I have not had much time lately to post here, but I am updating the blog on my flying web page (rudix.site) quite regularly.
You can find the link here: http://rudix.site/Blog/index.html
Thanks for reading my Blog and a happy festive season!
Rudi
Friday, 30 December 2016
Thursday, 20 October 2016
Paperwork done!
After being in-active as far as flying is concerned for almost 2 years (Medical reasons) I am now fully back and airborne again!
The last 2 weeks has seen a medical done, license renewal completed, transfer of ownership done for a new plane (Druine D.31 Turbulent ZS-UAO) and last but not least 3 x ATF's acquired to get at least part of the fleet airborne again.
The ATF's were a mission, planes needed to be checked and serviced, then the ATF/annual inspections had to be done. I also had to do new Weight and Balance calculations, compass swings and Pitot leak tests. All planes also needed their VSI's and ASI's calibrated and those that have transponders had those checked as well.
But that is now all history and with a long warm summer ahead most weekends and free time will be spend flying!!
Below you can see the planes that are now ready to fly again, more to follow....
The last 2 weeks has seen a medical done, license renewal completed, transfer of ownership done for a new plane (Druine D.31 Turbulent ZS-UAO) and last but not least 3 x ATF's acquired to get at least part of the fleet airborne again.
The ATF's were a mission, planes needed to be checked and serviced, then the ATF/annual inspections had to be done. I also had to do new Weight and Balance calculations, compass swings and Pitot leak tests. All planes also needed their VSI's and ASI's calibrated and those that have transponders had those checked as well.
But that is now all history and with a long warm summer ahead most weekends and free time will be spend flying!!
Below you can see the planes that are now ready to fly again, more to follow....
Savannah - ZU-EJS
Bush Baby ZU-BSE (Workhorse of the fleet)
KR2 ZU-CGR (Need some speed?)
Druine D.31 Turbulent ZS-UAO, new addition to the fleet, still needs to be ferried home.
With 3 weeks of leave starting today I am sure I will be able to add some hours to my logbook!
Sunday, 2 October 2016
ZS-UAO, Druine Turbulent, planning a ferry trip from Port Alfred to Rhino Park.
This flight is still in the planning stages, at the moment the plan is to start the flight first weekend in November.
Below you can see the 2 routes I am considering, the in-land one via the Gariep dam is a bit shorter (604 miles) but the trip via the coast is a lot more scenic (648 miles) I suppose a lot will depend on the weather so the final decision might well only be made on the day of departure!
Update 21/10/2016:I have been watching the weather closely the lst 2 weeks and during that time there was only 1 day where the coastal route was clear enough for flying! I am hoping this will change over the next 2 weeks, if it does not the ferry flight might well end up taking the more inland route. I hope not but I won't be taking chances with weather over the mountains.
Update 18/10/2016: The transfer of ownership and ATF has now been done for ZS-UAO so it is all systems go! The plan has now been confirmed, the "adventure" will start on the morning of 4 November. Now the weather just need to play along...
Update 8/10/2016: I have started watching the weather along the chosen route. So far it does not looks good, during the last week there was just 1 completely clear day! But it might not actually be a problem. Even if there are clouds they might be high enough to allow the trip to continue, at least up the coast. Crossing the mountains might be more of a problem but I only need 1-2 hours of clear weather!
Below you can see a screen shot taken from this afternoons weather along the route. The program used to display the route and the weather is EasyPlan, a proudly South African piece of software that is really superb!
Update 2/10/2016: The ATF inspection was done on ZS-UAO and all is well. She also now has brand new W&B as well as ASI ALT calibration certificates. This, along with the change of ownership, will be handed to SACAA and RASAA in the coming week. Then she is ready to go!
Update 25/09/2016: Arrangements are going well for the ferry flight. The plane will get an ATF inspection on 1 October, after that I need to sort out the change of ownership and ATF. Since some spares were included in the deal, a spare wing, tail section and landing gear, I have arranged to fly down to East London with a friend, there we will pick up a rented vehicle with trailer. The planned date for this is 4 November giving me enough time to sort out the paperwork. We will then drive to Port Alfred and settle in for the evening. The next day will be spent at the flying field packing the spares on the trailer as well as checking the plane from spinner to tail wheel.
Once I am happy with the plane and the systems I will do a bit of taxing before taking her up for a bunch of circuits. After that I want to land and fill the tank to the top before taking her up for 1 hour of cruising, maybe flying down the coast a bit (taking lots of photos along the way!) On return I will fill the plane again to determine the fuel consumption in cruise mode. The rest of the day/evening will be spent relaxing and sight seeing.
