DE - BRIEFING - As the end of the year draws closer, I took the opportunity to look over the training articles in order to sum up some points I have attempted to highlight to young pilots just starting out on their flying career.
FLIGHT FILES: BRUNBY LSA - The Brumby LSA is a new light sport aircraft designed to fulfill buyers’ desire for an all metal, two-seat, training and recreational aircraft with short field performance and docile handling combined with excellent visibility.
I HAD A DREAM - It had been one of those days. Having sent off an email to my favourite provider of quality glass-equipped composites to remind them of my previous email four weeks earlier setting out my requirements for the last quarter of the year...
THE SMELL OF NEAR NEW LEATHER - There is something unique, almost empowering, about the smell of new leather. Matters little whether the leather is inside a new car, a new aircraft or a new boat. It’s that evocative and intense sensation of brand new.
THAT WAS THE YEAR THAT WAS - The world economy has hit us all pretty hard in the last quarter of 2008. Just when we thought it was poor legislation that might kill aviation, we are all hit with financial chaos. Earlier in the year I was writing about high end buyers and their slick new machines.

QANTAS AIRBUS A330 INCIDENT – FLIGHT 72 - A week after the in-flight accident on 7th October 2008 involving a QANTAS Airbus A330 on Flight QF72 from Singapore to Perth...
USED CRAFT : PIPER PA28 CHEROKEE - The most familiar of the Piper aircraft on the general aviation scene is surely the PA28 Cherokee. The Cherokee is one of Piper’s first attempts to bring a light aircraft to their range with a low purchase price, low ongoing operating costs and suitability for both training and private use.
WHY FLY - Ever since I started flying I have defended Aviation to my non-flying friends, repeating mantras like, ‘you are more likely to be hit by a car crossing the road than hurt in an aircraft’ and the good old, ‘flying isn’t as hard as you think’.
THE FIRST STEP - Until now it was a very well kept (and slightly embarrassing) secret that the very first time I wanted to take to the skies was when I saw Luke Skywalker strafing the Death Star in his X-Wing.
THE JOY OF FLYING - Oh, to sail free of the bonds of the earth. To have one’s perspective broken, as that which limits us is left far below and we see beyond limited horizons that contain us.

FLIGHT FILES: STORM RALLY LSA - The high wing composite style of LSA is a popular choice amongst aviators. Falling into this busy market is a rather nice little Italian, the Storm Rally.
SHARP AIRLINES - SHARPWE THAN MOST - Contrary to the perception in the aviation community that Australia’s small regional airlines are slowly contracting, one Victorian regional airline is bucking the trend and going from strength to strength.
AROUND THE HOUSES - It’s five am on one of those lovely winter mornings in Queensland. Dark, really dark, and a little cold in the hour before the sun will break the horizon.
HOT SPOT: TAUPO, NEW ZEALAND - Most anyone who knows New Zealand knows Lake Taupo. If you look at a map it’s the giant puddle right in the middle of the north island.
THE EAGLET HAS LANDED - The Italians have been a longtime contender in the aviation market and aircraft manufacturers Tecnam, with their factory based in Naples, have admirably seized the opportunity and taken advantage of the light sport aircraft (LSA) rules.

A GRAND AIRVENTURE - Oshkosh. To a mother it means clothes for kids. To a trucker it means big trucks. But to aviation people it means Wisconsin in July. Heat, thunderstorms, mosquitoes, corn, people and...aircraft.
LEGAL: TICKET TO RIDE - In the olden days when one went flying with an airline, one purchased a ticket. The ticket was a work of art; many layered and had much small print on the reverse of each page. ...
THINGS WITH STRINGS - I’ve been involved with ultralight and microlight aviation a few times. The first time was in gliders, much later, as a passenger in an Aerochute, once joy riding in a trike and then recently in a Jabiru while obtaining a recreational license.
TALE OF A TWIN - THE NEW VULCANAIR P68C - One of the most popular light, twin-engined aircraft of the eighties and nineties was the Italian manufactured P68 Partenavia, a six seat, high winged twin with non-retractable undercarriage.

