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Medicals And Flying


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Well gang its 2 A.M. and I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep so here I am on the lap top again and thought I may as well give you an update on my summer.

 

Last week I had my six month medical done in Amsterdam and it was quite a bit more in depth than a Canadian one, no less than three doctors probed me to determine if I can still see lightening and hear thunder. By the way it is also more expensive here, paid 218 Euro ( $ 3.20.00 Canadian ) actually my employeer paid.

 

I offered them one thousand Euro each if they could fail me so I could get the f.. out of aviation but alas when it was all over I left depressed and discouraged as they had signed my license as class I and I am stuck with being a pilot for another six months.

 

Had my best airshow yet this year on Saturday, for the first time we were parked as a ground display and not in the flying display so I just wandered around eating free food and free drinks as that is one of the perks of being in the airdisplay crew portion of the airshows.

 

The airdisplay sector of flying is really quite a different part of aviation as you get to form friendships with people who like gypsies go from airshow to airshow and we sort of become a disfunctional family with the usual colection of charachters some nice and some classic as.holes just like every other group.

 

One of the nicest guys is from Turkey and he flys a really exotic biplane that looks like a Pitts but is really a one of a kind that has mindblowing performance, it even has spades on the rudder. He hauls it all over Europe in a big tractor trailer rig that cost him over $250.000 USD. He was really looking foward to his next airshow in England as it will be his last for this year, he did eighty shows this season...poor bas..rd is really ready to see the end of his season. The real highlight of that show was I got to see my first Grumman 7F7 Tiger Cat and watch it perform, what an awsome airplane.

 

I also am counting down the days as we have one more big public apperance to fly on friday where they are closing the biggest harbour in the world so we can land right down town Rotterdam and drop off the Mayor and his flunkies for some big gong show that politicians love so much.....I can't believe the B.S. that is required with all the paperwork and rules that we have to comply with just to do one landing and take off, we even have to do a practice landing and drop off on thursday so they can get everything all planned for the TV and all that stuff on friday.

 

It should prove interesting as there is a very big bridge that we have to approach over and they are all worked up worrying that I might fly into the f.ckin thing...I want to quit flying but not by flying into some **** bridge in down town Rotterdam.

 

Anyhow for what it is worth there is an update on my summer and by this next time next week I will be back home...if I don't fly into the bridge... :up:

 

The Reverend Chas W.

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Aha! So you aced the medical and not one single word about aerial competitions, Rev!

 

But I'm glad you got to see your Tiger Cat. Just watched an episode of the Military Channel's Air Power and they talked about the Tom Cats, Tiger Cats, **** Cats, et al. Very interesting!

 

Now don't be flying into any bridge and making the evening news. There's easier ways to get out of aviation, but i know you know you don't want to! Ahahaha! Be safe up there. :)

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Hey, Kyle it's far to late for me to change. :up:

 

This weekend was a zoo with the Netherlands Aerobatic contest being held here at the airport that we are based at.

 

Burt Huizenga the guy that I fly with won the unlimited again for the fifteenth time in a row, I just told him a few hours ago that he had better hope that I don't get time to practice or I'll take it away from him soon...the problem with that game is four things money, time, money and time...of which I only have money.. :up: :up: Actually I just checked and I don't have the money either... :shock:

 

Seriously I will not ever get the chance to compete because I am stuck flying the f.ckin Cat at all the airshows while Bert flys the Pitts, it's really funny Bert would sodomize himself to fly the Cat at the airshows and I would love to fly the unlimited birds but we at least are part of the gong show that airshows are behind the scenes. If I had a dollar for every new rule the bureaucrats dream up and force feed us I would be a millionaire....they are brutal on the rules for the airshow box and any slight deviation from the limits results in a warning and possible suspension of your airdisplay authorization.... I have been warned twice this year because they claimed that I went below our 200 feet floor...they actually have a radar gun that measures our altitude and if part of the airplane goes below the floor they either say altitude or stop, stop, stop...if they say stop, stop stop you are fuc.ed as that means you are finished until you go before the authorities to explain why you exceeded your limits.

 

The briefings are very detailed with maps, pictures, slides and about ten airshow officials yapping about that you can and can not do...I bet everyone here can imagine how hard I find it to just sit and nod my head yes, yes, yes when my real feelings are overwhelming me to say shove your rules and your airshow where the sun don't shine.

 

Several of the top pilots are quitting because it has becoms so cluster.uc.ed with rules and rule makers that it is not fun anymore. There are sometimes more than fifty pilots flying , and they fly some of the most exotic airplanes on earth.

 

Actually it is like a disease you catch and few of us recover so we just keep on hoping things will get better.

 

Anyhow Rotterdam will be all ours on Thursday and Friday as we are the only airplane in the festivities and I am looking foward to landing in the river right down town Rotterdam ..( weather permitting ) I wonder what they would say if I fly under the bridge instead of over it? I could always claim I got caught in a down draft and had no choice... :up:

 

I often wonder why those maggots at 800 Burrard can prevent me from flying simple training airplanes , yet in a foreign country I am given exemptions that no one else in Europe have...strange world this is huh? When people come up to me and ask if I'm that Canadian that they heard flys in Europe without a JAA license I say, yup, but in my own country I am not allowed to work, when they ask why I tell them about our TC idiots and just how corrupt their system really is in Canada...just my way to get the word out and believe me people listen.

