My Life as a Pilot, and other such mental fodder...

More Air-to-Air photos

2010-04-09T23:01:00.006-08:00

It was another beautiful day in Juneau, so my friend and I went out on a photo mission. We had to get while the gettin' was good since I have to go back to work tomorrow...

You can see the full gallery here: http://picasaweb.google.com/GeronimoDriver/ApacheFlying#
and click on the pics to see full resolution.

Full moon over the Delta...

2010-03-05T19:58:00.004-09:00

Fun day!

2010-02-08T20:25:00.006-09:00

Saturday was a good day.
We got out of bed and I just felt like flying, and actually doing something useful with the plane instead of just burning gas...
I called up my friend Sean (that's his Tripacer in the pics) and we went back and forth trying to decide where to go. Eventually we settled on Hoonah, because it is close and he has a Jeep stashed there. But what to do when we got there? How about a drive out the road in the Jeep, followed by a short hike to get to a sandy beach at Spaski Bay? Sounds good! So we gather the dog, lawn chairs, marshmallows and hot dogs and set off for a day on the beach!

We had a great time cooking hotdogs over the fire, flaming marshmallows, throwing sticks for Noni, and just watching the world go by.

We also got some great air-to-air shots of each others planes as a bonus.

Moose!

2010-02-08T20:15:00.003-09:00

You always hear the stories about Moose in "urban Alaska".
Well, they are true. I see moose almost every time I go to Anchorage, just walking around town.
This last week I saw two, one by the airport and this one just outside the hotel I stayed at. Amazing how close she let me get to take her picture...

New Video

2010-01-07T15:05:00.005-09:00

I made this from clips I took while at work.

Featured are the Navajo and 207 in Bethel, Emmonak, Stebbins, Yukon River, Russian Mission, Toksook Bay and Kwethluk.

Minor Remodel Project

2010-01-07T14:44:00.004-09:00

I just finished a small remodel project on the house. We had some really annoying cabinets hanging over the bar between out kitchen and dining room that were always getting in the way. A couple days ago I pulled them down then had a friend of our come over and wire in some new pendant lights to go in the place where the cabinets were. We also installed a dimmer switch for them as well as a new outlet while we were at it. After some painting the area looks much better, and is much more functional now. It also feels a lot more open and bright, with a nice ambiance provided by the stained glass pendents. This of course snowballed into removing the hideous old ceiling fan in the dining room and replacing it with a matching chandelier. That looked great once I got the chain looking right, but because the lights face down and the glass is heavily tinted the new light made the room much darker, although the table was very well lit. Perfect for dining and relaxing but sometimes you just need the room lit up. This led to yet another trip to Home Depot last night to get a new ceiling light to replace one that had stopped working right after we bought the house. We had assumed the bulbs were burned out and had gotten used to it not working since I could not get the glass unstuck from it to change the bulbs. I ended up taking a hammer to it. The glass doesn't exist anymore. Turns out the bulbs were fine and the problem was with the installation itself. Whoever put that light in did not know what they were doing since they just twisted the wires together, and the ground had come loose... Well, now there is a properly installed and matching lamp up there that puts out plenty of light when we need it.

Dining Room

Pendants and Chandelier from Kitchen

New Chandelier, also fixed and hung our mirror

Light Shades

New Ceiling Light

Photo Journal: 12-4-09

2009-12-05T16:09:00.005-09:00

Sorry I have not posted anything with substance lately, I have been busy with work... However yesterday I went flying with a friend in his '58 Tri Pacer. He had never been up over the Ice Fields, and we could not have picked a better day for him to experience it. What do you think?

Photo of the Week

2009-11-03T14:31:00.003-09:00

A double this time!

Caravan w/ Rainbow

Sunset over frozen lakes and tundra between Hooper Bay and Bethel, from 11,500'

I am the "Pavement Muncher"!

2009-11-03T13:54:00.009-09:00

...With a shark-toothed grin, Don't know if my gear will come down again!

It is time to tell this story, the Saga of N417PM over the last couple months.

It all started with "Papa Mike" (Now also known as "Pavement Muncher")
Sitting in the maintenance hangar for a while, I forget why. One of our pilots, Taka, got the idea to paint a shark mouth on the plane. Since we were short on planes, Taka and I were not flying and pretty bored so with an OK from the boss, we drew up a plan and got to work:

Myself, masking the design.

Now, this would have been the end of the story. Nose art done, time to fly right?
Sure, except I had made a comment to Taka while painting to the effect of "You watch, I bet this thing gets balled up in the next two months and we'll have to repaint it all over again..."

Well...

A month Later:

A hydraulic line in the nose wheel well had broken, which caused all attempts to lower the nose wheel to fail, dumping all her hydraulic fluid overboard in the process.

After flying around for a couple hours to burn off fuel, the plane landed in a textbook perfect emergency landing. Both props were feathered just before touchdown and the plane slid to a stop with only minor skin damage to the nose, a broken stringer and two pancaked pitot tubes.
There were no injuries to the pilot or passengers, who exited through the overwing exit on the right side.

This month, after scavenging a new nose from a carcass Navajo and a little spray paint, "Papa Mike" returned to the skies in all its eclectic glory. She was my ride for most of the shift this month and other that being a bit nose heavy (all that paint?) she performs great, maybe I found a new favorite Navajo?

Taken a few days ago at Mekoryuk, on Nunivak Island.

The Cycle of Airplane Ownership.

2009-11-03T13:41:00.002-09:00

Yup, that about covers it...

Photo of the Week

2009-09-02T11:10:00.002-08:00

Foggy Fall morning in Bethel, Alaska.