ALL DRIED UP - It’s the year 2050. At Mascot airport a tumbleweed rolls across the abandoned runway and stops against a dried up fuel tanker.
FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR: YOU FIRST JOB - So you have just got that shiny new instructor rating. Congratulations, you are now a Grade 3 instructor and are eager to impart a wealth of skill and knowledge to budding new students.
A NOMAD'S WELCOME HOME - These days it is a rarity to hear about an Australian icon being reborn, rather than sold off.
PHEONIX FROM THE ASHES - A South Australian regional airline has seen the sunshine break through the clouds thanks to the faith of one of its frequent flyers.

FLIGHT FILES: AVEOPHAMTOM SMARTPLANE - A revolution in General Aviation is set to hit these shores in the shape of the Aveo Phantom LSA.
HI FLYER: BATTLE OF THE TURBO'S - How much fun can one man have trying to sort out the pick of thoroughbreds that grace the sky? In my case I can only describe it as an obscene amount of fun.
LSA: MAKE MINE A LIGHT - Somebody hand me an acronym! If you haven’t already got your ALA mixed up with your AD, you’re bound to be confused by the time you try to separate your RA from your LSA or is that GA?
OUT OF AFRICA - At about 900ft the door behind the captain’s seat slid open and our engineer announced that the left engine has a stream of oil pouring from the centre section.
TRAINING: CLOCK, MAP, GROUND - Last month I introduced a series of articles discussing the basics of visual navigation and I touched on the concept of accurate flying and how important it is for successful navigation.

CONSTABLE PC PLOD JUMPS ON THE BANDWAGON - Recently, Perth Airport was shut down whilst the ‘authorities’ investigated a serious package or packages on a Malaysian Airline aircraft for 12 hours.
HI FLYER: THE FERRARI OF THE SKIES - The weather on the Sunshine Coast is truly spectacular in Autumn. Vivid blue skies, mild days, fabulous. It was my day to play hookie from a family holiday on the river at Noosa to fly ...
FLIGHT FILES: LIGHT WING SPEED - Here’s another range of aircraft we can be proud to call our own. The LightWing Speed represents the blood, sweat and tears of a few Aussie aviation lovers, namely Nick...
MAINTENANCE, REPAIR & OVERHAUL - The vibe around the general aviation industry is that a category of aviation fondly referred to as MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) is in a volatile state and in need of some new blood and...
USED CRAFT: AESL CT/4 - Often confused with the Victa Airtourer or more justly the Aircruiser, the CT4B is in fact a faster, heavier and more powerful relative of both. The origins of the CT4 start with Henry Millicer and Victa, who came up with the fundamentals for ...

A WING AND A PRAYER - Pilots are a mad lot. Logical, totally committed to safety, but mad. Most of us will do anything for a truly unique experience that has to do with wings and I’ll put up my hand as the epitome of this contagion.
AROUND THE WORLD - Curiosity is a wonderful thing. It guides your attention to that which most interests you. Inevitably they are the things you’re most invested in. You’ve all experienced...
DOWN AND DIRTY - They are sometimes called unsung heroes, mythical creatures, life savers or just crazy cowboys. Sometimes we laugh at them, other times we beg for them but...
FLIGHT FILES: AIRBORNE XT-912 TUNDRA - To someone brought up to fly in a strictly aluminium saturated GA environment, a trike could initially seem a little ‘alternative’. But unleash that adventurous spirit you’ve been hiding away...
LEGAL: WHERE TO NOW FOR CIVIL AVIATION? - We have a new fearless leader in Canberra. Kevin 07 and his treasurer offsider have flagged a skinflint approach to Federal spending. “It’s inflation, stupid”. Kevin and Wayne have foreshadowed a five part plan to...

