K-man

Sad news indeed. Peter was a top guy.

 

 

What I find plain dumb about all this is:

 

To get an RAA CTA endorsement I would have had to:

 

a) Obtain a class 2 medical

 

b) Pass the written CTA exam (Allegedly harder than the GA requirement)

 

c) Demonstrate that I am capable of handling the situation of flying into Essendon and Moorabin.

 

Due to the RAA endorsement being shelved, I now have a different option:

 

a) Obtain a class 2 medical

 

b) Pass the written PPL exam

 

c) spend two hours under the hood for instruments

 

c) Demonstrate that I am capable of handling the situation of flying into Essendon and Moorabin.

 

That will take a little more time and quite a few dollars but, at the end of the day, I am still the same pilot and I will be piloting the same aircraft in the same airspace. Maybe the fact that I am not intelligent enough to see a great difference here is why CASA don't want me in their airspace!! :baldy:

 

 

Controlled airspace, plb's, pseudo GA aircraft etc may be all very well but I think people are forgetting that a lot of pilots are just happy to fly within the limits of their aircraft and their abilities. The reason we have a seperate organisation is to control the lower performance end of the market and look after the pilots that just want to fly for the pleasure of it. If pilots want to cross oceans or deserts, compete with 747's or do what larger and faster aircraft do, then go and get their ppl and leave us "normal people alone". I fly rag and tube, get a real kick out of a lazy flight on a fine afternoon and do not wish to compete with larger GA aircraft in either performance, passenger capacity or speed. (if I did I would get my PPL and buy an aircraft to suit). I carry a radio as I think they are essential, I do not carry a PLB. Do not try and make me a pseudo GA pilot as I don't want it.Cheers

Maynard

There seems to be this constant theme of leave RA alone, we like it like it is. In Eugene Reid's presidents report in the latest RA magazine he refers back to the situation in 1977 when we couldn't fly above 300' or fly over or across highways. I am sure that those conditions still suit some people but most have moved on. In 1986 we could fly to the dizzying height of 500' and cross the highway. Should we have drawn the line there? If not is there some other point that we should have stopped our progress? Since then recreational flying has evolved much more and it will continue to evolve for the next hundred or more years. We can't stop development. People with red flags would still be walking in front of cars if the clock stopped at that point of time in the automotive story.

 

The Locomotive Act (also known as the Red Flag Act) is a reference to the Locomotives Act 1865 introduced by the British parliament as one of a series of measures to control the use of mechanically propelled vehicles on British public highways during the latter part of the 19th century. This act required any motorised vehicle to be preceded by a man with a red flag.

If your passion is to fly at 300' around your property and no further, fine .. go for it. That is your right and privilege. If your desire is to own and fly a faster and perhaps more sophisticated RA aircraft, optioned to a standard that is safe to utilise controlled airspace, then I believe that that privilege should be sought for you by RAA. As has been pointed out by many, just because a privilege is granted doesn't mean that everyone has to apply for that privilege. We can all fit under the umbrella of RAA. It is so totally negative and counter-productive to fight amongst ourselves.

Here are the facts as I know them. I have been informed by a friend (who has not consented to be named here) that he is reliably informed (I know, this is now 3rd or 4th hand) that there was a public incident between Mr Mc Cormick and someone who was reported to be a member of RAAus and / or RAAus Management at Bunderberg, not Narromine as previously reported by me. I have been informed by another independant source (who also has not consented to be named here) that Mr Mcormick (I am paraphrasing here) has serious concerns with the professionalism, competancy and standards of conduct of a number of RAAus pilots.

 

In both these cases it was relayed to me that these were significant contributory factors in Mr McCormick's decision on RAAus and CTA.

I was at the Bundaberg Air Show and there were very few RAA aircraft involved. However, there was one significant breach of RA regulations which may well have raised the ire of CASA. However, I cannot believe that the actions of one pilot, or for that matter a small number if you include the incursions at Temora after Narromine, would cause CASA to tear up months of work. The last para of McCormick's letter is very interesting in light of the fact that no reasons are given. "I consider,however, that the above proposed changes to current rules are not in the best interests of the safety of air navigation." This seems to be McCormick's personal position, adopted without consultation, and I really feel we deserve a better explanation bearing in mind the huge amount of work and effort RAA has put in on our behalf.

