Powerin

Playing one of these is really good training for situational awareness ....

I've been reading quite a few fuel starvation accident reports today. I'm yet to be convinced that simplest is best (with the greatest of respect to you Nev). I would argue that the simple fuel systems we have now bite very hard. I'm new to aviation, but I operate a wide range of machines and my experience is that usually the more sophisticated the machine the more reliable it is. I could bore you with many examples. The measure of a system's overall reliability is not a function of its pure mechanical reliability and simplicity. Human factors come in as well in terms of ease of use and ergonomics. I can't help thinking that the humble fuel tank selector is a good example. It's simple, and if it's used correctly it's extremely reliable. Yet pilots continue to die as a result of incorrectly using this simple device. If a fancy fuel gauge system or a series of automatic valves could help in fuel management it might save lives just by removing a level of human interaction.....even if the extra complexity introduces a slight increase in the risk of pure mechanical failure. There's always the argument that passive fuel monitoring as opposed to active fuel management might encourage complacency. But I think that the statistics show that complacency is just as big a danger with simple active fuel management.

Seems like Tiger has pre-empted CASA (or more accurately, the Federal Court) and cancelled all flights until 1st August anyway. Now....how to get my son home from Qld.

It's fun trying to pick who will get the random explosives residue test. One guy I often travel with to meetings nearly always gets tested whereas I hardly ever do. We go through security at the same time and both of us are wearing business clothes although he is usually better dressed than me. If you turn up at a quiet time they'll often test everyone coming through....obviously so they can meet their hourly quota

From what I've read I think CASA's opinion is that the minor issues all point to their major allegation of poor pilot training. That and the fact that Tiger management have been thumbing their noses at CASA for a while. So they are getting taught a lesson amongst other things.

Things seem to happen fast in a P92 in the circuit don't they! As hard as it is to believe now, what the others say above is true...it WILL just come to you as your brain learns to subconsciously manage things. Getting trimmed early and thinking/looking ahead is good advice, both for straight and level on downwind (I trim before turning downwind) and when descending on base. It's one less thing you need to concentrate on. I struggled with radio calls and lost the plot in the circuit when trying to do them. This is one thing that's really easy to practice on the ground. Try to practice them every time you do something else complicated like driving a car. But don't practice them while you are just driving along, do them while turning a corner at traffic lights or going through a roundabout while giving way to traffic. 50 metres before you get to the corner think about what you are going to say, decide which leg you are turning and which runway ("Wagga traffic, Tecnam xxxx, turning downwind, runway 05, touch and go, Wagga"), then say it out loud while making the turn. On the next turn call the next circuit leg. Be careful, it's surprising how much extra concentration it takes even while driving a car. But it will quickly become second nature and another thing you don't need to concentrate on in the circuit. I used to do it driving a loaded truck. I would decide on the call while slowing down for corners/roundabouts and managing speed, throttle, brakes and constant mesh gear changes. Then I'd make the call while turning and slotting into traffic. Next time I flew radio calls were a breeze. The idea is to train your brain to do several things at once.

Ahhh...the quintessential ingredient for truly inspired music-making

With the level of automation in Airbuses I'm surprised it's possible to breach altitudes without alarms going off everywhere. Wouldn't they still be on autopilot 15km out? EDIT: ah, I got the 15km from another article, the above article says the breach was on a go around. Makes more sense.

I'm an amateur musician too (keyboard in a band and classical organ). My flying instructor plays guitar. Seems to be a common thing amongst a lot of pilots....maybe something to do with hand-eye coordination?

Farmer, fourth generation on a family farm....crop, sheep, cattle, but also have been known to dabble in repairing/building computers, electronics etc. (tonight I replaced the DVD laser on the kid's Wii ) But volksy...you have to tell us what stereotypes you had in mind and if we fit them!

Embraer should have left the winglet (actually a fence) there....it nearly matches their logo....

Not at all Kaz....just saw HEON's post (from months ago) above yours and was reminded of the many contributions he made to the forum. When one of our esteemed members departs I think it's appropriate to reflect on and celebrate their life and how they helped us all!

And that, my friends, is why we fly :big_grin:

Nice Kaz! Reckon that's one of the most skilful landings I've seen. The transition from crab to wing down was masterful! You can't help but look above your post at #22 and feel sad that we've lost another great source of knowledge here.....

Hi Peter, As the others have said...welcome! Just wondering...how do you go getting through airport security with all that metal Peter

Lake Jindabyne is about 3000ft AMSL and the temp at that time was 7deg and QNH 1026. Sincere sympathy to family and friends. A great loss.

Brilliant photos, brilliant trip, as usual. Thanks John! Peter

Turbo is correct. Without knowing the actual figures the discussion is just academic....but it's fun to speculate :big_grin: It was said before that Australian Flying has a monthly circulation of 8000. It is a similar size to our mag and seems to have a similar amount of advertising. I would assume it has similar costs, in fact it probably has more costs as it would pay for a lot of its articles. I would further assume it is making some profit. I know it is part of a stable of magazines and I guess there would be economies of scale in publishing. Our magazine has a rock solid guaranteed circulation of nearly 10,000 into a captive and highly specialised target market. And, as has been noted here, there is plenty of advertising. If Aus Flying can make a go of it with 8,000/month circulation how can we be losing money on our mag with 10,000? Are we selling our advertising space too cheaply? I counted the member's market ads in the June mag and there is over 100 ads with photos. So there's $3,000 income for a start. Of course, some of the advertisers in AF (Cessna, Piper, Lycoming etc) have a lot deeper pockets than our advertisers...but still.

