Thecoverfeaturethismonth istheEgyptianversionof theBlitherBestmann,the GomhouriaMk6,recently importedbyWillGreenwood.Ihave toadmitthistypeofclassicwooden aeroplaneisarealfavouriteforme becauseIthinkweEuropeanscertainly masteredtheartofthewoodenaeroplane inthepre-andpost-wardecades.The Bestmannwasacontemporaryofa numberofcabinmonoplaneMilesand dBtypes,withmanyclassicpost-war Frenchdesignscontinuingtheartfonn. You'veprobablygathered,Ithinkit'sa trulybeautifulaeroplane,anditshandling qualitiesarelegendary.
EASApilotlicensingissomethingmany membershavebeenasldngaboutand withonlyamatterofmonthsbeforethe Regulationcomesintoforce,wehaveatlast seenmostoftheimportantissuessettled byEASAandtheCAA.Naturally, therewillbeatransitionperiod duringwhichwewillallhave todecidejustwhichlicenceor licenceswewantorneedto applyforsofearnot,youare notgoingtobefacedwith needingtodoanything immediately.However,Ihope thearticledoesgiveyouagood steeronwhatisarathercomplex issuesothatyoucanmake decisionsbasedonabetter understandingoftheoptions.
TheRotecradialenginegoesagainst moderntrendsbutwithalmosttow nowincirculationthereisclearlya demandforthe'nostalgic'look.How manyofusarejustitchingloseeDudley Pattison'sFlitzeremergewithitsRotec addingthatessentialvintageflavour?
StuartMacConnacher,whovisitedthe factoryinAustraliarecently,repoitsnot only ontheradial,butsomeinteresting liquid-cooledJabintcylinderheadstoo. I'mafanoftraveloguesandknow fromcommunication withmembers thattheydoinspirepilotstospread theirwingsalittlefarther.Butyou donothavetoheadoffintoEurope tohavesomefun,asScottButler andagroupofhisfriendsfromRAF HenlowFlyingClubfoundwhenthey touredEastAngliaandtheSouth-Eastlast surruner.Plentyofairfields,fun,flyingand• friendship,andallwithinwomilesofhome. Anewtackonthecoaching frontthismonthwith'Wheredid itallgowrong?whichIhopewill stimulateyourthoughtsonthego/ nogodecision.Wehaveallbeen inthepositionthisunfortunate pilotfoundhimselfin-verykeen togetgoingbutwiththeweather notwantingtoplayball. Someof us, meincluded, havemadewrong decisionsand gotawaywiththem, hutbelieveme,itisbettertolearn fromothers'mistakesthanmake themallyourself.Flysafely.
BrianHope EDITOR emodemmaIktaltnet
—Cr_
CHAIRMAN'SCHATBYROGERHOPKINSON EFLEVAMAKINGPROGRESS AsEFLEVA,theEuropeanFederationof LightExperimentalandVintageAircraft entersitsfifthyear,itisimportantto reflectonwhatparttheFederationhasplayedin progressingouxcommonpassionforaviation.
Othersportandrecreationalflying associationsacrossEurope,suchastheglidingand micmlightcommunities,hadalreadyestablished EuropeanFederationsorUnionsandwhenEFLEVA firstsattogetheratVichyinzoo?,itwastoensureour particularinterestswereproperlyrepresented.We sawgreatriskstoourfreedomswiththeprogressive transferofauthorityforaviationsafetyandregulation to EASAand,fearingtheconsequencesofchange, soughttoensureourexistingrightsandfteedoms toflywerenotlosttousorfuturegenerations.So whatprogresshasbeenmadeandhowmuchhas thatposinonchanged?
TheFederationisuniqueinnotjustrepresenting oneareaofinterest;eachofitsCommissionshas specificissuestobeaddressed,whichincludeLight Aircraft,VintageAircraftandExperimentalAircraft lorAmateurBuildasitisknownbymanyl.The originalfearsofAnnexIIbeingwithdrawnhavebeen delayedwellintothefuture,andare notnowamajorissue.Nevertheless, manyEASAregulationshaveanimpact forus:LightSportAircraftshouldbean opportunity,thoughthatisnotyetthe case;pilotlicensingisacurrentissue whichyoucanreadaboutelsewherein thismagazine(wemustensurethose flyingnon-EASAaircraftcontinueto enjoycurrentprivilegeswithintheirown counlw,acrossEuropeandelsewhere); cross-borderissuesremain;andairspace mustcontinuetobefreetouse.
domesticissuesinourhomecounnies,aswellas addressingmattersofcommoninterest MostofthesematterswerediscussedatEFLEVA's OctoberzonconferenceinParis,whenwealso specificallyaddressedcurrentitemsimportantto Federationmembers.Theseincluded:apresentation onageingenginesftomourVintageCommission (NigelStevensfromRSA);areportonthecurrent stateofLightSportAircraftintheEASAcontext byamemberoftheUNCAAPP McKenna I;and BarryPlumb(IAAandEFLEVAVice-President), gaveapresentationonaviationfuels-asubject ofrealimportancetousall.Allthesesubjectsare fundamentaltosafeguardingourhedtageand ourfuture,andtheyformthebedrockof EFLEVA'sactivities.
TheFederation'sactivitiesarenow RogerHopkinson notsimplydefensivetopreventadverse Chairman,LightAircraft consequences,buttheyinvolvetaking Association/President, initiativesinorderto(witherourinterests. EuropeanFederationof Ialso believethe supportofthe member - LightExperimentaland delegateshelpsusindividuallyasweface VintageAircraft
OneitemofnoteisthatAlfonsHubmann, EFLEVA'sSwissrepresentative,isnowalso PresidentofCIACA,whichistlwFederation AeronautiqueInternationale(FAI)group focusedonAmateurBuildAircraft.CIACAwas aTechnicalCommissionwithinFAI,butwith arecentreorganisation,hasnowbecomea SportingCommission.TheinterestsoftheEFLEVA ExperimentalgroupandCIACAarevery muchthesameandwithFA1beingan internationalbody,welookforward tothislinkbeingonewhichhelps progressourwiderinterests. Soasitentersitsfifthyear.Icanreport thatEFLEVAhasmadesomepositive progress,thoughinevitablythereis stillalottoaddress.ItisaFederation madeupofvolunteerresourcesand itssuccessdependsonthesupport andinvolvementofitsmembers andmemberorganisationstomake itallwork.TheFederation'smotto is,'Spreadingourwingstogether', appropriateIthinkaswework togetherasaEurope-wideteamwithin whatisnowaEurope-wideRegulatory environment
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VICECHAIRMEN:JohnBrady, JamesTannock
DIRECTORS:MikeBarnard, GrahamNewby,HarryHopldns, StewartJackson,BarryPlumb,Lord Rotherwick,RichDuneyein-Gordon
TREASURER:Bob Littledale
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LIGHTAVIATIONMAGAZINE
EDITOR:BrianHope,
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Whileeverycoreistokenwith contributors'manuscriptsendphotos, neitherTheLightAircraftAssociation northepublisherconacceptliability forlostordamagedmoterioI.The viewsexpressedbycontributorsdo notnecessarilyreflectthoseoftheLAA
nadir
LAANEWS THESHAPEOFTHECONTROLAREASAREALSOCHANGING FollowingareviewofairspacearrangementsintheManchesterarea andconsultationwithallsectionsoftheaviationcommunity,theCAA hasapprovedchangestotheboundariesoftheManchesterControlZone (CTR).Thechangeswillbeintroducedon8March2012,resultingina reductioninthesizeoftheManchesterCTRandchangestotheshapes oftheoverlyingControlAreas.Approachanddepartureroutesserving ManchesterAirportwillremainunchanged.
Detailsofthechangeswereduetohepubtishedin Aeronautical InformationCircularYellow03/2012 on26January2011,andwillbe incorporatedintotheUKAIPand1:500000AeronauticalChartSouthern England&Waleson8March2012.NorthernEnglandandNorthernIreland willbeupdatedwhenitisnextpublished,on3May2012.Therevisions willalsobedepictedon1:250000AeronauticalChartsCentralEngland andWalesandEnglandEastwhenthecurrenteditionsarereplacedinMay andJune2013respectively.
TheCAA'sdecisionletter,whichincludesachartandco-ordinates oftherevisedairspacecanbefoundontheMagazinepageoftheLAA websiteat www.laa.uk.com
AVIATIONEDUCATIONCONFERENCE HostedbytheEducationSectionofBrooldands AviationMuseumandorganisedbytheYouth andEducationSupportStrutoftheLAA,the annualAviationEducationConferencewill takeplaceatBrooklandsMuseum,Weybridge, Surrey,onSaturday21April2012from10am —4pm.Museumchargesapplybutentryto theConferenceisfreewithpre-registration, availableonthewebsite.
TheProgrammeincludesinformationand guidanceonawiderangeofaviation-related activitiesandcareersforyoungpeople,aswellas thesupportthatisavailableforthemthrougha numberofestablishedorganisations.
Subjectsupfordiscussioninclude:Airfield Days;BursariesandGrants;Build-a-Plane Projects;FlyingCadets;Glidingopportunities; LAAJuniorandStudentMembers;Young
AviatorsDay;BrooklandsMuseum;Models andModelFlyingwiththeBMFA;Scout AviationActivities;Air-Scouts and Camps; SpecialistResourcesandProjects;andTraining Opportunitiesforaviation-relatedjobs. Animportantaspectofthedaywillhe opportunitiestotalkwithpeoplewhodeliverthese activities.Forfurtherdetailsandtopre-register contact07974188395or info@flyers.org.uk
Aspartofitsausterityplan,Mario Monti'snewItaliangovernment isproposingtoheavilytaxprivate aviationinItaly—andthatislikely toincludevisitingaircraftthatstay longerthan48hours.
Thisso-called'luxurytax'is calculatedonthemaximumtake-off weight(MTOW)andisdueeveryyear. Theamountrangesfrom€1.5perkg foranaircraftunder1,000kgmtow, to€7.55perkgforanaircraftofmore than10tonnesmtow.Itisdoubled forhelicopters.Forgliders,motorgliders,gyroplanesandballoons,the feeisfixedat€450peryear.Atypical four-seataircraftwillbeforcedtopay between€3,000and€4,000,whilea 600kgtwo-seaterwillpay€900.11is unclearwhethervisitingaircraftwill payapro-ratarateforthelengthof I stayorthefullamount.Itlookslike IItalymaywellhaveruleditselfoffthe GAtouristmap.
BrianHope,60QueenboroughRoad,Sheerness,KentME123B7
GETINTOAIRRACING TheRoyalAeroClubhasreleasedits2012airrace datesandvenuesandtheseasonopenswithanAir RaceSchoolonSaturday24MarchatNorthWeald Aerodrome10am-4pm.Interestedpilotsand navigatorsareinvitedtoattendapresentationof howhandicappedairracingworksandtheskills neededtogetinvolved.Tobookaplaceonthecourse, pleasecontactRogerHayeson01285851311or rogerhayes@diaLpipex.co.uk—thereisachargeof£25 forthedayevent.
ThefirstraceoftheseasonwillbeheldatOldBuckenham ontheweekendof14-15April.Otherplannedvenues includePerranporth,AbbevilleandAlderney. AwardsincludetheSchneiderTrophy,theKing'sCup, theRolls-RoyceMerlinTrophyplustheUKandEuropean airracechampionships—there'splentytoraceforin 2012.Afulltistofvenuesanddatescanbefoundat www.agraceukco.ok
LightAviation planstofeatureanarticleonanovice's experiencesofairracingintheMarchissue.
GYROSCHOOLINPORTUGAL UKgyroinstructorandexaminer,KevinRobinson,has setupthefirstgyrocoptertrainingschoolinthebeautiful AlgarveregionofPortugal.The'GyrocopterExperienceAlgarve'isbasedatthePortimaoMunicipalairport nearAlvor.Facilitiesincludean800mhardrunway,a
busycafeandregularbusservicestothelocaltownand beaches.Withanaverageof300daysofsunshinea yearandastunningcoastalsetting,theAlgarveoffers excellenttrainingopportunities.ContactKevinat 07967646673or www.gyrocopterexperience.com/olgorve
DYN'AEROBANKRUPTCY ReportsfromFrancesuggestthatbankruptcy proceedingshavecommencedagainstDyn'Aero,the makersofthesuccessfulMCRseriesofkitandready-toffylightaircraftandmicrolights.TheCommercialCourt ofDijonappealedforpotentialbuyers,whohaduntil midday27January2012tosubmittheirtenders.Itwill beknownbyearlyMarchwhetherornotthecompany, whichatthetimeofclosurehad20employees,hasa futureinitspresentform.
Dyn'Aerowasstartedin1992byChristopheRobin, thesonofRobinAircraftfounderPierreRobin.The two-seatMCRseriesofultra-fast,verylightweight, carboncompositeaircraftweredevelopedwithCri-Cri andLatterlyLucioledesigner,MichelColomban.Around
30MCRO1two-seatlightaircraftandmicrolightsare flyingintheUKonLAAPermits.Afour-seatversionof theaircraft,theMCR4S,hasbeenavailableforseveral years,butnoneareoperatingintheUK.
DevelopmentofatwinRotax912-powered aircraft,theTwin-R,wasnearingcompletionwithtestifyingwellunderway.
ChristopheRobinleftthecompanyinlate2010 totakeupapositionwithDaher-SocatainTarbes, thecompanyalreadysufferingfromadeclinein aircraftsales.Sadly,attemptsbythenewmanagement teamtorestructurethecompanyandrationalise productionhavebeenovertakenbythecontinuing financialcrisis.
ACSSCATALOGUE FameatlastforUKVariEze builders,SteveBrownandMike Roper.Theiraircraft,G-VEZE,is oneofanumberofpictures,and indeedthesoleUK-builtmachine gracingthecoverofACSS's2012 catalogue,whichisasalutetothe designtalentofBurtRutan,who retiredlastyearasheadofScaled Composites.Ratherthanleada pipe-and-slipperslifehowever, Burthastakenonanother spacecraftlaunchvehicleproject.
REGRETIRES RegBradburyhassteppeddownas chairmanofWestMidlandsStrut after24yearsofservicetoLAA membersinthearea.NewStrut chairman,GrahamElvissaid,"Itis difficulttoexpresshowmuchwe owetoRegforkeepingtheflame alightforsolong;heseemstohave takenonmostofthe'behindthe scenes'workthatkeepstheStrut going.AtourAGM,hewasmadean honorarylifemember,averywelldeservedtribute.Ourbestwishes gotohimforhisretirement." http://iaawestmidlandsstraco.uk
LAASHOPSALE! Pickupagreatclothingbargain intheLAAShopduringFebruary! Allfleecesandshirtsareatleast 25%offtheusualprice,soyou cangettheLAAfleecefor£22 insteadof£30,ortheLAApolo shirtfor£12insteadof£17.All topqualitymerchandise—please phonetheLAAShopforcolour andsizeavailability,ororder online.01280846786. www.loauk.COM
AIPISALETOO PioneerAircraftLtdislaunchinga salefornewaircraftboughtbefore theendofApril2012,witha discountofupto10%offtheprice oftheaircraft.BradGoodfellow, M.D.ofPioneersaid,"Withthe additionaldiscountthatAlpihas givenusandtheeuroexchange rateexpectedtohit€1.3to£1,itis makingthePioneeranevenmore attractiveproposition."Prices arereducedontheP200and P300models,plusthereareearly orderingdiscountsontheP400 four-seater.Visit www.pioneereero orcall01873851116. I.
>NEWS BFRPRICECUT' HotontheofferofafreeLAAPilot CoachingSchemeBiennialFlight Reviewfornewmembers,comes newsthatexistingmemberswillget areductionof£10ontheusualfee of£35;thismeanstheywillonly havetopaytheCoach£25.Inboth instancesofcourse,thepilotmust provideasuitableaircraftforthe BFR.Fulldetailsofbothoffersareon theLAAwebsiteunderEducationand Training/PilotCoachingScheme.See www.laa.uk.com
EASAIR&EIR TheLAA,alongwithotherindustry representatives,hasprovideda formalresponsetoEASA's proposalsforconsiderably simplifyingthefullInstrument Ratingandintroducinganew En-RouteIRqualification.Weare activelyengagedwithEuropeAir Sports,AOPA,PPL(IR)Europeand ofcoursetheCAAtoensurethat notonlydotheseproposalsprovide possiblythebestoptionforEuropean PPLs,hutthatwealsosafeguard theprivilegesofcurrentandfuture holdersoftheUKINCR.
TheLAA'sresponsetotheEASA proposalcanbefoundviaalink ontheMagazinepageontheLAA websiteat www.lactuk.com
BLADETAPE FlowstripUKhasdecidedtomarket itspropellerleading-edgeprotection tapeinsmallerrolls,inorderto maketheproductmoreaffordable andavailabletoaircraftowners.The tape,whichis100mmwide,isnow availableinfive-metrerollsat£67.20 perroll,withrecordeddelivery availableforanadditional£4.50, Afandnextdaydelivery£7.Pleasecalf I01724841860andaskforZoeor Ronnie.Email zoe@flowstrip.cauk or visit wwwflowstrip.co.uk
Total'snewunleadedavgasUL91(seearticleinLAAugust2011)isnow availableatelevenUKairfields,pricesappearingtobearound15to20pper litrebelowthatof100LL.
ThefuelhasbeenpromotedasbeingparticularlyappropriateforRotax engines,butitissuitable,andapproved,forawiderangeofenginestypes usedinLAAaircraft.TheLAAAirworthinessApprovalNote(AAN)foruseof UL91inappropriateLAAaircraft,andtheEASAdocumentpertainingtouse ofthisfuelinnonLAAtypes,canbefoundontheTotalAvgasUL91tabonthe LAAhomepage www.laa.uk.com
Fieldscurrentlystockingthefuelare:Barton,ComptonAbbas,Dunkeswell, HalfpennyGreen,Flenstridge,NorthWeald,Rochester,Turweston,Thruxton, WellesbourneandWolverhampton.
FieldsimminentlyintendingtostocktheproductincludePopham,Gloucester andSleap,whileanumberofotherlocationshavealsoexpressedinterest.
TheAirportOperatorsAssociation I (AOA)hasdiscoveredwhatmanyLAA membersalreadyknow—thatSywell Aerodromeisworthyofbeingnamed the'BestGeneralAviationAirport'in theUK,asithasawardedtheairfield thathonourinits2011Awards.
AshometotheLAARallyforthree years,Sywell'sexcellentfacilitiesand helpfulservicefromitsfriendlystaff Ihavemadethevenueafirmfavourite. The2012LAARallywilltakeplace thereoverthethreedaysof31 August-2September.
WelldoneSywell. www.sywellaerodrome.co.uk
RAeC BURSARIES TheRAeCTrustrecentlytoldusthat itstilthasanumberofbursades availableforyoungpeopleto advancetheirflyingambitions.For 2012,thebursarieswillincludeThe President'sAward(twobursaries eachworthupto£750),afurther bursaryworthupto£1,000(ThePeter CruddasFoundationScholarship), theBreitlingBursaryalsoworthup to£750,andtheBramsonBursary worthupto£500,aswellasanumber ofadditionalbursariesworthupto £500eachtosuitablecandidates. IApplicationsmustbeinby31March. Ifyouareeligible,orknowanyone aged16-21whomightbenefitfrom thescheme,detailsareavailable fromtheTrust'swebsiteatirdNw. royalaeroclubtrust.org.bursaries.html
OLYMPICAIRSPACEBRIEFING LAACOURSES TohelppilotsprepareforflyingintheSouth-Eastof Englandduringthe2012LondonOlympics,theRoyal InstituteofNavigation(RINI)andtheCivilAviation Authority(CAA),throughtheAirspaceandSafety Initiative(ASO,havejoinedforcestohostafreebriefing dayinCentralLondononSaturday10March2012.
TheeventwillbeheldattheRoyalGeographical SocietyandfeaturespresentationsandQ&Asessions offeringpilotsthechancetogetthelatestinformation fromtheCAA,NATSandMoDonhowtouseAtlasControl, theairtrafficcontrolunitthatwillprovidetheservicein
theRestrictedZoneR112;theoptionsavailableforflight planningtogetaccesstotheRestrictedZoneR112;how airfieldscanapplyforanduseexemptions;andthe interceptionproceduresplannedforusebyMoDaircraft. Theeventopensatllamwithpresentationsfromlpm -4.30pmbutpre-registrationisrequiredandplaceswill beprovidedonafirst-come-first-servedbasis.Toregister, emailyourfullnameandanyaffiliation(e.g.flyingclub) toolympics@rin.org.uk.Allbookingswillbeconfirmed. FordetailsofOlympicairspacechangesgoto www.airspacesafetycom/olympics
Thefollowingcoursesareavailable forbooking. Rotax912/914.Saturday10th IMarchattheLAAETTrainingfacility, TurwestonAerodrome.£105incltea andcoffee. WorkinginAluminium.Sunday19th February.LAAETTrainingfacility Turweston.£115inclteaandcoffee. Tobookaspacecalltheofficeon 01280846786andselectoption2. www.sywellaerodrome.co.uk
BrionHope,60QueenboroughRood, Sheerness,KentME123B7
E:BRL/ode5dtalktolk.net11,07949650847
SPITFIRERESPONSE-FOR&AGAINST SPITFIRELETTERSPARKSRESPONSES,DHMAINTENANCESTANDARDSMUST PREVAIL,ANNEXIIANDUNSUPPORTEDAIRCRAFTANDLET'SENCOURAGE THETHREE-PIECEWING
CarolynGrace'sletter (JanuaryissueofLight Aviation)aboutthe OxfordSpitfireSquadronhas generatedmoreresponsethan anyletterormagazinearticle Icanrecoil.Carolyncertainly touchedanerve!Theratioof responseshasbeenabouttwo tooneindisagreement,soIam publishingselectedlettersinthat ratioandwewillthendrawaline underthesubjectandmoveon. Pleasekeepthoseletters comingthough,aftersomething ofadroughtoverrecentmonths Iamatlastreceivingahealthy supplyofcorrespondence,hence awholethreepagesoflettersin thisissue.Ed
WHENISASPITFIREA SPITFIRE? Inarecentlettertothis magazine,CarolynGrace,the celebratedSpitfiredisplaypilot, describedas'highlyoffensive' thenamingofthenewMk26 kitasaSpitfirealongsidethe original.Butwhen is aSpitfire aSpitfire?
Probablymostofthereaders ofthismagazinehaveatone timeconstructedanAirfixor equivalentmodelSpitfire. Itremainsoneofthemost enduringscalemodelaircraft kitsevermarketed,yetitis clearlynotaSpitfire.Apart fromitsdiminutivesize,itis constructedfrominjection
mouldedplasticandglue,and itlacksmostoftheoperational characteristicsoftheoriginal. Aswealllearnedwhenwe launchedit,itdoesnoteven glide-yetweareveryhappyto callitaSpitfire.
The900/0Mkz6bkitaircraft Iamcurrentlybuildingisalso clearlynotanoriginalSpitfire. Itissomewhatsmaller,and thereareplentyofotherlittle differenceswhencompared totheoriginal.Thetailwheel geometryisnotright,theflaps areconventionalratherthan splitandthewings,whiletrue toReginaldMitchell'sfamous ellipticalshape,arealittletoo smallinrelationtothefuselage.
WhenisaSpitfirenotaSpitfire?
Surelynootheraircraftcould createsuchdebate...
Undertheskinthedifferences areevenmoreapparent,since theinternalstructurehasbeen greatlysimplifiedtomake homeconstructionpossible. Yetanyonewhoseesthe aircraftcomingtogetherinmy workshoprecognisesitinstantly asaSpitfire.
Carolynisprobablyoneofonly adozenorsopilotsintheUK withthecombinationofgood fortuneandfundstobeable toflyagenuineSpitfireaircraft regularly,butshewillalso it
>LETTERS knowthatthevastmajority ofSpitfires'restored'toflying conditiontodayarenothingof thesortInstead,astheexcellent HaynesSpitfireOwners' WorkshopManual makesclear, theyareessentiallybrandnew machinesbuiltinspecialist workshops,whichincorporate afewpanelsorothersmall componentsrecoveredfromthe wreckageofagenuineSpitto lendthemhistoricauthenticity. ArethesestillSpitfires?
EvenCarolyn'sown Spitfire,withitsimpressive WWIIandCastleBromwich provenance,carriesamajor post-warmodificationtoallow apassengertositbehindthe pilotunderasecondcanopy. Anditwouldnotsurprise meifherinstrumentpanel containsmodemradiosand atransponderalongsidethe originalinstruments.Dothese modificationsmakeheraircraft lessofatrueSpitfire?
Descendantsoftheoriginal ownersweredelightedtoconfer therightstotheSupermarine companynametoMike O'Sullivan,theAustralian founderofthelittlebusiness thatdesignedandmarkets theMk26and26bkits.They clearlysawnothingoffensive inseekingtopreserveWI Mitchell'sremarkablelegacy throughthedevelopmentofa new,home-built,aluminium replica.NordidAlexHenshaw, Supermarine'sfamous chieftestpilot;hesimilarly offerednothingbutsupport toO'Sullivan'sprojectbefore hisdeathin2007.Afterall,this smallkitplanebusinesswas establishedinhomagetothe originalaircraftandwould makepossibleaSpitfire-like experiencetorathermoremen andwomenthanisavailable tothetinyelitewhostillhave accesstooriginalmachines.
SowhenisaSpitfireaSpitfire? Oncemymachineiscompleted inanothertwoorthreeyears, Iwillbedelightedtooffer Carolynachancetoflyit It willbeimmediatelyapparent toherthatitisnotanoriginal aircraft,butIdohopethatits look,feel,soundandhandling willneverthelessevokestrongly thespiritofthosemachinesand theirpilotswhofoughtsohardto preservefreedomover70years ago.Perhapsthenshewillagree thatitisafterallworthyofthe nameSpitfire.
StephenHall
SPITFIRENONSENSE RegardingCarolynGraces'letter intheJanuaryeditionofLA, Iwouldliketopointoutthat sheisnottheonlypersonfed
upwiththeSpitfirenonsense surroundingthescalemodel. Bothmyselfandmanypilot friendsarefedupwiththehype aroundtheseaircraftThatthe LAAseemstobecaughtupinit surprisesmefurther.
Carolyniscorrect;theyarenot aSpitfireinanythingmorethan roughappearance,andthefact thatsomeonehasacquiredthe Supermarinetitleinnoway authenticatesthem.
Thepeoplewhobuildthem shouldbeproudoftheirwork andoftheaircrafttheyfly,butit's notaSpitfire.
Finally,andI'msureyoudidn't meanitso,yourfinalparagraph isimmenselycondescending.I, andI'msureCarolynGrace,will neverseeitanyotherway.
