A Brief Review of 2016

With 2016 coming to a close, it's time to reflect on the flying year just passed.

I've totalled just under 30 hours in the Piper Arrow since January, including two flights with instructors where I practiced forced landings and instrument approaches. These trips included an ILS/DME and an SRA to Hawarden's runway 04. The instrument approaches help, as there will only be a requirement for me to complete one on my renewal flight test for the IRR(A) next year.

Emerging from the hanger, G-HALC Piper Arrow

 

Sadly, I have not flown any multi engine aeroplanes this year and so my MEP rating has now lapsed. I did not renew as there are no aeroplanes in my area to hire without considerable cost and inconvenience. It was just not worth renewing.

In October I completed the micro light differences training and I'm now checked out to fly a Team Eurostar EV97. At a maximum 450kgs it's quite different to the Arrow, but good fun flying.

Eurostar EV 97 at Barton

At Kirkbride for one of their lovely lunches

I visited Aero Expo at Sywell in the summer and the Flyer Live event in Telford during December. Both were well worth a look.

I'm going to see if I can regain my class 2 medical in 2017 and see where I get with that. But for now I plan next year to be business as usual in the Arrow.

A Return to Flying

I have done very little flying since my heart attack in November 2014. However, following extensive rehabilitation I have now regained a medical certificate and can fly "in command" again.

During my down time I have continued to fly with other qualified pilots and instructors to ensure I remain in reasonably current practice. At the moment I cannot obtain the class of medical certificate needed to fly P1 in multi engine aeroplanes, nor carry out flights under IFR. But I have not let this stop me doing exactly that as I've flown with a suitably qualified pilot in the right hand seat and been able to log the time as dual or not formally at all.

This is a summary of what's been happening during my enforced lay off and a description of my return to logging that "in command" time once again.

My first post heart attack flight was on March 27th 2015, after some four months of recovery. I flew with my instructor but the gods appeared to be against me as the Arrow's undercarriage would not retract after take off and the flight lasted only fifteen minutes. Not a good return to flying, but at least it was a return of sorts.

My next opportunity came in early April 2015 and this time I flew an hour, including some instrument time, on a LOC/DME approach and some circuits. This flight went well and I was pleased with my performance. Two further flights were made in April including my IRR flight test to renew the instrument flying rating that I could no longer use for the time being. There was nothing to stop me taking and passing the test, but, without the appropriate medical, its priveleges could not be used. Still, it was important for me to retain the rating, which I did.

I also hold a multi engine rating (MEP) that needs to be renewed every year by a flight test. To prepare for this I flew three legs left seat in a DA42 Twinstar with a flying buddy with me left seat doing all the work, and him sitting beside me doing nothing. We flew from Gamston to Llanbedr, then on to Welshpool for some circuits, before returning to Gamston. This gave me three hours of useful flight time although it could not be logged. I hoped it would be enough to enable me to pass the MEP flight test a week later. It was, and by the end of August I had renewed my multi rating and, in September, flew the DA42 to Waterford in Ireland for a day out with a fellow pilot and passenger.

To bring us up to date, in January I obtained a new medical certificate to enable single engine flying and following another session with two instructors over last weekend, flew my first P1 time of just over an hour.

I am hoping to try for a higher grade medical certificate early in 2017, but for now this is where I'm at with my flying.

Positive thinking and more flying in 2016 is the prescription and we will see how it pans out!

Latest Update

I am still unable to fly as pilot-in-command due to my medical certificate being suspended following a procedure to insert two stents in my heart. Currently I'm gathering information to present to my aviation medical examiner to, hopefully, get the certificate re-instated, but it all moves so slowly!

On the flying side things have progressed well. I regained my currency in the Piper Arrow and went on to complete some re-training in order to take the flight test to regain my IRR(A) which enables me to fly IFR in the U.K. That test was passed at the end of April and I'm due to take training next week with a view to renewing my multi engine rating in the Diamond DA42 Twinstar.

It is possible that my medical certificate will not be renewed and I will not be able to fly as I have been used to for the last thirty years or so. So is all this effort and expense to regain my currency and ratings worth while?

I hope so, but only time will tell.

Training and test on the DA42

Lack of Recent Flying

I have been inactive on the blog for a long period. This has mainly been due to a lack of flying after I suffered a heart attack in November 2014. I have been recovering since then and only recently took to the air with my instructor. That flight was very short due the plane's wheels failing to retract after take off.

However, it was good to return to flying even briefly. I am now going to concentrate on regaining my currency, renewing my IRR(A) for instrument flying and possibly my multi rating which expires at the end of May.

I do not know if my medical certificate will be returned to me until further tests and consultation with my aviation medical examiner. I will update this when my position is clear.

So for now, flying with an instructor and all time is PUT (pilot under training).

Flying Update

A quick update on recent flying activity after a rather long period with no posts.

After returning from Jersey in the SR22, I got checked out on a brand new DA40NG at Gamston in mid November 2013, and a week later flew it down to Northampton with a friend. This aircraft had only 15 hours on the clock so it was lovely to fly something brand new. It did not disappoint, performing very nicely on both legs of the flight.




Brand new DA40NG at Gamston -November 2013

Early January 2014 I travelled over to Leeds airport to fly a Diesel powered Warrior. Not having flown out of Leeds before made the proposition of this flight more attractive, although I have quite a few hours experience with Diesel engines now. With a local instructor, I did some stalls and steep turns around Weatherby and Harrogate before returning for a landing on runway 14.

Having not flown for a couple of months, in mid March I took some instruction in our Piper Arrow and flew a couple of forced landing practices over the sea North of Fleetwood, getting really low over a sandbank, before flying away. I also did a stall recovery to refresh my skills for the summer ahead.

