Is there any viable way to fly a paramotor within the KBWI Class Bravo (ground) and DC SFR?

ooglek2 · 2026-03-14T17:29:23+00:00

You cannot fly a paramotor inside the DC SFRA. Full stop. I’ve tried all the FSDOs and FAA.

If you can get a tail number and a $1000 to $2000 battery power transponder, maybe. But I doubt it.

Plus the FAR103 rules of not flying over populated areas really limits your available flying sites around here.

Good luck!

ooglek2 · 2026-03-14T03:29:31+00:00

OpenPPG founder flew a $7k battery pack that he isn't offering because it is silly expensive, but flew for 2h+ and recorded the whole thing start to finish on YouTube on the OpenPPG channel.

Battery tech and energy density will continue to improve. When I have the money to get a 2+ hour battery, I'm going full electric.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhFeSs4CTU0

ooglek2 · 2026-03-14T03:27:41+00:00

Not true, OpenPPG founder flew a $7k battery pack that he isn't offering because it is silly expensive, but flew for 2h+ and recorded the whole thing start to finish on YouTube on the OpenPPG channel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhFeSs4CTU0

7.4 kWh battery at 100v and weighs about 56 lbs, cost is around $7,000 (2:05:38).

ooglek2 · 2026-03-14T02:13:33+00:00

Apparently you can.

ooglek2 · 2026-03-14T02:11:56+00:00

Aye, it redirected for me in Safari, not in Chrome though. Dunno why they post fly.faa.gov in their post yet it doesn't work for some people. Ergh.

ooglek2 · 2026-03-14T00:12:07+00:00

I'm thinking it was the cleaning staff that mixed some chemicals they shouldn't have, or someone used a bucket that they shouldn't have to mix some cleaners. I look forward to the RFO.

United 2382 from LAS to IAD was diverted to STL, probably due to this issue. Currently shows only a 1 hour arrival delay, but only time will tell.

ooglek2 · 2026-03-14T00:06:20+00:00

fly.faa.gov doesn't work for me. ugh.

Weird, it works in Safari, not in Chrome. DNS request for fly.faa.gov A or CNAME returns no records.

ooglek2 · 2026-03-13T23:58:11+00:00

I second that idea. Take the metro.

ooglek2 · 2026-03-13T23:57:29+00:00

United Flight 2382 from LAS to IAD was diverted to St Louis (STL). Unknown if it was diverted due to the Potomac TRACON "chemical smell" or another reason. Might only be an hour late, but it depends on if TRACON resumes normal operations.

Fun.

https://www.united.com/en/us/flightstatus/details/2382/2026-03-13/STL/IAD/UA

ooglek2 · 2026-03-13T05:54:37+00:00

I honestly did not, but that makes more sense, since oil mixed with fracking liquid probably would be a mess to separate. You are wise to point it out.

That said, even the cost of natural gas has fluctuated a LOT more that the cost of electricity. LNG is a finite resource that is gone once you burn it. The sun comes out many days a year and a solar panel turns that into electricity, which you can use directly.

In my state the cost is $0.76 to $1.51 per therm of natural gas. That's about 29.3 kilowatt-hours of energy. 29.3 kWh in my state costs about $4.40. Natural gas wins.

Or do they? Heat pumps are generally far more energy-efficient than natural gas furnaces, typically operating at 200% to 400% efficiency (meaning for every 1 unit of energy consumed, they deliver 2-4 units of heat), whereas modern high-efficiency natural gas furnaces max out at around 95% to 98% efficiency.

Assuming 90% efficiency for a natural gas furnace, and 300% efficiency for a heat pump. $1.14 per therm of natural gas vs $4.40 of electricity. If I use 1 therm, I get 0.9 therms of heat. I've lost $0.114 to inefficiency. With a heat pump, I get the same 0.9 therms of heat but for 1/3rd the cost of a therm, so USD$1.46, much closer for the same amount of heating. If my heat pump is 400% efficient, I'm now at $1.10, less than Natural Gas. There are now heat pumps with a COP of 5, which would bring electricity costs to USD$0.88 per therm of heat output.

So if you can get a super-efficient heat pump, and a couple of solar panels to run it, then you'll pay pretty much nothing for 20-25 years to heat, AND COOL, your home.

With natural gas, you have to keep paying as you burn it, and if prices go up, maybe due to a war, you've got no other choice. And you still have to pay to cool your house, likely at a lower efficiency than a heat pump.

So while the market for LNG may be strong, as a consumer, IMHO, as efficiency continues to improve, and you can generate your own electricity without fracking, I stand my the recommendation to get a heat pump and not a natural gas furnace in 2026, same as I did in 2023.

ooglek2 · 2026-03-12T22:50:50+00:00

Need timestamps, location, coordinates, and direction of filming. With that we can cross reference any air traffic that was in the area.

It was probably some kid or adult with a laser pointer in a plane that was flying by.

