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News and EventsJuly 2009 Sadly Tom Ellison was killed along with his friend Julian Harris on Sunday 5th July when the aircraft they were flying crashed just 2 kilometers from Tom and Jane's home in France. July 2008 2008 French Menestrel Get-together
23 et 24 AOUT
2008 Tom Ellison February 2008 Great Pictures of Bernard Cintrat's aircraft in France September 2006 Pictures from Brian Gowland's home in North Wales August 2006 Pictures from Kemble 2006 May 2006 Engine Cowlings available from France
Re the cowlings, Mr Largiller will be making them as soon as he receives
the deposits(£50 each), Alain will bring them to Kemble in his motor caravan
in August, .
Four have been ordered , these are for John Webb , Terry
Williams, Peter Berkin, and Geoff Whittaker.
Are any more required? - Contact Brian Gowland
Allan Haseldine (01981 510 330) has now got my Engine
Mount and Hinge Jigs (control surfaces)
The Epoxy Resins cloth and Fillers are available from Steve
Jones ( Chemie Teckhnique) Catalogue from (01495 791 927)
24th April to 28th April 2006 Latest on the French visit as at April 26th 2006: The weather grounded the aircraft in France until Wednesday but they at last made it to Caernarfon where they touched down at about 6.30pm Wednesday evening. After a merry evening hosted by Brian they spent Thursday taking in the Welsh scenery. Today (Friday) they are flying down the west coast, refueling somewhere south of Wales and then flying along the South coast before taking the short crossing back to France. So no meeting at Duxford I am afraid.
Autumn 2005 The French are coming! The following news has been sent from Claude Lecerf in France: First fly-out of Menestrels to UK - April 2006 Aims and objectives of the trip 1.Objectives: A voyage of mates and Menestrels, to discover new horizons, to practice the language of international friendship, to practice making flight plans and dealing with the customs, to fly over the sea (but the shortest possible crossing!), to meet British Menestrel builders, - in brief, an enjoyable holiday, contructive and informative. 2. The project planned with a lot of much appreciated help from Alain Mathon who is an experienced organiser of overseas trips. I have participated in two of them - one to the Black Sea and the other to the Baltics. 3. The trip is open solely to Menestrels, (single or two seaters), ( and people with the backing of a Menestrel owner) and on condition that the cruising speed of their aircraft is similar to the Menestrelıs. 4. It is not necessary in the UK to have particular permission to fly French homebuilts. 5. At the moment we havenıt set an upper limit to the number of aircraft taking part but we think that the minimum number for it to be worthwhile is five machines. 6. Although all decisions will be taken collectively (with regard to the weather forecast , for example), each pilot will be responsible for compliance with regulations and the cost of accommodation, fuel, taxes, etc. Each person will also need to acquire for British currency for themselves. 7. A charge of 40 Euros per crew is payable towards the organisation of the trip (any surplus being refunded at the start of the trip). This 40 Euros will be forfeit if anyone backs out, except in the case of unavoidable circumstances, as defined by law. 8. Accommodation: each will provide their own camping equipment. In case of bad weather they also have B&B and hotels in England! 9. The programme below is just a suggestion and can be modified in the course of the trip (weather, traffic, the groupıs wishes.....) 10. Participants are responsible for obtaining charts but just one will suffice; ³Southern England and Wales² in scale 1/500,000 which will cover the whole journey. It can be bought from any seller of maps (Volez, for example), but otherwise the purchase of a single Pooleyıs Flight -guide (excellent English ODelageı (?)!) for the group (included in the 40 Euros!) and participants can be given photocopies. 11. All the airfields that we will visit in the UK have a fee of 10 - 15 Euros, and fuel costs about 2 Euros/litre. Please note that there will be no aero Total oil in England (for those who use it.....). Pay attention also to the operating hours of these airfields, to be respected without fail under pain of non-validity of insurance in case of accident. 12. It is obligatory for each person on board to have a life-jacket for crossing the Channel (Alain has 2 available and I have 2. First come, first served)13. A basic knowledge of aeronautical English is desireable. However, it is true that flying in a group (not necessarily in strict formation) greatly facilitates these things. K7ıs or CDıs are available on the market (Cepadues, for example). 