Departure is planned for early the next morning, me flying and my friend (Louwtjie Vosloo) driving as ground support. If the fuel consumption is as reported I will fly up the coast, skirting past East London (below 2500') flying up to Port St Johns. The main reason I want to land there is simply that it is an amazing runway on top of a cliff, I want to take photos! I will fill the tank as well, courtesy of my ground support, before departing for Margate.
The whole trip will be low and slow with detours to take photos, this is not a race, it is all about the fun of flying and the beauty of our country.
At this stage it looks like we will be staying over at Margate, we should be there quite early but I do not want to spend too many hours a day in the cockpit, I am still recovering from a back operation. I also want to give the plane, and mostly the engine a really good check over after landing, the next leg is over some formidable mountains so I want to be confidant all is well. By then I should have a better idea of fuel consumption and general performance.
The rest of the day will be spent relaxing and sight seeing, there will be lots of good food and drinks involved...
Departure the next day will be early again, weather permitting over the mountains as the track will now turn inland away from the coast. Depending on weather and the fuel situation I might land at Oribi (nice runway with Avgas) or maybe Howick or Eva's for a refill courtesy of my ground crew. I might pop in at Eva's to see a friend, if he is there since it would be Monday. From there the next stop will be Lady Smith, and it would most likely be where we stop for the day as well. They have a very nice flying club with a aviation friendly hotel right next door, I have slept over there before, the food is also pretty good!
Again the plane will be checked well before it is time to relax!
The next morning departure should be early again, weather depending as there is often clouds and/or fog in the morning over the last mountain range to be crossed, I have been stuck in Lady Smith at least 3 times in the past due to weather.
Below you can see the 2 routes I am considering, the in-land one via the Gariep dam is a bit shorter (604 miles) but the trip via the coast is a lot more scenic (648 miles) I suppose a lot will depend on the weather so the final decision might well only be made on the day of departure!
Update 21/10/2016:I have been watching the weather closely the lst 2 weeks and during that time there was only 1 day where the coastal route was clear enough for flying! I am hoping this will change over the next 2 weeks, if it does not the ferry flight might well end up taking the more inland route. I hope not but I won't be taking chances with weather over the mountains.
ZS-UAO patiently waiting for me to take her home
Update 18/10/2016: The transfer of ownership and ATF has now been done for ZS-UAO so it is all systems go! The plan has now been confirmed, the "adventure" will start on the morning of 4 November. Now the weather just need to play along...
Update 8/10/2016: I have started watching the weather along the chosen route. So far it does not looks good, during the last week there was just 1 completely clear day! But it might not actually be a problem. Even if there are clouds they might be high enough to allow the trip to continue, at least up the coast. Crossing the mountains might be more of a problem but I only need 1-2 hours of clear weather!
Below you can see a screen shot taken from this afternoons weather along the route. The program used to display the route and the weather is EasyPlan, a proudly South African piece of software that is really superb!
Lots of clouds on the preferred route!
Update 2/10/2016: The ATF inspection was done on ZS-UAO and all is well. She also now has brand new W&B as well as ASI ALT calibration certificates. This, along with the change of ownership, will be handed to SACAA and RASAA in the coming week. Then she is ready to go!
Update 25/09/2016: Arrangements are going well for the ferry flight. The plane will get an ATF inspection on 1 October, after that I need to sort out the change of ownership and ATF. Since some spares were included in the deal, a spare wing, tail section and landing gear, I have arranged to fly down to East London with a friend, there we will pick up a rented vehicle with trailer. The planned date for this is 4 November giving me enough time to sort out the paperwork. We will then drive to Port Alfred and settle in for the evening. The next day will be spent at the flying field packing the spares on the trailer as well as checking the plane from spinner to tail wheel.
Once I am happy with the plane and the systems I will do a bit of taxing before taking her up for a bunch of circuits. After that I want to land and fill the tank to the top before taking her up for 1 hour of cruising, maybe flying down the coast a bit (taking lots of photos along the way!) On return I will fill the plane again to determine the fuel consumption in cruise mode. The rest of the day/evening will be spent relaxing and sight seeing.
Departure is planned for early the next morning, me flying and my friend (Louwtjie Vosloo) driving as ground support. If the fuel consumption is as reported I will fly up the coast, skirting past East London (below 2500') flying up to Port St Johns. The main reason I want to land there is simply that it is an amazing runway on top of a cliff, I want to take photos! I will fill the tank as well, courtesy of my ground support, before departing for Margate.
