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#11
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While 80 gallons or so of fuel may not be much...we must ask a few
things.... snip That must have been SOME headwind to burn an extra 80 gallons. . . Rich S. The article doesnt seem to give the details....but i would guess its not so much that the HEADWIND burned the whole 80 gallons so much as the fact the headwind was gonna keep him from making it all the way....so once he reached the halfway point....or so....and he turned around....so its probably like 10 to 20 percent of the fuel was due to headwind burning and the rest was just normal fuel consumption...AND antartica has some of the strongest, most consistent/continous head winds on the planet....due to its unique geographic layout.... besides....i still say it was a boneheaded glory stunt that accomplished NOTHING....and HAD already been done..and he apparently KNEW he wasnt welcome....(which is WORSE than not knowing if he was/wasnt)....he failed to plan properly....tough cookies.... take care Blll |
#12
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It's said to me that the ultimate obstavle to Jon's
flying over the pole is not headwinds, but $#%holes. Chief among them being the one Johanson's head was up when he neglected to cache fuel along his intended route.... |
#13
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My brother over-wintered at Siple Station in Antartica about thirty years
ago. I called him today for his view on this. McMurdo Base is the main US supply base for most US operations in Antartica. The New Zealand base is "just around the corner, within walking distance". Most vehicles down there run on diesel fuel but they would have some gasoline for Ski Doo type vehicles. The main runway is built on sea ice and it will breakup within a month. In January icebreakers will carve a path to McMurdo for supply ships to get in but those ships are already loaded and on their way. Cruise ships visit the area during the brief summer. My brother was surprised the they made him sleep in the fuel shed. Even in the summer McMurdo has lots of barracks space. Shipping to Antrartica is very expensive. If he has to hire a Twin Otter to fly in fuel, he might find it's cheaper to abandon the airplane there. My brother thinks they're playing hardball just to keep others away. Rich |
#14
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On Thu, 11 Dec 2003 10:37:38 -0800, "Richard Isakson"
wrote: My brother over-wintered at Siple Station in Antartica about thirty years ago. I called him today for his view on this. McMurdo Base is the main US supply base for most US operations in Antartica. The New Zealand base is "just around the corner, within walking distance". Most vehicles down there run on diesel fuel but they would have some gasoline for Ski Doo type vehicles. The main runway is built on sea ice and it will breakup within a month. In January icebreakers will carve a path to McMurdo for supply ships to get in but those ships are already loaded and on their way. Cruise ships visit the area during the brief summer. My brother was surprised the they made him sleep in the fuel shed. Even in the summer McMurdo has lots of barracks space. Shipping to Antrartica is very expensive. If he has to hire a Twin Otter to fly in fuel, he might find it's cheaper to abandon the airplane there. My brother thinks they're playing hardball just to keep others away. Rich While I personally wouldn't fly a single engine airplane any great distance over water I admire those who have the courage to do so. So what is wrong with giving the guy the 80 gallons of gas and he buys two 200 liter drums of gas in Christchurch and they fly them down in the next C130 that has a little space available? Charge him for the airfreight. Don't tell me *every* C130 is at max gross or bulked out out of Christchurch? I think this is a good argument for abandoning the Antarctic bases. After 50 years surely the human presence can be replaced by a few automatic weather stations and satellite surveillance and we Aussies, Kiwis and Americans get to save some taxes? I think I'll write to my Member of Parliament urging the zeroing of Antarctic funding. The damn place is of no economic benefit by international agreement. Just a playground for a bunch of scientists who probably don't want anyone else getting in on their sweet little racket. Just like the NASA people. What we have had in both the Antarctic and space is tourism with high entry barriers and qualifications for the tourists. Second Last thought - I wonder if he's sleeping in the fuel shed with the right fuel in it? Last thought - I hope I someday get the chance to refuse to help one of these bureaucrats when he's in trouble and needs my assistance. Mike Borgelt |
#15
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"Jimmy Galvin" wrote:
