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CONTENTS

40

TABLE OF CONTENTS
REGULARS
06 From the Chairman
09 Events
09 From the CEO
10 Calendar of Events
52 Classifieds
66 Final Approach

COLUMNS
34 18 Bonnici - Learning to Fly
24 RAAus at Work
30 RAAus at Work
46 From the Ops Team
44 Safety – Reminder about landings
62 Milestones
64 Maintenance - Life of a LAME

FEATURES
14 A Family Affair
16 Automation
26 Trike Flying
32 King of the Skies
38 Griffith Aero Club
34 Triplane

48 40 Antiquers
48 Ballooning
3 / SPORT PILOT
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 3
 DIRECTORS

Michael Monck (Chairman)

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT HEAD OF FLIGHT AIRCRAFT AND 0419 244 794
OPERATIONS MAINTENANCE Michael.Monck@raa.asn.au
HEAD OFFICE
PO Box 1265 Fyshwick Jill Bailey Enquires:
ops@raa.asn.au Alan Middleton
ACT 2609 Australia tech@raa.asn.au
0400 280 087 0407 356 948
Unit 3, 1 Pirie Street alan.middleton@raa.asn.au
Fyshwick ACT 2609 PILOT AND MEMBERSHIP
Ph: +61 (2) 6280 4700 INNOVATION & IMPROVEMENT Inquiries: Trevor Bange
EXECUTIVE members@raa.asn.au
Fax: +61 (2) 6280 4775 0429 378 370
Lea Vesic Trevor.Bange@raa.asn.au
Email: admin@raa.asn.au
Lea.vesic@raa.asn.au ENQUIRIES
0418 445 652 General Enquires: Eugene Reid
www.raa.asn.au
admin@raa.asn.au 0428 824 700
ACN 070 931 645
HEAD OF AIRWORTHINESS & Eugene.Reid@raa.asn.au
MAINTENANCE
CEO FIND YOUR NEAREST
Jared Smith FLIGHT SCHOOL OR CLUB Rod Birrell
Michael Linke Jared.smith@raa.asn.au 0422 446 622
ceo@raa.asn.au www.raa.asn.au/schools
0418 125 393 Rod.Birrell@raa.asn.au

CORPORATE SERVICES AVIATION DEVELOPMENT Luke Bayly

EXECUTIVE COORDINATOR 0421 463 967
Maxine Milera Sport Pilot is published by Luke.bayly@raa.asn.au
Neil Schaefer M&M Aviation Media 12 times a
admin@raa.asn.au Neil.schaefer@raa.asn.au year on behalf of Recreational Barry Windle
0428 282 870 Aviation Australia
barry.windle@raa.asn.au

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT MAGAZINE

CONTRIBUTE EDITOR
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• Send in your story editor@sportpilot.net.au
Email: editor@sportpilot.net.au
Call: 0419 509 548 DEPUTY EDITOR
Michelle Smith
PO Box 60, Sebastapol 3351
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While every reasonable effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the content of this magazine, no warrant is given or implied. The con-
tent 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 M&M Aviation
Media 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 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 5
 COLUMN
FROM THE CHAIR: MICHAEL MONCK
SAFETY. MORE THAN
JUST A SYSTEM
S
afety is a funny thing. Safe operation
is something we all strive towards but
at the same time it is not an outcome
that can be engineered. We can’t simply tell
someone to be safe and then expect they
will be. It doesn’t work that way. We must
have controls. As a result, we end up with
a bunch of systems and procedures put in
place that are designed to produce safe
outcomes.
We have safety equipment like pro-
tective clothing and hard hats. These are
designed to prevent injuries and make sure
people go home to their families at night.
We have checklists to make sure we have
all the gear. Are you wearing your hard
hat? Have you got your safety glasses? And
so on. Only when we have completed the
checklist can we proceed. We have evolved
from a world where we knew that we were
safe because we had competent managers
and people at the sharp end who knew what
they were doing, into one where we know
we’re safe because we have the paperwork
to prove it.
At this point I can imagine a bunch
of readers imagining where this column
is going and thinking that I have lost my
marbles. Perhaps I have, but that was years
ago! Rest assured I am not going nuts
though, I am paraphrasing a well-regarded
safety expert who is challenging the status
quo. These are not my words.
I do a lot of work in the utilities sector
and as part of this I was lucky to hear Sidney
Dekker from Griffith University speak on
safety matters. A few things he said stood
out in my mind, one of which I have already
paraphrased. Another is that we have traded
common sense for hi-vis vests and an ob-
session with compliance. Instead of putting
faith and trust in our people, we make them
tick a box on a piece of paper and transfer
the responsibility onto the system.
Before anyone jumps the gun and makes
another leap of faith and assumes I am sug-
6 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
gesting that compliance is rubbish, I’m not.
What I am saying is that we need to think
about things a bit differently and re-exam-
ine how we ‘do safety’. We need to find a
good middle ground so that our systems
are helping us without taking accountability
away from those who should have it.
I was driving past the airport on the
way into the office the other day and for
some reason my phone didn’t connect
to the Bluetooth in my car. I pulled into a
carpark next to the airport so I could take
the call while being compliant with the road
rules and, as I was talking, I saw something
amusing.
Some workers on the airport were
moving a 737 with a tug. As they towed the
aircraft along the taxi way in front of me, I
noticed one of the stupidest things I’ve ever
seen. They were being led by a car with a
tiny orange flashing light on the roof. That’s
right, this large plane, around 40,000kg
empty, was being escorted by a car that
weighed in at around 1700kg presumably
so everyone could see them coming, as
though nobody would have seen the 737
being towed without the escort.
During the course of the phone call I
watched the plane go by, get parked up and
the ute disappear. A few minutes later the
tug scuttled off on its own back across the
airport without anyone escorting it. Another
small vehicle trundled along shortly after
and picked up some other people, I assume
those that were onboard the aircraft as it
got towed, and then made its way back to
the terminal.
What I can glean from this is while the
tug didn’t need an escort and nor did the
second vehicle, the aircraft did. But when it
is under its own power it can taxi around
unescorted. It was as though it became
invisible when attached to a tug and so we
had another layer of protective measures
needing to be applied because we couldn’t
trust those on the plane or the tug to make
sure everyone was safe. It was perhaps the
dumbest thing I have seen all year. I can
hear the arguments though, no one got hurt
so the safety measures must be working.
To me, this is an area where we have
got it all wrong. I’d love to speak to Dekker
directly, but I hazard a guess that he would
agree with me when I say that we need to
stop the silliness and focus on things that
will really make a difference.
Instead of putting in place a bunch of
silly measures we should be asking what we
can take away without making ourselves
less safe while looking at the things that we
are doing successfully with a view to under-
standing where we are about to fail.
That escort didn’t need to be there. I’m
confident that the people who were towing
the aircraft were well trained by Virgin to do
the job safely. I am equally confident that
they could communicate with the tower to
get the necessary clearances to cross active
runways and so on without the additional
ute because they did so on the way back.
I am confident that this was a step too far
and that whoever put that requirement in
place was looking in the wrong spot.
We know that certain things work in
safety. For example, Dekker references
a study that reveals airline “carriers with
higher rates of nonfatal accidents/inci-
dents had lower mortality risks”. That is, an
airline that reports, records and analyses
its performance is less likely to have a fatal
accident. Listening to other aspects of what
Dekker talks about suggests that this is less
to do with the underlying stats and more to
do with the culture of the airline itself.
A high reporting rate implies a willing-
ness to examine our own actions and be
responsible for the outcomes. Our reporting
rate at RAAus has gone up in recent years
and yet our fatality rate has declined. If we
are having more incidents, then surely more
people should be dying right? Wrong.
Instead of having more incidents what
is actually happening is we are more willing
to talk about them. We’re not having more
incidents; we’re just telling people about
them now.
This leads to us understanding what is
going on and what went wrong. We need
to also extend this to successful operations
and begin to understand where the pressure
points are. We have many more successful
flights than unsuccessful ones so there is a
treasure trove of learning opportunities there.
We’ve worked hard for many years now
on improving our organisational culture and
it appears to be delivering the right results. I
would urge caution when linking our efforts
to an improved safety result but there is a
definite correlation between our improved
reporting culture and an improved fatality
rate among our members. Our conversa-
tions seem to be resonating with people
and putting trust and faith back into the
hands of members while helping them with
the tools and knowledge they need looks to
be working. Our members are, for the most
part, accepting accountability for what
happens when they go flying and this is a
good thing.
Let’s keep this trend going and build on
it. Dekker reckons that we pay one person
out of every 10 to ensure we are compliant.
I reckon we should change that to 10 out of
10 people ensuring we are safe.
Michael Monck

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EVENTS 2019
NEW SOUTH WALES
TEMORA 31ST AUGUST.
Father’s Day showcase.
Come and see Australia’s best collection
of WWII aircraft exhibited where they
belong – flying. aviationmuseum.com.au
PARKES FRIDAY 20TH TO SUNDAY 22ND
SEPTEMBER
Airventure 2019. The event for
aviators, by aviators. Come along and
camp with your aeroplane. Attend sem-
inars by industry professionals or watch
the Global Aviation Bushcat being built
over the course of the event. The event
is topped off with an airshow on Sunday.
airventureaustralia.com.au
VICTORIA
ECHUCA. SUNDAY 21ST JULY
The famous Echuca Aeroclub roast lunch. Enjoy two
roast meats, roast pumpkin and potatoes, honeyed
carrots, corn, peas, gravy, bread and butter, then
a wonderful selection of homemade desserts
prepared by club members. All this for only $20
a head, kids eat free if accompanied by an adult.
www.echucaaeroclub.com.au
KYNETON. SATURDAY 3RD AUGUST
The Kyneton gourmet hot dog brunch returns for
another month. Enjoy the relaxed atmosphere
and interesting aeroplanes that are a part of the
culture of this lovely country airfield.
SHEPPARTON. SUNDAY 4TH AUGUST
The Great Shepparton pancake breakfast
8am to 11am
8 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
SOUTH AUSTRALIA
TRURO FLATS AIRPARK BRISBANE AIRPORT SATURDAY 17TH AUGUST
SUNDAY 7TH JULY The Aviation Expo in Brisbane is the
The Barossa Birdmen will host a forum largest event of its kind in Queensland and
showcases the thriving aerospace industry,
on electric aircraft and canopy mainte-
with a significant focus on aviation skills
nance. Local aircraft canopy construc-
development, careers and employment
tor Ian Linke will give a talk on electric
opportunities. www.eventbrite.com.au
aircraft for about an hour, then a talk
on canopy construction followed by a
hands on workshop for maintenance AIRLIE BEACH FRIDAY 6TH TO MONDAY 9TH
SEPTEMBER
and cleaning of canopies which will go Whitsunday Airport Shute Harbour will
as long as attendees require. host their annual Airlie Beach Fly In. This
Due to being hands on, numbers will be will also incorporate the renowned runway
limited. Lunch, morning and afternoon dinner and airshow.
tea provided for $10. Aviation enthusiasts are invited to fly into
Please RSVP Roy Whitsunday Airport to enjoy a wonderful
royp1948@gmail. weekend of aviation in the Whitsundays.
com before June 26. www.whitsundayairport.com.au
WESTERN AUSTRALIA
YORK. SAT 21ST TO SUN 22ND SEPTEMBER
Westfly is back by popular demand at White Gum
Air Park. Enjoy the Mig 21 and Boeing 737 static
displays. Mogas available. Camping and caravan
park open. Accommodation cabins available
Andrew Cotterell 0400 246 906.
QUEENSLAND
MURGON. SATURDAY 10TH AUGUST
The Burnett Flyers will hold their
bi-monthly breakfast fly-in at Angelfield.
For $15 you get a hearty country breakfast
with fresh coffee and tea, served in a
country atmosphere at the airfield’s rustic
ops centre.www.burnettflyers.org
WARWICK. SATURDAY 20TH JULY
QRAA Jumpers & Jazz Breakfast Fly-in at
Massie Aerodrome. Following a hearty
breakfast, transport will be arranged for
those wishing to visit Warwick to enjoy
some time checking out Warwick’s quirky
Jumpers & Jazz festival. www.qraa.info.
Graham; 0427 377 603
COLUMN

FROM THE CEO: MICHAEL LINKE

I WON’T BOTHER REPORTING IT…

O
ur Occurrence Management System culture in the past six years, a positive shift.
(OMS) turns four in a few weeks. If This shift has allowed us to develop train-
you are wondering what the OMS is ing courses and communication pieces for
you should check it out (oms.raa.asn.au). our members, which in turn informs more
In a nutshell it is where our members people, which in turn improves safety. THE PROPELLER SPECIALIST
report aviation relate occurrences, hazards Our open and fair reporting policy and
and lodge complaints. These days we get culture are also paramount as we progres-
very few complaints from our members,
3 Blade
sively introduce our safety management
which is a good thing, and even fewer
2 Blade $1,125.00in
system (SMS) across our school network.
complaints that require resolution using our As RAAus progresses to CASR Part 149, a $860.00in
complaints handling framework. SMS will be integral to the success of our
The same can’t be said for our occur- flight training schools. We’ve supported
rences, and that is a good thing. Our safety them by developing a very simple set of
culture at RAAus encourages self-reporting guidelines and templates, yet at the heart of
of occurrences and this fits with our open our system is the ability of our flight train- 4 Blade
and fair reporting policy which states we ing school network to solve problems at the
$1390.00in
don’t punish members for making honest local level. As Mick said in his column, real
mistakes, but rather we use occurrences as safety comes by competent people talking The all new
a learning tool. to each other, sharing experiences and Brolga Sport &
Now if you are going to deliberately fly watching out for each other. As a result of
upside down or do a beat up and it gets our size and diversity of our flight training
Magnum series
reported, we are going to take a closer school network, our SMS can’t be a one size
look, but at RAAus we accept we all make fits all. It must be customisable, scalable  2,3 or 4 Blade
mistakes and the best way to improve and and meet the operational requirements of  Pitch Adjustable
share the learning with our 10,000 members our diverse flight training school network.
 Carbon/glass
is to report them. There must be a level of common sense in
Blades
I’ve been the CEO of RAAus now for it, or as Sidney Dekker says, “competent
almost five years and I have been involved management”. We trust our CFIs, our com-  Alloy Hub
in fewer than five disciplinary investigations, petent managers in the field. Therefore,  Hard ware kit
with only one member losing their privilege by putting into practice the tools we have  Full warranty
to fly for an extended period of time. We developed will help keep our culture evolv-
are walking the walk and we continue to ing and improving, which in turn keeps us
encourage people to report occurrences. all safer.
As our Chair said in his article, an organi- So next time you have a mishap or
sation is likely to be safer, not because of simply stuff up, tell us about it. Who
all the safety training and monitoring, but knows how many others will learn?
more likely because of the culture of the
people involved. We’ve seen a shift in our Michael Linke

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AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 9

COLUMN

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

GEOFF NORWOOD IS NOT IMPRESSED WITH

WHAT HE SEES IS A BREACH OF TRUST BY RAA.

I
direct my complaint to those responsible for changing the privacy a partial disclosure, only to a few parties, and being in our best
policy, and the wilful disclosure of my personal information, to a interest. Please do not muddy the waters with the reason you saw
third party, without my knowledge or permission. This being done fit to enforce landing fees. That is a totally different issue which is
without any prior consultation with, or even notification to, the petty and irrelevant to this privacy breach. That issue should have
members of the organisation you are bound to protect.
been taken up with members years ago, when you saw a problem
Since I joined RAA, I have read the privacy policy carefully, and
looming.
considered it a reasonable, standard policy. To reinforce that policy,
I respectfully request a copy of the minutes of the board
you have repeated your commitment to it on numerous occasions
meeting at which this decision was discussed and made. I would like
since.
to know who proposed it, and who voted for or against it.
So, what was so valuable, what was the “pot of gold” that made
I am extremely disappointed. I consider your actions to be
you sell out your own members, those people that put you in place,
morally and ethically indefensible, and legally challengeable
who trusted you to guide and govern the organisation we are fi-
nancing? To look after our interests in the flying world, including our
This complaint is a prerequisite to lodging a complaint with the
privacy; - yes, the same things you have been repeatedly promising
Privacy Commission.
over the years.
Or am I wrong? There was no real reason, no big reward, it was
simply a total disregard and display of utter contempt for members’
rights to privacy, as per the policy document, as per your repeated
promises, that you gave them all away on a whim to please a third
party ? From the CEO:
How long is it since you read your own RAA governing policy? Thanks Geoff for your letter. For many years RAAus
Check out sect 2.1 for example. How hypocritical is that now! How members were criticised for not "paying their way". This
can you go out and face the members, and tell us you are looking criticism manifested itself in the past few years with several
after our interests and doing what you were voted in to do? You airports imposing prior permission required standards for
have failed in your duty to all the members of RAA, in the biggest RAAus members.
way. To be so cavalier in your handling of member’s privacy is un-
conscionable. RAAus worked with the Airports Association on a variety
This is not just a breach of privacy; it is a breach of trust. In of different solutions and ultimately settled on the current
doing this you have seriously compromised yourself. Your word is arrangement.
no longer of any value. Who would be foolish enough to believe We believe we have struck the right balance which will
your promises and statements into the future? ensure members of RAAus who use aviation assets where
So, I ask you, considering the above, are you now, really fit or a charge is imposed, will meet the cost of that use.
even able, to continue in the position you were entrusted with?
This is not just noise, or just one more petty complaint to ignore.
Please do not answer with “weenie” statements about being only

Send your letters to: editor@sportpilot.net.au

10 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019

OWEN BARTROP ASKS THE PERENNIAL QUESTION
ABOUT SPIN TRAINING.
T
here have been several articles written in various flying maga-
zines about spinning and whether pilots should be taught the
elements involved in spin recovery. Spinning is an essential
part of flying and if recovery from a spin is not part of a flying syl-
labus then why is flying straight and level part of the syllabus for
RPT pilots? They only need to know how to take-off and land; the
autopilot does the rest so why teach it? Now we all know that that
statement is ridiculous, and so is not teaching spin recovery.
Teaching a pilot to fly should encompass all phases of flying and
if the aircraft used is not capable of doing certain manoeuvres then
one that can should be used for that part of the syllabus.
I have read that some modern aircraft are built to prevent spins.
That may be but the student pilot may go and fly an aircraft that can
enter a spin only to find that he, or she, is not equipped to control
such a situation.
Alternatively, teach pilots to recover from stabilised spins, not
just incipient spins, then at least it gives hope of recovery from the
above situation.
If an aircraft does not respond to taught spin recovery proce-
dures, opposite rudder and elevator control full forward, there are
other manoeuvres that can be tried to regain straight and level
flight.
Editor: Thanks for your letter Owen. I ran a story in November
2018 where several senior instructors gave their opinion about spin
training. They all supported the current syllabus. Their opinion is
the recognition of the situation where a spin can develop is a more
important skill than teaching full recovery since the majority of stall/
spin crashes occur at low level in the circuit.
COLIN MCKAY AGREES WITH CHAIRMAN
MICHAEL MONCK’S COLUMN IN THE JUNE EDITION.
I
’m over in Nashville for the Great Tennessee Airshow to see the
Blue Angels and have just finished reading your article. I fully
agree.
I still maintain my PPL and ASIC at a reasonable cost as you
point out. That gives me the privilege of flying my Jabby 230 pretty
much anywhere I want to go.
I too am sick of the whingers who moan about a few hundred
Ops Comment:
Thanks Owen, the RAAus Syllabus of Flight Training Flight
Unit 1.01 (3 axis) Element 7: Stalling currently requires
pilots to recognise the approaching and developed stall
and recover with minimal height loss, including “when the
wing drops” in various configurations and at varied power
settings.
Flight Operations are currently engaging with subject
matter experts and experienced RAAus instructors to
develop a program for management of scenario-based
Upset Recovery and Prevention Training. This will become
mandatory for all RAAus instructors to complete over two
years once implemented. This will include awareness and
management of spins for instructors, however as you
would be keenly aware, RAAus aircraft are not approved to
conduct spins. As a result, this training program will need
to be conducted in approved CASA registered aircraft.
As far as RAAus Pilot Certificate (RPC) holders are con-
cerned, RAAus encourages RPC holders to expand their
skills by investigating and completing programs delivered
by gliding clubs and aerobatic schools to improve com-
petencies in aircraft handling and management. RAAus
does not intend to make spin training mandatory for RPC
holders at this time.
dollars a year but are quite happy to fly to Oshkosh at many thou-
sands of dollars. Some of those same people also pay many hun-
dreds of dollars on EFB items and all the other bits and pieces just
to do an hour flying or less once a month.
Unfortunately, it seems to be that people have a sense of enti-
tlement for everything, not just flying. In my mind, if you use it you
pay for it.
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 11
COLUMN

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

RICHARD SUGDEN GIVES HIS IDEAS ABOUT HOW

HISTORICAL ISSUES CAN STILL CAUSE PROBLEMS.

