spenaroo

probably had a nice power bump too from it sucking cold air instead. surprised anyone wouldn't be running an airbox style set-up on an aircraft. especially with ram air

my last flight was one of those days where you just cant seem to get comfortable.

was agitated driving to the airport - Friday after a long week of work. if it wasn't a booked lesson id have kept driving home.
still with an instructor doing tail wheel so thought I'd get comfortable once in the air - I'm always nervous and feel like an imposter before a flight.

sat with the instructor to do the pre-lesson discussion, turned out I was noted as next step being a check-ride for the endorsement.
mentally knew I wasn't ready - was expecting circuits. but having never done an endorsement before thought it would be good to see what needed work. and what the process actually was.

did the preflight and climbed in for engine start - had another instructor walk over just as id yelled clear prop, but saw him as I was about to hit start. turns out he would be in the air with us doing a TIF and asked if he could come join on the wing for some formation flying.... Ive never done it, but hey this is a flight of firsts.

taxi to the run-up and I'm not comfortable. feeling a knot in my stomach. and couldn't adjust the altimeter from the sweat on my fingers slipping on the metal knob. but got through it and airborne without issue.

get up to height and out of the circuit, radio calls seemed to be okay - I still feel my skills are lacking - of the 80 hours I've flown, I reckon only 15-20 would be out of the circuit, doing calls. remember the sweat on the altimeter - well the digital and analogue were out by about 200ft. and I know I set them the same on the ground. oh well made a note, told the instructor and used the analogue for setting/holding height.

stalls were okay, though recovery from a turning stall is still an unsettling experience. applied power instinctively in the first one

after that the second instructor was in the area, so for a rest he joined on my wing and we flew down the coast with a couple of turns. really cool to see an aircraft come in that close, and gives you an idea of how they actually move in the air.

back to the assessment and steep turns. easier said then done, was over controlling the plane with rudder. probably did a dozen but not getting balance. in the end we figured it out and was bang on once I used smaller inputs and relaxed my leg pressure on the controls.

coming back into the circuit was fine, still getting my head around overhead joins and the dead side. I learned to descend and enter the circuit at crosswind when I got my RPC, as skydivers meant no overhead joins. 

landings... well the only one up to scratch was the full stop to finish. flared too high, flared too low and bounced, did a go-around.
easily would have done 6 attempts. and despite perfect weather just couldn't get that sweet spot. did a couple of turns out of balance too, start focusing on one area and lose track in another.

was a long 1.6 hours, muscles were tense or shaking, shirt was wet with sweat. but its experience.
now to build some more hours and get comfortable so I'm not thinking about what I'm doing - just doing it.
hopefully its taken some stress out knowing what to expect and having a base point to build on.
 

22 hours ago, Yenn said:

I thought if you had an RAAus pilots certificate to fly the relevent aircraft, ie nose wheel, 3 axis, etc you could fly the plane. If not how does anyone fly a single seater?

Has anyone sold recently and knows what is required?

This is what is confusing me,
I was under the same understanding that there isn't a type certificate, just design features.

I know flight schools like you "checked out" on aircraft - but my understanding is that those are an operations rule, created by that operator

Foxbat should just be an basic RPC, no need for extra endorsement for circuit flight

Yeah, they found a ford falcon somewhere in the middle east, with a few mercs still wearing vic plates.
was really common with the motorcycle wrecks. ever wondered why written off vehicles are still worth such good money
its because there is no international registry for write-offs. so can be repaired and registered as an import.

I didn't get the vomiting.
but got a lot of the other stuff. It is a lot of concentration when learning.
found it helped me to prepare ahead of time. would make sure Id eaten a good meal. and sip a sports drink on my drive in, as well as pop a few painkillers before I started the lesson.
seemed to help lessen the impact after the flight. still wiped me out, but not on the couch in pain wiped out.
also be aware of your limits. by the time you start feeling fatigued its already taken effect, so don't try to push through it - every instructor I've flown with are pretty happy to reduce the load on you and call it a day when you tell them your starting to feel fatigue.

14 hours ago, facthunter said:

Keeps your feet warm.  Nev

+1 always nice to have the roof down and heater cranking when I had the MX5,

you actually sit in a still air bubble. so the air-conditioning worked well. used to be a lot of fun driving in the rain with the roof down.

as long as you stayed over 60km/h the airflow pushed all the rain over the top and you stayed dry.

I don't know, Barry sheen could have used the ash tray.

And there used to be a large market for cigarette holders to allow you to smoke without the wind and ashes while riding.
with an equally enduring market for smoking something other then cigarettes

2 hours ago, facthunter said:

You are taking a bit of poetic licence, 3 000 ft is low 42 000 is relatively high. Nev

yeah was tongue in cheek,

though 3000ft is what I consider mid, 5000ft high. everything I have flown doesn't get much higher then that

15 hours ago, facthunter said:

My Citabria was registered VH SAG.  It doesn't seem slow if you are low. It's a good 17 knots faster than a Tiger moth and a high wing tandem has a good view out each side and plenty of elbow room... I've had plenty of going fast and that's boring when you are high up.  You only need that if you are in a hurry,   Nev

Yes but legally we have to be above 500ft.....

