KFAM 171915Z AUTO 18012G17KT 120V180 10SM CLR 09/M06 A3008
I haven't been able to go flying for three weeks, as flyable weather and my availability to fly haven't exactly meshed. So even though I don't much care for flying in windy conditions, I went flying. Have to get the oil in the engine hot periodically, you know.
But yeah, not fun. Strong winds across the surface hit things, like slopes and hills, and then some of that wind energy goes up. If you ever get a chance to fly over a large body of water when the winds are up a bit, you may be amazed at how smooth the air is. Buy go over land a bit and blammo!
Strongest surface winds I ever dealt with was on a return flight from Sun & Fun 20+ years ago. Our ground speed, as reported by NY Approach, was 67kts. When we descended below 8,000', we got the crap kicked out of us. My passenger had to hod the controls and stand on the brakes until I got the airplane tied down.
