Flying in Ireland

[Whirlybird]

A friend and I are borrowing a C172 some time in August and going over to Ireland for 5 days. Neither of us has ever been there. Has anyone got any hints, advice, nice places to go? What about the paperwork; I know we need to file a flight plan, but do we need to clear customs, notify Special Branch (is that for Northern Ireland?), do anything else? Where are nice places to land and stay - we both like quiet places and "interesting" airfields. I read the recent article in Flyer and Bantry looks good - 400m with water at either end, great fun. Any more like that?

(Incidentally, for those of you who know how little f/w flying I do these days, fear not! My friend is a 1600+ hour instructor, and she has been known to switch into teaching mode if I really take on more than I can handle safely, or forget I'm not in a helicopter :) )


------------------
Whirly

To fly is human, to hover, divine.

[Negative 'G']

There was a good chat on the subject a few months ago try looking at:-

http://www.pprune.org/ubb/NonCGI/Forum53/HTML/000257.html

Personally I would steer clear of the big Airfields,and go into as many strips as possible.
If you like Aircraft Carrier style runways you must go to the Arran Isles,but read the above for more details

[Code Blue]

Whirly:

If you use an immersion suit don't forget to zip up:
http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief.asp?ev_id=20001211X11628&key=1

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size="2">the pilot ditched about 300 meters in front of the oil rig's supply boat. The boat came alongside, and the pilot requested a line be thrown to him. The pilot was wearing an exposure suit, but it was not zipped up. The line was thrown, but the pilot did not respond to it. Two crewmen from the supply boat descended a rope ladder, and attempted to pull the pilot up in 40-foot seas. However, the weight of the pilot and the water in the exposure suit in the high seas made recovery impossible</font>


also don't forget Two copies of the checklists - To be sure, to be sure :)

Oh God! it's been a bad week, and the weekend's getting worser...
(edited 'cos the linky thingy isn't right like most everything else this weekend)

[This message has been edited by Code Blue (edited 16 June 2001).]

[ponxoMX235]

Would suggest SLIGO as first stop. Car hire is available (pre book if possible) Sligo town has quite a few first class eating places ; live music etc.
CONNEMARA ; Interesting dirt strip. (PPO) If possible use as starting field for the Arran Isles. Aer Arann operate to the Isles and look after the radio traffic. Beware of strong crossswinds on the Islands!
ABBEYSHRULE. Enthusiasts airfield. Book into the Rustic Inn (Ted Magooe) Saturday nights usually have an drinks extension till Monday.
Good welcome also at CLONBULLOGUE home of the
Irish Parachute Club. Call 128.55 in plenty of time.
Enjoy your Flying.

[TwoDeadDogs]

Hi there
When you get here,stand by and brace yourself for the perfectly normal aviating,despite what Mr.Flute might have implied.There are plenty of airfields but only a few have Avgas.Kilrush,Co.Kildare is a good place to start,as is Waterford.It is best if you phone up in advance(the Fly in Ireland guide is well out of date)so nip down to the library and see if they have Irish phone books.Kilkenny is another nice field.The welcome can vary,depending on the humour of some of the airfield owner/operators,who can be as changeable as the weather.
Above all,have a flexible attitude,keep an eye to the weather and you'll do fine.
regards
TDD

[Whirlybird]

Thanks people. I'd forgotten we discussed this before. But if anyone has any more info, tell me more!

------------------
Whirly

To fly is human, to hover, divine.

[Negative 'G']

MX235,

Hi R.H or should I say J.R.S.H. at least I think thats who you are,does your aircraft still weigh approx "1 ton" ? :)

[This message has been edited by Negative 'G' (edited 16 June 2001).]

[andymac]

Hi Whirly, Customs need notification inbound + would like notification outbound.
Special Branch need notification both ways.
:)

[mutt]

I thought that General Aviation flying was banned in Ireland???? Or will that only happen when the JAR rules come in? :)

Whirly, I would suggest a round the country route, starting in Waterford (Customs etc) going over to Farranfore, up the coast to Galway and the Aran Islands, on up to Sligo, back across to Abbeyshrule and Weston, clear customs and cross back home.

Try to avoid Dublin / Cork / Shannon, they charge a fortune to land there. Get a good B&B guide and have a blast!

Mutt.

[PilotsPal]

Highly recommend Galway - we've always received the warmest of welcomes and found everyone enormously helpful. Do try to call in at each of the three Aran Islands, it makes a great afternoon's flying.

