dodgy-alan 1,587 Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 It's midnight, Goodwood Airfield in Sussex. A car arrives, the passenger, has been told to expect to find an aircraft waiting with its engines running, he is to board the aircraft which will drop him in France where he will be met. Sure enough, the aircraft is waiting for him. Goodwood doesnt normally operate at night but someone has been persuaded to light the runway.. closing the doors the aircraft takes off but keeps low. crossing the coast near Bognor Regis Keeping low over the channel, the cabin lights spilling onto the wing give a glimpse of the aircraft In the pitch dark, instrument flying is essential as they approach the French coast the hi-vis strobe lights are turned off very shortly they are on the ground at Vittefleur right on the coast. The passenger leaves the aircraft and is met by car waiting in the dark, A swift departure and the aircraft is heading Northwest across the French coast A while later and the lights of Sussex reappear through the gloom Approaching Goodwood, the lights just visble in the light rain rolling out at EGHR Parked on the flightline as the sun comes up a few hours later, the aircraft is revealed to be a Swearingen Merlin. No one would have any idea about the nights activities. all is quiet again, the residents of Chichester just imagined they heard a plane in the night! Later that morning the Merlin departs heading North. Who the mystery passenger was, or what his business was, the pilot did not need to know...... Thanks for viewing Link to post Share on other sites
ddavid 149 Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 Customs would be more interested in someone coming in, rather than escaping Cameron's clutches... Nice pics, Al' - well, plenty of black! Cheers -Dai. :pld-git: 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Gunner 69 Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 Nice set Allan. Where did you get that plane? 1 Link to post Share on other sites
dodgy-alan 1,587 Posted September 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 Nice set Allan. Where did you get that plane? Thanks, I found it last night , Its a freeware model, but I've always had a soft spot for those aircraft. The Merlin is often forgotten due to a market dominated by Cessna and Piper, but they are superb aircraft. Here is the link to this one.. pc_sa-227tt_merlin_300.zip Link to post Share on other sites
Corsaire31 419 Posted September 26, 2014 Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 Great set ! Where do you find the time to get familiar with all these planes ? Sometimes takes me an hour to download, install read the docs and figure out how to start the thing... so that's several flight hours before feeling at home in there. (Knowing I'm retired, don't watch TV and don't go to sleep before 3 o'clock morning most of the time... I am very admirative ! 1 Link to post Share on other sites
dodgy-alan 1,587 Posted September 26, 2014 Author Report Share Posted September 26, 2014 Most aircraft are very similar in principle. Turboprop twins are all pretty much the same, in this case the Merlin is very similar to the Beech 1900. The rest of it is just intuition. Link to post Share on other sites
Corsaire31 419 Posted September 27, 2014 Report Share Posted September 27, 2014 I understand... I have another strategy in fact, I fly many hours in a few planes. Don't have enough room in my hangar to store too many ! And if I don't fly them often enough, I have forgotten all data and have to read the whole thing again about take off speed, climb rate, approach speed, max flaps speed and all these things... Getting old, I suppose... 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Coffee 2,030 Posted September 29, 2014 Report Share Posted September 29, 2014 I have yet to read how to fly an add on. I just hop in and look for appropriate switches, get it running and get the annunciator board, if any, clear-ish. Within a 'class' of planes they all have similar basic systems (non-avionic) that one can work through to start up. I tend to figure out autopilots on the fly...and keep gauges in the green on the way...and it often works out fine. Since I don't fly IFR...my learning curve on a new airplane is fairly short. I am def going to.pick up that Merlin when I get home. I am enjoying a couple in that class now...Flysimware Cessna 402 (Great model...love it), and the milviz B55 Baron...I actually like the Cessna better so far.PSP...if I have forgotten things like stall speeds...I have a shortcut to my aircraft folder on my desktop. I just navigate to the aircraft.cfg file to get the reference speeds.I rotate when the plane feels like it...or I run out of runway...whichever comes first . 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Corsaire31 419 Posted September 29, 2014 Report Share Posted September 29, 2014 I like to feel at home in my planes ! And, as in real life, I don't have a collector's mind for things I'm not regularly using. We're all different, and it's great ! 2 Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Coffee 2,030 Posted September 30, 2014 Report Share Posted September 30, 2014 ... no VC. Dl'd, installed, hopped in and flew one 2D cargo flight....then sold and deleted it. Fast and good flyer though. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
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