Jess-b 420 Posted January 11, 2016 Report Share Posted January 11, 2016 There's no escaping the fact that when is comes to drinking, Mutley is in a class of his own. Having met up with him on arrival at SBJC, all I remember is a bottle of Bacardi and then nothing. Right now all I have to show for myself is a splitting headache. The headache though is the least of my problems. I have absolutely no idea of where I am. There's no city and me, and instead I seem to be out in the countryside. What the hell do Joe do this time. I do a quick check to confirm I still have all my kidneys, liver (whose going to steal that though?) and I'm relieved to find I'm in one piece. My hand bag still contains my wallet and fortunately, I still have my phone, and it's charged. Checking the time I'm shocked to discover I've lost two days! What the hell! There's also a text from Joe. 'I've decide to give you a bit of a challenge' he writes. 'Get to the airport to find out more.' I'm always worried when Joe sets me a challenge. So I flag down a passing bus and get back to the hotel and grab my bags and quick bit of breakfast, along with a few pain killers. At the airport though things turn worse. My Airbus is missing. For this leg of the challenge I was lucky enough to be flight testing my A320 around Columbia and Ecuador, so it made sense to bring the old girl with me on this leg. Joe however has other ideas and he's nicked it! Apparently, or so the ground agents inform me, Joe left the day before, flight plan unknown. He did leave me an envelope and something to fly, though I'll be damned if I can see another aircraft. Opening the letter, it's clear Joe is in a funny mood. 'Hello Jess. We had a great night out last night, and in case you don't remember, you challenged me to try and fly the Airbus. Well since yours wasn't busy, I thought I'd give it a try. You'll have to come find me to get it back though. So rather than a boring old airliner leg, how about a treasure hunt? First up, head south, for the next clue. Oh and enjoy the new aircraft I left you' Livid I scream at the poor station manager who quickly leads me to my 'aircraft.' Joe in a fit if wit has left me a litle surprise alright. The reason I didn't see my aircraft was because someone was stood in front of it. It a bloody micro jet. The micro jet is the same one from the 1983 bond movie, octopussy, which saw Roger Moore fly through a Hangar in this nibble little thing. And now Joe expects me to fly it on a wild goose chase. So be it. I check a local map and discover an airfield in the middle of the jungle to the south that's bound to be my first stop. Then with a great deal of trepidation, I set off in the smallest thing I've ever flown. Taxiing is a little rough, though being just a few feet of the floor explains that. For take off I floor it and hope for the best. It isn't as quick as you'd think and as I've brimmed the tanks, it takes awhile to get of the ground. Once I'm in the air though, boy does it feel fast. The Top speed is only 250kts if I red line it, but in something so small, it feels bloody quick. The stubby wings make it very agile, and as annoyed as i am with Joe, this aircraft is slowly bringing a smile to my face It takes just 30 minutes to reach the first airfield and sure enough another clue arrives, sending me to the coast for SBSL. At nearly 200nm distance, it's going to take a while. Along the way, with little to see but jungle, rain makes a fleeting appearance and there are more than a few thunderclouds around to make life interesting. After 100 nm or so, the jungles give way to green pastures mixed with dry fields and the Lightning can't spoil my mood as I settle in with the micro jet. It's great fun to get low with and with a little smoke here and there, it's fun to barrel (quite literally) around in. Before I hit SBSL I spot an old airfield and decide to 'buzz' the old tower. Great fun until I discover the airfield is active. I hit the deck and hope their radar can't find me. Feeling brave after my Encounter with the Brazilian airforce, I climb up to 4500 feet and I'm greeted with a beatific sight. The coast. The tropical waters glow ice blue. Arriving at SBSL, I find my third clue. I think Joe is getting board already as this one just tells me to head to SNWC. It's another 200nm trek but the weather is improving and the coast beckons. The leg is long but the stunning scenery is