I must admit, these long delays between lessons - and the attendant degrading of flying finesse and skills - tend to make me look forward to a flight more with trepidation than excitement. I look at the forecast and am almost disappointed that it shows as good for flying, and not so good for a lie-in, a leisurely breakfast and the never-ending list of chores.
Well, there was low cloud and haze but I shot off to Headcorn and spirits definitely lifted as the 45 minute journey drew me closer to the airfield.
"We can go over the salient revision points again", said Bruce. "Slow flight, the three stalls, the PFL, but circuits might be out".
The haze and low cloud remained but we taxied out over the soggy airfield to 11 and clattered off. "We'll climb on top", said Bruce. Well, this was going to be my first experience of that fabled land, VFR On Top, and I was not disappointed. We burst out at 1500 feet into the crystal blue and the brilliant white sea of cotton wool was there - just like in all the books! "See our shadow on the left", said Bruce. I looked round and there indeed was our shadow streaking over the cloud tops a couple of hundred yards away. "Well, watch this". We turned to converge, chased our shadow up to an enormous cloud bank, got the sun behind us and flew right into it! Fun, or what!
Anyway, we then set about the business of brushing up my skills, and I have to say the lesson was the most enormous fun. Yes, the spins I recovered from incipient
and fully developed, the PFL was a laugh - my original field disappeared from view (upwind was up-sun, in a wicked haze), I was close and high to the next choice, so there were lots of very tight turns to lose height, and a steep angled climb away to clear the houses, and a descent back to the airfield in IMC.
Bloody brilliant.
