by Bob Worthington
www.BobWorthingtonWriter.com
© Copyright 2023. All rights reserved!
Published in Midwest Flyer Magazine April/May 2023 Digital Issue
What we carry in our airplanes today evolved from our military air services becoming common after WWI. During combat our military pilots needed to know where they were and have some form of survival equipment (a parachute and an individual weapon, with hand grenades). During the teen years of the twentieth century, aviation flourished. The value of aviation became very apparent. Initially navigation was visual with pilots depending on a watch, their airspeed indicator, and their compass. In 1924, the U.S. Air Mail Service began, using bonfires for cross-country navigation. In 1934, an airline pilot, Elrey Jeppesen, formed a company to sell his hand-drawn navigation charts. In 1941, the first approach charts were created. From there, aerial navigation charts, and landing graphics, became required for cross-country flights.
Back in the day (1980s and 1990s), cross-country flying, by instrument flight rules (IFR), required 10 to 40 pounds of flight information. Enroute charts, VFR Sectional or World Aeronautical Charts (no longer made by our government), as well as several bound copies of airport approach plates, and of course a bound copy of AOPA’s Airport Directory, were all needed. Today, all of that and more are found in slim computer tablets, iPads, and smart phones. What I used to carry in a large “cloth flight bag” (CFB) to do flight planning, along with the aircraft Pilot’s Operating Handbook (POH), sunglasses, flashlight, spare batteries, and emergency, handheld nav-com radio, have given way to what is now called the “electronic flight bag” (EFB). My old flight bag was up front with me, between the seats. In the rear of my plane was a survival kit (created by me and housed in a small backpack), and gear for the airplane, such as tiedowns, chocks, tools, oil, and spare parts.
But what was in the back of my plane, depended on the plane, depended on where I would be flying, and the time of the year. Winter required warm clothing and survival gear. Over desert flying required extra water, and over water required floatation gear, such as life vests and a small raft. Extra gear for the plane itself depended on the needs of the plane. If it gulped oil, spare containers of oil were needed. I owned an airplane (a Cessna) that seemed to need “O” rings for the underwing fuel drains because they always began to leak at a fuel stop where no replacements were available. Mechanic tools were based on experience on what was needed during flight trips where parts of the plane needed removal or changing.
One day, early in my flying career, in my 10-year-old Cessna 172, stopping at a lonely, isolated, small, county airport in West Texas, I encountered a mechanical problem. There was an A & P mechanic on the field, but he was tied up doing an annual. He stopped long enough to evaluate my problem, explaining what needed to be done. He said I could use his tools and do the work myself and he would make sure it was done properly. By nightfall, I was done. He inspected my work, pronounced me safe to go, and went home. I spent the night sleeping on the ground, next to my airplane (in a sleeping bag). I also had some food onboard. At sunrise, I continued on my way. If not for that kind mechanic, I could have been stranded for days. From that trip on, I always carried tools and spare parts with me. They were contained in a small, fabric, zippered, tool bag.
With the small airplanes we fly, on long cross-country trips, weight can be an issue. Two kinds of trips taxed my brain attempting to take everything I needed, but I remained within safe weight limits.
One trip was flying the Al-Can highway through western Canada into Alaska, and the other trips were with my wife and two daughters. It seemed that each daughter would pack for a five-day trip as if we would be gone five weeks. Duplicate curling irons, hairdryers (and everything else females need), with tons of clothes, made the plane way over gross. Repacking was required for every trip we made as a family.
When I flew to Alaska, both Canada and Alaska (1990s and early 2000s) mandated required survival equipment which meant enough food for all onboard, plus a hunting rifle or shotgun for survival. But survival gear (food, water, clothing, and shelter, plus first aid supplies) is required! Fitting everything in within weight limits (survival gear or clothes and personal items for young women) takes practice packing and deciding what is most important or what equipment provides more but weighs less. I also recommend a personal satellite tracking device be included in your survival gear.
I live out west. Much of my flying was over wild, uninhabited, harsh terrain so I always had survival gear in my airplane. Flying back East or along the coast of southern California, usually means help is but a cell phone call away if a precautionary landing is needed. Even so, going down in a storm or in a wooded area or mountain top, even if in a populated area, may take help a long time to find you. You may be on your own for hours or days.
Your survival gear must be contained in something that can be readily reached and removed from your airplane, and easily carried. Loose gear in the back of an airplane simply does not cut it. It should be packed in an easily carried container and easily accessible. In winter, the sleeping bags were separate, but easily removed from the plane. In 40 years of flying, the only unplanned, overnight survival episode was the stop in West Texas. But it is better to have what you need and never use it, than need gear you don’t have.
