T510

I have only flown tailwheel since I started doing my RPC and ended up travelling up to Wings out West from Victoria. Can't recommend them enough. Great instructors and the Legend Cubs are a pleasure to fly (not that I have anything to compare them to) When I spoke to RAAus about flying schools offering tailwheel training they said Wings out West was the only option, I couldn't find anyone in Victoria offering tailwheel training through RAAus and I called all the schools listed on the RAAus page. A few other schools that listed tailwheel training said they no longer had a tailwheel aircraft available due to lack of demand. Flying with Grace at Narromine offers tailwheel training in a Legend Cub and it's good to see Sport Aviation and Adelaide Biplanes have a couple of options too. I'll have to do some travelling and get some flights in other aircraft so I can have something to compare the Legend Cubs to. I'm keen to fly as many different aircraft as possible Pity RAAus didn't seem to know which other schools to recommend. With regards to the people offering training in a Decathlon out of Moorabbin, my understanding is I can't fly VH registered aircraft under my RPC and no flying in controlled airspace unless I convert to RPL. Is it possible to do endorsements in aircraft I can not fly solo?

I aim to learn something with every flight. At no time was I rushed, my instructors and I came up with a plan the night before, the weather conditions and forecasts where closely monitored and a decision was made. That decision was then re-evaluated on the morning of the flight and further discussed during the flight and the circuits conducted with my instructor. I have flown in conditions that where worse than the conditions I did my solo in, we have discussed at length the rarity of "perfect" conditions and the requirements for a competent pilot to be able to read the conditions and fly (or cancel the planned flight) as appropriate. We have also discussed the appropriate actions if conditions deteriorate once the flight has begun. My instructors are highly skilled and we brief before and after all flights. I rely on them and appreciate their skills and their ability to instruct.

Dropping 95kg from the back seat of a 100hp cub makes for a really short take off roll. Reached circuit height well before the end of the runway.

Did my solo Sunday morning, just managed to sneak it in before a change in the weather saw the winds pick up. Did 3 circuits with my instructor in variable winds that made runway choice a bit challenging but the direction settled down giving me enough time before the wind speeds picked up. Full credit to my instructor and I have fallen in love with flying Cubs. The challenge of learning to fly in tail draggers has been an awesome experience

I use CT14 in my ultrasonic cleaner, does a great job on pretty much anything I have put through it from engine internals to motorcycle crank cases.

One thing I have noticed with the Chinese auto manufacturers is the rapid improvement in quality. I regularly get hire cars for work and the first of the Chinese MG's where a pretty horrible experience with shocking NVH, build quality and in car controls. 6 years later and the improvement was impressive, no way would I buy one but they have come a long way in a short time.

My brother has a Tesla that he bought new. He intends to drive it till it's dead, partly cause of resale values and partly to see how well it actually lasts

Best of luck Rapture. Having dealt with Chinese manufactured products for a few years now it has become evident that they can produce some high quality products if you choose the right manufacturers. As Brendan pointed out most things we buy now have Chinese components in them regardless of country of origin. Can you share an indication of pricing?

Skippy, Battery tech isn't there yet. I'm sure it will get there but at this stage there isn't a light enough APU generator to produce the power required to top up the batteries to usefully extend the range.

20 minutes flight time on the Jetson with 100km/h top speed means it isn't much good for anything other than a quick blast around the block. At $100k usd that is a really expensive toy with very limited capabilities. Not going to get much mustering done in 20 minutes then you have to charge for an hour before you can fly again. Hot ambient temps and LiPo batteries aren't a great combination either

What happened to the old "if you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything at all" Each to their own...

