Staggering Staggerwing

srgalahad

srgalahad

Charter Member 2022
Well, I got the last mods done and looked at the weather.. GREAT winds aloft!
Then I looked at the clock and realized that I wasn't going to make it Vienna in time to make my free dinner with the boss... so, in the line of duty, flying must wait for another day. Will the wind still be favourable?

At least there was time for another tune-up flight...
 
Well, come H*ll or high water I just HAVE to get out of England and at least the winds look decent this morning, so...

EGUN to LOWW

for a lunch of schnitzel!
 
ABM Maastricht at :21, estimating LOWW 2+02

After some heavy build-ups along the coast it's clearing and the winds are holding
 
Treat for ya Rob....

Once on the ground in Vienna and after relief at the rest area....:jump: I've set up "free" food and drink for you with a friend that runs the airport cafeteria.

Just need to statisfy the required 2 minutes of ethnic dance from your specific locale....[say WHAT?]...Yeah, you see the establishment there prides itself on being able to cater to any one in the world while running an open stage for rolks from all over to share a little something,,,story, demonstration , or in this case a short dance that I'm sure would be enjoyed by all.

I've given them a hint of what to expect so they could have a band set up to perform the music you'll need to dance to live. Nothin' but class Rob,,,,no records for this little ditty,,,live music!

Oh yeah almost forgot, you'll be curious to know what sort of "step" will be required I'm sure, so I've taken the time to locate an example in the youtube archives,,,,I'll leave the link here.

Pretty smart choice (I think),,, about the right vintage and probably not too hard for ya.....:ernae: best part is no partner required.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WIvZu4dPQQ

Enjoy the dinner!!,,,,you can thank me later.

Cheers,
 
On the ground at Wien LOWW

CAREFULLY examining salt_air's "scheme" .. it may be well-worth buying my own meal but we'll see...
 
Welllllll... not a bad choice, but considering the abilities of the band, this was a better choice..

[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/XQdPr7MQdBQ&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/XQdPr7MQdBQ&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]

The Oompah band got right into the rhythm :ernae:
 
But, while the winds look good, I'll be like Canada's Singing Cowboy

[YOUTUBE]<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/pX6aLcTMvd0&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/pX6aLcTMvd0&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]


and head out of LOWW for LGAT

(gotta find some bouzouki music to practice enroute)
 
Climbing out of Wein it looked like I was going to get slammed with a 20kt headwind, but on course and west of it I found a nice 21kt tailwind.

Now to blunder over a whole bunch of names I can't pronounce
 
A long day but safely down in smoggy Athens!

Somehow I managed to hang on to tailwinds almost all the way.

NOW, it's off to relax and see the sights and sounds of Greece for a bit...

[YOUTUBE]<embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/MOFRAGbNf_Q&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>[/YOUTUBE]
 
no word for over 24 hours...
are you all right?
I hope you haven't been kidnapped
by that notorious female gang
that uses Barbra Yani
as a decoy!!!
 
smilo said:
no word for over 24 hours...
are you all right?
I hope you haven't been kidnapped
by that notorious female gang
that uses Barbra Yani
as a decoy!!!
Click to expand...

Ahhh.. how I wish I'd been taken by pirates or Amazons... but I've been recuperating in a dark, dank cave surrounded by boxes of Kleenex and various 'healthy' drugs, listening to the theme music of "One Flu over the Cuckoo's Nest".

Even the feverish dreams of Barba Yani have not been able to drag me back to the computer til now and I doubt I'll last much longer before I drift into anti-histamine heaven.:isadizzy:
 
Well the doc (at least he said he was..) declared me "mostly healthy" and it looks like a fine day for flying.

departing Athens (LGAT) for Aleppo (OSAP)
-- with a full tank of fuel and some Barba Yani videos for Harpo, Groucho, and Chico. In case I get forced down I can make a rescue fire with old rags and my trusty Zippo. Maybe later I can get to see Gummo and Zeppo...

Enough of that.. time to kick the tires and light the fires... so to speak..
 
By the Ikaria NDB 37 minutes into the flight

No sign of the fresh coat of wax melting off the wings so I guess my altitude is not too high [phew!]

Now onward across Turkey
 
Abeam the beautiful coastal city of Antalya and halfway home on this leg. Tiny bit ahead of schedule.

Now for the nerve-wracking part... 160 nm with no sound of an NDB beeping in my ears. As long as the winds don't go strange I should be fine to the coast...:kilroy:

Grounds been rising for a while... no navaids so it's time for some Turkish IFR
 
Crossing the coast just southwest of Adana/Mersin, also the location of the historic city of Tarsus...

Tarsus (Greek: Ταρσός, Armenian: Տարսոն, Darson) is a historical city in south-central Turkey, 20 km inland from Mediterrenean Sea. It is part of Adana-Mersin Metropolitan Area, fourth largest metropolitan area in Turkey with a population of 2.75 million. Tarsus is an administrative district in Mersin Province and lies in the core of Çukurova, a geographical, economical and cultural region.
With a history going back over 9,000 years Tarsus has long been an important stop for traders, a focal point of many civilisations including the Ancient Romans when Tarsus was capital of the province of Cilicia, scene of the first meeting between Mark Antony and Cleopatra and birthplace of Saint Paul.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarsus_%28city%29

It also means I have about 40 minutes to go :icon_lol:

Watching vigilantly for fighters in/out of the vast Incirlik airbase (once a stopover for the U-2)
 
Oh Aleppo!
Baton is free at OSAP!

A bit tense for a few minutes. As I crossed the Syrian border the vis at 11,000 dropped to almost zero and made me doubt the 5.2 nm reported by OSAP Radio.
Fortunately cleared as I dropped though 7000 and a nice arrival after that! Even better-- 9 minutes ahead of flight plan!
 
Apparently the Syrians don't have enough gas to send up a weather balloon to check the winds. Will wait an hour to see if the desert sun brings some inspiration
 
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