Enews 31 August 2007
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AGM 5 September
Sponsors/help needed for end of year function
Courses
ATP ground school

Fly Ins

Vredendal Fly in report back
Lessons learned at Vredendal
Resources for pilots
Aviation History
Out and about

Classifieds

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Dates to diarise

5 September - CTFC AGM

20 October - International day of the Air Traffic Controller/ATC flip day round 2

9-11 November - TFDC Fly-In, AFB Overberg www.flyin.org.za

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CTFC AGM Wed 5 Sept 18:00 for 18:30

You will all have received nomination forms by email, so if there is someone you wish to nominate to serve on the committee, please complete the form and email to Beverly (info@capetownflyingclub.co.za). If you did not get a form and wish to nominate someone, email Bev.

A reminder: Only fully paid up members can be nominated, and only fully paid up members may attend and vote at the AGM.

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End of year function

Vossie is busy organising the end of year function, and needs our help with the donation of prizes and sponsorships towards the cost of the event.
If you can help, or would like to be involved in the organising, drop Vossie an email on : geminimotors@telkomsa.net


Donated prizes so far:

Generously donated by Hein de Waal (General Manager: Kagga Kamma)

A weekend for 2 at Kagga Kamma in our lodge including accommodation, breakfast and guided excursions (game drive, sundowner trip, bushman paintings tour, stargazing).
www.kaggakamma.co.za

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Courses

ATP Evening Courses at CTFC -> Debby Mann

There will be an ATP evening course starting at the club on 15th October till 30 November 2007.
Price including Avex Notes R8000.00. Excluding notes R6000.00.

If you are interested, please contact Debby Mann on shenebix@kingsley.co.za

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Vredendal Fly In

Vredendal Fly In Report Back --> David Wilson

This past weekend was the Vredendal Fly-In. Not knowing what to expect, as this would be our first Fly-In, myself (David Wilson), Justin Visser and Francois Cloeté booked out KBK for the weekend.

As the days got closer we were all waiting in anticipation for the Friday. We had planned to camp by the plane and stay for the duration of the weekend, Friday to Sunday. Checking Weather SA almost every hour we wanted to make sure that our weekend wasn't going to be spoilt by the rain. Luckily the weather was going to be good for the Friday & Saturday but Sunday was predicted to be foggy and rainy.

On Friday morning I did the rest of the shopping that needed to be done to buy our food and supplies. We arrived at the flying club well in advance to pack and prepare the plane. The cloud was a bit low but the zone was still VMC. We waited a while for the weather to improve until we were certain that the cloud wasn't going to disrupt our flight. We filed the flight plan and departed FACT at 14:00 with myself flying the plane.

We were routed to Kenilworth and then cleared north over Ysterplaat. We passed the D200 and it was clear up to Yzerfontein. We were flying at FL035 just under the cloud base. Approaching Langebaan lagoon we had to descend to 1500ft to remain away from the cloud. After passing FASD we routed North Easterly to join the coast. We passed through the brief downpour of rain and joined the coast to route all the way up to Lamberts Bay, remaining under VFR conditions the whole time. At Lamberts Bay we headed inland and followed the highway all the way to Vredendal. We found the airfield with ease, thanks to the GPS and began our descent to join the circuit. We landed in a very strong left crosswind and were guided to our parking bay by the officials.

Vredendal early on Saturday. Over 100 aircraft took part in this event. Picture: Jaco van Zyl






















After we had completed unpacking the plane and pitching the tent it was late afternoon. We then tried to find a place we would could braai our food. Luckily I had been in contact with the organizer of the event so he knew that we would need a place to braai. We took the steel drum back to camp and placed it behind and well away from the aircraft. As the sun started to set the temperature started to drop drastically. We had dinner and then spent the rest of the evening huddled around the fire to keep warm. We then decided to call it a night at 23:30.

