The Smilin’Jack |
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| EAA Chapter 866 monthly newsletter February 2002 |
PRES. STEVE PANGBORN BIRTHDAY FEB. 7 Big party ask Steve for details
PANCAKE BREAKFAST AT DUNN AIRPARK SAT. FEB. 2.... 8:00AM
CHAPTER MEETING
by Larry Gilbert
Thank all of you who sold and bought tickets. Without this the most basic requirement, we could not have had such a successful gathering of good people.
If you can visualize this, a big teddy bear, (Jim Garrison in a sombrero), a pretty Barbie doll, (Jim's wife), and a sand crane, (Bill Furnholm, also in a somberero) dancing with Cher to a Mexican number. Jim kinda shook the rattles in time with the music while his wife swayed and danced with good rythym. Bill kind of stepped from one foot to the other and kinda did a rendition of a mating sand crane. Very entertaining! The couple who entertained us with the impersonation of Sonny and Cher and Willie Nelson are very talented and did an excellent job of entertaining the troops.
The Holiday Inn and the staff there were very co-operative and the food was good.
Chapter members and their friends and guests appeared to have a great time. We had a good meal and great fellowship with our flying brethren at this event.
Jim Garrison and his wife Jenny and Bill Furnholm dance with 'Cher at winter party
By Larry Gilbert
Discussed at this month's board meeting was the upcoming 1st annual Chapter 866 PIETENPOL fly-in. This will probably be the main topic of discussion at our regular meeting on Feb. 6th. The fly-in is scheduled for Saturday May 18. Seems like a long way off doesn't it? Experience is teaching us that you can't start planning too soon. The board has agreed that although the event will be called Pietenpol fly-in, we will encourage other fly-ins, especially antiques, homebuilts, and classic aircraft. Also we've decided that we need more good exposure and should somehow advertise about the good things we do as a chapter, maybe an interview or an article with a local newspaper.
Please attend our Februrary meeting and add your input to the discussion about the May fly-in and our PR efforts.
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The much-anticipated Sport Pilot/Light Sport Plane Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) is still ... much anticipated. The Experimental Aircraft Association was expecting the NPRM to be published last week, and is now expecting it this week, and if it doesn't happen this week,well, they will expect it next week. EAA reminds AVweb that the government does things at its own pace, which is not necessarily the speed of anyone else. "Slow" to the government is often measured in Pleistocene-like eras instead of days ... and last week was a bit distracting for the feds -- who were dealing with new edicts on cockpit doors and the episode of a small plane flying into a Florida building. editors note: (Pleistocene????(Holy shmit, I'll hafta look that one up!) ...MAYBE THIS WEEK, MAYBE NOT
The good news is that the NPRM has left the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and is back in the hands of the FAA, which means publication in the Federal Register should be imminent. Once it is published, you'll have the chance to look it over and offer any suggestions you want during a comment period of 90 days. The NPRM will contain the complete proposed technical language for both the new pilot and light aircraft categories. If the NPRM includes what EAA thinks it will include, the group is hopeful no serious objections will arise. The new Sport Pilot will be big, "one of the most significant aviation measures in the last 50 years," according to EAA President Tom Poberezny. Truly it will, affecting large numbers of the FARs in everyarea from medical to manufacturing. Maintain your vigil and keep the faith. This week there could be an NPRM coming to a Federal Register near you.
The sport pilot certificate is designed for those who want to fly simple, lightweight, and diverse two?seat aircraft for recreation. The Sport?Light Aircraft category would be a new subcategory in FAR Part 21, which would enable existing and future two?seat lightplanes now used for trainingultralight pilots to be certificated as experimental light aircraft and flown by sport pilots. Currently, they are used under an exemption to the FARs.
The proposed Sport Pilot rule would also create a special airworthiness certification category in Part 21 that would allow manufacturers to sell new light, ready?to?fly light aircraft without the more stringent requirements of FAR Part 23, used for larger, more complex aircraft.
The entire Sport Pilot package reached OMB earlier last year; the NPRM was expected to be released at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2001. OMB requested several clarifications, however, which sent the proposal back to FAA. After OMB approves the final version, industry representatives and FAA personnel will discuss the proposed rule will help identify key points of interest for the aviation industry and individual pilots.
Warning, Will Robinson. FAA "suggestions" on improving flight school security made in the wake of 15-year-old Charles Bishop flying a Cessna into the side of a Tampa, Fla., building will probably not be the last word on the subject. The Office of Homeland Security is taking a hardlook at what happened and is awaiting recommendations that could become new -- and possibly mandatory -- preventive measures. The FAA was quick to respond to the January 5 suicide crash, calling on flight schools to watch their student pilots more closely, and encouraged everyone atairports to be on "a heightened state of alert" -- perhaps a remarkably apt description of the act of flying, these days.
