If it happens two years in a row, that makes it tradition, right? Last year I put together the ten most popular posts as an end of year wrap-up. I’ve checked the results for 2011 and I’m a little bit surprised that we have only one repeat entry. All the rest were posted this year.

Number Ten: We’ve Lost the Cabin: Southwest Flight 812

On the 1st of April this year, Southwest Airlines flight 812 departed from Phoenix for Sacramento. There were five crew and 118 passengers on board.

At 34,000 feet, climbing through to FL360, there was a loud sharp noise. The cabin experienced rapid decompression and the oxygen masks deployed.

Interesting to see this particular incident in the top ten. You can be sure I’m planning a follow-up to this piece!

Number Nine: Unfit to Fly

After parking at the clubhouse, the pilot spoke to several club members. They described him as being in a highly agitated, even distressed, state. He was sweating profusely, with sweat-soaked clothing. He was also very voluble, and talked of a number of things, including personal family issues which were obviously a source of concern to him. He was given a hot drink but did not eat anything.

If you have read a few of my accident analyses, you’ll know that I’m usually pretty quick to defend the pilot but in this case, there’s really no excuse. He should not have been flying that plane.

Number Eight: How to Drown a Jet

Somewhat telling is the commentary from the person who started filming: “We’ve got a nutball trying to land.” Even he didn’t expect to see the landing go so completely wrong, though. And then at the half-way mark of the video, just when I thought it was all over, things suddenly get exciting again.

Well, this one is pretty hard to justify as well. The video is amazing to watch and I’m still giggling at the registration for his new Citation.

Number Seven: Sex and Skydiving and the FAA

The film, titled “SexSkyDive” by Live2FlyVoodoo Productions, was a low-budget project. In the early hours of the morning before the skydiving school opened, Torres and Howell met up with a pilot and a camera man to create the footage. The good-looking couple boarded the plane naked and were filmed having sex next to the pilot as the flight began and then continuing with their, um, throes of passion as they jumped out in tandem and soared through the sky. The cameraman jumped after them for long range shots and Torres appears to have had a camera in his hand to get a close-up view of Howell’s ecstasy.

Of course, you all only watched the video to see if the pilot violated any federal guidelines, right?

Number Six: Stunt Pilots Survive Crash at Air Fiesta

When the engine quit, Amanda was on the top wing in the rack. Kyle continued to fly the airplane in a straight and level fashion as long as he could to give Amanda every opportunity to unstrap and get into the front cockpit where she would have the best chance in the event of a hard landing.

Just seeing this post again breaks my heart. Amanda Franklin did not survive the injuries and burns received in the accident. However, you can still support Kyle Franklin who is committed to continuing flying. His website is at Franklin’s Flying Circus & Airshow and he has a Facebook page (you don’t have to be a member of Facebook to read it) at Facebook: Franklin’s Flying Circus

Number Five: In Deep Shit

I have been researching the original rivers of London, specifically the Fleet, which is a part of the famous Victorian sewer system designed by Bazalgette in the 1860s and 70s. I found photographs on various websites: dark brick curved walls with a trickle of grey water pooling at the centre, all edges fuzzy in the low light. I wondered if there was a way to see them for myself and, on a whim, I sent a message to Thames Water asking if that might be possible.

You could have knocked me over with a feather when they said yes.

Not at all aviation related but I hoped you might enjoy joining me on my sewer tour and I’m glad to find I was right.

Number Four: The Amazing Story of the B-17 Flying Fortress

“Part of the nose peeled back and obstructed my vision and that of my co-pilot, 1st Lt. Phillip H. Stahlman of Shippenville, Pennsylvania. What little there was left in front of me looked like a scrap heap. The wind was rushing through. Our feet were exposed to the open air at nearly 30,000 feet above the ground. The temperature was unbearable.”

The 398th Bomb Group Web Site is an amazing resource and I was thrilled when they gave me permission to share one of their stories on my website.

Number Three: Southbridge Tornado

On the 1st of June, a tornado touched down in Southbridge in the late afternoon. It left a 39-mile path of damage behind it, the second longest track in Massachusetts’ history.

This is a collection of visuals from the aftermath: two videos and photographs from Dan Collins who had his plane hangared at Southbridge Municipal.

Number Two: FAA Approved?

So, the story goes that the Alaskan pilot had 2 new tires, three cases of speed tape and several rolls of cellophane delivered to the site and promptly repaired his plane so that he could fly it home.

This collection of photographs was the most accessed page in 2010 and almost again in 2011. Since my post, the event has had world-wide media coverage and even inspired a television episode: MythBusters: Duct Tape Plane. Also, you can read the whole story on Alaska Dispatch, who spoke to the pilot’s father: An appetite for revenge.

