THE BLOG
A blog with daily
news and photographs will be available here. Please come back soon and
check for updates on Jay & Dave's progress.
Sat 2nd Sept 06 15:03:00 BST
Sun 3rd Sept 06 15:37:00 BST
Planned departure -Tuesday 5th September 2006. The aircraft has not been
flight check flown and is still awaiting final documentation and Permit
to Fly.
Sunday 3rd September was the original target day for departure. While the aircraft is physically ready to go, the Permit to Fly has not yet been issued leading to a delay in departure which is just as well because of the high winds. Theoretically a departure would have been possible and a favorable tail wind would have been experienced(read quite a major crosswind component) on the flight to Headcorn. The wind is forecast as a SSW of around 5-8mph on Tuesday which shouldn't pose too much of a problem, light rain(0.1-0.2 mm) expected at around midday. Winds in France in the direction of Italy forecast as a westerly which is a breath of relief, let's hope the European forecasters are more accurate than in blighty.
Sponsors decals have been applied to the wings and pod, the aircraft is really starting to look as though it is about to embark on its journey. Photo's will be released shortly.
Sponsors decals shown on
wing and pod - let's hope they stay attached when flying through or parked
in those infamous winds of Italy(or was that 2001).
Permit has still not been issued which is going to delay the departure. Jay seems stressed and I'm sure Dave fancies getting back to Cyprus sooner rather than later(I heard the radio and tv stations and Mayor etc. are awaiting their arrival), let's hope this is just a small glitch.
Well, after a day of driving to Deddington it seems progress is being made. Dave will be driving from Barnet to the CAA at Gatwick tomorrow and then back to Deddington to hopefully finalize the Permit to Fly.
Rob Grimwood & Louise
made a fleeting but helpful visit(they are off on their own adventure
for the next 12 months through Africa and back; not by microlight but
by driving the best 4x4xfar, not in Northampton Gatekeeper blue but a
brand new(stakeout in Africa) grey paint job and well placed, door mounted
Flylight advertising
logo's - nice one Paul, one can imagine the Africans placing large
orders for Skyrangers and Tanargs with bank drafts issued by the late
great Mama Thembo whos husband once managed the Congolese Airforce.
;-)
Jay has been thinking about planning his wardrobe for the (hopefully)
6 days and says he is considering visiting Anne Summers for some lightweight
and breathable garments that won't take up too much packing space; Dave
looked a bit concerned!
They have been reminiscing about their previous failed trip hoping not
to run into the same problems. On their previous trip to Cyprus they landed
at a airfield where Philippe Zen(spl.) advised them never to attempt a
crossing over the Alps after 5pm. After consulting a forecast, they decided
to take-off with the option to return. Needless to say they crossed the
Alps without any problems, airspeed reading was 60mph, gps groundspeed
was reading 130mph; - all hands off.
Photo's of the aircraft
are pretty rare but here is one. Dave has a fancy digital camera on his
mobile phone which he is hoping to send us pic's during the flight for
this blog, keep visiting.
Hopefully the smoke gods will get them off the ground sooner rather than later(..and safely to Cyprus).
AIRCRAFT 'PERMIT TO FLY' HAS BEEN ISSUED
From this day on, flight
can take place, and so they will depart on Friday morning.
The team have decided that rather than rushing a take-off on Thursday morning, they'd prefer to ensure the aircraft is check flown again(which happened this evening) and to ensure their radio is working 100% and that planning is ready for the start. My personal thoughts are that they are indeed quite ready to go(except for the absence of Jay's A. Summers shopping spree).
Dave & Jay drove directly to the CAA at Gatwick this morning, onto Deddington(BMAA HQ near Oxford) for the permit issue and then back to the airfield. A very special thanks goes out to Phil(a South African Instructor who immigrated to England with his wife Rita & their little dog which is still in quarantine in Peterborough), without who's technical help, the trip would not have resulted in a speedy take-off.
Jay & Dave will be studying those map's(Jeppesen LI-1, LI-2 & LI-3) which will overcome the bureaucracy they know they can overcome. Dave has arranged a clearing agent which can go into action to get them through Italy now that the aircraft has been issued with a Permit to Fly; ... on the last trip, they needed to land at Brindisi in Italy to be welcomed by armed guards with automatic rifles pointed at them, needless to say they gained a flavour for Italian wine while the clouds passed by.
