dodo

I don't know so many good fictional books, but you might try Nevil Shute on a lot of aviation fiction - "Pastoral" for a bomber pilots experience, but some of the light plane flying in "Round the Bend" or "The rainbow and the Rose" are very cool. Autobiographical stuff - Douglas Bader' "Reach for the Sky" Adolf Galland's "The First and the Last", Johannes Steinhoff's "The Straits of Messina" and especially "The Last Chance" are all good. Or one of the all time greats of aviation books "Fate is the Hunter" by Earnest Gann is a brilliant experience of early commercial mail flying in the US. Fiction, but he had flown mail planes in the early, very dangerous era, so it is basically fictionalised experiences. Even though I haven't read the book in years, I can't forget the image of the aircraft captain lighting matches in front of a pilots face as he protests while landing a passenger aircraft, and dispassionately tells him one day he may need it. And then, years later, he is landing an aircraft with a cabin full of smoke with that memory. dodo

Flying...

How does Oziexplorer compare with Airnav? I see that Ian sells his GPS units with either (or both!). When would you pick which one? Or when would you want both? Jim

Same as Sue...but the mag just turned up this evening, so maybe I should have changed my vote...

If Canadian ultralights are not licensed, I wonder what the CASA equivalent will do? Wonder if he can get away with unspecified "engine trouble" requiring a precautionary landing? http://www.theregister.co.uk/2011/07/08/flying_visit/ and http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2011/07/07/18389736.html dodo

I have been looking at the same sorts of issues - I want to buy something like a Thruster (so probably 2s, tail wheel and low speed), but almost all the available training is high speed, 4 stroke and nosewheel. I can find a Gazelle not too far away to get low speed, perhaps a Lightwing for the tail wheel, but the only 2 stroke option I know of in NSW would at Camden, I think. The Aerochute looks like an attractive option for the two stroke endorsement. Firstly, there are at least two available for training within five hours drive of me. Also, you don't need the Aerochute endorsement to train, so you can either get the two stroke endorsement and stop there, but it might be a lot of fun to go on and get the Aerochute endorsement. It depends on how much extra time would be required to get both - I get the impression that Aerochute endorsement probably won't take much more than the mandatory 5 hours, and that might well include two stroke, so it might take little or no more than 5 hours for the pair. I also just like the idea of an Aerochute, so I might be biased by that! dodo

Why do you ask? I can see that buying that winglet would make a complete starboard wing for a 95.10 ultralight, but where would you get the port side? dodo

They are. Until they aren't. When the one that fails is yours, well, you lose faith in statistics and have to deal with it. As the old hippie slogan says, "one nuclear bomb can ruin your entire day". dodo

Probably a dumb question, but what does the insurance cover in these policies? Is it just accidental damage? Or accident, theft, third party person and property and public liability all rolled into one? (And yes, I know RA membership covers a little of this) Jim

Random piccies fro Tumut [ATTACH]11786.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11785.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11783.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11784.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11787.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11788.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11789.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11790.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11791.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11792.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11793.vB[/ATTACH] [ATTACH]11794.vB[/ATTACH]

Birdwatching at Tumut Rare bird spotted at Tumut on 29th August... [ATTACH]11781.vB[/ATTACH] It was a good day - about 50 aircraft, good weather, good lunch, and a friendly environment, dodo

True. The answer is to assess your risks carefully. A million dollars of public liability insurance is relatively cheap (because the insurer knows you too have skin in the game) - but large sums, such as the "unlimited" amount government agencies used to require their contractors to hold is very expensive - because it scares the insurers by providing a large target for lawyers. So a sensible medium is to find a reasonable level of insurance - reasonable being based on your own judgement... dodo

If me, a Jab, and 100 liters of Avgas manage to do a million dollars of damage, my interest in insurance (and anything else) will have just gone up in smoke. However, any dependents might care - so it is worth considering. dodo

