onetrack

Ian, every time I edit my profile - despite having my location listed as Perth, W.A., Australia - I find a "member marker" immediately being posted, listing my location as being in Ontario, Canada?

Something must need cleaning up in the location programming?

And thus the race started to find ever smarter and better avatars, with bull (who has now revealed he lives in a houseboat on Lake Echo) finally realising he can present his image best, as an angry Tassie devil avatar, screaming about beating people to death with a shovel - while the Jedi Rat has morphed into a cartoon mouse, thus leaving NES readers wondering what the Captain has been doing in his spare time - besides watching old Disney cartoons.

Only Turboid hasn't changed his avatar, and that's because he still dreams of being an F16 jockey - and the model he constructed from foam and photographed for his avatar, still hangs from the ceiling of his man-cave, which is decorated with posters of Tom Cruise and other.........

I think those making excuses for the pilot are missing more than a couple of extremely important things. This bloke flew blind, into IMC, for an extended length of time - against all VFR training. 

He flew right past the 538' high towers on the top of Mt Moombil, at an altitude that was 386' below the top of the towers - obviously, without even seeing them.

His entire management of the flight was extremely poor. His weather checks were deficient, and his weather assessment was deficient.

He never lodged a flight plan (although it wasn't a strict requirement, good planning skills say lodging a FP is a pretty good idea).

His entire flight planning was deficient from the moment he climbed into the aircraft. If he'd carried out his proficiency review, an instructor might have really smartened up his flying and flight planning skills.

It's very sad that both he and his son both lost their lives, and a perfectly good aircraft was destroyed.

But he'd obviously developed a very complacent and casual attitude to flying a fairly high performance aircraft - and that has killed a lot of people.

Quote

"All three (prototype) helicopters crashed" ...... "Only three or four of the 32 commercial versions were ever completed, with none of them receiving certification from the Federal Aviation Administration"

Good God, they should've just stuck to canning machinery. The prototypes killed one test pilot and seriously injured another. I wonder if they drew short straws on who was to fly one next? 

That thing looks like it was built from the wrecked remains of several aircraft and a couple of crashed choppers. Please tell me it never found any buyers.

If there was a way to fly doing everything wrong, this bloke was doing it. ATC directions may certainly have been a contributing factor, but this pilot was providing the greatest level of factors needed, to crash.

"The ATSB also found that the pilot was not carrying suitable navigation equipment and had most likely not obtained the required weather forecasts.

These factors reduced the pilot's ability to manage the flight path changes and identify the high terrain. This led to the aircraft being descended toward the high terrain in visibility conditions below that required for visual flight, resulting in controlled flight into terrain.

The pilot had also not completed the required flight reviews or proficiency checks. This resulted in the pilot not possessing the required licence to undertake the flight and likely led to a deterioration in the knowledge and skills required for effective flight management and decision-making."

https://www.atsb.gov.au/media/5779252/ao-2019-052-final.pdf

I always get concerned when I read about a crash pilot or FO (or both) being "very pious Islamic devotees, who always prayed 5 times a day, without fail".

The problem I see with these people is their highly fatalistic attitude, that nothing can be done when they are overwhelmed with a problem, and it is now, "Allah's Will!".

There is also often a very serious relationship fault between FO's and Captains in these societies, with junior employees in awe of senior employees, and an extreme reluctance to address any major errors in decision-making by the senior employee.

We have a saying in our family about religious fundamentalists (of any religion - be it Christian, Islamic or other variety) - it goes, "Too Heavenly-minded, to be any Earthly good!" 

These people let their religion transcend every facet of their lives, to their detriment of their application of everyday life skills. 

Garlfy has nailed it with his comment, that the smartest of pilots can do the dumbest of things. There are practical people, and there are highly intellectual people who have no practical skills - but they can rattle off all the maths, physics and equations like a uni professor.

The most competent people in charge of anything mechanically-driven, are those who have a satisfactory balance between practical skills and high maths and physics skills.

Then there's also the personality factor.

Someone who is easily distracted for an extended period, or who can't process multiple reactions required in a short time, are most at risk of killing themselves.

I find it interesting, that as we age, many people have a tendency to narrow their focus to a single problem, for an extended period, when an emergency occurs.

This stops them from focusing on the other problems that have appeared as well, that need addressing. This is a factor that has appeared in many accident investigations.

Electric fences generally work well on 'roos, just as they work well on most animals. But the problem is the erratic behaviour of 'roos.

If the 'roos are just grazing, and not being pushed or startled, they will normally hop up to a fence slowly, and then push their way under it - if the bottom wire can be lifted enough (and it usually can).

But if the fence is really tightly-strained, and the 'roo can't push under it, they will then attempt to jump it. They will also jump a fence at speed if they're being chased, they won't stop to nose under it. 

But a lot of the time, they misjudge the jump over the top wire, and get their toes caught in it, which brings them down with the twisted two top wires trapping their feet. They then die there, if not released.

