1st Solo to Le touquet

[mumraa]

Yesterday was my first solo in a PA28 to le touquet (passed PPL in Sept). I am on an incredible high contemplating my adventure yesterday and cant wait unti the next 'wing spreading' exercise!

Took off from lydd a little later than planned with 2 passengers. easy flight to boulogne using the LYD and BNE vors, right turn to le touquet in fairly poor vis, (was very hazy). Tower asked me to join left base for R14, I know the river runs parallel with the runway but the haze and ice on the runway made it look very confusing as to the exact distance, and I couldnt make out the threshold for R14 due to the reflection of all the ice. I decided to abort my initial join (about 3 miles north) and fly north again and climb inorder to reassess where the actual threshold was. The runway just looked shiny because of all the ice/water and was difficult to distinguis from the river. The second approach was fine, commenced base a little further out to sea using the ndb for orientation and landed a greaser. It turned out that my initial approach was fine, but i wasnt prepared to commit with this small doubt in my mind as the precise location of the threshold.

I'm pretty sure i did the right thing to abort the approach in order to orientate myself with the runway threshold, but would welcome any comments from anyone elses experience with poor vis/temp inversion etc, and patchy shiny runways! This is a first experience for me and was an excellent learning curve.

I would like to fly to Deauville in a month or two. Anyone ever landed there, and have any advice?

cheers in advance from a very stoked PPL.

[FNG]

Some tips for Deauville:-

1. On the way in, an unmissable landmark and the usual reporting point is the Somme Bridge (ie: huge suspension bridge over the Somme Estuary) [Edit@ Dohhh! Seine not Somme. Temporary inseinity. See below. Must have Somme on brain after driving through the region en route back from big white
pointy slidy downy things the other day]

2. There are no no particular difficulties in joining, approach or landing. There are friendly people in the Tower and at the reception desk where you buy fuel and pay your landing fee.

3. Why not take a cab and stay the night in the attractive town of Honfleur, which has some reasonable hotels. There is a pleasant restaurant serving classic Norman cuisine on the southern side of the harbour basin, where you can watch the British yachties who have just done what you have done, only more slowly, and using a different kind of airfoil. The twin-naved wooden church, built by boatmakers, as is evident from its roof, is well worth a visit.

4. If there at the weekend, why not pop into the grass strip at Bernay, home of Avions Mudry, a few minutes flying to the south of Deauville?

5. File your outbound flight plan using the dedicated terminal located in a little booth next door to the reception office. There's also a weather terminal. Step by step instructions for both are clearly displayed.

Have a good trip.

[Flyin'Dutch']

Hi Mumraa,

You did the right thing. Being unsure it is best to abort and re-appraise the situation, a lot better than pressing on.

Can second the idea of going to Deauville. It is very nice.

FD

[bluskis]

My advice is to avoid Honfleur and settle for Deauville, or perhaps Trouville which is 100 yds from Deauville town, acrossa river bridge.

Taxis are a complete rip off, and will try to talk you into going to Honfleur which takes for ever and rewards them handsomely.

If you are staying for a couple of days try phoning a car hire company in Deauville. Two years ago the rate was £24 per day and £5 each way for airport delivery and collection. This is enormously cheaper than the airport officials favourite taxis.

If you care to, send me a message for their phone number.

All this may sound a bit strong, but I was so annoyed with myself for being led astray the second time details of Deauville ground transport are now part of my fight bag.

[FNG]

I am sorry that you had a bad experience with a taxi driver bluskis, but that can happen anywhere. Do you speak French? Using the local language can be a safeguard against involuntary participation in the scenic route (this doesn't work in New York as the NYC taxi drivers are from Armenia). Last time I went to Deauville I had a short and reasonably priced taxi trip to and from Honfleur, blathering in dodgy French to the driver, who was deploring Le Pen's strong showing in the election. Proof that not all taxi drivers are rip off merchants or, indeed, right wing nutters. Honfleur is close to Deauville and definitely, as M. Bibendum would say, vaut le detour.

[Fly Stimulator]

1. On the way in, an unmissable landmark and the usual reporting point is the Somme Bridge (ie: huge suspension bridge over the Somme Estuary)

Unmissable unless you are following the Seine (not the Somme - you'd be in for a very long final into Deauville from there!) along from the east, in which case there's another fairly large suspension bridge a few miles upstream!

The one that is the Deauville Echo Delta reporting point is le Pont de Normandie.

