In Flight USA January 2020 by Anne Dobbins

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

Calendar of Events

To list your group’s event on a space available basis, please send your event notice with date, time, place w/city and state, contact name, and phone number to: Calendar, In Flight USA, P.O. Box 5402, San Mateo, Calif. 94402, or email 3rdavenue@embarqmail.com.

JANUARY

7 18

18 — 19 19 23

FEBRUARY

4 7—9 15 15 — 16 16

21 22 — 23

MARCH

6—7 7

13 — 14 14

15 21 21 — 22

22 — 23 28 28 — 29

Q Chino, CA: Living History Flying Day, 10 a.m., Planes of Fame Air Museum, (909) 597-3722, www.planesoffame.org. Q Hollister, CA: Antique Aircraft Display & Fly-In, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Frazier Lake Airpark, (408) 835-1694, frazierlake.com. Q Chino, CA: Kilroy Coffee Klatch, 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., Planes of Fame Air Museum, (909) 597-7576. Q Buckeye, AZ: Buckeye Air Fair/Copperstate Fly-In, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Buckeye Municipal Airport, (623) 349-6000, buckeyeaz.gov. Q Riverside, CA: Aircraft Display Day Fly-In, 8 a.m., Flabob Airport, (951) 683-2309, www.flabob.org. Q Santa Rosa, CA: Open Cockpit Weekend, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Pacific Coast Air Museum, Sonoma County Airport, (707) 575-7900. Q San Diego, CA: Historic Aircraft Display, noon to 2 p.m., Montgomery Field, (619) 301-2530. Q Laredo, TX: Stars & Stripes Air Show Spectacular, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Laredo Int’l. Airport, (956) 722-0589, www.wbcalaredo.org. Q Palm Springs, CA: “We Did It Together” Annual Gala, 5:30 p.m., Palm Springs Air Museum, tickets and info (760) 482-1836. Q Puyallup, WA: Northwest Aviation Conference & Trade Show, Sat. 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m./Sun. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Showplex, washington-aviation.org. Q Chino, CA: Kilroy Coffee Klatch, 9 a.m. to 10 a.m., Planes of Fame Air Museum, (909) 597-7576. Q Casa Grande, AZ: Cactus Antique Fly-In, gates 8 a.m., Casa Grande Municipal Airport, (520) 426-3616, cactusflyin.org. Q Chino, CA: Living History Flying Day, 10 a.m., Planes of Fame Air Museum, (909) 597-3722, www.planesoffame.org. Q Hollister, CA: Antique Aircraft Display & Fly-In, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Frazier Lake Airpark, (408) 835-1694, frazierlake.com. Q Yuma, AZ: MCAS Yuma Air Show, gates Fri. 4:30 p.m./Sat. 9 a.m., yumaairshow.com. Q Del Rio, TX: Fiesta of Flight Air & Space Expo, Laughlin AFB, laughlin.af.mil. Q El Centro, CA: NAF El Centro Air Show, gates 9 a.m., elcentroairshow.com. Q San Diego, CA: Historic Aircraft Display, noon to 2 p.m., Montgomery Field, (619) 301-2530. Q Riverside, CA: Aircraft Display Day Fly-In, 8 a.m., Flabob Airport, (951) 683-2309, www.flabob.org. Q Phoenix, AZ: Luke Days 2020, gates TBA, Luke AFB, luke.af.mil. Q Santa Rosa, CA: Open Cockpit Weekend, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Pacific Coast Air Museum, Sonoma County Airport, (707) 575-7900. Q Napa, CA: Vintage Aircraft Display, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Napa Airport, (707) 944-9236. Q Lancaster, CA: Los Angeles County-Aerospace Valley Air Show, gates 9 a.m., William J. Fox Airport, lacountyairshow.com. Q Mesa, AZ: Open House, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Flacon Field Airport, (480) 644-2450, falconfieldairport.com. Q Riverside, CA: AirFest 2020 “Thunder over the Empire,” gates 8 a.m., March ARB, marchairshow.com. Q Tampa, FL: Tampa Bay AirFest, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., MacDill AFB, (813) 828-7469, tampabayairfest.com.

NEW TANKS -

QUOTES ON: Cherokee Tanks Fuel Cells & Metal Tanks Repair, overhauled & new Technical Information or Free Fuel Grade Decals

10 YEAR WARRANTY

MONARCH PREMIUM CAPS Premium Stainless Steel Umbrella Caps for your Cessna 177 through 210 www.hartwig-fuelcell.com

info@hartwig-fuelcell.com

Keeping aircraft in the air since 1952

US: 1-800-843-8033 CDN: 1-800-665-0236

INTL: 1-204-668-3234 FAX: 1-204-339-3351

FLY HIGH with

Since 1985

Mountain High

Aviation Oxygen Systems

MOUNTAIN HIGH

Made in the USA

Equipment & Supply Company

GA and Rotorcraft Pilots use MH Oxygen Systems with Pulse-DemandTM sss Makes flying at the higher altitudes safe and comfortable sss Portable Pulse-DemandTM Systems

MH XCP 1-4 Place Cross-Country 0ILOT System

EZ BreatheTM Cannulas

Visit us at

Booth B-66 at Sun'n'Fun

www.MHoxygen.com s sales@mhoxygen.com

FAA/CAMI Tested

COVER STORY 4

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

AIRCRAFT SPRUCE: FROM A ONE-WOMAN VISIONARY TO A GENERAL AVIATION FORCE

January 2020

By Victoria Buonocore

lo Irwin. Unlike a play on words that her name might suggest, this was not a woman who just went with the flow… This was a “highly energetic, dynamic” person who started a legacy in the aviation business community. Bob and Flo Irwin started what is now Aircraft Spruce & Specialty Company in the summer of 1956. Bob, a pilot since 1940 and active in the Civil Air Patrol along with other aviation groups, worked in the aerospace industry. While he worked full-time, Flo – who started out with no aviation experience but learned very quickly – managed their little aircraft parts business, taking orders from their home. Her management of the business, which focused on fair prices and excellent service kept their customers coming back. Soon, the Irwins realized they needed to expand to a larger facility. Finding a location at the Fullerton Airport in Southern California led them to create

Bob and Flo Irwin started their aviation legacy from their home in 1956. Flo ran the business while Bob worked. Today Aircraft Spruce is a 300-employee business with eight locations and run by their son Jim, his wife Nanci and their four children. (Courtesy Aircraft Spruce)

Fullerton Air Parts, which grew into one the largest retail aircraft parts suppliers in the western United States in less than a decade. “This was really my mom’s

doing,” said her son Jim. “My mother was the business person behind it.” In 1965, Bob and Flo sold Fullerton Air Parts with the idea that Flo would

stay home to focus on raising her two sons. “That lasted about six months,” laughs Jim. Well ahead of her time, and somewhat unusual in this era, Flo realized she could both run a business and raise her children. With this, Bob and Flo founded Aircraft Spruce Company and Continued on Page 7

J.T. Evans

AIRCRAFT SALES, INC. Aircraft Specialist & Used Parts

Specializing in Landing Gear and Control Surfaces “We also do Recovery & Storage for Singles & Light Twins”

800-421-1729 407-843-4547 Fax 407-425-1817 2501 S. Orange Blossom Trail • Orlando, FL 32805

BUY AMERIC A N ! !

TABLE Volume 36, Number 5

CONTENTS

650-358-9908 • Fax: 650-358-9254 • E-mail: vickie@inflightusa.com • www.inflightusa.com

January 2020

ON THE COVER COVER STORY

PHOTO FINISH

AIRCRAFT SPRUCE:

NBAA-BACE CONVENTION

FROM A ONE-WOMAN VISIONARY TO A GA POWERHOUSE

HIGH-ROLLERS OF THE AVIATION TYPE

By Victoria Buonocore Story Begins on Page 4

By Bob Martinez Page 49 Cover Photo Courtesy Aircraft Spruce

NEWS Something for Everyone: AOPA Announces 2020 Fly-In Locations ....8 EAA Affirms Place of Legacy Model Aircraft at UAS SRM ..................10 Free Admission for Children at EAA AirVenture 2020..........................11 ADS-B Privacy Now Available ..................................................................17 Aviation Business Community Welcomes Congressional Promotion of Fuel Sustainability..............................................................18 WWII 75th Commemoration Fundraiser Launched ..............................19 Opener Named Sponsor of AirVenture Innovation Showcase............20 U.S. DOT Issues Proposed Rule on Remote ID for Drones ................22 U.S. A.F. Special Ops Command to be Highlighted at AirVenture......24 NASA’s Moon to Mars Plans Fast Tracked in 2019 ..............................28 FAA to Decommission HIWAS This Month ............................................35 FAA to Improve Airmen Certificate Testing ............................................37 Textron Marks Successful Wing, Fuselage Mate ..................................38 U.S. Space Force Becomes a Reality ......................................................40

Jim Irwin, President of Aircraft Spruce and Specialty Company, flying his BT-13 over Corona, California. Bob Irwin, Jim’s father, owned the airplane in the 1950s. Jim found the aircraft years later and restored it in 2013. Bob and Flo Irwin founded Aircraft Spruce in 1956. Jim, his wife Nanci and their four children, now run the business, along with 300 employees. Find the complete story about the Irwin’s BT13 on Aircraft Spruce’s website, www.aircraftspruce.com. Editorial: “I Am Fearful…” By Ed Downs ..................................................................6 Mutual Aerial Awareness ADS-B Benefits Extend Beyond Mandate By Jim Moore, AOPA ......................................................12

COLUMNS Flying With Faber: The Resort at Pelican Hill By Stuart J. Faber ............................................................29 Flying Into Writing: Splash and Go’s By Eric McCarthy ............................................................33 SafeLandings: ASRS Year End Roundup ....................................................................................42

DEPARTMENTS

America’s Amazing Airports Traces Development, History of U.S. Airports By Mark Rhodes ............................................................14

Calendar of Events ..........................................................3

Alerion Works to Solve Aviation Challenges By Annamarie Buonocore ..............................................25

Index of Advertisers ......................................................50

Classifieds ......................................................................48

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

“I

January 2020

Editorial

1976 Beech V35B Bonanza

1974 Cessna A185F

1868 TTSN. Exceptionally low time aircraft. Less than 1900 total hours, contiinuous and original logs and a clean panel and interior. After lengthly disuse, it has been brought “back to life” with an extensive annual in 2018. Robertson STOL Kit, Hartzell PHC-C3YF-1RF/F8468A-6R 3-Blade-Contstant Speed Prop. overhauled in 2018. Dual King KX170’s One with Glidescope, King KR86 ADF. King KN74 TSO RNAV and more. Readyto Fly!...........................................................$139, 900

TTSN 4242, 1495 SMOH, Beautiful and well carred for aircraft. Exceptional paint, leather interior and outstanding mechanical condition. Engine: 1495 hours TT SFRM, 425 hours STOH. MCCauley 3-blade prop 423 TT SNEW. Fully integrated Garmin GNS-430W and Garmin GMX-200 coupled to the King KAP/KFC 200 Autopilot/Flight Director.GPSS, and ADS-B.Custom interiorwith 4-place intercom 2001, 1997 paint by Century Aircraft/Chino in excellent condition. Southern California aircraft. ........................................................................................$122,000

1970 Piper Arrow

1975 YAK-50

4917 TTAF, 276 SMOH. Clean and well maintained Piper Arrow with ADS-B In/Out! Garmin GTX 345 integrated with Garmin 530W. Great transition from a trainer to a single with retractable landing gear and controllable-pitch propeller.Beautiful cross country IFR platform with low time engine .............................$72,000

TTSN 170, 14 SMOH. Fully Restored and Like New! The aircraft had 156 hours since new when sent back to factory in Russia for complete overhaul 1999.Declared a “zero time” overhaul.with latest tech standards. Complete avionic upgrade in compliance to European standards 2015.Call for more information........$89,000

Steve Feldman • Sales Manager (650) 394-7610 • steve@airplanesusa.com San Carlos Airport • 620 Airport Way • San Carlos, California 94070 AirplanesUSA of Chicago

AirplanesUSA of Florida

(847) 331-3133

(954) 491-1700

www.airplanesusa.com

CFI ACADEMY IT’S NOT CFI; IT’S CF-WHY

CFI Academy has been training FAA Certificated Flight Instructors since 1988. Maintaining focus and staying dedicated to teaching CFI courses exclusively for this long, we really are the experts in the Flight Instructor Training business.

Come to the EXPERTS in the field to train for the most demanding and challenging checkride you will ever take! • On-campus housing – custom built – means total immersion for three weeks, and no distractions. • From course start date to checkride completion – three weeks. • Flat Rate Ground School – the biggest variable in the training cost for CFI. CFI Academy 3700 E Jahant Rd. Acampo, CA 95220

1-916-209-0234 admin@cfiacademy.com Weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

CFIACADEMY.COM

FEARFUL …”

By Ed Downs

here is an upbeat title for the first editorial opinion for 2020! Yes, maybe a bit negative but also a prognostic look into the future. 2020 promises to be an interesting, if not disturbing year. The main event will be the upcoming national elections. If the past has anything to do with the future, we will see distasteful rhetoric, outright lies, name calling, and governmental paralysis continue, perhaps even climb to new heights… a sad proposition. But what is happening in our little corner of the world, or perhaps we should say atmosphere? What is in store for aviation, in all its remarkable forms? This writer thinks that 2020 will be a good year for flying, marking the maturing of technological advances that have been promised for more than 20 years but not delivered. First will come the ADS-B promise of a new ATC system and perhaps Next Gen. But this writer firmly believes that it is not just 2020 at hand. We are beginning a new decade. We will see technological advances maturing at a rate that has not been seen since the heydays of the 1960s… remember… “If we can send man to the moon, we can do anything!” We are entering a decade that will quite literally change our world, and perhaps add one or two new worlds to the list. It is now probable that the next decade will see permanent settlements established on the Moon and that Mars will receive the first exploratory visits by a species (us) that just recently (in galactic terms) evolved out of the primordial slime. We may even discover life on the moons of Saturn or Jupiter while the list of inhabitable exoplanets grows larger by leaps and bounds. Such achievements will bring about social, ecological, and technological changes that will shape the remainder of the millennium. Yep, great things are promised by expanding use of technology, which brings us back to the title of this editorial opinion. If my distant memory serves me faithfully, back in the early ‘90s this writer was having a conversation about the development of a new technology in the works at Boeing. Airbus was also deeply involved in this relatively new technology that promised to reduce cost and improve performance, meaning high profits for airlines and aircraft manufacturers. My friend was, in fact, leading this development effort. As the conversation, questions, and explanations continued, my friend paused. He pondered the

nature of our discussion and then added, “This development process may end well, but I am fearful that given the time and money that has been sunk into this technology, we will feel compelled to use it.” He was right, that technology was put into use, it did have weaknesses, and innocent people died as a result. The technology in question remains in use today, as its economic benefits warranted further development and improvement. It now works well but is carefully monitored by maintenance procedures and new legal standards… of little consolation to those who died or lost loved ones. It is the nature of our species to always want something better, call it the “better mouse trap” syndrome. But technological advances have been bringing “better” on at an ever-increasing rate, and along with that non-linear increase, is a belief that all things are made better with technology. We tend to toss technology at almost every problem. Of course, we have learned from the past… right? Apparently Boeing did not learn, nor did the government agencies responsible for public safety and aircraft certification. The tragic events surrounding the two Boeing 737 Max crashes brings to light the nasty results of mixing an overly cooperative regulatory agency with a company hell bent on competing with Airbus by offering a lower cost airline aircraft that can be flown by pilots with poor basic skills and minimal training, all contributing to cost competitiveness. In other words, the “bottom line” was profits and fatalities. Driving such questionable business decisions is the demand from major aircraft purchasers for a plane that will basically fly itself, requiring minimal pilot skill or training. Airbus saw the potential in building such aircraft decades ago and has consistently beat Boeing in the developing nation market. Boeing had previously resisted turning the safety of its products over to computer programmers. They gave in on the 737 MAX, a plane with unique stability challenges due to the use of a new engine configuration. A Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) was developed to overcome unwelcome (perhaps uncontrollable) pitch oscillations at high-power settings. The MCAS was designed to “take over” the plane if the pilot could not handle certain conditions, but pilots were not properly trained in the use of this system and lacked basic flying skills, resultContinued on Page 13

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

Cover Story: Aircraft Spruce

I am a safe pilot. This is a great day to fly. Accidents only happen to other pilots. Aircraft Spruce is a family-owned and operated business, with Jim and Nanci Irwin at the helm, along with their three sons and daughter running departments. (Courtesy Aircraft Spruce) Continued from Page 4 thought they would keep things simple by offering their customers only one product, aircraft-grade spruce lumber for aircraft construction and restoration. That philosophy didn’t long. Soon, they were adding more and more products to their inventory. Then they thought it would be helpful to have a catalog so that customers far and wide could see their products and place orders by telephone to be shipped. Their catalog started off very small, recalls Jim. Flash forward, today their catalog is more than 1,100 pages and contains more than 100,000 products. It’s available both online and in print. In keeping with Flo’s determination to keep Jim Irwin, President of Aircraft Spruce, is her customers happy, she shipped orders an avid pilot having logged more than daily. Aircraft Spruce continues to do so, 4,000 hours. (Courtesy Aircraft Spruce) usually getting parts to their customers within a couple of days. Aircraft Spruce also continues the mother was really the force behind the tradition of expanding their products and business and that was pretty unusual at product lines. “We are one of Garmin’s the time.” biggest distributors,” noted Jim. Aircraft Within a couple of years after his Spruce is also a major distributor for graduation from California Sate Lycoming and Continental products. “We University at Fullerton, Jim acquired want to be that one-stop-shop for everyAircraft Spruce and Specialty and thing our customers need,” said Jim. became president in 1980. Jim’s wife, As Bob and Flo grew their business, Nanci, a graduate of the University of they were determined to maintain their Southern California with a degree in fair pricing and top-notch customer servaccounting is vice president of the comice and added the goal of providing the pany and manages the accounting and parts, tools and supplies every pilot and data processing departments. Both Jim aircraft builder or restorer needed to comand Nanci are active pilots, he with well plete their projects. Jim and his younger over 4,000 hours as a multi-engine, brother John grew up in the business. “I instrument-rated pilot since 1976 and she would come in after school and pull parts with a private license. (for shipping) and later I would cut wood In 1983, Bob and Flo moved to Lake or metal to process orders,” said Jim. “I Havasu City, Arizona. That might have really learned the business from my been a retirement plan for some, but not mom, working side-by-side with her.” the Irwins. Along with their son John, During and after college, “I became they founded ACS Products Company, involved in the business end, especially which manufactures a line of products sales,” he added. “Through all of this, my Continued on Page 9

No flight plan includes an accident.

OVER 30% OF PPS PARTICIPANTS JOIN AFTER AN ACCIDENT OR INCIDENT (WHICH LIMITS YOUR COVERAGE RELATED TO THE ACCIDENT).

Aircraft accidents or incidents can happen to even the most experienced pilot. Help protect your airman and medical certificates with AOPA’s Pilot Protection Services, so you can keep doing what you love - FLYING!