I
t’s great to see letters coming in and opinions being aired. Just a little history, helps explain "the why it is today situation".
They could hardly be blamed for not wanting to associate with
In a letter from Ian Shaughnessy a while ago he made a little us at that time.
mistake, I would like corrected. I’m glad things have changed, but it’s worth noting that the bad
He stated that 95-10 allowed us to build our own designed air- behaviour of a few can make it hard for the rest of us. We all have
craft but that they could only be single seat and single engine. the responsibility to call out those who push the envelope.
There has never been a restriction on the number of engines on
a 95-10 aircraft.
In the early days of the AUF we had twin and even four engine
versions flying in public at our fly-ins. They performed really well!
If the rules have changed I would be bloody angry, but I don’t
think they have. From the RAAus:
There was also mention of our “falling out” with SAAA and The CAO 95.10 does not limit the number of engines;
others. it limits wing loading and weight. And rather than
I was present at a combined AUF/SAAA fly-in (forget exactly looking back, today, RAAus looks forward and works
where it was) when one of our members flying put on the most to have productive and meaningful relationships with
spectacularly dangerous low level sunset aerobatic display I have all other aviation bodies. And finally, yes Richard, we
ever seen. And I have seen many. are now 11,000 strong and it is important we all look
I’m talking down amongst the pine trees dangerous. Almost to out for each other and hold each other to account.
ground level dangerous.
At the conclusion you could hear the stony silence from SAAA.
Unspoken: “We don’t want ANYTHING to do with these mad
bastards”.

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12 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019

SO YOU’VE HAD
A CLOSE CALL?
Often the experience is something you’ll never
forget and you have learned from it.
Why not share your story so that others can learn
from it too? If we publish it, we’ll give you $500.

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.

Please do not submit articles regarding events that are the

subject of a current official investigation. Submissions may
be edited for clarity, length and reader focus.

image: © Civil Aviation Safety Authority

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 13

A FAMILY FLYING AFFAIR
Kate Morris and her father Steve are reaching their own new heights. Mark Smith
met up with them.
S
ixteen-year-old Kate Morris likes
to live a little bit on the edge. The
self-confessed adrenaline junkie
spent her spare time as the flyer in her
cheerleading team, a position that saw her
thrown high in the air to land on a pyramid
of her fellow cheerleaders. Then when she
was 13 it was skydiving that caught her
eye and she did a tandem jump. Now, it’s
learning to fly, along with her father, Steve.
“When I was a flyer at cheerleading, I
loved the feeling of being in the air,” she
says as she sits next to her father in the
briefing room at Lilydale Airfield.
“After my tandem jump when I was 13,
I asked my parents if I could get my solo
skydiving qualification for my 16th birth-
day.”
Dad takes up the story.
“We talked about it and instead settled
on a trial instructional flight here at Lily-
dale. Thankfully she was hooked from that
point onwards,” Steve says.
“I did a little squeal as we took off,”
14 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
says Kate. “And Carl, the instructor said,
‘don’t squeal, just fly the plane.’ From that
point on I didn’t want to do anything else.”
Steve had also always wanted to learn
to fly and so the intrepid team started
lessons.
“I always had a passion for aviation. I
am an engineer by training, and I wanted
to be an aeronautical engineer originally
but for various reasons I didn’t think there
was enough of a career path, so I did
structural engineering before moving into
IT. But I took every opportunity to be in-
volved in aviation in some way, taking Kate
and her brother and sister on joyflights on
holidays – really any excuse to be around
aeroplanes.”
After starting lessons in October last
year, they achieved their first solo in April,
with Kate getting bragging rights for being
first, the day before her father achieved his.
“We both soloed in April, but I soloed
first,” she says while giving a wry smile in
her father’s direction.
“I feel right through the process of
learning to fly there has been a competi-
tion going on – who is in front of the other.
I know sometimes Dad would book a few
sneaky extra lessons for himself to ‘keep
up’ with me. That’s okay though. I let him
get away with it because I think he needs
the extra practice!”
Steve chimes in.
“We’ll often be in the circuit together
and it’s very tempting to get on the radio
and say ‘tidy your bedroom when you get
home’ or something. Then we usually drive
home together, and Kate puts the L-plates
on the car and I’m in the passenger seat
instructing. That’s also a strange reversal of
roles,” he says.
“I definitely watch Dad flying and
provide constructive criticism,” laughs Kate.
Kate recorded her first solo with an
in-cockpit camera and it’s a pleasure to
watch this confident young lady take the
Jabiru around the circuit with just the right
amount of confidence. The joy of being

Steve and Kate Morris
alone in an aeroplane for the first time is
evident on her face as she smiles broadly
throughout the flight. She also has a very
light touch on the stick, another sign of
how comfortable she is in the airborne
environment.
“I was weirdly relaxed. It was a really
good feeling because it just felt right. On
downwind I’d done all my checks and I was
sitting there enjoying the view,” she says.
Even though Kate has an outgoing per-
sonality, Steve says he’s seen his daugh-
ter’s confidence grow even more as she’s
learned to fly.
“Kate’s definitely gained confidence
as she’s moved through the training. She’s
always been an adrenaline junkie but being
able to master flying and seeing her prog-
ress so well has been really encouraging for
the whole family. Everyone in her extended
family, as well as her friends, are always
asking how it’s going. It’s also been great
to see Kate mix with the woman in avia-
tion. She goes to their dinners and they’ve
FEATURE
Photos: Mark Smith
“I was weirdly relaxed. It was a really
good feeling because it just felt right.
On downwind I’d done all my checks and I was
sitting there enjoying the view'
Flying her first solo.
really taken her under their wing.”
Steve says while he has no plans
for a career change, he does hope
to use his pilot certificate to travel
through Australia, possibly after
he retires. Kate though isn’t sure
whether aviation or medicine will be
her career.
“For now, Dad and I are doing it
for fun. I would love a career in avia-
tion but I’ve always wanted a medical
career as well so possibly I could work
in remote areas using my skills as a
pilot to get around,” she says.
Steve is adamant they wouldn’t
be learning to fly without RAAus.
“When I talk to people, they ask
‘isn’t it expensive and how do you
afford to pay for two people to learn?’
When I explain what it’s costing, they
are surprised. And now that we are
both flying solo there’s nothing better
than coming out, doing a few circuits Young and already at the controls.
and getting a bill for $30.”
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 15
AUTOMATION. HOW WILL IT AFFECT
RECREATIONAL FLYING?
Owen Bartrop explores the brave new world of aviation automation.
T
he world of automation is fast ap-
proaching with the continuing devel-
opment of driverless cars, trucks and
trains. Recreational aviation will potentially
not be spared as automation spreads from
regular public transport to GA and RAAus
aircraft.
Currently, recreational aircraft use con-
ventional flight controls and instruments
with some fitted with glass cockpits. Some
have limited automation in the form of auto
pilots, and a few have more automation. The
future of these and new aircraft is yet to be
determined, although the introduction of
airborne taxis in the 2020s will, no doubt,
affect how Australian recreation flying
matures into the new age.
German air taxi start-up, Lilium, has
carried out the first full-scale test flight of
its autonomous all-electric five-seater flying
taxi. Other companies are striving to build
similar vehicles so we can expect the air
over our cities to become very crowded.
16 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
There is no doubt that air taxis are a fait ac-
compli. New technology is being developed
to fly these vehicles as well as synchronising
the hive of activity they will cause. The basic
technology is already with us, it is just a
matter of putting it all together.
To this end, NASA is leading an Un-
manned Aircraft System Traffic Management
project to develop a low-altitude traffic
management system for drones. Testing this
system is in its final phase.
Also, the first trials of the Single Euro-
pean Sky Air Traffic Management Research
program began in June where seven drone
operational scenarios, mixing both manned
and unmanned aircraft, were demonstrated,
including parcel delivery by drone. Because
unmanned aircraft will be cheaper to
operate, it is only a matter of time before
these unmanned aircraft are cruising skies
all over the world.
What effect will this new technology
have on recreational flying? Passengers of
these airborne vehicles will experience the
joys of flying low level (below 5000ft), a
pleasure that is currently the domain of
recreational flyers. Will this cause some taxi
passengers to say to themselves: “I like this
type of flying, it is fun, I think I will learn to
fly?”
The question then becomes: will they be
willing to go through the extensive training
course currently required to become a pilot
or will they demand their own fully automat-
ed aircraft where they don’t need to learn
to fly?
Extrapolating this new autonomous
taxi technology into “normal” GA and
RAAus registered aircraft will bring change.
Some aircraft will have their petrol engines
replaced by electric or hybrid systems
and some will have fully automated flight
systems. Some current aircraft will be able
to be retrofitted with this new technology.
New aircraft will almost certainly have
glass cockpits and a high degree of auto-

mation. In fully automated aircraft, ballistic
parachutes will probably be mandatory.
Will the future allow a person wishing to
fly to Broken Hill, to walk out to an auto-
mated Cessna at Moorabbin, get in, push a
button and the aircraft will start, do all the
checks, taxi to the duty runway and take
off? Will automation and electronic instruc-
tions emitted from an Air Traffic Control
computer allow this to happen? Will the
aircraft’s automation then fly the aircraft to
Broken Hill and land the aircraft, all without
a qualified pilot in command?
Some Pipistrel aircraft are already
capable of doing some of the above. Using
glass instruments and the output of an
electronic flight bag, these aircraft can
navigate to an airfield and land on the
runway, hands off. This has been demon-
strated in Canada. The Pipistrel has quite a
few automated facilities where the aircraft
does its own testing and turns on services
when they are needed. Pipistrel have de-
FEATURE
veloped an electrically driven aircraft that
costs $3 an hour to fly. The indication is
that an electric or petrol engine aircraft
could be automated to the extent that a
pilot is unnecessary.
Basically, there are six services that
will be required for a city seeking to begin
urban air mobility operations: airspace
procedure design, dynamic airspace man-
agement, flow management (spacing) of
aircraft, an information exchange among
system users, conformance monitoring to
ensure flights conform to flight plans, and
flight authorisations. That is quite a lot of
work required before autonomous aircraft
can operate in Australia.
Weather will be another factor in flying
unmanned aircraft, be it landing vertically
or on a runway. Initial investigations on the
effect of weather on towns or sections of
towns has indicated research is required so
that operations of unmanned aircraft can
avoid more windy areas for safety reasons.
If future aircraft are fitted with full au-
tomation, will people need pilot training, or
will they be satisfied to be flown by their air-
craft? In fact, would pilot training eventually
disappear completely?
Imagine the scenario where recre-
ational aircraft are replaced by automated
aeroplanes. Air Traffic Control becomes a
computer that ensures aircraft separation.
CASA would become a computer where all
regulations and safety requirements are fed
electronically directly to aircraft. Eventually,
this may well happen but where does this
leave the pilot that wants to fly, hands on?
Australia seems to have ignored this
progression towards automation. Not a
word has been heard from CASA or Air
Services. This progression would require
these services to take action and automat-
ed aircraft to be certified. Now is the time
for forward thinking because like driverless
cars, pilotless aircraft are just over the
horizon.
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 17
COLUMN

LEARNING TO FLY

RELUCTANT FLYER POINTS

David Bonnici learns the subtle art of coaxing hesitant family members to go for a fly

T
he product was an easy sell – a flight
from Lethbridge to the Mornington
Peninsula on a sunny winter’s day. The
problem was the getting the customer, my
daughter Sarah, through the door.
Since getting my RPC I’ve taken bunch
of people, including siblings and friends, for
a fly, but a year after getting that stamp in
my logbook I had yet to take either of my
two daughters.
That changed when I took my youngest,
Maddy, 19, for a jaunt across to Port Phillip
Heads. I was actually surprised she decided
to come up as she’s incredibly anxious when
travelling on airliners. But she figured this
would be a good way to demystify the
miracle of flight.
Apart from a 3000ft cloud base the
June 1 weather brought still air and the odd
sunbeam breaking through overcast with
stunning effect. It all went without a hitch
until I found myself a little high on final, her mind as I looked over 4679, but made a Phillip Heads. We flew along the Peninsula’s
necessitating a go-around that alarmed her point not to rush the pre-flight or become rugged back beaches to Rye before looping
a little, but didn’t stop her from wanting to distracted. Thankfully she still seemed around Arthurs Seat for a 500ft flyby along
go up again – mission accomplished. relaxed by the time the Rotax roared into life. the bayside beaches – personally I reckon
My eldest daughter Sarah seemed Despite the northerly we taxied out to this is even more spectacular than flying
pleased to be Dad Air’s next passenger. for a crosswind take-off on RWY 28 whose along the Great Ocean Road.
Sarah was always more outgoing than blacktop is a little more undercarriage By this point she was snapping pics on
her sister and even though she lacks my friendly than 34’s grass. If you’ve ever flown her phone and even enjoyed some banking
avgeek genes I was a little surprised when from Lethbridge you’d know it’s a decent turns as we buzzed the Queenscliff ferry
she texted me a couple of nights before the trip out to 28’s piano keys – enough time for and Mud Islands.
flight saying: “Hey Dad, I don’t want to be a nervous flyer to overthink things. We flew back toward Lethbridge along
the absolute worst but I just don’t know if I did well not to hurry to this point, but the Bellarine Peninsula keeping to around
I want to fly on Saturday. I think I’m a lot in my haste to get her in the air I pushed 1400ft to stay under Avalon Airport’s Class
more afraid of flying than I realised because the throttle without another look at the E. I radioed my position on the Barwon
it’s kind of been worrying me”. windsock and was caught a little by sur- Heads CTAF and again to an aircraft in
I felt a little disappointed, but didn’t prise when a gust pushed us to the left as my general vicinity – that communication
want to push her so I suggested she should we lifted off. I managed to contain things seemed to comfort Sarah.
one day come along to the airfield to check quickly enough for her not to notice and as A closer look at Kardinia Park from
things out. To my surprise she agreed to we flew overhead the airfield she declared 1000ft AGL was in order before riding a few
come along as planned to do just that. she felt good to keep going. bumps out to Lethbridge that weren’t even
The Saturday brought perfect winter It was a little bumpy so I climbed to remarked upon.
flying weather with barely a cloud and a 4000ft to get above the haze for smooth- The windsock was still favouring RWY
fresh 10-knot northerly. I was itching to fly er air. We’re mad Geelong Cats fans so I 34 when we overflew YLED. This wasn’t
but elected not to mention it during the pointed out the light towers of Kardinia the time to practice crosswind landings
one-hour drive to Lethbridge. Park football stadium which brought a smile so I set up for 34 for what I’m convinced
When we arrived Sarah actually looked a that didn’t go away. was the gentlest landing I’ve ever done –
little excited to see the Tecnam Echo Super I gave her the option of Great Ocean talk about the icing on the cake. The only
and, to my delight, conceded that she’d Road or Mornington Peninsula and she downside was forgetting to put the SD card
probably regret not going up before making chose the latter, which probably sounded in the GoPro! I put the aircraft to bed and
a determined beeline for the aircraft. safer. Once above Geelong I slowly de- gave my little girl (ok, she’s a 22-year-old
I was a little worried she might change scended so we were at 1000ft over Port accountant) a hug and told her how pleased

18 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019

I was that she persisted. She responded by
saying how proud she was of me and how
my flying made her feel safe. TIPS FOR FLYING WITH NOVICE PASSENGERS:
As well as a massive smile on my face
• Let people take their time to decide if they want to fly
I took a couple of key takeaways from that
flight. • Don’t be offended if they have second thoughts
The first was to recognise not everyone
shares our love of flying and to let them • Try and identify any fears they have and work around them
decide when the time is right. They’re more
• Always act professionally and relaxed
likely to entertain the idea if they didn’t feel
obliged to go up just to please us. • Don’t rush, especially when it comes to pre-flight
The second, which should expedite the
first, is to always act professionally regard- • Talk calmly when using the radio
less who you fly with. Whether you’re their
• When appropriate chat with your passengers like you nor-
friend, sibling or parent, your passengers
will look to you for reassurance. This is mally would, and ask how they’re doing
where your reputation as a pilot is forged
• Explain different procedures and how things work
– as it turns out a big reason Sarah had a
change of heart was that her sister told her • Don’t practice or demonstrate manoeuvres like stalls or forced landings
how she felt at ease when seeing me go
through all the pre-take off checks. • And for goodness sake, don’t try stupid jokes to scare your passengers.
Now to get my wife to fly with me..

