SGIAN DUBH

Bexrbetter, The Wings & other Structures were tested to Section S so we have no major concerns there ;-) The Landing Gear has actually spread by a few inches, nothing major and not something that has concerned the LAA Inspector who has checked it for us ;-)

Quaich Progress Report, The Quaich is without any doubt a SSDR Project that is showing up areas that we certainly need to upgrade/update or generally change. Throughout the Testing Programme we are looking back through all the posts on here because the input from messages are certainly relevant in certain aspects that we are testing on the Quaich. One area that ' Head in the Clouds ' highlighted was that He thought the Rudder & Elevator areas weren't big enough !!!!! Initially we disregarded this as we have every confidence in the initial build, we have now found that the Rudder Area definitely needs to be made BIGGER as the rudder authority is non existent below 10kts and a swing into wind happens whenever there is any side wind above 5kts !!!!! The Elevator seems to be powerful enough to lift the tail at 15-20mph, however we will probably fabricate a larger elevator and try it out. Another area we are looking at now is Undercarriage integrity : After all the Ground Taxying Tests we have now noticed that the wheels are now splayed out !!! The Taxying tests were undertaken on a slightly undulating runway in Devon and until we do a full stripdown of the wheels etc we aren't sure whether it is wheel bearings that have uniformly failed ( highly unlikely ) or whether the Undercarriage structure has bowed outwards ( this is more likely the case !!! ) I am pleased we are finding a lot of glitches before it takes to the air fully, just been taxyed fast with tail up so far, the 447 Rotax is running very sweetly ;-) Opinions on Undercarriage welcomed.

Further Taxying Tests were conducted when the windsock was almost limp ;-) The handling was better in low wind conditions, we have concluded that the elevator & rudder are not big enough so that will be looked at and refabrication will be happening. The latest video of the taxying is attached.

The Quaich G-CKFW taxying around during Ground Handling Tests 05/04/2017We have found it Weathercocks in a 10mph Crosswind, so further checks of the Tailwheel & Rudder are needed to hopefully eradicate the uncontrollable swing !!!!

The Quaich ( Above ) in Flying attitude. The Quaich ( Above) sitting in the Hangar Proudly displaying it's Scottish Origins. Hopefully the Test Flight will be completed fairly soon.

I suspect a bit of Furtling has also gone on during this restoration furtling The use of ones hands to simulate or create the impression of anatomical features in a postcard or photograph. This practice was more commonly for entertainment purposes rather than overt sexual gratification.

Today the Wings are being fitted to the Quaich, quite a bit of fettling has gone on & now all the bits of unpainted wood internally has been painted. The Test Flight is ever getting closer

Just looked at Whats Up Australia (.com.au) and being a Nosey Pommie I tried to log in with my Log On details from here. Absolutely no chance of me getting logged on, as I am guessing I am 1 of the 3 illegal immigrants from the UK I will just accept you don't want the poms in your Ranting Pages ho hum, I will just wait for the UK Version ;-)

The Quaich has now completed about 5hrs of Ground Running of the Trusty Rotax 447 it has completed 1hr of Ground Taxying Tests We estimate it having it's 1st Flight Test very shortly ;-)

The Iolaire getting loaded in Fenwick Scotland on 4th March 2017 for dispatching to an Irish Location. The Wings & Rudders of the Iolaire This was the Trailer that the Quaich was kept in ( even though it says Iolaire ) The Quaich loaded on the 3rd March 2017 for a trip down South to be readied for Flight ;-) Extra photos as Thumbnails ;-)

