rdav

I flew in to Lethbridge from Great Falls to clear customs. It was a relatively painless experience, but I did receive a bill for $12 a few weeks later. Last year I had cleared customs at YYC and received a much larger bill. I prefer the Lethbridge experience, especially considering how close it is to Great Falls. I avoided YBW as my initial entry airport simply because I don't have CANPASS, so I'm interested to hear if you are able to clear here.

I've only experienced carb ice once in my Mooney, flying near Kelowna, British Columbia. It was a very humid day, with temps at freezing. Definitely ran rough with carb heat on, but that was better than how rough she ran without the carb heat on!

Was great to see you there, Jolie! Definitely a fun event!

You may have just saved me a diversion the next time I head for Calgary! Excellent!

I don't think you can clear customs at Lethbridge .. not a port of entry. Last time I cleared at Regina and avoided hefty fees, then went west to Medicine Hat and then to Springbank. I did have the experience of clearing at Calgary International before. Very friendly controllers and FBO staff, but the NAV Canada landing fee left me hurting.

I would also chose CYBW, but if you're lucky enough to have clear weather and light winds why not consider a trip to Golden, BC (CYGE)? One hour from Springbank along the Transcanada highway. The view of the Rockies through that pass is amazing. Much better at 10,000 ft than at 30,000 ft! Just watch that mountain wave! The winds channel through that pass from the west.

I did my transition training at Namao Flying Club in Edmonton. They have an M20d with the retractable gear mod that they offer for training and rental.

I'd get some professional advice to estimate the costs to do this. It is certainly possible, but the completeness of the plane paperwork will determine the cost. If it's a single-owner plane with very few mods, it should be easy to do. The COPA website may have some helpful information. Check out http://www.copanational.org

This topic sounds familiar, but I'm still confused. Why would locking the latch mechanism prevent the door from opening? I thought the lock just prevented someone from pulling the latch handle outward .. is the logic that the door cannot be locked if the latch isn't fully engaged? Or does the lock actually engage some other mechanism that holds the door closed?

I would be really interested in seeing how a system like this might be made to work for part 23 airplanes. I've seen it on the airliners, which would have a lot more weight on the wheels as they roll down the runway, and have a wow squat switch to tell the system that they are on the ground. We don't have a scissor switch on our aircraft, but maybe there's a way to get the same information. A guess .. I'd think the price point would probably need to be in the range of a couple of tire changes, maybe a bit higher thanks to possible safety benefits.

Birds of a feather ...

I would never have thought to do this,but it looks like it's actually a popular option. Check this website out http://www.ajourneywithwings.com/about-a-journey-with-wings/scatter-ashes/. They don't recommend doing this yourself by airplane, but may be able to offer advice if you decide to go that route.

Rather than converting the entire system, have you considered creating a 24 volt bus using a converter off of the main bus? Something like http://www.kgselectronics.com/products/dc-power-converters-tsod/rh28.html. It would certainly be cheaper than trying to recertify a new alternator, adding a battery, etc.. And would allow you to run any existing equipment off of the existing 12 volt bus without a change. Of course, there is an efficiency loss with the converter. Are 24 volt avionics less expensive?

I was considering these at one point when there was a fuel thief at my prior home airport. Several members of the flying club were finding missing fuel during their preflights. It was bad enough that we were even speculating about the local fuel truck driver .. can't tell whether fuel is going in or coming out if the truck pulls up to a plane in middle of the night! The worst of it was .. one pilot that had locking caps actually had them pried off to get access to the fuel! Really makes you wonder! Our Flying Club wound up installing some security cameras around the airport, and the problem stopped shortly after that.

Thank you for that video Josh! I had always assumed that the seat adjustment was continuously variable on an eccentric cam that I could never quite adjust correctly .. Seeing this makes much more sense!

This is how I got my new iPad background graphic

Definitely agree with the pilot-accessible switch!

Is this what you meant? http://www.hookerharness.com/aviationquickie.php I had a look at these before I settled on a permanent installation on my plane. It sounded like a reasonable alternative.

This may be going too far into the details, but the company can also apply for a PMA letter if the FAA approves an STC for installation of the product. It is beneficial, but not necessary to have TSO for a product to install it on an aircraft. If you don't have a TSO though, it is harder to show that the product is suitable for installation in an aircraft. I work for a company that manufactures audio equipment and servers for aircraft use. Most of our products are TSO'd, but the servers have no TSO. Our PMA letter comes from the fact that an STC has been approved.

Totally agree with this assessment. The $30k hull coverage on your insurance policy should only apply to the portion of damage that YOU are responsible for, or if there was no other person responsible. The taxiing pilot is on the hook to make things right in this case, since he was the one that caused the damage. Even if your insurance makes a pay out to you to get things settled quickly, the cost of that should be borne by the other pilot. I would think that the other pilot would rely on his liability coverage to repair your plane, which should be more than enough. If he had no liability coverage, then he would have to pay out of his own pocket. If that doesn't cover it, you would be within your rights to sue him for the difference. I hope you're back in the air soon!

I had wanted to do something similar, but was looking for a small rubber door mat to do the job. I'm not as concerned with the O-rings leaking, but was worried about the water that pools in the cap and around the perimeter of the cap when the plane is parked outside overnight in rain. I do my best to soak up that water before opening the cap, but thought an inexpensive door mat might prevent water from pooling in the first place. Just need to find one that is malleable so it doesn't scratch the paint, yet heavy enough that it won't blow off.

You're comparing apples and oranges. When my son first got his drivers license, he borrowed my wife's car, a Kia Sephia, and thought it would be a good idea to join his buddies in their off road driving adventure. When he got it back and it spilled a puddle of oil on our driveway, I had to .. very calmly .. explain to him that the reason that the car now has a bent frame, cracked oil pan and damage on the sidewalls of the tires was because it was designed to be a passenger road car, not an offload vehicle. Oh sure, it drove the course, but it was the wrong tool for the job. Same thing with the iPad as a primary flight instrument. The G500 was designed using very rigorous software design and verification practices to provide a level of assurance that it will work reliably when needed. The iPad is an amazing device, and works great for playing games or doing simple office work, but it can and does do some strange things. It kicks me out from applications every blue moon, and sometimes it doesnt respond immediately when i push the application button. If a bug happens during a game, no big deal. I wouldn't want it for any life-critical applications though. Don't get me wrong .. I use my iPad in the cockpit for supplemental information all the time, but I always count on a more reliable primary source so all my eggs aren't in one basket.

.. Oh .. And an AOA indicator too

There is a reason that avionics software is developed to RTCA DO-178 design assurance standards. I could see this as a supplemental display, but would want a certified backup SOMEWHERE on my panel!