walrus

What about owner built and maintained?

https://www.skyshop.com.au/shopexd.asp?id=1189

+1 to Bert Flood at Lilydale - the Rotax agent.

ISOL SHRA and TCU after 3 pm in B1 sort of locks the front door at home for me. I don't want to have to divert or take my chances waiting for weather to clear before last light - and we have guests for dinner

Thunderstorms in weather forecast for home time, so not going. 😞

Anyone going?

My reading: CAo 95.55: 9.1: i) a relevant aeroplane must not be flown over a populous area or a public gathering unless: (i) a certificate of airworthiness under regulation 21.176 of CASR is in force for the aeroplane; or (ii) the requirements mentioned in paragraph 9.7 are complied with in relation to the aeroplane; And 9.7 says: (b) in the case of any other aeroplane: (i) an experimental certificate under regulation 21.195A of CASR, or an SAB flight permit, must be in force for the aeroplane; and (ii) an approval authorising flight in the aeroplane over a populous area or public gathering must be in force under regulation 91.045 or 91.050 of CASR, which approval imposes no conditions or limitations that would prevent the flight. ..And the certificate says, among many other things: 18. Operation over a closely settled area shall be avoided at all times. and separately, 20. The operation over a built up area of a town or city is subject to: -- at a height and speed being able to glide clear of persons or dwellings. None of this makes sense, I'm missing something. - You CAN operate over a closely settled area if its unavoidable? - You CAN operate over a built up area? Isn't a built up area a closely settled area? Who decides what is unavoidable, my wallet? My passenger? My need for a toilet stop? The SAAA has a paper that applies to their aircraft which makes sense. https://saaa.asn.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/IPM-FO-002-002-Flight-over-populous-areas.pdf

Can anyone explain what the rules are regarding flight over built up/ populous/closely settled areas are? I was of the impression that approval could be given by RAA for a fee, but I can't find references.

Is it legal? Full or empty?

Fill your fuel tanks now guys. While I hope rational minds prevail and without wishing to take sides, if we are lucky, fuel prices will rise. If we are unlucky, you will wake up one morning to rationing or no fuel at all. if we are very unlucky, we will be grounded as military airspace requirements supersede anything else. Yes, I hope we are too far away but don't count on it.

Thanks DJP, I'll keep trying then.

Yes, I get the message they are sending. They don't want RAA aircraft at all.

Talk about customer service.......NOT. Tried to call them three times and all I get is a voicemail divert. I tried calling the ARO who won't tell me anything, he just refers me to the office. Could i be forgiven for thinking that operators are doing everything possible to drive customers away?

Looking at the YMMB ERSA entry and Moorabbin Airport website, it appears that outside tower hours the area is covered by class G airspace. Is there anything that would stop an RAA aircraft from using the airport out of tower hours? I may have a passenger to drop off. Has anyone done this ?

If you try this, wear a parachute and good luck with your insurance policy. You have no way of knowing what the effect will be. The big one for me would be altered airflow over the tail in a critical phase of flight but it could be anything from nothing through to catastrophic flutter.

No synthetics, they melt onto/into your skin. To get anywhere I must fly over tiger country. So.... Leather shoes or boots. Definately never thongs or sandals because they offer no upper foot protection at all. Shorts or jeans. Shirt with collar. In winter a Nomex jacket with knife, matches, phone, keys, wallet etc. and most importantly my PLB. In summer a fishing vest instead. ....And most importantly, especially....don't forget a HAT! Be aware that if you are forced down, all you may have is what you stand up in.

If the aircraft is approved to fly with doors removed then the manufacturer will say so. If it doesn't, it isn't.

what is your engine? Read up on what other propellers 701's with your engine use and go with the herd. No need to stress about it

Be aware that taking matters into your own hands is dangerous. A person got 9 years for manslaughter after a raid by him and his kids to repossess some stolen stuff that they traced via ebay. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-01-21/melbourne-dj-equipment-manslaughter-tony-panagiotou-jailed/100772808

Yes, KG, that will work. In my case I cant guarantee I wont have negative line pressure at some time and the consequences of air in the fuel injection circuit are potentially catastrophic. Hence an isolation valve behind the dry break.

RF, yes, something like that but with an important addition......... Where I need to place the fitting in the fuel line, I cannot absolutely guarantee that there will never be negative pressure (ie a little vacuum) in the line. Its a gravity feed to the fuel pumps but they are EFI pumps and they suck, if you know what I mean. I have yet to find a dry break coupling that will guarantee that it remains leak proof under vacuum. As you can guess, I don't want any air to leak into the fuel system ever! The solution, I think, is a mini ball valve behind the dry break fitting that remains closed unless the fitting is in use.

I have finally formed a plan for refuelling my high wing aircraft: 1. Insert AN6 dry break socket in fuel line between tank and shutoff valve. 2. Bosch 044 electric pump or equivalent with suitable fuel hose attached. 3 Dry break plugs on either end of hoses, also a 100 micron or less filter with dry break coupling. ‘’To refuel - insert suction end with filter into jerry can and pump. ‘’To defuel reverse direction of hoses and suck. ‘’Pump can be powered either from jumper pack or aircraft battery. No mess, reduced fuel spillage opportunities. I have big vents on the tanks that will handle an overfilling incident. No step ladders, climbing, balancing, funnels, etc. What is not to like?

Turbo, yes, you are right. our fuels are bought on the spot market, I understand mainly from SIngapore. Individual oil companies MIGHT sometimes add their own "secret sauce" of additives, but anyway that doesn't guarantee you anything either because oil companies operate a "borrow and loan" slate throughout Australia so what comes out of a BP pump in Melbourne may well be exactly the same as the Shell product. We have no way of knowing. Your safety net is that through the tank farms and terminals and the borrow and loan slate, you get a fair amount of blending. I am also aware of Rotax experience in the Third world and the fuels supplied there have been horrendously poor quality with no ill effects. My understanding is that the engine is reasonably tolerant about what it is being fed in the way of fuel. As for vapor lock, that's an airframe issue. Its the airframe manufacturers job to get reasonably cool fuel to the mechanical pump (or the EFI pumps in a 912 iS). I've had exactly one fuel contamination/substitution event in fifty years of driving, and that was a dodgy operator at Peak Hill on the Newall Highway. If the engine was not reasonably tolerant of its diet, it wouldn't have the reliability record it already has. As for oils - thats the reverse. Stick strictly to Aeroshell Sport Plus 4

Rotax has a current Service instruction - SI-912 i-001 that details what is required. Anything else, including web posts is hearsay and possibly out of date or just plain wrong - and that comes from a certified Rotax engineer. Rotax requires a minimum RON of 95. up to 10% ethanol is permissible. The SI list various complying national specifications. Avgas reduces your maintenance periods and possibly increases fuel consumption (mogas has about 3% more energy). Vapor lock is a known issue that is a matter for the airframe manufacturer, not Rotax. I use brand name UL95 fuel from a busy service station. Ends.

We call it vapour lock. I would call it a slug of fuel that was so hot when it reached either the electric pump, mechanical pump or carb float bowls that it boiled. Even on the injected (812 iS) engine, when you switch on one of the pumps, you can hear it stutter at high revs for a few seconds before it clears the fuel rail of vapour and settles down to the usual rpm as the fuel pressure comes up.