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Our next meeting will be Monday, January 15th,
7:30 pm at the chapter hanger at Gundy's.
Snacks: Last names starting with A-C
by Bhrent Waddell
It’s January 2007 and Chapter 10’s 2007 board members have begun looking ahead to the activities in the coming year. We intend to continue with many of the traditions of prior years and to provide information and support to the flying community.
Before we leave 2006 behind, we need to thank several outgoing members for their support of Chapter 10 last year. Charles Freeland has served as Young Eagles Coordinator for several years. Charles made the phone calls, picked the dates and got the people and planes together for our Young Eagles flights. Lynn Coltharp has been newsletter editor for longer than he likes to admit. His support for the Chapter has been invaluable. Jeff Wedman has served as Vice-President and along with other contributions, he put on some really good programs at the last minute. Each of these men has given their time to support the Chapter, and we want them to know that we appreciate their contributions.
If you’ve had questions about aircraft interior installations, either experimental or certified, you’ll want to attend this month’s program. John Fisher has been doing aircraft interiors at Gundy’s and will discuss some of the do’s and don’ts of interiors. Bring your questions, and John will give you his prospective on adding a quality interior to your aircraft.
For several years, EAA 10 has paid the tuition for one, and sometimes two youths, ages 14-15, to attend the Air Academy in Oshkosh during the summer. The Air Academy is a one-week program held in June that consists of aviation activities and education on the grounds of Air Venture at Whitman Field in Oshkosh. We will accept applications for this year’s recipient until March 31, 2007. More information about the Air Academy is available online at www.youngeagles.org/programs/airacademy/. Our selection will be announced at the April meeting.
Besides reminding everyone to pay your Chapter 10 dues, I want to emphasize the benefits of maintaining your membership in the national EAA organization. Besides the fly-ins that we enjoy, the EAA supports and advances aviation by providing government representation for personal flying, technical information for builders, and education programs. The work of the EAA with the government has led to the Sport Pilot rules that will make flying available and affordable to more people. Through the excellent monthly magazine, Sport Aviation, fly-in forums, telephone and online support, information is readily available to members. The Air Academy, B-17 and Ford Tri-motor flights are some of their educational programs.
Chapter 10 is one of the best EAA Chapters, and I am looking forward to 2007 and all of the forthcoming activities.
Bhrent
by Craig Loomiller
Welcome everybody. I hope you like the new look of the newsletter. Don’t get used to it though, as I’m going to play with the format for a while until I get something I really like.
This newsletter will be only as good as you guys want it to be. What that means is that I will welcome all submissions. I’m planning on asking several of you for articles throughout the year, and I hope that everyone does their part. You do not have to be an accomplished writer to submit something to the newsletter. The role of the editor is to make everything look good.
One of the things I would like to do is feature a member’s project each month. I’d like to come out to your shop, ask some questions, and take a couple of pictures. That doesn’t sound too painful.
If you have something aircraft-related you would like to sell or trade, let me know and I’ll get it into the newsletter as soon as I can.
Craig
It’s a new year, and we’re off to another exciting start. Well maybe not all that exciting, but we’re trying. John Fisher will be our guest speaker. He is the owner of Aircraft Interiors.
Just a reminder that it’s dues time again. Still only $20. That's good for 11 meetings, 11 newsletters, and a lot of good information and comradeship. There’s usually a fair a mount of eats involved, too. There's even a handy form you can fill out and either bring to the next meeting or mail in.
See you Monday Jan. 15 at 7:30 and again don’t forget that 20 dollar bill or check book.
John Nys - ex-treasurer (Where is that new guy, he’s supposed to be doing this)
Now tell the truth, how many of you have dreamt of flying a hot military fighter and pitting your skills against another pilot to see if you got what it takes? It is a young man’s game, you say, but what about all those years and hours you have spent flying from here to there, dodging clouds and landing with gusty crosswinds. Can experience give you the edge you need to survive a combat trial?
Well, I got to find out about four months ago when I turned 60. My daughter, who still thinks of me as middle-aged, had arranged a session with Air Combat USA located in Fullerton, CA. They have a traveling unit that hits most major cities each year offering a simulated fighter pilot experience. My session was scheduled in early September in the Kansas City area. We flew at Johnson County Executive Airport located on the south-west side of town. This was my old stomping grounds, so I was familiar with the area and the airport. The traveling crew consisted of four ex-fighter pilots and two planes. The planes were fighter/trainers made in Italy, SIAI Marchetti SF-260s. They are two place side-by-side, 260 hp, retractable gear and equipped with a constant speed prop. They boast a rate of climb of 1,800 fpm and a Vne of 236 kts. This is a 26-yearold design, but still looks modern and mean just sitting on the ramp.
