Crossing the Atlantic

Flying to Europe in a Twin Comanche

How many phone calls, how many people you talk to? Probably not enough. I have been actively planing this journey for a year, thinking about it for a lifetime. Of the thousands who have had the guts to undertake it with half the equipment and aircraft, I have nothing to offer, no sponsor, no professional camera team to document all this but a narrative of a simple trip across to Switzerland, a second home. 

I have the unshakeable support from my spouse for the project and a new employer who has agreed to all this. They are hard to come by.

The aircraft (PA-30) is fully ready, mechanically impeccable. “My” mechanics at Aviation R.Goulet have afforded me and this journey quite the support that only comes from the best of their kind.

Yes, I could delay a bit more the departure or even wait for next year. There will always be an excuse or something else to do. I finally realized that I had no choice, I had to go. My close friend arrived from Switzerland on a one way airline ticket, well he bought a return ticket. The authentic one way was nearly twice the price, really. Bureaucrats are idiots, sometimes airlines like to emulate them.

Anyway, with my friend in town, I suddenly realized, there was no turning back. Yep, I have critical points calculated but for different reasons.

So we will depart CZBM (Bromont) Monday morning and make our way to Switzerland. A few tech stops are planned enroute. With a not too leisurely pace of 4 days to get the landing gear on LSGS (Sion) pavement.

Flying the Pound for many years aboard fabulous jets with all the technical support you can imagine, one finally understands what kind of work is required to complete such a flight: dispatch, load planing, maintenance, insurance, survival gear, customs relations, catering, layover hotels. I will get a good rest in cruise since there will be lots of it!

Stay tuned, as I will send pictures that already exist all over the Net! If this thing is going to be anything like the Easter flight, practice run to Sedona last April, the result should prove interesting.