Dil52's Cape to Cape Flights in the Golden Age Northop Gamma 2A

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Dil52

Charter Member
Dil52's Cape to Cape Flights in the Golden Age Northop Gamma 2A

A samll crowd has assembled early this morning, the GlennMiller Band is playing “In the Mood”, and a featured celebrity guest is at hand, which all eyes are focused on at this time. She is none other than Betty Boop!

We’re about climb into the Gamma 2A “Sky Chief.”
There's no sense in posing for pictures, they don’t even notice me. J

I’m checking my equipment such as gloves, boots (no spurs), helmet, goggles, scarf, hankie, a pair of pliers, E6B, an aviation sextant, kneeboard, and a set of maps, sketches, and notes showing all possible routes, fueling stops, and bonus airports between the Capes.

I wet an index figure and by holding it straight up in the air confirms a slight breeze out of the south west at about 214 degrees, which is also showing on the wind sock down along the runway. The sky is mostly clear blue with a few white cumulus clouds dancing along the horizon to the south.

We heard on a ham operators Hallicrafters SX-9 'Super Skyrider', which he had set up in the terminal, that the weather in Stockholm is rain with a 1000 foot ceiling. Nothing severe the flight's a go!

Flight 1 ENHF - ESSB
 
Both my mechanic and fabricator told me to do some more testing after they added the cargo bay, but me, OH NO!, I know better. I’ll be fine. After all, I did most of the testing of the Gamma 2A on this very flight and never came up with less than 6% fuel when landing at ESSB.

But today was a different scenario.

First of all I had a 20 to 25 knot head wind blowing squarely up the pitot tube the entire length of theflight.
Secondly the top speed at FL10-11 was more like 197 KIAS today. I’d been averaging 203 KIAS or better before the retro fit of the mail bin had beenadded.

In an attempt to make it to the required AP ESSB I let the plane run completely out of fuel, turned to approach RW 1L at ESSA and came up short and landed on Sweden’s Highway E4 right at rush hour.
We were dodging telephone poles and Volvo’s were running into each other and off the road all over the place!

I guess we know the range, time and fuel envelope of the Gamma 2Aa little better. :)

It was a total mess, but we got to within 1.9 nm of ESSA, which gave us a valid Duenna and landed with no mechanical damage......most pilots would call that a success....a walk away landing!

OK, to make a long story shorter.

I did not make my refueling airport and thus have penalty for needing to refuel at unprepared ESSA.

Penalty 5 hours.

http://fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?detail=flight&value=E5x2Vx6u0lkRk01pi6RndC990Q4

View attachment 62879View attachment 62878 View attachment 62880 View attachment 62881 View attachment 62882

Time to regroup and continue on.



 
Ouch.

Technically, you could also declare this a "crash". Take the one hour penalty, return to Hammerfest and re-fly the leg (not counting the initial time in your flight log.) A lot less costly than taking a 5-hour penalty plus the already accumulated flight time.

Also...

We are now considering giving pilots a "one time" reduced rate on crashes for their first leg. The proposal is now sitting on Miss Nellie's desk. You never know with Miss Nellie...

--Mike
 
MM said:
Ouch.

Technically, you could also declare this a "crash". Take the one hour penalty, return to Hammerfest and re-fly the leg (not counting the initial time in your flight log.) A lot less costly than taking a 5-hour penalty plus the already accumulated flight time.

Also...

We are now considering giving pilots a "one time" reduced rate on crashes for their first leg. The proposal is now sitting on Miss Nellie's desk. You never know with Miss Nellie...

--Mike
Click to expand...

Thanks Mike,

I was thinking about your first scenerio and, after reading the rules again carefully, I thought it would probably have been better to have crashed than to dead stick the plane onto the the highway. What happened was incredibly awesome in a bad way of course.
Perhaps Just 1 or 2 minutes more of fuel or a couple thousand feet of glide altitude may have gotten me to ESSB. :mix-smi:

At one point in time, about the middle of the flight (at 100 minutes), I slowed down to under 140 knots thinking perhaps the landing gear was down, because I didn't hear it raise after take-off. The reason being is that I couldn't get her up to, or slightly over, 200 knots at cruise.
I'm not sure whether Duenna squelched the sound as I didn't hear it come down when I lowered it either. I had no idea whether I was going to see sparks or if it would land on the gear when I touched down. As it turned out the gear was working and the sound was not.

I'll probably take the declared crash option and refly the flight.


If there's is indeed, a one time reduced rate on a crash on the first leg, then I'll put a couple Jerry cans of fuel in her, fly the 18nm from ESSA over to ESSB, which is prepared with fuel tanks, take the penalty, and be on our merry way once again. :)
I'll do a, just in case, flight from ESSA to ESSB now. If the rule doesn't change then I'll refly the whole flight. I think I can make it this time if I watch the weather closely and pick a day when the breeze is out of the northeast rather than the sou'wester I we had yesterday. :)

Making the "just in case" flight now. :)
 
Fred,

Just got out of Miss Nellie's office. Came in through the opaque glass door and put the "first-leg crash" proposal on her desk. She smiled as she opened up the manilla folder and started to read. And then she stopped, turned in her swiveled chair and stared out the window into the dark wind-swept clouds above.

After a pause, she turned back and said "On the proposal, the answer is No." She shook her head slowly and then added, quietly but firmly, "No one said that this would easy."

So no change.

--Mike
 
MM said:
Fred,

Just got out of Miss Nellie's office. Came in through the opaque glass door and put the "first-leg crash" proposal on her desk. She smiled as she opened up the manilla folder and started to read. And then she stopped, turned in her swiveled chair and stared out the window into the dark wind-swept clouds above.

