norman

Seasons Greetings Alan, I saw him briefly as he crossed the Atlantic tracks to take the sleigh for pre-schedule maintenance. But for the big day, track him Here. He is airborne, a bit Amurrican but... the heart's in the right place ... I guess. [youtubevideo]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBWJcnsyiV4[/youtubevideo]

There is no licensing requirement for PPG in the UK so therefore no defined medical requirement to achieve or fall short of. It would seem impossible for anyone to therefore stop you learning to fly a paramotor or restricting your operations in any way imho. You would be wise to consult an AME (CAA authorised examiner) to ensure that your remaining healthy is functioning correctly (and should remain so) and that you are not colour blind or have any peripheral or other vision problems that would work against your task of safely piloting your paramotor. The AME will be able to offer an opinion on the subject and offer recommendations of value.

Hi Alan, Just having a larf' of course. Intel Macs can run Windows quite easily as has been said. I use Parallels 5 - it is lightning fast - I need it for work related software - I don't use it for anything else.

Guys, Here is an extract from the latest Air Clues (RAF Flight Safety Pub), I was thumbing through it and thought you might appreciate the 'other side' perspective. TCAS means Traffic Collision Avoidance System, it requires kit to be present in both aircraft to work. It is the general pitch of the working environment that has value to us at the 'other end' of the challenge. We are a difficult target to acquire, a strobe (imho) would help significantly but to be effective they need a high energy flash. Wimpy strobes are useless dead weight. Lookout

"Don't worry Simon, you will get loads of prejudice thrown your way now you have found 'the path'. The world will seem a simpler place, your computing will progress with awesome simplicity - stuff will 'just work' from now on. Loading drivers and fault finding will become a lost art - seeking guidance on the internet to make peripherals work will be.... something that 'others' to do. Brother, you have checked into a five star seat at the temple of graphics heaven. Your Mac will last you years not months, the sun will seem that little bit brighter, the world's colours somehow more lush and radiant... blah, blah, blah... Don't expect everyone to understand - you have found a new religion. 'Cue angels and etherial music'." THIS is the Mac you really want for Christmas.... this comes as standard, hadn't you heard? LOL [youtubevideo] [/youtubevideo]Enjoy it mate, some people will never understand....

When you get used to them you discover that your triumphalism isn't worth the effort. Macs are not perfect, just different. Using a PC now and again reloads your female side and prompts a little sympathetic consideration for the less enlightened. Only joking Fanman

Yes, well done chaps, well deserved by all accounts. Mighty fine award items as well, who will be up for them next year? Thank you all for a lovely year, Merry Christmas.

Yes, very enjoyable; an intimate meeting of friends. Thank you for my award, I feel a little bit like Obama must feel having got his peace prize.

Welcome to the dark side.

Fanman I think that is a pivotal statement with the motor running.

Looking forward to a gentle slurp and chatter with the lads and lasses this evening. I hope we have a good turnout despite the snow/flood/earthquake/recession etc.

X-Craft That might make e' think for a bit.

Jock, Thanks brilliant, thanks for the reflections. I will bear them well in mind. As an aside I have already decided to replace mine with a larger one after doing some reading and listening. Have a great Christmas....

Andy, would that be a forward or reverse launch attempt?

You can almost feel the movement in this one can't you?

The point behind having a reserve is piece of mind. Wouldn't you always look at it and say, "That thing is as my white muzzled farty old Labrador, would it work?" As a demonstration piece it has a new life, maybe even as a decoration in a bar. As a lifesaver, as Simon says, I don't think it is worth its weight.

As a demo unit - training aid perhaps?

We still need an Airspace and Regulations Member guys. You don't need to be an expert in the field, just interested enough to do a little research. I can get you around to visit ATC units all over the country; get you chatting to controllers and airspace managers. I can also put you in touch with some nice guys at the CAA who would be very helpful on the regs side. They really want to help and assist. We need a couple of volunteers prepared to form a small team. Interested?

Gents, Food for thought? Love it or hate it restricted and controlled/reserved airspace is something we all have to live with on our little island. It has been growing since we first took wings of any sort. Some of us live near or underneath it, others never need consider it because they only fly locally and live in the sticks. But... It is clear that concern amongst our airspace administrators is growing about PPG/PG controlled airspace (CAS) infractions, perhaps we could include notified restricted/danger areas and other forms of reserved airspace like ATZs etc. for the sake of completeness. The first thing to appreciate about this problem is that it happens all the time, many different types of GA traffic are involved and it is growing as traffic and airspace reservation increases. PPG/PG may be seen as greater potential risk as the level of awareness (training/qualification/licensing) is perceived to be well below that of conventional GA. The additional complication that may also compound concerns is that PPG/PG traffic produce very poor or non existent radar returns making a controllers job of assisting avoidance very difficult. Ways to avoid becoming a statistic if you are flying anywhere near controlled airspace. Thorough pre-flight planning and use of your current 'Airmap' to appreciate where your proposed flight could take you, and where uncertainty of your position may put you at risk. Developing an appreciation of where the wind may take you should it be stronger than you anticipate. Plan your flights and navigation exercises to remain well clear of potential problem areas. Ensure that you understand the vertical dimensions of the airspace that you may fly near. The published base of airspace is defined by an altitude, ensure that you have an accurate altimeter and are aware of the current QNH when you fly. Give yourself a margin, don't run close to the base of CAS. It is human to err, leave a margin... Some may say, "I have a right to be here, I WILL fly as I please and fly as close as I wish to CAS boundaries." That's fine, just make sure that your navigation is spot on and be prepared to answer for it if it isn't. Expect to encounter those that live within those places, they may or may not see or anticipate your presence. If you are flying near CAS and become unsure of your position, consider landing in a suitable field and establishing it accurately. If you have penetrated CAS and are now within it, do not take off. Take a cab and get well clear before considering flight again. You might just have gone undetected or not caused any problems. What you do next I leave to your conscience. Should you be unfortunate or even foolish you will probably find the authorities stern but understanding if no safety issues have occurred or traffic was diverted. They prefer to educate and assist rather than bark and resort to the courts. The best bet is to read and learn from the mistakes of others and avoid the problem with forethought and planning. As a very new PPL in the '70s I ended up overhead a large airport in the north of England, I peed off at high speed and did exactly as I advise above. Having established my position I took off and landed at my destination.... then picked up the phone. The conversation with Manchester ATC was illuminating and thankfully not too unpleasant. "The superior pilot uses his superior skill to avoid situations that might require him to use it." You can probably think of other ways of achieving the same, chat about them so that we can all learn from them. I have dashed these down quickly as I am about to dash out of the door to fly...

It's been around for some time - it's a hoax.

But what a phenomenal thing to take into the air with you. Think of the amazing training material you could produce....

Paramotor Magazine search under 'records'. You could have a peep here.

Anyone got a free flight reserve that they need a good home for? Reasonable price paid for a good serviceable item. Pilot weight - 80kg clipped in.