Windswept 77 Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 Diary Entry #1 Capt. Lambert stared out of the East Croydon bay window at the grey grey sky. He turned as Mildred, his wife of 35 years, entered clutching a cup of tea & a scone. Lambert cleared his throat. Mildred looked up expectantly. "I'm just popping out for a bit dear", he muttered absent- mindedly. "Oh?", Mildred replies, scone half way between the plate & her mouth. "Will you be long?" "No, no, probably 80 days or so" There was a long silence. Mildred slowly chewed on her scone. "80 days dear? Isn't that rather a long time?" "No, not really", Lambert murmured, distracted by a dog peeing on his roses. He tapped loudly on the window & shook his fist. "Where are you going?", Mildred demanded, sounding slightly alarmed. "You're not off on one of those Distillery tours again are you dear?" Lambert shook his head. 'No, no fear of that. I'm just going to pop out & fly around the World. Shan't be long!" "But who will feed the cat!", Mildred remonstrated. "Why, you of course!", Lambert replied, shooting a look at Mildred that suggested she was daft. "You mean I'm not going too!!", Mildred remonstrated. Lambert sighed & pulled out some photos. "You really want to travel in these?', he asked, handing her a pair of photos. Please login to display this image. Please login to display this image. Mildred gasped in horror. To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aerosoft Aerosoft Team [Inactive Account] 51558 Posted September 30, 2017 Aerosoft Share Posted September 30, 2017 Want to get the beta An2 to fly? If so drop me a mail at mathijs.kok@aerosoft.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TigerTop 3 Posted September 30, 2017 Share Posted September 30, 2017 1 hour ago, Mathijs Kok said: Want to get the beta An2 to fly? If so drop me a mail at mathijs.kok@aerosoft.com Diary Entry #2 "What sort of aeroplanes are those?", Mildred wrinkled her nose. "There's no 1st class!!" "Mildred", Lambert sighed, "I have an important mission, top secret. I have been chosen!" "What for?, Mildred demanded. "Can't say dear, but I'm waiting for a package to arrive!? "A package?" "Well several actually. It's a kitset beta AN-2. I'll assemble it in the back garden & take off from there" "But you can't fly!", Mildred admonished. "Shouldn't be a problem dear, I've watched lots of stuff on YouTube. The AN-2 looks pretty straight forward. You just switch on every switch that is "Off" & away you go!" "But there are trees at the bottom of the garden!", Mildred reminded him. "No worries dear Here's the chainsaw, go & top them for me will you? I have to find my socket set!" "Oh dear g-d", Mildred muttered. To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff W 112 Posted October 1, 2017 Share Posted October 1, 2017 Poor Mildred, It certainly looks like she will be spending many, many hours in the next few weeks aloft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 1, 2017 Author Share Posted October 1, 2017 2 hours ago, Jeff W said: Poor Mildred, It certainly looks like she will be spending many, many hours in the next few weeks aloft. Nope. Capt. Lambert is taking a mechanic. Manwell. He is Spanish & fixes Lambert's Vespa. Mildred will be packed off to stay with her sister in Brighton. Taking the cat with her. Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 1, 2017 Author Share Posted October 1, 2017 Diary Entry #3 It was the day before departure. Capt. Lambert paced up & down his lounge, occasionally pausing to peer out the bay window. "What is it dear?", Mildred murmured, glancing up from her knitting. Mildred had accepted she wasn't going on the adventure , for which she was secretly relieved. Their last adventure, living rough in the Pyrenees & herding goats had resulted in a 3 week episode of dysentery. Although she lost 2 stone, Capt. Lambert had muttered he couldn't notice a difference, when she had inquired as to her appearance. "I'm waiting for the Better AN-2! , it hasn't come yet, time is running out!" "Did you send the order dear?, Mildred asked. "I did, I sent an email confirming too." "Perhaps it is stuck in Customs?", Mildred suggested. Lambert pondered that. "Could well be, the boxes might be a bit large!" There was a long silence. "Where are you flying to first?" Mildred inquired, trying not to drop stitches. "Suez", Lambert harrumphed. "Where is that dear?" "France, Italy, I don't know! Somewhere over there!!", Lambert waved his arm in the general direction of Europe. "That will be exciting dear", Mildred replied, encouragingly. Lambert turned sharply towards her. "Food will be terrible. I will need a ploughman's lunch & a clean set of underwear, do hop to & arrange it please. I have more pressing matters. I must plan my route". "Of course dear, anything else?" "Roger bunny" "Roger!, you haven't had him out since school days" "He's in the attic somewhere", Lambert added "He's stuffed dear" "Of course he's stuffed, you don't think I would take a live rabbit do you!!", Lambert thundered. He was becoming quite agitated because the Better AN-2 