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ISSUE 3 MARCH 2011 |
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Old
Dog Learns New Tricks
By
Dan Grunloh, Editor, Light
Plane World |
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I
just bought a new ultralight. Not a
full-size man-carrying version, but
instead a tiny 0.6-ounce indoor
radio-controlled model airplane.
Years of flying weight-shift trikes
had lulled me into forgetting all
the forces that can be unleashed
when you have a propeller in the
front, a tail in the back,
all-flying tail surfaces, and plenty
of power. Simply avoiding the hangar
walls is a humbling experience at
first. Read
more
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A
Simple Guide to Aviation Citizenship
By Helen Woods
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Becoming
a certificated pilot is all about
earning the privileges to operate a
flying machine, to "slip the
surly bonds of earth" and
experience the freedom of the birds,
and to take your best friend out for
the proverbial "$100
hamburger" in another state
with only a short hop, right? Well,
maybe at its most basic level, but
being a pilot is really about much
more. It's about becoming a citizen
of the worldwide aviation community.
Read
more
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Airborne
Australia to Reveal New FAR 103
Trike |
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Hang
glider and trike manufacturer
Airborne Australia has announced it
will introduce a new FAR 103
single-seat trike at the upcoming
Sun 'n Fun Fly-In at Lakeland,
Florida, and at the nearby Wallaby
Ranch hang gliding resort. The
Thermalite trike is powered by a
four-stroke Bailey engine and was
designed for a pilot weight up to
242 pounds.
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Photos
of the new trike have yet to be
released, so details may vary from
the early prototype shown here. Read
more
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Finding
a Rotax Maintenance Technician Now
Easier |
| Eric
Tucker, founder of the Rotax
Flying & Safety Club (RFSC),
has completed updates to webpages
for the official listing of the
independent Rotax maintenance
technician (iRMT) training
program. |
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Rotax
engine owners can use this new tool
to search by country, state, or city
to find one of the nearly 500
trained service and maintenance
technicians that comply with the
iRMT program along with contact
information for 65 independent
repair centers (iRCs). Read
more
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Wisconsin
Light Aviation Seminar This Month |
| The
18th annual Light Aviation Safety
Seminar will be held Saturday,
March 19, in the Founders' Wing of
the EAA AirVenture Museum in
Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The seminar,
sponsored by the Wisconsin Light
Aviation Advisory Council, EAA,
and a host of others, qualifies as
an FAA Wings event. |
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Registration
for the free event begins at 8
a.m., and the subjects covered
include airports, airspace,
traffic patterns, accident chain
of events, and engine maintenance.
Read
more |
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Sun
'n Fun Fly-In Coming With Changes |
| The
Sun 'n Fun International Fly-In
and Expo, taking place March 29 to
April 3 this year, has undergone
many changes since it began as a
small local chapter fly-in. The
warm Florida climate quickly made
it a favorite event for ultralight
and light plane pilots. |
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The
current name of the 37th annual
fly-in and expo and the scheduled
appearance of the U.S. Navy Blue
Angels are testimony to the
evolution that has occurred.
Ultralight Chairman Dave Piper
revealed some of the changes you
can expect to see at this year's
event. Read
more |
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Trike
School With Larry Mednick |
| Trike
instructor, author, manufacturer,
and competition pilot Larry
Mednick has released a one-hour
instructional video on DVD with 12
flying lessons suitable for pilots
ranging from novice to advanced.
