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Chairman’s report Calendar of events Letters to the Editor Happy Landings
16 21 24 28 30 31 37 43 44
COLUMNISTS
The W.A wheat fields in bloom Photo: Gordon Marshall
ON THE COVER
56 Wheat fields G O RD O N M A R S H A L L
“ I have to remind myself that I actually get paid to do this”
52 Editor’s choice B RI A N B I G G 53 Pilot talk T HE O P S D EP T 5 4 Tech Talk DA RREN B A RNF IEL D T EC HNI C A L M A N AG ER 57 Learning to fly KEN NI C H O L A S
NEWS
11 IAOPA get together PHIL L IP REI S S 11 Portal login changes 11 Another setback for Icon 13 Professional development seminar series MI C H A EL L INKE 15 Seminar dates and locations
Right plane wrong category part 2 A L A N B E T T ERID G E How not to fly floats DAV ID P E Y RE From large to small A L A N B E T T ERID G E CFIT or perfect storm A L A N B E T T ERID G E In honour of dad JA S O N A ND T R AC Y S AV IL L The same trip – but by SeaRey D O U G B AU ER A man and his machine A L A N B E T T ERID G E The meaning of life WAY NE M C LU C A S Flying ladders B RI A N B I G G
EXTRAS
5 Digital directions 59 Aviation Classifieds 64 Quiz 65 Where is CAGIT?
FEATURE STORIES
48 There are drones and there are army drones ADF
43
Sport Pilot Magazine is an official publication of Recreational Aviation Australia Ltd and is published twelve times a year by Stampils Publishing. EDITOR Brian Bigg editor@sportpilot.net.au All enquiries 1300 838 416 ADVERTISING SALES editor@sportpilot.net.au MAGAZINE SUBSCRIPTIONS Non-member annual subscription rates - postage included are available by contacting Recreational Aviation Australia Ltd, Po Box 1265, Fyshwick A.C.T 2609. (02) 6280 4700 or admin@raa.asn.au.
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All content in this magazine belongs to Stampils Publishing and is protected by Australian and international copyright and other intellectual property laws. You may not do anything which interferes with or breaches those laws or the intellectual property rights in the content. All rights not expressly granted under these terms of use are reserved by Stampils Publishing. Unless expressly stated otherwise, you are not permitted to copy, or republish anything you find in the magazine without the copyright or trademark owners’ permission. The magazine title, as well as the associated logo of Recreational Aviation Australia Ltd, are the property of RAAus. However, Stampils Publishing, Daniella Banco of Spank Design and Karin Middleton, of Cachekat, reserve the right to be acknowledged as the magazine’s designers. While every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the content of this magazine, no warrant is given or implied. The content is provided to you on condition that you undertake all responsibility for assessing the accuracy of the content and rely on it at your own risk. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of people named in this magazine. Recreational Aviation Australia Ltd and Stampils Publishing reserve the right to decline any article, letter or comment deemed unacceptable for whatever reason. No endorsement or responsibility is implied or accepted for any product advertised in this magazine. Advertisers and buyers are each responsible for ensuring products advertised and/or purchased via this magazine meet all appropriate Australian certification and registration requirements, especially those pertaining to CASA and RAAus. NOTE: All aircraft featured in the magazine are registered and legally permitted to fly. However, photographs of them may be altered without notice for editorial purposes. The Editor’s Choice column is designed to draw attention to potential safety issues through exaggeration and humour and is not meant to be historically accurate. 4 / SPORT PILOT
CH AIRMAN ’ S REPORT
The best insurance policy
N
BY BRIAN BIGG
o one likes insurance. On the surface of it, paying for insurance doesn’t appear to make much sense. You hand over good money to a big company in the fervent hope you are wasting that money. It just seems silly. You’d never hand over money to a car dealer in the hope they didn’t give you a car in return. Its even worse with life insurance. You hand over money every year and only ‘win’ when you die. Every year that goes by without you making a claim, means another year’s premiums go down the toilet. Insurance seems like such a waste of money. It’s why every time you get the bill for the annual premium, you can’t help but whinge. But you still pay it. Because insurance is one of those things you just can’t do without. If your house burns down and you are not insured, you will lose so much money, the cost of the premium seems tiny by comparison. The same with car insurance. The same with insuring an aeroplane or a boat. We all grumble about the premiums, but the potential loss we would suffer if our asset was destroyed is so big it makes sense to hand over good money to the insurance company then pray we never need to make a claim. Most communities in Australia have their own insurance policy. It’s called their local airport. And it’s a terrible shame that many of those who control these airports don’t appear to appreciate it. Local councils everywhere grizzle about the cost of keeping their airports up to scratch. Fair enough too. They didn’t ask the federal government to dump the airport on them (shame on you John Anderson). The cost of an airport is a burden on all ratepayers, even on those people who never use it. And, what is worse, for the most part the airport rarely pays its way in the annual accounts. The real estate agents who run most local councils will tell you the community could get a better yield per square metre in rates if the giant block of land, now being used very lightly for aeroplanes, was turned into a new shopping centre or housing subdivision rather than be left as a playground for a small club
of millionaires. But when a big disaster hits, that’s when your community’s insurance policy pays for itself. A few years ago, my community was struck by a tornado. Homes were destroyed, but no one was injured thankfully. Media helicopters flew in, emergency service experts flew in, insurance company assessors flew in, electricity repairers flew in, even the Premier flew in to declare the town a disaster zone. The parking areas at my local airport were jammed to overflowing with the aircraft used by people who needed to reach my community rapidly to help us as we went through a pretty serious event. When bushfires threaten, the local airport as the base for firefighting aircraft and the controllers who coordinate the firefighting effort. They can save your town, your home and maybe your business, even if you have never been anywhere near the runway. When floods hit, the local airport is the base for evacuating the sick and elderly and the focal point for emergency workers bringing in supplies of food. Maybe they’ll take your grandmother to safety and bring you hay for your animals, even if you never go near the runway yourself. And ask any of the thousands of people transported by air every year from your town for medical treatment, if they would prefer to spend many more hours travelling by road instead. I know what the answer will be. Having an airport means your community has an incredibly valuable insurance policy which it can call on when it needs it most. Of course, like all insurance policies, we pay the premiums and we complain that we’re throwing good money after bad. But if your community ever has a natural disaster (and you know our wonderfully harsh country is quite capable of hitting us with one on a regular basis), you will get a warm feeling if you’ve paid your premiums and are fully covered.
The Chairman, Michael Monck is on a well-earned holiday this month.
There are many ways to interact DIGITAL DIRECTIONS with RAAus these days. Website: www.raa.asn.au Member portal: www.members.raa.asn.au/login Lodge an occurrence: www.oms.raa.asn.au/lodge Back issues of Sport Pilot: www.raa.asn.au/sport-pilot-magazine Subscribe to printed Sport Pilot: www.raa.asn.au/sport-pilot-magazine-application RAAus shop: www.shop.raa.asn.au Sport Pilot online: www.raa.asn.au/sport-pilot-magazine ENewsletter: www.raa.asn.au/become-a-member/member-benefits/e-news
5 / SPORT PILOT
CA LEN D AR OF EVEN TS
A. 6-7 JANUARY
GREAT EASTERN FLY-IN Evans Head Memorial Aerodrome. Fly-in for a unique Australian aviation get together. Camping, fun activities, air displays, drones, joy flights, aviation history, classic cars, markets, great food and much more. For more information, greateasternflyin.com or Gai Taylor 0427 825 202.
G. 21-22 APRIL
TAVAS GREAT WAR FLYING DISPLAY This will be The Australian Vintage Aviation Society’s third (and possibly final) event to commemorate all pilots of all wars over the past 100 years. The display is expected to attract tens of thousands of people, be the largest event of its type in Queensland and host the only collection of flying pre-WWI and WWI type aircraft. They also have aircraft from WW2, Korea and Vietnam flying - and
B. 11 MARCH
C. 11 MARCH
Lone Eagle Flying School’s annual fly-in includes International Women In Aviation Week. This has become an iconic event in the region and is the premier attraction for all types of aviation in southern Queensland. See various types, shapes, sizes and models of recreational, ultralight and homebuilt aircraft including sport, vintage, general aviation and any other flying machine. Come late pm Saturday, 11th for BBQ, drinks and hangar talk. Fly or drive in, see ERSA. On field camping, bring your swag. Advise for catering. For more information www.loneeagleflyingschool.org. au, Facebook.com/LoneEagleFlyingSchool, admin@loneeagleflyingschool.org.au or Trevor Bange 0429 378 370.
An impressive day with some of the best air performers. The Peninsula Aero Club has a proud tradition of supporting local community service clubs from the proceeds of its shows. All visiting aircraft should plan to arrive before 10:30 because access will not be granted after that time. For more information, http://www. tyabbairshow.com.
CLIFTON FLY-IN
TYABB AIRSHOW
6 / SPORT PILOT
aircraft currently in service with the ADF. The 21st will also be the centenary of the shooting down of the Red Baron – so expect an appearance by the famous Fokker. For more information, www.tavas. com.au.
CA LEN D AR OF EVEN TS
B F A G E
C D
E. 25 MARCH
WARBIRDS OVER SCONE Lots of noise and spectacular heavy metal thunder. Paul Bennet will also perform. For more information, www.facebook.com/ WarbirdsOverScone.
F. 21-22 APRIL
COFFS HARBOUR AIRSHOW Postponed from last year. Lots of flying activity in one of the most beautiful parts of the world. For more information, facebook.com/CoffsCoast-Airshow
D. 17 MARCH CENTENARY OF FLIGHT AIRSHOW
It will be 100 years since the first operational military flights in Australia. These were conducted from Yarram in a FE2B aircraft out into Bass Strait looking for the German raiding ship The Wolf. This operation was flown by Capt. Frank McNamara VC from the Australian Flying Corp. Yarram Aero Club will honour the centenary of the event. For more information, yarramcentenaryofflight.com. au, Brian Lucas 0428 527 237 or facebook.com/YarramCOF. 7 / SPORT PILOT
H. 29 APRIL
WINGS, WHEELS AND WINE We are excited to be bringing back this great community event in 2018 bigger and better than ever before! Bring the whole family along as the Mudgee Aero Club hosts a great day full of kid’s entertainment, market stalls, food and wine tasting, a car show and an action packed program of aerial displays. For more information, www. wingswheelsandwine.com.au.
L E T T ERS TO TH E ED ITOR
IT DOESN’T ADD UP I’m always keen to see comparisons of like or competitive aircraft, avionics, instruments etc, and I think most pilots are. After all, pilots tend to be driven by numbers. May I suggest a more logical tabling of comparisons when you present aircraft performance numbers. The table on the story ‘Be fast or be last’ (Sport Pilot August 2017) is, my opinion, not at all informative because the numbers are not all in the same units, and are not tabled in any order. In fact, the table is a real dogs’ breakfast and frustrating if one is looking for comparisons. I’d also suggest that SP caveats any such numbers provided by manufacturers because we all know there’s potential for a bit of fudging (the old Vs in kts but Vne in km/hr trick). SP is improving every month – keep up the good work. RALPH BURNETT FROM THE EDITOR / We have a policy of using metric where possible and knots and feet otherwise. As you say, we are a little hedged in by manufacturers who want to paint their aircraft as nice as possible by only highlighting those things they believe are selling points and leaving out the things which are not. Also, U.S manufacturers still use miles an hour and feet and inches, which is a pain.
TRIKE POLITELY It’s been some six years or so since I’ve been getting Sport Pilot and I just wanted to say thank you very much for the excellent magazine. The September edition I’ve just finished is once again fantastic. I find when I read the mag, it just makes me want to go flying and be a part of this hobby and its people. I’m a trike pilot hangared in the Latrobe Valley. All the topics from month to month are all just great reads, as well as the stories of interest. And I just love reading your own stories and the adventures you have in your aircraft. I can’t remember where you are flying from, but it seems a nice cosy airfield to be sure. Some of the Letters to the Editor are good for a group debate among our club, the Southern Microlight Club, especially things like wanting all the trikes under one banner in Australia, not two. Two seems like a waste of effort to duplicate things and, I reckon, they belong in RAAus. I have just swapped over and by gee, RAAus is sure heading in the right direction. Another topic for us is fuel. Wouldn’t it be great if Australia, now we have to import 100% of our Avgas, just said blow that, were changing over to 98 unleaded and that’s it. It would save lots of jerry cans in cars, that’s for sure and be a whole lot more convenient. Will it ever happen in my time flying? I don’t know, but we must be getting closer. Why should my taxes
go to importing a fuel when we have a close equivalent here already? Another thought I had was wouldn’t it be great if the RAAus office was the repository of relevant information, like all the airparks around Australia, where are they and how many, etc. The list could just be a growing thing over time, but with RAAus becoming the go to place for such answers. Keep up the good work you and RAAus. You certainly doing just a great job and should be congratulated more often. CHRIS BULLEN FROM THE EDITOR / Thanks for the kind words, Chris. I agree that I should be congratulated more often. FROM THE CEO / We will look into the airpark option. These things take time to keep on top of and our resources to look after our website are very limited.
OUR SIDE OF THE FENCE I have attended both Narromine and Temora fly-ins, either flying or driving and note that all the Narromine (pre-Temora) events were both fun and well attended. The Temora venue suffered a little, but the last one was a good event. However, the damage of the move to this new venue had been done and, from what I saw, it was poorly attended. I did not attend last year’s event at Narromine, but reports were that it was returning to what it used to be. So this year I managed to attend (driving). But I was surprised to find I couldn’t walk among fellow pilots’ aircraft and talk over their planes with them. It was a case of pilots flying only - mere ‘drive ins’ not allowed. Remember that two thirds of RAAus membership do not own an aircraft. For me this is the highlight of any fly-in. I managed to talk to the CEO for a minute and was told that CASA had made the ruling that, because as it was now an air show, no public access. I spoke to others who were also disappointed they could no longer mingle with their mates. I wonder where this will all end. I have been both a paid employee and volunteer at air shows for the past 15 years and invariably all have been lucky to make small profits. If all staff had been paid though, most would have lost money. The questions are - how many air shows are there? Plenty. But how many national fly-ins are there? None. My point is; let’s keep it as a national fly-in not an air show. Remember not all our members own an aircraft. KEN MCGREGOR FROM THE EDITOR / I heard a similar story from several people so went to test it myself on the Saturday. Even though I didn’t have any ID, I wasn’t stopped from strolling around the lines of aircraft any time during the weekend. The one time I was pushed out of the parking 8 / SPORT PILOT
area was when the air show itself was about to start, and I can see the see the sense of doing that (thanks a lot Ramstein Air Base). The only place I couldn’t go was where the big noisy ones were parked in front of the aero club and, again, I can see the sense of keeping the kids and tyre kickers away from things that might bite. FROM THE CEO / AirVenture ran for three days, 24 hours in total, and the air show component ran for two hours. The event has a tag line of ‘The Great Aussie Fly-in’ and to my mind is a national fly-in. All the things historically on offer in Temora were on offer - exhibitors, seminars, food and drink and opportunities for mates to sit down and talk all things aviation. In terms of success, yes the event was a huge success. More than 2,400 visitors and over 440 aircraft. Certainly the rules regarding events of this nature have changed in the past 15 years, just as they have for marathon running, car shows and the like. Aviation is no different. We have a responsibility to ensure the event we offer is safe and economically viable, both for the organisers and exhibitors. We are exploring ways to keep the event as accessible as possible and the feedback you offer will aid us in achieving this.
TIME AS A TRAVELLER Just wanted to comment on Dave King’s ‘The exact time’ (Sport Pilot October 2017) regarding pilots’ inbound call to airfields with their ETA. Where he says “…it means the inbound pilot is expecting to arrive in the destination circuit at 52 minutes past the current hour at that location.” he is only partly correct in time zones which are an exact number of hours plus or minus from Greenwich Mean Time, because ETA is actually called with reference to GMT (or Zulu), not local time. In Australia that only happens to correspond arithmetically with the eastern and western states because they are an exact number of hours from GMT (WA +08:00; NSW, Vic, Tas, Qld +10:00), but not SA or NT which both operate on GMT + 09:30. This includes Broken Hill in NSW. Hence a pilot flying in SA/NT airspace calling “ETA 52” would have had to subtract 30 minutes from (or add 30 onto, if that’s mentally easier) their local ETA time of 22 before making their radio call. Us middle earth Aussies share this unfortunate 30-minute mental gymnastics encumbrance with very few other worldwide locations – Afghanistan, India, Sri Lanka, Lord Howe Island, Cocos Islands, Marquesas Islands, Newfoundland and part of Labrador, Iran, North Korea and Myanmar. Incredibly there are even two places where there is a 45-minute difference from GMT. One is Nepal and, believe it or not, areas of WA and SA at the interstate border. I’d be interested to hear of pilots’ experiences at airfields on that border. All this can be neatly eliminated if you set
L E T T ERS TO TH E ED ITOR
your watch to GMT in areas where these odd time differences could confuse your mental arithmetic. Or you can invert your analogue watch so the minute hand shows an equivalent GMT time on the face. Or your GPS will show an accurate ETA for you (if its clock is set properly). Many pilots are simply calling their Estimated Time Interval as though it is an ETA, for example, “ETA 6 minutes”. Where I fly there is probably a 50:50 split between pilots using the correct ETA GMT (Zulu) approach and those calling ETI in minutes. Interested in others’ experiences. PAUL SMITH
TIME AFTER TIME I was rather surprised reading Dave King’s letter, ‘The exact time’ (Sport Pilot October 2017) when he indicated that he rounds the estimated circuit time to the nearest five minutes. Has Dave forgotten what other pilots do with this information? Firstly, pilots can be accurate enough when calculating the estimated time of arrival at an airport. Some of us even have a glass cockpit which does the calculation for us. Having an accurate time piece is essential when flying. Secondly, the time given allows other pilots to calculate the order of landing at the airport – Will I get there before Dave or after? Will I be number one in the circuit or number two? Also, pilots on the ground can work out if they have time to taxi or backtrack on an active runway without hindering the arriving aircraft. Any pilot flying at an airport where RPT land can cause undue stress to the RPT pilots because when they plan their landing time, they will find that the light sports aircraft is not where its pilot said it would be. It is all a matter of being polite in aiding other pilots to avoid approaching aircraft and, at the same time, giving warning of increased traffic at a particular time. All pilots should give a time which is, as near as possible, the correct one. OWEN BARTROP
to start charging members who fly-in to the event, RAAus still took a financial hit. Will a financial report be issued at some point so we can see the income and expenses? Or is this commercial-in-confidence? I fully support the concept and have done so since the first Natfly at Holbrook. I consider promotion and weather as the two main ingredients for success, with in-fighting between our groups very unproductive. MARTIN HONE FROM THE CEO / Whereas we would love to give pilots who fly in free entry, economically the event just cannot sustain that and it creates inequity. If every visitor contributes a little bit, the event will be a success. It must be remembered events of this nature cost tens of thousands of dollars to put on and, as such, spreading the cost ensures the success of the event now and into the future.
