
Plane Crazy Down Under
Southern Skies Media
Categories: Sports & Recreation
Listen to the last episode:
It's our first episode for 2025 so we're allowed to say Happy New Year, right? Even though it's February, right? We may be Australia's longest running aviation podcast but we're taking a very long time to get to episode 200 :)
This episode we follow our dreams into the stratosphere and beyond, featuring a great chat with the Monash High Powered Rocketry team from Monash University. These amazing students are building and fuelling rockets that get up well above the cruising altitudes of airliners and even most corporate jets. We also get even higher beyond 100,000 feet with High Altitude Balloons. It's heady, rarified stuff in this one, so strap in and get ready to go sky high as the episode starts with Steve & Grant catching you up on what's new in their worlds before it unfolds as:
0:06:05 - We chat with Megan Robinson, Oliver Lancaster and Redmond Henry from the Monash HPR team about the program, their rockets, recent results, future directions and even a hint of more content to come during 2025. These folks are amazing and its no wonder that many of the HPR alumni wind up working with Rocket Lab, Gilmour Space, Space X and other legendary aerospace companies. Thanks to Rachelle Patturajan from the team for helping to coordinate everyone's schedules.
0:26:53 - We play some promos for other shows and organisations that we like and want to help spread the word about.
0:29:01 - When Grant flies a hot air balloon, he thinks 10,000' is sky high, but Robert Brand and the team from Flight Design go well over ten times higher than that. We chat with Robert about High Altitude Balloons in general, the company's experiences to date working with the Australian Defence Force and local universities, plus some of the payloads they're working with and how these balloons could be used to provide services like a satellite at greatly reduced time and cost.
1:01:28 - Steve and Grant wrap up the show with a reminder that you can drop us a line via contact@planecrazydownunder.com to say Hi, tell us about your latest adventures, or even suggest a potential guest we should chat with. We also shout out to:
- The number of aviation podcasts that have sprung up while we were taking time off the airwaves.
- Stefan Drury's challenges in getting back flying again (if you're not following Stefan's YouTube channel, you should be!)
- Steve's Clear Signal radio show.
- Grant's work with Australian Defence Magazine including hosting their podcast and even writing articles.
Links:
- Monash HPR: www.monashhpr.com
- Flight Design: flightdesign.com.au
- Stefan Drury on YouTube: www.youtube.com/@StefanDrury
- Steve's Clear Signal: www.clearsignal.com.au
- Australian Defence Magazine: www.australiandefence.com.au
- Dave Homewood's Wings Over New Zealand show: cambridgeairforce.org.nz/WONZ_Show.html
- The Journey is the Reward show: thejourneyisthereward.org
Credits:
- Introduction voice over and closing credits by Terry Daniel: http://yourvoiceover.com.au
- Episode artwork photos thanks to Monash HPR and Flight Design
Contact us via contact@planecrazydownunder.com
Previous episodes
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156 - To the Stratosphere & Beyond Wed, 12 Feb 2025
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155 - Pacific Airshow Gold Coast 2024 Wed, 16 Oct 2024
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154 - Getting Wired with the Ace Maker Thu, 15 Aug 2024
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153 - Aerobatics & Goal Setting with Aarron Deliu Mon, 22 Jul 2024 - 0h
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152 - Tyabb Airshow 2024 Thu, 28 Mar 2024 - 0h
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151 - Tibbsy the Aussie Airboss and a Day Trip to Tocumwal Mon, 04 Mar 2024
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150 - Exclusive: OzRunways Acquired by Boeing Tue, 13 Feb 2024 - 0h
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149 - Bush Flying 737s in Alaska, a long-haul Gipsy Moth, & more of the Steve Padgett Story Mon, 22 Jan 2024
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148 - Flying with Angels & the Padgett Story Begins Sat, 09 Dec 2023
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147 - Pacific Airshow Vibes Sat, 14 Oct 2023
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146 - Test Flying the F-35 Wed, 30 Aug 2023
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145 - Gold Coast Dreaming Mon, 14 Aug 2023 - 0h
