Having headed north on our last two long distance trips, this year it was time for myself plus Bob and Lesley Hart to head south. Carcassonne in the foothills of the Pyrenees was our chosen destination.
The trip was planned for three days during the last week of May, which produced some uncharacteristic hot weather over England and eventually wall to wall sun over France as well. As it turned out the first half of the first day of the trip suffered from the aftermath of a weak frontal system that crossed the UK and northern France. This generated an almost continuous layer of stratus between 1500 ft and about 3000 ft from the south coast of England to central France. Once we’d got past this though it was sun and warmth all the way there and back.
Outbound our planned route was via Goodwood VOR, Deauville VOR, L’aigle VOR and Amboise VOR with a stop at Poitiers for fuel for both ourselves and the plane. Then a direct track from Poitiers to Carcassonne.
Day1: Our trusty PA-28 Arrow G-OMNI is duly fuelled and loaded, weather, Notams, Royal Flights, and RA(T)s all checked and we’re ready to go. As we wanted to get to Carcassonne by mid afternoon an early start was required. So engine start at 0725 local and an indemnity departure from Gloucester.
So, with a left turn out off runway 27 we set course south-eastwards at 3000 ft. There was some patchy stratus around but plenty of gaps to give us views of the South Cerney lakes, and Swindon. As we approached the Goodwood area the gaps in the cloud began to close up and shortly after coasting out we climber to FL55
and cruised along in the sun above a solid layer.
South Cerney Lakes
ATC that early in the day was fairly quiet. We made a brief call to London Information shortly after getting airborne to get our flight plan activated then transferred to Brize Radar and subsequently Solent. After passing Winchester we were handed off to London Information again and stayed with them to the FIR boundary. Our first encounter with French ATC involved Deauville Approach, who kept an eye on us till south of L’aigle. It was then Seine Radar, Tours Approach and finally Poitiers. Due to the lowish cloud there wasn’t a great deal of VFR traffic about so RT-wise it was fairly quiet. All the controllers spoke reasonable English and each ATC unit gave us a squawk. Crossing airspace boundaries in France is in fact a lot easier than some of the maps might suggest.
So with a continuous cloud layer below us there wasn’t much to see other than watching the plane march across the GPS screen and note various condensation trails above us.
Contrail L'aigle VOR
Our track inbound to Poitiers had set us up for a straight in approach from about 20 miles but ILS traffic took priority and we ended up having to dogleg southeast to effect a base leg join. So we followed a Puma in for a landing on runway 20, slight down hill slope and a slight tail wind so we floated a bit, but plenty of runway as it is nearly 2000 metres long.
After refuelling the plane and ourselves and discovering that Graham Watson was on the airport record as being the last person to take G-OMNI to Poitiers it was time for leg 2.
It was still runway 20 for departure, which pointed us in the right direction anyway, just a small right turn to pick up track. We elected to stay below the cloud to take in the scenery so we settled at around 1600 ft. Our track took us towards Perigueux, passing west of Limoges and east of Bergerac. From there it was southeast to Gaillac VOR (some 20 miles northeast of Toulouse) and then to Carcassonne.
After passing Limoges the cloud finally dispersed to allow the sun uninterrupted access to heat things up. The heat of the day generated some strong thermals and coupled with a fairly stiff wind created quite a turbulent ride.
Cahors on the River Lot Walled city of Carcassonne
Carcassonne was moderately busy with DGAC operated aircraft conducting flying training and both Ryanair Boeing 737s and Air France ATR 42s coming and going. Turning finals we got a good view of the old walled city where we would be staying for the night. After landing we were directed to the GA parking area, which is somewhat remote from the terminal, and surprise… we park next to a Gloucester based Cessna Citation. Four and a half hours flying so far.
Pyrenees from the walled city Entrance to the walled city
So now we became tourists for a day. Got a taxi to the old town, checked into our hotel and then retired to a café for an afternoon snack. It was then time to stroll around the town and take in the sights. The city can trace its origins back to 118 BC but most of what we see today has it’s origins in the 11th and 12th centuries, with an extensive restoration of the buildings and fortifications beginning in 1850 and continuing to this day.
Sight seeing continued the following morning and by lunchtime we had complete the walk round the city wall and took a well earned lunch in typical French café style – outside under a cloudless sky. It was then time to hail a cab and return to the airport for the next leg of our trip.
G-OMNI in the GA park at Carcassonne Ryanair B737 we held up!!
Citation behind is Gloucester-based!
