It’s our first episode for 2025 so we’re allowed to say Happy New Year, right? Even though it’s February, right? We may be Australia’s longest running aviation podcast but we’re taking a very long time to get to episode 200 :) This episode we follow our dreams into the stratosphere and beyond, featuring a great […]
We’ve been a little busy lately and it’s been a while since our last episode, so to make up for it we’ve released this rather chunky episode of aviation goodness covering the Pacific Airshow Gold Coast 2024 event. It’s just like the old days when our episodes were long and the pause button was […]
We’re on the Gold Coast and getting ready for the Pacific Airshow once again. This year’s line-up is bigger and even more packed with amazing aircraft, including a T-33 Shooting Star which is the first of it’s kind to ever fly in Australia. Its pilot is Greg “Wired” Colyer from Ace Maker Airshows and we […]
With the Pacific Airshow returning to the Gold Coast in August, Steve and Grant caught up with Aarron Deliu, an Australian aerobatics pilot who is now based in Florida and performing at airshows and events in the USA, Europe and South Africa. Aarron put on a spectacular display at last year’s show on the Gold […]
After a break due to injuries, surgery & a wedding, we’re back on deck and our first episode for 2014 is packed with Down Under aviation goodness :) From Matt Hall & the return of the Red Bull Air Race to flying in a pair of C130Js over MelbourneFrom Matt Hall and the long awaited return of the Red Bull Air Race to our media flight in a pair of C130Js over Melbourne to promote the RAAF’s Centenary of Military Aviation air show, this episode really got us exited for the year ahead.
Our first episode for 2014 unfolds as:
Steve & Grant chat about surgery, a wedding and some recent media publicity after a couple of unusual hot air balloon landings in Melbourne
0:12:35 – We chat with Matt Hall about the long awaited return of the Red Bull Air Race and get lots of great info about the changes to the race itself, his new team, how they’ve been preparing and the telemetry system he’s using.
Is ATC Ben excited or nervous to be on the C130J media flight? :)Steven Pam is clearly excited to be on the C130J media flight :)
0:46:20 – Steven Pam & ATC Ben got to represent PCDU at a recent RAAF C130J media flight over Melbourne to promote the Centenary of Military Aviation air show at Pt Cook on March 1st & 2nd. In the process they recorded the following content:
Air Commodore Phil Byrne (RAAF’s Head of Special Events) talking about the historical significance of Pt Cook and the RAAF’s preparations for their Centenary of Military Aviation air show
David Gardner (Director, RAAF Museum) talks about the Bristol Boxkite replica
Flight lieutenant Matt Fleet, an RAF C130J pilot on exchange with the RAAF
Sergeant Greg Milne, an RAAF C130J loadmaster
The view of Melbourne from a RAAF C130J’s ramp Even the RAAF are getting into the GoPro action for this flight :)
We have some announcements:
PCDU will be at the Tyabb Airshow 2014 (A Salute to Veterans) on Sunday, March 9th and are looking forward to catching up with any of you who can be there
We want your stories, especially “grass roots” content and, as Steve Riley wrote in about, more “stories about flying”
The view from the C130J’s cockpit is spectacular, even without another aircraft in close formationWe have some shout outs:
Thanks to Steve’s surgical staff for doing his knee reconstruction, including Mr Eden Raleigh, Dr Peter Larkins & Dr Joshua Hoppe from the Epworth Hospital
Thanks to Pieter Johnson & David Vanderhoof for the long-distance support from around the world to help Steve get through some difficult times
Steve wants to thank Grant & the rest of the PCDU team for helping out with the Australia Desk episodes while he was recovering
As part of the RAAF’s promotional events in the lead up to the Centenary of Military Aviation Air Show being held at Point Cook on March 1st & 2nd, we were invited to join them for a C130J media flight. As Steve was still recovering from his knee surgery and Grant was out of town, we sent Steven Pam & ATC Ben along to get video & stills plus record some interviews.
On Friday 7th of February, Steven & Ben were at Point Cook to record the arrival of two C130Js, capture the official announcements and then ride on the trailing aircraft as the two C130s flew around Melbourne’s CBD and the bay. After the flight they were able to record a couple of interviews with aircrew.
Steven then took the content they gathered & produced the video below. Full audio from the interviews can be found in PCDU Episode 116: High Performances.
We would like to extend our thanks to the RAAF for inviting us on the flight and giving us the opportunity to capture more great content for our audience. We’re very much looking forward to the air show which promises to be a major event and a great showcase of the RAAF’s aircraft from the past 100 years.
