farri

Hi Sean,

I am well thank you and I hope you are well also.

"Very cost effective",better.

I came down to Caboolture a few years ago to test fly a Sky Dart for a student of mine who then became the proud owner.

I was very impressed with the amount of hangers and Ultralight,(Recreational) aircraft housed there,there were quite a variety of aircraft,is it still the same.

Cheers,

Frank. :thumb_up:

Safety Culture.

When I started flying there had been 39 deaths in Ultralights,this worried me so I decided I didn`t want to become another one but I realy wanted to fly these machines.

The accidents kept happening and I became so concerned I stoped reading the reports,I finaly decided it was better to know why the accidents were happening than to bury my head in the sand and I started to research them all as best I could and what did I find?

Most accidents occur because of the actions or mistakes of the pilot,I know of only 1 where it looked like a wing came off,was this pilot error?.

How many have gone into the ground because they could no longer see because of cloud,wern`t they taught to stay away from cloud?

How many have crashed trying to get back to the runway because the engine failed on take off ? wern`t they taught to land straight ahead and not to turn more than 30 degrees left or right?,of course they were.

How many have hit power lines?,one of my students did,I considered him to be a very good pilot,he crashed in front of his family who was driving down the road,I was devistated,I didn`t teach him to fly at that height,he`s sadly missed by me and his wife and children.

I could go on for far too long as I know of far too many however finaly it is up to the individual to to maintain a SAFETY CULTURE, no system will ever be able to.

SAFETY CULTURE starts and ends with YOU.

Frank.

Cheap And Reliable.

Sean,

I don`t think we can get cheap and reliable,cheap is usually inferior.:yuk:

Frank.

What Has Changed?

Skybum,

Don`t know about GA training,only did a couple of hours and found out it was more fun to fly from my own back yard,whenever I wanted to.

Speakig of recreational aviation only, I think I can shed some light on what`s changed in the time taken to learn to fly.

Have a look at the syllabus of training,it just keeps getting biger,as more people want all the privilages of GA with flight into controled airspace and controled airspace becoming more congested, the requirements for the pilot to meet increase however there`s no less requirements for those who only wish to fly outside of controled airspace,where it all started in the first place.

I agree with you that it doesn`t matter where we came from,only where we are going so we need to look after everyone, not keep making it harder,flying the aircraft is the easiest thing to do for most people, it`s all the other , in some cases, nonsense, that makes it hard.

What about the DOLLAR , as running costs increase schools are going to try and improve their income either by gaining more students, and students are limited, or keeping the ones they`ve got going longer,I think ,unfortunatly, it`s mostly become about the DOLLAR,these days.

Frank.

Cheep,Cheep,Cheep.

The bottom line is that there is no such thing as cheap, cheap is relative, relative to what??? :hittinghead:

Frank.

BAK CD.

Kelvin,

I can`t help with the CD,someone else may be able to,however, I can try to assist by sharing some of my experience and philosophy.

As far as BAK goes,it is just the theory to understand why the aircraft flies,It will not and can not fly the aircraft ,the pilot does and it is the understanding and the skill of the pilot that is required to complete a safe flight,what happened to your CFI has nothing what so ever to do with your ability or anything you may wish to do in Recreational Aviation,other than your memory of the accident.

As an instructor I asked myself, what I could do to stop the accidents and I came to the conclusion,that, other than to instruct well and create the best pilot I could,I could do no more,I was never going to stop accidents because I believe that everyone has their fate and accidents will always occur for many reasons.

I started flying, what we used to call,Ultralights,now called, Recreational Aircraft,over 20 years ago,we didn`t even have twin seat instruction then, as twin seat aircraft were not legal,I have never so much as been scratched, in all of that time.

I can assure you that todays recreational aircraft, well maintained,are far safer than driving on our roads but they are still only as safe as a pilot wishes to make them.

I can also assure you that, the Australian Ultralight Federation and now the Recreational Aviation Australia have always done everything possible,within their power, to improve safety within our sport,it finaly comes down to the individual.

I don`t know if I helped at all or if you will ever build the idol-of your -life`s confidence,just give it your best shot.

Regards,

Frank. :thumb_up:

Aircraft Rego Numbers.

Hi Airsick,

Raa versus CASA regulations, is an old issue,it`s caused confusion ever since we first started the AUF.

As I see it the RAA Ops manual has been approved by CASA and therefore it is our bible and whatever is in it is what we need to work to.

The only real problem is that we can be held to the CAO`S and CAR`S and in that case it would require a court ruling to make a decision,in my opinion,we can`t go too far wrong staying within the Ops manual.

Frank.

dozer.

Frank.

Feedback.

Kelvin,

Sorry about the commander doing the test flying.

I`m quite happy to assist in any way I can however I`m not sure what it is that you require,can you be more specific.

farri.

A lot of tallent.

Skylark.

Hi there,

to the forum,what AC have you been flying.

You`ll find that there`s a lot of experienced guys here,don`t be afraid to ask questions.

farri.

Additional fees for CFI.

Tony,

Boy am I glad someone else has said that,there`s no probably about it, of course we should have received some assistance but that`s in the past, what about the present,arn`t things still the same.

That has always been a pet hate of mine,from way back and still is,simply, if for no other reason,than principal.

Those of us who obtained CFI ratings and provided the membership by running the schools have always been discriminated against with higher fees and we were told and schools are still being told that they are independent operators and need to take care of themselves.

