CFC 1

Curtin Flying Club (Inc.) www.curtinflyingclub.com.au

Volume 15 Issue 1 May 2014 3 President’s Report

Greetings Curtin Flying Club Members It’s a pleasure to introduce myself to you as your club president for 2014. Taking over from Jake will be a hard act to follow and I hope to be able to live up to your expectations. At this moment in time several issues confront the club that will need addressing. These include declining club membership, low aircraft usage and the unavoidable rising costs of flying itself. The last of these is pretty much insurmountable, but rest assured, we will do as much as we can to keep economics as viable as possible. For the other two, I urge members to make use of our wonderful assets and at the same time make every effort to market the club to fellow pilots – the more members we have actively flying, the easier it is for the club to maintain low costs and a good fleet. In addition, the committee members will be exploring various initiatives to address these matters. You will be kept updated on our progress. When it comes to aircraft usage, you will notice that there is still an imbalance between CYQ and KXW. Usage of the latter is increasing gradually, and this is with great thanks to the efforts of Andrew Eldridge running his G1000 course to open this aircraft up to more users. Andrew’s efforts are greatly appreciated. KXW is a fabulous aircraft and I encourage anyone who has not made the move, to attend Andrew’s course, do the check flight and get going. You will not look back.

Likewise, if you are considering further training, you may wish to consider using one of the fleet for your IFR or NVFR training courses. Headsets for our aircraft have also been a point of discussion. The current ones are rather long in the tooth, and a decision has been taken to retire these. They will not be replaced. I take it as read that us pilots are already in possession of our own and require further headsets for passengers. These can be hired from RACWA at $10 each. Please ask at the counter. Club lifejackets will still be available in the lockers under the usual hire terms. Some unfortunate news is that Andrew Peterson, the club’s treasurer, intends to step down from this role in the next two months due to the workload of his professional life. A replacement for Andrew is needed and the committee has also taken the decision to source a part-time bookkeeper to deal with the week-by-week management of the accounts. Should any member feel qualified, or know someone interested, please contact either myself or Peter Taylor. Your suggestions will be very gratefully received. I would like to thank Andrew for his great efforts looking after the accounts over the past months. He will be sorely missed. Finally, I’d like to thank the hard-working committee for their on-going endeavours. As members, please feel free to contact me with any concerns or suggestions on service improvement. Best wishes,

Malc. In This Issue

1. President’s Report 2. Secretary’s Notes 3. Financial Report 4. Flying Stars 5. Member stories - 6. Housekeeping 7. Purchasing fuel outside of Jandakot

CFC 2

Secretary’s Notes

New Flying Members: Alastair Campbell------PPL-----------------277 hours Mike McCubbin--------ATPL-------------10600 hours Michael Hossen--------PPL-------------------50 hours Blaze Jasper------------CPL-----------------160 hours Yale Simpson----------ATPL-------------16400 hours Ilan Silberstein-----------PPL------------------70 hours Ryan Stokes------------ATPL--------------6800 hours Marco Surace-----------CPL-----------------280 hours Welcome to you all! We currently have 83 members renewed and new this year. There are 18 members outstanding from last year, and 10 resigned. Welcome to you all! It has been good to see some of the old members back flying, but we need more flying hours on both aircraft. Cheers and have fun up there Peter Taylor Financial Statement This is a summary of the financial statement for the months of July to October and YTD so far for 2013. Should any member require further details, please contact Andrew Peterson andrew@rfidtiming.com

Profit and Loss Statement January - December 2013

Total YTD

Income , $140,446.25 Cost of Sales $85,827.56

Gross Profit $54,618.69

Expenses $6,468.53

Operating Profit $48,150.16

Other Income $2,621.24

Net Profit / Loss $50,662.31

Flying Stars This item recognises the members who have contributed most to recent utilisation of our aircraft from July to October.