REVERSE COURSE In your answer to Edward Rees letter ‘Wind and the willows’ (Sport Pilot October 2017) issue Ops points out that qualifications earned in other disciplines are often transferable to your RAAus Certificate. Readers may like to know the reverse is true, too. This is why my wife (also a pilot) and I stuck with RAAus long after we had made the decision to go to the dark side and bought a gyroplane. I never once regretted sticking with our instructor, Steve McGrath, and plugging away at the navigation exercises in the Texan. When we went to ASRA and did the conversion, we took our knowledge with us. And there’s the added bonus of never having to try to refold a map in an open cockpit egg beater! Enjoy whatever you fly and thanks for making Sport Pilot available to all. PAUL ESCOTT Here’s the ride which took Paul away from RAAus (for now?)
THE FLY-IN FLY-OUT COST It’s good to see that the Airventure/Ozkosh/ Natfly was a success. I’m sorry to say we could not attend due to weather here in Queensland. I am rather surprised that, given the decision
COWRA ANOTHER BLOW FOR AVIATION Cowra Council has had freehold properties for sale at Cowra Airport for some time now. A great airport with a good future that would benefit the Cowra township. You could own your own freehold block of land on an airport. Every aviators’ idea of a secure space to build a hangar for their aircraft or start an aviation business. But property owners at Cowra aerodrome have just received a massive rate rise. One owner had a rate increase from $1,564.71 for the 2016/2017 year to $2,587.05 for 2017/2018. This represents a huge 65% increase! Over the past year, council has resurfaced the runway 15/33, taxiways and aprons. A new stage of freehold hangar lots have been under development as well. A total re-evaluation of the entire airport took place prior to the new rating year. Five existing properties, four of which are commercial enterprises and income bearing, and one private, now have to bear this massive increased rate/tax burden. After contact with council, owners are being pacified with the understanding their property values have increased and the increased rating burden should not be the main concern. Council believes it will not affect future hangar allotment sales. As aviation keeps being flogged with ever increasing operational costs and CASA bureaucracy, it has to be realised that the industry is retracting as flyers and maintenance operators are leaving aviation. The new stage of hangar lots is now almost completed. They will now become a good cash cow rates/tax source for council. Council says they are selling the hangar lots at cost. Obviously, the marketing of allotments is to benefit the council, with increasing rate revenue being passed over the whole aerodrome to claw back some of the expenditure. Over the past couple of years, there has been good interest shown in the new hangar allotments, which are near completion. This interest has been shown via tenders, by pilots and aircraft owners, assured by the council it was behind them and supporting the airport and aviation. It looks like the bean counters in the council have shot themselves in the feet. IKE GOODWIN
WRITE IN: EDITOR@SPORTPILOT.NET.AU The state of the organisation is reflected in the Letters to the Editor columns. The more letters – the healthier the organisation. So don’t just sit there – get involved. Your contributions are always welcome, even if no one else agrees with your opinion. The Editor makes every effort to run all letters, even if the queue gets long at certain times of the year. (By the way – the Editor reserves the right to edit Letters to the Editor to shorten them to fit the space available, to improve the clarity of the letter or to prevent libel. The opinions and views expressed in the Letters to the Editor are those of the individual writer and neither RA-Aus or Sport Pilot magazine endorses or supports the views expressed within them).
9 / SPORT PILOT
IN TH E N EW S
IAOPA GET TOGETHER
BY PHILLIP REIS S V I C E PRE SIDE N T I AOPA PAC IFIC REG ION
T
HE 29th International AOPA World Summit will be held in Queenstown, New Zealand in March. It will be a great opportunity for members of IAOPA in the Pacific region to meet and discuss mutual regulatory concerns and exchange ideas. The big issues include harmonisation of regulations governing maintenance, aircraft registration, pilot licencing and medical standards. These should be the goals of all aviation organisations. They would enable operation and movement of aircraft, maintenance personnel and pilots within the region
with minimal bureaucratic hurdles. At the moment, for a pilot to come to Australia from the US and fly in Australian airspace, it requires considerable advance notice, regulatory burdens which take considerable time, often months, to organise. We need to have procedures in place which help, not hinder, the free movement of aircraft and pilots, allow maintenance facilities to carry out maintenance on aircraft from other states and have aircraft standards which are transferable to each member state without major difficulty. I will be inviting Australian heads of gov-
ernment agencies ATSB, CASA and New Zealand CAA to attend the Pacific region meeting. For more information, www.iaopa2018. com.
PORTAL LOGIN CHANGES IF you’ve visited the RAAus member’s portal recently, you will have noticed quite a few improvements in the way you log in. The changes went live on December 5. Now when you first go to the member’s portal, an orange pop up box will appear explaining how to log in. After the pop-up box, you will be taken to the login screen. You will notice it will ask for your member number/email. Obviously enter either your member number or the email you would normally use to log in with, then your password. Once you log in, another pop up box will appear asking you to verify your details in the ‘manage my membership’ section. You will also be asked to hit ‘ok and go to ‘my member account details’ to verify that your name, email, phone numbers and postal address are correct. If you have any issues logging in contact the office on (02) 6280 4700 or email websupport@raa.asn.au.
ANOTHER SETBACK FOR ICON ANOTHER pilot has died flying an Icon A5 in the U.S. Legendary baseball pitcher, Roy Halladay, aged 40, was killed in November when the Icon he was piloting, crashed in the Gulf of Mexico. Halladay, adored in the U.S because of his long and distinguished career as a star baseball player, had been Icon’s main celebrity endorser. It was the second fatal accident in six months involving the new amphibious aircraft. In May last year, a test aircraft crashed into land beside Lake Berryessa, in Napa County, California, killing Icon’s lead aeronautical engineer, Jon Karkow and his colleague Cagri Sever. The National Transportation Safety Board put that crash down to pilot error. According to reports in the U.S, another accident involving an Icon A5, non-fatal, happened in April when the pilot misjudged his descent speed and landed heavily in the water, injuring the occupants.
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According to reports, Halladay, a relatively new pilot with little experience, had received the first of Icon’s new 2018 model and, because of his fame, was featured prominently in the company’s marketing material boasting about how he was regularly using it to fly low over water. He was flying low at the time of his accident, which led to criticism of the company for encouraging inexperienced pilots to do the same. The A5 has been designed to be very simple to operate and is stall and spin resistant. It is also equipped with a ballistic parachute. The 2018 model is about 60% more expensive than the original aircraft from four years ago. The company says its because of the safety improvements it’s made. However, losing your star celebrity endorser and your two lead engineers in the same year is going to be difficult for Icon to recover from.
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT SEMINAR SERIES Attention RAAus instructors and maintainers! RAAus is pleased to announce a series of professional development seminars designed to assist instructors and maintainers. For the first time RAAus will provide the opportunity for all instructors and maintainers to be engaged with, be informed and trained at the same time. Running from February 28 through until the end of June, the seminars will provide all instructors with practical and in-depth information on a range of relevant topics. Time will be spent presenting and discussing three key safety related topics. • Preventing and training to reduce Runway Loss of Control accidents; • The use of the RAAus Flight Instructor Reference Manual; and • Ensuring a common standard when issuing Pilot Certificates and conducting BFRs.
these will be included in presentations. As well, maintainers will be presented with invaluable tools, tips and tricks of the trade to help them keep RAAus’ 3,200 aircraft flight ready. Topics will include basic maintenance, weight and balance, log book recording and technical manual requirements. We are also excited to advise CFIs that the RAAus Safety Management System and Safety Toolbox will be rolled out during the seminars. The SMS and Toolbox will prove invaluable and ensure RAAus schools are ready for the introduction of Part 149. RAAus schools do not need to develop their own SMS, they can simply sign up to the RAAus SMS and, using the toolbox, ensure they met all necessary Part 149 requirements. For schools with an SMS already in place, the seminars will still be valuable and every CFI is encouraged to attend at least one of the 13 opportunities. As part of the professional development seminars, RAAus will also be running member forums where all members will be able to engage with Board members, CEO and senior staff. Email CEO@raa.asn.au if there are specific topics you’d like covered.
Along the way there will be opportunities to have instructors and CFIs interact with staff from RAAus Ops, Tech and Safety departments. There will also be an exciting presentation on the use of and training for Electronic Flight Bags which will assist instructors and Stay tuned for more detailed information in Sport CFIs when delivering this constantly evolving topic. Pilot February edition. RAAus invites instructors and CFIs to submit other topics and ideas for discussion. Where possible, Michael Linke
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(subject to change, specific locations are yet to be determined) 28 Feb Mildura seminar 28 Feb Mildura member forum and BBQ breakfast 08 Mar Launceston seminar 08 Mar Launceston member forum and BBQ 09 Mar Launceston seminar 16 Mar Lethbridge seminar 17 Mar Lethbridge seminar 17 Mar Lethbridge member forum and BBQ breakfast 22 Mar Latrobe Valley seminar 22 Mar Latrobe Valley member forum and BBQ 05 Apr Gawler seminar 06 Apr Gawler seminar 06 Apr Gawler member forum and BBQ
07 Apr Aldinga seminar 08 Apr Aldinga member forum and BBQ breakfast 03 May Wagga member BBQ 04 May Wagga seminar 16 May Caboolture seminar 17 May Caboolture seminar, member forum and BBQ 19 May Tamworth seminar 14 Jun Bindoon seminar, member forum and BBQ 15 Jun Serpentine seminar 16 Jun Serpentine seminar, member forum and BBQ 27 Jun Townsville seminar, member forum and BBQ 28 Jun Townsville seminar 30 Jun Rockhampton seminar
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THE RIGHT PLANE FOR THE WRONG CATEGORY PART TWO OF THE RISE AND FALL OF THE CESSNA 162 SK YCAT CHER
BY AL AN BE T TE RID GE
B
Y 2011, pricing for its Skycatcher was becoming a major problem for Cessna. At its inception in July 2006, Jack Pelton had promised you could buy one for under US$100,000, a price most people at Cessna knew would be impossible to achieve. By July, 2007 the price had risen to US$109,500. By 2008, it had become US$111,500 and US$112,500 by 2010. In November 2011, the company indicated the price was being increased to an astonishing US$149,000. Part of the increase, according to Cessna, was the incorporation of what had previously been optional equipment, including the multifunction display, intercom and sun-visors. But at least $20,000 of it was to help improve the company’s bottom line. Even the plan to have the aircraft built by the Shenyang Aircraft Corporation in China did not solve the pricing problem. The idea was the aircraft would be built in China, test flown, disassembled and shipped to the U.S where they would be re-assembled and have all modifications completed by Cessna contractor, Yingling Aviation. The decision to have the aircraft built in China was controversial in the U.S and Cessna received a high degree of negative feedback from both existing and potential customers. The price increases left the C162 priced well above its competitors and allowed customers, who had paid deposits, to cancel their orders and recover their money, which they did in droves. Cessna needed to sell the aircraft in Europe if it was to be commercially successful. The LSA market in the U.S is tiny compared to Europe’s. Only about 255 LSA were delivered there in 2012. But to be sold in Europe, the 162 would need both a Type Certificate and a Production Certificate. It had neither, so Cessna was forced to refund deposits held by European customers. In order to salvage a rapidly deteriorating position, Cessna announced in July, 2012 it would be
Flight One instructor Michael Ward with Lucas Tisdall
moving the C162 into the primary category, giving it both Type and Production Certificates and allowing for a much simpler registration process overseas. Cessna’s Skycatcher business leader for the 162 project, Tracy Leopold, said the move would aid in the certification process with countries worldwide. “This will make the Skycatcher a more innovative aircraft for our customers,” Ms Leopold said. “We’re migrating to the primary category in the U.S in order to be able to export the 162 into Europe,” she said. “The pilot can still operate the aircraft as an LSA, which makes this solution even more attractive to the Skycatcher customer.” While the plan sounded good, the reality was far different. 16 / SPORT PILOT
To approve the aircraft in the primary category, the FAA demanded changes to the design, which would have required additional expensive flight testing, something Cessna ultimately was not prepared to do. The transition never eventuated and the failed attempt was yet another nail in the C162’s coffin. Industry insiders starting to sound the death knell for the aircraft. The tale of woe continued when, in November 2012, Cessna was forced to issue a Mandatory Service Bulletin after finding cracks on its cyclic test aircraft. The MSB required the addition of new wing ribs and modifications to the wing attachment structure for all of the first 228 Skycatchers manufactured. The modification was extensive and required 32 manhours to complete. To its credit, Cessna paid to modify all aircraft affected. But the writing
Czech Sport Aircraft SportCruiser
Gareth Newport is more than happy with his C162
Piper first showed off its PiperSport in 2010
At its height more than 1,200 Skycatchers had been ordered was now on the wall. At its height more than 1,200 Skycatchers had been ordered. In October 2013, Cessna CEO, Scott Ernest, admitted the Skycatcher had “no future” with the company. In late January 2014, Cessna told its dealers to stop offering the aircraft. A month later, Cessna removed all marketing for the Skycatcher from its website. A total of 275 Skycatchers had been built and 195 sold. The remaining 80 aircraft were used for parts, until December 2016 when the balance were scrapped. So what went wrong with Cessna’s first and only foray into the world of LSA? It boils down to the fact that the Skycatcher was the right aircraft for the wrong category. Had it been built as a new entrant into the
primary category, as was the case with its predecessors the C150/152, the 600kgs weight restriction would not have applied. There’s little doubt it would be have been a huge sales success. Also in the primary category, it would not have suffered as much from the increased pricing, nor the restriction to European sales. Basically, the C162 was built as a scaled down C152 and even flight tested as such. Although Cessna has a long and proud history of aircraft manufacturing it appears that they simply couldn’t get their heads around the concept of LSA. Why had Cessna decided to go down the path of designing a completely new LSA model? Why didn’t they take the option, as Piper had done, of ‘badge’ engineering an existing design? 17 / SPORT PILOT
Flight One's C162
In 2010, Piper announced they would enter the LSA market with a licenced derivative of the Czech Sport Aircraft’s SportCruiser which would be called the PiperSport. Piper’s plan was that the aircraft would continue to be produced by Czech Sport Aircraft with some changes exclusive to the PiperSport, such as a stronger nose gear, a ballistic recovery system, leather interior, modified pitch controls and a custom paint job. As far as Piper was concerned it made no commercial sense to design and build its own LSA as Cessna had done. Even then Piper had problems, not with the aircraft but the business model which had been developed for it. On January 12, 2011 after selling just 45 aircraft, the company announced the PiperSport would be discontinued.
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H OLID AY READ IN G C162 about to become scrap
Skycatchers awaiting destruction / Not even the engines were removed before they were scrapped / Ready to be transported to the scrap heap
Piper CEO Geoffrey Berger said: “After a year working with Czech Sport Aircraft, we have determined it is in our company’s best long-term interests to discontinue the business relationship which distributed a Light Sport Aircraft manufactured by the Czech company and distributed under Piper’s brand by a separate distributor network. “Clearly, our company has a different business perspective and approach to the market than Czech Sport Aircraft.” The Czech company reacted by announcing that business would continue as normal, using the same distributor and dealer network, but the name of the aircraft would return to the original SportCruiser. What really went on behind the scenes we may never know. Was it a difference of business perspective, as Berger said? Or was it simply that Piper decided the margins were too low to be worth the trouble? Whatever the reaso, the demise of the C162 Skycatcher and the PiperSport put an end to the major players' entry into LSA.
SKYCATCHERS DOWN-UNDER
A number of C162s were imported into Australia and are still giving good service. Gareth Newport purchased his aircraft from the Tyabb Aero Club in July 2016 and has since flown about 100 hours in it. “The Skycatcher is a great aeroplane,” Gareth said. “The continental engine is powerful and gives a good rate of climb. The LAMEs are all fa-
miliar with it, so maintenance and annuals are straight forward.” Prior to buying his 162 Gareth had flown about 40 hours on a 152 and said the transition was easy. “All the switches and controls are broadly in the same place, which made changing aircraft a fair bit easier. “The Garmin 300 is a cut down version of the G1000, so would again make for easy transition to larger aircraft with glass cockpits,” he said. “The 162 has more responsive handling characteristics than the heavier 152 in windy conditions and I think this may be one of the reasons they never lived up to expectations,” he added. Gareth has added the extra display and is happy with the result. “Adding the additional display was a good move and it gives me some redundancy in case of an EFIS malfunction. “If one display fails, all flight information is automatically displayed on the remaining one. “The cost to put in the second display was minimal, due to the factory having the foresight to have the wiring already in place. “It was simply a matter of the installer plugging in the second display and off I went.” Another aspect that Gareth loves about his Skycatcher is the size of the cockpit. “The cockpit width is fantastic,” he said. “There is so much more shoulder space than the 152s I used to fly and even the 172 seems to be smaller.” “Although the seat is fixed, the rudder ped19 / SPORT PILOT
als are adjustable and, once I had it set up, there was no problem at all. “And since I am the only one who flies it, changing pilots isn’t a problem.” Flight One, an Archerfield based flight training organisation, operates two of the four 162s currently on the CASA register. Company CEO Lucas Tisdall says the aircraft are ideal for them. “We have been operating them now for three and half years and never had any major problems,” Lucas said. “In the early days, we did have one on which the door opened up in flight. That was exciting, but that problem has been well and truly eradicated by the fitting of a second door latch, which Cessna supplied. “Our primary role in flight training is to produce commercial pilots, so the EFIS cockpit is great because it will be what most pilots encounter during their careers,” he said. Lucas said the aircraft also offered great value for money for the company’s students as they gained hours towards their commercial licences. “The C162 is a great aircraft for hour building and helps reduce the overall cost of training. “The lower operating cost is reflected in the hire rate and, combined with the fact that the aircraft has a very similar cockpit layout to the 172/182, students can gain experience for a far lower price than if they were flying the larger aircraft. “Overall we are very happy with the Skycatchers and don’t have any plans to replace them at this stage.”
