EAA Sport Aviation 0415

The Spirit of Aviation | www.eaa.
org
Vol.64 No.4 | April 2015
+
Doubling
Down on Safety
The Additional Pilot Program
Laying the Foundation

Volunteers build your convention
Droning On
A community emerges
Super Cub
in Dress Blues
A tribute to the Marines
JACK J. PELTON
COMMENTARY / TOWER FREQUENCY
Congress to the Rescue

BY JACK J. PELTON
IT HAS BECOME excruciatingly obvious that the FAAs system for creating new and appropriate regulation is frozen.
It has been nine months since the FAA wrote a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that would modernize the class three
medical standards for private ying. More than 10 years of safe and
successful LSA ying by pilots using a drivers license as evidence of
medical qualication has proven that the current third class medical
restrictions are burdensome, costly, and unnecessary.
The FAA agrees with those of us who are convinced change is
appropriate and even necessary to keep more pilots ying for personal reasons with no loss of safety. Thats why the NPRM was
created and sent to the Department of Transportation for review just
before EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2014.
The DOT review is supposed to take less than 30 days. Its been
nearly nine months, and nothing has happened. The NPRM contents
remain a secret. Nobody outside government knows for sure what
rule changes are proposed. None of us even know what the DOT
may be objecting to that is holding up publication of the NPRM. The
DOT simply wont respond, and the FAAs hands are tied.
I have lost all patience with the process, and I bet you have, too.
Most importantly, many members of Congress who support aviation
have also exhausted all patience and have introduced the Pilots Bill
of Rights 2 to force the DOT and FAA to act.
The original Pilots Bill of Rights (PBOR) that was passed and
signed into law about two years ago guarantees pilots basic legal protections from FAA enforcement actions. The new PBOR strengthens
those legal protections and requires the FAA to change the third
class medical standards so that most private ying could be done
with a drivers license as medical certicate.
PBOR2, championed by Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma in the Senate
and Sam Graves of Missouri in the House, has broad bipartisan support. The bill would require the FAA to modify the rules so that
pilots could y an airplane weighing up to 6,000 pounds as fast as
250 knots, at altitudes up to 14,000 feet carrying as many as ve passengers under VFR or IFR without a third class medical
certication. The ights must be entirely personal.
This makes perfect sense to me. There is a change in airplane certication requirements at 6,000 pounds max takeof weight so that is
the logical spot to set the medical limit. Flying under IFR as well as
VFR also makes sense because IFR has obvious safety advantages for
qualied pilots. And the 250 knot speed limit has been long established
for all ights below 10,000 feet, and the 14,000-foot ceiling keeps pilots
below the level where supplemental oxygen is required at all times.
The senators and congressmen who co-sponsored and wrote the
PBOR2 legislation have succeeded in something I never expected to
PHOTOGRAPHY BY JASON TONEY
see from Washingtonthey kept it simple. No restrictions

of such things as retractable landing gear, or engine horsepower, or other issues of no real signicance. The goal is
to assure continued safety for the public matched with
logical regulation for pilots, and PBOR2 does exactly that.
I suspect that in response to congressional action we
will soon see the FAA NPRM on medical reform. But no
matter what the NPRM changes, the PBOR2 is almost certainly a better deal for pilots. I cant imagine the NPRM
will be as broad in its changes as PBOR2. And even if it is,
there will be at least 90 days to comment on the NPRM,
followed by more months for the FAA to consider the
comments and most likely make changes. An actual rule
change would be a minimum of six months away, and
more likely another year.
But if PBOR2 is passed in both the House and Senate
and signed into law, it requires immediate change.
Passage of PBOR2 is by no means a sure thing, but the
bill has very broad support across party lines. Simplifying
regulation and removing added costs for both the government and citizens is something everybody wants.
But your voice is needed. Please go to the Rally
Congress section of our website at www.EAA.org and send
an electronic letter to your senators and congressman.
They are read, you will be listened to, and your voice and
vote matters.
If we all pull together and get behind PBOR2, it could
be law before EAA AirVenture, something that just cant
happen with the FAAs frozen regulatory system.
www.eaa.org1
A PUBLICATION OF THE EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION
Contents
F E AT U R E S
46
D E PA R T M E N T S
COMMENTARY
BETTER PILOT
01
Tower FrequencyJack J. Pelton
80
Stick & RudderGetting It Right
06
Letters to the Editor
84
What Went WrongAvionics Become Fatal Distraction
16
Left SeatJ. Mac McClellan
88
Ill Never Do That AgainSplash and Dash
22
Savvy AviatorMike Busch
HANDS ON
28
Light FlightDave Matheny
90
What Our Members Are Building/Restoring
66
32
Flight TestCharlie Precourt
94
Hints for HomebuildersRadius Repeater,

Blow Holes and Vent Holes
36
Plane TalkLauran Paine Jr.

96
Shop TalkAdel Clamps
Custom Super Cub honors the greatest generation
42
ContrailsJe Skiles
Welcome to Oshkosh!
Weekend work parties help get your convention ready
By Ric Reynolds
58
Common Denominators
Airplane or drone, only adjectives
separate pilots and aircraft
By Scott M. Spangler
Family Matters
MEMBER CENTRAL
By Amy Gesch
74
The Additional Pilot Program
NEWS & INFO

10
Advocacy & Safety

Governmental Issues
14
FlightlineIndustry News
The FAA blesses having a second pilot

involved in E-AB ight testing
By Budd Davisson
103
104
106
113
114
Member Central
Pilot Caves
News From HQ
Gone West
Members and
Chapters in Action
123
124
126
128
Member Benets
FlyMart
Classied Ads
EAAs Logbook
ON THE COVER: Amy Gesch photographed Mark Ericksons custom Super Cub, painted to match Joe Foss Chance Vought F4U Corsair.
For more on many of the topics in this issue, visit www.EAA.org/sportaviation.
With the airplane, Mark aimed to honor the greatest generation, especially his father, Ray, who served in the Marines.
To view and submit aviation events, visit www.EAA.org/calendar.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY AMY GESCH
www.eaa.org3
EAA PUBLICATIONS
Founder: Paul H. Poberezny
Publisher: Jack J. Pelton, EAA Chairman of the Board
Vice President of Communities and
Member Programs: Rick Larsen
Director of Publications: Jim Busha
Editor-in-Chief: J. Mac McClellan
Associate Editor: Meghan Hefter
Assistant Editor: Katie Holliday
Senior Graphic Designer: Chris Livieri
Graphic Designer: Jenny Hussin
News Editor: Ric Reynolds
Copy Editor: Colleen Walsh
Multimedia Journalist: Brady Lane
Visual Properties Administrator: Jason Toney
Print/Mail Manager: Randy Halberg
Contributing Writers: Charlie Becker, Mike Busch, Budd Davisson,
Amy Gesch, Dave Matheny, Lauran Paine Jr., Charlie Precourt,
Robert Rossier, Je Skiles, Scott Spangler
ADVERTISING
Vice President of Marketing and Business Development:
Dave Chaimson / dchaimson@eaa.org
Advertising Manager: Sue Anderson / sanderson@eaa.org
Business Relationship Manager: Larry Phillip / lphillip@eaa.org
Mailing Address: P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086

Phone: 920-426-4800 Fax: 920-426-4828
E-mail: editorial@eaa.org Website: www.EAA.org
Need to change your address or have other membership

questions, call 800-564-6322 (800-JOIN EAA).
EAA and SPORT AVIATION, the EAA Logo and AERONAUTICA are registered trademarks, trademarks, and service marks of the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. The
use of these trademarks and service marks without the permission of the Experimental
Aircraft Association, Inc. is strictly prohibited.
4Sport AviationApril 2015
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Was It a Wake?
A FARM BOY REMEMBERS

JIM BUSHAS ARTICLE Farm Boy to Fighter Pilot (February)
brought back many memories for me of the old men and kids
who were left to carry on the farming. I spent my eighth
birthday driving a 1937 John Deere B pulling a McCormickDeering binder on which my boss was minding the foot pedals
and handles that made the contraption do its thing. Even
though I was somewhat small for my age, I could push in the
hand clutch with my leg and pull it out by threading my arms
through the steering wheel, and steer a straight line for 8-9
hours a day. For me the job was no burden but an honor for
it gave me responsibility normally reserved to older boys and
men. Even then my head was in the clouds, and today I y a
couple of older Mooneys.
_
Lloyd Shepherd, EAA 190354
Mulgoa, New South Wales, Australia
THANK YOU FOR Jim Bushas story Farm Boy to Fighter Pilot
in the February issue. The cover attracted my immediate
attention and drew me to the wonderful story about Dr.
Joseph Richardsons mission to treat veterans to rides in his
amazing warbirds.
Stories like this are opportunities for us to know the greatest
generation and their contribution to the freedoms we enjoy today.
I HAD A WAKE EXPERIENCE in my teens when I

was ying a Cessna 182, I believe it was probably around early 1960s, and passed behind
and slightly below a large airliner of the
timesnot sure whatbut before I was
aware of wake turbulence being so lasting
and signicant! I was probably a minute and
a half from passing through its wake. I was
belted in, and went vertically very harshly
rst one way, then the other, and put a large
gash in my head from hitting the headliner
and whatever was behind it at the time. I still
remember thinking I was slightly stunned
and also amazed the wings were still on!
Good article and really quite a serious
danger, since it seems to last longer than one
might think, and is not visibledangerous
combination. I was very lucky.
Carmine Margo Mowbray, EAA 1014005
Pete Halsmer, 461448
Polson, Montana
Bloomeld, Michigan
_
Robert Grossmann, EAA 77000
Vero Beach, Florida
IVE JUST BEEN READING Macs article What

Went Wrong in the February issue of Sport
Aviation, and it jogged my memory.
I spent all my working life ying 707s
and 747s long haul for Qantas out of Sydney,
and of course, frequently sat right under
other aircraft for hours on end, watching
their contrails form.
I remember distinctly an occasion when
I was between Honolulu and San Francisco,
sitting under one of those new fangled 757
things and watching its contrails forming
and fading as it ew through variations in
the atmosphere. What was signicantly different was that the wake was not in the form
of the spirals twisting into bigger spirals
that I was used to, but was more like a series
of cones, one inside the other. (It reminded
me of a rattlesnake rattlebut that is
derived from John Wayne, Robert Mitchum,
Rory Calhoun, etc. westerns!)
I thought of shedding vortices and
wondered if it had anything to do with the
reputation that the 757 was then getting for
violent wake turbulenceand Im still
wondering! Then theres the poor bugger
in the T-18.
Thanks for your articlesI really
enjoy them.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Jacks Right About ADS-B Cost
I AGREE WITH JACK J. PELTONS commentary (Tower

Frequency, February). I would be grateful for a rule
that would allow non-ADS-B out aircraft to y into
the 30 nm Mode C veil around Class B airspace
between the surface and 2,500 feet AGL. This would
provide a lifeline to aircraft based at six airports close
to SFO, 10 near LAX, and dozens elsewhere. It would
give time for owners to meet the deadline, and the
freedom to opt out.
_
Bruce Cruikshank, EAA 11714
Castro Valley, California
A WINTERS CHILL
IF FLYING IN THE BACK of an aluminum tube unlocks Jef Skiles
muse, EAA headquarters needs to put him in the 40-plus rows
more often. Mr. Skiles February commentary, A Winters Chill,
(Contrails) was as close to aviation writing perfection as Ive
perused in a while. I felt a real chill as Jef delivered the reminiscence of his younger cold-weather ying days and crafted the
artful description of winter at Brodhead. Somewhere, Gordon
Baxter and Len Morgan are smiling, nudging each other, and nodding in Jef s direction. Bravo, Mr. Skiles. Bravo.
_
James G. Parker Jr., EAA 860996
Bellevue, Nebraska
I WOULD JUST LIKE to provide some additional homebuilder perspective on the excellent article Mr. Pelton
wrote on how the FAA missed the ADS-B mark for
personal planes. I have been building a Jeanies Teenie
for quite a while now. I started working on the project
in 2005. When the Teenie design was released in
Popular Mechanics in 1968, the single-seat VWpowered aluminum plane was designed to be an inexpensive path to ight. Even now, the design can be built
for considerably less than $10,000. My plane is going to
come in around $3,000-$4,000. Since I will be ying
near Class B airspace, here in Salt Lake City, I have a
Mode C transponder installed, but I will need to
install an ADS-B solution. I nd it difcult to justify
installing one piece of an electronics package that
costs considerably more than my entire plane. As an
electrical engineer, a hardware designer, I would love
to see a way for me to create my own solution. The
primary problem with that is that the solution also
involves the FCC. It seems like any real solution for
us homebuilders is going to involve both the FCC
and the FAA. Even a $1,000 solution makes me balk a
bit, so I just hope the FAA will see our perspective
and provide an alternative.
_
Lance McBride, EAA 680346
Murray, Utah
Thanks to EAA advocacy the FAA has changed the

rules so that equipment that meets the performance
standards of the TSOs specied in FAR 91.227 can be
eligible for approval in an E-AB airplane. As you note,
its not easy, but there is a path for owners to gain FAA
approval without the full burden of TSO.Ed.
SUBMISSIONS
LETTERS INTENDED for publication should be e-mailed to editorial@eaa.org or addressed to EAA/Letter

to the Editor, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI, 54903. Please include your EAA number, city, and state. All
letters are subject to editing. Unpublished letters will not be returned.
On Page 11 of the March edition of

Sport Aviation we misidentied
Sen. John Boozman as representing
Arizona rather than Arkansas. EAA
regrets the error.Ed.
ADVOCACY AND SAFETY
GOVERNMENTAL ISSUES
Aeromedical Reform Push

Second Pilots Bill of Rights
THE REACTION TO THE bipartisan Pilots Bill of Rights 2 legislation

introduced in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives
in late February has been overwhelming and positive. At press
time, more than 17,000 letters have been sent to Congress
via EAAs Rally Congress website supporting the measure.
The bill would put EAA-supported aeromedical reform into
effect along with a number of other protections for pilots and
other airmen.
The Senate bill (S. 571) was initially co-sponsored by a strong
bipartisan group, including Sen. James Inhofe (R-Oklahoma),
Sen. John Boozman (R-Arkansas), Sen. Joe Manchin (D-West
Virginia), Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pennsylvania), Sen. Steven Daines
(R-Montana), Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi), Sen. Heidi
Heitkamp (D-North Dakota), Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kansas), Sen.
John Barrasso (R-Wyoming), Sen. Jon Tester (D-Montana), Sen.
Pat Roberts (R-Kansas), Sen. Angus King (I-Maine), and Sen.
Jeanne Shaheen (D-New Hampshire).
The House bill (H.R. 1062) was co-sponsored by Rep. Sam
Graves (R-Missouri), Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-Illinois), Rep. Todd
Rokita (R-Indiana), and Rep. Collin Peterson (D-Minnesota). The
bill expands the original Pilots Bill of Rights passed by Congress
in 2012 and signed by President Obama, and further advances the
aeromedical reforms rst proposed in the General Aviation Pilot
Protection Act of 2014.
A major provision of the new legislation is expansion of the
FAAs current exemption from third-class medical requirements
for sport pilots to cover general aviation aircraft up to 6,000
pounds, carrying up to ve passengers, for both VFR and IFR
ights at up to 14,000 feet. The bill would also prohibit FAA
enforcement for third-class medical certicate violations unless
the FAA has issued regulations within 180 days of the enactment
of this legislation.
In addition to expanding on aeromedical reform, the Pilots Bill
of Rights 2 will also:
Expand due process protections to include all certicates issued
by the FAA (not just pilots); increase protections for certicate
holders during an FAA investigation; require the FAA to release
a copy of enforcement investigative reports when serving an
enforcement action; and reform FAA

record-keeping policy, among others.
Include provisions that limit reexamination of covered certicate
holders, with an appeal process to
U.S. District Court; expedite updates
to the NOTAM program; apply the
Freedom of Information Act to contract
tower communications; extend civil
liability protection to aviation medical
examiners, designated pilot examiners,
and all other FAA designees; encourage
exibility for resolution of FAA
enforcement cases; and provide liability
protection for volunteer pilots.
EAA is particularly pleased to see
Congress acknowledging the crucial role that
designees play in the aviation safety system,
conducting what had previously been federal
governmental activities. These designees
deserve the liability protection aforded to
government employees performing functions
such as checkrides, certicate issuances, and
engineering and airworthiness approvals.
EAA, which with AOPA introduced
the aeromedical reform concepts in
2012, played a large role in crafting this
legislation in collaboration with Inhofe
and his staf. We continue to strongly
encourage EAA members to urge their
lawmakers to co-sponsor and support
these bills. At the same time, we continue
to push the Department of Transportation
and Ofce of Management and Budget to
approve the long-overdue aeromedical
rulemaking package for public comment.
We will keep you updated as the bills make
their way through the legislative process.
EAA/FAA SUMMIT: PROGRESS ON KEY GA ISSUES

REDUCING BARRIERS, bringing down costs,
and enhancing safety were among the key
goals at the annual EAA/FAA Winter Recreational Aviation Summit at Oshkosh in February. EAA and FAA teams focused eforts on
the issues that matter to EAA members during the two-day session.
Highlights include:
The FAA supports rulemaking to reform
aeromedical certication and is waiting
for its rulemaking package to return
from DOT review.
FAA support for allowing amateur-built
aircraft to develop and install ADS-B
equipment that meets performance
ADS-B out specications, but does not
necessarily hold a TSO.
A barrier to ultralight participation
may be crumbling as the FAA is willing
to solve a training situation that keeps

potential pilots from nding instruction
in ultralight category machines.
The FAA welcoming a petition that
would allow sport pilots to operate lightsport aircraft powered
by electric motors,
expanding innovation of
electric-powered aircraft.
EAA recommendations
were included in the new
Order 8130.2, which covers
operating limitations
for amateur-built and
experimental/exhibition
category aircraft.
There were also extensive
discussions on continuing
to improve amateur-built
safety, including how to properly collect and

measure such data. EAA and FAA ofcials
agreed to maintain regular updates on the
major action items and review them during
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2015.
EAA REVIEWING SUAS NPRM

EAA IS EVALUATING and will le comments to the FAAs proposed
rules on the operation of small unmanned aircraft systems (sUAS)
weighing up to 55 pounds. Among other provisions, the NPRM
requires that line-of-sight contact be maintained with devices, operations are restricted to below 500 feet AGL, ATC permission is
required for operations in Class B, C, D, and E airspace, and basic
operator certication, including a knowledge test and recurrent

training, is mandatory.
EAAs priority is preserving the safety of and access to the national
airspace system. The NPRM is a good start. The proposed rules can be
found under docket number FAA-2015-0150 on www.Regulations.gov.
The comment period is open through April 24, 2015.
MEDICAL REFORMWE HAVE NEVER STOPPED FIGHTING

BY SEAN ELLIOTT, EAA VICE PRESIDENT OF ADVOCACY AND SAFETY
AS FAR BACK as 1986 with

the rst proposal of the
recreational pilot certicate, it was envisioned
that pilots should be able
to attest to their own
medical condition with a
companion requirement
for a valid drivers license. The idea of
medical reform in GA is nothing new. The
FAA has responded favorably to repeated
EAA advocacy eforts on this issue only to
have the Department of Transportation
block the eforts. The notable exception
was the sport pilot rules that EAA helped
pioneer and championed and laid the foundation for where we are today. Now for
the rst time, we have a favorable political

landscape and a companion set of bills on
Capitol Hill that could potentially push
aeromedical reform into reality.
What started with eforts by Rep. Todd
Rokita and Sen. John Boozman in 2013 in
their General Aviation Pilot Protection Act
has now been included in the broader Pilots
Bill of Rights 2, authored with EAA input
by longtime general aviation supporter
and EAA member Sen. James Inhofe. EAA
member and avid pilot Rep. Sam Graves
has introduced an identical companion
bill in the House. S. 571 and H.R. 1062 have
considerable initial bipartisan support
and are gaining traction in both houses of
Congress. EAA staf has worked hard to bring
us to this point, but we need our members

to help push it over the goal line. Make
your voice heard now through our Rally
Congress tool. Just a few years ago, many in
aviation had all but given up on the notion
that we as a community could change the
regulatory landscape and y without the
requirement of a periodic visit to an aviation
medical professional and the burdensome
bureaucratic process behind medical
certication. The truth is we can. Every
other form of personal and recreational
transportation has shown it to be safe and
feasible including sport pilots for the last
decade. The statistics support aeromedical
reform, and it is the right thing to do for the
betterment of GA. Lets get it done!
www.eaa.org11
F
LIGHTLINE
INDUSTRY AND COMMUNITY NEWS
SPORTYS UPDATES
LEARN TO FLY COURSE
Sonex Aircraft
Delivers First
SubSonex Kit
SONEX AIRCRAFT ANNOUNCED the rst SubSonex JSX-2 jet kit
shipments from its Oshkosh factory in February. An ultraquick build kit for a customer in Durango, Colorado, was the
rst in a series of seven kit deliveries included in the initial kit
production run.
Other orders were destined for Ontario, Canada, Pennsylvania,
Missouri, Kentucky, and Oklahoma, and well as New South Wales,
Australia (via ocean container). Orders are now being accepted
for the second run of SubSonex Quick Build Kit production, to
commence in August 2015.
SPORTYS HAS UPDATED its popular

Learn to Fly Course to include nearly
four hours of new high-denition
video content and animations along
with improved features for the
popular written test prep application.
New video content includes
training in cross-country ight
operations that focuses on airspace,
chart interpretation, planning, and
detailed weather analysis that takes
advantage of the latest products and
technology available from the Aviation
Weather Center and Lockheed Martin
Flight Service. Real-world crosscountry scenarios examine pilotage
and dead reckoning while also
incorporating GPS and modern iPad
EFB applications.
Sportys has also improved
functionality within its written test
prep application making it easier to
earn the written exam endorsement
directly from the course. Test prep
allows customized study sessions and
simulated exams to be created with
access to plain English explanations
written by Sportys instructional team.
The Learn to Fly Course is provided free to EAA Young Eagles as
a part of the EAA Flight Plan. Visit
www.EAA.org/YoungEagles for details.
The course (or Learn to Fly
App) is available for $199 through
www.Sportys.com or by calling
1-800-776-7897 (1-800-SPORTYS).
For more information and direct links to Flightline

stories, visit www.EAA.org/sportaviation.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY SPENCER THORNTON
NEW AIRCRAFT SHIPMENTS RISE IN 2014

GENERAL AVIATION Manufacturers
Association (GAMA) companies delivered
a total of 2,454 aircraft in 2014, up from
2,353 in 2013. Total billings were $24.5
billion, compared to $23.4 billion in the
previous year.
Piston airplanes delivered rose to
1,129, an increase of 9.6 percent over the
year before. Business jet deliveries also
increased from 678 to 722. But turboprop
numbers declined from 645 to 603. Cirrus
was the highest volume piston airplane

maker delivering 308 airplanes worth
$217 million. Gulfstream led all member
companies in billings with the 150 business
jets it delivered worth $7.81 billion.
Helicopter shipments showed a sharp
24.7 percent decline from 1,290 in 2013 to
971 in the past year. Weakness in the global
oil business is thought to be one of the
reasons demand for helicopters dropped
during the year.
Among the manufacturers showing

stronger years were Socata, which delivered
51 of its new TBM 900 fast single-engine
turboprops, and the combined Beech and
Cessna Textron company that delivered a
total of 672 airplanes worth $2.92 billion.
Included in the Textron deliveries were 155
Skyhawks, 32 G36 Bonanzas, 40 B58 Barons,
and 22 Cessna TTx piston singles.
See the complete GA Aircraft Shipment
Report at www.GAMA.aero.
QUEST AIRCRAFT ACQUIRED BY JAPANESE COMPANY

QUEST AIRCRAFT COMPANY, maker of the 10-place Kodiak
turboprop, has been acquired by Setouchi Holdings Inc.,
part of the Tsuneishi Group, a global transportation
corporation headquartered in Japan. Quest corporate
headquarters and manufacturing operations will remain
in Sandpoint, Idaho, and the existing leadership team
will continue under CEO Sam Hill.
Setouchi Holdings subsidiary, Setouchi Trading Inc.,
is an authorized Kodiak dealer.
Over the last few years, we have experienced steady
growth, and with new nancial capitalization and a
shared understanding of the potential opportunities in
the marketplace for expansion, we are looking forward to
signicant growth for Quest in the years ahead, Hill said.
Quest posted a record year in 2014 with 30 Kodiak
deliveries. The company plans further expansion for its
facilities and employees as it ramps up production.
// L-3S NEW LINE of Lynx ADS-B out

equipment is aimed at a broad range of
airplanes, listing from $3,467 for a basic
remote-mounted unit to $6,800 for a unit
that is both a transponder and ADS-B
out and includes a display of traffic
and weather.
The Lynx units include three versions
of a remote-mounted box and two
that are panel-mounted transponder
replacements. All versions include a
WAAS-aided position sensor and a
transmitter. The more basic remotemounted units broadcast on the UAT
frequency while the panel-mounted
transponder system uses the standard
1090 MHz transponder frequency. UAT is
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF QUEST AIRCRAFT COMPANY
suitable for flight below 18,000 feet, but

after 2020 a 1090 MHz ADS-B out will
be required above that altitude.
// DYNON AVIONICS has created a compact

Wi-Fi adapter that links its SkyView glass
avionics systems to the ForeFlight flightplanning app running on an iPad. The
Wi-Fi link is bidirectional so ForeFlight
planning data on your iPad can flow into
the SkyView while the Dynon system
exports GPS, attitude, and other data
into ForeFlight.
The Dynon Wi-Fi adapter plugs into
the USB port on the avionics display with
no need for other wiring changes. The
adapter is priced at $35.
// GLENN BRASCH, EAA 151265, of Tucson,

Arizona, has developed a smartphone app for
Android and iOS called Airport Courtesy Cars
that lists airports with available courtesy/crew
cars for GA pilots. The retired professional pilot
and homebuilder got the idea while planning
his ight to AirVenture last year in his RV-9A.
I started compiling a list, going through
AirNav and putting out requests for car
locations, Brasch said. As the list grew
I published it on my website, and as it
approached almost 1,000 listings I thought it
would make a good app.
After several months of development the
app lists more than 1,250 airports, organized
by state, with Google Map capability to view
airport locations.
J. MAC MCCLELLAN
COMMENTARY / LEFT SEAT
Maybe Its Time for an

Instrument Rating
J. MAC MCCLELLAN
SOMETHING MOST OF US want in our flying is a new challenge. A

new skill to add. Something to do in our airplanes in addition to
riding around enjoying the scenery. And thats why so many pilots
have taken on the challenge of earning an instrument rating.
Over the past dozen years ending in 2013the most recent statistics availablethe percentage of all active pilots holding an
instrument rating steadily increased from 58 percent to 65 percent. The FAA reports that all ATPs are instrument-rated. No
surprise there. Ninety percent of all active commercial pilots also
hold instrument ratings. And of the estimated 180,214 active private pilots in 2013 the FAA says 59,909 were instrument-rated,
almost exactly a third of the total.
The statistics show that instrument-rated pilots are remaining
active in larger numbers than those who are not rated. In 2002
the FAA estimates there were 545,434 active pilots with a private
certificate or higher, and 317,389 of those were instrument-rated.
By the end of 2013 the active pilot population had declined to
473,739, a drop of 13 percent. But the number of instrument-rated
pilots dropped from 317,389 to 307,120 over the same period, a
decline of less than 4 percent.
There are certainly many factors contributing to the shrinking
number of active pilots, but the numbers clearly show that those
who are instrument-rated are more committed and are remaining
active longer.
Its important to understand that the number of instrumentrated pilots says very little about how much actual IFR flying
occurs in general aviation. In the piston fleet the number of hours
flown on an IFR clearance is a very small minority. Nobody
knows the actual number, but I doubt it is even 10 percent of the
total hours flown.
And having the instrument rating is only the first step in
instrument flying qualification. Again, nobody knows absolute
numbers, but Im positive only a small minority of instrumentrated GA pilots maintain the required currency to legally fly an
IFR trip this afternoon.
In the chaos after 9/11 all sorts of draconian proposals
were being tossed around at various levels of government,
and one of them was to ban all VFR flight, at least to ban it near
or over metropolitan areas. Several of us,

including people from aviation advocacy
groups, tried to estimate what percentage
of GA pilots were fully qualified, not just
instrument-rated, to fly IFR. A consensus
emerged that the number was less than
10 percent.
So why should you learn to fly IFR if
youre not going to actually fly in the system? Or at least not going to fly on a
clearance very often? My answer is that
learning to fly instruments will make you a
better and potentially safer pilot.
When Ive been asked which certificate
or rating was most important or most difficult to earn I always say it was the
instrument rating.
The commercial certificate is really a
glorified private course. You must learn to
fly a few new maneuvers such as lazyeights or 720-degree spirals, but mostly
you fly the same maneuvers you did to
earn the private but to a higher standard.
The ATP is really the instrument rating
all over again but to a tighter tolerance.
And earning type ratings is flying the type
that is new to you to the same standards as
required for the original ATP.
But the instrument rating requires you to
learn an entirely new set of skills. You must
learn to create a constant mental image of
the airplanes attitude and position based
only on what the instruments show you. You
must learn an entirely new method of navigating and maintaining safe altitudes. And
you must learn more about the weather than
is ever necessary when you simply avoid all
clouds and low visibility.
J. MAC MCCLELLAN
In my day the instrument rating was

pretty far into the future of a new pilot. As I
recall you needed to log at least 250 hours
total, and much of it had to be cross-country
ying to be eligible for the IFR. That didnt
make a lot of sense to many because ying
trips is when you are likely to encounter
marginal weather and benet from an
instrument rating. So the rules were
changed so that you need to have at least a
private certicate and have own at least 50
hours of cross-country as pilot in command.
Before the IFR checkride you will need
to have logged at least 40 hours of actual
or simulated instrument flying of which at
least 15 hours must be with an instructor.
The FAA has gone back and forth on how
much training time can be flown in flighttraining devices and simulators, but some
is allowed. And if you do your IFR training
at an FAA-approved school, hour requirements can be different.
You will also need to study for and pass

an IFR written exam. I know, were supposed to call it a knowledge test or
something like that, but calling it the written makes so much more sense.
Whatever you call it, the IFR written is
one of the toughest youll ever face as a pilot.
I think it is still also the longest in terms of
number of questions. And just about every
area of ying is covered including IFR procedures, of course, but also lots of weather,
regulation, and airplane-performance topics.
In the old days the IFR written was
greatly feared. Its toughness more than
any other test helped to grow the concentrated long weekend ground courses. The
weekend courses worked, but more importantly they paved the way for creation of
the very effective home study courses we
have today. You will still need to apply
yourself and actually study the courses,
but the risk of flunking the IFR written is
But the instrument rating requires

you to learn an entirely new
set of skills. You must learn to
create a constant mental image
of the airplanes attitude and
position based only on what the
instruments show you.
tremendously reduced compared to
decades ago if you make the effort.
REQUIRED EQUIPMENT
The equipment required to y IFR, particularly for training, is very basic. Most
standard category airplanes will have the
essentials, and a very large percentage of
homebuilts do, too.
What the rules require are the basic six

pack of attitude and directional gyros, a
turn and bank indicator, altimeter, and airspeed indicator. The only radio requirement
is a comm and a nav receiver. You will also
need to have a glide slope receiver along
with the VOR/LOC so you can learn to y a
precision approach, the ILS.
Advances in electronics are actually
making it more cost-effective to equip for
IFR flying, particularly in homebuilts.
Several companies offer integrated flat
glass avionics systems with non-moving
attitude heading reference systems
(AHRS) in place of gyros. These glass
cockpit display systems eliminate the
need to install a vacuum pump and
plumbing to spin old-fashioned mechanical gyros. And the primary flight display
(PFD) shows all of the information and
more from the old six pack of steam
gauges on a single glass display.
There are also cost-effective upgrades

for standard airplanes, particularly from
Aspen. The basic Evolution 1000 fits in the
space of the old attitude and directional
gyros to give you all PFD functions in a
single box. The mechanical airspeed,
altimeter, and turn and bank can remain in
place as backups. The Aspen unit has an
internal battery that powers the Evolution
if power is lost and also contains an emergency GPS feature.
If your budget is bigger, Avidyne,
Garmin, and others in addition to Aspen
make flat glass systems that are certified in
a wide range of airplanes, offer a long list
of capabilities, and connect to many existing avionics systems.
There are some ne points in the rules
when it comes to using GPS for IFR ying.
Most of your training ights will be conducted under VFR rules, even though you
are wearing a view-limiting hood or other
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device and ying published IFR procedures.