Number One: A Close Encounter with an Emu

I touched down 80 metres from the threshold and was just letting it roll out (save the brakes and undercarriage on the rough strip) and the speed had just dipped below about 90kts. Approach on the PA-601 is about 100. As you can hear, we were discussing the state of strip, which used to be very wide, but the grass is narrowing it further each year. An emu was sitting on the side unseen in the bushes and we obviously startled it, and it bolted from cover in front. One of my passengers yelled out, and I jumped on the brakes, hard, and washed off about 40 knots in about 3 seconds! The emu went in front of us and lost his footing on the loose dust, just as the wing passed harmlessly over him! Cue much celebration!

I have to admit, this was probably my favourite post as well. I’d found the video a few weeks earlier and was thrilled when the pilot agreed to tell me all about it.

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So, that’s it: the top ten viewed posts from 2011. There’s definitely a bias towards high-action and adventure there!

I hope you enjoyed these and I’m looking forward to sharing many more interesting posts with you in 2012.

Happy New Year!

In the past, I’ve posted ideas for Christmas presents for pilots. But that’s silly. Honestly, pilots are easy to find presents for. We love planes. We love gadgets that attach to our planes. We love books about planes. We love models of planes. We love movies showing planes flying. We love running around the living room with our arms outstretched making engine noises by buzzing our lips. Or maybe that’s just me?

Anyway, it really isn’t difficult to find good gifts for pilots.

It’s all the other muppets who are the problem.

So this year, I thought I would focus on presents for people who are not pilots. And most importantly, presents for people who are not pilots which you can actually manage to organise when you’ve left your Christmas shopping until the very last day.

Not that I would ever end up in such a situation.

Here are my top choices:

Number Three

DIY Star Wars Snowflakes at Matters of Grey

These are so easy to make and great fun! And if the gift is for someone crafty and you aren’t, you could even make a snowflake-making-kit! Just put together a package with paper and a print-out the designs with a pretty ribbon to tie it all together.

Number Two

Doughnut-Hole Croquembouche Recipe at Epicurious.com

Buy two dozen doughnut holes, some plastic holly leaves and a box of toothpicks and make a Christmas tree. As long as it is vaguely in a pyramid shape, it’ll be good enough. It’s deep-fried dough covered in sugar. How could anyone resist?

Number One

You Fly Like a Woman at Amazon

If you know anyone who is getting a Kindle this year, you can purchase this best-selling* e-book on Amazon and introduce them to the craziness excitement of flying. You can choose “give as a gift” on Amazon.com and the recipient will get notified on the 25th that this awesome e-book now belongs to them. What a perfect present, right?

* Well, it’s the best-selling e-book featured on this blog, anyway!

I’d like you wish you all a very merry Christmas and as my gift, here is my favourite Christmas song of the season:

See you next week!

Last week I posted a link on Facebook about a “sex diving incident” which had the FAA investigating two skydivers after a sexually explicit video was passed around at a local high school, showing a couple having sex in a small plane and continuing through a skydive.

Since then I’ve done a little more research out of curiosity as to why the film was made and why the FAA were investigating the poor pilot, who simply ferried the skydivers to their jump point as with any other skydive.

Skydive Taft offers accelerated free fall training as well as tandem skydives for first-time jumpers.

Alex Torres worked at Skydive Taft as a part-time instructor and Hope Howell was the receptionist. They were the stars of the video.

The film, titled “SexSkyDive” by Live2FlyVoodoo Productions, was a low-budget project. In the early hours of the morning before the skydiving school opened, Torres and Howell met up with a pilot and a camera man to create the footage. The good-looking couple boarded the plane naked and were filmed having sex next to the pilot as the flight began and then continuing with their, um, throes of passion as they jumped out in tandem and soared through the sky. The cameraman jumped after them for long range shots and Torres appears to have had a camera in his hand to get a close-up view of Howell’s ecstasy.

Alex Torres, a French-Canadian porn star known in the industry as Voodoo, then posted the video on his blog.

SEX SKYDIVE!!!! THE CONTROVERSIAL VIDEO SEEN WORLD WIDE!!! – voodoopornstar’s posterous

I am Voodoo, your guide into a world of perverted adrenaline and sacreligious behavior. Ready or not, here I cum.

I am a CONTRACT PORNSTAR and pro skydiver and I am the only Pornstar Skydiver in the world to actually have sex while skydiving!!! I live2fly and fly2live. And yes, I am a true NYMPHOMANIAC!!! MY GOAL IS TO HAVE MY OWN REALITY SHOW ON MTV!!!

His initial commenter is not so very impressed:

Sorry to burst your bubble dude, but we were doing this back in the 70′s, without the tandem harness tho, which makes it somewhat more difficult to stay “together”, but we weren’t porn stars either so I guess you’re right.