[MikeSamuel]

You'll find excellent hospitality, views, and unspoilt areas in both Co Clare and Kerry.
Me and my family regularly go to see our cousins etc. in this area, and we never tire of the area.
Areas to call in at include KILKEE and KILRUSH, Clare. Try to get as far towards the west in Clare and Kerry to see the end of the River Shannon and the start of the Atlantic. There are some amazing views, aswell as great pubs!
These areas are a little cut off, so I'm not sure of the proximity of strips and airports, but Shannon is right in the middle of the two counties.
In Kerry, try to get to Dingle, a great little town, surrounded by the areas where "Ryan's Daughter" was filmed. Also great beaches and dolphin swimming out there if you like that kind of thing.
If you do manage to find an airstrip in the Dingle area, try to approach via the Connor Pass, it's a huge valley with great views from the ground, so aerial views must be excellent.
Have a great trip!

Regards

Mike

[ponxoMX235]

Negative G.
Good guess. Still weighes around a ton. Sod this European metrification. Trying to put a name or face to you though. Must be creeping
senility! Enjoy your flying

[Hector_Pascal]

Had a brill time touring around there Sept last year. Probably go back again same time this year in our warrior. We found that clearing Special Branch requirements at IOM was quick and easy on way over. Nearly got caught out with early closing in Eire at 5pm at some airfields, so always check first.

Donegal was great, ATC man even gave us a lift to his home for lovely B&B at £18/night! Flight to Sligo next day along the coastline should not be missed. Arran Islands, super fun, but watchout for the holes on the grass parking area, the rabbits use JCBs! Kerry and Galway, big, standard, but good local facilities and great scenery. Weston flying club very friendly and helpful prior to our departure back over the Irish Sea to Blackpool for another easy and quick Special Branch formality clearance. You will not fail to enjoy yourselves ! Will try and post you a piccie when I can sort it out to whet your appetite !

[Hector_Pascal]

http://www.airclark.btinternet.co.uk/INN2.JPG

Here is a photo taken of the Arran Island Inishmore with its welcoming 520m of landing distance awaiting us.

[Whirlybird]

Hector, that looks brill!!! I wanna leave now.

Well, C152 (couldn't get the 172) is now booked for 20th-24th August. Fingers crossed for good wx.

Keep on with the advice, experiences, pics etc; all useful stuff - thanks people.

------------------
Whirly

To fly is human, to hover, divine.

[Yogi-Bear]

IIRC that runway is on two levels. The eastern half is c20' higher than the western half, all joined up with quite a 'ramp'. If you look veeeery carefully at the centreline's perspective, you can see it. :)
The island is solid limestone which releases waves of heat in the afternoon. Do they bury the dead vertically, above ground, in those stone edifices that you see by the road? http://www.pprune.org/ubb/NonCGI/eek.gif :)

[This message has been edited by Yogi-Bear (edited 04 July 2001).]

[Hector_Pascal]

Mr Bear,
Not sure about about any standing stiffs! But there were plenty of standing stones... sorry to be so irreverent. The many ancient fortifications and monuments looked great viewed from the air. And I do remember the slope you mentioned, it gave the visual illusion of having only part of the runway for takeoff, which was a little unnerving.
And as Whirlybird found the last piccie a taste of things to come, I have dug out the approach to Sligo, plus a comment from Grommit.
http://www.airclark.btinternet.co.uk/SLIGO2.JPG

[Yogi-Bear]

They're both very good. Any more to come, please? I have a friend whose RV6 tested the water there, before he bought it. http://www.pprune.org/ubb/NonCGI/eek.gif

[Hector_Pascal]

OK, twist my arm ! Here is the approach into Donegal. The fading light and showers has degraded the quality somewhat, but you can still see that it is another interesting place to visit. I remember a howling xwind coming straight in from the sea the next day as we departed as it looked like the runway was put where they could squeeze it in rather than with any regard to a prevailing Westerly. On the subject of weather there are a few recommendations I will make in a later post when I get a mo.
http://www.airclark.btinternet.co.uk/DONEG1.jpg

[Hector_Pascal]

