Dudley Henriques wrote:
I've NEVER been lost. I've been "temporarily disoriented", but NEVER
lost!!!!! :-))))



I wish I could say the same. I've been LOST.

When I was a brand new pilot, I did a night VFR flight from Rock Hill, SC to
Wilmington, NC... at least that was where I wanted to go. Having very little TT
(less than 100 hours), I navigated the same as I did in daytime VFR. At least I
thought I did.

Basically you just flew at about 100 degrees until you got to Laurinburg, then
turned another 10 degrees or so to fly down the railroad tracks until you got to
Wilmington. What I hadn't figured was that most small towns look pretty much
the same at night and I couldn't see the damned tracks.

Anyway, I got to where I thought I should call Wilmington Approach to report I
was inbound for landing and said that I was about 25 miles to the west of the
airport. They gave me a squawk code and then radar identified me.... about 18
miles EAST of the airport. The next landfall would be the island of Bermuda.

Rather than test my swimming abilities to the max, I chose to take their offer
of radar vectors to the airport.

Embarassing, to say the least. I never again navigated by pilotage and /or dead
recconing at night again. From then on it was radio navigation for me at night.



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN
mschnerdatcarolina.rr.com