biggles

Hi,I'm hoping to go on a solo flight tomorrow but my membership expired last week. I renewed it and have received a receipt. Even though I have not received the card in the mail yet, can I still go flying? Is it a requirement to carry your membership on board similar to how its required to carry your GA license on board? Sorry, I have searched and cannot find an answer. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks heaps!

If you are hiring the aircraft , eg. from a flying school advise them of the situation . They may contact RAAus for confirmation . If the membership renewal takes effect from the previous expiry date , or within a short time of that date , then I would imagine it would be reasonable to assume you have ticked all the boxes. It may take some further time for the actual Pilot's Certificate plastic card to arrive, but that should'nt matter, as long as you have evidence of the renewal ,showing the dates it takes effect from/to. You could then reasonable expect that in the event of a mishap, that RAAus would stand by you . A similar situation occurs when applying for renewal of your ASIC . Many times I have entered security airports with only a receipt from RAAus , and that has been deemed O.K. by the philistines checking for terrorists . In summary , take all reasonable steps to ensure that you are complying with all the requirements expected of you as a responsible pilot .

 

Bob

 

 

Today was the day!I knew my solo was coming because my instructor forewarned me and we had to organise a time in the afternoon when the Tower was closed. So today, after doing a theory course I waited around for an hour to see what the wind would do, it ended up dying to about 5 knots right down the runway in time for the tower to close for the day, woohoo!!

 

After a preflight and daily inspection we hopped in and started up. First we taxiied to the cross runway and took off, joining a right downwind for 03 which the wind was favouring. This was my first practical experience with a CTAF and due to the fact there was zero other traffic around it was rather easy to manage! We did a stop and go plus a practice engine failure, then a stop and go again. Although this time I came to a stop on the runway and it was time, my instructor opened the door and hopped out....

 

At this point I wasn't really feeling nervous at all. The first thing I noticed was how short the takeoff roll was, even with a no-flap takeoff the Foxbat was airborne within a count of 4 (A full flap takeoff then would have been astronomical STOL!). I climbed to about 700' straight ahead instead of the usual 500 to give myself a bit more time on downwind and to counter the increased climb rate. Made the usual turn to downwind with a radio call I'm happy to day I didn't stuff up, preformed the usual downwind check and took a quick glance down to the runway to see my instructor and confirm that this was infact real (The empty seat next to me also helped confirm it was real..)

 

Made the usual call while turning onto a nice tight base then another call when turning onto final. Was a good approach with idle power for the whole of final so essentially a glide (Which is how it should be sometimes!). Crossed the threshold and touched down for what I would consider a brilliant landing (Pity no one was in the aircraft to verify it...)

 

Stopped and picked up my instructor, then we realised how long the taxi back to the hangar would be. To shorten this we performed a practice aborted takeoff, which meant a 5 minute 'rollout' along the runway became around 1 minute! Exited the runway and made the usual calls, my instructor radioed the Brindabella aircraft on downwind with some comments about the wind (The only traffic during the entire afternnon), taxiied back to the hangar and shut it down.

 

Feels so good being able to write command hours in my logbook! I now have a massive 0.2 hours solo. Before today I had 9.6 hours total flying time and 8.6 of formal lessons excluding TIF's, according to my instructor I'm the only person he has sent solo prior to 10 hours. Guess that means I'm a fast learner

 

Days like today make me wonder why I'm not going into aviation as a career.... But then I look at the cost of a CPL and realise why

 

Hope you enjoyed the read, will post the video of it tomorrow!!!

Well done Jake , I well remember the elation of my first solo at 62 years of age , (won't say how many years ago that was )

 

Bob

 

 

Naahhh, This is fishin, Bob![ATTACH=full]16240[/ATTACH]

Nice Photoshop Frank , does almost look real though, but you can't fool us Southerners !!

 

Bob

 

 

Maybe it`s just the sun that I`ve been working in all morning, getting to me!What the hell is that gem supposed to mean?.....That all those who survive a crash, tell lies?

