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PUFA NEWSLETTER
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March 18, 2001
Ken Buck, President
Walter Klatt, Vice-President
Glenn Ursel, Treasurer
Daryl Hegyi, Secretary
Mail to: Pacific Ultralight Flying Association
102-16071 82 Avenue
Surrey, B.C. V3S 2L6
PUFA Newsletter published by Glenn Ursel
From The President
by Ken Buck
Wow! The February meeting was certainly lively! I enjoyed the meeting due to the vary diverse individuals all making acontribution in their own special way. You know what, even though we only had a "dirty dozen" or so of "hedge hoppers" out of a possible 40 (+/-) that is pretty darn good. I belong to a local union and if we get 20 out of 497 to a meeting, that is considered normal!
Don Willoughby has done an excellent job of preparing the basis for the coming summer Fly-outs. He supplied a lot of info at the last meeting in his full page hand out. Please swing his prop to get him really going by providing him with detailed information on locations to buzz and have fun.
Contact him at: donwilloughby@home.com or Fax: 669-8336 (where he is supposed to be working during the week) Cell: 805-3230 (probably not working and sneaking around some hangers) or maybe at home: 271-5537.
As you may have guessed, we'll be having a portion of the meeting relegated to "I Remember When...." Be prepared, I may call on someone to share an experience with the gang. Here's mine for the March meeting - Didja every cut paper? Well, come on out everyone, you all love the "third" dimension. Please come and share your dream with me and the rest of us.
Editorial Note
by Glenn Ursel
This month we have an article offered by Walter Klatt which summarizes the more esoteric definitions of what constitutes an ultralight in this country. As you may know, I am always looking for material to publish in this newsletter and you are all again encouraged to send me anything that might be of interest to our PUFA members.
As I often must do to produce the newsletter, I was surfing the internet this past week looking for articles of possible interest to PUFA members and I came across a Brian Gosnell’s column, Speaking Safety, in the website of the Buzzards Row Ultralight Club located at Allentown, New Jersey, USA. Brian has some pertinent information on mice which might be of interest to some of us. I know we have mice at our Glen Valley airfield, although so far, they seem to have confined themselves to our clubhouse and tool boxes rather than the airplanes themselves...
But Brian Gosnell’s article on Simple Green is a real shocker for me at least since I have been using the stuff to clean my prop mostly, but also occasionally some of the metal parts on the plane. It appears that this cleaner is not compatible with aluminium according to a report by an environmental program manager of the US Airforce based in San Antonio, Texas.
Finally, I offer the results of my own informal survey of ultralight websites across Canada to see what they do with regard to charging fees to advertise non members aircraft or restrict ads to club members only. I believe the results merit anotherlook at the vote we cast last month to offer free ads to non members.
What is an Ultralight?
A lot of people seem to be confused these days about what exactly is an ultralight. I am currently flying a Murphy Rebel which can be registered in Canada either as an ultralight or a homebuilt. I used to fly a Beaver RX550, and there seemed to be no doubt that this was an ultralight. But with some ultralights you can carry passengers. Which ones and why? What is an Advanced Ultralight? Then there are the powered parachutes. What are they?
Transport Canada now defines an Ultralight as having a stall speed no greater than 45 mph and a take-off weight no higher than 1200 pounds. So that explains why some planes like the Murphy Rebel can be registered as ultralights.
Another less known fact is that a homebuilt can also be piloted with an ultralight licence if it meets the 45mph/1200 lb definition of an ultralight. However, that does not mean your ultralight is a homebuilt, just because you built it yourself in your garage.
A homebuilt, or what Transport Canada calls Amateur-Built Aircraft, must comply with Chapter 549 of the Canadian Aviation Regulations and carry a Special Certificate of Airworthiness. That gives you essentially the same privileges as for private operations of certified aircraft, but includes similar paperwork and annual inspections which must be religiously maintained.
Then we have Advanced Ultra-light Aeroplanes. These are aircraft that meet the Transport Canada design standard TP10141 and are so designated by the manufacturer with a Statement of Conformity. The owners of these must follow a Manufacturer Specified Maintenance Program, and may not make alterations without written approval from the manufacturer. Passengers may be carried if the pilot holds a licence/permit providing passenger carrying privileges. At this point in time, only pilots with a Pilot Permit - Recreational or higher qualify for passenger carrying.