I started the day at 8:00 a.m. with introductions all around and a one hour intro/safety briefing. My assigned co-pilot was Robert “Boom” Powell, an ex-Navy two tour Vietnam vet and retired airline pilot. My opponent was a retired executive from Sprint who had little flight experience but was an avid aviation nut. His co-pilot was “Nails,” an ex-Navy jock. The executive’s son had purchased this adventure for him as a retirement gift. We were physically well matched, but I had the edge on actual flight time. In the air, “Boom” was responsible for engine management and safety spacing. He also provided altitude call-out if we got close to the hard deck, which was set at 4,500 msl. I had the stick and rudders most of the time starting from shortly after takeoff until down wind for landing. The rules set up by the insurance company required that all take offs and landings were to be preformed by the pros and a 500 foot bubble of safety around each aircraft would be maintained. No head-on shots were allowed; all attacks were to be made from the rear.
The morning rains had just stopped with a solid overcast at 7,500 msl when we took off. This gave us 3,000 feet to work with, which I found out was not enough for me.
The temperature was in the low 60’s, but I was plenty warm from nervous excitement and from wearing a full flight suit, parachute and helmet. We took off together military-style and flew formation out to the area where we were to stage our mock dog fights. After some practice gun tracking and performing the basic yo-yo maneuver, we set up for our first face off.
The fight starts with the planes coming at each other with a 500 feet spacing left side to left side at full throttle. After passing each other, the fight is on and you are free to try to get behind your opponent and shoot him down any way you can.
I had a plan, thanks to Randy Harris, who has experience with this type of flying. He suggested I pull up hard to vertical, gaining altitude and slowing the aircraft for a tight turn. I did just that and kicked the left rudder before we lost maneuvering speed. As the airplane started gaining speed with the nose pointing more or less straight down, I pulled up into a 5 g left turn and soon had my opponent in my gun sight. All that was left to do was to pull the trigger and the sortie was a victory. The only problem was that I was hurting, 5 g’s is more than I am used to, and I felt like I had been hit by a truck. My chest hurt; my back hurt; and my neck had a crick in it.
It took a few minutes to set up for the next run and I took that time to see if any part of my body was permanently damaged. Nothing was out of place, so we gave the okay for the next sortie. This time I was not as aggressive, and merely turned left after passing my opponent. My neck hurt so much that I did not turn my head to follow him around. The first rule of dog fighting we were told was, “LOSE SIGHT …LOSE THE FIGHT,” and that is exactly what happened to me. He shot me down and we were trailing smoke for two minutes. How embarrassing ! It never happened again. Hurting or not, we were not going to get shot down again.
I mentioned earlier that I had an encounter with the hard deck. As we gained experience, the fights lasted longer and longer. As we circled each other, we would lose both energy and altitude. Our turns were made at full throttle, 160 mph, 4-5 g’s, just above stall speed with 80-90 degrees of bank. The smoother you were and the less stall buffet you experienced, the less altitude you lost. On two of the next four fights, I would have him in my sights and about to pull the trigger when I broke the hard deck and the co-pilot called, “No Joy.” We then broke off the fight thereby forfeiting that sortie. On the last fight, I pulled up into a full hammerhead stall, dove on my lower opponent, and made quick work of that fight. All in all, we flew away with three clean kills, two forfeits and one loss.
After landing, we were shown the tapes from the three different cameras mounted inside the aircraft. One camera looked through the gun sight, one over your left shoulder, and one with a side profile of the pilot.
In the end, you end up with a memorable flight experience, a 45 minute video tape, and a greater appreciation for the young fighter pilots who do this kind of thing for God and country every day. If this is one of the things on your “do-list” before you die, they have a web site at www.aircombatusa.com.
Jerry
Richie Shroff sends me interesting links on the computer from time to time. Many of the most interesting items he sends me involve Google Earth. For those who don’t know what Google Earth is, it is a computer program that allows you to view photos of any location on earth. I have spent literally hours playing with this program. I highly recommend it. The link I’ve enclosed at the bottom of this page will take you to a Google Earth feature called “All Aircraft In Flight.” Clicking on the link at the top of the page named “View in Google Earth,” will take you to a map showing every location on earth where a satellite has captured an aircraft in flight. Check it out.
Craig
If you didn’t make the pie auction meeting last year, you sure missed a good one. Jeff Wedman and I served as co-auctioneers again this year. I feel bad that Jeff has to baby sit me each year, but I know that I am incapable of doing it on my own.
We had an excellent turnout in both people and pies for the meeting. The ladies of our chapter went above and beyond the call of duty in preparing so many pies for us to bid on. I had to catch myself from drooling on several of the pies during the auction. Thanks ladies, we couldn’t have done it without you.
The bidding came fast and furious throughout the auction. Many times, I was unsure just who was the current high bidder and more importantly, for how much. I really got a kick out of the time when Norma Shireman outbid her own husband, Paul, for a pie. It was just hilarious. Most of the bidding was considerably more funny that the lame jokes that I tried to tell. I think everyone had a good time.
In years past, we usually took the money raised as part of the auction and applied it toward our annual Christmas dinner. We were able to obtain and hand out some really nice door prizes as a result of pie auction money. We decided to do something totally different this year with this money. All the money we raised at the auction will be applied toward our Flight Academy Scholarship. This is a far better use of that money. We even had several of the ladies suggest we hold a cake auction in the spring with the same goal in mind. What do you all think?
