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Post by horicle on May 14, 2015 13:58:27 GMT 12
Regardless of the unfortunate and sad Grizzly crash the type will have the inside running when the C-130 replacement occurs in 5 to 7 years (more like 7) and the deal may well include a C295 component. The only question remaining to me is how the future RNZAF VIP capability will eventuate. The situation is simplified by the C-17 being well out of the picture by then - unless some big change occurs. Personal pick. I do not see our current C-130 fleet progressing to an engine update.
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Post by horicle on Apr 25, 2015 21:57:52 GMT 12
One of the problems with short term leases as and when required is that everybody might want the same service at the same time. Anyway my spies think we might know soon. If I was a gambling man I'd put my money ($2) on Tuesday 5th May. (It's always Tuesday and early May feels right).
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Post by horicle on Apr 24, 2015 16:02:14 GMT 12
With the ability for the Herc’s engines to be upgraded as mentioned above we could end up with a ‘new standard’ aircraft. Thats airframe, avionics, and engines all worked over. Why even the crews would be new and young. Then two C-17s would be there to do the heavy bits and the Hercs (as pointed out) would last longer. That leads to some future questions. 1 - would there be enough work for two C-17s? and 2 - where does that place us on ever getting back into the “smaller” tactical airlifter. The Bristol Frieghter /Andover fleets are long gone and the money bucket will be very low. What do we really need? When will that Air Mobility Review be completed?
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Post by horicle on Apr 19, 2015 14:08:33 GMT 12
Whenever an organisation buys a capability it has not had before new ways to use it are found. Back in the 70’s we got some transportable Tacan beacons (TRN-26) to make life better in Ops world. We were going to buy three and two were funded. A few years after we started using them our leaders decided having one permanently sited at Harewood (thats Christchurch Intl to younger readers) was the way to go, and the there was one to do the work we thought three were needed for. Lets face it two of anything will make life harder for those who provide the capability. Two C-17’s will only work if we go in with Australia to the extent of them becoming a flight of 36 Sqn. Can you see that happening. So what are our alternatives. There are five sizes of transport aircraft from babies (Cessna Caravan, Pacal 750), Small ones (Up to C-27), Mediums (C-130), Large (A400, An-70) and Oversize (An-124, C-17, C-5). The RAAF appear to basing their fleet requirements on four of the categories ignoring the “large”. I count their King Airs as filling the babies function which was an Army component when they (the Aussie Army) had fixed wing aircraft. If we want to stand alone and fit in with our nearest ally we could look at three A400 (or An-70, [ ). This of course explains all the Ads in the DomPost in recent months extolling the virtues of the A400. How many of you have bought one?
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Post by horicle on Dec 20, 2014 13:02:13 GMT 12
Part of the problem is the poor old police having to do two jobs. Upholding the 'Law of the Land' and enforcing the 'Rules of the Road'. Saratoga is on to it. There is a power of difference between 'rules' and 'laws'. One has a victim (or victims) and the other keeps us even. I note that the new 'social' level of inebriation (250-400) does not make you a criminal, just legally incapable of driving a motor vehicle.
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Post by horicle on Dec 18, 2014 14:52:05 GMT 12
To me neither issue, Speed Tolerance or Lower Alcohol Limits, is going to be the silver bullet our 'road sleuths' need to deliver the required goal. The speed issue has become all about speed monitoring rather than driving to the conditions. It seems all the unthinking out there are going to drive at THE LEGAL SPEED LIMIT because that is what it is. Then the new alcohol limit is going to save three or five lives per year because that is how many have unfortunately died over past years at that measured level (250 to 400). But what about those who have an accident with no blood alcohol level (and I mean no drunk driver involved in any way). If we booted all those sober drivers off the road what reduction in the accident rate could we expect to achieve. Guesses please.
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Post by horicle on Jun 23, 2014 14:37:35 GMT 12
There used to be two hangars there. Both 4 Hangar and 5 hangar seem to be gone. The MT yard is still there by the boundary fence. I thought it would have moved to Heli-Hakea with the other support functions.
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Post by horicle on Oct 3, 2013 15:06:56 GMT 12
To get a real matt finish I use Estapol Polyurethane Matt. It can be sprayed but I'm a brush man so have not tried that. It is so good a matt I don't use it on WW2 Japanese or Soviet types because they did not have the paint technology to make matt paint in the lighter colours. One that stayed on the aircraft. For those types I use Microscales Micro Flat, by my reckoning it is a poor matt but just right for poor paints.
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Post by horicle on Oct 3, 2013 14:55:32 GMT 12
A couple of observations from all those wasted years.
Selecting a paint type.
I ended up using the Tamiya Color acrylic series because. 1. Before drying it is water soluble making brush care and spill correction easy. 2. After drying it is quickly and easily broken down with Meths. You could even dunk the whole model in meths and expect nothing else to disappear. Not recommended. 3. For brushing you can dampen the paint brush with water to improve paint flow.
Using filler.