 

 

We flew up last year and stopped at White Cliffs. We stayed at the Underground Motel. Very comfortable, good food, reasonable price and they pick you up and drop you off at the strip.

 

 

Hi Tomo.

 

I should have noticed before that you were flying from YDAY. We called in recently after the Bundaberg airshow. Nice strip! :thumb_up: Unfortunately we copped atrocious weather along the coast so missed out on a lot of sightseeing. Next time!!

 

 

I ask some of you guys who have flown both a tecnam, and a Jab.If they were the same price for similar specs which would you buy?.

Having flown both, and enjoyed every minute of it in both, I think that everyone would choose the Tecnam as it's so much smoother to fly. The problem is, it's chalk and cheese. You could buy 2 or three J160s for the same price as the Tecnam and one J230 with enough left over to buy fuel for the next 10 years. It's like comparing a Volkswagon with a Mercedes.

I have friends with Jabs who absolutely love them and have had no problems and know of others who have had no end of trouble.

 

Dollar for dollar, Jab wins hands down but ... the real issue is the motor. I agree with the major, leave me with our 912 until the Jab engineers iron out the bugs. ;)

 

 

Sure beats using chopsticks!! :thumb_up:

 

 

Not a good day today,TAF AMD YSCB 252240Z 2600/2624

 

29030G45KT 9999 LIGHT SHOWERS OF RAIN SCT025 BKN035 BKN060

 

FM260600 29025G35KT 9999 LIGHT SHOWERS OF RAIN SCT020 BKN030

 

FM260900 28015G25KT 9999 LIGHT SHOWERS OF RAIN SCT015 BKN025

 

FM261200 28012KT 9999 LIGHT SHOWERS OF RAIN SCT020

 

INTER 2600/2606 4000 SHOWERS OF RAIN AND SMALL HAIL PELLETS BKN015

 

INTER 2606/2624 6000 SHOWERS OF RAIN BKN015

 

RMK FM260000 MOD/SEV TURB BLW 5000FT TILL261200

 

FM261200 MOD TURB BLW 5000FT

 

T 09 11 11 08 Q 1003 1002 1003 1006

 

TAF AMD YSCB 251656Z 2517/2618

 

31020G30KT 9999 LIGHT SHOWERS OF RAIN SCT015 SCT030 BKN060

 

FM260000 29030G45KT 9999 LIGHT SHOWERS OF RAIN SCT025 BKN035 BKN060

 

FM260600 29025G35KT 9999 LIGHT SHOWERS OF RAIN SCT020 BKN030

 

FM260900 28015G25KT 9999 LIGHT SHOWERS OF RAIN SCT015 BKN025

 

FM261200 28012KT 9999 LIGHT SHOWERS OF RAIN BKN015

 

TEMPO 2517/2522 5000 RAIN BKN012

 

INTER 2522/2606 4000 SHOWERS OF RAIN AND SMALL HAIL PELLETS BKN015

 

INTER 2606/2612 6000 SHOWERS OF RAIN BKN015

 

RMK FM251700 MOD/SEV TURB BLW 5000FT TILL261200

 

FM261200 MOD TURB BLW 5000FT

 

T 09 04 05 08 Q 1000 1002 1004 1004

Gee I love it when you guys talk dirty! :devil:

 

 

I am putting this back on the agenda as it seems to have dropped off the back end. There must be someone out there with some ideas.:hittinghead:

 

 

I reckon you did all right .. except for Carby Heat! You need to remember the possibility of icing when you're coming down on idle! You'll run the risk of an accident if you're not more careful!!! :thumb_up:

 

 

The Underground Motel at White Cliffs is another interesting ans enjoyable place to stay. The guys will pick you up and deliver you back to the strip.

 

 

Hi John, Welcome. You obviously enjoyed the GSA display and probably talked to some of the guys. Although I live the other side of Melb. I am proud to be a member of the Lethbridge crew because they are such a friendly and helpful bunch. Bruce Vickers is the CFI and with your background he would have you 'off and away with RAA' in no time. They have a sausage sizzle Sat lunch time. Why don't you pop out and say hello?