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AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 19
 COLUMN

SAFETY

HOLIDAY AVIATION
Luke Bayly reminds us a holiday is getting away from work, not flying.

W
hen we get a break from the ev-
eryday humdrum of life and head
off to some exotic location for
some rest or recreation, why not consider
the options to commit a little bit of aviation
somewhere new.
Last May I planned some time off from
work for the first time in 18 months and took
the family back to sunny North Queensland
to visit some friends for a week. While
we managed to pack in several activities
such as coffee catch ups, dining out and
a little bit of kitesurfing, I wondered what
opportunity I might have to get into the air.
With a little bit of local knowledge, I got
in contact with the local (and only) recre-
ational flying school in Mackay and spoke
with Matt Kucks about hiring his plane for
a little while.
Matt was only too happy to assist and
soon we had discussed some potential
breaks in the weather in which I could fly Matt Kucks.
his blue Savannah S from the airfield at
Palmyra. A note on this airfield is that it is
actually the return road for a drag racing
talk about flying lists the different schools all over Australia.
strip and so combines both nitro fuelled
speed with aeronautical pursuits into one When travelling, aviation is often left If this is too formal an approach, there are
awesome complex. A simple check of my to just the flight there and back on one many online options such as Facebook
flying currency coupled with my time spent of the big airlines but looking at any map groups (eg. Pilot Lounge Australia, Bush
on aircraft type (as I have flown the Savan- of Australia which has the recreational Flyers Down Under) which, with one post,
nah before) meant that all I needed to do flying schools marked shows us just how can link you into a network of like-minded
was get to the airfield, flip the switches and widespread the opportunities are. Sure we pilots in the area that can point you to a
enjoy the bird’s eye view of the Mackay may have to learn a new type of aircraft suitable option or give advice on what is
cane fields. or go up with an instructor for half an available. Keeping your ear to the ground
Unfortunately the weather didn’t get hour to prove we can return their aircraft for local contacts and your head turned
the memo and my plans for flying were in one piece, but aside from the pleasure skywards to see what is flying around
stifled with a low cloud base and a 20kt of the activity, it also represents an oppor- could always be your last resort and if you
cross wind. Being cautious I remembered tunity to try something different that you get the chance to do something different
that it was better to be on the ground wouldn’t normally get at home. Seriously, (eg, take a lesson in a Pitts Special or fly a
wishing you were flying rather than flying isn’t that the point of travelling in the first glider) you will always be a better pilot for
and wishing you were on the ground and place? I often learn at least one new thing the experience.
so stayed there. I did manage to get out when flying with a different instructor and And if you are ever visiting the Whit-
to the airfield to have a chat with Matt and I always improve my skills and experience sundays and wish to see tropical Mackay
that was sufficient enough as a consolation when flying different aircraft. from the air, give to Matt Kucks a call on
prize because, as we all know, when pilots To find these opportunities, the first 0437 833 752 and check out the awesome
are not flying we never miss a chance to place to start is the RAAus website which Savannah S!

20 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019

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THE AEROPUP IS BACK!
Mark Smith reports on an Aussie designed LSA
that’s back in production.
T
o an aeroplane enthusiast, closed
hangars are mysterious buildings
filled with potential wonder because
you never know what’s lurking behind
the doors. Is it a dust-covered Drifter that
hasn’t felt air beneath its fading wing for
years, or the latest and greatest LSA that
seems to be surging against its chocks? Is
it a lovingly constructed homebuilt?
Gympie airfield has quite a few hangars
and behind the doors of one is the rebirth
of an Australian designed LSA that its
backers hope will offer owners a safe air-
craft that’s affordable and full of character.
The basic design by John Cotton began
life as a single seater and was built in
Hahndorf, SA, as a kit for homebuilders in
the 1980s. It went through various model
changes before John decided to perform
a redesign and create a two seat, side by
side, version which became the Aeropup.
Rollo McKinley, is now manufacturing
22 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
the Aeropup at Gympie, under licence to
Aeropup Aircraft, a Spanish company that
bought the rights in 2004.
He knows a thing or two about building
things after retiring from a career in manu-
facturing and mass production.
“The Aeropup came into my life when I
retired in 2000. I wanted to get involved
in building recreational aircraft and I
approached John Cotton, who wasn’t in
good health at that stage, with the idea of
breathing new life into the design,” he says.
“We entered into a contract to build
kits for him and then the design was sold
to a Spanish company with the intention of
that company issuing licences. We’ve pro-
vided the first four aircraft to date to other
licence holders. We provided a complete
aeroplane and manuals to each licensee-
there’s one in Spain, one in France, one in
Romania and one in America.”
With his extensive experience in de-
signing mass production systems, Rollo
has been able to create efficiencies in the
build process that help bring the product
to market at a lower cost.
“Aircraft historically have been built in
the old-fashioned way, but you can’t do
that today. If you aren’t savvy with CNC
and embracing the computer age you
probably won’t be that successful. Many
manufacturers take around 400hrs to go
from scratch to a complete aeroplane, but
we think we can do that quicker.
“I know the volume won’t be there if
I were to only build for Australia but by
amortising the costs over a wider market
area, for example selling into America, we
can do a higher volume and lower cost.”
In the 1980s the Supa Pup used a
variety of different powerplants including
the Rotax 582 and the VW. Today’s fleet
of Aeropups will favour either the Jabiru
2200 or the Rotax 80 or 100hp. Rollo says

Rollo McKinley
the performance with the 80hp Rotax will
be a good match of economy and speed
with the airspeed indicator showing high
eighties at economical cruise settings.
Rollo says one of the keys to John
Cotton’s design is the structural integrity
of the welded tube frame.
“It was originally tested in the 600kg
category but there won’t be any problem
taking the weight up to 700kg when RAA
get their weight increase.”
The price of any aeroplane is always
going to determine its success in the tough
new aircraft marketplace, though Rollo
in confident the company has that under
control.
“We are aiming for a retail price for an
aircraft, without avionics or engine, to be
around $25,000 and we believe we can be
competitive at that. That’s a kit, with all
the hardware, but no covering. We think
you’ll be able to get one flying with a
FEATURE
Photos: Mark Smith
Rotax 100hp and basic avionics for around
$70,000. If you go to the Jabiru, you are in
the $60,000 range.”
One of the new local dealers is Ben
Jones from Western Australia, a sec-
ond-generation pilot who first flew gliders
at a young age. His entry into the world of
selling new aircraft came after he bought
an Aeropup project to replace a C172 that
was sold after his partner in the aircraft
decided he didn’t want his share. He has
spent the past 16 months rebuilding the
aircraft and installing a 100hp Rotax
engine.
“After the 172 sold I put the word out
via social media that I was looking for a rag
and tube tail wheel aircraft registered with
RAAus. A friend rang me about someone he
knew who had an Aeropup in his barn. He’d
just finished building a Sonex and only had
hangar space for one aircraft, so he folded
the wings on the pup and towed it home,”
he says. “I had no previous knowledge of
the aircraft and I’d never seen inside of
one. But having one now has given me a
chance to go right through the machine.
It’s really well designed and built.”
It’s through this chance encounter
buying an Aeropup and replacing the origi-
nal VW engine with a Rotax 912 100hp that
Ben has now become a dealer.
“I’d been getting advice about fitting
the Rotax from Rollo, as well as buying
parts and he asked if I wanted to take on
a dealership. Of course I said yes, so, I’ll
be selling kits and spare parts, as well as
offering support to builders.”
“No one gets rich as an aircraft dealer
in Australia and I certainly won’t be giving
up my day job, but it is a great chance to
help support a good local design. I think
that’s important.”
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 23
 COLUMN
RAAUS AT WORK
MTOW INCREASE AND CTA ACCESS PROPOSALS
– an update
R
AAus continues to work behind the
scenes on these important changes.
The key thing for many members to
remember is that these changes will have no
effect on existing operations. The changes
are an add-on and entirely optional for any
member. Existing aircraft on the RAAus reg-
ister will be able to operate as they do today.
Pilots will continue to be able to fly exactly
where they fly now. If you want to take ad-
vantage of the changes when they come in
you will of course be required to meet the
requirements attached to heavier aircraft
and access to CTA.
MTOW
Progress continues on this important
proposal to increase the Maximum Take
Off Weight (MTOW) of aircraft available to
RAAus members to operate. This proposal
received agreement in principle from CASA
Director of Aviation Safety Shane Carmody
in May 2018. Since that time RAAus and
CASA staff have been regularly meeting to
cover key areas since the original proposal
was provided to CASA in September 2016.
One of CASA’s requirements was that
RAAus be CASR Part 149 ready. RAAus has
undertaken a review of internal and external
documentation, including internal admin-
istrative manuals (“the how to” of RAAus
management for pilots, aircraft and safety),
creation of a number of other manuals and
policies, including an Audit and Assurance
Manual, various internal and external policies
and external manuals. The Flight Operations
and Technical Manuals will be reviewed in
mid-2020, although it has been determined
both manuals as they stand are “fit for
purpose” for Part 149 now.
During meetings with CASA and RAAus,
staff have focused on key targeted outcomes
and actions working towards the MTOW
increase in aircraft operated by RAAus
members. Key deliverables included:
• Practical L1 training delivered and avail-
able for RAAus members (already in
RAAus planned scope of projects)
• A robust audit and assurance program for
RAAus Flight Training Schools (already in
RAAus planned scope of projects)
•  A standard document to be made
available for RAAus members to record
24 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
scheduled and continued maintenance
for RAAus aircraft (Hours and Mainte-
nance record HAM)
• RAAus to provide CASA with the out-
comes of fatal accidents investigated by
Police and the Coroner on an ongoing
basis
• CASA Sport Team audited the delivery
of the initial RAAus L1 practical training –
with positive outcomes
• Determination of minimum instructor
and PIC hours to be approved to deliver
flight training in Group G aircraft (+600kg
MTOW)
• Creation of an RAAus Examiner theory
and practical standardization program
(already in RAAus planned scope of proj-
ects)
• Public register of RAAus aircraft – pre-
paratory to Part 149 implementation
(already in RAAus planned scope of proj-
ects)
• CASA to provide Part 149 education to
RAAus staff and managers
• Completion of the CASA Flight Examiner
Rating Course (FERC) by RAAus Opera-
tional managers
• CASA to supply FERC materials for
RAAus use
• Written commitment by RAAus to tran-
sition to Part 149 within 18 months of the
regulation being made (already in RAAus
planned scope of projects)
• RAAus to develop and deliver spin
awareness training for all Instructors (this
has evolved into Upset Recovery and
Prevention Training with spin awareness
within 3 years from the introduction of
the proposed changes)
• The MTOW specified by the manufacturer
will be the determining factor for accep-
tance by RAAus for registration
Key points for members to consider include:
• MTOW
- RAAus has no intention or plans to
change the existing requirements of
flight operation, maintenance or training
for pilots electing to operate aircraft up
to 600kg MTOW
- A maximum of two people aboard air-
craft operating at +600kg and above
- Interim approval for 760kg, with CASA
planning to release industry and public
consultation on this proposal by the end
of July
- The same maintenance regime the
aircraft currently operates under in the
CASA world (for FTS a LAME/L4 will be
required, for amateur built aircraft, the
builder/owner can maintain if they have
completed a recognised and approved
maintenance course)
- All outstanding AD/SB and other main-
tenance stipulations will be required to
be completed prior to acceptance of
registration by RAAus
- The initial weight will be implemented
at 760kg MTOW and after two years of
continued safe operations, approval will
be considered for 1500kg MTOW (still
limited to twu people aboard)
• CTA
- Controlled airspace access Phase 2 has
been implemented, allowing RAAus
members to not only train for issue of
RAAus Pilot Certificate in controlled
airspace but also allow private hire of
RAAus FTS aircraft
- Proposed Phase 3 and 4 of the Con-
trolled Airspace access will be imple-
mented once the 760 kg MTOW propos-
al is active
So what can RAAus members do right
now to assist in gaining this increase in
MTOW and eventual access to Controlled
Airspace for all RAAus members who are
appropriately trained and current?
Keep operating as compliantly as you
have been, keep reporting accidents and in-
cidents, keep interacting professionally with
other pilots and airports as you have been,
keep doing all the good work RAAus pilots
have been doing.
Finally, when the CASA MTOW increase
consultation is released, don’t be passive.
Open the link RAAus will provide, complete
the consultation and answer honestly and
completely.
 EVER HAD A
CLOSE CALL?
Write to us about an aviation
incident or accident that you have
been involved in. If we publish
your story, you will receive $500.
Articles should be between
450 and 1400 words.
Submit your close call by
emailing fsa@casa.gov.au
1906.2770

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current official investigation. Submissions may be edited for clarity, length flightsafetyaustralia.com/closecalls
and reader focus.

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Average under 20 litres an hour
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AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 25

TWO OLD BLOKES ON A TRIKE
A pilot and a photographer get together in the most open of aircraft. The results are beautiful.
Barry Windle is the pilot.

Catwalk's Jenny Fransson and Elisabeth Peder-

sen wingwalking flown by pilot Sus Jan Heden
Ben flies the old Fairchild.

26 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019

 FEATURE
F
lying is different things to different
people. Some of you enjoy the speed
of getting to a destination and back.
Some, the latest, newest in our amazing
fleet of recreational aircraft. Many weekend
pilots enjoy the coffee or lunch flight and
socialising with other aviators. I enjoy all
of that but recreational flying fun for me is
more about the exhilaration and sensations
of flying which come from exposure to the
elements, and the views of our glorious
countryside, its topography and vegetation.
I fly an Airborne 912 trike and love it. I
started late at 62 and still have lots of catch-
ing up to do. I’m the stereotypical baby
boomer having fun in my retirement, but
USAF F-22 Raptor. Hudson at sunset
unlike many pilots in not having a serious
interest in aviation until I discovered a trike
(without the wing) parked in the main
street of Bright, Victoria. My curiosity got
the better of me because I couldn’t work
out what this machine with a propeller and
three wheels was supposed to do (remem-
berLined
– no wing!).
up on the runway.
A call to the phone number on the
trike soon got me hooked (very clever
marketing) and I was booked for a flight
experience with the late Steve Ruffles of
Eagle Flying School at nearby Porepunkah.
During the flight I soon realised that this
was something that I could and must do
while I was able, and the rest is history. More
recently I have been flying a Jabiru 160 and
look forward to adding more of that type of
flying to my aviation adventures.
My trike experience has been augment-
Paul Bennet makes a bang during his performance.
A level turn
Homebuilt Piel Emeraude - an affordable
RAAus purchase.
Photos: Peter Knights
ed by having a neighbour and mate, Peter
Knights, as my passenger occasionally
because, apart from being good company,
he is a very accomplished photographer.
The joy I experience flying, mostly early
mornings or late afternoon, low and slow, is
captured by Peter in his wonderful images
and soon after our flights I get to revisit the
sights again.
Peter in recent years has expanded his
lifelong interest in photography to include
classic motor sport photography and he
travels to events to shoot the action around
classic race cars. After a successful career
developing and marketing his software
systems, he has retired to pursue his hobby
more professionally but at this stage, not
commercially.
Lucky for me he loves flying as a pas-
senger in my trike! Peter and I are both
70 going on 50 and don’t intend slowing
down any time soon. We fly as far afield as
a couple of hours will take us, which gives
us opportunities through the Adelaide Hills
and as far as the Riverland and the Mallee
regions.
Peter’s recollections about his first ex-
perience flying in my trike give an insight
into why he’s adapted well to a new photo-
graphic platform.
“As an early adopter of drone photogra-
phy, I loved the new perspective it provided,
so when Barry offered to take me for a flight
in the microlight, I had to ‘challenge’ my
comfort zone to find out what new oppor-
tunities this could offer. I enjoyed the first
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 27
flight and decided to take up further flights
as they were offered.
“As with anything new, there was a lot
of experimenting required, trying different
camera systems from compact cameras to
full frame DSLRs and working out practical
camera tethers to ensure that nothing falls
from the aircraft. My favourite combination
came down to using a full frame Sony A7R3
Mirrorless camera with a 42-megapixel
sensor and a 12mm to 24mm, wide angle
zoom lens.”
On a recent flight we were intending
to photograph a motor racing circuit in the
same way that we had about 12 months
previously. The owners appreciated the
photos and were interested in seeing some
updates. This was the second attempt to
do that and apart from being very cold with
28 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
a white frost at the airstrip, the weather
at dawn was looking very suitable for our
flight. But on approaching the Murray River
plains, we encountered thick fog as far as
we could see to the east.
So, changing plans, we headed for Lake
Alexandrina in dawn sunlight and skirted the
northern lake shore admiring the amazing
patterns produced in the morning light from
the colours and textures of the lake edge
vegetation. With no lifting of fog evident,
the original mission was abandoned and we
just enjoyed a scenic flight along the lake
and returned home following the eastern
escarpment of the southern Mount Lofty
Ranges. All up, about 1.5 hours of just en-
joying the scenery and smooth morning air.
So, if like me you enjoy the scenery as
much as any other aspect of flying, should
you find a photographer brave enough to
be your passenger?
I believe there are upsides and down-
sides to this arrangement.
On the upside, you get to see great
images after the flight without the hassle of
trying to take your own photos. And you
have company to share the flying experi-
ences with, and maybe you are flying more
safely if you don’t have to worry about your
own camera equipment.
On the downside, having a passenger
on board can add to the risk of flying. How
so you say? I’m even more careful with a
passenger on board!
In my view, carrying a passenger adds
a little rigour to the checks and briefings
to ensure the passenger doesn’t cause a
problem in flight and you may fly more care-
fully because of the added responsibility for
someone else on board. There are obvious
precautions like tethering all equipment and
checking coms and helmets are good. Both
Peter and I are well over the old 6 feet so
by the time we are loaded and ready to roll,
it’s pretty tight on board. I usually remem-
ber to install the high cross-country screen
to provide more wind protection for my
passenger but on one trip I forgot and the
buffeting sitting high in the back seat meant
that Peter had little chance of getting sharp
photos! We don’t forget now.
So, having a passenger on board usually
adds to the fun of a flight but, this is no
ordinary passenger – he is a photographer!
The temptation to please the photog-
rapher by flying just that little bit lower or
closer, or to roll more steeply to get that
award-winning shot is always present. Being
quite interested in photography myself, I
fly with the aim of positioning our aircraft
for great photos. We fly low 500ft and we
fly high 2000-3000ft just for the different
views. I fly into the sun and away from the
sun at various angles to see the shadows and
minimise the sun glare. I particularly enjoy
the long shadows we get early and late in
the day and watch for topography and fea-
tures that benefit from the low sun angle.
Our eastern hills get some great light late in
the day and as the sun sets, the colours and
shadows change rapidly and spectacularly
from the air. Peter is mostly quietly shooting
photos during my manoeuvres and I never
know what he has captured until well after
the flight has finished.
I know of two accidents, which included
fatalities, which were possibly contributed
to by wanting to get a better photo and
the inevitable distraction to the pilot safely
flying the aircraft. What’s the most common
cause of accidents? Pilot distraction and
loss of control of the aircraft.
Peter and I have a very clear under-
standing. I fly the aircraft – he takes photos.
The photography is secondary to having
a safe and enjoyable flight and he under-
stands that I don’t take direction on where
or how to fly the aircraft – ever.
Providing it’s non commercial and there
is a clear understanding about who does
what on board, having a photographer
aboard to get some great shots of my flights
adds another very enjoyable dimension to
my fun flying.
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 29
 COLUMN

