A Trip with Flight Design CTLS
Flight Design Panel The panel in Philip's Flight Design CTLS is intimidating. There is information about engine performance, weather, temporary flight restrictions (TFRs), airports, routes, airplane attitude and direction, speed... a lot of stuff to digest and stay on top of. The yellow label centered at the top admonishes, "Read manuals before flight." Notice the plural "manuals." It's a rule that reminds me of a jocular warning label in some old Piper Cubs: "Do not exceed mach 1.5 in inverted flight." How did we get into such a complicated airplane? It begins with a flight with our Zenith 601 HDS, N314LB, from Dallas to Deming, NM, under adverse wind conditions. The best choice is staying low, indeed very low, for the entire route. Over the desert of West Texas, this means flying 500 ft AGL. There are no towers or other obstructions, and flying so low is safe, indeed exhilarating. US 62 going west from the Guadalupe Mountains across th...