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SA CAA Awards
R35.00 incl. VAT N$35.00 incl. VAT
Aero Club Awards
Drones & UAVs Cover photograph by Athol Franz
www.africanpilot.co.za
A R nd ex o by he n R ld H C om rad P a i et o ir Av su ba ia pp nd tio lie n d
CAASA Awards
Volume 18 No.1
ha
January 2019
Contents Airline Pilot
Regulars
8 9 10 12 14 16 18
4 6 30 32 34 50 52 65 77 104 106 108 110 107
Airbus A321LR to Israel Airlink’s new Embraer simulator Bombarbier Singapore’s Changi - best of 2018 Airbus Beluga XL Delta Airlines EasyJet A320 orders
Commercial Pilot 20 22 24 26
CAASA Awards 2018 Diamond electric aircraft Garmin GFC 500 and 600 Handiflight Around the World
Helicopter Pilot 56 56 57 57 58
HS09 Latest Kopter Prototype Leonardo Helicopters Russian Helicopters Ansat Photos of Next Marine One released Leonardo Bestfly
Embraer KC 390 Silver Falcons
Sport Pilot 66 70 74
20
36
Special Features 36 84 92
Sling TSi Drones/UAVs Feature SACAA Awards
Other
Military Pilot 62 64
Competitions Letters Events Calendar Fact File Picture of the Month Medical The Best of the Best Names to Remember Accident Report Register Update Flying High Shop Window Aircraft Sales Subscription Form
EAA Sun ‘n Fun Brits AERO Club Awards SAPFA Springs Speed Rally
28 40 42 44 54 55 79 98 99 102 103
Legally grey Part VI Flight for the elderly Mayday SA turns 5 years old Mitsubishi’s Naval Bombers TQ Avionics Avdex Shuttleworth Race Day Pilatus PC-24 Medivac Battle of Britain Buchon Airbus using biomimicry I fly every day
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Contributors Athol Franz Honniball Aviation Auditing Tayla-Kaé Nicholson Pete van der Spek
Divan Muller Dr Nick Lee Charlie Marais
Aidan Owen Irene McCullagh John Illsley
Mark Mansfield Rob Jonkers Paul Bertorelli
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copyright The views expressed in African Pilot are not necessary those of the editor, publisher, or staff writers. The editors and publishers cannot be held responsible for differences of opinion or statements published in good faith. No part of this magazine may be reproduced including advertisements produced by Wavelengths 10 (Pty) Ltd in any form without permission from the publisher. – South African copyright laws apply. distribution African Pilot is distributed by On the Dot throughout southern African countries to approximately 1 000 retail stores: CNA, Exclusive Books, Pick ‘n Pay, PNA, selected Spar stores, garage convenience shops, Checkers Hypermarkets, 7/11 stores, selected bookshops, Fascination and Incredible Books as well as to neighbourhood convenience shops. Own distribution to specialist pilot shops at airports as well as to key decision makers within the aviation industry. Back editions are distributed free of charge to African countries, airport lounges, charter companies, the South African Air Force and selected flight schools. Altogether 5 500 copies of African Pilot are printed each month. The magazine also has online readers from all over the world. The first ten pages of African Pilot may be downloaded free of charge by visiting www.africanpilot.co.za
January 2019
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Editorial January editorial During the past month, African Pilot received an incredible accolade by being recognised as one of the top ten aviation magazines in the world. Apart from one Australian aviation magazine, African Pilot is the only African aviation magazine that competes with American, Canadian and British aviation magazines that all have significantly larger audiences. Placed in seventh position the commendation read: “African Pilot and APA news together are the most widely read and distributed aviation-specific publications on the African continent.” This honour was a complete surprise to me, because African Pilot did not enter any competition in an attempt to win this award. This recognition shows that a well designed and relevant aviation magazine will find its place within the world stage. Frankly this is not about quantity in terms of publishing a monthly magazine that is filled with cover to cover cheap advertising, but rather a superb production that has relevance in the overall aviation market. So what is next? As we enter 2019, African Pilot is committed more than ever to place our readers and advertisers at the forefront of African and indeed global aviation by producing the very best aviation publication that has significant influence within this incredibly interesting market. Presently African Pilot is printing more monthly magazines than any of its African magazine competitors. Over the coming year African Pilot will be introducing several new innovations to ensure that the publication not only keeps up with developments in the digital age, but also presents new platforms for ultimate communication within African and world aviation.
How about sharing the love for flying? Following on from the ‘Children’s Flight’ staged at Grand Central Airport some months ago, Felix Gosher decided to stage flights for elderly people
and their carers at Rand Airport on Saturday 1 December. In order to stage this event, Felix called in the support of many pilots and sponsors including the management of Rand Airport. As always, with these charity fl ights, the man with the biggest heart - Menno Parsons made several of his aircraft available, including his Douglas DC-3, his P-51 Mustang and his Huey helicopter. Th e full illustrated story about this amazing day fi lled with happiness is to be found on page 40 of this edition.
Why is SA so far behind with its drone regulations? Whilst regulators in the United States and Europe are devoting resources to understand the complexity of emerging Drones technology in developing ‘user friendly’ regulations, South African drone regulations appear to be stuck in the original promulgated rules of four years back, with no attempt to modernise as this technology is rapidly being developed. In addition, it appears that South Africa is the only country in the world that requires operators to obtain an Air Services’ Licence at signifi cant expense. It seems that the regulatory body wants to treat all drone operators in the same way as major airlines and charter companies, which is a complete overkill. T h e drones’ feature starts on page 84 of this edition. Because this magazine will be fully circulated before the December holiday period, may I and my African Pilot team again thank all our readers and advertisers for your loyal support in 2018. May I wish everyone safe travels and the hope that everyone returns to their work in January with batteries fully re-charged! A happy and peaceful New Year to you all. If you are flying this Christmas, watch out for those Highveld electric storms and remember ‘height is your friend!’ Athol Franz
Editor Athol Franz 082 552 2940 editor@africanpilot.co.za
Publisher / Production Wavelengths 10 (Pty) Ltd
Marketing Lara Bayliss 079 880 4359 marketing@africanpilot.co.za
Durban correspondent Pete van der Spek
Copy reader Gordon Dyne
gdyne@global.co.za
Designers Maria Leader maria@africanpilot.co.za Creshenda Maraba-Haffejee creshenda@africanpilot.co.za Website and digital Johan Botes
johan@africanpilot.co.za
Accounts Manager Helena Kurland
admin@africanpilot.co.za
Admin / Subscriptions Paulinah Motlhabi
subscribe@africanpilot.co.za
Transport Ephraim Ndlovu
Cape Town correspondent Irene McCullagh Printing Business Print
012 843 7600 / 0861 42 42 59
Distribution On the Dot
011 401 5938
African Pilot Local International Fax
0861 00 11 30 +27 11 466 8524 / 6 086 767 4333
P.O. Box 30620, Kyalami, 1684, South Africa
African Pilot House No. 6 Barbeque Heights, Dytchley Road, Barbeque Downs, Kyalami, South Africa
website: www.africanpilot.co.za January 2019
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Competitions Total value of the competition in this edition is R3000
Cover Sling TSi
January Cover Competition
A Rexon RHP air band handheld radio supplied by Comet Aviation to the value of R3000. Questions 1) Near which major airport in Gauteng is Comet Aviation based? 2) What is the horse power of the new Rotax 915iS engine installed in the Sling TSi? 3) At which airfield near Johannesburg is the Sling manufactured?
