A Hole In The Cloud

Fans of aerial combat will remember how Allied bombers over Germany looked for holes in the clouds to descend through and then looked for their targets. When flying in the early mornings,  I had to use the same technique to reach some destinations. This manoeuvre is not without its risks, so I avoid it as much as I can.

In the early nineties the GPS for aerial navigation was still an expensive equipment, costing more than RM4,000 each. We flew using only maps and the magnetic compass. As the latter swings erratically and takes a long time to stabilise whenever an aircraft changes direction, another instrument called the Directional Gyro Indicator (DGI) is used. This is a more reliable instrument but the pilot has to regularly feed in the headings that he reads from the magnetic compass into the DGI which always "drifts" as time passes.

I was flying from Sempang (the callsign for the RMAF base on Jalan Sungei Besi in Kuala Lumpur) to Taman Negara in Pahang one cool morning. Taman Negara happens to be my favourite weekend destination whenever I fly. It is only an hour's flight away and yet is a thick tropical jungle protected by law and had existed for 130 million years untouched by glaciers. It had clean rivers, cool waters and many rapids.

The sky was clear when we left. Our flight plan was filed for Batu Caves, Bentong, Jerantut and then Sungai Tiang which is the laterite airstrip located about five kilometres downstream from Kuala Tahan, our eventual destination. It is the site of most tourist amenities in the area. After Batu Caves,  we passed Genting Highlands on our left and was overhead Bentong airfield which in reality is a fairway on the Bentong golf course. Overflying Bentong at our cruising altitude of 3,000 feet,  we tracked direct for Jerantut which took us to the right of and below the peak of the majestic Gunung Benum. However we found that the cloud cover below us was thick and had blanketed the entire terrain ahead of us leaving no landmark for us to refer to. Jerantut was up ahead somewhere and we had to find it somehow since our subsequent leg to Sungai Tiang was by following the Pahang River northwards beginning from Jerantut.

We had an instrument on board called the Automatic Direction Finder (ADF) which can be used to track a radio signal from any radio station. This instrument is usually unreliable as it will point to any electrical source nearby such as a cloud with an electrical charge or some unknown radio transmission. Knowing that Jerantut has a radio broadcasing station, I tuned the ADF to the station's frequency but this time there was nothing heard and the needle pointer was rotating all over the gauge.

There was no other choice but to find a hole in the cloud below us and go down it to see what landmark lay below that we could recognise. Comparing our elapsed flight time and airspeed with our navigation log, we should have just passed Jerantut. Luck was with us and a reasonably sized hole in the white substance below us was nearby. We had to go through it quickly or it may close back leaving us stranded in the sky. The C172 is not a fighter plane that can zip down a hole just like that. I had no dive brakes. If I were to simply dive the plane through the hole, the gravity would accelerate it to a speed beyond its limit and rip its wings off. After checking with Air Traffic Control that no other traffic was nearby, I put the plane into a shallow spiral dive with twenty degrees flaps and kept the airspeed near the limit. Peeping through the hole I could see flat terrain below, so there was no danger of hitting a  hill or something.

After what felt like hours, we finally were below the cloud which was just a thousand feet above the ground. Visibility was good. I looked around and saw a river not far off, headed towards it and from its size knew that it was the right river although Jerantut was nowhere to be seen. We headed north along it confirming the layout with that on our map. Further upriver there were familiar-looking boats that added to my confidence that we were at the right river. Taking the correct forks as we flew on, we finally saw the Sungai Tiang airstrip and landed.

I locked the plane up and we walked to the jetty to wave down a boat, as I used to do, to take us on a one and a half hour ride to Kuala Tahan. The cool breeze that blew as the open boat trundled through the rapids was very welcome indeed (the normal passenger boats usually have a canopy above to ward off the sun).

We lunched at the usual cafe, walked around and then took another boat back to the airfield.  This time the warming earth had pushed the morning's cloud layer up a couple of thousand feet to form fast growing cumulus hills that will not only affect our visibility but also make the flight home a bumpy one.

