Recently, Chapter 1311 has had several new members join who have expressed an interest in learning to fly, building an aircraft, partnering in an existing aircraft, or were looking for a Tech Counselor or other aviation-related service or skill. While the newsletter editor knows most of you he doesn't know all about you. We'd like to offer to our members to opportunity for more of you to network with the new members and make your skills known.
Support Our Servicemen
SERVICEMAN UPDATE NEEDED: In December of 2002 Jim Griffin joined Chapter 1311. Shortly before the war with Iraq started Jim signed back up as a Major with the Marines and has been serving in Iraq. He had been receiving the newsletter via email but this past couple of months the emails to him have come back as undeliverable. If anyone knows how to contact Jim, or knows of his whereabouts or of any way to track him down, please contact the newsletter editor at michaelandkatie@tds.net.
Boone County Airport News
The club will be buying volunteer t-shirts, and volunteers will get free food and drink. Contact Chuck Long (317-892-3146) for Young Eagles, Michael Mossman (765-483-9533) for food service, or Wayne Deckard (317-370-7930) for any other volunteer work you might be able to do.
Hangar Space
There are several hangar vacancies available. Anyone desiring to base an aircraft at the airport or use the maintenance hangar will be required to join the association. For more information contact Michael Mossman, association secretary, or see the website http://www.booneairport.org. Rents range from $75 to $110 per month for "open air" hangars, with a one-time $100 application fee required to join. Benefits include access to the maintenance hangar, right to bring in your own mechanic to do your annual or repairs, use of the operations building and a steady supply of low-cost 100 LL (currently about $3.20 per gallon).
Young Eagles
Let's continue to introduce kids to the experience of flight and share our passion for aviation. Hopefully we'll inspire more kids to seek careers in aviation or maybe to just study hard, get good jobs and follow in our footsteps. If you would like a copy of the Young Eagles form download it at http://www.eaa1311.org/PDF_files/Young_Eagles_form.pdf
EAA Young Eagles Update: By newsletter publication date more than 1,223,460 Young Eagles have taken their first airplane ride.
Editorial Comments Sought
Calendar of Events
July 5-9 - Northwest EAA Fly-In, Arlington Municipal Airport (AWO), Arlington WA. For more information see http://www.nweaa.org
July 9 Hanover IN - Sinful Sundays at Lee Bottom Field, ice cream fly-in desserts, 1-3 p.m. Information: http://www.LeeBottom.com or email info@LeeBottom.com
July 24-30 - EAA AirVenture Oshkosh, Wittman Regional Airport (OSH), Oshkosh WI. For more information see http://www.airventure.org
August 13 Hanover IN - Sinful Sundays at Lee Bottom Field, ice cream fly-in desserts, 1-3 p.m. Information: http://www.LeeBottom.com or email info@LeeBottom.com
August 19 - North Vernon Airport Awareness Day, North Vernon IN
August 25-27 - EAA Mid-Eastern Regional Fly-In, Marion Municipal Airport (MNN), Marion OH.
September 23 - Paoli Aviation Day, Paoli IN
September 30 - 10th Annual Wood, Fabric & Tailwheels Fly-In, Lee Bottom Flying Field, Hanover IN. For more information see http://www.leebottom.com
September 30-October 1 - Virginia Regional EAA Fly-In, Dinwiddie Co. Aiport (PTB), Petersburg, VA. For more information see http://www.vaeaa.org
October 6-8 - EAA Southeast Regional Fly-In, Middleton Field Airport (GZH), Evergreen AL. For more information see http://serfi.org
October 7 - EAA Chapter 67 Annual Fly-In Barbecue, Noblesville Airport I80. For more information see http://eaa67.org
October 26-29 - Copperstate Regional EAA Fly-In, Casa Grande (AZ) Municipal Airport (CGZ). For more information see http://www.copperstate.org
For details on EAA Chapter fly-ins and other local aviation events, visit http://www.eaa.org/events
Special note: There are many events that don't get on the calendar due to various reasons, but the most common is that the information never got to the newsletter editor. If you know of an event that should be listed here please notify the newsletter editor at michaelandkatie@tds.net as soon as possible. Try to provide as much information as you can, including the date, location and who to contact for more information.
