OzScot

Condolence's to Dave's family and friends. He was a true gentleman and allowed me to take to the skies a few years back with patient instruction, guidance and laughs. Gutted to see this happen. I will echo what was said above about Dave - a real professional and very safety focussed, which just makes what happened more confusing. Michael

Hi Jon, I can certainly recommend flying from Boonah with Airsport Queensland. Speak to Dave, he’s a great instructor too. Caboolture have a few operators but I’ve not flown with them. I tried flying at Redcliffe with a group there and was made to feel rather unwelcome as I hadn’t done my first training with them. Hope this helps. Michael

Good to hear you had a good time. Tell him that Michael C says hi from Scotland. Wish I could go for a fly out there on a weekend!

Welcome!

Sometimes those "nit picking" are low time pilots trying to understand and ask questions to expand their knowledge. The CAR states that radio calls should be made to ensure the safety of those operating in the vicinity of an aerodrome. Why not ask what other people do, to help learn from those with more experience? (I.e., not just what the bare minimum/law is). This is a great forum to learn from those with more experience, and I've always appreciated that.

When I first got my certificate, one of my biggest concerns was other traffic and trying to keep track of where they were. Whilst it might be legal to only make minimal calls, it can result in low time or student pilots stressing about locations of other aircraft. I fly where sometimes gliders will join a left circuit with a right turn onto downwind or thermal just above circuit height with few calls. It's stressful to see a glider head on...more stressful if there are few calls! Anyway, I guess my point is that I can understand why in busy airspace chatter should be minimal, but at quieter strips it just seems helpful to others to at least announce downwind (base is helpful for me too). Plus if people get used to not making calls, that might just become a habit that gets someone hurt. (My 2 cents)

Near miss in the UK between a light aircraft (not sure of type but looks RAA type) and a citation jet. Video here: Air collision near Eastbourne avoided thanks to pilot - BBC News If the citation jet was doing 240kts then it's a surprise the other aircraft saw them in time to maneuver as the frontal profile would be small until the last couple of seconds!

I've done almost all my flying down in Boonah where it's $230/hour dual for a tecnam golf or $240 (I think) for a p2008 if you want something comfier. They also have a new Aeronca Chief which is similarly priced for taildragger learning. Private hire at $175 for the golf seems pretty reasonable. Plus the area down there is awesome to fly in. It's an hour from Brisbane and a nice drive. I visited another school at Redcliffe but wasn't impressed with their attitude so didn't go back. I'd be happy to fly GA one day if the medical becomes easier...but that's another story.

Thanks for the replies everyone. I guess by "better pilot" I'm referring to a self-evaluation of before and after you did something in particular...I guess, more of a retrospective. You might only realise that your rudder use wasn't great until you flew something that required a lot more rudder attention. Likewise with speed control or other aspects :-) Your answers give me ideas of types of flying to try to things to pay attention to that I might not realise were missing yet! Cheers Michael

Hi All, After flying for a couple of years in tecnams, last week I had my first taildragger lesson in an Aeronca Chief (at Airsport in Boonah). Lovely old aircraft but a lot more challenging as it needed constant rudder attention throughout the flight - a great challenge. I know a lot of people say that taildraggers make you a better pilot and I'm just starting to see why. Others say gliding makes you a better pilot. So my question is in a general sense, what made you a better pilot? And why? I'm interested to know if it's particular aircraft, age of aircraft etc. Happy flying, Michael

Reports of an engine failure and a couple more photos here: Middle Island plane crash: Engine failure likely cause - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) Very sad indeed. M

I've had a couple of bad instructors in different areas (a dangerous paragliding instructor was one!) and I can tell you that you need to feel comfortable and happy to be safe when you undertake an activity like flying. From 4 instructors I've had in flying, one I didn't return to because i didn't like his attitude- I felt like an inconvenience to him. If you're somewhere with another school nearby then I'd try them out to get a different perspective. It's also a great way to get independent feedback on your flying. I know that when you've invested so much time and money you want to get to the final sign off but you'll be safer if you go somewhere else and enjoy the passion of one of the many great instructors around Aus. And finally, who cares if your instructor has hurt feelings - might make him reevaluate why people keep leaving him.

