Last Flight of 2010

Today I was off of work to enjoy part of the New Years holiday so I spent a good portion of the day in the hangar.  My normal hangar flying buddies were not there today to distract me so I actually had a productive day working in the hangar.  Not that I think catching up on the airport stories is a waste of time... it just is a different type of aviation therapy to actually WORK in the hangar!

I unloaded some of the Christmas gifts out of the truck and spent a few minutes unpacking them.  One gift was a light weight drill from my parents.  My old drill had bit the dust a couple months back and I had resorted to the manual screw driver.  (Gasp!  Manual?!)  The big heavy drills for working around the house just aren't that good for working on the airplane.  With the battery charged I tried it out.  Works... and is not too heavy or too much power.

The next gift to be unpacked was a small six inch buffer from my father-in-law.  The Cyclo buffer/polisher is my polishing work horse but it can be heavy when trying to hit those vertical surfaces.  The new buffer can be palmed and is not heavy.  The rudder buffed out nicely with my normal procedure and using the new palm sized buffer!  A great gift and it will be useful for those higher vertical surfaces.

The weather was warm but windy with low clouds when I arrived mid-day.  As the day wore on I would peek out the hangar doors to do a weather check.  The clouds lifted and eventually cleared out.  So I wrapped up the polishing.  The windsock finally stopped its vigorous flapping so the classic Cessna was wheeled out for a flight.  It felt good to get up even if it was a short flight at sunset.  2010 wasn't a full year of flying but the Cessna helped get my feet off the ground for some much needed arial therapy.
Hope your 2010 was adventurous and may you have more Blue Skies in 2011.

Merry Christmas 2010

A fun story from the Warbird email circles... Merry Christmas!

Santa's Ride

THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS

'Twas the night before Christmas all over the place,
When we were confronted by an old flying ace.
There was icing reported and turbulent air ,
He said, "File me a flight plan, I gotta get there".

Outside sat his aircraft all ready to run,
And the old man walked out to that P-51.
"Bad weather's no problem," he silently mumbled,
The prop came to life...that big Merlin rumbled.

He eased in the throttle, the roar shook the ground,
He taxied on out and turned it around.
He went through the run-up and seemed satisfied,
Then he said to himself, "I'm in for a ride."

So he lined it up straight as he poured on the coal,
The tailwheel came up as he started to roll.
Up off the runway, he sucked up the gear,
And that mighty V-12 was all you could hear.

He screamed overhead with a deafening crack,
Blue flames flying from each little stack.
"He pulled up the nose and started to climb,
No ice on that airframe, it didn't have time. 

On top of the weather with the levers all set,
He looked up above him and saw a Learjet.
"With jet fuel and turbines there just ain't no class,
Gimmee pistons, and props and lots of avgas!"

Now he was approaching where he wanted to go.
But the weather had covered the runway with ice and with snow. 
How will he land it? We just have to guess, 
because the only way in was a full I-L-S.

Then over the outer marker, he started his run,
The ceiling was zero, visibility...none. 
Still going three hundred and he felt the need,
For an overhead break to diminish his speed.

Over the numbers he zoomed, along like a flash,
Pulled into his break, we just knew he would crash.
Oh, why do they do it on these kind of nights??
Then over the threshold, we saw landing lights.

I'm on a short final with three in the green,
And I see enough runway to land this machine.".
Then he tied down that Mustang, and they all heard him say,..
"Next year, I'm stickin' with my reindeer and sleigh.."

--author's name withheld by request--..........

...OK, I can't keep a secret..... 

Santa Claus

Clean Culver Cadet

This clean Culver Cadet was at the last Antique Airplane Assoc. meeting I went to over in Justin, Texas.  Owned, restored and flown by Gene Morris.  These are clean little ships and I have always liked their compact, sporty lines.  Much like one of my other favorites, the Globe Swift.  Just posting a picture as it is a great example of the rare Culver Cadet.  Check out this link I found for a web site dedicated to this classic speedster.