 

When I get back home I want to make some changes to my web site Kyle, so I'll contact you after I take care of the wife. :up:

 

The Reverend C.W.

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Hi Chuck....I guess the EU is really sticking it to general aviation and particularly the heavy metal warbirds over there with monsterous insurance liability requirements.

 

My new insurance policy makes it impossible for Ingrid to fly the "Alley Cat" solo unless she gets dual from a qualified instructor...she only has 200 hours on the aircraft and I checked her out when I still had an instructors rating. First it's the MoT then the insurance companies making mopre rules...nutz.

 

Remember ...fly low...fly slow...Oh never mind...you can't do anything else in a Canso.

 

Stay healthy old buddy

 

Barney

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Hi Barney, my biggest problem is I'm to healthy and they won't let me quit this flying thing.

 

Yesterday was a real long day, first off in the morning we did the PBY type rating ride for one of the airline pilots and to celebrate he asked me if I would like to go to Turkey with him in the evening, **** in todays world getting permission to fly in the cockpit in any jet is very unusual so naturally I said yes....first we had a three hour delay at Schipohl while they fixed a hydraulic problem, then we had another forty five minute delay in Bodrum Turkey because of a drunk that had to be removed from the airplane by the Turkish police, anyhow we landed in Amsterdam just after seven AM and I only got four hours sleep befroe I had to fly the Cat....I'm really wasted and have to fly tomorrow morning.

 

It was quite interesting flying with two of the guys in the Boeing 767 that I fly with on the Cat..it was a nice trip down to Turkey as all of Europe and the Southern Med was severe clear and from FL 410 we could see forever...

 

But I sure wouldn't want to baby sit a jet for a living just watching the miles click down as you fly.

 

I'm going to get some sleep will so chat again later.

 

Rev.

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Guest Bullet Remington

Hey Padre You old coot!

 

Great to hear that you're still alive and kickin!

 

Gotta agree with ya on the "Baby Sittin" a jet, doing milk runs! Ain't much fun flyin like the old iron with the round engines!

 

I've always maintained that Plank Drivers should start out, on their first job, making at least $150,00.00 per year. That first flying job is where they actually work. They have to do their own loading/unloading, own flight planning, own fueling, own weather breifings, own walk arounds, actually fly the machines (no autopilot on Single otters and 1.82's) help the mechanics with snags, they clean the machines, have to come in on no fly days and pump the floats. Plus they have to make payments and support heir families on about $25 to 30 K per year!

 

Jet Jockeys, do???? OCC does their weight and balance, Ramp rats do the loading, Fuelers do the fueling, OCC does the flight planning, Line maintenance does the walkarounds, groomers do the cleaning Auto does the flying, and in some cases the landings and /or Take-Offs, Routes are planned for them, weather breifing are done for them, MCC trouble shoots any snags for they while they are flying and tells them if they can continue or are required to terminte, and they make $100,000.oo a year for??

 

OH yeah, sorry I forgot, someone HAS to program the pre-planned flight into the computer, AND wear the paint off the lower part pf the forward instrument

panel!!

 

Yes Sir, it difficult and demanding work floggin along at 37,000 feet, sippin a coffee, peerin out the Windscreen and decidin which of the Trolley Dollies are the most doable!!

 

****, I think they should be PAYING us to let them fly!!

 

Have a great ONE, Padre. You be careful pushin that old bird through her paces now, ya hear??

 

BR

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BR---------you took me "back" a long way and you "nailed" them all except for one you left out........laying underneath the engine tent of an Otter, while the open-flame flare pots heat up the 1340 at -35F at 5AM in the morning. It was "fun" laying there with the mechanic while he had a cigarette and his morning coffee while the gas perculated like a coffee pot in the carburetor.

 

After one of those freezing mornings I was handed a copy of the old "Canadian Aviation" magazine when I hit warmth and when I opened it up I saw this flying school ad staring back at me:

 

"Lead an adventuresome and exciting life and earn up to $2000 per month.......become a pilot".

 

Ya........Right!! :wacko:

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Guest Bullet Remington

Cap:

 

Guilty Sir! I'm still scratching parts of my anatomy trying to remeber how I forgot that one!! And of course, up at 0 Dark :30 starting the damned thing and lettin her idle until the oil Temp came up and the pressure down!! Swattin skeeters, drink 100 mile coffee, smokin stale cigareetes and wishing I was back in bed with a warm body to snuggle up to!! :down:

 

Makes me wonder, sometimes why us old coots keep recallin the "Good Old days" when not much about them were actually that great!

 

On the other hand, didn't know much better and didn't care, was flying, the pay cheques (Checks, for TQN) didn't bounce every other month, and we were flying!! Yep! sure was fun being a 300 hour "professional pilot" :):)

 

Can't really remember if I was just young, stupid or in all probability, a combination of both!! :P:P

 

Thanks for the flash back, Cap. Think I'll go wrap a couple of Kleenex around my toes, but on a pair of oily coveralls, an insulated pair of coveralls, curl up on a mat in the corner with an old parker over me and get the Missus to hum, cough and fart like a radial!! :rolleyes::rolleyes:

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