Whitianga trip pics

Our very own Table Mountain at 4000 ft AMSL. Not nearly as grand as the one in South Africa but its ours.

Departing Whitianga from downwind, note the waterways development.


Another shot of the waterways, the airfield is to the right middle of the photo.


Flying mate Gav next to that other way to fly, only its twice as expensive. Gav has almost got his PPL (h) in the R22 but will fly in anything that goes up.

Yours truly giving the starboard oleos on FWS a workout. Archers are a great plane to fly and I think they look cooler than the Cessna 172. But I have no real preference for which one I fly.

The photos are in reverse chronological order, and the aerial shots were all taken on the return trip to Hamilton. This was because I left my camera in my bag and only realised where it was after we had taken off.

Another milestone past

The previous Ardmore trip as well as my weekend trip to Whitianga (photos + film to follow) allowed me to tick over the 50 hours PIC mark. My new goal is 40 hours Archer time (there is also a total time requirement but I meet that) so the Club will let me fly the Arrow.

Isn't it funny how you are told things time and time again by your instructor that you just don't get, then one day something happens and you realise they were right all along? Well this weekend the lesson I learned was about leaning the mixture. I was taught to lean above 3000 AMSL for best power and to save the engine from carbon buildup in the cylinders from unburnt or half burnt fuel. But what I found out was how much fuel you can save when the plane is only burning 40 litres an hour instead of 55!

The pics and movie were taken on the return flight to Hamilton as my camera sat in my bag the whole trip over. The weather was nicer on the return flight and it was a lot smoother as the late afternoon meant cooler air and less turbulence.

Photos of the Ardmore trip.

Established on finals, runway 03 at Ardmore (NZAR)Watch that sink rate!

A crosswind is no excuse for not landing on the centerline (although we actually did land on the centerline, it was one of those rare occasions).


And a movie of the landing back at Hamilton. No I am not missing the runway, I was cleared onto the adjacent grass runway (believe it or not that is not a taxiway). Note the difference in the weather, the movie was shot several hours after the photos.