The video-within-video technique
depicted in the DVD box cover
photo helps demonstrate what's
being explained and includes views
from the cockpit and from the
ground. |
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| Trike School With Larry
Mednick includes some
low-level and action scenes that
illustrate why trikes are
sometimes called the motorcycles
of the air. Read
more |
| Illinois
Ultralight / Light Plane Seminar
Debriefing |
| About
150 light aviation enthusiasts,
most of them pilots, attended the
Illinois Ultralight / Light Plane
Safety Seminar held February 26 in
Springfield, Illinois. The event
included static aircraft displays
and vendors of a variety of light
aviation goods and services. A
pair of newly introduced 100-hp
Magni Orion gyroplanes were the
top attraction. |
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| The
four seminar topics of the day
were personal survival, working
with flight service, understanding
glass panels, and an introduction
to the Jabiru engine. Read
more |
| Sport
Pilot Training Should Count Toward
Additional Ratings |
| When
the sport pilot regulations were
proposed by the FAA in 2002, a
statement the proposal made was
that training for the new
certificate would count toward
higher ratings. It was a major
inducement toward acceptance of
the proposal by the sport flying
community. The final rule issued
in 2004 confirmed that statement,
but a legal interpretation in 2009
has denied it. EAA has joined with
other aviation organizations
petitioning the FAA to change the
regulations. Read
more |
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Fifi's
Big Adventure at AirVenture 2010,
Part 3 - Conclusion
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Thursday,
July 29, 2010. The air was
definitely cooler when I crawled out
of the Hilton into the morning sun.
I decided that afternoon briefings
were far more civilized than getting
up before dawn and a leisurely
morning pace suited gentlemen of a
certain age.
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The
powered para-boys had been flying
and the fixed-wing boys were taking
the field. The pattern was running
south so after breakfast Jim Batzli
and I strolled up to the north end
of the campground to get a better
view of takeoffs and landings. Read
more
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Who
Is Bruce Hawk?
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Bruce
Hawk might not have been readily
recognized at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh
2010 because of his hat. For nearly
two decades he has been selling wind
socks at the major air shows while
wearing his trademark weather-beaten
cowboy or Panama straw hat. He said
he was shamed into replacing his old
tattered hat, but the new one isn't
broken in yet. Yes, Bruce
manufactures and sells a full line
of wind socks, but what do you
really know about him? Read
more
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From
the EAA Light Plane Community
The message forums at
Oshkosh365 are alive with
activity. Here are the latest
discussions!
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| Videos
from the light plane world |
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ICON
A5 Amphibious Light Sport - First-Person
View. View
the video
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Aero
towing at Wallaby Ranch. View
the video
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| Submit
light plane videos that you just
had to watch again; and probably
forwarded to your friends. Send
them to LightPlaneWorld@EAA.org. |
| Featured
Photo Gallery |
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Ultralights,
Light Planes, and Kids Album
The first exposure to aviation
in a child's life can come from
ultralights and light planes, as
seen in these photos, mostly from
EAA ultralight chapters. View
the gallery
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Engines
Q. Why
is it important to inspect my
exhaust system for cracks? Answer
Powered
Parachute
Q. Why do
pilots pull their parachute lines
down after they land? Answer
Weight
Shift Trikes
Q. Do I need a
pilot certificate to fly a
two-seat trike? Answer
Fixed-Wing
Airplane
Q. While
taxiing in windy conditions, what
position should my flight controls
be in? Answer
Powered
Paraglider
Q. Is this sport
limited to a younger person in
great physical shape?
Answer |
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A
Blast From the Past
Experimenter, April 1996 EAA
Ultralight Hall of Fame inductee
Mike Loehle displayed a Spad VIII
replica powered by a Rotax 503 at
EAA Oshkosh 1995. He said the Spad,
one of three replicas originally
designed by Squadron Aviation,
reminded him of his early days
flying Easy Risers. Read
the article
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| Webinars:
Checkride Coming Soon? Watch This
Webinar!
"Prepare
for Your Checkride, and
Pass!" - This presentation
will tell you the things you need
to do before you go to your
checkride to make it easier. You
will also learn about the common
mistakes applicants make during
their checkrides, in both the oral
part and the flight, and how to
avoid them. You will approach your
checkride with confidence.
All
webinars begin at 7 p.m. CST. To
find out more about upcoming EAA
webinars and to register, visit
the webinars
page.
EAA
gratefully acknowledges the
support of Aircraft
Spruce and Specialty Co. for
its generous sponsorship of the
webinar programs.
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| Q. What
is your opinion of emergency
parachutes for light-sport
aircraft?
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