VicLong
INCOMPARABLESPITFIRE PILOTS! IfailtounderstandCarolyn Grace'sassertionthatthose fewpilotscurrentlyfortunate enoughtobeabletofly Spitfiresshouldbeconsidered incomparable,unlesssheis simplyreferringtotheirfinancial statusorgoodfortune!
I'msurethatmostoftheUK's flyingcommunitywouldgive anythingtohavethechanceto flyaSpitfireandplentyofus, giventhetraining,wouldbeable tosafelyflysoloinone.Sadly, wedon'thavethemeansto provemyassertion,thoughthe BoultbeeoperationatKidlington hasshownwhatispossiblewith appropriatefunds.
Ihavealwayshadgreatrespect andadmirationforCarolynfor thedignifiedwayinwhichshe rebuiltherlifeafterthetragic deathofherhusband.The fighterpilotsof7oyearsago,who savedthiscountryfrominvasion, arealsoquiterightlydeservingof ourgratitudeandconsideration. Idon'tconsider,however,that wealthorgoodfortuneperse shouldbringrespectForthe record,Ididn'tfindthearticlein LightAviation towhichCarolyn refersoffensive,butIthinkthe finalparagraphofherletter couldcertainlybeconsidered tobeso.
PaulBaker
COTTESMOREAND WITITRING AirTrafficControl(ATC)atRAF CottesmoreandWitteringhas undergoneanumberofchanges recently,pleasedisseminate. AftertheclosureofCottesmore airfield,attheendof2010, theCottesmoreMATZwas disestablishedandtheATZ suspended.Pilotsarestill callingupforMATZcrossings -however,nopermissionis
actuallyrequiredtoenter theairspace.
FromiDecember2011,due tomanning,thereluctant decisionhasbeenmadetoclose Witteringairfielduntilfurther notice.AlthoughtheMATZwill notbeactive,theATZremains andboththeFourCounties GlidingClubandsomeprivate aircraftmaystilloperateunder flyingclubrulesusingfrequency 125.525.WitteringApproach/ Towerfrequencieswillnotbe monitoredand,althoughsome personnelwillstillbeworkingin theTower,theswitchboardmay notbemanned.
TheLARSwillstillbe provided,bycontrollers workingoutofCottesmore Tower.Pilotswishingtotransit theWitteringATZ(orcloseto) shouldspeaktoCottesmore Zoneon130.2foraservice.The switchboardatCottesmore(Tel: 01572812241ext.7330)willbe mannedandallqueriesshould bedirectedthere.
Insummary,wearestillhere, butwearemuchdepleted.The trafficthroughtheEastMidlands doesrampupingoodweather, especiallywiththeWytontutors, andthereisnotalwaysthe manningtoopenupasecond LARSconsolesopleasebear withusifwesoundbusy!'
FltLtKateRead(ATCO) RAFCottesmore Tel:01572812241exhmo (viaBillFisher)
DH:STANDARDSMUSTN'T SUFFER
DeHavillandSupportLtdhas beenfightingarearguard actionwiththeCAAover Approvalsforthelasteight years,spendinganinordinate amountofunproductiveand unremuneratedtime,still withoutpositiveresult.Iam surethecompany'sdecisionto makethismajorchangehasas muchtodowithfrustrationas anythingelse.
PuttingsomeMothsonto aPermitsystemwasalmost inevitablefollowingtheCAA's acceptanceoftheStampeon eitheraPermitoraCofA.The ownePschoiceatleastallows theaeroplanesworkingas purveyorsofThalLessons tocontinue,albeitataprice althoughonstandardutilisation thatmayequatetoonly£2or E3perflyinghour.
Iamsurethemajorityof privateownersbasedinGBwill optforthePermitschemewhich allowsthemgreaterflexibility inmaintainingtheaeroplanes againstsomerestrictionsin theirusage.Forexample,thede HavillandMothClub'sannual CharityFlyingWeekendwhich
hasraisedover£15o,000for goodcausessince1990willbea casualtyandtheeventplanned for 2012 mayprovetobethelast OwnersofBritish-registered Mothaircraftbasedoutside GBwillhavethechoiceof remainingonaBritishCofA orelseconformtothelocallyadministeredsystemsof authorisation,whateverthey mightbe.
Someengineerswhorun businessesbasedalmost exclusivelyonmaintaining enginesandairframesfor AnnexIIaircraftmayseetheir customerbasesfragmentas theirbread-and-butterwork isdiverted.Whatmustnotbe allowedisanypossibilityofthe highstandardofengineand airframemaintenance,which hasbeencalledforundertheC ofAsystemandprovidedagainst expensivelygainedApprovals,to bediluted.
StuartMcKay THREE-PIECEWINGS Haveyouthoughtofanarticle forthemagazineregardingthe acceptablepremiumofextra weightagainstconveniencewith thethree-piecewing?
IhaveownedaTaylor Monoplaneforapproximately 28years.Ithasathree-piece wingandIcouldneverhave managedmovingorstoringthe aeroplaneifthewinghadbeen onepiece. Looldngbackoverseveral articlesinthevarious publicationsofourmagazine Iseetherearenumerous desirableaircraftoutthere forbuildingwherecomments havebeenmaderegarding theproblemsformanydueto thesizeoftheone-piecewing ortheextraweightburden shouldthewingbebuiltinthree sections.LookingatmyThylor Monoplane,Icouldnotimagine theextraweightbeingmore thantheequivalentof a.5 gallons offuel.Asmallpricetopayfor theconvenience.Pleasegivethis somethought!
RussellAbrahams
C-BEYW
FrancisDonaldsonreplies It'struethatformany homebuildersandaircraft owners,anaircrafttypewith two-orthree-piecewingsrather thanawingbuiltinasingleunit isagreatboonfromapractical pointofview.Theweightpenalty involvedisnothuge,ranging fromaroundtolbforatypical simplesingle-seaterto30lbforan aerobatictwo-seater.Wealways encouragedesignersofnew aircrafttypestomakeprovision forremovableandpreferably
multi-piecewings.However,it shouldbeborneinmindthat formanyexistingaircrafttypes thepayloadisalreadyrather marginalandevenaslight extraweightpenaltyhasa drasticeffectontheaircraft's utility.Unfortunately,thepilot populationisgettingheavier andmanyofourexisting designswereintroducedin anerawhenthestandard 'typical'pilotweightwasj7o1b. Nowadays,astandardpilot weightofigolbisusually usedwhichmeansthatwhen loadedtomaxgrossweight, today'sstandardweightowners oftheoldersingle-seaterdesigns arealreadyshortofthree gallonsoffuelcomparedtowhat theirdesignerintendedand two-seaterownersaretypically sixgallonsshort.Formany, theextraweightofatwo-or three-piecewingmayjust maketheaircrafttoorestricted inpayloadtobeworthwhile.
LOVEOFTHETIPSY Brian,letrnestartbysaying whatagreatjobyouaredoing withthemagazine,itisacredit totheLAA.IenjoyedSteve Slater'sarticleononeofmyalltime-favouriteaircraft,theTipsy Trainer.Asayoungengineer withFaireyAviation,G-AISCwas availabletotheFaireyFlying ClubattheprincelyrateofEiper hour.Whatadealitwas!And theaircraftcouldbeborrowed atnocostforanextendedtrip, justbuyone'sownfuel.Back thentheRoyalAeroClubusedto haveregularyearlyinvitations toafreeweekendinDeauville, soG-AISCmadeitthere,clearing
CustomsatLeTouquetand havingproblemsbacktracking thehardsurfacedrunwayinthe prevailingstrongbreeze-no brakesandatailskid.
Iwastoldthattheselastthree machineswerebuiltfortheRN. FlyingClub,butinthemid-5os, therewasasecondonebased atWhiteWalthamalongwith 'SCownedbytwoofmythen colleagues,RussellWrightand DickRichards,andIbelieve thataPFAgroupinWelshpool operatedone.
G-AISCwasfittedwithaFairey Reedmetalpropellerand cruisedat85mph,justsipping fuel.Atonetimeithadamuch coarserpitchpropandIwas tolditcoulddonomph,but gavepoorclimbperformance. OurlatePFAChiefEngineerFI V'Johnny'Walkeroncetoldme thatheflewtheaircraftwiththat proptopickuparatherheavy passengercarryingasuitcaseon hisknee,andtookratheralong timetogettot000ftl
Well,itisover50yearssinceI lastflewoneofthesedelightful aircraft,andIamhappytosee 'SAinsuchgoodhandsand stillairworthy.
FranlcParker(formerPFA Chairmannowflyinga GrummanAAyatHollywood/ NorthPerryinFlorida)
ANNEXII,WHYNOTRIF?
Ihavefollowedwithinterestthe variousthreadsthathavebeen rumblingaroundthewebsite, themagazineandelsewhere concerningthemigrationof AnnexIIaeroplanestoPermits toFly(PtF).Theprocessappears tobeamazinglyobscure,though
wedoknowthatEASAlumped themalltogetherandtoldthe NationalAviationAuthorities togoandlookafterthemon itsown.
Onewouldhavethought thattheimmediatereaction ofourCAAwouldhavebeen totransferthewholelotonto PtF,orattheveryleastofferthe ownersachoiceofCertificate ofAirworthiness(CofA)orPtF, aswiththerecentdeHavilland scenario.Sadlynotso.When askedastowhythiswasnot abouttohappen,Iwasadvised thatwewereboundbytreaty obligations(presumablyICAO) andwhereatypehadaType Certificateholderitcouldnever goontoaPtF.
Thisbegstheimmediate question,areweruledbyEASA ordowehaveseveralmasters? WhyistheCAAcitinghistoric treatiestowhichEASAmust surelynowbethesignatory onbehalfoftheEUwhenEASA itselfhasdecidedtheseAnnex Ilaircraftdonotmeetthe requirementsforanEASACoAor evenanEASACoA(Restricted)? Doesthetreatyreallydemand thattheseaeroplanesmust remainonaCofAtothe exclusionofallelse?What happensiftheseoldaircraftfall belowthestandardbecause manufacturersupportand/ ornewpartsarenolonger available?Musttheowners scrapthembecausenoother alternativeisavailable?DHSL hasreleaseditsaircraftfromthe constraintsofaCofAbecause partsavailabilityhasbeena seriousproblemeventheyas awell-appointedcompany
couldnotresolve,yetmanyof uswithAnnexIItypessufferthe sameproblem,andalsolack theexcellent'manufacturer' supportthatDEISLgaveits aircraftowners.
Afewyearsago,whenEASA startedflexingitsmuscles,it broughtinthenownotorious PartM.ftdidoffertworoutes toairworthiness:FandG. TheCAAdecidedthatwhile Glookedlikesomethingthey recognisedandcouldplaywith, F,whichwasdesignedforthe privateownerwhowishedto operateoutsideofa'Controlled Environment',wasbeyondthe pale.Consequentlyitputitabout thatanyonedaringtoattempt routeFwouldbepresented witheyewateringchargesand seriousbuggeraCion,thusFdied inthewater.
Wouldn'tithavebeensonice ifinstead,CAAhaddonesome reallateralthinkingandwe hadbeenpresentedwiththe followingscenario:RouteF,for thoseoperatingoutsidethe controlledenvironment,would beopentoAnnexIIaircraftonly andwouldrequirethatoncea yearanaircraftbesubmittedto anacceptableengineerorLAA inspectorforhimtorecommend theissueorrenewalofaPermit toFly.Theycouldevenhave calleditaCofAPartF.
When,afterthepromised review,thechapsatEASA suggestthattheproblemwith PartMisnothingwiththem butthatithasbeencausedby goldplatingfromtheNAAs, perhapsthatwouldbethe perfectsolution.
FrankRothera
WINDMILLSINTHEWINGS Thesedayseventhesimplestof microfightaircraftpossessanelectrical powersystem;evenenginesassmall as150cchavetinyelectricalalternators. Outsideofthevintagearena,wetakeitforgranted thateveryaircrafthasanelectricalsystemcapable ofstartingtheengineanddrivingtheradioand transponder.ModeStransponder?Noproblem, wehavethepower!Ouronlypredicamentmaybe forgettingtochargeorchangethebatteriesinour noise-cancelingheadsets.
Butitwasn'talwaysso.Vintagebuffscanlook backatatimewhentheirearlyGipsyMajor engineswerenotequippedwithanyformof electricalgenerationIexceptforthedualmagnetos ofcourse!.Althoughimmediatelypost-warmost airfieldcontrolwasstillconductedwithlight signalsusingAldislamps,theneedforradio communicationswiththeprimitiveATCunits graduallyevolvedandwealthierownersinstructed theirlocalmaintenanceorganisationstofitVHF radiotransmitter/receiversintotheirMothsand Austers.Butbeforethesemi-conductorrevolution arrived,aircraftradiosusedbulkythermionic valvestoamplifytheincomingsignal,anclthese valvesrequiredalotofelectricalpowertoheat theiranodesinordertomakethemwork.And thiswasadditionaltothepoweroutputneededto transmitareadablesignal.Today,theminiscule VHFsemi-conductorradiosaresosmalltheycan
befittedintoacornerofourinstrumentpaneland bepoweredbyasingle,Mouble-free,nvgel-cell sealedbatten/thatcankeepitgoingforuptothree monthsonasinglecharge!
Theoldlead-addbatterieswereheavyandhad tobemountedinasuitable'batterybox',which protectedandheldthebatterysecurewhile ventingitstoxiccontentstoatmosphere.Evenfullycharged,abrandnewbatten/wouldn'tkeepthe radiogoingforverylong-certainlynotforaflightto thecontinentandback.ThereforeanadditionalDC electricalsupplywasrequired.
Enteryourgranddad'soldAustinTenmotorcar. Itwasfittedwithabeltdriven'dynamo',which generatednzvDCandrechargedtheonboard leadaddcarbatteryviaavoltageregulator. Thesedynamoswerealmostirouble-freeand lastedforthelifeofthecar,soitwasn'tlongbefore aversionwasdevelopedforusebythelight aviationindustty.Buthowtodriveit?Therewas nowaythatthesmallaircraftenginesofthosedays couldbefittedvvithsomesortofdriveforadynamo withoutexhaustiveairworthinessapprovaland enormouscosts.Soamorepracticalsystemwas evolved:windmills.
Thedynamos,suitablystreamlinedina protectivecase,wereusuallymountedintheupper wing'sleading-edge,justoutboardofthewingroot, andasmallwooden!approximatelydiameter) propellerdrovethem.Someofthese'windmill'
propellerswereevenground-adjustableinpitch sothattheirRPMcouldbemodifiedtosuitthe aircraft'scruisingspeed.
VACChairmanSteveSlaterrecallsbeingtaken completelybysurprisebyoneofthesedevices. "IwasonceaskedtohelpmoveaDH85Leopard Moth,"hesaid."ItwasabreezydayandasI pushedonthefiftstruttwassuddenlyawareofa propellerwhizzingroundverynearmyhead!It wasonlythenthatIsawthiswinddrivengenerator mountedontheleading-edgeofthewing."
Withmodemavionimandlater,electricallyequippedGipsyengines,mostoftheseWindmills' havedisappearedfromthevintageaircraftscene butvisitorstotheSywellLAARallylastyearwere treatedarareglimpseofonefittedtoaChrislea AceG-AKUW.FormerVACChairman,CarlButler, recallsthattheywerealsofittedtosomewartime ArmyAusterstopowertheirvitalradioequipment HealsoknewofatleastoneTigerMoth,G-ALBD, ownedbytheArmstongWhitworthFlyingClub, whichhadawind-drivendynamomountedunder thefuselagebetweenitsundercantagelegswhichbringsusrightuptodate.
Therearestillmanyclassiclightaircraftthatwere builtbeforetheneedforradiocommunication becamenecessary.Theyincludethelikesofthe veteranPiperCubs,LuscornbesandAeroncas. RecognisingtheirneedforasupplyofDCelectridty topower,BasicAircraftProducts[nuolEvans,
OVERTHEHEDGE< Georgia,USA,hasdevelopedasmall,six-inch diameter,wind-driven,ducted-fan'turbine' designedtobefinedbetweentheundercaniage. DesignatedtheBPE-14TurboAlternator,itweighs onlysibandprovidessixampsat751<1cruising speed.Ithasabuilt-inregulatorandabatteryis notneeded(butisrecommended).
DannyRacionzer,oftheHighlands aIslands SnutisbasedatInverness.Hefittedhisii952 PiperPA-18SuperCub,G-AYPS,withaBPE,u4 TurboAltenatur,whichhassoIndentoutput topowerhisnewModeStransponderand radio.Asdescribedinarecent'OvertheHedge', togetherwithhisSuperCub'sadditionalfuel tank,DannywasabletoflyfromInverness direct-toBreighton,hisradioandModeS allowinghimtoobtainclearancesthrough controlledairspace."Thealternatorworked extremelywell,"reportedDanny.
TheTurboAlternatorisaveryeffident ducted-fandesignbutitisstilldrivenbythe airflow,hencetireoldwindmillconceptliveson iii anewguise.Itishelpingpilotsofvintage aircrafttocopewiththeevergrowingAir TrafficControldemaridsoftoday.
(TheTurboAlternatorisavailable (romAirworldUKthroughitswebsite shopnirworlthilcann-Ed.)
LUCKYSHOES Footwearplaysabigpartinoursport. Wearingthewrongpairofshoes Call get yourfeettangledupwiththerudderpedals andbrakeswithunforeseenconsequences, andladies'stilettoscanpuncture 22SWG aluminiumsheetwithease.Butwesoonfind theidealfootwearthatsuitsus,ouraircraftand theairfieldswevisitAndthenwetendtokeep themaspartofourflyingkit
Itisnosecretthatmanywartimeaircrews were(OMsuperstitiousregardingtheirflying bootsandalwaysensuredthattheydressedin afixedsequencesoasnottotemptfate.Nothing wrongwithsuperstition ill theflyinggame.Despite allofourprecautionsandsafetydriIlsanelement ofluckisalwayspresentAfterall,ifahighlystressedpieceofmetaliiiourengineisgoingto sufferfrommetalfatigueitismudibetterthatit happensduringthepre-take-offpowercheckthan halfwayacrosstheChannel.Itisalwaysgoodto haveladyluckonourside,
Comfortablefootwearisalsobenefidaltoone's enjoymentoffly-insandrallies.Walkingmany happymilesovernewly-mownturfalonglines ofattractiveairuaftcanbeamostrewarding experience.HobblMgalonginafashionablysaran butuncomfortablepairofbootsisapainfuloption andnottoberecommended,
Dew-ladengrasscanalsorenderyourfeet soakingwetinnotimeatallbutonwarm summerdaysshoesandsockscanbedispensed withandhungonthefrontoftheaeroplaneto dry,thevelvetyturfbeingverykindtotiredfeet AtarecentLAASywellRally,membersofthe HighlandElIslandStruttookadvantageofthehot sunshinetodrytrainersandsocksonMelvaig Mackenzie'sbeautifullymaintainedclassicPiper L-18SuperCub,&MET,thoughI'mnotsosure thewhitetrainersanddarkgreysocksadded significantlytotheCub'sglossyyellowandblack colourscheme.
Onamoreenigmatictheme,wenoteda comfortable-loolengpairofsecond-hand,size eleven,blackshoesforsaleintheCAAFleaMarket. Surrounded,astheywere,byafuelcock,aircraft battery,starter-motorandthrottlecables,were theyusedforMck-startringengines?Averygood buyatjustLir•
PAULKIRKHAM-WORKEDONHISESCAPADEWITHACASTONONELEG-HISOWNI We'vebeenluckyenoughtobeabletofollow thebuildofBenChester-Master'sV6-powered T-51in'ProjectNews'overthelasttwoyears and,thismonth,itappearsinourClearedto FlylistTheaircraftispaintedinthecolours ofaP-5111ofthe343rdFighterSquadronbased atRAFWormingfordinEssex.Theoriginal wasflownbyMajorEdwardGillerandnamed theMillieGafterhiswife,Mildred(itis sometimesmistakenlyidentifiedas'MillieIF, duetothefont).In1446,theoriginalMillie G (oroneofthem)wassoldtoSwedenandfrom
thereendedupintheDominicanRepublic' whereitcontinuedtoserveforalmost30 years.Itnowsits,ontopofapole,asagate guardianattheSanIsidroAirForcebase. MajorCillerwentontocommandthe squadron,eventuallyflying115combat missionsandheiscreditedwiththreeenemy aircraftdestroyed,includinganMethzjet fighter.Hismilitarydecorationsandawards includetheSilverStar,LegionofMeritwith oakleafcluster,DistinguishedFlyingCross withoakleafcluster,AirMedalwith17oak
leafclusters,PurpleHeart,DistinguishedUnit CitationEmblemandtheCroixdeGuerre.He continuedinairforceserviceafterthewar reachingtherankofMajorGeneralbefore retiringintheearly1970s.Iunderstandthat heandMildredarestillaliveandwell,and arenowlivinginAlbuquerque,NewMexico. IhopethattheygettoseethenewMillieG. Ifyou'dliketosharenewsofyourproject thenpleaseemailmeatprojectnews@laaarchive.org.ukorwritetomeat 9 Tunstall Green,Tunstall,SuffolkIP=if.
CLEAREDTIFLY Aterrificmixofoldandnewthismonthwith theCassultRacerstartingusoffwithadesign thatdatesbackhoyears,eventhoughthis particularonewasregisteredusanewproject inMayzoto.ThenwehavetwoVIAVIIfighter inspirednewbuilds-aTglMustanganda Mk26Spitfire.Thenthenew-anRV-7anda SporiCruiser-G-TDKI,whichweKistsawtaking shapeinthesepagesinOleSlangierof2010 titularthekeeneyeofveteranpilotDanKendall. Spitfire&PMispaintedinthecoloursala 43 Salim/ranMk. /A(R/C855KT-Ct;theWCrani('
serviceofitslookafikeincludedspellsbasedin bothCasablancaandAustria.
>G-CGSUCASSUTTRACERHEM034-14983 06h2/2on
Howell,•oHiattStreet,Kinver,Stourbridge DT7GER
>G-TDMCZAWSPORTCRUISER338-14976 01/1212ou.
DRKendall,itTitheBarnClose,St.Albans ALI240
G-TSIMTITANT-51.MUSTANG355-14964 08/12/2on
fChester-Master,MorcasCourt,Meccas, tlei-Mord11R2oLH
>G-FOZYVAN'SRV-7323 -1450 20/1212011
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>G-PIXYSPITFIREMK26324 -1447723/12/2on Collenette,BoldreLaneCottage,RoldreLane, &shire,Li/outman)50418PD
NEWPROJECTS Thelistofnewprojects,whichcoversthe ChristmasperiodOesMenai,sitsatavery respectabletotaloffiveandwhatcimixilis; there's!gallysaalethingforjustaboutevery tasteandbudget.
PAULKIRKHAM'SREALITYESCAPADE (345-14824) C-DRPIC QUITE/UVESCAPADE
AsIwritethisprojectreportIamwaiting forthepaperworktoarrivefromtheLAA informingmethatitisclearedtofly,although Isuspectbythetimeyoureadthisitwillhave haditsmaidenflightatDunsfoldaerodrome. Ithastakenjustoverthreeyearsfromstartto finish,workingmostlyatweekends,evenings andthefewoddweeks.Tobehonest,the dreamofbuildingmyownaeroplanebegan morethan30yearsagowhen,asayoung lad,havingbuiltmanybalsawoodmodels fromfreeflight,tocontrollineandthenradio control,Imadeapromisetobuilda'real' aircraft,onethatIcouldsitinandflymyself. Iamsurethissentimentringstruewithmany otherpilotswhohavebuilttheirownaircraft
AboutfiveyearsagoIbegantolookaround toseewhattypesofaircraftwereavailable askitsand,moreimportantly,layingthe groundworktoavoidpossibledivorce.AsI liveintheSouth-East,mymainconcernwas thecostofhangarage,whichisveryexpensive inthisneckofthewoods,soiteitherhadto liveoutsideorbetraileredinordertostoreit elsewhere.Severalaircrafttypeswerelooked atandintheendIsettledfortheEscapade. Thewingsfold,itiseasilytransportableand canbestoredundercoverinarelativelysmall space,plusitlooksniceandisaveryversatile aircraftSobackinthespringof2008Ivisited RealityAircraft,theninAmesbury,and handedmydepositovertoTerryFrancis.Over thenextthreemonths,whilewaitingforthe
kittoarrive,Isetaboutfindinganinspector andturningmysinglegarageintoaworkshop. Thisrequiredatemporaryextensiontobe builtbyufilisingthegaragedoorstoprovide anextra31/2feetinlengthtothegarage.Terry deliveredthefuselagekitinJuly,justbefore wewereabouttogoonourfamilyholiday, whichwasveryfrustratingasIwasitching tostartthebuildbutwouldhavetowait untilourreturn.
AtthattimeIthoughtIwouldhavethe aircraftbuiltinayear-ohhowwrongIwas! Indeed,afterbeingrepeatedlyasked,"When willitfly?"Isoongaveuponspeculatinga completiondate,havingmissedseveral,and mystandardresponseeventuallybecame, "Whenit'sready."
Myeverwiseinspector,IanDaniels, warnedmeittakestwice,ifnotthreetimes, aslongasyouthink.IshouldaddthatIan wasextremelyhelpfulthroughoutthebuild process.Thefactthatheonlylivedfourmiles frommyhomeandwasthereforeeasilyon handtoprovideadvice,checkandsignoffthe variousstagesofthebuildwhenneededwasa bigadvantage.
Thebuildbeganwiththefuselageandby theendof2009ithadbeen'trial'assembled, covered,paintedandthetaskofinstallingthe instruments,avionicsandelectricalsystems hadbegun.Moreover,duringthesummer of2009thewingkitwasdeliveredandby theendoftheyeartheytoowerereadyfor
covering.Spacewasnowapremiuminthe garagesoIdecidedtohangthewingsup andfinishinstallingtheelectricalsystems andavionics,andtheninstalltheengine andfuelsystemoverthewinterof213139-2010. Bythespringofzolo,thefuselagecouldbe traileredtoitsnewhome,acustom-made shelterwhichIhadbuiltatalocalfarmtwo milesaway.Thisliberatedenoughspaceto completethecoveringofthewingsandallthe controlsurfacesduringthespringofzmo.
Summerarrivedandthewingsandcontrol surfaceswereshippedofftothepaintshop andworkreturnedtothefuselage,focusing onthedoors,windshield,enginecowlings andturtledeck.Asmybuildwasoneofthe firstfewEscapadestohavetheillagoiengine, thecowlingshadtobeextensivelymodified toallowroomforthecylinderheadrocker covers,givingthecowlingitsdistinctiveteardroppowerbulgeoneitherside.Eventually thewingsreturnedfromthepaintshopandso beganthefinalassemblyoffittingthewings tothefuselagealongwithinstallationofthe controlsurfacesandallthecables.Bytheend of 2010,1 hadwhatlookedlikeanaeroplane andcouldbegintoseetheendinsightwitha possiblefirstflightinthefirsthalfof 2011.
