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July 25, 08....
The lucky members and friends should be in Wisconsin at this time enjoying Airventure 08. For those
of you who remain behind, like me, we will have to read or view the event by some other means. At least our hearts and
minds are there and we hope everyone who actually made it there will enjoy as much as they can absorb.
I recently received an email from Jim Riviere, the state EAA coordinator:
Jim,
I am Roy Beltz of EAA 1356 in Leesville, La. I’d appreciate your distributing this ad through your network.
I met Mike Swick at Aero Country (T31) in McKinney, Tx. He is wheelchair bound and unable to finish
his dream airplane. It is a 75% scale Beech Staggerwing with a zero time 9-cylinder
radial engine, the same one used on a YAK. The engine is mounted on the welded
and painted fuselage, which is sitting on the gear. The prop is included, but still in the box. The wings are complete as near as I could tell, and the fuselage, wings, and empennage need covering. Mike is asking $39,000 and would be able to furnish more details. Contact Mike at Swick Aircraft, 10010 Champion Lane, Rt-1 Box 203, Aero Country Airport, McKinney, TX 75070 Phone 972 347 2596
Thanks, Roy
Sounds like an interesting project in case anyone is looking!
In other news, the state legislature, in its recent session, presented a number of aviation related items.
Here's a recap and the outcome.
Senate
bill SB 102, signed by Gov. as ACT 184-Text found at: http://www.legis.state.la.us/billdata/byinst.asp?sessionid=08RS&billid=SB102
What
it does: increase the maximum amount of
Transportation Trust Fund money made available for GA airport grants each year from $200,000 to $300,000. That money can then
be used to maintain and improve general aviation and reliever airports, helping to keep them safe.
Senate
bill SB 212, signed by Gov. as ACT 686-Text found at: http://www.legis.state.la.us/billdata/byinst.asp?sessionid=08RS&billid=SB212;
What it does: Abolishes the Louisiana Airport Authority and the
Louisiana Transportation Center.
House
bill HB 1190, signed by Gov. as ACT 326-Text found at: http://www.legis.state.la.us/billdata/byinst.asp?sessionid=08RS&billid=HB1190
What it does: repeals
the current requirement to register airctraft in the state, simplifying and reducing the cost of aircraft ownership in Louisiana.
It also eliminates certain other requirements (click on the link).
The boys and girls in Baton Rouge also passed
a resolution, SCR (Senate Concurrent Resolution) 65-Text found at: http://www.legis.state.la.us/billdata/byinst.asp?sessionid=08RS&billid=SCR65
What
it does: Memorializes Congress to provide financial support for the establishment and construction of a general aviation facility
in lower Plaquemines Parish (a new airport!!).
Senate
bill SB164-Text found at: http://www.legis.state.la.us/billdata/byinst.asp?sessionid=08RS&billid=SB164
What
it does: Changes the name of the Aviation and Military Museum of Louisiana, Inc., to the Chennault Aviation and Military Museum
of Louisiana, Inc. It is located in Monroe.
All
in all it seems like the aviation community faired well.
If
you went to Oshkosh.....We want a report and pictures when you get back.
Later.....CAVU,
S.J.
Current News for our Membership
(Updated often)
JUNE 10.........I just got an email from President Patsy:
EAA Chapter 541 of Louisiana,
Inc. has an event coming up! We're calling it the Bring-a-friend Fly-In.
Come and enjoy a great meal, good company, airplanes, and
lots of hangar talk! Bring someone with you! (Suggestions: Your friend who has expressed an interest, your boss so he'll
know why you need a raise, your cousin, your kid, or your mother-in-law!)
Where: Jennings Airport
When: June 28th (last Saturday of the month)
Brisket,rice dressing, and salad. Lunch served at noon --
$6 a plate. Please let Patsy know if you would like to bring a dessert (springgreenfarm@aol.com)
April 26......7 PM
Well the get together had some liquid sunshine so not many flyers were out. We did have
a good crowd in spite of the rain. The food and fellowship was great. I doubt that the aerobatic guys were doing
their thing @ LeGros with the weather in the condition it presented itself.
We will be starting a snail mail newsletter very soon and mailing them to members homes. Just
another way of keeping in touch. Any articles can be send to my email address and I will forward them to member Terry
Robideaux who will be doing the artwork and pasting together of everything, then the printing. Patsy will have her comments
and we'll try to get as much monthly info to you in advance. As usual, your comments are always welcome.
Stay safe and hope you have CAVU,
S.J.
| Last flight of this Lancair! Read the report... |
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| Remember to ALWAYS fly the airplane, First! |
April 20, 2008........
Well, Sun 'N Fun is over. I spent a little over a week in the sun and even with sun block,
I am peeling. I did spend most of my time marshalling in and directing taxiing aircraft to their intended destinations.
I had a blast. Volunteering is wonderful and the experience was great for me. One day, while waving aircraft forward
with my bright orange wands, I noticed one of many RV-6As passing by. The last two letters of the N-number clicked after
it had gone by. NxxxAP belonged to Pete Phillips and the AP stood for his wife Anne. He had already taxied
past my location and I could not get his attention and I'm sure he didn't expect to see me directing traffic. I looked
for him at the RV display a number of times but could never hook up with him. It would have been nice to visit that
far away from home. The advertised visitor V-22 Osprey never made it to the field. I guess the weather socked
them in. There was never any announcement as to why they didn't make it, but that's my guess. All they were supposed
to do was arrive and go on static display but that didn't happen. Oh well, the best laid plans....