RAAUS AT WORK

WHAT YOUR EXECUTIVE HAVE BEEN

DOING ON YOUR BEHALF
A board meeting was held at the end of May.
• Chair Michael Monck attended Ryl-
stone for the fly-in and to meet with
members, and May also saw a number
of meetings with industry to discuss
future youth programs.
• The Chair, and Innovation and Improve-
ment executive (I&I) Lea Vesic, also
attended a meeting of the Australian
Aviation Associations Forum (TAAAF)
to discuss the various state and federal
election outcomes and work out future
aviation policies.
• CEO Michael Linke met with IT service Seaplane Pilot Association of Australia
providers to develop enhanced (SPAA) conference at Rathmines.
member experiences within our digital
• Along with the I&I executive, the HFO
ecosystem.
also attended the Australian Strate-
• The CEO and I&I executive attended an
international conference in Brisbane on gic Air Traffic Management Group
practical safety management develop- (ASTRA) Future Air Traffic Working
ment within the aviation sector. Group (FAR-WG).
• The I&I executive met with Airservices
• Aviation development coordinator Neil
Australia and the ATSB to discuss
Schaefer oversaw a new flight school
several topics.
• Head of Flight Operations (HFO) Jill setup at Heck Field - Gold Coast Sports
Bailey gave a video presentation to Flying Training.

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 Vanessa flies for Qantaslink

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 31

 FEATURE
SOLOMON PROVES HE’S
KING OF THE SKIES
Take a 15-year-old, add an addiction to aviation and watch
what can be achieved. Mark Smith reports.
W
e all know Australia is a big
country, though there aren’t to
many 15-year old’s who have
experienced exactly how big it really is,
especially solo from the air.
Solomon Cameron from Bendigo is one
of the plucky few who gained his RAAus
pilot certificate six days after achieving his
first solo flight and then set his sights on a
bigger goal – circumnavigating Australia fol-
lowing the coast to raise much needed funds
for Angel Flight. Oh, and to cap it all off he’s
the youngest pilot to ever achieve it.
While he was able to take to the skies at
15, his mode of transport to the airfield was
much less modern, with pedal power being
his main way of getting to his lessons when
his mother was unavailable to drive him.
His dream of flight started at an early
age.“I have always had a passion for aviation.
Growing up I spent hours playing on a flight
simulator, dreaming of the day I could take
to the skies for real. Every time a plane flew
over, I would rush outside and frantically look
for the source of the sound.
“Then when I was 11, I started riding my
bike to Bendigo airport where I would sit on
a bench and watch, as the planes took off
and landed. Every time I saw someone walk
past, I wished they would notice me, sitting
on that bench, desperate to go flying. After
sitting on the bench every weekend for a year,
I swore to myself that if I ever saw someone
like me when I was a pilot, I would take them
flying and share the gift of aviation.”
32 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
Over time his trips to Bendigo airfield
began to pay off as members of the aeroclub
took him under their wing. When he was 12
he had his first flying lesson. Any chance of
leaving flying behind was lost.
His dedication led to club members
taking him flying, as well as giving him work
cleaning their aircraft, as well as other part
time jobs cutting lawns paid, washing aero-
Milly Formby, ornithologist.
planes and cleaning offices This work ethic
helped build the money required to begin
learning to fly in earnest.
“I am very proud to be able to say I
funded my pilot certificate myself and a part
of my goal with this trip was to show that
with hard work anybody can achieve the
dream of flight.”
Solomon left on his expedition in early
May, after spending the better part of a year
planning the trip. His aircraft was a Jabiru
230, owned by his father. The help and en-
couragement of flying clubs across Australia
proved vital to the trip, with families offering
him accommodation and experienced pilots
offering advice in some of the more remote
areas.
“There was a lot of safety planning
involved – risk assessments, mapping out
fuel stops and where I would be staying. My
biggest challenge was minimising the risk
of fatigue. Flying over the ocean and some
parts of Australia where landing options are
less adequate also carried risk, so I tried to
Bob Bramley
avoid the more dangerous places to fly over.”
The trip took seven weeks and covered
15,000km. He says the trip has changed his
perspective of Australia.
“Just seeing some of the places I'd never
seen before and finding out how different
they are to what I expected was a highlight.
Especially up north in Queensland," Solomon
said."I learnt quite a bit about being inde-
pendent and overcoming challenges. Being
by myself and having to problem solve when
there were a few issues. For example, in
Forest It was a bit cold I was having trouble
starting. I found another battery and was
able to get it warmed up.”
One of the other important aspects of
the trip was to spend time with people of
his age was to encourage them that flying
is accessible to anyone with the will to get
airborne.
“I like promoting aviation to 15-year old’s,
and even younger that it’s not impossible to
achieve great things at a young age.
Now the trip is over the year ten student
has set his sights on another challenge.
“I want to get my commercial licence and
maybe go into flight training before trying to
get into Qantas.”
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AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 33
 AIRCRAFT REVIEW
THREE’S A CROWD?
NOT WITH A TRIPLANE
Renni Forbes is no stranger to hard work. Here he describes building his own Sopwith Triplane.
I
have always liked WWI aircraft and have
various books, DVDs and magazines on
the subject. One day at the newsagents
I picked up Kitplanes, flicked it open and
there were plans for sale. My eyes saw WWI
aircraft, silver and camo green and I settled
on one in particular - a Sopwith Triplane
with a steel tube fuse. I thought that this
might be the go.
So, I bought the Kitplane magazine,
devoured that and then started studying
aircraft engines, aerodynamics, weight and
balance, anything and everything I could
find, from early aviation to early jets.
As time went on, I started to lean towards
a Fokker D.VII, for my project because it
34 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
would take a regular flat aircraft engine,
but then the seven-cylinder Rotec radial
engine was released. This would be a great
substitute given I couldn’t afford a real rotary
engine, even if I could have found one.
So I again started looking at aircraft
originally powered by a rotary engine and
seeing that a 130hp Clerget is about 165kg,
I thought I would scale the aircraft down to
account for the 100hp of the Rotec, or look
for kits that fitted this amount of hp.
In the end, I decided to go with the
Sopwith Triplane. I knew the Sopwith Pup
was a gem to fly and the triplane wasn’t
that different. I bought the Replicraft plans
from Jim Kiger and the steel tube plans
from Chad Wille in the US.
Chad also had control
stick mods, a push-pull
tube running under the
seat and a rocker tube in
the second bay back from
the cockpit and then cables
to the tail and other useful
info as well. However, the plans
had the tubes only, not the mounts,
brackets, that sort of thing.
I also received from the UK (after a
disclaimer letter was sent to me and signed
and mailed back), the rigging notes which
stated that the trailing edge of the six
ailerons are set 12mm low on the full-size

aircraft. I thought initially that I’d set mine
at 10 mm lower, or later on just work out the
angle it needs to be. I haven’t checked that
yet. It is probably near the same anyway.
After poking around on the web I had
mostly drawn up the wings but you can only
pick up so much from photos and magazine
articles, so I had to get my novice head
around getting the wings and flying struts
attached to the tube fuse using the original
Photos: Mark Smith
wood and wire braced plans, but scaled
down. Keeping the same scale wing gap,
stagger, angle of incidence and dihedral,
I just kept looking at the plan sets and
began to work out what to do.
I found it hard at first to go over the
Replicraft plans, which is in inches and
fractions of inches of every description,
convert to metric and scale down. They are
six sheets about 1.8m long, with many parts
to work out, but as time went on it became
more familiar and much easier.
I was trying to keep it to scale as far
as practical, with the shortest cowl I could
get with mostly steel tube tail feathers.
A screwjack for the adjustable tail plane
FLYING THE TRIPLANE
After Andrew Carter from TAVAS
did the initial test flying it was time
for me to take the controls.
On the first take-off I was nervous, and
my overriding memory is thinking ‘don’t
stuff it up and spear off the runway.’
But I’ve found it’s easy to fly for a novice
like me, with little more than 100hrs all up.
On that first flight, once the tail came
up, almost immediately after applying
full power, I could keep it straight and
then it was off the ground. I’ve timed
Andrew's take offs and from full power
to wheels off is about six seconds.
The middle wing is slightly above my eye
line, so I have a pretty good view forward in
level flight, though in the climb I find myself
dropping the nose so I can see traffic ahead.
Turns require rudder, as is to be ex-
pected with six ailerons, though the
stick is nice and light, compared to
the control forces on the Cessna 140 I
did my tail wheel endorsement on.
At 3200rpm we’re doing 78kts and
flat out the ASI said 92kts.
Andrew says it doesn’t actually stall, just
mushes. The best glide speed is about 50kts.
Landings are also easy, but I
haven’t done any crosswinds yet.
I think they’ll be a challenge.
added 1.4kg extra to the weight at the tail.
Even though it's not a real tripe, I wanted it
to at least look as close to one as I could,
says me the plane shrinker. It was difficult
to scale things down and still have room for
everything. It drove me crazy, but I liked the
challenge!
At 24kg the fuselage is not super light,
but it is quite sturdy. Earlier on I had drawn
the fuse plus the tail feathers on the shed
floor so I could measure the tubes and work
out their lengths and weight, and from there
draw up the engine, battery and oil tanks.
After juggling with it all I came to the re-
alisation that it was still tail heavy (as they
were in the day) by a long way.
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 35
 I also got the aircraft design DVDs and
notes from Bill Whitney and compared it
with how the tailplane size, elevator hinge
line, fin/rudder size and hinge position, to
the wing area and distance apart, and it was
all more or less spot-on which shows that it
was designed well back then, more than a
century ago. Only the fin and rudder had to
be enlarged to compensate for the shorter
fuselage, which in my opinion spoils the
look a bit but I could always make another
set slightly smaller later.
Having ordered a seven cylinder Rotec
radial engine, I was on their website one
day and saw that they were looking for five
people who were willing to throw in a 25%
deposit on a nine cylinder, 150hp version,
with a weight of 120kg or so. This would
go a long way toward the balance problem,
but it seemed like a lot of engine for a little
amateur aeroplane. Going through the
design notes again, the horsepower, wing
area, and tail volume was all good so I can-
celled the R2800 and was the fifth person to
place a deposit for the larger R3600 radial.
The landing gear is made of streamline
molly tube as original but scale size, with
36 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
the standard split axle. It has speedway bike
hubs and steel 457mm rims. I also rigged up
some hydraulic disc brakes for it.
The wings are two spar 6061 T-6 tube.
The top wing has tubes next size down
slipped inside. The ribs are 12.7mm by
.08mm tube from the leading edge to the
rear spar, with a .063mm sheet rib to the
trailing edge. Leading and trailing edge is
1/2 .035 tube with .016 sheet brackets the
plans had 11 ribs and a generic wing tip, so I
changed it to 12 and made the tips shape as
original, which I like the look of.
The aerofoil is a modified RAF15 which
differs from the original as it has round
leading edges, instead of sharp, and the
underside is flat, not concave.
The big flying struts are made of three
laminations of slightly oversize hoop pine
from Graham Lees plans, and a somewhat
different shape from original.
I used Polyfiber to cover the triplane -
70 wing ribs and six wing panels took some
work to finish for a beginner but was good
to see it as it all took shape.
Searching the web for colours, it became
apparent that there was a lot of discussion
about this and there is reference to colours
from a chart that is out of print and very ex-
pensive. I thought of painting it PC 12 brown
but in the end I used camo green, mainly
because I saw a Camel being built in the
US, painted with the Polyfiber colours and
thought ‘that will do’.
I looked forward to when I got to the
engine bay, but the space problem was
there hiding, and it was too difficult to
remove the engine every time so it mostly
had to be installed while I made everything
fit in there. It wasn’t as much fun to do
because of that; also the balance was still
not plain sailing. I mounted the battery and
oil tanks, yes two of, as there was so little
room so it had a four litre header tank as
well, mounted forward of the firewall.
I used car builder's zero clearance stick-
on insulation on the tanks and battery shield,
as they are all very close to the exhaust. The
header tank has strips of aerospace foam to
create tracks around the tank that is fed cold
air from a cylinder baffle to keep everything
cooler if needed. Likewise, the battery, coils
and the electric fuel pump as well.
During this time, I sent the engine back
 to Rotec to have all the latest parts fitted
and an exhaust made. In the end they
swapped my heads for the sandcast heads,
but they have a rear spark plug instead of
the two front plugs and the exhaust sat
back further which then made it closer to
the oil tank. I also got the deal of a lifetime
as I received a Rotec Throttle Body Injection
(TBI) as a bonus thanks to Paul Chernikeeff.
When I got the engine back from Rotec,
I had to modify the throttle to suit the
TBI with mixture and primer. I also had to
modify the main tank to clear the exhaust.
The reason I made the cylinder head and
rocker baffles was because the top of the
engine might not cool properly given that
the engine bay is very tight, plus I really like
the look of the baffles anyway and I wanted
to make them.
I wanted to incorporate some features
I had seen on some WWI aircraft to really
Builder Renni Forbes with his Triplane
Beautifully turned cowl.
make this one look great. I decided I had
to have a fully burnished cowl. To make the
cowl I laminated a heap of 19mm ply sheets
together, then cut them in half, drilled a
hole in the centre, and with a square tube
clamped under my bandsaw deck, I cut the
round shape of the cowl and finished up
with a basic wooden plug.
I took the plug down to Queensland
metal spinners, who machined it to size -
900mm diameter with a 150 radius, 370
long with a 640 opening. They got in an
extra wide sheet of 5000 grade x 2mm and
made the cowl in one piece.
Once I got the finished cowI home, I set
about giving it the burnished finish I had
always admired. I had to scale down the
diameter of burnishing swirls that Sopwith
used, to make them look right on my scaled
cowl. However, this means, the smaller you
make them the more you must do.
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 37
GRIFFITH AERO CLUB – A GROWING CENTRE
FOR RECREATIONAL FLYING
The country aero club movement has always been a mainstay of flying training.
Mark Smith headed to Griffith to see how their club is going.
G
riffith is a town that has had its ups
and downs. The name is still associ-
ated with an infamous murder many
years ago and there are still rumours the
beautiful art deco buildings in the main
street hide a seedy undercurrent.
Like many country aero clubs, Griffith
has also had its share of problems. But,
thanks to a committee that wouldn’t quit
and an experienced ag pilot who stepped
up to be CFI, membership is stable and
student numbers are rising on the back of
their RAAus-only flight school.
Rob Robilliard is the local ag pilot who
made the new RAA school his own.
“Griffith Aero Club used to run a GA
flying school and what happened to it is
common with many country clubs. It was
pressure, pressure, pressure, the costs kept
going up and no one wanted to learn to fly.
Then they lost all their instructors and
that’s when they approached me in 2007. I
own an ag business here and I run a 450 Ag
cat and 300 Brave. I used to employ seven
38 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
pilots, but the 10-year drought stuffed that
up,” he says.
“So now I contract as the CFI for the
club and I only do RAAus. Initially we
started with a Tecnam Golf, which was a
good trainer but possibly a little too easy to
fly, and now we have two J230s. The Jabirus
are good trainers because they must be
flown properly. They are halfway between a
Chipmunk and Tecnam Golf.”
The club has nicely appointed clubrooms
with lots of pictures of past club activities
and interesting aircraft that have been a
part of the aviation history of the area. The
club was founded in 1946, just after WWII
and has been in continuous operation ever
since.
Rob’s flying career goes back to the
early 1960s, with a logbook that shows a
huge number of hours.
“I had CASA going through my logbook
the other day and I have a 30 then a dash
and 950. He said what’s this 30. I said that’s
how many hours I’ve got. I passed 30,000
a while ago. When I started doing ag work
there was no restriction to how much you
could fly, so I’d be doing 1400 to 1500 hours
a year.”
Rob has 22 students on the books, a
healthy number given the size of the town.
Given his extensive experience in the ag-
ricultural flying world he tries to give his
students a taste of what to do and not to
do, low to the ground.
“I do a little bit of low-level work, not
below 500ft, to show just how dangerous
flying low is. I also do a bit of work around
hills, demonstrating why you don’t fly along
the lee side of a hill and never approach a
ridge at 90 degrees. The sort of things that
help a pilot survive.
“I do nav and met face to face over a
weekend. I start at 9am on Saturday morning
and we go to 5pm and then Sunday 9am to
3pm and then they do the exam.”
Lawrence Salvestrin is a committee
member who is enthusiastic about the
club’s future with the RAAus flying school.
 FEATURE

Photos: Mark Smith

Lawrence Salvestrin

CFI Rob Robilliard

“It’s working. We are getting lots of

people flying and that’s a good thing.
CASA registered flying training has gone
out the window here – we don’t even own a
VH-registered plane anymore. The Jabirus
fill that role. If I was learning again, I’d be
learning in one of those,” he says.
“What we are trying to do in the club
is get young people involved in flying.
If you turn up for drinks here at the club
and you’re 50 you’ve lowered the average
age by 20 years! We try and get the young
people out here on a Friday night, have a
drink and hopefully keep them enthused
about flying.”
Rob is also optimistic about RAAus
training.
“I think flying training is in a very good
position right now. RAA has a pretty good
curriculum. It educates in aviation basics
and we get them up to a standard where
they are going to survive.”

