Mother Nature Calls Again At Williams Gateway

This time, ATP was spared and my school was the victim. Last night the southeast part of the Phoenix metro area, where KIWA is located, got hammered by a severe Monsoon storm. Three aircraft from my school were destroyed. Two Cadets and one Seneca. The wind was so strong that it snapped the wing tie-downs on one Cadet and pancaked it upside down on the Seneca parked next to it. The other Cadet was solo and all of its tie-downs broke and it was pushed into the hangar/dispatch building.

Things to be grateful for:

1. Nobody was hurt
2. The IFR Cadet that was the crap-weasel of the fleet is no more. It really was an unbelievable POS to fly. I especially hated the permanently reclined, low-rider left seat. And to think, it just got a new DG! What a shame...not!
3. The other Cadet was no jewel, either

Things to be bummed about:

1. One of the Senecas is history
2. Scheduling will suck until a replacement is arranged
3. I start CME in a few weeks. CRAP

Since my school uses Senecas instead of the Seminoles that most flight schools use for multi-engine training, maintenance has always been an issue. Senecas aren't hearty like Seminoles and really aren't up to 1000+ landing cycles per year. With three in the fleet, that usually meant that at least one, maybe two were on-line. Now with only two, it's going to be every man for himself when it comes to scheduling. To make matters worse, Senecas temp out at 100F. So until October, it's either 5am to 12pm or night flights.

Hopefully, they're adequately insured and a replacement won't take long. My instructor shot some photos with his phone. I'll try to pass them along if I get them.