 

Frank.

It's not the sun Frank , as it's raining down here and I feel the same !!

 

 

There must be something we are both missing . FT seems to be 'fishin' .

 

Bob

 

 

Greetings Fellow Pilots!I have spent many hours on the tutorial section of this great forum!

 

Blue Skies!

Gidday John, and, as other forumites have said - "Welcome to the site" . You will find many fellow trikers here with a wealth of experience . I spent some time in your country about 8 years ago and was blown away by it's beauty. Lived in a secure apartment complex in Johannesburg and managed to spend some time in Kruger N.P.. Flew down to Cape Town then drove to Port Elizabeth via the coast, then back to Cape Town via the Uniondale road and Oudtshoorn . An extremely pretty part of the world and we often talk about going back . Good luck with your flying and we look forward to hearing about your first solo soon.

 

Bob

 

 

Thanks Nev, Maj and OME .Have emailed your responses onto Roy

 

Regards ,

 

bob

 

 

Some time ago I wondered about the purpose of the raised section beneath the heads of AN bolts . I asked my 94 year old uncle, who established Aeroswan Aviation in Swan Hill in the 50's and operated the busines for some 40 years , making quite a name for himself in the industry . As can be seen from the letter, Roy is a remarkable person for his age, and still has an interest in all things electrical and mechanical. It may also be of interest that, at 90 years of age, he published a book of his life with particular attention given to his early years working on properties in Central Australia . The book is titled " At A Cost " and makes good reading. One of his brothers,my father, was lost in a Catalina in the Solomon Islands in Feb 1943, two months before I was born. Appended is a letter written to various authorities, in an attempt to answer my question, but to date has received no reply. Hopefully someone on the site may be able to shed some light on it .

 

Bob

 

To whom it may concern.

 

Dear Sir/Madam,

 

Some 12 months ago I was asked, 'what is the reason for the machined section under the head of some bolts' ?. This I should have know as a licenced

 

aircraft maintenance engineer for more than 40 years, yet the question took me by surprise because I never had cause to question the problem.

 

Today I'm in my 94th year and all of my working life has been in the Automobile and Aircraft fields, of course the Department of Civil Aviation (now CASA)

 

has tested all engineers involved that they know much about bolts, and in particular AN bolts (Air Force/Navy). We must know of metalurgy, tensile strengths

 

(UTS), yield points, cadmium plating, and the dangers of chrome-plating bolts the requred knowledge seems endless to the stage where BOLTS as such

 

is a complex science, and this leads me to writing this message.

 

In all my years working with bolts I would question most of them, especially in aircraft-but in all those years I never asked why many bolts today have a slightly

 

raised circular section under the head of the bolt within that part of the imagined circle within the under side of the hexagon flats. The raised machine section is

 

only a few thousandths of an inch proud, in the order varying about : 004" to :008" in the ones I've measured.

 

To answer the question I said I didn't know! adding that I had never been asked, nor had queried the reason for the raised section, further adding that I'd find out!

 

With the lack of better knowledge, I suggested to the question that the raised/proud section might be to ensure the first 'bite' in tensioning a bolt fastener is

 

centred immediately close to the bolt shank and that increased tensioning would gradually spread outward from the bolt shank thus ensuring that the initial

 

axial loading would essentially take place radially over the raised portion of the under-head hex, with or without a washer.

 

To me it makes a lot of sense to have this section machined thus preventing sharp edges from the hex edges gouging into the clamped pieces, yet of this

 

I'm unsure.

 

I trust you will give me the time to answer this puzzling question as no-one so far seem to know. ( Retired LAME 4744 for some 45 years including WW2 RAAF )

 

Thank you, and I look forward to a favourable reply.

 

Yours faithfully,

 

Roy McFadyen.