I flew there on Wednesday from Lydd while the rest of England was being snowed on. We were the only aircraft at Deauville (never seen that before) and we got a taxi into Honfleur. Chatted in broken French to the driver on the way in. He didn't take any money for the trip in, but just asked us where and when we wanted to be met for the return journey. We had a look round a near-deserted Honfleur, had a good lunch, met up with our taxi and headed back.

It was about 15 quid each way - not cheap for the quite short distance involved, but not a big factor in a day's flying really.

mumraa , send me a pm for more details if you want - since we both fly from Lydd we've probably already met.

[Monocock]

Mumraa
Congratulations on your first X-Channel expedition.

WX was great 4 it too.

Mon

[bluskis]

FNG

My wife is French, so misunderstandings were limited to being talked into doing something we had not intended, staying at an inadequate and expensive hotel we had not intended, of course recommended by the taxi driver, and a couple of years later repeating the misjudgement.

We were much better served in Deauville/Trouville, and just in case we forget again, carry the contact numbers with which to bypass the taxi service.

[SteveR]

Well done mumraa - sounds like a good call to me.

I was there too on Saturday. You didn't,... um,... happen to, ..as it were... - stumble across my logbook, did you?

Since qualifying, I've carried my logbook with me when I fly - utterly pointlessly and unnecessarily risky. On Saturday I wanted some instructor intials in it, against some some night training I'd done a couple of years and now I want to resume the training.

So I took it, and now I've lost it.

I'm about to make a second round of calls to L2K, but I thought I'd mention my loss here just in case.

(A good job I've got an electronic backup, but it's not the same)

Steve R

[mumraaa]

Thanks for your replies, and sorry SteveR I didnt see your log book. Fly Stimulator, we probably have met as you fly from lydd too. (have sent you a message).

Another question: If arriving at an unfamiliar aerodrome and the vis is really poor (such as temp inversion with poor horizontal vis), how effective is it to pass in the overhead to assess the runway before comitting to the circuit? If ATC had already given instructions to say enter left base or downwind etc, would they be receptive to a request to fly in the overhead in order to assess the runway threshold? I'm fairly sure this is what i would like to do in a situation like this, but would welcome any further advice/comments.

cheers

looking forward to my next flight next weekend!!! weather permitting of course.

[Irv]

I'd agree it can be better to hire a car than 'taxi' - the coastal towns from Honfleur westwards are worth a little tour. I do like Trouville myself - (Honfleur is quaint, Deauville rich, Trouville is a good old fashioned honest seaside with excellent ordinary restaurants.)
However - I didn't append to say that - has anyone else incurred THE INCREDIBLE WRATH of Deauville airport by parking 'the wrong way around'? I did it just for 5 minutes to clear customs - Unbelievable - I landed and happened to park facing into 22 kt wind, but all the other parked aircraft were tail to wind. You should try it just to see the reaction. ATC sent firemen to intercept me as I walked over the apron and they came close to physical violence - I actually was forced back to my aircraft, had to restart, turn 180 degrees and re-park before the blockade on me approaching customs was lifted. It took 2 mins to clear customs and then I was departing again.

[Taildragger]

Mumraaa .....

One of the most important rules for Air Traffic interface, is that THEY are there to provide a service to YOU.
You both have to contribute to sensible and pertinent flight operations, but all you have to do is press that Mike key and ask. Definitely 8-9 times out of ten your request will be approved if they can. If it is not, then do the other. If you can't, then tell 'em that too and why.
Certainly if you don't know where you are going, you certainly won't know where you are when you get there.!!
What you are in engaged in tight now, is the single most sensible rule in aviation for someone who is not sure..... you are asking pilots who have been there before, done this, done that, and have a safety story to tell.
Just dont get all phsyched up....the French are simply Socts with the generosity and good humour removed. I love 'em and their food. Fly safe my friend.

[bluskis]

Irv
I can back up your experience with the ground staff at Deauville. I had just the same experience re. parking, once with very mixed instructions from the tower, followed by new ones just as you have shut down. Also the occasional refueling problem, so best to refuel on arrival if the option is available.

I actually made the point of complaining to the tower on that occasion.

However, stroppy staff, high landing fees, and taxis aside, there is a good weekend to be had in the area.

To find the field in poor viz there is a vor and an ils, but that doesnt help a VFR pilot if the sea mist has come in, so inland alternates and delayed departures have to be allowed for.

Not much different to Le Touquet in that respect.