Innholdsfortegnelse for July - August 2022 i Australian Flying

One of the United States’ largest air shows, Pacific Airshow, will hold an Australian version over Gold Coast beach in August next year. Pacific Airshow is held at Huntington Beach, California, annually and claims to host three million people across the three day show. “There has never been an air event of this scale staged anywhere in Australia,” said Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate. “That’s why the Gold Coast is famous for fun – in the air and on the ground. “This event underscores our commitment to attracting the very best in global entertainment for our residents, visitors and businesses.” Event organisers Code Four revealed plans for Pacific Airshow Gold Coast on a rain-sodden Gold Coast beach in April, which includes both civil and military displays, with involvement also from…

In a move designed to improve its ability to deal with the unique challenges of the Australian outback, the Royal Flying Doctor Service (Queensland Section) recently invested $100 million on six brand new King Air B360 aircraft. The first pilot to fly the new aircraft was Deputy Head of Flight Operations Clayton Nankivell, spoke to Derek Royal about the new aircraft and what it means to be an RFDS pilot. TOWNSVILLE AIRPORT, 1800 hrs It’s 6.00 pm and RFDS (Queensland Section) pilot Clayton Nankivell arrives at Townsville Airport ready for a 10-hour shift. Nankivell’s first task of the evening is a routine backload that involves transferring an elderly female patient from Townsville to Mount Isa, and then returning with a pregnant woman aged in her 30s. Nankivell has already been…

MAGAZINE The latest aviation news, reviews and tips delivered to your door DIGITAL Instant access to each digital copy via Zinio Renew or subscribe to Australian Flying with auto-renewal for just $6.30 PER ISSUE (print + digital copies) SUBSCRIBE VISIT GREATMAGAZINES.COM.AU/AUSTRALIANFLYING OR CALL 1800 807 760 AND QUOTE AUTO-RENEWAL Conditions: This offer is only available to readers with an Australian postal address. By subscribing via auto-renewal you give Yaffa Media authorisation to charge your nominated credit/debit card account or direct debit bank account regular amounts, in regular instalments, as set out in the terms of the subscription you are purchasing, until you request it to be stopped, or your card or account expires. You may voluntarily stop your subscription at any time by providing Yaffa Media’s customer service department (subscriptions@yaffa.com.au)…

After experiencing solid growth in the US over the past two years, Australian company Helitak Firefighting Equipment have formalised an agreement with Seaview Aviation to assist with US sales, installations, service and maintenance of their expandable, aerial fire tanks out of their California base at Camarillo. Helitak CEO and Chief Engineer Jason Schellaars said, “This is a wonderful opportunity for us, and we are delighted to be partnering with Seaview Aviation as it has allowed us to expand the Helitak network and also provide additional support to our customers. “We were impressed at how quickly the Seaview team were able to demonstrate a great understanding of the Helitak tank configuration, and this has benefited our mutual clients by facilitating seamless installation and delivery of the tanks. “We are confident that…

The wonderful thing about aviation is that it is so diverse. In fact, I regularly reflect that its immense breadth is such that not one person knows it all and therefore many of us take great joy in exploring its many facets during our lifetime without necessarily becoming an expert. Whether our interest was sparked from the "magnificent men in their flying machines" era, from watching Top Gun in our teenage years, having family that worked in the industry or that we simply wanted to explore this Great Southern Land, the industry in Australia provides ample choice to whet the appetite. Recreational Aviation Australia Ltd (RAAus) is a membership based not-forprofit organisation that exists to provide Australian aviators one of those many choices. Our members fly a range of aircraft…

Iʼve always maintained that to have a long-standing relationship with general aviation, you need to be an optimist. From the very first visit to the CASA website to apply for an ARN, to navigating NAIPS for a password or dealing with AvMed, there are so many opportunities to throw your hands up in the air and say, “this is all too hard!” Somewhere inside us, we have to believe that things will finally come good. If we weren’t optimists, we’d be lying on the floor in the foetal position, sobbing. Furthermore, you have to have the determination of a dictator to remain in aviation. Rules constantly change, three different answers to one question are possible from the regulator and unless you subscribe to every mailing list in the country, it’s…

The Civil Aviation Safety Authority published their long-awaited workplan to reduce regulatory burden on general aviation in May this year. The workplan was in response to the Statement of Expectations (SoE) handed to CASA by then Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce in January, and details all the steps and priorities CASA has set to comply with the SoE. “The General Aviation Workplan clearly sets out how and when CASA will optimise the regulatory framework for the general aviation sector,” CASA stated. “This will provide advice to stakeholders when regulatory changes impacting general aviation will likely occur among the range of other priority safety initiatives for government and industry. “Ensuring regulation is proportionate to risk and responsive to implementation challenges identified by industry helps to maximise flexibility for the sector and…

Recreational Aviation Australia’s new Group G was never intended to present opportunities to Australia’s slim-line aircraft manufacturing industry, but technology and potential regulatory change has opened the door slightly for new aircraft that could revolutionise general aviation in Australia. A quick recap: Group G will cover aircraft with maximum takeoff weights (MTOW) between 601-760 kg provided the aircraft was originally certified to those weights, and the pilot has been properly trained. The plan was for legacy types such as Cessna 150s and Piper Tomahawks to be gathered into the RAAus fold and still be able to fly to their original certified weights. Add to that amateur-built experimental (AB-E) aeroplanes like some of the RV series and the options for recreational pilots expands significantly. It’s not that simple; there are a…

