Schofields Flying Club Ltd - 1 Tower Road Bankstown Airport 2200
(PO Box 200, Georges Hall, NSW 2198 AUSTRALIA)
Phone: +61 2 9773 3611 Email: mail@schofields-flying-club.com.au
SCHOFIELDS FLYING CLUB NEWSLETTER - NOVEMBER 2006
Welcome to the November 2006 edition of Schofields News. There are the usual plus some new features - President's Notes by Mike Allsop, Visit to the Airbus Factory by Peter Blackbourn, Airmanship by Peter Kestle, X-File X068 (Macchi C.205N Orione) by Anthony Coleiro, Pat Watson Rejoins Schofields by Mike Allsop, RAAF Richmond Airshow by Nelson Crawshaw, Fly & Buy Day at Schoies by Sheri Crawshaw, Summer Engine Management by Scott Pringle, Tassie Club Flyaway 2006 Update by Sheri Crawshaw, and Last Word from Latrodectus. As well, there's the usual administrivia that you've come to expect. So, read on and enjoy!
Schoies fleet on 17 December, 1903 NEW MEMBERS FOR OCTOBER: Welcome to Kim McKay, Praneel Chand, Sara Sullivan, Gamal Tadros, Francis Mitchell, Richard Mulford, Anna Carew, Adam Kung, Stephen Tollenaar, Udaya Wellawatte, Thomas Huggler and Howard Abraham.
DUTY PILOT DRAW FOR SEPTEMBER: The Volunteer Duty Pilot Monthly Draw for September ($50 free flying) went to Karen Heugh and Leonie Mazumdar. Congratulations and thanks for your continued support, ladies! [The Duty Pilot draw for October will be announced shortly.]
INTERCLUB COMPETITION ROUND 3 will be held at Warnervale on Saturday, 4 November and will be hosted by the Central Coast Aero Club. Hopefully geography will mean a good roll-up for this event and we expect to take an instructor and at least 10 competitors. You can now download full details (150kB pdf). Pilots interested in competing should e-mail John Hook. More...
FROM THE TOWER: The October/November edition of the Bankstown ATC news circular has been published. This is a bi-monthly source of news and information to keep you informed of interesting and important events happening in and around the airport. Download your copy HERE (180kB pdf).
MULTI-ENGINE TRAINING: For members who want a multi engine endorsement, read on. Duchess VH-XHT is now on line at the Club and just waiting to be flown. Call us on 02 9773 3611 to book your place in the Ground School - attend the course - pass the questionnaire (it's easy), then commence flying training with two fans spinning. Once endorsed you can Private Hire XHT. Terms and conditions apply. More...
DIARY DATES: The Club has a number of social and flying activities planned for 2006. You can check full details on our Coming Events page. Below is a summary of the programme for November and December 2006:
| Sat | 04 | November | Interclub Competition Details | Warnervale |
| Sun | 05 | November | Duchess Ground School Details | Clubhouse |
| Sun | 12 | November | Duchess Ground School Details | Clubhouse |
| Mon | 20 | November | Committee Meeting | Clubhouse |
| Sun | 26 | November | Last Light Drinks | Clubhouse |
| Sat | 09 | December | Club Xmas Party | Clubhouse |
| Mon | 18 | December | Committee Meeting | Clubhouse |
| Tue | 26 | December | Tassie Tour departs | Clubhouse |
| Sun | 31 | December | Last Light Drinks | Clubhouse |
Mike Allsop
F ellow members, well here we are in November - after a good October and a hellish September we are hoping that spring will continue to be kind. We lost a lot of hours due to the adverse weather in September and to a lesser extent in October - rain, wind and heat all in one month make it best for many of us to stay on the ground. That didn't stop us driving the business forward however; there was plenty happening on the ground both for pilot members and new students alike. In particular our Jabiru workshops were very well attended and fun for all - especially those die-hards seen gathering under the small wing of the Jab during a downpour! This aircraft is now starting to accumulate some good flying hours from workshop attendees and others attracted to the new technology and low cost of this type.
In our traditional Piper fleet, our IFR upgrade is now complete with all IFR singles now equipped with Garmin GNS430 GPS/Nav/Comm. HQR is now resplendent with its GPS and second Nav/Com, bringing it into line with SFK, SFR, SVK, JRY and LSG. Have you done our GPS course yet? This is great for both VFR and IFR pilots (IFR do extra sessions), and is highly recommended.