Under those conditions a GPS navigator
does not need to be IFR certied in the airplane. But if you le a ight plan and accept
an IFR clearance, your GPS navigator needs
to be certied to use as primary guidance
such as when ying an approach.
Nearly all of the popular GPS navigators are eligible for IFR certification, but it
is a two-step process. The navigator itself
must be IFR-approved, and then the
installation must be approved, which
brings along a flight manual supplement
and other documentation.
The other requirement for an airplane
to fly IFR is that the altimeter and transponder be recertified every two years. But
there is a two-year recertification requirement on all transponders and their Mode
C function anyway.
Oddly the basic equipment rules for
IFR ying do not require a transponder,
360 ight hours
54,000 nautical miles
3 years of experience
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J. MAC MCCLELLAN
but do require a clock with a sweep second hand or digital

presentation. The reality is that a transponder is essential
to y in the system even for IFR practice approaches
own under VFR. You can, of course, y approaches and
holds to your hearts content in unregulated airspace
without talking to controllers and without receiving
radar vectors, but that would be a very incomplete IFR
training experience.
A WAY TO GET STARTED
If you want to dip your toe into IFR flying without any
commitments to schools or instructors, its perfectly legal
and logical to put on a hood and try it out with a pilot
friend in the right seat. There have been lots of hairsplitting discussions about the required qualifications for the
safety pilot and who can log the time, but the bottom line
that always meets the rules is that the person in the right
seat is fully qualified to command the flight while you are
under the hood.
If your friend is IFR-rated, thats great because he can
offer tips and advice that isnt formal instruction that can be
logged as such, but gives you time to see what IFR flying is
all about. I know some pilots who just hated being under
the hood. They got through the couple hours of hood flying
required to earn a private, but just didnt want to do any
more. But then many, even most, find flying instruments a
great challenge and something they want to master.
At one time it was possible to earn an IFR rating and
never fly on a clearance in the IFR system, and many pilots
did. They simply flew all of the practice approaches and
other procedures VFR even though they were often working with controllers, accepting vectors, and so on.
But that rule changed, and now you must fly at least one
trip of 250 miles or longer on an IFR clearance in the system with an instructor. That trip must include flying at least
three different types of approaches such as an ILS, VOR,
GPS, LPV, and so on.
There isnt a requirement to fly in actual instrument
meteorological conditions (IMC) during your training, but
most instructors will do their best to make that happen. It
can be a problem in some parts of the country during some
seasons when low clouds or visibility are rare, or when
clouds are icy or thunderstorms, but seeing the inside of a
cloud for real the first time is best done with an instructor.
I know IFR flying is not for every pilot any more than
aerobatics or gliders or antiques attract all. But I hope you
will at least consider learning to fly IFR. I promise it will
change the way you fly forever no matter how good the
weather on your trip.
J. Mac McClellan, EAA 747337, has been a pilot for more than 40 years holds an ATP
certicate, and owns a Beechcraft Baron. To contact Mac, e-mail mac@eaa.org.
M
IKE BUSCH
C OMMENTARY / SAVVY AVIATOR
Oleos
Oleo pneumatic shock struts use hydraulic uid, compressed gas,
and darn clever engineering to improve our landings
IF EVERY ONE OF OUR landings were a greaser and if runways never
had bumps or potholes, then the landing gear on our airplanes could
be dead simple. Wheel assemblies rigidly attached to the airframe
would work ne, just as they did on the toy wagon and roller skates I
had when I was a kid.
In the real world, some landings involve embarrassingly rm
touchdowns. Some of the runways and taxiways we use are not
exactly pool table smooth, either. Thats why nearly every airplane
ever built has been equipped with shock-absorbing landing gear
designed to survive considerable abuse.
Lightweight aircraft can often get away with a simple springloaded gear. Many older designs (like the venerable Piper Cub) use a
simple hinged gear leg with stranded rubber cords used to absorb
the shock of landing. Mooneys use a stack of shock-absorbing rubber
doughnuts for the same purpose.
FIGURE 1
Fully Extended: 0 pounds
Static (Taxi): 2,500 pounds
Fully Compressed: 7,500 pounds
300 psi
1,200 psi
3,600 psi
An oleo pneumatic (air oil) shock strut consists of two telescoping tubes with sealed ends partially
lled with hydraulic uid and partially with compressed air or nitrogen.
Many aircraft, notably Cessna singles,

use shock-absorbing spring-steel gear legs,
an elegantly simple design pioneered and
patented in the 1930s by air racer Steve
Wittman. Cessna licensed the design from
Wittman in the 1940s, introduced it in
1946 on the Cessna 140, and has used it
on its single-engine aircraft ever since.
Some recent lightplane designs (e.g.,
Cirrus SR20/SR22) employ a similar
spring-leg approach using composites
instead of steel.
RECOIL
Spring-type landing gear designs like these

have some compelling advantages when
used in lightplanes. Theyre cheap, lightweight, require few parts, and are
essentially maintenance-free. Rubber shock
cords and doughnuts require periodic
replacement, but Wittman-type springsteel gear legs often last the life of the
airframe with zero maintenance.
Unfortunately, spring-type gear
designs also have two significant disadvantages. First, they dont scale well to
heavier aircraft. As the weight of the aircraft increases, the size of the rubber,
steel, or composite springs required to
absorb the shock of landing tends to get
impractically large.
Second, and perhaps more important,
spring-type gear legs arent very good at
damping the recoil of a hard landing. The
harder the landing, the more energy the
landing gear springs absorb, and the more
energetic the ensuing recoil. The result is
that a hard landing on a spring-type gear
ILLUSTRATION BY CHRIS LIVIERI
FIGURE 2
Fully Extended: 0 pounds
Static (Taxi): 2,500 pounds
Fully Compressed: 7,500 pounds
An orice plate divides the strut into two chambers. Fluid passes through the orice as the strut compresses, absorbing energy
and damping recoil. A tapered metering pin constricts the orice as the strut compresses, providing softness at initial touchdown
and increased damping as the strut compresses.
often results in a bounced landing

which at best can be embarrassing, and at
worst can result in loss of control and
damage to the aircraft.
Consider Charles Lindberghs historic New York to Paris ight on May
20-21, 1927. His custom-built Ryan NYP
monoplane was adapted from Ryans
M-2 mail plane, which used a shockcord-type landing gear like most aircraft
of its day. But the custom-built NYP carried 450 gallons of fuel and had a
maximum takeof weight of 5,250
poundsnearly twice that of the M-2.
The gear of the NYP still used shock
cords, but was massively beefed up to
support the additional weight.
The result was obvious to anyone who
has seen the old motion picture footage
of Lindberghs takeof from Roosevelt
Field, New York, and his landing at Le
Bourget Field, Paris. The takeof was a
heart-stopping sequence of bounces, and
the landing was also badly bounced. Both
were ne examples of the recoil problem
inherent in spring-type landing gear
designs. As aircraft got larger and heavier,
a more forgiving landing gear design
became a necessity.
ENTER THE OLEO
The answer was the oleo pneumatic or

air oil shock strut, originally introduced in the late 1920s by the Cleveland
Pneumatic Tool Co. Clevelands Aerol
strut quickly gained acceptance in
the 1930s, and was the landing gear
technology of choice by the time
aviation exploded in the 1940s, transforming Cleveland Pneumatic Tool
into one of the nations largest wartime
industrial companies.
The oleo strut uses compressed gas
combined with hydraulic uid to absorb
and dissipate the shock of landing, and to
damp the recoil to minimize bounced
landings. The strut consists of two telescoping tubes with externally closed ends
(Figure 1). The upper tube is historically
referred to as the cylinder and the
lower tube as the piston. The telescoping tubes form a variable-displacement
chamber that contains hydraulic uid on
the bottom and compressed air or nitrogen on the top. As the strut is compressed
during landing, the incompressible
hydraulic uid maintains constant volume, while the gas at the top of the strut
is compressed to smaller volume and
www.eaa.org23
higher pressure. The compressed gas acts as a spring, and performs the same function as the shock cord or spring steel of a
spring-type gear.
The bottom of the upper tube (cylinder) is equipped with a
high-pressure seal to prevent uid or gas from escaping from the
chamber as the strut compresses and extends. For light-duty
struts, the seal may be a simple O-ring; for heavier-duty struts, it
tends to get a bit more exotic. Just below the seal is a scraper ring
to prevent dirt from damaging the seal as the strut compresses.
The seal and scraper ring are typically retained by a snap ring.
TAMING THE BOUNCE
The purpose of the hydraulic fluid in an oleo strut is to

damp the action of the gas spring, slowing the rate at
which the strut absorbs landing shocks, and slowing the
post-impact recoil to
minimize the chance of a
bounced landing.
To accomplish this,
the strut is equipped with
an orice plate that
divides the lower uidbearing part of the strut
into two chambers
(Figure 2). As the strut
compresses during landing, the uid is forced
through the orice from
the lower chamber to the
upper one, and as the
strut extends during postlanding recoil (or
takeof ), the uid is
forced back through the
orice in the opposite
direction. The size of the
orice and the viscosity of
the uid limit the rate at
which the strut can compress or extend.
Now heres where
things get really clever:
Most oleo struts employ
a tapered metering pin
to vary the size of the
orice and therefore the
rate of uid ow from
one chamber to the other. Cutaway view of an oleo strut. The reverse-taper
The more the strut com- knob at the top of the metering pin provides
presses, the smaller the
increased damping at the very end of the extension
orice becomes, and the
stroke to lessen the mechanical shock when the
more resistant the strut is strut reaches full extension during takeo.
to compress or extend. The result is a

landing gear that starts of very soft at
touchdown, and becomes increasingly
stif as the strut compresses and the energy
of landing is dissipated. When near-fully
compressed after landing, the strut is
highly damped and recoils slowly and
with great reluctance.
While the metering pin gradually tapers
from bottom to top, it normally has a largerdiameter bulb at its extreme upper end.
The purpose of this odd-looking swelling is
to slow the extension of the strut on takeof
just as it reaches full extension, thus slowing
strut extension just before it hits its mechanical stop after liftof.
DESIGNING A STRUT
A widely used rule of thumb is that the compression ratio of a main-gear oleo strut
should be about 4-to-1 between the fully
extended and static (taxi) position, and
about 3-to-1 between the static and fully

compressed position.
The nal gure comes from FAA certication requirements, which require that a
landing gear be designed to handle a hard
landing with a sink rate of 10 feet per second
(or 600 fpm). A simple calculation shows
that for a main landing gear strut with a typical maximum throw length of 12 inches, the
required deceleration from such a landing is
about 3gs. Thus, the strut needs to be able to
dissipate a worst-case landing force equivalent to about three times the aircrafts
normal static weight.
There are other constraints on gas pressure. If the minimum pressure in the strut
when fully extended is less than about 50
psi, the O-ring seal at the bottom of the cylinder may not seal tightly enough against the
piston to prevent the strut from leaking.
Conversely, if the maximum pressure in the
strut when fully compressed is more than
In the real world, some landings

involve embarrassingly rm
touchdowns. Some of the runways
and taxiways we use are not
exactly pool table smooth, either.
5,000 psi, the seal might blow out on a hard
landing. Finally, if the pressure in the strut in
its normal static position is more than about
1,500 psi, it will be impossible to add gas to
the strut without jacking the aircraft (since
nitrogen bottles typically have a maximum
pressure of 1,800 psi when full).
Given these constraints, a working pressure of about 1,200 psi under static (taxi)
load is a good compromise. At full extension
(with a 4-to-1 compression ratio), the pressure drops to about 300 psi, and at full
www.eaa.org25
compression (with a 3-to-1 compression

ratio), the pressure rises to about 3,600 psi
easily within the necessary constraints.
The required strut diameter can be easily
determined based on the weight of the aircraft. For example, my Cessna T310R has a
maximum weight of about 5,500 pounds,
which means that each main gear needs to
support roughly 2,500 pounds under static
conditions (with the nose gear supporting a
bit as well). At 1,200 psi, this requires a main
gear piston cross-sectional area of a bit over
2 square inches, which translates into a piston diameter of about 1.7 inches.
The fully extended main gear on my
T310R has a throw of about 12 inches. At a
4-to-1 compression ratio, the static extension
is about 3 inches. In a hard-landing scenario
say I forgot to are and drove the airplane on
at a 600 fpm sink ratethe strut would theoretically compress to about 1 inch extension
with an internal pressure of 3,600 psi (3-to-1
ratio) and an opposing force of 7,500 pounds.
A typical nose gear oleo on a tricycle-gear
airplane handles a lot less weight than the
mains, and has a shorter throw and lower
working pressure. But its ability to dampen
landing shocks with minimal recoil is perhaps
even more important than for a main gear.
Consider that a nose gear recoil pitches the
nose up, increases the wing angle of attack,
causes the airplane to want to start ying again,
and can easily lead to divergent pitch oscillations (often referred to as PIO or pilot-induced
oscillations) that have been known to wrinkle
rewalls, curl prop tips, snap of nose wheels,
and generally give owners a bad hair day.
Thats probably the principal reason that
although tricycle-gear Cessna singles still use
the simple Wittman-type spring gear for their
mains, they use an oleo strut on the nose.
STRUT INFLATION
Your aircrafts service manual provides

detailed servicing instructions for your oleos.
Typically, a specic ination pressure is given
for servicing the strut when it is fully extended
(i.e., airplane on jacks), and a strut-extension
measurement is given for airing up the strut
with the aircraft on its feet. These servicing
instructions are also contained on an FAArequired placard afxed to each strut. For
example, the main gear struts on my airplane

are placarded for a no-load ination pressure
of 320 psi, and for a static-load extension of 3
inches. For the nose strut, the corresponding
gures are about 50 psi and 1.5 inches.
But be careful: If you notice that your
strut extension is a bit lower than it should
be, the temptation is to air up the strut a
bit (using a nitrogen bottle or strut pump)
to bring it back up to the specied height.
But before you do this, stop and think about
it for a moment. How do you know whether
the strut extension is low because it needs
more air/nitrogen pressure, or whether its
low because it needs more hydraulic uid?
The takeo was a heart-stopping

sequence of bounces, and the
landing was also badly bounced.
Both were ne examples of the
recoil problem inherent in springtype landing gear designs.
If the strut is actually low on uid
(because some seeped out past the O-ring
seal between the cylinder and piston) and
you compensate by adding air/nitrogen,
what youve done is lower the compression
ratio between static and fully compressed
positions of the strut. Repeat this a few times
and you might wind up with a strut thats
sufciently short on uid and long on air
that will physically bottom out on a hard
landingand that could get expensive.
Remember, the function of gas in an oleo
is to provide the struts spring force, and the
function of hydraulic uid is to provide the
struts damping force. A useful test is to rock
the aircraft up and down and see how the
strut reacts. If the strut bounces up and down
freely with relatively little damping, then its
most likely low on uid. If the strut moves
stify and shows little willingness to bounce,
the uid level is probably adequate and the
strut may just need a little air or nitrogen.
If theres any indication that the strut
may be low on uid (i.e., its bouncy), you
should denitely check the uid level in

order to preclude the possibility of damage
during a rm landing. Low uid is potentially a lot more serious than low air.
Incidentally, the most likely time for a strut
to lose uid is in frigid temperatures, so be
especially vigilant during the wintertime.
SERVICING
To service an oleo strut with uid, jack the

aircraft until the wheel is of the ground.
Open the ll valve located at or near the top
of the strut to fully deate it.
Once the strut is deflated, attach one
end of some clear plastic tubing to the
filler valve, and immerse the other end of
the tubing into a pan of MIL-H-5606
hydraulic fluid. Slowly pump the strut up
and down a number of times. Each time
you extend the strut, it will suck fluid up
the tube and into the strut. Each time you
compress it, it will expel gas that is
entrapped in the fluid (plus excess fluid)
into the pan. Continue pumping until
youve eliminated as much entrapped gas
as you can and the expelled fluid comes
out relatively free of bubbles.
At that point, compress the strut fully
once more (to eject excess uid), then disconnect the plastic tube. Extend the strut
fully, and then service the strut with either
nitrogen or dry compressed air to the recommended pressure. Close the ller valve
and install its protective cap.
After the strut has been serviced, remove
the aircraft from jacks, rock the just-serviced
strut up and down, and check that the strut
extension is reasonably close to the static
extension values given in the service manual
and on the strut placard. A little variation is
okay, but if the strut is signicantly under or
over the recommended static extension, you
might consider adding or removing a little
air or nitrogen.
Mike Busch, EAA 740170, was the 2008 National Aviation
Maintenance Technician of the Year, and has been a pilot
for 44 years, logging more than 7,000 hours. Hes a CFI
and A&P/IA. E-mail him at mike.busch@savvyaviator.
com. Mike also hosts free online presentations as part
of EAAs webinar series on the rst Wednesday of each
month. For a schedule visit www.EAA.org/webinars.
Running on Empty
Running out of gas is, umm, unwise
IN OVER THREE DECADES of ying, I have inevitably seen cases of
pilots running out of gas, but the one I always think of rst concerns
a guy who ran his fuel tank completely dry right in front of the usual
handful of pilots who show up at my eld on nice summer days.
Tednot his real namewas one of those people who just have to
get some airtime in every day. Thats a completely understandable
mental state (in fact, I wrote about it recently) as long as it doesnt
lead to doing stupid things. He was also strapped for cash on the day
in question, so he hadnt bought any fuel for the Quicksilver MX
Sprint he was ying. He just rolled it out of the hangar and took of,
but stayed almost within gliding distance of the eld.
We saw that he had taken of with only about a quart of fuel
in an aircraft that burns about 3 gallons an hour in cruise. He kept
ying for an amazingly long time, doing

stalls, steep little turns, near-chandelles,
and all sorts of fancy, fun stuf. He was also
doing all this fun stuf at an appallingly low
altitude: never above 400 feet, and working his way constantly lower. Although he
didnt exactly have an audiencemost of
the people at the eld were pilots and not
unduly amazed by his yingthere was a
growing awareness that he had to be coming perilously close to running his fuel
tank dry. There was muttering along the
lines of He should have run out of gas 10
ILLUSTRATION BY DAVE MATHENY
minutes ago, and How long has he been

doing that?
When the silence came, it was not with a
sputter, just a dying away of the sound of the
engine. He was at about 80 feet, way too far
away to glide to the eld even if there had
not been a major freeway between him and
us, and over a rough but unpopulated stretch
of terrain. There was no rush to get into cars
and go rescue him. The unspoken attitude
was: Let him gure out what to do. He
showed up on foot 20 minutes later and collected a few people to help him drag the MX
to a road. Some kind soul brought along a
jerrycan of fuel. No damage had been done
to the aircraft in the forced landing, and Ted
took of from the road and ew back.
STUPENDOUSLY OBVIOUS
Running out of fuel is uncommon in any

form of aviation, and maybe even less common among the people Ive own with over
the years. Probably thats because most
We expect that anyone who takes an aircraft into the sky will have
rst made sure of some things: Is there a thunderstorm with baseballsized hail on top of me right now? Are the wings attached, or have I
thoughtlessly left one at home? Is there enough fuel aboard to do this
thing I am attempting to do?
ultralights and very light aircraft have their
fuel tanks situated in such a way that, when
fuel is running low, that fact is stupendously,
forehead-smackingly obvious. Theres usually only one tank, and its right there. In
Teds case, the Quicksilver MX series fuel
tank is just above and slightly forward of the
pilots head. Checking fuel state is about as
hard as it is for the driver of a car to see if the
sun visor is up or down. Even in my own
Quicksilver GT400, with the tank behind
the pilot and within whats called a pylon
cover, theres still a big window in the cover
to allow a visual checkthat is, for any pilot

willing to turn around and look. Teds vague
excuse was that he had become so absorbed
in what he was doing that he just forgot.
He didnt get much sympathy. Pilots
expect a certain rock-bottom minimum of
ourselves and each other. We expect that
anyone who takes an aircraft into the sky
will have rst made sure of some things: Is
there a thunderstorm with baseball-sized
hail on top of me right now? Are the wings
attached, or have I thoughtlessly left one at
home? Is there enough fuel aboard to do
www.eaa.org29
DAVE MATHENY
this thing I am attempting to do? Any pilot who strays outside these basics is going to get some stony looks when things
turn out badly.
Usually, when I write about the various blunders that pilots
make and the lessons we learn from them, I can ofer examples
of similar blunders I have made. But running out of fuel has
never happened to me, not because Im such a paragon of virtue but just because Im kind of obsessive about it. I will top up
the fuel tank even when the tank is half full and Im only planning to y for 15 minutes. The only time I dont top up my tank
is when I am guessing this is the last ight of the season, and I
dont want to have to throw away several gallons of old gasoline-oil mixture in the spring. Even so, I have never taken of
without at least three times the amount of fuel I will conceivably need. (And so I usually do wind up having to throw away
some fuel in the spring.)
Running out of fuel is the easiest evil to ward o,

ever. You dont need crosses and garlic, or even an
advanced degree in aeronautics, just common sense.
MANY WAYS TO RUN OUT
Possibly my illustration is unkind. There are many reasons other

than plain stupidity for running out of fuel, most of them having
to do with complexities in the system or misunderstanding the
fuel system. An NTSB study of fuel-starvation accidents from
2005 to 2010, published in this magazine in 2011, listed 177 fuelstarvation accidents. Of these, 112 were attributed to improper
fuel-tank selection. Stupidity is not necessarily the reason in
every case. The more complex the aircraft and its systems, the
easier it is to select the wrong fuel tank or to mismanage the fuel
pump or some other part of the operation.
In other words, there are many ways to run out of gas. And
the competence level of the pilots covered in the study ranged
as high as air transport pilot, and the average number of hours
was more than 3,000.
One of the most fascinating cases of fuel exhaustion is
known as the Gimli Glider. In 1983, an Air Canada Boeing 767
ran out of fuel at 41,000 feet on a ight between Montreal
and Edmonton. The captain, a highly skilled and resourceful
pilot with sailplane experience, elected to glide to an abandoned airport at Gimli, Manitoba, and was able to make a
successful landing there, despite being without hydraulic
pressure and therefore unable to extend aps and slats. The
nose wheel collapsed, and the resulting high position of the
tail when the airliner nally ground to a halt meant that the
emergency aft passenger-evacuation slides when deployed
did not reach the ground, so some passengers were injured
when departing the airplane. Even so, it was an amazing
example of airmanship. The mistake was caused by a misunderstanding about how much fuel was supposed to be in the
tanks. Canada was going through a conversion to the metric
system; the fuel pumped into the

tanks had been measured in pounds
while the crew had been led to
believe it was in kilograms, which
made them think they had more than
twice as much as they really did.
LISTEN UP NOW, CLASS
It would be interesting to teach a

ground school class and have the students complete this sentence: The
only reason I would ever run out of
fuel would be That ought to be
thought-provoking and enlightening
for the students; get them thinking
about their Achilles heel. We each
have one, I would bet.
In fact, lets play this game. Ill go
rst. The only reason I would run out
of fuel would bebecause I ew to a
place, landed, discovered I had a fuel
leak, and there was no way to get
moreso I took a chance on getting to a
destination that turned out to be too far.
That would be a pretty good reason, is
my guess, but when put in those terms,
it would shine a light on the simple
fact that theres almost always an alternative. In this case, staying on the
ground and nding some other means
of getting fuel.
I am afraid, though, that all too
often the answer would be, if the student were being completely truthful,
something along the lines of, Because
I trusted the fuel gauge, which was
malfunctioning, rather than checking
the fuel level with a dipstick. Or,
Because I got distracted and didnt
change fuel tanks.
Running out of fuel is the easiest
evil to ward of, ever. You dont
need crosses and garlic, or even an
advanced degree in aeronautics, just
common sense. There are so many
complicated, difcult-to-understand
things that can go wrong with an
enginespark, timing, fuel-air mixture, lubricationbut this one is
caveman simple.
Dave Matheny, EAA 184186, is a private pilot and
an FAA ground instructor. He has been ying light
aircraft, including ultralights, for 34 years. He can
be reached at DaveMatheny3000@yahoo.com.
www.eaa.org31
CHARLIE PRECOURT
COMMENTARY / FLIGHT TEST
Angle of Attack Indicators