Methusala's suggestion is very much along the lines I have been thinking of... But it isn't terribly practical while still a student, because a two seater will be considerably more expensive. And most of us get taught on higher speed, tricycle aircraft, and most of the cheap aircraft would require tailwheel and low speed endorsements. Still, a two seater for 20-25K would be usable for getting those endorsements, if your instructor had the courage (or naivete!) to trust your new toy! dodo

I don't think you have missed anything. I am only learning to fly, but from what I can see: - flying is expensive, and most of us would like to fly more, or better aircraft than we can afford; - aircraft, and especially engines, have a valuation based on flying hours, or hours to next major expense; So, just like cars when I was younger, there are always a number of people selling cars with the odometer wound back, or otherwise not quite as advertised. I would advise caution, especially when an aircraft is advertised as having "only been flown by a little old lady to church every week". Maybe ask which church? But it is entertaining, in a profession that prides itself on precision, care, and responsibility! dodo

In that case, if you want one damaged, we'll have to do it on the ground, then! Should I bring a chainsaw, or we could just pick it up and flip it? dodo

Wally Rudiin gave up being a CFI June or July of last year. Don't know much more, Dodo

What actually happened, where and when - I just found the photo somewhere? It looks like they may have made a habit of driving under the Tornado's wing at speed, fully loaded, and lightly loaded the van was just that little higher - oops! Jim

It's cheaper when it's only the vehicle that needs a little touch up! Jim

Looks like my first solo Except they stayed on the runway - I went chasing rabbits....

For build quality & value, strongly recommend ASUS (I've owned a number of them). MSI seem good, as well. I think Acer are poor quality. Toshiba, HP are good, but tend to be overpriced. Apple 12" models are good, but very expensive in comparison. Couple of comments or recommendations on netbooks: - Don't buy one with a 9" screen - the key board is MUCH more cramped than the 10" models. - The later models (especially ASUS) had significantly better battery life (901 in the 9" models, not sure which of the 10"), but it is about double the life. - Most seem to have power inputs of 11-12 volts, so car charger/ 12V arrangements should result in fairly low power drain (no need for a transformer, with luck) - my EEE 901 has a power adapter output of 3A at 12V at maximum. Online Shopping @ iiBuy.com.au!, The Ultimate Bargain Online often have good deals, and a reasonable range. One last comment - mobile internet is nice, but none of the mobile carriers are licensed for any airborne use - so they may one day pull the plug (sic) on you... Jim

I agree on the flap switch - it's a pain. But as a very low hours student, I find aircraft ergonomics are the last thing on any designer's mind. Throttles between the legs. Gauges located wherever they will fit. Cunningly hidden flaps switches with the guage carefully located out of the natural line of sight. I know the engineering is more important, but the ergonomics seem an afterthought, Jim

I thought I should clarify my previous post, as it reads as if I have a bad attitude about GA. I don't - and I have recieved a lot of advice and assistance from GA pilots. I just think RA-AUS shouldn't try to be GA, jim

I noticed a couple of comments regretting why no one wants to learn on the older, slower style of aircraft ("heads turned by the plastic"). As some one learning to fly for my own pleasure, I wanted to learn on something economical and slow. I want to fly from paddocks, not Brisbane/Sydney/Melbourne. I can buy a ticket if I wish to visit these. But what do you know? You can't! Of the three places I can learn to fly within two hours drive, one has a taildragger (I think), and all the rest of the aircraft are Jab/Tecnam etc. So to learn to fly a Thruster, I need to learn to fly a Jabiru or Tecnam, then go get a low speed endorsement, then get a tail wheel endorsement, then probably a low level - if I can find any instructors with an aircraft. My view of RA-AUS is it is about pretend Cessnas. The membership is mostly ex-GA, who still want to fly GA without the medical (want heavier weights, want to fly into controlled airspace, next will be night VFR), or people who want to become GA, but RA lets them learn on the cheap. There is limited interest in anything else. Certainly, RA-AUS does little to encourage anything else. Note the insurance problems, the requirements for training aircraft that come close to excluding most non-plastic or aluminium skinned aircraft. And check the RA magazine - it's all about GA type flying. If anyone does know of any instructors with low-speed & tailwheel training in NSW, I would be very interested, Jim