Navigation over Redon

With a beautiful blue sky and summer-like temperatures, this Wednesday in February is poised to become a delightful flight. The planned navigation route is for Dinard, to enjoy the sea under the sunshine. This time, we’ll be using a Cessna 172, which I’ve resumed flying since January.

I checked the paperwork for F-GCHM, the Cessna 172N belonging to the aero club, and updated the weight calculation based on the weighing record. A quick look at the weather forecast showed that Brittany stations reported CAVOK (ceiling and visibility OK). I took the keys and headed towards the hangar. Before takeoff, I performed a thorough check, including verifying the fuel level. 130 liters are distributed across both tanks; therefore, it’s impossible to carry three passengers as doing so would exceed the aircraft’s maximum allowable weight. Since we can’t drain any excess fuel, I decided to fly with my sister over Redon. The round trip will consume approximately 30 liters. Additionally, it will allow me to practice approaches to uncontrolled airfields.

After about an hour of flight, we returned to Rennes. I then boarded my parents, again verifying the fuel level – the gauges aren’t very accurate. We started up and taxied towards the holding point D10. I probably should have waited a bit longer before departing. It was peak time at the airport, with numerous takeoffs and landings of regional flights following one after another. As you can see in the photo, this creates congestion at the holding point!

We took off and climbed to 2000 feet, heading south. I turned within the CTR (Controlled Traffic Area), avoiding any villages. The air humidity seems higher than earlier, blurring the horizon at dusk. Everyone on board is enjoying the flight; the Cessna offers better ground visibility thanks to its high wings, as well as more legroom compared to the DR 400! After about thirty minutes, I turned towards Rennes and was authorized to integrate into a standard procedure. Final turn and landing on runway 10.