Common instruments on small aircraft

Don Tuite wrote:

Harmonicas are best. Saxophones take two hands. Banjos only work in
open cockpits.

Ernest Gann, (Fate is the Hunter), managed a small accordion.

On Tue, 24 Oct 2006 10:38:38 -0700, Jim Stewart
wrote:

Don Tuite wrote:

Harmonicas are best. Saxophones take two hands. Banjos only work in
open cockpits.

Ernest Gann, (Fate is the Hunter), managed a small accordion.

Well, in a DC3 cockpit,, I could see a 2-row diatonic like a Hohner
pokerwork. But I think even a 12-bass PA would be a stretch.

In calm air, you could keep the wings level with the rudder pedals for
32 bars, so I guess playing 2-hands is ok if you're trimmed and not
maneuvering. Still no trombones, and a glockenspeil would hide the
panel.

Don

Gig 601XL Builder writes:

Some of us value our time. I understand that you don't, else you would earn
more than $637 per hour.

Things can change unexpectedly and suddenly in life, and they don't
always change in a positive way. Live for today and be happy.

But in my case GA allows me to leave the office and
see 4 customers in a day instead of 2 or 3 if I were to drive.

Sounds like a very exceptional case.

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

Thomas Borchert writes:

No, you're not. Quite the opposite, in fact. Being opinionated about
subjects you know nothing or very little about is not polite. It is an
insult to the people you are trying to discuss with when those people
obviously know perfectly well what they are talking about. It's also
illogical and plain dumb, if I may say so. Being aware of one's limits
of knowledge and acting accordingly in discussions - that's polite. Oh,
and should you think of using the good old excuse of "All I'm being is
open-minded and sceptic (sp?)" - that can be done in a polite and
sensible manner, too. You don't.

And this not-so-subtle difference you refuse to understand is the key
to all the problems you have in human interaction (here). Thanks for
bringing it up so succinctly.

I provide the theory ... and others provide the illustration.

--
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Wade Hasbrouck writes:

"scheduled" is poor choice of words, as to the FAA, that inferes "airline"
"air taxi" or "on demand operation", which is strictly prohibited under Part
91 of the FARs (part under which Private Pilots operate). In the eyes of
the FAA a "planned flight" is different than a "scheduled flight" (scheduled
implies that it occurs regularly and is "for hire" or "on demand")

I wasn't using the FAA's dictionary. Scheduled meant marked on a
calendar, written in a planner, or just memorized as something one
plans to do.

No form of transportation is perfect and 100% reliable.

But aviation is unusually vulnerable to weather. That's why so much
of modern aviation seeks to reduce the effects of weather.

Do you even know what Fligh****ch and EFAS are? Have you heard of Pilot
Reports? You make it sound like once you a Private Pilot is in the air he
is all alone and helpless.

I think it's safe to plan as if you'll be alone. You aren't really
likely to be alone and helpless, but having contigency plans for that
possibility cannot hurt. I might have any number of ways to know and
avoid bad weather, but I have to be prepared to handle bad weather if
I encounter it.

Depends on when you fly... Fall/Winter (October - March) is definitely
"tougher" because of the weather. Spring/Summer are nice. afternoons,
Evenings, and nights in the Fall/Winter are generally better than mornings.

It was okay last night, although my flight ended tragically for other
reasons related directly to the sim. I almost landed safely. I'm not
sure if I survived.

Again you are inferring that the Private Pilot can ignore FAR Part 91 and
FAR 61.113 when they want to help out friends. If a friend comes to me and
says "I have a wedding or job interview to go to, could you fly me there?",
this would most likely be considered a violation of 61.113, and would be
illegal for a Private Pilot to do.

So where does one draw the line? Is it against regulations to say yes
to any request for a plane ride? After all, that would be planning
the flight, in a sense.

