KRviator

There's a few Twinkies (twin Comanche) for sale for well under $100K. Particularly with tip tanks, they should get you there non-stop in around 7.0 hours with up to 3 people depending on the BEW and model. (I know your profile says Brissy but I used Emerald-Launy as a rough guess as not many farms around Brisbane) Loaded up with all the family though you'll need at least 1 tech stop around Dubbo. They're reportedly one of the most efficient light twins around, using not much more fuel than a bigger, fast single. Whack an electronic ignition on each engine, and you are back down to two magnetoes with their 500-hourly inspections, and get lower fuel burn & easier starting too. I'm shortly going to sell my RV-9 and am giving serious consideration to a twin comanche... A J-model Mooney is about as efficient as you'll get in the piston singles, getting around 155-165KTAS from the IO-360, and with the Monroy tanks can do that distance non-stop, with 2 x 200lb people on board. These seem to get around $100-120K on the classifieds.

Usually not. That's one of the major gripes with RAAus, they either don't, or are very selective in what they release about a fatal accident. But...IT can, and it does get disseminated - occasionally. Although, the Mt Gambier crash data was obtained from OzRunways, not an onboard EFIS-based datalogger. The problem with with the Dynon (and others) data is it is not crash-hardened. The last flight is stored in non-volatile memory, but if that memory chip is damaged, that's it. The ATSB (and NTSB, et al) are very good at trying to mechanically & electrically fix damaged chips if they believe something can be learnt (as in the Cirrus Orange prang), but they are not miracle workers. I have found myself pushing the boundaries of what would be considered sensible a couple times since I've been flying behind the Dynon in marginal VMC. IT was legal, yes, but it wasn't smart. I'd look down to confirm the Dynon position agreed with the Ipad, look up and I had the 5km, but no discernible horizon, reliant almost exclusively on the AH on the Dynon. That was a wakeup call for me and I've not done that again. Given almost every pilot in Australia flies behind OzRunways or Avplan that gives your arrival time almost down to the second updated in real-time, I can only wonder if the bloke in question was that comfortable with his EFIS setup he deliberately ignored his ETA based on his (over?) confidence with his equipment, but overlooked the reliability of the PAL.

It certainly does. Everything you see and a whole lot more. I think I have mine setup to record everything at 0.5 second intervals, but you can get that down even more. There's even free viewers available online to take your downloaded file and recreate an EFIS presentation if you feed said viewer a Dynon/Garmin file. That being said, people need to want to install stuff like this. SkyView, like Garmins G3X, isn't overly cheap, but for what you get it is lightyears ahead of the latest gear from Boeing or Airbus. Personally, I went a step further and installed an automotive dash camera on the rollbar with GPS built in, so there's a visual record of what happens too. A quick look through a file I downloaded last month from the Dynon shows it records the following: GPS Fix Quality, date, time & satellites tracked. Lat, Long, GPS Alt, GS & Groundtrack Waypoint name, bearing, XTE, & distance System time Pitch & roll degrees to 1 decimal place Mag heading & turn rate IAS, TAS & VS Pressure alt & Density alt Lateral & Vertical acelleration AoA & OAT Barometer setting Wind direction & speed Heading & altitude bugs CDI source selected, scale & deflection AP mode, engagement status and current servo position Transponder Code, status & IDENT status Oil Press & temp RPM L & R MAP Fuel Press & flow Fuel QTY L & R Bus voltage & sensed amps Hobbs & tach time CHT 1-4 & EGT 1-4 Ignition system status (user configured) Calculated % power LOP/ROP status Other files available show any annunciated warnings, cautions alerts or their triggers in addition to the 'black box' file. One of the reasons I installed the TSO'd KLN-90 was, in an absolute worst-case scenario, I could load an RNAV approach and fly that down to minimums rather than aimlessly tool about looking for a sucker hole, or worse. It also allows enroute navigation without positive fixes.

Certainly can. As derek said, SkyView can show all that and a lot more. Here's a subtitled screenshot I put up to show some of my rail-forum mates. What is not shown is the OZRunways overlay available - I was using the Ipad that day, or the IFR GPS interoperability. I use a TSO'd KLN-90B for enroute navigation, that pushes the positive-fix time out to 2 hours, from the normal 30 minutes. You can also see the SynVis concept, instead of a 'standard' AH/EFIS, you have a 3D, digital representation of what you'd see out the window. I'm flying up the coast here, so it's water and flat, but in the hills, you see them, valleys, rivers, etc.

