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Mountain Air, North Carolina

By Max Grogan

Columnist

 

 

I recently had a fantastic opportunity to land at the highest airport east of the Rocky Mountains.  It sits atop a mountain ridge near Burnsville, NC, close to the western edge of the state.

 

I have traveled the 1,200 mile long Appalachian Mountain chain from end to end.  I’ve driven its crest line roads and its valley floors, following the curves of the ridges and rivers.  The beauty of our eastern mountains never fails to take my breath away.  I feel at home in the mountains.  I’ve never climbed a mountain I wanted to leave.

 

I’ve also been lucky to fly the length of this series of interconnected peaks, ridges and hills in my airplane.  I’ve landed at many places along the way, usually in a flat valley.  This flight allowed me to actually land on a high mountain ridge.

 

Mountain Air is the name of an upscale country club and land development which opened for sales about fifteen years ago.  The airport was put in at the beginning.  The developer felt he could attract an untapped market by building an airport for the exclusive use of members and their guests.  The airport is 2,900 feet long and has a rise in elevation of 85 feet south to north.  The official elevation is 4,432 feet.  The runway ends are marked 14 and 32.  Just past each departure end is a steep cliff.  The drop-off at the departure end of runway 14 is over 2,000 feet!

 

My visit was arranged by a friend I made on the internet.  I am a regular reader and occasional contributor to a news group we call the Beech List.  My new friend, Buzz, lives in Lakeland, FL, and keeps his pristine Bonanza A36, N1EV, at the nearby Bartow, FL, airport.  Once, on the list, he mentioned he would be spending some time at his new condominium at Mountain Air.  After a couple of private e-mails he invited me over for a round of golf.

 

That special Tuesday morning dawned crystalline with a promise of clear skies and light winds for this pretty October day.  After a quick cup of coffee and a light breakfast I was on the way to my Beechcraft Bonanza V35B I keep in a hangar at the Knoxville Downtown Island Airport.  The thermometer in my truck was displaying 52 degrees as I pulled out of my driveway.  The sweater I was wearing was comfortable and cozy.

 

I was to arrive at 9:30, and the flight distance was 85 nautical miles, or about 25 minutes flight time.  I decided to leave at 8:45 so as not to be late.  I had my instructions: Fly over mid-field at 5,500 feet for a right downwind to runway 32, call my position on frequency 122.75.

 

The flight over and into the mountains was thrilling as always, but, with a special treat awaiting, and a landing to this unusual airport upcoming, my heart was thumping in my chest.  Using the AOPA flight planner, I found a route to the airport (which is not in my GPS database because it is a private airport).  The planner showed a nearby airspace intersection called RHILE.  I flew from KDKX direct towards the RHILE intersection.  When about five miles away I dialed 075 degrees on my Garmin OBS indicator.   I then pressed “OBS” on the Garmin GNS430 to position a radial of 075 and 255 over the fix.  I flew 11 miles along this artificial radial at a heading of 075 degrees to the airport.

 

The airport is hard to see as it is surrounded by trees on one side and a higher ridge on the other.  As the GPS showed 11 miles from RHILE I was looking down for the airport.  First I saw sand bunkers on the golf course.  Then the runway flashed below.  I turned right and set up a downwind leg at a heading of 140 degrees.  Looking out below my right wing I did not see the airport again until I was past it a bit.  By this time the gear was coming down as I prepared to turn onto the base leg of the landing approach.  The approach end of the runway appeared from behind trees as I was midway through the base leg.  I thought how different this was from most landings.  There was no ground reference below for judging distance.

 

I turned onto the final leg of the landing approach and adjusted power.  I was hoping my normal landing procedure would put me onto the runway just past the numbers.  I remained a bit high and waited for any sign of up or down drafts as I neared the cliff face at the end of the runway.  Finding none I pulled off all remaining power and entered a slight slip to lose excess altitude.  Then I felt the wheels touch.  Chirp, chirp, and I was rolling up the incline to the parking area.  I hardly needed brakes as the slope was just right for slowing the plane, allowing me to coast onto the parking ramp.

 

I had done it.  My pulse had been racing on the final approach and I started to calm down as I positioned the plane on the ramp over the tie down ropes.  I parked next to Buzz’s Bonanza and tied the plane and removed my golf clubs.

 

A call to Buzz’s cell phone got his promise of a quick pick up, and soon he arrived.  He opened the gate to the ramp, drove to my plane, and we loaded the clubs.  We drove to his condo put our bags on his golf cart and headed for the golf course.  The golf course was in beautiful condition.  It was hard to concentrate on the golf as the mountain vistas spread out in every direction on each hole.  We had a great time.  The weather was splendid.  I enjoyed the golf even though Buzz beat me handily.  He is a good golfer.  We had lunch on the veranda outside the grill amidst the scenery of the mountains.

 

Buzz was a gracious host and didn’t rub it in too badly when he beat me.  We took a moment to visit and enjoyed the views from the deck of his condo.  We discussed our day: The weather was great.  Golf was a lot of fun.  The scenery was fantastic, and I had a beautiful flight over in my airplane.  A day to remember! 

 

The departure was down the hill on runway 14.  On lift-off the world just dropped away as I flew over the cliff-edge.  I made a hard left turn and flew back over the airport for a direct flight over the mountain range.  It was a bit of a surprise as I realized I was already at my cruising altitude of 5,500 feet.  Soon I could see the Tennessee Valley and familiar landmarks marking my route back home

It was a great day.  Hopefully I shall return soon.  Mountain Air is the kind of place you never want to leave.