Camel

Is the Microair transponder ADSB ,mode S or just mode C ? anyhow when I read about it I cant find anything about mode S. I thought all new aircraft were to be fitted with mode S capable transponders.

Yes ! Several phone calls and emails to AOPA ! after promising to get back to me and never did ! I have the emails I sent but I don't have replies because there aren't any ! After chasing him by phone he stated AOPA not interested in RAA or LSA aircraft ! If AOPA were listening and interested in all things aviation it may have helped improve the situation !

RAA have acted on my views and expressed their views also on the Eureka document ! If AOPA want support they would need to be listening to RAA not a few individuals who claim to be acting for RAA ! Which has been acted upon ! I'm totally unhappy for AOPA doing what they have done ! Showing serious contempt for RAA ! Also I believe AOPA did not seek support from SAAA ! So a bunch of silver tails decide everything ! AOPA doing the same as years ago causing a split !

AOPA would have been better to discuss the issues with RAA and get their support but they didn't ! AOPA blatantly said " they were not interested in RAA or LSA aircraft ! Read the AOPA document ! Not in RAA interest !

Depends who defines the serious accident ! Maybe another flat tyre or faulty radio ! ONE THING PROVED WITHOUT DOUBT ! CASA CAN NOT PRODUCE THE TRUTH AND TWIST THE FACTS TO SUIT THEM , TOTALLY DISGUSTED WITH CASA ! Government ministers and departments are protecting this disgraceful government department ! Truly disgracefull !

There is a section in ERSA CHG-REPORT. for alteration.

Always liked Seareys but was told years ago about some handling characteristics and have never flown one, did enquire about a kit once. Your thoughts on handling ?

AOPA seems to be supporting LAME's not RAA ! To me the simplest way is for Casa and ATSB to stay out of the whole sport and recreational aviation and concentrate on the commercial side of aviation ! Let RAA manage its own affairs. AOPA had no time for RAA, LSA and me and that was clear ! I DO NOT WANT TO BE FORCED TO USE LAMES AS IT IS GAME OVER AS FAR AS IM CONCERNED ! Once again AOPA are not doing what people want only what a few want !

I had a look, not really with RAA, not quite what I would like to see ! http://www.aopa.com.au/assets/587/Project_EUREKA_120416.pdf Extract from Eureka document ! Jabiru Aircraft Restrictions Because of a number of reported engine problems, CASA currently restricts Jabiru aircraft from flying over built up areas and this is having a devastating impact on the reputation of the manufacturer and impacting sales. The manufacturer claims the Australian engine problems relate to unsatisfactory local maintenance by aircraft owners since other countries which have different maintenance regulations to Australia are not reporting such problems and have not imposed such restrictions. CASA, in collaboration with both the manufacturer and the other overseas regulators, needs to determine whether the level of local owner engine maintenance is the source of the engine problems. 16. AOPA, in support of an Australian aircraft manufacturer, Jabiru Aircraft Pty Ltd recommends that CASA consult with the national regulators of the other countries where significant numbers of Jabiru aircraft operate, including New Zealand, South Africa, USA and Canada. If this proves to be a local engine maintenance problem, CASA and RAAus should look to alter engine maintenance regulations. In South Africa for example, engine maintenance is undertaken only by Licensed Engine Engineers. (See Section 10). 17. AOPA recommends CASA and the manufacturer implement a program whereby licensed engineers can inspect and lift restrictions on an individual aircraft basis for those aircraft deemed adequately owner maintained. This would allow flight by Jabiru aircraft over built up areas to be reinstated. (See Section 10). This appears to be an example whereby CASA has focused solely on safety aspects with blanket restrictions but has not taken account of the commercial interests of the local manufacturer.

Would like to see it, thanks for posting.

Fair call Ultralights, but my point is they are out of production and that can't be good for owners of 162's and the question is would you buy one now ? They are certainly a good aircraft ! I would like one Cheap !

Does everybody still remember the Cessna 162 Sky Catcher. Deposit down, big delay, etc etc ! No more Sky Catcher !

Turbo, I have given you facts previously and in case you don't remember ! Casa were questioned about the facts, the statistics ! RAA put in an FOI and failed, I put in an FOI and succeeded ! Casa would not previously give any information and the SASAO department would not answer all my questions ! The media spokesperson for Casa did not have the answers either and passed it back to SASAO ! RAA did not get proper answers either ! The best thing ever was to make this political because that is what it is really about ! Casa can do what it wants without Satisfactory evidence or correct process ! Casa are a dictatorship that is out of control ! Safety is not really a concern, it seems they want to put all aircraft manufacturers out of buisness and they are succeeding !

An LSA can only be if it is supported by the manufacturer, when or if they go broke it no longer can be LSA unless someone takes the helm of the brand ! As I said before " some basic maths makes it not look so good " .

