Seen through my window at AAP. Photo heavy.

[ronturner]

This might be of interest to some. At least it kept me busy for a couple of hours today during a period of foul weather.
I have a bedroom/office at home which allows me to keep an eye on what is happening out there, on the aerodrome and on the taxiway past my house. Most of these phots were taken in the last eighteen months. A few, which will be obvious from the early state of the garden, were taken somewhat earlier.

We have quite a few ULMs here, or visiting here. The first is an example of older tech and the second very much new tech and quite fast. The first was built by one of our residents who in the past has constructed an Emeraude, and two different replica Spitfires.

21AFZ Asso 3 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

58HY Pioneer 300 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

One of my neighbours, an ex AF A320 pilot, is the agent in France for FLYWHALE.

85ATU (3) by Ron Turner, on Flickr
85ATU (4) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

D-MJJL Flywhale Adventure Sport by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Another of my neighbours has a gite for hire on his plot, and we often get visitors. Here is a Cirrus from Germany. By the strangest of co-incidences, my neighbour's wife lived next door to me in Malmesbury, Wiltshire, although she moved out a month before we moved in, and we never met, until we both turned up at Atlantic Air Park.

D-EYBK Cirrus Sr22 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Two visitors from Germany who flew in formation:-
D-MLIV Europe MT-03 Autogyro by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Some kind of Flexwing Ultralight by Ron Turner, on Flickr

This neighbour always pulls a crowd:-

F-AYYL Socata TB-30 Epsilon by Ron Turner, on Flickr
F-AYYI Socota TB-30 Epsilon by Ron Turner, on Flickr

This pilot/part time resident lives principally in Belgium but registered in aeroplane in France because it is far less complicated for a self build. Two years on the run he won the prize for best Vans amateur construction in Vans Europe.

F-BPOO Vans RV7A by Ron Turner, on Flickr
F-BPOO Vans RV7A (2) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

My friend and neighbour keeps this '172 at Toussus le Noble but when he comes down here to his second home he uses my hangar and I get to fly it.
F-BUET Cessna 172 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

This chap is an AF pilot looking to buy something here. He came to have a look. He is an examiner and instructor so he took me impromptu for my bi-annual check.
F-GHSY Robin DR400 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Another long term resident:-
F-GJEF PA-28 (2) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Friends of mine from Dinan
F-GKAO PA-28 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

This neighbour has no aeroplane of his own, but he has the use of several Diamonds at an aero club East of Paris. NB Aeroplanes have priority over all traffic and pedestrians.
F-GSDE Diamomd DA-40D by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-GUVC and G-RVEM by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-GUVC Diamond DA40 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Three more permanent residents:-
F-PBML Vans RV4 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-PDXB Vans RV6A (2) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-PMCM Jodel D140 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Overnight parking for some guys from the restoration group at Niort
F-PPAN NC858S by Ron Turner, on Flickr


I am ending this here and will start another group as comment.

[ronturner]

Here are some more, so if you are not too bored, here goes:-

My neighbour with the gite, traded in his Boeing 777 for this RV, but has since traded that for a brand new Robin with a diesel engine. Since the covid stuff he had hardly flown it. (Second pic. parked next to a visiting Cirrus) What a shame.

G-CCIR Vans RV8 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

G-DCDI Robin DR401 and Cirrus D-EYBK by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Another visiting RV7

G-RVEM ANS RV7A by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Three more permanent residents. The owner of the Arrow is a licenced engineer for EASA and the FAA and also an FAA inspector. The owner of the Cessna 310 is also a licenced FAA engineer/inspector. There are only an handful of FAA engineer/inspectors in Europe, and we have two of them here.

N101CZ Piper Arrow by Ron Turner, on Flickr

N254SR Cirrus Sr22 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

N310HM Cessna 310 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

This beauty is owned by the 310 guy. We fly it to breakfast meetings Fabulous.

N4063V Cessna 170 (2) by Ron Turner, on Flickr
N4063V Cessna 170 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

An amazingly fast ultralight. Husband and wife both pilots. This flys a lot.
OO-106 JMB VM3 (2) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

OO-106 JMB VM3 (3) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

OO-I06 LMB VL£ (4) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Four unknown visitors. These ULMs are very popular in France. There are thousands of landing strips and the licence/medial ad maintenance all pretty ,much self regulated.
PA-28 Unknown by Ron Turner, on Flickr

RANS Cyote 2 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Savannah ULM (n0 2) by Ron Turner, on Flickr
Savannah ULM by Ron Turner, on Flickr

My "Flywhale" neighbour with his Seamax before he sold it last year.
Seamax (Amphibian.) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Not many people can claim to have hosted and hangered a Mosquito

F-PMOZ Mosquito .75 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

The first people we met when we came to AAP in 2004. Then, they had a PA-22 Tri Pacer which they up graded to a cirrus SR20. They sold up here about 8 years ago, and moved to 50% Dublin and 50% Spain, Sometimes they stop here on the way through from one to the other.

