walrus

applied for renewal today - an unecessary PITA.

KGW, I always use mogas from a busy brand name station. However if you are touring, you are stuck with using Avgas from the bowser as very few airports have mogas dispensers. The alternative is the tedious business of jerry cans and taxis - and I fully expect airports will eventually ban that practise - for (ahem)safety reasons of course.

The Rotax Avgas rule is that oil has to be changed at 50 hrs instead of 100 hours if 100LL is used for more than 30% of volume. The lead builds up on gears, sludges in the oil tank and fouls the spark plugs. Decalin Runup is an acceptable (by Rotax) fuel additive to 100 LL that minimizes problems by scavenging much of the lead by converting it to lead phosphate which mostly departs in the exhaust. Mogas 95 has about 3% more energy content than Avgas anyway, but the Avgas has better vapour pressure and long term shelf life.

It’s a pity there is no AOPA and RAA submissions. We will be ignored, marginalised and treated as cannon fodder. What should have been stressed is the potential GDP Growth out of the private flying and GA sectors. Jobs, investment and growth opportunities.

Jackc: Correct........until someone photographs you with more than a millimeter of sunlight underneath your wheels, at which point you are in contravention of the Act. I suppose you could try flying at night.... A part 103 bat?

If the aircraft is registered it is an "aircraft" if it also has a certificate of airworthiness it is flyable. You touch it or run it without a licence and "Ping"".

As a holder of both licences, my own observation is that RAA does not require the same BAK.

Good idea, but we would mess the execution up.

AC43-13b1 is your bible. It’s online

Looks good to go..... Maybe a little PVC tape wrapped around the hose 😛. ‘’Seriously, what’s wrong with a couple of AN - 6 fittings and a bulkhead connector?

Jackc, I have had the experience of attending an accident involving a “daredevil” pilot who flouted the law and common sense in a trike. All sorts of low level thrill seeking stunts..... until the motor stopped from lack of fuel and he crashed into a lake. Unfortunately he survived. His passenger didn’t. It is unclear what the law will do to him. Unlicensed, unregistered? You had better have your assets in your wife’s name...

Had an instructor once who was only interested in money. She always was on the lookout for the next ab initio student she could fleece. But then she fitted right in to the club atmosphere at the time - the place became all about making money out of south asian students, locals, even if they were members, were regarded as a nuisance and an impediment to making money out of foreign students. The quality of instruction also became #@#@ as good, ethical instructors left, I even remember going on a refresher with a “south asian” instructor who I then discovered knew less about controlled airspace procedures than I did. The club was not interested in improving members flying skills or knowledge, just chasing $$$$ from overseas students. Hiring a club aircraft for a week or touring became “difficult” because it “interrupted the training program”. Needless to say, I did not renew membership. I wouldn’t piss on them today if they were on fire. Serves them right if Covid upset the applecart.

-2 Aircraft tefzel ground firewall to block - same as for starter +ve as solenoid is a remote separate item, not part of the rotax starter. Hydraulically crimped AN terminals. One common grounding point for the battery and block on the firewall and tied to that is an Aeroelectric (?) grounding block with about 20 spade connectors. All audio and radio are shielded and grounded one end only to that block. All terminals are amphenol diamond grip crimped.

Grounding the Airbox stopped the noise.

Waraton, I believe the figure is 50% for original builder completion. I am aware of at least one project that was given away to a new builder. ‘’The Zeniths are great kits and great aircraft. So are RV’s. The RV is for the younger builder. If you are 60 or older, build a Zenith. It’s quicker and by the time you finish you should still be able to fly.

Got a multimeter on the engine today..... The engine airbox and throttle body assembly is NOT grounded to the engine block. I don't know if this is by accident or design. The central throttle wire core inside its teflon sleeve, and throttle spindle is not grounded either. When I touch the throttle spindle, I get ignition/computer noise in my noise cancelling Bose headset,, but not if noise cancelling is turned off. My ignorant speculation is that the throttle wire is radiating RF noise enough for the headset electronics to be affected. I assume at this stage that if I ground the throttle wire/airbox assembly, the noise will stop, but I want to check with rotax first since the 912iS has two completely separate electrical systems with their own isolated grounds...

“GPS Assisted” collisions are real. Never, ever fly “direct to” using airports as waypoints because by definition anyone on the reciprocal will track within 50 metres or less of you. Hemisphere]ical altitudes aren’t much help either. Always use offset waypoints or “wander” a bit.

K5054, you need to change your plumbing so that the orifice line bleed takeoff is not between the cube and the carburettors. I made that mistake.

I fitted a Dynon ADSB-IN receiver a few weeks ago. I already have a transponder. First flight with the new unit, I saw a target on the Dynon screen. I was going North, the target was heading South. It was on screen for no more than three seconds. Passing distance was about half a mile. I was surprised by the speed of closure and lack of time to respond. I didn’t have a hope in hell of seeing it. i suspect it was an RV whatsit and the closure speed must have been 200 + knots. More technology please.

Unfortunately there is nothing I am aware of to stop determined terrorists from taking control of an RPT aircraft at any regional airport, ASIC cards or no ASIC cards. I qualified that as being "aware of" because I sure as hell can't see any effective deterrents. I was taught in the army that an obstacle isn't an obstacle unless its covered by fire. I suggest that the same dictum applies to security precautions. What are you going to do when you find someone on the strip with no ASIC card?

As with everything it is LOGISTICS that counts be it Covid19 or electric vehicles. In fact electric powered vehicles can easily be more versatile and higher performance than IC engine vehicles - and that includes (propeller) aircraft. The problem is the logistics of getting volts and amps to the motor - ie batteries, fuel cells or storage media. Power generation and distribution. The example quoted to me was Britian - it uses something like 1 TwH annually for domestic use and 2 TwH for transport in the form of liquid fuels. So you see the scale of the problem - triple electric energy production and distribution to replace liquid hydrocarbons. Visit any petrol station on the Hume or Pacific freeways. Look at the volume of traffic at the pumps. Now imagine if each has to take 30 minutes to charge. Can you see the problem? Then can you see the size of the mega voltage, ultra high amperage power lines joining each station to some super power station? We don't have the grid technology, battery technology, network topology let alone operating rules, legal, financial or safety infrastructure.......yet

you are not even allowed to fly over fraser, let alone land. https://parks.des.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0031/167962/op-pk-vm-landing-recreational-craft-qpws-managed-areas.pdf

RF I'll check next week and report back. There do not seem to be any other radio or intercom issues.

RF, radios are on, they feed through the intercom panel. Its not alternator noise that varies with load, metal airframe. Everything grounded and shielded, no strobe noise, etc.. Not affected by frequency or squelch. No hiss. Just tapocka, tapocka, tapocka when i touch the metal throttle shaft (not the bakelite knob).. I will check grounding of the throttle body butterfly shaft. The body is attached to the airbox and that has rubber connectors to the inlet manifold, so the grounding of the airbox/throttle body may be the culprit. How sweet it would be to go "achtung" to the little Rotax elves in the black forest and point out an issue to these superior beings. Apart from this, I can't fault the engine.

Jab, Yes, I have grounded the engine block to the airframe. You raise a good question about the grounding of the throttle. I think it is grounded through attachment to the butterfly on the throttle body but I will check.