The Red Bull Air Race Returns

The last Red Bull Air Race (RBAR) was held at the EuroSpeedway racetrack in Lausitz, Germany on August 8, 2010. The race was won by Hannes Arch but the season's championship went to Paul Bonhomme who scored 64 against Arch's 60 points. Arch won 4 races and Bonhomme 2 in the 6-race 2010 season.

I thought that was the last we would hear of the RBAR but now I am overjoyed that it is starting again in 2014 and the icing on the cake is that the second race of the season will be held in Putrajaya, practically on my doorsteps. Hopefully I can shoot some nice videos of thr race myself. Below is my collection of videos that I purchased off the net and which covered previous RBARs.

For 2014, I am counting on Arch to be the champion as his performance since his first participation in 2007 has been impressive. He won in 2008 and was second in 2009 and 2010.

Fly-In To Phuket

Fly-Ins are always fun and I decided to organise one in November of 1988 but with a big difference. The destination was to be in a neighbouring country, Thailand, which I had never flown to in a light aircraft before. It turned out to be most enjoyable but at the same time it put the travelers through some unsavoury experience.

Having no experience in such undertakings, I consulted those who had made cross border flights before and began by applying through our Malaysian Foreign Ministry for a diplomatic clearance by the Thai authorities. This was done two months ahead of the event and after I had made all the interested participants place sufficient funds with my flying club to cover the aircraft rental and fuel expenses. The aircraft particulars, route details as well as the names and passport numbers of the pilots and passengers were furnished together with the application.

One week before our departure date, I enquired from the Foreign Ministry about the Diplomatic Clearance and was told that no news had been received from Thailand. I then visited the local Thai Embassy and was advised to pursue the matter with our Foreign Ministry as our application was made there and not through them. I called the Ministry daily until the day before our scheduled departure. On the eve of our departure at 6.00pm a call came from the Ministry with the Diplomatic Clearance number. I immediately filed the flight plan with the control tower quoting the reference number. All the group members were already on tenterhooks by then as it had been a long wait without any indication that the fly-in would materialise.

We had only two C172s available and had to turn away many members. Only those who paid first were given places. I however managed to rent a PA22 from a flight training school on condition the aircraft PIC was an instructor from the same school and that we would bear his lodging expenses. I agreed to this and we therefore were able to accommodate three more individuals excluding the pilot into the party.

The first leg took us from Kuala Lumpur to Penang, a two-hour flight at 4000ft and tracking via Batu Caves, Rawang, Tg Malim, Teluk Intan, Sitiawan and Bagan Serai. Flying in company and with weather being excellent, the three aircraft's crews and passengers had spectacular views of the morning sun throwing its rays from the four o'clock position onto the hills and plains to our left. As planned, we descended after Bagan Serai for Penang International Airport where we landed one by one, refueled and had some refreshments. As it was our point of exit from Malaysia, we went through Customs and Immigration before taking off for our destination Phuket (it is pronounced “poo kate’ and not with an F).

We took off in turn from Runway 04 Penang, taking us over the city of Georgetown with its Komtar building dominating the skyline and then the scenic beaches of Tanjung Bunga from where we began our island hopping legs. After about forty minutes, Langkawi Island appeared on the horizon like a legendary tropical isle. Overflying it, we approached the international boundary further north into Thailand, an airspace I had not flown in on my own before. From then on numerous islands of varying sizes passed below us, each with its own white sandy beaches and rocky outcrops. Among the larger islands were, as we flew northwards, Ko Tarutau, Ko Ta Li Bong, Ko Lanta Yai, the two Ko Phi Phi's and Ko Yao Yai (“ko” means island in the Thai language) before we swung left to Phuket airport. The most spectacular was Big Phi Phi (Phi Phi Don) with its two crescent lagoons that glimmered in the sunlight. The smaller Phi Phi Leh was more rocky but had hidden beaches below the rocks and was the setting for both the movies "Blue Lagoon" and "The Beach". I then realised how fortunate I was to be able to have such magnificent views of the islands which not many can have unless they fly that low.