We’re joined by Dave Homewood from the Wings Over New Zealand forum & podcast who talks to us about his career with the RNZAF, the Kiwi warbird scene and his excellent forum & podcast. We also feature more Avalon content including our KC-30A interview, the Herron RPV and Charles Cheeseman from Eco 2000. Finally, we introduce new team member Maikha Ly, announce another competition and work through a stack of listener mail.
One of the many RAAF C17s at Avalon 2013We still have some Avalon 2013 coverage not yet released so we decided to produce a single episode dedicated to the C17 as there were multiple RAAF C17s and a USAF C17 present on the final day. In keeping with our previous Avalon 2013 episodes, this one is under an hour and gathers the following content together:
0:03:08 – RAAF C17 pilot FLTLT Dirk Taylor talks about flying the aircraft & his career
0:10:59 – RAAF C17 techo Sgt David Everett talks about maintaining the aircraft & his transition from the DHC-4 Caribou
0:22:09 – RAAF Loadmaster WOFF Paul Lemarshall walks us through the C17s cargo hold
0:33:29 – USAF Capt Brian Carron talks about interoperability between USAF & RAAF C17 aircraft & crew
0:39:22 – We wrap up the episode
Given the focus on the C17 in this episode, it was a given that we’d include a promotion for the Australian Defence Force Recruiting, right? You can call them on 13 19 01 :)
Day Five of the Avalon Airshow 2013 is the first full public day and they turned out in force to enjoy great aviation action under clear blue skies. Despite the crowds we still managed to get around the airport to complete a number of interviews & meet up with plenty of people.
This episode includes:
Grant’s interviews with some RAAF AP-3C crew:
Air Combat Officer (ACO) Flying Officer Tristan Hull
Demonstration pilot Flight Lieutenant James Pears
Steve talks to Jacqui Carlon from Piper about their latest Garmin equipped Seminole on display
Grant & Ben Jones talk to Bob & Laurie Carlton about their jet powered Salto glider demonstration
Steve & Grant talk to Owen & Kirrily Zupp
ATC_Ben helps out with Timbo’s Tarmac and In the Keyhole with Papa Smurf
We’ve finally made it to our 100th episode and had some amazing experiences along the way. We’ve learned lots, had aviation experiences we’ve never dreamed of and even spun off a few side-projects for other shows.
For this episode we’ve resisted the temptation to do a retrospective or rehash earlier content (except for a bit at the start & the end of the episode :) ). Instead, we’ve put together some interviews with well known people about a couple of up-coming events and a discussion about the dreaded Biennial Flight Review (BFR), now known as an Aeroplane Flight Review (AFR).
In November of 2012 the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) decommissioned their C-130H fleet, transitioning to the C-130J and reaching the end of an era for flight engineers & navigators in the Air Lift Group (ALG). We were fortunate enough to be invited to partake in some of the decommissioning events including a final media flight over Sydney Harbour, watching a formation flyby practice from RAAF Base Richmond’s control tower and the delivery of C-130H A97-011 to the RAAF Museum at Point Cook.
In the course of these events we obtained a number of great interviews with past & present air crew which are gathered here in our tribute episode to the C-130H in RAAF service.
As 2012 draws to a close come & spend a bit of time with Steve, Grant, Bas & ATC Ben as they wrap up the year with some new content, some discussions and a bit of fun. It’s another long episode but we think it’s a pretty good way to send out the year :)
The episode unfolds as:
0:03:30 – We discuss issues CASA are having with RA-Aus that has seen a number of LSA grounded due to administrative issues, one of which was Bas’ own aircraft
1:32:12 – Tech in the cockpit comes up along with the inevitable IOS vs Android vs Windows 8 with Bas in the Blue Corner and Grant in the Red Corner. DING!!!!
1:33:16 – Ben Jones sends us a Christmas greeting
1:33:39 – Damien Rose also sends us a Christmas greeting
1:25:12 – We spend some time reviewing the highlights of 2012, including:
Grant got his balloon license
ATC_Ben went to the USA and Oshkosh 2012
Steve got a C130 ride over Sydney
Bas changed his work and lifestyle to focus on OzRunways, allowing him to work for himself and move to a property where he’s setting up a runway on the front yard (now, where have we heard *that* phrase before? :) )
1:43:49 – We look forward to 2013 and talk a little about our Avalon 2013 plans and how we’re always up for new sponsors for our Avalon coverage
1:50:13 – We give shout-outs to those who have helped us over 2012, including:
Cathey Visscher & Kitt Loughman for their on-going support behind the scenes and their endless roles as “podcast widows”
Of course, a big thanks goes out to our audience for doing us the honour of listening to our programme, supporting it, interacting with us and much much more
With 2013 practically on top of us, we’re going to enjoy some New Year celebrations and then get back to work on completing Episode 99 which covers the C130H retirement & is due out in late January.
