Innehållsförteckning för November 2023 från Pilot

Preflight I rather left the question of how quickly the LAA might turn around my Cub’s Permit validation dangling in the air in the last issue’s ‘Preflight’. It took two weeks last year due, I was eventually told, to LAA Engineering tripping over disparities in the climb rate recorded during the revalidation check flight and the propeller identification code recorded by my inspector. (I did point out the rate of climb of a 65hp Cub can vary from zero to 1,000fpm on a thermic day – and the embossed markings on the propeller that has been on the aeroplane for thirty years had become even harder to read after its recent refurbishment to pristine condition.) Having heard mutterings from a number of aircraft owners, operators and even LAA inspectors, I…

Labour’s failure to win former PM Boris Johnson’s Uxbridge seat at the by-election earlier this year contained one of those delicious political ironies that make politics so compelling. A policy introduced in 2015 by the then London Mayor Johnson was the bait in the trap that eight years later caused Labour to lose. The policy was London’s Ultra Low Emissions Zone, which Johnson had introduced to improve the air quality in the centre of the city, and which his successor, Sadiq Khan, was expanding to encompass the entire city, with added overtones of ‘net zero’ doctrine thrown in. The by-election was turned into a referendum on Ulez and the good people of outer west London said “not on your nelly”. The RAC made a freedom of information request in March…

Tri-Pacer tripped up Aircraft Type: Piper PA-22-150 Tri-PacerDate & Time: 25 April 2023 at 1324Commander’s Flying Experience: PPL, 339 hours (of which 93 were on type)Last 90 days: 3 hoursLast 28 days: 1 hour The aircraft arrived at Hamilton Farm Airstrip from White Waltham Airfield, landing on Runway 04. This flight was conducted by another pilot with the accident pilot flying as a passenger. The intention was for the two pilots to swap seats and roles for the flight back to White Waltham. Before departure both pilots and the airfield operator walked the length of the runway to inspect the conditions. They discussed the best direction for departure considering the obstacles, the condition of the runway as well as the wind direction, which was variable in direction but predominately from…

NOTABLE NOTES A Cirrus for China ... and possibly only China, as the Rotax engine three-seat SR20/22 lookalike doesn’t seem to have a place in the USA p8 NOTABLE NOTES Farm-strip A320 Ural Airlines plants another A320 in a farm field, after it ran out of fuel. Unbelievably, they plan to fly it out p9 NOTABLE NOTES B-N again! Reviving aircraft manufacture in the UK, Islander production jigs are moved to hangars at Bembridge p15 Red Bull racer aims for World Aerobatic Championship British Aerobatics has announced that Melanie Astles will represent Great Britain at the forthcoming World Advanced Aerobatic Championship at Jean Airport, Las Vegas, Nevada. The contest will take place from 24 Oct to 4 Nov, with the overall winner being crowned World Advanced Aerobatic Champion. Melanie is…

EASA proposes VTOL rules In a world first, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has just released an official ‘Opinion’ which proposes new rules for the operation of the new generation of vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) aircraft. The Opinion includes new regulations that will govern VTOL operations, flight crew licensing, rules of the air and air traffic management for manned air taxis capable of VTOL operations. It will also look to institute the necessary criteria and procedures for the certification and maintenance of unmanned aerial systems (UAS). Commenting on the proposal, EASA Executive Director Patrick Ky said “I am happy to release this Opinion to the European Commission, which is once again the first proposal on this topic to be issued worldwide. With this, we will achieve a…

Bugger! As I lazily circle above the strip it’s becoming increasingly apparent that no matter which runway I choose or which angle I approach from, one fact is irrefutable: the wind isn’t favouring any of them, and furthermore it’s right across the main strip and also quite strong. Double bugger. Why didn’t I pay attention to the doors? Of course, I don’t mean Jim Morrison’s popular LA-based beat combo, but the hangar doors. My Jodel D.9’s hangar has the same orientation as the main strip, which means that when the doors are open they are broadside to a ninety-degree crosswind, so a very simple metric I’ve used for the last thirteen years is that if I struggle to open the upwind door, the crosswind component is too much for safe…

Everybody knows that, don’t they? Unfortunately, it’s not always the case. My old RAF flying instructor nearly lost it in a Lightning due to disorientation when he put the landing light on during a nighttime approach in snow. Apparently, upon mentioning this to his colleagues they all said that everyone knows that. But was it written down for those who didn’t? No, apparently it wasn’t – people relied on others picking up such information as they went through training. It was assumed that everyone knows it, as they’ve all been through the same training system. But what about the person who was at the dentist that afternoon or the PPL student who changes school? Unless the examination covers absolutely every single aspect of a syllabus you can’t be absolutely certain…

There are occasions when I read some of the very fine articles written in this column and as a semi regular contributor I harumph and wonder what the hell I’m supposed to have learned from the entertaining content. As I was flying a lonely leg just last week having dropped off my son at Popham, I got to thinking that if you’re not learning something on every flight, I think you may be doing yourself a disservice. The driving equivalent of nearly falling asleep at the wheel. There is always time to practise something, or ask another pilot what they would do in a given circumstance. Leaning? How many people are scared to do that? I’ll tell you; loads. Normally low-hours folks but I have no idea why (I used…

THE PAN AM PRIZE! silentpooldistillers.com has joined Pilot to present our Star Letter writer the gloriously indulgent prize of a litre bottle each of Pan Am gin and vodka in a Pan Am building presentation box STAR LETTER Crashworthy design I used to be a private pilot a number of years ago, flying C152s, Piper Warriors and the PA-18 but due to costs gave up. However, I have retained an interest in flying and read Pilot every month. I have followed the advances in safety in new designs, especially the recovery parachute for light aircraft – and that makes me wonder about what the CAA and FAA have done to make light aircraft crashes survivable in 2023. It appears that Piper and Cessna plus others still produce aircraft based upon…

My first Cairo trip was for a full week and so unforgettable I still remember the names of half that crew. Prior to this I had never understood why there should be a whole branch of archaeology called Egyptology. Surely ruined buildings and excavated junk were much the same wherever they were found? But after this visit I became absolutely fascinated, buying books on the subject and watching every relevant television programme to learn more. Once there, we obviously had to explore. First stop was Gizeh, for the best-known ‘Great’ pyramids and Sphinx. Back then the latter was still buried up to its armpits and other parts in sand – you probably know the ditty? But the scars and chips on his face from the musket balls of Napoleon’s army…