December Cover Competition Winners Congratulations to the following winner, who won a flight for two on a Skyclass Dakota DC-4 valued at R2000: Frank van Zanten Solleveld
This Month’s Cover Competition Entries to be submitted to the following e-mail only: info@africanpilot.co.za One entry per person please. Entries sent to other African Pilot e-mails will automatically be disqualified.
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This month’s cover picture of the all new Sling TSi powered by the new Rotax 915iS 141 hp turbo charged engine was taken by Athol Franz from a Cessna 172. Athol used his Canon EOS1 Mk 4 camera fitted with a 28 to 105 mm image stabilised Canon lens.
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Dear Athol, Events spread over a 46 year period are the main motivations for writing this letter. As the daughter of a pilot, the niece of a pilot, a friend and an acquaintance to many pilots, but most importantly, the wife of a pilot, I have been an observer and participant in aviation for some time.There have been many breakfast rallies, fly-away weekends and cross border safaris. Shopping trips to the closest metropole some 150kms away, early morning sunrise patrols and late afternoon canyon flips. Airshows and air awareness days, receiving visitors that arrive by plane, being the visitors that arrive by plane. Flying to the doctor’s appointment, flying up north for the solar eclipse or to the lodge to check up on a construction project. The fun and convenience has been in large supply, saving time along the way, or so we all would like to tell ourselves. The rules have always been clear: safety first, no shortcuts. The take-offs are optional, but the landings are mandatory. Presence of mind, concentration, skill and a not too bold attitude coupled with a reliable aircraft that is maintained meticulously, at the required intervals by a reliable, reputable aircraft maintenance company. Clean fuel, enough fuel. Planning, weather checks, the phone-a-friend on the other side concept. The check list goes on. There is a lot of responsibility that rests on the pilot and there is a lot of trust that is placed in the hands of those who are tasked with maintaining the aircraft, providing subsidiary services to aviation and those who provide information for flights and who control the flight paths. However, what has become abundantly clear is that very often everything does not always work as it should or as it was planned. The precision that one strives towards, to ensure safety and longevity is sometimes not shared by all in the long line of supply, service, planning, routing etc., for whatever reason. Accidently and unintentionally, we all trust, hope and pray. However, where does that leave the pilot, the unassuming passengers, the family members who fly for business, holidays or just for fun? 46 years ago, on 5 August 1972, such an incident left my mother, seven months’ pregnant at the time, a widow, along with a two and a half year old toddler, who was present at the airfield that day. A signed out aircraft with unperformed maintenance items overdue, coupled with irregular manoeuvres by an instructor, being cited as the main causes. In more recent years I have had the displeasure of experiencing full electrical failure on short finals due to the wiring on the master switch hanging by a thread, a week after the aircraft returned from its MPI. I have been witness to engine failure shortly after take-off due to, what was explained as moisture/water in the fuel. There have been loose alternator parts, loose wiring shorting and smoking, engine mountings in process of collapse, tools left in fuel tanks after MPI, exhaust fumes entering the cockpit due to damage on the exhaust line/pipe. These are the ones I can clearly remember.
Dear Athol, Hope that you are well! I have to share this with you as this is my latest model, the Atlas Angel 1:24 scale, for a gentleman who owns a skydiving company. Each part is handmade and she was hand painted too! I am very pleased with the outcome. All the best, Jon Durant Dear John, Yes, thank you, I am well. The pictures show the beautiful work you have completed on this Atlas Angel model. You have every right be proud of your handicraft. One day I would like to photograph your model, which I believe is at Wonderboom National Airport, with other ‘real’ aircraft. Regards, Athol
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How many pardons should be given when incidents like this happen? At which point do you say enough, after the first, the second or the third incident? If you are lucky enough to have as many as three. All of the aircraft in question were meticulously serviced, no costs spared to do necessary and recommended maintenance and modifications as required by manufacturers from time to time. These aircraft being stationed either in South Africa or in neighbouring countries.Where is a starting point for tackling and hopefully solving this dilemma? Is it the workload, a lack of attention to detail, a lack of quality assurance procedures in place? Is it pressure, impatience and a short turnaround time required by the client, to have the aircraft back in the air? How does one assure safety of that which is beyond your control as pilot, where all you have is trust in professionals to execute and deliver professionally, as advertised? Or does one educate oneself further to be able to become the checks and balances, the second or third set of eyes?I don’t have the answers , I just know that there is an elephant in the room that needs attention. I know that we trust, we hope, we pray and then we check the weather. I have lost a father, some friends and acquaintances to this thing we call aviation. I know others have too. For some it may very well mean never setting foot in a light aircraft again. The purpose of this correspondence is not to shame, blame or scare, but rather to bring life to the cable that is connected well or not, the bolt which is fastened and checked or not. The cable has a heartbeat, the bolt has a breath. It is someone’s father, brother, son, wife, sister, daughter, friend. The responsibility carried is similar to that of a medical professional – it’s life and death. Sincerely, Tracy den Dunnen Dear Tracy Firstly my sincere condolences over the loss of your father in an aircraft accident all those years ago. I have also lost far too many friends in aircraft accidents. My most recent count is more than 40 people who I knew very well over the 34 years that I have been flying, which is more than any other single cause, including old age, therefore your e-mail has hit a very soft spot. My advice is to always make good friends with your chosen Aircraft Maintenance Organisation (AMO) and when your aircraft comes out of its Mandatory Period Inspection (MPI) don’t fly it before a thorough check on the entire airframe has been carried out by yourself. I always spend lots of time with the partners in my aircraft after the MPI to check all aspects of the airframe and engine before we attempt to get airborne. We also need to understand that everyone is under considerable pressure these days to complete work on time and to budget, therefore any assistance you can provide to your AMO during the process will be time well spent. Regards, Athol