Serge’s “Fighter Pilot” book coverIt takes a special breed to push an F18 out to the edge of the envelope, fly missions ranging from surface attack to dog fights and then blow off steam with your squadron mates. It’s certainly not Top Gun but it does make amazing fodder for a book that highlights the good, the bad and the crazy.
Steve & Grant chat to “Serge” about being a fighter pilot, flying & partying hard, blowing off steam and dealing with bureaucrats. We also cover:
The size of the fighter community in Australia and the camaraderie that has developed among them
The mentoring that occurs within the community covering both technical & behavioural aspects of being a fighter pilot
The interaction of fighter pilots with pilots from other parts of the RAAF
Serge’s career progressing from high school through basic training in the CT4, progression to the Aermacchi MB 326H (the Macchi) and on to the F18 via a stint on the Nomad.
Wing Commander Ross Fox’s influence as Serge’s mentor and the impact of his death in an F18 mid-air collision
Serge’s thoughts on the Australian Army & Royal Australian Navy
Working with the fighter pilots from the USA & comparing USA pilots with RAAF pilots
Old timer stories and their influence on current procedures
RAAF exchange pilots flying F15s & F22s with the USAF
The F35 JSF and its issues with kinematics
Drones and their use in the military environment
How the military have missed out on changing their operations & equipment to deal better with the Middle East environment & the modern political power dynamics
Serge’s love of hang gliding
Transitioning from being a fighter pilot to being an airline pilot
His final flight: a one-on-one dogfight with Matt Hall
After three years of lamenting the hassles involved in getting to the West Coast of Australia to report on aviation happenings wwwaaayyy over there on the other side of the big empty, we’ve finally done something about it: we’ve set up a PCDU-WestCoast office and found someone just as aviation-crazy as we are to run it :)
In this episode we introduce Ben Jones who is based in West Australia and has a long and fascinating history of aviation. Clearly it’s in his blood as most of his family are into aviation while Ben himself is a pilot, home builder, member of the RAAF reserve and much much more. He’s even started a blog called WA Aviator to record his aviation activities ‘over there.’
There’s more to the episode than introducing Ben, however, and here’s what you’ll find in it:
0:02:29 – We bring Ben in & start chatting about his background in aviation, the aviation scene in West Australia and his current projects.
0:26:58 – We chat with Sussan Ley, Federal Member for Farrer, Commercial Pilot and one of the two people responsible for starting the “Friends of Aviation” group in Federal Parliament. With only a half hour window to chat with Sussan, we had to jump through a number of subjects in only a short time. Hopefully we can return to chat again with Sussan in the near future as it sounds like there are plenty of additional stories for us to listen to as well as updates on progress with Friends of Aviation group :)
0:53:02 – Mark Pracy from JetRide Australia and Pracy Racing joins us to talk about their preparation for the Reno Air Races this year. We discuss the Galloping Ghost crash, the changes made to address the issues it raised and Mark’s training & preparation techniques.
We also have a very special announcement about AusFly: We’ve been invited to attend and provide commentary, narration and general radio services during the show. We’ll be there with a PA system, low powered FM transmitter and a live-stream to the Internet via LiveATC and our MyRadioStream link. Check it out at:
Finally, at 1:24:13 we have a few shout outs to cover:
Richard Pollard (the voice of the JetRide ads) is heading back to New Zealand to start a new chapter in his life.
Andrea Crook (our awesome voice-over lady) is launching her own podcast network: the Waffle Network
Steve gives HUGE thanks to Gary Mac for helping him with some voice-over training during the past couple of months. Check out Steve’s even more dulcet tones, folks! :)
If you’re in West Australia, check out the Sport Builders Club of WA who are holding their annual fly-in on September 30th at Serpentine Airfield, which also happens to be right about the same time as the WestFly event
![](https://www.planecrazydownunder.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/ep100_cover.jpg")
We’ve finally made it to our 100th episode and had some amazing experiences along the way. We’ve learned lots, had aviation experiences we’ve never dreamed of and even spun off a few side-projects for other shows.
In November of 2012 the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) decommissioned their C-130H fleet, transitioning to the C-130J and reaching the end of an era for flight engineers & navigators in the Air Lift Group (ALG). We were fortunate enough to be invited to partake in some of the decommissioning events including a final media flight over Sydney Harbour, watching a formation flyby practice from RAAF Base Richmond’s control tower and the delivery of C-130H A97-011 to the RAAF Museum at Point Cook.