Making them work for you
BY CHARLIE PRECOURT
ANGLE OF ATTACK INDICATORS have been in wide use in military aircraft

for decades but never had a lot of play in general aviation until
recently. The March 2015 Advocacy and Safety section of Sport
Aviation highlighted studies by the General Aviation Joint Steering
Committee that found loss of control to be responsible for 40 percent of GA aircraft fatalities. The GAJSC also prioritized angle of
attack (AOA) indicators as a top recommended safety enhancement
for both new and existing aircraft. The FAA has now taken steps to
make it easier for these systems to be retrotted into our existing
eet; they can be a great addition to the cockpit for enhancing situation awareness and avoiding ight too close to stall. Like any other
cueing device, however, they must be understood and used properly
to be efective.
AOA systems are not in wide use in GA. The GA community
should embrace to the fullest extent the stall margin awareness benets of these systems. To help the GA community understand the safety
benets of AOA systems, a public education campaign should be
developed by industry and the FAA. GA aircraft manufacturers should
work to develop cost efective AOA installations and retrot systems
for the existing GA airplane eet. Owners and operators of GA aircraft
should be encouraged to install AOA systems in their aircraft. GAJSC:
Loss of Control, Approach and Landing, Final Report
In many military high-performance aircraft the weight of fuel
and weapons can be a signicant percentage of the gross takeof
weight. We ight-tested the F-15E to a gross weight of 81,000
pounds. Of that about one-third was fuel, and another third was
external weapons capability, which meant the appropriate speed to
y nal approach varied dramatically

depending on how much fuel and weaponry
you had remaining.
Even the much lighter T-38 at 12,500
pounds gross weight had nearly a third of
that weight in fuel. Final approach speed at
nearly full fuel calculated out at 185 knots
but for normal end-of-mission fuel levels we
ew nal at 155 knots, a diference of 30
knots. We typically calculated the approach
speed before each landing using a memory
aid, based on fuel remaining, but with the
AOA indicator on board we ew nal at the
same AOA indication regardless of the
weight or conguration diferences, dramatically reducing pilot workload and keeping
us constantly aware of our margin above
stall. We trained to cross-check the expected
airspeed with the AOA indicator, giving us
independent conrmations we were where
we wanted to be on approach.
Even if most GA aircraft dont have very
large variations in optimum nal approach
airspeed with gross weight and conguration changes, we can still extract the same
benet of increased awareness of stall margin. AOA systems typically have three
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF ALPHA SYSTEMS AOA
elements of importance to the pilot: the AOA indicator gauge, the AOA indexer, and an AOA-driven
stall-warning device (horn or stick shaker, for
example). Not all systems will have all three of
these elements, but the best ones will. A minimum
system often has only the indexer, which is an illuminated display normally mounted on the glare
shield in the pilots view.
The AOA gauge typically will display a range
starting from the zero lift angle of attack up to
stall angle of attack, or the angle of attack for maximum lift coefcient. Most do not show the actual
angle of attack value in degrees, but instead are
calibrated in units that make it easy for the pilot to
see where the aircraft is between the two
extremes. In the T-38 that range went from 0 to
1.1. The F-15 went from 0 to 45, and the F-4 went
from 0 to 30. But each had markings calibrated to
show where optimum approach speed AOA was,
as well as where stall was.
The signicance of the diferences has to do
with the calibration of the AOA installation, which
is also an important aspect of installation of the
AOA devices now available for retrot on GA aircraft. Since the AOA sensor probes are sometimes
on the fuselage or on the nose of an aircraft and
sometimes on the wing leading edge, a calibration
has to be made that ensures the gauge displays the
zero lift, optimum approach, and stall angles of
attack correctly (the better systems available on
the market also accommodate input for gear and
ap position, but not all do). Once the calibration
is made correctly, the gauge and indexer will
www.eaa.org33
CHARLIE PRECOURT
always show where the aircraft is on the AOA scale regardless

of weight or load factor.
One benet of this kind of system is its ability to show margin from stall even in accelerated, turning stalls. We often
think of stall as a certain speed, as an airplane in level ight
will typically stall at a speed that we learn during training. We
also learn that increasing load factor, g, will cause a stall at a
higher speed (accelerated stall), but at the same angle of attack
in either case. So the angle of attack gauge automatically compensates for load factor for you.
Along with the gauge, the AOA system will often have a
visual indexer that shows the current AOA condition relative
to optimum approach speed AOA. A circle in the center indicates speed, while a chevron below indicates fast (lower
than optimum AOA) or above indicates slow, warning that
AOA is getting excessive. Many systems will be calibrated such
that on-speed is 1.3-1.4 times stall speed (VS) and slow is
1.15 VS for the current ight condition. The indexer allows a
pilot to have a heads-up view of his AOA while focusing attention outside the aircraft.
The nal element on some AOA systems is the AOA-driven
stall-warning device. On most systems I have own it was a tone
in the headset. Some designs have a slow, low-pitch beep that
comes on while slowing down from cruise to on-speed. The
tone would then go steady when on-speed, and if you got slow it
would beep at an ever-increasing frequency and chirp loudly at
stall. The F-4 had particularly nasty post-stall behaviors, so they
added a tactile warning device in the left rudder pedal, which
would vibrate vigorously under your left foot as you got close to
stall. If you missed that slew of cues and got too deep into the
stall, the only way out was to deploy the drag chute.
As with all systems, and AOA is no exception, you can miss
what they are telling you if you become task-saturated. But
AOA takes the error out of stall margin associated with load
factor g, and makes it more obvious how close you are to stall
than the airspeed indicator.
The beauty of any AOA system in a GA aircraft whether it be
just an indexer or it includes gauge and stall-warning device is a
separate set of cues to warn the pilot of impending stall. Beyond
that there are a couple of unique uses one can make of the
gauge. Many systems add further calibrations to show where
maximum endurance and optimum cruise AOA values are on
the gauge and/or indexer. The two values are very helpful
cross-checks of aircraft performance settings that are otherwise
set from indicated speed tables. If you havent considered AOA
for your ying, do yourself a favor and look into ittheyve
become much more available and afordable to install.
Fly safe out there!
Charlie Precourt, EAA 150237, is a former NASA chief astronaut, space shuttle
commander, and Air Force test pilot. He built a VariEze, owns a Piper JetPROP,
and is a member of the EAA board of directors.
LAURAN PAINE JR.

COMMENTARY / PLANE TALK
Lacey Lady
BY LAURAN PAINE JR.
IT HAS BEEN AN ICONIC landmark in Milwaukie, Oregon, for more than

65 years. It being a B-17G (44-85790) that sits on Southeast
McLoughlin Boulevard. Okay, it sits on pedestals, but still, its on a
very busy city street. Its the centerpiece for what was a gas station
and caf and is now a restaurant called, appropriately, Bomber
Restaurant. Over the years it has become quite the legend. It seems
almost all the directions given in Milwaukie revolve around the B-17:
From the bomber, go 2 miles east and then turn left. The public
generally loves it, and some city ofcials generally do not. But, after
sitting outside in the Oregon weather all these years, the airplane is
showing its age. Still, the love for it goes on.
Is there a story in all this? You betcha. And thats where you and I
are going right now.
It starts with a fellow named Art Lacey in

the year 1947. Art had been an engineer for
the Army Corps of Engineers during WWII.
He now had a gas station business on
McLoughlin Boulevard. And he had a civilian pilots license. At his birthday party in
1947perhaps, it is rumored, after having a
few adult beverageshe said he was going to
put a B-17 over his gas station for advertising. A friend told Art he was goofy and could
never pull it of. Art bet the man $5 that he
could. Art then turned to his friend, Bob, and
asked, You got any money on you? Bob
said, Yeah. How much do you need? Art

replied, $15,000. And the guy had it on him
and handed it over. (Im told Portland was
pretty wide open in those days, gambling,
booze, etc. Evidently so!)
Punky Scott, Arts daughter, says, You
have to understand, Art was a pretty crazy
guy. He was just one of those people who
would do anything. Mom just rolled with it.
Ah, a character! I like characters; they are
the spice in life. But more than being just a
character, Art was an outgoing, personable
sort of guy. He was very easy to talk to.
So, with $5 riding on his bet, Art got
acquainted with a guy who was the head of
Altus Air Base in Oklahoma, where surplus
B-17s were being stored after the war. He
traveled to Altus and bought a B-17 for
$13,500. After the sale the guy said to Art,
Go back into town, and when you and your
copilot come out in the morning, Ill have it
ready for you.
Art was down to just two problems now:

He didnt have a copilot, and hed never
own a B-17. But Art was Art so he borrowed a mannequin from a seamstress,
dressed it, and propped it up in the airplane
as his co-pilot. He then went to the ofce
and got an airplane manual for the B-17. He
went back to the airplane, crawled in and,
with some help from the mechanic ground
crew, got the airplane started. He taxied it
around the airport for a bit, and he took of.
He might have gotten away with his deception except that when he came back to land,
the landing gear would not extend. He ew
around for a while but eventually had to
make a belly landing. And, in so doing, hit
another parked B-17.
Art wasnt hurt in the mishap, but he
did have to walk back to headquarters and
admit that hed never actually flown a B-17
before. His friend at headquarters took
pity on him. He turned to the office
secretary and asked, Have you written up

the bill of sale on that B-17 yet? She
answered, No, not yet. He then told her,
Worst case of wind damage Ive ever
seen. And then he sold Art a second B-17
for $1,500. Remember, this was early postwar America, pretty giddy times. All of this
rather worked out for Art. The B-17 hed
crashed had seen some serious time during the war. The one he ended up getting
was a newer B-17G, with but 50 hours on
it, that had never seen combat.
This time around Art called his wife,
Birdene, and asked her to call his old ight
instructor and also a former B-17 crew chief
he knew and ask if they might come to
Oklahoma. They said they would. Art added,
And send a case of whiskey with them.
With the whiskey, Art made a deal with
the local re department in dry (prohibition) Oklahoma for them to siphon fuel out
of the two wrecked B-17s. And thats what
www.eaa.org37
LAURAN PAINE JR.
the re department did. Then they put that fuel into Arts
new B-17. The next morning, Art and his assembled crew
took of for Oregon.
Their rst landing was in Palm Springs, California, to get
gas. Art didnt have money for gas, so he wrote a bad check and
away they went again (Art covered the check when he got
home). En route they hit a snowstorm and got lost. Art ew
lower and lower trying to see landmarks. They nally ew over
a town, and on a rooftop was written Fall River Mills. They
found Fall River Mills on their chart; they were 100 miles of
course. They were able to nd a railroad track and followed it
to Klamath Falls, Oregon, where they landed. When they took
of again they found another snowstorm near Bend, Oregon,
managed to cross the Cascade Range, circled a relatives place
near Monmouth, Oregon, and nally ew to Troutdale, Oregon,
where they landed. Home! Mission complete! Wellalmost.
Is there a bit of urban legend in this story? Perhaps. But, ya
know, its just crazy enough to be believable. I say again, it was
1947 and things were a lot diferent in those days.
But were not done with Art yet. He still has to get the
bomber to the gas station to win the bet. Art and some helpers
dismantled the B-17 and put the parts on trucks for the trip. He
applied for the permits required to make the move, but city ofcials said, Nope. Too high; too big; too wide. Was that the end
of that? You know the answer to that; were talkin about Art
Lacey here.
Art hired a motorcycle escort, like
they use for funerals, and had a couple teenagers drive along beside the
convoy, telling them, If the cops
show up, you guys burn rubber in
another direction, and the cops will
follow you. They all set out in the
middle of the night heading for the
gas stationwith a B-17 I guess they
gured no one would notice. Art also
told the truck drivers, You guys just
keep going. Ill pay any tickets. Just
dont let em stop you.
Turns out the cops didnt stop them,
but a drinking driver nearly did. Seems
the drinking fella left the bar and was
coming down McLoughlin Boulevard
(then a two-lane road) in the opposite
direction when he saw a B-17
approaching. He hurriedly swerved
into a ditch. He later said, I thought
Id driven onto an airport!
The convoy menagerie made it to
the gas station, but the whole thing
wasnt exactly a secret easy to keep.
Local ofcials wanted to ne Art for
not having the proper permits. The Oregon Journal newspaper

wrote an article lamenting that local government tries to keep
bomber from nal resting place. Patriotism was still running
high in 1947; the people favored the B-17. The city eventually
ned him $10. The bomber has been at that location ever since.
Art christened it Lacey Lady in honor of his wife.
Art passed away in 2000. But heres the deal: From what I
know now, if I had met Art Lacey coming down the street, Id
just empty my pockets of any money I might have and give it to
him, and then Id ask, Okay, what are we doing today?
Whatever it is, Im in. Art, as you might imagine, was a xture
at the restaurant, helping many people over the years and was
known to bring his three-string guitar and sing an of-key
Happy Birthday to the kids.
But everything has a time, and after 60-odd years its Lacey
Ladys time. For what? Removal, storage, restoration, and ight.
The legacy of Art and the B-17 still shines bright in the Lacey
family. Jayson Scott, Arts grandson, and his wife, Terry,
have formed the B-17 Alliance as a 501(3)(c) nonprot
(www.B17AllianceGroup.org). You can join; you can donate;
you can helphands on. Jayson and Terry are busy people,
running the Bomber Restaurant and a catering business. They
also curate the next door museum dedicated to preserving wartime memorabilia. Jayson says, Were working hard on
planning. This is new ground for us, but were dedicated to
doing it. Theres that word all EAAers understand: dedicated.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY BRYAN HEIM
www.eaa.org39
LAURAN PAINE JR.
Throttle-Body
For 30-125hp
4-Stroke
Engines
Included in AeroVee Price!
Jayson goes on, Ive learned there is a lot more behind the
plane than just the actual physical structure. Its really more
about the people and their experiences and trying to do something to help preserve those memories and their life
experiences. Art Lacey would be proud to hear that.
Heres the other part of the story that I like a lot. After searching around for a suitable airport for relocation (you know, one
that recognizes passion and puts it a bit above the almighty dollar), they settled on McNary Field, Salem, Oregon. My airport! I
can see their hangar from my hangar. That close! Its like the biggest deal around here since Mount St. Helens blew, and that was
in 1980. Salem is the capital of Oregon so its a bit of a government town, kinda sleepy except for the mostly predictable
political spats. So, hey, Im going to join the B-17 Alliance and
hang around and help out. My buddy, Tom, down Dallas, Texas,
way, lives where there are lots of old airplane opportunities,
mostly with the Commemorative Air Force, and he regularly
takes advantage of it. I envy him that. But Im not quite willing to
travel that far after years of traveling for a living. Im a homebody.
So a B-17 in my backyard is like a bird nest on the ground (one
of my mother-in-laws favorite sayings). Im excited about it. And
so are all the EAA chapters in the area. To paraphrase Field of
Dreams: If you bring it, they will come.
Its really more about the people and their

experiences and trying to do something to help
preserve those memories and their life experiences.
Art Lacey would be proud to hear that.
a product Line of Sonex Aircraft, LLC
or call: 920.231.8297
I was talking to a local resident about the B-17 coming to

Salem, and he said, Yeah, I went and watched them bring
some of the stuf in. Just looks like a bunch of stuf to me.
That statement rather illuminates the diference between
other people and homebuilders/restorers. Other people
see stuf, and homebuilders/restorers see opportunity, challenge, and passion. How much work is there to be done? Lots.
A monumental amount. Maybe 10 years worth. But hey, we all
know the formula: perseverance, time, and money. Some
things are a part of who we are as a nation and a people. Lacey
Lady is one of those things.
And, no, I could nd no record of the guy paying of the $5
bet to Art. Id like to think he did. I mean, good grief, Art covered the bet in monumental fashion. But, no matter. I think Art
would consider Lacey Lady being returned to its original glory
as payment in full.
Lauran Paine Jr., EAA 582274, is a retired military pilot and retired airline pilot.
He built and ies an RV-8 and has owned a Stearman and a Champ. Learn more
about Lauran at his website, www.ThunderBumper.com.
JEFF SKILES
COMMENTARY / CONTRAILS
Technology With
Training Wheels
Flying a Pacer with an electronic ight bag
BY JEFF SKILES
I CANT SAY THAT I am a big proponent of latest and greatest. I was late
to the party with such things as dishwashers, microwaves, and
computers. My VCR (remember those) blinks 12:00, and I may have
been the last man on the planet to get a cellphone. Dont get me
wrong, I like modern conveniences, but with most things I prefer to
stay on the trailing edge of technology and let others be pioneers.
THE OLD WAYS
When I began in aviation the aeronautical gear you carried was fairly
minimal. If you were ying locally, you would be pretty well outtted
with a set of foam earplugs. When ying cross-country you might
grab a sectional chart on the way to the plane. That was pretty much
it. There was no need to have a fancy ight bag chock-full of electronic devices that somehow assist you in making a 25-mile ight to
view the fall colors. There wasnt any such thing as ight-planning
software and no requirement for the plethora of charging cables
vying for attention at the lone cigarette lighter power point.
Back then, a call to ight service would bring on a full brie ng
marathon with the briefer yammering on about fast-moving cold
fronts over Montana and troughs tragically stalled along a line between
No-wheres-ville, Texas, and Never-heardof-it, Tennessee. Eventually the briefer
would get around to what you were really
calling forthe current and forecast
weather for your one-hour local ight. But
those pearls would only be dispensed after
a 10-minute penance communicating the
big picture. I assume that weather briefers
were paid by the time they spent on the
phone because that was certainly maximized at every opportunity.
PURE MAGIC
Today however we have amazing capability

we could never dream of 30 years ago. As I
said, Im not a tech junkie, but I have
become a convert. I too am now one of those
guys striding to their aircraft with charger cords dangling

from their pockets. Why? Because of the amazing capabilities
modern equipment gives you.
The weather information alone is worth the price of
admission to the electronic ight club. I have made several
1,000-plus mile ights this year, and in every case the realtime weather, fuel cost, and ground services information
available changed my route and factored into my
decision-making.
I use an iPad Mini with the professional version of
ForeFlight accessing information through my Stratus 1
ADS-B receiver. I couldnt have even uttered that last sentence with comprehension two years ago, but now I dont
want to ever be without this equipment again. In fact, I consider this setup to be superior to the electronic ight bag
software we use at the airline.
I recently had the opportunity to put my equipment to the
test. A friend of mine, well call him Sam, bought his rst airplane recently in far away Kalispell, Montana, and needed
company for the trip home to Minneapolis.
TECHNOLOGY GETS US THROUGH
Kalispell sits in a bowl in the mountains and makes its own

weather. The terrain combined with abundant moisture
from Flathead Lake can sock in the valley with fog for weeks
at a time. Yet, only 50 miles through the mountains to the
east lies the vast, undulating surface of the Great Plains rolling unbroken for 1,000 miles. Sam and I thought it was the
rst 50 miles that would be the problem, but we couldnt
have been more wrong.
A large high-pressure area was pushing its way south
from Canada, and the Nostradamus-like weather prognosticators foretold clearing skies and fair winds. At least it looked
good on the 48-hour outlook chart; in fact it looked perfect,
but the swirling highs and lows splattered across the map had
plans of their own. As often is the case, the charts promised
much but conspired to disappoint.
It was mid-afternoon before we departed Kalispell pointing our nose to the east across the Continental Divide. With
only a scant week until the winter solstice, it wouldnt be long
before a curtain of darkness would descend upon the rugged
features of the far northern Rockies.
The sun falling low on the horizon silhouetted the craggy
peaks as we weaved along following the serpentine course of
U.S. Highway 2 far below. After only an hour of ying in this
old Piper Pacer we found ourselves clear of the mountains to
the east and angling toward Great Falls for our rst fuel stop.
FOG, FROST, AND OTHER UNPLEASANT PHENOMENA
Sam had planned to overnight in Great Falls and strike out

in the morning for home, but the last 24 hours harbored
optimistic forecasts continually changing for the worse as
www.eaa.org43
JEFF SKILES
low overcast skies stubbornly persist

along our route. Great Falls sits at the
conuence of the Sun and Missouri rivers, and the latest ADS-B weather
coming through on my iPad calls for
freezing fog not scheduled to clear until
the next afternoon.
Not wanting to be stuck in fog and
frost we alter course for Helena,
Montana, where it is forecast to stay
clear through the night. This holds true,
and the next morning dawns bright. We
meet the sun shouldering itself over the
horizon as the Pacer climbs briskly in
the chill for Lewistown, Montana. As we
pass Great Falls to the north the weather
is as expected, one-quarter mile visibility in freezing fog. Our modern
conveniences saved us from a long day
mired on the ground staring at the
malevolent conditions.
A blanket of snow has been spread
upon the Montana plains overnight, and
an undulating sea of white cast against the
bluest of skies greets our arrival in
Lewistown. The course ahead however
looks ominous as a solid low cloud deck
crowds upon the mountain ridge to the
east of the airport. The Pacer is a no-question VFR airplane, and with clouds
stretching all the way to the Great Lakes,
ying over the top is simply out of the
question. We must either nd a route
underneath or resign ourselves to a day
sampling the charms of Lewistown.
My ForeFlight app can overlay information on the course map including
TFRs, weather radar, satellite cloud
cover, and much more. The most valuable
data at the moment is a ceiling representation at every airport reporting weather.
A little box appears over each airport displaying a colorpink for low IFR, red for
IFR, blue for marginal VFR, and green
for VFRwith a numerical value representing the ceiling height. Today the
green box for VFR isnt showing anywhere on the map.
A ROUTE HOME
Our planned route directly to Aberdeen,

South Dakota, is displaying IFR ceilings
the entire way, albeit with good visibilities

below the clouds. This doesnt make for a
promising ight, but the app displays an
area of blue squares about 100 miles to the
north of our planned course where we can
stay in 1,200- to 1,700-foot ceilings and
continue eastward.
Departing Lewistown we nd a convenient cleft in the cloud bank allowing us to
get below the deck sitting hard against the
ridges eastern ank. A pilot has to judge
the safety of any ight operation, and
while this would certainly be considered
scud running, the visibilities below the
clouds are good and we are following a
sparsely traveled highway that can be
used for a landing in the event things go
very wrong. A Pacer can be set down just
about anywhere, and frankly, over the
eastern plains of Montana, there just isnt
that much out here to run into.
Today however we have

amazing capability we could
never dream of 30 years ago.
As I said, Im not a tech junkie,
but I have become a convert.
Still, the prospect of ying the next
700 miles in marginal VFR wouldnt be
appealing at all without accurate and upto-date weather-reporting information
along the way.
With the widely scattered reporting
points in eastern Montana, however, we
are forced to divert even farther north
to nd the blue boxes with ceilings in
the teens.
After a quick fuel stop in Sidney,
Montana, we point our nose toward
Jamestown, North Dakota, but once again
the Stratus ADS-B generated weather
shows that now turning south toward
Aberdeen we will gain higher ceilings.
Two and a half hours of ight nds
us in Aberdeen trying to warm ourselves in the FBO after the frigid
temperatures aloft; the heater in the
Pacer has proven to be a miserable disappointment. After viewing our breath in the cabin for
the last three hours we are reluctant to leave the
warmth of the FBO, but with only 211 miles to go
we push on for Minneapolis.
NIGHTFALL
By now the day is getting long in the tooth, and a

two-hour ight in darkness under a 1,500-foot
overcast is not an appealing thought. But, we are
ying into more heavily populated areas with a
plethora of airports that report weather through
ADS-B. I wouldnt even consider such a ight at
night without real-time weather information.
ForeFlight and the ADS-B receiver once again
prove their worth as we divert south of our course
to seek higher ceilings. Before long, two frozen
pilots are on approach to Flying Cloud Airport
after a long day having traveled 1,000 miles in
what I would call very challenging conditions.
HOW DOES IT WORK?
ForeFlight can display a course over both sectional

and IFR charts and also will le your ight plans
and get weather briengs based on the route you
select. It will do your ight planning by calculating
time, distance, and fuel burn, and it has many
other useful screen overlays including obstacles
and terrain information. A Stratus ADS-B receiver
gives you the most current in-ight information,
including weather radar, winds aloft, current and
forecast weather, fuel prices, and NOTAMs, as
well as providing a more reliable GPS receiver than
is provided by the iPads internal sensor. While
Sam and I were forced to y an extra 165 miles, we
made it home safely in marginal conditions where
we otherwise would have found difculty.
DEBRIEFING THE FLIGHT
The next day I opened my app and found largely

IFR ceilings across the route we had just traversed.
Without the iPad, ForeFlight, and the Stratus, we
would still be sitting in Great Falls waiting for the
fog to lift. The day and a half journey could have
stretched into a week, but with the aid of modern
technology we were able to y home in a purely
VFR airplane and do so in complete safety.
Je Skiles, EAA Lifetime 336120, is an ATP and CFII-ME who has
been an airline and light airplane pilot for almost 40 years. He
previously owned a Cessna 140 and a Waco YOC and currently ies
a Cessna 185. Je can be reached at JereyBSkiles@gmail.com.
www.eaa.org45
Paul Poberezny ashes his trademark thumbs-up while

working at Pioneer Airport in the early 1980s.
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF EAA ARCHIVE
WEEKEND WORK PARTIES HELP GET YOUR

CONVENTION READY
The frequent friendly greeting Welcome to

Oshkosh is more than just a tag line; its a
heartfelt salutation born of the camaraderie
all EAAers sharemany of whom have
poured their hearts and souls into getting
the 1,500-acre convention site at Wittman
Regional Airport ready for July 20-26, the
week of EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2015.
www.eaa.org47
NATIONAL VOLUNTEER WEEK
National Volunteer Week is April 12-18, 2015
CONVENTION PREP IS LITERALLY a year-round proposition;

once we put the wraps on one convention, planning
begins on the next. But as the harsh Wisconsin winter
winds down, convention prep truly heats up.
The weeks and months leading up to opening day
require an awful lot of work, far more than EAA staf could
perform on its own. The scope and breadth of this iconic
event requires an army of volunteers, willing to do what it
takes so that when July 20 rolls around, they can ofer an
enthusiastic Welcome to Oshkosh! Without this volunteer
support, the organization would not be where it is today.
There is nothing on earth quite like AirVenture, the
annual event that celebrates all that is good about our
shared passion for things that y. The same is true of the
coordinated efort (some would say controlled chaos)
that it takes to prepare for it. EAA is truly blessed, therefore, to have such an involved and committed
membership, many of whom give freely of their precious
time and amazing talents for the benet of their organizationtheir extended family.
During the show, more than 5,000 volunteers band
together within the conventions myriad enclaves to
make it work. But what about the ramp-up? Visitors, be
they EAA members or the general public, are often
blown away when they arrive and see the expansive
grounds ready to accommodate hundreds of thousands
of attendees who will pass through the main gate or land
their airplane on a colored dot.
HISTORY
Weekend work parties, as Paul Poberezny called them,

predate Oshkosh and even Rockford. They werent even
related to the convention at the beginning. When EAA
headquarters was in Hales Corners, Wisconsin, the rst
weekend work parties were organized to help build the
organizations rst museum.
The 1953, 1954, and 1955 conventions were at CurtissWright Airport in Milwaukee (now Timmerman Airport),
and preparations were madefor the most partby members of the Headquarters Chapter. As the event grew, it
became increasingly clear that the edgling organizations
membership would all have to pitch in before, during, and
after the y-in to make it successful.
George Hardie Jr., EAA 500, then managing editor of Experimenter magazine,
wrote the following in 1956:
Our organization cannot progress unless each of us is willing to do his part
in helping to lay a rm foundation for future development. Some means must be
found to develop a closer coordination of activities of all the chapters and members at largeIt is not my intention here to slight the splendid cooperation he
has received from many sincere members who have volunteered their help, but
the fact remains that in the nal analysis all must pass through Pauls hands
before the job is completed. This was acceptable when the organization was
small, but the task has become too big for such an arrangement. Something will
have to be done to rectify itand soon.
George challenged members, Its up to each and every one of us to weld our scattered forces into a solid organization working in unison and harmony. Its a challenge
that will take the best thats in us to meet. The future of EAA rests with the members.
Well, members took that advice to heart. In 1956, the fourth annual EAA convention and y-in was held in Oshkosh at the invitation of air race legend and
fellow homebuilt aircraft enthusiast Steve Wittman. Volunteers performed much
of the burdensome but necessary work required to make the event successful.
After the EAA convention moved to Rockford, Illinois, in 1959, members of
Rockford Chapter 101 and Chapter 60 in Beloit, Wisconsin, led preparations at
the airport for the annual event. Later, members of other Southern Wisconsin
and Northern Illinois chapters became key contributors, and many remain very
involved today.
WEEKEND WORK PARTIES
When the fly-in relocated permanently to Oshkosh in 1970, the tradition of

weekend work parties really took off. Early contributor Chapter 101 provided
JOIN THE PARTY!
pend a weekend day or two with us

in Oshkosh, meet some other great EAA
members, and help build the Worlds
Greatest Aviation Celebration. Dates this
year are:
May 2-3
May 16-17
May 30-31
June 6-7
June 27-28
July 11-12
If youd like to organize a weekend work party, e-mail