In a sickeningly positive twist, the surreal image of a light aircraft's tail hanging from the 28th floor of an office building has at least imprinted on the public the reality that your generic light aircraft is capable of relatively limited damage in such applications. Further, millions of viewers have now, through a familiar local newscaster, visited a small local airport and seen the concerned, patriotic, honest people working to improve security there -- some now require security badges and thumb prints -- and how even those measures would not have stopped the crash in Tampa.
The FAA has just notified EAA that the exemption we were granted two years ago for experimental aircraft owners to be compensated while letting others use their aircraft for flight training and/or flight reviews has been renewed. The new expiration date is April 30, 2004. All EAA and NAFI members using this exemption are reminded that their current exemption
expires on April 30, 2002 and can not be used beyond that date unless in receipt of the new exemption # 7162B. The EAA Safety Programs Office will be mailing the new exemption to all current users ? if you don't receive your renewal packet by April 15, 2002 please notify EAA by calling Jan Streblow at 888?322?4636, extension 6832, or jstreblow@eaa.org. If you own an experimental amateur?built or exhibition aircraft and would like to find out how to obtain permission from EAA to use this exemption ? please contact Jan Streblow.
By Larry Gilbert
Hey it was an official fly-in event as we had two visit by way of aircraft. Jackie Johnson showed up again in his Subaru powered Zodiac, And three people flew in with a Gruman Traveler. There are a lot of funny things said at these breakfasts and I have an awful time remembering these when it comes time to do this newsletter. A couple of things I heard at the last breakfast that struck me funny. Jim Web and I were looking at contrails way up in the sky and Jim called them polish cropdusters. The other thing was from Gil Jones and I didn't get the context of the conversation but I heard him say "the baby was so ugly the doctor slapped the mother."
It was kind of cold that morning so attendance was down some, but we probably covered expenses and could have even made a buck or two.
By Larry Gilbert
After our breakfast on Sat. the 5th, Mike Herring and I went out and did a hours worth of crosswind practice on runway 33 at Dunn. Have to do that every now and then ya know. My newspaper had some articles in it about a new large cruise ship coming to Port Canaveral so Bill Mitchell and I had to check that out on the morning of it's arrival. This was a fun little flight too. Bill Furnholm and I went out to the ocean near New Smyrna to look for whales. Bill may have spotted one, he's not sure. One flight was not fun at all! Dick Mercer, Hal's partner in the Long Bow heard about a crash in Mosquito Lagoon and wanted to see if it was Hal since he and the Long Bow were out, so we took 52L and headed for the lagoon and found the wreckage of their plane........ Bad day! Wayne Bullington and I went for a ride in 52L and we checked the beach out looking for manta rays and whales. Didn't see either of these. The next flight was the best of all because I got to fly with the master in his J3. Ray Thomas retired US Air captain, as most chapter members know, owns the J3 that he learned to fly in, in 1946. According to regulations Ray needed a flight review in order to remain legal as a pilot. On this particular Saturday I had planned to go to Valkeria to the fly-in pancake breakfast but I spent too much time at Patti's hangar with some of the Dunn Airpark regulars before deciding to leave. Ray showed up and we had talked about the up and coming flight review and since it was a nice morning I asked if he wanted to get this out of the way. He said "sure." We preflighted the plane and with one flip of the prop the little Continental started singing her song. Taxing out we talked about carb ice and the use of the carb heater in the J3. We did the runup and taxied onto 15 and went to full power and in a few seconds we were flying. Out to the practice area and through the routine of steep turns, slow flight, engine out emergency, and stalls, etc. When we were done with this Ray demonstrated his "Huntin Camp Stall" this is the stall where you are showing your 2 or 3 friends who are in the airplane with you the hunting camp. This stall is what can happen when you start making steep turns in a heavily loaded airplane, you know showing your buddies the hunting camp. This an especially aggravated stall if the turn isn't co-ordinated. Then the stall on the base to final when you've overshot the runway a little and you're banking steeply and this is getting uncomfortable because you're close to the ground so you almost unconsciously kick in a little opposite rudder and when you do this the nose goes down so you apply back pressure. BANG stall spin!! Then there's the one climbing out and turning with a lot of bank and not enough airspeed. BANG, surprise!!!! The wing that was up stalls first and it drops off on that side instead of in the direction which you are turning. After all of this we do some spins just for fun and Ray demonstrates effortless lazy eights to me. Why were they always such a struggle when someone like Ray can make it look that easy? Ray let me make a couple of landings and takeoffs and after not landing a Cub for the last 40 years after the first one it came back to me. The first landing was a little long and I while I was in the flare someone moved the runway down a couple of feet lower and when it stalled there was couple of feet left under us. The second one was much more acceptable. Ray demonstrated a wheel landing on 15 and we were finished. I'm lucky to get to fly with masters of the art like Ray! Oh by the way, the reason Ray calls that steep turn stall the "Huntin Camp Stall" is because in the 1970s there was an accident that involved a C172 and all three of the planes occupants were killed looking at the huntin camp. Ray said, "all three were airline captains!!!" There's a lesson for ya!
