Florida weather in September

[Rote 8]

I am hoping to go out to Florida in September for some post CPL hourbuilding. I understand however that September is Florida’s hurricane season. Is there anyone either in Florida or someone who has experience of the local weather at that time of year that could suggest to what extent this is likely to hamper my prospects of getting some intensive flying done and hamper my prospects of having a good time generally whilst I am out there. I am hoping to fly around 50 hours, any ideas how long this will probably take me (please do not say 50 hours).

Thanks in advance

[Keygrip]

Drat - you bet me to it - I was going to say "50 hours".

Answers? September is usually extremely hot and humid (hence the hurricanes).

Yeah - September is pretty much the peak of the hurricane season - but that doesn't mean that the whole of the State is in a constant 140 mph wind.

We usually get a couple of weeks notice of a storm intention to make landfall - with the real news being a few days before it smashes into the beach.

When there is a storm threat - most of the schools can calculate where to fly away to - to avoid damage.

Ideal if you are hour building.

Consider a long cross country - Florida to Los angeles or New York - it won't take many days to get 50 hours.

Where are you going for the aircraft rental??

[agroflyer]

If I had to go build hours, I would choose California as the weather is very mild and sunny in september (generally).

I have seen some bad weather in Florida at this time of the year (10 inches of water in the streets - Hugo).

California, has some weather but not as trough.

Hope I helped.

Chears

[Sensible]

The heat and humidity in Florida during September and October has to be experienced to be believed. Some really serious towering cumulus generally appear at around mid-day and they scare me for sure! Take your alarm clock with you and get your flying in early and watch the storms from the ground. Best flying from the crack of dawn till mid-day ish. Try to go after the end of October if possible, the weather is usually a lot better although I went last December and the ceilings were down to 1000ft for most of the day for the best part of 10 days!

[strafer]

I did my PPL in Florida last Sept and managed 54 hours in 3 weeks. That was with every other afternoon being wiped out by CBs and 7 exams getting in the way. The last hurricane to really hit Florida was four years ago, we just had a couple of trpical storms which screwed up the weather for a day at a time. Other times of the year are probably better (and busier) but Florida flying is fun.

[B2N2]

:D It's generally not that difficult to predict which way the CB's will be moving.
Since Florida is fairly narrow it depends on which seabreeze
happens to be stronger that day, meaning one of the coastlines usually remains clear while the other one is covered in afternoon storms.
Pretty interesting seeing storms that go up to FL450 40 miles away.:cool:

[noflow]

I just saw a story at drudgereport.com that said 2003 will be an above average hurricane season. If there are schools on the west coast of the state they will probably be less effected than east coast schools.
I've lived in Florida and California as well as other states and would opt for California in September. I don't know if Flying Vikings in Hayward is still around but they typically have many foreign students and instructors for that matter. They also may have some deal on housing set up as well.
The flying in CA is much more interesting than the flying in Florida. You can shoot some approaches into foggy coastal airports and do mountain flying on the same day. San Francisco is a great city to visit.

[FlyingForFun]

Rote 8,

You are a life-saver! There I was, getting ready to book a CPL course in Florida in either September or October, and this never even occured to me! What's more worrying is that none of the three schools in Florida who I contacted thought to mention it to me either, despite my e-mails to them specifically mentioning those two months, and specifically saying that I wanted to train in an environment where weather delays would be minimal... but never mind, I guess they don't want to put all of their customers off visiting in those two months, otherwise they'd be sitting on their back-sides bored in the periods between hurricanes.

Anyway, thanks for bringing this to my attention. I will now have to either go out there earlier (unlikely - I don't get on very well with hot weather, besides which it clashes with school holidays so flights and accommodation will probably cost more), or more likely in November.

FFF
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[My names Turkish]

Let us not Panic! I arrived here last spetember expecting gale force winds, driving rain and twisters scooping up little old ladies.The way your talking it would sound to some people like the state of Florida declares a national emergency during these months.

Not exactly.

Yes thunderstorms do occur, but usually they are very localized. The weather information in florida is second to none. I have flown about 150 Hrs here and probably only been grounded for 5-6 days in the period of a couple of months( Doing ATPL thats why I'm here so Long) Also around the end of the October the temperature starts to peter off and you get the most fantastic warm but not hot weather. There is a good possibility that you will not be grounded for a single day.

The only thing I would agree with from the above posts is that there is more variety in the So. Calif. Florida can be a bit boring, but are you here to go flying or to sight see? Cross countries are great and if you bring your camping gear they can be cheap. You learn so much from flying into new airports everyday too.