Katie Meyer at kmeyer@eaa.org. There are also plenty
of opportunities to volunteer during AirVenture at 130
dierent volunteer areas for every age and all interests.
Visit www.EAA.org/volunteer to learn more.
Prior to the 1981 convention, work is completed on the new entrance to Camp Scholler.
significant volunteer resources in helping to shape the convention

grounds, in particular the wooded camping area that had been purchased
from a neighbor.
Chapter 101 members and others cleared out trees and carved out campsites in what was originally called the 101 Woods (now known as Pauls
Woods). It remains the prime camping area on the grounds.
Our chapter has done just about everything that can be done by a work
group, said Dolores Neunteufel, EAA Lifetime 10359 and Chapter 101 secretary whose rst convention was 1961 in Rockford. Weve painted just about
every building inside and out, built ower boxes, picnic tables, moved buildings, demolished buildings, and built some, too. We put up curtains in the
shower housesand mowed about a million acres of grass.
Dolores, who chairs the assistance center during the convention, counted
89 weekend work parties attended by Chapter 101 members over the years.
This year they plan to have No. 90 in May and No. 91 in July.
Chapter 101 members also helped build the Camper Registration area on
the west side of the grounds and even stafed the registration area for a time
in the 1980s.
We love it, Dolores continued. Its about people who normally dont get
their hands dirty, going up there together and having a good time. We would
always marvel at how the grounds would change from May to July, and then
again at the start of the convention. Gave us a lot of pride I can tell you.
Some of the other chapters providing volunteers for weekend work parties over the years include Chapter 93, Madison, Wisconsin; Chapter 439,
Iron Mountain, Michigan; Chapter 54, Lake Elmo, Minnesota; Chapter 272,
Duluth, Minnesota; Chapter 790, Schaumburg, Illinois; Chapter 217, Kenosha,
Wisconsin; and Chapter 414, Waukegan, Illinois.
Its hard to describe, but EAA weekend work parties

are better than a lot of family reunions, Dolores added.
But then again, this is a family.
Traveling to Oshkosh on weekends at their own
expense, chapter members helped create and perpetuate
EAAs volunteer culture of work, sacrice, and the
greater good. This seless work ethic was passed down
to ensuing generations, along with varied skill sets that
were taught and learned. People often would take new
skills home with them and have a new hobby.
As is the case with other organizations, some of that
culture of volunteering is fading as longtime members get
older and too few volunteers step forward to replace them.
For people to just come down on the weekend can
be tough for families to do these days, said Steve Taylor,
EAA director of facilities. People who want to leave
their marktheir thumbprinton the organization are
still there, and we cherish them. They are the heart of
the organization.
For members seeking a way to volunteer but who
have limited time during the convention, weekend work
parties can provide a fullling way to become more connected with EAA.
TEAMWORK
Weekend work parties ofer an opportunity to meet and

work with other members and EAA stafers. Chapter 414
of Waukegan/Lake County, Illinois, began making
annual treks north in 2004 along with neighboring
Chapter 217located just across the state line in
Kenosha, Wisconsinwhose members had their rst
weekend work party in 2003.
Over the years, projects have varied greatly and
have included building construction and remodeling
(and demolition), fence removal and building (and
www.eaa.org49
removal again), material staging, sign painting,

and tree planting.
The rst year, four of us were assigned to
install a dividing wall in the PHP Conference
Center, explained Jim Hull, president of Chapter
414. This involved demolition of existing structures in the building, then framing out the dividing
wall. That same year, we also power washed the
outside of Theater in the Woods and replaced a
tree out back.
One year chapter 414 and 217 volunteers
removed some old playground equipment in Camp
Scholler, and the following year built a new wood
play set. The same weekend, as a couple members
painted new signs in the wood shop, located near
the South Maintenance building, just outside two
others worked to replace rotted oors and make
other repairs to several one-person information/
ticket booths.
Jim recalled one memorable year when his
group was tasked with taking picnic tables out of
storage and staging them in various locations
throughout the grounds.
We used two trucks with long atbed trailers
and a tractor equipped with forks to load and
unload the tables, he explained. We could stack
24 tables up to four high on the trailers, then proceed slowly to the drop-of locations.
At every work weekend, the chapter members

head to their traditional meal at the Oshkosh restaurant The Roxy. Thats always something to
look forward to, no matter how hot and dusty the
day has been, Jim said.
Their Saturday evening special activities have
been interesting and varied, said Chapter 217 VP
David McCormick. Theyve received private tours
of the museum, workshops, Pioneer Airport hangars, Kermit Weeks Hangar, and the Sonex factory.
Steve even took us to the local ice cream
hangout in the EAA bus, David said. Now that
was a treat! Then its back to the convention
grounds for whatever activities are planned for
the eveningbehind-the-scenes museum and
hangar toursthen back to the bunkhouse to rest
up for Sunday.
What brings the members back year after year?
Working together on projects brings them closer
together as a team, Jim said. They feel pride in
doing something that benets our great organization and the entire membership.
For David, its the satisfaction of contributing
to a job well done. We get a real sense of pride
and accomplishment after each and every work
weekend, he said. Not to mention bragging rights
at the show. You see that pole right there? I helped
paint that!
Left: Over the years

Bernice Scholler
volunteered in many
areas, including the
never-ending chore of
cutting the grass.
Opposite: One major
key to building the
culture of weekend work
parties was feeding the
volunteers well.
www.eaa.org51
Many weekend work party participants

also continue to volunteer during the convention teaching various skills, parking
aircraft, and greeting and assisting visitors.
Its the EAA way.
The prevailing attitude is Why pay to have
someone do something (paint a sign, build an
airplane, etc.) when we can do it ourselves?
ROOM AND BOARD
Before all the buildings were in place at Oshkosh, volunteers

put up many tents like the one in which Audrey Poberezny
(left) and Lois Nolinske sold EAA memberships.
Those registered for the scheduled weekend

work parties typically arrive on Friday or
Saturday, have breakfast at the volunteer
kitchen Saturday morning, then gather at
the maintenance shop to discuss whats on
the schedule that needs to be done to support the upcoming convention. Then people
just dive right in on these tasks, while others
are assigned.
Key to building the culture of weekend
work parties was providing lodging options
and feeding the volunteer chapter members.
While many members decide to stay in their
campers or tents, others sleep in the EAA
bunkhouse, a 26-bed building located near
Audreys Park that volunteers helped to
build, or the Binder Bunkhouse, which can
accommodate 24. And the volunteer kitchen,
also volunteer-built in the 1990s with one
addition, keeps members well fed throughout their stay.
Before the current bunkhouse was built,
some weekend workers would stay in the
original white brick farmhouse that was a
part of the Mateyka property EAA acquired
in 1971. It was converted to a bunkhouse in
1978, but the building burned to the ground
the following year. In 1981, a new farmhouse
was built to be used as another bunkhouse
and later became Paul and Audreys convention home.
After Paul and Audrey moved to their
new home south of the convention grounds,
the farmhouse became known as Guest
Relations, eventually becoming the PHP
Conference Center.
OPERATION THIRST
EAA fosters a lot of innovationnot only in airplane hangars

but also on the convention grounds, including chapter 414
and 217 volunteers unique way to distribute picnic tables.
During working hours, and especially at the

end of the day, Paul would make the rounds
bringing refreshments to the volunteers
throughout the grounds, taking special care
to visit with and get to know them. He was
always stopping to chat with people, listen
to them, and spend time with them to hear
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF EAA ARCHIVE AND EAA CHAPTER 414
what was going on. This became the beginnings of Operation Thirst before it was a
chaired area.
Work crews are responsible for many of
the things people take for granted today. For
example, many chapters have built picnic
tables. Other touch points include planting
owers and other general landscaping,
building the people-moving trams that snake
throughout the convention grounds, fencebuilding, putting up the shower houses,
painting everything that needs it, repairing
and maintaining buildings, and the neverending mowing of the grass. If people are
looking for something to do, theres always
some grass that needs to be cut.
VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION
Michael Blombach has served as chairman of

maintenance and construction for the Vintage
Aircraft Association area the past 10 years.
About 50 volunteers, mainly from northeast
Indiana, Michigan, Chicago, and Wisconsin,
come to Oshkosh three times a year to help
maintain its buildings and grounds, make
improvements to existing structures (or construct new ones), and of course perform nal
setup duties for AirVenture.
Just as important, volunteers take everything down afterward so they can be ready
to do it all again the next year.
In the last 10 years alone, Vintage has
built the Tall Pines Caf, made four additions and added a porch to the VAA Red
Barn, and helped with construction of the
Vintage Hangar, including creating the presidents ofce and data processing ofce, a
conference room, and a volunteer area.
Thanks to members Wayne Wendorf, Bob
Brauer, and Al Hallett volunteering their
time and talents, Vintage was able to run all
of the electrical service.
About three years ago we designed and
built a soundproof room for the inside of the
hangar so the metal shapers could pound
with their hammers and make noise without
interfering with the conversation of the
Type Club people, Michael explained.
When VAAs old line operations building
became too small and fell into disrepair, a
group of volunteers built a 32-by-32 foot
building, enclosed and under cover, in one
day. A replica 1913 Airmail Shack built about
four years ago has since been repurposed as
the Cub Corner and Authors Building.
The annual setup and takedown of snow fence

takes a major team eort.
Chapter 101s Kelsey Trydal, left, and Marjean

Thompson load branches onto a atbed.
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF EAA CHAPTER 101
VAA volunteers also have taken over setup and operations of the Aeromart, a swap-meet type location where
people with aircraft parts can display them for sale.
The week before opening day, VAA volunteers to-do
list is long: move the shelving and racking to Aeromart,
distribute about 75 picnic tables, set up the Tall Pines
Caf, clean out the VAA Red Barn and Vintage Hangar,
and help set up everything else for the show. Seven days
later its time to put everything away, and then they come
back to the grounds in October and winterize the area.
We could not accomplish everything we do without
the help of our many dedicated and talented volunteers,
Michael said.
FUN FLY ZONE (ULTRALIGHT AREA)
The Fun Fly Zone, which features not only ultralights

and light-sport aircraft but also is the base for hot air
balloons and homebuilt rotorcraft, is unique in that it
creates and maintains its own grass airstrip, Runway
15/33, throughout the event.
EAA Ultralight Chapter 1, also known as the
Microlite Flyers, traditionally conducts a weekend work
party about 10 days before opening day. The to-do list is
a long one, and chapter President Mike Madgic, EAA
589592, works with area chairman Lee Crevier, EAA
355549, to coordinate the workload for 25 to 50 chapter
volunteers. Getting the Fun Fly Zone ready constitutes
the chapters monthly meeting.
Some of the work that needs to be done includes general maintenance around the barn; readying the line
shack where announcers and airport volunteers work;
preparing the fuel shed for its annual fuel shipment; laying out the camping area so people know where they can
set up and where they cannot; preparing the exhibit
area; and setting up bike racks, as well as tents for
forums and workshops.
One of the biggest prep jobs is getting the Ultralight
Barn ready, and thats headed by Carla Larsh, chair of
the Ultralight & Light-Sport Aircraft Council and member of the EAA board of directors. She arrives with her
fth wheel around the Fourth of July and parks just outside the barn, then gets to work. She handles the
merchandise, accounting, and other duties as well.
Other duties include grass cutting, putting up signs,
and setting out several hundred cones to mark areas like
the runway, camping, parking, etc.
EAA Chapter 41 also provides volunteers for the tram
line that operates in the Fun Fly Zone.
Im not sure how we would be able to function
without the volunteers getting the site ready, said
Timm Bogenhagen, EAA ultralight and lightplane community manager.
CHAPTER 790
Members of EAA Chapter 790 of Schaumburg, Illinois,

traditionally attend a work party the rst weekend of
June, and also had one scheduled in March this year.
According to Chapter President Elton Eisele, the chapter has participated for as long as I can remember.
From about 1999 to 2006, the chapter helped
assemble information packets for the annual Teachers
Day at Oshkosh. Other projects have included building
a oating pier for the seaplane base; refurbishing one of
the trams with new seats and roof support structure;
refurbishing a work cabinet to like-new condition;
building and painting booths; tearing down old buildings and building new ones; and cutting grass, painting
mailboxes and buildings, and helping in diferent areas
at Weeks Hangar.
The members always enjoy workends not only to
help EAA prepare for the big event, but for bonding
together, Elton added.
WARBIRDS
The small evergreens pictured now tower near the PHP Conference Center, and
the building just behind the truck cab? Thats the Volunteer Kitchen.
Warbirds has one major weekend work party before the

convention, and this years is scheduled for July 11.
Members come from Squadron 6, Oconto, Wisconsin,
Squadron 4 from Joliet, Illinois, and Squadron 3 from
Indianapolis, Indiana. They all gather to clean, organize,
and set up the Warbirds Campground, volunteer food
service facility, and the areas buildings and grounds. A
host of local volunteers led by longtime merchandise
sales chairman Rose Metz prepares the Warbirds merchandise building for retail sales during AirVenture.
Ric Reynolds, EAA 642317, is news editor for EAA publications.
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF EAA
PHOTOGRAPHY BY JIM KOEPNICK
AIRPLANE OR DRONE, ONLY ADJECTIVES

SEPARATE PILOTS AND AIRCRAFT
BY SCOTT M. SPANGLER
With their mushrooming popularity, drones

have been the subject of a contentious aviation debate. Aviators on all sides have been
arguing for as long as the FAA has been formulating its notice of proposed rulemaking
(NPRM) that will regulate their commercial
use and integration in the national airspace
system. Mandated by the FAA Modernization

and Reform Act of 2012 (FMARA 2012), the
NPRM is (in early February) undergoing its
penultimate examination and review by the
Ofce of Management and Budget.
Publishing the NPRM for public comment
will likely increase the debates intensity.
www.eaa.org59
wo words seem to lay the debates foundation:

identity politics. Simply put, it is all about the
adjectives, the semantic parsing of persons,
places, and things, the nouns central to our lives
like pilot and aircraft. Certainly, these modiers more clearly identify our individual interests,
but each adjective also divides us, pits one against
the other in a world too often assessed with zerosum metrics. As a whole, aviation is one of many
minorities competing for a sustainable existence
in a global marketplace. When aviators focus on
their dening adjectives, it weakens aviations collective
efort to sustain its current and future viability.
If EAA has proven anything since its founding in 1953,
it is that we can celebrate the aviation adjectives that
dene us without weakening their collective voice that
defends, promotes, and propagates their shared passion
for ight. It started with homebuilders. Pilots who pursued their passions in vintage, warbird, aerobatic, and
ultralight aircraft soon joined them.
Now knocking on the hangar door are aircraft collectively known as drones. Following the example set
The Kewaunee, Wisconsin, lighthouse from a Yuneec Q500 drone.
by EAA Founder Paul Poberezny, we

welcome them into the vast ocean
of air that is home to all who rise up
from the earths surface. Many
drone pilots y for the same reason,
according to Mannie Francesthe
view. The founding member of the
Drone Media Group, an organization focused on drone safety,
education, and training for pilots,
camera operators, and hobbyists, he
said the only diference is the technology involved.
First-person pilots look out the
cockpit windows; ground-bound
drone pilots wear video goggles that display a rst-person view (FPV) from their camera-equipped drone.
What unites the two is a shared love of aviation, according to Mannie, EAA 1147708.
Whether doing it for fun or for a career, a drone
pilot is just as enthusiastic about skillfully piloting a
drone as a traditional pilot is an airplane, he said.
Enjoying the view is not the only
thing that unites the pilots of
manned and unmanned aircraft.
Sharing it is another.
We are in a golden age of personal
storytelling, said 3D Robotics CEO
Chris Anderson, who was editor in
chief of Wired magazine before he
became a drone manufacturer.
In an online video interview
recorded at the Consumer Electronics
Show, where drones were a major draw
this year, Chris said that with the amazing cameras available today, people
want a diferent perspective.
It is a perspective shared by many
rst-person pilots; at least Sportys
Pilot Shop thinks so. In its annual
report of aviation trends, it said portable HD video cameras are hot. But
then anyone paying attention to his or
DRONE DEFINITIONS
In the common vernacular, drone is a synonym for
a hangar-full of multisyllabic terms that include
remotely piloted aircraft (RPA), unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), and unmanned aircraft system
(UAS), which is what the FAA calls them. Each term
has its proponents, all of whom seem to agree
that drone refers exclusively to military aircraft.
Judging by conversations by those with no particular alliance other than aviation, most people see a
drone by its dictionary definition: a pilotless airplane that is directed in flight by remote control.
They derive its mission, military or civilian, commercial or recreational, by the context of its use.
If there is a common denominator among all of
the drone synonyms, it is that they all are aircraft
according to the NTSB.
In 2011, the FAA fined Raphael Pirker for the commercial and careless operation of a Ritewing Zephyr
to shoot video for the University of Virginia and
assessed a $10,000 civil penalty. Raphael argued
that he was not subject to aviation regulations
because his drone was not an aircraft, and the
administrative law judge agreed.
The FAA appealed that decision to the NTSB, and it
reversed the decision.
Yuneec Q500 drone in ight.
her aviation friends on Facebook and

YouTube already knows that. Ultimately,
this shared passion for perspective may very
well encourage pilots to try their hands at
ying others aircraft.
RESPONSIBILITY OF FLIGHT
Safety is another noun common in all forms

of aviation, and it is an imperative concern for
all who aviate. Too often born of hard and
painful experience, safety is preventive
knowledge promoted by self-preservation
and regulatory requirements. It is learning
required of all rst-person pilots who must
demonstrate their knowledge of it. The perception that drone pilots lack this knowledge
is a fundamental concern among other pilots.
For most drone pilots, safety is a pre-eminent concern, Mannie said. Seeing and
avoiding things that will down their aircraft is
a universal desire, as is a desire not to fall on
anyone or anything.
There is one major diference between
the manned and unmanned world: pilots
absolutely do not expect to crash or want to
crash, he said. Learning to y a drone is a
diferent realm; crashing happens, and drone
pilots are hyper aware of it.
But no matter what they y, no pilot is

immune to making poor decisions.
According to Mannie, one complication of
the drone safety picture is their rapid transition from novelty to spectacle to widely
known curiosity to becoming widely
adopted in an environment where standardized knowledge and training requirements
are absent. Technology, such as GPS-based
autopilots and ight computers, makes
drones easier to y. And it can aid safety. After
one of its quadcopters landed on the White
House lawn, DJI issued a mandatory rmware update for its GPS-enabled ight
computer that modied its no-y zones in
Washington, D.C., and around 10,000 United
States airports.
Automation and digital capabilities vary
among drones, according to Mannie, just as it
does on manned aircraft. Like manned aircraft pilots, drone pilots should learn when to
employ automation or manual controls, or a
hybrid of them. In its NPRM, the FAA will
likely apply the established pilot certication
template of aeronautical knowledge and aircraft-specic skills for commercial drone ops.
Until then, the lack of these standards makes
training hard to come by, Mannie said.
We must look no further than the clear, unambiguous plain languagean aircraft is any device
used for flight in the air, the NTSB said in its decision. [An aircraft is] any contrivance invented,
used, or designed to navigate or fly in the air.
Following this precedent, a drones operator is the
pilot in command because he or she is the person
who has the final authority and responsibility for
the operation and safety of the flight.
The FAA subdivides UAS operations into three categories: civil, public, and model aircraft. The
forthcoming regulations apply to small UAS, meaning those that weigh no more than 55 pounds.
Civil (commercial) operations require an experimental special airworthiness certificate and
accompanying operating limitations that would be
familiar to any homebuilder. It prohibits operations for compensation or hire but allows research
and development, flight and sales demos, and crew
training. At its UAS test sites across the nation, the
FAA is working with these operators to gather the
technical and operational data necessary to safely
integrate drones into the national airspace system.
Until the FAA rulemaking proposal is published,
commented upon, revised as necessary, and
made final, the FAA is authorizing drone ops on
a case-by-case basis under Section 333 of the FAA
Modernization and Reform Act of 2012. As of early
February the FAA has approved two dozen of the
hundreds of applications received, most of which
carry cameras. The operating limitations require
the drone pilot to hold a current private pilot and
medical certificate and have a dedicated observer
to ensure that the aircraft never leaves the pilots
line of sight.
Public UAS operations require a certificate of waiver
or authorization before a government entity such as
public safety departments can conduct operations.
Model aircraft are drones flown exclusively
as a hobby or for recreation.
www.eaa.org61
KNOW BEFORE YOU FLY
BY SEAN ELLIOTT, EAA VICE PRESIDENT OF

ADVOCACY AND SAFETY
The opportunities of this new technology are obvious, but so is the dark side that involves everything
from interference with regular aviation operations
to personal privacy concerns. Responsible operations are paramount to the future of what the FAA
now calls sUAS or small unmanned aircraft systems.
General aviation pilots should not have to worry
about hitting one of these during the course of a
normal flight. The EAA advocacy department is paying close attention to the emerging new rules and
their potential impact on general aviation.
EAA maintains a strong partnership with the
Academy of Model Aeronautics. The AMA has a longestablished model aircraft safety code that has been
effective for decades. Many RC model clubs have
flown within a few miles of very busy GA airports
and have never had a problem. The difference is
responsible operations through education.
EAA fully supports the recently launched Know
Before You Fly campaign for these very reasons.
The campaign brings together manufacturers and
distributors to inform consumers and business users
about what they need to know before taking to the
skies. The effort includes a digital and social media
campaign, point of sale materials, and pamphlets
for participating manufacturers to include with their
products. EAA signed on as an official supporter of
this effort during the recent AMA Expo in Ontario,
California, where the program was unveiled.
EAA has always stood for education and responsible
freedoms in aviation. The new emerging community
of drone operations should be approached in much
the same way to ensure they are both welcomed
into aviation and experience minimal conflicts
with full-size aviation. After all, The Spirit of
Aviation is welcoming to everyone with an
eye toward the sky!
Yuneec Q500 drone and controller. Note dierent

colored lights show fore and aft positioning.
In the interim, the Academy of Model

Aeronautics (AMA), the Association for
Unmanned Vehicle Systems International
(AUVSI), and the Small UAV Coalition united
to launch www.KnowBeforeYouFly.org in
December 2014. It provides essential guidance for responsible, safe ight for those who
y drones for recreational, business, and public uses. EAA, NBAA, and the Consumer
Electronics Association (CEA) are supporters
of this efort.
The website summarizes requirements
for commercial and public drone operations.
The recreational ight guidelines are derived
from the AMAs community-based safety
guidelines, said Rich Hanson, AMAs director
of government and regulatory afairs. They
include keeping the model in sight at all
times, seeing, avoiding and not interfering
with manned aircraft operations, not intentionally ying over unprotected persons or
property, and ying no higher than 400 feet
above the ground.
To this last parameter, the National
Agricultural Aviation Association (NAAA)
would surely point out that its members operate in this same narrow layer of airspace, an
arena for conict that all drone pilots in farm
country should address.
MODEL PERSPECTIVE
Drone and model aircraft employ the same

technology. With some exceptions, they
operate on the unlicensed frequency
bands, 2.4 MHz and 5.8
MHz, which serve
remotely controlled
models, according to
Rich. The GPS and
computerized ight
controls that make
drones easier to y are
doing the same for traditional models as well.
Drones and model
aircraft can be one in the
same, he said. What
separates one from the
other is mission.
Regardless of the
form they take, from free
ight wanderers to
remotely controlled gliders, airplanes, and
rotorcraft (regardless the
number of rotors), they are model aircraft

when their pilots y them strictly for hobby or
recreational purposes.
When AMA surveyed its 175,000 members two years ago, approximately 30 percent
of them ew drones, according to Rich.
That percentage is probably higher now,
and half of them are EAA members, he said
noting that their kinship is a shared passion
for ight.
Model aircraft started ying long before
manned aircraft, he continued, and since
AMAs founding in 1936guided by its code
of safetythere has never been a fatal meeting of the two. FAA Advisory Circular 91-57,
Model Aircraft Operating Standards, is a single page born of the AMA code and dated
June 9, 1981. Thanks to their safety self-discipline, model aircraft pilots have not
attracted undue attention from their peers.
That changed with the introduction and
rapid growth of drones, primarily cameraequipped multi-rotors.
Most of the newcomers were unaware of
aviation safety because they did not get
involved through the traditional pathway of a
local hobby shop or club. If their technology
is properly set up, drones are easy to y right
out of box, according to Rich, whos been eyeball deep in drones since 2008. But as every
pilot knows, technology can fail, so pilots
must know how it works, and must know
how to y the aircraft manually.
The nationwide network of 2,400 AMA

clubs welcomes new members with training
at their ying elds. In addition to teaching
the safety code and nuances of their local airspace, newcomers learn to y withand
withoutthe aircrafts technology in case the
aircraft loses its GPS orientation.
It thinks it is somewhere other than its
actual position, so it just takes of, Rich said.
Pilots need to learn how to y manually so
they can safely recover it.
This training is no diferent than the simulator training full-scale pilots undergo; the
instructor fails a system and teaches the new
pilot to deal with it.
In January 2014, AMA signed a memorandum of understanding with the FAA to
collaborate on safety procedures for model
aircraft. Part of the plan was to include AMA
safety literature with each small drone sold,
Rich said. That collaboration was sidetracked in June 2014 when the FAA
published its interpretation of FMARA 2012
Section 336, which exempts model aircraft
from drone rulemaking.
To be exempt, pilots must y their
unmanned aircraft in accordance with community-based safety guidelines (the AMA
code of safety) strictly for hobby or recreational use. The FAA interpretation dened
hobby as a pursuit outside ones regular
occupation engaged in especially for relaxation, and recreationrefreshment of
Left: An alternate camera gimbel allows the attachment of a

GoPro camera.
Below: Yuneec Q500 controller. Note altitude readout to stay
within limits.
www.eaa.org63
SEE IT AT AIRVENTURE
Aviation Gateway Park at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh
2015 will feature EAAs first-ever drone cage.
Measuring 80 by 80 by 24 feet, the cage will be
located immediately next to the air-conditioned
Innovation Center. Aviation Gateway Park, just
northwest of the tower, also includes the Education
& Career Center and the Forums Center.
With the drone cage, programmed jointly by EAA
and the Drone Media Group, we will be introducing
many new activities to our members and attendees
that provide a glimpse into the burgeoning world
of drone flight, and using the activities to stimulate
interest in flight for people of all ages. From manufacturer demos and educational sessions, to obstacle
course contests and free flight opportunities, there
will be something for everyone.
Aviation Gateway Park provides the perfect venue in
which to familiarize oneself with innovation in the
world of flight, including drones and the pathway
to careers in unmanned flight.
strength and spirits after work; a means of

refreshment or diversion.
Unmanned aircraft operations that further or are incidental to the pilots
business would not be a hobby or recreation flight. For example, a realtor using
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2015 will feature

EAAs rst-ever drone cage.
a camera-equipped aircraft over a property he or she is trying to sell is not flying

a hobby or recreational flight.
By this interpretation, the FAA considers all UAS operations that are not hobby
or recreation as commercial ops subject
to the forthcoming regulations.
Thats 180 degrees of AMAs position,
Rich said. Tell us whats commercial, and
everything else is in the hobby arena.
Regardless of the point of view, the FAA
interpretation made it clear that while
model aircraft would be exempt from UAS
regulations, their operators, like all pilots,
would still be subject to enforcement
actions for Part 91 regulations, such as
careless or reckless operation (91.3), right
of way (91.113), and operating on or near
an airport that ensures safety of the
national airspace system (91.126).
The disagreements stemming from the
competing points of view regarding
unmanned aircraft will eventually be
resolved as the FAA works through its
regulatory process, just as it has with

amateur-built experimental aircraft, Part
103 ultralights, and light-sport aircraft
and sport pilot certification. In the process, drone pilots will join the fraternity
of aviators and strengthen the voice of aviation as the newcomers before them have.
One thing few, if any, will disagree on
is that drones are going to be huge regardless of their ultimate recreational or
commercial use. Traditional aircraft
modeling has long been a path to the
cockpit according to Rich, and he sees
drones offering a similar portal to fullscale aircraft.
The industry is too young to have supporting data, but drones are a gateway to
the world of flight, Mannie said. It opens
the door to anybody who wants to live in it
and explore its every opportunity.
Scott Spangler, EAA 132843, is a former editor in chief
of EAA Sport Aviation, a freelance writer, and editor of
www.JetWhine.com and www.Droneport.com.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARC AUSMAN
CamGuard Congratulates
Bill Harrelson
World Record Flight
Speed Around the World Over
Both the Earths Poles*
Class C-1d
December 28, 2014 - January 21, 2015
Lancair IV, N6ZQ
*Pending certication from the NAA
Average Speed: 174.9 knots

