Natfly 2011

The flying itch was burning away at me for ages. I got my PPL way back in the late seventies, but getting married and raising a family meant giving up flying for the time being.

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Flying the Tecnam P92 at Coldstream

Besides resurrecting my PPL at Moorabbin, I've also been working on getting my RAA certificate at Tooradin. Tooradin's a lovely place on the North coast of Western Port Bay, Victoria. Most of the training is done in Jabiru 160's and 170's. For some reason Jabirus and me didn't get on very well, the words "use more rudder!" still ringing in my ears. I also found the ergonomics not to my taste, a bit like a wine connosieur tasting some cheap swill from the supermarket. There's nothing inately wrong with the Jabiru, I just couldn't get used to using the centre mounted control stick with my right hand and having my left hand reach halfway across the panel to reach the carby heat.

Enough waffling about the Jabiru. Having tasted the Tecnam when in New Zealand a year ago, I wanted to give it another try at Royal Vic Coldstream.  The P92 Tecnam is a highwing LSA aircraft that will cruise at around 95 to 100 knots at around 4800rpm. The donk is a Rotax 100hp engine partly water cooled and will run on avgas or premium mogas. The instrument layout is far more professional than the Jab and just for me they've got a centre mounted throttle (as well as one on the left of the panel), allowing me to control the stick with my left hand.

On takeoff the Tecnam literally leaps into the air and climbs effortlessly even with 2 pob. It's very easy to control in flight, although you still need to pay attention to the rudder in a turn to counteract adverse yaw. We did some medium turns followed by some steep turns which the Tecnam made easy and fun. We also had a look at how the application and reduction of power  affects yaw requiring changes in rudder pressure.

Joining the circuit at Coldstream was easy, once the instructor showed me where the airfield was; circuits to the East are the norm so you don't stray into Lilydale's airspace. My first landing attempt was nothing short of disastrous, getting caught by a shifting crosswind and some windshear thrown in for good measure. I also found that the elevators were still very responsive and I managed to balloon in the flair so high that a goround was required.

The next two landings were much better, coming in a little higher and with only takeoff flap selected, she was much easier to handle in the tricky conditions. Well. my instructor and I both survived the ordeal and besides being a little tricky during the flare, the Tecnam is a beautiful to fly.

I would also like to try the Texan at Tooradin, which is a low wing model. People I've spoken to have raved about its flying qualities so I want to compare it against the Tecnam to see which one I will use to finish off my RAA ticket.

Stay tuned for more exciting adventures in the coming weeks!

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