On arrival at the airport terminal we found the information desk and sorted the landing and parking fees. Upon enquiring about how to regain access to air side, the girl on the desk said ‘follow me’. She promptly parted a 737 size queue of passengers waiting to go to departures for a Ryanair flight and fed us through security into the departure lounge. We then had a short wait whilst a 737 taxied onto a stand and then we were escorted airside to the edge of the main apron and left then to our own devices to walk about 1/3 mile back to the GA park.
Our plan today was to fly from Carcasonne to Limoges via the Millau viaduct, about 1 hour 45 minutes flying. Having started and obtained taxy clearance we proceeded to the holding point, pulling over to one side, thinking we’ll leave room for the Ryanair 737 to go first if necessary (there’s only one taxiway access to the runway). The controller however, still thought that Mr. Ryanair would have trouble getting past so insisted that we went out first, much to the disgruntlement of the Ryanair crew.
Millau is about 30 minutes at Arrow speed northeast of Carcasonne. The viaduct spans a valley a couple of kilometres wide in terrain that extends up to 3000’ above sea level with the centre span standing just over 1000’ above ground. An impressive sight and worth the detour for a look. It was then northwest for an hour or so to Limoges.
, Millau Viaduct
Along the way we spoke to Toulouse and Rodez with the track taking us east of Rodez and west of Aurillac. Between Millau Viaduct Aurillac and Limoges we had good views of the Massif Central off to the east.
It was runway 03 at Limoges with a moderate crosswind, which got a little squeak from the undercarriage warner as the legs flexed sideways on landing. Air France was loading up at the terminal so we had a 20 minute wait for fuel. Once the plane was sorted it was time to retire to the café for a cold drink.
Sue Virr, one time regular at Cotswold Aero Club and now successfully teaching people to fly at Limoges (www.francoflyers.org) had agreed to accommodate us overnight, so once she had finished lessons we met up and retired to her gîte complex at Gorre, about 25 minutes drive from the airport. Here we are very much in rural France and the pace of life is noticeably slower than here in the UK and with large open spaces very little background noise if you sit outside (www.nearlyheaven.com will give you a feel for the place). A pleasant evening at a local restaurant rounded off the day.
Final 03 Limoges G-OMNI at Limoges
Sue was off for more instructing before us on the next morning, so her assistant Lucie ferried us back to the airport. Limoges on a Saturday was quite busy with club aircraft coming and going, Air France and Flybe on the move and a French military Puma helicopter putting in an appearance.
We decided to break our return to the UK at Cherbourg, partly because the café is good and partly because Luc, the café owner operates a wine store in the airport terminal, so a good place to stock up on some French wine at reasonable prices.
So, waving goodbye to Sue, who was doing crosswind landings with her student, we set off north north west from Limoges towards Cherbourg. We routed roughly equidistant between Poitiers andChateauroux, passing a few miles west of Tours and Le Mans before reaching Normandy. On the final 20 or so miles to Cherboug we had good views over the D-Day beaches of Omaha and Gold. Flight information was given by ATC at Limoges, Seine Nantes and Deauville on this leg.
Aéroclub de Limoges Omaha Beach, Normandy
Cherbourg was the only airfield we visited where we ended up with an air traffic induced delay. A local flying club Robin joining right base for 10 caused ATC to instruct us to orbit on downwind. Unusual for such a quiet airfield to have 2 aircraft wanting the same patch of sky at the same time. So, after 2 hours airborne time to retire for refreshment at the Cherbourg airport café.
Whilst at Cherbourg a steady flow of British registered aircraft came and went, thus showing what Cherboug is a popular destination for British flyers. The airport is about 8 km from the town so a taxi is more or less a must if you want to get off the airfield, unless you got contacts locally.
Anyway, for us it was just a lunch stop, so refuelled it was airborne again to continue the homeward trail. Over the English channel at 3000’ the haze ahead showed where the English coast was. Our route took us along the recommended VFR crossing from Cherbourg NDB to St. Catherine’s Point on the Isle of Wight and then overhead Southampton. London Information wasn’t too busy for a sunny Saturday and Southampton let us through their overhead without any quibble. Routing past Winchester we turned more northwest and followed the usual path that takes us through the gap between Lyneham and Brize. Gliding from Rivar Hill and Sandhill with parachuting at Redlands make us keep a very good lookout. As usual, the sky was busy but nothing seen. So, 1½ hours after departing Cherbourg we join right base for 09 at Gloucester and conclude our long distance jaunt for 2009.
Crossing the Solent Right Base 09 Gloucester
Three days, 9 hrs 40 mins flying, brilliant weather, cheap landings, French hospitality and new territory for us to see. The only downside is French AVGAS prices, about 10p a litre more than the UK.
Recent Comments