An Aéro-Sport classic: discovery of the champaign region 2016 edition

Aéro-sport cordially invites you and your family to the WEEKEND DISCOVERY TOUR OF FRENCH CHAMPAGNE REGION on June 10th - 12th 2016

Luxembourg - Troyes (LFQB) - La Ferté Alais (LFFQ) - Luxembourg (352NM)

SCHEDULE

Tuesday June 7th^th  

7pm                      Pre tour briefing at the Aéro-Sport clubhouse organised by Jean Birgen

Friday June 10^th  

6pm                      Departure Team A: ELLX to Troyes (LFQB)                            
                              Check-in at your hotel

                              Group dinner at Grand Tulip Hotel adjacent to the Troyes airfield

Saturday June 11th

8am                      Departure Team B: ELLX to Troyes (LFQB)

10.30am               Visit historical sites of Troyes or shopping at outlet store McArthurGlen

2pm                      Departure Team C: ELLX to Troyes (LFQB)

6pm                      All teams will be picked up at the listed hotels and will be transported per bus to the PENOT winery for champaign tasting, followed by a dinner graciouslu offered by Martine and Claude PENOT.

12pm                    Return by bus to hotel

Sunday June 12th

7am                      Weather update & swimming pool

9am                      Breakfast

10.30am               Departure all teams for La Ferté Alais (LFFQ)
                            Beware ! – landing at LFFQ only with written autorisation in advance

1pm                      Lunch

3pm                      Visit of the flying museum of the Jean Salis association

6pm                      Departure for ELLX

Additional information

Jean Birgen selected three hotels at your best convenience

• Golden Tulip (64,00€)
• Hôtel Première Classe (55,00€)
• F1 Hotel (27,00€)

Here under are some details, pictures and video-clips from the 2015 edition, which was a great one (more than 40 participants). If you like to join, please send an email to info@aerosport.lu

pilots briefing

ready for take off

Landing at Troyes airport ( in a Robin) ,looks as this

The swimming pool of the Grand Tulip hotel, Troyes

On Saturday morning, you either either visit the historical town of Troyes with its abundant cultural heritage such as the following highlights:

·        The St-Madeleine church with its stained glass windows

·        Maison de l'Outil et de la Pensee Ouvriere : Superb display of tools….artistic, aesthetic…a must to see! Allows the visitor to experience and understand the work and lives of carpenters, masons, etc

·        Modern Art Museum: The museum has a wide-ranging and very worthwhile collection of many schools and artists, all housed in a historic building 

·        Apothicairerie de l'hotel Dieu le Conte : lovely 18th century apothecary

Alternatively, you can also opt to find your favourite designer brands at reduced prices, all year round at outlet store McArthurGlen Troyes (110 stores offering a selection of 300 brands). 

Saturday evening at 6pm, we’ll pick you up at either the Golden Tulip Hotel or the Fast Hotel and you will be driven by bus to the village of Ville-sur-Arce where the PENOT family invites us for an evening of fellowship at the Champaign winery of Martine and Claude PENOT with Champaign tasting “à go-go”. There are long lasting friendship ties with the PENOT family and Luxembourg. Claude PENOT is besides being a wine maker, also the Mayor of Ville-s-Arc, pilot and honorary president of the FNA.

Claude PENOT - blanc de blanc

On Sunday morning, you’ll have the chance to discover the private Ferté Alais (LFFQ) aerodrome, which has a restricted use policy. We will be welcomed in person by Jean SALIS, the lunch will be served at the restaurant of the flying museum of the Jean Salis association at la Ferté-Alais where you’ll meet the pilots of this association for a social talk.

 the flying museum of the Jean Salis association

Ferté Alais

flyer Georgia

We now have finished a flyer about our upcoming rally to Georgia this August, as we've found a solution for getting Avgas in Turkey and (most likely) in Georgia as well.

