TV programs that may interest other flyers

[planedriver]

I thought I'd start a thread where we can advise others of programs coming on tv, so you don't miss out on something interesting.

 

Tonight on NITV Ch 34 in Sydney is "Motorkite Dreaming", about 7 young adventurers with two secondhand planes (trikes) who set out to fly across 4000km's of desert.

 

Hope you enjoy it.

 

Kind regards

 

Planey

 

 

[red750]

Thanks Planey. Added to Planner.

 

Recorded an episode of The Restorers last night, about the Doolittle Raiders and the Mitchell B-25. Last episode in the series by the look of it. Seventeen restored B-25's of the Minnesota Commemorative Air Force in formation.

 

 

[kasper]

OK - episode 2 on NITV of Motorkite dreaming leaves me cringing ... and no wonder that RAAus put a full disclaimer and disassociation at the top of the program ... wonder just what RAAus safety officer and ops manager think of the airmanship displayed?

 

You can have a hell of a lot of fun, fly legally and responsibly and they could have made just as much of a 'personal adventure' film as this appears without showing the worst of flying skills and making out that trike are basic death traps.

 

Oh and 200km a day planned flight ... good grief thats about two hours a day ... hardly necessary to fly after dark and in the middle of the day with those sort of planned flight

 

Really not looking forward to the roll over that has been shown in shorts ... and the after inspection ... so much as knock a wing on these and you should do a short strip on the wing and check the outers as a minimum and check the hang bracket ... I am guessing that not a lot of that is going to occur ...

 

 

[Guest Redair]

I wasn't going to put in my 2c, but the two idiots in the motorbike dreaming show should have those clapped out pieces of junk well and truely shoved up their back passages and put away in the sheds, (if anyone thinks I was referring to their body cavities, I can't help the misunderstanding, ha-ha).

 

Really, they should be strung up by RA Aus and CASA, and before anyone jumps to the defence of the programme, saying it was all done with camera trickery and carefully staged stunts by experienced pilots.... there is this thing out there, called, "The General Public" who do not need any excuse to decry our hobby, sport or pass time, and this trash will play right into their hands. Even if they were not breaking the rules, (all in the name of a good story) the potential damage this show could cause is huge, for those of us who take our flying seriously, not to mention the lunatic copycat fraternity out there who think it will be a laugh to do the same.... monkey see, monkey do!

 

Not impressed, Redair.

 

 

[Guest Redair]

Sorry, auto correct at its best again... should have said motortrike.

 

 

[Guest Redair]

Keepers, this is getting annoying... motor kite, can't get it to accept it as one word!

 

 

[Frankus1aust]

Re programs, there is a great wealth of old aviation series on Youtube. Here's a starter from the 90's.

 

 

 

[kasper]

Motorkite dreaming episode III - wish it was a dream

 

Unfortunately it was all there to be seen.

 

1. low flying ALL the time by one 'pilot', including buzzing at various time both their support ground crew AND a group of kids

 

2. They decide to put down for a rest - and one lands into dead standing scrubby trees ... at least three large chunks taken out of one of the composite prop blades (couldn't see the other two) BUT after consoling each other he just flys out ... there was a perfectly serviceable two seater there to fly out in to get parts etc but NO

 

3. The low flying one decides to outland again and this time the nose wheel hits loose sand in the ground run, flicks full right and the trike and wing tip over to the left ... wing does strike ground and he just puts it back upright and without even dropping the wing to check the spars on that side he just takes off

 

4. nice cliff hanger ending with an engine out outlanding (apparently due to running out of fuel) and they stop as he hits HARD ...

 

One thing for sure - these airframes should be put on a warning list - do not buy these from anyone

 

Second would be the view of the RAAus ops and safety and exactly how they nice shiny new members charter and documents apply to conterol/dicipline these two 'Pilots'

 

 

[pmccarthy]

There is a show on TV about gold miners and I can assure you it is total BS for much the same reasons.

 

 

[Guest Redair]

There is a show on TV about gold miners and I can assure you it is total BS for much the same reasons.

I don't think the issue is about the programme being BS, it is more about the damage to all recreational pilots and their aircraft if we are all tarred with the same brush by the viewers who do not know or understand what our form of aviation is all about. Let's not be in doubt that anyone can start a campaign fuelled by misinformation and sensationalist claims, and there are plenty of people willing to jump on a bandwagon even if they have no idea what the hell they are supporting.

