CTFC news 5 Septemer
==================
AGM 5 Sept
Sponsors/help needed for end of year function
Courses
ATP ground school
==================
AGM 5 Sept
Sponsors/help needed for end of year function
Courses
ATP ground school
Traps for unwary pilots
Aviation History
Aviation History
==================
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
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
==================
CTFC AGM Wed 5 Sept 18:30 for 19:00 (not 18:-- for 18:30 as written last week)
A reminder that the AGM will be taking place this evening (Wednesday). If you have a last minute vote for a new committee member, now is your chance to let Bevery know (info@capetownflyingclub.co.za).
==================
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
==================
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
==================
Traps for unwary pilots --> G Pinnock
During 2006 in South Africa, there were 130 accidents, which included 36 fatalities resulting from 21 accidents (SACAA).
This might seem less than one would expect, considering that in 2006 there were roughly 4000 aircraft on the register. However, we need to look at something called acceptable loss’
The airline industry has an acceptable loss of zero. RAF Bomber command's acceptable loss rate in WW2 was 4%. We need to ask ourselves what GA's acceptable loss rate is and what we are doing to decrease it.Aircraft accidents continue to feature prominently in the news, and contribute to the average person's fear of little planes and helicopters. Each accident affects us, either through rising insurance costs (insurers operate to make a profit after all) or by alarming the public with what is seen as a dangerous hobby/sport/career.
Trawling through the CAA website it appears that a large proportion of these accidents (107) were caused by pilot error (thats a whopping 82%!), while weather (11) and mechanical/maintenance (33) were the next major factors.
Unfortunately, the CAA does not split the fatalities into categories, but research in the USA suggests that up to 80% of accidents where weather is a contributing factor, end up in a fatality. Pilot error is a sweeping statement, and the public/news crews are often quick to shift focus to pilot error in any investigation. This is not to deny that a lot of accidents are caused by someone doing something reckless. It is used in its correct sense to state that the pilot responded to a given situation in the incorrect manner.
Those of us on the ground must remember that in the stress of the moment, the pilot summoned all his available knowledge and decided on an appropriate course of action. He believed so fully in the action that he willingly bet his life, and those of his passengers, on it. The fact that the pilot is not around to defend his actions should not stop us from attempting to understand why he acted as he did.
This series of articles will focus on weather issues and pilot error, and what we can do to avoid becoming a statistic on the CAA page ourselves.
Weather
1) Density altitude
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=a06_1188732892&p=1
The video shows a Beech Bonanza taking off from Cameron Park airport, California on 30 August 2007.
The temperature was 37 degrees Celsius and the airport has an elevation of 1250'. The pilot had 3 passengers on board. Initial reports indicate a density altitude of at least 4500' and an 8-knot tailwind.
Assuming that everything on the aircraft (including the engine) was functioning properly, let’s indulge in a hypothesis.
From the video (and witness confirmation), the plane took a long time to become airborne, and once airborne the pilot was visibly struggling to remain aloft.
We all know that we need air – personally and for our flying machines. Our aircraft engines positively gulp it down, while the wings need it to create lift.
We can imagine the air in the form of little boxes of a fixed size with a fixed volume. The engine and wings both need a certain amount of air (say 10 boxes per second) to continue doing their thing. Anything that decreases the quantity of what is in those boxes is going to affect both the engine and the wings.
As seen in the video, the engine and propeller suffered from decreased performance, which caused the aircraft to accelerate slowly. Since we need a certain speed to fly, we will need more runway to reach that speed.
The wings also need a certain number of boxes of air to create the required lift. Since the content of each box becomes less as density altitude increases, we need more boxes (say 20 per second) to achieve the same effect. The only way to get more boxes involved in the same amount of time is to move forward faster (therefore our TAS increases).
The end result of this particular incident was that, once out of ground effect, the engine did not have the power to overcome the increase in drag, and the wings could not support the aircraft at the low speed (notice the decrease in lateral stability after take-off). If we are unable to get the required lift at a certain speed, we could try increasing the Angle of Attack, which is what this pilot did. Unfortunately, the critical angle of attack was exceeded, and the aircraft stalled and descended.
The pilot wagered his life on the successful completion of the flight, but stacked the odds very heavily against him. He accepted the density altitude, the weight, and the 8knot tailwind. He bet against all of these, and lost.
So what is density altitude?
Density altitude is the altitude in the International Standard Atmosphere at which the air density would be equal to the actual air density at the place of observation. ‘Density Altitude’ is the pressure altitude adjusted for non-standard temperature. (wikipedia.org)
In layman’s terms, density altitude allows us to compare the current conditions with the conditions found in the aeroplane’s performance charts. Using this, we can then calculate how the conditions will affect our flight. It is therefore a vital calculation in flight planning.
