Innholdsfortegnelse for May/June 2020 i Australian Flying

General aviation began to feel the debilitating effects of coronavirus in mid March as the government applied restrictions that threatened the viability of many GA businesses. Measures to combat the spread of the COVID-19 illness included a ban on foreign nationals coming into Australia, rules implemented to keep people 1.5 metres apart and encouragement for people to stay at home unless it was absolutely necessary to travel. Although important to stop the spread of the virus, the measures acted to effectively shutdown GA in Australia as businesses were robbed of the very resource needed to keep revenue flowing: people. Tourism operators were forced to ground aircraft, pilots and instructors were laid-off, many flying schools ceased dual lessons, exhibitions and air shows were canceled or postponed and movements at airports plummeted.…

The future of Katoomba Airport in the Blue Mountains region of NSW is in doubt after the government elected in January not to lease the airport. Katoomba has been operated under a licence arrangement for the past two years, with licencee FlyBlue nominated as the preferred tenderer to lease the airport, which lies surrounded by national park. After community consultation, the NSW Department of Planning, Industry and Environment informed FlyBlue that no lease would be offered and that FlyBlue’s licence to operate the airfield was to be terminated and replaced with a new licence that prohibited helicopter flights. According to the department, the community feared that joy flights would ruin the peaceful environment, even though joy flights were to be excluded on any lease. The lease proposal was publicly exhibited…

Czech manufacturer BRM Aero has introduced a new two-seat low-wing general aviation aeroplanes. The FAR23-certified B23 Bristell was due to be launched at AERO Friedrichshafen in Germany last April, but the event was canceled due to concerns over coronavirus. While the aeroplane looks very similar to the classic Bristell LSA, the B23 fuselage is longer and the tail is larger, with an aluminium rudder, larger flaps and stabiliser and the composite main landing gear legs have been redesigned completely to be able to carry much higher loads. In addition, a twin elevator trim tab function helps the pilot to optimise the forces on the control stick. Powered by a 100-hp Rotax 912S3 engine, the B23 has a projected top speed of 117 KTAS. With a maximum take-off weight of 750…

Qualifying for a commercial helicopter pilot’s licence is not an ending; it’s a beginning. As a CPL(H), pilots are entitled to fly and get paid for doing so, but helicopters are far more versatile than a simple commercial licence allows. For a pilot to take advantage of the full value of a helicopter, they need further training that will enable them to fly low, herd cattle, winch from the ground, carry sling loads, spray crops and a litany of other tasks. It’s that extra capability that makes a commercial helicopter pilot a more employable prospect. But those added extras usually come with added risks. Many of the jobs that helicopters are deployed to do put them in close proximity to the ground, structures, natural pinnacles, ever-dangerous powerlines, trees and every…

Pilots are taught the importance of cockpit organisation from almost the first flying hour. Folding charts, securing notepads, juggling spare pens and pencils, storing the whiz-wheel. For decades we came up with all sorts of tips and tricks to keep everything to hand and still prioritise flying the aeroplane. Then came tablets, which were disruptive technology in many ways. Large and unfoldable, they forced a rethink on cockpit management. Many gadgets emerged for aircraft owners to mount their tablets, but for aircraft hirers or those with no space to attached a permanent mount, the solution came in specially designed kneeboards. One such kneeboard is the MyGoFlight Universal Kneeboard Folio C. The Folio C was designed to be adaptable to the way most pilots work. It can be configured for both…

Over recent years the drone sector of aviation has been growing and evolving rapidly. There are now more than 1800 organisations holding a remote operator’s certificate and nearly 16,000 holders of remote pilot licences. Drones are being used commercially in a wide range of industries from farming to construction, as well as for community purposes such as shark spotting, crocodile management and law enforcement. Last year CASA approved the first commercial drone home delivery service, which is now bringing small products from retailers direct to the residences of people in some areas of northern Canberra and outer Brisbane. If you are a certified drone operator you are well aware of the relevant safety regulations and your safety obligations – in the same way as manned aviation operators know and accept…