It's a Reims / Cessna 337 TBG. Spectrum Aircraft replaced the two piston engines with a single rear mounted Pratt & Whitney PT-6 turbo prop, lengthened the cabin ahead of the wing and an extended cargo nose. Thanks to google for the answer

I spent a fair bit of time operating out of Woomera, both the main airport and Evetts field and from what I saw they didn't bury anything. There were piles of aircraft parts just dumped in the desert around the hangars. Even the remains of the Canberra at the end of the main runway had other aircraft parts dumped on top of it

Here are some scans of pics from my old mans collection, unfortunately there is no notes on the pics and dad has been gone over 20 years now so I am not sure where these pics were taken. It would have been the late 70s/early 80s. Dad's scout in the backyard Dad's Scout with his mate's green scout (Werner Becker I think) Scout transport vehicle and here are a bunch of unknown to me ultralights and a Volksplane

My father used to tell the story of going to a Military surplus auction with the intent of buying a Tiger Moth. He was put off the idea when he was told he had to take it on the day if he won the auction given he had never flown a plane before and he had no other way to transport it. The auctioneer told him they where really easy to fly and he shouldn't have a problem with it but dad wasn't convinced there was enough room to land it in the paddocks behind his parents house in Ascot Vale. He ended up with a Ferret armoured scout car instead.

Safety of the pilots and efficiency come into it too. Flying autonomously you can even spray at night. And if you do trowel one in its typically only an expense not a human life. Crop dusting is a great application for unmanned aircraft. Removes the high risk to pilots and flight paths are down low away from most manned aircraft activities. There are already companies out there converting manned aircraft into UAV's

Onetrack is on the money, CASA consider a drone an aircraft, the legislation doesn't mention people on board or not. That sounds like a really bad experience, disappointing that nothing was done given people have been arrested for pointing lasers at aircraft.

Shooting at a drone incurs the same penalties as shooting at a manned aircraft, the legislation doesn't differentiate

Most chemicals is a very generic statement, the spraying method with drones is different as well. The site is typically surveyed with another drone often using a NDVI camera then using that data and an agronomists input the spray drone varies it's application rates to ensure most efficient use of the chemicals. The latest multirotor ag drones available are pushing 100kg MTOW, half of which is payload. Fixed wing are up around 600kg https://www.flypyka.com/pelican-spray There are quite a few companies now doing very well out of drone spraying and ag services. They have CASA approval and have been facing a lot of scrutiny like many emerging technologies. They don't get away with ignoring regulations. For large sites requiring big volumes they can't compete with manned aircraft at this stage but it is coming. Removing the risk to a pilot in what is traditionally a high risk aviation activity has it's merit

With the appropriate policy and procedures in your Operations Manual and CASA approval, swarm flights or "one to many" as CASA prefer to call it are possible. I had a CASA Instrument that allowed up to 400 drones with one pilot in command and a secondary pilot to conduct drone light shows. One pilot running up to 5 ag drones is not uncommon.

Drone aerial sprayers are governed by the same rules as manned aircraft, the operator still needs to have the appropriate licences and permits for the chemicals they are spraying. If they don't they are at risk of litigation same as a manned aircraft A single spray drone can spray up to 14Ha and hour, some you can fly in swarms of 5 drones to one operator, they are not just doing tiny areas. The Aerial Application Association Of Australia hasn't released drone policy since 2021. Their policy said they did not see the use for drones in aerial application. This was a short sighted view when they could have had input in licencing and policies for drone spraying

You are only allowed to drop things or spray from a drone with CASA approval. You must have the appropriate policies and procedures in your Operations Manual and they must be signed off by the CASA RPAS department

I have been working writing policies and procedures to get CASA approval for pressure washing from drones. The system I have got approvals for is limited to a maximum of 3500psi nozzle pressure and 38Lpm. The drone just has the spray nozzle mounted and the water/cleaning solution is fed through an umbilical tether from the pressure washing unit on the ground. My little fire trailer I use on my property with a Honda powered fire pump delivers ~250Lpm and it is one of the smaller systems available. We are a long way off fighting fires with drones

Try ~$26k for some thing like the new DJI delivery drone, $3600 just for a battery. Wing delivery drones are in built in house and from what I know are not available for anyone else to purchase

22yo pilot dead in the Mulgathing Station crash.