So what affects the density altitude(which is simply a measure of the amount of air in the virtual boxes)?
The main one is clearly temperature. As the temperature increases, the air expands, which means that there are fewer air molecules in a given volume of air (in a box, for instance). This in turn of course leads to decreased performance, in both engine and wings.
So how does density altitude affect us?
Decreased performance means slower acceleration, which uses more runway. The climb performance will be reduced (because the power available is less, while more power is required just to sustain level flight). The increase in TAS will also be noticeable on landing, where the increased speed will lead to an increase in the amount of runway used.
In Cape Town, we are lucky to have a very long runway, virtually at sea level. On a hot day, we have more than enough runway available and we do not notice when we use more than we should. However, when flying to smaller strips at a higher elevation (especially in the Gauteng area), density altitude calculations are of vital importance.
Density alt = Pressure altitude + (temperature deviation from ISA x 120)
E.g: Hotazhells airfield is at 5000' pressure altitude, and the temperature is 38 C.
In ISA, at 5000' the temperature should be 5 degrees. (15- 10)
But in reality, it is 38 degrees C.
It is therefore 33 degrees warmer than it should be in ISA conditions. (Remember: ISA is what is in the aeroplane’s manual).
Density altitude is (33 x 120) + 5000.
If, like me, you can't do maths, just break it up:
33 x 100 = 3300
(30 x10) = 300
300 x 2 = 600
This gives a density altitude of roughly 9000 (3900+5000).
The aircraft will perform as if it is at an altitude of 9000'...which can catch the unsuspecting pilot by surprise...especially if he has loaded dice against him (overweight older aircraft which no longer performs as promised in the POH. Etc.).
Which means that you would be unable to get reach even 75% power, and you would need about 3000' to clear a 50' high obstacle - compared to the 960' needed at sea level (figures approximate for C172 and P28A).
Ask your instructor to demonstrate a simulated high-density altitude take off and see how the reduced performance affects the take-off and climb.
A hot day, little wind, and a heavy plane spell trouble. If you are in doubt, ask an instructor for help with the aircraft charts. The test pilots and engineers went to a lot of trouble to create those charts there is no need to replicate their test flights!
Fly safe!
==================
This month in aviation history --> Danny Buitendag
In September....
1907
The first piloted helicopter rises at Douai in France. Piloted by Volumard, it rises only about 2 feet and is steadied by men on the ground. It did not constitute free, vertical flight.
1908
The first fatality in a powered aeroplane occurs when Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge is killed while flying with Orville Wright at Fort Meyer, Virginia.
1911
The first mail carried by air in the United Kingdom is delivered. The mail contained messages for King George V and other members of the British royal family.
1913
French pilot, Roland Garros, becomes the first person to fly across the Mediterranean, a distance of 470 miles. He lands in Tunisia 7 hours and 53 minutes after taking off from France, which is of particular note because he only had enough fuel for 8 hours of flight.
1920
American pilot Howard Rinehart, flying a Dayton-Wright R.B Racer, becomes the first person to fly an aeroplane fitted with retractable landing gear.
1922
Dr. Albert Taylor and Leo Young, scientists at the US Naval Aircraft Radio Laboratory, make the first successful detections of objects by “radio observation”. They use wireless waves to detect objects not visible due to weather or darkness. This insight leads to the advent of radar.
1928
The first diesel engine to power a heavier-than-air aircraft is flight tested in Utica, Michigan.
1934
Lufthansa, Germany’s national airline flies its millionth customer.
1944
The first successful flight into the eye of a hurricane is made by a three-man American crew flying a Douglas A-20 Havoc. They demonstrate that valuable scientific information can be obtained in this manner, which is still done today.
1945
A British Gloster Meteor F.1 makes the first flight of an aircraft powered completely by turboprop engines. A turboprop or propjet is an aircraft with a propeller that is driven by a gas turbine engine.
1948
The first flight of a delta-wing jet aeroplane is made with the Convair XF-92A.
1953
The first aerial refueling of a jet aircraft by a jet tanker is made with a B-47 Stratojet by a KB-47B tanker.
1956
The first piloted airplane to exceed Mach 3 is the rocket-powered Bell X-2.
1964
The first take-off and landing of the XC-142A vertical take-off transport is made in Dallas, Texas. The aircraft has four 2,850-hp General Electric turboprops mounted on the wings that can pivot 90 degrees to allow for a vertical take-off.
1967
The governments of France, West Germany, and Britain sign a memorandum that calls for the development of the Airbus A300 wide-bodied jet airliner.
1982
The first round-the-world flight in a helicopter is completed as the Bell Long Ranger II, flown by Americans H. Ross Perot Jr. and Jay Coburn, lands safely.
