SDQDI

If I had to land in a crosswind that was 3 - 4 times my planes stated capability and had no ability to get to an alternate I would seriously look at why the cross strip was closed, then if that wasn't an option landing into wind across the active would be high up the list (I see no sense in nailing the centreline "just because"). That is all assuming no alternate was available which is rarely ever true, we are taught precautionary search and landings and I find nothing wrong with finding a nice paddock or road that suits the purpose so don't get so focused on runways that you pass up a safer option.

I don't see the point of them! . . . . . . .

Article says both were unoccupied. Hand turning gone wrong?

In regards to the high number of elderly deaths as pedestrians I think you will find if you could get reliable statistics on the age of all pedestrians hit compared to killed and I don't think the elderly would be overly represented BUT the elderly don't bounce so well and will be more likely to suffer a more serious injury than a younger more agile individual. At least the majority of elderly pedestrians aren't getting around with their heads buried in their mobiles and for sure they may be a little hard of hearing but no worse than someone with their ears full of earplugs playing their tunes.

If 3928 voted then I would say that is a very successful turnout compared to other times!

Welcome D And don't knock the RVs with beds, they certainly have a place in a relaxed lifestyle:thumb up:. If they could get one of them to fly on 20litres per hour at 150knots it would be a perfect world!

I don't think jab7252 was having a go at you:whisper:(I think he was just stirring with turbo)

Gday Storch Pilot Unfortunately Maj will be unlikely to reply as he sadly died a while ago in a prang. However no doubt there will be others interested for example Sorry if I was a bit blunt but wouldn't want you to get too big of a case of foot in mouth so thought I had better let you know.

Reading the story it comes across as making more sense, they didn't actually head to Melbourne by mistake but rather as they had entered one wrong digit and killed their navs so they were going to land back at Syd to get it fixed but conditions had become in favourable so rather went to Melbourne. As far as I can see I am happy with their approach to the problem. How cranky would everyone be if they pushed on and got lost for real? Maybe Dutch could give us an idea of company policy in a similar situation.

Don't underestimate the extra wear and tear you get with four wheels constantly in contact with the ground. Planes have it easy to a certain degree only touching the ground for shortish times so unless you have a dodgy donk you shouldn't have excessive vibrations for the entire time. Corrigations do cars no good, when we were out west we were constantly welding up cracks in the diffs and also cracks in the body, it just became part of the process at oil change time to pull out the welder and fix any new cracks. But the major components (engine and gearbox) never gave any trouble before 250,000 k's, in all three vehicles that I have worn out (2 pajeros and 1 landcruiser ute) they did a gearbox between 250-300k kms and needed major engine work between 300-400k kms. I agree that the main reason for an upgrade is to keep up with the jones or get in front of them maybe for a bit. Although repairs can start to add up in an older diesel but even then I think they are still cheaper (than buying a new one, not in any way talking about the difference between diesel and petrol that is a whole different conversation!) EXCEPT the downtime can be a killer.

I know you have been working hard at it Ian but in a slightly selfish way I sort of prefer the old style so I am still happy:blush:

Seems to be back again:thumb up: thank you

I have always been one that enjoys hitting the new (21 days) option as I like to see the threads I have already read (sometimes I reread them as my memory sucks!). I don't mind having the 14 days option but it now requires me to scroll back to the top to select it or hit new and then select it which is an extra click (Lazy aren't I), anyway it may be just me but I would like to see it come back as an option on the side menu.

It has all been overly commercialised, Christmas, Easter, fathers and mothers days ect ect ect. It seems if you don't buy something for someone you are the worst in the world. As far as I can see the idea to have a set day to remember things is a good idea but is totally ruined by the commercialisation of them. This last Christmas we refused to buy presents for anyone except our own kiddies and told our immediate family to not buy anything for us and to spend it on their own kiddies. We still got together and had a great catchup but without the whole worry of "did we buy cousin so and so a good enough gift?" Or "oh no they spent more on us than we did on them!". So as we go forward we will be shunning spending every last cent on useless unwanted gifts and focusing more on catching up with family, IMO much more valuable and a lot less stress. (Ok family still causes stress but at least there is less of it!)

Well I enjoy a good air show. I love the sounds of all the different types whether a radial or turbine or a grunty "standard" and I also love the smell of burnt fuel coming out of engines that I can't afford to fly. I also love the look on my little kids faces as a hawk does a high speed low pass, just priceless the awe that they show so openly knowing I still feel like that but am too "mature" to show it. I still enjoy flying myself around of course but yes I do enjoy a good air show.

I don't mind the idea of a more comprehensive ranking system but I disagree with using military ranks. It is my opinion that those in the military earn their ranks and I find it a little disrespectful for those of us not in the military to use them. I am not nor have I previously been in the military but that is still my opinion. Why not something original maybe based on plane Brands or types or styles or a mixture?

