Aero Expo 2006

After attending the "Fly" exhibition at Earls Court earlier in the year, I decided to book a slot to fly into Wycombe Air Park (Booker) for Aero Expo 2006. My slot time was set for 11am and all my preparations had proceeded well to make an on-time arrival look likely.

I was sharing this trip with Steve who rode in the right hand seat and acted as radio operator and navigator, although I've flown the route so many times now that a map is almost redundant.
We followed the Low Level Route to Winsford, over to Lichfield, down to Daventry, then Henton NDB and direct to Booker. The weather between Lichfield and Daventry closed in with visibilty going down to around 6 or 7 kilometers but perfectly flyable.

We were dead on time for our slot time and as we dialed up the ATC frequency it became clear many other aircraft were also arriving at 11am! Were were told to expect a right base join but eventually ended up overhead after the circuit became very congested. Not to worry, we landed on 24 tarmac and followed a very nice 180 Arrow to the parking area where the marshallers had directed us. A people carrier arrived after a ten minutes or so to transport us to the check in area and we were soon in the exhibition area.

I enjoyed a look at the Cirrus SR22G2 and had a good brief on it's features from Nick Tarratt a Director of Cirrus UK who fired up the avionics and was very helpful in giving me an understanding of some of it's capabilities. He could only touch on what it was able to do in 15 minutes or so! Very impressive and I want to take a demo flight when I can.

Cirrus Aeroplane complete with its "glass cockpit"

I also looked at the new version of our 1972 Piper Arrow and although the avionics were updated the airframe was exactly the same even though 30 plus years had passed. I guess if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I'd still like to have one of course but I think I'd like a new challenge with either the Cirrus or Piper Saratoga which I also sat in and thought felt very good and business like with high quality written all over it. These aeroplanes have 300 hp engines and would be a good challenge to operate but the Piper at over $650,000 is a little out of my price range! Still, it's good to dream.

The new Arrow looks just like the old... apart from another glass cockpit and lots of switches and knobs to play with.

The Turbo Saratoga was my overall favourite although the Cirrus ran it very close. These are brand new aircraft and make our Arrow look very tired in comparison.

Piper's six seat Saratoga impressed me a lot!

The exhibition halls were full of businessess plying their trade. You could buy flight equipment, global postioning receivers, standby power units, in fact anything to do with flying. There were cut outs of engines and as well as aircraft for sale you could also pick up a helicopter if you so wished. There were flying schools represented too where a rating could easily be booked.

Overall it was an interesting trip out and we departed for Manchester mid afternoon to find the en route weather was much improved from what we saw on the way down earlier in the morning. Would I go again? Yes.

Abbeville France

It can't last! This good flying weather has been with us for a couple of weeks now and I am flying quite a bit at the moment. You have to take advantage of good weather when you can and with the longest day past us already, there's no time to lose.

So France was calling again, just two weeks after our last trip there. This time we decided to try Abbeville which is about thirty miles further South than Le Touquet which we visited two weeks ago. Abbeville is inland, around ten miles from the coast and we chose it because we heard reports that it was ok for a visit. Simple as that.

It was a similar plan to last time only we were going non stop outbound and on the return would clear customs and immigration at Lydd airport on the Kent coast. We departed towards Warrington at 1250 feet to meet the requirements of Manchester's Low Level Route before climbing to 2400 feet on route to the Lichfield NDB. It was a little bumpy but not too bad and as we had no passengers there were no worries there for us.

We cruised at 3000 feet as we turned to slip between the East Midlands and Birmingham Control Zones contacting Coventry early after hearing jet traffic on frequency. We were given a transponder code and asked to look for a Boeing 737 approaching runway 23. We spotted it fairly quickly and were soon leaving Coventry behind as Daventry VOR came up and we headed further South towards the Henton NDB and the aeriel activity at Halton near Aylesbury. A quick word with them on the radio and we turned eastwards towards the Lambourne VOR and Stapleford Airfield.

June 17th was the Queen's Birthday flypast and there was a no fly area directly in our path. Good timing on our part meant we got through and clear with ten minutes to spare before it became active and we were on our way to Detling VOR once again. We skirted past Rochester (again) and passed over Lydd before setting off towards the BNE VOR in France, a track that would take us over Boulogne. We were now cruising at flight level five zero and making good progress. Lydd passed us on to Lille and we descended to remain below cloud levelling at 3000 feet. After reaching the BNE VOR we turned south towards the Abbeville VOR and closed our flight plan with Lille when we reached our destination airfield. Time elapsed was 2 hours 20 minutes.

The Coast of France from flight level five zero.

We called a taxi from the airfield at Abbeville and 10 minutes and 10 euros later we were dropped in the town centre which was busy with cars and people on this Saturday afternoon.

On both visits to France we have found the atmosphere and the people very inviting and friendly and we immediately felt at home in Abbeville. We were pretty hungry by now and so picked up a sandwich and in my case, a georgous strawberry tart, and sat down in the sun to eat and watch the people.

