50 Flights to do before you...........
 

Prompted by slim_slags post in On Tracks 'Visiting England' thread, about flying over Sydney Harbour, has anyone else got any recommendation for 'Must Do' Flights.

My own personal 'have done' flights are D.H Rapide over London, Jet Ranger helicopter over the Victoria Falls and must not forget my Concorde trip.

They are definately 'Must Do' flights

Land on a beach (I've done that several times)

Fly under a bridge (not yet)

Fly an airship (not yet)

Fly a fast jet low level (god that was good)

Fly high enough to see the curvature of the earth (still working on that).

Thermal a glider for a couple of hours (very very relaxing, in a strangely demanding sort of way).

Get winched out of the sea under a helicopter (well, it's flying! I'm glad to say that the one time I did this was for training).

G

Mountain flying in New Zealand - Wanaka -> Glenorchie -> Queenstown -> Wanaka was just magical and probably the best flight I've ever made. Okay so that's three flights but you get the idea.

Fly any single seat a/c, where you're on your own even for your first flights.

Sydney harbour... On my list for my trip down under next year;

Landing on a beach... good idea...added to list;

Bridge...done...will probably do it again;

Airship...not yet;

Low level Jet...hows Mach 1.2 at 200feet? (F-5 in ColdLake, Canada);

Curve of the earth... still working on that one... FL450 isn't quite high enough;

Thermal in gliders...still working on that one too.. longest soaring flight is 1hr;

Winched into a helicopter...not from the sea, but unfortunately its already done :-(

Mountain flying... Ever landed a Challenger in St-Mortiz? That was tons of fun.

Self check out in a single seat airplane...twice...once in a single seat glider, the other in a Hawker Hunter!

You guys have forgoten my personal favourite: Formation Aerobatics... there is nothing quite like looping my Nanchang parked on one of my friend's wing tip... to each his own I guess

Dan

Agree about the single seat aircraft but do it properly - a single seat biplane :cool:

I've done formation, but agree, formation aeros I really should add to my personal list.


Actually my "got to do before I die" is fly an aeroplane that I designed myself. That may have to wait until I retire and have a little spare time however.

And to add another, one day I'm going to get seaplane qualified.

G

Fly:

At dawn and watch the sun rise.

On a perfectly clear night and marvel at the world laid out beneath you.

Vertically out of the clag into the clear blue sky above.

Back over the border with your wingman after the first Operational sortie.

With anyone on their first flight - just to see the look in thier eyes when they finally understand why you must do this.

I think this is the top 10% of mine:ok:

I would love to do some night-time aerobatics...
Then there's fly a single-seat aircraft;
Fly through the Rocky Mountains;
Complete a long-distance flight - something like a Canadian coast to coast;
And fly a Mustang. :O

Genghis - what single-seat bi-planes are still flying, which I could realistically get my hands on???

(Still working on the single-seat aircraft, btw. I did go to the Tiger Club to do some Tiger Moth flying. Flying the Tiger Moth is a great experience in itself, but the reason for going all the way to Kent to do it was that once I got checked out on the T.M. they'd let me fly the Turbulent, which is my favourite single-seater. Unfortunately I ran out of money after two flights.)

FFF
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Have done and recommend:

1. Orbits over Sydney Harbour
2. Victor One - a VFR flight along Sydney's beaches at mandatory altitude of 500 feet
3. Outback flying to Central Australia, Top End (Kakadu National Park)
3. Overwater flying from Australian mainland to Whitsunday Islands and Great Barrier Reef
4. Mountain flying around Queenstown, Wanaka and Milford Sound in New Zealand
5. Beach landing at Big Bay, New Zealand

Would like to fly:

1. Australian mainland to Tasmania
2. Australia to New Zealand via Lord Howe and Norfolk Islands
3. Australia to Europe via Asia

Non-stop across the Atlantic in an unmodified GA piston powered a/c. Only just been done (Diamond DA-42 TwinStar in 7.5hrs), and I'll get to do it some day. With proper training and equipment of course! !:cool:

I'm a sucker for long flights! :\ :E

HM293, SE5a replica, Pitts S1S, the Tigerlite is I believe for sale...

I've flown the first of those (a French registered example, there are none in the UK), and tremendously fun it was too (the only biplane amongst my single seaters).

http://pou.ardechois.free.fr/Images/HM293_47DG-02.jpg



Just thought of another "special", which I have done several times. First flight of a newly built aeroplane.

G

I'm sure loads of you have done it and its not a big thing, but it was for me when I had my fresh JAA PPL with 55hrs!
Flying up and around the west coast of Australia with low level "tours" of attractions such as Coral Bay, Ningaloo Reef, Rottnest Island.

Gorgeous country, wish they made it easier to emigrate :(

Jimmydacraw

I did the "Bay Tour" around San Fransisco a while back. Up the Pacific Coast, over the Golden Gate, Alcatraz and across the 4 runways of KSFO, all at 2000' VFR.

Visually spectacular.

G,

I agree with the bi-plane single seat check out, but some time one has to take what is available. In my case, it was a 10 000lbs of thrust Vintage 1950's transonic fighter. :-)

This post is great. Could not stop thinking on how I love my job / life. Seen and done so many unique things. Just to add to my personal "to do" list, landing on a glacier somewhere in Iceland and unpack my lunch...

D

Some of my favourite flights..
1. Birdsville in a Cherokee. A must. (Races held first weekend in Sept)
2. Flying to Tasmania in a Cherokee via Flinders Island.
3. Victor 1 along Sydney's coastline with the orbit near the Bridge.(did something similar in a Dash 8 too. Nice)
4. 500' along Williamtown (near Newcastle NSW.)
5. Flying in the Kimberley. Wet and Dry seasons. Unbelievable scenery and challenges. Top fun (and scary at times).
6. Ningaloo Reef. Try it at 100' :E
7. In fact, most of the Coastwatch flights were fun. Buccanneer Archipelago. West coast of Oz up to Darwin. 100' to 1500' when on task. Nice.
8. Flying over the Great Barrier Reef.
9. Seeing the Rowley Shoals (Indian Ocean) for the first time.
10. Returning from Kassel (Germany) on a very cold but gin clear night and seeing nearly all of the UK glowing with lights.
11. Any night flight over London. (so long as the heater worked!!)

On the wish list.
1. Fly supersonic intentionally.
2. Space flight.
3. Fly a mil fast jet.
4. Fly a tailwheeler.
5. Survive aerobatics.
6. Fly a jet (going to do that one in 2005) :D

I've done one of mine
 

I've flown up the Hudson River at night on the flightdesk of a 737 into EWR. Sadly, the option to ride up front is no longer there these days.

Aerbabe wrote:Just done some tonight overhead Rivenhall disused. It does add a whole new dimension to doing aerobatics and I can absolutely recommend it!

Gerard

Night-time aerobatics? Is that like instrument flying? :E

tb10er,

I've flown up the Hudson River at night on the flightdesk of a 737 into EWR. Sadly, the option to ride up front is no longer there these days.

In a 737 and then with somebody else flying? Boring!

All the TFRs have gone now, so stick in some flaps so it goes nice and slow and fly yourself up the Hudson at 1000ft

http://www.avweb.com/newspics/181613...tional_new.jpg