onetrack

I can recall sighting a big-bum hot air balloon in the 1988 Centennial Across-Australia Balloon Race. 

Dry powder is pretty good for most fires, but a strong airflow in a still-flying aircraft would have to be the single greatest problem affecting the effectiveness of a fire extinguisher in a light aircraft.

Being able to cut off fuel supply is good, but you can't do much about a burst oil line, or a hole in a major component that is spewing out oil. 

With burning fibreglass, you've got two major concerns - not just the fire, but the toxic smoke as well.

Spacey, 550g of fire extinguisher product is good for SFA, stating it bluntly. You'd be far better off to purchase a larger dry powder extinguisher, that's built to Australian Standards for fire extinguishers.

https://www.aldi.com.au/en/special-buys/special-buys-sat-21-may/saturday-detail-wk20/ps/p/mini-fire-fighter/

So ... can you still buy an Australian-made Aeropup kit? - or has manufacturing moved completely to the U.S.?

The Zeppelins were abandoned after the horror of the Hindenburg disaster. But if the Germans had chosen Helium instead of Hydrogen, the Zeppelins might still be around today.

The construction of the Zeppelins framework was nothing less than astounding, with duralumin the secret to their great strength and lightness.

In the first 2 years of WW1, the Zeppelins wreaked havoc on Britain, until the British got the upper hand and exploited their weaknesses with both explosive and incendiary bullets combined.

https://media.nationalarchives.gov.uk/index.php/defeating-zeppelins/

......it has nothing to do with the acid ingested by pop stars, and even less to do with normal rain - apart from the fact it falls from above. But there were other, more pressing problems Turbo had with carrying a .357 Magnum - the sheer weight of the weapon, even in a holster, made him walk funny - and the kickback from the recoil left him with shoulder problems, every time he fired it.

Then there was the problem that if he dispensed with the holster and simply carried it in his pocket, the more knowledgeable girls would become wide-eyed, and say, "Are you simply glad to see me, or is a that a S&W .357 in your pocket?". To which Turbo would reply. "I have this problem with........

The Europeans are getting in on the airship deal, too, with plans for rigs able to lift up to 400 tonnes. The Europeans are utilising a rigid frame airship. 

http://www.euroairship.eu/

That's a great aerial shot of Augusta, Hardy Inlet and Cape Leeuwin with the lighthouse.

For a 600 hr engine, the start in the video wasn't particularly inspiring - unless the battery was down.

https://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/stirling/miscellaneous-goods/piper-aztec-aircraft/1295781918

Twin six Lycomings, wow, he must be on first name terms with the fuel suppliers.

You can have rain fall in a clear area as it descends from clouds that are a considerable distance away. If there's strong winds where the rain if falling, the winds can carry the rain quite a distance. This phenomenon is often called "sunshowers".

You can also have rain fall from clouds as they dissipate. The French have a name for rain from a cloudless sky - "Serein".

.......did you know, there's a very good reason why that pavement construction team chose those exact pebbles? There's many a secret to top-quality pavement construction, but the biggest secret is in the pebble selection!

That pavement construction team were descendants of the legendary blokes who comprised 5ACS, who cut their teeth on constructing runway pavements all through Australia and the Pacific Islands in WW2! - and they beat the Japanese hands down, when it came to pavement construction materials!

You see, the Japanese effectively didn't know a pavement pebble from a Japanese Garden pebble! - and this was one of the major reasons why they lost the War! That, and the fact that the Zeroes couldn't handle.........

Not a pretty sight. Straight into a near-vertical rock face. That pilot was definitely completely lost.

https://newsroompost.com/world/nepal-army-locates-the-crash-site-of-tara-air-aircraft-at-sanosware-thasang-2-mustang/5106382.html

..... "Turbine Global Spies Inc" registered, run out of a ramshackle tin shack in the back streets of Mysore (formerly known as Mybumsore, but abbreviated for simplicity), with a mange-ridden and flea-bitten old dog for site security, and a 1970 model, ex-AMF AN/PRC 77 radio set as the global communications instrument, utilising a discarded local TV antenna secured to the top of a 6M length of galvanised pipe for extra range, and wired up to run on.........

F10 - Yes, all the ones I have are for sale, I was in the process of putting them on eBay. The ones I have are Honeywell Hobbs (Honeywell International purchased Hobbs Corp in 2002), and they're the same as the ones the U.S. seller below, is selling.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/175132661015

They're 12-60V, bayonet-style connectors, with a sliding plastic clip held by serrations to secure the meter in the panel. I'm asking $40 for them, post included. PM me when you're ready.

