, MEII and helicopter ratings, has more than 10,000 hours and is typed in several different business jets. He has been flying for a living on and off since he was 20, and currently works as a
contract pilot for various corporations in the Seattle area. When not working as a pilot he is employed part time as an emergency and urgent care physician. He can be reached at kevin.ware2@aol.com.
November 2018
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