You can offer all apologies all you want but only for yourself. Don't talk for me. I feel that he took a chance for glory, self promotion, stupidity, or whatever and ended up with his tit caught in the wringer. It is not up to me and my tax dollars to bail his sorry ass out of the jamb he inflected on himself. This goes for all those fools that climb mountains, trek through caves, or go exploring in the woods relying on a GPS with 1/2 dead batteries to guide them along. They should all just be left to their own devices and hopefully receive a Darwin Award for their efforts. Many people would say that applied to all pilots of light aircraft, especially those who build their own. I know a lot of people think I'm crazy... |
#16
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I agree with Jimmy,
Sell him the gas at what it costs to get it there and don't support all the fools in the world. In Arizona we had all sorts of fools that would try to cross washes (normally dry creek beds) right after a rainstorm. Dozens of people would get stuck because they were too lazy to go around and find a bridge. Now the people that get stuck are billed for the cost of whatever was necessary to get them to safety and the tow bill on the car when the wash subsided. Not too many people think it's WORTH IT now. -- Bart D. Hull Tempe, Arizona Check http://www.inficad.com/~bdhull/engine.html for my Subaru Engine Conversion Check http://www.inficad.com/~bdhull/fuselage.html for Tango II I'm building. Jimmy Galvin wrote: You can offer all apologies all you want but only for yourself. Don't talk for me. I feel that he took a chance for glory, self promotion, stupidity, or whatever and ended up with his tit caught in the wringer. It is not up to me and my tax dollars to bail his sorry ass out of the jamb he inflected on himself. This goes for all those fools that climb mountains, trek through caves, or go exploring in the woods relying on a GPS with 1/2 dead batteries to guide them along. They should all just be left to their own devices and hopefully receive a Darwin Award for their efforts. "Cam" wrote in message ... On behalf of all normal Kiwi's . I appologise for our sick burocratic politcaly correct government *******s (Bitches) Cam.......... "John Ammeter" wrote in message . .. Jon Johanson, known for his round the world flights in his RV-4 as well as flights to Oshkosh may have some trouble getting out of Antartica.... http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmp...=10&u=/nm/2003 1210/od_nm/adventurer_dc |
#17
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Mike Borgelt wrote:
Last thought - I hope I someday get the chance to refuse to help one of these bureaucrats when he's in trouble and needs my assistance. These days you never know who may be a bureaucrat or future bureaucrat. Therefore, I refuse to help anyone in need of assistance. I would imagine that puts me in the same company as BOb again. ;-) Russell Kent |
#18
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Jon speaks english...and isn't it the agenda of the U.S. to give the taxpayers
moneys to only non english speaking counties....that hate us??? And feeding Jon or giving 80 gallons of fuel to him would not give anyone near the benefit as sending mice into space to see if thay copulate or if house flys can fly in zero gravity or even having a "base" in the Antartic...( what is the benefit??? ) |
#19
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"BlakeleyTB" wrote in message
... Jon speaks english...and isn't it the agenda of the U.S. to give the taxpayers moneys to only non english speaking counties....that hate us??? And feeding Jon or giving 80 gallons of fuel to him would not give anyone near the benefit as sending mice into space to see if thay copulate or if house flys can fly in zero gravity or even having a "base" in the Antartic...( what is the benefit??? ) If he gets 80 gallons and a cheeseburger, I want mine too! Rich "Taxes?" S |
#20
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I remember flying over Los Angeles 30 years ago in my Ercoupe. I had flown
non-stop from San Francisco and was dreadfully low on fuel. I was also lost in the smog. I could see the ground under me but everything around me was an even brown-grey color. Finally, I spotted Disneyland! Yahoo!! Now to get to Orange County. I set a compass heading and noted the time and speed. After a few minutes the engine seemed to burp. Was this it? were the tanks finally dry? Ahead of me, barely visible through the haze was El Toro Marine Air Station. I called the tower and asked if I could land, describing my plight. They said, "Sure, lil' guy, c'mon down. Of course, you'll have to take that Ercoupe apart and truck it out. . . " I went on to find Orange County (John Wayne to you kids). I told the tower I was critical on fuel and they said, "Roger, you're number 17 on downwind." Well, I made it to the ramp and actually had enough fuel that I needed to kill the mags to stop that faithful little Continental. When the fuel truck got done, I did the math. I had less than a gallon on board. I hope Johanson brought his socket set with him. Rich "That which doesn't kill you makes you stronger" S. |
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