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John DeRosa's
Aviation Presentations and Information Web Page |
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![]() Introduction: I have created several presentations, and various other information details, on various glider related topics EXCEPT for anything to do with flying (flying well that is). I haven't quite figured that out as yet.
AND INFORMATION Click on the links below to download each presentation or see each informational web page.
Soaring Aviation Electrical
Presented at the 2020
I have seen many glider avionics installations that have made my hair stand on end (or fall out altogether)! This presentation is intended to provide basic instruction in some best practices on the wiring of avionics. Topics include wires types and gauges, crimp lugs, power, batteries, installation, mounting, power distribution, power management, tools, etc.
Click Here to Download the Latest Presentation (Part 1) Table of Contents
Reference Materials
Working with Glider Air Lines Sailplane pneumatic air lines are critical to the safe functioning of instruments. This presentation will provide you valuable information on how to work with these lines, testing and repair/replacement. Table of Contents
Transceiver Troubleshooting & Information Trying to figure out why your transceiver (radio) isn't working as well as it should is FRUSTRATING. This presentation may just help you! Table of Contents
![]() Landing Gear Warning Systems
The presentation includes notes and hints on implementation, types of switches, and how to test the alarm system. This presentation also contains an animation of a gear warning system to help you to better understand how the system works. Microsoft PowerPoint Users - Please download the file from the link below and open it. Then hit F5 to start the slide show. Those of you with PowerPoint 2004 and later will be able to step through the previously mentioned animation one flight phase at a time. Older versions of PowerPoint may have issues with the animation. Non-Microsoft PowerPoint Users - If you do not have PowerPoint 2004 or later then there is an MP4 video available at the link below. WARNING - this is a large 6mb file. This will run through the entire presentation but will be too fast to study properly. So please use the pause function of your video application to step through it slide by slide and the various phases of the animation. Download the latest Microsoft PowerPoint presentation here Download the latest MP4 video of the presentation hereJump to Index of Presentations Overview of Emergency Location Devices
Download the latest presentation here
The SSA sponsored Webinar of this presentation is available
here.
See also these related presentations;
Landout Survival Kits Over the years I have created a survival kit which I carry in my glider at all times to be prepared for landouts. There is another version for when I fly out west.
See this web page for more details on the landout survival kit.
See also these related presentations;
Jump to Index of Presentations ![]() Bailout Survival Kits Over the years I have created a bailout survival kit which I carry attached to my parachute at all times to be prepared for a bailout.
Download the latest presentation here
See also these related presentations;
Jump to Index of Presentations Oxygen Systems for Glider Pilots
Presented at the 2023
Once you have experienced the joys of soaring to high altitudes, you will want to do it again and again. However, you must learn how to use an oxygen system in your glider and, most importantly, learn how to conserve the limited amount of oxygen that you can take aloft. This presentation will help you learn how to create and use an oxygen system in a glider. Download the latest presentation here Companion medical oriented presentations on Oxygen by Dr Dan Johnson, Eric Bick, and Others; Jump to Index of Presentations ![]() Cobra Trailer Ramps - Getting On & OFF To get my glider's fuselage into my "hangar" (AKA garage) for winter work I often have to get it off and out of the trailer by myself. I made some inexpensive ramps to help me with this. I thought you might find this useful. There are two pairs of ramps needed;
See the images of the ramps HERE. Jump to Index of Presentations ![]() Instrument Panel Hole Sizes There are four common instrument hole sizes found in aircraft panels;
While the fractional inch and metric sizes are close to one another they are not exactly the same. This presentation will provide you instrument hole size details, conversion factors, and templates. Download the latest presentation here Jump to Index of Presentations Trailer Wiring & LED Conversion Trailer wiring can be daunting no matter what trailer you have. Converting a European trailer like a Cobra to a US connector can be a chore. Then dealing with burn out or corroded bulbs can be frustrating. This presentation may just help you! Download the latest presentation here Jump to Index of Presentations Pilot Relief Systems I have brought together information on my experiences with pilot relief ("pee") systems for glider and soaring pilots along with information from other resources. See this web page for more details. Jump to Index of Presentations Battery Testing Each year I like to test my ship's batteries and replace those that do not have enough individual capacity to last 6 hours at a 1A load. But how can the average pilot perform a reasonable "real world" test with easily obtainable equipment? See this web page for an explanation of the testing that I perform, and the simple load test rig that I use, along with Excel templates for gathering the data and then graphing the results. There is a manual test methodology and an automated one.