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Full stop landing
HOW NOT TO FLY FLOATS BY DAVID P E Y RE
B
ECAUSE these two stories are personal and, to some extent, embarrassing, I debated whether to write them or not. But, because they are interesting, I decided to put aside my personal pride to give you something to contemplate. My first experience with floatplanes occurred in 1979. I was tasked with giving a check flight to the owner of a Lake La4 Buccaneer. This aircraft, an amphibian, had been sitting on the ground at Archerfield for quite some time before the new owner bought it. Although I had never flown an amphibian, it fit into the single-engine category and was legal for me to fly on land operations. On the downwind leg, the owner completed the pre-landing checks and identified three lights. Looking across to the gear lights, I thought I could also see three lights and confirmed this. The handling notes required that, after gear selection, confirmation was to be made by actually sighting them that the mains were down. I checked the right-hand gear and it looked as if it was down. As we touched down on the grass runway, the aircraft lurched to the right and stopped - resting on the extended left wheel and the right outboard float. We shut down the engine and clambered out with the noise of the airfield crash alarms blaring in our ears. I could see that the right undercarriage had partially extended and was contemplating my next action when the fire engine came roaring up. In no time at all, six burley fire fighters had joined me looking at the situation. I asked them to lift up the right wing and I managed to kick the right undercarriage leg and heard it click into the down extension lock. I then re-started the engine and called the tower for a taxi clearance, but this was denied because they wanted the accident investigators on the scene. I argued that we could taxi okay and that it would be better to clear the airstrip. I was given a clearance. The gear had failed to fully extend because thick grease on the strut had hardened and impeded full gear extension.
DON’T TRUST YOUR DRY RUNS
My next experience with those malignant floatplane gremlins happened in 1991. I had been loaned from Seabird Aviation to Austflight Aviation where my good friend, Jim Fenton, wanted to certify an amphibious Drifter. The Drifter had been fitted with retractable main wheels, which were lowered and retracted with complicated simplicity using cords and pulleys. I say simplicity, because all the pilot had to do was to turn small windlasses which raised and lowered each wheel one at a time. Complicated, because the confusion of pulleys and cords was amazing. Tests and practice of this system were conducted in the hangar and surprisingly, even though turning the little windlasses was tiresome and arduous, the whole arrangement proved to be satisfactory. We then practised a few landings on the airstrip, which were also satisfactory, so I flew the Drifter over to Lake Moogarah and conducted a few water landings. I practised lowering and raising the gear a few times and then disaster. I lowered the left gear but the right gear wouldn’t come down. No matter how many times I unlocked it and turned the little windlass, that wretched wheel would not budge. So, there I was, one up and one down. Fortunately, I managed to retract the left gear then locked both wheels in the up position. Due to the remoteness of Lake Moogarah and, after discussion with the ground party, I decided to return to Boonah airstrip rather than risk being stranded at the lake. I was then faced with doing a landing on the floats with the gear up. On the approach, my heart was in my mouth – would I somersault on touch down? Apart from when I once landed with a banner hooked on the nose-wheel instead of the banner hook, this landing rivalled the shortest landing I have ever done! Any lessons to be learned? Just one—don’t always trust your dry runs.
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Touch down
WHAT COULD GO WRONG?
In 1995, I bit the bullet and started my own flying school at Bundaberg. Part of my service was to test fly various aircraft. On this day, I accepted a task, once again offered by my friend Jim Fenton, to test fly a strut braced Drifter on floats. I duly loaded up my favourite Jabiru and set off from Bundaberg to Boonah. The weather was fine and beaut and I was enjoying flying over the Sunshine Coast hinterland. Inland of Maroochydore, the sun was shining down on the canopy of the jungle-like bush and reminded me of the lines of C. J. Dennis: ‘Watchin’, behind the orchard’s bonzer green, The flamin’ wonder of the settin’ sun.’ * *C. J. Dennis ‘The Mooch of Life’ When I arrived at Boonah, the team from Austflight Aviation was busy with the preparations for the test flight. These preparations included test
runs in a small hovercraft which was to be used as the rescue boat in case of something going wrong. But, what could possibly go wrong? I went through the test flights matrix with the flight test engineer, Bill Whitney, and convinced myself that all would be AOK. The plan was to fly the Drifter over to Lake Moogarah, land on wheels on the side of the lake and then fit the floats for the test runs. The next morning dawned as a beautiful day with only a light wind. The Drifter looked magnificent, all new with its red and yellow wings and nose cone reflecting the early morning. I flew over to the lake, located the area to land and, using the short field capability of the Drifter, landed. The lake was not even being ruffled by the wind. A photograph in my logbook shows a wedge of swans swanning around on the placid 22 / SPORT PILOT
surface among patches of very light fog. After the floats were fitted, Jim taxied the Drifter around to our assembly point. I noticed the floats were sitting very low in the water. It didn’t worry me, because I knew all the weight and displacement calculations had been made. The first few flights were spent conducted the usual flight tests, directional and lateral stability. Stick force per g, stall speeds and the like. One of the flights involved meeting the requirement to fly 15% above Vne. I must say that this was a very exhilarating flight. The target speed was 95kts and, although this doesn’t sound very high speed, it was quite difficult to achieve with the normal high drag of the Drifter increased somewhat by the extra drag of the floats. I nosed over into a powered dive and could see the red painted hovercraft, almost waiting expectantly, on the lake. I had to use quite a bit of muscle to hold the nose down and watched the airspeed
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slowly build up. As the ASI needle crept up over the 95kts, I eased back on the power and came out of the dive. After the aircraft had been inspected, it was time for the last flight of the day. By this time the wind had sprung up and the surface of the lake was starting to develop waves with crests and troughs. I got airborne and completed the assigned flight tests and, after about 40 minutes, I set up for the landing. This was okay but I was faced with taxiing downwind to the assembly point. Approaching this point meant that I was taxiing with a quartering tailwind and along the trough line. About fifty metres from the shore, I noticed the left float going down into the trough and the right wing rising on the crest of the wave. This caused the nose of the left float to submerge and then, almost in slow motion, the tail lifted and I took a deep breath as the Drifter turned
“The only real damage was to my pride”
upside down. So, there I was, upside down and in imminent danger of drowning. I could feel the balance weights falling down and scraping my legs and I noticed this huge red glowing button where the seatbelt release catch was situated against my tummy. My immediate thought was that the good Lord had intervened. I had enough nous to pull out my helmet headset leads and rose to the surface, just as the rescue crew arrived in the hovercraft. Two of the gallant lads dived in and unceremoniously dragged me on board. Sitting on the shore, bedraggled, sopping wet, water stilling streaming down from my helmet, I had a real mixture of feelings. Grateful to be on the shore, trying to analyse the sequence 23 / SPORT PILOT
of events. I had doubts about my handling actions and, most of all, filled with wonder about the illuminated red button. As I was removing my helmet, I realised what had caused the button to grow big and glow red. My helmet was a Gentex with a full-face visor. As I was suspended upside down, the helmet filled with water and, with the sun shining through, the water in the visor both enlarged the vision of the release button and sun’s rays caused it to glow a brilliant red. The aircraft only sustained light damage and because it was dunked in fresh water there were no corrosion problems. The only real damage was to my pride but, being a glutton for punishment, I was back a week later to finish off the flight test.
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FromLARGE to SMALL
BY AL AN BE T TERIDGE
H
AVING learnt to fly in Redcliffe in 1973, and gaining nearly 1,300hrs of GA flight time in everything from C150s through to C210s and Piper PA32Rs, I thought the transition to RAAus type aircraft would be easy. What was easy was seeing just how wrong one person could be. I hadn’t flown for a number of years due to financial restraints, so I knew I would be a tad rusty. My conversion to LSA was to be conducted by Russell Middleton of Pro-Sky Aviation in Maryborough. Russ, being the everconfident man he is, assured me I should be able to do the conversion in between four and six hours. On day one, Russ spent considerable time ensuring I understood the aircraft we were going to use, a SkyLeader 500 and an Evektor SportStar. He very patiently explained the operation of both aircraft and how I could expect them to handle. He answered all my questions in a professional manner, as I would expect from a man of his impeccable aviation background. Because of my training over the years in GA, I am aware that not all in-
structors are born equal. Many are excellent pilots, with all the skills of Hinkler or Kingsford Smith, but some are lousy at conveying that knowledge. Others have the ability to be expert aviators and have the aptitude to impart those skills, helping students gain the confidence they need. I had an instructor of the former variety during my early training. He would revel in showing me how good he was, but then had difficulty in demonstrating how I was to do the same thing. He would tell me it came naturally to him and leave it at that. I requested a change of instructors. On my first flight in the SkyLeader, we headed out to the training area to conduct some upper air work. Because all of my experience had been in GA aircraft, the first thing I had to get used to was the throttle being on the left-hand side of the aircraft. Russ pointed out that some LSA aircraft had dual throttles, some had one in the centre and one on the left-hand side and many of them only had a left hand one. He said I should try and get used to it. That turned out to be remarkably harder than you would imagine. My
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Teaching yourself to fly is right up there with do-ityourself brain surgery natural instinct was to hold the control column with my left hand and use my right hand to control the throttle, mixture and pitch controls. Clearly I didn’t have to concern myself with mixture or pitch, but the temptation to use the centre throttle control was strong. Another aspect I found a tad disconcerting at first was engine speed. The trusty and ever reliable Rotax 912ULS happily spins at around 5,500rpm during take-off and, even in cruise, it still ticks over at a little under 5,000rpm. When you are used to engine speeds of around 2,550rpm on take-off and 2,250-2,300rpm for cruise, the speed of the Rotax seems insane. Still, I got over it and never really gave it a thought after about 20 minutes or so. My reasoning being that, if it hadn’t destroyed itself up to that point, hopefully it wouldn’t do so when I was flying it. Stalls were remarkably docile and the slow speed, especially with flap extended, was eerily low for a GA pilot like myself. A few steep turns and a couple of practice engine failures later found us heading back to the airport. It was in the circuit the really big difference between LSA aircraft and GA types became obvious.
I was used to doing powered approaches with different airspeeds for base, final and over the fence. But the SkyLeader (and other LSA I have since flown) uses the same airspeed all the way down – and with no power at all. Each and every landing is a glide approach. It was during the round-out that another big difference revealed itself. With a heavier GA aircraft, the airspeed bleeds away fairly slowly after you round-out, but with the much lighter LSA the reduction in airspeed is almost instantaneous. During the debriefing after that first lesson, Russ explained that, because of the light weight, LSA aircraft had very little inertia, so lifting the nose had a dramatic effect on airspeed. My mind wandered back to the very early days of ultralight aircraft, when they were governed by the earliest incarnation of CAO 95.10, introduced in November 1976. Incidentally, this was the first regulation in the world designed specifically to cover powered ultralight flying machines. Initially ultralight aircraft were banished into the airspace below 500ft and not permitted to fly within a certain distance of people or allowed to cross public roads. Nor were they required to be registered. Back in those days, if you wanted to fly an ultralight, you had to teach yourself to fly be-
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Pro-Sky’s SkyLeader 500 pictured at Gladstone
Another aspect I found a tad disconcerting at first was the engine speed
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Pro-Sky owner and CFI Russ Middleton explains the effect of controls to student Matt Cozilf
cause there were no training organisations and few two seaters. Teaching yourself to fly is right up there with do-it-yourself brain surgery and the results were often the same. Quite a few pilots bit the dust. In a lot of cases, it was because of a failure to understand how these super light aircraft would behave when you reduced power. Most, if not all, had no stall warning devices and many pilots didn’t fully understand how the aircraft would behave in a stall – after all, it is very hard to practice a stall when you are limited to operating below 500ft. The airspeed bled off so quickly after a power reduction (or an engine failure – which were common) that a stall could occur without any warning – the result was usually serious. The next few hours of my conversion were spent in the circuit area with an occasional foray out to the training area for further stall training, forced landings and generally to just get a feel for the aircraft. Russ proved to have the patience of a saint. I felt he sometimes had an overwhelming desire to take control, but he didn’t. After about five hours of training, he sent me solo. As he climbed out of the aircraft and told me to go and do a few circuits on my own, I was sure I could see him doing a silent prayer. I’m not certain whether he was doing that on my behalf or just to get his precious aircraft returned to him in in the same condition as he left it. Either way, it worked. I returned safely and he got his aeroplane back in one piece.
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CFIT OR A PERFECT STORM? T H E C R A S H O F TA A F L I G H T 5 3 8 BY AL AN BE T TERIDGE
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HE arrival in Australia of the first Trans Australia Airways F27 Friendship aircraft was reason for celebration on April 16, 1959. For the first time, air travellers would be treated to unheard of speed, smoothness and the quiet cabin the aircraft offered. The F27 was to replace the venerable DC3 aircraft which had been the mainstay of commercial aviation in Australia for many years. TAA was the first operator outside of Europe to order the aircraft and showed the company’s faith in the burgeoning airline industry at that time. It could fly higher, faster and for longer than the aircraft it was replacing and offered more opportunities for travellers than had previously been available.
THE AIRCRAFT
The aircraft, which was registered VH-TFB, and named the ‘Abel Tasman’, was one of six aircraft which had been ordered by TAA in 1956. It had its first flight on February 26, 1959 and handed over to TAA at Schiphol airport in the Netherlands on April 6, departing on its ferry flight to Australia under the command of Capt. Don Winch two days later. TAA wasted no time in getting the aircraft into service with its first revenue earning flight from Sydney to Canberra and on to Essendon taking place on May 1. By June, 1960 TAA had 12 Fokker Friendships in service and the aircraft had proven popular with aircrew and passengers alike.
PREVIOUS F27 ACCIDENT
The only blot on the F27’s operations in Australia up to that point had been a landing accident in Mackay of sister aircraft, VH-TFK, on January 22. Although the aircraft belonged to TAA, it had been leased to Melbourne based operator Associated Airlines of Australia on January 1, 1960. The accident was a result of the nose gear failing to lock into position for landing. During the landing roll, the starboard main landing gear collapsed. This caused extensive damage to the starboard wing, engine and airframe. Luckily no one was injured. The aircraft was repaired and returned to TAA at the end of the lease on December 9, 1960.
THE ACCIDENT FLIGHT
As people headed off to bed on June 10, 1960 no one could have any idea they would awake
The wings and engine nacelles are lifted from the sea. Note the port wingtip, the damage is consistant with TAA’s Frank McMullen’s possible scenario. Photo: Civil Aviation Historical Society - Doug De Lacy
to the news Australia had experienced its worst ever commercial aircraft accident. Not since the 1950 crash of an ANA DC-4 in Western Australia, which killed 29 people, had Australia experienced any fatal commercial aviation flights and it seemed inconceivable it could happen to the region’s newest and most modern airliner – the F27 Friendship. On June 10, TFB was operating as Flight 538 from Brisbane to Mackay, with stops at Maryborough and Rockhampton. It departed on time at 17:00 under the command of Capt. Frank Pollard, with Flight Officer L. Davis, and hostesses (as flight attendants were then referred) M. Wilmer and J. Hamilton. The flights to Maryborough and Rockhampton were normal and on time, with the aircraft arriving in Rockhampton as scheduled at 19:02. When Capt. Pollard updated his weather information, it showed the forecast for Mackay was predicting shallow fog patches and he would be required to nominate an alternate aerodrome. As a result, the aircraft was loaded with an additional 2,600 litres of fuel, giving it sufficient range to continue on to Townsville if a diversion was required. Joining the nine passengers already aboard were seven adults and nine schoolboys. All of the school children were boarders at Rockhampton Grammar School, returning to Mackay to be with their families for the Queen’s Birthday weekend. TFB departed Rockhampton at 19:52 on climb to its planned cruising altitude of 13,000ft with an ETA for Mackay of 20:40. About 20 minutes after departure, and a few minutes before the aircraft was due to start its descent, the flight crew was advised by Mackay 28 / SPORT PILOT
ATC that the aerodrome was closed to all arrivals due to a light fog rolling in. After receiving this information, Capt. Pollard told control he would delay his descent and hold over Mackay at 13,000ft in case visibility improved. At 20:45 ATC advised that the visibility was fluctuating between two and 2-1/2 miles (3,200 - 4,000m) along the runway 14/32 centreline. Capt. Pollard advised that the airport lighting, the city area and the surrounding country could be clearly seen, but a belt of fog extending about 10 miles was situated to the southwest of the airport and was moving in a slightly north easterly direction across the airport. Capt. Pollard then requested a clearance to descend and landing instructions. The aircraft was cleared to make a visual approach for a landing on runway 14. The crew reported final approach to runway 14 and was cleared to land. As the aircraft approached close to the runway threshold at a height of about 50ft, the pilot announced he was going around because of a small patch of fog which had appeared on the runway. Capt. Pollard then advised he would attempt to land on runway 32. ATC observed the aircraft descending to approach runway 32. It reached a height of approximately 200ft but, before crossing the threshold, it began to climb along the line of the runway and the pilot requested permission to hold over Mackay at 5,000ft until an improvement in the weather occurred. The aircraft held over Mackay until 22:00 when ATC advised the aircraft that the conditions were improving rapidly. In response to this information the flight crew advised they would commence a descent for a visual approach to
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Runway 32. The aircraft was given the QNH (1019) and the wind (calm) and told to report on final. The controller on duty, Mr E. Miskell, then telephoned the airport fire service for the latest ground temperature. It was 55.4 deg Fahrenheit (13 deg Celsius). Miskell reported this to the aircraft but did not receive a response. Miskell called the aircraft for a second time and noted that the time was 22:05. Again there was no response to the call. At 22:10 Miskell started the procedure for launching a search and rescue operation.