14. Allow for the possiblility of needing and extra one or two days in case the weather is too bad - itıs necessary to avoid flying in bad conditions. 15. If you are alone in your machine I know already there are pilots who will volunteer to help balance out the weight! (including an English pilot living in France and building a Menestrel!...) PROVISIONAL PROGRAMME as at 27th November 2005: Sunday 23 April late afternoon. Rendex-vous at Berck (LFAM) friendly airfield where you can camp, but unfortunately no customs. Monday 24 April: Take off for Le Touquet (LFAT), engine warmed up, and pass through customs....... Leave for the Channel crossing......and land at Lydd (EGMD N 50.57.37 E000.56.35)taking a bearing on VOR LYD. Just 37 Nm over water (which one can reduce to 20Nm by crossing via cape Gris-Nez to Folkestone) At Lydd, clear customs and depart for Shoreham (EGKA N50.13 W000.17.83) about 50 NM along the coast and where we will spend Monday night. Tuesday 25th April: Take off for Swansea (EGFH N51.36.32 W004.04.07), situated 60 Km to the west of Cardiff, by the seaside. About 150 Nm and 1h40min of flight, a brief stop and then set off on the afternoon leg for Harfordwest, 36Nm , (EGFE N51.50.02 W004.57.63) situated to the west of Cardiff, just 18Km to the south of VOR STU and close to the sea.....(or West Wales (Aberporth), slightly further north at EGFA N52.06.92 W004.33.42) Wednesday 26th April: We take off to go to the nearest airfield to Brian Gowland, Menestrel builder. (He has built a splendid collectorıs car and if his Menestrel is equally beautiful he is going to make people jealous!....) The airfield is Caermarfon (EGCK N53.06.25 W04.20.43) (two 940m runways - what luxury!). A short stage of only 80 Nm but with a bit of a detour (about 10 or 20 degrees) in order to avoid the Welsh mountains. Thursday 27th April: We cross to the east towards England on a heading of 80 degrees, overhead VOR WAL, again, so we avoid the high ground in Wales we travel along the coast, then heading 110 - 120 to head for Shuttleworth, also known as Old Warden (EGTH N52.05.32 W000.19.10), well-known for its magnificent museum of very old aircraft. (See Volez, December 2005). This leg about 185 Nm, about 2hours. Friday 28th April: Return towards France....heading to the east to avoid Stansted zone then 90 Nm due south towards Lashenden (EGHKH N51.09.42 E000.38.50) where customs will be waiting for us before we return to Touquet, another 53 Nm. Depending on the time when we are ³released² by the customs, we will either return home or to Berck. Total from Touquet and back: about 680 Nm (1260 Km), about 8 hours including take-offs and landings. Contact Claude Lecerf Tel/Fax: 02 40 28 67 64 Mobile: 06 08 41 18 85 Email: lecerf.cl@wanadoo.fr
August 26th and 27th 2005 The annual gathering of Menestrel Builders from both France and the UK took took place August Bank Holiday weekend. To read and see more follow this link, but as a taster take a look at this picture taken over Brittany as a total of sixteen Menestrels and one Emeraude took to the air together to fly to an Island just off the coast of France for lunch!
Brief Details of the Venue and contacts below:
Airfield is LFTQ ( CHA POUANCE )
This is located North West of ANGERS , SOUTH EAST of RENNES
in BRITTANY ,NORTH WEST FRANCE
(Look for Chateaubriant- half way between -Rennes and Angers)
Contact in FRANCE IS -TOM ELLISON Dial 0033 2 47 92 35 58
French contact is Claude Lecerfe Dial 0033 2 40 28 67 64
July 2nd There was a lively gathering of Menestrel builders at Kemble on Saturday 2nd July. Much useful information was exchanged and there is a real possibility that we may be able to cut costs on metal bits by pooling our requirements - especially with fuel tanks! Several useful contacts were shared and I will publish these on this site as soon as I have details. A heated debate about conversion to detachable wings developed - watch this space! Pictures
June 5th Thanks to the efforts of Brian Gowland we have a report of the Morpeth trip - those of us who did not make it have missed out on a lot!!! -- Read on!.... Our rendezvous on the Saturday morning (21st May) was at the old wartime
fighter station based on Eshott airfield. Eshott, is ideally situated adjacent
to and easily reached from the Great North Rd (A1-M) Nowadays this private
airfield , seven miles north of
Morpeth, is actively involved in local GA and is home to a thriving micro light
school. Sue and I met up as arranged with Geoff and Chris Whittaker and after a
brief wait for Stragglers ( none came?) We headed towards the local hamlet of
Nether Witton to visit Roger Partington. Menestrel builders Roger and Nicki Live
