Click HERE to go to the Episode 81 Page

The focus of this flying display was the Korean War and Anthony was able to find out that the “Forgotten War” was about so much more than episodes of M*A*S*H:

• Anthony chats with Lt Don Reed (ret), a 90 year old veteran of the conflict who flew with the Fleet Air Arm as an observer on Fireflies and as a Seafire pilot
   
• He then meets Esther Blaine, the PR Manager, for a discussion on:
  • The history of the Duxford site
  • The educational programmes the IWM provides
  • The new “Airspace” display
  • The IWM’s plans for the future
     
• Anthony is also able to further one-up Steve & Grant by noting that he’s been through a Vickers Viscount, DeHavilland Comet and Aerospatiale-BAC Concorde as well as getting up close with a Lancaster and Tigermoth. What, us, jealous??? :)
   
• Anthony wraps it up by interviewing Mark Linney from the Golden Apple Trust about their flying F86A, the only one of its kind still flying. They chat about:
  • The history of this particular aircraft
  • Mark’s career as a pilot in the RAF flying the Tornado GR1, instructing on the Hawk and then winding up on the Harrier. After the RAF he’s now flying 747s, A340-600s and, of course, the F86
  • They then chat about the F86′s development, handling and history

The episode wraps up with Steve & Anthony having a quick review of the content & Anthony’s experience at Duxford.

• Steve &  David Vanderhoof discuss the Royal Australian Navy  (RAN)  Sea King helicopters at the time of their decommissioning, developments with the C130 Hercules and a special Christmas greeting from David
• We chat with Mo Ferrando from High Alpha Media about the Hexacopter and Octocopter units he was displaying for us at Tooradin
• David Pilkington talks with us about his career in aeronautical engineering and aerobatics
• David &  Grant go up in David’s Decathlon to fly an aerobatic routine above Tooradin (YTDN) and broadcast the manoeuvres and sensations during the flight
• Adam Wooley from JoeyGlide chats with us about the National Junior Gliding Championships recently held in Queensland

As usual we have some great listener mail, including:

• Ryan Hothersall sent us a link to the 2011 STOL competitions – amazing stuff!
• Congrats to the AirStig who is celebrating the arrival of a new Stigette
• Thanks to Keane Bourke for his Merry Christmas wishes
• Thanks also to Garry Collins for his train jargon & congrats for Steve
• Big shout out to Owen Zupp for his Owen Zupp Author page on Facebook and his new OwenZupp.com.au blog

Given it’s our end of year episode, we have a list of people & groups to thank:

• Our sponsors over the course of the year:
  • Aviation Advertiser
  • GippsAero
  • Andrew Temby from Temby Automotive
  • Jetride Australia &  Pracy Racing
  • Joel Haski at Red Baron Adventures
  • Thromby Air &  Robert E Coli
• All the listeners who donated to help us cover the costs of being at Oshkosh &  producing the show all year
• The contributors who have helped us create content for the show:
  • Bas Scheffers
  • Anthony Crichton Browne
  • Kathy Mexted
  • ATC Ben (aka Ben Ippolito)
  • David Vanderhoof
  • Dan Morris
  • Pieter Johnson
  • Anthony Simmons, the Infrequent Flyer
  • Adam Visscher
  • Steven Pam
  • Allan Van’t Padje
  • Mike Wilson who helped us at Oshkosh

We’d also like to say thanks to:

• AusAir Services
• Ian Kershaw for his help with the survey
• James Williams &  Dave Gray from LPN
• Milford &  Charlie from Flight Time Radio
• Max Flight & Courtney Miller for making this happen
• Rob Mark for his hospitality at Camp Jetwhine
• Mike Miley &  Rod Rakic from MyTransponder for the help at Oshkosh
• Stu Stevenson for his hospitality post Oshkosh
• Special thanks to Kitt &  Cathey for their continuing status as podcast widows!

So thanks again to our growing audience who have been with us as we’ve expanded PCDU over the course of 2011. Happy holidays and here’s to a whole new year of bringing you the most amazing aviation experiences & information from Australia &  New Zealand that we can.

We were fortunate enough to get some time chatting with Tim in one of the briefing rooms at Moorabbin Flying Services where we had a great time talking about a variety of topics, including:

• The number of people in radio who have their pilots license
• The difficulties of juggling radio work with learning to fly & the challenge of time management
• What influenced him to become a pilot
• How flying saved his life
• Amusing flying stories about instructors, examiners and experiences
• Aircraft he’s flown and ratings he has, including a great look at glass cockpits vs steam gauge
• His interest in flying people around Australia on charter work, going to places like Fraser Island, Daly Waters, Alice Springs, Darwin, Birdsville, etc
• How he’s often doing lots of exploring from the air & going to out of the way places & experiencing the outback scenery & friendliness
• Aviation TV shows in Australia
• The impact of government legislation and ideas to get more people flying
• Flying in New Zealand

It’s a great chat and we’re very happy that Tim was able to give us so much of his time on the AFL Grand Final day (when almost the whole of Victoria and most of the rest of Australia stop to watch football).

You can find Tim online at:

• TimSmith.com.au
• The Discover Downunder TV show
• At the agents EntertainOZ and Profile Talent
• Tim’s Wikipedia page

The Aus Air Services advert is provided courtesy of Star FM 94.3

The three unions represented the pilots, engineers and baggage handlers working for Qantas’ “mainline” operations. The Jetstar, QantasLink and JetConnect operations were not involved in the grounding.

We have assembled a collection of discussions with a number of people involved in the disputes or monitoring it from the outside. It is our intention that we provide you with an overview of what has happened, why it happened and where things might go from here. Unlike the commercial broadcast media, our time is not rigidly controlled so our guests are able to take their time to explain their views & concerns without being restricted to sound bites.

While we also express our own views during this episode, we have tried to present enough information for you to get a better understanding of the situation & form your own decisions.

The discussions in this episode include:

• Captain Richard Woodward, Vice President of the Australian & International Pilots Association (AIPA)
• Warren Truss, leader of the National Party and Shadow Minister for Infrastructure and Transport
• Steve Purvinas, Federal Secretary of the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA)
• Independent Senator Nick Xenophon from South Australia
• Dick Smith, an entrepreneur, pilot and past chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the Civil Aviation & Safety Authority (CASA)
• Shashank Nigam from Simpliflying, a consultancy specialising in aviation branding & social media
• Ben Sandilands from the Plane Talking blog & Will Horton from the Centre for Aviation, both aviation journalists focusing on the Australasian market

We’d also like to thank Colin Lipiatt, the Manager of Coporate Communications at Virgin Australia, for taking the time to chat with us about their ability to quickly respond with extra capacity to help affected travellers. While we couldn’t include him in the show, he provided plenty of useful information for us.

While putting this episode together we did attempt to contact Qantas’ media department to arrange a representative who could talk to us about the items raised during the discussions listed above. Unfortunately we did not hear back from them and can only assume that, like Anthony Albanese (Minister for Infrastructure & Transport), they were too busy dealing with the big issues and the mainstream media to spare any time for us.

We trust that you’ll enjoy this special episode of content specifically covering the Qantas Grounding situation. It’s been a marathon effort to arrange & record the interviews then put it all together for you. It has certainly been educational & eye opening for us as we discussed the issues with our guests, and that’s got to be a good thing :)

The Aus Air Services advert is provided courtesy of Star FM 94.3

PCDU Episode 77: Qantas Crisis: After the Grounding.

In addition to producing this episode, Grant was invited to appear on Al Jazeera’s English channel to briefly discuss the current Qantas grounding.

Here’s the video of the discussion recorded with Grant in the Southern Skies Online Media studio.

Our thanks go to Al Jazeera for providing us with this copy of the discussion and allowing us to display it.

There’s also a “behind the scenes” video that Steve took of Grant in the studio being interviewed:

We spend a bit of time discussing the flight, the scenery, air sickness, some geology and what it was like loading four ladies into a high performance single then blasting off to out back of beyond. Kathy also discusses staying at Mungo Lodge, the Wilpena Pound Resort and Trevor Hancock, their tour guide while they were there.

While staying in outback South Australia, Kathy and her friends caught up with some of the pilots from Air Wilpena and recorded a discussion with them about their backgrounds, the flying they’re doing and what it’s like to be flying in outback Australia.

After this we play a few interviews from our recent visit to Coldstream Airport including:

• A chat with Judy & Andrew Doak, the owners of Coldstream Airport (YCEM)
• Dr Bruce Searle, CEO of ACMA
• Andrew Temby, aerobatic display pilot flying his Yak-52TW

We then move into reading some listener emails and discussing some future events on the calendar, including:

• Keane Bourke is 12 years old & wants to be an airline pilot
• Ed Stubbs recently attended the SAAA fly-in at Langley Park in Perth
• AusAirServices are having a Wings Night dinner on the 22nd October
• Bas sent us information about the Port Augusta Open Day that’s coming up
• Moorabbin Flight Services are having their Wings Night dinner on November 19th
• ErrolWi in NZ points us to a list of Kiwi aviation events at the ProBoards Calendar
• We then cut to a discussion about the upcoming Holbrook Ultra Light Club’s fly-in.

Our backing music for this episode comes from “The Groove Press” by Ron Soo.

We start off by hanging out with Anthony and talking about his career in aviation and more, including:

• He has an older brother who’s also a pilot
• He’s from Western Australia, learning to fly at Jandakot in Perth
• He did the usual hour building & quickly found himself in a Cessna 310 then on to First Officer on a Brasillia before stepping up to Second Officer on 747-400, after which he proceeded to his current gig as First Officer on a 767
• Anthony started flying aerobatics with friends and also scored a flight with Matt Hall
• His aerobatic training really kicked in with a Pitts and he now has his own Pitts
• We talk about G-Tolerance, G-LOC and beating the effects of high-G manoeuvres
• We discuss the recent tragic accident at the Reno Air Races, including the NTSB’s preliminary report & talk further the effects of pulling-G’s
• A discussion about stalls that leads into how advanced training really helps dispel some of the many myths, how the stall stick position works and standard GFPT training vs advanced training by groups like Red Baron in Sydney (Hi Joel! :)

You can find Anthony on his Flying Ant Online website as well as following him on Twitter where he’s known as AntCB.

We then move into the interview that Steve & Anthony recorded with Grant Piper, the President of the Australian Aerobatics Club, featuring:

• An overview of aerobatic manoeuvre’s
• How aerobatic competitions are managed & scored
• Australia’s return to the World Aerobatic Championship
• How to improve the standard in Australia with coaching by current champs
• Grant’s career in aviation including his start in the RAAF
• The benefits of including aeros in primary training

We then return to a chat with Anthony about:

• The challenges of flying competition aerobatics
• Standard aerobatic figures (loop, cuban-8, etc)
• How scoring each manoeuvre starts at 10 points then deducts points for any errors
• How it all has to look right from the ground
• The issues in dealing with wind & power
• What is the aerobatic box
• Types of propeller blades and their benefits (blade numbers, sizes, etc)

Finally we start to wrap it up with some listener mail:

• Ian Allen from New Zealand sent us some great ideas for more Kiwi Content
• Errol Cavit points us at a possible Kiwi aviation podcast
• Don’t forget to check out our Facebook page and our forums on Downwind

We then wind up with some shout outs:

• Phil Unicomb from Action Aerobatics and Combat Dragon
• Steve Tupper at the Airspeed Podcast who has a great new episode out on air show safety
• The NSW Aerobatic Champs will be held at Temora on Friday 28th Oct to Monday 31st October with more information available at the Australian Aerobatic Club’s web page

The team with the mobile studio at Coldstream

We can also provide up to 12 high quality weather proofed speaker towers to cater for any occasion – enough to stretch along 300 metres of flight line!

Steve & Grant recording at NatFly 2011 in Temora

If you’d like to have Grant, Steve and the PCDU team attend your next aviation event, email us at planecrazydownunder@gmail.com

• Air Traffic Control in the aftermath of the Christchurch earthquake, especially the problems they encountered due to centralising all area controllers in one location
• How user fees in New Zealand have lead funding being removed for weather briefing service: pilots must now pay an annual fee to access the weather service
• What the Air NZ Aviation Academy and student loan funding by the New Zealand government (which remains interest free if you stay in NZ) mean for flight training in NZ
• Air New Zealand’s latest earnings report
• The rapidly approaching Flair 2011 industry innovation showcase & airshow
• The Will it Fly project that is working to produce a replica of the Pearse Flyer from 1903 with updates on the Will It Fly Facebook page

Next up, Steve travels back to his old high school to discover that it’s a lot better than when he was there (and NOT just because his class photo has been hidden :) Thanks to Chris Barry at Brentwood Secondary College and our friends at Aus Air Services, kids at the school have the opportunity to learn to fly as part of their studies. Steve chats with Chris, Angelina from Aus Air Services and some of the kids about this fantastic project.

Our final interview in this episode is a quick chat with Mark Pracy Sr from JetRide Australia and Pracy Racing as he gets ready to head to the 2011 Reno Air Races to fly his L39 low, fast & turning left. We discuss what it’s like to fly the course and how he’s going about keeping himself ready for it.

We wrap up the episode with a quick chat about Dale Watson’s Tiger Airways song on YouTube (thanks to Chris Fenlon for pointing us at it) and the fact that Tiger Airways are back flying, albeit at a reduced level. We also discuss how Crawford Rix was replaced by Tony Davis who is, in turn, leaving the airline shortly after working hard to bring it back from the brink.

Finally, we have some shoutouts, including:

• Charlie Willwerth from the FlightTime Radio show is currently in the Mayo clinic under going chemotherapy to fight Leukemia – good luck & get well quick, mate!
• Zyola T Mix from the Mile High Flyers has spun off her own project, a podcast about women pilots called The BoXXoffice
• The Uncontrolled Airspace podcast has just celebrated its five year anniversary on August 23rd! Woo hoo! Go guys! Congrats to Jack, Jeb & Dave!
• There’s a new aviation podcast with us from Canada called Cleared Enroute with hosts Danny Vacar & Chris Johnson (on Twitter as clearedenroute)
• Jamie Dodson who writes the Nick Grant Adventures novels and sent us a couple of copies

NOTE: You can find Dan Morris on Twitter as TheGrandVizier, on Facebook and at his blog which mixes aviation & coffee in copious quantities.

From here Bas & Grant got to join the Bonanzas to Oshkosh group and fly from Rockford up to Oshkosh on the Saturday, landing on RWY 36 where even two days before the official opening, the aircraft parking spaces were filling up and the airport was a hive of activity. On the Sunday Rob, David Vanderhoof, Dan Web, Steve and his friend Mike all arrived having driven up from Chicago. Joining our friends at Firebase MyTransponder / Camp Bacon we set up the tent and settled into life in Camp Scholler, which is definitely something to be experienced at least once (& perhaps only once :)

Until we left on the Sunday at the end of the show, we were flat out experiencing the amazing sights, sounds & people that make up Oshkosh. We discuss the highlights and talk about trying to take it all in before winding up by reviewing our departure, our returns to Australia (including Steve’s flight with Milford from the FlightTime Radio show) and then our post-Oshkosh thoughts.

Following this we have a recording Steve & Grant made with Rob Mark (also from CommAvia as well as JetWhine and the Airplane Geeks) before Steve presents an interview he recorded with Bill & Earlene Hankins about Bill’s time in Strategic Air Command. Towards the end of Bill’s time with SAC he was a commander of a Titan Missile complex. While some of the chat can be like watching the movies Strategic Air Command or Gathering of Eagles, his descriptions of the Titan’s launch environment are very much like those shown at the start of the movie WarGames.

It also turns out that Bill and Earlene hosted Steve when he was an exchange student and then again when he returned to the USA to complete his US pilot’s licenses and instrument ratings. The interview includes some discussion about N4223Q, a C172L Bill used to own and Steve got to fly a lot.

After all this we have a chat with Bas about the OzRunways app then mention Ryan Hothersall’s photos of the 787 and Rob Noonan’s heads up about the Australian aerobatic pilots who are getting ready for the World Aerobatic Championships in Italy later this year.

For now, here’s a list of what you’ll find in episode 72: Oshcast #3 (Hugging your Roo):

• Steve chats with Amy Laboda from Women in Aviation International
• Boyd Dellwo is an Australian listener who is now working with The Spaceship Company on White Knight 2 and Spaceship 2
• David talks to Steve Sorenson who flew a Rutan Defiant from the USA to Australia & back
• David also provides us with “A view from the tent” segment
• Bas Scheffers air tests the Remos Light Sport Aircraft
• Steve chats with Shelly Ventura of the Ninety Nines
• David talks with James Weeby about the Belite ultralight aircraft
• Steve chats with Butch Bajner about the Young Eagles Program
• Steve catches up with a South African tour group who are attending the show

After all this, we wrap up the show with a discussion between Steve, Grant, Bas, David & Mike, closing off our on-show coverage of Oshkosh 2011.

Today was the first full day we were all here and also the first official day of the show. We’ve started gathering content and have assembled some items together to create our first show episode:

• Steve reconnects with Kent Pietsch who we last spoke to back at Avalon earlier this year (in Episode 6 of our show daily coverage)
• David interviews Brandon with his Super Cub
• Bas records some chats with folks in the light-sport (Recreational) area:
  • Sportair USA
  • Snap Aero with their “Snap” aircraft
  • Mike Hanson from Hanson Air Group regarding the FK Lightplanes Fk12 biplane
• Steve talks with Pablo Alvarez about international pilot admissions at Embry Riddle University

We then wrap up the episode with a group discussion featuring Dave Allen, Bill Williams, Kent Shook, Pilot Damon, Stu Stevenson & David Vanderhoof.

Now that we’re back in Australia, we’re being kept pretty busy catching up with our families, getting back on top of everything at our “day jobs” and working through all the content we’ve gathered. It’s going to take a few months to get it all completed, but we’re working on it as best we can :)

You can find the daily reports in our PCDU Commentaries blog as we’ll be creating an Oshkosh 2011 Summary page as we did for Avalon 2011. For now, we have a few of the daily reports completed and loading episodes featuring the additional Oshkosh content we’ve not already released.

Daily Blog Reports:
Day 1 – Getting there isn’t always the best part!
Day 2 – Rockford Bonanza
Day 3 – Arrival en Mass

Audio Episodes:
Oshcast #1
Oshcast #2
Oshcast #3 (Hugging Your Roo)
Episode 73:Oshkosh:The Greatest Show on Earth

We would like to offer our audience the chance to give us some indications of what you’d like to see, hear and (virtually) experience about Oshkosh while we’re over there. By posting your own comments on our updates, you can give us some direction and we’ll try to come through for you if we can.

Joining us at Oshkosh will be Bas Scheffers and David Vanderhoof as well as Mike Wilson who is going to help us with transport, camera and other technical work. We’ve received some amazing sponsorship from Pracy Racing and Jetride Australia who have covered our airfares to Chicago and back (thanks guys!!!! :) while Aviation Advertiser is chipping in to help cover a lot of the accommodation and food costs while we’re there. This has helped immensely but we’re still going to be out of pocket a rather large amount and we’d like to chip in some $$$ to say THANKS to our friends who’ll be helping us while they’re there.

If you’d like to help ensure we can get the coverage you want to hear, feel free to chip in some $$$ via the DONATE button on our home page. We’ve already received a few “Go hard!” packages from friends and every little bit helps. The more we get the more chances we have of being able to run around & pump out the content you want to hear, read & see.

As always, we are not entirely comfortable asking our audience for donations, however, this is a huge undertaking which may exceed the generous funding levels of our wonderful sponsors. In this unique instance, we ask you to consider the substantial effort we put into this programme, entirely on our own time, and give away each month at no cost. We believe our product compares favourably to monthly print publications, yet for less than the cost of a magazine you can help us achieve our goals on your behalf. Your financial assistance for this series of shows would be greatly and humbly appreciated.

We’re really looking forward to this and no matter what, we’re going to bring you along for the ride :)

Meanwhile, here’s the latest animated video from our friends at Thromby Airlines about their foray into online media and podcasters. We hope you enjoy it and recommend you visit their site for more great Thromby Air fun.

We then transition to a chat with Monika Petrillo and Elliott Schiffman who came to Australia in the late 90′s to fly around the country as part of a one month air safari with Mal Shipton’s GOANA (Great Outback Air Navigation Adventure) Australian Air Safaris. After returning to the USA, Monika spent a number of years producing the movie FlyAbout, a documentary film based on her adventures during the air safari.

You may also have heard Monika on other podcasts such as The Pilot’s Flight Podlog, The New Pilot Podblog and the Mile High Flyers. Each of these podcasts have chatted with Monika and presented their own unique approach to her movie & her story.

Who are we to be different, then? :)

In chatting with Monika & Elliot we touch on the following aspects of their adventure:

• What it was like for Monika to edit & produce the movie
• Why did they come to Australia for this adventure?
• Monika’s learning to fly & then flying on the safari with her father, an even more inexperienced pilot
• Elliott’s background in flying
• Getting to know each other while on safari
• What it was it like flying in the Australian outback without needing radios, having the freedom to deviate from track and so on
• The scenery they encountered and experiences with the locals as they travelled around
• How have the others from the safari gone since their big adventure?
• Comparing Australia’s aviation culture with that of the USA
• Dealing with certification, maintenance, paperwork
• A side track into ballooning (gee, thanks Grant :)
• The non flying activities they got up to during the safari
• What flying they’re currently doing
• Elliott’s involvement with Bonanzas to Oshkosh, the mass arrival of 100+ Bonanzas at Oshkosh

Following our chat with Monika and Elliott, we introduce Don McLean, an air traffic controller from New Zealand who also happens to be Grant’s 2nd cousin. Like Grant’s father, Don went through the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) flying P3 Orions then went on to Bristol Freighters before winding up in a desk job at which point he decided to leave. From there he started working as an Air Traffic Controller at Ardmore near Auckland before moving to Auckland International Airport and then on to Hong Kong. After many years working in Hong Kong he returned to New Zealand where he worked at Palmerston North airport before moving to Hamilton where he’s currently working in the tower.

In addition to a discussion of Don’s career, our chat includes:

• Oceanic Control
• ADSB in New Zealand
• Working the old school radar equipment
• What it was like working in Hong Kong – especially Kai Tak
• How airspace is structured in New Zealand
• The GAAP to Class D transition here in Australia
• Radar coverage of New Zealand airspace
• The process of centralisation in Christchurch and whether Auckland could provide a good fall back position

We then wrap up the episode with a chat about Grant & Bas joining the Bonanzas to Oshkosh group for a rather stylish arrival while they’re over there. We then get some great listener mail from Mark Fraser in Canada who has a great story about an early flying experience in his life. Finally, Steve gives Grant a Shout Out for editing the interviews then another to Glen Philp from Steve’s CFA past who recently contacted us via the podcast.

Music supplied from the royalty free production music at JewelBeat.

We start by talking with Mark Sr about his background in aviation including how he grew up in Scone seeing warbirds all the time, was taught aerobatics by Col Pay and then eventually became an aerobatics instructor. He’s also got a low-level aerobatics waiver and is an airshow pilot displaying a number of warbirds at events around the country.

Eventually progressing to jets, the Pracys purchased a Czechoslovakian Aero L-39 Albatros two seat aircraft. We discuss with them it’s handling, speeds and the typical manoeuvres they’ll perform when taking passengers up as part of their JetRide Australia flights. We also discuss some of the more interesting folks they’ve had on board before moving into their other main operation: Aircraft Imports.

Mark Jr is a certified LAME & pilot who runs the Aircraft Imports business, working with his father to scout aircraft, flight test & inspect them and arrange their purchase for clients. With the AUS$ being so high compared to the US$, they’re being kept very busy arranging purchases for Australians at the moment (although we’re not sure using a container to bring a Cirrus into Australia is the best way of doing it :). Mark Jr is able to run the entire operation from the inspections to dismantling & packing then on to reassembly, test flights & certification back here in Australia.

The work Team Pracy do in JetRide Australia and Aircraft Imports all helps support their latest endeavour which is racing their L39 at the Reno Air Races. They’ve recently completed their qualifications and are now certified to race this year in September. We talk to them about the qualification & selection process, dealing with emergencies and the mechanics of reducing weight to help compete. Fascinating stuff.

Team Pracy also note that they’re happy to take on sponsors of their L39 in Reno so if you or an organisation you represent are interested in getting space on a very sexy aircraft, contact Mark Sr via mark@jetride.com.au.

Finally, we have our big announcement for the show:

Thanks to the generous support of Team Pracy, we’re being sent to Oshkosh 2011. That’s right, after 2 years of having to miss Oshkosh because of insufficient funds and looking like we were going to miss this one as well, Mark Sr & Mark Jr have offered to get us over there (mostly, we think, so they can see our heads explode as we’re surrounded by aviation :)

We’d like to thank Team Pracy for their most wonderful offer as it’s thanks to them that we’re going to finally be able to meet up with our online friends and experience the wonder that is AirVenture Oshkosh. We’re also receiving additional sponsorship funding from other groups including the fine folks at Aviation Advertiser who are helping to chip in some additional funds to cover our camping gear while we’re on site.

Watch this space as we’ll have more news & updates about how our trip to Oshkosh is progressing over the next few weeks :)

As if all this wasn’t enough, we wrap up the episode with a quick chat with Bas about the latest news on the OzRunways application and he points us at a cool video of OzRunways being demonstrated.

Music supplied from the royalty free production music at JewelBeat.

• The joys of ash clouds (Thanks Chile!)
• Virgin Australia taking on Qantas & Jetstar with their new pricing structures & business class, including just what kind of passenger they were targeting at the front of the cabin
• Qantas & JetStar’s industrial issues with their unions
• Tiger regrouping & focusing on routes where it can do the most damage to the others (watch out Melbourne <-> Sydney and maybe even the Golden Triangle of Melbourne, Sydney & Brisbane)
• Strategic’s foray into the Pacific

In this episode we also include an interview with Kathy Mexted, a freelance writer who we met *way* back at the Centenary of Flight airshow in 2010. Flying is in Kathy’s blood by birth & by marriage and she’s been writing articles for a variety of aviation magazines as well as working on a book about being the spouse of an airline pilot. We’re very happy to announce that Kathy’s also going to be producing some content for us in the near future mostly covering Recreational & General Aviation areas.

Finally, we’re including some new music in our show as Steve’s found out about the royalty free production music by JewelBeat. Watch out for whole new background tracks & cross-over music in this & future episodes :)

Eagle Microlight at Porepunkah

• Tom Vincent from Asia Pacific Aircraft Storage (APAS) talking about the new “boneyard” facility they are creating at Alice Springs in the middle of Australia
• Angelina Morino from Aus Air Services joins us again to review their past year of operation and discuss their involvement with Brentwood College (Steve’s old high school) to provide aviation study to students. They’re also planning to extend this out to other high schools in the area. NOTE: As with Peter Dow at TVSA, it’s great to see local flying schools thinking outside the box to make it easier and/or cheaper to learn to fly)
• Some more content from Avalon, including:
  • The crew of a KC135 tanker
  • Flying Officer Johnno Pearson on flying the F/A-18 Hornet
  • Flight Lt Liam Webler, a techo who helps to keep the F/A-18 Hornet in the air
• Steve & Lisa Ruffles talk about their Eagle School of Microlighting at Porepunkah

The view of the runway and "ramp" at Porepunkah

• Miles Rados wrote in about gliding at Tocumwal
• Toby Robb wrote in about Steve’s recent microphone levels and had some comments on our recent chat with Dick Smith
• The Airplane Geeks podcast reaches episode 150 – well done, guys!
• Kudos to the RAAF social media team for helping to promote our work via the “I love jet noise” Facebook page
• There’s a new aviation podcast – The Stuck Mic AvCast – from the folks at The Pilot Report. They’re two episodes in and have been producing great content so far
• PCDU can now be found on Stitcher & SlapDash Radio
• Thanks to all those who’ve left feedback at the iTunes store – much appreciated and keep it up!
• Don’t forget to check out our website where we’ve made some recent layout changes plus we’ve also been loading more videos on our YouTube channel.

Once again this discussion with Dick is sure to generate divided commentary from those in aviation, both old & new. If you’ve not already listened to our previous chat with Dick about his early flying adventures, you really should check it out now.

Following our chat with Dick we have a dramatic change of scene as the Infrequent Flyer (aka Anthony Simmons) returns to give us his View From the Lounge angle on the Avalon Airshow. Then, to answer Anthony’s question of “How it all flows together” we have ATC_Ben return to present his latest Controller’s Corner where he explains just what went on at Mercat Manor.

Following that we have a few interviews recorded at Avalon:

• FLT LT Pete Komar, an F-18F Super Hornet pilot with the RAAF
• BAe Hawk Mk127 techo LAC Brian Dick
• Pilot Officer Emmanuel “Muz” Murray talks about flying the BAe Hawk Mk127
• SGT Kerry Dimar who works in logistics with the BAe Hawk Mk127

To keep with the Fast Jets angle, we’ve thrown in some cockpit audio from Steve’s flight with Mark Pracy in JetRide’s L39 Albatros.

For this episode, we’ve dived into the mailbag to bring out:

• Calum Tsang from Toronto lists some of his favourite episodes
• Carl Rossi says PCDU is going to cost him $13,000 … and he doesn’t mind!
• Peter Haans tells us he appreciated our Avalon 2011 coverage
• We remind you to check out our listener survey
• Listener “Raptor” has created a thread about CASA’s “Flight Planning Kit” on our forum at DownWind.com.au

We also give a shout out to:

• The Airplane Geeks podcast for their great episodes with Igor Sikorsky III and Mikey McBryan from Ice Pilots
• The Flaps Podcast from the UK for being nominated for an award in New York and winning an award in the UK – awesome effort from a great podcast (if you’re not listening to these guys, you’re REALLY missing out on an amazing show!)
• Tod McClamroch from My Flight Blog also had a ride in an L39 and scored some stick time (great, another person Grant is jealous of :)

Steve scored a ride in an L39 Albatros with Mark Pracy from Jetride Australia, flying from Tooradin airport (YTDN) in the south east of Melbourne. Mark ran them through a combination of horizontal & vertical manoeuvres during which Steve experienced a sustained peak of 5G's. Best of all, he didn't even hurl!

In flight video was captured along with the briefing and a few interviews. We'll be putting together a special video episode that combines Steve's jet ride and Grant's 8G RedBull aerobatics ride last year with Joel Haski from Red Baron. We'll also be putting together an audio episode on high-thrill adventure rides. Watch for these to come out in the PCDU feed in the near future.

Meanwhile, here's a quick video of Steve returning to the ramp in the L39:

www.flickr.com Steve's L39 JetRide Adventure photoset

We were fortunate to be invited to attend along with the team from Aviation Advertiser, setting up our mobile recording studio in one of the Temora Aviation Museum’s hangars (along with their Mk VIII Spitfire and Cessna A37). We arrived on the Friday morning and departed on the Saturday evening, experiencing two very busy days packed with interviews, discussions, aircraft & equipment inspections and a couple of demo flights.

Suffice to say there was plenty of material captured and we’ve managed to squeeze the best of it into yet another very large episode. We considered splitting it over two but there’s more great content on the way on other topics so we felt it best to pack it all into one large package.

The content we present in this episode is:

• An introduction with Steve, Grant, Ben & Bas
• Brumby Aircraft with Paul Goward
• Laurie Hines and his Revolution Mini-500 helicopter
• John Garton from Leisure Sport Aircraft talks about the Paradise P1 aircraft from Brazil
• Gyrocopter pilot Sam Polyak talks about the EVA Aviacion ELA 08
• Gary Flood from Bert Flood Imports discusses the latest Rotax engines
• Owen Zupp joins us to chat about how he undertakes an air test
• Paul Chernikeef talks with us about Rotec Engineering’s latest radial engines
• Nick Sharples talks about the AVOCET aircraft his father Mike has created from a Jabiru 230
• Tony Blair talks to us about flying aerobatics and RAAF ab initio training
• Jon Johansen from Flymore steps us through the TruTrak EFIS, EMS & autopilot systems on offer
• John Lindner gives us a visitor’s view of the show
• Bryce Hughes joins us from Cub Crafters
• Matthew Maude from Performance Metals Australia gets detailed on metal
• Some of the cockpit audio from Steve’s test flight of a Brumby R600
• John Conte from Aerochute talks to us about their powered parachutes
• Gary Sargeant discusses the amazing EQ1 Wireless Headset he’s invented

We then wrap up the episode with a review of the show between Steve, Grant, Ben & Bas along with a quick chat about the OzRunways application that Bas has been developing.

We also have some other great chats in this show, including:

• Steve Ahrens talking about the upcoming Barossa Airshow (May 1st, 2011)
• A chat with the crew of an RAAF Wedgetail AEW&C aircraft that we recorded back at Avalon Airshow
• A collection of quick chats with some RA-Aus pilots at Avalon, including:
  • Peter Harlow from Foxbat Australia
  • John Callahan with his Typhoon Glider
  • Peter Kane with his Kitfox
• Ben Morgan then rejoins us to discuss the state of the second hand aircraft market in Australia and a couple of the aircraft available for sale on Aviation Advertiser

We’re also acknowledging that these daily episodes should have been called “Daily Avalon Updates” or anything other than “Quick Casts.” To really confirm that, we’ve put quite a lot of content in this episode, including:

• Grant’s chat with Paul Simmons recorded while sitting on the wing of the CA27 Sabre
• Nikolay Timofeev talks about flying aerobatics in his Sukhoi 26
• Anthony Simmons presents a short View from the B52′s Lounge
• Kent Pietsch talks to us about flying the “Jelly Belly” Cadet & his various routines while Chris Williams from the same team talks about driving the mobile landing-platform vehicle
• Being updated by Colonel Seth Bretscher on the amount of work involved in getting so many USAF & USN aircraft & airmen down to Avalon (and why there was no B2 & the F22s didn’t fly)
• An update from Ian Honnery on how the airshow is going so far
• A quick chat with Ed Stubbs, a listener from Perth who came over to Avalon for the show
• The final tarmac updates from Timbo with the warbirds & Papa Smurf at the Keyhole

These Avalon Quick Cast episodes are being sponsored by Aviation Advertiser and supported by Red Baron and Temby Automotive.