Our first sight of Abbeville centre with street cafes and shoppers enjoying Saturday afternoon.

The town is laid out in a square at the centre with shops, restaurants and water features. You can then explore streets which lead past the cathedral and down to the river and another fountain. It's very nice and relaxing to soak up the French way of life. The cathedral is just a two minute walk from the central square and is certainly worth a look. Admission was free.

Inside the Cathedral at Abbeville and me relaxing in the town square amongst the flower beds with the impressive Cathedral behind.

We had a last drink at another street cafe and called our taxi to head back to the airfield and home. Ou route retraced the flight down only we landed at Lydd to clear customs and immigration. Another drink before we departed for home. Lydd is a very nice little airport: professional and with good facilities. The flight back to Barton was one hour fifty minutes and it all went to plan with no problems.

So our second trip to France was a success. We are now fairly confident about these trips and would like to return soon only staying overnight and trying some other rural airfields in France. Of course we need good weather and for that we can only hope.

One final drink before heading home ......

Sunday In Wales

We have had some good flying weather over the last couple of weeks or so and I am pleased to have taken advantage of it to get some good trips in.

Janet has not been flying with me for about a year now and so Sunday seemed a good day to get her up again. I was a little concerned about the thermal activity which can cause us to have a rough ride and the wind was also gusting which adds to the problem.

However, she was feeling brave and so off we went. At Barton I set about checking the plane over and all was well with no fuel uplift required until we arrived at Welshpool. Good, I don't have to pull her to the pumps.

We were soon on our way taking the low level route again then turning towards Welshpool and climbing to 2000 feet. There is high ground around Welshpool but we were vood VFR and the only snag was the headwind was slowing us down to around 110 knots groundspeed and that feels very slow.

I has handed over by Shawbury Radar, who were working due to the Cosford airshow, but there was no response on the radio from Welshpool. They were outside sunbathing I expect!
I positioned on a long final for runway 22 and landed with no sign of any other traffic.

I pumped 40 litres of fuel into HALC's tanks and Janet paid by cheque as no credit cards are taken. I parked her next to a Turbo charged Piper Lance and after a quick drink we set off to walk towards Welshpool along a road with no pavement which made for a hairy walk. Most drivers were very considerate but the blind corner was a bit scary!

Getting to know you as Arrow meets Lance.....

Decking where the air-ground radio operators sun themselves at Welshpool

After walking about a mile we came across a garden centre where we had some lunch and a drink. Good value for money and Janet even bough a couple of bedding plants. Because it was so hot we decided against walking further into Welshpool town but would certainly try it next time.

We got back to the airfield to see a new arrival: a third Welsh Air Ambulance that had just arrived that afternoon. Read about it here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/5069604.stm

It looked very good in the afternoon sun and should be a useful asset although it's just for the next three Summer months.

We met a nice guy who was plane spotting at Welshpool who had been coming to the airfield for 35 years. That is real dedication. We chatted for a while before it was time to head off back to Manchester. But not before a quick photo of me posing in front of the aircraft. Just don't make any comments about my knobbly knees!!

On the return trip that headwind turned into a tail wind and we were soon belting along at 135 knots and before we knew it were landing on Barton's 27 Right once again. A quick ice cream and then it was off home for the next world cup game.

Fair Stood The Wind For France

Saturday June 3rd was a brilliant day’s flying for me and Niels. The long awaited trip to France was finally on! The weather forecast for the day looked good and HALC was ready to stretch her wings on a longer trip than she was used to.

When you are based in the North of England it makes a day trip to France a little more demanding due to the greater distance and planning required. Those pilots on the South coast have only a thirty or forty minute flight to reach foreign lands but for us it is much longer.

I have spent nearly all my flying time in England and so a steep learning curve for Niels and myself meant we were in a huddle trying to work out flight plans and customs forms to ensure we broke no laws and got it all right. Well we did get it mostly right but the time spent on planning meant we had a little less time in France than we would have liked. Not to worry, we know the ropes now. Next time we will be faster with our planning!

The day started for me at 9am at Barton where I arrived and pre flighted our Arrow for the day’s flying. She had not flown since I completed my refresher training on the Thursday but I gave her a good look-over, declaring her fit to fly after 20 minutes or so. We just needed to add fuel and that could be done when Niels arrived.

The original plan was to fly out of Barton to Lashenden-Headcorn where we would refuel and set off over the channel. We planned to go to Le Touquet and Le Harve and return the same evening. We filed our flight plan from Lashenden to Le Touquet before we left Manchester and then we were off. We uplifted fuel and set off through the low level route and then headed to Lichfield NDB and routed to Daventry VOR, Henton NDB, Lambourne VOR and Detling VOR before positioning to the West of Lashenden to join downwind left hand for runway 29. The article in June's Pilot magazine was very useful for tips and the flight worked out well taking 90 minutes in the air for 202 track miles excluding the little diversion to the west to position.

