Paper airplanes

Ever wanted to fold some incredible paper airplanes? Here's a great video that will help. Perfect for if the weather is not good enough for flying the real airplane over the Christmas break 😁

http://clipart-library.com/clipart/6Tp6xL47c.htm

Somebody call me when this is ready to purchase...

Can somebody call me when this is ready to purchase?

The forgotten WWII history of the Piper J3 Cub/ L4 Grasshopper

What a cool video!

I guess this means I can claim to have flown a WWII military aircraft? 😁

Nanchang fun

I recently went for a quick flight in the Nanchang CJ6A, ZK-MAO. It was just over 1.5 hours, from Wellington, abeam Paraparaumu then Foxpine, to Tokomaru, across the ranges and down to Masterton. After a quick stop to refuel, we returned to Wellington.

Coming along for the ride was Ady, who took the photos and video in this post.

Enjoy!

Off the coast from Paraparaumu

Just over the Tararua ranges

Heading south to Masterton

Short final for runway 06 at Masterton

Looking south from Greytown towards Palliser Bay

 

Lastly, the landing at Masterton wasn't too bad. I blame the shuddering on the videographer 😂😂

This would be nice!

This would be a nice little machine - two seats, 1200km range, turboprop, 800kg MAUW. Christmas present for me anyone? 😁

Avweb ditching video

Here is an interesting video on ditching survival rates, from Avweb. Take it how you want, but there would seem to be worse options than ditching [in some cases] and if landing in the water is your best option, then it is highly survivable.

Enjoy watching, it's only 5 minutes long.

Why electric aircraft face such a tough haul: Joby edition

Here is an interesting video from AvWeb. A big part of it is a particular company's desire to create a network of eVTOL aircraft undertaking air taxi operations, but there are also some good comments on where electric aircraft are at right now.

tldr; They are not there yet.

Enjoy!

100% synthetic fuel and the RAF

This is an interesting video from 3-4 weeks ago. The Royal Air Force trialling a 100% synthetic fuel in a light aircraft, made with 100% renewable energy.

Clearly it will be a way off yet - the cost of the fuel and the ability to scale up production [which are related of course] mean it's not coming to a fuel pump any time soon. Still, a 100% synthetic drop in replacement for avgas would be good.

Also, with something so bleeding edge, there's bound to be more than a little hype in the video, but the ability to provide the Royal Air Force with 100% synthetic fuel for ALL its aircraft is certainly worth aiming for. Of course if that happens, I'd expect the fuel would be widely available by then. Exciting times!

Anyway, here is the video. Enjoy!

Should parachutes spin?

Here is an interesting video I found on spinning parachutes, auto-rotating rotor blades and more.

Basically, it's a comparison between descent rates of simple parachutes, ones that rotate during descent and rotating blades as a replacement for parachutes.

It's interesting enough as a video, but there are also brief mentions of lift and drag for those that get excited but that 👍

Enjoy!

Don't try this at home... 😬

It's almost Christmas, so it is time for a present of some Bob Hoover aerobatics!

Please don't try this at home... or the local aero club.... or other flight school... 😬 

 

I am hoping to have some more of my own flying adventures to comment on soon - just need the weather to improve so I can get my BFR done.

Pipistrel Virus. Not, not THAT virus...!

Yes, I know, what a name! Pronounced differently of course, but yeah, still comes across as odd 😁

I was watching a video from Mojogrip [included below], who does a bit of an introduction to the aircraft, but the short version for the 100hp fuel injected version is around 147 knots at 15.5 litres per hour. Some say [social media commentary, so maybe unreliable] that real-world performance may actually be about 130knots at 19 litres per hour.

With those more conservative figures, it would be an impressive 643nm before it goes very quiet.😬 That would be around 12 litres per 100km. When you consider that aircraft can often maintain straight lines more easily than cars and don't have to slow down for road works, it is probably as efficient as most cars out there, excluding battery only models like the Teslas. Very impressive.

