Tell us about your last flight

[Zibi]

My last flight has been fairly unremarkable, just like many of my previous flights accept for one small detail.

 

I went in my trike from Caboolture towards Bribie island for a stroll along the beach and at one point flying over the southern tip of Bribie I flew right over (well maybe some 20 m away) a bird.

 

I'm not sure what bird it was, some kind of a hawk or something, but it was one of those great feelings when you're up there and you realize that you're actually watching a flying bird from above and you're right next to it, you're almost one of them...

 

That's what makes flying great for me...

 

 

[Old Koreelah]

Long ago I had a hawk enter my thermal. Started at the left tip, he gradually slid down the wing of the Blanik, drifted forward enough to miss the cockpit, then drifted down the other wing. I could almost reach out and touch him.

 

 

[M61A1]

Haven't done my last flight yet. After I do, I hope I am in a position to tell you about it. Nev

Somewhere I have seen the definition of "Final Approach"......It's along the lines of- VFR pilot in a single engine aircraft, flying IFR on a moonless night below minimums .

 

 

[biggles]

Somewhere I have seen the definition of "Final Approach"......It's along the lines of- VFR pilot in a single engine aircraft, flying IFR on a moonless night below minimums .

 

Mmmm , a bit like those who say " if you're not living on the edge you're taking up too much room "

 

Bob

 

 

[Guest Andys@coffs]

Last Friday my eldest daughter was to fly Tiger from Sydney to Coffs but due to a problem at BNE Airport (emirates 380) with crap on the runway Tiger had an issue where the plane for her flight was delayed and the tiger approach to something like this is to just completely cancel a flight segment and all of a sudden your no longer late, coffs was the sacrificial lamb that day......She blew her stack with them and told them to stick it.....they had the last laugh at my expense, I'd paid for the return ticket.....3 weeks for a refund......

 

Anyway Saturday morning sees me take off from South Grafton and on the way to Maitland to pick her up and bring her home.....she can catch the train back!

 

Only about 5hrs since the 3300 was overhauled.....I immediately started a climb so as to safely go round tiger country west of Coffs (very unfriendly territory)...anyway at about 3500ft motor missed, picked back up and then stopped altogether.......I'd forgotten to turn the fuel taps on on the side pillars and ran out the header tank....... I've since determined I need to make up a placard, laminated it and add Velcro to the dash so that I cant possibly fly and forget...something I swore Id never do...... I can report that my pucker ring tension was tested multiple times and found to be within spec.....once the taps were turned on the header filled faster than my heart rate slowed to normal......

 

Beautiful smooth flight down, about 2hrs 10 minutes roughly as I had to use the closest section of the lane of entry for Maitland (that within the 25nm Willy town ring)... going home 1 hr after landing was turbulent and all of a sudden the see for miles was replaced with haze..... I have to say that if Sat morning is normal for Maitland on a shared CTAF frequency trying to get a Tx in was murder......and Meatbombers all over the place I had to detour multiple times to avoid conflict over Taree and then where I intended to go west of maitland at Elderslie to avoid having to use the lane of entry with its low ceiling and then again at Maitland, where meatbombing is clearly a big and successful business!

 

On the way back I thought that the engine sounded louder......when I landed I had a look and saw that Id lost some springs that hold the muffler to the header pipes and the remaining ones had stretched to the point that the headers had completely disengaged from the muffler..... Really lucky that I had as part of the overhaul added 6CHT and 6EGT gauges which meant that the grommet through the firewall into the cabin was stuffed to capacity....no CO, or at least none that we could detect (the other combustion products that is) where as if I had left it with the default 2 egt and 2 cht there may very well have been another thing to go wrong as the cheese holes all strived to align...

 

So.. 2 things happened that could have impacted the 4.5hrs of flight....one was clearly my fault and I intend to ensure it doesn't happen again, and the 2nd just bad luck I think

 

Andy

 

Please note a split in the thread has been made here - Mod xox

 

Fuel management discussion continues here - http://recreationalflying.com/threads/fuel-management-and-muffler-problems-split.110470/

 

 

[ExJourno]

I did some circuits in a Lightwing at Coominya today. Practised forced landings... turns out I can still do them well enough to live...