[Nearly Man]

Rote 8

Well, I just came back from Florida, Jan, Feb .. hmm, trouble is, it seems to be getting hard to predict what the weather is gonna be like in Florida at anytime now. I used to live around the Ft Lauderdale area nad you could bet on the storm season starting August through to Sept, with the heavy storm in the afternoon then lovely flying weather.
All the weather guys I talked recently said it was the worst winter in yonks .. and were at a loss to understand why .. then went and hopped into their 8 gals a mile utility vehicle (:
I think someone earlier said California .. that seems a good idea as a few mates of mine went out West to fly and said the weather was tops.

Anyway, if you are going to Florida, I'd go to the west coast .. east coast is like Benidorm on sea.

Best of luck

[T_richard]

Rote 8

I am clearly out of my league when it comes to flight school, but I will tell you that September in New England Coastal area is usually awesome; temps 60-75, mostly sunny, Morning breezes are usually light, afternoons are SW 10- 15 knts. Don't know about flight schools, but there are several around and I know some experianced pilots. Would be happy to inquire if you want PM me if this is useful. If not, I apologise for wasting your time

[Seldom Seen Slim]

There are advantages and disadvantages for both. This is all based on personal expiernce and stories I heard first-hand, or stuff I saw on TV.

Disadvantages of flying in Florida, and tips to deal with them:

* to avoid the humidity, get an air-conditioned place and never leave home. Either that or go flying in a swim suit.

* avoid all airports. Just at my flight school we had like seven fatalities in three years, one of them a suicide (an instructor in a light twin), all in close vicinity to airports.

* always wear a helmet, because the hot & humid air will be knocking you around alot.

* make sure your plane has good visibility straight up so you can avoid all the skydivers (esp. in the vicinity of DeLand--you can tune CTAF if you want but don't bother because it's constantly filled with calls of "skydivers over DeLand...)

* don't fly low at night near the coast or you may be forced down for smuggling drugs

* fog every morning, thunderstorms every afternoon. When the lightening turns green, go hide in the basement. Your living room won't work, as this dead guy you lived not to far from me would explain to you if he were alive.

* farmers take pot shots at you if you do too much ground reference near their fields, or they complain to your flight school because the airplane engines cause the chickens the start killing their chicks (I am not making this stuff up)

* alligators known to sun themselves on runways (this happened out of the place I flew at--Delta MD-80 had to do a go around until they could drag it away) when they are not busy eating dogs or little kids.

* fireants (make sure none of those critters get in your shorts before you go flying)

* retired people will kill you by car if you aren't killed by plane first

* fligh schools lure you in, then you can't get a plane because Air Saudi Arabia is paying twice the rate you are for an airplane, or because freelance Saudis have bottomless bank account yet no interest in learning how to land.

Florida advantages:

* amusing to watch Saudis go down on their knees when Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia arrives for surpise visit

* no mountains, no hills. Highest point is a garbage dump. But beware the 2,500' towers, and permanently teathered 10,000 foot high "weather balloons" that seem to make all the drug smugglers suddenly get busted.

* you will learn the definition of "white trash" :} if you don't know it already. "Damnit, you boys don't know the difference 'tween a hillbilly and a redneck!" (line actually spoken to me by my next door neighbor.)

* you can see the Space Shuttle take off if you aren't too far from... oh wait... nevermind.

* most hurricans always magically miss FL at the last minute... except for that one 4 years ago... and FL seems to get at least one solid hit one every 4 years...

* cheap to fly. Welfare queens with 2 kids get more $ than instructors.

CA Advantages

* no rain, no clouds (unless you count L.A. smog), no Saudis. Well, less Saudis, and most of the terrorists decided they liked Florida better.

* earthquakes have no effect at 5000 feet.

* excess of senile FAA-certified check ride pilots may pass you because they can't tell your short field was 400 feet long

CA Disadvantages/Tips

* excess of senile FAA-certified check ride pilots who may fail you because they say you gave them the wrong answer then proceed to give the right answer which oddly is the exact same thing you just said.

* If you live in Sothern California, lock your plane well, or else Mexican drug smugglers will steal it.

* If you smuggle drugs then crash and die, the Mexicans will give you a free cremation once they get to the wreckage.

* extra gas tax, on both AvGas and regular gas (new extra-high higher tax now that the previous merely high-tax "environmentally friendly" gas polluted all the drinking water)

* You may have trouble communicating on the ground if you don't speak Spanish or Chinese.

* Cost of living makes New York City look cheap, so get a place in the stix.

And frankly, from what the European pilots I've talked to have told me, both Florida and CA are about ten times better than Europe, what with the ridiculous cost and Mount-Everest high mountains of red tape.

[FlyingForFun]

SSS - why not tell us what you really think?!?!?

Fantastic post, though - can't remember the last person who made me laugh so much with their first ever post! Welcome to PPRuNe! :D :D :D

FFF
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[Seldom Seen Slim]

I started out with a serious post but then it turned in to a condensed form of my repitoire of flying stories. All the stuff is true, too (or at least a convincing rumor), even if I make it sound ridiculous. The green lightening means a tornado is coming, by the way, I forgot to mention that.

