The flight to Newcastle was via Amsterdam and the departure time delayed by the late arrival of our plane to Budapest. Gusty high winds were to blame at Schipol and this proved to be true as we approached Amsterdam, the plane pitching and yawing and then a rather unexpected gentle landing, relatively speaking , so much so that the passengers broke out in a round of applause. It is possible with the GermanWings catastrophe still fresh in the minds  of the flying public, that the applause was more to do with the fact that we just landed, no matter how we did it!

At Newcastle, gusty winds again made landing diffucult and on this occasion the pilot indeed put the plane down rather heavily! There were a few squeals from the girls on board ( but not this one) and the First Officer apologised as we taxied to the apron.  

Quentin, my cousin and his wife Jan live in the village of Corbridge about 18 miles from Newcastle.

 

The weather forecast for yesterday was “rain developing by 4pm, then sleet arriving around 4:30pm followed by light snow around 6 pm.” Remember this is Spring! It was an education to realise that the BOM in the UK are just as likely to get it wrong as it’s Australian counterpart. By 4 pm it was snowing.

Here follows a few pictures of the mass of Spring bulbs in flower now around Corbridge.