However,itwasnottobe.Disasterstruck inearlyFebruarywhenIwasinvolvedin aroadtrafficaccident,sufferingabroken legandbeingputoutofaction.ByMay,the aeroplanehadspentthebestpartoffive monthsinitsshelterdownatthefarmwith nofurtherworkundertaken.ThoughIwas stillunabletodrive,mylegwasbynowina removablecastsoIwasabletopersuademy wifetodropmedownatthefarmfortheday duringtheweekendswithmytools,achair, somefoodandwaterandamobilephonejustincase.Thisenabledmetodosomework ontheaircraftandgetitreadyfortheinitial engineruns.AtleastIwashappyandnot goingstircrazy.ByJuly,Iwaseventuallyina positiontofireuptheengineandcheckthat everythingworkedasitshould.
Thevinyltrim-lineswereappliedandin September1traileredtheaircraftuptothe LAARallyatSywell,whereitwasawarded theAlbertCodlingtrophyfor'Bestpart-built kitaircraftzon'.Aftertherally,thelastfew jobswerecompleted,suchasfinishingthe enginecoolingbaffleplatesandinstallingthe oilcooler.Thentheallimportantfuelflow checks,compassswing,moreengineruns, taxytrialsandthefinalinspectionbefore sendingoffthepaperworkinNovember.
HasitallbeenworthitandwouldIdoit again?Definitely,althoughtowardstheend, thestrainwasbeginningtoshowontherestof thefamilyanditwassuggestedthatperhapsI shouldn'tbuildanotherforatleasttenyears!
PITTSMODEL1234945116 2311212011
PBorchert,StEdiths,3KingsburySquare, Wilton,WiltsSP2oBA WHITTAKERMW6164 -1511520/n/20n 11Dunning,GrangeFarm,Whixley,York Y0268AY EUROPA2474911315/12/2011
SVestuti,Lamneth,airway,Kidwelly,Corms SAI7411E PIONEER 400364-1511212/12/2011
ARLloyd,OrlingboryHoldFarm,Kettering Road,NrHannington,NorthantsNN69TA GROPPOTRAIL372- 151209/12/aon
Name&addressheldbyLAAEngineering
>PROJECTNEWS Imustsayabigthankyoutoallmyfamily andfriends,inparticularmywife,Fiona, forbeingsounderstandingandsupportive throughoutthebuildprocess.Ofcoursethe kids,Charlotteandlain,can'tgowithouta mention,fornotonlydidtheyhelpmewith thebuildbuttheychosethecolourandthe trimscheme.LastbutbynomeansleastI wouldliketothankmyinspectorIanDaniels, AndyPhilipsatAndairforhishelpwiththe
fuelsystem,MarkJonesatGalaxyMicrolights whodidafantasticpaintjobandmost importantlyTerryFrancisatRealityAircraft whowasalwaysathandtoanswerany questionsduringthebuild.
Sonowallthat'slefttodoisflyitand havefun.Butwhoshallsitintheco-pilot's seat?Thekidsarealreadyarguing.Perhaps forsomepeaceandquietIshouldbuild afour-seater.
ROBINMORTON'SFOKKEREMDECICERSSDRG-CSAL FIRSTFLIGHTANDMEMORIESOFANOLDFRIEND
YoucanfindavideoofRobinMorton'sfirst EindeckerflightintheMagazinesectionofthe LAAwebsite wwwfaa.uk.com-so far,no-one hasanystillsofitflying,onlyvideos-such isprogress.ThefilmingiscourtesyofShaun Davis,withGeorgeSimoniactingasground supportandRobinslippingthesurlybonds ofearth.Thefilmwaseditedanduploaded byMikeOakley.Unexpectedly,thougha microlight,allsalesoftheEindeckersofar havebeentoLAAmembers.
Manyyearsago(in1985tobeexact) RobincompletedandflewaHoveyWhingDingIIthroughthePFA(ProjectNo.116-10706,
G-MBAB)andthisaircrafttypenowcomes undertheDeregulatedClassrules.Hehas justsoldasetofplanstoanLAAmember inKent,somaybeanotheronecouldtake totheskiesinayearortwo.GrassStrip Aviationisnowmarketingtheplansto includeallthemodsnecessarytobringthe aircraftuptoaminimumSection'S'standard ifanyoneisinterested,andtheplanswill shortlygoontoitswebsite www.grass-strip-aviation.com
TheoriginaliswithMartinAubreyinhis museuminHerefordshireandhasn'tflown forsomeyears.
STOPPRESS!ThefollowingreceivedbyFrancis DonaldsonfromPauljustbeforepublication afterWillGreenwoodcarriedoutasuccessful firstflightonióthJanuary.
'Itflew!WhatafantasticdayItwaslikea homesickangel.Willwantstodomoreofthe testflyingtomorrowandwillstartcollating someperformancefigures.Asfortoday,itflew forr5hrandmadesevenlandings.'
Greatnews!
ThosefortunateenoughtobeatGoodwood onSaturday9Decembermaywellhave witnessedKlemmLa5,G-AAUP,flyingforthe firsttimesincethemid-198os.Shewasbuiltin 1929withaSalmsonAD9radialandhasbeena UKresidenteversince.Twosortieswereflown byCharlieFluke,withtheradio-lessKlemm havingan1.4Cubaschaperone.
PainstakinglyrestoredbyownerjanCooper andherteamattheNewburyAeroplane Company,includingthelateJohnGreenland whodidmuchofthework,GAM?hadbeen atGoodwoodsincebeingtraileredtherefor theFreddieMarchSpiritofAviationevent,part oftheGoodwoodFestivalofSpeed.
CelebratorychampersforWillandPaul
"WhyaZenair?"afriendasked,andI hadtothinkforawhiletorememberthe reasoningbehindmychoice.First,Ineeded side-by-sideseatingasmylastAeroprakt Azor)aeroplane'standemarrangementand lackofbagspacedidnotprovesogoodon longjourneys.Andsecond,lamnotafanof compositework,allthatsticky,itchystuff andmuchmoredemandingontheworkshop facilitytoo.IthoughttheSportCruiserlooked apossibilitybutafterfindingouttheprice, whichhadstartedataroundEzgkmark,had goneuptoaunaffordableamount,thatwas ruledoutNexttheZenaircameup,950/0a SportCruiserinmostwaysexceptlooksbut atnearlyathirdoftheprice,andasIactually wantedtobuildanaeroplaneratherthan bolttogetheralreadycompletedassemblies, itfittedthebillperfectly.Theonlysmall disadvantageistheslightlynarrowercabin butthelatestXLismorethanbigenough-you cangettwoAmericansinitafterall!
Theactualbuildwasprettystraightforward asIcouldincorporatetheLAAmandatow mods,likethemassbalancedailerons,etc, asIbuiltThekitsnowcomewithalltherivet positionspre-punchedoutbyCNC,butyou dothenhavetostepdrilltothecorrectsize, whichisfineasitgivesyoualittleadjustment togetthingsperfectlyaligned.Allofthe constructionwasdoneinasingle-cargarage andIfoundthemetalworkquitepleasurable andtherapeutichutyouwillgetstrong forearmsmovingaIItheclecosaround.For me,thebiggestchallengewasgettingaway withstoringthewingsinourTVroomfori8 months..,thatandetchprimingeverythingas Iwentalong.Theonlyparttotrymypatience
wasthecanopy;ittookagestodoandfwas foreverwheelingthefuselageinandoutofthe garagebutnow,havingflownit,Icansaythat itreallywasworththeefforttogetright.
Thefinishedairframewasfullyriggedand thendisassembledbeforepaintingatEast ofEnglandSailplanesbyRichardKilham, whodidagreatjobwithoutaddingtoomuch weight.FinalassemblywasdoneatLeicester IEGBG)withalltheflighttestingcompleted intwodays.
'VZhasallthefactoryoptionssuchas wing-lockers,lights,wheelfairings,big tanks(mit),twincontrolsticks,andelectric aileronandelevatortrims.Ihavealsoadded aGrovelightweightundercarriagebowthat savedtslbandhelpedgettheCofGforward. ThemotorisamohpRotaxwhichspinsa WoodcompSR3ciooVPprop.Igavemuch thoughttothepanelandwentintheendfora mixofDynonDioofortheflightinstruments, analogueengineinstrumentsalongwitha
coupleofMGLonesforMAP/RPMandaquad thermocouplereadingonefortheCHTs.I foundthisthemostcosteffectiveandeasiest ontheeyeforscanninginflight.AGarmin GPS3islinkedtotheDynondisplay.ABendix KingimtandTrigTrIzitopitalloff.
IhavetothanktheagentGaryJohnsonat JMSAeroforputtingupwithsillyquestions alongwithLAAEngineeringforsortingout thepastXLissues.Gary,whowastheproject inspectorandthetestpilot,alsomadenice commentsaboutthebuildquality!Itwas reassuringthat'VZflewstraightoffthebuild withnoissuestocorrect.'VZwasakitfrom theZenithAircraftCompanyintheUSAandas itisthefirstregisteredhere(asopposedtoa CZAWkit)FrancisDonaldsonflewittoconfirm thehandlingandstabilitycharacteristics withthefullPermitlandingthreeyearsanda monthfromthearrivalofthekitInowhavea supercross-countrycruiserthatdoeslogktat 4,7oorpmand23.5inMap.
TheBMAAmicrolightversionoftheEurofox hasnowcompleteditscomprehensive spinningscheduleandpassedwithflying colours.Ithasfinishedalltheairtestsand easilypassedtheCAAnoisetestschedule, soitisfullyapprovedandisawaitingitsfull Permitissue.
ItismuchthesamefortheLAA560kg version.TwoLAAEurofoxeshavebeensold togliderclubsandthereareseveralothers lookingforwardtodemonstrations.The CMisduetosignofftheglidertowing elementimminently.
KEVINDIM'SZENAIRZODIAC6mM(ZACkit)1.1111162.8-14990.G-CGVZ
JODELDR1 REIN NATE MicrolightdesignerBillBrooks talksusthroughhisrebuild, witha,g1-Oenengin%I• •
IacquiredmyjodelDRio5oparts inSeptember2010.Thewing camefromG-AWEN,damaged -probablyinagroundloop sometimearound1985.Theportwingwas completelybrokenaboutonemetreoutboard oftheundercarriagepickup.Theportwingtip anddamagedtailplanestructurecamefrom another,unidentified,Jodel,andthebare fuselageshellfromG-AWWO,repairedafter hittinganearthbankinabout2004. Themasterplanwastocollectormakeall thenecessaryremainingpartsandtopowerit withawohpRotax912Sratherthanitsusual Continental0-200.BillSherlock,whousedto betheMDatPegasusMicrolightAircmft„had ownedaJodelDRiooA{theforerunnertothe DRio5o)whichIthoughtwasdelightfulonthe coupleofoccasionswhenIflewit.He'dthought ofpoweringthatwiththe9125butchoseto
overhaulhis0-200,astheaircraftwasthenon aCofAandthemodificationapprovalprocess waslookinglongandexpensive.
Thiswasallinthebackofmymindduring constructionofanine-metre-long,detached garage/workshopduring2005-7;theJodel's spanis8.75m.Havingtransportedmyprizebad< home,Isetaboutobtainingmaterialsandwent onaday'sLAAwoodworldngcourse(thanks Dudley).Whilewaitingformaterialsandplans, IdesignedanenginemountLAAmember FelipeVizoso,whonowownsBill'soldaircraft hadthesameRotaxideaforhisrebuild.Aftera falsestart,hedecidedtocollaboratewithmein gettingapairofmountsmade.
Iworkedouthowfaytheenginewould havetomoveforwardstocompensateforthe reducedweightoftheRotax(about150mm)and submittedmydesigntoLAAEngineeringusing theCS-VLAdesigncode.AfterresoMngafew
issues,JohnTempestdeclaredhewashappywith it.ThemountusestheRotaxringmountandLord J-36o8-1rubbermountsandismadefrom3/4in Mswg4130tube.CETEngineeringhasnowmade them,andaverynicejobtheymadetoo.
PhilHall,theprojecrsinspector,looked aroundmyacquisitionandworkshop,sucked throughhisteethabitandaskedsomepertinent questions.Hegraduallycamearoundtotheidea thatthisassemblageofpieceshadaflyingfuture andwesetoutsomeinspectionstages,including inspectionofthesparboomscarfedjointsbefore gluingandageneralinspectionofthespar beforetheplyboxwasclosed.
Ibeganbyproducingthejigforthewingribs tromMDF;Ihadapatternribsodidnotneed toproducetheNAGA23012profflefrom co-ordinates.Icutoutplywasherswithahole sawtomakeeccentricclampsandmadea soakingtankfromanolddrainpipefor CUrVing
Firstbuildtheworkshop!Tailplaneabouttobe re-skinned,interiorisvarnished
theribbooms.Thereareurcomponentsand atiointsineachrib.Mostofthiswasdone inJanuaryson,requitingtheribjigtocome indomstoallowtheAeroduxtocure.Iused Aerodux(nowmadebyPrefererresorcinol adhesivebecauseitistriedandtested.fis amazingstainingpropertiesmakeitvery obviouswhereglueisandisnot,compared tothetranslucentAerate.Ifstartingagain,I thinkI'duseanepoxy,whichistougherthan theAeroduxandwillalsostilldevelopgood strengtheveniftherearegaps;withAerodux, thefit-upofpartshastobeaccurate.Theonly downsideofepoxyIcanthinkofispossibleloss ofstrengthwithadark-coveredstructureinthe sun.Iuseasmalldigitalkitchenbalancetomix Aeroduxbatchesdowntoisgrandhavemade testpiecesforeachbatchfromsprucescraps, usingTechnorastripsofreinforcedtransparent sailclothtosettheassemblystaplesinto.When
FelloVizoso'sORto0A,myinspitathmamt SigItconYerfatotaktpower
(Photo:ParthandlO RibJigcanbesetupindoorstoallowthe Aeroduxtocure
theadhesivehasset,thestaplescanberapidly pulledoutbypullingthesailclothstripoff-those thatremainwithonelegstillincansimplybe pulledoffwithpliers.
BUYINGTHELAMBORGHINI Istartedrepairingthemainsparbooms accordingtoanLAAapprovedrepairscheme (neverstartwithoutthis!)preparingtheria5scarf jointsusingajigandarouter...andsoonfinding thattherouteronlyworkswelloneway,i.e. brushingdownonthegrainratherthanliftingit up.Intheend,Imadeajigforaportablecircular sawwhichproducedgoodresultsineither direction.Imadefurtherligstocuttheangled aileronandelevatorribsaccurately,usingafine tootheddovetailsaw.Makingjigsandusing shamtoolsaidsaccuracyandsavestimeand scrap.Laserlevelsaregreatforaligningspar boomsandribs.
Ithinkarepairprojectofthissortismore difficultthanbuildingfromscratch.Care, precisionandpatiencearecertainlyneeded. Asfaraspossible,Ikepttheoriginalsparbox intactwhenIpreparedeachsparboomscarfso thattherepairwouldbeself-aligning.WhenI hadproducedthenewsparboomextensions andgluedthemallinplace,Istrippedbackthe plyandbegantopreparethescarfjointsonit.I boughtanexcellent75rnmLamborghinisander, whichhasatightradiusonthenose-roller, enablingaccessintotnckycorners.Mywife, Judy,wasslighdyaghastwhenItoldherI'd boughtaLamborghindShehasstartedherown podiatrybusiness,whichhasbeenveryusefulin providingdustmasks,rubbergloves,allsortsof nailfilesanddiamondrotaryburs,whichwork verywellonspruce. Imadeupakindofoperatingtabletoalign thewingtipwiththemainsparconrectly
>PROJECTNEWSSPECIAL whenassemblingthedihedraljointandIdid remembertoslidealltheribsalongthespar first!Thepadelsparisstraightinboardbuthas afiendishtwistatthetips.Thefrontandrear sparfacesareverticalandthetopandbottom facesslope.
Atacursoryglance,onemightexpectthelodel inboardpanelstobeuntwisted.Infactthe trailing-edgeDses3ommfromroottotip.Iglued alltheribnosesontothesparandthen,toget thecorrecttwisthadtoscarfjointthetopspar boomsofthethreemostoutboardribstoget thetwistrightIlinedalltheribsupwithalaser, comparingthenewwingwiththeundamaged starboardsideforsymmetry.Lookingclosely atthestarboardribs,Ifoundsomeofthemhad similarjointsintoo.ThenImadeupallthe paddngpiecesbetweenthesparboxandrib booms,Theremustbehundredsofcomponents inaJade]wing.
Thezommximmsteeltubefortheairbrakes provedveryhardtoget,soI'veused1/4"xallswg irgo,whichhasidenticaltorsionstrengthand stiffnessataslightweightpenalty.Ifitted[GUS polymerbusheswherethetubeusedtorun straightintheribplyblocks,maldngsleeves byboringoutsectionsofold 20111M tubeto allowclampingoftheairbrakeribsand operatinghorn.
Astimehasgoneon,I'vemanagedtoacquire mostofthemajorparts.Wehadalongweekend triptoLinco]nshirewhereIboughtacanopy framejigfromRichardYates,whoalsobygood fortunehadmostofthemetalpartsforthe airframeincludingjoysticks,fueltanks,seats andmanyotherassortedwidgets.Theseare nowallcleanedupandpowder-coated.Ifound rudderpedals,wheelsandbrakesinFrance, andboughtsomenewlymadeundercarriage legsfromPeterThomas.AndIfoundatailwheel andrudderatSkycraft.
IalsoacquiredaRotaxquSwithonly goohoursonit,plusacompletesetofMGL Voyagerinstrumentsandbackupmechanical instnnnents.I'malsogoingtofitavacuumoperatedturnindicatorfromanoldRallyeI usedtofly.Mycowlingswillbebasedonanold Eurostarone.
Thewingiscompletedandreadyfor inspectionandvarnishing,andtheairbrakes areinstalledandworking.Irepairedoneaileron andmadetheotherfromscratch.Currently,I'm makingasetofelevators,whichwillcomplete theairframestructure.ThenI'lltakethewingto workwhereIhavemorespaceforcovering,and bringthefuselagebackhomeforpowerplant installation,instruments,controlsruns,etc.So, thingsareprogressingandI'mprobablyabout ayearawayfromcompletion.Inthemeantime, I'menjoyingitdespiteworkingonmicrolight aircraftallday.Ithinkit'sbecauseit'sathome, it'sbuiltinwoodandthere'snotthesame commercialpressureasthereisatwork.
DreamsofflyingtoFrance enfamine keep megoing.AsDudleysays,youhavetoenjoythe processforitsownsakeandbecauseyoucan buildsomethingtoyourownrequirements, otherwiseit'sprobablycheaperandquicker tobuyone.
Inmycase,IwillendupwithaOust! affordabledassicaeroplanewhichhasbeen completelyrebuilt,withthebenefitofa state-of-the-artlightweightpowerplantand instruments.It'salsoteachingmequitealot abouteconomyofdesign,wherethere'sjust enoughofeverythingandeverythingdoes severaljobs.ThenImaybebetterplacedformy ownefforts.ThecostisaboutElsk,sofar.•
EASA'splansforflightcrew licensinghavebeenbubbling awayinthebackgroundfor severalyearsbutwiththenew regulationscominginthisyearithasgotto thestagewhereweneedtositupandtake notice.ManythingsfromEASAcanseemto beverycomplicatedandwithflyinglicences itisevenmoresobecausetherealready seemstobemorethanenoughdifferent typesoflicencetogoaround,without addingfurthercomplication.However, youcannotignorethesituationanylonger, sothisarticlesetsouttoexplainthepilot licensingoptionsforthegreatmajorityof
LAAmembers.Wehaveheldoffpublishing anythingearlierbecause,believeitornot, untilnowEASAhadn'tissuedadefinitiveset ofrules-finallyitnow(almost)has.Dueto thesedelayswithEASA,theCAAtoohassome tidyinguptodooverthecomingweeks. Therewillinevitablybethosethatfall outsidethemainbodyofinformation containedherein,andtothemIapologise inadvance,buttoincludeeverypossible scenariowillsimplycomplicatematters andtakeupspacewhichunfortunatelywe donothave.Ihaveincludedreferencesto relevantCMandEASAdocumentationwhere informationcanbefound.
ItshouldbenotedthatalthoughtheEASA LicensingRegulationscomeintoforceon8 April2012, theUKCMwillnotbeginissuing EASAlicencesuntiliJuly2012.
EASAANDANNEXII
OneoftheftindamentalsoftheEASAPilot Licensingregulationiswhethertheaircraft tobeflownisanEASAaircraftoranAnnexII aircraft
Thereisasimplisticviewthatanyaircraft thathasaPermitisanAnnexIIaircraftandso isoutsideEASArules.Thisisnotalwaystrue, becausesomeorphanaircraftandsomenew lightaircrafthaveanEASAPermittoFly.Itis
safetosaythatallamateur-builtaircraftand allmicrolightsareAnnexII.Butifyouintend toflyanyfactory-builtaircraft,including warbirds,youshouldcheck.Somewillhave nationalcertificates(PiForCofA)andsome willhaveEASAPIPorCofA.Youcanlookatthe certificatefortheindividualaircraft-ifitisan EASAformthenitisnotAnnexII.Alternatively youcanGoogleG-INFO(orputG-INFOintothe searchboxat www.caa.co.uk)and thatwill takeyoutotheCMaircraftdatabasewhere youcanputintheaircraft'sregistrationand itwillsayiftheaircrafthasanEASACofAor anEASAPtEAlternadvely CAP 747 (alsoon theCAAwebsite)hasatableofaircrafttypes
marked'E'forEASA,or'A'forAnnexII-(the tabledoesnotlistamateurbuiltormicrolight aircrafttypes).
Asageneralnue,ifyouarerentingfrom anon-specialistflyingclubitislikelytobe runningEASAaircraft-Cessna15o/152/172/182, PiperPA-28,PA-38,RobinDRzioo,Cirrus,etc. OK,that'sabriefexplanationfromwhich youcandecidewhetheryouarecurrently flyingEASAornon-EASAaircraftand,froma pilotlicensingperspective,ifyouareflying EASAaircraftyouwill,eventually,needtoget anEASAlicence,knownasaPartFCLlicence. Andyouwillhaveachoiceofeitherthe 'traditional'licencethatisonaparwithour UKCAAorJARPPEhenceforthcalledanEASA PPEortheequivalentofourNationalPrivate PilotsLicenceINPPL),henceforthcalledthe LightAircraftPilotsLicence(LAPL).Butdonot panic,youdonothavetodoanythingright now,thereisatransitionperiodofatleasttwo years,orthreeyearsifyouonlywanttofly aircraftthatarewithinthescopeoftheLAPLupto2,000kg,nomorethanfourPOB,private flightsonly.
IfyouarenotintendingtoeverflyEASA aircraftthenyouwillnotneedtogeteither theEASAPPLortheLAPL.Thatisarather simplisticexplanationthough,soread ontoseenotonlywhatyourmostbasic requirementsare,butwhatmaybestserve yourpurposesintheyearsahead.
Pleasenotethattheformalprocessfor agreeinglicencefeeshasnotbeencompleted bytheCAA,solicencefeesmentionedinthis articlehaveyettobeconfirmed.
YOUHAVEANOLDSTYLEUKPPL (PRE-JAR) Asmentionedabove,ifyouareonlyflying non-EASAaircraftthenthislicencewill continuetobevalid(subjecttotheusual requirements)intothefuture.Youwillalso bepermittedtoflyEASAaircraftduringthe transitionperiodasthenewlicencesare broughtin,whichisupuntil7April2014or, iftheEASAaircraftfallswithintheLAPL categolyofbeingunder2,000kgmtom,with maximumfouroccupantsandflownfor privatepurposesonly,7April2015.
Posttheappropriatetransitiondate,you willneedtoobtainanEASAlicenceifyou wishtocontinuetoflyEASAaswellasAnnex IIaircraftTherewassometalkintheearly daysthatUKPPLholderswouldhavetogeta JARlicencebeforetheycouldobtainanEASA licencebutthisisdefinitelynotthecase;it ispossibletoobtaineitheranEASAPPLora LAPLdirectlyfromaUKPPL.
FortheEASAPPLlicencethatwillmeanyou mustbeabletoshowyouhaveaminimum70 hoursonaeroplanesandcandemonstratethe useofradionavigationaids.Exactlyhowthe latteristobecarriedouthasyettobedefined. Thenon-expiringEASAPPLwillbeavailable fromtheCAAandconversionisexpectedto cost£65(TBC).
ShouldyoudecidetoobtainaLAPLrather thananEASAPPL,youwillofcoursebe restrictedtoaircraftwitha2,000kgmtom, maxfouroccupantsandprivateuseonly, butformanyofusthatisnotaproblem.The principaladvantage,however,isthatthe LAPLisineffectaEurope-wideNPPLwitha medicalrequirementalongthelinesof(but notidenticalto)thecurrentUKNPPLGeneral PractitionerDeclaration.Thetermsfor conversionfromapre-JARUKPPLtoa
>LICENSING non-expiringLAPLhavebeendraftedina conversionreportthatistobesubmittedto EASA.ThetermswillbepublishedbytheCAA induecourse,butasproposedwillnotrequire anynewexamsorflyingtraining.Thecostof conversionisexpectedtobeE65(TBC)
YOUHAVEAFIVE-YEAR'EXPIRINGTYPE' JARPPL YourJARlicencewillbecomeanEASAPPL from8April2012untilitsexpirydate.When youapplyforyourlicencerenewalafter July,theCAAwillsendyouanEASAPPL initsplace,thereisnoneedtoapplyfora replacementearlierthanitsexpirydate.The costofthereplacementEASAPPLisexpected tobeE73(TBC)anditwillbealifetimelicence. PleasenotethatbecausetheUKCMwill notbeissuinganyEASAlicencesuntiliJuly 2012,between8Apriland3oJune2012itwill continuetorenewexpiredJARPPLlicences withanewfive-yearexpiringJARPPL.
Anyratingscurrentatthetimeofrenewal willbeincludedonthenewEASAPPL,and ifyouhaveacurrentnon-EASAratingsuch asaMicrolightRating,youwillalsoreceive alifetimeUKCAAlicencewiththatratingon it.Itisexpectedthattherewillbechargeof E35(TBC)fortheadditionalUKCAAlicence. (NotethatasClassratingsonEASAlicences willbevalidforAnnexIIaeroplanes,youwill notneedanadditionalUKCMlicencetouse MEPorSEPprivileges-includingmicrolight privilegesafterdifferencestraining-onAnnex IIaircraftifyouhaveanEASAlicencewith thoseratings.)
AnEASAPPL,whetheraresidualtimetoexpire JARPPLoranactualEASAPPL,allowsyoutofly non-EASA(e.g.AnnexII)aircraftprovidedyou havetheappropriateRatingsofcourse. YoucanalsoconvertyourJARPPLtoa LAPLifyouwish.Therewillbenoadditional requirementstobernet,buttherewillbethe samechargeof£73(TBC).
