Vale, General Yeager Sometime today, you will find yourself processing the news that the famous twinkle has forever left the clear eyes of Brigadier-General Charles E. Yeager. I heard the news from my friend Ronald, who heard it on the radio. Then I checked and found I’d not known for around five hours. Part of me regretted that. Another part was glad I hadn’t found … Continue reading Missing Man
Oh dear. I think I might have gotten a bit ‘soap boxy’ last month. I don’t want to give the impression that I’m anti-enterprise, or anti-airlines, or anti- very much, really. Who has the time? I am, if anything, a little passionate about aviation and the freedom to practise it. And so I’m still committed to writing a follow-up article for ‘If you build it…’ … Continue reading Gone awry
The way to fly I’ve been reading aerodynamics books over the last month. I know. So cool, right? I don’t apologise. I find the subject fascinating and the more I learn, the more it makes me want to find out. I have it so bad that I find the engineers at NASA JPL and Langley genuinely cool. Sigh! I guess there are far lesser people … Continue reading Go with the flow
Grand circle route Back in the day, Qantas crews referred to their long-haul Super Constellations as ‘the best three-engined airliners in the world’. The complicated, 18 cylinder turbo-compound Wright R-3350-972-TC18DA ‘Duplex Cyclone’ engines arrayed along the wings paid for their incredible 3,250 HP output (each) with a propensity to failure. In fact, Qantas had spare engines stored at every stop along its Kangaroo Route from … Continue reading Four turning
A week or so ago, UK-based author Mitch Peeke sent me this story of a recent unplanned visit to his old gliding club. While I’m sure it stirred up memories for Mitch, it also brought the magic rushing back from my own Saturdays with the Adelaide Soaring Club. It seems the charm of sunshine, dry grass and sleek sailplanes is the same the world over. … Continue reading Doing it quietly
Ready for anything Thanks for standing by, airscapers. (And thanks for not asking what happened to June!) Back in February, I think, I flagged the potential of some changes that would impact on airscape one way or another this year. Turns out I was right. But still, the changes came later than I’d expected and, true to life, were completely different from what I’d planned. It … Continue reading Stacking up
Aviation culture If you’ve been following airscape for a while, you’ll know that January is hardly the most productive time of year. A combination of having kids home for the holidays and Adelaide’s furnace-fierce summer weather makes writing difficult, to say the least. Happily things are returning to normal now. And one way or another, I’m planning to make 2018 a pivotal year. For now, … Continue reading Firing up
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