Top Gear 11 Dec 05 - Cessna 182 race vs Begatti (spelling)

[hekokimushi]

Hi lads,
James from Top gear on the 11th Dec flying a G-reg C-182 from North Italy toward the UK.

anybody watched the show?

some shots have clearly shown the plane had flaps down at 10 Deg.

and some shots show it seems it might have been under IFR. and when james said Cleared to Land RWY 18 and it actually landed on 17... haha.

any comments lads?

nice to see another celib fly. any one know where he flies?

happy landing

[Sleeve Wing]

Aircraft was from West London Aero Club at White Waltham ( inc. Instructor)
Flaps were probably selected to accommodate air-to-air shots from chopper (?)
Rgds, Sleeve

[mazzy1026]

Yeah I saw it - was a good show. I too noticed things like the flaps, and especially the low height he seemed to remain at. I would guess that this is for the purpose of television.

It was unlucky that he couldn't fly at night, as I reckon they would have creamed Clarkson otherwise!

What an annoying :mad: Hammond was!

[egbt]

As there was an instructor with him (to be legal) why not fly at night? Probably because it was quicker / cheaper/easier / better TV to get to central London from Lille than other airfields

[Piltdown Man]

It was hardly representative of what you could achieve on a reasonable day. There are routes through the Alps, and they could (should) have thrown some people off the plane to carry more fuel. But the reality is, to fly in this part of the world you need an IR and an aircraft capable of flying in icing conditions at a reasonable level. But that sort of plane would cost more than a Bugatti!

[foxmoth]

If theTG team did not realise beforehand that they would run out of daylight the way it was flown then they were a pretty poor bunch - and 30 mins to do a preflight!:confused:

[Spitfire78]

I'm pretty sure they deliberately made James and the hamster run out of "air" time... Clarkson+the car has won everytime - I don't think they'd let a flying "toaster" (their comment!) beat a £850k car?

P.S. does "Captain Slow" hang around on pprune?

[BEagle]

Well, it was entertaining TV and James May talked quite knowledgeably about aviation. Of course the white-toothed hamster was being annoying - that was obviously the idea.

Good product placement by West London Aero Club!

How was Hammond able to talk to Jeremy Clarkson by phone? Is it legal in France?

[mazzy1026]

Yeah don't forget, this kind of thing will always have some fiddling to get that final, tense result. Every race they have had, is always a won by about 30 seconds - purely for entertainment purposes (and I love TG!).

It would be interesting to know if James is a Pruner or not - does he hold a full license?

[High Wing Drifter]

What was all that busines about having to land 10 mins before sunset. Also does a C182 really have 13 drain points?

[Gugnunc]

I watched the whole thing and then sulked for a bit because I thought they slagged off May and the flying too much. I knew Clarkson was to win - it is all part of the pantomime of TG.

I just thought they should have pointed out that at a fair altitude, the g/s of the 182 with (?) 160hp would have been more than the real road restricted speed of the 1000hp bugatti.

So there was I grumbling on about "if they'd been in a TBM700 with an IR Pln blah blah" until my wife subtly pointed out that I'd just returned from an abortive ferry trip trying to go VFR from Bavaria to England - which had taken 4 days to get as far as Nancy and then we'd given up and gone home on the train.

Even a Trabant would have done Salzburg to Wellesbourne eventually - in snowstorms! Still, we did get 180kts g/s from 160hp & fixed pitch prop. Beat that on a Autobahn Clarkson!

ps liked the music - 633 Sqn and Where Eagles Dare. Was continually humming WED whilst nav was talking to Munich.

[dwshimoda]

Missed this due to family committments. Does anyone know chich channel, and when, it is repeated?

Must get round to buying a video one day...

DW :ok:

[Spitfire78]

I believe it's repeated Tuesdays on Beeb2 ... but not the usual time. I think it's 19:00

[dwshimoda]

Thanks Spitfire - juest checked - Tuesday 8pm on BBC Prime. Looking forward to it!

[hekokimushi]

yep good show. but i must say. too much yaking and complaining about flying from the teeth whitening man. haha

but a pre flight check doesn't take 20 mins. maybe a B744 would take that amount of time. not a C182.

but would like to know if James is still a student or a qualified pilot. would be a nice trip for a student.

but then... who is paying his bills? em... was that a legal trip?!? was that trip for a commerical purpose?!?... kee. no further questions.

[wbryce]

IMO James still looked like a student, I think there was one moment when he had both hands on the control column (could be wrong, my memory isn't that pedantic)....I was holding my breath waiting for an instructor to slap him :E

[Captainkarl]

Now being 16 and at 6th form all my friends there who are non aviators all started slagging of aviation imediately, it was then that I reminded them how did they go on holiday to florida or where ever last year! I think to be honest a faster plane maybe a more experinced pilot with IR/Night would have won.

