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rdarby

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Everything posted by rdarby

  1. rdarby
    Try before you buy. I bought a good set but don't like them, they don't fit my head. So try them on instead of buying a brand. But they are worth it. I like lightspeeds best.
  2. rdarby
    I looked into this when wanting to buy and found nothing in RAA is massively cheaper after you are over the initial purchase, as a 503 and 912 both need a hangar and fuel and maintenance. Most can't do their own. And insurance. Buying for $20k did not make it cost one fifth of the cost if a $100k SportStar to own on a month by month basis. So remove those fixed costs and join a gliding club. Very skillful flying, in a plane with wings, skills that can help you fly other fixed wings, much cheaper, and a nice social environment.
  3. rdarby

    the foxbat

    rdarby replied to a topic in Aeroprakt/Foxbat

    What I mean is that you have to apply power to make it go faster. Over 5000 rpm is using more fuel than other aircraft need to go even faster. It seems to be smooth and more hands off at 85.
  4. rdarby
    To decide where to host it, you need to decide if it's a fly in or a conference. If a fly in, central is good. Caboolture is 20min from my house but impossible from Victoria. If a conference, then near a commercial airport is good. I don't think you will get both. Australia is a big country! A days flight from most centres is a fair position, which it probably is. You could move it closer to the larger population centres, which again it probably is.
  5. rdarby
    The reviews for SPOT are not great on Amazon. There is another called Delorme I think, and it seems to use more robust technology. Before buying I think it is important to understand how satellites work.
  6. rdarby
    Thanks. I have just sent an email off to get one fro Skyshop, seems cheapest at $145.
  7. rdarby
    So SPOT is essentially a small sat phone, and sends an SMS via sat phone? My main question before I buy it is, does it use the mobile phone network in any way? If so I can't rely on it, as when I need it I will be off the grid.
  8. rdarby
    Women's smell worse than mens? I thought they didn't fart? I've never farted on a plane, probably a good thing as it would lead to a sudden increase in pressure and pop eardrums!
  9. rdarby
    Plane and Pilot, nice read and at $2.50 per copy including postage with a subscription it craps all over local stuff. Also Australian Flying. I get others because I'm a member of sonething and 4 a month is more than I can cope with. I dump Sport Pilot at a local barber, and try to spread the word.
  10. rdarby
    In the past I've used the train. If you can be close to a train line you can get a train into the city, then there is a special train (long queue to get tickets) that takes you straight to Avalon. Well to a shuttle bus that then takes you to the airshow.
  11. rdarby
    Nindigully has a Facebook page, and on it they responded to my question, and said that they will fetch pilots from St George. I didn't ask about the cost of that. They do have some cheap accomodation at the pub.
  12. rdarby
    I was watching some sort of lifestyle program on TV last night and they were showing a road tour of outback Queensland in support of Angel Flight. They showed the burgers at the Nindigully Pub. My giddy aunt, you would not take off again if you ate one. I want one. Does anyone know if there is an airfield nearby? I can only find St George on the map but it's 40km away and too far to walk! Otherwise, is there a good pub within 3 hours flying of Brisbane with an airfield that anyone can recommend please? Cheers Ryan
  13. rdarby
    I'm up for that course too.
  14. rdarby
    Well done, that exam is bigger than it seems! Now you can concentrate on the practical, you will soon have unclipped wings!
  15. rdarby
    I was there late last year. If you contact Lowes Petroleum they will put you in touch with the guy who refuels and if you text him about an hour before you get there he will come up. He was very friendly, let me pay with a Visa, and didn't charge a call out fee. Get in contact with him and chat about your trip a bit and you will get a friendly result. The little terminal is a good place to get out of the cold!
  16. rdarby

    the foxbat

    rdarby replied to a topic in Aeroprakt/Foxbat

    I fly a new LSA and it is comfortable about 90kts at 5000. I usually do 85kts to 90kts at 4600 - 4900 if by myself. If you want to go faster you need to apply power, it doesn't seem to like it. It's not a cruising aricraft, it's a STOL aircraft. I plan on 85kts for cruising, it settles well into that.
  17. rdarby
    Hi Porra Goed om jou hier te he boet. Jacobs Well/Heck Field is near you. Further out is Boona, then going further North is Redcliffe and then Caboolture. What you need will depend on if you are training again. The RSA Microlight Pilots License is an RA Aus Pilot Certificate over here. PPL is PPL.
  18. rdarby
    What are you trying to find, or do? How to find these will be covered in your training, so I am guessing you are just starting out? There will be different types of frequencies. Some for locations, and found in ERSA, and some for areas, which are found on the charts. You can get the charts from any flying shop or directly from Air Services.
  19. rdarby
    One of the reasons I went from the SportStar to a Foxbat is that I feel like I'm sitting in a roll cage in the Foxbat, and I think it will be easier to push open a door,even if it's warped, than try to lift the whole aircraft off the bubble. However, this would have resulted in low wings being abandoned long ago if it were really a problem. I don't think it's high vs. low wing, and we shouldn't be distracted by that. It's are you in a bubble or a cage? A low wing can be build with metal forming the cage you sit in, so has some strength when on it's back. And it also has smaller windows in metal frames that you could kick out. A true bubble is like a fighter jet (or SportStar) and there is no structure to offer support, and nothing but the entire canopy to try to break.
  20. rdarby
    I agree that the practice only counts if you touch down. It's contact with the ground that makes it a walk away from or not incident. But as opposed to a comment above, you can't always loose hight. It's easy to end up in the trees at the end of the landing area too. You have to judge the glide right, no easy way around that I'm afraid. I think it's a good school that actually makes you touch the ground (in an appropriate ALA) when doing forced landing practice.
  21. rdarby
    That is funny. I haven't laughed out loud in a while! thanks!
  22. rdarby
    Thanks Andy. I need to look at the ongoing costs then. I think it may be worth it. Ryan
  23. rdarby
    I've done some reading this morning, inspired by the accident from Caboolture, as I reaslised that I don't feel comfortable finding and activating a PLB in an emergency situation. Engine out at 1500ft I doubt anyone will actually pick it up and remember how it works. There will be too much flying and stress going on. That isn't what I want to discuss. I want to look at what can suplement (not replace) it. SPOT is an option, and I have read but don't fully understand it. Does it need to be activated too, or does it quietly transmit where you are all the time? And does it really not need any mobile phone coverage? Using a smart phone is useless as I fly, and in fact live, in a place where coverage is dodgy. Ryan
  24. rdarby
    I saw the Gazelle being got ready as I took off yesterday from Caboolture. It's a well known aircraft. I hope it turns out okay.
  25. rdarby
    Book right now if you want a motel, last year I found they book out the year before.
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