This is truly a great aircraft restoration story, complete with as much history of the aircraft (which is a lot), that the restorers could find. This aircraft was the 2021 AirVenture Oshkosh Grand Champion in the Antique class.

Some fascinating information in this story -

1. The number of accidents the aircraft had is amazing, and it still flies today! Out of 150 Travelair 6000's built, only 6 remain in flying condition. The vast majority of the Travelair 6000's were purchased and (well) used by commercial airlines.

2. The story behind the "wicker chair" style of construction - it's not cane, as you might think! The restorers had to search the U.S. to find someone with the skills to rebuild the seats to the original style of construction.

3. The first aircraft to drop "smokejumpers" in Montana, to start backburns to fight forest fires. This arrangement was deemed to be a major improvement on the previous arrangement, where the Travelair reported forest fires, and the Forest Commission then had to build a road to the fire. By the time the Forest Commission people had got the road into the fire, the fire was massive, and out of control!

4. The amount the cotton fabric shrank over the years, and how the cotton was stronger than the structural elements, and how this shrinkage actually buckled aluminium sections!

All in all, one of the most comprehensive and fascinating aircraft restoration stories I have watched and read in a long time. These people are dedicated beyond belief. As with all major restorations, a sizeable number of volunteers were invaluable.

https://www.travelair6000.com/

......where uninvited visitors arriving for coffee in cheap aluminium dinghies, were looked down upon with huge disdain, on a par with arriving in a.......

F10 - There's nothing in the Hobbs meters that is repairable, simply buy a new one.  When you pull it out, it will have a decal with all the relevant information on it, model number, part number, voltage, polarity etc.

I have several new units of the rectangular variety, but I can't help you with a round one. Try eBay, there's usually plenty available there.

*my spelling and proof-reading error - it's actually spelt phthalate. Phthalates can also come from soft plastics and utensil coatings, and will migrate into cooking oils from the bottles, thus making checking for phthalate content in the original oil, difficult to track down. 

.....newly-owned Brighton properties, when he suddenly realised there was a real possibility said properties were very soon going to be worth nothing, as the wall of the tsunami wave roared towards them - with Cappy riding on the top of it!

It was about then, that Cappys mind turned to amphibian aircraft, and how he wished he'd bought that SeaRey (long-overdue avref), and used that to sneak out to the statue.

But it was too late for all that now, as the wall of water approached Brighton at 55 knots, and Cappy knew that soon he'd be......

Around 8% of the diesel sold in Europe in 2019 was biodiesel, the Europeans use large amounts of Australian Canola oil to add to regular diesel. There's a substantial improvement in exhaust emissions by using biodiesel blends.

The Europeans specify biodiesel as a way of keeping their dino oil imports down, and to meet their requirements for lower emissions levels. They set a 10% biodiesel target for 2020, but didn't meet it. The target for 2030 is 14% biodiesel.

https://www.politico.eu/sponsored-content/biodiesel-the-green-fuel-bridging-the-eus-climate-ambitions/

The cetane number is a direct measure of the speed of ignition of diesel, and is thus a measure of ease of startability. So, a high cetane number guarantees a faster start for your diesel.

Biodiesel produced from tallow and other heavy fats high in saturated fatty esters has a higher cetane number than biodiesel produced from plant-based (vegetable) oils.

Tallow-based biodiesel can actually have a higher cetane number than dino diesel.

Used cooking oil is full of heavy fats from cooking sausages and other low-grade "fast foods". I picked up some IBC's a couple of years ago that were supposed to be empty - but some contained up to 100 litres of used fryer oil.

This stuff was a real eye-opener, you would never eat deep-fried food again, when you see what comes from deep fryers after a few weeks of cooking. It was not only full of heavy tallow with a soft butter consistency, it also contained a large amount of food particles, a few utensils (!), and the worst part was the heavy, almost plastic-like coating on the containers.

This heavy coating is pthalates, a plasticiser formed when the cooking oil contains undesirable by-products, and formed when the oil is overheated. It's nasty stuff. A lot of el-cheapo cooking oils are pretty poor quality.

Pthalate coatings can be formed on combustion chambers if untreated or inadequately-treated oil is used in biodiesel. These are highly undesirable coatings, and they can result in a need for engine dismantling to remove them.

