May 2009
Note from the Treasurer – statements have been emailed/posted to everybody last week indicating that the 2009 to 2010 subs have been deducted from your accounts. A number of members have been concerned with this email /letter thinking that the subs are overdue, the email/letter was just to advise you that they are now due and how much you need to pay to square up (or that you are in credit). Apologies for any confusion.
It has been a while since the last newsletter. My apologies, I have got writers block. Since the last newsletter we have had the RAANZ AGM, the CRAC AGM and various other happenings. President Mike Sheffield will give us a report on the AGM and happenings but it might have to wait until the next newsletter.
I haven’t caught up on much of the gossip at the airfield but I did see Bill de Friez taxiing around in his Aeronica and just itching to get airborne. Mike Sheffield is nearly ready to go with the Pixie Pathfinder. It looks a nice little aircraft and we are looking forward to seeing it fly in the not to distant future. Work is progressing nicely on the two new Karatoo’s. The wings are being built in Mike Small’s hanger and the fuselages are being done by Paul Woodley in his workshop. Phil Haywood has sold his Jabiru so we don’t see him around the field much, but hopefully he will get another aircraft soon. Graeme Main has got his Jodel all stripped down in Mike Small’s Hanger and is hoping to have it up and flying by the end of the year. He is going to hang a 912s on the front to make all the noise.
I haven’t done a lot of flying since the last newsletter. One trip I did do though was to Ashburton to watch the stock cars with my son in law. That was a great way to do it. We first went to his place in Waddington and then had a look around Mt Hutt and then to Ashburton. As people who have flown in to Ashburton will know the stock car track is right on the airfield on the eastern side so all we had to do was land, taxi over and we were there. Didn’t even have to pay to get in. To come home again all we had to do was walk 50 metres, climb in KTP and we were on our way, no traffic jams, all too easy. Mind you we did have a fierce headwind on the way home but it was still quicker than driving and way more fun. Jeremy (who races at Woodford Glen) is an avid stock car fan but he still reckoned the most fun was the flight there and back.
Mike Small (alias Tom Cruise) was approached by a film crew that he has worked with in the past, to do some filming at the airfield. Basically, what they wanted was an actor in an aircraft looking down at a small boy in a vineyard. They wanted to use KTP as the aircraft. As most people know the movie world is all about illusion. They took the shots of the actor in the aircraft on the ground looking up at the cockpit while Mike rocked the wing to make it look as though it was flying. Then we did a few flypasts so they could get some flying shots. Mike, of course, took the pretty director/camera girl away to do the air to ground shots of the vineyards. All good fun. I managed to click the clock over to 300 hours on KTP and Mike has now clocked 800 hours on KTO.
Several of our club members went to
the RAANZ AGM in Motueka including Caroline Trevella in the Thrasher.
We had sixteen aircraft from CRAC there. For some great pics be sure
to visit our club website and check out the gallery. Some of the
memorable achievements were:-
Best aircraft at the Fly-in Dave Mitchell
Best presented aircraft
Dave Mitchell
Reserve best aircraft
Chris Hagen
Most
meritorious flight Caroline Trevella
Spot landing
Doug Anderson
Jeff Banister didn’t quiet make it there. He sent me a story but I have lost it in my computer somewhere. I will try and get it for the next newsletter as it is a good story. By then it will probably have a sequel. Now to finish we have a great story from Phil Rhichards. If there are any other stories out there please send them to me at dbmcp@xtra.co.nz
JOL crosses the Cook Straight
Trip Report By Phil Richards
Toward the end of March I received a phone call, which meant I needed to go up to Pahiatua (my home town until 1996, when I moved to Christchurch) in the North Island. A web search of airfares to Palmerston North and checking Ferry fares show it would cost about the same as hiring one of the club planes for the trip, and that sounded like it would be a whole lot more fun. After all that’s what I fly for.
After flying JOR to Motueka in March for the National fly in, I figured well why not fly to the North Island. This was discussed with Mike our CFI and planning and preparation began for a trip to the North Island by one of the club planes. There’s lot’s of planning to be done for the longer overnight trips. A phone call or 2 to Gordon, an Ag pilot I used to load for to get permission to use the airstrip (a 650 metre sealed strip) and an optional strip if the was too much crosswind. Time was spent getting AIP information on airfields I’d use and alternatives along my planned route. After watching weather forecasts Easter weekend was chosen as being a good time to go. Now this clashed with the fly in at Woodbury and with me making my decision at fairly short notice found JOR was fairly well booked out for the weekend and JOL was only available from midday Sunday onward, so I made the booking online and confirmed again with Mike that this trip was still all OK and am given the green light.
Sunday morning with the weather real good JOL was prepared for the flight. Fuel tanks are filled right to the top, and all the bits loaded, pickets, toolbox, oil, measuring jug (I’m going to have to mix fuel while away) 2 fuel containers (1 full) overnight kit, a life vest and most importantly MAPS and airfield info. (No GPS for me, this time anyway). Take off was on time @ 12 noon headed for Masterton, flew past Cheviot over the hills and along the Conway flats, a bit cloudy around Kaikoura and north of the town ended up skirting the coast at 500ft just under the cloud. Soon got past the cloud and able to climb a bit higher and fairly soon I was running out of South Island coastline to follow. I called Wellington Control to see if I could cross the Cook Straight @ 3500ft but due to other traffic was asked to remain clear of their airspace so gradually descended to 1200ft for the crossing and made landfall on the North Island at Lake Ferry. No problems. JOL didn’t know she was over water, and we landed at Masterton at about 3:25pm.
