November-December 2018

Australian Flying

Australia's premier General Aviation magazine

Australian Flying3 min read
At The Mercy Of The Current
I stalled a yacht once. It was a small thing of long-forgotten length a friend was trying to teach me to sail out of Newhaven. She bade me to go and haul in some rope thingy and watch out for the boom as we jibed, or tacked, or something. Apparently
Australian Flying5 min read
AirMail
Owen asks the question why having a glass cockpit would entice pilots to have their eyes inside the aeroplane more than they normally would. Dear Steve, I read with interest your article “Arrested Development” in the May-June edition of this magazine
Australian Flying1 min read
Outback Air Race beats Fundraising Target
The 2018 Outback Air Race (OAR) held in August raised $514,000 for the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), surpassing the target of $500,000. Running from 19-30 August, this year's event took a fleet of 28 aircraft and 90 competitiors from Archerfiel
Australian Flying3 min read
News
The first AirVenture Australia, held at Cessnock 20-22 September this year, has sparked a debate over how a truly national general aviation fly-in should be staged. AirVenture, run by AirVenture Australia and Recreational Aviation Australia, is struc
Australian Flying2 min read
CASA To Pursue Low-cost ADS-B For VFR
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) announced in September that it will implement a low-cost ADS-B option for VFR aircraft after consultation revealed wide industry support for the idea. All IFR aircraft must have certified ADS-B fitted by 202
Australian Flying3 min read
A Time to Honour
Ray Cronin Ray Cronin started flying in 1976, over time becoming one of the most respected people in the Australian helicopter industry. He has been CFI and Managing Director of Kestrel Aviation for over 30 years. Since 1989 his company has been oper
Australian Flying7 min read
ATC And The Art Of Communication
Early last year, I took my new partner for his first flight in a light aircraft, hiring an SR22 and flying him to Mudgee for lunch. Upon landing, I could tell by the look on his face he’d loved the flight, and I asked him whether he’d be interested i
Australian Flying9 min read
Light Sport Luxury
When Bruce Stark of Tecnam Australia invited Australian Flying to review the latest model of their P2008, we never thought that the weather would be a factor in organising such a review considering the recent clear skies and absence of bad weather as
Australian Flying10 min read
Challenging Reality
Aviation is one of those activities when practice can transform into reality in an instant. We practice forced landings in real aeroplanes, we practice spin recovery in real aeroplanes; these are only two. But in seconds the forced landing will becom
Australian Flying10 min read
Behind the Looking Glass
Technology is one of the great temptations of aviation, especially when it comes to avionics. Having worked hard for years interpreting the signals given out by analogue systems, the new digital age of incredible capability and function can be a lure
Australian Flying10 min read
Scary Stuff There and Back
Jim Davis has a passion for instructing. He has been training civil and military pilots, in the air and on the ground for 50 years. His other passion is writing, which he studied at Curtin University in Perth. You can see, and buy, his two pilot text
Australian Flying9 min read
An Instrumental Choice
Exactly what is an instrument rating and what does it enable a pilot to do? It allows a pilot to fly under the instrument flight rules (IFR). The instrument flight rules permit the pilot to operate an aircraft safely in instrument meteorological cond
Australian Flying10 min read
Perfect Circles
Stand at any training airfield anywhere in the world and you will see pilots practicing circuits. It is a truism that take-offs and landings are the most dangerous phases of flight, and circuits provide an efficient way of practicing important skills
Australian Flying9 min read
Watching Your Six
It is hard to imagine anyone who has ever learned to fly or lived near an airport where flight training takes place, who doesn’t instantly recognise Mr Piper’s Cherokee aircraft. The ubiquitous low-wing plane with its wheels permanently down, ready t
Australian Flying3 min read
CASA extends IR Proficiency Checks and Recognition of Overseas Trainers
The ABAA has been working with CASA for the past two years in order to resolve some concerns we have, which directly affect many ABAA members and some other sectors of our industry. A breakthrough was recently achieved with CASA advising that current
Australian Flying3 min read
The Man at Smithy’s Side
From the day he first stepped aboard Southern Cross to the day he disappeared somewhere near Hawaii, Charles Ulm was one of the most divisive characters in Australian aviation. Today he would be considered an entrepreneur; in the 1930s he was looked
Australian Flying3 min read
Against all Odds
Len Waters was a fighter. Born into the underprivileged world of the Australian aborigine in the first half of the 20th century, Waters battled bureaucracy and out-right prejudice to achieve something he yearned for: a life beyond that of simply bein
Australian Flying3 min read
Wrapping Up The Year
Recreational Aviation Australia will hold its annual general meeting in early November. As part of this process we review the financial year that concluded on 30 June 2018 and present our members with our annual report. This year’s report will focus
Australian Flying4 min read
CASA removes BIFT from Initial Training
In what is seen by industry observers as a common sense move, Australia’s Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) has removed the requirement for basic instrument flight training (BIFT) for initial issue of a private or commercial helicopter license.
Australian Flying3 min read
Love a Cub
Kathy Mexted reports. Working at the Narrabri airport as a refueller in the mid-80s, a couple of Corby Starlets got Dan Compton’s imagination going. How great would it be to build an affordable little sport aircraft? The yearning to own his own aerop
Australian Flying3 min read
A Year of Progress
I started my tenure as head of CASA with the stated aim of addressing a range of long standing issues as quickly as humanly possible. Looking back over 2018, I think most people would agree we have made great progress on many fronts. These include th
Australian Flying6 min read
On The Wrong Side Of The Drag Curve
This discussion contains extracts from the SACAA’s accident report. It is compiled in the interest of promoting of aviation safety and not to establish legal liability. Jim Davis has 15,000 hours of immensely varied flying experience, including 10,00
Australian Flying3 min read
Regulation in Parts
CASA’s regulatory reform program, commenced in the late 1980s, is slowly coming to its crescendo. Having trawled through multiple documents for each component of the next tranche of operational rules, it could be said that the rules as drafted are al

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