hadn't arrived. "But he is falling apart!", Mildred protested. "Then sew him up please!", Lambert muttered, "Can't leave without Roger. he's my good luck charm!" There was a knock at the door. To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harrry 37 Posted October 1, 2017 Share Posted October 1, 2017 HMMMMM So you are the one who introduces those pesky rabbits to australia......Englishmen who have to take their animals with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 1, 2017 Author Share Posted October 1, 2017 I thought it was the prisoners that settled Sydney. W Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harrry 37 Posted October 1, 2017 Share Posted October 1, 2017 Yes ENGLISH prisoners and their public servants who had to take rabbits for hunting sport, Australia had no enemies for rabbits and that is what they bred like, it led to a lot of not too successful eradicadication projects,,,,,,,the rabbits, not the englishmen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rupert 20 Posted October 1, 2017 Share Posted October 1, 2017 24 minutes ago, harrry said: Yes ENGLISH prisoners and their public servants who had to take rabbits for hunting sport, Australia had no enemies for rabbits and that is what they bred like, it led to a lot of not too successful eradicadication projects,,,,,,,the rabbits, not the englishmen. That's kinda sad. The rabbits never stole the natives' land nor tried to enslave them. Rupert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harrry 37 Posted October 1, 2017 Share Posted October 1, 2017 It was the English that did that not the Australians.....Australia only started in 1901 Have fun on the trip....if Mildred ever lets you out of the house....Is your mechanic any relation to Manuel from Fawlty Towers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 1, 2017 Author Share Posted October 1, 2017 Diary Entry #4 There was another knock at the door. Capt. Lambert threw it open & peered across the head of a gentleman holding the handlebars of a Vespa. "Can I help you?", he inquired, staring downwards. "I am Manwell. I am your mechanic!" A handle bar mustache & a big smile stared back up at him. "Oh, right ho!", Lambert exclaimed. "Jolly good" "We take Loretta too, si??" "Loretta, who is Loretta, I see no lady accompanying you!?" Lambert frowned as he glanced about the front yard. "Loretta, she my Vespa!", Manwell turned theatrically to pat Loretta on the petrol tank. "Good lord no!", Lambert replied. "But, but", Manwell protested. At that moment Mildred popped her head around the corner, "Darling, there's someone on the phone for you saying they have 6 crates at London City airport & will you come & get them!" Lambert paused. "How big are they?', he asked. "How big are they?", Mildred asked the person on the end of the phone. "10 by 10 by 10 the man says!", Mildred called to Lambert. "Inches?", Lambert queried. "No, feet!", Mildred replied. Lambert turned pale. "6 of them! Hell!" "I must get to London immediately. We will have to assemble it there tonight", Lambert announced. "What is it dear?", Mildred asked "Why, its the Octopus Better An-2!!. Hot off the production line!, Mildred - my things! Manwell, we must away!" "The car is at the garage for servicing dear, how are you going to get there?" mildred informed him. Manwell smiled & turned & with a sweeping gesture, offered the Vespa. To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 2, 2017 Author Share Posted October 2, 2017 Diary Entry #5 3 Nurses waiting at a bus stop were left gob smacked when a red Vespa shot past them at 35 mph carrying a 5' 4" Spanish mechanic in red overalls crouched over the handle bars whilst being clasped around the waist by a 6' 2' English Salvation Army captain dressed in WWI fighter head gear, complete with goggles. He was also wearing a black bomber jacket & had on his back a leather knapsack, out of which poked the head of Roger bunny, & to complete the ensemble, a thrice wrapped around the throat white silk scarf streamed out behind them. Threatening to engage itself with the Vespa's rear wheel, which would surely have been the end of Capt. Lambert. However, fate was on his side & after a wild ride to London City Airport, the Vespa pulled into hangar 99 & lo & behold, a gleaming new Octopus Better An-2 stood in a corner. Lambert was flabbergasted. "I thought it was still a kit-set!", he thundered incredulously. From out of the shadows a tall figure wrapped in a grey trench coat sidled up to Lambert & whispered in a guttural voice, '"Octopus did not want its prototype subjected to your attempts at assembly. Too much is riding on this project!. We flew in a team this morning & did the job. Good luck comrade", & he melted back into the shadows. "Is big!", Manwell mused as he walked around the An-2. "It has, how you say it, the aesthetics of a hippopotamus! Strong!!", Manwell added enthusiastically. "Should be a breeze to fly!", Lambert observed as he tried to figure out where to board it. "Shvetsov ASh-621R 9-cylinder supercharged radial, rated at 1,000 hp!!", Lambert told Manwell. "A bit more go than the Vespa!" "What we do now?", Manwell yawned. Fatigue was setting in. "We sleep, then at first light we head to France for Brunch. Coffee & Croissants, that sort of stuff. Eat local is my motto" Lambert informed him . "Where in France?", Manwell inquired. Lambert became irritated. 