Photo of the Week

2009-08-23T14:59:00.003-08:00

The Apaztec* resplendent in the early dawn sunshine at Walsenburg Colorado.

Click for full size.

*Apaztec= A Piper anomaly, built as an Aztec but called an Apache. Suffers from an acute identity crisis, being that it is not quite 100% Aztec, but hardly is she an Apache by any definition. You Decide, If it quacks like a duck...

Update!

2009-08-23T13:48:00.010-08:00

For all those that have not followed our vacation (July 25 to today) on Jen's Blog I'll give you a brief update and add some pictures for everyone to enjoy here, here and here. Its about 1500 pictures and I have only added captions to about half of the ones that I want to on the first set. Thw last set is a mix of pics from my Dad's and Grandma's cameras, including some more pics of our flight up from Bellingham in the Apache.

Needless to say, we have had a great time flying the plane around the Lower 48 for a couple weeks, then returning home and spending a couple weeks with visiting family. It was a great time for Jen and I to "play tourist" at home and do some activities we don't normally enjoy or to see them from a tourists point of view... A good time was had by all as we went to the Mendenhall Glacier, Mount Roberts Tram, Downtown Juneau, a back country tour of Hoonah, whale watching, a trip to Skagway with Ice field tour, Dog Sledding, a trip "out the road" and much more...

I will be going back to work in Bethel tomorrow on my original 15-day schedule. I think work will be a lot more tolerable with the shorter schedule. Twenty days out there is way too much.

I'll try to post more often, no guarantees however...

IT'S ALIVE!!!

2009-06-23T18:33:00.010-08:00

After many, many months of hard work, our plane finally flew today. Everything seems to work and the new interior is nice to sit in while the airplane makes its own noises without me supplying the soundtrack... Now we just gotta put a few hours on her before we head to America for vacation next month.

Happy Birthday Noni!

2009-04-23T16:46:00.007-08:00

Our dog, Noni, is four today!

Happy birthday Noni!

Details...

2009-03-27T20:05:00.003-08:00

Having finished the bulk of the work on the plane, I am now concentrating on all the little finishing details. Today's project: Operation Spinner Shine. I am a sucker for polished spinners, so it was inevitable that I should tackle the project on the Apache. I had previously done this on my Wife's Tri-Pacer years ago, however, I have since learned to polish aluminum better (that means this time it took longer and cost more). Interestingly, the last time I polished a spinner, it was for a friends Apache in SLC. Upon finishing one side, I had one of those "Gee, I love owning a twin" moments when I thought "Aww crap, now I get to do the other side". It can wait until next month.
I also replaced the air filters today, which prompted me to repaint the covers for them. Hmm... New spark plugs, oil change and maybe a fresh battery and she's ready to unleash the fury in search of the perfect $100, umm, I mean $200 latte.

Oh yes.

Noni keeps guard, lest the evil snowplow get too close.

She's starting to look like an airplane again.

Finished! (for now)

2009-03-24T20:32:00.006-08:00

The interior of my plane is finally "done". There are still a few little things to take care of but its ready to fly now.

Just as soon as I change the air filters, spark plugs, oil, bleed the brakes, service the hydraulic fluid, grease the landing gear, overhaul the left prop, wash and wax, oh yea, and put gas in it...

Freakin airplanes....

Juneau Video

2009-03-24T15:35:00.003-08:00

ENOUGH ALREADY!

2009-03-16T16:33:00.003-08:00

WARNING: This is a rant, I am pissed and I am only going to just barely censor myself.

Film makers, musicians, writers etc. GET OVER YOURSELVES! I realize you work hard for what you do, and you get paid well to do it, but do you not realize that by shutting down people who want to enjoy and share your work you are hurting yourself, rather than protecting your work? Case in point: Youtube. A good deal of my favorite videos have been forced off the internet, why? bad language? nudity? nope. They had the audacity to use your music as a background score to compliment their own works. You should be glad that people would choose your music, and want to share it with others, for whatever reason. Maybe what you sang about expressed what the individual was trying to convey, or created the mood they were after. SHAME ON YOU! Why do you do this? so you can get a couple cents of royalties? Please. Did it occur to you that maybe someone would hear your songs, like them and want to buy the CD or MP3? Idiots.

And Hollywood, SHUT THE $#&@ UP ALREADY!

I want to watch movies and enjoy them for what they are, not listen to your idiotic politics which nobody gives a damn about! Who decided that your opinions matter? Since when should I care what you think? Sean Penn, go to @$&#!!! Alec Baldwin, I try to like ya man, but shut up and act. Rosie O'Donnell? Um, eat @#&$ and die. I nave nothing nice to say to you.

Congress:

GROW A PAIR! We elect you to do a job, not protect your own interests. When we say "NO" we mean it, and the more you push everyday working Americans into a corner, the closer we are to lashing out at you by any means available. Maybe thats why you are suddenly trying to push radical new controls on guns, restricting the sale of ammunition, controlling free speech via the "fairness doctrine" and trying to control the citizens ability to travel these states with ever tighter and more insane regulations of air traffic. I have to ask permission from the government to fly my plane to Canada now. Does Canada care if I want to fly there? NO. But the DHS seems to think it should care. It wants to know when I want to fly, and who is on my plane. If I fly to Canada (or any other country for that matter) I now have to send a manifest of the "crew" that being my Wife and I to the DHS to be screened against the "no-fly-list". Then, I can not depart on said flight without receiving a confirmation email from CBP authorizing the flight. How long does this take? They will not say. How do I know they received my request? I don't. But if I assume all is in order and depart, its a $5,000 fine for the first time, then $10,000 each thereafter. Give me a freaking break! If I was a terrorist do you really think I would give a damn about your rules?

