Flying high from LOWS 3

What do you pack when you escape just for a week to your the village where you grew up on regular family visits?
Unfortunately the restricted luggage rules did not leave space for my full pilot gear – but at least logbook, license and medical still fit into my bag…and who knows there might always be the chance for a quick take off. I had investigated earlier abot flying schools in the Bavarian Chiemgau area, but there is nothing. Stupid me – I never considered Salzburg until I landed there with my commercial flight from the Netherlands. And surely, there are many possibilities!

Salzburg Airport LOWS is in convenient distance to the city

So the first day after my arrival I got in touch with the ÖSC- Österreichischer Sportfliegerclub ( http://www.oesc-aero.at/) and surely, being a flying club as well as a flying school they were the solution to my challenge! The club has been founded in 1956 and counts today more than 140 members. 5 planes (Katana DA20, AQuila A210, Cessna 172 and a Mooney M20k) are available. For me the decision is easy: as my check out flight for our club’s 172 is scheduled right after my return, I am happy to have a little practise round on it again! Additionally I do not want to spoil my view with a low wing plane. Via the website I quickly get in touch with the ÖSC and Reinhold gets back to me within a couple of hours: “I have to work, but my colleague Thomas has time to go with you!” Great! Now only the weather has to play along!
And we are lucky: when I arrive at Hangar 7 (just left of the official terminal buildings on the other side of the road) the morning haze has cleared. Yes, it could be even brighter, but I am happy that it all worked out anyway. Thomas and I quickly agree on a route and enter the flight plan: no registration of leaving the Austrian FIR necessary. As this happens already 2 minutes after take-off I guess the controllers would be pretty busy keeping track of all these registrations. However, for me this is new and I am glad to once again rely on the experience of a local safety pilot. Next step: who is doing what during the trip? Thomas offers to do the radio, so I can concentrate on the flying and do not have to mess around with frequenzes and dialects. And there is the next surprise: on previous flights in Germany others did the radio in German. Thomas is very clear: “I do it in English so that the international commercial guys around us also know what we are up to!” I like this attitude! We are not alone up there and should consider others as well!

Chiemsee

And then we go: taking off on RW 33 we turn around and leave LOWS over Whiskey in the West, heading on a Northern Route along the motorwat A8 towards the Chiemsee. Funny how familiar everything looks and how easy it is to find my way in “unknown” territory simply from childhood memories! We laugh a lot when it becomes clear that I know the German landmarks on our route much better than Thomas as a local.

Ruhpolding is beautifully nested between the mountains

As the Chiemsee is rather hazy again, we turn around and follow the valley from Siegdorf towards Ruhpolding – famous for the Biathlon Worldcups and training station. There is the house of my aunt, the old granny, our holiday appartment, the church…now it is time for Thomas to take control so that I can enjoy and take a few shots! And over and over again I simply have to say: “Mei is das schee” (Wow, this is beautiful).

Is it the flight which makes me so enthusiastic? The plane? The area? Guess it is a combination of all of it!

We turn and fly out via another valley passing Inzell (Yes, that’s the town you know from iceskating) along the way. The weather is still not too bright, so we decide against a round in the mountains (I will be back for that one for sure), but ask the tower to allow a round over Salzburg city.

Salzburg from the air

How pretty it looks with the castle towering over the city, the river in the middle and the mountains in the background. These are definitely different views to the (otherwise lovely but still) flat Dutch landscapes.

Tuck tuck tuck…I love these slow approaches but feel sorry for the commercial flight waiting for us to land

Much too soon the time is up and we are on final for RW 33 again. Tuck tuck tuck – approaching with 60 kts I feel a bit sorry for the waiting Boeing, suddenly the Cessna seems very very slow.

Back on the ground again I have the next surprise: it is cleaning time. Everybody quickly rinses and leather wipes all parts forward facing parts of the planes when back at the hangar. I wish we would have the same attitude in our club and suddenly understand why I was able to see reflections of the ground also in the wings during the flight.

So what is my conclusion of this little trip?

Thanks Thomas for a great day! I am sorry, but you might have to cope with me again in the future 🙂

Wings so clean that the landscpae reflects in them – a great feeling!

I love flying and seeing the world from above (well, not really news right?). I am a Cessna fan as it simply gives extra time to enjoy. I love to explore new areas and am not ashamed to ask a safety pilot along. The contrary: I enjoy the pilot chats, the additional learnings, the new contact and stories I hear. Somebody said to me once: “Flying with a safety pilot is like taking a KLM flight to China.”
I do disagree: flying with a safety pilot in unknown territory is added value and added safety…and I believe that as pilots we should never fall into the “Can Do It All” attitude, but remember to have fun and keep learning, looking out not just for ourselves, but also for the planes we charter and the people we might endanger.