posted 05-14- 05:46 PM               

a North American T-6, in absolutely splendid condition!

a beautiful Yak-11, a postwar trainer derived from the Yak-3.

Lfbpro and "his" P-51D!

posted 05-14- 05:47 PM               

They also have a Piper Cub, a Fiesler Storch, and several pre-war French aircraft. The most impressive of all is the huge Skyraider, it would make a P-47 look like a Cessna next to it.

They also have two of these De Havilland Chipmunks, a 1950s RAF trainer.

The owners of both Chipmunks were here. We were having a nice chat about plane stories, then one of them said "I wonder if gasoline is cheaper in Montélimar?"

There's only one way to know!

Quicky I found myself installed in the back seat. There is double command (of course in a trainer), and a simple instruments panel with a similar layout to the Spitfire's. My main problem is I am a bit too tall and my left leg either touches the stick, rudder or brakes lever! This is only the second time in my life I board a propeller aircraft (first was a Cessna 172, some 15 years ago), so I am a bit impressed and very excited.

So after a smooth take off and a couple circuits we are on our way, flying in formation with a DR400. The Rhône valley below is splendid and very green - this is the first sunny and warm day since ages! At 95kts and low alt you have a fantastic view of the countryside. With its narrow fuselage, there is excellent visibility from the Chipmunk's back seat, only limited by the front pilot's head. In theory you could watch right at 6 o'clock too, but I found myself unable to turn my head enough for this.

posted 05-14- 05:48 PM               

Here Lfbpro gets ready to fight imperialism with his MiG-21! (sorry about the poor exposure, man)

Then we fly back to St-Rambert in a wonderful sunset. The Chippie's pilot does a low alt pass to salute and thank the Montélimar people. I feel a bit uneasy, that looks a lot like my daring strafing runs in SDOE (the ones that usually end up in a big explosion). Then he shows me a couple sharp turns. Wow, 2G is already impressive for me. Then a bit more formation flying (I am explained it is not easy with the Chipmunk, because of its low power and low drag). A circuit, the flap fully lowered almost stops the plane in mid air, a smooth landing and we are back.

We forgot to check gas price, I missed the last train to Paris. Who cares?
That was a wonderful day, huge thanks to our pilots, Pierre and Jean-Philippe, and Nico, for inviting me to his fantastic playground!

Check out AeroRetro's website: http://www.chez.com/aeroretro

posted 05-15- 08:58 AM            

Werner