TSA, CBP, DHS

You can all kiss my pissed off over-regulated hairy white @$$.

Stop trying to create fear and suspicion where there is none. And what part of "innocent until proven guilty" do you not understand? or Due Process?

You need to be stopped.

Can anyone say "CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE"? "Ive got your non-compliant attitude, RIGHT HERE!"

I think as long as the politicians can choose what taxes to pay and what laws to obey, I should be able to do the same, after all, you people work for me.

Lately you have been working against me, so far you have raised my taxes, jacked up my energy costs, cut off credit, shut down a good portion of my flying, put me out of a job and told me its all for my own good, and not to worry, because Big Brother is here to save me.

UP YOURS!

Hows that for exercising my First Amendment rights @$$-HOLES!

Rant Over.

But really, think about it...

Tanker 123

2009-03-16T15:26:00.002-08:00

I last saw this plane in Battle Mountain Nevada in 1998, along with Tanker 121. I also recall 123, 121 and 124 being in Abilene TX years earlier. If you dont know, This is what I wanted to do with my career, and I have always had the greatest respect for the pilots and crews who not only keep these great planes flying, but use them to save lives and property. To quote a line from the movie "Always", "Its 1943 man, except we go places that are burning and bomb them until they stop burning..." The sound of her four P&W R-1830's still echo in my mind. Rest in Peace Rick Lee Schwartz, Milt Stollak and Tanker 123.

I have been putting off posting this video because it makes me cry every time I watch it, and it sends chills up my spine, especially at the 2:03 mark.

An Excerpt from the NTSB report, read it then listen to the song again, it'll make more sense if you are not familiar with this accident.

On July 18, 2002, at 1840 mountain daylight time, a Consolidated-Vultee P4Y-2, N7620C, under contract to the U. S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service and piloted by a commercial pilot, was destroyed when it impacted into mountainous terrain 6 miles southwest of Estes Park, Colorado. A post-crash explosion and fire ensued. Prior to the impact, the airplane's left wing separated and aircraft control was lost while maneuvering to deliver fire retardant on the Big Elk wildfire, burning in an area northwest of Lyons, Colorado. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time of the accident. The aerial attack flight was being conducted under the provisions of Title 14 CFR Part 91, public use. A company visual flight rules flight plan was on file. The pilot and second pilot on board the airplane were fatally injured. The flight originated at Broomfield, Colorado, at 1814.

According to the Airtanker Base Manager at Jeffco Airport, Broomfield, Colorado, the airplane, Tanker 123, was dispatched to join other airtankers, Tanker 161 and Tanker 22, a helitanker, number T-16, and a U. S. Forest Service lead airplane, Lead Bravo 8, to drop fire retardant on the Big Elk Fire. The airplane had flown seven previous air attack missions on the fire that day. Prior to the accident mission, the airplane was loaded with approximately 2,000 gallons of fire retardant, and 550 gallons of fuel.

The captain of T-161 said, "Tanker 22 had just completed his drop and Tanker 123 had observed the drop and was preparing to drop. All communication between 123 and Lead Bravo 8 was normal. I fell behind T-123 on downwind and base. I looked away momentarily and I again focused on T-123. I noticed his left wing was falling. The aircraft was in a 15 to 20 degree bank. I next saw fire near the fuselage as the wing failed inboard of the number 2 engine. The aircraft pitched nose down in a huge fireball and plunged into the ground vertically starting an immediate large fire."

The copilot of T-161 said Tanker 123 was in his base turn for the drop and in a "smooth 15 to 20 degree bank turn", when the left wing separated from the airplane. "The aircraft then went into a rotation and impacted the ground." The copilot said that operations were normal and the weather in the area consisted of "the smoothest, least turbulent conditions of the day."

The pilot in the Forest Service leadplane said, "The conditions were perfect for a tanker drop. No turbulence and no smoke in that area." The pilot said, "I had just made two runs with Tanker 22 on the same drop area. He had departed and I allowed helicopter 72D to make a water drop on the area. Tanker 123 was on scene when Tanker 22 made his split load drop, two different runs. I instructed Tanker 123 that we would be extending Tanker 22's first drop. Tanker 123 responded with something like, 'We can do that' or 'We see that," and that he was on downwind for the drop. I told him I was at his 8 o'clock and [he] said that he had me in sight. I then told him I would come up on his left side and continue downwind with him until he was ready to turn back. He then responded with 'I think I'm going to use this nice big valley to turn around in.' I told him that sounded like a good idea to me. We flew approximately 15 seconds before he began a gentle turn to final. We continued in the turn from downwind to final without squaring off for a base, which is normal on tanker runs." The pilot said that after he turned on final, he told the captain on Tanker 123 that his attack run would require a pitch over which was approximately 1/2 mile ahead. The pilot said after he finished that transmission, the captain of Tanker 161 called him and said that the left wing had just come off of Tanker 123 and the airplane had gone in.

A witness on the ground, approximately 6 miles east of the accident location, using a digital camera with a telephoto lens and automatic shutter, took a series of eight still photographs of the airplane at the time of the accident. The photo series shows the airplane's left wing separate at the wing root and fuselage, a fire ensues at the separation, and the airplane enters an approximately 45-degree dive to the ground. The photos also show the airplane in a counter-clockwise roll during its dive toward the ground. The witness said when he saw what was happening, he depressed the shutter button and held it until the airplane went behind a treed ridge. Copies of the eight photographs are provided as an attachment to this report.

