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Flying lesson
JoelP - 9/7/11 at 09:29 PM

I had a flying lesson today! Just thought id say, it was one of the most fun things ive ever done, and i dont even like flying! Cant wait to go again


BigFaceDave - 9/7/11 at 09:42 PM

Its really not very often that I get jealous but ........... You lucky bugger!

One day... one day

P.S. did uncle Ron ever do a book how to make your own airplane for under £200?


JoelP - 9/7/11 at 09:46 PM

quote:
Originally posted by BigFaceDave
Its really not very often that I get jealous but ........... You lucky bugger!

One day... one day

P.S. did uncle Ron ever do a book how to make your own airplane for under £200?


It was a voucher for my birthday 10 months ago, took me that long to get round to it! The leaflet i got though tells me its only £70 for a half hour flight, and i got to do an awful lot of the controls, firstly going up and down, banking, adjusting the trim and throttle, and eventually just being told '90 degrees left' etc. Amazing once you realise that planes are pretty stable and sort themselves out to a certain extent.

I think mark evans had a program about building a plane. Id love to make one one day, ply and epoxy


RazMan - 9/7/11 at 09:51 PM

I had a lesson as a birthday prezzie a while back. I'm not a good flyer at the best of times and I nearly barfed on my instructor - came back to earth looking a weird green colour but still managed to say "great prezzie dear" [lying through gritted teeth]


BigFaceDave - 9/7/11 at 09:52 PM

I've just had my 30th and been told to think of something that I'd like for a special birthday present and I think I may have just come up with a answer!


Ninehigh - 9/7/11 at 10:30 PM

quote:
Originally posted by JoelP
I think mark evans had a program about building a plane. Id love to make one one day, ply and epoxy


I know he did one with a kit helicopter


stevebubs - 9/7/11 at 11:33 PM

quote:
Originally posted by BigFaceDave
I've just had my 30th and been told to think of something that I'd like for a special birthday present and I think I may have just come up with a answer!


Go for it...I did it when I was 18...wish I could afford to do it again...


Bare - 10/7/11 at 02:44 AM

quote:
[
One day... one day
I think mark evans had a program about building a plane. Id love to make one one day, ply and epoxy


Don't Even think about it.
DIY aircraft has a surprisingly high 'Death Count' associated with it. About the highest of Any activity.
Many (most?) of the DIY 'aircraft' have erm... less... engineering that any 'commercial' design will have. Liability laws :-)
Crap design on Locosts has small real world effect... witness the number of Lucusts cluttering roads.
Not so with aircraft. Mistakes only lead to spectacular ways to die.
Add to that "iffy' build practices.. Aircraft parts ARE pricey.. Often DIY' ers will 'sneak in' crap bits.. cuz they are cheaper and Diy'ers are ALL about Cheap :-).
I know of one fool (RIP) who decided to forego Aircraft use certified braided steel control cabling.. opting instead for Cheap Home centre 'lookalike' cables. His Aileron cables snapped in flight.. He Died.
Don't underestimate the effect of Substandard engines.. AND... VERY low airtime Pilot experience on the part of the typical overeager..'builder/flyer" and death is More likely than not.


LBMEFM - 10/7/11 at 05:50 AM

Your not to keen on the idea then Bare. I did a couple of glider lessons down at Culdrose that was brill too.


Guinness - 10/7/11 at 08:22 AM

My wife won a flying lesson as part of a promotion at work. She's booked in next weekend!


JoelP - 10/7/11 at 08:31 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Bare
quote:
[
One day... one day
I think mark evans had a program about building a plane. Id love to make one one day, ply and epoxy


Don't Even think about it.
DIY aircraft has a surprisingly high 'Death Count' associated with it. About the highest of Any activity.
Many (most?) of the DIY 'aircraft' have erm... less... engineering that any 'commercial' design will have. Liability laws :-)
Crap design on Locosts has small real world effect... witness the number of Lucusts cluttering roads.
Not so with aircraft. Mistakes only lead to spectacular ways to die.
Add to that "iffy' build practices.. Aircraft parts ARE pricey.. Often DIY' ers will 'sneak in' crap bits.. cuz they are cheaper and Diy'ers are ALL about Cheap :-).
I know of one fool (RIP) who decided to forego Aircraft use certified braided steel control cabling.. opting instead for Cheap Home centre 'lookalike' cables. His Aileron cables snapped in flight.. He Died.
Don't underestimate the effect of Substandard engines.. AND... VERY low airtime Pilot experience on the part of the typical overeager..'builder/flyer" and death is More likely than not.


The wright brothers didnt do too bad (and i did just google to make sure they didnt die in flames )


foskid - 10/7/11 at 08:32 AM

Well done, but be warned it can be infectious. I’ve a few flying hours under my belt, all conventional ac, but a little while back I had a half hour in a Pegasus Quantum 912 microlight at Clearprop at Swindon.

It was my first experience in an open cockpit (at altitude) it was awesome, can’t wait to go back for some more.


