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November
13, 2009 Volume 9,
Number 53 |
EAA, WOA OPPOSE NPRM THAT
WOULD ADVERSELY AFFECT JET WARBIRDS
 On
August 31, 2009, the FAA issued a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM)
for changes to 14 CFR Parts 61, 91, and 141 that would require
pilot-in-command (PIC) proficiency checks for pilots who act as PIC of
single-piloted, turbojet-powered airplanes. This set of rules would
govern all turbine aircraft including warbird jets certificated in the
Experimental Exhibition category, affecting pilot, flight instructor,
and pilot school certification rules. The NPRM does not take into
account several issues, such as a current shortage of qualified
experimental aircraft examiners who could give the required checkride. Read
more
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UPDATE ON PRESIDENTIAL
SUCCESSION
Maintaining EAA’s unique culture and taking the organization forward
are among the prime qualities needed in EAA’s next president,
according to current EAA president/chairman Tom Poberezny. In March,
Poberezny announced that he would be additionally assuming the chairman
of the board role while the organization began a search to find its next
president. Read
more
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ADVANCE-PURCHASE CAMPING
NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE FOR AIRVENTURE
Advance-purchase ticket site open
at www.airventure.org
 Following
on the popularity and success of advance online ticket availability for
EAA AirVenture Oshkosh the past two years, attendees staying at the
drive-in Camp Scholler area can now also pre-purchase camping for prime
arrival dates. AirVenture 2010, "The World's Greatest Aviation
Celebration," is coming July 26-August 1, 2010, at Wittman Regional
Airport in Oshkosh. Read
more
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MATT YOUNKIN SURVIVES
AIRPLANE CRASH IN ARKANSAS
Aerobatic Pilot Matt Younkin survived a plane crash while flying the
Younkin Mullicoupe Tuesday afternoon (November 10) south of his home in
Siloam Springs, Arkansas. Longtime friend Jimmy Bedfork told NWA.com
that Matt Younkin walked away intact, without any life-threatening
injuries. "He had a broken hand and got that fixed. Had a bump on
his head, nothing came of that. They did have to stitch up a cut on his
leg, but it wasn't anything life-threatening," Beckford said. Read
more
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FIVE PRODUCTS WORTH
TAKING HOME FROM AOPA SUMMIT
 In
a song recorded by The Beatles more than 40 years ago, the characters
“all lived in a Yellow Submarine,” but at the Aviation Summit
celebrating 70 years of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, it
was actually possible to take one home. The $2 million, two-seat,
1,000-foot-down-capable sub stood out as one of the more unusual
products offered at AOPA Summit, even if it does share the
three-dimensional undersea maneuvering capabilities pilots love to
explore in the sky. Read
more
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AOPA SUMMIT CONCLUDES
SUCCESSFUL DEBUT
The inaugural AOPA Aviation Summit closed out its run Saturday, November
7, with energy equal to the beginning, several hundred airplanes parked
in the transient areas, and a host of vendors expressing their
satisfaction at the level of business they did. Purveyors of everything
from avionics to books on using them, from aircraft to tools for owning
them, observed that crowds seemed noticeably lower than in recent years.
AOPA stressed the record number of aircraft on display at Peter
O’Knight Airport’s AirportFest static display and the strong turnout
of fly-in attendees the second and third days of the three-day
convention. Read
more
Day 1 | Day
2
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'LT. DAN BAND'
RETURNING TO AIRVENTURE
 A
weeklong salute to veterans during EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2010 will be
highlighted by the return of actor Gary Sinise and his "Lt. Dan
Band" at AirVenture's Theater in the Woods. The concert, sponsored
by EAA Warbirds of America and the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), is
scheduled for Friday, July 30. It's the second EAA visit for Sinise,
best known for his role as Vietnam veteran Lt. Dan Taylor in the classic
film "Forrest Gump," and as star of the hit TV series
"CSI: New York." Sinise also plays bass in The Lt. Dan Band,
which made its first, hugely popular appearance at Oshkosh in 2008. Read
more
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L-39 INCIDENT MAKES NEWS
An incident from 2008 involving a pilot
flying over the ocean near the Santa Monica Pier made the national
news this week when the FAA took action against the pilot. Based on
details in the Los Angeles press, it appears that the incident does not
shed a good light on operators of experimental exhibition jet aircraft.
