News :: JetBox

Nov

Fire fighting and sumo wrestling……….

By joeltobias · Comments (0)

Jeremy Paxton

Many of you may never have heard of Jeremy Paxton, but he is a no-nonsense, self made millionaire property developer who has a passion for all things eco-friendly – even though he is just as passionate about helicopters and his Hughes 500. He is the owner of the Lower Mill Estate and a commercial pilot as well as a former champion water skier.

I’ve met Jeremy once, although he won’t remember me, but he was charming and chatty. I’ve recently noticed that he’s in the news again, usually connected in some way with his helicopter, after his local council granted him retrospective planing permission for a rotating turntable/landing pad so that he could rotate his parked helicopter and take off into wind. Read More→

Categories : News

Comments (0)

May

Charity Abseil – Done!

By joeltobias · Comments (0)

The ususal suspects (Andy, Steve, Mike and Joel)

As Gordon Ramsey would say “Charity Abseil – Done”. Last Saturday 3 of my fellow huddies (helicopter buddies!) and I travelled down to the big smoke to show the Southern Jessies how ‘it’ (whatever ‘it” is) should be done.

Our goal was to abseil down the Barclays Capital building in Canary Wharf as part of an organised charity event to raise money for the London HEMS Air Ambulance. It’s not a particularly difficult challenge, unless your scared of heights, but I decided early on to implement a rigorous training routine to ensure I was fit for the day. This involved a particularly strict diet of cream cakes after every meal, and ensuring that I went to the gym at least twice in the 3 months leading up to the event. I’m proud to say that I didn’t falter at all and steadfastly stuck to that routine even managing to devour more cream cakes than I had planned for. Even if I say so myself, I’m proud. Read More→

Categories : News

Comments (0)

Jan

New York, New York

By joeltobias · Comments (0)

Tw*tographer

I’m turning (turning or turned?) into a geek. All my life I’ve stared at your typical tourist with their big digital camera, accessories slung over their shoulder in a bag stuffed with lenses and flash guns and wondered what on earth it was all about. Never, ever will I become that type of tourist. Until now that is. Now I have a big camera, and a bag stuffed with lenses a flash gun and a video camera to boot. I’ve become the tourist that I always stared at. It’s decidedly un-cool and I’m not happy about it! Worse still, I have a lens the size of my chopper (I’ll let you lot work out which chopper!) that I have never, ever used and it set me back over £1,300. I’m seeking help as I type.

At some unearthly hour tomorrow I’ll be setting off for my business trip to New York where I am due to take trips around the Manhattan skyline in an EC-135 helicopter, courtesy of Liberty Helicopters and also in a Schweizer courtesy of an acquaintance I have made through Pprune and this blog. Clearly going without a camera isnt an option so I’ve packed a single all purpose lens and a video to snap what I can, whilst trying not to look like a complete tw*t. Not easy when I’m half way there most of the time anyway. When I’m not aviating, I intend to dome some business, hopefully! I’ll try to get some updates going each day with some photos. Obviously.

Yours geekingly. Joel

Categories : News

Comments (0)

Jan

Microlight pilot Martin Bromage dies attempting charity flight

By joeltobias · Comments (0)

Martin Bromage a microlight and fellow helicopter pilot, has been tragically killed on the first leg of an attempt to travel by microlight, 11,000 miles from the UK to Australia. Apparently (and subject to confirmation) Martin encountered particularly bad weather that even forced the rescue helicopter dispatched to assist him to return under emergency conditions. Media reports have stated that he was in radio contact with french authorities who were attempting to assist him and they had suggested alternate airfields for him to land at but he elected to return to the U.K.

Martin died in the English Channel just three hours into his six week charity flight, he made a series of distress calls before he crashed in low cloud and mist, it has emerged. Martin Bromage was due to land at the French coastal airport of Le Touquet at around 3pm but was forced to divert by mist, fog and low cloud and appealed to the French air traffic controllers for an alternative place to land.

Martin’s trip was a charity attempt and he was hoping to raise money for Help for Heroes which supports wounded British soldiers, he has a JustGiving charity page here and if you are minded to do so it would be nice to continue to donate to the charity to support his efforts.

Categories : News