MAY 2016 The Prez Sez Hello and a happy Spring to all 526 members and reconnoiterers of aircraft building and flying. My wife and I enjoyed our two month RV (not the aircraft) vacation in the Southeast, but it’s great to be home where the weather is the best. I noticed the improvements to the hangar right away. Many thanks to Spic and Span and their team who picked through the mess and hauled off unneeded hardware. There is more room now and the it looks much cleaner. I look forward to implementing some of the other hangar improvements members have suggested. Our best to Tom Brady, Dan Wojdac, and anyone else recovering from illness or surgery. May you all be blessed with good health to enjoy flying, building aircraft, and the other hobbies you enjoy. The days are longer, the weather is better and I am anticipating seeing everyone at our next meeting this Wednesday. Come an hour early to pick great food from our new grilling machine and great ideas from the brains of our veteran craftsmen. So if you are thinking of an old or new project, join us to throw a Spring shower on those seeds of thought........Ivan
Next meeting: Wednesday, May 11, 2016 BBQ starts at 6:00p Meeting starts at 7:00p
Hangar Manager's Report The quadrennial hangar clean-up went well, you will all see the difference. We took a full pick-up to the Auburn Dump, and a lot of misc. things went to new homes including our WWII drone target engine. Many thanks to all who helped, the team-work made it painless.
The chapter has a new barbecue, and we will do it's "maiden flight" this week, at the chapter meeting. Burgers dogs and chicken will be the usual menu with trimmings. This MAY be the "last supper" unless some chapter members step up and take over the overall responsibility of doing the planning, purchasing and setup. Jack Prock has volunteered to command the cooking duty with help. The new hangar's "Wi-fi" is in and performing well, enhancing the hangar area security with the closed circuit cameras, thanks to Dan, Steve, Duane, and others who contributed to that installation.
Young Eagles Report Our first Young Eagles event of the year was held Saturday, April 16. Seventeen Young Eagles were flown by a total of eight Chapter members.
Don Garrison prepares a Young Eagle for flight.
Lynn Cook does a pre-flight briefing for two Young Eagles and their parents.
We expect a much larger crowd for the next event on Saturday, May 14. We have been told we will have a group of 25 Girl Scouts in addition to the usual number of youngsters. The Girl Scouts will be there early so that they can attend another event on the field later in the morning. If you can fly Young Eagles or work as ground crew on May 14, please arrive by 7:30a. We will need all of the volunteers we can get. In order for the Chapter to get credits from EAA for use in sponsoring a youth at the Air Academy, pilots need to fly a minimum of ten Young Eagles per calendar year. To help pilots keep track of their numbers, we are providing a web page with current stats. It can be seen by clicking here. In addition to showing the totals of Young Eagles flown, the chart lists the -2-
number of Young Eagles flights by each pilot. This should give more recognition to those with two-place aircraft. They have to make more flights in order to carry the same number of Young Eagles. Please note that registration/waiver forms can no longer be distributed or signed in advance. They must be completed at the sign-in desk at the Chapter hangar on the morning of the event. A parent or legal guardian must be present. Reminder: EAA national requirements for the Youth Protection Policy and Program took effect on May 1, 2016. In order to participate in our Young Eagles events (as pilot or ground crew), you must comply with those requirements. It only takes a few minutes to fill out the online form. Results usually are available within 24 hours. If you haven't already signed up, here is a link: http://www.eaa.org/en/eaa/aviation-education-and-resources/eaa-youth-ed ucation/youth-protection-policy-and-program .
NTSB: Pilot Skipped Safety Briefing Before 2013 Crash May 05--The pilot of a small plane that crashed off Molokai, contributing to the death of former state Health Director Lorretta Fuddy, did not give passengers a safety briefing prior to the flight as required under federal law, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a report about the crash. Fuddy died of acute cardiac arrhythmia due to hyperventilation after exiting into the ocean wearing an infant's life vest, according to the report that was released Tuesday. The document is a factual report and does not give the probable cause of the crash. The crash happened about 3:20 p.m. Dec. 11, 2013, about two minutes into the flight, which departed from Kalaupapa Airport and was headed for Honolulu Airport. The pilot, age 60 at the time, said he heard a loud bang followed by an immediate loss of engine power. The pilot landed the Makani Kai Air Cessna 208B nine-passenger plane in the open ocean with a level, slightly nose-up attitude.