Throughout the flight into Thai airspace, the ATC service was excellent and we had not much difficulty in communicating with the controllers. We were cleared for Runway 27 Phuket and taxied down the long undulating runway to the parking ramp to the end on our left. Immigration, customs and health checks proceeded without fuss and we were soon on our way to our hotel on the touristy Patong beach.

The next morning, we obtained clearance from the friendly ATC personnel to fly on a circuit around the island at 1,000 feet and so all three aircraft took off on Runway 09, turned right and began our clockwise journey over the several beautiful beaches that ring the island. The flight was most exhilarating and soon we were back to the airport for a landing. We stayed another night in Phuket partaking in the delicious local cuisine and shopping for some clothing items.

Sunday morning came and it was time to head for the airport for our return flight. Upon arrival, we filed our flight plans and were told that we had to pay for parking and landing fees which came to US$100 per aircraft. This was something we never expected as back home this would have amounted to not more than US$5 per aircraft. In response to our disbelief, the controller showed us their book of charges which indicated a minimum of US$50 per night for aircraft of below a certain weight. We sensed that the rate probably applied to commercial aircraft but we realised that we had to go home and the argument was not going to be settled soon or in our favour. We paid up after collecting cash from the team members.

Our ordeal had just begun. With the receipt in my hand, we went through passport and customs checks. Apparently immigration and customs officers on duty were working on overtime on Sundays and needed to be paid. More cash was dispensed. Oh, they even issued us receipts for these payments though we could not read what were written as there were no English words on them.

As we walked across the ramp to our aircraft, we requested for the fuel bowser to be sent round for refueling. Again another ingenious response came . The bowser driver was at home as it was a Sunday but he could be summoned to come over if we agreed to pay his taxi fare and overtime. We suspected he was just lazing behind the office building. More cash was dispensed. Finally we were airborne again over the scenic Andaman Sea with its beautiful islands as we winged our way south for home.

The episode did not end then. Some weeks later we received an invoice from the Thai airport company requesting for a further sum from us for "navigation charges" based on the actual distances flown within Thai territory. I cannot recall the exact sum but it was maybe another US$50 per aircraft. All the team members paid their share as to act otherwise would mean putting our club on their blacklist and causing future fly-in requests by our club members to be rejected.

Upon my return, I described our experience to a senior club member who responded with his own story of how he faced a similar situation in Kupang, Indonesia when he flew there in our club aircraft a few years earlier. In his case, he was told that the airport had not received the diplomatic clearance telex from their head office and that he would not be allowed to take off until the receipt of that telex. After a small payment, the telex was found in a desk drawer somewhere.

Despite the traps that may be sprung upon a pilot landing his plane in a foreign country, the adventure element in making a first flying visit to that destination may still goad him to risk it. The satisfaction of seeing new places spread below one's eyes from a thousand feet up and landing on foreign soil is irresistible. 

Sudden Wing Drops

Early in our flying training we were warned about wing drops i.e. one wing suddenly dropping (and the other rising consequently). This can happen when there is insufficient lift generated on that particular wing and it stalls. The loss of lift in turn can be caused by a drastic drop in airspeed caused by the aircraft getting into too high an angle of attack but with insufficient thrust to maintain it. Both wings can stall at the same time, in which case the pilot just has to perform the normal recovery. In many instances though, and particularly with some aircraft, one wing will stall first and if the correct action is not taken, the aircraft will enter a spin - a more serious situation than a stall.

Sometimes though, that wing drop occurs due to a sudden drop in airspeed arising from a change in wind direction or speed especially when it is gusting. I was once caught in this situation as I was flying straight and level on a windy day and suddenly the right wing rolled down sixty degrees and my passengers were alarmed. On another occasion,  I was landing at Tioman Island and the sea breeze was gusting onto the runway. The aircraft was just about 10 feet above the threshold when the left wing rolled down about 30 degrees.