The video begins with the url and phone number for Skydive Taft with “Wish you were me?” in the foreground written on a woman’s hand. This photograph is from the Skydive Taft website and appears to me to be Alex Torres jumping with Hope Howell, although with a bit more clothing than in the video:

The sexual nature of the clip attracted the attention of staff at a local highschool where the students were passing it around. The police investigated and contacted David Chrouch, the owner of Skydive Taft. Chrouch claimed to have not known about the video and fired Alex Torres immediately. He told the local news reporter that he was undecided as to whether to fire his receptionist as well. Torres is said to have immediately removed the video from his website but it is present on the link above, presumably reinstated once the police admitted they had no reason to charge the skydiving couple.

All of the participants were consenting adults. The flight took place in the early morning and there were no witnesses, so there was no issue of public nudity. The frustrated police stated that there was no crime but notified the FAA who agreed to investigate the pilot. The video shows Torres and Howell having sex within inches of the pilot. There is no filmed interaction between the couple and the pilot.

Ian Gregor, spokesman for the FAA, admitted that there was no explicit policy on sexual conduct on private planes. However, he justified the investigation stating that “any activity that could distract the pilot while he’s flying could be a violation of federal regulations.”

Here is the original, uncensored video which is NOT SAFE FOR WORK nor do I recommend watching it with your children within hearing distance. Seriously, it’s meant to be a porn flick. Don’t press play unless you are happy to view explicit sexual footage.

If you’d rather play it safe, you can watch this clip from CNN which is “safe for work” and includes tasteful stills from the video:

David Chrouch says that his sky-diving instructor came up with the stunt in order to get the attention of Howard Stern. He claims that he had no idea they were planning the porn flick and that the couple had lied to the pilot, saying that they had the OK to do the filming. But Thomas Roche posted on Violet Blue’s open source sex site questioning the situation.

He believes that receptionist Hope Howell was also a porn star and the pair had been hired to perform the sky-diving stunt. Certainly Hope Howell told ABC news that she’s done more than a dozen adult films, although this was only her fourth jump. She also said that her boss, David Chrouch was involved in the planning.

Woman In Skydiving Sex Tape Speaks Out – South County News Story – KERO Bakersfield

The owner of the company, David Chrouch, said he wasn’t there when the stunt happened and didn’t know what was being planned. Howell said that’s a complete lie.

“Our boss was there. Everything was approved. We did plan it out,” Howell said.

There has also been confusion about whether or not she was fired from her receptionist job at Skydive Taft. She said call it whatever you want, she is not working there anymore.

“I got a phone call saying I was fired, and I feel like that was a stab in my back,” Howell said.

Thomas Roche sums it up in his post (Note: website contains adult material and is not safe for work: Skydiving Sex Scandal! But Who’s Getting Screwed? | violet blue ® :: open source sex):

So here’s the deal: Skydive Taft hired “the only Pornstar Skydiver in the world” as a skydiving instructor, hired a hot 20 year old who appears to also be an adult performer as the school’s receptionist…then fired them for making porn while skydiving?

Am I alone in thinking that would take some monumental cluelessness? Or is it that it would take monumental cluelessness to believe Chrouch didn’t know about the stunt? Just how stupid does this guy think we are?

This is obviously a publicity stunt from the start, but I seriously doubt it’s an example of Torres and Howell conspiring to screw their employer, or even do something they thought they could “get away with” and then get proven wrong. I find it much more likely that Skydive Taft owner David Chrouch was in on the whole thing from the get-go, for publicity reasons…and then he chickened out when the cops came sniffing after him.

Last Friday, the spokesman from the FAA conceded that the video evidence confirmed that the pilot was not distracted. Having seen the video, I have to agree that the pilot is clearly focused on the flight and does not appear to be particularly interested in his passengers.

Skydive Taft owner David Chrouch spoke to local newstation KGET about the investigation:

No, I wasn’t concerned. He was in complete control of the plane at all times. I mean he looked back a couple of times. The same thing he does if there are other skydivers in the plane. He is going to look back, he’s going to look around to see what everyone is doing.

The fact that the FAA even bothered to investigate is somewhat embarrassing and clearly a direct result of the titilllating nature of the video, rather than any real concern for what appears to have been a perfectly safe flight. I did note that there was no reference to it within the press releases on the FAA site.

If you enjoy this blog, consider buying my ebook: You Fly Like a Woman for under a dollar at Amazon.

For pilots here in the UK, the Airspace & Safety Initiative (ASI) have launched an initiative that might be interesting: ‘File a Flight Plan Day’ to get GA pilots warmed-up for Olympics.

A unique, one-day event in November, will aim to get as many GA pilots as possible thinking about flight planning, ahead of next year’s London 2012 Olympics. Any pilots wishing to fly though the Restricted Zone, being put in place over the capital and surrounding areas during the Games, will need to file an accepted flight plan with air traffic controllers before they can take to the skies.

You are encouraged to create and submit a flight plan similar to flights that you think you might wish to fly during the Olympics, although they are quick to point that pilots do not actually have to fly the route on File a Flight Plan Day!