THE SEARCH FOR WRECKAGE
At 03:00 the following morning, a searchlight equipped motor launch found items of wreckage, including damaged passenger seats, clothing and cabin furnishings floating on the surface of the ocean, five miles due east of the airport. The unthinkable had occurred. The aircraft had crashed into the sea, killing all on board. The priority for investigators was to find the wreckage, recover those who had lost their lives and establish the cause of the accident. There were large numbers of F27 aircraft operating world-wide and if a problem existed, it must be found quickly to avoid further accidents. A navy survey ship, the HMAS Warrego, was sent to search for the wreckage and arrived on Sunday, June 12. That afternoon, the ship discovered the major sections of TFB in 12 metres of water. It would take another two agonising weeks for the salvage operations to be completed.
THE BOARD OF INQUIRY
A Board of Accident Inquiry was appointed on July 29 and, after allowing investigators time to examine the wreckage, it opened on October 4. Investigators could not find any material, structural defects, fire or explosion on board, or any mechanical problems with the aircraft. Without any indication of what the crew may have been discussing during the last stages of the flight they were unable to determine a definitive cause. The aircraft had simply flown into the sea for no obvious reason. Some speculation
Photo: Civil Aviation Historical Society Doug De Lacy
took place that a problem may have occurred with the aircraft’s altimeter. Was the static system or altimeter itself faulty, giving the crew a false reading and leading them to believe they were higher than they were? Another idea canvassed was the fact that the altimeter in question was a three pointer type. This type of altimeter has individual pointers for thousands, hundreds and tens of feet. They were notoriously hard to read and could have been easily misinterpreted by the flight crew during a night approach in marginal conditions. As a consequence, this type of altimeter was later removed from service. One of the stranger ideas put forward was that by TAA’s Director of Engineering, John Watkins. He was intrigued by a mysterious brown glass medicine bottle discovered in the wreckage of the cockpit. Mr Watkins theorised that one of the schoolchildren on the flight may have been an aviation enthusiast and had been shown into the cockpit while handling a bottle of model aircraft fuel. At some point the bottle’s contents may have spilled in the cockpit, the fumes distracting the pilots enough for them to make a mistake and crash. It would seem incredible anyone would have been invited into the cockpit during final approach, given the conditions under which the crew were operating. It would appear far more likely the mysterious medicine bottle was just that – a medicine bottle which had been thrown forward into the cockpit (most cockpit doors were left open at 29 / SPORT PILOT
that time) by impact forces during the crash. A far more likely scenario was that expressed by TAA’s Technical Services Engineering Superintendent and F27 Project Engineer, Frank McMullen. Mr McMullen formed the opinion that, during the third attempt to land, the crew adopted a low flight path hoping to keep the airstrip in sight below the cloud layer. He further speculated the crew was deceived by the difficulty in assessing their height over a glassy sea and put the left wing tip into the water while turning onto the runway approach. A photo showing the wings being recovered clearly shows the port wing tip missing, which added weight to Mr McMullen’s theory. As any pilot who has landed on the water will tell you, it is extremely difficult to judge height, even during daylight, when landing on a calm water surface. So this scenario may have been correct but, without any cockpit voice recorder or flight data recordings, this could never be proven.
THE OUTCOME
The Board called 95 witness and its final report was 1,250 pages long. DCA’s investigation was the most intense ever conducted into an accident in Australia up until that time. The report filled four volumes. The investigators and Board of Accident Inquiry came to the conclusion that a probable cause could not be positively established. It was known the flight crew was highly experienced and was operating at night with very limited visual cues. The aircraft was virtually new, having only accumulated 2,420hrs of flight time. One of the recommendations to come out of the inquiry was that passenger-carrying aircraft, the size of the F27 and larger, should be equipped with flight data recorders and cockpit voice recorders. Australia was to become the first country in the world to mandate the carriage of CVRs on civil transport aircraft. Today, as a result of the crash of TFB, all large civil transport aircraft all over the world are required to carry both CVRs and FDRs.
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In honour of Dad BY TR ACY & JA SON SAVILL
Jase and Trace’s Zenith
OU R T R I P T O K A R U M BA & BACK IN H ON OR OF MY D AD F OR W H A T W OU L D H AVE BEEN H IS 75TH BIRTH D AY
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ASON and I went up north flying for a bit of an outback trip in our Zenith Zodiac. We wanted to be at Karumba in time for what would have been dad’s 75th birthday. Dad passed in September 2014 and we really wish we had been able to take him to Karumba to go fishing one last time. On our travels, we met up with a few of our flying friends who came along for the trip - Julie and Ian in their Savannah, Shane in his Jab, Murray and Doug in their SeaReys, Bill in his Savannah and Peter in his Foxbat. Our first stopover was at Peter and Carmel’s place at Olga Downs. They opened up the shearing quarters for us to camp in. That saved us setting up our tents for our first night away from home. They even gave us a BBQ dinner and cooked breakfast before we went on our way. What beautiful people. We set off for Adels Grove, with a quick stopover at Burke and Wills roadhouse. After lunch, the owners of the roadhouse gave us a lift back to the planes so we didn’t have to lug full jerry cans. How bloody beautiful is Adels Grove! Wow! And the water. I have to say, it was bloody cold! Here’s a tip if you are there. Don’t stick your foot in and take your time trying to adjust. Just jump right in. It’s the only way. But remember to breathe. And if you’ve come that far north, definitely make sure you do the electric boat trip up the Gorge. You will not be disappointed. We stayed for a couple of days camping and it was just beautiful.
Then we headed to Karumba to say “Happy 75th birthday, dad!” Peter happened to know a few people around the place, so we had use of a car. Because there were a few of us, it meant things were always done in two trips. Luckily Karumba isn’t too big. We toured the place, stopping for a quick beer at the Animal Bar. Then we went to the Barramundi Farm for a tour. When we were kids, dad used to bring us to Karumba Point for fishing. There’s a bar there now, so what better place to celebrate his birthday? I had Dad’s favourite V.B and missed him. For the last part of our journey, we headed off to Einasleigh. We stopped at Croydon for a leg stretch and cuppa on the way. The Einasleigh Gorge is worth seeing. We had to imagine what it would look like when it was full of water. A great swimming hole for sure. The next day we separated to head home, Peter and Shane back to Olga Downs, then Shane back to Longreach; Julie and Ian, Bill, Doug, Murray went on to Undara Lava Caves for the night. Our departure the next morning was delayed when late fog rolled in. Then, when we finally departed, we found the clouds too thick to negotiate. So we turned around and went back to Einasleigh to wait for it to clear up. When it did, we made it home to Donnington with just a quick stop for a wee. It was a great trip. I’m sure dad would have loved it as well.
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H OLID AY READ IN G Dawn ready for Take Off Adels Grove
The same trip but by SeaRey BY DOUG BAUER
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HEARD on the grapevine the Whitsunday Flying Group was planning another of their outback trips, taking in Adeles Grove and Karumba. I thought that sounded like fun. Day one I met up with Murray and his SeaRey at Mackay and we headed up the Pioneer Valley to check out a few water bodies along the way. Then we dropped over the back of the range and convened with the group at Bowen River. There is a bush strip there near an original old school 1860s pub. We conducted an aerial surveillance of nearby Terrible Gorge, then set off to Burdekin Dam for lunch. The plan was for the two SeaReys to amuse themselves on the dam, while the Savannahs cooled their heels at the old Burdekin Dam Wilderness Lodge airstrip. The Wilderness Lodge is long gone, leaving just wilderness. Burdekin Dam is very large, with a hill island in the middle. There are a lot of dead trees, good for fish but not so good for SeaReys. That said, there was plenty of clear water for touch and goes in the vicinity of the dam wall. Later, we agreed that the Burdekin Dam Wilder-
ness Lodge airstrip was off the holiday list. The surface is now gravel, with the local double G burr bush proliferating. That is when you learn it is good to have plenty of tread on your tailwheel and to avoid burr bushes. I learned the easy way. Everyone else was picking prickles out of their tyres. The next morning we set off to Lake Dunn. I tracked via Lake Buchanan. This is a large dry lake which occasionally fills. Not as salty and much smaller than Lake Eyre. I was impressed because it is starkly different to the surrounding country. It was then over Lake Galilee, which is a number of large shallow water bodies of various colours, for a water landing on Lake Dunn. Lake Dunn has an airstrip beside the sizable fresh water lake, with facilities such as tennis courts and powered camp sites. A bargain at $5 a night. The land based crew had arrived earlier and were waiting on the shore for a seaplane landing show. It was 1pm and the wind had increased, leaving the lake quite choppy. We had the airstrip option, but the lake did not look too rough. The landing was fine, but as we slowed down, the distance between the waves became problematic and made for a bit of excitement. It was an
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exercise making our way to shore, because seaplanes tend to weathercock, making it a challenge to go downwind. The solution is to be patient and wait for the wind to blow you ashore. This entertained the assembly of grey nomads who had gathered to watch. Locals frequent Lake Dunn in the summer months to go water skiing. They think the water is too cold in winter and leave it to passing nomads. We were confident the wind would die down towards sunset and were not disappointed. That was the time to have a bit of fun on the lake with the SeaRey. There is something special about landing on almost glassy water and cruising to the shore as the sun drops over the horizon. We all liked Lake Dunn, with both land and water landing options and great facilities. Our thoughts turned to a possible future mixed craft fly-in there. A while later we arrived at Adels Grove via fuel stop at the Burke and Wills roadhouse. The strip at Adels is immaculate and quite close to the camping area. They brought the bus out to pick us up almost immediately. We learned not to feel pressured to rush. Mostly staff at these sorts of places are looking for an excuse to escape the routine for a bit, have a
chat and stickybeak at the planes. The Grove provides immediate relief from the dry heat, with a great spot for a swim and a choice of dining facilities. The following day saw us play tourist with a boat tour down Lawn Hill gorge. Some of our number chose a bush walk and swim at the first falls. The road between Adels and the gorge was atrocious. This made us appreciate our own chosen mode of transport. The gorge lives up to the picture postcard expectations and is well worth the visit. We elected for a dawn take off for the leg to Karumba to avoid the forecast headwinds and bumpy air. A departure over the gorge gave us another perspective, very scenic in the early dawn light. It then became a competition to see who could find the most efficient altitude and see the sea first. On the approach to Karumba, I elected to explore a few of the waterways and was not disappointed. The Leichardt River and the Sweet Swamp lake were smooth enough for an obligatory touch and go. There were seemingly endless termite mound-populated plains and then a vast area of salt pan mud flat. I felt obligated to splash down on the Karumba
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Line up Bowen River Murray and Ian fuel walk Burke and Wills roadhouse
Undara lava tubes
Main: Serenity on Lake Dunn. Insets: Einasleigh fog, Murrays SeaRey Lake Dunn sunset, and Copperfield Gorge, Einasleigh
town reach of the Norman River, before catching up with the rest of the crew at YKMB. I think you can get a bit too focused on getting to your destination in as short a time as possible. As long as you have sufficient fuel, it is definitely worthwhile checking out some of the features along the way. After a bit of refuelling, the next activity was whistle wetting at the Sunset Bar. It warms the soul to have a cool beer in hand and watch a great northern sun set over the water with friends after a fulfilling day. This was a special moment for Jase and Trace, who made a toast to Tracy’s dad who used to frequent these parts. The next leg was to Einasleigh via Croydon. We tracked over the meanderings of the Norman River and could see Normanton in the distance. I thought I would explore Croydon Dam. It was a bit breezy and choppy, but the landing was fine with a bit of mucking around to taxi to a suitable smoko location. It looked like the locals do a bit of skiing there in the warmer months. Afterwards, we all got airborne about the same time and saw what looked like rich cattle country with some sizable dry riverbeds, billabongs and the odd lake. The approach to Einasleigh was over some
rugged range country with dramatic gorges and waterfalls. Most of us left it to the last before losing altitude, to make sure we missed the ground. Lining up for Einasleigh, you could have been forgiven for thinking you were at a much larger centre. Einasleigh is blessed with a long brand new bitumen airstrip, equipped for night landings. Not what you would expect for a two-horse town. Einasleigh is a small place with an old pub with fuel and a spectacular gorge, all within a short stroll. Everyone enjoyed Einasleigh and would highly recommend it as a stopover. The locals warned us about morning fog. It looked pretty cool washing over the mountains, but we had to wait for an hour or so for it to clear. Then it was time for half of us to head off towards home. I chose instead to go via Undara to see the lava tubes. They are impressive. I wasn’t prepared for the scale of some of them. They are so convenient to the airstrip too. That was it then. Everyone arrived home safely. What a fantastic trip. Great company and an excellent experience. Bring on the next one.
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Two Reys at sunset Lake Dunn
Bent rail bridge Einasleigh
Bus drop off dawn Adels Grove
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You can get too focused on getting to your destination in as short a time as possible
e Lawn Hill Gorg first falls Lawn Hill Gorg e
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SO YOU’VE HAD A CLOSE CALL? Why not share your story so that others can learn from it too? If we publish it, we’ll give you $500. Email us at fsa@casa.gov.au Articles should be between 450 and 1000 words. If preferred, your identity will be kept confidential. If you have video footage, feel free to submit this with your close call.
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A MAN AND HIS MACHINE THE NEVER ENDING STORY OF 19-3924 BY AL AN BE T TERIDGE
Lyle Passfield (L) and David Bevan with Lyle’s Jodel D9 or was that D18
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O MANY people, the idea of getting into ultralight aircraft means either buying a shiny new factory built model or one of the many used aircraft now on the market. In the past, though, this wasn’t really an option. Most people who wanted to get into the sport did so by building their own from plans, normally purchased from overseas. Lyle Passfield, from Quirindi, was one such person. Lyle’s story starts back in 2004 when he purchased an incomplete Jodel D9 and started on a long journey of modification. “I bought my little Jodel D9 because it was the best aircraft I could afford and it offered scope for significant improvements,” Lyle said. “I have progressively modified it to improve safety and utility, based on advice from M. De-
lemontez, the original designer.” When Lyle purchased his aircraft, his ambition was to have it completed and fly it to Natfly but, as the modifications went on, so did the years pass. “It’s said that humans possess forty types of intelligence, but most of us are lacking in one or several departments. ”After much hard experience, I discovered one of my deficiencies is the lack of a capacity to understand how long it will take me to complete something - my five year house is still unfinished 30 years later. Somehow, my better half is still with me.” Some of the modifications Lyle has completed were necessary because of his height. “First I enlarged the cockpit to fit my 1.94m frame. 37 / S P O R T P I L O T
“The fuselage was split down the middle and widened at the cabin by 100mm. “The seat was laid back and the turtle deck raised and streamlined. “An extra pair of spruce longerons were added to connect this to the firewall, which was moved forward. “The floor was lowered about 60mm, streamlined and curved. I added a couple of belly doors for access to the fuel system and rear fuselage,” he said. During the rebuild, the seat belt anchor points were reinforced, just one of the many additional safety features Lyle built into his aircraft. The new canopy taught Lyle a lot about bending acrylic but, in the end, he had what he wanted and it’s unique.The canopy slides at
the front and has radius arms at the back- so it resists coming open while flying. “It can be opened in flight but the airflow makes it want to slide shut,” he said. Lyle said along the way he learned some valuable lessons, not the least of which was to not always listen to the self-declared experts. “The original Stark-Stamo engine was past its use-by date and I was persuaded to replace it with a 1600 VW engine. “I wasn’t keen on the idea, but they convinced me that iron barrels were the only way to go. I really should have paid more attention to my gut feeling.” Even when Lyle was fitting the engine, he still considered safety to be the number one priority for his project. “A starter motor was a safety priority to me, after the old engine stopped a few times on taxiways. “It was more than just the inconvenience of having to undo my harness and clamber out to restart the donk. “Although starting was easy, there was always the danger of making a mistake around a spinning prop. “After much searching, I found a tiny starter off a Yamaha outboard. It turned the right direction and I mounted it on the oil-pipe studs at the front of the engine. “I used an angle grinder to cut a Holden pinion to fit, so it could mesh with the ring gear from a Holden 202 Automatic. “I have no lathe and had never used one, but made a 340mm diameter spinner on a spindle mounted vertically in a bench vice and shaped with hand tools. Of course, now that the Jodel had an electric starter motor, Lyle knew it would also need a charging system for the battery. “I got a Kubota dynamo out of Tennessee and mounted it belt-driven off a pulley on the rear of the engine.” To avoid the ugly bump seen on so many VW cowls, next came a low-profile electronic ignition system. For the cowling, Lyle decided to fabricate one from fibreglass. To protect the engine during the process, he encased it in cling-wrap then built a streamlined fibreglass pressure cowl around it. Then it was time to ground run the engine to check to see if all was well. “Ground testing the engine with the original Hoffman prop showed everything worked well, which was very pleasing after all of the work I had done up to that point,” he said. Just as he was thinking his dream machine was ready for flight testing before the trip to Natfly, disaster struck. “Despite my best efforts to keep it light and carefully weighing each component, I got a nasty shock when I borrowed some digital cattle scales from a neighbour. “My two years of effort was wasted: the beast was hopelessly nose-heavy.” Lyle was left with no choice. Two years of hard work had just gone down the tube. He had to replace the entire engine/cowling assembly and start from scratch. “I ripped the whole lot out and spent up large on the engine I had originally wanted, an 80hp 2200 Jabiru purpose built engine.
