The REALLY Big Trip

Having now retired I have more time to invest in my passion - flying my Vans RV-6, ZK-VRV, "Thunderbird 6".

New Zealand is a great place to fly and we are spoiled by the freedom we have, the differing terrain and scenery none of which is much more than a couple of hours of flying away.  However, I've also been privileged to be able to fly extensively in Australia and I'm fascinated by the vastness of that big dusty continent.

Since 2005, I’ve criss-crossed the Australian continent on 10 wonderful flying trips.  All were great but none lasted much longer than 3 weeks due to work commitments.  I’ve long dreamed of having the time to do a big trip in Australia – a REALLY big trip.  A trip that takes in some of the places I've visited and a trip that covers some new ground. Something like this ...

The time has now come and, after months of planning, on Monday 29 June I’ll leave Paraparaumu for Kerikeri to fly across the Tasman on Tuesday/Wednesday.  I’ll be on my own in my aircraft but good friends Andrew Schofield and John Kilby will be accompanying me in Andrew’s Cirrus SR22, ZK-LDY.  They’ve enthusiastically signed up for the big trip around Australia and it will be good to have their company.

Andrew is a skilled photographer and blogger and will also be keeping his blog up-to-date as we travel.  Keep an eye on NZ Cirrus Pilot \ Trans-Tasman and check out Andrew's other interesting blog posts while you're there.

My bag is packed, Thunderbird 6 has been inspected and checked thoroughly and the paperwork that must accompany a light aircraft flying from New Zealand to Australia is filed ready for use and presentation to the authorities.  I now just need a good nights sleep before leaving home tomorrow.