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What is your greatest flying experience?


mobydog

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A tough one that. I suppose many would say it was their first flight but mine was a flight in a Rapide from Duxford as part of my 40th birthday present from Gill. Obviously I was thrilled to bits with the aircraft itself but I loved being able to see loads of old WW2 airfields and, being fascinated by archaeology, loads of different crop marks as well. Sadly me argument that I needed another two flights to take it all in was met with a very unladylike reply!

Martin

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Going solo at Wellesbourne in 1988 (age 17) in Cessna 152 G-RICH, once I'd left the deck I looked across to where the instructor should have been and saw no one sitting there and thought 'holy s£!t I have to land this now!' I then sang to myself all away around the circuit and pulled off a blinder of a landing with all my family watching.

Yours aye

Iain

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My greatest flying experience has to be when I was living in Israel about 13 years ago. I was married to a woman who worked for the Israeli Air Force and we frequently flew on the IAI Arava. One of these flights was in the middle of Honey Buzzard migration over the country and I had a bird's-eye view of the birds. Unnerving but really exciting at the same time.

The marriage didn't work out, but during my time in the country I got to fly on IAF Aravas and Queen Airs, a King Air once, and even a Hercules!

Kind regards,

Adam

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Hands-on for a low-level tour around the Highlands in superb weather in a 237 OCU Hawker Hunter T8 from Lossiemouth as a UAS cadet.

We flew low over Tain range at 420 kts; the Range Control Officer told me in the bar the next evening that we had been down at about 30ft - no wonder those strafing targets looked close!

Wow.

Jon

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Small world Iain,

Just picked up the Airfix Chipmunk for the trainer GB and decided to see if I could find the scheme of my first ever time away from mother earth. Digging out my 3822 I found the small "certificate" issued by 10 AEF to commemorate the event. Turns out it was none other than WP896!, flown by Flt Lt Owen back in December '79.

I don't suppose you have any pics of the starboard side or underside??

Hiya mate!

Brilliant coincidence! I'll have to dig out my 3822 - would have been '79/80 for me too - and Flt Lt Owen rings bells...

WP896 is now back in her silver scheme - and pretty immaculate. Her owner, Nev Gardner, takes great care of her!

1146547_10151627176503123_1775700080_n.j

What Sqn were you on?

Iain

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Hiya mate!

Brilliant coincidence! I'll have to dig out my 3822 - would have been '79/80 for me too - and Flt Lt Owen rings bells...

WP896 is now back in her silver scheme - and pretty immaculate. Her owner, Nev Gardner, takes great care of her!

1146547_10151627176503123_1775700080_n.j

What Sqn were you on?

Iain

She looks lovely in silver. I have just bought the old Airfix kit to do in the scheme she wore at 10 AEF (red, white grey) as a sort of memory aid. I was in 1036 Squadron over in Bury at the time and I still remember everything from that first flight from the ungainly waddle out to the aircraft through to aerobatics and even taking control. But the best bit was that I was one of only three newbies who didn't need to replace the sick bag (can't remember its official form no :banghead: )

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Talking about Chipmunks, If I remember correctly, the Fulmar Gliding Club tug at Milltown in the early 1970's, which I spent a lot of time trying to follow on the end of a rope, was the same machine as depicted by the Airfix kit decals at the time, WP896 , although in a different colour scheme - silver and dayglo if memory serves. Prior to the Chipmunk, a Tiger Moth was the tug, but I never had the pleasure of a tow from it. Aerotows in an open cockpit T21 are still vivid memories though!

Am I right? was the Chipmunk WP896?

.

Never saw 896 at Lossie or Milltown but not saying it was never there.

I have WK574 as the LM Stn Flt Chipmunk.It was allocated '681' then '680' but as far as I know never wore them.

Much preferred Tigermoth XL717 though!

RG

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Never saw 896 at Lossie or Milltown but not saying it was never there.

I have WK574 as the LM Stn Flt Chipmunk.It was allocated '681' then '680' but as far as I know never wore them.

Much preferred Tigermoth XL717 though!