Club standard: Garmin GNS430 Going on a trip somewhere? Make sure you are up to speed with this level of instrumentation and the added safety and flexibility it can provide, and remember to stay current with it. For the really keen there is still time to get your PIFR in before Christmas if you get in now!
Towards the top end of the scale, we have Duchess XHT on line for initial twin endorsements, ME IFR training as well as private hire. We have access to several other Duchesses at Bankstown, so we are not limited to the availability of just the one aircraft. Looking to move up to twins? Maybe just interested in what it's all about? Join us in our multi-engine ground course / workshop in early November. Even if you do not intend to fly a twin all the time the disciplines you learn will add to your store of aviation experience and professionalism. The Duchess is a great aircraft to fly. We have had members choose to do their PIFR in the Duchess even though the majority of their intended IFR flying was in the Arrow or Archer. The costs work out closer than you might think because the transit times in a Duchess are considerably lower than the singles. Our multi and IFR instructors would love to discuss the options with you.
As always, there is a lot happening at the Club and October was no exception. Our Tassie tourists had a fabulous briefing session on October 14th complete with a run over the entire track using Google Earth.
Duchess XHT now on line at Schoies That same day we also had a "fly and buy" discount outlet tour for members, partners and friends. A huge success but exhausting for even the hardened shoppers I am told.
The month concluded with our Club Competition being held here at YSBK early in the morning October 29th, with hearty breakfast following. We had about 10 competitors, 2 air judges, 2 ground judges, miscellaneous cat-herders and the ever helpful BK TWR and BAL airport ops folks all keenly involved. We had to get the comp over by 8:30am before traffic started to build, and this worked to perfection. Many thanks also to Nelson and Sheri Crawshaw and Peter Whiteman for the catering back at the Club.
A reminder on the subject of discount flying. We have several discount programs available to you, and in the main they are cumulative - you can benefit more than once (eg for a long mid week cross country etc). These get applied automatically to your account as you rack up the eligible events. See the website for details or call Suzanne or Nelson at the Club. It is all about giving something back to you as a keen member supporting us.
Finally, as Christmas approaches, remember that we can sell gift vouchers for friends, relatives or yourself for a flying treat of whatever kind you like. It doesn't have to be a TIF. A short run of aerobatics maybe? A blast in the Duchess? Maybe that Jabiru check-out you missed. Just let Suzanne or Vivianne know what you would like and they will fix it for you.
And on that note, I hope to see you at the Club sometime during November. Safe and happy flying.
Mike Allsop
President SFC
Club Vice President Peter Blackbourn and wife Vivianne are at present on holidays in Europe. As the 'official Schoies Foreign Correspondent', Peter has provided this report on his visit to the Airbus Factory.
A380 touching down
The second aviation activity of our European holiday was at Toulouse in France when we visited the Airbus factory. This was arranged from Oz over a month before our departure with two seats on an English speaking tour. Having previously visited the Boeing factory at Everett in Washington USA I was interested in the comparison. Whilst Airbus had no DVD or video material, books (mainly in French), T-Shirts, caps along with key rings etc were plentiful in the souvenir shop. The show of hardware on the factory floor was the same as Boeing. BIG and enjoyable. Size does count at these places.
After sign in, our tour started with a briefing about the A380s first flight in a mock up of the control room used for flight testing. This had numerous video panels of the flight and also included the glass cockpit for instrumentation used by the flight crew. If it's good enough for our Jabiru, then it's good enough for an A380 was my thought at the time. The interesting part here was that the testing principles that were described are the same that we as private pilots can relate to. Angles of attack, touch and goes, stalls - where the stick is pulled back until the aircraft starts to fall (no wing drops here). A slightly "tweaked" version of Microsoft's Flight Simulator of the A380 was used for their simulator work.The next part was a bus tour of the immediate site with time spent at the assembly hanger. There were three A380's in the construction process. Singapore Airlines being the first for delivery (still work in progress). Next was Qantas (an Australian airline) and then Emirates with the biggest order of 40 units on the books. With the enormous hangars used it was hard to get a feel for size here however, with a tail plane that itself is equal to a seven story building, it does give one an idea.