The campsite. Picture: Justin Visser




















I woke up at 04:00, as it was so cold, to find Justin and Francois wide awake as well. With four layers of clothing, a sleeping bag, inside a tent we had all suffered from the cold. We got up at about 05:00 to make some HOT coffee and checked the temperature gauge in the plane. It was 1°c. We then waited in anticipation for the sun to rise, while constantly making more coffee to keep us warm. When the sun did rise, it was great. We had breakfast, more coffee and were able to take some great photos.

By this time many aircraft were now landing to get in before the zone was closed for the air show. We were then joined by Gareth Pinnock and Chantal van Steijn in PMY and Jaco van Zyl and student in KSS. Just before :00 the air show started with the Silver Falcons. The day was spent admiring some of the performances at the show, slowly packing away camp and recovering in the sun from the night before.



KSS in parking bay Bravo 112 Picture: Jaco van Zyl
























The horde from the ground. Pitcure: Chantal van Steijn



















The Oryx demonstrating some fire fighting skills. Picture: Jaco van Zyl

































The Harvard in US Navy colours. Picture: Gareth Pinnock




















We decided that we were going to leave on the Saturday as the weather in Cape Town on Sunday wasn't looking good. At 14:00, the air show stopped for an hour to allow planes to arrive and depart. We departed at 14:40 with Justin flying us home. It was a bumpy ride home due to a tailwind. We also were able to fly back along the coast seeing many whales and some great sights.

G Pinnock departing. Picture: Stuart Soden




















All the planning we had done was definitely worth being up at Vredendal for the two days, being surrounded by all types of aircraft and people who are passionate about flying was truly a great experience. This also being our first Fly-In, we arrived with little knowledge of what to expect, but by the time we had departed, we had already started planning our next trip to the Overberg Fly-In on the way home.

--------------------

Lessons learned in Vredendal --> Linda Hodgkinson

1. Always take a passenger – you never know when you will need some cheap manual labour to help push the aircraft.

2. Always take a tow iron. Even if you stare at it the morning before you leave and think you won’t need it. You will. And then you probably don’t need the passenger after all.

3. Never open the filler caps until the second before you are ready to put in the fuel. You never know when some eejit is going to start up his aircraft right next to the fuel bay on a sandy taxiway.

4. Never leave the cockpit open – even for one second. Selfsame eejit will blow the whole cockpit full of fine sand before you can get to it to close it.

5.Always take LOTS of cash for fuel – at R12 a litre in Vredendal it hurts!

6. Always make sure you are smiling prettily even when you are concentrating on flying or taxiing your machine – you never know when your pic might appear on Avcom.

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Resources for pilots

For people looking to train on glass cockpits --> Russel Wolson
http://www.aero-tv.net/index.cfm?do=app.bestView&videoid=7811ac5b-95cf-4042-a266-04f15baffbfc

Great safety magazine --> G Pinnock
http://www.overtheairwaves.com

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Aviation History --> Danny Buitendag

In August....

1783
Jacques Alexandre César Charles flies the first balloon filled with gas rather than fire-heated air using hydrogen produced by pouring 489 lbs. of sulfuric acid on 1,000 lbs. of iron. The balloon has a diameter of 12 ft.

1871
Orville Wright is born in Dayton, Ohio. He is co-inventor, with his brother Wilbur, of the first aeroplane to achieve powered, sustained, and controlled flight and the first fully practical powered aeroplane. Orville piloted the famous first flight at Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina after winning a coin flip against his brother.

1908
Wilbur Wright makes the first flight using stick controls near Le Mans, France. The flight lasts 1 minute and 45 seconds.

1909
The first flying machine purchased and put into service by a government is the Wright Flyer. The US Army accepts its first airplane and pays the Wrights $25,000, plus a $5,000 bonus, because the machine exceeded the speed requirement of 40 mph.

1910
Radio is first used to send messages between the ground and an aeroplane when James McCurdy both sends and receives messages from a Curtiss biplane at Sheepshead, New York, using an H.M. Horton wireless set.

1910
The first aircraft tricycle landing gear is installed on the US Army’s Wright airplane.

1910
The first U.S. Army experiments with firing a rifle from an aeroplane takes place when Lt. Jacob Earl Fickel conducts firing trials from a Curtiss biplane piloted by Curtiss himself.