When I was younger we used computers so that they would make our lives easier, if we are making things harder for ourselves to make it easier for the computer then we really are looking at it back to front. Surely it isn't that hard to program a computer to sort dates chronologically in whichever format suits us as people best? And yes DWF I do know what a notam is and I peruse those met reports occasionally and as far as I am concerned they are a horrible example of how things should be written (for the average private pilot anyway!) and are a prime example of where a more human friendly text could be obtained without inconveniencing a computer too much. (Actually now that ozrunways has a simple plain translation right there I find I actually read the reports more often, go figure!)

So why year first? Nearly every time in real life (mine anyway) that the date is written it is done dd/mm/yyyy, why put the year first and confuse me, ESPECIALLY if you only do yy and not yyyy. To me 16/08/29 is totally confusing and reads (for me) the 16th of August 2029 or 1929. In case I wasn't clear enough I prefer DD/MM/YYYY and don't get me started on mm/dd/yyyy!!!!!!! "Rant paused!"

In the couple of times I flew into tamworth the initial call had no details just as simple as "tam tower Hercules 1234 details" then give them details once they ask (once they are ready)

Hmmf just looked like a typical nose wheel pilots wheelbarrow approach:amazon: Ok maybe he/she was a tailwheel pilot and tried wheeling it on:whistling:

I prefer a nice open paddock generally but certainly keep an eye on roads. Powerlines have a funny way of crossing roads at peculiar places, it is easy enough to see them run alongside a road but not so easy to see where they cross over mostly to a house or shed but sometimes they can cross to nothing obvious so it is easy to get caught out. Guide posts are not an issue to a high wing BUT road signs are and most importantly they do NOT stand out from their back side (don't ask!) as the non reflective steel back blends well with dry grass on the side of the road. A good paddock (IMO) gives me a bit more leeway, a road locks you into a set direction (or 2) whereas a good paddock will let you fine tune your angle to match the wind. Obviously paddocks have a list of dangers too so it all needs to be looked at on a road by road, paddock by paddock basis.

Seemed to work for me with the iPad, but I rarely use the menu unless I need the search function. I mainly use "new (21 days)" so I would like to see it and the new option stay without having to go to a menu to get them?

My list is refreshingly short (ok maybe only refreshing for those who like short posts:crying:) J3 cub All my original training up to Raa cert excepting navs was done in this beautiful old girl. SportsStar Did my Nav training in this one as it was a tad quicker across the ground also it gave me my NW endo Hornet STOL I guess doing my original training in a cub I was bound to end up in a properly configured plane:whistling: That is all I have flown, I have ridden in a few helicopters, actually I did a few hours with an American pilot counting cows that were on agistment up near Burke in a flood and then in a bigger chopper dropping hay to them, that was enjoyable:thumb up:

I had my L5-S1 disc replaced in my early twenties, it is surprising how much pain you can get used to when it comes gradually. My pain started before I was 20 but was tolerable and just gradually got worse, at twenty I saw a surgeon who said he could fuse the vertebrae together which would remove some of my flexibility but he said it was unlikely to help the pain! I basically said thanks but no thanks and with the thought that surgery couldn't help I put up with it as it got worse and worse. (I wasn't overweight at that time) I eventually got to the stage where it really affected everything I did, I couldn't walk far, driving was a nightmare and if I sat down at lunch time I couldn't get back up and had to roll across the floor to get to bed. I knew I had to get something done but was still holding off because of a lack of confidence of a good result. Then I had a friend who had a disc replacement (all the surgeons I had talked to said there was no such thing as a disc or vertebrae replacement and said fusing was the only thing that could be done) and he was back to pain free life almost immediately post op and he gave me his Dr's name. It all went well from there, a phone call later and I organised a copy of my X-rays to be sent to him which was followed by a call back with a fairly prompt appointment time. At my appointment was told very confidently "yes it can be fixed by replacing the dodgy disc, I can fit you in tomorrow afternoon seeing as you have travelled a fair way. You will just have to organise to stay up here (Gold Coast) for two weeks post op, you can have a little time to decide if you like" I looked at my wife and she looked at me and I said yep lets do it. One night in hospital and I can still remember my first walk post op, the physio led me straight to the stairs and helped me down, I automatically favoured my bad side due to habit and she scolded me and made me descend one foot after the other and I was absolutely gob smacked that I could do it with no pain whatsoever! After my two week check up I drove from the Gold Coast back to hillston Nsw and after another few days I was back on a motorbike mustering. It is absolutely amazing what can be done, having said that I am extremely glad I had kept my private health insurance up to date, it still costed enough but is the best money I have ever spent. Your back is extremely important, don't let any sugeon fuse you up without a second opinion! And a shameless plug for Dr Matthew Scott-Young of Gold Coast spine! 07 5528 6477 Just looked at my card, that was in 2008 so 8 years on and no pain.

My wife was a Grong Grong Local:victory:........ Yes yes totally insignificant but so are most of my ramblings:chuffed: As for the early election, good on them for getting in and getting things happening. I can understand canning it if the new constitution failed getting throu asic but I see no problem as it stands. Also good on them for sending out the mag with the ballot form, I think that this should be something that should be done for each election.