Apparently it's not meant to be today. 
The fog is clearing everywhere but not where it should disappear. Better luck next year. Happy holidays.
Tuesday, 23 December 2008
No flying today
Apparently it's not meant to be today. The fog is clearing everywhere but not where it should disappear. 
Monday, 22 December 2008
Crosswind training IFR Eelde 12.2008
Click on the title to see the HD video on DailyMotion
Today not the visibility but the wind is the determining factor. Again there is a big wind shift between runway elevation and the layer starting from a couple of hundreds of feet. From 1000ft upwards there is more than 40kts wind with an angle of 40 to 60 degrees cross on runway 23. Interesting for training purposes, but the turbulence is also challenging for the video crew.
On the ground the maximum gust according to ATC is 29 kts on the last approach which would be on the limit of the max demonstrated crosswind for the DA40 of 20 kts.
Ummetje survived his logo party. Class 8-3 is now called the Governors. Sounds pretty tough and ambitious (I still prefer "Granny's Pride"). We consider to take him with us as well, but after a quick inspection of his weekly luggage he seems better of going back by train.
Whilst lined up on the runway to return to Lelystad again we are able to watch some para's perform their tricks right next to us.
Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.pancake-airlines.com/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
Today not the visibility but the wind is the determining factor. Again there is a big wind shift between runway elevation and the layer starting from a couple of hundreds of feet. From 1000ft upwards there is more than 40kts wind with an angle of 40 to 60 degrees cross on runway 23. Interesting for training purposes, but the turbulence is also challenging for the video crew.
On the ground the maximum gust according to ATC is 29 kts on the last approach which would be on the limit of the max demonstrated crosswind for the DA40 of 20 kts.
Ummetje survived his logo party. Class 8-3 is now called the Governors. Sounds pretty tough and ambitious (I still prefer "Granny's Pride"). We consider to take him with us as well, but after a quick inspection of his weekly luggage he seems better of going back by train.
Whilst lined up on the runway to return to Lelystad again we are able to watch some para's perform their tricks right next to us.Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.pancake-airlines.com/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
Friday, 19 December 2008
Pancake Airlines at IFR minima
click title to see HD video on DailyMotion
Finally! Nice to have some IMC weather during Marijke's IFR training. During my whole IR training the weather had been to easy. The basics of IFR flying in solid IMC are exactly the same but we were really looking forward to experience what it's like. On this day the circumstances on EHGG in terms of visibility where exactly at the acceptable minima, both in terms of RVR, cloud cover and vertical visibility.
At the same time the cold front was moving from west to east, and visibility and cloud height at Lelystad were already above VFR minima (so we were able to return as well). At first we had to delay the flight plan a little bit because the measured cloud height at Lelystad was still a bit low. Only a thin layer is enough to keep you on the ground. We departed from Lelystad as soon as possible (nr.2 plane that day) to be able to return before the fog would increase again in the final hours before sunset.
Shortly after take-off we were already in VMC on top of the thin cloud layer with beautiful views of the sun playing with the clouds. Further up in the northeast corner of the Netherlands the clouds were getting thicker and the fog reached out to the lower levels.
Now we had to rely fully on the IFR procedures and the G1000 instrumentation during our approaches at Eelde. The local flying schools were not flying, except for a single Beech Baron from KLM Flight Academy. We were not sure whether it would be possible to land. Even if we had to abort or go around, it would already make us happy to be able to practise in solid IMC.
Because of the conditions we decided to make maximum use the G1000 and autopilot; it's able to fly the whole ILS approach on runway 23 down to the decision altitude. From that point at 200ft, if you are exactly on the right track, we found out that you still have plenty of time to make a descent landing. With our approach speed of 90 kts the RVR of about 650m is not a real issue as well. The only real issue in these calm conditions was the vertical visibility, seeing the runway lights on time to be able to continue the descend.