The Airbus factory in Toulouse We were told the maximum passenger number for an aircraft is based on the number of people that can be evacuated in a 90 second period. During the passenger evacuation trial, 873 participants left the A380 MSN7 in 90 seconds with only 8 of 16 doors in operation. The standard configuration is for 555 PAX. Each airline sets its own seating number as part of the order and for Qantas is was said to be 540, Singapore 480 and Emirates 650. A bit of variety.
The A380 has an empty weight of 260 tonnes and a max weight of 560 tonnes using 20 wheels in its main undercarriage across four main bogies to spread the load over the runway. Ten airports around the globe are now A380 capable with this number is to increase to 60 by 2010. What did impress me was its rotation speed of 145Kts using just over 1000 metres of RWY. Not bad for a mother this big. Typical range is 8,000 NM.
The cost for an A380 depends on a number of variations as selected by the purchaser. Engine make, seating configuration, number ordered etc. As a guide you can expect to pay around US$285M. At that price let's get two! It was certainly an impressive display of state of the art aviation.
Finally, the Concorde was a very popular static display attraction but with a 3 month waiting period this will be for another time. So, if you ever find yourself in the Toulouse area then the Airbus factory is certainly worth the visit.
Peter Blackbourn
Schoies Foreign Correspondent
Peter Kestle
Aviation safety is the key to your success. A safe flight means an enjoyable flight. One of the main ingredients for such a flight is having sufficient fuel. Apart from the planning and loading of the required fuel, this includes the pre-flight or daily inspection.
Not only do pilots check the quantity of fuel, fuel caps security, but also the fuel for quality. Stop and double check yourself. After you have drained the fuel and looked at the contents of your sample, look at the fuel drain. Have you ever noticed the fuel drain still leaking? You will see it in the Cherokees quite easily, even from a short distance, by observing a damp stain on the main tyres, or a green stain on the wheel spat. It is very important that you ensure that this drain is properly closed before flight.
Fuel drain This is easily achieved by twisting the bayonets of the tank drains until the flow is stopped. It may only be a slow drip, but even that can be a problem. If you were to do your daily inspection, for the first flight of the day, and found one of these drains leaking, this probably means the drain has leaked from the last time it was checked, through that flight and overnight. This is a definite waste of fuel.
Another key point of success for airmanship is that of LOOKOUT. How many times did you hear your Instructor say "Lookout, Left, Centre, Right"? That was first introduced to you during your first flying lessons. Hopefully, you would have maintained that discipline faithfully throughout your flying life. But what if you are not in the training area? What if you are on a cross-country and will just be adjusting heading by 20 or 30 degrees? It is quite common to use airports as turning points. Have you considered other traffic in the area doing the same? Are there any gliders using the airport?
It is vital to check all clear every time you make a turn, whether in the circuit, in the training area or at a turning point on a holiday trip. Lookout and beware. The Alerted See & Avoid system will only work if all pilots maintain a vigilant lookout and observe the 'check clear' prior to a turn, thereby avoiding blind spots during such a turn.
I hope that this helps clear a few things up.
Peter Kestle
CFI, CP and HAAMC
Macchi C.205N Orione
In 1941 Mario Castoldi from Macchi drew up a proposal for a new high altitude interceptor fighter based on the 1,475 hp Daimler-Benz DB605A-1 engine to the Italian Air Ministry. Two other companies tended proposals for a fighter based on this engine.
The proposal was to use the centre and aft fuselage as well as the tail of the C.202 Folgore fighter, mate to this a wing of greater span and attach the new engine. This new fighter was now designated C.205N (N for new) and dubbed Orione.The first of two prototypes flew on 1 November 1942 and was armed with four machine guns. The second prototype flew on 19 May 1943 and had 20mm cannons fitted instead. They performed well and attained a speed of over 600 km/h. There was an initial order for 1,200 aircraft. As the war progressed it became apparent that introducing a new fighter at that critical stage was not practical. The order was subsequently cancelled.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
- The Complete Book of Fighters - William Green Gordon Swanborough
- War Planes of the Second World War: Fighters Volume Two - William Green
Patrick Watson
After nearly three years in the hallowed halls of academia at the University of New South Wales, Pat has accepted our offer to return to the clearer skies and greener fields of flying as Chief Pilot and Chief Flying Instructor at Schoies. Pat was the CP/CFI at Schoies from December 1998 until early 2004 when he left to join the UNSW as Director of Flight Operations. He rejoins us on 20 November.