• Our chat with Squadron Leader Matt Harper, an RAAF pilot on exchange with the USAF who’s flying the F22 Raptor
• Steve’s in-cockpit discussion with David Wheatland, the chief pilot for the GippsAero GA-8 Airvan
• Talking with Flight Lieutenant Skye Smith about RAAF Public Affairs, her career to date & where it may lead in the future
• Today’s tarmac updates from Timbo with the warbirds & Taffy reluctantly agrees to cover for Papa Smurf at the Keyhole

These Avalon Quick Cast episodes are being sponsored by Aviation Advertiser and supported by Red Baron and Temby Automotive.

• An interview with a B1B pilot & systems operator
• A chat Grant recorded with Squadron Leader Phil O’Donnell, the RAAF’s only permanent hot air balloon pilot
• Catching up with Owen Zupp
• Talking with Squadron Leader Louise Burr about base construction, administration & juggling family life with RAAF life
• Today’s updates from Timbo & Papa Smurf on movements at the Warbird and Keyhole tarmacs

These Avalon Quick Cast episodes are being sponsored by Aviation Advertiser and supported by Red Baron and Temby Automotive.

• Catching up with Matt Hall to discuss the new show he’s performing at Avalon in his MXS-R (it’s choreographed to music) and how he’s filling his days without the Red Bull Air Race being around
• An interview with a USAF F22 Raptor pilot and maintainer while standing on the tarmac as close as we were allowed to get to their aircraft
• Today’s updates from Timbo & Papa Smurf on movements at the Warbird and Keyhole tarmacs

These Avalon Quick Cast episodes are being sponsored by Aviation Advertiser and supported by Red Baron and Temby Automotive.

• A chat with RAAF staff operating & managing the Heron Remotely Piloted Vehicle, the RAAF’s first unmanned front-line aircraft
• A chat with Lockheed Martin’s team behind their ISR testbed aircraft
• Today’s update from Timbo on movements at the Warbird, Combat Jet and Keyhole tarmacs

These Avalon Quick Cast episodes are being sponsored by Aviation Advertiser and supported by Red Baron and Temby Automotive.

March 1st: Day 1:

• Brendan Nelson – past Defence Minister
• Mark Robinson & Martin Hoffensetz from SAAB – Remote Tower system
• Peter Dow from TVSA Pilot Training – Flight Camp & VET FEE-HELP system
• Timbo’s Tarmac & Through the Keyhole with Papa Smurf segments

Click here to listen to the full Day 1 audio quick cast

March 2nd: Day 2:

• RAAF Heron operators
• Lockheed Martin’s ISR flying testbed aircraft
• Timbo’s Tarmac

Click here to listen to the full Day 2 audio quick cast

March 3rd: Day 3:

• Matt Hall
• USAF F22 Raptor pilot & maintainer
• Timbo’s Tarmac & In the Keyhole with Papa Smurf segments

Click here to listen to the full Day 3 audio quick cast

March 4th: Day 4:

• B1B crew
• RAAF Hot Air Balloon pilot
• Owen Zupp
• Squadron Leader Louise Burr
• Timbo’s Tarmac & In the Keyhole with Papa Smurf tarmac reports

Click here to listen to the full Day 4 audio quick cast

March 5th: Day 5:

• SQDN LDR Matt Harper, RAAF F22 Pilot
• David Wheatland & the GA8 Airvan
• Flight Lieutenant Skye Smith
• Timbo’s Tarmac & Taffy covers the keyhole for Papa Smurf

Click here to listen to the full Day 5 audio quick cast

March 6th: Day 6:

• Paul Simmons, CA27 Sabre pilot
• Nikolay Timofeev, world champion aerobatics pilot
• A view from the B52′s Lounge
• Kent Pietsch & Chris Williams from the Jelly Belly team
Colonel Seth Bretscher, USAF
• Ian Honnery
• Ed Stubbs
• The final Timbo’s Tarmac & In the Keyhole with Papa Smurf tarmac reports

Click here to listen to the full Day 6 audio quick cast

These Avalon Quick Cast episodes are being sponsored by Aviation Advertiser and supported by Red Baron and Temby Automotive.

Video summary entries produced by Steven Pam.

• Interview Dr Brendan Nelson who was Australia’s Defence Minister during 2006-2007 and, in addition to scoring a couple of rides in F18 Super Hornets, also signed off the purchase of Super Hornets & C17s for the RAAF, the MRH-90 helicopters and many more new projects that are now reality
• Talk to Mark Robinson & Martin Hoffensetz from SAAB about the “Virtual Control Tower” systems they’re presenting to AirServices here in Australia. These systems will allow people to manage control towers from remote locations and could potentially be on trial here in Australia in the near future
• Discuss flight training options with Peter Dow from TVSA Pilot Training including the incredible effort he has put into establishing TVSA as Australia’s first ever VET FEE-HELP endorsed aviation school, allowing students to defer payment of part or all of their tuition fees until they obtain paying work

Introduce our first “Timbo’s Tarmac” and “Through the Keyhole with Papa Smurf” segments. These will feature daily chats with tarmac operations staff covering newly arrived aircraft and issues that cropped up during the day

Not bad for a first day’s effort. There were a few more chats we recorded but they’ll be carried over to tomorrow’s Quick Cast or a post-Avalon episode we release after the dust has settled. Despite that, it’s still a 50 minute episode so we’re going to attempt a bit of trimming on tomorrow’s episode as our goal is to be about 30 minutes :)

These Avalon Quick Cast episodes are being sponsored by Aviation Advertiser and supported by Red Baron and Temby Automotive.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/03/01/episode-54-avalon-quick-cast-1/feed/ 2 0:49:33 Plane Crazy Down Under - Episode 54: Avalon Quick Cast #1 Avalon Quick Cast #1 aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/02/20/episode-53-a-ditch-some-dutch-de-icing/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/02/20/episode-53-a-ditch-some-dutch-de-icing/#comments Sun, 20 Feb 2011 11:37:32 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=883 Steve & Grant are joined once again by Bas Scheffers from Adelaide to discuss a few items, including:
A follow up to the ADSB discussion we had with Bill Hamilton back in episode 48 A discussion of the iPhone/iPad application Bas & a partner have been developing called OzRunways covering what it does & how . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 53: A Ditch, Some Dutch & De-Icing]]> Steve & Grant are joined once again by Bas Scheffers from Adelaide to discuss a few items, including:
• A follow up to the ADSB discussion we had with Bill Hamilton back in episode 48
• A discussion of the iPhone/iPad application Bas & a partner have been developing called OzRunways covering what it does & how it came to be
• The revelation that Grant actually doesn’t like the TV show “Ice Pilots” (oh, the shame! :)
• Parafield airshow is changing dates to March 25th, 2012 due to weather concerns and to help ensure more Australian Defence Force assets will be available
• Avalon is coming up soon
• Bas is going to Oshkosh and as we may not be able to make it, he may have to be the PCDU correspondent for us (not sure how we’ll get him a more Australian accent though!)
• Hassling Bas to provide a bio for the PCDU “About Us” page

We also have another great chat with our man “Across the Ditch,” Dan Morris from New Zealand, including:

• A review of the amazing Walsh Memorial Scout Flying School, an event that should definitely be set up here in Australia if it’s not already being done
• Some information about Palmerston North where Dan’s based (check it out on the map)
• Mention is made of the Ministry of Transport & Technology museum in Auckland
• We talk briefly about Air New Zealand and Air Nelson as Air Nelson will be flying new services into Paraparaumu (also called Paraparam :) – check out the map

As if all this wasn’t enough, we also have a chat with James Williams from the Podcaster’s Emporium about his recent Business Class trip with Emirates across the ditch to New Zealand & back.

Finally, we wrap up the show with some Listener Mail & Shout Outs, including:

• Bill Morelli from the USA who flies a Zenith Zodiac (nice plane!)
• Paul Bridges who supplied the photo of the Qantas DC3 that graces this episode’s notes
• Colin Sweetman from the UK who has started getting back into his flying and wants to do aerobatics (YES!!!! says Grant :) and also offered to be our tour guide to a number of aviation museums if we can get there (we’ll hold you to that, Colin! :)
• And finally, a big shout out to the people who decided to take part in the “$50 for Episode 50″ concept – thanks folks!
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/02/20/episode-53-a-ditch-some-dutch-de-icing/feed/ 1 1:43:07 Plane Crazy Down Under - Episode 53: A Ditch, Some Dutch & De-Icing A Ditch, Some Dutch & De-Icing aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/02/03/avalon-airshow-is-around-the-corner/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/02/03/avalon-airshow-is-around-the-corner/#comments Wed, 02 Feb 2011 14:45:11 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=875 With Avalon Airshow about to present us with a broad range of aviation this March, we thought it would be a great idea to give you a history of the show. Who better to provide this than the man who’s been with the show since before it even began?

Check out Episode 52: The . . . → Read More: Avalon Airshow is around the corner!]]> With Avalon Airshow about to present us with a broad range of aviation this March, we thought it would be a great idea to give you a history of the show. Who better to provide this than the man who’s been with the show since before it even began?

Check out Episode 52: The Misty Dawn of Avalon for a great interview with Ian Honnery, CEO of Airshows Down Under on the history of the Avalon Airshow plus much more.





]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/02/03/avalon-airshow-is-around-the-corner/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/02/03/episode-52-the-misty-dawn-of-avalon/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/02/03/episode-52-the-misty-dawn-of-avalon/#comments Wed, 02 Feb 2011 14:29:43 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=869 Every two years Avalon Airport is the home to one of the biggest airshows & aviation expositions in the Southern Hemisphere (the biggest, according to many). One of Australia’s premier aviation events, Avalon Airshow (also known as the Australian International Airshow) draws aircraft from around the world and attracts scores of people from the general . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 52: The Misty Dawn of Avalon]]> Every two years Avalon Airport is the home to one of the biggest airshows & aviation expositions in the Southern Hemisphere (the biggest, according to many). One of Australia’s premier aviation events, Avalon Airshow (also known as the Australian International Airshow) draws aircraft from around the world and attracts scores of people from the general public through to aviation enthusiasts & professionals, especially for the Friday night airshow.

From the early days of the airshows produced by the Schofields Flying Club through to today, a consistent presence throughout it all has been Ian Honnery. CEO of Airshows Downunder. We were fortunate to spend some time with Ian to discuss the history of the Avalon Airshow and it makes for fascinating listening.

Sadly, our sound gear wasn’t configured correctly for the space we were in and so the audio quality is not up to our show’s (and especially Steve’s :) usual standards. The content itself is incredible so after doing as much work as could be done to correct the sound issues, we’re finally able to release this interview. Our thanks go to Domenic at Audio Visual Media for his help in massaging the raw audio.

We’re looking forward to attending the airshow in March this year as it will be the 90th anniversary of the RAAF. Look out for more content about Avalon, how it’s managed and what to expect this year as we get closer to March 1st.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/02/03/episode-52-the-misty-dawn-of-avalon/feed/ 1 1:09:45 Plane Crazy Down Under - Episode 052: The Misty Dawn of Avalon The Misty Dawn of Avalon aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/01/21/episode-51-pig-out/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/01/21/episode-51-pig-out/#comments Thu, 20 Jan 2011 21:27:21 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=856 In November 2010 the PCDU team were invited to attend the Media Day at RAAF Amberley where members of 6 Squadron were gathered to give us one final look at the F111 before it was retired from service. We have gathered the interviews we recorded during the Media Day and combined them with a couple . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 51: Pig Out!]]> In November 2010 the PCDU team were invited to attend the Media Day at RAAF Amberley where members of 6 Squadron were gathered to give us one final look at the F111 before it was retired from service. We have gathered the interviews we recorded during the Media Day and combined them with a couple of discussions to present our tribute to the F111 and all those who helped to keep them in the air.

This is our longest episode to date so you may want to make use of the PAUSE button to get through it all. Like the PIG, it’s big, but we think the content is just too good to leave any of it out. The F111 has been a major part of our lives over the last 30 years in Australia and New Zealand and anyone who has experienced the RAAF’s trademark “Dump & Burn” display will have some idea why we’re so sad to see them go.

From seeing an F111 doing 4-point hesitation rolls, aileron rolls and a loop at Avalon to watching them racing past while sitting on the beach on a summer’s day, the F111 became an icon of Australia’s military as they provided us with a long range projection of power. They leave a large gap in our force structure now that they have been retired and a hole in the hearts of many who kept them flying.

So long, pig and remember: That’ll do, Pig. That’ll do!

The contents of this episode include:

• The Media Day’s opening press conference (starts at 06:08)
   
• A discussion with David Vanderhoof about the history of the F111 including its inception and service with the USAF & RAAF (starts at 32:06)
   
• We talk to Wing Commander Terry Deeth about his time as a bombadier/navigator (or Weapons Systems Officer) with the F111 while on rotation to the USAF (starts at 51:33)
   
• We visited the F111 simulator on the base and got to meet:
  • Steve Clark, an ex-RAAF F111 pilot who has more hours in an F111 than almost anyone else in the world (starts at 1:05:40)
  • Brett Denton, a computer technician who helps to keep the simulator operating (starts at 1:11:29)
     
• While everyone likes to focus on the guys in the cockpit, an F111 needs a lot of maintenance between flights so we managed to catch up with a few of the techos:
  • Flight Lieutenant Adam Firth & Sergeant Chris Walker (starts at 1:15:32)
  • Corporal James Morton (starts at 1:30:19)
  • Corporal David Bash, an American now living in Australia (starts at 1:35:50)
     
• We talk with Flight Lieutenant Vlad Bismark about flying the F111 (starts at 1:47:25)
   
• We have a chat with Brendan Cowan from ADF Serials about the history of the RAAF’s F111s and with Chris Daley from the Save the F111 page on Facebook about how the page developed and where it’s going now (starts at 1:55:28)
   
• We interview Wing Commander Al Curr who ejected from an F111 on take off from RNZAF Ohakea in New Zealand (starts at 2:14:12)
   
• Our final chat is with Wing Commander Michael (Micka) Gray, officer commanding 6 Squadron and the world’s last F111 unit commander (starts at 2:20:42)

We also have a couple of “Shout Outs” in this episode:

• Flight Lieutenant Skye Smith for her tireless efforts in making the Media Day run smoothly, not to mention herding us about the base and ensuring we didn’t wind up where we shouldn’t be (wonder if there’s a “Keeping media on track” medal in the ADF??? :)
• Listener Chris Whyte who we met at RAAF Amberley has produced an F111 tribute video called “RAAF F-111 tribute feat. TV Rock – ‘In the Air’” – you can find it on YouTube and it’s well worth watching a few times
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/01/21/episode-51-pig-out/feed/ 8 2:35:52 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #51: Pig Out! Pig Out! aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/01/12/coming-soon-our-tribute-episode-to-the-f111/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/01/12/coming-soon-our-tribute-episode-to-the-f111/#comments Tue, 11 Jan 2011 13:40:36 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=848

Steve & Grant standing behind F111C, A8-134

Our F111 Tribute Episode (Episode 51: Pig Out!) has been released and is getting great reviews. It’s packed with awesome content from our visit to RAAF Amberley and covers pilots, maintainers and simulator staff as well as a speach by the CO.

(Click on the image to view . . . → Read More: Our Tribute Episode to the F111 is out!]]>



Steve & Grant standing behind F111C, A8-134

Our F111 Tribute Episode (Episode 51: Pig Out!) has been released and is getting great reviews. It’s packed with awesome content from our visit to RAAF Amberley and covers pilots, maintainers and simulator staff as well as a speach by the CO.

(Click on the image to view a larger copy)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2011/01/12/coming-soon-our-tribute-episode-to-the-f111/feed/ 6 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/12/31/episode-50-farewell-2010/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/12/31/episode-50-farewell-2010/#comments Fri, 31 Dec 2010 11:01:38 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=841 As the final hours of 2010 pass by and the year draws to a close, we release our 50th episode with a mix of annual review, Christmas greetings and a new experiment. In conjunction with a live video stream of the proceedings, we gathered Steve, Grant, Anthony and Ben in the recording studio to attempt . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 50: Farewell 2010]]> As the final hours of 2010 pass by and the year draws to a close, we release our 50th episode with a mix of annual review, Christmas greetings and a new experiment. In conjunction with a live video stream of the proceedings, we gathered Steve, Grant, Anthony and Ben in the recording studio to attempt the unthinkable: capturing a whole show in a single take.

We start with a look back at a few of the big stories from 2010 and an additional discussion on ADSB driven by Ben’s perspective from behind the controller’s console. Mixed in with the discussion are:

• A discussion we recorded with Matt Wardell from AirServices Australia about their Santa NOTAM, the Santa Tracker and various other efforts they make at Christmas
   
• An interview with Michael & Roselyn from Downwind.com.au about the site and aviation in general
   
• Various Christmas greetings from other aviation podcasters around the world

We then start to wrap it all up with some feedback from listeners:

• Ian Kershaw from Canada sent in recorded message
• Ahmet Hussein emailed us looking for information to help him track down episodes of the TV series “Big Sky” (which Ben recalled watching)
• Jay Swanepoel left us some positive feedback on our Facebook page

Finally we worked through some shout outs, including:

• The many guests we’ve had on PCDU during 2010
• Andrea Sammut from Scripts & Voicers for her great support this year
• Dane Golden for his support & promotion of our show on Hey.com
• James Williams & Dave Gray from the Podcasters Emporium on the Lifestyle Podnetwork for helping to promote our show (they’ve also been promoted recently on iTunes as a premium provider – awesome news!)
• To all the organisations that have advertised with us, providing both in-kind help and some actual funds
• Milford & Charlie from the FlightTime Radio Show for their faith in our product
• David Hook from PlaneHook Aviation Services for his sponsorship of our Flying Down Under segment
• Max, Dan, Rob & David at the Airplane Geeks Podcast for all the help & encouragement they’ve given us over the year

We’d also like to especially thank all of you, our audience who have given us your precious time to listen to our show. Your numbers are growing along with your feedback and it’s your support that helps us put in the effort to produce the show.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/12/31/episode-50-farewell-2010/feed/ 7 2:10:55 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #50: Farewell 2010 Farewell 2010 aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/12/15/episode-48-hovering-matilda/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/12/15/episode-48-hovering-matilda/#comments Wed, 15 Dec 2010 01:30:33 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=834 Rosemary Arnold learned to fly fixed wing in the early 60s then converted helicopters in the mid-60′s, becoming the first woman in Australia to receive a helicopter pilot’s license. From operating her own helicopter business in Australia to flying in locations around the world, Rosemary has had an extensive career in aviation. She has also . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 49: Hovering Matilda]]> Rosemary Arnold learned to fly fixed wing in the early 60s then converted helicopters in the mid-60′s, becoming the first woman in Australia to receive a helicopter pilot’s license. From operating her own helicopter business in Australia to flying in locations around the world, Rosemary has had an extensive career in aviation. She has also written a number of books, lectures on aviation history and join the public speaking circuit. As a registered celebrant, she also runs “Chapel in the Sky” performing weddings in a helicopter above Sydney harbour. We chat with Rosemary about her career and her new book, First Females Above Australia, a presentation of the pioneering women involved in aviation in Australia.

We also chat with Dan Morris, a flight instructor in New Zealand who’s joined us previously in a few of our Australia Desk adventures. Dan joins us to discuss his aviation career to date and the flying scene in New Zealand. He also anticipates providing more New Zealand related content in the new year.

This episode is rounded out with another Controller’s Corner segment where ATC_Ben answers some of the many questions that have been raised in our forums and via email. We then move on to listener mail:

• Braham Sacks asks about careers in aviation
• Ian Kershaw from Canada has a blog & podcast page that’s worth checking out
• Luke Murphy writes in from China where he’s working as a pilot
• Ed Stubbs sent in a link to an interview with one of the pilots from QF32 (the Qantas A380 that had a massive uncontained engine failure)
• We mention that Anthony Simmons is looking for more feedback on his View from the Lounge segment

We also have some shout-outs:

• Damian Rose has completed his MECIR and is now working on his Caravan endorsement – congratulations (and yes we are jealous! :) You can follow his details on his blog.
• Robert E Coli from Thromby airlines has done another great cartoon showing Steve & Grant hard at work in the PCDU studio. You can see it in all it’s glory on our Facebook page.
• Thanks to Michael & Roselyn from Downwind and the team at Moorabbin Flying Services (MFS) for a great BBQ the other weekend and for making discount TIFs/Check flights available
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/12/15/episode-48-hovering-matilda/feed/ 1 1:50:08 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #49: Hovering Matilda Hovering Matilda aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/28/episode-48-ads-b-cest-un-petard-with-bill-hamilton/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/28/episode-48-ads-b-cest-un-petard-with-bill-hamilton/#comments Sun, 28 Nov 2010 03:13:51 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=827 While the technology behind ADS-B is nothing new, it is becoming the centerpiece of modern Air Traffic Management systems around the world. Unfortunately, CASA is once again taking a global concept and creating an entirely unique Australian implementation of it.

According to CASA’s Discussion Paper (DP) 1006AS Proposed Strategy and Regulatory Plan in support of . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 48: ADS-B: C’est un pétard! – with Bill Hamilton]]> While the technology behind ADS-B is nothing new, it is becoming the centerpiece of modern Air Traffic Management systems around the world. Unfortunately, CASA is once again taking a global concept and creating an entirely unique Australian implementation of it.

According to CASA’s Discussion Paper (DP) 1006AS
Proposed Strategy and Regulatory Plan in support of the Australian Government’s Aviation White Paper, any aircraft added to the Australian register after 2013 must have an ADS-B out compliant Mode-S Transponder on board. This means large added costs for no real benefit beyond that already provided by Mode-C and Mode-S transponders.

This is creating no small level of concern in the aviation communities, including RA-Aus, ballooning and others, as can be seen from a recent discussion about DP 1006AS on the Recreational Flying site. Even the airlines who were pushing for ADS-B to improve safety at regional airports are now realising that the costs are huge (it’s not a simple upgrade of their avionics) and the benefits are minor.

With all this in mind, Bas & Grant chat with Bill Hamilton, past president & technical director of the Australian Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association (AOPA). While Bill can appreciate ADS-B’s history and benefits, he doesn’t hold back when it comes to CASA’s attempt at creating yet another uniquely Australian implementation. We discuss the differences between the US, European and Australian implementation plans, the costs associated with our version and the lack of real benefit CASA’s proposal will provide.

As the title of CASA’s Discussion Paper shows, the proposal is implementing an aspect of the Australian Government’s Aviation White Paper. If, like many, you are concerned about the costs being applied to the aviation industry for little real benefit, it is important to respond to the DP by November 30th. It is also vital that Australian aviators write to their elected representatives, members of the opposition and their aviation organisations (eg: AOPA, RA-Aus, ABF, etc) to ensure politicians are aware that the proposed solution will cause more harm than good.

You can easily find who is representing you at the Australian Government’s “Who’s Who” page. You can also find a great guide to writing effective letters to politicians over on the Crikey website.

Don’t assume others will sort this one out for you. Don’t take the classic Australian “She’ll be right” approach. Get out there and tell CASA, the politicians and your aviation group what you think, otherwise the safe skies will be achieved thanks to the removal of any non-airline aircraft.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/28/episode-48-ads-b-cest-un-petard-with-bill-hamilton/feed/ 4 1:41:48 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #48 ADS-B: C'est un pétard! - with Bill Hamilton aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/23/episode-47-bull-me/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/23/episode-47-bull-me/#comments Mon, 22 Nov 2010 17:15:55 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=811 The 2010 RedBull AirRace season was exciting, eventful and disappointing all at once. From Adilson Kindleman’s crash in Perth to Hannes Arch’s pylon hit and Matt Hall’s “walk on water” incident, G-Stalls were everywhere. Then came the news that the last two races were cancelled and, finally, that the whole 2011 season was cancelled. As . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 47: Bull Me!]]> The 2010 RedBull AirRace season was exciting, eventful and disappointing all at once. From Adilson Kindleman’s crash in Perth to Hannes Arch’s pylon hit and Matt Hall’s “walk on water” incident, G-Stalls were everywhere. Then came the news that the last two races were cancelled and, finally, that the whole 2011 season was cancelled. As if the end of the season wasn’t bad enough, we were all stunned by the news that Alejandro Maclean had died in an aerobatic training accident.

We have already presented our “End of Season” chats with Hannes Arch and Matt Hall in previous episodes so in this one, we present our chats with Nigel Lamb and Pete McLeod.

We also officially announce the winners of our Flight City Simulator Centre B777 sim session prize (Graham Neal) and two runners up (Greg Spencer & David Mitchell), both of whom win PCDU T-Shirts.

We talk briefly about Qantas’ recent 90th Birthday event at Melbourne airport and play the quick chat we recorded with Juan Serrano, John Travolta’s chief pilot.

After another View from the Lounge segment, this time paying tribute to those serving in the military, we dive into our mailbag:

• Steve Horton form Perth is worried that the RedBull AirRace will never return to Perth and lets us know about his great photo site
• Peter Baxter wrote in asking about jet engine technology and again to share a great story about an Air New Zealand DC10 that helped a ferry flight in trouble over the Pacific
• “brettkp” has some great feedback about episode 46 in our forums on Downwind

We give a shout-out to Pieter Johnson (@NascotHornet) in the UK who has just become a very proud father: welcome Beatrice :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/23/episode-47-bull-me/feed/ 0 1:47:37 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #47 Bull Me! aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/22/flight-city-b777-simulator-session-we-have-a-winner/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/22/flight-city-b777-simulator-session-we-have-a-winner/#comments Mon, 22 Nov 2010 12:11:15 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=808 Thanks to the folks at Flight City Simulation Centre in Perth, we have been able to give away a one hour flight session in their Boeing 777 simulator to give away, valued at $275. Of the many people who correctly recognised that the airline jingle belonged to “Australian Airlines,” Graham Neal was the lucky winner.
. . . → Read More: Flight City B777 Simulator Session – We Have a Winner]]> Thanks to the folks at Flight City Simulation Centre in Perth, we have been able to give away a one hour flight session in their Boeing 777 simulator to give away, valued at $275. Of the many people who correctly recognised that the airline jingle belonged to “Australian Airlines,” Graham Neal was the lucky winner.

Congratulations to Graham and also to David Mitchell & Greg Spencer who were our “runners up” winning a PCDU T-Shirt each.

Thanks to all of you who entered, even those of you who had incorrect answers. We’re working to bring in more prizes for future episodes so watch this space :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/22/flight-city-b777-simulator-session-we-have-a-winner/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/10/episode-46-qantas-a380-incident-from-the-ground-up/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/10/episode-46-qantas-a380-incident-from-the-ground-up/#comments Wed, 10 Nov 2010 05:02:12 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=795 On November 4th, 2010 Qantas A380 VH-OQA (“Nancy Bird Walton”) was operating flight QF32 from Singapore to Sydney. During the climb out from Singapore, the number 2 Rolls Royce Trent 900 engine’s Intermediate Pressure Turbine appears to have failed and flown apart, sending bits through the aircraft’s wing in multiple locations and raining debris down . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 46: Qantas A380 incident – from the Ground Up]]> On November 4th, 2010 Qantas A380 VH-OQA (“Nancy Bird Walton”) was operating flight QF32 from Singapore to Sydney. During the climb out from Singapore, the number 2 Rolls Royce Trent 900 engine’s Intermediate Pressure Turbine appears to have failed and flown apart, sending bits through the aircraft’s wing in multiple locations and raining debris down on Batam island, Indonesia. After assessing the problem, determining their options and burning off fuel, the crew were able to return the aircraft to Singapore for a safe landing.

This incident, in conjunction with some other recent engine failures on Qantas 747s, has overshadowed Qantas’ 90th birthday celebrations. While the story is still unfolding and it will be some weeks before the ATSB’s preliminary investigations are completed, we have decided to quickly produce an episode dedicated to the incident.

To begin with, we talk to Captain Richard Woodward, Vice President of the Australian and International Pilots Association (AIPA). He discusses what the crew would have experienced on board as the incident unfolded, including the systems alerts & alarms, the processes to be followed and the roles over the various people on board. He also discusses the A380′s systems & redundancies and the options available to the crew when flying & landing a crippled aircraft.

We then chat with Steve Purvinas of the Australian Licenced Aircraft Engineers Association (ALAEA) about the changes that have occurred in Qantas as they have moved from an exclusively in-house engineering operation to one that relies more on outsourced maintenance performed overseas. We discuss the implications of the changes and other paths Qantas could have followed.

This episode was conceived, implemented and released within the week of the incident occurring as we felt it important to present our listeners with good background information about the aircraft, the crew’s likely experience and some of the changes at Qantas that have seen their engineering force reduced significantly compared to their heyday of the 70′s & 80′s.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/10/episode-46-qantas-a380-incident-from-the-ground-up/feed/ 7 1:56:40 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #46 Qantas A380 incident - from the Ground Up aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/09/competition-777-flight-simulator-session/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/09/competition-777-flight-simulator-session/#comments Tue, 09 Nov 2010 04:31:43 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=784 Thanks to the folks at Flight City Simulation Centre in Perth, we have a one hour flight session in their Boeing 777 simulator to give away, valued at $275. All you have to do to win is listen to PCDU Episode 45 where we play a jingle that belonged to an Airline over here.

Have . . . → Read More: Competition: 777 Flight Simulator Session]]> Thanks to the folks at Flight City Simulation Centre in Perth, we have a one hour flight session in their Boeing 777 simulator to give away, valued at $275. All you have to do to win is listen to PCDU Episode 45 where we play a jingle that belonged to an Airline over here.

Have a listen to the jingle and then email us with your answer (even if it may be wrong :). We’ll draw the winner live on uStream and also announce them in a future episode.


]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/09/competition-777-flight-simulator-session/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/01/pcdu-team-are-appearing-beyond-their-own-podcast/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/01/pcdu-team-are-appearing-beyond-their-own-podcast/#comments Sun, 31 Oct 2010 23:25:07 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=748 Some of you may be aware that the Plane Crazy Down Under team can be found beyond the bounds of the PCDU podcast. In addition to venturing out of the studio to attend events and record interviews, we’re also occasionally appearing in print (yes, print!) and other forms of recorded history.

Most of you may . . . → Read More: PCDU team are appearing beyond their own podcast]]> Some of you may be aware that the Plane Crazy Down Under team can be found beyond the bounds of the PCDU podcast. In addition to venturing out of the studio to attend events and record interviews, we’re also occasionally appearing in print (yes, print!) and other forms of recorded history.

Most of you may know of the Australia Desk segment segment we produce for the Airplane Geeks podcast. In fact, that’s where our show started when we found that we had too much to talk about than would fit in the time allocated for the Australia Desk.

We’re also producing the Flying Down Under segment for the FlightTime Radio Show that Milford & Charlie have been broadcasting every Saturday morning on radio W-BOB in Florida. Our segment plays every fortnight and is sponsored by Planehook Aviation Services.

We’re also starting to appear in print media too, including an article by Kathy Mexted on the Centenary Airshow at Melton and a write-up about PCDU in the Australian Pilot magazine. You can find links to these two articles in our new PCDU in the News page under the “About Us” menu entry on our site. We’ll update that page as we appear in print, on radio shows or maybe even on TV.

Slowly but surely, we’re spreading the word about aviation down under to the rest of the world. Don’t forget that you can help to spread the word which will, in turn, help us to keep promoting the fun & benefits to be found in aviation.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/11/01/pcdu-team-are-appearing-beyond-their-own-podcast/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/10/31/episode-45-keeping-it-to-scale/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/10/31/episode-45-keeping-it-to-scale/#comments Sun, 31 Oct 2010 02:29:50 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=770 It’s been a while since our last episode but at last we’re able to present our latest update with some more great content. First up, Matt Hall joins us once again to look back on his 2010 RedBull AirRace season, discuss the lessons he’s learned and give us his thoughts about 2011 & beyond.

Next . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 45: Keeping it to Scale]]> It’s been a while since our last episode but at last we’re able to present our latest update with some more great content. First up, Matt Hall joins us once again to look back on his 2010 RedBull AirRace season, discuss the lessons he’s learned and give us his thoughts about 2011 & beyond.

Next up we are proud to introduce our latest advertiser, Flight City Simulator Centre at Jandakot in Perth, with their Boeing 777 simulator. We chat with Richard Zandvliet, the CEO at Flight City, about their various simulators, the courses they can offer for the professional pilot and the packages they have for the general public. Richard also makes a generous offer of a one-hour flight package in the 777 simulator that we can give away on the show (see below).

While Grant’s been able to go flying in some full sized aircraft (check out the photos on our Facebook page), Steve’s been catching up with some slightly smaller aircraft. He’s been out to the Victorian Scale Aircraft Association’s state championships and interviewed John Lamont, Noel Whitehead & David Law from the Packenham & District Aircraft Radio Control Society.

Finally, we wind up the episode some mailbag & shout-outs:

• Peter Baxter wrote in and suggested the brilliant idea of following up some engineers about jet engine issues
   
• Alex James wrote in from China with some comments
   
• Camper English from the Alcademics blog is producing a catalog of Aircraft Drinks Menus and, as mentioned in our PCDU Commentaries, we think you should give him a hand
   
• David Vanderhoof has started his own podcast called the Hitchhiker’s Guide to Military Aviation – well worth checking out!

NOTE: We had some additional content from our Matt Hall interview that was no longer current so we’ve moved it from the episode to our Extras collection. You can find it at our “Extras” page.

