Rupert Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 On 2/16/2024 at 8:53 PM, ViperPilot2 said: They recognized I was left handed, and allowed me to continue with my individuality intact. Lucky you! And I'm guessing your what 30-40 years younger than me? And probably not enrolled in a one room 1-6 grade school room. Being an old chopper guy I usually fly low and slow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViperPilot2 Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 26 minutes ago, Rupert said: Lucky you! And I'm guessing your what 30-40 years younger than me? And probably not enrolled in a one room 1-6 grade school room. I'm a Senior Citizen, if that answers your question. And I apologize if I offended you; it seems as if I did. "I created the Little Black Book to keep myself from getting killed..." -- Captain Elrey Borge Jeppesen AMD 1.9GB/8GB RAM/AMD VISION 1GB GPU/500 GB HDD/WIN 7 PRO 64/FS9 CFS CFS2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgf Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 5 hours ago, Rupert said: IS THAT ANYTHING REAL?? https://theaviationist.com/2020/08/10/take-a-look-at-these-incredible-shots-of-the-russias-sole-completed-lun-class-ekranoplan/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lun-class_ekranoplan There is a model for FS2004 from Alphasim/Virtavia, now freeware. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgf Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 8 hours ago, PhrogPhlyer said: the to do list! Were I condemned to live til completion of my version of that I'd be damn near immortal. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgf Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 Got a wild hair, took her out of mothballs, and flew from Sydney to Haneda; here we're climbing through 41k ft on the way to 60k 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottishMike Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 Just letting my mind wander, go where it might. Suzanne at the controls, Sydney slipping away as we head up the coast for Coffs Harbour. Relaxed in the cockpit is such a nice feeling. An interesting and beautiful coast. The weather gentle. Mellow would be a good word to describe the mood. We decided to cruise at 4000' for a good view of the ground. This eastern leg is for pleasure as much as anything else. A few miles south of Newcastle: Approaching Newcastle and the landscape is dotted with industrial landmarks: Power station chimneys and cooling towers. The geography still spectacular with inlets, bays and islands. The weather is turning to rain and we decide to descend to 3000' to dodge the dark rain clouds. We could go above but the scenery is too good to miss. Cleared to overfly Newcastle airport: Sliding northwards under darkening clouds. Suzanne and I had talked about jumping west to watch the Bathurst 12hr but decided heading north would be more relaxing. I mentioned my meeting with “Old Binda” and we wondered what he would have made of the race. His timescales born out of a culture that had lasted thousands of years. More appropriate would be the Bathurst 1000 years race. I tried to imagine race teams training their children and grand children to keep the cars running from generation to generation. As individuals they would not see the results of the race, and that not mattering as much as passing the knowledge on. Taree ahead: The rain clouds gone, clear now if a bit hazy. The cruise never dropped below 210 Kts depending on the wind. Approaching Port Macquaire and it's airport: Not many miles from Coffs Harbour and a fabulous looking beach passing by. I wondered if Suzanne had packed a swimsuit, the beach looked perfect for a visit. Getting the Aerostar lined up for rwy 030, because of the speed anticipation is required, more like landing a business jet than a prop: The runway coming into view bottom left. Reducing throttle to almost zero, when speed as bled off to 150 kts the flaps are deployed and power increased to around 110 to 120 kts. Gradually further flaps and landing gear lowered till on short final and another nice beach appears parallel to the rwy: Touch down: An odd shaped airport, the general aviation area is miles from the main terminal connected by a long narrow taxiway. We are held by ATC for ages as a Mooney is taxing to the rwy. Who bought me that shirt? And why am I wearing it? Eventually the Mooney clears us and we taxi to our allotted parking area: 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bossspecops Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 I'm inclined to go with Melo's choice on the Eastern route in that I'll fly all the legs, but without doing the timing stuff. That's for various reasons as I want to use different amphibians for each leg. Some of the older ones just won't accept the timer gauge on their panels. No idea why, I've almost worn out my copy of FSPS trying to do it, but that's life. The other reason is it would take many hours of test flying to gather enough reliable data to make sensible estimates. FST does a half-way good job at it, but it needs data for each aircraft type before it can even start, and then doesn't follow it some times! So I'll start off with Cutter's Goose flying out of Sydney Harbour, after having hopped over there Bankstown in the Sealand. I'm sure they'll take good care of G-AUST while I'm up north. And even now I'm thinking about flying G-AUST back home after the Rally, but heading on eastward across the Pacific. That long leg from Hawaii to the West Coast looks a bit of an problem though, I may have to fit ANOTHER fuel tank! Oh yeah, I intend to fly each leg of the Eastern Rally from the water, and beaching each aircraft each night near the local airport. Just to make life interesting.................... Regards Kit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taoftedal Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 1 hour ago, ScottishMike said: We decided to cruise at 4000' for a good view of the ground. A low and slow bird she is not ... but if asked to do it no complaints ... but if you need to get above it all and run ... not a problem. (Of course ... your fuel burn won't impress anyone driving a Prius). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rupert Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 13 hours ago, ViperPilot2 said: I'm a Senior Citizen, if that answers your question. And I apologize if I offended you; it seems as if I did. I certainly accept your apology. And I'm truly sorry to be so touchy. I'm sure nothing negative was intended. And these forums are for fun and enjoyment. However I've had to struggle to read what I wrote down myself since I was a kid. In rural Kentucky schools during the early 1950's, writing or printing with your left hand was simply not allowed. My resultant poor penmanship caused me to buy an old typewriter at a yard/garage sale with my pay as a golf caddie as a teenager. I always needed to type my lecture notes while they were still new enough for me to understand them myself. And that's still an issue for me even with things as simple as shopping lists today. 2 Being an old chopper guy I usually fly low and slow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rupert Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 8 hours ago, jgf said: https://theaviationist.com/2020/08/10/take-a-look-at-these-incredible-shots-of-the-russias-sole-completed-lun-class-ekranoplan/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lun-class_ekranoplan There is a model for FS2004 from Alphasim/Virtavia, now freeware. Thanks so much for that link! I have to admit that isn't the first Russian piece of equipment I've found to have a strange appearance. Having said that, Howard Hughes would probably have thought that thing looked normal. Being an old chopper guy I usually fly low and slow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgf Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 1 hour ago, Bossspecops said: won't accept the timer gauge on their panels Create it as a popup, that's what i did on the Beech (and my P-38). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bossspecops Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 46 minutes ago, jgf said: Create it as a popup, that's what i did on the Beech (and my P-38). That's a good idea, thanks. Regards Kit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomPenDragon Posted February 19 Author Share Posted February 19 The Daily Update (Cue “She Sells Sanctuary”) EP: “Hello and welcome to the Update for the 19th of February, 2024. I’m Elias Pacheco, for Claus Ullrich and the Radio Chachapoya team. We have ten more days to go. And we have news, so let’s go to the Leaderboard: “ViperPilot2 had a really nice, 3-leg run to finish his race. With a 0 to Parkes, a +1 to Bathurst, and a -1 into Bankstown, he has finished the 1976 Australian Air Rally with a perfect CV, which locks in his position on the second step of the podium. Congratulations, VP2! “And there’s been some interesting free flying going on as well. While we were on air yesterday, taoftedal was having himself a delightful jaunt to Alice Springs. His Twin Comanche runs on 100LL, while he is apparently fueled by Tim Tams. ScottishMike and his new flying companion, a woman named Suzanne, took his Piper Aerostar to Coff’s Harbour. And jgf, obeying one of those wild hairs that make life so much more interesting when they’re heeded, took an XB-70 to Tokyo. “Claus said that that was just ridiculous, with a distinct note of envy to her voice, so I rented us a B-58, with which we ran the Eastern Route in 3:28. Why so long? Well, the Australian authorities were not especially amused by my going supersonic running the Eastern Route in the Tomcat and then that rather spirited hop to Perth. They warned me of dire consequences to come if I went supersonic again in Australian airspace. So, we ran the Eastern Route at 12,500’ – 13,500’ and Mach 0.88. I’ve opted for a straight run back to Sydney, Mach 0.88 and 31,000’. Oh, well… No afterburner flames, but the Hustler’s a really sweet cruiser at Citation X speeds. “And with that, I’ll bring this edition of the Daily Update to a close. I’m Elias Pacheco, with Claus Ullrich behind me physically and Radio Chachapoya behind me figuratively, signing off. Have a great flying day, everyone.” 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taoftedal Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 9 minutes ago, TomPenDragon said: “And there’s been some interesting free flying going on as well ... " As long as we're getting a little side-tracked (Tokyo?) ... anyone have any rw experience with one of these bad boys? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ViperPilot2 Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 3 hours ago, Rupert said: I certainly accept your apology. And I'm truly sorry to be so touchy. I'm sure nothing negative was intended. And these forums are for fun and enjoyment. However I've had to struggle to read what I wrote down myself since I was a kid. In rural Kentucky schools during the early 1950's, writing or printing with your left hand was simply not allowed. My resultant poor penmanship caused me to buy an old typewriter at a yard/garage sale with my pay as a golf caddie as a teenager. I always needed to type my lecture notes while they were still new enough for me to understand them myself. And that's still an issue for me even with things as simple as shopping lists today. NP... we're good. Like CARQUALS, Auto Rotations and Instrument Flying, both the Physical act and the Exercise of Writing is a perishable skill. I applaud Tom for encouraging everyone to write about their experiences, if for nothing more than a little practice. Onward to Cairns, Gentlemen! Have fun getting there in whatever conveyance you choose! By the by... anyone catch this in the News recently? Looks like the Ladies are having an Air Race... https://www.airraceclassic.org/ "I created the Little Black Book to keep myself from getting killed..." -- Captain Elrey Borge Jeppesen AMD 1.9GB/8GB RAM/AMD VISION 1GB GPU/500 GB HDD/WIN 7 PRO 64/FS9 CFS CFS2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bossspecops Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 1 hour ago, taoftedal said: As long as we're getting a little side-tracked (Tokyo?) ... anyone have any rw experience with one of these bad boys? I've been on board XL231 'Lusty Lindy' at the Elvington Museum, and it's a lot more user friendly than a Vulcan. Everyone's on the same level for a start. And I've watched numerous Victors do their thing at RAF displays all over the UK. I saw the prototype fly at Farnborough in the 50s too, a cracking looking aeroplane in any version, or colour scheme. Back to Rally stuff, it looks like I've got to do a REALLY accurate flight to Bankstown today a) to try and equal my mate Melo's aggregate V=0, and b) to equal ViperPilot2's performance as well! I'm just about to start up at Bathurst, so fingers are crossed. 1 Regards Kit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bossspecops Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 On the ramp at Bankstown after a virtually full throttle flight the entire distance, no thanks to a hefty headwind, but I got down one MINUTE before my FST estimate. Full report a bit later, but in the meanwhile I've got to get 'Austral Rose' over to the seaplane base in Sydney Harbour where some clever guys are going to try and cram even MORE fuel tanks inside her while I traipse up the East Coast of Oz. 2 Regards Kit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgf Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 17 minutes ago, Bossspecops said: try and cram even MORE fuel tanks inside her I wouldn't be surprised. In reading about my Beech I found that several owners, frequently needing longer range, would remove the rear seats and mount a fifty gallon tank back there. This gave the plane about 1600 mile range ... eight to nine flight hours. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomPenDragon Posted February 19 Author Share Posted February 19 Elias here with a few screenshots of our run of the Eastern Route: Sydney Exotics' lot at YSBK When the big dog walks by, the little dogs sit One of SEx's (Sydney Exotics' preferred acronym - given the types of aircraft in their inventory, I think it's completely appropriate) Thunderbolts taking off A low, slow turn around the city to get a feel for her - it's been a while since I've flown a B-58 Bankstown again Sydney's down there somewhere Cruise locked in: FL135, Mach 0.84, okay? I'm not supersonic; I just look that way Leaving Sydney behind And the Australian Alps Coff's Harbour Gold Coast Turning over Rockhampton Bringing her down into Cairns, firing up the SALS Turning for 15 On final Chronometer's showing 3:21, which is what I reported in the Update. I forgot that there's a time change between Sydney and Cairns, so flight time was actually 2:21. Fun run! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taoftedal Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 2 hours ago, ViperPilot2 said: Looks like the Ladies are having an Air Race ... Interesting route ... did jgf plot this out? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taoftedal Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 17 minutes ago, TomPenDragon said: ... so flight time was actually 2:21 Sydney to Cairns huh ... what Piper model is that? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melo965 Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 2 hours ago, Bossspecops said: but I got down one MINUTE before my FST estimate. AWESOME! Great run! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melo965 Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 28 minutes ago, TomPenDragon said: Sydney's down there somewhere Great picture! Nice speed run! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taoftedal Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 4 hours ago, TomPenDragon said: ViperPilot2 had a really nice, 3-leg run to finish his race. With a 0 to Parkes, a +1 to Bathurst, and a -1 into Bankstown, he has finished the 1976 Australian Air Rally with a perfect CV, which locks in his position on the second step of the podium. Congratulations, VP2! In a whirlybird to boot! Well done VP2! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bossspecops Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 50 minutes ago, TomPenDragon said: Cruise locked in: FL135, Mach 0.84, okay? I'm not supersonic; I just look that way I'd have been SO tempted to head out past the 12 mile limit, light the burners and REALLY have a go at it. Regards Kit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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