Next Weekend ( 3rd -4th March 2017 ) both the Quaich & The Iolaire are getting collected from Storage & being taken for Flight Preparation. The Iolaire will be getting restored to the CAA Aircraft Register as G-MZFI in the next few weeks ;-) This will be the 3rd of the H.L. SSDR Fleet : G-CJPK was the 1st and is the Sgian Dubh that will be lovingly cared for by Bruce Keeping & check flown by Bruce. G-CKFW is the 2nd and is the Quaich that will be lovingly cared for by Myself & Michael Gregory & check flown by Mike Gregory. G-MZFI is the 3rd and is the Iolaire that will be going to Ireland for restoration by Andrew Russell, Andrew is tasked with getting the Iolaire back into the Air ( The Iolaire has previously flown & was a two seat all flying canard. This met with nothing but blocking even after all the structural stress calculations had been checked and the load testing completed in line with B.C.A.R. Section "S" approved methodology (available from the CAA website). It has flown, and proved stable and easy to handle, both in the air and on the ground, however an approved flight test program couldn't be conducted without a TEST CERTIFICATE. Now with SSDR being available to UK Microlights, Andrew will be trying to get it into SSDR or the Eire Experimental category or suchlike ;-) Next week Photos will be added ;-)

Giovanni, I have exported a Ultralight to Thailand before, it isn't easy but it isn't impossible ;-) I will discuss it on the phone with you at some point ;-) Are we going to fly it there? or are you crating it? Regards, Your Limoncello drinking friend ;-)

The name comes from the Gaelic sgian-dubh. Although the primary meaning of dubh is "black", the secondary meaning of "hidden" is at the root of sgian-dubh, based on the stories and theories surrounding the knife's origin, in particular those associated with the Highland custom of depositing weapons at the entrance to a house prior to entering as a guest. Compare also other Gaelic word-formations such as dubh-sgeir "underwater skerry" (lit. black skerry), dubh-fhacal "riddle" (lit. hidden word), dubh-cheist "enigma" (lit. hidden question).

With the Sgian Dubh being restored in Pentewan Cornwall & the Quaich getting ready to be restored in Edinburgh Scotland it is with great pleasure to announce that it looks like the Iolaire will also be getting restored to flying condition. This will happen in Northern Ireland ( if certain enquiries suggest it can be either put into E Conditions or SSDR )

The Sgian Dubh now has a low time Rotax 462 fitted and has been mentioned in the Royal Aeronautical Society newsletter January 2017

The Quaich now has been allocated the CAA Registration G-CKFW Hoping to commence getting it ready for TEST FLYING soon. LETTERING Ordered for Fuselage etc.

The Sgian Dubh is getting ever closer to being ready for flight ;-) I am sure it will be a Momentus Day when both fly over Hugh's Home ;-)

Hi Everyone, All going well but a bit slow with the Sgian Dubh. The Driving Force behind getting the Sgian Dubh ready for flight has made some major changes to the Aircraft : The Rudder pedals have all been moved and a ' tiller bar' now steers the nose wheel. The Rotax Engine is all in the right place but he had to do some glass work and make up new metal mounts for the engine. He currently needs to find place for fuel pump.He now has a full set of instruments and just need to be mounted. A new loom has been made and all the wiring is now in. It's taken hours of work to get this far and nearly £2000 ! Well, Anyway I hope you ALL have a superb new year. All the best from the SD Campus ;-)

The Quaich was put on the Back Burner as the Sgian Dubh was making Little Progress, now I think the Sgian Dubh is getting very close to being ready for testing, so the Quaich will be getting registered soon ( waiting for a 2017 registered date ). That I think will fly very soon as it is 99% complete already ( just needs a few instruments fitted )

I am not sure whether the Flying Fraternity in AUS/NZ are a lot less Penny Pinching than they are in the UK but we just had an example of a MW5 Sorcerer that because the UK Microlight fraternity treat every penny as a prisoner it had remained unsold for ages. It was for sale for £2000.00 ( $ 3483.00 AUD ) To sell it as another Microlight was due to replace it, we discussed raffling it off..... the decision was to sell 59 numbers @ £35.00 each ( 59 numbers is how many balls are in the Euromillions Lottery & once every ball was sold the next lottery draw it would be the bonus ball number that won the microlight ). Believe me, selling 59 numbers @ £35.00 each seemed like we had asked them to spend a fortune on a 59 to 1 Punt !!!! I looked upon it as a bit of a laugh & £35.00 is about as much as a cheap night out costs here ;-) When it was won, the lucky winner then complained " it is going to cost a lot of money to get it across to where I am " So a person had just won a microlight funded by 58 unlucky ticketholders & yet he was moaning that he was going to have to spend a bit more money to get his £35.00 investment home !!!! So unless you are extremely confident about selling 2000 tickets I wouldn't even contemplate it...... as to selling 12000 tickets in South Africa, I would bet they haven't sold 1200 since the idea started.

