octave

Good point, perhaps just whining will help or we could just go flying!

I don't really believe the media reporting on this issue was over the top. It is not like the media was stalking her and waiting for an issue to present itself. This would have remained unknown if she or someone had not uploaded it to youtube. It seems that the short attention of the media has moved to other things and the issue is now up to CASA as it should be. My view of is that regardless of legality and no matter how light this drone was it still does carry some risks such as falling on someone, although not likely to cause serious injury, I do believe flying over busy roads or pedestrians carries risk. I do not think this should be a big legal deal and I would have no objection to a warning and education IF an offense has occurred. It is important for the drone issue to be sorted out, especially for us pilots. This is why to me flying over a busy road is dumb I am most certainly not anti-drone, in fact, I want one.

Whilst it may be true that people are making a bigger deal because of the particular person, I suspect there are also people defending her because of who she is. The big question people have to ask themselves is how would they react to a regular person posting such a clip. I strongly suspect that especially of an aviation forum that there would have been more criticism of drone pilots transgressing the rules. What it comes down to is she should be treated by the law as any ordinary citizen would be treated. Apart from what the regs say it does seem to me to be irresponsible or at the very least not well thought out. If it were to fall on someone, I guess it would not cause great injury unless it perhaps fell on a car and startled the driver but it sure would be bad for the reputation of responsible drone pilots. As a resident of an apartment, I would probably not like a drone flying past my window. Anyway, the point I want to make is although it may seem unfair for it to be in the papers, the point is was it in contravention of the regs? was it irresponsible? What would be the normal sanction in such cases, if it is usual to give a warning then so be it if a fine then that's what should happen. The identity of the person flying the drone does not make it worse but it sure should not diminish it either. Just to be clear, IF an offense has been committed, I would have no problem with a warning and some education if that is what normally happens. Perhaps this is why it is not considered a smart thing to do? Drone plummets from skyscraper on maiden flight when propeller falls off | Daily Mail Online

The quality of the facebook postings that come onto my page are determined by the quality of my friends and acquaintances, if they post rubbish they don't last.

Other than unfriending you can unfollow, which means you will remain FB friends but you wont get their postings unless you go to their page.

This travel agent should work harder on promoting flights on Virgin aircraft. .

Just about taking control of your settings.

Can you be more specific? I don't recall anyone condoning illegal or dangerous behaviour, I could be wrong and I am am re reading from the beginning but it would save me time if you could illustrate the bad attitude that you are referring to.

Neil, I would suggest that most people on this forum would agree that carrying a PLB whether or not it is mandatory is extremely important. What I found offensive is that you seemed to be asserting that he definitely did not have one. My assumption is that you have evidence or inside knowledge. Although it may or may not be true that he did not have a PLB I just wonder how you could be so sure? I think anyone that had a go at you on this forum did so not because they disagree with carrying a PLB or flying within the regs but that you appeared to be calling a fellow pilot who at the time was still missing "brain dead" this to me seems to be in poor taste. I have no doubt that you motive is good but perhaps it would be better to start a new thread on this subject rather than labelling your fellow pilots as "brain dead". Pilot error is still the major cause of aviation accidents, people make mistakes, we need to know how and why people make mistakes. Simply labelling pilots who make mistakes or make poor decisions as being idiots does nothing to improve safety. Whenever I read about a fatality I do tend to try to come up with an argument about why this could not happen to me. I might say to myself "I don't fly that type of plane" so it could not happen to me or "I wouldn't fly in those conditions" or "I would not make those poor decisions like those other idiots" however these are tactics just to make me feel less at risk. Learning from the mistakes of others is the most important factor for my continued safety. I do not see it necessary to name call or bag another pilot (especially before the outcome is known). If a pilot comes to has an accident due to flying in unsuitable weather or perhaps flies into wires I am more interested in knowing why they made the decisions they made not name calling. We all deal with these tragedies differently, some people deal with it with anger but I feel that to do this even before the pilot has been found is rather insensitive In my flying I try my best to fly safely, of course I do make mistakes from time to time from which I learn valuable lessons. If I should have an accident I am more than happy for it to be discussed so that other pilots can learn something from it. All I would ask is that any such discussion be conducted intelligently and respectfully (not just declaring me an idiot) and most importantly it should be based on accurate information and not rumour.

That is a question that can only be answered when the plane is found. Lack of a PLB being activated does not prove either way that a PLB was not on board. If you are using non activation of a PLB as evidence that there was not one on board then that is just illogical. Whilst I hope this pilot is found safe and well we cannot rule out the possibility of a sudden and catastrophic accident. Either way it is pointless having a go at the pilot without the facts.

edited...mod Neil, are you saying you know for sure that this pilot did not have a PLB on board?

Either it was declared or it wasn't, this surely is a matter of public record.