Most operators of these types of aircraft do an excellent job of
maintaining, operating, and exhibiting these aircraft in a manner in
which the Federal Air Regulations allow. It is unfortunate that
sometimes these aircraft are operated in a fashion that is not compliant
with the regulations. We in the warbird community all suffer the
consequences of those operations. Read
more
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YOUNG EAGLES PILOTS: GET
YOUR '10 FOR 2009'
Now that the fall flying season is here, it's a great time to share the
sky with a few more Young Eagles and ensure you've flown your "10
for 2009." All pilots who fly and register 10 or more Young Eagles
during the calendar year earn credits that can be used to help sponsor a
young person to attend an EAA Air Academy session next summer. Many
individual members and chapters pool their credits to establish
significant scholarship funds each year. In addition, the use of the
credits has
been expanded. Read
more. (See the current "10 for 2009" list here.)
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SKILES TO SPEAK AT EAA
WRIGHT MEMORIAL BANQUET
 Jeff
Skiles, Young Eagles co-chairman and First Officer of US Airways Flight
1549, will be the keynote speaker at EAA's 7th Annual Wright Brothers
Memorial Banquet scheduled for Friday, December 18, at the EAA
AirVenture Museum's Eagle Hangar in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The dinner
celebrates the 106th anniversary of Orville and Wilbur Wright's first
successful powered flight on December 17, 1903. Read
more
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U.S. SPORT AVIATION EXPO
PREPARES FOR SIXTH YEAR AT SEBRING
The first aviation trade show dedicated solely to sport
pilot/light-sport aircraft is gearing up its sixth run in Sebring,
Florida. The U.S. Sport Aviation Expo, commonly known as “Sebring,”
is just around the corner, January 21-24, 2010, at the Sebring Regional
Airport. This well-established aviation event showcases all different
kinds of LSA, along with a full schedule of EAA-coordinated forums. Ron
Wagner, EAA field operations manager, is putting together the forum
schedule and welcomes applications from potential presenters at rwagner@eaa.org.
Read more
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CAF LOSES COURT FIGHT TO
KEEP P-82
 The
United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit recently ruled in
favor of the National Museum of the United States Air Force (USAFM) in
the ownership dispute with the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) regarding a
P-82 Twin Mustang. While the ruling by the Court of Appeals supports the
original judgment of the District Court in July of 2009, CAF officials
are disappointed by the ruling. Read
more
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HOMEBUILDING HINT OF THE
WEEK: DUCTING: SCAT, SCEET, CAT & CEET
 Richard
Koehler talks you through the various types of ducting used on your
aircraft. Dick is a Technical Counselor for Chapter 186, an A&P
aircraft mechanic with Inspection Authorization (IA), and a SportAir
Workshop instructor. Watch
the video.
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EAA 'TIMELESS VOICE OF
THE WEEK': LEE LAMAR
 Lee
Lamar’s first airplane ride took place in a biplane at Kansas City’s
Municipal Airport (now Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport) in the
mid-1930s. A few months later he bought a $1.25 ride on Kansas City
barnstormer Ben Gregory’s Ford Trimotor, and after landing knew he
wanted to be a pilot. Lee enrolled at St. Joseph Junior College in 1939
and was accepted into the Civilian Pilot Training Program. After two
years of school and earning his private pilot ticket, Lee transferred to
the University of Missouri, and was there when Pearl Harbor was
attacked. Lee enlisted in the Army Air Force, and was called up in 1943.
He graduated from flight training as a Second Lieutenant with Class 44-B
on March 8, 1944, and was later trained as a copilot on a B-24 crew.
Assigned to the 760th Bomb Squadron of the 460th Bomb Group based at
Spinazzola, Italy, Lee flew 20 combat missions before having to bailout
of his stricken bomber on his 21st mission on November 18, 1944. He
evaded capture for a day before being captured and shipped to Stalag
Luft 1 near Barth, Germany. Watch
the video.
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SAVE
$5 ON MEN’S AND LADIES’ FLEECE JACKETS
 Take
the chill out of crisp fall days with this incredibly soft yet durable
Sierra Pacific full-zip anti-pill fleece jacket. Features full-zippered
front, convertible collar, oversized nylon reinforced front zippered
pockets, and elastic cuffs and hem. 100% polyester. EAA logo on left
chest. Men’s in Red with dyed-to-match zipper pull. Ladies’ in River
Blue with princess-line seams, lined sleeves and draw cord waist. On
sale this week only, get yours for $5 off the regular, non-member price.