David Jenkins - 10/7/11 at 09:13 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Bare
Don't Even think about it.
DIY aircraft has a surprisingly high 'Death Count' associated with it. About the highest of Any activity.
Many (most?) of the DIY 'aircraft' have erm... less... engineering that any 'commercial' design will have. Liability laws :-)
Crap design on Locosts has small real world effect... witness the number of Lucusts cluttering roads.
Not so with aircraft. Mistakes only lead to spectacular ways to die.
Add to that "iffy' build practices.. Aircraft parts ARE pricey.. Often DIY' ers will 'sneak in' crap bits.. cuz they are cheaper and Diy'ers are ALL about Cheap :-).
I know of one fool (RIP) who decided to forego Aircraft use certified braided steel control cabling.. opting instead for Cheap Home centre 'lookalike' cables. His Aileron cables snapped in flight.. He Died.
Don't underestimate the effect of Substandard engines.. AND... VERY low airtime Pilot experience on the part of the typical overeager..'builder/flyer" and death is More likely than not.


Don't let my brother hear that! He's a PFA (Popular Flying Association) build inspector, and ex-RAF 'officer in charge of aircraft maintenance' at assorted ranks. He's also building his own all-metal 'Vans' 2-seater.

He's fussy about build quality, to the point of obsession...


T66 - 10/7/11 at 09:48 AM

And the CAA will not licence anything homebuilt that is shoddily assembled- The issues mentioned about crashes are in the USA where the homebuild regulations are much more less regulated.

UK homebuilt does not have a safety issue - most light aircraft crash due to pilot error.




Microlights are a cheap way to get into flying, and great fun.


BigFaceDave - 10/7/11 at 09:50 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Bare
quote:
[
One day... one day
I think mark evans had a program about building a plane. Id love to make one one day, ply and epoxy


Don't Even think about it.
DIY aircraft has a surprisingly high 'Death Count' associated with it. About the highest of Any activity.
Many (most?) of the DIY 'aircraft' have erm... less... engineering that any 'commercial' design will have. Liability laws :-)
Crap design on Locosts has small real world effect... witness the number of Lucusts cluttering roads.
Not so with aircraft. Mistakes only lead to spectacular ways to die.
Add to that "iffy' build practices.. Aircraft parts ARE pricey.. Often DIY' ers will 'sneak in' crap bits.. cuz they are cheaper and Diy'ers are ALL about Cheap :-).
I know of one fool (RIP) who decided to forego Aircraft use certified braided steel control cabling.. opting instead for Cheap Home centre 'lookalike' cables. His Aileron cables snapped in flight.. He Died.
Don't underestimate the effect of Substandard engines.. AND... VERY low airtime Pilot experience on the part of the typical overeager..'builder/flyer" and death is More likely than not.


Dont panic! I would have to finish the Viento first so at this rate I wont be thinking about it until im at least 60!


gingerprince - 10/7/11 at 09:53 AM

I had a lesson about 4 years ago. Wired getting used to the fact that turning the wheel left actually makes it go 'lefterer', and wheel straight doesn't new fly straight! Would definatrly fail iva on self centreing!


JoelP - 10/7/11 at 09:59 AM

what struck me was how dependant i was on the instructor to land it - i wouldnt have even found the air field, nevermind touch down safely.


mad4x4 - 10/7/11 at 11:31 AM

quote:
Originally posted by BigFaceDave
Its really not very often that I get jealous but ........... You lucky bugger!

One day... one day

P.S. did uncle Ron ever do a book how to make your own airplane for under £200?



Try ISBN-10: 0246111887


macc man - 10/7/11 at 11:44 AM

I had a 1 hour lesson for my 40th birthday present . Flight got cancelled twice due to low cloud. When I finally got up it was great. I had a lovely female pilot too. Would love to do it again and get my wings if I could afford it. Came into land behind a 747 at Manchester airport.Great day out.


Minicooper - 10/7/11 at 11:54 AM

Had a few goes flying a Boeing 777 it was easy, beat that!

Cheers
David


Andi - 10/7/11 at 12:03 PM

I got my Mother a 40 minute flight in a stunt plane for her 70th....
She thought it was a great idea at first then decided she wouldnt do it after further contemplation.
So I did it eventually..... It was the craziest and best thing ive ever done. I got out of bed the next day and my
knees were still wobbly.
The instructor had a note book and pen which he let go of when we were tumbling and they just floated around the cockpit weightlessly ... Got me thinking about getting a PPL.

Andi


Andi - 10/7/11 at 12:03 PM

I got my Mother a 40 minute flight in a stunt plane for her 70th....
She thought it was a great idea at first then decided she wouldnt do it after further contemplation.
So I did it eventually..... It was the craziest and best thing ive ever done. I got out of bed the next day and my
knees were still wobbly.
The instructor had a note book and pen which he let go of when we were tumbling and they just floated around the cockpit weightlessly ... Got me thinking about getting a PPL.

Andi


David Jenkins - 10/7/11 at 01:51 PM

quote:
Originally posted by JoelP
what struck me was how dependant i was on the instructor to land it - i wouldnt have even found the air field, nevermind touch down safely.


My bro took me up for a flight - I know a bit of the theory 'cos I used to fly R/C planes, and I was doing pretty well at moving the plane around - then I realised that he was doing all of the 'other stuff' - talking to flight control, making sure we were going in a sensible direction, etc. There's a lot involved!


LBMEFM - 15/7/11 at 06:39 AM

quote:
Originally posted by Andi
I got my Mother a 40 minute flight in a stunt plane for her 70th....
She thought it was a great idea at first then decided she wouldnt do it after further contemplation.
So I did it eventually..... It was the craziest and best thing ive ever done. I got out of bed the next day and my
knees were still wobbly.
The instructor had a note book and pen which he let go of when we were tumbling and they just floated around the cockpit weightlessly ... Got me thinking about getting a PPL.

Andi


Are you sure you bought for your mum?????????????????????........................