JimG

Was meant to be doing some more LL training today but the Boss has cancelled due to the wind and dust. Your excactly right HEON , it is the knowledge and skill to hopefully handle the situation if forced to very LL in an emergency like engine failure or low ceiling etc ( HF, I know ). The lessons learnt like the amount of control deflection coming out of a steep turn in particular top rudder and the scalding you get if foolishly/instinctively try to use the rudder to tighten the turn, Oouch...! I read somewhere (I think it was in Stick and Rudder) that a pilot panicing using the rudder to try to tighter the last turn to a paddock or better paddock was 70% of the cause of spinning in from LL. So to have all those things co ordinated automatically in your mind is what may save me. Cause i can tell you for sure if you use bottom rudder and heave on the stick to come out of a steep turn the plane rolls over the bottom wing almost instantly, a demonstation only done at altitude with no traffic around..! The lessons are probably taught in a military style but I like that cause it really etches into my mind all the important not negotiable aspect of flying the plane, situational awareness and what not to do at LL. Also its all about growing as a pilot, my logic is if I do nothing other than social flying the skills i learnt to pass my certificate would slowly deminish until I have a quick tune up before any BFR. So for the sport and pleasure of challenges I'm working my way though the various endorsements of interest. Earlier this year myself and two other enthusiastic young pilots spent 16.2 hrs collectively doing the Formation Flying endo and gee the was a great challenge and hugely rewarding and once finished Low Level i'll go on to Advanced Pilot and maybe work on an instructor rating , we'll see. It's trying to be confident and not cocky, I still remember shortly after getting my wings being nervous about being in the circuit and hearing on the radio someone joining xwind .:) Fly Safe everyone JimG

Tomo asked. JimG, Just for interest sake, would you be willing to run through what you've done so far? On the Practical side? I'm just curious I've been very busy to reply until now so I won't attempt to go though all of it, that would take quite some doing , I'll just touch on a couple of things of interest. Firstly, yes HEON i believe this is the same instructor you did your LL though so I'm sure you'll read some of this and reflect (hopefully without a cold sweat). After not flying the drifter for near on 12 months most of the first session was just getting back up to speed in the plane, as all the drifter flyers out there know the drifter is all about stick and rudder,high drag and low enertia so you are really flying the plane in every sense. Once back on the horse so to speak we set about learning to fly accurately over the ground at about 300 ft following dirt roads and tracks etc. with the main aim to locate as many power lines as possible using all the indicaters i'd studied and been shown. To be honest I missed a few , they are so well hiden in places and sure we're taught all the stuff about obsticals at LL and lee side turbuence etc. but the instructor says obstructions we can easily see at LL and use common sence and with time and a bit of planning can be avoided but the power line itself you won't see and it will KILL you. So with every session, ever sorty at LL its all about power lines,power lines.....! I've learnt so far the fly the plane accurately with power, attitude and trim at 5 feet and that is honestly 5 feet for miles on end over paddocks ,crops, dams, fences, under many many power lines and to say that has your attention is an understatement. I did say the intructor is a current crop spayer, normal to him but me i can tell you my eyeballs are like dinner plates stuck on the visor. i've done orbits around a hill with a NE@10knts in a constant medium rate turn getting progressively lower until ten feet about the tree tops when you are using all of the controls to fly the plane in updrafts,downdrafts,downwind losing lift and upwind pushing the stick forward. Stalls and recovery at 500 feet, stalls and recover to full power vertical climb to almost second stall and a kind of flop over to level flight to simulate a LL stall and recover to climb over obstical . Simulated engine failures at LL and aiming at the path of least danger, engine failures while climbing up mountain sides and turn away using wind direction to advantage etc. Establishing climb with false horizons, turn back in valleys. Thats just some of the stuff we've been over so far but i can tell you the last session was my favourite so far and that was flying a track over the ground that included figure 8's around 2 large trees at 10 feet doing steep turns with full power anticipating all the effects of the wind. Now that has you using ALL of the controls all the way around. Finally my motive for doing this is to improve my skills as a pilot and as far as LL future flying is concerned there is no way in hell i would attempt this without an instructor or if need be an emergency. cheers JimG

