It was glorious weather for February, nothing was going to hold me back from ticking the biggest box on my bucket list!
I was staggered at my first sighting of the aircraft - what a terrific looking aircraft! I hadn't realised it would look so tall. Following a thorough pre-flight check and after an in depth explanation of its various features, I climbed aboard and was immediately struck by how comfortable it was. I was impressed with the instrument layout up front and how new and tidy everything looked compared to the much older Aircraft I am used to. I was equally impressed with the wonderfully clear sounding Bose headset and its individual controls. I then learned the aircraft was only 2 years old. After seeing the Beluga line up and depart, we taxied out to runway 22 where we waited for the engine to warm up. Acceleration was another impressive feature as we lifted off, turned right towards Mold and climbed to 2,000ft. We passed on the left of Moel Famau and I took control, as we headed towards Snowdonia. It was rather strange having control without an instrument panel in front of me but I quickly became used to it. As we passed several smallish lakes it was explained to me how to "read" the water to tell which way the wind is blowing. As we neared Llanrwst I passed over control, descended and banked left towards Llyn Geirionydd. First we did a "touch and go" then climbed out to go-around and came back again. We touched down and we became a boat and slowly moved back to the far end of the lake, turned into wind and took off. Another circuit and we came back in to touch down for a third time. It was an incredible feeling to be flying one minute and then be gently floating on the water in beautiful scenery. The last "boat trip" to the end of the lake was with the window and side panel fully open to further enhance the enjoyment of it all. Once airborne, we headed towards Conwy. We had been seeing pockets of flames springing up on the hillsides presumably with the heat of the sun, (there did not appear to be people about). On our circuits we spotted flames appearing in different places to those on the previous circuit. The hills above Conwy were well alight sending dense clouds of brown smoke aloft. They hung there like a long ribbon. The low lying brown cloud (with a pungent smell), held down by the high pressure of this gorgeous February day. Once we crossed the coastline I took back control and I flew it offshore back towards the Dee. A Piper Tomahawk passed in the opposite direction a bit lower down to our right as we waggled our wings. Yet another first for me. Unlike my previous flights down this way, it was reassuring to be flying offshore and know that we had floats on the aircraft! On reaching Point of Ayr and turning up the Dee I did a slow descent until it was time to prepare for our turn onto finals at Hawarden. This had been a truly memorable experience and easily eclipsed all my previous flights as it was so different. It is a fantastic aircraft and the all-round visibility gave views to both sides that I have never had before. |