Is this a reckless trip for a brand new private pilot?

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Flying_Dentist77@reddit

Aside from all of your questions, this trip is only a good idea if you are ok not going. If you can look at the weather objectively and not go in conditions you are not comfortable in, and can make a last minute decision this might be a good idea. If you cannot do that, and are going to push to go when you shouldn't don't even think about it.

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ammo359@reddit

Buy refundable airline tickets.

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Mountain-Report4772@reddit (OP)

It’s definitely a must go trip, but it’s also a 5 hour drive. If weather doesn’t look perfect I have no problem saying we’ll just drive. Im not sure what i’d do if weather is bad otw back though as the house is shared between multiple families and we only have it for the week.

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TSFearNowRedRep89@reddit

As still a new pilot I would only go if I could be completely comfortable canceling at any point due to weather or other factors and rent a car and finish the trip. That includes leaving the plane somewhere and coming back for it. A lot of factors and passengers add a lot of factors in the planning.

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video_bits@reddit

You need to have an answer to this. Flying cross country means you might spend an unexpected night at a hotel maybe even at a town you never planned to stop at (looking at you Lebanon, TN). And I know at age 18 you might not have a credit card and funds to easily do that. But, here’s where the PIC job meets reality. Flying the plane is easy. Telling your friends and family they are going to have to call out of work tomorrow is the hard part. You are responsible for their safety. So, you need to make sure your friends know going by small plane might mean unexpected delays.

All that said, this is an awesome idea for a cross country trip, and it’s why you learned to be a pilot, right? Be safe and prepared to make alternate arrangements. Get flight following and they will hand you off to Atlanta and the transition through there should be relatively easy ( I say this last part with my Bravo experience being Kansas City. Atlanta is busier so probably wise to discuss with local instructors what to expect).
Good luck and enjoy the beach.

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angryshark@reddit

ATL is very cool to look at when you’re flying over in a small plane. The transition is easy, so don’t worry about that. But all in all, this is the reason to get your IFR rating.

Fly safe.

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southern-springs@reddit

Have your friend buy a one-way refundable airline ticket home so there is no pressure for you to get him home from the trip.

I get that you can drive there if there is a problem, but once you need to get back it will be harder.

Also discuss with flight school ahead of time that you will be conservative re weather and returning.

Also be prepared to decide to leave a day early. (Again why your friend needs his own way home.)

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KaiserTNT@reddit

You'll need to be prepared to get a last minute hotel to wait out any weather on the way back. Your friends could do a 1-way car rental if they need to. GA flying trips are fun but it's definitely not a reliable way to get around on a strict itinerary.

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__joel_t@reddit

To add on to this, some hotels and car rental agencies won't rent to an 18-year-old, or they might be sold out the night(s) you need to stay there, so you really need a plan that doesn't involve you pushing the weather to get back.

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flight_char_@reddit

Yep. Isn’t it hilarious he can rent an airplane but not a car?

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AgonizingGasPains@reddit

More pilots (and passengers) have died of "get-there-itis" than any other air-born disease.

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ertemplin@reddit

Some of the best advice I got when I had a freshly minted instrument rating was to only go when you have zero doubt about being able to do the flight (or flight with a diversion somewhere) safely.

Always have several alternatives when planning the flight if weather, the airplane, or passengers have problems in flight. And always have at least one at all times while in flight.

This flight sounds like a great opportunity to build some experience that will help a ton down the road. And it’s good to see them considering most of the potential hazards in the post.

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jliptty@reddit

Either avoid it or grab an instructor to brief it. Easiest is staying out of it.
You have an efb. Don’t forget to switch tanks.
Give the storms 20nm, use your eyeballs, land with enough time to tie down if need be.

Send it, within reason.

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JhPPharmaGuy@reddit

Ditto what others have said. I'll add 5 things. 1) iPad & ForeFlight are a MUST for both situational awareness, air space, and airports. 2) start with the mindset of, "I am NOT going to fly today unless all flight factors CONVINCE me otherwise. This flips the script on the mental attitude that often creeps up on pilots who try to convince themselves, "well that (insert Wx, airplane, IMSAFE, PAVE, etc.) isn't too bad!" 3) You ARE a pilot, no matter the checkride. You ARE PIC and responsible for all souls aboard you aircraft. It appears to me from what you've written that you are conscientious, and cautious. Lean heavily on those. 4) Maybe leave a couple days early so you have baked in the solution to every pilots enemy - "Getthereitis"!! 5) GO! Have a great time. This is exactly why we fly. Have a great, safe adventure Captain!!

