rob16584 42 Posted September 28, 2013 Report Share Posted September 28, 2013 After having the baton left for me by John in the late afternoon I thought, why not fly down through the night in something nice and slow? Depart as the sun sets and arrive as the sun rises. I spoke to the ramp hands and asked them to prepare the Diamond Katana for me, I thought it would be an ideal choice for the flight, and a welcome break from the tube liners As I was walking out to the aircraft my phone buzzed... Oh boy, here we go again. Sharon has found some fame on the reality TV show 'Air Hostesses Gone Wild' and has become quite the socialite since. As La Rochelle was more or less on my flight path (co-incidental eh?) I thought why not. Some company would be welcome. After the pre flight checks I was ready to go and begin this leg of the ATWC It was a very nice and calm day today, perfect for VFR flying.REX was working it's magic once again Our cruise altitude was only 1,500ft for this flight, which was perfect for watching the world go by below Before too long La Rochelle popped into view and we began to fly the traffic pattern Turning finals Getting down nice and low over La Rochelle A little bit to the left, easy to fix Landing After a nice and easy landing I left the ramp guys to secure the aircraft as I went to find Sharon Sharon: Hi Rob, are we ready to go? Rob: Sure, have you any bags to bring? Sharon: Yeah they are in the terminal, would you go and get them please? Off I trotted to find the baggage. Afetr finding it I needed to make a call to Joe 'Joe, we're going to need a bigger plane!' Joe told me to sit tight and he's get something sent down overnight for us. The next day.... We got to the airport nice and early and after a while heard the rumbling of what sounded like the big plane we had asked for Joe had come through again for us! I went and did the paperwork and went out to find the aircraft already prepared for flight Without wasting any more time we took to the skies The Electra is an old bird, but I felt right at home in this cockpit I took her up to 11,500ft and settled back for the cruise to Barcelona Strange shadow ..Passing over the MUT NDB aswell The Sharon threw me another curveball. She'd heard that the paparazzi were waiting for her en mass at Barcelona and asked me to divert to Girona for her so that she could escape them. Sure no problem. Landing at Girona Parked up As we went to the terminal Sharon received a phone call....... It turns out one of her co-stars had asked her to attend, and contribute, to a talk she was giving at the University of Air Hostesses in Barcelona (c'mon give me a break I'm trying to fit it into the story!). Her friend was based up in the mountains at La Cerdanya, LECD. There was no way the Electra would fit into that airport, so we arranged for Sharon's baggage to be forwarded to the university whilst we headed off the LECD in a rental Mooney Bravo This was only going to be a short flight, but I was beginning to think that the Baton was going to be going around in Spain for ages I had to make a quick climb to 9,500ft The airport is in a long valley. I thought that it would be best to get into the valley early and descend slowly. To make the flight more interesting the mountains were surrounded in cloud Although the hills were a little close for comfort Descending down the valley was tricky with this cloud cover But the scenery was still very nice The runway is out there somewhere After landing Sharon decided that she was going to spend the night there and her friend would fly them into Barcelona the next day in the Mooney (what are the chances, an air hostess with a PPL....). Which left me with the choice of drinking all night with two socialite air hostesses, or getting the baton to Barcelona the same day. Easy choice, the baton it is. Although the only other aircraft available was a DC-6 parked at the other side of the airfield (don't ask how it got there as it might ruin the continuity) The runway is very short, and the DC6 is quite big... Once over the tree it was time to get over the mountains The flight to Barcelona was a short one, before long we were being guided down to our landing, in very strong and gusty winds Lining up with these winds was hard as this is a very sluggish bird Eventually after a crazy adventure the Baton arrives at Barcelona, although the Boeing and Airbus guys are a bit bemused as to why this old war bird has arrived Here is the route of Leg 3 I'm off to put my feet up whilst Rosario gets ready to head to Gibraltar For those who are interested I'll upload the flight plan to the file library later today/tomorrow Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew Godden 934 Posted September 28, 2013 Report Share Posted September 28, 2013 Rob, Great PIREP. My head is still spinning from all the aircraft changes, but I guess that is just life on the go with Sharon. Cheers Andrew Link to post Share on other sites