Next Meeting
On the Radar:
Chapter 1311 Board of Directors for 2006
Newsletter editor: Michael Mossman
Classified Ads
FOR SALE: Custom composite 6.24"-wide panel flush-mount for Garmin GPS 296 or 396, $75 Contact Larry Rush k9hxt@sbcglobal.net
FOR SALE: O-470 engine. Contact Bob Vondersaar bobandteresa78@msn.com for details.
FOR SALE: Four sets of very nice Koss headphones. Contact Michael Mossman michaelandkatie@tds.net for details or to make offer. Proceeds benefit Chapter 1311.
FOR SALE: Three lighted and adjustable "flight desks" for aircraft installation. Contact Michael Mossman michaelandkatie@tds.net for details or to make offer. Proceeds benefit Chapter 1311.
FOR SALE: Stinson L-5 Landing gear Struts. Contact Kenny Shull 317-539-5542.
FOR SALE: Complete Van's RV-6A project with sliding canopy, 160 hp Lycoming engine, new Sensenich fixed pitch metal prop, Vetterman stainless steel exhaust system, some options and small items included. $27,500 John Edwards, 317 539-2737 after 10 a.m.
AIRCRAFT WANTED: Sport Pilot aircraft. Contact Gus Gustafson at 317-293-4430 or dalefaye@msn.com
AIRCRAFT FOR SALE: Cessna 150, currently in Florida. Contact Gus Gustafson at 317-293-4430 or dalefaye@msn.com
AIRCRAFT FOR SALE: 1957 Cessna 172, nicely equipped for VFR, Horton STOL kit, aileron and flap gap seals. Contact Tom Chapman cell 317-625-3126, Home 317-888-6866 or tschapman1@aol.com
WANTED TO BUY: Hirth 2702 engine with a 2.59 G-50 reduction unit. Contact Doug Moncreiff at 317-280-1621 or cmoncreiff@netzero.net
WANTED TO BUY: Used 4-foot brake and 4-foot shear. Contact Troy Grover, 317-919-6594 (cell phone), rv6grover@netzero
WANTED TO BUY: Headsets and intercom. Contact Mark Rinehart, 317-745-2466, capt_riney@yahoo.com
HANGAR FOR SUBLET: Space available at 2R2 while Luscombe is being restored. Contact Alan Ward 317-446-0785 or Silvaire8A@aol.com
2006 Membership Roster
See our chapter roster online at http://www.eaa1311.org/memberroster.html
Did we miss anybody? Please let us know; we'll get it updated right away.
Dues Note
Harpooning, But of the Aeronautical Variety
The Harpoon was the last derivative of a succession of twin engine medium bombers that Lockheed produced during WW II. The roots of the design configuration lay in the model 10 Electra, the type that Amelia Earhart was lost in. That airframe developed into the model 12 Electra and model 14 super Electra, as well as the model 18 Lodestar. Along about the model 14, a branch of the family tree forked off to make the Hudson bomber for the British. Other variants were delivered to the USAAF as Lexingtons. These were then developed into the PV-1 Ventura for the USN, and ultimately into the PV-2 Harpoon. The Ventura was known as a rather 'hot ship' as it was both a very fast plane in flight, and fast to hurt you with an engine out. The Harpoon featured the same engines as the Ventura, 2,000 hp Pratt & Whitney R-2800's, but its wingspan was increased from 65 feet to 75 feet, its fuel capacity was increased, and its maximum takeoff weight upped from 31,000 pounds to 33,000 pounds. The net effect was to increase the aircraft's range from 1,600 miles to 1,800 miles while reducing its maximum speed from about 300 mph to 280 mph.
This particular airframe has been through several owners, and actually started its restoration in Texas. It was acquired by a group here in the Indy area, and has been slowly upgraded since. Unfortunately, the interior is still essentially devoid of military detail but for the upper turret. About the time I became involved, they were in the process of installing a new engine. It's quite an undertaking when you only have volunteer labor on nice weekends, but we finally got the engine swap and related issues finished off. Working on this aircraft has been an educational and rewarding experience to say the least, and I've gained a number of skill sets I hadn't anticipated. I can now definitively say I can jack the plane, remove the 16x16.00 main wheel, and swap out the brakes by myself. I've gotten to work on the hydraulic system, the electrical system, and have changed a whole lot of spark plugs. The list goes on and on, and I love it.