The Irony of all this : I have the BMAA Chairman trying to get me ousted because I am deemed a bad person & then today 'unprovoked ' this gets written about me by a Fellow Microlighter called Bob Hood :::::: Hello again all, Further to my posts above about how my plane stopped working. I'd like to tell you all about an incident that took place on the Tuesday of Fly-UK. I was at East Fortune, and decided to try to get to Strathaven, in an attempt to catch up with the others who'd already done the northern circuit and were on their way back down south. So I set off from East Fortune, to route through the Edinburgh zone and avoid the high ground to the south of the city. With this in mind I called Edinburgh before leaving, and also called them again once in the air. They told me to route via Dalkeith and Hill End, then Kirknewton and Latch Farm before heading out of their zone to the west. So I called at Dalkeith, then at Hill End, where I encountered strong turbulence and rotor, but my plane tried to twist itself apart while I was over Kirknewton RAF base (The A frame turned right and the pod turned left at the same time!), so I decided to get away from that particular bit of airspace as quickly as possible. By this time my arms were getting very tired as it had taken me an hour to get this far, against the strong south westerly winds, as well as the high levels of turbulence and rotor. I told Edinburgh I was going to land at Latch Farm, as I'd originally thought to do a low pass over it, or possibly land for a rest if I saw any cars there. As it turned out, with my arms getting very tired and me being somewhat nervous after my plane did its twisting manoeuvre over Kirknewton, I decided to land, so I let Edinburgh know my intentions and headed off towards it. There is a line of trees along the southern (windward) side of the runway, and although I tried to land long to avoid the worst of it, nevertheless I got rotored in somewhat untidily when I tried to land. The plane bounced on one rear wheel, then the other one, then suddenly seemed to move off to the left of its own accord (rotor I guess!) and I ended up in thick thistles to the left of the runway. I managed to taxi out by using a lot of power, and then got my plane up to the concrete apron outside the hangar there, whereupon I parked the plane and tried to calm down a bit. For those of you who don't know, it's where Peter Kelsey is based, and within minutes of me arriving, so did he. I hadn't made any arrangements to meet him, so it was pure coincidence that he was there, but I'm very glad he was. He'd come to East Fortune the previous evening and taken myself and Dave Karnovich over to North Berwick so that we could get something to eat. He'd then driven miles around the area looking for a garage so that Dave could get some petrol for his flight the following day. The search was unsuccessful and Peter had finally dropped us back at East Fortune just before midnight, which must have cost him at least a bob or two in petrol, not to mention the wasted time. Anyway, when Peter had picked us up he'd mentioned that he was based at Latch Farm, and said that if I was heading west I should fly over it so that I could see where he kept his plane. So I decided I'd try to do a pass of the field on my journey to Strathaven. Hence my being there and choosing to land due to increasing fatigue. Peter arrived, found me there, and then quickly helped me check the plane over, unload it, and hobble it between the hangar and his trailer that he's got his Dynamic parked in. With me still a bit shaky, he took me into Edinburgh to find somewhere to sit down with a cup of coffee, and at this point he, then I, received a phone call from someone else who's also based at Latch Farm. Apparently the other bloke is the person who is listed as being the airfield operator, so Edinburgh contacted him to find out if I'd landed OK. They'd expected me to let them know when I landed, but due to the difficult landing and subsequent unloading and tying down, I'd completely forgotten all about them. Needless to say the bloke who phoned me wasn't impressed by my lack of airmanship, and I had to apologise profusely for forgetting. However, I then contacted Edinburgh myself and told them that although I'd landed a bit hard in my plane, there was no damage to either the plane or myself. The lady I spoke to said she'd pass on my message and that all was well. With Peter's help I was quickly booked into a B+B, and after we went for some lunch he took me all the way to the B+B like a personal taxi service. The afternoon and evening soon went, and I slept the sleep of the very tired. The next morning Peter arrived and collected me, then took me back out to the airfield, where he helped me rerig the plane and reload it ready for the off. Due to the strong south westerly winds I'd decided to return to East Fortune, so I rang up Edinburgh and told them this. They asked me to report as soon as airborne and this I did. There then followed half an hour of relentless battering as I was quickly returned to the airfield I'd spent an hour getting to Latch Farm from the previous day. After landing at East Fortune, Peter rang up to make sure I was safely down once more, and soon after that I received a phone call from the AAIB at Aldershot. The lady asked what damage my plane had sustained during the hard landing the previous day. I told there wasn't any damage as 'hard landing' just meant I'd bounced instead of the usual smooth joining with the earth that I normally managed. She said she'd tell the duty officer and see if he wanted to do any further investigation. A little while later she phoned again and told me that the duty officer had decided not to pursue it any further, and that I was now free to move the plane. I was a bit non-plussed by this as I'd already flown it 30 miles back from Latch Farm to East Fortune by the time she'd called me the first time, but I suppose it just goes to show that we have to be very careful how we describe our landings in case they are misinterpreted by the people in the heavy plane world. In future I won't describe any landing as being a 'hard landing' unless I've broken the suspension because that's obviously what they thought I'd done to my flexwing. Anyway, I'd like to express my thanks and extreme gratitude for all that Peter Kelsey did for me during my time in Scotland. Without his unstinting help I'd have been in a bit of a mess, to put it mildly, and I'd like you all to know that although he's often vilified on this forum and others, nevertheless, in the flesh he proved to be a very good friend in my time of need. My guess is that if anyone else had been in my predicament he'd have helped them just as much as he put himself out for me, and I can't thank him, or praise him highly enough for helping a fellow aviator through a distinctly uncomfortable time. ( copied from : BMAA Forum )