1912
Englishman Francis K. McClean becomes the first pilot to fly under bridges spanning the Thames River when he takes off from Harty Ferry, Eastchurch in his Short S. 33 biplane.

1913
American inventor Lawrence B. Sperry successfully demonstrates the first gyroscopic automatic stabilizing device for powered airplanes when Lt. Patrick N. L. Bellinger pilots a U.S. Navy flying boat designated C-2 and relinquishes full control to the autopilot.

1913
Lieutenant Petr Nesterov of the Russian Army in Kiev performs the first loop-the-loop. The complete circle and other intentional acrobatic stunts prove to be valuable experience for the wartime pilots during aerial battles.

1921
Lieutenant John A. Macready of the U.S. Army Air Corps finds a new use for aeroplanes when he sprays a patch of ground infested with caterpillars. This practice becomes known as crop dusting.

1923
The first use of electric beacons mounted on the ground to provide sight direction for night flying is made in the United States.

1933
Air France, France’s national airline, is formed.

1946
President Harry Truman signs a bill authorizing an appropriation of $50,000 to establish a National Air Museum in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C. The small museum eventually becomes the National Air and Space Museum - the most visited museum in the world.

1959
President Eisenhower replaces his aeroplane with a jet, a USAF VC-137A, which is a modified Boeing 707-120 jet-airliner. The switch allows the President to cut his travel time in half. Three were ordered. The picture is of a VC-137C.

1960
Captain Joe Kittinger jumps from a gondola, suspended from a balloon, 102,800 feet to the ground using a parachute. He breaks the records for greatest altitude from which a parachute descent had been made and the longest delayed parachute jump.

From www.centinnialofflight.gov

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Out and About

Benedict Poulter recently built some cross country time in PMY around Namibia. These are a selection of the scenery.
All pictures taken by Neil Hermann

The eye of the dune

















Moonscape
















Abandoned mines















The great divide
















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Classifieds

Instructors needed in Botswana
African Planes Flight Training Centre is a newly established flight school situated in the heart of Maun (an up and coming tourist town known as the gateway to the Okavango Delta in Northern Botswana)

We are looking to employ an instructor urgently!

The range of courses we offer includes:

PPL Training
CPL Training
C206 Conversion Courses
GA-8 Airvan Training
Instrument Rating Courses
Caravan Conversion Courses

We have our own Cessna 172 and a Cessna 206. For conversions and training on the Airvan and Caravan we utilise planes from Mack Air www.mackair.co.bw and other charter companies based here in Maun.

Also a new simulator for IF training has just been installed.

If you are a newly qualified student with an instructors rating looking for a position in an exotic place such as Botswana, where flying over the
breath taking Delta is routine, then please get in contact.
We need someone with lots of energy and enthusiasm who can take the initiative and who has a passion for flying!

We look forward to hearing from you now!

If you would like further information please contact Sandrine or Helen: africanplanes@dynabye.bw

Many thanks,
African Planes Team

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CTFC news 16 August
==================
New booking system on the cards
Sponsors/help needed for end of year function

Fly Ins

Women's Day Fly In
Out and about

Aviation News

==================

Dates to diarise

24-25 August- Vredendal Fly In

5 September - CTFC AGM

20 October - International day of the Air Traffic Controller

9-11 November - TFDC Fly-In, AFB Overberg www.flyin.org.za

==================
New booking system on the cards

If you have popped in at the club lately, you may have noticed the new large screen that greets you. This will soon be the the replacement for our stone age paper booking sheets.

Tony Russel has spent time developing and implementing the system, and is currently involved in testing the system for the club. Once the bugs are ironed out, the paper sheets will be phased out, and we will join the 21st century. We will also be able to view and make bookings from the comfort of your own computer.