A Different Point of View Dear Steve, I was intrigued to read Kriesha’s recent article “Where’s Your Head at?” [Australian Flying January-February 2020]. Despite Kreisha’s upbeat appraisal of aviation career options for those with previous mental health issues, CASA’s approach to mental health and aviation is one of total ignorance and discrimination. When I was 17 I was diagnosed as having dysthymia with episodes of major depression after hospital admission for attempted suicide. Clearly I was a very disturbed young man at that time, and for many, many years to follow. However, in time, I developed an alternate understanding of my illness and in my middle-30s beat the black dog of depression. Fast forward several years of depression-free living, I developed an interest in sport shooting. The NSW firearms registry…

1 Rotortech rescheduled for October 2 RAAus to seek Regulatory Relief 3 Cessna runs Engines on First SkyCourier 4 Wings over Illawarra falls Victim to COVID-19 5 VoltAero tests Cassio Prototype 6 BRM hits back over CASA stall Ban 7 Gliding Leases soar at Camden Airport 8 A Special Year for Rotax 9 Daher to fit Autoland to TBM 940 10 Pel-Air to update King Air Fleet SIGN UP TO KEEP UP! The Australian Flying website is updated daily with the latest GA news stories. Visit us online now at www.australianflying.com.au to also check out our free classifieds section, photo and video galleries, blogs, flying tips articles and comprehensive Warbird coverage. And be sure to register for our FREE weekly electronic newsletter, which delivers the latest news FREE to your…

CASA published a proposal in February this year to amend the Civil Aviation Orders (CAO) to allow VFR aircraft to fit low-cost ADS-B units. The regulator hopes the concept will encourage owners of VFR aircraft to fit ADS-B, which is now mandatory for all IFR operations both commercial and private. Under the proposal, VFR aircraft would be allowed to use non-TSO’d equipment complying with a different technical standard to that fitted to IFR aircraft. “CASA sees value and a safety benefit if more VFR aircraft have ADS-B equipment,” the proposal summary states. “To encourage this, industry is being consulted on new technical standards aimed specifically for voluntary fitment in VFR aircraft. These new ADS-B equipment standards may not be suitable for ATC surveillance separation in controlled airspace, but will provide…

I had tried to get permission to land in Syria, Iraq and Iran. I was keen to retrace the trip fully, and Damascus, Baghdad and Bandar Abbas were ancient cities I’d long wanted to visit. However, flight clearances for these three countries were available only through diplomatic channels, and I didn’t even waste their time asking. In the end, once a drone got shot out of the sky in Iran, I figured it might not be the best time to pop in anyway … An early departure from Haifa sent me past Syria, Iraq with an overnight tech stop in Bahrain, then over Dubai and along the edge of Iranian airspace for most of the day before picking up the Vickers Vimy route again in Pakistan, for a quick overnight…

Globules of rain splattered on the windscreen as I splashed my way along the Pacific Motorway towards Southport. The wipers struggled to keep up with the torrent, making my search for the exit sign nearly impossible in the blurry world outside. Cars swooshed all around me, sending out the occasional bow wave as evidence of flooded road. Cloud, grey and heavy, hovered only a few hundred feet above the motorway. This was possibly not the most ideal day for testing an aeroplane. My mission that day was to fly the new 215-hp Tecnam P TwentyTen (P2010) Mk II, and compare it to the 180-hp fixed-pitch version that I flew in Capua, Italy, in 2015. Operating from Southport Airport, I should have had a bright, sunny Gold Coast day for the…