 

 

Some time back there was an advisory circular AC 91-220(0) regarding operations at non-controlled aerodromes. http://www.casa.gov.au/newrules/parts/091/download/ac091-220.pdf

 

In particular:

 

9. CIRCUIT DIRECTION

 

The regulations permit turns contrary to the recommended circuit direction subject to

 

supplementary safety procedures. Left-hand circuits should be performed unless righthand circuits are recommended for the particular runway, but the pilot may use a contrary direction if it is safe to do so (CASR 91.220 (2)). In assessing the safety of a contrary turn the pilot should take into account, among other things, the prevailing visibility, the probable expectations of other pilots, and the possibility of a missed broadcast.

 

This was followed up with: http://www.casa.gov.au/fsa/2003/jan/60-61.pdf which clarified the situation.

 

 

 

Now, I can't find any other reference to CASR 91.220 so I don't know if the rule was enacted or not. (RAA does refer to this rule but only by the number, not its content.)

 

 

 

The reason for the interest is this. Under certain circumstances (not denoted in ERSA or in a controlled airport) is it allowable to fly a RH circuit if conditions dictate? Common sense says yes and the proposed rule would have allowed it but I can find no further reference to it.

 

 

Anybody know the fate of Lilydale and Coldstream airports? If not good, anybody hurt. Heard the fires ran thru the area.Gibbo

The fire came within about 500m to the north of the field at Lilydale. No fires really close to Coldstream airport, but they weren't far away. We flew around the Yarra Valley, and down towards Warrigul, from Lilydale yesterday. Lots of smoke etc near Kinglake, Glenburn Gap and Healesville so didn't go near those spots. Just hoping they get all the hot spots before the next bout of hot weather and North wind.

 

 

And in the article we read ..

 

Police are investigating the fatalities, and spokesmen for the Australian Transport Safety Bureau and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority declined to comment.

The spokesmen said ultralights, also known as recreational aircraft, were an RAA responsibility.

 

The RAA failed to return The Sunday Mail's phone calls and emails.

Once again, a lot of these accidents were not ultralights, but, why no response from RAA? What a lost opportunity.

 

 

For anyone with the Rotax 912, with regard to the engine restart. Our manual suggests restart should be possible by simply applying fuel and ignition, as long as the propeller is still windmilling. If this fails you need to increase the angle of attack and reduce speed, even up to a stall, until the propeller stops rotation. Then you lower the nose and use the starter.

 

The other thing in our POH is the airspeed for the glide, 60kt for minimum rate of sink and 65 kt for best distance in still air.

 

We've had two partial failures due to faulty throttle cables and had no problem landing either.

 

 

Time to spare? ;) Go by air!! Sounds like lots of fun though.

 

 

the first school had me confused with the validity of my log book, the instructor kept saying as i had now association with a authorized association my flight time did not count, I questioned that as some flight time is with the R.A.N, he said that was OK but all the rest was not. your response doubly confirms he was wrong, so thanks for that, this is one school i will not be going back to.

Your log book is a legal document. There are certain requirements as to how and what information is recorded. It is an offence under the regulations if an entry is falsified.

 

Requirement to hold a log book

 

 

 

 

 

 

• A pilot must keep a personal log book [Civil Aviation Regulation (CAR) 5.51]
   
   
   
   
  A log book consists of a number of pages permanently bound together in such a way that pages may not be replaced or removed;
   
   
   
   
   
  
• An electronic record is not acceptable as a log book, however, a computer printout bound together in the form of a log book and maintained up to date is acceptable;
   
   
   
   
   
  

 

 

 

[*]All manual entries to the log book must be made in permanent ink;

 

[*]This log book is to be produced to the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) when requested;

 

[*]Falsification of a log book is a criminal offence;

 

[*]There is no regulatory requirement to carry a personal log book on a flight.

 

 

Your log book, if properly maintained, should be accepted as a valid record of your experience. As has been pointed out, it is not a record of ability or competence. It is a total lack of respect to say it has no part in your training process. If you have the experience, it will show in your flying.

