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sfGnome

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  1. sfGnome
    Ummm… What’s the black thing on the bracket in the bottom of the 2nd and 3rd pictures?
  2. sfGnome
    That patch of ground has lots of trees; it’s not open pasture. It’s possible that it hit a tree during the last phase of landing.
  3. sfGnome
    Wow. Put it in a museum!
  4. sfGnome
    That sounds like they’re moving into drone territory, so they really should be required to meet the ‘beyond line of sight’ drone rules (ie radio, conspicuity and licence). My old 2metre gliders would not have been visible from the ground at that height, let alone a small sports model.
  5. sfGnome
    Getting back to kiwi’s suggestion of 25nm navs, I did that too, but I did it as practice sessions between (expensive) nav lessons. I think maybe it’s better to avoid getting the bad habits that may arise from self (or good mate) tuition. As for using EFB vs charts, I follow the magenta line like everyone else, but I also print the tabular plan for fuel/time tracking, *and* the charts with the plan from the EFB. Got a nice surprise a little while back when the EFB wasn’t working (my fault - config problem), so I pulled out the chart, pointed the plane in the right direction, did a quick calculation on time to the next town, and, hey presto, there it was, right under my nose, right on time. Been a lot of years since I did that… 🙂
  6. sfGnome
    Not exactly a flight, but it’s always the first place they want to go when they visit.
  7. sfGnome
    Has it always done that, or is this a new thing? Knowing that may help to ascertain whether it is a build problem (like unshielded mag wires) or a failure issue (like an old cap or a crook earth, etc).
  8. sfGnome
    While I couldn’t go this year, I did join the Rich Stowel webinar yesterday morning. It was recorded, so I think it is worth watching if they make it available. There was nothing new and startling, but it did serve as a good reminder of a few things. He gave two statistics that I found interesting. The first - that 70% of accidents occur in takeoff, manoeuvring and landing which only accounts for 17% of flight time - was no surprise. What did surprise me was that the cohort with the lowest accident rate were students, including those flying solo (so their low accident rate cannot be attributed to having an instructor next to them). His theory was that they were also the cohort who spent the most time circuit bashing, so they actually had more recency in that aspect than most ‘experienced’ pilots. Food for thought. How much circuit bashing have you done recently?
  9. sfGnome
    They sent out a message a little while back that phone renewals won’t be available in future (as of some date that I don’t recall) as you have to agree in writing to the new document. They’re basically trying to stop people doing stupid things (ref the Mt Beauty crash) and then blaming RAAus for it. I haven’t seen the document yet, but the concept seems reasonable enough.
  10. sfGnome
    The gremlins must have got it. Glad to hear you’re home, but you know the old saying - no photos; didn’t happen. 😁
  11. sfGnome
    I will admit that my diseased imaginings didn’t include a constant speed prop (that would be more like a dream), but Neil hit the nail on the head. The issue isn’t what to do right now (apart from “don’t panic”), but what to do when you get to a suitable airport (hence my “plenty of fuel” specification in the original post). We all train for engine failure (don’t we?), so landing dead stick from above the strip shouldn’t be a major issue, but the only other thing I would add is, after cutting the engine and while still at height, attempt a restart just to see if it is possible so that a go-around is an option if the landing goes pear-shaped.
  12. sfGnome
    This thread is just a result of a diseased imagining in the early hours of the morning, but if it prompts some useful questions and discussion, then the restless night was worth it. 🙂 Imagine that you’re cruising on a long distance flight, say at 5500’, plenty of fuel, CAVOK, then the engine goes to wide open throttle and you can’t reduce it. What would you do?
  13. sfGnome
    To make lots and lots and lots of money. Nothing else matters. 🫤
  14. sfGnome
    You’ve just mover a shovel full from your bucket of luck into your bucket of experience. Thanks for putting this out there. It’s really important that we learn from each other.
  15. sfGnome
    Silicone hump hose might help. The intent of the hump in the middle is to allow movement between the two ends. I don’t know whether the right size for your application exists, but it’s worth a google.
  16. sfGnome
    Yep, but that process won’t fill the radiator if the thermostat is blocked (and yes, it is fully blocked at low temperatures, unlike the coolant thermostat which does have a small bypass).
  17. sfGnome
    I’ll second (third?) the RAM mount on the longish arm. I used to have an iPad mini on a 75(?)mm arm and it worked well (and that was in a low wing - never had a problem). On your panel, I’d look at putting the mount below the Hobbs meter. It doesn’t matter if you can’t see it in flight, and it’s easy to move the tablet to check it at flight’s end.
  18. sfGnome
    For those of you who have a Rotax with a thermostat fitted, how do you do the initial fill? When cold, the radiator is bypassed, so it won’t get any oil. I have worked out a method, but I’m interested to see how others did it. Note: I’m not asking for people’s opinions on whether thermostats should be used. That already been thrashed in other threads. 😛
  19. sfGnome
    I used to (and hopefully will soon be able to start again) fly from Sydney(ish) to Bairnsdale (eastern Victoria), and there’s no direct path there that doesn’t go over some very ‘ordinary’ country. I used google maps in satellite view to pick out a path between Delegate and Nowa Nowa that had consecutive sequences of “light green patches” following a slightly circuitous route, on the basis that the light green was more likely to be some farmer’s paddocks rather than remote heavily wooded stuff. That, combined with staying as high as possible, made for a comfortable (ie not buttock-clenching) trip.
  20. sfGnome
    Wow! And I thought plans-builders were nuts dedicated. 😀
  21. sfGnome
    CASA’s VFR Guide (free to download) has a whole chapter on dealing with emergencies (plus it just notes that in DRAs, you are required to carry “appropriate survival equipment for sustaining life” without attempting to define what is considered “appropriate”).
  22. sfGnome
    Well, I enjoyed it, but I’m not an expert so I guess it was aimed more at my level.
  23. sfGnome
    Google’s take on it is “Flightradar24 primarily relies on its huge network of ground-based receivers picking up ADS-B signals from aircraft transponders, but it also uses other data sources like MLAT (Multilateration) and official radar feeds for better coverage, especially over oceans or for flights without ADS-B. While ADS-B is the main source, other technologies fill in gaps where ADS-B coverage is limited, giving a more complete picture of air traffic.” That would explain why it was showing Skip’s plane as 1200 - it was picking up his transponder, not his ADSB (which, of course, raises another question…)
  24. sfGnome

    Northrop Alpha

    sfGnome commented on red750's aircraft in Airliners

    Wonder what happens to the balance when the pax in the front seat decides to have a chat with the bloke at the back?
  25. sfGnome
    Welcome to Venture Capital takeovers… 🫤
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