All other ultralights that do not meet or continue to comply with the Advanced Ultra-light Aeroplane requirements are then designated as Basic Ultra-light Aeroplanes. These also include Powered Parachutes and Trikes, or flex wing aircraft. These aircraft may be single or two seat, as long as it meets the 45mph/1200 lb Transport Canada definition of an ultralight. The two seaters may be used for flight training but not passenger carrying. However, two pilots with a Pilot Permit - Ultra-light Aeroplane may fly together in any ultralight.
So what about my old Beaver RX550? It was registered before the Advanced Ultralight category, which came out in the early '90's. Hence it is just a regular Basic Ultra-light Aeroplane. I do believe, though, that the newer Beavers did meet TP10141, and could be registered as an Advanced Ultralight.
Hopefully the above helps clarify the picture somewhat about "What is an Ultralight". If we really want to get confused, we can look at the new proposals by Transport Canada and UPAC on passenger carrying in ultralights, but we'll leave that for another time. If anyone has any questions or comments on this article, please contact me at (604) 930-2265 or you may email me at Walter.klatt@home.com.
Walter Klatt
It's been a while since I've graced this page with my talented and professional rant so here is my message for all of you that keep them pickled and put away for the winter. The word that comes to mind this time of year is "Mice". Yes, mice. The furry little rodents that seek shelter in your dormant aircraft during the winter months. These pesky creatures can wreak havoc to your aircraft while it is put up for the winter. I have heard of many ways to deter the pests from taking up shelter in your bird but most do nothing from keeping them from their goal. The best prevention is to visit your aircraft frequently, set mouse traps and remove nests when they are found. I have heard that moth balls help deter them from returning to their nest but I have no proof that this really works. I have seen people on the field throw a sacrificial towel or rag in the plane to give them something easy to chew on rather than chewing on your seat or worse, your electrical system. Once these critters find their way into your bird they proceed to build their nests out of anything they can find in the vicinity so the towel or rag become the most expendable item in the area. Be sure the towel or rag is clean as you don't want the critters to pass up this materiel for something you will have to replace in the spring. I will have more on this in the spring as I walk you through the potential trouble spots for damage. That's it for now... Have a nice winter and see you this spring.
JUST IN
I received this email from John Havens, in regard to the pest problem I mentioned in my column:
I was reading the "Speaking Safety" column, and I thought I'd put my two-cents in. I had mouse problems at my house, and we also had problems with mice chewing on the candles at Church. I found an electronic repellent at Home Depot that can operate on two different frequencies....one for mice and one for crawling critters like spiders and fleas. Within a week or so of deploying one in my house, my mice infestation was gone. I deployed another in our Church, and we've had bite-free candles ever since. These units are a little smaller than match boxes, and can run on a 9-volt should your power fail. I think they are about $25.00 a piece, but they are certainly worth it. The alternative is to line up little body bags for all mice to see.
Thanks John for checking in and sharing your tip with us!
Brian Gosnell
Buzzards Row Ultralight Club
Simple Green!
It's Simple -- Don't Use This To Clean Aircraft!
A well-known aviation magazine this month published a feature article
on cleaning one's aircraft and getting it ready for spring flying. Only
one problem -- a product the article recommended as safe for aviation use
has been proven corrosive to aluminum. The product is Simple Green, a popular
household cleaning liquid. According to the magazine's May issue -- which
included a photo of Simple Green and other products -- the liquid "does
an admirable job for a fraction of the
cost of the aviation cleaners." While that may be true as far as it
goes, both the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Army have conducted tests of
Simple Green and strongly urge that it not be used to clean aluminum structures.
In one test conducted by the U.S. Air Force, results from which were published
in 1989, aluminum alloy samples were immersed in Simple Green for a week
then removed, cleaned and weighed. The results indicated that the approximately
3.5-gram aluminum
alloy samples experienced a material loss of about 31 milligrams in
a diluted solution and a whopping 295 milligram loss after spending a week
in the undiluted liquid. The Air Force report summed it up this way: "We
do not recommend the use of this product on Air Force equipment containing
aluminum." Good advice, that.
NOTE: Check out the USAF report for yourself (at http://www.avweb.com/other/usaf0020b1.pdf) available in Adobe PDF format, free readers for which are available at www.adobe.com.
Most of have used this product on our aircraft in the past because of the great job it does on cleaning the sails but it looks like the disadvantages out weigh the advantages here. The problem with this product is that you may not see the damage it is causing over a period of time because the fabric is covering the aluminum and that creates a danger. Be forewarned, this stuff could be trouble.
Remember... Fly Safe! Safety is no accident.
Brian Gosnell
Buzzards Row Ultralight Club
Originally published at: http://buzzardsrow.com/speaking.htm