A learning curve should be fun!

The newest member of the LAA Pilot Coaching Scheme, and the only Coach in Northern Ireland, Neil Wilson talks to Mark Chambers

How and when did you get started in aviation?

Flying has managed to make its way in three generations in my family now, starting with my late great uncle, David Sturgeon, who owned and flew a Miles Messenger in the 1950s, before emigrating to the States where he owned a V-tail Bonanza to commute down the Florida Keys. My dad, Colin, who learned to fly when I was still at primary school, and I caught the same bug. The mid-life crisis came early and I was only too happy to see he’d bought an aeroplane. Growing up as a bit of a ‘hangar rat’ around Kilkeel, Co Down, was all part of my early life, especially at Aughrim which was full of LAA types, my dad’s Luscombe, a couple of Jodels and a Cub.

Above Happiest when helping others learn - that’s Mark!

Saturdays were often spent helping cut grass, painting runway markers or picking stones off runways, often in return for invaluable flying lessons from airfield owner Archie Alderdice.

Tell us about your PPL training

My first flight in a light aircraft was the back of a 172, at the Ulster Flying Club (UFC), which was a gift to my dad as a trial lesson – I often joke this was the most expensive gift my mum ever bought as he wanted to learn to fly, and I DEFINITELY wanted to learn! I also recall my first flight with my dad when he got his PPL, it was a clear and calm Christmas Eve, perfect!

Despite our best petitions to the CAA to count my Luscombe time in those early years, I had to go and receive PPL training in Newtownards on UFC’s 172 fleet, which was a 7hr round trip on buses for me at 16 years old, often just to get an hour of flying! But that all became worth it when in September 2014 I became a PPL holder thanks to the Ulster Flying Club – and a grilling from examiner Trevor Kellett. I was in my final year in High School, and the school bus went past the airfield road, so occasionally I’d hop off and go flying instead! But when I got a car it was even better, I’d occasionally ditch school at lunchtime, obviously to fly over my peers on their lunch break, to be greeted afterwards by a less than impressed headmaster!

With my PPL in hand it was straight into the Luscombe with Archie Alderdice, for tailwheel differences training. For those who don’t know Archie, he is a bit of a local legend in GA in Northern Ireland, founding Aughrim some 50 years ago, and a loyal attendee of the PFA/LAA Rallys in Cranfield and Sywell. Aughrim isn’t the easiest of airfields for a fresh PPL holder, but steady guidance and good mentoring has made it home for me.

You trained for your commercial licence in New Zealand. What was that like?

Post-PPL, my ambitions didn’t wane, and I went to CTC Aviation to do my commercial training, with the vast majority, in Hamilton, New Zealand. I lived there for 17 months doing ATPL groundschool and doing my CPL, Multi Engine and Instrument Training. Following New Zealand’s coastlines by air for hours on end is very therapeutic, flying an approach into Windy Wellington is less so! But the breathtaking views of circling around Mt Taranaki at 10,000ft were hard to beat! New Zealand was a really wonderful place to live and my course mates and I became the best of friends during that time. We ended up touring around in campervans and staying in some of the most beautiful locations on the South Island, too. In Bournemouth I finished my instrument rating. We lived in a big house beside the beach in the summer, we had the best parties, and it was a great last hurrah to end our training. Towards the end of my training I was fortunate enough to be offered an interview with easyJet. Thankfully this went well and I was offered a job flying the Airbus in Belfast – as close to home as I could get!

Top Training for ATPL with CTC in New Zealand.

Above Mark, on completion of his PPL at Ulster Flying Club.

Below Current job, flying for easyJet.

How long have you been an LAA member?

I have been an LAA member since the very start of my Luscombe flying, as this allowed me to take advantage of licence renewal training in the Pilot Coaching Scheme (PCS) with Archie. Since becoming a flying instructor, I had always wanted to get involved with the LAA PCS. I never thought the opportunity would come around quite so soon, but then Archie retired and I applied to become a coach. The thing I’m looking forward to most is continuing the work that Archie has done for many years in Northern Ireland, and hopefully our LAA friends on the mainland will come over to visit us to join in the fun too!

Number of types and hours flown?

I’ve flown about 30 types and have 1,700hr total as it stands. About 650 of those have been in single-engine light aircraft.

It still seems like a drop in the ocean, but I have age on my side, and hopefully a lifetime of flying still ahead of me!

Any favourite aircraft so far?

I’m definitely biased, but for me it has to be the Luscombe. I think it’s certainly one of the best looking LAA types, and it flies so well. It’s a real workhorse, is comfortable in a wide range of weather conditions, can lift a good load, and is also very sporty in and out of tight strips. But ‘low and slow’ types in general are where I’m happiest. Cubs, Champs, Taylorcraft, Jodels and Luscombes, they all have their little eccentricities, but all are typically delightful to fly! I love a bit of 1940s ergonomics.

Types I like least are probably the new modern LSA stuff. While I totally get the appeal, as they’re fast and cheap to run, and usually fly beautifully, for me they don’t have the soul that old aeroplanes have.

What and where have you flown for ‘work’ so far?

I’ve only flown the A319 and A320. Airbus has a fantastic design that’s the same type rating for both. I would say the A319 is a bit sportier since it’s shorter and it’s definitely better on a gusty day. The new A320s with the ‘sharklet’ wingtips are very slippery and can be a bit harder to get slowed down. The NEO has plenty of power but is very efficient, so much kinder on the environment.

