–  Page 158

Ominous

“Thank God men cannot as yet fly and lay waste the sky as well as the earth!” — Henry David Thoreau Is it really only a week before I’m off? I am so not ready…

Read more… 26 Apr 06

Revised Itinerary

I’m slipping the dates for the Channel Islands by 2 days, which fits in better and also means I get to spend Liberation Day on Jersey. The final plan is: 4 May: arrive Guernsey (evening) 5 May: Guernsey 6 May: Guernsey (Ale and Food festival, yum) 7 May: Alderney (Milk-a-Punch Sunday, thanks to SI for…

Read more… 12 Apr 06

Not an auspicious start

Ben, who was going to be flying with me, contacted me on Sunday to say that he was stuck in Copenhagen with a jet whose wheels would not retract. A nice young man named Alistair agreed to adopt me for a few days, so we flew out to Shobdon yesterday where we got stuck on…

Read more… 4 Apr 06

Oxford

I spoke to Ben yesterday and so my trip to the “British Mainland” is now confirmed. I’ll start in Oxford and do circuits there until I’m dizzy (circuit: take off, fly in a circle, “touch” the run way and “go” again, ad infinitum) and then head off to local airfields and do the same there.…

Read more… 25 Feb 06

More things to do in Alderney…

… lest you think I’m only going there for the alcohol. A meal in St Anne in view of St Anne’s church. Hike out to the neolithic burial site, followed by a visit to the Alderney Museum. A trip on the only running railway in the Channel Islands. Find out about the Elizabethan wreck which…

Read more… 14 Feb 06

Milk-a-Punch Sunday?

Alderney has an annual event called “Milk-a-Punch Sunday” and I’ve specifically worked my schedule around being able to be there, plus a day on the ground on Monday to recover. http://www.alderney.gov.gg/index.php/pid/16/more_info/7 This long-observed tradition is a drink made of milk and egg and given a little kick by a healthy tot of rum, offered by…

Read more… 13 Feb 06

Accident Reports

"Totally a visibility issue."

On Sunday, the 27th of November 2022, a single-engine aircraft made national US news when it crashed through power lines in Gaithersburg, Maryland, coming to rest on a lattice tower.…

Overrun in Ireland

On the 19th of February 2023, a private pilot arranged to meet with a flight instructor at Birr Airfield to fly a Cessna 172 Skyhawk. That morning, the flight instructor…

Demystifying

How to tell an F-16 Fighting Falcon from a Eurofighter Typhoon

There are a number of reasons why you might need to quickly point out the differences between a General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon and a Eurofighter EF2000 Typhoon. You might…

Extreme Turbulence in Singapore Airlines flight 321

A few days ago (21st of May 2024), Singapore Airlines flight SQ321 encountered heavy turbulence on a passenger flight from London-Heathrow to Singapore. There were 229 on board, including eighteen…

History

Gladys Ingle Inflight Wheel Change: Emergency Action or Stunt?

This video of a mid-air wheel exchange goes viral once a year or so, but I never get tired of watching it. Last week, it showed up on Reddit and…

The Disappearance of the Hawaii Clipper May Not Be as Mysterious as Was Thought

This week, we have a guest post by J.B. Rivard who wrote an article for the American Aviation Historical Society (AAHS) and used one of my articles as a reference.…

Fun Stuff

Terminally Early: The Berlin Viewing Platform

Mistakes were made. All of them were mine. Before I left for Dresden, I planned out my full itinerary. Berlin is a much busier airport than Tallinn, so I needed…

A Few Good Stories

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…