Thank you for the response.  You hit on my point exactly.  I am not saying one things always happens one way or the other.  Only tying to make some think about it.

"Whatever your views, these debates keep the mind focussed on the issues, and always benefit participants."

This article is a good read for anyone. http://www.aopa.org/members/files/pilot/2005/bird0508.html

I never said always and read this from the report.

"Dolbeer and fellow scientists Carol Washburn and Sandra E. Wright found that at altitudes higher than 500 feet, birds would typically dive to avoid an aircraft. Thus, above 500 feet, pilots should expect to fly over birds. Below 500 feet, birds exhibit a variety of behaviors including climbing."

How often are you below 500ft?  Sounds like great guidance to me.

The high altitude cruise encounters scare me the most.  Been there, cruising at 200 knots and there is no chance to see and avoid, you just see the fleck of black zoom by.  I guess I have more experience with the big ones down here in florida, the turkey vultures. They are much easier to see, yet in the climbout in a lancair, very difficult.  A friend of mine hit a 15lb turkey vulture in his 360, on climbout, with the horizontal stab.  MK II tail.  Damaged the leading edge, but was able to get it back around and on the ground safely.  Also saw one come through the prop and top wing on a christen eagle and splat on the canopy.  Stuck there all the way to the ground.  Luckly eagle pilots are used to not seeing out of the front to land. Problem was on the ground, to open the canopy it rolls to the right and if he would have opened it, the bird would have fallen through the fabric wing.  So he had to sit in the cockpit with a nasty smelling bird dripping into the front seat, waiting for someone to take the bird off so he could get out without damaging the plane.  Fun times

Luke Alcorn




G’day Luke,

Been occupied with other matters so haven’t been able to keep up with the debate.

Birds: It is equally valid to maintain your flight path as it is to take avoiding action. Birds haven’t read the regs. You can’t accurately predict what they might do. But most of them won’t keep flying straight into a hazard like an aeroplane. I’ve hit ‘em on many occasions, the last one which bent six fan blades of a CFM 56 engine 90 degrees to the plane of rotation after V1. S**t happens. A mate o’ mine was killed after hitting three pelicans in an F-111. Took ‘em at 450 knots in a low level bombing run on the range and they went through the windshield. He wasn’t close to stalling as he hit the ground inverted after pulling the handle. They know that because the cockpit had started to separate.

I believe, me myself, that you can only take all the reasonable precautions, but there is no way you can account for every situation. Expect the unexpected.

Stall practice – go ahead and do it if that’s your bent. But stick to the rules. As for circuit speeds, and that appears to be the core of this debate, should not be flown outside ( meaning below), those factors set in the regs. That means 1.4 Vsi for manoeuvring, and 1.3 Vso for approach. Now, the Lancair POH states speeds associated with these and other manoeuvres. Even Lancair have stated in the POH that the Flap down approach speed is 86.89762 KIAS.

Whatever your views, these debates keep the mind focussed on the issues, and always benefit participants.

Cheers

Dom Crain

VH-CZJ