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Tracey Curtis-Taylor (Merged threads)

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Tracey Curtis-Taylor (Merged threads)

Old 13th Oct 2018, 20:16
  #4401 (permalink)  
 
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Just the Stearman, but ATC have some blame as well.

I was there, it wasn't clear - neither Ewald nor Tracey did anything wrong.

For the avoidance of doubt.
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Old 13th Oct 2018, 20:43
  #4402 (permalink)  
 
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Originally Posted by Sam Rutherford
Just the Stearman, but ATC have some blame as well.

I was there, it wasn't clear - neither Ewald nor Tracey did anything wrong.

For the avoidance of doubt.

A question Sam if I may: when the Stearman and the chase plane were transiting controlled airspace, contacting approach for landing, reading back departure clearances or communicating between aircraft who was doing the talking in the Stearman? Did each plane make their own calls or was it done as a “flight of two” ?
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Old 13th Oct 2018, 20:54
  #4403 (permalink)  
 
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Originally Posted by Sam Rutherford
Just the Stearman, but ATC have some blame as well.

I was there, it wasn't clear - neither Ewald nor Tracey did anything wrong.

For the avoidance of doubt.
This is a great example of sticking to the facts wherever they lead. It would be so easy for Sam not to post this and let everyone keep criticising Ms Curtis-Taylor for what happened.

It’s a shame that she seems unable unwilling to address the other questions of fact surrounding her “achievements “ with equal honesty.

Last edited by Jonzarno; 13th Oct 2018 at 21:51.
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Old 14th Oct 2018, 04:33
  #4404 (permalink)  
 
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ON the other thread (which I won't comment on as I am not a member of the LAA) there is this

"It has damaged our reputation and made us look misogynistic. We need to be generous and fix it.... Let’s play the game in a way that makes us attractive to young women and men, and encourages them to join us."

I am just your regular PPrune troll, but what this is suggesting is the most misogynistic thing of all, TOKENISM. It makes a mockery of the many women who have forged successful careers without a team of men to do all the work for us and haven't sought any publicity or thrown our toys out of the pram when we don't get everything our way.

The hidden agenda seems to be to get revenge on the LAA for being so beastly and mean and tear the horrid organisation to shreds, it's working a treat, would there be this much wringing of hands if she was a he? Is all you need to get an accolade to throw a tanty?

What a horrible situation, deliberately manipulated; if I were a member I would suggest expelling her from the association before the AGM for her remarks about the association then presumably she wouldn't be eligible for the trophy anyway, problem solved.
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Old 14th Oct 2018, 06:23
  #4405 (permalink)  
 
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As shown on the Winslow accident report both were logging the flight time. The aircraft was being operated under FAA rules, given the first para in the quote how could both log the time, a Stearman does not require two pilots? Were they taking advantage of the second para, in which case Ewald was the real PIC, responsible for the overall safety etc of the flight, and TC-T was logging PIC time as "sole manipulator", which she tells us she was?
two pilots may not simultaneously log PIC when one pilot is sole manipulator of the controls and the other is acting as pilot-in-command if the regulations governing the flight do not require more than one pilot...............there are some unusual situations which occur. A private pilot flying with his friend (a CFI or ATP) aboard as a passenger. What is the status of the CFI or ATP (Ewald) who is obviously a more senior pilot with more experience than the private pilot (TC-T)? The regulations don’t address this situation, but the courts may find that the more senior pilot has some or all the responsibility for the operation or safety of the flight.
https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org...AND%20TIME.pdf

FAA LOGGING TIME - LEGAL INTERPRETATIONS

http://www.offhand.org/amb/pic-time.txt
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Old 14th Oct 2018, 16:22
  #4406 (permalink)  
 
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I'm an LAA member. I'm female. I've held some sort of licence since 1981. Nobody outside my club has ever given me an award. I did once get a small grant from the BWPA.
I've paid for my flying apart from when I was an instructor. I paid for my CPL, I paid for my instructor ratings, I paid for my touring, in a slow and basic aircraft, I paid for the maintenance that I didn't or couldn't do myself. If in order to get an award I have to act like this pretentious stuck up liar, then I don't ever want one. Actually I don't want one anyway, because I fly for fun.
Guess how I voted?
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Old 14th Oct 2018, 19:19
  #4407 (permalink)  
 
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On p8 of this publication the author says the Stearman belongs to Ewald Gritsch
https://www.airpilots.org/file/2339/...-june-2016.pdf
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Old 14th Oct 2018, 19:53
  #4408 (permalink)  
 
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Originally Posted by Hadley Rille
On p8 of this publication the author says the Stearman belongs to Ewald Gritsch
https://www.airpilots.org/file/2339/...-june-2016.pdf
That's what I would call a 'Hmm...we appear to have a problem article...let's try and head it off at the pass...'

