First Flight

chipmunk with 1116 woodley squadron ATC {1983-87} from abingdon {well chuffed when pilot talked me through a loop as i had control} in the early eighties. Flew twice in that time frame and once in a glider from raf Benson {got my raf marksman with SLR there as well}

January 1976, Her Majesty’s Bulldog XX622 at RAF Finningley (please don’t call it Robin Hood). 16,000 hours later, still loving every minute.

Summer 1980 in a Westland Whirlwind HAR 10 from Shawbury. Don’t know which a/c but the pilot was Flt Lt ‘Chas’ Chubb and I got a severe headache because my bone dome was too tight. Good fun though, an hour at low level following roads, canals, railway lines and then landing in a forest clearing six inches bigger than the rotor diameter.

[QUOTE=ALBERT ROSS]I was wondering what your first flight was in and how you felt – sick or elated? Mine was in an Auster at an Open Day at RAF Wroughton, Wiltshire in September 1960, but I was too young to remember the exact date and didn’t record the registration letters. QUOTE]
Albert,

Mine was a year before that, September 1959, Prentice G-APIY and I did take a photo at the time.

Elated.

I was interested to be re-acquainted with it recently at the Newark Cockpitfest.

Mark

East West airlines Fokker F27 for me in the late 70,s I can remember.That was my first of a few flights with them.Waiting at the terminal at Inverell with that god awful noise as it taxied in still gives me a smile.Most hair raising was in the early 80,s when an army Iriquoi pilot decided to do wingovers at 2000feet,then do low level runs over the beach near Newcastle.After that was a noisy run in a Chinook over to watch the paratroops do a dive near the Williamtown gunnery range.God bless the ATC..Only flown once while I was in control,well sorta.During my apprenticeship with QANTAS part of our TAFE course was flying.Being copilot for the jaunt in a Piper/Cessna got handed the stick and proceeded to try pull a few small negative Gees for the guys in the back seat..Thing was we were over Sydney at the time….”hmmm is that a Jetranger below us??”

My first flight with with the RAF Gliding Association in an old Blanik. I was sat in the front and the instructor in the back and I was 16. What a wonderful experience soaring over the vale of York. I was up for an hour and went on to take up gliding as a hobby. When I finished my studies in London I started to do my PPL at Goodwood but got seduced by the Flying Tigers skydiving center and switched to jumping out instead of flying them. Haven’t flown anything for nearly 15 years but still look up when I hear an engine.

Ali 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

Piper Cherokee, from Ipswich in about 1982 or 1983. Don’t remember too much about the experience apart from looking out over the North Sea and the East Anglian countryside but not really recognising the significance of everything. We were over our house at one point, I was told, but couldn’t see it. I definitely enjoyed it, and went up twice (everyone else I was with only went up once) but don’t remember much about how it felt.

I didn’t manage to fly again until going to Ireland on a Ryanair 737 to visit my girlfriend’s parents a couple of years ago.

My first flight was a circuit in an Islander (G-BNEA) at the Abingdon Airshow in September 1979

..so that would be THIS one on THAT day at Abingdon, then?

Summer of ’93… at the ripe old age of 26

Fifteen minute in a Stearman over the Ottawa River for some sights and light aerobatics… what an experience – couldn’t get that silly grin off my face for days… gotta love the ‘rabbit ears’ for the pic – courtesy the CAM North Star

JJ

The Rapide was operated by Monique Agazarian (spelling?), an ex ATA pilot, who later ran an Instrument Flight Sim facility at Booker. Retired in 1985 or thereabouts.

An unusual name ,was’nt there a B o B pilot Noel Agazaran,any family relation possibly.

My first flight was with the ATC flying out of Hurn airport, Bournmouth.

It was in a DH Chipmunk, WP840 on the 22nd June 1991 and I flew in her twice more my final flight being almost exactly 12 months later. 😀

I was bitten hard by the flying bug and the only reason I haven’t made progress towards my PPL is the old £££££££££££££££s! 🙁

The Rapide was operated by Monique Agazarian (spelling?), an ex ATA pilot, who later ran an Instrument Flight Sim facility at Booker. Retired in 1985 or thereabouts.

My first flight was a Cessna (possibly either a 182 or 206) on floats off a lake in Norway in 1969 to look at the glaciers and ice cap, the only problem was that I was terrified, aged 11 and ended up not making the flight that pleasant for the others. Since then I have got a pilots licence, so have overcome that fear.
My father first flew in Alan Cobham’s Air Ferry at Blue Barns field on the Ipswich Road north of Colchester in 1933/4, he remembers seeing the Birdman, amongst other things, and my mother in a Rapide at Heathrow in 1952.

Has anyone got a photo of the Rapide at Heathrow, not sure how many were operated from there and she tells me the pilot was a woman?

Texan TC.

I too vivid memories of that Tiger Moth G-BJZF, having crashed in it at Headcorn in 1998.
My friend Rob rebuilt it beautifully, after buying the salvage back from the insurers for £5,000. He finished it in a stylish burnt orange scheme/ black, but when he came to sell it in 2000, the non-period colours did not help and it sold eventually for a mere £30,000. It is now up in Yorkshire somewhere, having been pulled apart, and re-painted.

ASK 13 Glider of Essex Gliding Club, North Weald – 12 years old, 1979

Luton Flying Club Auster (G-AIGT?) 1957 . Dad (at Hunting Percival) bent the arms of some guys in the club at the weekend..
None of the Kids at school believed me the following Monday.
O.K. Johnnie Johnson (Ex- Vintens) where is she now? You did have her. 🙂

Mine was definitely in a Rapide, from RAF Hornchurch on a Battle of Britain Open Day, probably 1952, so I would have been aged 11. I still have a vivid meory of sitting in a left-hand seat right next to the wing leading-edge and a whirling prop. I am sure I was aprehensive at least, but I also enjoyed it and have grabbed any opportunity to fly since. My most ‘entertaining’ has been hanging out of the open cockpit of an Aircoupe while my pilot kept standing it on a wingtip so that I could photograph possible real estate development sites without the wing getting in the way!

My boss made me go to Chicago in the early 1980s for a week of training
when I was in my late 20s. The flight was on an Eastern commercial
DC-9 for about two hours each way. I sat on the right side, just past the
wing, and was terrified for the first hour. The friendly, supermodel
stewardesses helped me feel better. And, I felt great as I exited the
jet at O’hare airport. On the return trip a sexy, gorgeous young business
lady sat beside me and began downing vodka drinks as soon as she could
buy them. After an hour, she was passed out and her head, and lovely hair
was lying on my shoulder. When we landed, I woke her up and gave her a
big 🙂

WWW. link to photo of Eastern DC-9:

avsim.com/pages/0999/durst/ea-d95.jpg

…a big WHAT? :rolleyes: Cummon, surely it doesn’t end there? :diablo:

First flight was in Cambrian Airways Dak from Le Bourget to Bristol Lulsgate via Hurn in 1965. Had been an aviation nut since I was in short pants and loved every minute. Now have 3,000+ hours, mostly as a nav, with tours on PR.9’s, Buccs, J.P’s, Dominies & Hawks, but the first ever flight will always be v special.

Oh yes I remember it well. An Air Anglia DC3 G-AGJV out of Greenham Common July 1974. Anyone know what happened to her?

I was on board her that weekend as well!

What a weekend – a flight in a Dak and an ogle at the KC97 in the static park!

And me also!!