Corsair in Black

In a previous post I wrote about the fine craftsmen over in Germany at MeierMotors and their work on many recently imported World War Two fighters to that country.  The most recent project is the cosmetic restoration and repaint of an F4U-5 Corsair.  Take a look at the unique paint scheme this powerful fighter will wear!  An all black scheme of a Korean war era Corsair.  It is worth the ten to fifteen minutes to read through the WIX forum post on the research for the paint scheme and the history of this Corsair.  The pictures of its transformation are there as well.  A special thanks goes out to Matthias Dorst for allowing me to post his photo.

Links - WIX forum post on the Corsair - MeierMotors

P-38 Reunion Video

This just came to my attention. Wow... Great video from the recent P-38 reunion out in California.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GdzF_i7mPgs&feature=youtube_gdata_player


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Warbird T-Shirt Quilt

 In this day and age of reuse and recycle it is always fun to see something repurposed, especially when it pertains to our own personal interests.  My mom is an avid quilter.  I grew up staying warm in the winter months under her handiwork, and over the years our family has shared her interest in quilting.  As a matter of fact, we even owned a small quilt shop years ago.  It was a lot of fun learning how to run a small business, and have the opportunity to meet new people who shared the love of quilting.

In the local quilting scene mom became fast friends with a woman named Melinda Hamm Giacommarro.  Melinda has taken her own love of quilting to new heights and has made some rather unique creations.  She repurposes t-shirts by making them into one-of-a-kind quilts.  Over the years my mom had me stash away my old, worn out aviation t-shirts and this summer we finally pulled them out to give this t-shirt quilt thing a go.  

We sorted through the various types and styles and ultimately narrowed down our choices to the final 12 shirts that made the cut.  We’ve aptly named it the “Warbird Quilt”.  Like I said, we narrowed down our selections to just 12, so I have a very strong suspicion that this will be the first of many aviation themed t-shirt quilts to come.

We scheduled a meeting with Melinda at Bluebonnet T-shirt Quilts to show her the t-shirts we had picked. We then reviewed the layout and the quilting.  I have to admit I was overwhelmed by the numerous options that could be added!  The creativity flowed and we came up with a good number of designs.  Each block would have its own coordinating theme.  Here is a breakdown of what we finally decided on:

1. The Corsair t-shirt block has the Blacksheep Squadron patch quilted in it.
2. The P-38 block is embellished with lightning bolts.
3. The War Bond poster block has aviator goggles.
4. The Super Corsair block has the “flying man” logo from the Cleveland Air Races.
5. The Keep ‘Em Flying block has Stars and Bars.
6. The Hamilton Standard block has the propeller from the airplane logo.
7. The Fighter Rebuilders block has a world globe.
8. The Old Glory B-25 block has American flags.
9. The Southern Cross Sea Fury block has the Australian roundel.
10. The Memphis Belle block has a 25 missions bomb.
11. The Pratt and Whittney block has eagles.
12. The Me-262 block has clouds.  

Not only are each of the individual blocks uniquely quilted, but we even decided on detailing all the way around the edges!  Quilted into the borders are the names of the airshows we have attended over the years where I purchased these t-shirts.  Also in the borders are the American Stars and Bars with the phrase  “Keep ‘Em Flying.”  All these designs are quilted into the background of the quilt!  One other very cool and unique aspect is that when you turn the quilt over, all of the quilting details and patterns are easily seen.   A lighter colored backing was put on it so the beauty and workmanship would stand out.  Melinda really cranked up the creativity and blew us away!

For this aviation enthusiast my new quilt is an awesome blend of repurposing the old, worn out, but highly treasured t-shirts and making them into a piece of art I can show off to friends and family!  And, my wife and I can slide the quilt off the back of the couch to warm up while watching a movie.  Do you have a closet full of airshow t-shirts you don’t know what to do with?  I highly recommend Melinda at Bluebonnet T-shirt Quilts** to preserve all of your special memories!