Stay tuned...
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End of year function

Vossie is busy organising the end of year function, and needs our help with the donation of prizes and sponsorships towards the cost of the event.
If you can help, or would like to be involved in the organising, drop Vossie an email on : geminimotors@telkomsa.net

==================
Women's Day Fly in at FAWC 11/12 August --> Alexia Michaelides (pictures David Barnes, Alexia Michaelides, GP)

The Woman's Day Fly-in, organized by Worcester Flying Club 11-12 August was a lovely event. The weather looked extremely dodgy, lots of low cloud, rain and some strong winds. However, its good to know there are a few brave pilots amongst us. I was not one of them however, and elected to drive, taking Sue Barnes with me. Sue and I arrived before any aircraft, and we braved the rain and snow in front of a roaring fire inside the Worcester Club house. We were met by Ursula and Paul with coffee, rusks etc.


Linda's weather fairy hard at work - rain and water everywhere!
























The first brave pilot to arrive was David Barnes in ZS-KSS, followed by Gareth Pinnock in ZS-KBK. Both pilots executed superb landings on a very wet runway, and the passengers in the Warrior seemed to have survived the gusty winds and rain showers along the way. Shortly afterwards, a Bonanza joined overhead piloted by Dietland Lempp with Linda Hodgkinson. Once again, the girls showed the guys how its really done.




















Despite the snow on the mountain and the very wet airfield, we settled down in front of the fireplace until dinner was served. We had no idea that we were in for a treat of note. Paul told us he was cooking supper, but we did not know that he is, in fact, a chef!! We started with a Caprese salad which was delicious, followed by a pyramid of grilled prawns with chocolate chilli sauce. The food was absolutely delicious. And just when you thought you could not eat any more, Paul announced "the main course" (?!?) which was a fabulous chicken risotto. The wine flowed merrily and we all got noisier and noisier as the evening progressed. After force feeding ourselves madeira cake and hot custard (it was so delicious I had to challenge Pinnock to a duel for the last square) we all collapsed around the fire place with coffee, some bad jokes and the odd flying story (duh!).











Accommodation varied according to your sense of adventure. The grown-ups stayed at two
lovely B&B's, Aan de Doorns (highly recommended, authentic Cape Dutch and very beautiful) as well as Church St Lodge (also lovely but a bit more corporate than quaint). Gareth and the rest of the kids camped in the hangar but assured us they were warm and cosy and we took their word for it. We arrived back at the airfield in time for breakfast. If dinner was anything to go by, we knew we were going to be in for yet another treat. Besides coffee and muffins, toasted ham and cheese - but not your average ham and cheese. The cheese sauce was kind of a designer cheese sauce made from 3 different kinds of cheese plus cream and butter. This was followed by fried egg with toast, not to mention fruit juice and yoghurt. We ate ourselves stukkend.


The kids unpacking their toys (note snow above Gareth's head...magnifying glass available on request)









We went to Worcester to a "fly-in" which turned out to be a cordon bleu experience. I am sorry for those who were not able to make the trip, but next time..... do NOT miss out. I would like to extend a big thank you to Linda Hodgkinson who made all the arrangements, but most of all to Ursula et al of Worcester Flying Club who made this a most memorable week-end.

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Out and About

CTFC pilot Brad Gargan flying Scenic Air's bird, V5-JAG in Namibia






















Brad taking in the sights






















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Aviation News this week

Plane lands on car near Brits --> IOL.co.za (15 August 2007)

A "normal" emergency landing for pilot Dale de Klerk ended alarmingly when he accidentally touched down on Sid Mann's car in an incident that has left aviation fundis gasping in disbelief.

The case of a small plane landing on a Mercedes-Benz driving along a quiet road is apparently a freak incident which, according to De Klerk, "nobody I have spoken to can remember ever having happened before".

"I mean what are the chances? It must be a billion to one," De Klerk said.

The incident that brought Mann and De Klerk together happened on Tuesday morning on the R512, about 23km outside Brits.


Mann was on his way to Brits in his Mercedes when he got the shock of his life. "I had no idea what happened. The windows shattered and I hadn't seen anything. I had no idea there was a plane on my roof."

De Klerk had taken off from the Aviator's Paradise airfield near Hartbeespoort Dam in his single-seater Ceenie 2, intending to deliver a package to Krugersdorp.

