Who has a pilot's licence??

Thats a serious bit of gear---
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...2016/11/97.jpg

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by JDNSW

Or the Gipsy Major. My Auster had as permanent "ballast" two one gallon tins of oil - and on first starting after being in the hangar for a few weeks without use, you had to wait a few minutes for the smoke to disperse. The bottom of the fuselage was permanently oil coated. Normal consumption, one quart per hour.

John

---

Which model of Auster did you have John? I'm contemplating buying a MKIII but I know little about their maintenence. Was the Gypsy troublesome? What is their TBO? What is the average 100hrly worth?

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by HUE166

Which model of Auster did you have John? I'm contemplating buying a MKIII but I know little about their maintenence. Was the Gypsy troublesome? What is their TBO? What is the average 100hrly worth?

---

I traded the Auster on a Cessna 180 in 1969, so I'm relying on distant memories - and even if I could remember prices, they would be irrelevant today.

My experience with the Gipsy Major was that it was trouble free, but I only owned it for about three years. I think the TBO was 1500hrs, but don't quote me on that. The only issue I can remember, and that was rare, was that sometimes the impulse drive on the magneto (left one I think) sometimes stuck, but was freed by a a whack with a spanner. You could tell there was a problem, because the sound of it is obvious when turning the engine - no loud click meant not enough spark to start.

Being an inverted engine, one pre-start check if it had been standing more than a few hours was to turn the engine through four compressions before trying to start, to make sure you did not have a hydraulic lock with oil that had found its way past the rings.

My Auster was a J5F Aiglet Trainer, VH-ADT, the aerobatic version. Last time I looked a few years ago it was still registered.

John

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Pedro_The_Swift

Thats a serious bit of gear---
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/im...2016/11/97.jpg

---

Er. . . - Any relation to the one that lost it's head earlier this year, up in the Norway.. ? :(

I wish I had a helo licence :)
Learned to fly in a PA38 Traumahawk, then flew all sorts of singles- most of the 'modern' types on the GA register.
I flew mostly C310, Duchess and Chieftain piston twins.

Then I moved on to Jetstream 31/32, Dash 8/100/200/300. After that, Emb 170/190 and Boeing 737.
I really miss teaching, the youngest I taught was an 11 year old. She would have soloed at around 7 hours if she could have legally done so.
I'm at stage 3 on the scale :D

I read somewhere that the "ideal" age to learn to fly - co-ordination I'm guessing - is when the child/youth has mastered roller-skating.
Comments ?

Hi superquag,
In my experience, yes, between 11 and the late teens is an age where the kids' minds are like a sponge. I did work for the Airforce Cadets and was amazed at the speed of some of the kids' learning.

I sent many kids first solo on their 16th birthday. Even now, all these years later, those moments are some of the fondest memories I have of the industry.

My youngest trainee was 11 (as mentioned), my oldest 82. He was an ex-WW2 Spitfire pilot who used to come out to Bankstown for a jolly every couple of weeks. He knew he would never get his pilot licence back, but still enjoyed the thrill of flying. I felt privileged to be the one who got to fly with him :)

John.