Gee, that was quick Tomo . I'm currently 80% of the way though the LL endorsement with my Instructor near Gatton training in the his drifter also. So far i've done 4.4hrs over 5 sessions with ground briefings before each flight. My Instructor is a current crop spayer Jimg

Congrats Tomo ,well done. just looking at your endorsements you might as well apply for the "2S" as well which is for two stroke operation. Thats assuming your tail wheel training was in the Drifter. I think my training was done pretty much the same as yourself with starting in the Drifter for tail wheel training then off to an enclosed AC to finish and then x country. We actually dropped into the school at Dalby during 2 of my nav exercises. See ya around the traps, BTW are you planning to come over to Watts Bridge for the festival of flight annual flyin, its on both days this week end cheers JimG

Will be fun, looking forward to it. JimG :thumb_up:

Can anyone help me here. I'm a regular flyer and am interested in checking out the availability of planes for hire at Caboolture, Redcliffe or maybe Caloundra . I'm current in Drifters,Tecnam Sierra and Sportstar. My preferance at the moment is for low wing 2 seaters with cruise of 90 to 100 knts. Happy to do any check flights or conversion to type training. Any takers Cheers JimG :thumb_up:

Does anyone know of a con rod bearing clearance measuring device similar to the "cyclone conrod bearing clearance checker" being sold in australia. Or perhaps someone makes one locally.? Thanks JimG

Very well put Gofastclint, and indeed the makings of a good aero package, however the BIGGEST issue with any subaru installation is a well thought out and reliable cooling system . cheers JimG

Good work old Mate, it just keeps getting better from here;) yep and I just luv that Drifter too, so don't wear it out. Cheers JimG :thumb_up:

Reinspired Racer Good work on the blogspot Bob, Geez you must be giving your keyboard a real bashing the last couple of days..;) Now get back to work mate you'll need the cash to keep flying. Just love flying that Drifter, addictive isn't it.:thumb_up: Cheers JimG

Weight Limit Yes 2008 was a great year, and for me the realisation of my life long plan to learn to fly and earn my pilot certificate. Now on with my home build A/C (J6 Karatoo)....! Any word on the progress of the new propossed MTOW limit of 760kg.? Lets everyone on this fantastic forum have a great 2009:thumb_up: Cheers JimG