A short while later the engine cut out and he realised he was going to have to glide to an emergency landing. He prepared to land on the R512.

As he touched down he realised he had landed about 1,5m above what he expected to be the ground, but carried on cruising, unaware of the fact that his plane was resting on the roof of Mann's car. De Klerk escaped without a scratch.

Mann suffered some minor scratches and cuts. The car was badly damaged. The plane fell off the car and broke a wing.

Both Mann and De Klerk were interviewed on Talk Radio 702 on Wednesday.

CTFC news 10 August
==================
ACSA Fees

Fly Ins

Women's Day Fly In
Tools for Pilots

Aviation News

Humour

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Dates to diarise

3 August - Party at CTFC

11-12 August - Woman's Day Fly in at FAWC

24-25 August- Vredendal Fly In

5 September - CTFC AGM

20 October - Aerobatic Nationals, Oudtshoorn

9-11 November - TFDC Fly-In, AFB Overberg www.flyin.org.za

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ACSA Fees (Update) --> AWSA

Subsequent to the publication of Government Gazette no 29987 (22/62007) and Government Gazette 30021 (29/06/2007), which included details of substantial increases, ACSA has published a further large increase of fees in Government Gazette 30136 (2/8/2007). This update follows barely a month after the promulgation of the original fee increase and replaces Gazette number 30021. Aviation observers have expressed dismay at these latest developments. This gazette can be found at:

http://awsa.co.za/docs/20070803_gg30136.pdf

The new fees, which will become effective at the beginning of November, will result in an increase of passenger fees of 55.9% for domestic flights and as high as 66% for some cross border flights. Landing fees will increase by 15.6% and parking fees by 12.7%.

Compounded by the growth rate of 12% pa for passenger movements and 8% pa for aircraft movements, ACSA profits will in all probability reach unheard of new heights in the 2008 financial year. According to comments by some of ACSA's larger users the situation has become untenable and will now require drastic remedial action.

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Women's Day Fly in at FAWC 11/12 August

Join us for a fun excursion on Saturday 11 August to FAWC. The guys and gals there will treat us to dinner, entertainment and breakfast on Sunday morning for those who will be staying over.

Please book your accommodation ASAP if you haven't already done so: Aan de Doorns 023 342 1402 or Church Street Lodge 023 342 5194 or camp at the airfield if you prefer (Ed at the Gliding club 084 277 6233).
Please let Ursula know urgently how many people she should cater for or you may have to watch while the others enjoy their scrumptious meal. R80 for both dinner and breakfast - what a steal!
Mail Ursula at shebear@acenet.co.za or call her on 028 272 9193 or 076 166 8761.

If you are looking for passengers to fill your plane, or are a passenger looking for a plane to fill please let Linda know.

If the weather fairy decides to mess up our flying plans, we'll drive up and spend the night there anyway. That'll teach her.

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Tools for pilots --> submitted by Russel Wolson

Online weather station dedicated to the GFA in the Delta 200 area in Cape Town. Live updates every 15 minutes.

www.bushwacker.co.za/wx.htm

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Aviation News this week --> Gareth Pinnock/Danny Buitendag/ Anthony Berkow

Plane crashes into a house in JHB (and the callousness of our society)
Emergency landing gone wrong near Cullinan
Improving African Air safety
GA flying in Israel


Plane crashes into Jo'burg house 8 August (from News24.com)

Johannesburg - A seriously injured man was trapped in the wreckage of a Piper aircraft which crashed into a Johannesburg house on a flight between Lanseria and Grand Central airports on Wednesday, police said.

Senior Superintendent Eugene Opperman said the Civil Aviation Authority was investigating the crash.

There were two people in the aircraft when it hit the house, then a tree, in Birdhaven, Johannesburg, said Johannesburg Fire and Emergency Management Services spokesperson Malcolm Midgley.

They had been on a routine test flight, he said. Both occupants of the plane were seriously hurt in the crash. No one in the house was injured.

The cause of the crash was not immediately known.