Competition: Win a one hour flight package with Flight City Simulator Center’s Boeing 777 simulator

Just listen to this episode to hear a jingle from the past. If you know who owned that jingle, send us an email at planecrazydownunder@gmail.com telling us who you think it was. We’ll draw the winner live on uStream in the near future.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/10/31/episode-45-keeping-it-to-scale/feed/ 3 1:52:39 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #45 Keeping it to Scale aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/10/09/episode-44-hannes-bas-and-the-rhino/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/10/09/episode-44-hannes-bas-and-the-rhino/#comments Sat, 09 Oct 2010 06:25:44 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=714 In an effort to reassure you that we’re not trying to cut any corners as we build towards our 50th episode, this episode comes in at over 2 hours in length (our longest ever, in fact). It’s jam packed with great content, including:
A chat with Bas Scheffers about:
The impact of the Class D . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 44: Hannes, Bas and the Rhino]]> In an effort to reassure you that we’re not trying to cut any corners as we build towards our 50th episode, this episode comes in at over 2 hours in length (our longest ever, in fact). It’s jam packed with great content, including:
• A chat with Bas Scheffers about:
  • The impact of the Class D changes at Parafield
  • The flying he’s been doing lately in his Evektor Sportstar
  • The Parafield Airshow
  • How the Aeroscene Flying Group is going
  • A review of some of the latest RA-Aus developments (Recreational Aviation Australia)
     
• A chat with Hannes Arch (Red Bull Air Race pilot) where we discuss his 2010 season and his plans for 2011/2012
   
• An interview with an F18F pilot that David Vanderhoof recorded at the Oceana Air Show
   
• A discussion between Steve & David about the history of the F18, its current status with the Super Hornet (aka Rhino) and the implications of the F35 JSF
   
• Controllers Corner #2
   
• The View from the Lounge: “Monkey in Business”
   
• We read some mail & forum items:
  • Cameron Liberts enjoyed episode 42
  • Turb Coriolis comments on episode 43 in our forum
  • Anthony Crichton-Browne enjoys our content even if he does disagree with some of what we say :) – he also points us to video of the recently deceased Renaud Ecalle performing an aerobatics at the World Aerobatic Championships in 2009
     
• We give a set of Shout Outs to:
  • The Flying Ant podcast by Anthony Crichton-Browne (a 767 pilot) who also has a blog
  • The Flaps Podcast from the UK is an awesome new show – we highly recommend it
  • Andrew Offen from Brisbane took Grant & Nykolai for a flight in his Cirrus SR22 with the new Avidyne Release 9 package – an amazing aircraft & systems and a lot of fun catching up with Andrew for a flight
  • Brendan Viti is getting his IFR rating – wow!

Please note that our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5).

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/10/09/episode-44-hannes-bas-and-the-rhino/feed/ 8 2:09:56 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #44 Hannes, Bas and the Rhino aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/09/30/oshkosh-podapalooza-2010/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/09/30/oshkosh-podapalooza-2010/#comments Thu, 30 Sep 2010 13:38:49 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=708 We never made it to the Podapalooza event at Oshkosh 2010 although we did try and a recording of our attempt was played for everyone there. As many of you may know, a recording of the entire event was capture and has been circulated on a few of the podcasts that were there. In each . . . → Read More: Oshkosh Podapalooza 2010]]> We never made it to the Podapalooza event at Oshkosh 2010 although we did try and a recording of our attempt was played for everyone there. As many of you may know, a recording of the entire event was capture and has been circulated on a few of the podcasts that were there. In each case the podcast adding the podapalooza entry to their feed has made their own intro to it covering their own perspectives on the event.

We thought about doing the same but figured that most of you have probably already heard it from the other feeds. Rather than add yet another download of the same content to your already overloaded stash of podcasts, we’re going to follow the Airplane Geeks’ lead and point you at places to get it if you haven’t already heard it:

• The PilotCast (Podapalooza was started by the original hosts of The PilotCast)
• The Pilots Journey (this one has a great summary of who was on the show)
• The Mile High Flyers
• The New Pilot PodBlog
• The Student Pilot Cast

So go & check it out if you haven’t already heard it and by the way, be sure and listen to all those podcasts we’ve listed there if you’re not already (as well as all the others we list in our podcasts we like section :).

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/09/30/oshkosh-podapalooza-2010/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/09/19/episode-43-back-to-the-air-show/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/09/19/episode-43-back-to-the-air-show/#comments Sat, 18 Sep 2010 17:48:06 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=701 Back in March we attended the Centenary Air Show at Melton airport near Diggers Rest (a short drive from Melbourne). In addition to being a great air show that celebrated 100 years of powered flight in Australia, this was also the first event where we had media passes. We recorded lots of great interviews, caught . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 43: Back to the Air Show]]> Back in March we attended the Centenary Air Show at Melton airport near Diggers Rest (a short drive from Melbourne). In addition to being a great air show that celebrated 100 years of powered flight in Australia, this was also the first event where we had media passes. We recorded lots of great interviews, caught up with Owen Zupp and bumped into a few old friends.

It’s now 6 months on and we’re finally getting an episode out with these interviews plus a wrap-up chat we had with Owen Zupp after he finished his “There and Back” fund raising flight around Australia. We’ve been meaning to get this content out for a while but have had so many other things to do, it just kept getting put on the back burner.

Finally we’re able to present these interviews along with a more recent chat we had with Glyn Butchard, the organiser of the Centenary Air Show. We caught up with him this month and discussed how everything went once the dust settled and the people went home.

Here’s a list of the interviews & chats we present in this episode:

• Chris Sperou and Warren Stewart are the “Skyblazers” formation team
• Bernie Ferrie flew in a Citabria and we chatted with him while sitting under its wing
• Clin Ashton-Martin flies a gorgeous Avro Cadet biplane
• Grant’s friend Andrew Temby flew an aerobatics routine with his Yak-52TW so we had a quick chat while sitting on its wing
• Phil, Mark & Shane who were providing unicom & air show coordination services
• Grant had a quick chat with Glyn Butchard at the end of the day as everyone was leaving
• Steve & Grant have a recent chat with Glyn Butchard and we look back at how it went in the months after the show
• We chat with Owen Zupp about how things are going after his “There and Back” fundraising flight around Australia
• We give a quick shout-out to Peter Johnson from the UK who is now producing the “Across the Pond” segment for the Airplane Geeks show

NOTE: Additional music in this show was from Glenne Petersen’s “Empty Cars”

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/09/19/episode-43-back-to-the-air-show/feed/ 6 1:35:56 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #43 Back to the Air Show aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/09/04/episode-42-wings-down-under/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/09/04/episode-42-wings-down-under/#comments Fri, 03 Sep 2010 21:35:16 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=694 This episode we’re joined by Will Horton from the Wings Down Under blog to chat about recent aviation news items. We also have Anthony Simmons returning for another View from the Lounge segment and a chat with Damien Rose about his flight training up in Toowoomba. The episode wraps up with some listener mail and . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 42: Wings Down Under]]> This episode we’re joined by Will Horton from the Wings Down Under blog to chat about recent aviation news items. We also have Anthony Simmons returning for another View from the Lounge segment and a chat with Damien Rose about his flight training up in Toowoomba. The episode wraps up with some listener mail and a shout out so it’s a little long but that should make up for the three Election QuickCast episodes we released recently :)

The list of topics we discussed with Will Horton include:

• A review of the recent Asia/Pacific Aviation Outlook Summit in Sydney
• The Asia/Pacific outlook for airlines includes a prediction for strong growth
• “Buy local” for Russia (Sukhoi) & China (Comac) plus India building up its local aeronautics capabilities along with Mahindra & Mahindra buying into Australian aviation companies such as Gippsland Aeronautics
• Cathay Pacific’s Boeing 777-300 and Airbus A350-900 order
• V Australia’s 777 useage in Fiji & Bali plus the use of wide bodies (eg: 767/A330) on domestic routes due to slot restrictions
• Qantas wanting to fly 787s into China & on to Europe
• Jetstar being boosted over Qantas (if it’s new it’s JQ) and using Singapore as a hub into Europe
• Qantas’s new smart card system for check-in that relies on elite frequent flyers who are with Qantas, not Jetstar
• AirAsia setting up a Frequent Flyer program
• Crawford Rix @ Tiger Airways is against frequent flyer programs as they’re anticompetitive and is hinting that Tiger could go down the RyanAir path (standing seats, pay loos, etc) – at least for the publicity :)
• Customers in Australia and Asia/Pacific wanting a higher level of standards
• Tiger setting up a franchise in Thailand (51% Thai owned but still Tiger Thailand)
• China more likely to have standing seats as the Chinese can lay down the law for their own operations – no need to align with FAA/EASA standards although they’re investing in highspeed trains)
• AirAsia wants to enter the Australian domestic & trans-tasman market
• The high quality of the AirAsia experience (a discount carrier that doesn’t nickle & dime their passengers) will hit Jetstar hard
• Pacific Blue is pulling out of the New Zealand domestic market
• Repurposing of V Australia’s 777s off the Fiji route
• United is not worried about Delta-V
• Qantas’ financial results

Steve & Grant also talk afterwards about Virgin Blue’s financial results which came out after we spoke with Will, along with their news about adding A330s, dropping the E170s (while keeping the E190s) and linking up with Etihad.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/09/04/episode-42-wings-down-under/feed/ 2 1:59:51 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #42 Wings Down Under aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/20/episode-41-australian-federal-election-quickcast-3-comments-on-the-greens-labors-white-paper/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/20/episode-41-australian-federal-election-quickcast-3-comments-on-the-greens-labors-white-paper/#comments Thu, 19 Aug 2010 22:46:38 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=682 In our third & final Election QuickCast, we take a look at the published transportation policies from the The Greens and the Labor Party’s “Aviation White Paper.” Sadly, Christine Milne from the Greens and Anthony Albanese from Labor were unable to accommodate us in their busy schedules. Both groups have indicated that they’ll be happy . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 41: Australian Federal Election QuickCast #3: Comments on the Greens & Labor’s White Paper]]> In our third & final Election QuickCast, we take a look at the published transportation policies from the The Greens and the Labor Party’s “Aviation White Paper.” Sadly, Christine Milne from the Greens and Anthony Albanese from Labor were unable to accommodate us in their busy schedules. Both groups have indicated that they’ll be happy to talk to us once the dust has settled from the election so we look forward to bringing them on for future episodes.

Meanwhile, Steve & I didn’t have much time for a full analysis & discussion but we did record our thoughts on the information we could gather. As you’d expect, the Greens are very much into public transport and eco-friendly fuels while the Labor party are standing very firmly behind their Aviation White Paper.

As previously noted, we’re not trying to tell you how to vote, just doing our bit to raise awareness of the importance of aviation within the political community and hopefully give you some information that might help you make an informed decision.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/20/episode-41-australian-federal-election-quickcast-3-comments-on-the-greens-labors-white-paper/feed/ 0 0:23:26 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #41 Australian Federal Election QuickCast #3: Review of Policies from the Greens & Labor Party aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/19/episode-40-australian-federal-election-quickcast-2-ken-hill-tim-sheen/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/19/episode-40-australian-federal-election-quickcast-2-ken-hill-tim-sheen/#comments Thu, 19 Aug 2010 06:52:16 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=676 Australians are about to go to the election booths on Saturday 21st August so we’re working to bring our listeners information about the aviation policies of the various political parties. We’re not trying to tell you how to vote, just doing our bit to raise awareness of the importance of aviation within the political community . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 40: Australian Federal Election QuickCast #2: Ken Hill & Tim Sheen]]> Australians are about to go to the election booths on Saturday 21st August so we’re working to bring our listeners information about the aviation policies of the various political parties. We’re not trying to tell you how to vote, just doing our bit to raise awareness of the importance of aviation within the political community and hopefully give you some information that might help you make an informed decision.

In our second Election QuickCast, we’re taking to two representatives from one of Australia’s more “interesting” parties. This party approaches politics from the small business and civil liberties environment and has a rather distinctive, catchy and memorable name: The Australian Sex Party.

We were fortunate enough to speak with Ken Hill and Tim Sheen about their views on the current election, Australian politics and aviation. Ken is a private pilot in Melbourne who is working on the party’s aviation & transportation policies while Tim Sheen is a candidate for the Sex Party in Queensland and also a commercial pilot flying in the New Guinea area.

The discussion covers a lot of issues that are of importance to pilots within Australia and raises a number of the problems currently facing people who are trying to make a living in this industry.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/19/episode-40-australian-federal-election-quickcast-2-ken-hill-tim-sheen/feed/ 0 0:34:04 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #40 Australian Federal Election QuickCast #2: Ken Hill & Tim Sheen aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/18/episode-39-australian-federal-election-quickcast-1-warren-truss/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/18/episode-39-australian-federal-election-quickcast-1-warren-truss/#comments Tue, 17 Aug 2010 15:59:49 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=669 Australians are about to go to the election booths on Saturday 21st August so we’re working to bring our listeners information about the aviation policies of the various political parties. We’re not trying to tell you how to vote, just doing our bit to raise awareness of the importance of aviation within the political community . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 39: Australian Federal Election QuickCast #1: Warren Truss]]> Australians are about to go to the election booths on Saturday 21st August so we’re working to bring our listeners information about the aviation policies of the various political parties. We’re not trying to tell you how to vote, just doing our bit to raise awareness of the importance of aviation within the political community and hopefully give you some information that might help you make an informed decision.

In our first Election QuickCast, we’re interviewing Warren Truss, the leader of the National Party and shadow minister for trade, transport and local government. Warren was gracious enough to give us some time to talk about his interest in aviation as well as his party’s views on the importance of aviation to Australia, the cost of flying, airspace safety, airport encroachment and ways to get more people flying. We even touch on high speed rail and how it stands compared to airlines. We also discover that Warren’s a bit of an aircraft lover and has a good collection of models in his office.

We’re working with the other parties to see if we can get time with their representatives before the election. Everyone is, of course, extremely busy in the final days of meeting constituents, appearing at events and being in the media. Watch the space to see who else we can get for you :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/18/episode-39-australian-federal-election-quickcast-1-warren-truss/feed/ 1 0:25:14 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #39 Australian Federal Election QuickCast #1: Warren Truss aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/10/episode-38-dick-smith-around-the-world-in-many-ways/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/10/episode-38-dick-smith-around-the-world-in-many-ways/#comments Mon, 09 Aug 2010 22:24:53 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=662 Dick Smith is an entrepreneur well known to most Australians, ranging from the country wide chain of Dick Smith Electronics stores he created to Dick Smith Foods and Australian Geographic.

Another very important aspect of Dick’s life has revolved around aviation. In addition to owning & flying his own aeroplanes & helicopters, he has . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 38: Dick Smith: Around the World in Many Ways]]> Dick Smith is an entrepreneur well known to most Australians, ranging from the country wide chain of Dick Smith Electronics stores he created to Dick Smith Foods and Australian Geographic.

Another very important aspect of Dick’s life has revolved around aviation. In addition to owning & flying his own aeroplanes & helicopters, he has also flown around the world multiple times, made the first helicopter landing at the North Pole, and flown balloons across Australia as well as from New Zealand back to Australia (against the prevailing winds). He was on the board of (and then director of) both the Civil Aviation Authority and the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA). Dick is also a very vocal champion of air space reform in Australia and aviation safety in general.

We were very fortunate to have been given some of Dick’s valuable time to discuss his early days learning to fly, his adventuring around the world and his thoughts on a number of different aircraft he’s owned & flown. We also touch briefly on his time with the CAA/CASA and his thoughts on aviation safety & airspace reform, all of which will be covered in more detail in future interviews we hope to bring you as soon as Dick’s schedule permits.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/10/episode-38-dick-smith-around-the-world-in-many-ways/feed/ 10 0:47:23 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #38 Dick Smith: Around the World in Many Ways aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/09/the-new-look-site/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/09/the-new-look-site/#comments Sun, 08 Aug 2010 22:14:12 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=648 We’ve revamped the site layout yet again with the aim of making it easier to find information and important stuff. Mostly this is handled via the menu bar across the upper part of the page (About Us, You can Help Us, etc) but also by putting some more white space in the design to make . . . → Read More: The new look site]]> We’ve revamped the site layout yet again with the aim of making it easier to find information and important stuff. Mostly this is handled via the menu bar across the upper part of the page (About Us, You can Help Us, etc) but also by putting some more white space in the design to make it a bit easier on the eye.

Another key part of the redesign is the list of episodes are now highlighted down the left hand side of the page, rather than buried in the stream of messages like this. Hopefully that makes it easier for you to find them if you’re playing them from the site rather than getting them through the feed.

There’s also the large space at the top for big announcements and such, like the one there now telling you that yes, we’ve been picked up by another group of aviation podcasters. Milford & Charlie at the Flight Time Radio show in Florida have graciously offered us a space to run a “Flying Down Under” segment. The Flight Time Radio show is broadcast every Saturday on radio W-BOB in Jacksonville, Florida so we’re tailoring this segment to recreational flyers and the general public. Stay tuned for more about “Flying Down Under.”

Meanwhile, feel free to let us know what you think of the new layout, either by leaving comment here or using our forum.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/09/the-new-look-site/feed/ 2 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/08/we-tried-to-get-to-oshkosh-2010/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/08/we-tried-to-get-to-oshkosh-2010/#comments Sun, 08 Aug 2010 02:37:03 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=601 Air Venture: Oshkosh is the place to be if you’re into aviation. There’s something for everyone from home builts to military to warbirds to commercial to seaplanes to antiques to balloons and everything else imaginable. If you love aviation, you have to get to Oshkosh.

For the past four years a group of aviation podcasters . . . → Read More: We tried to get to Oshkosh 2010]]> Air Venture: Oshkosh is the place to be if you’re into aviation. There’s something for everyone from home builts to military to warbirds to commercial to seaplanes to antiques to balloons and everything else imaginable. If you love aviation, you have to get to Oshkosh.

For the past four years a group of aviation podcasters have been gathering to produce the “Podapalooza” session. Imagine a room full of people and a table at one end packed with many of the people behind the voices in your head. All hanging out, talking about flying, aviation topics and social media. Pure podcasting fun :)

Since we started Plane Crazy Down Under, we’ve tried twice but never been able to make it to Oshkosh. Back in 2009, Stephen Force of the Airspeed podcast took a quick “Hello Oshkosh” piece we produced and had it played at the Podapalooza and on the EAA radio show during the event.

This year we couldn’t make it again (DOH!) so we put another promo together. It’s longer but encapsulates what we’ve been up to for the past year. They played part of it at the Podapalooza so we’re adding the original piece to our feed so you can hear how we tried to get there but couldn’t quite make it.

Maybe 2011 will be “third time’s the charm” and we’ll get there at last? :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/08/08/we-tried-to-get-to-oshkosh-2010/feed/ 2 0:04:41 Oshkosh 2010 Promo Oshkosh 2010 Promo aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/07/30/episode-37-its-flight-attendant-grant/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/07/30/episode-37-its-flight-attendant-grant/#comments Fri, 30 Jul 2010 11:51:01 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=594 It seems that Grant has always had troubles with the label “Flight Attendant” ever since his sister joined Australian Airlines and mistakenly told him she would be a “Trolley Dolly.” Ooops :)

In this episode we’re joined by Janene Murdoch, Tania Tracey and Amelia Kelly. Janene used to be a flight attendant with Ansett in . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 37: It’s “Flight Attendant,” Grant]]> It seems that Grant has always had troubles with the label “Flight Attendant” ever since his sister joined Australian Airlines and mistakenly told him she would be a “Trolley Dolly.” Ooops :)

In this episode we’re joined by Janene Murdoch, Tania Tracey and Amelia Kelly. Janene used to be a flight attendant with Ansett in the 70′s & 80′s, Tania was with Australian Airlines & Qantas in the 90′s and Amelia is currently working in the industry. We have a great chat with them comparing “then & now” in recruitment, work environments, passenger expectations and challenges.

It was a great chat and we hope to have the ladies back with us again in the future to continue exploring the “then & now” of being a flight attendant.

For those of you who want to keep up with Amelia’s latest news, you can follow her on Twitter (traytablestrvls) or through her blog (Tray Tables Travels).

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/07/30/episode-37-its-flight-attendant-grant/feed/ 0 1:13:23 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #37 It's Flight Attendant, Grant aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/07/14/episode-36-incidentally-matt/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/07/14/episode-36-incidentally-matt/#comments Wed, 14 Jul 2010 07:01:32 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=584 Most of you will have already seen Matt Hall’s splash on the river at Windsor back in June. Then he was denied a go at racing in New York, to which he responded very diplomatically, which in turn taught some of us how to “take our lumps.”

This episode we have a good chat with . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 36: Incidentally, Matt…]]> Most of you will have already seen Matt Hall’s splash on the river at Windsor back in June. Then he was denied a go at racing in New York, to which he responded very diplomatically, which in turn taught some of us how to “take our lumps.”

This episode we have a good chat with Matt Hall about exactly what happened during his splash in Windsor (including what was going through his mind at the time), the physics of a G-Stall, where the Red Bull Air Race folks dredged up the “two prior incidents” they mentioned, how the other pilots reacted to the news and what Matt’s learned from all of this.

Great listening and very educational, especially on the subject of how even a top-notch pilot like Matt can help make the holes in the swiss cheese align.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/07/14/episode-36-incidentally-matt/feed/ 0 0:53:58 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #36 Incidentally, Matt... aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/07/04/episode-35-perseverance-persistence/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/07/04/episode-35-perseverance-persistence/#comments Sat, 03 Jul 2010 19:15:20 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=577 These days it’s quite common to find ladies in command of commercial airliners, bizjets and combat aircraft. Thirty years ago, however, this was certainly not the case here in Australia and a female required a stubborn streak & thick skin to push through and gain acceptance in a very male dominated world.

While the situation . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 35: Perseverance & Persistence]]> These days it’s quite common to find ladies in command of commercial airliners, bizjets and combat aircraft. Thirty years ago, however, this was certainly not the case here in Australia and a female required a stubborn streak & thick skin to push through and gain acceptance in a very male dominated world.

While the situation for ladies in aviation is still not completely balanced it is significantly improved over the scene in the mid-70s. One reason for that improvement was thanks to the efforts of Deborah Lawrie (aka Deborah Wardley) who was the first female pilot with Ansett Airlines, one of Australia’s biggest airlines until it’s demise in 2001.

Deborah’s story is one of determination and a drive to achieve her goals, no matter what obstacles society and some organisations put in her path. We are fortunate enough in this episode to have had Deborah join us for a great chat about her interest in aviation, learning to fly, her early commercial days, getting into Ansett, the Australian Pilots’ Dispute of 1989 and her subsequent career working with KLM before returning to Australia where she is currently working with Jetstar as their manager of Safety Investigations (while still also flying their A320s).

It’s an incredible chat and we think that in addition to learning about Deborah’s life, you’ll also learn a lot about the Australian airline environment of the past & present.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/07/04/episode-35-perseverance-persistence/feed/ 5 1:32:00 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #35 Perseverance & Persistence aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/06/17/episode-34-arching-over-the-swamp/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/06/17/episode-34-arching-over-the-swamp/#comments Thu, 17 Jun 2010 06:32:23 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=564 This episode we feature an interview with Hannes Arch, the Austrian Red Bull champion in 2008 who came second in 2009 and is currently second on points for 2010. We have a great chat with Hannes about his involvement in extreme sports, his love of flying and his approach to the Red Bull racing world.
. . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 34: Arching over the Swamp]]> This episode we feature an interview with Hannes Arch, the Austrian Red Bull champion in 2008 who came second in 2009 and is currently second on points for 2010. We have a great chat with Hannes about his involvement in extreme sports, his love of flying and his approach to the Red Bull racing world.

We were also fortunate to get some time with Gary Clark, the creator of the Swamp cartoon strip. Gary’s experiences in learning to fly and his on going adventures in the air have provided a solid source of inspiration for many of the characters & moments depicted in the Swamp series. It is not uncommon to find his cartoons on the walls in flying clubs & schools, hangars and aviation organisations.

This episode also includes the following:

• A discussion with Angie Morino from Aus Air Services about the changes they’ve made at the Tooradin Flying School (YTDN).
   
• Grant’s quick chat with Richard Turnbull, a hot air balloon pilot from the UK
   
• Anthony Simmons’ latest View from the Lounge segment
   
• Our listener mail, including:
  • Stephen Silk points us at Ask the Pilot
     
  • Steven Pam provides still more checklist examples
     
  • Trent Donnovan from WA shows that Jandakot (YPJT) is only just behind Bankstown (YSBK) for total movements in February

  
  

• We give a few shout outs:
  • The Airplane Geeks podcast reaches 100 episodes – well done guys!
     
  • We’ve launched our PCDU Commentaries blog
     
  • Kathy Mexted mentioned us in her article about the Melton Centenary Air Show that appeared in AOPA’s Australian Pilot magazine
     
  • Milford & Charlie from the Flight Time Radio Show over in Florida
     
  • Don’t forget to give PCDU a good comment (or two :) ) over at the iTunes store
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/06/17/episode-34-arching-over-the-swamp/feed/ 0 1:52:59 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #34 Arching over the Swamp aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/06/03/introducing-pcdu-commentary/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/06/03/introducing-pcdu-commentary/#comments Thu, 03 Jun 2010 13:34:31 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=555 We’ve set up a blog where Steve & I can post our opinionated observations & commentary on the aviation scene down under. We still have our personal blogs (Grant’s is Fly Me Friendly and Steve’s is AusFlier) but they’re more for our own flying adventures.

So check out PCDU Commentary and add your thoughts . . . → Read More: Introducing PCDU Commentary]]> We’ve set up a blog where Steve & I can post our opinionated observations & commentary on the aviation scene down under. We still have our personal blogs (Grant’s is Fly Me Friendly and Steve’s is AusFlier) but they’re more for our own flying adventures.

So check out PCDU Commentary and add your thoughts & comments to ours.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/06/03/introducing-pcdu-commentary/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/06/02/1000-downloads-for-episode-1/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/06/02/1000-downloads-for-episode-1/#comments Wed, 02 Jun 2010 11:28:18 +0000 steve http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/06/02/1000-downloads-for-episode-1/ Some time over the past few days, our fledgling episode number 1, “And so it begins” has crossed the 1000 downloads mark! This surely is cause for a small measure of celebration, considering that in it’s first week, we were pretty happy to see it hit 40 downloads. Over the following few weeks, it struggled . . . → Read More: 1000 Downloads for Episode 1]]> Some time over the past few days, our fledgling episode number 1, “And so it begins” has crossed the 1000 downloads mark! This surely is cause for a small measure of celebration, considering that in it’s first week, we were pretty happy to see it hit 40 downloads. Over the following few weeks, it struggled up to around the 200 mark, and has trickled slowly upwards ever since.

Our first few shows, and episode 1 in particular, were basically just the uncut versions of the Airplane Geeks Australia News Desk that we have been producing since March 2009. Listening back to those earlier shows now, made as they were with cheap PC microphones, no mixer, and recorded directly off Skype, it’s almost a little cringe worthy compared to the standard we strive for now. However, if you’re new to our show, and are perhaps reading this page before heading off to iTunes to download our earlier efforts, please do so with the view to coming on a journey with us – not only in terms of content, but with a view to observing the learning curve we’ve been on that’s taken us to the magazine style, radio show format you hear today.

Our statistics show us that many first time listeners happen across episode one but don’t continue on with us. Given the lower production standards back then, we understand why this is the case, however we suggest sampling one of our shows from, say, episode 20 onwards. These shows were made using studio quality microphones, mixers and solid state recording devices. And frankly, we feel we’re delivering the shows far more professionally now. As time has gone on, we’ve been privileged to meet and interview a wide range of fascinating people and have introduced a number of segments designed to make the show just a little bit different with each release.

For those of you who continue to faithfully download Plane Crazy Down Under each week and participate in our community, we thank you sincerely for your support. We plan to continue delivering quality content to you each fortnight, and we encourage our new listeners to take the step and venture past our initial effort. Come on the journey with us and become another valued member of the PCDU community!

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/06/02/1000-downloads-for-episode-1/feed/ 6 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/28/episode-33-four-degrees-of-separation-from-ben-sandilands/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/28/episode-33-four-degrees-of-separation-from-ben-sandilands/#comments Fri, 28 May 2010 06:02:43 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=542 In this episode we join noted aviation journalist Ben Sandilands from Plane Talking to review the latest news & information. When we called Ben, he was experiencing a heat wave of 11 degrees Celsius at his home in the mountains near Canberra. Meanwhile, here in Melbourne we were thinking winter was upon us as the . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 33: Four Degrees of Separation from Ben Sandilands]]> In this episode we join noted aviation journalist Ben Sandilands from Plane Talking to review the latest news & information. When we called Ben, he was experiencing a heat wave of 11 degrees Celsius at his home in the mountains near Canberra. Meanwhile, here in Melbourne we were thinking winter was upon us as the temperature dipped to 15 degrees Celsius. Four degrees of separation but a very different pair of perspectives on cold vs hot.

Fortunately, we were all spot on with our news analysis, including such topics as:

• Use of composites in airliners and the indications that it won’t really be effective for another 10 to 20 years
• QANTAS still claiming that they’re going to get their 787-9s on a date that would be before Air New Zealand (the launch customer) despite Boeing making a statement contradicting this
• The changes that are afoot with the Virgin Blue group being under new leadership:
  • Brett Godfrey’s farewell bash
  • John Borghetti not getting the top job at QANTAS but, perhaps, getting something better with running Virgin Blue
  • Fleet choices and the possibility that they’ll get A330s or B767s, especially on high density routes like Sydney to Melbourne
  • The likelihood that they’ll rebrand the group (Virgin Blue, V Australia, Pacific Blue, Polynesian Blue) under a single name
• Singapore Airlines having veto rights over the name Virgin for any new international airline
• Tiger Airways recording a profit and becoming more of a stable, solid threat in the market
• Australia’s transport minister Anthony Albanese wanting to restrict cockpit access to only the two pilots flying and any check pilots or safety reviewers
• The F35 and how Australia seems to be one of the few countries NOT getting upset about all the delays and problems

After chatting with Ben, we have an interview with James Baldwin & Glen Somerville from EmptyJets, an organisation that gives you the chance to get rides in charter aircraft that would otherwise be flying empty on positioning flights. From helicopters to Gulfstream Vs, they’re all on the list and well worth checking out.

After that we dive into the mail bag where:

• Matt McCabe compares the cost of learning to fly here in Australia against the USA
• Errol Cavit enjoyed the Red Bull show and will be catching up with us when he comes over from New Zealand (for a Sci Fi convention, no less)
• Vince Bezzina who volunteers at the RAAF Museum at Point Cook was checking if we knew about the DC6 coming to Australia from South Africa. Oh yes, do we ever!

We also have a couple of shout outs to:

• Damien Rose who is now a private pilot and on his way to a commercial license (and speaking of the cost of learning – Damien sold his house to fund all this! He must have a VERY understanding wife, that’s for sure :)
• Steve Cooke from the Flying Podcast in the UK has released his latest episode on a topic that’s very important for Grant: ballooning
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/28/episode-33-four-degrees-of-separation-from-ben-sandilands/feed/ 2 1:53:04 Plane Crazy Down Under Episode #33 Four Degrees of Separation from Ben Sandilands aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/20/open-day-at-tooradin-this-coming-saturday/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/20/open-day-at-tooradin-this-coming-saturday/#comments Thu, 20 May 2010 11:04:08 +0000 steve http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/20/open-day-at-tooradin-this-coming-saturday/ The flying school at Tooradin, just south east of Melbourne, is back in action! After a few quiet years, the school has been bought by Aus Air Services who have quickly set about restoring an operational status. Steve & Grant ventured out the Tooradin and recorded a quick interview during which we discovered that an . . . → Read More: Open Day at Tooradin this coming Saturday]]> The flying school at Tooradin, just south east of Melbourne, is back in action! After a few quiet years, the school has been bought by Aus Air Services who have quickly set about restoring an operational status.
Steve & Grant ventured out the Tooradin and recorded a quick interview during which we discovered that an open day is being held this Saturday, May 22nd from 12pm, AEST.
This is a chance for everyone to head down and have a look at this great little airfield, meet the staff and have a look at their fleet of training aircraft. The airfield also houses the Commando Sky Divers operation and Wings & Fins restaurant, which has also recently re-opened for business.
Tooradin Airfield is located on the South Gippsland Highway, just south of the township, and just a pleasant 60 minute drive from central Melbourne. Check out their website at www.ausairservices.com.au for details of the RA-AUS training aircraft, Tiger Moth flights, and Piper Chieften charter aircraft.
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/20/open-day-at-tooradin-this-coming-saturday/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/18/grant-steve-help-out-with-the-airplane-geeks/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/18/grant-steve-help-out-with-the-airplane-geeks/#comments Tue, 18 May 2010 01:20:41 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=532 Grant & Steve produce a weekly “Australia Desk” segment for the Airplane Geeks podcast that provides some news & information from down under. It’s usually presented with a bit of a cheeky theme and makes use of Steve’s extensive sound effect library. That’s the usual process and we have a blast doing it for the . . . → Read More: Grant & Steve help out with the Airplane Geeks]]> Grant & Steve produce a weekly “Australia Desk” segment for the Airplane Geeks podcast that provides some news & information from down under. It’s usually presented with a bit of a cheeky theme and makes use of Steve’s extensive sound effect library. That’s the usual process and we have a blast doing it for the guys over in the USA.

Recently, however, we were too tired to make an episode so Max Flight invited us to join the Geeks and record live with them. The results are, suffice to say, hillarious and their guest, Karlene Petitt, demonstrated true mettle by not only sticking around to record with us but joining in the fray.