'I don't know, somewhere out there. It's a big country, I'm sure we can find a nice little Bistro somewhere!!" Manwell paused. He furrowed his brow. "Mr Lambert, something is strange. Everything is written in Russian! Do you speak Russian?" "Good lord, no, I hope you do!" To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 2, 2017 Author Share Posted October 2, 2017 Diary Entry #6: Preparation Lambert woke from a fitful night's sleep on a camp bed the Russian assembly crew had left behind to find the An-2 side door open. Entering the aircraft he found Manwell sitting in the left seat. "Other seat old boy!", he muttered as he made his way gingerly into the cockpit. "So many switches!", he murmured to himself. "Que?", Manwell had heard him. "Lot of switches!", Lambert repeated, gesticulating towards the front of the cockpit. Lambert sat down in the left seat & turned to Manwell, "I'll have bacon & eggs with sausage & eggs & a cup of black coffee. Be a good chap & find that while I sort this crate out. Need to get going, I hear other's leaving already. Want to make Paris today!" "Que?", Manwell replied "Breakfast old chap, find it!" Manwell thought long & hard. "We take Loretta!", he beamed. "I take Loretta now & find breakfast, then we take Loretta with us! Yes??" Lambert sighed. "Ok, she may turn out useful on the trip" Manwell smiled & was about to leave when Lambert called him back. "All the labelling is in Russian, but look, if I hover my finger over a switch I get an English translation - marvelous! Now, how does one start this thing?". He turned to Manwell for the answer. Manwell shrugged. "I think maybe flick all the switches on & then hold down Ctrl + Enter?" To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 2, 2017 Author Share Posted October 2, 2017 Diary Entry #7: Departure Manwell had a knack of finding food in all the wrong places. As Lambert wiped egg yoke off his chin he gave him the thumbs up. Manwell was buried in a Paella, but he did manage to grunt an acknowledgement of Lambert's appreciation. "Right!", Lambert proclaimed. "Time to get this crate in the air!" 'No, no!", Manwell protested, we must name & bless her before we leave!" "Really?", Lambert was only half incredulous. "What do you suggest?" "Babushka!", Manwell cried excitedly. Paella did that to him. Revved him up. "I was thinking more like Florence, or Herminia!" Lambert offered. "Babushka, it goes better with Loretta!", Manwell insisted. Lambert relented & Babushka was chosen & blessed with a short Buddhist incantation from Manwell. They took their respective seats. "Check list I suppose", Lambert intoned. "Ready?" "Yes, yes", Manwell replied eagerly. "Right - Plowman's Lunch?" "Si". "Change of underwear?". "Si!". "Roger bunny?". "Si!" "Then we're good to go! Get those chaps to push us out of the hangar would you!" After a lot of arm waving & finger gestures, Manwell managed to get Babushka towed outside. "Fire her up then!", Lambert commanded. Manwell looked for the starter button, then tried Ctrl + E & voila!, all hell broke loose. Starting with the shuddering, hacking & wheezing of a chain smoker having the first one of the day, Babushka burst into life & slowly rumbled forward. "Brakes, brakes", Lambert cried out, frantically searching for a brake of some sort. "I think too late", Manwell muttered as they lumbered towards the runway. Somehow they got Babushka lined up & pointed in the right direction. "ATC, si??", Manwell inquired. "ATC what?' Lambert demanded. "The Controllers, they tell us when to depart!", Manwell suggested. "Oh poppycock, I'll go when I'm ready" Lambert hollered over the cacophony. & with that he opened the throttle & sat back. Babushka rumbled forward & elegantly left the ground at 42 knots She slowly turned right & leveled off at 800'. "Jolly good take off Manwell!", Lambert exclaimed. "Que!!??", Manwell replied, looking very confused. "The take off. Very smooth. Your flying was impressive!", Lambert continued. "But, but Mr Lambert, I do nothing! I not fly Babushka. I thought you were!" "Good lord!", Lambert exclaimed, she flew herself off. This is going to be a doddle!!" "Where are we going Mr Lambert?", Manwell inquired anxiously. "You have control now?" Lambert sighed, "As much as I'll ever have I guess". "We head for Orly in Paris, refuel, then press on to Lyon. Should make it by night fall I hope!" "Si", Manwell replied. "Eiffel Tower, could we see the Eiffel Tower, I never see it in my life!" "Maybe", Lambert mused. He wasn't quite sure where it was, but didn't want to acknowledge that. "How we navigate Mr Lambert?", Manwell asked, casually. "I have my Boy Scout's compass, that's all we need. Currently we are headed 165 degrees at 115 kia with a 21 kt crosswind " How you know all that??", Manwell was genuinly