A Message From Our Chapter President, Ron Fritz (Nov '05)

There is quite a bit of information included in this month's column. First, Chapter 704 has been invited to join two local chapters in their upcoming events.

Chapter 211 in Grand Haven has invited Chapter 704 to join them at their annual Christmas party to be held in John Gill's hangar at the Sparta Airport. For two years now, our chapter has actually provided support to their party and this year they have invited us to join them. The date is Saturday, December 10. More information is contained later in the newsletter and the subject will be brought up at the upcoming meeting.

Chapter 145 in Grand Rapids is planning a group trip down to the Kalamazoo Air Zoo and has invited us to join them. The trip is planned for January 2006 but the actual date hasn't been set yet. I haven't been down to the new museum yet so this might be a good opportunity to check it out. More information will be presented in a future newsletter.

I like to see interaction between the local chapters as it gives the EAA members a chance to see what other groups are doing. For many years I've been a member in other chapters and have enjoyed this opportunity to see what others are doing and if some of their activities might be successful in our chapter. Things can get a little stale limited your EAA contact to one chapter only.

The November program will be very informative and one you should make every effort to see. I've invited long-time friend, Ken Fryling, to bring along his slide show on the restoration of Island Airways' Ford Trimotor. Island Airways owned and flew several Fords to the islands in Lake Erie, off Port Clinton, Ohio. They were all lost to accidents and the one you see in the photo below was taken to Kal-Aero in Kalamazoo and restored to flying condition. It was a monumental task and Ken was instrumental in seeing the plane restored to fly again. As a sidelight, one of the other Fords that was wrecked is now under restoration by the EAA Chapter in the Port Clinton area and will, hopefully, fly again.

Since the year is rapidly coming to a close, I hope all of you have your house chores done. The long, warm fall has allowed us to complete the chores we have put off to the end of the year. With the coming of cold weather we have to give thought to new challenges to flying. Although winter provides us with beautiful, clear flying days, there are new problems to consider before getting the plane out. We may touch on that at the November meeting but will take up the subject in greater detail in December.

I had the opportunity to attend the Fall Board meeting of the Vintage Aircraft Associatiion at Oshkosh in October. You may or may not know that I have the privilege of sitting on the Board of Directors of that association. For your information, the VAA is in very good health and looks forward to great year in 2006. At this annual meeting we all have the opportunity to attend the annual induction ceremonies for those being named to the EAA's Hall of Fame. It is a wonderful time and allows me to see many of my old friends that I've grown to know over the years

See you all at the meeting.

Just Plane Pics...

The following photographs were submitted
by John Smith for your enjoyment...

Aerocomp Turboprop w/ motorcycle
in baggage compartment

Closeup view of Aerocomp Turboprop w/ motorcycle
in baggage compartment

C-150 w/ rubber track gear

Jim Bede Round the World Unrefueled Aircraft

Modified Scwitzer Sailplane

Rocket Powered Long EZ

Attention chapter members, your photographs are welcome too. If you would like to share any aviation photos, please feel free to bring them to the next meeting or submit via email, eaa704@gmail.com

November (2005) Meeting Minutes

EAA Chapter 704 met for its regular monthly meeting on October 10, 2005 at the Sparta Airport.

The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by president Ron Fritz. The minutes and treasurers report were approved as printed in the newsletter.

President Fritz conducted a discussion of the feasibility of having a chapter building of its own. It was recalled that Tom Owens of Paramount Aviation had offered $5000.00 toward such a project. The consensus of the discussion was that such a structure would be quite expensive and the ongoing maintenance would be demanding, placing a fmancial burden on the chapter it was not prepared to handle. Though the offer made by Mr. Owens is greatly appreciated, the entire project is not within the financial ability of the chapter at this time.

President Fritz reminded the group that election of officers will be held at the next meeting and interested and/or willing persons should be ready to accept the leadership positions.

Vic Johnston gave an airport update. He stated that a large grant for runway improvement had been approved but the actual money may not be issued due to the unexpected government expenses resulting from the national disasters in the last few months. He sated that if the State of Michigan gets the money -- we will get the money and only time will tell.

A discussion of various members projects was held after which the meeting broke up for refreshments.

Ron Fritz then showed some very interesting old movies showing a number of different airplanes --some of which were his own. The movies may be old but the interest in them never dies. Thanks Ron. Meeting adjourned.

Respectfully submitted
Jay Dean, Secretary/Treasurer

Chapter 211 Christmas Party

Chapter 211 of Grand Haven has invited Chapter 704 members to join them at their annual Christmas party to be held in John Gill's hangar at the Sparta Airport.

•The Christmas party will be a potluck with everyone attending being asked to bring a dish to pass.

•Coffee and beverages will be provided.

