Isaac’s First Flight!

Isaac initially joined the Royal Air Force Air Cadets because of the stories he had heard about Air Experience Flights (AEF) and they certainly lived up to his expectations. His first flight was from RAF Wittering, with an ex-Harrier fast jet pilot as his instructor and he distinctly remembers when they started the Grob Tutor’s engine and the aircraft began to rumble.

Isaac gets ready to take to the skies.

“My nerves massively spiked and I was petrified during the takeoff because you could feel the wind blowing the light aircraft.”

His nerves soon settled when the pilot requested he take control and perform the basic movements that he’d practiced on the squadron, using the flight simulators. After getting used to the aircraft, the pilot told him to fully roll the aircraft, followed by carrying out a loop under his instruction.

“Doing aerobatics sent my adrenaline through the roof, but after performing these manoeuvres I gained a feeling of freedom.”

The flight ended with him lining the aircraft up with the runway and the pilot taking the controls for the landing.

His second flight took place at RAF Leeming with an F35 pilot at the controls. This flight was much more intense, beginning with a simple G-force test up to 4Gs! The pilot then had him perform rolls and loops, but much faster, which increased the G-force experienced. The pilot then regained control and performed very intense manoeuvres for the rest of the flight, including manoeuvres such as: split S, half cuban both ways, 0 and -1G flight, and stall turns. This flight ended with a glider landing and definitely a bit of an upset stomach, but it was an amazing experience.

Isaac would recommend that all cadets volunteer for Air Experience Flights, whenever the opportunity is presented.