Skybird
 

...........anybody in here fly for or at SKYBIRD AVIATION late of EN say back from 1980 onwards?.............just wanting to see where pilots of the day are today:)

CW:)

Yep. Learnt to fly there. Was there from 86 until about 90. Washed many an aeroplane there come rain or shine.

Now in KA. A330 Cap.

There are some others ex Skybird here in KA. A320 Cap / A320 FO.

Did my Grade 3 Instructor Rating with them back in about 82-83.
Working in Hong Kong ATC now.

.................ahhh tnxs guys, Out of all the misery one can read amongst these pages it's nice to see some made it to where they wanted. I thought I was the only one left out of that mad lot from there !:) Good to see that the 'products' of SKYBIRD where successful. Remember the line of planes out the end of the EN terminal all shinny ? VH PIX, VH SOX VH BMN etc.('cause we washed them !) & those fake rubber plants in the offfice:), they (SKYBIRD) where probably the dearest operator on the airport at the time but they did have the best indoor plants as well as the most planes :) And that Cessna Pilot Training course, on the so called computer !................CPC I think it was called, even have the red bag that you bought yr learning stuff in !:), now where getting all teary here:)
Trying to recall that incident where one of SKYBIRDS instructors went to the states to ferry back a C172RG I think it was & never got the plane back to OZ. Ditched & was picked up by a fishing boat, I believe his wife said...............do that again & where finished !:).............lucky guy, had an 'out' even in those early days !:}..................anyway seems like a zillion years ago now !

CW:)

Yeah. Was his first ferry trip across the pond I think. GB ("the Barking Toad" - you had to know the Derek and Clive sketch!) from memory. Long time ago now.

I went solo in SOX (and pants and a shirt)

Remember in about 87 when an RAAF C130 came to EN and was taxying towards its awaiting entourage near police air wing when one of the tarmac terriers from skybird raced out and marshalled it into one of our spots where the dca f28 usually parked. For half a day we had a Herc on line.

SOX / PIX / BMN / RSB / WOJ / AIX / OLY / MVE / Phils magic hanger. The galley.

Memories huh.

Oh, I forgot the nicknames Maitland used too . . .

Ickerbod, Gunner, Dickie knee etc

And I believe John is now a practising lawyer! Good luck to him.
Still thought Black JAK was a very cool looking aircraft. My first twin!!

And some of the quotes John used to make. Here are some I can still recall, and to this day have no idea what they mean :

"He probably votes Labor and eats margarine with a spoon"
"That ADF in Black JAK is so f...ing powerful it can pick up the King Island NDB on the ground at Essendon"
"Yep, it's good to start a turbocharged engine and rev the **** out of it just to get the turbo working"
"They've only got those aeroplanes cause they're f...ing drug runners"
"My mate Jeff is gonna cream it in at the election"

b.

............ah am welling up in the eyes thinking back to the good 'ole days:)
Other rego's at SKYBIRD where WYG WYJ as well WOJ already mentioned. When under pressure trying to get those rego's out without sounding like a complete goose was challenging at times !:)
Seems like there's only a few of us here who either remember SKYBIRD or want to forget !:)...........anyway 'tis nice reminiscing.
Bachuus Marsh, how many times did we tranist out there for training?.............racked up many hrs just enroute to the training area !

............keep the dream alive guys fly safe:)

CW

And I wonder if Russ and the Sherriff are still around?

And wasn't there the Phantom in ADL?

Dusted off the old log book for this one:

Restricted test 1986 in PWP. Also flew RSB, PIX, UVS, OLY, ITC.

Unrestricted test in WOJ with Maitland in 87. Remember looking for the strobes in the western lane on the trip back from BCS. After landing at EN he asks me "you know what those white lines down the centre of the runway are for?.... thats the fukcing centre line and you're supposed to land on it"

Twin endorsement at MNG in JAK.

Had a 'real' job for a while and stopped flying 92 - 2001.

First pilot job in 2004, currently flying a lawn dart.

Good to see he got his command. Remember the late Norm Lee? Top bloke and a very sad loss. I had many a good Skybird charter in Norm's PA-31's.

I used to fly Discover *lying's Doves while you blokes were with Skybird. I wouldn't mind getting in touch with Nick B. If anybody has contact details please PM me.

......ahhhhhhhhhhhh "flying-spike" now yr bringing back memories, not all that good either !:bored: I too used to fly the DH-104 for MM many moons ago, I think I racked up a few hundred landings at PID with those 'little' people on board who loved the penguins !:) I can still remeber & laughing (not at the time) a 'twin loc' app by another pilot to EN for rwy 26 !!!!!...........I guess when yr 'cut -out-stick-on' ADF fails (falls off the panel !!)what else do you do?:}Good 'ole VH ABM & VHNBM, may they both rest in piece/s !:) Who knows what those 2 X IO720's where sucking up on T/Off...the FF was off the planet !
Great to see a few guys here dusting off logbook No. 276514762965429:}
for the memories:)

Tnxs for the memories & to Ron 'Jaco" at Riddels Creek for fun times when SKYBIRD had a satelite station out there, at around $35 an hr for a C172 we thought we where paying heaps..........oh how we wish now:)

CW:)

ABM was OK (for a Dove) but NBM nearly killed me and a few customers with an assymetric flap incident . That was sorted but afterwards it used to roll left a few degrees when you selected the first stage for landing.Used to put the wind up me!:\

.................ahhhhh good 'ole NBM..............yr right 'fkying-spike' it was a beast & a the flying disaster !!!.........remember the pneumatics??.............there was so much oil in the pneumatic system from constant leaks from the compressor that I felt the system would have been better off being called hydraulics !:}.............still they where very stable & I can remember flying ABM once in the cruise back from PID with using only the rudder pedals & elevator trim 'till short final, such was the inherent stable nature of the big 4 tonne bird:) ABM had the original fin/rudder & was better at getting the beast under control early in the T/Off run, not so for NBM, (with the cessna type tail) one had to 'dance' on the rudder pedals to make that ugly duckling stay on the straight & narrow !:)

.................oh how we tap danced around fate back in the good 'ole days :)

CW

And remember when they'd get bogged down at Phillip Island and everyone, passengers included, would have to get under the wing and lift?

.............now now EPIRB I care not to remember such things:bored:.Probably got a crook back 'cause of that !!!!!........:bored: PID............boy that place was a joke when it came to rwy lighting & decent parking area's.
Saw the funniest thing down there years ago(not funny at the time tho). One late afternoon a low wing job came in for a touch & go & the airport owner saw this event (won't mention any names here) & when he spotted the offending plane (offending 'cause there where landing fees payable for all a/c, bit hard to pay when you bash & crash!)) he (owner) promptly got in his old old old clapped out car & proceeded to drive along the rwy & block the ldg A/C( a go-around was performed & he shot thru!)............all for what??.................$5 bucks or so at the time????............still ldg fees are another whole subject !

.............more to come am sure !:)

CW:)

The same gentleman (and he is/was?), did a stirling job of putting reflector tape on the tyres surrounding the runway lights. Came in handy for a 10pm takeoff when the PAL wouldn't work!