After close to two months of scheduling my night cross country, and having to cancel last minute due to weather, or a broke plane...I finally got it done! After having to cancel my night XC several times due to low ceilings, I was relieved to see that we were forecasted to have unlimited visibility, and clear skies...however with Santa Ana winds blowing, some airports near my destination were reporting gusts up to 25 knots, and others were reporting around 5 knots. I decided that if I was going to have to cancel this flight due to winds, then it was going to be at the last minute...I was not ready to cancel this flight again.
The weather was perfect for flying on this night. Sure there was a little turbulence in the air for about 5 minutes on our way home, but besides that, the winds were calm, the sky was clear, visibility was unlimited and the moon was shining bright! A beautiful night to fly! I had made this trip before on one of my dual cross countries, except last time Big Bear was out destination airport, but Redlands was where we ended up after some poor engine performance. I found navigating the route at night pretty easy. I used airports and a VOR as my checkpoints, and found the airports really easy to see from quite a far distance away. The airports beacons could easily be seen from far out, and by cross checking the lighted areas near the airport with the populated areas depicted on the sectional, it was easy to determine if I had the right airport in sight. The flight went off without a hitch, and I felt like I navigated and flew the airplane very well.
With the night XC finally complete, all that stands between me and being eligible for my check ride is .1 hours of instrument time. The check ride is the only thing on my mind right now!
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