Still very fresh in my memory Well you asked for it..... this is what I wrote and it appeared in the May 08 edition of the RAA mag. Cheers JimG MY FIRST SOLO CAME OUT OF THE BLUE… So I am driving over to Kev Walters Flying School early Monday morning (had to postpone to m’day cause of family commitments, wasn’t gonna miss a week)and I’m just thinking we’ll be back doing circuits and landings and that’s great, working on the rudder, keeping it straight on take off and approach,not flaring too high and letting the nose up etc.etc. and if someone had have said to me ,gee today you could do your 1st solo , well I would have thought don’t be stupid, I am no were near ready for that! Shortly after arriving at the school we jump in the drifter after the checks and “clear prop” we off taxying down the runway to line up for take off . now I am thinking I’ve got to get this right as I’ve made a meal out of my first take offs the last two lessons . So lined up and slowly open the throttle and feeding in left rudder trying not to over do it and off we go ,a little wobble, pretty straight, not bad, yeah now theirs a good start to the day. In the air now and a short flight over to the training strip to start work. Once at the training area we joined downwind ,did the downwind checks, now turning base and then final , on approach now (first time for me at this strip) and Kev says, “a bit of cross wind here so allow for that and there may be a wind shear as we pass below the tree tops so we add 5 knots to our air speed to help with any lose of lift at that point”. Trying to keep all this in mind I landed ,sort of ok , I did feel Kev come on the controls and help out so I sure won’t be bragging about that one. The cross wind here Kev estimated was about 8 knots and would be almost 90 deg to the runway. I went on to do 3 or 4 circuits and landings , not that good , I don’t think I flew the same path twice and maybe one ,half ok landing , the others I’d rather forget. Man I was really struggling with this today , and Kev could easily see things weren’t going that good so we stopped for a coffee and a bit of a talk about it. Kev decided that my skill level probably wasn’t ready for this much cross wind so we jumped back in the drifter for a bit of nav practice and headed for a 20 min flight, following compass headings and landmarks to arrive at another training strip where Kev believed the prevailing wind would be more favourable. As we were approach the air field I’m bringing it down to circuit height and as we over flew the end of the runway I could see the wind sock dead in line with the runway , I now know enough to realise this is a very good thing , and now joining downwind , downwind checks, turn to base and cut the power for a glide approach, turn to final and nose down maintaining 60 knots (no less) and there is my aiming point on the runway . So I’m using the rudder to stay on my aiming point and wings level with the stick ,ok that’s working good , now all is in control the ground is coming up and there is the flare point ,pulled the nose up a little too high quick correction with the stick, now easing the stick back ,all the way back now and we gentle ease down onto the runway,bit of a bounce and holding the stick back steering it straight with the rudder pedals , not bad…! Now this feels a whole lot better so off we go flying circuits and landings , probably 4 times with each landing slightly better than the previous with the use of the controls starting to feel natural and automatic, freeing up my mind to work harder on other things and then after the last landing (not even a bounce), Kev says to me “this next circuit you are going to find the controls are going to be a little more responsive and the thing will feel a bit lighter” ,ok , thinking about the situation I replied “is that because of the fuel we had burned off “ “no” he said ”it’s because I’m getting out “ Straight away I said ” Bugga off “ (thinking Kev was having a joke with me) , when I didn’t get an answer I looked to my left and Kev was standing there holding his headset . Hmmm, now I know he’s not joking !!! Kev now says “go and fly one circuit , just do the same as you’ve been doing and if you get a big bounce on the landing go straight to full power and go around, now off you go”. OK I guess this is it, I’m thinking back your ability ,Kev is a bit of tough master and I’m certain he wouldn’t do this unless he was certain I was up for it , so I waited till Kev had walked well clear and I thought, full concentration now and get on with this. OK ,harness secure, trim set for take off, fuel on ,chokes off, brakes off, switches L to R, boost pump on, gauges L to R all ok ,runway clear check for traffic, EFATO land in the field straight ahead , all done . Now a couple of deep breaths and slowly open the throttle, rolling along nicely straight as an arrow, tail is well up, plenty of speed now ease back on the stick and up we go, couple of hundred feet now ease the power back to 6000 and adjust the nose attitude with the stick to climb out at 50 knots, gee is it climbing well now. On the aiming point with the rudder till I get to the tin sheds on the ground and climbing turn to the left, careful now only 15deg and a gentle roll all the way around cross wind and on to downwind maintaining climbing speed, yeah all good so far, boy is this thing climbing now, not far into downwind and there is circuit height (that was quick), ok, attitude, power, trim for level flight, yeah all good, water temp fine, power at 5400. Maintaining aiming point in the distance and too much time to think (I just remembered I’m up here by my self) downwind checks, harness secure, brakes off, boost pump on, airfield clear. Here comes the river and its time to turn base, ok nice 30deg turn to the left ,there is my next aiming point and right stick right rudder, neutral(coming off bank turn). . flying base now looking between the runway and my aiming point deciding where I’m going to pull the power off, I was thinking a little further to make sure I don’t undershoot and now, gentle pull the power back to idle and nose down in the same movement and ease in some right rudder to stop the big power off yaw to the left. Now a quick check for traffic and a nice gentle turn onto final keeping the nose down and min 60 knots, reset trim and using the rudder to line up in middle of the runway and the wings level with the stick , its all going good a bit of control here and there, concentrating and stareing at my spot on the runway a quick look at the air speed , a bit over 60 , so here is the ground coming up ok wait for it don’t flare yet (like turning into a corner too early for my racer friends) and flare now , a touch high , a touch of nose up, quick adjust with the stick Running parallel with the runway and easing the stick back as the speed is coming off and slowly down on the runway a little bounce, stickfully back and keeping it straight with the rudder all good and stop. Its done, my first solo flight, came totally by surprise and now it’s done…! Now here comes the dumb act, I see Kev walking back over from a little distance and I’m sitting in the front of the drifter all excited and I just turned the mag switches off and before Kev had made it back I thought, oh no I’m going to get a tune up here because I’ve just parked his drifter in the middle of the runway, dooh! But all was good their was no one else around so Kev didn’t seem to mind and he shock my hand and said “congratulations on your first solo flight, well done !” I’ve heard and read that pilots never forget their first solo , well I don’t know if that is true ,but even if it isn’t it’ll be a while before I forget!! I also well realise that Kev has taken advantage of the good flying conditions and a reasonably performing student to get the first solo thing out of the road before the “I wonder when anxiety starts to build”. Thanks Kev, things are going great mate ! Jim Gollagher RAA student # 021338

