September 2011 Meeting Minutes

September Meeting Minutes
Dave Deweese

The minutes for September will be less structured than usual, since our meeting varied from the norm this month with a field trip to Zenith Aircraft Company's annual open house in Mexico, Missouri.

Temperatures were unseasonably cool for mid-September, and with light rain and drizzle in the forecast it was anybody's guess as to how many Chapter 32 members would manage to fly in. I opted to take the land route, fueled up "The Blue Flame", (my '89 Tercel,) and headed west. To get to (North) Mexico by road from the St. Louis area your best bet is 70 west. This is familiar territory, since my old alma mater, Mizzou, is in Columbia, and I made many trips that way in the late eightees. Many landmarks remain from those days, and gray skies recalled the drive back to school after Christmas break: a depressing trip during which post-holiday blahs mixed with thought of trudging across campus in snow and ice for months until spring returned.

Thankfully this was not January, and I was glad to turn off of 70 onto 54 northbound. For years I've been aware of Zenith, but never had a real excuse to trek out to their annual open house. The place is easy to find: you simply follow 54 as the highway shrinks from four lanes to two, then stops, turns eastward, and guides you past homes and small businesses until you see the airport sign on the right.

Despite gloomy weather a fair number of attendees were parked alongside of the road by 9:00 a.m. Cool drizzle (and after effects of morning coffee) inspired me and I jogged past the row of parked cars and up to the open hangar doors. EAA HQ had a table inside where Charlie Becker was actively recruiting new members, and our own Gale Derosier took a microphone and spoke about the Tech Counselor program.

I wandered about the facility, fascinated by all the shiny airplane parts, and one of the robots who fabricates them. He's sort of like a big printer with rotary tools instead of ink. First he picks up a drill and sinks a pattern of holes in a sheet of aluminum, then picks up a cutting bit and cuts a nice, perfect part while a vacuum neatly picks up all the shavings while he works. A formed example of the piece sat on a table nearby; other tables held subassemblies from yokes and rudder pedals up to an uncovered wing.

Outside I ran into Don Doherty and Tim Finley, who flew his shark-mouthed 601 through the drizzle. We watched a couple strolling among the airplanes with two young children who obviously approved of the Flying Tiger motif: the little boy stuck his nose up so close to the cowling that he appeared to be sniffing it. We were there for group picture time, and you can see how a fun paint job makes a bird stand out from a more conservatively painted flock.

The new 650 and 750 are fine-looking planes, no doubt, even lacking eyes and teeth. I wondered how the 750 would look as a tail-dragger, and imagined the view from that big, bubble canopy. A 750 took off a few times, its steep ascent reminding me of my wife's speculations on a piece of land out in the country, where such a machine would be at home leaping off of a grass strip. If I was in the market it'd be tough to pick between the two.

Art Zemon arrived later on with Troy and Jeff. He, too, had braved the weather. The local EAA chapter was serving up hot dogs and pork steaks, proceeds going to their own scholarship program. We all sat together and ate lunch. The food was hot, though the weather was chilly, and once my stomach was full it was time to adjourn and head back to home base in St. Charles. I'm glad I finally made it out to the house of Heintz, and if you have not, and feel any interest in shiny airplanes, then you should plan on trekking out to Mexico, Missouri, for the 2012 open house.

Onwards and upwards, (and westwards and eastwards,)

Dave Deweese

August 2011 Meeting Minutes

August Meeting Minutes
Dave Deweese

August's meeting began with the Pledge, Dave Doherty presiding.

Minutes from last month's meeting were approved.

Don Doherty gave the treasurer's report, including checkingand savings account balances.
Dave called for a show of Oshkosh attendees. Art Zemon saw a BD-4C at the Bede tent and has decided to build one. It has the same engine as his Piper Arrow but is 30 to 40 mph faster, and is also wider. Jim Bede Jr. just got his pilot's license and needs a certificated plane in which to build time, so Art is going to trade his Arrow for a partially built plane and a prop. He's on the lookoutfor avionics and an IO-360.

Dave Doherty found an interior for his Taylorcraft. Getting the plane itself took some work. The former owner flew from Los Angeles to Amarillo Texas, where he was grounded by winds. After waiting a few days for better weather Dave sent him home, then he and Don Jonas went to fly her back themselves. After 28 years since his last left-seat time Dave worked with Bob Kraemer to get current in the taildragger, and is now signed off to fly it.

