kgwilson
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Everything posted by kgwilson
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What is the purpose of a return line to the tank? With a Facet electronic cube pump it continues to run to its maximum pressure when the carb bowl is full and the shutoff valve closes. Pressure does not build up past its maximum. Mine is 1.5psi to 4 psi so when the carb bowl is full it just keeps running at 4 psi with no fuel flow.
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I don't know the details but a Sling had an Engine failure and landed on Sapphire beach near Coffs a few weeks ago. My understanding is that there was a failure in the valve train somewhere which caused a piston to disintegrate, bending a conrod and crankshaft and distorting the crankcase. There is no coming back from that sort of catastrophic failure. I'd be interested to find out the details, anyone?
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Facet do make soild state and other types of aviation fuel pumps. They are just the same as automtive except have lots of paperwork and cost 4 times as much.
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Another one trying to enter the hangar from the roof. A pilot has escaped with only minor injuries after a single-engine plane crashed nose-first into the roof of a hangar at a Southern California airport. The crash happened while the pilot of the Cessna 172 was “practising landings and takeoffs" at Long Beach Airport, south of Los Angeles, the US Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement. Video aired by ABC 7 showed the nose of the plane embedded in the hangar's roof, with the tail sticking straight up. The pilot, who was the only person on board, had to be extricated from the wreckage and was hospitalised with minor injuries, the news station said. About 45 gallons (170l) of fuel leaked from the plane after the crash, the fire department said. The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board will investigate.
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There is not much point seeing traffic in the wrong position on the screen that has already gone past you.
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What I didn't understand about that explanation of GPS antennas was, well, all of it.
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Yesterday the forecast was for Westerlies 15-30kmh and fine conditions. There wasn't a cloud in the sky and little wind when I left home. There was a 10-15 knot wind from the SW when I got to South Grafton straight down the runway. It is mostly bush till about 10 NM from Casino which was where I decided to go. I knew it would not be smooth flying. It was quite rough in fact and I could see the clouds forming from small thermals that were popping off the brown farm patches & then get shredded by the wind. I was at 3500 feet and the base of these a bit over 4000. As I approached these I got trashed. They were small but very punchy & I had over 1000 up followed by 1000 down within a few seconds and got involuntarily turned 90 deg & banked 60-70 deg a few times. I instantly pulled the thriottle back till well under VA (85 knots) after the first one but even at 70 knots it was most unpleasant. I knew what this was but would a new pilot with 5 hours solo have any real idea and then know what to do? -
A few hours solo & having sat the exams etc in no way prepares you for flying in bad weather. That is an attitude issue unless it has been drummed in to you by an instructor or you have flown with someone competent in those situations. You can pass all of the exams by just having read what is in the books but never actually taking much heed of what the real message is.
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I enjoyed every minute of my 5 year build project. It was not full time obviously. I spent about 1000 hours in total. In the same 5 years I had several holidays, re-built a hangar, re-built part of a house and spent plenty of time with family etc.
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Leighton Beach WA light aircraft ditched 20.04.2023
kgwilson replied to trailer's topic in Aircraft Incidents and Accidents
Whatever else she did or forgot to do I don't know but she did pull off a textbook ditching. -
As I remember from the incident at the time that RH wing got left behind before the aircraft fell in love with the back of the hangar.
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I was 90% complete after about 2 years but it took another 3 years to finish the other 90%. Take some comfort (when you di finish) in the fact that about 50% of all aircraft building projects never get finished at all.
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This was reported in the other thread https://www.recreationalflying.com/forums/topic/38971-3rd-april-2023-proserpine-light-aircraft-crash/page/2/#comment-549735 where the ATSB has discontinued it's investigation. It just shows there are still idiots prepared to do their own thing rather than follow established rules and procedures. The sad part is he took out his pregnant wife due to this attitude.
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The solenoid in the Jab is for the starter motor.
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No 3600 is the total of all ATC employees
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Park on the grass on the other side of the sealed taxiway opposite the Aero Club. They run a flying school so are open most of the time. Rod Davison runs everything. PM me for his phone number.