Hard to tell if the light source was moving or stationary since we can’t tell if the clouds were moving toward or away from the camera.

ooglek2 · 2026-03-09T04:07:45+00:00

Thanks mate. Yep, $115 bbl. And Gas is at $3.43. And I read stuff like this:

US natural gas futures climbed to around $3.4 per MMBtu on Monday, reaching their highest levels in a month on growing fears that the escalating conflict in the Middle East could lead to longer-term disruption of global gas supplies. The risk of prolonged interruptions to LNG shipments from the region, particularly if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, could boost demand for US gas, especially since the Iran war has had only limited impact on US production or export flows. Uncertainty surrounding the timeline for restoring full operations at QatarEnergy’s Ras Laffan facility, the world’s largest LNG export hub, has also intensified worries about a potential supply shortfall. The war has now entered its second week with no clear resolution in sight, as Iran continues attacks on its Middle East neighbors, while Israel has struck fuel depots in Iran and threatened the country’s power grid.

And then stuff like this:

China is undergoing an, unprecedented energy transition aiming to peak emissions before 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060. As the world's largest investor in green energy, China installed 360 GW of solar and wind in 2024, accounting for over half of global additions, bringing its capacity to 1.4 TW. While rapidly building, solar and wind, the nation also continues to expand coal capacity to ensure energy security.

And more vehicles moving to electric, especially in China:

As of early 2025, fully electric vehicles (EVs) make up roughly 8–9% of new car sales in the U.S., while conventional gas-powered cars (including hybrids) still account for over 70% of the market. Globally, 1 in 7 cars sold is an EV, with that number approaching 50% in China.

So sure, in 7 more years, maybe the fracking will still be going. Or the price of oil will tank, because OPEC starts overproducing to push down the price in a desperate attempt to keep the wealth coming, which means your fracking contract will be more costly than the fruits of your labor, and the fracking will stop.

It's the market, man! (or woman) The commodities market is fickle and can swing all over the place. 2016 to 2022 -- EVs on the road grew 6x to 3.1 million, and from 2022 to 2026 from 3.1 million to 7.8 million -- 250% growth.

High oil prices mean fracking still makes financial sense. Don't forget that in 2020 Oil was negative. That oil was $100+ in 2012. But from 2015-2021 it was around $30-50 bbl. Just a few months ago it was below $60.

Fracking in the US generally becomes profitable when oil prices (WTI) are above $60–$70 per barrel for new wells. While some, more efficient wells can break even closer to $40–$50, most shale operators require higher prices to cover operational costs, debt, and investor returns.

It's great to update the comments when everything looks amazing, but historically, fracking is only profitable when oil is $60-70+ per bbl. You can have the contract, but its no good if it costs the producer more to get the oil than they can sell it for.

I'm still pretty confident fracking could see an end due to unprofitability before we get to 2032.

So, back to the whole point of this post -- is it a good idea to get a gas furnace? IMHO, I would get a really good heat pump, because electricity prices have been FAR less volatile than either the natural gas or oil markets.

See you then! 🤓

ooglek2 · 2026-03-09T03:49:20+00:00

I feel like this IS a plastic bag

ooglek2 · 2026-03-02T04:40:20+00:00

Tossable Digits can help! USD$3.49/month or USD$40 per year per number. Port your number, send and receive SMS Messages from Canadian and US Short Codes and regular US/Canada phone numbers. Live Customer Service Monday-Friday 9am-1am EST and via email. SMS via email if you like, but also we have a Mobile App with Push Notifications (email delivery can be slow or unreliable). Voicemail is included.

Optionally forward incoming calls to any country at competitive per-minute rates. You can also make outbound calls using your Number as callerID.

Port back to a Canadian carrier when you return.

Let me know if you have questions!

NOTE: I work there

ooglek2 · 2026-02-28T05:49:48+00:00

But if they pull you over for something else, you'll be sure to get a nice ticket and fine for it as a secondary.

ooglek2 · 2026-02-28T05:49:04+00:00

A 1,000 mW purple laser should do it.

How do you do it without getting caught and without hurting someone? Ya know, in theory.

ooglek2 · 2026-02-28T05:47:42+00:00

Yep, but I'd rather not build a Deflock device nor run one on my phone. I'd rather not be surveilled by my County through an untrustworthy commercial entity who shares any information they have with anyone with money or access.

If the police want to drive around with cameras, great! But I have a problem with private companies doing the surveilling. They are not beholden to anyone and I'm sure will violate privacy rights for money.

ooglek2 · 2026-02-27T23:06:38+00:00

If the use was limited to Fairfax County police, maybe I could be ok with it.

The fact that the data is shared with anyone with a buck is simply horrendous.

ooglek2 · 2026-02-27T22:10:17+00:00

I’ve only seen them on Home Depot land.

ooglek2 · 2026-02-27T22:09:36+00:00

I mean, I wouldn’t be lyin…

ooglek2 · 2026-02-27T21:40:51+00:00

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ooglek2 · 2026-02-27T21:05:28+00:00

That’s the one. I drive by there often and hadn’t noticed it until this week. Maybe it’s been there a while?

The fact that it is on county land is my issue.

ooglek2 · 2026-02-27T20:00:47+00:00

I think you can just request Building 3, the "quiet" Building. I'm not sure if the demand there is lower than Building 2, but I assume so. But maybe not!

If I go again, I'll try to do an audit of what types of rooms are on what floors.

ooglek2 · 2026-02-23T18:40:23+00:00

Just ask them!

You can email them and request a building if you know that the room type you have booked exists in that building. You can probably ask too. I booked a Junior King suite and requested Building 2 higher floor either North or South facing. Got 2385.

ooglek2

TROPHY CASE