So if you’ve not already heard the episode, go and check out Episode 96: Karlene’s Flight to Success and you’ll hear a great interview with Karlene, Grant & Steve joining in the fun for the news review and a set of out takes at the end of the show that go longer than entire episodes of some podcasts :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/18/grant-steve-help-out-with-the-airplane-geeks/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/13/episode-32-switch-to-plan-delta/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/13/episode-32-switch-to-plan-delta/#comments Thu, 13 May 2010 04:41:44 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=520 This episode features a discussion with Peter Gibson, the manager of corporate communications at CASA. He’s joined us to explain the airspace changes that will come into effect on June 3rd, changes which will impact Class D, see the transition of GAAP to Class D and introduce the mandatory carriage of radios at all certified, . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 32: Switch to Plan Delta]]> This episode features a discussion with Peter Gibson, the manager of corporate communications at CASA. He’s joined us to explain the airspace changes that will come into effect on June 3rd, changes which will impact Class D, see the transition of GAAP to Class D and introduce the mandatory carriage of radios at all certified, registered or military non-towered aerodromes (plus any others as designated in the ERSA).

We also talk to Owen Zupp just before he departed on his There and Back trip around Australia as well as Tim Pryse and Ken Evers a few days prior to the start of their Millions Against Malaria trip around the world. We feature another “View from the Lounge” and introduce ATC_Ben‘s new “Controllers Corner” segment.

As we wind up the show, we discuss the Australian Capital Territory funding yet another feasibility study for a much needed secondary airport near Canberra. You can read more about it in an news entry from Australian Aviation and also follow up progress through the Canberra Region Aviators Association web site.

If you want to see a 737-200 land at Jandakot (Perth’s secondary airport), check out the video of the landing that Ed Stubbs pointed us at. Not bad.

Just in time to make our cut off for this episode, we had a quick chat with Owen as he was half way around his trip. A great update on his progress and how things have been going.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/13/episode-32-switch-to-plan-delta/feed/ 2 1:41:43 Plane Crazy Down Under # 32 Switch to Plan Delta aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/13/catching-up-with-owen-zupp-at-point-cook/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/13/catching-up-with-owen-zupp-at-point-cook/#comments Wed, 12 May 2010 22:30:59 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=526 Owen Zupp will be arriving at Point Cook on Sunday the 16th by about 12:30 so he can be on the ground before the RAAF Museum’s 1pm flying display starts. We’re going to be on site to meet up with him and watch the display.

If any of you are in Melbourne then come on . . . → Read More: Catching up with Owen Zupp at Point Cook]]> Owen Zupp will be arriving at Point Cook on Sunday the 16th by about 12:30 so he can be on the ground before the RAAF Museum’s 1pm flying display starts. We’re going to be on site to meet up with him and watch the display.

If any of you are in Melbourne then come on down and say HI. Let us know if you’ll be there and we can have a “Tweet Up” (sorry Turb, let’s take the tech out and call it a “Meet up” eh? :) )

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/13/catching-up-with-owen-zupp-at-point-cook/feed/ 1 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/12/two-great-journeys-are-under-way/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/12/two-great-journeys-are-under-way/#comments Wed, 12 May 2010 04:57:30 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=523 Owen Zupp is half way around his There and Back Australian tour, raising funds for the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Flying a Jabiru J230, Owen’s trying to raise $10,000 in donations to the RFDS so go to his site and “give a dollar to the doctor.”

Meanwhile, Ken Evers and Tim Pryse have left Australia . . . → Read More: Two Great Journeys are Under Way]]> Owen Zupp is half way around his There and Back Australian tour, raising funds for the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Flying a Jabiru J230, Owen’s trying to raise $10,000 in donations to the RFDS so go to his site and “give a dollar to the doctor.”

Meanwhile, Ken Evers and Tim Pryse have left Australia and are flying around the world in a Gippsland Aeronautics GA-8 Airvan. Their Millions Against Malaria flight is raising funds towards malaria research so if you can spare a few dollars, go to their site and donate.

Check in regularly with both sites as their routes may take them near you. Owen, Ken & Tim welcome the opportunity to meet people at each stop, so feel free to go and say HI as they pass through.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/12/two-great-journeys-are-under-way/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/08/episode-31-red-bull-all-the-way/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/08/episode-31-red-bull-all-the-way/#comments Fri, 07 May 2010 20:01:56 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=511 The Red Bull Air Race came back to Perth this year and Steve was there, flexing his newly minted press credentials and discovering the amazing world of the Red Bull media centre. Sadly, Grant was working in Indonesia and so couldn’t be there to help hang out, rub shoulders with the stars and quaff a . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 31: Red Bull all The Way]]> The Red Bull Air Race came back to Perth this year and Steve was there, flexing his newly minted press credentials and discovering the amazing world of the Red Bull media centre. Sadly, Grant was working in Indonesia and so couldn’t be there to help hang out, rub shoulders with the stars and quaff a few cans of Red Bull.

Fortunately Steve was well & truly up to the task and managed to capture a few interviews while he was there. First up in this episode we have Steve’s summary of the race, including his interview with Hannes Arch, the press conference at the end of the race and a collection of content from the Red Bull Media Pool.

After the break we get to hear a great chat with Nigel Lamb recorded while he was in Rio getting ready for the third race. We learn about how he flies the race and just what benefit he is getting from those amazing winglets. Grant drops a clanger during the interview but fortunately Steve cut that bit out, putting it at the very end of the episode in the bloopers ‘cos hey, no one ever listens to them, right? Right? (“Please don’t!” says Grant) :)

The final pair of interviews are with Lenny Raulson, Matt Hall’s mechanic at the time of the Perth race. He finished up with Matt’s team just after the race and they’ve now transitioned to an Australian mechanic, Jack Moshovis. After Steve’s chat with Lenny, we have a chat with David Lyall, Matt’s team coordinator. He tells us what it’s like to work with Matt, why they changed from Lenny to Jack and much more.

We hope you enjoy the episode. Feel free to leave us feedback via email, comments on the site or on our forum on Downwind.com.au.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/05/08/episode-31-red-bull-all-the-way/feed/ 10 1:33:26 Plane Crazy Down Under # 31 Red Bull all the Way aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/20/episode-30-antarctica-the-last-true-wilderness/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/20/episode-30-antarctica-the-last-true-wilderness/#comments Tue, 20 Apr 2010 09:55:45 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=491 The first aircraft to be used in Antarctica was Henry Mawson’s Vickers REP monoplane. Sadly, it had been damaged in Australia before arriving in Antarctica and was used as an “air tractor” to pull sleds. Even that didn’t work out and it was dumped, eventually being found again only recently.

Given that inauspicious start, . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 30: Antarctica: The Last True Wilderness]]> The first aircraft to be used in Antarctica was Henry Mawson’s Vickers REP monoplane. Sadly, it had been damaged in Australia before arriving in Antarctica and was used as an “air tractor” to pull sleds. Even that didn’t work out and it was dumped, eventually being found again only recently.

Given that inauspicious start, it’s hard to believe that there are multiple ice & snow runways in Antarctica receiving visits from C130s, C17s and now an Australian A319 carries scientists on regular flights to the ice. It is also possible to go on one of the QANTAS sight seeing flights that are proving to be very popular with their great views of the ice & mountains.

With all this in mind, we decided to put together a special episode focusing on the land that’s even more “down under” than we are. To kick things off we have an interview with Captain Dan Colborne of Skytraders. Dan flies the Airbus A319/ACJ from Australia to the Wilkins Blue Ice runway in Australian Antarctic territory. He also flies the CASA 212-400 aircraft that are based in Antarctica for the summer, including the long ferry flights at the start & end of the season.

We chat with David Vanderhoof about Air New Zealand Flight 901, the DC-10 that tragically crashed on Mount Erebus during a sight seeing tour over Antarctica in the 70′s. We also discuss some of the other runways on Antarctica and the aircraft that visit them.

The final section in this episode has a discussion with Phil Asker from The Captain’s Choice Tours and Croydon Travel who has been arranging Antarctic sight seeing flights for many years. Working with QANTAS, the flights are in Boeing 747 or Airbus A380 aircraft and are very much in demand, especially the New Years Eve flight.

We talk with Phil about what’s involved in preparing the flights and what passengers can expect to encounter. We also talk with David Halls about what it was like as a passenger on the New Years Eve flight on Dec 31st, 2009. Finally, we prove that nepotism is alive & well in podcasting by bringing Grant’s sister Tania on the show to talk about her time working as a Trolley Dolly (sorry, Flight Attendant) on an Antarctic flight. She also gives Steve LOTS of material to use against Grant, much of it unfit for public consumption (even in the outtakes).

So, put your survival suit on and prepare to meet some penguins as we talk about Antarctica.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/20/episode-30-antarctica-the-last-true-wilderness/feed/ 1 1:31:29 Plane Crazy Down Under # 30 Antarctica: The Last True Wilderness aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/18/if-only-i-could-do-this/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/18/if-only-i-could-do-this/#comments Sun, 18 Apr 2010 05:50:27 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=481 How cool would it be if the seat selection process at the check-in kiosk system allowed you to do this:

XKCD's "Seat Selection" cartoon

If you like the cartoon, send an email to orders@xkcd.com and ask them to add #726 to the list of signed comic prints that are available to purchase. Heck, even . . . → Read More: If only I could do this…]]> How cool would it be if the seat selection process at the check-in kiosk system allowed you to do this:



XKCD's "Seat Selection" cartoon

If you like the cartoon, send an email to orders@xkcd.com and ask them to add #726 to the list of signed comic prints that are available to purchase. Heck, even if you don’t, please send the email anyway – some of us are hanging to buy a signed copy of this one :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/18/if-only-i-could-do-this/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/16/pcdu-on-sun-n-fun-radio/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/16/pcdu-on-sun-n-fun-radio/#comments Thu, 15 Apr 2010 23:57:17 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=479 Thanks to Stephen Force (aka Steve Tupper) of the Airspeed podcast, we were invited to appear on a special “Aviation Podcasters” event being held on Sun N Fun Radio at the Sun N Fun air show. We were on first and, given the joys of timezones, it meant an early morning start for us to . . . → Read More: PCDU on Sun n Fun Radio]]> Thanks to Stephen Force (aka Steve Tupper) of the Airspeed podcast, we were invited to appear on a special “Aviation Podcasters” event being held on Sun N Fun Radio at the Sun N Fun air show. We were on first and, given the joys of timezones, it meant an early morning start for us to be on the show. For Steve it was 8am in Melbourne but for Grant it was 5am in Indonesia where he’s working at the moment.

So despite a bit of a lag and a very flakey connection in Indonesia, we managed to do our bit on the show. It was a lot of fun and we really enjoyed the opportunity to hang out and chat for a bit.

If only we could have been there, rather than connecting via Skype. Oh well :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/16/pcdu-on-sun-n-fun-radio/feed/ 3 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/12/pending-gaap-to-class-d-conversion/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/12/pending-gaap-to-class-d-conversion/#comments Mon, 12 Apr 2010 10:17:35 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=475 In June of this year, Australia’s General Aviation Aerodrome Procedures (GAAP) airports are going to convert a US FAA based Class D airspace. We’re trying to arrange an episode dedicated to this topic before June but meanwhile, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) have arranged a number of workshops around the country for pilots to . . . → Read More: Pending GAAP to Class D conversion]]> In June of this year, Australia’s General Aviation Aerodrome Procedures (GAAP) airports are going to convert a US FAA based Class D airspace. We’re trying to arrange an episode dedicated to this topic before June but meanwhile, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) have arranged a number of workshops around the country for pilots to learn about the changes and how they will affect them.

If you haven’t already, go to the CASA GAAP page and follow the links there to sign up. This is critical not only for any pilot who flies at these airports but even those who fly near them. You never know when you may have to divert to one. Besides, as Bas Scheffers points out in his CTAF(R) blog article on these workshops, it’ll be a great way to meet pilots in your area :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/12/pending-gaap-to-class-d-conversion/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/08/whos-going-to-the-red-bull-air-race-in-perth/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/08/whos-going-to-the-red-bull-air-race-in-perth/#comments Thu, 08 Apr 2010 00:07:51 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=469 If any of you are going to the Red Bull Air Race in Perth, let us know so we can arrange a meet up (or tweet-up if you’re so inclined :) Steve’s got media accreditation and will be taking photos & recording interviews with the pilots, their teams and the race organisers.

Sadly, Grant’s . . . → Read More: Who’s going to the Red Bull Air Race in Perth?]]> If any of you are going to the Red Bull Air Race in Perth, let us know so we can arrange a meet up (or tweet-up if you’re so inclined :) Steve’s got media accreditation and will be taking photos & recording interviews with the pilots, their teams and the race organisers.

Sadly, Grant’s being sent to Indonesia with his work so he’ll be sitting in the middle of Java gnashing his teeth at the thought of what he’s missing. Hopefully the distractions of work, culture and learning a new language will keep him from getting too distraught :)

So chime in if you’re going to be in Perth and we’ll arrange some sort of gathering.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/08/whos-going-to-the-red-bull-air-race-in-perth/feed/ 2 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/06/episode-29-whats-in-a-checklist/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/06/episode-29-whats-in-a-checklist/#comments Mon, 05 Apr 2010 23:21:35 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=427 Some in-cockpit audio provided by a listener triggered a discussion on the differences in pre-landing checklists (GUMPS vs BUMFTH vs BUMFOH vs whatever). All of Grant’s aviation books & manuals are still in boxes after moving house so he had to rely on his memory with predictable results. Talk about incentive to go out and . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 29: What’s in a Checklist?]]> Some in-cockpit audio provided by a listener triggered a discussion on the differences in pre-landing checklists (GUMPS vs BUMFTH vs BUMFOH vs whatever). All of Grant’s aviation books & manuals are still in boxes after moving house so he had to rely on his memory with predictable results. Talk about incentive to go out and get current again…

Given we couldn’t do a whole episode around the concept of “gas” in different countries, we also discuss recent aviation news items (so many to chose from lately) and have a collection of interviews we recorded at the RAAF’s Air Pageant at Point Cook.

Here’s how the episode hangs together this time:

• We have yet another opinionated discussion on recent news items:
  • QANTAS are very much in the news due to an engineering dispute and maintenance woes
    • Qantas jumbo with damaged engine lands safely at Sydney airport (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Tyres burst on Qantas A380 (Australian Aviation)
    • Qantas denies industrial action could delay flights (ABC News)
    • Engineer strike compounds Qantas woe (ABC News)
    • Qantas engineers in overtime bans for Easter (Australian Aviation)
    • Qantas bosses accused of breaches on safety (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Engineers demand watchdog investigate Qantas (ABC News)

  
  

  • Virgin Blue has signed up with Boeing for new 737s
    • Virgin Blue signs order for 50 new Boeing 737 jets (Bill Lindsay @ The Australian)
    • The Blue’s big Boeing buy (Australian Aviation)

  
  

  • New boss to aim for bigger Tiger (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
     
  • Tower, ILS upgrades for Melbourne (Australian Aviation)
     
  • Sydney Airport flags huge rise for plane berths (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
     
  • Last boarding calls for Sydney’s tarmac tours (Ben Sandilands @ Crikey)
     
  • Brindabella closes flying school (Australian Aviation)
     
  • Rhinos arrive (Australian Aviation) (First 5 RAAF Super Hornets land in Australia)
     
  • CASA are converting our GAAP airports to Class D in June. Have you booked in to attend one of their workshop seminars on the transition? You’d better. Check out the CASA web page about the transition.
     
  • We shamelessly rip off UCAP’s “Off field landing of the week” segment
    • Plane lands on Hobart highway (Yahoo! 7 News)
    • Pilot praised over highway crash landing (ABC News)




• We recorded a few interviews with pilots at the RAAF’s Air Pageant at Point Cook airbase
  • Jim & Jenny Wickham (Yak9 & Robinson R22)
  • Jim Whalley (CA-13 Boomerang)
  • Murray Colquhoun (chief experimental test pilot with Pilatus & the PC21)




• Anthony Simmons returns with his “View from the Lounge” segment




• What’s in our mailbag for this episode?
  • Luke Harris raises the issue of laser pointers being used to tag aircraft
  • Bob Livingstone makes some comments about the B24
  • Damien Rose provides some in-cockpit audio (we play his intro but the cockpit audio is at the end of the episode)




• We definitely have some shout outs this episode
  • Marty at Flight.org has been of great assistance to us, helping to promote the podcast & much more
  • Thanks to those folks mentioning @pcdu in their Follow Friday tweets
  • Check out errolwi on Twitter for his tweets while at the Warbirds over Wanaka air show in New Zealand (and yes, you’re welcome for the F18s :)
  • Good luck to Zyola from the Mile High Flyers podcast as she’s going through the “joys” of losing her job recently. We also want to know if our photos on our About us page scared off her friends who thought our accents were cool/hot/sexy :)
  • Thanks to Stuart Stevenson of the Pilots Journey podcast for setting up the Aviation Podcasts Network aggregator site

As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/04/06/episode-29-whats-in-a-checklist/feed/ 0 1:49:47 Plane Crazy Down Under # 29 What's in a Checklist? aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/03/28/episode-28-save-the-liberator/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/03/28/episode-28-save-the-liberator/#comments Sat, 27 Mar 2010 14:28:19 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=337 The B24 Liberator was the most produced heavy bomber of World War 2 and saw service in all theaters of the war. The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) flew B24s along side those of the USAAF, based in northern Australia and Papua New Guinea. These aircraft flew long range missions of many hours duration, typically . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 28: Save the Liberator]]> The B24 Liberator was the most produced heavy bomber of World War 2 and saw service in all theaters of the war. The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) flew B24s along side those of the USAAF, based in northern Australia and Papua New Guinea. These aircraft flew long range missions of many hours duration, typically without fighter escort. Providing bombing, maritime patrol and transport services, the advanced & complicated B24 was, perhaps, the unsung hero of heavy bomber operations.

Very few of these aircraft still exist (see the list of remaining B24s) and in Australia, only a single example remains. It is currently being restored by a group of dedicated and passionate individuals, many of whom flew B24s during or immediately after the war.

Based in Werribee, just outside Melbourne, the Australian B24 Restoration project is definitely worth visiting and supporting. We were fortunate to visit the team, admire the aircraft and interview John Temby (President of the association) and Ed Crabtree (ex B24 pilot). Another trip down is currently being planned and we expect to have more great content from the restoration team in a later episode.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/03/28/episode-28-save-the-liberator/feed/ 4 1:03:40 Plane Crazy Down Under # 28 Save the Liberator aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/03/18/meetup-at-the-centenary-of-powered-flight-airshow/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/03/18/meetup-at-the-centenary-of-powered-flight-airshow/#comments Wed, 17 Mar 2010 23:14:10 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=412 The Centenary Air Show is being held this Saturday (20th March) at Diggers Rest near Melbourne. The air show is being held to celebrate 100 years of controlled powered flight in Australia and will feature flying & static displays along with other entertainment and attractions.

Naturally we will both be there which no doubt means . . . → Read More: Meetup at the Centenary of Powered Flight Airshow]]> The Centenary Air Show is being held this Saturday (20th March) at Diggers Rest near Melbourne. The air show is being held to celebrate 100 years of controlled powered flight in Australia and will feature flying & static displays along with other entertainment and attractions.

Naturally we will both be there which no doubt means Grant will be busy tweeting & texting madly yet again. We’re going to be interviewing pilots, crew & staff, meeting up with folks and hopefully lining up a few visits & reports for future episodes.

If you’re going to be at the airshow (and let’s face it, you should be :) then post a message here or in the forums, email us, tweet us or SMS us on the day to arrange a meet up. The weather is looking pretty friendly with predictions of light winds, a few clouds and a top of 26 Celsius.

NOTE: The start of the flying display will have Ken Evers & Tim Pryse flying off in their Gippsland Aeronautics GA-8 Airvan to start their Millions Against Malaria around the world journey. You may recall that we interviewed them in Episode 27: Trans World Adventures :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/03/18/meetup-at-the-centenary-of-powered-flight-airshow/feed/ 2 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/03/10/episode-27-trans-world-adventures/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/03/10/episode-27-trans-world-adventures/#comments Tue, 09 Mar 2010 13:09:34 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=404 The common theme in this episode is about going around the world, first by bringing Saj Ahmad (Fleetbuzz Editorial) in the UK and Ben Sandilands (Plane Talking) in Australia together to talk about financial reports from QANTAS, Virgin & Tiger plus general discussions about airlines in Australia, past, present & future.

We then chat with . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 27: Trans World Adventures]]> The common theme in this episode is about going around the world, first by bringing Saj Ahmad (Fleetbuzz Editorial) in the UK and Ben Sandilands (Plane Talking) in Australia together to talk about financial reports from QANTAS, Virgin & Tiger plus general discussions about airlines in Australia, past, present & future.

We then chat with Ken Evers & Tim Pryse, a couple of local lads who are going to fly a Gippsland Aeronautics GA-8 Airvan around the world to raise funds to help fight against malaria. You can read more about their epic journey at Millions Against Malaria.

We also give a few shout outs & read some mail:

• Tom for listening to all 25 episodes in less than a week – now *that’s* masochism :)
• Steve Cooke in the UK and his Flying Podcast that gives a great perspective on flying in the UK and Europe.
• Christie Walker who we’ll be chatting to soon and is interested in learning more about Australian airline cadet pilot programs
• Grant’s sorry for being behind on all the emails that have come in

As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/03/10/episode-27-trans-world-adventures/feed/ 1 1:32:14 Plane Crazy Down Under # 27 Trans World Adventures aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/26/meet-up-at-point-cook-air-pageant/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/26/meet-up-at-point-cook-air-pageant/#comments Fri, 26 Feb 2010 11:09:43 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=388 If you’re going to the RAAF Museum’s Point Cook Air Pageant this weekend (Feb 28th) then post a comment here or send a tweet to @PCDU, @Falcon124 or @SteveVisscher to let us know. We’ll try and organise a meet up somewhere before the show starts depending on who’s around and what interview slots we manage . . . → Read More: Meet up at Point Cook Air Pageant]]> If you’re going to the RAAF Museum’s Point Cook Air Pageant this weekend (Feb 28th) then post a comment here or send a tweet to @PCDU, @Falcon124 or @SteveVisscher to let us know. We’ll try and organise a meet up somewhere before the show starts depending on who’s around and what interview slots we manage to get with pilots & staff :)
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/26/meet-up-at-point-cook-air-pageant/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/25/episode-26-enjoying-the-views/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/25/episode-26-enjoying-the-views/#comments Wed, 24 Feb 2010 21:24:39 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=377 You can always count on this podcast to have some interesting, opinionated and, occasionally, diverse points of view. This episode really brings them all and (bonus!) includes a whole new view as we introduce Anthony Simmons and the “View from the Lounge” segment for your listening pleasure.

We’ve also got another great discussion with Owen . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 26: Enjoying the Views]]> You can always count on this podcast to have some interesting, opinionated and, occasionally, diverse points of view. This episode really brings them all and (bonus!) includes a whole new view as we introduce Anthony Simmons and the “View from the Lounge” segment for your listening pleasure.

We’ve also got another great discussion with Owen Zupp as his trip around Australia draws closer, a quick chat we recorded with David Optimal (one of our listeners) and Bas Scheffers returns (at last) with his friend John Squires to tell us about a fly-away trip they did not too long ago.

Here’s how this episode unfolds:

• Here’s a “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot” for you: man attacks plane with machete to prevent his bride-to-be from leaving him.
  • Fleeing bride’s plane attacked with machete
  • Man hit plane with machete
     
• We have a discussion with Owen Zupp about
  • His trip around Australia (There & Back)
  • Flying the DA20 & DA40
  • ADSB in Australia and flying RNP approaches
  • What it was like to fly with Matt Hall
     
• We introduce Anthony Simmons and his amusing view on commercial flying in the new segment: “View from the Lounge”
   
• we recorded a quick chat with listener David Optimal in Steve’s PCDU-Mobile when he came down to visit us and the airports around Melbourne
   
• David Vanderhoof presents another great Aviation History segment
   
• Bas Scheffers returns with his friend John Squires to tell us about how the Aeroscene Flying Group arranged a fly-in at the Asses Ears Lodge at the Grampians Airfield in Victoria. They also chat briefly about the Parafield Airshow they’re organising for April 2010.

As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/25/episode-26-enjoying-the-views/feed/ 11 1:55:52 Plane Crazy Down Under # 26 Enjoying the Views aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/22/the-jetstarisation-of-qantas-is-not-over-yet/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/22/the-jetstarisation-of-qantas-is-not-over-yet/#comments Mon, 22 Feb 2010 06:00:49 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=369 Thanks to an opportunity presented by Shashank Nigam, Grant’s just had an article about the ongoing Jetstarisation of QANTAS published on Shashank’s Simpliflying site.

It provides a background on the birth of Jetstar, its growth to date and how it is destined to consume more of QANTAS’ mainline routes & aircraft. Head on over to . . . → Read More: The Jetstarisation of QANTAS is not over yet]]> Thanks to an opportunity presented by Shashank Nigam, Grant’s just had an article about the ongoing Jetstarisation of QANTAS published on Shashank’s Simpliflying site.

It provides a background on the birth of Jetstar, its growth to date and how it is destined to consume more of QANTAS’ mainline routes & aircraft. Head on over to Simpliflying and check out the article.

Thanks to Shashank for giving us the opportunity to gain further exposure to the global aviation world, it’s very much appreciated :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/22/the-jetstarisation-of-qantas-is-not-over-yet/feed/ 2 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/15/so-you-want-to-help/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/15/so-you-want-to-help/#comments Mon, 15 Feb 2010 12:17:43 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=360 Are you one of the many people who have been enjoying this podcast and want to help ensure it grows and continues into the future? Well, we certainly appreciate your intent and would like to work with you to make it happen (funny that :)

Here are three great ways that you can help us . . . → Read More: So you want to help?]]> Are you one of the many people who have been enjoying this podcast and want to help ensure it grows and continues into the future? Well, we certainly appreciate your intent and would like to work with you to make it happen (funny that :)

Here are three great ways that you can help us to keep bringing in the fun & interesting content for you:

1. Donate: If you’ve got a few spare dollars, donating them to a worthy cause is always a wonderful thing. In the absence of a suitably worthy cause, please consider clicking on the big yellow “Donate” button and sending some to us. Even $5 helps if enough of you do it. We’re trying to get an advertising system set up but it’s early days and we’re not sure if it will ever work out, so donations really help.
    
2. Put up our Flyer: We’ve created a nifty flyer that promotes our podcast and is intended to be put up on notice boards around the world. It’s already showing up in a few flying clubs, flight schools, pilot shops and airport cafes around Australia. If it’s not appearing where you work, fly or hangout, why not download our flyer (150k PDF), print out a few, put them up around the place and maybe even send us a photo. Don’t forget to ask permission first before you put them up, just in case :)
    
3. Tell your friends: As the guys at the Airplane Geeks podcast keep reminding us, another great way to boost listener numbers and help keep Steve & Grant motivated is to “tell your friends about our podcast”

Feel free to contact us if you have some other suggestions for helping us to grow and keep the fun happening. We certainly don’t have all the answers but are enjoying finding a few new ones as we go along.




Download, print & distribute our flyer

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/15/so-you-want-to-help/feed/ 2 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/13/episode-25-fan-boys/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/13/episode-25-fan-boys/#comments Sat, 13 Feb 2010 10:14:09 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=351 Yes, Steve & Grant are Fan Boys (big Fan Boys, in fact :) and this episode we demonstrate it once again by interviewing Matt Hall and hanging out with some more fans at the Flight Experience Melbourne Facebook fan page open night in their 737 flight simulator. Seems we’re not the only ones who think . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 25: Fan Boys]]> Yes, Steve & Grant are Fan Boys (big Fan Boys, in fact :) and this episode we demonstrate it once again by interviewing Matt Hall and hanging out with some more fans at the Flight Experience Melbourne Facebook fan page open night in their 737 flight simulator. Seems we’re not the only ones who think a publically accessible 737 simulator is a great thing :)

Here’s how this episode flows:

• First class to be stripped from Qantas 747s? (Australian Aviation)
• QANTAS 767 involved in a tail strike at Sydney
  • Qantas 767 returns to Sydney after tailstrike (Australian Aviation)
  • Qantas plane in tail strike drama (Kate Schneider @ Herald Sun)
• Air New Zealand has a couple of emergency situations
  • Full-scale emergency response as Air NZ jet aborts take-off (Sydney Morning Herald)
  • Air NZ 777 involved in emergency at Narita (Australian Aviation)
• Jetstar are rolling out self-service & SMS based check in
  • Jetstar jettisons check-in desks for self-service kiosks (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Jetstar to roll out SMS boarding passes from February (Australian Aviation)
• Jetstar expect big results from their expansion into Asia
  • Jetstar chooses Singapore for Asian hub (Australian Aviation)
  • Jetstar expects payoff from expansion in Asia (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• Garuda are preparing for an IPO
  • PT Garuda, Indonesia’s state-owned carrier, planning a $340 million IPO (P R Venkat & Tom Wright @ The Wall St Journal / The Australian)
  • Garuda to list this year, cancels 787s (Australian Aviation)
     
• We have another interview with Matt Hall
  • Matt Hall announces his supporter’s tour for Perth
  • AVTours set up Matt’s supporter’s tour
     
• We attended the Flight Experience Melbourne Facebook fan open night and recorded some interviews with the instructors & guests who were there at the 737 simulator.
   
• Shout outs
  • Congratulations to Jack Seymour in Wangaratta for doing his trial introductory flight in a Eurofox. You can read about his adventures in flight at his blog: StudentFlight.
  • Thanks to Brendan from Essendon (YMEN) for letting Grant tag along when he went flying out to Tooradin (YTDN). While he didn’t get atthe controls, being in the backseat of a C172 is still flying :)
  • We have a discussion on our forum about where to find the best coffee at airports.

As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/13/episode-25-fan-boys/feed/ 1 1:28:15 Fan Boys Yes, Steve & Grant are Fan Boys (big Fan Boys, in fact :) and this episode we demonstrate it once again by interviewing Matt Hall and hanging out with some more fans at the Flight Experience Melbourne Facebook fan page open night in their 737 flight simulator. Seems we’re not the only ones who think a publically accessible 737 simulator is a great thing :) Here’s how this episode flows: First class to be stripped from Qantas 747s? (Australian Aviation) QANTAS 767 involved in a tail strike at Sydney Qantas 767 returns to Sydney after tailstrike (Australian Aviation) Qantas plane in tail strike drama (Kate Schneider @ Herald Sun) Air New Zealand has a couple of emergency situations Full-scale emergency response as Air NZ jet aborts take-off (Sydney Morning Herald) Air NZ 777 involved in emergency at Narita (Australian Aviation) Jetstar are rolling out self-service & SMS based check in Jetstar jettisons check-in desks for self-service kiosks (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Jetstar to roll out SMS boarding passes from February (Australian Aviation) Jetstar expect big results from their expansion into Asia Jetstar chooses Singapore for Asian hub (Australian Aviation) Jetstar expects payoff from expansion in Asia (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Garuda are preparing for an IPO PT Garuda, Indonesia’s state-owned carrier, planning a $340 million IPO (P R Venkat & Tom Wright @ The Wall St Journal / The Australian) Garuda to list this year, cancels 787s (Australian Aviation)  We have another interview with Matt Hall Matt Hall announces his supporter’s tour for Perth AVTours set up Matt’s supporter’s tour  We attended the Flight Experience Melbourne Facebook fan open night and recorded some interviews with the instructors & guests who were there at the 737 simulator.  Shout outs Congratulations to Jack Seymour in Wangaratta for doing his trial introductory flight in a Eurofox. You can read about his adventures in flight at his blog: StudentFlight. Thanks to Brendan from Essendon (YMEN) for letting Grant tag along when he went flying out to Tooradin (YTDN). While he didn’t get atthe controls, being in the backseat of a C172 is still flying :) We have a discussion on our forum about where to find the best coffee at airports. As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com. aviation, australia, new, zealand, asia, pacific, flying, aircraft www.planecrazydownunder.com no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/04/episode-24-misuse-of-accents/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/04/episode-24-misuse-of-accents/#comments Wed, 03 Feb 2010 23:06:19 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=340 Despite the annoying habit of our “day jobs” and families encroaching into our PCDU time, we’ve finally managed to get some time to record an episode. Steve even managed a marathon effort of post production to edit a coherent episode from our opinionated news discussion and an interview with Saj Ahmad. Go Steve! :)

Despite . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 24: Misuse of Accents]]> Despite the annoying habit of our “day jobs” and families encroaching into our PCDU time, we’ve finally managed to get some time to record an episode. Steve even managed a marathon effort of post production to edit a coherent episode from our opinionated news discussion and an interview with Saj Ahmad. Go Steve! :)

Despite my best efforts to drone on endlessly, Steve’s also managed to keep the episode under 2 hours, but not by much. Hopefully this will give you heaps of fun listening as you travel to & from work, mow the lawns or do your household chores :)

Here’s how the show came together this time:

• Robinson R44 crashes on a mountain beside a massive drop
  • Men uninjured after chopper crash (Jeremy Sollars @ Lismore Northern Star via Warwick Daily News)
  • Chopper incident ‘not so dramatic’ (Damian Bathersby @ Sunshine Coast Daily)
  • Three men dodge death after their helicopter crash lands on the edge of a canyon ridge… two feet from a one mile drop
• Tiger’s IPO closes over subscribed – oh wow!
  • Tiger Air offering overcomes doubts (Kevin Brown @ Financial Times)
  • Blue skies for Tiger? (Stephen Bartholomeusz @ Business Spectator)
  • Backing at home for Tiger Airways (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Tiger IPO closes fully subscribed (Australian Aviation)
• Australia’s “self-serve” passport gates not working well
  • Self-serve passport gates ‘easy to cheat’ (Monique Ross @ ABCNews)
  • SmartGate passport hits 1m milestone (Sydney Morning Herald)
• Lie down all the way to LA: Air NZ (Thanks to Mike for pointing out the article)
• RNZAF aerobatic team lose a pilot in a training crash
  • DEATH OF AIRMAN – 3RD STATEMENT (Press Release from RNZAF)
  • RNZAF loses pilot in Red Checkers crash (Australian Aviation)
  • Pilot doused burning plane wreck (Michael Forbes @ The Dominion Post)
  • Brother pays tribute to pilot (Manawatu Standard)
  • Dead air force pilot was top trainer (TV NZ)
  • Red Checkers Ground Aircraft (NZ Herald)
  • Death with no regrets, says pilot’s family (Iain Hyndman @ Wanganui Chronicle)
• Scathing report released on the F35 JSF project
  • JSF faces another scathing report (Australian Aviation)
  • Some notes concerning Australia’s exposure to the risk that the Joint Strike Fighter is a failed project (Ben Sandilands @ Plane Talking on Crikey)
• We review a recent “Traffic Report” from the Australian Aviation magazine (our favourite aviation magazine :)
  • VH-EBK (A330) withdrawn from QF domestic and repainted in JetStar colours in Manilla
  • VH-OGA (a 767-300ER) withdrawn from service
  • JetConnect withdrew it’s last 300 series 737 (ZK-JNC) which has gone to storage in Tucson – entered service with Australian Airlines on Dec 31, 1988 as VH-TJB “Fortitude” – transferred to JetConnect on Jul 29th 2004
  • Some new aircraft with funky names have arrived for Virgin Blue
    • E-190 VH-ZPO = “Portia Macquarie”
    • 737-800 VH-VUT = “Yabba Dabba Blue”
    • 737-800 VH-VUR = “Star City”
    • 737-800 VH-VUS = “Chitty Chitty Broome Broome”
  • VB’s 737-800 VUA that was previously used for mile-high karaoke with the Black Eyed Peas as they toured Australia has been returned to normal configuration & colour scheme.
     
