M. from the flight school gave me a call the other day to see if I wanted to go flying this weekend. He and P. were planning a flight to Haverfordwest and they were looking for me to make join the crew - I think more for my local knowledge, than my aviating skill, which is a bit rough around the edges at the moment.
By Sunday, the flight's ambitions had shrunk to Cork. Cork, I had never been to Cork Aiport, not quite as adventurous as Wales but it would be fun. By Monday, P. had to cry off, so with only two sharing the plane we planned for a shorter trip. Kilkenny became the new target.
We put in a quick phone call on Monday to confirm that the airport was open but all we got was disappointing news. Only 400 meters of the runway was available. Neither I nor M. felt we could get the C172 in and out safely so our horizon contracted even further - if it is possible to "contract further".
We settled on Kilrush Airfield in county Kildare - a short bimble but any flying is better than no flying.
M. flew the leg down and it was remarkably quiet out. No sign of any traffic and very little activity in Kilrush when we floated in. It seems that family commitments take precedence over flying on bank holiday weekends. There was a little bumpy air around with the easterly breeze, rolling off the mountains. The visibility was fantastic though. I still haven't figure out how far south we could actually see but on the route home we could definitely see Kingscourt in Cavan and, we think, the Mourne Mountains. I don't think I've ever seen visibility that good and certainly not after a prolonged warm spell. A few days of the glorious weather we've been having normally means quite a lot of haze but not yesterday.
Yesterday was spectacular..... if only we managed some more flying
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