Not sure where to start? I realised that I had no idea how to file a flight plan in the UK. Luckily, I was talking to Kelly who works for RocketRoute and she said it was easy and even offered to write a blog post about it.

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For pilots here in the UK, the Airspace & Safety Initiative (ASI) have launched a unique one day event, ‘File a Flight Plan Day’ to get GA pilots warmed-up for next year’s Olympics.

What is it?

File a Flight Plan Day will take place between 10:00 and 15:00 on Saturday 12 November 2011. The ASI are encouraging GA pilots to file a test flight plan to familiarise themselves with the process that will be in place from 14th July to 15th August 2012. This is so that pilots can continue to fly with minimum disruption if they plan to fly during the Olympics next summer. The 5 hour event will not require the planned flight to be flown as it is only a test. It will be a good opportunity to address industry concerns regarding the flight plan process and will give Atlas Control (the military ANSP who will be providing the ATS and flight planning facilities) the opportunity to test the air traffic management arrangements set to be in place over the Olympic period.

What to do

On 12th November between 10:00 and 15:00, you are encouraged to file a test flight plan. This can be done through AFTN or by logging onto www.olympicflightplantrial.co.uk using your AFPEx account login details. Those who are not yet registered on AFPEx are advised to sign up as soon as possible. The plan should be based on a similar route that you may intend to fly during the Olympics.

To avoid any disruption to the ‘live’ flight planning system participants should carefully follow several steps to indicate their plan is actually a test. These include:

• Operational AFTN users must ensure the flight plan is only addressed to those taking part in the test – EGGOLYMP. It is then the responsibility of the service supplier to ensure that these Operational terminals do not send test messages to AFTN devices that are not part of the test.
• AFPEx users must use the AFPEx site at http://www.olympicflightplantrial.co.uk as this will keep all messaging away from the operational traffic.
• All test plans must be VFR.
• If flight plans have inadvertently been sent to the wrong address, a remark must be submitted into field 18 of the test flight plan “RMK/OLYMPIC FPL TEST PSE IGNORE”. This is to ensure they do not cause a flight safety issue.
• Add your name and phone number in field 18 “RMK/ PILOT JOHN SMITH 07700 770077″ as during the Olympic period, acceptance codes will be sent to these numbers.
• The equipment that Atlas Control will use is based on an automated system and therefore it will not be able to process non-standard entries in the route field 15 of the flight plan (such as locally use VRPs). To ensure that your flight plan does not get rejected it is strongly recommended that you use either navigation aids, 11 character lat/long coordinates or 6 digit bearing and distance from a navigation aid, for example: Stokenchurch Mast is approximately 5140N00055W or CPT049015

If you require help completing a flight plan, you can find it in CAP 694 — the UK Flight Planning Guide. You can also find out more about the procedure in place for File a Flight Plan Day at http://olympics.airspacesafety.com/downloads.

The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) UK is part of the largest association of pilots in the world, with over 470,000 members in over 50 countries. AOPA is a not-for-profit organisation which exists to serve the interests of aircraft owners and pilots, promoting the economy, safety, utility, and popularity of flight in general aviation aircraft. AOPA UK is teaming up with RocketRoute to offer pilots the facility to use their services to file a test flight plan as an alternative to AFPEx. RocketRoute have developed and put together their own bespoke flight planning software that can accurately direct aircraft in the fastest route possible with minimal fuss. RocketRoute members receive 24/7 flight planning, filing and management support. The service is available through PC and Apple Mac computers, as well as internet mobile phones and tablets. Users of RocketRoute will be able to file VFR flight plans free of charge for flights during London’s restricted airspace during the 2012 Olympics.

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So now there’s no excuse not to file a flight plan in November, just to prove you can. Thank you, Kelly and RocketRoute, for the guest post and step-by-step advice!

This guest post is from Stephanie of Hillsboro Aviation in Oregon, who was kind enough answer my questions about how to start an aviation career. I hope my son is reading this!

The Route to an Aviation Career

The route to becoming an employable commercial pilot is not necessarily easy. Is it worth it? That really depends on you—if it’s your dream to fly airplanes or helicopters for a living, then it probably is.

Before you start out, however, there are some things you should understand. It will likely take years before you are ready to start piloting a big, commercial airline jet or flying helicopters commercially. During this time you may be earning little money and even paying money for airplane or helicopter flight training to earn the necessary certificates that you need. If you are okay with this, then it’s never too late to start.

Education

In addition to the necessary airplane or helicopter lessons, many employers like to see that you have completed some formal education. While there is usually no official requirement that you must obtain a degree to be a pilot, it does not hurt and often helps in the recruitment process. Consider going for a math or science degree to boost your credibility in this area.