• We have a chat with Saj Ahmad about 737/A320 re-engining and lots more
   
• Instead of reading some listener mail, we review a recent discussion on our forum about Podcasting Beer between Turb, Grand Vizier, Scofreyjet and ourselves
• We have a stack of shout outs for this episode:
  • Ms Dark Sarcasm (aka Jennifer Barry) had her first solo (YAY!). You can follow her flying adventures on her blog: A need for Airspeed
  • David Optimal is now a Grade 3 instructor (YAY!). You can follow his news via his blog at DavidOptimal.com
  • Robert Cigliano has started a new aviation podcast called The New Pilot Podlog
  • Zyola from the Mile High Flyers podcast has been getting lots of her lady pilot friends in Hawaii’i to listen in to PCDU – go go Aussie accent power :)
  • Also big thanks to our anonymous donor from Canberra

As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/02/04/episode-24-misuse-of-accents/feed/ 2 1:48:49 Despite the annoying habit of our “day jobs” and families encroaching into our PCDU time, we’ve finally managed to get some time to record an episode. Steve even managed a marathon effort of post production to edit a coherent epis[...] Despite the annoying habit of our “day jobs” and families encroaching into our PCDU time, we’ve finally managed to get some time to record an episode. Steve even managed a marathon effort of post production to edit a coherent episode from our opinionated news discussion and an interview with Saj Ahmad. Go Steve! :) Despite my best efforts to drone on endlessly, Steve’s also managed to keep the episode under 2 hours, but not by much. Hopefully this will give you heaps of fun listening as you travel to & from work, mow the lawns or do your household chores :) Here’s how the show came together this time: Robinson R44 crashes on a mountain beside a massive drop Men uninjured after chopper crash (Jeremy Sollars @ Lismore Northern Star via Warwick Daily News) Chopper incident ‘not so dramatic’ (Damian Bathersby @ Sunshine Coast Daily) Three men dodge death after their helicopter crash lands on the edge of a canyon ridge… two feet from a one mile drop Tiger’s IPO closes over subscribed – oh wow! Tiger Air offering overcomes doubts (Kevin Brown @ Financial Times) Blue skies for Tiger? (Stephen Bartholomeusz @ Business Spectator) Backing at home for Tiger Airways (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Tiger IPO closes fully subscribed (Australian Aviation) Australia’s “self-serve” passport gates not working well Self-serve passport gates ‘easy to cheat’ (Monique Ross @ ABCNews) SmartGate passport hits 1m milestone (Sydney Morning Herald) Lie down all the way to LA: Air NZ (Thanks to Mike for pointing out the article) RNZAF aerobatic team lose a pilot in a training crash DEATH OF AIRMAN – 3RD STATEMENT (Press Release from RNZAF) RNZAF loses pilot in Red Checkers crash (Australian Aviation) Pilot doused burning plane wreck (Michael Forbes @ The Dominion Post) Brother pays tribute to pilot (Manawatu Standard) Dead air force pilot was top trainer (TV NZ) Red Checkers Ground Aircraft (NZ Herald) Death with no regrets, says pilot’s family (Iain Hyndman @ Wanganui Chronicle) Scathing report released on the F35 JSF project JSF faces another scathing report (Australian Aviation) Some notes concerning Australia’s exposure to the risk that the Joint Strike Fighter is a failed project (Ben Sandilands @ Plane Talking on Crikey) We review a recent “Traffic Report” from the Australian Aviation magazine (our favourite aviation magazine :) VH-EBK (A330) withdrawn from QF domestic and repainted in JetStar colours in Manilla VH-OGA (a 767-300ER) withdrawn from service JetConnect withdrew it’s last 300 series 737 (ZK-JNC) which has gone to storage in Tucson – entered service with Australian Airlines on Dec 31, 1988 as VH-TJB “Fortitude” – transferred to JetConnect on Jul 29th 2004 Some new aircraft with funky names have arrived for Virgin Blue E-190 VH-ZPO = “Portia Macquarie” 737-800 VH-VUT = “Yabba Dabba Blue” 737-800 VH-VUR = “Star City” 737-800 VH-VUS = “Chitty Chitty Broome Broome” VB’s 737-800 VUA that was previously used for mile-high karaoke with the Black Eyed Peas as they toured Australia has been returned to normal configuration & colour scheme.  We have a chat with Saj Ahmad about 737/A320 re-engining and lots more  Instead of reading some listener mail, we review a recent discussion on our forum about Podcasting Beer between Turb, Grand Vizier, Scofreyjet and ourselves We have a stack of shout outs for this episode: Ms Dark Sarcasm (aka Jennifer Barry) had her first solo (YAY!). You can follow her flying adventures on her blog: A need for Airspeed David Optimal is now a Grade 3 instructor (YAY!). You can follow his news via his blog at DavidOptimal.com Robert Cigliano has started a new aviation podcast called The New Pilot Podlog Zyola from the Mile High Flyers podcast has been getting lots of her lady p[...] Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/21/ten-minutes-of-fame-in-a-737-simulator/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/21/ten-minutes-of-fame-in-a-737-simulator/#comments Wed, 20 Jan 2010 22:35:10 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=334 The crew at Flight Experience Melbourne are having an Open Night on the 27th January and we’re going along. They’re giving away 10 minute sessions in their 737 sim to the first 20 people in the door (need to register before hand).

We’re going to be there to interview people for a future episode as . . . → Read More: Ten minutes of fame in a 737 Simulator?]]> The crew at Flight Experience Melbourne are having an Open Night on the 27th January and we’re going along. They’re giving away 10 minute sessions in their 737 sim to the first 20 people in the door (need to register before hand).

We’re going to be there to interview people for a future episode as well as have some fun (and enjoy the drinks & nibbles :)

If you’re in Melbourne, Australia and can get to the QV Building in the city from 6pm on the 27th January, you really should get yourself there. More information about the event and the registration form is available on their blog.

Hope to see you there :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/21/ten-minutes-of-fame-in-a-737-simulator/feed/ 1 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/15/episode-23-australia-a-tsa-free-zone-for-now/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/15/episode-23-australia-a-tsa-free-zone-for-now/#comments Fri, 15 Jan 2010 11:53:35 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=324 Even down here in Australia we’re being impacted by the out-of-control antics of the TSA, so what the heck, we’ll have a bit of a c’est la vent moment about it. We also have our usual opinionated discussion on some other news items and chat with Shashank Nigam from SimpliFlying.

Here’s how the show proceeds:

. . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 23: Australia: A TSA free zone (for now)]]> Even down here in Australia we’re being impacted by the out-of-control antics of the TSA, so what the heck, we’ll have a bit of a c’est la vent moment about it. We also have our usual opinionated discussion on some other news items and chat with Shashank Nigam from SimpliFlying.

Here’s how the show proceeds:

• Prosecutors want Garuda pilot back in jail (ABC News)
• Farmer’s flight path message for charity (ABC News)
• The first aircraft taken to Antarctica has been found again:
  • Remains of Antarctica’s first plane found (ABC News)
  • Future of Antarctic plane undecided (ABC News)

  
  

• David Vanderhoof gives us an Aviation History segment
  • Guy Menzies with his crashed Avian (image)
  • Image of an Avian in a pprune.org story
  • QANTAS Super Constellation

  
  

• Air NZ’s new cabin crew outfits like ‘drag queens’ (Greer McDonald & Kiran Chug @ Sydney Morning Herald)
• Phrase “elephant in the room” is most popular cliche of 2009 (The Mirror) (AirNZ’s use of the phrase “disestablished”)
• Tiger Airways carries 3 millionth passenger (Travel Daily News)
• Tiger’s flight delayed 10-hours (The Morning Bulletin)
• Tiger Airways advances aircraft delivery (Yahoo! Singapore)
• Discussion about Tiger’s callsign on our forum @ Downwind
• Jetstar and AirAsia form a Joint Venture:
  • http://au.biz.yahoo.com/100105/2/2am5y.html (Yahoo! FInance)
  • Analyst tips fruitful Jetstar-AirAsia alliance (ABC News)
  • Two-for-one budget airlines (Stephen Bartholomeusz @ Business Spectator)
  • Jetstar maintenance stays onshore (Geoff Easdown @ HeraldSun)
• Australian executives at Jetstar Pacific not allowed to leave Vietnam:
  • Jetstar Pacific executives questioned in Vietnam (ABC News)
  • Jetstar Pacific probe set to last months (ABC News)
• QANTAS are impacted by another Amadeus crash:
  • Flights delayed after Qantas glitches (ABC News)
  • Another computer glitch for Qantas (Australian Aviation)
  • Qantas may be just another eyes wide victim of IT ‘lies’ (Ben Sandilands @ Plane Talking on Crikey)
  • Passengers suffer as Qantas check-in fails (Lanai Vasek @ The Australian)

  
  

• We chat with Shashank Nigam from SimpliFlying
   
• We have a c’est la vie moment about the Transportation Security Administration (TSA)
   
• Technical glitch strands Qantas passengers (ABC News)
   
• Listener Mail:
  • Jack Seymour’s got a blog up about his learning to fly (Student Flight
  • Mark mentions Coronal Mass Ejections and their potential impacts on GPS systems

  
  

• Shout Outs:
  • The new Mile High Flyers podcast is well worth listening to (and they refer to our show in their second episode – w00t :)
  • Will & Dave at The Pilot’s Flight Podlog podcast have provided us with a promo piece and are joining in the fun of cross-promoting other podcasts

As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/15/episode-23-australia-a-tsa-free-zone-for-now/feed/ 12 1:36:44 Even down here in Australia we’re being impacted by the out-of-control antics of the TSA, so what the heck, we’ll have a bit of a c’est la vent moment about it. We also have our usual opinionated discussion on some other news items[...] Even down here in Australia we’re being impacted by the out-of-control antics of the TSA, so what the heck, we’ll have a bit of a c’est la vent moment about it. We also have our usual opinionated discussion on some other news items and chat with Shashank Nigam from SimpliFlying. Here’s how the show proceeds: Prosecutors want Garuda pilot back in jail (ABC News) Farmer’s flight path message for charity (ABC News) The first aircraft taken to Antarctica has been found again: Remains of Antarctica’s first plane found (ABC News) Future of Antarctic plane undecided (ABC News) David Vanderhoof gives us an Aviation History segment Guy Menzies with his crashed Avian (image) Image of an Avian in a pprune.org story QANTAS Super Constellation Air NZ’s new cabin crew outfits like ‘drag queens’ (Greer McDonald & Kiran Chug @ Sydney Morning Herald) Phrase “elephant in the room” is most popular cliche of 2009 (The Mirror) (AirNZ’s use of the phrase “disestablished”) Tiger Airways carries 3 millionth passenger (Travel Daily News) Tiger’s flight delayed 10-hours (The Morning Bulletin) Tiger Airways advances aircraft delivery (Yahoo! Singapore) Discussion about Tiger’s callsign on our forum @ Downwind Jetstar and AirAsia form a Joint Venture: http://au.biz.yahoo.com/100105/2/2am5y.html (Yahoo! FInance) Analyst tips fruitful Jetstar-AirAsia alliance (ABC News) Two-for-one budget airlines (Stephen Bartholomeusz @ Business Spectator) Jetstar maintenance stays onshore (Geoff Easdown @ HeraldSun) Australian executives at Jetstar Pacific not allowed to leave Vietnam: Jetstar Pacific executives questioned in Vietnam (ABC News) Jetstar Pacific probe set to last months (ABC News) QANTAS are impacted by another Amadeus crash: Flights delayed after Qantas glitches (ABC News) Another computer glitch for Qantas (Australian Aviation) Qantas may be just another eyes wide victim of IT ‘lies’ (Ben Sandilands @ Plane Talking on Crikey) Passengers suffer as Qantas check-in fails (Lanai Vasek @ The Australian) We chat with Shashank Nigam from SimpliFlying  We have a c’est la vie moment about the Transportation Security Administration (TSA)  Technical glitch strands Qantas passengers (ABC News)  Listener Mail: Jack Seymour’s got a blog up about his learning to fly (Student Flight Mark mentions Coronal Mass Ejections and their potential impacts on GPS systems Shout Outs: The new Mile High Flyers podcast is well worth listening to (and they refer to our show in their second episode – w00t :) Will & Dave at The Pilot’s Flight Podlog podcast have provided us with a promo piece and are joining in the fun of cross-promoting other podcasts As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com. Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/03/itunes-feed-glitch/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/03/itunes-feed-glitch/#comments Sun, 03 Jan 2010 04:14:15 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=319 Some of you may have experienced some problems downloading from our feed lately. This was all thanks to updating to the latest version of the PodPress plugin, unfortunately. It seems the latest version didn’t mix well with our site and started sending out broken URLs to each episode’s MP3 file in our RSS feed (we’re . . . → Read More: iTunes Feed Glitch]]> Some of you may have experienced some problems downloading from our feed lately. This was all thanks to updating to the latest version of the PodPress plugin, unfortunately. It seems the latest version didn’t mix well with our site and started sending out broken URLs to each episode’s MP3 file in our RSS feed (we’re not the only ones to have experienced this).

The problem was fixed by rolling back to the previous version of the plugin, but for about 4 to 6 hours around New Years’ Day the feed was broken (episode description text was fine but the episodes wouldn’t download).

If you’re still experiencing a problem downloading our episodes, make sure you’ve got the latest version of the feed in your system. In iTunes, this means right-clicking (or cmd-clicking :) on the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast entry and selecting “Update Podcast.” This will force iTunes to download the most recent copy of the RSS feed file.

Once that’s done, retry the broken download and it should all work nicely.

Meanwhile, I’m waiting for a fix from the PodPress developer and will, in future, try not to be amongst the first to try out a new version of a plugin :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/03/itunes-feed-glitch/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/01/were-interviewed-on-erk-pod/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/01/were-interviewed-on-erk-pod/#comments Fri, 01 Jan 2010 04:35:10 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/01/were-interviewed-on-erk-pod/ In the relatively quiet time between Christmas & New Year, Erk from the Erk Pod podcast bravely travelled down from Sydney to Melbourne, seeking sites to enjoy, experiences to be had and southern podcasters to interview. Having found PCDU a few months earlier, Erk asked if we wanted to be interviewed about the podcast, how . . . → Read More: We’re interviewed on Erk Pod]]> In the relatively quiet time between Christmas & New Year, Erk from the Erk Pod podcast bravely travelled down from Sydney to Melbourne, seeking sites to enjoy, experiences to be had and southern podcasters to interview. Having found PCDU a few months earlier, Erk asked if we wanted to be interviewed about the podcast, how it came to be and what’s involved in keeping it running. Who were we to say no to some publicity? :)

The results can be found at Erk Pod Episode 236 and it’s worth listening to for some insight into what goes into making PCDU is produced each week.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2010/01/01/were-interviewed-on-erk-pod/feed/ 8 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/31/episode-22-farewell-2009/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/31/episode-22-farewell-2009/#comments Thu, 31 Dec 2009 12:05:34 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=304 It’s the Christmas & New Year holiday period, plus down here it’s Summer so we’re totally into listening to long aviation podcasts when we’re not distracted by having fun. So, for all of our listeners who have long drives or lots of chores to do around home, we give you our longest episode yet. With . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 22: Farewell 2009]]> It’s the Christmas & New Year holiday period, plus down here it’s Summer so we’re totally into listening to long aviation podcasts when we’re not distracted by having fun. So, for all of our listeners who have long drives or lots of chores to do around home, we give you our longest episode yet. With a bit of Christmas cheer, we produce just over two hours of PCDU goodness including an interview with Michael Gilmour from Downwind.com.au, our usual opinionated review of the news and listener mail. We also wrap up the year with a tip of the wing to the podcasts that inspire us and the guests who have helped give us some great content.

Here’s how the episode came together this time:

• Indian company buys Gippsland Aeronautics and Aerostaff (Australian Aviation)
• CASA ups GAAP circuit limit, to use FAA Class D (Australian Aviation)
• Satellite-based navigation system to allow air-traffic controllers to pinpoint aircraft (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• Air N.Z. More Affected by 787 Delay Than Slump, Airlines Says (Tracy Withers @ Bloomberg.com) plus interview with Rob Fyfe on IATA.org
• Qantas to launch A380 Melbourne-London services (Australian Aviation) and Qantas to operate A380 on Melbourne-London route
• Defence Dept to fix Amberley base creek pollution
• Tiger Airways IPO reduced following luke-warm reactions and may be withdrawn
  • Tiger confirms IPO (Australian Aviation)
  • Tiger Air cuts IPO size (Kevin Lim @ AsiaOne)
  • Investors Cool Toward Tiger Airways IPO (Shares Investment)
  • Two major shareholders may jettison Tiger stake (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• QANTAS 747-400 has an engine failure not long after take off at Changi (Singapore)
  • Qantas flight turns back after ‘flames from engine’ (Thomas Hunter @ SMH.com.au)
  • Qantas denies engine fire forced return (ABC News)
  • Qantas engine failure terrifies passengers (ABC News)
• QANTAS pilots union upset over JetConnect pilots
  • Pilots union to launch legal action to fight for Kiwi pay equality (Ewin Hannan @ The Australian)
  • Qantas ‘underpaying NZ pilots’ (ABC News)
  • Australian union seeks more for Qantas’ Kiwi pilots (Kathy Marks @ NZ Herald)
  • NZ-based pilots paid ‘half of Aussie counterparts’ (Stuff.co.nz)
  • APIA takes action on Jetconnect pilot pay (Australian Aviation)>
• Interview with Michael Gilmour from Downwind.com.au
• We review our Listener Mail
• It’s Christmas, so of course everyone’s going on strike
  • Qantas faces more strike action (ABC News)
  • Qantas engineers to begin 5-day strike from tomorrow (Cynthia Koons @ The Australian)
  • Christmas strikes looming on two fronts for Qantas (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Qantas, Jetstar engineers ‘overworked’ (Nine News)
  • Work bans threaten air travel (Ben Schneiders @ The Age)
  • Qantas engineers set for more industrial action (Australian Aviation)
• Here’s our end of year wrap
  • Special thanks to the podcasts that inspired us to start PCDU
    • Uncontrolled Airspace
    • Airspeed
    • Pilot’s Flight Podlog
    • Podcast Answerman
    • Airplane Geeks
  • Our great guests in 2009 were
    • Matt Hall
    • Nigel Lamb
    • Owen Zupp
    • Bas Scheffers
    • Saj Ahmad
    • Ben Ipolito & Jeremy Peck
    • Michael Gilmour
    • David Vanderhoof
    • Lang Kidby
    • Joel Haski
    • Shashank Nigram
    • Karla Courtney
    • Carlo Santoro
    • Nick Brau
  • Special thanks also to
    • Dane Golden & Leo Laporte
    • Adam Visscher (about to be our photographer)

  As from now, we have a forum. Yes, that’s right, a place where you can come and chat about our episodes and anything else related to PCDU. Thanks to Michael @ Downwind for making a space available to us.

  As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/31/episode-22-farewell-2009/feed/ 13 2:01:41 It’s the Christmas & New Year holiday period, plus down here it’s Summer so we’re totally into listening to long aviation podcasts when we’re not distracted by having fun. So, for all of our listeners who have long drive[...] It’s the Christmas & New Year holiday period, plus down here it’s Summer so we’re totally into listening to long aviation podcasts when we’re not distracted by having fun. So, for all of our listeners who have long drives or lots of chores to do around home, we give you our longest episode yet. With a bit of Christmas cheer, we produce just over two hours of PCDU goodness including an interview with Michael Gilmour from Downwind.com.au, our usual opinionated review of the news and listener mail. We also wrap up the year with a tip of the wing to the podcasts that inspire us and the guests who have helped give us some great content. Here’s how the episode came together this time: Indian company buys Gippsland Aeronautics and Aerostaff (Australian Aviation) CASA ups GAAP circuit limit, to use FAA Class D (Australian Aviation) Satellite-based navigation system to allow air-traffic controllers to pinpoint aircraft (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Air N.Z. More Affected by 787 Delay Than Slump, Airlines Says (Tracy Withers @ Bloomberg.com) plus interview with Rob Fyfe on IATA.org Qantas to launch A380 Melbourne-London services (Australian Aviation) and Qantas to operate A380 on Melbourne-London route Defence Dept to fix Amberley base creek pollution Tiger Airways IPO reduced following luke-warm reactions and may be withdrawn Tiger confirms IPO (Australian Aviation) Tiger Air cuts IPO size (Kevin Lim @ AsiaOne) Investors Cool Toward Tiger Airways IPO (Shares Investment) Two major shareholders may jettison Tiger stake (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) QANTAS 747-400 has an engine failure not long after take off at Changi (Singapore) Qantas flight turns back after ‘flames from engine’ (Thomas Hunter @ SMH.com.au) Qantas denies engine fire forced return (ABC News) Qantas engine failure terrifies passengers (ABC News) QANTAS pilots union upset over JetConnect pilots Pilots union to launch legal action to fight for Kiwi pay equality (Ewin Hannan @ The Australian) Qantas ‘underpaying NZ pilots’ (ABC News) Australian union seeks more for Qantas’ Kiwi pilots (Kathy Marks @ NZ Herald) NZ-based pilots paid ‘half of Aussie counterparts’ (Stuff.co.nz) APIA takes action on Jetconnect pilot pay (Australian Aviation)> Interview with Michael Gilmour from Downwind.com.au We review our Listener Mail It’s Christmas, so of course everyone’s going on strike Qantas faces more strike action (ABC News) Qantas engineers to begin 5-day strike from tomorrow (Cynthia Koons @ The Australian) Christmas strikes looming on two fronts for Qantas (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Qantas, Jetstar engineers ‘overworked’ (Nine News) Work bans threaten air travel (Ben Schneiders @ The Age) Qantas engineers set for more industrial action (Australian Aviation) Here’s our end of year wrap Special thanks to the podcasts that inspired us to start PCDU Uncontrolled Airspace Airspeed Pilot’s Flight Podlog Podcast Answerman Airplane Geeks Our great guests in 2009 were Matt Hall Nigel Lamb Owen Zupp Bas Scheffers Saj Ahmad Ben Ipolito & Jeremy Peck Michael Gilmour David Vanderhoof Lang Kidby Joel Haski Shashank Nigram Karla Courtney Carlo Santoro Nick Brau Special thanks also to Dane Golden & Leo Laporte Adam Visscher (about to be our photographer) As from now, we have a forum. Yes, that’s right, a place where you can come and chat about our episodes and anything else related to PCDU. Thanks to Michael @ Downwind for making a space available to us. As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com. Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/19/episode-21-london-calling/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/19/episode-21-london-calling/#comments Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:04:57 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=293

  Regent Street in the snow (by Jon Curnow)

  For the majority of our listeners it’s warm and getting warmer down here in the Southern Summer with Christmas just around the corner. Not so in London where it’s bleak and somewhat miserable (and that’s the economy, let alone the weather). Saj Ahmad from FleetBuzz Editorial . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 21: London Calling]]>
  

  Regent Street in the snow (by Jon Curnow)

  For the majority of our listeners it’s warm and getting warmer down here in the Southern Summer with Christmas just around the corner. Not so in London where it’s bleak and somewhat miserable (and that’s the economy, let alone the weather). Saj Ahmad from FleetBuzz Editorial is based in London and recently returned from the scorching skies of Dubai where he’d been attending the Dubai Airshow 2009. Saj generously took some time away from his family to record with us last Sunday (morning his time, evening our time), trying not to look out the window at the winter weather while we discussed the warmth Melbourne was experiencing. The discussion covers the Dubai Airshow, Middle East airlines and their flights to Australia, aircraft orders and the (then) pending first flight of the 787. It’s an enlightening chat and we’ll be sure to have Saj on again early in the new year.

  In addition to our chat with Saj, we also recorded some news items to round out the episode. We actually recorded these on the same day the 787 flew and, thanks to the miracle of modern technology, have spliced it all together into a single show. Neat, hey! :)

  Topics in this episode include:

  • The 787 finally flew – you can check out Boeing’s ‘first flight’ site for all the videos
  • Jet star’s check-in system goes down and then a few days later, so does Virgin Blue’s:
    • Check-in system problem delays Jetstar flights (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Airport chaos as system goes down (ABC News)
    • Stranded airline passengers booked into hotels (ABC News)
    • Expect major delays, Virgin tells passengers (ABC News)
    • Airline struggles to clear backlog of flights (ABC News)
  • Former doctor Geoffrey Edelsten crashes his helicopter on his first solo
    • Lucky escape as Edelsten’s chopper crashes (ABC News)
    • Geoffrey Edelsten in helicopter crash landing at Moorabbin Airport (Wayne Flower @ The Herald Sun)
  • Delta & V Australia tighten their alliance in steps towards the full Delta-V marriage
    • Virgin’s V Australia agrees key deal with Delta Air Lines (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • V Australia and Delta sign lounge and loyalty agreements (Australian Aviation)
  • Discussion with Saj Ahmad
  • Air New Zealand opens direct Sydney to Rotorua flights
    • Rotorua: International Air Service Begins (Scoop NZ)
    • Trouble on first Rotorua trans-Tasman flight (Stuff.co.nz)
  • The Garuda pilot who was convicted for negligence in the cause of a fatal crash ha his conviction quashed
    • Garuda pilot’s conviction quashed (Sydney Morning Herald)
    • Garuda crash pilot obsessed with flying again (ABC News)
    • Garuda pilot wins appeal against jail sentence
  • The Australian Federal Government releases their eagerly awaited aviation white paper
    • A National Aviation Policy Statement – the Aviation White Paper (download it from the federal government)
    • Albanese releases Aviation White Paper (Australian Aviation)
  • Sydney Flight Training Centre collapses leaving many students with debts (Pilot pupils left grounded after flight school collapse (Andrew Carswell @ the Daily Telegraph))
  • A DC-10 fire bomber arrives for the Victorian forest fire season
    • DC-10 firebomber arrives at Avalon (Australian Aviation)
    • Giant water bomber ready for fire season (ABC News)
  • First use of a SkyCrane fire bomber this season (Air crane used on Blue Mountains blaze (ABC News))
  • David Vanderhoof’s aviation history down under segment (at last – Grant forgot to include it in episode 19 – ooops)
  • Listener mail, including George from New Zealand with his super sexy Falco aircraft
  • There’s a chartered Air New Zealand 747 flying to Oshkosh 2010 (details with Avtours Australia) and we’re dreaming of being on it (it’s only AUS$4k each including accommodation – anyone want to help donate to get us there? :)

  As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/19/episode-21-london-calling/feed/ 0 1:38:57 Regent Street in the snow (by Jon Curnow) For the majority of our listeners it’s warm and getting warmer down here in the Southern Summer with Christmas just around the corner. Not so in London where it’s bleak and somewhat miserable (an[...] Regent Street in the snow (by Jon Curnow) For the majority of our listeners it’s warm and getting warmer down here in the Southern Summer with Christmas just around the corner. Not so in London where it’s bleak and somewhat miserable (and that’s the economy, let alone the weather). Saj Ahmad from FleetBuzz Editorial is based in London and recently returned from the scorching skies of Dubai where he’d been attending the Dubai Airshow 2009. Saj generously took some time away from his family to record with us last Sunday (morning his time, evening our time), trying not to look out the window at the winter weather while we discussed the warmth Melbourne was experiencing. The discussion covers the Dubai Airshow, Middle East airlines and their flights to Australia, aircraft orders and the (then) pending first flight of the 787. It’s an enlightening chat and we’ll be sure to have Saj on again early in the new year. In addition to our chat with Saj, we also recorded some news items to round out the episode. We actually recorded these on the same day the 787 flew and, thanks to the miracle of modern technology, have spliced it all together into a single show. Neat, hey! :) Topics in this episode include: The 787 finally flew – you can check out Boeing’s ‘first flight’ site for all the videos Jet star’s check-in system goes down and then a few days later, so does Virgin Blue’s: Check-in system problem delays Jetstar flights (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Airport chaos as system goes down (ABC News) Stranded airline passengers booked into hotels (ABC News) Expect major delays, Virgin tells passengers (ABC News) Airline struggles to clear backlog of flights (ABC News) Former doctor Geoffrey Edelsten crashes his helicopter on his first solo Lucky escape as Edelsten’s chopper crashes (ABC News) Geoffrey Edelsten in helicopter crash landing at Moorabbin Airport (Wayne Flower @ The Herald Sun) Delta & V Australia tighten their alliance in steps towards the full Delta-V marriage Virgin’s V Australia agrees key deal with Delta Air Lines (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) V Australia and Delta sign lounge and loyalty agreements (Australian Aviation) Discussion with Saj Ahmad Air New Zealand opens direct Sydney to Rotorua flights Rotorua: International Air Service Begins (Scoop NZ) Trouble on first Rotorua trans-Tasman flight (Stuff.co.nz) The Garuda pilot who was convicted for negligence in the cause of a fatal crash ha his conviction quashed Garuda pilot’s conviction quashed (Sydney Morning Herald) Garuda crash pilot obsessed with flying again (ABC News) Garuda pilot wins appeal against jail sentence The Australian Federal Government releases their eagerly awaited aviation white paper A National Aviation Policy Statement – the Aviation White Paper (download it from the federal government) Albanese releases Aviation White Paper (Australian Aviation) Sydney Flight Training Centre collapses leaving many students with debts (Pilot pupils left grounded after flight school collapse (Andrew Carswell @ the Daily Telegraph)) A DC-10 fire bomber arrives for the Victorian forest fire season DC-10 firebomber arrives at Avalon (Australian Aviation) Giant water bomber ready for fire season (ABC News) First use of a SkyCrane fire bomber this season (Air crane used on Blue Mountains blaze (ABC News)) David Vanderhoof’s aviation history down under segment (at last – Grant forgot to include it in episode 19 – ooops) Listener mail, including George from New Zealand with his super sexy Falco aircraft There’s a chartered Air New Zealand 747 flying to Oshkosh 2010 (details with Avtours Australia) and we’re dreaming of being on it (it’s only AUS$4k each including accommodation – anyone want to help donate to get us there? :) As usual, our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simps[...] Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/11/episode-20-a-tribute-to-pip-borman/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/11/episode-20-a-tribute-to-pip-borman/#comments Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:58:30 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=277

  (Image from JustLearn on Flickr)

  As part of the recent Show us ya Wheels event in Numurkah the PCDU team attended a memorial tribute dinner for Pip Borman, a famous Australian aerobatics pilot from Shepparton who died in a crash during a photo shoot flight. The presentations at the dinner included speaches from David . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 20: A Tribute to Pip Borman]]>
  

  (Image from JustLearn on Flickr)

  As part of the recent Show us ya Wheels event in Numurkah the PCDU team attended a memorial tribute dinner for Pip Borman, a famous Australian aerobatics pilot from Shepparton who died in a crash during a photo shoot flight. The presentations at the dinner included speaches from David Fertel at Castrol and Julian Frazier from QBE Insurance along with a keynote presentation from Matt Hall, Australia’s only Red Bull Air Race pilot.

  There is a video clip of Pip Borman flying the Pitts Samson on YouTube that is well worth watching. The Samson is a radial powered aerobatic biplane (truely a “muscle plane”) and the video gives you an idea of what it is capable of. It was shot at Shepparton airport (YSHT) only a week before Pip crashed in it.

