So, after what feels like forever (only 9 days) the video footage from Sokol has arrived. The DVD’s had a whole heap of stills on them (some good, some not so good) which I have already added to this blog in the relevant sections.

I also got a DVD with footage of the flight which I have re-edited so it’s shorter and  I’ve taken out the cringe worthy transitions.

I have broken out the aerobatics sections and the flight into the stratosphere so that they are shorter and easier to watch but in reality the aerobatics bit is all part of the same flight, which is why, when you see the landing I look like I have been in a tumble drier. (I have!)

This is the Hammer

In the hammer the pilot takes the plane vertical and then slows to a stop. A cool but freaky feeling to be in a plane thousands of feet up but going nowhere. I think you can actually hear me swear when the plane stops!

This is a Loop

Pretty straight forward although the G-force as we start the climb was pretty uncomfortable (I am pretty sure watching it this is where we pulled 6 g and I blacked out at the start) You can see my breathing pattern change as I get the “stuffing” squashed out of me as we go into the climb.

This is Flying Inverted

This was more freaky than the Hammer!

Dangling upside down by a couple of seat straps and looking straight down to Terra Firma through a clear canopy makes your heart pump. I was much happier once we had spun back around and my ass was back in the seat and not dangling in the wind. I did have a cocktail stick bouncing around though, which gave me something to focus on and raises the question “why did I not get an in-flight meal”? Obviously someone else did and did not clean up after themselves!

A Roll

This is pretty tame, it’s over very quickly and the G-force on you is minimal but after a few of them you do start to feel a little queasy! Be warned!!!

A Low Level Pass

This was very cool. As the plane gets lower to the ground (we were at about 20m) you start to realise how fast you are actually going and get an amazing sense of how powerful the aircraft is. This came towards the end of the flight after all of the other aerobatics. Much more and breakfast would have been on the inside of the cockpit I’m sorry to say.

The Edge of Space

There is not a lot I can say about this, other than it was just breath taking and the view was stunning! The whole experience is something I will treasure for a long time.