Nice try but the date is well after the first accusations were made. Two weeks after this article was published, C-T's Facebook and website were still talking about a solo flight - see link below.

If you follow the link, you'll notice that the website description of her journey seems not to be quite as fulsome and open as the editors above.....

https://web.archive.org/web/20160621...:80/operations
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Old 14th Oct 2018, 20:17
  #4409 (permalink)  
 
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"Her journeys have been very much 21st century ones, embracing the GoPro era with copious cameras and photographers, and a chase aircraft bringing luggage and avgas, and also assisting in navigation, and very proactive PR. Moreover, for most flights on the 2015/6 expedition to Australia she was accompanied by the aircraft's owner, Ewald Gritsch, a 20,000 hour instructor."

Interesting article.
So here is the chase-plane assisting with the navigation which was such a "feat" for Tracey, in that aeroplane that is not hers, and Ewald along just to see she doesn't break it.

Role model? - No.
Worthy of any award? - No.
Proactive PR? Yes, in over-drive and no one applying any brakes.
Right to remove the Bill Woodham Trophy? - Yes

People have done great things in the past, received awards for doing so but these have been removed when the truth came out. (See the Lance Armstrong story)
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Old 14th Oct 2018, 23:22
  #4410 (permalink)  
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In the meantime, somebody else is trying to get to Australia, and may be worth watching...

http://gb-nz.com/

G
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Old 15th Oct 2018, 03:38
  #4411 (permalink)  
 
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Interesting to read that the chase plane was impounded in Indonesia for a month for busting restricted airspace.

Good luck to the GB to NZ team!

Last edited by Clare Prop; 15th Oct 2018 at 13:37.
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Old 15th Oct 2018, 11:50
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Originally Posted by Clare Prop
Interesting to read that the chase pane was impounded in Indonesia for a month for busting restricted airspace.
I had forgotten about that, it was mentioned some time ago. What happened there I wonder, a missing stamp on one of the many reams of paperwork they so love in those parts?
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Old 15th Oct 2018, 14:31
  #4413 (permalink)  
 
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To lighten the mood I thought I would post this from the ladyicarus blog because it made me smile.

“There was a small problem with oil leaking from the front of the engine at Port Elizabeth, so Ewald Gritsch, the team's engineer, flew with Tracey to confirm that everything was all right.”
...........and this

“So what is Tracey Curtis-Taylor carrying in the Spirit of Artemis?
[img]http://2.bp.********.com/-pzSPCH1PSeM/UntwSCG9SpI/AAAAAAAADuE/AV_IkAlkKQM/s200/IMG_0141.JPGAt the ExecuJet HQ in Cape Town before take off, lots of negotiations were taking place, with boxes and equipment being swapped between the two planes. Tracey can carry just 15kg in hers; the chase plane, a Cessna Caravan, can obviously carry more, but is also limited.
Unlike Lady Heath all those years ago, Tracey will not be carrying a tennis racquet, shot gun, or morphine in case of a crash landing. She will certainly carry a change of clothes, some food, a book or two, and maybe even a party dress!
Then there are her three mascots - an elephant, leopard (or maybe it's a giraffe?) and lion. "And I hope to get two more along the way!" she says.”
...........and this

"She was the first person to fly it solo in a light aircraft and she was doing it totally unassisted. I have a little bit more support that she did - I have an aircraft accompanying me. The purpose of that is to film the project - a story of Mary Heath and my flight."
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Old 15th Oct 2018, 15:09
  #4414 (permalink)  
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This was posted on another aviation bulletin board - so everything including the email addresses are already in the public domain...

From: Steve Marriott [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: 14 October 2018 13:14
To: undisclosed-recipients:
Subject: Journeys in a Biplane, Following Female Pioneers of the Air

I must apologise for contacting you like this and with such short notice. We have arranged a talk by Tracey Curtis-Taylor about early woman aviators and recreating their journeys for next Wed, 17/10/2018 and thought it might be of interest to your members.
Tracey's talk is about the story of early woman aviators in history and the contribution that they made to aviation; the universal dream of flight, and what it's like to fly a vintage aeroplane across five continents in the modern age. Her recent epics have included:
• Recreating the flight of Mary Heath, one of the most outstanding pilots of the late 1920s and the first person to fly solo from the Cape of South Africa in a light aircraft. Tracey restored and made the flight in a 1942 Boeing Stearman
• In 2015 following the route of Amy Johnson’s solo flight to Australia which was another world first in 1930.
• In 2016 flying across America following the historic airmail route from west coast to east coast which took a second attempt a year later after she crashed in the Arizona Desert with an engine failure
The lecture takes place Wed 17/10/2018, 7pm for 7:30pm start. Venue in the Chemistry Lecture Theatre, University of Bristol, off Woodland Road, Clifton. Bristol. BS8 1TS (allow time for parking). Advance tickets available from Stanfords, Corn St, Bristol. BS1 1HT, cost £10:00 (concession rate; £9:00) or available on the door price £11:00.