When someone mentions Picasso, it is natural to think of an odd man who painted odd-shaped art. His before-their-time cubist works, to the untrained eye, are unnatural, occasionally irritating; like a crooked picture on a wall, you almost want to go in and tweak it to make it “straight”. Pablo Picasso had the sheer audacity not only to envision something different, but also to then actually paint it as true to his vision as he could. Standing in front of a Picasso piece, the artist’s opposition to the norm is palpable. Burt Rutan has the audacity to design and build airborne machines that invoke a similar response. Well and truly bitten by the aviation and aerospace bug very early in life, Rutan, by his own admission, was not as enamoured…

The catastrophic attack of 11 September 2001 on the World Trade Centre in New York led to a significant increase in security awareness throughout the world. A new era was ushered in with crews, passengers and baggage being subjected to security checks, often for the first time. These have since become routine at airports and cruise terminals across the globe. The impact on business aviation was immediate. Considerable numbers of individuals and companies, who had not previously considered business aviation for their travel needs, turned to this safe and secure form of transport. Now, for a variety of reasons, many corporate visitors to destinations throughout the world choose to travel by business aircraft, and will only travel on this mode of transport. ABAA research has shown that a number of…

Bell Helicopter recently revealed a novel electric anti-torque system for its commercial helicopter line. Known as the Electrically Distributed Anti-Torque (EDAT)system, the system is composed of four small fans within a tail rotor shroud in an offset two-by-two pattern. While still in development, Bell claims enhancements to safety and operating cost, as well as a reduction in noise when compared to conventional tail rotor controlled aircraft. Each of the four four-bladed rotors are powered by four separate motors, with the electrical energy provided through generators driven by the turbine engines. “In a nutshell, we removed all of the conventional mechanical anti-torque components, including gearboxes, drive-shafts and tail rotor hub and blades, and replaced them with four electric motors and fans,” said Eric Sinusas, program director of light aircraft at Bell.…

The main problem with change is that most of us see change as a threat, plus there is a natural bias towards maintaining the status quo when something is already working. Changing is even harder when many individuals and businesses are still making a profit by doing things how they have always been done. Presently Australia's major airlines are experiencing a temporary lull in the hiring of pilots, but it is evident that there will soon be a serious global pilot shortage caused by the increase in low cost travel, the growth of the Asian middle class and the retirement of senior airline staff. When business owners try to improve things for customers and staff, they try to reduce friction points. Flight training presently has many friction points, and I…

The aviation community has had to do a lot of head shaking at AVMED decisions in the past, often for some of the reasons laid out in this letter. We can all hope that the writer is correct in assuming that a more reasonable approach to aviation medicine is in the wind. Medical Pragmatism Thanks to AOPA Australia–particularly Ben Morgan and Dr David Hooke–for their ongoing assistance with an aviation medical. Their support facilitated a phone conference with CASA Aviation Medicine Branch which, following a standard DAME review, led to the granting of a Class 2 with usable conditions. It seems that under the guidance of recently appointed Dr Simon May, Principal Medical Officer, a more pragmatic approach is being adopted by AVMED, consistent with maintaining the safety of air…

In February this year, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority proposed a new solution for assessing the impact of colour-vision deficiency (CVD) in pilots. Pilots with CVD have been subject to a three-stage testing process in the past, which organisations such as the Colour Vision Deficiency Pilots Association (CVDPA) have long railed against because it was purely diagnostic. Now CASA is proposing that the impacts of CVD be assessed in flight also. “Research in recent years has shown relying on diagnostic tests alone may be unnecessarily limiting when considering the impact of colour vision deficiency on aviation safety,” said CASA Director of Aviation Safety and CEO Shane Carmody in his February CASA Briefing newsletter. “Advances in technology, operating techniques and human factors training can now mitigate many of the safety risks…

