I met up with Rob (my daughter’s boyfriend) at the airport and I had already checked the plane out. He helped me pull it out of the hangar and I started up and taxied over to the pumps as there was barely enough fuel for a couple of circuits, with one tank virtually dry. I called for taxi clearance after I had put some 70 litres in and was told that I hadn’t booked out – ah! I thought it was all going a bit too smoothly, UI had forgotten. The guy in ATC relented as he wasn’t too busy and took my details over the radio. I taxied to the hold for 22 and did the power checks carefully, as the previous pilot had reported engine rough running while on the right tank, from the description, almost certainly carb icing, but can’t be too careful. The engine and tank were fine.
Line up, power up, dance on the peddles to keep her straight down the runway, tail up and keep her down. She starts to skip, hold her down a bit more, still only looking down the runway and judging the airspeed by sight and the engine by sound. I daren’t take my eyes off the end of the runway for a second for fear of the plane starting to weathercock in that moment – I think most taildragger pilots would say the same thing, maybe I should ask them? Anyway, we are easily up and climbing to the right heading north as I have decided to pop into Wolverhampton / Halfpenny Green airport, as I haven’t been there since I was training in 2001.
We climb to 4500’ and I let Rob have a play with the controls. He isn’t bad at all, but betrays that he is a ‘Flight Simulator Pilot’ by the way he only ever looks at the instruments and does not fly by visual reference. I give him the usual patter about how to fly visually. It is only a short run to Wolverhampton and I take care to avoid flying anywhere near the Birmingham control zone. I call up Wolverhampton and see that they are operating on runway 16. I ask about the wind and they say it is 150/08 – OK fine, just different from Gloucester who were giving 200/08. By the time I spot the airfield, we are virtually on top of it and still at 4000’. So I opt for a standard overhead join which goes pretty well. They are very quiet and there is only one other aircraft moving down there. On base I hear someone calling ready for departure and on final I see him lining up. No bother as In continue my approach. I get the expected ‘lad at your discretion’ (this is an INFO tower, not a controlled airport). The guy on the end of the runway starts moving, so I continue. He is well clear and airborne as I come in for the landing. Approach has been good, bit fast, but I hold off well. The stall warner is screaming, hold off some more and when we touch it is barely a touch and we stay down and solid and roll slowly to the end of the runway (as that is the quickest taxi to parking). Well that was about as close to a ‘greaser’ as you can probably get in an RV6 (certainly as close as I ever get!).
Rob and G-GDRV at Halfpenny Green Airport
The INFO guys are very helpful and talk me around the route to parking, not that I needed it, but a nice touch, but then they weren’t busy. We park up on hard standing by the tower and shut down. It is a beautiful day as I head to the tower to pay the landing fee, while Rob explores the delights of the café, in the tower building, but one floor below. The guys in the tower are very friendly and seem keen to encourage return visits. I explain that I haven’t been here for eight years or so and quickly explain that it is only because it is so close to Gloucester that it is a bit embarrassing, a bit like a trip to Kemble, a mere ten minutes away – some intrepid aviator! They mention my plane and say that Manuel had it based at Wolverhampton while he was preparing it for his round-the-world flight.
The airport café is basic but very nice. Good choice of food as I opt for the mandatory toasted bacon sandwich and coffee (I have never quite got the hang of tea, despite living in the UK most of my life). Rob pays for the meals as he has a burger and fries brunch. We chat away watching the very odd aircraft come and go, it is pretty quiet here.
I know that I only have the plane booked until midday but I don’t know if anyone has booked it after me. But as a good group member, I won’t push it and assume I can simply roll up late, so I call time as we saddle up for the return trip. We trundle around the taxiway behind a Cabair PA28 (presumably on a training flight), so I give him lots of space in case he stops suddenly or does something unexpected. I complete my power checks sat behind the PA28 and call ‘ready for departure in turn’. I could taxi past the PA28 on part of the taxiway that looks a lot less used, but I am not stressed about it. The instructor in the PA28 twigs and radios that he will pull forward so I can get past – how nice!
I line up, apply power and I am away on runway 16. I modest right turn puts us on track for Gloucester and well clear of Birmingham zone. Up to 4500’ again as we trundle over the Malverns for a quick look. I get the ATIS and call Gloucester for a rejoin. There are a couple of aircraft calling for a join at the same time and I note in particular a PA28 joining the overhead from the opposite direction a little closer than me. I call as instructed at three miles and hear the PA28 call three miles a few seconds before me. OK, I don’t like this and tell / offer APP that I will do one orbit at three miles to let the PA28 get well into the overhead before we potentially jostle for position. Orbit complete, I join and call for deadside descent, which I am given. Gloucester do seem to like to police the circuit and they ask where I am when I am in the crosswind. I can see the other aircraft and we seem to be pretty well sorted out. I call downwind and complete the pre-landing checks. On base Rob notices the PA28 so far out that at first I assume he isn’t in the circuit. It dawns on me that he is and I take my base wide to try to get behind him. I do get behind but I am closer than I would like. It turns out he is doing a T&G, so it will probably be OK. TWR tell me to expect a late clearance as I bring the speed back as much as I dare.
Worcestershire from 4500' on a beautiful flying day!
On very short final I am cleared to land. I flare and set up for the hold off with the power off. Looking good, stall warner starts with a chirrup, but we touch very gently before I would like. We hop slightly, more chirruping and we touch again, but a bit harder – OK this is a bounce now. In probably no more than three seconds I weigh up my options as I don’t like this, it feels like one where the bounces will get bigger and bigger. So do I carry on and try to control the bounces, apply power and go around or apply a shot of power and try the hold off again. I opt for the third option and smooth out the bounce and re-flare (this is what I did at Avignon fighting a nasty gusting crosswind) as I have plenty of runway on 22 and it is not problem to turn off at the end anyway. This works pretty well and my ‘second landing’ from the same approach works well. Oh well, good practice I guess.
We taxi in and shutdown only a few minutes past midday on a perfect flying day. Do we wheel it back into the hangar and put the plane back to bed. As it turns out later, no one else had it booked, which I found surprising on such a great day. I really should have checked this and I wouldn’t have minded a detour to fly around the Welsh Hills on the way back and see if we could spot the SAS troopers sweating their cods off on Pen-y-Fan, but maybe another day.
