180 hrs, not bad at all. 90% OCAS local stuff. Memorable: 1) nice fly-out with my ULM-friends to Galicia this summer and with Antonio into the Pyrenees in autumn and 2) the LESU fly-in. For the fun of it, filed to arrive in the middle of the blocked-off period created because of a commercial OPS. So there was of course a major crisis when I approached while a single bizjet was departing. Shock & Horror! 
ATC asked me for an immediate climb to FL90 and I of course dutifully complied. But with a 100 HP normally aspirated Rotax that takes a while so I had to repeatedly respond to ATC that I was doing my best 
In 2021 I flew more than before. 399h 37m, 135 landings, 63 airports in 28 countries.
Longest trips were Atlantic crossings. Two to the USA and one to Brazil. The remaining flights were around Europe.
In 2022 I expect to fly less.
@loco did you write up your Brasil trip? What a great year of travel
2021 aspirations:
pass ATPL theory exams
get the CPL (just for fun of it – no commercial work intended)
fly at least 50 hours doing trips to nice and interesting places (inspired by shared experience on this great forum)
2021 reality:
passed 11 of 14 ATPL theory exams
CPL postponed to 2022
55 hours, almost all IFR on nice trips (Germany, Slovenia, Croatia, Italy, France)
2022 aspirations:
finish ATPL exams
get the CPL
transition to more capable tourer
lots of nice trips
I didn’t write about it. We flew from Cabo Verde to Fortaleza. It was quite normal. No oceanic clearance as in the North Atlantic, just follow the airway. We took a life raft and a PLB to feel better.
When I look back at the year 2021, flying was amazing; for other reasons, personal and globally it was a rather gloomy year. The ongoing Coronavirus Pandemic meant for the best part of 2021 restrictions played a part in what was possible in terms of completing the Instrument Rating and utilising the rating internationally. The first part of the year was lockdown, from Spring until mid-Summer I completed the training at Stapleford in some of the most convective weather I’ve ever flown in.
The later part of Summer into Autumn I took the aircraft on a little tour of the UK using my newfound freedom. With some IFR experience under my belt and being fresh, a few canceled plans made way for a short weekend in Germany. As we headed into the colder months of the year, the icing level dropped and so did the number of flights that I flew. Further restrictions across Europe meant some international trips had to be postponed till next year.
Due to Coronavirus and the impending lockdown of early 2021, not much flying if any took place in the first few months. Despite moving into the second year of living with the coronavirus pandemic, optimism was in the air as the vaccine was rolled out.
As we progressed through the warmer months of the year, the COVID restrictions that were in place on our lives were slowly retracted. On the 2nd March 2021, the UK Gov announced that flight training could take place from the 12th of April 2021 – however, there were restrictions in that you had to wear masks when sharing the cockpit, which in the damp and cold months is very difficult if you wear spectacles.
This meant when I started my Instrument Rating, I was in a fatigue mode, with my skill set severely hampered due to the lack of currency. For the best part of my training, there were no issues with COVID restrictions, however, instructor availability and airport closures due to the drop in traffic demand and ATC regulations regarding rest breaks meant this was proving extremely difficult.
By the Summer I was double-vaccinated which meant I could travel to Europe, however, there were many restrictions and hoops to jump through, and as the year progressed most countries in Europe went in and out of severe restrictions, thus preventing much if any international trips.
After much delay, I completed the Instrument Rating in Mid-Summer 2021. A huge bulk of the training, at a great cost, took place between April & July 2021, and this was beneficial as I passed the instrument rating test on the first attempt.
As a result, I joined an elite club in which there are probably more astronauts than there are PPL/IR holders in Europe. It literally was such a tough cookie to crack and the pressures are immense – I still don’t know how airline pilots do the IR course after very minimal hours on a single-engine aircraft and manage to somehow be successful at it.
You can read more on my journey to gaining the IR.
Every flight that I have flown since gaining the Instrument Rating has been IFR. It’s very much a task to keep current, but I’ve challenged myself to do so; although this has become harder in the colder months and in poor weather. The first IFR trip I did was to Newquay, this was followed by a day trip to Doncaster before taking the aircraft to Liverpool for the weekend which was in lieu of my canceled Amsterdam trip. I then flew the aircraft for a short hop to Kemble and then back a month later after a routine 1000 hour check.
After this, a trip to Ibiza was planned, however that was canceled due to reasons beyond my control. I elected to fly my first international trip to Dusseldorf instead. A few days later I flew a quick day trip with my former instructor to Gloucester and flew through a weak cold front on the way home, which provided a challenge for the landing into Stapleford.
Over a month later I flew with a fellow pilot on the group, who just revalidated his IR. We took it upon ourselves to do some flights together and share our experiences. This was timed well within the short daylight that we had that day, including the opening hours of ATS. A quick hop to Shoreham, a further flight to Gloucester then onto Oxford before a sunset flight back to Stapleford.
In early December I completed an IFR flight to Cambridge and a further flight later that day, to my surprise something I didn’t think was possible in winter, but it wasn’t with any ease. A planned trip to Kortrijk in Belgium for an avionics fix was canceled multiple times due to weather.
What should have been a year of 70 hours flown finishes with only 66 hours 30 minutes, which is a new personal record. This is almost double my previous record of 33 hours 25 minutes flown in 2011 when I got my PPL. The last time I flew 30 hours+ in a year was 2017 when I joined the G-ZANY group.
In those 66 hours 30 minutes, I completed 43 successful take-offs and landings, across 40 flights, and as a result of my Instrument Rating doubled my IFR hours in my logbook finishing the year with 315 hours 50 minutes flown.
With that ends, so does 2021. It’s hoped in 2022 I can keep the dream alive and gain some more experience flying across Europe and beyond using the Instrument Rating. Where the journey takes me after that, who knows? Maybe an MEP and a CPL in the future?
With pictures via here – https://www.theflyingvlog.uk/the-flying-annual-2021/
How was your 2021? What did you guys do?
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Unfortunately only 12 hours. Aspirations were 25+
I had a feeling that I didn’t fly much this year because I spent almost 5 months at Croatian seaside and a month in Mexico. However, when I looked in logbook it turned out that I managed to collect 140 flight hours. Trip to Canaries, trip to Spain, trip to Sicily, LESU fly-in and many local flights. On top of that I spent more than 200 hours under water – a bit more than 100 in the sea and a bit less than 100 hours in Mexican flooded caves. All in all very good year
At 62 hours a little less than usual, but I had to spend almost 4 months in Europe due to a family issue and I didn’t have time to do any local flying while there. So really an 8-month year and not too bad for that. Only reasonable trip I did was to Salt Lake City and Escalante with my GF, a couple of quick trips to Phoenix, everything else was pretty local(ish) in CA. On the upside, I really got into multi-engine ops, now mainly flying a BE55.
Aspirations for the coming year. Take the Baron to Alaska and do more trips. Potentially buying an airplane together with a friend, we are looking at a 172RG. We had planned on a C210, but unfortunately he doesn’t have the complex hours the insurers want for that.
106 hours, with Croatia and a night ILS to Toussus as highlights.
My 2022 objective is simply to get my plane back from overhaul ASAP
