Jiri Pittner's Flying Page - USA

Although my light sport pilot license is not valid in the USA, I could still fly a general aviation aircraft with a local instructor, since many flight schools offer "intro" or "discovery" flights to the laymen public. I had a very positive experience, most flight schools responded quickly to the email or web form enquiry and I was able to organize several flights at different locations during holidays in Alaska and in Florida. I was actually surprized that they booked a plane and instructor for a complete stranger from a foreign country without asking for a credit card in advance :-).

Alaska 2024

Flights from Palmer, AK

I did two flights in a C172 with the flight school Blue River Aviation from the (PAAQ), sightseeing a part of the Chugach Mountains. The first flight was to the Knik river valley and glacier, the second one to the Matanuska river valey, glacier, and a side canyon.

Flying in Alaska is fun

Palmer airport

Glacier in a side canyon

Crown Peak

Around Lake George

Lake George

Knik river valley

Knik river

Knik glacier

Braided river

Knik glacier

Super Cubs landing off-airport at the Knik rived

Glacier structure

Glacier melting

Blue ice

Bridge over Matanuska River in Palmer

Final runway 16 at PAAQ

A side stream

Another small glacier

Bad weather in Nelchina River valley

Braids in the sun

Broadly braided Matanuska

Canyon )side

Canyon side

Caribou creek

Clouds in the mountains

Clouds over Matanuska valley

Colored Mountains and Glenn) Highway

Colored mountains

Colored mountains in Matanuska valley

Colored peak

Downstream the valley broadens

Entering a side canyon

Exiting the canyon

Flying close to winward side

Flying down the valley

Glacier and lakes

Glacier creek and Matanuska river

Glenn highway Lake Leila

Going out the weather improves

Hole in clouds

IMatanuska low level

Ice and clowds

Ice and dirt

Ice structure

Ice strure

Interior of Chugach mountains gets higher

Knob hill

Lakes and swamps

Lakes around the Slide mountain

Lakes under the Knob Hill

Lions Head

Lions Head top

Lions head and Matanuska glacier

Local low clouds

Lower mountains

Lower mountains nearing Palmer

Lower valley is forrested

Matanuska River

Matanuska blue ice

Matanuska glacier

Matanuska glacier Lions Head

Matanuska glacier melting

Matanuska glacier structure

Matanuska low

Matanuska low flight

Matanuska low leverl

Matanuska melting

Matanuska melting high view

Matanuska river Braids

Matanuska river braided

Matanuska river erosion

Matanuska river valley Glenn Highway

Matanuska side creek

Matanuska valley

Matanuska valley side

Matanuska velley

Moose cow with a calf

Mountain flying

Mountains and blue skies

Mountains and clouds

Nelchina river

River valley

Sheep mountain

Streams lakes swamps

Terrain gets too high turning back

ThirtyMile Lake at Glenn Highway

Tiny glaciers

Tundra with lakes and swamps

Vast valleys

Approaching Palmer

Flying Alaska is fun

Flight from Talkeetna, AK

At the Denali flightseeing from Talkeetna airport (PATK) with Talkeetna Air Taxi in a De Havilland Otter I participated only as a passenger, but I was able to get the copilot seat and the views were spectacular, we had good luck with the weather. Actually, in Talkeetna there are no flight schools, and Cessna 172 would not be able climb high enough to see the Denali summit anyway.

DeHaviland Otter on skis

Takeoff from Talkeetna

IEndless forrests and Denali

Foraker

Talkeetna river

ISusitna river

Denali

Chulitna river

IAK highway

Otter cockpit

Tokositna and Chulitna rivers

Denali and Ruth glacier

Approaching Denali

Mount Grosvenor in+front

Mount Foraker

Denali Tokositna and Ruth glaciers

Lower mountains and glacier

Mountain eroding

Little glacier lakes

Ruth glacier turning

Lower peaks

Denali and clouds

Denali and Tokositna glacier

Denali and clouds

Tokositna glacier and peaks

Tokositna glacier

Tokositna glacier structure

Other sixthousand meters peaks

Denali and Tokositna

Mount Foraker

Lake at Tokositna glacier

Two glaciers merge

climbing towards Denali

Mount Foraker

Kahiltna peaks

Denali getting closer

Denali and glacier flow

in climbing turns

upper glaciers are white

climbing towards summit

still not there yet

Kahitna glacier

cirrus clouds and mountains

upper Kahitna glacier

more climbing turns

blue ice on mountain

steep peaks

icy peaks

Mount Foraker

Denali blue ice

Denali blue ice detail

Denali summit

Denali ridge

Denali summit

mountains and cirrus

Denali summit

Denali ridge

Denali glacier

Denali blue ice

Denali summit

Denali ridge

Denali slope

Denali glacier

Denali cuirrus

descending from Denali

Wind at Denali summit

Denali pass

Denali North peak

Denali range

Denali summit

Denali range

Denali glaciers

Denali range

Denali glaciers

Mountains and cirrostratus

glaciers merging

Denali range

long glacier flow

glaciers merging

Denali range

Denali glacier lower

approaching a gorge

flying through a gorge

uphill along glacier

Don Sheldon's amphitheatre

planes on glacier

Don Sheldon amphitheatre

On the final for glacier landing - strong upslope, no go-around option due to rising terrain

The pilot was experienced in this environment and landed us sade ...

hydraulic skis in action

several companies land there

glacier runway uphill no goaround option

another plane just landed

inside amphitheatre

Don Sheldon mountain Chalet

inside amphitheatre

two planes landed

talkeetna air taxi

tailwheel ski

inside amphitheatre

glacier takeoff

leaving amphitheatre

glacier ice structure

downstrem the glacier

Denali erosion

sharp canyon walls

Down the Ruth glacier

Ruth glacier ice

leaving Ruth glacier

Ruth glacier ice

towds lower terrain

melted holes in glacier

lake in glacier

lakes in glacier

Tokositna river and lake

many lakes

Lake Denali

towards civilization

Islands in Susitna river

Talkeetna railway bridge

left base runway one Talkeetna

Florida 2023

Flight at Saint Petersburg FL

I did fly a C172 of the flight school St. Pete Air from the Albert Whitted Airport (KSPG)

Departing from KSPG with view of the Saint Pete Pier

Saint Pete downtown and the Albert Whitted Airport

Saint Pete waterways and coast

Saint Pete beach

Pier at Fort De Soto

Little islands and shallow lagoons

Must be nice to live here and anchor your boat next to the house

Isla del Sol with a fountain in the lake

Somebody having fun on jet skis

We had to land asap. due to approaching heavy rain

Flight at Melbourne FL

I did fly a C172 of the flight school Melbourne Flight Training from the Melbourne International Airport (KMLB) Unfortunately the ATC controller was too busy to clear us into the Cape Canaveral airspace to make a low approach over the space shuttle runway, so I got only views of the space force base from about 3000 feet and some distance