Spare some outback/remote flying tips for a beginner?
Thread Starter
Thanks all for the tips!
It seems outback flying is a whole other world!
Looks like I have a ton to learn and a lot to read up on, but all these comments have made it so much easier, thanks a lot!
Is there any recommendations for dealing with customers that may be irate or not in a state for flight?
Thanks all
Kind Regards,
Mach1
It seems outback flying is a whole other world!
Looks like I have a ton to learn and a lot to read up on, but all these comments have made it so much easier, thanks a lot!
Is there any recommendations for dealing with customers that may be irate or not in a state for flight?
Thanks all
Kind Regards,
Mach1
Before you have to do it for real, learn how to jump start from a LandCruiser. No prop swing required.
If a dirty great wasp/bee/insect/spider gets in the cabin, don't get excited and try to brush it through the storm window. Open as many orifices the plane offers, and let them do it them selves. Otherwise they will get as exited and toey as you.
Be prepared to smell stuff that you will never forget. Then you will remember that living beings can really smell that dead.
Just as important as covering the pitot, don't forget to take it off. Especially if you use the pitot heat.
Always keep the grid MORA/LSALT in mind if you get caught out.
Flys. Lots and lots of flys.
If a dirty great wasp/bee/insect/spider gets in the cabin, don't get excited and try to brush it through the storm window. Open as many orifices the plane offers, and let them do it them selves. Otherwise they will get as exited and toey as you.
Be prepared to smell stuff that you will never forget. Then you will remember that living beings can really smell that dead.
Just as important as covering the pitot, don't forget to take it off. Especially if you use the pitot heat.
Always keep the grid MORA/LSALT in mind if you get caught out.
Flys. Lots and lots of flys.
interpreting a WAC
Learn to interpret a WAC in both wet and dry times, when the world looks totally different. Better to do visual nav with roads and outback stations than rivers, or creeks.
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Know the probabilities for inclusion of weather on the various types of forecasts - GAF 10%, TAF 30% and TTF 50% - particularly if you're running minimum fuel. You'll often see thunderstorms at an aerodrome when they're not forecast on the TAF, but only occasionally see them if they're not forecast on the GAF. I've seen the first reference to thunderstorms at Darwin on more than one occasion being a METAR. The same goes for fog.
You may be surprised to find how quickly birds can build a nest on top of a warm engine.
One thing that you will learn is what it is like to have no background noise.
Maybe an occasional bird, that's it
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As has been suggested earlier, always have a Plan B. I would go further and suggest have a plan C and D. The day you start running out of options is the day you will run into trouble.
A good attribute for a bush pilot is the way they can think on their feet and improvise. Having a good knowledge of your machine is critical when things break down as well as having good hand skills to fix it. If you are not comfortable or have the tools to fix anything listed in Schedule 8, then bush flying is not for you. Spend some time in a hangar and know how to fix tyres, check spark plugs etc.
A good attribute for a bush pilot is the way they can think on their feet and improvise. Having a good knowledge of your machine is critical when things break down as well as having good hand skills to fix it. If you are not comfortable or have the tools to fix anything listed in Schedule 8, then bush flying is not for you. Spend some time in a hangar and know how to fix tyres, check spark plugs etc.
Congratulate yourself that you found that pimple in the middle of a featureless plain by good navigation and rigorous track/heading keeping. Very important pre-takeoff, set that blood gyro! Once in the air and about to depart have an idea where the sun should be in relation to your departure track and ensure you set your departure heading ACCURATELY asap because there are minimal features that relate to the WAC and it could be a good while before you relate the WAC to a feature on the ground..NEVER TRUST THE MAGENTA LINE until you are sure you have set the correct destination...the bit about the Sun will help you if you forget this...A wise old Cunnamulla flyer bashed my ears on this very subject....and we were in a KingAir at the time!
Be very prepared for absolute **** visibility in smoke/haze. In most of the inland (Especially anywhere in QLD west of the range), if you get ABV100 you will invariably get above the inversion layer and it into clear air with no turbulence...just remember that all that **** below you makes it difficult to pinpoint features. Having said that, the higher you get the more realistic the WAC looks. Me is a very low time PPL but I spent too much time in the back of Codd Air's B65s wandering around western QLD flying into and out of rough strips graded specially for crew change. (Please excuse the link to Airhistory and credit to David Carter in advance)......
