Mick

No mechanics & no hangar is no different to Hervey Bay, Bundaberg & Gladstone just to name a few off the top of my head. No doubt there are lots more destinations that are also like this. When a Dash 8 breaks down in Gladstone ( and they do ) they can't just bus the passengers to Brisbane but somehow the world keeps turning and QLink keeps operating.

Either way it 's not so sporty anymore, I think the newness has worn off.

From the news report ( for what that's worth ) it was hit by a gust on landing & pushed off the strip into the gully. Not an engine failure.

I found this pic of the aircraft involved in yesterdays accident - To me the crashed aircraft looks more like the Piper Sports operated by the Sunshine Coast Aero Club- This is the Sportstar operated by the club - Note the Sportstar is silver not white, also the angle of the leading edge of the fin on the crashed aircraft looks more like the Piper Sports than the Sportstar, ie more raked angle.

A couple of weeks ago I took a short drive ( 20 hours each way ) from Gladstone Qld to Cootamundra NSW for the "Invitational Scale Classic Downunder" scale competition. I flew my P-47 Thunderbolt "Rough & Ready" in the flying only category and was fortunate to also fly a twin to "R&R' in the form of "Slick Chick" in the Team category. Slick Chick is the latest model out of the molds by a friend of mine and has been "scaled out" a bit more than previous models. As the two models are of squadron mates I reckon they look pretty cool together........

Do you mean the notorious "Gravity Gust" ???

Yep, without pics it didn't happen.

MAAA have only picked up their games since AMAS have provided some competition. Maybe RAAus could do with some competition too?

My wife & I had our first lessons on the same day. For me it was a life long dream, for her it was a case of "I'll have a go". She fell in love with it during that first lesson. Our shared love of flying has meant we have owned 3 aircraft and currently own 2 which we refer to as "his & hers". Taking a plane each and taking friends for a fly together is one of the best fun things you can do with your clothes on.

Hi Ian, I'd be happy to take a couple of litres off your hands. There have been times when I have wished I had some for use on models. I will e-mail you to arrange to grab it sometime.

Just had a quick look at their website & as I suspected Funkwerk has evolved from Filser. We had a Filser radio in our first Sportstar and it was excellent. Vastly superior to the Icom we have in the Skylark. The Garmin SL40 in our current Sportstar is very good too.

Andy the strip I think you are looking at is just behind St Brendan's College. There is an active flying group based there as well as the modellers. I have flown models there 10 years ago and keep meaning to fly in for one of their monthly BBQs. I have all the details & contacts on the home PC but I am in London for another week. If no one else chimes in I will get the info for you when I am home. If I forget PM me a reminder.

The airshow at Waddington was great and the Vulcan incredible to watch, just so majestic but so threatening at the same time. The Battle of Britain Memorial flight Lancaster also performed & also fantastic to see. The commentators pointed put that incredibly it was only 11 years between the first flights of the 2 types. We also squeezed in an all too short visit to The Shuttleworth Collection at Old Warden on Friday.

Roger that on the ear plugs, they are already packed! Hendon visit is scheduled and of course "Flying Legends" at Duxford. Will check out the Shuttleworth Collection too. I have also planned to hire an aircraft & Instructor from Lydd Aero Club and do a flight along the Cliffs of Dover and over the Battle of Britain Memorial at Folkstone. It's going to be great

It will also be flying at RAF Waddington Airshow next weekend which I will be attending.

Time to spare, go by air. If you must arrive, you had better drive.

What impressed me was that the German authorities are looking at how they can fit their rules to a machine like this. Seems like in Australia we look at how we can exclude things that are different.

Check out this new German machine....

That's great, I have nothing but respect for you guys who do such good work with things in such a small scale. I find this sort of thing awkward enough in 1/5 or 1/4 scale as I do my RC models, let alone at this size.

Gee! There has been all this discussion lately about UAV's when we really should be worrying about kites & Cessna hovercrafts!

Following up on a great event............... http://www.centraltelegraph.com.au/news/rescue-chopper-gets-25k-lift/2291425/ Thanks to everyone who came along to be part of this & make it possible to provide this assistance to the Rescue Chopper.

The Sportstar used for training in Gladstone is also available for hire. At the moment it is only here for 2 days a week, but it will soon be based here full time. Gladstone might not be as close as you might have liked, but I am not aware of anything any closer to you outside of Rocky's controlled airspace. If your are interested, google Gladstone Aero Club and look at the " learn to fly" page for contact details.

I flew out to Thangool today and the setup is looking great. There was already about a dozen aircraft there when I left at about 3.30pm. Unfortunately other commitments mean I won't be there for the rest of the weekend. Bit of a shame as it looks like it is going to be a great event. I hope you guys that are there will post lots of pics.

Yep.