One pager

The young pilots of Luxembourg

The "Yound Pilots" of Aéro-Sport have been participating at an intl. trainings camp in Southern Germany (Donaueschingen) setup by the Swiss Precision Flyer team. Our young pilots have been partcipating at the so called AIR NAVIGATION RACE

Other teams participating were coming from Switzerland, the Netherlands, Finland and Austria. All together there were 16 teams of which the German, Finnish and Dutch teams have been participating last year at the "World Air Games"

Aéro-Sport is quite please with the obtained results, the more if you consider it has been the first time they ahve been participating at this event

The winners of the AIR NAVIGATION RACE were Thomas Kirchner and Kalle Bender on a Cessna 152. The Aéro-Sport delegation achieved:

       2.  Klosen Gilles / Holweck Mathy on a Cessna 172 SP,

       6.  Schneider Laurent / Schumacher Gilleson on a Cessna 172,

      11. Muno David / Desonniaux Tom on a Cessna 172 SP.      

Whilst our young pilots were training and trying to participate in the competition, they got support from a 12 plane delegation coming over from Luxembourg. The Luxembourg delegation also visited the beautifull island of Maineu on Lake Constance

Our young pilots will participate at the Swiss Open contest in precision flying and at the ANR in Biel. One of our teams will also attend between July 16 and 31 the HOP Air rally for young pilots throughout France.

Luxembourg may be a small sized country, but delivering many international pilots.

Young pilots of Aéro-Sport

English language proficiency tests

Please note that the next English language proficiency tests (up to level 6) will take place at LFTA premises on May 19th. Candidates must hold/have held a previous English level proficiency, before being allowed for this test (DAC restriction). If you are interested please let us know at info@aerosport.lu

English language proficiency tests

UPL-AOPA Nav refresher May 28th

UPL-AOPA presents its yearly NAV refresher, which is held at May 28th this year to which Aéro-Sport pilots are cordially invited to participate.

The Navigation - Refresher, which is also a fly-out,  offers an opportunity for all pilots to improve their knowledge in preparation and realization of navigation flights. 

Especially pilots, who got their licence recently,  hereby get the chance to acquire more experience, routine and confidence in navigation flights by flying in a team with more experienced pilots. 

Flight instructors are available for student pilots who want to participate.

Three legs will be flown, meaning that each pilot has the chance to fly one leg as PIC. (with three pilots aboard per plane)

Routing

• ELLX – EDTM ( Mengen) 150 NM
• EDTM – EDEW ( Walldürn ) 140 NM
• EDEW – ELLX 130 NM 

2016 route NAV refresher UPL-AOPA

Scheduled briefings:

• Thursday May 26th at 7pm at Aéro-Sport at Luxembourg airport
• Friday May 27th at 7m at Aéro-Sport at Luxembourg airport

Time schedule

• 08 am  Breakfast with ATC and weather briefing at Aéro-Sport at Luxembourg airport
• 09.30 am Departure ( Findel; Zouftgen; Sterpenich )
• Between 11.15 and 12am Arrival Mengen - EDTM
• PIC – change
• Lunch
• appr. 2pm departure from Mengen - EDTM
• 3.30pm - 4pm : arrival Walldürn - EDEW
• PIC – change
• appr. 5pm departure Walldürn
• between 6.30pm and 7.15pm arrival Luxembourg ( Findel; Zoufftgen; Sterpenich Followed by debriefing and finger food ( Findel Aéro-Sport )

Registration by email to info@upl-aopa.lu or bfrechen@pt.lu  mentioning the following information per person who participates in your team

• First and last name 
• Email and phone
• Are you a pilot: Y/N
• Are you member of UPL-AOPA: Y/N
• Type of Aircraft
• Call-sign
• Speed in kts
• Departure in ELLX or Zoufftgen or Sterpenich                            

You can also participate as individual pilot, without having a crew. The organisation team will assign you to one of the existing pilot crews. Just mention in your email to the organisation that this is what you're looking for.

Island hopping (Corsica, Elba) from May 5 till 8

During the upcoming Ascension weekend of 2016, Aéro-Sport is organizing a fly out to the beautiful Mediterranean island of Elba.

The plan is to fly out of Luxembourg on Thursday morning May 5th and fly to Bastia – Poretta Airport (French: Aéroport de Bastia Poretta - LFKB) which is serving Bastia on the French mediterranean island of Corsica. It is located 17 km (11 mi) south southeast of Bastia.

