Yesterday I met a fantastic man. His name is George Prevezanos. He is a retired pilot from the Hellenic Air Force. He runs a small airfield and flight school in Messolonghi. He is one of these heroes who never give up their passion, no matter how hard it is. After having made some space in his hangar for the Stampe, he took me for a ride in his old yellow truck to show me the city and some reference points for the case I wanted to go for a walk in town after dinner. He dropped me at a very nice little hotel near the haven from which the view on the Peloponnese was amazing. This morning, he took me back to the airfield and offered all his support in the preparation of the airplane and flight planning. He also showed me his museum of military airplanes. I want to thank this incredible man and tell him how grateful I am. I will always remember my friend George.

Took off at 10.30 for Megara. The channel looks clear but the weather on the south is terrible. I am hoping not to encounter any spot of rain on the way. It is not very exciting in an open cockpit airplane. At 12.00, I reach Megara (Athens general aviation airfield).

And here I meet another fantastic man: Elias Sofianos. He is the general manager of beautiful company run by all his family: Superior Air. They are a flight school (ATO), maintenance company (Part 145), CAMO, and air taxi company (AOC). All for helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. Their brand new facilities are amazing. They seem to be very professional, and by the way they welcomed me here, I can tell these are genuine people with a true passion for general aviation.

After a long discussion with Elias and his extensive experience about all sorts of flying in Greece, I decided that Megara would be the last stop of the day. The weather on the way to Crete was pretty marginal.

Later I found out that Elias had been one of the student pilots of George in the army. I was not really surprised…

 

 

Elias offered to park the Stampe in the hangar for the night. I got a pretty unusual view on our bird thanks to this…

Tomorrow is another day. The weather should be clear. The Stampe is in good hands. I can enjoy this peaceful Greek sunset…