2009/11/03
THE smell of jet fuel, the sound of a high-powered jet engine reaching fever pitch and the pull of G-forces so tight it twists your stomach in a knot.
That’s what it feels like to fly in a fighter plane.
Yesterday afternoon, two very lucky media representatives were treated to the flip of a lifetime when they went flying in two high-performance fighter jets ahead of the Elvin Extreme Airshow today.
Daily Dispatch Online News Editor Jan Hennop and Algoa FM radio jock Charlton Tobias experienced the speed first- hand when they were taken up in two Albatross L-39 jets.
The jets form part of a two- team aerobatics display at the airshow at the East London airport today.
Pilot Pierre Gouws put the warbird through its paces as it did a number of loops, wingovers and barrel rolls over Kayser’s Beach.
The view was spectacular but even more thrilling were the 5G-force manoeuvres the pilots were doing over the ocean.
“While doing a loop I even managed to spot a whale or two,” quipped Hennop.
The flight ended with a spectacular high-speed flypast over the East London Airport, with the one jet breaking sharp left and the other sharp right.
It was over all too soon and some 20 minutes after take-off, the two jets safely landed.
“As we came in to land I had the soundtrack to Top Gun playing in my ears .
I couldn’t help smiling over and over again,” said Hennop.
Tobias – who is qualifying as a helicopter pilot – said he was so excited about the flight he could not sleep the previous night.
One of the jets’ owners, Gianfranco Cicogna, said the planes do formation aerobatics, “which is definitely one of the most spectacular things for the airshow” . — DDR
• Gates to the Elvin Extreme Airshow will open at 8am with the show starting at 10.30am.
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