Siberia is not a great place to live. Not much happens in Siberia and after standing outside for an hour and a half in a (reasonably) strong Siberian wind, it’s easy to see why. I lost feeling in my fingers within 20 minutes, my toes followed suit after another 20 minutes. Fortunately, I don’t live in Siberia, because, as they say in French, je suis frileux. Fortunately, the Siberian wind brings very little moisture as it characteristic of a sinking air mass above the jetstream, causing very high pressure. QFE today was 1013 leaving QNH at 1027. This high pressure cannot carry much moisture at all and so leaves clear skies. These clear skies are meaning that many people are finding their inner Biggles at the moment and taking to the skies. I don’t blame them, particularly if they are a Turweston resident, as the wind was pretty much down the runway, and when it wasn’t, the crosswind component was still very low.
Today also saw a new type for me. The Wassmer Europa is a bit of an oddball, and there are only 4 examples with a G- registration. It was nice to see a different sort of aircraft over the usual Pipers and Cessnas. Today also saw the return of G-BOXR, the Grumman Cougar mentioned in a bit more detail here.
These are the aircraft I saw
F-GBVN | 1979 | Robin | DR400/180 | Bicester |
G-BDIE | 1975 | Rockwell | Commander 112 | Turweston |
G-BNIV | 1981 | Cessna | 152 | Coventry |
G-BNKI | 1978 | Cessna | 152 | Halton |
G-BOKX | 1978 | Piper | PA-28-161 Warrior II | Turweston |
G-BONC | 1979 | Piper | PA-28RT-201 Arrow IV | |
G-BOXR | 1978 | Gulfstream | GA-7 Cougar | Elstree |
G-BSEU | 1977 | Piper | PA-28-181 Archer II | Shobdon |
G-BUFY | 1980 | Piper | PA-28-161 Warrior II | Denham |
G-BWNC | 1980 | Cessna | 152 | Wellesbourne |
G-BYHI | 1980 | Piper | PA-28-161 Warrior II | Turweston |
G-CSHB | 2012 | Czech Sport Aircraft | PS-28 Cruiser | |
G-EFVS | 1971 | Wassmer | WA-52 Europa | |
G-MCLN | 2006 | Cirrus | SR20 G2 | Turweston |
G-NJOY | 1982 | Piper | PA-28-181 Archer II | Turweston |
G-OCAM | 1979 | Gulfstream | AA-5A Cheetah | Turweston |
G-OTAM | 1974 | Cessna | 172M Skyhawk | |
G-PORK | 1977 | Grumman | AA-5B Tiger | |
G-ZERO | 1975 | Grumman | AA-5B Tiger | Turweston |
N179JD | 2017 | Cirrus | SR22T-GTS Platinum | Biggin Hill |
Bravo – really nice pictures and report – well worth the frostbite!