 

 

Given the lack of testing and development in the past I wouldn't touch any 'new' Jabiru development till some other mug has put 1000 hrs on it. Normally you would expect an engine manufacturer to do that sort of testing themselves but we all know that Jabiru's test program is carried out by the folk who buy their engines. The same folk that regret it later.The dog of an engine I bought needs much work and money spending on it before it will be reliable enough to fly any great distance. So far 38 hrs and stripped and new parts already.

 

Stand well back from this new equipment until you have evidence of many hundreds of hours of testing...... or rue the day you stood in line to join the test program.

 

Regards, Clive

 

3300 #1460

 

2200 # 596

 

(70kgs)

Clive

Just for the record , was your 38 hour engine new or rebuilt ,what were the problems leading to the new parts ,was it a 4 or 6 cyl and was it run on Avgas or Mogas

 

Bob

 

 

Hi Biggles Bob, I even offered to put some hours on it for them, if they'd pay for the fuel!

Gidday RKW . O.K. if you ar 80 kg or less, as its only in the J120 at this stage

 

 

I would'nt get too excited fellas . Jabiru are currently doing tests on some engine mods but at this stage only have 20 hours on the engine . My guess is that any new engine will be many months , or even years away .

 

Bob

 

 

" How lucky have Jabiru been that one of their engine failures hasn't killed anyone yet." - Bit unfair don't you think David ? If you read the Flight Safety magazine you will find that even Continentals and Lycomings feature prominently, with faults such as through bolts and a manner of other things . And how long have they been manufacturing aircraft ?

 

Bob

 

 

Ok so it's not really a trip as I will be in the back of a 737, but I couldn't see an offtopic section to post in!I wil be in Townsville Thursday and Friday this week for a a Medicine course interview at the uni. On the Friday my interview is early in the morning but I don't fly out till 7:30 that night...

Now my question is, is there anything to do to fill in time for the majority of a day? Won't have a car so preferrably within walking distance of the CBD. I've heard walking up Castle Hill is a good timewaster, but then again the weather is supposed to be crappy...

 

Thanks!

" The Strand " is a good place to spend time enjoying a coffee while gazing out at Magnetic Island. Castle Hill walk is also well worthwhile, but probably better later in the afternoon when a bit cooler . Also depends where your accomodation is .

Bob

 

 

Biggles - what are the reflections in the window? It's a bit late in the year for Easter eggs, isn't it?

Hi Gnome ,

The" navigator", as detailed in her 'duty statement', is required to maintain a continuous supply of sugar free lollies at all times, particularly when coming into strips such as YSPT with 'fly neighbourly','displaced threshold','tree obstructions', 'preferred approach' ,'radio towers near turn onto final' etc.etc. . She chooses to place them on the Inst. console and this has worked very well over a number of years , however clearly this practice must cease ,as it appears that we are being held up to ridicule . I should also say that , in addition to not disagreeing with any decisions I make, it is one of her more important duties , and to change this long standing practice may take some time.

 

Bob

 

 

[ATTACH]15438[/ATTACH][ATTACH]15438[/ATTACH]

 

Haha dazza. Not quite, my grandpa Keith mason founded the club in the 70's and was president for 25 years so I spent a lot of my childhood there, probably where I got the flying bug, these days I'm just a member but get down there whenever I can.

Hi David ,

Here is a pic. of " the navigator" and I on approach into Southport on our way back home last month .

 

Bob

 

 

 

http://www.equipped.com/aopa-ditch-rebut.htmFollowing on from the Paul Bertarelli article posted by Mozartmerv in the accompanying thread, I found the story above amusing - reminds me that it isn't only on recflying that pilots all but come to blows in support of their pet theory. It does explain how some of the firmly held opinions/myths(?) originate - eg high wing aircraft will almost inevitably go over on their backs.

 

Sad that someone had to die to bring all this to light, but a refresher course on the available material makes me feel a whole lot better about doing the Cape Moreton - Redcliffe jump as well as low level past the Gold Coast; should the worst happen, there is every chance that I and my passengers will make it out ok.