Dear Athol, I have just completed my aviation medical. Since 29 October a new requirement has been introduced by the SACAA which might cost a large number of pilots their PPLs. If the audiogram does not meet certain benchmarks, one is compelled to visit an audiologist for an assessment (some years ago this was also introduced, but later withdrawn) at great cost. If the report of the audiologist shows some theoretical values which the powers that be at the CAA don’t like, one is compelled to attend a simulator session in a Boeing simulator at ORT at even greater cost. For older pilots these costs will occur each year. Many of the pilots (hunters, seniors etc.) have some sort of hearing impediment which has no practical ramifications in flight. After all there is a volume knob on the radio. I even use an ANR headset with even more volume controls, which I never engage. I fly approximately 100 to 120h each year. Never did I ever have to ask ATC to repeat a message due to my not hearing it. I hear plenty of Chinese pilots not responding to ATC, not because of hearing problems, but because they don’t phonetically understand that their call sign was called up. What about the responsibility of pilots? Surely a responsible pilot will opt for a hearing aid if he battles to understand ATC. Apparently this new requirement does not apply to class 4 medical although we
operate in the same airspace. For years already I fly a light NTC aircraft. I have now decided to surrender my PPL and migrate to a NPL. There are many pilots who don’t have this option. Some bored doctor at the CAA wanted to introduce this under the guise of flight safety. In all likelihood this lady/gentleman has never spent even one hour in a light aircraft doing radio work. I regard this new requirement as having nothing to do with reality. A new rule/ requirement should only be introduced when it has been proved that the lack thereof has led to a number of incidents/accidents. Otherwise it will only lead to another harassment of the flying community. Kind regards, Helmuth Fischer Dear Helmuth, I am pleased to hear that you are flying so many hours each year and of course it is all that more affordable operating a Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) instead of those gas guzzling certified aircraft types. I have discussed your specific case with my Aviation Medical Examiner (AME) and he says that this is not a new rule, but one that has always been in existence. The only difference is that the SACAA is now enforcing proper compliance, whilst the second factor is that AMEs can now submit the medical results of every pilot they test on-line. I hope this helps. Regards, Athol
Dear Athol. I would be very grateful if you would publish the following for me: Many readers will remember Ralph Coombs who was a SAAFA and RAFOC member who died five years ago almost to the day. Ralph was a pilot with both the RAF and the SAAF. He flew Vampires and Meteors from RAF Leuchars in Scotland in the 1950s. He was a smashing ‘old boy’ and I was privileged to have known him and to make the eulogy at his funeral. Last week, his daughter Lyn and family visited me at my aviation Man-cave attached to my hangar at Brakpan Airfield and presented me with some books and memorabilia from Ralph’s flying career. Amongst the items were the following: 1) A blue blazer with the badge: RAF - Per Ardua ad Astra. Natal Sqdn.222 RAF Pambili Bo, which translates from the Zulu as ‘go straight ahead.’ 2) A blue blazer with the badge SAAF SALMY (which has wings and a crown on the badge). 3) Another blue blazer with the badge SAAF SALMY (which has wings, but not a crown on the badge). 4) A light blue zipper jacket with the SAAF badge. All items are in excellent condition and although Ralph was of a very slim build, daughter Lyn assures me that these blazers and jacket were ‘big on her dad!’ All the badges are the metal type.Lyn would like to donate this clothing to any former RAF or SAAF personnel who could wear them with pride, particularly someone who is not as affluent as he or she once was. In other words has ‘fallen on hard times!’ Would any interested reader please contact me by e-mail. If there is not any interest I will donate the SAAF items to the SAAF museum and the RAF blazer to a RAF museum when I next visit England. Very many thanks for your help, Athol. Yours sincerely, Gordon Dyne E-mail: crazyaviator@dyneamic.co.za Dear Gordon. Happy to assist. I hope the four items go to good homes. Regards. Athol January 2019
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Arkia Israeli Airlines takes delivery of world’s first Airbus A321LR
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el Aviv based ARKIA Israeli Airlines which is majority owned by Jordache Enterprises, has taken delivery of its first A321LR becoming the launch operator of the world’s most flexible and capable large single aisle aircraft ever. The A321LR is the latest version of the best selling A321 Family and allows operators the flexibility to fly Long Range (LR) operations of up to 4,000nm (7,400km) and to tap into new long haul markets, which were not previously accessible with single aisle aircraft. The new LR cabin configuration allows airlines to offer each passenger more space and premium products for widebody comfort.
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Powered by Leap CFM motors, Arkia’s A321LR fleet will be configured with 220 seats in a single class layout.ARKIA Israeli Airlines receives its first A321LR from Hamburg, Germany The A321LR and its derivative aircraft family members are the world’s best-selling single aisle aircraft with over 6,100 orders from 100 customers since its launch in 2010. It has pioneered and incorporated the latest technologies, including its new generation engines and the industry’s reference cabin design, delivering 20 percent fuel cost savings alone. The A320neo also offers significant environmental benefits with nearly 50 percent reduction in noise footprint compared to previous generation aircraft.
Airlink Embraer E190 Simulator
T
he commissioning of the Embraer E190 Level D simulator at the Airlink Training Centre of Excellence will be of great value to Airlink. Firstly, there is a substantial financial benefit from a logistical perspective by not having to send flight deck crew around the world for initials and recurrences. However, more importantly having access to a simulator in the training centre will ultimately facilitate better training for the airline’s pilots. Airlink implemented evidence based training (EBT) many years ago and having a simulator on hand allows the instructors to fine tune the scenarios in order to achieve the desired training outcome. Furthermore, the proximity of the simulator also allows for the testing of the recurrent training syllabi to ensure timings, training notes and instructor notes are accurate and achievable. The Embraer owned E190 simulator’s motion is electrically driven as is the new Embraer ERJ145 Level D simulator, which is currently under construction at CAE for Airlink. These state of the art simulators will greatly assist in the cognitive, associative and autonomous stages of training and the technologies deployed are closely aligned to Airlink’s desired training goals. Both the E190 and ERJ145 simulators are compliant with the new 2019 CAA training regulations negating the need for any upgrades. The E190 simulator is supported and maintained by Airlink’s simulator technicians and can operate for five slots a day.