Welcome back! Boonah's a great place to fly from and the Golf is good fun. Assuming you've got the same instructor as I've had, you'll be in great hands :-) Michael

Hi everyone, Thanks for all the comments and advice :-) Michael

Hi Everyone, Thought I'd ask your advice about flying in areas where parachute drops take place. I know they normally broadcast intentions to drop on frequencies on VNC/VTCs but how do you know when you're good to enter that area. I guess they won't broadcast an all clear so what do you do? I'm thinking specifically as I'd like to fly around Byron or rainbow beach where drops can occur. I figure a skydiver going through a wing would make a lot of noise and be a pain to clean up... Cheers Michael

Great - that makes things clearer. Thanks!

Hi Rhys, Thanks for the quick reply. No readout on the transponder but I'm pretty sure I was on area QNH that I it from Brisbane Centre. Either way it's good to hear that there's a buffer to correct for any issues with equipment. Cheers M

Hi All, Great idea on the thread- very informative :-) I was wondering what the protocol is regarding altitudes when flying near controlled airspace. I'm a relatively low time pilot (~50hrs) and I had one flight flying towards the Q1 on the Gold Coast from Boonah where I was asked my intentions by Brisbane Centre. They identified me by location and altitude but the altitude they used (mode C or radar I guess) was about 200ft higher than my altimeter read, even though I'd got the area QNH from the controllers about 10 minutes earlier. I was wondering if in this case if I should have checked the QNH with them again or let them know I had a disparity? flying under the 1500ft class c step to the coast I wanted to make sure I maintained 1000ft above the populated areas but not too close to class c above. Any suggestions would be very helpful :-) Thanks!

I've had a great experience at airsport qld with David Briffa, at Boonah (1 hr from Brisbane). Id highly recommend him as an instructor. It's also a beautiful area to learn in - in the scenic rim. Michael

Great point av8- since I was at the top end (and above) from the VTC, I was using my VNC where Teewah isn't marked (it is on the VTC). There are the symbols though. Appreciate the input, will be able to prepare better next time :-) M

Hi Nev, love that idea, makes a lot of sense. Cheers, M

Thanks for the replies :-) yesterday I was flying from Gympie to the coast just north of Noosa and back, although I've also flown around the Gold Coast. In both cases, once in the area, you're almost always within 10 of an airfield but on a common frequency, and changing between airfield areas. Yesterday people were reporting on a location that wasn't on the VNC so I was a bit concerned - that area was within 10nm of an unmarked airfield (Teewa?) and Noosa, so I wasn't sure what the best calls were. In that case I called more than the minimum, but at least that way it let people in the CTAFs know I was close. Anyway, that's the reason i wanted to find out where these local locations were, in advance (if there is a way), to avoid unnecessary calls. Cheers Michael

Hi All, I was flying in a new area yesterday (VFR) and trying to make radio calls based upon locations that were marked on my VNC charts so that people would know where I was. The problem was that local pilots were reporting locations on 126.7 (which covered a bunch of fields in the vicinity) based upon a reference point that I later found out was close to me, but not marked on the chart (it was on google maps, which i found later). So my question is, if i'm making a cross-country flight to a new area, is there a way to find out common reporting points in higher traffic areas? or should i add something to my transmissions to say i'm unfamiliar with the area? I did ask a local pilot before going but I only got broad information, so would be more specific in requesting info next time. But any other suggestions would be helpful. My fear is that i could be close to another aircraft but not know since i can't see their reporting location on my charts. Thanks in advance, Michael

Hi all, Thanks for the replies - I'm definitely trying to get up every couple of weeks so hopefully that'll work out ok. Nev i'm interested in what you mean about the notebook of flying rules. Do you mean a set of rules that you place on yourself (human factors-ish), or specific rules that you need to remind yourself when you're flying (more air-law/navigation/safety)? I like the idea of having consolidated relevant information as a reminder so will follow your advice on that :-) Michael

Hey everyone, I recently passed my pilot certificate, with X-country and passenger endorsements and am now flying for fun, which is great. But at this point (~45 hours total), I find that if I don't fly every couple of weeks then I don't fly as well...not necessarily big things, but just clarity of radio calls and things like that. I'm sure that with experience this will become easier but I was just wondering: (1) how regularly do you fly, post licence award; and (2) how often at this sort of stage do you/did you fly with an instructor (to polish out errors that are creeping in)? I'm sure a lot of this depends on personal aptitude/confidence, but the issue of regular revision with an instructor interests me. With so much at stake, I don't think I'd be comfortable flying only once a month, but that's just me. Keen to know what everyone else thinks :-)