On both occasions I instinctively kicked hard on the opposite rudder and used as little aileron as possible and managed to right the aircraft in time. I had learned from my instructors during early training that when the airspeed is low, one cannot use too much aileron to right an aircraft. The wings do not have enough airspeed to react to the ailerons' deflection and will fail to right the aircraft. Only the wash from the propeller in front onto the empennage at the back will be able to act on the deflected rudder and roll the wings back to level via an indirect effect.

Tried and true. 

A Memorable Flight

In the many flights that I had made over the years, of course many are memorable ones but one that put a big smile on my face was when I completed my first cross country flight into an international airport, one which I had never flown to on my own before.

Planning the flight was a joy as I laid out the 1:500 map and plotted my intended path, measured the distances of the legs and worked out the details for my navlog entries. On the morning of the flight, I filed the flight plan, checked the weather (which was forecasted to be good) and preflighted the aircraft. It had two tanks full of fuel and with one passenger tagging along, had just the right setup for a pleasant flight.

I had over 20 PIC hours by then and confidently flew the flight plan on VFR using the navlog and relating the ground features to the map as we went along. Every inch of the flight was under ATC and I had no problem with that as I switched from station to station on the way. GPS was too expensive then, so concentration was really required to ensure we were always on track by matching the ground features with the corresponding items on the map.

Finally we entered the penultimate leg but just then ATC directed us to a location that was not in my flight plan. Fortunately I could find it on the map. It was a small fishing village on the coast and we tracked towards it using the compass and by looking at the shape of the coastline . That was the only heart stopping event we encountered. We were told to hold over that village as we approached it and so we just circled above it. There was airline traffic around the airport at that time. Eventually we were cleared to descend and join right base for Runway 04. The airport is located on an island and there is a hill that flanks the seaward side of the runway. We therefore had to track across the sea from the mainland while descending to circuit height, join downwind on the other side of the hill from the runway and continue until we could see the runway end before turning base.

We were cleared to land and I touched down just after the piano keys, turned off the runway at the next exit and was told to hold to allow a B737 to pass along the main taxiway in front of me. This was the first time ever that I sat as a pilot in a plane watching a jetliner taxi right in front of my nose at a busy airport. At that instant I imagined myself being at the controls of another B737 just doing my job as an airline pilot. It was a totally different scenario from what I was used to in my earlier flying days as a student pilot where the traffic was mainly GA and some military aircraft.

A SIMILAR SCENE AT ANOTHER AIRPORT

We were cleared to proceed to the ramp near the tower and as we did other jetliners were pushing back for departure. The vista, sounds of jet engines, ground vehicles crawling around and ATC chatter in my headphone were something that gave me a glow of satisfaction, a feeling that I had arrived literally and figuratively into the aviation world. How can I ever forget that wonderful day. 

Learning From The Instructors

As I reminisce, it seems that a lot had been added to my collection of flying techniques since the day I had my first lesson. Yet I find that the most critical and useful techniques were actually taught me during the first fifty hours of flying. For this I have my instructors to thank for. I was lucky to have had two highly competent individuals as my mentors.

The first was Manjit. He was a tall handsome young man who was collecting his hours before he could join the airlines. He was methodical in presenting his preflight brief and would ask me quick questions on the aircraft as we walked to it, inside it and later as we walked back for our debriefs. Questions could vary from how much fuel could the tanks take to why the wings wash out at the tips. In the air he would ask if the engine would cut out if he switched off the ignition, and then as I said yes, proceeded to actually switch it off. Manjit led me to my solo by which time I had the answers to most, if not all, the questions.

After soloing, another instructor took over my training. Chandran was a QFI (Qualified Flying Instructor) and was quite elderly with an above average girth. He was soft-spoken and a man of few words. If he ever raised his voice, it would be a scream to get me to add power when we were sinking too fast or to go around when we were too high or in such similar situations.