I think we set a record this year in terms of both pies and proceeds. We were able to collect over $750.00, which is an outstanding effort on everyone’s part. You should all congratulate yourselves.
Craig
We were able to have a “white” Christmas party this year. Our party was on the 9th of December, just one week after the big chill that we experienced. It didn’t stop anyone from attending, though, as we had a full house.
We had a good turnout for the decorating party held the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Everybody pitched in and we got the decorating done in just a couple of hours. The only problem was that my wife and I did not prepare enough of her award-winning chili to go around. We cooked an entire crock-pot full of chili. I figured that it would have been plenty, but I was wrong. Roma and Marvin Williams arrived right on time at 1:00, but didn’t even get a spoonful. I felt really badly. I guess we will have to make a bigger batch for next year. Sorry Roma; I promise we’ll save a bowl for you next year.
The day of the party was still cold with plenty of snow on the ground. I think everyone was able to arrive ok. Jamil’s catered the event again this year. We had prime rib and chicken with all the sides that Jamil’s usually brings. I did not hear anything bad about the food, so it must have been pretty good. I know that I like it.
After everyone was finished eating, we went into the presentations for the evening. Certificates were handed out to all the officers that served last year. I then gave a PowerPoint presentation on 2006, The Year In Review. I recapped all the events that occurred last year along with photos of each gathering. It was kind of fun to be able to look back on what we accomplished last year. Believe it or not, we were actually pretty busy.
As I mentioned earlier, we did not have any door prizes this year. We still had the “white elephant” gift exchange like always. I was especially pleased to see the look on our new Treasurer Mike Aichele’s face when he opened his gift. I was the one who made sure that he got that particular gift. I was the recipient of it last year. I was going to have a hard time getting rid of it any time soon since everyone saw it last year. That was everyone except Michael. “It” is an apron that is, how should we say it, well endowed. Everyone had a pretty good laugh as Michael was a pretty good sport about it.
All-in-all, it was a pretty good time. If you have never attended one of these affairs, this year’s party is only eleven months away. It’s not to early to start planning.
Chapter 10’s own Charlie Harris has just been inducted into the EAA Hall of Fame. In reality, for us to call him one of our own is a bit of a stretch as just about every other aviation group in this area can make the same claim. I think Charlie is involved in just about every aspect of sport aviation in Green Country. He has done more for sport aviation in these parts than the next ten people put together. This is a well deserved honor for Charlie and we all should be proud for him. Here’s congratulations from Chapter 10!
If you haven’t taken a look at our web page lately, you should check it out! Bob has started putting a picture of the author along side the articles, which really adds a lot to the newsletter. Many organizations have gone to an all-online newsletter which really reduces costs. Hopefully, we can get our own chapter moving in that same direction. We are supposed to be a progressive-thinking organization, after all.
If you would like to receive the newsletter electronically off of the chapter web site (www.eaa10.org) every month, just send Secretary Bob Thrasher or our web editor Bob Minich an e-mail. This action saves the chapter money on printing and mailing costs, which in turn, helps keep your dues low. It’s really simple to do. We send you a monthly e-mail notice when the latest newsletter is posted online. Just click on the provided link and you are there!
FOR RENT 60X24 Building with heat and air at Gundy's See Roger Wieden 798-2060
To list your aviation items for sale, contact newsletter editor Craig Loomiller.
| Day of Week | Date | Event |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | January 15th | Chapter meeting @ Gundy's 7:30pm |
| Saturday | February 3rd | Ponca City Breakfast Fly-In |
| Monday - Sunday | July 23rd - 29th | Airventure 2007 @ OSH |
To add an item to our calendar, get the information to the newsletter editor Lynn Coltharp. See the contact info on the cover (or home page) for e-mail, phone, and mail addresses.
| Day of Month | What | Where | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Monday | Board meeting | Chapter hangar | 7:00pm |
| 2nd Monday | Newsletter Folding | Chapter hangar | 7:00pm |
| 3rd Mondy | Chapter meeting | Chapter hangar | 7:30pm |
| 1st Saturday | Ponca City Breakfast Fly-In | Ponca City | |
| 1st Saturday after 3rd Monday | Pancake breakfast & Fly-Market | Chapter hangar | 7:00-9:30am |
If your last name starts with A, B, or C, then January is your month to bring a snack for the meeting.
| Month | Initial letter(s) of last name |
|---|---|
| January | A-C |
| February | D-F |
| March | G-H |
| April | I-L |
| May | Annual Picnic |
| June | M |
| July | N-P |
| August | watermelon provided |
| September | Q-S |
| October | T-V |
| November | W-Z |
| December | Christmas party (no Monday meeting) |
If you would like to get the newsletter on the chapter website (http://www.eaa10.org/) every month, this saves us on mailing and printing costs, helping to keep your dues low. Just send John Nys or Bob Minich an e-mail and we'll stop the paper version and send you a monthly e-mail to let you know when the newsletter is posted online.