N6554B Grumman Tiger by Ron Turner, on Flickr

A former president of our residents association and very experienced pilot who unfortunately came to a sad end in this aircraft in Austria.

N403HP PA-46 Malibu 350P by Ron Turner, on Flickr

I still think this is the best aircraft the ever occupied our hangar and our apron:-
G-AXVB Cessna 172 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

We are always here with a welcoming cup of tea.
G-BRLI Piper Cub by Ron Turner, on Flickr

[ian531]

Great set of images, looks like you a have great life out there
Ian

[Deleted]

There should be a lot more of these - a few in the UK would be very nice. I'd buy a house, even though I didn't have an aircraft. I'd just enjoy the atmosphere.

[deteulada]

Great sets of photos, hope there are more.  Thanks for sharing.  

Bill

[richardheywood]

Mar 13, 2021 22:14:34 GMT 1 @garstonboy said:

There should be a lot more of these - a few in the UK would be very nice. I'd buy a house, even though I didn't have an aircraft. I'd just enjoy the atmosphere.

Peter Day of www.hangarhomes.co.uk has been trying hard to get planning permission in a number of places but has, so far, been unsuccessful. Hopefully one day he will get there.

[andyh]

Great set of photos Ron, thanks for sharing. Do you have any that show what the aeropark looks like from the air? How far do aircraft have to taxi to get to the airstrip itself?

[ronturner]

Hi Andy, I hope the attached answers your question.

Depending upon where you live on the airpark and which threshold you want its about 2 to 5 minutes from home to the holding point of your choice.

The first photo is an aerial view showing the residential part in the centre of the picture. This picture also shows you an installation belonging to the local flying club. In fact we (The proprietors) are the owners of the airfield and we allow the flying club use it for a token annual rent. They have two aircraft and they maintain the avgas, mogas and Jet A1, for their own use and for general sale. The flying club has been on that site for over 40 years and used the grass field with the agreement of the land owner. (The Chateau). When the Chateau came up for sale, it was the Mayor of the time who suggested development of the site for an Airpark, based on the success of Vendée Airpark some 50km away. As part of the deal the mayor brokered a deal whereby the aero club could stay, based on the conditions I described. In fact its a great deal for everyone as the aero club is the centre of our social life with evening bar, kitchen and meals (We have two Michelin star chefs in the aero club membership), fly-ins and an annual open doors air display. It is also the older members of this club who over 17 years conceived and constructed the Mosquito.

Access to the residential village is a by a link Taxiway (Alpha). It crosses a public minor road, regulated by Pilot controlled traffic signals which also open the barriers. (Barriers each side of the road.)

Finally I included a closer up view of the residential village which shows the Chateau at the centre, and my old Cessna photo shopped into it. The Chateau is actually not part of AAP, but they have access to it and the owner is a pilot, although not an aeroplane owner. (Its the roof $$, or the foundations $$$, or the walls $$, or an aeroplane $ ??) My home is directly beneath the B of the registration, at the junction of the taxiways. The whole place is substantially more developed from when this photo was taken.

AAP July 2010 (2) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

IMG_9114 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

IMG_9110 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Flying over Paradise by Ron Turner, on Flickr

[northbynorthwest]

That is a very attractive set up Ron, I am envious. In my neck of the woods, 30-odd miles southwest of Atlanta, I believe there are eight similar airparks within 20 miles of where I live, plus numerous private airstrips. The airparks all have grass runways and a similar set-up with a housing association who set the rules and by-laws. Several date back to the 1960's and are quite rustic; there is one just like that a couple of miles from my house, where there are are less than twenty houses, all with a hangar. There are maybe 12 active aircraft there, with the rest of the homes owned by former owners who like living so close to aviation. I often wonder what finds there might be lurking in some of the hangars. The largest airpark is called Mallard's Landing in a quaintly named town called Locust Grove. There are maybe 65 homes there, with more being constructed, ranging from modest bungalows through to multi million dollar homes with the obligatory swimming pool, but everyone blends in and participates in an active social life. A friend from work lives there and is rebuilding a Citabria, and is getting a lot of (free) help from retired mechanics and pilots. Plus free rides in numerous aircraft ranging from high performance aerobatic aircraft through to warbirds.

[ronturner]

Yes, There are about 500 airparks in the USA. The most well known perhaps being Spruce Creek in Florida. In about the year 2000 I looked at Leeward Air Ranch, near Ocala, Florida, only about 50 minutes by road from where my daughter lives. We found a lovely house and hangar which was very affordable, and we were hooked. (Me and Mrs. T).
Then came the less good news. At the time my daughter was a resident of the USA but not a citizen, so she could not sponsor us as permanent residents. This would limit our time in the USA to not more than 180 days in a year. Owning two homes and possibly two aeroplanes in not what we wanted nor could afford. The next blow was to discover the cost of health insurance for two people approaching 60 and getting older every year. We abandoned that project but the bug had bitten

When my other daughter decided to push off to New Zealand we took the decision to sell up and find a new adventure. I was more or less resigned to having to give up my aeroplane which for 25 years I had kept in a hangar on a private aerodrome only five minutes from where I lived. The idea of having it far away in some big shared hangar did not appeal. I have to thank my wife for researching air parks in Europe after reading in Pilot Magazine about Vendée Air Park in France, the first to be constructed in Europe. There was nothing available at VAP. We looked at Biscarosse in the SW of France. Liked the idea and the plot we were offered. The beaches nearby, the forests, the lakes and everything, great but the town was totally deserted except for July and August. We would have been driven mad there.

