Aloft Newsletter B.R.C.A.C. Inc.

Transcription

1 Aloft Newsletter B.R.C.A.C. Inc. Vol. 3. Issue 2 REMINDER Next Meeting is on Monday 25 th February 2013 at the Kangaroo Flat Y.M.C.A. at 7:45pm. Opposite ALDI Supermarket. PRESIDENT S REPORT FEBRUARY 2013 Well not much to report on this month as it has been a quite month for the club. Yes it is still too Hot, Dry and Windy. On that it was a good call by Alan to call off the Duration on the 17 TH February because of the heat on that day. We have had no more progress on the pavers or kitchen cupboards at this stage. It s been to Hot! Don t forget to come to the VOTA Old timers comp and have a look or have a go. Over the New Year I did catch up with a past BRCAC Treasurer from 1978, Stuart Hellyer. He is now President of a model club in New Zealand. We think we have a long drive to the field, he has a 3 hour drive to go for a fly. I guess if you go for a quick fly you are gone for the day. Safe Flying President Andrew Thomas. (AUS 5567) SECRETARY REPORT POST 28 th JANUARY 2013 MEETING First meeting for the year with 16 members present and located out at the field, which is a pleasant start even though a little windy, which cut down the flying before the meeting. Down to business for another year, only this time with the unveiling of the new Honour Board for the Executive Members since If you can fill in some of the early gaps on the board please advise a committee member. General reports covered in the newsletter were the Xmas breakup, Slope Day at Mt Hollowback, Les Davis Birthday, Honour board and the Model Club in Orange who established in To assist our Junior member Matt Young compete in the July World F3D Pylon championships in the Netherlands, representing Australia, a collection was taken around the members at the Xmas breakup which yielded an initial $310. Donations and fundraising volunteering was discussed and it seemed to fall back to the usual few volunteers who are already at their peak. A Motion was moved and passed that the Club assist with donations only, and the club will match the personal donations given by members up to the value of $500. Donations may be made through the Club and recorded in case the trip does not occur. CARPET - The shade shelter carpet is to be replaced with square 300mm Pavers in the near future. These have been purchased and the old blokes would like to train the younger ones in paver laying so their health does not suffer. Working bee to be notified. CUPBOARDS - New cupboards have been organised to update the Kitchen and make it more functional and we are just waiting on the bench tops before installation. BENDIGO GLIDING CLUB CHALLENGE - The BGC issued a competition challenge for an Electric Glider competition at Raywood for 24th March with a free glider ride as a prize. (More details when known as the 24th March is no longer suitable now on hold) SCANNER RACING - Scanner circuit racing discussed and details in newsletter. 1

2 ASAA FIELD REQUEST - A request was received for Mid-September for the field for 2 days to hold the first Victorian State Championships The calendar is full but changes will be looked at to see if this is viable. Ongoing. LARGE SCALE RACING - discussed regarding the introduction of Formulae 1 aircraft club will give it a try this year. SUN SCREEN - Lotion that is We agreed that Sun Screen Lotion will be made available at the field with a pump dispenser unit being obtained and fixed in a suitable location. Alan Uren Secretary or Secretary@brcac.asn.au WOT S COMING UP with Dam Dairy Monday 25 th February Sunday 3 rd March Meeting Lockwood Rd Kangaroo Flat YMCA. 7.45pm Start VOTA, Oldtimer Competition Marong Field. All Day Sunday 10 th March Glider Competition 4 in 20 Marong Field. 1pm Start Sunday 17 th March Club Oldtimer Competition Marong Field. 1pm Start REMINDER- NO FLYING ON TOTAL FIRE BAN DAYS REPORTS ROUND UP. FEBRUARY RADIAN GLIDER COMPETITION. How does that song go, "Where have all the flowers gone, long time passing" well for us its "Where have the flyers gone, long time passing. We have been waiting for our first comp to arrive, and it did, but only four (4) Radian Gliders managed to make it to the field...what! I guess you could be excused for saying it was "too bloody windy" and you would have been half right, but the conditions weren't great I must admit, but you know what some of our members are like, they'll fly in just about anything. At about 1pm the CD called us together for a "Welcome to the New Year", and the briefing for the competition, also a reminder about covering up during summer period and don't forget to, slip, slop, slap on the sun screen cream. First round, it was just wonderful air, everybody maxed out, we thought it was a "piece of cake" for this competition until the second round, when all there was sink, sink, sink, and no one got anywhere near a max time. 2