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The Facet pumps I installed came with their own nipples which fitted the 1/4" automotive fuel line so there were no AN fittings required. The main boost pump is 1.5-4 PSI & has heaps of flow to a Jab 3.3 engine so will have no issue with feeding a rotax. The wing tanks have a 4-6 PSI pump to transfer fuel to the main fuselage tank
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I agree but there is always a limit to what can be done to minimise the risk of a fire. The risk will decrease with the preventative meaures taken but the tradeoff is added complexity and weight. Even the addition of items to help with prevention could cause other problems should they fail to operate as required. So there is a compromise to be reached and be determined by the builder. Good quality components correct wiring protocols, procedures and continued preventative maintenance will minimise the risk of failure. If these things are properly carried out the risk will be minimised to a level that is acceptable to the builder. Statistics from the US show that in 2022 there were 1,529.9 fires in petrol powered cars per 100,000 sales or 1.53% and this was all fires, not just those caused by electrics. The vast majority were fires caused by accidents and fuel spilled onto hot engines For EVs the number was just 0.025%. So the conclusion is that the risk is extremely low without adding extra prvenative measures. If after looking at statistics and analysis you still think extra measures are required either do them or don't fly. I am happy with the knowledge of having wired the aircraft to very high standards and the risk of fire with the system I have installed is very low so as to not bother me.
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My hourly costs are minimal as I usually only have fuel as outlay. I don't bother factoring in depreciation so I have written off the build cost. Since new in 2015 I have installed a new Bolly prop in 2018 at a cost of $1,700.00 and other parts have been $300.00 for a coil, 2 batteries $280.00, starter clutch $220.00, new mains tyres $325.00, engine mount rubbers $130.00, tacho sender $65.00, oil/filter every 25 hours $45.00, spark plugs every 100 hours $55.00 & air filter $25.00. There are a few other minor things but that's it so far.
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To answer the question definitively. There is NO legal requirement to instal a battery isolator in a 19 registered amateur built aircraft. Wiring is entirely up to the builder. You can instal motor vehicle cables or certified tefzel cables and the switch gear can be anything you like so long as it works & considered safe by you the builder. When the pre-flight inspection is carried out, that is done by you and observed by a L4. Personally I have nothing that will isolate the electrical system except a 30amp fuse on the firewall for all electrical power to the master to deal with a direct short and various size fuses and circuit breakers for the various bits of electrical equipment in the cabin. The quality of the wiring installed will be determined by the knowledge and experience of the installer. If I had a lithium battery I would instal an isolator but even that may not prevent a runaway internal circuit failure. I've seen some terrible installations with cables bundled allowing for electromagnetic interference, too close to hot surfaces, poor joins and bad insulation some even showing bare wire, cable runs throgh drilled holes with no grommets or glands, the list goes on.
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Air Traffic Controllers are employed by Air Services Australia. If you add their 3600 to CASA's 900 gives a better comparison of 4,500 to the FAAs 45,000
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49?? According to US government Accountability office there are nearly 45,000 FAA employees. FAA Workforce: Better Assessing Employees' Skill Gaps Could Help FAA Prepare for Changes in Technology WWW.GAO.GOV The Federal Aviation Administration relies on a workforce of nearly 45,000 to operate the national airspace system. Changes in the aviation industry...
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I'm not so sure. The only Westach instrument i installed is a Carburettor Temperture gauge. The probe stopped working after a couple of years and then the needle fell off the gauge making it entirely useless.
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Absolutely the best and least expensive way to fly is to build your own aircraft especially an approved design. You can modify it and maintain it yourself and you have the satisfaction of knowing that you are not trusting the strength and integrity of the build to anyone else but you. I am talking about a full build of every nut, bolt, rivet and fibreglass/resin part here not a quick build kit which is more like an assembly and paint job. Not flying over built up areas and in controlled airspace are just stupid rules that mean nothing as far as I am concerned. The only thing is that my aircraft has 19 & not VH in the rego. If I was across the ditch there is no difference.
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Well at least we can land on sports grounds, golf courses and roads without power lines in our small aircraft.
