NT5224

Yeah saw this too. Sounds pretty awful! 

Hope the poor bloke gets the best possible treatment and is able to recover.  Our thoughts should be with him and his family right now, but once he is out of danger it would be interesting to know what happened there. 

The prospect of fire in an aviation accident  is pretty terrifying.  I think we can become complacent thinking fires are less likely with our slow moving aircraft which have fewer electrical systems which can be shut down in an emergency. 

Wishing our fellow aviator for a rapid recovery. Thats the priority now!

Alan   

4 hours ago, Bruce Tuncks said:

If you do as jackc suggests and copy a commercial design, making sure that if it is in a cyclonic area then you copy a similar one, then you should be safe.

I hope you don't come across an insane buildings inspector like we used to have down here. He is famous for rejecting square footings, even though they were heavier than the round ones on the plan.

Regarding the dome-type of building, it was good advice to work out the potential uplift from wind and to make sure it doesn't lift on you.

Thanks Bruce.

Good advice.

Fortunately ( or unfortunately!) my Father in Law is a German  old school  structural engineer who checks engineering  designs for a living.  Nothing is ever quite precise enough! So the  potential uplift of our dome structure was carefully calculated before we hoisted it, and I ended up doubling the weight of concrete holding it down.

Alan 

12 hours ago, jackc said:

I have suffered many months in ‘Hangar hell’. getting prices that were astronomical from kit shed places with delays and astronomical prices to put it up.

A couple of weeks ago I bit the bullet and decided to build my own from the ground up.  Now a week to go and a large load of steel will be delivered and will start to build the trusses and all the bits, setting up in my big shed for the build, welders, cutoff saw, plasma cutter, mag base drill, and all the other goodies needed.  I have machinery to put up the frames, trusses, purlins etc, but will get someone to screw the roof on. I am too old to do that 🙂. 

This whole thing is engineered by myself, being totally unqualified and put up in the middle of the bush 🙂 

Hiya Jack 

Really interested in your experiment there. We initially planned to do the same thing (we build everything else at our place ourselves) but to be honest the 12m span defeated us, both in terms of design and our ability with equipment available to build and raise it.

As I said above, I costed a steel shed /hangar  at very significantly higher than the tension membrane dome we ultimately went with. So I'm really interested to see how you go. 

Very best of luck mate. I'm sure it'll be a great hangar! 

Alan 

8 hours ago, rgmwa said:

Make sure it's designed to have one end blanked off if you fully sheet the end. If the airflow is blocked a strong gust of wind in a storm could easily lift it. 

That’s a good point which is why I’m not fully closing the back wall and leaving the door open. Just some hessian  material for shade which comes down in winds.

Alan

9 hours ago, onetrack said:

I bet he's proud of having the biggest kennel in the region!

 

Those Dome Shelters are quite popular amongst the mining people, but there are big variations in the build quality of the frame, and the durability of the covering material, depending on who the supplier is. A lot are built to a price, not for durability.

There are some highly durable covering materials out there, and it pays to check out the units that have been erected for a while to see how the fabric is travelling as regards destruction by strong sunlight.

 

Yes that is a solid point onetrack.

Our shelter was definitely at the cheap end of the scale and our expectations about its durability are realistic.

However a replacement cover is only $2000  and just takes a day to throw over and tension. 

We couldn't have thrown up a  steel shelter of comparable size for less than  $20,000. So we get five cover replacements for the price.... That will keep my aircraft sheltered longer than I am likely to be flying...

Another factor is that we erect all our infrastructure ourselves because of the cost of bringing in trades.

These arched tension structures are really easy to build to get a 12m span and can be thrown up by just two people and a dog. 

Alan

Ok been a while since I updated this. After months of delay and other chores prioritised,  I have thrown up a back wall to my hangar. This keeps the morning sun off, and driving rain out  in the monsoon.

Used some steel members I had lying around the place and sheeting collected from the Darwin Tip shop.

So far, everything you see has been built for about $8000.

The Boy  (our German Shepherd) loves the hangar and serves as airstrip Guardian and wildlife chaser.

Alan 

Mo 

10 hours ago, APenNameAndThatA said:

Why does the race cost $7k? 

No idea. Might be 6K or 5K but still bloody expensive. 

They organise accommodation along the route but im guessing it's something to do with insurance or support. But still, it won't be sending them broke...

In addition each team has to raise a minimum of 2K sponsorship 

We were all set to do it four years ago but dropped out due to a professional opportunity which came up for my wife.

At such strong money we probably won't go back.

Alan 

Palmyra's a great name. But for me it's always that sand blasted spot out in the scrub in Homs province. Dust storms and toppled columns. And more recently hoodlums with their black flags.

Alan

22 hours ago, kgwilson said:

Both Mooneys had their undercarriage retracted & were on hydraulic lifts. There was a metre of water through their hangar & they only just kept out of it. Once in a blue Mooney got a little bit in the rear of the fuselage due to the AOA it was sitting at. If you go to the air race website & click on the donate button (you don't have to donate) for Show me the Mooney you will see a photo of the flood level in their hangar.

If you go to the Outback Air Race live tracker you will see 'Once in a Blue Mooney' appears still in Darwin while the rest of the pack are now flying the Gulf Country.