January CYQ KXW Dr MP Roberts 6.3 C Bailey 4.0 Terry Mott & Luke Bock 2.6 ea Mike McCubbin 9.2 Etnan Oost 5.0 Mark Dawson 3.1

February CYQ KXW Sam Juers 4.0 Leanne McKenzie 3.8 Dr MP Roberts 3.6 Jimmy Di Menna 5.4 Rob van Hamersveld 4.0 Bernie Nelson & Yale Simpson 3.6 ea

March CYQ KXW Ilan Silberstein 4.4 Leanne McKenzie 4.1 DR MP Roberts 2.9 Rob van Hamersveld 2.1 Andrew Peterson 6.1 Bernie Nelson 3.6 Peter Michell 3.0 We have a great fleet, so please make the most of it!

CFC 3

SAAA WA Regional Fly-In Denmark March 2014

I had received information from Rob Slater from Champagne PC Services that the long weekend of March the 1st, 2nd and 3rd was to be set aside for the annual SAAA Regional Fly-In hosted by the Albany Chapter and that a total of 31 aircraft were due to fly in on the Saturday for a weekend of flying activities, so Club Members Bernie Nelson and myself would plan a flight down there. With us "retired" people, timing is not a great issue so it was decided that we would fly down on Friday the 28th February and plan a flight down to The Lily Windmill near the Stirling Ranges as rumour had it that the owner Pleun Hitzert is building some more accommodation in the form of an old WW2 DC3. From there, we would then fly directly south so that we could do a photographic run along what I consider some of the best coastline in Australia back into Albany for a fuel stop, then along the West Cape Howe National Park coastline again and back up into Denmark (YDEK). With KXW and accommodation booked for that weekend, we planned for an Armadale (ARE)departure for Friday morning the 28th. and that I would be flying the Armadale (ARE) to The Lily sector. So with a "one finger line" area forecast, ENE winds at 15 kts and CAVOK all the way down (brilliant!),our departure on RWY 06R was at 0833. Once through the steps, we settled into our assigned flight plan altitude level and tracked to Williams, then onto Wagin (YWGN) and were overhead at 0937. From Wagin, our track took us over Katanning (YKNG) and then onto The Lily Windmill where RWY 09 was the choice and arrival time was 1012.

KXW parked at end of RWY 09 We wandered over and saw Pleun busy setting up the permanent wheel jack foundations on the DC3. These jack frames will hold up the aircraft undercarriage and keep the weight off the tyres.

Setting up undercarriage permanent jack frames With the kettle on and coffee brewing, we listened to Pleun's wealth of information on this south west area. He certainly is a man of vision and after coffee, he showed us around his new venture with the inside accommodation well underway. (I wonder what the wife will say when I tell her that I have booked a romantic getaway at the new DC3 accommodation!!).

Pleun and Rob

CFC 4

Accommodation progress It was now Bernie's turn as PIC for The Lily to south coast, Albany (YABA) and Denmark (YDEK) sector which would give me a chance to do some aerial photography and our overhead departure was 1138. The skies were clear with light ESE winds, so decided to fly over the top of the Stirling Ranges which is a great view.

On climb out over Stirling Range Retreat Once over the top and past the ranges we began our descent and tracked south to Hassell Beach and then along to Two People Bay. This south coast is magnificent to photograph.

Beautiful Hassell Beach

Little Beach at Two People Bay From Two People Bay we tracked around Cape Vancouver and past the Maitraya Resort and around to Ledge Point (north end of King George Sound) and photographed the "Awhina" shipwreck, then across the sound to Bald Head and around to the Gap before heading to Albany for our refuel stop and some lunch (fresh ham and salad rolls made by my lovely wife Mien)at 1245. This aviator is well looked after!!.

Albany refuel and lunch stop From Albany, it is only a short fifteen minute flight via the West Cape Howe National Park coastline and we joined overhead for RWY 09, at 1355.

West Cape Howe National Park

CFC 5

With our aircraft secured and registering with the SAAA People, we managed to secure a lift into town with one of the locals. As always, country hospitality is great. Once checked into our accommodation it was off to the Denmark Bowling Club and after chatting to the locals and Club Captain, we managed to obtain some bowling balls, jacks and mats, we set about bowling a few ends.

Bowling a few ends to work up a thirst Saturday evening was the SAAA Club BBQ and it was well attended and it was interesting listening to other flyers' stories. It was a broad mix and they flew in from Southern Cross, Esperance, Geraldton, Serpentine and of course Albany.

BBQ time and a cleansing ale!!