Distance Flown: 31,119 nautical miles
Total Flight Time: 177.9 hours
Proudly
Sponsored by:
Bill Harrelson adding CamGuard half way around the world in Hamilton, New Zealand.
Between oil changes we added a total of ZERO quarts of oil!
CUSTOM SUPER CUB HONORS THE

GREATEST GENERATION
BY AMY GESCH
IN A SEA OF UNIQUE aircraft, an especially eyecatching one stood out among its peers in
vintage parking at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh
2014. The 1959 Piper PA-18A-150 Super Cub
looked like someone had sent a Chance
Vought F4U Corsair through the dryer. From
nose to tail, it was nearly identical to the

Corsair of Pacic theater ace Joe Foss.
Owner Mark Erickson stated the inspiration
behind the airplane simply: To honor the
greatest generation and a great American
ghter aircraft.
www.eaa.org67
ark, one of three children, grew up

working on the family farm alongside his father, Ray (whom, since
Mark now has children of his own,
he calls Grandpa Ray). He inherited his fathers mechanical
inclinations and put them to use
during his service in the U.S. Army. He was stationed at
Fort Richardson in Alaska, and worked as a tool and die
maker in the machine shop. After his discharge, Mark
returned to South Dakota to continue to work as a tool
and die maker, working on many large government projects around the world. Along the way, he learned to y in
a Taylorcraft at a grass strip in Larchwood, Iowa, and
decided to build an airplane.
The airplane was a Wag-Aero CUBy, but Mark was
upset with the lack of affordable new wing ribs and
disapproved of the fragile original Piper design. He
designed a new rib based upon the truss structure of
the Piper rib and installed them in his project. An
FAA inspector encouraged him to get a supplemental
type certificate (STC) for his design to be able to sell
them to owners of certified Cubs, and the rest, as they
say, is history.
His original intent was just to get his single set of
ribs eld approved for his Cub, but the inspector was so
impressed with the improvements Mark made that he
encouraged him to seek an STC for the ribs. In 1993
Mark founded Dakota Cub Aircraft Inc. and began
manufacturing replacement wings for fabric-covered
Piper aircraft.
As Marks business grew alongside his children, he
realized it was time to take on some personal projects
and spend some more time with his family, especially
his father.
I started thinking about things I could do for him,
he said. I decided to do somethingfor him every year.
His desire to place focus on his father was due in
part to Rays dedication to his family including his
wife, Phyllis.
When Phyllis and her sisters went on vacation, he was
home farming, so he missed out on a lot of things, Mark
said. I wanted to do something that was just for him.
The other driving force behind Marks desire

to honor his father was his seless service during
World War II.
A lot of guys came back home, and they didnt want
to talk about the war, Mark said. They didnt want to
be called heroes, but we owe them and those killed in
action a tremendous debt of gratitude. We wanted this
airplane to remind people of their sacrice and, most of
all, to say thank you.
Mark explained that the inspiration for the airplane
was the bond between fellow servicemen that only they
can understand.
Grandpa Ray and Joe Foss used to run into each
other at the annual South Dakota snowbird potluck in
Arizona, Mark said. They didnt serve together, but
they were fellow Marines.
Ray enlisted in the Marine Corps at age 19 on
November 20, 1943. He was the youngest in his family,
and Rays brothers were already serving in one capacity
or another. His brother Kenny served in an Army tank
battalion, Randy served as an Army engineer, and
Kermit served on the home front, helping the family
manage the farm.
Ray was inducted into the service in Omaha,
Nebraska, and sent to Marine Corps Base San Diego for
basic training. He contracted polio during training and
had to relearn how to walk. Due to his medical condition, he was ofered the chance to return home, but Ray
wanted to serve. He earned a sharpshooter qualication
and completed training as a telephone operator and was
then sent to Saipan. Ray arrived after the island had been
secured and remained there for ve months. His next
deployment would take him to the island of Okinawa.
Ray served as part of the diversionary force that
made a feint landing on one side of the island while the
main force surreptitiously landed on the opposite side.
It apparently worked, according to Ray. Once Okinawa
was secured, Ray was deployed to Sasebo, Japan, as part
of the occupation force. In July of 1946, he was honorably discharged after nearly three years of service.
He met his wife of 67 years, Phyllis, on the night he
returned at a dance about 10 miles away from where
they eventually settled down to farm. He didnt dance
Four generations of Ericksons brought together by an

airplane: Cody, Annastyn (2 months old), Mark, and Ray.
In 1993 Mark founded

Dakota Cub Aircraft Inc.
and began manufacturing
replacement wings for
fabric-covered Piper aircraft.
and neither did I, Phyllis

recalled wryly. The couple
married in September of
1947, with Phyllis dressed in
a wedding gown fashioned
from a Japanese parachute
that Ray had brought back
from his time overseas.
Like many of the men and
boys who served, Ray didnt
speak much of his experience
in the war once he got home. While being interviewed, he was quick to
state, Dont make it look too good. I didnt have it as bad as a lot of guys.
just like an old tractor and everyones jaw just dropped. Heres this guy
thats 90 years old, and hes the top dog again.
THE JOE FOSS SUPER CUB
This year, a larger project was in order. Mark had decided to

rebuild a 1959 Piper PA-18A-150 Super Cub, and had performed
extensive research to match the airplanes paint scheme to the
Chance Vought F4U Corsair that South Dakota native Joe Foss had
own. The airplane would honor Ray Ericksons service in the
Marines, as well as all other members of the greatest generations
service in World War II.
THE MINNIE-MO GOLF CART
A long time ago, I went and bought a Yamaha golf cart, Mark
remembers. Right away, (family friend) Speedy Dave welded up a
case on the back of it so Grandpa could get around and bring his
tools with to work on things. He would take it to tractor shows to get
around. Eventually, we painted it yellow to match the MinneapolisMoline tractors that we had on the farm. The year we painted it
yellow he was top dog and got all the attention at the shows. Soon
everyone else was showing up with carts and ATVs painted in
Farmall red, John Deere green, and Minnie-Mo yellow.
These days the cart is still getting attention.
Last year, we took the hood of the golf cart, Mark said. Grandpa
Ray got a little worried, but we told him to come back in the afternoon. By that time, we had the Minneapolis-Moline Model R radiator
mocked up, and he was pleased. We added working headlights, then
got it painted up in Minneapolis-Moline colors and added decals. Of
to the show we went, and there are these four-wheelers painted up in
the same colors. We came driving by to unload the golf cart that looks
Ray and Phyllis Erickson with the customized Minnie-Mo golf cart .
www.eaa.org69
DAKOTA CUB
Dakota Cub Aircraft Inc. was founded in 1993 by
Mark Erickson, building replacement wing ribs for
fabric-covered Piper aircraft. He designed a new cap
strip for the ribs and reworked the design of some of
the truss structure. His original intent was just to get
his single set of ribs field approved for his Cub, but
the inspector was so impressed with the improvements Mark made that he encouraged him to seek a
supplemental type certificate (STC) for the ribs.
Mark followed through and received his first STC in
1993. Dakota Cub began business that year, with
Mark and others working weekends and evenings
to produce ribs around full-time jobs and family obligations. As business continued to grow, the
company expanded steadily and Mark decided to
operate Dakota Cub full-time. Dakota Cub began
offering spars and full wing assemblies, then fuel
tanks and fittings, having earned a PMA, or parts
manufacturer approval, from the FAA. A milestone
development was the creation of Super 18 LLC, a
company which designed and certified a 21st century backcountry aircraft based on the venerable
Piper Super Cub.
Dakota Cub expanded into the kit market and partnered with leading suppliers to produce and market
the Super 18 kit. Three models are now oered with a
gross weight of up to 2,300 pounds and a useful
load in excess of 1,000 pounds. All three kits meet
FAR 21.191(g) regarding the 51 percent rule and
have been evaluated by the FAAs National Kit
Evaluation Team.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MICHAEL STEINEKE
www.eaa.org71
JOE FOSS
Joe Foss was born in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on
April 17, 1915, as the oldest child in a farming family. He was inspired to become a pilot after seeing
Charles Lindbergh and The Spirit of St. Louis at age
12. Joe had to wait another four years to take his
first airplane ride in a Ford Tri-Motor, which he
shared with his father. A year later, Joe lost his
father in an accident and dropped out of school
to assist his mother in running the farm. He was,
however, determined to become a Marine aviator, and worked outside of the farm to save money
for college tuition and flight lessons. Eventually,
Joes younger brother took over at the farm, which
allowed Joe to go to college in Sioux Falls.
Joe was part of the student body that lobbied to set
up flying courses at the school. Upon graduation, he
had accumulated 100 hours of flight time, in addition to competing on the schools boxing team, track
team, and football team. After being told he was
too old for fighter duty at age 27, Joe successfully
managed to secure duty in the South Pacific in the
F4F Wildcat. There, with VMF-121 (often referred to
as Foss Flying Circus, with two sectionsthe Farm
Boys and the City Slickers), Joe was credited with
shooting down 26 aircraft, matching top American
World War I ace Eddie Rickenbacker. This made Joe
Americas first ace of aces in World War II.
Joe was awarded the Medal of Honor on May
18, 1943, and then asked to participate in a
war bond tour. Joe returned to the Pacific theater
in February of 1944 as the commanding officer of
VMF-115, flying the Chance Vought F4U Corsair. This
squadron came to be known as Joes Jokers.
Following the conclusion of the war, Joe opened
a flight school and charter service in Sioux Falls.
He was politically active and served two terms in
the South Dakota legislature, later becoming the
states youngest governor at age 39. He then served
as the first commissioner of the American Football
League. He hosted ABCs The American Sportsman,
and hosted and produced his own series, The
Outdoorsman: Joe Foss. Joe also worked as director of public affairs for KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and
was elected to two consecutive one-year terms as
the president of the National Rifle Association. He
later worked as the chairman of the U.S. Air Force
Association and then as a director of the U.S. Air
Force Academy. His charitable work included working as the president of the National Society of
Crippled Children and Adults, along with supporting various other philanthropic causes. Joe and his
wife, Didi, founded the Joe Foss Institute in 2001 to
educate youth on history and civics.
Joe passed away on January 1, 2003, following a
stroke. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
The project was not without its skeptics.

Mark remembered having a few employees
walk through the hangar early in the transformation. Its all blue with the light blue on the
bottom, with nothing on it, no decals, no
Joe Foss
nothing. I think at that point they thought I

was a little whacked out, and wondering how
it was going to come together. I knew how it
would look, but they had trouble imagining it.
We started in early April of 2014, and it
took about three and a half months to nish
the airplane, but we had a head start in that
the wings were already assembled and covered. We just had to repaint them. The paint
was unique because we custom-mixed it to
be the right color using Juneau White and
Christen Eagle Blue. I was using a syringe to
measure everything precisely.
In addition to a custom-made paint,
Mark was also able to use many parts manufactured by Dakota Cub.
We only bought the parts that we
didnt already manufacture, Mark added
proudly, showing off many of the airplanes unique features.
The most noticeable deviation from the
traditional Super Cub silhouette is the slotted wing. Developed from the Piper L-14
design and certied by Dakota Cub, the wing
drastically improves slow-speed handling,
makes the aircraft very spin-resistant, and
allows the pilot to safely make slow-speed
approaches to landing in conned areas. The
wing also features 90-inch aps that are

more than 40 percent larger than the standard Super Cub aps, further increasing the
airplanes backcountry capabilities.
The airplane also incorporates Dakota
Cubs extended-range fuel tanks (one tank in
each wing, 23-gallon capacity per tank), highpressure brake master cylinders, high-visibility
fuel sight gauges, high-ow/high-capacity gascolator, improved trim system, and other
modications. Its equipped with a 150-hp
Lycoming O-320 turning a McCauley borer
prop. With the extended baggage, extended
landing gear, and 31-inch Alaskan Bushwheel
tires, this Cub is ready for anything.
The interior features a custom-embroidered Marine Corps emblem on the seats.
A local shop was able to embroider the
seats for us, Mark said. I wanted it bigger, but
I started thinking about things

I could do for him, he said.
I decided to do something
for him every year.
the seat cover was already made, and they couldnt

do it with the stitching that was already in the seats.
Preparations for EAA AirVenture were somewhat difcult with the added challenge of keeping
the aircraft a secret from Ray.
We hadnt told Grandpa yet, so here we are,
weve got the airplane painted blue with the light
blue on the bottom, and weve got the Marines
decals on the side, but I draped blankets over the
airplane so he couldnt see, Mark said. Weve got
the hangar door down pretty far to keep it hidden,
but hes out mowing the yard, and every time he
comes by hes trying to look inside the hangar,
because he saw the Marines on the wing. He
mowed that yard a lot more than normal!
Eventually curiosity got the best of Ray, and he
asked about the project in the hangar.
I told him hed just as well nd out now, and
we pulled the cover of the airplane, Mark said.
Hes a man of few words, you know, and he just
says, Geez.
Mark said he tried to stick to the original
Corsair scheme but with one change.
Joe Foss Corsair

squadron, VMF-115, had
been dubbed Joes Jokers,
and we did all the research
we could for the insignia
on the tail for Joes
Jokers, he said. We
couldnt make it look right,
so we elected to put the
POW/MIA insignia on.
Grandpa Ray said, That
takes care of everybody.
As the rebuild progressed, Mark brought in
his young business partner,
Brian Morford, to assist
more and more.
It came together, and I
started to let Brian take on some decisions, he
said. He really started to get a better understanding of what I was trying to do.
As his understanding grew, Brians passion for
the project seemed to grow as well.
I realized Brian was fully

into it when he spent a day and a
half polishing the spinner, Mark
said. I kept telling him to just
paint the thing, and he ignored
everything I said and went on
bufng and sanding. A whole day
had gone by, and he took it home
to get it bufed and brought it
back all polished. He wanted it to
really shine.
Mark noted that all of Dakota
Cub Aircraft was in some way
involved in the project.
Brian and Mike worked on
the graphics to get the decals
sized and cut, in addition to
making the banner we had, he
said. Speedy Dave was also a
huge helphe not only helped
with fabrication and assembly,
he also did all of the test ying
and ew the airplane to be on
display at Oshkosh. Everyone
contributed to making this airplane a possibility, and they all
earned part of the Bronze Lindy
we were awarded.
What does Ray think about
this one-of-a-kind Cub? Thats
quite the deal, that airplane, he
said with a smile and a twinkle
in his eyes. Its wonderful.
Amy Gesch is an EAA Air Academy alumna, private pilot, and aviation marketing
Extended landing gear, 31-inch tundra tires, and a Borer prop make this Cub at home o pavement.
manager. She is the proud owner of a 1946

Piper Cub.
www.eaa.org73
BY BUDD DAVISSON
THE FAA BLESSES HAVING A SECOND

PILOT INVOLVED IN E-AB FLIGHT TESTING
The FAAs Additional Pilot Program, a new

policy that formally allows a second pilot on
board while ight-testing homebuilt aircraft,
is now a reality. This is big news! One of the
fastest moving EAA/FAA programs ever to
come to fruition, the Additional Pilot
Program (APP) may also be one of the most
important in terms of improving the safety of
testing experimental amateur-built (E-AB)
aircraft. At the same time it increases exibility during the test period.
www.eaa.org75
In less than
18 months
the two bodies (with the help of lots of volunteers and input from the homebuilt
community) developed AC 90-116, which outlines the ways that the initial test ights of a
homebuilt can be accomplished with more
than one pilot in the airplane.
Under the new provisions, the owner/
builder can now be accompanied by a pilot
who is more experienced and qualied to help
with the test ights. The program also outlines ground tests for the powerplant and
suggests test programs for both the aircraft
and the pilot that are aimed at increasing the
safety through building experience while
doing the Phase 1 testing. Phase 1 includes all
of the ight time prior to getting the restrictions own of (typically 40 hours).
The new program is not a requirement. It
is an option. The old test policies still remain
in place allowing a builder/owner of the aircraft to do the testing himself (solo) or get
someone he feels is more qualied to do it.
The APP allows the builder/owner pilot to
experience the thrill of the rst ight while
having a more experienced and qualied pilot
at his side to ride herd on the proceedings,
ready to head of any potential problems and
to lend a helping hand if problems do occur.
done came from the NTSB. When it reviewed E-AB accidents

that occurred during 2011 (a representative year), the board
came to the conclusion that having more experienced pilots in
the airplanes could reduce the accidents, especially those ending in fatalities.
The statistics clearly show that the causes of accidents fall
almost equally into three distinct categories: powerplant problems, pilot loss of control, and incidents that indicate a lack of
experience, prociency, or qualications such as hard landings.
With those statistics in hand, the NTSB tasked the FAA to work
with EAA in developing a program that would lower accident
rates. It opined that would probably involve a second pilot.
After the causes of accidents in 2011 were researched in the
light of having another, more qualied person on board, the
FAA, with EAAs input, came to its own conclusions:
Powerplant problems were often caused by some sort of fuel
system deciency, so tests to help prevent those problems
should be recommended in the APP. At the same time, many
of the powerplant accidents on record were made worse by
poor decisions or poor skills on the part of the sole pilot on
board. It was determined that the handling of the aircraft
during a powerplant emergency would be greatly improved
by having a more experienced pilot at the controls.
Loss of control accidents were almost always the result of
a builder/pilot being over his head in the type of airplane
being own for the rst time, usually because of a lack of
currency and eroded skills. Of the loss of control accidents,
20 percent happened on the rst ight, but 65 percent
happened in the rst eight hours. So, the APP not only
includes allowing a second, more qualied pilot in the
cockpit, but also spells out some maneuvers the builder pilot
(BP) should do in the airplane to gain familiarity with it
while the qualied pilot (QP) is at his side.
Other category accidents included any number of factors,
some beyond the pilots control, but many of them could
have been avoided had the pilot been more skilled and
procient. These included things like landing short, being
overcome by a crosswind, and other varied causes.
The research made it obvious that during the test period
the pilot was being tested just as much as the aircraft was,
and the Additional Pilot Program was designed to deal with
both factors.
THE BACKGROUND OF A GOOD IDEA
ELIGIBILITY: THERE ARE PILOTS AND THEN THERE ARE PILOTS
There are several reasons this program

escaped the seemingly endless delays that are
often a part of altering federal policies. EAA
has long advocated some sort of provision that
would allow more qualied pilots to assist in
the testing. However, the real push to get that
The way the program is organized, there are actually three different grades of pilots, each of which must meet eligibility,
currency, and experience requirements.
AC 90-116 goes into much more detail than a magazine article can deliver, so it is suggested that the PDF be downloaded at
www.EAA.org/sportaviation to get all of the details.
The Additional Pilot Program formally allows a second pilot

on board while ight-testing homebuilt aircraft.
www.eaa.org77
The three pilot types that are designated in the APP are:
Builder pilot (BP): To be eligible for the program the pilot
must be the builder and/or at least part owner of the airplane
in question. In the event there are multiple owners, the same
series of requirements has to be met by each owner.
Qualied pilot (QP) is the individual who meets the requirements
to ride in the other seat from the rst ight onward.
Observer pilots (OP) are those who, after the BP demonstrates
familiarity with the aircraft by meeting certain requirements,
can ride along to perform tasks such as note taking, watching
for trafc, etc. He has to have a purpose to be in the ights and
isnt just going on a joyride. He is also not necessarily qualied
to y the airplane himself.
All pilots have to meet the same operational criteria that would
be expected to y any airplane: a certicate that matches the category of airplane, a current ight review (formerly known as BFR)
and medical (if required by the category), and the prescribed FAA
denition of currency.
The requirements for a QP are much more codied and require
lling out the two worksheets/matrices shown in the AC. Although
at rst glance they appear complicated, if they are read several
times it becomes clear what each matrix is meant to accomplish.
One establishes recency/currency not unlike the way FARs do for
currency for every pilot (three takeofs and landings in 90 days,
etc.), but the parameters are raised for QPs under the APP. For
instance, rather than three takeofs and landings in 90 days, anything less than 10 takeofs and landings in the same period is a
disqualier as is anything less than 40 hours of ying in the last 12
months. It raises the bar for currency, which only makes sense.
The matrix, which is aimed at determining a pilots ability to act
as a qualied test pilot, is as stringent as youd expect and is
designed to meet EAA/FAAs goal of seeking out experienced, wellqualied pilots but is not so tough that there isnt a large number of
pilots who can easily meet the requirements. Also, if the pilot seeking to be qualied is lacking in some areafor example, not enough
landings in the prescribed periodhe or she can quickly do what is
required to match the requirement and simply ll the matrix out
again and attach to the logbook.
All of the matrices and qualication gymnastics are dealt with
between the QP and BP. The FAA isnt directly involved or looking
over anyones shoulders. Its an honor system, but the intent of
going with the APP has to be clearly spelled out with the DAR/
inspector whos overseeing this particular aircrafts testing and
certication. The intentions to use the APP system must be written
into the operating limitations before the rst ight.
CLARIFYING THE QUALIFIED PILOT WORKSHEETS
Two points need clarication on the qualication matrix. First is

the denition of model family of aircraft. Basically each matrix
asks for the pilots experience in diferent specic areas (total time
in same category and class, etc.). It awards the applicant points
for diferent factorsa pilot who has 500 hours in the same category and class as the aircraft gets 20 points, one with 1,000 hours
gets 35 points, etc. Points awarded for the diferent areas must add
up to a minimum of 90. When it comes to the time own in the
same model family as the subject airplane, it is referring to how
closely the airplane own matches the subject airplane. The time
doesnt have to be in the same make and model. However, it must
be in an aircraft that approximates the ight characteristics and
operation of the subject airplane.
It is up to the BP and the QP applicant to determine whether
the airplanes the BP has experience in are similar enough to the
aircraft to be tested and that the QPs skills in one would transfer to
the other. A Stearman probably wouldnt be in the same model
family as an RV-6, but any other RV denitely would be.
Presumably, a Thorp T-18 would be, too. A Bonanza, probably not.
The decision that determines the similarity is made by the BP and
QP. No one else gets involved. However, if there is any doubt as to
the similarity between types, the AC strongly encourages contacting the kit manufacturer or type clubs.
The other area that needs clarication is the area marked
Phase 1 Experience. This needs discussion because, if the applicant
doesnt have any time ying a homebuilt during Phase 1 testing, he
gets a 75-point penalty. If thats the case, you can have all sorts of
ight time and be a graduate of the Naval Test Pilot School and still
might not get 90 points. However, thats not a deal-breaker: Only one
ight in Phase 1 in any airplane eliminates the 75-point penalty. So, if
the applicant makes the initial ight in the subject airplane or ies
some Phase 1 time in any other airplane, hes instantly qualied, and
the BP can be on board for every ight after that.
Once the BP completes the required maneuvers and has own
the ight time outlined in the aircraft initial test requirements
under the watchful eye of the QP, hes qualied in the airplane and
can have an OP y with him.
QUALIFYING AS AN OBSERVER PILOT
Since the OPs will be ying with BPs who have been qualied to be
PIC on the airplane, the OP qualications arent as stringent. In
fact, an OP only needs a recreational or sport pilot certicate (if it
is an LSA) and, of course, the appropriate category and class ratings for the test aircraft; to be endorsed for the ight environment;
and to have a current ight review and medical.
LOGBOOK DOCUMENTATION
The logbook entries required to document the APP are fairly simple and matched to the type of second pilot involved as well as
tests performed.
The BP must log:

The name of the QP on each ight where one is used. A typical log
entry might read, Wings-level stall tests. John Doe was my QP.
Each of the aircraft tests called for in the initial test program
must be logged.
Each of the maneuvers required in the BP maneuver list
(BPML) laid out in the APP has to be documented. The
maneuvers are designed to verify the airplane performance in
various situations as well as increase the BPs familiarity with
the aircraft in those areas.
The QP must ll out the QP worksheet and recency matrix. The
worksheet is lled out only before the initial ight and must be
attached to the logbook. The recency matrix must be lled out
before each ight, but there is no formal requirement to attach the
recency paperwork to the logbook; however, it would be wise to
keep it readily available for the FAA, should the need arise.
The OP must ll out the OP worksheet before the initial ight and
attach it to the logbook. This doesnt need to be done on any except
the rst ight as an OP.
ABOUT THE POWERPLANT AND FUEL SYSTEM
Because power failures appear to be a major cause of accidents in

the rst eight hours, the FAA has made tests of various powerplant
systems part of the APP and outlined them clearly in AC 90-116.
These too must be documented in the logbook in some detail and
signed of by the person doing them. The BP can do the sign of
himself, but they should be treated in the same manner as documentation of the aircraft building process was handled (photos,
notes, etc.).
Based on the recommendations of AC 90-89 and industry testing of the powerplant and fuel system, the following tests, if
applicable, are required:
Mixture and idle speed
Magneto
Cold cylinder
Carburetor heat
Fuel ow
Unusable fuel
Compression
WHAT ARE THE QUALIFYING TESTS FOR MAN AND MACHINE?
Inasmuch as both the pilot and the airplane are untested prior
to any kind of a flight-test program, the FAA has developed
a short list of items meant to prove the airplane and another
list that proves the pilot. When these two lists are combined
(aircraft initial tests and BPML), they compose the total initial
test package.
Aircraft Initial Tests (AIT)
Those test items that are aimed at the airplane include:
Eight hours of total time on test aircraft
Taxi testing
Gear and aps check
Verify pitot/static system
Stalls (wings-level and turning in clean and
landing congurations)
Builder Pilot Maneuvers List (BPML)

Those items aimed at the BP and that must be performed by him/
her solely with the QP watching include:
Eight hours total ight time in test aircraft
Steep turns
Stalls (wings-level and turning in clean and landing congurations)
Takeof and landing (normal and crosswind)
Slow ight
Go-arounds
Simulated emergency approach and landing
Each BP who owns part of the airplane must accomplish the same
check items and have them signed of in his or her logbook by the QP.
FLIGHT DECK COORDINATION
The APP recognizes that the inclusion of a second pilot in the

cockpit automatically requires a certain amount of preight planning as to whom will be PIC during diferent portions of the ight.
Additionally, the question of who will be ying the airplane in the
event of a problem occurring and who will carry out certain tasks
will be answered in the preight brieng.
WHAT ABOUT THE AIRPLANES?
At this time, the APP does not apply to all homebuilt aircraft or all
powerplants. Specically, it applies only to aircraft constructed
from FAA-approved kits. Plansbuilt aircraft do not qualify, even if
the plans are for a popular kit airplane. Also, only those engines
recommended by, or specically approved by, the kit manufacturer
are qualied for the program. It doesnt make any diference what
that engine is (automotive, etc.), it will be allowed access to the
program as long as the kit manufacturer has specically given its
blessing to it. However, factory approved or not, turbine engines
will not be permitted in the program at this time.
The approach to the APP has purposely been conservative.
However, it is expected by both sides that, if successful, the program will eventually be expanded to include plansbuilt aircraft of
many types as well as other engine types.
THE FUTURE LIES IN OUR HANDS
Over the years, EAA has worked with the FAA to put policies into
efect that will make life for the homebuilt community much easier
and safer. In reality, it could be said that the APP is a test program
to determine how successful an advocacy program such as this can
be. It is a rst step, and both the FAA and EAA are hoping it works
well so they can expand it and move on to other equally benecial
parallel programs. It is up to us to show good faith and prove to the
FAA that additional reforms are worthwhile. Its important not to
abuse the additional rights theyve given homebuilders by stepping
over the line and viewing the APP as a relaxation of the older no
passengers rules. Our future is bright and getting brighter, but
only we can make it stay that way.
Budd Davisson, EAA 22483, is an aeronautical engineer, has own more than 300
dierent types, and has published four books and more than 4,000 articles. He is
editor-in-chief of Flight Journal magazine and a ight instructor primarily in Pitts/
tailwheel aircraft. Visit him on www.AirBum.com.
www.eaa.org79
STICK AND RUDDER