I make it perfectly clear to my passengers, that I am the one responsible
for the safety of the flight, and if at any point I see that it is not safe
to go or continue, I will terminate the flight, and ask before they get in
the airplane (alot of times before I even book the plane) if they can deal
with the possible dissappointment and/or hardship of not being able to go or
complete the flight, and if they can't, we don't fly. I am not an airline,
I am not an air taxi, I am not an on demand operation, I am a private pilot
who wants to go someplace with some friends, and see it as a convient form
of transportation to take my friends and myself places that we want to go,
and if the weather doesn't cooperate, we have a backup plan either an
alternate route or ground transportation if we really want to go.

That's fine, but it just emphasizes how unsuitable GA is for practical
transportation in most cases. You don't have to worry about that with
a car. Commercial airlines don't worry about it excessively, although
it's occasionally a factor.

For instance, if I am going flying in two weeks, I will keep
an eye on the long range forecasts, starting about 10 days out from the
flight.

A ten-day forecast isn't worth the paper it's printed on.

FAA could still consider this as flying for compensation, which is
prohibited under Part 91 and FAR 61.113. FAA has said that compensation
doesn't have to be monetary in nature to violate FAR 61.113. If I am taking
friends and family on a trip they must realize, that there is always a
possibility we might not be able to fly or that we may need to stay longer
at our destination, otherwise again we don't fly and we find a different
mode of transportation. If a friend comes up to me and says "I need to go
somplace, can you fly me there?" and I do the flight (even if I pay for the
flight), that can still be considered a violation of FAR 61.113.

No FAR is violated if you just go by car, or by commercial airline.

Going "because you really want/need to" will more than likely get you
killed, becuase you are no longer thinking rationally about the situation
and results in poor judgement.

Maybe, but for the umpteenth time, this just emphasizes how
impractical GA is for transportation.

Do you actually think your typical airline captain has his eyes glued to the
instrument panel when it is VMC outside the plane?

I think a lot of them doze off a bit during long flights.

What are you implying?

That a 747 captain should be able to afford his own plane.

If you are flying IFR in the simulator, don't you know what the IFR minimums
are?

I don't know anything that requires a chart, as I don't have charts.

Just because you are on an IFR flight plan, doesn't mean you can land
in zero visibility, especially at a place like TIW, as many airports have
some minimums where if you don't see the runway at a given altitude, you are
required to execute a missed approach.

Unfortunately, Mother Nature decided to reduce the visibility while I
was en route. I could have executed a missed approach, but for what
purpose? Everything was in the same condition. I was not equipped to
land anywhere with only a hundred feet or so in front of me. Do I
just stay in a holding pattern until the weather improves or I run out
of fuel? It's a serious question.

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

I have used my airplane to travel to jobsites for many years. It has
several advantages.

1) By the time you wait in line to get on an airliner, and have extra
stops and plane changes, especially with today's security issues, I can
usually get their quicker.

2) I can often get there cheaper, especially if it's a last minute
trip, or when I consider fees for changing tickets for my unpredictable
return trip, or fees for extra luggage for the test equipment I
sometimes need to carry.

3) Easy to change plans or add a new destination, which I have done on
numerous occasions.

4) It makes me a happy camper.

It's certainly not impractical.
--
Gene Seibel KB0NNN
http://pad39a.com/gene/broadcast.html
Because I fly, I envy no one.



Mxsmanic wrote:
Judah writes:

But what if the weather is bad or there is low visibility?

I walk IFR.

Just because it doesn't present value for you doesn't mean it has no value.
Evidence would suggest that GA presents value to some number of people in the
world, because there are many people, both pilots and otherwise, that use
General Aviation as a form of transportation. If there is no value in it,
they wouldn't use it.

I think it more likely that many private pilots use the pretext of
transportation as an excuse to fly. Not that there's any harm in
that, but they should just admit it and not try to pretend that
aircraft are actually practical transportation for general purposes.

--
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"Mxsmanic" wrote in message
...

But in my case GA allows me to leave the office and
see 4 customers in a day instead of 2 or 3 if I were to drive.

Sounds like a very exceptional case.

Not exceptional in anyway whatsoever.

On 25 Oct 2006 10:51:07 -0700, "Gene Seibel" wrote:

I have used my airplane to travel to jobsites for many years. It has
several advantages.

