MadamBreakneck

Not politically correct, Planey, What about the girls?

OK, I'll bite

 

Where does 'politically correct' come in? Ok, girls generally seem less interested in flying than boys, but plenty have just not been brought up to expect to enjoy it, often by mummies and daddies who've been brought up with that expectation. After all, only a small proportion of boys end up as aircrew. ☔ Go on, give the girls a chance to say 'no thanks'. ☔

 

Back to the OP, I don't see a short term problem; the graphs show a drop off, true, but only back to the levels at the beginning of the year with a COVID-time swell through the southern autumn. Longer term, it's the same with forum format discussions this side of the world with a lot of contributers preferring the immediacy of Facebook and the like. Personally, I find those FB-style discussions about as engrossing as a chat in the flying club bar ~ fine at the time but rarely memorable.

This is the gulliest gull wing aircraft I can think about.

Minimoa

 

Not a good answer to the OP question though...

... I want to be able to do it locally off a template and hopefully save a bit of $ so looking into other alternatives.

It seems like you may be down to making your own template from first principles - at least you have the wing frame and the battens to start from. I suppose it depends on how many $$ you hope to save.

 

However you solve the problem, good luck with it. As I said on the UK forum, it looks a nice little aeroplane.

I only knew Tony via email as I distributed his TOSG bulletins in the UK. I'd say he knew a lot and his opinions deserved attention, whether or not you agreed with any or all of them.  I'd certainly be happy to see the TOSG pages back up.

 

If I recall correctly, one of Tony's reasons for preferring wheeler landings was that three-point landings hammered the tail structure when in the training role with student attemps at landing several times per hour.  I preferred the other way around because when the student has tailwheel landings under reasonable control it became possible to convert a bounced wheeler into a three-pointer - it doesn't work the other way around.   Now I'm retired from instructing on nosewheel Thruster T600, I enjoy three-point landings in my old share-o-plane Thruster TST (UK answer to the Gemini, I believe).

 

Tony kindly let me copy his series of essays on landing microlight taildraggers on my old web site - part 8 of which covers his theory on choosing three-point or mainwheel landings.

 

 

Back from a long time away from here...  the TOSG link in the OP doesn't work for me.

 

Does TOSG still exist?

 

We in UK have our own baby version at https://groups.io/g/Thrusterclub

 

 

Why, thank you kind sir... and today's reason for not flying is: FOG. Yesterday's reason was rain.

 

Joan

 

 

re Tony Hayes's articles: while I was distributing his TOSG bulletins in the UK he kindly allowed me to publish the text of his articles on landing on my web site. You can access them [here].

 

Hope they help.

 

I believe his excellent taildragger training manuals are still available from his widow.

 

Joan

 

www.SaxonMicro.co.uk

 

 

Now we're talking about near London, I've just gotta plug my own place

 

Saxon Microlights - microlight flying lessons for Essex and London

 

We fly Thruster.

 

North Weald was a military airfield between 1916 and the 1970s. It played an important role during second world war, most notably during the Battle of Britain and

 

Nowadays the airfield hosts several flying groups operating everything from microlights, through ordinary cessnas, to piston and jet warbirds via helicopters and bizjets - all with nothing more controlling than an air/ground radio service (and a dose of common sense).Also, as mentioned in my post somewhere above, the BMAA have a list of clubs and schools on their web site [here]

 

Joan

 

 

Those of you with UK design Thrusters (the Vision series, I believe) may be interested in this service bulleting from the Thruster factory. It affects all UK Thruster types using the aerofoil section struts. [added] Only those with aluminium alloy strut ends, steel ones are OK.

 

http://www.thruster.co.uk/documents/TAS_SB013.pdf

 

Joan

 

www.saxonMicro.co.uk

 

 

I suggest these people Somerset Microlights for flying out West

 

(Other sites and schools are available)

 

I did my microlight instructor course there.

 

Joan

 

www.SaxonMicro.co.uk

 

 

Well since then we've heard, of course, that the factory has had it's approval and I understand that they are building new aircraft again.

 

Those who read about my training simulator in the TOSG bulletin a few issues back may be interested in the latest enhancement, a 'tactile transducer' fitted to the seat - known in the trade as a butt-kicker. It's now possible to feel that all-important transition between earth and sky, and back again. It's made an instant improvement to the training value in the landing phase with one student making a marked (and sustained) improvement in his landings after just one session. My real Thruster has already said thank you

 

Joan

 

www.SaxonMicro.co.uk/simulator

 

 

There's now quite a nice promo video on the new UK factory's web site

 

Video Player

 

Joan

 

 

 

Thanks for the kind words, Tony,

 

Latest news on the rumour network is that the new Thruster factory has been awarded it A1 approval by the CAA.

 

This still needs to be officially confirmed....

 

Edited to add that it seems the rumour mill was too optimistic. Apparently sucessful meeting was had with the CAA but it's not in the bag (yet, we hope).

 

Joan

 

 

Thanks Joan.Just an identification point on the photo Joan has supplied.

 

'DF is a TST but has been retrofitted with a T300 pod and has the full height T300 windscreen as well. So it looks a little different from the normal TST although the wings (apart from the retrofit aerofoil section lift struts) are quite standard.

 

Tony

She's also got original-style curved 2-leaf undercarriage springs. you can't see them but you may notice the pod is sitting slightly lower than you may be used to seeing - about 2 inches in fact, which I believe makes it slightly easier to get into a three-point attitude than with the later straight 3-leaf springs.

I know Tony disagrees

 

Joan

 

 

This might interest. It's a picture of our (UK) TST with its trailer being used as a rigging aid. You can see the supports which allow the wings to be transported rigged.

 

Joan

 

 

 

I spent time in your part of the world in the seventies. Managed to do a little hang-gliding down near Dover, at a place called 'Devil's Dyke '?

In the '70s I lived in Brighton and drove to work past Devil's Dyke every day. It was watching those guys that persuaded me to stay away from hang-gliding and stay with conventional sailplanes:devil:It was only in the '90s that I got onto microlights, attracted initially by the Chevvron.

 

I was eventually seduced by a Thruster TST.

 

Joan

 

 

Hi farri, thanks.

 

I've always loved the look of the drifter - both the wire-braced and the strut braced ones. Unfortunately only one seems to have made it through the UK airworthiness rules - and that took the owner a terrific amount of effort. See here

 

Cheers

 

Joan

 

 

Hi,

 

I'm Joan. I fly and instruct in a Thruster in dreary grey England, helped by my dear husband, Ginge. I've been helping Tony Hayes out a litle bit for a couple of years by printing and distributing his TOSG bulletin to a few like-minded souls in this part of the world.

 

My main online home is within the BMAA forums in the UK. I joined this site to be able to read (and join in) the Thruster forum on here.

 

Looking forward to chatting with you guys.

 

Joan

 

For more detail see www.saxonMicro.co.uk