BETTER PILOT
Getting It Right
In search of the perfect ight
BY ROBERT N. ROSSIER
TAX TIME IS RIGHT AROUND the corner, and for many of us, theres a
lot of efort and planning that goes into getting it right. With any
luck, I did so this year, but in the back of my mind Im really hoping
my accountant made a mistake somewhere and Ill score a refund
of a few thousand dollars. Its not very likely, but Im hoping.
As pilots, we all recognize the importance of getting it right,
and perhaps the most elusive goal in ying is scoring a perfect
ight. After having made many thousands of ights I can say that
perfect ights are as rare as unicorns, perhaps just as mythical, and
about as likely as my multi-thousand dollar

refund this year. It seems like no matter
how well we do, we could always have done
something better. What makes a ight perfect might to some degree depend on our
personal denition and standards, but here
are a few items we can consider when making the critical self-assessment.
TAXI
An oft overlooked part of any flight is the

brief (hopefully) journey from the tiedown or hangar to the departure end of
the runway. Among the many details to be
considered are judicious use of brakes
and power, maintaining position on the
yellow line, and keeping the ailerons and
elevator properly positioned throughout
all the turns. Situational awareness, communication and coordination with ATC
and other aircraft, and courtesy to other
pilots are a few more of the prominent
points that can make our taxi technique
perfect. And somewhere along the way
we need to perform a run-up and complete a pre-takeoff checklist, with no
items skipped or overlooked.
TAKEOFF
The takeof isnt usually the most difcult

phase of ight, but not for a lack of opportunities for errors. Wind correction is of
course primary, but monitoring our takeof
is one of the most important and often
neglected aspects of what might otherwise
be a perfect takeof. If we know our aircraft
and have done our homework, then the
point at which we rotate and break contact
with the ground conrms that all is going
according to plan. And of course through it
all, we have Plan B mentally loaded and
ready to execute at a moments notice.
ILLUSTRATION BY GARY COX
AIRSPEED AND ALTITUDE
CHECKLISTS
Maybe its the way instructors harp on us to

precisely maintain airspeed and altitude, but
it always makes me smile to scan the instruments and see them both pegged right
where I wanted them. During climb, proper
airspeed means were getting the performance we want. In cruise, it informs us that
our conguration, power setting, and fuel
consumption (if properly leaned) are correct. During the descent and approach to
landing, having the airspeed dead on makes
the perfect landing more likely.
From the day of our rst ight lesson the

importance of using a checklist is drilled
into us. Time and time again experience
reminds us that the human memory is less
than perfect, and in an environment
wrought with distraction its easy to overlook an important detail. Used properly,
checklists can help guide us in making the
perfect ight.
COORDINATION
Smooth, coordinated turns are a hallmark

of good piloting, and so we focus on getting
the right inputs to keep the ball centered
during turns. Proper coordination in cruise
ight might also require proper adjustment
of the rudder trim, while elevator trim
adjustments are needed with each speed
change, or perhaps to assist in steep turns.
trap of looking for one aircraft and neglecting another. Other aspects of situational
awareness are perhaps just as important.
Those include keeping a sharp eye on the
weather, monitoring progress toward the
destination, keeping our ngers on the
pulse of the aircraft systems, and conrming sufcient fuel to safely complete the
ight. If we can keep on top of the myriad
factors concerning safety of our ight, we
navigate closer to perfection.
SITUATIONAL AWARENESS
One of my early ying mentors used to harp

on me, among other things, to keep your
head on a swivel. Its just too darned easy
to come eyeball to eyeball with opposite
direction trafc, or to swap paint (and
much worse) due to unseen closure angles.
In addition to keeping our heads on a
swivel, a number of strategies can be
employed to avoid collisions. ATC ight
following and listening for position reports
are two good examples. Dont fall into the
COMMUNICATION
Part of any perfect ight is making the right

calls, and being in communication with the
right folks at the right time. That includes
using proper phraseology, and getting the
read-backs right the rst time. Just the other
day I fouled up when I transmitted on the
company frequency, rather than the
UNICOM frequency. Forgetting to turn up
the volume or hitting the transmit button
without rst verifying the correct frequency
www.eaa.org81
STICK AND RUDDER

BETTER PILOT
are just a couple of the easier mistakes to

make in the communication department.
NAVIGATION
descent, we need to maintain situational

awareness, communicate as appropriate, and
make sure we get those checklists completed.
These days, with the aid of GPS, it seems

we should be able to score a perfect 10 on
navigation, but theres more to it than positional awareness. Precise heading control,
keeping the needles centered during an
approach, and knowing where we are without the use of the GPS are some of the
indicators that tell us were getting it right.
As pilots, we all recognize the

importance of getting it right,
and perhaps the most elusive goal
in ying is scoring a perfect ight.
DESCENT PLANNING
Landings are perhaps the trickiest part of

making a perfect ight. Were looking for a
feather-light touchdown, right on the centerline, at our pre-planned touchdown
point, with zero drift and perfect alignment. This can be a lot to ask for, and
particularly tough to accomplish in gusty,
turbulent, crosswind conditions. When we
get this right, there comes an inner peace
that is perhaps even more important than
LANDING
Descent planning sometimes seems as much

of an art as a science, and there is a certain
amount of joy that comes with leaving cruise
and transitioning smoothly and gracefully all
the way into the pattern and to a touchdown.
Not only is planning important, but making
those small corrections and timing the turns
so that it all ows seamlessly are also part of
the success story. While we make our
the accolades of our passengers. We might

nd ourselves saying, Wow. That was perfect. After that perfect landing, all thats
left to do is clear the runway, communicate,
complete our checklists, and taxi perfectly
back to the tiedown.
Im not sure Ive ever made a perfect ight,
but the challenge is one thing that keeps
ying fun as well as safe. In the nal measure, its important for us to recognize that
the most important element in any ight is
decision-making. Even if our altitude wanders slightly, our airspeed varies, or our
touchdown wasnt totally perfect, if weve
made good decisions, our errors may be
forgiven. And just like with those tax
returns, theres always next time.
Robert N. Rossier, EAA 472091, has been ying
for more than 30 years and has worked as a ight
instructor, commercial pilot, chief pilot, and FAA ight
check airman.
WHAT WENT WRONG

BETTER PILOT
Avionics Became
Fatal Distraction
BY J. MAC MCCLELLAN
BEFORE THE FULLY INTEGRATED glass cockpit was developed it typically took two weeks of ground school and simulator training to earn
a business jet type rating. Now, with advanced glass cockpits, necessary training time for the most sophisticated airplanes has stretched
up to six weeks.
The new airplanes are not harder to y, and the pilots are no less
experienced or capable. The extra time goes entirely into learning to
use the avionics.
In airplanes that arent turbojets, or weigh 12,500 pounds or less
for takeof, there is no requirement for a type rating or specic training of any kind for a new and advanced avionics system. A pilot with
the appropriate category and class ratings can jump in and y an airplane with the most capable and complex avionics without a single
hour of instruction on the new technology.
Even at the piston single or homebuilt level integrated at glass
avionics systems are now the norm in new airplanes. The capability
exceeds that of the most sophisticated jets of just a few years ago, and
takes time and at least some training to understand.
The transition to a complex avionics system mattered for a corporate pilot who had accumulated more than 15,000 ying hours when
his company purchased a Beech King Air 200GT. The pilot had an
ATP certicate, held several jet type ratings, and attended annual
training classes at major simulator-based facilities. He had logged
more than 5,000 hours in the King Air 200.
The day prior to the accident the pilot and two passengers ew a
King Air 200 to Georgetown, Texas, to trade in on the King Air
200GT. The new airplane was equipped with a Rockwell Collins Pro
Line 21 integrated avionics system that included at glass primary
and multifunction displays and a highly capable ight management
system (FMS). There is no record that the pilot had any experience
operating the Pro Line 21 system.
Like most recently built turbine airplanes the King Air 200GT
had a cockpit voice recorder. No ight data recorder was installed,
nor was it required.
The voice recorder captured the conversation between the pilot and one of the
passengerswho the NTSB calls the assisting pilotas they were being vectored for an
ILS approach into Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
They had own the King Air 200GT there
from Georgetown, after taking delivery of the
airplane the previous day, to drop of the
assisting pilot, who had experience with the
avionics and knew how to operate the system.
The recorded conversation sounds familiar to any experienced pilot who has learned
how to use an integrated avionics system.
The weather was VFR, but the pilots were
planning to y the ILS approach. The pilot
didnt understand how to use the FMS to
select the approach, or how the legs would
sequence or what he would see on the glass
primary ight display (PFD). He made comments to the other pilot that I dont know
what were doin now, and later said, This
right here aint the heading. I dont know
what it is.
None of the recorded comments and confusion were unusual for a pilots rst ight
with a new avionics system. The Pro Line 21
system is no more complicated to operate
than other sophisticated integrated systems.
You could hear conversations like the one
recorded during the King Air 200GT ight in
simulators across the country every day as
pilots learn to operate new avionics systems.
The pilot sounded distracted throughout
the remainder of the approach and landing.
The assisting pilot took over communications with controllers and ran the checklist
for landing in addition to operating the FMS
and displays. The pilot was accustomed to
steam gauges for the basic engine and system information such as oil pressure and oil
temperature and had a hard time nding that
information on the multifunction display
(MFD) even as they taxied in after landing,
or even how to turn the avionics system of.
About an hour later the pilot and the
assisting pilot were back in the cockpit preparing for the pilot to y the King Air to its
new home base at McComb, Mississippi
solo. The assisting pilot was heard talking
the pilot through each step of the checklist
including engine start.
The assisting pilot then talked the pilot
through every step to initiate the avionics
and enter McComb into the FMS as the destination. The weather was broken clouds at
7,500 feet with 10 miles visibility. The pilot
called for a VFR clearance and requested
2,000 feet, which was issued by controllers.

It was only 52 miles to McComb.
After about 11 minutes of running checklists and setting up the avionics, the assisting
pilot asked, Are you comfortable? The pilot
replied, Im, Im nervous, but I think Im all
right. Ill gureI just, the only thing Im
nervous about is I dont want to mess up
while Im in their airspace here. And, and get
in trouble. Baton Rouge is Class C airspace,
but McComb is not.
The assisting pilot then showed the pilot
how to enter the assigned transponder code
and how to select frequencies on the comm
radios, and said, Thats it, man. He also
suggested hand ying instead of using the
autopilot, and showed the pilot several different display formats on the PFD screen
and also how to operate the ight director.
With best wishes all around the assisting
pilot asked for the left propeller to be feathered so he could exit without being blasted
by prop wash.
After the assisting pilot left the only

recordings were communications with
ground control and tower, and aircraft sounds
and alerts from the systems. About one minute, 12 seconds after the engine sound
indicated takeof the altitude alert chime was
heard indicating the King Air was near 2,000
feet. The tower controller then called telling
the pilot to switch to departure frequency.
As the pilot was switching to departure a
tone believed to be the gear warning horn
sounded very briey. In the King Air when
the throttles are reduced beyond a preset
point and the landing gear isnt down the
gear warning horn sounds. But the tone can
be canceled with the press of a button, and
thats what NTSB experts believe happened
instead of the throttles being advanced to
silence the horn.
Twenty-three seconds after the gear
warning tone was recorded there was a
sound believed to be the stall warning horn.
The sound could be heard as the pilot called
www.eaa.org85
WHAT WENT WRONG

BETTER PILOT
departure control reporting that he was leveling at 2,000 feet.

About eight seconds later the the autopilot disconnect warning was heard. Shortly
after the autopilot disconnect tone the stall
warning horn began to bleat again. At the
same time airow sounds changed, which
investigators believe was a change in engine
power or propeller pitch. The pilot continued
pretty normal replies to departure control.
About 23 seconds later the enhanced
ground proximity warning system (EGPWS)
was heard announcing 500 feet followed
by too low gear followed shortly by pull
up pull up. As the EGPWS automated voice
continued the pilot keyed the mic and told
departure, Im xin to crash. The recording ended less than four seconds later.
A review of the radar track showed the
King Air started a turn to the assigned heading not long after takeof. The groundspeed
was 124 knots increasing to 128 knots. Radar
showed the airplane reaching an altitude of
1,200 feet and appearing to turn on course.

Before radar contact was lost the altitude
was down to 400 feet and groundspeed to
102 knots.
Several witnesses reported seeing the
King Air ying low before dropping and
striking the roof of a house. The accident site
was about 3.5 miles northeast of the departure airport in a residential area. There was a
post-crash re that, along with the severity
of impact, made the crash un-survivable.
Why would a highly experienced pilot
with thousands of hours of time in the same
type of airplane lose control under benign
weather conditions and so shortly after takeof ? Investigators couldnt nd any indication
of pre-impact problems with the airplane,
and the pilot never mentioned a problem or
emergency situation to controllers.
The NTSB probable cause nding for the
accident is the pilots failure to maintain adequate airspeed during departure, which
resulted in an aerodynamic stall and
subsequent impact with terrain. Contributing

to the accident was the pilots lack of specic
knowledge of the airplanes avionics.
Advanced avionics can do so much to
guide us, but until we learn how to operate
and understand an integrated cockpit all of
that capability can also be a distraction. No
matter how advanced and capable an avionics
system may be we can always see the airspeed, attitude, and altitude, but the hard part
is to remember thats what matters most.
This article is based solely on the ofcial nal
NTSB report of the accident and is intended
to bring readers attention to the issues raised
in the report. It is not intended to judge or
reach any denitive conclusions about the
ability or capacity of any person, living or
dead, or any aircraft or accessory.
J. Mac McClellan, EAA 747337, has been a pilot for
more than 40 years, holds an ATP certicate, and owns a
Beechcraft Baron. To contact Mac, e-mail mac@eaa.org.
ILL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN

BETTER PILOT
Splash and Dash

Banner towing in a Piper J-5
BY JOHN CARROLL, EAA 271703
BANNER TOWING IS VERY much like sitting through a dull opera that pauses
occasionally for a highly violent civil war. I would go weeks without missing a banner pickup or having a close call, and then wham! Im up to my
split ends in trouble.
I was towing aerial advertising banners along the coastal shores of New
Hampshire and Maine. It was a welcome change from the engineering
career I left, but nothing exciting had happened for days. I was so desperate for some distraction that I would have traded my summer pay for the
audio version of a college dictionary. So when I rolled out of a turn and discovered a problem with one of the ight controls, the issue received my
grateful attention.
My fascination with what turned out to be a jammed elevator developed into a legitimate concern, and from there into sheer terror.
I was ying a highly modied Piper J-5 low along the coast, with an
uncowled 185-hp Lycoming engine towing a moderately long sign. The
aircraft had a smoke oil tank in the back for skywriting. Id occasionally
gun the engine, rock the wings, and let out a puf of smoke for a group of
girls on the beach.
Sometimes there were beaches and sometimes just rocky shoreline with
hundreds of little coves. I lost count of the number of barbecues and baseball games. Flying a few hundred feet above the water, I searched ahead for
other air trafc and vessels. The airplane also had to stay away from the seashore to comply with regulatory requirements, but I was bored and started
to steer in and out of the coves, just for fun. I experimented with smaller
coves and ever-tightening turns until the

sharp maneuvering had an unintended result.
All but one of the eight aircraft in the outt
that I worked for were assigned to banner towing. Most of the towplanes are equipped with a
retractable boom mechanism for picking up
the signs. It was an ingenious but simple contrivance suspended from a truss welded under
the main landing gear. The device looked like
one of those big hooks by naval ghter jets to
capture the arresting cable on the deck of an
aircraft carrier.
Our booms could be lowered manually
after takeof by freeing a friction-held cord
inside the cockpit. A hook at the end of the
boom snagged the banners towline from
between two 6-foot poles, and it could be
released at will from the cockpit. The hook was
just forward of the tail section and had the
freedom to swing to either side when extended.
The boom was a marvelous invention with
many advantages over the old grappling hook
method. For one thing, the pilot didnt have to
land and reset the hook every time a sign was
ILLUSTRATION BY MATT BELLISLE
dropped. Nor was there any risk of losing a hook and having it fall
to earth. But the boom system had two disadvantages. If you
couldnt release the banner before landing on grass, the aircraft
would ip over. I was just about to discover the other weakness.
The aircraft had banked and pitched so steeply during a turn
that the towline had positioned itself next to the outboard hinge,
in the gap between the right horizontal stabilizer and the elevator. It was cast under the former and over the latter so that the
weight of drag from the banner blocked the upward movement
of the elevator for climb. The towrope also placed a burden on
the tail that was well above the normal ight loads.
I rst noticed a funny feeling in the stick. Pulling the control
aft to climb prompted considerable resistance, and when I looked
backward and saw the trapped towline, it was obvious that the
situation needed to be remedied, and soon. I certainly couldnt
drop the banner or land in this condition. A landing with that
much force tugging on one side of the plane would cause a
ground loop. I was also very concerned about the force being
applied to the tail.
The towline was situated as it was because the banner had
pulled the boom upward and to the far right side of its usual station, allowing the rope to be caught. Now I had to y the airplane
out of the rope. I rolled right and pitched the aircraft up to
remove some of the pressure on the line. Looking over my shoulder, I skidded the plane to the right by manipulating the controls
to remove the towline from the rst leg of an L-shaped maze.
The next step was to pitch the aircraft up so that the tail
would move backward and away from the slack towrope. Finally
with the towline out from between the two surfaces, I did
another skid to the right, rolled slightly left, and gently pushed to
spot the boom and the towrope into a more natural position. The
whole procedure only took a few seconds. I was quite pleased
until I turned around and saw that the view through the windshield was lled with nothing but ocean!
While freeing the towrope, Id lost all reference to the horizon
and water below. I snapped my head around, rolled to the nearest
skyline, and pulled. The aircraft responded, and at full throttle
found and passed the horizon, but there was still a long stretch of
rope and signage behind me that was headed in the wrong direction. I reached for the sign release handle, ready to yank it at the
rst hint that the banner had found water. The next nickel of
time cost me a dollars worth of worry.
When I realized that the sharks were going to go hungry
that night, I started breathing again. Boredom, as it turned out,
wasnt so bad after all. It had not been a particularly good idea
to thrash about through the coves with that much equipment
riding along and under the aircraft. I couldnt take credit for
saving something that I was almost responsible for wrecking. It
is instructive to explore, but there is a time and a place. This
close call was avoidable. The greatest hazard in a dangerous
ying job is still the pilot.
SUBMISSIONS
SHARE YOUR CLOSE CALL so we can all learn from the experiencesend your
story to editorial@eaa.org.
www.eaa.org89
H
ANDS ON
WHAT OUR MEMBERS ARE BUILDING/RESTORING
Pan-Lom Garuda
Thatcher CX4
BY BOB SQUIRES, EAA 191476; OVILLA, TEXAS
MY DREAM OF AVIATION began when I was about 5 years old watching planes y over from a nearby airport. Though I was an avid
model airplane builder while growing up, I rst began realizing the
dream of actual ight 14 years later in 1955 when I started taking
ying lessons at what was then a small 1,500-foot strip with a couple of old hangars: Brackett Field in California. In one of the
hangars at Brackett Fieldcatching my keen interesta Pietenpol
was being constructed, so my dream expanded from ying to building, and I wanted to build a Piet. But, as life goes, my aviation
dreams had to take a back seat to family and job, and the Piet project was put of 50 years, but eventually got started in my backyard
shop in June 2005.
Before beginning work on it I considered tackling a Thatcher
CX4 after seeing it in EAA Sport Aviation in 2004. I bought an info
package that year from designer Dave Thatcher. However, I opted
instead to stick with my longtime idea to build a Pietenpol and
moved forward with an Air Camper. While the plans for the
Pietenpol were sketchy and required a great deal of builder innovation, it t my interest well, and I enjoyed working with spruce, 4130,
and fabric. That project was completed successfully in November
2008 with credit to skills learned from EAA SportAir Workshops in
gas welding and fabric covering, and had its rst ight May 27, 2009.
After the Piet, I wanted to learn the skills and get the experience
of building an all metal plane so I fell back on the Thatcher CX4 and
bought plans set No. 440 in December 2010. I set up my home shop,
purchased material, and signed up for an

EAA SportAir Workshop (sheet metal
basics), which gave me a basic understanding of fabrication and the tools needed. I
began drafting (tracing) patterns and fabricating rib and bulkhead forming blocks in
April 2011.
While the entire plane was fabricated in
my shop, certain components were preformed but still required fabrication.
Oregon Aero supplied the upholstered seat
cushion and the seat back and headrest
over my tted plywood backing. Dave
Thatcher did a great job of detailing the
plans, instructions, and accompanying photos, so the metal fabrication moved along
smoothly, and the plane was ready for tting the engine by May 2012. But due to
budget constraints at the time there was a
delay of a year before ordering the VW
engine from Great Plains. During that time
I disassembled the plane and transported it
back to my home shop for painting.
After computer drafting the planes basic
outline, it was fun to play with a number of
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF BOB SQUIRES
AIRCRAFT SUBMISSIONS
Share your craftsmanship with EAA Sport Aviation
readers worldwide! Send us a photo and description of your project and well consider using it in
What Our Members Are Building/Restoring. Please
include your name, address, and EAA number.
We reserve the right to edit descriptions. For guidelines on how to get the best photo of aircraft, visit
www.EAA.org/sportaviation.
Mail: EAA Publications, Aircraft Projects,
P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086
E-mail: editorial@eaa.org
oil cooler on the rewall made for a tight

t, and the dual ignition. Assembly of the
engine components and connection of the
instruments were accomplished thanks to
expert advice from other Mid-Way
Regional residents Bill Fuller, Charles
Christ, and Jim Cunningham. Along the
way their advice, help, and yarns were
greatly enjoyed and appreciated.
N440BS (yes, I get a lot of guf about the
BS of course, but Im used to that) was
issued a special airworthiness certicate by
the Fort Worth MIDO on October 22, 2014,
and made its maiden departure from terra
rma at Mid-Way Regional on December 12,

2014, following a number of hours taxi testing and adjusting the tail wheel tension
springs. N440BS became the 47th CX4 in
the air. While full ight testing is pending
favorable weather, this building project has
been fun, educational, and rewarding and
gives me a gratifying feeling of accomplishment. It was all made possible through the
support of my understanding, loving, and
helpful wife, Thon.
E-mail Bob at resquires@aol.com.
diferent paint scheme ideas. Through that

process settling on the best scheme was easy,
and it was applied to the aircraft following
the computer sketch closely. Painting was
accomplished in my backyard shop, rst
with Henkel Alodine conversion, then
primed using two-part epoxy and the color
coats with Randolph Aircraft Products
Mark II for Metal paint, which is a two-part
catalyzed paint. It is not catalyzed with an
isocyanate, so normal safety equipment such
as a charcoal-ltered spray mask could be
used. However, the smell of the paint is powerful and penetrating, and I found it better
to use a supplied air respirator anyway. This
system worked out quite well.
The name I chose, Pan-Lom Garuda, follows from many years working and living in
Southeast Asia. Pan-Lom is the name for the
roof fascia of an old-style traditional house
of northern Thailand, a shape I adapted as
my thumbprint about 45 years ago while
living there. The symbolized version of it is
on the vertical stabilizer. Garuda is a very
large mythical bird, a sort of eagle, of both
Hindu and Buddhist mythology.
Since an 80-hp VW engine weighs
essentially the same, opting for a 2276 cc
VW engine and using an oil lter and dual
ignition (slick mag plus electronic)
appealed to me, although the plans
detailed installing and tting out an 1835
or 1915 cc VW engine with no oil lter.
Great Plains provided the pre-assembled
engine, engine components, and other
parts, and the shipment arrived June 2013.
The larger horsepower engine turned out
to create more time for engine installation
due to a larger oil cooler moving to the
underside of the engine, and mounting the
www.eaa.org91
H
ANDS ON
WHAT OUR MEMBERS ARE BUILDING/RESTORING
NEW JERSEY SUPER CUB
BOB HUNT, AN AIRCRAFT RESTORER from
Hackettstown, New Jersey, restored this

1952 Piper Super Cub Special for pilot
Dennis Johnson of Hoboken, New Jersey.
The aircraft is one of just 242 built specically for training military pilots during the
Korean War, and used afterward by U.S.
Army and Air Force ying clubs and the
Civil Air Patrol. Because the N number of
all the Specials ends with a T, theyre
often known as Tango Cubs. This particular aircraft was used to train pilots at
Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi, from
1953 to 1955.
Bob worked for 10 months, in his suburban garage workshop, to restore the Special
to its original condition. Only a few modications were made in the interest of safety, such
as disc brakes, a strobe light, and a modied
fuel system. Its painted vintage Army-Navy
Yellow with a hickory brown interior and

features a U.S. Air Command insignia on the
cowl, just as it did 61 years ago while being
own by young military cadets.
The aircraft is based at Sky Manor
Airport in Pittstown, New Jersey, home to
EAA Chapter 643.
Dennis Johnson, EAA 1091907; Hoboken, New Jersey
E-mail: dj@denniskjohnson.com
NORTH CAROLINA STINSON 108-3
I AM A MEMBER of EAA Chapter 1278 in Elizabeth City, North

Carolina, and own and y a 1947 Stinson 108-3 powered with a
freshly overhauled 165-hp Franklin engine. I had a friend who
owned a beautiful Stinson 108-3 in 1986 and was kind enough to let
me y for a short time. When I started looking for my own two years
ago, I asked for his help to nd a good Stinson 108. He agreed to sell
me his, and I was ready to buy, but in the meantime he had a minor
issue, and the aircraft was totaled rewall forward, then sold to a
salvager who was nice enough to sell it to me. I asked Southern Aero
of Thomasville, North Carolina, to take on the project of a rewallforward restoration and after about 12 months returned the Stinson
to ying condition with a new prop and zero-time rebuilt engine.
My Stinson is set up with a basic blind ying instrument panel
of the 1947 era used by Stinson with a King comm and transponder.
For comfort and good looks I installed leather seats and original
wood paneling.
Mark Roberts, EAA 651483; Elizabeth City, North Carolina
E-mail: robertsmk@gmail.com
TEXAS CARBON CUB
I HAVE A SHOP AT my house and spent an average of 13
hours a week working on my Carbon Cub EX. I chose a

classic yellow Cub paint scheme because I like the
looks of the originals. But thats about where the comparison ends because for power I chose a 340 cc 180-hp
(modied Lycoming IO-360), long-range fuel (40 gallons), extended baggage, LED light package, Alpha
Omega suspension system, 3-by-3 extended landing
gear with 29-inch tundra tires, and Baby Bushwheel
tail wheel. For avionics I choose a Garmin SDU 370,
Garmin 327 transponder, Garmin SL40 VHF comm,
PM3000 intercom, Dynon FlightDEK-D180 SuperBright, and a TruTrak autopilot.
Covering my project was my most dreaded section
because it was so foreign to me. To solve that problem I
went to how-to videos and powered right through it
like a pro. Thanks to all of the people who take the time
to make those videos and post themit really helped
me a lot!
Je Mickler, EAA 708117; Friendswood, Texas
E-mail: je@mickler.com
CALIFORNIA COZY MK IV
COZY 4518S BEGAN its life with the signing of the license agreement
with Nat Pufer on May 25, 1994. The rst test ight, consisting of
four low approaches and a full-stop landing, took place on October
23, 2012, at Napa County Airport in Napa, California.
I purchased a Burt Rutan inspired kit from Aircraft Spruce and
practiced the composite construction techniques. The aircraft was
built per plans with one major exception: Its powered by a 1991
Mazda 13B fuel-injected, water-cooled, rotary engine driving a
three-blade composite propeller, which I built. Tracy Crook, of Real
World Solutions Inc., supplied the RD-1B gear reduction drive, the
EC3 EFI ignition controller, and EM3 engine monitor.
Instrumentation is VFR only, with a Garmin GTR 200 VHF comm/
intercom, a Sandia STX 165 transponder, and a Dynon
D1 Pocket Panel portable EFIS. I have logged almost
80 hours of ight time, including the FAA required 40
hours of test time.
The aircraft is a sweetheart to fly, with sporty
performance and excellent visibility through the
bubble canopy. Performance is typical of a canardtype aircraft, although I continue to experiment
with different propellers to obtain a more efficient
cruise speed.
I had the project evaluated by tech counselor
Dwight F. Giles when most of the major parts
were nished, and I spoke with C.J. Stephens, a
ight advisor, prior to test ying. He was very
helpful, as he ew the CAFE Foundation tests on
a Cozy MK IV.
Always work on your aircraft project once a day, even
if only for a few minutes. Projects fade and die easily
when not worked on continuously until nished.
John Schosanski, EAA 1076615; Napa, California
E-mail: cozybldr@prodigy.net
www.eaa.org93
H
ANDS ON
HINTS FOR HOMEBUILDERS
Radius
Repeater
The block can be aluminum or hardwood. The guide strip is glued and screwed
if wood, or attached with at-head machine
screws if metal. The slack t of the guide
strip in the worktable slot lets you pull the
block back to start and then slowly push it
toward the sanding face while at the same
time rotating the work. When the block is
hard against the sander, the work can be
fully rotated as necessary to give the nal
dimension. The block is adaptable to any
radius. Just drill another hole for the pin.
You should use a well-worn or fine-grit
belt or disc. When sanding radii, there is a
very small area that is in contact with the
sanding face and therefore the sander
takes off material very quickly. You want
to go slow. You must keep the work moving (rotating) when in contact with the
sanding face to avoid flat spots. If using a
belt, make sure that it is tight so that it
doesnt flobber against the work. You
can use 400 grit paper to remove any
scratches and to break the edges.
This method produces parts that are
identical, something that I could never
achieve when doing it without the tool.
Bob designed the MacDonald S-20 that
rst appeared at Oshkosh in 1972. He
restored it a few years ago to ying status
and brought it to Sun n Fun. It is an impressive aircraft. See Page 10 of the February
1973 edition of Sport Aviation in the archive
at www.EAA.org/sportaviation for an article on his neat little aircraft.Ed.
BY BOB MACDONALD, EAA 10770; MILL CREEK, WASHINGTON
IVE USED THE FREEHAND radiusing method shown in

