Friday 20 August 2010

SkyWatch Friday; The "outback" sky;


When we left for Leigh Creek the sky was blue, a few clouds in the back. This is one of the flying Doctor's planes at the Bourke airport.

Slowly the view dissapeared....

And the soup got thicker and thicker and the sky was hiding. Wind and rain buffeted the plane. It was lifted up and plunged fiercely. One feels very vulnerable to be up there separated only by the thin wall of the plane and all around a wild, opaque sky. After more then an hour we received the message that we could not land in Leigh Creek the wind was to strong. We turned back and arrived safely ....

back at the airport. The sky had taken on this strangely coloured opaque hue and the wind was also very strong.

The next morning everything was covered in a fine red dust. The sky was blue again with a few clouds hovering around. We still could not fly out as the winds were very strong and the weather unpredictable. We played it safe and stayed one more day in Bourke!

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24 comments:

Carol said...

Wow! That was a frightening adventure! Your photos tell the story well. I like that strangely colored opaque sky.

EG CameraGirl said...

YIKES! I bet someone hd to blow dust out of the engine!

Sylvia K said...

Oh, Wow, indeed! That had to be scary! And, yes, your photos to tell the story well indeed! Did make a mess of the plane, didn't it! Dramatic and fascinating skies -- well, as long as you don't have to fly in them! Have a great weekend!

Sylvia

D said...

Titania, you best stay home now! :) Amazing occurrence. I'm pleased to know they got er without a hitch. It is quite dramatic as to how quickly the weather can shift. Happy weekend.

Anonymous said...

Always two hands full of air beneath your wings. Please have a good Friday.

daily athens

Floridagirl said...

Wow, scary stuff! What a weird storm, but I guess that's normal for the Outback, huh? Glad you made it back safely. Great photos of your experience! My husband takes trips in prop planes every now and then for work and has been caught by our summer thunderstorms before and wisely detoured. I really don't like it.

lotusleaf said...

What an adventure, Titania! I had read about the doctors' planes in school.Somehow one never connects textbook lessons to real life. Now I know better! Have a safe weekend!

Hildred said...

Is this Bourke, NSW on the Darling River that you are picturing Titania?
I knew a boy from there who took his Commonwealth Flying Training in Canada during WW2, - a great friend...

Your pictures are fascinating, but it must have been a scary adventure.

Pietro Brosio said...

Titania, you describe really well the whole interesting transformation of the sky. Very nice sequence of images!
Happy weekend!

Rajesh said...

Fantastic views. Lovely changing colors of the sky.

Stephanie said...

That sounds like a scary experience. Glad to know you landed!

Unknown said...

Wow, what a scary thing to happen. Glad that you were able to get back to the airport.

Pearl Maple said...

Oh my that is stormy weather, the outback can be a wild place.

eileeninmd said...

Wow, it does look a scary ride in that little plane. I'm glad everyone is safe and on the ground. Very dramatic skies and skywatch photos.

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

My family in Brisbane sent me some photos when you had a big dust. when were your photos taken?

We watch a lot of Aussie TV with the flying doctor.

Are you ready to vote?

eden said...

That was pretty scary. Glad you landed safely. Great photos.

Judy said...

That must have been pretty scary! One of those things that are far better in photos than in real life!

Japa said...

That's scary enough. Just settle down now and have a good weekend.

Kathy said...

Sounds like an adventure I don't want to partake in. But I'm glad I got to see and hear the story.

Max-e said...

Hi Titania, this is an interesting post. Must have been scary though.
My son is a pilot flying for the UN in North Africa. He has also had some hair raising experiences up there

Autumn Belle said...

Oh, what a scary experience. Your photos tell the story. Luckily it was ok again!

Linda said...

Everything looked so tranquil to begin with. It's one thing looking up at a stormy sky and thinking it looks beautiful, and quite another being up there.

Steffi said...

Very interesting post,Titania!Your photos are very good for this post!Have a great weekend!
Greetings from wet and cold Germany!

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