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Near-tragic plane crash draws onlookers --> Lebogang Seale (IOL.co.za)

Curious children jostled to peep through the hole of the wall into the yard of a mansion.
Their mission: to catch a glimpse of the mangled wreck of a plane.
Others screamed at their parents to carry them shoulder high, All the while, cameras - including the cellphone variety - clicked.

'I don't understand how something like can happen. It's so sad, but cool!'
This was the scene on the corner of Wingfield and Greenaces avenues in Birdhaven, Joburg, when a near-tragic plane crash transformed the garden into an instant tourist attraction.

The accident happened on Wednesday evening when a Piper Seneca twin-engined light plane crashed into the property, seriously injuring the pilot and the co-pilot.

The men - Michael Richards, 47, and his colleague, known only as H Matticks, 48 - were on a routine flight when they lost control of the plane, according to emergency services workers.

On impact the co-pilot was thrown out of the plane and landed on some tree logs.
The pilot was trapped in the mangled wreck of the aircraft. It took paramedics almost an hour to rescue him.
Their condition on Thursday was said to be stable.

On Thursday, scores of people descended on the quiet suburb as news of the crash spread.
When a team from The Star arrived, a fleet of cars lined the street and curious people - most with their children - wanted to catch a glimpse of the spectacular accident.

"Oh my God! Look at the wing! It's so huge. Daddy, what kind of a plane is that?" asked one child.
The wing was suspended on a tree in the garden.
The plane's propeller lay between the wall and the tree. Next to it was the engine. Mangled pieces of metal lay scattered.
"It's crazy. I don't understand how something like can happen. It's so sad, but cool!" said 10-year-old Matan Traube, from Melrose.

Brothers Adam, 14, and Doron, 12, interjected: "It's exciting because it's like history. An aeroplane crashing into a garden? Jeez!"
Nadine Singer, 34, from Savoy said: "It's so scary, very frightening. It's just a matter of luck that no one was seriously hurt or killed."
Even more bewildered was Mary Lang, 59. "It's so shocking. I'm just happy that people survived," she said - complaining that her cellphone camera was fading.

As more and more people arrived and milled about the yard, the owners of the crash site stood chatting at the main gate.
"It's quite disturbing. Not what we expected," was all Yvonne Schneider, the daughter in the family, would say.

Andre Snyman, the first Netcare 911 paramedic to arrive on the scene, said the pilot and his colleague were extremely lucky to have survived.
"When I arrived, the co-pilot was lying about three metres in front of the aircraft after being flung out.
"The pilot was still trapped inside the cockpit.
"I feared for the worse because I could see only his upper abdomen. I wasn't sure if his legs were broken.
"I became concerned when he complained of some pains on his legs but was relieved when he said the pain was not severe."

Snyman said the men were extremely lucky the aircraft did not catch fire.

========================
"Plane flips over after landing --> News24.com 30/07/2007

Johannesburg - Paramedics say a mother and son escaped almost unharmed when their light aircraft flipped over after an emergency landing in a field near Cullinan.

The pair had been flying around Cullinan for several hours when they were forced to make an emergency landing.

The plane was piloted by a man in his 40s, accompanied by his mother.

Netcare 911 spokesperson Nick Dollman said the aircraft flipped over onto its roof after it had taxied for about 100m along the bumpy field after a successful emergency landing.

"The plane landed upside down with the roof on the ground and its wheels in the air."

"The mom had a cut on her face but both occupants were extremely lucky to escape with minor injuries."

The plane was a write-off, he said."

========================

African Civil Aviation Authority aims to boost African air safety --> www.seattlepi.com

DOUALA, Cameroon -- As Capt. Terry Palmer's airliner neared the international airport at this commercial hub in central Africa, the routine weather report he received from the tower indicated light rain and scattered clouds on the final approach.

"Instead, in the fading light I saw this huge black mass, like a twister just to the side of the runway heading. It was a waterspout, the top of which appeared to be significantly above our level," said Palmer, who was flying a Canadian-built DHC-6 twin turboprop from Cameroon's capital of Yaounde.

"If that had been at night and if we had flown into it, I wonder if we would have survived it," the New Zealander said.