The whole trip will be low and slow with detours to take photos, this is not a race, it is all about the fun of flying and the beauty of our country.
At this stage it looks like we will be staying over at Margate, we should be there quite early but I do not want to spend too many hours a day in the cockpit, I am still recovering from a back operation. I also want to give the plane, and mostly the engine a really good check over after landing, the next leg is over some formidable mountains so I want to be confidant all is well. By then I should have a better idea of fuel consumption and general performance.
The rest of the day will be spent relaxing and sight seeing, there will be lots of good food and drinks involved...
Departure the next day will be early again, weather permitting over the mountains as the track will now turn inland away from the coast. Depending on weather and the fuel situation I might land at Oribi (nice runway with Avgas) or maybe Howick or Eva's for a refill courtesy of my ground crew. I might pop in at Eva's to see a friend, if he is there since it would be Monday. From there the next stop will be Lady Smith, and it would most likely be where we stop for the day as well. They have a very nice flying club with a aviation friendly hotel right next door, I have slept over there before, the food is also pretty good!
Again the plane will be checked well before it is time to relax!
The next morning departure should be early again, weather depending as there is often clouds and/or fog in the morning over the last mountain range to be crossed, I have been stuck in Lady Smith at least 3 times in the past due to weather.
Clouds just outside Lady Smith on a previous trip.
Once over the mountains it should be an easy run, next stop should be Heidelberg for fuel and a leg stretch, then a short run, around 48 miles, the plane's new home at Rhino Park.
All of the above is "as planned", but we all know about "The best made plans of mice and men"..... The plan does make provision for a few extra days if needed for weather or technical reasons, time will tell how it all pans out.
All of the above is "as planned", but we all know about "The best made plans of mice and men"..... The plan does make provision for a few extra days if needed for weather or technical reasons, time will tell how it all pans out.
My view for the trip, a basic panel that includes all that is needed. I will just add my trusty Garmin Pilot III GPS as backup.
Flight planning will be done courtesy of Air Nav Pro on an iPad that will also be in the cockpit with me, the software also provides live tracking, via the internet, so that friends can check my progress in real-time. Added are features like an AH and synthetic vision showing the route ahead, great when crossing high mountains. It is an amazing piece of software!
Planned routes, the coastal one is the preferred one with the more direct one only as an option in case of bad weather along the coast.
The plane has a 35l tank and it burns around 10 l/ph at a conservative 90 mph. I am planning legs no longer than 200 miles at the most (sitting in the small cockpit for more than 2 hours at a time might not be fun!) so range is not a problem. My stops were mostly chosen based on fuel availability. I am also not putting any limit on how long the trip will take, if the weather is bad I will simply land and wait it out!
More photos of the Turblent
Engine run, she sounds great!
Engine run, she sounds great!
Below are a few photos taken along the Wild coast during a previous trip, the same route I want to take this time. It is so beautiful I just have to go back! This time I will have small air inlet "hatches" on both sides of the plane that is perfect for taking photos, no reflections from the canopy like in the photos below!
I will update this blog as planning progresses....
(c)2016 R Venter
Aircraft inspection time!
Time I start posting on this blog! Have been rather busy getting things done to facilitate my return to full-size flying!
Yesterday was ATF inspection, W&B, Alt & ASI calibration and compass swing day at Rhino. Even managed to check a transponder. Had to do 3 planes!
2 of the planes, the Bushbaby and the KR2, has been standing since around 2014 without flying, that was when I stopped flying due to medical reasons. The third one, a Pietenpol, is a new, recently finished plane that is now ready to fly.
With my medical issues now history I have to get the fleet active again thus the hectic day of inspections, calibrations and checks! All three passed without snags so it is just a question of getting the paper work processed before the will be flying again!
Yesterday was ATF inspection, W&B, Alt & ASI calibration and compass swing day at Rhino. Even managed to check a transponder. Had to do 3 planes!
2 of the planes, the Bushbaby and the KR2, has been standing since around 2014 without flying, that was when I stopped flying due to medical reasons. The third one, a Pietenpol, is a new, recently finished plane that is now ready to fly.
With my medical issues now history I have to get the fleet active again thus the hectic day of inspections, calibrations and checks! All three passed without snags so it is just a question of getting the paper work processed before the will be flying again!
Weight and balance being done on the Bushbaby
Next it was the KR2's turn
And then the soon to be test flown Pietenpol
With these planes now legal again it is time to log some hours quickly as I have a ferry flight of around 650 miles coming soon and I want to be ready for it.
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