A special mention must go to Jeremy Witcher who has given a descent donation towards the team's nominated charities. Jeremy flies a Quik 912 along with his partner Amanda(student in training). We'll give Jeremy's business a special plug for his generosity in the coming days.
The team have decided that Jay will flying as P1 when leaving England and Dave will be flying P1 when arriving in Cyprus and sharing the flying between them in between.
That's pretty much all
for today. There will be a few photographers at the departure including
a private TV consortium. If anyone is interested in the departure, please
e-mail 'the
team', I will arrange that they get your e-mails. They might
not unfortunately have much time to respond to your e-mails due to the
imminent departure.
The team are leaving at 08H00 BST from Plaistows airfield, St Albans on their record breaking attempt to Cyprus. A final farewell drink with the Plaistows crowd was just what Jay and Dave have needed to settle their nerves though in my eyes, they will be needing the support of fellow aviators along the way to maximise their efficiency to break the record set by Brian Milton(and Keith Reynolds at the time).
I think everyone has to keep this trip in perspective; the great feat of Brian Milton circumnavigating the world in a microlight can hardly be compared with this trip, something which both Dave and Jay acknowledge, however, when Brian & Keith set-out, they had a great team working behind the scenes, their planning was at a point where most unfortunate possibilities were calculated into their planning; they too were very motivated in the initial days of their trip, knowing that they always had to benefit from good weather etc.
While not tearful, Jay felt embarrassed about not previously mentioning & listing possibly his biggest donor who has not only done them proud, but also put 'the team' in a position that they are healthy, ready to go and also mentally & structurally sound ensuring they are ready for the trip under all circumstances. A great thanks go to Jepson, Bolton & Co Ltd(please also see major sponsors webpage).
While Jay & Dave are stressing out about whether their documentation is correct(including the infamous 'interception procedures' which are, as we know, in our small, open cockpit aircraft, really difficult to read, understand and navigate accordingly in such events), some characters decided to go on a lending spree. For purposes of remembrance, the following items were lent to or are outstanding and have been committed for return or delivery before take-off at 08H00 BST:
Kay : Please return electronic
equipment *
Kay : On returning electronic equipment*, please handover to Steve for
inspection.
Dave : Personal documentation.
A penultimate thanks has to go to Derek Brunt. (he who doesn't know Mr G-TDVB & all combinations thereof for aircraft he has owned and flown in his day has probably never flown).
A final request, 'PLEASE BE GENEROUS TO THE TWO GREAT, CHARITABLE CAUSES, THE CHILDREN WILL ALWAYS APPRECIATE YOUR DONATIONS'.
Bon Voyage.
Dave & Jay finally
embarked on their journey taking off from Plaistows Farm, St Albans at
08H36 this morning using less than 100m to get airborne(no pun intended).
Their first destination will be Headcorn
in Kent where they will file a flight plan for a direct routing over the
English Channel to Abbeville in France(around 60 miles of water crossing).
They were followed by Kevin ONeill and Max(Davids grandson who is making
video of the departure) in a Skyranger as well as John Hayday & Kay
Bolton in an Air Creation Tanarg.
Arriving in Headcorn around an hour later, Jay has commented that the aircraft was using more fuel than he has guestimated the consumption to be though he'll probably get a better idea once they've covered a few more airmiles.
It seems they were in trouble
before they even left; - photographic evidence will appear shortly(and
now below:)
They can run, they can fly, but the old beak is always near.
The team have arrived in Epernay where they will be spending the night. They have found a good, averagely priced hotel not too far from the airport(Plivot), those with Google Earth can viewed it by clicking here. They decided that rather than heading for the next airfield which was 2.5 hours away, they would take it easy rather than run out of daylight hours.
Fighting a 10-15 mph headwind all the way from Abbeville, they tended to fly with the bar in a little which resulted in a fuel burn of 11-12 litres per hour; not ideal considering the aircraft is hardly loaded.
Jay & Dave are sitting down to a well earned dinner at the time of writing this blog entry along with their daily ration(self committed) of a single bottle of french wine to share - they must have meant a magnum.
Further news later, remember to
if you haven't already.