After a touch and go and a full stop, we checked conditions at Lelystad again before selecting the ROLDU1D back to Lelystad. Once in the air you can let the autopilot fly the SID again. The first few minutes after take-off are the most important in these conditions, especially in a single engine plane.
Once in the air we hear both Transavia 780 and 782 over the radio headed for Eelde. If we are not mistaking both of them had to divert to Schiphol in the end; we see one of them passing us on starboard.
Conditions on Lelystad were much better but you could already see the ground fog increasing. As Eelco explains, once the fog really start developing you can often see the ground from above but you loose all (horizontal) visibility when you try to land. The sun is straight over the extended runway, but we use the final part of the instrument procedure for Lelystad as a reference for the landing.
Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.pancake-airlines.com/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
Finally! Nice to have some IMC weather during Marijke's IFR training. During my whole IR training the weather had been to easy. The basics of IFR flying in solid IMC are exactly the same but we were really looking forward to experience what it's like. On this day the circumstances on EHGG in terms of visibility where exactly at the acceptable minima, both in terms of RVR, cloud cover and vertical visibility.
At the same time the cold front was moving from west to east, and visibility and cloud height at Lelystad were already above VFR minima (so we were able to return as well). At first we had to delay the flight plan a little bit because the measured cloud height at Lelystad was still a bit low. Only a thin layer is enough to keep you on the ground. We departed from Lelystad as soon as possible (nr.2 plane that day) to be able to return before the fog would increase again in the final hours before sunset.Shortly after take-off we were already in VMC on top of the thin cloud layer with beautiful views of the sun playing with the clouds. Further up in the northeast corner of the Netherlands the clouds were getting thicker and the fog reached out to the lower levels.
Now we had to rely fully on the IFR procedures and the G1000 instrumentation during our approaches at Eelde. The local flying schools were not flying, except for a single Beech Baron from KLM Flight Academy. We were not sure whether it would be possible to land. Even if we had to abort or go around, it would already make us happy to be able to practise in solid IMC.
Because of the conditions we decided to make maximum use the G1000 and autopilot; it's able to fly the whole ILS approach on runway 23 down to the decision altitude. From that point at 200ft, if you are exactly on the right track, we found out that you still have plenty of time to make a descent landing. With our approach speed of 90 kts the RVR of about 650m is not a real issue as well. The only real issue in these calm conditions was the vertical visibility, seeing the runway lights on time to be able to continue the descend.
After a touch and go and a full stop, we checked conditions at Lelystad again before selecting the ROLDU1D back to Lelystad. Once in the air you can let the autopilot fly the SID again. The first few minutes after take-off are the most important in these conditions, especially in a single engine plane.Once in the air we hear both Transavia 780 and 782 over the radio headed for Eelde. If we are not mistaking both of them had to divert to Schiphol in the end; we see one of them passing us on starboard.
Conditions on Lelystad were much better but you could already see the ground fog increasing. As Eelco explains, once the fog really start developing you can often see the ground from above but you loose all (horizontal) visibility when you try to land. The sun is straight over the extended runway, but we use the final part of the instrument procedure for Lelystad as a reference for the landing.
Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.pancake-airlines.com/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
Tuesday, 16 December 2008
Ummetje gets lost - The Making Of
Click on the title to see the HD video on DailyMotion
This Friday Ummetje's class at KLM Flight Academy has its Logo Party. As a sneak preview you are able to witness the making of his contribution to one of the topics during this promising evening (sponsored by Playboy!?).
Ummetje is filmed on a trip from Lelystad to Texel and back with the Pancake. You can have a look at the result that was used as input for the total class 8-3 video via http://www.dailymotion.com/pancake-airlines/video/x7r5u9_ummetje-gets-lost_travel.
Special guest star Marijke acts as the stewardess for the Unaccompanied Minor, a role that seems to fit her well (a part from loosing her very first UM out of sight in no time).
Ed, Mike and Miriam: thanks very much for your contribution to this video.
Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.pancake-airlines.com/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
This Friday Ummetje's class at KLM Flight Academy has its Logo Party. As a sneak preview you are able to witness the making of his contribution to one of the topics during this promising evening (sponsored by Playboy!?).Ummetje is filmed on a trip from Lelystad to Texel and back with the Pancake. You can have a look at the result that was used as input for the total class 8-3 video via http://www.dailymotion.com/pancake-airlines/video/x7r5u9_ummetje-gets-lost_travel.
Special guest star Marijke acts as the stewardess for the Unaccompanied Minor, a role that seems to fit her well (a part from loosing her very first UM out of sight in no time).Ed, Mike and Miriam: thanks very much for your contribution to this video.
Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.pancake-airlines.com/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
Friday, 5 December 2008
G1000 IFR training examples 12/2008
click the title to see the HD video on DailyMotion
Now it's Marijke's turn to get her instrument rating. She's planning to do her last 3 ATPL theory exams in January so it makes sense to prepare for the practical exam as well. As you might have read before, my experiences with Eelco as instructor and Wings over Holland where pretty good. No wonder that Marijke chose the same combination.
Due to mutual holidays the start up in 2008 is rather slow. There's no need to rush, since we are allowed to fly IFR together with my rating. I don't think either of us would go flying solo IFR just for the fun of it.
Marijke still has about 45 hours of instruction to go. Gives me the perfect opportunity to come along in the backseat. Especially in the winter months this should bring us a couple of new references in solid IMC conditions and/or dealing with lower freezing levels.
It also gives me the chance to follow the IFR training on video. Existing training video's are more desk based, with screen captures and endless ranges of buttons to push. I wonder how it would look like if we would show the IFR training elements on video from a real live environment. This video is a try out in search for the right format. Please let us know if you have additional idea's or suggestions that might improve the format.
You will still need some button-knowledge to able to do this yourselves. The practical use and the possibilities of the Diamond DA40 with G1000 however are clearly visible. And yes, I will clean the windows and the MFD/PFD next time. In this try-out I used sub-titles in stead of a voice over because it's easier to use the pause button on the video player to read them in detail if you need to.
I will just publish the recordings parallel to Marijke's IFR training, as it should have a logical sequence in it. Let's have a look at it afterwards to determine whether it makes sense to edit it into a more structured way.
The IFR training flight in this video is on December 2nd 2008 from Lelystad (EHLE) to Groningen/Eelde (EHGG) in the Netherlands. The weather is fine, with some showers and lower clouds. Freezing level is around 3000ft. We file 2000ft LLS DCT EEL DCT SO.
Reaching the Eelde TMA, the ATIS informs us the ILS is temporarily out of service. We here Danny of Eelde Approach saying it will be active again in about 10 minutes. So we start preparing for a VOR/DME approach for runway 23 first, based on own navigation in the direction of the holding at SO. We will make a parallel entry into the holding at 3000ft and will be ready for the approach after one full round in the hold.
After the VOR/DME approach we will perform 2 ILS approaches, one with maximum use of the G1000 & autopilot and one manually flown with a full stop.
In the meantime I have plenty of time to make pictures and videos of the training and of Eelde airport (and wave at Sander in school or in building B).
The video shows that we are asked to speed up the last one to enable a small training jet behind us to follow along. Although we did our best to expedite vacating the runway, the jet has to make another bonus round.
On the way back to EHLE you can see the weather getting a bit worse already as a first sign of the approaching occlusion from the west. Snow is predicted and Eelco clarifies that experiencing a snow shower is totally different from a rain shower. In a snow shower you will loose all visibility and you have a higher chance of disorientation. We got back to Wings well in time before the first snow showers hit the country; so we will save this for one of the next training flights.
Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.pancake-airlines.com/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
Now it's Marijke's turn to get her instrument rating. She's planning to do her last 3 ATPL theory exams in January so it makes sense to prepare for the practical exam as well. As you might have read before, my experiences with Eelco as instructor and Wings over Holland where pretty good. No wonder that Marijke chose the same combination.Due to mutual holidays the start up in 2008 is rather slow. There's no need to rush, since we are allowed to fly IFR together with my rating. I don't think either of us would go flying solo IFR just for the fun of it.
