20 October 2010
Build Progress Summary
Build progress has been steady over the last few weeks and I have made good progress on the
Horizontal Stabiliser. I have drawn up the plans for the hinges I am getting made
and given these and the aluminum channel to my machinist friend who is making them up for me. Hopefully these will be
ready in a few weeks. In the meantime it is business as usual with the woodwork.
Goals For The Coming Week
- Continue with finishing up the woodwork on the HS.
- Order a 8' length of 3/16" rod to use to align the hinges.
- Order some Divinycell foam for the HS.
Recent News off the KRNet
There has been a lot of discussion on the relative sensitivity of the KR controls and how this pertains to new builders
learning to fly their KR's. The general consensus from those already flying their KR's is that the aircraft is sensitive
but that it is not difficult to learn to fly provided new builders get an introduction to flying responsive aircraft
before attempting to fly the KR by themselves. Most current KR pilots indicated that new pilots should be able to figure
out how to fly the KR within just a few minutes provided they are given some previous instruction.
Sonex JQP News
Sonex JQP has been getting a bit of airtime recently with Sandy Wilson, one of the
syndicate members, getting rated on the aircraft a couple of weeks ago. Sandy has been down and flown it a couple of
times since and is encouraging me to get my PPL renewal completed as quickly as possible so I can get into flying it
myself. Can't wait.
My Flying
My PPL renewal training has been going well. I did an evaluation flight with the
club CFI a couple of weeks ago and this went very well. He pointed out a couple of areas I need to focus on and
encouraged me to continue on with working through the air exercises. I also completed the English Language compentency
test which is a required part of getting a PPL in New Zealand and passed with flying colours. I am taking next week off
from work to focus on knocking off the last of the air exercises I need to complete and hope to be in a position to sit
my PPL flight test in early November. Hopefully the weather will cooperate.
Other Updates
I have added a couple of new links to the Aviation Articles page. There is quite an
interesting article on the Sub-Sonex jet currently being tested by Sonex aircraft.
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