RG

I also remember early mornings hand pumping fuel from 45 gallon drums into an Auster that we had as a tug, and I had a few memorable flights in that too - when the glider pulled off I got to fly it back. Great fun, pulling tight spiral turns on the quickest way back down. My memory may be playing tricks with the Chipmunk though, I'd guess 1971-72 or thereabouts.

Edited by Scratcher
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My fave is in 2004 when based in Darwin, Australia. I was a Navy Patrol Boat Operations Officer and suggested to the CO that we investigate a flight in a RAAF P-3C for the purposes of seeing how they did things in support of us. I easily arranged it with the Wing at Darwin RAAF base and within a few weeks we were up. An 8ish hour flight saw me given the controls of the aircraft for about 10 mins and also spend about 45mins in the co-pilots seat. I also had the chance to sit at the back of the cockpit, unrestrained, while we did wingovers of foreign fishing vessels at below 500ft. Great hospitality shown by the RAAFies (even though the aircraft captain was a Kiwi) even when we lost an engine on approach. The sight of a fire truck following us down the runway was a little disconcerting!

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Cracking thread this - some great experiences out there - enjoyed reading them immensely.

I think my greatest flying experience was on 8 August 1989. Not the most difficult or exciting or frightening or spectacular or intense - but rather the most precious.

My log book for the day says Jaguar T2a XX829 (which BTW is at the Newark museum now) - captain: Flt Lt FrItag - crew: Flt Lt Fritag 1hr 25 mins - airfield attack Linton on Ouse.

Well allright it actually reads captain: Self - crew: Fiona, cos that was the day the RAF let me take my wife flying in a Jag T-bird (she was an RAF fighter controller).

Her dad was a Master Air Engineer who worked on the flight line at Linton on Ouse - so we did a low level airfield attack over the flight line there (then did a hard turn and did it again just a bit lower...) - also did the standard Jag mud mover stuff of 450kt low level route, practice bombing at Holbeach Range and then some general handling and aero's etc. all just rather more special cos of sharing it with the missus.

The young Mrs Fritag appeared pretty pleased with herself afterwards:

Freddyafterflight_zps78615aae.jpeg

She'd had several JP trips before, and also been up in a Hawk and a few rides in a Wessex and Sea King. IIRC she turned down a trip in the back seat of a Phantom once on the basis that she couldn't see out of it - how daft was that? Anyways - I did my best chucking it about at low level and pulling G - but she didn't even get close to feeling queasy - just kept whooping and yelling for more!

Steve

Edited by Fritag
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In my youger days my mates and I used to be in thre Royal Observer Corps and as such we used to be asked to marshall some air races at local flying clubs.This one particular day we were in and around Holbeach aerodrome out in the Fens and had just finished marshalling the race, we went back to the clubhouse and were each offered a flight on the last discipline of the day. I was chosen by a chappie who flew a 1930's Auster and we had to do a circuit and land by trying to touch a ribbon set at a set height. As we took off all we could see was this wall of snow as it was moving our way, well this pilot took her round and landed, literally sideways as the wind was a blowing, and landed her on the line on the runway just as the snow arrived. What a flight and what a landing, and he won that paricular disipline. It was only a short flight but had everything, fantastic airmanship, grouchy weather and flying accuaracy and all in a lovely old Auster.

Gary.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I had a silly big grin on my face like that (apologies to Mrs Fritag) for about a fortnight, after I'd been up in a FRADU Hunter T.8.

I couldn't stop talking about it in the bar all that evening. For which I am now deeply sorry :)

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I had a silly big grin on my face like that (apologies to Mrs Fritag) for about a fortnight, after I'd been up in a FRADU Hunter T.8.

I couldn't stop talking about it in the bar all that evening. For which I am now deeply sorry :)

Now I would have had a silly big grin on my face too if I'd ever had a trip in a Hunter.....

I would have loved to have flown the Hunter at TWU - but I missed it by a few years. Mind you I wouldn't want to be any older than I am so maybe that was a good thing.......

There were one or two ex-hunter men still kicking around on the jaguar force in the 80's. Low level ground attack in a Hunter - now that would separate the men from the boys - really high workload and no inertial platform to help with the navigation......ouch.