I say rematch, well Ive told topgear Id have a go when I pass :-P

chow for now

CaptainKarl

[foxmoth]

I was holding my breath waiting for an instructor to slap him

I suspect that bit is on the cutting room floor! - may see it in on of those out take programmes:=

[stue]

Now being 16 and at 6th form all my friends there who are non aviators all started slagging of aviation imediately

Take no notice, all my mates did that too. Its a different matter when you take them to the other side of the country for a "day out" because the whether looked good when you woke up.

(great way of getting girls into bed too!:p )

IF James had an instructor however, why didnt his instructor take over and James become Pu/t for a night rating? totaly legal? then no probs flying at night. just a thought?

have fun!:ok:

[Send Clowns]

PiltsdownBut the reality is, to fly in this part of the world you need an IR and an aircraft capable of flying in icing conditions at a reasonable level. But that sort of plane would cost more than a Bugatti!With all due respect - balls! You can get hold of a de-iced light twin second hand for about £120,000 no problem. A friend of mine is about to buy a twin diesel (TT62) for 500,000 Euros (although he put deposit down a while back - they cost more now) brand new. A lot less that the showroom price of the Bugatti, let alone the cost price! And I'd fly the thing for free :D

[wbryce]

Captainkarl,

A cessna 150 would probably beat the bugatti in a straight race from Topgears chosen positions.

It would have been good TV for us flyers if the cessna won but lets face it, we where the minority watching that day! ;)

[Captainkarl]

yeah, still I wonder how James May got paid for that episode? And who covered the rental cost? Hes not CPL I think hes a PPL

[foxmoth]

yeah, still I wonder how James May got paid for that episode? And who covered the rental cost? Hes not CPL I think hes a PPL
There have been a few posts of this sort - I am one of the first to be upset by someone doing illegal charter - I was the Chief Pilot for an IOM Air Taxi co. some time ago and when the TT came round we got the CAA inspecting everything . The illegal boys just answered "No" when asked if it was a commercial flight and got away with the lot - no AOC/CPL, single engine over water and pinching the business at a far cheaper rate than we could offer with the overheads of operating properly.
Having said that, the Top Gear setup was not really taking other business, James was being paid for his presenting, not the actual flying and people should stop stirring the S*%$t just for the sake of it.
(Still think it could have been done better though):*

[Captainkarl]

I wasnt **** stirring
I was just wondering cause i am a PPL in training how it can be done.

[egbt]

Posts elsewhere indicate a CPL/FI or higher in the right seat so legal all round.... I don't think they would have been quite that crazy. And James May gets some X-country hours in for free to help towards his PPL.

[foxmoth]

There are a few ways you can fly legaly and be paid at the same time, the important thing is you are not paid for the actual flying . One example of this might be someone who is employed as a salesman and flys to his business meetings in a company owned or leased machine much as if he was using a company car. If James was paid extra for the flying here it would be illegal, if it was just done as part of his "normal" work then I think he can get away with it.

[Wide-Body]

Ok Guys.

Top Gear is a car show, so car wins. end of story.

182 from west london aero club, with cpl instuctor in right hand seat. Yes he could have beaten the bugatti, but it would not have been so much fun.

James may is a student PPL at White Waltham and a thoroughly nice man.

Regards

Wide

[WorkingHard]

Route via Lyon is about 600nm. C182 at 150k with a 270/10 wind speed/direction give about 4 1/2 hrs flight time. Who wins?

[volvodriver]

Top Gear is a very entertaining show which is aimed fairly and squarley at the type of male and (more recentlty) female which you can see idolising bully boy Clarkson - It's My Show SO I Win OK! - from the audiance standing behind.

Now, in a previous life I was that man - not Clarkson thank God - the gauking pertolhead in the audiance. I have owned very nice sports cars which were far too powerfull for my abilities and had some hairy moments on and off of race tracks. I have had the Burberry wearing Fiesta driver 2 inches off of my tail at 60mph showing what a man he is that he can keep up with me and I've had the rally look alike 40 year old born again drivers of Subarus overtake on blind summits just to show me how much faster and braver they are!

I got well pi**ed off with this and sold the cars and took to the air. What an amazing skill to have, to fly an aeroplane. We probably all now take it for granted being able to jump into an aeroplane and head off for that £100 burger. When was the last time you thought about doing that in a car!

I quite like the Hampster Hammond however I would probably have made my excuses and switched the intercom to crew only after a while. But that was not in the script and therin lies the truth of the story - its a scripted show!

