Alister Duncan. 1989

Jan 1989: And now for something more exotic.


Aloha Hawaii

I really have to get off the beach and see more of Hawaii … you know, the cultural bit … Pearl Harbour etc. Those two birds with bodies like a Bo Derek clone with inch wide strips in front and nothing behind weren't doing the libido much good. Steel yourself lad, sez I, so averting my eyes with difficulty and with leaden tread, I tore myself away to other pursuits.

A quick glance thru the guidebook for Oahu said it all. Shopping, dining, rental cars, cultural shows, submarine dives, gliding ……. What's this? … gliding!

So off around Oahu in the rentabomb, take in the sights and end up at Dillingham Field, the old USAF bomber station where the Japs had roared in over on the way to bomb the battleships on the "Day of Infamy". "Mr Bill" doyen and owner of the gliding operation under the auspices of the Honolulu Soaring Club, has been flying here since 1970 and within about one minute of enquiring, I found myself strapped into a Schweizer, the Piper 180 towplane buzzed up about thirty feet in front of us and at right angles to our bow. (Alister was in the Merchant Navy. Ed). Another pilot …female … hooked us on and we were off, tearing down the 9300ft runway … big enough to get a 747 into.

We quickly climbed to 4000ft where we bunged off. Free of the tug, we climbed in lazy circles in blue thermals to 7200ft. Views in all directions, cane fields, deep blue sea and in the distance, Honolulu. The air was like velvet, smooth with not a bump. After some conversation with Bill about local conditions, I tell him of Rod Smith's high flight a couple of weeks before. "Oh, I had 22000ft a few days ago, no problem. Do it regularly here".

So, shot down in flames on that subject, I ask about the large white domes scattered along the ridge as we flew west. "Those are radar tracking stations for both the international airport and the space shuttle. It was these that tracked the door falling off the United Airlines plane".

I look at my watch, time to get back as I have to return the car by 5pm and Bill says it takes an hours drive from here. So he reluctantly popped the airbrakes and we head straight down. Back on the ground Bill said "next time come with more time and we'll put you in the Twin Astir". Now there's something to look forward to!

And for others thinking of heading for warmer parts and thinking of gliding, Bill's is the much better of the two operations on Oahu. The other one only goes up to 1000ft. A few turns and back down again. However, don't expect anything in the way of a check list litany …. CBSIFTCB etc. Its just hook on and away.

God, look at this appalling weather outside. Jobs in Hawaii anyone?