We landed on the grass runway and this was the first time I have landed on a runway with no designators! No big white number 29 on the threshold to confirm you have the correct runway. Lashenden is a very different place to visit. For a start there are parachutists coming down all the time and the place was packed with flyers, spectators and all kinds of flying machines. There was a happy buzz of activity around the place.

We wanted fuel but did not taxi to the pumps, instead shutting down the engine to protect our prop. The taxing area near the pumps was full of stones and very rough. A friendly local helped us push our bird to the pumps and I refueled her myself with 73 litres of avgas at £1.37 a litre. Ouch!!! More planning ensued as we enjoyed a drink and a bite to eat.

Short final for Lashenden runway 29

Niels "masterminds" the route into France

Finally we were ready to leave for the cross channel leg routing out to Folkstone, over the channel to a position north of Boulogne before flying down the coast and into Le Touquet. Niels was doing this leg and all went well. The visibility over the channel fell markedly and as we approached the French coast it was still poor at around 5000 metres. However the coast is a good line feature to follow and we were soon downwind right hand to land on Runway 32. Niels extended our downwind leg as we failed to see a Cirrus on a four mile final. Eventually we landed after a flight of around 35 minutes. We were on French soil at last.

A rather murky Le Touquet as we position on a long final to runway 32

Just to prove I'm not making it up!

We got ourselves a drink at the restaurant next to the airport where we met two fellow flyers on their way back to the UK. They told us how nice Le Touquet town was and so we decided not to fly on to Le Harve but to get a taxi into the town for some food and a look around.

The people at the airport were very friendly as I filed our return flight plan and they kindly telephoned for a taxi to take us the short ride into town. Eight euros and 10 minutes later we walking up one of Le Touquet's narrow streets heading towards the sea front. It really is a very nice little town with lots of shops and pavement restaurants where you can sit in the sun and people watch.

We had a walk on the promenade and were then confronted by at least six young ladies, one of which was looking to kiss one tonne of men. The things girls do before they get married! I offered my services right away, kissing her on both cheeks and declaring my weight as 170 pounds. This was added to their running total and all the time this was going on we were being filmed. For proof I presume. In France less than an hour and one French girl kissed already. Can't be bad!

We then sat down outside at one of the many street cafes, ordered a meal with a drink and spent about an hour soaking up the sun and the atmosphere. It was very nice and we were glad we hadn't pressed on to Le Harve. You have to stop and smell the roses sometimes.

What! Drinking coffee in this heat?

A taxi back to the airport had us ready to return to England. We had flight planned to return via Boulogne, the Lydd VOR, Dettling VOR, Lambourne VOR and then west across the North of London into Denham airfield to clear customs and close our plan.

This leg again went fine and we landed to a nearly deserted Denham in search of fuel. There was a bit of a panic when they could not find the key to the fuel pumps but it was eventually uncovered and I again refueled myself adding 80 litres of avgas at £1.32 per litre, 5p cheaper than Lashenden. Thanks to the girl at Denham who went out of her way to help us despite the late hour, I think she was an instuctor based there. All the people we met on the day were great.
We took off from Denham at around 7:45pm and we routed to Henton, Daventy, Lichfield and up the low level route to join downwind right hand for Barton's runway 27 right (will 27 left ever be reopened?) We saw five hot air ballons in the sky as we departed Denham but other than that it was quiet all the way home.

The landing at Barton was just after 9pm and the aerodrome, like Denham, was almost deserted. They'd even closed the hanger and so we had to leave HALC out all night. By now me and Niels were both tired but happy to have completed a great day's flying. We learned a lot during the day and armed with the confidence this brings, hope to embark on another overseas trip fairly soon.

Refresher Training

I'm fairly pleased at the moment as I have managed to log another five hours flying over just two days, a great improvement on what I've done recently. Most of these hours were on a trip out to France on Saturday as well as some refresher training in the Arrow on emergencies.

The French trip in a seperate report to follow, but first the serious stuff. I'd read a few articles about the importance of being up to speed with emergency procedures but just hadn't got round to doing anything about it. That was about to change. I booked the plane and my friendly flying instructor for a whole evening and set about the task.

I started out with some full panel instrument flying with climbing and descending turns and intercepting a radial to the Shawbury VOR. I felt rusty at first but with some good instruction I began to get the hang of the techniques and settle down. Recoveries from unusual attitudes followed which went well despite my lack of current instrument flying practice. We went on to cover simulated engine fire at altitude with emergency descent and forced landing; engine failure after take off and engine failure at low altitude in the cruise followed by a a couple of low level (500ft) circuits and a final glide approach from over the airfield at 1900 feet. I just made it to the landing with gear and flaps coming down at around 300 ft.

I was tired but pleased with how the two sessions had gone. A discussion at Sleap while we had a drink covered the other items on my list to seek advice on. All in all a very useful hour and a half flying. I will fix up another session in the near future, ideally every quarter but probably every six months would be more likely to be achievable.

Thinking about emergencies is good as we so often take the outcome of a flight as fairly predictable. One day it may not be and it's a case of trying to stack the odds in my favour as much as possible.