In the grand scale of things I doubt Captain Mannering should even be on my ' radar ' Ironically, of recent I have been so well behaved that it has become BORING, it's funny how your outlook on life changes with events that happen in your life. Whilst I don't bear Grudges it would seem apparent that the BMAA Chairman does ;-) I do know Dave Bremner proposed the revocation & 'Flatpak' Maharajan seconded it, I don't as yet know the reasons for the revocation other than Steve 'Has a Spear to chuck at you ' put the idea to the Council. This all ' ESCALATED' because there is an imminent Election PROCESS starting. As it doesn't drastically affect my enjoyment in flying, I will just keep him on the 'hook' until I get tired of reeling the fishing line in. If I thought his actions were justified I would happily walk away but they aren't ( Had he tried this 4yrs ago I wouldn't have had any defence, but now I am in the Top Spot )

When you get a reply like : Dear Peter It says something for your attitude to the BMAA that you treat its emails as spam... David Bremner Can only be answered as follows : David, I would have thought that even you had the capacity to understand that Email servers sometimes put emails into SPAM by error, it has nothing to do with my attitude towards the BMAA. I do not control how Google segregates emails. Anyway whilst discussing attitudes, I perceive your attitude towards this matter as particularly 'slap dash' You hold a position which the BMAA Membership voted you into, I was part of that voting process & whilst I now regret having ever voted for you I did so believing you were the best of the gaggle in the frame. Now as the BMAA Chairman I reasonably expected you to at least know the contents of the ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION, as at this time I am still a bona-fide BMAA Member I respectfully ask you to apply the correct Article to your desire to revoke my membership. I look forward to your compliance to Article 31 & then I will deal with your correspondence, I have extended you the courtesy of answering your somewhat childish remark ( even though I said " I will answer after receiving your correspondence by post ) Please do your role as is expected of someone voted into a position & bear in mind you are there to serve the members & not vice versa. Let's not have personal differences come into play here, try being professional in how you conduct yourself as a representative of the BMAA as this is now becoming part of the folder that I will collate for the Article 31.2 response. To reaffirm what is expected of you I require a full copy of the minutes pertaining to the discussion by Council on this matter & a hard copy of your reasons for you wishing to revoke my membership as I will be taking advice on the content before deciding what recourse to take. Peter J Kelsey, That should get his ' hackles up ' # whogivesastuff #