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 39

FEATURE
FLYING THE OLD FASHIONED
WAY AT ECHUCA
Mark Smith attends his favourite fly in of the year.
T
he sound of an aeroplane engine
being started by hand is something
most people think has been consigned
to history, yet at the Antique Aeroplane
Association of Australia’s national fly in at
Echuca airfield it was the order of the day
for many aircraft.
Pilots brought their aircraft, including
one that is 94 years old, from across Aus-
tralia to celebrate the joy of owning and
flying old aeroplanes. Normally Echuca is
a typical country airfield, with a few take
offs and landings by members of the local
aero club as well as the odd visit by the Air
Ambulance.
Yet for this one weekend the normally
empty surrounds became the nesting sites
for classic flying machines made from
wood and fabric. Keeping these aeroplanes
flying requires true enthusiasm and Dr Tim
Brownridge is an example of just such an
enthusiast. He flies a 1937 Stinson SR9, and
made the trip from his home in South Aus-
tralia in three hours.
“This is the highlight of my year and if
40 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
the old girl lets me get here and doesn’t
break down, I’ll always be here. Last year
I had a flat battery and had to drive, the
year before I flew over and the year before
that I drove. That’s how it is with antique
aeroplanes. Thankfully today she wanted to
go flying."
Tim’s day job is as an anaesthetist and
he says flying relieves a lot of the pressure
from his profession.
“I get to meet people from all walks of
life coming to these events, which gets me
away from the doctor set, which is why I
smile a lot. It’s definitely not the drugs in
the operating theatre. Flying is a chance to
use your brain in a different way.”
Not all pilots of antique aeroplanes are
men. Emma Taberner was there proudly
showing off her recently purchased Piper
Cub.
“This is my little 1952 PA 18 Super Cub,”
she says proudly.
“But I’ve only had it for a short period,
so I don’t know much about the history
of it. Apparently, it was the base ‘hack’ at
Nowra, so it does have a military history.”
Emma came into aviation after mar-
rying her husband Scott, who has been
involved in aircraft for most of his life and is
now a 737 captain with Tigerair.
“Until I met Scott 25 years ago aviation
definitely wasn’t in my future. I told my
mother when I was seven that I was never
getting into a light plane again after we did
a flight around Mt Cook.”
Neil and Deb Williams own an Auster.
It’s a bit rough around the edges but it’s
theirs, it’s perfectly maintained, and they
love it. Deb has her own theory as to why
the association is so successful.
“It’s a great group of people and we
have a lot of fun together. No one’s worried
about keeping their aeroplane clean and
flash, or even what sort you are flying. We
simply fly and enjoy our aeroplanes,” she
says.
The happy couple have owned their
Auster for 15 years and say their involve-
ment has opened doors to destinations
they probably wouldn’t have flown to.
 Emma Taberner with her Cub.

Tim Brownridge in his Stinson SR9 Neil and Deb Williams

Clin Ashton Martin.

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 41


“It’s a major part of our flying that has
got us to places we wouldn’t have thought
of flying to, like Ayers Rock and Kings
Canyon,” Deb says.
“We’ve also flown across to Perth twice
with the group as well as up to fly-ins at Ca-
boolture. We’ve even been to the Flinders
Ranges quite a few times. It gives us some
aim to our flying.”
Clin Ashton Martin flew his 1933 Avro
Cadet in from Temora, as he has done for
more than 10 years.
“It’s something that persuades me to
get the old aeroplane out and go through
the rigours of open cockpit flying and come
and spend time with similar fools.”
Clin proves that age is no barrier when it
comes to flying vintage aircraft considering
he’s two years older than his aeroplane.
“I learned to fly in 1952 as a volunteer
reservist with the RAF.
“The Cadet flies very nicely, with a great
42 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
Geiger Engineering have a generator in the
back of the aircraft.
roll rate because this has four ailerons while
the Tiger Moth has two. But the Tiger cost
about half of what this cost to build at the
time. A restorer in Australia who has rebuilt
two Cadets says they can rebuild three
Tiger Moths in the time it takes to rebuild
one Cadet.”
Rod Luke is another member who loves
getting together with the tribe at the many
fly ins. He enjoys the slow pace of his J-5
Auster after a distinguished career in the
RAAF during which he flew Canberra
bombers before retiring as an Air Commo-
dore.“The aeroplanes are just wonderful.
I’ve always loved older aeroplanes,” he says.
“Everybody is always happy to see you.
It’s just a great big family. It’s not dependent
on what aeroplane you fly or what level of
experience you have as a pilot. It’s a very
encouraging organisation. There are always
people who an owner can turn to and get
answers to their questions.”
Peter flying at Portsea
The AAAA was formed in 1974 when a
group of owners and enthusiasts felt the
need for an association to represent the
interests of owners of old aeroplanes as
heavy government charges and regulations
were forcing many aircraft out of the air or
to be exported.
The most important role of the AAAA
has been to give owners and enthusiasts
a unified voice with which to speak to
government aviation authorities. It is the
recognised organisation that speaks for
Australia's restorers, maintainers, owners
and operators of old aeroplanes.
AAAA president Matt Henderson says
it’s a great organisation for anyone who
enjoys aeroplanes of any type.
“One of the reasons we got involved
with the Antiquers is that it’s just a big social
fun flying community. Regardless of what
you own, the passion among everyone is a
love of old aeroplanes. We were welcomed
 Peter (right) training
new pilots

Ian Harvie in his Aeronca Champ. Stinson L-5

into the association despite not owning an

antique aeroplane and in the seven years
we’ve been involved we’ve been on the
committee the whole time. You could say I
was ‘volunteered’ on to it," he says.
“They are a great bunch of people.
There’s no politics, no egos, just a general
passion for old aeroplanes and flying.”
After a weekend filled with long con-
versations about the relative merits of
the various aircraft gathered, with friend-
ships made and renewed, Sunday sees
the exodus begin. Those travelling the
furthest are usually airborne at first light
while owners who live closer linger just a
bit longer before saddling up and heading
into the limitless sky they love so much. By
lunchtime the airfield is almost deserted.
But next year, with luck and good weather,
the old aeroplanes will return. And so, a
tradition of keeping aviation history alive P&M Trike range.
Tim with his Stinson.
will continue.

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 43

 COLUMN
SAFETY
A REMINDER ABOUT LANDINGS
From the ATSB archives comes an article that’s as true today as it was in 1983.
L
anding a light sport aircraft can demand quite some skill.
Lacking the higher approach speed and inertia of heavier ma-
chines, light aircraft tend to be more affected by factors such as
wind gusts and turbulence. The Bureau of Air Safety Investigation's
files contain many reports of aircraft damage arising from improper
recovery from a bounced landing. This article discusses bounced
landings in tricycle undercarriage light aircraft, which constitute
most of the reported cases of aircraft damage. Typical occurrences
include:
• The aircraft bounced on touchdown following a full flap ap-
proach. The pilot eased off back pressure on the control column,
causing the aircraft to pitch down onto its nose landing gear,
which then collapsed.
• Directional control of the aircraft was lost due to improper re-
covery from a slightly bounced landing. In the ensuing ground
loop, the right-hand wingtip struck the ground.
• During a crosswind landing a wind gust caused the aircraft to
bounce. Improper recovery by the pilot caused the propeller to
hit the ground.
• An ex-ATPL holder lacking recent experience on light aircraft
overshot his intended landing point and bounced several times
while trying to get the aircraft to stay on the ground. A propeller
ground-strike resulted.
Ideally, when the correct landing technique is applied to a light
aircraft with a tricycle undercarriage, the hold-off is sustained to
the point where the aircraft is in a slight tail down attitude. It is then
permitted to settle gently on the ground so that touchdown is made
on the mainwheels first as intended by the manufacturer. Because
44 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
the centre of gravity is forward of the mainwheels the aircraft will
pitch slightly forward at touchdown, thereby reducing the angle of
incidence (and the lift) of the mainplane, and the aircraft stays on
the ground. It is when the correct technique is not observed that
problems can arise.
Before discussing the problems of bounced landings in detail it
is worth stating at this point that the best way to avoid occurrences
of this sort is to maintain your flying skill at a safe level by frequent
and properly conducted practice. Otherwise, the best insurance is
to take a check flight with your instructor and ensure your flying
skill is still at a safe level. If you have not been subject to any official
flight tests in the previous 24 months you will also be due for a flight
review, and this can be used to brush up your technique, so helping
you to prevent accidents rather than cure them.
Mislandings: cause and effect
There are four basic causes of mislandings, and each is likely to
have predictable consequences:
• No roundout or insufficient roundout. The aircraft will either
touch down on the nosewheel or on all three wheels simultane-
ously. Since the speed will be high the aircraft will bounce, be-
coming airborne again. Unless corrective action is taken by the
pilot the nose will begin to drop as the airspeed decays at the
top of the bounce, causing the aircraft to pitch down heavily on
to the nosewheel. If excess flying speed still exists this motion
may be repeated several times with each oscillation becoming
shorter, steeper and less controllable. This motion is called
porpoising and can cause serious damage to the undercarriage,
propeller and airframe, not to mention the hapless pilot and
passengers. Worse, this oscillatory motion can be aggravated
by the pilot if his reactions are slow or ill -timed. The instinctive
reaction to a bounced landing is to relax back pressure or move
the control column forward to reduce the height of the bounce.
However, if the control input is delayed it may not take effect
until the aircraft has already begun to descend, thereby increas-
ing the rate of descent and steepening the angle of the already
down pitching nose. The result is an even heavier impact on the
nosewheel and perhaps propeller.
• 
Roundout too large. The aircraft will balloon, lose airspeed
rapidly and then possibly sink at a high rate causing a heavy
landing and damage to the undercarriage and airframe.
• Insufficient hold-off or landing before the correct attitude has
been reached. This can lead to porpoising if the nosewheel
touches first, or a series of skips if all three wheels touch togeth-
er. The undamped porpoise can cause severe damage. Further,
a ground loop may also occur if there is a loss of directional
control.
• Holding off too long and landing with little or no control over
the aircraft attitude or rate of descent. If a hold-off is continued
for too long, so that the airspeed is at or near the stalling speed
and the aircraft is then allowed to balloon or is lifted by an un-
expected gust, the consequent high sink rate and/or stall may
be impossible to control because of the lack of airspeed. Once
again, undercarriage and propeller damage are likely, while the
consequences of a wing drop during the stall need no elabora-
tion.
Corrective actions
In most cases the best cure is to go around as soon as a mis-
landing is recognised. If the landing has initiated a porpoise, hold
the control column slightly aft of neutral and apply full power. This
will dampen the porpoise and the aircraft will eventually climb away.
Opposing the porpoise pitching action by use of elevator almost
invariably accentuates the problem. If circumstances are against a
go-around, for example a damaged aircraft, bad weather or similar,
then a mislanding can be recovered by skilful use of power to reduce
the descent rate and to fly the aircraft into a second flare and hold-
off. However, this technique requires practice and skill. If not familiar
with it you should ask your instructor to teach you during your next
check flight. The following pointers, applicable to any landing, are
all indicative of a sound flying technique and should be borne in
mind when thinking about this article.
• A gentle flare started early is better than a violent flare at the
last moment.
• Know the landing attitude of your aircraft. Do not let the aircraft
touch down until you achieve the landing attitude and do not
attempt to hold-off by raising the nose above the landing atti-
tude. If you have reached the landing attitude during the hold-
off, maintain that attitude with the elevators and, if necessary,
control the sink rate with power until the aircraft touches down.
• Pick a point on the runway at which you will go around if the
aircraft has not touched down. An old definition of a good
pilot is one who has an equal number of take-offs and land-
ings ... think about it! Think about this article too, especially
in relation to your flying technique right throughout the
approach and landing phases; perhaps there may be some
points which would lead to a worthwhile discussion with your
local flying instructors on this fundamental aspect of flying. If
out of practice or still inexperienced, have your instructor give
you a lesson on recovering from mislandings, perhaps during
your next check flight.
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 45
 COLUMN
FROM THE OPS TEAM
WEATHER TO FLY – LOCAL PRE-FLIGHT
PLANNING
A
ll pilots know the requirements for
pre-flight planning before that big
trip around Australia. But what about
local flying? Should pilots apply the same
principles if planning to fly around their
local aerodrome? Are NOTAMs relevant
every day when nothing ever seems to
change?
Yes, is the short answer.
If you are an instructor planning circuit
flying with students, a solo student plan-
ning circuit departure and entry practice or
a private pilot flying to a local farm strip
for the day, referencing the winds aloft and
expected weather conditions can make a
significant difference to the safe comple-
tion and conduct of the flight.
RAAus has received a number of recent
reports relevant to students or pilots losing
control of aircraft while landing, overshoot-
ing runways and trying to force the aircraft
down, or conducting repeated go-arounds
until a change of runway direction is made.
Let’s consider the effect of a 20+ knot
wind at 1000ftAGL in the opposite direc-
tion to the indications of the windsock at
ground level.
Firstly, there is no indication to pilots of
this wind just from watching the windsock.
If there are no clouds at altitude, there are
no other indications of this wind. The trees
aren’t moving, the birds are chirping and
all seems well.
The aircraft lines up and takes off
normally. Once airborne an alert pilot may
notice a reduced climb angle, extended
climb path and the impression of greater
speed over the ground, even though the
airspeed indicator confirms the usual climb
speed is being maintained.
While processing these sensations, the
aircraft is turned onto crosswind and is
further away from the runway than usual.
The downwind leg seems to take forever.
Once the turn onto base is made, the
runway threshold seems to come up in a
hurry and on final the aircraft is too high,
46 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
so the pilot forces the nose down to aim
for the threshold point, resulting in a sig-
nificantly increased approach speed. Once
the aircraft cuts through the wind gradient
at lower levels, the descent rate increases
significantly, but with the higher airspeed
of the approach, the aircraft now seems to
float forever.
The pilot may be tempted to force the
aircraft to land and suddenly there is an
event which requires a report because the
aircraft ran off the runway, either because
of a wheelbarrow event, a diversion off
the side of the runway due to landing too
fast or a late go-around to avoid obstacles.
Another Runway – Loss of Control event
has just occurred.
If the pilot, student or instructor is not
thoughtful about the sequence of events
and considers other possible factors, it
may simply be written up as a momentary
lapse of judgement, concentration or even
on occasions, blamed on the aircraft.
Alternatively, let’s consider a wind
aloft which is significantly higher than the
ground indications, but in the same direc-
tion as the intended runway.
On takeoff, the aircraft appears to be
climbing like a rocket, with a significantly
higher climb angle than usual. The aircraft
doesn’t seem to be tracking over the
ground at the usual speed and the turn
onto crosswind occurs earlier than usual.
Once again, our pilot is distracted by this
unexpected turn of events.
Flying the crosswind leg as usual results
in a significantly different position for the
turn to downwind, but the pilot is focussed
on completing the pre-landing checks. As
a result, the downwind leg seems to rocket
past and the turn onto base is delayed.
While the base turn is made, the aircraft
has drifted away from the aiming point and
is now a long way from the ideal position
for the turn onto final, resulting in a need
for additional power.
Turning onto final the airport seems
to be a lot further away than usual and it
seems to take forever to get to the usual
threshold picture. If the pilot only adds
enough power to maintain the usual
picture, the approach will be significant-
ly flatter than usual. As a result, when
the power is reduced to land, when over
the runway, the aircraft sinks like a rock,
bounces and the pilot manages to respond
with control movements which are exactly
too late, timing the actions unintentionally
to result in a pilot induced oscillation.
If the pilot is thinking not reacting,
power will be applied and the aircraft may
climb safely away after one or two oscil-
lations to try again. On upwind, the pilot
will be thinking “what the hell just hap-
pened” and either be so distracted that the
whole cycle happens again, or will think it
through and realise the strong winds aloft
have resulted in these changes.
Or if the pilot is slow in applying power
to conduct the go-around the next noise is
the sound of the nose wheel breaking and
the propeller impacting the ground.
How do we avoid these scenarios?
Simply by checking the weather, recog-
nising the effect of a significant wind at
altitude and being mentally prepared for
the differences in circuit shape, apparent
drift or illusions of reduced or increased
speed over the ground. The thoughtful pilot
will adapt and overcome these changes by
adjusting circuit shapes, flying attitudes and
standard procedures and being prepared to
go-around if the circuit is not going to plan.
If pilots, students and instructors make
it a habit to check the weather using NAIPS
for the area, even for a local flight, a clear
picture of what the pilot may expect at
altitude will emerge which for a thoughtful
pilot will provide a heads up of differences
to the usual flight paths and management.
Regarding NOTAMs for local airport,
while a local pilot may not see a need to
obtain NOTAM information when intending
to fly locally, airport NOTAM information
may include vital notices about wet grass,
maintenance works, unusual operations
like military parachute operations, drone
flights or non-aviation uses of the airport,
like car races, etc.
Most pilots, students and instructors
have some sort of flight planning software
on an electronic device, and the program-
mers of most of this software make it pos-
sible to easily obtain weather and NOTAM
info, so there really isn’t any excuse for not
at least glancing over the information -
even for a local jolly around the area.
We used to hear pilots complain about
the cost of keeping their charts and ERSA
up to date, but now an annual subscription
to the flight planning software allows pilot
to keep all charts and information current
at the push of a button.
Instructors should be routinely check-
ing weather every day they plan to fly with
students, particularly if solo flights are ex-
pected. This check is not just for the effect
of wind, but also to be aware of changes
from cold fronts, dust devils, cloud and
rain, thunderstorms and other weather
phenomena. Leading by example, these
instructors will educate by their actions,
not only for students, but also local pilots.
As always the 5 P principle applies,
even when flying locally, Proper Planning
Prevents Poor Performance.
Safe Flying, the Flight Operations team.
Stans Gazelle
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 47
 PILOT PROFILE
FEATURE

LEARNING FROM THE BEST

A veteran ag pilot is still passing on the art of aviation to anyone keen to learn its ways.
Mark Smith caught up with him.

