FlyingVizsla

FV, to log out, click on the small avatar at the top of the left menu. Log out is the bottom item on that menu.

I clicked on it and I get:

Oops! We ran into some problems.

Please try again later. More error details may be in the browser console.

Wondering if I should delete all history etc?

Closed the browser (couldn't find where to log out of RF) and did a restart on my Win10 tablet and restart of Firefox (not restore), and opened RF/new. We are on satellite NBN and this has dropped out 3 times in the last hour due to rain and overcast.

Same error messages......

Tried to insert an emoji and got this:

Oops! We ran into some problems.

Please try again later. More error details may be in the browser console.

When I clicked on the notification (little bell, LHS between mail & search) - it was a 1 - your reply to my post. I got this:

Oops! We ran into some problems. Please try again later. More error details may be in the browser console.

When I tried to Like your post I got:

Oops! We ran into some problems.

The requested page could not be found.

I will try logging out, doing a restart and trying again.

If I try to edit my forum thread (eg the one above) I get this:-

Oops! We ran into some problems. Please try again later. More error details may be in the browser console.

Sue

The Likes - if I try to "Like" a page it returns this:-

Oops! We ran into some problems.

The requested page could not be found.

Sue

There's a familiar face in the July 2017 RAAus directors election

 

Yes, he stood for election.  Any member can put their hand up.   There is no mechanism for saying "we think he's a bit sus don't accept his nomination".  The election spiel is written by the candidate, RAA does not go into the truth of the statement.  Even if he did get on the Board, he is still only one of seven.

The system is fairer than when Ian (Admin) nominated and certain members conspired to delay his membership, so that it lapsed while nominations were open and Ian was denied the chance to stand.  You can read about it on the forum, or PM Admin.  This was years ago with RAAus Inc.

Karasport is not for sale - it's his fun machine.  Although he did contemplate selling to an old early AUF flier, but as he didn't have a licence (you didn't need one back then) and he wasn't prepared to get his RAA Certificate, it ended up in a stalemate.

The Scout needs a lot of work, and is a handful to fly, and you have to be pretty light.  He can't believe anyone would want to buy one.

We have a Turbulent hanging up in the shed, but all the glue joints are suspect.

The son saw a part built Sonerai, so Dad bought it for him and he has never done anything with it (he doesn't fly) and now wants to get it out of his shed - again - a lot of work needed.

We have a Lightwing (GA model - short wing and harder to handle than the GR) which will be for sale soon, and hangar. 

Rationalising our fleet to what we can afford, fly and maintain and getting rid of the detritus of a life of collecting things.  I'll have a look through our early photos and put some up.

ATEC kits could easily be completely finished & flying within a week of delivery.

 

Would that then fail the 51% build requirement for 19 reg? 

No offence but I dont think you looked very far for a good weight/performance RAA registerable aircraft.

 

True - I didn't look very far past what we own and what works for me, carries the most weight, is the fastest (95-100kt) and is 'cheap' at $35-45k with a range of 5 hours (my C152). 

Mr FV would highly recommend the RANS Courier S7.  It can take the two of us with fuel, but very little baggage (behind the seats).  One 19 reg sold recently for $70k, the kit incl Rotax maybe $70kUSD ($100k AUD).  It took 6 years to build; but he was working full time, his first wife got cancer and died, got a slack-attack, he chased me for 13 months, had a wedding, moved house ...  Dedicated work could have it built in a year.  Or you can buy a factory built ready to fly for over $207k AUD.  The advantage of building is the alterations you can do to suit.  It cruises at 75-80kt, 4 hours if you throttle back.  Seats are one behind so a lot of instructors won't train in them (want side by side), so you'll probably have to do your dual training in another aircraft.

For fun we can't go past our Karasport - single seat, 2 stroke, very cheap, about 20 mins endurance (you just take off, chortle around and land), can take Mr FV at 6' & 105kg, comes apart into a trailer, saving on hangarage.  Build (we did) or buy second hand.

That's our pick.  Would not recommend the Wheeler Scout unless you are very light and want excitement.  Or the Lightwing GA - again need to be light and long legged (no seat adjustment, little payload), needs careful handling (a GA killed Maj Millard), they are cheap, but need constant maintenance (fabric etc), the GR is more forgiving.  Ours will be for sale, but we won't sell to an inexperienced pilot.  It is 55 reg and L2 maintained so can be used for training or hire.