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144 - Reaching Skyward Thu, 20 Jul 2023 - 0h
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143 - Traffic Sighted Sun, 25 Jun 2023 - 0h
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142 - Leaning Into It Fri, 09 Jun 2023 - 0h
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141 - All Change for the Defence Strategic Review Tue, 16 May 2023 - 0h
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140 - Extended Ranges Tue, 09 May 2023 - 0h
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139 - The Sound of Freedom Tue, 25 Apr 2023 - 0h
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138 - The Commentators Tue, 11 Apr 2023 - 0h
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137 - Owen Zupp on Resilience Tue, 28 Mar 2023 - 0h
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136 - Pushback & Start Thu, 16 Mar 2023 - 0h
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135 - PCDU Episode 131: Reflections Tue, 28 Feb 2023 - 0h
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134 - PCDU Episode 130: Avalon 2017 – Alpha Sat, 15 Apr 2017 - 0h
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133 - PCDU Episode 129: Going Back to School Tue, 28 Feb 2017 - 0h
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132 - PCDU Episode 128: Unprecedented Sun, 30 Oct 2016
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131 - PCDU Episode 127: From the Vault Sun, 17 Jul 2016 - 0h
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130 - PCDU Episode 126: Emirates Wants You! Thu, 10 Mar 2016
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129 - PCDU Episode 125: Avalon Charlie (The Avalon Airshow Goodness Continues) Sun, 02 Aug 2015
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128 - PCDU Episode 124: Avalon15 Bravo (Yet more Avalon Airshow Goodness) Wed, 11 Mar 2015 - 0h
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127 - PCDU Episode 123: Avalon15 Alpha (It’s Avalon Airshow Time :) ) Sat, 28 Feb 2015 - 0h
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126 - PCDU Episode 122: Farewell 2014 Wed, 31 Dec 2014
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125 - PCDU Episode 121: Exercise Pitch Black 2014 Wed, 01 Oct 2014
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124 - PCDU Episode 120: History & Records Thu, 31 Jul 2014 - 0h
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123 - PCDU Episode 119: F-35 Joint Strike Fighter: The RAAF Approach Tue, 03 Jun 2014 - 0h
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122 - PCDU Episode 118: Can you fly to NatFly 2014? Sun, 27 Apr 2014 - 0h
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121 - PCDU Episode 117: Holler for a Marshall, an AIR Marshal Wed, 26 Feb 2014
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120 - PCDU Episode 116: High Performances Sun, 16 Feb 2014
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119 - PCDU Episode 115: Farewell 2013 Tue, 31 Dec 2013
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118 - PCDU Episode 114: AusFly 2013 – Back Together Under One Sky Tue, 10 Dec 2013 - 0h
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117 - PCDU Episode 113: Fleeting Dreams Mon, 21 Oct 2013
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116 - PCDU Episode 112: Federal Election 2013 Fri, 06 Sep 2013 - 0h
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115 - PCDU Episode 111: Radio Killed the Podcast Star (Almost :) ) Sun, 25 Aug 2013
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114 - PCDU Episode 110: A Basket Full of Flight Mon, 08 Jul 2013 - 0h
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113 - TeenWorldFlight: Update #1 with Ryan Campbell Sat, 06 Jul 2013 - 0h
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112 - PCDU Episode 109: Dave’s Cambridge Airforce Sun, 26 May 2013
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111 - PCDU Episode 108: On a Wing & a Chair Sat, 27 Apr 2013
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110 - PCDU Episode 107: Avalon 2013 – Globemaster Central Sun, 31 Mar 2013 - 0h
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109 - PCDU Episode 106: Avalon 2013 – Day Six Mon, 04 Mar 2013 - 0h
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108 - PCDU Episode 105: Avalon 2013 - Day Five Sat, 02 Mar 2013 - 0h
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107 - PCDU Episode 104: Avalon 2013 – Day Four Fri, 01 Mar 2013 - 0h