Go to aopa.org/pps or call 800.872.2672

Available for membership levels that include PPS Basic or Plus level coverage

SPREAD YOUR WINGS

In Flight USA Celebrating 36Years

By Mark Baker

January 2020

You Earned your Pilot Certificate – Now What?

merican author Mark Twain once said, “Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.” From personal experience, I can tell you Twain was onto something. I have spent a good portion of my life around the aviation community, and I’ve yet to meet a pilot who regrets learning to fly. More often, it’s “I wish I hadn’t waited so long.” Whether you pursued this skill to advance your career, learned to fly as a hobby, or have always dreamed of crossing it off your bucket list, I applaud you. Earning your wings is an accomplishment that should be celebrated, and it truly sets us apart from most of our co-workers, neighbors, and acquaintances. For me, learning to fly was one of

the most thrilling, rewarding, and challenging experiences of my life. However, there are a lot of pilots caught in a gray area after getting their certificate. Like all things, the honeymoon phase of taking up your first few passengers dwindles, and many pilots begin asking themselves – now what? Statistics show that many pilots let their skills lapse over time, partly because they don’t have a reason to venture out of the familiar traffic pattern at their local airports. But a multitude of opportunities exist – whether the goal is to build time, volunteer, or challenge yourself with a fun, new rating. Don’t let your logbook sit on the shelf collecting dust. Put your skills to good use and get airborne. Enjoy all the freedoms that come with being a pilot in a country where the sky truly is the limit. If you want to make a career out of

flying, now’s the time. Because of a growing number of retirees, a booming economy, and an increased thirst for air travel, pilots are in high demand. Aviation professionals are needed in legacy airlines, regionals, Part 91, and Part 135 operators. Boeing predicts a need for more than 800,000 new civil pilots to fly the global fleet over the next 20 years. Collegiate flight schools such as Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University have seen an increase in enrollment in the past year. Last fall’s incoming class at Embry-Riddle’s Daytona Beach, Florida, campus had 1,950 students – an increase of nearly 18 percent over the previous year. Today, there are many opportunities to build coveted flight time without going down the traditional flight instructor route. In fact, many Part 135 operators are accepting pilots with fewer hours than pre-

viously demanded. Such positions are great opportunities to build time to qualify for the regional airlines. Some on-demand operators are recruiting first officers with as few as 300 hours total time. Aerial photography, air tour pilots, pipeline patrol, and skydive operations are all great ways for low-time pilots to get more experience, up their confidence, and jump-start their careers. Plus, I can’t think of any entrylevel job with better office views. No matter your experience, ratings, or time logged, we are all pilots with a passion for aviation. We all dared to take the leap, sacrificed the hours, and sat shoulder to shoulder with our instructors on a weekly basis. Should you ever find yourself in a rut, just remember what a remarkable achievement it is to become a pilot. Life is bound to be filled with some regrets, but I assure you, learning to fly will never be one of them.

It’s official – the locations have been selected for the 2020 AOPA Fly-Ins, three great two-day events and each will have a personality of its own. From music to rodeo, car shows to airshows, and Wild West excursions to a metropolitan vibe, AOPA’s three locations will have something for everyone. AOPA staff have worked for months identifying, selecting, and finalizing this year’s fly-ins. Drum roll, please: On May 29 and 30, join AOPA in San Marcos, Texas (HYI), for a return event that looks noth-

ing like it did the first time around, when they hosted their first regional fly-in there in 2014. The fly-in will be co-located with an exciting music festival/car show/airshow called Go Wheels Up, Texas! On June 19 and 20 head to Casper, Wyoming (CPR), a place to savor the rich Western heritage of these United States. AOPA will be there during the College National Finals Rodeo so this event will be a total immersion in Western culture. Sept. 11 and 12, AOPA will host the fly-in in upstate New York in the energetic city of Rochester (ROC).

This international airport will welcome “us little guys” with waived fees and open arms. “This year’s AOPA Fly-Ins will take us into two new states in parts of the country we’ve not yet visited with exciting opportunities to explore their unique strengths,” said Chris Eads, AOPA senior director of Outreach and Events. “And, we will also revisit the roots of our regional fly-in program by returning to our very first location in 2014. We are looking forward to a fun year with lots of new flying adventures.”

Three great weekends: 2020 AOPA Fly-In Schedule

AOPA President and CEO

SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE: LOCATIONS FOR AOPA’S 2020 FLY-INS ANNOUNCED

FAA ISSUES IMPORTANT CHARTER GUIDANCE

Today, booking a charter flight can be as easy as tapping a few buttons on your mobile device. But that doesn’t mean the flight is legal or safe. The FAA’s top priority is ensuring the safety of the traveling public, and it’s critical that both pilots and passengers (PDF) confirm that the charter flights they’re providing and receiving comply with all applicable Federal Aviation Regulations. If you pay for a charter flight, you

are entitled to a higher level of safety than is required from a free flight from a friend. Among other things, pilots who transport paying passengers must have the required qualifications and training, are subject to random drug and alcohol testing, and the aircraft used must be maintained to the high standards that the FAA’s charter regulations require. The FAA recently sent a letter about this issue to a company called Blackbird Air that created a web-based application

PILOTS

that connects passengers with pilots. The letter emphasizes an FAA policy about the requirements for pilots who are paid to fly passengers. The policy states that pilots who are paid to fly passengers generally can’t just hold the required Commercial or Airline Transport pilot license – they also must be employed by the company operating the flight, which must hold a certificate issued under Part 119 of the Federal Aviation Regulations. Or the pilots must themselves hold a Part

May 29-30 San Marcos, Texas, San Marcos Regional Airport (HYI) June 19-20 Casper, Wyoming Casper/Natrone County Airport (CPR) Sept. 11-12 Rochester, New York Greater Rochester International Airport (ROC) For more information, visit the AOPA website at aopa.org/fly-ins.

AND

PASSENGERS

119 certificate. Any pilot who provides charter flights without complying with the Part 119 certificate requirement would be violating the Federal Aviation Regulations – even if they possess a Commercial or Airline Transport Pilot license. The FAA’s determination has been upheld in federal court. A current listing of FAA-licensed charter providers is available on the FAA website, faa.gov.

Visit In Flight USA’s website for the latest aviation news... www.inflightusa.com

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

Cover Story: Aircraft Spruce

Continued from Page 7 distributed by Aircraft Spruce. John and his wife Frances now manage ACS Products Company. Sadly Flo Irwin passed away on June 10, 1989 but not before leaving a legacy of aviation businesses that continue to thrive and serve the general aviation community through her sons and their families. “My mom went from seeing telephone orders to fax orders, but that’s about it. She passed before technology really took off. I think she would be amazed at how the business has evolved. I think she would have been pretty proud, too,” said Jim. Bob Irwin passed away on June 26, 2015 at the celebrated age of 95! He was an instrument-rated pilot with more than 2000 hours. He flew a 1968 Navion Rangemaster, which was based at Lake Havasu, until May 2000 when he retired after 50 years of flying. As legacies go, he moved his Navion to Chino Airport where his grandchildren continue to fly it. Not only do his grandchildren fly, they are “in the process” of taking over Aircraft Spruce… and while Jim sees himself on a golf course in the not-toodistant-future, each of his four children, three sons: Mike, Jeff and Rob and daughter, Krissy, are managing departments at Aircraft Spruce: Mike, the eldest, is in charge of the purchasing department; Jeff runs operations and manages the Canada facility from the Corona headquarters; Rob is the marketing director and Krissy works with Nanci in the accounting department. “We have all six of us working right alongside 300 other very dedicated and talented employees,” said Jim. By the way, don’t take Jim’s golf course comment too seriously. He was quick to add, “I love what I do and I’m thankful for every day I get to come to work. Nanci and I have been doing this for some 40 years and we love the challenge and we love working side-by-side with our children. We look forward to continuing to grow!” Growth is an underlining theme at Aircraft Spruce. “Aircraft Spruce has been very fortunate over the years to grow from one person 50-plus years ago to what it is today. It’s taken a lot of hard work but mostly we’ve had great support from the aviation community. We couldn’t be more thankful, especially for the great people we deal with everyday. Aviation people are pretty special and we look forward to doing this for many years to come,” said Jim. From their mom-and-pop (mostly mom) start in a home to the Fullerton Airport to the former Fullerton citrus packing house to the new (in 1997)

Aircraft Spruce is headquartered in a 62,000 square-foot complex in Corona, Calif. (Courtesy Aircraft Spruce) 62,000-square-foot complex in Corona, Calif., Aircraft Spruce has continued to establish facilities and warehouses throughout the country, including Peachtree, Georgia; Ontario, Canada; and most recently in Chicago and Alaska. The family also owns and operates a second business called Aero Performance. This is mostly a wholesale business selling to FBOs and other facilities. Aero Performance has locations in Texas, Pennsylvania and Arizona. This brings the family business to a total of eight facilities, seven in the U.S. and one in Canada. Since Aircraft Spruce and Aero Performance work hand in hand, the focus of the business is to get orders shipped quickly and efficiently and this can happen with customers being served usually within two days from their facilities throughout the country. Generally, “97 to 98 percent of all orders are shipping the same day,” said Jim, “and those orders usually get to our customers within two days.” Aircraft Spruce ships between 15,000 and 20,000 orders every week. “We do our best to keep this part of our business finely tuned. It’s important to our customers to get their orders quickly, whether they are a new airplane owner or a kit builder and need a part or they are refurbishing a classic or a warbird. These projects are important; they are the heart and soul and a big part of the aviation community.” With his years of experience, Jim says aviation is in a “very good spot” today. There are “many options” by which to learn how to fly, to maybe own an aircraft or be part of a team to refurbish an aircraft.” Aircraft Spruce wants to be a ‘one-stop-shop’ for everyone’s needs in the aviation community. “We are excited about finding new products and bringing new product lines into the business.” To think this all started in “one room with our mom at the helm, is really amazContinued on Page 10

EAA AFFIRMS PLACE OF LEGACY MODEL AIRCRAFT AT UAS SRM

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

Garm Dealerin in Western U.S.!

January 2020

28 YEARS OF GIVING PILOTS THE BEST PRICING AND BEST SERVICE!

THE WEST COAST LEADING GARMIN DEALER! From basic installs to complete panel and glass retro-fits-we are the leaders in avionics experience, excellent service and value pricing. Call us for your next avionics installation.

F33A BONANZA DUAL GARMIN G-500TXI GARMIN GPS-175 • GNC-355 • GNX-375

ADS-B Transponders T GPS-175 2” Touchscreen GPS

$4295 Free Shipping! GNC-355 2” Touchscreen GPS/COM $6295

Free Shipping! GNX-375 2” Touchscreen GPS w/ADS-B Xponder $6995 Plus Installation

$2249

ONE BOX ADS-B SOLUTIONS! GTX-335/GPS (Out Only) ...... $2995 GTX-345 (Out/In) (Installed).. $6059 GTX-345/GPS (Installed) ....... $7095

G5 EFIS for Experimentals

$1249

APPAREO

UAVIONICS ADS-B

CALL FOR SPECIALS

ANR HEADSETS

STRATUS ESG TRANSPONDER • ADS-B Out Transponder • Internal WAAS GPS w/Antenna

$2995 STRATUS-3 $699 • ADS-B Receiver

G5 EFIS Certified

IN STOCK! TailBeacon/Certified.................... $1999 TailBeacon/Experimental............. $1649 SkyBeacon/Certified................... $1849 SkyBeacon/Experimental........... $1395

BOSE A20

LIGHTSPEED

$1095.95

Zulu3 $850

PCA-ANR

PCA-ANR/BT

$249

$349

THE WEST COAST LEADING AVIONICS DEALER!

EAA believes that model aviation is a significant pathway to manned flight, and many EAA members came into general aviation through model aviation. (Courtesy EAA) EAA affirmed on Dec. 19 that legacy model aircraft can safely be integrated into the National Airspace System (NAS) – as they have been operated inside controlled airspace and near airports for decades without causing a safety risk to full-scale aircraft – in a Safety Risk Management panel (SRM) in Washington, D.C. EAA vice president of advocacy and safety Sean Elliott represented EAA as a subject matter expert at the SRM panel, which sought to define recommendations towards a process/checklist for Air Traffic Control to integrate model aircraft operations and allow their operations at higher altitudes than the current LAANC facilities map currently allows. It has long been EAA's belief that model aviation is a significant pathway to manned flight, and many EAA members came into general aviation through model aviation while many more continue to participate in both forms of flying. Specifically, Elliott pointed out the

true lack of risks associated with model aircraft operations taking place in proximity to various types of manned operations. Legacy model aircraft – such as traditional fixed-wing airplanes, gliders, and helicopter models – have operated in the National Airspace System for decades without posing a threat to manned flight. “Legacy model aviation is a pathway and parallel to all aspects of manned flight, from professional pilots all the way down to grassroots activities such as the EAA community; our members participate in these forms of aviation in a lifelong capacity,” Elliott said. “It's very important for the future of general aviation. EAA's role is to bring that viewpoint and help the modeling community continue to exist and be relevant into the next century.” EAA is supportive of safe integration of UAS and believes legacy model aviation should continue to exist as it has for more than 90 years.

Cover Story: Aircraft Spruce

CALL FOR BEST PRICING ON THESE ITEMS AND MORE

SAME DAY SHIPPING ON MOST ITEMS! FREE SHIPPING • NO SALES TAX

WE BEAT ALL ADVERTISED PRICES!

www.PCA.aero 1-800-353-0370 Aurora State Airport • 22783 Airport Road, N.E. • Aurora, OR 97002 Fax: 503.678.6292 • Mon. – Fri. 7:30 – 5:30 PST PRICE AND AVAILABILITY SUBJECT TO CHANGE.

Continued from Page 9 ing,” states Jim. From one employee and a mail-order type of business to now more than 300 employees, all online and ready to serve in a multitude of positions, Aircraft Spruce’s president credits his “ahead-of-the-times mom with her philosophy of good customer service” and the many repeat customers throughout the years for where they are today. “I’m really proud of all of our employees,” he added. They work very hard to keep our customers satisfied and

coming back. They are really focused on their jobs and we’re so thankful for how hard to work. That’s reflected in our repeat business customers, which is very important,” Jim said. Aircraft Spruce is headquarterd at 225 Airport Circle in Corona, Calif. Find more information, including their products and locations on their website at www.aircraftspruce.com or call toll free for information and order placement at 877-477-7823.

For the latest aviation news and stories, visit

www.inflightusa.com

January 2020

FREE ADMISSION FOR AGES 18-AND-UNDER AT EAA AIRVENTURE OSHKOSH 2020 www.inflightusa.com

Boeing Support Opens Door for Youth to Attend World’s Greatest Aviation Celebration

Young people ages 18 and under will be admitted free to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2020, as a way to introduce more youth to the possibilities in the world of flight. The 68th annual Experimental Aircraft Association fly-in convention will be July 20-26 at Wittman Regional Airport. The Boeing Company is financially supporting this effort for the next two years to encourage more aviation-minded families and their children to attend the event that brings more than 10,000 aircraft from around the world to Oshkosh each year. “EAA’s mission is growing participation in aviation and in 2019, after EAA reduced admission costs for students, we saw an increased number of families coming to AirVenture,” said Jack J. Pelton, EAA’s CEO/chairman of the board. “Inspiring young people and giving them a first look at what’s possible in aviation is only achievable if they can get in the gate. This effort will build on the more than 60 years where AirVenture has earned a reputation as a wonderful family event. We’re incredibly appreciative of Boeing’s support and like EAA, Boeing is committed to inspiring the next generation of aeronautical innovators.

Because of Boeing’s belief in our mission, we can invite youth from around the world to experience AirVenture at no cost.” The free youth admission is available throughout AirVenture week. Along with Boeing’s financial support, a small fee on AirVenture advanced purchase adult admissions and value-added opportunities such as the Aviators Club will support this free admission opportunity for young people. “At Boeing, we aim to inspire and prepare the next generation of innovators, and EAA AirVenture provides a unique opportunity to encourage the natural curiosity of young people,” said William Ampofo, vice president, Business Aviation, General Aviation & OEM Services, Boeing Global Services. “We are proud to provide an opportunity for thousands of youth to experience this world-class event, and be inspired to use their talents, creativity and vision for the future of aviation.” Longstanding youth activities and programs at AirVenture include such popular offerings as the hands-on KidVenture display and program area; technology, innovation, and education options at Aviation Gateway Park; and extraordinary events

such as daily air shows and more than 1,500 forums, workshops, and seminars. Complete admission pricing and advance online purchase is currently available at EAA.org/AirVenture. EAA AirVenture Oshkosh is “The World’s Greatest Aviation Celebration” and EAA’s yearly membership convention. Additional EAA AirVenture infor-

mation, including advance ticket and camping purchase, is available online at www.eaa.org/airventure. EAA members receive lowest prices on admission rates. For more information on EAA and its programs, call 1-800-JOIN-EAA (1-800564-6322) or visit www.eaa.org. Immediate news is available at www.twitter.com/EAA. P.O. Box 5402 • San Mateo, CA 94402 (650) 358-9908 • Fax (650) 358-9254

Founder ..................................................................................................................Ciro Buonocore Publisher/Editor................................................................................................Victoria Buonocore Managing Editor..........................................................................................Annamarie Buonocore Production Editors ..............................................................................Anne Dobbins, Toni Sieling Associate Editors .................................... Paul T. Glessner, Nicholas A. Veronico, Sagar Pathak Staff Contributors ..............................................S. Mark Rhodes, Larry Nazimek, Joe Gonzales Columnists ..................Stuart Faber, Eric McCarthy, Ed Wischmeyer, Marilyn Dash, Ed Downs Copy Editing ............................................................................................................Sally Gersbach Advertising Sales Manager ........................................Ed Downs (650) 358-9908, (918) 873-0280

In Flight USA is published each month by In Flight Publishing. It is circulated throughout the continental United States. Business matters, advertising and editorial concerns should be addressed to In Flight USA, P.O. Box 5402, San Mateo, Calif. 94402 or by calling (650) 358-9908–fax (650) 358-9254. Copyright © 2008 In Flight Publishing. In Flight USA is not responsible for any action taken by any person as a result of reading any part of any issue. The pieces are written for information, entertainment and suggestion – not recommendation. The pursuit of flight or any action reflected by this paper is the responsibility of the individual and not of this paper, its staff or contributors. Opinions expressed are those of the individual author, and not necessarily those of In Flight USA. All editorial and advertising matter in this edition is copyrighted. Reproduction in any way is strictly prohibited without written permission of the publisher. In Flight USA is not liable or in any way responsible for the condition or airworthiness of any aircraft advertised for sale in any edition. By law the airworthiness of any aircraft sold is the responsiblity of the seller and buyer.

1980 CESSNA 414A RAM IV

1975 PIPER CHIEFTAIN PA-31-350

Serving the General Aviation Community Since 1981 1975 CESSNA 150M SOLD N66AT - 12,100 TT, 1470/1495 SMOH (2007), 488 SPOH (2014), King digital, 160 radar, aux heat, last flown July 2013. MAKE OFFER!

N63646 – Only 2410 TTSN! Only 566 SMOH! 51 SNEW Prop! Fresh June 2019 annual! Questionable Cessna 300 NavCom, King KT-76 Trans ponder, Tanis heater, belly drain. FIRST $25,000 OWNS IT!

N53WT - Only 4735TT, 625 SRAM, 10 SPOH, King digital, KLN-94, RDR160, Strike Finder, KFC-200 A/P! VGs, June annual. Does have DH. $225,000/OBO/MOTIVATED SELLER!

Corporate Headquarters • Watertown Municipal Airport • 1741 River Drive • Watertown, Wisconsin 53094 • (920) 261-4567

e-mail: acsales@wisconsinaviation.com

website: WisconsinAviation.com

MUTUAL AERIAL AWARENESS ADS-B BENEFITS EXTEND BEYOND THE MANDATE

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

HANGARS

50 Years of Manufacturing Excellence 44 Buy Factory Direct ! • Electric Bi-Fold Doors • T-Hangars • Corporate Hangars • Individual Hangars • Hangar Homes • Maintenance Hangars

Photo by Bruce Selyem

CCall all TToday oday !

