Changing plans

There’s a lot of rain on its way to Luxembourg on this long August 15 weekend. I planned to go to a pilot’s fly-in in Kalinigrad initially and meet there with a Polish pilot, and attend an AOPA supported event, but as I fly VFR, seems not to be a good idea to go that direction due to the poor weather.

Time to work out an alternative plan as I booked the Mooney of the flying club in Genk Zwartberg for several days

As it rains on August 15th, I decided to go working  and had a long and productive day in my office with the outlook of a nice new flying adventure on August 16th. 

The new plan is flying to Italy

On the 16th of August, I got early out of bed. Time for analyzing weather maps, something which I like particularly well. At the age of 17, I considered becoming a weatherman. The maths scared me off to go further in that direction. But the interest for weather maps remained.

I change my travel plans quickly this morning. The new plan is to fly to Parma, Italy via southern France. I reached out to a Belgian friend, Mimi Vinckenbosch, who lives nowadays with her family in Parma. She is happy we are coming over as it has been some 15 years since we last saw each other. I always take some fine Luxembourg wine with me whilst traveling. We hurry to Luxembourg Airport to take off.

I am so glad we can escape Luxembourg’s bad weather this morning. Shortly after crossing the French border, the weather improved rapidly.

The break-in procedure

Because of the Break-In period for the engine of our Mooney, I have to fly all the time at 5000 feet at 75% power settings. Only during the second hour, I alternated between 65% and 75% power. Air traffic controllers on our route to Cannes are friendly and helpful. I stayed between two layers of clouds during the first hour or so.

I note that the new engine of the Mooney flies way better than the previous one. A cruise speed of 155 knots is now feasible (compared to 145 knots with the old engine)

Arriving in Cannes

It took me some 3 flying hours to reach the French Riviera for an overnight stop at Cannes. The approach of Cannes is atypical. The landing pattern passes close to the hills and my wife Kika feels a bit uncomfortable. although skies are clear now. Landing in Cannes went seamless and we refueled our plane. My friend Maurice explained to me earlier how I should proceed to get a cheap parking spot at Cannes. This works.

We plan to stay overnight in nearby Tourrettes and plan to continue our Journey tomorrow with a flight to Parma, Italy