YOUHAVEANNPPLSSEA(AEROPLANES) LICENCE YouwillbeabletocontinueflyingEASA aircraftuntil7April2015andAnnexIIaircraft indefinitely.IfyouwishtocontinueflyingEASA aircraftafter7April2015youwillneedtogetan EASAPPLoraLAPL,andthelikelihoodisthat theLAPLwillbethelogicaloptionbecauseof itslessonerousmedicalrequirementsandthe additionaltrainingrequirementsoftheEASA PPL.Itisimportanttonote,however,thatonly thoseNPPLsissuedbefore8April2015willbe convertibletoanEASAlicence.
TheexactmeansofconvertinganNPPLto aLAPLhasnotyetbeenfinalised,butwill bepublishedinduecourseinCAP804.Itis intendedthattheLAPLwillbeavailablefor issuebytheCMfrom1July2012.Thecharge forconversionfromanNPPLtoaLAPLis expectedtobe41(TBn.
ShouldyouwishtoflyonlyAnnexIIaircraft post7April2015,andflyonlyinUKairspace, thenyoucanretainyourNPPLSSEAandwill notrequireanEASAlicence.
YOUHAVEANPPLMICROLIGHT,APPL (M)ORAPPLWITHAD(MICROLIGHT) RATING
Ifyouareamicrolight-onlypilotwith anyoftheselicences,theEASAlicence changeswillnotaffectyou,allowingyouto continuewithyourcurrentlicenceintothe foreseeablefuture.
THEREARESOMEchangesinthewayRatingsare dealtwithundertheEASAlicensingrules. IntheUKithasbeentheCAA'spracticewhen Ireissuingoramendingalicencetoleavelapsed Iratingsonthelicence.Thisallowsanexpired ratingtoberenewedbyanexaminersigningthe authorisationpage.UndertheEASArules,whenthe CAAprintsandsendsoutalicence(whichithastodo wheneverthelicenceischanged)itmustnotinclude expiredratingsinthelicence.TheCMintendsto listexpiredratingsonthebackofthelicencesothat theholdercanshowanexaminerevidenceofthe ratingbeforebeingtestedforrenewal.However,once thetesthasbeenpassedthelicencewillhavetobe senttotheCMtobeamendedagaintore-addthe ratingtotheratingslistandtherevalidationpage. Unfortunately,thiswillentailacostofEV(TBC).Ifa ratinghasexpiredbutisstillonthelicence(because ithasnotbeenreprintedforanythingelse)examiners maycontinuetorevalidateorrenewtheratingas currently.Itmaywellbeworthconsideringensuring thatanyRatingsyoumaywishtouseinthefuture arecurrentatthetimeyouswitchtoanEASAlicence, andanytimeyousendyourlicenceinafterthat.
THEIMCRATING OfalltheEASAlicensingissuesitisprobablythe UKIMCRatingthathascausedthemostfurore. Unfortunately,attimeofwritingthedefinitive
YOUHAVEAUKPPLGYROPLANES AllgyroscurrentlyoperatingintheUKare under56okgmtomandthereforeAnnexII aircraft,soareoutsideEASAcontrol.Youare notaffectedbythelicensingchanges.However, shouldanyheaviergyroplanesbeproduced whichdocomeunderEASAcertification,your currentlicencewouldnotbevalid,andasyet EASAhasnotproposedasolutiontothat,albeit hypothetical,possibility.
YOUFLYGLIDERSINTHEUK GliderpilotswillrequireanEkSAlicenceto flyagliderbyApril82015.TheBGAandthe CAAareworkingtogethertoestablishhow thecurrentBGAschemeofqualifications willbeconvertedintoeitheranEASALAPL (Sailplanes)oranEASASailplanePilots Licence(SPL).
Well,Ihopethatformostmembersthe aboveoffersananswertotheirquestions abouthowEASAlicensingwillaffectthem, andasCAAandEASAcrossthefinalTsand dotthefinalIs,wewillbringyouanynewsof changesandamendments.Moreinformation isalsoavailablefromtheCAAat www.coo. co.uk/defouitospx?gid-2o61 andEASAat eosa. europa.eu/flightstandards/opinionibl.hrml•
positionhasnotbeenresolvedsodonotassume thatwhatyoureadelsewhereisfactual.Theonly EASAresponseinwritingisfromNPA2011- 16 whichstates:
'ItishighlightedinthisRegulationthatMember Statesshouldaimatallowingpilotsto,asfaras possible,maintaintheircurrentscopeofactivities andprivileges.TheAgencyalreadydiscussedthis issuewiththeCMUKandindustryexpertsinorder toidentifypossibleoptionsforUKIMCholders. Themostfavourablesolutionseemstobethata Part-FalicenceandanIRwillbeissuedwithcertain conditionsonthebasisofaspecificconversionreport inordertoreflectthecurrentprivilegesheld.This wouldallowtheexistingUKIMCholderstocontinue toexercisetheirIMCprivileges.'
So,itmayultimatelyhethattheIMCRatingis 'grand-fathered'byincludingsomeformofrestricted IRonanEASAlicence,andifthatiswhathappens then8April2012willbetheearliestpossiblecut-off dateforobtaininganIMCRthatcouldbetransferred. TheCMiscurrentlyinnegotiationwithEASAonthis issueandisactivelyseekingacut-offdatebeyond8 April2012.TheCMwillpublishfurtherinformation whenavailable.
Itwillcontinuetobepossibletoaddorrenew anIMCratingonaUKnondARThon-EASAlicence intothefuture,butafterthetransitionperiodthose licenceswillnolongerbevalidforEASAaircraft.11
JUSTASTHEUKPPLandJARPPLarereliantonyou holdingavalidJARMedicalCertificate,yourEASA PPLorLAPLwit!dependonyouholding a Part-MED MedicalCertificate(Class2orLAPLasappropriate). ToallintentsandpurposesthecurrentClass2JAR MedicalandtheEASAClass2Medicalarethesame, althoughtheEASAClass2Medicalhasbeenbased onICAOClass2standardsratherthanJARClass2 requirementsandismoreliberalthantheJARClass2 inseveralrespects.IfyouhaveacurrentJARClass2 Medical,itwillbecomeanEASAClass2Medicalasof 8April2012untilitexpires.AswithJARlicences,ifit expiresinApril,MayorJuneyouwillgetanotherJAR MedicalCertificate,butfromthe1stofJuly,Part-MED certificateswillbeissued.
TheLAPLMedicalstandardissimilartothecurrent UKNPPLDeclaration,andtheLAPLMedicalCertificate willbeobtainablefromeitheryourGeneralPractitioner oranAeromedicalExaminer(AME).However,ifyouare intendingtoconvertfromanNPPLtoanEASALAPLyou MUSTundertakeanEASALAPLmedicalassessment. TheANOisbeingamendedtoallowaLAPLMedical CertificatetobeusedwithanNPPL,butanNPPL MedicalDeclarationcannotbeacceptedasasubstitute fortheLAPLmedicaltosupportaLAPL.
AlthoughtheLAPLmedicalstandardsareverysimilar tothecurrentUKNPPLstandards,theprocessis differentinthatinsteadofaGP'scounter-signatureto yourdeclarationofmeetingthestandards,afive-point
examinationis requiredforthe LAPLfirstmedical andthen,from age50,attwoyearintervals. Unfortunately thereareafew anomaliesinthe EASALAPLmedical requirementsthat willcauseconcernto anumberpilotswhoare currentlyabletoattainthe UKNPPLstandardforpassenger carrying.Theseconcern,primarily, sufferersfromepilepsy,hearingproblemsand insulin-treateddiabetes.Inthecaseoftype1diabetes mellitustheLAPLstandardsprohibitflyingaltogether (notsoundertheNPPL).andinthecaseofdiabetes mellitustype2treatedwithinsulin,theremaybean OSL(OperationalSafetyPilotLimitation)imposed. IaskedDavidRobertsofEuropeAirSports—and SecretaryofNPLGLtdwhichprocessesapplications fortheNPPL—toexplainthedilemmaasthisisan areainwhichheistaking,andhasformanyyears takenagreatdealofinterest.Davidisnotadoctor andthereforecannotspeculatehowthiswillaffect particularindividualsexactlywithcertainconditions.
Heisconcerned,however,thatthereisthe potentialforafewUKpilotstobe'medically disenfranchised'inthistransitiontotheLAPL, andwiltifnecessarybetakingthisupatthe toplevelattheEuropeanCommission's DGMOVEDirectoratetotryandprotectthe rightsofthosefewpilotswhomaybeaffected bythenewregulations.
Apartfromtheinstancesabove,Davidpoints outthatforthevastmajorityofNPPLpilotsthe LAPLmedicalstandardswillbeessentially thesame,butthattheprocessinvolving limitedexaminationandtestswillbea changefortheaverageGP,whounder theNPPLschemecountersignsapilot'sselfdeclarationagainsttherelevantUKdrivinglicence medicalstandards.InfutureGPswillbesigninga positivestatementoffitnesstoflyunderEUaviation medicalrules,whichsomemaybemorecautious about—withpossiblyanassociatedhighercostto thepilot.
Theendresulthasbeentheculminationofalotof volunteerworkandlobbyingbyUKpilot/medical expertsandothersincludingtheUKCAAmedical team.Itisnotaperfectresultbuttheoutcomeisalot betterthanwasfeareduntilfairlyrecently.Andjust oneexampleofa'gain',comparedtotheyearlyNPPL medicalrevalidationafterage60,theLAPLrevalidation intervalwillbe24monthsafter50,forlife.
Thedeath onFriday
6January offormer
FarnboroughandCAA testpilot,andfounder memberoftheHistoric AircraftAssociation, DarrolStinton,marksthe passingofoneofthemost influentialpersonalities inairshowandhistoric aircraftsafety.Darrol diedpeacefullyin hospitalfollowing surgeryafewweeksafter his84thbirthday.News ofalikelymemorial serviceinFebruarywill bepublishedontheHAA websitewhenavailable. www.haa-uk.aero
Darrol'sworkinhelping formtheHistoricAircraft Associationandincreating airdisplayandpilot standards,laterenshrined inlegislation,probably saveddozensoflivesover theyears,butthatwasonly asmallpartofavariedlife inwhichaircraft,shipsand waterequallydominated Darrol'sinterests.
Hislifeinaviation beganasanaeronautical engineeringapprentice in1944withBlackburn AircraftLimitedofBrough, ontheRiverHumber. Blackburntaughthimto flybefore,around1950, hemovedtodeHavilland atHatfield,fromwhere,in Darrol'swords,he,"escapedintotheRAF" in-1953,viatheRAFVR
WhilestillintheRAF,hetrainedasa Ship'sDivingOfficerRN,andurgedbythe teamofRAFdiversinthesub-aquaclubat Seletar,Singapore,hefoundedthenow verysuccessfulRoyalAirForceSub-Aqua Association-trainingtheoriginalteamto workwiththeNavyintheeventofaircraft accidentsinwater.
In1959,Darrolwasacceptedforthe EmpireTestPilots'Schoolandcrossed theFamboroughrunwaytojointheRoyal AircraftEstablishment.Hisworkvaried, frompureresearchanddevelopment,to in-flightaccidentinvestigationandbeinga guinea-pigfortheRAFInstituteofAviation Medicine.In1964,Darrolwasawarded theMBEforhisexperimentaltestflying atFarnborough.
DarrolretiredfromtheRAEin 1969and
Dart-01Stinton,1927-2012
joinedtheAirRegistrationBoard,laterto becometheCivilAviationAuthority,as acertificationtestpilotonlightaircraft. Theworkwasextensiveandvaried,from canardtoconventionalsingle-andtwinenginedaeroplanes,sailplanes,motor glidersandmicrolights,oneofwhich hefamouslydescribedasflyinglike"an animatedbeachumbrella".
Hisworkincludedseveralvisitstothe ExperimentalAircraftAssociationFly-in,at Oshkosh,Wisconsin.Onthefirstoccasion, hereturnedtotheARBexhausted,having tested16weirdandwonderfulhomebuilt aircraftinasingleweek.
Intheift7os,Darrolwastestflyingan increasingnumberofhistoric,classicand vintagetypesforwhichcivilianowners
wereseeking Permits toFlyand, inanswer to CAAconcerns aboutthe abilityof privateowners toproperlymaintain anddisplaytheaircraft, in1978,togetherwith HawkerChiefTestPilot, DuncanSimpson,helped foundtheHistoric AircraftAssociation, tomonitorstandards, shareinformationand makeappropriate recommendationsto theCM.
Fornlorethanthree decades,Darrolworked asaVice-Chairmanof theAssociationandthe excellentsafetyrecord ofhistoricaircraftat airshowsacrosstheUKis partofhisfinelegacy.He helpedcreatethesystem ofDisplayAuthorisation, whichevaluated theperformanceof individualpilotsand helpedframeregulations whichensuredthat aft"anypotentialdisplay incidentswerekeptaway fromcrowds.
In1982,withCAA consentandretirement insight,Darrol,together withhislawyer-wife, Jacqueline,formedhis owncompanyofaeromarineconsultants. OnleavingtheCM, hecontinuedasa freelancetestpilotwiththe InternationalTestPilots'SchoolatCranfield, lecturingmeanwhileonaircraftdesignas aSeniorVisitingFellowatLoughborough University.
Darroloncedescribedhislengthy professionalcareerashaving,"become clutteredwithtechnicalqualifications".He wastheauthorotanumberoftextbooks andtechnicalpapers,hewasawardeda DoctorateinPhilosophyforhisworkon dolphinaerodynamicsandhydrodynamics, wasaCharteredEngineer,Fellowandpast Vice-PresidentoftheRoyalAeronautical Society,FellowoftheRoyalInstitutionof NavalArchitects,Hon.FellowoftheSociety ofExperimentalTestPilotsintheUSA,and LiverymanoftheGuildofAirPilotsand Navigators.Butgainedmanyyearsbefore achievinganyofthese,heparticularly prizedhismembershipoftheInstituteof MechanicalEngineers.•
Teh01926614422
ithytt, cosrnikaviationcomk
Email:salesatosmikaviation.co,uk
>ENGINEERING diaphragmexperiencesadropinatmospheric pressureatthespraybar.
'Theundersideofthediaphragmisconnected directlytotheTBIspraybar,thereforewhen theengineisrunning,negativepressureis createdatthespraybarandthispressureis proportionaltothespeedoftheengine.The resultantnegativepressuredevelopedpulls ontheunderneathofthediaphragmandthis inturnopensthefuelflowvalvewhichallows fueltotransfertothespraybarandmatchfuel demandexactly!'
ModelsoftheTBI-goareavailableforawide rangeofenginesfromVWstoLycoming0-360 andabove.
LIQUID-COOLEDCYLINDERHEAD Thelatestproductfromthecompanywill certainlybeofinteresttoUKJabiruowners. Afterrnarketliquid-cooledcylinderheads (LCH)forthe2200,33ooand5100seriesJabiru enginesareclaimedtocombatthedistortion producedbyoverheatingoftheoriginalheads andtheneedtoregularlyretorquetheheads tothecylinders.TheseLCHhavebeenin developmentforsomewhileandthecompany
hascarriedoutconsiderabletestingtoprove them.Itreportsthatwhereasastandard air-cooledJabiru3300enginewillreachCHT limitswithintwominutesofhighpowerstatic operation,its3300testengine,fittedwith Rotecheads,ranforfourhourscontinuously atWOT(wideopenthrottle)andthewater temperatureneverexceeded85°C(1850F).The CHTmeasuredunderthesparkplugofthe rear-mostcylinderpeakedatun°C(230°E).The ambienttemperatureduringsomeofthese testspeakedat31°C.
Theobviousquestionis,whataretheweight implications?Well,forthe 2200 theLCHheads arearound25oglighter,perhead,thanstock heads,andforthe3300theyarethesame, sotheadditionalweightisconfinedtothe radiator,waterandhoses,soisfairlyminimal.
ThereiscurrentlyoneUKownerwhohas appliedtoLAAEngineeringtomodifyhisBoo jabiruwiththeseheads,andEngineeringis intheearlystagesoflookingattheproposal, somaybeitwon'tbelongbeforewestart seeingwater-cooledjabshereintheNorthern Hemispheretoo.
See www.rotecaerosport.comfordetails.•
Above:themodelradialenginethatspawned thecompany.Belowleft:aradialexhaustinits weldingjig.Belowright:an101mountedona 3300jabiruengine
>ENGINEERING Thismonthwecompleteourthreepartalphabeticaltourthrough themostcommontypesofLAA modificationsandwhat'sinvolved ingettingthemcleared.Partsiand 2 oftheA-Z wereinourSeptemberandOctoberissues. Asever,thisshouldbereadinconjunction withtheLAA'sTechnicalLeafletTL .13: Guide to CS-VIA, whichprovidesaquickmeansof identifyingthespecificparagraphs(ofour mostfrequently-useddesigncode),which applytodifferentmodifications.
Remember,theEngineeringDepartment isheretohelpwithyourapplications.We doaskthoughthatyouconsidervery carefullywhetheryourproposedmodification isreallygoingtoimprovetheaircraft,and whethersomebodyelse'salreadyapproved similarmodwouldsuffice,orwhetheryou arepreparedtocarryoutthesometimes extensiveresearchrequired.
Propellers. Oneofthemostfrequenttypes ofmodificationrequestedbyLAAmembersis achangeinpropellertype,eitherbecausethe originalmodelofpropisnolongeravailable orseekinganimprovementinperformance. Duetothemanyinterrelatedvariables,afull treatiseonthescienceofmatchingapropeller toanairframe/enginecombinationand 'missionrequirements'couldfillasubstantial book.Whilethediameterandpitch,andthe numberofbladesareeasilyquantified,other factorsincludingthebladechorddistribution frombladeroottotipandthebladesection thicknessalsohaveamajoreffectonthe amountofpowerabsorbedbyapropellerat agivenrpmandforwardspeed.Forgeared engines,suchastheRotaxtypes,thechoiceof reductiongearratiomustalsobefactoredinto theequation;forexample,apropellersuited toaRotas582whenfittedwitha2.58:1 'B type' gearboxwouldallowtheenginetoover-rev
significantlyiffittedtothesameenginefitted witha3:1ratio'Ctype'box.
Aswellaschoosingthepropellertogive theoptimumaircraftperformance,the structuralstrengthofthepropellermustsuit theapplication,henceit'sessentialtoselect apropellerwhichiswithinlimitsasregards bothpowerandrpm.Withsomeengines,such astheRotastypes,there'salsoapropeller inertialimittotakeintoaccount,asapropeller withtoohighaninertiawillreducethelifeof thereductiongearunit.Thebladeresonance characteristicsarealsocriticallyimportant, especiallywithmetalandcompositeblades, whichdonotenjoythesamedegreeofinbuilt dampingasasimplewoodpropeller,andare thusmuchmorepronetoresonanceproblems. Bladeresonanceisafunctionnotonlyofthe propitselfbutoftheengine/propcombination, aseachenginetypehasownvibrationprofile. Ifbladeresonanceshouldoccurwithinthe
Left:therangeofpropellertypesandmaterials isextensive,whichmakesprovingsuitabilitya verycomplexissueinsomecases
Above:advancedpitotslikethisDynanwithAoA andheatfacilitiesneedparticularconsideration overmountingandelectricalsupply
Thisconstantspeedpropisbeingcycledto ensureadequateclearancefromthespinner. Noteforwardspinnerbulkheadscrews
normalrpmrangefortheprop,there'sa stronglikelihoodofthepropellerbreaking uporsheddingablade,verylikelywithfatal consequences.Understandablythen,the LAAonlypermitstheuseofmetalpropellers whenthevibrationcharacteristicsofthe particularengine/propellercombinationhave beencheckedandfoundtoberesonance free,usuallybythepropmanufacturer carryingoutgroundrunswiththepropeller fittedwithstraingauges,connectedtostatic instrumentationbyslipringsortelemetry. Theinformationaboutthematchingot certifiedpropellerstodifferentenginetypesis containedinthe TypeCertificateDataSheet for thepropeller,whichcontainsawealthofuseful information,andcangenerallybedownloaded fromthewebsiteofthenationalaviation authority(NANofthecertificatingstate.Most propellermanufacturersarealsoveryhelpful inadvisinghowtoselecttheoptimumprop
foraparticularapplicationbutalways,always checkwiththeLAAbeforecommittingtoany propellerchange.Thetypesofpropellers thatLAAhasacceptedinthepastondifferent aircraft/enginecombinationsareshownin TechnicalLeaflet3.n whichcanbedownloaded fromtheLAAwebsite,thisishoweverintended onlyasaguideanddoesnotinferanyapproval tofitanypropellertoyouraircraftotherthan theone(s)statedontheOperatingLimitations sheetofthePermittoFly.Aspecialtypeof modform (MOD4 form) isusedtoapplyfora propellerchange.Allpropellerchangesrequire aflighttestusingaspecialschedule;theLAA providesthreedifferentschedulesdealing withfixedandgroundadjustablepropellers, hydraulicconstantspeedpropsandelectric constantspeedpropsrespectively. Pitottubes. LAAEngineeringisfamiliar withmostofthereadily-availableunits, soit'susuallynottoomuchofaproblem
>ENGINEERING approvingareplacementprovidingtheunit islocatedinthesamepositionandwiththe samealignmentIfnot,thenit'samatterof decidingonthepositioningmostlikelytogive acceptableASIreadings,andthenplanning onspendingachunkoftimeduringtheflight testprogrammecheckingouttheresults,and beingpreparedtoexperiment.Thedesign codeCS-VLAcallsfortheASItobecorrectto within5%or5mph(whicheveristhegreateri throughoutthespeedrange,whichcanbe quiteachallenge.Ifaheatedpitotisused,it's importanttochecktheelectricalcurrentdraw oftheheaterelementandlookintowhether youhaveenoughsparealternatoroutputto feedit.
Radios.Aspecialtypeofmodform (MOD7) isused,whichgivesdetailsofhowtochoose equipmentwhichisapproved,andprovides uswiththeexactdetailsoftheequipment youhaveselected.Thisisabitofatrapforthe unwarybecausenotallradioequipmentthat's forsaleintheUKhasactuallybeenapproved bytheauthorities,andisthereforeillegalto use.LAAcannotsanctiontheuseofequipment thathasnotbeenapproved.TheLAAformalso includesaseriesofkeyquestionsthattheLAA inspectormustrespondto.Theapplication formisthensenttoLAAEngineeringfor checking.Aspecialradioflighttestformisused toevaluateperformanceintheair.Satisfying LAArequirementsleadstotheissueofanLAA radioinstallationapprovalcertificate,which theownermustkeepamongsthisaircraft's essentialrecords.
Skinstiffeners.Additionalstiffenersare somehmesaddedtometalaircrafttomake thepanelsmorerigidandavoiddrumming inflight,particularlyonflatpanelswhichlack anyinherentstiffeningeffectbyvirtueofbeing curved.Thesestiffenersusuallytaketheform ofL-sectionedpiecesfoldedfromthinsheet aluminium,rivetedinplace,althoughsome aircraftusestripsofahigh-densityfoamwhich isgluedon.
Addingstiffenerscancausestructural problemsinhighly-stressedpanelsby focussingtheinevitablewrinklingintosmaller areasattheendsofthestiffeners,ratherthan acrossthewholepanel,leadingtopremature poppingofrivets.Alwaystalktothedesigner firstandtoLAAEngineeringifcontemplating anychangeofthisnature.
Spats.Addingwheelspatscanslickenan aircraft'sappearanceandyieldaworthwhile performanceenhancement-thoseonthe RobinDR400seriesbeingaprimeexample. Rememberthatthewheelsgetquitea hammeringandthatthespats,aspartofthe 'unsprungweight',havetoputupwiththe sameroughtreatment,sotheirfasteningshave toberobustThebestplanistolookathow thespatsareinstalledononeortwosuccessful factory-builtaircraftandfollowsuitAtthe sametime,besuretodesignthespatstobe easilyremovedwithoutneedingspecialtools.
Besuretoleavesufficientclearancebetween thetyreandthewheeltoavoidinterference whenthetyredistortsonlanding,andthink abouthowyouaregoingtoaccessthevalveto checktyrepressureandfitapump,andhow youwillextractmudthrownupintothespat
Particularcareisneededwithspatson steerablenosewheels,whichcansometimes upsetthedirectionalstabilityoftheaeroplane inflightifthespathastoomuchsidearea forwardofthenoselegpivotaxiscomparedto thatbehind,leadingtoanadverseweather-
cockingeffectthatworksagainsttherudder's self-centringaction.
Spinners.Aproperlydesignedspinner improvesanaircraft'slooksandreducesdrag, itcanalsoaidenginecooling.Off-the-shelf spinnersareavailablefromsupplierssuchas AircraftSpruceEtSpecialty,oryoumaychoose tomouldacompositeonetoyourowntaste, orindeedhaveacustommetalonespun. Exceptonthesmallestspinners,it'sbestto fitthespinnerwithbothafrontplateanda backplate,sandwichingthepropeller.The cut-outsinthespinnershellfortheshanksof thepropellerbladestopassthroughmusthave enoughclearancetopreventfrettingdamage tothatexpensivepropeller.Likewisetheskirt ofthespinnermusthavesufficientclearance tothecowlingnosebowl;bearinmindthat thewholecowlingmaymovearoundalittlein flightandthattheengineisfreetoshifttoall extentonitsrubbermounts.
Strobelights.Strobelightsmustbesited wheretheywillnotbetoodistractingtothe pilotinflight,theyshouldnotbelocatedillhis orherdirectviewforobviousreasons.Toavoid electricalinterference,thestrobelightwiring shouldnotberoutednearaerialsorotherlow signal-strengthwiring.
Streamlinedbracingwires.Wesometimes seeapplicationstosubstitutestrandedsteel externalbracingwireswithstreamlinesection steelwiresknownasRAFwiresintheearly daysofWWIfinsearchofreduceddragand
amoresophisticatedappearance.Greatcare mustbetakenhowever,becausestreamlined wires,madeinonepiece,aremuchmoreprone tofracturethanamulti-strandedwire.Even inaircraftdesignedtousestreamlinewires, wherethewiresareduplicatedorthestructure hasbeenshowntobeadequatelystrongwith anyindividualwirebroken,itcanbevery frighteningflyinganopencockpitaeroplane withtherazor-sharpendofasnappedwire flailingaboutPre-wardesigncodessuchas AP.97ocalledforexternallybracedaeroplanes tobeabletowithstandatleast2/3ofthenormal maximumdesignloadwithanysinglewire shotawayorbroken,andLAAEngineering followthesamephilosophystill.Particular careisneededwiththedesignoftheend fittingsofstreamlinedwires,tomakesurethat ifthewirevibratesinflightthentheendfitting ispin-jointedinsuchawaythatwillavoid bendingstressesbeingappliedtothewiresat theirends,asthishasbeenafrequentcausefor fatiguefailuresinthewires.Installationswhich youcangetawaywithusingthemorebenign strandedsteelcablesaresometimesfatally flawedifcarriedovertoastreamlinesteelwire application.