Peter Kestle has done a great job for the Club in his capacity as acting CP/CFI, and has enabled us to re-activate all the advanced training permissions on our AOC. Peter will remain as an instructor with the Club, and is particularly keen to help Pat take the advanced training programme to the next level. Many thanks Peter.Pat will be charged with reinvigorating the operational side of the Club, extending our training activities and building our market reach in training services. While being a familiar face around the Club in his capacity as a testing officer, Pat has always enjoyed the Club spirit of Schoies and everything that we represent to the aviation fraternity.
A few words from Pat:
| "I have attended a few recent Club social functions and have noticed the vitality and esprit de corps that exists at Schoies, helped along by the excellent organisation and catering on the social side of things that sets the standard to be aspired to by operations. "I am looking forward to renewing acquaintances and meeting new members and students who have joined since I left - and, of course, catching up with all of my old friends. "Please drop in to introduce yourself or just say G'day. My office will always be open to anyone who has any problem with any aspect of their flying or for anyone who just wants to talk about flying in general. "More next month on some initiatives to build and enhance our training operations. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions or ideas, please let me know." |
Welcome back Pat!
Mike Allsop
President, Schofields Flying Club
F-111 at full noise
It is true to say that Schoes members will turn up anywhere, anytime around the globe when news gets out an air show is on. RAAF Richmond was no exception on the weekend of 21st and 22nd October 2006. Every step taken presented a familiar face - the name - brain can't work fast enough, so it's "hi, howya doing, great show, yeh, catcha later". But who cares, we are there to imbibe the purity of aviation and experience the F111 and F/A-18 dance through the cloudy skies screaming "hey, Warrior, betcha can't do this".
So what was the show really like, well most of us have see the F-111 and FA18 strut their stuff on many occasions, and I hear there is one of us who gets somewhat emotional watching the F-111 "dump and burn" and the F/A-18 fly at an impossible angle of attack, but there is a whole lot more to see if you fancy a stroll to the far flung corners of the airfield. Take for instance the model aircraft guys, some
Wheels first, prop second very serious machinery on display here, jet aircraft with 2.5m and 3m wing span, carbon fibre competition aircraft fitted with 160cc flat 2 engines - that's the size of your average lawn mower engine? Whilst these impressive aircraft can do anything the big boys can do, the "pilots" when faced with the challenge of cross wind landings do manage to strike the runway wheels first, prop second, much to the delight of our treasurer, who continually muttered , at the top of his voice, "bulk strip"!
And then there was the C-17, with four of those really annoying, politically correct, environmentally friendly fan jet engines, "could somebody please light the F/A-18 candle"? If you can tolerate the silence you would enjoy the performance.
Mustang, Spitfire, gently floating above the airfield emitting those glorious sounds of the V12 Merlin engine, Vampire, Meteor and Canberra, giving a glimpse of pure jet classics from the past, choppers in battle dress, C-130s and DC-3s, and a Boeing 707.
Wouldn't it be a horrible job, flying around in one of these gems?
Nelson Crawshaw
General Manager, Schofields Flying Club
A bleary eyed band of ladies, some with husbands in tow, arrived at Schoies around day break (not quite, but 7am certainly felt like it) on Saturday 14th October. The guys immediately made themselves scarce while the girls checked they were "credit card ready" for the day. Carol Rock panicked when she realised she'd changed handbags and left her purse on the kitchen bench. "Don't worry", said Helen Smith. "I've got Grahame's credit card!" And so the day began....
A refreshing glass of Chardonnay Our coach picked us up at the Club and the first stop was Berlei in Granville. More men's undies were purchased than anything else and I think the girls had it sorted. But were they were buying presents for the boys, or was it a bit of practice before we hit the rest of the shops on the tour?
We headed for the next outlet, Perfume Forever in Rosehill, and then on to Sportscraft, TFS Clothing, Sandler, and Shoes 2000. The bus was full of shopping bags, wafting perfume, clothes being held up and compared and, of course, lots of laughing.