Several witnesses on the ground in the vicinity of the accident location said they saw the airplane in a left banking turn. Some of the witnesses described the turn as "steep" or "tight." One witness said the airplane had rolled out of the turn after making a "hard banking turn." At this time, none of the witnesses indicated that there were any apparent problems with the airplane. The witnesses then said the left wing "folded upward" and severed at the "left wing-fuselage point." They all described "slurry" coming out and "fire erupting" from the area where the wing separated. The witnesses said the airplane rapidly descended and impacted into the hillside.

Radar information provided by the Denver Air Route Traffic Control Center showed the airplane come out of the Broomfield area and proceeding northwest to the Lyons-Estes Park area where the Big Elk fire was burning. The airplane is shown entering a series of counter-clockwise 3.5 to 4 nautical mile diameter orbits at an altitude averaging 8,900 feet mean sea level (msl), over Lion's Gulch, and in the vicinity of Moose Mountain. Terrain in this area is mountainous averaging from 7,300 feet msl to 8,500 feet msl. The radar information showed the airplane make five orbits over this area. On the last half of the fifth orbit, the radar information shows the airplane at an altitude of 8,500 feet msl and heading approximately 315 degrees. The airplane is shown on a 315-degree heading for 1.3 nautical miles. The airplane is then shown making a left turn to 260 degrees. The airplane is shown on a 260-degree heading for 1.1 nautical miles and at an altitude of 8,400 feet msl. The airplane is then shown making a left turn and rolling out on a 195-degree heading. The airplane remains on this heading for 0.6 nautical miles, when radar contact is lost. The accident site was approximately 0.1 nautical miles southwest of the last radar plot.

Making Progress

2009-02-27T22:36:00.003-09:00

I have been too busy on my days off this month working on the plane to blog about it, but now that I am going back to work and have been forced to leave the plane alone for a couple weeks, I present you with some before and after pictures. It is still a work in progress, with the seats and window trim remaining to be done in a couple weeks, along with some minor details. Then I get to start on the engines and props. Sweet.

The new carpet and wall upholstery is done, The freshly painted and updated panel looks nice...

New throttle quadrant. I do not want to install another one.

New headliner and overhead console complete, note new air vents.

Self explanatory.

The panel, cleaned, painted and with a few new electronic gadgets.

Random Memories

2009-01-26T16:25:00.004-09:00

Just in one of those moods today...
Too cold and snowy to work on the plane, the mind starts to wander to years past...

My Word...

2009-01-26T09:01:00.001-09:00

Found this site on my Wife's blog...

Your Word is "Think"

You see life as an amazing mix of possibilities, ideas, and fascinations.

And sometimes you feel like you don't have enough time to take it all in.

You love learning. Whether you're in school or not, you're probably immersed in several subjects right now.

When you're not learning, you're busy reflecting. You think a lot about the people you know and the things you've experienced.

What's Your Word?

Photo of the Week

2009-01-25T17:08:00.012-09:00

Click for full size image
Sunset over Cook Inlet

The Step

2009-01-18T22:57:00.006-09:00

Few things can excite an argument / debate in a hangar bull session like mention of "the step". For those of you that do not know this is a phenomenon in which an airfoil seems to be mysteriously capable of flying faster if you climb past your target altitude then start a shallow descent back to where you want to be. Unfortunately, this little bit of aerodynamic knowledge has been relegated to "myth" status in recent decades. Nay-sayer's claim that it is impossible. "Prove it on a drag curve" they say. "Show me in the plane" they say. And chances are, I can not. Let me pick the plane, time, weight and altitude however, And I'll prove it. "Kids these days" call what they do not understand and cannot reproduce with their fancy modern planes a "myth" perpetuated by the older, less enlightened generations who simply must not have understood flight, because it was so new. Or some crap like that... They knew, knew better than we in fact. Those wise old pelicans knew, and as new technology designed out characteristics that were once commonplace, the Kids forgot. Because they did not need to know. But knowing what an airfoil does and why, even if you do not need to is the path to aeronautical enlightenment. This rant brought to you courtesy of a thread on the AOPA forums. It was amusing to note that the "myth" crowd were mostly flying newer Cherokees, Mooneys or composite planes with sleek laminar flow wings. The ones who Knew, however were flying or had flown those wings to which this curiosity applies, The Cessna 195's, Bonanzas and so on.

The thread was started by quoting Ernest Gann, in an excerpt from Fate is the Hunter.

“We pass through ten thousand feet and for a moment steal an additional hundred feet so we can descend back through it. In the doing, the ship can be set flying in a slightly nose-down position. Thus, “on the step” we will add better than 10 knots to our air speed and also satisfy our sensual appreciation of flight. A mushing airplane, regardless of it’s speed, becomes a miserable contraption to any dedicated pilot. He absorbs this unhappiness through the seat of his pants. There is no reason to believe this will ever change, regardless of aircraft design. A good pilot becomes morose and irritable in spite of what most modern instruments proclaim unless his ship is “on the step”. He will work work endlessly to achieve that delicate angle and for this once and only once will prove the instruments wrong and hair tips of his sensory powers more honest. When the instruments finally admit additional speed, then the pilot is doubly content, for he has proof that the instruments are not his absolute master and he is not as yet altogether a mechanical man.”

Here is my reply and explanation, edited for context.

