JetRanger around the UK (Pictures added)
Yesterday afternoon I caught a train from Aberdeen to Stirling and in doing so completed the final leg of my adventure, in a slightly more mundane mode of transport than the last ten days.
As some of you may know, last year I completed my JetRanger conversion and had subsequently amassed just about 25 JR hours. My challenge for this year has been to bring that total up to 50 hours - and in doing so, to make it interesting, I thought it would make a great adventure to fly singlehanded around the UK.
Now I'm home again and over the next few posts, in the now traditional installment fashion, I'll tell the story of my travels. Along the way there will be lots of weather, some spectacularly helpful and friendly people, and just a few bacon sandwiches ! Later, there may also be some pictures...
FRIDAY 1st JULY
The journey begins with a complicated vehicle shuffle. When I get back to Cumbernauld I will need transport so first thing on Friday morning, I drive to the airfield, park the car and meet a taxi driver who takes me to Stirling railway station to catch the train to Aberdeen, where the JetRanger I've leased for the week is based. The owner is waiting to give me a lift out to the hangar.
I've offered to take the owner on the first three legs so we set out for Inverness - Oban - Cumbernauld. This first day is really a positioning flight to get the aircraft to my home base at Cumberanuld, but I figured it would be nice to extend my round trip a bit further North and take in some scenery. The weather is fine as we set out, with just a few showers to dodge. Aberdeen clears us VFR out of their Class D via Insch and we are under way. Just an hour later we're on the ground at Inverness, parked next to a bright yellow air ambulance.
After a verylong walk for a bacon sarnie we are under way again, this time for Oban. Just a few miles from Inverness a magnificent spectacle awaits us. The Great Glen comprises Loch Ness, Loch Lochy and Loch Linnhe and cuts a diagonal gash across the country from Inverness via Fort William to Oban. It's a 70nm trench with a 4000ft landmark at the far end, and we slot into it like a scene from Star Wars - possibly the easiest nav in the whole of the UK ! Keeping a sharp lookout for Nessie monsters (and low-flying RAF !), we head southwest and as we approach Fort William Ben Nevis rises, unusually cloud-free all the way to the top, far above us on the left hand side. Now the cleft widens into a sea-loch filled with dozens of small islands as we head into Oban, where Paul greets us with the usual warm welcome. We're treated to a cup of tea, jammie dodgers, and a nice slurp of Jet-A1 - all served up with one of the finest views from any airfield in the UK, out across the islands and the sea towards the sound of Mull. If you ever travel to Scotland, this is one field you must visit.
Last leg of the day is a quick hop over the hills and along a couple more inland lochs to Cumbernauld and a hangar for the night.
Tomorrow, the real trip begins. There's a warm front on the way so whether I get going or not will depend on just how fast it's moving . . .
Last edited by Grainger; 17th Jul 2005 at 17:07.