The photo shows a natural car-wash up the Hecho valley. It stopped raining overnight, but the sun never appeared and so the cloud-base never got up to an interesting height. The next two days look worse.

As predicted it is a non-flying day. In the afternoon the cloud-base managed to rise above the summit of Stage One (in the distance behind the broken medieval bridge over the River Aragon). The ski-resort at Astun looked fairly well socked in so tourism was the fall-back. It should be flyable tomorrow, but looking dodgy after that.

The sun shone and everyone flew. The weather is not yet at last year's standards, but there was a highly acceptable 7000 foot cloud-base that enabled forays to Stage Three arriving just high enough to realise that you shouldn't be there. We must be thermalling better. Vultures are coming over to join us in thermals rather than the other way round.

Simon Holland reported that one way of knowing which way is down is to dribble, though I prefer to stay in vmc!

Week four duly assembled, registered and were briefed. 431 went off to Stage One and scratched while 775 went south east and scratched. The dizzying height of 6000 feet was reached (cloudbase) and a combination of generosity towards the next pilots and gravity brought everyone back in less than an hour. Meanwhile another Lasham pilot managed to put himself a small, muddy field beyond Jaca leaving only sketchy details of where he was and the location of his trailer's keys. His mobile didn't work so it was a matter of detective work. Merv deduced from the strength of the radio signal he was 10km south east of Jaca not south west as he had reported. The trailer keys were found in his locked car after his spare car key was found in his room. And, by the way, he also landed wheels up. The clag moved in, so no more flights. Tomorrow's weather looks better, but mixed thereafter, and that is optimistic,

Jaca Crown Week, Days 4, 5 and 6

 

Sorry for the delay too busy flying, with the occasional meal etc of course.

Thursday 21

A fairly good day with 5 flights averaging between 1.5 and 3 hours on a moderately difficult windy and overcast day, base generally 8000.

This was the hardest of the days, with the best flight being only 3.15, 2 of 1.5 and 4 others less than 30 minutes.

Friday 22

Another good day with flights hovering around the 2 hours mark, only 1 fall down after 22 minutes but he returned and did another 2.23.

Fairly cloudy most of the day with hints of rotor and a couple of wave flights, base generally about 7-8000 but Martin did manage 13,000. Richard got to 12500, via France.

Saturday 23

Forecast only moderate with top cover and rain rolling in from mid afternoon – BUT

775 took off at 1056, released fairly early and then took quite a while to get up to height for repeated transits from the Hecha Valley to Sabinajio, restricted further by 7,500 foot cloud base to the east.

431 followed 10 minutes later and was seen frequently by us further down the valley, he returned and changed pilots.

By 1330 the valley was filling with cloud but both took off again, 775 returned 2 ½ hours later and took off again, in the meantime 431 was still away after 4 hours, I should say the weather was not what we had expected from the morning briefing.

On its second flight 775 climb up to Stage 3 and Andy soon had Paul rock polishing among the snow up to cloud base for three-quarters of an hour. The conditions were so good it was possible to fly at 70 knots and climb at 4 knots to cloud base for several miles, providing Paul with one of his best flights ever.

775 left again at 1630 and came back just 1900.

431 came back after 5pm – Richard and John managed a fun-filled 4 and 1/2 hours.

Many thanks to John and Andy for an exceptional weeks flying.

Long may this continue for next week’s group.

Goodbye from Crown Services until next year.

 

Crown Services Week 3, Day 3, 'Great Expectations'

Wednesday's briefing was a menu of thermals, ridge flying, rotor and wave in all directions. By 11 am 431 and 775 were up (why oh why isn't the DG here???).

In the K21, Andy took John up first, flying the length of Echo valley to 7,000 feet (stage two) using bowls and rotor for a couple of hours. John Simmonds took Paul in the Duo, polishing rock behind Andy and John, for two and a half hours.

The Fins were third away but came back after half an hour. They hadn't forgotten anything - they'd just pulled-off too soon (helpfully, somone suggested they might try not pulling off at all :-)).

Richard was next to go with Andy, taking the same route along Echo valley and finding wave to reach over 10,000 feet. In a three hour flight they took in Canfranc  and Orielio before a look at Bedun.

Adrian was John's second for the day - spending two and a half hours working Hecho valley to 7,500 feet (stage 3).

Martin was Andy's last flight for the day, two and a quarter hours polishing rock and soaring before a close-up with a Vulture.

Paul was John's last flight of the day - another two and a half hours, ending in the wave over stage 3. 

Howard reached almost the end of the Canfranc Valley - by car - and spent the day skiing.

Outlook  for Thursday - another brilliant day.

Tuesday, John Adams heading to stage 3