"Something to consider, the airfoils in use at the time of Gann. Most people today believe that the "step" is a myth, and as it applies to modern airfoils, it mostly is. As pointed out, it works in Bonanza's, and I can see and feel a difference in my Apache. I have also seen it demonstrated first hand from the third seat in a DC-6, by an old school Captain that probably would have gotten along fine with Gann... Those planes use airfoils dating from the 40's. More modern airfoils do not have the same drag properties, they are blessed with the ability to achieve efficient cruise flight without having to accelerate in a shallow dive first. The simple way to think of it is this, at angle of attack "A", the wing will generate the required lift at airspeed "1" with overall drag in equilibrium with thrust, thus no more acceleration. However, if we then lower the nose and reduce the angle of attack the first thing that happens is a loss of lift right? Lower AOA, same speed... You with me? That's the shallow dive. Now, something else starts to happen, at this lower AOA, induced drag goes down (old school fat wing remember?) and with gravity's help, the plane accelerates. More speed equals more lift, as well as more overall drag. The plane will shortly reach a new equilibrium and stop descending due to the increased lift which equals the previous ammount and is once again balanced with gravity. We are now at AOA "B" and airspeed "2" with the same lift and power we started with. One other reason this is so elusive is this: Notice I said nothing about raising the nose to level off again? The plane will stop descending on its own as the lift increases with airspeed. Thus the plane "picks" its own altitude. If you know your plane well enough you can end up at the desired altitude by knowing how far down she will go as she seeks balance, but otherwise it'll do whatever it wants. This is why its so easy to "fall off the step". As soon as you change something the plane will seek a new equilibrium point, maybe on the step, maybe not. Depends on what you did. Well, nuff said, flame away, but again, this does not work on all airfoil/airframes. Mostly on older, slow, fat high lift wings. (Bonanza guys, don't take that last part wrong...)

So find yourself a "Real Airplane" and go try it out. (I think I sense another hangar fight coming on...)

Project Update

2009-01-18T10:58:00.007-09:00

We are finally making some progress on the Apache now that it is inside the hangar. It took a scrub brush and vacuum to clean the floor after the carpet was pulled up. Now its on to cleaning and prep for paint in the control pedistal and instrument panel while we wait for the rest of the needed parts to arrive (new door seal, throttle quadrant cover). We are also upgrading the Avionics with the installation of a dedicated CDI for the GPS, as well as moving map MFD and annunciator control unit for the GPS. She will be well on her way to a modern IFR machine... Next month we should have the headliner and carpet ready to install, will keep you posted.

One Six Right

2008-12-30T16:13:00.005-09:00

If you have not seen the film "One Six Right", you should. Highlighting the history of the Van Nuys Airport, it is an incredibly beautiful documentary about general aviation and its rich history. You'll gain an appreciation for private aviation and how it serves the community as a whole and on the local level, as well as see some of the most beautiful aerial cinematography ever produced. You can learn more at www.onesixright.com

Here is the official trailer, enjoy.

Also, here is a trailer for their next film

And a clip from One Six Right

Photo of the Week

2008-12-30T16:04:00.005-09:00

After waiting all fall, I have finally got our plane in a hangar.
Maybe now I can get some work done on her...

Doesn't she look sexy?

Click for full size image.

Back to work...

2008-12-30T16:02:00.003-09:00

Well I hope everyone had a merry Christmas, and I wish a happy new year to all. I will be starting my new year on my way back to Bethel. It was -22c the other day. A guy said something about freak ice storms. Sweet.

New videos

2008-12-22T17:18:00.003-09:00

I have recently added some new videos to YouTube. They include a new one I made from my last rotation at work in Bethel, one I made last year when I was towing gliders in Hawaii, and some I have edited together from some of my old VHS movies I made years ago in my Pacer. The footage of the Tri-Pacer at the end is poor quality but I am glad to have it. It is the only footage I have of my wife flying solo in her plane...

Photo of the Week

2008-12-22T17:07:00.006-09:00

Three Whiskey Golf, waiting patiently to return to the skies...

I can't wait till the next time we disturb the peace with a little 470HP symphony.

Click for full size image.

Update:

2008-12-22T16:56:00.002-09:00

Hello all, I apologize for not updating my blog more frequently lately, but as you probably know, I was at work for a couple weeks (without internet access) and since I got home I have been busy with Christmas stuff... Its not a bad thing, this is the first time in the last few years that I have been able to be home for the holidays, and it is the first time since 2001 that we have had a tree and decorations. I'll post some pics for ya'll in a couple days, but untill then, Merry Christmas everyone!

Photo of the Week

2008-11-24T15:58:00.003-09:00

Civil Air Patrol Beaver departing the Juneau Float Pond.
Juneau, Alaska.

From hideous to shredded to......?

2008-11-22T17:55:00.014-09:00

Well, my desire for a project to work on and my equal desire to hoard money have been at odds with each other lately as I hemmed and hawed about redoing the interior in my Apache. Finally, I figured if I didn't start the project I would not have any motivation to get off my butt and order the new upholstery. And boy do I have motivation now. As you can see, I have already stripped about half of the old interior out.

I will be installing an all new interior from Airtexinteriors.com and will make regular posts about my progress. First, I will continue to strip the interior down to the metal, then clean everything, followed by the installation of all new soundproofing and insulation. This will be a good time to inspect all the hidden stuff like the hoses for the overhead fresh air vents and heater ducting... The goal being to actually be able to get some fresh air and hold in some of those 35,000 BTU's the heater puts out during the winter. After that, I think I'll do the headliner first (glue drips down, better to get it on metal than new upholstery). This promises to be just an absolute load of fun (ha! that's a load of something all right...) Eventually I will move on to the carpet, then walls. The seats will get done at home when I feel like it sometime in there. Here's a picture of an Airtex interior in a Grumman that has the style and color seats I will be getting, try to imagine that in the "before" picture above. These are the same style they did for the AOPA "Win-A-Twin" Twin Comanche a couple years ago. I can't wait to sit in these comfy, newly upholstered and padded seats and make airplane noises. Yes, I went there... Since that's about all I'll be able to afford to do after all this work. Eventually, I might actually fly it. Next year. Sometime...

