General aviation pilot reported an inoperative airspeed indication after takeoff due to the failure ...

Attributes
ACN	1579894
Time
Date	201809
Local Time Of Day	0601-1200
Place
Locale Reference	RDU.Airport
State Reference	NC
Aircraft 1
Make Model Name	Small Aircraft
Operating Under FAR Part	Part 91
Flight Phase	Takeoff
Route In Use	Direct
Flight Plan	VFR
Component
Aircraft Component	Pitot-Static System
Person 1
Function	Pilot Flying
Qualification	Flight Crew Multiengine Flight Crew Commercial Flight Crew Instrument
Experience	Flight Crew Last 90 Days 130 Flight Crew Total 2475 Flight Crew Type 300
Events
Anomaly	Deviation - Procedural Published Material / Policy

Narrative:

I was flying my 12th airdrop relief mission post hurricane florence. Conditions on the ground were hectic and we were late in getting loaded. During my preflight; a [non aviation person] started asking questions. Non-pilot people should not be allowed unsupervised access to the ramp. After the interruption; I finished my preflight. I was preparing to remove my pitot cover when interrupted. I apparently skipped that step. After normal taxi and rotation which showed an indication of airspeed; my airspeed froze at about 20 to 25 knots below normal. I looked out of the window and saw the pitot cover about half on and folded over by the wind (soft cloth cover). I climbed out; requested return to the field; was given priority; and landed without incident. I informed tower of my omission; apologized for tying up airspace; and was re-assigned a departure slot. No flights were waved off to permit the landing. Despite the distractions; the mistake was completely my responsibility.

Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: General aviation pilot reported an inoperative airspeed indication after takeoff due to the failure to remove the pitot tube cover during pre-flight.

Narrative: I was flying my 12th airdrop relief mission post Hurricane Florence. Conditions on the ground were hectic and we were late in getting loaded. During my preflight; a [non aviation person] started asking questions. Non-pilot people should not be allowed unsupervised access to the ramp. After the interruption; I finished my preflight. I was preparing to remove my pitot cover when interrupted. I apparently skipped that step. After normal taxi and rotation which showed an indication of airspeed; my airspeed froze at about 20 to 25 knots below normal. I looked out of the window and saw the pitot cover about half on and folded over by the wind (soft cloth cover). I climbed out; requested return to the field; was given priority; and landed without incident. I informed Tower of my omission; apologized for tying up airspace; and was re-assigned a departure slot. No flights were waved off to permit the landing. Despite the distractions; the mistake was completely my responsibility.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.