Yep I'd agree 100% with Tony and Adam Hi Nathan, yes mate I believe you'll have to look long and hard before you find anyone that equalls Kev in skill and ability as a professional pilot and intructor.Tony will remember recommending Kev to me well over 18 months ago and I started my pilot training in jan08 (in the drifter) and finished in july08 (in the tecnam). Now in that time I trained mostly once a fortnight, a double lesson with a break in between and I did find Kev a fairly tough master who pulls no punches when it comes to the perils of not learning safe habits and techniques. Geez it was a blast though and yes there were a few times driving home feeling a little inadequate and with the tail between my legs but there were many, many more trips home feeling an incredible sense of achievement and exhilaration. Also I can concur with Adam, when Kev was teaching me low level safety pointers on forced landing drills it was worth the price of the lesson just to be in the drifter with him while we were doing that. During my training I did write 9 short stories for my diary and a couple of them have made it to two aviation Mags, so Nathan if your interested in reading some of my learning tales PM me and I'll forward them to you. Best of luck with your training and don't forget to enjoy it aswell. Cheers JimG :thumb_up:

Hope for the well rounded Being a little on the round side myself I can tell you the Drifter I did some of my training in has a Max Pilot Wght label of 90 kgs. My weight at the time and currently is 96 kgs. The a/c just needed a touch more back trim for straight and level flight . Now i believe the other detrement of being nose heavy is the flare for landing and this Drifter handled this well . Another point to mention is that school drifters are "factory built i.e. 24-**** " and as a result are build with heavier guage wires and other components. I'm sure others in this forum will know more about that than I. Yep...luv those pies too.!:thumb_up: Cheers JimG

Onya Adrian Yeah Mate, thats great well done...! I know the feeling you describe as I have only achieved my certificate in june this year with navs etc. and today I was hiring the schools Tecnam . A short flight from Lynfield north to Watts Bridge for some circuit practise for an hour or so and back to home base. I couldn't find a pax for todays flight to go sight seeing with so I thought nothing wrong with going for some self inflicted training . Currently I'm doing my best to fly once a fortnight, mostly for fun but also to keep working on flying correctly and keeping to the required proceedures, radio etc. and I can tell you ,I've become a lot more relaxed and comfortable as pic and Iam absolutely luvin it ! Cheers and all the best JimG

Flyin Drifters Yeah Rage83, I did all my initial training and my first solo in a Drifter February this year. It was great, my intructor often said that if he had his way everyone would do 15hrs in a Drifter first to really learn all the basic stick and rudder flying. Currently I'm flying the schools Tecnams out at Gatton and Caboolture once a fortnight purely for fun but after xmas I plan to go back for some more training in the Drifter to work on some other endorsements, mainly low level and formation flying. Anyways, enjoy your time in the Drifter, I know I did.:thumb_up: Cheers JimG

Hi Craig, well done on your first lesson, by now your probably hangin out for the next lesson;). Just a thought though, you've chosen a very good instructor so concentrate 100% on what he is teaching you as you may find reading and talking to others (even though there is a lot of good stuff here) could end up confusing you at this early stage. I've only recently got my certificate and one thing I found useful was to sit in my car after the lesson and hand write half a dozen or so key points about the flight and what I'd been taught. This would only take 10 or 15 minuites and then put that in my study notes for future referance and my own pre-flight briefings. So in the meantime keep on studying BAK and Air Legislation etc and enjoy the ride:thumb_up:. I can tell you for sure though, flying training was one of the most rewarding challenges I have ever put myself through.....just luved it. Cheers Jim