Call Today !

R & M Steel Co. U.S. Toll Free: Phone 1-866-454-1800 • Fax 1-866-454-1801 Outside U.S. 1-208-454-1800

www.aviationbuildingsystem.com sales.rmsteel@gmail.com

Call for promotional Pricing!

Specializing in New Pilot Medical Exams

January 2020

By Jim Moore AOPA

DS-B is a bit like a vaccine: Everyone needs to have it to achieve the maximum possible benefit. As drones continue to increase in number, AOPA noted that aircraft owners who may not need access to certain airspace once ADS-B becomes mandatory in that airspace in 2020 still stand to gain significant safety and situational awareness by equipping. In medicine, the term “herd immunity” refers to disease prevention through mass vaccination. It is achieved when a significant portion of any given population is immune to a given disease. Once the population exposed to the risk achieves this benchmark, the protection of vaccination extends beyond the vaccinated individuals to include everyone. The benefits of ADS-B equipage are multiplied by mass adoption in much the same way: When most, if not all, aircraft utilize the technology, everyone – remote pilots included–will have a more complete “picture” of the nearby airspace, and the risk of conflict or collision will decrease significantly. The aviation community as a whole still has work to do, however. As the final days before the ADS-B mandate count down, AOPA and a few key players serving both the manned and unmanned aircraft communities have made significant progress setting the stage for successful realization of the full potential safety benefits of ADS-B. AOPA Senior Director of Airspace, Air Traffic, and Aviation Security Rune Duke noted the association’s concern that many general aviation owners remain unprepared for the ADS-B mandate that will apply to so-called “rule airspace” starting in January (generally speaking, airspace where Mode C has been required for many years). “We are projecting just 60 percent of the 143,000 general aviation aircraft that frequent rule airspace will have ADS-B by 2020. With nearly 212,000 aircraft in the active general aviation fleet, there is still a way to go,” Duke said. “It is important pilots understand the wide-ranging safety and efficiency benefits of equipping with ADS-B Out. We regularly hear stories from pilots of how ADS-B Out helped avoid a traffic conflict, or worse.” Duke noted that many hands and minds are working together to achieve

DJI is equipping all of its drones weighing 250 grams or more with ADS-B In capability. (Jim Moore/ Courtesy AOPA)

wider implementation of ADS-B. AOPA has enjoyed the support of many collaborators from industry, including firms that were created to support the unmanned aircraft segment of GA. To name one example, DJI announced in May that it will equip every DJI drone weighing 250 grams or more with ADS-B In. That AirSense feature will help remote pilots avoid conflict between their drones and manned aircraft, displaying on the remote pilot’s screen traffic alerts for any nearby aircraft that are broadcasting ADS-B Out. “As we studied the past few years of drone incidents, we learned that nearly all reported drone sightings and even collisions are not credible, but also found a pattern of verified low-altitude conflicts with helicopters. We used this data to inform our next step in leading the industry in drone safety: ADS-B,” said DJI Vice President of Policy and Legal Affairs Brendan Schulman, in an email. “Our voluntary commitment to ADS-B will help the vast majority of drone pilots be better aware of nearby traffic and take steps to avoid conflicts and collisions. As the FAA’s 2020 ADS-B mandate comes into force, our voluntary commitment to equipping the world’s most popular drones provides one of the best additional reasons for airplane and helicopter owners to equip their fleets.” Equipping business jets is a relatively easy sell, but the value proposition for older piston aircraft has long been a challenge. Owners of vintage airplanes that often lack basic electrical systems have good reason to want to avoid investing many thousands of dollars equipping with ADS-B Out systems that might cost more than their Piper Cub or Luscombe is worth. This is exactly the inexorable force that has limited ADSB fleet penetration (and that “herd immunity” we’re all aiming for), and that pulled uAvionix (a Montana company launched in 2015 to serve the drone industry) into GA in a big way. uAvionix announced a discount on Continued on Page 16

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

Editorial: I Am Fearful Continued from Page 6 ing in loss of control. This entire system was dependent upon only one data input and did not have redundant monitoring (like RAIM in your IFR GPS). Yes, welcome to technology of the next decade, but do not think for a minute that this race for technological gadgetry is limited to the big guys? Auto pilot systems that run full time to help the pilot have been in place for many years, with excellent results. The advent of swept-wing aircraft led to discovery of a phenomena know as “dutch roll,” a yawing motion that leads to uncontrolled roll inputs. It can get nasty. The yaw damper is an automatic ruder system, used for many years on virtually all advanced aircraft (especially swept wings). Yes, pilots who leaned to fly in military jets and then went into sweptwing fighters have poor coordination skills, but they do know what a ruder is and can use it (overriding the yaw damper) if need be. High-altitude airplanes are almost always flown on autopilot, providing a form of stabilization in thin air. It is nearly impossible to hand fly such aircraft in the upper atmosphere, but these pilots are carefully trained and know alternate procedures should an autopilot failure occur. The GA market joined in with auto stabilization when Mooney aircraft installed a full-time wing leveler in the mid-’60s. Other GA planes have used some form of stability augmentation. But all these systems were installed with the understanding that a skilled and properly trained pilot was flying the plane, and the systems could be quickly disabled. Even as avionics progressed from the old low-frequency systems, to VOR, to LORAN, and finally GPS, it was done in a manner that considered these improving systems as a means of reducing pilot workload and/or enhancing skill. These systems were not designed to “replace the pilot.” Technology of the next decade may not seek to help us but to replace us… no, not like robots in a science fiction scenario… but in the sense that we, as pilots, will know less and less about what is going on, depending upon our technology to do the job for us. Sure, good technology will probably get good results … it always has… right? With a student load of some 300plus individuals per year (all ratings, written exams, and CFI recerts), this writer sees a very alarming trend. Be it for pre-flight planning, checklist use, flight maneuvers, complex instrument approaches, and other flight situations, we have become increasingly dependent upon a switch or a battery. The ques-

tion… is that switch or battery improving the healthy set of skills you already have, or is it replacing them? Yes, a rhetorical question, as this writer sees more and more students and CFIs who are dependent upon technology to do even the most basic tasks. Regrettably, even the FAA, the same agency that collaborated with Boeing, is “in” on the idea of technology replacing skill. The new Airman Certification Standard (ACS) corrects deficiencies of the old Practical Test Standard (PTS), but also allows the use of electronic flight bags for the automatic creation of full flight plans and weight and balance computations. There is certainly nothing wrong with electronically stored data, but should that device also “think” for the PIC? Does software go through any kind of certification process or require dual redundancy? The new standard stresses the psychology of flight but diminishes basic stick-and-ruder skill standards. It is now permissible to “manage” an aircraft through a complex instrument approach, meaning one can use all the technology provided by a plane, like a Cirrus or advanced Cessna, to do the thinking. Yes, in these fully integrated planes, letting the plane do the work is acceptable. It is surprising how many times this old CFI has heard the statement, “Boy, I sure am glad I have an advanced technology airplane, I would never try this approach without it.” Does that sound like a well-developed skill set? Yet strangely, the same agency that wants to talk about flying, but not actually do it, is now asking those of us who teach Flight Instructor Refresher Courses (FIRCS) to bring up the possible downsides of new technology such as task saturations, sensory overload, auto system dependency, and a loss of basic pilot skills. Maybe one group of regulators is still flying Aeroncas, while the others are spending time playing computer games? There seems to be an almost “underground” movement to restore basic flying skills. Perhaps a glimmer of hope for the new year? So, in the end, does this writer dislike technology? Heck no! But my years of flying give me the ability to use “connective reasoning,” meaning using skill and knowledge to “connect the dots” and predict an outcome. I do not need a machine to do that for me. While many modern pilots think only as far ahead as permitted by an advance display, this old boy is mentally flying an approach hours before reaching the destination. Demonstrable skill sets permit one Continued on Page 22

Planes of Fame Air Museum Over 150 Aircraft and Displays See the

Vought F4U-1A Corsair

Fly!

Living History Flying Day Saturday, Feb. 1, 2020, 10 am The February 1st Living History Flying Day will feature the Vought F4U-1A Corsair. A speaker panel of distinguished aviation experts and historians will give a presentation, followed by a flight demonstration of the featured aircraft. Living History Flying Days occur the first Saturday of each month at the Chino, CA location. (Schedule subject to change.)

Visit us:

Sun-Fri: 10-5 • Sat: 9-5 Closed Thanksgiving & Christmas

CHINO AIRPORT (KCNO) • 14998 Cal Aero Drive, Chino, CA 91710 Corner of Merrill and Cal Aero Drive Dr. Chino Airport

WWW.PLANESOFFAME.ORG

COME LAND ON THE COLORADO WITH US!

• • • • •

Highly Experienced Instructor and DPE Private and Commercial Add-On Airplane Single Engine Sea Ratings Bi-Annual Flight Reviews Re-Current Training Flights www.lakehavasuseaplanes.com

Lake Havasu, Arizona • 928.733.7122

DR. PENNY HAMILTON'S AMERICA'S AMAZING AIRPORTS TRACES THE DEVELOPMENT OF AIRPORTS IN UNITED STATES AVIATION HISTORY

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

By Mark Rhodes

veryone knows of early pioneers of Aviation such as The Wright Brothers, Charles Lindbergh and Amelia Earhart but who knows about the birth of the Modern Airport? Aviator and Photographer Dr. Penny Rafferty Hamilton’s book America’s Amazing Airports: Connecting Communities to the World (Mountaintop Legacy Press) aims to rectify this omission. Dr. Hamilton (AKA (“Penny the Pilot”) was interviewed about her work, and her take on the past, present and future of the modern American airport. IF USA: What was the genesis of your interest in writing a history of U.S. Airports? PRH: “My husband and I are both general aviation pilots. For the past 40 years, we have worked closely with aviation groups to promote the many community benefits of airports. Public relations specialists know the importance of having a consistent, focused message told over and over again. Aviation and airports are inspirational and magical. Through my book I hope to help our aviation pro-

fessionals share our enthusiasm with others as a lasting legacy in both print and eBook form. “America’s Amazing Airports is meant as a public information tool for airports or aviation groups/businesses to share aviation career information with young adult readers (ages 12-18) and as an easy-to-read outreach/educational resource to share with their civic and elected leaders. The many archival and contemporary photographs might encourage STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) careers. In addition to our rich airport history, America’s Amazing Airports explains how our aviation transportation network is self-funded by users. This book is a great size to make it affordable for anyone, especially in bulk for groups to sponsor/buy and give out to promote airports.” IF USA: How did the idea of a dedicated space for aircraft evolve in the early years of U.S. aviation? PRH: “Well, first we had to have airplanes. In the early 1900s, as airplanes increased in numbers, the focus was more on entertainment than on utility and commerce. In the early years, “shared use” of

We keep you

flying. 50¢ off every Avgas gallon with Weekend TakeOff™ 10X points with Signature TailWins® everyday Self-serve Avgas at 13 locations Supporting General Aviation at over 100 U.S. airports

large areas as race tracks and fair grounds for “air exhibitions” were the norm. After the well-publicized air event, that large open space went back to being what it was originally. Over time, as air commerce, especially the U.S. Air Mail Service expanded across the country, dedicated site-specific airport design was mandated to get this important service.” IF USA: Was there a key figure or moment in the development of what you might call the modern airport? PRH: “In actuality, the Wrights developed Huffman Prairie Flying Field near their Dayton, Ohio, home in 1904 to improve their Wright Flyer and, eventually train a cadre of pilots. As early as 1909, College Park Airport was established by the U.S. Army Signal Corps as a training location for Wilbur Wright to instruct two military officers to fly the government’s first airplane. As early as December 1910, other civilian aircraft began flying at College Park Airport. Although often debated, Maryland’s College Park airport claims the prestigious honor of being recognized as our first airport still in continuous operation. College Park Airport (KCGS), due to its obvious historical and

January 2020

cultural significance, is listed on the American Register of Historic Places. “In 1905, Pearson Field Airport (KVUO) in Vancouver, Washington, had a dirigible or airship landing. By 1911, airplanes began using the airfield. The airport is still in use and in 2012, the Continued on Page 22

January 2020

ORDER YOUR FREE 2019-2020 CATALOG! 1000 PAGES OF PRODUCTS!

www.inflightusa.com

January 2020

Mutual Aerial Awareness

FREE CATALOG!

1-877-4SPRUCE 7

www.aircraftspruce.com

Continued from Page 12 select products for AOPA members in October, part of an ongoing effort to reduce the cost of equipage and maximize the safety benefits for all. The tailBeacon and skyBeacon products have been approved as ADS-B Out solutions for helicopters and fixed-wing GA aircraft, and can be purchased and installed for around $2,000, requiring just an hour of shop time in many cases. “We firmly believe (ADS-B is) the best detect-and-avoid solution in terms of any single technology,” said Christian Ramsey, president of uAvionix, in a phone interview. Ramsey said the company’s strategy has evolved, particularly during 2019, to focus much more attention on creating solutions for manned aircraft. That is in no small part to help facilitate advanced drone operations to come, such as package delivery, infrastructure inspection, and other beyond-line-of-sight operations that are key to realizing the potential benefits of unmanned aircraft. One key hurdle remains, Ramsey said: “How do we get everyone in the manned world to equip so that we can enable the unmanned operations?” It’s all about costs and incentives, and Ramsey said his firm has made safety central to its marketing effort, addressing the National Agricultural Aviation Association’s convention this year with a presentation on its low-cost ADS-B Out solutions pitched as technology that can keep drones well clear, because the remote pilots will “see” the inbound crop duster that is broadcasting its position, and maneuver to avoid it long before the remote pilot could hope to hear or see the low-flying aircraft: “If you put ADS-B Out on your crop duster … (drone pilots) are going to see you,” Ramsey said. Ramsey said there is reason to hope that regulators may soon enable an even less expensive ADS-B Out solution for manned aircraft in the interest of safety: The FAA has been reluctant to approve any portable ADSB Out transmitters for use inside or outside of rule airspace. Ramsey said the firm has detected a shift in recent months toward openness to considering that, even if not for mandate compliance in rule airspace. The benefit of going portable? “Call it 500 bucks and you’ve got a protection mechanism,” Ramsey said. There is widespread consensus that enabling advanced drone operations like package delivery will require layers of technology beyond ADS-B. AOPA, the FAA, and industry all recognize the imperative to account for some number of aircraft flying without broadcasting their presence via ADS-B Out, or any other means, though the goal is to encourage as

much adoption as possible. Safety should be a priority shared by all airspace users. The long-term plan is to safely accommodate and account for so-called “non-cooperative” aircraft (in the parlance of the drone industry) with a layered approach that includes drone-mounted detect-and-avoid technology. Iris Automation of San Francisco is among the leaders in developing successful, compact, active detect-and-avoid solutions for drones. Casia, the firm’s flagship solution, is a system composed of cameras integrated with a powerful computer programmed to recognize and automatically maneuver the drone to avoid any nearby flying objects. Casia has performed well in tests conducted under the federal unmanned aircraft Integration Pilot Program. “Our system is designed to detectand-avoid both cooperative and noncooperative aircraft. In order to maximize situational awareness, Casia also incorporates ADS-B allowing it to be aware of and actively avoid aircraft broadcasting these signals,” said Alexander Harmsen, CEO of Iris Automation, in an email. Camera-based systems like Casia as well as drone-mounted radar being developed by Echodyne and others will be critical to enabling advanced drone operations at scale without sacrificing safety or segregating airspace, two compromises that nobody wants to make. One or both of these technologies, perhaps further augmented by other detection methods yet to prove their capability, will close much of the situational awareness gap. “AOPA is very optimistic and supportive of these innovative companies in their development and improvement of technology to detect and avoid manned aircraft,” said AOPA Director of Regulatory Affairs Chris Cooper. “With the increasing equipage of ADS-B for manned aircraft and the continued adoption of detect-and-avoid technology for unmanned aircraft, the industry is taking significant steps toward safely integrating UAS into the National Airspace System.” Ramsey noted that the FAA has made it pretty clear that with the vast majority of small drones expected to remain below 400 feet, ADS-B Out is not a viable solution for this segment of the aircraft population, at least not at scale. Another technology will be required for remote identification and tracking of drones. Equipping miniature aircraft to detect ADS-B Out broadcast from as many manned aircraft as possible will reduce the probability of conflict and collision to acceptable levels. “Inoculating” as much of the GA fleet as possible with ADS-B Out will be one of the keys to airspace safety in years to come.

ADS-B PRIVACY NOW AVAILABLE FAA LAUNCHES PRIVACY ICAO ADDRESS PROGRAM

January 2020

By Mike Collins AOPA

The FAA’s Privacy ICAO Address (PIA) program, announced in early November, quietly went live Thursday, Dec. 19. PIA allows aircraft operators to increase operational privacy by requesting an alternate, temporary ICAO aircraft address that is not associated with the aircraft owner in the Civil Aviation Registry. For more information, visit the AOPA website at www.aopa.org or the FAA website at www.faa.gov.

“CPA’s “CP PA’s turn tto o us... us...””

The FAA is allowing operators to sign up for its Privacy ICAO Address (PIA) program, which assigns a temporary ICAO aircraft address not linked to the aircraft owner. In 2020 the FAA will transition the program to private providers. (David Tulis/AOPA)

ASKING FOR ADS-B

OWNERS SEEK BATTERY ADS-B NONELECTRICAL AIRCRAFT

LEGALLY LEGALL LY AVOID

TAX ON YOUR SALES T A AX XO PURCHASE AIRCRAFT P Today Call us T oda

(916) 691-91 691-9192

<RXU ¿UVW FDOO LV < R RXU ¿UVW FDO always FREE FRE

By Mike Collins AOPA

group of Texas pilots has petitioned the FAA seeking an exemption from the agency’s ADS-B rules, which take effect at 0001 local on Thursday, Jan. 2. But they’re not trying to avoid equipping with the mandated new technology; they’re seeking an accommodation that would allow them to install ADS-B Out in their airplane. They are asking for an exemption from FAR 91.225(f) for their stock, ragwing 1946 Luscombe 8A, which they’ve based at El Paso International Airport – located in Class C airspace – since 2002. “This exemption would allow the installation and practical operation of a battery-powered ADS-B system in an aircraft that was not originally certificated with an electrical system, or that has not subsequently been certified with such a system installed, by allowing the ADSB system to be turned off upon entering uncontrolled airspace,” the petition reads. FAR 91.225(f) requires that ADSB Out equipment be operated in the transmit mode at all times – regardless of whether it is in ADS-B rule airspace or not. “This would add a capability of operating the aircraft with the ADS-B turned off, similar to the existing process allowed for transponders under FAR 91.215(c),” the petition states. “All we want to do is keep things as we are, operate from our Class C [airspace], and cooperate with ATC. We

aeromarinetaxpros.com aer omarinetaxpros.com Luscombe co-owners (from left) Jerry Sheppard and Dennis Flosi stand in front of their airplane at Salt Flat, Texas, with friend Manny Estrada. (Courtesy of Jim Ivey and AOPA)

want ADS-B Out, too,” explained Jim Ivey of Clint, Texas, who has coordinated the exemption effort on behalf of the Luscombe’s five owners. The Luscombe is equipped with a certified transponder installation and a communications radio, powered by a battery that’s connected to a trickle charger in the hangar. They use the transponder and radio to depart the Class C airspace, and then turn them off to conserve battery power – so that they can reverse the process, and talk and readily be radar identified, when they are ready to reenter the Class C airspace. “We’re not asking for an exemption in rule airspace,” Ivey said. “We want to be seen by everybody.” They’re asking for the ability to save their limited battery power for the return to Class C airspace. “Right now we can’t equip, because it’s going to cause us to be noncompliant at some point—when the battery dies, or we turn off the [ADS-B] switch. We have Continued on Page 18

AVIATION OXYGEN EQUIPMENT

WWW.AVIATIONOXYGEN.COM

BUSINESS AVIATION COMMUNITY WELCOMES CONGRESSIONAL PROMOTION OF AVIATION FUEL SUSTAINABILITY

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

A group of aviation stakeholders on Dec. 26 welcomed congressional legislation including provisions aimed squarely at promoting the development and use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF). The House and Senate approved the legislation in December, as part of a fiscal year 2020 appropriations package.

