PA28 PLT ENTERED DC ADIZ WITHOUT CLRNC OR A DISCREET XPONDER CODE AFTER MDT APCH CTLR DUMPED THE PLT FROM FLT FOLLOWING; AND THE PCT APCH CTLR REFUSED TO WORK THE PLT.

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I DROVE UP TO READING REGIONAL ARPT ON JUN/FRI/03; TO PICK UP MY NEW AIRPLANE; AN ARCHER. HAVING RECEIVED MY PVT PLT TRAINING IN MANASSAS ARPT; I AM VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE REQUIREMENT TO FILE AN ADIZ FLT PLAN. I FILED MY ADIZ FLT PLAN WITH THE BRIEFER FOR AN XD00Z ARR IN THE VICINITY OF FREDERICK; MD. I WAS UNABLE TO DEPART RDG AT XC00Z AS PLANNED BECAUSE THE AIRPLANE'S ENG QUIT ON THE TXWY. IT WAS NOT UNTIL XC48Z THAT THE AIRPLANE WAS CLRED BY MECHS AND I WAS ABLE TO DEPART FOR MANASSAS. I REQUESTED FLT FOLLOWING; AND REMAINED UNDER RADAR CTL UNTIL HARRISBURG APCH TERMINATED RADAR SVC. I REQUESTED A FREQ FOR POTOMAC APCH. I ATTEMPTED TO CONTACT POTOMAC APCH A NUMBER OF TIMES; AND AFTER BEING PASSED BACK AND FORTH BTWN SEVERAL CTLRS AND DENIED FLT FOLLOWING EACH TIME; WAS TOLD BY A CTLR THAT HE WAS TOO BUSY AND THAT I SHOULD TRY HIM AGAIN IN 30 MINS. BY THAT TIME; I WAS AT WAYPOINT ERIC; ABOUT 1 MI FROM THE ADIZ. BECAUSE OF MY DIFFICULT DEP FROM RDG AND NAGGING CONCERNS ABOUT THE ENG'S VIABILITY; I FORGOT THAT MY ADIZ FLT PLAN WOULD BE DISCARDED BY THE COMPUTER BY THE TIME I REACHED THE VICINITY OF FREDERICK. THIS WAS MY FIRST TIME IN THIS PARTICULAR ARCHER. IT IS EQUIPPED WITH A COLOR MOVING-MAP GPS. I SPENT MANY HRS STUDYING IN THE ONLINE MANUAL BEFORE MY FLT. FEELING SUFFICIENTLY QUALIFIED IN ITS OP; I INPUTTED 3 WAYPOINTS INTO THE GPS PRIOR TO DEPARTING RDG. ONE; NAMED ERIC; WAS LOCATED ABOUT 1 MI W OF THE OUTERMOST RING OF DULLES ARPT (IAD) AIRSPACE; AND THE OTHER 2 (RODA AND YVET) WITHIN THE OUTER RINGS OF IAD AIRSPACE. I ALSO PROGRAMMED 2 FLT PLANS INTO THE GPS. FLT PLAN #1 WAS FROM RDG-ERIC-HEF AND WAS THE ONE I ACTIVATED BEFORE DEPARTING RDG. THIS FLT PLAN WAS PREDICATED ON BEING CLRED INTO CLASS B AIRSPACE AND ALLOWED TO FLY DIRECT TO MANASSAS. FLT PLAN #2 WAS FROM RDG-ERIC-RODA-YVET-HEF; SHOULD I NOT BE ALLOWED INTO CLASS B AIRSPACE. BY FOLLOWING ITS RTE; I WOULD BE ABLE TO REACH HEF BY THE MOST DIRECT RTE WITHOUT ENCROACHING INTO CLASS B AIRSPACE. THE AIRPLANE IS ALSO EQUIPPED WITH AN AUTOPLT; SO I WAS ABLE TO FLY THE GPS TRACK AUTOMATICALLY. AFTER BEING TOLD TO WAIT 30 MINS; I REALIZED I WOULD NOT BE ALLOWED INTO CLASS B AIRSPACE; SO I DELETED THE GPS'S CURRENT FLT PLAN (FLT PLAN #1). UNEXPECTEDLY; THE MOVING MAP SCREEN WENT BLACK. AFTER