From Cannes to Elba. An interesting flight.

So far on this trip everything has gone to plan.  Flight plans filed and received.  Plane working like a dream.  Weather perfect.  That was all to change on this leg.

We woke up especially early to make sure that no horrible weather prevented us taking off en route to Elba.  We didn’t need to get up early because the weather was perfect if not a little hazy.  But, despite the hotel breakfast being served from 0600 the man setting the tables was working incredibly slowly and refused for us to have breakfast until he had completely finished.  We wanted breakfast so we hung around until 0700. 

The taxi took us to Cannes airport.  We walked through the private pilot gate without issue and checked the plane.  ZD had been a little thirsty in the hot weather with oil so I have her a drink via her funnel so we didn’t waste a drop.

It was hot.  It was very hot.  We started up and radioed the ground control.  We were told to wait.  We waited.  After about 10 minutes of engine running and sweat dripping off our foreheads I contacted ground and said, “have you forgotten us?”  “No” came the answer, “but I can’t find your flight plan”.  Then we proceeded to have a long exchange about file plans until I decided enough was enough and shut down the plane and marched over to the terminal.  We found the flight planning room and faxed a flight plan to Nice.  I then waited and checked with the airport desk that Nice had received it.  It was confirmed received by Nice.  Good.

We got back to the plane (it is a LONG walk) and started up again.  Ground Control said, “Sorry G-ZD your flight plan is still not there” the gentleman said to me.  I paused.  I’d had enough (the heat was getting to me).  “Too bad” I said, “I’m taking off anyway and when I get handed over to Nice Information when airborne I’ll have a word with them”.  “As you wish ZD.  You can taxi via Yankee and the Whiskey to hold short for runway 17”.  I wasn’t waiting around anymore.  We quickly taxied according to instructions.

I carried out all the normal pre-take-off checks at the holding point and was then cleared to take-off.  I pushed in the throttle and Zulu Delta purred down the runway.  Engine temperatures and pressures all good, revs good, airspeed slowly increasing…..half way down the runway close to take-off speed the airspeed indicated shot to 100 kts, the plane was fully up to speed so I pulled back on the yoke and she lifted from the runway.  Suddenly, the airspeed indicator dropped to 20kts.  It was bizarre and worrying.  The plane had a positive rate of climb and all was looking good.  My gps was telling me I had a ground speed of 90kts.  But, I was committed by that point.  I had only a small amount runway ahead of me and there was no way I could land.  In front of that only the sea.  The plane was flying and showing no signs of trouble.  Then the airspeed indicator starting increasing but kept on increasing until it was at 160kts and then fell down to zero.

I knew immediately the pitot was to blame and giving me mis-readings.  We just carried on regardless.  There was no point doing anything else.  The plane was performing and the only issue was going to arise on landing.  Throughout the whole of the flight the airspeed indicator was giving me ridiculous readings and I can’t say I wasn’t worried.  My other equipment would give me every piece of information but I wanted my airspeed indicator.  At the time, I considered it to be my favourite instrument. I kept thinking, “I’m not looking forward to landing”.

To add to complexity, Nice decided to route me to some (I say fictional) point of which existence I had no knowledge.  I knew just about every location, every reporting point but the one he wanted me to go to.  I am sure they make them up.  I told him I wasn’t aware of it and he should just give me a heading.  He did.  However, he also decided to throw in the sarcastic comment, “well, who hasn’t been reading his charts then?”  It was actually funny.  Perhaps he would have gone on and on about it but his attention was then diverted by another pilot who decided to enter into a military zone without permission and the controller probably thought he was a more juicy fruit upon which to express his agitation.

Along with the fictional reporting point outside of Cannes the other issue was Elba.  There are two runways, 34 and 16.  The approach to 16 is difficult.  You have to clear the mountains at the front end of the runway, route on a specific heading between two mountains and then make a steep descent and a VERY short final.  All of that without an airspeed indicator was not something I was looking forward to at all.

To make matters worse, when we crossed over Corsica and were handed over to Roma approach communication became very terse.  The controller was much more interested in a female pilot who, despite being told not to enter into a specific area where parachute jumping was taking place seemed to be nonetheless heading straight for it.  “I have told you (call sign) you must avoid that area.  Do you understand?  You must NOT go there”.  In the end I gave up with Roma and told them I was switching frequency to Elba approach (whether they liked it or not).  That wasn’t any better.  Elba approach seemed to have gone to lunch.  I made another executive decision: I was landing on runway 34 no matter what runway was in use.  The sky was obviously not busy around Elba (there wasn’t anyone else on frequency – including the mystery controller) so I couldn’t see the problem.  I routed to the south of the island and continued the approach.

Eventually, after finishing his pasta or whatever he was eating, Elba approach appeared and cleared me to land on runway 34.  Lord did I miss my airspeed indicator.  I trimmed the plane for its descent, pulled back the throttle, deployed some flaps and headed for the runway.  I decided, if anything, I was going to approach fast.  I didn’t want a stall and I don’t think Zulu Delta has a stall warning buzzer in any event.  We landed without issue (fast) and I was very pleased to be on the ground.  As we unloaded the handling agent said, “Sorry we were a bit late on the radio, there was a lot of confusion about your flight plan”.  “Yes, I know” I replied with a roll of my eyes.

Some interesting video coming soon.  Sorry for the delay in editing it up….I’ve been preoccupied.