Order
online or call toll-free, 800-564-6322.
 Also
save $5 on this Nylon/Fleece Reversible Vest. This weather-resistant
100% Tactel nylon vest reverses to a soft anti-pill fleece. Features EAA
logo embroidered on chest. Choose from Grey fleece with nylon in River
Blue or Black. Only $34.99 if you order
by November 18 (2X: $38.99).
CALL 800-564-6322 TO
RECEIVE OUR NEW FALL CATALOG OR DOWNLOAD
NOW.
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Pilots Wanted!
Can you help?
Join the Discussions
Post of the Week!
Brett Lovett of Liberty, MO, shares
a great picture and short but powerful story of a reunion of pilot
and airplane. At least one Oshkosh365 reader responded with a story of
their own. How about you - any similar tales to tell?
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If you have a suggestions and/or submission for EAA’s weekly AeroInnovations column, please send to
AeroInnovations editor Bob Waldron at aeroinnovations@eaa.org.
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First
Successful Helicopter Flight With Two Active Sidesticks
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A test pilot at the German Aerospace Center
(GAC) flew the first successful helicopter flight with two active
sidesticks controlling the aircraft instead of a conventional rotorcraft
control system. The active sidestick control system is designed to
provide higher flight safety by making the helicopter less complicated
to fly.
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X-Plane
Improves Blended Wing-Body Performance
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A joint NASA/Boeing project is using an
X-plane (research aircraft) to improve the performance of blended
wing-body aircraft. The X-48B is an unmanned scale model with a 21-foot
wingspan and three 55-pound-thrust gas turbine engines. Blended
wing-body designs have more challenges with high angle of attack
performances than do conventional aircraft, but improvements made
through more than 70 flights with this X-plane have overcome some of
those challenges.
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MSU
Building Advanced Hybrid Vehicle Engine
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Michigan State University (MSU) researchers
are developing a high-efficiency engine design for electric hybrid
vehicles. The MSU wave disk engine is designed to replace today's hybrid
vehicle engine/generator systems with a compact, lightweight power unit.
This engine technology has the potential for 500 percent improvement in
automotive fuel efficiency relative to conventional internal combustion
engines.
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Aircraft
Navigation Sensors From Robotics Specialists at IATech
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Entrepreneurs at Innovation Automation
Technologies design lower cost and higher quality navigation sensors for
aircraft and other vehicles. Based on their success with these
navigation sensor applications, IATech has developed autonomous unmanned
aircraft which are only a quarter of the cost of comparable aircraft and
require less training to launch and operate.
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Solar
Impulse Does Its First Engine Run Up
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The Solar Impulse, an aircraft designed to
fly around the world using only power from the sun, had its first engine
run up on November 6, 2009. The four electric motors were all
successfully powered up to 400 rpm. This was also the first time the
Solar Impulse has been fully assembled outside the hangar.
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| AeroInnovations aims to highlight developments that have potential to impact the future of aviation. EAA does not necessarily endorse the ideas, products, services or views contained therein. |
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ALUMINUM
OVERCAST IN THE LONE STAR STATE
 "B-17
Month" in Texas continues as Aluminum Overcast, EAA's Flying
Fortress, lands at Georgetown this weekend, November 13-15, hosted by
EAA Chapter 187. From there it’s on to Kerrville November 17-18 hosted
by EAA Chapter 747, and San Antonio November 20-22 hosted by EAA Chapter
35. Book a flight or get more tour
information at www.B17.org, or call
800-359-6217.
Visit EAA's
Fly the Fortress multimedia gallery.
Become a fan of EAA's B-17 Aluminum
Overcast Facebook
page!
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WHERE ARE YOU FLYING THIS
WEEKEND?
 EAA
Chapter 1241 Aviation Day in the Florida Keys - Marathon Airport
Terminal
On Saturday, November 14, Chapter 1241 holds its annual Aviation Day
Fly-In 10 a.m.-5 p.m. It's open to the public and admission is free! See
airplanes of all types including warbirds and a very active Young Eagles
event. Last year more than 1,500 visitors attended! Please come join us
as we reach out to the general public to inform them about general
aviation. All aircraft welcome! For more information visit http://eaamarathon.com,
or contact Frank Derfler at 305-853-5239.