Substitutematerials.Whetherit'sadifferent spedesofwoodorametalalloyoranepoxy resin,amaterialcannotjustbesummedupby lookingatafewnumbersinastrengthtable. Somesteelslookgoodinitiallyfromthespec sheetsbutyoufindthatwhenweldedthey
losealargeproporrionoftheirstrength;other steelsareunaffectedbywelding.DouglasFir hasstrongerpropertiesthanspruceinthe strengthtables,butasaspeciesit'smoreprone toalmostinvisiblecompressionshakes.What abouttheglasstransitiontemperatureofan epoxy;istheaeroplanegoingtogodroopy ifirsleftoutinstrongsunfortheafternoon? Andistheepoxysafetouseinanamateur's workshop?Anyonewhosuffersthelong-term effectsofanepoxyallergywillknowthatthisis notanissuetobetakenlightly.
Smokesystems. Smokesystemsforairshow useusuallyconsistofanoiltankconnectedto anelectricpumpwhichondemandsquirtsa meteredamountofoilintotheexhaustsystem throughasmallnozzle.Inthepast,dieseloil wasusedbutthesedays,duetoenviromnental concerns,anon-carcinogenicpharmaceutical mineraloilsuchasShellOndina927isused. Displaypilots,accustomedtosittingina cockpitthat'sregularlyfilledwiththesmoke fromthisbabyoil,jokethatitgivesthena lovelysoftskin!
Themodificationneedstoincludeapositive andautomaticmeansofshuttingofftheoil supply,otherthanjustthepump'son/off switch-oftenasolenoidvalvelocatedinthe oilpumpfeedlineisconnectedinparallel withthepumpswitchsothere'snochanceof oildribblingthroughtheinactivepumpover time.Iftheoiltankismountedintheengine bay,itandthepipeworkmustbemadeofa fireproofmaterialsothatanenginefirewon't releasetheoilandfeedthefire.Theoiltank fillerneedstobeaccessiblesothatyoucanfill thetankwithoutriskingspillingoiloverthe cockpitfloor.Wheretheoiltankisinaccessible, somesystemsarrangeforittoberefilled usingasecondelectricpump.Theweightand balanceimplicationsneedtobeconsidered-in someinstallationstheweightofthetankand thesmokeoilhasasignificanteffectonthe aircraft'sCofG.Thevolumeofthesmokeoil tankisnormallybetweenapintandagallon, dependingonthesizeofengineandthepilot's appetiteforexhibitionism.TheOndinaoilis notcheaphowever!
Trimsystems. Acommonrequestisto replaceamechanically-operatedelevator trimmerwithanelectricservodrivenone, usuallyusingthepopularRayAllenservo unitanditscustommulti-LEDarrayposition indicatingsystem.Fromasafetystandpoint therearesomepositivesaboutthis,forplacing theservointheelevatoritselfmeansthatthe mechanicallinkagebetweentheservoand theelevatortabcanbeshortandverydirect leadingtominimalbacklashandflexibility inthedriveandfewmechanicalpartsto comeadriftorbreak.Thisarrangementis mechanicallyfavourablecomparedtoalong lengthofpush-pullcablereachingforward tothecockpit,andoffersatrulyirreversible systemwithcomparativeease.Careisneeded however,becauseaswithanycontrolsurface, thefluttercharacteristicscanbeupsetby addingweight(orstrictly,mass}aftofthe hingeline,especiallyonanelevatorthatisnot massbalanced.Theservoshouldtherefore bemountedasclosetothehingelineas possible,notnearthetrailing-edge.Evena*
>ENGINEERING so,themodwillneedspeciallyin-depthflutter testingduringtheflighttestprogrammeto checkthatthedynamicsofthecontrolsurfaces haven'tbeeninadvertentlymadedangerous. Anotherissuewithelectrictrimisthepotential foratrimrunaway,dueto,forexample,an internalshortinsidetheoperatingswitch,a mechanicaljamintheoperatingswitch(yesit doeshappen)orthepilotpressingtheswitch bymistake.Problemshaveoccurredwithpitchsensitiveaeroplanesbeingoverstressedinwild pitchexcursionscausedbythepilotrestinghis maponastick-toprockerswitch.Tominimise theriskinarunaway,therateatwhich thesenfotravelsshouldbelimitedsothat whateverhappens,ifthesystemrunsawaythe pilothastimetointervenebeforethesituation getsoutofhand.Thisisnormallyevaluatedat theflightteststage.
Tailwheels.Therearemanywaystoskina cat,andmanywaystoarrangethetailwheel steeringonataildragger.Thesimple,homemadetailwheelassembliesfeaturedonthe drawingsofmanyplans-builtaircraftare notalwaysverysadsfactoryineverydayuse, judgingbythenumberofapplicationswe receivetofitcustomaftermarkettailwheel assemblies.Thesenormallyincorporatea break-outfeatureinthesteeringarmsothat theaeroplanecanbepushedbackwardsinto thehangar,(wherepreviouslyifyou'dtried this,thetailwheelwouldhaveswivelledto Tulllockandjammed),andtoallowturnson-the-spotusingdifferentialbrakes.Thisis usuallyverystraightforward,butcareneedsto betakentoselectaunitoftheappropriatesize andweightforthetypeofaircraftinvolved-a unitwithabigtailwheelmaycopewithsoft groundbetterthanasmalltrolleywheel,but itsbiggerdiametermeansthatduringasharp tornorgroundloopitimposesmuchhigher twistingmomentsonthepoortailwheelspring andeitherthespringormorelikelythefixing ofthespringtothefuselagemaysoongiveup theghostThesteeringbreak-outfeatureneeds tobefine-tunedtoprovideenoughsteering authorityfortheaircraftinquestion-itcan beexcitingifthetailwheelsteeringbreaks
outjustatthemomentyouwantittohold theaeroplanestraightinthelaterpartofa crosswindlanding,forexample.Ontheother hand,youdon'twantitsohardtobreakout thatyoustruggletoreleaseitwhennegotiating thatrightangleinthetaxiway.
Vortexgenerators.Aproposaltoaddvortex generatorstothewingsand/ortailofanLAA aircraftcomesthroughfromtimetotime,either insearchoflowerstallspeedorimproved controlauthorityinpitchorroll.Certainly,tests onthejabiruRgohaveshownthatVGsonthe wingcanboosttheaileronresponsiveness, withnodetrimenttotheperformanceor handling.Aftermarketmodkitsareavailable withsetsofplasticvortexgenerators,selfadhesivepatchesandtemplatestohelpalign theVGsatthecorrectangleonthesurface.The issuesthatariseduringthemodevaluation arethebehaviouroftheaircraftinflighttest, recordingtheexactpositionoftheVGsfor laterreplication,andthedurabilityoftheVG
attachmentNotthatitwillprobablymake muchdifferencetothehandlingifoneortwo oftheVGsfallofflater,butitcouldspoilyour wholedayiftheVGhappenedtogetstuck inacontrolsurfacegapandrestrictaileron orelevatortravel.Controversially,because VGscanhavesubtleeffectsonthehandling, needingaproperinvestigation,theflight testingneedstobedonebythesamecalibre ofevaluationpilotwhowouldhavetestedthe handlingoftheaircrafttypeforUKacceptance initially.Itmayseemfrustratingtohaveto bringinahighlyqualifiedtestpilottotryout theadditionofaVGkitonapuddlejumper, butthere'snoavoidingthisrequirement FortunatelytheLAAhasafairscatteringofsuch pilotsaroundthecountry,soit'snottoomuch ofaproblem.
Weightincreases.Ownersoftenaskabout thepossibilityofincreasingtheiraeroplane's maximumtotalweightauthorisedlintwal.Even iftheaeroplanehassufficientperformance tocopewithabitofextraweight,provingthis tobeacceptablefromastructuralviewpoint isusuallytootallaclifftoclimb,unlessthe designerispreparedtostepinandreworkall hiscalculations.IMierethereisnoaccessto theoriginalcalcs,orthetypehasneverbeen stressedinthefirstplacebuthasbeenaccepted ona'serviceexperience'basis,i.e.'proofby usage',thenacompletestressingexercise fromscratchwouldbeneeded.Thecostof commissioningsuchaprojectwouldbemany thousandsofpounds.
Wind-drivengenerator.Theadditionof awind-drivengeneratorhasbeenapopular modificationespeciallyamongstthevintage aircraftfleet,manyofwhichhavesmall ContinentalA65motorswithoutprovision foranengine-drivenalternatortobefitted. AirworldUKsuppliesapopulartype,andfitting kitshavebeendevelopedtoadapttomost vintageaircraftofUSorigin.Astheseareusually STC'd(SupplementalTypeCertificated)foruse oncertifiedaircraftintheUSA,verylittlefurther investigationisusuallyrequired.Checksdo includeasimpleflighttest;theincreaseddrag maybecriticalonsomelow-poweredaircraft•
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practicableaswellasagoodvintagemilitary displaymachine.Hencetheseedwassown whenIsawtheithMk6.Thistoohadthe classiclinesandvintageappealbutwithamore modernengine,theContinental0-3ool1/45hm, givingitbetterclimbperformancethanthe originalGermanversion'sBirthHM504engine ofonlyJo5hp.
Imanagedtomakecontactwiththeowner byemailandthefirsthurdleturnedouttobe thattheaircraftwasalreadypotentiallysold. However,afterafour-monthdelaythesalefell throughandIwasabletostartnegotiations.As soonasIwasinvitedtoOldenburginGermany IjumpedontoanEasyletflighttoBremenand arrivedtoview.
Notbeingfamiliarwiththetype,Ihaddoneas muchresearchaspossible,butmyknowledge ofwood-and-fabricaircraftstoodmeingood steadformyappraisaloftheaircraftAftera goodinspectionofthestructureandaflick throughthelogbooks,Iwasinvitedforaflight. Imademywaytowardstherightseatandwas toldIcouldtaketheleft,asthevendorwasan instructor.Hequizzedmyflyinghoursand wasmorethansatisfiedwithmy 1,200 hours ontailwheel;fortunatelyIhadbroughtmy logbookaswellasmylicence.
DELIGHTFULFLYING TheBestmannisquiteasubstantialaeroplane, havingawingspanofnearly35ftandstanding overoft6intall.Thatwonderful'glasshouse' canopyandtaperingrearFuselagehelpsgive herthatclassicWWIIGermanlook,thoughas shewasbrightyellow,hermilitaryheritagewas somewhatsubdued.
Theforwardsectionofthefuselagehasa steeltube'cage'buttheremainderofthe aircraftiswood.Thecontrolsurfacesare fabric-covered,apartfromthesplitflaps,the rudderbeingcable-operatedandtheailerons andelevatorviarods,withthatoh-so-siftcysmoothfeelthatanybodywhohasflowna Kickerwillappreciate.Fueliscarriedinasingle 125-litretankmountedbehindtheadjustable seats,whichhavemilitarystylerecessesshould youwishtowearaparachute.Thebaggagebay isabovethetankandhasanetacrossitsfaceto keepluggageinitsplace.
FORACOMPANYwiththreeveryfamousaircraftto itsname—thelungmann,lungmeisterandBestmann, BuckerFlugzeugbauactuallyhadarelativelyshort operationalUfespan.
CarlClemensBackerwasbornin1895inKoblenz andjoinedtheGermanImperialNavyin1912.He trainedasapilotandlaytheendofthewarwasthe Navy'stestpilotforseaplanes.Followingthevirtual cessationofpoweredaviationactivitiesasoneofthe conditionsoftheTreatyofVersailles,Backerbriefly joinedtheSwedishnavyasapilot,butfollowing ameetingwithErnstHeinkel,heagreedtosetup anaircraftmanufacturingfacilityinSweden,at Stockholm-Lindigo,initiallytobuildHeinkelaircraft fromcomponentsillegallybuiltandsmuggledoutof Germany.SvenkskeAeroAB(SAAB)wasestablished in1921andby1927wasalsobuildingdesignsofits own,notablythejaktfalkanfighter,whichhadbeen designedbynewlyappointeddesignerAnders JohanAnderssonfromMesserschmitt.Thecompany soldsmallnumbersofaircrafttotheSwedishNavy, butby1932wasinfinancialtroublesoBuckersold ittotheaircraftdivisionoftheSwedishRailroad Workshops,itlatertoriseagainunderitsoriginal SAABinitials.
BuckermovedhacktoGermanyandin1933, takingAnderssonwithhim,establishedanew aircraftmanufacturingcompany,BuckerGmbHin Iohannisthal,Berlin.WithinayeartheAnderssondesignedprototypeBO131jungmann,atwo-place tandembiplane,hadflown,andayearafterthatwas orderedinlargenumbersbytheLuftsportverband,a civiliantrainingorganisation,asaprimarytrainer.The company'ssecondofferingalsoappearedthatyear, theBEI133jungmeister,asingle-seatbiplaneformore advancedacrobaticflying.
In1935,thecompanymovedtolargerpremises, atRangsdorfairfield,inordertomeetdemandforits twosuccessfulbiplanes,inthemeantimeworkingona numberofmonoplanedesigns.Followingthelimited successofthetandemtwo-placeStudentandthe single-placeKornett,theBa181Bestmannprototype flewin1939andwasaninstantsuccess,beingordered inlargenumbersbytheLuftwaffeasatrainer. Duringthewar,thecompanygrewtoover1,600 employees,makingpartsforotherGermanaircraft aswellasitsown.Duetodemand,Buckeralso licensedtheFokkerCompanyintheNetherlands,who subsequentlybuilt708examplesoftheBestmann duringthewar,Hagglund&SanerABinSwedenwho built125,andZlinatOtrokoviceinCzechoslovakia, whereproductioncontinuedafterthewar,783 aircraftbeingbuilt.Inthe1950s,theHeliopolisAircraft WorksinEgyptacquiredalicenceforthetypefrom theCzechsandbuiltaround300Gomhouriasforthe EgyptianandotherArabAirForces.Inall,3,400aircraft werebuilt,onlyahandfulofwhichsurvivetoday. ByApril1945,theSovietswereadvancingand Backerandhisworkforcefledwesttoavoidcapture. Post-warthefactorywassituatedintheEasternbloc andaircraftproductionwasneverrecommenced, thefacilitiesbeingusedforengineoverhaulduties formilitaryapplications.Followingthefallofthe IronCurtain,theBackerfactorybuildingswere preserved,thoughtheyarenotopentothepublic. ThereishoweveraBuckerMuseumonthesite, openedin2001.
BackerhimselftriedtorestartproductioninWest Germanyin1947butwasunsuccessful.Hedied inKoblenzin1976,hisaircraftcitedbymanyof theworldftnotedaerobaticpilotsassomeofthe sweetesthandlingmachineseverbuilt.
FollowingaquickbriefingIstartedthe engineandwhilewesatwaitingforittowarm up,discussedtake-offandlandingspeeds, flapsettings,thefuelsystem,etc,these allbeingnotedonmyknee-padsoIcould referencethemifneeded.
Aftertaxiandmn-upchecks,Iaskedifthere wasanytendencyforhertoswing,towhich IgotashrugandadvicethatIshouldletthe aircraftrollstraightbeforeliftingthetail. TheBestmanntracksverywell,duetoits
>FLIGHTIMPRESSIONS relativelywide,well-damped,oleo-spring,strut undercarriage,andtherudderiseffectiveas soonastheairflowandwashfromthepropeller hitsit.
Raisingthetailproducednonoticeable swingandwewereairbornequicklyataround 45ktThenoisefromthesixcylinderswas pleasantenoughandweclimbedat7okt,the VSIshowingaroundthe7oofpm-notbad foranoldgirl.Levellingoutoftheclimb,we acceleratedto951(1andset2,3oorpmleconomy cruise)andIbegantoexplorethehandling. First,theaileronsarewell-balanced,making turnsajoy-notquiteaChipmunkbutnotfar offeither.Theelevatorislighttooandthe rudderfirmbutnotheaw-shereallyisa delighttofly,especiallywithsuchaspacious cockpitandgoodvista.DareIsayit?Almost toogoodforatrainer!
Shestallsat38-4okt(fullflapttheailerons beingmosteffectiverighttothestallandwith nolargewing-drops.Theflapswereeasyto lowerfromaveryrespectableflap-limiting speedofrioktRollreversalsgaveasprightly turn,notsurprisingastheBUckerrangeof aircrafthasagoodnameforhandling.
Descendingbacktotheairfield,Iwent throughpre-landingchecksandturned downwindtosetanBoldleg.Turningbase,I slowedto7oktandpulledthefirststageofflap, 15',thenturningfinalIapproachedat65ktand pulledonthefull45°flapwiththetrimmer woundallthewayback.Concentratingon myflightpath,wearrivedoverthehedgeat flokt,levellingoffjustabovethegroundbefore closingthethrottleandholdingherinthe three-pointattitude.Iflewafewmorecircuits beforeweheadedtothepumps,andmyhost commentedthathewashappyIhadhandled herwellandadealwasstruckwhileweput herawayforthenight.
Thenextchallengewastogetthemoney transferredquickly.1usedWorldFirstwho transferredthemoneyineuroanditcleared thevendor'sbankbythepromiseddate.
THEGREATESCAPE Thefinalstepwastobookanotherflightto Bremenandgetherhome.Onthe6fulyIgot flownbyafriendtoAndrewsfield,fromwhere itisashorttaxiridetoStansted.Arrivingat Bremenatifloo,thevendorkindlyputmeup forthenightandIflightplannedmytriphome toSussexviaMiddenZeelandandHeadcorn. Sofareverythinghadgonetoplan.However, thenextmorningthefrontthatwassupposed tohaveclearedduringthenightwasstill around,andlookingoutofthewindowdid notgivememuchhopeofflyingthatday.After breakfastandcheckingtheMet,wedecidedto preptheaircraftforanafternoondeparture, althoughtobehonestthedayhadthatclaggedinfeeltoitOldenburgistothesouth-west ofBremenandonarrivalyoucouldseethe clearanceasaratherbrighterskysomewayin thedistancebelowtheBookgreyGermanicsky. Afteragoodpre-flightandpackingmy meagrebelongingsintotheaircraft-shewas alreadyfulloffuelfrommylastflight-Ifiled aflightplanforEHMZ.Bynowitwasloam. VariouslocalpilotstoldmethatIwasflying overthelowcountryandthat800ftwasfine, providedIcouldseetheclearanceinthe distance;onepilotevenwentforaquickflight andconfirmedtheconditions,soaplanwas hatchedto'escape'.
Withmyflightplanaccepted,Iclimbed aboardtheBestmann,saidmyfarewellsand startedup.Whilewaitingfortheoiltowarm, Imadeaplaninmymindthatifthingswere nottomylilting,Icouldreturnordiverttothe glidingsiteatAschendort,whichwasonlya shortdistanceenroute.Afterthat,therewas alongstretchwithfewdiverts.Climbingout, thecloudbasewas,asexpected,just800ft, butthevisibilitywasgoodunderneathandI couldclearlyseesignsofthebrightnessahead. IchangedtoBremenControlandsettledinfor azhrjominsectortowardEHMZ.Thegliding sitecameandwentandtheweatherheld,so continued,theoddshowerpassedandIhadto
flytothenorthforazonmdivertaroundsome rain,notreallywhatIwanted.Concentratingon mynavigation,1soonsawmyfirstwindfarm. Boy,thoseturbineslooklargewhenyouare flyingatthisheight,howevertheywereagood referenceandhelpedconfirmmyposition. Lookingahead,theglowofbetterweather beckonedmeonwardstowardtheDutch border.Iwasbynow45minintomyflight. Spottingmynextwaypointetaminingrailway track,Ichangecoursetoavoidafiringrange andforthefirsttimeIwasabletoclimbtothe dizzyingheightofL000ft,whichimproved navigationmarkedly.
CrossingtheFIR,theweathergradually improvedandatlastIcouldbegintorelaxa little,butkeptasteadyfingeronmychart. TalldngtoDutchMilitary,Iprogressedsteadily south-westinimprovingconditionstojust southofArnhem,wheretheweatherimproved dramaticallyandatlastIfeltIhadmademy escapeandwasabletoclimbto2.,600ftenroute toDordrecht
Bynowthelandscapewasbecomingfamiliar; aslightleftturnputmeontracktoEHMZ,with asenseofreliefaftertwohoursinthesaddle. Crossingtheestuariesandislandsbeforemy finalapproachtoMidden-Zeeland,Idetoured slightlytoseetheSportHotel,whereweused tostaymanyyearsago;asalwayspeoplewere enjoyingwatersportsatthestill-popular venue.AwelcomeresponsefromEHMZgave mejoininginstructionsandagentlelanding wasmadeonthewidegrassrunway-thefirst legwascomplete.
ParkingandgoingtotheTower,Ifiledaflight planforHeadcorn,onlytobetoldofaone-hour delay.NoworriesasIneededabreak,soa quickrefuelandanicesaladwithchipsand thatgreatmayotheyserveinHollandwent downwell.Bynowitwasearlyafternoonona hotsummer'sday.Luckily,Ihadremembered ahatandbroughtwaterforthetrip.Fedand watered,Ididanotherwalkround,checked theoil,firedupandtaxiedoutformy1400
departure.ClimbingawayfromEHMZIset coursealongthecoasttowardsZeebruggeand aquickcalltoOstendhadmetransitingnorthof themat3,000ft.Therewasaslightdelaywhile someheavytrafficclearedandIwasthrough theirzoneandheadingdownthecoasttowards DunkerqueandCalais.Easynavigationthis bitandonlyaMr3501i0sectortoHeadcorn. ChangingtoLilleInfo,theyhandedmetoCalais TowerfortheChannelcrossing,CapGrizNez toFolkestone.Nowhowmanyofushavedone thissector?Easystuffinthisweatherbutnot muchfunwhenit'sgreyand1,5ooft. Thereisalwayssomethingwelcomingabout crossingtheUKFIRboundaryandcalling mid-Channel,thewhilecliffsinthedistance welcomingyoubackhometoEngland.Aswitch toLondonInfoandabasicservicetillcrossing thecoast;nearlythereaswechugalongat 2,3oorpmand95kt.FblRestoneslipspastand IsetadirectcourseforHeadcom.Agradual descentafterAshfordandastraightfoininfor 29,landingcheckscompleteandIrumbleon. IpickedupamateatIleadcornforthe lastsectorbacktomyairstripnearLewesJonathanWilkins,wholaterflewthecamera shipwhenwetooktheflyingshotsthat accompanythisarticle.Againapre-flight checkandweareawayandenroute.Bynow it's1500andthesummersuncastsshadows acrosstheKentandSussexconMix/side-what adifferencefromthismorning'sgloom.I letJonathandotheflighthome,onlytaking controlforthelanding.He'llgetagolaterwhen Ihavemoreexperienceonher.IcallSafety Com135.475MHzandlandon24,wetaxitomy hangarandafterenginenindown,Ipullthe mixtureandthebladeswinddown.Wehave madeithome,wehavemadeourGreatEscape. Incidentallyifyouaretryingtoremember whetherourtwoheroesfromthefilm,Donald Pleasance{Blythe)andJamesGamer(Hencileyi, madeitbackhome,sadlytheydidnoLThey crash-landedshortoftheirgoal,theSwiss border,whentheenginefailed,Blythebeing shotandHendleyrecaptured.
PAINTANDPERMITS Sincegettingtheaircrafthometherehasbeen ablurofactivity,thetransitionpaperwork tocompletebeforetheAnnualexpiredon the9August-don'tletitexpireoryoumay havetroublefromtheLBA(theGermanCAN; however,havingdonemyhomework,thisdid nothappenandtheycancelledmyGerman Certificatesintypicalefficiencyontheduedate. Meanwhile,aquicktriptoTurwestontosee thehighcommand(HerrDonaldson!onthe25 Julytoconfirmwecouldmakeplanstoaddher totheLAAfleet-thankyoutotheengineeHng teamattheLAA.Then,on27July,shewastaken toVintageFabricsatAudleyEndtobelightly restoredandresprayedinLuftwaffemarkings byCliveDenney.Theydidacrackingjob, thanksguys!
Andlast,theCAAsortedmyre-registration andexemptionswithexcellentresponse,also confirmingthatshecouldgoontheLAAPermit Nowtheballwasrolling.
WhenmyPermittoTestarrivedinNOveIllber, friendandcolleagueDanGriffithhelpedme withtheflighttestingtoconfirmanunbiased reviewoftheflighttestresults.NowIsithere aftertheChristmasbreakandhopetohavea freshPermittoFlyinmyhandsinJanumy. It'sbeenquiteanadventure...withplenty moretocomein 2012 asIprepareforthe airshowseason.•
PERFORMANCE
VNE:184Itt(211mph,34C/kph)
Cruisespeed:105kt(121mph,195kfth)2,45Orpm
Rateofclimb:7001pm
Crew:Two
Range:800km(497m.432nm)
DIMENSIONS/WEIGHTS
Wingspan:10.6m(34.7110
Wingarea:13.5m2(145.3112)
Length:7.85m(25.711)
Height2.05m(6.00
Emptyweight: 569kg
emsweight850kg
Engine:Continental0-3004145hp
Davewasabusyman.Despite lessthanidealtrading conditions,hissmallbuilding businesswasforeverbusyas householdersdecidedtoupgraderather thanmoveintheseuncertaintimes.Inthe pastthreemonths,he'dmanagedjustthree roundsofgolf,hishandicapwassuffering andhisbestmateMikewasnolongerthe pushoverheoncewas.
"Apresvous,"saidMike,astheystrolledto theninthonthepicturesquegolfcoursejust outsideStOmer,along-promisedtripacross theChannelforaroundhavingfinallycome about-albeitanon-flyingtrip.
"Oui,merci,monarni,"saidDavewitha cheerylaugh.
AsDavesethistee,aRobinDR400passed overhead,probablyatrainingflightfromthe localaeroclub,whichwasbasedontheold WWIairfieldacrosstheothersideoftown. Thoughitspassingwentunobservedby Dave,Mikeglancedskywardsashisthoughts returnedtoasomewhatlesshappyoutcome toatriptheyhadtakentogetheronesummer's daysomeyearspreviously.
DaveandMikehadknowneachother sinceschooldaysandDavehadalwaysbeen interestedinaeroplanes.He'dscrapedenough moneytogetherbyhismid-aostotakeflying lessonsand,despiteworkinghardtoestablish hissmallbusiness,he'dstuckwithitandgot hislicence.Histotalflyingtimewasbarely150 hourssincehestartedtolearntoflyalmost eightyearspreviously-anhoursnatchedhere andtherewasn'texactlyhowhehadimagined hisflyingwouldbe.Hewantedtostretchhis wingsandusehissouthcoastlocationasthe idealsteppingstoneintomainlandEurope,but heeitherhadthecashandnotthetime,orvice versa.He'dfinallymanagedtostealacoupleof daysfromhisbusyscheduleandheandMike wereplanninganovernighttriptoLeTouquet inoneoftheclub's152s.
