After a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon on the sea front at Sandown it was time for us to head back home to Headcorn.

After the short taxi ride from Sandown Pier back to the airport, I started the pre-flight checks when I realised that the aircraft fuel dip stick had gone missing. As I filled the tanks to full on departure from Headcorn earlier that day, I had no need to measure how much fuel we had. So I had to improvise. I had bought my daughter a windmill on a stick while we were on the beach in Sandown as a gift for when I got back home. Luckily the stick was just the right length to measure our remaining fuel which confirmed we had plenty for our return flight and aligned perfectly with my pre-flight performance calculations.

With the checks complete and the engine running, I called Sandown Radio to get the latest airfield information for our departure. It was extremely busy trying to get out of Sandown and space was limited to complete the required power checks. I ended up doing this just past my parking bay which was convieniently located just next to the holding point for runway 05.

While at the hold, we gave way to an aircraft on final approach before lining up on runway 05 and departed towards the north. We left the Isle of Wight a slightly different way to the approach for our arrival. We headed directly north as traffic in the area seemed quite busy on the dead side of Sandown and we wanted to get some views of Cowes and then the Spinnaker Tower when back on the mainland.

When we were outside of the vicinity of Sandown I requested to change to radio frequency to Farnborough LARS west. When inside their area of coverage I made contact with them requesting a Basic Service. As I was heading towards the east I was handed straight over to Farnborough LARS east and was requested to make first contact when inside their area of coverage. On approaching Goodwood I made contact and received a Basic Service.

Apart from our departure, the route was similar to the one we took on our inbound flight to Sandown. Crusing at 3,000 feet for most of the flight we passed to the south of Goodwood and then tracked towards Burgess Hill with Brighton clearly visible from our right hand window, we then descended to 2,300 feet to avoid controlled airspace. We then proceeded towards Crowborough and then over Bewl Water where I requested a frequency change to Headcorn Radio.

While overhead Bewl Water I made contact with Headcorn to get airfield information for our join to the circuit. I was informed that the runway direction had changed from when I departed earlier that day and that runway 10 was now in use with a left hand circuit.

I contemplated a straight in approach for runway 10 but being unsure of any traffic in the circuit and a bit of height still to lose to get to circuit height as well as overhead joins being prohibited, I opted for a crosswind join.

Just before I joined the circuit, I noticed the clouds above were getting darker and some spots of rain. I joined crosswind and in fact the circuit was pretty quiet. I completed a standard circuit and landed on runway 10 just as the rain started to get heavier.

I parked the aircraft up, shut the engine down and proceeded to the club house to complete the paperwork. While I was logging all of the flight details, my parents sat on the benches outside watching some of the aircraft that were practicing aerobatics.

So that was the end of an epic flight and a brilliant day out on the Isle of Wight.

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Note: I am not an instructor and these videos are for aviation enthusiasts to enjoy for entertainment purposes only. Please always consult a qualified instructor for advice.


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MUSIC:
Artist: Nicolai Heidlas
Title: Hand In Hand

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