3 When the third round came some lift was back and one flyer managed to max out. The rest just missed by a few seconds or so. Into the fourth round and the wind was gusting rather wild at times, and all flyers struggled with the conditions. Before the fifth and final round the flyers were asked if they still wanted to fly, and you can guess what they said Let s get this competition finished, yes let s fly the last round. So we did, the scores weren't great, but the competition was completed. But before the results were worked out, there was a request for a "all up last down challenge", so with a 60 second motor run away we went, up to a 1000 feet or more the Radians climbed. Unfortunately the glide angle was almost the same angle as the climb angle, best time was only 9m 25 seconds, not real good glide weather. Results were for the Radian Glider Competition First Second Third Roy Butterfield Alan Uren Les Davis Winner of the all up, last down Challenge was Les Davis Thanks to our helpers, and Bill the picture man for some great pictures. DURATION COMPETITION - SUNDAY 17 th FEBRUARY The Duration competition came and went without an aircraft being flown, why you ask, well it was too bloody HOT! With the temperature at 35 degrees the pilots would have needed more liquid fuel than the aircraft, so for obvious reasons we called it off. Now note the date, it relates to something else further along in this newsletter, keep reading to find out. You might as well as the weather doesn't want to ease up as yet by the forecast, still at least another week of hot and windy coming up, and we're almost into autumn, unbelievable. SCANNER CHALLENGE The invites went out on the 13 th of this month to the local clubs in our area to see if any of them were interested in coming to Bendigo to race in this low level fun class event. Well s have come back from clubs that didn't receive an invite to say we love to come to your race day for the Scanner Challenge. It just shows how the Flight Line Grapevine works, very rapid from what s happened. So is there any of our Club Members out there who would like to come and help Me, Please! Being the first one of these events it would be very nice if we had too many helpers than not enough, it s on the 21 st of April. Can you check your diary please, and come and help your club have another successfully event? Reported by our HOT reporter Les (Pop) Davis. 3

4 WHAT IS FLUTTER? (Part 1 of 2) Most of us are familiar with the term "Flutter". For those of you who aren't, it is when a surface or control surface of an airplane suddenly and often violently vibrates, frequently resulting in a catastrophic failure. However, the more I read and talk to others, the more I realize how little this phenomena is understood. With that in mind, I hope to shed some light on this subject and hopefully, dispel some myths. Simply put, Flutter is a Harmonic Vibration. A harmonic vibration is really quite easy to comprehend, but describing it is a bit more complicated. So I will try my best to put it in terms that are easily understood. What you must first realize is that everything in the universe will vibrate at a given frequency. That frequency depends on many factors, such as size, weight and a host of others, AND in most cases, that frequency can be changed. I'm sure that as school kids we've all slapped a ruler that is hanging over a desk to make it vibrate, and if you slide the ruler so that less of it hangs over the edge, the vibrations get faster. By the same token, a string on a guitar will vibrate at a certain frequency, but if you tighten it, or make it shorter by holding it against a fret, the frequency will change. Ok, so we all have at least a basic understanding of what vibration is, but what is "harmonic" vibration? This is when an object is hit by an outside force which has the same frequency at which the object wants to vibrate. One example of this is a microwave oven. The magnetron in your oven emits microwaves at the same frequency that water molecules vibrate. The waves cause the water molecules to vibrate, the vibration creates heat, and your burrito gets cooked. So that is what harmonic vibration is. It is when an object is influenced by an outside force at the same frequency at which the object naturally wants to vibrate. Now, let's equate this to an aileron (Note: As I mentioned earlier, flutter can happen to ANY surface, but since aileron flutter seems to occur most often, I will use it as a reference throughout the rest of this article). Let's say we have a straight, constant-chord wing with a free-swinging aileron attached (I.E. No control horn, pushrod or servo). The aileron is 2 inches wide, and there is a slight gap in the hinge line. Now we get in a car and stick the wing out of the window and level to the ground (We're professional s Kids, Don't try this at home). With the car sitting still, gravity is making the aileron hang down, but as the driver starts to move the car, air pressure begins to lift the aileron. Once a certain speed is reached, the aileron is likely to flutter. This speed will vary depending on many factors, but for the sake of argument, let's say that the speed is between 60 and 65mph. Now, we stop the car and add an inch to the aileron's width. Repeating the experiment will show that the aileron will now flutter at a different (probably lower) speed range. If we then add a weight or counterbalance to the aileron, the speed at which it flutters will change again. If we seal the gap, again the speed we're moving will be different when the aileron flutters - BUT... In every case, the aileron WILL flutter. The only thing that will change is the speed at which you are moving when the flutter occurs (and that speed might even be faster than the car can go). One final oddity is that if you develop flutter at 60mph, it may very well disappear at 70mph, because it may be that 60-70mph is the "envelope" in which the conditions are right to develop flutter in that particular surface. 4