**Melinda Hamm Giacomarro is an exceptional quilter.  She has made hundreds of beautiful and creative creations for folks with a variety of themes including:  Disney, High School, College, and Vacation Themes among others.  If you have a pile of old t-shirts that you just can’t seem to part with, but no longer wear, here is a practical way to preserve those memories and give new life to something old and treasured!  To contact Melinda email her at melindaquilts “at” gmail.com.

Aviation Magazine Collection

As I have noted before on this blog I am organizing a rather large collection of aviation magazines.  This weekend I added to it with several more boxes!  Like a truck full of boxes!  It is one of those aviation collectables that can be very focused or very broad.  Which titles do I focus on?  Which years do I keep?  When boxes and boxes are passed on to me I know I wont keep ALL of them even though I may want to!  Each box may have a few keepers or be full of keepers. The 1940s SKYWAYS were added to the keeper box along with some 1940s and 1950s FLYING and some of the first editions of AIR CLASSICs.  So... I can see myself in a few weeks sitting by the wood stove in the living room with a pile of magazines to glean more aviation history from.  Anyone looking for some rare magazines?  I might just have a copy!

My list of winter projects is now growing... update web sites... sort magazines... post a few items on eBay... oh and polish the Cessna while it is not 100 deg. outside!

Harpoon 84062 Recovery

The aviators dream of a Jenny in a barn, a Mustang in an old hangar or a Cub in a garage make up the stories for books.  When the airplanes are larger sometimes you might find them sitting outside!  Years ago on our families route to church there was a Cessna 195 sitting outside behind a house.  If they are bigger than a 195 they might be more obvious commanding a spot on the ramp of a local airport.  It appears that Taigh Raimey and his crew at Vintage Aircraft found an airplane that they could not let go to the scrap heap.  A PV-2 Harpoon (84062) was sitting on some land that had sold in California.  The tired Harpoon was a fire bomber and had been sitting since 1994!  It only has about 800 hours on it since new!  The mission to save the Harpoon was a success and Taigh tells a fantastic story over on the WIX forum.  Check out the story here.  After you read the story check out the videos here!

Links - WIX - Vintage Aircraft

Texas Antique Fly-In 2010

The 48th Annual Texas Antique Airplane Association Fly-In enjoyed clear blue skies and pleasant temperatures this past October 8&9.  This year I drove up on Friday night to help the set up for the event and be an extra pair of hands for the dinner. During the evening the aircraft owners and pilots were treated to great food and even a new motion picture “Pearl” that featured several antique aircraft.

On Saturday my wife, Candice and I flew the 170 up and spent the entire day on site.  The weather was perfect for sitting under the wing of the Cessna visiting with friends and family.  I even gave a few rides to family and a group of Young Eagles. We flew home at sunset after one of the most enjoyable fly-in events of the year!

Over 120 airplanes of all types were on display for the local enthusiasts to survey. Classic Cessnas, Pipers and Aeroncas showed in good numbers along with many unique antiques and a few Warbird trainers.  This years grand champion was the beautiful 1948 Luscombe Sedan NC1666B owned by Fred Ramin. Other award winners were the 1941 Culver Cadet NC34791, the 1941 Waco UPF-7 NC32035, the 1946 Fairchild 24 NC81363, the 1941 Fairchild PT-26 N9474H and the 1962 Navion Rangemaster N262CC. With Texas being the home to many rare and lovely antiques the air was in constant motion with vintage flying machines from another time. This event is one to add on the calendar for 2011.

Links - The Movie "Pearl" - Texas Antique Airplane Association - Antique Airplane Association

Miss Veedol - 79 Years Ago Today

An email crossed my desk today with this bit of history...


Oct. 5, 1931 was the first time an aviator ever flew non-stop across the Pacific Ocean. That aviator was Clyde Edward Pangborn, native of Bridgeport, Washington, along with his not very able co-pilot, Hugh Herndon. And he did it without any sort of spells, charms, or other magical intervention.


Miss Veedol - the airplane.


Clyde Pangborn - the man.

2010 Texas Antique Airplane Fly-In

Come on out the the Texas Antique Airplane Fly-In Oct. 8-9!

http://www.texasantiqueairplane.org/flyin