 

 

Thanks, but no thanks! I've read it already. :devil:

 

 

Yesterday was a beautiful day for a fly so we decided to meet up with some friends for lunch a Phillip Island. :thumb_up: To get a little familiar with other strips and conditions and to allow an extra t/o and landing for each pilot we called in at YTDN on the way down and YTYA on the way home. Approaching Tyab my wife gave a 10 mile inbound call which was followed by an inbound call from a C172 which gave its position as 200m metres behind and 500' above (keep in mind the 172 is 5 to 10 kts slower than our aircraft), over French Island. Naturally we are looking everywhere for this aircraft. To let him know where we were we gave an early joining oblique downwind call thinking we must have been well ahead by now. He responded by saying he was mid downwind. We still had not sighted him so my wife decided to turn away, circle and rejoin behind the C172 which she did. The 172 was now in sight and we followed it in. The issue is this. The 172 pilot made at least one call from the wrong location. He gave no downwind join call and his calls all followed our calls. In my mind we were at all times in front of him until we aborted our approach to ensure our safety.

 

We changed pilots and set off home to YLIL. Established on downwind in the circuit and another aircraft flies in from the right joining mid-field crosswind cutting in in front downwind, forcing us to slow and extend downwind to gain separation. I deliberately have not described the second aircraft. Suffice to say it is VH registered.

 

Isn't is interesting that in one afternoon our safety was threatened by two GA registered aircraft flown by two young PPL pilots who for whatever reason felt that they had the right to push ahead of an RA registered aircraft.

 

We were not in a hurry and were not put out but there seems to be an attitude problem out there. Any-one else had similar experiences? We normally fly mid-week, is this the weekend way to fly?

 

 

On the basis that we plot our course on a map and take our direction from the compass, then we don't need a GPS, but aren't they great as backup. :thumb_up: As far as I can see the aviation GPS is pre loaded with most of the things you need and as such doesn't take a lot of time to programme, and the CTA boundaries are useful. Your Garmen as a backup unit would be fine. We connected our old GPS to a laptop with mapping software for a trip to central Aus some time back and in the vehicle it was fantastic. I wouldn't like to have to use it in the aircraft though. I would use your Garmin and keep an eye out for someone upgrading their aviation unit, or someone with a hand held installing a new system.

 

 

Yes, I also sent letters to both papers. Bloody hard to vent the steam in under 200 words. Neither published my response.

 

 

For anxiety - talk to your doc. about a Beta-blocker; I dont think they induce drowsiness, but check...

In sport, Beta blockers are on the banned list. They were used to reduce heart rate and hence aid shooters by giving a greater time between heartbeats to get off their shot. They may also be effective in stopping anxiety induced tremor as in stage fright. Overall though I don't think there is much evidence to support the use of Beta blockers in the treatment of anxiety. I don't believe that anxiety is one of the indications for the use of Beta blockers and as such I doubt many doctors would be keen to prescribe them, particularly to a budding pilot. First dose side effects such as decrease in blood pressure leading to dizziness and the possibility of fatigue could be a big problem with occassional use.

 

 

My stomach is extremely unreliable. When I was scuba diving from boats I was sick almost every time. :yuk: Motion sickness normally has very little to do with anxiety. It is the vestibular disturbance in the ear. As previously posted it helps if you are able to concentrate on the horizon it helps a little however as soon as you start to feel unusually warm and a bit clammy across the face, get the bag ready 'cos it's likely you will be sick. I have found all the usual medications totally useless in the normal recommended dosages (and I certainly would NOT recommend higher dosages because of the possible side effects). Having sold all those products for motion sickness for many years the feedback was never really positive. The only product that seemed to work most of the time, and it was the favourite of the yachties, was the SCOP patch, worn behind the ear. Unfortunately they went off the market about 10 years ago. As for Ginger etc, they work for some people but not many.

 

I prefer not to eat much, if anything, before flying if the conditions are likely to be lumpy and I take some water to sip along the way. My classic bag effort was on my final cross county when I had to hand over to the instructor (sorry Bruce if your reading this). Too many deviations. I survived the first three but the fourth one got me! Too much looking down, drawing lines, measuring angles, combined with thermals. Another memorable flight was from Birdsville to Alice Springs and the re-emergence of the curried camel pie! Fly early in the Centre. However, motion sickness is no reason to stop flying, just be a little more selective depending on conditions. :thumb_up: