Neil_S

Hi Summer, Nothing really to add to what has already been said. I learnt in an LSA and was certainly surprised by the difference the lack of weight of my instructor made and went a bit above circuit height. He also warned me about sink on final as our airfield is in the lee of a mountain and the wind was coming from that direction and sometimes caused sink, but when it happened I was still a little surprised by it. However, I did as taught and added a bit of power which cured the problem. The main thing is to enjoy it - you only do a first solo once!! Good luck, Neil

Hi Danny, Not sure if you wanted ipad info too. I have ipad mini 5, AVPlan and Skyecho2. No problems with setup or use. Cheers, Neil

Hi KA, Sounds weird. I have no problem with my Skyecho and Avplan on my iPad Mini. Suggest you call the AVPlan Support people - I have always found them very helpful. Cheers, Neil

Hi Nev, Wow - I never knew that. It must have been a long time ago as I've been there for about 14 years. As you rightly say - good thing they don't any more!! Cheers, Neil

I recently went to a CASA Safety seminar at Point Cook. We were told we would need photo ID at the main gate to get in as it is a military base. However, an ASIC was not acceptable, but a driver's license was. Sums it up, really. Cheers, Neil

Hi Nev, Not sure where you got the idea that Penfield requires an ASIC - it doesn't, as ERSA will confirm. Cheers, Neil

I have been using one of these for several years with no problem - just fill from a 10 litre container using a Mr Funnel to eliminate any water or contaminants....then put into the filler neck on the plane. No issue with overflow as it automatically stops when the fuel level reaches the nozzle. I think they are $69. Cheers, Neil

Congratulations! You will enjoy flying her. I've had mine for over 7 years and really enjoy flying her around the place. Cheers, Neil

Example : I am flying a course of 045 degrees, at 3500 ft, someone else is flying a course of 135 degrees also at 3500 ft. Both of us are complying with the hemispherical rule, but we are potentially heading towards each other on a collision course. I would recommend you review the extensive work done by Robert Patlovany by googling "Robert Patlovany collision", and also the work done by Russell A. Paielli. The 1928 Australian invention, the Altimeter-Compass Cruising Altitude Rule (ACCAR), would be much safer. Paielli's model, made in 2000, corroborated an earlier 1997 model by Patlovany showing that zero altitude error by pilots obeying the hemispherical cruising altitude rules resulted in six times more mid-air collisions than random cruising altitude. Similarly, Patlovany's computer model test of the Altimeter-Compass Cruising Altitude Rule (ACCAR) with zero piloting altitude error (a linear cruising altitude rule similar to the one recommended by Paielli), resulted in about 60% of the mid-air collisions counted from random altitude non compliance, or 10 times fewer collisions than the internationally accepted hemispherical cruising altitude rules. In other words, Patlovany's ACCAR alternative and Paielli's linear cruising altitude rule would reduce cruising midair collisions between 10 and 33 times, compared to the currently recognized, and internationally required, hemispherical cruising altitude rules, which institutionalize the navigation paradox on a worldwide basis. The ACCAR alternative to the hemispherical cruising altitude rules, if adopted in 1997, could have eliminated the navigation paradox at all altitudes, and could have saved 342 lives in over 30 midair collisions (up to November 2006) since Patlovany's risk analysis proves that the current regulations increase the risk of a midair collision in direct proportion to pilot compliance.

Yup - which is why flying the hemisphericals makes things more dangerous.....

Me too.....

Hi folks, I received an email yesterday saying "A remittance advice from the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science is attached", and then today I actually received the grant payment in my bank account. So it took just over 6 weeks from application submission to receiving my payment. Cheers, Neil

Hi Ross, I don't have that issue with AVPlan on my iPad mini. Suggest you call AVPlan Support - I have always found them very helpful, or Samsung as it sounds like a device issue, rather than an app issue. Cheers, Neil

......still waiting for my payment........(no 24).........

Pure music and grace. Thanks for posting, kgwilson! Cheers, Neil

I was hoping to fly up on Thursday and back on Saturday (early morning commitment on Sunday), but with Windy forecasting low cloud, rain and strong winds throughout that period I'm afraid it will be a no-show for me from the south side of Mt Macedon.

Hi folks, Just got an email today saying my grant application had been approved! Now just have to wait for the money to hit my account. Mine was application number 24 and I applied on August 12th, so hopefully all you others will have yours approved soon. Cheers, Neil

Nope - and I applied on the day it opened (August 12th), number 24. But then it is a gov't department, so.......... Cheers, Neil

Hi Blueadventures, Forgive me if I have misinterpreted what you were saying, but you seemed to imply that fitting costs could exceed the rebate. However, if you had a full-blown ADSB system installed which would include being hooked up to an existing GPS by an avionics guy, for example, then you would still get back half the installation costs up to $5000. But a Skyecho installation consists of attaching a suction cup to a side window in the cockpit (took me less than 2 minutes) - then you're good to go. So it is classed as a portable device and there is no rebate for any installation costs, so you would just get back around $500 of the $1000 cost of the device. Hope this clarifies. Cheers, Neil

Hi Blueadventures, Not sure where you get the figure of $500. From the gov't website :- "Up to $5,000 per eligible aircraft covering up to 50% of eligible project expenditure. Only one grant per aircraft and per device is permitted." HTH Neil

Hi SGM, I have also noticed this, and it is to be expected as the ADSB-IN is direct from the other aircraft, whereas the AVPlan paint is rebroadcast from ground stations, so depending on how good the connection is there will be a delay. Both AVPlan and OZRunways do point this out, and they both recommend a proper ADSB-IN to get the best information. Cheers, Neil

Slackers! Mine was 000024 😄

Hi BC105, Even from my Windows laptop I had the interminable "Please Wait" message on the page asking for the amount I was claiming. I had to kill and resubmit several times before it worked. Fortunately it had saved the rest of my application so I was taken straight to the Amount page. Government app does not work properly anywhere!! Cheers, Neil

Hi J_A, Many moons ago, when I was a young lad, a friend and I used to fly from Southend to Le Touquet. I have fond memories of eating steak and chips at a cafe in town, going on the go-kart track at the seafront (is that still there?), buying some baguettes, vin et fromage, plus duty-frees, then flying home. A brilliant day out. I don't remember ever showing a passport at Le Touquet, although I seem to remember we did at Southend. Cheers, Neil

Aircraft Propellers and Spares, as noted before. Very helpful.