Sir Alan Cobham and Africa

[bhk]

Royce....
The book has arrived (Sat morning) and although tatty it is perfectly readable and there is nothing missing.

So I'll fine-tune the route that I've already created by browsing through the book looking for appropriate references and then complete and upload the Flight.

Hopefully this weekend (he says, probably being overly optimistic!)

Bruce

[cptroyce]

Bruce- My copy arrived today as well (Fri)..looking forward to flying the route ;>)

Regards,
Royce

[bhk]

Royce,
You'll love the story.

I've only gleaned the first few chapters (up to Malta) for route details and have already used two A4 notepad pages!
Lots of information that I can use to enhance the Flight and make it that more immersive for anyone interested in doing it.
What an adventure these folk had......straight our of "Boys Own Annual"! (Or Michael Palin's "Ripping Yarns"! ;D )

In order to do this journey justice I'm going to take longer than anticipated this morning.

Regards,
Bruce

[bhk]

Okay.......change of tack.

There are many reasons not to create a conventional flight plan and route map, not the least of which is the fact that every stopping point mentioned in Cobham's story has no equal in Flightsim and that disallows the allocation of a standard Fsim waypoint (airfield, NDB or VOR).

In addition, the entire route was flown without any artificial nav-aids and the crew plotted the course between locations using compass and drift-allowance, or followed rivers, roads, coastlines and other significant geographical or man-made features.

Therefore what I have decided to do is to provide the end-user with a document listing pertinent information that will allow them to follow the route taken by Cobham.

For example.....
==============================
17-November-1927
Weather overcast with sunny breaks.
Depart the Short Bros. works, Rochester (River Medway) at 1:45 PM bound for Fairey Aviation, River Hamble.

After leaving Rochester, fly in a north-westerly direction to pick up the River Thames.
Follow the Thames at approx. 500 feet, passing the Houses of Parliament at 2:00 PM (Big Ben actually read 30 seconds past the hour as they passed it) and continue following the river to Reading.
Turn south towards Southampton Water and Hamble, on a course of 211 (approx) degrees.

Due to inclement weather, Cobham alighted on Southampton Water adjacent the mouth of the Hamble and was towed into the Fairey Aviation slipway area. If the weather had been less severe he would have landed on the river itself and taxied to the factory.

Spend two days in Hamble due to bad weather.
===================================

..........and so on...........

This will provide a very accurate guide for the re-enactment and one which could be quite enthralling if my experience so far is anything to go by.
Navigating just by eyesight and compass rose and not using the FSim map or beacons is a very interesting and rewarding thing to do, providing immense satisfaction when you see the next visual prompt appear.

This will take longer to create the package but will be worth it in the long run.

Bruce

[cptroyce]

Bruce- Sounds like a terrific plan..especially for those of us that enjoy the immersive/historical factor!

>> the entire route was flown without any artificial nav-aids and the crew plotted the course between locations using compass and drift-allowance, or followed rivers, roads, coastlines and other significant geographical or man-made features.<<

I fly like this almost all the time anyway (adds to my level of interest; very difficult to stay on course, but when I do, well that's the enjoyment) ..but an extensive trip like this one should truly be a challenge.

Can't wait for this one Bruce.

Regards,
Royce

[bhk]

Thanks for the encouragement, Royce.
Work is under way.

Cheers!
Bruce