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All eight passengers and the pilot exited the plane through the rear door and the plane, which was intact, remained on the surface for about 25 minutes before sinking. One passenger recorded a video that began with the airplane descending toward the water, showed the impact, and continued for about 15 minutes. Two passengers, a married couple, both sustained serious injuries. The man sustained broken ribs and a gash on his head, and the woman sustained broken ribs and a broken sternum. Several passengers said the pilot did not give a safety briefing before takeoff. Federal rules state that before each takeoff, the pilot in command will ensure all passengers have been briefed on the location of survival equipment and use of flotation devices. Deputy Health Director Keith Yamamoto told investigators he had to ask other passengers where the life vests were located. He said the life vest was "very tight" on his neck and difficult to remove when he got to shore. He weighed 175 pounds and had an adult's life vest. He told investigators he stayed with Fuddy, who was "breathing very hard and fast," but later closed her eyes and was no longer breathing hard. Investigators inspected Fuddy's life vest and found only one of two CO2 cartridges were deployed and determined the vest was meant to be for an infant. Fuddy weighed 220 pounds. Another passenger who swam to shore also inadvertently put on an infant's life vest.
1000 Aircraft Photos Want to kill an hour? Click on the link below to check out this collection of 1000 aircraft photos! (http://www.vintagewings.ca/VintageNews/Stories/tabid/116/articleType/Art icleView/articleId/562/1000-Aircraft-Photos.aspx)
Bad Fuel System Design Contributes to Accident The pilot, who was also the builder/owner of the Zenith CH-750, reported that he was en route toward his home airport with each wing tank about 3/4 full. -4-
About 50 minutes into the flight, the engine experienced a total loss of power, and he was unable to restart the engine. He conducted an off-airport, forced landing near Venus, Florida, and the airplane hit vegetation and came to rest inverted, which resulted in substantial damage to the left wing, vertical stabilizer, and nose structure. After the airplane came to rest, the pilot turned the fuel selector valve to the "off" position. Examination of the airplane revealed that the left wing fuel tank was devoid of fuel and that the right wing fuel tank contained about 6 gallons of fuel. Further examination revealed that, when the fuel line to the carburetor was removed and the fuel selector was selected to the "on" position, fuel drained freely from the fuel tank. Examination of both fuel tank venting caps revealed no abnormalities that would have precluded normal operation. According to the fuel system drawing provided by the manufacturer, the fuel line from the right fuel tank runs laterally across the top of the airplane cabin to a T-fitting that is connected to the left tank fuel line. The fuel line then runs down the side of the airplane to the gascolator and the "on/off" shutoff valve. The airplane had no interconnecting fuel venting system, and each fuel tank was independently vented through the fuel caps. An internet forum on this kit airplane noted the occurrence of several other similar in-flight fuel starvation events. The general consensus of the forum discussion was that the fuel system design led to a partial or complete vacuum being developed during fuel consumption, which resulted in the fuel in the left fuel tank being consumed and a subsequent total power loss and in the right fuel tank being at or near maximum capacity. Therefore, it is likely that the fuel system's venting was not sufficient to provide adequate positive pressure and that this resulted in a vacuum developing between the right fuel tank and the T-fitting and the subsequent loss of engine power due to fuel starvation. The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause as the fuel system's inadequate design, which resulted in negative pressure in
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the right fuel tank and a total loss of engine power during cruise flight due to fuel starvation. NTSB Identification: ERA14LA183 This April 2014 accident report is provided by the National Transportation Safety Board. Published as an educational tool, it is intended to help pilots learn from the misfortunes of others.
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