Fly Me Friendly

For those of you who don’t know it, I’m co-host of the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, currently Australia’s only aviation podcast although we know of a new one that’s about to start up soon. It’s been going for almost a year and, thanks in no small amount to the efforts of my co-host Steve Visscher, it’s growing steadily and our production quality is light years ahead of where we first started.

We’ve interviewed Red Bull Air Race pilots like Matt Hall, Nigel Lamb and Hannes Arch. We’ve been to airshows & aviation events, hanging out on the flight line in the “no public areas” (wooo :) We’ve chatted with RA/GA pilots, airline pilots, analysts, air traffic controllers and enthusiasts. We’ve even scored media passes and are starting to have all sorts of opportunities open up that, with a bit of effort & luck, could turn into a great future merging aviation & technology.

It’s been a great first year (we launched our first episode in mid-July, 2009) and there’s still so much that we can be doing. I’ve got more than I can manage given I’m also trying to earn a living, but to say I’m excited about all this is an understatement. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll get that media ride in a combat jet… (ya gotta have dreams :)

According to Alan Joyce from QANTAS, the “Jetstarisation of QANTAS” is supposed to be over. Well, I have a problem with that as I continue to see evidence that, if anything, the “Jetstarisation” is increasing. I would not be surprised to find JQ branded high density A380s flying to the USA and/or Europe while QF dwindles to only a very few select routes.

Thanks to an opportunity presented by Shashank Nigam, I’ve been able to voice my concerns on his very well read Simpliflying site. This is not only getting my thoughts before a large audience, it’s also helping to promote the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, which can only be a good thing.

The article provides a background on the birth of Jetstar, its growth to date and how it is destined to consume more of QANTAS’ mainline routes & aircraft. Head on over to Simpliflying and check out the article.

Thanks to Shashank for giving me the opportunity to gain further exposure to the global aviation world and helping to promote PCDU, it’s very much appreciated :)

I got the word from John that the Victorian chapter of the Aviation Historical Society of Australia was having a Christmas BBQ at Moorabbin airport (YMMB) today. So, I went down to hang out, meet new people and spread the word about our podcast.

It was definitely worth while as I definitely got to meet some interesting people, including Keith Meggs (founding member of the AHSA & current president) and Dr Carlo Kopp, a defence analyst who’s work I’ve been reading for a very long time. Dr Kopp is one of the founders of Air Power Australia, an independent defence think tank.

After a few hours chatting with a number of the people there, I headed off to the Australian National Aviation Museum to catch up with what might be new and on display. I’ve been a member for a while although I’d lapsed and not renewed my fees for a few years – ooops. I renewed recently as part of my DC3 excursion to Albury (yes, I need to write that adventure up – sorry – been busy :) and sorted out the back fees so I’m definitely current now :)

Going through their book pile, I found a number that included biographies, novels and historical narratives. After buying a stack of them, I noticed more in a pile waiting to be put out on display. Guess I’ll be going back again after payday to buy some more :)

The other task I have after I get paid is to join the AHSA as it would seem I may be able to help them with getting their print, audio & video archives online. While I’m certainly no historian, I do enjoy reading biographies & historical narratives and am definitely a big fan of capturing & preserving history online for people to access.

I’ll keep you posted on how all this progresses :)