AA5 PLT DESCRIBED P49 TFR INCURSION RESULTING FROM WX FACTORS AND UNFAMILIARITY WITH AREA AND RECENT FSS PROCEDURAL CHANGES.

Narrative

I WAS ON THE 4TH LEG OF A CROSS COUNTRY FLT DELIVERING A CUSTOMER'S ACFT WHICH WE HAD JUST COMPLETED OUR PART OF A PROJECT. PRIOR TO DEPARTING TX; I ATTEMPTED TO CONTACT THE REGIONAL FSS FOR WX BRIEFING. A LARGE AREA OF TSTMS HAD BEEN PERSISTENTLY LINGERING FROM S OF HOUSTON TO THE OKLAHOMA BORDER OVER THE DFW AREA. THERE WAS NO PLACE OPEN WITH A PHONE AND MY CELL PHONE WOULD ONLY DIAL UP THE SEATTLE FSS. NOT UNDERSTANDING THIS NEW PRIVATIZED FSS SYS I DID NOT THINK SEATTLE COULD GIVE ME THE INFO I NEEDED FOR CENTRAL TX. I HAD LOOKED AT THE RADAR IMAGES ON THE MOTEL'S COMPUTER AND WATCHED THE WX CHANNEL EARLIER AND IT LOOKED LIKE THERE WAS A FAIRLY OPEN AREA BTWN STORM AREAS S OF DFW AND N OF WACO. IT SEEMED DEPARTING EARLIER WAS BETTER THAN LATER AND I THOUGHT I COULD GET MORE INFO ON FLT WATCH AS I PROGRESSED. I SET A COURSE OF 095 DEGS; WITH MEXIA (LXY) AS A WAYPOINT ON THE PORTABLE GPS AND WORKED THE VOR'S AS BACKUP. THE FIRST HALF HR I STAYED BELOW THE BROKEN LAYER AT 1600-2000 FT THEN WAS ABLE TO FIND A LARGE ENOUGH CLRING TO CLB ON TOP AT 3500 FT. I DECIDED TO CLB HIGHER TO SEE TOPS OF BUILD-UPS AND SKIRT AROUND THEM AS NEEDED. IN ANOTHER HR I HAD CLBED TO LEVEL AT 11500 FT MSL AND IT LOOKED AS IF I WAS GOING TO BE ABLE TO CIRCUMNAV THE BUILD-UPS AHEAD BUT IN ANOTHER HALF HR OR SO THE TOPS HAD JOINED AND PASSAGE WAS NOT POSSIBLE. I TURNED BACK AND BEGAN DSNDING TOWARD THE NEAREST CLEARING IN THE UNDERCAST I COULD SEE. MAKING A RAPID SPIRALING DSCNT I CAME THROUGH TO LEVEL OFF AT ABOUT 700 FT AGL AND BEGAN LOOKING FOR AN ARPT TO SET DOWN AND WAIT THE STORM OUT. NOT WISHING TO 'SCUD RUN' IN UNFAMILIAR AREA I SAW THE NEAREST ARPT THE GPS OFFERED; WHICH WAS PVT; WITH ANOTHER TO THE E ABOUT 11 MI THAT WAS PUBLIC. THIS WAS CLIFTON-EISENHOWER (7F7). I WAS AWARE OF THE AREA MARKED P-49 AND WAS SURE TO REMAIN WELL CLR OF IT. I STAYED N OF THE HWY; WHERE THE TERRAIN WAS LOWER; AND ANNOUNCED TO AREA TFC I WAS ENTERING A XWIND TO L DOWNWIND LNDG TO THE E. I FOLLOWED THROUGH WITH THE PATTERN AND LANDED; TAXIED TO THE FUEL AREA; AND SHUT DOWN. MY PRIMARY CONCERN WAS TO GET THE ACFT ON THE GND SAFELY AND WAIT OUT THE WX CONDITIONS WITH THE PROBABILITY OF BEING OVERNIGHT. I HAD NO IDEA P-49 HAD BEEN EXPANDED; OR EVEN WHAT THIS AREA WAS; WHEN A LCL PLT DROVE UP AND INQUIRED MY STATUS. HE SAID HE THOUGHT THERE WAS AN AIRSPACE RESTR AND THE ARPT MIGHT BE EFFECTIVELY CLOSED. I SAW A HELI E OF THE FIELD AND WATCHED AS IT CIRCLED THE ARPT AND CAME TO A HOVER OVER THE CTR OF THE RWY; THEN DEPARTED. SOON POLICE ARRIVED AND THE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS BEGAN WITH A SECRET SVC AGENT SOON ARRIVING. I HAD CHKED NOTAMS AT LEAST 3 TIMES DURING COMPLETE WX BRIEFINGS ALONG THE LEGS OF THIS TRIP WITH THE EVENTUAL DEST STATED. I HAD BEEN BRIEFED THE DAY BEFORE ON THE POSSIBLE RTES THAT MIGHT BE TAKEN TO GET THROUGH THE AREA OF STORMS AND THE POTENTIAL COURSE I WAS FLYING OF FROM 090-120 DEGS OVER THE WACO AREA AND NOTHING WAS MENTIONED ABOUT P-49. APPARENTLY THE NEW FSS SYS HAD CHANGED THINGS DRASTICALLY. THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I HAVE MADE A LONG TRIP SINCE IT WAS IMPLEMENTED (AND I'M NOT SURE WHEN IT WAS) AND I TRIED TO USE IT LIKE THE OLD SYS. I FEAR THE MORE WE ARE FORCED INTO COMPUTER CTLED ENVIRONMENTS; AND THE HUMAN FACTOR DISAPPEARS; WE WILL FIND OURSELVES IN MANY SITUATIONS WHERE EFFICIENCY AND SAFETY ARE LOST TO THE EFFORT TO ELIMINATE HUMANS FROM MANY POS STRICTLY FOR ECONOMIC REASONS.