For the aviation fans

[DJR]

I do not post a lot in the grand scheme of things.....but here I sit in Dubai with my South African life passing me by. At least I am happy in the knowledge that my wife is busy with her small restaurant/ bakery and my kids are busy having just qualified in their degrees.

I miss SA, I miss the cycling at home in the George area. Most of my input on the Hub is in the Chit Chat forums as that is what my life is. You are all my connect to SA. Which is why there are more posts when I am away from home........vegging in hotels!

It is so easy to look at someone elses life and only see the exciting bits. I had that realization years ago when I had a chat to an colleague who emigrated to Canada, then became a professor at Stanford and tour the lecture circuit all over the world. I said that I was just a bit jealous of him flitting from one exciting part of the world to the next. He said to slow down and understand that he lives out of a suitcase and sleep in hotel beds away from his wife and kids for 6 months of the year. He said he envied my stable life in Cape Town and will swap any day ,,,,,,, I said no thank you.

[PhilipV]

I do not post a lot in the grand scheme of things.....but here I sit in Dubai with my South African life passing me by. At least I am happy in the knowledge that my wife is busy with her small restaurant/ bakery and my kids are busy having just qualified in their degrees.

I miss SA, I miss the cycling at home in the George area. Most of my input on the Hub is in the Chit Chat forums as that is what my life is. You are all my connect to SA. Which is why there are more posts when I am away from home........vegging in hotels!

Thanks for the reality check.

I was going to go to 43 Air school, had everything lined up and planned out in st9 already. Then we were involved in a bad landing that bent the Cessna (170 iirc) somewhat. We got out without injuries, but that rattled me a bit and I decided to take a gap year after school.

Gap year became b.comm, became a job in Cape Town where I met a pretty girl and 16 years later I'm married with kids et al.

But still I yearn to to do a PPL and fly out of Stellenbosch.

 

A mate of mine went to the 43rd intake that I was supposed to go to, he spent half his working life in Africa, and now flys for Safair. Knowing what I do now I'm not sure whether I would swap for that. But still I yearn to fly out of Stellenbosch....

[DJR]

................But still I yearn to fly out of Stellenbosch....

I have a mate who had a dream to fly, but grew up without ever getting the chance. Eventually through hard work and luck he made himself a decent fortune. What he did next amazed me and ever since inspired me to sometimes just take the plunge.

 

He bought himself an old Tiger Moth in need of restoration. He had no pilots license, but he knew that the restoration of the plane would take about 2 years, so that was enough time for him to go and get it. I asked why on earth he decided on a Tiger Moth and he said he wanted something that was an icon of flight. When the plane was ready he went to fetch it in Joburg and after training on it for a week or two, flew it to the Cape in a series of short hops. He kept it at Stellenbosch for many years and I did a few trips with him from there, along the Helderberg and False Bay as far as Hangklip. 

 

Sadly, he sold it and bought an  Ashton Martin (James Bond, DB4) which was an icon too and still fun, but not quite as cool as a bright red Tiger Moth!

Edited December 31, 2020 by DJR

[PhilipV]

I have a mate who had a dream to fly, but grew up without ever getting the chance. Eventually through hard work and luck he made himself a decent fortune. What he did next amazed me and ever since inspired me to sometimes just take the plunge.

 

He bought himself an old Tiger Moth in need of restoration. He had no pilots license, but he knew that the restoration of the plane would take about 2 years, so that was enough time for him to go and get it. I asked why on earth he decided on a Tiger Moth and he said he wanted something that was an icon of flight. When the plane was ready he went to fetch it in Joburg and after training on it for a week or two, flew it to the Cape in a series of short hops. He kept it at Stellenbosch for many years and I did a few trips with him from there, along the Helderberg and False Bay as far as Hangklip.

 

Sadly, he sold it and bought an Ashton Martin (James Bond, DB4) which was an icon too and still fun, but not quite as cool as a bright red Tiger Moth!

What a lovely story.

 

I will admit though, while I am still far off in terms of the fortune, I have started getting hours in on the boat to do my skippers. Hopefully I will be licensed by the end of 2021. And then one day I will buy and restore an old sailboat. Preferably a catamaran.

 

But comparing my dad's spend on his boat and fishing with my MTB habit would be akin to comparing a heroin addiction to the vague recollection of something salty.

 

But I've always found a way to make things work when I'm patient....

[Bateleur1]

I have a mate who had a dream to fly, but grew up without ever getting the chance. Eventually through hard work and luck he made himself a decent fortune. What he did next amazed me and ever since inspired me to sometimes just take the plunge.