My own hot tip on a tour around Ireland, is to be as flexible as you can with regard to the weather. In case you hadn't realised, there is a very good reason why the country is so green! Anyway, the tip is to plan your destinations but delay finalising your route until a final check on the really good US Air Force weather guide for Europe found at http://www.phd.nl/aviation/wx/
Use the top left corner menu which says "make your selection.." and then scroll down to "Fronts and SLP" and look for the USAF Surface Analysis charts. I have shown an example picture below and they go up to 5 days ahead. With this rough guide you can adjust your route to take account of the forecast fronts over the coming days. Last year there were 4 fronts forecast to blast through Ireland (as they do) during our tour. By taking this into account, we reversed our plan from Northbound to Southbound and flew in between each front arriving and depositing its load. Standard procedure was to fly in the sunshine and scuttle in quickly to be in the pub before the Heavens opened. We still got our TAFS etc, but with a good big picture overview we never got stuck. I have used this site for quite a while now (as a long term guide) and it has saved me a fortune in coffee at wet airfields. God Bless America!!!! http://www.airclark.btinternet.co.uk/synop.GIF

[Yogi-Bear]

Thank you. Similar Wx to our visit and 25 knot x-wind. http://www.pprune.org/ubb/NonCGI/cool.gif The Airport Director provided the taxi service for you too? :) Mega-EU money spent on new grossly under utilised terminal. One Shed per day from GLW. http://www.pprune.org/ubb/NonCGI/frown.gif Wx strategy spot on but how do you get the net when on the hoof and staying in B&Bs?
Sembach also available on:- http://www.wetterzentrale.de/topkarten/fsfaxsem.html and a superb satelite IR photo plus mpeg scroll of same on:- http://www.wetterzentrale.de/ http://www.pprune.org/ubb/NonCGI/tongue.gif Ireland is a bit of a challenge?
Since Wx is such an important aspect of flying in Ireland, here is also the Very Useful UK Wx page site:-
http://www.maalla.co.uk/uk-weather/SYN.HTM :)

[This message has been edited by Yogi-Bear (edited 05 July 2001).]

[Hector_Pascal]

Thanks Yogi,
Great site, have added it to my favorites and it will also let me practise some German too! On the subject of helpful sites for touring Ireland, I can also recommend www.local.ie (http://www.local.ie) for general grockel info

[Radar]

Hector-Pascal

Thank you,thank you......thank you !! Sligo has got to be my favourite destination of all. It's been too many years since I flew that approach. The photo was great. Thanks for jogging my memory :)

All the best
Radar

[LowNSlow]

There's a lovely little airfield near Limerick City called Coonagh. I was visiting relatives inthe area and popped in and a very friendly chap called Foncy Hodding took me for a trip around the local area in the club Rallye. Short and narrow tarmac runway (416 x 10m). Alan Bramson (Pilot magazine) once said if you can land at Coonagh, you can land anywhere. There's a lovely clubhouse but I'm not sure if they have fuel. If you plan on going there I have Foncy's number.

[kanga]

do coonagh have landing fees?

[Whirlybird]

That sounds good LowNSlow. We might well go there, so I would like his phone no. We aren't making any definite plans or booking accommodation; we're simply going where the mood takes us (and the wx allows!). But that sounds like our kind of place.

Thanks for all the info, everyone. Keep it coming, and I'll print out the whole lot to take along when we leave. Can just imagine the scenario can't you: "Hey, head west, there's a comment here about an airfield... hold on a moment while I read a bit more..." :D

[Horsepower]

Just be careful that you don’t fly into regionals such as Galway out of hours, as you will incur a hefty charge of £200-plus to keep the airport open.

HP

[LowNSlow]

Kanga, it's £3 according to Pooleys. Punts or Pounds I don't know.

Whirl, I'm hoping to tak the Cub for some exercise to Ireland in August some time inthe laat 3 weeks. When are you likely to be going? I'll catch up with you on chat and pass on the number.

[Whirlybird]

C152 booked for Aug 19th to 24th LowNSlow; be good to see you. A PPRuNe Phly-in at Bantry perhaps?

[ 14 July 2001: Message edited by: Whirlybird ]

[Horsepower]

Almost forgot...
There’s a new 1:500,000 chart for Ireland which incorporates significant changes in airspace structure—don’t fly without it. It’s available from the IAA at IR£10. This chart has just be issued and, to my knowledge, the edition still supplied by Transair etc. is the old one. Irish AIC 10/01 gives the background to the changes.

HP

IAA (http://www.iaa.ie)

[Whirlybird]

Many thanks to all who replied to this. I've printed it all out for reference, and we leave on August 19th. Fingers crossed for good wx!