onetrack

The German Consul in W.A., imported 2 Klemm monoplanes in late 1929 and early 1930. The Consul, a Mr H.C. Ittershagen, ran a company called the Aerial Commerce Co., and tried to sell the Klemm aircraft with barnstorming sessions, and much advertising and visitations by the aircraft, and giving joyrides, in many rural regions of W.A. H.C. Ittershagen was also the local dealer for German Lanz tractors, and he was intent on selling the Klemm aircraft to wealthy farmers. However, it was the height of the Great Depression, and most peoples thoughts were on survival, not purchasing aeroplanes. The farming community was under stress as commodity prices had collapsed below the cost of production. As a result, sales of the Klemm aircraft failed to eventuate, and I believe the company was wound up before the Great Depression was over (1934). The two seater Klemm apparently survived until the early 1950's, and was apparently flown unregistered and secretly during the War by an unlicenced pilot. https://encore.slwa.wa.gov.au/iii/encore/record/C__Rb1920207?lang=eng&ivts=x9%2FQXzsNh%2Bv1jvs6BeSDUg%3D%3D&casts=xs0LRgWFEu0M%2B8o995kfRA%3D%3D https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/33345002 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/244479910?searchTerm="Aerial Commerce Co" https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/33346529 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/32309256 https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/264201167 https://www.airhistory.net/photo/564927/VH-ULU

..........gaps in his maps and charts. However, the novice suddenly became aware, once airborne, that the countryside below didn't seem to match his maps and charts. This led to a great deal of consternation, until he realised that the maps and charts he was in possession of, dated to 1943 and contained information such as "likely enemy target", amongst other things. What was even more unfortunate, was that one of the "likely enemy targets" listed was the Turbine Industries Cat Farm. Upon reading the word "enemy", our novice was overcome with emotions that made him start looking on board for his American flag, and he then sought out the whereabouts of his armaments, which comprised.........

From a Flight Operations Briefing Note: Introduction: The failure rate of aircraft engines has reached an all-time low. This means that many flight crews will never face an engine failure during their career, other than those in the flight simulator. However, simulators are not fully representative of engine failures because accelerations (e.g. due to a failed engine), noise (e.g. caused by an engine stall), or vibrations (e.g. in the event of a blade rupture), are hard to simulate. Consequently, flight crews are not always able to identify and understand engine malfunctions. Incorrect crew understanding of engine malfunctions can lead to unnecessary engine shutdowns, but also to incidents and accidents. Statistics and Background: When the jet engine was introduced in civil aviation in the 1950s (de Havilland Comet, Sud-Aviation Caravelle), the available thrust was less than 10,000 lbs. Today, high by-pass ratio engines produce up to 115,000 lbs of thrust. During the same time, the rate of In-Flight Shut Downs (IFSD) has decreased as follows: IFSD (per 100,000 engine FH) 1960s - 40 Today - Less than 1 In other words: • In the 1960s, on average, each engine failed once a year • Today, on average, each engine fails every 30 years. This improvement in the rate of IFSD has allowed the introduction of ETOPS (Extended Twin Operations) in 1985. Among other criteria, to be approved for ETOPS 180, the rate of IFSD must be less than 2 per 100,000 engine flight hours. This also means that pilots that start their career today, will probably never experience an IFSD due to an engine malfunction. However, despite the significant improvement in engine reliability, the number of accidents (per aircraft departure) due to an incorrect crew response following an engine malfunction, has remained constant for many years. This prompted a study with all major industry actors involved (aircraft and engine manufacturers, authorities, accident investigation agencies, pilot organizations). Among the results were: • The vast majority of engine malfunctions are identified and handled correctly. However, some malfunctions are harder to identify • Most crews have little or no experience of real (i.e. not simulated) engine malfunctions • Simulators are not fully representative of all malfunctions • Training does not sufficiently address the characteristics of engine malfunctions. The following crew undue actions, caused by engine malfunctions, have been observed: • Loss of control (trajectory not adapted to the engine failure) • Rejected takeoff above V1 • Shutdown of the wrong engine • Unnecessary engine shutdown • Application of the wrong procedure / Deviation from the published procedure.

There is nothing in the information coming out that says the fuel cutoff switches were actually moved. All that has been stated, is that the investigation is "focusing on the fuel switches". No doubt the investigation is carefully studying the maintenance records and interrogating those who last worked on the aircraft. It is a worrying sign that falsified and inadequate aviation records have been provided by Air India Express staff previously.