Gale has passed the 40 hour test period in his Rans. The first passenger was his wife, and after that his son.

Chapter 64 is hosting the Tri-Motor on September 24, 25,and 26. They are expecting 500 to 600 people, and are looking for volunteers (see elsewhere in this issue). On Saturday the 24th there will be a hangar dance; we'll be bringing a tent, tables, and chairs. Flights will be $60 for EAA members and $75 for the general public.

Jeff Stephenson has soloed on July 22, the anniversary of Neil Armstong's moon landing, incidentally. After flying the pattern during some early morning lessons, Nick, his instructor, said "two more and I'm out of here". Nick was able to record the first flight with Jeff's camera. The first flight was from runway 18, and since then he's made about ten more takeoffs from 9 and 27. Jeff was clever enough to wear an old t-shirt to the meeting, as Bill was waiting to cut off the tail.

Dave Doherty suggests that we hold our September 17 meeting at Zenith in Mexico, Missouri, where they'll be holding their open house. We moved, seconded, and voted to proceed. We'll hold the meeting at KSET in case of bad weather. Dave's considering a future "field trip" meeting at the Silver Creek glider club.

In honor of the 100th anniversary of naval aviation, this month's movie will be Flight Command.
Next we recognized visitors. John Pilla, an ex-navy mechanic, is getting back into aviation. Sam Bell, Chuck Maggart's son-in-law, was also in attendance. He's a National Guard mechanic, mostly F-15s. Tony Krause found us on the internet, he's moving from St. Louis from Evansville. He flies a Cessna 150. Joe Wurtz is a CAF member and new EAA member. He recently brought his 12 and 14 year-old grandsons to one of our Young Eagles events.

Chapter elections are coming up. Nominations for President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer will be accepted through the September meeting.

We also need a Christmas party committee. We'll meet the All Occasions Banquet Center, the same location as last year, and still need to arrange a speaker.

Our old refrigerator is dead and needs disposal. We'll check Craig's List for people who haul away old appliances to sell for scrap.

The anniversary of 9/11 is coming up. Chapter 64 members are organizing a fly-over of Jefferson Barracks, and are looking for pilots interested in participating. Harvester Christian Church will also hold a tribute to firefighers and rescue workers at the Family Arena.

Since our presentation fell through, we closed the meeting and toasted Jeff.

July 2011 Meeting Minutes

July 2011 Meeting Minutes

by Dave Deweese

July's meeting began with the Pledge, Bill Doherty presiding:

Dave is en route in the new/used Taylorcraft.

Don Jonas is helping to get the bird to its new home; last stop was Joplin.

We approved last month's minutes.

Don Doherty gave the Treasurer's report, including checking and savings balances. The chapter made over $1,800 during the Fourth of July event on O'Fallon. Sunday started off slow, then a storm blew in. Thanks to internet weather reports on mobile devices our volunteers were able to get under cover. July 4 was better, so much so that the food supplies ran out.

Jim Hann announced the annual photograph of chapter members who attend Oshkosh. He suggests noon on Thursday, July 12, at the Chapter House. Several people will camp at 12th and Sunset. Art Zemon plans to be atNorth 40.

Art has also completed the nametags and brought them to the ARC.

Following the business portion of the meeting Dr. Charles Miller gave a video presentation. He flew C-47s in the Pacific Theater of WWII and gave an account ofhis experiences. He belonged to a troop carrier squadron, and his missions began near Australia and ultimately brought him to Japan.

Rick Ray, the Public Information Officer of the local CAF also gave a presentation, including a video and an overview of the group. Afterwards several of us touredthe facilities.

June 2011 Meeting Minutes

June Meeting Minutes

by Dave Deweese

Our June meeting began with the Pledge, Bill Doherty presiding. We approved last month's minutes, then Don gave the treasurer's report, including checking and savings accountbalances.
There were no new members or visitors to recognize thistime around.

Old business started off with a report on the International Young Eagle's day event. We had a request to see insurance papers; Art Zemon took care of this. We flew 34 young eagles, including 16 attending the merit badge program. Several parents also flew. Our next event will take place on July 9, Mr. Bill will be in training. We'rehoping floodwaters will not be a factor.

