Jump to content

skippydiesel

Members
  • Posts

    5,154
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    49

Everything posted by skippydiesel

  1. You have just proved my previous observation - I am sad that you feel the need to assert yourself in this way - take a breath and reread what I have said. At no time have I suggested you are wrong/contradicted you or used a hostile tone/language as you have. I would be pleased if you did not miss or out of context quote me or add words that I have never used. Thank you
  2. No offence intended Nev - you seem quick "to dish it out" and very reluctant to receive/accept even the slightest comment, no matter how mild/inoffensive, that you can construe as being negative to whatever argument you are prosecuting eg my "Ditto" to your "Obviously you haven't taken on board anything I've already posted. Nev" There is an apt saying - "Those in Glass Houses Shouldn't Throw Stones" - happy to explain 🙂
  3. "If you want to continually run an industry down, don't stay in it." It seems to me, that most if not all, are lamenting what they see as a steady down trend, in interest in aviation - no one is running it down.
  4. Sorry Nev - so what? The point is, that neither you , I or the next 912iS owner, will be able to source, using Rotax recommended specifications, an oil from an alternative supplier.
  5. Last time I checked meat was/is an organic substance - Organic, in my book, is any substance that has been grown/is growing/can be grown/product of an animal/plant. Clearly wool/cotton/silk/etc & other fabrics are organic so some rational would have to be brought to the situation, however anything that can be considered to be a food stuff (for human /animal consumption) was or is alive, is the product of a plant/animal eg wood/manure has the potential to do terrible damage to not only our agriculture industry but also to our environment. In my humble opinion, Australia should have: Large signs at every departure air & ship port,for incoming passengers, spelling out in multiple languages, severe penalties for the importation of any organic substance without a license/permit. Multi language leaflets to be issued with every ticket & boarding pass to Australia, containing the above message. Final chance bins, at every gateway/dock before Customs/Immigration for the disposal of organic materials. Very severe penalties for any person caught attempting the importation of the above. Penalties for non citizens - automatic, immediate no appeal, return to to place of origin/country of citizenship and 20 year ban from entry to Australia (no exception for non citizen residents). Citizens attempting import - immediate arrest, no bail and if found guilty, minimum 10 year jail sentence. If found to have profited from earlier import -State seizure of all associated/resulting assets/profit plus costs. Importers found to have deliberatly/negligently imported any substance, without a permit and or containing a foreign animal/plant/pathogen, to potentially receive even harsher penalties including seizure of all assets, depending on level of criminality/negligence. Our unique environment has already been damaged by foreign organics - why continue to allow the invasion?
  6. Not having any experince in oil analysis - what might the cost be? "...prevent someone making a suitable oil" --- true! however it is very likely alternative oils are already available on the open market ie I doubt very much that Rotax would delve into the realms of engine oil manufacture, rather they would approach an existing supplier, seeking to have a suitable oil, rebranded as their in house product.
  7. Sure! - bring a case myself ? As an retired public (I prefer pubic) servant I doubt I have the cash reserves to instigate the start, let alone go through with a case. My position is weakened by not using the oil (like most current users, my aircraft is on a diet of AeroShell Sport +/4) ie I have no vested interest. Note sure that Rotax market share, no matter how unethical, would gain much interest in the wide open World - ACCC likely focused on bigger fish. I just find it odd, that my friends on this Forum, not for the first time, seem quite unphased by, what I see as, clearly unethical behaviour - an Australian characteristic?.
  8. Perchance you miss my point? If you happen to be operating a Rotax 912iS you will have no choice in the your engine oil. That is if you want to use an an oil meeting the recommended specifications because Rotax will not release the specs, making it impossible to compare, their specifications, with alternative suppliers oils. With the available supplier limited to Rotax you will also have to pay their asking price (likely to be very expensive). This sort of marketing philosophy has become quite pervasive in recent times - I believe that John Deere (& some other large manufacturers)was taken to court over an extreme variation on this marketing ploy. They lost the case. This is an attempt to bind the customer to the supplier/seller. The captive customer can then become an assured revenue stream. This is a prime example of unethical marketing - I am surprised (not) that the Brains Trust is so relaxed about it.
  9. It seems that the Brains Trust is quite content, to be tied to Rotax for the supply of crankcase oil and will happily pay whatever price for the privilege.
