gregrobertson

I haven't contributed to this forum for some time but check it out from time to time. A couple of point I would like to make. CASA's charter makes CASA responsible for aviation safety in Australia. They can delegate their authority to a third party (RAA) but they can't delegate their responsibility. So they will always set the rules for the third party. BEWARE. Secondly. RAA ,M&M and the RAA board can do anything they want. They know that only around 10% of members vote in board elections, which is just bloody pathetic. What do they have to fear. Until members take an ACTIVE interest they will get the management they deserve. Regards Greg

Like MartyG I started at Latrobe Valley in 1985. In the clubs fleet of C172s EUI,STH, UGO, First lesson on Feb 1st, first solo on Feb 6th. Passed my restricted licence on March 14th and unrestricted on June 10 th. Great instructors John Willis, Alex Hood and Alan Helding. A great time in my life .

Repotredly (reliable inside information) Graham Hosking's Corsair suffered an hydraulic failure and crash landed in a field near Sydney with extensive damage. Thankfully the pilot is reported as ok.. My heart goes out to Graham he has spent years rebuilding this beautiful aeroplane. Greg

The Ryan belongs to Graham Hosking who was flying it. Reportedly the engine just stopped. He has done a great job putting it down as he has. I'm sure he will rebuild her.

If you are only using one of the CHT sensors (most just use the hottest cyl) swap the CHT sensor to the oil pump and see if it makes a difference. My recollection is that they are VDO sensors as mark suggested. Greg.

Just a thought. have the new carbie diaphragms been fitted correctly. there are small lugs on the diaphragms which must be mated with corresponding detents in the piston and carbie body. If they are not lined up the engine will run very rough. Also check that the piston is free to travel up and down smoothly, if the top of the chamber is not tightened correctly it can jamb the piston. Greg.

Looks like you are doing a nice job as usual. I like the spats on as I think they finish it off nicely. You should get another 2-3 knots at cruise. Greg.

I am looking for a contact from Murray Bridge or the Adelaide Hills area. I may need some hanger space and wonder just what is available. Greg.

The vent at the rear of the cowl (at the top) will certainly help to get rid of the hot air surrounding the engine after shutdown, increasing the size a little will help with heat soak but I'm not sure it is going to help while climbing out. It depends just where the oil cooler is mounted. Greg.

Seems to me there is enough air going through the radiator to keep the CHT under control. You may need to reposition the oil cooler so that it is getting more air flow through it. I have the same problem with my 912 although I am still in the green but only just. A small lip on the bottom of the cowl can make a huge difference to the amount of air going through the cowls. Greg.

Oh bugger! I just don't know what to say. I didn't know Ross well, but well enough to know that he would like us all to smile when we think of him. RIP. Condolences to his friends and family.

Congratulations Mike. Your Nynja looks great and now flies very nicely after some minor adjustments. Enjoy flying your new Nynja I know you will love it. Don't envy you having to do 25 hours just in the training area but have fun anyway. Greg.

One of the commitments I make to my clients is that I will be available to do the initial test flight of their new Nynja or Skyranger when it is ready to fly. With that in mind a trip to Alice Springs was in order. Chris Leisi has been toiling away on his new wide body Nynja for about 18 months in between operating a very successful tour company based in Alice Springs with his wife Anita. I had prepared my Nynja the previous day and was able to get away from Watts Bridge by 8.00 AM last Wednesday 19th. The weather was fine with just a light breeze on the nose I made reasonable time to Charleville having overflown Roma. Refuelling at Charleville is a breeze as the refueller is on hand to make sure everything works. I had a quick lunch from the well stocked Café and was on my way again. I was restricted to 4500 ft as every time I tried to climb the head wind forced me back down. It is sometimes a compromise between comfort and speed. The lower you fly the more turbulent it is but generally the lighter the head wind so 4500 was the chosen compromise and I still had a ground speed of 85 knots. Next stop was Windorah where I had arranged accommodation at the Pub. Refuelling was trickier as the self serve bowser was out of service, however a call to the agent from the supplied phone (no mobile coverage) had the problem licked. Kerry came out to the strip straight away to help out and kindly offered me a lift into town. Windorah is a great little outback town, wonderful people and hospitality. If you ever get the chance to drop in there do not hesitate. I walked the 1.5 km out to Windorah airport in the half light of dawn and was airborne as the sun was just over the horizon. It is a magical time to be flying, the shadows over the landscape are amazing, the air is still and the colours all come to life as you watch from above. I watched a dust plume behind a vehicle settle in a fine mist back over the road. Not even a zephyr of a breeze to disturb it. I feel sorry for those who will never see the things that we see from the sky. I had carried 45 litres of fuel with me and I transferred that to the wing tanks at Bedourie and set off over the Simpson Desert to Alice. This is the first time I have crossed the Simpson and it is a fairly lonely place, no mobile coverage and not much radio chatter as I was still stuck at 4500 ft. There is still a fair amount of vegetation and it changes all the time so it is never boring. Getting closer to Alice the Mc Donald ranges loom in the distance. As they grow larger the grandeur is obvious and the rock formations are simply stunning, they remind me of the Flinders ranges around Arkaroola. Don't take my word for it just go and see them for yourself. We have some of the best scenery in the world just waiting for you. Bond springs is the base for recreational aviation in Alice springs and where Chris has his Nynja hangered. It is a gravel strip 1800 m long and very wide about 20 mins drive north of Alice. A great spot although a little on the dusty side. The test flying is covered in another post on the forum but it all went well and Chris now has a new Nynja to fly off the 25 test hours. The trip home was just as enjoyable and a little quicker with a 15 knot tail wind. Actually a 25 knot quartering tail wind which made for some interesting flying at Windorah where I transferred some fuel into the wing tanks. I pushed on to Charleville as I was anxious to get home before some predicted storms on the Monday. Charleville: what lovely people they are there. Not only did they help me refuel but showed me where I could push the Nynja into a hanger for the night . Then if that wasn't enough gave me the use of a courtesy car and recommendations for a reasonably priced motel. That sort of hospitality should be rewarded so if you are out that way drop in and say hi. Perhaps go out for the week end they can certainly use some tourist dollars as they are all doing it tough up there at the moment. The leg into Watts Bridge was no problem except that as I got closer to the coast the cloud was building up and I was forced under the cloud with 40 miles to go. The cloud base was 3500 ft which gave me plenty of terrain clearance. It proved to be a good move as there were no holes in the cloud as I landed at Watts Bridge. A total of just over 22 hours flying over four days out and back. Was it worth it? Hell yeah!! Would I like to do it again? In a heart beat, although a bit more time would have been nice and I would love to do a lot more flying around Alice. Greg Robertson.

Congratulations to Chris Leisi in Alice Springs who now has his new Nynja flying. I had the privilege of doing the first test flight of Chris's new aircraft. I have to say it flies beautifully, hands and feet off after some very minor adjustment . Chris has been working on his Nynja in between operating a very successful tour operation with his lovely wife Anita. He has done a great job on the aircraft which is the first wide body Nynja in Australia. Chris is now in the process of flying off the 25 hours test flying and loving it. Thanks to Chris and Anita for their wonderful hospitality during my all too short stay in Alice springs. Greg.

Hi Mike. I,m with Scott it is a credit to you

Thanks for the feedback. I haven't been to Bedourie before and that's not a bad reason for going there this time. Just looking at Google earth Bedourie looks bigger than Birdsville but I guess not as well known. I am sure I could get Mogas there if I need it. I have been to Birdsville a number of times over the last 30 years and may come back that way. I have always wanted to have a look at the French line. I 'll take Frank's advice though and check the terrorist alerts before going into Birdsville, you can never be too careful especially just before the big races. The purpose for the trip is to test fly a new Nynja which is nearing completion at Alice. Just one of the things I like to do for my clients. Snr Pilot, Yes the Skyranger and Nynja are brilliant French designed kit aircraft and there are quite a few Skyrangers in the US. They had a very active agent about 10 years ago but he sold out and started a religion (true story) there was more money to be made there. Greg.

I am planning a trip to Alice Springs mid to late August in my Nynja. The plan at present is; Watts bridge- Roma- Charleville-Windorah- Bedourie-Bond Springs. Refuelling stops at Charleville and Windorah. I can carry some fuel and add it at Bedourie to get me to Alice as it seems fuel is not available at Bedourie. I am open to other suggestions . I would probably overnight at Windorah, any suggestions, I haven't been to Windorah or Bedourie before. Greg.

Thanks for the write up Ross. It is a pity we didn't have a bit more time for you to explore a little more but I have to say I was impressed with the way you handled the tricky conditions with so little time on type. Old station can be a bit of a handful with a strong cross wind blowing. Greg.

I spent an hour in a A320 sim in Melbourne a few years ago. I managed take-off OK and could fly it but managed to crash land every time. There is just no feel to the things. I admit to being a dinosaur when it comes to computers but it makes me worry about many of the new airline pilots who do very little real flying and get many of their hours up in Sims. Greg.

Pmccarthy gives good advice. I have crossed Bass Strait many times in GA aircraft. (Archer 2, 210,and TB20 Trinidad). Always from Latrobe Valley via Cliffy Island- Hogan Island- Deal Island-Flinders Island-Cape Barren Island- Cape Portland. Plan to fly as high as you can, above 7500 you should not be out of gliding range of land, albeit sometimes a little rocky island . File a flight plan and talk to Melbourne centre and use skeds. Wear a life jacket, warm woollen cloths. The better prepared you are the more you will be able to enjoy it. Greg.

Semi official count is 150 aircraft. A great turn out. Greg.

Great weather in fact it just couldn't have been better. Unofficial count of 150 aircraft. I think from memory that's more than last years Natfly. Thanks all those who flew in for making it such a fantastic day. Greg.

I have to say that I was impressed with the way Ross handled the tricky cross winds at OS in an unfamiliar aircraft. To answer fly-tornado my Nynja has a 912 ULS 100 HP engine. As others have discovered there is not a great difference in price between the 100 hp and 80hp engines and you can never have too much power. Interestingly most of the European Nynjas and Skyrangers fit the 80 hp engine but fuel is a lot more expensive over there. The wing tanks hold 52 litres per side with a small header tank that gives the aircraft quite a good range. Thanks for the great write-up Ross. Greg.

The tank seems to be a little bit too far to the rear. normally align the front of the tank with the stitch line in the lower wing fabric. it is not critical but the tank will probably fowl the upper wing battens in that position. Greg.

I'll go along with that. I have been to many fly ins over the past 30 odd years and Old Station is amongst the best. I plan to be there again this year. Greg.