  We were fortunate to be allowed to record the speaches and have been given permission to include them in the episode. It was a great night and we’re glad that we are able to bring you along for part of it.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/11/episode-20-a-tribute-to-pip-borman/feed/ 4 1:26:58 (Image from JustLearn on Flickr) As part of the recent Show us ya Wheels event in Numurkah the PCDU team attended a memorial tribute dinner for Pip Borman, a famous Australian aerobatics pilot from Shepparton who died in a crash during a photo shoo[...] (Image from JustLearn on Flickr) As part of the recent Show us ya Wheels event in Numurkah the PCDU team attended a memorial tribute dinner for Pip Borman, a famous Australian aerobatics pilot from Shepparton who died in a crash during a photo shoot flight. The presentations at the dinner included speaches from David Fertel at Castrol and Julian Frazier from QBE Insurance along with a keynote presentation from Matt Hall, Australia’s only Red Bull Air Race pilot. There is a video clip of Pip Borman flying the Pitts Samson on YouTube that is well worth watching. The Samson is a radial powered aerobatic biplane (truely a “muscle plane”) and the video gives you an idea of what it is capable of. It was shot at Shepparton airport (YSHT) only a week before Pip crashed in it. We were fortunate to be allowed to record the speaches and have been given permission to include them in the episode. It was a great night and we’re glad that we are able to bring you along for part of it. Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/05/episode-19-interview-with-a-vampire-pilot-other-stories/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/05/episode-19-interview-with-a-vampire-pilot-other-stories/#comments Sat, 05 Dec 2009 02:27:37 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=264 Steve’s out sick (he must have eaten the fish :) so Grant’s flying solo on this one and cheating madly by assembling a few interviews and a slightly modified version of the Australia Desk segment we recorded for the Airplane Geeks’ Thanksgiving episode. The interviews include:
  Matt Hall & Nigel Lamb Carlo Santoro from Flight . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 19: Interview with a Vampire … Pilot (& Other Stories)]]> Steve’s out sick (he must have eaten the fish :) so Grant’s flying solo on this one and cheating madly by assembling a few interviews and a slightly modified version of the Australia Desk segment we recorded for the Airplane Geeks’ Thanksgiving episode. The interviews include:
  • Matt Hall & Nigel Lamb
  • Carlo Santoro from Flight Experience Melbourne
  • Nick Brau on flying hot air balloons over Melbourne city

  The news items we covered include:

  • British Airways again discussing a merger with QANTAS
  • The US FAA wil be conducting an Air Safety examination of Australia’s air operations
  • 30th Anniversary of Air New Zealand’s DC10 crashing on the side of Mt Erebus in Antarctica
  • Virgin Blue likely to have a profit in FY09/10
  • QANTAS to purchase additional aircraft and will be assigning more of their 787s to Jetstar
  • QANTAS introduces the airport of the future concept
  • Airport capacity in Sydney and the need for a second airport
  • Australian Transport Safety Bureau provides interim reports on the QANTAS A330 ADIRU issues and QANTAS 747 oxygen bottle incidents
  • RAAF to purchase 14 F35 fighters even though Lockheed has admitted the project is running late
  • The first two Wedgetail AEW aircraft have been delivered
  • Last flight of the Caribou in Australia & it’s potential replacement

  We hope you enjoy the show and we will return to our usual levels of interviews, discussions & opinionated news reviews in a week or so.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/12/05/episode-19-interview-with-a-vampire-pilot-other-stories/feed/ 0 0:58:22 Steve’s out sick (he must have eaten the fish :) so Grant’s flying solo on this one and cheating madly by assembling a few interviews and a slightly modified version of the Australia Desk segment we recorded for the Airplane Geeks’[...] Steve’s out sick (he must have eaten the fish :) so Grant’s flying solo on this one and cheating madly by assembling a few interviews and a slightly modified version of the Australia Desk segment we recorded for the Airplane Geeks’ Thanksgiving episode. The interviews include: Matt Hall & Nigel Lamb Carlo Santoro from Flight Experience Melbourne Nick Brau on flying hot air balloons over Melbourne city The news items we covered include: British Airways again discussing a merger with QANTAS The US FAA wil be conducting an Air Safety examination of Australia’s air operations 30th Anniversary of Air New Zealand’s DC10 crashing on the side of Mt Erebus in Antarctica Virgin Blue likely to have a profit in FY09/10 QANTAS to purchase additional aircraft and will be assigning more of their 787s to Jetstar QANTAS introduces the airport of the future concept Airport capacity in Sydney and the need for a second airport Australian Transport Safety Bureau provides interim reports on the QANTAS A330 ADIRU issues and QANTAS 747 oxygen bottle incidents RAAF to purchase 14 F35 fighters even though Lockheed has admitted the project is running late The first two Wedgetail AEW aircraft have been delivered Last flight of the Caribou in Australia & it’s potential replacement We hope you enjoy the show and we will return to our usual levels of interviews, discussions & opinionated news reviews in a week or so. Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/26/episode-18-tally-ho-its-the-red-baron/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/26/episode-18-tally-ho-its-the-red-baron/#comments Thu, 26 Nov 2009 08:16:23 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=240

  The Red Baron's Pitts Special

  If you’ve ever looked skyward in Sydney, there’s a high chance you’ve seen a bright red aircraft with old-style German crosses on the wings. Originally flying an old Tiger Moth, the Red Baron flew out of Bankstown and gave joy flights to members of the public, flying over Sydney’s beaches . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 18: Tally Ho, it’s the Red Baron!]]>
  

  The Red Baron's Pitts Special

  If you’ve ever looked skyward in Sydney, there’s a high chance you’ve seen a bright red aircraft with old-style German crosses on the wings. Originally flying an old Tiger Moth, the Red Baron flew out of Bankstown and gave joy flights to members of the public, flying over Sydney’s beaches and occasionally doing aerobatics.

  Roll forward to today and Red Baron scenic & aerobatic flights is now owned by Joel Haski (RedBaronSydney on Twitter) with a number of aircraft, including Pitts Specials, Robins/Alphas, an Extra and a new Airvan. Some are painted in Red Baron colours while others fly under the Red Bull logos.

  

  We were fortunate enough to get some of Joel’s time for a chat about his flying history, running the Red Baron operation, being involved with Red Bull and the recent New South Wales Aerobatic competition.

  
  

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/26/episode-18-tally-ho-its-the-red-baron/feed/ 7 1:08:50 The Red Baron's Pitts SpecialIf you’ve ever looked skyward in Sydney, there’s a high chance you’ve seen a bright red aircraft with old-style German crosses on the wings. Originally flying an old Tiger Moth, the Red Baron flew o[...] The Red Baron's Pitts SpecialIf you’ve ever looked skyward in Sydney, there’s a high chance you’ve seen a bright red aircraft with old-style German crosses on the wings. Originally flying an old Tiger Moth, the Red Baron flew out of Bankstown and gave joy flights to members of the public, flying over Sydney’s beaches and occasionally doing aerobatics. Roll forward to today and Red Baron scenic & aerobatic flights is now owned by Joel Haski (RedBaronSydney on Twitter) with a number of aircraft, including Pitts Specials, Robins/Alphas, an Extra and a new Airvan. Some are painted in Red Baron colours while others fly under the Red Bull logos. We were fortunate enough to get some of Joel’s time for a chat about his flying history, running the Red Baron operation, being involved with Red Bull and the recent New South Wales Aerobatic competition. Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/20/episode-17-the-ipanator-says-rivet-shower-not-on-my-watch/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/20/episode-17-the-ipanator-says-rivet-shower-not-on-my-watch/#comments Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:46:24 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=237 How many of you folks have wanted to be Air Traffic Controllers? Do you dream of Pushing Tin around the skies? Think you can keep The Flick in your head? Want to tell pilots in aircraft of all sizes where to go? (ahem! :) Steve & Grant both applied for ATC and were both knocked . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 17: The Ipanator says “Rivet Shower? Not on *my* Watch!”]]> How many of you folks have wanted to be Air Traffic Controllers? Do you dream of Pushing Tin around the skies? Think you can keep The Flick in your head? Want to tell pilots in aircraft of all sizes where to go? (ahem! :) Steve & Grant both applied for ATC and were both knocked back for a number of reasons. Fortunately, we know a couple of guys who weren’t.

  Join us as we chat with Ben Ippolito (the Ipanator) and Jeremy Peck, discussing being selected for ATC, the long hard slog of learning & practicing in the simulator and the terrors (ummm, joys) of taking their first few steps in the real world outside of the academy.

  We also discuss GAAP changes, oceanic control, airspace classes, working with the RAAF and much more.

  You can find out more about becoming an Air Traffic Controller on the Air Services ATC page. Recruitment for the 2010 class closes by January 3rd.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/20/episode-17-the-ipanator-says-rivet-shower-not-on-my-watch/feed/ 16 1:27:55 How many of you folks have wanted to be Air Traffic Controllers? Do you dream of Pushing Tin around the skies? Think you can keep The Flick in your head? Want to tell pilots in aircraft of all sizes where to go? (ahem! :) Steve & Grant both app[...] How many of you folks have wanted to be Air Traffic Controllers? Do you dream of Pushing Tin around the skies? Think you can keep The Flick in your head? Want to tell pilots in aircraft of all sizes where to go? (ahem! :) Steve & Grant both applied for ATC and were both knocked back for a number of reasons. Fortunately, we know a couple of guys who weren’t. Join us as we chat with Ben Ippolito (the Ipanator) and Jeremy Peck, discussing being selected for ATC, the long hard slog of learning & practicing in the simulator and the terrors (ummm, joys) of taking their first few steps in the real world outside of the academy. We also discuss GAAP changes, oceanic control, airspace classes, working with the RAAF and much more. You can find out more about becoming an Air Traffic Controller on the Air Services ATC page. Recruitment for the 2010 class closes by January 3rd. Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/15/episode-16-rant-on-steve-rant-on/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/15/episode-16-rant-on-steve-rant-on/#comments Sat, 14 Nov 2009 23:08:59 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=227 Steve & Grant discuss all the latest news items that were of interest over the past couple of weeks. Steve also gets to have a few “c’est la vent” moments on some topics that were annoying him.

  As if all that wasn’t enough, we also have a chat with Owen Zupp and reveal the winner . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 16: Rant on Steve, Rant on]]> Steve & Grant discuss all the latest news items that were of interest over the past couple of weeks. Steve also gets to have a few “c’est la vent” moments on some topics that were annoying him.

  As if all that wasn’t enough, we also have a chat with Owen Zupp and reveal the winner of our first ever give away competition. Sorry, you’ll have to listen to the episode to discover who were the close runners up and who was the winner :)

  So, sit back, relax and enjoy episode 16, in which we discuss:

  • Jetstar engine fire forces evacuation at Newcastle airport (ABC News)
  • Victoria launches bid for Red Bull Air Race (Australian Aviation)
  • We both express displeasure that the Red Bull Air Race was not available online via web-streaming for Australians despite Channel 10 not showing it live
  • V Australia to get 777-200LRs?
  • We discuss Air New Zealand replacing its 737-300′s with A320′s
    • Air NZ opts for Airbus (Australian Aviation)
    • Air New Zealand to replace Boeing fleet with Airbus A320 (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Airbus knocks 50 per cent off New Zealand deal (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Air New Zealand’s Chris Nassenstein Tapped For Qantas Post (Aero-News Net)
  • We discuss the political turn-around associated Victoria trialling heavy jet fire bombers
    • Victoria to trial fire-fighting jet (The Age)
    • Victoria commissions fire fighting jet (SBS)
    • Giant water bomber to soak Victorian bushfires (ABC news)
    • Water bomber could have saved lives (ABC News)
    • Victoria looks to bigger fire bombers (Australian Aviation)
  • It seems that it’s not just in the USA that airline pilots make silly mistakes
    • Qantas pilots forgot to lower landing gear (ABC News)
    • Qantas pilots forgot to lower wheels (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Pilots stood down over landing gear incident (Australian Aviation)
  • We chat with Owen Zupp about our recent competition, the runners up and the big winner
  • David Vanderhoof provides a look at “this week in aviation”
  • Qantas will not be ‘Jetstarised’: Joyce (The Age)
  • We discuss the expansion of Tiger Airways as they open new routes
    • Tiger spreads wings to five biggest cities (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Tiger’s eyes on Avalon (Herald Sun)
    • Tiger ups Melbourne & Sydney services, stalking Avalon? (Australian Aviation)
    • Tiger to fly Melbourne-Brisbane (Australian Aviation)
    • Tiger launches Adelaide-Brisbane (Australian Aviation)
  • Steve has a major “What Cheese Me Off!” session about the advertising for Melbourne Airport (you can see the adverts as a banner on the Melbourne Airport website
  • We discuss JAL’s new premium economy class seating on the Sydney to Narita route (thanks to Dan Web for the lead)
  • Final F-111 exits deep maintenance (Australia Aviation)
  • Boeing completes Wedgetail counter-measures testing (Australian Aviation) (plus a ‘heads up’ by David Vanderhoof)
  • We review some listener mail

  As usual, our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5).

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/15/episode-16-rant-on-steve-rant-on/feed/ 16 1:29:50 Steve & Grant discuss all the latest news items that were of interest over the past couple of weeks. Steve also gets to have a few “c’est la vent” moments on some topics that were annoying him. As if all that wasn’t enou[...] Steve & Grant discuss all the latest news items that were of interest over the past couple of weeks. Steve also gets to have a few “c’est la vent” moments on some topics that were annoying him. As if all that wasn’t enough, we also have a chat with Owen Zupp and reveal the winner of our first ever give away competition. Sorry, you’ll have to listen to the episode to discover who were the close runners up and who was the winner :) So, sit back, relax and enjoy episode 16, in which we discuss: Jetstar engine fire forces evacuation at Newcastle airport (ABC News) Victoria launches bid for Red Bull Air Race (Australian Aviation) We both express displeasure that the Red Bull Air Race was not available online via web-streaming for Australians despite Channel 10 not showing it live V Australia to get 777-200LRs? We discuss Air New Zealand replacing its 737-300′s with A320′s Air NZ opts for Airbus (Australian Aviation) Air New Zealand to replace Boeing fleet with Airbus A320 (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Airbus knocks 50 per cent off New Zealand deal (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Air New Zealand’s Chris Nassenstein Tapped For Qantas Post (Aero-News Net) We discuss the political turn-around associated Victoria trialling heavy jet fire bombers Victoria to trial fire-fighting jet (The Age) Victoria commissions fire fighting jet (SBS) Giant water bomber to soak Victorian bushfires (ABC news) Water bomber could have saved lives (ABC News) Victoria looks to bigger fire bombers (Australian Aviation) It seems that it’s not just in the USA that airline pilots make silly mistakes Qantas pilots forgot to lower landing gear (ABC News) Qantas pilots forgot to lower wheels (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Pilots stood down over landing gear incident (Australian Aviation) We chat with Owen Zupp about our recent competition, the runners up and the big winner David Vanderhoof provides a look at “this week in aviation” Qantas will not be ‘Jetstarised’: Joyce (The Age) We discuss the expansion of Tiger Airways as they open new routes Tiger spreads wings to five biggest cities (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Tiger’s eyes on Avalon (Herald Sun) Tiger ups Melbourne & Sydney services, stalking Avalon? (Australian Aviation) Tiger to fly Melbourne-Brisbane (Australian Aviation) Tiger launches Adelaide-Brisbane (Australian Aviation) Steve has a major “What Cheese Me Off!” session about the advertising for Melbourne Airport (you can see the adverts as a banner on the Melbourne Airport website We discuss JAL’s new premium economy class seating on the Sydney to Narita route (thanks to Dan Web for the lead) Final F-111 exits deep maintenance (Australia Aviation) Boeing completes Wedgetail counter-measures testing (Australian Aviation) (plus a ‘heads up’ by David Vanderhoof) We review some listener mail As usual, our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5). Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/11/running-late-but-not-gone/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/11/running-late-but-not-gone/#comments Tue, 10 Nov 2009 13:27:02 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=222 This is a quick update for everyone who reads the blog & doesn’t just grab episodes via their podcatcher software (Hi gang! Great to have you here :)

  We’re working on a couple of episodes at the moment, one of which we’re recording later tonight and should have out in a few days depending . . . → Read More: Running late, but not gone]]> This is a quick update for everyone who reads the blog & doesn’t just grab episodes via their podcatcher software (Hi gang! Great to have you here :)

  We’re working on a couple of episodes at the moment, one of which we’re recording later tonight and should have out in a few days depending on:
  a: How well the recording flows – we try to get rid of the “hang on, what was I going to say?” moments for you
  and
  b: How much time Steve gets to do the post production work

  You see, Steve works wonders in post production to tidy things up, blend them together and make it all sound coherent and cool (let’s face it, anyone who can make me sound good has to have talent :) As any podcast producer can tell you, the post-production work can easily take 2 to 3 times as long to complete as the episode took to plan & record. Well, it does if they’re trying to make it sound professional.

  We’ve also got a great discussion we recorded recently that’s almost ready to release and it will come out shortly after the next episode (yes, it’s the dreaded Episode 17!). To give you a hint, it talks about showers & learning. Can you guess it?

  Doing this podcast around the demands of our day jobs does slow us down and make it tricky to get time for planning, recording and producing. We’ve also had the recent distractions of flying around the place in a DC3 and my aerobatics session in a Yak-52. Don’t worry, we’ll be releasing the recorded sounds & discussions from these events shortly. Of course, that’s what I’ve been saying about my work on the Dawn Patrol recordings too – sorry, my bad :(

  The upshot of all this is that we’re working to get the next few episodes out and have plans for many more. We certainly they’ll be worth the wait :)

  Cheers,

  Grant

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/11/running-late-but-not-gone/feed/ 8 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/01/episode-15-and-now-for-something-completely-different-here-is-the-news/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/01/episode-15-and-now-for-something-completely-different-here-is-the-news/#comments Sun, 01 Nov 2009 04:37:51 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=192 We’re back to being our opiniated selves with a backlog of news stories to work through and discuss. Once again Bas Scheffers joins us for some of the news and to discuss a number of RA-Aus items. From Beavers to Tigers and even Kiwi Skyhawks doing battle with bureaucracy, we cover a diverse range of . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 15: And now for something completely different, here is the news]]> We’re back to being our opiniated selves with a backlog of news stories to work through and discuss. Once again Bas Scheffers joins us for some of the news and to discuss a number of RA-Aus items. From Beavers to Tigers and even Kiwi Skyhawks doing battle with bureaucracy, we cover a diverse range of topics including:
  • QANTAS shareholders fail to block Dixon’s $3m payment
    • Shareholders blast Qantas over Dixon payout (ABC News)
    • Qantas shareholders slam Dixon payout (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Jetstar tight-lipped on Facebook ‘sacking’ (ABC News)
  • RedBull AirRace returns to Perth in 2010 (see Tourism West Australia’s release)
  • Rocket Lab Primed To Launch New Zealand’s First Rocket Into Space (Voxy.co.nz)
  • Crash fears after 10 near misses a year in NSW (Sydney Morning Herald
  • Qantas unveils Socceroos 747 (Australian Aviation)
  • Jetstar plane evacuated after engine fire (ABC News)
  • Virgin Blue 737′s nose wheel ‘disintegrates’ on landing
    • Plane wheel ‘disintegrates’ on landing (ABC news)
    • Virgin Blue hits back at ALAEA after wheel issue
    • Virgin Blue denies plane wheel disintegrated
  • Police guard staff after Tiger passengers left stranded (Mex Cooper @ Sydney Morning Herald)
  • Qantas passengers stranded for 26 hours(Kate Schneider @ News.com.au)
  • Next QANTAS A380s delayed due to technical issues
    • Technical issues force delay to Qantas’s next two A380s (Australian Aviation)
    • Qantas talks straight on Airbus problem (ABC News)
  • Qantas A380 project takes out award (Australian Aviation)
  • Russian jets ‘refused’ on Black Saturday (Melissa Jenkins @ NineMSN)
  • General Aviation & RA-Aus round-up
    • Australia’s centenary of powered flight to be celebrated at Diggers Rest between March 18th & 21st, 2010 (see Victorian government’s release
    • RFDS enters jet age (Australian Aviation)
    • The Last Super Beaver (Australian Aviation)
    • Mayor calls for Jandakot curfew
    • Bas reports on his experiences at the Jamestown airshow
    • Discussion on changes coming up in RA-Aus (25nm over water, 600kg for non-ISA but no increase of weight to 760kg)
    • Bas talks about the AeroScene flying group
  • RNZAF A4 Skyhawks battle bureaucracy to get sold
  • Update on RAAF Airbus KC-30 MRTT
    • Third tanker enters conversion facility (Australian Aviation)
    • Second RAAF tanker flies (Australian Aviation)
  • $1bn industry package & early availability for a RAN Romeo buy

  As usual, our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5).

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/11/01/episode-15-and-now-for-something-completely-different-here-is-the-news/feed/ 15 1:33:07 We’re back to being our opiniated selves with a backlog of news stories to work through and discuss. Once again Bas Scheffers joins us for some of the news and to discuss a number of RA-Aus items. From Beavers to Tigers and even Kiwi Skyhawks [...] We’re back to being our opiniated selves with a backlog of news stories to work through and discuss. Once again Bas Scheffers joins us for some of the news and to discuss a number of RA-Aus items. From Beavers to Tigers and even Kiwi Skyhawks doing battle with bureaucracy, we cover a diverse range of topics including: QANTAS shareholders fail to block Dixon’s $3m payment Shareholders blast Qantas over Dixon payout (ABC News) Qantas shareholders slam Dixon payout (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Jetstar tight-lipped on Facebook ‘sacking’ (ABC News) RedBull AirRace returns to Perth in 2010 (see Tourism West Australia’s release) Rocket Lab Primed To Launch New Zealand’s First Rocket Into Space (Voxy.co.nz) Crash fears after 10 near misses a year in NSW (Sydney Morning Herald Qantas unveils Socceroos 747 (Australian Aviation) Jetstar plane evacuated after engine fire (ABC News) Virgin Blue 737′s nose wheel ‘disintegrates’ on landing Plane wheel ‘disintegrates’ on landing (ABC news) Virgin Blue hits back at ALAEA after wheel issue Virgin Blue denies plane wheel disintegrated Police guard staff after Tiger passengers left stranded (Mex Cooper @ Sydney Morning Herald) Qantas passengers stranded for 26 hours(Kate Schneider @ News.com.au) Next QANTAS A380s delayed due to technical issues Technical issues force delay to Qantas’s next two A380s (Australian Aviation) Qantas talks straight on Airbus problem (ABC News) Qantas A380 project takes out award (Australian Aviation) Russian jets ‘refused’ on Black Saturday (Melissa Jenkins @ NineMSN) General Aviation & RA-Aus round-up Australia’s centenary of powered flight to be celebrated at Diggers Rest between March 18th & 21st, 2010 (see Victorian government’s release RFDS enters jet age (Australian Aviation) The Last Super Beaver (Australian Aviation) Mayor calls for Jandakot curfew Bas reports on his experiences at the Jamestown airshow Discussion on changes coming up in RA-Aus (25nm over water, 600kg for non-ISA but no increase of weight to 760kg) Bas talks about the AeroScene flying group RNZAF A4 Skyhawks battle bureaucracy to get sold Update on RAAF Airbus KC-30 MRTT Third tanker enters conversion facility (Australian Aviation) Second RAAF tanker flies (Australian Aviation) $1bn industry package & early availability for a RAN Romeo buy As usual, our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5). Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/29/episode-14-langs-great-journeys/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/29/episode-14-langs-great-journeys/#comments Thu, 29 Oct 2009 11:52:28 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=190 We were fortunate to attend a lecture recently presented by Lang Kidby at the Australian National Aviation Museum (Moorabbin Air Museum). Lang has flown a Vickers Vimy replica aircraft from England to Australia to re-enact the 1919 flight by Keith & Ross Macpherson Smith. He has also flown an Avro Avian from England to Australia . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 14: Lang’s Great Journeys]]> We were fortunate to attend a lecture recently presented by Lang Kidby at the Australian National Aviation Museum (Moorabbin Air Museum). Lang has flown a Vickers Vimy replica aircraft from England to Australia to re-enact the 1919 flight by Keith & Ross Macpherson Smith. He has also flown an Avro Avian from England to Australia to re-enact Bert Hinkler’s completion of the first solo flight from England to Australia in 1928.

  In this recording, Lang discusses his experiences from building the Vimy replica & transporting it to the UK through to the actual flight itself. This is an amazing presentation that we could have happily listened to for longer had time permitted.

  We are most greatful to Lang for permitting us to publish his lecture and to Mark Pilkington at the Moorabbin Air Museum for allowing us to join in the fun.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/29/episode-14-langs-great-journeys/feed/ 0 1:04:00 We were fortunate to attend a lecture recently presented by Lang Kidby at the Australian National Aviation Museum (Moorabbin Air Museum). Lang has flown a Vickers Vimy replica aircraft from England to Australia to re-enact the 1919 flight by Keith [...] We were fortunate to attend a lecture recently presented by Lang Kidby at the Australian National Aviation Museum (Moorabbin Air Museum). Lang has flown a Vickers Vimy replica aircraft from England to Australia to re-enact the 1919 flight by Keith & Ross Macpherson Smith. He has also flown an Avro Avian from England to Australia to re-enact Bert Hinkler’s completion of the first solo flight from England to Australia in 1928. In this recording, Lang discusses his experiences from building the Vimy replica & transporting it to the UK through to the actual flight itself. This is an amazing presentation that we could have happily listened to for longer had time permitted. We are most greatful to Lang for permitting us to publish his lecture and to Mark Pilkington at the Moorabbin Air Museum for allowing us to join in the fun. Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/29/win-a-copy-of-owen-zupps-book/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/29/win-a-copy-of-owen-zupps-book/#comments Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:45:27 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=188 As mentioned during our interview with Owen Zupp in episode 13, we’re doing our first ever give-away.

  Owen has graciously donated a signed copy of his book, Down to Earth, for one of our lucky listeners to win. All you have to do is go to the There and Back website and see where Owen’s . . . → Read More: Win a copy of Owen Zupp’s Book]]> As mentioned during our interview with Owen Zupp in episode 13, we’re doing our first ever give-away.

  Owen has graciously donated a signed copy of his book, Down to Earth, for one of our lucky listeners to win. All you have to do is go to the There and Back website and see where Owen’s journey is taking him (check out The Route for details). Then, suggest a location you think Owen should go to during his journey and say why he should go there.

  Send your recommendation to us at PlaneCrazyDownUnder@gmail.com” and we’ll review them with Owen. He will then select a winner and we’ll contact them to send them the book.

  Easy, isn’t it? So, what are you waiting for? It doesn’t matter where you live, come up with a suggestion and send it to us.

  Please note that Owen’s decision is final and that all submissions become the property of Owen to use as he sees fit.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/29/win-a-copy-of-owen-zupps-book/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/20/episode-13-the-only-way-is-zupp/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/20/episode-13-the-only-way-is-zupp/#comments Tue, 20 Oct 2009 11:15:07 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=180 Of all the times for the technical gremlins to strike, it had to be for our “Lucky” 13th episode. We recorded a great discussion with Owen Zupp and, despite a fault in the call recorder that made us repeat a part, we thought we had it in the bag. We even feature our first ever . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 13: The Only Way is Zupp]]> Of all the times for the technical gremlins to strike, it had to be for our “Lucky” 13th episode. We recorded a great discussion with Owen Zupp and, despite a fault in the call recorder that made us repeat a part, we thought we had it in the bag. We even feature our first ever give away in this episode and it’s a beauty (see the notes below for details).

  However, it seems that it’s not just the Apollo missions that have problems at 13 as, sadly, the sound quality in this episode is not at all up to our usual levels of quality. Poor Steve has been tearing what’s left of his hair out but has managed to work his magic once again and produce an episode that preserves most important part of all, our guest’s great content.

  We start off discussing Owen’s early work with the Ambulance Service of New South Wales and how that provided a foundation for dealing with flying’s more “interesting” moments. Moving into flying, Owen talks about learning to fly with his father, an ex-RAAF instructor, then moving on to instructing others with the Royal Aero Club of NSW (sadly no longer in existence) and eventually shifting to his times flying with Ansett Airlines.

  During this discussion we review the pros & cons of the Multi-crew Pilot License (MPL) and various aircraft, including the Skycraft Scout. Owen also discusses Bert Hinkler, the town of Bundaberg, Hinkler House and the Hinkler Hall of Aviation.

  With the collapse of Ansett, Owen moved into flight instruction and also started writing articles. A regular contributor to Australian Aviation (our favourite flying magazine, thank you :) and other publications, Owen has also written a book called “Down to Earth,” the story of Squadron Leader McGlashan, a pilot during WWII.

  There And Back, a charity flight for the Royal Flying Doctor Service.

  Next year (2010) will mark the 100th anniversary of powered flight in Australia so Owen is flying a light aircraft around Australia, visiting various historic landmarks and promoting aviation in Australia as well as raising funds for the RFDS. His sponsors include:

  • Jabiru aircraft
  • Spidertracks tracking & monitoring systems
  • Champagne PC Services flight planning software
  • Australian Aviation magazine
  • Global Aviator magazine

  Our First Ever Give Away

  Owen has graciously donated a signed copy of his book, Down to Earth, for one of our lucky listeners to win. All you have to do is go to the There and Back website and see where Owen’s journey is taking him (check out The Route for details). Then, suggest a location you think Owen should go to during his journey and say why he should go there.

  Send your recommendation to us at PlaneCrazyDownUnder@gmail.com” and we’ll review them with Owen. He will then select a winner and we’ll contact them to send them the book.

  Easy, isn’t it? So, what are you waiting for? It doesn’t matter where you live, come up with a suggestion and send it to us.

  Please note that Owen’s decision is final and that all submissions become the property of Owen to use as he sees fit.

  ---

  As usual, our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5).

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/20/episode-13-the-only-way-is-zupp/feed/ 3 1:27:34 Of all the times for the technical gremlins to strike, it had to be for our “Lucky” 13th episode. We recorded a great discussion with Owen Zupp and, despite a fault in the call recorder that made us repeat a part, we thought we had it in[...] Of all the times for the technical gremlins to strike, it had to be for our “Lucky” 13th episode. We recorded a great discussion with Owen Zupp and, despite a fault in the call recorder that made us repeat a part, we thought we had it in the bag. We even feature our first ever give away in this episode and it’s a beauty (see the notes below for details). However, it seems that it’s not just the Apollo missions that have problems at 13 as, sadly, the sound quality in this episode is not at all up to our usual levels of quality. Poor Steve has been tearing what’s left of his hair out but has managed to work his magic once again and produce an episode that preserves most important part of all, our guest’s great content. We start off discussing Owen’s early work with the Ambulance Service of New South Wales and how that provided a foundation for dealing with flying’s more “interesting” moments. Moving into flying, Owen talks about learning to fly with his father, an ex-RAAF instructor, then moving on to instructing others with the Royal Aero Club of NSW (sadly no longer in existence) and eventually shifting to his times flying with Ansett Airlines. During this discussion we review the pros & cons of the Multi-crew Pilot License (MPL) and various aircraft, including the Skycraft Scout. Owen also discusses Bert Hinkler, the town of Bundaberg, Hinkler House and the Hinkler Hall of Aviation. With the collapse of Ansett, Owen moved into flight instruction and also started writing articles. A regular contributor to Australian Aviation (our favourite flying magazine, thank you :) and other publications, Owen has also written a book called “Down to Earth,” the story of Squadron Leader McGlashan, a pilot during WWII. There And Back, a charity flight for the Royal Flying Doctor Service. Next year (2010) will mark the 100th anniversary of powered flight in Australia so Owen is flying a light aircraft around Australia, visiting various historic landmarks and promoting aviation in Australia as well as raising funds for the RFDS. His sponsors include: Jabiru aircraft Spidertracks tracking & monitoring systems Champagne PC Services flight planning software Australian Aviation magazine Global Aviator magazine Our First Ever Give Away Owen has graciously donated a signed copy of his book, Down to Earth, for one of our lucky listeners to win. All you have to do is go to the There and Back website and see where Owen’s journey is taking him (check out The Route for details). Then, suggest a location you think Owen should go to during his journey and say why he should go there. Send your recommendation to us at PlaneCrazyDownUnder@gmail.com” and we’ll review them with Owen. He will then select a winner and we’ll contact them to send them the book. Easy, isn’t it? So, what are you waiting for? It doesn’t matter where you live, come up with a suggestion and send it to us. Please note that Owen’s decision is final and that all submissions become the property of Owen to use as he sees fit. As usual, our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5). Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/12/episode-12-its-not-that-late-in-adelaide/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/12/episode-12-its-not-that-late-in-adelaide/#comments Mon, 12 Oct 2009 11:39:02 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=169 Despite his better judgement, Bas Scheffers comes back to hang out with us once again as we discuss some of the news items from the past week or so. Topics of discussion in this episode include:
  Jetstar flight attendant gets in trouble with Facebook:
  Jetstar attendant contacted 15yo passenger on Facebook (ABC News) Jetstar worker . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 12: It’s not that late in Adelaide…]]> Despite his better judgement, Bas Scheffers comes back to hang out with us once again as we discuss some of the news items from the past week or so. Topics of discussion in this episode include:
  • Jetstar flight attendant gets in trouble with Facebook:
    • Jetstar attendant contacted 15yo passenger on Facebook (ABC News)
    • Jetstar worker in strife over Facebook incident (ABC News)
  • Mile-high matchmaking: social networking service (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Jetstar eyes growth in Asia, India (David McIntyre @ Brisbane Times)
  • Mid-air dramas trigger action: Qantas (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Qantas criticised over foreign butter (ABC News)
  • Air New Zealand says demand recovering, no capacity cuts (Reuters)
  • Investigations into fatal plane crashes begin (ABC News)
  • Regional Express (REX) flying into Northern Queensland again:
    • New airline arrives in town (Bianca Clare @ the Daily Mercury)
    • New routes launched during the last week (Saturday 26 September – Friday 2 October) (from Airline Network News & Analysis – scroll down to the end of the article)
    • Landing scare at Wagga airport (ABC News)
  • Smelly, fat, seat-kickers worst plane passengers (ABC News)
  • Boeing Receives Australian Industry Award For F-111 Support (Aero-News.net)
  • Defence told to clean up creek contamination (ABC News)
  • New delay for RAAF KC-30s (Australian Aviation)
  • More news of air traffic system improvements
    • Qantas calls for air traffic overhaul (ABC News)
    • Qantas has called for ‘smarter skies’ (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • 
      Airlines to save millions as defence flight paths open (Sydney Morning Herald)
  • Virgin Blue and The Black Eyed Peas join music’s Mile High Club (Access All Areas)

  Please note that our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5).

