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single pilot ifr trip tonight



 
 
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  #181  
Old November 13th 03, 03:16 AM
Greg
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.... and for flying I have
a green LED on my mike boom that I can activate with my lip or keep on with
a switch.



Where did you get that and what is it called? That sounds great!
Also someone used to make a light on a lanyard that could be worn
around your neck...anyone know where you can still buy these?
  #182  
Old November 13th 03, 05:49 AM
John R. Copeland
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"Ron Natalie" wrote in message =
m...
=20
"Snowbird" wrote in message =

om...
=20
Even when there isn't an authorized VOR checkpoint one can
often pick up a radial somewhere on the airport, or track
the localizer on takeoff or something.

=20
Tracking the localizer won't tell you anything about VOR errors.
=20
=20


It could, if the VOR happened to be on the airport.
---JRC---

  #183  
Old November 13th 03, 04:55 PM
Thomas Borchert
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Snowbird,

Sorry for the delay in answering.

would you mind expanding a
bit upon what you like about TPAS and in what circs you find
it "don't leave home w/out it" useful?


Yes, I fly in Europe. Well, when the owner of the aircraft I fly (a
Tobago) first suggested we get one, I thought: "Who needs this?" After
having flown with it for a year I would say it is extremely cheap
insurance, for somewhere between 600 and 1200 $. It gives you an extra
warning to look outside and scan for traffic - which is very useful if
your plane has a lot of gagdets like our Garmin 430.

As you know, it will only say that something is out there somewhere
(lately, also at which altitude), but no direction to look at. That, we
found, is no problem at all - at least not a problem worth investing
another 10k $ or so, which is the price of azimuth-capable systems. You
just look outside and normally find the traffic real soon - if it is
yet close enough for visual ID.

As you also know, it will not alert to gliders or other traffic without
a transponder. The fact that the transponder has to be interrogated is
not a problem here - Europe has either radar coverage or enough
airliners overhead with TCAS triggering transponders. Gliders and
#*?\&% idiots with their transponder switched off are a problem. So you
still have to scan for traffic. But the unit wakes you up.

As for overload in high traffic areas: With the unit we have, you can
set it to only voice alert really close traffic. That works quite well.
And in a busy traffic pattern, I normally switch the voice alert off.
Does that make the unit not worth having? Of course not!

So, basically, it is a great and cost-efficient tool - and it has made
me look outside a lot at times when I had become complacent about
traffic scanning. Did it actually prevent me from hitting someone?
Well, the big-sky-principle still holds, but it is nicer to know if
someone is out there.

Yes, as Thierry mentions elsewhere, we liked the unit so much that we
decided to offer it in our little pilot shop here. But I was less than
convinced before I actually flew with the unit.


--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)

  #184  
Old November 13th 03, 05:57 PM
Snowbird
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"Ron Natalie" wrote in message om...
"Snowbird" wrote in message om...

Even when there isn't an authorized VOR checkpoint one can
often pick up a radial somewhere on the airport, or track
the localizer on takeoff or something.


Tracking the localizer won't tell you anything about VOR errors.


Depends upon the source of the error. It is true it will
not tell you whether the OBS is aligned within 4 degrees
(or indeed 13 or any number)

It wil give information about other NAV/OBS errors.

When my OBS have failed to give full-scale deflection at the
appropriate deviation, this occurs with both localizer and
VOR. If there's a problem with the splitter, it's evident.
If one NAV radio isn't receiving properly, it's evident.

Regards,
Sydney
  #185  
Old November 13th 03, 05:59 PM
Snowbird
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"John R. Copeland" wrote in message ...

Tracking the localizer won't tell you anything about VOR errors.


It could, if the VOR happened to be on the airport.


I did mean localizer, not VOR. But I wasn't specific or clear
enough about what I meant. See other post.

Regards,
Sydney
  #186  
Old November 13th 03, 06:55 PM
Stan Gosnell
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(Greg) wrote in
om:

... and for flying I have
a green LED on my mike boom that I can activate with my lip or keep
on with a switch.



Where did you get that and what is it called? That sounds great!
Also someone used to make a light on a lanyard that could be worn
around your neck...anyone know where you can still buy these?


I bought it in parts at Radio Shack and KMart. All it takes is an LED (get
the highest output numbers you can find, and a narrow focus. I have a
clear lens, green light, but you can get these from Mouser & other places),
a microswitch, a mini slide switch, some wire, and a battery holder. I use
2 AAA batteries mounted with Velcro on top of my headset. I discovered the
need for 2 switches when I tried to file 3 IFR plans in the air at night.
The microswitch activates the light using my lip, when I want momentary
light without using my hands - sometimes essential in a helicopter. The
slide switch keeps the light on without having to use my lip while I'm
talking and reading. The whole thing is held together with moldable epoxy,
which fits over my mike, and held securely with small tie-wraps. Not
beautiful, but it has been working for me for several years. Green is the
best color, IME, because the human eye is most sensitive to green. That's
why NVG images are green. You can see more with less light output.

Wings Aviation in Dothan, AL used to sell liplights, maybe still does, but
all they had when I checked were designed to fit military mikes.

Sporting goods stores sell LED lights that you can wear around your neck,
but you may have to provide your own lanyard. I also have a small green LED
light that I bought at Auto Zone (!!) for a couple of dollars, which I have
attached to my survival vest. Comes in handy for quick looks sometimes.
I've gone almost exclusively to LED lights now. I have a white LED
flashlight with 5 LED's, very bright, that works very well for preflights.
Checking yellow oil in sightglasses under a yellow light can be difficult,
but the white LED shows the level very well, even in sunlight. I have one
flashlight with an incandescent bulb, stuck in my flight bag, just to
satisfy FAA regs, but I never use it.

--
Regards,

Stan

  #187  
Old November 17th 03, 08:42 PM
EDR
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In article , Greg
wrote:

Where did you get that and what is it called? That sounds great!
Also someone used to make a light on a lanyard that could be worn
around your neck...anyone know where you can still buy these?


www.campmor.com
CMG Infinity Light $12.95
  #188  
Old November 24th 03, 11:18 PM
Thierry
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Hi All,

Have a look at http://www.proxalert.com

The new R5 compares to the Ryan 8800 silver but in the 1000 USD range.
Terry

(Snowbird) wrote in message . com...
"Bill Padley" wrote in message ...

For those thinking of TCAS,
I just took delivery of the first UK import of Surecheck trafficscope
VRX..the successor to TPAS...much nicer ....
maybe worth considering instead of TPAS on your shopping list! -its out in
the USA already

http://surecheck.net/five/avionics/vrx/

Interesting, but I wish the web site had more details about
how it works. For example, how does the built-in-altimeter work?
How does it cope with pressure changes? How does it develop
distance and altitude information on other aircraft? Does
it develop range, too?

I hope you'll put in a pirep as you get more used to it.

What concerns me is, when I most want "extra eyes" watching
for me is w/in a few miles of an airport. Yet there can be
5 planes in the vicinity of our airport, heck within 1.5 miles,
and none of them a threat to me. I'm afraid when I most need
such a device it would be nothing but a continuous cry of
"Wolf! Wolf!"

Cheers,
Sydney

 




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