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Post by Bruce on Nov 2, 2017 16:41:34 GMT 12
'tis the sign of the times...? Tough call Bruce. Could it be rescheduled to a more settled-weather time of the year perhaps? Sadly over summer the camp ground we use as a base is so popular there isnt any chance of rescheduling. Early November is the window we work with...
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Post by Bruce on Nov 2, 2017 15:59:14 GMT 12
The second total cancellation actually. Wings Over Wairarapa got washed out earlier this year; and Classic Fighters dodged a bullet by the skin of their teeth. First for Black Sands. We've had damp weekends before, but never so bad we had to cancel. Not a bad record over 13 years!
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Post by Bruce on Nov 2, 2017 15:58:13 GMT 12
Sad news Bruce and all the gang of hard working people who've been preparing for this. No doubt Bruce McD has an over abundance of food now. Actually Bruce has retired from the role and Baz McGahan was back running the hospitality. The food purchase was one of the reasons we made the call now.
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Post by Bruce on Nov 2, 2017 15:08:14 GMT 12
BLACK SANDS 2017 Cancelled due weather Hello everyone, we regret to announce the Black Sands Fly in at Raglan this weekend has been cancelled. Despite hopeful forecasts a few days ago, the latest forecasts show heavy rains for Friday, Saturday and most of Sunday. As we do not wish to have people risking flying in poor conditions, and the effort involved in setting up the event for a low turnout, we have reluctantly decided to cancel the fly in. Due to facilities bookings we are unable to postpone to another date. This is the first time in 13 years of the event that we have had to make this call. Please let as many people as you can know of this cancellation - we may have trouble reaching the SAA mailing list as the admin is currently away. We will also publish this via social media. Our apologies for any inconvenience this may cause, please stay tuned for details of Black Sands 2018! Best regards, Bruce Cooke Chapter Secretary Waikato Thames Valley Chapter NZ Sport Aircraft Association
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Post by Bruce on Nov 2, 2017 12:22:02 GMT 12
At this stage we are still on, but we expect that turnout will be down significantly. We are not able to postpone due to campground and airfield bookings, so its either this weekend or not at all. the forecast has been varying all week, and unfortunately looks to be deteriorating again. As we dont have pre-registrations its impossible to advise people of a cancellation, so that is very much an extreme option we would generally only consider if a tropical cyclone was due to arrive. We fully expect however that the weekend programme will change from that advertised, and the we may finish early if the weather really sets in.
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Post by Bruce on Oct 20, 2017 17:36:07 GMT 12
Glad that didn't turn out worse! Theres some serious energy involved in something like that so its always good when there are no injuries. Hope you're back in the saddle soon!
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Post by Bruce on Oct 18, 2017 17:40:44 GMT 12
The Walsh Brothers Wright-Farman was destroyed by cows - they liked the Sago-coated wing fabric!
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Post by Bruce on Oct 11, 2017 9:22:23 GMT 12
The photo of Devon NZ1817 and Canberra is likely to be Mildura, Vic. The history for 1817 says it was owned by Pierce Dunn at Mildura as part of a warbirds museum in the mid 1980s. The museum has now closed and the Devon has relocated. I visited Mildura last year and the Museum has gone, but the location in the photo looks familiar. That would also explain the prescence of a Canberra!
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Post by Bruce on Oct 6, 2017 16:58:23 GMT 12
It used to be regularly flown in front of CAA (and the previous dept Civil Aviation) facilities. The Current CAA building doesnt have a flag pole, so I dont think its flown much any more! It is in their reception area so not flown, but "hangared"
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Post by Bruce on Oct 6, 2017 9:23:17 GMT 12
Dave, do you know if it is/was ever used? It used to be regularly flown in front of CAA (and the previous dept Civil Aviation) facilities. The Current CAA building doesnt have a flag pole, so I dont think its flown much any more!
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Post by Bruce on Sept 30, 2017 9:24:07 GMT 12
If I recall correctly, were not the early Doves built with a fixed non-steering nose wheel? Can you tell externally? Were these ones setup for nose wheel steering? Or am I thinking of a different aircraft? Graeme All Devon / Doves that I am aware of have castoring nosewheels, hence the reason the wheel is offset well behind the strut. Its almost identical to the Vampire / Venom but slightly larger. A steerable leg would look significantly different, with the wheel closer to the strut axis.
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Post by Bruce on Sept 19, 2017 11:48:38 GMT 12
Is it just Jet A1 that is low? Or is it AvTur for the turboprops too? Turboprops use JET A1 - No such thing as AVTUR in New Zealand en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jet_fuelAvtur is Military Fuel spec JP1 (now largely obsolete) which was a different spec to the JP-8 Military Spec Jet Fuel. JP-8 differs in detail from JET A1 (Civil Spec) but is essentially compatible.
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Post by Bruce on Sept 19, 2017 10:20:05 GMT 12
Is it just Jet A1 that is low? Or is it AvTur for the turboprops too? Turboprops use JET A1 - No such thing as AVTUR in New Zealand
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Post by Bruce on Sept 18, 2017 22:11:00 GMT 12
My Brother has just left for Auckland to catch a flight to Aussie. I suggested he take a 20 Litre drum of Jet A1 with him as his contribution....
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Post by Bruce on Sept 18, 2017 13:23:23 GMT 12
By the way, it has to be said, how flipping cool is it to see four Hawker Sea Furies in the same place, and the same race. What amazing beasts they are! Makes the Yak look tiny!
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Post by Bruce on Sept 17, 2017 19:28:24 GMT 12
You can e-mail news to TVNZ : news@tvnz.co.nz Maybe if several people submit the story they may wake up to its importance.... yeah right
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Post by Bruce on Sept 17, 2017 16:07:10 GMT 12
Judging by the chat here and on Facebook and the messages I have been getting from people I think Graeme and Full Noise are recreating the biggest buzz in the New Zealand aviation scene since the second Mosquito first flew! I've put it out among the SAA Mailing lists - I think there will be a LOT of interest amongst the NZ aviation community. I hope it doesnt overload the live stream!
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Post by Bruce on Sept 16, 2017 9:18:49 GMT 12
I struggle to understand the Gold - Silver - Bronze classes, and why when you have the potential to win your class of closely matched racers, you get "promoted" to an also-ran in a class where you cant possibly keep up. Must be an American system....
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MOTAT
Sept 14, 2017 10:00:57 GMT 12
Post by Bruce on Sept 14, 2017 10:00:57 GMT 12
Yes, that is the correct legal definition as far as aviation law goes too. That is how they are always referred to in the Civil Aviation Rules. You have landplanes and Seaplanes, and just like you can get nosewheel and tailwheel landplanes, you can get Floatplane, Flying Boat and Amphibian Seaplanes.
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Post by Bruce on Sept 12, 2017 22:38:15 GMT 12
Michael Holland and his cameraman spent most of the day on site getting the feel for the place and the family. I had a chat to Mike and he seems to be quite an aviation enthusiast, He has done a very nice job of telling the story without over dramatising things. a good report.
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