Freizeitpilot

The latest email communique from RA-Aus tends to confirm that ADS-B will be required for Class C access.

“Remember, ADS-B makes your aircraft visible to drone operators (particularly when they are operating Beyond Visual Line of Sight or BVLOS), other airspace users, Airservices and if you intend to operate in controlled airspace once this becomes available to RAAus, will permit operations in Class C.”

I believe it was Paul Keating that once said “If there is a horse called ‘Self Interest’, back it every time !  
 

So yes, there is certainly a degree of self interest in buying a raffle ticket that by chance happens to be linked to a charity. However, the knowledge that a portion of your spend will be directed to the charity increases the raffle’s attractiveness. That is what both the charity and the promoter are relying on - it’s a synergistic relationship.

There are many ‘charity’ raffles however, where the returns are heavily biased towards the promoter, and it is not easy for the average ‘punter’ to discern that bias.
 

Choose your discretionary gambling spend wisely.

Given the vast amount of advertising spend this had and that it was a satisfactorily registered Art Union raffle it may have been a simple case of costs exceeded revenue. One theory is that in a panic he may have chosen to hang onto what monies he got in, rather than a deliberate scam upfront.

Regardless, it’s a crime, and a crime against a charity which is even worse. 

Silent Hektik regulators get a mention on a European ULM forum. I know less than zero on this subject, but just thought I’d mention it in case it is remotely useful to someone here.

I note they have a presence in Australia.
 

https://hektikgroup.com.au/

OK, the lion has been prodded.   

I thank the forum contributors for giving up their time to respond to my query and sharing their experience.  I call it politeness. 

"never-the less impressed by the potential of such a product, that might just get me & my aircraft from some desolate country strip, to a more favorable (help/workshop) airfield, I have decided to make the astonishingly costly investment, by purchasing the Holts equivalent product"

I understood from your previous comment that you were happy enough to experiment with a tyre repair product on yourself, with all the unknowns thrown in.

....and I don't think that a single contributor suggesting a random branded product they may have chosen to carry with them in their a/c, paints all as "paid promoters of Motul".

Separately, I will also be considering higher ply tyres.

That's enough from me on this topic, but am certainly still interested in other peoples experiences with managing 'away' punctures.

Thanks to all forum contributors to this topic. 

It appears that the latex-based 'goo' is a satisfactory low weight solution for emergency situations when you are out in the boonies, and hopefully you can avoid removing the tyre from the A/C.

I've read reviews (mostly motorcycling) for the various brands of goo, and its a mixed bag.  Rather than brand vs brand, its a case of sometimes it works very well, and other times it doesn't.

For ~ $30, and <500grams, its reasonable insurance against a significant P in the A.

http://www.kathrynsreport.com/2018/11/tl-ultralight-sting-sport-n494n.html

Interesting scenario from 2018 - simple pilot distraction leads to overspeed event - HS separation. 

In NO WAY am I suggesting any causal similarity to the Preston Beach incident. 

Included here simply because it was a BRS deployment in an LSA after losing control of the a/c.

https://www.planeandpilotmag.com/article/shroud-lines-ii/

The aircraft was apparently not controllable - that was the motivation for pulling the chute. I wasn’t there and am only relying on hearsay - but I’m not prepared to simply blame it on the pilot.

There are a hundred different outcomes in this scenario with or without a BRS. In this particular case, the two occupants walked away.

A brief article from 2019… but no recent update on the technology.
 

https://www.motoringweekly.com.au/2019/04/16/the-duke-engine/

Someone is still paying to keep the Duke engines website visible, but early technology businesses are capital hungry and are often times capital constrained. Maybe they are in survival mode between research grants ?

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion - and everyone appears to have an opinion about BRS.

My understanding is the pilot was a flight instructor with thousands of hours of experience - but I may have been mis-informed.

But they had apparently already lost control before they pulled the chute.

1 hour ago, pmccarthy said:

I had one at Apollo Bay on a Sunday due to big sharp gravel. Left the plane halfway up the hill for a week. Had to go back in a mates plane with a new tube. Big job on a slope in grass.

