NT5224

Interesting clip. Two observations from the benefit of my arm chair. First I was interested to see a tricycle undercarriage nose over like that in the rough. Second, I dunno the aircraft type or its approach speed but I felt (with the benefit of hindsight!) that the pilot was carrying a bit of extra speed into his approach. Flaps dropped to late to slow him down much and if he hadn't nosed in, the aircraft would have gone into the trees... But the pilot saved himself and any passenger and that aircraft will likely fly again -so all things considered great flying! Easy to be an armchair critic -but this same thing happened to me in 2017... Alan

Here's where mines at... still got to enclose the back... all materials and delivery for structure came in under $7000..

Thanks for responses! No flying this weekend due to weather ( and lack of MR), but following suggestions here I will now keep MR and POH documentation stored in aircraft. Seems like the obvious thing! Alan

Sorry Yenn, I’m VH reg. Just confirming what I already suspected... I stupidly forgot to bring my flight bag with everything in it heading home to my property this weekend. The weather has been very overcast for three weeks due to monsoon and haven’t been able to fly. Hoped a break in the weather might come this weekend, but now no documents. POH can be downloaded electronically, it’s my licence and MR which are the issues Alan

Ok kinda a dumb question here. I've stupidly forgotten my flight bag with licence, POH, maintenance release, logbook etc... Can I still legally fly circuits from my own strip over my own land? I'll have ERSA and other electronic documents in my EFB (which is with me). Alan

Great clip but gotta say I thought his turn onto final rather steep with engine out. Still,did the trick I guess... Alan

I subscribe. But was surprised to receive an email informing me that my annual subscription had just automatically been renewed...And I had been debited for it. While understanding the OPs point, I don't wholly agree. Flight Safety has an overarching theme of encouraging better airmanship, but has a variety of content covering diverse topics much like any aviation magazine. If it was just aviation safety directives, I wouldn't be buying it! I'm guessing if flight schools and charter companies have a copy lying around the tea room or the hangar it might have broader reach in tbe aviation community... Alan

Hi folks. In my personal experience kangaroo repellers don't work. I've tried a couple (on vehicles not my aircraft!) However, my take on why they don't work is as follows. Kangaroos are dumb. I absolutely love them, but they are among the dumbest of Gods creatures! When Im out walking the sound of my footsteps through the bush will likely scatter a a big mob when they hear me approaching. However, I can fire a shotgun close to the same mob and they will stand frozen, transfixed by the sound or in some cases even hop forward to investigate. So the question is not whether roos are hearing the sound emitted (whistle, horn, approaching vehicle or whatever), but how they respond to that sound, and whether it is (from a human perspective) a rational response? Without a much deeper understanding of roo psychology, it is impossible to assume just because a roo hears a particular sound it will respond to it the way a human would. This is why my own roo control mechanism is the best. Like all good shepherding dogs, The Boy has learned to intimately understand and predict roo behaviour, and does exactly whats required to shepherd them to safety off the strip. Funnily enough, the roos have also learned about the dog (its the same individuals that come back to the airstrip everyday), and so, like sheep, are not unduly concerned at being shepherded. To them its pretty much part of their daily routine. Everyones happy. With respect to fencing the strip, it would cost me approximately $4000 to put a three wire fence round the perimetre. Trouble is, a three wire fence might be useful in sheep country, but wont stop roos as they hop over or push through between the wires. And the occasional buffalo around the property wouldn't even know the fence was there. It would walk straight through, dragging the pickets out behind it. Then Im hit with repair costs. A steel cyclone mesh fence might keep most of the critters out, but as a private individual I can't afford that. Another consideration is I actually quite like having roos grazing the grass strip, other than when its actually being used for flight operations. I don't want to restrict their access permanently. Having a good shepherd dog as airstrip guardian is the way to go. Purchase price $2500 and all up about $1000 per year maintenance costs. The airstrip is cleared of critters whenever you want it, and the he keeps an eye on the homestead and hangar too. And.... I get my face licked at 6.00am every morning. Result. 🤣 Alan

Nup Assuming my wife is at home, I radio ahead. My strip is about a kilometre through thick forest from the house but when the boy is dispatched and Im circling overhead it takes him about three minutes to get there and another two minutes to clear the length of the strip... ( say time it takes me to fly one circuit). He won't approach an aircraft until the engine shuts down. He knows his job... Of course if he's flying with us its more of an issue... Perhaps we should explore the parachute concept...? 🤣 Alan

Where I live we have a mob of 30- 50 roos that graze my strip morning and evening when I generally fly. I have therefore developed a highly effective method of clearing the airfield prior to landing or take-off. Its 100% effective, and this effectiveness does not diminish. It is also humane, as no animals are hurt or unduly frightened by my control method. Here it is: Alan

Hey folks A good question from OP. Even though I now only fly GA I am firmly of the opinion that BFRs are valuable. My personal experience of BFs in RAA and GA has basically been good. Instructors have been helpful and the process has been beneficial. Particularly somebody like myself, who operates remotely from their own strip rather than In a club environment, spending a couple of hours with an instructor is useful to pull up on any emerging bad habits. But in the past I have added some additional endorsements to my ticket as a way of achieving BFRs. I believe that there is great value in continuously learning and broadening our knowledge as aviators. We should never stop learning, and so, until somebody comes up with a better way I'm happy to fly BFRs (GA or RAA) Alan

