MEET THE MEMBERS

A growing passion for aviation…

This month we talk to David Johnstone, retired agronomist, glider tug pilot, Shobdon Strut founder member, and Avid and RV builder…

Welcome David, can you tell us something of your career? I trained as an agronomist at Seale Hayne, in Devon, in the 1960s and joined ICI Agricultural Division in 1967, initially in Suffolk, then Buckinghamshire.

In 1976 I transferred to ICI Agrochemicals and moved to Lancashire, followed by a brief secondment to the USA. Then it was back to the UK where I was based in Herefordshire. Next there was a move to Denmark for three years and finally I ended up in the Head Office at Fernhurst, Surrey. I retired from Zeneca in 1994 (ICI having split into the Ag Chem business, with Pharmaceuticals becoming Zeneca, later AstraZeneca) and moved back to Herefordshire to run a smallholding and a B&B / holiday cottage business with my wife. We did this for 10 years before finally retiring to Powys.

What kindled your interest in aviation?

As a small boy growing up in the 1950s, I lived in Farnham Common, Bucks. We were right under the flight path for the Coronation fly past, and it was Above A very serious looking David flying his RV-9A. fascinating to see and hear all those aircraft flying over, and I used to go to the Farnborough Air Show in September as a birthday treat.

In what, where and when was your first flight?

My very first flight was in a Dragon Rapide from Heathrow in around 1951. They were doing joy rides round the airfield for about five shillings (25p) and I was furious as I had to sit at the back. However, it ignited the spark. I have tried to find out which aircraft it was, and G-AGJG fits the bill.

Where did you do your flight training?

I began my flight training in Bakersfield, California. I flew from London to New York on a 707-charter organised by BUNAC (British Universities North America Club) then, using a $99 Greyhound Bus pass valid for 99 days, set off to get to San Francisco, a three-day journey.

I was in California as an exchange student with Chevron Chemicals, who were ICI’s agents in the USA, and I was due to start work for ICI on my return to the UK in October. I only managed three or four lessons as I recall, all in a C150.

On return to the UK, I started work, got married and had a family, so flying was out of the question, I couldn’t afford it and didn’t have the time. I managed to cadge a few flights whenever I could, a farmer’s Auster in Suffolk, a racehorse trainer’s helicopter in Newmarket and another farmer in a PA28 from Booker.

I moved to Lancashire in the drought year of 1976 and met someone who flew with the WLAC (West Lancs Aero Club) from Woodvale. He boasted that they were the cheapest club in the UK at £12 an hour. I did the sums and thought I could just afford to fly for an hour a month. WLAC were not impressed and told me to stop wasting their time, as they said it was impossible to learn to fly like that. That was just the encouragement I needed to prove them wrong. I began my training on the 21 July 1976 in C150 G-BAXU and went solo on 20 June 1977. I took my GFT at Blackpool on 27 October 1978, again in a c150, G-BBCF.

How long had you spent in the US?

My version of a ‘gap year’ in America was actually only for three months, but I used my Greyhound bus pass to move on from San Francisco via Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Indianapolis, St Louis, Kansas City, Denver, Salt Lake City, Reno and Sacramento. The return trip took in Los Angeles, Las Vegas, The Grand Canyon, Albuquerque, El Paso, Dallas, New Orleans, Atlanta, Washington, then into Canada to Toronto, then Montreal for Expo ’67, and finally New York. I had a ride in a hovercraft, then still a relatively new phenomenon, at Expo ’67.

How did you hear about the PFA/LAA?

I heard about the PFA from an ICI colleague who was also a pilot. We went to the Rally at Wroughton in 1992 and saw the Europa fly. I think that event opened my eyes to the possibility of building an aircraft.

How long have you been a member?

I tried out the Kitfox G-PPPP from Blackbushe, then an Avid G-BULY, from Cambridge in May 1993. I placed my order for my Avid Hauler with Martin Ott that same year and the kit arrived in early 1994, so I guess my membership started around then. Top RV9-A G-EGBS was initially powered by the 120hp WAM diesel but has been re-engined with a 150hp 0-320 Lycoming.

Above David built his Avid Hauler, G-BVLW, when he retired from ICI, and flew it for 12 years. How did you get involved in the Shobdon Strut?