•The party will start around 6:00 PM and we will be going through the food line between 6:30 and 7:00 PM.

•Dress is strickly casual and we hope to have a snow free area next to John's hangar to park in.

Aviation Wisdom

•It’s better to be down here wishing you were up there, than to be up there wishing you were down here.

•If the houses are getting bigger lift the pointy bit at the front.

•There is nothing more useless than runway behind you.

•A 'good' landing is one from which you can walk away. A 'great' landing is one after which they can use the plane again.

•When in doubt, hold on to your altitude. No one has ever collided with the sky.

•You’ve never got too much fuel unless you are on fire

A Message From Our Chapter President, Ron Fritz (Oct '05)

Here we are, fall is here and I bet most of you don’t have the chores done that you had hoped to finish before snow flies. That’s the case around my house and I doubt if they will get done before that time.

Our EAA year is winding down and elections are just around the corner. We have a good number of members in the chapter now and one of those lucky people will be your leader next year. I’ll keep this reminder in front of you in the newsletters and during the last three meetings.

Our chicken barbecue was not quite the success we had hoped for. Attendance was not what we would like to have seen. At least, we didn’t lose any money on the event and by selling leftover food, we were able to come a couple bucks to the good. I suppose there were several factors behind the small turnout, one being, that our expectations were a little too optimistic. In years past, we had some fantastic turnouts, one with over 300 people enjoying the food and flying camaraderie. Whatever, we should take a closer look at the circumstances and, perhaps, only plan a day for our chapter alone. That will be up to the 2006 officers.

For those who missed the last meeting, we brought up the possibility of the chapter building its own hangar/meeting place. That would be a tremendous undertaking and would require a huge obligation on the part of the chapter membership. It is something worth looking into. More on this at the October meeting.

See you all at the meeting.

October (2005) Meeting Minutes

EAA Chapter 704 held its regular monthly meeting on Monday September 12th 2005 at the Sparta Paul C. Miller Airport

The minutes and treasurers report from the previous meeting were approved as printed in the newsletter. The current check book balance is $2109.51, with $53.00 in cash on hand.

President Ron Fritz held a short business meeting primarily to discuss the very recent Chicken BBQ held for the club members and a number of friends. It had been hoped that the Club would at least break even financially and the final report indicates that we did just that with $17.14 left over. The total income was $633.00 and expenses came to $615.86. The real profit came in the fun we had getting together with family and friends over a very nice chicken dinner.

As usual there was work involved in getting everything set up and taken down but that all seems to "fall together". Once again a big thank you goes to Paramount Aviation for the use of their facilities. It is indeed the perfect location for such an event.

The program for the evening was put on by Bob Rector telling about the Powered Parachute. He should a factory video and also some slides taken at a group event up in Northern Michigan where they gather annually for a PP Fly-in at a farm offered for just this occasion.

Respectfully submitted
Jay Dean, Secretary/Treasurer

Top 25 Greatest Lies in Aviation

1. I'm from the FAA and I'm here to help you.
2. Me? I've never busted minimums.
3. We will be on time, maybe even early.
4. I've got the field in sight.
5. I have no interest in flying for the airlines.
6. I fixed it right the first time, it must have failed for other reasons.
7. I'm always glad to see the FAA.
8. I've got the traffic in sight.
9. I only need glasses for reading.
10. I broke out right at minimums.
11. The weather is gonna be alright; it's clearing to VFR.
12. Don't worry about the weight and balance -- it'll fly.
13. If we get a little lower I think we'll see the lights.
14. I'm 22, got 6000 hours, a four year degree & 3000 hours in a Lear.
15. We shipped the part yesterday.
16. Your plane will be ready by 2 o'clock.
17. All you have to do is follow the book.
18. Oh sure, no problem, I've got over 2000 hours in that aircraft.
19. It just came out of annual -- how could anything be wrong?
20. We'll be home by lunchtime.
21. I have 5000 hours total time, 3200 are actual instrument.
22. No need to look that up, I've got it all memorized.
23. Sure I can fly it -- it has wings, doesn't it?
24. Of course I know where we are.
25. I'm SURE the gear was down.

Chicken Barbecue

Date: Saturday, September 10

Where: Sparta Airport, Paramount Aviation Hangar.

Time: 12:00 PM until the chicken is gone or 2:00 PM.

The meal will consist of chicken, potato salad, baked beans, sweet corn, rolls and beverage.

Cost: The price will be $7.00 for a half chicken and $6.00 for a quarter chicken.

All Chapter 704 members are asked to bring a dessert to pass.

This will be a rain or shine event, so we hope we have a good turnout.

Chapters 145 and 211 have been invited as well as the Sparta Pilots
Association.