hurricanemk1c 195 Posted September 28, 2013 Report Share Posted September 28, 2013 Superb shots and story there Rob - the return of Sharon had to come at some point! Link to post Share on other sites
ddavid 149 Posted September 28, 2013 Report Share Posted September 28, 2013 Quite a selection of aircraft, Rob - and some excellent videos, too - you certainly have been busy! Thanks for the PIREP. Sharon has gone up in the world since I knew her - feeling my age, Mate! Cheers - Dai. Link to post Share on other sites
J G 927 Posted September 28, 2013 Report Share Posted September 28, 2013 Great PIRIPS Rob! I love the videos! How did you do them? Link to post Share on other sites
rob16584 42 Posted September 28, 2013 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2013 Thanks guys. John, I recorded the videos with FRAPS (full version) and then edited them with windows live movie maker Link to post Share on other sites
mutley 4,487 Posted September 28, 2013 Report Share Posted September 28, 2013 Great job Rob, my head is spinning with all those aircraft changes too Loved your choices though, now to pay up the bill, those oldies aren't cheap to run!. Cheers mate! Link to post Share on other sites
allardjd 1,853 Posted September 28, 2013 Report Share Posted September 28, 2013 Hey, Rob - great series. Four aircraft, all winners. Nice piece of work. John Link to post Share on other sites
rosariomanzo 545 Posted September 28, 2013 Report Share Posted September 28, 2013 Great pirep, Rob. The videos are a nice complement to a complex leg. See you at the lounge. Link to post Share on other sites
stu7708 244 Posted September 29, 2013 Report Share Posted September 29, 2013 Great leg Rob. Love the livery on the DC-6 too, a real classic. But that final landing did look a tad dodgy, good thing Sharon stayed behind in the mountains, or you might have scared her away Link to post Share on other sites
brett 2,283 Posted September 29, 2013 Report Share Posted September 29, 2013 Aircraft changes, great story line, videos, my nerves are starting to settle in for my leg. Another great PIREP to bump up the ATWC standards. Link to post Share on other sites
UKJim 502 Posted September 29, 2013 Report Share Posted September 29, 2013 Good stuff! Nice read there Link to post Share on other sites
needles 1,010 Posted September 29, 2013 Report Share Posted September 29, 2013 Great read Rob and I too liked your use of videos to give us a greater feel of your leg of ATWC. Well done mate. Who the hell does Sharon think she is? Jumped up trolley dolly. Link to post Share on other sites
jaydor 345 Posted September 29, 2013 Report Share Posted September 29, 2013 Was fully involved in the story with you Rob. Brilliant. Can't wait to get my hands on meet Sharon later in the journey.. Brian will have no chance with her when I tell her what he said.. Link to post Share on other sites
allardjd 1,853 Posted September 29, 2013 Report Share Posted September 29, 2013 Don't mess with Sharon - you'll come off second best. She eats 10-penny nails and s***ts railroad spikes. John Link to post Share on other sites
Andrew Godden 934 Posted September 29, 2013 Report Share Posted September 29, 2013 Was fully involved in the story with you Rob. Brilliant. Can't wait to get my hands on meet Sharon later in the journey.. Brian will have no chance with her when I tell her what he said.. James, Brian never had a chance. Sharon rejected him outright years ago. Cheers Andrew Link to post Share on other sites
needles 1,010 Posted September 30, 2013 Report Share Posted September 30, 2013 Oi you lot. I may be on hols but I swear, when I return, my keyboard will be buzzing with expletives aimed at you all. I won't be employing Sharon's services on my leg, as I have a new lush to assist me called..... Ah! You'll have to wait and see. So quiet down forthwith. Link to post Share on other sites
Kasper 14 Posted October 1, 2013 Report Share Posted October 1, 2013 Great choice of planes, well done screenies and a fine tale to tell. What more can one wish for in a pirep? Link to post Share on other sites
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