The language contains a renewal-andextension of the biodiesel tax incentive, for which certain fuels are eligible. The funding measure restores the expired Section 40A biodiesel credit through 2022. Under that provision, a tax credit is available to qualified producers, or blenders of sustainable fuels derived from

January 2020

biomass, one of several SAF pathways, that meet applicable ASTM specifications. The biodiesel tax incentive remains critical to the industry’s efforts to research, produce, and scale SAF use. Ten years ago, the business aviation community made a commitment to sustainability and carbon neutral growth. Utilization of SAF

Trusted.

Available in both Qref® Book, Card and new iPad editions Over 50 years of professional experience in every checklist

Written by Master CFIs with workflow and ease of use in mind Professional design, rugged construction

ADS-B

Best-Selling Aircraft Checklists Beechcraft Bonanza A36 285HP

1968-1983

Cessna 210N Centurion

Beechcraft Bonanza C/D 35

1951-1953

Cessna Turbo 182T

Beechcraft Bonanza J/K/M 35

1958-1960

Cessna Turbo 182T/G1000

2006+

Beechcraft Bonanza N/P 35

1961-1963

Cessna Turbo 206H

1998+

Beechcraft Bonanza V35 A/B

1966-1982

Cessna Turbo 210M Centurion

1977-1978

Cessna 150

1959-1977

Cirrus SR20 Analog Gauges

2000-2003

Cessna 152

1978-1986

Cirrus SR20 G1-G2

2003-2007

Cessna 172 Universal

2001+

Cirrus SR20 G3

2007+

1973-1976

Cirrus SR20 Perspective

2008+

Cessna 172N

1977-1980

Cirrus SR22 G1-G2

Cessna 172P

1981-1986

Cirrus SR22 G3

2007+

Cessna 172R

1998-2006

Cirrus SR22 Perspective

2008+

Cessna 172RG

1980-1985

Cirrus SR22 G3 Turbo

2007+

Cessna 172S

1998-2006

Cirrus SR22 Turbo Perspective

2008+

Diamond DA20 C1

1998+

Cessna 172S G1000

Universal

1979-1984

Cessna 172M

2005+

2003-2007

Cessna 177RG

1971-1978

Diamond Star DA40

Cessna 182P

1972-1976

Piper Archer II PA-28-181

1976-1994

2001+

Cessna 182R

1981-1986

Piper Archer III PA-28-181

1995-2002

Cessna R182 Skylane RG

1978-1986

Piper Arrow 180 PA-28R-180

1967-1971

Cessna 182RG Turbo

1979-1986

Piper Arrow II PA-28R-200

1969-1976

Cessna 182T Analog Gauges

2001+

Piper Arrow III PA-28R-201

1977+

Cessna 182T/G1000

2004+

Piper Arrow III Turbo PA-28R-201T

1977-1978

Piper Arrow IV PA-28RT-201

1979-1982

Piper Arrow IV Turbo PA-28RT-201T

1979-1990

Piper Cherokee 140 PA-28-140

1964-1977

Piper Cherokee 150 PA-28-150

1961-1967

Piper Cherokee 160 PA-28-160

1961-1967

Piper Cherokee 180 PA-28-180

1963-1973

Piper Dakota PA-28-236

1979-1994

Piper Cherokee Lance PA-32R-300

1976-1978

Piper Navajo PA-31-310 B/C

1972-1980

Piper Navajo Chieftain PA-31-350

1973-1984

Piper Saratoga SP PA-32R-301

1980-1992

Piper Saratoga SP Turbo PA-32R-301T

1980-1987

Piper Tomahawk PA-38-112

1978-1982

Piper Warrior 151 PA-28-151

1973-1977

Piper Warrior II PA-28-161

1976-1986

MANY MORE MODELS COMING SOON!

Best-Selling Avionics Quick Reference

FAA FITS ACCEPTED

Avidyne Entegra

Garmin GNS 480

Garmin GPSMAP 96

Garmin G1000 Non-WAAS

Garmin GNS 530

Garmin GPSMAP 195

Garmin G1000

Garmin GTN 750/650

Garmin GPSMAP 196

Garmin G1000 WAAS

Garmin GX Series

Garmin GPSMAP 295

Garmin G600/G500

Garmin MX 20

Garmin GPSMAP 296

Cirrus Perspective by Garmin

Garmin 300XL/250XL

Garmin GPSMAP 396

Bendix/King KLN 89

AnywhereMap ATC

Garmin GPSMAP 495

Bendix/King KLN 90B

AvMap EKP IV / IV Pro

Garmin GPSMAP 496

Bendix/King KLN 94

AvMap EKP V (coming soon)

Garmin GPSMAP 696/695

Garmin GMX 200

AvMap Geopilot II / II Plus

Garmin Aera Series

Garmin GPS 400

Bendix/King AV8OR

Lowrance Airmap 2000C/1000

Garmin GNS 430

Bendix/King AV8OR Ace

Lowrance Airmap 500/600C

WRITTEN BY MASTER CFIs

by business aviation operators is an important part of this commitment, along with rapid and continuing advancements in fuel efficiency, advanced aerodynamics and noise reduction. The Sustainable Aviation Fuels Coalition – which includes the European Business Aviation Association (EBAA), General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA), International Business Aviation Council (IBAC), National Air Transportation Association (NATA) and National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) – has demonstrated Continued on Page 19

www.Qref.com Order direct or from your favorite pilot supply

Continued from Page 17 decades of experience with a Mode C transponder in the panel; it just comes down to that ‘always on.’” The petition acknowledges that installing a wind-driven generator could power the transponder and ADS-B system, noting that it would not be an engine-driven system and that winddriven systems are difficult to find today, likely would not generate enough power, and generally are unreliable. “We feel like we’re being forced to move the airplane to another airport or sell it,” Ivey said. Without ADS-B they’d probably sell, because the nearest nontowered airport – Las Cruces, New Mexico – is about 50 miles away. All the Luscombe’s owners own other aircraft – Ivey said he owns six and is a partner in three more – and all the others are ADSB Out-equipped. Although the Luscombe is not his only airplane, it’s clearly a favorite. “It’s always the one we take for Young Eagle flights or pancake breakfasts,” he said. “And there’s a certain zen from hand propping an engine, too.” If the Luscombe owners’ petition is approved, it would streamline the approval process for any other operators of nonelectrical aircraft using batterypowered transponders who want to equip with ADS-B Out, said Rune Duke, AOPA senior director of airspace, air traffic, and aviation security, noting that operators will have to comply with any requirements contained in exceptions issued to them. Ivey and his Luscombe partners simply want to maintain the status quo. “We want to participate in the system and be as good a neighbor as we possibly can,” he said. “And we want to be seen by everybody.”

WORLD WAR II 75TH COMMEMORATION COMMITTEE LAUNCHES PUBLIC FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN FOR END OF WAR COMMEMORATIVE EVENTS

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

On the 78th anniversary of the U.S. entry into World War II, the 75th World War II Commemoration Committee is launching a public fundraising initiative to engage your patriotic support. The 75th WWII Commemoration Committee will spearhead the bookend events: The Arsenal of Democracy tribute remembering the end of war in Europe, May 8, 2020; and the events marking the end of war in the Pacific, Sept. 2, 2020, in Washington, DC and Oahu, Hawaii, respectively. “It is significant that we ask for the public’s engagement with 75th WWII Commemoration fund raising today, remembering not only the “date which will live in infamy,” but also the 100th birthday of nationally recognized WWII veteran, Tuskegee Airman, Col. Charles McGee. It is our goal to honor the heroism and sacrifice of our WWII veterans, those serving on the home fronts and those who suffered the horrors of the Holocaust while we still have a precious few left living among us,”

said Pete Bunce, representing the Arsenal of Democracy Executive Committee and the 75th WWII Commemoration Committee. Honorary co-chairs of the 75th WWII Commemoration Committee, Senators Bob and Elizabeth Dole, joined by Linda Hope, who represents the Bob Hope Legacy as part of the Bob and Dolores Hope Foundation, the Presenting Sponsor of the 75th WWII Commemoration, shared their support of the bookend events: “These events will preserve our nation’s memory of a time when the United States persevered with selflessness and courage in the face of tyranny,” the Doles and Hope write in a letter to the public. “The events... may be our last opportunity to honor the service and sacrifice of our veterans and our heroes, celebrating the impact they had on our lives,” the letter says. “The accomplishments of the ‘Greatest Generation’ are too valuable to forget. Together, we can

preserve the legacy of World War II and remind our nation of what can be achieved by the American spirit.” Visit www.75thwwiicommemoration .org/about/national-cochairs-presentingsponsor to read the full letter from the Doles and Ms. Hope. Individuals can donate to these 75th commemorative efforts by clicking www.75thwwiicommemoration.org/ donate. Learn more about the events, including how you can contribute to support them by visiting www.75thwwiicommemoration .org, which provides details on the programs that will be held in both Washington, D.C. and Oahu, Hawaii. The Arsenal of Democracy Flyover will take place on Victory in Europe (VE) Day – Friday, May 8, 2020 – to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II in Europe. As part of a five-day slate of educational and commemorative activities in and around the nation’s capital, the flyover will coincide with a ceremony for veterans at the

National World War II Memorial, hosted by the Friends of the National World War II Memorial. It will consist of over 100 vintage warbirds of various types flying over the National Mall in 24 separate, historically sequenced formations. On Sept. 2, 1945, the Japanese signed the surrender documents ending World War II on the deck of the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay. The Battleship Missouri Memorial and Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II in the Pacific with another five-day schedule of educational programs and ceremonies. The event will highlight the transition from war to a global commitment to peace and friendship, beginning on Aug. 29, 2020, and culminating in a special ceremony on Sept. 2, 2020, at the USS Missouri in Pearl Harbor. For more information regarding sponsoring these events call 877-8834773.

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2020 will feature expanded warbird flying activities, as the annual EAA fly-in convention commemorates the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II. EAA AirVenture will tell the many aviation stories of the Greatest Generation and the worldwide conflict during its renowned afternoon air shows. It will feature flying displays and groups that are favorites for EAA audiences. Highlighting the weeklong commemoration will be major air show fly-

ing activities on Wednesday, July 22, and Friday and Saturday, July 24-25. “Marking the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II and telling all the aviation stories involved is a mammoth task,” said Rick Larsen, EAA's vice president of programs, publications, and marketing, who coordinates AirVenture features and attractions. “Our goal is to create the go-to event that properly commemorates the aviation story of World War II, from the Eagle Squadrons and

American Volunteer Groups through the final Allied victories in 1945.” Specific aircraft and flying demonstrations are still being finalized for EAA AirVenture 2020, but will feature aircraft from both the European and Pacific Theaters. Additional highlights will tell the stories of remarkable heroism and pioneering technology that changed the course of the war. Further details on individual highlights and aircraft will be announced as they are finalized.

This year’s AirVenture will feature an expanded warbird series of events to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II. (Courtesy EAA)

AIRVENTURE 2020 WILL HONOR 75TH ANNIVERSARY ENDING WITH HUGE FLYING DISPLAYS

Aviation Fuel Sustainability Continued from Page 18 the safe, real-world use of SAF and business aviation’s commitment to sustainability. The stakeholders group is part of a growing coalition advocating for a broader and long-term SAF tax credit applying to all pathways, and promoting an investment in production capacity. “This is a great example of the aviation industry working together and pushing for an incentive from Congress for companies to invest in the production of sustainable aviation fuels,” said Timothy Obitts, chief operating officer of the NATA. “These tax incentives, coupled

with state initiatives like California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard program, will help create the supply of SAF that the business aviation industry is demanding. SAF are one of the critical pieces that will help the industry achieve cleaner skies for future generations.” “We are glad that Congress took action to extend the biodiesel tax credit, which benefits certain sustainable aviation fuels,” said Pete Bunce, GAMA president and CEO. “The general aviation industry is aggressively promoting the use of sustainable fuel, and we will continue to work with policymakers and other stakeholders to support its use. It is

our commitment that 2020 will build upon the momentum of this past year through a March SAF summit in Washington and other events and initiatives.” “Congressional action to renew and extend the biodiesel tax incentive demonstrates continued U.S. leadership among its international peers to encourage the production and use of SAF, a critical technology to reducing aviation’s greenhouse-gas emissions,” said Kurt Edwards, Director General of IBAC. “At the International Civil Aviation Organization, IBAC, on behalf of the global business aviation sector, has called

WWII

on all governments to put in place such policies, which will enable the industry to grow sustainably while bringing economic activity and connectivity to all corners of the world.” “NBAA’s 11,000 member companies are committed to increasing the utilization of SAF in our daily operations,” said NBAA President & CEO Ed Bolen. “These innovative fuels can reduce C02 emissions by up to 80 percent, and they are a critical part of business aviation’s commitment to sustainability.” More information about SAF can be found at www.futureofsustainablefuel.com.

ARSENAL OF DEMOCRACY WORLD WAR II FLYOVER

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

January 2020

EAA’s B-17 Aluminum Overcast will be leading the formatio.

EAA's B-17 and B-25 are slated to play central roles in the Arsenal of Democracy World War II flyover May 7-8, 2020, with B-17 Aluminum Overcast leading the formation of B-17s, and B-25 Berlin Express taking part in the B-25 flyover. In addition to its main role in the flyover, Aluminum Overcast will serve as the backdrop for the gala the night before

(Courtesy EAA)

at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Additionally, both historic aircraft will remain in the area for a joined tour stop at Manassas Regional Airport the weekend after the event. For more information, visit the EAA website at www.eaa.org or the Arsenal of Democracy website at ww2flyover.org.

OPENER NAMED PRESENTING SPONSOR OF EAA AIRVENTURE OSHKOSH 2020 INNOVATION SHOWCASE

Senior Living and Care Solutions Senior Care Authority, Peninsula will provide you the guidance concerning your loved one, including finding the best places to live, receiving the proper care, and navigating through a complex health care system. • Free consultations • Available 7 days a week • Serving South San Francisco to Palo Alto For more information contact Annamarie Buonocore at 650/504-8549 abuonocore@seniorcareauthority.com

Opener, the company that designs and builds the all-electric BlackFly personal aircraft, has been named the presenting sponsor of the Innovation Showcase at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2020. The Innovation Showcase at EAA AirVenture is focused on research and development in the aviation and aerospace industries. It welcomes cutting-edge companies that seek to bring their new products to the public and the aviation marketplace. “Opener has an unparalleled leadership position in new technology driving personal flight,” said Dave Chaimson, EAA’s vice president of business development and membership. “They have been a part of the Innovation Showcase at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh for the past two years and have been a prime example of the innovative aviation technology we’ve been introducing at AirVenture. Having them as the presenting sponsor of this area will bring even more companies to Oshkosh who are interested in highlighting the newest and best in aviation.” Opener spent their first 10 years in stealth mode, designing, developing, and testing new innovative technologies, which have now evolved into an all-electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicle, BlackFly. Opener made its public debut in July 2018, shortly before displaying BlackFly at Oshkosh that year. A

Opener, the company that designs and builds the all-electric BlackFly personal aircraft, will be the presenting sponsor of the Innovation Showcase at AirVenture 2020. (Courtesy EAA)

BlackFly v2 is now on display in the EAA Aviation Museum in Oshkosh. “EAA AirVenture has always been synonymous with what’s new and gamechanging in aviation,” said Ben Diachun, Opener’s president. “Seeing how attendees at Oshkosh welcome and encourage new ideas in all areas of flight convinced us that we needed to help foster it even further by sponsoring EAA’s Innovation Showcase.” Only 20 exhibitors are selected from all applicants to be included in the Innovation Showcase. Any aviation-related product or service that demonstrates unique, forward-looking technology is invited to apply for complimentary exhibit space in that area. In 2019, nearly 75 companies applied for this area at Oshkosh. Applications for 2020 are currently being accepted through April 1, 2020, through the EAA.org/Innovation website.

EXPLORE

• COLUMBIA•

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

STATE HISTORIC PARK

G O L D R U S H F U N F O R E V E R YO N E Gold Panning • Stagecoach Rides • Tours • Shopping Demonstrations • Restaurants • Saloons • Historic Lodging

FLY IN FOR YOUR GOLD RUSH ADVENTURE – LOCATED ONE MILE FROM THE COLUMBIA AIRPORT. STAY

DOWNTOWN COLUMBIA

AT ONE OF TWO HISTORIC HOTELS!

YOUR STAY WILL BE ENHANCED BY THE BEAUTIFUL VICTORIAN FURNISHINGS. ONE, TWO & THREE BEDROOM COTTAGES ALSO AVAILABLE. CALL FOR HOTEL SPECIALS.

RESERVATIONS 209-532-1470 parks.ca.gov/columbia

U.S. DEPARTMENT

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Dec. 26 announced a proposed rule that would continue the safe integration of Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), commonly called drones, into the nation’s airspace by requiring them to be identifiable remotely. “Remote ID technologies will enhance safety and security by allowing the FAA, law enforcement, and Federal security agencies to identify drones flying in their jurisdiction,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine L. Chao. The FAA will seek input on the

TRANSPORTATION ISSUES PROPOSED RULE REMOTE ID FOR DRONES

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for Remote Identification (Remote ID) of UAS that on Dec. 26 was placed on display at the Federal Register. It will be accompanied by a 60-day comment period to receive public feedback and help the FAA develop a final rule to enhance safety in the skies over the U.S. “As a pilot, my eye is always on safety first,” said FAA Administrator Steve Dickson. “Safety is a joint responsibility between government, pilots, the drone community, the general public and many others who make our nation so creative and innovative.”

Editorial: I Am Fearful Continued from Page 13 to predict and manage risk, not simply deal with it when it appears. One must not become dependent upon technology but turn it into a tool that enhances your skills, not replaces them. Perhaps an analogy is in looking at modern automobiles, now controlled by computers with remarkable abilities to manage the power

output and drive train operation to deal with road conditions that would challenge all but professional drivers. But one is caused to wonder about those who have driven only these advanced handling autos. Are they more likely to drive into conditions that an old-time driver would have avoided, not knowing that even their “wonder car” has limits? One

Drones are a fast-growing segment of the entire transportation sector – nearly 1.5 million drones and 160,000 remote pilots are registered with the FAA. Equipping drones with remote identification technologies would build on previous steps taken by the FAA and the UAS industry to safely integrate operations, including the small UAS rule, which covers drones weighing less than 55 pounds, and the Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability (LAANC), which automates the application and approval process for most UAS operators to obtain airspace authorizations. These efforts lay the foundation for

more complex operations, such as those beyond visual line of sight at low altitudes, as the FAA and the drone industry move toward a traffic management ecosystem for UAS flights separate from, but complementary to, the air traffic management system. The proposed Remote ID rule would apply to all drones that are required to register with the FAA (recreational drones weighing under 0.55 pounds are not required to register), as well as to persons operating foreign civil UAS in the U.S. For more information about drones, visit the FAA website and search for drones at www.faa.gov.

ponders what a survey of first responders would disclose. Would a few lessons in an old car, on a slick street, alter their trip planning? For pilots, how about a few hours in an old tail dragger? Maybe we would have a better airline pilot? 2020 starts a new decade. Technology will be king, and our world will be less exclusive as the solar system

opens to travel. Maybe by the end of the decade, we will have learned that technology should not be used to replace human skills but to enhance them, perhaps making us that clever species we think we are. Who knows, perhaps even human civility will become popular. What the heck, worth a try!