EAA Chapter 1332 Breakfast Fly-In,
Vidalia Regional Airport, Georgia
Pancake breakfast fly-in served 7:30-10 a.m. For just $3.50 you can
enjoy eggs, sausage, and all you-can-eat pancakes. Stay and play, then
join the chapter for the 7 p.m. EAA Chapter 1332 monthly meeting.
Potluck supper served. For more information visit www.EAA1332.org,
or contact Donald Brantley at 912-293-2842.
To learn more about calendar events, or
to find/submit others, visit www.EAAcalendar.org. |
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Q
& A:
Question of
the Week
For EAA
Information Services
Is it possible to fly an adequately equipped
experimental gyroplane using an instrument rating in
another category/class?
Answer: The
simple answer is yes, with single pilot and no
passengers. The operating limitations allow it if
the aircraft is properly equipped. Since there is
not an instrument rating for gyroplanes, one needs
to fly under an instrument rating of another
category, i.e. airplane, helicopter, etc. One cannot
carry passengers if they are not properly rated but
there is not a limitation of using one's airplane
instrument rating.
Have a question?
To ask a question regarding government issues,
e-mail govt@eaa.org.
For questions about registration, airmen, aircraft
and medical certification, safety records,
performance, or any other matter, e-mail infoserv@eaa.org.
November
2009
EAA
Desktop Calendar
The Gilmore Red Lion should look familiar to
many of you, especially readers of Sport Aviation.
The aircraft, a Marquart Charger built by Mark
Gilmore of Muncie, Indiana, won the Grand Champion
Plans Built - Gold Lindy award at AirVenture this
year and graced the cover of our October issue. The
air-to-air photo was taken by EAA's Bonnie Kratz.
Download
this wallpaper image from the EAA
website, where you can choose among several different
resolutions to suit
your screen - including three wide-screen
sizes...or select an image from the archive. |
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BELITE
KITS NOW AVAILABLE
Belite Aircraft is now offering several kit configurations of its
single-seat Part 103 compliant ultralight at prices starting less than
$8,100. Belite has also announced the availability of its new,
lightweight carbon fiber 'hybrid' tail feathers; included in the quoted
kit prices. For those builders seeking to register their airplane as
experimental, Belite kits are expected to comply with the FAA's new
experimental aircraft ruling, AC 20-27G. (Part 103 assembly does not
require compliance to the new FAA ruling.) Find more information at www.beliteaircraft.com.
NEW PRESIDENT AT PIPER
Piper Aircraft announced last week that Piper Chief Executive Kevin J.
Gould will assume the company's presidency effective December 1, 2009.
Gould will add the president's title and responsibilities to his current
position as CEO upon Piper President John D. Becker's resignation,
effective December 1, 2009. Becker announced that he is leaving Piper to
pursue other career goals.
In addition, three Piper executives have
been promoted. Jeff Barger, formerly Senior Director of Piper
Manufacturing, is Piper's new Vice President of Manufacturing
Operations; Dennis D. Olcott, formerly Senior Director of Piper
Engineering, is the company's new Vice President of Engineering; and
Derek Zimmerman, who joined Piper as Senior Director of Supply Chain, is
the company's new Vice President, Supply Chain and Aftermarket
Development. Mary Messuti, formerly Director of Production Engineering,
is the company's new Senior Director, Asia. www.piper.com
FREE ONLINE: IDIOT'S
SPORT FLYING GUIDE
The Complete Idiot's Guide to Sport Flying is now available online, at
no charge, at www.SportFlyingGuide.com.
Articles range from how to fly planes to rules of the air. "I'm
offering my popular book online for free to introduce more people to the
fun of sport flying," says Dan Ramsey, EAA 739500, who co-authored
the book with Earl Downs and includes a foreword by EAA's Tom Poberezny.
Find it at www.SportFlyingGuide.com/EAA.
POWER FLOW OFFERS
TUNED EXHAUST FOR BONANZAS
Power Flow Systems has designed a tuned exhaust system for the Beech
Bonanza. The company plans on obtaining supplemental type certificates
for the IO-470, IO-520, and IO-550 configurations. Initial flight tests
revealed that Bonanza owners can expect an increase in cruise speed by
up to seven knots (four knots are guaranteed). When flying at
established cruise speeds, owners can expect a fuel savings of up to 1.5
gallons per hour, the company says. Learn more at www.powerflowsystems.com
or call 386-253-8833.
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