TRAINING THE TRAINERS - Flying training is a key sector of the aviation industry from both an economic and safety point of view. With the demand for pilots growing at a rapid rate...
OLD VERSUS NEW - With an ageing fleet spectacularly failing to attract young blood into aviation, isn’t it time to let go of the old and bring in the new?
OVER THE MOONEY - It was the perfect day for it. Miserable. Grey, wet and with the damp heaviness of a sponge waiting to be squeezed. Perfect for my introduction to Mooney’s latest high performance girl...
SUPERMAN OR SUPERSAFE? - To fly or not to fly, that is the question. Our high flying aviator, Rod Douglas, navigates cross-country and assesses whether his safety or his demanding schedule is more important. Safety first in a world without margins.
THE PASHA BULKER RESCUE - On June 8th, 2007, the bulk carrier Pasha Bulker grounded in severe storms on Nobby’s Beach in New South Wales. The following is an account of the helicopter rescue of 22 crew members off the stranded ship.

FLIGHT TEST: ROBIN R2160 - The Robin is a French designed aircraft originally manufactured in France as one of the Avio’ns Robin family.
FLIGHT FILES: THE SPARROWHAWK - The wonderful thing about aviation is that every look into the future is also a look into the past and the Sparrowhawk is a fine Australian example of when these two elements, past and future, merge together and create something special.
HIFLYER: THE NEXT GENERATION CIRRUS SR22 G3 - When a revolution washes through an industry it rarely emerges from its leading lights. Almost every real change comes from the very edge, a genuine innovation.
STUDENT: DO YOU KNOW THE WAY TO TIPPERARY? - As this series is approaching a length that Tolstoy would envy, and as Ali constantly reminds me that she is not getting any younger...
TRASH OR TREASURE? - I find shopping for a used aircraft about as exciting as shopping for socks in a second hand market. Old aircraft generally aren’t appealing to the eye, you’re never sure exactly what you are getting and they smell just a bit funky.

FLIGHT TEST: BOOMERANG - The Whitney Boomerang launch aircraft has recently arrived at its first home in WA and is creating much interest for its proud new owner, Min Stokes operator of Minovation Flight Training.
HI FLYER: THE HIGH END TBM - As I drove closer it became clear: there was not one, not two, but three majestic personal time machines sitting together on an Essendon ramp that’s usually reserved for the big iron...
LEGAL: FOOD FOR LEGAL THOUGHT - Some years ago I had a client who was a farmer who owned 25,000 acres on the Darling Downs in Queensland. The farmer was growing a good crop of weeds...
THE RUNAWAY BUYER - Leather interior, airbag seatbelts and metallic paint. With manufacturers struggling for pole position in new aircraft sales there is an unusual similarity emerging between the new aircraft market and the new car market.
STUDENT: FLYING BLIND BUT NOT MUTE - My long-suffering instructor Ali, has learnt long ago never to pre-empt my next flying lesson with any advice or pre-warnings should that lesson involve anything out of the ordinary.

FORCE FED-UP - It is my fervent belief (and no one else’s) that the more times you repeat something, the funnier it becomes.
JUST THE TICKET - She’s determined, always meets her deadlines for scant reward and was born into aviation. But, thus far, she’s restricted herself to GA.
OH THE FREEDOM OF FLYING - I never imagined I’d see the day. Fourteen captains of industry with responsibility for a couple of billion dollars in turnover, mouths agape at the thought. “Fly to Townsville in a light aircraft?” What a ludicrous proposition.
THE SNAZZY TASSIE SAFARI - After months of organisation and a few last minute changes, 11 helicopters in total were getting ready to depart from Helibiz at Moorabbin Airport and descend on Tasmania: nine R44’s and two AS350 Squirrels in all.
WASH ‘N GO - Go At first glance, it may sound like teaching your nana to suck eggs, but there is a right way and a wrong way to hose down your beloved machine. A recent CASA bulletin outlined the dangers of not following certain procedures, so read on and discover the correct way to wash an aircraft!