Bearing serial number E-89, VH-FWL is a 1968 Beechcraft 36 Bonanza. It is not an Beechcraft A36 Bonanza. A36 were not built until 1970. Externally there is little
that differentiates the planes (wing tips are slighlty different).
It has six seats (two of which are usually removed), and can fly for some 4 hours (with reserves) at 150 knots (about 275 km/h).
When I originally became a part-owner of FWL it was based in Tyabb on the Mornington Peninsula, just due South of Melbourne. As a consequence of moving to Queensland, I had to either relinquish my 1/3 share or buy out the other 2 shares. In the end we settled on the latter scheme, making me the sole owner of thousands of very expensive spare parts flying in close formation.
As of April 2004, FWL has clocked up some 8,800 flying hours. Given an average speed of 140 knots (to allow for circuits and taxying), this equates to a distance of 1,232,000 nautical miles which is roughly 60 times around the globe at the Equator.
This does not mean that is it a ramshackle, worn-out and just-about-to-fall-to-bits aircraft: Aircraft are regularly inspected, overhauled and rebuilt. For exmaple FWL had a zero hour engine installed only in March 2003 and its propeller was completely overhauled in April 2004. Also in the last 10 years both wings have been completely re-built, as has the tail plane, resulting in a reasonably clean airframe.
This registration mark also doubles up as the call sign for the aircraft, which, using the international phonetic alpabet, makes it "Foxtrot Whiskey Lima"
Over three months from May to September 2009, FWL took a step back in time.
She was first stripped to bare metal and inspected for corrosion and other faults, these were then repaired.
She then was given a new windshield and dorsal fillet.
She was finally painted in the very same colour scheme that she wore when she came out of the factory in September 1968.
Looking out the window in flight now gives you the impression on being on golden wings.
As of the middle of September I have a new partner in the aeroplane. So she will now hopefully get twice as much use and we will be able to share some of the annual, recurring costs.
David is a long standing friend who was flying DC-3s when I was still in my nappies and progressed through various airlines to fly some serious heavy iron (B737, B757 and B767) all over the world, so he should find little trouble adjusting to our little yellow girl.
Bendix/King KMA24 Audio Panel
Bendix/King KX175B NAV/COM
Bendix/King KR85
Narco AT150
Codan HF2000
Sigtronix 4 place intercom
S-TEC System 50 2 axis pitch/roll Autopilot
Also affectionately known as George, it is a great workload reducer in the instrument flight rule environment. It is far more capable than I will ever be in keeping the blue side up and the brown side down for hours on end.
Garmin GPSMAP 295
This allows for accurate navigation in the absence of ground based navigational aids. It also gives real-time information about the current speed, track made good and time to the next way point. Prior to the arrival of GPS this information could only be inferred once one had passed an en-route navigational fix and taken into account the time to reach it from the previous fix.
EI UBG-16
This allows the monitoring of 16 engine parameters. In this aircraft the following parameters are being monitored:
JPI FS-450
Prior to installing this gauge, making accurate in-flight decisions regarding the exact amount of fuel remaining was difficult and I had to always be a lot more conservative in my flight planning. Now I can accurately and safely make decisions which helps me avoid having to land needlessly.
This instrument was a thank-you gift from my brother after I had loaned him the plane for a few months.