In this month’s edition:

• Down on the farm 60 last month 1/24 – Tony Palmer
• Mike Whittaker’s Plank Flies! – Video
• Hamilton Farm Airstrip – somewhere to visit in Kent
• Electronic Conspicuity Rebate Scheme deadline 31 March 2024
• The Future of Aviation Fuel – UL91?
• A Great British 1940’s Might-Have-Been: The Planet Satellite
• Sad news about The Old Tollgate, Bramber
• Radiotelephony Manual (CAP 413) – Latest Version Published
• Identify That Tool

Down on the farm 60 last month 1/24

Klemm L25C G-ACXE

We are still waiting for the permit to fly from the LAA. We ran the engine one dry day and we have lost some of the oil leaks. We are now changing the screws that hold down an intermediate section of the rocker boxes, so that we can get more clamping force. We have decided to remove the rocker oil feeds and go back to manually greasing the rockers say every 10 hours of operation which is what Francis Donaldson does with his Popbjoy. We hope the removal will eliminate a fair number of leaks.

Palmersfam airstrip is still very soft but the Tiger and the Bristell were due for a permit renewal and on the 19th of January and the temperature was -4C on the ground so it was hard. We managed to start the Tiger eventually; turning the engine was like stirring thick treacle with straight 100 oil, see pics below at 3000’ in an open plane i.e. -10C.

Note the ice on the screen in the picture below!

Other Stuff

One of our members Tony Berryman had a short break in Washington DC and went to the National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Centre. Here are two pics from his trip.

Tony will be bringing his memory stick along next Wednesday and we will show a film about the V1 bomb which runs for about 1 hour, this will start at 8.00pm.

When you come to club night on Wednesday the 7^th please bring some cash for subs (£25) if you have not paid already!! and we can discuss the above and what direction you want the strut to go, suggestions please for the coming year?

Tony Palmer

Mike Whittaker’s Plank Flies!

You may remember seeing Mike’s ‘Plank’ at the LAA Rally in 2018. Well, It is actually flying! Mike says it flies well and like other planks is reluctant to spin, does not tumble from a vertical stall and is extremely stable in pitch. Mike is working on producing plans for homebuilders, so if you are looking for a cheap and cheerful project….

Electronic Conspicuity Rebate Scheme deadline 31 March 2024

If you haven’t got an electronic conspicuity device in your aircraft yet and you’d like £250 from the CAA to get one, you have only until the end of next month! See here for details: caa.co.uk/general-aviation/aircraft-ownership-and-maintenance/electronic-conspicuity-devices/

The Future of Aviation Fuel

Seeing the above last month at Shoreham and then reading the ‘Light Aviation’ articles by Ian Fraser and Ruth Kelly about the future of leaded avgas set me thinking. I’d like a source of unleaded avgas to run my little two stroke, now that Esso’s E5 really is adulterated with alcohol. Following their warning about the future of UL91 – use it or loose it – should we be encouraging Shoreham and Goodwood to supply it? Would you use it?

Richard Griffiths

A Great British 1940’s Might-Have-Been: The Planet Satellite

An amazing design for private flying, the Planet Satellite, built in the 1940’s in Croydon. It was a true monocoque design, built from magnesium, intended to be cheap to manufacture and maintain; Perhaps just a bit ahead of its time. It got no higher than 20 feet at Blackbushe in 1949, when structural deficiencies caused the plug to be pulled. Read a detailed history by William Pearce on his Old Machine Press website: oldmachinepress.com/2021/06/20/planet-satellite-light-aircraft/ and also on the Hush-Kit alternative aviation magazine site: hushkit.net/2015/10/16/whisky-business-the-strange-story-of-the-planet-satellite/

Sad news about The Old Tollgate, Bramber

The venue for a number good of Strut Christmas dinners, the change in offering was very evident at the last one. As suspected the combination of adversities facing the catering sector was behind the decline. The notice from their website is reproduced below. Let’s hope The Longshore stays solvent…

Dear Customers,

We have decided to close the doors of our restaurant while we reconsider what we can realistically offer to the local market.

The cost of raw materials, the cost of heat, light and power, employing people, and general food costs, have meant that unfortunately, the business as it is now has become unviable. We have received so much feedback asking us to keep the Carvery as it was, but the cost as an independent business, was too much for the local market to bear. Changes we made to our offering and increased prices have understandably not been embraced. We could not offer something we were proud of while trying to meet the pricing needs of our customers. Hospitality industry staffing issues have further undermined our beloved Tollgate Restaurant. 

We are considering all options, as an independent business, we will need to be creative and thoughtful in our next steps and approach. Our closure, though temporary, will most likely be a lengthy process, but we do hope many of you will return to whatever exciting and delicious cuisine comes next.

The Tollgate Hotel will remain open as a Bed & Breakfast option, and we look forward to continuing to greet our overnight guests. We have put together a list of all locally available food offerings and can assist with reservations.

The Tollgate Team

https://www.thetollgatehotel.com/

Radiotelephony Manual (CAP 413) Latest Version Published

This edition comes into force on 28 March 2024. Download it here: Radiotelephony Manual (CAP 413) Edition 24

Identify That Tool

I’ve been given the tool in the picture above. It’s got an Irvine aviation logo on it, but I’ve no idea what it is for. It has step shaped jaws with a little spike mounted on the top.  All suggestions welcome. Editor

Events

Next Strut Night is Wednesday 7th January, 7:30pm at The Longshore. Come along with ideas for activities next year!

For a list of events go to the website Events page.