Flyer

http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/11/12/2088207.htm?section=justin And I hope they kick the living out of the . Obviously he's a bright lad judging by his actions. No sympathy for the :censored:head.

Fair enough. At the end of the day your training and quick decision making stopped anybody getting hurt.:) That's a good thing. ;) Hopefully all parties will be open to discussion and learnings so as to avoid this situation again. Thanks for your honest response Ultralights. Regards Phil

Was the pilot of the "VH" aircraft approachable or available to have a chat with? and if so, was he aware of what had just transpired? No trick questions here, just curious as a similar thing happened to me the other day although there was a lot more room between us...maybe 4-500 feet. We had a chat later and the outcome was that we were both a bit out on where we actually were although we were both aware that the other was out there..... No harm done and the old MK1 eyeballs worked well. Regards Phil

That's why the experimental classes are so great. No product liability and no(?) limits. It lets people play with new concepts so we don't have to be stuck with expensive and archaic (albeit quite reliable) 1930's flat 4 technology.... My 2 cents... Regards Phil

From experience, the road there is just about as straight as a road can be. Having driven that road countless times, you would/should have no problem landing a lighty on it, crikey, the RFDS land the PC12's on the road in various spots if they have to. Cant say that there are that many wires out there to trip over either, although I haven't been up there for a few years now. Sounds like he might have just made a mistake....... Now if it was out near Bond Springs airstrip and the JDSRF over the horizon radar antenna array and he picked the wrong one to land on.......:;)6::ah_oh:...... I know of 1 trainee pilot who almost fell for that one.....:big_grin: regards Phil

Ok. I'm running for the flying party. Line up for your free Jabas, sportstars, CTs or whatever your poison is. 100 litres of free fuel for everyone and all people are required to have at least 1 RDO per week so they can go flying in good weather...;) Regards Phil

GA to RA-Aus almost finished I've been doing my GA to RA training for the last 6 weeks or so and the time for the test approaches. They cut me loose today so I could fly off my required 1 hour of solo. ;) You could have mistaken Tooradin for Moorabbin today with up to 5 aircraft in the circuit. I even managed a happy snap of a warrior over the fence on 04. I decided to leave them all playing in the circuit, climb to 3500' and head for Phillip Island. Silky smooth and a glorious day for a fly. ;);) I'll leave you with a couple of pics... Next thursday the CFI gets stuck into me to find out wether I deserve a pilots certificate.....:confused: regards Phil

I've just had a re read of this thread and it makes for some interesting reading. I learnt to fly in a Piper Warrior originally. From the time I hopped into the cockpit to the time I went solo was 15.4 hrs. However, 43.8hrs had elapsed by the time I had reached and passed my GFPT exam. I then finished my PPL adding another 41 hrs or so along the way. In total somewhere around 85 hrs training. The day I received my ticket, my instructor said, You have a license to learn, go practise. That was in 95. I kept flying until 99 and did my last BFR in July of 2000 and then stopped flying due to kids mortgage etc etc. A mate started flying jabs out of Tooradin a few months ago and He suggested that I have a go as well. So 7 years after my last time in a plane I made a committment and kick started my flying again. GA to RA conversion time is a minimum 5 hrs according to the book, 4 hrs dual and 1 hr solo. It took those first 5 hrs for me to go solo again. I've since done a 2 hr navex and I need to finish flying off the 1 hr required solo time and then sit an exam. By the time I get my ticket, I'll have about 10 hrs in my logbook. Jabs aren't as easy to land as a PA28 warrior or C-172. Bottom line...enjoy the journey...... Can we start a poll for time to convert from GA to RA ? just for interests sake......... I'm about 10 hrs... Regards Phil

Mathew, What Mike says and congratulations. ;) Regards Phil

At the risk of copping a fairly large smack, I'll wade in as well. The idea behind a rec aircraft is to keep it simple (KIS principle). How well is the average rec pilot trained and what qualifications does the instructor need? From my view point the training standards in rec aircraft are somewhat more relaxed than that of GA. Not a problem with the training in principle and a 90-100 kt aircraft is fairly easily managed. However, from experience, a 150 kt aircraft requires that you be on the ball all the time and keep your wits about you. From a design point of view, do the majority understand aerodynamics well enough to design an aircraft that is capable of safe flight at 150kts? Do they have access to the required testing "stuff" whatever that is? Basically, you either self regulate or you will be regulated. I see RA as a laid back, go for a fly type place to be with uncomplicated aircraft that are easy to handle. There is a place for lighting up an engine and wringing the daylights out of an airframe and I think that place is in GA experimental. RA has its share of accidents and fatalities, lets not go trying to break the sound barrier in aircraft that may not be up to it and giving the authorities a good reason to shut the whole lot down. Leave the high performance stuff to GA...... Regards Phil