A Message From Our Chapter President, Ron Fritz (Sept '05)

It looks like September will be our busy month this year, as we will be putting on an invitational chicken barbecue for the first time in several years. This is always a difficult event to plan, as it is impossible to predict how many folks will show up. We aren’t ordering a lot of chicken as a result. All Chapter 704 members are asked to bring a dessert to pass. Plan to attend rain or shine as plans are pretty much finalized and we won’t be able to change them after September 2nd. Our members are asked to volunteer to help if they are needed as we’ll need food servers and preparers.

The September meeting will be held on the 12th. The program for the meeting will be put on by the powered parachute guys and will include a video of their recent trip up north. This should be a good program, so plan to attend.

See you all at the meeting.

September (2005) Meeting Minutes

EAA Chapter 704 held its regular monthly meeting on Monday August 8th 2005 at the Sparta Paul C. Miller Airport.

The minutes of the previous meeting were approved as printed in the Newsletter. The treasurer reported $1692.24 in the checkbook with $31.00 to be deposited and $50.00 in petty cash.

President Ron Fritz commented on the recent pancake breakfast and pronounced it a success. We received a check for $680.00 from the Lion’s Club as our share of the profits. A letter is to be sent to Paramount Aviation in appreciation for the use of their hangar and facilities during the event.

The Poker Run flying event conducted on August 6th by the Sparta Pilot’s Ass’n brought out 14 airplanes with nearly 24 people involved. Linda De Young won the pot for the best poker hand.
Vic Johnston, Airport manager, commented on the new fuel farm being constructed and said it should be operational around 8-15-05. An issue with the insurance has yet to be resolved.

The September 10th chicken BBQ was discussed. Wendell Beuschel will be cooking the chicken again and 704 will be providing the other items on the menu. The serving time will be close to noon with work parties gathering in the earlier hours of the morning to prepare the site. $7.00 was discussed as the price of the meal.

Tim and Lori Layne took a few moments to describe a couple of aspects of their business. They have the FAA approval for selling Sectional Charts at Sparta Airport but they also are starting another chart related service. Any pilot planning a cross country trip can obtain, through them, a flip over book containing all the enroute charts, the communication frequencies, airport information, navigational aids etc one might need. This is a very nicely assembled booklet much like the AAA triptic you get for road trips. This is designed to help the pilot with cockpit management to eliminate the cumbersome chart flipping, folding and unfolding that often creates distractions while trying to maintain control of the aircraft.

They also commented on a new service they have begun called “Pilots for Christ”. This is a mercy flight service to provide pilots and planes to provide emergency mercy services to people in need.

Following their presentation, John Smith spent some time discussing procedures for laying out patterns for making airplane parts from drawings. He used a wing rib as an example and demonstrated how to transfer data using draftsman techniques from the print onto wood to create a template. He stated that the techniques he used are those one learns in any class on mechanical drawing. He showed several of the instruments he uses in the procedures and demonstrated their use. He showed how to use a divider compass to establish a true 90 degree angle with techniques learned in high school plane geometry. He then showed how the French Curve was used to create the proper curves along the upper and lower wing rib. He stressed using quality instruments to insure accuracy.

Our thanks go to John for his presentation and to Tim and Lori Layne for advising us of their activities.

Meeting was adjourned 9:15 p.m.

Respectfully submitted
Jay Dean, Secretary/Treasurer

A Message From Our Chapter President, Ron Fritz (August '05)

We just returned from Oshkosh this morning and it suddenly dawned on me that our meeting is coming up in one week. So here are my remarks for the August newsletter.




Our July meeting was a little different with respects to the program. As most of you know, I’ve been involved with antique free flight planes and have gotten to know a lot of the local “old timers”. Karl Spielmaker has been modeling for nearly sixty years and is a walking history book on modeling. He has a nice collection of old engines and was kind enough to bring some up to show and run for you. We thank him for his efforts. He was joined by Ward Delano and Bob Pattison. I hope all of you had a good a time as I did.

The annual pancake breakfast came off well. We had excellent weather at Sparta and all had a good time. We thank Paramount Aviation for making their excellent facilities available for us. The weather around Sparta wasn’t all that good and that kept many planes from flying in. Our chapter members made a good showing and made the event a success. I haven’t heard if we made any money but hope to have that information available at the meeting.

Our next, and probably biggest effort of the year will happen on September 10 when we will put on chicken barbecue like we did in years past. We will be inviting the public as well as other chapters. We will have to finalize our plans at the August meeting so plan on that as being the largest part of the meeting. Our program will be a two-part program. John Smith will be showing us how to lay out an airfoil using coordinates provided. This is how things used to be done so it will be fun to see how things were done in days gone by. Also, members, Tim and Lori Layne will be talking about their new business located at the airport.

See you all at the meeting.