I had been flying from Shobdon for about seven years when the airfield owner, David Corbett, suggested that we should form a Shobdon Strut. When David suggested something that was code for ‘do it’, so the Strut was formed in 2002 with Robin James as the Chairman and me as the coordinator. Initially the membership was quite small but over the years it grew to around 40, but with a mailing list of around 100. We organised speakers for around 10 evenings a year, all in the Herefordshire Aero Club clubhouse at Shobdon. The meetings are very informal affairs with a cabaret/café style format. This has led to some very lively debates over the years, with everyone feeling they had had a great time and had got to know the speakers very well. I guess the top of the speaker’s list would have to be Eric ‘Winkle’ Brown, closely followed by Derrek Pigott and John Farley, Ian Whittle, Manuel Querioz, Don Cameron, Dennis Kenyon, Ivan Shaw and Prof Mike Bagshaw. The list goes on to over 125 speakers. We also carried out many Young Eagles flights, and Nav-Ex flights for the local ATC as well as hosting PFA fly-ins, which were very popular. However, with the advance of compliance rules and regulations, all these events have now ceased, which is a pity.

I retired from the role of Strut coordinator in 2018 and

was very surprised to be awarded the RAeC Certificate of Merit for that year. Thank you LAA.

How many hours and types do you have in your logbook?

I hadn’t, until recently, looked at how many aircraft I have flown in my 1,936 hours in the air, but trawling through the pile of logbooks, I have surprised myself. The current total stands at 31 different marks – four Cessna, 11 Piper, three Robin, Thruster, Citabria, Scout, Avid, AA5B, Rallye 180 Tug, Katana, Airtourer, RV9A, Eurofox and Grob G109B. I have recently stopped tugging after 18 years and some 1,806 launches and 430 hours.

Do you have a favourite and ‘not so keen’

type?

My favourite has to be the RV-9A G-EGBS, which I co-built in 2004-8. It was a quick build with a WAM120 diesel, it took us four years because we only worked on Mondays. Being in the forefront with the WAM engine, we quickly became the highest hours in the fleet and the first to reach 1,000 TBO. We had to put up with a lot of ribbing when we were taking off on full power and belching black smoke, several controllers called us on the radio to alert us to the imminent engine failure they were sure was about to happen. The engine was experimental and, as such, we had to send it back to Wilksch seven times, so became quite expert at taking it out, the record being one hour. Luckily Wilksch were based at Staverton, so it was a short drive to get it to them. They were magnificent in their support over the years. Eventually we had to bite the bullet and fit a Lycoming 0-320. It has made a huge difference to the performance of the aircraft both in speed and operating cost. The WAM burnt 15 L/hr at £0.80 a L=£12 compared with the 0-320 burning 24 L/hr at £1.47=£35.28 I’ve enjoyed all the different types I’ve flown, just some more than others.

What aircraft do/have you owned?

My current aircraft is the RV-9A, owned by the Shobdon RV-9A Group of which I’m the Trustee. Prior to that I owned and built G-BVLW, an Avid Hauler with a Hirth F30. I built it as my retirement project in 1994 and flew it until the end of 2006. It was a great little aircraft to fly and the perfect platform for aerial photography. I think I had three opportunities to fly it as a glider, but all ended well. I flew 575 hours in all. It was last heard of still going strong in Finland. I have also helped build a Eurofox, G-CIFO, for the Hereford Gliding club, which was a joy to do – an Avid brought up to date and with the amazing Rotax 912 ULS. How such a light aircraft could manage to tow a heavy two-seater glider remains a mystery, but it does. Above David’s most memorable flight was a trip to Lisbon on Concorde for an ICI promotion. Passengers were presented with a certificate memento.

What’s your best aviation moment?

Three moments really. The first was in Concorde G-BOAB as a passenger on its inaugural flight into Lisbon. ICI chartered Concorde to take some VIP customers to Lisbon for lunch and a product launch. A few members of staff were able to go on the trip and I was lucky enough to be on the flight out. Lisbon cleared Concorde Flight BA 9058 for a fly through before landing. Apparently, it brought the traffic to a halt in Lisbon. My second-best flight was in April 2017 when a friend, Tony Maitland, asked me if I would like to accompany him on a ferry flight from Indianapolis to Sweden in a Rockwell Turbo Commander N73EF. We took off from Eagle Creek Airpark just north of Indianapolis and flew to Goose Bay in Newfoundland – 1,356nm in 4 hours 23 minutes, and average speed 309kt. Next day we departed for Narsarsuaq, a flight of 682nm, average speed 262kt and 2 hours 36 minutes.