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MeatServo1@reddit

Make the trip now as a dry run and apply that experience to your decision. Also, flying with friends makes your job significantly more difficult because there will be lots of external pressures. Regardless, identify your minimums for ceiling, visibility, fuel, wind, gust factor, weight, CG, DA, etc., and do not deviate. If something’s out, scrub the flight or leave someone/all of them behind, etc. Remember, you’re not a medevac and no one’s life is saved or lost by you going or not going. This flight doesn’t need to happen, but if everything works out, it safely can.

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PatriaFlyer@reddit

And tell this to your friends to set expectations. Explain to them there are many reasons you may cancel this flight.

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shockwave53@reddit

Agreed. Fly the route, or another similarly challenging one, in advance. Try and take along someone with more experience that can give you tips and back you up, but go into it with the mentality that you’re gonna handle things and not expect them to carry your weight. Also make sure you get some time in the Cherokee first and fully digest the POH/supplements. In the middle of a saturating trip is not the time to figure out nuances or abnormal procedures.

I applaud you for wanting to expand your horizons and get out of the practice area. Just make sure you set your minimums/no-go limits in advance. Sounds you may be more critical of yourself than others. This is good, but don’t let it get to a point you overly second guess yourself and continue to learn and grow.

Have a great trip, there or anywhere else. Congrats on the PPL!

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Salt-Cold1056@reddit

I am going to second this. Do a big XC by yourself first or this exact trip.

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AgonizingGasPains@reddit

This. Also, spend time in the flight planning office at your FBO and go over contingencies for different emergencies along the way at different points. Also be very clear with your passengers on risks, behavior during the flight, emergency procedures, etc. As pilot in command, remember you are responsible for them and everyone's safety.

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n312rb@reddit

Even medevac that is true, fixed wing medevac is just a fancy uber.

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Stevie-B-@reddit

This tool is useful for helping you plan your risk before a flight.

You can add in factors like the weather, familiarity of airfield, aircraft, times of the flight etc… and it helps that decision making process!

https://apps.apple.com/app/prifly/id6762050891

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headies1@reddit

Personally I think it sounds like a bad idea and I wouldn’t go. Too many potential holes in that Swiss cheese. You’re brand new PiC and young with friends who are going to pressure you. Hard pass. Maybe in a few years, for sure.

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eSUP80@reddit

Agreed. I wouldn’t do it in a 6 pack, as a PPL, who has trained almost exclusively in a G1000. Add in substantial external pressures and unfamiliar airspace… it’s asking for trouble.

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MaybeBowtie@reddit

As a student who’s only flying round dial, I wouldn’t even want to do this type of trip without some sort of autopilot to help out.

Sure, people have done it in the past. But I mean aviation has become more popular and safety has become more prevalent lol.

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Spacechase1@reddit

In addition to everything I said in my comment, I second this assessment; too many holes to potentially line up in the swiss cheese right now

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MaybeBowtie@reddit

No, get used to the Cherokee. I flew discovery flights with the Cherokee before going onto a 172. They’re very different aircraft and feel different. My instructors always said you can legally fly any aircraft (with limitations) with a PPL, but that doesn’t mean you should.

Fly in the Cherokee as dry runs just to get used to the aircraft.

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Rough_Engineering743@reddit

Sounds like a blast do it!

Leave early in the morning to avoid convective activity famous in florida in the afternoons, get flight following. And pack on a bit of gas in case you cant make your field cause of thunderstorms, make an extra fuel stop if you have to buy you another 1 hr of fuel. Check the radar along the route of flight and TAF at destination , and you're good to go!

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Legitimate_Repair922@reddit

So. I’m not a commercial pilot, but I do hold a commercial license, plus multi, plus plus. Ten years of experience as a “recreational pilot”.

This is a hard no.

You have basically no experience flying with non pilots. They can screw up your flight in ways that you can’t imagine (yet). They will distract you. It will be at a critical moment.

You’ve had your PPL for a week. I didn’t risk killing my two kids (my second non pilots PAX) until I’d flown by myself for a year.

You’ve never flown a Piper, and it’s not a G1000. Maybe get 10 hours on it by yourself first.

It’s a long trip. You have to do it on schedule.

I never fly anywhere in a GA plane with a schedule; that’s what airlines are for.

I’m all for you doing this once you’ve had experience, but based on a week old PPL and the details other posters have shared, you would not be exercising the care and duty of the PIC if you took a passenger that is going to unwittingly trust you with their life on this trip.

Good luck, have fun, don’t die. And for gods sake don’t kill your passenger.

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Carre_Munuts@reddit

Go to KJKA. You can circumnavigate the class b or just get flight following if you contact them early enough. G5 vs a G1000 give you the same information just on bigger or smaller screens. You’ll be fine

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RepublicActive5439@reddit

Based on your experience, I would recommend “Don’t do it!” There will be plenty of opportunities to use your PPL after you get more experience. The weather will be a factor going into that part of the country. I have flown there many times and am very familiar with the weather and the airspace.

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Feckmumblerap@reddit

Hard no for me, it’s just not worth it. Id wait until you got at least your instrument rating before embarking on any big XCs like this. Weather is unpredictable and you don’t know the plane and avionics. Also don’t underestimate the effect having pax will have on your mental state. Its kinda freaky at first and the responsibility you carry is so much greater.

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AlbiMappaMundi@reddit

It's good of you to be asking questions, and thinking conservatively. I'm not local to the area so I can't comment on specifics, but this would be a good thing to talk through with a local CFI -- review the airspace, look at weather patterns, talk through routing and alternates.

You noted you trained in a C172 -- have you flown PA28s before? Not that they're terribly different or difficult at all, but you should have some minimal transition training going into a new type (and presumably the FBO will require that of you). Personally I think G1000s are quite overrated, and don't give you much more information or capability than a plane with dual G5s, a Garmin 530/630/730, and an iPad (ideally with an ADSB-in source) would give you.

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Mountain-Report4772@reddit (OP)

Thanks for your comment. I totally will have some training in the PA28 prior, my concern is that it’s easy to go burn holes in the sky in any single engine on a nice day but i’m not sure how i’d react if shit hit the fan in a plane I have minimal experience in.

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MotivatedsellerCT@reddit

Assume the FBO will require you to have some PA28 time, use that opportunity to do a dry run down and back. Looks like maybe 2 hours each way so that would probably be enough to get comfortable with the plane and also the route. Maybe stop somewhere along the route to simulate a diversion in case weather turns south. I know you work at an FBO but it’s good to see how things work from a pilot perspective (not often taught in flight school)

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Odd_Entertainment471@reddit

Then go get some experience in it! Do a thorough pre-flight before your passengers arrive. Do your flight plan on a paper chart and do all the math yourself, and then with your EFB and see if they match. You can plan your way through complex airspace and if nothing else just go under it if it isn’t down to the surface or over it if it is (and you can) or finally just go around it all. USE FLIGHT FOLLOWiNG. Be safe Buddy!

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stubborn_fence_post@reddit

How would you go otherwise? Have plans to run that alternate ready to go, or even pre-purchased refund-ably that you can cancel if things work out. It will help mitigate that gotta-go pressure if you don’t like the way the flight looks.

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Secret-Support-2727@reddit

This will be an amazing experience! Just give yourself extra time, don’t try to fly down the day before. Also take up the 6 pack a few times before flying this, it’s very different.

Plus you may want to go around Atl rather than trying to fly right through it as a newly minted private pilot getting flight following.

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perispomene@reddit

Don't worry! The line on the G5 is also magenta.

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PiperCherokee383@reddit

Like I’ve seen said, a big trip immediately after your license is difficult. Do a longer flight in the plane you’ll be renting and get more real world experience. I took my wife and child on a trip from Northern TN to Tampa and it was honestly a little much. 100% agree do a ‘dry run’ solo before doing it with friends/ family on board.

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Lazy-Statistician818@reddit

If you're planning Gulf Shores, the following route takes you from VOR to VOR on Victor airways and out of MOAs/alert areas:

KPDK 7GA7 PIZZO LGC MGM MVC BFM KJKA

Depending on your airport you may be able to get flight following while still on the ground using clearance delivery. You could fly under the ATL bravo then climb to 5500' or 7500' after, both of which keep you clear of B/C/D airspace. It's wise to call the airport FBO for parking info. Lastly, do this route in a simulator if you have one. Good luck!

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Professional_Read413@reddit

I wouldn't worry about MOAs I fly in them almost every flight.

Get flight following right after take off eith ATL and then MOAs are a non issue. You definitely want to be talking to approach controllers around PNS anyway

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Lazy-Statistician818@reddit

While you can legally fly in a MOA, the ones around Florida are pretty busy and going around only adds a few miles to the trip. Just because you can doesn't mean you should.

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Professional_Read413@reddit

I fly in them all the time, I wouldn't do it without flight following though. If you are talking to ATC it's a non issue

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Hemmschwelle@reddit

400+ hours here. Due to bad experiences in the past, I try to avoid flying on every three day weekend. Many rusty pilots try to cope with many rusty pilots. So even if you're not rusty, you're flying in that context.

The absurd things that I've experienced on three day weekends are hard-to-believe, so I won't bother recounting.

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Mega-Eclipse@reddit

something about this just seems off to me. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

No one is going to say "No" outright, but the honest answer is that this is a really, really, bad idea.

I am 100% not saying, "It's impossible!!! You're going to fail!!!" You'd probably be fine....Just that, you're stacking a lot of bad ideas together.

You're flying a long distance 250-300 nm "strait line." With any sort of headwind or deviations around airspaces or weather and you're easily looking at 3+ hours of flight time in a small plane. We're not even not counting taxiing, pre-flight, post flight, getting to from the airports, etc. Do you have enough fuel for that with passengers?

Have you ever been in a small plane that long? Have your friends? Have you ever been in constant turbulence for 2.5 hours? Have your friends? We haven't even touched on the new plane, new airspaces, new avionics. All things you can easily learn over time...but you're putting them together in once trip.

Me? All of the first flights with friends/family were shorter, local flights to see how they handle it. If they were cool with it, we can extend the flight. If not, we were never more than 10-15 minutes from an airport that I had landed at numerous times before.

I'll be honest....This trip seems like a cool idea...for next year. Once you have another 75-100 hours, you know YOU can handle it. And once you know they can handle it too. Once you've got the hours in the plane, with the avionics, with experience dealing with ATC and airspaces.

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Spacechase1@reddit

If you take a look across all the comments, this comment honestly seems like the best representation of a consensus. Something to grow into/prepare for, but maybe not right now/this year

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Antique_Set_9864@reddit

Just doit

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Fearless-Sign-9733@reddit

Don’t go. New airplane and loaded w friends with weather potential is too much.

Stick with the 172. You can handle that with friends. And go in the morning to avoid the weather. Airspace and class B is no problem, it’s actually better because someone will be watching you.

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redwoodbus@reddit

A couple months after earning my PPL I went Oregon to Socal and back with my mother. A great adventure and confidence booster!

But it was in the airplane I learned to fly in.

Be careful, avoid the getthereitis kind of trap. Be ready to turn 90, 180, or whatever.... And wean yourself off of the magenta stuff, its more fun without it I promise!

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oldbrap@reddit

I'd do it with a CFI or more experienced (instrument rated and current) pilot in the right seat, as a practice XC. Prove out the flight plan and your assumptions for how the day will go.

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Av8torryan@reddit

Do it - but give your self plenty of time- and outs. Don’t be afraid to divert and call it a day. That might actually make for a great trip and great learning experience of where you’re comfortable.

Also be aware that FL this time of year into summer has a lot of pop up showers and clouds, so be aware that things can build fast. Do t try and push it.

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travis2886@reddit

Was flying when I was your age. Your friends are a large risk They do not know what is involved or how there normal behavior might not be a good thing

If you decide to go try to be wheels up with the sunrise

Give s you much more flexibility Don’t let delinquent buddies delay that Much smoother that time of day

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FeatherMeLightly@reddit

PDK to PNS (as we call it penis), ez flight. Even in a 172, if the ex is good you should not have any surprises with such a short en route.

Just know PNS can get busy and has some push times, fly in early or late prolly avoid a lot of drama. The part I hate about all of that area of FL are all the SUA's, plan carefully, review your destination airport carefully, use Google maps are similar to review the air port and get oriented before you set foot in the airplane.

Have fun, and don't get rattled by any unexpected routing, just comply and carry plenty of fuel.

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phonekeyswallet12@reddit

How comfortable are you navigating around thunderstorms? That’s going to be a big factor for that region/time of year

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Creepy_Type@reddit

Aside from your other smart conservative attitudes (good job thinking that way!) Go fly that G5/six pack combo with your CFI for a couple hours. It’s an easy transition really, but don’t do it alone.

Overall - don’t do it for the first time with your friend and all those pressures. It’s a longish haul with complex airspace. This is one flight you may want to ‘grow into’ so to speak. That being said, if you do all of the proper planning, you’ve had some practice in the plane and some complicated airspace, and the weather is great - maybe go for it? Just don’t push yourself too far yet. It could get messy.

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just-hangin-around1@reddit

Sounds like your on the fence. When I was instructing I always told my students if you're asking several different people if its a good idea then its probably not and the answer should be no.

What speaks to me: New plane and new avionics... Def get training with a CFI and spend some time getting comfortable with it all before going. As someone else said - friends will create lots of external pressures. Be prepared to put your foot down and be comfortable with not going. ATL is a busy airspace. Might be tough to get permission through the bravo. Be prepared to go around be prepared for contingencies and fuel planning if you have to go around. I fly an airbus in there every week arrivals come in high and departures go out low. Im not saying you cant go through it just be prepared if approach says no and be aware you'll be around some heavy metal in the area and need to be alert. Dry run is a good idea and if you have anything important going on on the back end of the trip be prepared to bail the trip early or get home late incase un-forecast weather appears.

Would be really cool trip and I'm sure a great time! Just plan a lot and be mentally prepared to say no and don't stack the risks. Good luck! Certainly would be cool to utilize the privledges and fly friends.

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Perfect_Insurance_26@reddit

Go do this with a CFI, get comfortable going that far, and then you can count it towards a commercial license if that's what you want.

This is probably a good flight for you to take on after you get your experience in the warrior. Push yourself just a little bit out of your comfort zone and next time you do a trip you'll do it better. Just remember to switch tanks in that thing.

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Working_Football1586@reddit

It’s not a far flight but the airspace around PNS and JKA can be a bit wild so be careful . There are tons of very very low time navy pilots ripping around in T6’s that 1. Are new pilots and 2. Never look out the window for other traffic. The real concern would be the weather, if you have hard timelines to leave etc you could get screwed waiting awhile for a storm to clear.

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HaikuKnives@reddit

Pick up flight following as soon as able. It's helpful to make sure that ATC is aware of you and that you're not ending up in someone's flight path even if you never enter the Bravo.
Practice legs of this route with just your Pilotage, so you can get used to keeping time and breaking your magenta line habits. I personally recommend having frequent and visible waypoints (highway exits work well for this).
Be diligent about your wx planning, aviationweather.gov is tailor made for us, and has plenty of products to know what's coming.

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Well-Pitter-Patter@reddit

I would recommend JKA over PNS. JKA is pretty laid back, and the traffic is manageable. As others have said, do a dry run, stick to your minimums and personal restrictions, IMSAFE, and take your time.

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Fair-Ganache-8589@reddit

My first trip after getting my PPL was taking my family over the Grand Canyon. I did my training in Long Island, NY, so that was quite the experience.

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ben_makes_stuff@reddit

Talk about going from 0 to 100 haha! I'm actually getting ready to start lessons in Long Island out of KFRG - going to be a "fun" experience dealing with that insane pattern traffic, but I think it'll make me competent at radio calls and interacting with ATC fast which should come in handy for many future situations

Is that what you found training out of there as well?

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JPAV8R@reddit

Take the longer drive to ISP and get done twice as fast. You’ll spend a lot of money number 8 for takeoff while you’ll still get a good ATC experience but into the air in a fraction of the time.

My wife was spinning her wheels getting her PPL at FRG until she finally took my advice and moved to ISP where she finished it quickly.

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ben_makes_stuff@reddit

I hear you.

The only reason I’m still going to give KFRG a go is because I found a really good instructor there at a school with significantly lower rental rates than others (plus other benefits not found at other schools like a DPE on staff and in-house maintenance), and I have a flexible schedule so as to avoid the worst of the KFRG madness.

I figure I’ll give it a shot for a week, and if it seems absolutely unbearable despite the really good instructor and rental cost savings + DPE scheduling time savings from having one inhouse, I’ll quickly pivot to KISP or another airport in Jersey like KCDW.

Leaning towards staying in Long Island though - the views are simply better, and I noticed more potential emergency landing spots on my discovery flight vs. the one I took out of KCDW.

Anyway, regardless of which airport I’m going to choose, I moved to Manhattan recently to be centrally located to both the LIRR and bus access to Jersey for exactly this reason - didn’t want to box myself into one airport when I’m not positive KFRG will work over the long term 😅

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ljthefa@reddit

Did all my training out of KISP, and concur.

Frg is a mess. I rented from there a few times and it was always painful.

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mirassou3416@reddit

I did my Pvt out of HWV when it was 1N1 and did my checkride our of ISP but I lived out east

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greaseorbounce@reddit

Good on you for asking these questions, and having a good attitude about ADM and personal minimums.

I do not think the trip itself is reckless, BUT I think you have some prep to do. A bit of transition training in a PA28 with less instrumentation should boost your confidence there.

I also would ask a CFI, "Hey next time you have a student cancel due to wx that is still safe to fly in but not ideal, can we go do some dual?"

The only way to get comfortable flying in WX is to do it. I'm not saying take a piston single into a thunderstorm, but light rain and reduced (still VFR) vis is a good experience to get with a CFI before you end up in it alone the first time.

But here is the MOST important thing. If you decide to do that trip, you HAVE to be willing to be a couple days early/late leaving and returning, and base that decision on weather brief. Flying private is not like booking an airline ticket two months in advance where you know you're going to take off at 7am. You start checking weather a couple days in advance. Be willing to go a day early or delay a day. Be willing to change route the day of.

"Get-there-itis" is real, and you must fight it. Having friends standing around saying "I don't know what you're talking about with this weather thing, it isn't raining here" can be pressure that you even subconsciously succumb to.

Even after over a decade of owning and flying these silly airplane things there are trips where the day before I was supposed to leave on a flight I go "Well shit, looks like we're driving."

Cliche as all heck, but I assure you that you'd rather be on the ground in a car wishing you were flying than the opposite.