Flight Training

You will need to log a certain number of flight hours with an instructor and a certain number solo to get your first certification: Private Pilot. With this certificate, you can then work on getting either a Commercial Pilot Certificate for an airplane or a helicopter. Once you complete your commercial certificate, you can work on your Certified Flight Instructor Rating. With this rating, you can get a job as a flight instructor which is a great way to build your flight hours and pay for food at the same time. As an instructor, you can get paid to help other students learn to fly an aircraft and build up the necessary hours flying. According to Hillsboro Aviation, a flight instructor must be prepared to educate, motivate and evaluate his or her students effectively.

Somewhere between getting a private certificate and a commercial one, you’ll need to get an Instrument Rating in order to fly in conditions of low visibility. Commercial airline pilots will also need a multi-engine rating, which gives you experience in a multi-engine aircraft and an Airline Transport Pilot Certificate, which ultimately allows you to be the pilot in charge (or the captain) of a big, commercial airline jet.

After Certification

After getting a commercial certificate, your “training” may not be finished. Depending on the type of career you are seeking, you’ll most likely have to work your way up to the job you want. Airlines don’t often put freshly-certified pilots in charge of large 747s after all. With a commercial license you are ready to fly charter jets or with a regional airline, all the while getting more flight experience and more time in the sky. After that, you are ready for major airlines, where you will likely undergo more preparation directly from the airline.

With helicopter pilots, there are a lot of different options available from emergency medical services to sightseeing operations. Check out the specific requirements for the job you want, and if you do not yet fit the bill, work on getting as much experience as you can.

Conclusion

As you can see, it may take some time for you to land the pilot job of your dreams, but it is definitely possible. The best thing you can do to begin the journey is start logging as many hours in the cockpit as possible. Before you know it, you’ll be ready to take on any challenge.

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If this has you dreaming of a career in aviation and you are local to Portland, you can visit HIllsboro Aviation yourself to find out more. They offer both Helicopter and Fixed Wing Flight Training and, as you can see, are more than happy to answer questions.

I am trading in my single-engine aircraft obsession for space ships this weekend at the Illustrious Eastercon 2011. Unfortunately, I don’t have a new post for you; however, I found this piece in my archives discussing “authentic” travel and expectations of foreign resorts. I still feel the same as when I wrote it two years ago, so I thought I would reprint it for further comment. Back next week!

Mark Twain said: “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.” Sometimes, reading travel blogs on the web, it seems like the converse is true.

If I see one more article about how obnoxious holiday makers are and how popular resorts are ruining travel for real adventurers who want to truly experience foreign countries, I might scream. The online definition of true experience varies but the overall litany is the same: tourists who are not travelling the way I travel are wasting their time, should just stay at home, are to be pitied. I understand that as visitors to a foreign place, we’d like to feel special, as if we have a special connection. But honestly, a tourist is a tourist is a tourist – I don’t believe there is a special brand of travel that is somehow elevated from the rest.

And yet, the litany continues that somehow other people are not experiencing the trip the way that they should. Somehow, they are doing it wrong.

I’ve been tempted to comment on these travel pieces, pointing out that the only “real” way to experience authentic travel is to fly yourself. If you’ve flown commercial, you’ve had a layer of red tape between you and the people who live and work in your destination. You are herded from one building to the next. You don’t get the the chance to walk around the plane or see the details of the airport. You are limited by a schedule devised by business men in starched suits who have probably never even made the journey.

And then I take a deep breath and reach for my blood pressure pills.

I live in a resort town – we have beaches and mountains and ancient cities and Moorish forts. We have had a huge influx of tourism over the years and there are times when I shake my head in sadness at the loss of the village that I knew. At the same time, I recognise that the same instinct which drove me here is driving the other tourists. I am not somehow special nor more deserving of the delights of this place. Arriving early isn’t clever, it’s simply presaging the changes to come.

I do understand the frustration of watching people close themselves off from the local experience and ask for home delights. Many visitors – accidentally or on purpose – inform the locals of the items that they think should be made available.

We have the Irish pub and a fish-and-chip shop and an Indian restaurant and, most recently, Turkish kebab to take away. The Andalucians, eager for an income, have always tried to deliver what the tourists expect. In recent years, the tourists themselves have become residents, the ex-pat population swelling and providing for itself. Slowly, my favourite comida casera disappears in favour of fake tapas and international cuisine, my dusky shops are replaced with beach gear and flamenco skirts in toddler sizes.

I sympathise with the people who arrive only to discover this display of tourist kitsch. They complain, “I want to see the real Spain.” My response varies based on mood, a variation of: “If you want to go there, you shouldn’t be starting from here, your real Spain is not where the cheap flights go.”

But really, what, exactly, is fake about this place? Do you mean you want to see what it was like before people like you arrived? It was wasteland with a few fishermen trying to scratch a living. The Spaniards who live here welcomed the tourists for a reason and funnily enough they aren’t interested in staying poor for your viewing pleasure.