Adelaide company Eyre to There Aviation announced in February that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Pipistrel to build Alpha Electro aircraft in Australia. The announcement said the company would be the first electric aircraft manufacturer to be based in this country, with plans to build up to 100 aircraft annually. Eyre to There Managing Director, Barrie Rogers, said he believed the time is right to introduce the aircraft to Australia as a flight trainer. “Electric aircraft are cheaper to buy, cheaper to run, are significantly quieter than conventional aircraft and don’t rely on fossil fuels,” he said, “and they are ideally suited for short-range flight training activities. “The one thing that has previously hindered the development of electric aircraft compared with, say, electric vehicles, has been the…

Ten years ago, Australian Flying published a highly-charged article about CASA’s change to the operations at six major general aviation airports. These airports had previously operated under General Aviation Aerodrome Procedures (GAAP) rules, but CASA blind-sided the GA sector when it announced that GAAP would be replaced by Class D procedures. The six airports affected were Bankstown, Camden, Moorabbin, Jandakot, Parafield and Archerfield. The article included phrases like “widespread confusion”, “controversy”, “death knell”, “hand grenade”, and “ruckus”. Other commentators at the time were less polite. A decade on, and now the dust has well and truly settled, we can reflect more calmly. Was it all a storm in a teacup? More importantly, has it improved safety? Has it reduced confusion and increased standardisation? Concerning times The concerns, and there were…

In the beginning, the Wright Brothers invented a flying machine … then very quickly, bureaucracy decided these machines had to be certified to be safe. Things stayed more or less like that for many years, albeit with ever growing complexity. Then, with greater knowledge and giant strides in materials and engines, driven by a public hunger for low-cost aviation, along came ultralights, which didn’t have to be certified at all. Once again bureaucrats emerged and decided these aeroplanes also had to be certified to make them safe. Most recently, Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) were born, which are sort of certified, but not really. And in amongst all these are experimental aircraft, which are largely–but not exclusively–aeroplanes which are amateur-built from plans or kits, some of which are approved and others…

On 19 March 1973, the author had his first flight in an aeroplane, from Brisbane to Toowoomba. The aircraft was VH-TGW, a TAA DHC-6 Twin Otter. It had already been in TAA service for close to five years. Masling Airlines of Cootamundra acquired the aircraft in 1976, but two years later it was flying in the rugged highlands of New Guinea. It came back to Australia in 1998 and went into service with Eastland Air of Cairns, operating the first revenue service from Cairns to Lizard Island. In 2007 it was sold in the United States and started working on the tourist run in Honduras. Thirteen years later, it’s still in regular service in Honduras as N718KW. The most important facts about the Twin Otter are encapsulated in this little…

As we all process changes to our lives, our livelihoods, our social circles and the world around us, one thing remains intact: leadership. Crisis can be a time when leaders miss the opportunity to lead, while others will thrive and embrace the complexities associated with leadership during a crisis. As one of Australia’s largest private aviation enterprises, we’ve had to manage through this crisis as well. What leaders need during a crisis is not a predefined response plan, but behaviours and mindsets that will prevent them from over-reacting and help them to look ahead. Our focus has been firstly how to support and protect our staff. How to support our schools through economic conditions seen once in a century. How to run a $3 million, 10,000 constituent business with all…

This discussion contains extracts from the SACAA’s accident report. It is compiled in the interest of promoting aviation and not to establish legal liability. Aircraft Registration: ZS-KFU Date of Accident: 19 February 2007 Time of Accident: 1250Z Type of Aircraft: Piper PA38 Tomahawk Type of Operation: Training Pilot-in-command Licence Type: Commercial Age: 42 Licence Valid: Yes Flying Experience Total: FlyingHours 8 127.35 Hours on Type 2.4. Past 90 days 70.8 Student: 9.2 hours of total flying hours and had not acquired a student pilot license. Last point of departure: Pietersburg Civil Aerodrome 120 nm north of Johannesburg Next point of intended landing: Springs Aerodrome in the Johannesburg area Location of the accident: Outside the perimeter of runway 26 at Pietersburg Civil Aerodrome. Meteorological Information: Fine weather. Temperature: 28°C; wind: 15-18…