Planet VLJ
Overheard at a recent Eclipse Very Light Jet (VLJ) event:
Safety: "It won't crash because we've given it the best safety systems, and you won't crash because of the great training - BUT - we have designed the actual aircraft itself to be crashworthy because...er...well you know...s**t happens!"
Design: "The whole skeleton is made from machined parts. We stole this from the Boeing Phantom Works - we only steal from the best!"
Technology: "We use friction stir welding, or, as our competitors sometimes like to call it, stir-fry welding."
Competition: "And speaking of which - we did not know it was going to be called the Citation Mustang. Internally we called it the 'Pinto'."
Right Reg?
Q: "Why was Burt Rutan's SpaceShipOne registered N328KF?"
A: "Well Brian, it is pretty obvious actually. It represents 328,000ft (you know, KF), which is around 100km, or the notional edge of space."
Q: "So is it true the SpaceShipTwo might be registered N367KF in view of the last altitude attained?"
A: "Not sure. We've heard it might be something like N369KF because with Virgin aboard you never know quite what they will get up to...in terms of absolute altitude naturally."
A plague on your air show
Rain, fog, low cloud - every air show-going Brian has seen at least one or other of their favourite events abandoned or curtailed in some way because of Mother Nature. Imagine then the dismay of nephews and nieces Down Under, who had gathered on an otherwise perfect sunny day, to see the much-loved Temora Aviation Museum warbird flying day last month only to be greeted by the sign: "Unfortunately we are unable to fly today due to a locust plague on site." Nephew Dave Richardson reports: "The little flying b******s refused to be grounded and rampaged all over the airfield on both flying days. Naturally given the value of the museum's warbird collection [including the world's only flying Lockheed Hudson, an aaaaaahhh Gloster Meteor F.8, Australia's only flying Spitfire and Canberra etc], the no-fly decision was accepted as a wise one. But in nearly 40 years of attending air shows I can't remember a more novel reason for curtailing a flying display!"
Can anyone top that?
Border skirmish
Investigations are under way as to why a US National Guard Lockheed Martin F-16 pilot on a nightime training mission fired 25 rounds of the aircraft's 20mm cannon at Little Egg Harbor Intermediate School. Two early theories: one - the district had voted for the Democrats; two - the pilot thought he saw Canadians.
Source: Flight International