I don't think it takes much to piss off Captain Mannering & his cronies ;-)

This is primarily for Kasper, though anyones opinion is welcome The Illustrious Leader of the BMAA ( The Jeremy Corbyn Stand in ) recently sent me the following by email: Dear Peter This email was sent to you at your usual email address on 14 June. I have not received an acknowledgement to date, so I am resending it via your other known email addresses. Please confirm that you have received and read it. David Bremner 07801 xxxxxx 01584 xxxxxx Sent from my mobile Dear Peter I am writing to inform you that at the BMAA Council meeting on Monday 13 June, a decision was taken in accordance with Article 29.2.2 not to approve any application for renewal of your membership. -- David Bremner 07801 xxxxxxx 01584 xxxxxxx Unless I am mistaken Article 29.2.2 isn't APPLICABLE as I am not applying for renewal of my BMAA Membership, I am simply renewing an already approved membership? I believe ( as does a legal rep ) that Article 31 could be used by the BMAA Council if they follow the correct procedure, sending me an email isn't the correct procedure, nor is citing the wrong Article in the email. Content of Articles 29.2.2 through to Articles 31.6 added for perusal : David. I have received your email today ( your previous one might have gone to SPAM ) To be honest I am disappointed that as you are the Chairman of the BMAA you choose to use a media that can get filtered to a Spam Folder ( Unprofessional if I say so myself ) Had you shown a level of professionalism a Formal Letter would have been sent to me. Anyway having read the content of your Email I had the BMAA Articles of Association 2012 ( Current version @ 04/07/2016 ) checked by an independant source to get an opinion on the Wording of Article 29.2.2 & to get a informed view of how it relates to my membership. The Independant opinion is that under Article 29.2.2 I am not deemed to be applying to become a BMAA Member, I would be renewing a Pre-existing Membership which doesn't fall into the Applying to be a Member Category. I have had the entire Part 3 checked for wording & Article 29.2.2 isn't applicable as my Membership was approved on inital application and memberships are renewed without each renewal going to the Council for approval. If you wish to revoke my Membership I would request that you carefully read Article 31 paying particular attention to Article 31.1 whereby : It shall be the duty of the Board, if at any time it shall be of the opinion that the interests of the Company so require, by notice in hard copy form sent by prepaid post to a member's address, to request that member to withdraw from membership of the Company within a time specified in such notice. No such notice shall be sent except on a vote of the majority of the directors present and voting, which majority shall include one half of the total number of the Board for the time being. Only after you have complied to your own Guidelines will I enter into any further correspondence on this subject, then once you have complied to Article 31.1 will Article 31.2 come into play, whereby : 31.2 If, on the expiry of the time specified in such notice, the member concerned has not withdrawn from membership by submitting notice in hard copy form of his resignation, or if at any time after receipt of the notice requesting him to withdraw from membership the member shall so request in hard copy form, the matter shall be submitted to a properly convened and constituted meeting of the Board or such subcommittee to which it has delegated its powers. The Board or sub-committee and the member whose expulsion is under consideration shall be given at least 14 days notice of the meeting, and such notice shall specify the matter to be discussed. The member concerned shall at the meeting be entitled to present a statement in his defence either verbally or in hard copy form, and he shall not be required to withdraw from membership unless a majority of the Board members or subcommittee members present and voting shall, after receiving the statement in his defence, vote for his expulsion, or unless the member fails to attend the meeting without sufficient reason being given. If such a vote is carried, or if the member shall fail to attend the meeting without sufficient reason being given, he shall thereupon cease to be a member and in the case of a Voting Member his name shall be erased from the register of members. The Board may exclude the member from the Company's premises until the meeting considering his expulsion has been held. For the avoidance of doubt, the member shall be entitled to attend the Company's premises to attend that meeting (if it is held at them) for the purpose of making his representations. I trust that you will furnish me with details of