Marijke still has about 45 hours of instruction to go. Gives me the perfect opportunity to come along in the backseat. Especially in the winter months this should bring us a couple of new references in solid IMC conditions and/or dealing with lower freezing levels.
It also gives me the chance to follow the IFR training on video. Existing training video's are more desk based, with screen captures and endless ranges of buttons to push. I wonder how it would look like if we would show the IFR training elements on video from a real live environment. This video is a try out in search for the right format. Please let us know if you have additional idea's or suggestions that might improve the format.You will still need some button-knowledge to able to do this yourselves. The practical use and the possibilities of the Diamond DA40 with G1000 however are clearly visible. And yes, I will clean the windows and the MFD/PFD next time. In this try-out I used sub-titles in stead of a voice over because it's easier to use the pause button on the video player to read them in detail if you need to.
I will just publish the recordings parallel to Marijke's IFR training, as it should have a logical sequence in it. Let's have a look at it afterwards to determine whether it makes sense to edit it into a more structured way.
The IFR training flight in this video is on December 2nd 2008 from Lelystad (EHLE) to Groningen/Eelde (EHGG) in the Netherlands. The weather is fine, with some showers and lower clouds. Freezing level is around 3000ft. We file 2000ft LLS DCT EEL DCT SO.Reaching the Eelde TMA, the ATIS informs us the ILS is temporarily out of service. We here Danny of Eelde Approach saying it will be active again in about 10 minutes. So we start preparing for a VOR/DME approach for runway 23 first, based on own navigation in the direction of the holding at SO. We will make a parallel entry into the holding at 3000ft and will be ready for the approach after one full round in the hold.
After the VOR/DME approach we will perform 2 ILS approaches, one with maximum use of the G1000 & autopilot and one manually flown with a full stop.In the meantime I have plenty of time to make pictures and videos of the training and of Eelde airport (and wave at Sander in school or in building B).
The video shows that we are asked to speed up the last one to enable a small training jet behind us to follow along. Although we did our best to expedite vacating the runway, the jet has to make another bonus round.
On the way back to EHLE you can see the weather getting a bit worse already as a first sign of the approaching occlusion from the west. Snow is predicted and Eelco clarifies that experiencing a snow shower is totally different from a rain shower. In a snow shower you will loose all visibility and you have a higher chance of disorientation. We got back to Wings well in time before the first snow showers hit the country; so we will save this for one of the next training flights.Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.pancake-airlines.com/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
Saturday, 22 November 2008
2008/11 Diamond Aircraft visit Wiener Neustadt
click on the title to see the video on DailyMotion
Last Friday the 14th of November we were invited to the Diamond headquarters in Wiener Neustadt, just 40 kilometers south-west of Wien. We flew in the day before with SkyEurope, a Czech low cost carrier, so we could spend some time in Wien.
From the airport you can take a special train to reach the city center within a few minutes.
The video shows some pictures of Wien including the Stephansdom and some other historical buildings. From Wien to Wiener Neustadt is also easy by train, it takes less than half a hour.
Diamond Aircraft is located on one of three airports in Wiener Neustadt and is located in the north-eastern sector of the city. This is the airport where we first saw our current plane the PH-PCA Diamond DA40. We have been flying it for only a year but if you see all the blog stories together it seems much longer. The DA40 really outperformed our initial expectation measured on what we are actually doing with it, and the ease with which this seems to be possible. Even for pilots with our limited level of experience.
Diamonds' Bernard Gruber gave us a warm welcome in the Katana Cafe of the airport. The headquarters is still a very busy place. Besides all the activity around the factory and the test flights with experimental versions of the plane, there are of course also all kind of marketing and sales activities carried out on the premises. That day a French media team was inspecting the DA42 NG on several demo flights. The NG is equiped with two Austro Engines, from the nearby sister company that started developing this diesel engine a couple of years ago.
