Bio-diesel is almost as expensive to manufacture as Diesel, the part that makes it cheaper is the lower tax, 0.27p/litre as opposed to 0.4#p something. It also uses some very hazardous chemicals in its manufacture.
Bio-Diesel is usually made from Waste Vegetable Oil, well filtered from the chippy or Chinese!

Diesel engines will run on Straight Vegetable Oil, but there is a problem with viscocity, its just too thick to feed the engine as-is, it needs to be heated before injection. It has been known to clog injectors and break injector pumps (Bosch pumps work well though), as well as increase coking in the cylinders-heads. Peanut, Palm, Rapeseed, Sunflower, Caster and Hemp oil have all been used in Compression Ignition engines with good results.
I would be very surprised to see any vegetable oil based fuel in Aviation use, other than for testing.

The only difference between Avtur and Diesel is (so I’m told) Avtur lacks the lubrication additives needed in modern cars, I may be wrong.

Interesting information Bigglesworth, I don’t know the results of running diesel engines on bio-diesel but I do know that Avtur doesn’t possess the same lube additives as diesel.
On a road going diesel engine the injector pump has extremely fine tolerances and runs at very high pressure hence the necessity for lubricant in the fuel that passes through it.
Avtur doesn’t have to pass through such a pump, therefore has no lubricant in it, nor does heating oil – I have worked on a few vehicles that have come to grief through using the latter!!
I did read somewhere that the French had a problem with Avtur wearing out an injector pump on an adapted Peugeot diesel engine fitted to a Jodel, they also ran it on diesel fuel mixed 50/50 with used, filtered sump oil – I may be wrong tho…

Yes – on more than one occasion!!
He’s a very good friend of mine though, a top class pilot and one of my formation guys..

Eeekkk, I’d better not moan at him too much then…. or he might disappear off in a Stampe!

Or my B***DY Stearman – wouldn’t be the first time!!!!!

Testament to the strength of the aeroplane – I have known quite a few crash and every pilot has walked away.. Pleased there were no injuries.

I absolutely love my Stearman, I’ve got hundreds of hours in it and others. It demands respect, especially on landing. I wouldn’t say its got a whole lot more power than a tiger – 220hp but it weighs 1500kg, so power to weight it isn’t far different.

I will endeavour to look for it, I’m sure I’ve got a copy of it somewhere..

The numerous Piper incidents are probably because there are numerous Pipers!!
The same types of engine, of course, are fitted to both Pipers and Cessnas…

DME,
Fortunately for me things turned out ok, the aircraft was repaired and returned to flying around East Anglia.
During the ensuing investigation it was found that the logs had been falsified and the engine had gone way past its 2000hr (+ extension) TBO limit.
A lesson well learnt……….

Very difficult to speculate…. the 206 will hold approx seven people including the pilot, therefore, if the jumpers were going to go individually, this unfortunate chap could have been first or second out of the door.
Imagine the aircraft on its run in at 10000′, the pilot slowing the aircraft to around 75/80kts in preparation for the jump, the jump master calls for the cut, the pilot reduces power and enters a gentle descent to maintain airspeed, the first (or second) chap makes for the door or is on the step, just as he’s about to go his chute comes open and immediately wraps itself around the tail and pulls the skydiver into trail behind the aircraft, at such a slow speed the increased drag immediately stalls the aircraft and down it goes, all that is left is for the remaining occupants to make good their escape.
The second possible senario is – at the cut, the jumpers start climbing out to hold on (floaters), at this point one guy’s chute pops open and wraps itself around the tail, the story is then the same.

I agree with Janie that skydivers fall straight down rather than back then down, remember that they are travelling at the same speed as the aircraft when they leave it and their forward speed diminishes as they fall, I also agree that the weight and balance does change dramatically in fact I think many PPL’s should experience it for themselves, also if the door is on one side of the aircraft then you get a very serious weight shift one way, many jump pilots fly with a assymmetric fuel load to help (I do!!), as the skydivers leave the aircraft you have full forward trim, full forward elevator and full right hand aileron!! makes for an interesting recovery once they have jumped and all of a sudden there is no weight!

However I disgree that the aircraft could be so nose high that the jumper ‘fell onto’ the tailplane, it would have to be near vertical and at such a low climb airspeed it would be impossible to achieve such an attitude, the aircraft would stall out long before.

MMitch is right, floaters hanging on outside do create interesting flight characteristics until they jump off their perches!!

The key to this unfortunate incident is the fact that the chute got wrapped around the tail, therefore it must have been open in or near the door.

There have been plenty of nude jumps even nude weddings in free fall…….

Sorry for the waffle…

Rgds

Current BPA pilot