I’m not usually that bitchy. I do understand the dilemma and with friends I’ll offer an alternative: – come with me inland. Let’s go to one of the white villages off the coast, in the farming area, and get something to eat and I’ll show you a different Spain. But these authentic restaurants, they may leave something to be desired.

“It’s so loud in here,” is the most common complaint – a good Spanish restaurant is one full of people shouting across the table at each other. Not one for passive gestures and gentle smiles, you can spot the “real” Andalucian restaurants by the level of ambient noise. If it is quiet, perhaps with gentle music in the background, then you have gone astray.

“Is there a vegetarian option?” This area is built on agriculture: the Andalucians love their olives and onions and firm salad tomatoes and green peppers. They also love their cured ham and sardines in vinegar and deep-fried delicacies of the sea. You can have a salad if you wish (you may have to ask them to leave off the tuna) but if you have a restricted diet, then a land based on subsistence farming is perhaps not the place for you.

Sometimes it seems that adventurous travellers looking for authenticity are most likely to try to bend local cuisine around their personal dietary requirements. I respect the social decisions that people have made to reduce their impact on the world. And if you have a special diet, your requests will certainly be catered to … but this is not the “real” Andalucia you are tasting, any more than the burger and chips that you sneered at.

And then there’s the accommodation snobbery: staying in a campground is a completely different experience from staying at a four-star hotel but neither is traditional. I have a soft soft for the Paradores, hotels situated in interesting old buildings, castles and monasteries, but they’ve been rebuilt with central heating and en-suite toilets, with restaurants featuring top-quality dishes from all over the country. Life was never like this in the ancient buildings until tourism arrived with a healthy cash infusion. None of this is really Spain.

It does seem sad to a place constructed around the visitors instead of deeper roots. I get frustrated at the local market when I see stall after stall of items aimed for at the weekenders: cheap summer clothes, knock-off perfumes, music CDs. I have to remind myself that this isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

I look at the stall owners, smiling patiently, cracking jokes to one another, always happy for a chat. They greet me, offer me almonds to taste. The toy-stall owners shout at my son like an old friend, “Tío! Come look at this.” They are selling junk, plastic guns and knock-off laser lights but my boy loves the attention, enjoys feeling a valued customer – a feeling he never gets at Toys-R-Us.

And I realise I’m wrong to get wound up at the friendly Spaniards at the market – who am I to tell them not to pander to the tourists? That’s the same implication: that they aren’t being real Spaniards, this is some fake version of their home. What the hell? This is their life.

An authentic destination is like Schroedinger’s Cat, once you’ve arrived, it probably no longer exists. But it’s not a stage set, pulled down as soon as you have boarded your flight and filed away your passport until next year. They are still there, standing at the market, living their life. It’s not just for show.

I like to camp, my best friend likes sheets and a double bed. If staying at a hostel makes him miserable, who am I to tell him what his experience should be? This is a man who talks to everyone, who will get the chef out of the kitchen for a chat and a drink. He’s as happy to talk to the farmer in the hills as the owner of a restaurant chain all along the coast. And not one of them think he’s a fraud for staying at a hotel. His views of comfort don’t interfere with his experience of a place. His refusal to view a particular aspect of a country as “authentic” is much more telling.

I have in the past complained about the snow in the UK and that my flying was unnecessarily curtailed as a result of the weather.

• UK Snow Day on Webcams
• Snow on the Runway, Ice on the Wings

So on a glorious day like today, it seemed only fair to show the other side of British aviation: the glorious blue skies and clear horizons of a perfect Spring day. It’s 20C and barely a breeze to be seen on the windsocks. The only downside of this set compared to winter is that there are far fewer aircraft to be seen on the webcams. They must all be up in the air!

Here are my screenshots of the webcams (so you see what I saw, this afternoon) with links to the live webcam. Just click on the image or the name if you want to see the live weather conditions.

Bembridge Airport	Cambridge Gliding Centre
Cotswold Airport	Deeside Gliding Club
Enstone Flying Club	Glenforsa
Gloucestershire	Headcorn
Heathrow	Hollym Airfield
Kirkwall Airport	Leicestershire Aero Club
London Gliding Club	Lydd Aero
Milfield Gliding Club	Oxford Airport
Portmoak	Sherburn Aero Club
Shoreham Airport	Shropshire Aero Club
Ulster Flying Club	Wellesbourne Airfield

Where are you right now? Post a link to your local airfield – especially if it has a webcam!

It might sound silly to highlight lighthouses on an aviation blog but pilots who fly on the coast know why they are important.

Lighthouses make for unmistakeable landmarks and are often used as Visual Reporting Points.

Also, they tend to be on the most scenic of locations (why is that?) and so I know I’m not the only one with dozens of photographs of beautiful lighthouses looming over rough rock and crashing waves.