 

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Spin ,

I did that VFR route from just North of YCAB across Moreton Bay toward Tangalooma then down the Western side of both Moreton Is. and Stradbroke Is.last week , and are presently enjoying a few weeks on the Gold Coast before returning to Victoria. It is all done below the 3500'step and there are several options in the event of an engine failure and on a good day very scenic . I personally would not do Victor 1 in any single engine a/c. I did not continue down the Gold Coast where the recommended flight levels are 500 & 1000' but tracked over Sanctuary Cove into Southport .

 

Bob

 

 

Finally got time to take some more pics of our new J170D, as asked for. We have put more than 50 hours on her in just 3 weeks and the one thing that all the students like is the ease of landing her - compared with our J160. She gets into ground effect in the round out, and all it takes is pulling the power back to idle and wait for her to settle... Easy. To our surprise she handles cross-winds much better than we assumed; a lot to do with the new profile of the fin, we suspect.. And, as expected, the climb rate is 30% better than the 160. All in all a great training package.Click thumbnails to enlarge:

 

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Yes Chris the 170D is certainly a nice aircraft and an improvement over the old one with the temporary mods . Jabiru should also be commended for their prompt action in rectifying the faults and the J160 does need full concentration when landing at ( or above ) MTOW. Also nice to chat with you briefly at the factory .

Bob

 

 

I am with you Turboplanner we are members of Recreational Aviation, we fly for Recreational purposes. Most of us are not Sport pilots. DON'T LIKE THE NAME.Alan Marriette.

Could'nt agree more "G" - I am a recreational pilot

 

Biggles

 

 

In May I did a flying trip in my Savannah from Kilcoy, SE Qld, across the center to Shark Bay, then around about the Kimberley and Pilbara, then back home across the center. Photos are at:https://picasaweb.google.com/woblywallaby/WestAustraliaTrip?authkey=Gv1sRgCJbzvM23iO6-vgE

 

To get full screen view press F11 on your keyboard. Click on the right arrow at the bottom of the screen to advance the pictures.

 

JG

Good work John . Doing a similar thing on our trips I realise the effort required to make the shots interesting for others , but you seem to have this ability . A marvellous record of your trip and once again well done .

 

Bob

 

 

Hi All, I am after an opinion on the following.: (hopefully it makes sense) forgive me if the jargon is wrong I am interested only in theory. I am not taking into account mapreading, ATIS, cold fronts, warm fronts, local QNH, area QNH or any other variables, it is purely a difference in altitude of airfields and indicated AGL V's actual AGLI take off from airfield (A) which I know is at an altitude of 0' (sea level). and have set altimeter accordingly to read 0'

 

I fly to airfield (B) which I know is at an altitude of 1000' ASL

 

Hypothetically, on arrival at (B) if I join circuit at 1000' as indicated by my altimeter I am 1000 AMSL but only 0' AGL (obviously wrong), I therefore have to think about it, do some math and climb to 2000' indicated to give me my circuit height (1000'AGL) OR:

 

Do I somewhere along the flight path readjust altimeter by subtracting 1000' (Difference between A+B) by turning knob, to accommodate known altitude of airfield (B) therebye joining circuit at 1000' AGL and 1000' indicated on alt (2000' ASL in fact) without having to do math at landing stage, relieving my workload .

Pete ,

 

I can see where you are getting confused and essentially the concise reply by brillin_air is correct . You will find that with (a)the duration of your flights and (b) the conditions you will be flying in , there will be little change in the atmospheric pressure between your point of departure and your destination , hence the altimeter will read accurately at your destination . The important thing is to ensure that the correct elevation is entered at your point of departure and , providing this is done , your altimeter will read correctly at your destination also - no need to remember the elevation at your departure point or worry about arithmetic .