Very well said Rick ! It is exactly how you said it and it gets worse, the LSA catergory was created to allow a more economical way of a standard to build planes and engines so hence the ASTM , Casa then go and compare the engines built under ASTM standards and compare to FAA certified standards and use this as a reason to back up the other bullsxxx. Certification does not make anything any better as the auto industry changes all the time to improve their products and the auto industry is 50 years ahead of aviation !

Some basic maths confirm your opinion and I agree, my quick calculation is that if they invested $120 m Then if they could make $100,000 on each plane they would need to sell 1200 planes to break even. The plane is too dear at present, I heard US$260 K so in oz it would have to be around $300k with import and GST, can't see them selling enough planes. The real shock to me was the Lisa Amphibian which was going to be a winner but it also is a lot more expensive than the Icon ! I honestly thought these would be real winners but the price tags are too high for the current market. It seems if you invent or pioneer a product some are going to take advantage of the hard work developing new ideas.

I'm no expert and only a suggestion but in the download section is a switch for download from peers, would this work ?

I'm very keen on ampibiams, can you enlighten me on some of the cheaper alternatives that I may not already know of ?

A fair call Kaz but the mentality that RAA planes are not real planes is alive and well in GA circles and have experienced it first hand but it doesn't work with me as I have a PPL and owned a C172 foe 9 years, I have owned 5 aircraft and guarantee I will never own a GA plane again unless it is under experimental and is maintained by me ! The idea of supporting AOPA would only be acceptable if they show their proper intentions to RAA members. I'm sure a good number of RAA members previously held a valid PPL or restricted. The majority of RAA knockers are less than capable pilots, have seen this first hand. I'm afraid AOPA needs to make the first move to get support in my opinion.

There is no mention of support for RAA and I was told directly by the current AOPA CEO that they had no interest in RAA pilots or LSA aircraft. If they want members they better openly make a statement of support, I left AOPA when all the presidents were resigning because of the National Airspace Reform which started in 2003 and continued for a couple of years and they tried to drag RAA in then to pay to fight legal battles that were not RAAs to fight, there was a resignation from a RAA president at the time. Do you remember ? I shared a lot of info with AOPA in regard to the Jabiru issue and not even a response and when I chased it up he stated "AOPA HAD NO INTEREST IN RAA OR LSA AIRCRAFT"

I know from experience ! They are a waste of time and money. Around 10 years ago members of AOPA left in droves including myself, very disappoint with their ideas. Now in the last 12 months I approached AOPA they said they are not interested in RAA, after supplying them info they said they would get back and they didn't I chased AOPA and they said straight out that they were not interested in RAA aircraft or pilots. Things haven't changed as far as I'm concerned, all for the glory of a few, not for all !

I was a member of AOPA years ago and for very serious reasons I did not renew and there is no doubt in my mind from recent dealings with them that they are not interested in RAA at all.

I reckon he deserves the Darwin Award, ! Why walk if too sick to fly ? Why did he say obviously got food poisoning at his last stop ? If he had food poisoning surely he would not have been able to walk out would he ? I find everything he said confusing given his situation in my opinion !

Statistics mean nothing unless you have the right information ! Aircraft running out of fuel should not be counted, siezure from no oil ! Running an engine too lean or overheating ? There are human error failures, mechanical design fault failures and faulty part failures. There is also the fact that engines are listed as brands and there are models of engines that are more prone to failure. Unless statistics categorised in their respective failure catergory then it is impossible to use these statistics. Every engine has its quirks, some don't like certain revs due to harmonics, some like to rev without load, some like load and some don't get hot due to over efficient cooling where others are very pronged to run hot. As I have a Jab engine I treat it as I believe what suits this engine and the Lycombing O320, Rotax 582 and 912 I've had I have treated according to recommendations from POH. I have seen many people mistreat these engines the same as some people mistreat car engines and wonder why they give trouble. An example of being kind to a Lycombing was climb and level off every 500 ft and cool engine, full rich during climb and full power, lean when achieved desired altitude, not to richen mixture until bottom of descent from Higher altitude and keep a little power on during descent. If you don't treat your engine right expect problems. People say you should not have to baby and aircraft engine and should be robust to take a little abuse and there is some truth in this but I see people idling Rotax engines with the engine falling apart from vibrations and I see people steep climb Jabs for long periods and idle for long periods and these are serious abuse of an engine that is built light to deliver high performance. Engine management is important and I wonder how many people really care or do it especially when they hire a plane ? When I worked on Expensive European high performance cars it was the ones that did a lot of miles that gave the best service others were plagued with problems and called unreliable but they weren't driven hard enough to get the temps and oil up to operating optimum temp. Taxis are the best example of this ! So the ATSB stats are not a reliable source in my opinion.

With respect to good l2's and good LAME's, I have owned a GA planes and RAA planes, the standard of some LAMEs was disgusting, I found things wrong and I only felt safe if I stayed with the aircraft throughout the annual inspection and checked everything. On several occasions when I was not present I found several things on a walk around and was totally unacceptable and unsafe.