If you want sleek, fast, slippery - there's a Pulsar coming on the market - the owner can no longer fly, Rotax 912, was VH registered, now 19, two seat, taildragger, price very negotiable.  Personally I don't like it, too cramped after flying C152, RANS & lightwing, but Mr FV says it is the best Rotax 912 he has seen.

I won't recommend anything I have not owned or flown a fair bit.

Sue

When the weight increase comes through there is the option of Cessna 150 / 152's at reasonable sale price, all SIDS done, LAME maintained.  I have a C152 - what I like about it is the weight I can carry in the baggage area.  I found most ultralights had nil to minimum baggage allowance, and I carted myself, the dog, o/n bag, emergency gear etc and went with full tanks (149 litres) around Western Qld.  RAA are hoping to get L1 maintenance approval for private (non-training / hire) purposes.

Actually, the ATSB DOES investigate recreational aircraft accidents, or provide technical support, if they are contacted. The problem is that RAAus is responsible for investigating the accidents for aircraft THEY administer, so unless they ask for assistance, ATSB generally won’t get involved, and in a lot of cases RAAus culture is to avoid getting the “big boys” involved. In fact, unless there is serious injury or a fatality, I suspect that most RAAus accidents/incidents are swept under the carpet by the aircraft owner/pilot. This also happens in GA at a recreational level. I know of 3 GA accidents in recent history that have resulted in total loss of aircraft, one was a fatality the other 2 resulted in no significant pilot injury. Two are being investigated, the third is not. The difference is that ATSB were not contacted about the third accident. 

 

ATSB has investigated RAA accidents where there was a clear public benefit - eg the Ferris Wheel incident (no fatalities).  RAA have approached ATSB for more investigations, however they have a budget, and until their political masters see the benefit in increasing their staff etc to cover RAA fatalities and accidents, it is not going to happen.

I read a fair bit of RAA bashing over reporting accidents, and a fair bit of people not reading or understanding the present situation.  When a fatality occurs, the Police are the lead agency to investigate and prepare a report for the Coroner who then releases his/her findings.  As Turboplaner says, some Coroner's reports can be hard to find.  While the investigation is on-going RAA & others, are restricted in what they can reveal.

It is up to the Police to request RAA to help with the investigation.  In times past they have refused, and that left RAA to stand in line with the rest of us waiting a year or two for the Coroner's report.  To counter that, RAA sent their investigators to the ATSB course in accident investigation, so that their reports would carry more weight.  Police now seem to be more willing to request RAA assistance.  Some times RAA requests ATSB assistance with technical issues (eg retrieving data from flight instruments), and I suspect we pay for that.

As for Sweeping it under the Carpet - ATSB sometimes declines to investigate - two GA friends of mine had wheels-up landings, one was the subject of an ATSB report and the other was not (but CASA had something to say to him). 

RAA has an occurrence log where you can list the details of accidents, incidents, near misses etc.  If you see something wrong you can report it.  You don't have to be the pilot.  You can be anonymous, and our Club has had two of these from non-pilots, reporting suspect behaviour.  A recent accident, the pilot tried to make out it wasn't his fault, but several pilot witnesses told RAA otherwise and he was suspended pending re-training.  The system isn't perfect, never will be, but it is loads better than it was 10, 20 years ago.

Survey Monkey - it is up to you to decide how to frame your questions, they don't do it for you.  I have seen some terrible surveys, some along the lines of "Have you stopped beating your wife?" Yes / No

It was a while since I did the RAA survey, but I don't think Sport Pilot was at the top of the list, so maybe random.  You can't go past without filling in 1-8 so you do have to put some thought into it, even if that is 1 2 3 ...  I suspect the donkey voters would give up.  Then there are others who would want to be able to give more than one thing a 1, and similarly with an 8.

