Week in brief May 6 2011

A paraplegic British pilot this week set off on an epic 11,600 nautical mile solo flight from Yorkshire to Australia in a microlight in an attempt to set a new record. 43-year-old Dave Sykes suffered severe injuries in a motorbike accident in 1993 but beat the odds and in the years since has been indulging in all sorts of daredevil pursuits. In what has been described as a £20,000 “flying motorbike”, Sykes is hoping to become the first person, disabled or otherwise, to fly the distance in a microlight and in doing so is also raising funds for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance. His adventure will see him fly over 18 countries on legs of up to eight hours in duration. To read this inspiring story in full click here.


Alaska’s Real Deal Productions has just completed filming of a documentary titled Outback Pilot…Australia. Here’s an interesting quote from one of the participating pilots and creators: "With constant warnings from the locals of croc attacks to floods that wiped out roads that made travel by 4×4’s impossible, our aircraft were the only means of transportation for filming purposes in many cases. During the course of shooting we had three different helicopters up in the air for over nine hours while we shot cattle mustering at the huge stations,". And of the Aussie working pilots they met along the way: "These folks are the real deal, no question about it. They live the life that few would ever know about so I took on this project to bring to the world. In-depth interviews from the pilots provide an intimate look into their lives,".


The Toronto Sun reports that two days after finding a pilot dead in the wreckage of his Cessna, a pair of Parks Canada employees have located the pilot’s dog, who survived the same crash. Rusty, clearly a very plucky border collie, was heard barking as the searchers called his name and was, “alive, well and happy to see people”. The employeers had earlier spotted blood and dog footprints leaving the crash site but were unable to locate Rusty. To read the full story, which includes a lovely photo of Rusty, click here.


Hawker Beechcraft has announced it has delivered 66 aircraft in the first quarter of 2011, up from the 50 it delivered in first quarter 2010. 45 of those deliveries were GA aircraft, compared to 34 in first quarter 2010. And of those 45 Hawker Beechcraft GA aircraft delivered so far this year, 24 were King Airs, 10 were in the piston range and 11 were business jets.


Associated Press reports that Swiss adventurer and former fighter pilot Yves Rossy will today (US time) attempt to fulfill a dream by flying through the Grand Canyon with his jet-propelled wingsuit. Subject to FAA approval, the 51-year-old daredevil will jump from a helicopter near Eagle Point on the Hualapai Indian Reservation and fly for 15 minutes westward along the rim of the canyon. Read the full story and check out an awesome photo of Rossy and his jet-propelled wingsuit in action here.


Hawker Pacific had a major presence at the recent inaugural Shanghai International Business Aviation Show at Shanghai Hongqiao Airport, where the Aussie company runs an FBO. A Hawker Beechcraft King Air 350 and Hawker 900 biz jet were among the aircraft on static display at the event, which is China’s first major business aviation show.


BAE Systems Australia has been awarded a six-year contract to provide Interim Basic Flying Training to the Australian Defence Force as of January 2012. Basic Flying Training plays an important role in providing a cost-effective training solution for initial flying training for the ADF. The agreement will see ADF cadets conduct their ab-initio training in a CT-4B Airtrainer. Are you as jealous as us?


And while on the subject of our Defence forces, the RAAF’s shiny new Super Hornets are currently on their first overseas deployment, participating in Exercise Bersama Shield in Malaysia. The Super Hornets will operate alongside aircraft from Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore and the UK for two weeks.