Anyway I digress - lucky man for having Hunter memories.

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Well seeing as I've never had my hands on the controls of an aircraft, but would love to, and apart from my experience on a Garuda 737 and the various sick bag moments in heavy turbulence...my greatest flying experience was when I flew 30 yards over the top of a car in a head on collision at a combined speed of about 60 MPH. Sorry chaps...but it was about 15ft in the air and the greatest bit about that flight, is I'm still here to take the piddle! :winkgrin:

Oooh...I love this intelligent 'Language Timothy' moderating software. Now I know who's sitting on my shoulder! :whistle: And highly commendable too, it is! :)

Edited by Nobby57
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Now I would have had a silly big grin on my face too if I'd ever had a trip in a Hunter.....

I would have loved to have flown the Hunter at TWU - but I missed it by a few years. Mind you I wouldn't want to be any older than I am so maybe that was a good thing.......

There were one or two ex-hunter men still kicking around on the jaguar force in the 80's. Low level ground attack in a Hunter - now that would separate the men from the boys - really high workload and no inertial platform to help with the navigation......ouch.

Anyway I digress - lucky man for having Hunter memories.

Yes, it was a special day and a great memory. Although, a trip in Jaguar T.2 would come a close second!

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  • 2 weeks later...

Mid 70’s on the Ark, the Leading Hand who worked in “Ark Airways” had done his wrist in so me and another chap covered for him until he was ok for full duties again.

I was very lucky and had 3rd seat ride in a COD Gannet accompanying the out-going mail. Waist cat shot brill just brill :thumbsup: about 15 - 20 minute flight to Cludrose.

Later in the day back to the Ark in a “Helston Blue Bus Co” Sea King with the in-coming mail.

RR

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I'd had 1 of those weeks where everything went wrong, I went down to my local club (Yorkshire Gliding Club), the day was flat calm and blue everywhere, there was no lift, no wind, we were going nowehere...

About 3pm a few tufts of cloud started to pop up, most people had left for the day apart for the air experience flights but I decided to take a launch before I depart aswell. I took the Astir up expecting realistically to have a sledge ride, 1 of those straight up, straight down rides. I released at 2,200ft just "upwind" of the tufts and prayed, the vario flickered a couple of times between 2 down and 3 down, my heart sank, I was coming down quicker than I thought today.

I 'S' turned out of the patch of sky and after a couple more exploratory turns I soon found myself in the circuit on downwind, the call placed, the gear down and locked when just before the base leg I fly quite literally straight into 4 up (I was at the very limit, any lower and I could not have turned in the lift), I hesitated for a fraction of a second expecting it to dwindle, but no, I turn into wind and up I go and so did the gear, scratching here n there for every little bit until around 3,000 the lift went ballistic and pegged I climbed like a rocket to 5,000ft, lift was everywhere and whats more everybody had gone home, I had the skies to myself!

By this time I'd been scratching etc for well over an hour, I'd been sat on the field pushing gliders around and air exp flights in the 25+ deg heat I could not be bothered to go far, so I found this whacking great cloud with 360 view all around within 5 miles of the airfield and lift going right upto it, I played around the edge of that cloud for well over an hour, throwing the aircraft around, in and out of the whisps, nigh on knife edging along it, throwing the glider around knowing I had lift all around to get me back up, I remember it was pure pure white, the sun was on my right wing and I was looking down my left wing at the shadow with the rainbow effect around it I was casting on the cloud, watching as it rippled along......Ahhh me, what a day, the lift was so strong by the time I set off home I was also able to throw in some extended aerobatics on the way down, it's the 1st and only time I have exited a loop damn near higher than I entered it!

Damn, gives me shivers just remembering that day...I went no where but I had the time of my life.

5164621051_7b09db1962_o.jpg

Edited by pittnuma
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Other than bog standard civilian flights, my mam booked me a flying lesson for my 18th birthday, a go in a microlight for my 19th, a helicopter ride for my 20th and a go in a stunt plane for my 21st.

Enjoyed them all but the stunt plane was the best. Was a lot of fun and got a good half hour in the air with the pilot doing barrel rolls and loops and such.

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