With a range of over 280nm, my bladder is now the major limitation
“After all that practice, fitting the third motor was much easier. It weighed far less than the VW and had mobs more power. “Thank you Jabiru. “I designed a new engine mount and tacked it together in a plywood jig- then took it to a proper aircraft welder who did a neat job of it. “Building a new pressure cowl around the smaller Jab engine was relatively easy. I enjoy creating complex and functional shapes in fibreglass. “Modifying the exhaust system to fit the narrow cowl was harder. No local welders would touch anything from an aeroplane, so I had to do it myself. Not neat, but functional,” he said with a wry grin. As with any project the size and scope of what Lyle was attempting, inevitable setbacks were bound to happen. “With the engine air intake system – the third I had built – it wouldn’t rev out properly. “Don Richter at the factory advised me it would never work properly because the air intake was too close to the prop. “I had to rip it all out and start again, taking intake air from further back and installing an air filter box between the rudder pedals with the air making a straight run through the firewall to the carbie. “It worked perfectly.” Now, at last Lyle had a flyable aircraft. But, being the person he is, the modifications didn’t stop there. At the time Easter was still a good time away, so Lyle decided to add even more innovation to his new aeroplane. “Efficiency is everything right? Good designers maximise performance. 38 / S P O R T P I L O T
“Why waste all that heat from the engine? I read up on exhaust augmenters and became a convert. “Augmenters were once common, especially on aircraft built by Canada’s de Havilland. They do a great job of sucking cooling air through the engine. “I could not understand why they had fallen out of favour so, armed with the results of NACA research done in the 1940s, I built a matching pair each side of the forward fuselage, exiting beside the cockpit.
The cockpit had to be widened for a more comfortable fit
The pressure cowl around VW 1600
Lyle becoming airborne at Clifton last year
Lyle’s first attempt with the VW engine proved fruitless due to weight
Jodel 19-3924 is a regular visitor to the DDSA fly-in at Clifton (Qld)
“They added about 4kgs but, flight testing with them installed and then removed, showed 4% faster climb rate and better cooling. “I was so pleased with my own cleverness I put up with the ear-shattering howl as the engine came on song. “After my first long trip, to Temora, the first thing I did was buy a good noise cancelling headset. “This reduced the horrible noise, but I soon removed the augmenters, re-routed the exhaust under the cowls like everyone else, and didn’t
notice the marginal loss of climb performance. “Cooling is still okay, because the low pressure zone above the wing helps suck plenty of air through. This wasn’t to be the first of Lyle’s good ideas to bite the dust. “An ag pilot once told me that the tailwheel has to take a lot of punishment. “But I knew better, or so I thought. “I went ahead and replaced my robust, but heavy solid roller with a light, streamlined plastic one from Bunnings (who would have 39 / S P O R T P I L O T
thought, Bunnings Aerospace?). “It failed on my first trip. “An after-hours hop over the fence of Temora’s lawn-mower shop yielded a front wheel from an old Victa which got me home. “After three different Bunnings wheels, I fitted one from a wheelchair and all is well,” he laughed. Streamlining got a lot of attention, in an effort to improve the glide rate in the event of engine failure. Wheel fairings attracted Lyle’s attention.
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Ingenuity at its best. Lyle’s wife modified this Big W tent to fit over the wing - no poles needed
SOME OF LYLE'S MODIFICATIONS TO JODEL 19-3924 Fuel tanks in wing
Lyle’s ingenious aircraft carrier
“I spent a couple of months building fairings around my fat six inch tyres. “I had never liked the look of those ugly big wheel pants, but they work. “Flight testing with and without them showed a nine percent reduction in fuel burn and four per cent more speed. “With a range of over 280nm, my bladder is now the major limitation. “Experimenting with my improved new CHT/ EGT gauge might stretch this beyond 320.” As the aircraft weight crept up again, the stall speed also rose; landing runs became noticeably longer – not good if I Lyle had to land in a rough paddock. Lyle was also determined to keep his air-
SAFETY
Windows in floor to improve visibility. Spring-mounted wingtip strobes resist hangar rash. Automatic crashactivated battery isolator. Impact padding under seat and canopy (he also wears a helmet). Cockpit double layered with plywood: increased strength, to reduce chance of spruce-inflicted splinter injuries in
craft in compliance with the rules of RAAus. In an effort to lower the stall speed and improve safety, Lyle sought the advice of Frank Rogers, Adam Finn and the original designer, M Delemontez. His plan was to change the leading edge to the later Jodel D18 profile and add flaps similar in design to the larger Jodel models. Their advice to him was to have the modifications double checked by an L2 or LAME and to re-do all of his C of G and weights. They further advised that an additional 25 hours of flight testing would be appropriate. Much to his delight, the modified wing brought the MTOW stall speed back to 41kts. Lyle, being the perfectionist he is, still 40 / SPORT PILOT
accident. BRS parachute. Trim wheel incorporating back-up elevator control. Light, powerful LiFePO4 battery, isolated behind firewall. Digital CO detector. Fire extinguisher plumbed into engine bay. Chrome-moly canopy hoops; alloy centre member to carry fence wire over pilot’s head in a crash.
sought to improve the Jodel’s low-speed handling and safety. On advice from David Llewellyn, he removed all the vortex generators from the inner wing and added fences to control the span-wise spread of stall. To aid in ground transport, Lyle came up with an ingenious aircraft carrier. Pitot, fuel lines and electrical connections are bundled into one ‘umbilical’, allowing the fuselage to pivot over the wing. Loading plane onto carrier and folding for transport takes one person 20 minutes; no controls are disconnected. One rather disappointing experience Lyle encountered was when he entered his air-
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Lyle Passfield’s Jodel D9 when he first purchased it in 2004
Jodel D9 19-3924 at AirVenture 2017
Impact-resistant 2mm poly-carbon windscreen; acrylic canopy to allow break out in event of flip-over. Landing lights and wig wags (don’t buy the cheap ones). Bright yellow paint above and darker green underneath to improve visibility. Loud horn to warn animals and people on the ground.
Curving plywood on belly
FUEL SYSTEM
Wing tanks rubbermounted behind spar, wrapped in kevlar, with vent tubes to wingtips (large-bore to carry pressure pulse in a crash and if inverted, to drain fuel far from cockpit). At 2,800rpm (90+kts) it burns 12.5 litres per hour. At 2,600rpm (80kts) it burns 10 litres. Allowing 10 litres for reserve, gives a range of at least 280nm.
The finished product. Possibly one of the safest Jodels in the country - even if it’s not the prettiest
The paint job makes the aircraft highly visible from all angles
craft for judging at AusFly in Temora. “After years of building all these improvements into my little plane, I entered it for judging at AusFly, hoping there might be some interest in my safety innovations. “I must confess to some disappointment when the judges showed no interest in my offer to demonstrate some of the safety features. “A great paint job seems to be more important. “The little Bèbè is now doing pretty much what I wanted. I can fly interstate above the clouds (in VMC) in silky smooth air at 90kts, land in a paddock and camp under the wing. “Owning the aircraft costs less than keep41 / SPORT PILOT
ing my bike on the road and I can do most of my own maintenance. At MTOW, the D918 can get off the ground in 150m, but the landing run is longer. “It is now a useful long-distance tourer- as long as I keep luggage to a minimum. “My wife helped me cut down our 1970s Big-W tent so it slips over the left wing; no poles required, saving weight. “It’s a delight to fly. Cruising high above the turbulence, I can fly hands free and steer it with movements of my head.” “The fact a Jodel D9 could be transformed into this craft is a tribute to a great design.” Flight testing is on-going and probably will be for as long as Lyle owns the aircraft.
When you are up here you need to know what is happening at a glance.
Glance EFIS
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The meaning of life BY WAY NE MC LUC A S
T
HE sound of a threatening crow gradually seeps into my consciousness. It arouses my senses to the new day. One eye dares to open, to reveal the pre–dawn and the peace this time of the day always brings. Last night’s promise of a beautiful dawning day, reminded me of my father’s words of “red sky at night, sailors delight”. Accurate or not, who cares? A quick stretch to bring the body fully alert, and I thrill to the sight of my wife sleeping calmly beside me. Life is good. A mate once told me to achieve the true meaning of life, keep it simple. Briefly, explained, clean teeth, open bowels and the love of a good woman. That was the secret, the rest are just add-ons. I have achieved all this over the years. Good health has followed me as I have aged. I look again at my first and dearest love and remember her energy, caring and enthusiasm for life. With family and career taken care of, her energies have changed and her vitality centres on the grandchildren and their laughter. I still have the urge of the young buck and seek something more. I look now to the window and my thoughts turn towards my second love. The sun is now in the sky, the day is perfect, the visibility is infinite
and the trees show me there’s a gentle breeze. My mind quickens and my body urges me to get up and get going. I ready myself. My body and mind need sustenance, but I’m mindful of excessive fluid intake at this stage of the day. With the first two elements of the Meaning of Life taken care of, off I go towards the day. I open the hanger doors and there she awaits - a thing of beauty. I check all her vitals, then climb on board and follow all my safety checks. As ever, the sound of the engine brings joy to my ears. It tells me that my preventative maintenance is as required and this will ensure a safe and successful end to my day. The rush of speed exhilarates as we rush down the airstrip. Almost too quickly, we reach the airspeed and lift off begins. I am in control of my own destiny. I can just fly for fun, I can travel to other places, the reasons are limitless. Why am I so pleased with myself? Because I have added another element to the Meaning of Life. I have a permit to fly, a licence to slip the surly bonds of earth and soar with birds, a licence to freedom. Can life get any better? I am a sport pilot.
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Flying ladders? BY BRIAN BIGG
The manufacturer of the ladders became worried about his insurance liability
Y
OUR friends and family might think you go up in some flimsy aircraft, but we in RAAus have nothing on these French blokes. They take to the skies in aircraft made of ladders! Seriously. Off the shelf garden equipment. And they make no secret of the fact. Their group is actually called ‘L’association pour la promotion des échelles volantes’ (The Association for the Promotion of Flying Ladders). Daniel Dalby founded APEV in 1997 (not to be confused with the ‘Association for the Promotion of Electric Vehicles’ which was formed in 2010 but uses the same acronym). Daniel is an engineer, ultralight pilot, private pilot and gliding instructor. He works in the industry making composite parts for aircraft and helicopters in the
Provence-Alpes-Côtes d’Azur region of France. His dream for APEV was for a very light and inexpensive aircraft, the lighter and cheaper the better. The group’s original design, the Pouchel, was based upon the 1930s Henri Mignet-designed Mignet Pou-du-Ciel (Flying Flea), but constructed using three commercial household aluminium ladders to save construction time, cost and weight. An aussie Flying Flea was featured in Sport Pilot in July 2014. “Aviation and piloting have been a passion since my childhood,” says Daniel. “I flew gliders and aeroplanes, was a gliding instructor and was determined to build one of my own. I built a glider during my engineering studies. It took 2,080 hours. Too long. Much too long. 44 / SPORT PILOT
“I wanted to build something faster. So I spent 1,200 hours building a sailplane (JP 1536). Still too long. I remained immersed in Aeronautics with a capital A and in advanced composite materials for years. Then I was inspired by an experience in a large discount store. I discovered a display of 2.65m long aluminum ladders, which were on sale for about $25. “Building on ideas I had accumulated while flying, I arrived at the concept of an ultralight made from the ladders. My rupture calculations for the ladders was only 25 daN/mm2, rather than 40 (AU4G), but I didn’t intend to build an Airbus.” Daniel’s design began in 1997 with two major principles, simplicity of construction (an ultralight built without special tools in several
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THE SCOUTCHEL
This model is the modern version of the Demoichelle. Building a Scoutchel requires only a drill, an iron and a rivet clip. APEV says the assembly from the kits needs around 150 hours of work and from the plans alone about 300 hours. The wings of the Scoutchel are similar to those of the Pouchel Light and the Demoichelle. They are made using a single aluminium spar (50 x 100 mm), with Stydodur ribs covered with 6/10mm plywood. The leading edge is made of glass fibre and the wings are covered with Dacron 1000 fabric. The airfoil is the NACA 23112, which is perfect for the rotating wings. The Scoutchel doesn’t have ailerons. Roll axis manoeuvres are made by differential rotation (+4°, -2°) of the wings.
weekends) and minimum cost (using materials readily available in the local discount store). He applied for and received a patent the following year (n°27760222). Then he hit his first snag. The manufacturer of the ladders became worried about his insurance liability. So Daniel changed the design to instead use rectangular aluminum tubes, which turned out to be even easier to work with, cheaper and stronger. Thus arrived the Pouchel. “Pou” for the Mignet formula Pou-du-Ciel (usually translated into English as the Flying Flea), and “-chel” for “échelle”, the French word for ladder. The “Ladder Flea”. Why Mignet Pou-du-ciel? “First of all in tribute to Henri Mignet, who is the father of amateur aircraft construction, not
only in France but worldwide,” says Daniel. “Further, simply because the ladders would not support a wider wing span”. The first Mignet, the HM-14 Pou-du-Ciel of 1934 weighed only 130kgs, an ultralight already years ahead of the invention of the term. “Nowadays, in France, amateurs construct many more aeroplanes as are produced commercially. Around the world, several thousand aeroplanes have been built following the Mignet formula. The aeroplanes have two off-set wings with no ailerons or flaps. The stall is very smooth and predictable because of the aerodynamical configuration of the wings.” But it’s not that simple. “Piloting is not standard,” he explains. “Pitch control is accomplished by changing the inci45 / SPORT PILOT
dence of the front wing by direct action of the stick. This allows for precise, immediate pitch control but pilots used to a standard configuration find it a bit disconcerting in the beginning. The rudder alone produces perfect turns. The stick controls both the incidence of the front wing and the rudder, no rudder pedals. Point the stick where you want to go and the Pou-du-Ciel goes there.” The Pouchel made its first jumps in March 1999 on the runway of Salon Eyguieres. “For the tests, I followed the method of the book, “Sport de l’air” by Henri Mignet. It calls for a lot of taxiing to get used to the machine. The first jumps were more like the Clement Ader’s ‘Eole’ than a real ultralight.” (Ader was a French aviation pioneer who, in
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1886, designed and built one of the world’s first aircraft. The Eole was described as a bat-like machine, powered by a lightweight steam engine developing 20hp. In 1890, it left the ground for the first time. Flight would be too ambitious a word for the journey. Witnesses described it as a hop of 50m, at a height of just 20cms above the ground). “Following the first take-off attempts, Daniel installed a rev counter and received a surprise. Turns out the Fuji 18hp engine wasn’t exceeding 4,500rpm, so was delivering only around 12hp, not 18. So the team went to work on the engine, including a new carburettor and exhaust pipe. But the results weren’t good enough and the take-off was always borderline. “We received the loan of a propeller from the Halter company, which lifted the rpm to 5,200, but the take-off was still too hard. “Then we had a moment of thinking. The 128cm prop was blowing under the wing. It was causing a loss of air circulation on the central section of the front wing. Realising this gave us two options - increase the horsepower by changing the engine and propeller to make the aircraft faster. Expensive. Or increase the wing span which would imply a raising of the surface and, of course, lifting capacity. We choose the latter option because it meant just adding some small pieces of aluminium ladder with its polystyrene rib and covering it with DIACOV, which was just two day's work. The team headed to Salon Eyguieres to test their changes. “After a few easy take-offs, I decide to make a big flight with my Pouchel. It had been widely criticised because the wings had no dihedral, there was no tension coating and the fuselage wasn’t aerodynamic. “In the air the Pouchel flew itself. I pushed the stick to the right and it turned immediately to the right. I pushed the stick back and the Pouchel flew nicely back to the horizontal. I made a wide circuit around the airfield and I came back to the runway axis. The Flea was really obedient. I did a high speed fly-by (around 100km/h) then slowly pulled up while turning right and I flew another pattern. Into the wind on approach, I managed a perfect landing. But I heard a little metallic noise in the engine. Later I found the clip holding the starter had broken, as had the support for the air filter. The filter itself had also disappeared. But nothing really bad.” “My conclusion was that the aircraft’s airborne behaviour was excellent and, even without wing dihedral, the aircraft turned well.” After that first flight, Daniel quickly sold 120 sets of plans for his new design. Then he improved it, calling the new model the Pouchel II. This evolved into the Pouchel Light and an electric powered version, the Pouchelec. Further designs followed these, including the two seat Bipouchel and the Pouchel Classic. These days the Flying Ladder doesn’t actually have any ladders in it (thanks a lot insurance companies). But APEV represents a growing and healthy club of builders and fliers in Europe who don’t pay much more than about EUR7,000 (AUD$10,800) to leave the ground (not counting the engine). They should be an inspiration to us all. I’m going to pay more attention the next time I am in Bunnings. The wheelbarrows on sale there have given me an idea.
POUCHEL II
APEV says the Pouchel II is even more simple to construct than the Basic. The kit only requires 100 hours to complete using a few simple tools (a drill, a pop-riveter, a few wrenches and a clothes iron). Only the paint, instruments and motor (usually a Rotax 447) are not included in the kit. Professor Franck Petitjean, the project leader for the Pouchel II, said fatigue tests on the aircraft concluded that, under normal conditions, it had an unlimited life-expectancy. The model was eventually replaced by the Pouchel Light.
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H OLID AY READ IN G THE DRAGON
The first APEV aircraft with a wooden fuselage. A single-seater biplane. The top wing has a variable pitch (+2°, -4°), which does not require ailerons for roll control. The rotating wing system has already been proven on the Cubchel, Scoutchel and Demoichelle. The manufacturing of the wood fuselage takes slightly longer than the usual metallic fuselage of the other APEV aircraft. As compensation, the Dragon is comfortable and has good performance. The assembly of the kit requires around 250 hours of work before the first flight. From the plans you’ll need 300 to 500 hours.