The E190 simulator is housed in a world class, if not world leading, purposely built training centre. The objective of creating a purposefully built training centre housing the simulators and other training devices was to create a specific ambiance that exudes learning and professionalism. The training environment therefore encourages and supports the best possible training outcomes and sets the tone for the Airlink flight crew members.
January 2019
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Chronicles of
Bombardier’s jet programmes
What was to be a regular quarterly earnings report, turned into a stunning announcement for the global aviation industry, when on 8 November 2018, Bombardier revealed it would sell two of its businesses, including the aging Q400 aircraft programme and cut 5,000 jobs across the board. With the CSeries and the QSeries now out of the manufacturer’s portfolio, only the CRJ regional jets remain. Will Bombardier end up being exclusively a business-jet and rail manufacturer? With its third quarter 2018 earnings’ results, the Canadian aircraft and train manufacturer said it will sell its QSeries turboprop aircraft programme as well as its de Havilland trademark to a subsidiary of home-based Longview Aviation Capital, Viking Air, for $300 million. The sale package includes Bombardier’s Q400 turboprop line as well as assets and intellectual property for other Dash 8 models, the -100, -200 and -300. Bombardier said it also reached an agreement to sell its business aircraft flight and technical training unit, which is run out of Montréal, Québec City (Canada) and Dallas (US), to Canadian training solutions company CAE, for $645 million. The transactions with CAE will total $800 million in revenue for Bombardier. Overall, the manufacturer said it expects to receive around $900 million in net proceeds out of the two all-Canadian deals, which should be finalised by mid-2019. By that time, the company’s large scale cost reduction and restructuring measures will have begun to erase around 5,000 jobs, which translates into over 7% of its global workforce, helping the manufacturer to generate $250 million in annual savings at full run rate by 2021, as it stated. The company defends itself by saying the cuts and sales are necessary and that it would continue to ‘streamline’ its operations.
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THE BOMBARDIER SAGA The offloading of the slow-selling QSeries turboprop business comes months after the Canadian plane maker handed over another of its commercial jet programmes: its signature CSeries to Airbus. Under the deal, the European aircraft manufacturer acquired a majority stake (50.01%) in the CSeries aircraft line effective 1 July 2018. It has since renamed the two models CS100 and CS300 to the A220-100 and A220-300, pledging to boost sales of the rebranded airliner. Heavy investments into the loss-making CSeries a few years back had led Bombardier to a similar situation it has found itself with the QSeries today. In October 2016, the company announced plans to cut a total of 7,500 jobs (over 10% of its global workforce) by the end of 2018. It was, in fact, the second wave of job cuts to hit Bombardier’s employees in less than a year. The company hoped the measures would save it $300 million a year. In the interim, since 2015, it had been asking the Québec government for a $1 billion investment in the CSeries. In February 2017, the manufacturer’s pleas were finally answered: the federal government pledged to provide $372.5 million in interest-free loans to Bombardier over a four year period. Most of the loans were to go to the Global 7500 business jet programme (originally named the Global 7000) and the remaining third to the CSeries programme. The CSeries passenger jet was plagued by delays and cost overruns prior to entering commercial service with SWISS airlines in July 2016. However, Bombardier’s Global business jet programme was not exempt from those problems either. The 7500 was initially scheduled for introduction in 2016, whilst the 8000 would be introduced in 2017. However, the former received type certification by Transport Canada and the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) just a day before Bombardier‘s breaking news, on 7 November 2018 and was expected to enter into service by the end of 2018.
BOMBARDIER’S PLAN B The drastic cost reduction measures mentioned were part of Bombardier’s recovery plan launched in 2015. The Montréal-based company is still seeing it through aiming to improve profitability and competitiveness by 2020. Signs of the demise of its QSeries programme were there too, when in May 2018, Bombardier sold its Downsview factory in Toronto, where the Q400 is built, to the Public Sector Investment Board for $635 million. In its second quarter earnings results released on 2 August 2018, Bombardier said it would try to turn its loss-making regional jet programme around by cutting costs and boosting volumes: “Adding a little bit of volume here also is very beneficial to those programmes as you add units especially at the current rates that do improve the cost structure,” CFO John Di Bert said during a conference call about the results. At the time, CEO Alain Bellemare said the company was making ‘solid progress’ in its turnaround plan and ‘positioning the company for the future.’ He also added that, “With our heavy investment cycle
largely behind us, our focus is now on ramping-up production and improving operational efficiency to accelerate growth.” Bombardier’s aircraft order backlog rose to 116 planes, which is enough for three years of production, allowing a potential increase in production rates, CBC observed. During the quarter, the manufacturer delivered 18 commercial aircraft of which eight were CSeries jets and five of CRJ Series and Q400 aircraft each. It had secured orders for a total of 16 Q400 aircraft and 35 CRJ Series.In its third quarter earnings report, announcing the sale of the Q400 programme, Bellemare reiterated his words, stating the heavy investment cycle was now ‘completed.’ As for the regional jet programme, the plan also remains the same. Only now it says it would also ‘explore strategic options’ for the programme whilst seeking to return it to profitability. That is to say, of course, for the remaining regional jet programme the CRJ family of airliners. As of 30 September 2018 quarter three results showed that Bombardier’s order backlog stood at 122 jets. The quarter saw only five deliveries of the CRJ Series and Q400 combined and firm orders totalled 11 aircraft.