 

eg If I leave Bairnsdale ( Elev 160'AMSL ) for Mt Hotham ( Elev 4260'AMSL ) a distance of approx. 100 n.m., and providing I have set the Altimeter to 160' before departure , it will be reading near enough to correct at Mt Hotham , and I will join circuit at 5260' as indicated on my Altimeter.

 

 

Thanks for watching my back fellas, I don't mind the jab bashers, It has been my experience that many, but not all, know nothing about Jabs other than hearsay.

Good on you Pete and congratulations on the purchase of a fine aircraft . As has been stated elsewhere the Jab engine is , like many others , still " a work in progress " , and the improvements done recently have been significant in improving their reliability . The people at Jabiru are commited to further improvement and generally respond positively to input from informed and well researched sources . Unfortunately any large concern like Jabiru will have a few unhappy customers for a variety of reasons , and that appears to be a fact of life . I now have 230 hours on my 2200 engine manufactured in 2008 ,and are about to leave on my 4th, trip to North Qld . Keep the engine cool and give it plenty of Avgas - as recommended by Jabiru .

 

 

Welcome Dr John ,

 

Wish I was 66 again !

 

Bob

 

 

Hmmm , you may have something there Motz , does look like something is missing .

 

Regarding the Zenith and more generally the testing of owner-builts. We often find that homebuilders are so full on with the task, that their proficiency as a pilot tends to slip , either due to lack of funds , their anxiety to complete the build , or both , they put all their spare hours into the build . Some home builds take many years to complete , many are never completed . Coupled with this , todays a/c are not the simple rag & tube of yesteryear , but often fast and loaded with complex electronics , where if things go pearshaped ,you may not have the luxury of time as in the past .The Zenith and its wing flutter problems are one example of an impending disaster that may not have been noticed by a novice pilot . My personal opinion is that it should mandatory for all newly completed ownerbuilt a/c to carry an instructor , ideally qualified in similar a/c ,for say the first 5 hours . This ,as well as sorting out any undesirable features of the a/c , would ensure that the owner had sufficient time to acquire the skills and knowledge , to enable safe flying . Many may disagree with this proposal , and it is diametrically opposed to what the current RAAus ( our regulatory body that puts a high priority on safety ) rules stipulate .

 

Bob

 

 

fly_tornado

 

No - the rules state " no passengers until first 25 hours flown off " but you are correct , ignorance of the law is not a defence .

 

Bob

 

 

fly_tornado Since i had asked , and had the ruling confirmed by our peak body, I could hardly plead ignorance . Had I disobeyed the rules and taken someone , things might not have been good for me from the liability point of view , had something gone wrong . - Moral of the story - don't ask too many questions

 

Bob

 

 

" But if it is your aircraft, it is not part of the FTF fleet. You only need to find an instructor crazy enough to teach you in your aircraft ".- Basscheffers .

 

I took up flying at the ripe old age of 62 years . Some time later I decided to build an aircraft from a kit . I was around 65 when the a/c was completed , inspected by an Amateur Built Inspector and test flown by the local CFI . At this stage I had flown very little since qualifying as a pilot - with pax and x-country endorsements. Being a new mature age pilot and having minimum hours and experience , I approached a CFI about accompanying me in the passengers seat for a few hours ,until I became familiar with the a/c. I was advised that this was not allowed , and I had to fly off the initial 25 hours alone . I raised this anomaly with Mick Poole who confirmed the regulations , but agreed that there was a safety issue involved , and raised the issue with CASA . In summary , my options were - (a) Have somebody else fly off the initial 25 hours ( by him/herself ) - not an option many would take up. Or (b) Fly off the initial 25 hours myself and hope for the best . I consider that this restriction is an 'accident about to happen' , and may have contributed to some of the recent accident reports on this forum - that is if some of the press reports are in fact correct . The Draconian regulation also encourages pilots of new home built a/c to disobey the rules , in the interest of common sense , particularly when applied to low hour , mature age pilots like myself . Even though Mick was sympathetic to my plight , and did raise the issue with CASA , I am not aware of any changes to the rules

 

Bob