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saxmore@reddit

I have flown from PDK to PNS before. DM me if you have questions

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DDX1837@reddit

I learned to fly at PDK in the 90's and now live in the FL panhandle.

The ATL class B is a non-issue. You can fly north a bit and then just go around the class B.

The aircraft is a concern. "I did all my training in a g1000 172" So you have no time in a Cherokee? Sure, it's a SEP aircraft, but there are some differences in systems (required switching of fuel tanks, for example) and they do land a little different. I know the first time I landed a warrior, I floated down the runway for what seemed like forever. And the avionics is also a factor. A six-pack is a world of difference from a glass panel. I would want to spend some time flying around in that before carrying a passenger or making a trip.

This time of year, weather is definitely a factor in the SE. If you fly in the morning, you have a better chance of not getting surprised by a thunderstorm. The pop-ups are usually small and move/dissipate fast. But there are also large systems that can move in and keep you on the ground for a couple days. Going down, that's not a problem since you can just drive. But you could find yourself stuck down here for a few days so be prepared for that.

All that said, for me, I didn't take anyone on a cross country until I got my IR. But it was with my wife and son and I was older and much, much more risk averse. And the trip was from the Chicago area to the FL panhandle.

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Electrical_Review_81@reddit

My biggest concern would be having your buddies with you, unless they are into flying as well- 18 yo males do really dumb shjt- your training will keep your head on straight but your friends?

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Professional_Read413@reddit

Yeah for sure I didn't catch that part on the first read through. I'd def not have taken that trip with my friends in the plane when all of us were 18 lol

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gmcrtv@reddit

I’ve instructed out of both JKA and PNS , going to Perdido Key i’d recommend flying into JKA. It’s a busy non radar delta with great controllers which shouldn’t be an issue coming from PDK. Pensacola can be a bit of a nightmare getting into and out.

Everyone wigs out about the density of military traffic , MOAs & the SATR around Eglin. Don’t overthink it and get a second opinion on the weather before you depart.

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ltcterry@reddit

ATL ATC is really good about letting people who sound confident/competent on the radio fly North-South over the airport at 4,500 feet. As part of your checkout in the PA28 you should fly to Hampton and back.

There is a great way point right over the Atlanta airport - THRSR - that you can use. It will show some familiarity with the area. Training out of PDK you know how to talk on the radio. (THRSR is "thrasher")

But, if you want to avoid the Bravo, it's really only a tiny detour to fly east or west of the lowest parts. Use flight following and be attentive to where you are. But no need to fly a perfectly straight line.

Others have given you great advice on planning, dealing with money, weather, pax expectations, and so on. Heed that advice. Please.

Years ago when my 33-year old son was just a few months old we flew from northern/central Georgia to southern Florida to visit one of my thankfully-now-long-ex's high school classmates. We spent the night in a hotel on the way down because of weather. Then came home a day early for the same reason. Pretty expensive for a trip shortened by two days!

Gotta make good decisions flying. Even more so when other people are counting on your professionalism and expertise. Right now your "luck bag" is a lot bigger than your "experience bag." Don't abuse it!

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Professional_Read413@reddit

Not at all if you plan it right. My first trip was PNS to KRCZ and I was very nervous but it was fine. I did this in a real 6 pack plane no G5 and no autopilot. I did have a GPS . You'll be fine. Definitely leave as early as possible and plan a stop halfway in case the standard gulf pop up afternoon thunderstorm starts building before you can make it in. That's really your biggest risk probably. Don't out have a way to check adsb weather enroute?

After a checkout in the cherokee you will be fine. The biggest thing is the manual flaps (better IMO) you'll probably find it easier to land.

The airspace in the panhandle looks intimidating, but there really isn't much too it if you are on flight following. You just contact PNS approach and go where they tell you. Going into JKA (probably where I'd go if going to perdido key.) They'll just route you through the Navy airpsace and then you'll be handed over to jack Edward's tower, easy peezy.

Hell, you could easily miss all the class C airspace and not talk to anyone until you get to JKA, but I wouldn't recommend it. Our area is incredibly busy with TONS of VFR training, navy pilot training, and commercial traffic.

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JonboatJohn@reddit

Fly early in the day in Florida before the storms build

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q-milk@reddit

Go for it. But make sure you and your passengers plan for days of delay due to weather, and possibly a much more expensive trip. You can not feel pressured by your buddies to make it back in time for work or exams.

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Philly514@reddit

The pressure of telling your buddies that you’ll go and having to cancel but not actually cancelling because of weather has killed a lot of pilots with way more experience than you. Have you practiced getting stuck in a cloud? In Rain? Near storms? Having to divert to another airport? Engine failure in a cloud? If the answer is not “yeah, 10 times each” then you are in danger straight up.