There was an accident on Sunday that took the life of a pilot. I was not there so I missed
that unpleasant sight. Here is the report from the NTSB:
NTSB Identification: MIA08LA089
14 CFR Part 91: General
Aviation
Accident occurred Sunday, April 13, 2008 in Lakeland, FL
Aircraft: Dayon Thomas Lancair Legacy, registration:
N1177M
Injuries: 1 Fatal.
This is preliminary information, subject to change, and may contain
errors. Any errors in this report will be corrected when the final report has been completed.
On April 13, 2008, about 1120 eastern daylight time, a Thomas Dayon
amateur built Lancair, N1177M, registered to G-KAS Aviation LLC, and operated by a private pilot, collided with the ground
shortly after takeoff from runway 27L at the Lakeland Linder Regional Airport in Lakeland, Florida. The personal flight was
operated under the provisions of 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 with no flight plan filed. Visual meteorological conditions
prevailed at the time of the accident. The private pilot received fatal injuries. The airplane was substantially damaged by
impact and the subsequent post crash fire. The flight was departing at the time of the accident.
According to witnesses,
the pilot was observed having difficulty closing the canopy on the airplane prior to takeoff. During the takeoff climb a witness
said he saw the cockpit canopy moving and believed the pilot was pushing it up and down about 6 to12 inches. Another witness
stated that shortly after takeoff the engine lost power, the airplane continued straight and level and there was no attempt
by the pilot to return to the runway. The airplane then nosed down about 40 degrees and the left wing dropped. About 3 to
5 seconds later a plume of smoke was seen coming from behind a tree line.
The following contains excerpts from an article in the
Tampa Tribune:
The person killed in a small airplane crash late Sunday morning on the final day of the annual Sun 'n Fun Fly-In has
been identified, said Polk County sheriff's officials.
Gerard Schkolnik of 129 Pinecrest Circle, Bluffton, S.C., was killed by blunt force trauma when his 2006 single-engine,
two-seat Lancair Legacy crashed just west of Lakeland Linder Regional Airport about 11:15 a.m., said sheriff's spokeswoman
Carrie Rodgers.
Schkolnik's family told deputies he flew to Lakeland for the annual event and owned the aircraft.
The airplane crashed into a cow pasture near Hamilton Road, according to the sheriff's office, which is investigating
along with the Federal Aviation Administration.
FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said the single-engine, two-seat airplane crashed and burst into flames moments after
it left Lakeland Linder.
Investigators couldn't say what caused the accident, where the plane was headed or even how many people were onboard.
The wreckage -- a husk of twisted, burned steel -- hardly resembled an airplane by the time rescue workers arrived.
Witnesses described an explosion and columns of smoke pouring from the crash site. The flames touched off a brush fire
that was contained by firefighters. An acre of pasture burned, but no structures were damaged, Wilder said.
Steven Edwards, who lives near the site of Sunday's crash, said he was trimming trees in his yard when he heard a strange
sound. "I didn't know if it was a tree limb I heard cracking or if it was a plane that went down," he said.
When Edwards turned around, he saw the plane on fire.
"There was a big old plume of clouds and black smoke," he said. "By the time I got down here, it had a good section
of that pasture out there burned up."
FAA records indicate the aircraft was assembled by Thomas Dayon of West Milford, N.J., in 2006 and manufactured by
Lancair International of Redmond, Ore. Lancair manufactures general-aviation aircraft kits.
Not counting Sunday's crash, Lancair Legacy planes have been involved in seven crashes, three fatal, in the past five
years, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
Records show Dayon was killed in June 2006 in a crash involving a Lancair 360. He sold his Lancair Legacy plane to
G-Kas Aviation that year. A phone listing for G-Kas was not immediately available Sunday; efforts to reach the company were
unsuccessful.
I saw the news report on TV and there was not much left of
the Lancair. (View the last photo included). And, of course, they interviewed the least intelligent local they
could find. His comments questioned whether "..these experimental things are checked and maintained as well as normal
aiplanes." Will the insanity ever be educated?
The Chapter is planning another Fly in and Cook-out @ Jennings Airport, Saturday, April
26, from 11-2. Barnstormer burgers and desserts are on the menu. ALSO, Aerobatic competition will also be
underway at the LeGros airport on Saturday. Visitors are welcome. ALL pilots flying over to LeGros are asked
to use their radios, follow stands traffic procedures, and PLEASE give way to competitors who are landing (they may be low
on fuel!)
That's all I have for now. If you didn't get your newsletter this past week, contact Charles
Moore to see if you have been mistakenly omitted from the mailout list.
CAVU, later...
S.J.
| Emergency responders have little to view! |
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| Don't let this happen to you! |
Saturday, April 5, 2008.......
I received an email saying that the fuel system is back in service @ St. John Parish airport.
The Parish will run the fuel service. The price is $4.92 per gallon. Let's all rush over there
and fill up!
Leaving in the morning for Tampa and the Sun 'N' Fun Fly-In. My flight
is out of Lafayette around 8 AM. I tried to book a flight out of LCH Regional on Continental but it cost nearly $400
more. And the powers that be wonder why more people do not fly out of LCH.
See ya later,
S.J.
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