I took a flight in a Bi-Plane that my 83-year-old father helped to restore and modify.
This Boeing Stearman is no ordinary aeroplane, it has a much larger engine than normal and has 4 ailerons making it a highly manoeuvrable aerobatic machine.
I took a flight in a Bi-Plane that my 83-year-old father helped to restore and modify.
This Boeing Stearman is no ordinary aeroplane, it has a much larger engine than normal and has 4 ailerons making it a highly manoeuvrable aerobatic machine.
On the tarmac, my pilot Mick Poole runs through all of the pre-flight checks, the general condition of the aeroplane, quality of the fuel, checks the maintenance record and makes entries in the flight logbook.
I step on board the lower wing and scramble into the front cockpit and put on my harness, making sure that it was really tight as I suspected we were in for a bit of a thrill.
My Brother Doug turns the prop a few times, steps back and Mick fires up the engine which quickly bursts into life, initially sputtering and then gaining a quick even note as he pulls on the throttle.
Mick operates the ailerons and rudder a couple of times to confirm everything is working correctly. He pulls the power on and we sit there shaking for a few minutes until he is happy, and then in discussion with the tower he releases the park brake, we begin to move forward, an abrupt squeeze on the brakes confirms that they should work when we need them taxiing down the runway and again upon landing.
We’re off and work our way alongside the runway until we get to the end, and then we do a U-turn so that we are facing into the wind for the take-off. Mick pulls on the throttle and increases the revs until the engine is fast and steady.
A few more checks with the Tower and we are off down the runway. The rear wheel lifts off the ground almost instantly and before you know it, we are in the air. The powerful engine has us lifting almost as much vertically as it is going forward.
We gain a lot of height and do a few circuits over the airfield. Mick calls to me over the intercom and checks my interest in doing a few aerobatics. Tentatively, I say why not!
He describes to me that we will first do a barrel roll, then a four-point hesitation roll, and then finish off with a big loop. It sounds exciting, actually I am in fear for my life at this stage, but I am reassured by Mick’s confidence (and experience).
We do the first barrel roll, I am hanging on to the sides of the cockpit like you wouldn’t believe. Then we quickly move into the hesitation roll, a smart four-point roll. The Stearman is quick and sharp, and Mick is gentle and precise on the stick, God knows how, because I am totally unable to let go of the tubular frame inside the cockpit.
Mick’s voice comes across the intercom once again, he signals that we are going to do the loop and that we will be going into a steep dive to gain airspeed.
The nose dips and we plunge straight down. All I can feel is this incredible rush of adrenalin and the earth coming towards me at breakneck speed. Then Mick pulls back on the stick, and you really get to experience the power of this aeroplane and the gravitational pull, three times your body weight and it felt like the floor was coming to hit me in the head. Next thing I now, we are vertical, and I am looking into space and then, over the top we go, and you feel the aeroplane once again racing toward the earth.
Mick says we will go back to the aerodrome, to be honest there was some level of relief in that statement although I was regretful that we were near the end of the flight.
Just then, Mick sees a familiar aeroplane flashing past us the opposite way and below us, so he makes radio contact with them. Next thing I know, Mick says let’s go get them, so around we go. Both pilots are in communication with each other and the other aeroplane slows up until its almost hovering in mid-air when we go wing to wing with them in a big circle. Mick says goodbye to the other pilot on the radio and we peel away back towards the aerodrome, Mick calls me over the intercom and cheekily says “now to remember how to land this thing”.
A couple of steep banks and we are lined up for our final approach. Mick backs off the airspeed and we descend back to earth, the ground comes up quick and he chooses to land on the grass beside the runway. We come in pretty fast and it is a perfect landing.
On this occasion, our mission was simply just to have a bit of fun and excitement.
Flying in the Stearman made me think about how important “planning” is to any mission critical activities. In any organisation, it is very important to have a current plan as to how you intend to achieve your goals and objectives, and to also anticipate what could go wrong, so that contingencies are considered, and if necessary, put in place.
Like Mick the pilot, businesses need to do the pre-flight checks, plan the flight path and route, ahead of time, think about the environment that they will be operating in, and ensure that the controls in place are going to be effective when you need them to be.
In doing so, it ensures that your business remains relevant, viable, and safe from any threats or vulnerabilities, and that all stakeholders get to appreciate the benefits from a well-run business.