As a place to operate from, I reckon Belfast is one of the best kept secrets! We’ve a small base of seven aircraft and all the crew know each other and get on really well. Going to work always makes for a good day out. For me I prefer the short sectors. As I write this, I’m between a day’s flights to Glasgow and Edinburgh, which is my ideal day out. Short hops across the Irish sea are very busy as some days we might only have a five minute cruise! Of course, the odd day somewhere exotic to sit in the sun for 15 minutes is hard to beat too!

Do you own an aircraft?

Family aeroplanes have always been Luscombes, and dad and I have no plans to break from that tradition! Slower than a speeding bullet, less powerful than a locomotive… but faster than a Cub!

What’s been your most memorable moment in aviation?

A massive highlight for me was the summer of 2020, after a rather miserable few months in lockdown we were let loose for a Luscombe get together at Draycott Farm and then Sywell that Nige Barratt organised. My dad and I flew from Aughrim to Barton, where we linked up with Tom Carter (G-AJKB), and flew together to Draycott for lunch. The highlight came being a part of a gaggle of Luscombes flying together across the English countryside, I think six aircraft in total. Of course a few beers and Luscombe stories were shared that night too!

You are an instructor at the UFC and now at 25 you are the newest Coach in the LAA Pilot Coaching Scheme. What plans have you got?

Well, this is where it all comes full circle. I got my PPL at UFC back in 2014 and now I’m part of the team of instructors there. Also my examiner Trevor, from Navan Airfield, has me instructing there too. I feel very lucky to instruct and I’ve found it so rewarding seeing students go solo and achieve their goal of earning their PPL. Now, with this new role as an LAA PCS Coach, I’m very excited to get started. I can offer differences training on tailwheel, retractable gear, constant-speed/variable-pitch propellers, EFIS and single power level control. But that’s not all, being based at Aughrim and using many of the other local strips over the years I’m very keen to help members who may want some coaching with strip flying, especially to help build confidence in their skills and aircraft capabilities! Coaching doesn’t just stop after differences training or a biennial review, it’s always an opportunity to explore your abilities and aircraft, even if it’s just to try a new airfield or get help with polishing up your R/T skills, I’m very willing and available to assist.

What can pilots do in their day-to-day flying to stay ‘polished’?

Having discipline goes a long way. Not accepting sloppy flying, but trying actively to fly the aircraft as best you can. Enthusiasm and a bit of persistence for sure to be the best you can be. You’ve got to be honest in this game too though, if something isn’t up to scratch and you know it, you’re doing yourself a disservice if you don’t try and address it. But as far as Coaching is concerned, a good brief and debrief of what’s going well and what needs work, and coming up with a plan on how to achieve that is very important. For me as an instructor, I find pilots learn best when you’re having fun! It’s easy to forget, but fun is all part of good airmanship.

Do you have any aviation heroes?

At 16 I went to the Red Bull Air Race in Budapest and watched Paul Bonhomme fly – it blew my mind, so he’s up there as far as heroes are concerned. Another would be writer Ernest Gann. I recently read Fate Is The Hunter and was on the edge of my seat as he described flying across the North Atlantic using a DC-3 and celestial navigation – no SkyDemon back then! Both these pilots perfected their skills and ultimately were the best at their jobs, and that inspires me to try and be like that too.

Any lessons learned in aviation?

As a fresh PPL holder, life was going pretty sweet until I was climbing out from Newtownards in the Luscombe when an exhaust valve stuck open. Anyone who’s experienced this knows how unpleasant it is, effectively a partial engine failure at low level – I think I was at 300ft. I think I had 60hr or so at the time, and my training kicked in.

My first concern was to maintain airspeed, then work out what to do from there. The aircraft settled and flew level at about 80kt, which was actually a comfortable place to be. I turned on a tight low level downwind and returned to land on the same runway I departed. It all happened very quickly but it reinforces the age old adage, ‘Aviate, Navigate and Communicate’, in that order!

Since then, there’s been a few encounters with poor weather, but I’ll save those for another time!

Any future flying dreams?

Every boy wants to fly a Spitfire, unfortunately I think that’s a bit out of my budget, but I’ve always wanted to have a go at flying a Harvard. I think I might be able to stretch to that someday – I hope!

Right If you weren’t sure, Mark is happiest when flying something vintage or classic!

Anything with a big noisy round engine would be ideal. Another dream would be to fly in a DC-3/4/6, more noisy round engines, there’s a theme here perhaps!

I haven’t done anything about it yet either, but I’ve always wanted to build a Van’s RV, although I’m not sure where I would find the time! Maybe someday…

Do you have other non-aviation hobbies or interests?

If like me you’re a bit of an aviation addict you need to find things to do on those non-flying days. I dabble a bit in film photography with a few old cameras I have.

In lockdown I got a wee Romanian rescue dog, which I named Connie, after my second favourite passenger aircraft, the Lockheed Constellation, why not the first? It would be a bit silly to name a dog, DC-3!

Any words of wisdom to share with other pilots?

For me I’ve been very lucky growing up in a club surrounded by lots of experienced pilots. It’s from their experiences that I’ve been able to learn loads. My advice is to get involved and listen to people who have experience to share.

Don’t shy away from the push to learn more. Perhaps go and do a couple of courses, for example, in instrument flying, aerobatics, night flying or maybe learn tailwheel.

All of these will help your skill level and your confidence. Most of all though, never be afraid to ask for help! ■