The plane was finally together and ready to fly a week before last year's Terre Haute airshow. We had all attended a mandatory ground school earlier in the year, and were anxious to go flying. Logistics were critical, and although I was the junior member, I was also free to train and help fly the plane. I believe it was on a Monday that two PICs trained each other under a waiver from the FAA and then jumped right into their checkrides with an independent check airman. The reason for the waiver was that at that moment in time, there were precisely zero current and qualified Harpoon pilots on the planet. That being the case, they had to 'bootstrap' themselves to the point of passing a checkride before either could act as PIC with anyone else on board. As soon as that was done, I hopped in for my flight training.
The flight training that day included ground ops, two take offs and landings, and some airwork including steep turns and stalls. The taxi and checklist processes are pretty normal but for two things. First, from that cockpit you can pretty well look right over anything else moving on a GA ramp, and second, when it's time to turn, the PIC will call for the SIC to unlock the tailwheel and then lock it again when tracking straight. Runup is completely normal and just as you might expect for an Apache, save for that sound. The plane's runway characteristics aren't bad, but with a nose-high three point attitude and all that power, it's important to lead with the left throttle on take off, especially since there are no brakes for the right seater. Take off power is 2,700 rpm and 52 inches (!!) of manifold pressure. It's a manly sounding beast, to be sure, and at this point we stop using the intercom and noise canceling headsets, and revert to hand signals for crew communication. Initially we use aft yoke to hold the tail down for better directional authority, and then transition to significant forward pressure to raise the tail and keep the plane on the ground while we accelerate. This brings us to an idiosyncrasy of the plane. Its design predates many of the safety concepts we take for granted these days. For example, the plane will lift off quite happily at about 70 knots or so unless you are holding lots of forward pressure. Unfortunately, minimum controllable airspeed is on the order of 105. This basically meant that losing an engine on takeoff during wartime ops would likely result in a crash. Our operation requires holding the plane down to accelerate to a much safer speed than was originally used for liftoff.
Once airborne, the gear is retracted and the power is reduced as soon as practical. Although the engines will maintain takeoff power quite easily, they do so at 300 gallons per hour ... per side. Climb is unremarkable, and levelling off and setting cruise power yields about 150 KIAS. The cowl flaps and oil cooler shutters are worked towards their closed positions to keep all the temps where they belong. The plane handles reasonably in roll, but is very speed stable and therefore pretty heavy in pitch. It pretty well takes the proverbial 'two men and a boy' to flare or stall the plane. Stalls are accompanied by a buffet and perhaps a little wing drop, but are unremarkable on the whole. It also takes a significant pull to maintain altitude in steep turns. Predictably, it is quite stable and has a strong tendency to go wherever you point it.
One consideration that was new to me was to maintain a minimum manifold pressure of about 19 inches. The problem is that this engine is geared at a 2:1 ratio, and having the prop drive the engine does bad things to it. Maintaining that minimum MP helps protect the engine, but it makes descent planning a little different. The landing pattern is a little different than I was used to as well, since the landing gear is available at 150 kts and the flaps are limited to 120. Consequently we extend the gear first on downwind. Abeam touchdown we extend 1/4 flaps. This is an occasion for close airspeed control, as the single engine best rate of climb speed, or 'blue line,' is 115 kts, which only affords us a five-knot window for safe operation. On base leg we extend 1/2 flaps, and when landing is assured we go to full flaps. We cross the fence at idle and 85 to 90 kts and test the security of the seatbelt while pulling for the flare. Cheated death again! We taxi back and execute another pattern before the sun sets.
Glen Matejcek is an ATP rated pilot who has flown the "Big Iron" for USAir and ATA, and currently is crewing on a Westwind. He and his wife, Robin, are building an RV-8.
Be sure let the newsletter editor know if any of our members or their families has someone in the service, especially if they have been called up for active duty. We'd like to recognize them and thank them for representing us so honorably.
Open House
The association is hosting their annual "Affordable Flying" Open House on Saturday, June 17. This is a free offering to the non-flying public, trying to get them interested in aviation. The association can take care of everything before and after the event but being a club with only about 30 members, they will need some extra help the day of the event.
