Eric, we see the same thing out here at the Colorado Front range.
Having the ability to go higher would be a great help with some of the
weak patches and discontinuities in our ranges. For a long (crosswind)
flight in our location those gaps can be significant. Even being able
to go up to 20-22K would be a big help, and you would not incur a big
TAS penalty.
Speaking of downwind wave dashes, Dr. Joachim Kuettner is sponsoring a
new prize for the first person to complete a 2000km downwind wave
flight. I believe details on this prize will be coming soon from the
SSA.
Nice to see these long flights being done without logging frequent
flyer miles on
Aerolineas Aregentina.
Bill Hoadley