On the road to Linate
airport many of us thought about another joke of the nature: the fog! There was a stratum
much dense around the city of Milano.
Nevertheless, luckily in Linate airport there was only a light haze. Already on the ramp
the first surprise of the day: EU.RE.CA. (European Regional Carrier) that kindly have been
lent this our initiative, taken the opportunity to present at the aviation fans his last
acquisition, still wet paint. In-fact on the ramp there was the Fokker F27-500 reg.
G-JEAF, delivered the previous week at the society of Bergamo, and with this airplane
effected their first flight in occasion of our demonstration. Imaginable the enthusiasm of
the participants!
Two young associates ready for boarding
on Fokker 27
The sticker of CLIPPER association was
beautiful stuck near the access door of the Fokker 27 EuReCa.
After the scheduled formalities before went on board, arrives the so much expected moment. For the desperation of the ramp personnel, when the doors of bus shuttle opened, all the 48 participants have flowed on the ramp with uncontrollable enthusiasm. The excitement was so much evident!
Unfortunately, the side of the embarkation (side with our stickers) it was against the light. A delusion for the enthusiast of the photographers!
Also during the taxi-way we takes a small satisfaction: in-fact through the big porthole of F27 we saw some people in the airport border near the classical observation point of Canzo, run near a hole in the fence to photograph the unexpected aircraft with Clipper’s stickers.
Fokker 27's cockpit
Our exit rout was standard directly to Saronno VOR and therefore directly on the Como lake, where we maintain 8000 FT. Flew over the lake for all his length and we therefore turn right eastwards, following the alpine mountains up to proximity of Bergamo. Turn right southwards and under radar vectoring we set a route that allows to flew over the Bergamo’s airport (Orio al Serio, BGO). Than we reach the vertical of Lodi where, with a last turn right we aligned directly to the ILS path of runway 36R of Milano Linate airport. The show was very beautiful, accomplice the stupendous sunny day that allow to admire the whole alpine mountains, enclose the so much distant Monviso.
A last show was the fog layer near Lodi. In-fact the ground was hidden from a soft white blanket (very handsome from the sky, were emerge, as a reference point for pilots (like a flowers from snow) two chimneys of the Lodi power station. We are radar vectored directly for a "long final" without reaches the Codogno NDB, and now flew in condition of visual approach. The ground is "unfortunately" more and more near and this means tell that the flight is next to the end.
Unfortunately, the flight is finished....
The captain Mr. Giancarlo Colombo (our special guest in occasion of the end year feast) gives to us another demonstration of understanding. He required at the control tower a different park from that have assigned (I would be curious to know which kind of motivation!), that because the side with the two stickers of Clipper was in favour of the sunlight. A last courtesy much appreciated from the participants (spotters), but not so much appreciated once more from the employees to the ramp!
