Jerry_Atrick

The mob that Ross Perot owned (COmputer somethingorother) managed to take arojnd £5bn form the NHS (public health) and produced absolutely nothing... This sums up government using private enterprise: Government wastes £31bn on 'rip off' contracts. Its behind a paywall, but you can guess what has happened.. Yhe thing to remember is that these companies are often foreign owned, so the unretauined profits are exported to the parent and that country reaps the rewards... I wold rather the government stuff it up and at least the employees and money stays in Australia (or the UK from my perspective). HMRC (equivalent of the ATO + Customes/Excise) has engaged one of the big computer software consultancies to develop making tax digital.. simply put, the ability to submit 10 fields that comprise the VAT (GST) return throughb software rather than online over the web. Hm.. as an ex developer, I think it should be able to be done in, say six months as the software is already doing it over the web (convert to an API call, add credentials, tokens and approprriate authorisations/tax payer management and one is done).. They completely stuffed it up.. Took something like 2 years - built a whole new system and they are hiring a bunch of monkeys to hand key everything... As I understand, HMRC are paying much more for it than originally tendered. Of course, some will be the HMRC itself not being able to make up its mind about what it wants... but surely, it is a quiestion of replicate what is there and then build on it...

I feel for those where water is running low... It is the opposite here - we have had more or less non stop rain over the last couple of months... Unf, there is no way to redirect it to Aus and SAF. But, I bet they declare London in drought yet again as they don't have the infrastructure (or more accurately, the infrastructure has been allowed to decay for want of a better word) under private ownership. Out here, I think most water resevours are underground and the system leaks like a seive.

Although I don't need to be more than a few minutes drive from anywhere to feel comfortable, I definitely agree with the sentiment. I moved from London, which, if you consider the area inside the M25 (about 103 mile circular road that more or less defines greater London these days, albeit containing Surrey, Hertfordshire, Essex and Kent). We moved probably further out than we should have, but my wife, who thought she was a city dweller really enjoys the open space and remarked that she didn't know she was subliminally feeling claustrophobic.. Being able to see beyond the endless rows of houses to fields and a skyscape, even if one lives in a village is liberating for her. Ignore the mess, as the house is a WIP, but the view I have from my home office is below... Even living in the village where the road is narrow and when walking to the pub (not visible but at the far end of the village) gives that sense of being hemmed in, a short stoll and one is in rambling country side... That is good enough for me and far healthier than cramped living that overpopulation, albeit potentially sustainable (or at least deferring the inevitable through technology) will bring.. The question is, what sort of quality of life do we want?

Buggah! My son picked up the conundrum - if the pilot dies with a lot of people on board, he is not confrontung his fear od dying alone! I feel a little sheepish now!

This may have been posted before - if so, sorry! But.. worth it...

My partner asked after my loud exclamation of "Hoo-bloody-ray" if we had won the lottery.. Nope.. The TB20 is finally re-assembled after a locally sourced antenna was found. It has been so long since I have flown it, I have decided to bleedin well do a checkout on it with the syndicate instructor again.. I vaguely remember the speeds and will re-read them tonight... But, I can't wait to get it into the air for a spin... I'll get some photos of the beast and post them soon-ish..

It is now officially on my bucket list to fly too! And a visit to the old Corunna Fields secret WWII air base seems a worthy trip...

I am echoing what people are saying as I am in a position of ignorance, but Flybe are claimed to have succumbed more to mismanagement than anything else. There were already in crisis talks and looking for relief on passenger duties to keep it afloat. The drop in bookings seems to have merely brought forward what appeared to be the inevitable. It seemed strange to me that it was backed/rescured by three (or thereabouts) billionaires who appealed direct to the giovernment to provide relief on £100m of passenger duty rather than simply kick it in themselves if they thought it was merely a blip. These people don't generally throw good money after bad. My concern (apart from the employees) is the regional airports they operate from. Exeter - my closest (though Bristol is not too far away) has 80% of their movements attributed to Flybe. No doubt, another operator (most likely Logan Air at this stage) will partially fill the gap, but the question remains - is there enough demand to cover the loss enough for Exeter to say, well, time's up and its far more profitable to turn the thing into a housing estate, despite clean-up costs. The UK already loses airfields - many historic WWI and WWII - to the developer... Exeter without a decent amoutn of airline traffic will also go under as GA does not pay the exhorbitant costs of running a licensed field like that.

Wish I was there.. Haven't been to Tyabb and the Peninsula Aero Club for years... Looks not a bad day, though.. better than here today...

Yeah - I am not so sure.. The ripples in the water seem consistent and one won't see the wash because of the angle of the camera... Not sure it is entirely fake... Also, clearly, the human is bening lifted across the water and one can see the disturbance of both the water and the human ;-).. Although, in my defence, I am with my best mate, Wolfie B.. from the Barossa..

Somehow, I would not equate these fellas to your stereotypical RC flyer. And while I have a warped sense of perception, I doubt very much too may people will, too. In fact, as a member of the suffering public who was put to great inconvenience because of drone flyers flying their drones too close to Gatwick, I would welcome this sort of RC Flyer.. The drone flyers have a small minority that stuff it up for the rest of them.. these guys aren't in that league. I understand why CASA had to go for them.. it's a shame as they were only endangering themselves and showed ingenuity.. HOw many pioneers have suffered an early end so we can fly safely today? Without them, where would we be? (I know, I know.. but you get my drift).

Do you know.. I think I was ahead of myself when I stated Europe's airpspace has beome more dangerous.. Last email today from our maitenance guy... in response to a question of whether it is due back this coming week: "No, it has been ‘delayed’ pending the arrival of a new localiser / glass slope antenna from the US (that was broken during the respray). Rudder can’t be put back on without fixing this antenna. " Flipper knows when that beastie of an antenna will be back.. At least the paint is complete! I guess it's not all bad.. The UK has been battered with storms normally reserved for th Atlantic ocean.. so at least it has been snug in a hangar rather than being snowed, p!$$ed, sleeted and ratted on..

Rwy 2/29 is over 1,000m long.. Not the longest, but suitable for most, aircraft... The structure is a few hundred metres from the end of the runway and as an ex RAF airfield, I am guessing that the strcuture was built then - the road layout suggests it.. However, looking at google maps there is a holdiay part just off the eastern end of the 55/07 runway..

Travel safe on the trip, Marty - sounds like it will be a cracker.. The WA post from John could have been read for the UK.. Exmouth, Carnarvon (misspelt, of course).. @John Robert, I may nick that and send it to one of our blokes in HK, who is German and wants to move to WA... I have suggested a road trip around Aus to SWMBO a few times.. Unf, she still has memories of a dash from Melb to Lightening Ridge by car, and eating a pubs all the way - there was only so much chicken schnitzel and kiev she could take.. So post all the cullinary delights your family partake in and I may convince her of the idea!

Yeah, but they are a handy landmark... Once this carp weather passes, I may take the TB20 (if it gets out of the paint shop alive) up to Caernavon..

PTSD right now...

Blimey - I must be a virtual hermit - never even heard of the movie.. But then, maybe, "Honey, I shrunk the kids" was the last movie I saw... Anyway, back to our bad habits.. I have to admit - with the tech on the LAA/RAA side of things compared to Contipolis and Lycosauras tech, I am tempted to go to the dark side...

FFS! The shop was ready to turn it over to the mechanics to put togeher and they noticed the "forgot" to paint the undercarriage wells and fairings... The whole effin reason it went into the shop.. On my way home yesterday (Friday), I thought I would pop in.. abot 3pm... They were shut and had gone booine, I guess... 5 months + now and counting. I haven't flown in that time.. Decided last weekend I would rent a club PA28.. Of course, Storm Ciara decided to pitch up.. So thougth I would do it this weekend.. Storm Dennis! I tell ya, I was never religious or really believed in the big fella upstairs... But I am changing my mind. My father.. who passed away about 8 years ago, hated me flying... hated anything that may have resulted in his children being injured or worse.. from a sensationalistic point of view.. Well, since his passing, and given his resolute stubborness, there have been countless challenges thrown up - mainly wx realted that has restricted my ability to get out and take to the blue yonder. My guess is somehow, he got through the pearly gates and looks down, has a sqizz at my booking sheet and then cajoules the bog fella into throwing wx events to stop me flying... Either that, or the guy that looks after the lower regions of spiritual life has more control than we think. (p.s. I am not religious.. .I am frustrated)

I used to fly from YCEM when RVAC were there..... Nice little airfield...

Out of interest, are gas venting sites not marked on charts in Aus?

Well, so far, not much flying this year.. though the account to fund flying is building - so that is OK, I guess... Just got an email from the paint shop - er.. they forgot to paint the undercarriage - and given the whole reason it is in the paintshop is because someone belly-landed it, seems incredulous. A 4 week paint job in for our 4 months! A non-equity syndicate in a C172 near me has just opened up - min 6 months membership.. may join that for 6 months while waiting for this to get out of the shop.