......horror, as it was suddenly realised by Margot and Rudy (and all the NES readers, too, of course) that the NES had now been infiltrated by a secretive ex-WW2 Messerschmitt fighter pilot, who has admitted to selling Cessnas as a sideline - and even worse - has admitted to being a Tasmanian. One could forgive the new member for supporting one lost cause, but supporting three lost causes is too much, and makes one...........

The "talk of other faults", is what is missing at present. The AAIB preliminary report is likely to be somewhat disappointing, and declaring an open and shut case at any preliminary report is quite likely not ideal, as deeper investigation takes place, that often finds subtle or unrecorded factors in play. What if the fuel cutoff switches are recorded by the FDR as being untouched by the crew, in "run" position, but the fuel supply to the engines was found to be shut off, in contravention to the switch position? That would mean a much more intensive search to find the precise reason for the fuel starvation.

The article says the pilot "fell from the parachute", which appears to indicate he fell out of it, rather than the parachute itself falling rapidly to the ground? If that's the case, then position restraint failure must be the reason behind the fall?

I can attest to the usefulness and durability of pantyhose. Many decades ago, when I was operating in the mining industry, there was a local underground nickel mine which was notorious for working conditions. Nickel sulphide itself is a nasty, highly corrosive ore, but it often comes with volumes of underground water, and that water often contains high levels of nasty chemicals such as arsenic. Many underground miners work in very wet conditions, and if you work in these conditions where the underground water contains a high level of arsenic, you end up with some nasty skin complaints in the tender crotch region. So, it was found that wearing pantyhose was the best protection against arsenic water skin complaints, in those tender regions. So, even rough and tough miners can be seen wearing panthyhose!

The part I find interesting is that according to the B787 drivers, both fuel switches cannot be switched off at once, unless both hands are used. The switch handles need to be lifted against spring pressure, to go through their locking gates. This applies whether you're selecting "run" or "cutoff" with the switch. The drivers say it would require a person using both hands to switch both fuel switches to cutoff at the same time, as appears to be the case here. The fuel switch cutoff is instantaneous, the engine spools down immediately. If the pilot or co-pilot, sitting in their seats, strapped in, tried to switch both fuel switches simultaneously, it would require some extreme body movement, to do so. If the switches were moved to cutoff, one after the other, quickly, with one hand, I would expect to see some yaw, as one engine shut down before the other. I see zero yaw on takeoff, the flight travelled smoothly in one direction only. As the switches are electric-over-mechanical, with spring pressure at the fuel valves holding the valves at the position they're set at (i.e., a power failure does not change the valve position), then the conclusion must be that electric power was supplied to the fuel valves to activate them to the cutoff position - and both at the same time. How that could possibly happen if the switches weren't activated in the cockpit, has to be the main focus of the investigation, now. There is talk that the preliminary report, due tomorrow, will not reveal why the fuel valves were in the cutoff position - only that it happened, and much further investigation is going to be required, before the reason they were in that position, is found.

Another media source, with added information .... https://www.firstpost.com/explainers/air-india-plane-crash-ahmedabad-fuel-control-switches-movement-13904485.html

I can't wait, to see the rush by a bunch of blokey pilots, to obtain their size in pantyhose! 😄

.....whurr sheep go, whun yuh can't find thum! They go underground!" "Of course", said OT soothingly, "Haven't you heard of underground mutton? It was a great delicacy in my youth, and even today, you still can find.........

My bet is the fuel was likely switched off - but not necessarily from a cockpit control knob. https://www.smh.com.au/world/asia/air-india-crash-investigators-focus-on-jet-s-fuel-switches-as-report-nears-20250709-p5mdps.html

.....londe nurse to give him a full medical, and run her hands over him (as Cappy always fantasised about - but it never happened, of course - he always got the grumpy old male doctors). Pangy laid there on his back for a while, looking as cute as any Pangolin could get - but it wasn't working, because the place was so busy, that the nurse ignored him, after she said 'Hi' - thus leaving Pangy as bitterly disappointed as any Pangolin could get (and we have little understanding of Pangolin levels of disappointment, but the best animal behaviour researchers are working on it). Accordingly, Pangy rolled back the right way up, and promptly.......

