Aeroprakt A32 1,000 nm ferry flight

ido-shaun-at-emeraldMy colleague Ido Segev and his friend Shaun just got home from an almost 1,000 nautical mile ferry flight of a new shiny Ferrari red Aeroprakt A32 Vixxen, registered VH-ACL, to its new owner Will Graham.

The aircraft is fitted with a Dynon SkyView system, including a 2-axis autopilot, transponder and fuel computer. In addition to the standard dual-watch VHF radio, the aircraft also has an 80-channel UHF radio, operating through the headsets.

ido-shaun-ferry-02Their flight took them from Moorabbin Airport, near Melbourne, via Temora and Parkes in New South Wales, to an overnight stop at St George in southern Queensland. Most of the flight was made at 8,500-9,500 feet AGL, which at times translated into a density altitude of over 11,000 feet. Said Ido: “Even at 7,500 feet were were still climbing in excess of 500 feet a minute – not bad with two of us, full fuel, luggage and some spare parts on board.” The next day, the weather wasn’t so kind, with strong headwinds and a 2,000 foot cloud base. Nevertheless they made good time and arrived at Emerald, Queensland, before lunch, after a short wait at Roma while some weather passed through.

Total flight distance was about 950 nautical miles with and average ground speed of slightly over 95 knots. Average fuel burn was a shade under 17 litres an hour. In metric fuel economy terms, that’s about 10.3 litres per 100 kilometres – not bad for an average speed of over 175 kilometres an hour! Ferrari and co, eat your hearts out!

Aeroprakt A32 Y-stick arrives in Australia

a32-y-stickSome 15 months after the arrival of the first A32 ‘Vixxen’ aircraft in Australia, the first Y-stick control version has now landed and was handed over to its new owner on 24 December 2016.

This bright red aircraft with a chequerboard rudder design looks great – click on the photo or here for a short video explaining the controls: A32 Vixxen with Y-stick controls

Thanks to Mike Rudd for the video, which also shows a take-off of the ‘youngest’ P-51 Mustang in Australia.

Latest A32 Vixxen departs

Pumpkin leaves TyabbThe 5th Aeroprakt A32 Vixxen in Australia is on its way to its new owner in Broken Hill. Painted beautiful Pumpkin Orange – which looks particularly brilliant in the sun – the aircraft departed Tyabb on Saturday morning, ably piloted by Rob Hatswell, flying instructor at Gawler SA. Accompanied by his brother Peter, they made Horsham in double-quick time, cruising at 110 kts. After re-fuelling, they continued to Gawler, where the aircraft will be based while its new owner – Luke Mashford – does his conversion flying course.

Rob comments: “I’m amazed. The A32 only burned 33 litres from Tyabb to Horsham. That’s 17 litres less than the A22LS and an average of 20 knots faster. Yuriy has clearly waved his aerodynamic genius over the A32.”

Two more A32s are arriving at Moorabbin next week – another one for Broken Hill, plus a school aircraft for Coffs Harbour. More in due course.

Australia’s 4th A32 arrives!

A32 #011 being prepared after shipping

A32 #011 being prepared after shipping

Response to the Aeroprakt A32 ‘Vixxen’ has been nothing short of phenomenal, since the first demonstrator arrived in July 2015. No less than 12 have been ordered through Foxbat Australia, including one to an Australian subsidiary company operating in South Africa. The surprising thing is that sales of the A22LS ‘Foxbat’ have remained unaffected.

The most recent A32 arrival – serial number 011 – is in ‘Pumpkin Orange’, a colour which is becoming more popular as an alternative to the more common yellow, white, red and blue. The lucky owner lives out Broken Hill way and after familiarisation training – courtesy of Rob Hatswell at Gawler (north of Adelaide) – he will be flying the A32 largely on farm duties.

The aircraft is due for some sprauncy decals in the next couple of days and will hopefully be signed off sometime next week for test flying. Although weather around Melbourne has been a bit tempestuous lately!

After the very first A32 arrived here in Mazda Spirited Green Metallic (have a look at the pre-delivery flight test video here: A32 check) it seems that A32  owners like their colours – the next two A32 deliveries, due later in May, are yellow and white, with a bright green one (but not metallic) due early in June.

 

Aeroprakt A22LS Pre-delivery flight check

A22LS Flight checkFollowing on from our recent A32 Vixxen flight check video, here’s another one – this time in a stick-controlled A22LS Foxbat.

As before, Mike Rudd accompanies me through a series of checks to ensure the aircraft performs as it should and is ready for its new owner.

Click the picture to view the video on YouTube. Watch at the highest resolution you can, to see the figures on the dials

Tyabb Airshow this Sunday

Tyabb Airshow 2016Don’t forget! This Sunday, 13 March, is the bi-annual Tyabb Airshow – themed ‘Winged Warriors’.

The airfield looks very smart and ready for all its visitors.

New aeroplanes, old aeroplanes, old cars, new cars, aerobatics, drones, open hangars, food of every description – there’s certain to be something for you on this great family day out.

The airfield is located just a few metres down Stuart Road from the corner of Mornington-Tyabb Road in Tyabb, just north of Hastings in Victoria. Gates open at 0830 and the flying display runs from 1030 – 1630.

For more information on the airshow website, click here.

Foxbat Australia’s Hangar 11 (the first hangar south across the grass from the Clubhouse) will be open, with a couple of A22LS aircraft and our A32 demonstrator on display.

Come along, say hello and and enjoy the day.

A32 Vixxen – Australian Flying flight review

OzFly CoverAustralian Flying Magazine has published a review of the Aeroprakt A32 Vixxen in their November/December 2015 issue.

Editor Steve Hitchen flew the aircraft a few weeks back, on an ‘interesting’ weather day at Tyabb. I won’t spoil his article for you but he definitely seemed to like the aircraft!

Click on the photo to download a copy of the article – file size is about 2.5Mb. If you want a higher resolution copy, you’ll have to buy a copy of the magazine yourself – it’s on the news stands now. Happy reading!

Sport Pilot Magazine reviews the A32

A32 Sport Pilot Review

A32 Sport Pilot Review

The September issue of Sport Pilot Magazine (the official publication of Recreational Aviation Australia) has a flight review of the new Aeroprakt A32 Vixxen. You can read the article by clicking the Sport Pilot link above and turning to page 30.

Written by Andrew Murray – an A22LS Foxbat owner – this is a candid, comparative and objective review of the A32 aircraft.

Thanks to Andrew for taking the time to write the article, which, I think you will agree, has a certain style about it which makes it an easy read.

PS – As you’ll read, the new A32 is not just a quick update of the A22LS Foxbat, it’s a whole new aircraft. As a result, the name ‘Vixxen’ is currently being used in Australia to differentiate the two aircraft.