Thiswasthesecondtimehehadplanned thetrip,thefirst,earlierinthesummer,being scupperedbytorrentialrainsettinginforan entireweekend.Thistimedidn'tlooklikeit wasgoingtobeplainsailingeither;lowcloud wasforecastalongtheSouthCoast,possibly burningoffbylatemorning.Davehadchecked alltheTVforecaststhepreviouseveningand pickedthemostoptimisticonwhichtopinhis hopes.Thenine-hourTAFthatmorningalso
Notethemergingofhillsandskyin thedistance
heldaflickerofhope,soheranghismateand pickedhimupasplannedat0830forthehalfhourtriptotheairfield.Withagenerallylow ceilingandfoganddrizzleforthelastfivemiles tothecoast,itwasaprettygloomycoupleof friendsthatpulledupoutsidetheaeroclubthat Augustmorning.
fakingtheirheelsforacoupleofhoursand regularlycheckingtheTAFsandMetars,come middaythepromisedimprovementwasvely slowinarriving.Visibilityhadimprovedand thecloudbasewasnowatleastdiscernable, butclearlylittlemorethanafewhundredfeet LeTouquet'stelephoneATISwassounding betterthough,tsooftandiokm.Iftheycould getoutunderthecloudbaseandheadstraight acrosstheChannelthen,intheoryatleast,he convincedhimself,theywouldbeflyingintoan improvingsituation.
"Ithinkwemaybeinluck,"saidDave."The CFIisn'tintoday,andhe'sarealstickler,maybe thedutyQFIwillletusgo.I'llassurehimthat ifwegetairborneanddon'tlikeit,we'llcome straightbackin."
"OK,"theinstructoreventuallyagreed,"but ifthatbaseislowerthanbooft,makesureyou justniparoundthecircuitandcomestraight backin."
SHOULDN'TWETALK? StrappedintotheCi52,checkscomplete andsittingattheendoftherunway,Dave's
optimismwassomewhatlessbuoyant.The windowsweresteamingupandallbefore himwasoveiwhelmingly. grey.Mike'shappy chatteraboutthetripdidn'thelpeither;hewas beginningtowishhe'dbeenlesspersuasiveinhis discussionswiththedutyQFI.Still,inforapenny, ifthebasewastoolowhecouldalwayscomplete alow-levelcircuitandcomebackin.Low-level circuit-itsoundedstraightforwardenoughbut hecouldn'trememberthathehadeveractually flownonebefore,evenwithaninstructor.
Theinstructorwatchedfromtheclubhouse asthe 152 disappearedintothemurk,while inthecockpitDavewastakenabackasat lessthan5ooftthegrounddisappeared.He instinctivelyloweredthenoseandgingerly bankedalittlelefttoheadouttothecoast,and bythetimehehadbrokenout,Davecaught sightofthebeachslippingpastbelow,with littlemorethan400ftonthealtimeterandthe seaandcloudsseemingtomergeahead,with nodiscernablehorizon.
'Idon'tlikethis,'hethought,ashestarted aRio°turnbacktowardsthebeach,andas theaircraftturned,theviewaheadwaslittle better.Expectingtoseetheairfield,allhecould makeoutwerehousesandthenopenfields. Heknewtherewashighgroundonlyfivemiles inland,theSouthDownsrisingtoalmostgooft He'dhavetoclimb.Att000fthecamethrough thefirstlayerwith45°ofbankonandtheASI showingjustbokt'Jesus!'hethought,hisheart thumpinginhischest,'WhatthehellamIgoing todonow?'
Mikehadbeenveryquiet,realisingallwas notwell."Shouldn'twetalktosomebody?" hesuggested.
Betweenlayersandjusthigherthanany localterrain,Davesettledalittleandkeyedthe mic,"GolfX-rayYankeeisreturning,butIam uncertainofmyposition,"hestammered.
Thecalmvoiceofthecontrolleraskedfor hisheightandwhetherhewasinsightof thesurface.
"Negative,"cametheresponse,"And I'mat...gooft,"realisingthathehadlost looftinhisattemptstostopclimbinginto thehighercloud,
UsinghisVDF,thecontrollermanagedto ascertainthatDavewasnorth-eastofthe fieldandheadinggenerallynorthwards,w•
>COACHINGCORNER "Turnontoz3o°andtrytoclimbto1,5ooft,"he said."Thereishighgroundinyourvicinity."
BynowDavewasgettingquitefrantic.Ashe turned,hewasinandoutoftheupperdoud andnowbarelyabletomaintainnooftTrying tostayevencloseto230°wasimpossiblewhile dodgingaroundtryingtostaybetweenlayers. Suddenlythecloudbelowhimpartedanda greenpatchflashedpastliterallyjustfeetbelow. Instinctivelyhehauledbackontheyokeand pulledupintothecloudabovehim,hisclammy handsgrippingtheyokeforallhewasworth. Airspeedwasdiminishingquicklyandthe horizonwasshowingabanktotheleft,sohe loweredthenose,buttoofarandtheengine revvedpasttheyellowarcsoquicklyitgavehim astartRollingrightandeasingbackalithehe poppedoutofthecloudsalmostinawings-level conditionandwithfieldsjust400ftbelow.He hadn'tevennoticedpassingthroughtheshallow, between-layersgapashestareddesperatelyat theartifidalhorizontryingtomakesenseofwhat controlinputsheshouldbemaking.
Luckwasonhissidethatday-hadhecome outofthecloudinaspiraldivehewouldalmost certainlyhavebecomea'lossofcontrolinIMC' statistic,butwithwingslevelhewasquickly abletogethisspeedundercontrolashe decidedtolandimmediately;probablyhisbest decisionoftheday.Helineduponthenearest fieldstraightaheadandeasedbackonthe throttle,tryingtogatherhisthoughtsbuttotally unabletodoso.Withnoflaps,nothoughts aboutthedirectionofwhatlittlebreezethere wasandnoMaydaycall,hejustclosedthe throttleandflared.Luckilytherewasanother fieldbeyondthehedgerowasthe152floated acrossthechosenfield,andtoucheddownin theploughedonebeyond...butitwas,thank GodthoughtDave,Motherearth.Theaircraft toucheddownhardandbounced,goingover asthenosewheelduginonsecondcontact Thenoisesweresickeningastheonce-solid152 buckledandwrencheditselftodestruction.
TheensuingsilencewasdeafeningasDave andMikehunginverted,shockedandafraidbut otherwiseintact.Theyextricatedthemselves withoutfurtheradoandsatonthegrassatthe edgeofthefieldsomewayfromthewreckage, utterlydejectedbutthankfulforbeingalive. Anhourlater,astheywereferriedtothelocal hospitalforacheck-up,awaterysunpeeped throughthebreakingcloudbase.'Patienceisa virtue,'thoughtDave.
MikeneverdidgethisflighttoLeTouquet; Davecouldn'tgetoverthefearhefeltas, helplessandterrifiedinthatcockpit,he'dheld notonlyhisownbutaninnocentfriend'slifein hishands.BythegraceofGodorsimplygood lucktheyhadbeenspared,butheneverflew again."IthinkImighttakeupgolf,"saidDave astheytookataxibackfromthehospitaltothe aeroclubtopickuphiscar.•
BRIANHOPEOFFERSSOMECONCLUSIONSABOUT WHATWENTWRONGWITHTHEFLIGHT CLEARLYTHEREAREmanyissueswiththisflight buttheunderlyingoneisthatoft-quotedalphamale pressuretoperform.Herewehaveareasonably capableman,runningasmallbusinessandgenerally incontrolofhislife,andhavingpromisedhismate atrip,andalreadyhadtocancelonce,heisfeeling pressuredtodoallhecantomakethisflighthappen. Theforecaststhepreviouseveningweredoubtful, butdon'tweallcheckoutseveraltoseekaglimmer ofpossibility?TheTAFthatmorningtooheldonly littlepromise,butratherthanwarnhisfriendthatthe likelihoodwas,atbest,alateafternoondeparture, heseizedonthatpossibilityofanimprovement. HesodesperatelywantedtobelievetheTAFthatit cloudedhisjudgment(nopunintended)evenwhen hecouldseeoutofthewindowthatthegeneral conditionwasnotgoodandwasnotmeetingthe TAF'sexpectations.
HealsotooktheopportunitytopersuadetheQFIto lethimgiveitatry,whichraisesconcernsaboutthe QFI'sjudgement.Evenwhenself-doubtdoesfinally creepinatthehold,hestillpersists.
Thereisnoplaceforyouandanegointhecockpit, youmustmakeeveryjudgementcallbasedonthe bestfactsthatarepresentedtoyou,whatyoucansee withyourowntwoeyes,andwhatyouknowfrom experienceandcangleanfromthosewhohavemore experiencethanyoudo.Itwasabadweatherday withlittlechancethatitwouldimprove,andifitdidit wouldbetaterratherthansooner.Headingoutacross theseainpoorvisibilityatverylowlevelinthevague hopethatitwillgetbetterasyougoisfoolhardyinthe extreme.
Takingoffintheseconditionswasalwaysgoing tobecourtingtrouble,obscuredhighgroundto thenorthandseatothesouthandacloudbase thatturnedouttobejust400ft.Therejustweren't enoughoptionsshouldanythinggowrong,andgo wrongitdidalltooquickly.
Sadly,evenasalow-hour,out-of-practicepilot, Daveisnotaloneinmakingtheerrorsofjudgment thathedid,plentyofmoreexperiencedpitotshave donelikewise,andsamewerenotsoluckywiththe outcome.Neverletthefearoflosingfacemakeyou getintoanaeroplanewhenconditionsarebeyond yourexperiencelevel.Ityoudon'tmakethatfirst mistake,youareunlikelytomakealltheothersasthe optionsreduceandyourbraingetsaddled.
Wherediditallgowrong?Intheclubhousewhere pressuretoperformandaweakQFIoverrodebasic airmanshipandcommonsense.Thoseofuswho haveanaircraftavailableoutsideaclubenvironment ultimatelymakeourowndecisionsbutinthisparticular instance,hadtheQFIsuggestedthatheandDavefly acircuittoseewhattheweatherwasreallylike,alotof heartachecouldhavebeenavoided.
Postscript.Itisworthrememberingthatweorenow atthetimeofyearwhentheonsetWoginmid-tototeafternooncanberapidandunexpected.Makeapoint ofnotingthedewpointwhenyoucheckyourTAFsand Metars;thecloserit/stoatypicalwinter'safternoon temperaturethemorelikelyfogcouldformasthesun goesdoomandthetemperaturefalls.Afriendofmine hodoveryluckyescaperecently,byhisownadmission totallydowntoluckratherthanability,whenhesetofffor hometateinthedayandultimatelyfoundhimselfabove fog,lowonfuel,darknessapproachingandhisoptions rapidlydiminishing...butthatisanotherstory
ChangesdueunderEASAwill requirelicenceholderstoholdan AerobaticsRating(AR)inorder toconductaerobatics.ThePart FCLrequirementsfortheARaredefined inSubpartIFCL.800.ManyLAAmembers willbehappytonotethatthisrequirement willonlyapplytoEASAaircraft,therefore, forpilotswhooperateLAAPermittoFly aircraftandwishtoflyaerobaticsonlyin thoseaircraft,therewillbenorequirement toaddthisrating.Thatsaid,youmaywish toaddtheratinginordertoalsoconduct aerobaticsinanEASAaircraft.
Forthosewhoalreadyflyorhaveflown aerobatics,Ihavebeeninvolvedwiththe CAAandotherpilotgroupsindraftingthe conversionreportwhichdetailstheexperience orqualificationsrequiredbyholdersofUK NationalandJARlicencestocomplywiththe requirementsforthePartFCLAerobaticRating -somemaydescribethisas'grandfather'rights.
JonCooke,Chairman ofthePilotCoaching Scheme,explains someforthcoming changes TheUK'saerobaticworkinggrouphasidentified sevencategoriesofaerobaticpilotwhose experienceand/orqualificationsmayprovide compliancewithPartFCLBoo:providing logbookevidenceofaerobaticflying;completion oftheAOPAAerobaticCourse;holdersofDisplay Authorisations;entrantsinBAeAevents;Flswith the'NoAerobaticsRestriction'removed;orexstudentsofmilitaryElementaryFlyingTraining andgliderpilotswithanappropriateBGAbadge Exactdetailwillbein CAP804, aforthcoming
documentandreplacementto LASORS producedbytheCivilAviationAuthority. Shouldyouwishtoobtainrelevantacrobatic trainingpriorto8April2015thenthatmight beconsideredascountingtowardsthe appropriateconversionruleasmentioned above.Thereafteryouwillberequiredto completeacourseoftrainingaslaiddownin EASAPartFCL.800atanApprovedTraining Organisation.Ofnoteisthatyouwillstillbe abletoreceivetrainingandconductaerobatics innon-EASAaircraftregardless-sincetheyfall outsideofEASA'sremit.
TheCAAisnotyetinapositiontoissuethe AcrobaticRatingbutexpecttobeabletodoso towardstheendofthisyear-Iwillkeepyou informed.Insummary,Irecommendthat,when available,youapplyforanAerobaticRatingif youhavesufficientexperiencetofallwithinone ofthesevenconversiongroupsandyouholdor intendtoholdaJAR-FCL/EASAlicence. Pilotsofnon-EASAaircraft-rollon!•
Likemanyreaders,Iamenthralled -bythetalesofintrepidmembers whoventureoutintoEuropein theirPermitaircraft,eveniffor allmannerofreasons;thoughalong-held ambition,suchtripsarenotpracticalfor manyofus.Thereisthough,agreatdealof beautifulcountryside,historyandculture onourowndoorstepthatisjustwaitingtobe explored.Thisstoryisaboutonesuchtrip, withamildlycompetitiveelement,madelast summerbyagroupofflyersfromtheRAF HenlowAeroClub.
EastAngliahasanabundanceofairfields, inallshapesandsizes,andagroupofnine ofusdecidedtoexplorethearea.Overa four-daytourwevisited17airfields,taking fiveaircraftwithus,fourofwhichareon theLAARegister.WesetofffromHenlowon TuesdaymorningfortheshorttriptoMain HallFarm,averywell-kept75omgrassstrip justsouthofWytonATZ.Fromhereweflew ourfirstnavigationexercise,setbyoneof
theclubmembers,tofindandreporton fourfeatures.Weused 1/4milmapstolocate aninitialpoint,thenanOS1:5o,000mapto homeinonatargetTheroutetookusnorthto March,throughtheFensthenacrosstoKing's Lynn,alongtheNorfolkcoasttoBurnham, andendedatBinham.Thefirsttargetwasa buildingalongsidetheHundredFootDrain, thenachurch,followedbyCastleRisingand finallyBurnhamWindmill.
ManorFarmAirstripatBinham,justsouth ofLanghamdisused,isrunbyJeremyTaylor. Thewindwasacrossthenorth/southitunway which,inadditiontothepoplartreesshort ofthethreshold,madeforsomechallenging conditions.Oneofourgroupsensiblydecided afteracoupleofapproachestocontinue ontothenextstop;theotheraircraftgotin safely.Werefuelledbeforesettingoffonthe shorthoptoCromerforlunch.Mostofustook thescenicroutealongthecoast,whichalso allowedustohavealookatthewindmillat Weybourne,ourafternoonstop.
Atthe'new'Cromer,thewindfavouredRn, withanapproachovertherailwaylineandthe oldCromerairfield.Thepartnerofoneofour groupworksinCromerandbroughtlunchfor us-dressedCromerCrabandfreshlybaked breadinthesunshinealongsideouraircraft-a matchforCamembertandbaguettesanyday! Ournextstop,atWeybourne,wastobethe mostchallengingoftheweek,sorequired carefulbriefingfromthosewhohadflownin therebefore,alongwithstudyingtheairfield guides.Thewindwasalmostfullyacross, withaslightheadwindcomponentfavouring f234.Thiswouldmeananapproachoverthe hillandgorsebushes,andaslightlydownhill slope,butasafeovershootoptionoutover thesea.AlltheaircraftwerebookedintoLittle Snoringincaseanyofuswerenothappywith theconditionsatWeybourne. Westaggeredourdeparturesandsentthe Tragoofffirsttoassesstheconditionsandmake thefirstlanding.TheEmeraude,Jackaroo, TurbulentandCessnafollowedon.Wesetup
Above:theuniqueTragoMillsSAH-1.Right:using itsconvenientwingtoplantheleg fromMarham aright-handcircuitcallingonSafetyCom135.47 todeconflict,approachingoverthehilland side-slippingdowntotherunway,whichthen fellawayasweheldoff.Severalaircrafttouched downlateandwentaroundbuteventuallywe allmadeitdown.Uponwalkingtherunwayto thecoastend,wenotedtheslopeofthestrip andthenotsosmallhillonapproach.
ThedeparturefromWeybournewasdownhill andtowardsthecoast,andfromtherewe flewbackinlandtoournightstopatMarham, wheretheff,000fttarmacrunwaywassucha differenceaftertheshortgrassstripswehad visitedthroughouttheday.Wewerehosted byMarhamAeroClub,whohelpedrefuelthe aircraftandarrangedhangarageforus.The stationwasmosthelpfulinaccommodatingus andouraircraft,ifnotusedtotheodditiesof littleaircraftwithtailwheelsorskids. it
TheweatherontheWednesdaywasgood: alightwindwithsomeshowersforecast latemorning.OurfirstdestinationwasOld Buckenham,oneofseveralformerAmerican EighthArmyAirForceairfieldsweplanned toflyinto.Wewerebookedin,butfoundthe placedesertedandafterstretchingourlegs, departedforatouraroundNorfolk.Heading offtothenorth,wepassedFelthorpeand skirtedclearoftheNorwichzoneacrossto Coltishall.Thisformerfighterstationisnow deserted,althoughtherunwayandbuildings stilllookedingoodcondition.Therainshowers hadstartedtobuildupandseveralofthegroup gotwetastheywentroundthetopofNorwich, withthehour-longroutetakingusoverthe BroadstoTibenham,justaomilesfromourstart pointatOldBuckenharn.TheNorfolkGliding ClubownsandrunsTibenham,maintaining threeconcreterunwaysandacresofgrassat thisexUSAAFbomberairfield.Welandedon themainRo3,theJackarootakingtheparallel grasswhiletherestofususedthehard.After manyyearsofoperationsolelyasagliding field,theglidingclubnowwelcomespowered aircraftthoughprioritymustbegiventothe glidersandtherearenooverheadjoinsdueto winching.Wetaxieduptotheclubhouseand orderedourlunchwhilstwechattedtothelocal members,includingachapwhohadflown HorsaglidersonD-Day.
FromTibenhamitwasonlyaquickflight toKnettishallbutweplannedtotakeina fewplacesontheway.Onlyafewmilesfrom Tibenhamistheformerairshipstationat PulhamStMary,wherethefoundationsof thehangarsstillstandout.Thenitwason toThorpeAbbottswithitsrestoredControl Tower,amemorialtothe'BloodyHundredth' BomberGroupwhowerebasedhere.Next wasSnettertoncircuit,wherecarswere hurtlingroundtheformertaxiwaysand runways,beforeformerRAFHarlingRoad, wherethesoleremainingWWIBelfasthangar nowstandsontheedgeofanindustrialestate.
The800mgrassstripatKnettishallruns downtheoldmainrunway,andwehadhad athoroughbriefingfromoneoftheresident pilotswhokindlygaveuspermissiontouse thestrip.Weflewatightcircuittothenorth andlandedonRo8,fromwhereitwasavery quickhoptoournightstopatHonington, fivemilestothewestHoningtonclosedasa Tornadobasedinthemid-199osandhassince thenbeenhometotheRAFRegimentThe airfieldwaspartiallyresurrectedafewyears agobyHoningtonAeroClub,whichusespart oftherunwayandoneoftheoldHard-ended AircraftShelters(HAS)asitshangar.The westernendoftherunwayisblockedandthe maindispersalbuilton,buttheeasternhalf oftherunwayisinreasonableconditionand linkedwithataxiwaytotheHAS.Thewind favouredlandingon09,soweflewacircuit overthecamptolandbeyondthemidpointof therunway,stillgivingus4,000ftofconcrete. Fromtheendoftherunwaywetaxiedintothe HASsiteandparkedallfiveaircraftinashelter designedforonefighter.Thatnightweatein BuryStEdmundsandcomparedourstories andexperiencesfromthelastcoupleofdays. Thebackgroundofthegroupvariedgreatly, fromanFa6pilottoPPLholders,withflying hoursrangingfromafewhundredto14,000.
APERFECTFLYINGDAY TheweatherontheThursdaywasepic; unlimitedvisibilityandlightwinds,aperfect
flyingday.WeflewsouthfromHoningtonto Rougham,andsatintheshadeoftherestored ControlTowerasweplannedoursecond precisionnayroute.Wetaxiedouttothe easterlyrunwayandtheslowestaircraftsetoff firstwithabiggapbeforetherelativelyquick TragoandCessnadeparted.IntheTurbulent, theroutewouldtakemejustoveranhour; Ihadcarefullyfoldedandstowedmymaps andworkedfromleftpockettorightpocketas Iwentthroughthephotocopiedtargetmaps, hopingIwouldn'tloseanyovertheside.The firsttargetwasastatelyhome,wherewe hadtocountthechimneystacks,thenonto awindmillwherewehadtocountthefloors. Iflewfurthereasttothenexttarget,thenav questionbeing'Howmanychairsintheback garden?'CarefullynavigatingviatheOrdnance Surveyledmetoahousewhere,laidoutinthe garden,thereweresevenchairsintheshape ofaseven.Thelastlegtookusouttothecoast andaroundSouthwold,overtheseafrontin thelovelysunshinetheninlandtonotethe colourofapub.
WehadplannedtolandatParham,another ex-wartimeairfieldwhereasmallstripofthe northerntaxiwayisavailabletolandon.The ownerskindlygaveuspermissiontolandbut warnedusthatthestriphadn'tbeenusedfora while.TheJackaroowasgoinginfirsttoassess
thestrip,andifwegot thereandthe'Roowas downthenwewould eachmakeourown assessmenttolandor notIfthe'Roowasn'tontheground,thenit wasontothenextstop.Therewasalotoffarm activityaroundthestrip,whichlookedusable butrough,sono-onelandedandweallflewto ournextairfieldatDebach.
Debachwasthelastwartimebomberairfield tobecompletedandthesquadronsflewtheir firstmissionsfromhereonD-Day.Afterthe waritwasusedasarefugeecampandwas eventuallysoldbacktotheoriginalowners. Therunwayswereremovedforhardcoreand thebuildingsfellintodereliction.Several yearsagotheownersdecidedtorestore someofthebuildingsandsowagrassstrip, therestoredbuildingsformingamuseum coveringthehistoryoftheairfieldandits units.Theyhavedoneagreatjobandthesite iswellworthavisitThewidegrassstripis 59omlongwithgoodapproachesandparking ontheconcreteatthesouthernend,where ourfiveaircraftwerejoinedbyanother Henlowresident-TigerMothG-AJVE.As westoodandchatteda19405'truckcame downthepen-tracktowardsus;Richard,the ownerofthesite,hadcometopickusupin
Finalapproach intottetmth, wellworth a visit
hisrestoredcrewtransport wagon.Wespentagreatafternoontouringthe siteandviewingtheexhibits,andwereturned thefavourbytakingsomeoftheteamfora flightaroundthelocalarea.
OurnightstopwastobeWattishambutmost oftheteamneededtorefuelbeforethen,sowe bookedintoElmsettThewindhadincreased throughthedayandwasnowblowingacross thestripatElmsettatmktTheairfieldwas veryquiet;wefollowedtheinstructionson thepumpsandwithalittlehelpfromthe maintenancecompanythere,refuelledour fleetThewindhadfurtherincreasedandwas nowratherachallengefortheJackarooand ThrbulentWespoketothelocalsandwere allowedtotakeoffintowind,pacingoutour 'runwayandtaxyinguptothehedgebefore departingdirectlyintowind.Onceairborne wewerealmostinthecircuitforWattisham. WespoketotheTowerandwereclearedto joinbaselegforRo5.Thewindwasstillacross, butthewidthofthestripmadethingsmuch easier.Thejackaroocrewpositionedsuch thatwhenitweathercockeditwouldrunoff intowinddownataxiway;theaircraftwas wheeledonandcametoahaltontherunway andwaswalkedintotheparkingarea.
Weenjoyedamealinthelocaltown andretiredtobedreadyforthefinalday ofouradventure.
Thenextdaygreeteduswithcalmwinds butnosunshine,theskyobscuredbymist andhaze.WecheckedtheNotamandspoke totheMetOfficerwhoassuredusitwould clear.Transporttookusouttoouraircraft andwepreparedthemforflightTheweather didimprovebutslowly,andwelaunched inturn,headingtoRaydonthenacrossthe StourEstuarytoGreatOakley.Afteraweek offlyinginunlimitedvisibilityweallfound flyinginpoorvisibilityverychallenging.We hadacuppaatGreatOakleyanddepartedfor theIsleofSheppey,inbetterbutstilllimited visibility.Stopwatch,mapandcompass workedwellasIroutedsouthofColchester, pastStowMariesandRayleigh,thenclimbed tocrosstheThames.TheChimneyontheIsle ofGrainappearedbelowinthemurkasdid Sheernessafewmilesfurtheron.Wewere landingatParsonageFarm,Eastchurch,an 800mstripadjacenttotheoldEastchurch Aerodrome,nowthesiteofthreeprisons. ThewindwasslackandIelectedtoland upslope,headingeast,withaslighttailwind. ItaxiedinandmetBillCroydon,aretiredAir Commodoreandlocalaviationhistorian.The otheraircraftsoonfollowedandBillgaveusa
quicktalkonthehistoryofthearea.In1909, theRoyalAeroClubestablishedanaerodrome onthesite,andShortsBrotherssetupthefirst aircraftfactoryinUK.Theairfieldcontinuedto expandthroughthefirstworldwarandserved asafighterstationinWWIIbeforeclosingin the195osandthefirstopenprisonbeingbuilt onthesite.WewalkedintoEastchurchvillage andlookedattheAviationMemorial,then enjoyedafishandchipslunchintheShurland Armspub,surroundedbyoldphotographs offlyingmachinesattheairfield.Eastchurch isafascinatingandoftenforgottenplace;the birthplaceofBritishaviation,itplayedamajor roleintheveryearlyaviationachievementsin thiscountry.