You will always get people who don't follow lines, or stop where they're not supposed to stop - even pilots.

It ain't necessarily so, as the old song goes.

The lawyers are circling like buzzards over a rotting carcass. Boeing must be sweating, when you consider their losses, both financial, and on the manufacturing status level, in the last few years. https://www.financialexpress.com/business/airlines-aviation-serious-systems-failure-uk-law-firm-seeks-answers-to-two-major-issues-in-ai-171-crash-3903947/

The propellant in rocket chutes should contain Guanidinium nitrate, which is the same propellant as used in airbags in cars. I've never seen a recommendation to change out airbags in cars, they're supposed to still work after 30 years or more. There are still many questions around old airbags in use, because older airbags used sodium azide, which is as toxic as cyanide. Takata stopped using sodium azide in airbags due to toxicity concerns, and started using ammonium nitrate, which was deemed safer. But the problem that occurred with the ammonium nitrate in the defective Takata airbags, was that if it got wet (and it was supposed to be sealed, but sometimes the sealing failed), then the AN developed little tunnels through it, known as "Ostwald ripening". High temperatures made the problem worse, and effectively caused the AN to detonate when initiated, rather than burn (there's a fine line between the two, as you all know with fuel detonation). As a result, all airbag and ballistic chute manufacturers now use Guanidinium nitrate, which is a long-standing and safer propellant. This doesn't mean this product can be mishandled, it is still a toxic compound and needs to be handled accordingly, especially when disposing of product which has reached the end of its lifespan. All propellant in airbags and ballistic chutes should be detonated on disposal, to change the chemicals into less harmful compounds.

"Hey Jethro, I jest shotgunned outta the sky, the biggest darn skeeter ah ever did see!!! .... and the noise of its buzzin', you could hear a-coming for miles!!! ...."

.........Asian food delights from the Lucky Cat restaurant. Now, not many people know that Turbo started a fine Asian restaurant, as a sideline to the Turbine Cat Farming operation. This restaurant conveniently utilised cats from the Cat Farm that didn't make the grade for pelts - thus showing that Turbo's business skills at waste minimisation and maximising ROI, were right up there with the countrys biggest and best CEO's. The restaurant name was a clever joke that no-one ever twigged to, of course, and even fewer knew the source of the meat in the Kway Teow and the Sweet and Sour Pork, but regardless......... (and here, dear NES readers, is OT's photo of Turbo's prominent restaurant advertising - however, he did give the place a miss, knowing it was owned by Turbo, so he can't report on these particular food delights, as regards taste......)

It's a shame the Larkin Aircraft Co. folded because of the Great Depression. I have an early 1930's copy of the Australian Wings aviation magazine, and it features a lot of information about the Lascondor and the Larkin Aircraft Co. Aviation was going great guns here in Australia in the late 1920's, but the Great Depression wiped out a lot of aviation efforts.

.......Santoku knife sets, which need to be treated with more care than a live Taipan, the Kimono with obi (which must be tied using the tateya musubi knot), and of course, Zori, otherwise known as Japanese work boots. Zori can be worn anytime and anywhere, of course, and if anyone complains that open-toed footwear must not be worn on the premises, one can always tell them where to shove their........... (Dear NES Readers, Cappy has brought a reminiscent tear to OT's eyes, as he did once own 3 of the D-375 dozers, plus a large fleet of other Komatsu machines, with the Cats making up a tiny minority of the 55-strong fleet. But those days are long gone, and today, all OT has left is a photo album, and little else. As the old saying goes, "I started with nothing, and I still have it all".)

Trip Advisor users seem to provide the only feedback, and it's not promising. Read the reviews. https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/Hotel_Review-g24055445-d1458218-Reviews-Adels_Grove-Lawn_Hill_Queensland.html

Well, that thing sure got whacked with the ugly stick, didn't it!

......sold many Landcruisers to weekend walliors who wanted to tear up their local sand dunes! So the Landcruiser became the oliginal unbreakable Toyota, and now, having given up our original militaly conquest, when it failed to ploceed, we succeed with economic conquest!! Turbo looked a bit thoughtful when the Japanese bloke expanded on the eventual Japanese conquest of Australia. Then he thought back to when all the Japanese invested in Gold Coast property and the signs started appearing around the GC, reading "オーストラリア人よ、ファック", which led to local outrage, even if..............