I've been a big Internet user since the mid-90s (big is entirely relative when you're using a 14.4 kbits/s dialup modem :big_grin: ). But I still much prefer reading a printed magazine than an online mag. $40/year is about the cheapest magazine I could buy anywhere. Don't forget that a website that engages and interests people takes a lot of vision, work and money...just ask Ian. Spending $13k on a new RAAus website is just a baby step. It certainly won't get any more visitors unless a lot of work is put into keeping it up to date and current. Who's going to do that? I go to the RAAus website once every few months and there's the odd announcement and new AD....if I'm lucky. I've already read all the other stuff...more than once! I might go there once every month if I had to download a magazine....IF I got an email reminding me when a new issue was available. You would still be paying someone a hefty fee to publish even an online mag. Where do I see ADs? Here! Because the content here is great, there's something new everyday and I visit every day. Think how much blood, sweat and tears (and downright bloody mindedness ) it has taken to get this site to where it is today. If an Internet tragic like me only visits the RAAus site a few times a year, how often are the aviators who don't give a rats about the Internet going to visit? I know plenty of people that enjoy computers and the Internet about as much as a visit to the dentist. The present mag comes in the mail and it's right there in front of you. I bet most of us at least thumb through it and see the odd safety tip and AD. Even in this day and age magazines are still a medium that the majority of people can relate to and you can still take it and read it anywhere without worrying about damaging or losing an expensive piece of hardware (and believe me, a tractor cabin is not the friendliest place for a laptop). For now I think it is still the best way to keep the membership involved and informed. And finally, let's say we all give up our $40/year for the magazine and train 50 or so people to fly for free. What exactly will that achieve given that most of us have scrimped and saved to achieve our dream of flying? I'd far rather give my $40 to something like Angel Flight and give pilots who have worked hard to achieve their wings the chance to use their flying to help others. I'm ranting again...forgive me. Peter

Speaking of the website...it's probably old news, but I only just noticed that the Natfly meeting minutes went up on Friday.

If one were a cynic one might think the justice system is self perpetuating. Highly paid experts are hired to write laws that only other highly paid experts can understand. Then the common person breaks the law because they couldn't understand it and has to hire a highly paid expert to defend themself against another prosecuting highly paid expert while a highly paid expert sits in judgement! But I am not a cynic so I could never believe the above to be true . Sorry...I'm off topic again.

Good theory...but I'm a Z and got mine Tuesday . But it would be nice if members at least got their copies before the newstands.

Here's a couple of pics of the underside of an Airtractor (AT-402). As you can see there is a small 3 bladed wind turbine that drives the centrifugal pump. On this AT the turbine sticks out ahead of the undercarriage legs so you could see how it might get damaged in a wire strike. This particular aircraft also sported some nice power cable shaped indents on the leading edges of the wings. I seem to recall the undercarriage legs on a Turbo Thrush are a bit different from this.

Got mine today. I think the layout and the quality of the articles feels far more professional. I enjoy reading a well edited mag. Great idea to have some prizes for contributers. Hopefully it will attract some more members to write in. A "news" section is something that's been sorely lacking in the past. Every other magazine has one. Hopefully this will expand as more of us contribute. I'd like to see more how-to and instructional articles. I'm sorry, I've enjoyed reading them, but I'm a bit over all the travelogues. The photography article and the "Flight Instructors Forum" are a good step in the right direction. I'd like to see some CFI's writing some articles (and pay them for articles if we have to). I love the little story on the last page. A lot of mags have one. It's somewhere where any of us can write a quick little snippet with a photo about our love of flying and inspire others. In this mag the smile from a 6 year old in a Drifter made my day! There's a few rough edges. The Sport Pilot title on the cover looks a bit amateurish, but I think the general cover layout is attractive. I hate with a passion when you have to search through 30 pages to find the end of the article you are reading (eg Pilot Talk), but most mags are guilty of this. Both the Editor and Deputy Editor are GA pilots, and you can tell this in Kreisha's Sport Cruiser review. However it was a well written and balanced aircraft review. Overall a good effort and an improvement in quality.

Thanks Dexter, that's about what I thought. So to the Jaspers crew: we are all 100% in support of you, but I would suggest that you take care when presenting a petition which has been obviously generated from an Internet campaign. It could be counterproductive and decrease your credibility. Shoalhaven ratepayers (ie voters) ar the ones you need to get on-side. Having said that, it's been a long time since I've visited the area and had hoped I could test my yet-to-be-aquired nav skills by flying in to Jaspers one day. I'd be happy to write a personal email to councillors explaining my desire to spend tourist dollars in the area and that Jaspers would be the gateway! Would that help?