THE BIPOUCHEL
APEV describes this model as the world’s cheapest ultralight. It a two-seater (side-by-side or tandem) aircraft, powered by a ROTAX 582. The wings consist of a double spar aluminum section 100 x 50 x 2 connected by spacers. This rigid structure makes the building easier. The 30cm Styrofoam ribs are slid onto the structure, followed by the leading and trailing edges and the lot is covered with fabric (Dacron).
THE DEMOICHELLE
This model debuted in 2007 at the European ultralight show at Blois in France. The APEV was there demonstrating a Pouchel II built by high school students. Next door was an almost complete ‘Demoiselle’, built by students of a French engineering school), based on an American kit. Daniel thought the aircraft was gorgeous but worried about the small size of the rear fuselage which could mean a poor yawing moment. So he got out his tape measure and drew the first drawing of the ‘Demoichelle’. Because it it a three axis aircraft, the model eventually received a system of mobile wings, which avoid the construction of the ailerons. The wings of the Demoichelle are the same as the wings of the Pouchel Light - single spar, using 50x100mm aluminium extrusion, wooden reinforced Styrodur rib, composite leading and trailing edge, and DIATEX 1000 covering. The Demoichelle made her first flights in August 2009.
THE CUBCHEL
The design for this aircraft was inspired by the Affordaplane. The wings are similar to those of the Pouchel Light, the Scoutchel and the Demoichelle. The Cubchel doesn’t have ailerons either but relies on differential rotation (+4°, -2°) of the wings. The system is reportedly simple and very pleasant in flight.
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FEATU RE
SUBMIT TED BY THE ADF
A Shadow UAV lands at Multi National Base - Tarin Kot after completing a mission in Uruzgan province
THERE ARE THERE ARE 48 / SPORT PILOT
FEATU RE
DRONES AND THEN ARMY DRONES 49 / SPORT PILOT
FEATU RE
Top left - Wasp Centre - Shadow 200 Right - Black hornet
T
HE Australian Army is a very active user of unmanned aircraft: the largest and most experienced in Australia. It operates ‘state’ aircraft, as classified by CASA, and therefore does not follow CASA regulations, but instead follows Defence Aviation Safety Regulations. Unlike the CASA AC101-01, which defines requirements on weight, DASRs has four categories. These are described as: 1: A Category 1 UAS, when operating in the intended configuration, role and environment (CRE), is a system for which the outcome of a catastrophic failure can reasonably be expected to result in death or serious injury, or significant damage to property. Cat. 1 UAS are characterised by a requirement to operate in any class of airspace, over populated areas. 2: A Category 2 UAS, when operating in the intended CRE, is a system for which the outcome of a catastrophic failure may result in death or serious injury, or significant damage to property. Cat. 2 UAS are characterised by a requirement to operate in any class of airspace with appropriate operational restriction; including limited flight over populated areas.
We have sighted numerous aircraft in the vicinity of military restricted airspace
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3: A Category 3 UAS, when operating in the intended CRE, is a system for which the consequence of a catastrophic failure is unlikely to result in death or serious injury, or significant damage to property. Cat. 3 UAS are characterised by operations in segregated airspace only, where the UA of the system has a requirement to operate over sparsely populated areas, mission essential personnel and associated property, with appropriate operational restriction. 4: A Category 4 UAS, when operating in the intended CRE, is a system for which the consequence of a catastrophic failure can reasonably be expected not to result in death or serious injury, or significant damage to property. Cat. 4 UAS are characterised by the UA of the system having a collision energy contribution of less than 42 Joules and operations confined to airspace below 400ft AGL. Cat 1 and 2 UAS undergo a similar technical acceptance process to that of a manned platform, because they will operate in civil airspace. The army does not currently have any Cat .1 or 2. UAS. The RAAF is planning to have Cat. 1 and 2 systems in the 2020s.
FEATU RE
The army currently operates two Cat. 3 UAS: Shadow 200 and Wasp; and three Cat. 4 UAS: Black Hornet, DJI Phantom 4 Pro Plus and DJI Mavic. The largest UAS in the army is the Shadow 200, operated by 20th Surveillance and Target Acquisition Regiment, an artillery regiment. Shadow 200 is a Cat. 3 UAS and is currently flown in military restricted airspace and over military training ranges. The drone is catapult launched and recovered to a preprepared surface, has a maximum mission time of 9 hours and weighs 211kgs. The other Cat 3. UAS used by the army is the Wasp. This is much smaller than the Shadow 200, is hand launched, has a mission time of 50 minutes and weighs 1.3kgs. It is operated by combat forces. Both of these UAS have individual Operating Permits which detail the requirements to safely operate the systems, one of which is the issuing of a NOTAM. While these are prepared and provided, via range control, to AirServices for dissemination, there are still many air users unaware of their release and we have sighted numerous aircraft in the vi-
cinity of military restricted airspace during flying operations. One Cat. 4 UAS operated by the army is the Black Hornet, which is a Nano UAS, has a range of 2kms and weighs 28gms. The Black Hornet is also operated by combat forces. There are currently two other Cat. 4 UAS in use: Phantom 4 Pro Plus and the Mavic Pro. The Phantom is 1.3kgs and the Mavic is 780gms. The Mavic offers a portable alternative to the Phantom, but both have similar sensor suites. The Phantom and Mavic are operated by anyone who has completed the training and are in use across the full spectrum of units: cadets, to logistics, to combat. The Cat. 4 permit details the requirements for safe operation, including training requirements and development of risk management plans. The initial permit was deliberately restrictive and required the issue of a NOTAM for all operations. Only two safety occurrences were raised during this time, which were for a Black Hornet flying outside the designated area and for incorrect operation in class G airspace. Both the Phantom 4 Pro Plus and Mavic Pro have geofencing, return to
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home and collision avoidance which provide added safety assurances. The current restrictions include: ♦ Operations only below 400ft AGL; ♦ Beyond visual line of sight operation; ♦ Operation within 3nms of airfield restrictions; ♦ Safety programming applications activated; ♦ Training requirements; ♦ Risk management plan developments; ♦ Understanding of the CASA ‘Can I fly there?’ application; ♦ Mandatory safety reporting for defined occurrences. The army is Australia’s biggest user of UAS/drones. We are the most experienced operators and will remain the biggest for many years to come. We are committed to ensuring safe operation within military and civilian environments. To ensure this is achieved, we are determined to remain at the cutting edge of technological advancements for nano, small and tactical UAS and evolve their safety practices as the technology advances and the safety and capability features of each platform develop.
E D I T O R’ S CHO I CE
What I gave up to fly BY BRIAN BIGG
O
NE of my oldest non-flying friends calls me every time there’s a news report about a light aircraft accident. He’s always just checking it wasn’t me ploughing up some farmers paddock. He has called me dozens of times over the years and always ends the conversation the same way. “Give it up, mate. One of these days it will be you. And look how much that bloody aviation has cost you. You’d be a rich man now if it weren’t for how much you wasted on that stupid pastime.” It is true that if I added up how much I’ve spent over the course of 31 years private flying, I could have bought a very nice house. My non-flying friend has. Several of them in fact. He’s doing very well and only leaves the ground when there are two pilots up front, 100 people seatbelted in around him and a cold Corona in his right hand. I have paid for every single hour in my log book, except maybe for the odd hour here or there reviewing aircraft for the magazine. Early on, I was forced to save up for a couple of weeks to be able to afford an hour in
the air. No question that money could have been better spent more sensibly somewhere else at the time. I had young kids and a mortgage. But it wasn’t spent somewhere sensible. It was used to drag me one hour closer to my pilot’s licence. Even when I started to earn more money, my aviation costs went up proportionally. Getting a pay rise at work didn’t mean I could afford a trip overseas or new furniture. It merely meant I could afford to do some trips in the Tobago rather than in the Warrior. I spent thousands of dollars flying to places I didn’t particularly care about. And more often than not, was stuck on the ground for days waiting for the weather to clear in order to fly back. Hire cars, hotel bills, restaurant bills, on top of an ever-increasingly hourly rate, just to drag me another hour closer to my licence. I spent many hundreds of hours at work, so I could spend the many thousands of dollars I earned, travelling from point A to B and back again for no reason other than to prove I could go there and back. All leading up to that marvellous day
People are the sum total of their experiences, not their possessions
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when Nancy Bird-Walton handed me my wings and I could call myself a pilot. I’ve spent many more thousands of dollars since then. The only one who cares what the money was used for is me, when I look through my logbook. It’s not only a book keeping record, it’s a precious diary of some of the best bits of my life. My friend shakes his head at the very idea of it. A colleague sold her bookshop in order to pay for her commercial licence, which she may never use to earn a living. Ask her if she felt it was worth it and she will tell you “absolutely”. Bookstores are actually a hard way to make a living these days, so maybe she made the right decision. Another friend gave up a very healthy living as a solicitor in order to fly old Cessnas around the outback. Another chose to keep the plane and nothing else when he and his wife divided up their assets at the end of their marriage. There’s no telling is there? Why do we do it? Why don’t we choose the more sensible route, investing our money or using it on tangible assets which could last a lifetime-rather than just on a couple of hours which will fade with the memory? You know why. Because flying is life. Because being a pilot is being part of a very restricted club of elite people. Special people, arrogant people for the most part, but special nonetheless. We are the only ones who know the joy of a deliciously smooth take-off just after dawn on a cold clear winter’s morning, the exhilaration of a monster tailwind pushing us home much earlier than we planned, the sense of deep satisfaction which follows a greaser of a landing in a strong crosswind, or that feeling of peace and tranquillity when you stand by the nose of your aircraft at a deserted field just as the sun goes down. We understand that we alone, in the entire world, have earned those moments and that lesser mortals have not. A philosopher once said that people are the sum total of their experiences, not their possessions. I agree with that. That’s what has made the cost of flying worth every cent to me. So I haven’t given up anything, really.
PI LO T TA L K
The twilight years BY THE OP S TE AM
O
PERATIONS has written a number of articles about the challenges facing pilots as they age. Recent articles from Sport Pilot editor, Brian Bigg, also highlighted the sorts of challenges pilots face when they see one of their friends, or a pilot at their local airport, who they believe may no longer be safe to fly alone. So what do we do and how do we manage it? From RAAus point of view, we don’t want to stop anyone flying. But we do have a community and regulatory responsibility to manage and help pilots who should not fly because of a medical condition. Pilots themselves have a responsibility to self-assess their fitness before every flight. As part of this inner discussion should be an honest assessment if the time has come to hang up the flying boots. For RAAus members, Operations Manual Section 2.16 outlines five medically significant conditions requiring the member to supply an annual statement from their GP to RAAus. These include heart condition/disease or paralysis, epilepsy, diabetes (Type 1 or 2), mental illness, medicated or otherwise or becoming 75 years or older. Finally, there is a reference to any other medically significant safety related condition. Members are encouraged to use the IMSAFE checklist from our website and review the information to ensure their fitness to fly. CASR 61.070 defines a medically significant condition to include any injury or illness, any bodily or mental infirmity, defect or incapacity, and condition which is a consequence of a previous disease or injury, any abnormal psy-
chological state, drug dependence or addiction and finally for women, pregnancy and the consequences of pregnancy. This link will provide more reading from the CASA website https://www.casa.gov.au/licences-and-certification/aviation-medicine/grounding-dame-consultation-and-casa-notification CASA can require a safety pilot for pilots holding a CASA issued medical certificate, in recognition of a safety need or the value of additional resources in the cockpit. This may be due to a transient or short term medical issue, or as a result of a change in the pilots’ health. We recently had a conversation with a long time glider pilot, AUF and RAAus member. He revealed he had decided to stop flying once he reached the age of 82. He appeared fit, cognitively aware and able, but had decided to ground himself rather than possibly get involved in an incident, which would end his distinguished career on a sad note. This is one of the most difficult decisions a pilot must make. The fact that this pilot decided for himself to stop flying is a credit to his awareness of his possible cognitive decline due to aging, or other health issues. We applaud the courage and decisiveness the decision took and encourage all pilots to consider the same issues for themselves. What can RAAus do to assist? We are happy to talk about these issues with you and, while RAAus doesn't have specialist medical personnel, we can offer interim solutions, such as organising a safety pilot for you. The safety pilot would have to know about your medical issues obviously. They must also be able to fly from the right seat (provided the aircraft doesn’t prevent 53 / SPORT PILOT
this in the Pilot Operating Handbook). If you are worried about your ability to handle an aircraft, a safety pilot would act as another pair of eyes and ears to keep you safe and allow you to enjoy your flying for a little while longer. The safety pilot can even operate the radio for you, provide situational awareness and manage the aircraft in the event you do have a medical incapacitation when behind the wheel. If a CFI or instructor holds any concerns about the health or fitness of a pilot they have just assessed for a BFR, we encourage them not to issue the BFR, but contact Operations to discuss the circumstances and see what alternative arrangements are possible. Perhaps the instructor themselves can act as the safety pilot. Age can be a silent creeping problem. You might still have the practical and physical skills required to fly an aircraft, but your situational awareness skills might be quietly eroding or maybe gradual hearing deterioration will prevent you from understanding the radio calls. Both are good reasons to have someone with you to ensure you have fun and make it back safely. Ultimately, like most aviation things, it comes down to Airmanship. A pilot must consider the safety of other airspace users, their families and their own, as well as their responsibilities to the wider aviation community. If you, or a pilot you know, is possibly unsafe due to a medical issue, decline from aging or a change in health, you can contact RAAus and report it. If we act responsibly, we can all enjoy safe and enjoyable flying long into our twilight years.
TE CH TA L K
Ball end fittings & penny washers BY DARREN BARNFIELD N AT I ON AL T EC HNICAL M AN AG E R
B
ALL end fittings are swivel fittings used extensively in flight control systems. They consist of a ball with flats opposite each other, encased in a ball housing which has some form of threaded end to attach to pushrods and cables. A hole through the ball accommodates a bolt which attaches the swivelling ball assembly to a bell crank, control horn etc. The thickness of the ball between the flats is generally greater than the housing, which allows the bolt/ nut to be tightened on the ball without binding on the housing. A problem occurs if the ball/housing wears or becomes distorted in service sufficiently to allow the ball to escape containment, i.e. the ball can fall out. Generally, the diameter of the hole in the housing is greater than the bolt head. Under these conditions the bolt head, although still tight on the ball and attached to the other part of the assembly, passes through the housing, allowing the connection to fall apart and disconnecting the control. The cure is to have a large washer under the bolt/ nut which will not pass through the hole left by the ball. In many cases, a normal washer will also pass through the hole, so a washer with a larger outside diameter than normal is required. These washers are available and are called penny washers. It is strongly recommended operators and builders check all ball ends to ensure penny washers are in place, or at least to ensure the existing washer or bolt/nut is large enough not to pass through the housings in the event a condition allows the ball to escape the housing. Penny washers. The AN970 washer in comparison to the AN960 flat steel washer.
PENNY WASHERS REVISITED
Firstly, when penny washers have been fitted and the retaining bolt tightened, the connection should be checked to ensure it is free and that the ‘cheeks’ of the larger washer do not interfere with any sideways alignment the connection must adopt in service. Any binding or fouling will throw bending loads on the threads of the connection which could lead to failure. If it is binding, the penny washer might actually be clamping the
ball to the housing (the assembly shouldn’t be made that way…but Murphy’s law is ever present), in which case a smaller outside diameter washer which clears the housing (i.e. one which would cause the assembly to disconnect if the ball escaped) may be needed beneath the penny washer, as a spacer to stand it away from the ball. This may also be necessary if the sideways swivelling action of the assembly is
54 / SPORT PILOT
A washer with a larger outside diameter than normal is required AN970 Washer. Common sizes and AN reference.
impeded by the penny washer. Special penny washers do exist for aircraft use on ball joints. These have one flat and one convex surface so when the convex surface is placed toward the ball, it clamps on the ball only and the curved surface provides clearance to allow the rod end to be swivelled sideways without the edge of the washer fouling on the ball housing.
AN970 WASHER
The AN-970 large area washer provides a greater bearing area than the plain type, and is used to prevent local crushing of the surface. These are available in -3 through -8, for bolt sizes no 10 ( -3) to 1/ 2� ( -8). If you need a high strength steel washer, use a MS20002 washer. Available in -4 (4/ 16 or 1/4 inch) through -8 (8/ 16 or 1/ 2 inch) sizes for bolts 1/ 4 inch to 1/ 2 inch diameters. The subject of aircraft hardware can be confusing. Thousands upon thousands of small items are used on a typical airplane. What does the custom aircraft builder really need to know about hardware? Where do you find the information? What reference is really the end authority on proper installation? What do all of those AN numbers mean and do you have to know them? What types of hardware should you really learn more about in order to build your own airplane? These questions will be answered in this series of articles on aircraft hardware and aircraft basics. I hope to eliminate some confusion over what type of hardware to use and how to properly install it. If you have any particular ideas you want to see added in coming editions, send your suggestions to tech@raa. asn.au.
The rods ends installed with a penny (factory supplied with the kit) washer to assist in the event of a rod end failure. The rod end is clearly able to move on the axis of the ball in a full and free range of movement. It would be suggested that the bolt should be installed in the other orientation.
The fitting with a standard 960 AN washer. If the rod end fails, it is possible for the body of the linkage to slip over the securing washer and nut and bolt.
55 / SPORT PILOT
PAG E ON E
GETTING PAID FOR THIS BY GORDON MARSHALL
THIS photograph was taken in September just East of York near White Gum Farm in Western Australia. We are flying over this season’s grain crops (barley, oats, wheat, lupins and canola).
COVER OPPORTUNITY
I was the instructor. My student’s name was Ray Holdsworth The aircraft is an A22 Foxbat. When you have an eager student and conditions like this, I have to remind myself that I actually get paid to do this :)
WANT TO SEE YOUR AIRCRAFT ON THE COVER OF SPORT PILOT? Because of the success of our poster opportunity, we’ve decided to extend the idea and offer you the cover of Sport Pilot as well. If you have a spectacular photo of your aircraft or you and your aircraft, send it in and maybe get to see it on the front cover
56 / SPORT PILOT
in all its glory! The file size has to be at least 4megs and the shot should be in portrait, not landscape mode, if possible. A simple uncluttered background would be good too. Send in your photo to editor@sportpilot.net.au.
