EAA 690 Veterans November 2018

EAA 690 at Air Venture 2017
Happy DC-3 Passengers
Flying Start - 2018
EAA 690 Youth Work the B-17
Jack Pelton - Christmas Party 2016
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Work has begun on a couple new projects at the airport, with full scale construction expected to start on Monday, June 17th. New access gates and roads are being installed, which change the way we gain access to our chapter hangar. The "dirt road" that we have become accustom to using is no longer available (see red lines on article image), with a new chain and lock having been added to prevent access. Instead, all traffic to our hangar(s) will be through the gate located near Advanced Aviation, until construction is complete.

For those who are not chapter members, and thus do not have the code to the gate located near Advanced Aviation, we will open the gate and force it to remain open for chapter functions.

Parking will remain in the areas it has always been (see green boxes on article image). Please be mindful of aircraft operating on the airport grounds and do not park in front of any hangars so that hangar owners may access their hangar (see green dashed line on article image).

EAA690HangarAccess

Initially the majority of the work is expected to be grading, hauling, relocating sewer lines, installing culverts, and other work that will be outside the airport operations area and will not impact airport operations.  However, eventually work will necessitate the temporary closure of taxiways, and the temporary closure of the runway in order to tie the new taxiway into the runway pavement.  Taxiway closures will be minimized, but some taxiways (e.g., Foxtrot and Golf) may be closed for extended periods.  Any runway closure will be limited to nights (9:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m. local) Monday through Friday. 

The contractor is working to develop a tentative time line showing when closures will be required. Once we have that information we will share it, understanding that the times may change due to weather or unexpected circumstances encountered in the field. Once a definite closure time has been established a NOTAM will be issued and an e-mail notice will be sent out. Please check NOTAMs to ensure you are aware of any closures that may be necessary.

To see the GDOT airport layout plans, please see http://myfiles.dot.ga.gov/Airport%20Layout%20Plans/LZU.pdf

As previously published we have pledged to contribute to the Ford Tri-Motor Wing Fundraiser.  Did you know we have a contest to win a Golden Age of Aviation Weekend Retreat?

Essentially, for every $100 donated to the Ford Tri-Motor Wing Restoration project, you get an entry into our drawing to win.  The drawing will be held July 18th at our monthly chapter meeting.  Everything in Oshkosh is taken care of, however the winner will be responsable for their own travel to/from Oshkosh.

Details about the Golden Age of Aviation Weekend Retreat:
Date: August 23-25, 2019
Friday, August 23, 2019
  • 6:30 PM Welcome Dinner in the Lodge
Saturday, August 24, 2019:
  • 8:00 AM Arrival/Welcome
    • At Pioneer Airport - Short Talk on Early Stages of Mail Delivery/Bi-Planes/Etc.
  • 8:30-10:30 AM Bi-Plane Ride or Helicopter Ride
  • 11:00 AM-12:00 PM Lunch at Lodge
  • 12:00 AM – 2:00 PM Ford History/Ground School (Lodge basement)
    • Cody Welch to provide history of the Tri-Motor with ground school.
  • 3:00 – 5:00 PM Tri-Motor Flight
    • Up close time with Ford
    • 35-45 minute flight with every passenger being allowed a right seat opportunity during flight.
    • Takeoff from Pioneer Airport.
  • 5:00 PM Catered Dinner at Lodge
  • 7:00 PM Movie at SkyScape Theater in Museum
Sunday, August 25, 2019:
  • 8:00 AM Breakfast at Lodge
  • 9:00-10:30 AM Bi-Plane Ride or Helicopter Ride
  • 11:00 AM - Departure

So be sure to donate today!

At the last Pancake Breakfast Greg announced that the chapter has indicated that it intends to raise $10,000 over the next three years to help EAA pay for the new wings for the airplane. 

Over the year’s visits from the Tri-Motor have brought revenue to the chapter. Beyond that, it has brought many visitors to our airport and lots of smiles on lots of faces of those that have ridden on the plane.

Last year the plane was removed from service when some corrosion was discovered in the wings.  These are the original 90-year-old wings.  A shop was found that could produce a new set of wings with a price tag of $1,000,000.  Of the total, chapters have been asked to commit $160,000 over the next three years.

The Board voted at their last meeting to commit the chapter to the $10,000 or Platinum level.  If the chapter can reach that commitment level, they will be given the following in recognition:

  • Golden Age of Aviation Weekend Retreat, August 9-11, 2019
    (for individual donors or chapter representative(s) only)
    An immersive experience at EAA including Bi-Plane or Helicopter rides, ground school, Ford Tri-Motor history lesson and extended flight experience, meals and an overnight stay at the Air Academy Lodge.
  • Ford Tri-Motor Certificate Suitable for Framing
  • Listing on a donor plaque in the aircraft
  • Recognition on EAA website and Annual Report

I’ve set up a donation item at the Square Marketplace https://mkt.com/eaa690/item/ford-tri-motor-wings-campaign for you to make your donation. To follow the progress of the project you can go to https://tingoose.eaa.org/

The new wings are complete and it is hoped that the plane will be back in the air by the end of March.

IMG 1926

In December of 2015 an idea was proposed to have a chapter build of an RV-12 for members of the chapter. It was to be funded through member donations and certain matching donations. By the end of January of 2016, we had donations totaling more than eight thousand dollars. We ordered the empennage kit and were off and running. By April of 2016 we placed the order for the fuselage kit as many members became involved and the airplane continued to take shape.

Construction continued through the end of 2016 and donations continued to come in and in January of 2017 we were able to order the wing kit. Work continued on and as the wings were nearing completion, we were able to order the finishing kit in August. Work continued on the finishing kit until recently. Unfortunately, the donations have stopped and we have not been in a position to order the remaining kits to complete the airplane.

A couple of months ago the BOD voted on a motion to do one of two things with the RV-12. We set the overall price of the plane at seventy-three thousand and four hundred dollars. One option was to have a club form that would provide the money to the chapter to order the remaining two kits, an amount of approximately fifty thousand dollars. Once the airplane was complete, its ownership would be transferred to the flying club and they would begin to pay the remaining twenty-three thousand and four hundred dollars back to the chapter over a three-year period at zero interest. John Post decided to take the lead on putting the flying club together and began to speak to folks that had indicated an interest in being part of the club. Although interest was expressed, money was not put forward.

The second option was to sell the airframe as is to a third party for the amount of twenty-three thousand and four hundred dollars. This would bring money back to the chapter and we could decide whether to pursue a different project or to do something else with the money from the sale. To that end, we have been advertising in Barnstormers and are hopeful of getting an ad in Trade-A-Plane soon.

Work on the plane has ended at this time. There is still an opportunity to fund the flying club and complete the airplane. That would be dependent on four to eight folks coming forward with capital necessary to order the remaining kits and complete the airplane. I would love to see this happen, if possible, but we will continue the effort to sell to a third party.