Within the past two decades, both pilots and the FAA have struggled with the legality of using electronic flight devices for navigating in small general aviation airplanes. FAA Advisory Circular 91-78 is an excellent source of information, along with FAR Parts 91-78 and 91.21(for IFR flights) and AC 120-76D. (Part 91 is the section of the Federal Aviation Regulations that provides general operating and flight rules for civil aircraft. Whether you’re flying a Cessna 182 or a Boeing 777, you have to comply with these rules.) These FAA documents and regulations explain what is legal (and for whom or what flights). For the GA pilot, paper charts or approach plates are not required. But in AC 91-78, the FAA does “suggest” that backup sources of information be available, either electronic (a second iPad or tablet?) or paper. In addition to my tablet, I carried backup paper World Aeronautical Charts (WAC). If I suspected severe instrument flying on a trip, I would carry paper backup IFR enroute charts.
Three combat tours as an infantryman and special ops officer taught me to always have a backup plan in place when going into battle. I believe I am alive today because of this steadfast rule. I did not become a pilot until I was 38 years old (after my combat days were over). Flying also involves risk. During my initial training as a pilot, I promised myself I would not entertain risks when flying. I also was determined to follow my combat rule and always had backups when flying. Even the FAA believes in this. What you as a pilot decide for your backup is up to you. I had my electronic flight bag device AND paper backups. Did I ever need my paper backups? Never, but they were available if needed. They were also handy for long cross-country flight planning.
But the biggest problem with personal electronic devices (PEDs) is power. Some planes may not have a source of power to recharge batteries. Other sources are available such as small solar units (I used one which used the sun by laying on top of my instrument panel) or backup batteries.
If weight is not a problem, in-cabin comfort items are nice. One’s flight path and the sun may present problems for the pilot (and passenger). East-bound early morning flights and west-bound late afternoon flights mean flying into the sun. Not Good! Stashed in the pockets behind my seats were large, colored, plastic squares, that would adhere to the windshield or door windows, acting like sunglasses, blocking the glare. My wife loved light blankets for winter flights (my vintage Vietnam camouflaged poncho liners were excellent for this) and small pillows for snoozing. Snacks and liquids were always welcomed on cross-country flights.
Firearms in a GA plane were covered in a previous column. I always flew with a pistol in my airplane, but I was also experienced with handguns. I also had a concealed carry permit, legal for many states. Before packing a pistol in your airplane (which is not prohibited), be sure you understand the firearms laws of every state you will cross or land in.
More than once I have stopped to overnight only to find no tiedowns on the ramp. Even with brakes on, the wind can move small airplanes. I carried tiedown ropes with hooks to engage on the plane or places on the ramp. I also carried small aluminum wheel chocks (“L”-shaped ¼ inch thick stock about 4 inches long and two inches on each side). Tied together with a foot of cord, they were small, light, and always did the job.
My airplane gear was kept in a light plastic box or a cardboard box, lined with aluminum foil. Greasy rags, oil cans, gloves, and other dirty items were kept off the rear baggage compartment carpet and contained. The tiedown gear also resided here.
This is the extra gear I carried in the back (and front) of my airplane. What gear do you carry in yours?
EDITOR’S NOTE: Pilots are urged to check the current firearm laws of other countries concerning what is legal to transport in general aviation aircraft before departing the U.S. Also, see article entitled “Can you carry a gun in your airplane?” published in the February/March 2022 issue of Midwest Flyer Magazine: https://midwestflyer.com/?p=15245
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Pilot, Viet Nam veteran and former university professor, Bob Worthington of Las Cruces, New Mexico, is the author of “Under Fire with ARVN Infantry” (https://mcfarlandbooks.com/product/Under-Fire-with-ARVN-Infantry/), and producer of the 2019 film “Combat Advisor in Vietnam” (www.borderlandsmedia.com). Facebook: Bob Worthington Writer. Website: www.BobWorthingtonWriter.com. Bob Worthington has placed excerpts about combat flying in Vietnam (from his books) on his website. Here is a direct link to those excerpts: www.BobWorthingtonWriter.com/combat-flying-in-vietnam/. Every couple of months, he adds another excerpt.
DISCLAIMER: The information contained in this column is the expressed opinion of the author. Readers are urged to seek the advice of others, including their personal flight instructor, and state and federal officials. Neither the author, Midwest Flyer Magazine, Flyer Publications, Inc., or their staffs, employees or advertisers assume any liability for the accuracy or content of this column, or any other column or article published in this publication.
