Microlighters

'Escape By Microlight'. Brian Milton was the first to microlight around the world. Now he is attempting what many believe is a tougher challenge as he sets out to fly across the Atlantic, carrying just 35 hours of fuel.

:D thanks Ill be watching

Absalutely awsome but he must be a bit crazy, nice to see the Coopers that helped him.

Not much respect for airmanship though . . . hopelessly overloaded on take-off, near miss with jet, etc.

IMHO, a bit of a cowboy

IMHO, a bit of a cowboy

Bloody idiot if you asked me. How can you go on a suicide mission without testing your equipment ? He completed it a day before takeoff and never filled it with full fuel on the first part of his journey.

Tsk ! Tsk !

All due respects for his guts but the planning was bad.

He flew around like a stealth fighter and that makes it dangerous.

420l fuel = 357 kg
Pilot = 90 kg
Empty 912 trike = 180 kg

Total = 627 kg

How much can a Blade lift? No wonder the authorities were unhappy with his tank.....

Yep, ditto to al of the above, bad planning, bad airmanship, and it seems to me every thing revolves around him. the way he treats everybody around him is apalling the weight issue bothered me aswell

I hope he gives the cooper's a copy of his book though, He looks like a rather moody pilot.Now he did not achieve his goal and his a/c is in pain.
Very brave pilot, but very scary.

I wonder if he knew he would not make it and it was just a media thing.
Surely he knew not to take off in a cross wind with that load on board

It was going to be a 30 hour flight and he never tested the full tank out

Would you not wait for almost perfect weather conditions first

Demon why don't you try it then, maybee you can be the first to cross the Atlantic in a microlight with your GT450

You get retired pilots and you get reckeless pilots....................you don't get retired reckless pilots.

Some one should have got him to smoke next to the fuel tank.

A prime candidate for a Darwin Award. www.darwin.com

Last year in the post regarding Microlight Reading matter I reported the following on

(8) Chasing Ghosts - An attempt at the atlantic by Microlight - Brian Milton
(9) Global Flyer - Around the World in 80 Flying Days - Brian Milton

This Milton guy is a dude with an attitude. (Yea yea I hear that chorus singing A pot calling the kettle) In Chasing Ghosts, a lot more time is spent badmouthing those who cross his (flight)path than on the stuff us microlighters would love to read.

In Global Flyer, he also uses the opportunity to give his side of all the altercations he had, but at least he describes his flight in more detail, especially the weather he had to cope with, the blind flying in clouds (just looking at the instruments whilst the navigator called out headings) etc. etc.

The most memorable quote in the last book is "Happiness was being able to fart without fear, not something you can do in India".

Yesterday evening's program confirmed this. BTW I posted a similar thread one minute after Slow_Poke (viewtopic.php?t=3617&highlight=)

and have mentioned on there that I have recorded this on DVD. Will post a copy to Trixie for those in Smogteng.

This guy is a bad advert to Microlighting. Things are not planned correctly, not tested properly and he admits that he himself is not good technically. The fact that he flew 2 legs with the skydat fuse blown, knowing the criticallity of the engine management and fuel management. On the second take off when the fuse had blown I would have turned around and sorted the problem out.

Loading up a tank that took the plane way over it's MAUW is insane, taking off in marginal conditions, crosswind. Ignoring the Canadian Government and flying illegally. Making statements that he would rather die than abide by their ruling. This guy is a complete DOOS

BTW, Mike Blythe and Olivier have successfully crossed the Atlantic on the South to South trip. Watch their DVD and see how correct planning, safety concerns, etc are important. They are a brilliant advert for Adventure flying, not this idiot.

Agree Morph, I spoke to my dad on the phone who watched the programe. He said if he did not know better from me and had watched the show he would have thought all microlighters were insane ( a bad ad for microlighters in general)

I was wondering if he actually even did have a near miss with a jet or if that was just put in, he might have seen one at a distance but the sound must have been added afterwards for effect. If you think about it he had a helmet with visor on over his mike???

I was wondering if he actually even did have a near miss with a jet or if that was just put in, he might have seen one at a distance but the sound must have been added afterwards for effect. If you think about it he had a helmet with visor on over his mike???

I was also wondering what a jet was doing at 500 ft AGL that time of the day. His comment " I think they came looking for me " Uh Duhhh - Canadian A/F sending a jet to come looking for a microlight in their airspace

This guy is a complete DOOS

He had to sell his story to make money for repairs on his microheavyweight. Make it interesting. [/quote]