Of course the financial problems at Thielert did have an impact on Diamond as well. The Thielert situation has also effected existing plane owners and Diamond has always been Thielerts number 1 customer. The positive news is that during our stay in Wiener Neustadt we sincerely got the feeling that we are close to a solution of the current situation. A solution not only focused on the upcoming Austro engines and for both new and existing Diamond customers.
The Austro 2.0 liter diesel engines will be a little bit heavier than the current Thielert engines, but the extra weight should be more than compensated by the higher power of the engines. In addition Diamond expects them to be even more fuel efficient. Certification of the engine itself is expected on short term, the type certification on the DA42 and DA40 should follow shortly afterwards.
We already saw a significant number of DA42 equipped with the Austro's in final assembly. On the video you can see the difference in rate of climb between an Austro equiped and a Thielert equiped DA42 that took off in sequence, without being absolutely sure of course that the same take-off technique was used. Another feature of the Austro seems to be that it makes a lot less noise when running idle.
Next to the Austro alternative Diamond seems to continue implementing newly delivered Thielert engines into its planes. It will be interesting to follow how the future will look like, what alternatives will be available and what scenario's will be developed by Diamond for both new and existing customers.
Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.diamond-aircraft.at/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
Last Friday the 14th of November we were invited to the Diamond headquarters in Wiener Neustadt, just 40 kilometers south-west of Wien. We flew in the day before with SkyEurope, a Czech low cost carrier, so we could spend some time in Wien.From the airport you can take a special train to reach the city center within a few minutes.
The video shows some pictures of Wien including the Stephansdom and some other historical buildings. From Wien to Wiener Neustadt is also easy by train, it takes less than half a hour.
Diamond Aircraft is located on one of three airports in Wiener Neustadt and is located in the north-eastern sector of the city. This is the airport where we first saw our current plane the PH-PCA Diamond DA40. We have been flying it for only a year but if you see all the blog stories together it seems much longer. The DA40 really outperformed our initial expectation measured on what we are actually doing with it, and the ease with which this seems to be possible. Even for pilots with our limited level of experience.
Diamonds' Bernard Gruber gave us a warm welcome in the Katana Cafe of the airport. The headquarters is still a very busy place. Besides all the activity around the factory and the test flights with experimental versions of the plane, there are of course also all kind of marketing and sales activities carried out on the premises. That day a French media team was inspecting the DA42 NG on several demo flights. The NG is equiped with two Austro Engines, from the nearby sister company that started developing this diesel engine a couple of years ago.Of course the financial problems at Thielert did have an impact on Diamond as well. The Thielert situation has also effected existing plane owners and Diamond has always been Thielerts number 1 customer. The positive news is that during our stay in Wiener Neustadt we sincerely got the feeling that we are close to a solution of the current situation. A solution not only focused on the upcoming Austro engines and for both new and existing Diamond customers.
The Austro 2.0 liter diesel engines will be a little bit heavier than the current Thielert engines, but the extra weight should be more than compensated by the higher power of the engines. In addition Diamond expects them to be even more fuel efficient. Certification of the engine itself is expected on short term, the type certification on the DA42 and DA40 should follow shortly afterwards.
We already saw a significant number of DA42 equipped with the Austro's in final assembly. On the video you can see the difference in rate of climb between an Austro equiped and a Thielert equiped DA42 that took off in sequence, without being absolutely sure of course that the same take-off technique was used. Another feature of the Austro seems to be that it makes a lot less noise when running idle.
Next to the Austro alternative Diamond seems to continue implementing newly delivered Thielert engines into its planes. It will be interesting to follow how the future will look like, what alternatives will be available and what scenario's will be developed by Diamond for both new and existing customers.Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.diamond-aircraft.at/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
2008/10 Diamond DA40 Burgos to Holland
click on the title to see the video on DailyMotion
After diverting to Burgos (LEBG) on Wednesday there was no chance of flying back to Holland on the next day. Severe thunderstorms, very early snow in the north of Spain and over 50 kts of wind lead to an additional day in Burgos.
