Washington D.C. to Key West

Flying from Washington, D.C. to Key West International Airport, in Key West, Florida, a fairly long 909 NM flight. Here are some things to do in Key West. I didn't capture any snapshots until I was more than halfway there. This is a snapshot of the Foreflight app display on my phone, showing that I have about an hour left to go, before I arrive in Key West. It also shows a line of significant real-world weather that is crossing the Key West area from west to east. In real life, that hour could give that fast-moving storm enough time to pass by Key West, and leave me with beautiful weather for my approach. However, since I'm accelerating time in the simulator, I'll probably be arriving while the worst of it is passing over the airport. I'll call that a fun simulated challenge!

This flight took me over the space launch complexes at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS), Florida - a place with fond memories for me, as I have traveled there for work, to participate in launch countdowns.

The Complex 36 launch pads A and B that we used to launch the Atlas I, II, and III rockets are on the point of land that sticks farthest out to the left, near the end of the CCAFS Skid Strip runway off my left wing. The Atlas V Space Operations Center (ASOC) where we controlled launches of the Atlas V rocket is on the small island directly behind me, and the Atlas V Launch Complex 41 is at the bottom right of the snapshot. I have many great memories of those times, some of which involved seriously deep thought and anxiety, as we worked through the various expected and unexpected challenges that arose when launching our rockets.

Looking ahead, as I pass over Cape Canaveral, I have already checked weather, and selected the instrument approach to Key West's runway 27. I can see the enroute and approach segments depicted on the moving map display. The simulator doesn't seem to know anything about the real-world storm system that's passing over Key West.

Passing over Lake Okeechobee.

As I approach the south tip of Florida, a thick cloud layer suddenly appears. This might be an indication of some of the severe weather I saw in Foreflight, as the simulator retrieves real-world weather from the network.

Descending through 14,400 feet, toward the cloud layer, and approaching the Initial Approach Fix. Some rain is starting to show up on the NEXRAD overlay on the moving-map display.

On the ground in Key West!