Grahame's card was looking a bit tired, but Kerry Allsop kindly offered us all a swipe of Mike's. Where was our Treasurer, Peter Cunningham, when we needed him? (Maybe we were better off without Peter there to remind us we were dangerously close to exceeding the budget.)
At this point our coach driver called for reinforcements (he should have been calling for a GNS 430 as he was hopelessly lost at one stage, driving around and around the same streets. We didn't want to stop at Bunnings, but the Toy Warehouse was eluding us.
Lunch was a welcomed break at South's Junior Leagues Club with roast of the day, a refreshing glass of Chardonnay and, for some, a wistful glance at the poker machines as we hurried back to the coach.
The day was hot, about 37°C. We all commented on how rough and uncomfortable it would be flying over Sydney but, no doubt, the boys would take it as a challenge. So, in that true Schoies spirit, we soldiered on to the next shop!
Not only a total indulgence, but a very clever ploy The afternoon saw us hit Manchester Madness in Surry Hills where Fran Cahill made her mark, and Beach Culture in Alexandria. (Not all the boys on the Tassie Flyaway will be wearing Speedos, but some now have new board shorts.)
Gift & Home Warehouse, and Elite Luggage in Caringbah were also popular. But we saved the best till last - Dolci D'oro Chocolates were a delight and the free samples were not only a total indulgence, but a very clever ploy, as our shopping baskets were filled with tasty delights.
However, even chocolate and the champagne and orange juice provided by the tour couldn't keep us going one step further. We were flagging and headed for home.
By this time it was 5:30pm and the Tassie Flyaway Presentation was due to start at the Club. We'd been shopping for 10 hours, and even for the dedicated, this was enough for one day!
We shared the coach and the day with our Tour Guide, Stacey, who really looked after us, and some lovely ladies from Picton - now those girls can shop!
Total spend for the day was approximately $12,600, shared over 32 credit cards (3 of them belonging to Grahame Smith!)
If you'd like us to organise an outing for the "Pilots Partners" just drop an email suggestion to Sheri Crawshaw on mail@schofields-flying-club.com.au. It doesn't have to be a shopping trip and we're happy to include the kids in activities!
Sheri Crawshaw
Director of Marketing & Promotions
Scott Pringle
As summer approaches many of us plan to do that little bit of extra flying or take a trip or two to enjoy the bright skies and long days. This presents a vastly different environment for us than our more usual circuit bashing or Sydney Scenics in cool air and at altitudes below 2500 feet. It also places demands on us to manage the machinery well in these conditions. Here are a few tips to keep our engines well managed is this environment.
Why is this important? Well, as a convenience to you we would rather that the engines start when required and keep running smoothly and efficiently, and as a consideration for your fellow members and the Club we would wish to optimise fuel and oil burn and maximise engine longevity. Remember that considerable damage can be caused by clumsy or inattentive engine management in hot conditions, even to the extent of requiring an engine change prematurely and at great expense to us all.Start-up
- Do not over-prime. The engine will need priming when "cold", but probably no more than 1 squirt if recently operated.
- For hot Arrows, run some cool fuel through the system with the fuel pump on, mixture rich and throttle cracked for just a few seconds before going back to lean and a normal fuel injected Lycoming start.
- Oil pressure when hot is likely to be in the lower end of the green arc; this is normal.
- Pay attention to oil temperature while taxying. Higher revs or run-up into wind might be required to give a sufficient flow of cooling air.
- Ensure that you have used your "P" Chart for hot/heavy/short runway environments, making sure you have left plenty of safety margin. High density altitude with heat will rob take-off performance dramatically (engines and wings).
- Once established on climb, keep an eye on the oil temperature (and CHT, if fitted). You may have to keep the nose attitude a bit lower to give a bit more airspeed for cooling purposes while still providing climb performance. Make sure you are climbing. Also, make sure you are climbing with mixture "Rich" when under 8000 feet. Leaning for maximum power at altitude for climb purposes can do more harm than good.
- In the cruise, lean to 100oF rich of peak EGT when above, say, 4000 feet. Leave it all "Rich" any lower than that to avoid any risk of overheating.
- Pay attention to EGT (if fitted), CHT (if fitted) and Oil Temp as part of the usual CLEAROFF checks in cruise.
