Voyages to Vigan

I flew to Vigan four times during the Easter Holidays.  Enough for honorary citizenship in Diego Silang’s Yloko Libre.
We found a charming boutique hotel.  Ate the best dishes Ilocos has to offer.  Sat quietly in the 18th century Cathedral.  Prowled the flea market on Maundy Thursday, fasting on balut and twin popsies.  A real Holy Week hardship.
Explored a bookstore full of quaint old editions — Isak Dinesen essays, [...]

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Hot and High

The Philippine Flight Simmers Group is one of the best communities on aviation in the Philippines.  There are aviation enthusiasts of all ages, from pre-teens to retirees, and also a lot of active pilots on the Forum, from all over the world.  PFSG deserves an article by itself, really. 
PFSG’s Kevin and Iyoy, friends who actually care [...]

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Loafing Off Loakan

  
  
  
  

  
It’s fitting to end the Baguio series with this departure story.  It could have been our last flight at Baguio — “the departed”.  
It turns out Carlo shot a video.  The “scary video” I’ve promised here.  After I saw it , I became a believer — there is no lift at Loakan.
  
  
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High Road to Baguio

It’s time to share our explorations beyond our Central Luzon backyard.  Easily the best place to fly to in Luzon is Baguio, high up in the Cordilleras, the summer capital of the Philippines.
  
Baguio’s Loakan Airport is intimidating.  High density altitudes, forbidding terrain and a lack of lift due to the black hole in the sky that spews anti-matter, ghosts, [...]

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Thy Youth Is Restored Like the Eagle’s

Meynard’s Basic Aerobatic course was almost over.  I now had 9 hours of taildragger and aerobatic time, nearly 3 hours in the last sortie alone.  On graduation day, I practiced vertical maneuvers — loops and hammerheads. 
Then came the graduation exercise.
   
  

   
           
   
    
Graduation day was CAVOK after rain the previous day, and we regrouped for a briefing.  Meynard wanted [...]

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