Bastia fuel stop

Fuel is way cheaper over here than in neighboring Elba and we've selected two hotels nearby the airport to relax from your flight. Given the short notice of this organization, you are kindly invited to make hotel reservations in Bastia by yourself if you decide to make an overnight fuel stop over here. 

• Hotel Poretta (***)  for online reservations click here
• Les Jardins de la Madrague (***) for online reservations click here  

Some pilots may continue their journey directly to Elba however on Thursday May 5th

On Friday May 6th, all pilots are invited to gather at the nearby Elba island. Your Luxembourg UPL-AOPA membership card will prove to be helpful as it allows to obtain reduced handling and landing fees at Marina diCampo LIRJ 

Best known as the site of Napoleon’s exile, Elba’s long history stretches back to pre-Roman times, when it was settled by Ligures and then Etruscans. It’s Tuscany’s biggest island and Italy’s third-largest, offering a great mix of options both cultural (like hilltop towns and castles) and recreational (like hiking, biking, swimming, diving and beaching

On this island, we've selected two hotels for our participating pilots and their passengers. Aéro-Sport will make reservations for you if we get your email prior to the pilot's briefing of May 3rd. Aéro-sport been negotiating an additional 25% on tariff of the Hermtage hotel, ensuring you have a very good price for this 5 star beach resort

• Hotel Elba (***) reservations via Aéro-Sport (68€ per night per person)
• Hotel Hermitage (*****) reservations via Aéro-Sport (180€ per neight per person including breakfast and gala dinner)

).

view of the former residence of Napoleon

From Friday May 6th till Sunday May 8th, you'll have two days to visit this stunning island by either rental or by minivan. Here are some examples of tours one can make :

• German article
• A list of highlights on Elba

If you are interested and like to participate, please send asap an email to info@aerosport.lu mentioning the following information:

• Name, address of pilot in command as well as your phone numbers and email
• Names of your passengers
• Call sign of your plane and whether it is a club plane or private plane
• Hotel reservation Elba @68€ a night per person. Please advise us if you need a single, double or triple person room and on which dates.
• Hotel reservation Hermitage @ 180€ per person including breakfast and gala dinner. Please advise us if you need a single, double or triple person room and on which dates.

All details of this trip will be discussed on the pilots briefing on Tuesday May3rd at 7pm at the clubhouse of Aéro-Sport. You're cordially welcomed.

If you still hesitate, here's a video of a landing on the island of Elba

Perfect weather

Most of our pilots just landed in Konstanz and yes, the weather is perfect. 

Now we are on our way to flower insel Mainau with team Jänghi

briefing season opener

There's always a pilot briefing at 7pm taking place at the Aéro-Sport premisses on Tuesday prior to a fly out
Pilots are thus expected this evening at 7pm for the season opener to the Lake Constance next weekend.
See you there !

pilot briefing :)

Season opening 2016: lake Constance

We're only a couple of days away from the season opening 2016 of Aéro Sport with a fly out to Southern Germany, to the "Bodensee" region. Here are the details.

On Friday April 29th, a first bunch of pilots are flying from Luxembourg to Donaueschingen (EDTD), located in the "Black forest".

Anyone with an interest in the Danube will love the residential city of Donaueschingen, the birthplace of the river Danube. The town is located in the Southern Black Forest Nature Park. Donaueschingen is famous around the world due to attractions like the annual Donaueschinger Musiktage (festival of new music) and the CHI International Equestrian Tournament.

Donaueschingen

On Saturday morning, we're joined by a second group of private pilots coming from Luxembourg as we fly to Konstanz or Friedrichshafen at the Bodensee. Pilots need to ensure to be there in the morning as at 11am, we leave for a boat trip on lake Constance to The almost-tropical island of Mainau features a magnificent garden at its center and an ancient castle, which was the former residence of the Knights of the Teutonic Order !