I can recall a trial the Ag Dept did with regard to stopping wombats with an electric fence.

They found the most highly successful arrangement was a low electrified wire, and a higher electrified wire, about 300mm higher - just back a bit from the first wire.

The wombat would shuffle along and come to the bottom electrified wire, and get a jolt right on his nose. This made them do an "Oww!! - SHXX!!" jump backwards, and upwards - whereupon they promptly hit the second electrified wire!

This second jolt was apparently the coup de grâce, that sent the wombats scurrying off, never to return! It apparently took the double jolts to really reinforce the message to the wombats, that they weren't welcome!

The 'roo scaring whistles don't work (or not effectively enough, anyway) - and a lass did a 171 page thesis to test them out, with the results showing what most regular country drivers already know.

https://abigpeacheyadventure.com.au/kangaroo-whistles/

Every single driver should be made to learn to drive on unsealed roads. When I was 16, our roads were 98% unsealed and 2% sealed - and we drove at high speed on unsealed roads without a care.

Now, roads are 50% sealed and 50% unsealed and people drive off the end of the sealed portion, and the vehicle is on its roof within a kilometre! - because they have no unsealed road driving skills!

Drivers of today can't even properly correct a swerve at speed - on bitumen! So the road safety authorities simply tell them to never swerve at speed, to try and reduce the road toll!!

.....he suddenly stood up and pointed and exclaimed, "Oooohh! Did you just see that flunked landing! I thought he was going to rip the undercarriage off!"

"No? Where?", said Cappy as he spun around in his chair (as fast as his portly frame would allow for "speed"), looking hither and thither at an empty runway, and not an aircraft in sight. 

"Ahhh, you missed it! You were too slow!", said Turbo - as he surreptitiously poured the coffee into a nearby pot plant - thus promptly making the pot plant stand more erect, and gain some extra size.

Cappy spun around in his chair again, ready to examine the contents of Turbo's cup - but again, he was too late, as Turbo already had it in the sink, and was cleaning it.

"I can't believe this!", cried Cappy, "First off, it was - initiate a major distraction, then it was, dispose of the contents without a trace, now it's..........

A quote reportedly coming from one of the Indonesian investigators, is along the lines of, "we are puzzled because the aircraft speed is too slow for that altitude" (at the point contact was lost).

If this report is correct, it appears to indicate that one engine may have been producing less thrust than required.

If the aircraft was in IMC, and the crew were occupied with other tasks, and not noticing asymmetric thrust starting to create a roll, that would likely explain how they failed to correct any autothrottle problem, until it was too late.

Asymmetric thrust creates both a yawing and a rolling moment. The pilots job is to identify asymmetric thrust quickly, and restore the thrust levels to equilibrium, as a priority. Any delay obviously results in an unrecoverable upset.

Compounding any asymmetric thrust problem that has developed as a result of an autothrottle fault event, is the lag in spool-up time of jet engines. I understand this can be 6 to 8 seconds.

That spool-up lag, coupled with any delay in troubleshooting, could mean trouble if a serious level of bank and yaw had already developed without crew awareness.

It's an interesting study, learning how quickly a swept-wing, large commercial jet can develop a flight upset, that can rapidly lead to aircraft loss, if the crew aren't "on the ball" with prompt troubleshooting and fault identification.

http://www.iasa.com.au/folders/Safety_Issues/others/aerodynamic_principles_of_large.html

But how do you get Rin-tin-tin to sort out the kangaroos, prior to landing? Drop him off with a parachute, and let him go for it? 

....winning the 2021 Reno Air race - not bragging about individual aircraft choices. After Cappy and Turbo had gone over both the Thruster and the F16 with a fine tooth comb, it was decided that the decision was so close, a toss of a coin would have to constitute the decision-making process.

At that, Cappy drew his favourite double-headed Two-Up coin from his pocket, and holding it up so no-one could see either of the heads, he said loudly, "I bags throwing the coin, and I pick Heads for the Thruster!"

But Turbo was used to Cappys cunning ways and said, "No, we'll use a random coin from the coin-holder from my taxi-driving days, for the toss!" - and at that, he quickly pulled out his special double-tailed 50c piece, and tossed it in the air, yelling, "I bags Tails for the F16!!" 

And the instant the coin stopped rolling and laid flat, and everyone saw it was a Tail - Turbo swooped and recovered the coin, and returned it to the special spot in his coin-holder. 

"Hang on!", cried Cappy, suspecting his old mate was just as crooked as he was - "We never got to inspect the coin! Pull the coin out again, so we can get a look at it, and ensure that there's no funny business going on here, or we'll have to......

O.K. Must have been a temporary glitch on my end, it's working fine now. Thanks.

Ian, the Social Australia page appears to be having problems. The site is not opening.

No, I think oil coolers would be pretty common on the majority of aircraft engines. And yes, split oil coolers are not unknown - although they rarely split catastrophically.

I just believe that minimisation of external oil plumbing is the best design idea - and besides, it reduces complexity.