I did the survey as soon as it came out, so I don't remember everything.  It was open to Members, ex-Members and non-members.  As I fitted most categories (PC, L1, owner, etc) I think I saw most questions.  Ranking things 1-8 was similar to previous years, and will show priority changes over time.  There were adequate opportunities to tick Other or fill in free-form boxes.  Much better than surveys I have done for others eg Super, Insurance, Telcos etc. where you are forced to assess or choose with no opportunity to explain or tick Not Applicable or I Don't Know, so you go for a 5 or neutral and they say We were rated 8.3 by our customers and the opposition got rated 5 .... now that's skewed.

The results come out some time after.  If I remember I'll link to it here.  It will probably be mentioned in the email to members. 

The difference between the software I.e. IPS vs XF is IPS around $400 per year and XF around $200 per year. Hosting is around $250 per month.

 

So the big ticket item is Hosting = $3,000.   The difference between XF & IPS is small by comparison ($200).  Firstly, I would suggest not changing the software again, as the chaos upsets the loyal, long term users who have forgotten how to stop email notifications, struggle with things not being in their usual place and acting as they did, and needing patience while things are migrated.  Stick with what gives you the most functionality for the future.

There's a good number of us who are not on Facebook - we need this site.

There are a number of First Class Members and some of them may be happy to give more than $50 if they knew there was a short-fall. 

I like the Forum: - Accidents & Incidents, the builds, Laughter (NES!!), general discussions, guess the plane.  Resources, Aircraft, Classifieds - waiting for the Book Review.  Not so interested in Off-Topic.

Thanks for the site - I love it.

Pilot William Scott-Bloxam killed in Mareeba crash remembered as 'colourful character'

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-12-15/pilot-william-scott-bloxam-remembered-after-mareeba-plane-crash/11801342

Police said they would investigate reports from witnesses who heard a strange sound from the engine, described by one person as "backfiring".

Mr Scott-Bloxam was still alive after the crash but he could not be saved by paramedics and died at the scene.

He came to national attention in 2008 as the pilot of a flight to the Papuan town of Merauke in which he and four others were detained by Indonesian authorities for entering without a visa.

They became known as the "Merauke Five" and were held for several months. They were eventually sentenced to between two and three years' jail each.  Following intervention from the Australian Government, their convictions were dismissed by Indonesia's Supreme Court and they returned home in June 2009.

More information in the article

Qld Country Life update ...

RFDS emergency evacuation of Isisford ultralight crash pilot

Sally Cripps@sallyQCL3 Dec 2019, 5:30 p.m.

News

The Royal Flying Doctor Service plane on the strip at Wahroongah Station south of Isisford preparing to evacuate the injured patient. It's first time the medical service has used this airstrip. Picture supplied by the RFDS.

Aa

The young Longreach pilot injured in Monday morning's ultralight mustering accident south of Isisford has been flown to Brisbane in a critical condition.

According to a Royal Flying Doctor Service (Queensland Section) spokesman, the RFDS Charleville crew was tasked by Retrieval Services Queensland at about 8.15am on Monday to the light aircraft crash at Pemberley Station, about 60km south of Isisford.

Landing at the neighbouring Wahroongah Station airstrip about 10km from the crash site at 10.15am on Monday, two RFDS doctors and an RFDS flight nurse were met by Queensland Ambulance Service paramedics and Queensland Health medical staff from Isisford, who had transferred the patient by road to the airstrip.

Together, the medical crews stabilised the patient, 25-year-old Robert Paterson, who was suffering from significant head, face and leg injuries, before flying him to the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital in a critical condition.

Police and emergency services were called to the accident on the Yaraka River Road at around 8.10am on Monday.

The acting CEO of Recreational Aviation Australia Maxine Milera said the accident involved an RAAus-registered Foxbat aircraft.

"RAAus provides specialised subject matter expertise to assist the police with their investigation, which will include an assessment of a variety of possible factors including environmental, mechanical and human factors," she said.

From the Qld Country Life  https://www.queenslandcountrylife.com.au/story/6521359/light-plane-accident-at-isisford/

Police were called to a light plane accident south of Isisford on Monday morning.

According to a police media spokeswoman, the minor aviation incident occurred at around 8.10am at a location 60km south of Isisford, along the Yaraka River Road.

The male pilot was flying a yellow mustering plane when the incident occurred.

He is understood to have sustained injuries but was not trapped in the plane.

Further details will be supplied as they come to hand.