This is just one of a series of lectures we run every year as Wilderness Lectures. Our full programme is available on wildernesslectures.com. If you would prefer I don’t contact you in future to pass on news of relevant lectures do let me know.

Yours
Steve Marriott
Wilderness lectures
[email protected]
Can't say it seems worth going to me, but others here might be interested.

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Old 15th Oct 2018, 15:21
  #4415 (permalink)  
 
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I’m sure that Ms Curtis-Taylor will immediately be contacting Mr Marriott to ensure the actual restorer gets the credit. After all, given what’s happened in the past through misunderstandings and the errors of others, correcting such inaccuracies must be high on her agenda.
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Old 15th Oct 2018, 15:37
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Originally Posted by Gonzo
I’m sure that Ms Curtis-Taylor will immediately be contacting Mr Marriott to ensure the actual restorer gets the credit. After all, given what’s happened in the past through misunderstandings and the errors of others, correcting such inaccuracies must be high on her agenda.
Well before she does, this is on their website.

Wilderness Lectures

Tracey Curtis-Taylor was born in England but raised in British Columbia, Canada, until the age of ten when the family returned to the UK in the early 1970’s. Tracey had her first flying lesson at the age of sixteen on a holiday to Canada and continued flying after she emigrated to New Zealand in 1983. Over the next six years she gained her private and commercial pilot’s licences and qualified as a flying instructor. She joined the New Zealand Warbird Association and was trained by military pilots to fly WW2 training aircraft. But her real passion was for early bi-planes and open-cockpit flying, and a defining moment was when she bought a share in a replica WW1 single-seat fighter, the iconic Se5a, which famously fought against the Red Baron in his Fokker Triplane.

Flying old aeroplanes fostered an interest in the early pioneers and the recordmaking solo flights of the inter-war period. In 2012 Tracey commissioned the restoration of a 1942 Boeing Stearman for the purpose of retracing Lady Heath’s flight from Cape Town to England in 1928. Accompanied by a support aircraft and film crew, a documentary called T h e Avia t rix was made of Tracey’s flight in 2013 and was screened by the BBC. This was the forgotten story of Mary Heath, one of the most outstanding pilots of the late 1920s and the first person to fly solo from the Cape of South Africa in a light aircraft. Continuing with this theme of celebrating the achievements of the female pioneers, in 2015 Tracey followed the route of Amy Johnson’s solo flight to Australia which was another world first in 1930. In 2016 Tracey flew across America following the historic airmail route from west coast to east coast which took a second attempt a year later after she crashed in the Arizona Desert with an engine failure. Another documentary about Tracey’s flying adventures and the pioneering story is in the final stages of completion. Tracey’s talk is about the story in history and the contribution that these remarkable women made to aviation; the universal dream of flight, and what it’s like to fly a vintage aeroplane across five continents in the modern age.

Continuing with this theme of celebrating the achievements of the female pioneers, in 2015 Tracey followed the route of Amy Johnson's solo flight to Australia which was another world first in 1930. In 2016 Tracey flew across America following the historic airmail route from west coast to east coast which took a second attempt a year later after she crashed in the Arizona Desert with an engine failure. Another documentary about Tracey's flying adventures and the pioneering story is in the final stages of completion.

Tracey's talk is about the story in history and the contribution that these remarkable women made to aviation; the universal dream of flight, and what it's like to fly a vintage aeroplane across five continents in the modern age.
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Old 15th Oct 2018, 15:54
  #4417 (permalink)  
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Mr Genghis Sir,

The quotes refer to an engine failure at Winslow. Does anyone know which part of the engine failed ? We appear to at least have stepped away from contaminated fuel which is a welcome amendment.
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Old 15th Oct 2018, 16:11
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Originally Posted by B Fraser
Mr Genghis Sir,

The quotes refer to an engine failure at Winslow. Does anyone know which part of the engine failed ? We appear to at least have stepped away from contaminated fuel which is a welcome amendment.
I suspect that it was the bit between the throttle lever and the seat.
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Old 15th Oct 2018, 20:44
  #4419 (permalink)  
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Tracey continues to issue denials about previous claims while still publishing this on her wiki entry.
In December 2012, Curtis-Taylor was part of a four-man Russian crew that was flying an Antonov An-2 biplane from Kiev to deliver in Cape Town, arriving in February 2013.
Now unless she has a Russian licence I must assume she was just a passenger and not a crew member.

Sadly the backstory is littered with such illusion.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tracey_Curtis-Taylor
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Old 15th Oct 2018, 22:26
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Air Police;

Brilliant! Where I work that part is called “the sloppy link.”

SND
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