Watch the “Pilot Debrief” Youtube channel and see how many people crashed in your exact scenario, it’s not fear mongering it’s reality.

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mpup55@reddit

A lot of talk here about all the things you need to concern yourself with for this flight. Personally I think you're overthinking it. Yes, you should preflight and prepare what you can, but you have to expect that you'll never be completely prepared for every contingency on every flight. That is why you just need to fly. My first solo cross country after getting my PPL was KLOU to 82J via KLGC. Did not plan it all out. Just went to the airport, saw good weather to the south, and took off. After getting fuel n KLGC, saw wx looked ok into Pensacola, so just went. Picked up flight following to get through all the zones. I didn't even pack an overnight bag, just went to the airport to fly and ended up in another state visiting the Naval Air Museum. Never forget that flying is an adventure, not just a mode of transport like your car. You need to develop your adaption skills for adventure, and the only way to do that is...FLY!

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flyingron@reddit

Atlanta is super easy to go around but not too bad to try to get a clearance through.

Yeah there are a lot of MOAs in northern Florida.

The answer to both is simple: USE FLIGHT FOLLOWING. They'll help with both.

Foreflight (or Avare or Garmin Pilot or whatever) will be an easy adjucnt to the old VOR-based nav instruments.

Florida gets earlier weather on the coasts and popup thunderstorms in the afternoon. Other than hurricaine season, these are pretty easy to navigate about. Check the weather often and be flexible about your times and routing.

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Hot_Weather_2691@reddit

The airspace around PNS and JKA is full of helicopter and T-6 Texan flight trainers working their training areas and talking on UHF frequencies. DEFINITELY USE FLIGHT FOLLOWING.

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retiredaaer@reddit

Ok. Get and use a supply of paper current Sectional charts. Plot your route on the paper chart.

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retiredaaer@reddit

Call ATC. Request VFR Flight Following. They will help you.

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swedishlightning@reddit

People have covered the XC planning pretty well, so I’d just make sure you take the time to work through the weight and balance carefully, and impress upon your friends the importance of accuracy with weights. A hot summer day flying a low-power Cherokee is no time to be overweight or out of CG, especially if the runways are on the shorter side.

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olek2012@reddit

I wouldn’t say reckless but I’d say you’re not as well prepared as you could be. The good thing is that between now and July 4th you have about 2 months. That’s plenty of time to get up with a CFI, get comfortable with the new plane, and practice some scenarios together.

You get experience by doing new things. A CFI has probably done those things before so they can help you be as prepared as possible to make the right decisions and have a safe and fun holiday.

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jckwlzn@reddit

Debrief with your instructor and maybe fly the route with him first if you have the money

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snoutpower@reddit

Sounds like you've got at least three slices of Swiss cheese. I'm at 175 hrs and still probably wouldn't do it yet. Good luck.

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pattern_altitude@reddit

You can also go under/over/around airspace...

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BandicootOnly4598@reddit

The scariness of Bravo airspace is often worse in anticipation than reality. They’ll probably give you a heading and altitude; don’t deviate from those. If they don’t want you in the airspace they won’t clear you into it. If you’re already on flight following half the time you don’t even have to ask permission, they’ll just ask if you want it or clear you based on where you’re going. It’s the little non-contract delta towers you really gotta watch out for…

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poisonandtheremedy@reddit

One thing I ask myself when I'm wrestling with a decision is: How is the Accident Report Video / NTSB Report going to sound?

"There were four in the plane with the accident pilot was 18 years old having just received his Private a less than a month prior, and having little to no time in the accident aircraft. They were travelling to a destination the pilot was unfamiliar with, 250 miles away at the time of the accident."

You get the gist.

I'm a pretty confident guy, but whenever I find myself hemming and hawing, doing that sort of exercise about the flight / decision helps me go 'hrmmmm' 🤨

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CaptMcMooney@reddit

shrug, i'd do it, pdk->pensacola isnt very far.

be deliberate and thorough with your planning and weather, not much else to it.

oh, get flight following before leaving the ground if you can, really helps with the whole class b thing

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acidreducer@reddit

I’m not sure I can help too much on this one, but if you decide to go, maybe you can use this bit of wisdom that was passed along to me.

“If you ask yourself ‘should I be doing this?’ three separate times, you probably shouldn’t be doing this.”

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DragonofLightning@reddit

Love the Cherokee and did my training in FL, though not Pensacola. I have flown up there a few times though. You are asking the right questions, which is good.

Like others in this thread have already said, get familiar with the Cherokee BEFORE you take PAX up. Also read up on Part 93 airspace in the Pensacola area. You should miss it but always good to know in case of diversion or something. If you are grabbing a CFI to help you transition to the Piper Cherokee, I'd highly recommend buying him/her lunch or something and going over your plan.