Bynowthesunhadburntoffthemistand inbeautifulsunshinewestrolledbackto theairstripandheadedofftowardshome. OurlaststopwasatNorthWealdforfueland refreshments.WesatoutsideTheSquadron anddiscussedthelastfourdayswhichhad includedvisiting17interestingairfields, withsomeprovidingarealchallenge.We hadtestedournavigationingoodweather, locatingtargets,andinpoorweatherfinding airfields.Wehadallthoroughlyenjoyed ourselvesflyingbetweeneightandninehours each,andallwithinafewmomilesofour homeairfield.•
SAFETYSPOT WithMalcolmMcBride AirwolthmessEngmeer
CABLESANDSPRINGS TheLAAhastogroundallAeropraktA22LFoxbatsduetosevere rudderflutterissues
'Thisisthedawning oftheageof Aquarius,theage ofAquarius...'I've finallysatdowntowritethis month's'SafetySpot'aftera maddayupgradingmyhome computersystem.Itcertainly feelsabitstrangewritingona screenthat'snearlyasbigas mytelevision.I'mwondering ffthezillionsofwobbliesper milliseconddaimedbythe computersalesmanwillhelp tomalcethis'SafetySpot' featureanymoreinteresting. Let'ssee...
QuiteafewyearsagoIhad theopportunitytoflywiththe designerofasmall,two-place sportsaeroplanethatthefirm Iworkedwithatthetimewas interestinginmarketingforthe LlK.Wegotonverywellandthe aircraftwasadelightfulmachine, Iwellrememberloopingand rollingovertheTexascountryside Thisparticulardesignerhadbuilt afewaircrafthimselfoverthe yearsandlikedtoworktothe limitsofthetechnologyavailable;
perhapsquiterightlywhenit comestodesigningaeroplanes, hewasalwayslookingforwaysto saveweightOneweight-saving ideahecameupwithwasa one-sidedelevatorcontrolcircuit.
ideawasthat,byreplacing onesideofthecontrolcircuit withaspringattachedtothe controlsurface,theweightofthe controlcablecouldbesaved.He did,heexplained,considerthe safetyangle-whatforexample, wouldhappenifthespring broke?"Well,Ithoughtabout this..,remember,anelevatorwill naturallytrytofindthepointof leastresistanceand,obviously really,asthecontrolcableisfitted onthe'upelevator'side,afailure ofthespringwouldn'tbethatbig aproblembecause,ifthespring failed,youwouldstillbeableto flareforlanding."
I'dneverheardofsuchan ideaand,asIlistened,Ithought initiallythatthissoundedlikea prettyneatwayofdoingthings !well,Iwasavetyyoungchap). Iaskedthedesignerwhythe aircraftwehadjustdancedacross
theskieswithwasn'tconfigured thisway.Ifitwassuchagood idea,certainlyauniqueselling point,whatchangedhismind? I'ddonethepre-flightandnoted thattheelevatorsystemwas completelyconventional."WelI," hesaid,withwhatIthoughwas justtheslightesthintofasmile, "Ifelloutoflovewiththeideaafter breakingtheUSrecordforthe numberofloopsinasingleflight."
Hewentontodescribeaflight he'dmadeintheprototypewhen, aftercompletingaloop,hemoved thecontrolstickforwardto regainlevelflightbuttheaircraft continuedskywardsdetermined tocompleteanotherloop.Then another,thenanother.Naturally, eachloop,causedbecausethe elevatorwasjammedup,costa littleheightso,runningoutoffuel aside,thiswasafiniteprocess. Hewentontoexplain,"Iworked outthatifIpulledthepower backatexactlytherightmoment atthetopoftheloopitgaveme afewmomentsrespiteand,by applyingpowerattherighttime, Icouldminimisetheheightloss
perlooptosomeextenLOfcourse theloopsweren'tveryround!" Ipointedoutthat,aswewere actmallychatting,hemusthave gotawaywithitandaskedhow.
"Mmm,I'mnotreallysure, IthinkthatGodhadahandin it,butononeoftheloops,Ileft itabitlatetore-applypower. Irememberstallinginverted, hearingaloudbangandthenext thingIknewIwasbackinlevel flightandtheelevatorcontrol appearedtobeworkingagain."
Whathadcausedhisnear accidentwasthat,afterafair numberofflights,thespring, whichasyouwillremember replacedonesideoftheelevator controlcircuit,hadbecome slightlyweakenedand,whenone oftheelevatorbearingsbecame partiallyjammed(forunknown reasons)thespring-returnforce wasnotabletoovercomethe partialjam.Anarrowescapefor himandalessonlearntwhichhe wasabletoshare.
It'sdefinitelyatruismthatthe sameoldproblemsinengineering designkeepsurfacingand,similar
Left:inthispicture,whichfocuses ontheempennageoftheAeroprakt A22LFoxbat,youcanseethatthe rudderanti-balancetablower(of three)hingeattachmenthasfailed. Theexactreasonforthisbolt failureisnotclear,infactitisnot possibletodetermineconclusively whetherthisattachmentbolt failedandinitiatedtheRutter eventorthe3mmscrewfailed becauseoftheflutterevent.You canseeclearlythatthedamage tothetopoftheelevator,caused bytherapidoscillationofthetab andtherudder,isrestrictedtoan areaovertheelevator'saluminium leading-edge.It'slikelythatthe rudder/elevatorjamwascaused becausethefailedanti-balancetab drivehornburieditselfintothe fabricskinoftheelevator:therear ofthetwoholesfitstheshapeof thebentdrivehornnearlyexactly. Remember,theelevatorwould beslightlyupduringlevelflight. (Photo:MalcolmMcBride)
spring-returnsystemshavebeen usedfairlyextensively,albeitnot inquitesuchacriticalsystem, inthemicrolightandverysmall aircraftdesigncommunities.Look inmanyenginebays,justasan example,andthethrottlecontrol isverylikelyoperatedwitha Bowdencableactingagainsta spring.Regularreaderswillrecall thatproblemshavesurfaced withtherudderanti-balance tabonanAeropraktAisLFoxbat rnicrolightaircraft;thisisaflight controlsystemthatpartially reliesonatorsionspring.Iwrote aboutthisintheDecember 2011 LightAviation andwedidhope thattheissuanceofanLAA AirworthinessInformationLeaflet /AIL),requiringfullinspectionsof therudderanditsanti-balance tabbeforeeveryflight,would solvetheproblem.Unfortunately, despitethesepre-flightchecks, we'vesincehadanotherincident ofsevererudderflutter.Faced withwhatwasfastbecominga spateofseriousincidents,the LAAairworthinessteamhave thereforehadtogroundtheAssL typeintheUKwhilewereview
WithMalcolmMcBride AhworthinessEngineer Above:hereisaportionofthetopoftheleading-edgeoftheaircraft'selevator;youcanseethatalotofenergy hasgoneintocreatingthisdeepscarring.Theinitialwarningwasaseverevibrationandthepilotfeltsure thathisenginewasfailing-.thisconfusionisusefulinthatitgivesusaroughestimateoffrequencywhich,in aerodynamicflutterterms,isquitelow.Ihaven'tactuallycountedthefissuresbutIhopethatyouwillagreethat thisinitialvibrationcouldn'thavelastedverylongandprobablyrelatestothetimetofailureoftherestraining Bowdencableor(possibly)hingeattachmentscrew. (Photo:MalcolmMcBride)
Inthepicturesleftandabove,bothendsoftheBowdencablecanbe seen.Notethatthecablehasfailedatapointnearestthetabbutthe otherendofthecableisundamaged.Thissuggeststhatthecablefailed duetofatiguecreatedasaresulttotheextreme(andrapidlychanging) bendingloadsandnotbecauseofatensileoverload.Whenthiscable failedthetabitselfwasfreetomovebackwardsand,atthispoint,the vibrationstoppedandthecontrolsjammed. (Photo:MalcolmMcBride)
what'sgoingonrandwhy)and, ofcourse,trytocomeupwith asolution. Hereisthestoryofthelatest incident
AEROPRAKTA22LFOXBAT SERIOUSCONTROLFLUTTER
IreceivedacallfromFoxbatowner, PeterGoff,whichratherchanged
myplansfortheday.Peterhad justhadafrighteningexperience where,afterashortboutof rudderflutter,hehadlostboth rudderandelevatorcontrol.I askedhimwhetherhehadseen thelatestAILrequiringpre-flight checksoftheanti-balancesystem andhesaidthathehadandcould 'absolutelyguaranteethatthe
Hereisapictureof theleading-edge oftheantibalancetabafter itwasremoved completely fromtherudder. Therearesimilar witnessmarkson thetrailing-edge oftherudder. Becausethetab hadbecomebent duringthefailure event,itwas notpossibleto establishifthe hingeitselfwas stiff;certainlythis rubbingwould havereducedthe returnspring's effectivenessand mayhaveleadtoa nullpositionat,or closeto,fullright rudder.
systemonhisaircraftwasworking perfectlybeforetheflight'.Youwill recallthatthisanti-balancesystem isoperatedbyasinglecableacting againstatorsionbartypespring whichdoublesasthetab'shinge pin-it'saninterestingexample ofasinglecomponenthavingtwo functionsandsosavingweight andcost
(Photo: MalcolmMcBride)
SAFETYSPOT Whilethissystemhasbeenin serviceforafewyears,recently therehavebeentworeports ofinstancesofrudderflutter; inthelastevent,featuredin December's'SafetySpot',the pilotexperiencedalossofrudder controlaftertheinitialflutter butlandedtheaircraftsafely.We arecertainthattheoscillations feltbythepilotaretriggeredby flutterintheanti-balancetab. Thesuspicionisthat,whilethe spring-returntabsystemworks OKgenerally,becauseit'snot apositivedrivearrangement, undercertaincircumstancesthe airloadsonthetabcantakeover andthetabmaydecidetodoits ownthing.
Thereasonforthelastincidence ofrudderflutterwasdetermined tohavebeenlackoflubricationin thetorsionbarspring/hinge;the LAA,inresponse,issuedanAIL requiringfullinspectionsofthe rudderanditsanti-balancetab beforeeveryflightUnfortunately, despitethesepre-flightchecks, we'vesincehadanotherincident ofsevererudderflutterwhichleft thepilotwithlimitedcontrolof hisaircraft Iamsurethatyouwillbe pleasedtohearthatwehave identifiedanumberofreasons forthislatestevent.RayEverett, theUKagentforthetype,is developingasimplefixand expectstosupplyasmallkit ofpartsforownerswhichwill replacethetabspring-return drivesystemwithapositive push-pullrod.Anothermodhas beendevelopedbyaFoxbat ownerworkingindependently, whichLAAEngineeringhas alreadyapproved.WeatLAA Engineeringneverliketoseeone ofouraircrafttypesgrounded foranylengthoftimeandone wayor,another,Azztownerswill hopefullybeabletogetbackin theairagainbeforethestartofthe newflyingseason.
I'vereceivednumerous telephonecallsfrommembers questioningtheneedforan anti-balancetabonthismachine; it'sonlyafittedtoUKexamples oftheFoxbatOnemember commentedthat,"Surelythis so-calledsafetydeviceismaking theaircraftlesssafe."Ihavesome sympathywithhisview-adding anythingtoanaeroplanebrings withitadditionalopportunities forfailurestooccur.Ididspeak tooneoverseasmemberthough whohadflowntheaircraft withoutthetabfittedandhe confirmedtheUKtestpilot's reportthatthedirectional stabilityofthetypedidnotmeet
1)Incidentoccurs-Rudder jammedtoelevator.Single 'circuittocheckturningand toregaincomposure,
21Thinkingtime-Choose thebestairfield.Ruleout Heyford,Torwestonand Kidlington
bealwayswhereyouthinkit shouldbe!Oncetheaircrafthas yawed,the'trailing'positionin theairflowisnolongerwiththe ruddercentralbutofftooneside. Withamoreorlessneutrally directionallystableaircraft,a10° rudderdeflectionmayresultina to°yawangle-sothedeflected rudderisalignedwiththeflow andthere'snoruddercentring effectatall.
4)Longfinalsusingpowerto maintainglideslope.Ruleout Flap,buttimetoplanlanding withoutelevatorShortburst ofnowertoraisenose.
3)DecideonEnstone and setcourse-PanPan call,useaileronsfor Gentleturns.
Here'sascreen-printofPeter'sflight,takenfromtheaircraft'sGPS.His trackacrossthegroundispaintedinbrown;startatEnstoneandfollow theloopclockwise.ThecommentsintheblueboxesarePeter'sown.The approachchevronsareforthe(fairly)newILSfor R20 atOxford;Upper Heyfordisnolongeractive.IknowthisareaprettywellandIcansaythat it'snotthebestforaforcedlanding.Peterfoundhimselfinanaeroplane withlimitedcontrollabilityand,inmyhumbleopinion,madeallthecorrect decisionswhichenabledhimtolandtheaircraftsafety. (Picture:PeterGoff)
therequirementsofBCARSection S.IntheUK,itisarequirement thatmicrolightaircraftmeetthese requirements.Ihaveflownthe typemyself,albeitbriefly,and mytwooverridingimpressions werethatthemachineisrather overpoweredlapersonalopinion) and,evenwiththeanti-balance tabfitted,rudderfeelisvery lightWiththebenefitofthe anti-balancetab,however,inmy judgementitdidjustmeetthe requirementsofSectionS.
Quiteafewpeoplecouldn't understandwhatananti-balance tab'sroleis,soafewwordsabout whatitdoeswouldn'tgoamiss here.Inshort,fittinganantibalancetabtoacontrolsurface increasesthefeedbackforce proportionallyastheangle-ofcontroldeflectionisincreased. It'sacertifyingrequirementthat anincreaseinangleofacontrol surfaceisaccompaniedbyan increaseinfeedbackforcetothe pilotAwell-designedaircraft, fromafeelpointofviewwill havecontrolfeedbackforces balancedagainsttherelative physiologicalpowernormally availabletothepilot Legsaregenerallystrongerthan armsandhaveadifferentmix ofmuscletissue,whichisable
toresistappliedloadforlonger periods,hencerudderinput (displacement)loadsshould, inawell-designedsystem,be quitehigh.Remember,thisis notadiscussionaboutcontrol responserate,it'sabouthow muchloadneedstobeapplied bythepilotrelativetotheangular displacementbut,ifthedesigner getsitright,thentheresponse ratewillincreasewiththeapplied load.Ideally,inthecaseofa rudder,ifthefeetareremoved duringflighttheruddershould returntoitsneutralposition. It'stheanti-balancetab'sjob toincreasethisreturn-to-neutral force.Thereturnforcefromatab isproportionalnotonlytothe angulardisplacementbutalso tothesquareoftheairspeed,in otherwords,thefasteryou're going,theheavierthecontrols get-adefinitesafetyfeature asithelpspreventthepilot frominadvertentlyoverstressing theaircraft Icanalmosthearyouasking, "Howcometherudderforces aresolight?Surelyifyoudeflect acontrolintoanEloktwindit's boundtoreturntothepointof leastresistance?"Well,thisistrue tosomeextent,buttheactual pointofleastresistancemaynot
Motherdifficultyfacedby thedesignersofverysmall aircraftisthattheresultantforce (backthroughtothepedals) maynotstartoutbeingthat largeandotherforceswithin theaircraft,orinherenttoits design,mayconspiretoreduce themstillfurther.First,there aretheaerodynamicissuesthat alwayssurroundshort-coupled aircraft;ineffect,inthisregard, short-coupledmeansthatthe empennageisclosetotheback ofthewingandresidesinpretty turbulentflow,soyouoftendon't getwhatyoudesignfor!Second, finsandruddersaregenerally toosmall.Thisisahugesubject initsownrightand,sadly,there's notenoughspaceheretotalk aboutitinthisfeature.There's athirdfactorand,beforeIleave thedesigndifficultiescompletely, abriefcommentaboutthis wouldn'tgoamiss.
TheFoxbatisanosewheel aircraftandthenosewheelis connectedtotheruddercontrol system.Thisalmostinevitably addsagreatdealoffrictioninto thesystem,whichoftenmasks theweakaerodynamiccentring forcefromtherudderitself.The resultisperceivedbythepilotas 'therudderstayswhereit'sput'. Allabitbamboozled?Let'shear LAAFoxbatowner,PeterGoff's accountoftheruddertabincident ontoJanuarythatleadtous groundingthefleet
DearMalco/m,
ThisaircraftwasPermittedtofly inlatefulyzon.Ithascompleted aroundflohoursflyingwithno significantproblems.Ihaveflo hoursflyingexperienceinaFoxbat and32ohoursintotalonfixedwingmicrotights.
it BackgroundFollowingthe recentissueofasafetybulletin fromIAAregardingthebalance tabontheFoxbat,Ihavechecked thisbeforeeveryflight.On receiptofthebulletinIhadalso protectedandlubricatedthe hingemechanismusingACF50at threehingepointsattachedtothe rudder,andappliedsomegrease tothebottomhingeandtabedge toensurefreemovementasitwas
EARIE 5^ RD
touchingtherudderveryslightly atthebottom.Thistreatment appearedtosignificantlyimprove themovementofthehingeandI repeatedthis.
Oneweekbeforetheincidentthe tabwasmovingfreelyandon subsequentchecksandIhadno concernsthatit/citstiff.
OnMondayloth linitially flewtheaircraftfromLittle GransdentoBakersfieldtomeet withfriends.Theruddertab hadbeencheckedaspartofthe pre-flightinspectionandwasfree moving.OnarrivingatBakersfield, IfoundIhadapunctureinthe fronttyreandthiswasremoved andrepaired.Oncereplaced,the ruddertabwascheckedcarefully againforfreemovementbefore flyingontoEnstone.Theflightand landing at Enstonewasnormal. Wehadencountered23mph headwindsandsometurbulence but(heweatherconditions werewellwithintheaircraft's capabilities.
Incident atEnstoneTake-off At3,0raIpreparedtoleaveEnstone -tspecificallycheckedthefront tyrewasstillOKandhelddown thetailtomakesuretherudder wasfree.Icheckedforfulland freemovementonallcontrols.The aircrafttaxiedandsteeredfreely andeverythingappearednormal;I
hadappliedflapandthetrimwas setnosedown.At3.o3pmtake-off wasonR26witharight-handturn forcircuitaftertake-offThewind wasbrisk112-14mphlwesterly, straightdowntherunway.
ClimboutInitial problem Iremovedflapasnormalat around3ooftaftertake-offand climbedtoL400ftonmaximumrevs beforeturningrightandreducing powerto3,000rpm.Iadjustedthe trimaridcontinuedtoclimbto 2,000ft.Iwasheadingdueeast withatailwind.Imaintained 5,000rpmintotalforaroundan minutes;myindicatedairspeed atthispointwasmi3mph(with a23mphtailwindinaddition). Iwasusingalittleright-hand pedaltocounteractthetorque andwasabouttoreducerevsfor cruisewhentheaircraftbegan toshudderviolentlyIthoughtat firstthiswasanengineproblem soreducedrevsimmediately.The shudderingcontinuedforaboutsix secondsthenstopped.Theaircraft wasyawingtotheright(Notthis pointandIrealisedtherewasa rudderproblem.Itriedtoturnthe ruddertotheleftwhenIhearda violentbangasitbrokefree.Ithen completedafullorbittotheleft. Return to Enstone Theaircraft wasnowstable,flyingstraight andnofurthershuddering,butI
WithMalcolmMcBride AirwortunessEngineer realisedIhadnoruddermovement. Icouldrumusingaileronsand controldescentwithpower,soI checkedforalternativelanding sites.UpperFRyford(disused)was inview,howeverIwasuncertain ofthestateoftherunways.Oxford andTurwestonwereunfamiliar, soIoptedtoreturnimmediately toEnstonewhereIknewthe layoutandknewthatthewind wasstraightdowndierunway. Maintainingaround3,600rpm, madeapancalltoalertEnstone ofmyrudderproblemandthenset courseforlongfinalonR26.After consideringtheprosandcons, Ioptednottouseflaptoavoid introducinganytrimchangesor instability,butaroundonemile fromEnstonedidsettrimfor maximumnoseup(notsureifit mademuchdifference).Ihadnot realisedthatIhadlimitedorno elevatormovementatthispoint. Approach and landing On theapproach,shuddering occurredagainforaround three-fourseconds.AsImademy finalapproachwithashallow glideslopeat63mphandwith poweron,Ithenascertained Ihadnoelevatormovement forround-out.Ichosenottotry andfreethisbyforceasitmight introduceinstabilityandoptedto continuetheapproach.Nearthe
groundIappliedasmallamount ofpowertoliftthenosethencut thepowerat6omph.Ataround 33mphtheaircraftflaredcloseto thegroundandheldoffforafew secondsthenlandedonitsrear wheelsasnormal;thenoseconic downlightlyAtthispointIhadno steeringastherudderappeared tobestuckontheelevatorsothe aircraftranoffthehardrunway tothegrassontheleftwhereit stopped,sustainingnofurther damage.Atthispointthesteering appearedtoberestored.
After landing dieckedthe damageandrealisedthetrim tabhadbrokenloose,thecable snappedandthemetalhornhad dugintotheelevator.Further damagetotheelevatorhad possiblyoccurredwhenthisbroke freeonlanding.Therewasno otherdamageapparentfromthe landingandno-onewasinjured Iwasthenabletotaxitheaircraft withgroundsteeringtothehangar atEnstoneMicrolights.
Iwasunabletoascertainthefull extentofthedamageandwasnot abletocheckiftherudderwasfree, immediately,oriftheelevatorwas nowworkingcorrectly.Theaircraft wasparkedinexactlythestateit wasinonlanding.
Regards,PeterGoff
Thankyou,Peter,foravery comprehensiveandwell-written report..andwelldone!Notto panicincircumstanceslikethisis, well,theword'incredible'comes tomind,andfollowingthecustom forEnglishunderstatement, certainlydeseivesamentionin dispatches.
Becauseofanumberoffailuresinservice,wehavedecidedthattheBowden-cable-operatedanti-balancetabis notsafetouseontheAeropraktA22I.Foxbat.Independentfurtherflighttestinghasconfirmedthoughthatthe aircraft'sdirectionalcontrolis,ineffect,onlyneutrallystable.Whatthismeansisthat,ifyouweretoapplyfull rightrudderandthentakeyourfeetoffthecontrol,therudderwouldremainfullydeflected.Therudderreturn thereforedoesnotmeettherequired'proportionalforce'requirementsofBCARSection5.Hereisonesolution, devisedandmadebyLAAmemberPaulTrimble,whichhasbeenapprovedbytheLAA'sDesignDepartment.This littleunitprovidesaspringforcewhichreturnstherudderbacktotheneutralposition. (Photo:PaulTrimble)
Adayortwolater,ImetPeter atEnstone,alongwiththe LAA'sChiefEngineer,Francis Donaldson,andtheUKagentfor AeropraktaircraftRayEveritt, tolookattheaircraftandsee ifwecouldcomeupwithan explanationastowhathad happened.Iwilladmitthatmy firstthought,as I readPeter's account,wasthattheuseofan anti-corrosionsprayratherthan aconventionallubricantsuch asalightmachineoilmayhave increasedthefrictionwithinthe hinge.Thisisapossibility,but Icouldfindnoevidenceofthis duringmyvisit.Ididnoticethat theruddercontrolcabletensions werealittleonthelowside, althoughwedidn'tfeelthatthis byitselfwaslikelytohavebeen asignificantfactor.Onething thatPeterdidsaywasthathe hadnoticedaclickingwhenhe checkedtherudderanti-balance tabduringthenormalpre-flight. Duringourcloseinspection
SAFETYSPOT wewereabletosimulatethis clickingbyrotating thespring/ hingeoneway,thentheother. Thismightindicatethatthere wassomeextraresistanceinthe hingeatonepointinitsrangeof movementwhichmighthave upsetthedynamicsofthesystem enoughtocausetheservotab toflutter.
Anotherthingthatwas immediatelyobviouswasthatthe tab'sbottomhingeattachment screwwasmissing.Itispossible thatthisbrokeduringtheflutter eventbutmyviewisthatitcould alsohavebeentheinitiating failure.Ifthisscrewweretofail(or thenutbecomelooseandfelloff) thenthebottomofthetabwould havebeenfreetoflailaroundin theairstream.Ifthisscrewhad failedthenspringtensionwould becomeverymuchreducedand wealreadyknowthatwhenthe springbecomesineffective,tab flutterwillresult
Onefurtherthingthatmightbe relevantwasthattheleadingedgeofthetabitselfhadbeen rubbingonthetrailing-edgeof therudder.Thismayhavebeen duetoanover-closefitmentwhen theaircraftwasmanufactured but,inmyview,it'smorelikely tobearesultoftheloosehinge fittingsfound.Ithinkthatthis loosenesswasduetothetrailingedgeoftherudderitselfyielding againstthereactinghingeloads.
Pioneerspecialist,TimSkinner,has noticedthatanumberofaircraft he'sworkedonrecentlyhave sufferedfromseparationofthe innerwingribtosparjoint.There havebeenvarioussuggestions astowhythisparticularjointis failingbut,whateverthereason, theLAA'sDesignEngineer,Andy Draper,wantsthisweakjoint beefedupabit.Hereisapicture ofthesolution,asmallgusset. (Photo:TimSkinner)
Anymodificationwillrequirean improvementhere.
Ithinkthatyouwillnowsee therelevanceofmyintroductory 'multipleloops'story;thisis,after all,aone-sidedcontrolsystem workingagainstaspring.I've beenachingtotellthestoryto somebodyandthiseventhas givenmetheperfectexcuse!
Thepicturesandmytext describethedamagefoundand thepossibleinterpretationsas tocauseandeffectEitherway,
Toby,fromTargettAviation,foundthisgougeinaPioneer300mainundercarriagesidestaywhilehewasfittingassistspringstoaidtheover-centre lock.ThedamagewascausedbecausethescrewsholdingtheDOWNindicatormicroswitchweretoolongand,eachtimetheundercarriagewasoperated, materialwasremovedinamachiningactionfromthesidestay.It'sessentialthatoperatingmechanismsonaircraftarecheckedregularlyontheground andthisisespeciallytruewhenfittinganewcomponent(inthiscaseamicroswitch).WhenyouaredesigningtheMaintenanceScheduleforyouraircraft, buildintoitregular'panelsoff'inspectionssothatthenormallyhiddenpartscanbecheckedand,wherenecessary,lubricated. (Photo:TobyotTorgettAviation)
enoughisenoughandtheLAA Engineeringteamelectedto publishanAILgroundingthe machineimmediatelyuntila morerobustdesignofrudder centringsystemcanbefitted.
Incidentally,youwillrecall thatPetertalkedabouttheuse oftrimasasecondarymethod ofcontrolifacontrolsurface jams.Iamsurethatyouwill rememberthatthisisafavourite questioninexaminations.lnthis casethetrimdidn'tmakemuch difference,whatdidimpressme wasPeter'scoolandcalculating approachtotheproblemashe sawit.liecouldhavetriedtoforce thejammedelevatorcontrolto freeit,butnotknowingjustwhat hadgoneondownthebackend, thismighthavehaddisastrous consequences.Theaircraftwas controllableuptoapointsohe chosenottorocktheboatby flyingbruteforce,butjustguided theaeroplanegentlybacktoa safeemergencylanding.Well doneagain.