Dr. Penny Hamilton's America's Amazing Airports

Continued from Page 14 American Institute of Aeronautics & Astronautics (AIAA) named it an historic aerospace site. “World War II significantly changed the structure, size, and nationwide reach of our airports. After the war was over many of those improved, expanded, and even new airports were returned to civil control. The more “modern” commercial airport we think of today would probably be Washington National (now Ronald Reagan National Airport) which in 1958 hosted the christening of the first Pan Am Boeing 707. By 1966, jet service was operating. In 1967, the grooving of runway 18-36 to improve safety and traction when wet was a first for a commercial airport in the United States. Commercial jets required longer takeoff distances. In 1962, Washington Dulles International (KIAD) was the first American airport built with jet service as a design consideration.” IF USA: What do you think are some (if any) major differences in U.S. airports from those in Europe and around the world? PRH: “In the United States, in relative terms, aviation transportation is more affordable and available through our vast network of general aviation or communi-

Belmont Park, October 30, 1910. ty airports. European models are more centralized and focused on airline/commercial aviation services.” “The U.S. has a much stronger aviation training focus through our many FBO/flight schools, community college and higher education programs. The U.S. has approximately one third of the world’s airports; the most of any single county.” IF USA: What do you think is the American public’s biggest misconception about the operation of airports?

January 2020

(Courtesy Dr. Penny Rafferty Hamilton) PRH: “Because they do not understand airports are user-funded and economic engines literally connecting their community to the world, airports are not valued as much as they should be. Many are familiar with the big, commercial/airline airports, but do not fully understand that our airports are all connected into a national aviation transportation system. America’s amazing airports create a web of connected benefits worldwide. Bill Gates of Microsoft fame said, “The Wright Brothers created the single

greatest cultural force since the invention of writing. The airplane became the first World Wide Web bringing people, languages, ideas, and values together.” Today’s airports continue that connectivity legacy. IF USA: As a pilot do you think your experiencing a commercial airport is different than a non-pilot? PRH: “Yes! I value the whole team it takes to make our aviation system safe and efficient and important. So many airport operations are unseen and even unknown by the traveling public.” IF USA: How do you see airports evolving in the future? PRH: “Expanded technology with more electric engines in aircraft will reduce environmental impact and noise pollution. Automation already has increased with passenger self-check-in. Robot helpers will be expanded in customer service areas as they currently have in financial services and the restaurant industry. Autonomous services will be expanded. People and baggage will seamlessly move from air to ground back to their businesses or homes. Airports will become multi-modal hubs or transportation centers.” For more on Dr. Hamilton see www.PennyHamilton.com.

Fax: 415-898-5155 www.tjair.com Email: tjair@tjair.com

351 Airport Road #3 Novato, CA 94945 415-898-5151

The The Trinidad Trinidad Center Center 2007 EVEKTOR SPORTSTAR PLUS

1991 SOCATA TB-20 TRINIDAD

1974 PIPER ARROW II Extremely easy to fly SLSA. Great fuel economy and fantastic visibility with comfortable cabin. Hangared and well maintained by Rotax specialist.

Meticulously cared for at Piper Service Center. Perfect high-performance family/complex trainer airplane.

1985 CESSNA 182R SKYLANE

Price reduced! A beautiful cross-country luxury machine. Super easy to fly. A wide cabin with easy double door access. Readily available parts with American made engine, propeller, avionics and more. One of the best useful loads and service ceilings in its class. 1,000 nm range. Last owner kept always hangared in Tucson, Arizona. Lowtime airframe and virtually new engine and propeller.

1/2 SHARE IN THIS BEAUTIFUL CIRRUS

1977 TURBO 210 Don't miss this opportunity to buy a late model 182 Skylane with the powerful 275 HP P-ponk engine conversion. Very sharp titanium silver with orange and black and attractive leather interior.

1974 PIPER WARRIOR

Fly high and very fast guided by new state-of-the-art avionics all the while luxuriating in the beautiful new leather interior.

1979 BEECHCRAFT A36TC BONANZA

Partially assembled project plane. Owned by a Piper Service Center for last 10 years. Engine pickled and installed. Prop installed. Interior partially installed. New glass partially installed. Has been hangared since 2010. To make plane airworthy: put avionics in, install carburetor, put interior back together, rig aircraft controls. Call us for more details!

2006 DOVA SKYLARK

Fly high, fast and far in comfort. This meticulously cared for plane has a sumptuous leather interior, double doors for easy loading and an extended baggage area.

Hangared in Novato, CA (KDVO). Maintained at Alpine Aviation. Hangared whole life. Owner flies plane at about once a week for pleasure with logs of all flights.

1941 PORTERFIELD

A breathtaking total restoration of a classic WWII era primary trainer. Fly solo from the front seat. An absolute hoot to fly. Comes with a spare overhauled pickled engine.

Good paint and interior on this ELSA. Great useful load. Good avionics.

All specifications and representations are believed to be accurate to the best knowledge of the seller. However, it is the buyerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s responsibility to verify all information prior to purchase.

T. J. Neff

Phone: 415-898-5151

www.tjair.com

Email: tjair@tjair.com

U.S. AIR FORCE SPECIAL OPERATIONS COMMAND TO BE HIGHLIGHTED AT EAA AIRVENTURE OSHKOSH 2020

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

The aircraft and personnel of the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) will be among the highlighted programs at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2020. AFSOC is comprised of highly trained, rapidly deployable Airmen, who conduct special operations missions worldwide. Airmen who undertake

Special Operations careers specialize in unique skills such as parachuting, scuba diving, rappelling, motorcycling, survival skills, and more. Aircraft in the command include specialized mobility aircraft such as the MC-130, CV-22 and C-146, Close Air Support aircraft such as the AC-130 gunship, and Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR)

Features

*Holiday Special* Super Quality Aviator Watches All ‘A.T.C.’ Pilot Timepieces HIGHLY DISCOUNTED Thru Jan 15, 2020 only!

aircraft such as the MQ-9 and U-28. “Even those who have a solid familiarity with the U.S. Air Force often know little about its special operations units and the important mission they fulfill, so we want to bring some visibility to that at Oshkosh in 2020,” said Rick Larsen, EAA’s vice president of programs, publications, and marketing, who coordinates

Our ATP series is a feature loaded MULTI-FUNCTIONAL watch also offers an Altimeter for under $90.00!! Available in either a Standard or Subtractive (Black) Display

& Large Digital Display Altimeter Barometer Thermometer Multiple Alarms 23:59hr Chronograph 99hr Count-Down Timer 28 City World-Time Zones Perpetual Calendar 12 or 24 Hour Display Hourly Chime Electroluminescent BackLight Altitude and Barometric Log ATP 46 x 16mm| ATP II 42 x 14mm

January 2020

The ATP-Pro is a more bulky, strong G-Shock type with a thick plastic casing, but is surprisingly lightweight. ATP1200W $129.95

The ATP-Pro II is a more conventional-sized model with a Stainless Case and Rubber Strap. The ATP-Pro II can be for either men or ladies. ATP21200W $139.95

$78.50

$87.50

ATC2200B

ATC2250Y

ATC2250K

$450.00

$485.00

$465.00

Features Date Window 60 Minute Chronograph 1-Touch Instant Chronograph Reset 2nd Independent Time Zone 2nd Timezone 24 Hour Subdial Large E6B Calculator Bezel Constant Sweep Second Hand Deploy Clasp on ALL models 100 Meter Water Resistant Designed by and for Pilots Screw-Down Locking Crown 7.5 Inch Strap/Bracelet Lengths 46mm x 13mm Case Dimensions Serial Numbers engraved on Caseback

$139.95

$149.95

$144.95

ATC3200B

ATC3255K

ATC3500B

$550.00

$585.00

$650.00

U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) will be among the highlighted programs at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2020. (Courtesy EAA) AirVenture features and attractions. “The Air Force has been extremely cooperative through the years at showcasing its remarkable people and aircraft at AirVenture, and we look forward to discovering even more in 2020.” AFSOC was officially formed in 1990, but has a heritage that reaches back to Army Air Forces operations during World War II. In the three decades since AFSOC’s formation, it has been involved in missions around the world in both independent campaigns and in conjunction with other military branches. “We are excited to highlight specialized airpower at the nation’s largest air show, but it’s the Airmen flying these aircraft who provide our real value to the nation. … Humans are more important than hardware. The 20,000 innovative problem solvers in this command are exactly what we need to maintain our competitive advantage in the future, and I am proud to showcase them at Oshkosh,” said U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Jim Slife, commander of Air Force Special Operations Command.” The exact aircraft and activities will be announced as they are finalized, but are expected to include aircraft flying during AirVenture air shows and presentations by USAF Special Operations units throughout the week.

Sell your airplane fast with an

In Flight USA $179.95

$184.95

$199.95

Classified Ad

Turn to Page 48 for details.

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

DYESS AFB AIRMEN COMPLETE BACE EXERCISE

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

January 2020

By Staff Sgt. David Owsianka 7th Bomb Wing Public Affairs

DIVORCE – PATERNITY MEN’S RIGHTS If you are Involved in a Divorce or Paternity Case... ...you Should Know That: 1. You may have an excellent chance of obtaining child custody; 2. It’s your child...she doesn’t own it; 3. There are numerous legal methods of avoiding alimony; 4. There are numerous legal methods of avoiding loss of your property; 5. If properly represented, you won’t be “taken to the cleaners”, 6. Courts can be legally required not to favor the woman; 7. You can fight against false charges of child abuse or spousal abuse. 8. You can emerge from a divorce emotionally and financially sound; 9. Men do have rights! 10. California cases only.

Contact: Lawyers For Men’s Rights 213-384-8886 or visit us at www.mensrightslawyers.com LAW OFFICES OF STUART J. FABER

irmen from Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, and Little Rock AFB, Arkansas, completed a Bomber Agile Combat Employment exercise at Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base, Dec.10–12. The training is part of a Dyess AFB initiative to develop and improve the ability to rapidly deploy the B-1B Lancer, personnel and equipment to austere or unfamiliar locations worldwide in support of Air Force and combatant command strategic objectives. “As we look toward our future, and the threats we may encounter, this training will help us deploy and employ our aircraft and personnel quickly within much closer striking range of our adversary,” said Maj. Gen. Jim Dawkins Jr., Eighth Air Force and Joint-Global Strike Operations Center commander. “We want to be agile as we move around unpredictably with a small footprint. This experiment allows us to see how small our footprint can be while generating combat power.” During the exercise, three C-130J Super Hercules aircraft from the 317th Airlift Wing and the 19th Airlift Wing transported the equipment and personnel needed to successfully maintain and support flying operations for two B-1B Lancers from the 7th Bomb Wing’s 9th Bomb Squadron. Both the 317th Airlift Wing and the 7th Bomb Wing are stationed at Dyess AFB, making it the only Air Force base to host both bomber and transport aircraft at the same location. “Integrating both of our wings allows us to practice and execute employment methods that would take a great deal of coordination if not geographically collocated,” said Lt. Col. Brenton Gaylord, 317th AW chief of safety. “Even though our wings have trained together before, this scenario is groundbreaking because it is developing new competencies in both communities preparing us to execute distributive operations in the future. The planning and logistics of organically integrating tactical airlift and strategic bombing assets without centralized command and control drives toward a level of agility that will be necessary in the Air Force going forward.” The exercise also gave Airmen across the base the opportunity to develop new competencies to help execute potential real-world operations.

Airmen from Dyess Air Force Base board a C-130J Super Hercules aircraft from Little Rock AFB, Ark., after completing a Bomber Agile Combat Employment exercise at Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base, Texas, Dec. 12, 2019. The exercise tested Airmen’s capabilities to travel to an austere location with minimal manning and equipment as they support the B-1B Lancer mission. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. David Owsianka)

A B-1B Lancer pilot completes a helmet check during a Bomber Agile Combat Employment exercise at Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base, Texas, Dec. 12, 2019. The B-1B Lancer pilot and crew completed multiple training sorties during the exercise to test the personnel’s capabilities to complete the mission in potentially austere locations. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. David Owsianka)

Airmen with the 7th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron conducted minimum regeneration time maintenance on the B-1B Lancer, where they tested the proficiency of using Airmen from multiple career fields, coming together, to launch aircraft as quickly as possible. “Completing this training is important because the world is constantly changing and we need to be able to provide global power to combatant commanders throughout the world,” said Maj. Kolt, 9th Bomb Squadron B-1B Lancer instructor pilot. “As we continue to perform these types of exercises we are going to increase its complexity so we can successfully complete real-world missions like these, if and when, they come our way.”

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

82!=>&?1 ?@=!43A2BC W zZK>> d y ^͍

!"#$%"&'()*")+,&-(./&0 12-3&456)(77&859",:: ͻ EŽ ĚŝƌĞĐƚ ĐŽƐƚƐ ƚŽ ǇŽƵƌ ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ ͻ EŽ ĐŚĂŶŐĞ ŝŶ tŽƌŬĞƌ͛Ɛ ŽŵƉ ĐĂƌƌŝĞƌƐ !"#$%&'%()%*"+&,$'%-./%0%1&"234%+.%5/$''&/$%2066 ƚŽ ƐĞĞ ŝĨ ǇŽƵƌ ďƵƐŝŶĞƐƐ ƋƵĂůŝĮĞƐ ĨŽƌ ƚŚĞƐĞ ƐĂǀŝŶŐƐ͘ -577&()&".5;7< ;ϴϳϳͿ ϲϰϬͲϱϯϲϱ Žƌ ƌŝƩĂŶǇΛtŝůů^Ğƌǀ^ŽůƵƟŽŶƐ͘ĐŽŵ

ǁǁǁ͘ǁŝůůƐĞƌǀƐŽůƵƟŽŶƐ͘ĐŽŵ

NASA’S MOON TO MARS PLANS, ARTEMIS LUNAR PROGRAM GETS FAST TRACKED IN 2019 In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

In 2019, NASA celebrated the 50th anniversary of the agency’s Apollo 11 Moon landing, the most historic moment in space exploration, while also making significant progress toward putting the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024 under the Artemis program. Through America’s Moon to Mars exploration approach, Artemis gained bipartisan support this year among members of Congress, the U.S aerospace industry, as well as with international partners, including Canada, Australia, and Japan, and member states of the European Space Agency. “2019 will be remembered as the year the Artemis program really became a reality with real spaceflight hardware built, U.S. commercial and international partnerships standing behind it, and hardworking teams across NASA and the world coming together like never before to quickly and sustainably explore the Moon and use what we learn there to enable humanity’s next giant leap – sending astronauts to Mars,” said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine. “While the Artemis program came into sharp focus this year, NASA continued to show what leading in space exploration is all about, whether it was kicking off 2019 with New Horizons’ historic Kuiper Belt object flyby, conducting the first allwoman spacewalk outside the International Space Station, or developing the first flying robotic explorer to study Saturn’s moon Titan. And wait until you see what we do in 2020!” The Office of the Chief Financial Officer received a successful clean audit in 2019 – the ninth consecutive clean financial audit opinion for the agency. And for the eighth year in a row, NASA retained its standing as the number one large agency in the Best Places to Work in Government rankings, published by the Partnership for Public Service. “Throughout this year, as I have visited each of our centers, I have personally witnessed their unparalleled commitment to accomplishing our mission. The daily devotion of our employees makes them well deserving of this award,” Bridenstine said. “I am honored to lead such a dedicated team. They are what makes NASA the Best Place to Work in Government.”

Moon to Mars

This year, NASA officially named the new lunar exploration program Artemis, for the goddess of the Moon and

twin sister of Apollo. Under Artemis, NASA will send new science instruments and technology demonstrations to study the Moon, accelerate plans to send astronauts to the Moon by 2024, and establish sustainable lunar exploration by 2028. Science and technology progress in Artemis includes: • Two sets of Moon rocks, sealed since they were collected by Apollo astronauts and returned to Earth nearly 50 years ago, were opened for study. • NASA announced it will send a new mobile robot, VIPER, to the lunar South Pole to scout and sample ice in the region. • Twelve new lunar science and technology investigations were selected in February and July, 24 total, to fly on early Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) flights to the Moon. • The agency awarded initial surface task orders for commercial Moon deliveries. • New CLPS contracts were awarded to five companies to support the next generation of lunar landers that can land heavier payloads on the surface of the Moon. A total of 14 companies now are eligible to bid on these deliveries. • NASA received a record-breaking 10,932,295 names to travel to Mars on the agency’s upcoming Mars 2020 mission. • Engineers attached the Mars Helicopter to the Mars 2020 rover. After the rover lands at the Jezero Crater, the helicopter will be deployed to conduct test flights. • The international mission team for NASA’s Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport (InSight) lander continues to assess the lander’s heat probe, while the lander’s seismometer collects data on quakes. • NASA selected 14 Tipping Point and 19 Announcement of Collaboration Opportunity proposals from U.S. companies that focus on technologies and capabilities needed for a sustainable presence on the Moon by 2028. • The agency partnered with Advanced Space to develop and build a pathfinder CubeSat destined for the same lunar orbit planned for NASA’s lunar Gateway. • The Sample Analysis at Mars chemistry lab on NASA’s Curiosity rover measured seasonal methane and oxygen spikes in Mar’s atmosphere. • Technology sensors and an in-situ resource utilization experiment were installed on the Mars 2020 entry vehicle and rover. NASA continues to advance development of our Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft, which

will send astronauts to deep space. • NASA demonstrated that Orion’s launch abort system can pull astronauts to safety if an emergency occurs during launch, and assembled the spacecraft for the first Artemis mission, Artemis I. It was delivered to Ohio for final testing for the extreme environment of space before it’s returned to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for launch preparation. • On the SLS rocket for the first Artemis mission, engineers completed the segments for the boosters and assembled the core stage. The core stage next will ship to NASA’s Stennis Space Center in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, for a Green Run test of the integrated propulsion system before joining Orion at Kennedy for stacking. • Teams at Kennedy conducted a series of water flow tests of the sound suppression system at the launch pad and tested the flow of cryogenic fluids through the pad’s infrastructure – the systems that will send liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen to the rocket at the time of launch. • The launch team at Kennedy held its first formal training simulation for Artemis I, and flight controllers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston simulated part of Orion’s uncrewed flight to the Moon. Work also began on hardware for Artemis II, the first SLS/Orion test flight with astronauts aboard. NASA and Northrop Grumman technicians applied insulation to the final booster motor segment of SLS and completed casting of all 10 booster motor segments. The agency also issued a request for proposals from U.S. small satellite developers to fly their missions as secondary payloads on Artemis II. Development of the key pieces of NASA’s lunar architecture is underway: • NASA awarded a contract for the first element of the Gateway, which will provide power, propulsion, and communications to the lunar outpost. The new Gateway Program is based out of Johnson. • Negotiations are underway for the Gateway’s habitation and logistics outpost (HALO) module, and awards are expected in the future for logistics supply services. • NASA announced astronaut spacesuit designs for the Artemis III mission, which will include the return of astronauts to the Moon’s surface. The agency is asking industry for input on production for Artemis IV missions and beyond. • The agency also announced its Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, will manage its new

January 2020

NASA’s Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover, or VIPER, is a mobile robot that will roam around the Moon’s south pole looking for water ice. The VIPER mission will give us surface-level detail of where the water is and how much is available for us to use. This will bring us a significant step closer towards NASA’s ultimate goal of a sustainable, long-term presence on the Moon – making it possible to eventually explore Mars and beyond. (NASA Ames/Daniel Rutter)

An engineer works on attaching NASA's Mars Helicopter to the belly of the Mars 2020 rover – which has been flipped over for that purpose – on Aug. 27, 2019, at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. (NASA/JPL-Caltech)

This artist's concept of NASA's X-57 Maxwell aircraft shows the plane's specially designed wing and 14 electric motors. NASA Aeronautics researchers will use the Maxwell to demonstrate that electric propulsion can make planes quieter, more efficient and more environmentally friendly. (NASA Graphic / NASA Langley/Advanced Concepts Lab, AMA, Inc.)

