Trip Review

Intro

• It is a great privilege to be able to do a trip to Europe and return.
• It is a great privilege to share this experience with Pip.
  
• It is a great privilege that Amira had such faith and was super positive about doing this
  
• I am grateful to God for allowing a dream to be fulfilled
  
• I am grateful for the people who prayed while doing this trip (The vertical relationships)

Personnel Growth

When asking to do something difficult God seems to smile knowing we are asking beyond our abilities. God knows how to deal with this. Similar to a parent whose child asks to do something outside their reach, but different in that God can use the circumstance to teach and build us up:

• Eggenfelden SID departure was a terrible is rain and clouds. Looking at the GPS I lost the attitude and temporarily control of plane and it was hard to bring back, (Even fearless Pip was feeling the g forces and a bit paler) - we where queried by controller and this was a valuable lesson (I think a puller plane potentially would have spun out). Rekavick was alsp SID departure where there was zero visibility, and we managed this departure well.

  The last approach at Narsarsuaq still was rocky and showed that improvements are still necessary. We stay humbled.

• We set the timing and God again arrange events to make it happen
  • Missed the NOTAM that Goosebay had no fuel
  • Got there in the evening to hear that fuel will be only available in 4 days.
  • Next morning manager parked fuel truck on slope and we got/drained the last fuel
  • Had spent 12 hour trying to figure out how to get fuel or use car fuel...
  • At the FBO in the morning suddenly had Assurance that we would be OK prior to manager suggesting we put fuel truck on hill to get last fuel.
  
  
• Build up to get plane ready had many challenges
  • Gear collapse on landing
  • Front wheel axel failure on takeoff then landing
  • Gear extend failure on approach - fixed in flight
  • Lost All lost electronics /Battery failure at midway airport
  • Repeated shimming of front wheel
  • The difficulty in getting smooth landing with plane
  • the costs incurred where crazy
  To fly this plane it seemed that over and over one needed to be a test pilot to debug the many issues. So with apprehension but set a date Aug 12 to fly to Europe. Only Two weeks prior took a passenger for first time ( Pip)

  This apprehension prior to leaving was close to disabilitating and it make's one appreciate the Jesus strength he had as leading up to his crucifixion he:

  • gave his peace
  • say take comfort I have overcome

  The trip and it's preparation made the transition or growth from anxiety/apprehension to confidence and excitement

God Moments

• No business orders for 6 weeks prior gave plenty of time to research flying in europe
• Super pleased I could ask Pip to come and have this opportunity with him.
  Strongly felt this was the right thing to do - very quick spontaneous decision
• FAA Medical received thursday / get plane friday / oil chg... plane Saturday /depart monday
• Largely solved insurance issue with trust agreement...
• Iceland departure was total ifr, with icing at 6000 ft. Yet I felt confident we could stay under and it proved to be an excellent flight with strong tail winds below ice layer. Flying thro the clouds was relatively smooth. So I listened to logic, common sense and the spirit. On arrival at Wick Scotland we heard a ferry pilot did not make the trip. Like many instance one fundamentally needs to go alone carefully and listen to common sense and the spirit.
• Bremen we where welcomed by media - Strong advocate in Christiane. The media attention later allowed contacts to be made
• Bremen security found the live ammo in Pips bag - which he forgot he had. We had traveled through Canada, Greenland, Iceland, Scotland and arrival Bremen and only on departure was this found. It seems security did not release this was live.
• We managed to contact a very friendly maintenance/service guy in EGMC Southend UK, who let us use his hanger to do oil chg and check plane. On removing planes cowling a bolt dropped out. If it has dropped out in flight this would not be good news for the propeller. A veteran tech worked out where this bolt came from (Alternator bolt 2 - hard to see)
• I did not realize Greenland needs a permit for experimental planes. We where allowed to leave without a permit and I managed to get a permit for return without fulfilling all the requirements
• Plane is running great - only a couple of splutters

Memorable Moments

• Canada controller advise storm ahead and the say no radar or radio contact for next 100+ mile - suddenly we are alone with a storm ahead which we managed to side step.
• Narsarsuaq Greenland arrival thro fjord - icebergs / good weather all very pretty.
• Iceland IFR departure
• Scotland kindness of FBO
• Bremen IFR arrival
• Bremen Mum so excited and also pleased we could do garden
• Trip to Strausberg/Berlin skipped rain.
  We where asked to do grass field landing at main runway had stranded plane.
  This was the first grass landing I did in this plane - went well.
• Berlin Jewish museum does not show actual holocaust - show history up to and after - Did i miss it?
• Eggenfelden IFR SID departure - learn't some valuable lessons - thank you God
• VFR to Portugal - seeing the alps and english channel/atlantic was beautiful
• MAIA IFR/VFR departure
  Pilots explain FAA allows uncontrolled airport IFR departure - Europe does not
• At Guernsey found Instructor who could show VFR route into UK which we then did next day.
• South end departure. We had an IFR flight plan. While taxing to runway just shy of it they cancels our flight plan due to overload for controllers.So we are ifr in uncontrolled airspace working our way around Gatwick, and missing cambridge - With out an ipad this would have been impossible.
• Elizabeth Friday nite - the longer we spent there the more excited she got.
  a bit of wine helps also
• Cranfield IFR departure
• Reykjavik great SID departure
• Kulusuk was wild, poor and had a real character as hotel proprietor. Had gun as he had that morning needed to clear area of polar bears.
• Kulusuk departure controller tells you destination Narsarsuaq has weather not legal to land. We knew we where flying into improving weather. Still a bit disconcerting
• Scenery along Greenland from Kulusuk - this was beautiful and a gift to have such nice weather and very favorable winds - thank you God
• Narsarsuag IFR approach shaky - I remain humbled
• smooth ride to Canada (strong head winds - fuel no issue) - flew low where winds where weaker. PIC decision
  Extremes of wind 196 knot ground speed to Wick down to 110 knot ground speed back to Goosebay

Memorable moment - people

• Mums excitment
• Rudy'e Cremation (sharing with Christiane)
• Sabine and Ralf, Ralf playing sax music
• Spending time with Danial and meeting Awa and friends
• James was honored - and so where we
• Fun with Ellie and Ludwig
• Great time with Frederica and family
  Fantastic that Frederico show so much of what he was doing
  Manual and Martin and friends where fun to be with
• Nana keep talking more and more as she got exited
• John a real plane nerd was so excited, was fun to be with.
  Gena was great very hospital.
  They are very nice to each other

Next time

• Terminology revision: different place use different jargon - approach / radar / information/ terminal.....
• Use denmark weather
• Foreflight for greenland and UK does not have waypoints!!
  
• Consider using sky demon particularly for UK
• Used autorouter : best to produce routes that euro control would accept.