In all,I paid over $40,000.00 insurance for my school.When I couldn`t afford the insurance premium any longer,no insurance, no school.How many small grass roots schools have we lost, I think it`s quite a lot.

As the small schools are forced out,of course the cost of recreational flying will increase and if something isn`t done to assist the small schools then there`s a real chance that all the training will revert to GA schools,what will be the cost then.

What is being done by the RAA to protect the small schools Nothing as I see it.

Still no answer to why aircraft rego fees are so different,however.

farri.

Aircraft Rego.

Talking about cheep flying,can anyone tell me why it costs $55 to register a single place and $110 for a two place aircraft .

It appears to me that both aircraft occupy roughly the same amount of runway and air space and require the same amount of computer space and administration time.

Are we simply,Golden Geese.

farri.

Brolga Props.

I`ve had two,4 blade Brolga props over the years,I went to the Ivo simply because I couldn`t get the Brolga,the Brolga is a good prop.

The bolts on the Brolga need to be torqued at the required time intervals or it will work loose.

If any white powder is coming from between the hubs it is an indication that the hubs are working loose and the bolts need to be re-torqued imediatly,it may be too late though and the prop may need to be replaced.

Frank.

Prop.

Too late Ian,but good to know,have you got contact information,may help others.

Frank.

Aircraft1,

Can`t help with contact,can say, I ordered a Brolga prop through Wayne Fisher,last September, after several yes and no, two weeks ago I was told, sorry won`t make anymore maybe someone will take on the factory in the future.

Gave it up as a bad joke and ordered an Ivo from America $640 Australian,delivered to me,same prop from Wade Air, $890+$45 freight.

Check out,on the net, U-Fly-Ultralights,LTD. email, [email protected]

farri

Williams Wings.

How can anyone achieve in 4 months, what everyone else is required to do in 4 years.

Pilot???????

farri.

Drifters.

Rocko,

Your so righ but gees their fun to fly .:big_grin:

farri.

Daylight saving.

Yens way is the only way to get more out of daylight,there is no way to save it as it can`t be stored or extended,when are the geniuses who implement it going to see that.

Frank. :hittinghead:

Diggler,

Hello there, to the forum,ask the questions if you have any,we may have the answers.

Cheers,

farri.

Macca15.

Welcome Ian,

To get started the best thing to do would be to contact "Recreational Aviation Australia", The (RAA) for short they will give you all the information you require.

Once you have all the information you need it is most important that you choose a school and an instructor who best meets your needs,the closest school is not necessarily the best for you.

The preparation you can do is to obtain a good book on "Basic Aeronauticle Knowledge"and start learning,it will assist you greatly when you begin your flying and you will need to know the subject matter to pass the exam required before obtaining your pilot certificate.

Other than RAA membership cost,the cost of training will vary,depending on the school you choose.

The RAA Contact is.

Head Office,

Unit 3,

1 Pirie Street,

Fyshwick ACT 2609,

Ph 0262804700

email, [email protected]

All the best to you and I hope become a Recreational pilot.

farri.

Drifter,Fun??????????

TOSGcentral,

Tony you are absolutely correct in all you say about the Drifter.

When I was taking students on a cross country,up to the Atherton Tablelands, in winter,my face would get so stiff I could hardly keep briefing and it`s teribaly hard for me to stop talking,had to wear face protection in the end.

I flew in the Thruster years ago with Pat Mcgrath,whom I`m sure you know,when he was teaching in one,I didn`t mind it at all.

It appears to me everyone wants to go faster these days,be it on the road or in the air,we need to slow down a bit and enjoy more.

I`m semi retired now and if things go to plan, in the near future, I may have one of those, shiny,no bugs or wind in the hair,minimum clothing required, maximum creature comfort,things called Recreational Aeroplanes,don`t know how I`m going to go slow though,what`s the secret. I`ll never stop flying the Drifter however.

One of the first things I flew, was,what I called, a Garden Chair with a wing and a tail on it and something that resembled a motor,had a lot of fun though.

Drifters,Thrusters and all of those primitave flying machines,for ever.:thumb_up::thumb_up::thumb_up:

farri.

Ian,

Understand what you`re saying,happens plenty to me,possibly to everyone I gues.

I`ve got plenty of dirt on a river but check my blog and you`ll see what`s in it,plenty of clear water creeks near by though.

farri.

Tassy.

Hello Jillian,

Welcome,I bet it`s getting cold down there,my wife and I were in Tasmania a couple of weeks ago,we loved it,was very dry though,just getting some rain as we left,it should have greened up a bit by now.

We live 45ks south of Cairns QLD and believe it or not we`ve had over 3 meters of rain since Christmas.

Back to flying,I hope you have a great experience and if you get a chance have a fly in a Drifter.

Cheers,

farri.

Cheaper,Cheapest????????

Spacesage,

I agree with you,The value of anything is relative,how do we measure it,any amount is too much if you don`t have it.

The intention of going going back to basics was to maintain the cost as low as possible,but the scene has changed since I started and that`s just a fact of life,maybe someone will start all over again,one day.

On endorsements,I agree also,there`s still a lot of guys out there who fly real grass roots and don`t want to be commercial pilots, I`m one.

K.I.S.S. principal, Keep It Simple Stupid.

farri.

Hello Ozrod,

Welcome,have you any aircraft and if so what type.

farri.