 

 

[metalman]

I did some circuits in a Lightwing at Coominya today. Practised forced landings... turns out I can still do them well enough to live...

Good to hear ,,,it wasn't your last flight after all

 

 

[biggles]

He's a lot younger than you or I Biggles !.............

Just about everybody is younger than me Maj .

 

[biggles]

 

Andy

I have seen, on a Rotax actually which was subjected to higher vibration, lock wire through the springs and securing points. The lock wire was not tight but only to stop excessive movement should a spring fail. It seemed like a good and simple idea to me...........

I have always done this Frank , and like you say ...... " a good idea " . Andy for what it's worth I have not shut those fuel taps for many years , after a near miss similar to yours . I seem to recall Jabiru stopped installing them years ago for whatever reason . These days I just rely on the main beam isolating tap . The pre - start check lists are , I believe ,essential as it is easy to get distracted or complacent , due to familiarity or whatever - " Human factors " at play . Even though I never shut those taps , they are still a part of the check list as you may see in the pic. ......... " Fuel taps - 3 off -- OPEN "

[octave]

My last flight was along the Great Ocean Road. Unfortunately a week later I found myself in hospital with a serious cardiac problem, so I am desperately hoping that this was not truly my "last flight"

 

http://grahamlambflying.weebly.com/great-ocean-road-flight.html

 

 

[skeptic36]

I learnt to fly on a trike which has one fuel tank and a fuel tap that as pilot you cant get to in the air so inflight management involved looking at time spent with the motor on and nothing else.

And wasn't it great

 

 

[ahlocks]

Thinking of splitting the fuel side of the convo to a new thread. What say the masses?

 

 

[facthunter]

MASSES never reply. But that's thread drift too. Nev

 

 

[ahlocks]

a bit of thread drift is OK (IMHO) but this fuel stuff is important and needs to be easier to find in the future.

 

There's something about pilots and masses Nev. It seems a lot of pilots are mass debaters....

 

 

[facthunter]

I would have called them, individualistic self pleasurers. Nev

 

 

[Old Koreelah]

Thinking of splitting the fuel side of the convo to a new thread. What say the masses?

Masses? Repeat after me: " we're all individuals"...(I'm not)

Mate, if you have done the hard yards being moderator, you have earned the right to make an executive decision!

 

 

[facthunter]

Why do all the non conformists look much the same? Nev

 

 

[Old Koreelah]

We all want to belong to a group...even the non-conformists. We wear the uniform, talk the talk and exclude the uncool.

 

 

[ahlocks]

Split done.

 

http://recreationalflying.com/threads/fuel-management-and-muffler-problems-split.110470/

 

Mate, if you have done the hard yards being moderator, you have earned the right to make an executive decision!

Yeah, but nice to be included in these sorts of things init?!

 

[crashley]

Hi all last flight was from Latrobe valley to Apollo bay for the night and then back along great ocean road to torquay and then inland for a trip around the bay and the back home

 

trip was great except very rough from torquay to the bay

 

 

[Stoney]

I took my Dad for his first flight last week from Murray Bridge to Aldinga for coffee and then anti clockwise around the Fleurieu Peninsular, then from the Murray Mouth over Lake Alexandrina and Lake Albert and followed the river back. A perfect day, no traffic and some special time with my Dad, looking at where we used to sail together nearly thirty years ago. Made some good memories that day and it made all of the training that went into obtaining my pilots licence worthwhile for just that one flight. Thanks Dad xx

 

 

[mAgNeToDrOp]

I took my Dad for his first flight last week from Murray Bridge to Aldinga for coffee and then anti clockwise around the Fleurieu Peninsular, then from the Murray Mouth over Lake Alexandrina and Lake Albert and followed the river back. A perfect day, no traffic and some special time with my Dad, looking at where we used to sail together nearly thirty years ago. Made some good memories that day and it made all of the training that went into obtaining my pilots licence worthwhile for just that one flight. Thanks Dad xx

Nice, one to remember for you I'm sure.

 

 

[PA.]

Maybe this thread should be called, Tell us about your latest flight.

 

 

[ahlocks]

... Tell us about your latest flight.

I once landed when the street lights were already on....

 

 

[skeptic36]

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