Art Zemon brought some examples of our new, laminated nametags. These could either pin to a hat or hang from a lanyard.

We revisited flood preparation. Both rivers are up, the Mississippi is at 25 feet. At 31 feet it's in our facility. In the case of evacuation we'd attempt to call the entire membership in order to recruit enough volunteers to move the equipment out. As in the past meeting we discussed the PODS system as an alternative for temporary storage. Jim Hann moved to authorize up to $1,000 expenditureif necessary; Don will post pricing on the Yahoo board after researching. Bill requested emergency authorization for the officers to, if necessary, use their discretion in deciding how to proceed. The move was seconded and passed.

The clean water issue has taken a twist. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources is investigating wells in response to new clean water standards from Washington.Tracy received word that they have to approve all wells. Wells on airports such as KSET are getting extra scrutiny. Although they are looking for information on our on well we do not currently have documentation and are looking for members who were involved in this project.

June 25 is the EAA32 movie night, "30 Seconds Over Tokyo", preceded by a potluck at 6. This is preceded by a car show at the CAF.

This year's July 4 event at O'Fallon is scaled back a bit, menu-wise. We're planning to work in shifts on July 2, 3, and 4, and would like 5 to 7 people at any given time. A special meeting is coming up to discuss plans and supplies needed. We'll be using gas grills versus charcoal and will use the chapter's grill plus a few more borrowedunits. Other needs include tubs for cooling drinks, big fans, a tri-fold pamphlet to hand out, and a vehicle with a trailer for hauling. Bill presented an estimate of the outlay and asked for authorization to spend from $1,300 to $1,500. Art moved for $1,500 and Jim seconded, the membership voted and the motion passed.Bill Wehmeyer, our CAF contact, reports that the B-29, "Fifi", will be at the Spirit of St. Louis airport August 1 through August 3. They'll be selling rides; around $900 in the back compartment and $1,200 up front. The three planes based here at KSET will be there as well.
Oshkosh is next month. Attendees from Chapter 32 will meet there, we'll hold an unofficial meeting here on July 16. Our next official meeting at the ARC is on August 20.
The CAF hangar dance takes place September 17.

Chapter 64 will host the Tri-Motor September 23 through the 25th. They're looking for volunteers.

October 8 is the Gateway to Youth Aviation Day at Parks College.

After the meeting the Sonex-flying Huebbe family gave some hints and guidelines for filming your aircraft, and then putting your video together in a professional manner.

Following the Huebbes' presentation several members attended the open house at St. Charles Flying Service.

June 2011 Meeting Minutes

June Meeting Minutes

by Dave Deweese

Our June meeting began with the Pledge, Bill Doherty presiding. We approved last month's minutes, then Don gave the treasurer's report, including checking and savings accountbalances.
There were no new members or visitors to recognize thistime around.

Old business started off with a report on the International Young Eagle's day event. We had a request to see insurance papers; Art Zemon took care of this. We flew 34 young eagles, including 16 attending the merit badge program. Several parents also flew. Our next event will take place on July 9, Mr. Bill will be in training. We'rehoping floodwaters will not be a factor.

Art Zemon brought some examples of our new, laminated nametags. These could either pin to a hat or hang from a lanyard.

We revisited flood preparation. Both rivers are up, the Mississippi is at 25 feet. At 31 feet it's in our facility. In the case of evacuation we'd attempt to call the entire membership in order to recruit enough volunteers to move the equipment out. As in the past meeting we discussed the PODS system as an alternative for temporary storage. Jim Hann moved to authorize up to $1,000 expenditureif necessary; Don will post pricing on the Yahoo board after researching. Bill requested emergency authorization for the officers to, if necessary, use their discretion in deciding how to proceed. The move was seconded and passed.

The clean water issue has taken a twist. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources is investigating wells in response to new clean water standards from Washington.Tracy received word that they have to approve all wells. Wells on airports such as KSET are getting extra scrutiny. Although they are looking for information on our on well we do not currently have documentation and are looking for members who were involved in this project.

June 25 is the EAA32 movie night, "30 Seconds Over Tokyo", preceded by a potluck at 6. This is preceded by a car show at the CAF.