It appears that CASA rules that all flight training must take place in a suitable (i.e. approved) flight training facility, under CASR Part 141 - and this includes RA-Aus training. So private training in a rental aircraft would not meet those requirements.

https://www.casa.gov.au/licences-and-certificates/flight-instructors/certification-flight-training-operators/flight-training-locations

Here's an interesting ATSB report, where the flying instructor of a Temporary Satellite Flight Training Facility (TSFTF) possessed adequate flying training skills, but he/she did not possess the required pilot training briefing materials, as required by CASA and RA-Aus.

"RA-Aus operations staff undertook a review of the performance of the senior instructor who provided the pilot’s training. That review found that the instructor had adequate aeronautical knowledge but did not possess any formal and consistent briefing material for pilots. In response, he was tasked to produce a set of standardised pilot briefing notes."

https://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/2011/aair/ao-2011-126/si-01/

The upright Chrysler Hemi sixes were some of Australia's finest engines, exceptionally durable, capable of high HP without breaking anything - but they would never make it as an aircraft engine, in 500 years.

Yes, the majority of heavy industrial diesels still use inline injection pumps. But Common Rail injection is gradually becoming the dominant style of diesel fuel injection.

I see no reason why a flying instructor, who is fully qualified, can't teach a flying student in a "non-flying school" aircraft. The instructor must also hold qualifications in training and assessment.

The "fly in the ointment" will possibly be in the aircraft rental terms and conditions. I can't see anyone renting an aircraft for it to be used for flying training, as flying training is always recognised as being hard on aircraft.

There are also insurance issues to be addressed. If the rental companys aircraft insurance doesn't specifically cover using the rental aircraft for training, you won't be able to do it.

Indirect injection (IDI) was the primary diesel design up until the late 1950's, when direct injection (DI) designs became more favoured. The IDI system utilises a precombustion chamber to commence the fuel burn.

Many heavy industrial diesel engine designs dropped IDI in favour of DI in the late 1950's and early 1960's, because the early IDI designs could not meet the efficiency requirements of the newer, high speed (2000-2500RPM) diesels being produced in that era.

Older IDI designs became smoky and lost efficiency at high RPM's, and DI offered lower thermal losses, so DI became more prevalent. Caterpillar stuck with IDI until the late 1970's, when tighter diesel emissions laws made DI a better choice.

However, a number of Japanese and European manufacturers have stuck with IDI designs, thanks to improved design abilities created by computerisation, and improved real-time combustion studies.

IDI still does have some advantages, both in lower manufacturing cost and the ability to utilise lower injection pressures - but as a general guide, the current ruling diesel designs are DI, electronically-controlled piezo injectors, and extremely high pressure common-rail fuel injection systems.

A couple of the problems associated with CR fuel injection are - the heat generated by pressurising the fuel to exceptionally high pressures (30,000psi or 206Mpa) has to be removed via fuel cooling - and any water in diesel fuel in a CR system causes catastrophic damage to delicate, high precision, fine tolerance injectors, the high pressure pump, and associated valves.

Another problem is common rails bursting with the extremely high pressure, thus posing a major personnel and fire hazard. So much so, that some manufacturers encase the high pressure rail inside another protective layer of heavy tubing.

It's interesting that the U.S. Military is very big on "multi-fuel" engines. They want engines that will run on a wide range of fuels, so that their forces don't get caught out with the wrong fuels for an operation.

The U.S. military fuel standard is JP-8 - which is essentially aviation fuel. JP-8 is used as a backup to diesel in multiple applications. It is used for powering aircraft, powering tanks, used in heaters and stoves, and even used as a coolant.

JP-8, as a kerosene-based fuel, does not have the energy content of regular diesel, and diesel engines run on it suffer from a power reduction of around 10-15%.

There also have been issues with premature fuel injection equipment wear in some military equipment - but the injection equipment problems are mostly confined to vehicles with rotary fuel injection pumps - such as the Stanadyne injection pump found on the 6.2L and 6.5L Chev V8 diesels, fitted to the Humvees.

Because rotary fuel injection pumps use only one pump plunger for all cylinders (instead of individual injection pumps, as in inline Bosch/CAV/Lucas-Delphi/Zexel/Kiki Diesel/Nippon-Denso injection pumps), they are always prone to increased wear rates. Injection pump lubrication additives are a must for these style of injection pumps.