Good morning KW

Cross country flight is just that, a flight from point A to point B. It is typicaly done from the back of a pickup truck or convertable.

In organized events there are two different types one is to acheve the greatest endurence/distance on a given allowence of fuel and the other is a 'Hare and hound' type of event in which a lead cars goes ahead before the start and picks an unknown check point on the preplanned route perhaps five miles down the road and you must land and pickup a poker card at the completion of five stops you have your poker hand and your winner. In this way any sport type airplane can be used with no special tankage. The real winners of course are the finishers who survive the multiple unknown landings and takeoffs not always in the best conditions. I have flown in a number of this type event near Las Vegas and even helicopters and electrics have gone the route.

A few years ago I participated in a flight of six airplanes from Kingman Az. to Seligman AZ a distance of eighty miles along old Route '66'. The purpose was to commemorate the new Public full scale airport at Seligman and most of the town residents of Seligman awaited our arrival with complete with speechs by the town dignataries. The flight was difficult because of the moutains to be traversed and an elevation gain of more than 2500 feet with the resultant richening of the fuel mixture along the way.

In my case I used a forty size trainer with a K&B .45 Sportster fitted with a Perry oscillating pump with a twelve oz tank in the nose, a fourteen oz in the radio compartment and twenty four Ozs. over the CG above the wing. The flight was completed in one hour and fifty six minutes.

And yes, The flight was accomplished with the full cooperation of the tribal council police whch was responsible for most of the route and the FAA for the arrival at the full scale airport.


John