Jump to Index of Presentations OGN - Open Glider Network The objective of the Open Glider Network (OGN) is to create and maintain a unified tracking platform for gliders, drones and other aircraft. Focused on tracking aircraft equipped with FLARM and OGN trackers, OGN is also open for integration of other flying objects tracking data sources. You can see beacons from FLARM PilotAware, SPOT, Garmin InReach, Skymaster, FANET (paragliders) and Spidertracks circulating through our network. The tracking data is freely available. Download the latest presentation here Jump to Index of Presentations Poor Man's Spar Alignment Tool Inserting the main spar pins into the spar bushings during sailplane rigging can be difficult due to the close manufacturer tolerances. In other words things have to be JUST RIGHT to get the $#%^@ pins in! Included here is how to make a poor man's version of a non-eccentric spar alignment tool. Download the latest presentation here Jump to Index of Presentations Removing Painted Lettering from Gelcoat After purchasing my new/used ASW-27B I was faced with removing the non-vinyl painted contest ID letters from the underside of the right wing. That was a learning experience as imparted by others to me and is important to pass on to whomever might be faced with the same task. Download the latest presentation here Jump to Index of Presentations Cambridge Aero Instruments The Cambridge Aero Instruments line of flight recorders and audio varios were very popular with soaring pilots. Their last model of the flight recorder, flight computers, and audio vario was the great model 302 which is still highly regarded by glider pilots the world over. Here is a web page with additional information on several subjects; logging error fixes,tones decoded, software and manuals, simulators, etc. Jump to Index of Presentations Securing L'Hotellier Fittings Everything that you wanted to know about L'Hotellier fittings and the several ways to secure them to comply with the FAA AD about them. Included is a step-by-step guide to the installation of Wederkind Sleeves on a glider with L'Hotellier fittings and sources for the parts. See this web page for full details and pictures. Jump to Index of Presentations Carbon Fiber Instrument Panel Overlay This presentation talks about applying the following types of carbon fiber to the face of an instrument panel plus the pros and cons of each with examples of the finished products;
Jump to Index of Presentations ![]() Glider Maintenance Tool Box A comprehensive list of many things that you might need in a maintenance kit for your glider at home and during your road trips. Click here Jump to Index of Presentations ![]() O'Hare Class B Airspace Expansion In mid-2008 the FAA started the process of expanding the O'Hare Class B airspace. This change was implemented on October 21, 2010. This has directly impact several soaring sites in the Chicago area, notably Sky Soaring near Hampshire, IL. More details and information can be found by clicking on this link Jump to Index of Presentations ![]()
Oudie Flight Computer
Here is a web page with some information on the Oudie Jump to Index of Presentations IGC File Name Decoding Maybe you have wondered about the file names of the IGC log files that are generated by your flight recorder. For example, "85KC3WK1.IGC". It looks like a strange random combination of letters and numbers, but each character does have a meaning. In the example above it means, "1st Flight on May 20th, 2018 using a Cambridge flight recorder serial number 3WK". Simple? Not so much. Please see this web page for more information.
Jump to Index of Presentations ChicagoLand Glider Council Presentations These presentations come from past ChicagoLand Glider Council meetings. Jump to Index of Presentations ![]() Blanik L-13/L-23/L-33 Strut Information and Repair The repair/rebuild of the L-13/L-23/L-33 strut landing gear strut is an important skill if your strut has collapsed and is no longer holding gas (typically nitrogen). A repair/rebuild kit is required. Old parts should not be reused and the new kit is not commonly available. To my knowledge kits are only available from Blanik (approximate cost US$500). Note that a replacement new strut is much more expensive. Also note that L-13's have been effectively grounded (at least in the US) and used struts from an L-13 can be reused in L-23's and L-33's. Several items are included here for downloading;
Jump to Index of Presentations
Soaring Flight Computers NEEDS SOME SERIOUS UPDATING! This presentation details GPS systems for use for soaring pilots. I talk about how flight recorders are used, how they are wired together, how to upload and download flight logs and other details. I deal with what flight computers bring to the party, how they can help soaring, how they enhance moving map PDA displays, file structure, etc. Download this 2007 SSA Convention presentation for complete details.
Basics of Dr Jacks BlipMaps and BlipSpots(PLB) NEEDS SOME SERIOUS UPDATING! Here is a short presentation on the use of blipmaps and blipspots which was created for a ChicagoLand Glider Council meeting. Download this 2007 presentation for complete details. Also available is Dr. Jack's presentation from the 2003 SSA convention (by kind permission).
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