If you like the idea of always striving to be a better pilot, then there are plenty of good reasons to convince even those of us with the healthiest of aviator egos to give formation flying a crack. From tweaking our technical skills, to developing our discipline, and learning as a group, formation flying offers a plethora of opportunities to improve and learn; not just about ourselves as pilots, but about our aircraft and others in the air. It really does make you a better pilot. But why is this so? Aside from improving your technical prowess, it’s the upgrading of non-technical skills that sorts the galahs from the peregrine falcons. When ICAO asked experienced pilots what constitutes a “good pilot”, more often than not the reply included words related…

Since the mid 1990s when GPS units found their way into GA aircraft for the first time, comm sets have been integrated in the GPS unit, which saves space and weight. For some, it meant never having to worry about an independent comm set; for others it meant the opportunity to have a second comm for the first time. It is almost a given now that a primary GPS unit will have the comm built-in, but dedicated, stand-alone radios still have a place in GA cockpits. They provide a second active frequency, and act as a back-up should the primary nav/comm unit wink out at a inopportune moment. And in the LSA and experimental markets, new EFIS systems like the G3X will display frequencies on the screen that have been…

The aviation industry is about to undergo significant changes and CASA needs to be on the front foot as this happens. In the next decade, we can expect substantial developments in technologies such as electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft, expected to form the backbone of a new advanced air mobility (AAM) sector, and remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS). These and other developments have wide implications for all sectors of the industry, from passenger operations through to general, sports and recreational aviation. Just the rise of eVTOL and RPAS activity is generating a need to modify our airspace so that everyone can have equal access to the skies. This means crewed and uncrewed aircraft operating in the same airspace in way that everyone can do what they need to…

CASA has said it will remove the 45-knot stall speed limitation on ASAO-registered aircraft from CAO 95.55 after 80% of respondents to feedback requests said the change would maintain current safety standards. The stall speed limitation has restricted the ability of aircraft owners to take advantage of the new 760-kg maximum take-off limit to be applied to RAAus’ new Group G aircraft, and removing it has been seen as the final hurdle to the new rules being implemented effectively. Group G is intended to bring GA aircraft into the ASAO fold and will not apply to aircraft with light sport aircraft (LSA) and ultralight approvals. “The focus of this consultation was on the safety aspects of removing the stall speed limitation from the definition of lightweight aeroplane,” CASA states. “The…

Every few years we report on developments in alternative aviation fuels. It’s hard to answer the question “Are we there yet?” because a second question always arises, namely, “Are we where yet?” Since our last report the “where” has started coming into focus. Increased tensions around the threat from climate change are driving demand for technological advances to “save the planet.” We no longer talk of “alternative fuels”, but rather “sustainable aviation fuels” (SAF). Further, an industry goal, or “where” has been set: netzero CO? emissions from flights by 2050. Billions of dollars are being wagered on alternative paths to SAF and low emission technology. Aviation accounts for around 1 billion tonnes, or 2-3% of global CO2 emissions. According to Air BP, “a return flight between London and San Francisco…

Peter Janssen’s confidence in his Beechcraft B55 Baron was not shaken, but it was stirred. Sure in his belief that the aircraft would climb easily on one engine, he was not perturbed when the instructor dropped gear and flap, then failed one of the big Continentals. What happened next cemented in Janssen’s mind the value of pilot proficiency courses. “We had a nose-up attitude and we’re dropping 800 fpm!”, he recalled years later. “So we retracted the flaps and the rate of descent was arrested. Then with the gear up we were back to a rate of climb again. “What I learnt was that with the gear and flap out and on one engine, you may as well be in a single-engined aircraft. I had been so confident in the…

The just released Garmin D2 Mach 1 is one of the best looking and best performing pilot watches ever. It gives pilots everything they could ever need, and more. In testing it, as someone who has owned many of the previous versions, I was reminded of two parallels. First, to the Cirrus SR22, and second, to the Garmin G1000 – to which it can connect. Like both the parallels, the Mach 1 is all class, reflecting continual product and technology improvement. Key features of this high end personal aviation accessory include: the crystal clear, bright, well-lit, rich colour, touch screen; ease of connection to your mobile phone and internet; continuous graphical and digital display of weather, runways, and frequencies at your favourite or selected airport; the ability to have the…

In our industry it’s easy to get carried away with the hardware. Year-on-year corporate jets become larger, faster, and more efficient; with greater range and increasingly luxurious interiors. It’s true; they’re magnificent, and a pleasure to be around, but for many of us, it’s the people who make it all worthwhile. I sat down with business jet captain Darryl Newman who, at the urging of his family, recently put pen to paper chronicling his life and times in aviation. His (as yet) unpublished memoir is a candid and illuminating tale that stretches from his early years at Civil Flying Services at Moorabbin to joy-flights in Tiger moths from Tyabb, his time at the controls of Australia’s first Learjet with Bib Stillwell, several years of night freight in his beloved Boeing…