If there is any doubt, let me tell you about a person, (no names) who I knew, and thought was reasonably well adjusted.... turns out this could not have been further from the truth, as I discovered when another acquaintance to her that I was building a plane. She, ooppps, given the gender away, went totally ape-s**t, ranting and raving about how ridiculous it was than someone could just build a plane, how dangerous it was and that it should be banned. She believed that people should not build aircraft.... mmmm, let's just hope she never wants to hop on a commercial jet and go on holiday, goodness knows what she would do if she found out "people" had built it!

 

RA Aus and/or CASA need to deal with the fools from Motor Kite Dreaming in a very public way, before we are all accused of being unsafe idiots.

 

Redair.

 

 

[Yenn]

Is Motorkite an Australian show? Is it filmed in Australia? If so, surely CASA would be looking into it.

 

 

[kasper]

Is Motorkite an Australian show? Is it filmed in Australia? If so, surely CASA would be looking into it.

Very Australian

- pilots are RAAus pilots

 

- aircraft are RAAus registered

 

- aircraft are Australian made - Airborne

 

- funded by

 

the Australian Film Fund

 

even Airborne have it advertised on their home page ... probably not a great advert for existing pilots and people watching this crap show and the flying 'skills' exhibited wanting to come into the sport are in for a shock when they meet an actual instructor and pilot

 

 

[Old Koreelah]

...went totally ape-s**t, ranting and raving about how ridiculous it was than someone could just build a plane, how dangerous it was and that it should be banned. Redair.

I've seen that attitude, Red. At an in-law's Xmas dinner I was introduced as an aircraft home builder. One bloke's instant reaction was close to violence. He loudly proclaimed that people should never be allowed to build a plane.

No amount of quiet logic could sway him. I would have fared better if he thought I was a kiddy fiddler.

 

If we want to keep our privileges we've gotta counter some extreme ignorance in the wider community.

 

 

[Guest Redair]

I've seen that attitude, Red.If we want to keep our privileges we've gotta counter some extreme ignorance in the wider community.

Sadly it is the "Great Unwashed" who can overwhelm small groups and associations due to their numbers all complaining until they get their own way, even if they know nothing about the subject they so violently campaign against.

 

Maybe RA Aus could make a programme to counter the stupidity of Motor Kite, I am sure there would be plenty of examples of fine airmanship, professional demonstrations of how to fly, and countless examples of "home-made" (a phrase I think needs to be stamped out) immaculate, precision built aircraft which are the prides and joys of those who spent hundreds of hours constructing them. Might even increase the RA Aus membership!

 

 

[Old Koreelah]

Sponsoring some accurate PR would be a good use of RAA resources. Anyone who turns on the teev cans see a glaring need for decent content.

 

 

[ev17ifly2]

Very Australian- pilots are RAAus pilots

- aircraft are RAAus registered

 

- aircraft are Australian made - Airborne

 

- funded by

 

the Australian Film Fund

 

even Airborne have it advertised on their home page ... probably not a great advert for existing pilots and people watching this crap show and the flying 'skills' exhibited wanting to come into the sport are in for a shock when they meet an actual instructor and pilot[/quote

 

I was told that CASA had got hold of a copy of the video and did take some action.

[kasper]

If CASA did take some action that would be nice.

 

And it would also mean that there would be no reason RAAus could not separately take some action and make public to the membership what was done ... nice new governance documents and all put through as the prior ones were not fit for purpose - the behaviors in this TV series are ones that I think should come under the eyes of RAAus from a member disciplinary perspective ...

 

 

[flyerme]

Motorkite dreaming episode III - wish it was a dream Unfortunately it was all there to be seen.

 

1. low flying ALL the time by one 'pilot', including buzzing at various time both their support ground crew AND a group of kids

 

2. They decide to put down for a rest - and one lands into dead standing scrubby trees ... at least three large chunks taken out of one of the composite prop blades (couldn't see the other two) BUT after consoling each other he just flys out ... there was a perfectly serviceable two seater there to fly out in to get parts etc but NO

 

3. The low flying one decides to outland again and this time the nose wheel hits loose sand in the ground run, flicks full right and the trike and wing tip over to the left ... wing does strike ground and he just puts it back upright and without even dropping the wing to check the spars on that side he just takes off

 

4. nice cliff hanger ending with an engine out outlanding (apparently due to running out of fuel) and they stop as he hits HARD ...

 

One thing for sure - these airframes should be put on a warning list - do not buy these from anyone

 

Second would be the view of the RAAus ops and safety and exactly how they nice shiny new members charter and documents apply to conterol/dicipline these two 'Pilots'

Spoiler alert!!! Lol

His girl friend in the back hits her kneck on a wire in the engine out fuel starve scene..I have it on DVD. Was disappointed in it. What you see on TV is actually more than what was sold publicly on DVD only 2 months ago.