Whilst it is true that political opponents will look for opportunities to get even, I am afraid that I tend to judge harshly pollies who are foolish enough to either transgress the law or even sail close enough to the edge to invite this kind of scrutiny. I see 2 issues here, one is the declaration of political donations. To me it is crucial for democracy for these to be declared as well as legally required in some. circumstances. I do not know whether these laws have been broken or not but if they have then they should face the consequences regardless of political affiliation. I would assume that this will ultimately be determined in the legal arena. I do not subscribe to the notion that it may be technically illegal but that it is OK because it is good for the image of RA aircraft. It is either within the law or not and that has nothing to do with whether or not I approve of One Nations politics or not. I am not sure whether this aspect of this case rightly belongs on this forum or perhaps would be more appropriate on the Whats up Aus site The other issue is that of whether these flights fall within the scope of recreational aviation or not. This IS an issue for this site. I see this as more of an issue for the pilot rather than the passenger. I am very careful not to break the regs regarding cost sharing and commercial operations etc. and I expect other pilots to do the same. I do not know if there has been a contravention of the regs in this case but if there has then surely we would all agree that it should be acted upon. I follow the rules and I expect everyone else to.

OK these are my thoughts on the Sports Pilot magazine. I have been flying since 1988. Back then we got a photocopied 1 page newsletter. When the sports pilot magazine came out I was an avid reader, but as time went by I became quite bored with the content, there are only so many cute articles one can read about someones experience of learning to fly or reports of trips. Whilst this material can be interesting there is no shortage of this type of content on the net. It is just my own personal cross country flight experience. I do respect other points of view but I do not believe that providing reading material should be a core aim of RAAUS, I know that many people believe that RAAUS is somehow incompetent because it does not seem to be able to make the magazine a financial success. Perhaps someone else could start a magazine and run it at a profit, that would be cool but I do not think it is within the scope of RAAUS to be regulator, lobbyist for RA pilots AND a producer of a magazine. If anyone thinks RAAUS is incompetent in this perhaps they should produce their own (profit making) magazine

Harrison Ford Refers to Himself as "Schmuck" in New ATC Audio

Rex propeller found in Sydney bushland

I have to admit that I have not read most of this thread so perhaps I am going over old ground. I am not giving advice to anyone merely stating what I do. A few points to consider are that we don't all own our own aircraft, I hire from a flying school and they have their preferred starting procedure each of their aircraft and I am happy to comply with that. Although many RA aircraft are simple the upper end of the fleet does have lots of electronics to deal with. I usually fly once a fortnight sometime more sometimes less. Now let me say this LOUD an CLEAR, I am able to do this from memory (with about 2 or 3 lapses over 300 hours) After engine start I do not race straight off, I take a couple of minutes to review the steps and make sure I have done everything. Whilst waiting for the engine to warm up and before mag checks I will review again the state of the aircraft, for instance so often the fuel computer does not match the actual amount measured by dipping (because the previous pilot did not input the actual fuel amount.) Before entering the runway I will read out my EFATO plan (yes I can do this from memory but reading it for me reinforces it). Before entering the runway the list is stowed. The circuit is not the place for a written checklist. After leaving the circuit for a x country as well as flight planning tasks I have a short list which is basically, am I and my aircraft prepared for a long flight, this is another reminder to ensure I have enough fuel (although I do this before the flight also) is the aircraft performing correctly, have I done those things which I should have done earlier, I know I retracted the flaps but no harm in reconfirming that. One of the errors I once made was not turning off the fuel boost which remained on for the whole flight. I was sure I had done it but again no harm in having a prompt to double check. It is not unusual for an aircraft to arrive in the circuit transmitting on the wrong frequency because they either forgot to change the frequency or incorrectly remembered the frequency. Again not trying to tell anyone how to fly but this works for me and does not detract from situational awareness (not done in the circuit and done on x country flight as part of the usual log keeping.) I await my harsh judgment:oh yeah:

I did a lot of my early flying in a Gazelle and although a delightful plane it's door latches are not the best. It really did make sense to check whilst downwind that the latch had not vibrated towards the open position.

1989 at The Oaks NSW

wow, unless this rego number has been reused this is the aircraft I got my first pilot certificate in (1989 at the Oaks NSW) Still the same colour coverings but the pod was blue and then or black after a couple of mishaps (not me) or perhaps it was black an then blue, so long ago.

Hey what's with the yorkshirephobia? although my Yorkshire father does say: “Ear all, see all, say nowt; Eyt all, sup all, pay nowt; And if ivver tha does owt fer nowt - Allus do it fer thissen” also Yorkshire born and Yorkshire bred, strong in't arm weak in't head.

Having spent 12 years as an airforce musician, I did plough through this music many times. Still enjoy it though!