But your plan is very doable and definitely plan to fly in the morning before Florida gets too humid and hot! The last time I was in KPNS I know their FBO was reasonably GA friendly too.

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Spacechase1@reddit

This is definitely a long, potentially complex trip;
Having done all my training through my commercial certificate in florida, I can provide some insight as to the weather situation:

Afternoon thunderstorms in the summer can appear quite quickly and are almost guaranteed to appear in early-mid afternoon like clockwork in the middle of the summer. Weather can change quickly and I echo the other commenter who said you would need to be prepared to divert(have multiple options along the route) and also to wait out any inclement weather.
(ask me how I know haha- I am based out of KSUA and one time had to land at KPHK on the way back from 2IS because a single thunderstorm was sitting right over my home base -- the only thunderstorm on the east coast that day haha, and another wall of thunderstorms was moving from west to east so I had a window of about 30 minutes where i could depart KPHK and get to KSUA safely before the second wave of thunderstorms crossed lake Okechobee to be within 20 miles of KPHK)

From your description of this trip as a "must do" trip, you already know you have the external pressure of 'get-there-itis' to be very careful of and other pressures like meeting people there or having to leave at the end of the rental house/hotel.

The trip you are considering would take you through some complicated airspace, so my personal reccomendation would absolutely be to both plan and do a dry run of this trip with a CFI/CFII, particularly because you are a newly minted PPL. At trip of this magnitude can definitely be a case of 'you don't know what you don't know'.

I agree with others here saying the trip is doable from a technical perspective, but from the perspective of managing your own risk and comfort, you definitely should not do this kind of trip for the first time with non-pilot passengers. Definitely also get training and be very comfortable with the aircraft you would fly for this mission (echoing the reccomendations of others to get training in the pipers and be VERY proficient with the avionics you will be using). You wouldn't want to be caught fumbling with the technology you are relying on to keep you and your passengers safe.

This is good that you are looking to build experience, and this can be a good, memorable trip, but you definitley need to rehearse all aspects of it so you don't do something for the first time completely alone. I absolutlely beleive you are a safe and competent pilot just because of the thought you have put into this so far, so just keep that up and don't do anything rash/prematurely just because you feel like "you should be able to do this" or , this is you exercising good ADM.

if you have any follow up questions, I (and other commenters) would be happy to answer them

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Key_Math8192@reddit

Be sure to get a few short flights with friends in first. I’ve always been very comfortable flying alone, but when I first started to invite friends along I found myself rushing and distracted on preflights and missing checklist items.

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Worried-Cartoonist12@reddit

You’re looking at a +250NM trip. Weather and general judgement are your highest risk profiles at the moment. Weather in Florida can be unpredictable and moves extremely fast. Be prepared to vector around weather or wait out a storm worst case scenario. I’d also definitely get a few hours in the piper before taking non pilot passengers. You said in a previous comment that it’s a must go trip. If you do factor in get-there-itis into every decision you make. Also factor in time of day, possible diversions ect.

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Floating_Ground@reddit

If it helps, I did my solo long cross country 1993, from PNS to BHM to MOB back to PNS. VFR in a C152 in pre GPS days with a paper sectional and a clock.

Is completely doable vfr. Exercise good ADM, get weather and have a back up plan. PAVE and IMSAFE are your friends here.

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rFlyingTower@reddit

This is a copy of the original post body for posterity:

Hi everyone, i’m 18 y/o and earned my PPL a week ago today. Every year I go down to Perdido Key, FL for the 4th with a couple of buddies. This year me and one other friend are going down a day earlier and I figured what a great way to put my new cert to use. The flight will be from PDK to either PNS (Pensacola) or JKA (Gulf Shores). While i’m super stoked at just the thought of being able to fly down there I definitely have some risk concerns and am just looking to get another opinion as I still very much suffer from imposter syndrome (I thought I failed my check ride until the dpe told me it was the best ride he’s given in his entire career). My biggest concerns are as follows:

Airspace - This would involve transitioning through the ATL class B plus the whole panhandle is a mess of airspace
New plane - I did all my training in a g1000 172, unfortunately my school has a very strict 1 night overnight policy. Fortunately the FBO i’m working at this summer owns 2 old G5/ 6 Pack Cherokees. While i’ll be flying these in college and I need to grow out of being a child of the magenta line I still am worried about the lack of situational awareness.
Weather - All of my training was done between now and this past fall (in the morning before school) so, I really have no real world wx experience and know that a pop up thunderstorm in the southeast in the summer is very likely.

I was praised in the debrief of my check ride for my confidence and PIC mentality but idk, something about this just seems off to me. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

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