January 2019
African Pilot
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cover: s i d o t s m • New ge
January 2019
African Pilot
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First BelugaXL successfully completes her maiden flight The first of five BelugaXL aircraft to fly has landed at ToulouseBlagnac, France after successfully completing her first flight lasting four hours and 11 minutes.The crew in the cockpit on board this flight comprised: Captain Christophe Cail, Co-Pilot Bernardo Saez-Benito Hernandez and Test-Flight Engineer Jean Michel Pin. Meanwhile, monitoring the aircraft systems and performance in real-time at the flight-test-engineers’ (FTE) station were Laurent Lapierre and Philippe Foucault. Following the first flight, the BelugaXL will undergo some 600 hours of flight test over 10 months to achieve Type Certification
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and entry into service later in 2019. The BelugaXL programme was launched in November 2014 to address Airbus’ transport capacity requirements in view of the A350 XWB ramp-up and single-aisle production rate increases. Five aircraft will be built between 2019 and 2023 to gradually replace the five BelugaSTs. The aircraft will operate from 11 destinations as Airbus’ method of transporting large aircraft components. Based on an A330-200 Freighter, the BelugaXL is powered by Rolls Royce Trent 700 engines. The lowered cockpit, the cargo bay structure, the rear-end and tail were newly developed jointly with suppliers, giving the aircraft its distinctive look.
January 2019
African Pilot
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Delta Air Lines orders 10 additional Airbus A330-900s
On 16 November 2018, Delta Air Lines announced an order for an additional 10 Airbus A330-900 widebody aircraft, expanding its orders for the A330neo from 25 to 35 aircraft. This latest order supports Delta’s international growth strategy in the near to medium term. Simultaneously, Delta and Airbus have agreed to defer 10 previously ordered A350 XWBs to 2025-26 in order to accommodate the airline’s long-term growth strategy. Delta currently operates 11 A350-900 aircraft and expects a further four in 2019-2020. Delta’s A330 fleet stands today at 42 widebody aircraft.
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The A3330-9000 is goin ng to be an importaant addittion to Delta’s fleet
said Delta Chief Executive Officer Ed Bastian. “Airbus has infused this next generation of the successful A330 family with new technology and features providing advanced levels of comfort for our passengers and significant operating cost reductions that will make our airline stronger in the decades to come.” Building on the proven success of its popular twin-aisle, twin-engine, widebody A330 Family, Airbus launched the A330neo programme, comprising the A330-800 and A330-900 versions in July 2014. The A330neo brings significant efficiency improvements whilst also introducing the Airspace by Airbus cabin, which offers the newest and most advanced in-flight experience with extra personal space and state-of-the-art ambient lighting. Incorporating the latest-generation Rolls-Royce Trent 7000 engines, along with aerodynamic enhancements, which include new extended composite wingtips which provide 3.7 metres of increased overall span. Along with this increased lift and reduced drag, the A330neo is a more efficient aircraft which will generate savings through reduced fuel burn.The longer-fuselage A330-900 version can accommodate 287 seats in a typical three-class layout or up to 440 for high-density configurations and can provide a range of 7,200 nautical miles.
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easyJet
orders additional
17 A320neo
On 20 Novem ber, Air extends bus rea the airli ched an ne’s flee to firm agreeme t plans orders fo nt with into 20 r 17 A3 easyJet NEO to 2 3, exerc 20neo. Th that is 147 (inc ing pur is takes luding 3 c hase rig 468 A3 its com 0 A321 hts 20 Fam bined o neo) an ily aircr rder for d mean aft to da th s easyJe e te. t has or dered
This rep eat orde r cement s easyJet Europea ’s positio n operat n as the or of our largest leading A320 fa mily, says Ch ristian S cherer, A irbus C hief
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of 316 A320 F amily in and thr cluding ee A32 17 A32 1 neo, ma largest a 0neo king it irline op the wor e r ator of A aircraft. ld’s irbus’ sin easyJet ser ves o gle aisle airports ver 130 in som Europe e 31 co over 10 an untries 00 route operatin s. g The A3 20neo fa mily is selling the wor single a ld’s bestisle airc than 6 raft wit ,200 o h more rdered custome from o rs since v e r 100 its laun It inco ch in rporates 2010. latest includin technolo g new gies g e n and S ha rklet win eration engin es g tip devic togethe r deliv es, whic e h r more percent than 1 in fuel 5 s avings one and from d 20 perc ay ent by further 2020 w cabin it h innovati A320ne ons. Th o also e offers s environ ignifica mental nt perform nearly ance wit 50 perc h ent red noise fo uction otprint in compar previou ed with s genera tion airc raft.
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COMMERCIAL AVIATION ASSOCIATION OF SOUTHERN AFRICA
AWARDS COMPILED BY ATHOL FRANZ Pictures by Athol Franz & Mark Mansfield
On Friday afternoon 16 November, CAASA presented its annual awards to deserving members of the aviation community. The awards were preceded by a delicious finger lunch and generous liquid refreshments. Many certificates were also presented to those people who had excelled in their efforts at the CAASA led Africa Aerospace and Defence 2018 exhibition and airshow staged in September.
Contact t 011 659 2345 e admin@caasa.co.za or ceo@caasa.co.za w www.caasa.co.za 20
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Every year CAASA recognises those individuals who have gone beyond the call of duty and provided excellent support for the organisation. The following awards were presented: • Aviation excellence award: Refilwe Ledwaba • General aviation industry award: Graham Speller • CEO’s award: Tony Frost • President’s trophy: Shaun Ledlie of AATOSA and Justin Reeves from ANSO • AAD excellence trophy: Gary Renault • Windgat awarded by Kev Storie to Philip Eloff CAASA certificates of appreciation: • Tracey Eloff • Sean Murphy • Ken Venn • Sean Reitz • Justin Reeves • Colin Visser • Mark Mansfield
• • • • • • •
Rob Garbett Shaun Ledlie Dean Polley Ray Ledlie Mike Clark Charles Norval Reinie Guldenpfenning
The Commercial Aviation Association of Southern Africa NPC is a non-profit organisation formed in 1944 to promote and protect the commercial interests of the General Aviation industry in southern Africa. CAASA’s membership includes Airport Operators, Nonscheduled Operators, Business Aircraft Operators, Flight Training Organisations, Helicopter Operators, Aircraft Maintenance Organisations, Commercial Unmanned Aerial Systems, Design Organisations as well as companies that offer a range of retail services such as African Pilot, to the aviation industry.
