Ham Sandwiches, Winds and Alcohol Tests.

"Hello, is anyone in here?" I heard through the various aircraft that litter the hangar.

"Hi, just me!"

"Oh, hello there.  Are you about to fly this aircraft? (looking at me with the top cowl in my hand).

"I hope so!"

"I'm from CASA, we're up here in Ballarat today doing random drug and alcohol testing."

"Fair enough."

I wasn't really worried, as I'd only had one light beer about a week ago.  Shouldn't be a problem!


Monday looked like the pick of the bunch weather-wise and I had a day off work, so I made sure that the Jabiru was booked.  (It turned out that Sunday was better, but I had to work all day - so I'm not even including it in my calculations!)  The next question was 'where to?'  I definitely wanted to go on a nav somewhere, as I haven't been able to get anywhere for weeks.  Then, the plan to visit my friends Brian and Linda down at Bacchus Marsh popped into my head.  The same couple that kindly took me on the trip to the Twelve Apostles.  They have mentioned many times to 'drop in' on them at their hangar, where they can regularly be found hot-rodding and polishing their lovely Jabiru. 

The weather report told me that although it should be mostly clear, the wind will be strong-ish, then be strong, and then get back to strong-ish near the end of the day.  I figured that I should at least head out to the airport to see what conditions were really like.  When I got there, the wind sock was about half way and the AWIS was reporting a steady 14 knots almost perfectly aligned with runway 36.  I thought that if it is aligned with the runway it won't be so much of a problem.  A text from Linda reported barely a zephyr at Bacchus Marsh!

Hmm.  I chatted with Roger (owner of aircraft) and he didn't have an issue with me going - so I began the daily inspection on the aircraft.  Roger was doing bits and pieces in and out of the hangar.  He'd just headed outside, when the man from CASA came in, rolling his Pelican case full of testing equipment behind him.  He introduced himself, told me what his job was and asked me a few questions.

The actual breath-test took a couple of seconds.  The paperwork (done in triplicate!) took the most time.  I had just come up negative when Roger walked back in.  I told him that I needed to do more study for this test, as I got a negative result.

One for the wall, I think!

I continued on with the pre-flight and it wasn't long before I was heading over to the run-up bay.  The wind had climbed to 15 knots by this stage, but it wasn't too gusty and it was still aligned with the runway.  Back-tracking on the runway was very fast as the wind was pushing me along!  I had to hold it back with the brakes!

The flight, I went anti-clockwise.

When I lifted off (in almost no ground roll!) there was the normal amount of lumps and bumps courtesy of the aptly named Mount Blowhard just North of the field.  I turned downwind and departed the circuit to the South.  During my discussions with Roger, he mentioned that it might be worth heading South past Mount Buninyong, and then head East to Bacchus Marsh - thus missing the rising terrain through Gordon and Ballan.  I thought that was a good idea not to get into trouble with the clouds, so I made my way over to the Midand Highway for a bit before turning towards Bacchus Marsh.

Ballarat, looking East towards Mount Warrenheip.  The suburb of Delacombe in the centre of frame.

It certainly was a scenic way to go, but in hindsight I probably should have stayed to the North of Mount Warrenheip - passing South of it caused a lot of ups and downs!  However, they were short-lived and it wasn't too long before I was twenty or so NM from Bacchus Marsh.  Time to ensure I was on the right frequency and prepared for my circuit entry requirements.

The ERSA entry calls for no over-flight of the aerodrome unless "operationally necessary".  I wasn't sure what that exactly meant as there is no AWIS to help pilots decide which runway is most into wind - so I made my best guess.  I called for my landing to be on runway 01, but as I got closer and could make out the wind sock - it was exactly in the middle between 01 and 27, so it was a line call anyway. I descended to circuit height and joined mid downwind at 45°, and landed without too much fuss.  The crosswind practice I did a few weeks ago really helped.

Brian and Linda's hangar is over on the perimeter of the field. I'd been there by car before, so I knew where it was, but I wasn't sure how to get there via the various taxiways. From the air, I thought I saw a small taxiway leading off from the end of the runway straight to their bank of hangars.  After touching down, I rolled right to the very end of the runway expecting to see a nice track, but found nothing but shin-high grass.  So, then I had to sheepishly backtrack all the way back to the centre of the runway and take the large dirt taxiway.  The guys at the flying school were probably having a giggle at that!

After eventually negotiating the various taxiways, I finally pulled up out the front of Brian and Linda's open hangar.  They'd heard me coming on the radio and already had the kettle boiling as I got out of the plane.  We sat down and enjoyed freshly made ham, lettuce and mayo sandwiches and a cuppa.  Quite tasty indeed (made all the better by flying there!).

What's the best way to go get a ham sandwich?  Flying of course!

We chatted for a bit, I had a drool over their Jabiru and then I figured it was time to head home before the wind at Ballarat got any stronger.  Brian and Linda helped me move the Jabiru on to a cement square for my run-up, then it was off back to the runway.  As I took off, I could see two figures waving goodbye - so I gave them a little wing-rock in return.  Once I turned for home and got above the hills around the aerodrome, the reality set in.  Bumps and more bumps.  They were not big, just small and often.  I set up a cruise climb and initially levelled out at 3000 feet.  Still bumpy.  Climbed through 3500'. Still bumpy.  Got to the magical 4000' and it was like someone switched the bumps off.  Instantly it was smooth as silk.  I was still flying quite sideways and my ground speed was 69 knots, but that was fine by me.  I got to have a good look the small Fiskville airstrip, the Werribee Gorge and the beautiful valleys that I only get to see a fleeting glimpse of from train line whilst commuting to work.  Great scenery!

In a way I was dreading coming back in to Ballarat, as I knew didn't want to leave this magic carpet ride.  I pulled on carby heat, reduced the throttle and braced myself.  Thankfully, it wasn't that bad.  The wind was still quite strong (my large crab angle told me this!), but it seemed to be more consistent.  A quick listen to the AWIS told me the wind was now up to 19 knots! 

After a challenging mid-field crosswind and a lightning fast downwind (probably at 120 knots!) I slid the aircraft around from base and on to final.  I felt a little high, but it was actually good for the strong wind.  I used very little flap to ensure good turbulence penetration and flared normally to find a very soft touch down. I didn't hold the nosewheel up for long.  I was ready to get that thing down on the ground!  She pulled up in no time and it wasn't long before I exited the runway on the first taxiway.  I pointed it into wind and shut down.

All in all, I think it was a very worthwhile experience.  My first solo journey to a new airport in challenging conditions and a catch-up with some lovely friends.  Who could ask for more?   I'm slowly expanding my trips.  Hopefully soon I can head out even further.