Chuck Long is organizing a Young Eagles event the morning of the Boone County Airport's open house on Saturday, June 17. Volunteers are needed for flying and ground support. Contact Chuck at charles.long@GM.com.
If you have an opinion on any story that appears in the newsletter, or any other aviation-related issue, we want to read about it. We will make editorial space available for your responsible comment. Please contact the newsletter editor at michaelandkatie@tds.net then send it to the newsletter editor at michaelandkatie@tds.net. Or just write what you wish and send it as an email.
June 24-25 - Rocky Mountain EAA Regional Fly-In, Front Range Airport (FTG), Watkins CO. For more information see http://www.rmrfi.org
The next meeting will be Wednesday, July 5, 6:30 p.m. at Hendricks County Airport (2R2) operations building. Program: TBA.
July 5 - TBA
August 2 - TBA
September 6 - TBA
October 4 - TBA
November 1 - Chapter elections. Program TBA
December - Christmas Party
President: Dale "Gus" Gustafson
Vice President: Dennis Crawley
Secretary: Michael Mossman
Treasurer: Vern Sullenger
Director: Dave Helton
Director: Glen Matejcek
Director: Paul Vogel
FOR SALE: Brand new Airwolf oil filter system, still in the box. Paid $ 510, will take $ 300. Fits all Lycoming motors, has STC. Dave Helton, 317-590-5001 or dhelton@iquest.net
Current as of June 7, 2006
NAME EMAIL ADDRESS PROJECT(S) BROYLES, John JohnC-DELTA@worldnet.att.net - BUDNY, Skip skbudny@tds.net Mini 500 helicopter BYRUM, Jon jbyrum@byrumarchitects.net RV-7A CHAPMAN, Jeff PoP6756@aol.com Piper Tri-Pacer CHAPMAN, Tom tschapman1@aol.com 1957 Cessna 172 CLARK, David davecpd@iquest.net Restoring 1946 Aeronca Chief CRAWLEY, Dennis Crawley27@comcast.net Grumman Tiger DAVIDSON, Ginger planecrazy13@att.net RV3 DAVIDSON, Rich ifitsoldillflyit@msn.com RV3 GRIFFIN, Jim jimg@netcapade.net Questar Venture GROVER, Troy rv6grover@sbcglobal.net RV10 GUSTAFSON, Dale DALEFAYE@msn.com Piper J-4 HELTON, Dave dhelton@iquest.net Piper Tri-Pacer HENDERSON, Robert robert_10215@msn.com Christavia MK2 HILL, Ken khill5@indy.rr.com RV-9A KOPESCHKA, Dave iedvk@iquest.net -- KOPESCHKA, Steve stephen.j.kopeschka@rolls-royce.com Little Wing Autogyro LeBARON, Tim tjlebaron@sbcglobal.net RV8, Breezy, 1946 Ercoupe LEWIS, Jimmy rudder4@aol.com RV-7A LONG, Chuck charles.long@GM.com Zenair 601 HDS MATEJCEK, Glen aerobubba@earthlink.net RV8 MATEJCEK, Robin aerobubba@earthlink.net RV8 MCCORD, PAUL pfmccord@gmail.com RV-4, Kolb FireStar LSA MELCHIOR, Dirk d-r-melchior@msn.com F1 Rocket MONCREIFF, Doug cmoncreiff@netzero.net Ultralights, LSPA MOSSMAN, Michael m_mossman@enovationgraphics.com Zenair 601 HDS NG, Bart bng@math.iupui.edu RV-7A NOLAN, Bill TBA -- REYNOLDS, Gary n98gr@aol.com RV6A RINEHART, Mark capt_riney@yahoo.com Kolb Mark III Classic ROEVER, Doug dmroever@iquest.net RV-7 Tail kit ROLDAN, Erick Phone 765-482-7287 Ducted fan research ROTTLER, Mark mark@rottler.org - RUSH, Larry k9hxt@sbcglobal.net RV6A, RV-8 SHULL, Kenny Phone 317-539-5542 Helping Others SHUMAKER, Kim kkrv-9a@sbcglobal.net RV-9A SULLENGER, Vern sullenger@iquest.net Cherokee 140, RV-7A UTLEY, Ted ted.utley@in.ngb.army.mil - UTTERBACK, Tom Phone 317-839-2505 - VOGEL, Paul pvogel@indy.rr.com Helping others VONDERSAAR, Bob rvondersaar@austin.rr.com Steen Skybolt VONDERSAAR, Teresa tvondersaar@ausin.rr.com Steen Skybolt
A few members paid their dues for 2006 but Vern doesn't have the list with the names. If you paid but are not listed as a 2006 member, please send and email to both Vern Sullenger sullenger@iquest.net and Michael Mossman michaelandkatie@tds.net so we can get the records corrected.