Just found this and now I'm wondering why J430 was banned/suspended a few weeks ago when now it seems he was onto the truth..... JimG Hempels Aviation grounded - faces liquidation BRISBANE air company Hempels Aviation is facing liquidation following the death of its founder and principal in a joy flight crash three weeks ago. Already at the centre of separate police and safety investigations, the company has flagged to the civil aviation watchdog it may have to close its doors. The 30-year-old company's nightmare run began on August 31, when pilot Barry Hempel was killed with his fare-paying passenger Ian Lovell, 35, in a $492 joy flight. It later emerged that Mr Hempel did not hold the commercial pilot's licence necessary to take fare-paying passengers. Civil Aviation Safety Authority spokesman Peter Gibson yesterday said CASA would be unable to take action against the Hempels pilots and the company once it folded. Hempels Aviation chief pilot Michael Lawrence refused to comment on the company's reasons for closing yesterday. A police investigation will continue as a report is prepared for the coroner. The news of the wind-up came as some relief to Mr Lovell's family. His partner Samantha Hare had bought the joy flight as a gift for Mr Lovell's birthday and claimed she was misled by Hempels. Source: The Courier Mail www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,24397434-3102,00.html

Welcome Retired Racer (Bob) I'm glad you made it though being my first pax, thanks for not mentioning the blindfold or hand cuffs. Look forward to another mission with you as first officer. First officer Hone also survived as no.2 ! Cheers JimG

It seems the owner is still shy about coming forward..... I notice in todays local paper a public notice to the owner of the wreckage to come forward and collect it. The Ranger in charge @ Bribie Island National Parks also seeks to discuss the costs of recovery and restoring the enviroment! Then the various means of disposal are noted ,including public auction. In the desciption the only noted markings are MAFA 86.... does that mean anything to anyone. PM if anyone wants more details from the add. JimG

:sad:Sorry Boleropilot, I was planning to come over for a look in a full bodied Drifter (schools tecnam) but bugger, flying has been cancelled today due wind. Oh well maybe next time. Cheers JimG

[Have completed a minimum of 10 hours cross country navigation flight training and accumulated a minimum of 2 hours solo cross country navigation experience. Your instructor may feel that you need longer than the bare minimums before he/she signs you off... I agree for sure ,in cross country their is oh so much to learn. I got signed off on Xcountry about a month ago and I had done 11.5 hrs dual before I did the solo navx. Now while that is a lot more than the previous 3dual and 2solo, I can tell you for certain I needed all of that time to get the whole package working right. What I found was when I became proficient at one aspect of the trip I forgot or mucked up other parts so for me it was much more than just learning all the stuff and passing the theory test it was also co ordinating ALL of the tasks together and operating smoothly in the cockpit without exceeding my mental capabilities. I realise that time is money but I really wanted to master it as best I could so I would say to anyone about to take it on, to not try to rush it cause it is huge....!! Can't imagine the feeling of flying around lost watching the fuel guage going down:help: I'm just luvin flying Jim

xcountry hours Ian , I remember being told the xcountry hours have been changed in the new opps manual. I believe the new requirement is total 10 hrs that includes 2 hrs solo. The new opps manual was released in march (I think) but not too many members have them as yet. The word is the manual is coming on CD with the june RAA mag and members can request a hard copy later if they wish . Now I am told by a friend in Tamworth who is about to start xcountry that if you start your training prior to the new rule , then 5 hrs still apply but starting after means 10 hr min now applies. Now this is what I believe to be true so maybe a member who runs a school or a RAA rep can confirm this for us..... Cheers JimG

Great piece Tony , where did ya find that....? Cheers

Thanks for your help guys , just had a friendly chat with one of the Body Corp Members from Kilcoy Airfield . All questions answered. Cheers Jim :thumb_up: