Phil Perry

 

Stunt to advertise upcoming airshow. ( Jun 2019 ) Pilot was a Welsh Sqn Leader with an unpronounceable name ( Sorry Sir )

 

 

Does modern HF actually need a trailing wire? Surely antenna technology has surpassed that....

Law of Electro Physics can't be surpassed,   you need a certain length of antenna to resonate on the desired frequency old bean, but there ARE smaller antennas you could use but their Transmit / receive efficiency is a compromise to produce a reasonable radiation resistance / efficiency / range.  ( See Bullwhips in the front of trucks )   The lower the frequency, the larger the antenna required. . .Inverse proportions and all that. . . 

 

 

Problem is, I am a ham radio tragic......even one of my motorcycles has HF ham radio on it, so why not my plane?  IF it can be done. ?

Cheers,

 

Jack.

See if you can get hold of an RFDS Portable HF set,. . I've not seen one of these, but they are mentioned on this thread,. . can't recall by whom though . . . Hope they don't need a trailing wire,. . on a Harley Davidono, it might be awkward. . .  ( Ell Oh Ell )

 

 

Coffs Harbour had the only Vixxen I could find with a BRS.  Bonus was all steam gauges too!  Love learning to fly it and have a great instructor, too ?

Cheers,

 

Jack.

OK, Jack,. . . Sounds good.  I gather that you are not fond of Glass Cockpits. . .LOL I know a few old hands who agree with that.   I love the technology though,. . mate of mine has an Evektor Eurostar ( similar the the Aus SportStar ) which is mainly Electronic.  The instructors in the UK are now teaching Cross country using GPS, rather than the old Maps and wind drift calcs, mainly due to the rather worrying increase in Controlled Airspace infringements. . . although the pilot MUST carry a current Nav chart wherever he flies.. . . I dunno if this is a good or bad thing,. . .but keeping Toy aeroplanes away from conflict with Commercial traffic cannot be a bad idea really. and the trend is still rising monthly. . . 

 

Matey's Eurostar has Pilot Aware moving map, Flarm, ( to detect Gliders ) coupled Mode S transponder with ADSB and TCAS. . . . and all he does is fly around the local cabbage patch and rarely goes anywhere, apart from to the local licenced airport for breakfast and a coffee ( 19 NM each way )  VERY nervous flier. . dunno why he doesnt' just flog the plane and buy a fancy motorhome with a jetski on the back. . . .but HEY,. . I get free flying with him as he likes an experienced old boy as company. . . 

 

Phil.

 

 

Problem is, I am a ham radio tragic......even one of my motorcycles has HF ham radio on it, so why not my plane?  IF it can be done. ?

Cheers,

 

Jack.

Yeah . . .I feel your pain mate.   . .I used to do all sorts of naughty things to aeroplanes to operate non-aeronautical radio from them, even though it was not legal so to do.  My Crowning achievement was to make a simplex radio contact with a guy just North of Canberra, from 9,000 feet above Victoria, near to Michelton at the time,. . using a Phillips FM 320 UHF CB radio on 476 Megs UHF. . .  t the time, we had a repeater near Melbourne, I think it was on Mount Dandenong ( I could be wrong ) but I wanted to make a long distance transmission using 5 watts UHF FM. .. I took the radio up in a C172, and had a small Motorcycle battery to run it.  The antenna was home made and attached to a little Cone base mounted under the Right wing, ( Wasn't me who drilled the wing BTW )  I used a home made helical whip and worked the chap in ACT easily,. . .70% quieting. . .we had a chat for around 15 minutes, before the WX started to get too cloudy below,. . and this was before I'd earned my Instrument rating !   So had to cut it short. 

 

Regrettbly, this was in the very early days of UHF CB, and there weren't that many operators around.  But I gather that it becme a lot more popular afterwards and now there is an explosion of IWN modes available that you an download onto your phone and tali to the world,. .. IF you have a mobile signal. . saw an  APP called YELLO yesterday,. .. lotsa stuff around for comms mate. 

 

Phil

 

G4 OHK  ( Old Hairy Kangaroo    ). . .'

 

 

Shooting around hangars and water tanks is dangerous. Better ferret out another method.

We had an Irish Guy,. . who specialised in sorting Bunny infestations,. . they were undermining our portakabins. . He used a .22 rifle for the awkward ones, and the Airfield Manager allowed him to do that since the man was an ex RAF Herc pilot, who understood that thin skinned aircraft did not like being shot. . . but his Main weapons were Ferrets, nets and Jack Russell dogs.   He did the job anyhow, and word must've gota round as the Bunnies have not returned. . . He squirted Ferret Urine into the burrows,. .. apparently, this has a similar effect to leaving Lion Sh!t to deter larger creatures in other localities. . . .

 

 

Wonder what the legality is, trailing  a wire HF antenna from an RA registered aircraft?  An enquiring mind would like to know ?

Cheers,

 

Jack.

 

Couldn't get away with that in the UK Jack.   Commercially produced / factory built aircraft cannot be modified once they have been approved for recreational use under the 'Permit to Fly' system here.   Occasionally, minor modifications to existing design have bee suggested, these then have to be described in detail, both to the Manufacturer, and whichever umbrella organization which looks after the type.  We have 2 in the UK, the LAA and the BMAA,  

 

If the manufacturer approves of the idea, they can advise LAA /BMAA who will look at all the engineering aspects and if they agree, a modification may be made, under strict conditions.   That sounds easy doesn't it ?. . .It's a lot more involved really !  It took 3 years to get a cabin heater, based upon a Mini car heater radiator in our syndicate plane under the BMAA.  engineering system, and this wa a home built aircraft.   In the end we had to remove it as I'd made a big Boo Boo in my calculations and when it was turned on,. . .the engine wouldn't maintain normal operating temperature !   We all flew in Ugg Boots instead.

 

I can imagine the howls of derision regarding dangling a bit of wire behind the aircraft. . ."What if it jams the controls ?"   etc.  The other point is that no one uses HF in the UK. . .when you can communicate to everywhere using 3 watts on VHF ! A flight radio telephony licence here only covers VHF too. . . Some older GA types have HF fitted, but I've never had cause to use it since I came back to the UK from Aus in 1983. . .

 

 

Hi Everyone,

Well, here I am to start a new era in my life, since I am retired from the Radio Comms industry. Another goal to achieve and another item to cross off my bucket list!  So last week I did a TIF at Coffs Harbour in an Aeroprakt Vixxen and continued on for 5 hours or so training over the rest of the week.  My longest flight time was 1.8 hours and I guess the instructor was trying me out to see IF I had a chance to make the grade.  I have to say it was the best week I have had in a long time.

 

I did 3 hours classroom time as well.  The plan is to go back to Coffs Harbour for  10 days or so and run up more training hours and keep up this regime through the winter. Fortunately the Vixxen has a full complement of steam gauges and no glass panel I need to throw rocks at ?

 

I have done  previous training in gliders, however at my age I have found the groundhandling regime too hard for me in the hot Sun, so I abandoned the idea. At the same time I am bringing my era of 50 years motorcycling to an end as well.  Picking up a BMW 1200 HP2 if it falls over, I cant do anymore ?

 

So it’s onwards and upwards, even to the point of measuring out an airstrip on my property, herein after called a fire break!  Time to fuel up my bulldozer and other machines and get to work,  construction of a machinery shed too, for an obvious reason.

 

My aircraft of choice is a Foxbat “Kelpie” although I am looking at what else is out there.

 

Gathering much good knowledge reading the forums, won’t post much as I have little knowledge to offer right now.

 

Cheers,

 

Jack C

 

(25km SSW Of Rockhampton)

 Welcome Jack. . .I've had a ride in the Demonstrator Vixxen at our airfield . . .Lovely aeroplane. . . shame I haven't the dollars to buy one on a pension ! .  

 

 

Rode my daughters Monster in SE France. Driving on the right, steep drops with no barriers. Scared the sh... out of me. Went back to her house with my tail between my legs.

The MAIN thing is that you managed to preserve your tail for future use.  Magnifique Mon Ami. . . .

 

 

The manager of our Airfield presented me with a Hand Held radio last weekend,. . . as soon as the wx was good enough for flying and the field had dried out !  It is an ICOM ICA6E 8.33 Khz compliant unit.   Now superseded by the A25 series, but they got it at a good price !   I asked if there was a wall charger with it, and they said there was a 'charger' . . NO, that was a Battery eliminator, to RUN the unit if the battery had discharged, which both of them had. . .I explained that connecting this to a car battery, would not charge the battery on the rig, as it was a Lithium ion which required a current limited pulse charger,. . .which meant that I would be tied to a big auto battery and not able to walk around the site with the radio. . .

 

Eyes glazing over,. . have you ever tried explaining a pair of scissors to a Martian over the phone ?. . .   anyway, Manager is going to Sun N Fun in Florida this weekend and left me a message saying that he'd buy a charger there. . .  Er, don't the Yanks use 110 Volts mains supply ?  \He said that we would have to buy a travel plug to use it in the UK,  but I don't know about the voltage Oh well,. . at least he's trying. . . . 

 

 

Think about the intent of the English language test.  I gained the impression when doing the test for the part 61 licence conversion that it was more about understanding calls that were made by people not speaking correct English.  To have to do a test when your first and only language is English is at best questionable and probably more correctly labeled stupidity but then again this is CASA so unnecessary rubbish is the norm.

I said this when I read that it was to be introduced in the UK for ALL new licence Applicants Frank   For those whose first language is English, seemed to be a very silly thing to ask, BUT the CA UK re a Qango, so some of the Government nonsense obviously rubbed off.  Generally, CAA are one of the Better Qs.  Mainly due the fact that all of their ops staff are Pilots, Ex pilots or at least have some related aviation experience. I dunno if CASA do.    I can feel the frustration mentioned by other posters here, when it becomes apparent that international students are Obviously not that proficient in something so vital.

 

We used to have a lot of training particularly at Oxford Airport, of foreign students, mainly from Middle Eastern countries, I had n amusing attempt to contact a ld who it turned out was Iraqui, to let him know that his aeroplane was trailing smoke from the right engine. . . He did not respond, so I guessed he wasn't on Oxford's freq.  I called Oxford and identified the aircraft and later found that it was one of their students.  ( I never found what the smoke was all about though )

 

Oxford trained a heck of a lot of Argentinian students Before the Falklands war,. . .I often wondered if any of them were victims of our boys in the Harriers later whist flying their Pucaras. . .bit ironic if they had been . .

 

 

Well I used to fly around in a 172 with 50 metre or so of aerial cable hanging out the window connected to a RFDS HF SSB portable. Could talk to people a looong way away, make telephone calls through the base to organise stockies or a case of coldies. Very swish for the late 70s.

Kaz

 

RFDS portable HF ?. . . very swish that.    I heard about those units but never saw one.      I hope that you didn't have to pedal it ( ! )   I used an old C180 a few times which had HF on board, and a trailing wire antenna which had to be wound out handraulically to the appropriate length for the frequency used. . . David Squirrel ( RIP ) told me that he once forgot to wind the aerial back in and landed,, wrapping it around the fence. . .  Used to have a little 'Egg Cup' device on the end  of the wire, to make it trail nice and straight. . .   Being a radio Ham back then, I found all this stuff most interesting.

 

 

In the 1970s, I always thought that in the future, we'd need to alter the frequency spectrum a bit as traffic increased. . .  we were using 119.1 Unicom for ALL unspecified airstrips and this worked fine. . .and sometimes used 'SmokeNet' the CFA channel if wandering about in the WoopWoop, always someone to chat to there ( If you were lucky enough to have HF installed in your flying appliance that is. . . I actually used Ham Radio, on the 2 metre VHF FM band in some cases where I knew there was a 'Useful' Ham that I could connect with. . .but that entailed carrying a Converted Crammond Carphone taxi rig with an extra aerial, and I'm sure it was not Kosher. . .but for those of you who have actually flown in the North of WA and in far North Queensland,. . .I'm sure you understand how lonely it can be if there's no one to talk to when flying over that Glorious and mostly empty country. . . Jeeze,. . .I Really DO Miss it. . .  

 

What year did they start using the Y--- designator for airfields ?  

 

UK Airfields only have a 'E' locator if they are licenced, maybe it's the same in Aus ?   I dunno . . .All I ever had was the VFG, and a flipchart full of disparate strips all over the bloody place, with no radio frequency advertised,. . we just used 119.1 unless otherwise indicated. . .   AND nowadays, the map and chart NAV system has been junked in favour of GPS for flight trining,. . possibly due to the large amount of Airspace incursions,. . though you still have to carry a current paper chart by law. . .  Hmmm. . .  Advancement ?  or what. . ?  I Learned to Navigate ( In Australia ) with the traditional methods, and, touch wood, , I've never, EVER busted controlled airspace. . . .So I don't know yet whether this is a good or a bad thing as regards training fresh pilots. . . time will tell. . .

 

 

I still think that this is a GREAT idea for Alcoholic Pilots who want to keep it a secret. . . 

 

 

 

 

Yes indeed,. . .  Darned good job that it didn't happen in flight eh ?. . . 

 

 

OK let's just reach back over the seat and grab my Flight bag. . .  . . ..Oh Bugger. . . .Err. . . . .

 

 

 

Thanks Kasper.

 

I have no idea what that aircraft is,. the pic was sent to me by one of our flying club members; simply labelled 'Horten Aircraft'

 

The only Horten I'd ever heard of came from Germany in the 1940s.   I'll have to ask again when my friend returns from the U.S. 

 

Phil.

 

 

As a foreigner, can someone tell me what is the aircraft MAUW maximum for RPC certificates ? . . .is there one ? ( in the UK it's 450 Kgs MAUW, shortly to become 600 Kgs. )

 

 

OK,. . no takers for the Horten Brothers lookalike  ?  Shame on yez all. . . .

 

Mind you, I have no idea who made the modern replica one in the picture. . . which looks like a 2 seater, the original was single seat.  ( Honest Phil ) [Kasper must be on his Jollies this week. . .] 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horten_Ho_229.

 

 

Easy one

 

 

Thank you for letting us know Rotorwork.

 

I really can't recall if I commented on this thread earlier on. . I certainly Read it. . . 

 

I feel like I've been kicked in the guts. . .I really do, and now iv'e got some grit in both eyes and no mistake..

 

R.I.P.  Debbie mate.

 

Us Big boys DO weep occasionally don't we lads. .

 

 

Don't worry,

Its part of my identity. probably always keep a bike around.

 

current favorite is my modified Ducati monster S2R, it was purchased from a good friend after I fractured a vertebrae. in an indecent that killed my trusty bandit, which I was riding at the time,

 

lets just say feeling like I got hit by a truck is a legitimate point of reference for me.

 

also have a Suzuki Vstrom in the garage for long distance touring.

The bike riding will help with balance. . .EVERY PILOT I KNOW, HAS HAD BIKE EXPERIENCE. . .attracts them like flies. . . and it certainly helps with coordination in flight training. . .  Best of fortune with your ongoing training mate, and welcome to the forum too. . .   :-)

 

 

In that case,. . Well Done that man. . . I gathered that it was a PA28 from the tail bit on the pic. . . 

 

Since he walked away from it, I can say Thanks that he didn't damage any Vines. . .( Must preserve Aussie Wines )

 

 

 

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UNAUTHORISED MOGAS MAY HAVE LED TO SERIOUS INJURY

 

The AAIB monthly bulletin for February 2019 includes a report on an accident to a Rutan Long Ez whose engine suddenly failed on the approach to Dunkeswell Aerodrome.  The pilot made a dead stick landing close to the approach to the active runway but in avoiding a post and wire fence the aircraft touched down firmly, seriously injuring the pilot.

 

There is often an element of luck in carrying out an off airfield landing and on this occasion it seems that luck was not on the pilot's side, although his passenger fortunately suffered only minor injuries.  The report goes on to examine in some detail the cause of the sudden engine stoppage on the approach and concludes in part:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ONGOING AAIB INVESTIGATIONS

 

Updated 20 February 2019

 

Currently there are nine UK GA fatal accidents under investigation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AIRPROXES

 

In the February Insight the Director of the Airprox Board draws attention to how important it is that a report to a controller of current or estimated future position should be accurate.  A controller without radar will rely on this when directing other traffic and it is vital to let them know promptly if a correction becomes appropriate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

OCCURRENCES

 

Occurrence reports can be used only for the purposes of maintaining or improving aviation safety.  However, providing that this is your motivation for wanting to see them, and I believe that many of our readers are so motivated, your application to the CAA for ongoing access to Occurrence Reports may well succeed.  I understand that EASA is concerned that Occurrence Reports might alternatively be used for purposes of litigation.

 

To apply for access to Occurrence Reports contact [email protected] 

 

This month's occurrence (Ref. 201900672) is yet another example of the confusion about new frequencies which is likely to be with us for some time to come:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My experience with the PA38-112 was one where I lost elevator control on a glide approach; it stopped flying 6’ off the ground which made for an uncomfortable arrival. My airspeed was somewhat higher than the POH stalling speed and the T-tail didn’t respond well without the benefit of some power on the airscrew to assist it. I wouldn’t now deliberately arrive without at least a trickle of power on.

I didn’t like the spin characteristics much either as it went into a steep nose down very quickly and the spin rate seemed to increase at first...bit disconcerting. 

 

It has has a reputation for spinning easily if rudder is mishandled and it just doesn’t seem to me to be a good proposition for a trainer. AOPA America recommends spin training only with PA38 experienced instructors.

 

the Auster has a quite docile stall ?

 

kaz

The Auster is a lovely, Docile Pussycat. . . I tried to buy VH-ARX. . .the owner would not sell.   After returning to  the UK, I saw it in an Aussie magazine in Airline colours, based in East Gipplsand in 2009. . . can't recall the Airline, but it was predominantly silver and red livery. .