rodgerc

I suspect other attendees@409tonnermay be able to answer these questions with more authority, but here goes: 1. I use Ozrunways to provide guidance on landing fees…From memory, Charleville is around $15. However, Viva Energy was a sponsor of the Wings on the Warrego event and were discounting fuel to offset landing fees. (I’ve found that fees are a bit of a hit-and-miss affair when flying RA-AUS registered aircraft, as was the case on this occasion. 🤷🏿) 2. For the tarmac walking event on Saturday, between 10:00h and 13:00h, the public were fitted with a wrist band and given airside access to the aircraft parking area which was delineated with a bunch of orange cones. (Maybe there were drones equipped with flame throwers hovering over the crowd to exterminate anyone with the audacity to step outside the boundary 🤷🏿🤷🏿) During the 3 days we were there, I had my ASIC in my pocket and nobody asked for it….My non-ASIC equipped travelling companion walked freely in and out the security gate, unchallenged. It was pretty casual (read as: friendly) as is typical for most outback communities, and had a great community vibe.

The Spitfire replica and C185 performances were (unexpectedly) entertaining….It was a good weekend but 8+ hours of hand flying is about my limit these days 😵‍💫

Hi Danny….You likely haven’t had your “Ah hah!” moment yet….It will happen. I see you’re Brisbane based so I’m happy to meet up and go through your issues if that’s of interest. Unless you’re forgetting where you parked your plane, at 56 you’ve got a couple of decades of flying ahead of you before investigating bowls club memberships.

n!

It will be interesting to see how many light GA aircraft drop off the CASA register when annual registration fees are introduced….I personally know of 3. I spent just shy of 3h in the air last Sunday taking 7 youngsters on their first flights….I’ll wager that 2 of them (at least) will pursue aviation as their chosen career in a couple of years. Their enthusiasm for flight was palpable. (My messages have been running hot with texts of thanks from their parents.) From my viewpoint, one of the best parts of introducing youth to flying is that they have no idea that it was ever better in the good ole days. As far as (not) tuning in to the livestream goes….I know a couple of the RA-AUS directors and have confidence in their ability….Happy to let them get on with their jobs.

Only If you’re keen….you can buy online a low cost tension gauge that is used to tension balustrade cables. The spring it is supplied with is too strong, so you can make a lighter spring from piano (spring) wire. (Hobby shops supply) Then calibrate it with the required preload (22 lb +/- 2lb in my case) using a bucket containing steel scrap and water. Put your mark on the scale and bingo, you have a calibrated gauge for about 50 bucks. I use it at every annual to check.

Married Shiela at First Sight 😳

Did anyone say, ethylene diamine? If you’re short on time or fall asleep reading, jump to pages 61 and 62. https://www.atsb.gov.au/sites/default/files/media/33960/sir200103_001.pdf

Pantene Process: “It won't happen overnight, but it will happen.”

I replaced the Sonex wheel with the Vans RV (solid) wheel and a bracket that was supplied by Kip Laurie (see photo) at the time. During building I had ditched the Sonex push-rod for an aluminium version with a couple of rod ends. The wheel and bracket swap had negligible impact on weight and moment. Peter Anson’s bracket has been subject to FEA and validated in application.

Typically 5 or 6 hours dual in a 600kg MTOW (low inertia) aircraft.

From my point of view, it’s nothing more than a turf war….A bit like being a Ford or Holden supporter….There are disadvantages/advantages in both schools and don’t see an overwhelming reason to consider one any better than the other. Personally I maintain both licences and fly my amateur built RA-AUS registered taildragger on Saturdays and VH registered experimental RV on Thursdays. The costs are comparable in either camp and eventually I’ll be forced to drop one of the two options….It’s a toss-up at present, but if RA-Aus get CTA access over the line it’ll likely be my Part 61 license/VH aircraft that will go, simply because I’m finding my local RA flying community a lot more “relaxed” and “convivial”….And I find the folk at RA-Aus generally helpful and easy to approach. Happy to accept though that others’ experience may be different….No doubt the turf wars will continue until natural selection determines the dominant species.

Here’s their current schedule of fees https://raaus.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Schedule-of-fees-and-charges-V1.0-July-2025.pdf