Don't get sucked in by their uneducated comments - I wonder how Hammond would have coped with the engine coughing shortly after take off due to water if the tanks had not been tested?

Me, I'm going to stick to flying long distances, whether commercially as a passenger or private as a pilot, for the forseable future. If I have to drive then I take my trusty......

Volvo !

[Gugnunc]

Volvo

I couldn't agree more. Prior to the PPL I was a PetrolHead with a TVR (that funnily enough didn't break down!) and although it was glorious, the Neds/Chavs made normal driving unbearable because everyone wanted to "have a go".

Switching to flying means that I am in an environment where my peers are co-operative, rather than competitive. Focus is entirely on judgement, skill and enjoyment as opposed to posturing. (ok well still a bit of posturing in the club house later...)

I still watch TG for the pantomime, but given my new found "enlightenment" with flying, the TG episode did nark.

If only the program editors of Discovery Wings could inject "New TG" type production values and make the Wings programs a bit more technical, less American and a whole lot more fun.

[wbryce]

If only the program editors of Discovery Wings could inject "New TG" type production values and make the Wings programs a bit more technical, less American and a whole lot more fun.

And presently, a lot less about Trains!!

[FlyingForFun]

just checked - [the repeat is on] Tuesday 8pm on BBC PrimeOh no! I was away this weekend, but didn't bother recording it because I "knew" the repeat would be on BBC2 on Tuesday.

But I don't have access to BBC Prime. :(

FFF
-------------------

[dwshimoda]

FlyingForFun - check your PM's

DW.

[stue]

FFF,
you mised it??!
after all the times that i reminded you! How could you?!
Its not on this tuesday though, some "snooker" game? what ever that is?? dont sound like much fun too me! TG and flying is much more fun!:)

[Brooklands]

Oh no! I was away this weekend, but didn't bother recording it because I "knew" the repeat would be on BBC2 on Tuesday.
According to the Flyer Forums its going to be repeated on Tuesday 20th, as there won't be a show on the preceeeding Sunday because of the snooker.

A quick on the Radio Times web site confirms it BBC 2 7 - 8pm

Brooklands

[wobble2plank]

Shame on all of you!!!

Thinking that a poxy Cessna 182 (even with a triple bladed prop) would need flap to let the chopper keep up!

I'll have yer know in my day I chased (escorted) a C182 back across dry land in me chopper and had to slow down to let him keep up! 150Kts IAS no snags.

However, on to more mundane things there were a few gratuitous bank away from the camera shots and 'ohh doesn't that look like a nice valley for low flying' shots that lost them a tad bit of time.

Also it proves that the Bugatti is no quicker than a VW Transporter van! How many times did the bloke overtake the Van with the camera crew in!!! They must have been tankin it.

Finally my A321 gets from South of France back to LHR in about 2 hours, given ATC screw arounds.

Look out and fly accurately

:p :p :p

[Barnaby the Bear]

There were a couple of errors in the film. As was said before, he was told to land on 18, but it was 17. At the beginning, despite being told to taxy before requesting. He was told to line up Rwy 03. But again he took off on RWY17.
But who cares....It was as usual a very entertaining program. Just wish I had the dosh to own a C182, let alone own or drive the Bugatti.
Considering, Mr May hasn't (from what I gather) been flying that long. Fair play for displaying his flying skills on national tv.
Yes i know he's probably paid bloody well for it..
:}
By the way Mr May, if you read this. You ran on tv without complaining too much about it! :ok:

[hekokimushi]

if the presentation is correct. the c-182 fuel twice and how many times did the 1000bhp fueled for its huuuge tank? must have been more economy to fly the 182. and where had the London traffic gone around Canary Warf on any evenings soon after dark? em...

they said at the beginning that they were not allowed in 4 wheels vehicles so at the end no taxi, fair enough, em.. but... eh... oh well i suppose the bus has 6 wheels. haha... but still i agree top gear is a top show. and of coz its biased for cars.

great presenters. Mr May did have 2 hands on the yoke... i wonder why.... haha. must be the nerves with the camera when flying. i need a cameraman to record my flights like that. both inside and out.

i too was a petrohead for a while but not for long thou, as i took up flying early enough before i spent lots on the cars. And i enjoy every penny i spend on the light sep.. not everyone can fly planes and i am proud of what we can do.

Happy Flying, Driving, Speeding lads/gals

[ShyTorque]

"Thinking that a poxy Cessna 182 (even with a triple bladed prop) would need flap to let the chopper keep up!"

I totally agree! Only a few weeks ago ATC asked us to SLOW down our helicopter on the ILS because we were catching up with the Boeing 767 in front ;)