1) By the time you wait in line to get on an airliner, and have extra
stops and plane changes, especially with today's security issues, I can
usually get their quicker.


BEFORE today's security issues I could normally beat the airlines out
to about the distance of Denver/Boulder/Orlando which is max nonstop
for the Deb.

2) I can often get there cheaper, especially if it's a last minute
trip, or when I consider fees for changing tickets for my unpredictable
return trip, or fees for extra luggage for the test equipment I
sometimes need to carry.

On a last minute trip with a non discount airfare the Deb would be
cheaper. With Joyce and I it was cheaper than a pair of discount
airfares.


3) Easy to change plans or add a new destination, which I have done on
numerous occasions.

If the mood hits you can change.


4) It makes me a happy camper.

I love mine too.

It's certainly not impractical.

But the weather is much more of a factor than it is flying commercial.
Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
www.rogerhalstead.com

Many cities that had airline service 30 years ago, no longer
have any service, even an old Beech BE99 doesn't stop
anymore.
Years ago a company with offices in Wichita and Burlington
would have regular staff meetings. In order to get four to
six people to Burlington for an 8 AM Monday meeting they had
to buy six tickets and leave Wichita Sunday morning. They
then had to have rooms at the hotel for 6. The meeting
would run until 4-5 PM, after the last flight out that day,
so another night in the hotel. Then they would travel on
Tuesday, getting home in the late afternoon. Cost was in
the $5,000 range, considering lost time, even more.

But they could charter a King Air for a round trip cost of
$2.00 a mile [higher now] and depart Wichita at 6 AM and be
there for the 8 AM meeting. When they finished at 5-6 PM
they'd go back to the airport and be home for a late dinner
and their own bed by 9 PM. No lost week-end, no strange
hotels, no days missed in the office.

The cost was a King Air, a motel room for the pilot so duty
time limits could have the required 10 hours of consecutive
rest between "days" and a charge for meals and taxi. They
also paid a wait time charge for the pilot and airplane for
time in excess of the flight time waiting.

It is hard to beat the time from LAX to NYC, even with a
personal G-V and most Lear Jets require a fuel stop coast to
coast. But most business trips are under 1,000 miles and a
200 mph Bonanza can cover that in 5-6 hours. The airlines
require you check-in 1-2 hours early, fly a 2 hour flight
and take 1/2 an hour to get your bags.
You can't get any real work done on the airlines and you
"meet the 'nicest' people on the airlines."


"Roger (K8RI)" wrote in message
...
| On 25 Oct 2006 10:51:07 -0700, "Gene Seibel"
wrote:
|
| I have used my airplane to travel to jobsites for many
years. It has
| several advantages.
|
| 1) By the time you wait in line to get on an airliner,
and have extra
| stops and plane changes, especially with today's security
issues, I can
| usually get their quicker.
|
|
| BEFORE today's security issues I could normally beat the
airlines out
| to about the distance of Denver/Boulder/Orlando which is
max nonstop
| for the Deb.
|
| 2) I can often get there cheaper, especially if it's a
last minute
| trip, or when I consider fees for changing tickets for my
unpredictable
| return trip, or fees for extra luggage for the test
equipment I
| sometimes need to carry.
|
| On a last minute trip with a non discount airfare the Deb
would be
| cheaper. With Joyce and I it was cheaper than a pair of
discount
| airfares.
|
|
| 3) Easy to change plans or add a new destination, which I
have done on
| numerous occasions.
|
| If the mood hits you can change.
|
|
| 4) It makes me a happy camper.
|
| I love mine too.
|
| It's certainly not impractical.
|
| But the weather is much more of a factor than it is flying
commercial.
| Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
| (N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
| www.rogerhalstead.com

I find that the weather is not a factor 80% of the time. The airline or
driving option is there for those times. I have to fly commercial
ocassionally to properly appreciate GA.


Roger (K8RI) wrote:

But the weather is much more of a factor than it is flying commercial.
Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
www.rogerhalstead.com