A MIN OR SO; I INPUTTED FLT PLAN #2 AND THE MOVING MAP SCREEN CAME BACK; REVEALING THAT I WAS WITHIN THE OUTER RING OF CLASS B AIRSPACE. BEING AT 2500 FT; I KNEW I COULD NOT HAVE ENCROACHED INTO CLASS B AIRSPACE; BUT FAILED TO REMEMBER THAT WHILE THE ADIZ FOLLOWS THE CONTOURS OF THE IAD AIRSPACE; UNLIKE CLASS B AIRSPACE; IT BEGINS FROM THE SURFACE IN ITS ENTIRETY. IN THE BACK OF MY MIND; I STILL THOUGHT I HAD A VALID REQUEST FOR CLRNC INTO THE ADIZ ON FILE; SO IT DID NOT OCCUR TO ME THAT I HAD COMMITTED A VIOLATION. AS SOON AS THE GPS SCREEN CAME BACK TO LIFE AND I REALIZED WHERE I WAS; I TURNED TO A 300 DEG HDG IN ORDER TO GET W OF THE OUTER RING. ONCE CLR; I CLBED BACK TO 3500 FT AND SET A COURSE TO CIRCLE COUNTERCLOCKWISE AROUND IAD AIRSPACE. HAVING BEEN TRYING TO PICK UP FLT FOLLOWING FOR MUCH OF THE TRIP; I CHALKED UP THE CTLR'S UNWILLINGNESS TO CTL ME TO THE FACT THAT THEY WERE TOO BUSY; AND NOT TO THE FACT THAT I HAD A LAPSED CLRNC REQUEST. AFTER ABOUT 20 MINS; I CALLED THE POTOMAC APCH AGAIN REQUESTING TO GO TO MANASSAS; AND WAS TOLD FOR THE FIRST TIME THAT THERE WAS NO ADIZ FLT PLAN ON FILE FOR ME. IT IS ONLY AT THIS POINT THAT I REALIZED THE TRUE NATURE OF MY PROB. I RADIOED THE FSS; FILED AN ADIZ FLT PLAN WITH THE BRIEFER; AND WAS TOLD TO CONTACT POTOMAC APCH. I WAS TOLD TO SQUAWK XXXX; TOLD I WAS 'RADAR CONTACT;' AND WAS CLRED TO MANASSAS. UPON LNDG; MANASSAS TWR HAD ME CALL POTOMAC APCH. I WAS TOLD THAT I HAD PENETRATED THE ADIZ WHILE SQUAWKING VFR. I WAS VERY DISTRAUGHT AND TOLD HER THAT I HAD NOT CROSSED INTO THE ADIZ; ALL THE TIME MEANING THAT I HAD NOT CROSSED INTO CLASS B AIRSPACE. IT IS ONLY AFTER REPLAYING THE EVENTS IN MY MIND INNUMERABLE TIMES THAT I CORRECTLY REASSEMBLED THE EVENTS OF THE FLT AND DREW THE TRUE CONCLUSIONS. CONCLUSIONS: THE REASON FOR FORGETTING THAT MY ADIZ CLRNC REQUEST HAD LAPSED WAS UNQUESTIONABLY THE FOCUS ON MY MECHANICAL TROUBLES; AND THEN REPLACED BY MY CONFUSION REGARDING THE INCOMPREHENSIBLE PROB I WAS ENCOUNTERING BEING CLRED FOR MANASSAS. I TRACE THE REASON FOR ENCROACHING INTO THE ADIZ TO MY FOCUS ON THE GPS DISPLAY PROB. I HAD THE TERMINAL AREA CHART IN MY LAP TO SHOW WHERE I WAS; BUT INSTEAD OF USING THE ONE I AM MOST USED TO; I TURNED MY ATTN TO A NEW NAVIGATIONAL DEVICE I AM NOT FULLY TRAINED ON. I HAVE RESOLVED TO NEVER AGAIN USE THE GPS AS MY PRIMARY MEANS OF NAV; BUT RATHER TO USE IT IN COMBINATION WITH THE AUTOPLT AS A TOOL THAT ALLOWS ME MORE TIME TO FOCUS ON MY CHARTS; ESPECIALLY IN THE CHALLENGING TERMINAL ENVIRONMENT OF WASHINGTON; DC.