MUCH MORE THAN SIMPLY

A LOT OF HOT AIR
Mark Smith enjoys the simple pleasure of a form of flying that dates to the 18th century.

T
hey gather on an empty airfield an hour
before dawn. It’s cold and calm, which
is how they like the weather to be. The
mood is festive and gives the impression they
have joined together to worship the sunrise.
But that impression is wrong, for this group
is made up of pilots and their crew and they
have come to worship the joy of flight in its
oldest and simplest form. Welcome to the
world of hot air ballooning.
They unload their craft from small trailers
towed behind family cars as the first light
from the false dawn begins to light the thin
mist covering the ground. The traditional
wicker basket is made ready by mounting
the burners and attaching them to the gas
bottles that provide the fuel to heat the air
inside the balloon in order to fly. Then it’s un-
loaded and laid on its side, before the balloon
is unravelled in a long line. From preparation
to flying, there is nothing fast about balloon-
ing. Gretta Menzies has been involved in the
sport since she was 13, though waited until
she was 33 before finally getting her private
licence. Eleven years later she has 420hrs and
tries to fly whenever she can.
“My parents had friends who were into
ballooning and I got into it through them. I
started when I was 13 and just kind of carried
on,” she says as we float over green fields

48 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019


south of the Victorian town of Milawa.
Gretta was in Milawa, along with more
than 20 other balloons from south eastern
Australia, as part of the King Valley Balloon
Festival over the June long weekend.
“I learned at a training camp that’s held
at Lake Culleraine. I went down there with
an instructor who brought his own balloon
and I did 14 hours in one week. You need 16
hours for a private balloon licence, so I went
Photos: Mark Smith
back two years later and finished my hours
and my exams. I was lucky to be able to do it
that way as it can take many years to get the
hours you need.”
Gretta’s first solo was very different to
what pilots from other aviation disciplines
experience. “First solo was very interesting.
My instructor, Phil, said do a touch and go
in aPaul and Karen
paddock. Strike
So, we landed, and he got out
and said off you go and walked away. So, I
LEARNING TO FLY
It takes 16 hours of flying to gain your PPL
(B) and you must be a member of the
Australian Ballooning Federation (ABF)
as this is the self-administrative body
that regulates ballooning in Australia.
The theory of ballooning is relatively simple
and for the private pilot certificate there are
six exams; Air Law, Navigation, Meteorolo-
gy, Aerostatics and Airmanship, Landowner
Code of Conduct and Radio Operator.
Ballooning is a team sport as you need at
least one other crew member to help set
up the aircraft for flight and then follow in
the recovery vehicle to pick up the pilot
and help pack up the balloon. A first step
into the sport for many people is to work as
crew. When you join the ABF as a student
pilot you receive a list of instructors as
well as a training pack This includes the
issue of your Student Pilot Certificate, a
certificate wallet, ABF operations manual,
pilots circulars, and a safety manual. A pilot
training manual is included which gives
most of the theory information you will
need to achieve the standard required along
with various other associated documents.
Balloon pilots can participate in
competitions and this is a great way
to improve pilot skills in a fun way.
The competitive events in a balloon
competition are called tasks. Several tasks
can be specified for each flight. The tasks
for a competition flight are determined
before the flight commences, after assess-
ment of the weather and other factors.
Most tasks do not involve a competition
based purely on maximum time, distance,
or altitude as record flights do. Rather
competition flights require pilots to
exercise skill in manoeuvring their balloons
over a set course with goals, targets,
scoring areas, time and distance limits.
Good results in competition tasks are
achieved using a combination of winds at
various altitudes to fly in the direction of
a goal and accurately approach the target
within the designated competition area.
Balloons do not land on the target itself.
Crew members aboard the balloons drop
markers onto or as close to the target
as they can fly. The markers are small
sandbags with streamers attached. Some
balloons will skim just above the ground,
while others may be thousands of feet in
the sky when they release their marker. The
straight-line distance between the spot
where the marker lands and the target
itself is the measured result. The balloonist
whose marker lands the shortest distance
from the target is awarded the most points.
Other tasks involve flying the minimum or
maximum distance in a set time, achieving
the greatest change in direction and
other demonstrations of flying skill.
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 49
Heating the air in the Van Gogh ballon
did the rest of the flight, another 40 minutes
on my own. That was my first solo at five
hours. And the instructor just walked out of
the field to wait for the retrieve car.”
Flying in a balloon is like no other aviation
activity. The noise of the burner punctuates
the silence as we drift across the landscape.
It’s a multi-sensory experience where you
not only enjoy a great view, but you feel the
change in temperature at different heights,
hear animals on the ground below and smell
the trees as you fly over them.
Balloons have very simple controls. The
burners heat up the air inside the envelope
and cause the craft to rise. The pilot can
rotate left and right by pulling on ropes
linked to vents on the side of the balloon.
Not using the burner for a length of time
causes the air inside the balloon to cool and
the craft to descend. A vent at the very top
of balloon can be opened, again via a rope,
to expedite descent. The rest is up to the skill
of the pilot in reading the microclimate of
winds at various levels.
“It’s good today because we have lots
of balloons around us, which means we can
50 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
see which way the air is moving by watching
which way they are going,” she says.
“This morning our weatherman gave us a
rundown of the wind direction at various al-
titudes, which we look at as different layers.
We look at that list and go up and down to
those different heights depending on where
we want to go.”
It’s a strange feeling to watch a balloon
pass below moving at right angles to the
direction of travel to the balloon you are in
is going. Balloons pilots prefer colder con-
ditions which is why early mornings are the
preferred take off time. This is as much to do
with the physics behind why a hot air balloon
flies as it is with seeking calm conditions.
Balloons work on the principal that hot air
rises and so need a temperature differential
between the inside of the envelope and the
outside. The colder it is outside the easier it is
to get lift from the heat on the inside.
The four gas tanks on Gretta’s balloon
allow for around two hours of flying.
“When I lived in Canberra, I could fly
50 hours a year which was almost every
weekend,” Gretta says.
“It’s harder to fly as often living in
country areas where I do now because it’s
hotter over the warmer months of the year
and that stops us from flying. In summer
you get thermals from the air mass heating
up and balloons don’t like thermals because
we are just a bag of air and we tend to get
thrown around very badly. We are also badly
affected by storms so it’s easier to just avoid
them by not flying.”
However, there is an upside to flying in
country areas.“Flying in Canberra involved a
lot more planning. You tend to have to look
at the winds and work out where you want
to land and change the launch site to match.
In the country it’s a bit more relaxed because
we have a lot of open fields and lots more
friendly farmers who don’t mind a balloon or
two landing in their paddock.”
After watching two other balloons touch
down in a wide field near a dirt road, Gretta
decides it’s time to land. At 500 feet, on a
slow descent, we are tracking south west
but as we pass slightly south of the balloons
on the ground descending through 300 feet
the balloon starts tracking more to the west
 Gretta Menzies.

north west. The descent is quite steep with

what seems to be about five knots of ground
speed. In the final stages of the landing,
close to the ground Gretta has the burner
on, heating the air to cushion the touchdown
and just before landing the burner and pilot
lights are turned off. We bump along, upright
and then stop. In the background a herd of
cattle are serenading the other two balloons,
obviously thinking these intruders from the
sky bring food.
Packing up takes a fair bit less time than
set up, and after getting permission from the
land owner to drive the pickup car onto the
field, the balloon is deflated by opening the
top vent and the whole aircraft is put back on
its seven by five trailer.
As we pack up, Gretta give a short insight
into why she loves the sport.
“It’s calm, you get the best part of the
day in the early morning and you get a view
of the world few people get to see, at a pace
even fewer get to see because you get to do
it at slow speeds.
“Flying doesn’t get much better than Student pilot Josie White prepares for liftoff.
that.”

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 51

AVIATION CLASSIFIEDS
5164 JABIRU UL3300 (6CYL)
610 Airframe Hours, 351 Engine Hours, UL3300
(6Cyl). Jabiru UL3300 (6Cyl, 3300, Camit engine,
4yo), Good Condition Extended wings. Frame: 610
hrs. Engine: 364 hrs (1/4/19). Engine top overhaul just
done. Upgraded brakes, larger wheels. Climbs ex-
ceptionally well. Ideal for short take-off and landing..
Fuel: 14-15 l/hr @ 105Kn. Will consider delivery.
PRICE: $29000
CONTACT: Johannes Luthy 0402 443 635
5189 SAVANNAH S PRICE REDUCED
82 Airframe Hours, 70 Engine Hours, Savannah S
Savannah S.Rotax 912iS 100 HP Fuel Injected Eng.
45TTIS. Factory built. No Accident. 144L Fuel.
Garmin G3X 10.6" Touch Screen & GTX23 Mode S
ES Xponder.Garmin GMC305 Auto Pilot & GTR200
Radio. AOA. DUC Prop.
PRICE: $119000 ONO
CONTACT: Lance Weller 0407 229 495
5300 33 TIGERMOTH AVE, PRICE DROPPED
Freehold hangar at Temora Airpark. 2yr old
15x15x6m 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. Due to shiftwork, email KRviators@
bigpond.com
PRICE: $180000
CONTACT: Robin Wills 0401 023 271
5335 TYRO MK 2
60 Airframe Hours, 40 Engine Hours, Tyro MK 2
Tyro MK 2 fully refurbished 4 years ago with stits
polyfibre. VW 1600 twin port aero engine (60
hours). Holds 50L of fuel, with a burn of 7-10L/hour
in cruise. Fully enclosed trailer included. Located in
South East Tasmania.
PRICE: $7000
CONTACT: Les Skinner 0437 616 135
52 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
5439 SECURE HANGAR SPACE FOR RENT
Secure Hangar space for rent in Central QLD 50min
from Rockhampton. $1330 Per Year 1700m Grass
AirStrip.
PRICE: $1330 P/Y
CONTACT: Adrian Paine 0400 157 833
5458 HANGARS HOLBROOK AIRFIELD
Hangars blocks 18m x 18m freehold titles at
Holbrook Airpark from $25,000 or land and new
Hangars 15m x 12m available from $78,000.
PRICE: Available from: $25000
CONTACT: John Ferguson 0413 990 400
5482 SKYFOX GAZELLE
1418.9 Airframe Hours, 1146.2 Engine Hours, Gazelle
SKYFOX GAZELLE for sale. I am off around the
country soon so don't be afraid, make me an offer
I cant refuse LOL! Great aircraft with nothing to
spend G/BOX overhauled, New tyres, perspex roof
replaced, Upholstery recovered. New 2 blade Bolly
Prop fitted 1402 Hrs. Airframe 1418.9 Hrs. Engine
done 1146 Hrs. Manufactured 1997 by SKYFOX
AVIATION. Serial Number CA25N074. Engine is
Rotax 912 80hp. Reg Number 24-3432 (expires Oct
2019). Interior and...
Price: $29000
CONTACT: Brian Stott 0410 401 139
5501 AIRCRAFT 23-8806
550 Airframe Hours, 550 Engine Hours, J230D
For Sale Jabiru J-230D
PRICE: $88000
CONTACT: Bill Haynes 0429 054 205
5528 AIRBORNE XT-912, TRIKE/ MICROLIGHT
ARROW S WING LSA
156 Airframe Hours, 556 Engine Hours, XT-912
Airborne xt-912 trike; arrow s wing only 156 hours,
winglets factory fitted 16/3/18, engine & base 556
hours, converted to LSA, fully factory performance
tuned. All services done, always hangared. New
bolley prop, tall screen, engine cowl, headsets.
PRICE: $25000
CONTACT: Bob Thiemann (07) 5481 2025/0418 776 116
5569 ZENAIR 750
ZenAir 750 130hrs Rotax914Turbo widebody
bubbledoors tundra tyres 10" Dynon Skyview.
100ltr fuel. Amazing short field take off.
PRICE: $95000
CONTACT: Nat Jaques 0417 073 046
5580 JABIRU J200 + 1/2
HANGER AT HECK FIELD
480 Airframe Hours, 480 Engine Hours, J200
480 hours, 6Cyd, 3.3Ltr, 120 HP, Solid valve lifter,
head done at 450hrs, Temperature gauges, GPS,
Transponder, Auto Pilot, Disc Brakes, Fuel Filter,
Radio, comes with ½ hanger at Heck Field QLD.
$50,000-plane, $40,000 - 1/2 Hanger.
PRICE: $90000
CONTACT: Bruce Smallacombe 0410 524 040
5630 COBRAM COBRA
653 Airframe Hours, 118 Engine Hours, Cobra
Single seater, very nice to fly. Very light and
responsive controls. Cruises at 75-85kts burning
11-12 litres per hour. Fuel capacity 48 litres. Engine is
points ignition, and requires hand starting. 5690 WYREEMA AIRFIELD HANGAR SPACE/ 5751 TECNAM P92-2000RG
PRICE: $7500 STORAGE
CONTACT: Tony Meggs (02) 6689 1009

5631 SAVANNAH VG

Hangar Space/Storage for light aircraft, boats,

250 Airframe Hours, 250 Engine Hours, VG
Savannah VG 19-7575, 250hrs Engine/Airframe.
Rotax 912ULS, Warp Drive Nickel prop. XCOM
Radio. 4 Tanks 144ltr with fuel flow meter. Electric
Trim, Garmin 695, carpeted cockpit - very quiet. Nil
accidents, full service history, excellent condition.
PRICE: $56800
CONTACT: Rodney Kinnish 0411 378 998
5642 ARION LIGHTNING 3.3FI
775 Airframe Hours, 683 Engine Hours, Lightning
Owner builder, FI 3.3 Jab eng powered by Haltec
F10X computer. Eng never pulled down. Cruise
140kts @ 2800, 19 lts per hr. Thompson prop 61x60.
Lowrance 2000C GPS slaved to Dynon 180.ASI.
Always hangared at Goolwa.
PRICE: $59000 ONO
CONTACT: Steve Biele 0407 218 203
caravans. Airfield is at Wyreema appr 15 minutes
south of Toowoomba QLD. Water, electricity,
toilet & avgas available. Prices start from $100 per
calendar month.
PRICE: $100 p/m
CONTACT: Daniel King 0409 465 812 708 Airframe Hours, 708 Engine Hours, P92-
2000RG. Tecnam P92-2000RG. 2006 model
5703 BANTAM B 22S 707 hours since new, Rotax 912 ULS, retractable
undercarriage, new leather seats, Trio Ezypilot A/P
coupled to Garmin 195 GPS, Microair Transponder,
Icom A200 VHF.
PRICE: $79000
CONTACT: Merv Hargraves 0429 003 112
414 Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, Bantam B 22S
414 engine and airframe hours located YCAB Brolga 5763 JABIRU 24-4681 J-160C
prop, 582 Blue head motor. New skins, detailed log
book and flight manual. A new motor still in crate is
available, but is NOT included in this price.
PRICE: $12500
CONTACT: Kyle 0415 858 869
5730 AIRCRAFT 19-8492

5653 RANS S6ES

624 Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, Rans S6ES
Coyote II. 624TT Powered by Jabiru 2200 Fantastic
Aircraft to fly, plenty of room for two large people.
Two GPS units one Portable and one in dash,
ballistic chute, full deluxe interior, Dual controls inc
toe brakes, 2 noise reduction headsets.
PRICE: $38000
CONTACT: Peter Tapp 0403 116 690
5672 JABIRU 170C 24-5398
85.5 Airframe Hours, 25 Engine Hours, PT-2
Protec PT2 STOL Aircraft for sale,912s 100hp.
PRICE: $40000
CONTACT: Neal Livingstone 0407 347 255
5731 JABIRU SPT-6
78 Airframe Hours, 78 Engine Hours, SPT-6
PRICE: $45000
CONTACT: Neal Livingstone 0407 347 255
2164 Airframe Hours, 266 Engine Hours, J-160C
Certified Aircraft – Approved for flight training
Airframe 2164 hrs, Engine 266 HTR to 500 HRS
when through bolt replacement required. Annual
Registration paid EXP 06/19. Full service history.
Wood Prop. Located Launceston Tas.
PRICE: $34000 + GST
CONTACT: Tasmanian Aero Club 0418 500 111
5779 STORCH BY FLY SYNTHESIS

5737 JABIRU J200B 19-4922

1000 Airframe Hours, Zero Hours Engine Hours,

370 Airframe Hours, 370 Engine Hours, J170C
For sale Due to present health issues Jabiru 170C
24-5398, aircraft hangared at Wynyard Approx
370 hours on both engine and airframe. In top
condition. Maintained by John McBryde who is
happy for calls 0427 757 922.
PRICE: $56500
CONTACT: John Heidenreich 0419 324 250
73 Airframe Hours, 73 Engine Hours, J200 B
Jabiru J200 B 19-4922. Low hours TTIS 73 hrs.
Jabiru 3300 engine solid lifters. ICOM radio with
David Clark headsets. Garmin 296 GPS. 2 pack paint
always hangared. Excellent condition inside and out.
PRICE: $52000
CONTACT: Graham Moller 0458 785 035
Fly Synthesis. Re-engined with Mercedes Smart
car engine. TT Zero hours. Comes in a roadworthy,
registered tandem axle enclosed trailer. The wings
fold and the whole aircraft can be loaded into the
trailer by one person.
PRICE: $52000
CONTACT: Frank Shrenk