Jack - Make your own - this bloke did. It's not like the tail wheel carries a lot of weight or is a critical component.

A couple of pieces of T6061 alloy, cut and smoothed to the desired shape, bolted to an aluminium block centrepiece, a bushing and bolt, and a suitable proprietary light castor wheel, finishes it all off!

https://www.kitplanes.com/do-it-yourself-tailwheel/

The sonic kangaroo-repellers are in the same category as snake oil - they simply don't work. Why? Because they don't project their sound far enough ahead - and their whistle is drowned out by vehicle and road/tyre noise.

https://abigpeacheyadventure.com.au/kangaroo-whistles/

Skippys idea of a horn or alarm is as good as any idea - it's the startle effect you need, a loud unusual sound, that is not part of their normal landscape sounds.

If you want to go the whole hog, fit an air horn! Guaranteed to raise the dead into movement!

Kangaroos definitely respond to a whistling noise - but we used to whistle to make them stop and look in our direction, so we could get a better head shot!

The single biggest problem with 'roos is that they're brainless on the move. They will start to hop in one direction, then reverse direction in a second, if they suddenly decide there's a threat in the direction they're heading.

If there's a group, that's better, as they are herd animals, and stay together - so, if one 'roo moves and the others notice, they will all hop in the same direction.

But if one get left behind and suddenly wakes up, he/she will make a mad dash to catch up to the others. It's the odd single 'roo you didn't see, that you have to be most concerned about.

Even the RFDS has had numerous 'roo strikes, and they haven't found a successful technique for eliminating them. 

https://www.gympietimes.com.au/news/flying-docs-taken-out-by-kangaroo/2052477/

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-10-19/flying-doctor-grounded-after-hitting-kangaroo/4324010

https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2013-02-28/rfds-pilot-narrowly-misses-hitting-kangaroo/6147250

Jack, possibly the biggest single cause of loss of oil pressure in flight is failure of an external hose, piping, or fitting - or catastrophic failure punching a hole in the block or sump.

A failed bearing or some other internal pressure loss, via mechanical failure, is a less likely scenario. If the oil supply is being depleted by the former, a prelube pump is only going to pump the little remaining oil overboard.

I like engines (any engines) with little or no external plumbing for oil, they suffer from engine failure on a lower percentage basis than engines with external oil plumbing.

....someone reported that their airstrip had been stolen - when it was right there all the time, and the gent was just disorientated, thanks to some serious deficiencies in his map-reading skills.

But Cappy, being the fattie he was now, was pretty worried about being rounded up and sent to the hoosegow - because he was now scared he'd get stuck, going through the main door. 

He'd seen American newsclips of fat Americans being transported on stretchers hung from cranes, and he was terrified that he would end up going.......

(Dear NES Readers, if you examine the Jedi Rats photo, you will see he's now wearing a large shapeless robe to hide his increasing girth, and folds of flesh, and you also note the inability to hold his Jedi wand in his fat little paws, and he's actually holding it between his teeth. This is a sad state of affairs, obviously caused by excessive imbibing of gin and fine wines, too many visits to fast food places such as Maccas, Pizza shops, and other fine dining establishments. It won't be long before the Jedi Rat will be asking Eeeeaan for a larger avatar space allocation, to enable him to fit his corpulent frame into it. In short, he is well on his way to becoming a Fat Rat.)

Had to chuckle at the runway on Cocos-Keeling Islands. The Cocos Malays love their bantams, and they are on the loose (feral) everywhere. They can fly quite a distance (100M+) and reach probably 15M in altitude.

As there's no runway fencing on Cocos' West Island, the aircraft prepares for takeoff - and the bloke in the runway ute, barrels up and down the runway, chasing the bantams back into the bush surrounding the runway!

When he gives the all-clear, the flight can take off. I don't know if any aircraft has had a bantam strike on takeoff there, but I've never heard of one, the bantams seem to know to keep clear of the aircraft.

I got a fridge magnet from when we stayed on Cocos - it's got a cartoon drawing of five, wild-looking bantams on it, and the caption, "Feral Chook Island"! 

A privately-owned airstrip is a different kettle of fish, as it would normally require any airstrip user to contact the owner, to gain permission to use it.

As such, it is the equivalent of a private property, and the local council rules and regulations for dogs in public places don't apply.

However, if a private airstrip owner allows free general public access to his airstrip, then the local council rules and regulations for dogs in public areas, would then apply.

In my council area, all dogs must be kept on a leash no longer than 2 metres when in a public place. When a dog is allowed to be unleashed in a recognised, designated dog exercise area, the owner is still obliged to carry a lead and restrain the dog if it is causing distress to other people, or other dogs.

Any dog owner who allows his/her dog to attack someone - even on their property, if the attacked person has entered the property without malice - faces serious penalties ranging from $3000 to $10,000.

There are a sizeable number of irresponsible dog owners who feel that they have no obligation to follow dog control rules and regulations - and these people just make it harder for everyone.