5 Why does this happen? As air moves over the wing, several vortices will develop in the airflow - a series of high and low pressure areas. If they put pressure on both sides equally, the pressures will cancel each other out (Fig 4). However: IF the vortices on top and bottom are out of out of sync, and IF they hit the surface with a harmonic resonance (the frequency at which the aileron wants to vibrate), the surface will try to flutter (Fig 5). Not all vibration is the same Something else to consider is that just because you're holding one area of the aileron tightly, that doesn't mean it can flutter in another area. Remember, EVERYTHING will vibrate at some frequency. Of course, in most cases, securely holding an aileron's control horn is usually enough to keep it from vibrating at reasonable speeds, but the larger the surface, the greater the chance of this happening Through the same principle, an aileron can be held firmly at one end while the other end is developing flutter. It's sort of like when you hold a ruler against a desk and smack it. One end of the ruler is held firmly while the other end is vibrating. Find out how to Avoid Flutter Next Month Newsletter! Article written by Les (Pop) Davis Friday Flyers 15 th February 2013 Well is it Flyers or Fryers? Quiet day until an Electric came down in the long very dry grass which then started to produce smoke. The retriever then broke into a run and picked up the model which then burst into flames. The Li-Po had become a big flare so immediately back to the short grass at least. After disconnecting the battery foot on the big flare and yank model system and then spraying some molten solder around for good luck, things started to quieten down again. The question was then asked WHERE IS THE FIRE FIGHTING GEAR ANYWAY? As of now - the Water Knapsack has been serviced and placed in the old clubhouse to use it turn on the nozzle tap at the end and start pumping. There is also a fire extinguisher under the kitchen counter primarily for indoor fires and some fire blankets. In addition a Li-Po Salt Water Disposal Bucket will be placed between the clubhouse and shade shelter to control swollen or hot LI PO s. Check them out and keep us FIRE SAFE. 5

6 ROY S VISIT TO SOUTH AUSTRAILAIAN AIRCRAFT MUSEUM Roy has been touring around some more and gave Adelaide a visit. While in Adelaide he took a tour around an Aircraft Museum. The museum is the South Australian Aircraft Museum in Port Adelaide. Very interesting place. Apart from aircraft, there are rockets that were launched from Woomera, as well as the history about rockets that were launched from Woomera. One thing that stands out about this place is the static engines on display. On certain weekends they are actually fired up. (Information on website). and it is located right next door to the Railway Museum. Rumour has it that they are getting a RAAF F1-11 in March. Time for a Laugh When I was in the pub I heard a couple of morons saying that they wouldn't feel safe on an aircraft if they knew that the pilot was a woman. What a pair of sexists!! I mean, it's not as if she'd have to reverse the bloody thing... Co-Pilot Checklist Andy s Scrapbook and Ding Duck. More exciting information from Andy s Scrapbook. Check it out. 6

7 Little Bit of Goss From the flight line / grapevine. Twin Texans On Friday the 8 th of February, the first flyable Friday (weather wise) since December, we had a visitor come up from CHAMPS club. His name was Paul and he had something amazing. He had joined two aircraft together to form a twin similar to a twin Mustang only in this case he has used a pair of AT-6 Texans. This format has been set up for the Twins and more day at the State field on the 28 th of April, must try and get to this day for a look see, it would be worthwhile for sure. The question was asked, could they fly that aircraft in the Large Scale Racing Event, Texan Class, and the answer was they would have to enter twice and use two transmitters, and if they won, they would have to share the prize for a tied first place score. You make up your own mind on that answer. Photos by Ted Goulter (Our newest Club Member Welcome Back Ted) MOVEMBER PHOTO. In last month s newsletter we had a story of how Marong was renamed Mo-rong for the Cancer appeal. It is great to see we have received at least one photo for the Movember. Great job for raising money for the Cancer appeal. 7

8 WWW DOT Most of us know that, double you - double you - double you dot (WWW), means it s the start of a World Wide Web address, but for us flyers it could be "Windy Windy Windy hot". Windy Windy Hot Hot Hot and for how many weeks now, remember it was too hot and windy at last year s breakup to do any flying, which was early in December. And we've had next to no relief since, and this has brought to mind a bit of poetry that I've remembered, and tell me if it fits our country to the letter. I love a sunburnt country, A land of sweeping plains, Of ragged mountain ranges, Of droughts and flooding rains The model for the character of Mulga Bill was William Henry Lewis ( ), who knew Paterson in the vicinity of Bourke, New South Wales. Lewis had bought his bicycle as a result of a drought when there was no feed for horses. Eaglehawk, Victoria, once a rural mining town, now part of Greater Bendigo was given as Mulga Bill's hometown ('Twas Mulga Bill, from Eaglehawk...). This has been recognised with the development of the Mulga Bill Bicycle Trail, a scenic ride taking in many of the mining attractions, historic sites and modern-day amenities of Eaglehawk. Let s finish this Goss section with a bit more about poetry. Did you know Banjo Paterson would be 149 years old if he was still alive on the 17 th of February this year, and one of his famous poems was called Mulga Bill" the following info has come from W W W dot, (see what happens when you can't go flying, your bored and start playing on the computer, anyway have a read of this) The poem actually featured the Safety bicycle. However, the poem has been inaccurately illustrated by various illustrators with a depiction of the visually more interesting Penny-farthing which had been superseded at the time the poem was written. The introduction of safety cycles gave rise to a bicycling boom with millions being manufactured in the decade They were very popular in the Australian outback, widely used by shearers and itinerant workers at the time that Paterson wrote this poem. Mulga Bill on a safety bicycle, it may be called a safety bicycle, but you can still have a Crash L A N D I N G! 8