Budd Davissons article in the January 2015 EAA Sport
Aviation, and I got pretty darn good at it while building
and restoring my MacDonald S-20. But when I started
to volunteer making parts for the B-17G at the National
Museum of the Mighty Eighth Air Force in Pooler,
Georgia, it became evident that pretty darn good
wasnt good enough, so I developed the tool shown in
the illustration.
Leave 1/8 inch of play between guide strip and worktable slot.
ILLUSTRATION BY BRIAN CARPENTER
BLOW HOLES
AND VENT HOLES
BY CHARLIE BECKER, EAA HOMEBUILT COMMUNITY MANAGER
I WAS RECENTLY welding some tabs onto a closed structure, and

suddenly I was burning holes each time I tried welding on a
tab. Ive done a lot of TIG welding of 0.035 wall tubing and
couldnt remember the last time I burned a hole. After the
holes happened several times in a row, I was at a complete loss
as to what was happening. I checked all my equipment and
settings and then changed my tungsten; same result. I was
completely frustrated and called Brian Carpenter, an EAA
technical counselor, for advice. He quickly diagnosed the
problem: I wasnt burning a hole; I was creating a blow
hole. Of course! Since it was a closed structure, the air inside
the tube was heating up and expanding, and once the puddle
was molten, some air escaped and created a blow hole.
There are a few ways to avoid a blow hole. The first and
best method is to drill 1/16-inch ventilation holes where
another tube will mate up on your structure. If you plan it
right, the vent holes can interconnect your entire fuselage.
This will relieve the pressure during welding and, if you add
preservative oil, will allow it to coat the entire inside of a
fuselage. If you fail to plan ahead and forget to build in vent
holes, you can still drill a vent hole and then just weld it shut
later. Another approach is to weld everything but the last 1/8
inch or so. Let everything cool and then come back in and
finish. This will allow you to finish the weld before the internal pressure builds.
GOT A HINT?
SEND YOUR TIPS to cbecker@eaa.org.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY JENNIFER BOWEN
www.eaa.org95
H
ANDS ON
SHOP TALK
Adel Clamps
The most aggravating piece of hardware in aviation
BY BUDD DAVISSON
IS THERE ANYBODY reading this who doesnt hate installing

Adel clamps? Thats unlikely because Adels are universally
despised. They are one of those things you like having done,
but hate doing.
For those who havent been bedeviled by the wildly efcient
little wire-bundle/tube/whatever holders, Adel clamps are the
do-all, keep-everything-in-place clamps that no airplane can be
without. But, as useful as they are, they have one incredibly
annoying feature: trying to keep them closed and getting the
holes aligned while getting a bolt or screw through them challenges the hands and thoroughly frustrates the mind. For this
reason, lots of suitably frustrated, ingenious brains have come
up with dozens of ways of solving this problem.
Truth is, before thinking of the Adel as a subject for Shop
Talk, I was too personally embarrassed to bring it up. I gured
other folks had a quick solution, and I was the only one fumbling
around. I was always embarrassingly thankful when I nally got
the screw through the clamp. However, when Googling the subject, I found thread after thread detailing peoples solutions to
the same problem everyone seems to have with the tricky little
buggers. Amazingly enough, a couple of solutions I use arent on
the web, so I thought Id mention them here.
THE CLECO APPROACH
The problem with Adels is keeping the ears together to get

them lined up and over a bolt thats going through a tab. A long
time ago, I sawed a slot wider than a No. 10 (3/16 inch) screw
in the jaws of an edge-grip Cleco (they are super-soft aluminum). This allowed clamping the Adel tight from any direction
and could allow sliding a punch through the holes to line them
up before putting it over the screw.
Unfortunately, the jaws on that kind of Cleco are so thick
that when slotted to go around the bolt, the bolt had to be overly
long to get a nut started on it. That was

solved by ling/sanding the jaws down to
give thinner, and parallel, surfaces. This
would let a normal length screw be used
and made it easy to get a few threads into
the nut before taking the Cleco of. This
works most of the time, but there are
always a few places where it doesnt.
RE-INVENTING THE ADEL PLIERS
Probably 20 years ago, I made a set of pliers (that I still use) that would let me
subdue even the orneriest Adel with a
minimum of hassle. These days a number
of outlets sell modified pliers or vise grips
with noses that grip the flat of the Adel
really well. But far too often there is not
enough room inside the structure to use
the pliers in the straight-on direction it is
designed for because theyre too big. The
pliers I made back in the day were based
on a well-worn pair of needle nose vise
grips on which I had built a flat nose that
could clamp an Adel from a number of
angles (see the photo caption for construction details). I figured at least one of
the directions would give enough room to
capture the entire ear. The store-bought
ones can be modified to do the same thing
by rounding the noses and narrowing
them down. Some of them, however, are
too thick and require longer-than-necessary bolts.
HOW-TO
The ever-present side-grip Cleco is made out of very soft, cast aluminum so it can be
sculpted into almost any shape including an eective clamp for an Adel clamp. The holes in
most Adel clamps are 3/16 inch, so cutting a slot slightly bigger than that lets the Cleco grab
the Adel clamp with the bolt hole uncovered. Then ling or sanding the top and bottom
jaw down to about 3/32 inch (plenty of strength left) lets a No. 10 screw be inserted through
the slot into the tab and a nut started on the other side. The Cleco can also bridge the tab
so it is sandwiched inside the jaws and the screw put through the clamp and the tab at the
same time. The Sharpie-black color and yellow ngernail polish are so it stands out from
other Clecos in the storage bin.
Using a small (6-inch), cheap pair of vise-grip-type needle nose pliers, two pieces of 0.062
4130 were brazed to the jaws. They were brazed, rather than welded, to minimize distortion
of the 4130, which is so thin that it allows the insertion of normal length screws. It is plenty
strong enough for the task at hand. If the ends are well rounded, the hole can be clamped
from almost any angle. A 1/8-inch punch is used to get the tails into approximate position,
and the 3/16-inch punch lines them up perfectly.
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF BUDD DAVISSON
www.eaa.org97
H
ANDS ON
SHOP TALK
HOW-TO
Google hemostat & forceps and youll nd an endless supply of the little clamps, which come
Capturing the Adel in a closed position with wire and removing the wire after the clamp is installed
is a universal solution to the problem. However, it is easier if green gardeners wire is used because
it is softer than safety wire so it can be wrapped by hand and clipped easily, when nished.
Dont underestimate the value of the readily available, bent-nose needle nose pliers. They make
handling Adels much easier.
in a variety of shapes and sizes, for around two bucks each. Even Harbor Freight has them. They
can reach in between the Adel clamp hole and the rubber shielding and do a good job of keeping
the ears together until you get everything lined up. Also, they can be used for other purposes, like
holding pieces for soldering. The curved ones work best because the curve gets the handles out of
the way, but at two bucks a piece, you can aord to buy a variety of them.
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF BUDD DAVISSON
You could stay on the fence,

or you could fix it.
Dont agonize about buying a welder. First, make sure its RED. Second,
make sure its a POWER MIG 210 MP. At 40 pounds, this machine can
go anywhere, and with two voltage options, you can plug it in anywhere,
too. The push button controls and LCD screen make setup a breeze, and
with the versatility to weld Stick, MIG, Flux-Cored and TIG, youll have all
the welder youll ever need, for just $999. Get off the fence and get it
done with the POWER MIG 210 MP.
www.lincolnelectric.com/210MP
AR15-02 The Lincoln Electric Co. All Rights Reserved.
See us at Sun and Fun

Booth #N044-045
H
ANDS ON
SHOP TALK
The military and aerospace companies

used to have a nice little over-center type of
thing that would pull Adels closed and tight,
but they havent shown up in surplus bins
for a long time.
SURGERY TOOLS TO THE RESCUE
Scalpel, hemostat, gauze! Two of those

are unnecessary for the task at hand, but
the hemostat, which costs about $2 at
some outlets, is perfect for the task on
most Adels. Originally designed to clamp
off blood vessels and hold tissue in place
during various types of surgical operations, the tiny width of the hemostats
nose works perfectly for fitting between
the Adels bolt hole and its main loop. The
seemingly fragile instruments look as if
they wouldnt be up to the job, but they
are. Plus, they are a little springy so you
can force the handles closed and they lock
in that position.
For those who havent been

bedeviled by the wildly ecient
little wire-bundle/tube/whatever
holders, Adel clamps are the do-all,
keep-everything-in-place clamps
that no airplane can be without.
GETTING IT WIRED
In places where the other methods dont

work, a lot of guys wire the clamp closed.
Sometimes I do the same; however, rather
than using safety wire, which is harder than
the clamp and can damage it, I use that
really thin, green wire with the covering
that gardeners use. It does the job easier and
cleaner. Its thin, so it doesnt get in the way,
and its really easily clipped after the clamp
is in place and the screw about halfway
tightened. Other guys use various types of

string and cord to do the same thing.
Incidentally, the wiring-it-shut method
has the advantage that the Adel stays permanently closed and ready to accept a screw/
bolt until the wire is removed. This lets you
Adel clamp the wiring bundle/tube to the
airframe and then take it of again for airframe painting knowing you arent going to
have to ght with the Adels again, when reinstalling them. When everything is bolted
on permanently, just go back in and clip the
wires and pull them out. This is where the
gardening wire works better than safety
wire: Theyre so thin, they pull out easier.
Budd Davisson, EAA 22483, is an aeronautical engineer, has own more than 300 dierent types, and has
published four books and more than 4,000 articles. He
is editor-in-chief of Flight Journal magazine and a ight
instructor primarily in Pitts/tailwheel aircraft. Visit him
on www.AirBum.com.
p.104 Pilot Caves p.106 News From HQ p.113 Gone West p.114 Members/Chapters in Action
COLLEGIATE
VOLUNTEER PROGRAM
College-age aviation enthusiasts seeking to
get involved in the Worlds Greatest Aviation
Celebration have a pathway to Oshkosh 2015
with a new Collegiate Volunteer Program.
The program is designed for college students,
whether or not they are aviation majors,
who want to join the more than 5,000
volunteers who make AirVenture possible.
Volunteers are welcome in nearly every area
of AirVenture operations.
This tradition has been passed down for more
than 60 years, now into a fourth generation
of aviation enthusiasts, said Janine Diana,
EAAs vice president of people and culture.
Volunteering is an unforgettable way to
experience AirVenture, see the aircraft, and
meet people from around the world in an
atmosphere lled with fun and discovery.
More information is available at
www.EAA.org/volunteer.
QUESTIONS ABOUT
YOUR MEMBERSHIP?
Want to change your address or need other

assistance? EAAs Membership Services sta
is available to assist you Monday through
Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on
Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Central
time). Call 800-564-6322 (800-JOIN-EAA),
e-mail membership@eaa.org, or visit
www.EAA.org/membership.
David Ooms, EAA 869956, of Grand Rapids, Michigan, volunteered

in Warbirds Flightline Operations at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2014.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MELODY WOLLANGK
www.eaa.org
103
MEMBERCENTRAL
PILOT CAVES
Pilot: Jerry Hodneeld, EAA 631131

Location: Monterey Regional Airport (KMRY), Monterey, California
JERRY HAS HAD a keen interest in WWII militaria since
childhood, and in 2006 acquired his hangar at the
Monterey Regional Airport to house some of the things
he has collected over the years in three separate hangars
that are 60-by-60 feet each.
Included in my collection is a 1944 Ford GPW Jeep
with a .50-caliber machine gun, a 1942 BMW motorcycle
with a sidecar and an original MG-34 German machine
gun, a Dodge WC57 command car, and lots of stuf left
over from the war. He has also acquired a Canadian T-6
Harvard, a Ryan PT-22 trainer, and a 1941 Piper L-4 Cub
to add to the collection. The machine gun collection has
been de-milled to be legal to own in California. On the
mezzanine deck, he has displayed original WWII artwork signed by many of the guys it depicts, ries and
pistols, helmets, and letters and scrapbooks of the veterans long since gone.
In addition, Jerry has made a portion of the mezzanine deck museum a comfortable place to relax and visit
with fellow aviators. He also has an adjoining hangar
where he has built a Glasair IIS and a Vans RV-8A, and
completely restored a 1966 Champion.
Do you have an interesting pilot cave? Send a snapshot to
editorial@eaa.org to share your aviation space with fellow
EAA Sport Aviation readers.
104 Sport Aviation April 2015
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF JERRY HODNEFIELD
MEMBERCENTRAL
NEWS FROM HQ
Name: Kathy Phillip, EAA 651324

Position: Former assistant to the chairman
of the board
WHOS WHO AT HQ
What do you enjoy most about your
job? The interaction with our members,
staf, volunteers, etc. The diversity of this
position is truly a plus. Ive often said
that I never thought Id meet and interact
with the individuals I have met through
EAA, especially during AirVenture. I feel
very fortunate.
Allied Icons
at AirVenture
Canadian Lancaster bomber, B-25 returning to Oshkosh
AN ICONIC ALLIED AIRCRAFT that helped secure liberty in World War
II returns to Oshkosh as the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum
brings its Avro Lancaster bomber to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2015.
The aircraft rst visited Oshkosh in 2006 and returned in 2009 to help
celebrate that years Canadian centennial of ight. This year the rare
RCAF heavy bomber (C-GVRA), along with the museums B-25 Mitchell
bomber Hot Gen, will participate in 70th anniversary commemorations
of the Allied victory in Europe.
C-GVRA is one of only two remaining airworthy examples in the
world today. The other is based in the United Kingdom, owned and
operated by the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.
The museums B-25J Mitchell (C-GCWM) was one of the last
Mitchells of the line in 1945 and was operated as a civilian transport for
more than 25 years. The airplane was acquired by the museum in 1975
and underwent extensive restoration.
The aircraft displays the markings of a B-25J of RAF No. 98
Squadron, which fought over northwest Europe from 1944 to 1945,
and is dedicated to the Canadians who ew with the 98th. Its been to
Oshkosh a number of times, the rst after initial refurbishment in the
1970s and most recently accompanying the Lanc in 2009.
Who introduced you to aviation? I was

a stewardess for Delta Air Lines in the 60s.
Wonderful experience. My planes were
a Convair 440 and 880/DC-6/DC-7/DC-8/
DC-9. When I started working at EAA,
I found out that the planes that I ew in
were now referred to as vintage aircraft.
Most memorable EAA experience?
Being able to go aboard a DC-7 when it was
at AirVenture a couple years ago. When
I was walking into the plane, the owner
said, Welcome home. Very moving for
me. Also, the quiet visits with Paul and Audrey. Remembering one AirVenture early
evening, a very hectic day, and Paul coming
up to my golf cart, climbing on, and saying,
Hows it going?
Describe your rst airplane ride: My
brother and I were staying with our grandparents in northern Minnesota for the
summer. My dad and a friend ew up in a
twin-engine plane to pick us up to bring us
back to northern Illinois. This was in the
late 1950s. I just loved it! I couldnt believe
the distance covered in just a couple of
hours versus the usual 9-10 hour car drive.
Unique aviation story: My grandfather
built and ew a glider in the 1930s. My
mom used to y with him. Ill always remember my mom looking at the ladies in
aviation display in the museum and commenting that had her life been diferent,
she might have been one of those women.
PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF CANADIAN WARPLANE HERITAGE MUSEUM
MEMBERCENTRAL
INNOVATION, EDUCATION, AND UAVS AT AIRVENTURE

CUTTING-EDGE INNOVATIONS, including
EAA AirVenture Oshkoshs rst drone
cage, will be featured at EAAs new
Aviation Gateway Park during the
Oshkosh convention July 20-26. This
new area will be located near the corner
of Waukau and Knapp streetswhere
the successful College Park innovation/
education area launched in 2014.
The drone cage will feature
daily unmanned aerial
vehicle (UAV) demos,
educational presentations,
and obstacle course contests
viewed from all sides of
the cage, including from
bleachers inside the Parks
Innovation Center.
Other features of Aviation
Gateway Park include the
Innovation Center and the
Forums Center presented
by the National Air Trafc
Controllers Association and
the Education & Career
Center presented by Embry-Riddle

Aeronautical University.
A plaza area between the three main
structures will be a popular gathering
place and home for some of the returning
activities from last years College Park
complex, including a social for college
aviation students and an aviation job fair
hosted by aviation-related companies
seeking employees.
GIVE FLIGHT AT AIRVENTURE THIS SUMMER

JUST AS A GROUP of volunteers helped
build the One Week Wonder Zenith
CH 750 Cruzer airplane during EAA
AirVenture Oshkosh 2014, EAA is
embarking on another project at
Oshkosh this year to highlight aircraft
homebuilding and raise awareness of our
worldwide chapter network.
The initial goal of Give Flight will be
to construct ve sets of wings for various
types of kit-built aircraft during the week.
Then those wing sets will be given to
ILLUSTRATION BY NICK HANSON AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY JASON TONEY
ve diferent EAA chapters to jump-start

building projects that we hope will lead
to the formation of ying clubs.
The volunteer-based project will
occur at the main crossroads of the EAA
AirVenture grounds on Celebration Way.
Volunteers will construct the wings on
each of the seven days of the convention,
and like last year, anyone who walks by
can participate by pulling a rivet.
The chapters will receive the
completed wings for free, but they
will then be responsible for
raising the funds necessary to
complete the aircraft. EAA is
in the process of determining
which kit manufacturers want
to participate in the project, said
Charlie Becker, EAA homebuilt
community manager.
If your chapter is interested
in taking on a Give Flight
building project, e-mail Charlie
at cbecker@EAA.org.
www.eaa.org107
MEMBERCENTRAL
NEWS FROM HQ
SCREAMIN SASQUATCH TO MAKE OSHKOSH DEBUT

BIGFOOT SIGHTINGS could become commonplace at Oshkosh this year when the jetpowered Waco Screamin Sasquatch lands at
Wittman Regional Airport to make its EAA
AirVenture Oshkosh debut.
Pilot Jef Boerboon is scheduled to y the
highly modied 1929 Waco Taperwing for
John Klatt Airshows. Its powered by a Pratt &
Whitney 985 Wasp Junior radial engine (450

hp), but its auxiliary powerplant is a General
Electric CJ610 turbojet that throws out 3,000
pounds of thrust. The airplane sports an
aggressive paint scheme based on its sponsor
company, Jack Links Beef Jerky, and the
popular Messin With Sasquatch campaign.
Fully fueled, the airplane weighs in at
about 4,000 pounds, so right away its unique
twin-engine conguration provides a more
than 1-to-1 thrust-weight ratio (4,500 pounds
of thrust). All of Screamin Sasquatchs control
surfaces were specically engineered to
accommodate the unique aerodynamic forces
of high-speed ight.
Screamin Sasquatch is uniquely capable
of intensely powerful aerobatic ight, such as
extreme vertical climbs, at spins, snap rolls,
torque rolls, and even a hover, which the
plane can then power itself out of to regain
forward ight.
EAA FORD TRI-MOTOR TOUR

SETS PASSENGER RECORD
EAAS FORD TRI-MOTOR NC8407 ew a
record number of passengers during
its tour stop February 5-8 at Dona
Ana County Airport in Santa Teresa,
New Mexico. The three-and-a-half
day tour stop co-hosted by the War
Eagles Air Museum and EAA Chapter
555 of Las Cruces, New Mexico, saw
the airplane make 89 separate ights,
providing more than 800 passengers
with rides on the vintage airliner.
Thats a remarkable total,
said Kristin Busse, EAA air tours
manager. The chapter and the
museum created a model tour stop
that we here in Oshkosh and other
hosts will strive to replicate in the
future. That is the best ever threeand-a-half day tour stop weve had
for the Ford Tri-Motor.
PHOTOGRAPHY BY RYAN LAMBERT
MEMBERCENTRAL
NEWS FROM HQ
BURT RUTAN RETURNING TO OSHKOSH IN 2015

BURT RUTAN, THE VISIONARY aircraft designer whose innovations
made history and changed the aviation world, will be back at
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh in 2015 to commemorate the 40th
anniversary of his iconic VariEze aircraft. Rutans designs have
been groundbreaking for more than 40 years, beginning with the
VariViggen in the early 1970s through the concepts that became the
SpaceShipOne and SpaceShipTwo vehicles that are launching the era
of space tourism.
His use of canard wings and composite materials changed the
look and efciency of homebuilt aircraft, with more than 1,000
airplanes based on his designs now ying in the United States alone.
The VariEze rst ew in May 1975, with the prototype causing
a sensation at that years EAA Oshkosh y-in. That canard design
evolved into other Rutan aircraft innovations, such as the Long-EZ,
that are still being built today. Rutans multitude of interests has
also led him into successfully exploring space ight and into
electric ight.
In honor of the VariEze anniversary, EAA is inviting all Rutan and
canard aircraft owners to come to Oshkosh and participate in the
festivities. More details on specic dates and events will be released
as they are nalized.
RESERVE YOUR SPOT IN AIRVENTURE

AVIATORS CLUB
THE EAA AVIATORS CLUB pavilion provides a prime ightline
oasis available only to EAA members and their guests
at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2015. Enjoy extra amenities
during the annual celebration scheduled July 20-26
at Wittman Regional Airport just south of the famed
Brown Arch.
Aviators Club extras include prime air show seating, air
conditioning, and breakfast and lunch each day during the
convention. Proceeds from admissions to the Aviators Club,
which is sponsored by Shell Aviation, are directed to the
Young Eagles program and EAAs other aviation education
and preservation activities.
Passes for the Aviators Club are available for EAA
members on a daily or weekly basis. Breakfast and lunch are
served each day during AirVenture, with dinner served prior
to the night air shows on Wednesday, July 22, and Saturday,
July 25. Passes are available in advance, and any remaining
passes for each day will be available right at the Aviators
Club. Learn more and secure your space in the Aviators
Club at www.EAA.org/AirVenture.
MEMBERCENTRAL
Gone West
Not alone into the sunset but into the company of friends who have gone before them.
ARIZONA
William Owens (EAA 182357), Vail
CALIFORNIA
Robert Archer (EAA 48916), Torrance
Fred Farnsworth (EAA 67109), Morgan Hill
Richard Hulme (EAA 5127), Santa Maria
James McDonald (EAA 599303), Newport Beach
Peter Stanek (EAA 238504), San Rafael
Don Weiler (EAA 7970), Los Altos
COLORADO
Col. Jack Wilhite (EAA 324063), Morrison
CONNECTICUT
Don Martin (EAA 673475), East Hampton
FLORIDA
Richard Barry (EAA 109555), Spring Hill
Robert Lewis (EAA 11191), Parrish
Robert Moler (EAA 613918), Dunedin
Donald Stu Sammis (EAA 352553), Titusville
Shirley Smith (EAA 1689), Flagler Beach
ILLINOIS
Ray Lynn (EAA 804955), Noble
Sally Schumacher (EAA 818058), Barrington
Robert Stecher (EAA 822232), West Peoria
Tom Wise (EAA 111776), Morris
INDIANA
Bernard Rice (EAA 11039), Osceola
IOWA
Donald Herrman (EAA 1053117), Bettendorf
KANSAS
Emil Roesky (EAA 89157), Coeyville
MICHIGAN
Jim Lach (EAA 127272), Clinton Township
Gary McKiddie (EAA 828543), Brimley
Forrest Shaw (EAA 570311), Ann Arbor
MISSOURI
Richard Denise (EAA 28744), Lake Tapawingo
Kirby Grindsta (EAA 424672), Patton
MONTANA
Ted Parod (EAA 594596), Columbus
NEBRASKA
Todd Rickenbach (EAA 270987), Chadron
NEVADA
Fred Alpers (EAA 479295), Carson City
Steven Murphree (EAA 529028), Dayton
NEW JERSEY
Nelson Ralls (EAA 19553), Tabernacle
NEW MEXICO
Daniel ONeil (EAA 1106525), Santa Fe
NEW YORK
G. Douglas Wallbridge (EAA 15143), Fabius
OHIO
Lester Bell (EAA 280291), Logan
Robert Dowell (EAA 211106), Goshen
Ronald Forsythe (EAA 410722), West Chester
Michael Riley (EAA 1123332), Columbus
David Weinsweig (EAA 628891), Proctorville
OREGON
Richard Balzer (EAA 330132), Corvallis
Bruce Myers (EAA 665594), Bend
PENNSYLVANIA
Wallace Shelby (EAA 75609), Quakertown
SOUTH CAROLINA
Jerry Reider (EAA 509221), Greenville
TENNESSEE
George Rowell (EAA 393861), Crossville
TEXAS
Gordon Allar (EAA 770077), Garden Ridge
Joseph Jan Collmer (EAA 124698), Dallas
E.J. Swearingen (EAA 148363), San Antonio
VERMONT
Larry Telford (EAA 600834), Hinesburg
WASHINGTON
John Brick (EAA 6201), Graham
William Sjoberg (EAA 45729), Yelm
WISCONSIN
Winton Christner (EAA 193982), Webster
Bill Cowden (EAA 717389), Menomonie
Kenneth Gilbert (EAA 381882), Brookeld
Jack Heller (EAA 193100), New Glarus
Arlo Hill (EAA 1128768), Mazomanie
Milon Hutchinson (EAA 528607), Phelps
Robert Jacob (EAA 567848), Winneconne
John Rodencal (EAA 53476), Wisconsin Rapids
Mark Von Dross (EAA 55270), Waukesha
CANADA
Richard Dagg (EAA 204327), Calgary, Alberta
Peter Prisner (EAA 1140446), Chatham, Ontario
NEW ZEALAND
Frank Harker (EAA 16645), Auckland, North Island
LOUISIANA
Gerald Leonard (EAA 163561), Covington
Martin Marks (EAA 563891), Gonzales
www.eaa.org113
MEMBERCENTRAL
MEMBERS/CHAPTERS IN ACTION
Success Stories
EAA Eagle Flights
BECKY DUECK, 42, EAA 1116435; WINNIPEG, MANITOBA, CANADA
In hindsight, I think I have always had at least a bit of interest in flying. When I was a kid, my dad had a small interest in
aviation, but I didnt realize it at the time. I think back, and
somehow we stopped at many air museums and air shows in
our travels. I remember thinking that flying would be a cool
thing to do, but I had no connection to the aviation world and
couldnt envision it.
I was just finishing high school and considering my future
when becoming a pilot crossed my mind. At that time I didnt
know any pilots who made their living flying. I had no idea what
a pilots life was like and couldnt envision myself in that role.
It also seemed like so much money to

do something that unknown to me, so I
looked for a different career.
A friend with a son interested in aviation heard about the Young Eagles ights at
Lyncrest (CJL5), in Winnipeg. My daughter also had an interest in ying, so I took
her to participate in several of the Young
Eagles ights and wished that I could be
the one going up ying. I heard about a
ights for women event through a mailing list for Young Eagles, and I didnt have
to think twice about signing up.
In September of that year, I went up
for a flight through the EAA Eagle Flights
programthe flights for women event.
My flight was in the back of a Cessna 172. I
loved the flight, but would have preferred
to be in the front.
On my official Eagle Flight the pilot
was a young woman and fairly new to flying. She explained things well, but not too
detailed. Right then and there I felt like
flying was something I could do.
This is when I decided I needed to
go up for a second flight to confirm that
this is what I wanted to do. Good things
last the test of time. The second flight
happened in January 2013, and the introductory ground school followed in May
2013I had become a student pilot.
I thought about many education options, none of which really excited me,
but when I thought of getting my private
pilot certificate, I knew that was what I
wanted to do.
I had planned to proceed with ight
training when my job ended in 2014, but
MEMBERCENTRAL
after ground school I plunged right

in. I booked my rst lesson for the following weekend. I did all the ground
school online because I didnt have
time to go to a class, and I could do
online studying at home in the evenings and on weekends. I tried to get
up ying two to three times a week. In
the end I completed everything in ve
and a half months.
The weather kept me grounded
at times. There were several times in
spring and fall when it was too windy
to fly, and I couldnt get up for two
to three weeks. It was frustrating because it felt like I lost so much when
EAA EAGLE FLIGHTS
BY BRIAN OLENA, EAA LIFETIME 645286