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first flight of multi-engine hybrid electric aircraft In collaboration with Siemens, Diamond Aircraft Industries announced the first flight of a jointly developed multi-engine hybrid electric aircraft that undertook its maiden flight on 31 October 2018 at Diamond Aircraft’s headquarters in Wiener Neustadt, Austria. Air traffic growth is expected to continue to increase at a rate of up to 5% per year. Using only current technology, this will lead to an increase in emissions and a depletion of fossil fuel reserves. Therefore innovation is needed to keep future flying sustainable. This includes the development of highly efficient drive systems that will contribute to the reduction in fuel consumption that aids the protection of the environment. For this reason, Siemens AG and Diamond Aircraft Industries have partnered to develop a multi-engine hybrid electric aircraft. The main objective of this project is to develop an aircraft that has a lower fuel consumption resulting in higher efficiency, as well as a lower noise footprint. The hybrid powertrain will allow for full electric take-off capabilities without the added noise and pollution of a combustion engine. To demonstrate this serial-hybrid technology, a DA40 aircraft was reconfigured to support a hybrid electric powertrain. In this system
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set-up, one combustion engine is powering two independent electric drive systems consisting of one motor, battery and inverter each. Two electric engines have been added on a forward canard, which combined can generate 150kW of take-off power. The diesel generator is located in the nose of the aircraft and can provide up to 110kW of power. Two batteries with 12kWh each are mounted in the rear passenger compartment and act as an energy storage buffer. With a dedicated power lever, the pilot can control the energy flow between the generator, batteries and motor. The pilot can select either pure electric mode (generator off ), cruise mode (generator provides all power to the motor) and charge mode (generator charges the batteries). Pure electric, the aircraft has an endurance of approximately 30 minutes, but the hybrid system extends this to five hours. This is the first flying test-bed that allows engineers to gain experience with a hybrid propulsion system built up of one genset and multiple electric motors and a system architecture with distributed drives.
The redundant architecture of the propulsion system with two electric motors operating independently, allows for increased safety. Moreover, in this set-up, energy production, energy storage and thrust generation are locally separated; this concept of distributed propulsion will enable aircraft designers to think in new directions at the very beginning of the process of design. “This is the first serialhybrid electric plane in the world with two electrically powered free-stream propellers and one combustion engine. A distributed propulsion architecture opens entirely new possibilities for the design of highly efficient planes and we have now proved its technical feasibility”, says Dr. Frank Anton, Executive Vice President eAircraft at Siemens AG. The project started in 2013 and is driven under the supervision and finance of the BundesministeriumfürWirschaft und Energie (BMWi, German Ministry of Economics) and the Forschungsförderungsgesellschaft GmbH, FFG (Society for the development of the research, Austria). The project has been split into two main work packages. Siemens AG was responsible for the design and development of the electric powertrain. This was done within the framework of the German LuFo programme. Diamond Aircraft was responsible for the reconfiguration of the aircraft and installation of the hybrid-electric powertrain. For this, Diamond partnered together with the TERA Group and the Johannes Kepler Universität Linz. The TERA group preformed the design and dynamic analysis of the generator drive unit. JKU Linz preformed the aerodynamic analysis and simulated the flow interaction between the propeller and airframe to achieve a high overall efficiency. The consortium partners in the HEMEP project play a pioneering role in the field of aviation in the field of electric drive systems, thereby enabling the participating companies to become technology leaders for the future. During the 20 minute first flight, the aircraft demonstrated all modes of operation. This included pure hybrid, charging flight and full electric flight. In this last configuration, the aircraft was able to fly pure electric and produced zero emissions. Furthermore, a full electric take-off was demonstrated which lead to a significantly lower noise footprint. Ingmar Mayerbuch, head of flight test at Diamond Aircraft Industries who piloted the aircraft aid: “The first flight exceeded all our expectations. The combination of the hybrid powertrain and the configuration of the aircraft is just perfect. We reached 130 knots at medium power output and climbed to an altitude of 3,000 feet.”
The objective of future flight tests will be to determine the exact efficiency increase achieved in comparison with similar nonelectric aircraft. Also the noise footprint will be determined. Future tests will gather knowledge on the practical operation of hybrid aircraft. Different hybrid modes of operation will be tested and their effect on efficiency, range, and energy consumption will be determined. “Serial-hybrid electric propulsion systems and distributed propulsion architectures for us are the key to a more sustainable flight future also in higher power classes. The Diamond flying testbed will help us to understand the requirements for these new propulsion technologies and to be prepared for the challenges of larger-scale applications”, said Dr. Anton said. This is not the first hybrid electric aircraft developed by a collaboration between Siemens and Diamond. In 2009, the successful implementation of a hybrid powertrain was demonstrated in the DA36 E-Star. This initial project showed the opportunities this hybrid technology has in aviation. Information from this project was taken and used to improve the propulsion systems over the last few years. This learning step was important and lead to the success of this project. January 2019
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Garmin GFC 500 and GFC 600 autopilots approved for additional aircraft models On 14 November 2018, Garmin announced it had received Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Supplemental Type Certification (STC) in several aircraft models for the GFC 500 and GFC 600 autopilots. The GFC 500 and GFC 600 deliver superior inflight characteristics, self-monitoring capabilities and minimal maintenance needs when compared with older generation autopilot systems. The GFC 500 is intended for single-engine piston aircraft, whilst the GFC 600 is intended for high performance piston single/ twin-engine and turbine aircraft that have a wide range of speed and performance characteristics.
New aircraft models approved for the GFC 500 autopilot include: • Cessna 210: Models: 210K, T210K, 210L, T210L, 210M, T210M, 210N, T210N • New aircraft models approved for the GFC 600 autopilot include Cessna’s 208B (cargo pod-equipped only) The GFC 500 autopilot uniquely integrates with the G5 electronic flight instrument or a combination of both the G5 electronic flight instrument and the G500 TXi or G500 flight displays to provide pilots with an economical and modern autopilot solution. The GFC 600 is designed as a standalone autopilot and also boasts superior integration potential when paired with the G500 TXi/G600 TXi or G500/G600 glass flight displays, Garmin navigators, as well as a variety of third-party flight displays, instruments and navigation sources.
