Katrina Relief Flight
After Hurricane Katrina came ashore on the Gulf Coast, I signed up with Vacation Rentals for Families (VRFF). They began organizing Operation Brother's Keepers to fly supplies and medical personnel into the hurricane zone. Meanwhile, they were working to find available homes and other locations willing to accept evacuees who were flown out of the hurricane zone. All this flying was done by volunteer pilots who flew mostly small single-engine planes to various places around the country.
Well, after about a week, I got a call from a flying buddy who said he'd been asked to fly for them and he needed a copilot. I quickly arranged the plane's (and my) schedule to leave around 5pm Saturday, September 10 while he collected some supplies to carry with us.
The weather forecast called for smooth but very hazy conditions all along our route and we pulled off the runway at Leesburg at 5:30 (2130Z) Saturday afternoon for the two-hour flight to Concord, NC. I had filed airways to Concord but, to my delightful surprise, we were cleared "direct Concord" before getting to the Casanova VOR (south of Dulles International). Gotta love that "/G" equipment suffix...
We flew the purple line of the Garmin 430 at 8000 in beautifully smooth air just above the haze layer. The haze was so thick it appeared as a cloud deck from above. Visibility below us was barely 5 miles ahead - and that was for large landmarks like lakes. It may have been legal VFR, but this is one of those flights that make me grateful for the instrument rating as I didn't have a horizon until getting above the haze layer.
The flight was rather uneventful. ATC gave us the NASCR1 arrival into Concord and we began our descent into the hazy murk below. After a dusk landing at KJQF (my favorite time to fly), we topped off fuel, answered the call of nature and took off for Wrens, GA for an RON (rest overnight). It's rather convenient that I have family in the area as we took advantage of their hospitality both Saturday and Sunday nights.
Sunday morning found the winds picking up a bit out of the North, but not too bad. We took off from Wrens (65J) and picked up our IFR clearance in the air - direct to Peachtree-Dekalb (KPDK) at 8000. An hour later, we were passing Stone Mountain on our way for a visual approach to KPDK.
We landed and taxied over to Hangar 6 where Epps Aviation was graciously hosting the VRFF operation. The ground coordinator was found and we were told we would be waiting for a truck enroute to the field with supplies. In the meantime, we borrowed the coordinator's pickup and went for a bit of caffeine.
Shortly after we got back to the field, the supplies appeared and we loaded up the .jpg)
plane. A Skylane doesn't have the most cavernous of cabins, but we were able to load up about 170 pounds of childrens' clothing. After a quick review of our flight plan and a bit of fuel, we taxied out toRunway 2 where the KPDK controllers were busy with quite a few light aircraft arriving and departing. After our runup checks, we were number 3 for takeoff, but our wait wasn't long and we soon found ourselves in the air talking to Atlanta Departure.
Once again, the controller soon offered "direct destination". He asked us where KHDC was and we told him Hammond, Louisiana. We thought it amusing he would give us direct then ask us "where is that?"
Just about three hours later, we were descending into Hammond and passed what appeared to be a very large staging area for trucks - possibly involved in Katrina relief. A short while later, we saw the first areas of destruction: acres of trees pushed over by the winds. Considering the force required to push over trees including roots over an area that large, I was surprised I didn't see more tarp-covered roofs. However, we were still several thousand feet in the air so we wouldn't have seen any but the most extensive structural damage. To that end, we did see scattered "blue roofs" indicating some damage. Just a couple miles farther revealed a much larger area of uprooted trees - several of which appeared to narrowly miss some buildings.
KHDC was operating a temporary tower. (Judging by the phraseology, I'm guessing a military controller.) We switched over to them and made a long straight-in landing to Runway 18, then taxied over to the West Ramp where we were told to go for unloading..jpg)
Eugene and his grandson Jeremy soon found their way over to us and we all moved the boxes from the plane to the truck.
We had been told to expect a couple of passengers from local shelters, but we soon found out that none would be forthcoming. While my copilot Bob began calling Angel Flight, I began plotting courses home. I have a friend in Montgomery I was hoping to see, but Bob soon called out that Angel Flight had a patient needing a ride from Naval Air Station Meridian, Mississippi to Birmingham, Alabama.
While all this was transpiring, one couldn't help but notice the heavy military presence. The Army (National Guard?) was obviously staging out of the field and several helicopters (both UH-1 Hueys and UH-60 Blackhawks) were on and around the field. Several soldiers had M16 rifles slung over their shoulders, but I noticed none of them appeared to have ammunition. The rifles certainly weren't loaded and it was not apparent that any of the soldiers had ammunition magazines stashed in their pockets - nor were they wearing web belts or LBE's. I just found it odd, but maybe they had simply stashed their ammunition in a central location for the time they were at the field. Or maybe the plan was simply to show the guns and hope that would be enough to deter most of the undesired activities the soldiers were there to prevent.
We put a few gallons of fuel in the plane and taxied to Runway 13 for departure. Along the way we saw a few planes that suffered the ravages of the storm - one of them inverted. After a short wait for landing and departing aircraft, we lifted off to pick up our IFR clearance enroute. This was the first time I'd been involved in an Angel Flight operation, so it took me a little bit of time to get used to hearing "Angel Flight 71R". Nonetheless, we were cleared direct to Meridian and we settled in for the (relatively) short trip.
Another first for this flight was landing at a military airfield, Naval Air Station Meridian (McCain Field). The only significant differences were the different language used by the controllers (this caused a couple of head scratches, bemused looks and "say again's") and the appearance of arrestor cables on either end of the runways. We were also queried more than a couple times by various folks at the field about our point of departure, destination, etc. I don't know if they are integrated into the national airspace system or the FAA's computer network, but I was wondering why they were asking since all this information was provided in my IFR flight plan. Regardless, since I wanted to ensure we left (with the plane), we cheerfully answered the repeated questions.