After a pause, she turned back and said "On the proposal, the answer is No." She shook her head slowly and then added, quietly but firmly, "No one said that this would easy."

So no change.

--Mike
Click to expand...

No problem and thanks for trying Mike,

Whatever Miss Nellie’s decision is quite acceptable to me.

I admire her tenacity.

I'll declare a crash, make my way back up to Hammerfest, and re-fly the flight.
That way, instead of looking at +8 hours(initial flight time plus a 5 hour penalty) I'll shoot for a 1 hour penalty anda little over 3 hours for the reflight, which can cut it into about half. (Kind of like hitting the ball OB in golf.......stroke plus distance) :)


That is if I may declare a crash!

If not, I'll just accept the 5 hour penality, declare the two flights to ESSB, and head on south. :)
I may just have that mail bin removed, pay the freight to Marseille, and reinstall it there if we decide to take the coastal route.

I'm still open for suggestions!

Fred
 
Quickly...yes, you may declare a crash if you like. Then re-fly with the crash penalty.
(Don't know the winds or weather conditions. One would think the Gamma could make it to Stockholm. But if not, there is always Trondheim.)
 
Offical Flight #1 ENHF - ENVA with +1 hour penalty for crash at Stockholm

The flight from Hammerfest to Trondheim went much better sincewe had a nice tail wind this morning.
Where was that on the Stockholm attempt?
After calculating the fuel we would have had a range of724nm, which would have easily gotten us to Stockholm.

At times we're able let the plane fly without tending to the trim much at all.
Then at other times, when the wind is gusting, it is a constant job.
It is evident that the VS is either positive or negative. :)


http://fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?detail=flight&value=dTyWDUUcFkIbCj1ByX9HvJasw

View attachment 63015View attachment 63016

Pic 1 The sun is telling us we're right on our longitude of E12* 35' after 2 hour schedualed reading time with an average of 200 KTAS....making good time. :)
Note the Sperry....It's there for the use of the AI and HI, which both work fine; however the autopilot is not hooked up to any of the flight controls....hand flying at all times.

Pic 2 Crossing the Namsen River. We should be about 60 nm out of Trondheim.....time to tune in
Pic 3 Fueling for the next leg.

View attachment 63017 View attachment 63018 View attachment 63019

 
ENVA to EDDH

Leg#2 ENVA – EDDH
Trondheim, Norway to Hamburg, Germany....hopfully.

I’ve got to push on. I can’t let this northern tail wind today go unused! :running:
 
Leg#2 ENVA – EDDH Complete

Longitudinally speaking I only traveled about 30nm east on thisflight, so the sextant using the sun was pretty much just keeping it close.

We need to rely on visual flight landmarks and of course the use of NDB’s at the airports.

http://fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?detail=flight&value=hn5lTdqELK4A8xFn99hwrd41bXs

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We managed to catch a lighting bolt on camera as it was storming on approach to Hamburg.
View attachment 63048




 
Looking Good here brotha Fred!


I expect to here the whooosh any day now of that Northrop breezin' past.

Well ... I mean if we taking the same route that is ... :wiggle:







Good luck buddy!
 
salt_air said:
Looking Good here brotha Fred!


I expect to here the whooosh any day now of that Northrop breezin' past.

Well ... I mean if we taking the same route that is ... :wiggle:







Good luck buddy!
Click to expand...


I don't know about catching you, but we have enough time to make one more short flight today into Frankfurt and then we'll be preparing for the Alps flights.
I wonder if the weather is better in Alps than what I just encountered in Northern Germany.........April showers might bring May flowers, but there's a draw back for pilots hand flying the Alps...........it could get very exciting indeed! :jump:

I'm not absolutily sure what route I'm taking at this time.
I'd really like to fly the Trans-Sahara for the navigational challenge, but am leaning towards taking that mail run bonus.

Isee you’re at the point of making the big decision.

Good luck,

Fred
 
Dil, When I started my Alps run last night the weather into Bolzano was excellent. Which leads me to believe that it was a trap to draw me into the mountains.
 
Willy said:
Dil, When I started my Alps run last night the weather into Bolzano was excellent. Which leads me to believe that it was a trap to draw me into the mountains.
Click to expand...
I know what you'fe talking about Willy,

Mountain weather is fickle. It looks nice one minute, but can turn on ya quicker than a raging bull. :eek:

It seems the skies are blue, the clouds are white and puffy, and as soon as I descend into an airport it gets as thick as soup!

I see you made it! Nice flight and camera shots. I like the one on the tarmac with the snow covered mountain peaks in the background.

Keep up the good flights.

 
Leg #3 EDDB-EDDF Complete

Now that my goggles are thawed from my cheeks it’s time to take a break for the night.

I thinkI’ll catch a ride down to one of those places they call Gardens alongthe Rhine and have a couple of those good German barley waters that they talk about. :)


http://fs-duenna.com/flights/ShowFlight.php?detail=flight&value=8DXKRInHXlHRTTI4tsxQnPPlk
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Commerzbank Tower and Frankfurt Rhine Main approach
View attachment 63055 View attachment 63056
 
Alps

Leg #4 Frankfurt, Germany to Bolzano, Italy EDDF-LIPB


We're ready to depart for some flights through the Alps and eventually arrive at Marseille and the Mediterranean.

Not sure yet if I'm going to try flying directly over the mountains or take the safer route to Innsbruck and follow the Eisack-Isarco River valley to Bolsano. The decision will come as I approach the mountains see the weather conditions.

Dil52
 
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