Mainau island

In parallel, one can attend the FAI Air navigation racing at the Donaueschingen airfield of which the purpose is twofold:

• Emphasizing the ability to follow a precise track whilst adhering closely to a time schedule, a given corridor and a groundspeed. 
• Emphasizing the ability to land an aircraft in short and narrow places with the simulation of trees or other obstacles on the approach, thereby fully demonstrating a pilot's ability to handle an aircraft both accurately and safely.

During the whole trip, our home basis will be the beautiful Concorde hotel , located on the airfield of Donaueschingen.

Agenda 2016

Here's the tentative new agenda for 2016.

Programme provisoire des organisations 2016

r  20.02.2016          SAFETY-Seminar                                     UPL

r  20.-23.04.2016    Aero Friedrichshafen                          AERO-SPORT

r  29. – 30.04.2016  Ouverture de saison Konstanz           AERO-SPORT

r  29. – 30.04.2016   ANR Air Navigation Race                   AERO-SPORT
                               Entrainements Donaueschingen

r  05. – 08.05.2016   Corse – Elba                                       AERO-SPORT

r  28.05.2016            NAV-Refresher                                         UPL

r  10. – 12.06.2016   Fly Out Champagne                           AERO-SPORT
                          Musée Volant J. Salis – La Ferté Alais

r  01. – 03.07.2016   Fly-Out Ardèche Domaine de la Tour AERO-SPORT
                               Voyages aériens dans la région

r  15. – 24.07.2016   HOP Tour de France
                               Aérien des Jeunes Pilotes         FFA / AERO-SPORT

r  21. – 24.07.2016   IAOPA World-Assembly, Chicago                      UPL

r  25. – 27.07.2016   EAA Air Adventure , Oshkosh               UPL / AOPA

r  05. – 15.08.2016   Memorial Hans Gutmann Tourist Flight          FAI / AOPA
                               Caucasus – Black Sea – Jakabszallas –-
                               Istanbul – Tbilisi (Georgia)

r  02. – 04.09.2016   Vol en montagne Annecy    (Not sure yet)      UPL

r  17.09.2016            Rallye UPL                                                      UPL

r  24.09.2016            Rallyes Aéro-Sport / Instalfit              AERO-SPORT

FLY OUT - CHATEAU LES CROSTES VINEYARD

July 10th-12th 2015   - Provence, South eastern France 

The upcoming fly-out of Aéro-Sport brings us to the Var region in Provence (southern France)

On Friday July 10^th, you’ll fly to Cannes-Mandelieu at the French Riviera, where you’ll check in at the Campanile Hotel Cannes Quest at walking distance of the Cannes – Mandelieu Airport. The hotel has a nice swimming pool area.

On Saturday morning July 11^th after breakfast, our tour bus picks us up at 09.30am at the hotel for a day trip in the Var region with the following highlights:

Visit of the “Chateau les Crostes” vineyard nearby Lorgues , where His Royal Highness Prince Félix of Luxembourg (Prince of Nassau, Prince of Bourbon-Parma) lives with his family. 

HRH Prince Félix of Luxembourg

The vineyard is situated on an extensive property amid 220 hectares of forest nearby Lorgues. The wonderful views and the location are unlike any other in the Provence Alps. Chateau Les Crostes in was completely renovated recently and is now open to the public for a luxury winery Chateau Holiday.

This 17th Century Chateau is situated in the heart of the forest, completely surrounded by olive trees and by 55 hectares of vineyards.  The true tastes you will experience are those of a long tradition at this winery, one that has lasted for centuries and is now being reinvented, to give you a taste of the old while all the time combining new flavors and richness.

By the time we leave the Chateau de Crostes, it will be around lunch time. That's why we'll continue our journey towards the village of Tourtour: this village perched at an altitude of 635 m, it is easy to see why Tourtour is nicknamed "the village in the sky of Provence". The stone houses topped with round tiles, Place des Ormeaux and its fountain, the arched passageways and narrow streets bathed in sunlight amid countryside of vineyards, lavender and pine trees: nothing is missing !

