If you're in the Calhoun area, can you tell me what the terrain is like, around there?

How was the weather around 6:00pm EDT today (Friday, August 16, 2024)?

A friend just sold his airplane, a Grumman AA5 ("Cheetah"). The airplane had been sitting unused for well over ten years. The buyer had an annual inspection done; while I was not privy to all the details, it's my impression that he did the minimum necessary to get the annual inspection signed off.

The buyer is a relatively inexperienced pilot, not instrument rated. FlightAware shows that the airplane "was last seen" (by FlightAware) in the vicinity of Calhoun at 6:09pm today. The flight path shows that the non-instrument rated pilot probably tangled with some weather that I'm guessing was more serious than his training and experience were adequate to handle.

Starting around 5:38pm, the FlightAware Track Log shows some pretty erratic deviations in course, altitude, airspeed, and rate of climb (descent).

FlightAware usually shows time and place of landing, but for this flight it just indicates "last seen."

All of those factors give me a bit of cause for concern, thus my questions about terrain, and weather in the vicinity around 6:00pm.

I’m about an hours drive east so that’s my perspective.
There was a line of storms going southeast from Tennessee across northern Georgia.
I wouldn’t consider them particularly dangerous where I am but they usually lose some of their energy as they go eastward. But I wouldn’t want to be flying through them, even if I was highly skilled.
That area is mountainous and wooded but I-75 goes through the area.
Has anyone notified emergency services in the area?
Based on your description of the situation, skills, terrain, etc., I’d be very concerned.

Any update on this? I ferried one a few years back from Colorado to Sacramento. They are nice flying birds.

With the ‘N’ number you should be able to track it, as you know. Most have ADS-B installed, but 10yrs sitting, maybe not.

The regular aviation weather.gov site
https://aviationweather.gov/ has weather, it’s free too. I don’t like how they changed the site, but things are there. When I say ‘free’, you know what I mean, tax funded.

As one looks there are some tragic weather related aircraft crashes. Just 7-10 days ago, 3 were killed flying to a Trump rally in MT. Overall the weather wasn’t that bad, at quick glance, but they ended up with clouds covering higher terrain.

Calhoun is in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. With mountains on the east and west sides of it. I was out of town yesterday evening but I got an alert from the National Weather Service for severe thunderstorm warnings in the area at 6:36 pm.

I work over there.

There is a ridge south of Chattanooga that gives me heartburn.
It's NOT for inexperienced pilots.

What airport was he departing and where would his likely flight take him to?
Does your friend who sold the plane have any contact information for family and friends who might have heard from him to verify he’s actually missing or not?

quote:

Originally posted by sourdough44:

With the ‘N’ number you should be able to track it, as you know.

As I said in the original post, "FlightAware shows that the airplane 'was last seen' (by FlightAware) in the vicinity of Calhoun at 6:09pm"

I had to look the plane up. Kinda looks like a Navion light.

https://www.globalair.com/airc...fications?specid=401

The aircraft in question is not a Piper J3. It is a Grumman AA5 Cheetah.

quote:

Originally posted by snoris:
This story looks like what you were searching for:

Mooreburg, TN is ~200 miles away from Calhoun, GA.

And that plane was a Piper J3, while the OP states the plane in question is a Grumman AA5.

We are in extremely bad weather today.

Looks like he made it in to Calhoun last night.

FlightAware shows him departing Calhoun at 2:16pm EDT today, for a fourteen minute flight to Dalton, so I'm guessing that his original destination yesterday was Dalton, and he got into some weather near Calhoun and landed at the nearest airport.

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:

quote:

Originally posted by snoris:
This story looks like what you were searching for:

Mooreburg, TN is ~200 miles away from Calhoun, GA.

And that plane was a Piper J3, while the OP states the plane in question is a Grumman AA5.

My error, I deleted my post. Thanks for the correction.

Good to hear he made it safely.
Sounds like the buyer took a few shortcuts and was creating an opportunity for a poor outcome. A quick look at any weather radar showed risky picture of the weather.
He got lucky this time.


“A superior pilot uses his superior judgment to avoid situations which require the use of his superior skillS.”
Frank Borman

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:
Looks like he made it in to Calhoun last night.

FlightAware shows him departing Calhoun at 2:16pm EDT today, for a fourteen minute flight to Dalton, so I'm guessing that his original destination yesterday was Dalton, and he got into some weather near Calhoun and landed at the nearest airport.

Or he just HAD to get to a Buc-ees!

(There’s one in Calhoun. Glad everything is alright.)

quote:

Originally posted by 220-9er:

Sounds like the buyer took a few shortcuts and was creating an opportunity for a poor outcome. A quick look at any weather radar showed risky picture of the weather.
He got lucky this time.

“A superior pilot uses his superior judgment to avoid situations which require the use of his superior skillS.”
Frank Borman

I remember discussions from a long time ago, stating that the most dangerous period in a pilot's development is between 100 hours and 500 hours of flight time. Enough experience to be confident, but not enough to be competent.