Anne’s crisp voice came through loud and clear on my headset as the English coast retreated behind us. “Does anyone want a biscuit?” Cliff responded for the both of us. “Not now, Mum. It’s only a short flight.” He shook the map at her, as if she could see it from the rear seat. I…
Read more… 27 Apr 07
Driving along a coastal road, I saw something at the last moment. “Stop the car! There was a sign back there.” Cliff slammed on the brakes. “A sign for what?” “I dunno, but it looked interesting.” He gave me a nasty look but backed the car up and found a wide bit of road to…
Read more… 20 Apr 07
The Parish Church of St Brelade is a romantic Norman stone structure, dating from the 11th century, a reminder of French government of Jersey. I paused to look at the stained glass windows but I was much more interested in its neighbour, The Fisherman’s Chapel. The Fisherman’s Chapel is a chantry, a medieval pay-for-prayer chapel…
Read more… 12 Apr 07
From my notes We arrived at the station where I tried to buy a Day Rover, unlimited travel on both the electric train and the steam train. “It’s a special event” said the unshaven man at the counter. “I can do you a return to Ryde and you just get off at Smallbrook Junction.” I…
Read more… 31 Mar 07
I’m finally getting around to organising my photographs and the shots from the Isle of Wight are rapidly appearing on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/landing/sets/72157600034671389/ Did you know there was an Isle of Wight County in Virginia? I first realised that I might have gone astray when I saw that “the Isle of Wight Museum offers Indian artifacts,…
Read more… 29 Mar 07
The weather played along: I was able to fly every evening last week. A minor hitch came up with the the plane being an N-reg (registered in the US). We sorted it out by using this darling TB10, a friendly, light plane that seemed eager to please; not something I’d ever say about the Saratoga!…
Read more… 20 Mar 07
The Manchester Airport Group Plc owns and operates three airports: Manchester, London Stansted and East Midlands. Manchester Airport is the third busiest airport in Britain. Their website says Manchester Airport…
On the 27th of July 2018, an experienced pilot departed with ten parachutists on board for a routine drop mission. It was the pilot’s fourth flight of the day in…
My friend Maria at Daedalean wrote this article about how they are using AI to help pilots detect gliders. I thought it was fascinating and Daedalean gave me permission to…
On the 5th of January 2024, Alaska Airlines flight 1282 had just taken off when it lost a door plug, leaving a gaping hole on the left side of row…
Aviation in Iceland started with an airline, not an aircraft. Flugfélag Íslands, the first Icelandic airline, was founded in Reykjavík on the 22nd of March 1919. They did not (yet)…
I’ve lost most of the day to unexpected research and one of the fascinating items that I discovered was the Air Force Historical Research Agency and their amazing photo collection.…
I’m in Dresden at the moment and I’m afraid I haven’t had a free moment to write you a new article. Luckily, lots of other people are on the internet…
Long-term readings of Fear of Landing know that my favourite aerobatics show of all time is Kyle Franklin’s Ben Whabnoski Comedy act. Just in case some of you haven’t seen…