PIONEER300 INNERWINGRIBJOINT Thisiteminvolvesarecurring problemwiththeleading-edge rootribonthewoodenPioneer 300sufferingagluejointfailure causingtheribtolosesomeof itsrigidity.Thisparticularjoint failurehasbeenseenonanumber ofPioneeraircraftsowewillbe issuinganAltrequiringchecks andstrengtheninginthisareaat lorbefore/thenextAnnual.The reasonwhyIwriteaboutithere isthatIknowthatmanyPioneer ownerswillbehavingtheirwings offshortlytoreplacethesuspect fuelfitting!See'SafetySpot',May zonjandthatwillbeanideal timetodothisminorrepair/ strengtheningjob.
Thereareacoupleofpossible explanationsastowhythe gluedconnectionbetweenthe bottomoftheinnerwingDband thespariscomingadriftand ithasbeenthesubjectofhot debate.IspoketotheUK'sdesign consultantforAlpiaircraft,Dave Simpson,andIledidsomemaths todemonstratethattheaircraft's structurewasn'tinanydanger. Onesuggesbonastocauseis thatthejointcannottoleratethe loadsimpartedtoitifpeoplesit onthewingleading-edgetoreach intothecockpit-thehardened walkwayistotherearofthe wingandtheleading-edgeisnot designedtotakeheavypointloads. Anotherreasonmightbethe factthatthefueltanks,whichare fittedinsidethewingleadingedges,mightundersome circumstancesapplyapointload rightatthejointitself.Eitherway, we'regoingtorequirethefitment ofasmallgussettostrengthen thisareaalittle.
PIONEER300 UNDERCARRIAGESIDESTAY This'Spot'wassenttomeby Toby,anaeroengineerworking atTargettAviationbasedat Nympsfield.Atthispoint, it'sprobablyworthviewing thepicturewhichshows alargegougeinoneofthe undercarriagesidestays.Note thataconsiderableamount ofthematerialhasbeenlost andtherewillhavebeena consequentiallossofstrengthin thiscomponent.Tobytellsme thatthecauseofthedamage, whichhaditnotbeenspotted wouldmostlikelyhavecontinued untilthepartwasseriously compromised,wasthatasthe retractableundercarriagecycled, thepartwasrubbingagainstthe
WithMalcolmMcBride AirworthinessEngineer endofanoverlongscrewusedin theFitmentofan'undercarriage down'indicationmicroswitch. Tobywouldn'thavespottedthis faultbutforthefactthathehadto removethewingstochangethe fueloutlet
Regularreadersandofcourse Pioneerowners,willremember thatinitiallythePioneerwas fittedwithone'downandlocked light'whichwas,unusually, connectedtothepowersupplyof themechanism'selectricmotor. Ineffect,thegreenlightshowed whenthesystemthoughtthatthe undercarriagesshouldbedown ratherthanwhentheywere actuallydown.Iheardofone aircraftthathadthreegreenlights wiredinseriesandconnectedto themotorlimitswitchcircuitThe ownersaidthathealwayscalled, "Threegreens,"ontheapproach notrealisingthatitdidn'tactually reflectmuchaboutthestateofthe individuallegs.
Afteranumberofincidents whereonlytwoofthethreelegs hadactuallylockedover-centre, hutwithagreen'downand locked'lightilluminated,Pioneer UKissued ServiceBulletin09/041 requiringriggingcheckstohe conductedandundercarriage downandlockedindication microswitchestobefittedat eachindividualleg.It'snot uncommon,inthisessentially simplesystem,tooperatethe undercarriageandforonly twoofthethreeundercarriage lightstoilluminate.Owners knowthatthisisasignthatthe undercarriageneedsaservice andmeanwhiletheymust manually'wind'therecalcitrant legdownandilluminatethe finallightTheLAAmandated thisSBinMarch 2010—see 1140D/33oA/ou3issuer
Thereareafewlessonsthatcan belearntfromToby'sspotthe biggestofwhichisthatwhenever itemsareintroducedtoasystem, fullchecksmustbemade.Inthe caseofthisundercarriage,clearly thiswasnotdoneotherwisethe overlylongboltwouldhavebeen found.
Whatshouldhavehappened isthattheaircraftshouldhave beenplacedonjacksandeach legshouldhavebeenwatched throughitsoperationtocheck thattherewereadequate clearancesallround,nothingwas snaggingandthegearwasovercentringproperlyandmoving fromstoptostop.Inthecase ofretractableundercarriages, thissortofcheckmustbedone annually;Pioneerspecialists recommendthatfullretraction checksshouldbeconductedeach 25flyinghours.
Oh,andwhythe'Ageof Aquariusstuffatthebeginning'? Well,Istartedthismonth's'Safety Spot'athomeoneevening.I hadjustreturnedfromJed's(the dog)walk.It'saginclearnight withstarsand,ofcourse,the occasionalplanet,visiblefrom horizontohorizon.I'vejust watchedVenusdisappearover thesouth-westerlyhorizonand,if Istrainmyneckabit,canstillsee JupiterinAquariusthoughthe kitchenwindow.It'ssuchalovely eveningIcannotstopwhistling thetune.Timepassesinevitably though,andadayortwohas pastsincethislittleastronomical magicalmomentBrianHope, theEditor,hasbeenpressingme tofinish'SafetySpot'and,not surpisingly,I'vegotadifferent tuneinmyheadnow...
IfIwerearichman,diddle diddlediddlede...
Fairwinds!•
V A AhandfulofeventstookplaceovertheNewYearto encouragepilotstoblowawaytheChristmaslethargy. Unfortunately,Pophamwasaffectedbygenerallypoor weatherinthesouthandonlyaroundtenaircraftmadeit in.ThankstoNigelHitchmanforthisniceshotofRonandValerie Gammons'lovelyLeopardMothG-AIYS.
Thestartofthenewyearhasbeenquitewindy,butlet'shope ithasfinallyblownitselfoutforthiswinter,asstrongwindsare
FEBRUARY APRIL 5 Sturgate,LincsACBreakfast 1 Patrol01427838305 winwlincolnaerodub.co.uk
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12 OldBuckenham,ValentineFly-in 7 0195386o8o6 www.oldbuck.com
MARCH 7-9
3 Newark,AerobootSale01636707170 wwwneworkoirmuseum.org 8
3 VauxhallRecClub,Luton,Luton Aircraft En thusiastsFair0137272506314 www.aircralienthusiestfoirro.uk
4 OldSarum,VintageSunday Fly-in01722322525 14-15 www.oldsorumairfield.co.uk
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17 WhiteWaltham,BAeAJudging 15 School www.aerohatics.org.uk 17-18 Grenchen(1-1B),HeliWeekend wwwairport-grenchen.ch/flughefen.18-21 asp?s=w1281=en
25 Turweston,VACSpringFly-in (PPR)01280705400 19 - 24 1/111/1/1N.vintageoircrotchib.org.uk
25 OldBuckenha wwwoldbuck.com LAAaHomebuiltFly-in0195386o8o6 21 27-Ap1 Lakeland,Fl(N)EAASun'n'Fun www.sun-n-fun.org 22
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31 Sandtoft,BAeAAerobaticCompetition 27-29 MAW aerobatics.org.ak
alwaysaworrytopilotsoverthesecurityoftheiraircraft,even whentheyarehangared.
Thediaryisreallyfillingnow,withmanyoftheoldfavourites alreadyannounced.IfyoucheckouttheRAeCwebsiteat www.royalaerodub.org/eventsMtmyouwillfindthatmanyofthe eventshavelinkstowebsitescarryingmoreinformation.Mythanks toDaveWisewhocompilesthelist;ifyouareplanninganeventand wantitaddedtothelist,contacthimatdave.wise@btintemetcom
28Newark,MuseumV-ForceTribute Event01636707170 www.newarkairmaseuntorg
OldSarum,VintageSundayFly-in 01722322525 wwwoldsarumairlield.co.ok Breighton,AprilFoolFly-in 01757289065 www.reathero.com Marrakesh-Menara(CR)Aero TradeExpo wwwen.oeroexpo-morocco.com Henstridge,IAAWessexStrutFly-in (PreRegister)0776017686 wwwwessexstrutorg.ak Fentand,Fly-inEtSpottersDay 01406540330 wwwlenlondoirfield. EastKirkby,LincsMuseumLarge ModelShow wwwlincsaviation.comk PophamlodelFly-in01256397733 6 wwwpophani-thrfield.co.ak Fenland,VACDaffodilFly-in (PPR)01406540330 6 www.vintageoiructftcluh.org.uk Soesterberg-KanipZeist(PHI, 6 Museum8DepotOpenDay Breighton,BAeAAerobatic Competition wwvvnerohatics.orguk NorthCoates,SpringMicrolightEt GyroFly-in01472388850 wwwmorthcontesflyingdobxo.ok Friedrichshafen(0),AERO GAExhibition00497541708128 wwwnero-friedrichsholen.de Svalbard-NorthPole(LN),Land atNorthPoleFlyingSafari www.prepare2go.corn/ov)ation OldSarum,AeroncaClubFly-in 01722322525 www.aeronnicomk K2Centre,Crawley,Gatwick AirEnthusiastsFair www.gotwickaviationsorietyorg.uk Elyington,BAeAAcrobatic Competition www.oerobarics.org.uk
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MAY 5 Antwerp-StampeMuseum(00), ASAAviationFair www.aso-be.corn/Pliorogalloy ASAantwerp_ovintionjoinhim
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13 HenhamPark,Suffolk,WingsEt WheelsShow(PPR)07796878052 wwwwingsandwheels-online.co.itk
13 Hoogeveen(PH),Wings6Wheels Show www.vliegveldhoogeveen.n1/ diversen/wings_and_wheels.pdf
BOOKS Thereisn'tenoughspaceheretolistinformationaboutallourbooks' contents.Comprehensivedetailsabouteverybookcanbefoundin ouronlineshop-www.laa.uk.com-whereordersmayalsobeplaced.
LAAAircraffLogBook
tAAEngineLogBook
AFEVFRUKFlightGuide2012.spiral
PoolaysUKFlightGuide2012.spiral
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LockyearsFarmStrips&PrivateAirfields FlightGuide,5thedn £20
Wrecks&Relics-22ndedition £20
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Pilat'sWeather(Cosgrove)
StickandRudder(Langewiesche)
TheCloudBook
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Autogiro-RotaryWingsBeforeTheHelicopter
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Onlythemostrecent editionswillbesupplied. Ifaneweditionisdue withinsixweeks,theorderwillbe helduntilthen PRICE:£15.99eachPOSTFREE
JeppesenFrenchandIrish 1:500,000VFR/GPSChartsnowinstock,price£12incp&p.Pleaserefertoonlineshopfor fulldetails,orphoneLAAShop-01280846783
CLOTHING Thetop-qualityrangeofLAA-badgedclothingisstillavailable.Forfulldetails, includingcoloursandsizesavailable,pleasevisittheonlineshopatwww.laa.uk.com
FLEECES CONTRASTPOLOSHIRTBASEBALLCAPS&SUNHATS PRICE:230 £22 PRICE:£18 £13 PRICE:£10
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POLOSHIRTS WINDCHEATERS LAATIE PRICE:217 £12 PRICE:£17 £13 PRICE:£10
EUROPATRI-GEARXS. £35,000ono.Alwayshangared.basedatEGHA.Permit to31/5/12.Leatherseats,superbpanel, speedkit.allmandatorymodscompleted. Rotax914Turbo.465airframehours.Variablepitchprop.SmartCSCcontroller,colourGPS.KX125NayComm,GTX320 transponder.electrictrim,strobes,stall warner.Plususualinstruments(AH.VSI, ALT,DI,TurnCo-ord).Preparedtonegotiateforaquicksale.Tel:07990762894and emailaddressBARRYMOORHOUSEW BTINTERNET.COM
GLASTAR. Constructed2005.250hours A/F&Eng.0-320150hp.Wing-foldtri-gear. 6x6.00tyres.Highspecaircraft.Tiptanks. Leathertrim.Multipleawardwinner.Always hangared.FullycorrosionproofedplusACF treatment.Contact01224861197.
SA300STOLPSTARDUSTERTOO. Imported1990.TTAF1235.Engine104hours onfactoryrebuiltLycoming0-360.Christen invertedoilsystem.Permituntil11/2012. BasedAndrewsfield.£25K.01371856696.
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RUTANLONG-EZ. £26.000ono.TTAF300 hours_0-235-L2C10hourssinceprofessionalrebuild.PermittoJune2012.Electric start.Wilhelmsonnoselift,covers,Narco 12Dnay/corn,transponder.wingleveler. strobes/naylights.BasedPrestwick.Phone 01563540510.
1979GRUMMANCHEETAH 150hp.IFR equippedwithModeS.385HrsSTOH.Good paint.NewexhaustandARCNov/11.Wing andcabincovers.Retirementforcesreluctantsale.222,750ono.Call07715609401
RAF2000GTX-SEGYROCOPTER. Built 2003.Onlyflown14.75hoursforPermit purposes.PermituntilOctober2012.Enclosedtrailerwithramps,new12vwinch, batteryandcrane.AircraftinAlcondition. Formoredetailsorphotos:01803862011 or07970155335mike@spray24.freeserve. co.uk£16.500ono
SIPA903. LAAPermittoMarch2012.Continental0-200TT2,900hours,50hours sincetopoverhaul.King97radio.intercom. King76XpondermodeC.Evrapropellor. lightweightstarterandalternatorat300 hrs.ManysparesincludingoriginalKen Fernprop,mainfueltank,undercarriage legsetc.ViewatWhiteWaltham.£16,750 orpossiblysharesavailable.Tel:Richard 07980239283richardgeatonair.co.uk
BULLDOGTMK 120/121.1974,ex-RAF 2-seattrainer.7197hrsTTAF.Militaryreg: XX561,CAAreg:G-BZEP.Lycoming10360200hp,70hrsSMOHbyCSEOxford. Hartzellconstantspeedprop34hrssince zerotimed.ExtensiveRAFworkshop& partsmanualsincludingallRAFhistory fromnew.BasedBigginFfill.UK.OIRO GBP25,000(noVAT).Tel:Anthonyon+44 (0)7909481610or+44(0)2084671448
JODEL1050 Ambassadeur1960.2500H. Wingjustrecovered2012andtwolanding lightsandwingtipstrobesinstalled.King 155Nay/Com,KingCom.KingDME.King ADE,KingtransponderModeC.Interior refurbished2012andallscreensreplaced. NewPermit.Engine0-200oncondition. Genuinereasonforreluctantsale.flyingfarmer@online.ieorcall00353862549883 REIMSCESSNAC150. 0-200Continental engine.Goodcondition.AnnualApril2012. Alwayshangared.Wellmaintained.VOR, TransponderModeC.BasedSherburn, 211950.PhoneSteve07788533701or John07710128200.
PIPERTRIPACERPA22/160. Reluctant sale,ownedsince1996.Airframe3063hrs, engine388hrs,prop228hrs.Fuselagerecovered1998.Fittedauxtank.CoAAugust 2012.Nicefourseattourer.HangaredHuddersfield.£17,500.Contactcoln.wattl virgin.net.01457876156.07773570387.
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BODMINBASED JodelD120.Quarter sharesavailable.Verygoodconditionwith lowenginehours.£3,500,£90permonth, £35perhour.PhoneRichard01752407411. Emailrichardwalker123@sky.com
ONESIXTHSHARE availableinwellrun Redhillhangared1951L18CPiperCub. Verylowhouredairframeandengine.Recentengineoverhaul.Excellentavailability throughonlinebooking.Pricedforreluctant saleat£2500.£100permonthand£40 perhourwet.ContactJonWattsan07831 115313orjonwatt@ntlworld.com
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TENPERSONSYNDICATE tobeformed aroundanewMagniM24basedonafarm stripintheSouthWest.Costs:Shareprice 518000,monthlycost£40.flyingcost(wet) £43.50perhour.Webbasedbookingand Instructoravailable.Contactroberl.cannockV9yahoo.co.ukformoreinfo.
VAN'SRV9A, Bournemouth.Iamlookingto formanewgroupofthreetosixpeoplewith myoneyearoldaircraft.40hrTT(Valueabout 62K).10-320engine.Hartzellc/sprop.Extensivepanelincludingtwoaxisa/pandMode S.Fliesbeautifullyandeconomically.Contact Robbie07770997824formoredetails.
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DESIGNaerodynamics.stress,anddrawings services.Modifications,completelightaircraft projects.through!BCAR(s),EASA(CS23). EASA(CS-VLA).Reasonablerates.some initialconsultationtime.KSLProjects.Email eric@kingeng.co.ukTel:John07769695856 EXPERIENCEDbuilder,pilot.andLAAInspectorforwood,metalandcomposite aircraftoffershisservicesforrepairwork. recoveringandspraying.Finishingoff projects.assistancewithkitsandinsurance work,building,inspectionandPermitrenewals.Weighingserviceusingthelatest computerpadsforthemostaccurateweight possible!ForfurtherdetailscontactMike HanleyTel:01872560771.Mobile:07703 781628.Email:Mwhflyby@aol.com
WANTED.1994AprilandMayPopularFlying.NeedtocompleteRAESLibrarycollection.Ifyouhavecopiesyoucanpartwith e-mailmefirstatdickybird2Wtalktalk.net
P&WR985two-pieceexhaustsystem,new andunused.WillsellforE100,orexchange for...??Fulldetails,photosetc. terry.froggattaliceadstfr
MODE S ISHERE TRIGandFUNKWERK unitsinstockfor immediatedispatch. www.airworlduk.com
GARMINGPS196inasnewcondition. Boxedwithallextrasandfittings,£200.00 IanRatcliffe07815093931
MGLENIGMAEFISWITHGPS.Complete withgyrocompassandfuelflowsensors. AlsobackupASIandTurninstruments. £2000.Bill01672861737H.861350W. P12COMPASSINBLACK.Newoldstock andinexcellentcondition,henceE250.Also SigmatecvacuumDirectionalGyroinv.good conditionE15012vturncoordinator,fair conditionE45.CirrusMajorcamshaft,used butserviceable.E150.Tel:07973775856
HereIam(AGAIN) PPLGroundExams
Areyoutryingtopassbywatching television(er,sorry,CDROMs)?
Glareyndrould1eac.,,Durt./nOcie11,/talkiric;lo11,an couldlam1,,gTvi•sorry,(2)KU,untilyOdr •=ue, aae.day.[."lalla0-0551Schonolalour ..esur.111Iprprn,,,p.1.11.'111,51'1
Threedecadesareacher/examiner TelephoneDerekDavidson,7am-830am.8 evenings,07831517428(mobile) Emalflyderekdholmailco.uk
N.P.P.L 111011.,11\ Microlite(3axis)toSEPiston(aircraft)
Threedays- £990tclal
*Day 1 -Groundschooladexam(aircrafttechnical)
*Day2-Flighttraining(differences)inclucangflight safetybreifingsinPiperFA2E1
*Day3-FlighttesttNET. SR-)
VHFRTAVAILABLEIFREQUIRED DerekDavidson-Mobile07831517428(7am-8.30am1 &evenings).Emailflyderek@hotmad-co.uk
VHFRTLICENCE All thetrainingyouneed,theoryand practical or either. Includesexamandtest To airtrafficcontrol,thebadgeyouwearasto howgoodyouareasapilotisyourRT. alyousounda****.theywillassumeyouare Itmaynotbefairbut it's now is."
Phonemeforachat
DerekDavidson,ftenstridge,Somerset Tel.(from7am-8.30am&evenings) 07831517428(mobile) Emailflyderek@hotmail.co.uk
• A
NEWkRA 795..f1495
7inchhighresolutionscreen
Intuitiveicondriventouchscreen
Largesunlightreadabledisplay
3Dlhsiontechnology TerrainandObstacles
/ERA500 £449
ARA550 E699
GPSMAP695£1299
GNS930GPSiGornilhavIOHCiE3995
*GTN650/750GPS/Com/NavCall 'SuppliedwrthharnessforLAAaircraft
GTX328ModeStransponder£1650
GTX330transponder....Call
SL40 Comm £1145
SL30Nay/Comm E2475
GMA340Audiopanel£875
GMA240Audiopanel£599
GI106ACOI £1395
G3XEFIS/EMSSYSTEM
G3Xsystemsingledisplaya£3845
G3Xsystemdualdisplay.3.£5495
AWARE5 CLARITY2.0
CAAdigitalchartsasstandard MovingMapGPS
Uniqueairspacealertingsystem Readytousestraightfromthebox Freeairspaceupdatesfor lite
AWARE5AirspaceWarningDevice £191
AWARE5+AirspaceWarningDevice £274
NEWCLAR)TY2.00with5'screen E415
FORESIGHT7"screenmovingmapGPS£665 FORESIGHT7"superbrightRS £1165
SV-07007"display £1690
SV-D100010"display E2290
SV-ADAHRS-200 £775
SV-EMS-2201A £390
SV-XNPDR-262MedeS£1160
SV-GPS-250GPSreceiver£130
AllotherSkyviewpartsinstock
• AR4201VHFCorn £999 NEWAR6201VHFCom8.33£1295 BXP6401transponder£1595
EF1S-D60050
EFIS-D10A£1400
EFIS-D100 £1575
EMS-D120£1400
FlightDEK-D1130£2095
HS34HSImodule£425
SV-32AutoPilchservo£500
EUROPEANDISTRIBUTORFORDYNONAVIONICS Icom
lC-A6E* Sportspack£208
Receivers
UnidenUBC3OXITf58
NFLIGHTCAMHDCamera £199
NFLIGHTCAMHDGPSCamera£249
NFLIGHTCAM+HOCamera £416
NFLIGHTCAMHehoopteradapter50
Therevolnoncontinues tat ZUW2 Improvedcomfortandnoiseattenuaton Nuetootconnectorsandauxmusic'mot
ZULU.2ANRGAversion £565
ZULIJ.2ANRHelicopter. £565
ZULU2ANRGAcoilcord ,£565
ZULU.2ANRLetopanelvers:onE565 SierraANRGAversion,E399 wrthbluetoothandmusicinput
RCALLEN (TOOapproved)
RCA22-7yecLienhorizon E550
RCA22-11vacuumhorizonlit£650
RCA26EKelectrichorizon....born£1550
RCA2600digitalelectrichorizonE1750
RCA11A-8vacuumD.G. £550
RCAI1A-16vacuumEEGlit ,E650
RCA15AK/BKelectric0.0born£1550
RCA82Aturncoordinator £550
JPINSTRUMENTS (TOOapproved/ FS450luelCow.. f449
EDM700-4CengrnemanagementE895
EDM700-4Cwithfuelflow..... E1295
E0M700-6Cenginemanagement£1250
EDM700-6CwithfuelPow WINTEREASAapprovedASI3E255
GNS5870forPad £58
Harry'sHM40 f99
HM51childheadset£89
Peltor8006GAheadsetE175
PeltorHelrcopterheadset £199
DavidClarkH10-30 £189
DavidClarkH10-13.4 £205
DavidClarkH10-13H £229
DavidClarkH10-60 £249
SennheiserHME95 £135
SennheiserHME100 £169
SennheiserHME110 £199
SennheiserHMEC250 £325
SennheiserHMEC260K £499
SennheiserHMEC4613K£425
NonTSOinstrumentsforLSA
HomebuiltorExperimentalAircraft
GH030vaMin lacWOO E299
GH025elect]lchorizon14voltE799
G0031vacuumD E299
GD023electricDG14volt E799
BZW-4Bturncoordinator £239
BC-3Ealtimeter3" £180
BG-19altimeter 2" £149
BC-2AverticalaltimeterInd3"f99
VS12FM-2verticalspeedcid 2"£149
MagneticCompassE85
AirSpeedIndicatorsfrom E85
MCO22verticalcardcompassE130
MCVC-2L-AM vertalcardcompassE140
PRECISION550RuaalcardPontanE249
AV8ORACEGPS7"dhsolay.£1195 SKYMAPIIICDeccanversa-1999 KMD250panelmountGPSE1995 KY97AVHF(NC)corm£999 KR87ADE10HC)unitonly£695 KR87ADFIOHC)system.£1695 1(1.164CUE(CNC) £1295 10164DMESCs £2095
TRIG1121Class2ModeS£1350 TRIGT122ClassIModeS£1560
TRIG1131ClassIModeS£1650
ATR500transceiver £807
ATR833transceiver £1070
TRT800Htransponder £1650
TM250trafficmonitor £985
MX11replacementCorn£695
MX170CNay/Corn £1295
MX300Nay/Corn £1295
NEWEKP5 E1495 INCLUDESAPPROACHPLATESFOREUROPE 7inchdisplay Fullyportable brottatbatteryandspeakers only08inchthick tttlalos5GPSreceiver specialdockingstation
5
MMOO1BHelmetwithVOX£345
MMOO1CHemetvaC1XandAU£406 MM001Headset £181 MMOO1AAMRHeadset £242 MM0065luemouthphorcadaptor£140 MM005RadioInterface £186
• HM2 piaceportable £99
NEW BoseA20Headset
A20 GAtwinplug,,,,,,,,.„£695
A20GAtwinplugw/bluetooth£766
A20Helicopterw/bluetooth£766
A20Lemoinstalledversion...£695
A20Lenaw/bluemothE766 installedwiringharnessf32
MID-CONTINENTMgapproved) 4300ElectricHarmon £1995 LIFESAVERElectricHorizonwith emergencybatterybackup E2395 M0200-3063'CoosaDearInd£1195 13947100-7ZTurnCoordinator540 5934PM-3Altimeter20kMiliharE695 7000C.31VertrcalSneedled f395 M025AirSpeedInd f850 M090QuartzClock 165
• PortableTraffic "lostAlertSystem ZaonMRX£299ZaonXRX£849
Home/KitBuilders
Wecansupplyzirayplebpackagercmeet yourapaerfierequirementsreadyfor immeciarainstallation Alroomsorecustommadebyourengineers Iframmedthe81/1011Cscancatradtintocur cewradioracknrountrngsystem PleaseCaItorpsicingaridmoreintormation
HM2 placetorloom&PIT£119 HM4placeportable £119 SigtronicsSPA400£169 PSEngineering PM501panelmount4plane£199 PM10004placepricesfrom £249 PM3000stereo4place f329 PMA4000AuthoPanel 6549
AMERI-KINGAK-451ELTJTSO approved406MHzELT. £599 completesystemwith2antennas KANNAD
TheLightestoastcompactraftintheWorld Raftwithcanopy f999 Raftwithequipmentf1150 HMSurvivorSlimlinelifejacket withwhistle and light £65
IntegraAFpack£550I PackincludesELT, universalmountingbracket 130200remoteandconnectors KANNADXS-4GPSPLO f188