I mean, Im not sure that I can get away with calling the whole flight a precautionary search

go a tail dragger, lots of fun

but it all depends on what you enjoy. personally I only ever do a 1 hour flight every couple of weeks.

so hiring the schools champ, and bashing out some circuits or a flight to check out the coast does me fine.
I like the Tail dragger for the added control inputs during circuits. more difficult means more rewarding. that's my fun

if I was to do navigation etc... then the champ is pretty impractical with the need to be always on top of the control inputs. its not a take your hands off the stick like the Jabiru or Vixen I learnt in.
as well as its slow cruise speeds. (was doing cross winds in marginal weather the other day, and the the schools Harmony's were also out doing the same - was a few comments asking if I was moving or that the reverse beeper was malfunctioning)

2 hours ago, Kununurra said:

No mention of what the charge is, but will be interesting to se the outcome.

first paragraph

 

"charged with conspiracy and evidence offences over a Northern Territory helicopter crash which claimed the life of a cast member of National Geographic's Outback Wrangler show.

The man was detained on Wednesday for questioning then charged with conspiracy to pervert the course of justice, destruction of evidence and providing a false statement in a statutory declaration."

My father was involved with manufacturing parts in china as a lower cost option for the market.

they sent a sample to be replicated exactly as supplied....
which they did right up to the "made in XXX country" stamp.

But yes, he had to make regular trips over to inspect the production. and ensure that there was no deviation.
as others mentioned the biggest problem is design creep where they change or substitute things.

he mentioned that the Chinese quality control was to lessen the quality until it became unusable. then walk it back one step.

maybe its the pilot that has done his bucket list trip, and decided the plane isn't practical to keep

not much point having a touring plane if your not using it.

been done for a few years with adventure motorcycles, buy it - do the big trip and sell without loss of value.

17 hours ago, Marty_d said:

I don't understand how he managed to start and fly a twin engine aircraft if he wasn't trained as a pilot.  Guessing it's got constant speed props too?  I wouldn't be able to do that, at least not well.

 

I'm sure a quick search on YouTube will provide a tutorial vid.
plenty of people uploading that stuff

17 hours ago, red750 said:

Is that the Su-34? That's what comes up in an internet search for Platypus aircraft.

That's the one.

there is a reason the SU-24 is still flying in many air forces. and aircraft such as the tornado were kept for the strike role long after their replacement for air to air roles.

Makes sense, we need something with long legs to be a factor in any indo-pacific conflict.

we lost the capability to strike un-refueled when we retired the F-111

and there aren't many options for a new bomber or long range strike aircraft. shame we never got the platypus

On 13/08/2022 at 11:11 AM, Thruster88 said:

Final report from ATSB. 

 

 https://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/2021/aair/ao-2021-025/

Interesting that another student was briefed at the same time,

and likely the only reason we know of the incorrect spin recovery being taught for this aircraft.

I've heard of schools briefing students together. but I've only experienced individual briefs' immediately before the flight.

(or do the larger theory lessons when the flight is cancelled due to weather)

My understanding is that 95 is regulated. But the manufacturers can put whatever they like in 98.

Which is why all the manufacturers advertise their 98 as a special blend. Notice that these days it's advertised for its detergents "cleaner engine' not any performance benefits 

On 13/08/2022 at 9:21 AM, sfGnome said:

Thanks KG. That was really interesting. With regard to the bit I’ve quoted, are they saying “don’t leave it empty”, or “don’t leave it full” (or both)? What’s the reasoning?

interestingly with motorcycle's it was always completely drain the tank and leave it empty and dry so that the fuel didn't turn to varnish/jelly and destroy the fuel pump and lines.
or leave it completely full with some stabilizer, so the moisture couldn't get in and rust the fuel tank.

when it was left half is when everything would be completely destroyed. would only take a few months of sitting to leave it completely cactus. and 98 fuel was the absolute worst for it.

Looks like my memory was pretty good, 2900rpm cruise is about 15L an hour

from the Jabiru POH

I did my training in a J160 and I thought we used 15L an hour as the rule of thumb for fuel usage

it happens all the time to our motorcycles. parents lifting kids on, or the young foreign student wanting a photo for his friends.
no asking, no caring just sit on. used to work for a Harley dealership... remember having a nice conversation with a patched member (nicest customers for me to deal with. mutual interest for the bikes and often on a first name basis. polite and well mannered with me at the counter) anyway this day an exchange student was out and sat on his Harley to take a selfie... wonder if it captured the punch that took him to ground.
that was the first of a few punches I saw fly for that. (wasn't often done out the front of our store - respect for the place of business)

people just don't care any more, people with young kids are the worst "he's just curious, he's just playing" no cares.

used to work at motorcycle dealerships and we hated the grandparents taking the kids out for the day, and the young dad taking the kids out. so many close calls.
suddenly see they wake up to fact they need to keep them close, when we tell them that its a 100k bike that their little gremlin is about to try and climb on.

classic example of the difference between campaign, and the actual governance.

they were smart - shut up during the campaign and sold themselves as the moderate party focused on climate change.
 

think they had a real shot at offering a third party - but there members are too used to acting like an independent when given the soap box.
be interesting to see if they can get the extremism out before the next election.

Nah, the greens have stuffed themselves at the moment.
with the whole not standing in front of the flag, and declaring the parliament invalid.

don't think the government wants to be seen as working with them

There is a great section in eric winkle brown's auto biography about his test flight in it.
having prisoners of war as the ground crew, that had to have signed statements that they wouldn't be punished if things went wrong before they would touch it.

sounds like an awesome experience but a short range, and limited tactic - basically rocket up - dive down at a bomber, ignite again to climb. then dive once more and land