PCDU Episodes:

Here is a full list of all PCDU Episodes since #1 back in 2009. Click on a title to visit the episode page & download or listen to the episode from there.

PCDU Episode 104: Avalon 2013 – Day Four

By Grant (Falcon124), on March 1st, 2013%

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:02:27 — 43.0MB)

Subscribe: RSS

USAF F22 Raptor on the combat jet tarmacThe sun came out in force on Day 4 of Avalon 2013 and with mostly clear blue skies we finally felt like we’d arrived at a real airshow. With aircraft putting on some amazing performances, the F22 once again took to the skies and let us experience the “High Show” and what a fantastic show that was!

For today’s episode, we have the following content:

  • Master Sergeant Bo Brewer talks about maintaining the F22 & its systems
  • Major Henry Schantz is the current F22 demo pilot & he compares its handling with an F15C, walks us through the manoeuvres in the demo and talks about the experience of flying it
  • Damien Rose chats with Stephen Buckle about the Carbon Cub
  • Steve & Grant get to hang out & chat with the Breitling Wing Walker team
  • Grant chats with Stewart Wilson from Aero Australia magazine
  • We corner listener Ben Wickham & ask how Avalon 2013 is going for him
  • This time it’s ATC_Ben heading out to bring us Timbo’s Tarmac and In the Keyhole with Papa Smurf
One comment   Podcasts
  , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  

PCDU Episode 99: RAAF C-130H – Into History

By Grant (Falcon124), on January 29th, 2013%

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:01:42 — 83.8MB)

Subscribe: RSS

C130H Farewell Cover Art

C-130H A97-005 with the ‘Farewell’ tail art

In November of 2012 the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) decommissioned their C-130H fleet, transitioning to the C-130J and reaching the end of an era for flight engineers & navigators in the Air Lift Group (ALG). We were fortunate enough to be invited to partake in some of the decommissioning events including a final media flight over Sydney Harbour, watching a formation flyby practice from RAAF Base Richmond’s control tower and the delivery of C-130H A97-011 to the RAAF Museum at Point Cook.

In the course of these events we obtained a number of great interviews with past & present air crew which are gathered here in our tribute episode to the C-130H in RAAF service:

  • 0:07:48 – Air Commodore Gary Martin’s (Commander Air Lift Group) press conference held on the ramp at RAAF Base Richmond before the Sydney Harbour media flight
     
  • 0:11:39 – RAAF C-130H pre-flight safety briefing
     
  • 0:17:25 – Onboard recording of C-130H engine startup & cruise sounds
     
  • 0:17:50 – Flight Lieutenant Tony Charles, pilot of A97-005 on the media flight over Sydney, discusses the flight
     

  • Steve gets to fly the C130H simulator

    0:19:54 – Flight Lieutenant Richard Aughie, C-130H flight simulator instructor, talks about C-130H performance specs, simulator training, his involvement in the C27J Spartan training program and Steve’s landings in the simulator
     
  • 0:31:41 – Phil Brown, a former RAAF Warrant Officer C130H Flight Engineer & now an instructor with CAE, talks about his RAAF career and the role of the Flight Engineer on the C130H
     
  • 0:54:37 – Squadron Leader Rob Sokol, pilot of the final flight of A97-011, talks about the flight to Point Cook, his time at 1FTS at Point Cook, his RAAF Reserve service and his “day job” as an A380 pilot
     

  • Special tail art for the C130H farewell

    1:00:29 – Air Vice Marshall (ret) Greg Evans (DSC, AM) talks about his RAAF career as a C130H pilot from 1983 to 1992 including:
    • His exchange posting to the USAF and Little Rock AFB with the 40th Tactical Airlift SQN between 1998-90 (which naturally leads to comparing notes with Steve about flying the skies of Arkansas :)
    • Some “interesting” missions & training flights he flew with the USAF & RAAF
    • Comparing the C130H to the older C130E
    • The differences encountered with the C130J
    • The advantages of the C27J Spartan
    • Being Commander Joint Task Force 633 MEAO (Iraq) during 2004 & 2005

Thanks to Eamon Hamilton (ALG Public Affairs Officer) & Ben Wickham (ADF Regional Public Affairs Officer for NSW) for arranging our access to the events & people so we could gather the content used in this episode.

2 comments   Podcasts
  , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,  

PCDU Episode 82: Keeping up with Owen Zupp

By Grant (Falcon124), on February 16th, 2012%

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (74.7MB)

Subscribe: RSS

Our good friend Owen Zupp takes time out from his very busy schedule to hang out & chat with us:

  • Owen’s got a new blog on www.owenzupp.com where he talks about aviation (mostly). Readership is ramping up quickly and we chat about some of his content and the questions readers are sending to him.
     
  • Steve met up with Owen at the GippsAero factory recently when Owen was flight testing the GA8 Airvan for an article in Australian Aviation. We chat about GippsAero, the GA8 Airvan, the GA10’s pending launch and what Owen was looking for during the test flight.
     
  • One of Owen’s recent articles was “The Fatal Stall” which was inspired by a recently released video on YouTube. We talk about stall/spin training, Owen’s approach to teaching stalls and factors that can lead to the stall.
     
  • We even touch on cricket a couple of times. I mean, really, cricket? How did that get in an aviation podcast?? :)
     
  • Finally we chat for a bit about Owen’s future projects

After chatting with Owen, we run a few World War 2 related segments that Steve recorded while on a road trip to Mildura, including:

Pieter Johnson has supplied us with another great From Up Here to Down There episode. This time he’s talking with Paul Fowler about the Enstone Flying Club’s “Spitfire Project” which aims to build a squadron of 12 of the Supermarine 90% scale Mk26B kits. Via their “Zero to Hero” classes, they will recruit pilots who will then fly the aircraft at airshows around Europe putting on public flying displays.

We then return to chatting with Owen and discuss:

  • Finding small aviation museums & historic sites around Australia.
     
  • How World War 1 aircraft are just as cool as World War 2 aircraft.
     
  • The Seaplane Pilots’ Association of Australia are having their “Splash In” on the 21st & 22nd of April at Lake Boga
     
  • The replica Spitfire & Mustang kits that are available to purchase.

We end up working through some Listener Mail & Shout Outs, including:

  • Howard McClernon says Hi, discusses the Ansett collapse and also remote controlled aircraft
  • Gary Clarkson asks about flying RA-Aus aircraft in Class C & D airspace
  • Justin Sarda points us at some amazing graffiti painted aircraft
  • Congratulations to Chris Barry for getting a $100k grant from the government to expand the aviation studies programme into more high schools
  • Sympathies to Steven Frischlng on the passing of his Dad
  • Congratulations to Ben Wickham on his recent engagement
  • Congraultations to Rod & Lisa Rakic (from MyTransponder) on the news that they are expecting a new potential pilot

In other news, we’ve started a mailing list to keep you posted on new episodes & interesting developments. You can sign up to receive it on our Facebook page and on our web site.

Finally, don’t forget that the Tyabb Air Show is on March 4th and the RA-Aus NatFly event is at Temora on April 6th & 7th.

One comment   Podcasts
  , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,