Gentreau

Nutnudger !? That's a goodun, welcome abord captain :)

Has anyone even managed to find a link to a flying club for Group-A's in Tonga, so FF28 could at least keep his hand in with a bit of PPL training. Google's giving me nothing......

And what is the arrangement between Australia and New Zealand ?

As a general rule, as microlights are operated under national regulations, you can only fly a foreign registered machine for a limited period, if at all. A example exists in Europe between the UK and France. We have dispensations allowing up to 28 days flying of a foreign machine by a foreign pilot, but it needs the dispensation in place to be legal. The same would apply for example to an Aussie wanting to go to New Caledonia which has the same rules as France. If you can find a flying club in Tonga, they will be able to give you more information, but for three years you will definitely be looking at registering your machine there (if possible)

He probably forgot to genuflect and kiss the president's ring.......

Two possibilities come to mind. 1. Board members to President "wind yer bloody neck in" 2. "Oh shit he had some nasty illness, don't offend the spastic" (Adam Hills) In any case, you have your membership and the activities of the president are now a matter of public record. Well done, score one for the good guys :)

Ok, having never seen these screws, I was imagining something rounded and un-drillable (maybe that would be called button-head screws). If they are of the same style as the 582 exhaust bolts then they could be drilled and wired. Have to say though, it does sound strange for them all to go walkabout at the same time..... Looking forward to hearing the conclusion from MozartMerv when has all the details.

Just been looking at the Jabiru website and I noticed a couple of claims that strike me as possibly innaccurate. Actually, I think the D-Motor holds that particular record at 48kg installed (http://d-motor1.vpweb.be/Price---product-specifications.html) Not according to Rotax (29.1kg) http://www.flyrotax.com/enginesImpressum/product-rangeImpressum/carburetedImpressum/582-65hpImpressum/engine-data-performance.aspx

Clearly if the area is inaccesible, then that's not going to happen. If the fixings are cap-head screws then I guess they can't be safety-wired either. Is there a requirement by Jabiru to use any kind of thread locking compound on these screws ?

We have a standard practise to remove the top cowling and make a full visual check at least daily too. We check the engine mounts, all hoses, plug caps, electrical connections and safety-wires. In France we don't have the L1, L2, L3 qualifications, every pilot is 100% responsible for his or her machine which is why we don't trust anyone else to have done anything, we check ourselves. I don't know the Jabiru engine, so I didn't know that the intake manifold is not visible from above. Sounds like those bolts should be safety-wired.

Shouldn't the loose bolts have been spotted on a pre-flight ? I find it surprising that a set of bolts could come loose, to the point of falling out without anyone noticing. Are they not safety wired ?

Only taking the piss David. I've worked at a large american electronics manufacturer and seen some of the 'inventions' for which they get patents. Frankly I find it all bloody stupid and beneficial to only one group of people.

I wonder, has anybody patented the term "smartphone" yet ...... ?

Interesting analysis of the case here: http://www.themusicvoid.com/2012/08/consumers-are-the-real-losers-in-apple-vs-samsung-verdict

Not that I noticed, but then there was so many different aircraft, I could easily have missed them.

You mean this one.

Probably because France is the biggest microlight market in europe with approx. 15000 pilots. Our regulations are relatively 'light' compared to say, the UK, which allows a lot of freedom in flying. Yesterday I was at the Festival ULM at Blois where Zenith were exhibiting along with probably 40 other microlight makers.

Yes, but Truro is in Cornwall, not so far away, just a short channel crossing ......

I shall be there tommorrow (Blois) and be taking a look at it. :) Were you after a translation of the french website ?

Does the candidate have to pass the "elbow test" ?

Just how "swift" is the build ?

France identifies microlights differently too. We have a registration number (ex. 85ND) and then a radio callsign which IS the same format as the standard registrations (ex F-JHAX)

We have one in the hanger (in France so not much use to you) and I'm told it's an excellent machine and very simple to maintain. The wing covers are factory made as slide on "socks" and only need tensioning. There seems to be quite a bit of leg and shoulder room too. Hope that helps.

Thanks Wayne. Going down there for work, once the details are all sorted. I was in NC last year and it certainly is a great place to fly, especially under the french microlight regulations ! There's plenty of full blown airports run by the state and quite a few smaller strips too. Very difficult to get lost as you're never more than 50km from the coast :)

G'day. Just joined the forum as I'm going to be moving to Noumea in New Caledonia in the next few months and intend to also get to Oz to do some flying. Nice to get a feeling for how things work down there. Cheers, Gentreau.