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>You've never lived until, at FL 190 in a Seneca II somewhere way northwest
>of Phoenix and around the MOA, you see a prop arc outlined in purple and the
>hair on your neck stands straight out so you need to reach back and hold it
>down.

The purple arc that you are referring to is called "Saint Elmo's
Fire(corona discharge)". It is a more or less continuous, luminous
electrical discharge of weak or moderate intensity in the atmosphere,
emanating from elevated objects at the Earth's surface (lightning
conductors, wind vanes, masts of ships) or from aircraft in flight
(wing tips, propellers, etc.).

I don't think that St. Elmo's Fire is dangerous. I have been in it
while in a snow storm over NYC in a Piper 180. The radios all stopped
working. Sparks shot off the ends of our fingers directly to the
front windows. The propeller glowed. When the snow was gone, so was
the fire.

When do you start needing static wicks? My C340A has them. My LNC2
320 doesn't. I have flown the LNC2 now for 2.5 years and over 200
hours. I fly on instruments and in clouds. I have not yet had a
problem. Other small planes, even though certified for instruments,
don't have static wicks. Other big planes do.

Lorn H. Olsen, President
US MidTel, Corp., MichTel, Inc.
Pontiac, MI  48342
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Please send your photos and drawings to marvkaye@olsusa.com.
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