The Airline Transport Pilot leaps tall buildings in a single bound, is more powerful than a 747, is faster than a speeding bullet, walks on water, and discusses policy with God.

The Multi-Engine Pilot leaps short buildings in a single bound, is more powerful than a 707, is just as fast as a speeding bullet, walks on water if it is calm, and talks to God.

The Instrument Pilot leaps short buildings with a running start and favorable wind conditions, is nearly as powerful as a Lear Jet, almost as fast as a speeding bullet, walks on water of an indoor pool, and talks to God if special request is approved.

The Commercial Pilot makes high marks when trying to leap buildings, loses a tug-of-war with twin-engine aircraft, can fire a speeding bullet, swims well, and is occasionally addressed by God.

The Private Pilot barely clears a camping tent, is run over by single engined aircraft, can sometimes recognise a speeding bullet, , can dog-paddle, and talks to animals.

The Soloed Student Pilot runs into buildings, recognizes a Cessna 172 two out of three times, has never seen a speeding bullet, can stay afloat if properly instructed, and talks to water.

The Non-Soloed Student Pilot falls over door sills when trying to enter buildings, says “Look at the airplane,” wets himself with a water pistol, and mumbles to himself.

The Aircraft Engineer lifts buildings and walks under them, kicks planes out of the hangars, catches speeding bullets in his teeth and chews them, and freezes water with a single glance.

The Engineer IS God…

You’ve ever said, “Oh yes sir, it’s supposed to look like that.”
It is. If it’s on the floor, or hanging off the aircraft, it still resembles what its supposed to…

You’ve ever sucked LOX to cure a hangover.
To such a good natural high, there is an un-natural low….

You know what JP4/JP5 (jet fuel) tastes like.
Jet A and A1… A1 is nicer because of the ice inhibitor

You’ve ever used a piece of safety wire as a toothpick.
or a nail scraper, or a filter blockage indicator re-setter, or to keep your car exhaust on, or keep your fence up in strong winds…..

You’ve ever had to say, “My boots are still black!” (or ever spray-painted them black)
or had to throw them away after two weeks because the steel toe-cap is showing….

You have ever used soot from the tailpipe to blacken your boots.
or had to crawl down the jetpipe just to make your brand-new overalls look used

You believe the aircraft has a soul.
It does, and it hates us

You talk to the aircraft.
only when insulting it

You ever wished the pilot would just say, “Great aircraft!”
One did once. He was wrong.

You can’t comprehend why everyone doesn’t want to be a Maintainer.
Especially since I teach them!

You think everyone who isn’t a Maintainer is a wimp.
they are…. if they’re not an engineer that makes them a trolley-dolly or an admin clerk.

You consider ‘Moly-B’ fingerprints on food an ‘acquired taste’.
PRC is nicer than that silicone rubbish

You’ve ever been told to “go get us some prop wash, a yard of flight line or the keys to the jet.
Metre of fallopian tube, tartan paint, or a long stand.

You have ever jumped inside an intake to get out of the rain.
or OUT of an intake when some loon sets of the ignitors for a giggle. A Victor intake is a long way up…..

The phrase “Oh, by the way…” makes your eye twitch.
😉

Little yellow ear plugs are all over your house.
and their fully fledged ear def cousins

Your spouse refuses to watch any aviation shows or attend air shows with you.
Date no.2 involved a Bristol Hercules strip down…. we’ve been married 10 years now….

You have ever looked for pictures of “your” jet in aviation books and magazines.
MY jets have all been retired…. and I’m only 34!

You have ever used a pair of Dykes to trim a fingernail.
tin snips… yes

You have ever wiped your hands on your pants.
Asda sell jeans for £4 so its not a problem.

You have ever wiped leaks right before a crew show.
If it doesn’t leak, its out of fluid…

Everyone you know has some kind of nickname.
Chalky and Floppy would dissagree

You know in your heart that your jet is female.
All aircraft are…. and they all hate us

You refer to ANY machine as “she.”
Stroppy, tempramental, and makes you late for beer…..

You think JP8 and Skoal wintergreen taste good together.
Chateux d’Chably and AVCAT. Yum….

You can’t remember half of your coworkers real names… only their nicknames.
Chalky White is not on Facebook…..

You fix 30 million dollar jets, but can’t figure out what’s wrong with your $150 lawnmower.
… or your car, or your child’s toy, or anything else!

Your toolbox at home has wheels and foam cutouts, just like the ones at work.
As a contractor, my home toolkit IS the one at work! That said, I have yet to find a household use for a windy hammer….

Some of the tools in your toolbox at home are etched.
I can neither confirm nor deny……

You cannot say it is not for you unless you haven’t seen it. Can you now ?

I can. There are 4 of us in the family. I need a minimum of 2 seats for leisure and 4 for a tourer. Something which is electric will be about as much fun as kiilling myself. Make it double the size and lob a V12 in it and I’ll buy one. 😀

Well, either way, good luck with it. I would advise that you stay away from any association with the spitfire during your design and prototype stages. Let the public decide if it looks like an icon….

I would also look further in depth at what you’re doing – where does the aircraft fit within the market? IS there a market? Will the LAA / CAA certify it? Is it certifiable in other countries? Is it a pure aerobatic fun toy, or can it convert to carry bags – does it have a usable range?

You are entering a very crowded market here…..

I really have no opinion as to whether Scotish independance would solve any problems in either country, but I do have a minor question…

Having spent a large portion of my life in the Northumberland hills, how would border control be implemented? I believe the last people to put up a big wall spent a considerable amount of time and effort policing it to very little avail. There are only half a dozen public highways crossing the border, and the rest of the space is fen and farmland. Would we have an open border with the only real ‘independance’ being a political and financial one? How would you stop illegal immigration in either direction?

From a post on page one, assuming that 10% of the armed forces has been paid for by scotland – that means you get the Black Watch, 111 Sqn and a rubber dinghy. Carry on 😀

If it is a pressurised gas bottle (which seems logical) then it seems to be air – grey bottle, black shoulder (although the design of the bottle has me at a loss..) , and appears to be leading to a life preserver of some description – possibly a one man life raft.

Send HMS Invincible and her fleet of Harrie……… oh……

Did I say 73LW? I meant N37LW… doh! Permit would have lapsed two years ago.

The documentation we have for the aircraft starts in 1963, and lists it’s hours only as a total ‘carried forward from FAA documentation’ and it is the time before 1963 which I am interested in. There are traces of various modifications , particularly equipment rack mounts immediately behind the cabin which apparently came from its US Navy days – it was certainly on-strength with the USN for a period, perhaps as you say, as a company demonstrator rather than a prototype.