DRAUMRS - Dreamweavers Among Us

1 - If You Can Dream It

Will Green considered the flickering warning light on the banged-up cockpit instrument panel in front of him. The engine failure alert didn't seem sure if it should be on or not. The old-style incandescent bulb under the small amber lens wasn't binary like today's electronic displays. It could sort of be on, while sort of being off. But now, it was definitely more on than off; Will knew that he had a little problem.

A visual check of other dials and gauges showed a slight variation in RPM and some uncertainty in the engine output. There was plenty of fuel in the tanks, but, for some reason, not enough was consistently getting to the cylinder injectors to satisfy the needs of the decades-old deHavilland Beaver float plane that he was flying today. He listened carefully to the rumble and whine of the engine and to the hum of the prop. She was a little off-key from her normal perfect pitch.

Next, he checked his position on the lined and weary plastic-coated map clipped to his flight book. He was a long way from an airport, but unlike wheeled aircraft, the Beaver had landing ability just about anywhere there was water. The step-wise process for getting down safely began to roll out in his head.

Will finally looked out the window. He calmly scanned the unbroken green carpet of trees far below. None of these observations gave him any immediate solutions to the failing engine, but each was part of his practiced routine for landing the big plane. The only obvious thing missing was some open water. I need to find a place to park her; probably better sooner than later.

He was flying back home from his last bush camp drop-off at a Northern Ontario lake an hour behind him. He was taking a direct route back to his base at the south end of Georgian Bay with almost no baggage and half a tank of fuel. The open water of the Bay was still a considerable way ahead. His chosen route should have made for a quick, safe flight. Of course, if he had known that he was going to have engine trouble, he could have taken a less direct route that kept him closer to a service center or at least closer to lakes that he knew. But lakes and flat rivers were so common east of Lake Superior, that this route itself should have been fairly foolproof. Now, seeing nothing but green, he briefly wondered if he had outsmarted himself by flying over the only totally dry spot in the whole province.

It was late in the day, but that was nothing more than inconvenient. The sun was still above the horizon and a bright blue sky would last for a long time after sunset. The day was waning, but he trusted that the clear horizon should still give him enough working time for a visual sighting and landing. From his map position, he calculated that he would need approximately 30 minutes flying time to get to the dock at the Burnt Lodge Lake camp, if he could keep his airspeed up.

He rolled over 35˚ to head straight there. While he still had mostly full power, he pulled the bush plane into as much of a climb as he thought she would tolerate. The extra altitude might prove useful down the road.

Will had in mind tying up to a dock with lights and maybe getting a helping hand to hold a flashlight or tool while he figured out her problem. With luck, he might be up again in a few hours. Or he might enjoy the camp's hospitality for the night. A hot coffee, at the least, would be nice.

Just as he was about to radio Sault St. Marie ATC with his necessary, but not emergency, change of plans, he felt the first full cough from the engine. A misfire at a full throttle on the rotary turbine sounds like a bomb going off, but he knew that the engine was quite capable of regaining its composure. For a few more seconds, he hoped that he had full power back. Then a second cough and a definite loss of power told him he wasn't going to make a normal landing at Burnt Lodge. Tipping the Beaver slightly back on wing to start a wide arc, he scanned for any suitable lake in sight. There hadn't been one visible minutes early, but he was an optimist. He had wheels if needed, but a landing strip out here was even less likely.