LEAR N ING TO FL Y
Getting it wrong BY KEN NIC HOL A S
L
A
RE we having fun yet? You bet we are. And by we, I mean me. So where was I up to? First solo? Tick. Still smiling on the inside and it probably shows on the outside especially if someone asks, “how’s the flying going?” Then last month, a lap of honour of the training area as congratulations from my instructor, David, just to relax and fly for the fun of it. Then it was down to more serious stuff. And by serious stuff, I mean it was time to find out what really happens when the pilot gets it wrong. While David didn’t dwell on the gloomy side of this subject during the briefing, I was made very aware of the likely outcomes of getting it wrong at lower altitudes. I’ve flown many hours as pilot-in-command of radio controlled arcraft, both powered and unpowered, and I’d got it wrong a few times. But now, my own body was in the game. That is how it was described by my good wife on a day out recently, “It’s just like a playing a video game”, with one big exception. We are in it. David said we were to do some stalls, so we headed out to the southwest of the training area, a good spot for this sort of thing. Underneath us there was a lot of farmland and around us, not a lot of traffic. We climbed to 4,500ft I performed my HASELL checks. David demonstrated the first stall, a straight ahead power-off stall. I discovered then that the little Tecnam Eaglet is a very gentle aircraft in a stall. My instructions were to pull power off and then try to maintain my altitude in the glide. When I then repeated what David had demonstrated, I found it was clear when a stall was imminent. The nose of the Eaglet rose as the airspeed washed off and, as long as I had the ball in the middle, the stall itself was gentle and level. Releasing the back pressure on the stick, I let the nose drop sufficiently to break the stall, applied power and flew out. The trick, according to David, was to be able to feel the stall before it happened and actually not stall at all. After all who wants to suddenly lose a couple of hundred feet on turning final when that is all you have. While practicing a few of these power-off stalls, I found myself starting to correct for it before I had reached the stall. David chipped me about it but I explained that I could feel it was about to stall and was correcting before it actually happened. We talked about this. He told me I was one of the lucky ones. There were, he explained, a lot of pilots who couldn’t feel it that early. So we continued on into deeper stalls, so I could learn the recovery skills I
needed. It was actually fun for me as we went on to power-on stalls, power-on in turns, poweroff in turns, inadvertent full nose up trim and full power stalls. This was as close as I was going to get to aerobatics in this category, so why not enjoy it while learning at the same time? Power on in turns was particularly interesting. As usual, David demonstrated what he wanted me to do. Twenty degree bank left turn with, as I recall, about 4,000rpm. Holding altitude, I kept increasing the back pressure on the stick until suddenly the right wing stalled. The Tecnam flipped from a left turn to a right and away we went. I applied opposite rudder and eased the backpressure on the stick to break the stall then centred everything before applying power and flying out. The funny thing was, when David demonstrated this stall, twice the left wing stalled, rolling us deeper into the turn. When I performed the exercise, the right wing stalled both times rolling us out of the turn. It would be interesting to hear some comments on why this happens. I’m guessing that my coordinated turn wasn’t quite as co-ordinated as I thought. A little right rudder in there perhaps? I think I’m going to have to re-visit this. I might go out, duplicate the exercise, see if I can work out what caused one wing over the other to stall first. As David duly informed me, history tells us that unfortunately the most common place a stall happens is on downwind to base or base to final with little to no power on. My lesson learned with these exercises is to keep a little power on in those turns. And also not to just say, I’ve done that in my training, but to go out and revisit these sessions. Speaking of revisiting a training session, I’d like to relate what happened last Satur57 / SPORT PILOT
day, it’s very relevant to this story. One of the school Tecnams was due for a 100 hourly and Andrew, one of our local flyers, and I were ferrying it to Stawell. Andrew and I had done this trip before but with me as a passenger prior to getting my Certificate. The plan this time was for Andrew to fly there and I would fly back. On arriving back at Lethbridge, I made my turn from base onto final for runway 10. I’ve made this turn many times, but significantly not recently. For some reason I overshot my mark and not by a little, but by a significant amount. I found myself doing exactly the same turn I’d been trained to be very, very wary of. I was, to say the least, extremely conscious of what I was doing and at what altitude I was doing it, but the training kicked in and everything I did was exactly what the training said I should do if I found myself in that situation. The main thing was not to try a hard low-level turn with low power. I found, by the time I was back on the centreline of the strip, I still was still too high because I’d had too much power on in the turn. I called a go round, much to the relief of Andrew, I suspect. This was the first time he had flown with me as PIC. Andrew is an experienced pilot, but he could only sit there. He could not feel what the aircraft was doing, but he put his faith in me. Afterwards we talked about why I missed my turn and all we could put it down to were seasonal changes. Canola crops in flower off the end of the strip made everything just a little different on the day. Later when I reviewed my video at home, I also noted that I had not slowed the plane down enough. Mark this down as another lesson learned.
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A VI A TION CLASSIFIED S
270 Airframe Hours, 270 Engine Hours, S-6ES Coyote II. Registered till June 2017. Rotax 582 UL engine 260hrs. New BRS recovery chute installed December 2015. Large roomy cockpit with sliding seats. Folding wings for easy storage/trailering. All VFR instruments. Search Youtube for “Tuflux RANS Coyote”. PRICE $25000 CONTACT GORDON JAMES BAILEY 0409 348 293
5016 SONEX 3300
6.5 Airframe Hours, 6.5 Engine Hours, Sonex. Sonex taildragger, 3300 jabiru, sensenich prop, MGL velocity avionics, engine management & radio. May be able to arrange delivery. PRICE $38000 CONTACT TONY MESSENGER 0400 610 076
Stacked_CMYK 286 Airframe Hours, 626 Engine Hours, RV-3A. RV performance with Lycoming reliability. Lycoming O-320-A2B 150HP,150-160kt TAS cruise @32lph. New prop, instruments & paint. A/C can be registered VH if aerobatics required, and can be delivered anywhere in Australia for cost. $55000. ph 0428719639 PRICE $55000 CONTACT PETER GILBERT 0428 719 639
5080 JABIRU J120
5032 MORGAN CHEETAH
326.2 Airframe Hours, 55 hours Engine Hours, Cheetah. Morgan Cheetah, Camit 2200 engine, 55 hours on the motor, 350 airframe, no accidents, 115 KTS cruise, PRICE $28000 CONTACT JOHN TERENCE MURPHY 0409 308 232
5140 PARADISE P-1
5057 RV-3
5023 HOLBROOK AIRFIELD, 22 AIRPARK ROAD
nil Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, nil. 25m wide 30m deep residential vacant Block. 22 Airpark Road Holbrook NSW 2644. $69,800 ono Don. 0417 696461 Email: donwoodward@outlook.com Web: holbrook.simdif.com PRICE $69800 CONTACT DON WOODWARD 0417 696 461
Analogue gauges, electric flaps, trim on central joystick and arm rest, leather seats, 40kg luggage. $90,000 (ONO) Bob Meldrum 0400 230 895 PRICE $90000 CONTACT BOB MELDRUM 0400 230 895
450 Airframe Hours, 114 since Zero timed Engine Hours, J120. Engine 114 since Zero Timed.Many new parts used. Crankshaft magnetic particle checked. Aircraft could go back into commercial work with check. 1/2 share in Steel Hangar near Bega/ Merimbula available cheap PRICE $38000 CONTACT NEVILLE JOLLANDS (02) 6494 4125
286 Airframe Hours, 286 Engine Hours, P-1. PARADISE P-1 PRICE $85000 CONTACT JOHN DARBY 0402 210 913
5197 SKYFOX CA21
309.2 Airframe Hours, 309.2 Engine Hours, CA21 Skyfox. Skyfox CA21 in excellent condition,T/Hrs 309.2 recovered using Stitts system, new upholstery. All ADs completed incl. alum. laminated aileron hinges GA dash. May be oldest flying Skyfox in existance S/N CA-21010. Easy to fly. Phillip 0427632590 PRICE $21000 CONTACT PHILLIP MCGUIRE 0427 632 590
5202 FLIGHT DESIGN MC. 2010 MODEL. 751 TT. PRICE REDUCED. GARMIN 430W GPS
5095 TOPAZ
5039 RANS COYOTE II S6ES
743 Airframe Hours, 743 Engine Hours, MC. FLIGHT DESIGN MC. 2010 MODEL. 743 TT. MAF OWNED SINCE NEW. VH-REGISTERED. ( OPTION TO LSA) 100 HP ROTAX. ALL GARMIN. G430W GPS/NAV/COM. 2ND COM. EFIS x 2. MODE S TRANSPONDER. AUDIO / ICOM. ELT. FDR. NIGHT VFR. COMFORT PACK. SIDE BY SIDE SEATS. PRICE $89500 CONTACT DAVID O’CONNOR 0407 522 346
Stacked_804C 320 Airframe Hours, 320 Engine Hours, Topaz. Topaz 24-8438 ttis 320 hours (engine and airframe) Rotax 912UL cruise 105 kt at 15 lph. Ballistic parachute.
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59 / SPORT PILOT
A V I ATION CLASSIFIED S
5208 ROTEC RALLY
1191 Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, Rally. Rotec Rally/Pather, slight damage to one wing strut via transport. A strong built, easy to fly aircraft, cruises at 75 kts, 50Ltr long range tank. For additional informational, please call Charles on 02 6496 7254 PRICE $2700 CONTACT CHARLES DARMANIN (02) 6496 7254
5223 X-AIR 3194
Lightwing GR912 Tailwheel - 1989 factory built and registered. Always hangared, L2 maintained. Suitable as trainer for tail wheel endorsement. Recently overhauled, Reluctant sale, Negotiable at $32,000 Call Tony 0427 200 377 PRICE $28000 CONTACT ANTHONY CATHCART 0427 200 377
5268 JABIRU J250 2004
345 Airframe Hours, 345 Engine Hours, J250. Jabiru J250 2004. Solid Lifter eng. VGs, Elect Flap, Trig Mode S Txp, Area 500 GPS, Microair VHF, Area 500 GPS, All 10 Ply Tyres, Gt Touring A/C PRICE $60000 CONTACT IAN WILLIAM BERRY 0427 997 441
5300 37 TIGERMOTH AVE, TEMORA AIRPARK
nil Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, nil. Change in circumstances means #37 Tigermoth Ave Temora Airpark is on the market! Brand-new 15x15x 6m high hangar on a 50 x 25m freehold block, it has unrestricted views across the entire northern side of the airport. Power, water, gas & sewer avail. PRICE $190000 CONTACT ROBIN WILLS 0401 023 271
5309 SHARE IN AEROPRAKT A32 VIXXEN AT CABOOLTURE QLD
5285 JABIRU 230C 450 Airframe Hours, 450 Engine Hours, X-Air. X-Air 3194 Excellent Condition 450 Hours TT.E/AF Always Hangered Rego October 2017 Rotax 503 Engine Performs well 3 Blade Brolga Prop. Reluctant sale due to health reasons. PRICE $9000 CONTACT RON (03) 5382 4766
5231 ACROLITE 1B
94hrs Airframe Hours, 94hrs Engine Hours, Acrolite 1B. Single seater bi-plane. 2200 Jabiru solid lifter. Disk brakes, Matco tail-wheel, new tyres & battery. Always hangared, covers. Timber spars. 85kt cruise, 50litre alloy tank. Ailerons upper and lower. Reluctant sale. PRICE $21500 CONTACT DENNIS WALKER 0427 555 727
5237 SEAMAX AMPHIBIAN
350 Airframe Hours, 0 Engine Hours, J 230 c. 2007 J230 New zero timed solid lifter fine fin engine with o hrs total and full Jabiru warranty. Airframe 350 hours. EMS with egt - cht on all cylinders, gps 296, icom 210, Garmin intercom, Transponder c, new 10 ply tyres. Always keep in hangar. PRICE $68000 CONTACT JAMES GEALE 0418 449 856
5310 JABIRU J160-C IMMACULATE CONDITION
5297 RV6 VH-MJH FOR SALE
290 Airframe Hours, 290 TIS Engine Hours, RV6. TT AF/ENG/Prop 290 Hrs LYC. 0 360 180 HP. Metal FP prop. Nil accident. Best SAAA ‘All Metal Aircraft’ in 2006. CRZ 160 KTAS on 30 ltrs. CoA, Day/Night VFR with NO flight over built up area restrictions. PRICE $100000 CONTACT MIKE HORNEMAN 0417 931 872 EMAIL RV6MJH@BIGPOND.NET.AU
32 Airframe Hours, 32 Engine Hours, M22. Compare this Seamax with any other amphib LSA. 100kt IAS in cruise. 18L/hour 95 octane mogas. Reverse thrust and water rudder for water handling. 279kg useful load. Salt water friendly composite /stainless steel , no alum frame like searey. PRICE $145000 CONTACT TERRY O\’BRIEN 0400 747 401
5261 LIGHTWING GR912
150 Airframe Hours, 150 Engine Hours, A32 Vixxen. A share is available in The Davewood Syndicate Vixxen based at Caboolture. Long running syndicate dedicated to providing a low hour high (currently 150) standard machine at reasonable rates of $85 per hour wet and $100 per month fixed. PRICE $10000 CONTACT IAN MCDONELL (07) 3886 5828
560 Airframe Hours, 290 hours (18th April 2008) Engine Hours, J160-C. Jabiru J160-C - Immaculate condition. Garmin 296 GPS, Transponder, iPad holder, Illuminated Compass, Electronic T&B indicator (for Auto Pilot) PRICE $48000 CONTACT DAVE LLOYD 0417 328 435
5318 WAIEX FOR SALE
260 Airframe Hours, 5 since rebuild Engine Hours, Waiex. Kit built plane. Recent winner Avalon Air Show. Best in show, light recreational aircraft PRICE $47500 CONTACT KEITH JEFFS 0438 508 576
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2523.9 Airframe Hours, 311.7 Engine Hours, GR912. 60 / SPORT PILOT
5326 JABIRU J230C (24-5013)
575.6 Airframe Hours, 575.6 Engine Hours, J230C. Factory built 2007. Excellent condition. All AD’s
A VI A TION CLASSIFIED S
up-to-date. Glass cockpit: Dynon D100 EFIS, AvMap EKP IV, GPS, Sentient AirNav GPS touch screen. Lots of extras. Hangered at Warwick (Qld). $75,000 or nearest offer. Phone (after-hours) 0438 66 3371. PRICE $75000 CONTACT GWENITH TYBURCZY 0421 322 618
PRICE $41000 CONTACT DAVID BUCHANAN 0427 210 083
5373 SPACEWALKER SW1
5387 TECNAM RG FORSALE
5335 TYRO MK 2
60 Airframe Hours, 30 Engine Hours, Tyro MK 2. Tyro MK 2 fully refurbished 4 years ago with stits polyfibre. VW 1600 twin port aero engine (30 hours) with new Ark tech propeller. Holds 50L of fuel, with a burn of 7-10L/hour in cruise. Call Les 0438 017 256. Located in South East Tasmania. PRICE $8500 CONTACT LES SKINNER 0438 017 256
317 Airframe Hours, 99.6 Engine Hours, GT400. Quicksilver GT400, single seat, very good condition, always hangared, pleasure to fly. PRICE $6800 CONTACT MARK BARTLEMAN 0407 344 466
unk Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, Spacewalker SWI. Single seat SW1 Spacewalker. Restoration job. All structure complete, condition 6/10. Outer wing panels OK, Centre section requires rebuild. Engine mount for A65. Located Sydney. PRICE $5000 CONTACT NEALE DUNSTAN 0424 944 697
5379 RANS S6ES COYOTE
1100 Airframe Hours, 700 Engine Hours, P922000RG. Tecnam RG For Sale Price $80000 contact Michael Riddle 0477 000 343
5389 JABIRU J170-C
5348 JABIRU 120C - 24-5453 - PRICE REDUCED
1050 Airframe Hours, 180hrs Engine Hours, 120C. Reduced to Sell. 2200 engine, full rebuild 180 hrs ago L.2 maintained, oil and filter changes every 25hrs, A/D and service buletins , Std VFR intruments, Garman GPS wheel spats, always hangared, $33,990 (no GST). Mark Griffen 0427 887 311 PRICE $33990 CONTACT ARNOLD NIEWAND 0429 857 275
5355 MINICAB J14
168.5 Airframe Hours, 168.5 Engine Hours, J14. Highly admired aircraft built to the highest standards by Keith Jarvis in 2002 being his 14th aircraft constructed. Exceptional performance and very safe and easy to fly. 95 knot cruise @ 2600 rpm. Fuel @ 13 litres per hour. Reliable solid lifter 2200 Jabiru Engine S/N 744. TT only 168 hours. This aircraft is meticulously built, operated and ... PRICE $30000 CONTACT IAN JARVIS 0419 838 925
5368 ALLEGRO
325 Airframe Hours, 325 Engine Hours, S6-ES. Rotax 912 Engin, 325 Hrs engine & airframe. Rego until August 2018. Hydraulic brakes, large wheels. Very easy to fly. Folding wings. Includes trailer. PRICE $35000 CONTACT ROBERT WILSON 0428 667 586
5382 FOR SALE - SIGMA 4 AIRCRAFT
2200 Airframe Hours, 350 Engine Hours, J170 - C. J170-C-Manufactured 2010, 22B Gen3 Engine with no restrictions (350hrs). Transponder, Garmin GPS, Jabiru composite propeller. Currently cross hired to Adelaide Soaring Club with opportunity to continue arrangement (STCA) $59,000 Inc GST PRICE $59000 CONTACT GLENN SCHWARZ 0425 661 112
5390 EUROPA CLASSIC
330 Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, 4. Registration 24-5095 Factory Built, 330 Air Frame Hours, 330 Engine Hours, Rotax 912s/uls Engine, Garmin Area 500 GPS, 1 X iPad Holder, iCom 200 Radio. Price $58,000.00 Contact Barry 0417 473 780. PRICE $58000 CONTACT BARRY HEARD 0417 473 780
