Bill's Aviation Log

Passing by the still colorful Essex Skypark after takeoff.

We did some formation practice en-route, then switched over to route formation. Here's a nice shot of Mark as we pass over some scattered clouds.

It looks cloudy but actually there was only a narrow band of cumulous clouds below us.

We did an overhead break at Millville. Here we are waiting for Chuck to finish his roll-out.

Well, you hate to see any plane sitting on the ramp with flat main tires and a missing nose wheel. But especially a plane like this one.

I think I remember reading an article about the restoration and flying of this particular plane -- it's a PZL TS-11 Iskra (English: Spark) Polish jet trainer -- in one of the aviation magazines. (I looked for the article but couldn't find it.) I was able to determine the jet was put up for sale in August 2018. There must have been no buyers, and now the plane is just wasting away on the ramp. Jets like these are expensive to hangar, insure, and maintain. And that's before you even get to what it costs to fly them -- jets burn a lot of gas.

The Iskra was entered into competition for the standard trainer of the Warsaw Pact, but lost to the Aero L-29 Elfin for political reasons. Poland became the only Warsaw pact country to use the Iskra. The only other user was India, which acquired 76 of the aircraft. A total of 424 Iskras were built, in eight versions. Production ceased in 1987. Poland continued to operate the aircraft until 2002. India retired their Iskras in 2004. Following their operational careers, several TS-11 s were disarmed and sold to private collectors around the world. Planes of Fame Air Museum in Chino, California has one. So does the Cavanaugh Flight Museum in Dallas, Texas.

The wind was howling when we came out of Verna's. On takeoff, as soon as I applied power, the tail came up. Shortly thereafter, the RV just levitated into the air. It was like riding an elevator.

Getting closer to the Delaware Bay.

Over the Delaware Bay.

Feet dry over Delaware.

Looking northwest. The Chesapeake Bay comes into view.

Visibility was phenomenal today; you could see the Washington DC skyline from over the Chester River. That never happens. You almost never see it even from Essex Skypark.

Following Brian for awhile.

Brian checks out the grass runway. There's a single Cessna 182 on the field.

November 13, 2021 - Essex RVs to Millville, NJ
This Saturday morning the Essex Skypark RVs had an impromptu flight to Millville, New Jersey for breakfast. The weather wasn't great but certainly flyable. We had four RVs: myself in the RV-7, Chuck in the 7A, Mark and Brian C. in 8s.

Passing by the still colorful Essex Skypark after takeoff.

We did some formation practice en-route, then switched over to route formation. Here's a nice shot of Mark as we pass over some scattered clouds.

Brian on the other side.

Chuck took the next few shots with his iPhone.

It looks cloudy but actually there was only a narrow band of cumulous clouds below us.

On the other side of the cloud band, about to go feet wet over Delaware Bay.

We did an overhead break at Millville. Here we are waiting for Chuck to finish his roll-out.

Taxiing to Verna's Flight Line Restaurant.

Parks on the ramp.

Chuck got to park next to this fancy turbo-prop Aero Commander. Nice ride!

An unpainted RV-10 taxiis by. Verna's Flight Line Restaurant is behind the RV-10. We ordered breakfast and the food was on our table in an incredibly short time; if it was more than five minutes I'd be surprised.

Well, you hate to see any plane sitting on the ramp with flat main tires and a missing nose wheel. But especially a plane like this one. I think I remember reading an article about the restoration and flying of this particular plane -- it's a PZL TS-11 Iskra (English: Spark) Polish jet trainer -- in one of the aviation magazines. (I looked for the article but couldn't find it.) I was able to determine the jet was put up for sale in August 2018. There must have been no buyers, and now the plane is just wasting away on the ramp. Jets like these are expensive to hangar, insure, and maintain. And that's before you even get to what it costs to fly them -- jets burn a lot of gas. The Iskra was entered into competition for the standard trainer of the Warsaw Pact, but lost to the Aero L-29 Elfin for political reasons. Poland became the only Warsaw pact country to use the Iskra. The only other user was India, which acquired 76 of the aircraft. A total of 424 Iskras were built, in eight versions. Production ceased in 1987. Poland continued to operate the aircraft until 2002. India retired their Iskras in 2004. Following their operational careers, several TS-11 s were disarmed and sold to private collectors around the world. Planes of Fame Air Museum in Chino, California has one. So does the Cavanaugh Flight Museum in Dallas, Texas.

A simple, rugged and forgiving aircraft, the Iskra was the starting point for Polish fighter pilots on their way to flying the faster and more complex MiG or Sukhoi aircraft used by the Polish Air Force. Today the TS-11 is a very popular warbird with aircraft collectors. Relatively inexpensive to own and operate, the Iskra is often the first step these collectors take toward flying a larger, higher performance jet warbird. This is sad.

The wind was howling when we came out of Verna's. On takeoff, as soon as I applied power, the tail came up. Shortly thereafter, the RV just levitated into the air. It was like riding an elevator.

Looking south as Dividing Creek heads out to Delaware Bay.

Looking north as the Cohansey River comes out of Bridgeton.

Looking straight ahead (west). There are so many rivers and creeks in south Jersey I can't even tell you what this one is.

Getting closer to the Delaware Bay.

A nice shot of Mark as the sun peaks out. We were flying into a monster headwind and were only doing 135 mph or so across the ground.

Over the Delaware Bay.

Another shot of Mark.

Feet dry over Delaware.

Two RV-8s cruising together.

We were rained on for awhile. Now we're out of the rain with the Chester River to the south.

Looking northwest. The Chesapeake Bay comes into view.

Visibility was phenomenal today; you could see the Washington DC skyline from over the Chester River. That never happens. You almost never see it even from Essex Skypark.

Looking southwest at the Chesapeake Bay bridge in the distance.

Following Brian for awhile.

A new grass strip on the Eastern Shore, just south of Rock Hall.

Brian checks out the grass runway. There's a single Cessna 182 on the field.

Another look at the grass strip.

Passing by Miller's Island in its autumn splendor.

As we flew back, we knew the landing at Essex Skypark might be a little exciting due to the high winds. But when we got back, the wind was right down the runway, and landing wasn't bad. Here, three of us are watching Mark about to touch down. I spent the next six hours helping Rich and Nhu-An on their RV-10.


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November 13, 2021 - Essex RVs to Millville, NJ