There are a lot of weather related problems in the summer months that can cause serious damage to a light aircraft, and even to those aircraft that are not so light. Tim Hall-Mathews will testify to this and will not in future leave his aircraft without being tied down. Only a short time ago he left his aircraft at Condobolin, where his bank run ends and where he remains until late afternoon before returning to Bankstown. A wind squall came through, picked his aircraft up and deposited it back on the ground resting on the wing tip and the nose leg. Both were severely damaged (about $40,000 worth). The Airvan is much bigger and heavier than a Cessna 172 and given similar conditions a 172 would probably have finished up on its back. These dust devils, or whirly winds as they are sometimes called, can be very severe in the hot conditions and many aircraft have come to grief at their hands.

When left unattended VH-BAC must be tied down. There are tie-downs in the baggage compartment together with a hammer for putting them in the ground. Some airports have wire cables that the aircraft can be tied to. In these cases the rope that is attached to the tie-down peg should be used to secure the aircraft to the cable. The control lock should also always be in place and the sun screens should be used to protect the interior trim and the avionics.

It was reported to the committee recently that VH-BAC, when left unattended at a nearby airport, was not tied down, no control lock was put in place and the sun shields were not used. The winds were quite strong on the day and the controls were flapping in the breeze. An interesting point here is that if an aircraft is damaged in this situation and it had not been tied down, the insurance company may thing twice about meeting the claim. If they do meet the claim, they could in turn sue the pilot concerned for their losses.