When I first flew to Guernsey, I fell in love with the Casquets, to a great extent because it was the most obvious visual reporting point I had ever seen: three towers perched on straggly rocks, a lighthouse clinging to sandstone reef. I wrote about the The Shipwreck of the Stella, a chilling maritime accident, made real by the fact that I’d seen the location and the memorial in the graveyard.

In my post, I wondered what it might be like to have been at the lighthouse, so close to where the ship went aground and yet not able to see a thing.

To my surprise, I got a very specific response.

I was a Keeper on Casquets Light House from 1984 until automation in 1989/90 and had read of the wrecking of the Stella. Having been on Casquets on many a foggy day/night with almost no sea visibility, I cannot imagine the horror on board the ship. It is reported that the keepers heard screams from a large number of people but saw nothing.

Gordon Partridge knows lighthouses. He spent 22 years working the lights and seen duty at 22 different stations, including some of my favourites: he worked both at the Needles and at the Isles of Scilly. He was the last lighthouse keeper at the Casquets, the last to leave up the ladder into the helicopter. Gordon studied Museum Curation while on the lights: Open University courses were funded by Trinity House. Now he regularly speaks on his experiences of Lighthouse Life.

To be inside a tall tower offshore lighthouse is quite an awesome experience, especially the first time! On Bishop Rock, west of the Scilly Isles, the tower is approximately 150 ft above sea. During the worst of the Atlantic weather, the sea crashes over the top; the structure shakes and bangs, crockery rattles, and the noise of the sea is like a loudly roaring lion!

When the sea hits and climbs, all goes dark inside as the daylight is interrupted. Such experiences only lead one to pay homage to those Victorian engineers who designed and built such structures. The walls are 15ft thick granite at the base, tapering to some 3ft at the higher levels; each stone is dovetail jointed (woodwork fashion) to its neighbour.

Before the extensive use of helicopters, reliefs were carried out by boat. This involved waiting for a “fair weather window opportunity” in order to effect. It was not uncommon to have to wait several weeks after having served an 8-week duty! Helicopters changed our lives so much! If I can I will forward you a photo of me being winched from a boat onto the Bishop Rock: a trip up of some 45 ft onto the landing!

It might all sound pretty awful but, once inside the tower with the coffee pot simmering on the Rayburn stove, it was cosy! To be in one’s bunk when all outside was hell was really snug!

Gordon has offered to answer more questions in the comments so if you are interested in the life of a lighthouse keeper, please ask away!

I’ve been running around like a mad woman all week so I’m afraid I don’t have a real post for you. To make up for it, I made this mosaic of iPhone photographs I took today travelling from Heathrow to Malaga:

Meanwhile, if you are looking for something interesting to read, I highly recommend this series on Alaska Dispatch:

Part One: Seasoned Alaska pilot recounts Knik Glacier crash landing

Part Two: ‘Perfect storm’ of deadly conditions tested Alaska pararescuers

Part Three: Another aircraft crashes before successful rescue from Alaska’s Knik Glacier

Max Trescott has written up a summary of the articles if you want the short version: What all Pilots Can Learn from Alaska Plane Crash Rescue

Now, I’m off to unpack my suitcases and collapse in a heap.

Happy New Year! I’ve compiled a list of the most popular posts of 2010 (some of which are from 2009!) for your reading pleasure. It’s a fun collection of photography, essays, news and even a link round-up on engine failure.

I hope you enjoy the articles and I look forward to sharing lots of new interesting posts with you in 2011.

Number Ten: Engine Failure After Take-Off

Engine Failure After Take-Off, commonly referred to as EFATO, is one of the most frightening events that can happen to a pilot. A recent incident hit International headlines when US Airways flight 1549 landed in the Hudson after a sudden loss of engine power. Every pilot has been trained to deal with EFATO but the reality of the situation has little in common with the practice runs when you have a competent instructor at your side with his hand on the throttle.

Engine Failure After Take-Off is a collection of links and news including first-person accounts, discussions of strategies and crash survivablilty and a YouTube video of a collision with a cow.

Number Nine: Military Jet Buzzing Santa Monica Pier

The plan was for the jets to do four passes off of the coast of the Santa Monica pier, west of a banner tow aircraft towing a banner for the film. The first passes went as planned and then one of the pilots broke away and flew low over the beach area for multiple passes in excess of 250 knots (two of the passes were below 500 feet) and then pulled into a steep climb just before the pier.

Military Jet Buzzing Santa Monica Pier was posted at the end of last year, the story of two military jets buzzing Santa Monica pier including a list of the specific violations. The same plane appeared in the viral “Close Call with Terrain” video which I also included in the post.

Number Eight: Cross Country Solo

I went for the heartfelt-plea approach. “It’s for my licence. I am a student, learning to fly. The paper is to say that I landed here without breaking any planes or causing any problems.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Did you break any planes?”

“No! I think – I think you’ll find that ATC are happy to sign it. I was told they wouldn’t mind. It has my name and the plane’s registration on it.”