This year's July 4 event at O'Fallon is scaled back a bit, menu-wise. We're planning to work in shifts on July 2, 3, and 4, and would like 5 to 7 people at any given time. A special meeting is coming up to discuss plans and supplies needed. We'll be using gas grills versus charcoal and will use the chapter's grill plus a few more borrowedunits. Other needs include tubs for cooling drinks, big fans, a tri-fold pamphlet to hand out, and a vehicle with a trailer for hauling. Bill presented an estimate of the outlay and asked for authorization to spend from $1,300 to $1,500. Art moved for $1,500 and Jim seconded, the membership voted and the motion passed.Bill Wehmeyer, our CAF contact, reports that the B-29, "Fifi", will be at the Spirit of St. Louis airport August 1 through August 3. They'll be selling rides; around $900 in the back compartment and $1,200 up front. The three planes based here at KSET will be there as well.
Oshkosh is next month. Attendees from Chapter 32 will meet there, we'll hold an unofficial meeting here on July 16. Our next official meeting at the ARC is on August 20.
The CAF hangar dance takes place September 17.

Chapter 64 will host the Tri-Motor September 23 through the 25th. They're looking for volunteers.

October 8 is the Gateway to Youth Aviation Day at Parks College.

After the meeting the Sonex-flying Huebbe family gave some hints and guidelines for filming your aircraft, and then putting your video together in a professional manner.

Following the Huebbes' presentation several members attended the open house at St. Charles Flying Service.

May 2011 Minutes

May's meeting began with the Pledge, VP Bill Doherty presiding while Dave is in Kansas with his son.
After approving the April Minutes Jeff Stephenson presented a Young Eagles scholarship to Paola Dacosta-Rosario, a girl from his social studies class. Jeff had mentioned the YE program to his students, so Paola came out and flew with Ron Burnett in his Luscombe. She had spoken about wanting to be a pilot and was interested in the Air Academy, so Jeff spoke with Dave Doherty about sending a scholarship her way. Paola accepted the scholarship in front of the membership. Her father, mother, and younger sister were present as well. Note that we are working on an EAA32 scholarship to provide funds for a college-level aviation student. We're
looking out for donations and ideas for raising funds.

Don gave the treasurer's report, including the checking and savings balances.

We recognized visitors next; George Roeback, a friend of Vince and former pilot, was in attendance.

May's Young Eagles event was canceled due to weather, the next will take place on June 11. Chapter 64 is also holding an event that day. Our pilot roster is dwindling, and we're looking for ways to reverse this trend.

Don Doherty has procured a light for our entryway. We need another, specialized light to illuminate the flagpole. The current one is malfunctioning.

The threat of flood continues, and we still don't have a formal plan. Our main concern is getting equipment out. Given adequate notice, we could go the Pods route, renting a container to store our equipment for the duration.

Dave McGougan and Art Zemon were not present, but they are working on the new badge solution.

New Business:
St. Charles Flying Service canceled an open house due to weather and are rescheduling for June 11.

Al Donaldson's family has arranged for a memorial ceremony at Oshkosh.

Neuman Richard's wife passed away in May.

Our bylaws are in need of an update, and we need a committee to tackle this. Several volunteers stepped up, though timing is an issue for all. If you are interested in taking part please contact a chapter officer.

Laura Million is updating our chapter website and gave the chapter officers an online preview of her changes. She is trying to simplify the layout and make it easier to find important information.

Don Doherty is organizing maintenance for the ARC. The gutters and the EAA 32 sign, in particular, need some new paint.

We're planning to attend the July 4 Heritage Festival in O'Fallon once again. Alternatives to the rented charcoal grill are being considered. For example, Sam's has a $400 gas grill.

May's movie is "Battle of Britain". Pot luck begins at 6, the movie starts at 7.

EAA Chapter 1212 in Macon (northeast Missouri) has a fly-in on June 12.

Our neighbors, the CAF, are holding a car and aircraft show, "American Muscle", on June 25.

Jack Bowers of the regional radar aircraft control in Weldon Springs met with Bill Doherty to discuss a chapter tour of their facility.

April 2011 Minutes

Our April meeting began with the Pledge, Dave Doherty presiding.