The full-featured GFC 600 and GFC 500 autopilots provide thousands of existing general aviation aircraft with a simple, lightweight, cost-effective autopilot upgrade path. The GFC 600 and GFC 500 incorporate solid state attitude with robust self-monitoring capabilities to provide superior autopilot performance, greater reliability and safety benefits that are similar to the popular GFC 700 autopilot. In addition to traditional autopilot capabilities such as altitude hold, vertical speed and heading modes, the GFC 600 and GFC 500 also include altitude preselect, VNAV1, Level Mode, underspeed and overspeed protection and more. Pilots can also select, couple and fly various instrument approaches, including GPS, ILS, VOR, LOC and back course approaches when paired with a compatible GPS navigator. As a standard feature on both the GFC 500 and GFC 600 autopilots, pilots receive Garmin Electronic Stability and Protection (ESP), which works to assist the pilot in maintaining the aircraft in a stable flight condition. ESP functions independently of the autopilot and works in the background to help pilots avoid inadvertent flight attitudes or bank angles and provides airspeed protection whilst the pilot is hand-flying the aircraft. Garmin continues to add additional aircraft models to the growing STC list for the GFC 500 and GFC 600 autopilots. To view the most up-to-date aircraft STC list, to view certifications that are expected to begin in the next 12-months, or to express interest in a specific aircraft make/model, visit:
www.garmin.com/GFC500 or www.garmin.com/GFC600
GFC™ 600 Digital Autopilot
GFC™ 500 Digital Autopilot
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Handiflight
around the world A challenging and inspiring global adventure changing perceptions of disability
A Swiss based organization, Handiflight (www. handiflight.com) which has been arranging fly-ins at Gruyeres in Switzerland for ‘adaptive’ flyers for the last 10 years, is undertaking a round the world flight, routing eastwards from Geneva. Two Flight Design CTLS aircraft, specially equipped with long range fuel tanks and both configured with handcontrols for rudder operations are being flown by two paraplegic pilots, one South African and one French. Mike Lomberg from Morningstar Flying Club in Cape Town and Guillaume Feral from the Aeroclub Paul Louis Weiller at Les Mureaux in Paris. They took-off from Geneva on Sunday 18 November on the first leg over the Swiss and Italian Alps to Verona in Italy. Over the next few months the men will fly through Greece, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and then on to Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Thailand and into Singapore where the first scheduled maintenance stop will take place. After flying through Australia, New Zealand and the mammoth crossing of the Pacific, the route will take them through South and North America, including the full week at Oshkosh 2019, Canada and then back across the Atlantic to Europe. They should land back in Geneva in September 2019.
Many of the legs are extremely long and will be flown solo over the sea, the longest being 18 hours from Easter Island to Santiago in Chile. On such long legs there are many physiological factors to be considered and noise induced fatigue is a major one. Century Avionics and Bose have teamed up to provide the project with two Bose A20 Blue Tooth Headsets to help alleviate this aspect on the circumnavigation and provide a more comfortable working environment in the cockpit. The direct outcome is enhanced safety.
With their passion for aviation and the fact that despite both being in wheelchairs they are both pilots, their message is one of focusing on our common humanity rather than our differences and thereby promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities in all aspects of life. Through sharing, exploring and inspiring others to find ways to tackle what might have seemed impossible, they are hoping many people might imagine a fuller life for themselves and push the barriers to inclusion back in their own lives and in their own communities.
These two Swiss registered CTLS aircraft have been modified to be able to carry 300 litres of fuel in the wings with an additional auxiliary tank where the right seat would normally be. The total fuel load that can be carried is 436 litres. The aircraft carry a special EASA approval to operate on the longest legs up to a MAUW of 750kg. At an average fuel burn of 18 litres per hour this provides safe endurance of 22 hours.
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ore nd m t ou ject a : d n i F pro gress e h ut t eir pro om/ o b a th ook.c w o l eb fol .fac ght
nal e’s o s r Pe Mik f o unt ences o c c a y: eri exp journe om/ he t c . k n o o ebo c 94 w.fa radial. w w e. mik
i w difl ww n a h
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Legally grey
Part VI
by Honiball Aviation Auditing
To be legally grey has more than one origin. By now I suppose everyone understands that the term ‘legally grey’ is tongue in cheek and an argued adjustment of the law, to fit whatever purpose. There are reasons such as time constraints when we hand in paperwork to the aviation authority. Sometimes it takes months to obtain a decision and investments must be idle, forcing the making of a plan. The shortage of staff and the resignation of staff is very serious and the authority is trying to do its best, but the acknowledgement of internal problems will not be forth coming.
Then there is the issue of shifting goal posts in the name of safety. To be in the top 20 International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) member authorities, out of more than 190 members, is quite a feat. Well, not so when you realise that it is all a paper exercise and has little, to no functional, representation of the state of aviation administration in the operational world. However, none of this means we can bend the rules. For now, we must ‘eat it’ and hope that the authority’s aim of being in the top ten, will not kill general aviation through the implementation of unachievable goals. Then there are the obvious ones, such as to just go ahead with your plans once you have submitted them to the authority. Although this is still a transgression, we have seen in the past that the transgressors, when caught out, were considered lesser offenders than when no attempt has been made at all.
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Then we have the group that just does not bother at all. We make ourselves belief that what we are about to do is legal and that is that. Well, it does not really matter what I say here, as the law will always catch up and in many cases leave no back door. One of my friends just did that. He bought a helicopter and before long, he was the pilot during darting and game capture operations. Because it was for himself, he did not think it necessary to even obtain a game rating. After a few intense chatting bouts, I managed to convince him to do the game rating. As a PPL holder with more than the required hours for a Captain, it was just a matter of doing the course, being evaluated and recommended for accreditation. This was done and before long he was the proud recipient of a game rating.
Up to that stage it was business as usual and he could have felt very thankful that nothing went wrong, but he did not realise it as we all believe that because we are not having accidents, but only incidents from time to time, that we are bullet-proof and just super cool. Then, the inevitable happened. For reasons outside his control, the helicopter literally fell out of the sky and was written off. That was when the insurers asked for the details of the helicopter and as usual, the details of the pilot. He phoned me and thanked me because the insurance company, after confirming that he was game rated, promised that the settling of his insurance claim would be no problem. This leads me to plead with all of us to honour the law as the devil is always in the detail after the happening. To pay out a few million rand on a claim is not what the insurance company wishes to do. The SACAA by now will be involved, but its punishment is far less than the family of the one who was with you in the helicopter during the accident and who got hurt or died, bestows on you. Most accidents will have some form of legal action by the other parties’ lawyers and that is when the third party insurance will walk away if all the ‘t’s’ are not crossed and the ‘i’s’ not dotted.