5384 SAPPHIRE
244.1 Airframe Hours, 244.1 Engine Hours, Europa Classic. Constructed 1999. Trailer, Conventional tail wheel undercarriage, 4 stage flap, 120Kts @20.lph -Jabiru 3.3 engine. TT 244.1hrs engine and airframe, VHF, Transponder, Lowrance GPS. Contact - Doug 0408386175, Mary - 0417003281 PRICE $40000 CONTACT DOUGLAS GREGORY 0408 386 175
5393 SKYFOX GAZELLE CA25N
535.6 Airframe Hours, 140 Engine Hours, Sapphire. Don’t be left on the ground, looking up, wishing you were flying. For a very affordable price you could be flying too! The Sapphire is a classic and well respected Australian built design. Rebuilt with new electric start Rotax 503, new Bolly 3 blade prop, new instruments and electric system. It is ... PRICE $13000 CONTACT MUSTAFA BOZKURT 0408 516 816
5386 QUICKSILVER GT400 610 Airframe Hours, 610 Engine Hours, Allegro. 2009 Allegro, rotax 80 hp, 610 hours total time. Usable load 250kg, Endurance 4.5 hours @ 100 knots tas. 0427210083
61 / SPORT PILOT
2250 Airframe Hours, 2960 Engine Hours, Gazelle CA25N. Skyfox Gazelle CA25N. A/F hrs - 2250. Eng hrs - 2962. Second owner, all A/Ds complied with. Rotax 912. King KT76 mode C transponder, Icom A220 VHF, AvMap digital A/H, Garmin Aera 500 GPS. Tidy aircraft, always hangared. $32,000 neg. PRICE $32000 CONTACT VICTOR TAYLOR 0427 113 637
5395 LIGHTWING GR582
A V I ATION CLASSIFIED S
300 Airframe Hours, 300 Engine Hours, GR 582. Factory-built Hughes Lightwing. Professionally recovered and painted. Rotax 582, panel-mount Icom VHF, long-range tanks. Exceptionally low hours (300 from new) and in excellent condition throughout. Forced sale due to medical condition PRICE $21000 CONTACT MARTIN HONE 0419 368 696
PRICE $59000 CONTACT (07) 4092 2043
5405 J-230 D
5397 BUCCANEER2 ULTRALIGHT FOR SALE
342 Airframe Hours, 342 Engine Hours, 1996. Updated electric actuators and Tundra wheels and tyres. Brand new icon A210. Needs some work on the tail-wheel for water landings. Condition report included. Registered until September 2018 PRICE $29000 CONTACT IVAN LIZARRALDE 0409 660 716 EMAIL BLUEPEACE24@YAHOO.COM.AU
5400 JABIRU J200B 19-5266
170 Airframe Hours, 170 Engine Hours, J200B. Jabiru J200B in excellent condition. TTIS 170hrs, Total engine time 170hrs. All Basic instruments plus AvMap EKPIV. Micro Air radio. 3300 eng. Quite a fast Aircraft. PRICE $55000 CONTACT ROBERT MUSGRAVE 0407 502 782
5415 HANGAR FOR SALE - HUNTER VALLEY
660 Airframe Hours, 240 Engine Hours, J-230 D. Built 2007. TT 660. Eng. 240. Prop. 120. One owner. Nil accidents. Dynon D10. VHF. Tranponder. All SB’s up to date. Meticulously maintained. PRICE $70000 CONTACT JOHN RUFFLE 0414 947 530
nil Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, nil. Near New, fully-enclosed steel hangar at Scone Airport. 12m x 12m concrete floor. Full width 3.6m high doors on rollers. Bitumen-sealed apron and taxiway to 1400m bitumen runway. FREEHOLD (Torrens) Land Title - no annual lease payments. PRICE $0 CONTACT GEOFFREY PINFOLD 0429 810 008
5409 AIRCRAFT 32-4718
5417 J6 KARATOO
196 Airframe Hours, 196 Engine Hours, Edge X T 912. 2007 Airborne XT-912 with CRUZE wing all in excellent condition 196 Hrs TT. Comes with all the standard equipment PLUS a “move around dolly frame”. Has the NEW coil packs fitted as well. Call Rick on 0416 041 007 for more details. $35,000 ono Taree NSW PRICE $35000 CONTACT RICHARD JOHN WILLIAM HARPER
0 Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, J6 Karatoo. J6 Karatoo unfinished project, 2 seater side by side, 32’6” wing span, 20’ long, wooden spruce wings, hydraulic disc brakes, fabric for covering, all plans and instructions included, many hardware parts and tools included also, all in good condition PRICE $5000 CONTACT ROBERT STUART (03) 5854 8377
5410 JABIRU 430
5418 RANS AIRAILE S12
106 Airframe Hours, 106 Engine Hours, J430. 2015 registered VH can transfer to RA. Immaculate condition suit new buyer. Airframe/eng TTIS 106hrs, Cruise 120ktas @ 20l/hr. SDS fuel injected CAMit 3300, IVO IFA Prop, Glass panel, Auto Pilot. Contact Simon 0417793902 sccoombs@westnet.com.au PRICE $75000 CONTACT SIMON 0417 793 902
360 Airframe Hours, 360 Engine Hours, S12. Excellent condition-nil accidents. Flown 360 hours only with Rotax 912UL and Warp Drive prop, boost pump, radio, intercom and 2 headsets. Long rego. Always hangared. Currently located at Wedderburn. PRICE $17000 CONTACT RODNEY HOLZWART 0438 123 767
5414 SUPAPUP MKII
5419 IBIS MAGIC GS 700 19-7591 TWO SEATER AIRCRAFT FOR SALE
5401 TECNAM P96 GOLF AIRCRAFT 24-4143
1302.6 Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, P96 Golf. Tecnam P96 Golf 100 aircraft. 24 registered. Awesome and reliable aircraft in great condition. Dream to fly. Rotax 912 S. engine PRICE $65000 CONTACT MICHAEL VAN DER HEIDEN 0412 393 334
5404 JABIRU J160-D
583 Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, J160-D. Factory Built 2013. 583 hours Total time. Composite propeller (250 hours since new). Re-painted 2016. Dynon EFIS D10A. MicroAir M760 VHF. MicroAir T2000SFL Transponder. Excellent condition inside and out.
202 Airframe Hours, 186 Engine Hours, SupaPup MkII. Price reduced! Single seat A/C. Reliable (Two Bass Strait crossings!) Rotax 503 Dual CDI with approx 186 hrs TT. Fuel tankage 55ltrs (premixed) giving approx. 3hrs total endurance at a cruise speed 60-65 kts ind. Minimum field required with no obstacles 200m. Drum brakes, no flaps. Wings are removable and custom ... PRICE $11500 CONTACT GARRY DUKES 0400 709 801
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470 Airframe Hours, 470 Engine Hours, GS700. IBIS GS 700 19-7591 TWO SEATER AIRCRAFT FOR SALE. Glass cockpit with autopilot and backup instruments. Excellent cross over of stol and cruise 24kt stall with 100kt cruise. Recent annual Low hours. Selling due surplus to requirement PRICE $70000 CONTACT YULIO SPADINA 0439 003 633
A VI A TION CLASSIFIED S
5422 JABIRU 230D 1/2 SHARE $40,000
5425 MICROLIGHT
5428 CESSNA SKYCATCHER 162
515 Airframe Hours, 515 Engine Hours, J230D. J230D. Excellent Condition, true 120kt cruise,Nil Accidents, Autopilot, plus many more, Full Analogue Instruments, All AD,s current, 515H Airframe and Engine, Factory built, Customised Leather Seats, great for travelling, GCSFS Jacobswell Qld. PRICE $40000 CONTACT COLIN WORTHY 0403 669 564
48 Airframe Hours, 348 Engine Hours, XT. Airborne XT912 CRUZE WING, 2006. PRICE $32000 CONTACT GREG OLDFIELD 0424 195 317
98 Airframe Hours, 98 Engine Hours, 162. CESSNA SKYCATCHER 162 2011 TT 98 hrs. Australian delivery. One owner. Dual screens PFD and EGT, all options. Currently registered GA but can be registered RA. 10/10 $90,000 plus GST Contact Alan 0439 805 540, alank454@hotmail.com PRICE $99000 CONTACT ALAN KIRWAN 0439 805 540
5426 VANS RV-8 QUICK BUILD KIT FOR SALE
5423 JABIRU 230D FOR SALE
977 Airframe Hours, 236 Engine Hours, J230D977 Airframe hours, 236 engine hours, factory built, exc condition, always hangared, no accidents, never used for training. Jabaru composite, scimitar propellar, dynon d100 EFIS, garmen transponder, itom radio, AvMap EKP-IV GPS, fuel scan FS-450. PRICE $65000 CONTACT BARRY MOCK 0418 381 790
5432 FULLY ENCLOSED AIRCRAFT TRAILER
0 Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, RV-8. Intro plans and 2 copies building plans. Empennage complete. Wing, Fuselage & Finishing kits inc ...wing & fuselage on wheeled stands. Extras include electric elevator & aileron trim & rear rudder pedals. Large discount over current $US pricing+shipping PRICE $35000 CONTACT RODNEY HOLZWART 0438 123 767
5427 JABIRU 230 FOR SALE
5424 ZENAIR ZODIAC CH601 FOR SALE
800 Airframe Hours, 800 Engine Hours, Zodiac CH601. PRICE $28000 CONTACT LAWRIE BARTON-JOHNSON
nil Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, nil. Fully enclosed trailer built to house RV12. Hydraulic brakes, single axle. Not registered. Heavy duty aluminium chequer plate rear ramp with spring assist to open and close. 8000mm long x 2540m wide. Solar panel. PRICE $5000 CONTACT ALAN PHELAN 0411 253 156
5433 D T A TRIKE VOYAGEUR 2
500 Airframe Hours, 1000 Engine Hours, 230 - was a 430. Airframe J430 built to GA standard. Eng 914Rotax turbo +hyd con prop. Full cockpit. 2 radioes. Transponder. DG gyro. 2GPS”s. Autopilot. Dynon FFIS-DIOA. Altimeter. 2 airspeed indicators. All engine guages+turbo boost. Always hangared. PRICE $70000 CONTACT RAY ALLEN 0416 204 472
264hrs Airframe Hours, 264hrs Engine Hours, Voyageur 2. D T A Trike near perfect 450 Dynamic wing. 9/10. PRICE $33 CONTACT RUSS DENNIS
TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR ADVERTISING ONLINE AND IN THE MAGAZINE To advertise online and in Sport Pilot magazine Visit: www.aviationclassifieds.com.au/
| Call: (02) 6280 4700
|
Email: sales@aviationclassifieds.com.au
Advertising rates start at $33 (incl GST) per month for online advertising. You can include up to 5 photos and 1000 words of text online. Advertising rates include an ad in Sport Pilot Magazine, which is limited to one photo and 50 words. Advertisers are responsible for cancelling their ad. No refunds will be issued for ads where the advertiser sells a product and fails to cancel their ad. RAAus offers advertisers the opportunity to auto-renew ads, it is an advertisers responsibility to turn off this feature. The deadline for ads to appear in Sport Pilot is the 15th of the month prior to the cover date of the issue. The Aviation Classifieds section in Sport Pilot is subsidised by RAAus and its members and is for non-commercial sales only. As such, even though your ad is guaranteed to be online, inclusion in the magazine will be at the discretion of the Editor. Before purchasing any aircraft/engines/equipment which appears in the Aviation Classifieds, make sure the technical details and registration information is correct for that type and model of aircraft/engine/equipment. RAAus and Stampils P/L take NO responsibility for the technical accuracy of the details and information attached to each ad online and in Sport Pilot magazine and may not be able to transfer the aircraft purchase. RAAus also reserves the right to edit or delete advertisements deemed inappropriate or misleading. RAAus and Stampils P/L reserve the right to withdraw from publication, without refund, any ad deemed unsuitable, including low quality or faulty images. Neither RAAus nor Stampils P/L accepts responsibility for advertising errors or omissions. Advertisers are also responsible for assessing both the integrity of potential buyers and the risks which attend online transactions. The long standing principle of caveat emptor (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caveat_emptor) applies. Since phishing scammers may contact advertisers using the RAAus website, you are strongly encouraged to familiarise yourself with the ACCC’s guidelines for recognising and guarding against online scammers (https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/consumer-protection/protecting-yourself-from-scams).
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QU IZ
A QUESTION OR TWO
2
Which of the following are the classic symptoms of carburettor icing on an engine in flight? a. A sudden and substantial drop in engine power b. A fall in engine temps (caused by the ice) and a drop in RPM c. An enriched mixture causing a drop in engine power d. A drop in RPM and rough running
3
Which of the following are the required conditions for CBs to form? a. Atmospheric instability extending through at least 10,000ft b. A relatively moist atmosphere, especially aloft c. A trigger to start an uplift action d. All the above are correct
d. To maintain a constant angle of attack along the span of the blade
5
A minute of latitude is a. The same as a minute of longitude b. 1 degree of longitude c. 1 nautical mile d. 60 degrees of latitude Source: Brisbane Valley Flyer
4
Propeller blades appear to have a longitudinal twist along their blades. This twist a. Is an optical illusion b. I s to minimise thrust losses near the propeller boss c. To improve thrust at the propeller tips
1. B 2. D 3. D 4. D 5. C
What does 10 litres of petrol weigh? a. 10 kgs b. 7.2 kgs c. 12.8 kgs d. 14.4 kgs
ANSWERS
1
DENILIQUIN AERO CLUB FLY-IN 13th - 15th April 2018 Opening 1st stage of the recognition of No7 Flying School Deniliquin WW2 Mini Air Show Oz Runway Presentation Hangar Dinner
Sky High Opera South West Music and CoOpera present The Barber of Seville in a WW2 hangar Famo us De ni Aer o Club Sunda y Brea For more details kfast regarding the program accommodation Opera and dinner tickets visit
www.deniliquinaeroclub.com 64 / SPORT PILOT
IN D EX
WHERE IS
CAGIT?
CAGIT STILL IN THE WEST AGAINST all the odds, the highly sought after Come And Get It Trophy remains firmly lodged in the west of the country. At the time this magazine went to the printers, John Reymond still retained possession of the trophy at Karakin (10nm east of Lancelin) in southern W.A. If you, or your crew, are contemplating a high-speed heist of recreational aviation’s most coveted prize, it’s best to keep up-to-date with its latest location by checking the CAGIT hunter’s Facebook page, administered by Dexter Burkill, Peter Zweck and David Carroll - Facebook. com/cagithunters. For a full list of rules about how you can grab CAGIT for yourself, check out the RAAus website.
ADVERTISERS INDEX Airborne Flight Training
68
CASA
36
Mendelssohn Pilot Supplies
Asia Pacific Light Flying
13
Coominya Flight Training
58
MKY Tours Oshkosh
58
Atec Aircraft Sales
66
D-Motor Australia
67
PSB
20
Australian Lightwing
36
Deniliquin Aero Club
64
Recreational Flying Co Gympie
58
Bert Flood Imports
12
Foxbat Australia
20
Bill Owen
64
Goolwa Airpark
42
Sapphire Avionics
42
Bolly Props
67
Horsham Aviation
18,59
SEQFTA
67
Brumby Aircraft
15
Insure Planes
58,67
Sling
13
Bushcat
18
Jabiru Aircraft
10
Sport Aviation Tocumwal
67
C & H Freight
42
Leading Edge Aviation
67
Starfox Aircraft
54
65 / SPORT PILOT
2
HAP PY L A ND IN G S
Another signpost of the future
I
T’S never going to be in the RAAus category, but how is this for another signpost pointing at the future of aviation? More than 60 rich people have signed up for the revolutionary TriFan 600, a new vertical take-off and land aircraft, designed for use on superyachts. The company XTI launched the aircraft at the Paris Air Show and reported major interest when the TriFan 600 was promoted at the giant Ft. Lauderdale International Boat Show. The company says the TriFan 600 will combine vertical take-off with long-range, the speed and comfort of a business aircraft and a quieter and cleaner state-of-the-art hybrid-electric propulsion system. The six-seater is expected to travel at 300kts and have a range of up to 1,200nm. Using three ducted fans, the TriFan will lift off vertically. Its two wing fans then rotate forward for a transition to cruise speed and initial climb. It will reach its cruising altitude of 30,000ft in ten minutes. First flights of the new aircraft are expected in the second half of the year. The future just keeps coming, doesn’t it? For more information, www.xtiaircraft.com.
SEND IN YOUR STORIES Got an aviation moment you’d love to share? Your kids or maybe your club get together? Send a photo as a jpeg attachment and a short explanation to editor@sportpilot.net.au
66 / SPORT PILOT
AVIATION INSURANCE EXPERIENCED AVIATION INSURANCE SPECIALISTS
Stewart Smith, Gladys Smith, and Grant Cerni would like to assist with your Fixed Wing, Helicopter, Hangarkeepers, and Public Liability needs. Grant can also quote you on all other types of business & personal insurance. Our team is friendly & helpful to deal with, and we obtain for you multiple competitive quotes from all suitable insurers. We service clients in all parts of Australia! WE’RE ON YOUR SIDE
Cerni Kalser Insurance Pty Ltd t/a Insure Planes
Phone: 03 9816 3264 Email: aviation@insureplanes.com.au Web: www.insureplanes.com.au Stewart Smith 0433 278 700 Gladys Smith 0425 759 322 Grant Cerni 0427 779 649
AVIATION FINANCE
Australian Commercial Credit Pty Ltd in affiliation with Phillips Basile Equipment Finance Pty Ltd may be able to assist with funds from prime lenders. Good bank fixed rates, normally over 5 years with security over only the plane. Ring Stewart Smith for an obligation free initial discussion. WE’RE ON YOUR SIDE
68 / SPORT PILOT