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Lookout - why are so many pilots so careless?

Cobalt wrote:

The ascent of FLARM in the gliding community shows that lack of an electrical system is no obstacle.

FLARM only works with a small subset of GA traffic, and is a proprietary closed system that’s even encrypted. Peter’s quite right when he says it’s useless outside the gliding community.

Until last year, there was no inexpensive to acquire and inexpensive to install (portable) EC system that was visible to anything that’s actually standards compliant (ADS-B), just a smorgasbord of incompatible EC systems that wouldn’t have shown on that helicopter’s TCAS. Now there is, but only in the UK at present, so it would still not have been any help to that Bucker which was in Spain. Everywhere else, lacking an electrical system is still an obstacle because you still have to have the full Mode-S fit.

Last Edited by alioth at 10 Jan 09:45
Andreas IOM

There are various incompatibilities on the serial format e.g. GTX330-TAS605 is software version dependent (can’t find the thread right now).

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Timothy wrote:

Really, I didn’t know that. Sorry for the thread drift, but how does an encoder inform the transponder of the altitude then – is it digital? Has it always been digital? I assumed that in the early days of Mode C it would have been a simple voltage.
It has always been digital. The old style is 10 or 11 parallell wires, the new style is serial transmission.
And are all encoders cross compatible, or do you need the right one for your transponder?
AFAIU they are all compatible as long as they both accept either serial or parallell input.

ESKC (Uppsala/Sundbro), Sweden

The Mode S Trig we have has an in-built encoder, and just needed a T-piece in the static air feed to link with a tube from the aquarium section of the local pet shop.

Maoraigh
EGPE, United Kingdom

The ascent of FLARM in the gliding community shows that lack of an electrical system is no obstacle.

Biggin Hill

Timothy,

The helicopter was using the grass, the Partenavia the runway. The CAA then decided that both Heli and Fixed Wing must use the same circuit and altitude, even worse than before; last November this was changed again with the helis having the circuit on the opposite side now.

EBKT

Very sad to hear of your friend, Alioth.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Steve6443 wrote:

Photograph was taken 3rd January 2018, in Spain…..

Please tell me the pilot wasn’t Scottish (a pilot who occasionally visits my home airfield is a Scot usually based in Spain and owns a Bucker).

Update: a bit of Google searching shows it was him (Don Milne) :-( I only flew with him a couple of times (he flew with me in the Auster, and also he took me flying in one of his helicopters) and didn’t know him that well but it always hits you when it’s someone you knew.

Although I didn’t know Don all that well, judging by the helicopter I flew with him in, he wasn’t the “anti transponder” type. Of course I don’t know what he had in the Bucker.

Last Edited by alioth at 09 Jan 15:01
Andreas IOM

Is that do do with mixing the types, or with having two circuits very close together?

Or, to put it another way, had the helicopter lined up on the runway and taken off, would the collision have happened?

EGKB Biggin Hill

The mix of helicopters and fixed wing in the same circuit is very bad. A couple of years ago we had a local helicopter, in initial climb after take-off swap paint with a twin Partenavia also on initial climb. This is about as close as you can get without being hurt. Only the paint to show the contact, no other damage. Rotor against elevator.

EBKT
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