Action will take long to be initiated, but once it has started, makes life for one and all extremely uncomfortable, expensive and time consuming. Who are the winners here? Only the lawyers. Who are the losers? All of us, as our premiums will increase, new laws may be enforced and day to day operations will be interrupted. There is not any option, but to do your best to stay within the law. ‘Penny wise and Pound foolish’, is only realised when it is too late. This is where foresight is far better and cheaper than hindsight. Honiball Aviation Auditing specialises in keeping you out of the ‘grey’ and thus out of the courts. Honiball has an in-house lawyer and auditing experts, with a true understanding of the law and a passion to serve. This not only benefits you, but also the authority, your family, not to mention your business. The letter of the law is. but one phone call away. It is a no-brainer. Contact Thomas to smooth out your legal road and to navigate you actively into clear and trouble-free waters. This is his and his team’s speciality. Remember that to be legal wise is a proactive move. Reactive moves do not make great business sense.
Are you in it for keeps? Then contact Thomas Honiball and protect your legacy; it is time to become aviation legalised.
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2019
Event
Venue
Contact
19 - 20 January
SAC Gauteng Regionals
Vereeniging Airfield
Annie Boon chunge@mweb.co.za
26 January
SAPFA Rand Airport Challenge
Rand Airport
2 February
SAPFA Morningstar Speed Rally
Morningstar Airfield
Hans Potgieter hcom@mweb.co.za
27 -28 February
Aviation Africa Summit
Kigali Convention Centre, Rwanda
mark.brown@africanaerospace.aero
Frank Eckard 083 269 1516 frank.eckard@mweb.co.za
Mark Brown www.aviationafrica.aero Phushaza Sibiya 072 870 7085
28 February
BARSA Aviation Summit
venue TBA
4 - 7 March
HAI Heli-Expo
Georgia World Congress Centre, Atlanta, Georgia
rotor@rotor.org www.rotor.org
9 - 10 March
Swellendam Flying Club host Sport Aerobatic Club Regional Championships
Swellendam
Pieter Venter pventer@vgv.co.za
12 - 14 March
Saudi Airshow
Thumah Airport, Riyadh
www.saudiairshow.aero
13 - 15 March
Ageing Aircraft & Aircraft Corrosion seminar
OR Tambo International Airport
lmjaviationbookings@gmail.com
23 March
FASHKOSK
Stellenbosch Airfield
Anton Theart 079 873 4567 gm@stelfly.co.za
23 March
SAPFA Virginia Fun Rally
Virginia Airport
4 - 6 April
SAPFA Rally Nationals & Fun Rally
Stellenbosch Airfield
6 April
Robertson Annual Breakfast fly in
phushaza@vumareputation.com
Mary de Klerk 084 880 9000 maryd@expandingbranding.co.za Frank Eckard 083 269 1516 frank.eckard@mweb.co.za Alwyn du Plessis 083 270 5888 boeredata@breede.co.za
Airshow organisers: African Pilot annual airshow award details on our website: www.africanpilot.co.za Local 0861 001130 International +27 11 466 8524 Pre & post publicity: E-mail: editor@africanpilot.co.za Website: www.africanpilot.co.za Details are published in the magazine, the African Pilot weekly Newsletter and the African Pilot Website. They serve to remind aviation enthusiasts of forthcoming events during the week running up to the event. Capital Sounds for sound and broadcast: Brian Emmenis 057 388 2351 E-mail: capital@icon.co.za ASSA - Air Show South Africa Website: www.airshowsa.org.za. To reserve an airshow or fly-in please book on-line: www.airshowsa.org.za Louise Hofmeyer 083 454 1104 E-mail: louise@airshowsa.org.za Management & Airshow Authorisation: Tania van den Berg RAASA 011 082 1000 E-mail: tania@raasa.co.za Website: www.raasa.co.za
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By Divan Muller During the 1920s, the famous Schneider Trophy seaplane race was dominated by Britain’s unbeatable Supermarine aircraft. Eager to gain national prestige, Italy’s Mario Castoldi, who worked for MacchiAeronautica, developed a seaplane specifically to outperform the Supermarine S.6. In 1926, his Macchi M.39 won the trophy, so he was eager to repeat the achievement. Castoldi’s new aircraft, the MC.72, completed its first flight in July 1931. However, due to problems with engine development, the aircraft was not ready in time for the race. As it happened, that year’s event was to
be the final Schneider Trophy air race. Nevertheless, development of the MC.72 continued, as its completion was a matter of national pride. On 10 April 1933, the MC.72 was flown at a speed of nearly 370 knots. The Italian aircraft may not have beaten the British Supermarine in a race, but it did break its speed record. The Macchi team then set its sights on reaching a speed of 700 km/h (378 knots). On 23 October 1934, the aircraft was flown at an average speed of 709 km/h (383 knots), setting a speed record for piston-powered seaplanes which, to this day, has never been broken.
Did you know? During a test flight, the MC.72 unofficially reached a speed of 394 knots. The aircraft was powered by a 2 850 hp 24-cylinder Fiat engine. Five MC.72s were built. The only surviving example happens to be the one which set the world record. The aircraft is on display at the Italian Air Force Museum, about 30 kms from Rome. 322 3
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AeroVue™ Touch Experience Industry-Leading Flight Display
AeroVue™ Touch is a low-cost display available for 353 aircraft types that offers powerful and intuitive touchscreen capabilities with the highest screen resolution on the market today. The system delivers improved safety by consolidating all essential flight information onto one screen, and reduces pilot workload by making all flight-critical functions accessible with only one or two touches on the screen. The AeroVue Touch comes standard with industry-leading SmartView™ synthetic vision system, ADS-B In traffic and weather display. Sma
+27 11 701 3244 salesadmin1@centuryavionics.co.za www.centuryavionics.co.za | Hangar M1, Lanseria Int Airport SA CAA AMO:0003 KCAA AMO: F|144
SADO D688 DCA AMO: MI|414|2016
NCAA AMO:FSS|AMO|C3610 CAAB AMO: B|1A|F30
CAAZ AMO: 176|128 January 2019
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By Athol Franz
This picture of the beautiful new Sling TSi was taken by Athol Franz from a Cessna 172 owned and piloted by Mark Miller, Athol’s nephew. This was the first visit of the new Sling to EAA Chapter 322’s recent Sun ‘n Fun weekend held at Brits airfield. James Pittman is flying the Sling and he demonstrated how superbly the new four-seat Rotax 915iS engine powered aircraft performed. Athol used his Canon EOS1 Mk4 camera fitted with a 28 to 105 image stabilised Canon lens. 34
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Sponsored by
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