We were delayed by an American surveillance aircraft refuelling and eventually got away after nearly two hours for the third leg to Reykjavik; 681nm, 2 hours 42 mins, and average speed 253kt. The final leg to Torsby in Sweden was 1,005nm, 3 hours 50 mins, and average speed 261kt. We landed after midnight local time after flying 2,368nm in 8 hours 18 mins. It was an amazing flight over Greenland with the ice cap stretching out onto the horizon. Tony has done many ferry flights in the Turbo Commander and made the whole trip look easy, while his skill and experience made me very confident that it would go well. The third flight was when I was asked to ‘bomb’ the Bishop of Worcester with 4,000 poppies. It was the unveiling of a New War memorial at Pensax on 9 June 2014. The RAF had been asked if it could do it but declined. The request went out to Shobdon and I was volunteered for the task. A CAA Notam was applied for and I was cleared down to 300ft and given the OK to drop the poppies. The HGC Eurofox was the perfect aircraft for the job as it can be flown with the doors open. I recruited a member of the gliding club as my bombardier and we set off with SkyDemon pointing the way. As we approached the DZ SkyDemon warned us that we were about to bust a Notamed site – for once I could ignore it as it was for us. Eyewitnesses on the ground confirmed a direct hit on the target. Beginner’s luck I would say.

Do you have any aviation heroes?

My uncle, John Rowden, a Pilot Officer in the RAF, flew Spitfires through the Battle of Britain but lost his life over France on 9 April 1941. I would like to visit his grave this year on the 80th anniversary, if the Covid-19 allows.

Have you had any I learned about flying

moments?

Hampshire, where I encountered severe wind shear and had a very heavy landing. The left undercarriage leg folded, resulting in a ground loop into a standing crop of wheat. There was no other damage to the aircraft, so with a replacement leg from Avid and a bit of welding in the fuselage, I was back in the air. Lesson learned; apply full power the moment the approach looks to be going wrong. The second incident involved an Avid on floats in America. I went to Oshkosh with two friends in 2005 and ended up at the floatplane centre on Lake Winnebago. We blagged a ride on an Avid on floats, one of my friends went first, then it was my turn. I’m very familiar with the Avid so I was concerned when the take-off run went on for ages and the vibrations were getting worse. So bad in fact that I got hold of various hand holds to brace myself.

Suddenly there was a lurch and we dived underwater and came to a very abrupt stop upside down and underwater. I remember reaching for the seat belt release and pushing out through the hole where the windshield had been. Being underwater made this quite easy as you are weightless. The pilot also popped out on his side, but in his haste to exit had failed to turn the master switch off and the fuel pump was pumping away, I suggested he dive down and turn it off before we were covered in petrol, which he did.

Neither of us were injured, however, I lost my glasses which was a nuisance. It turned out that the float on my Above Flying the Hereford Gliding Club’s Eurofox tug, which David also had a hand in building. He was one of their tug pilots for 18 years. side had hit an object and delaminated, filling with water and dragging us under. I’ve had a bit of a thing against floatplanes ever since, but I did have a flight in Sydney Harbour in one of their Otters. Much better all round, and I managed to get into the P2 seat.

Do you have an aircraft or vehicles wish list?

I still have a dream to fly in a Spitfire. The nearest I got to this was at Goodwood, 30 years ago, but back then it was £1,000 for 20 minutes and I said ‘I regretted I didn’t have the time’. If only…

Do you have other non-aviation hobbies?

I enjoy photography but I am not that good, although now that iPhones come equipped with excellent cameras I’m getting better.

And I share an interest in classical music with my wife. We support the Presteigne Festival, which has become very popular with modern composers. I’ve even taken the President, Lord Berkeley of Knighton, flying when he was looking for inspiration for a new piece he was commissioned to write. Cloud chasing seemed to do the trick.

Any advice for fellow pilots?

Fly Permit to Fly aircraft, they are much better value than the certified variety in my opinion. Fly safe, and don’t be afraid to say you’re not flying. I regard being called ‘a coward’ as a badge of honour. ■

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Two one-third shares in Auster J5F G-AMZT at £7,000 each. Gipsy Major 1 engine, electric starter, dual brakes. Trig TY91 radio, Trig TT22 Mode S transponder. Airframe hours 5412, engine hours 1885 running on condition. Permit to January 2021. Hangered St Athan. Contact Colin at colin_butters@btinternet.com or 07546 221176.

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