I hope.

New upholstery all around isn't all she is getting, I am sprucing up the panel with new overlays and a newly cleaned and painted glareshield (already complete, yay!) She'll also get new placarding all around. I may also try this new plastic coating I found that can be brushed on to refinish my yokes, I'll report on that after I test it on something. Speaking of yokes, one of the few things I have completed so far is refinishing the original Piper emblems on the yokes, This took some effort to get it right, but the result was worth it. If anyone wants their Piper yoke emblems refinished, I'll do it for you, now that I have a system down... The pics don't do them justice, but its quite an improvement from what they were. The hardest part was matching the original colors since none of it remained on mine to use as a guide. As tempting as it is to reinstall these now, I have decided to wait until everything else is done. When these once again grace the yokes, the project is then "finished".

More to follow in the upcoming weeks. The first shipment of material should be here sometime in late December...
One last thing to keep in mind, the green seats you see, ugly as they are, aren't that bad considering they are the original factory seats from 1963...

Photo of the week

2008-11-17T15:43:00.003-09:00

Grant Aviation Cessna 207 in Tununak, Alaska.

Veterans Day

2008-11-11T08:48:00.002-09:00

Lets all take time to remember that today is Veterans Day, and to think about what that means. We should all be enormously grateful to all those who have served our country past and present, especially those who gave their lives in the defense of freedom, at home and overseas. If you see a soldier, Airmen, Marine or Sailor, take the time to thank them for their service. Also, as far as I am concerned, this should be extended to Police Officers, Firefighters and any other individual that selflessly puts their life on the line to defend others.

To all U.S Veterans and those of her Allies, Thank You.

Now I've Gone and Done It...

2008-10-30T14:27:00.005-08:00

Well, I passed my 135 checkride yesterday and got started on IOE... Guess I have to go back to work now, whether I like it or not. I am looking forward to flying here, and it has felt good to be back in a 207, I forgot how much I liked that plane. I still only have the internet at work, but when I get home in a couple weeks I'll post some pictures from Bethel and the Y-K Delta (Yukon Kuskokwim river delta).

Cessna 207
Cessna 208

Photo of the week

2008-10-28T17:13:00.007-08:00

From 2008 Photos

And so it begins

2008-10-22T22:19:00.012-08:00

Today I arrived in Bethel, Alaska. Normally that would be enough information for you to know how my day is going. And you would be right.

But first, the story of how I got here...

It started yesterday evening on Alaska Airlines flight 67 from Juneau to Anchorage, a boring enough flight, and especially so since this was to be done under cover of darkness.
However, what transpired was a rare treat, it was in fact, a rather pleasant airliner ride. To start, the cabin crew were exceptionally friendly, probably given they were all on their way home to Anchorage for the last flight of the day... And the flight crew actually took pride in their work, something that all too often seems lacking these days. I knew these guys were different than the norm when we taxied into position and hold on Juneau's runway 8, the Captain actually turned towards the END as in the very end of the runway before lining up on the center line rather than just pulling out. That gave us at least another 50 feet of usable runway, not that we needed it or anything, but it was nice to see I was not the only one taught to use ALL available runway. I used to do the same thing when I flew the Brasilia and my FO would always give me that look. You know the one, "I think your insane, this is not your bush-plane toy and we don't do things like that here, but if it so amuses you to indulge in this act of mischief then so be it, you're the Captain, but I still think your strange..." kind of look. Anyway, the takeoff was what we call the "Lemon Crick" (that's creek for you normal people) Departure, it involves a relatively steep climbing right 180 off of runway 8 to avoid rising terrain up to 4000 feet within a couple miles of the airport. Did I mention this was at night, and it was overcast and raining? Of course one could not see the mass of granite just beyond the airport, hiding in the darkness like an evil trap set for the unwary aviator, waiting to snare anyone who dare trespass into their domain. all was uneventful the rest of the flight, despite 130kt winds aloft blowing over the Fairweather Mountains beneath us. Oh yes, I forgot to tell you that our crew thoughtfully gave us passengers in the back a friendly and honest heads-up on both the unusual departure (dictated by the winds) and on the potential turbulence aloft. All was smooth, though, as we sailed through the night at FL360, a mere twinkling aberration in the darkness, the muffled, hollow drone of our engines the only hint of our presence to anyone unfortunate enough to be somewhere in that seemingly bottomless night. The Passengers were unusually pleasant as well, with no screaming kids, no noise really at all... The elderly lady sitting across from me even shared some of her snacks with me. I tell you, those crackers with almond butter and strawberry jam really hit the spot... Finally I dozed off a bit, only to awake just as we were crossing the threshold of runway 7R in Anchorage, and again I was impressed with the crews willingness to FLY the plane and not just drive it. I heard the engines spool up ever so slightly as he held it off the runway, finally rolling it on in what I believe was the smoothest landing I have ever been treated to in an airliner. It was "Cessna 207-with-an-aft-CG-landing-in-an-inch-of-powder-snow-on-top-of-smooth-gravel-with-no-wind" smooth... Amazing. As it turns out an old friend of mine that I used to instruct was also on board and he kindly gave me a ride to my hotel, where after wandering around trying to find dinner at 11:00pm I finally went to sleep.

This morning I awoke early to catch a company flight to Bethel, but being a non-rev I was bumped. Needing to get to work today I finally ended up getting a ticket (thanks Mom!) on a competing airline who was the only one to have a seat open the rest of the day.

What followed was not as enjoyable as yesterday.

