Aircraft Problem Before Departure - Kemble to Headcorn - G-BFJZ Robin DR400 (full ATC)

Better late than never with this video, but here it is! The return leg back to Headcorn from Kemble in the Robin DR400-160 G-BFJZ with fellow pilot and friend Graham.
The first leg was actually my first flight as pilot in command of the DR400 since completing my differences training with my instructor. Apart from a slight delay due to the weather the flight went smoothly with no issues. So I was hoping for the same on the return leg to ease me in nicely to a new aircraft type.
As is quite frequently the case in general aviation, things don’t always go to plan. After checking out the aircraft and preparing for our flight, everything seemed fine both externally and internally. We fired up the engine and got our taxi clearance for a departure from runway 26. I released the parking break and started taxiing the aircraft. Immediately something didn’t feel right with the handling of the aircraft but I couldn’t put my finger on it. It seemed that every time I touched the foot pedals to control the steering the wheel locked up or felt like the brake was engaged.
Given that I don’t have a huge amount of experience in this aircraft type, I wanted to check that I hadn’t done silly like leaving the parking brake partially engaged or locked the nose wheel in place. But this wasn’t the issue, the parking brake was definitely disengaged and movement in the foot pedals was absolutely fine.
At this stage I wasn’t happy to proceed and we decided to pull over to one side, out of the way of other taxiing aircraft to investigate further. I brought the aircraft to a holt, engaged the parking break, straightened up the nose wheel and took a look at the exterior of the aircraft … everything looked fine.
I then released the parking brake pulled forwards slightly and everything seemed fine. As we still had a fair distance to travel to the holding point for runway 26 we decided to use this time to assess if we are happy to continue with the flight back to Headcorn.
We had no issues at all taxiing up to the holding point, where we completed our engine checks and were both happy to proceed and get the aircraft back to Headcorn where we could report the issue to maintenance and ask them to take a look at it in more detail.
We plotted a slightly different route for our return, flying overhead RAF Benson where a MATZ penetration would need to be requested and then to the north of the London CTR, over Banbury Reservoir and then passing over the Thames at the QEII bridge back into Kent. We would then start our approach into Headcorn from Maidstone.
Our departure from runway 26 was nice and smooth and we made a left turn to then depart the circuit on the downwind leg in the direction of Swindon.
On approaching Swindon we then gave the controllers Benzon Zone a call, initially to request a Basic Service before asking for a MATZ penetration via their overhead. As usual we didn’t have any problems with getting this approved.
Given the changing weather through out the day, although visibility was good, we were expecting one or two small pockets of turbulence along our route back home. We hit our first one pretty quickly just as we were approaching RAF Benson.
After passing through the Benson MATZ we were asked to contact Farnborough LARS North and we called them to request a Basic Service just as we approached Wycombe Air Park. At this point we started to get sight of the London skyline with Wembley stadium being the stand out landmark.
We then had some tight spaces of airspace to negotiate, and the aircraft being buffeted about by pockets of reasonably strong turbulence really didn’t help with the concentration needed to navigate through the gaps between the London CTR and the Elstree ATZ and then a bit further along between the Stapleford ATZ and the London/City CTR.
This was the first time that I have flown over north London since Tottenham Hotspur’s new stadium was built and we got a great view of this impressive looking stadium and we approached Banbury Reservoir.
After passing the London/City CTR, we made a right turn towards the Thames and the QEII Bridge which for some strange reason has always been one of my favourite landmarks to fly over. Around this area, Graham took the controls. He has never flown in a Robin DR400 before and wanted to get a feel for this type of aircraft and how having a stick control differs from the traditional control column/yoke......
What a great day of flying with great company!!!
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Note: I am not an instructor and these videos are for aviation enthusiasts to enjoy for entertainment purposes only. Please always consult a qualified instructor for advice.

[@Kiri_coley]

Just did a flight out of Headcorn today with an instructor. I’m only 13 and it was just a tester flight loved it tho

[@Roidsear42]

A beautiful plane. Thanks for this nice video. Currently getting into VATSIM ATC, and videos like this are really helpful. 👍 Many happy landings from Berlin!

[@rickairs551]

Nice landing, greetings from the Netherlands , crew PH-HMS

[@PrivatePilotFlightVlogs]

Great flight. Love Kemble. Good to see you back. Hope you and the family are well.

[@pplvideodiary]

Private Pilot Vlogs thanks Adam. Yes I’ve not done as much flying recently with a combination of work, kids, weather, faulty aircraft all taking its toll. This now means I’m outside of club currency rules so next flight will be with an instructor.

[@PrivatePilotFlightVlogs]

PPL Video Diary yeah similar story my end too! I’ve got loads of editing from the summer to do too, never enough time!

[@grahamdewey4727]

Its always good to see your videos as it reminds me of our flight and the little things that happened along the way. I can see that on the landing that you are feeling for the ground and what a good landing it was too. I also noticed that I keep saying 'errr' on my overs - I really must stop doing that as I can imagine the controller at the other end saying 'come on, spit it out' in a basil Fawlty voice!

[@pplvideodiary]

Thanks Graham. I too like watching the videos of our flights back for exactly the same reasons. Thanks also for the comment about the landing, I just wish all of my landings were that smooth.

[@flyingwithchris2723]

Thanks for the video. I like a visit to Kemble too. Good food as well. Must get down to Headcorn at some point.

[@pplvideodiary]

Flying with Chris thanks for the comment. Headcorn is a great airfield to visit. Usually lots happening on a good weather day, especially with the parachuting. My family quite often set up base in the field next to the runway for great views of the planes and usually to see me depart and arrive.

[@dominics7677]

Great video, thanks for sharing

[@Robinbamv]

I notice that you performed a zero flap take off, while at a place like Kemble performance is not an issue it should be remember that the DR400 flight manual take off performance is all quoted with 15 degrees ( first stage ).

[@rainbowdash7194]

Why the deicsion to come south of Elstree very close to the London CTR, instead of north of elstree where there is much more space?

[@11clarkm]

Hey great video. Did you find out the problem in the end?

[@pplvideodiary]

Thanks for the comment :) It turned out that at the parking break wasn't fully disengaging. It was a relatively quick fix for maintenance.

[@musoseven8218]

Interesting flight, typical UK, changeable weather - great video, really interesting! A query from a novice, during radio contact are pilots/crews supposed to give ATC the number of people on board? I noted that some do and some don't?

[@pplvideodiary]

Thanks for the comment Muso Seven. Yes, it is good practice in most cases to let ATC know the POB. There are some cases when it isn't necessary for example on handover from one air traffic unit to another where they actually pass over your details. I've noticed that sometimes it does get forgotten though and must admit I have been guilty of this a few times myself. Usually they will ask you if you forget when you initially pass your details.

[@musoseven8218]

@@pplvideodiary Thanks, always nice to learn new stuff, everyday is a school day for me.

[@oegeat]

schade hätte gern das flugzeug von aussen gesehen .. a rundgang