- Make sure you are familiar with the leaning technique on your aircraft. None of the Club aircraft have electronic systems for optimising power and fuel flow, so keep to the basic, careful, prudent, "Rich is better than Lean" philosophy if in any doubt. Watch your fuel consumption though - planning figures assume you have leaned correctly.
- On descent, progressively richen the mixture until "Full Rich" by 3000 feet as a general rule.
- Ensure full rich as part of your normal pre-landing checks. Remember also to double check the "Ts & Ps" for normal range.
- Watch oil temp (and EGT/CHT if fitted) on hot days to ensure that circuit work is not overheating the engine. Lower power on downwind will give the engine a chance to cool a bit more than if you continued to bore along at cruise power or more. This is just good airmanship, summer or not.
- Again, just keep an eye on oil temperature to ensure sufficient cooling air is being generated. You might have to increase revs a bit, but don't sacrifice the brakes either!
- Normal mag check on shutdown at 1000 rpm, final check of the Ts and Ps then mixture to idle cutoff as usual.
Scott Pringle
Director - Fleet Operations & Maintenance
T he final Tassie Fly-Away meeting was held on Saturday 14th October, with a good turn out of pilots, partners and passengers. For those of you who missed it, Wayne Russell "flew" through the whole trip on Google Earth. It's a great way to view unfamiliar airstrips and terrain from above.
If you would like to spend some time prior to the trip tracking each point,
call Wayne for information on how to download the program, or just type earth.google.com into your web browser, and follow the prompts.Some important points to consider and remember for a safe and enjoyable trip:
- In Launceston and Hobart, don't hesitate to tell the Control Tower, you are "unfamiliar with the area" ~ they are there to help you. If you don't ask for this guidance they will assume you know the area.
- When you are flying between the mainland and islands, call Melbourne Centre on the appropriate frequency and arrange for an "Overwater Sked" (schedule) for about every 15 minutes - this will help other pilots following you and also allows Air Services to track your progress over water.
- All aircraft pilots and passengers MUST carry Life Jackets. These jackets are to be worn while flying over water. Obtaining Life Jackets for your aircraft is YOUR responsibility.
- All aircraft MUST carry their own Tie Down Kit ~ make sure you check this is available in your aircraft prior to departing Bankstown.
- For those of you who are purchasing High Visibility Jackets from Wayne, these will be issued to you on Flinders Island. It is assumed all other pilots will have their own jacket. Where ever you need your ASIC card, you, as pilot, will need to wear this fluro jacket.
- In Launceston, we will have very limited room to park aircraft, so be prepared to push your plane around and up tight against the fence, so we can all get in.
- Embroidered flyaway tee-shirts and jackets will be given out to everyone in Launceston, when we'll have a couple of group photos taken.
- Don't forget to make arrangements for your car while away on the trip. We don't have unlimited secure parking at the Club. Consider having someone bring you and your gear to the club on departure day.
- Small typo in the booklet given out at the meeting - DATES are CORRECT, however, some days may not match the date, e.g. Friday 6th January (6th is a Saturday) so correct information should read - Saturday 6th January. Sorry about this folks.
One last comment ~ be prepared, READ your emails and all the information Nelson and Wayne have taken so much time preparing for you. Do your homework! Consider involving your partner and passengers ~ ask them to take responsibility for details such as how will you be transported to accommodation, when should you be ready for a tour pick up, what tour you're doing, who are you sharing with etc. (most of these details have already been provided in the trip booklet, on invoices, in emails etc.) You don't have to do it all yourself ~ share the load.
It's your holiday - enjoy it, but remember, Nelson and Wayne are paying to be on this trip too ~ there are no freebies ~ so by all means talk to them if you have any concerns, they'll be more than happy to help, but take responsibility for your situation and make sure everyone has a great trip. Keep Safe!
Sheridan Crawshaw
Director of Marketing & Promotion
FEEDBACK AND CONTRIBUTIONS: Well, that's your Newsletter for this month. With help (in the form of contributions) it might be possible to continue to produce a newsletter every month. Don't forget to check the latest news on the Club's website at www.schofields-flying-club.com.au. Contributions, comments, feedback, and suggestions to latrodectus@schofields-flying-club.com.au.
THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH: Learn from the mistakes of others. Life isn't long enough to make all of them yourself.
Latrodectus
© 2003 Schofields Flying Club Ltd. All Rights Reserved.