First, it was on a Beech 1900, with the only space for a carry-on bag being where my feet belong. This after having to stuff my laptop bag into one of my checked bags to combine them in an effort to avoid a $75 fee for excess baggage. Don't get me wrong, normally I love smaller planes, the smaller the better, and from a Brasilia Captains point of view, a Beech 1900 has a little bit of a toy airplane feel to it. None the less, this flight sucked. First, it was cold. Really cold. PT-6's have bleed air you know guys, turn it on please... And I don't mind at all if you want to hand-fly the whole way, but at least learn to fly first, okay? And just when I thought there was hope for airline pilots these days too... Oh well.

And now I am here, I am tired now and will tell of what followed later in the day, but it was nothing particularly interesting, just a ride to a village north of here and some book work...

I'll post more later...

Photo of the Week

2008-10-20T09:07:00.004-08:00

TEMSCO Helicopters at Skagway Alaska

Been quiet lately

2008-10-19T21:07:00.005-08:00

Sorry for not updating my blog lately. I have not been feeling very social while my job was in a state of flux... However all seems to have settled down for now and I am preparing to head off to work FINALLY on Tuesday next week. For those that don't know, I was hired by an airline operating in western Alaska to fly a Cessna Caravan. Unfortunately, one of their Caravans was involved in a little incident last week and will be down for repairs for several months. Hence the stress over my position... Fortunately they have offered to put me to work flying a Cessna 207 (known in these parts as the "sled") and probably a Piper Navajo as well. I am looking forward to being a "Sled Driver" again, as I think that its a wonderful plane. Hopefully soon I will be flying my faithful old friend, the Chieftain, and after that revisit that sweetest flying of Cessna's, The Caravan. All three of these planes have treated and served me well in the past, so heres to many uneventful hours to come... I'll post some pictures and stories about my new job when I get there. That is, if the internet works good enough out there in Bethel... If not, I'll be back home in the middle of November and promise an update then.

Photo of the Week

2008-10-12T21:32:00.004-08:00

Juneau Float Pond.

click for full screen image.

Sittin' Pretty

2008-10-09T14:47:00.018-08:00

I was scanning alot of my old pictures yesterday and came across this one I thought you all would like.

My old Pacer basking in the late afternoon sunlight on Freemont Island, in the middle of the Great Salt Lake, with the Wasatch Mountains as a backdrop.

From Photo Archive

View of the upper strip on Freemont.

Show some respect.

2008-10-09T13:33:00.006-08:00

I watched an episode of "Grizzly Diaries" last night, a series broadcast on Animal Planet. It tells the stories that the late Timothy Treadwell wanted us all to hear and I am glad someone has finally put together the years of filming and commentary he created to show to the world in its intended context. For those that don't know, Treadwell A.K.A. "The Grizzly Man" spent many summers living in the Alaskan wilderness, in the Katmai area. He had devoted his life to observing and documenting the bears, foxes and other wild animals that lived there. Unfortunately, many in our society who have probably never left the urban jungle and wouldn't understand nature in any form have criticized this man, attacking him personally. They say he was crazy for living unprotected from nature, with the wild animals. Well who says we should protect ourselves from nature anyway? Aren't we PART of nature? Are the bears dangerous? ABSOLUTELY. Did Timothy know this? ABSOLUTELY. He knew what he was doing, and he loved that way of life, and he loved nature and the animals around him. But he also understood the risks. He knew that at any time he could pay with his life in exchange for experiencing things very few humans ever will. He also understood the rarity of what he was able to witness and took it upon himself to document it in detail, founding "Grizzly People" an organization dedicated to protecting the bears and their environment. When he was not in the wilderness, he spent a great deal of his time traveling to schools donating his time to teach children about the bears and other animals, how they interact, and how humans have impacted their way of life in the "Grizzly Maze". Sadly he died in 2003 when he and his partner, Amie Huguenard were attacked by a bear. Now, some say he "got what he deserved". How disrespectful can you be? He died doing what he loved! We all should be so lucky! No one attacked Steve Irwin personally, or called him crazy or anything else. Why is Timothy any different? They both brought new understanding of the animals they respectively observed. The part that I think a lot of people have a hard time with it that unlike Mr. Irwin, Treadwell went out in the wilderness unarmed, and usually alone for months at a time. He got to know individual animals and learned their mannerisms the same way we would with our pets. He talked to the animals, and yes, acted pretty goofy sometimes. But did anyone think to take this in context? I talk to my dog, does this make me crazy? No more so does it for Timothy to talk to "his" foxes... And as for his goofy behavior, a sure sign of mental problems? You have to remember he was filming, and "acting" in his own documentaries for the benefit of CHILDREN, not US. In context he wasn't any different than the guy who dressed up in a "Barney" costume everyday or any number of other silly things people do to entertain kids. Timothy wasn't perfect. In the "civilized" world he had contempt for certain aspects of society, and had had alcohol problems in the past. But the important part to remember, is he was passionate about what he did, loved nature, loved animals, and did everything he could to protect them and their environment. He put his life on the line to learn what he could, he found his own way, his own path, and for that I have the greatest respect for him. I encourage anyone to watch "Grizzly Diaries". You'll see some of the most incredible footage of wild animals at close range, and the antics of the foxes are hilarious.

Here is the Trailer for a documentary by Werner Herzog.

I'll get off my soapbox now.

Good for a laugh

2008-10-09T13:29:00.002-08:00

We might as well make fun of the commies while we still can right?
This clip was on the Glenn Beck show yesterday, I knew I had to find it on youtube as soon as I saw it...

NONI DOG!!

2008-10-07T22:06:00.002-08:00

On a lighter note, Here's a picture of my dog, Noni.

