Another ferry flight
Yesterday in the evening I did another ferry flight for Cabair, taking an AA5-A to collect Matt and Angela from Biggin Hill Executive airport who were in turn taking a Piper Warrior to maintainence.
The route is really easy as it is pretty much straight East from Blackbushe, however the London class A is very close by so I would have to make sure I don't infringe their zone and with the TMA above I have to remain under 2500AMSL. I dial in the VOR at Ockham and also the VOR at Biggin Hill itself on NAV2, the AA5 I am flying this time has no DME so I take a stopwatch to time the legs and work out the planned time over first the Ockham VOR and then arrival at Biggin Hill.
After departure I get Flight Information Service from Farnborough who ask me to climb to 2400AMSL to avoid a jet passing below coming into Farnborough, once clear I descend back to 2000. I follow the VOR radial to Ockham and then change course slightly towards Biggin Hill. I call up Biggin Hill ATIS on COMM2 and listen to both frequencies. After a short time I request frequency change to Biggin Hill approach who ask me to report at 4nm to run. Approach frequency is extremely busy, with mainly jet traffic in and out.
I am tracking the radial OK and shortly pass what looks like a grass airfield.. thinking this is the gliding site at Kenley I inform Approach that I am approximately 4nm away, I am told to remain clear of their ATZ for a moment, so I circle here until they tell me to join on right base for runway 21. I can see the airfield ahead. I join for right base however see no other traffic, which is strange, checking my stop watch I confirm that I have flown the requisite time so this should be Biggin Hill ahead. I descend to 1000 on their QFE and make for right base.
Approach soon advise me that they don't have me in sight and ask me to confirm my position, I am working this out and realise that the airfield is in fact Kenley, with it's long tarmac runways it is deceptive. My mistake was basically not to pause the stopwatch during the hold earlier, therefore I forgot to factor in that time into the ETA. I continued on towards Biggin Hill and approach asked me to contact tower, they basically assumed I was totally lost, which I wasn't but I was happy to accept their detailed instructions to bring me onto final.
On final I received clearance to land so read back the clearance and thanked the controller for his assistance. Flying down final seemed to take forever, I practiced with holding a 300fpm descent rate to keep the PAPI lights with two white and two red. The runway was huge and the two taxiways either side had several large jets waiting for me to land, I thought of the poor pilots at the hold watching me descending at 70knts, must have looked agonizingly slow.
I landed nicely and was asked to take first exit onto taxiway Alpha, from there was given taxi instructions to hold at Alpha 4. Matt and Angela landed behind me so after a long taxi round this busy airport they dropped off the Piper and climbed onboard the AA5. The return to Blackbushe was uneventful and splitting the workload with Matt doing radio gave me more time to get familiar with the area, I had never flown out this way before so lots of landmarks to learn.
Anyway good flight and a reminder to double check everything!
The route is really easy as it is pretty much straight East from Blackbushe, however the London class A is very close by so I would have to make sure I don't infringe their zone and with the TMA above I have to remain under 2500AMSL. I dial in the VOR at Ockham and also the VOR at Biggin Hill itself on NAV2, the AA5 I am flying this time has no DME so I take a stopwatch to time the legs and work out the planned time over first the Ockham VOR and then arrival at Biggin Hill.
After departure I get Flight Information Service from Farnborough who ask me to climb to 2400AMSL to avoid a jet passing below coming into Farnborough, once clear I descend back to 2000. I follow the VOR radial to Ockham and then change course slightly towards Biggin Hill. I call up Biggin Hill ATIS on COMM2 and listen to both frequencies. After a short time I request frequency change to Biggin Hill approach who ask me to report at 4nm to run. Approach frequency is extremely busy, with mainly jet traffic in and out.
I am tracking the radial OK and shortly pass what looks like a grass airfield.. thinking this is the gliding site at Kenley I inform Approach that I am approximately 4nm away, I am told to remain clear of their ATZ for a moment, so I circle here until they tell me to join on right base for runway 21. I can see the airfield ahead. I join for right base however see no other traffic, which is strange, checking my stop watch I confirm that I have flown the requisite time so this should be Biggin Hill ahead. I descend to 1000 on their QFE and make for right base.
Approach soon advise me that they don't have me in sight and ask me to confirm my position, I am working this out and realise that the airfield is in fact Kenley, with it's long tarmac runways it is deceptive. My mistake was basically not to pause the stopwatch during the hold earlier, therefore I forgot to factor in that time into the ETA. I continued on towards Biggin Hill and approach asked me to contact tower, they basically assumed I was totally lost, which I wasn't but I was happy to accept their detailed instructions to bring me onto final.
On final I received clearance to land so read back the clearance and thanked the controller for his assistance. Flying down final seemed to take forever, I practiced with holding a 300fpm descent rate to keep the PAPI lights with two white and two red. The runway was huge and the two taxiways either side had several large jets waiting for me to land, I thought of the poor pilots at the hold watching me descending at 70knts, must have looked agonizingly slow.
I landed nicely and was asked to take first exit onto taxiway Alpha, from there was given taxi instructions to hold at Alpha 4. Matt and Angela landed behind me so after a long taxi round this busy airport they dropped off the Piper and climbed onboard the AA5. The return to Blackbushe was uneventful and splitting the workload with Matt doing radio gave me more time to get familiar with the area, I had never flown out this way before so lots of landmarks to learn.
Anyway good flight and a reminder to double check everything!
posted by Chris @ Wednesday, May 03, 2006
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