gyrating habit but there is room for more flying now that the weather is generally improving. I received this photograph from John Rochfort who is enjoying flying his gleaming red Xenon at Dannevirke. John is flying solo under remote supervision which requires some judgement from afar to provide the right level of encouragement mixed with words of caution. I am impressed with the level of discipline shown by both John and Paul Scherrer in handling the remote consolidation stage of their progress successfully.
h the surface to achieve a smooth image on the surface.
stunning! The portfolio of 'Gyro Grins' was expanded and it was a great day for flying, sunny with a fresh Southwest breeze. Phil was kind enough to fly up from Whakatane just for the occasion which was much appreciated and the loose formation flying was a first for him. Note slowing down to 40mph, with RGG ahead, to let a commercial Beech 1900 cross the grass runway.
'Wordpress' based web site that Gyrate will release very shortly. Among its features will be links to Tauranga actual weather and forecasts, links to other sites of interest and videos of gyro flying around the world.
isappeared! No worries looking back its hard to understand why rushing around Heathrow with two large wheelie cases weighing in at 'max allowable' should be an issue. Twelve hours later formalities and the quiet efficiency of Hong Kong's new airport can be handled even by the jet lagged. There is just a touch of intimidation in the eyes of the Chinees imigration officer and then the smooth airconditioned bus ride takes me direct to the Hotel door located amongst the hectic bustle of Kowloon. It is over 20years since I opperated DC8 and 747 aircraft into the old Kia Tak runway but the memory of heading 
straight at a large checker board painted on a hillside is still very very vived. The break-off into a steeply banked right turn is also indelibly planted into the mental databank and I can see the washing hanging from the balconies as the wing tip passes over, surely the soap-powder struggles to overcome the vapour of burnt jet fuel that must fall from the sky. Maybe that was a factor in reclaiming the land and building an engineering marvel, an International Airport out where there was sea. I am able to keep awake to take in a small amount of the City by night; I treat 
myself to the bar at the Intercontinental which looks across the water to Hong Kong Island where a Lazer light show takes place each evening. At 8.00pm sharp the show begins and beams of colour dart across the sky while the sides of the sky scrapers explode with brilliant light displays. It is hard to enjoy the full specticle as it is spread over some miles of waterway and no one vantage point can capture all the action. The spread of the City is further emphasised next day when I take the tourist tour which 
includes spectacular views from the Peak as well as touching on the povity of the traditional fishermen who still ply their trade from Junks around the harbour.
arrive in October.
I am privileged to have access to fly some private aircraft based at the Royal Navy Airfield Yeovilton and had arranged to use one for a trip to the Chanel Islands. These are somewhat closer to the French coast than the English and appear to operate under 'a flag of convenience' to suit all parties. The Islands are not part of the European Union, they establish their own tax regimes and attract the seriously wealthy to take residence. 
The mixture of a predominantly English language with a French cultural influence creates a unique lifestyle and attitude to the outside world. The two larger Islands are modern sophisticated centers of Banking; both have airports. The smaller inhabited Islands aim to preserve an almost medieval culture with unmade roads, no cars and no aviation. Last Thursday dawned grey and misty, however my brother in law had booked a Hotel and ferry 
so four of us headed to Yeovilton to asses the forecast and landing conditions at Guernsey, the nearest airport to the small destination Island of Sark. Conditions were not good with a cloudbase struggling between 500 and 1000feet and drizzle lurking in the air. The best opportunity for flight would be just after mid-day when the temperature would be highest which would dry the air for an hour or two. We boarded the French designed Tabago TB10 touring aircraft and set off to look at the prospect of success and found it was possible to maintain over 1000ft till South of the UK coast 
where the cool sea brought the cloud lower. With Guernsey offering suitable landing conditions we pressed on clear of cloud and in sight of the surface until the GPS led us to a grey silhouette of land and a climb to join the circuit for an approach. Having secured the aircraft within its protective covers we headed for the taxi and ferry that would take us to Sark. Only 40 minutes on a ferry through some treacherous rock strewn waters and the clock of civilisation turns back through a time warp; there are no cars on the Island and the lack of personal motor transport changes a couple of miles from an insignificant distance to a major obstacle particularly in wet or windy conditions. We traveled to our hotel by horse and carriage on rough unmade
tracks and at one point had to dismount to traverse an excessivly exposed col. Having booked a rather expensive cottage in the hotel grounds we were rather shocked to find that our accommodation was in fact a batch some 500 yards up a flint strewn track were we were sent to dress for dinner, ties and jackets gentlemen please! Some heated discussion followed and a transfer was agreed for the following night to quaint if not 
luxurious rooms across a pretty garden from the main building. By dawn the skies had cleared and a brisk walk along a cliff path led to the small village where we hired bicycles to explore the 5 mile x 2 mile extent of this small rock. Armed with wheels one can cover most vantage points in half a day even at the 19th century pace of the locals. The hotel food is exceptional and so is the bill, its time to return to the modern world where the commercial pressure of competition offers some escape from the sole provider mentality that enables rip-off economics to prevail.
Well against the odds and thanks to my engineering friends I now have a new permit to fly for my VPM16 Gyroplane.
The picture shows an engineer of the old school, Gordon Smith who has still got the skill to take a sheet of metal and with no more than simple hand tools create items as diverse as a kettle drum or a cowling for an antique aircraft. Fortunately he also understands gyroplanes and has acted as an inspector for many years before 
recently retiring to concentrate on model building. For me Gordon has now been replaced by Tony Melody who has vast experience but also a 300mile round trip to service my machine. The CAA office tasked with surveying my aircraft for the issue of a permit is only 15 miles away and was able to provide a prompt service. The inspector arrived in smart suit and shiny shoes only to be faced with Somerset fields awash with weeks of torrential rain. The access to the flying field is a farm track much neglected by the 
farmers and now only passable with a 4x4 and some determination. Fortunately my hangar, a converted removal lorry, is a perfectly dry oasis (that can't be the right word) amongst all this damp and the machine was seen to be in good order. As is often the case with CAA there was just one thing that stopped permit issue then and there; I was unable to show the weight and balance document that was sent to CAA when the last permit was issued. 'No problem' says I, 'nothing has changed and you have the document or you wouldn't have issued a permit'. Ah, 'well archives can't find it and so 
we will need you to produce a copy'. So a quick trip to see my engineer of the time and Gordon was able to satisfy their needs; paperwork in order, permit issued, aircraft flying!
With only a week or so before I head back to New Zealand I have decided to let a fellow instructor take the machine away and market it on my behalf. He has agreed to address some minor issues and ensure the aircraft is in perfect condition following a 200 mile trailer ride back to his base.
Although this will be a sad day for me I have been spoilt by flying modern factory made aircraft and have decided to move on and leave G-YFLY to receive the TLC she needs from an enthusiast. And so it was that today flew the aircraft out of my field and landed where it could be de-rigged and loaded onto a smart trailer for a long journey North and the Tardis stands empty awaiting a new arrival but who knows when! By co-incidence, today a similar container holding three new machines left Germany on route Tauranga, I will be there to welcome it eagerly as these are even better aircraft than the Eagles we 
know.
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