Feeling a little Tipsy

No, it's not as you might assume from the title: your fearless blogger hasn't fallen off the wagon - in fact he's always been a tee-totaller. Hm. Since the only strong liquid a teetotaller drinks is tea, shouldn't that be tea-totaller? But I digress.

Let's see. Where was I? Oh- Tipsy! As in the Tipsy Trainer, a very rare pre-war English airplane of which there are now 4 flying examples.


While in London on my way to Israel, I was honored to have been given a flight in this little gem by its present owner (or caretaker, as he thinks of himself), Steve Slater. Only 29 Tipsy Trainers were manufactured, and of them, only 4 are currently airworthy.

Our flight over the English countryside near Bicester Airfield was wonderfully nostalgic and gorgeous. The airplane is somewhat sensitive to the controls, especially in pitch, but appears to love to fly just as much as I loved flying in it.

Many thanks, Steve!

More pictures can be found at Flying the Tipsy Trainer