Builds By Baz

Introductory flight today was bloody brilliant. Decision made. booked to start training next month. Thanks everyone here for the words of experience and encouragement. Baz.

I've always been a very calm person. I go with the flow. I accept what is. My heart rate sits under 60 even after a car accident. Flight training will be what it is. I've flown and worked in military and commercial, fixed and rotary, Cessna to C5 Galaxy. Behind the controls for a change will be an experience I've looked forward to my whole life. I will be fine. Location is pretty good, I can be there in less than an hour from where I work and live. Price is price. I've got it covered. As always, I appreciate hearing all the feedback and banter between you blokes. I'll keep you posted how I go next week. Baz.

Yep. learn2Fly

So I booked my introductory flight today. Looking forward to it. The journey begins.

Where do I go for a flight medical? Is there paperwork I need to download? What is the medical called? Can my GP do it? Is the paperwork flying-school specific or generic? Baz.

Thanks John and Nev. I'm clearing some obstacles to get a foot in the door. Hopefully next Monday or Tuesday I'll walk in to the flying school and get the ball rolling.

Thanks BurnieM. I had to look up VFR. I should then probably start with RPC, but I'd like to finish with PPL. Baz.

I have zero idea of what any of that means. Probably a good idea to go in cold, with no bad habits or assumptions? Or should I start studying? Downloading stuff? Watching tutorials? Baz.

Hey guys. I sure hope my thread hasn't started a flame war. To fill in the blanks: I wanted to be a pilot when I was a kid. At 15 I wanted to be a fighter pilot but quickly realised I didn't have the grades so I joined the army at 17. As an air dispatcher, crew commander, basic paratrooper, drop zone safety commander and finally a parachute jump master, I spent a lot of time in aircraft over 16 years in the military. I've jumped out of a lot of aircraft static line and freefall from 1,000 to 12,000 feet. About 18 years ago I bought a Saitek flight control joystick and throttle control and had some hours on microsoft flight simulator. I was interested again in flying but never followed through due to financial constraints and family commitments. I don't know if these false starts mean it's not happening for a reason, or if they mean that I should actually bite the bullet and just do it. I do like the idea suggested that I go for an introductory flight under instruction, then go through the study, exams and flight training to get at least my recreational licence. I don't think I'll ever go as far as commercial, but maybe somewhere in between so if I fly I can share it with a loved one. As far as building is concerned, I am very accomplished with my hands, having built buildings and infrastructure, movie props, a 12 metre trailer and am currently a bladesmithing instructor full-time and a swordsmith. I've inspected some kits and been up close with partially built aircraft from kits to restorations. I think if I wanted to do it, I would be fine at it. Getting some flying in first and getting my licence before even attempting to build is sound advice. When I get a day off during the week, I will check out the Canberra airport for the flying schools. Thanks everyone for your tremendous advice and banter. It's interesting and informative to see your wealth of experiences. Cheers, Baz.

Now that, is good information. Thank you. Makes sense. Thank you.

WOW. You guys are awesome. Thank you so much for your candid answers and chat amongst each other. It's nice to know that as a noob, I might be encouraged rather than looked down upon. I am looking into it. I'll start by going to Canberra Airport and ask there. I agree, it probably would be a good idea to get my licence to fly first. My kids still visit me weekends and I still work full time, so I can't probably do both at once. After building the Viper from scratch over seven years, I've looked at kits and some instructions and I don't think it will take me nearly as long. Years ago I dabbled in microsoft flight simulator. Do you guys recommend anything like that in this day and age? Would it help? Baz.

Thank you. I appreciate the encouragement. Baz.

I looked it up. It's a reasonable alternative. Thank you. Thanks mate. I will chase that one up. Cheers. Baz.

Where would I start? I live in Canberra.

I'm 56 this year and have wanted to fly since I was a child. I spent many years in the Australian Army, flying and working in all kinds of service aircraft parachuting, dispatching air land, air drop and airlift. Never flown one. Is it too late? Can I fly anything at my age? Can I build one? I built this over seven years, but it is a display only and not airworthy even if I did miraculously fit engines. how would I even start? Baz.

Some pics from Paul Bennets Wings over Shellharbour Airshow last weekend.

Two Vipers at the Wings over Shellharbour Airshow. https://www.buildsbybaz.com/two-vipers-at-wings-over-shellharbour-airshow-2026/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uniw3vA-gRM

Thanks mate. I built it purely for the latter. I have no intention of profiting from it. Baz

Sure is! I 've been there before and have a friend who works there.

Update Shellharbour Airshow looming. https://www.buildsbybaz.com/airshow-appearance-coming-up/

For anyone interested, come on down to the Wings over Shellharbour 16/17 May. I will be there with the MkII Colonial Viper and my friend Scott Stewart will be beside me with his life size MKi Colonial Viper from the original series. See you there! Baz.

Final build video. Now that the Viper and trailer are finished, I am focused on saving to buy a truck to tow it. In the meantime, I dug through my hard drive for seven years of WIP photos and combined them into a complete build video, just under 9 minutes. Enjoy! Baz.

The end of an era. I have finished the Viper, it's trailer and the first public appearance is this coming Sunday. I've been madly tweaking the trailer and display, steps, jack-stands and a ladder, along with an inverter and lead-acid battery power solution for a totally self-contained unit. It's a good shakedown close to home, so I can get things sorted and be confident that the trailer will make the distance to other cities and highway driving. The Canberra Times came out and interviewed me last week, took lots of photos and video. [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/dljVIi2.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/z7xjysT.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/D2CfTiN.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/Kdl3Y40.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/pXTp0nU.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/amdwdOu.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/G13V0OE.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/oxSXuWW.jpg[/IMG] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/TxHTs30.jpg[/IMG]

Update.

Updates!! Adding details to the Viper https://www.buildsbybaz.com/adding-details/ Viper-trailer torsion -suspension kit and wheels arrive. https://www.buildsbybaz.com/viper-trailer-display-podium/