rdarby Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 I'm trying to come up with a list of the sealed runways in SE QLD or surrounds. Does anyone know any I don't know of? So far I'm finding them on a map and looking in ERSA: Redcliffe Caloundra Caboolture (a bit anyway) Stanthorpe Lismore Gympie Wondai Dalby Ballina Evans Head Are there any others within a few hundred miles of Brisbane? Ryan
Alpi Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 Toowoomba, Kingaroy and Southport on the Gold Coast but you'll need an invertation for that one !
FlyingVizsla Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 Ryan, By "tar" do you mean bitumen and/or asphalt? Bitumen is a black liquid that is heated and sprayed onto the surface and immediately stone is spread and rolled as it sets. This is what most rural roads are built of. High volume airstrips have a second process called Grooving where lots of thin horizontal channels are scored into the surface to avoid aquaplaning. Asphalt is a mix of bitumen and a range of stone from very fine to coarse which is spread and compacted in a thick layer and ends up a very smooth and quiet. Bitumen is like a thin icing on a cake, all the lumps & bumps show through, asphalt is like a thick icing that fills in all the cracks and ends up smooth and even. Bitumen can suffer from loose stone due to age or poor adhesion due to poor rolling etc, asphalt is hideously expensive so you only see it on high volume roads or intersections or where noise is an issue. The Whitsunday airstrip is asphalt due to the residential airpark being so close. There are other airstrip treatments. In my area: Emerald Qld grooved Springsure bit Rolleston bit Blackwater Sue
horsefeathers Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 Hervey Bay - YHBA Maryborough Qld - YMYB Sunshine Coast - YBSU (at Maroochydore - not for RAA - controlled airspace)
Tomo Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 Off the top of my head... there's: Millmerran Pittsworth Then a bit further west Chinchilla Tara
kaz3g Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 AOPA's Country Airfield Directory is a good investment... I was going to throw in Amberly if you live on adrenalin :-) Why are you after sealed strips? Good grass is awfully kind on your aeroplane. kaz
Neville75 Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 Mundubbera & Gayndah two more for your list. Nev
dunlopdangler Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 Inglewood and Goondiwindi.. and these and all the above have better "tar" than the crap we put up with at Dalby:coffee: also Jimbour house (near dalby) has a nice sealed strip and looks like cellar doors/cafe maybe reopening soon at weekends
Tomo Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 Jandowae as well, not sure if it's still open these days or not, but it's a nice little strip there.
XP503 Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 Yes Mason Field at southport is a private field, there is also Chearabah just south of Warwick
dunlopdangler Posted March 23, 2011 Posted March 23, 2011 kooralbyn near Beaudesert is another sealed strip
rdarby Posted March 24, 2011 Author Posted March 24, 2011 Thanks very much, that is a great list! The reason I was after non-grass runways was because the few grass ones I have been on (not many) havebeen quite rough, and I was looking for something smoother, so it's less of a worry of damaging the airplane until I get used to using a hire plane and build some experience.
dunlopdangler Posted March 24, 2011 Posted March 24, 2011 I've never had any damage caused by using grass strips, although some can feel a little bumpy compared to the tar at Redcliffe, the only damage that I have had is stone damage caused by loose stones on cold mix bitumen at Archerfield and Dalby
Ballpoint 246niner Posted March 25, 2011 Posted March 25, 2011 Thanks very much, that is a great list! The reason I was after non-grass runways was because the few grass ones I have been on (not many) havebeen quite rough, and I was looking for something smoother, so it's less of a worry of damaging the airplane until I get used to using a hire plane and build some experience. Don't try Kooralbyn then, the hard surface is in a poor state at present.
dunlopdangler Posted March 25, 2011 Posted March 25, 2011 I just google earthed the kooralbyn airstrip and your right Ballpoint, you can see the grass growing through the black stuff!!
dazza 38 Posted March 25, 2011 Posted March 25, 2011 Koralbyn is in a very poor state since the hotel went bankrupt.If going there its best to land on the grass beside the Bitumen.As DD had mentioned the grass growing through the bitumen is over a foot high in places.I havent landed there for a long while, but my parents live there, I drive past the strip a bit.
hogey74 Posted November 10, 2013 Posted November 10, 2013 Unless they're maintained like a green lawn, grass strips will tend to be clumpy and hence a bit bumpy. Most of the weight is off the gear though when you're juddering along quickly - I'd say that it's easier on the airframe than you might think. A few points: Wondai is grass with a bit of gravel - definitely NOT sealed. (Unless it's happened since December 2012). It is designed to be usable after plenty of rain though. Archerfield 10R/28L is listed as gravel on the edges - must be under the grass, making it look like a narrower but completely sealed strip. I flew over Kooralbyn on November 06 2013 and there were the big white Xs of closure at either end. Still looked like the best bet for a forced landing in that neck of the woods though.
hogey74 Posted November 10, 2013 Posted November 10, 2013 Koralbyn is in a very poor state since the hotel went bankrupt.If going there its best to land on the grass beside the Bitumen.As DD had mentioned the grass growing through the bitumen is over a foot high in places.I havent landed there for a long while, but my parents live there, I drive past the strip a bit. It was closed as of November 2013.
dazza 38 Posted November 10, 2013 Posted November 10, 2013 Ye It was closed as of November 2013. yeah my parents live at Kooralbyn , I flew over the strip 3 weeks ago. The crosses have been their for a while now, at least 8 weeks.
Chocolate Posted November 10, 2013 Posted November 10, 2013 Murwillumbah...and it's no fees to boot. Casino.
Dafydd Llewellyn Posted November 10, 2013 Posted November 10, 2013 Massie field, near Warwick, is sealed nowadays too.
davidb3296 Posted November 10, 2013 Posted November 10, 2013 Maryborough and Bundaberg are both sealed, I understood Blackwater was closed? Gympie sealed, Pacific Haven sealed-private, Hervey Bay sealed, Wondai sealed.
hogey74 Posted November 10, 2013 Posted November 10, 2013 Bit sad :-( Yeyeah my parents live at Kooralbyn , I flew over the strip 3 weeks ago. The crosses have been their for a while now, at least 8 weeks. I haven't been out there in 10 years. Hope the place picks up!
M61A1 Posted November 10, 2013 Posted November 10, 2013 Oakey....restricted area usually deactivated on weekends and afternoons (atis 124.3) also has good Army aviation museum if you're there on a weekend. 1
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