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.
Fri 8th Sept 06 21:11:00 BST
The chaps are just getting to bed after downloading their video material
from memory stick to laptop. They are planning an early start in the morning
which probably means a 07H30 start(Continental time) for a continental
breakfast, cab drive to the airfield, quick packing no rigging(Jay has
a tendency to attract free hangarage offers, it must be because he asks).
They are planning on reaching
Yenne(spl.) just short of the Alps where they will overnight again. More
in the morning.
Last night Dave said he wanted to get an
early start, something that Jay didn't take literally; Jay was awoken
at 03H00(BST+1) to find Dave making his bed(in a hotel???? - Dave must
be old school!) and getting ready to put his flight suit on - and so the
day started.
Jay & Dave wanted to thank Jacqueline(spl.) & partner* for giving them a lift to the hotel and making them feel welcome while in Epernay.
* Jay did tell me the name of "partner" but I couldn't remember all the days details over a phonecall, I did try calling him back but his mobile phone was unavailable. Jacquelines' "partner's" name will be divulged as a sign of thanks when confirmed tommorrow in this blog.
They got to the airfield to find it was still pretty dark with the sun only rising just after 07H00(BST+1). Half an hour later they were in the air only to return because the gps battery had died on climbing out. After checking the electrical power connection, service was restored but they will need to get spare batteries as backup. They progressed at a snails pace at times, with their groundspeed down to 30mph and continuously being bashed around the sky all the way to Champforgueil airport(Google Earth view) in Chalon-sur-Saône where they briefly stopped to refuel.
They took off again finally to reach Albertville
in the Rhone-Alps where they will overnight. They did consider crossing
the Alps this evening however, there appeared to be a bit of claggy cloud
on the Italian side, making them heed on the side of caution; this does
leave them short of their daily target for both days meaning they will
have to make better progress if they're going to get a stab at the record;
something they are very aware of.
Dave commented that Albertville and surrounds must be the most beautiful
place in France and possibly Europe. Graced with beautiful mountains,
lakes and forests and the cleanest alpine air. He wishes he could share
some of the photo's that were taken however, his camera phone is experiencing
problems not allowing the pics to be sent, which is why the hacked photo's
can be found below to give blog visitors a better picture. Those with
Google Earth can see where they are by clicking
here. If looking at the Google Earth image below, looking up
the valley towards the east, you can see Mont Blanc(Europes highest mountain)
which is also the French/Italian border. Albertville airfield is the placemark
midscreen with the town centre less than 3 miles up the valley towards
the east.
They couldn't believe how friendly the folk at Albertville were. An Irishman named Joe flies GA aircraft and also an autogiro out of Albertville(he lives in Switzerland where microlights/ulm's were previously outlawed thus making sense to fly from France; 'Ecolights' are now permitted in Switzerland, check the web or BMAA groups where this has been discussed by clicking here).
He helped them with fuel arrangements, finding accommodation and also recommending airfields for their trip through the bureaucratic Italy; - they had previously acquired the service of a clearing agent who specializes in getting aircraft through the bureaucratic hoops of Italy though it seems you'll never beat good old, local knowledge.
Joe has advised them to head over the Alps and then directly to Ivrea just north of Turin and then onto Ferrara(25 miles NNW of Bologna), both of which are apparently very microlight(ulm) friendly and have fuel available. From Ferrara they will start winding their down the east coast of Italy.
You can send your wishes to the team which will be passed onto them verbally on a daily basis and also e-mail forwarding after the trip by clicking here. Well wishes will be published on this website in due course.
More news as it unfolds.
For my own personal reasons of sanity, I have managed to establish that Jacquiline's(spl.) partners name is Amos, their assistance at Epernay was greatly appreciated.
The team took off from Albertville which is 1033 feet above sea level and climbed to 12000 feet at which point the weren't climbing anymore even though still obtaining max rev's of 5000rpm. Knowing that this height was sufficient for the route they were crossing, they pointed the aircraft in the direction of Ivrea.
After 1.5 hours flight and on the Italian side of the Alps, they realized they were looming over a carpet of mist and cloud disturbed only by jagged rock peaks sticking through into the open sky hiding the secrets of the valleys below. Most disturbing, they had a groundspeed of less than 5mph; they weren't going anywhere. Not having the power to climb and not having the luxury to descend, they turned around and made their way back to Albertville.
They started descending 10 miles out from Albertville, using brief inputs of power only to keep the engine warm during the descent. Landing safely on the ground, they will be refueling and have another go at around midday when the sun should have burned away most of the mist.
The team managed to get across the Alps on their second attempt at around midday which proved quite uneventful. They headed straight for Ivrea for a refuel and then onto Vercelli where they refueled along with a quick bite to eat(airfield staff whipped them a quick Spaghetti Bolognase as they do in Italy); their spirits are high.
Wasting no more time, they departed on the 4 hour flight to Ferrara where they will overnight again as they will be running out of daylight. Considering the delay, they will have managed a respectable 6.5 hours in the air.
With tomorrow's forecast being a NNW of 15mph with no significant weather, they should finally make some decent progress and hopefully make it to the south east of Italy(near Brindisi) or perhaps even make the 70 mile hop over the Adriatic sea to Greece. Let's hope.
Having safely arrived in Ferrara (Google Earth view) calling blind as no atc response was received, they decided on a straight in on finals(they did call telephonically prior to departing Vercelli). The airfield is located just to the south of Ferrara and has a nice long tarmac runway, ideal because they have been using up to 400 meters to get off the ground at altitude.
Once again, Italy is appearing friendlier than they anticipated. The atc staff even gave them a lift to a local hotel. Smoking is prohibited everywhere so they were having a relaxing puff on the steps of the hotel while delivering this report.
Jay has confirmed they will attempt to
make the south eastern tip of Italy tomorrow, his only concern being lack
of airfields and the sun setting earlier as they fly south; he is aware
of his target meaning 500 miles of flying. They will be sitting down with
their charts this evening to plan with military precision. ATC at Ferrara
have promised to advise them of good airfields onroute with their intended
track taking them down the spine of Italy away from the mountains.