Human Landing System Program and asked American companies to design, develop, and demonstrate a human lander. NASA’s InSight lander captured audio of the first likely quake on Mars on April 6. The agency also bid farewell to a veteran Martian science rover on Feb. 13 and captured audio of the first likely quake on Mars. The Mars Opportunity Rover mission stopped communicating with Earth when a severe Mars-wide dust storm blanContinued on Page 32

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

Flying With Faber

WORLD CLASS RESORTS: ADD THE RESORT AT PELICAN HILL

ver the years and around the world, I’ve visited hundreds of spectacular resorts. I’m frequently asked for recommendations and a list of my favorites in the United States or abroad. A few are in a superlative class. One of these treasures is in Fiji, another in The Maldives. I’ve just added another to that exclusive list – The Resort at Pelican Hill.

Pelican Hill Resort. (Courtesy Pelican Hill Resort)

the most picturesque and pristine coastal panoramas remaining in Southern California. In an hour or so, you’ll enter the resort grounds, a 504-acre plot of rolling hills and valleys overlooking the Pacific Ocean. An added outdoor bonus is the resort’s proximity to more than 5,000 untouched acres of permanently-protected parks, trails and naturally open space. Although just a stone’s throw from the fashionable village of Newport Beach, we settled in at the resort and rarely strayed – except for a complimentary resort limo which shuttled us down to Crystal Cove, a stretch of historic beach houses and coastline framed by sandy coves and tide pools.

Villa Accommodation Interior. (Courtesy Pelican Hill Resort)

Accommodations

One of the unique features of this resort is that the guest quarters are housed, not in the main lodge, but along a series of nearby winding roads. We would hang out at the restaurants and shops, then saunter back to our bungalow and feel snug and secluded. We parked the car at our front door. Although it sat idle, it was nice to know a ride was at our beck and call.

Main Entrance of Resort. (Courtesy Pelican Hill Resort)

The Resort at Pelican Hill, 22701 Pelican Hill Road South, Newport Coast, CA 92657, 888/ 507-6427, www.pelican hill.com. We didn’t have to travel half-way around the world to get there. A quick flight from the Los Angeles basin to John Wayne International Airport was all it required. Departing from Burbank, an IFR flight plan kept me out of trouble from wandering into LAX Class B airspace. I selected the longer of the two parallel runways at KSNA and listened for that melodious squeak of the wheels as they kissed the pavement. We touched down within 30 minutes after take-off. ACIJET offered the cheapest fuel, so we taxied to their ramp. We grabbed a rental car and were off to the resort. By car, the resort is a short hop via I405 from either Los Angeles or San Diego. Enjoy the delightful cruise along one of

Stuart J. Faber and Aunt Bea

Bungalow Guest Room Interior. (Courtesy Pelican Hill Resort) The resort has an exquisite array of 204 bungalows and 128 villas. Ranging in size from 847 to 2,486 square feet, the bungalows are lavished with tasteful appointments which exude an intimate, residential ambiance. Not one detail is overlooked. Hand-crafted wood-beam ceilings, fireplaces framed in Italian limestone, deep soaking marble tubs, 40-inch flat screen televisions, wet bar, Bose sound systems, MP3 ports, wireless internet, 500-thread-count sheets and private terraces with unobstructed ocean views make it a challenge to stray from your quarters.

Villa Upstairs Master Four-Bedroom. (Courtesy Pelican Hill Resort)

The villas offer an additional level of ultraluxury. Select a one-bedroom, or up to a four-bedroom mini-mansion. Ranging from 2,200 square feet to 3,581 square feet, the villas offer hand-hewn wood-beam alder ceilings, limestone fireplaces, expansive terraces with dramatic ocean views, gourmet kitchens, dining areas, plus personal butlers and staff available around the clock to fulfill whatever suits your fancy. Rarely have I seen resort villas with SubZero refrigerators and Wolf Ranges. Even your car is pampered in an enclosed garage. Villa guests are further embraced within the arms of refined splendor – sumptuous beds with 500 thread-count linens, crafted bath areas with fine private label toiletries, marble walk-in showers and deep-soaking tubs. An exclusive perk for Villa guests is the 10,000-square-foot Villa Clubhouse. With its relaxed elegance and sun-bathed living room, the Clubhouse provides personally tailored service, private gourmet dining, a radiant blue pool created by 300,000 hand-cut glass mosaic tiles, luxurious cabanas and stunning vistas of the Pacific.

Dining

Jean-Pierre Dubray – An Extraordinary Chef. Although a plethora of

celebrity chefs has emerged in the past few years, lamentably, many of them are more self-acclaimed celebrity than chefs. So, it is very refreshing when I encounter a chef who was classically trained in France and who faithfully adheres to the disciplines that have elevated French chefs to the world’s leaders in gastronomy. As executive chef, he masterfully implants his culinary identity within each restaurant. Jean-Pierre, born in the Loire Valley around 60 years ago, commenced his training the old-fashioned way. At age 15, he apprenticed in a local restaurant. Later, he moved to Paris and trained in a variety of classical restaurants. Today, Jean-Pierre brings a synergy of classical influences to contemporary cuisine. Most recipes incorporate approximately five top-notch ingredients yet each dish is complex in flavor and texture. Reminds me of talented musicians who can elevate a string quartet to produce the sound and depth of a 30-piece orchestra. A subtle French touch is applied to each creation. Jean-Pierre’s talent pervades the realm of Italian, American and Asian cuisine with new dimension. We saw no reason to venture from the resort for a meal. Over 70 percent of the restaurant guests are locals; many visit three times a week. Prices are on a par with neighboring restaurants. It is good practice when selecting a restaurant in an unfamiliar destination to research the local favorites. Around Newport Beach, locals flock to Jean-Pierre Dubray. Why go elsewhere when the locals dine at the resort? Andrea Ristorante: Jean-Pierre effortlessly traverses the French-Italian frontier and bestows his magical touch with distinct Tuscan influences on classic dishes from Northern Italy. Braised veal ossobuco was succulent and tender. Striped bass had a resplendent, crispy skin over a svelte flesh. Dover sole was unparalleled in flavor and texture. Risotto, prepared tableside with wild Continued on Page 30

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

Flying with Faber

Continued from Page 29 mushrooms and acquerello, the ultimate of short-grain rice, was creamy and elegant. It is finished in a huge wheel of Parmigiano-Reggiano. For extra carbs, we couldn’t resist a helping of handmade pasta. Save room for the warm chocolate hazelnut bombolini served with fresh raspberry sauce.

Pelican Grill Terrace by day. (Courtesy Pelican Hill Resort) Pelican Grill: Located at the Golf Club, Pelican Grill presents the quintessential California dining experience with offerings fashioned from the highestquality locally sourced foods. An ambiance of al fresco dining on the ocean-view terrace and a popular lounge with two huge 9-foot by 6-foot HD TVs for viewing sports events sets the stage. Jean-Pierre continues to showcase his enlightened versatility. Launch with a roasted beet salad, a crab cake with huge chunks of fresh crab or a spicy tortilla soup. We dived in to a margherita pizza, this one rivals the original in Naples. You will love the pan roasted salmon or the huge diver scallops. However, the Grill is a citadel of superb steaks and chops. I recommend the juicy bone-in rib eye or the Tasmanian grass-fed New York strip. The Colorado rack of lamb is sensational. Impressive sides include onion rings, truffle mac and cheese or garlic mashed potatoes.

Coliseum Pool with ocean view during the day. (Courtesy Pelican Hill Resort) The Coliseum Pool & Grill: Relax at the pool or your cabana and savor American favorites which range from pizzas, panini and sandwiches to seafood dishes, pastas, specialty salads and smoothies. Villa Clubhouse: Breakfast and lunch are served daily in the Villa Clubhouse dining room and terrace. On

weekend evenings, the Clubhouse becomes Piccolo, a globally inspired epicurean tasting experience available exclusively to Resort guests. Caffè & Market: For breakfast, lunch, dinner or anything in-between, Caffè & Market serves food and beverage items for casually dining in or conveniently taking away. Take your pick of sandwiches, salads, soup, pastries, resortmade gelato, coffee, wine and beer. Great Room Social Lounge: A lively place to gather, linger and peoplewatch while grazing on small bites with a specially crafted cocktail. Plush chairs swivel around for ocean and sunset views by day, then to evening dining and entertainment by night.

Massage, which consisted of a deep massage fused with aromatherapy. As a visitor to spas all over the world, she claims this spa and massage were in a towering class by themselves. Her fatigue and tension vanished!

Pelican Hill Golf Club

Hanging Out at the Pool

The Coliseum Pool, inspired by Rome’s Coliseum is among the most striking swimming plunges we’ve seen. Perfectly circular and 136 feet in diameter, the Coliseum Pool dazzles with its radiant blue bottom created by 1.1 million hand-cut glass mosaic tiles. After swimming some laps, we flopped on lounge chairs and gazed at the endless seacoast below. The furnished cabana suites at the Coliseum Pool are packed with amenities from private servers, wet bars, Bose audio systems and flat-screen HDTVs to dining tables, chaise lounges and drapes for privacy. For vacationing families, a separate children’s area has its own circular pool, mini chaise lounges, sand play area and a circular interactive bubble-jet fountain.

Spa at Pelican Hill

The Spa embodies the philosophy of the world’s most celebrated traditional treatments and therapies. The 23,000square-foot compound, with its dramatic 28-foot-high Palladian rotunda, wall of flowing water, 22 private treatment rooms, steam rooms, saunas and saltwater Roman soaking tubs, presents an unmatched experience in a sophisticated ambiance where every sense is awakened, and where every moment is one of extraordinary pampering and rejuvenation. So much more than a place to enjoy a good massage, the Spa helps restore health and balance through the ultimate in personalized care. Guests can participate in daily beach walks, wellness retreats and more than 25 fitness classes. The Spa also houses a full-service salon, fitness center, boutique, private Spa Suite and a spa cuisine area. Cheryl selected the Rest and Relax

January 2020

Golf with a view. (Courtesy Pelican Hill Resort)

One of the nation’s premier courses, the 36-hole, Tom Fazio designed Pelican Hill Golf Club has stunning ocean panoramas along every step of the course. The 44,000-square-foot clubhouse has separate men’s and women’s locker rooms and lounges with a full array of appointments and amenities. Grab a bite at the Grill or the Caffé II Italian coffee bar. Stop by the golf shop for the latest golf fashions and accessories. A full-service practice course is located outside the clubhouse. Private lessons are available.

Camp Pelican

Meeting Space Newport Board Room. (Courtesy Pelican Hill Resort) sive lawn area, Pelican Hill provides a range of ballrooms and meeting rooms. Steps away, Mar Vista with its own arrival area, is a stand-alone center with a variety of specialty spaces. Wedding couples may select from two spectacular, panoramic ocean-view ceremony settings, either the charming, free-standing La Cappella with its own bell tower, or the secluded, idyllic wedding lawn with a romantic Renaissance rotunda. Mar Vista has large terraces for cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, personalized butler services and a grand ballroom for dining and dancing. Surrounded by high-ceilings and expansive walls of glass, Mar Vista’s inviting celebration space is bathed in natural light with panoramic ocean and golf course views.

The Shops at Pelican Hill

Four boutiques, plus an online store, invite endless possibilities to satisfy any shopping obsessions. Allegra displays stylish men’s and women’s apparel and accessories. The Newsstand & Gifts Shop has everyday necessities. The Spa Boutique offers skin-care products, cosmetics, gifts, books and apparel. The Golf Shop has an extensive selection of exclusive golf products.

Nearby Recreation & Leisure

Camp Pelican Children’s Pool (Courtesy Pelican Hill Resort)

For resort guests from ages 4-12, the ocean-view children’s retreat has a clubhouse and terrace. Led by energetic and experienced activities specialists, themed half-day and full-day sessions offer stimulating activities that entertain and educate children.

Meetings, Events & Weddings

With 23,200-square-feet of function space in the main hotel, plus an expan-

Guests may avail themselves of outdoor recreation such as Crystal Cove beach outings, hiking and mountain biking through neighboring Irvine Ranch, plus open space, parks and trails. Head for the ocean for surfing, kayaking and paddle boarding, as well as yachting, sailing, sunset cruises and whale-watching excursions from Newport Harbor. Visit premiere shopping destinations: Fashion Island, South Coast Plaza, Crystal Cove Shopping Center and Corona del Mar Plaza. Stroll around the beach towns for visits to art galleries and boutiques. Or, take in a show at one of the performing arts centers.

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

ASK ABOUT AIR TRANSPORT FROM OUR BASE TO YOURS OR WE CAN COME TO YOU.

AVIONICS FOR EVERY MISSION www.airtronicsavionics.com

KJAQ, JACKSON CALIFORNIA KFTG, FRONT RANGE COLORADO

TO SCHEDULE CALL (209) 418-0004 , ext 101

TIME IS RUNNING OUT! TWO YEARS UNTIL ADSB MANDATE , AND YOUR NOT COMPLIANT!

AIRTRONICS INC. IS THE ADSB EXPERTS. DON’T TAKE OUR WORD FOR IT. YOU CAN READ CUSTOMER REVIEWS ABOUT US ON “PILOT AMERICA”, “BEECHTALK”, AND ASK THE MAJOR MANUFACTURERS. CUSTOMERS AROUND THE U.S. HAVE SHOWN AIRTRONICS WHAT OTHER SHOPS HAVE BEEN CHARGING. WE HAVE SEEN SOME RIDICULOUS QUOTES. IT’S NOT ROCKET SCIENCE! HERE IS AIRTRONICS PRICING ON THE MOST POPULAR SYSTEMS THAT TAKE ONE DAY OR LESS TO COMPLETE.

AIRTRONICS, THE AVIONICS EXPERTS FOR OVER 50 YEARS

NEW LOCATION OPENING JUNE 2018 AT KFTG “FRONT RANGE” ADSB SOLUTIONS SIMPLIFIED ! ALL PRICING INCLUDES ALL LABOR AND PARTS REQUIRED TO INSTALL!

AWARD WINNING DEALER 15 YEARS IN A ROW

GTX330 EXTENDED SQUITTER UPGRADE (ES) $1,600.00 IF YOU HAVE GTX330 TRANSPONDER AND A GARMIN GNS OR GTN WAAS GPS WE WILL UPGRADE THE UNIT TO EXTENDED SQUITTER (ES) AND REWIRE TO YOUR GPS UPDATE THE GPS FIRMWARE FOR $1,600.00 OUT THE DOOR!

GTX335 WITH GPS AND GARMIN ENCODER $3,995.00 GTX345 WITH GPS AND GARMIN ENCODER $6,695.00

STRATUS ESG CERTIFIED TRANSPONDER $3,400.00 IF YOU DO NOT HAVE AN APPROVED WAAS PANEL MOUNT

GPS, THEN THE STRATUS ESG MAY BE ALL YOU NEED IF YOU DONT HAVE AN APPROVED WAAS GPS, AND DON’T WANT ONE, YOU CAN FOR YOUR MISSION. YOU FLY WITH YOUR IPAD AND HAVE A TRADE OUT YOUR TRANSPONDER FOR A GTX ADSB COMPLIANT TRANSPONDER STRATUS RECEIVER THEN THE STRATUS ESG IS FOR YOU. WITH INTERNAL WAAS GPS, AND NEW ENCODER MODULE. THE GTX335 IS OUT ONLY IF YOU WANT YOUR STRATUS RECEIVER TO SHARE POWER THE GTX345 GETS YOU IN AND OUT WITH AHRS AND BLUETOOTH FOR IPAD DISPLAY AND ANTENNA WITH THE ESG ADD $500 FOR PARTS AND LABOR. OF FISB WEATHER AND TISB TRAFFIC. SHOULD YOU GET A PANEL MOUNT DISPLAY IF YOU NEED A RECEIVER ADD $800 FOR STRATUS 2S RECEIVER. YOU WILL BE IN CAPABLE WITH THE GTX345. G1000 AIRCRAFT ADD $2,300.00

GTX345 STANDARD ADSB IN & OUT TRANSPONDER $5,800.00 PANEL MOUNT / $6,600 REMOTE

IF YOU HAVE AN APPROVED WAAS GPS, AND DON’T NEED ANOTHER, YOU CAN TRADE OUT YOUR TRANSPONDER FOR A GTX345 ADSB COMPLIANT TRANSPONDER PRICING INCLUDES INTERFACE TO ONE GPS OR PANEL MOUNT DISPLAY ADD $300 FOR EACH ADDITIONAL DISPLAY OR GPS, AND EXISITNG TAS OR TCAS INTERFACE. G1000 ADD $2,300.00

NOW TAKING RESERVATIONS FOR AIRTRONICS FRONT RANGE AIRTRONICS INC WILL OPEN JUNE 2018 ITS DENVER LOCATION TO SERVE YOU AT

KFTG, FRONT RANGE AIRPORT REQUEST QUOTE BY EMAIL TO admin@airtronics.info

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

Artemis Lunar Program

Continued from Page 28 keted its location in June 2018. Designed to last just 90 Martian days and travel less than 3,300 feet (1,000 meters), Opportunity far surpassed all expectations, exceeding its life expectancy by 60 times, traveling more than 28 miles (45 kilometers), and returning more than 217,000 images.