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/12/episode-12-its-not-that-late-in-adelaide/feed/ 4 1:08:10 Despite his better judgement, Bas Scheffers comes back to hang out with us once again as we discuss some of the news items from the past week or so. Topics of discussion in this episode include: Jetstar flight attendant gets in trouble with Faceboo[...] Despite his better judgement, Bas Scheffers comes back to hang out with us once again as we discuss some of the news items from the past week or so. Topics of discussion in this episode include: Jetstar flight attendant gets in trouble with Facebook: Jetstar attendant contacted 15yo passenger on Facebook (ABC News) Jetstar worker in strife over Facebook incident (ABC News) Mile-high matchmaking: social networking service (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Jetstar eyes growth in Asia, India (David McIntyre @ Brisbane Times) Mid-air dramas trigger action: Qantas (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Qantas criticised over foreign butter (ABC News) Air New Zealand says demand recovering, no capacity cuts (Reuters) Investigations into fatal plane crashes begin (ABC News) Regional Express (REX) flying into Northern Queensland again: New airline arrives in town (Bianca Clare @ the Daily Mercury) New routes launched during the last week (Saturday 26 September – Friday 2 October) (from Airline Network News & Analysis – scroll down to the end of the article) Landing scare at Wagga airport (ABC News) Smelly, fat, seat-kickers worst plane passengers (ABC News) Boeing Receives Australian Industry Award For F-111 Support (Aero-News.net) Defence told to clean up creek contamination (ABC News) New delay for RAAF KC-30s (Australian Aviation) More news of air traffic system improvements Qantas calls for air traffic overhaul (ABC News) Qantas has called for ‘smarter skies’ (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Airlines to save millions as defence flight paths open (Sydney Morning Herald) Virgin Blue and The Black Eyed Peas join music’s Mile High Club (Access All Areas) Please note that our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5). Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/03/episode-11-recreationally-yours/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/03/episode-11-recreationally-yours/#comments Sat, 03 Oct 2009 13:15:18 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=162 This episode we’re joined by Bas Scheffers, a Recreational Aviation Australia pilot (our version of the US Sport Pilot rules) who flies out of Parafield airport (YPPF) in Adelaide, South Australia. We have a great chat about flying RA-Aus aircraft, GAAP issues, the benefits of learning to fly under RA-Aus instead of the usual GA, . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 11: Recreationally Yours]]> This episode we’re joined by Bas Scheffers, a Recreational Aviation Australia pilot (our version of the US Sport Pilot rules) who flies out of Parafield airport (YPPF) in Adelaide, South Australia. We have a great chat about flying RA-Aus aircraft, GAAP issues, the benefits of learning to fly under RA-Aus instead of the usual GA, the information available from the recreational flying community and even discuss the new AAAF Forum (Forum for free speech on industry: AAAF – Steve Creedy @ The Australian).

  After our great chat with Bas, we move on to our usual opinionated regional news review which includes the following items:

  • David Vanderhoof provides a “This week in Australian aviation history” segment for us
  • In Dust we Trust
    • Flight delays remain as dust settles in Sydney (ABC News)
    • Sydney flights get back to normal after dust storm (ABC News)
    • Flight chaos as dust storm hits Sydney, Brisbane (Kate Schneider @ news.com.au)
    • Havoc for airlines, passengers (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Tiger Airlines strands people at Mackay:
    • Cancelled flight strands hundreds (Fallon Hudson @ The Daily Mercury)
    • Tiger Airways causes chaos at Mackay (e-Travel Blackboard)
  • Geoff Dixon’s golden parachute from QANTAS
    • Dixon’s $11m parachute from Qantas nosedive (Michael Janda @ ABC News)
    • Former Qantas CEO Geoff Dixon paid $11m in last year (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Qantas high-flyers must come down to earth: payouts (Stuart Wilson @ The Australian)
  • High-speed thrills as Thunderbirds roll in: USAF (Mike Glynn @ The Australian)
  • Boeing To Test Military Airplane Over Hood Canal (Q13 Fox News)
  • Final boarding call: empty bladders only (Mark Willacy @ ABC News)

  Please note that our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5).

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/03/episode-11-recreationally-yours/feed/ 6 1:32:35 This episode we’re joined by Bas Scheffers, a Recreational Aviation Australia pilot (our version of the US Sport Pilot rules) who flies out of Parafield airport (YPPF) in Adelaide, South Australia. We have a great chat about flying RA-Aus airc[...] This episode we’re joined by Bas Scheffers, a Recreational Aviation Australia pilot (our version of the US Sport Pilot rules) who flies out of Parafield airport (YPPF) in Adelaide, South Australia. We have a great chat about flying RA-Aus aircraft, GAAP issues, the benefits of learning to fly under RA-Aus instead of the usual GA, the information available from the recreational flying community and even discuss the new AAAF Forum (Forum for free speech on industry: AAAF – Steve Creedy @ The Australian). After our great chat with Bas, we move on to our usual opinionated regional news review which includes the following items: David Vanderhoof provides a “This week in Australian aviation history” segment for us In Dust we Trust Flight delays remain as dust settles in Sydney (ABC News) Sydney flights get back to normal after dust storm (ABC News) Flight chaos as dust storm hits Sydney, Brisbane (Kate Schneider @ news.com.au) Havoc for airlines, passengers (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Tiger Airlines strands people at Mackay: Cancelled flight strands hundreds (Fallon Hudson @ The Daily Mercury) Tiger Airways causes chaos at Mackay (e-Travel Blackboard) Geoff Dixon’s golden parachute from QANTAS Dixon’s $11m parachute from Qantas nosedive (Michael Janda @ ABC News) Former Qantas CEO Geoff Dixon paid $11m in last year (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Qantas high-flyers must come down to earth: payouts (Stuart Wilson @ The Australian) High-speed thrills as Thunderbirds roll in: USAF (Mike Glynn @ The Australian) Boeing To Test Military Airplane Over Hood Canal (Q13 Fox News) Final boarding call: empty bladders only (Mark Willacy @ ABC News) Please note that our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com and our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5). Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/03/combined-pcduucap-meet-up-at-temora/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/03/combined-pcduucap-meet-up-at-temora/#comments Sat, 03 Oct 2009 12:25:28 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=159 Looks like a few of the PCDU listeners are going to fly from Essendon Airport (YMEN) to Temora (YTEM) to catch the Temora Aviation Museum‘s next flying days on October 24th & 25th. I had planned to go up there to catch the show and interview some of the staff, pilots and engineers, although I’d . . . → Read More: Combined PCDU/UCAP Meet Up at Temora]]> Looks like a few of the PCDU listeners are going to fly from Essendon Airport (YMEN) to Temora (YTEM) to catch the Temora Aviation Museum‘s next flying days on October 24th & 25th. I had planned to go up there to catch the show and interview some of the staff, pilots and engineers, although I’d originally planned to drive up & back. I’d prefer to fly up there but it depends on weather and if those doing the flying are staying for both days.

  As if you didn’t need enough reasons to go and check out the flying at Temora, Matt Hall is going to be flying his Mustang there. It promises to be quite the experience!

  Given a bunch of us will be up there, we’re considering doing a combined PCDU/UCAP meet up. Depending on when people are going to be there, we’ll do it on one or both days of the show and/or arrange a dinner session on the Saturday night.

  If you’re interested in meeting up at Temora, please post here and let us know. Tell us whether you want to fly yourself there, drive or come along as a passenger in one of the planes if space permits.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/10/03/combined-pcduucap-meet-up-at-temora/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/27/episode-10-on-the-podium-with-matt-hall/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/27/episode-10-on-the-podium-with-matt-hall/#comments Sat, 26 Sep 2009 21:45:14 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=151

  Matt Hall

  Once again we get to interview Matt Hall, Australia’s Top Gun RAAF pilot who’s making a big hit in the RedBull AirRace as the first rookie to ever score a podium. We talk with Matt about his performance at Porto, his preparations for Barcelona, how visualisation plays a major role in his . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 10: On the Podium with Matt Hall]]>
  

  Matt Hall

  Once again we get to interview Matt Hall, Australia’s Top Gun RAAF pilot who’s making a big hit in the RedBull AirRace as the first rookie to ever score a podium. We talk with Matt about his performance at Porto, his preparations for Barcelona, how visualisation plays a major role in his flying and flying his P51 Mustang.

  As with our previous interview session with Matt, time blurs and we have a great time chatting and listening to his fascinating comments. We’re looking forward to seeing how he goes in the final race at Barcelona and hopefully will get a chance to chat with him again afterwards.

  You can find Matt on his home page, Wikipedia, FaceBook, Flickr and Twitter. Be sure to join up to follow his progress in the races and show your support.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/27/episode-10-on-the-podium-with-matt-hall/feed/ 2 1:08:59 Matt Hall Once again we get to interview Matt Hall, Australia’s Top Gun RAAF pilot who’s making a big hit in the RedBull AirRace as the first rookie to ever score a podium. We talk with Matt about his performance at Porto, his preparatio[...] Matt Hall Once again we get to interview Matt Hall, Australia’s Top Gun RAAF pilot who’s making a big hit in the RedBull AirRace as the first rookie to ever score a podium. We talk with Matt about his performance at Porto, his preparations for Barcelona, how visualisation plays a major role in his flying and flying his P51 Mustang. As with our previous interview session with Matt, time blurs and we have a great time chatting and listening to his fascinating comments. We’re looking forward to seeing how he goes in the final race at Barcelona and hopefully will get a chance to chat with him again afterwards. You can find Matt on his home page, Wikipedia, FaceBook, Flickr and Twitter. Be sure to join up to follow his progress in the races and show your support. Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/22/episode-9-airplane-geeks-down-under/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/22/episode-9-airplane-geeks-down-under/#comments Tue, 22 Sep 2009 02:17:38 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=128 Andrew Temby
  This episode we’re joined by Dan, David & Rob from the Airplane Geeks podcast to discuss airline news and have a great discussion about air traffic control issues here & in the USA. We also have interviews with Dr Bruce Searle, dean of the Australian Centre for Mission Aviation, and Andrew Temby, . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 9: Airplane Geeks Down Under]]>

  Andrew Temby

  This episode we’re joined by Dan, David & Rob from the Airplane Geeks podcast to discuss airline news and have a great discussion about air traffic control issues here & in the USA. We also have interviews with Dr Bruce Searle, dean of the Australian Centre for Mission Aviation, and Andrew Temby, aerobatic pilot & owner of a YAK-52TW. Both were recorded at the Mission Aviation Fellowship airshow held at Coldstream Airport (YCEM) a few weeks back.

  While Max Flight from the Airplane Geeks couldn’t be with us, having the other guys from the show record with us was a hoot and certainly generated a LOT of content for a future “Bloopers Only” episode. We’re definitely looking forward to recording with them again once our sanity recovers.

  

  Dr Bruce Searle

   

  The topics discussed in this episode include:

  • A general discussion of airline issues down under with the Airplane Geeks
    • Emirates and V Australia to codeshare on Tasman routes (Leithen Francis @ FlightGlobal)
    • V Australia to Codeshare with…Emirates? (Dan Webb @ Things in the Sky)
    • High fuel prices may clip recovery (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Premium passengers slowly return to flights (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Qantas CEO: See No Further Room For Capacity Cuts In This FY (Wall St Journal)
    • INTERVIEW: Qantas CEO: Passenger Demand Higher Than Expected (Wall St Journal)
    • Qantas jettisons JAL merger rumour (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Virgin in talks to buy $4b planes (Matt O’Sullivan @ The Age)
    • Virgin Blue to buy 30 to 50 737s? (Australian Aviation magazine)
    • Virgin Blue’s plan to seat more passengers (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Brett Godfrey true believer in 50pc Virgin share (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Talking about Air Traffic Control issues with Rob & David
    • Staff shortage sparks national flight delays (ABC News)
    • Flights delayed or cancelled as air controllers “unavailable” (Sydney Morning Herald)
    • Sydney’s flight schedule ‘to return to normal’ (ABC News)
    • Airservices, staff on collision course (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Virgin Blue to pursue AirServices Australia for compensation for its air traffic failures (Ben Sandilands @ Crikey)
    • Military to lose airspace in $300m savings push (Cameron Stewart & Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • David Vanderhoof presents “This week in Australian aviation history” covering the official approval for the establishment of the Central Flying School at Point Cook (now referred to as RAAF Williams)
  • Grant went to the Mission Aviation Fellowship airshow at Coldstream Airport (YCEM) and recorded these interviews
    • Dr Bruce Searle, Dean of the Australian Centre for Mission Aviation
    • Andrew Temby, aerobatics pilot and owner of a Yak-52TW
  • Matt Hall came 3rd at the Porto RedBull AirRace in Portugal – YAY!
  • We discuss some military news
    • Questions over F-35′s stealth capability (ABC News)
    • Air Marshall Mark Binskin wants more fighters (Mark Dodd @ The Australian)
    • F-111 maintenance blamed for creek contamination (ABC News)
  • We review some of the “Traffic” entries from the latest Australian Aviation magazine
    • OzJet 737-200s
    • V Australia’s latest 777
    • RAAF KC30 MRTT
    • Air New Zealand’s 767 with blended winglets

  Please note that our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/22/episode-9-airplane-geeks-down-under/feed/ 4 1:30:06 Andrew Temby This episode we’re joined by Dan, David & Rob from the Airplane Geeks podcast to discuss airline news and have a great discussion about air traffic control issues here & in the USA. We also have interviews with Dr Bruce [...] Andrew Temby This episode we’re joined by Dan, David & Rob from the Airplane Geeks podcast to discuss airline news and have a great discussion about air traffic control issues here & in the USA. We also have interviews with Dr Bruce Searle, dean of the Australian Centre for Mission Aviation, and Andrew Temby, aerobatic pilot & owner of a YAK-52TW. Both were recorded at the Mission Aviation Fellowship airshow held at Coldstream Airport (YCEM) a few weeks back. While Max Flight from the Airplane Geeks couldn’t be with us, having the other guys from the show record with us was a hoot and certainly generated a LOT of content for a future “Bloopers Only” episode. We’re definitely looking forward to recording with them again once our sanity recovers.Dr Bruce Searle   The topics discussed in this episode include: A general discussion of airline issues down under with the Airplane Geeks Emirates and V Australia to codeshare on Tasman routes (Leithen Francis @ FlightGlobal) V Australia to Codeshare with…Emirates? (Dan Webb @ Things in the Sky) High fuel prices may clip recovery (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Premium passengers slowly return to flights (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Qantas CEO: See No Further Room For Capacity Cuts In This FY (Wall St Journal) INTERVIEW: Qantas CEO: Passenger Demand Higher Than Expected (Wall St Journal) Qantas jettisons JAL merger rumour (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Virgin in talks to buy $4b planes (Matt O’Sullivan @ The Age) Virgin Blue to buy 30 to 50 737s? (Australian Aviation magazine) Virgin Blue’s plan to seat more passengers (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Brett Godfrey true believer in 50pc Virgin share (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Talking about Air Traffic Control issues with Rob & David Staff shortage sparks national flight delays (ABC News) Flights delayed or cancelled as air controllers “unavailable” (Sydney Morning Herald) Sydney’s flight schedule ‘to return to normal’ (ABC News) Airservices, staff on collision course (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Virgin Blue to pursue AirServices Australia for compensation for its air traffic failures (Ben Sandilands @ Crikey) Military to lose airspace in $300m savings push (Cameron Stewart & Steve Creedy @ The Australian) David Vanderhoof presents “This week in Australian aviation history” covering the official approval for the establishment of the Central Flying School at Point Cook (now referred to as RAAF Williams) Grant went to the Mission Aviation Fellowship airshow at Coldstream Airport (YCEM) and recorded these interviews Dr Bruce Searle, Dean of the Australian Centre for Mission Aviation Andrew Temby, aerobatics pilot and owner of a Yak-52TW Matt Hall came 3rd at the Porto RedBull AirRace in Portugal – YAY! We discuss some military news Questions over F-35′s stealth capability (ABC News) Air Marshall Mark Binskin wants more fighters (Mark Dodd @ The Australian) F-111 maintenance blamed for creek contamination (ABC News) We review some of the “Traffic” entries from the latest Australian Aviation magazine OzJet 737-200s V Australia’s latest 777 RAAF KC30 MRTT Air New Zealand’s 767 with blended winglets Please note that our theme music track is “YouNameIt5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5) and our sound effects come from SoundSnap.com. Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/11/episode-8-riding-our-segways/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/11/episode-8-riding-our-segways/#comments Fri, 11 Sep 2009 13:48:27 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=114 We thought we’d have this episode out within a few days of our previous one, but there was so many news items to review, so much to discuss and so many bits to splice together that it took a whole week to bring it to you. Weighing in at almost 2 hours, this episode has . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 8: Riding Our Segways]]> We thought we’d have this episode out within a few days of our previous one, but there was so many news items to review, so much to discuss and so many bits to splice together that it took a whole week to bring it to you. Weighing in at almost 2 hours, this episode has interviews, GA, follow ups and much much more.

  With some brilliant segways between topics (and a few clangers), this episode includes the following items:

  • Changes after the Kokoda accident
    • Australia pledges $2m for Kokoda airstrip upgrade (ABC News)
  • Virgin Blue and Delta rebuttal against Air New Zealand
    • Virgin and Delta slam Air NZ attacks (Ari Sharp @ The Age)
  • As we predicted, JetStar are going to Fiji
    • Qantas and Virgin Blue in Fiji fight (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Jetstar to spoil V Australia’s Fiji flights? (Alex @ AusAviation)
  • Webjet pressured by competition to drop fees
    • Pressure On Webjet As Zuji and Expedia Drop Fees (Martin Kelly @ Travel Trends)
  • Listener comments about laser pointers and aircraft
  • @DanWebbage from the Airplane Geeks provides feedback on United Airlines and their 747-400s on the Pacific route
  • @DanWebbage also gives us a report on a recent conference where he got to try different aircraft seats
  • Some QANTAS stories from mechanical to financial
    • 
      Qantas makes emergency landing in Perth (Geoffrey @ The West Australian)
    • Qantas yields remain under pressure (Bill Lindsay @ The Australian)
    • Qantas feels the heat from the east (Geoff Easdown @ the Herald Sun)
    • Qantas braces for long haul in red: IATA figures (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Qantas yield contractions continue, but appear to have stabilised; SIA downgraded on yield squeeze (Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation)
    • Discounted tickets lure more to Qantas in July (news.com.au)
    • It’s a Jetstar a rising at Qantas (Ben Sandilands @ Crikey)
  • The Australian Government is putting its travel management up to tender
    • Federal air travel tender to hit Qantas (Scott Rochfort @ the Sydney Morning Herald)
    • More bad news for Qantas – Federal air travel tender up for grabs (eTravel Blackboard)
    • Virgin hails move to tighten airfare policy (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Interview with Karla Courtney from the QANTAS Travel Insider
  • Tiger Airlines aircraft hits a flock of birds
    • Bird strike grounds Tiger plane at Adelaide Airport (Sam Rodrigues @ Adelaide Now)
    • Airplane hits flock of birds in Australia, take off rejected (AvioNews)
  • Airline review results are in
    • Australians reveal their worst airline (Angela Saurine @ news.com.au)
  • Jetstar Pacific in Vietnam may have breached the law
    • Jetstar Pacific told to quit using the orange star and ‘Jet’ logo (Look At Vietnam)
  • Interview with Shashank Nigam” from SimpliFlying
  • Final missing RAAF aircrew from the Vietnam conflict found and returned for burial
    • Diggers’ bodies to return from Vietnam (news.com.au)
    • Vietnam airmen’s remains flown home (Max Blenkin @ The Courier Mail)
    • 39yr wait over as Toowoomba farewells Vietnam pilot (Sam Burgess @ ABC News)
    • State funeral for Vietnam War airman (ABC News)
    • http://www.airforce.gov.au/raafmuseum/research/aircraft/series2/A84.htm
    • About #2 Squadron in Vietname and more about #2 squadron
    • History of Canberras with the RAAF
    • Images of the Canberra that crashed
    • Thanks to David Vanderhoof for the research

  Student pilot makes emergency landing after engine fails (same pilot as the runway overrun reported a few weeks ago)

  • Plane makes emergency landing in paddock (ABC News)
  • Man survives plane crash in Abbotsbury (Michael Chammas & Stacey Vanoska @ the Fairfield City Champion)
  • Student pilot crash lands in paddock in Prospect (Vikki Campion @ the Daily Telegraph)
  • NOTE: Thanks to @DavidOptimal for the info
  • Observer has to fly King Air until pilot recovers (thanks to @DavidOptiimal and others for the inside story)
    • Passenger flies plane after pilot passes out (ABC News)
  • Government is taking steps to halt inappropriate development on airports
    • Airport building hopes reined in: Bankstown (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • We mention some web sites:
    • Owen Zupp’s website about his trip around Australia to raise money for the Royal Flying Doctor Service (There and Back)
    • Noel Kruse has released some free flight training books online (Fly Better)
  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/11/episode-8-riding-our-segways/feed/ 0 1:49:06 We thought we’d have this episode out within a few days of our previous one, but there was so many news items to review, so much to discuss and so many bits to splice together that it took a whole week to bring it to you. Weighing in at almost[...] We thought we’d have this episode out within a few days of our previous one, but there was so many news items to review, so much to discuss and so many bits to splice together that it took a whole week to bring it to you. Weighing in at almost 2 hours, this episode has interviews, GA, follow ups and much much more. With some brilliant segways between topics (and a few clangers), this episode includes the following items: Changes after the Kokoda accident Australia pledges $2m for Kokoda airstrip upgrade (ABC News) Virgin Blue and Delta rebuttal against Air New Zealand Virgin and Delta slam Air NZ attacks (Ari Sharp @ The Age) As we predicted, JetStar are going to Fiji Qantas and Virgin Blue in Fiji fight (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Jetstar to spoil V Australia’s Fiji flights? (Alex @ AusAviation) Webjet pressured by competition to drop fees Pressure On Webjet As Zuji and Expedia Drop Fees (Martin Kelly @ Travel Trends) Listener comments about laser pointers and aircraft @DanWebbage from the Airplane Geeks provides feedback on United Airlines and their 747-400s on the Pacific route @DanWebbage also gives us a report on a recent conference where he got to try different aircraft seats Some QANTAS stories from mechanical to financial Qantas makes emergency landing in Perth (Geoffrey @ The West Australian) Qantas yields remain under pressure (Bill Lindsay @ The Australian) Qantas feels the heat from the east (Geoff Easdown @ the Herald Sun) Qantas braces for long haul in red: IATA figures (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Qantas yield contractions continue, but appear to have stabilised; SIA downgraded on yield squeeze (Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation) Discounted tickets lure more to Qantas in July (news.com.au) It’s a Jetstar a rising at Qantas (Ben Sandilands @ Crikey) The Australian Government is putting its travel management up to tender Federal air travel tender to hit Qantas (Scott Rochfort @ the Sydney Morning Herald) More bad news for Qantas – Federal air travel tender up for grabs (eTravel Blackboard) Virgin hails move to tighten airfare policy (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Interview with Karla Courtney from the QANTAS Travel Insider Tiger Airlines aircraft hits a flock of birds Bird strike grounds Tiger plane at Adelaide Airport (Sam Rodrigues @ Adelaide Now) Airplane hits flock of birds in Australia, take off rejected (AvioNews) Airline review results are in Australians reveal their worst airline (Angela Saurine @ news.com.au) Jetstar Pacific in Vietnam may have breached the law Jetstar Pacific told to quit using the orange star and ‘Jet’ logo (Look At Vietnam) Interview with Shashank Nigam” from SimpliFlying Final missing RAAF aircrew from the Vietnam conflict found and returned for burial Diggers’ bodies to return from Vietnam (news.com.au) Vietnam airmen’s remains flown home (Max Blenkin @ The Courier Mail) 39yr wait over as Toowoomba farewells Vietnam pilot (Sam Burgess @ ABC News) State funeral for Vietnam War airman (ABC News) http://www.airforce.gov.au/raafmuseum/research/aircraft/series2/A84.htm About #2 Squadron in Vietname and more about #2 squadron History of Canberras with the RAAF Images of the Canberra that crashed Thanks to David Vanderhoof for the research Student pilot makes emergency landing after engine fails (same pilot as the runway overrun reported a few weeks ago) Plane makes emergency landing in paddock (ABC News) Man survives plane crash in Abbotsbury (Michael Chammas & Stacey Vanoska @ the Fairfield City Champion) Student pilot crash lands in paddock in Prospect (Vikki Campion @ the Daily Telegraph) NOTE: Thanks to @DavidOptimal for the info Observer has to fly King Air until pilot recovers (thanks to @DavidOptiimal and others for the inside story) Passenger flies plane after pilot passes out (ABC News) Government is taking steps to halt inappropriate development on airports Airport building hopes reined in: Ba[...] Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/05/episode-7-matt-hall-were-not-worthy/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/05/episode-7-matt-hall-were-not-worthy/#comments Fri, 04 Sep 2009 15:37:04 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=102 This episode detours from our usual opinionated discussion of the news and instead features an interview we were fortunate enough to arrange with Matt Hall, an ex-RAAF F18 pilot who has flown the F15 on exchange with the USAF and is currently flying an MXS aerobatic aircraft in the RedBull AirRace. We were expecting to . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 7: Matt Hall, we’re not worthy!]]> This episode detours from our usual opinionated discussion of the news and instead features an interview we were fortunate enough to arrange with Matt Hall, an ex-RAAF F18 pilot who has flown the F15 on exchange with the USAF and is currently flying an MXS aerobatic aircraft in the RedBull AirRace. We were expecting to get a half hour or so to chat with Matt and were thrilled to discover an hour had passed before we all thought to double check the time.

   

  The discussion ranges from Matt’s early days learning to fly through to his experiences with the RAAF and USAF then on to flying in the RedBull AirRace. Matt talks with us on many topics, including gliders, air-to-air refuelling, pylon hits and the dreaded bridge.

   

  We were delighted that Matt accepted our request for an interview and cannot sufficiently express our gratitude for his time. We’re looking forward to following his progress through the remaining races this year and chatting with him again at the end of the season.

   

   

  You can find Matt on his home page, Wikipedia, FaceBook, Flickr and Twitter. Be sure to join up to follow his progress in the races and show your support.

   

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/05/episode-7-matt-hall-were-not-worthy/feed/ 13 1:03:54 This episode detours from our usual opinionated discussion of the news and instead features an interview we were fortunate enough to arrange with Matt Hall, an ex-RAAF F18 pilot who has flown the F15 on exchange with the USAF and is currently flying[...] This episode detours from our usual opinionated discussion of the news and instead features an interview we were fortunate enough to arrange with Matt Hall, an ex-RAAF F18 pilot who has flown the F15 on exchange with the USAF and is currently flying an MXS aerobatic aircraft in the RedBull AirRace. We were expecting to get a half hour or so to chat with Matt and were thrilled to discover an hour had passed before we all thought to double check the time.   The discussion ranges from Matt’s early days learning to fly through to his experiences with the RAAF and USAF then on to flying in the RedBull AirRace. Matt talks with us on many topics, including gliders, air-to-air refuelling, pylon hits and the dreaded bridge.   We were delighted that Matt accepted our request for an interview and cannot sufficiently express our gratitude for his time. We’re looking forward to following his progress through the remaining races this year and chatting with him again at the end of the season.     You can find Matt on his home page, Wikipedia, FaceBook, Flickr and Twitter. Be sure to join up to follow his progress in the races and show your support.   Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/02/flight-experience-melbourne/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/02/flight-experience-melbourne/#comments Tue, 01 Sep 2009 14:50:53 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=98 In Episode 6 we interviewed Carlo Santoro, the owner of Flight Experience Melbourne, a fixed base 737 simulator that is open to the public. People can come in and fly a 737 with an instructor, getting the chance to experience what it’s like flying a commercial airliner.

  Having flown a number of full motion simulators, . . . → Read More: Flight Experience Melbourne]]> In Episode 6 we interviewed Carlo Santoro, the owner of Flight Experience Melbourne, a fixed base 737 simulator that is open to the public. People can come in and fly a 737 with an instructor, getting the chance to experience what it’s like flying a commercial airliner.

  Having flown a number of full motion simulators, I can assure you that the lack of motion is not something you really notice. During your flight you are so busy flying the aircraft that the sounds and sight picture displayed for you are sufficient to fool you into thinking you really are moving.

  In addition to their store in the QV building in Melbourne’s CBD, they also have an online store where you can purchase aviation merchandise, including clothing, DVDs and aircraft models. They also run the Experience This! blog that has interviews with their staff & customers, stories about the flight packages they offer, information about merchandise and much more.

  You can also follow them on Twitter via FlightExpQV as well as through their FaceBook page.

  If you can make it to Melbourne and haven’t checked them out yet, we totally recommend that you do. Whether you are a pilot, a sim junkie or an aviation enthusiast, a session in this simulator will be an amazing experience. From practicing for an interview with a major airline to just seeing what’s involved up front, you won’t regret giving it a go at least once.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/09/02/flight-experience-melbourne/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/30/episode-6-plugcast/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/30/episode-6-plugcast/#comments Sat, 29 Aug 2009 14:38:35 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=86 After almost two weeks we finally get another episode out, but this one should be worth the wait. We have our first guest discussion session (@MaxFlight from the Airplane Geeks Podcast) and we have our first interview (Carlo Santoro from the Flight Experience Melbourne 737 simulator). In addition to all this, we also discuss the . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 6: Plugcast]]> After almost two weeks we finally get another episode out, but this one should be worth the wait. We have our first guest discussion session (@MaxFlight from the Airplane Geeks Podcast) and we have our first interview (Carlo Santoro from the Flight Experience Melbourne 737 simulator). In addition to all this, we also discuss the following topics:
  • Bodies of the passengers on the Airlines PNG Twin Otter crash at Kokoda are returned
    • Kokoda crash victims arrive home (Paul Millar @ The Age)
    • ‘Bubbly’ pilot broke down barriers (Michael McKenna and Natasha Bita @ The Australian)
    • Fellow pilots remember Kokoda crash victims (Sarah Elks and Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Virgin Blue to drop their code share with United (thanks to @DanWebbage for the lead)
    • Virgin Blue to end codeshare partnership with United (Brendan Sobie @ FlightGlobal)
  • QANTAS profits drop dramatically
    • Qantas profit plunges 88pc, misses market forecasts (Bill Lindsay @ The Australian)
    • Qantas shares defy profit plunge (Bill Lindsay @ The Australian)
    • Qantas says LA and London routes behind profit nosedive (The Australian)
    • Boeing Tells Qantas 787 Will Fly This Year (Aero News Network)
    • Qantas targets costs as profit tumbles (Matt O’Sullivan @ The Age)
  • Flight Centre also has a dramatic drop in their profit
    • Flight Centre hits financial crisis turbulence (Michael Janda @ ABC News)
    • Flight Centre optimistic on travel sector recovery in fiscal 2010 (Bill Lindsay @ The Australian)
  • We talk briefly about travel agents vs online travel planning and Grant shamelessly plugs Cloud 9 Travel in Melbourne, his favourite boutique travel agency
  • Falling profits are the norm at the moment with Macquarie Airports and Air New Zealand also earning less than expected
    • Macquarie Airports hit by fall in asset values, air traffic (Iain MacDonald @ The Australian)
    • Air New Zealand posts 90pc profit slump (ABC News)
    • Air NZ rejects cartel charges (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • We discuss military flying in New Zealand, including the RNZAF 757, selling their A4 Skyhawks, their success with the Kaman Seasprites, buying the RAN’s A4s and the RNZAF’s A4 formation aerobatic team
  • Australia and New Zealand getting closer to having open borders between them
    • Cheap NZ flights as Tasman union looms (Josh Gordon @ The Age)
  • @MaxFlight from the Airplane Geeks Podcast bravely agrees to chat with us and be recorded
  • Do you think you have what it takes to save the day when your flight crew “eat the fish” but want to be sure in advance? Flight Experience Melbourne provide a 737 simulator and instructors to help you find out. Grant interviews Carlo while sitting in the sim
  • Regional Express tries to expand into Queensland again
    • Rex’s second tilt at Queensland: Regional Express (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Optus launch a 3rd satellite
    • Ariane 5 Rocket Launches Satellite Duo for Japan, Australia (Justin Ray @ SpaceFlightNow)
  • QANTAS passenger tries to open door in flight
    • Midair drama: man restrained on Qantas flight (ABC News)
    • Man tries to open door on Qantas flight (Yahoo!7 News)
  • Bomb scare on Singapore Airlines
    • Bomb scare: Passengers herded to back of plane (ABC News)
  • We hope the winds drop further (Wind causing flight delays: Qantas (ABC News))

  Our sounds come SoundSnap.com and our title track is “Younameit5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5).

