The intrepid adventurers of the Heelan's Flying Circus gathered together on the frosty morning of Sunday 20th November at Andrewsfield for the short flight to Tatenhill. This involved the usual extensive preparation of deciding where to go at the last minute, flight plans involving a straight black line between points of departure and destination, and much turning and twisting of compasses, before finally tapping the coordinates into a GPS and letting it do the rest.

The frosty morning at Andrewsfield

Re-fuelling fun

The usual re-fuelling exercise (involving more than 10 litres for the C-152 … in each tank!) was preceded by much entertainment in starting, with batteries struggling with the sub-zero temperatures, and Uniform Delta's starter motor problems relegating Steve and Peter to passenger status. Then followed the de-icing fun and games, with the low wing of the Arrow having a distinct advantage over that of the Cessnas, and avoiding the queue for the sole ladder.

Upfront in the Arrow

Departure from Andrewsfield passed without incident, with the Arrow making immediate strides, the 172 moving along nicely, and the 152 trundling behind, with the capable Flying Circus pilots Richard, Shane and Jane at the wheels, respectively.

Having passed Haverhill, Cambridge was the first call for info, with Jane changing frequency a little too quickly for Cambridge ATC. The rest of the outward journey was a little unadventurous except for the spectacle of extremely dense and low level fog to the south-west and the Arrow taking a closer look at Rockingham Speedway. An impatient Peter learned to trust the guys up front when the replies to his incessant 'where are we' questions were adequately handled by Nick, with a little help from a GPS.

Cambridge and Rockingham

Rugby radio masts. Power station at Derby.

Having called for joining instructions before arrival at Tatenhill, Richard was told to do whatever he wanted by the nice lady in the tower, with a sudden 'tomato colouring' skin condition occurring, as observed from the rear by Steve.

Cessna's arriving at Tatenhill

Shane in XK was second in, and after a lucky perfect landing did not have the correct voucher for Tatenhill, as the 172 occupants only carried December edition of Flyer, but was let off by the kind people at the airfield. The 152, funnily enough, was last down, to be welcomed by the same nice people, who assured their counterparts at Cambridge control that the occupants were alive and well so the Nimrod S&R could be called off.

On the ground at Tatenhill

The runway indicator was the wrong way round on the ground, noticed by the eagle eyes of Richard from the air, but was rectified on departure, and the usual musical chairs at Tatenhill saw Peter return in the Arrow and Steve in the 172, with the customary switch of nav-man person and PIC.

The port view (Bruntingthorpe) and the starboard view

The return leg was arguably as exciting as the outward, with Jane taking over the radio activity from Diarmuid at Cambridge to apologise for the earlier confusion with loss of communication.

Smoke, hills, and fog

Back at Andrewsfield, the Arrow and 172 occupants were already sinking their first beer when the 152 was busy trying to locate the runway whilst on final approach against a blinding low level sun. Luckily the runway appeared in time, and a smooth landing ensued, followed by an even smoother beer.

The back seat of XK and that inversion layer again

After much banter on the above events, the team agreed to clamber into the cramped cockpits (or maybe that's just the 152 !) and do it all again, on 18th December.

[Text: Diarmuid] [Photos: Steve R, Pat, Shane & Rob. Click here for the rest of the photos]