IT GOES PLACES QUICKLY, between 4 and 10 miles a minute, it has a prodigious thirst, great sensitivity and, in the single seat version at least, it is cramped.
So you plan the fuel, the route and the frequencies even more carefully than you would in a normal flight because it is extremely difficult to revise them once airborne. There is no autopilot, no heads-up display, no GPS. To remain ahead of the aircraft, you need to know where you are going and retain a high level of situational awareness.
If it's the two-seat aircraft and there's someone going with you, you need to start preparing them well in advance.
The cockpit of a Hunter is intimidating to those who are not familiar with it, doubly so for non-pilots. It is cluttered and claustrophobic and there are ejection seats and strapping procedures to cope with. Unlike most aircraft, ex-military jets like the Hunter have an escape system which means that, if there is some catastrophic failure and the aircraft is going down, your options are greater than sneaking a cell phone goodbye or reciting your rosary you can have an enormous kick in the backside and an excellent view of the accident. The trouble is that the seat rewards casual mishandling with death. That may sound melodramatic, but it is the simple truth.
It is absolutely essential that anyone who is going to sit in a live ejection seat understands its potential lethality in chilling detail. With the amazing reliability of the Hunter, the greatest actual threat to all involved is a casual approach to the seat. If the aircraft does go wrong, though, it is comforting to know that 93% of the 197 recorded ejections with the Martin-Baker Mk 3H seat were successful, and 96% of the 54 recorded with Mk 4H seat fitted to the two seat Hunter. In recent years, 3 out of 3 ejections using the Mk 3 seat were successful.
Walk Around
Bu hikaye SA Flyer Magazine dergisinin January 2025 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Bu hikaye SA Flyer Magazine dergisinin January 2025 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
LIVING THE DREAM Part 2: Planning and Pax
Part 2: Planning and Pax
QUEEN AIR TALES
In the early seventies Esquire Airways acquired a pre-owned Beechcraft Queen Air. This top of the range 8,800 lb MAUW model had nine forward facing commuter seats and I flew it as a single pilot operation for several months.
HELICOPTER PILOTS SHOULD UNIONISE
Helicopter pilots are stuck in a 12-month flying cycle. While they will have periods of rest and active rest (performing ground-based tasks and planning ventures) within their work source campaigns, it's not a good situation. They need programmed periods to catch their breath.
AFTERMATH of the Engine Fire
Iris McCallum continues her stories about her early years with Air Kenya. This month she tells us about the immediate aftermath of her dramatic engine fire and crash, and her subsequent 'getting back onto the saddle'.
LARGEST EVER RHINO RELOCATION
Specialist air cargo operator ACS mobilised all its skills to successfully complete a very challenging project – the translocation of 39 White Rhino from Namibia to the USA.
NOVEMBER 2024
November sees strong growth in aircraft registrations with 16 additions, but 10 aircraft are cancelled as exported. The Type Certified additions are a mixed bag.
TWINCO FUEL
AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT REPORT
RON WHEELDON'S HUNTERS
RON WHEELDON is a Johannesburg based trademark and IP attorney. He writes, \"My love affair with Hawker Hunter jet fighters started in approximately 1963 when the Rhodesian parliament opening was marked by a fly-by of nine recently acquired Hawker Hunters in diamond formation.
FLYING THE HAWKER HUNTER
Flying a Hunter starts hours before actually walking out to the aircraft. This machine is a legend, but it is first of all about the highest performance machine that it is feasible for a civilian to fly. Flying it is not to be taken lightly.
RIGHT SEAT RULES NO. 25 SLOW FLIGHT
Most of us feel a bit edgy when the ASI creeps down within 10 KIAS of the stall. Jim Davis has some hints on how to be comfortable and in control - even when the airspeed is 20 KIAS below the stall.