By Glen Matejcek
My involvement in aviation has had me spending time in, and sometimes moving to, rather a few locations around the country. Being the aviation junkie that I am, when time permits I have a tendency to snoop around and see what sort of interesting aviation activities can be found. One facet of this has been to visit aviation museums. This has led to my involvement in several of them, including doing some very interesting restoration work as well as getting to fly a couple of historic airplanes. One of the highlights was getting to crew the Mid Atlantic Air Museum's (http://www.maam.org) R4D-6 (Navy DC-3) on a trip to Andrews Air Force base for an open house. This aircraft was notable as it had been awarded both Best Transport and Grand Champion Warbird at Oshkosh. I don't believe any other aircraft can lay claim to that distinction! Another neat experience was working on the restoration of the Douglas D-558-III Skystreak at the Carolinas Historic Aviation Commission (http://www.carolinasaviation.org). It was the last of three Skystreaks built, and was flown numerous times by the late Scott Crossfield, among others.
Several years ago I became involved with the American Military Heritage Foundation, which is based at the Mount Comfort Airport on the east side of Indianapolis. The core activity of AMHF is the operation of the last Lockheed PV-2 Harpoon on the airshow circuit. There were several others performing in airshows, but sadly they have all been lost. The good news is that there are several more undergoing restoration, including a pair that Kermit Weeks is working on. I'm sure those two will be spectacular!
Ventura and Harpoon aircraft were used by the Navy and the Marine Corps for just about everything but dropping airborne troops. Anti-submarine warfare, surface ship attack, ground attack, and even night fighter were roles filled by these aircraft. The particular aircraft that AMHF operates was en route to the Aleutian islands for bombing missions against the Japanese home islands when hostilities ceased, so it is not a combat veteran. Unless, of course, you want to consider the civilian time it spent as a 'mosquito bomber,' but I digress.
We had already done the cockpit familiarization drills, so we got right down to work with some engine starts. The process involves the SIC accelerating the starter for 20 seconds and then engaging the starter. The PIC then brings the mixture out of the cutoff position and into auto lean. The SIC maintains starter engagement while modulating the primer valve to get a smooth start. It takes a little practice to get a feel for starting the engine without any belching, banging or fire balls. You may wonder how I know that ... but the reward for doing it correctly is an engine that wakes up smoothly into a deep, throaty idle that just makes you grin.
The next time the planets align for us to train was the following Friday. Another SIC flew his complete training sortie, and then I got my third take off and landing while moving the plane from Mt Comfort to Terre Haute. Nothing remarkable on this flight, and our ground crew was there to meet us and take us home. Saturday the Harpoon was a static display during the airshow. Sunday morning we arrive in time to load up our stuff and go to the airshow briefing. This is a mandatory meeting where details of the performance are coordinated. After the brief, we have about enough time to do the several tasks needed before saddling up and flying the show. On this occasion, we started up and headed over to the 'hot pad' at the north end of the main runway and on the side opposite the crowd. It was a hot day and we had all the windows and hatches open, and were generally enjoying sharing some concrete with the B-25 and B-17 we would be flying our portion of the show with. Then came the highlight of my experience there. I felt as if someone had reached in the open window and pushed on the side of my head. Not real hard, but a definite push. It seems a Corsair was doing his routine and had passed us from behind. About 10 feet higher than our wingtip, and a half span or so outboard of us. On that day, he was almost certainly doing on the order of .70 Mach or better, and what I had felt was the pressure wave of his passage. Our flight engineer, standing aft of the cockpit, felt it as well. YOW! The Corsair made several more passes, providing us with a breeze each time. During one head-on pass, I swear I was looking slightly down at him. Then it was our turn to fly. We made several passes down the runway, in trail with the other bombers, and then departed the pattern to the north. Next stop: Oshkosh. Well, almost. First we had to declare ... but that's another story!