Page 32 - Index

Jet Journal
Old Dogs & Old Airplanes
by Kevin Ware Airplanes can be like an old hunting dog – very much liked and appreciated, but after years of faithful
service, they regrettably need to be “put down.” This was recently the case with our old Lear 35.
Knowing it was to be our Lear 35’s last trip before its final flight to the “vet’s office,” fellow pilot Rick and I conducted a sort of airplane “memorial service” on a return trip from Spokane. For a moment, I thought I might even need to hand him a Kleenex to wipe his tears as we discussed all of the places we had travelled in this particular airplane. But of course, the airplane had no idea what its future held, so with an empty cabin and a light fuel load, it performed more like a young greyhound versus an arthritic old hunting dog. We zipped up to FL360 at 5,000 feet per minute, went two miles above the cloud layer and settled into a cruise at Mach .78. All of this was easily accomplished as we reflected on the flights we had taken in the airplane.
Just the previous week, we were in Minden, Nevada (KMEV) ready to depart with the airport surrounded by thunderstorms and lightening, making an IFR departure along the mountains impossible. Airline traffic out of nearby Reno was delaying departures left and right, but while sitting in the Lear 35, we could see an area of blue sky and sunlight to the southwest along with a clear but narrow visual corridor. It was nowhere near the published IFR departure routes, but the only thing required to depart VFR was the ability to climb at a good 5,000 feet per minute after takeoff in order to clear the mountains and remain in visual conditions until reaching FL180 and coordinating IFR with Oakland Center. We knew the old Lear could handle it so after advising Reno Departure of our intentions, we took off VFR. Four minutes later, we were climbing through 17,000 feet, 10 miles west of Lake Tahoe in bright sunlight – well clear of the thunderstorms back on the east side of the Sierras. We gave a pilot report to Oakland Center, were told we were the only traffic that had departed and promptly got our IFR our clearance back to Portland, direct no less.
We reminisced about other trips like Valdez, Alaska in the middle of a freezing winter snow storm. Ice was on the runway and braking was so minimal that we had to keep the reversers armed until shut down. A week after that, we took a trip to intolerably hot Palm Springs, with its high-end hotels, pools and golf courses. The old air- plane took us to these places of extreme contrast without a single complaint. Hot or cold, it was always patiently waiting on the ramp ready to go. But, in spite of its continued performance and attractive appearance that made the cover of Twin & Turbine in 2013, it was time for the old cover girl to permanently be put away.
Theproblemwithairplanesastheyageisthatalthoughtheycanstillflyfastandhigh,theyneedmoreandmore trips to the “veterinarian.” Their avionics can become very outdated and prohibitively expensive, if not impossible to fix. In a 1980 Lear 35, there are no glass screens, autopilots with altitude pre-select, or even a flight director on the
30 • TWIN & TURBINE October 2018