Welcome all to our February newsletter, a little late but I held off to incorporate a brief report on the PPP held 2/3 March.
Autumn Fly-in: Tasmania Fly-in Feb 14, 15 and 16.
Earlier in February we held our Autumn Fly-in, assembling in the afternoon of Friday the 14th at “Panshanger” near Launceston in Tasmania. Most of the attendees arrived mid-afternoon in challenging visibility due to smoke, to land at George and Maree Mill’s excellently maintained airstrip at Longdown (YLDG). Highlight of the day was a magnificent BBQ meal provided by George, Maree, their family and staff. The weather was delightful and the hospitality exemplary.
Saturday morning saw us assembled early (7:30) outside our Launceston motel (The Penny Royal) for a short bus ride to Longdown for breakfast. After breakfast at the bakery, we again boarded the bus and worked our way up the mountains to “The Wall in the Wilderness” at Derwent Bridge where we admired the amazing workmanship of Greg Duncan on his Huon pine masterpieces.
We then progressed to a picnic lunch by Lake St.Clair in “challenging” weather conditions, before returning to Launceston.
Our dinner Saturday night was at The Cataract restaurant adjacent to our motel, a most enjoyable evening with lovely food, beverage and company.
Sunday morning had us all busing back to “Panshanger” again via the bakery at Longford for breakfast, then to a lazy, late-morning departure back to the mainland. A few stayed on for a couple more days to further enjoy the sights of Tasmania.
A huge thank-you to George, Maree and to all of the helpers at Panshanger. A special shout-out to Danny and Marion Georgeson who flew their 250 (VH-CDA) all the way from Rockhampton in Queensland to attend. Trips like that are what our Comanche’s were made for!
Comanche Pilot Proficiency Program: Deniliquin NSW February 28 to March 2
The 27th conduct of the Australasian Tribe Comanche Pilot Proficiency Program was held at Deniliquin on the weekend of February 28 to March 2. This was one of our larger PPP programs with 14 Comanches on the field, 17 persons on the course and 29 attending the Saturday night dinner. Noteworthy was the attendance and involvement of 5 Comanche experienced, CASA appointed, industry Flight Examiners (Tony Smith, Nigel Wettenhall, David Miller, Chris Gregory and Nathan Muller) who provided an incredible depth of aviation experience and Comanche knowledge to this course.
Our two key areas of focus on this PPP were “Safe Operations at Uncontrolled Airfields” and “Confident Handling of your Comanche”. For five of those on the course this was their first Comanche PPP and so separate sessions covering the key Comanche systems were provided to them.
The PPP commenced on Friday afternoon with a short briefing and an excellent BBQ dinner provided by the Deniliquin Aero Club. The group reconvened on Saturday morning for a short flight to Swan Hill for morning tea and a return to Deniliquin to practice their arrival, departure and alerted see-and-avid procedures at uncontrolled airfields. Most attendees had the opportunity to fly with one of our experienced PPP instructors in which they diverted via Kerang to practice their Comanche flying techniques. Weather was perfect for the flight, we all self-separated well, and feedback was very positive.
After lunch Chris Gregory (Flight Examiner and experienced Twin Comanche owner) from Gawne Aviation in Shepparton led a great discussion on VMC loss of control and inadvertent spinning). Although of most interest to Twin Comanche Owners the spin recovery techniques were very useful for the PA24 pilots as well.
A huge highlight of the weekend was the long awaited re-appearance of the Comanche Head-dress at our dinner on Saturday night. George Mills flew from Tasmania to return the errant headdress to its rightful place with the current Tribe Chief. For this occasion, we were joined by a number of additional guests, including life member John Macknight and his wife Jan, Roger Lenne, Brian Zrna, Martin Reynoldson, Chris Gregory’s wife Nishi and daughter Tassani.
Tony Matthews, former chair of CASA, former Airservices Australia Board Member, Regional Airline owner and long-time Comanche flyer, provided our after dinner entertainment with recollections of his aviation career and the development and future of our industry. It was a great night with the Deniliquin RSL provided an excellent meal.
On Sunday our large group joined the Deniliquin Aero Club for their regular Sunday morning Breakfast feast. After this, most departed for home however our first-time PA24-250 attendees (David Smith, Louis Cameron, and Andy Robertson) joined Lawrence and Ken for the aircraft walk around and further systems presentations.
While not our regular format the weekend provided both excellent Comanche training and good company and we are looking forward to our next PPP in Marybourough QLD in July.
All the best
Nigel Wettenhall