Thx PMc - as a result of this experience, do you carry anything now ?

Lots of talk on this forum about the infamous green slime and CO2 canisters , etc but how big is the risk of a puncture versus how much extra stuff can you realistically carry when you are already at MTOW ?

So, just a straw poll to get an idea of how common and inconvenient this situation can be, to then get an idea of how much effort, expense, weight penalty, etc should go into planning for this eventuality prior to an extended flyaway when every kg counts.

If you had a puncture……

Where ?
Dirt, gravel, grass, bitumen?

Resulting cost implications ? (Including unexpected extra accom, etc)

How did you fix it ? Did you require local assistance ?

What would you do next time ?

An oldie, but a goodie.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0oms3r1q6Gs&pp=ygUTU3RhbGxpbmcgZm9yIHNhZmV0eQ%3D%3D

Didn’t quite know where to put this little snippet……..

Airlines and aircraft manufacturers in the US will have to put a second barrier in front of the cockpit.

US President Biden has signed legislation proposed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) requiring a second barrier in front of the cockpit and the existing door.

This rule was one of the recommendations made by the 9/11 Commission more than two decades ago.

The cost of the second barrier for commercial aircraft flying in the US is estimated at US$35,000 per aircraft. This innovation will cost airlines around 505 million dollars over the next few decades.

It is stated that the cockpit door cannot permanently be closed due to the need for a restroom, especially on long flights, so an additional safety barrier is needed. Today, flight attendants often block the passage to the cockpit with a food car.

Flying Sense - US Navy basic flight instruction 1944

https://youtu.be/8kLxBr_nal8?si=ZoIj-h9FMiHGNff9

Mixed units is when it gets absurd though.

Having a W&B moment expressed in kg inches !! 

Quick change battery packs can solve the recharge time problem.  There is an Australian company doing that for electric trucks. They can change out a battery pack in around 4 mins.

https://www.januselectric.com.au/

Life is pretty cheap on the roads too…..and some days the smog is so thick you can’t see the traffic lights.  But then again, a red traffic light is there to simply offer a vague suggestion anyhow.

Flying electric taxis in China

China, China, China……where a ‘one thousand year’ strategic plan can prevail, regulatory approval is swift, community consultation is nil, and return on investment is not essential.  An example - China was an early commercial adopter of (German) magnetic levitation high speed rail over 20 years ago, and now intends to both dramatically expand its footprint and its speed.

I travelled on the Shanghai Maglev train at 420kmh just after it opened, and the fare was the equivalent of $6. They later had to reduce the speed as apparently the shockwave vacuum created by two passing trains was pulling the elevated tracks together. I remember it being a very sudden and dramatic sideways jolt. Safety ? Pffffttt. !!

One way or another, I have absolutely no doubt that China will make this e-VTOL ‘low altitude economy’ a reality.  

Given the history of high speed rail in Australia, a low altitude economy in Australia probably won’t occur in my lifetime, but it’s still interesting to see where this stuff is headed.

1 hour ago, skippydiesel said:

You completely miss the point - it's not about & never has been about BRAGGING, it's about efficiency and options.

And you missed mine. I couldn’t give a tinker’s cuss how efficient your aircraft is. I’ll just enjoy my own flying, which at present is in someone else’s aircraft- so I can’t brag about anything anyway.

and I believe Bird Dog’s point was that some recreational pilots don’t give a rat’s left gonad about speed - they simply want to enjoy the view. But if outright $/kt efficiency floats Skippy’s boat, well that’s fine too.
 

Each to their own. Bragging rights ? Not interested.

4 hours ago, facthunter said:

Canberra Goulburn Crookwell area is not much for weather..   Nev

I hear Crookwell airfield is closed ??
A dispute between the leaseholder and the local council ? I don’t have details, just hearsay at this time.

In industry they are called ‘bump hats’ as opposed to hard hats. Any PPE store should have them if you are looking for different options.