rdarby

Is it strong enough for spins? Nev, a big company needs a professional leader, not a pilot. Being a pilot would not make him a good CEO. It may help him with context, but it is a business and needs an experienced CEO, not someone who thinks it would be fun to run an airplane company as an extension of their flying abilities.

Why not in Australia anymore? I really wanted to go but I'm already going overseas next year so can't go again!

There are also cheaper simulators out there. I have seen one that just has you flying finals and along the runway to practice cross winds. That would be worth it. Red Bird I think it was called. I had a few goes at Sun n Fun last year. Generally unless it is a lot cheaper I found a flying lesson to be better. PC based simulators didn't help me at all with the basics like I had hoped, I needed to feel the plane. But a PC based one could be good for practicing procedures though. Ryan

No its open Wed to Sun only

Went there this morning. Bumpy along the way. The strip looks good from the air, but it was blowing hard across the runway so we went to Kingaroy instead. Very nice airport there. It reached 37deg when we got back to Caboolture. Climbing and just maintaining altitude took quite a lot of extra revs in the circuit!

eBay often has planes and some bargains on it.

I flew the SportStar far away once, and got there and had a flat. The instructor just about broke his back lifting the plane so the tyre could be changed. So he built a handy jack to use. I then flew away even further. Flat. Then found I had left the jack behind. It took a lot of people to get me out of that! And my lack of knowledge of how the wheel and brakes all connected up did not help. My advice to myself and any others is, learn how that works, it's more complicated than just slipping off a car wheel if you have to pull the brake apart too. And I am going to go early on Monday to the plane and have a look at the Foxbat's wheels!

It does sound good. Pull out your charts and start planning your own trip! I plan months in advance so I can save up for it, and it's great to dream about it over the months!

That was what I was thinking too. And there is more motivation. I heard the café at Kingaroy has closed down, is that true? I was hoping for breakfast! It's forecast to be a decent day and I want to make the most of it! I hope the wind dies down, I nearly got blown off the road just driving to work!

Thanks Bandit. Definitely taking the Foxbat! Maybe I am reading between the lines too much, but is this a bad strip to be avoided? I don't want to break anything. I may just go to Kingaroy to the café there instead!

Mark, as your hangar mate I hope you are back in the air soon. You have had an interesting last year or so, so hang in there, you will be flying again soon! Love that insurance!

I want peanuts something bad, so am going to fly to Nanango on Monday (public holiday!) to get some. Why not, it's somewhere different to go! Does anyone know the airfield, the runway direction and who owns it? I want to see if it is open, I can use it etc. Cheers Ryan

So what's happening at Calloolla Cove?

What about just buying one? You can get a Koala for pretty cheap, probably cheaper than building. There was one on this site for $10k or less I remember. That could leave enough money left for a hangar?

That screenshot is from Oshkosh last week. I'm not sure if they actually parked planes like that, but I am sure they could have. I am definitely going to watch it, I have looked forward to this one for about a year now!

Use it or loose it. Think about how much of your income gets spent on flying. Mine is more than it should be when I think about it, but that is how much I want it. My next flight is booked, and I am going to book a weekend away to support a local fly in soon too. Yes it's expensive but if you want it, ignore the gubbermint and pump your money into aviation. That is a start. Yes the big picture needs to be sorted out, but right now we as individuals need to fly more to make it happen for ourselves and others. And take a kid flying. That is what I am doing next weekend.

An iPad is not built to be used in the way we would use it, for hours on end with a large app running. So not all navigation devices are equal. There is a reason certified hardware costs so much more. I have had the iPad go wrong several times. I found a bug in OzRunways that the developers hadn't found yet. It's not fool proof. But I am a lot more reliable as I know myself and what I can do, and I plan and look at a map and have a great time planning, and I really get a good feeling when it all comes together and I arrive where I should be, using paper. It just doesn't feel like such an achievement using the iPad. Are we flying, grass roots style, or are we looking at electronic toys?

The problem with an app is that is needs a mobile phone signal, and there are many places we fly where there isn't one. Things like SPOT may seem expensive, but if you are paying for an app, you may not be getting the coverage you actually want.

Thanks for being so sharing Steve, I really hope you are okay. I think you did a great job of dealing with it, and after looking a bit closer at the salt bush and how tough it is, you did an amazing job! Now relax and enjoy the nurses!

That goes to show how little vegetation can stuff you up. I bet from the air it looked like a smooth paddock to land in, but anything over about 6 inches of grass, especially scrub, will just be too much.

Don't worry if you can't go this year, it gives you a year to spend looking forward to going in 2014. I have just got off the phone with my friend in Canada, we are going to hire a house a Oshkosh and get a bunch of families together from different parts of the world, and spend the week exploring Oshkosh and the area. I just need to save up more! International flights are sorted, it's all the rest I have a year to sort out now. The house gets booked as soon as Oshkosh is over. Has anyone ever hired a house there?

Enid Blyton's Famous Five. They are under rated and easy to read, and should be easy to find too, and had the type of adventure you could relate to.

This type of thing worries me, as it shows how little foresight people have, and how little they value anything but their little house and the TV they veg in front of all day. Leave the caravan and spend your retirement chasing a dream, like flying!

Good he is okay. I try to come in without power (idle) and glide on final, just in case. Who knows what happened here though. And yes who put anything on the end of the runway? That is what trees are for!

GoFly at Caboolture if he is on the North side.