Unfortunately, this regulation already existed in the CASR's, the laughable point - to me anyway - was they simply copy-and-pasted it over to the 'new' Part 91 without thinking 1) Do we really need this? and B) IS it really necessary to make it a criminal offence? I'm sure there is not a road-based equivalent that says "If you roll your 4wd on a farm, you are guilty of an offence", though if you had no authority to be there (closed NP trail, driving like a muppet, etc), then an argument could be made in a few other areas . But if you were doing what was reasonable in the circumstances and fell foul of what a 'reasonable person' would consider an accident, so far as I'm aware, that'd be the end of it. And that's the problem...You can do all the assessments you want, and up until something happens, nothing will happen. But if you drop a wheel in an unseen rabbit hole, or a patch of soft ground pulls you to one side, or you nose over, you're instantly guilty of breaching this rule. And a vengeful regulator can use this particular rule as a blanket cover-all in the event of your screwing up. And as it's strict liability, all they have to say is "Ol' mate ran off the runway, therefore, the strip wasn't suitable in the prevailing conditions", and what defence do you have? IANAL, but from what I can see, the answer to that is "not much". I'm not sure this is correct. ISTR, you don't need to do a W&B, if you have previously proven the aircraft is incapable of being loaded outside it's envelope. I'll double check my W&B notes from the MPC, but recall there was a question along those lines in the course...

I came across THIS Part-91 ready-reckoner from our favourite regulator today and had to chuckle. You folks probably will too, when you read Example 1, Regulation 91.410. Or else you'll cry... Now, the instant you run off the runway, overshoot the far end, or even crash in the trees following an engine failure, you are an instant felon, and probably for most of us, twice over - once as the PIC, the other as the Operator. Per Subregulation 2(a)iv, the place you chose was clearly not suitable, as you crashed trying.

You're correct in that it does reduce visibility somewhat, primarily from about 20* above the horizon ahead. In the circuit, clearing the area hidden by the sunshade - assuming it isn't busy enough to justify retracting it - is easily accomplished though. Nothing more than personal preference. I'm right handed and by flying PIC from the right hand seat, any passenger isn't going to bump my right arm when I'm hand flying.

When I built the -9A, I enabled the datalogging feature on the SkyView as well as installing a Navman MiVue 530 Dash-camera on the roll bar behind the Coey's seat. As most of my flights are solo, the view of the back of a head is fairly infrequent and it provides a video and data log of all my flights and actions in the event I spear in. I downloaded the card the other day to grab some footage of my recent landings to measure the numbers and you can see the results for yourself. The -9A, admittedly one of the lighter ones out there, can consistently pull off ground rolls under 600' with moderate braking on a slightly uphill runway and is likely capable of sub-400' ground rolls for a maximum performance landing if need be. You can also have fun showing off to Diamond pilots at the holding point by crossing the threshold on a 3000' runway at 250' AGL and still make the turnoff at the far end. The runway at Somersby is only 600m / 2000' long, 850'AMSL and on top of a plateau, slopes down 2* to the north and is surrounded by trees, so most FW landings tend to use Runway 17 and takeoff on 35, irrespective of the wind. For those considering a -9A, enjoy!

Check out the fine print for your credit card(s). I understand many will come with free travel insurance so their PDS' might allow it if you get lucky...Then again, you might need to see if you can find a stand-alone policy for the duration of your travels.

You're right, it is just like that. Just like you pass those signs at the entrance saying "First 3 hours FREE!", but then you come out after 2 hours and they won't raise the boomgate unless you pay $40 because they've changed the sign while you were in the shops. I'd forgotten just how much like those private carparks it was... On a serious note, it shouldn't be different between RAAus and GA - neither should have the private details of members, aircraft owners or operators published...For RAAus to do it "just because" GA does - as alluded to by the CEO - is nothing but a cop-out, and a disingenuous one at that...