 

 

[rgmwa]

The constant emphasis by the film maker on how dangerous it is to fly these trikes doesn't help, although he's probably only telling the truth in this case.

 

rgmwa

 

 

[jetjr]

There's some RAA disclaimer at the start of the show

 

 

[Guest Redair]

There's some RAA disclaimer at the start of the show

Mmmm, disclaimer? Sounds like that is the same as turning a blind eye! What has happened to the RA Aus stance of, "if you see something, say something?" Clearly they are aware of the rules being broken, and the negative image this show is no doubt generating. None of the members should need to submit a report about these activities for action to be taken... if someone in RA Aus has taken the time, (and no doubt money) to get a disclaimer added to the start of the show.

 

I don't know how many of our number have anything to do with Remotely Piloted Aircraft, but there was a guy who flew his drone to Bunnings to get a snag in bread, and then posted the video on social media... countless rules being broken, and by all accounts, CASA are now dealing with him. So surely the same action could be taken against a far more serious breach of rules, with potentially more serious outcomes than a 2 kg drone crashing into someone.

 

Perhaps at the end of Motor Kite series, they could show the trikes being destroyed, so that they could never fly again, or maybe they will just add some footage of a poor unsuspecting person buying the abused machines, as they drive off into the sunset, counting their cash and laughing... that would be a much more exciting end to the show, NOT!

 

OK, I will go and get this bee out of my bonnet and try to calm down a bit.... then I am off out to make a video of myself blowing up endangered species. As soon as I get the WWF to add a disclaimer to the video, I will post it online safe in the knowledge that no action will be taken against me, and it might just encourage others out there to follow my lead and finish off the rest of those pesky critters, Ye-haw!!!

 

(I reckon RA Aus should be safe.... a toothless tiger is no real threat!)

 

Redair.

 

 

[jetjr]

Pretty limited what RAA can do

 

CASA can still prosecute as they have done for other TV show breaches. But they have been widely criticised for doing so and lost a few cases costing plenty.

 

 

[kasper]

Pretty limited what RAA can doCASA can still prosecute as they have done for other TV show breaches. But they have been widely criticised for doing so and lost a few cases costing plenty.

They rewrote the entire member control and disciplinary documentation to address the issues where they got burned previously and IF all the docs are so damn good as we were told the book should bloody well be thrown at them with every expectation that it will hit hard and stick.

 

 

[Guest Redair]

They rewrote the entire member control and disciplinary documentation to address the issues where they got burned previously and IF all the docs are so damn good as we were told the book should bloody well be thrown at them with every expectation that it will hit hard and stick.

Here here!

 

 

[NT5224]

Partly due to reading this thread i went and hired 'motorkite dreaming' to watch over Christmas. Gotta admit i enjoyed the show and the fabulous aerial footage of outback Australia. I made a similar length solo flight earlier this year bringing my bird home to the Top End -and the antics of those lads has certainly inspired me (and my wife) to further exploratory flights. So in that sense the film was wonderful.

 

But yes, the film featured some pretty reckless flying. The shots of the lads flying in convoy with the ground team were picturesque, but do trikes operate to the same 500ft minimum altitude regs as three axis? I was also nervous at the lads' first takeoff (in formation). The two trikes couldn't have been separated by more than a couple of metres, and who here hasn't experienced a little wobble on takeoff, especially when opening the throttle, or feeling a crosswind gust? And I reckon running out of fuel on a cross-country flight in the bush is inexcusable... Of course old mate's effort to take off two up through that thick scrub was bound to end in disaster!

 

But I reckon the craziest antic was taxiing into Kintore along a public road at night... I struggle to understand how the cops let them pass....

 

But here's the thing. I enjoyed the show, and I gotta wonder if the footage was very cleverly shot and edited to given an impression of recklessness and adventure along the way? You notice it as much in the footage of the 'support crew', with nearly every depiction of the ladies barrowing along full pelt through mud and distinctly average conditions... They never would have completed the journey in one piece if they'd been driving like that the whole way...

 

Endless checklists, preflight inspections and lengthy sessions on the E6B would not make for thrilling TV.

 

One point in which the show scored high for me was the lads giving rides to some of the locals. In fact, I think the whole concept of tying up the journey with recognition of indigenous culture worked rather well, and revisited the 'songlines' from an interesting new angle. That won me over.

 

Would I want to fly with one of them blokes? Nup. Did I enjoy enjoy the show? Yes I did.

 

Should RAA throw the book at them? Given the clever editing of footage it might be quite difficult to demonstrate what did or didn't happen along the way....