.....One important thing. NEVER allow anyone else to load your aircraft. The guys I worked for managed to overload the nose locker of this particular Queenie with drill bits that would have been ..um..interesting if not caught early.
Be very prepared for absolute **** visibility in smoke/haze. In most of the inland (Especially anywhere in QLD west of the range), if you get ABV100 you will invariably get above the inversion layer and it into clear air with no turbulence...just remember that all that **** below you makes it difficult to pinpoint features. Having said that, the higher you get the more realistic the WAC looks. Me is a very low time PPL but I spent too much time in the back of Codd Air's B65s wandering around western QLD flying into and out of rough strips graded specially for crew change. (Please excuse the link to Airhistory and credit to David Carter in advance)......
.....One important thing. NEVER allow anyone else to load your aircraft. The guys I worked for managed to overload the nose locker of this particular Queenie with drill bits that would have been ..um..interesting if not caught early.
Aviate, navigate, communicate. Fly the aircraft, always know where you are, and then chat to whoever you need to (ATC, pax, boss).
Before heading to the bush, get into a maintenance org, and learn how to do all the pilot maintenance you can. Change a tyre, change a spark plug.
Read Section 7 in the POH on aircraft systems, then go through it again, and write down a list of questions on anything you are not clear on. Then go through that list with a LAME, and get a clear answer. Section 7 of the POH should be of more interest to a pilot than Playboy or Cleo.
When enquiring about the condition of an little used airstrip, ask if anyone would be game to belt down it in a landrover at 120 - 140kph (that's approximately your landing speed for most light singles). If there is any hesitation before they say yes, then there's your sign.
It's a requirement to do a fuel drain before flight. The second half of that reg is more commonly forgotten, and that is to do a fuel drain after re-fuelling ( before starting up to taxi). Always best to catch nasties before they get sucked into the fuel filter / fuel system.
Check the weather from more than one source. Look for the common information across all sources.
Check the weather for today, then check it for tomorrow and the day after. It's all very well to get from Point A to Point B today, and overnight, but a weather system coming through may mean that you are at Point B for tomorrow and the next day (and the day after....while the strip dries out).
Get a dual sim for your phone that does both Telstra and Optus. Think about investing in a Sat Sleeve that will turn your ordinary mobile into a sat phone.
Get a bluetooth compliant headset, so you can link your phone to your headset, and make calls in flight (push the pilot isolate switch to separate you from the pax). It means a quick chat to the boss or to the Gingerbeers may settle your mind / nerves.
A couple of muesli bars, extra water, a clean pair of socks, jocks, a toothbrush and a phone charger in the hand luggage weigh very little but will come in handy surprisingly often.
In advising a passenger (or the boss) why something can't be done, double check your facts and figures, be polite, and try and offer an alternative rather than just saying "no". Stick to the facts, and don't get into a slanging match (unpleasant with a passenger, career limiting if its the boss).
I agree with most of the previous comments - know your personal limitations, and always, always have a Plan B (and a Plan C, just in case).
On the day I got my PPL, my flying instructor said -
Right now, you have a full bag of luck, and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill the bag of experience before you empty the bag of luck.
At the time, I thought he was being funny.
20 years later, I look back and think how right he was.
Flying in the bush will introduce you to experiences, locations and people you would never otherwise meet. Some you will teach, others you will learn from (good or bad in both instances).
Before heading to the bush, get into a maintenance org, and learn how to do all the pilot maintenance you can. Change a tyre, change a spark plug.
Read Section 7 in the POH on aircraft systems, then go through it again, and write down a list of questions on anything you are not clear on. Then go through that list with a LAME, and get a clear answer. Section 7 of the POH should be of more interest to a pilot than Playboy or Cleo.
When enquiring about the condition of an little used airstrip, ask if anyone would be game to belt down it in a landrover at 120 - 140kph (that's approximately your landing speed for most light singles). If there is any hesitation before they say yes, then there's your sign.
It's a requirement to do a fuel drain before flight. The second half of that reg is more commonly forgotten, and that is to do a fuel drain after re-fuelling ( before starting up to taxi). Always best to catch nasties before they get sucked into the fuel filter / fuel system.
Check the weather from more than one source. Look for the common information across all sources.
