Author: Francis Meyrick
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Learning to Fly Helicopters (3) “First Solo “
Learning to Fly Helicopters Part 3: “First Solo” (in a Helicopter) The irony for me of course was the fact that I had, myself, in previous life, sent many a fixed wing student pilot off on his or her first solo. And it was always I who, as the (h)airplane instructor, had watched (anxiously) as…
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Learning to Fly Helicopters (2) “Do I trust this thing? “
Learning to Fly Helicopters Part 2: “Do I trust this Thing?” The Robinson R-22… Long time ago. Early model days. Old fashioned twist grip, no governor, straight tail. I was suspicious, still, about the mechanical integrity of the beast. It looked so flimsy. Like a bunch of surplus tin cans beat roughly into shape. Now…
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The Old Eagle
The Old Eagle As an old Eagle, battle scarred and cynical, I still soar, high and alone, through the grey, damp soaked, wintery skies. Lightning flashes incessantly, and the dull kerr-whump of distant thunder rolls alternates with the sharp, explosive crackling detonation resonating all around me. It is cold. And I am weary. If I…
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Lifting the Iron Curtain (1) “Minefields at the Border “
Lifting the Iron Curtain Part 1: Minefields at the border The Cold War was still very hot in the late sixties. Tensions simmered, and nobody really know how the future was going to play out. As a teenager, I read books on Karl Marx, Nikita Kruschev, and Stalin. I read about the Katyn massacre, and…
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Learning to Fly Helicopters (1) “Seduction “
Learning to fly Helicopters Part 1: Seduction When a chap has already logged several thousand hours fixed wing, and then starts getting involved with helicopters, people will ask ‘why?’. When on top of that, he has previously been unkind about helicopters, people will be doubly intrigued. My quiet opinion, along with a great many fixed…
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Of Helicopters and Humans (25) “Benjy, the Groundsman “
Of Helicopters and Humans Part 25: Benjy the Groundsman (a true story) Many moons ago, and many complete elliptical orbits around our medium class Sun, I was instructing hairplanes and heli-whoppers in a faraway country. It tended to be wet there, and the grass grew often and tall. We had a good old boy there,…
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A Blip on the Radar (39) “I could have been a Librarian “
Forgetting to undo one tie-down… the one millionth pilot to make this same old mistake A Blip on the Radar Part 39: I could have been a Librarian There was a period of time in Oz and New Zealand, when, if I understand correctly, Federal student loan programs were very readily available for those wishing…
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Of Helicopters and Humans (24) “Of Vomit and Mischief “
Of Helicopters and Humans Part 24: Of Vomit and Mischief I have worked as a flying instructor (fixed wing and heli-whoppers) in widely different parts of this funky blue dot. It’s been rather interesting. What sticks in my tiny mind are a great many different things, one of which is the wide variety of…
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Of Helicopters and Humans (23) “Those Dang Dangerous Helicopters “
Of Helicopters and Humans Part 23: Those Dang Dangerous Helicopters I always ask the ground staff to let me know if I’ve got a “First Time Flyer”. A virgin chopper-rider. After all, if they have half a brain, they should be nervous. Maybe a touch of ‘terrified’ even. “What, leaving the ground? In that thing?…