BBQ gathering at sunset

Another couple (Mary and Andrew Cotterell) flew a Foxbat from White Gum Farm near York who help run the Sky Sports Flying School which is in the Country Airstrip Guide. Anyone is welcome to call in, so it will be another destination to check out.

Mary and Andrew in front of their Foxbat There was also a magnificently worked over 1978 model Cessna C182Q VH-VJR which had extended wings and also small Canard Wings in the front. The owner (JJ) said that this aircraft stalls at 38 knots. This would be the perfect "truck" to have. Plenty of power, lift, good load and a low stalling speed. He would not part with it!!.

JJ's C182Q

Note the Canard Wing

CFC 6

The majority of aircraft were various Vans RV models in both tricycle and tail wheel versions and were works of art.

"Flying" the Curtin Flag

Aircraft display at Denmark

Aircraft at the SAAA Fly-In The Saturday evening BBQ venue was well attended with thanks to Ian Tippett for making his magnificent hanger available to the SAAA Group and with a donation of $18.00 for the meat pack, it gave you admission to the BBQ plate. Drinks were all BYO and it was just great being able to mix with the other members and listening to their stories and where they came from. Bernie and I went up to the "loft" to check out how the "other half" lives and with a kitchen with a view to die for and the very comfortable lounge setting.

I was hoping that my LOTTO numbers might have come good, but looking at the Sunday morning paper numbers, I had to cancel my deposit on the hanger next door!!. The weather gods were not very kind on the Sunday morning with fog and low visibility together with strengthening southerly winds, made it very difficult to put on an air display and late afternoon, the formation group managed to do a fly by, so a bit disappointing as a lot of work goes into these type of flying events. Monday morning greeted us with low cloud (overcast at 2700 ft),8000 VIS and winds SSE, so we decided to depart later in the morning, hoping the cloud base would lift. After a brief phone call to the aviation forecaster, the cloud would lift later in the morning, so our overhead departure for Denmark was 1112 and commenced our track west via Walpole. From there, we tracked to Northcliffe, then up towards Nannup and finally broke free of the low cloud abeam Greenbushes and headed for our Bunbury fuel stop. Then it was off to Jandakot via the usual coastal route and with the ATIS dialled up we joined downwind for RWY 24R and touched down at 1405. It was a great weekend of flying and we traversed some of the best coastal scenery in this country.

Rob van Hamersveld A quick flight over Fraser Island Having arrived at Hervey Bay to visit my wife’s cousin and family on a Friday evening we only had the Saturday morning in which to have a quick look around before heading back to Brisbane that afternoon. I was interested in seeing Fraser Island, considered to be the largest sand island in the world, while we were there. It normally takes at least a day to get over to the world heritage listed Fraser Island and have a brief look around. Not having that luxury I had earlier made contact with the one and only flying training organisation at Hervey Bay airport,

CFC 7

Peter in front of the Piper Challenger Aerodynamic Flight Academy. I arranged for a flight in their Piper Challenger along with flight instructor, over the Island. Luckily I had my ASIC with me as this was the only bit identification I had that linked me to being able to hop into a plane and take to the skies. My licence, log book etc I had left behind back in Perth. I hadn’t until the day before thought about taking a flight while away on holidays. While the ladies enjoyed a bit of shopping and engaged in “girl talk” my wife’s cousin Doug, came along for the flight and took the photo’s from the back seat.

Take off checks!! Being a Cessna man I hadn’t flown a low wing Piper since 1970 but I was keen on the challenge and with a bit of oversight from Cameron Watt the resident instructor all fell into place quite easily. The Piper Challenger, VH – KEP, looked well used and a bit shabby compared to our club aircraft. It had a 180HP engine and performed much the same as our 172 SP’s as far as climb and airspeed. The big lever between the seats for operating flaps was a bit different to the electric flaps on the 172’s.

Hervey Bay Airport I kept thinking how lucky we are as CFC members to have such new and well maintained aircraft at our disposal when compared to this one. But then again it did the job. We lined up in Kilo Echo Papa and took off from runway 11 around 9.30am local time and were soon on climb to 1,500’ over the great sandy strait separating the Island from the mainland. Fraser Island is 123km in length and 22km wide at it’s widest point. We were soon flying over lake MacKenzie, one of over 100 fresh water lakes on the Island.