Like Manjit did, Chandran too made me master the mnemonics which remain with me till today. From HASELL to TVMDC, the mnemonics will never be forgotten and have been found to be useful in times of need.

Chandran had these tricks and formulae to make complex procedures simple. With short and sharp instructions, he would guide me as to what the requirements are for, say, a good approach. "Before base speed 80kts, flaps one, speed 70kts, turn base and descend....turn to final to complete by 300ft AGL, flaps two...speed 65kts, descent rate 200fpm..." and on he went. Most of the time his formulae worked and I lived by them.

One of my favourite destinations was Tioman Island less than two hours flying time away from my base. Although exotic in itself (the island “Bali Hai” in the musical movie “South Pacific” is in real life that island), the attraction to pilots is because its 900-metre runway is enclosed on three sides by steep hill slopes and the fourth side by the sea.

APPROACHING FROM THE WEST

Only pilots checked out on the airport by an instructor are allowed to land there. Chandran had a simple formula for landing there – establish right base at 300ft AGL on feet dry, cling close to the hill on the left while descending, turn final and select full flaps while skimming the grove of coconut palms that stretch to the runway’s edge, then when clear of the palms, cut power completely, push the aircraft down to the runway and ensure that it drops on its main wheels carrier-style. “Don’t worry,” he said, “the Cessna’s main undercarriage is made for heavy landings.”  In later years, the runway was lengthened and the palms on the approach cleared away.

CHANDRAN'S FORMULA

(AFTER RUNWAY EXTENSION)

EARLY BASE VIEW

(BEFORE RUNWAY EXTENSION)

Wikipedia

I have never had any problem landing at the island despite tailwinds sometimes and I owe one to Chandran. As I continued flying over the years, Manjit’s and Chandran’s words constantly echoed in my head guiding me to do the right things as the situations demanded.

The Wonder of Cassini-Huygens' Voyage to Titan

This is not exactly an aviation story but I apologise for the diversion. The significance of the event that I am about to describe is as great as man's first flight in 1903. The Apollo manned landings on the moon and the successful return of the space travellers to earth are by themselves  some of man's greatest feats. The work now being carried out by the Mars Exploration Rover on that planet's surface is yet another major achievement.

I am however very much impressed with the journey and landing of the Cassini-Huygens (CH) spacecraft on Titan, which is Saturn's largest moon. The distance between earth and Saturn is about 1.4 billion kilometres. It took CH seven years to reach Titan. For this to happen the planets have to be ideally aligned so that CH can use the gravitational slingshot effects of earth, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn to reach Titan with the fuel that was available on board. Man would have to wait another 600 years for this alignment to occur again!

What is so interesting about Titan? It is a cloud-shrouded moon which means it is somewhat like earth but scientists want to know what its surface is like underneath the thick red clouds which are mainly composed of nitrogen and some methane Scientists believe the reddish colour of the clouds come from a substance called tholin.. There is no oxygen on Titan thus precluding man from inhabiting it. Gravity on Titan is about one-sixth that of earth but the atmospheric pressure on its surface is 1.4 times that of earth due to the thick opaque clouds that hide its surface from us.

Huygens, the lander module of CH, has succesfully sent us images and data about Titan's surface. It is almost earth-like but due to the extremely cold temperatures, all water is frozen. Rivers abound but they are not of water, rather the fluid is liquid methane since methane has a much lower freezing point. Liquid methane flows from rivers into lakes but there are only a few lakes on Titan. Past erosion by these methane rivers have created canyons and valleys not unlike what is seen in Arizona.

There are also "volcanoes" on Titan but they spew "lava" consisting of water and ammonia which flow down the slopes. Because of the cold nature of the flows these "volcanoes" are called cryovolcanoes. Other surface features of Titan include craters created by the impact of objects from space but these are few. 