I was at work over the weekend wondering what the weather was really like...now I know ! A good day to be sitting on the ground for sure.;) Having not had that much exposure to bad weather, how would you have rated the weather, VFR of SPECIAL VFR for the distance you covered? p.s. this isn't a trick question, just trying to get an understanding of what less than ideal weather looks like. What was the cloud and vis like in comparison to the reported weather etc... Regards Phil

Hi John Thanks for the link. Great reply. Do you, or anybody else know of a petition to sign to stop the introduction of ADS-B ? Some of us are a little challenged in the letter writing department...:confused: but would be happy to sign a petition of some description ;) if it would help.... regards Phil

Great photography and a fantastic spot to fly... Regards Phil

Gloster Meteor, one of a kind blue note howler, mach 2 speedster about twice the length of an F111 and half the length of a 747, rare as rocking horse . Fair dinkum fellas:;)2:, you cant expect the media to get the mundane facts right and get in the way of a great hyped up totally twisted story now can you? ;) Regards Phil

Hi Brilin_Air I would have tried to wire it through an intercom system however I've noticed that the microair has its own inbuilt intercom. Does it have an auxilary in on the microair radio? If so thats where I'd be plugging the Ipod in. If not, maybe a quick phone call to microair themselves may be the answer. They may have already come up with a solution.... Regards Phil

Hi Mike I've got a few extra kilos if you're interested...;) Phil

CFIT... ok, I've just been really stupid and flown into cloud (IMC). I dont have the right instruments, I'm not trained, I'm below LSALT, I've panicked and I've now got 178 seconds to live. Turn the lot off and pull the chute. It gives me a fighting chance at least......Having a BRS may well have saved some people who ended up in this situation. As for weight...that is a penalty that you have to pay. No arguement., however, do you (as the pilot, not you personally) have the ability to lose a few kgs of weight? I know I fit that category :yuk:........ Chute tangled up in tail surfaces, flying controls etc etc....pray a lot..it looks like your time is up...fair point Mike Regards Phil

Looking at the points raised here.... 1. It happens but not often... 2. Various opinions on how quickly the engine falls out Cant train for a sudden massive rearward departing C of G 3. Lets hope not.... but a wedgie in the cockpit could be interesting and having read the latest RAA mag a Brown snake in the cockpit sounds pretty exciting as well. Both could be very incapacitating. 4. Medical emergency. Heart attacks and strokes are very incapacitating and hard to train for. How many people fly Recreational Aircraft because they're a bit suspect on a GA medical? Heart attack material maybe ?? Let those who fly decide....It may not be your own life you save but the persons house below that you auger through....bring on the BRS ;) Phil

Love the vampire:keen: and love the beach...Nice work Ultralights...;);)

Considering that Cirrus aircraft have had their chutes tested a bit, I'd try to find out which one they use....;)

Pardon my cynicism but the government funding this ADSB transponder fit out. I dont think so. It is a user pays system and wether we pay up front or later on, we will pay! I also agree with Sain in sofar as the parts to make this jigger are probably worth $500 in total if that at wholesale prices. R&D will be worth a bit and assembly would probably be done in China to cut costs. I cant see how they could justify a 10k price tag for one of these jiggers... My 2 cents worth... Phil

Hi All I'm currently converting to ulralights from GA type aircraft and flying from Tooradin Melbourne. As I haven't been flying for some years (about 7 now) I'm required to do a navex just to demonstrate that I can still do it. Fair enough. The Problem: I cant remember much of what I was taught. My question: How many others are in the same boat (plane ) as me?? If there are a few in the melbourne area ( I fly out of Tooradin), would it be worthwhile engaging the services of an instructor for an evening or two and going over some basics ?? The solution: A night or two going over basics such as; reading and interpreting weather forecasts Flight planning and flight plan lodging reading maps fuel management Airlaw and airspace Talking to flight services I'm thinking a 2 or 3 hour refresher here just to jog the memory a bit..... There would probably be a small fee to cover an instructors time/use of equipment etc. Anybody interested? If so post an expression of interest and lets see if we can get something together. Maybe we could do it on line and benefit the whole community... Is it possible to have a virtual classroom on this website Ian or moderators? An idea at this stage Phil

I have stayed away from GA in the last few years because of the BS and rising costs. 2 months ago I discovered RA-Aus and thought it looked good because it operated on the KISS principle. Hopefully the BS and associated costs don't infiltrate too far into the recreational world and put it out of reach for us mere mortals. I'll go and read the article now before further comment.. Phil

I'm jumping between a J160 LH throttle RH stick and a Texan TC RH throttle LH stick. No problems sofar. I still have a problem with the throttle on a Jabiru LSA. Cant remember which way it goes...;)