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 53

AVIATION CLASSIFIEDS
5783 SKYFOX CA21 AND TRAILER
847.8 Airframe Hours, 325.8 Engine Hours, CA21.
CA21 TAILDRAGGER with recent new rotax 80HP
fitted. I am off around OZ soon so don't be afraid
to make me an offer I cant refuse LOL! Engine only
done 325.8 hours. Airframe only 847.8 hrs. The
trailer was custom made for this aircraft and has
electric winch and internal lighting etc.
PRICE: $39000
CONTACT: Brian Stott 0410 401 139
5827 SYNDICATE SHARE A32 VIXXEN AT
CABOOLTURE
600 Airframe Hours, 600 Engine Hours, A32 Vixxen
A share is available to a suitably experienced
pilot. Long running syndicate based at Caboolture
Queensland. Has full Dynon avionics including
autopilot. Professionally maintained.
PRICE: $9000
CONTACT: Ian McDonell (07) 3886 5828
5837 AIRCRAFT 32-7042
97.6 Airframe Hours, 97.6 Engine Hours, Outback
Airborne Outback trike in excellent condition only
98hrs and always hangered.
PRICE: $17000
CONTACT: Richard Perrett 0407 454 809
5842 JABIRU FOR SALE
347 Airframe Hours, 347 Engine Hours, J160
Jabiru J160. 347 engine & airframe hrs, Sensenich
ground adj prop. 2 spare blades & angle adj meter.
Flys hands off , 65lt wing tanks. Satalite airmaps
built into panel, microair & intercom 2 headsets. +
extras $45,000.
PRICE: $38500
CONTACT: Brad Salter 0417 385 250
54 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
5849 SAVANNAH
70 Airframe Hours, 70 Engine Hours, Savannah XL
Savannah XL 70 hrs airframe 70 hrs engine luggage
barrier upgraded door latch Xcom vhf uhf tundra
tyres upgrade to 600 kgs owner reluctanly given
up flying.
PRICE: $69000
CONTACT: James Jardine 02 6454 6210/0408 167 863
5855 JABIRU SP FOR SALE
755 Airframe Hours, 374 Engine Hours, SP
Jabiru Aircraft SP 19-3253 For Sale.
PRICE: $34500
CONTACT: James Robert Rodgers 0457 054 123
5865 MICRO AVIATION - BAT HAWK
80 hours TTSN Airframe Hours, 80 hours TTSN
Engine Hours, Bat Hawk
The Bat Hawk is widely used as a surveillance
and anti-poaching platform. It is manufactured to
comply with the ASTM2245 Build Rules as well as
South African Civil Aviation Type Approval. This is a
true 'bush aircraft', easy to fly and cheap to run.
PRICE: $39500
CONTACT: Johannes Gouws 0448 019 980
5878 ZLIN SAVAGE SHOCK CUB AIRCRAFT
FOR SALE
90 Airframe Hours, 90 Engine Hours, Shock Cub
$150,000 (inc. GST) AUD (approx. $108,000
USD) - will assist with export/import. Rotax 100 HP
912 ULS - 90 TTSN. Factory Built registered S-LSA.
TK1 Shock Monster & tailwheel. 26" Alaskan Bush
Wheels. Dual Caliper Beringer Brakes & park brake.
Immaculate logbooks & maintenance. DUC Helices
Flash 3 blade ground adjustable prop. Long range
fuel tanks (105L capacity).
PRICE: $150000
CONTACT: Damien Soward 0412 578 693
5893 XAIR HANUMAN
175 Airframe Hours, 1750 Engine Hours, HANUMAN
Beautiful XAIR HANUMAN 912 ULS 100 HP aera
500 GPS, XCOM VHF. Folding Wings. 92 knot
cruise. Always hangared. Great fun plane priced to
sell.
PRICE: $32000
CONTACT: Jason Bruce King 0418 986 609
5897 BANTAM ROTAX 582
602 Airframe Hours, 100 Engine Hours, B22s
This aircraft is in good order and maintained by an
L2. The motor was rebuilt by Bert Floods and only
has 100 hours on it. The aircraft is now surplus to
requirements and is ready to find a new home.
PRICE: $16000
CONTACT: Mark Gentry 0481 309 222
5903 DUEL SEAT AREOCHUTE
131 Airframe Hours, 131 Engine Hours, Aerochute
Good Condition. 503 Rotax engine. Electric start.
58" IVO propeller. Standard prop guard for 58"
prop. Tacho, hour meter, altimeter. 2 Flight suits.
2 Helmets with passenger intercom. VHF and
UHF radio ready. Fuel funnel and 2 Jerry cans.
Maintenance records. Operator and maintenance
manuals.
PRICE: $13500
CONTACT: Peter Oliver 0447 466 319
5905 TECNAM P92 ECHO CLASSIC 100
299.0 Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, P92
Echo Classic. Tecnam P92 Echo Classic 8236.
Hours- 298 Will sell with fresh 100 hourly. Always
Hangered and Level 2 Maintained. Garmin GTX 327
Transponder Mode S. Garmin 695 moving map GPS.
Trutrak Digiflight IIVS Autopilot 2 Axis. Oversize
Main Wheels.
PRICE: $100000
CONTACT: Stuart Reseck 0434 645 439
5909 PIEL EMERALD FOR SALE
1059 Airframe Hours, 1725 SOH Engine Hours, 100
Piel Emerald Model 100, Built 1974. Continental
0-200, 100hp. McCauley alum prop. TTIS 1059 hrs.
Toe operated hyd disc brakes. VH reg until 2018,
now RAAus. 100 knot cruise, 84 ltrs fuel. Good
condition for it's age.Fun and affordable flying.
PRICE: $24500
CONTACT: John Kelly 0428 516 485
5912 JABIRU J160 - D FACTORY 9/10 PERTH
490 Airframe Hours, 490 Engine Hours, J160D
Beautiful and ready to tour. It is just back from a
trip through NT & SA where it behaved brilliantly.
One owner 2009 to 2019 who maintained it to the
highest standards. 95 Kts cruise, fully laden for
touring (without spats) 80-90 knots 15-18 LPH.
PRICE: $51000
CONTACT: Angus Macaskill (+4) 4796 7805059
5917 TEXAN 600
890 Airframe Hours, 890 Engine Hours, Texan 600
890 Engine and Airframe. AV-Map GPS coupled to
auto pilot, 3 blade constant speed prop, BRS, Nav
Lights, Mode S Transponder, I-Com radio, Excellent
condition inside and out.
PRICE: $100000
EMAIL: buildmac@bigpond.com
CONTACT: Bruce McGill 0418 713 267
5924 JABIRU 160-C
559 Airframe Hours, 559 Engine Hours, 160-C
This is a good clean low hours aircraft with a full
suite of avionics. Flies beautifully with economical
cruise. Fitted with Jabiru double brakes. All in good
condition and always hangared. 100 hourly is due
and will be completed prior to sale.
PRICE: $51500
CONTACT: Malcolm Dow 0400 482 206
5927 XT-912 TOURER - LOW HRS - 156 HRS
SST WING
326 Airframe Hours, 326 Engine Hours, XT-912
Tourer. Excellent condition, always hangared fully
maintained by LAME, full log books. 2000hr TBO
engine. Includes brand new travel covers and trailer.
PRICE: $25000
CONTACT: Jeffrey Thompson 0406 621 202
5928 HUGHES LIGHTWING WITH JABIRU
2200 ENGINE
2060 Airframe Hours, 360 Engine Hours, LW 1
Not flown since complete airframe rebuild. Jab 2.2
@ 360hrs, 60 hrs since overhaul. New fabric, paint,
upholstery etc. Spare complete engine (condition
NK). Hangered at Innisfail. Ex the late Carlo Prete
CFI/L2.
PRICE: $20000
CONTACT: Alan Yarrow 0407 961 055
5933 LIGHTWING GR582
500 Airframe Hours, 100 Engine Hours, GR582
Good reliable aeroplane always hangered and well
maintained, low hours on air frame and Rotax 582
blue head.
PRICE: $16990 NEG
CONTACT: Phillip Ensabella 0468 464 101
5934 FLIGHT DESIGN
1125 Airframe Hours, 1070 Engine Hours, CTLS
CTLS for sale. Excellent condition. New Odyssey
battery just installed. Great aircraft to fly and own.
PRICE $97500
CONTACT: David 0419 343 544
5935 AIRBORNE TUNDRA XT 912, MICROLI-
GHT, ULTRALIGHT, TRIKE
307 Airframe Hours, 307 Engine Hours, Tundra.
Date of manufacture: 2014; Rotax 4 strokes engine
80HP, Engine hours 307; brand new Merlin wing 0
hour, upgrade to cross country add 1000 AUD. You
can choice any kind of new sail the airborne Factory
set up instant. With all logbooks. Radio, wate.
PRICE: $29999
CONTACT: Feng Zhai
5938 SUPERMARINE SPITFIRE 2/3 SCALE
REPLICA
120 Airframe Hours, 120 Engine Hours, 2/3 scale
Supermarine Spitfire 2/3 scale replica.
PRICE: $118000
CONTACT: Karl Schultz
5942 DYNAERO MCR 01 VLA SPORTSTER
440 Airframe Hours, 440 Engine Hours, MCR -01
VLA Sportster. Fast, Efficient 2 seat aircraft, that
will TAS @ 145kts at around 17 LPH. Climbs fast at
1750 fpm. Superb direct stick handling and easy to
fly. Privately Owned. Built by John Chesbrough -
Mechanical Engineer. Always hangared.
PRICE: $83000
CONTACT: Stuart Norman 0438 196 010
5944 P&M AVIATION GT-LITE
60.2 Airframe Hours, 60.2 Engine Hours, GT-Lite
This GT-Lite comes with Radio, Covers, oil injection,
and carbie de-icing. It's a dream to fly. The GT-450
with is one tof the best wings on the market. TTIS is
60.2 hours. http://pmaviation.com.au/inventory.
PRICE: $35000
CONTACT: Peter McLean 0415 406 413
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 55
AVIATION CLASSIFIEDS
5945 2 PLACE LOW WING
Partly finished 2 Place ultralight, one wing needs
the "D" aluminium attached, tail group is complete,
Under-carriage needs two main wheels.
PRICE: $750
CONTACT: Paul Badcock 0417 513 414
5946 SUPERCAT
287.3 Airframe Hours, 88.25 Engine Hours, bobcat
mkII. Genuine sale of my supercat (bobcat mkII).
PRICE: $14000 ONO
CONTACT: Marcus Legg 0428 834 314
5947 SG AVIATION STORM 300
657 Airframe Hours, 657 Engine Hours, Storm 300
Storm 300. 2003. 600kg max weight. 360kg
empty. Max baggage compartment weight 20kg.
110kt cruise at 5000rpm 18lt/hour. 80lt fuel tank.
Very nice aircraft and in great condition, adjustable
rudder pedals, 5 year rubber replacement done
3 months ago. Willing to deliver. Has prop and
canopy cover. We have purchased a Cherokee so.
PRICE: $49500
CONTACT: Chris Hayhoe 0417 535 832
5949 WANTED - KIT PROJECT
If you have a kit (happy to look at any type) that
isn't working out then please let me know. Partially
completed or still in the crate - I'm looking for the
next project.
CONTACT: David Vaughan 0478 188 348
5952 MORGAN SIERRA 200
157 Airframe Hours, 75 Engine Hours, Sierra 200
Morgan Sierra 200. All metal, factory built by Gary
Morgan, Jabiru 6 cylinder, good comfortable cross
56 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
country aircraft. Buying a four seat aircraft for family
travelling. $68,000 serious offers considered.
PRICE: $68000
CONTACT: Glenn wilcox
5955 MICROLIGHT TRIKE
383 Airframe Hours, 383 Engine Hours, Edge X
Edge X classic 2002. Instrument data - air speed,
EGT, ALT, Tacho, HR meter, water temp. After muffler.
REGO - 8/09/2019. 383 Hours. Wing- streak 2B.
Trailer included. Always stored in garage. 2 flying
suits large and medium and 2 helmets with mic.
PRICE: $12500
CONTACT: Peter Koch 0409 566 389
5957 PETREL AMPHIBIOUS
195 Airframe Hours, 195 Engine Hours, PETREL
Wings easy removed and refitted in under 1/2 hour
making it trailer-able to take on holidays or be kept
at home in your garage or hangar. New tyres, new
Bolly propeller.
PRICE: $35000
CONTACT: Margaret 0401 365 989
5958 X-AIR 618 ROTAX
298 Airframe Hours, 4 Engine Hours, X-air.
Fully overhauled X-Air with 618 Rotax. this project
aircraft and was rebuilt from the ground up. New
Skins, Engine overhauled in USA, dyno
data available. new suspension, wing ribs, pod
repainted and vinyl wrapped. Efis included not yet
fitted. Decea
PRICE: $17500
CONTACT: Andrew Twigg
5959 SAVANNAH XL
269.0 Airframe Hours, 269.0 Engine Hours, XL
2016 3 Blade Bolly Prop. 100 HP Rotax 912 Engine.
Long range fuel tanks. 269 Hrs. Talosavionics -
A-3FIS. No beach landings. 6.006 Tyres.
Maintenance release forms, extensive mainte-
nance log by L.A.M.E. Upgrade to 600 kgs.
PRICE: $68000
CONTACT: Colin Wood 0427 543 593
5961 SONEX TRI-GEAR FOR SALE
0 Airframe Hours, 2 Engine Hours, Tri-gear 3300
Completed Sonex Tri-gear 3300 for sale - forced
sale due to ill health. Aircraft is complete but
has not flown. Jabiru 3300 engine and Prince
Propeller with test hours only.
PRICE: $30000
CONTACT: Greg McCarthy 0428 569 712
5964 CUMULUS COURT - VACANT LAND IN
AIRPARK ESTATE
The freedom to fly has never been so close to home
with this opportunity to join an aviation community
and build your dream home. Lots in Cumulus
Airpark start at 3000sqm. Custom build a house
and hanger with stunning Mary Valley views.
Sealed strip.
PRICE: $280000
CONTACT: Dianne Gresham 0428 835 451
 17 Continental Court, Gatton
MASTER BUILT HOME IN PRESTIGE
ESTATE
Block Size – 2,345m2 Bedrooms – 4 all built in Bathrooms – 3
– main + en suite + one in shed Cool/Heat – Ducted air-condi-
tioning + ceiling fans Car Space – 10 – double remote in house
garage + powered 17m x 12m hanger to accommodate at least 8
cars or an aircraft Located in the prestigious airpark estate with
direct access to the taxiway and runway, north eastern veran-
da perfect for relaxing and entertaining, hangar with shelving
and mini kitchen toilet and shower. Located in an elevated cul
de sac position with beautiful rural views over farmland, town
water connected, 3 x 6000 gallon. Rainwater tanks and 1.3KW
solar power system. If you are dreaming of living a lifestyle that
includes access to a private community runway with an exclusive
lifestyle or perhaps a shed big enough for all your toys and
hobbies, then this property will impress. Built by master builder
with no expense spared. Its practical design and open plan living
spaces include a huge family and dining area of the spacious
granite kitchen. Great sized formal lounge room and multipur-
pose media room or 4th bedroom or hobby room. The eleva-
tion of the property provides views from nearly every window
of the Lockyer Valley rim. When you step out to the rear wrap
around veranda you have the aspect of the airfield. The 17m x
12m aircraft hangar is impressive, with shelving, mini kitchen,
shower and toilet. It can accommodate up to 8 vehicles. So, if
you are looking to call Gatton’s unique Airpark Estate home, call
the team at Gatton Real Estate 07 5462 1311 to arrange your own
private viewing of this incredible property.