One evening Jim Garrison and I flew down to COI to retrieve his Bonanza from Sabastian avionics shop. Month's ago Jim put up a lot of money to have an avionics system installed in his plane. It is a Garmin 430 IFR GPS coupled with his Century auto pilot. Problem is, the Century auto pilot isn't reliable! Could be a very dangerous situation when flying IFR in the soup! They cannot seem to find the problem. Jim has been very patient with Century about this . He has had his plane in the shop having the wiring, gyros, HSI, and all that stuff checked and replaced and it seems to be the auto pilot that isn't reliable and Century doesn't have answers. Hmmmm!
Chapter 866 and Dunn airpark fliers lost a good friend when Hal died in the crash of his own airplane, the Long Bow 150. Hal was well liked fun and easy to talk to. Often he would stop at my hangar and just chat for a while about flying and matters concerning our beloved Dunn Airpark. He was a good pilot too. Short of a drastic mechanical failure or debilitating physical problem I think Hal could handle an emergency with the Long Bow very well. I'm gonna miss him.
Submitted by Mike Herring
Chapter 866 would like to congratulate Lennie and Maynette Duncil on the birth of their first child, Ethan Scott Duncil. Lennie's newest little co-pilot was born on Sunday, January 20th, 2002 at 10:02a.m. He weighed 7lbs, 5oz. and was 19 inches tall. Maynette and Ethan are doing great. Congratulations Lennie!
The 5 Nieuports under construction at Dunn are starting to look like airplanes already. Gil Jones and Steve Pangborn have fabricated the landing gear for theirs. They decided against motorcycle wheels because they aren't designed for side loads like may be encountered with Xwind landings. Instead they found these well built steel wheels with inner tubes and bicycle type tyres, (eh eh) that appear to be well built and strong . All members should stop in at the Nieupy factory and supervise for a while anytime you see work going on there. Actually stop and give em morale support cause there seems to be enough supervisors already.
Gil Jones with his Nieuport project. |
Close up of gear and wheel on Gil's Nieuport |
Come do what you've always wanted to do, FLY IN to Orlando's Premier Aviation Attraction; Fantasy of Flight! The Florida Pilot Association has been granted exclusive permission to host this rare opportunity for all pilots and their friends and families to FLY IN! The runways at Fantasy of flight are 5000'x 2600' of wide well groomed turf just north north-west of GIF - WINTER HAVEN'S GILBERT. Unicom Frequency will be 122.70. Most likely we will utilize runway 4-22(5000' in length). Pattern altitude of 1000'. Right pattern to 4. Left Pattern to 22. Detailed instructions will be posted soon. ALL Fly-in guests will be eligible for Door prizes at t he Fly-In!
All you have to do for you to participate in this event is to RSVP to herk@floridapilot.com or call 941-378-2364. More information will be available at www.FloridaPilot.com as the event date gets closer. Make sure to include your "N" number, type aircraft, and number of people on board. Admission price is the regular admission $25.00 per person. Cash ONLY will be accepted the day of the event. If you would like to pre-pay by check, please make it payable to the Florida Pilot Association, 5254 Myrtlewood, Sarasota, FL, 34235.
ALL prepaid reservations ARE REFUNDABLE due to no show by aircraft. Each admission includes a donation to the Florida Pilot Association. ALL Fly-in guests will be eligible for Door prizes at the Fly-In!ALSO...If enough pilots show interest (need at least 25 folks), a special buffet price ($6.95 + Tax/Tip) will be offered in the Officer's Club at Fantasy of Flight (Exclusive only to FLY IN Guests)!Rain date is March 31, 2002. Come do what you've always wanted to do, FLY IN to Fantasy of Flight! RSVP Today
Mike Herring called and mentioned this event to me and suggested that maybe we are interested in a group of our planes and pilots going over to this. Interested?? Come to chapter meeting on Feb. 6 to discuss.
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