OK. Seems to be quite a few threads on the topic. Some going back as far as 2006. Holi moli. Some things move slow.

 

Back in 1993? (I'll have to check my magazines) CASA offered a weight increase to 750kg on a platter.  The AUF people replied "We're too busy ...." and it went on the back burner.  The offer now is 760kg which takes in the Cessna 150/152 range - old but cheap, it might get some back into recreational flying.

 

I believe I know of one other person who has some from of the AUF/ RAA magazines from the early days. But I'm not sure if their set is complete. I'll be sure to log back into RAA and check out which magazines are available online ? Once I've done that, if there are still any gaps in my information I'll be sure to let you know. 

 

Which mark is your Scout? I haven't seen a Karasport fly. Is yours in flying condition? Ultralight aircraft projects are brilliant (we certainly have a few on the go), but yes very time consuming. 

 

Thanks

 

The magazine went digital from June 2011 - you can find them on the RAA site and issuu.com.  I have a complete set from late 1992, but patchy before that.  I would be grateful for any early copies I can borrow.  Be warned ... there will be floods, cyclones, magazine gobbling goannas, Marie Kondo moments of decluttering ahead for your AUF magazine owners.

Karasport is a single seat in flying condition.  It is a parasol, comes apart into a trailer.  There's some pictures on this forum discussing trailer-able planes.  The Scout isn't flying as it needs recovering, pixie motor, Mk I.

Flying Vizsla, are those earlier magazines/ newsletters digitally stored or are they hard copies please? 

 

Both.  I was copying the AUF/RAA magazines as a project for RAA to put them up on their website.  I have a complete collection of hard copies from 1992/3 up to when the magazine went digital (and available on the RAA website), but I am still looking for hard copies earlier.  My digitising project goes in fits & starts and I have not touched it for about a year.  Fully searchable and tagged, high resolution.  RAA have offered to loan me their archived copies, but I am a bit reluctant to be entrusted with perhaps the only official copies in captivity.  I'm jinxed - the pre 1992 copies I have been promised have all disappeared in (a) spouse clean up, (b) deceased and dumped x 2, © freak flood, (d) frenzied silverfish / cockie attack, (e) "I'm sure they're here somewhere ...." If anyone wants to risk it, I am still looking for AUF mags/newsletters from inception to 1992.

The Pacific Ultralights and earlier magazines are all gathering dust in boxes under the house.  I could read through, scan and send whatever you are interested in.  If you could define that for me pls. 

We still have a Scout, but needs re-covering, Mr FV is too heavy to get it off the ground, but I still can, and a single seat Karasport.  We've just got too much to do, so many projects - who said retirement was boring?

 

I'm currently researching the Ultralight History of Australia (specifically in the NT) and wonder if anyone has any suggestions on books/ texts to read please? 

 

You could start with this:-

This is on this site under Resources - Tutorials.

I have early copies of some Ultralight publications such as Pacific Ultralights and the AUF newsletter / RAA magazines.  There's a lot out there, so it will depend on what specifically you want - aircraft design, people, governance, statistics?

Sue

G'day Hunsta,

When you get up to the cross-country, call in to the Childers airstrip.  Usually a morning tea on Wednesdays and people around most times.  We have functions from time to time, like fly-in breakfast, just had the Oz-STOL competition.  The Isis Flying Club is a happy group of active aviators with about 20 hangars and a good club house.  Meetings 1st Sat of each month at 10am.  Welcome to drive up to talk planes and flying.

Sue

It's part of a crack-down on Registered Training Organisations defrauding the Commonwealth

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-11-06/private-college-reaped-$2m-from-students-but-never-taught-class/11662164

Some pics here https://www.facebook.com/2019ausfly/

Mostly presentations and sponsors. 

I would like some feedback too.  How many, how did it go .. is it worth the interstate trip?  Some plane porn pls.

Unfortunately that job didn't end up happening so I am still unemployed and getting desperate

 

Yes, I know the feeling!  I've been caught waiting on jobs where they have used my resume as "and this will be our Project Manager, Engineer ..." when they win the contract they employ someone far less experienced / qualified on less wages to cover two or three roles.  Hope it turns around for you soon.  In the meantime we REALLY APPRECIATE all the work you are doing for us here!