Captain Kirk: March 2005

Thursday, March 31, 2005

Life back in Doha.

Since I returned back to Doha from Toulouse life has gotten back into a routine. My training partner from sticks and Wing Chun instructor (Steve) has healed from his last injury (a torn pectoral major tendon- ouch!) so the easy life for me (like no bruises) is over! We did our first full contact session on Tuesday. It was an easy start but still have some ‘nice colour’ on my body. I have also started training Brazilian Ju-jitsu here with a guy named Noe (pronounced no-way) from the military base. It gives me something to do to keep Doha interesting. The weather is starting to warm up (getting up to about 32C / 89F). Today I will go out to watch (and maybe try) some kite surfing. It has just taken off here in Qatar and might be a new hobby for me.
I start my line training on the A330 Monday (4th) and finish on the 14th. I am looking forwards to getting out and flying again.
I will try to put on some pictures from Doha in the next few days.

Sunday, March 27, 2005

Qatar Airways Route Map

Here is a link to help figure out where some of the places I fly to are located!
http://qatarairways.com/routemap/index.php

Saturday, March 26, 2005

Roster April 2005

http://www.geocities.com/kirkdpleasant/RosterApril05.htm

I am back!

I am back in Doha after my training in Toulouse. The last few days in Toulouse the weather changed back to cool and overcast. I visited several little French restaurants and really enjoyed the food (being back in Doha is going to improve my diet!).
Doha has not changed much except that there is tightened security because of the bombing last week. Fortunately only one person (besides the bomber) died. This was a wakeup call for Doha and now it is probably one of the safest places around because of the increased security.
I do a simulator check for the company today in Doha and then a few ground schools over the next week. My line training does not start until the 4th of April and finishes on the 14th. My first Flight solo (after training) is to London. Then I have flights to Jakarta and South Africa. I am looking forward to the new destinations and of course the new aircraft.

Foggy entrance to the mediaeval city of Carcassonne.

The bridge leads to the Lord of Carcassonnes residence inside the city. It was also heavily fortified.

Between the outer and inner wall of Carcassonne.

A view from outside the wall of the city of Carcassonne.

Carcassonne.

The “Chair of Truth” from the Torture Museum- great for getting a confession out of someone!

The Rack!

Can you guess what this is? A Chastity Belt!

Monday, March 21, 2005

Mediaeval fortified town called Carcassonne.

The entry into mediaeval fortified town called Carcassonne.

Passed my check ride!

The last week has been very busy- On Wednesday I visited the A330/A340 production line. It was much smaller than I thought it would be. They can produce about 7 aircraft a month and it takes about 7 weeks to produce an aircraft.
I finished my simulator check ride and now am rated on the A330! The check went well. I have 1 more day of training – what is called All Weather Operations (AWOPS). It allows me to land in very low visibility (200m).
Today I went on an Airbus tour to a mediaeval fortified town called Carcassonne (http://goeurope.about.com/od/carcassonne/). It is still inhabited and is amazing! It is very impressive and some of the museums there are very interesting (especially the Torture Museum from the Inquisition http://www.torturamuseum.com/ ).
I am heading back to Doha on Wednesday morning and should be fully checked out and flying the line on the A330 by the second week in April.