 

He bought himself an old Tiger Moth in need of restoration. He had no pilots license, but he knew that the restoration of the plane would take about 2 years, so that was enough time for him to go and get it. I asked why on earth he decided on a Tiger Moth and he said he wanted something that was an icon of flight. When the plane was ready he went to fetch it in Joburg and after training on it for a week or two, flew it to the Cape in a series of short hops. He kept it at Stellenbosch for many years and I did a few trips with him from there, along the Helderberg and False Bay as far as Hangklip. 

 

Sadly, he sold it and bought an  Ashton Martin (James Bond, DB4) which was an icon too and still fun, but not quite as cool as a bright red Tiger Moth!

 

Whenever I see a Tiger Moth flying I can't help thinking if I would be able to chase it down with my bicycle.  It always look as if they are flying so slow that they will be dropping out of the sky any second.

[DJR]

Whenever I see a Tiger Moth flying I can't help thinking if I would be able to chase it down with my bicycle.  It always look as if they are flying so slow that they will be dropping out of the sky any second.

This is the very reliable airspeed indicator on a Moth. I suppose you could call it an instrument of you wanted to stretch the meaning of the word a little.  On a downhill and a good bike I'm pretty sure you could chase it down! 

[Kranswurm]

Whenever I see a Tiger Moth flying I can't help thinking if I would be able to chase it down with my bicycle.  It always look as if they are flying so slow that they will be dropping out of the sky any second.

A mate of mine has a Tiger Moth and he and his daughter took part in this little escapade. Theirs is the plane with the Botswana flag.

 

http://www.vintageairrally.com/rallies/past/crete2cape

[Kranswurm]

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Edited December 31, 2020 by Kranswurm

[BigDL]

I was very fortunate have climbed the crew ladder and clambered about in this very aeroplane. I would need to check dates on photos but perhaps about 2009. I was flying our DC8 freighter on a British MOD contract out of RAF Brize Norton. We had just landed back from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus which was a tech stop from Karrachi, itself a night stop from the freight drop in Camp Bastion, Helmand Province, Afghanistan. Anyways, the crew of 558 were prepping to fly to Scotland to I legged it across the apron to request a “look see”! They were very accommodating. I do have a video of the take off somewhere in the deep depths of my shed load of aviation photos.

Separate to this, a few years back I visited the aviation museum at Le Bourget ( Le Baguettes) in Paris and found a 1/72 model of 558 in the shop. It was bought and awaits construction (along with about 30 other diverse models)

Must be wonderful to fly for a living as well as having an obvious love for aeroplanes

[SwissVan]

This is the very reliable airspeed indicator on a Moth. I suppose you could call it an instrument of you wanted to stretch the meaning of the word a little.  On a downhill and a good bike I'm pretty sure you could chase it down! 

 

That ASI hangs on the forward wing strut halfway down (at least 6 feet) the wing....and that's why pilots have to have good eyes 

[Spokey]

Must be wonderful to fly for a living as well as having an obvious love for aeroplanes

It has its moments! A huge amount of boredom interspersed with moments of “what the hell is it doing now?”

Yes, always good to be paid for doing something you enjoy!

[DJR]

That ASI hangs on the forward wing strut halfway down (at least 6 feet) the wing....and that's why pilots have to have good eyes 

I had the great fortune to get to know and fly (as passenger) with two Tiger Moths.

 

As a high school kid I worked as a helper /orderly / fetcher / lifter for the local town doctor who was our neighbour. He flew various small planes to transport patients in the sticks and I basically helped to load and lend an extra pair of hands. That was work (later on I ended up, during national service, in casevac work because of it - "interesting" it sure was), but for a while his toy was a Tiger Moth and I got rewarded every so often with flying in its most pure form. On a quiet spring day flying over the mountains and endless plains of the Great Karoo rivaled Karen Blixen over the Serengeti (in my mind anyway). Regrettably I have no pictures of those adventures.

 

Then, later as an adult I met the somewhat crazy and eccentric friend who I posted about above and jumped at the chance to fly with him again.

[patham]

For our December break, the youngster and I are building  a matched pair of Sukhoi's, 1/48 Su 35 (him) and Su 34 (me, the one with canards). First time I have used an airbrush, so lots of frustration as to how to use it (masking, overspray, trying to get mottling and texture, paint layer build-up, fragility of the coating etc). 

 

Any of us who were at the SAAF 75th anniversary show should remember the Su 27 and flight display with cobra ? 

 

But making progress and learning new things. Work in progress pics below - last 2 photos are after a panel wash (again, new techniques) to make the panel lines, rivets etc. stand out more. 

 

In 1/48 these are big birds, the real ones seem smaller somehow.

[SwissVan]

Some swissness

 

[Bateleur1]

Some swissness

 

 

Really good looking plane, inside and out.  Do they take mastercard?

[SwissVan]

Really good looking plane, inside and out. Do they take mastercard?

If it’s a black titanium one with at least US$10 Bar CL

Edited January 6, 2021 by SwissVan