At last some actual flying! A mid week telephone conversation during the week told me my usual Cessna 152 G-BSZW wasn't available, she was out for an extended service and would I like to fly a PA28? Well I've been very keen to fly everything so I agreed. I had two lessons booked for the weekend and the weather looked somewhat questionable. My fingers were crossed - I surely deserve a break after all of this bad weather. Actually I say Zulu Whiskey is my usual, but I have only flown her twice.
The weather held on Saturday very still, humid and sunny. I arrived at Kemble to see a row of three Piper PA28s sitting in the sun - mine must be one of those. Delta Jets were flying a Hawker Hunter and as I watched a De-Haviland Vampire arrived. I love these old planes.
My instructor arrived back from his previous class at exactly 16:30 in yet another PA28, the one I'd be flying G-PSRT. Looks like the flying club have four.
Stuart asked me to check over the aircraft, we checked the fuel and after an abortive re-fuel attempt (queue at the pump!) we started. Once again I did the initial call to the tower. With a bit of guidance from Stuart I taxied along taxi way golf (G for grass I'm told...) to runway A1-26. A got to do a second call to the tower which must have been asking for permission to take off - but I'm having trouble remembering what was said. I must write that down.
Today's lesson was Straight and Level Flight part 1. We covered the previous lesson Effects of Controls quickly - it has been seven weeks since I last flew and a little refresher is very useful. Straight and Level isn't as easy as it sounds - keeping a fixed heading, altitude with gentle but firm control. The hour passed very quickly and in no time were were back.
Sunday was another good day on the face of it, sunny, humid and still. Delta Jets were in action again celebrating a wedding at AV8. I tried to snap a picture of a Hunter doing a very low fast pass over the runway but to no avail - it was a blurry dot before I knew it. Better camera required for that sort of nonsense I think.
Stuart once again got me to do the transit checks on Golf Romeo Tango, this time I managed to examine the fuel and oil myself. I like the PA28 - the controls seem so much more obvious than the Cessna 152 - a large throttle handle, distinctly different mixture control, bigger rudder and brake pedals and a kind of hand brake for raising and lowering flaps. Even the parking brake works properly. Though I don't have my own door, just a tiny little window flap.
We talked about the two air pressure readings, QnH and Qfe. QnH is the air pressure at sea level and when set on the altimeter shows us the height above sea level we are. Qfe is the air pressure at the airport and would show us the height above the airfield we are.
Once again I made the first call to the tower but Stuart was keen for me to do more - its a whole new language within a language. Some stumbling later...
"Kemble Information, Golf Papa Sierra Romeo Tango."
"Golf Papa Sierra Romeo Tango pass your message."
"PA28, two POB, request taxi for a VFR flight to the west". Dammit forgot to say we were at Woodside. Must do better.
Gasp for air... Then Kemble Information saying something like
"Golf Romeo Tango, use taxiway golf, hold at alpha one, runway two six"
After that it was all a bit of a whirl. They must have given the wind and air pressure (QnH - the altimeter shows our height at 430 feet or so) which Stuart noted. With barely a moment to think I was taxiing to A1-26, turned Romeo Tango into the wind, well what little there was, and we ran through the final checks. Unlike yesterday I taxied onto the runway and we just carried on. "You can take off" he said. He talked me through the take-off, full throttle, keep her straight on the white line, sixty five knots, pull back on the controls and we were up! No time for jumping up and down with joy though. A steady climb to around two thousand feet. Time to begin the lesson. Begin! Blimey.
Photo out towards the River Severn showing just how hazy it was.
We did a little repeat of straight and level part one and then on to straight and level part two, flying increasing and decreasing speed. I had a few practices of flying at 115 knots and 80 knots. Keeping the nose down when were had lots of power and pulling the nose up to change the attitude when we used less. Changes in power required a bit of thinking about carburettor heat. A nice straightforward rule, below 2000 RPM carb heat on, above 2000 carb heat off. As the book says this lesson was Power - Attitude - Trim.
Today things were more difficult with a fair bit or turbulence from the heat, bumping around every time we flew over high ground. The horizon and navigation references were a nightmare - the horizon just faded out in many directions. There was quite a bit of traffic over the western training area we normally use, a familiarisation flight for someone new to the club and a great deal of glider activity at Aston Down. We even heard a call from the local air ambulance flying through the north of Kemble's area. We hurried back to Kemble before the Kemble Operations closed at 18:00. A swift landing and quick dash off the runway let our club-mates land close behind us.
All in all a marvellous weekend of flying. More radio work, a take-off, some aerial photography and some insight into the life of a flying instructor.
I now have more flying hours in a PA28 than in my 'usual' C152. I think I will be sticking with the C152 for the time being on two scores. Firstly it is slightly cheaper and secondly it is a very cute little aircraft with bags of character. The PA28 was good though...
I have two lessons booked next weekend as well. Fingers still firmly crossed.
Some more photos, this one towards Badminton (see the parallel lines of trees?)
Westonbirt Arboretum under the wing (had to use Google Maps to confirm this one!)
Kemble Airfield from the ground
