A VFR BE35 PLT ENTERED IMC AND CLASS D AIRSPACE AVOIDING WX. PLT OBTAINED CLASS D LNDG CLRNC TO AVOID APCHING WX.
Synopsis
A VFR BE35 PLT ENTERED IMC AND CLASS D AIRSPACE AVOIDING WX. PLT OBTAINED CLASS D LNDG CLRNC TO AVOID APCHING WX.
Narrative
07/TUE/05; I DEPARTED VFR FROM ZZZ1 JUST BEFORE THE ARPT WAS CLOSING; I FLEW TO ZZZ2 TO ACCESS AN APCHING WX FRONT VIA THE FBO'S LIVE RADAR. AFTER DISCUSSING THE WX WITH A BRIEFER AT THE FSS; I DECIDED TO DEPART VFR ON A SE HDG WITH THE INTENTIONS OF FLYING APPROX 60 NM SO AS TO ENCOUNTER CLR SKIES AND THEN TO CONTINUE MY FLT VFR TO DEST. I WAS AWARE OF AN APCHING LINE OF WX; BUT CONDITIONS AND RADAR INDICATED THAT I COULD LEAVE THEN AND BEAT THE SYSTEM; OTHERWISE BE 'GROUNDED' FOR APPROX 12 HRS OR MORE! I DEPARTED VFR USING TRSA SVCS ON THE 140 DEG HDG AND MAINTAINED VFR. AT SOME POINT THE CTLR STATED 'RADAR SVC TERMINATED; FREQUENCY CHANGE APPROVED.' SOME TIME LATER; THE CEILING BEGAN TO LOWER AND VISIBILITY BEGAN TO DECLINE TO ABOUT 2 MI. AS THE WX AHEAD WAS RPTED 'CLR' AT ZZZ3; I MONITORED CROSS FREQUENCY AND ACTUALLY TALKED TO AN ACFT LNDG AT ZZZ3 THAT SAID IT WAS CLR; BUT THAT A THUNDERSTORM CELL WAS NW OF THE AREA! AS I WAS APPROX 19 NM NW; IT WAS EASY TO DETERMINE THAT THE LOWER VISIBILITIES COULD BE ATTRIBUTED TO THE PROXIMITY OF THE CELL; THUS THE NEED FOR EVASIVE ACTION. AS I BEGAN TO DEVIATE AND MAINTAIN VFR; I HAD PASSED OVER ZZZ4 (UNCONTROLLED) PREVIOUSLY AND CONSIDERING DOING A 180 DEG TURN FOR THAT ARPT. HOWEVER; WHILE ON AN EASTERLY HDG FOR WX AVOIDANCE; I SPOTTED ZZZ5 ARPT. I THEN REALIZED 'THEY' WOULD HAVE THEIR CTL ZONE EFFECTIVE DUE TO THE RAIN AND VISIBILITY AND A CLRNC WOULD BE REQUIRED. I GRABBED THE SECTIONAL CHART AND RETRIEVED THE TWR FREQUENCY TO CONTACT THEM. OF COURSE; THEY DIDN'T KNOW I WAS 'THERE' AND I APOLOGIZED AND SAID I WAS 'S' AND WANTED TO ENTER A L DOWNWIND AND L BASE FOR RWY 27; WHICH THEY APPROVED. I LANDED UNEVENTFULLY AND ENTERED THE FBO. SOMETIME LATER; A LADY FROM THE TWR STOPPED BY TO DISCUSS THE EVENT WITH ME; AND RIGHTFULLY SO! SHE WAS VERY NICE AND WANTED TO KNOW HOW I HAD GOTTEN MYSELF IN THAT PREDICAMENT; WHICH IS ESSENTIALLY EXPLAINED ABOVE! I SPENT THE NIGHT IN THE ZZZ5 AREA AND DEPARTED VFR ON AN IFR FLT PLAN THE FOLLOWING DAY FOR DEST; WHERE ONCE AGAIN; THE FORECAST WAS FOR VFR CONDITIONS UPON ARR IN THE AREA! IN SUMMARY; I ENTERED A CTL ZONE INADVERTENTLY AND CONTACTED THE TWR WITHIN SECONDS AFTER DISCOVERING THE ERROR. OF COURSE; I WAS VERY CLOSE TO THE ARPT WHEN CONTACT WAS ESTABLISHED. ALSO; WX CONDITIONS DETERIORATED MUCH FASTER THAN I ANTICIPATED ON MY RTE OF FLT; WHICH CONTRIBUTED TO THE EVENT. AS A 'PERSONAL POLICY;' I DON'T FLY IFR WITH EMBEDDED THUNDERSTORMS AS I HAVE NO WX DETECTION EQUIPMENT IN THE AIRPLANE OTHER THAN MY EYES AND 'RADIO STATIC!' I LIMIT MY IFR IN LIGHT ACFT WITHOUT WX DETECTION EQUIPMENT TO STRATUS CLOUDS ONLY. AS THUNDERSTORMS WERE FORECAST ALONG AND AHEAD OF THIS FRONT; I HAD NO INTENTIONS OF DEPARTING ZZZ2 ON AN IFR FLT PLAN; THUS THE DECISION TO DEPART VFR TO HEAD FOR CLR SKIES TO THE SE; WHICH DIDN'T 'WORK OUT' AS PLANNED.
Source: NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (public domain). Reports are voluntary submissions and are not verified by NASA.