Finally, she found a plot at Atlantic Air Park which the original owner was selling, undeveloped. We came on wet horrible windy weekend in December2003. ( £1 return with BUZZ from Stansted to La Rochelle). After our experience at Biscarosse we decided first to look at the nearby town of Lucon. Nice place population about 10,000, and on a wet Saturday it was buzzing with a market and everything you expect of France. Shops, cafés, services, railway station, hospital. Less then 10 minutes away is the pretty village of Chasnais, and two minutes from the village centre we found Atlantic Air Park. At the time only about 5 homes were constructed or in construction, but we loved it straight away and never looked back. We are fully integrated here and following Brexit, my wife applied for and eventually was granted French nationality. I expect my papers to come through in July. A slightly speedier process now that I am married to a Frenchie.

All this comes from those early days of logging Starways DC-3s and DC-4s at Speke, then to have found a life partner who has supported my interest in flying, encouraged me to buy into a share of an aeroplane in the first place, then to have found a place to keep it in safety and tranquillity not more than five minutes from home, and finally to have lived the dream here in France, where flying really is as easy going as is so often said.

[northbynorthwest]

Ron, thanks for the potted history of how you ended up at the Atlantic Air Park. Your dear wife has a lot to answer for and is a real superstar; and despite now "being a Frenchie", she is definitely a keeper!!! That is such a nice heartwarming story. You and Jeanette have really done good.

[ronturner]

Our neighbour with the gorgeous Cessna 170 sold up and left to go back to UK (He hates it, having lived in this paradise for 20 years, ... but there was a good reason, family related.)
The good news is that the new owner of his home has just brought in a Beech 18, which arrived today, and soon we will have a Cessna 195 too. Not a bad trade.

IMG_0556 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

IMG_0559 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

IMG_0564 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

IMG_0570 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

[vanguard]

The Beech 18 is absolutely gorgeous Ron😎

[ian531]

Great pictures, very lucky

Ian

[ronturner]

We have some rare but very welcome rain here, so I have time to post an update of changes at our village aéronautique in the last year.

The Beech 18 departed after only a few months here. Apparently, it was owned by two guys and the one living in Germany wanted to spend a lot of money restoring it to perfection in sole ownership, whereas our guy wanted to use it in movies and other work. It left here early in the year leaving us a lot of good memories. We are expecting a Cessna 195 to replace it,

New residents include A LongEZ, a Cap 10, a Dynamic and a Savannah.


A former visitor Cirrus D-EYBK has now become resident. There is one photo of it and another visiting machine which at the time was new out of the factory at a cool $1 million.

Most of the other photos are visitors.

I finish off with a photo of the two flying club aircraft in my hangar, whilst the club hangar was being used to feed 250 people celebrating the club's 50th anniversary, and a picture of the Diamond which I fly regularly and which was parked on the apron at the front of our house for most of June when my eldest daughter and grand children were here from Florida.

New Residents:-

N45SK Beech 18 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

N45SK Beech 18 Au revoir by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-GOXN Cap-10C at 24 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-PNAR Savannah (ICP) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-JTCY Aerospool Dymanic by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-PZMT Rutan LongEZ by Ron Turner, on Flickr


D-EYBK Cirrus Sr22 by Ron Turner, on Flickr


Visitors:-

F-AZLZ Beagle T1 (XX531) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

D-EYBK + 1 cirrus at #3 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-AYXG TB-30 Epsilon (2) by Ron Turner, on Flickr

G1 STOL Sept 2022 by Ron Turner, on Flickr


N8KR Cessna P210N by Ron Turner, on Flickr


Savannah ULM Chez Christophe by Ron Turner, on Flickr


Zlinn Savage Classic ULM Chez Christophe by Ron Turner, on Flickr

Cessna unknon reg by Ron Turner, on Flickr


D-EDHX RV6 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-HIZG C140 Mouquetaire by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-HPOF Diamond Da-40NG by Ron Turner, on Flickr


N681EW Cessna F182 by Ron Turner, on Flickr



Friday evening fly in for a snack by Ron Turner, on Flickr
Every Friday evening at the club house we have snacks and drinks. Bring a plate of something to share. Pilots fly in from nearby aérodromes to join in.

My Place:-

F-GUVA and F-JDLT our hangar sept 2022 by Ron Turner, on Flickr

F-JDLT CTSL Our Hangar Sept 2022 by Ron Turner, on Flickr


F-GUVA DA-40 at 21 by Ron Turner, on Flickr