I'm actually thinking about trying this on at Warnervale shortly. I can get in a circuit every 3 mins 20 seconds, and Warnervale want to charge $8.25 per landing, so if I do 18 missed approaches an hour, I want to see if AvData will hit me up with a $150 bill. And if I don't touch down, then the PPR restriction at Warnervale doesn't apply either, so Council can get stuffed.

(language) they're behind him. I've expressed my outrage to him in December last year. Because I complained to RAAus in December, I already have gone to the OAIC. And because I have the date & time-stamped PPrune posts, with the privacy policy URL's, it'll be hard for RAAus to argue that *I* am the one who screwed up reading their 'new in August' policy... Particularly when their ISP logs show who accessed what files and when... Soon as I can, I'll be swapping the RV to VH and RAAus can go take a long walk off a short pier. This is not the organisation I started out with, and given the Board's apparent willingness to trample the wishes of the membership and ignore their own policies just to feather their own nests, it's not an organisation I want to be a part of going forward. Good on you for having the balls to actually do something, rather than just vent on here. Best I can tell, it doesn't, as no one agreed for such a change to the Privacy Policy. At least when Apple, et al do it, you have to acknowledge 'reading and agreeing' to their changes - even if you just skim down and click the blue button. True -which is why many of us have written to RAAus and some have, or are, going to the OAIC. So are GA aircraft, with false callsigns, or simply going NORDO - and let's face it, with a parasite like AvData out there, why wouldn't you. When they bill you for overflying, or conducting an instrument approach, or a missed approach, why would you? If you feel so strongly about it turbo, what's your car rego so I can look up where you live? Oh...Wait...

Any income would have to be listed in the financial statements wouldn't it? Any good beancounter would be able to pick it out in a heartbeat you'd think.

Of course, this is what happens when the dog decides it isn't so supportive anymore...And as a side note - check out the "Emotional support peacock" in the article...I can understand a parrot or budgie, but a peacock?!?

Of course bloody not. But we're pilots and we know that. We know that we don't all drive a 2019 Lexus or are dropped off in a stretch limo. But so far as the local council is concerned "Youse all own a plane, youse must be rich" (sic). I crunched some numbers the other day after doing a few circuits at Mudgee last month. I got one circuit in every 3.3 minutes in the RV-9, so according to the Central Coast Council, that means I am up for $150 an hour in landing fees, though that is down from $495/hr last year. And that's just landing fees, for a sub-600kg RV. The bloke who owns Somersby charges me $300/month for unlimited movements and that includes hangarage - though there's no T&G's to be had at Somersby! I don't mind paying landing fees to a private airfield owner, club or organisation, but if it is a council asset, then unless they charge boaties to use a boat ramp, or a motorist to drive down your main street, then I don't feel I should pay to use their airfield. It is an asset like the local footy oval, skate park or road into town that brings everyone else (and their spending money) in.

No no - $500 a flight is only if you were going to do an hour of circuits at Warnervale! FWIW, an extra $10M liability coverage for an additional $20 premium sounds like good value to me, but I am not a beancounter...

I'd forgotten about this site. It shows a greater history than FA or FR24, going back a couple years for my ADS-B outputs.

Thou shall not copy-and-paste PDF files from your C: drive... The actual file can be found HERE.

Do what I do. Ignore it. You are under no legal obligation to contact them, or lift a finger to dispute, an incorrect bill they have issued. They have the onus to provide a true and correct invoice before expecting payment. No more so than driving down the main street. I don't pay a toll to drive from Gosford to Wyong, yet the local council - of which I am a ratepayer - expects me to pay $8.25 for each and every landing. Now given I can achieve a landing every 3.3 minutes that is $150 in landing fees for an hour of circuit training, in an aircraft that I own, and that is before the operating cost of the aircraft is considered. Or, put another way, it is a toll of $41.60 / kilometer of runway used, based on 200m ground roll multiplied by 18 circuits. ARTC charge less than 20% of that to run a bloody 2000-tonne freight train from Brisbane to Sydney. And if I refuel - from my own jerrycan - after that hour of circuit training, well then that's another $110 just for the 'privilege' of refuelling on council land. So, just like the Council parks, boat ramps, ovals and roads that I don't pay to use? And what happens when they're not? Warnervale is the only north-south runway between Cessnock and Wollongong, it serves an LGA with a population approaching a third of a million direct residents and probably 1.0m indirectly, yet they charge more than any other airport I've seen, with a taxiway that is worse than some "4wd tracks" I've driven on...