impressed. "It says so at the top left of the screen!", Lambert advised him, with a faint smile. Babushka winding up for Departure Please login to display this image. To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 2, 2017 Author Share Posted October 2, 2017 Diary Entry #8: EGLC to LFPO, then LFPO to LFLY After an hours flying vocal silence fell on the cockpit. Lambert had the controls, Manwell was admiring the scenery below. The radial engine rumbled on with Manwell tuning into its nuances. He had that affinity with Loretta. Knew her every mood by the sounds she made. They were headed to Orly at 3,600' and making around 115 kias. A cross wind was buffeting them, and there was cloud about, but Babushka had size & momentum on her side. She plowed through the fickle air currents like a Dowager Duchess at a Harrods sale. Unstoppable. Suddenly Lambert cried out. "Manwell, look out the window, what color is Babushka??", he demanded. Manwell gingerly eased back a window & stuck his head out. "Is grey with a blue stripe!" 'Damn!", exclaimed Lambert. "I ordered the yellow & blue model. Drat it!" Manwell was at a loss for words. "It make the difference. The color?', he asked with a shrug. "Oh yes, definitely!", Lambert replied. After a further silence, Manwell suggested, "Perhaps we get a repaint on the way?" Lambert harrumphed, but he tucked the suggestion away in the back of his mind. As they overflew Paris en route to Orly, Lambert was surprised to see the Eiffel Tower. Manwell's joy was unbounded as they flew past it. The approach into Orly was straight forward. Apart from cutting off an A36, nothing untoward occurred. They stayed at Orly for 2 hours, re-fueled, re-provisioned, had lunch, & then departed for Bron, LFLY, in Lyon. About a 2 hour jaunt over countryside. It was twilight when they reached Bron. Manwell dozed most of the way as Lambert would not give up the controls. Bron was another smooth landing. Lambert was getting the hang of it. Although he noticed he was only shining one landing light on approach & wasn't sure if there should be another one. "Where we go tomorrow?", Manwell asked as they deplaned. Lambert sniffed the air & looked to the Eastern horizon. "Not sure, perhaps Milan, depends on the weather". Dash board from the right seat. The main switch panels 'float' slightly above the dash chassis & vibrate, an interesting touch Please login to display this image. Manwell's wish granted - the Eiffel Tower Please login to display this image. French pastoral land on the way to Lyon Please login to display this image. Over Lyon at 8,500' at twilight, in cloud Please login to display this image. Dropping under the cloud at Lyon Please login to display this image. Puttering into LFLY, Bron, Lyon around 56 kias. Not sure if there should be 2 landing lights. Please login to display this image. (Babushka is a joy to fly. Great sound, FDE & visual elements) To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 3, 2017 Author Share Posted October 3, 2017 Diary Entry #9: Issues As the sun clawed its way over a Lyon horizon clad in a blanket of soft off-white mist, now tinged with lemon infusions, Lambert stirred fitfully in the back of Barushka. Manwell had fallen asleep in the right seat. He woke with a start, a craggy hand on his shoulder. "Breakfast old chap, would you be so good??" It was a grey looking Lambert. Manwell glanced around. "You ok Mr Lambert?", he inquired anxiously. Maxwell grimaced. "Been up all night peeing. Forgot my Tamulosin!" "Oh, si!", Manwell acknowledged, having no clue what Lambert was talking about. "I have prostatitis, the scourge of older pilots!", Lambert announced gruffly. "Oh, si!", Manwell empathised. "We go to Milan today?", he asked "Turin actually old boy. My geography was a bit rough. It's on hold until I get this sorted out!" He waved his hand in the general direction of his lower half. "I mount Loretta & find breakfast??", Manwell inquired. "Yes, yes. Strong coffee please. I know I shouldn't have it, but we aren't going to make it over the Alps if I don't!!", Lambert declared. Manwell turned white. To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator Heinz Flichtbeil 1609 Posted October 3, 2017 Administrator Share Posted October 3, 2017 Hello Windswept, the picture over Lion in clouds .... very good I like it ... Good, that you have found a way out ... Greets Heinz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 3, 2017 Author Share Posted October 3, 2017 Thank you Heinz Just threaded through the French Alps in good conditions, heading to Milan, (not Turin) Report & shots tonight perhaps. Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MM 137 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Splendid. Top drawer. ... Actually not bad at all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 4, 2017 Author Share Posted October 4, 2017 Diary Entry #10: Entering The Alps A late breakfast was consumed in silence. Manwell was thinking of Hayley, his other Vespa, lying in parts on his workshop floor. Was she lonely? He missed her. Lambert was thinking about his prostate & its irritation. "Prostatitis is a pain in the ass!", he announced to Manwell. "But it will not stop me!. Find me a soft cushion Manwell & we shall venture forth among the crags & valleys of the Alps!" "We soar like the Eagle, si??" "More like a Turkey Buzzard", Lambert muttered. While Manwell was scouring the countryside for a big soft cushion, Lambert alighted from Babushka & walked out to a clear piece of tarmac. He held a wet finger aloft & squinted South Eastwards. It was nearing lunch time. There was a haze on the horizon. Should they go?? "I think we will wait until after lunch!', Lambert advised Manwell. "See which way the weather turns" It was mild with a light South East breeze. Manwell wasn't sure why they hadn't left but thought silence was called for. 2 hours later nothing had changed, Lambert woke from his nap & pronounced them ready to depart Bron airfield in Lyon, France for Milano Linate in Italy. "We have the map, si?", Manwell inquired. Lambert snorted derisively, "No map needed, I'll just follow the roads through the alps." "Oh!", Manwell replied, crossing himself. Lambert had the Ctrl + 7 starting routine down pat for Babushka by now. He opened the oil cooler flaps 70% & did the same for the cowling flaps that surrounded the big throbbing radial. He marveled how they peeled back from the fuselage, like peeling an orange. And he could hear them opening too, which reassured him. Then he gave her full throttle, applied a touch of right rudder to counteract Babushka's desire to poke her nose to the left, & trundled off down the runway. "You can take her!", he announced to Manwell as they were half way through the take off run. "Que,que!!", Manwell replied. "She's a doddle, flies herself off!!", Lambert advised him encouragingly. Manwell grimly gripped the yoke , he did nothing & Babushka found her own way towards the Alps in pleasant conditions. "Did you notice how she lifts all 3 tires off the ground at the same time?", Lambert hollered over the engine noise. Manwell nodded. He hadn't heard what Lambert said, but thought nodding was the way to go. He borrowed Lambert's WW1 helmet & goggles, but was denied the off-white silk scarf. "Family heirloom old chap, sorry!", Lambert said, as Manwell reached for it & Lambert whisked it away They climbed at a leisurely 200 fpm towards 13,000'. There was some cloud about & a 20 kt headwind breeze. Manwell periodically adjusted the mixture & prop & throttle & found a sweet spot giving 90 kias in the climb. At 11,500' they found a valley & entered the Alps. Manwell still had control. Lambert was dozing. Manwell was not happy about that! Headed South East from Lyon, towards the Alps Please login to display this image. Entering the Alps, looking for a valley to follow Please login to display this image. To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robertorizzo 37 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Amaaaaazing... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Windswept 77 Posted October 4, 2017 Author Share Posted October 4, 2017 Diary Entry #11: Leaving the Alps Manwell gripped the yoke even more tightly, the peaks were getting closer. They had reached 12,000' & a crosswind was buffeting Babushka. Enough to wake Lambert. "Where are we?", he asked, rubbing his eyes. "Lost!", Manwell replied. Lambert frowned & looked out the side of the cockpit. "Follow that road", he commanded, pointing off to the right. "I think you should!", Manwell replies, climbing out of the right seat. "I no like heights!!"" Lambert sighed & took over. The remainder of the flight was uneventful, other than for Manwell sitting in the back, refusing to look out the window. "Missing some magnificent scenery old boy!", Lambert called back as he steered Babushka along valleys & around peaks until they were out over the North West plains of Italy & slowly descending into Milano Linate. It was a hazy dusk when they arrived. Customs formalities over, Lambert realized he was parched & went in search of a beer, Manwell set off in search of a cousin. In among the peaks Please login to display this image. "Follow that road!" Please login to display this image. Out of the mountains, encountering cloud over the North West Italian plains, late afternoon Please login to display this image. Nearing Milano Linate with the sun in behind Please login to display this image. Setting up for the approach into Milano Linate, at dusk, in hazy conditions Please login to display this image. To be continued Windswept Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeff W 112 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 I am eagerly awaiting the next installment of Lambert and Manwell. Very entertaining. Also some very nice screenshots. Great atmospherics. Looked like is was a lovely afternoon to go flying. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalizzi 53 Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Absolutely love your dairy and screenshots. My compliments! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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