Our nice beach shack!! On reaching the Eastern side of the Island we turned North, descended to 500’ and flew up the coast taking in the sights. We soon passed an idyllic holiday resort ( beach shack ) to our left before coming across the wreck of the Maheno.

CFC 8

The "Maheno" Shipwreck In June 1935 the Maheno was being towed to Osaka in Japan to be broken up after many years of service. About 80Km off the coast a strong cyclone parted the tow line and the ship became beached on Fraser Island in early July. It was subsequently used as target practice by the RAAF during WWII and has now largely rusted away.

Mangroves aplenty A little further North we then turned left to cross back to the Western side of the Island. On the way we had to see and avoid one of the many sightseeing flights taking tourists for a look over the Island by air. On the Western side there are a number of small inlets and Mangroves lining the shores.

Heart shaped lagoon

We were soon crossing back towards Hervey Bay passing Woody Island and heading towards Boat Harbour. Before I knew it we were turning base and descending for our turn onto final lining up with runway 29, Hervey Bay. There was a bit of a crosswind from the right but I executed an almost perfect landing, not bad after not having landed a low wing in over 40 years. The flight took around 45 minutes and lightened my wallet to the tune of $250 but was worth every cent. So if you are away for any reason, don’t forget to take along your licence, log book or ASIC so if you decide you might enjoy going for a flight as I did, it will help make things a bit easier. I did the same in Germany a few years back and enjoyed a flight over the Rhine in a G1000 equipped C172, with a German instructor. This was before the club bought KXW and was an interesting introduction to glass cockpit flying. So enjoy your wings while you can and happy flying.

Peter Nosow

Map of the area showing the approximate flight path taken on the scenic flight.

House Keeping (paperwork) Pilots are reminded to make sure that the daily inspection sheet is signed off on the Maintenance Release which is a legal requirement. Also, Part 3 of Maintenance Release is equally important. Previously it was done for us, but now with new management, it is the responsibility of the PIC to fill this page in.

CFC 9

Whilst on "house Keeping", if members require oil, the procedure now is that you obtain the oil from the RACWA hanger and sign for it. Normally, there should be a bottle in the box in the back of the aircraft, but if not, please be considerate and leave one for the next person. There may be still some confusion as to how and when the Part 3 of the MR needs to be done, so set below are some helpful pointers. There are two different standards for completing time in service, and it is worth understanding both.

1. The “once a day” method (used by RACWA) requires the first pilot of the day to complete the hours and landings for the previous day. Each pilot making an entry in the daily inspection section completes the line for the previous pilot or pilots. 2. The “after each flight” method requires each pilot to create an independent hours-in-service record after each flight. Each pilot completes their own entry in the daily inspection section. From time to time, depending upon who manages the aircraft, the requirement for a particular aircraft might be changed, so please be aware which method is expected for each aircraft. If in doubt, there is no downside to completing the line in the MR, although the "once a day" option is the preferred option. House Keeping (general ops) Seat Belts: The seat belts on CYQ are sometimes "temperamental" when extending. If you pull quickly and at an angle the inertia reel will "lock" before being fully extended. If you pull out slowly and straight at first, then they usually will not "lock" up on you. If this does not work for you, then just use your index finger and lift the inertia ratchet plate as you pull on the belt. It works every time. Purchasing fuel outside of Jandakot When buying fuel outside of Jandakot you will need to get paperwork mainly showing how many litres were put in to the aircraft

CFC 10

Try to use the BP or Mobil carnet cards in the flying folder. If it is a cash or credit card sale then you will be reimbursed the fuel cost at the current Jandakot fuel rate per litre. It is much easier to do this calculation and deduct the amount on the docket when you pay for the flight at RACWA. Just ask for the current Jandakot fuel rate at RACWA or better still, contact a CFC committee member ahead of time to get it (RACWA staff are not always forthcoming with this info). Doing the deduction on the docket means you get your money back much faster and saves your poor overworked Treasurer some chasing up. The alternative is to wait up to 2 months until we get the monthly dockets from RACWA and cross reference the fuel burn with the logbooks."