Later in the afternoon, we'll visit the "Thoronet Abbey". This is a former Cistercian abbey built in the late twelfth and early thirteenth century, now restored as a museum. Le Thoronet Abbey is one of the best examples of the spirit of the Cistercian order. Even the acoustics of the church imposed a certain discipline upon the monks; because of the stone walls, which created a long echo, the monks were forced to sing slowly and perfectly together.

By 6.00 pm, we expect to return to our hotel, where you can refresh yourself prior that our bus takes us at 7.30 pm to a special restaurant, for a pilots dinner offered by Aérosport member Gilbert Poitiers. Thank you Gilbert ! 

You’ll return by taxi on your own to your hotel.

On Sunday July 12th, planes are refuelled at Cannes Mandelieu airport prior to fly back home to Luxembourg or you can extend your stay at the French Riviera

Memorial Tourist Flight Hans Gutmann 2015 July 01 – July 05 2015 - update June 25th

Memorial Tourist Flight Hans Gutmann 2015  July 01 – July 05 2015

Latest News on June 25th 2015

Last Briefing for Memorial Tourist Flight Hans Gutmann 2, July 1st – July 5th 2015 Dear Pilots and Friends, Here is the last briefing before the Memorial Tourist Flight Hans Gutmann 2  sets off on Wednesday, July 1st. 1.    Rally Officials The organising committee decided the following appointments as officials for the Memorial Tourist Flight Hans Gutmann 2: Director and Technical Advisor:                                           Jean Birgen Secretary General, Translations, Reports:                           Reinhard Krommes Treasurer, Handling, Rally Competition, Ranking:               Pierre Lorang Speaker, Award Ceremony:                                                  Jean Ries 2.    Participation We have almost filled the planned number of participants, there is room for one more airplane and up to four passengers. Please bear in mind that for each airplane there is  only one pilot plus a number of co-pilots and / or passengers. 3.    Crew Information Please send us ASAP a list of your crew members with the following details: Callsign,  name, status (pilot / co-pilot / passenger), address, first name, e-mail, mobile phone  number,  hotel room single or double. 4.    Salzburg LOWS Procedures Arrival in Salzburg LOWS: According to WX, arrival on Wednesday the 1st of July 2015 at 12:00h LT. Immigration / Customs Before arrival, participants must be aware of immigration and customs requirements  for their crew. For arrivals and departure to and from non-Schengen countries,  immigration / customs must be cleared at the General Aviation Centre (GAC) on  the western side of the airport. No arrivals / departures from or to non-Schengen  countries are possible directly from hangar 7. For the continuation of the rally,  please note that Hungary is part of the Schengen space. Taxi-Clearance: Taxi clearance must be obtained before passing the gate to taxiway S.  Call and identify yourself with “Memorial Rally Hans Gutmann”.  Follow signs of the marshaler. Taxiing: After the complete opening of the gate indicated by a green light, turn and pass the  gate with minimum thrust, but speedily and proceed to hangar 7. Passenger Handling: The pilot in command must assure that all passengers will only stay on the apron for  deplaning and boarding and transit rapidly between the airplane and the hanger.  In case of questions, there will be a person responsible for apron handling. Landing and Airport Fees Landing fees will be paid in common at the GAC. Refueling Airplanes may be refueled after arrival or before departure on the western side of  the airport. There is no fuel at hangar 7. 5.    Visit of Red Bull Hangars There will be refreshments and a light lunch at hangar 7. At 13:00h LT, a guided tour  of hangars 7 and 8 is foreseen. Latecomers may visit individually. 6.    Flight to Jakabszallas LHJK Joint departure from LOWS will be at 15:00h LT.  After arrival at Jakabszallas airfield, please refuel immediately and taxi  to the general aviation hangar.  After check-in and refreshments, a briefing for the following day will be held. 7.    Plan B in Case of Unfavourable Meteorological Conditions According to your planning and judgement, proceed from your homebase to  Jakabszallas LHJK airfield. Dear friends, in case of further questions, do not hesitate to contact me at jean.birgen@instalfit.lu or at call me +352 621 240140.  I am looking forward to meet you all as planned at Salzburg airport  and I wish you pleasant flights and a successful rally participation. Kind regards Jean Birgen GAC Technical Officer AOPA Board Member