After much deliberation, I chose to renew my multi engine rating in May and did this over a couple of flights in one day in the Piper Seneca I have been flying for a few years now. June saw me fly our Arrow for three hours, which brings us up to date.

I've nothing firm planned yet for the next flight but I'll update the blog when I do.

Turbo Cirrus SR22 to Jersey and Alderney

I had been waiting a long time to fly a Cirrus SR22 and the fact that this is a turbocharged version just added to the anticipation.

Along with a friend, we set off to drive to North Weald airfield, near London, to check into a nearby hotel and prepare for the following day's flight. We have both flown the lower powered SR20 aircraft but this 310HP Cirrus is in a higher league. We were with an instructor and were flying IFR on all three planned legs: North Weald to Jersey, then to Alderney for lunch, and back to North Weald to complete the day. Three legs means one of us gets to fly only once, whilst the other pilot gets two flights in the left seat. I flew us down to Jersey, Kim would fly us back from Alderney and the third leg would be decided later.

There were three firsts on this trip for me: one, flying the SR22, two going IFR on the airways and three landing at Jersey. The documentation was filed and shortly after 10am we were departing from runway 21 at North Weald. We were VFR until contact was established with ATC who cleared us to climb to 4000ft into class A airspace, recleared shortly after to continue climb to FL70. We were given vectors which took us north of our planned track. Our flight plan was EGSX-BNN-NORRY-Q41-ORTAC-EGJJ. We were eventually vectored over Halton and Benson before being given a direct to SAM VOR. At Benson were were cleared up to our cruising level of FL90.

The most notable element of the departure was just how busy the radio was with talk. It was almost non stop and getting a call in required a swift press of the transmit button. The workload in the cruise was much lower and we could relax a little, although constant monitoring and adjustment of the fuel flows occupied our time. I was flying the aircraft and hand flew up into controlled airspace but then used the autopilot to free some brain power.

Crossing the south coast I was vectored before being cleared direct to ORTAC and told the arrival procedure would be Jersey 1Alpha. I had studied all the charts the night before so was familiar with the routing. With about 20 miles to run, Jersey atc gave me vectors and descent and I established on the ILS for runway 27. The autopilot was turned off and I hand flew the final 3 miles or so. We landed having flown 212 nm in 1hr 29mins, with a maximum speed of 195kts and an average of 143kts. There was a significant head wind that slowed us down on this leg.

I landed the aircraft and we taxied to the general avaiation flying club where we were handled very efficiently and given cheap tax free fuel. The very reasonable landing fee was a pleasant surprise and coffee was good too.

The Cirrus SR22 Turbo at North Weald

View from Jersey Aeroclub to the GA parking area

Fortified with fuel, drinks and a snack, we were soon off up to Alderney for lunch. As I'd done the flight down, my friend Kim was now at the controls. This flight was also IFR and we were cleared at 2000ft to Alderney. We requested the RNav runway 26 approach and Kim flew us around the hold three or four times at 4000ft before we landed and parked up. Alderney is a wonderful little island and it is easy to walk into "town" to get a bite of lunch. It's very quiet and laid back on the island and the weather was beautiful, even though it was late October.

Preparing to depart Jersey

We had lunch at a lovely restaurant called Bumps Bistro and Bar, where the owner very kindly set us up with some very nice food despite being officially closed. Walking down the main street is an experience on Alderney, one I had missed since coming to the island on honeymoon over three years ago.

I lost the coin flip and it was Kim who also got to fly us back to North Weald. I relaxed in the back as we retraced our outbound route at FL90 again. This leg we briefly donned the oxygen masks to make another first for me and we later dropped out of controlled airspace east of Bovingdon and landed shortly after on runway 21.

Me, first time with an Oxygen mask
 

 

South Coast of England from FL90

You don't see this every day as a private pilot! IFR is the way to go.

A good flying day was had again. Not one flying around in circles near home, but one where new experiences add to the pleasure. Flying with a friend also means you get to fly further at a lower cost.

What more can one ask?

Flying Update

It's been nearly five months since I made an entry to this blog.

2013 has been a year of much reduced flying compared to previous years, mainly due to the closure of Aircraft Grouping Ltd. This organisation had provided a glass cockpit Cessna 172, Cirrus SR20s and the Diamond Twinstar. There was also a very nice Turbo Seneca available to fly. From having such a wide variety of aircraft to fly, to having only one, was a difficult transition, one I am still coming to terms with.

Since the last posting, I have flown the Turbo Seneca for the last time, a fact I was unaware of on the day of the trip. This was probably a good thing. The same is true for the Cirrus too. The Cessna has been sold and I am back where I started this journey, with my grouped Piper Arrow.

I have slowly renewed my relationship with G-HALC, taking small steps to re-engage on flights to local aerodromes, including Blackpool and Welshpool. My most recent flight was over to Gamston with a fellow group member, sharing the flying and conversation that comes with joint trips. With no readily available twin to fly, I considered letting my MEP rating lapse. In the end I renewed, giving myself another year to see if anything local becomes available.

Just as my flying future is at a crossroads, so is my working life, with redundancy on the horizon at the end of September. My intention is to continue flying and hopefully find some employment for at least the next few years. I have no real idea of what that employment will be, if any.

The last five or six years of flying have been the best I have enjoyed since I started back in 1982. Wherever the future holds, the one thing I would say to anyone on a similar journey to me, is take time to enjoy what you are doing, stop and smell the roses.

Into my heart an air that kills
From yon far country blows:
What are those blue remembered hills,
What spires, what farms are those ?

That is the land of lost content,
I see it shining plain,
The happy highways where I went
And cannot come again.

("A Shropshire Lad" 40th poem by A.E. Houseman -1896)