  10. Overrated! The hyman eye is not adapted to seeing other flying objects in the sky. That's why communication giving distance from a known point, altitude and direction of travel is so important - it gives the listener (pilot) a clue where to look, greatly assisting our poor eyesight. Aircraft lights work well in low light or against a dark sky but are otherwise almost invisible - for the VFR pilot, great fun but that's about the start/end of it. . Ground observers catch sight of an aircraft much better than when airborne. For a start they can confine their optical serch to above the horizon, then there is the noise of the aircraft engine/prop giving a general direction in which to look, if it's in the circuit, the search can be further narrowed. A VFR aircraft on the ground, may benefit from taxi lights, informing both ground and airborne observers, that the aircraft is or about to move.
  11. After "skimming" through this topic, it seems to be that the first question has been well and truly answered: Master solenoid- legal requirement in 19 reg aircraft? The answer - a master solenoid is not a legal requirement on 19 regoed aircraft but is a very good safety idea. The concept of an emergency mechanical battery isolator is excellent. Can be as simple as a panel mounted knob, connecting through a lightweight rod/cable (through the bulkhead) to a suitably sized switch mechanism (preferably on the battery(-) cable but could be on (+). The emergency activation of the isolator, will cut all battery/generator power in the aircraft, leaving the engine ignition system to continue the flight to a safe landing.
  12. My Sonex has wing tanks and a central header tank, located just behind the instrument panel. To drain the gascolator, bottom right firewall, I must have the central header tank valve ON
  13. It doesn't have to. Our leaders are, through negligence on our borders, trashing our wonderful environment. Sure there have been mistakes/failures in our distant/recent past, this is no reason to shrug our shoulders and turn away from proper boarded security (not talking about human imports). The authorities crow about every illegal drug bust, "mule" intercepted and drag the offenders off to a taxpayers funded jail, while smacking imborters of organic material (animal/plant/insect) on the wrist (sometimes not even that). It's completely arse about.
  14. Speculation: The decline in interest in aviation seems to be consistent with the distance, in time, from the second World War. Post War babies/adults, were fascinated by the booming mechanical technology of the recent past and their present - As this (my) generation fade away and cutting edge technology moves, ever more, to computer based innovation, so does the level of interest in aviation fade - also in all sorts of, formally well patronised, technologies eg steam/internal combustion engines/etc. In the wealthy West, the young of today are gripped by computer provided/generated communication & innovation, in much the same way as we were about mechanical devices. It manifests very differently (low levels of interpersonal contact being the most obvious) but I suspect is a similar phenomenon - while many/ most? of our generation, had some level of understanding of the ICE/jet engine/road vehicle & aircraft /steam/ 240/12V electrical reticulation /etc, the young can babble on, in a completely foreign language (to me) about computing and associated technologies. They are unphased about not having a depth of general knowledge (about anything much) as Google/etc is literally at hand, a resource completely dwarfing anything we may have stashed away in our puny brain. Future flight/travel is likely to be dominated by autonomous aircraft/ships/vehicles - much safer/efficient than having a pilot/crew/driver. The transition to this has already well advanced with drones and all sort of computer aided fight systems. I suspect that many of today's commercial pilots are in it for the $$/prestige (fading), if they have a genuine interest in flight, they may fly small recreational aircraft/gliders for fun. I don't see this trend changing any time soon - small (than the major city ones) will no longer be the hive of activity that our parents and we experienced in their hayday. If they continue to exist at all, it will be as commuter ports for autonomous aircraft.
  15. Nev, it's a question of priorities. It's got very little to do with tax revenue, other than where best to invest it it, for the betterment long term of our country. In most instances adequate quarantine, surveillance, enforcement, can & should be paid for by the importer, who then passes on the cost to the consumer - no direct tax $$$ Equine Influenza entering Australia was a direct result of the thoroughbred (race) industry, being given permission to run its own quarantine system - guaranteed to fail, due to financial self interest and blatant disregard for the integrity of our boarders. I don't recall any of the guilty being fined/jailed. Could it be they have mates in high places? Politician want attention grabbing, vote getting, topics/situations with quick solutions. In general they are not good managers (managers being a profession that should have strategies for the short/medium/long term) so biological imports that should be stopped at our borders, are not, due to a failure to prioritise the tax dollars. When a newly arrived pest is discovered, our leaders should throw everything, including the kitchen sink, at it to prevent it becoming endemic but Nooooo -States & Feds squabble about who will take charge/spend the dollars and in the mess the bug/weed/virus/animal/etc gets away. Our boarder's should be a National/Federal responsibility ie the quarantine system should be run by the Feds but once again it's a mish mash of State/Fed implementation (eg NSW Ag being responsible for CV19 infected people departing a cruise liner). Complacency/Apathy Rules - we will find out, only when we have lost this once wonderful environment.