Check the weather for today, then check it for tomorrow and the day after. It's all very well to get from Point A to Point B today, and overnight, but a weather system coming through may mean that you are at Point B for tomorrow and the next day (and the day after....while the strip dries out).
Get a dual sim for your phone that does both Telstra and Optus. Think about investing in a Sat Sleeve that will turn your ordinary mobile into a sat phone.
Get a bluetooth compliant headset, so you can link your phone to your headset, and make calls in flight (push the pilot isolate switch to separate you from the pax). It means a quick chat to the boss or to the Gingerbeers may settle your mind / nerves.
A couple of muesli bars, extra water, a clean pair of socks, jocks, a toothbrush and a phone charger in the hand luggage weigh very little but will come in handy surprisingly often.
In advising a passenger (or the boss) why something can't be done, double check your facts and figures, be polite, and try and offer an alternative rather than just saying "no". Stick to the facts, and don't get into a slanging match (unpleasant with a passenger, career limiting if its the boss).
I agree with most of the previous comments - know your personal limitations, and always, always have a Plan B (and a Plan C, just in case).
On the day I got my PPL, my flying instructor said -
Right now, you have a full bag of luck, and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill the bag of experience before you empty the bag of luck.
At the time, I thought he was being funny.
20 years later, I look back and think how right he was.
Flying in the bush will introduce you to experiences, locations and people you would never otherwise meet. Some you will teach, others you will learn from (good or bad in both instances).
drill bits that would have been
Doorstops was his reply.
If you're still in the city - get a taxi licence and drive a few months as a taxi driver. Touting for business and dealing with runners is the bush pilot experience you need. Seriously - if you're based in a community, then you end up walking through the town looking for business - and that business can sudenly scatter on arrival if you're not careful and prepared.
Ask if you can do a week's work experience in your flying club/school's maintenace hangar. Just being able to remove, sand blast and re-gap the plugs, change the oil and change a tyre will be enough to put on your resume to make it stand out a bit.
Ask if you can do a week's work experience in your flying club/school's maintenace hangar. Just being able to remove, sand blast and re-gap the plugs, change the oil and change a tyre will be enough to put on your resume to make it stand out a bit.
PPRuNe Handmaiden
If you can, get a driving licence that lets you drive smaller minibuses. Good for tourist pick ups.
A first aid certificate as well as dangerous good certificate. Don't leave home without them.
Night VFR rating. Easier to keep current than an Instrument rating.
Some maintenance skills are bloody useful.
If you can get any time flying a C206 would be very useful.
Leave the attitude at home, be friendly and open.
Good luck
A first aid certificate as well as dangerous good certificate. Don't leave home without them.
Night VFR rating. Easier to keep current than an Instrument rating.
Some maintenance skills are bloody useful.
If you can get any time flying a C206 would be very useful.
Leave the attitude at home, be friendly and open.
Good luck
Learn to cook a few meals (Italian or stir fry is a good place to start - cheap and easy). You'll be sharing accomodation with others and sharing cooking nights - buying takeaway pizza each time makes you look an idiot. Make sure you can do basic housework, wash and iron.
Off topic, but Was at the Marree pub many years ago on a state of origin night during tourist season. The strip almost ran out of avgas. I’ve never seen a group of pilots, guys and gals, having so much fun.
Was at the Marree pub in Oct 2011 and the strip had run out of avgas. Dinner at the pub with fellow aviators was a lot of fun. (Fortunately no footy to have to watch.)
Was around that year Gerry. When I arrived about 4pm, (landing downwind), the kids were all busy cleaning their windscreens and interiors for tomorrow’s tourist flights over Lake Eyre. Trevor Wright would have been proud. I’ve never seen a group of young folk working so hard and then playing so hard.
Anyone remember the mice?
Anyone remember the mice?
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CASA's Out-n-Back series 2 has some fairly good practical advice for low time pilots flying in the outback (in amongst the usual dry safety messages).
Pretty easy viewing, and one of the better pieces of work to come out of CASA in my opinion.
Pretty easy viewing, and one of the better pieces of work to come out of CASA in my opinion.
Never, ever be afraid to turn back when you feel continuing ahead is getting beyond your level of experience……..especially when weather is involved.
The strip almost ran out of avgas. I’ve never seen a group of pilots, guys and gals, having so much fun.