I really think that Florida weather stinks and California weather rules, but it costs less to fly in Florida, and if all you are gonna do it build time, the weather doesn't matter as much, since you don't need to go anyplace specific.

One neat thing about Florida is the way they let you fly down the centerline of the runway the Space Shuttle lands at 500 feet (not at the same time the Shuttle is landing, of course). What with 9/11 I dunno if they still let you do that. There is also this neat runway in Florida that we called "Gilligans Island". Its on an island in the St. John's river, north of Orlando/SW of Jacksonville. The river is more of a big lake at this point. A heavily wooded island has a obvious grass runway cleared from the water's edge to the middle. One end is clear, but the other is a wall of trees, as is both sides. I don't recall it being on any sectional (it's definitely private). It's neat because it's like a private "secret hidden airfield" on someone's hidden island.

In Florida I flew at Embry-Riddle's flight school (big 141 school, also a university, sucks ass, don't go there) at Daytona (KDAB), by the way. California was a mid-sized FBO at Concord (KCCR).

[FlyingForFun]

I like the sound of that runway - I guess it makes a late go-around a bad option?

Unfortunately, more important than the weather is the fact that the CAA hasn't authorised any California schools to offer JAR CPL training, so that's not an option. I did have the pleasure of flying through California a couple of times when I was hour-building though (I was based in Arizona, so it was just next door), and all I can say is that whoever designed the airspace around LA must have been on some pretty good drugs at the time - I thought the London airspace was complicated enough! :D Would love to go back - I never got to visit the Bay area or San Diego, and I gather that both are well worth a visit.

FFF
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[Sensible]

FFF, Whats, wrong with the LA airspace? Have I missed something? :confused: it's actually my favourite place to fly!

[FlyingForFun]

Must just be me then? :confused: Don't have my charts to hand, but I seem to recall it took several dog-legs and altitude changes to get around the various bits of Class B/D (and I think a bit of C as well). The chart shows one huge area of yellow, with very few features to help confirm your location (although I was fortunate enough to spot a large freeway which was marked on the chart). And whoever it was that I'd planned on using for flight following didn't want to know!

Probably didn't help that this came at the end of a 4-hour flight in poor viz and moderate turbulence, in a type which was 50% faster than I was used to. And that no one anywhere near where I was based knew the area, so I had to rely on the charts without the benefit of local knowledge.

Fun? Yes! Educational? Absolutely! But I still think whoever designed it was on drugs! :D

FFF
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[Sensible]

FFF, can’t be sure but it sounds like either you didn’t ask for class Charlie services/ a VFR flight following at your departure airport if it was towered within the LA basin or request it on initial contact with ATC if you were flying out of a non towered or from outside the LA basin. I’ve only known low level flights to be a bit of a problem when ATC vector low level aircraft clear of busy airport approach airspaces. I’ve been cleared through the class Bravo airspaces without problem although I did miss the opportunity of popping down through a big hole in broken cloud because ATC asked me to “maintain at or above 4000" over one busy class Delta airspace. ATC at Las Vegas even surprised me by giving me clearance to circle the Hoover Dam! Circling anywhere to do with utilities or people is not usually permitted at the moment. There is currently a restricted area 3miles around L.A. Disney !

[Seaweed Knees]

when I first arrived in LA i was scared by what I saw on the chart,
but its actually really easy to fly through the airspace here. Once you pick up flight following like sensible said above, its only LAXs airspace you need to keep clear of. For the most part, controllers are friendly ( although I actually fell out with one tonight.)
As for navigation, pilotage can be quite a task for someone unfamilliar with the area, but there are enough VORs in the area to ensure that you wont get lost or enter class B airspace.
My only complaint would be that when its hazy, flying west in the evening, may as well be flying west in IMC. You cant see a damn thing.

[FlyingForFun]

At the risk of dragging this thread even more off topic ;) When I first arrived in LA i was scared by what I saw on the chart, but its actually really easy to fly through the airspace hereI think Seaweed has hit the nail on the head. It is daunting when you first look at it, but I'm sure that after a couple of flights it becomes second nature - just as flying under the London TMA and avoiding Heathrow, Luton, Stanstead, Gatwick, Benson, Farnborough and lots of smaller airfields is second nature to me but probably looks daunting the first time someone sees it. But doing only one flight in the area (well, two - one inbound and one outbound) didn't give a chance to get over my first impressions.

FFF
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[Sensible]

quote:
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At the risk of dragging this thread even more off topic
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How could that be possible? the thread was about Florida!

[FlyingForFun]

How could that be possible?So, what's the weather like in Australia in April? :D :D :D

FFF
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