  16. "They are ALL a BUZZ around orchards here. Nev" Not for much longer - the State & Federal Governments have let Varroa Destructor Mite & Small Hive Beetle into the county. Our World leading bee industry is going to go through some very hard times. Many aperists will lose their livelihood. Bee products will become very much more expensive. The use of bees in commercial crop pollination, is likely to be diminished, impacting on agricultural productivity. Lower yields means higher prices in the shops, hitting your pockets. Our leaders are more concerned with illegal drugs than with agricultural/exotic pests entering the country. Illegal drugs are a tragedy affecting a few - agricultural & exotic pests entering Australia, will be (are) a financial & environmental disaster for generation to come.
  17. I wonder, at what cost in $$$ and pollution. Bees may be slower but they don't pollute & they provide honey & wax.
  18. I have no wish to undermine or see RAA disappear and doubt very much that, in the unlikly event of it doing so, "RA flying ends." - this is hyperbole. Should RAA resign/be closed down, the flying members & their aircraft, would be accommodated under GA. Further to the last point in blue - cost of flying is already a disputed point between RAA & GA. At the moment I think, when all is taken into account, RAA is the cheaper (but comes at the cost of the Certified pilots entry to controlled airspace and limited to two seats.) A hike in fees may tip the balance in favour of GA.
  19. I agree with (1) holding inspectors of any kind/level accountable for their report(s) - (2)what I don't agree with is (2) RAA somehow being responsible for the condition of an aircraft, at any stage of its operational life including being sold/purchased. My opinions above, may sound the same/similar BUT (1) is holding an authorised person to account (2) is making RAA accountable/liable needing more staff/insurance for very little if any gain. Why? - If this is to be an effective authority, it will require enforcement, an inspectorate/police, punishment, sufficient funds to fight the inevitable court battle(s) brought by aggrieved members and authorised persons. This will all need funding - do I need to spell out to the RAA membership where the $$$$$ will come from?
  20. The studies (science) , conducted in the 1950-60"s are NOT specific to truck drivers, cover ALL industrial situations (speculation: recreational activities as well). The studies are about human limitation. In my very small case - I could start from my depot as early as 03:00, end as late as 18:00 (not counting the commute to/from). The driving (semi 19m / 45.5 tonne) was predominantly within the Sydney Basin. Heavy traffic, crawl -100 kph. Possibly far more taxing than any long haul driving. To even suggest that " limited by businesses being open so takes care of itself." is a rational argument, is just beyond comprehension
  21. Australia seems to have a "thing" (technical term) for enacting legislation, that on the face of it seems to have meaning/logic at its core but is all too often incomplete, illogical and fails to follow through with appropriate policing/enforcement. I learnt a little about fatigue and fatigued management in the early 1970's. From imperfect/aging memory, truck drivers (amongst others) were one of the featured studies. In short, despite fatigue mitigating strategies, like rest breaks every 2.5 hrs - by 9 hrs, the drivers response times (as a measure of fatigue) had dropped well below safe limits ie their ability to respond to a sudden/unexpected event was markedly reduced. They were/are in effect, a danger to themselves and the public, if still driving after 9 hrs behind the wheel. About this time I obtained my HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) Articulated (Semi) License, as a way of earning fast cash (truck drivers being well paid in the UK, at that time) to assist with living expenses during term time. The limits on driving 9 hrs (behind the wheel) and duty 12 hrs (on the clock). (there were also minimum time between duty cycles, to ensure adequate rest) A detailed (time, place & breaks) log book of driving/duty times had to be completed for every trip. The police were very active in monitoring the log books, with heavy penalties, to the driver & sometimes his/her employer) for false entry. Over about 45 years I have intermittently driven trucks in Australia (NSW) - I have never had my log book checked. Further I did one job, about 3 years ago, where my log book did not have to be filled out at all, as my multiple daily trips where within a 100km (?) radius of the truck depot - in effect, this meant I could drive for as long as I liked/my employer wanted - who thought up this "brain dead "exception? My point: Standards are set by the leaders. Rubbish leadership leads to organisational (societal) failures that can not just be blamed on the individual - Government is our primary leader. Failure of Gov, to appropriately legislate and/or then follow through with adequate enforcement, creates a climate where the individual may make bad decisions or is coerced, through circumstance (employer?) to do so.
  22. "However if you issue an official Condition Report you are responsible for your own advice" Any sort of honest "Condition" report is contextual, in that the degree of responsibility, by the author/mechanic/engineer/etc (technician) will depend on the scope ie if the report is understood/know to have limitations, as expressed by the technician and or documentation supplied, the technicians liability/responsibility will be limited accordingly. Technicians are not expected to be God's/infallible, in that they would be required to know all things past/present about a vehicle/aircraft condition.. "(which is why mechanics issuing roadworthy certificates photograph every single item they look at)". First I have heard/seen of such a practise (might be a Vic thing😁)
×
×
  • Create New...