Seem's I'm too late to edit the previous post to include the link to the drama's I had initially, but you can find a bit writeup about it in the thread What's up with the SAAA?

Yes you can, but there are several hoops to jump through, Jaba covered most of them nicely, but there's a couple gotchas, see below. That was me, and eventually I gave up and went back to RAAus because I didn't have my MPC at the time and wasn't prepared to pay for a LAME to issue a MR, or a WCO to redo the W&B per the AP's requirement, even though it had been done by an RAAus L4, an approved CAsA delegate. The difficulty of getting in touch with either of the (at the time, only) two AP's in NSW didn't help either. Now I have the MPC, when I can tee up a time I'll have another crack, but here's a few tips: Make sure you de-register your aircraft with RAAus well before you attempt to register it with CAsA. Where the CAsA registration form asks "Has the aircraft ever been on a foreign register?", the muppets in Cant-berra interpret this to mean "Any register other than ours, at any time since Noah built the ark?", not just "A register in another country" You can register your plane VH at any time, but you can't fly it until you have a CoA from an AP Unless you built it, or "a substantially similar" one, you will need a LAME to raise the MR, which can't happen will you have a CoA The AP or LAME may want a new W&B done. If you haven't done the MPC & W&B course, you will need a CAsA-approved WCO to do this. Ask beforehand. The AP may want to issue you a test area to complete your "SAAA-approved" Phase-I testing, even though you have successfully been flying RAAus for months/years. Ask beforehand, and discuss where this area will be. The AP may want you to complete the SAAA "Risk-Radar" bollocks, even though you have successfully been flying RAAus for months/years. Ask beforehand and discuss.

I believe the certification requirement is recovery from a 1-turn spin, not a fully developed one.

You can remove and replace the landing gear tyres, IAW Schedule 8, that would include the removal of any wheelpants to actually get to the tyres in the first place. Removal of "non structural" components, cover plates and fairings is also permitted as part of lubricating various components if required.

Point of order! There is a distinct difference between a "deadman" switch on a train, and the "Vigilance/Alerter" system, which is the button you have to push every 45 seconds or so. Suburban trains usually have a deadman system, either the power controller or a pedal that has to be held "just so", or the brakes will be applied, and in Sydney after Waterfall, they introduced the Vigilance as well, whereas locomotives typically have the Vigilance system only, that being the button you have to push. That being said, the Vigilance system can lull you into a false sense of security - usually around 0700 struggling up the hill into the rising sun after signing on at 1000 the previous night following a crappy sleep. It beeps, and you reset it as part of an unconscious reaction without being fully alert. Newer vehicles usually have the Vigilance "task-linked" to other onboard systems, such that the act of blowing the horn, changing power settings or making a brake application resets the cycle with the logic being you're alert enough to be actively driving the train, so why bug you just now? The eye-scanner technology has been trialed by rail operators before and found to be a dismal failure. Train driver's can appear to lose focus for relatively long periods, which the system picks up as fatigue or at-risk behavior, though when you are driving the train several miles in advance and know almost to the meter where each signal and speedboard are, you don't need to actively focus your eyes on the track immediately ahead - which is what these systems seem to be programmed to look for and flag an alert if it doesn't happen.

To take that a step further, a single-seat aircraft of any registration doesn't need an ELT, as they are classed as "Exempted aircraft", along with HCRPT, turbojet-powered aircraft, balloons, gliders & airships. One benefit of those SPOT systems is they work outside ADS-B & mobile coverage, though depending on your chosen plan, you may have many miles between your reporting points, significantly increasing the potential search area if you can't get out the SOS feature before you crash. They're also portable between different modes, planes/boats/4WD's etc. Spot Basic sends (but doesn't confirm receipt) a location packet every 5/10/30/60 minutes but you can bring that down to every 2.5 minutes for an extra $200AUD/yr. ADS-B, for example, outputs a position accurate to within a few meters every 0.5 seconds. Depending on your cruise speed (and potential search area if you go missing), you may feel the increase in messages is worth the cost if you go the SPOT route, you may not, but it's something to consider either way.