your request by Hard Copy as set out in the BMAA Articles of Association along with a copy of the Minutes of the Council Meeting ( you can omit the identities of who proposed the Action & who seconded it as I already have that detail along with who put the idea in front of the Council Members ) SU,DB,DM in case you think I am bluffing. I look forward to receiving your Formal letter & then I will act accordingly in my response, please pay particular attention to Articles contained in Article 31 as that will be the SECTION applicable to this matter. ( Article 29 IS IRRELEVANT ) PART 3 MEMBERS BECOMING AND CEASING TO BE A MEMBER 29. Applications for membership 29.1 The subscribers to the Memorandum of Association of the Company as at the date of incorporation, and such other persons as are admitted to membership by the Board in accordance with these Articles (and any applicable Rules), shall be the Voting Members of the Company. 29.2 No person shall become a member of the Company unless: 29.2.1 that person has completed an application for membership in such form as set out in the Rules, and 29.2.2 the Board has approved the application. 29.3 Every corporation and unincorporated association which is admitted as a Voting Member may exercise such powers as are prescribed by Part 9 of the 2006 Act. 29.4 The Board may from time to time fix the levels of entrance fees and annual subscriptions to be paid by the different categories of members. 30. Conditions of membership 30.1 All members shall be subject to the Rules. 30.2 The members shall pay any entrance fees and annual subscriptions set by the Board under Article 29.4. Any member whose subscriptions and/or entrance fee is more than three months in arrears shall be deemed to have resigned his membership of the Company unless the Board decides otherwise. Page 25 of 42 Iss 0. April 2012 31. Termination of membership 31.1 It shall be the duty of the Board, if at any time it shall be of the opinion that the interests of the Company so require, by notice in hard copy form sent by prepaid post to a member's address, to request that member to withdraw from membership of the Company within a time specified in such notice. No such notice shall be sent except on a vote of the majority of the directors present and voting, which majority shall include one half of the total number of the Board for the time being. 31.2 If, on the expiry of the time specified in such notice, the member concerned has not withdrawn from membership by submitting notice in hard copy form of his resignation, or if at any time after receipt of the notice requesting him to withdraw from membership the member shall so request in hard copy form, the matter shall be submitted to a properly convened and constituted meeting of the Board or such subcommittee to which it has delegated its powers. The Board or sub-committee and the member whose expulsion is under consideration shall be given at least 14 days notice of the meeting, and such notice shall specify the matter to be discussed. The member concerned shall at the meeting be entitled to present a statement in his defence either verbally or in hard copy form, and he shall not be required to withdraw from membership unless a majority of the Board members or subcommittee members present and voting shall, after receiving the statement in his defence, vote for his expulsion, or unless the member fails to attend the meeting without sufficient reason being given. If such a vote is carried, or if the member shall fail to attend the meeting without sufficient reason being given, he shall thereupon cease to be a member and in the case of a Voting Member his name shall be erased from the register of members. The Board may exclude the member from the Company's premises until the meeting considering his expulsion has been held. For the avoidance of doubt, the member shall be entitled to attend the Company's premises to attend that meeting (if it is held at them) for the purpose of making his representations. 31.3 A member may withdraw from membership of the Company by giving notice in accordance with the Rules. Page 26 of 42 Iss 0. April 2012 31.4 A membership terminates automatically when a person dies or ceases to exist or on the failure of the member to comply or to continue to comply with any condition of membership set out in these Articles or the Rules or Regulations. 31.5 Membership is not transferable. 31.6 Any person ceasing to be a member forfeits all rights in relation to and claims upon the Company, its property and its funds and has no right to the return of any part of his subscription. The Board may refund an appropriate part of a resigning member's subscription if it considers it appropriate taking account of all the circumstances. Kasper: Interested in your 'take' on this