1993
Boeing finishes production of their 1,000th 747 aeroplane, 26 years after the 747 program was launched.
2001
Hijackers launch a series of co-ordinated attacks on the USA. 3 airliners hit the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, while a 4th crashes short of its assumed target, Capitol Hill.
From www.centinnialofflight.gov
==================
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
==================
Traps for unwary pilots --> G Pinnock
During 2006 in South Africa, there were 130 accidents, which included 36 fatalities resulting from 21 accidents (SACAA).
This might seem less than one would expect, considering that in 2006 there were roughly 4000 aircraft on the register. However, we need to look at something called acceptable loss’
The airline industry has an acceptable loss of zero. RAF Bomber command's acceptable loss rate in WW2 was 4%. We need to ask ourselves what GA's acceptable loss rate is and what we are doing to decrease it.Aircraft accidents continue to feature prominently in the news, and contribute to the average person's fear of little planes and helicopters. Each accident affects us, either through rising insurance costs (insurers operate to make a profit after all) or by alarming the public with what is seen as a dangerous hobby/sport/career.
Trawling through the CAA website it appears that a large proportion of these accidents (107) were caused by pilot error (thats a whopping 82%!), while weather (11) and mechanical/maintenance (33) were the next major factors.
Unfortunately, the CAA does not split the fatalities into categories, but research in the USA suggests that up to 80% of accidents where weather is a contributing factor, end up in a fatality. Pilot error is a sweeping statement, and the public/news crews are often quick to shift focus to pilot error in any investigation. This is not to deny that a lot of accidents are caused by someone doing something reckless. It is used in its correct sense to state that the pilot responded to a given situation in the incorrect manner.
Those of us on the ground must remember that in the stress of the moment, the pilot summoned all his available knowledge and decided on an appropriate course of action. He believed so fully in the action that he willingly bet his life, and those of his passengers, on it. The fact that the pilot is not around to defend his actions should not stop us from attempting to understand why he acted as he did.
This series of articles will focus on weather issues and pilot error, and what we can do to avoid becoming a statistic on the CAA page ourselves.
Weather
1) Density altitude
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i
The video shows a Beech Bonanza taking off from Cameron Park airport, California on 30 August 2007.
The temperature was 37 degrees Celsius and the airport has an elevation of 1250'. The pilot had 3 passengers on board. Initial reports indicate a density altitude of at least 4500' and an 8-knot tailwind.
Assuming that everything on the aircraft (including the engine) was functioning properly, let’s indulge in a hypothesis.
From the video (and witness confirmation), the plane took a long time to become airborne, and once airborne the pilot was visibly struggling to remain aloft.
We all know that we need air – personally and for our flying machines. Our aircraft engines positively gulp it down, while the wings need it to create lift.
We can imagine the air in the form of little boxes of a fixed size with a fixed volume. The engine and wings both need a certain amount of air (say 10 boxes per second) to continue doing their thing. Anything that decreases the quantity of what is in those boxes is going to affect both the engine and the wings.
As seen in the video, the engine and propeller suffered from decreased performance, which caused the aircraft to accelerate slowly. Since we need a certain speed to fly, we will need more runway to reach that speed.
The wings also need a certain number of boxes of air to create the required lift. Since the content of each box becomes less as density altitude increases, we need more boxes (say 20 per second) to achieve the same effect. The only way to get more boxes involved in the same amount of time is to move forward faster (therefore our TAS increases).
The end result of this particular incident was that, once out of ground effect, the engine did not have the power to overcome the increase in drag, and the wings could not support the aircraft at the low speed (notice the decrease in lateral stability after take-off). If we are unable to get the required lift at a certain speed, we could try increasing the Angle of Attack, which is what this pilot did. Unfortunately, the critical angle of attack was exceeded, and the aircraft stalled and descended.
The pilot wagered his life on the successful completion of the flight, but stacked the odds very heavily against him. He accepted the density altitude, the weight, and the 8knot tailwind. He bet against all of these, and lost.
So what is density altitude?
Density altitude is the altitude in the International Standard Atmosphere at which the air density would be equal to the actual air density at the place of observation. ‘Density Altitude’ is the pressure altitude adjusted for non-standard temperature. (wikipedia.org)
In layman’s terms, density altitude allows us to compare the current conditions with the conditions found in the aeroplane’s performance charts. Using this, we can then calculate how the conditions will affect our flight. It is therefore a vital calculation in flight planning.
So what affects the density altitude(which is simply a measure of the amount of air in the virtual boxes)?
The main one is clearly temperature. As the temperature increases, the air expands, which means that there are fewer air molecules in a given volume of air (in a box, for instance). This in turn of course leads to decreased performance, in both engine and wings.
So how does density altitude affect us?
Decreased performance means slower acceleration, which uses more runway. The climb performance will be reduced (because the power available is less, while more power is required just to sustain level flight). The increase in TAS will also be noticeable on landing, where the increased speed will lead to an increase in the amount of runway used.
In Cape Town, we are lucky to have a very long runway, virtually at sea level. On a hot day, we have more than enough runway available and we do not notice when we use more than we should. However, when flying to smaller strips at a higher elevation (especially in the Gauteng area), density altitude calculations are of vital importance.
Density alt = Pressure altitude + (temperature deviation from ISA x 120)
E.g: Hotazhells airfield is at 5000' pressure altitude, and the temperature is 38 C.
In ISA, at 5000' the temperature should be 5 degrees. (15- 10)
But in reality, it is 38 degrees C.
It is therefore 33 degrees warmer than it should be in ISA conditions. (Remember: ISA is what is in the aeroplane’s manual).
Density altitude is (33 x 120) + 5000.
If, like me, you can't do maths, just break it up:
33 x 100 = 3300
(30 x10) = 300
300 x 2 = 600
This gives a density altitude of roughly 9000 (3900+5000).
The aircraft will perform as if it is at an altitude of 9000'...which can catch the unsuspecting pilot by surprise...especially if he has loaded dice against him (overweight older aircraft which no longer performs as promised in the POH. Etc.).
Which means that you would be unable to get reach even 75% power, and you would need about 3000' to clear a 50' high obstacle - compared to the 960' needed at sea level (figures approximate for C172 and P28A).
Ask your instructor to demonstrate a simulated high-density altitude take off and see how the reduced performance affects the take-off and climb.
A hot day, little wind, and a heavy plane spell trouble. If you are in doubt, ask an instructor for help with the aircraft charts. The test pilots and engineers went to a lot of trouble to create those charts there is no need to replicate their test flights!
Fly safe!
==================
This month in aviation history --> Danny Buitendag
In September....
1907
The first piloted helicopter rises at Douai in France. Piloted by Volumard, it rises only about 2 feet and is steadied by men on the ground. It did not constitute free, vertical flight.
1908
The first fatality in a powered aeroplane occurs when Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge is killed while flying with Orville Wright at Fort Meyer, Virginia.
1911
The first mail carried by air in the United Kingdom is delivered. The mail contained messages for King George V and other members of the British royal family.
1913
French pilot, Roland Garros, becomes the first person to fly across the Mediterranean, a distance of 470 miles. He lands in Tunisia 7 hours and 53 minutes after taking off from France, which is of particular note because he only had enough fuel for 8 hours of flight.
1920
American pilot Howard Rinehart, flying a Dayton-Wright R.B Racer, becomes the first person to fly an aeroplane fitted with retractable landing gear.
1922
Dr. Albert Taylor and Leo Young, scientists at the US Naval Aircraft Radio Laboratory, make the first successful detections of objects by “radio observation”. They use wireless waves to detect objects not visible due to weather or darkness. This insight leads to the advent of radar.
1928
The first diesel engine to power a heavier-than-air aircraft is flight tested in Utica, Michigan.
1934
Lufthansa, Germany’s national airline flies its millionth customer.
1944
The first successful flight into the eye of a hurricane is made by a three-man American crew flying a Douglas A-20 Havoc. They demonstrate that valuable scientific information can be obtained in this manner, which is still done today.
1945
A British Gloster Meteor F.1 makes the first flight of an aircraft powered completely by turboprop engines. A turboprop or propjet is an aircraft with a propeller that is driven by a gas turbine engine.
1948
The first flight of a delta-wing jet aeroplane is made with the Convair XF-92A.
1953
The first aerial refueling of a jet aircraft by a jet tanker is made with a B-47 Stratojet by a KB-47B tanker.
1956
The first piloted airplane to exceed Mach 3 is the rocket-powered Bell X-2.
1964
The first take-off and landing of the XC-142A vertical take-off transport is made in Dallas, Texas. The aircraft has four 2,850-hp General Electric turboprops mounted on the wings that can pivot 90 degrees to allow for a vertical take-off.
1967
The governments of France, West Germany, and Britain sign a memorandum that calls for the development of the Airbus A300 wide-bodied jet airliner.
1982
The first round-the-world flight in a helicopter is completed as the Bell Long Ranger II, flown by Americans H. Ross Perot Jr. and Jay Coburn, lands safely.
1993
Boeing finishes production of their 1,000th 747 aeroplane, 26 years after the 747 program was launched.
2001
Hijackers launch a series of co-ordinated attacks on the USA. 3 airliners hit the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon, while a 4th crashes short of its assumed target, Capitol Hill.
From www.centinnialofflight.gov
posted by Cape Town Flying Club at 12:37 PM
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