Ever tried putting masking tape along each side of the crack/indent/whatever you need to fill. Then sand out the filer before lifting the tape. All that surface detail adjacent to the c/i/w remains. Sometime the filler shrinkage works to your advantage.
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Post by horicle on Oct 3, 2013 14:40:15 GMT 12
I have been using WP for some years and like all things on the web you must sort the wheat from the chaff. A good example is the Zero float plane (Rufe?) with the weird pastel purple paint scheme. I have the kit box top that one looks like it was copied from (JO-HAN kit A-105). All good fun and well meaning people have done some impressive art work. Just always check it out.
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Post by horicle on Sept 29, 2013 16:41:58 GMT 12
The Longbank people were at WB during 1963. Some of their equipment was flown in that year. First a Globemaster with a long trailer on board (that nearly didn't make it down the ramp. Then a later load on a Herc that that sat engines running during the whole unload. I recall it as being an A model with the shorter nose radome. I also remember the reaction of the young American Airmen in our barrack block on 22/Nov/63 when the news of Kennedy's assassination came through (it was a weekend and you always remember where you were - for me, in the shower). I was away from WB during 1964 and on 27 March 65 I took the then Longbank Boss Morgan Closs for a couple of glider flights. His last flight command had been a Globemaster. I think he may have been the first Longbank Boss. In 1987 or later I visited EECC (ecky squeeky) a few time but don't recall anything 'special' about the building.
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Post by horicle on Sept 19, 2012 15:38:17 GMT 12
They have got me started. Sorry about this. In the limited media rush on the Defence pay situation nobody has bothered with the consideration of how much Defence pay had fallen behind during the four year freeze. Inflation can be whatever you use to measure it. I went to www.johnpemberton.co.nz/html/inflation_graph.html which gave me these numbers in December Years. 2008 3.4% 2009 2.0% 2010 4.0% 2011 1.8% Just the last three years add up to 7.8%. Safe to say that picking any start point and counting back four years there has been 8 to 10 per cent inflation. Where does a 5.7% pay rise - reduced by the rent grab and the other mystery changes - leave the average serviceman/woman. Only if working for families payments are increased will the coalface service personal get a ‘pay’ rise.
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Post by horicle on Jul 19, 2012 13:55:37 GMT 12
I remember trying to get Skyhawk and Macchi stuff from the (mythical) off Base storage 10 or so years ago. It just didn't happen.
How do we accommodate thread drift?
Re the Maritime Herc. I recall standing in a hangar parade at Woodbourne cira 1963 when Mr Morrison (then CAF) told us we were getting three C-130's and possibly a few more with a maritime role fit. Lockheed talked us out of that by extolling the airframe difficulties inherent in using the Herc that way. Naturally they would, as they were selling the P-3 (not P3) at the same time. Now that the P-3 is off the market the Maritime Herc has reappeared. Lockheed could have done it earlier, after all the P-3 is just an adapted L-188.
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Post by horicle on May 14, 2012 14:35:57 GMT 12
Don't they know that the OBOG unit is mounted on the same platform as the 5Ltr and 10Ltr LOX containers and has the same volume as the 10Ltr container. Probably not allowed in the contract and too expensive to modify a few A/C to see if the problem goes away. The U/SAF may have a problem here that is so simple to fix that it is below the services ability.
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Post by horicle on May 7, 2012 14:12:35 GMT 12
It would have been sealed when NAC changed from DC-3s to F27s as most of the smaller commercial airports were. The seal used was just like road chips and I think was blamed for the Macchi loss. Was that at Kaitaia?
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Post by horicle on May 7, 2012 14:02:28 GMT 12
Something has to change. Currently both the trainers have round holes in the instrument panel and the rest of the fleet has rectangular glowing thingies. Also both are leased. Interesting times!
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Post by horicle on Mar 30, 2012 14:23:24 GMT 12
Real pilots 'crab and kick'
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Post by horicle on Mar 16, 2012 10:56:13 GMT 12
Further to the F-22 oxygen system. Avweb site covers the legal action entered into by a pilots widow (Haney, I think) and in that entry is the fact that the oxygen system shut down 'correctly' due to a bleed air problem. How about - the idiots have engineered something too complex for them to fix? I am still not aware of the problem being solved.
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Post by horicle on Dec 27, 2011 20:02:51 GMT 12
In the picture that kicks this thread off you can see the Gloss Grey T Bird (#2) has matte green ailerons. I recall they were fitted because the aircraft was so damn hard to formate on. I do not recall the white rudder though.
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Post by horicle on Dec 17, 2011 10:12:53 GMT 12
During the inquiry one of the panel gave a group of us a 'heads up' on the proceedings, limited of course by sensitivity, and made the statement. We have to decide if we are investigating a survivable event that killed three or an un-serviveable event that someone survived. My immediate gut feeling was that the survivor, who was supercrew, was facing aft with his back to the cabin bulkhead. So far no statement about this has emerged. All I have got so far is that the task was aborted and they about turned to port - towards the problem - rather than a stbd turn towards open sea. There must be more to come out of this.
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