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 57

AVIATION CLASSIFIEDS
5965 ZODIAC 601HD
250 Airframe Hours, 250 Engine Hours, 601HD
Previously VH-CCY, now RAA registered, built
1999, 250hrs tt, Aeropower 76-80hp, spare prop
(new). Corrosion painted. Full build plans, engine
logs, history. A22 radio with new intercom. Electric
trim. Cabin heat. Carbie heat. Basic instruments.
Flys great. Paint 9/10 Interior 9/10. MTOW 545 kgs.
Flown regularly. Can deliver to SA or VIC.
PRICE: $29000
CONTACT: Andrew Niblett 0408 801 900
5966 LOT 13 WHITSUNDAY AVIATION
VILLAGE ESTATE $249K
Lot 13 Whitsunday Aviation Estate Village.
Large square 1054m2 block at $249 000. Eastern
side of runway, backs on to Conway National Park,
direct taxiway access, soil test included. All ready
to build your hangar home. Call Simon on 0400
799 788.
PRICE: $249000
CONTACT: Gary Hughes 0428 124 470
5967 JODEL D11
1800 Airframe Hours, 1800 Engine Hours, D11
Jodel D11, 19-7519 Cont. O-200, 1800hrs, always
hangered, radio & basic instruments.
PRICE: $20000
CONTACT: Mark Tait 0413 289 604
5971 RURAL LIFESTYLE PROPERTY
Lifestyle property complete with 15 m x 12 m hanger
and 600 metre airstrip. 100 year old restored stone
cottage shearing shed and numerous out buildings.
Contact Greg 0419 836754 for more photos and
details. Could be set up as fly in fly out B&B.
PRICE: $480000
CONTACT: Gregory Moore 0419 836 754
58 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019
5973 MORGAN SIERRA 100 2012
227 Airframe Hours, 227 Engine Hours, Sierra 100
Morgan Sierra 100 2012 build with 227 hours.
Jabiru 3300 hydraulic lifter. Dual controls, Electric
flaps, Matco wheels and brakes . Leather seating,
Adjustable oil cooler airflow, LAME built with many
improvements. Garmin 295 GPS Icom 210 radio.
PRICE: $50000
CONTACT: Dave Henty-Wilson 0411 066 135
5975 2005 MK26 SPITFIRE
305 Airframe Hours, 305 Engine Hours, MK26
Reg 19-4104, with 8cyl Inj. Jabiru eng. 305 TT,
cruises 150kn@29L/hr. Electric flaps& retract. gear,
Sensenich FP prop. VHF, Garmin 176C, TC, VSI, G
Meter & full MGI monitor. Genuine RAAus aircraft
located in SA, no accidents. Cost > $200K. Bargain!
PRICE: $85000
CONTACT: Geoff Eastwood 0427 812 422
5977 JABIRU J160D
585.7 Airframe Hours, 585.7 Engine Hours, J160D
For sale , owner has to a GA aircraft
PRICE: $48000
CONTACT: Kerry Fennamore 0409 342 501
5981 A32 VIXXEN IN A STUNNING SPECIAL
ORDER "TRUE RED"
35 Airframe Hours, 35 Engine Hours, A32 Vixxen
Practically new A32 Vixxen in a stunning special
order " True Red" paint. TT 35 hours. extremely
lightweight at 317.4 kg - MTOW of 600kg. Yoke
controls with TRIG VHF and Transponder. Stall at
27kts, climb at over 1,000 fpm. cruise at 100 knots
on 16l.
PRICE: $138050
CONTACT: Ido Segev 0413 900 892
5989 ROTAX 503 + INSTRUMENTS
0 Airframe Hours, 4 Engine Hours, 503
Very good condition Rotax 503 with E type Gear
box (pull start), only been used for approximately
4 Hours (Basically brand new). Would suit new
aircraft owner or builder, great back up for parts
also. Instruments sold seperatly or together (CHT).
PRICE: $5000
CONTACT: Jacob Potts 0426 877 791
5994 2008 RANS S-6ES WITH ROTAX 912 ULS
400 Airframe Hours, 400 Engine Hours, S-6ES
380hrs airframe/engine, Cruise 90kn at 5200 RPM,
MTOW-544kg, BEW-290kg, 93L fuel capacity, VHF
radio with 2 place intercom, VG's installed, 8.00-6
tyres and hydraulic disc brakes, rubber replacement
completed June 2018, take-off/landing roll 50m
1-up.
PRICE: $36000
CONTACT: Cameron Obst 0427 616 945
5996 JABIRU
570 Airframe Hours, 170 Engine Hours, J400
For Sale – JABIRU J230. Jabiru – J400/230 –
Amateur Built – serial 162. VH-IHS – 1st Reg 2007.
Air Frame – 570 hours – 2+2 seating – MTOW 700
kg / Empty 385 kg. Engine – TTIS 170.
PH: 0428 471 848
PRICE: $55000
CONTACT: Steven Drage 0412 621 212
5997 RANS S6
295 Airframe Hours, nil Engine Hours, S-6
3283 RANS S6 295 hrs airframe and engine,
Airmaster in flight adjustable prop, new Matco
brakes and hub, new tyres, Garman 196 GPS, TAS
90kts, always hangared, located YBLN. Owner
retiring from flying.
PRICE: $40000
CONTACT: Michael Tonks 0427 693 395
5999 SABRE LSA
380 Hours Total Airframe Hours, 380 Engine Hours,
KP-2U Sova. 2005 Sabre Factory built light aircraft
low hours, many extras.
PRICE: $85000
CONTACT: Rod Waldon 0404 170 039
6000 LUSCOMBE 8E SILVAIRE
3841.02 Airframe Hours, 172.2 hrs (TSOH) Engine
Hours, 8E Silvaire. Recent annual and CAO 100.5
instrument tests. New wheels and main wheel
bearings. ICOM IC-A200 and Bendix-King KT76
transponder. Cessna seats, 25 gallon wing tanks,
and disc brakes. Regularly flown and always
hangared. May deliver (within reason).
PRICE: $39000
CONTACT: Mark Clayton 0415 900 554
6001 KOLB MK3 EXTRA
400 Airframe Hours, 400 Engine Hours, Mk3 extra
Kolb mk3 extra. Up for regrettable sale is my very
capable little bush plane, it has a stall of 23 knts
and a cruise of 65/70 knts @17 ltrs ph out of a 68ltr
tank.
PRICE: $25000
CONTACT: Mick Horvat 0414 404 012
6007 GRT EFIS HORIZON AND AR4201
BECKER AIR BAND RADIO
AR4201 BECKER AIR BAND RADIO. 12V OPER-
ATION. COMES WITH MANUAL AND WIRING
DETAILS. NO HARNESS
PRICE: $1350
CONTACT: Stephen cardwell 0478 769 786
6008 TL 2000 STING CARBON ULTRALIGHT
990 Airframe Hours, 990 Engine Hours, 2006
TL 2000 Sting Carbon Ultralight. 2006 model.
Factory built. Rotex 912 motor. Ballistic shute.
Inflight adjustable prop. True track Auto pilot. 1000
hour service, all new hoses gear box serviced.
Updates all completed. Transponder.
PRICE: $72000
CONTACT: Angus McLean 0427 004 656
6009 AIRCRAFT 19-7998 ICP SAVANNAH VG XL
150 Airframe Hours, 150 Engine Hours, Savannah
VG. The time has come to sell "The Girlfiend". This
aircraft is well known as she is the aircraft built
and featured in my blog on the Recreational Flying
Forumhttps://www.recreationalflying.com/threads/
another-new-savannah-xl-on-its-way.9712/
PRICE: $74000
CONTACT: Mark Kyle 0408 724 272
RA AUS & GA FLIGHT TRAINING
Magnus Aircraft Sales & Support | Flight Training | Aircraft Engineering
07 3272 7707 info@flightscopeaviation.com.au
6010 FLYING INSTRUCTOR WANTED
Moruya Aero Club is looking for a pilot to carry out
ultralight flying training and TIF's. The ideal person
is someone looking for a sea change to south coast
NSW and want PT work in the flying training field.
Call Club President John on 0403 031 392.
PRICE: $66
CONTACT: Sarah Gordon 0403 031 392
6011 EUROFOX 3K LSA, 100 HP ROTAX 912ULS
– EU FACTORY BUILT
353 Airframe Hours, 353 Engine Hours, 3k 100 hp
Pristine & always LAME maintained, this all-round
performer has 10” Dynon Skyview avionics,
autopilot, and ADSB transponder. 110+ KTAS cruise
@18LPH, yet it has STOL characteristics. Can sell
with custom-built enclosing trailer, single handed
stowing.
PRICE: $89500
CONTACT: David Samulenok 0425 723 367
CASA. 141 FTO. 0281
Building 115, Hudson Place, Archerfield, QLD, 4108 www.flightscopeaviation.com.au
AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 59
 BOOK REVIEW

SUNDOWNER OF THE SKIES

Ray Vuillermin reviews a book that tells the story of a forgotten pioneer aviator.

ory,

SUNDOWNER enterpris- boss. He retired and after his very full flying
Mary Garden

OF THE SKIES
her,
sh-
th
on
es, and career never flew an aeroplane again. He
the places entered into aviation obscurity. He did wish
ess The story of Oscar Garden where they for some unique recognition of his signifi-
SUNDOWNER OF THE SKIES

THE FORGOTTEN AVIATOR

t took place, I cant 1930s achievements. His achievements
would be were in a period of giants and he found one
pre-empting small satisfaction in having outlived them all,
the pleasure except for Arthur Butler
you will have Admitting my inexperience in matters
by reading it psychological and reading of Oscar’s almost
yourself. total lack of concern for the feelings of others
Springs He was a and his reluctance to have physical contact, I
Sydney troubled char- began to think of him as having sociopathic
acter, possibly tendencies. In her concluding summary, Mary
The story of Oscar Garden
THE FORGOTTEN AVIATOR

arising from discusses the possibility of him having a

his early childhood years in cold, remote,
Mary Garden windy far north Scotland, exacerbated by
austere Calvinistic parents and their failing
‘A rattling, searing, soulful story’
TRENT DALTON
marriage, in addition to banishment by them
to an uncompromising school. His older
family history is one of considerable enter-
mental disorder. She also mentions his battle
with the black dog of depression.
Mary says the black dog also visited her
however she grasped the nettle and sought
a varied range of treatments including psy-
chotherapy and counselling, about which she

I
n her book Sundowner of the Skies, author
Mary Garden has dealt with a most diffi-
prise and great financial success yet great has written elsewhere. Given her personal
partiality and discrimination in the handing experience
Hans Gouws andinthe
thescars she has from having

cult subject: her father, a man at once an down of that fortune. a 120hp Bathawk.
non-caring father who did not respond to
In the 1930s Oscar was the recipient of her reaching out to him, I can’t help but hope
incredible achiever and a very troubled and
huge amounts of publicity and recognition writing this book has been cathartic for her.
troubling fellow.
in NZ, Australia, the UK and Scotland. Later, In her own words and at her mother’s behest
Oscar Garden’s 17 years in aviation
when ANZ evolved from TEAL, Oscar was re- the story is told ‘warts and all’.
needed to be recorded as his was a signif-
placed by a corporate appointee. Oscar was Mary is easy to read, and her research
icant contribution and, as the book points
hurt and disgusted as he knew he was re- is impressive, producing a book that should
out, his safety record and long-term survival spected by his pilots as a tough but efficient take its place on the aviation history shelf
conspired to make him unspectacular and
historically invisible.
In 17 short years he progressed from
leaning to fly to commanding large interna- Square bound soft cover of 192 pages with numerous black and white photos
tional flying boats as chief pilot and opera- Available at bookshops at $30 or direct from the author for $35 including postage.
tions manager of Air New Zealand’s forerun-
Email marygarden@bigpond.com
ner, Tasman Empire Air Lines (TEAL). Were
I to discuss his many and varied aviation

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60 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019

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AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 61

FEATURE

MILESTONES
Ben Swart (BELOW) Despite at times struggling to fit into the
compact cockpit of Alpine Aviation Australia’s J120, Ben Swart
flew his first solo on a perfect Sunday afternoon in mid-May. Ben
has been learning to fly with the aim of securing a position in the
Rex Pilot Cadet Programme and achieving his long-held ambi-
tion of becoming an airline pilot. His first solo circuit was closely
watched by his instructor, Martin Hughes, and members of the
Jindabyne Aero Club.

Murry Booth (ABOVE) Recently went solo in a J170 at

Coffs Harbour Aero Club under the instruction of Simon Peutrill.

BELL SPORT AVIATION

Josiah Collins (LEFT) achieved his first solo in April in the

Foxbat.

Eli Huisman (BOTTOM LEFT) CFI of Bell Sport Aviation in

Tasmania, Lloyd Kay had the pleasure of training his grandson, Eli
Huisman. He has achieved his RPC and passenger endorsement
in the Alpha and then took his mum for a flight on Mother’s Day
as his first passenger.

Jake Holness (BELOW) who started learning to fly on April

6th and passed his RPC flight test on June 7th , a great effort.

62 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019

 Rob Bigg (LEFT) was a maintainer in the RAAF for 13 years
who always wanted to fly. He started about two years ago with
GambiAir Flying School but had an almost 12 month no flying
period. When he started back he describes his first solo as
‘awesome’.

Alex White (RIGHT) has achieved his Pilot Certificate with

Dan Compton at Wings out West. In the background of the
picture is his C150 registered as a single seater with RAAus.
Ryan Potts has also achieved his Pilot Certificate and is
ready to fly far and wide.

Jack Benney (BELOW) is 15 and has made his first solo with
Golden Plains Aviation at Lethbridge. He’s an outstanding young
man who is passionate about international causes. Apart from his
flying, he’s travelled to Spain to walk the El Camino from Astorga
to Santiago, about 260 km, to raise money for two charities: To
provide water in developing countries (Walk4Water), and brain
research (NeuRA).

Kiara Vandersee (ABOVE) Aged 15 she is our Lone Eagle Flying

School 2018 scholarship winner going solo last Saturday 15th June.
Below is a copy of Kiara's first solo log book entry:
"FIRST SOLO. Holy Moly!!!. This is quite possibly the greatest
thing that's ever happened to me!. That was such an exciting,
amazing, exhilarating experience. (smiley face caption). Nothing
can top that. The first person I told was my best friend Diahn and
my closest friend at Lone Eagle Flying School, Luke".

AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 63

 COLUMN

MAINTENANCE
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A LAME
Rob Scott sees everything from basic ultralights to high end CASA registered workhorses.
This is just one of his work days.

I
t’s been an interesting time in the hangar
with a client’s Corby Starlet project
coming under my care to have the engine
re-installed after a rebuild.
This Starlet has been around since
1988, though it hadn’t flown for a few years
and the new owner decided the only way
forwards was a complete engine overhaul,
which was done up at Coffs Harbour by VW
specialist Stan Pobjoy.
The engine had already been test run
on a stand so it seemed like a simple job to
bolt it in, and install the electronic second-
ary ignition system the owner had obtained
from another VW expert, Sig Munniger from
WA. The thing I’ve learned over the years,
and what was a lesson to the owner, is that
nothing is simple with homebuilts, especial-
ly when they have been originally built by
someone else a long time ago.
The magneto had been installed at the
wrong angle to fit in its recess in the firewall.
Time to think this through, given simply
turning the unit would alter the magneto
timing. This engine is set up to fire 1,2,3,4 so I have a client who owns a Searey. He the dreaded SIDS inspection. This aeroplane
a lot of head scratching ensued as we had was showing me the new torque wrench has around 4,500 hours, which isn’t a lot
to consider how to reset the timing, and get he had bought to check the tightness of for that type of Cessna. The owners were
the magneto to slip into position. I worked various bolts on his aircraft and it brought inclined to try and sell it on without doing
out that the simplest way was to move the up the subject of calibration. This was a the inspections and find something else. My
magneto drive on the back of the flywheel mid-priced tool that hadn’t come with a argument was that buying something that
around while keeping the number 1 cylinder certificate attesting to its accuracy. My isn’t compliant is putting them back in the
at top dead centre. torque wrench cost about $500 15 years situation they are in now and buying an
After much fiddling and finessing the ago and as per CASA guidelines is checked aeroplane that has had SIDS would prob-
magneto we were able to get a spark at the for accuracy regularly. It hasn’t fallen out of ably be more costly than just doing their
right point, and it fitted into the firewall. tolerance in all that time. own aeroplane. After I had a good look at
Problem one solved. A lot of people maintain their Jabirus the airframe I convinced them to work with
Once mounted it was time to set up the under RAA, and an essential part of their the aeroplane they knew. After they put the
electronic ignition. There isn’t a lot of room engine maintenance regime is to have the money into this airframe, completing SIDS
in a Corby’s cowl so again there was a fair bolts accurately torqued. This is one of the and putting a new paint job on, they’ll have
bit of trial and error finding where I could factors that led to the engine problems an asset worth more than $100,000 that is
mount the ignition unit and the coils where experienced with the type. If the torque a known quantity.
they would get a cooling airflow, while still wrench used isn’t properly calibrated then They’d looked after it well and after dis-
allowing access to the mounting bolts. the torque values can be out by quite a bit. assembly I didn’t find anything that would
Thankfully it all fitted neatly off the firewall. I’ve had owners check their tools with mine have led to the aeroplane falling out of
The moment of truth arrived for the first and seen variations as much as 50%, which the sky any time soon. There were no deal
start on the aeroplane. is totally unacceptable. If you own a torque breakers in the form of cracking of major
A bit of fuel on the air cleaner and few wrench and use it in anger I suggest you see structures but there was some reasonably
pulls forwards and it started on the fourth your friendly LAME and check its accuracy, serious corrosion in places you don’t nor-
blade. There was a bit of tweaking with the or better still, get it calibrated. This applies mally get to that in years to come would
carby and that was it. A great result from to all tools being used for return to service have led to substantial damage.
a fun job that really had me using the old measurements. It’s part way back together now and will
grey matter. Finally I’ve had an old Cessna 205 in for end up being a great result.

64 AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019

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AUSTRALIAN SPORT PILOT | July 2019 65

 COLUMN

FINAL APPROACH MARK SMITH

EDITOR

WHEN IT’S TIME TO SAY GOODBYE

T
here are cynics who say the best two
days of your life are when you buy an
aeroplane, and when you sell it.
I’ve owned four flying machines over
the years, beginning with VH-HVU, a 1977
C-150 with a good paint job and pretty
good performance. Due to having a cruise
prop she was a genuine 90kt aeroplane.
Then came VH – PRZ, a C172M. I ran both
online with a flying club and that’s all I’m
going to say about that.
They were sold when my marriage
went south, and I stepped away from
flying for a while. But, as they say, you
can’t keep a good man down. Second
marriage to a fellow pilot meant the
prospects of owning something started
to look up, though with wife V2.0 happily
with child the decision was made to
look for an aeroplane after the bairn had Mark, Amy and Michelle Smith with
The Mouse
arrived and the bride was back at work.
The best laid plans of mice and men
as they say. New daughter, Amy, was nine this magazine and our daughter isn’t a picture at, Coober Pedy, of the luggage
weeks old and an ad in Trader caught my aeroplane mad but horse mad, so some we used to carry when Amy was 18
eye. 1967 A23-24 Musketeer, 200hp and of our weekends are spent at horse months old, including porta cot, folding
so the ad went. I was intrigued. The price events. pram and a huge collection of soft toys.
was what we’d have been paying for a Plus, medical issues mean I can’t In later years we have it down to two suit-
145hp C172, with much less room and fly The Mouse and Michelle enjoys PIC cases which neatly stacked in the boot.
load carrying capacity. I made the call, duties.
So, it’s probably time to say goodbye.
without the wife’s knowledge, and then Given I keep mentioning it, most
started the real work. She was dubious It’s the practical, sensible decision.
of the readers will know about my Piel
at first but came around. So, we bought Emeraude, registered in RAA. That’s my Owning an aeroplane and being a pilot in-
Delta Yankee Alpha. go-to aeroplane to get around and last volves logical decision making processes.
That was 12 years ago. I know because year it flew around 40 hours. This year But that’s the duality of being involved in
Amy is now 12. In that time Michelle, Amy it’ll be more as I travel for the magazine. aviation, especially recreational aviation.
and I have flown about 800 hours in The So, it means decisions must be made. There is emotion involved. An aero-
Mouse across much of Australia. She’s It costs a lot in maintenance and insur- plane stops being a collection of parts
always performed brilliantly, has ridden ance to own a flying machine and to have and assumes the status of something
the turbulence in outback Australia like it sitting on the ground, flying a handful of more. I’ve cursed and stressed at main-
one is sitting in an armchair and won an hours, breaks my heart. But the thought tenance bills then a few weeks later re-
award at the Antique Aircraft Association of selling her on also hurts. When we do
joiced in the view flying over the Flinders
of Australia’s annual fly in. go flying the memories of our trips come
Ranges, and any worries are flung away.
But changes in circumstances are a flooding back. The approach into Uluru,
big part of life. Where once flying some- the difficult crosswind landing at Black- Maybe I shouldn’t be hasty? Possibly I
where on a weekend in the Mouse was all and the magic of Victor 1 are all still do need to think this through a bit more.
just a part of our lifestyle, it’s no longer there, etched into the aluminium, cloth I don’t think the day I sell DYA will be
our go to recreation. My wife works some and steel that an aeroplane is built from, one of the best in my life. Far, far from it!
weekends, I travel some weekends for along with many more memories. I took Clear Prop.

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