LEARning this bird (very picture heavy)
Posted: Thu May 28, 2015 7:03 amAlong with the 'Electrifying' Blade I also got this Lear 24b (also by Lionheart Creations) and what's a better way to learn an aircraft then pretending to know everything about it 
Today I was called to fly an important businessman and his wife from Roturua to Wellington Airport, very early in the morning.
It was only 4:15AM when I completed the walkaround and was standing next to the aircraft, waiting for the big boss to arrive
I got a phonecall from airport security that they passed through the gate, so I went into the cockpit for the the preflight checks
I was just done with the pre-flight when Mr. and Mrs. businessman took their seat in the small, but cozy cabin.
Time to start the old girl up, not much is needed for a cold & dark startup, except that you do it quick since the batteries are old and drain in minutes. So a flashlight is needed, because the panel lights won't last long on the batteries.
Turn on batteries - Jet pumps on - hold down start switch - after just a few seconds the old girl spins to life with a high pitched screech. No better way to get yourself woken up!
After starting engine #1 we do the after starting checklists. To safe fuel we'll taxi on one engine and start the other one when we finished backtracking over the runway.
Between the yawns of the controller we get our departure clearance. He's going back to bed probably, lucky bastard...
As you can see, just one engine is running. Although you still have to be very easy on the throttles, because she is very, very overpowered (you can hit VNE on just one engine
)
We finished backtracking so engine #2 has been started up and the flaps have been set to T/O.
Just a few seconds after we set full throttle, we hit our rotationspeed of 120kts
The sun is rising, and so are we. Liftoff!
Retracting the gear and waving goodbye to the sleepy controller
This thing climbs like a rocket! Less than a minute ago we started our takeoff and now we are already turning to the south!
Like I said: this thing is a rocket, we hit 10.000ft in 1.5 minute later!
I don't know why, but I love this big puffy clouds! And being a pilot I'm enjoying it everytime I can blast through one.
Everything goes as it should, so we engage the autopilot and reach for a quick, but very welcome breakfast!
We're still eating breakfast when we pass Lake Taupo, just more evidence on how fast this little jet is!
The sun is getting pretty bright, so the sunglasses (Ray Ban Aviators of course
)come out of the flightbags
20 minutes later we are closing in on Wellington, so it's time to loose some altitude and speed. The Learjet loses it's speed just as fast as it gains it!
Decending over Te Horo beach, with Kapiti Island in the top of the picture
The passenger view over Tararua Forest Park is stunning!
Getting really close to Wellington now, as we see it in the distance
Captured the localizer for runway 36. Since we are buzzed on coffee anyway we'll do a manual ILS approach like in flightschool
Hmm it's more confusing than I thought, since the PAPI lights don't correspond with the glideslope indicator on the HSI all the time. A well, let's eyeball the approach like a peasant
Coming down nice and easy!
After a smooth landing and a short taxi to the parking, we are ready to disembark. Just in time, because Mr. Businessman has a bladder issue...
Conclusion: a lovely bird to fly, it's systems are nicely modeled and it just looks soooo good! It's insanely fast and very agile, I definitely recommend this great addon and I have high hopes for the next project from Lionheart Creations: The Fokker F100
Today I was called to fly an important businessman and his wife from Roturua to Wellington Airport, very early in the morning.
It was only 4:15AM when I completed the walkaround and was standing next to the aircraft, waiting for the big boss to arrive
I got a phonecall from airport security that they passed through the gate, so I went into the cockpit for the the preflight checks
I was just done with the pre-flight when Mr. and Mrs. businessman took their seat in the small, but cozy cabin.
Time to start the old girl up, not much is needed for a cold & dark startup, except that you do it quick since the batteries are old and drain in minutes. So a flashlight is needed, because the panel lights won't last long on the batteries.
Turn on batteries - Jet pumps on - hold down start switch - after just a few seconds the old girl spins to life with a high pitched screech. No better way to get yourself woken up!
After starting engine #1 we do the after starting checklists. To safe fuel we'll taxi on one engine and start the other one when we finished backtracking over the runway.
Between the yawns of the controller we get our departure clearance. He's going back to bed probably, lucky bastard...
As you can see, just one engine is running. Although you still have to be very easy on the throttles, because she is very, very overpowered (you can hit VNE on just one engine
)We finished backtracking so engine #2 has been started up and the flaps have been set to T/O.
Just a few seconds after we set full throttle, we hit our rotationspeed of 120kts
The sun is rising, and so are we. Liftoff!
Retracting the gear and waving goodbye to the sleepy controller
This thing climbs like a rocket! Less than a minute ago we started our takeoff and now we are already turning to the south!
Like I said: this thing is a rocket, we hit 10.000ft in 1.5 minute later!
I don't know why, but I love this big puffy clouds! And being a pilot I'm enjoying it everytime I can blast through one.
Everything goes as it should, so we engage the autopilot and reach for a quick, but very welcome breakfast!
We're still eating breakfast when we pass Lake Taupo, just more evidence on how fast this little jet is!
The sun is getting pretty bright, so the sunglasses (Ray Ban Aviators of course
)come out of the flightbags20 minutes later we are closing in on Wellington, so it's time to loose some altitude and speed. The Learjet loses it's speed just as fast as it gains it!
Decending over Te Horo beach, with Kapiti Island in the top of the picture
The passenger view over Tararua Forest Park is stunning!
Getting really close to Wellington now, as we see it in the distance
Captured the localizer for runway 36. Since we are buzzed on coffee anyway we'll do a manual ILS approach like in flightschool
Hmm it's more confusing than I thought, since the PAPI lights don't correspond with the glideslope indicator on the HSI all the time. A well, let's eyeball the approach like a peasant
Coming down nice and easy!
After a smooth landing and a short taxi to the parking, we are ready to disembark. Just in time, because Mr. Businessman has a bladder issue...
Conclusion: a lovely bird to fly, it's systems are nicely modeled and it just looks soooo good! It's insanely fast and very agile, I definitely recommend this great addon and I have high hopes for the next project from Lionheart Creations: The Fokker F100
Excellent post , great trip thanks .