I'm still not sure how it would handle the turbulence we get in much of NZ around the mountains [probably not great], and an approach speed of around 55 knots will not be ideal in some situations, but the performance is still very impressive!

Anyway, click here for the specs on the official Pipistrel site if you are interested and here is the video from Mojogrip.

The video is from 2019, but it appears to match the Pipistrel website's specs.

A biplane version of the Hawker Hurricane...!

Every now and then I come across something that I never would have thought of and which is at the same time, ridiculous and very interesting.

This biplane conversion of the famous Hawker Hurricane would have to be one of those things. Add on the intention to be able to jettison the wing in flight. Almost unbelievable!

It sounds nuts, and basically was. I think this short video of what was now designated the Hillson FH.40 Slip Wing Hurricane says it best. Enjoy the next nine minutes! 😲

This is why I don't fly in clouds... :-)

This is a fairly good description of why I don't fly in clouds. Some of the comments, particularly at time 9:08, might be a little more focussed on airliners, but they are good none-the-less.

From position 9:40 until 10:38, it also provides a brief description of how I was controlling the aircraft during the recent Flying NZ regional competitions held in Whanganui 👍

Fun times!

Ice Pilots episodes

Many of you will remember the TV series Ice Pilots. It is a series looking at Buffalo Airways, based in Yellowknife, NWT, Canada. This airline flies freight, and some passenger, flights in the frozen north of Canada. Buffalo Airways has a number of historic aircraft in its fleet, including the DC3, C-46, Lockheed Electra and the DC4!

Over the past moth or so, several episodes have been uploaded to Youtube, along with a number of other reality type series on different topics.

It's well worth a watch, especially for those of us who have found it hard to access this series in past years due to geographic restrictions on distribution.

Anyway, click here for the Buffalo Airways playlist and enjoy!

Wet and windy Wellington

Here is a brief video from Wellington airport after the wind turned to the south and increased in strength and the rain set in.

#CantBeatWellingtonOnANiceDay 😂

The carburettor!

It's been a few weeks since I posted - mainly weather and general busyness, but I hope to fix that in a couple of days.

Meanwhile, here's a very very interesting video on the fascinating subject of carburettors! Most of the aircraft I fly have a carburettor, and while the basic concepts always made sense, this video from Smarter Every Day takes it to a new level.

The explanations are interesting enough, but the use of high-speed footage just blows my mind as it shows fuel and air being mixed and sucked along toward an engine. The video is almost 25 minutes, but if you have even a passing interest in aircraft engines with carburettors, or small engines in lawn mowers etc for that matter, this is a compelling and very interesting video!

Enjoy the video!

BTW - while not covered in the video, it's easy to visualise how carb icing occurs and why it's important to be on top of it.

This might be a good addition to the aero club flight line...

 Any takers for a syndicate? 😂

Southern Wairarapa, Lake Onoke and the Baring Sector

Here's a brief video from a flight on 14 March, where I fly south down the southern Wairarapa toward Lake Onoke and Palliser Bay, then return to Wellington via the Baring sector.

The aircraft was Wellington Aero Club's Cessna 172N, ZK-EKE. The video is sped up 6x as otherwise it would be very boring 😀.

 

Leave me a comment if there are more areas around Wellington or the top of the South Island you'd like to see in a future video. No promises, but I may be able to do it!

A channel introduction video

I've just published a new channel introduction video. Hopefully this gives a small taste of what you can see on this blog and on my Youtube channel!

Enjoy the video!

For a direct link to the Youtube channel, click here. Remember to like and subscribe to be kept up to date the all the latest content.

Overflying Paraparaumu airfield

This short video shows me flying overhead Paraparaumu airfield [ICAO code NZPP] in February. This was part of a fun flight from Wellington, around Kapiti Island, overhead NZPP and back to Wellington.

Enjoy the video!

 

If you like this type of content, then please like and subscribe the video on my Youtube channel. This feedback shows me that you appreciate the content, and finances permitting, I'll make more of them!