Solar System and Beyond

It was a great year for astrobiology and the agency’s search for life in the universe: • Scientists synthesized a molecular DNA-like system in NASA-funded research – a feat that suggests there could be an alternative to DNA-based life as we know it. • NASA selected Dragonfly, a rotocraft-lander that will survey locations on Saturn’s moon Titan for prebiotic chemical processes common on Titan and Earth. Other highlights this year include: • On New Year’s Day 2019, NASA’s New Horizons mission flew by the most distant object ever visited by a spacecraft and became the first to directly explore an object that holds remnants from the birth of our solar system. • NASA launched the Ionospheric Connection Explorer (ICON) spacecraft and announced the first results from the agency’s Parker Solar Probe mission. • Significant progress was made on the agency’s James Webb Space Telescope. The two halves of Webb were assembled into one observatory and the sunshield passed a critical test. • After a navigation maneuver to keep NASA’s Juno mission out of an eclipse that could have frozen the solar powered spacecraft, it discovered a new cyclone at Jupiter’s south pole. The cyclone is the size of Texas, small by Jupiter standards. • NASA’s next Mars rover, Mars 2020, passed its first driving test as it rolled forward and backward and pirouetted in a clean room at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, on Dec. 17. The next time the rover drives, it will be rolling over Martian soil. • The Europa Clipper mission’s next phase was confirmed with a decision in August to allow the mission to progress to completion of final design, followed by the construction and testing of the entire spacecraft and science payload. • NASA’s Chandra, Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NUSTAR), Fermi, Swift, and Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) telescopes contributed to the first direct imaging of a black hole. Chandra, which celebrated its 20th anniversary, separately spotted three

black holes on a collision course. • The agency’s Hubble Space Telescope observed the first confirmed interstellar comet and found water vapor on a habitable-zone exoplanet for the first time. • The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) completed its first year of science, capturing a panorama of the southern sky and finding 29 confirmed planets and more than 1,000 planet candidates. TESS also captured a rare astrophysical event – a black hole tearing apart a star. • The Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) detected the universe’s first type of molecule, helium hydride. • The Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer (SPHEREx) mission was selected to help us understand how our universe evolved and to search our galaxy for the ingredients for life. • NASA’s Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) was cleared for the next development phase: finalizing the spacecraft’s design. • The Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-Rex) made the first-ever close-up observations of particle plumes erupting from an asteroid’s surface, and the mission team announced the site on the asteroid Bennu where the mission will collect samples that will be returned to Earth in 2023.

Humans in Space

NASA astronauts Anne McClain, Nick Hague, Christina Koch, Andrew Morgan, and Jessica Meir of the 2013 astronaut class all participated in their first spaceflight missions to the International Space Station. Each also conducted their first spacewalks, including the first allwoman spacewalk with Meir and Koch. The space station is facilitating a strong commercial market in low-Earth orbit for research, technology development, and crew and cargo transportation, and remains the sole space-based proving ground and stepping stone for the Artemis program. In 2019: • SpaceX’s Crew Dragon returned to Earth after a five-day demonstration mission to the space station for NASA’s Commercial Crew Program. SpaceX now is preparing for an in-flight abort test in advance of its first flight with astronauts. • NASA and Boeing are collecting data and lessons learned from the uncrewed flight test of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner, which launched and landed successfully, but was unable to dock with the space station. Boeing successfully completed a key safety milestone in

November with a test of its abort system. • NASA astronauts assigned to the first Commercial Crew Program flights trained extensively in preparation for their flight tests on Crew Dragon and Starliner. • Koch and Morgan are participating in extended missions to provide further opportunities to observe the effects of long-duration space travel. On Dec. 28, Koch will set a record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman. • Results from NASA’s landmark Twins Study were published, revealing the resilience of the human body in space. • NASA announced a five-point plan to open the space station to U.S. industry to accelerate a thriving commercial economy in low-Earth orbit. • Five commercial cargo missions delivered more than 32,000 pounds of science investigations, tools, and critical supplies to the space station and returned more than 10,800 pounds of investigations and equipment to researchers on Earth. • Commercial resupply missions enabled the crew to support more than 100 new U.S. science investigations to advance human space exploration and conduct research for the U.S. National Laboratory to benefit life on Earth. • Research conducted on station included experiments to better understand: human adaptations to spaceflight; how fluid shifts affect an astronaut’s blood flow and regolith behaves in microgravity; black holes and quantum mechanics; and how best to grow and harvest vegetables in space and measure atmospheric carbon dioxide. • Also tested on the space station was a free-flying robot system, a new air quality monitoring system, a vest designed to protect astronauts from radiation, a new medical research technology called tissue chips, and a virtual reality camera. • NASA astronauts participated in 10 spacewalks to install a new docking port for commercial crew spacecraft, upgrade the station’s power system, and repair an instrument that is searching for dark matter, anti-matter, and dark energy.

Flight

NASA’s aeronautics team reached several major milestones in its efforts to enable commercial supersonic air travel over land. • NASA tested the eXternal Vision System, a forward-facing camera and display system that lets the pilot see the airspace in front of him or her, for the X-59 Quiet SuperSonic Technology (QueSST). • NASA deployed CarpetDiem along a 30-mile-stretch of the Mojave Desert in California to test a specially-

January 2020

Urban air mobility means a safe and efficient system for vehicles, piloted or not, to move passengers and cargo within a city. (NASA)

NASA's Deep Space Atomic Clock, the first GPS-like technology for deep space, started its one-year space mission on in August. If the technology demonstration proves successful, similar atomic clocks will be used to navigate the self-flying spacecraft. (General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems) configured microphone array that will be used when the X-59 makes a series of acoustic validation flights in 2021. • The X-59 project team completed its critical design review and the aircraft was cleared in December for final assembly and systems integration. NASA’s research into electric-powered flight with the X-57 Maxwell made headlines throughout the year. • NASA devised a custom-designed skin around the aircraft’s motor electronics to cool them without changing the aircraft’s shape or design. • NASA and General Electric announced a $12 million partnership to further explore electrified aircraft propulsion and received the X-57’s Mod II aircraft, paving the way for NASA engineers to put the aircraft through ground, taxi and flight tests. Another major aeronautics focus was NASA’s ongoing work in Urban Air Mobility – a safe and efficient system for passenger and cargo air transportation. • NASA selected two organizations to host the final phase of its four-year series of technical demonstrations involving small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), or drones, in Reno, Nevada, and Corpus Christi, Texas. • NASA and Uber partnered on computer modeling and simulation of airspace management for small aircraft in crowded city environments. NASA also launched its Continued on Page 34

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

SPLASH

Flying into Writing By Eric McCarthy

recently had a chance to do something I’ve wanted to do for a long time: I had my first experience in a floatplane – what fun! I mentioned last time that my friend Bob has a very nice Cessna 206 Stationair on amphibious floats and, like most pilots, he was always looking for an excuse to go flying; well, I was that excuse! We met at Lawrence Municipal Airport (KLWM) and went to Bobs hangar/man cave. It was cold out, so we pre-flighted in the relative warmth of the hangar. It seems that everything is a little more challenging with a floatplane: it’s a long way up to the fuel tanks, and you really can’t even inspect the outboard tanks without a tall ladder. My usual routine, following the POH guidelines, of an inspection walk-around, checking nuts and bolts, actuators, and hinge security just couldn’t be done from the ground – I could reach the stabilizer and elevator, but just barely; the vertical stabilizer – not even close… Checking the engine’s oil and fuel sump was a little easier – the pontoons provided a nice platform and relatively easy access. We pulled the big bird out of the hangar with his four-wheeler, closed up the hangar, and mounted up in the plane. First impression: it’s a long way up to the cockpit! I’m used to smashing my shins into the landing gear and my forehead into the trailing edge of the wings as I enter the cockpit of most Cessnas; not with the 206 on floats! First you’ve got to scale the floats – with the wheels down ‘n locked they stand about three feet tall; then you have to climb the ladder another three feet or so to get to the cockpit. Unlike most Cessna’s, the 206-series of airplanes only has a door on the pilot’s side. There is a set of doors providing access to the rear seats on the right side, but the pilot and copilot enter through the pilot’s door, and not in that order. The cockpit is spacious enough that this is not as difficult and ungraceful as entering a Piper, but it’s definitely not as convenient as most Cessnas. We strapped in and Bob ran through the pre-start checklist. “Clear!” Whir, whir, whiirrr…click, click, click… Dang , dead battery! Ugh! It was a pretty new battery too! Either the cold had somehow sapped it of its power, or there was some other ‘phantom’ power drain occurring while the plane sat idle. The plane is hangared and it’s not that cold inside, so that leaves the phantom power drain. Bob had recently had an

AND

ADS-B-compliant transponder installed, and wondered if that may have had anything to do with it…oh, well, a problem for another time. A quick call to Tim at Eagle East brought a jump start and before long we were taxiing to the active. We did a quick run up and held for our takeoff clearance while a Diamond Star executed a touch and go before us. Holding for takeoff is a luxury not afforded to wet-ops where there are no brakes! You also have to learn to execute your checklist items from memory, as you can ill-afford to expend more than a glance inside while the plane is motoring along on the water. Cleared for takeoff, we trundled out onto 32 and began our takeoff roll. Lightly loaded, we were off the ground in short order and climbing at an impressive rate despite about 700 pounds of amphibious floats dangling below the fuselage. The plane isn’t fast, giving up 15-20 knots to the floats, but it is very stable in flight. As you might expect, it’s a little ponderous in roll, but very pleasant to fly. We turned southeast on departure, passing over the City of Haverhill, carefully avoiding a nearly-invisible radio tower set on one of the city’s hills. We followed the Merrimack River for a few miles until Lake Attitash came into view, never more than about 1,500 feet over the river. As we overflew the lake, Bob helpfully pointed out indicators of the wind’s direction. We had a pretty good breeze of about 12-15 knots that day, so the usual signs – flags flapping, smoke blowing, etc – gave way to the wind streaks across the lake, making it very clear that the wind was out of the northwest (well, that and the fact that we had just departed on runway 32…). I had asked, and Bob had offered, to walk me through seaplane operations, and this was an important part of my education. Backcountry lakes and rivers don’t have windsocks or tetrahedrons – you’ve got to be able to read the signs yourself. Having determined the wind direction, we set up for a left downwind and prepared for landing, just as you would at any airport. As we dropped flaps and slowed to approach speed, the gear selector warning system audibly reminded us of our configuration: “Gear up for water landing” and displayed four blue lights indicating that the four wheels were up and stowed. Turning final, we approached low over the rolling hills and trees at the southeast end of the lake. Since it was a

GO’S

cool, late fall day, all the boats had been pulled. We had the lake all to ourselves, save for a few seagulls and ducks floating in the lee of the trees at the other end of the lake. We splashed down about 500 feet from the shore, skittering across the surface of the water briefly before Bob advanced the throttle for the ‘go’ portion of the touch and go. The landing was really quite smooth, a testament to Bob’s skills, I’m sure. The sensation was a little odd as we started to settle into the water – I’ve never done that before – but that quickly passed as we accelerated to takeoff. It was very much like being in a speedboat; that same stuttering feeling as you cut through the waves and when you decelerate and sink a little. After another brief takeoff run, we were airborne again, climbing away as the gulls and ducks scattered beneath us. We, again, entered a standard left pattern for another touch and go. I followed Bob through the motions as he prepared for the landing: again, the only thing different from any other landing was acknowledging the gear system’s reminder of the landing configuration. We executed another splash and go then headed off for a cruise down the coastline to Gloucester. Bob handed the controls to me and I followed the Merrimack’s twists and turns until we passed Newburyport and the mouth of the river – some of the most treacherous waters on the East coast. There we turned right to follow along the beautiful sandy beaches of Plum Island. We passed abeam the Crane Estate in Ipswich, a 59room, Great Gatsby-era mansion set atop the aptly named Castle Hill. The 165 acre estate, part of a 2,100 acre reservation, features spectacular grounds including the Grande Allée, a half-mile of manicured lawns cascading down the hill to the Atlantic. Often used as backdrop scenery in advertisements for a variety of luxury products, the estate has also been used in a number of movies. Passing Essex Bay, we turned south again over Wingaersheek Beach to follow the Annisquam River, which effectively makes Cape Ann an island. We followed the river to Gloucester Harbor, where we circled over the ‘Wicked Tuna’ fleet preparing for the tuna season, which opened the next day. Both a beautiful harbor and a working fishing port, Gloucester was the setting for novels including Rudyard Kipling’s Captains Courageous; artists such as Winslow Homer and Edward Hopper were also

Bob and me cruising the coastline in his 206. (Eric McCarthy)

The ‘Wicked Tuna’ fleet awaiting tuna season. (Eric McCarthy)

The blue ocean and dark river water don’t readily mix... The Merrimack River. (Eric McCarthy)

drawn to its scenic beauty. Unfortunately, it is perhaps best known for the tragic events of The Perfect Storm of 1991, when the fishing vessel Andrea Gail was lost with her crew in a massive storm in the North Atlantic. We turned north to begin our trek back to Lawrence, retracing our path back up the coast, over Newburyport and along the Merrimack. We called in about 10 miles east of the airport and were told to report a three-mile base. Our final approach would take us over Lake Cochichewick and over another early 20th century mansion called Campion Hall. About ten years ago, I had been part Continued on Page 35

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

Artemis Lunar Program

Continued from Page 32 solicitation for companies to participate in the Urban Air Mobility Grand Challenge. Continuing other avenues of research in aviation technology, the agency: • Signed contracts with three industry partners to demonstrate the use of systems for the safe operation of drones in the national airspace; • Successfully tested an advanced photographic technology that captured the first-ever images of the interaction of shockwaves from two supersonic aircraft in flight; • Demonstrated a new aircraft wing using advanced carbon fiber composites that can flex in flight to maximize aerodynamic efficiency; • Brought onboard its newest worldclass research facility, the NASA Electric Aircraft Testbed (NEAT), in Sandusky, Ohio, which provides a reconfigurable research platform capable of accommodating power systems for large passenger airplanes with megawatts of power; • Demonstrated air traffic management tools that manage the movement of aircraft from an airport gate to a spot in the sky after takeoff; and, • Installed onto a flying testbed small fins made from shape memory alloys to help control airflow during flight.

Space Technology

As NASA embarked on the next era of exploration in 2019, the agency continued to advance technologies needed for a sustainable human presence on the Moon and future human missions to Mars. • Two NASA technology demonstrations were launched to improve how spacecraft travel and navigate. The Green Propellant Infusion Mission is successfully demonstrating a low-toxin propellant and NASA’s Deep Space Atomic Clock is close to determining how well our clock keeps time, down to the nanosecond. • A biology experiment on the space station is testing a method of using microorganisms to produce nutrients usually found in vegetables. • Google, in partnership with NASA and Oak Ridge National Laboratory, achieved quantum supremacy by demonstrating the ability to compute in seconds what would take the largest and most advanced supercomputers thousands of years. • NASA demonstrated the first coordinated maneuver between two CubeSats in low-Earth orbit, and two CubeSats teamed up for a laser communications pointing experiment. • NASA awarded a contract to Made In Space to 3D print and assemble spacecraft parts in low-Earth orbit.

• NASA helped test a commercial terrain-relative navigation system for precise lunar landings and dozens of other technologies aboard suborbital rockets, spacecraft, planes and balloons. • The 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge wrapped up after 30 hours of 3D printing prototype planetary habitats. College students practiced drilling for water on the Moon and Mars using simulated soil and ice stations. • NASA established two new space technology research institutes to study smart habitats. NASA-funded university faculty and graduate students researched technologies for robot explorers, spacecraft temperature control and more. • Two NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts aimed at exploring lunar craters and mining asteroids received another round of NASA funding. • The agency licensed to commercial companies NASA technologies and software that can be used to create products and solutions to benefit people everywhere. • NASA awarded nearly $180 million, in May, June and November, to hundreds of U.S. small businesses to advance capabilities in aeronautics and space.

Earth

NASA continued to use its perspective of Earth from space to improve lives and revolutionize our understanding of how our planet is changing. • After powerful Hurricane Dorian hit the Bahamas in September, NASA assisted emergency response organizations by creating detailed damage assessment and flood maps based on satellite data. • The largest migration of small sea creatures on the planet was studied globally for the first time using the Cloud-Aerosol Lidar and Infrared Pathfinder Satellite Observations (CALIPSO) satellite. • A study showed that the increasing dryness of the atmosphere above the Amazon rainforest is primarily the result of human activities and is increasing the demand for water and leaving ecosystems vulnerable to fires and drought. • A new NASA laser instrument on the space station began collecting data to create detailed 3D maps of Earth’s forests and topography.

STEM Engagement

NASA provided more than $32 million in financial support to more than 8,000 students participating in internships and fellowships through its: Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP); Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR);

Space Grant Project; and Next Gen STEM. Nearly 40 percent of the opportunities were filled by women, and 30 percent went to racial or ethnic minorities. Participating in NASA’s Micro-g Neutral Buoyancy Experiment Design Team (Micro-g NExT) program, Team CERO, from Lone Star College-CyFair in Cypress, Texas, became the first team to have their tool sent to the International Space Station, where it was used during a spacewalk on Nov. 22 to repair the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer. NASA also engaged students, educators and the public in STEM through a series of public events including: • Future of Space, a live television event for college students to learn more about NASA’s newest mission, Artemis and hear from NASA’s leadership. • Forward to the Moon, a 30minute show to accompany the Apollo 50th live broadcast to engage the public in STEM activities. • Space and STEM: Where do you fit in? is a show for college students participating at 2019 International Astronautical Congress.

Public Engagement

NASA is dedicated to engaging the public in the excitement, accomplishments and opportunities available only through the nation’s space program. The agency hosted and participated in events across the country marking the 50th anniversary of the first Apollo Moon landing in July 1969, including two events in Washington: a concert on July 20 at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts co-hosted by former Myth Busters host Adam Savage, and a three-day festival on the National Mall that featured exhibits and talks and had more than 50,000 attendees. Other public events included: • NASA Day of Remembrance, attended by Vice President Mike Pence • Earth Day celebration at Union Station in Washington • The agency’s Independent Verification and Validation Facility in Fairmont, West Virginia, was renamed in honor of West Virginia native and NASA “human computer” Katherine Johnson. • Hidden Figures Way dedication at NASA Headquarters in Washington. • Events leading up to the premier of the movie Ad Astra, including a conversation between astronauts on the International Space Station and actor Brad Pitt. • Star Wars actors Kelly Marie Tran and Naomi Ackie visited Johnson Space Center, where they met with astronauts and learned about training to live and

January 2020 work in space. Tran also narrated a new video detailing how we’ll go to the Moon with our Artemis program. • Ariana Grande, Blake Griffin, and Karol G also visited Johnson to learn more about human space flight. • The cast of Lost in Space toured NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. • Interactions on social media with celebrities such as Barbara Streisand, Billie Jean King, Priyanka Chopra, Ava DuVernay, Misha Collins, David Bowie, Alicia Keys, Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Tony Hawke, Tig Notaro, and others. NASA had a significant exhibit presence at two high-profile annual space policy conferences: Space Symposium, which brought together space industry leaders and entrepreneurs from around the globe to discuss the current and future state of space exploration; and the International Astronautical Congress, hosted this year by NASA and during which more than 6,660 people visited the agency’s exhibit. NASA now has more than 219.7 million social media followers – up from 187 million in 2018. In addition to increasing engagement on various platforms, the agency hosted 10 NASA Social events, bringing together nearly 500 followers for unique, in-person experiences of exploration and discovery. The agency’s social media activity was honored in April with two Webby Awards and two People’s Voice awards. The agency’s website received its 11th People’s Voice Award in the Government & Civil Innovation category. The busiest day for the website was April 10, when NASA shared a black hole image from the National Science Foundation, which had 1.7 million visits. The second-busiest day, with 1.6 million visits, was May 21, when NASA invited to the public to send their names to Mars on the Mars 2020 rover. The agency launched two new mediums to communicate with the public. In March, NASA debuted a weekly email newsletter that already has more than 1.1 million subscribers. In September, NASA TV launched a new video series called #AskNASA, in which agency experts answer questions from the public about its incredible mission. The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences recognized NASA’s engagement efforts in September with two Emmy Awards for its coverage of the landing on Mars of NASA’s InSight mission and the agency’s first test of a spacecraft that will help bring crewed launches to the International Space Station back to U.S. soil. For more about NASA’s missions, research and discoveries, visit: https://www.nasa.gov.

