TAA rtfm

Hi folks, I had the best time on Saturday. I got a call from Alan (HITC) to join him on a car trip down to Evan's Head (about 220k South of Brisbane) to visit the annual fly-in there. Suitably armed with water, packed lunch, GPS, prophelactic medications and emergency numbers (after all, it is south of the border in wild New South Wales territory ), we headed out to pick up another mate on the way down there. Evans Head Memorial Aerodrome is approximately 1 km (0.62 mi) north of the village. During World War II it was Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Evans Head housing the RAAF No 1 Bombing and Gunnery School; and the RAAF No 1 Air Observers School.At the height of operations it supported three asphalt runways and one grass strip. The entire airport is listed on the NSW State Heritage Register. Today the runways are still mostly intact, but tufts of grass have largely taken over at least one of the runways I inspected. When we got there, I was surprised to see so many stalls set up, selling food, trinkets, more food, and (of course) joy-rides in a Mustang, a gyro, a Drifter, some warbirds, and even a great lumbering yellow Anatov AN-2. The highlight of the day was when Alan organised a quick flight piloted by an aerobatic ace friend of his in a Drifter. (See below for an example of this heart-pounding flying aluminum tube...) It all started out pretty innocently, execpt that as we picked up speed (I was in the back seat, clinging on for dear life strapped in as tightly as I could manage with a screaming 2-stroke a few inches from my eardrums), the aircraft seemed to career erratically all over the runway as it averaged itself forward. After what seemed an age, we finally lifted off and the plane stopped its Brownian motion. Only to start flying sideways. Bloody hell - it has been a long time since I went flying, and my first time strapped into a seat perched on top of a pole exposed to the elements. After we'd climbed out, I suddenly found myself in control. I definitely hadn't expected that. A few gentle turns, and "This baby needs lots of rudder, mate" blurted over the hearphones. And in 20 seconds I learned all I needed to know about adverse yaw and the role of the rudder, as I was treated to first the stick hard left onto the stops with no rudder input, and then the stick hard over to the right again with no rudder. Then again, this time with rudder inputs. Voila. Better than any words could explain. I spent the next few minutes turning harder and harder, with plenty of rudder inputs. I was feeling quite chuffed with myself. Till I had my little safety cuccoon completely distroyed with "Don't be scared to throw her around a bit..." in my ears. Next thing I knew we were climbing nearly vertically, and then the world sort of turned upside down as we plunged to our doom over the ocean. "I managed to stall the left wing-tip on that one..." my earphones said as though to comforrt me. Strangely... it didn't. Our landing was pretty calm and placid, we touched down, the Brownian Motion started again as the little plane jumped all over the place. And then careered off wildly to the left. And I mean WILDLY. This time I could feel the rudder pedals sawing away frantically. And then it was over. We rolled to a stop. "Bloody helicopter hovering just to the right there off the runway..." All in all, one of the most exciting times of my recent life. Thanks Alan. The Drifter is quite a plane... The rest of the day was spent getting burnt in the merciless sun, talking to a few builders about their planes, having Alan point out some of the nicities of design and build features of some of the planes, asking questions of the owners, and generally chewing the flying cud. Brilliant. I have arrived home with a renewed enthusiasm to get the little Razorback flying. I would just LOVE to fly there next year. Well, maybe the year after next... Cheers, Duncan

Hi Michael, Thanks for the reply. Certainly clears things up. I believe this is the same as in NZ where I did my training and all my flying. Using Archerfield as my home field would make life a LOT easier than having to travel out to Redcliffe every time I wanted to go flying... Cheers, Duncan

Hi guys, I live in Brisbane's West End, and so the prospect of flying out of Archerfield is rather attractive. I have heard horror stories from just about everyone I've spoken to regarding who/what/when one can use Archerfield, and the advice I've received has ranged from "It's far too expensive", "You have to fly a certified aircraft", "Your engine has to be certified", "You can fly outside controlled times", "You have to have a PPL", "The airfield isn't controlled at the weekends". So this morning, I called Laurie Prior the airport's Operations manager, who told me that so long as I have a PPL, and my aircraft has a VH registration I can use Archerfield. Simple as that. I have a PPL, and (if I understand the VH registration correctly), my plane will be registered under the Experimental category, so will be "VH registered". Is this correct? Does anyone have any corroborating information or additional information in this regard? I have also heard that touch-and-go's are not regarded as full landings, and are not charged for. That's a bonus, if correct. And I suspect there will be space to hangar my plane somewhere, especially since the wings come off, and it is only about 15ft long. Cheers, Duncan

Well done that Grannie! From Grandpa Dunky

Hi folks, and thanks for the welcome. The little Razorback (it really IS small) will be powered by one of Valley Engineering's Big Twins. Essentially this is a 990cc Generac industrial engine which has been opened up and fitted with all sorts of good things including a new cam. It now produces 50hp of safe, reliable power and fitted with a belt redrive, starter, twin exhausts and filled with oil (ie ready to bolt on and fly) weighs 116lbs (just over 52kg). So that's almost 1hp per kg. Not bad for a cheap industrial engine. And the best thing is it comes with a factory selected wooden prop and basic engine instruments - all for just over $5k USD. That's not a bad deal. According to the spreadsheets, this little plane (empty weight) ready to fly = 272lbs (124kg) will stall at 38kts and cruise at 145kts. One reason for this is that it has a very small wing (18ft span, 45 ft ^2 area), with HUGE Fowler flaps. So there you have it. The little Razorback in a nutshell. Time will tell if the design translates with integrity into the physical artifact, but I'm having a ball just building it. Cheers, Duncan

G'day, I've just stumbled across this forum, and it really is attractively laid out. I have read good things about the friendliness and helpfulness of the folks here, so I'm very happy to have made your aquaintance. I have designed, and am now building, a single seat, composite mid-wing aircraft, which is STILL in the plug stage, although nearing vcompletion. I am building it on the 2nd floor of the Absoe Warehouse (the old Peter's Ice Cream factory in West End, Brisbane). However, I've just been made redundant (AGAIN...) and will be moving the plane out to better (ie cheaper) accommodation. Anyone have any spare space for a month or two to house a very small single seater with no wings, please give me a call on 0406 527 822. I have been an active member on the HBA forum, but it is very nice to find a local home. If there are any local builders/designers who would like to get in contact, or to pop over to take a look at my progress so far, please feel free to give me a call also. Always happy to talk about planes. Well, that's it for the intro. Regards, Duncan