Cross Country Solo is a three part series of my first navigation flight all alone. Actually, Part Two: Almería of this collection of three posts was the most popular for some reason, although the return to Axarquia was the most stressful leg! I’ve included all three in order to keep context.
Part One: Granada
Part Two: Almería
Part Three: Return to Axarquia

Number Seven: Grounded

I want to be up there, conquering the sky, a young man says, gazing out the window with undisguised yearning. I have to hide my confusion. There is no such colonialist desire in my heart, I have no visions of conquest. But then I think about his words again and realise that I’m wrong. It’s not the sky that I want to subdue, it is myself.

The popularity of Grounded surprised me. A deeply introspective piece, I was trapped in by the weather and explored my own feelings towards flying and what I hoped to achieve. The comments on this post are fascinating.

Number Six: Mike Newman Glider Accident

Amazingly pilot Mike Newman, 35, crawled out of the wreckage of the high performance Swift S-1 aircraft after the cockpit broke up on impact.

The former racing driver suffered three broken vertebrae in the accident, but doctors expect him to make a full recovery.

I was sitting in a pub in London when a friend mentioned a crash at Shoreham Air Show the day before. I went home to research the Mike Newman Glider Accident and found unbelievable photographs and video of the Swift S-1 wing-first into the runway. I collected the information into a single post with links to more detail. I may look at a follow-up to this piece.

Number Five: Pitch vs. Power: Landing Better

Like most PPLs, I was taught to use attitude to control airspeed and power to control height. However, the inertia of the Saratoga and its tendency to sink like a stone at low speed, combined with my inability to nudge the power gently enough to keep my pitch steady, can make this difficult. A bad approach can feel like a ship in heavy weather as I adjust the power back and forth to try to keep my perspective of the runway correct.

Pitch vs. Power: Landing Better was my attempt to explain a breakthrough I’d made flying the Saratoga. I understood the relationship between pitch and power in a text-book sort of way but it took longer to feel it in my gut.

Number Four: Snow on the Runway, Ice on the Wings

Funny, it seems that it’s somewhat quiet on the runways at most of the UK airfields. But as I am resigned to not flying anyway, I have to admit that some of the views today are just beautiful. Just linking the webcams doesn’t show you what I saw (and you have a high chance of seeing nothing but black sky at the Scottish airfields at this time of year!) so I’ve taken a set of screenshots to share with you.

The second popular piece I wrote whilst grounded due to weather, Snow on the Runway, Ice on the Wings was a series of screenshots from webcams around the UK. I did the same again a few weeks ago after the first serious snowfall of the season: UK Snow Day on Webcams.

Number Three: Drunk steals plane at airshow

I had to cover my eyes to watch this video the first time I was shown it. But then I kept peeking through my fingers.

I am continuously astounded by Franklin’s Flying Circus and I was thrilled when Kyle Franklin said he was happy for me to offer a streaming video of Drunk steals plane at airshow, previously only available as a downloaded wmv file. I’m thrilled to tell you that since then, he’s made a number of his videos available on YouTube via the Franklin’s Flying Circus Video Page.

Number Two: The Last Flight

He went to the airport and started the engine in his plane. It purred smoothly, with a low rumble and a promise of speedy high adventure. He taxied it across the ramp and down the taxiway to the end and near the runway. He ran the engine up to medium power while holding the brakes, but he resisted the temptation to go at high power down the runway and lift off into the sky. He returned to the ramp, tied the plane down and went home. Sadly unfulfilled, he returned again the next day, and the next. The routine of taxiing was repeated at higher and higher speeds but he would, each time, return and park the plane on the ramp.

I originally found The Last Flight posted by Max Grogan on BeechTalk.com and I knew I wanted to share it. He kindly gave me permission to include it as a guest post on Fear of Landing and gave me access to his photo albums as well. It’s no surprise to me that this is one of the most popular posts of 2010 and I hope Max continues to write about his aviation adventures.

Number One: FAA Approved?

So, the story goes that the Alaskan pilot had 2 new tires, three cases of speed tape and several rolls of cellophane delivered to the site and promptly repaired his plane so that he could fly it home.

In October 2009, I posted FAA Approved?, photographs of a Piper Supercub mauled by a bear. It was only a few weeks after the incident and at the time, I couldn’t find the photographs on the Web and details of the plane and the pilot were sparse. I posted everything I could find in hopes of getting more information and visits to Fear of Landing skyrocketed. In December, Alaska Dispatch posted the full story as told by the pilot’s father in An Appetite for Revenge.

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So that’s a summary of 2010 with a bit of an overhang from 2009! I’m pleased to see that a variety of different posts – news round-ups, essays and accident reports – are all popular. I’ve been running this blog for four years now and it’s still a lot of fun, especially reading the comments!

So here’s to you: Happy New Year to every one and I hope we see more of each other in 2011!