MANAGER, YOUNG EAGLES AND EAGLE FLIGHTS
To grow participation in aviation; thats EAAs

mission. Now more than ever its time to
introduce adults who have expressed a desire or
interest in ying to a ight in a GA aircraft. Its
time for EAA members to provide an Eagle Flight
to an adult friend, a neighbor, or a perhaps
someone you work with to share your passion
for ight.
I would have to miss a few lessons. Plus I

just wanted to fly; knowing I would go flying later somehow made it more bearable
to be at work.
Time was also a challenge. During my
ight training, I was working full time, plus
coaching or playing sports about four to
ve times a week. Often I would go straight
from work to my ight lesson about 45
minutes from home, to sports, and then
do some ground school before bed. I had
to stay focused.
My advice to others thinking about it is
to find a support group. This could be a local EAA chapter or flying club, classmates
from ground school, or a personal contact.
Volunteer with the local flying club at its
events. If there is someone working on an
aircraft, ask if you can observe or even help.
So much can be learned from the hands-on
experience. Flying is so much more than
just flying; it is the people you meet and
conversations you have.
The EAA Eagle Flights program is intended

to be an informal mentoring program that
helps expose adults to aviation and guide
them toward whatever engagement ts their
lifestyle. We hope the one-on-one Eagle Flights
experience helps them move toward becoming a
pilot, but most importantly, we want to nurture
their interest in aviation and invite them to join
our aviation community. We all participate in
aviation in various ways; some of us y, others
are aviation enthusiasts, but we are all part of
a wonderful community. Please consider being
a mentor by taking someone ying and helping
him or her understand your passion for aviation
and EAA.
Why should you become a mentor? There are
many reasons; perhaps the most compelling is
to pay it forward. For many of us in aviation we
had a positive role model who encouraged us
to pursue our dream of ight, and maybe now
is the time for you to become an Eagle Flights
mentor and make that kind of dierence in
someone elses life.
Its simple to become a mentor pilot in the
program. We have developed a mentor pilot
handbook and other support materials to
help you better understand how the program
works. To learn more about Eagle Flights
and how you can share your passion for
aviation, visit www.EAA.org/eagleights.
www.eaa.org115
MEMBERCENTRAL
CHRIS MATHENY, 41, EAA 1155617;

NEENAH, WISCONSIN
My interest in aviation started about

a year ago through conversations with
a couple of colleagues who were private
pilots. Ive also been interested in the
combination of intellectual and physical skill sets. As I learned more, flying
seemed to pique both of those interests.
What held me back from flying at an
earlier age was a lack of exposure,
and understanding was probably the
biggest barrier along with some (mostly
false) assumptions about the costs of
taking lessons.
SENNHEISER STEPS UP
SUPPORT FOR EAGLE
FLIGHTS MENTOR PILOTS
Sennheiser has been a supporter of EAAs Eagle Flights
program since 2013, complementing its own Live Your
Dream program started in 2011. That support now means
even more to Eagle Flights mentor pilots, as Sennheiser
is donating four S1 Digital Headsets to be awarded on a
one-per-quarter basis throughout the year.
Each time an EAA member ies an adult through
the Eagle Flights program, the pilot becomes eligible
for that quarters drawing. One Sennheiser headset
winner will be chosen on the 15th of January, April,
July, and October.
EAAs mission is growing participation in aviation,
and Sennheisers participation will help accomplish
that even more through Eagle Flights, said Rick
Larsen, EAAs vice president of member programs and
communities. Pilots dont need a reason to go ying,
but the opportunity to share the world of ight with
someone and be eligible to win one of the nest
headsets available is certainly an added incentive to be
involved in Eagle Flights.
The Sennheiser S1 is specially developed for pilots
of single- and twin-engine propeller aircraft and
ensures safe and reliable voice communication, easy
control, outstanding audio quality, and wearing
comfort. At the heart of this technical innovation is the
new digital adaptive NoiseGard system, a technology
that sets entirely new standards in the eld of noise
compensation and makes the dream of ight even
safer. With the push of a button the headset adapts to
the noise environment in the cockpit within seconds.
More information on how EAA members can get
involved with Eagle Flights is available through your
local EAA chapter or at www.EAA.org/eagleights.
No purchase or donation is necessary. A purchase or
donation will not improve your chances of winning.
I heard about Eagle Flights through

contact with EAA. With the EAA headquarters in my backyard, I reached out to
EAA staff to find out more about flying,
what options existed to become a pilot,
and how realistic it was for a busy professional and father to become a pilot. All my
questions were answered.
When I went up the first time I was
mostly nervous about becoming airsick.
I expected the flight to be like a roller
coaster. In reality, it was very smooth, and
I had a great time.
The pilot, who ended up becoming my
ight instructor, was very thorough. He
took the time to talk with me about everything from the preight, to the weather,
and much more. I got a great sense for
what a private pilot does before, during,
and after each ight.
I began my training through the Winnebago Flying Club at KOSH. It has been a
steady progression with a couple of breaks in
between. I y about three times per month
on average, but there have been months
where time and schedules have allowed for
up to seven or eight hours of training.
Time is the biggest hurdle to overcome,
but scheduling the airplane and my instructor through the ying club has been
The pilot, who ended up

becoming my ight instructor,
was very thorough. He took
the time to talk with me about
everything from the preight, to
the weather, and much more.
very easy. Taking the time not only for the
ight training but also for the book work
has kept my free time occupied. Whats
nice is that the deadlines are my own. I can
progress at a speed that ts me.
If you are truly interested in pursuing
your dream of flying, I would recommend
reaching out to EAA or a local flying
club to get more information on taking
an Eagle Flight. I would also recommend
taking some time to learn about the various options for training. The flying club
was a great option for me because it offers access not only to the airplane and
instructor but also to a great group of
pilots who are interested in improving
their flying and the flying of the
club members.
WELCOME, NEW LIFETIME MEMBERS

William Arnot (EAA 1138318), Houston, Texas
Rodney Burns (EAA 1164353), Pasco, Washington
Bruno Didier (EAA 1065729), Saint-Nom-la-Bretche, France
George Forster (EAA 612327), Boulder Creek, California
Kurt Hall (EAA 339433), Weston, Florida
Joseph Hann (EAA 840843), Flemington, New Jersey
Tristan Hase (EAA 1095092), Duluth, Minnesota
Joseph Kozar (EAA 123119), Warren, Michigan
Manfred Kreiselmeier (EAA 869400), Scottsdale, Arizona
Hal McCord (EAA 445428), Pensacola, Florida
Daniel Paternoster (EAA 459748), Fowlerville, Michigan
Chad Richards (EAA 437139), Norfolk, Virginia
Robert Roncace (EAA 204032), Ashburn, Virginia
Eric Sheels (EAA 201242), Wayland, Massachusetts
Beverly Smith (EAA 739109), Monticello, Iowa
Roger Smith (EAA 231757), Monticello, Iowa
Robert Snell (EAA 364972), Friendswood, Texas
Stanley Specht (EAA 431073), Lakewood, Colorado
Jim Templeton (EAA 46169), Petersburg, Illinois
Lena Templeton (EAA 346145), Petersburg, Illinois
MEMBERCENTRAL
YOUNG EAGLES SPARKS AVIATION DREAMS FOR SIBLINGS

ELLA AND BENJAMIN ROBBINS started building remote-controlled
aircraft when their brother Jonathan was given one at the age
of 10. The trio soon had a fleet of unmanned aircraft. About
four years later they took the next step toward potential careers
in aviation: Young Eagles flights.
One July day a pilot friend invited us to fly in his little
Ercoupe, said Ella, 17. Jerry Ward, EAA 476228, took each of
them up separately, and in no time they were all hooked on the
idea of becoming pilots.
Ella started researching ight school programs and eventually
found the Missionary Aviation Training Academy summer camp
near their home in Ferndale, Washington. By selling handmade
bowls, socks, tops, and other crafts at a farmers market they were
able to raise $1,500 to send all three to the camp last year.
Their next goal is flight training to earn their private pilot
certificates, with the dream of becoming bush pilots some day
so they can help people in hard-to-access areas of the world.
The siblings, all EAA student members, have started an Indiegogo campaign to help raise funds for flight lessons.
EAA ANNOUNCES HARRISON FORD SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS

AN OSHKOSH HIGH SCHOOL senior has been
named recipient of a $7,500 Harrison
Ford Flight Training Scholarship administered by EAA. Jordan Paulson, 18, plans
to attend the University of North Dakota
in the fall to study aviation management
with the goal of being a commercial pilot. The Harrison Ford Scholarship is
funded by Angela and Jim Thompson to
help young people achieve their dreams
of flight.
Along with Jordan, six other students
will receive $1,500 scholarships, including Cole Hooper, Wheaton, Illinois; Joseph Schimnich, Sauk Rapids, Minnesota;
Keegan Sponholz, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin;

Henry Vaughan, Sugarland, Texas; Jack
Verstegen, Middleton, Wisconsin; and
James Wright III, Salt Lake City, Utah.
Jordan, EAA 1083097, served as an
intern at EAA in 2014 and was also the
youngest person hired to refuel airplanes
by Orion Flight Services during EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2013. Hes currently
an intern at the Outagamie County Regional Airport.
The Harrison Ford Scholarship will allow me to experience aviation full force,
Jordan wrote in his required application
essay. Also it will allow me to share avia-
CHAPTER VIDEO MAGAZINE

TAKE A TRIP BACK in time with a ight aboard EAAs
beautifully restored B-17G Flying Fortress Aluminum
Overcast in the April issue of EAAs Chapter Video
Magazine. This months video also includes an Oshkosh update from EAA headquarters as well as a Hints
for Homebuilders segment on grease basics. A link to
download this months video was e-mailed to chapter
ofcers on April 1. If you are a chapter ofcer and did
not receive the e-mail, please contact chapters@eaa.org.
EAAs Chapter Video Magazine is proudly sponsored by
Dynon Avionics.
tion with those around me, in particular my

father who hasnt own an aircraft since he
had his license back in 1976.
Harrison Ford served as EAAs Young
Eagles chairman from 2004 to 2009 and
made many contributions to the general
aviation community. By funding this endowment, the Thompsons have created an enduring legacy of Harrisons contribution to
youth and general aviation.
Many people have told me that the
skys the limit for your dreams and aspirations, Jordan added. To which I like responding, That is exactly where I plan on
taking them.
MEMBERCENTRAL
MEMBER BENEFITS
Member Benefits Spotlight

MEMBERSHIP IN EAA makes aviation more fun, economical,
and accessible. Below are free and discounted programs
offered exclusively to EAA members. Join, renew, or
ask questions by visiting www.EAA.org/join or calling
800-564-6322 (800-JOIN-EAA).
PROGRAMS
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insurance for all types of aircraft at an exceptional price. Ask for
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anywhere. www.EAA.org/finance, 800-999-3712
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techniques. www.EAAVideo.org
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PSI LaserGrade FAA Tests - $10 off FAA written exam.
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of equipment. www.EAA.org/johndeere
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rentals through the EAA Travel Choices program. www.EAA.org/travel
COMMUNITIES
EAA communities are groups organized in a local community

or around a particular interest like an aircraft type. They
meet up, share advice, and work together on important
community projects.
EAA Chapters - www.EAA.org/chapters/locator
EAA International Aerobatic Club - www.IAC.org
EAA Warbirds of America - www.Warbirds-EAA.org
EAA Vintage Aircraft Association - www.VintageAircraft.org
EAA Ultralights - www.EAA.org/ultralights
EAA Homebuilders - www.EAA.org/homebuilders
www.eaa.org123
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FOR SALE
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LANDING GEAR WHEELS & BRAKES
LED & CONVENTIONAL aircraft lights
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Aircraft Landing Gear Systems
1800 Joe Crosson Dr.

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CLASSIFIED ADS
AEROMEDICAL
Windshields-Windows-Canopies for experimental aircraft. Custom
Skybolt plans $165, Pitts S1-C plans $250, S1-SS updates $100, materials
FAA Medical Problems? We specialize in helping pilots, ATC, etc.,
jobs welcome. airplastic@aol.com, 937-669-2677
& components. Knight Twister plans: single $250, two-place $285.
able. ARMA Research, LLC, 920-206-9000 www.ARMAResearch.Com
Holy Cowls - RV & Mustang II, www.jamesaircraft.com 850-342-9929
Steen Aero Lab, (321) 725-4160. www.steenaero.com
AIRCRAFT
Landing Gear-Wittman type rod gear since 1969. Contact Harmon
CLASSIC HOMEBUILT AIRCRAFT PLANS - Cozy Mark IV $500 Christavia
Piper J3/L4 for sale, 2012 Oshkosh Award Winner, 65 Cont, 163 SMOH,
Lange 503-397-1478, harmon@langair.com
MK-1 $375 Christavia MK-2 $289.95 Christavia MK-4 $275 Starduster
Firebolt plans $275. Great Lakes plans $350. Pilot & aircraft accessories.
when FAA Medical Certicate problems occur. Professional and aord-
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restored 2004, silver, $60K 740-943-2773, gperkins@midohio.net

1999 T-40, AF 80% complete, eng, new prop, in NYC. Both outer wing
Carbon ber cowls for non-certied PA 18 aircraft. Selkirk Aviation,
$250 Starlet SA500 $125 Acroduster Too SA750 $125 V-Star SA900
208-664-9589. www.selkirk-aviation.com
$195 Acrolite 1B $295 Wittman W10 Tailwind $195 Wittman V-Witt

Racer $95 Baby Great Lakes $295 Super Baby Great Lakes
structure 90% lacks skin, ailerons & aps. Make oer. 631.724.4895
Aircraft wires from Bruntons of Scotland. Certied wires featuring
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Avid Flyer Aerobat featured June 2004 issue, 110 TTAF, NDH, new blue head
stronger rolled threads. AN665 stainless terminal assemblies. Call for
(951) 372-9555, www.aircraftspruce.com
582, Terras, Whelens, Powern, $25K OBO, avidyerforsale@gmail.com
quote. Steen Aero Lab, (321) 725-4160. www.steenaero.com
Biplane Construction, Ron Walker A&P-IA, a1airplanemech@aol.com,
BUILD YOUR OWN BOAT! Send $9.95 for catalog of over 300 boats
650-593-5010
you can build, includes FREE Dingy plans. Glen-L, 9152 Rosecrans
RV Builders-Upper/lower gear leg intersection fairings
AIRCRAFT INSTRUMENTS
Ave/EAA, Bellflower, CA 90706, 888-700-5007. Online catalog:
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FLOATS BY ZENAIR 750# to 2500# straight & amphib kits
place, all metal, plans $375. Pazmany PL-9 Stork-Two place STOL
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and empennage, fabric covered. Super detailed plans (700 sq.ft.)
WORLDS MOST POPULAR Aircraft Design Books @

OSHKOSH/AIRVENTURE HOUSING
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OSHKOSH BOUND? Visit Sleepy Hollow Farm - the closest
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ENGINES
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PARACHUTES
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Pennsylvania Parachute Company-Pilot Emergency Parachutes
PROPELLERS
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www.PerformancePropellersUSA.com Two & Three Blade Multi-
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PLANS/KITS
Complete R-2300 85HP . Die cast. RevFlow injector carb 30-42mm.
Aircraft plans advertised in EAA Sport Aviation must have satised
MT & Homann Propellers for aerobatic, homebuilt & production air-
Revmaster Aviation 760-244-3074. www.revmasteraviation.com
the FAA minimum requirements of the Experimental Amateur-built
craft. Call for quote. Steen Aero Lab, (321) 725-4160. www.steenaero.com
Laminate Wood composite propellers for up through 300 HP. 713-417-2519
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Engines starting at $200 - guaranteed Kawasaki, Rotax, Hirth and
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and should have satisfactorily demonstrated its advertised qualities.
Live on a beautiful Arizona airpark. www.azaviationproperties.com
selection of accessories with top-notch service from our friendly sta.
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Custom Lycoming & small Continental engines overhauled or
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SERVICES
MORTGAGE REFERRAL SERVICE Conventional, FHA, VA or Reverse
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CFI TOOLS General Aviation Software for Pilots, www.CFITools.com
Kawasaki package - save 50% - engine, reduction drive, carburetor,

and exhaust. 0-time, 64 lbs., 40 HP. Contact J-Bird - (262) 626-2611
GibboGear EAB Trikes & Wings, Kits, Builders assistance, Ready2y

www.gibbogear.com 832-434-2642
MISC
Patent, Trademarks, Copyrights. Robert Platt Bell, Registered Patent

Attorney, EAA Member, 821 Riverview Drive, Jekyll Island, GA 31527.
Composites & Supplies - 37+ years of excellent customer service,
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designers, manufacturers, materials. Always in stock: epoxy, polyester,
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Vinyleter resin, carbon ber, Kevlar, lightweight fairing & bonding
robertplattbell@gmail.com. PH. 912-635-2147.

WANTED
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Volksplane-Complete VP-1 Plans $64 w/FREE Designers
Donate your factory built plane to leave a signicant legacy! A charity
resin infusion supplies. Order online www.lbiberglass.com or call for
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that provides mission/medical services to remote areas of the world.
free catalog 800-231-6537, technical assistance
www.volksplane.com & www.evansair.com
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AT YOUR SERVICE: ADVERTISERS IN THIS ISSUE
ADVERTISER
PAGE
WEBSITE
PHONE
ADVERTISER
PAGE
AD INDEX
WEBSITE
PHONE
Advanced Flight Systems
45
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503/263-0037
Glasair Aviation
85
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360-435-8533
AeroConversions
40
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920/231-8297
GoCycle
98
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AEROX
107
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800/237-6902
Grand Rapids Technologies, Inc.
34
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616/245-7700
877/4-SPRUCE
John Deere
119
www.johndeere.com/gator
309/765-8000
Aircraft Spruce & Specialty/Cozy
97
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877/4-SPRUCE
J.P. Instruments
41
www.jpinstruments.com
800/345-4574
Aviat Aircraft Inc
37
www.aviataircraft.com
307/885-3151
Lancair International
55
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541/923-2244
B & C Specialty Products
39
www.bandc.info/SAV
316/283-8000
Leading Edge Air Foils, LLC
95
www.leadingedgeairfoils.com
800/532-3462
Bearhawk Aircraft
20
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877/528-4776
Lincoln Electric
99
www.lincolnelectric.com/210MP
888/355-3213
Better Aircraft Fabric
95
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907/229-6792
Lycoming
www.lycoming.com
800/258-3279
Boeing
www.buildsomethingbetter.com
206/655-1131
Mahindra Aerospace
111
www.ga8airvan.com
855-4-AIRVAN
Bose
35
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888/501-8769
MT-Propeller
97
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386/736-7762
Bristell
40
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717/371-8677
Piper
105
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866/FLY.PIPER
California Power Systems
30
www.800-airwolf.com
800/247-9653
Poly-Fiber Aircraft Coatings
www.polyber.com
800/362-3490
CamGuard
65
www.aslcamguard.com/products/aviation 800/826-9252
Pygmy Boats
115
www.pygmyboats.com
360/385-6143
Champion Aerospace Inc
31
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864/843-1162
Randolph Aircraft Products
33
www.randolphaircraft.com
800/362-3490
Cirrus Aircraft
IBC
www.cirrusaircraft.com/accelero
800/279-4322
Rimowa
21
www.rimowa.com
519/653-4660
CubCrafters, Inc.
29
www.carboncubex.com
509/248-9491
Rotec Aerosport
23
www.rotecaerosport.com
61 3 9587 9530
Daher-Socata
17
www.tbm850.com
954/993-8477
Sandys Airpark
115
www.sandysairpark.com
800/908-4359
Dual Eyewear
57
www.dualeyewear.com
720/235-1112
Savvy Aircraft Maint. Management 125
www.savvyanalysis.com
702/655-1359
Dynon Avionics
IFC
www.dynonavionics.com
425/402-0433
Sennheiser Aviation
19
www.sennheiser-aviation.com/S1
860/434-9190
EAA Air Academy
112
www.eaa.org/airacademy
888/322-3229
Sigtronics Corporation
44
www.sigtronics.com
909/305-9399
EAA Airventure Oshkosh 2015
12
www.eaa.org/tickets
920/426-4800
Sky-Tec
83
www.skytecair.com
800/476-7896
EAA Aviation Insurance/Falcon
86, 122
www.eaa.org/insurance
866/647-4322
Sonex Aircraft, LLC
107
www.sonexaircraft.com
920/231-8297
82
www.eaa.org/b17
800/359-6217
Sportys Pilot Shop
87
www.sportys.com/stratus
800/SPORTYS
EAA Eagle Flights
18
www.eaa.org/eagleights
800/557-2376
Stauer/Watch
117
www.stauer.com
800/333-2057
EAA Aircraft Finance
100
www.eaa.org/nance
800/999-3712
Stewart AC Finishing Systems
38
www.stewartsystems.aero
888/356-7659
EAA Ford Tri-Motor
20
www.ytheford.org
800/564-6322
Superior Air Parts
25
www.superiorairparts.com
800/277-5168
118
www.eaa.org/shop
800/564-6322
Tempest
www.tempestplus.com
800/822-3200
www.eaa.org/sportair
800/967-5746
Trade-A-Plane
115
www.trade-a-plane.com
800/337-5263
102
www.eaa.org/sweepstakes
800/236-1025
Trutrak Flight Systems
24
www.trutrakap.com
866/TRUTRAK
EAA Tribute
112
www.eaa.org/support
800/236-1025
UMA Instruments
40
www.umainstruments.com
800/842-5578
EAA Webinars
89
www.eaa.org/webinars
800/967-5746
Vans Aircraft, Inc.
33
www.vansaircraft.com
503/678-6545
EAA Women Soar
108
www.eaa.org/womensoar
920-426-6859
Vertical Power
43
www.VerticalPower.com
425/328-1658
EAA Young Eagles
110, 121
Aircraft Spruce & Specialty
EAA B-17
EAA Merchandise
EAA SportAir Workshops
EAA Sweepstakes 2015
13, 24, 95, OBC www.aircraftspruce.com
34, 101
www.eaa.org/youngeagles
877/806-8902
Viking Aircraft Engines LLC
30
www.vikingaircraftengines.com
386/566-2616
EAA Young Eagles Rae
38
www.eaa.org/yerae
800/236-1025
Wag-Aero
97
www.wagaero.com
800/558-6868
Flight Design USA
81
www.ightdesignusa.com
860/963-7272
Wicks Aircraft Supply
45
www.wicksaircraft.com
800/221-9425
53
www.ford.com
800/392-3673
Zenith Aircraft Company
27
www.zenithair.com
573/581-9000
www.garmin.com
800/800-1020
Ford Motor Company

Garmin
5, 109
For more information from EAA Sport Aviations advertisers, please phone or visit them on the web, and mention that you saw their ad in EAA Sport Aviation. Visit www.EAA.org for a listing of this months advertisers.
Copyright 2015 by the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. All rights reserved. EAA SPORT AVIATION (USPS 511-720; ISSN 0038-7835; CPC#40612608) is owned exclusively by the Experimental Aircraft Assn., Inc. and is published monthly at the EAA Aviation Headquarters, 3000 Poberezny Rd.,
Oshkosh, WI 54902. Periodical Postage paid at Oshkosh, WI 54901 and other post offices. [U.S. membership rates are $40.00.] EAA STATEMENT OF POLICY Material published in EAA SPORT AVIATION is contributed by EAA members and other interested persons. Opinions expressed in articles are
solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the opinions of the Experimental Aircraft Association, Inc. Accuracy of the material is the sole responsibility of the contributor. ADVERTISING EAA does not guarantee or endorse any product offered through our advertising.
We invite constructive criticism and welcome any report of inferior merchandise obtained through our advertising so that corrective measures can be taken. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to EAA SPORT AVIATION, P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086.
www.eaa.org127
EAAS LOGBOOK
WHERE WE CAME FROM
INSIDE THE ISSUE

Highlights from April 1965
According to a story about the Bede XBD-2 and BD-3, the Bede Aircraft Corp.
challenged the aviation world with its new concept in aircraft design. The
prototype XBD-2 was designed for STOL performance.
Its No Mirage!
n April 1965, EAA Sport Aviation featured Bill Leighnors

homebuilt Mirage II, built from the plans for a Stolp-Adams
SA-100 Starduster. According to the article, the biplane,
which still has a valid registration, turned heads everywhere it
landed: One has to look twice to make sure that it is real!
The magazine also featured Part 1 of a look at ultralight
aviation, covering its history and discussing its future.
Additionally, Sport Aviation covered EAA Chapter 187s mobile
library project: Members donated more than 600 educational
items, including past issues of Experimenter and Sport Aviation
and aviation technical manuals and books, and built a library
trailer that could be towed to chapter events.
In Homebuilders Corner, EAA Founder Paul Poberezny
reminded members that, as of January 1, 1966, they will be
required by the FAA to display a billboard-size registration
number on their aircraft fuselage. Paul suggested that members
drop FAA Administrator Najeeb Halaby a letter voicing your
opinion on the matter and include any constructive criticism.
The Chestney C-21 Termite was based on the Smith Termite plans and cost Jim
Chestney only $339 to build, including the engine, a 65-hp Lycoming with 78
hours since overhaul that came with the mount and propeller for $100.
As the caption reads, Oblivious to all else, Ed Higby built the ribs for his
folding-wing Cougar in the den of his home.
View archived issues of EAA Sport Aviation at www.EAA.org.
July 20 - 26
Buy your AirVenture Oshkosh 2015 tickets
today! Visit EAA.org/tickets

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The Spirit of Aviation | www.eaa.

Vol.64 No.4 | April 2015

Laying the Foundation

A tribute to the Marines

COMMENTARY / TOWER FREQUENCY

Congress to the Rescue

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JASON TONEY

see from Washingtonthey kept it simple. No restrictions

A PUBLICATION OF THE EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION

Tower FrequencyJack J. Pelton

Stick & RudderGetting It Right

Letters to the Editor

What Went WrongAvionics Become Fatal Distraction

Left SeatJ. Mac McClellan

Ill Never Do That AgainSplash and Dash

Savvy AviatorMike Busch

Light FlightDave Matheny

What Our Members Are Building/Restoring

Flight TestCharlie Precourt

Hints for HomebuildersRadius Repeater,

Plane TalkLauran Paine Jr.

Shop TalkAdel Clamps

Custom Super Cub honors the greatest generation

The Additional Pilot Program

NEWS & INFO

Advocacy & Safety

The FAA blesses having a second pilot

For more on many of the topics in this issue, visit www.EAA.org/sportaviation.

To view and submit aviation events, visit www.EAA.org/calendar.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY AMY GESCH

Vol.64 No.4 | April 2015

Mailing Address: P.O. Box 3086, Oshkosh, WI 54903-3086

Need to change your address or have other membership

4Sport AviationApril 2015

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

A FARM BOY REMEMBERS

I HAD A WAKE EXPERIENCE in my teens when I

Carmine Margo Mowbray, EAA 1014005

Pete Halsmer, 461448

6Sport AviationApril 2015

IVE JUST BEEN READING Macs article What

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Jacks Right About ADS-B Cost

I AGREE WITH JACK J. PELTONS commentary (Tower

Thanks to EAA advocacy the FAA has changed the

LETTERS INTENDED for publication should be e-mailed to editorial@eaa.org or addressed to EAA/Letter

8Sport AviationApril 2015

On Page 11 of the March edition of

ADVOCACY AND SAFETY

Aeromedical Reform Push

THE REACTION TO THE bipartisan Pilots Bill of Rights 2 legislation

10Sport AviationApril 2015

enforcement action; and reform FAA

EAA/FAA SUMMIT: PROGRESS ON KEY GA ISSUES

to solve a training situation that keeps

safety, including how to properly collect and

EAA REVIEWING SUAS NPRM

operator certication, including a knowledge test and recurrent

MEDICAL REFORMWE HAVE NEVER STOPPED FIGHTING

AS FAR BACK as 1986 with

PHOTOGRAPHY BY JASON TONEY

the rst time, we have a favorable political

us to this point, but we need our members

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