The people on Burgos airport are unbelievable friendly and supported us all the way. We were even offered a space in the hanger to get shelter for the storms during the night. Both landing fees and overnight parking charges are very cheap in Spain, as we found out in both Valladolid and Burgos.
Burgos turns out to be a very authentic Spanish city with all kind of local shops, restaurants and tapas bars. Lots of tiny little alleys, beautiful buildings (cathedral, castle, plaza major), and nice view from the hills. Apart from the hotel and airport virtually nobody seems to speak English, so we had to improvise with the few words of Spanish/Portuguese we were able to produce.
The next day, Friday October 31st, we decided to try to leave as early as possible to use the short and only temporary improvement of the weather. ATC at Burgos starts a bit later than the airfield opens which was new to us on an airport of this size. The very friendly girl from operations recommends using blind transmissions during backtracking and departure, in case of eventual other traffic.
Between two layers of clouds we were able to follow our VFR flight plan over Vitoria (LEVT) and San Sebastian (LESO) into France. The Pyrenees don't extend all the way to the ocean, so you don't have to fly very high to be able to cross the Spanish/french border over land. Both San Sebastian and Biarritz (LFBZ) are very nice airports close to the ocean. The beautiful San Sebastian airport is even directly parallel to the water in a small bay.
ATC allowed us this time to follow the coastline across all restricted area's around the coast between Biarritz and La Rochelle. Further north we encounter some rain showers until we have to decide whether to stay below in marginal visibility or go on top. The TAFs promised us an easy descend further up north, and clouds seem stratified and not to high so although freezing level is at FL50 we start to climb. After an additional hour cloud tops are getting gradually higher and higher until we are at FL115 and minus 10 degrees.
The altitude is no problem for the DA40 with its turbo diesel whatsoever, but with this temperature we would have to stay out of clouds even when switching to IFR. ATC provides us with MET updates for Deauville and Le Touquet (both are indicating good weather), but in real life the overcast extents a lot further north than we had anticipated.
We had been flying for almost 4 hours already at that point, but with the long range tanks still no worries. No worries would be appropriate for experienced pilots. The lack of experience with icing conditions made the situation for us personally lot less relaxed. Finally we decide to descend through a number of mailbox like openings in several layers of clouds and we find out that there is no ice build up at all.
Later we are told that even if there would have been a thicker stratified cloud layer of a couple of thousand feet, a freezing level of FL50 will give you plenty of time to loose the ice if you are building up some. Nevertheless, a DA42 or DA50 anti-icing system would offer a more relaxed descent to us in similar situations.
Approaching Le Touquet we asked Paris area control for an ILS approach. No problem for them, and he gives us a heading at 2000ft across the Channel. According to the MFD we are almost in the UK before we get a base and intercept heading which gives us clear view of some huge container ships at high speed.
Arriving at Le Touquet (LFAT) after a 5 hour flight we witness a lively discussion between a German private jet pilot and the local tower about their flight plan, who has this flight plan and who should have had this flight plan. The jet is already at the holding point for the runway, has to catch a connecting flight somewhere south with very little margin in time; but has to return to the apron nevertheless. 10 minutes later we see it depart anyway, lovely sight the acceleration and climb rate of a private jet.
After a short stop on Le Touquet (if you have more time visit the fish restaurants in town in stead of the airport restaurant) we were just in time to be able to beat sunset at Lelystad (EHLE). Flying at 2.500 feet we were just on top of a cloud layer in the sun, marvelous sensation. Holland turns out to be rainy, with poor visibility (what else is new).
Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.diamond-aircraft.at/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
After diverting to Burgos (LEBG) on Wednesday there was no chance of flying back to Holland on the next day. Severe thunderstorms, very early snow in the north of Spain and over 50 kts of wind lead to an additional day in Burgos.The people on Burgos airport are unbelievable friendly and supported us all the way. We were even offered a space in the hanger to get shelter for the storms during the night. Both landing fees and overnight parking charges are very cheap in Spain, as we found out in both Valladolid and Burgos.
Burgos turns out to be a very authentic Spanish city with all kind of local shops, restaurants and tapas bars. Lots of tiny little alleys, beautiful buildings (cathedral, castle, plaza major), and nice view from the hills. Apart from the hotel and airport virtually nobody seems to speak English, so we had to improvise with the few words of Spanish/Portuguese we were able to produce.The next day, Friday October 31st, we decided to try to leave as early as possible to use the short and only temporary improvement of the weather. ATC at Burgos starts a bit later than the airfield opens which was new to us on an airport of this size. The very friendly girl from operations recommends using blind transmissions during backtracking and departure, in case of eventual other traffic.
Between two layers of clouds we were able to follow our VFR flight plan over Vitoria (LEVT) and San Sebastian (LESO) into France. The Pyrenees don't extend all the way to the ocean, so you don't have to fly very high to be able to cross the Spanish/french border over land. Both San Sebastian and Biarritz (LFBZ) are very nice airports close to the ocean. The beautiful San Sebastian airport is even directly parallel to the water in a small bay.
ATC allowed us this time to follow the coastline across all restricted area's around the coast between Biarritz and La Rochelle. Further north we encounter some rain showers until we have to decide whether to stay below in marginal visibility or go on top. The TAFs promised us an easy descend further up north, and clouds seem stratified and not to high so although freezing level is at FL50 we start to climb. After an additional hour cloud tops are getting gradually higher and higher until we are at FL115 and minus 10 degrees.
The altitude is no problem for the DA40 with its turbo diesel whatsoever, but with this temperature we would have to stay out of clouds even when switching to IFR. ATC provides us with MET updates for Deauville and Le Touquet (both are indicating good weather), but in real life the overcast extents a lot further north than we had anticipated.We had been flying for almost 4 hours already at that point, but with the long range tanks still no worries. No worries would be appropriate for experienced pilots. The lack of experience with icing conditions made the situation for us personally lot less relaxed. Finally we decide to descend through a number of mailbox like openings in several layers of clouds and we find out that there is no ice build up at all.
Later we are told that even if there would have been a thicker stratified cloud layer of a couple of thousand feet, a freezing level of FL50 will give you plenty of time to loose the ice if you are building up some. Nevertheless, a DA42 or DA50 anti-icing system would offer a more relaxed descent to us in similar situations.
Approaching Le Touquet we asked Paris area control for an ILS approach. No problem for them, and he gives us a heading at 2000ft across the Channel. According to the MFD we are almost in the UK before we get a base and intercept heading which gives us clear view of some huge container ships at high speed.Arriving at Le Touquet (LFAT) after a 5 hour flight we witness a lively discussion between a German private jet pilot and the local tower about their flight plan, who has this flight plan and who should have had this flight plan. The jet is already at the holding point for the runway, has to catch a connecting flight somewhere south with very little margin in time; but has to return to the apron nevertheless. 10 minutes later we see it depart anyway, lovely sight the acceleration and climb rate of a private jet.
After a short stop on Le Touquet (if you have more time visit the fish restaurants in town in stead of the airport restaurant) we were just in time to be able to beat sunset at Lelystad (EHLE). Flying at 2.500 feet we were just on top of a cloud layer in the sun, marvelous sensation. Holland turns out to be rainy, with poor visibility (what else is new).
Pancake Airlines Crew is trained by Dwarf Powered Gliders (http://www.dwarf.nl/) and Wings over Holland (http://www.wingsoverholland.nl/). Information on the PH-PCA Diamond DA40 can be found on http://www.diamond-aircraft.at/. You can click on the title link to see the HD video on DailyMotion.
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