Merry Christmas to all and their loved ones Lets hope this coming year is better than the current one! Alan

Hi Glen I said earlier that my new hangar has been built without a concrete floor, exactly along the lines of what Nev has suggested. I would echo this as a genuine alternative to a slab, depending on what and where you are building. I have built plenty of slabs. My wife and I built our whole home including outbuildings, workshops, sheds and now hangar entirely with our own hands. We have only had outside assistance with electrical wiring and our off grid solar system. All our slabs have been hand mixed and poured on site, because we are too far for a concrete delivery (even with retardant) and at any rate our home site is inaccessible to trucks. In our experience the key issues are the mixture, quality of cement and materials but most of all the base and screeding. My wife is an excellent screeder. I personally wouldn't worry to much about polishing unless you're aiming to get onto Grand Designs. But even then we are now opting for a gravel /metal dust compacted floor. Can't face doing another 144 square metre slab! But seriously, throwing up a shelter structure isn't a big deal and can be done quite cheaply if you do it yourself. No arcane knowledge required. My wife and myself have hoisted our fabric roofed arched structure unassisted, with total budget of under $10,000. Would accomodate two C172s comfortably.. Alan

I know there are great pics from the air of international airports congested with grounded passenger aircraft, but I've just driven into the Alice airport and had to do a double take as I turned the corner onto the airport access road. Dozens of aircraft dragged into the scrub and left there. Its quite extraordinary! Not something I expected to see in my lifetime. Alan

Hi RF guy...I just built out of the dirt. No concrete slab.. but interested to follow this thread for when I hoist a proper hangar

All good points Skippy. A good pilot can fly any configuration of aircraft most places. However as a tailwheel pilot myself based at an outback strip, I consider conventional configuration offers a number of advantages for Bush flying. Possibly tougher undercarriage as you point out, but more important is propeller clearance... There is also something to be said for the angle of attack tail wheel configuration offers. But hey, the trade off is a really slow cruise and many would feel a faster aircraft better suited to long distance touring... Its just a matter of personal preferences I guess... Alan

I have little doubt that Faeta are excellent aircraft. They look great and so they probably fly great too. We all know the Czechs build good small aircraft. But the specific question is whether one would make the best touring aircraft for a lap? My personal feeling is that aircraft with bubble canopies are just not climate appropriate in northern Australia. Unless you want to wear a hat and sun cream all way round... Perhaps there is a tropical model with a opaque canopy? Also I would always favour high wing and tail dragger for the bush and rough strips. Thats not to say that low wing trikes are inferior. We are discussing a very specific mission here. Alan

My preference for a LSA tourer would be a Brumby in conventional configuration (taildragger). Metal, tough, tough, and easily repairable and lots of room inside. Having crossed over to VH now, I think I'd struggle with a 600kg MTOW these days, but if I had to, the Brumby would let me use every kilogram. The J230 is a great aircraft with awesome cruise but for my tour I'd want to be dropping into out of the way places and rough strips, where the Brumby would perform better. Alan

Hi Shajen! Congrats on the beautiful new bird. I've gotta ask. Do you now have two Jabirus? Didn't you give us a glimpse of one in your hangar a few months ago? Cheers Alan

Scott That's a wonderful video! Its a very beautiful neighborhood you have there, and the production quality of the clip was high. Great job! Three questions: What's the Legend like to Fly? Its got a whiff of Cessna about its appearance. Does that carry over to flight characteristics? Just a two seater, right? Its a nice looking aircraft. Second, can you tell us anything about your external camera mount? It seems to work really well. Finally, do you fly far enough over the soup to need to carry a life raft and buoyancy aids? Or are you staying within glide of the coast? if the former can you tell me about what safety equipment you carry and how much it weighs... Cheers Alan

Just as we finished the last stages of our home hangar build we decided to move our bird up to MKT and an available hangar space there. Cant wait for the luxury of our own Hangar not having to worry about cramming in with other aircraft, moving things around and the ever present fear of 'hangar rash'. The ferry hop to the coast was pleasant and I just love clear wet season mornings. VID-20201130-WA0005.mp4

As said above, for me 'easy to fly' suggests a nice stable airframe with forgiving flight characteristics. That is integral to the aircraft. 'Nice to fly' suggests the both the experience of flying (comfort) and what you can do with an aircraft (performance). My own aircraft is very easy to fly, extremely stable (some might call it 'boring' in flight). But you have a huge interior, can fly cross-country eight hours ( admittedly at a very slow speed) and can land pretty much anywhere. Its built really tough and solid and you have the advantage of it being a proper aeroplane with the little wheel at the back... A 172 is also stable and easy to fly but the overall experience is somehow different Alan

Hi folks Hope all are staying well. Another question from me which might be more relevant to some of our fraternity than others. For those of you grounded for any period longer than a few weeks owing to lockdown related restrictions, what has been your experience of returning to flying? What did you do, and how did it go? Just curious Alan

Amazing!