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/30/episode-6-plugcast/feed/ 2 1:14:11 After almost two weeks we finally get another episode out, but this one should be worth the wait. We have our first guest discussion session (@MaxFlight from the Airplane Geeks Podcast) and we have our first interview (Carlo Santoro from the Flight [...] After almost two weeks we finally get another episode out, but this one should be worth the wait. We have our first guest discussion session (@MaxFlight from the Airplane Geeks Podcast) and we have our first interview (Carlo Santoro from the Flight Experience Melbourne 737 simulator). In addition to all this, we also discuss the following topics: Bodies of the passengers on the Airlines PNG Twin Otter crash at Kokoda are returned Kokoda crash victims arrive home (Paul Millar @ The Age) ‘Bubbly’ pilot broke down barriers (Michael McKenna and Natasha Bita @ The Australian) Fellow pilots remember Kokoda crash victims (Sarah Elks and Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Virgin Blue to drop their code share with United (thanks to @DanWebbage for the lead) Virgin Blue to end codeshare partnership with United (Brendan Sobie @ FlightGlobal) QANTAS profits drop dramatically Qantas profit plunges 88pc, misses market forecasts (Bill Lindsay @ The Australian) Qantas shares defy profit plunge (Bill Lindsay @ The Australian) Qantas says LA and London routes behind profit nosedive (The Australian) Boeing Tells Qantas 787 Will Fly This Year (Aero News Network) Qantas targets costs as profit tumbles (Matt O’Sullivan @ The Age) Flight Centre also has a dramatic drop in their profit Flight Centre hits financial crisis turbulence (Michael Janda @ ABC News) Flight Centre optimistic on travel sector recovery in fiscal 2010 (Bill Lindsay @ The Australian) We talk briefly about travel agents vs online travel planning and Grant shamelessly plugs Cloud 9 Travel in Melbourne, his favourite boutique travel agency Falling profits are the norm at the moment with Macquarie Airports and Air New Zealand also earning less than expected Macquarie Airports hit by fall in asset values, air traffic (Iain MacDonald @ The Australian) Air New Zealand posts 90pc profit slump (ABC News) Air NZ rejects cartel charges (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) We discuss military flying in New Zealand, including the RNZAF 757, selling their A4 Skyhawks, their success with the Kaman Seasprites, buying the RAN’s A4s and the RNZAF’s A4 formation aerobatic team Australia and New Zealand getting closer to having open borders between them Cheap NZ flights as Tasman union looms (Josh Gordon @ The Age) @MaxFlight from the Airplane Geeks Podcast bravely agrees to chat with us and be recorded Do you think you have what it takes to save the day when your flight crew “eat the fish” but want to be sure in advance? Flight Experience Melbourne provide a 737 simulator and instructors to help you find out. Grant interviews Carlo while sitting in the sim Regional Express tries to expand into Queensland again Rex’s second tilt at Queensland: Regional Express (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Optus launch a 3rd satellite Ariane 5 Rocket Launches Satellite Duo for Japan, Australia (Justin Ray @ SpaceFlightNow) QANTAS passenger tries to open door in flight Midair drama: man restrained on Qantas flight (ABC News) Man tries to open door on Qantas flight (Yahoo!7 News) Bomb scare on Singapore Airlines Bomb scare: Passengers herded to back of plane (ABC News) We hope the winds drop further (Wind causing flight delays: Qantas (ABC News)) Our sounds come SoundSnap.com and our title track is “Younameit5″ by Brian Simpson (aka t3cat5). Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/24/a-new-look-and-a-delayed-episode/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/24/a-new-look-and-a-delayed-episode/#comments Sun, 23 Aug 2009 14:26:56 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=82 Those of you who’ve been following our site prior to now will notice that we’ve (finally) revamped the site’s theme, moving from something bland and hard to follow to a much better layout and colour scheme. We’ve also highlighted the iTunes subscription and RSS feed links towards the top right hand side of the page. . . . → Read More: A new look and a delayed episode]]> Those of you who’ve been following our site prior to now will notice that we’ve (finally) revamped the site’s theme, moving from something bland and hard to follow to a much better layout and colour scheme. We’ve also highlighted the iTunes subscription and RSS feed links towards the top right hand side of the page. This should help to address the hassles some folks have had finding our feeds.

  Unfortunately, our next episode is going to be a little delayed. While we usually try to release one every week, this week is proving difficult. Steve’s had a hard drive failure on the machine he uses to record & edit the podcasts and Grant’s burning the candle at both ends (and the middle) at his day job. Throw in Steve’s work putting him on night shifts for the next few days and it’s going to be difficult for us to synch up to record.

  That said, we should be recording the next episode (#6) in a few days and expect that it will be ready for release by the weekend. We are at least getting the Australia Desk segments done for the Airplane Geeks podcast. Fortunately, they’re easier to record, remix and get out to the world.

  Stick with us and your patience will be rewarded as episode #6 promises to have lots of news, commentary and an interview. Don’t forget to subscribe via our entry in iTunes or point your podcatcher software at the podcast feed. You can also subscribe to the full blog feed and get the episodes as well as general postings like this one.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/24/a-new-look-and-a-delayed-episode/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/16/episode-5-jet-lag-recovery/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/16/episode-5-jet-lag-recovery/#comments Sat, 15 Aug 2009 22:41:05 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=69 Steve’s back from his trip to the USA and, despite some jet lag woes, he’s in the recording studio and the banter is flowing in our longest episode yet. Sadly, the first 15 minutes sound like Grant’s testing NASA’s new Interplanetary Internet and experiencing a really crappy connection. Not to worry, it soon clears up . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 5: Jet Lag Recovery]]> Steve’s back from his trip to the USA and, despite some jet lag woes, he’s in the recording studio and the banter is flowing in our longest episode yet. Sadly, the first 15 minutes sound like Grant’s testing NASA’s new Interplanetary Internet and experiencing a really crappy connection. Not to worry, it soon clears up and the rest of the episode quite clearly reveals our usual commentary on this week’s local aviation news stories, including the following topics:
  • Airlines PNG Twin Otter crash at Kokoda
    • Pilot in PNG crash had six months’ experience (Michael McKenna and Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Flyers may have lost their bearings (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Landing gear incidents @ Bankstown (YSBK)
    • Planes Lose Wheels (The Torch newspaper)
  • Regional airlines worrying about aircraft
    • Regional airlines face plane shortage (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Flying Doctor losing a contract
    • Flying doctor service loses $70m contract (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Royal Flying Doctor Service – history
    • Royal Flying Doctor Service – Wikipedia
  • Steve discusses his visit to the TWiT Cottage and meeting Leo Laporte (go on gang, you *know* you’re jealous :)
  • Steve clarifies that he went to Eaker AFB while in the USA but named it incorrectly during his update on the previous episode
  • Steve talks about his flights with V Australia
    • Tainted Virgin Blue chicken wraps induced births (Jamie Walker @ The Australian)
    • Virgin-Delta joint venture to get a clear run (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • We discuss an article by Andrew McLaughlin in the July issue of Australian Aviation magazine about United Airlines fighting to retain share on the Pacific route
  • Tiger is taking steps to improve its image
    • Airline complaints head sky-high (Clive Dorman @ The Age)
  • V Australia wants to fly to Fiji
    • V Australia applies for Fiji route (Greg Waldron @ Flight Global)
  • Grant talks about his experiences going to Sydney for the SimpliFlying/PCDU Tweet Up along side the Asia Pacific Aviation Outlook Summit 2009 conference
  • QANTAS links its frequent flyer program to the Woolworths loyalty program
    • Qantas loyalty deal with Woolies a big seller (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • AirAsiaX news
    • Capital city rivals out to land Asia (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • AirAsiaX will boost its Gold Coast route
  • Malaysia Airlines getting stung by low cost carriers
    • Discount rivals hit MAS results (Geoff Easdown @ The HeraldSun)
  • Laser taggers arrested
    • Laser pointer accused faces court (ABC News)
  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/16/episode-5-jet-lag-recovery/feed/ 3 1:15:48 Steve’s back from his trip to the USA and, despite some jet lag woes, he’s in the recording studio and the banter is flowing in our longest episode yet. Sadly, the first 15 minutes sound like Grant’s testing NASA’s new Interp[...] Steve’s back from his trip to the USA and, despite some jet lag woes, he’s in the recording studio and the banter is flowing in our longest episode yet. Sadly, the first 15 minutes sound like Grant’s testing NASA’s new Interplanetary Internet and experiencing a really crappy connection. Not to worry, it soon clears up and the rest of the episode quite clearly reveals our usual commentary on this week’s local aviation news stories, including the following topics: Airlines PNG Twin Otter crash at Kokoda Pilot in PNG crash had six months’ experience (Michael McKenna and Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Flyers may have lost their bearings (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Landing gear incidents @ Bankstown (YSBK) Planes Lose Wheels (The Torch newspaper) Regional airlines worrying about aircraft Regional airlines face plane shortage (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Flying Doctor losing a contract Flying doctor service loses $70m contract (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Royal Flying Doctor Service – history Royal Flying Doctor Service – Wikipedia Steve discusses his visit to the TWiT Cottage and meeting Leo Laporte (go on gang, you *know* you’re jealous :) Steve clarifies that he went to Eaker AFB while in the USA but named it incorrectly during his update on the previous episode Steve talks about his flights with V Australia Tainted Virgin Blue chicken wraps induced births (Jamie Walker @ The Australian) Virgin-Delta joint venture to get a clear run (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) We discuss an article by Andrew McLaughlin in the July issue of Australian Aviation magazine about United Airlines fighting to retain share on the Pacific route Tiger is taking steps to improve its image Airline complaints head sky-high (Clive Dorman @ The Age) V Australia wants to fly to Fiji V Australia applies for Fiji route (Greg Waldron @ Flight Global) Grant talks about his experiences going to Sydney for the SimpliFlying/PCDU Tweet Up along side the Asia Pacific Aviation Outlook Summit 2009 conference QANTAS links its frequent flyer program to the Woolworths loyalty program Qantas loyalty deal with Woolies a big seller (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) AirAsiaX news Capital city rivals out to land Asia (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) AirAsiaX will boost its Gold Coast route Malaysia Airlines getting stung by low cost carriers Discount rivals hit MAS results (Geoff Easdown @ The HeraldSun) Laser taggers arrested Laser pointer accused faces court (ABC News) Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/15/spreading-the-word/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/15/spreading-the-word/#comments Sat, 15 Aug 2009 11:50:12 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=63 In addition to having our feed going through iTunes and our web site here, we’ve also gone to a number of other podcast listing sites, including Odeo, PodFeed.net and Podcast Alley.

  Right now we’re waiting for some of them to approve the listing, but if you have a favourite podcast listing site that doesn’t have . . . → Read More: Spreading the Word]]> In addition to having our feed going through iTunes and our web site here, we’ve also gone to a number of other podcast listing sites, including Odeo, PodFeed.net and Podcast Alley.

  Right now we’re waiting for some of them to approve the listing, but if you have a favourite podcast listing site that doesn’t have us included, let us know and we’ll try to get listed with them.

  ]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/15/spreading-the-word/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/07/episode-4-hand-propped/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/07/episode-4-hand-propped/#comments Thu, 06 Aug 2009 20:47:41 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=58 This week’s episode comes out a little late as Steve’s still in the USA and Grant was up in Sydney for the PCDU / SimpliFlying TweetUp that happened along side the Asia / Pacific Aviation Outlook Summit 2009. A great time was had by all who attended the event but now it’s back to work . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 4: Hand Propped]]> This week’s episode comes out a little late as Steve’s still in the USA and Grant was up in Sydney for the PCDU / SimpliFlying TweetUp that happened along side the Asia / Pacific Aviation Outlook Summit 2009. A great time was had by all who attended the event but now it’s back to work as there’s news to read, interviews to arrange and a podcast to produce.

  This week’s episode includes the following topics:

  • Jetstar launches world first SMS based boarding pass
    • Jetstar’s SMS boarding passes (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Comparing Geoff Dixon with Alan Joyce at QANTAS
    • Qantas boss a cautious optimist (Matt O’Sullivan @ The Age)
    • Global aviation faces slow return to profits: Dixon (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Joyce rules out Qantas merger (Matt O’Sullivan @ The Age)
    • Alan Joyce kills off IPO plans amid Pacific rationalisation forecast (Ross Kelly @ The Australian)
  • QANTAS fights back
    • Qantas vows to slug out fare ware (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Qantas relaunches branded website (The Age)
    • Qantas business blitz to hit Virgin (Steve Creedy @The Australian)
  • Swine Flu impacts air travel and Cathay Pacific struggles
    • Asia-Pacific travel recovery falls foul of flu (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
    • Times are turbulent for Cathay as it faces storm (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Virgin fights back, raises money and has a health scare
  • V Australia Launches New One Way Fares to USA
  • Virgin share offer takes flight (Matt O’Sullivan @ WA Today)
  • Food poisoning scare on Virgin flights (ABC News)
• Tiger Improves its Act
  • Complaints drop as Tiger Airways listens to customers (John Wright @ The Courier Mail)
• Remains of last missing RAAF airmen returned from Vietnam
  • Missing Vietnam airmen’s remains found (ABC News)
• Merpati Twin Otter crashes
  • Plane wreckage found in Papua (ABC News)
• Bangkok Airways ATR72 crashes at Koh Samui
  • Pilot killed as plane skids off runway (ABC News)
• RNZAF Upgrades Tech Training Fleet
  • NZAF to Upgrade Aircraft for Training (Aviation Today)
• Hand Propping Accident
  • Cessna takes off without pilot (ABC News)
• Steve Visscher presents an update from the USA including flying an old tail dragger, seeing more C130s than the RAAF could ever own and starting the long flights back home
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/07/episode-4-hand-propped/feed/ 0 0:33:44 This week’s episode comes out a little late as Steve’s still in the USA and Grant was up in Sydney for the PCDU / SimpliFlying TweetUp that happened along side the Asia / Pacific Aviation Outlook Summit 2009. A great time was had by all [...] This week’s episode comes out a little late as Steve’s still in the USA and Grant was up in Sydney for the PCDU / SimpliFlying TweetUp that happened along side the Asia / Pacific Aviation Outlook Summit 2009. A great time was had by all who attended the event but now it’s back to work as there’s news to read, interviews to arrange and a podcast to produce. This week’s episode includes the following topics: Jetstar launches world first SMS based boarding pass Jetstar’s SMS boarding passes (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Comparing Geoff Dixon with Alan Joyce at QANTAS Qantas boss a cautious optimist (Matt O’Sullivan @ The Age) Global aviation faces slow return to profits: Dixon (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Joyce rules out Qantas merger (Matt O’Sullivan @ The Age) Alan Joyce kills off IPO plans amid Pacific rationalisation forecast (Ross Kelly @ The Australian) QANTAS fights back Qantas vows to slug out fare ware (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Qantas relaunches branded website (The Age) Qantas business blitz to hit Virgin (Steve Creedy @The Australian) Swine Flu impacts air travel and Cathay Pacific struggles Asia-Pacific travel recovery falls foul of flu (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Times are turbulent for Cathay as it faces storm (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Virgin fights back, raises money and has a health scare V Australia Launches New One Way Fares to USA Virgin share offer takes flight (Matt O’Sullivan @ WA Today) Food poisoning scare on Virgin flights (ABC News) Tiger Improves its Act Complaints drop as Tiger Airways listens to customers (John Wright @ The Courier Mail) Remains of last missing RAAF airmen returned from Vietnam Missing Vietnam airmen’s remains found (ABC News) Merpati Twin Otter crashes Plane wreckage found in Papua (ABC News) Bangkok Airways ATR72 crashes at Koh Samui Pilot killed as plane skids off runway (ABC News) RNZAF Upgrades Tech Training Fleet NZAF to Upgrade Aircraft for Training (Aviation Today) Hand Propping Accident Cessna takes off without pilot (ABC News) Steve Visscher presents an update from the USA including flying an old tail dragger, seeing more C130s than the RAAF could ever own and starting the long flights back home Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/01/greetings-oshkosh-2009/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/01/greetings-oshkosh-2009/#comments Sat, 01 Aug 2009 07:58:14 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=50 A recent event at Oshkosh has been the Podapalooza “gathering of aviation podcasters” where attendees get to meet some of the voices in their heads. Much as we would have loved to go to Oshkosh this year and attend Podapalooza, it’s a long long way to swim from down here so all we could do . . . → Read More: Greetings Oshkosh, 2009]]> A recent event at Oshkosh has been the Podapalooza “gathering of aviation podcasters” where attendees get to meet some of the voices in their heads. Much as we would have loved to go to Oshkosh this year and attend Podapalooza, it’s a long long way to swim from down here so all we could do was listen to the other podcasters talking about how they were going and gnash our teeth while trying not to stomp on our iPods.

Fortunately for us, Stephen Force of the Airspeed podcast told us he was willing to smuggle in a short “Hey there” piece for us and get it played at the event. Well, not only was he able to smuggle it in, he even got it played on EAA radio. Wow! Thanks Steve – yet more beers we owe you when we meet!

For those of you who, like us, couldn’t be there and couldn’t listen to the live feed, here’s the little greeting we recorded for everyone at Podapalooza 2009.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/08/01/greetings-oshkosh-2009/feed/ 3 0:01:43 A recent event at Oshkosh has been the Podapalooza “gathering of aviation podcasters” where attendees get to meet some of the voices in their heads. Much as we would have loved to go to Oshkosh this year and attend Podapalooza, it’[...] A recent event at Oshkosh has been the Podapalooza “gathering of aviation podcasters” where attendees get to meet some of the voices in their heads. Much as we would have loved to go to Oshkosh this year and attend Podapalooza, it’s a long long way to swim from down here so all we could do was listen to the other podcasters talking about how they were going and gnash our teeth while trying not to stomp on our iPods. Fortunately for us, Stephen Force of the Airspeed podcast told us he was willing to smuggle in a short “Hey there” piece for us and get it played at the event. Well, not only was he able to smuggle it in, he even got it played on EAA radio. Wow! Thanks Steve – yet more beers we owe you when we meet! For those of you who, like us, couldn’t be there and couldn’t listen to the live feed, here’s the little greeting we recorded for everyone at Podapalooza 2009. Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/31/episode-3-flying-solo/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/31/episode-3-flying-solo/#comments Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:23:28 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=45 We were a little delayed because Grant was trying to do it all this week, but better late than never. With Steve in the USA, Grant was flying solo and discovering that he missed having someone to put the gear up on take off.

This week’s episode includes the following topics:

Air New Zealand joins . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 3: Flying Solo]]> We were a little delayed because Grant was trying to do it all this week, but better late than never. With Steve in the USA, Grant was flying solo and discovering that he missed having someone to put the gear up on take off.

This week’s episode includes the following topics:

• Air New Zealand joins Tiger to say that Delta teaming up with V Australia (Delta V) is bad, but QANTAS stays out of it
  • Qantas aloof as Air NZ joins Delta V opponents (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• QANTAS 737 de-pressurises during flight
  • Engineers probe Qantas midair mishap (ABC News)
• Jetstar upsetting Kiwi pax with baggage charges
  • Bags cost shocks traveller (Rebecca Lewis @ the New Zealand Herald)
• It’s official, Regional Express (REX) is the world’s best regional carrier
  • Rex ruled the world’s best regional carrier (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• Virgin Blue 737 loses a nose wheel
  • Safety fears raised after plane wheel falls off (ABC News)
• Brett Godfrey announces he’ll retire from Virgin Blue
  • Brett Godfrey to retire from Virgin Blue (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• Virgin Blue to raise capital
  • Godfrey to quit as Virgin raises capital (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• John Holland Group wins Virgin Blue’s Embraer maintenance work
  • John Holland in 10-year deal to maintain Virgin Blue’s Embraer jets (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• Macquarie Airports to separate from the Macquarie Group
  • Macquarie Airports takes over management from Macquarie Group (Allison Jackson @ The Australian)
  • Sydney airport traffic declines; Melbourne rises (Business Day)
  • Airports fly against economic downturn (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• PelAir chosen for Ambulance Victoria contract
  • Pel-Air Chosen As Preferred Contractor By Ambulance Victoria (Aero-News)
• Steve Visscher presents an update from the USA, including flight comparisons and the TSA
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/31/episode-3-flying-solo/feed/ 0 0:23:08 We were a little delayed because Grant was trying to do it all this week, but better late than never. With Steve in the USA, Grant was flying solo and discovering that he missed having someone to put the gear up on take off. This week’s episod[...] We were a little delayed because Grant was trying to do it all this week, but better late than never. With Steve in the USA, Grant was flying solo and discovering that he missed having someone to put the gear up on take off. This week’s episode includes the following topics: Air New Zealand joins Tiger to say that Delta teaming up with V Australia (Delta V) is bad, but QANTAS stays out of it Qantas aloof as Air NZ joins Delta V opponents (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) QANTAS 737 de-pressurises during flight Engineers probe Qantas midair mishap (ABC News) Jetstar upsetting Kiwi pax with baggage charges Bags cost shocks traveller (Rebecca Lewis @ the New Zealand Herald) It’s official, Regional Express (REX) is the world’s best regional carrier Rex ruled the world’s best regional carrier (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Virgin Blue 737 loses a nose wheel Safety fears raised after plane wheel falls off (ABC News) Brett Godfrey announces he’ll retire from Virgin Blue Brett Godfrey to retire from Virgin Blue (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Virgin Blue to raise capital Godfrey to quit as Virgin raises capital (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) John Holland Group wins Virgin Blue’s Embraer maintenance work John Holland in 10-year deal to maintain Virgin Blue’s Embraer jets (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Macquarie Airports to separate from the Macquarie Group Macquarie Airports takes over management from Macquarie Group (Allison Jackson @ The Australian) Sydney airport traffic declines; Melbourne rises (Business Day) Airports fly against economic downturn (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) PelAir chosen for Ambulance Victoria contract Pel-Air Chosen As Preferred Contractor By Ambulance Victoria (Aero-News) Steve Visscher presents an update from the USA, including flight comparisons and the TSA Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/26/tweetup-at-the-asia-pacific-aviation-outlook-summit-2009/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/26/tweetup-at-the-asia-pacific-aviation-outlook-summit-2009/#comments Sun, 26 Jul 2009 00:07:47 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=37 From the 3rd to 6th of August 2009, the Asia Pacific Aviation Outlook Summit 2009 is being held in Sydney at the Four Seasons Hotel down at the Rocks end of George St (near the Harbour). Shashank Nigam from SimpliFlying will be in town to attend the conference and present a keynote.

You may have . . . → Read More: TweetUp at the Asia Pacific Aviation Outlook Summit 2009]]> From the 3rd to 6th of August 2009, the Asia Pacific Aviation Outlook Summit 2009 is being held in Sydney at the Four Seasons Hotel down at the Rocks end of George St (near the Harbour). Shashank Nigam from SimpliFlying will be in town to attend the conference and present a keynote.

You may have heard Shashank interviewed on episode 29 of the Airplane Geeks podcast. He’s also been interviewed on CNBC Arabia, the Things With Wings blog at Aviation Week, Asian Airlines & Airports (PDF) and many other places.

I’m going to fly up to Sydney for the day on the 5th August to meet Shashank and interview him for the podcast. We’re also going to hold a combined SimpliFlying/PCDU TweetUp while we’re there.

In addition to having a drink and mixing with other aviation enthusiasts, the event will also offer a panel discussion moderated by Shashank and featuring Karla Courtney from the Frequent Buyer blog and myself. More panelists are being arranged and I’ll list them as they sign up.

Update: Karla’s going to be at the Summit on behalf of her work with the QANTAS Travel Insider site and their associated Twitter account, QFTravelInsider.

You’re more than welcome to come and ask questions, suggest topics and otherwise join in. Dress is smart casual and we’ll be starting at 5:30 on Wednesday 5th of August.

Sign up to follow the event via TwtVite and Facebook. You can also post a comment here or email us so we can keep you updated about when & where we’re meeting.

So, if you’re in Sydney on the 5th of August and can make it down to the rocks from 5:30 onwards (exact venue to be confirmed), you’re more than welcome to come and join us for a few drinks and join in the discussion. It promises to be a great night of fun and information.

Update: Venue has been locked in: Top level bar at Jacksons on George (176 George St) – looking forward to seeing you all there :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/26/tweetup-at-the-asia-pacific-aviation-outlook-summit-2009/feed/ 3 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/24/thanks-for-the-promotions/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/24/thanks-for-the-promotions/#comments Fri, 24 Jul 2009 13:33:34 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=33 Steve and I would like to say “Thanks!” to all the aviation podcasters and Twitterati who have made the effort to welcome us to the ranks of content producers. People like Jack Hodgson at Uncontrolled Airspace, Steve Tupper at the Airspeed Podcast, Rod Rakic of MyTransponder, Captain Chris (ex Plane Madness, now LightPlane), @redrowen, @EAARentals . . . → Read More: Thanks for the Promotions]]> Steve and I would like to say “Thanks!” to all the aviation podcasters and Twitterati who have made the effort to welcome us to the ranks of content producers. People like Jack Hodgson at Uncontrolled Airspace, Steve Tupper at the Airspeed Podcast, Rod Rakic of MyTransponder, Captain Chris (ex Plane Madness, now LightPlane), @redrowen, @EAARentals and many others have all helped retweet our “We’re here” messages and have recommended our podcast to the people they know. Major thanks to you all, folks.

Of course, no thank you could be complete without very special mention to the guys at the Airplane Geeks podcast. Max, Dan, Rob and Courtney have really helped us get started, from the early “Australia Desk” entries in their podcast to the invitation to join in with a whole episode (we’ll figure out a way, don’t you worry about that!). Even if Courtney is too busy becoming a Canadian to be involved in the weekly episodes, his podcasting guidance has been invaluable.

So thanks once again to everyone who has made us feel so welcome. You’re guaranteed a few beers from Steve & I if we ever get to catch up with you in the real world.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/24/thanks-for-the-promotions/feed/ 0 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/22/episode-2-aero-neuro-what/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/22/episode-2-aero-neuro-what/#comments Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:12:42 +0000 Grant (Falcon124) http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=17 Surprisingly less than one week after our first episode was released, we’re releasing our second episode. During this one, we discuss the following items:
Singapore Airlines to fly A380 to Melbourne
Superjumbo threat to Qantas stepped up (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) British Airways cutting flights to Australia British Airways to cut flights to Australia . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 2: Aero Neuro What???]]> Surprisingly less than one week after our first episode was released, we’re releasing our second episode. During this one, we discuss the following items:
• Singapore Airlines to fly A380 to Melbourne
  • Superjumbo threat to Qantas stepped up (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• British Airways cutting flights to Australia
  • British Airways to cut flights to Australia (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• Garuda ends their only flight to Darwin
  • Plea for Garuda to retain Darwin flights (Daniel Bourchier @ the Northern Territory News)
• Tiger Airlines protests V Australia’s agreement with Delta
  • Tiger Airlines out to disrupt Delta Airways deal (Geoff Easdown @ the Courier Mail)
  • Virgin’s joint venture deal with Delta has upset Tiger (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• Steve says Tiger Airways’ reality show is terrible but he’s going to keep watching it (Airways)
• Virgin Blue halts shares and appears to be seeking more money
  • Virgin defers on call for funds (Matt O’Sullivan @ WA Today)
  • Virgin goes to Gulf for cash (Adele Ferguson @ The Australian)
• Push for second Sydney area airport to be at the Richmond RAAF base
  • Airlines push for second airport at RAAF base (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
  • Wikipedia information on RAAF Richmond airbase
• RAAF Sabre jet flies again
  • Temora Aviation Museum
  • Australian RAAF Sabre Flies Again (AVweb)
• We comment on Robyn Riley of the Sunday Herald Sun panning Air New Zealand’s Nothing To Hide campaign
• QANTAS ground staff in Perth are upset with management leaving them to deal with angry passengers
  • Perth ground staff lash Qantas inaction (Steve Creedy @ The Australian)
• Jockeys smuggle beer onto REX flight and drink them while returning from a responsible drinking course
  • Drunken flight lands jockeys in hot water (ABC News)
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/22/episode-2-aero-neuro-what/feed/ 0 0:34:27 Surprisingly less than one week after our first episode was released, we’re releasing our second episode. During this one, we discuss the following items: Singapore Airlines to fly A380 to Melbourne Superjumbo threat to Qantas stepped up (St[...] Surprisingly less than one week after our first episode was released, we’re releasing our second episode. During this one, we discuss the following items: Singapore Airlines to fly A380 to Melbourne Superjumbo threat to Qantas stepped up (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) British Airways cutting flights to Australia British Airways to cut flights to Australia (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Garuda ends their only flight to Darwin Plea for Garuda to retain Darwin flights (Daniel Bourchier @ the Northern Territory News) Tiger Airlines protests V Australia’s agreement with Delta Tiger Airlines out to disrupt Delta Airways deal (Geoff Easdown @ the Courier Mail) Virgin’s joint venture deal with Delta has upset Tiger (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Steve says Tiger Airways’ reality show is terrible but he’s going to keep watching it (Airways) Virgin Blue halts shares and appears to be seeking more money Virgin defers on call for funds (Matt O’Sullivan @ WA Today) Virgin goes to Gulf for cash (Adele Ferguson @ The Australian) Push for second Sydney area airport to be at the Richmond RAAF base Airlines push for second airport at RAAF base (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Wikipedia information on RAAF Richmond airbase RAAF Sabre jet flies again Temora Aviation Museum Australian RAAF Sabre Flies Again (AVweb) We comment on Robyn Riley of the Sunday Herald Sun panning Air New Zealand’s Nothing To Hide campaign QANTAS ground staff in Perth are upset with management leaving them to deal with angry passengers Perth ground staff lash Qantas inaction (Steve Creedy @ The Australian) Jockeys smuggle beer onto REX flight and drink them while returning from a responsible drinking course Drunken flight lands jockeys in hot water (ABC News) Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/19/were-on-itunes/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/19/were-on-itunes/#comments Sat, 18 Jul 2009 14:20:16 +0000 admin http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/19/were-on-itunes/ After managing to jump through a few hoops, our podcast is now available through iTunes. You can find it under the Aviation section of the Hobbies & Games category. Woo hoo :)

Now to link our Twitter feed (@PCDU) with the blog, get the blog & podcast feeds on clearly marked on the blog, add . . . → Read More: We’re on iTunes]]> After managing to jump through a few hoops, our podcast is now available through iTunes. You can find it under the Aviation section of the Hobbies & Games category. Woo hoo :)

Now to link our Twitter feed (@PCDU) with the blog, get the blog & podcast feeds on clearly marked on the blog, add an iTunes “subscribe” icon and get the look n feel sorted out.

Never a dull moment down under, that’s for sure :)

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/19/were-on-itunes/feed/ 5 http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/16/episode-1-and-so-it-begins/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/16/episode-1-and-so-it-begins/#comments Wed, 15 Jul 2009 19:54:35 +0000 admin http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=8 Weighing in at a whole 27 minutes and 18 seconds, here’s the first episode of the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast. During this episode, we discuss the following news items:
Emirates EK407 tailstrike – the Captain tells his story and we comment on fatigue issues The RAAF’s first F/A-18F Super Hornet rolls off the production . . . → Read More: PCDU Episode 1: And so it begins…]]> Weighing in at a whole 27 minutes and 18 seconds, here’s the first episode of the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast. During this episode, we discuss the following news items:
• Emirates EK407 tailstrike – the Captain tells his story and we comment on fatigue issues
• The RAAF’s first F/A-18F Super Hornet rolls off the production line plus comments on the pending F-111 & DH4C Caribou retirements
• Tiger Airways adds a 7th aircraft to get an incredible increase in capacity out of Melbourne and their reality TV show launches
• QANTAS has bad customer service (and associated PR) in Perth following a lightning strike on an A330, cops freight fines in Canada and has an A380 go around at LHR
• Jetstar apologises for their bad service in New Zealand
• Virgin Blue’s V Australia is experiencing low yields so far
• Delta operates their first flight into SYD
]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/16/episode-1-and-so-it-begins/feed/ 4 0:27:19 Weighing in at a whole 27 minutes and 18 seconds, here’s the first episode of the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast. During this episode, we discuss the following news items: Emirates EK407 tailstrike – the Captain tells his story and we c[...] Weighing in at a whole 27 minutes and 18 seconds, here’s the first episode of the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast. During this episode, we discuss the following news items: Emirates EK407 tailstrike – the Captain tells his story and we comment on fatigue issues The RAAF’s first F/A-18F Super Hornet rolls off the production line plus comments on the pending F-111 & DH4C Caribou retirements Tiger Airways adds a 7th aircraft to get an incredible increase in capacity out of Melbourne and their reality TV show launches QANTAS has bad customer service (and associated PR) in Perth following a lightning strike on an A330, cops freight fines in Canada and has an A380 go around at LHR Jetstar apologises for their bad service in New Zealand Virgin Blue’s V Australia is experiencing low yields so far Delta operates their first flight into SYD Podcasts Steve Visscher & Grant McHerron (www.planecrazydownunder.com) no no http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/15/got-to-start-somewhere/ http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/15/got-to-start-somewhere/#comments Wed, 15 Jul 2009 12:47:59 +0000 admin http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/?p=3 Welcome to Plane Crazy Down Under, an aviation podcast with a focus on the Asia/Pacific area. Produced by Steve Visscher of the AusFlier blog and Grant (Falcon124) McHerron of the Fly Me Friendly blog, Plane Crazy Down Under will feature discussions about aviation news, interviews and anything else we think is suitable for an aviation . . . → Read More: Got to start somewhere…]]> Welcome to Plane Crazy Down Under, an aviation podcast with a focus on the Asia/Pacific area. Produced by Steve Visscher of the AusFlier blog and Grant (Falcon124) McHerron of the Fly Me Friendly blog, Plane Crazy Down Under will feature discussions about aviation news, interviews and anything else we think is suitable for an aviation podcast in this part of the world.

The idea for this podcast came to us when we had been producing the “Australia Desk” segment for the Airplane Geeks weekly podcast and finding that, in the process of editing our sessions down to 5-7 minutes in length, lots of stories and discussions were being dropped. It wasn’t long before we realised that all this material could be made into a podcast of our own and thus, Plane Crazy Down Under was born.

We’re still going to be editing down a 5-7 minute “best of” from each podcast to make the “Australia Desk” segment for the Geeks. After all, we’d be mad to miss out on the exposure we get from all their listeners and they’re a lot of fun to work with :)

For now, the site is active and the first episode is about to be uploaded. In the near future we’ll have the podcast set up properly so you can subscribe to it in your favourite podcatcher. We’ll also get the site looking a LOT better when we get a chance.

Feel free to post comments here in the blog or contact us via planecrazydownunder@gmail.com. We’d really like to get your feedback on what you like, what we’re doing wrong and any ideas you might have for content, interviews, etc.

]]> http://www.planecrazydownunder.com/2009/07/15/got-to-start-somewhere/feed/ 0