2008-10-07T20:52:00.013-08:00

Well, it's that time again. Time to blame everyone and everything but ourselves for everything wrong with the world. That's right, ELECTION TIME IS NEAR! YAY! Unfortunately it's the same old B.S. from Washington and the candidates, with the mud slinging and the finger-pointing. And if I hear one more person talk about so-and-so's plan to "create jobs" blood is going to shoot out of my eyes... (sorry Glenn...) Those candidates can't create jobs! Business owners do that. How? By having the capital available to do so, by having less overhead in their operation to afford employees and by having a healthy economy in which people can afford to spend their hard earned money at said businesses. So how can your friendly Feds help here? Only one way to do it and that is to LOWER TAXES. That puts more money into the hands of everyone, including the feds! I understand why its so popular to jump on the "soak the rich" bandwagon, after all, why should they have all the money right? well they should have it because they know how to get it, they earned it and I HAVE NO RIGHT TO ANY OF IT. Likewise, nobody, including the feds, has any right to MY money. "Government Tax Dollars"? BULL, that money belongs to the people and we should no more take it from the rich to give to the poor (socialism) than we should take it from the taxpayer and give it to those who HAD money and either got greedy or were too stupid to keep their businesses solvent. The "bailout" last week is not only another in a string of steps towards socialism, it rewards bad behavior. Did we the people vote to go $700 Billion in the hole? I sure didn't. The fundamental problem here is this idea that we as citizens are somehow entitled to money, jobs, houses, cell phones or whetever. We are not entitled to ANYTHING except those rights as laid out in the Bill of Rights. Nowhere does it say that if your business is about to fail, or if your state spent too much money on illegals (that's you California, oh yea, $11 BILLION on that one alone last year....) that the federal government either has the power or the responsibility to "bail you out". I am sorry, but those businesses should be allowed to fail, and that is exactly what would happen if the free market was allowed to function properly without federal intervention. Just like we don't need Bush to tell us we all have to start burning corn in our cars, without any help from Uncle Sam when gas got expensive enough (probably around $10.00 Gallon) people will sure as $&!@ start using alternative fuels on their own. Instead of asking for yet more money to be pulled out of my @$$ to fund commie programs for illegals and whatever else they are wasting money on in California, how about they oh, I don't know... SPEND LESS! Just like I do when I don't have enough for what I want...
And another thing! If I hear one more idiot talk about socialized health care I'm going to lose it more than I already have. Most of us already have coverage from our employers, do you really thing the people that brought us the DMV could do it any better? Please. And those that don't have insurance either don't want it (like myself for a long time. Why pay for something I don't use?) Or can't afford it. For the last group maybe if the feds didn't tax the crap out of us more could afford coverage on their own. And for those truly in need, they can even now use several options already provided for like Medicare, Medicaid etc. and as a last resort just go to the emergency room and sort it out later (not that I condone that, but you do what you gotta do...)

Ok, so here is my point tonight. Like most of you reading this, I want a REAL LEADER in the White House. It should be obvious that I am no democrat, but I don't consider myself to be a republican either. I do consider myself to be very conservative. I believe in the Constitution and what the Founding Fathers envisioned for our country. However more and more it seems that the constitution doesn't matter anymore, and the politicians seem to have everyone brainwashed about what is really in the Bill of Rights with all these entitlements everyone is so conditioned to expect these days. So this isn't a McCain vs. Obama rant, they seem more alike than different to me. This is about the direction our country is going, what it should and could mean to the world. I truly believe that the vast majority of Americans want the same basic things. A free, safe and prosperous nation in which we are able to live our own way without fighting amongst ourselves. With the ability, and more importantly, the will to except personal responsibility and take care of ourselves.

I'll leave you with that to chew on. A nice break from the "all airplanes all the time" blog you thought this was :o)

Picture of the Week

2008-10-06T14:43:00.003-08:00

Each week, I'll post a new picture from my archive. This week is a Cessna landing on Lake Hood, Anchorage. You can click on it for a full screen image.

Found an old friend

2008-10-06T01:55:00.008-08:00

The more I get around, the more I realize what a small community aviation really is. I keep running into people and planes that I had known in the past... Be it running into an old friend unloading lumber from his DC-3 in Kokhanok, AK who I last saw in 1998 in Salt Lake, or even as close to home as my own plane, which was owned by a friend when I was in high school... Most recently I was walking around Lake Hood in Anchorage with a friend I hadn't seen in a couple months taking pictures of the planes on a beautiful fall day. I just happened to look around a corner of a hangar and saw none other than the very Cessna 152 that I had made my second ever solo flight, N915AA, back in Abilene, TX. The years have taken thier toll on the paint and she was missing some avionics but other than that she was pretty much as I remembered her, only she seemed a little smaller now? Maybe its just me, since I was 17 the last time I was near that plane... So, heres to old friends, may we meet again someday, somewhere...
Click on the pictures for a full screen image.

My new Blog

2008-10-05T18:13:00.015-08:00

Welcome to my new Blog. This is a place where I will share stories from my life, my career, and generally ramble about whatever comes to mind. The plane in my header is my 1963 Piper Apache 235, and I will probably tell you more than you ever wanted to know about the type in future posts, but what can I say, I'm proud of my plane... :o) More to follow when something actually comes to mind... Until then, here are some videos from YouTube that I like. The first one I found, the others I made myself over the past couple years.

Just a cool video I found, sadly this plane crashed on 2-26-2006, killing the pilots.

Summer 2008 as seen from a pilots (mine) perspective in Southeast Alaska.

Scenes from my career in aviation from my private pilot days to an EMB-120 Captain.

Photos and video from my year flying in Hawaii.