in a beautiful part of the English country side, the wild remote open spaces of
Northhumberland. Their lovely old farmhouse (erroneously named) COLD PARK FARM,
straddles one of the many ridges and river valleys typical of this remote wooded
landscape. This area runs east from the Otterburn Ranges to the seaside beaches
of ALNMOUTH, BAMBURGH and the Holy Island of Lindisfarne. Rogers workshop is
part of the farm outbuildings and is entirely filled with his almost completed
Menestrel fuselage, resplendent in a butyrate colour scheme of turquoise and
white. This very competent
construction is complemented with a glistening
AERO-VEE 2180cc home built engine , which with its polished laminated wooden
propeller is very impressive Inside the cockpit is painted a light shade of
green, a black VFR panel, instruments and controls , all finished off
with a wood framed clear perspex canopy, testament to many hours
of T-L-C. Roger meanwhile
had arranged for us to meet Ridley Kendle who keeps his completed Menestrel not
two miles away ,at a remote moorland strip. Their excellent little farm strip,
with it fine modern hanger, is home to three aircraft a Europa, Glassair and
Ridley,s elegant little gem of a Menestrel 11. Next came one of the trips
highlights, an invitation to fly with Ridley in the Menestrel, a two headed coin
was tossed and would you believe, I got
the first flight, MAGIC. I've
always had a concern regarding the undercarriage and its ability to handle less
than perfect terrain ,but no worries ,the moorside strip was taken in its
stride. A smooth engine, good brakes and rudder control soon had the little
aeroplane lined up for an uphill take off. Obviously a very competent pilot,
Ridley, with ample power from the Jaburu, quickly lifted the little aircraft off
the rough pasture and into a smooth climb out showing 800 ft on
the VSI. Less than perfect flying conditions are no problem
to this Menestrel, she skips and climbs
buoyantly , rough air and turbulence emphasizing her inherent stability.
Soon we are at 3000 ft and Ridley offers me the controls,...............
Dreamland. Suffice to say; I can still recall every detail of my first flight in
the Menestrel. The excellent all round visibility, the change in attitude on
lowering the flaps, the well damped pitch control, the excellent lateral
stability coupled with the lightest touch to lift a wing tip and very
comfortable in the knowledge off sitting astride that very strong laminated
spar. Many thanks to Ridley and his chums for their generous hospitality... A
perfect day was rounded of with an equally perfect evening in a local hostelry..
Its just to good, for ordinary folk... SUNDAY 22nd MAY A late start, followed
by an invitation to visit Roger at the BORDERS GLIDING CLUB where he is building
his menestrel wing. The gliding club is situated about thirty miles north of
Cold Park and is easily reached on what must be some of the best country roads
in the UK. Good driving conditions soon had Sue and I meeting up with Geof and
Chris who incidentally had found a very nice cottage (on the internet) on the
coast just opposite the ruined castle in the picturesque village of Walkworth.
Roger is building his wing in a corner of one of the clubs hangers, The
interesting variation in Rogers building technique, relies on a clever hinged
steel frame, attached by the 1/2 " wing mounting bolts to the main spar.
Part of the frame is firmly fastened to the building table, allowing both
vertical and horizontal construction to be carried out - ingenious. See photo.
Roger has access to a computerised roller printer , allowing
full size patterns to be run off and laid on the building table for
direct construction over the print out....Very nice. Thanks to Nicki and Roger
for a great trip, looking forward to our August visit to France Cheers Brian and
Sue. Pictures June 1st Two new members! Cutting Lists added to builder's notes. New Links. Watch this space for details of Kemble and hopefully a report on the Morpeth Meeting!
May 21st/22nd Brian Gowland has organised a visit to Roger Partington's workshop in Morpeth
near Newcastle, (over the weekend of May 21/22)to view his advanced construction.
The fuselage is finished and includes the engine and instruments installed. Currently working on the wing. Joe McCollom is bringing his Menestrel over from Northern Ireland (weather permitting) Also in the area are the Menestrels of Ryan Fenion, Ridley Kendle and Bill Goldsmith.. So, it promises to be a informative weekend, If you or anyone else is interested in joining us please get in touch for more
details..brian@modeldynamics.co.uk March 2005 Mentioned in PFA Magazine!
February 2005
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