My Own Cessna (Well a share in one at least) - First solo flight in VA!

The desire to fly and be airborne was the primary motivation behind my drive to buy a share. At 130 pounds an hour, hiring an aircraft from the local flying club was out of the question. Instead my own share looked promising. I decided upon a share in the Cessna 172, which I had recently been flying. It was the new Zulu Papa! Even at this early stage it was clear that I would come to love this aircraft, not only as a tool of carrying on my flying career, but as a release from the every day monotony of life. Having received the all clear from the insurance company today was the first time that I was legally allowed to fly Victor Alpha without any other shareholders present. The thrill. The excitement. The shear pleasure of once again being able to fly without another qualified pilot sitting in the right had seat. With the destination of Caernarfon picked, victor alpha was prepared for the flight. This was also to be my first flight with a real life passenger, my partner Sammy.

With full fuel tanks, a route prepared and a box of chocolates easy at hand, we were clearly ready to depart. After obtained taxi clearance we lined up and departed Barton on RWY 27R into a slightly blustery, albeit warm and pleasant day with moderate Vis. Routing overhead Wigan and North of Liverpool’s Class D airspace, we crossed the coast near Formby and altered the heading to head towards Rhyl. Leaving plenty of space between us and Birkenhead (No offence to the local population!), we tracked across Liverpool Bay. Although a great deal of precipitation decided to occur directly above VA, we ploughed on and soon reached the Menai Straits. The perfect introduction to Northern British weather! The views after Llandudno Head were spectacular. Snowdon lies off the Port tip and the great expanses of the Irish Sea to the Starboard. Having to fly the straits under 1250ft Valley QFE, gives the chance to obtain some spectacular views and great photography opportunities. Telford’s Menai Bridge and Stevenson’s Britannia Bridge look magnificent when viewed from the air, especially when there is not a great deal of clearance below. We even got away without speaking to Valley MATZ, as it was a weekend!

The landing at Caernarfon was, well interesting. The approach to the active RWY brought us in over the sea on base and finals, giving some spectacular views of the local beaches. The fact that the wind was being very inconsiderate and continuing to blow slightly across the RWY at around 30kts meant that we had to crab VA in at a very unusual angle to keep track down the approaching centerline. The lading was great, no problems, firm but smooth and defiantly safe, which pleased me as I had never before experienced x/winds on that scale. The only problem was that I had to backtrack the length of the active whilst traffic was approaching short finals. The grub was good, and after a quick walk around the aircraft on display, we gave VA a well-earned drink of AVGAS tonic and departed. Mona, our next destination was quickly scrubbed due to a 35kt full x/wind reported, clearly too much for our 172.

The flight back along the Welsh coast was uneventful, until we reached Chester, where we approached Hawarden on the R/T and gained a zone clearance. This was clearly going to be a day of firsts. Having only ever flew over one other airport en-route, thus being LAX! Even here, no clearance was required. The controller was helpful and very friendly, giving us a FIS all the way to Oulton Park. From here it was a short shoot up the low-level corridor and back over to Barton. Entering on the downwind, I greased the landing just before last light and taxied back to the hanger. My new GPS PDA system had proved a valuable tool, using the CAA quarter scale chart to navigate, backed up by the GPS system. The trip was fantastic, great scenery, great flying and a mixture of radio practice, thanks to London FIR! After sailing here many summers as a boy and recently revisiting the area a few times earlier this year, the trip brought back memories.