The Twinstar (Diamond DA42) is possibly the nicest aircraft I have flown. It handles beautifully and is great to throw around the sky to have some fun in. It is also significantly quicker than the Cessna we were flying in New Zealand which means we can get a bit further afield in our lessons. For example yesterday in my last flight, I went down to Alderney for an RNAV (GPS) approach before flying back to Bournemouth. This two hour jaunt to this small Channel Island was all done in time for me to get back home for breakfast. It was stunning though flying through and between the clouds over the English Channel in the peaceful early morning air.
I also had a chance to back seat a course mates flight to Guernsey the other day. Back-seating is a really good opportunity to learn from the other person's lesson and pick up some tips that your instructor may not have mentioned, as well as a chance to take loads of photos. Here are a selection;
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| Leaving UK airspace and heading to Guernsey |
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| The English Channel |
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| Alderney |
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| The view of Guernsey through the propeller blades |
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| Busy at Guernsey Airport |
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| The return leg over the Channel |
This last month of training has been great fun. It has been a chance for us MPL cadets to learn something new and get some valuable experience of the UK, multi-engine flying and Upset Recovery in a no pressure environment. The emphasis of this phase really was experience and fun. The next phase should also be fun, but hard work. The waiting Airbus A320 simulators are certainly an exciting thought to all of us and we cannot wait to get a go in them. Unfortunately it does mean that until February we wont be doing anymore real flying, and the scariest thought is that the next time we take to the skies will be at the controls of the Airbus.
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