Once we got to the ramp (next to a squadron of T-45 trainers), we were pointed to the "MASH" unit. where we were met on the ramp by two gentlemen in uniform with Navy Captain insignia decorating their collars. They introduced themselves as the XO of the base and the public affairs officer.
Forget Hawkeye, Radar, Trapper and the rest of the TV M*A*S*H gang. This unit has an official title that is most definitely not "Mobile Army Surgical Hospital" and the US Public Health Service personnel we talked to were nothing if not professional - even the no-nonsense-yet-friendly SP-type who insisted we wear the visitor badges he personally delivered with a request that we be sure to leave them with him on our way out.
The mobile "hospital-in-a-box" unit was set up at Meridian to offload less-critical patients from hospitals around the areas hit by Katrina to free them up to handle the more "acute" patients. The unit was set up in a large hangar and (thankfully) had plenty of open beds.
Angel Flight had called them to let them know we were coming in, but they weren't sure of when we'd arrive. That meant a short wait while they prepared the patient for departure and we took the time to file our flight plan and find some liquid refreshment. We found out our patient was an elderly gentleman who was one of the first evacuees they received about two and half weeks earlier. They had found a nursing home in Birmingham willing to take him and he only needed transportation there.
They wheeled him out to the plane and helped him get onboard. Meanwhile, I was given his "luggage": A 10"x10"x14" cardboard box and a small handbag with all his possessions. They seemed genuinely happy he had found a home. Nobody wants to spend a lot of time in a temporary shelter - especially a hospital.
Anyway, we quickly pre-flighted (answering yet another series of "where you from/going" questions) and started the engine for the flight to KBHM. Tower gave us progressive taxi instructions and we pulled out onto Runway 19R for departure. However, we didn't start our takeoff roll right away. About 1200 feet down the runway was another arrestor cable suspended a couple inches off the concrete. I did not want to hit that at speed and risk using my nosewheel as an arrestor hook so we taxied to the cable and gently nudged the gear over it before running up the power for takeoff.
We encountered only a couple mild bumps during our climb to 7000 where we were cleared direct to Birmingham. I was grateful for glassy smooth air at altitude and the crimson sunset on top of the haze layer was a nice touch, too. The controllers in Birmingham gave us a smooth descent and vectors to final for Runway 36 followed by progressive taxi instructions to Mercury Air. My copilot arranged for the FBO to bring a van out to the plane to retrieve our passenger (who didn't walk well at all) while I helped him out of the plane and, after driving him the short distance to the front of the FBO, we helped him into the waiting car of the nurse who was to take him to the home and bid them all a safe trip.
By this time, it was 9:30 in the evening (0130Z) and we had logged almost 7.5 hours of flight time since 7:30 that morning. We agreed we were simply not going to be able to fly the 5+ hours to get back home to Leesburg (KJYO) so I arranged for another stay in Wrens. After getting some fuel (with a generous Angel Flight discount off the regular price of over $5/gallon), we taxied out for takeoff on the 2 hour flight. We filed direct at 5000 and were surprised to actually get it with a friendly "right turn on course" almost immediately after takeoff. We even kept it straight through the southern areas of Atlanta's airspace.
The landing at Wrens wasn't the smoothest of the day, but I didn't shake loose any parts, either. After a very restful sleep and filling breakfast, we wandered out to the airport for the flight home. First, we hopped to Thomson (KHQU) for a refueling stop, then climbed out to 7000 feet enroute to Greenwood, SC, but we found out the controllers at Charlotte needed us elsewhere so we wouldn't interfere with their arrival bank. They suggested 5000, but we asked for 9000 and they obliged (we didn't want the bumpier air at 5000 feet).
We had just completed a mission to help victims of Hurricane Katrina and we were now facing mild headwinds associated with Hurricane Ophelia off the coast of the Carolinas. Luckily, the winds were mild and smooth. By the time we got north of Charlotte, the winds were more of a direct crosswind (again quite mild) and we ended up with a nice 10-12 knot tailwind by the time we reached Virginia. The haze of the previous two days was mostly gone by this time and we had a very scenic flight home along the eastern edge of the Blue Ridge Mountains with nice views of Roanoke and the Blue Ridge Parkway off our left wing.
I was grateful for the opportunity to help and I hope the meager clothing we took down will be put to good use. The folks at VRFF were able to round up a very helpful bunch of pilots who (by September 11) had flown over 3 tons of supplies into southern Louisiana along with several medical personnel. They had also flown many passengers out of the area including 35 just the night we left. This mission really highlights the flexibility of small planes where we can land at smaller fields closer to where we're needed. While each plane may not carry much, it was obvious to me there was not a shortage of pilots willing to donate their time and planes for the effort and it does add up.
The final tally for the trip:
17.5 hours flight time
1808 nautical miles (not including vectors)
I've posted still photos here.
Landing at Concord, NC (KJQF) (8:55)
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Departing Concord, NC (KJQF) (7:25)
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Landing at Wrens, GA(65J) (6:55)
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Departing Wrens, GA (65J) (8:07)
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Landing at Hammond, LA (KHDC) (9:00)
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Departing Hammond, LA (KHDC) (6:43)
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Landing at NAS Meridian, MS (KNMM) (7:25)
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Departing NAS Meridian (KNMM) (3:43)
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Landing Birmingham, AL (KBHM) (8:13)
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Departing Birmingham, AL (KBHM) (5:00)
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