Due to our YE event in March there was no official meeting, and therefore no minutes to approve. We flew 101 kids at our event, and participating pilots included Ron Hightower who brought his Stearman. We haven't had this much activity in a while and have many more events coming up. Laura reminded us that this year's events take place on the second Saturday of each month, pilot and ground crew briefings start at 8:30 am. April's event flew 71 Young Eagles, so we've flown more in two months of 2011 than in all of 2010.

There were no visitors to recognize at this meeting.

Don gave the Treasurer's report, including savings and checking account balances. We've recently filled the propane tank and emptied the sceptic tank, taking a chunk out of our funds. Since the closing of the Fly Girls' restaurant we've been selling food at our Young Eagles events and this helps defray expenses. We also sold food at our recent Wings presentation. We're signed up, once again, for the July Fourth event in O'Fallon. Taking lessons from last year we'll buy less and sell for a bit more. We'll also sell food at this year's airport open house. Tracy has not yet set a date.

Old Business: water. Tracy reports that the airport intends to supply clean water to all airport users. Although this will take about a year, it negates our own clean water project.

Art Zemon is helping out with our new nametags. These will be printed and laminated, so they can theoretically include whatever you like: a logo or graphic of your aircraft. A sheet was passed around at the meeting asking for specifics.

We have raised $85 of our projected $500 scholarship fund and will be contacting universities soon.

Design for flagpole lighting is in progress. It will have to be weatherproof and hopefully will light the walkway as well.

One of our refrigerators is dead. Since some local utilities will haul away old appliances we'll be checking to see if Ameren will take ours.

With the recent increase in activity at KSET there has also been an increase in reports to the FAA. Some incidents involve the intersection of the two runways, and others are the result of flying odd patterns. The FAA is not looking at imposing new rules as it might cause more confusion. Remember to stay on the radio and make your intentions known.

New Business: We've been invited to tour the CAF after an upcoming meeting and get a look at what our neighbors are up to. Bill mentioned the CAF 'Heritage' program: rides in the B-25 will go for $325. They are looking at including more planes in the program.

The ARC needs paint. Anyone who's up for some scraping and brushing is welcome to volunteer.

Mike Saettel is looking for old charts to donate for educational purposes. Ron Burnett notes that FBO's cut the corners off charts to identify them as expired, and agrees that VFR charts in particular are good to give away.

Ron reminded the group that he had extra food coupons, and Dave reminded new members that the chapters gets 4% from purchases made. Dave is also looking for corporate sponsorship for the chapter, if you're aware of such sources please let him know.

The Ford Trimotor will visit Cahokia this year. There's no news on the B-17 and Dave will contact EAA HQ once more.

A few Chapter 32 members were at Sun-n-Fun this year, though none were at our April meeting. We're waiting for an eyewitness account.

April's movie, on April 30, is 'Pearl'.

Dave Doherty has signed up with Dave Pressy to pursue his sport pilot certificate. He's now looking for a Taylorcraft.

If you find any out of date information in the roster please contact Jim Bower.

As of the April meeting the river is technically in flood stage, but is still about 10 feet from threatening KSET. The magic number is 31 feet of flood stage at Grafton, which puts the water about 6 inches from the floor level of the ARC.

Our by-laws were written in the nineteen sixties and need a review. Our executive committee will review and present changes to the membership. If you'd like to get involved please contact Dave Doherty.

Following the meeting Bill Doherty recognized Ron Burnett for the first flight of his RV-6A. Beginning in 2009, the quick-build kit took 11 years to complete. Ron thanked the chapter at large for assistance, and specifically recognized Jeff McKee, noting that they started Marine flight training together. Jeff was always ahead, even in the construction of his airplane. Ron has several suggestions, including building at home, and waiting to move to the airport only when your project is nearly complete. He also warns against the 'shotgun' approach: moving to a different subproject when you encounter a challenge. It's better to ask questions, get your issue resolved, finish the part you're working on and then move on. Ron's plane has a Subaru engine that burns 5 to 6 gallons per hour, a money saver over time. In retrospect, however, he noted that a Lycoming and a standard prop would have ended up costing about the same and taken less time to install and set up. Ron's thinking about selling his Luscombe, but don't consider making an offer if you plan to paint her.