Approaching Masterton Aerodrome, Sunday April 12th – 3hr 25min flight from Rangiora.
Poured the full fuel container into JOL then phoned Gordon to check destination weather. The report was good with no wind so use the main airstrip, (The Tararua wind turbines weren’t even making power) soon on the way again, I landed at Pahiatua airstrip ½ hr later. 40º28 28’ S 175º49 04’ E for those who want to know where that is. JOL is tied down and fuelled ready for the return trip on Monday.
Monday
dawns with cloud at about 1500ft scudding along indicating a westerly
had come up. This is very common in Pahiatua and is the prevailing
wind. It was still calm on the ground and on the advice of Gordon I
shouldn’t delay my departure too long. The airstrip is about 02 /
20 orientation and a westerly wind can make things very interesting.
After getting the reason’s for my trip done without undue delay
went and got JOL packed and the pre-flight done, got airborne soon
after 9am, and headed south east toward Masterton. It was a bit
turbulent to start with but got smoother as I progressed further
south remaining quite smooth until getting within 5 miles of Palliser
Bay when it got bumpy again but not bad. No worse than a thermally
easterly at Rangiora. All was OK keeping just under a bit of cloud at
1200ft and following the coast. At about 5 miles before Turakirae
Head there is a valley, which comes out into Palliser Bay. Now the
wind was coming down this valley very stirred up and very rough, I’ve
not flown in air so rough so make a hasty reversal and hit another
big down draft losing about 300ft very quickly. I had a life vest on
and the inflation toggle got caught on the seat belt buckle. With a
bit of negative G I’m lifted up off the seat and there is a loud
bang followed but a loud rushing of air, my headset has come off and
I’m thinking S**** something’s broken, after a few seconds I
realise the plane is still flying fine but I’m having to look down
my nose to see the instruments the seat belt had become very tight
and it was so noisy. The life vest had gone off and I’m battling
turbulence although out off the worst of it by now. It’s definitely
not recommended to inflate a life vest inside the aircraft while
flying, it’s hard to look down your nose to see the instruments and
even harder to wear a headset. I flew on back toward Masterton
wondering how the heck do I deflate this damn life vest. I searched
my pockets trying to think of anything within reach that I could use
to let the vest down. I found a pen in my shirt pocket and resorted
to poking a hole in the vest with that, phew now get the headset back
on and concentrate on getting safely on the ground. I had the AIP
information for Martinborough so opted to land there as it was a lot
closer than Masterton, further east from the ranges, and landed there
in perfectly calm conditions. The Nor’wester got up shortly after
JOL was safely picketed beside a row of willows. No more flying today
I needed to settle the nerves. Should have tucked the life vest
toggle into my pocket instead of letting it just hang down beside the
seatbelt buckle!!!!! Yes I can see the funny side of it all now but
it was pretty scary at the time.
Now Martinborough airfield is jointly owned by 2 farmers both with their own aircraft and hangers. Alistair and Pauline McLeod operate a farmstay right beside the airstrip with his hanger beside the house with a lovely Cessna 172 parked inside. Their neighbours and co owners of the airstrip have a taxiway about halfway down the strip up to their own hanger also with a Cessna 172 shared with a Pelican Microlight. Alistair and Pauline have a room available for the night so I accept the room. I highly recommend to anyone travelling or flying in the Wairarapa area to spend a night or two there at Martinborough with Alistair and Pauline. Contact details are in the AIP NZMT, and I’ve also placed their card on the clubhouse notice board. Their farmstay is called “Aig An Taigh Farmstay” which is about 15 minutes walk to the town, if you’ve flown in and staying they will loan you a car to drive into town if you would so desire. They are fabulous hosts and Alistair being a fellow pilot is very interesting to talk aviation with and has a wealth of local knowledge on where to and not to fly and signs to look for in westerly wind conditions especially in and around Palliser Bay where I’d gotten shaken up.
Tuesday dawns crystal clear and calm, and with a good forecast (although with a hint of Southerly) prepare to head for home. Alistair loaned me another life vest since I’d ruined the first one. Soon I’m flying south heading for Palliser Bay come to thickening cloud, fairly stiff southerly and a grey haze under the cloud as I approach the coast. I turn back again as I didn’t feel comfortable flying over a grey choppy sea, under a thick cover of low cloud and a grey hazy mist. It would be too easy to lose the horizon, so back to Martinborough. Around 1pm I takeoff again with a passenger and fly south to check the weather again as the southerly had now died off a lot but Palliser Bay is still quite cloudy. We decide that it was now clear enough and I know the South Island is almost cloudless, so back to Martinborough to drop off passenger and refuel.
Airborne again find that the cloud had again thickened over the sea at Palliser Bay so I climb to 3500ft listen to ATIS then contact Wellington Control to get clearance to fly through their airspace following a gap between 2 large banks of cloud (tops @ about 2500ft) out over Cook Straight to Cape Campbell.
Clearance is given and after cruising along for about ½ hr, I am clear of the clouds and guided by Wellington Control directly toward Cape Campbell. At 5 miles from the Cape Wellington ATC call up to say I’m now clear of their airspace and bid me farewell. JOL cruises happily on in clear calm conditions all the way to Rangiora landing at home in 3hrs from Martinborough.
Until next time
Safe flying
Dave McPherson