Palmer's experience illustrates Africa's continuing problems with air safety. These were highlighted last month when a brand-new Kenya Airways Boeing 737-800 crashed into a jungle swamp seconds after take-off from Douala airport, killing all 114 people aboard.

The continent traditionally tops international air accident lists, with a crash rate about seven times higher than the rest of the world.

But now, Africa has a new tool to try to improve its safety record. African governments on June 28 will inaugurate a continent-wide air safety agency that is modeled on the EU's Aviation Safety Agency and the U.S. Federal Aviation Agency.

"Until now air safety was left to individual countries, but from now on the African continent will speak with one voice," said Harry Eggerschwiler, chief of operations for the African Civil Aviation Authority, or AFRO-CAA.

"The political will is there to reverse the trends," he said.

In the 1960s and 70s, outgoing colonial powers such as France and Britain established national aviation authorities to regulate commercial carriers. But lack of qualified staff and little or no government oversight caused local airlines to quickly allow standards to slip.

"In Africa it's not considered particularly unusual to reach a scheduled destination at night and find the airport closed, the runway lights off and air traffic control nonfunctional," said David Ryerson, a South African pilot who flew for the now-defunct Air Afrique. "We would usually just circle awhile and then head off to an alternate airport."

The industry deteriorated further with deregulation in some countries, creating a large number of new operators that frequently fly old Soviet-built aircraft leased from Ukraine, Moldova or other former Soviet republics in Central Asia.

The broader problems of extreme weather, poverty, war and corruption also have had a damaging impact on Africa's air industry, contributing to numerous crashes over the past decade.

According to accident statistics compiled by the International Air Transport Association, the number of major accidents per million takeoffs in Africa amounted to 4.31 in 2006, compared to a worldwide average of only 0.65.

The safety record is so dismal that the European Union now bans 74 African airlines - from a total international blacklist of 91 - from entering its air space.

Last year the African Union, the continent's political umbrella organization, established the AFRO-CAA as a means to stem "the alarming rate of accidents, hull losses and fatalities in the African continent when compared to statistics of other areas of the world."

The new organization will have a total of about 80 to 100 staff members at headquarters and another 25 in its five regional offices in Ethiopia, Cameroon, Libya, Nigeria and South Africa.

Its principal tasks will be to improve overall safety standards by developing uniform technical standards known as Civil Aviation Requirements for use in flight operations and aircraft maintenance.

It also will synchronize the licensing of pilots and issuing certificates of airworthiness to airliners, which would replace widely differing national regulations. And it will provide experts to assist national authorities in implementing safety procedures.

The FAA has offered free training for air operations officers and accident investigators, Eggerschwiler said. The European Union also has offered assistance to the new agency.

"This will be a big step to improve safety in Africa," Eggerschwiler said. "When you go to international safety meetings you always hear 'Africa, Africa.' Well, we are now doing something about it."

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Israeli Goverment plans to fortify light aircraft to prevent use in terror attacks --> Zohar Blumenkrantz, Ha'aretz Correspondent

Israeli Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz has announced plans to outfit all light aircraft in the country with sophisticated anti-theft devices that will prevent them from being stolen for use in terror attacks.

The Transportation Ministry on Tuesday published an appeal to private industry to develop sophisticated security devices that will prevent theft or interference with flights during landing or takeoff.

Since the terror attacks of September 11th, 2001, owners of light aircraft in Israel have been required to affix special locks to their aircraft, to prevent them from being opened or moved while they are on the runway.

The ministry's new initiative would call for special security devices that would notify a special control room after any attempt to tamper with or break into aircraft.

There are currently about 660 private aircraft in Israel, of those 440 are of the Piper or Cessna class, 190 are Ultra-lights, and 53 are gliders.
========================

Humour

Heard on the airwaves --> Chantal van Steijn

(Comair on final approach to FACT)

TWR: Comair 123, winds light and variable, cleared to land

.......

TWR: Comair 123, winds light and variable, cleared to land



Comair 123 : Sorry Tower, but now our passengers also know that we are cleared to land!