Actually the Tracker is in Palmetston -not even at MKT airfield. Be interesting to know what has happened. Have they flown on without their tracker, or is the aircraft still parked at MKT?

Some mechanical problems maybe? Darwin is local for us but many competitors will already have flown across the continent just to reach the start line. A few mechanical tweaks might have been needed...

Alan 

Saddened  to  read this. Condolences to the families of the deceased.

Alan

47 minutes ago, kgwilson said:

Two pilots from South Grafton are taking part in their Mooney M20Js. They are team "Show me the Mooney" and team "Once in a Blue Mooney". Show me the Mooney won the last outback air race before covid.

Those blokes have been flying the race for years!

I envy their participation and hope they have another good flight. Wasn't Grafton recently flooded?  Glad the Mooney didn't get wet feet.

Alan

Apparently the Outback Air Race  commences again this morning. The first since COVID.

I was driving past into town (not flying because of Pitch Black), so stuck my beak into MKT  to see the scene pre-departure.

Anybody on here taking part? I'd love to hear about it.

We had intended to compete in a previous event  but probably can't afford the $7000 per person required. Its much cheaper to flight the same  route alone. 

Pic of the racers  (pre departure) attached.

Alan 

I submitted my rebate application yesterday. I was 251.  I haven't tested the device yet

Alan 

Top End dry season and Pitch Black is back in our skies again.

This year (first exercise post COVID), 17 national airforces are participating.

My place lies almost directly halfway between Darwin and Tindal   (the main operational bases) and with our airstrip it seems to have become  a bit of a landmark. Fast jets constantly thundering overhead in waves.  I might not be flying this weekend 🤣.

We'll be in Darwin tomorrow to watch the fabulous Red Arrows display team. I've seem them twice before once in Darwin and once in Dubai. They never disappoint. 

Cheers

Alan 

I just received my skyecho unit. Will apply for rebate this weekend

Alan

Haha! Read this wrong. Thought was titled the 'Gairplanes Maule'.

Looks a bit like another Mini Rebel.. Thanks for sharing 

Alan 

Hi Raeburn.

Great to heard that you and your wife are well.  Sorry to hear about any minor scrapes, and hope you both recover quickly.

Thanks for the update. Its a relief  to know that our  fellow aviators are well, also the circumstances of how an incident  happened. I fly from my small private strip in thick woodland  and what happened with you is entirely possible at my place. Bad luck, unxexpected gust!

Incidentally, my wife and I had  a forced landing after an engine seizure that made the national news about five years ago. No fun at the time, a bureaucratic nightmare and rather  embarrassing but I learnt from it (as I'm sure you will from your incident). Early days still but how's the 152 looking ?

Very best of luck and let us know how you get on. 

Cheers 

Alan

Its reported in other media now, but I can't read it.

Couple on board are OK. Can somebody post the news atory here please?

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Plane clips tree, plunges 10 metres in Toowoomba region crash

A plane has clipped a tree and plummeted 10 metres to the ground north of Toowoomba this morning.

Alan 

Just heard about a light aircraft accident at Emu Creek.  Was on ABC national news. Apparently struck a tree on take-off at 8am.  2 POB. I think I heard no fatalities or injuries... police and emergency services at scene to observe fuel leak.

I'm interested in this one because of the hitting a tree aspect. That is a distinct possibility  here at Robin Falls international so keen to  hear what happened and learn any lessons.

Was surprised that what sounded like a relatively minor accident made the national news....

Hope everybody on board unhurt and aircraft repairable.

Alan

. 

Just heard on the news. 2 POB. Both reported OK.

Alan 

The engine drain on my 320 always gets stuck and I have to manually close it after a fuel drain. 

This would be an easy mistake to happen. 

Alan

1 hour ago, Garfly said:

An excuse to have another look at this old favourite:

 

 

Thats amazing!  Loved it.

Thanks for sharing. Where is it?

I'm full of admiration for  the knowledge and skills of you 'proper' pilots and the incredible things you do compared to a mere VFR monkey such as myself...

Alan 

55 minutes ago, kiwiaviator said:

I have finally got my J230C flying in NZ. Ex 24-4927 is now ZK-JAB and she experienced the snow covered mountains on Sunday for the first time. A big change from the Pilbara. I reckon I can still hear an accent in the 3300 burble 🙂

Wow that's amazing landscape, with a good few tigers running around down there.

Glad your Jab six pot is still chugging reliably..!

Great Rego...

How did you get across the ditch? Freight or fly?

Alan

Flew into Batchelor this morning for a coffee and brekkie.  Nearly dropped off my perch when I saw AVGAS at $3.26/L.

I squirted the minimum required in each wing and began scheming about how I might instead suck out a few extra dregs from the barrel stashed at the back of my hangar.

Do people on here think AVGAS prices will come back down again when the world gets back to normal? Or do the fossil fuel companies like current pricing too much?

Alan 

Flew into Batchelor this morning for a coffee and brekkie.  Nearly dropped off my perch when I saw AVGAS at $3.26/L.

I squirted the minimum required in each wing and began scheming about how I might instead suck out a few extra dregs from the barrell stashed at the back of my hangar.

Do people on here think AVGAS prices will come back down again when the world gets back to normal? Or do the fossil fuel companies like current pricing too much?

Alan