May 2007

05.05.2007: I am quite busy working in Sydney, so I can't spend as much time as I want to on the SportCruiser. I have sent a number of questions regarding the options and the panel to Kurt Schumacher, the SportCruiser sales agent for Switzerland, and have already received some feedback. I will try to look into it next Saturday and then update this page.

Next Sunday I will go flying! I have tried to get an Australian temporary license, but since the World Trade Center attack you need a safety check before you can obtain any license, and that can take several months to complete. For that reason I will go flying with a flight instructor, as this can be done even without any license. I have reserved a Piper Warrior with Airborne Aviation at Camden Airfield (YSCN), which is 45 km southwest from where I live.

I have already organized the necessary maps too to plan some sightseeing:

The airspace structure looks quite similar to the one in Switzerland, except that the TMA sectors around the CTR are even lower (click on map for larger image):

The have some extra VFR procedures to fly into the CTR so that you can go and have a look at the Opera and the Harbour Bridge.

13.05.2007: Yesterday and today I finally managed to spend some time on the SportCruiser again. As mentioned earlier, I have started a list of open issues to be decided before the kit is manufactured and shipped.

So far the list looks as follows:

Issue	Options	Decision	Comments
Wheel Fairings	with or without	with	Would be aesthetically a crime to not install them
Propeller	fixed or variable pitch	fixed	Performance gain does not justify the extra cost, is more complex to operate for low time pilots
Propeller	Woodcomp or Sensenich or other manufacturers	Sensenich	Even though it is more expensive, after having seen it at the Aero the case is clear.
Adjustable pedals	with or without	with	Seem to be part of standard kit anyway, different size of the two pilots requires it
Dual brakes	with or without	with	The latest info I have received says that you can get flight training on a kitplane, but for that it is a must. Maybe I can teach my kids flying?
Parking brake	with or without	with	Is just much more convenient than to always use chocks at each landing.
Leather upholstery	standard seats	with	I much more robust, price difference is minor
Locking fuel caps	standard fuel caps	with	I know Chips argument that they can still steal your fuel through the fuel drains, but at least you can control what goes into the tank, which is much more important

There is a number of issues I am looking into too that are however not relevant for kit manufacturing:

Issue	Options	Decision	Comments
Tow bar	buy or make	open	I have not seen it yet
Paint	locally or at CZAW	open	It would be possible to have the kit painted at CZAW, either by bringing it there by truck or by flying there. I have heard they make an excellent job and for a very decent price, so this could be an option.

When surfing around I found the following picture on the page of the Sport Aircraft Works, the sales agent for the SportCruiser for North America, of what he kit looks like. I thought this might interest those who are less familiar with kits, so I show it here (engine, propeller, instruments and avionics missing).

<< Previous Next >>