its own reward. I'm enjoying it so much, I've decided Joe gets to live having stolen my Siggy and hidden him. As I approach SNWC I begin to wonder where my A320 is though and I'm hoping that at this airport I find the rare sight of an Austrian A320 sat at a gate. Sadly it's not to be and I begin drawing up plans for Mutley's disembowelling. Another clue points me on to the next and hopefully last airfield. On to SBFZ I go, another 159nm leg. There's no sign of the a320 here either and just a note saying 'it's in the last place you'd expect.' The penny drops and with thoughts of murder running through my head, I realise where the aircraft is. It's where it should be at SBNT. It's 235nm and I max out the micro jet to get there. I'm tried now and I need some sleep. The weather ahead seems ok and I'm looking forward to parking up and getting a coffee. Finally, after a long days flying I arrive to see Brian's 747 parked and ready to go. More importantly my A320 is sitting in a Hangar and Joe, well Joe is nowhere to be seen. I head off to the terminal with Brian and tell him about my day, and advising him to ensure the 747 is locked up tight. You just can't trust some people. Link to post Share on other sites
mutley 4,488 Posted January 11, 2016 Report Share Posted January 11, 2016 Bravo Jess,Glad you "liked" the little adventure I set up for you,it certainly made for a great PIREP!Cheers Link to post Share on other sites
Bruce (a.k.a. brian747) 142 Posted January 11, 2016 Report Share Posted January 11, 2016 Great one, Jess. I very much enjoyed reading your saga (although recalling Ian Fleming's famous quote, "It reads better than i lives", I respect your right to feel slightly differently about the whole affair). Great pics, too! However, as I went on to discover, there was also a twee problemette at SBNT (I'll explain about that when I do my own write-up). Suffice it to say that we were both done over in different ways, but I was happy to see that after our chat you and your A320 were able to leave without any further problems. No one said the ATWC was going to be easy, right? Cheers, B. Link to post Share on other sites
brett 2,291 Posted January 12, 2016 Report Share Posted January 12, 2016 How can you be mad a Joe after he gave you such a beautiful scenic flight. Great shots and narrative Jess, enjoyed the PIREP. Watch your back and keys Joe. Link to post Share on other sites
Captain Coffee 2,030 Posted January 12, 2016 Report Share Posted January 12, 2016 Terrific set of pics...and a terrific trip in one of my favorite "go to" to have fun planes. It is blazing nimble, yet very steady flying when trimmed out. At cruise it is quite thrifty on fuel, and maxed out it will creep up pretty easily into the red range over 300 mph/kts/whatever is marked on the Airspeed dial...i forget at the moment. It is quiet and has great views from it's bubble canopy. I can't imagine how weird it must have been for you though going from and Airbus to that itty bitty thing...It must have felt like your butt was dragging along the runway with such an unusually low eye-point. Cheers. No hop over to the bus and hit the mini bar for a well deserved drink...if you can still get alcohol down that is. Maybe Bruce can share some of his Imerhol with you if he has any left after his birthday bash. Link to post Share on other sites
stu7708 244 Posted January 12, 2016 Report Share Posted January 12, 2016 I wonder who's been teaching Joe to handle airplanes with a FMC/MCDU.. I seem to recall him saying in a previous installment of the ATWC that he'd never again touch such a plane with a stick!! And boy is that plane tiny... I could barely see it in some of those shots, beautiful as they were... A very enjoyable read, now get back to writing that other thing I'm waiting to read will you Link to post Share on other sites
hurricanemk1c 195 Posted January 14, 2016 Report Share Posted January 14, 2016 Excellent leg there Jess - and an interesting change from your normal tubes! Link to post Share on other sites
hlminx 301 Posted January 23, 2016 Report Share Posted January 23, 2016 Hi Great PIREP Jess! I can imagine how cheery you were to find Joe had nicked the Airbus and left you with that little bug. I literally had to zoom right in to see it in your departure pic... was like playing 'where's Wally' Link to post Share on other sites
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