What about the surface material on Titan? Huygens' instruments and cameras show that the landing site is made of sand, pebbles and small rocks which are basically ice.

TRIBUTE TO THE LATE COL. (Rtd) ZAKARIA SALLEH

The late Col. Zakaria Salleh (whom everyone called Zak) was a small-built pilot but his aerial exploits and the significant contributions he made to general aviation in Southeast Asia was legendary.

I first met Zak when he was teaching several of us to fly the Quicksilver ultralight during his spare time. We were flying at various open spaces which were pending development and as soon as construction work started at these sites, we had to move like nomads to new flying sites. At that time Zak held the rank of Flying Officer in the air force and was flying F5 jet fighters. I then lost touch with him as I progressed to Cessnas and flew at proper airfields.

Several years later, Zak started instructing at the Royal Selangor Flying Club where I was regularly flying from. He was ater elected the Club Captain and was responsible for all flying activities of the club. In this role he organised regular fly-ins, open days, flying competitions and air shows. I enjoyed participating in most of these events which took us to various airports and airstrips not only within Malaysia but also in the neighbouring countries.




A FLY-IN TO PESTA LUMUT IN 1991
Zak is circled  The writer is second from left.

Subsequently Zak retired from the air force with the rank of Colonel and having flown various fighter types like the CL-41G Tutor, Northrop F5 and A4 Skyhawk. He then flew target tugs and later several bizjets for a living. His flying and organising skills were recognised and he was subsequently elected as President of the Malaysian Sports Aviation Federation which is the umbrella organisation for all sports aviation related bodies in the country.

Zak loved aerobatics and formation flying and would put on impressive flying maneouvres at various air shows in the region. He was most famous for leading the Eagle 150 Aerobatic Team which regularly took part in the country's Independence Day parade flypasts and in air shows overseas. On occasions where the Eagle aircraft were not available, he would call up several pilots from various flying clubs and still put on a commendable performance. I was glad to join in and fly on some of these events.



PILOTS AFTER A FORMATION FLIGHT
(Zak is circled. The writer is second from right)

The Eagle 150 was a highly aerobatic aircraft and in the hands of someone like Zak, it was capable of some magnificient stunts that never failed to impress crowds. Zak, however, yearned for more. He went out and bought a dedicated aerobatic aircraft, the Christen Eagle, from the US. This was the aircraft he loved and with it he went on to mesmerise the crowds with his superb flying skills.



A CHRISTEN EAGLE AEROBATIC AIRCRAFT
(Wikipedia)

On June 23, 2011, while performing aerobatics in front of an air show crowd in Padang, Indonesia, his Christen Eagle slid down from a vertical climb and crashed to the ground. His wife, Leila, was watching from the stands. Zak passed away in hospital shortly after.



ZAK LEADING HIS EAGLE 150 OUT OF A HANGAR IN PEKANBARU AIRPORT

To Leila and the family, I send my deepest condolence. Zak was a good friend and helpful at all times especially in my flying activities. He is well-known in the flying fraternity in Malaysia as well as in the neghbouring countries. We shall always remember him.

A Vulcan Bombed Port Stanley Airport

Just saw a video on YouTube about the bombing of Port Stanley airport in the Falklands by a single Avro Vulcan V-bomber during the British-Argentinian war over the islands in 1982. The Americans would have turned it into a Hollywood blockbuster but the British just made it into a TV documentary but it sure had all the elements of a thriller such as the longest bombing run in history, a return-to-base by a back-up bomber due to loss of pressurisation, a fuel shortfall that meant being unable to reach home, mid-air refeelling in a thunderstorm, a 300ft AGL approach towards the target area and lots more.

The crew members of the mission were the "actors" and most of the shots were actual scenes during the war. It is heartwarming to see the survivors recalling the moments 30 years after the event.

Of course, what grab me are the live shots of the Vulcans and Victors which I have written about in another post (RAAF Butterworth) in this blog.

Go to XM607 - Falklands' Most Daring Raid and enjoy the show.