January 2020

FAA

The FAA will discontinue the Hazardous Inflight Weather Advisory Service (HIWAS) in the contiguous United States, effective Jan. 8, 2020. HIWAS is a continuous broadcast of weather advisories over a limited nationwide network of VORs, providing pilots with information related to hazardous weather. The agency’s decision comes in the wake of decreased demand for inflight services from flight service specialists in general, dropping from an average of more than 10,000 radio contacts per day

DECOMMISSION HIWAS In Flight USA Celebrating 35 Years

to less than 900 per day, which the FAA said is an indication pilots are using other means to obtain weather information. NBAA participated in an FAA/industry Safety Risk Management (SRM) Panel that analyzed the risks associated with discontinuing this service and addressed stakeholder concerns. “NBAAwas a part of the SRM process, and is comfortable with the decommissioning of this service in the lower 48 states, as there are numerous other products that provide pilots with the needed weather informa-

tion,” said Heidi Williams, NBAA’s director of air traffic services and infrastructure. “We no longer rely solely on the aircraft radio for access to weather information in the cockpit. Instead, we have access to a number of resources that we didn’t when HIWAS was created,” she added. “This greatly mitigates any impact of decommissioning what we found in the course of our review to be a little used product.” Further, newer sources for inflight weather information typically present material in a graphical format, which is

Flying Into Writing

Continued from Page 33 of the development team that saved the historic building from being destroyed by dividing the mansion into a dozen condominium units and constructing another 14 units on the grounds. It turned out to be a very nice project. Bob configured the plane for landing, lowering the flaps and gear and acknowledging the aural warning “Gear down for runway landing” and confirming the four green lights of the gear indicating system. Alas, our landing came too soon – both figuratively and literally, by my standards: we were still 10 feet in the air when the gear hit the pavement. The plane flew so similarly to any other Cessna I’d flown that I had forgotten how tall she sits on her floats! With winter settling early over the northeast it seems unlikely that we’ll get another chance to partake of the wonders of floatplane flying until the spring thaw. I would have liked to experience and learn the nuances of on-water operations. Seaplane pilots need to consider so much that we landlubbers take for granted: wind, waves, and currents can all have significant impacts on operations as the floatplane has no purchase on the water and is at the mercy of each. Consider a situation where the wind or current (or both) are such that you can only approach the dock nose in from the left side: in this case, the pilot has to time the engine shutdown so that he has enough, but not too much, momentum to ‘coast’ to the dock. If there’s no help on the dock, he then has to jump from his seat, walk to the front of the pontoon, then walk the tightrope, a cable strung from float to float for just this purpose, to be able to fend the plane off the dock, then wrestle the beast to secure it to the dock. There’s a lot to think about there, as opposed to pulling to a stop and setting the parking brake. I want to thank my friend Bob for the flight and introduction to floatplane flying – it was a blast! I look forward to

Final approach to LWM runway 32. (Eric McCarthy)

IN JANUARY

often easier to use while flying. Air traffic controllers will continue to advise pilots of hazardous weather that may affect operations within 150 miles of their sector or area of jurisdiction. This includes details found in Airmen’s Meteorological Information, Significant Meteorological Information, Convective SIGMENT, Urgent Pilot Reports and Center Weather Advisories. Pilots will be instructed to contact a flight service specialist through air-to-ground radio frequency if they need additional information.

CORONA AIR VENTURES LOWEST FUEL PRICES IN THE BASIN! • • • • •

24-Hour Self-Serve Pumps, 100LL Assisted Fuel Service 7 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Pilot’s Lounge Open 7 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Oil, Snacks, Free Wi-Fi Credit Cards Accepted: Phillips 66, Union 76, Multi-Serv, Visa, Mastercard, AmEx, Discover • Tie-Downs $50/Month

Individual Hangars under $300/mo! See your Lower Fuel Price at

www.CoronaAirVentures.com CORONA MUNICIPAL AIRPORT AJO Wingaersheek Beach at the mouth of the Annisquam River. (Eric McCarthy)

doing it again when springtime clears the ice. In the meantime, I’m already plotting my next bucket-list experience, and this one also involves landing on water, albeit the frozen variety: landing at the lower 48’s only FAA authorized ice runway at Alton Bay on Lake Winnipesaukee. I can hardly wait! Until next time, fly safe!

33° 53.86’N, 117° 36.15’W Unicom 122.7 AWOS 132.175

(951) 737-1300

ALERION WORKS TO SOLVE AVIATION CHALLENGES By Annamarie Buonocore

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

January 2020

(504)723-5566

Contact

Visit

Images and visions of Sagar Pathak

Specializing in Aviation Photography

www.HorizontalRain.com

ere at In Flight USA, staff have been asking the question: what challenges will pilots and aviation enthusiasts face in the new year of 2020? Articles in this issue as well as past issues have addressed ADS-B, airport closures and threats, and of course, the pilot shortage. For years, professionals in our industry have been asking the question: how can we inspire more people (young people) to enter the exciting world of aviation? The last couple years have been good to general and business aviation. The freedom to fly is alive and well. We have been making great progress on this issue, and we continue to be impressed by the many companies, pilot organizations, educational institutions, and individuals who are doing their part to make a difference and to end the pilot shortage. We look forward to being your source for aviation news for 2020, and we are proud to share with you, an interview we did with Alerion Aviation CEO, Bob Seidel. We look forward to hearing your feedback and ideas on this ongoing issue. In Flight USA: What is your background in aviation? Bob Seidel: I started out in aviation as a military officer. I was a naval flight officer, flying in the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans. My job was hunting Soviet submarines during the last decade of the Cold War. After that, I got out of the service and went into industry out in California. That brought me to the Midwest where I had a sales position. Then after that, I got my master’s degree at Northwestern. After finishing that, I ended up moving back into aviation by becoming a regional sales director for Gulfstream Aerospace. I worked there for about four years. Then I became a national sales manager for Jet Aviation. I was responsible for charter business for the Americas. From there, I did aircraft management. Then I moved to my current company, Alerion Aviation. We are a full-service aviation management company. We have a dozen aircraft operating throughout the country. IF USA: Where are you based now? BS: I have homes in Northern New Jersey and in South Florida, but I travel a lot for the business. I go to California a lot. IF USA: When did the company start and how did you get involved? BS: The company precedes me. It was founded in 1995. The current owners, myself among them, acquired the

Bob Seidel is Chief Executive Officer of Alerion Aviation. (Courtesy Alerion Aviation)

company in 2005. I became a partner in 2012. The company’s principal business is a Part 135 air carrier, operating a dozen jets. We have six different types of aircraft, including Gulfstreams, Hawkers, and Falcons. We have lots of different kinds of pilots. IF USA: What do you attribute the pilot shortage to? BS: Like any situation of this magnitude, it does not happen overnight. I think there is a combination of factors. The first one being that aviation very much became a commodity after deregulation. Prices went up, which is good for the consumer, but it put tremendous pressure on profits. Pilot salaries stagnated. Combining that with the end of the Space Age as we knew it… when I was growing up, nothing was more exciting that watching rockets shoot off into space and people making space walks. It was a very exciting time for aviation. I think the fascination with aviation started to fade. We went into a period where a lot of other activities caught the attention of our young people. Also, the economics of the situation made it very expensive to get a pilot’s license and all the ratings that are necessary. The pay at the end of the road just wasn’t as attractive as it had been in the ‘50s and ‘60s when it was seen as a very prestigious career. It kind of lost some of the glow. Back then, the movies portrayed aviation as something very glamorous. We have also seen a lot of people retiring, and that has resulted in a shortage. While we are having fewer people interested in becoming pilots, we are seeing more interest from around the world. We have people in China, India, and South America buying jumbo jets and packing them with hundreds of passenContinued on Page 37

January 2020

FAA

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Jan. 13, 2020, will launch improvements to the way it tests all applicants for an FAA airman certificate. This applies to all certified pilots of manned and unmanned aircraft. One of the most important changes is the requirement that applicants obtain an FAA Tracking Number (FTN) by creating an Integrated Airman Certification and Rating Application (IACRA) profile

TO IMPROVE

AIRMEN CERTIFICATE TESTING

www.inflightusa.com

prior to registering for a knowledge test. IACRA is the web-based certification/rating application that guides the user through the FAA’s airman application process. The five-minute process enables the agency to rely on the name in the profile for all actions associated with that applicant. The FTN enables the applicant and any certifying officer the ability to pull up airman information in a consistent for-

mat, leaving little room for errors associated with an applicant’s name. Previously, name inconsistencies could lead to returned files and lengthy delays in the certification process. To help educate those who will take an FAA Knowledge Test beginning on Jan. 13, 2020, the FAA hosted two webinars in December and will host two more on Wednesday, Jan. 8, at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. (EST) to explain the new testing

Alerion Works to Solve Aviation Challenges Continued from Page 36 gers. It’s a classic economic problem: too much demand, not enough supply. IF USA: What are you doing in your company, and personally, to alleviate this problem? BS: That is a good question. Being a small business, we are small boats floating in the sea. We are subject to strong winds. We are trying to maintain a stable workforce by offering competitive, or above competitive, salaries and benefits. We hope to maintain a working environment where people feel appreciated, respected, and like a part of the team. We do this in a number of ways. We engage them in the management system, which doesn’t just cover safety issues but quality assurance and customer service issues as well. We make them a part of the solution. We engage them to be part of a team. The simple fact is that retention is the number one goal in maintaining our flight schedules. We have also had to do some counterintuitive things that make pilots less available, but it adds to their quality of life. I didn’t mention this earlier, but this is another factor that drove people out of the industry. Similar to the trucking industry, people want to have quality time at home. Flying takes you away from home a lot. We try to allow our pilots to have a life. We schedule them for their days off and give them blocks of days off. They have like 12, 10day vacations per year. This allows us to keep pilots retained because they can schedule their lives. This was why many business and charter aviation companies were losing pilots to the airlines – the airlines offered better scheduling. We have to be able to keep up with them. Attracting new people and minting new pilots is a whole other challenge. To work for us, you have to have 3,500 hours. The airlines have much

lower standards because they need people. We are exploring opportunities with our training provider, AIE, to help people build their hours and work on their ratings. It’s a long, drawn-out process that is very expensive, but our program alleviates all of that. They are training cadets who sign contracts to get into a dual-pilot private aviation environment. They provide tons of simulator and ground training. This is helping us attract and mint new pilots in a much shorter timeframe. They have already been doing this in Europe and Asia, now we are doing it in the United States. Sponsors such as Southwest Airlines are paying for the training so that the individual doesn’t have to cough up all that cash at once. Then in the end, the student will have a guaranteed contract. We can walk into high schools today, show students a pathway to becoming a pilot, and not cost them or their parents anything. Our role in that would be to take on pilots from this program. We would not be penalized for taking on a pilot with fewer hours because we know we would be getting a highly trained pilot. They are purpose-built to fly our jets. This is a proactive and intelligent way to address this problem. IF USA: What is your company doing to provide opportunities for underserved groups such as women and people of color? BS: I am putting a premium on hiring more women. We have at least three female pilots right now. I personally really give a lot of consideration to women pilots. I find them to be outstanding in the sense that they are very focused, very serious about their careers, and detail oriented. Women can be good multi-taskers. Mentally they can handle so much simultaneously. It is very helpful in the cockpit. They are collaborative with the CRM (crew resource management). We are

getting away from top-down management, and we find that females are so adept at our modern needs. We actively recruit women, and our training partners do the same. We do the same thing with other underserved populations. We want more of them to qualify and to become private pilots. With the quality of life improving, the image of the pilot is growing. IF USA: Why do you enjoy doing what you are doing? BS: In my career, I have enjoyed this most latter portion the most, where I don’t have to prove anything to anyone, and where I am content with where I ended up. I get a real charge out of helping other people, not just to become pilots but to get into the aviation industry and into flying. I am on the advisory board for the SUNY Farmingdale campus’s aviation program where they train people to become pilots and mechanics. I get invited every year to meet the class. It is great to see young people so excited. This was what I wanted to do since I was 13, feeling and touching airplanes. Sharing the joy with other people and seeing them respond to that is great. I recently had an experience where I met a young woman in a hospital, and this woman just impressed me with her customer-service job. She told me it was her last day, and I thought she was so good at it that she should keep it up. She kept in touch with me, and I learned that her boyfriend was a baseball player who had been injured. She asked me if there was anything her boyfriend could do in aviation. I introduced him to mechanics and walked him around the hangar. She called me and told me that he was so excited. This guy applied to the school. This is not a dirty, grease-under-yournails thing. It is a professional, high-tech job. Helping people get into it is really

system, including the FTN requirement. Go to http://register.gotowebinar.com/ webinarFull to register for a webinar. The FAA’s Airman Testing Branch posted information about the new testing system and changes to their web page. If you have any questions, please contact the Airman Testing Branch atAirmanKnowledgeTesting@faa.gov.

gratifying. It just gives me a good feeling to have a positive impact on someone’s career and future ability to make a living for himself out of this industry. I have also been an advisory board member for an organization called Able Flight. Able Flight is a nonprofit organization that provides scholarships for disabled people to get into the aviation industry, specifically to become pilots. They have helped and mentored hundreds of people over the last 12 years. These are people with major disabilities. Some have suffered spinal cord injuries that have rendered them quadriplegics. Never in their wildest dreams did they think they would get into a cockpit. They trained a woman with no arms to become a sport pilot. Injured military veterans and cops have participated in the program. This helps me get up every morning. IF USA: What are your future plans for the company? BS: We would like to double the size of the company. That would be just right. We don’t want to manage 700 airplanes or anything like that. We would like to get up to 25 or 30, doubling our current fleet. We are kind of a boutique operation that likes intimacy with customers. That is our secret sauce and our place in the food chain. I would like more female pilots and ones from underserved communities. That is very positive. I would like to do more to help Able Flight and SUNY in their efforts to attract young people into the industry. That is the key to our ongoing success as an industry, a very worthwhile one in the United States. IF USA: Thank you! Editor’s Note: To learn more about Alerion Aviation, visit their website at www.flyalerion.com or call 855-3592576.

Visit In Flight USA’s website for the latest aviation news...

www.inflightusa.com

TEXTRON AVIATION MARKS SUCCESSFUL WING AND FUSELAGE MATE OF THE FIRST CESSNA SKYCOURIER AIRCRAFT; BEGINS NEXT PHASE

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

Textron Aviation Inc., a Textron Inc. company, on Dec. 19 announced it has successfully mated the wings to the fuselage of the first Cessna SkyCourier twin utility turboprop prototype aircraft, a key milestone in the development of the clean-sheet aircraft. “As expected, the operation was sound as the wings were secured on the fuselage, and the new Cessna SkyCourier took another major step in its development,” said Chris Hearne, senior vice president, Programs and Engineering. “The Cessna SkyCourier’s rugged, highwing design will give the aircraft excel-

lent operational and performance characteristics for its diverse mission profile.” The program is progressing considerably with the assembly of the prototype and additional five flight and ground test articles. Landing gear testing continues as well as avionics ground testing. First flight of the Cessna SkyCourier is anticipated in 2020.

With the final stroke of a pen and handshakes with team members, Ross Aviation completed its planned acquisition of the Signature Flight Support facility at KTRM in Thermal, California. The acquisition now gives Ross Aviation the largest ramp and hangar complex in the Coachella Valley and signals the organization’s grow-

January 2020

The Cessna SkyCourier will be offered in various configurations including freighter, passenger or combi, all based on a common platform with a

6,000-pound payload. The freighter configuration is designed to accommodate three standard air cargo containers (LD3) while the passenger variant carries up to 19 passengers and baggage. The Cessna SkyCourier is designed for high utilization and will deliver a combination of robust performance and lower operating costs. Cessna SkyCourier will feature the popular Garmin G1000 NXi avionics suite and offer highlights such as a maximum cruise speed of up to 200 ktas and a maximum range of 900 nm. Both freighter and passenger variants of the Cessna

SkyCourier will offer single-point pressure refueling to enable faster turnarounds. To learn more, visit the Textron website at txtav.com.

ing presence in the region – as well as its appetite for expansion, system-wide. “We see Thermal not only as a primary airport serving the Coachella Valley,” said Brian Corbett, chief executive officer of Ross Aviation, “but also as an excellent alternative to other facilities in the region which are becoming

increasingly congested. We anticipate hosting traffic from a variety of previously traditional destinations in the area, and now have the ramp space and hangar capacity – along with outstanding passenger and crew facilities – to accommodate them comfortably throughout the year.” The Palm Springs/Coachella

Valley region is particularly well-known for its numerous festivals and activities and for its regular influx of visitors and seasonal residents to the desert resort communities. Ross Aviation has been a provider of FBO services at KTRM since 2016, and Continued on Page 43

Relentless Capability

(Courtesy Cessna/Textron Aviation Inc.)

ROSS AVIATION ACQUIRES SIGNATURE FLIGHT SUPPORT BASE IN THERMAL, CA

ađÝ X%4"H ~đ Åͨ đæØ ͨÂ ~æØæđͨ æ ΢æͶđ ÂæØ « (ÍÞä¡ Č T É ÛÃÍÞ #Ã³¬°ä ¡Éä¡Ûķ Û¡ Í¬É³ď¡ Ã¡ ¡Û ³É Þ «¡äČ ¡ æ ä³ÍÉ T «¡äČ T¡È³É ÛÞ Û¡ Ã³ĉ¡ŊÞäÛ¡ È¡ ¡ĉ¡ÛČ f¡ É¡Þ Č É T äæÛ Č ¡ÞÞ äÍ Íĉ¡Û ĢĠĠ Û¡ ÍÛ ¡ Þ¡È³É ÛÞ ³É ÍæÛ Û °³ĉ¡Þ ³ĉ¡ÛÞ¡ Û É¬¡ Í« äÍØ³ Þ É ÞØ¡ Á¡ÛÞ æ ³Í ÃÞÍ ĉ ³Ã Ã¡ ³É ØÍ Þä «ÍÛÈ 8¡¡Ø æØ Ċ³ä° ä°¡ Ã ä¡Þä äÍØ³ Þ ³É $¡É¡Û Ã ĉ³ ä³ÍÉ

CÉÃČ ŚĩļĩĩłÈÍĹ

XÍ ¡ÉÛÍÃÃķ ÍÉä ä æÞ ä ňĦĥĠŉŊĩĤĦŊġħĠĠ

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

VORTEX GENERATORS

MICRO

Installed on the leading edge of the wings and on tail surfaces, Micro VGs help keep air attached longer at slower speeds. This reduces Vmca and Stall Speed, improves controllability, improves characteristics, creates a more stable instrument platform and gives better aileron response and rudder authority.

Available for Twins & Singles

Micro VGs

(800) 677-2370

Vortex Generator Technology

• Improves Controllability at Slow Speeds • Improves Characteristics • Improves Aileron Control • Lowers Lift Off Speed • Lowers Stall Speed • 1 Day Installation • Compatible with other STOL Modifications

4000 Airport Road, Suite D Anacortes, Washington 98221 (360) 293-8082 FAX (360) 293-5499 www.microaero.com micro@microaero.com

rice P t i VG K 3950 to $ $695

MADE IN USA

WITH THE STROKE 40

By Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs

President Trump signed into law Dec. 20 the sprawling, $738 billion defense bill, making history by creating the Space Force as a stand-alone, sixth branch of the U.S. military and guaranteeing for the first time 12 weeks of paid parental leave for federal workers. “Today [also] marks another landmark achievement as we officially inaugurate the newest branch of the military [United States Space Force], this is a very big and important moment,” said President Donald J. Trump. The Space Force and parental leave were two of the most high-profile elements of the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), a law running 1,976 pages that serves as comprehensive, annual blueprint for military spending and policy priorities and operating standards. The law touches almost every corner of the military and beyond since it is one of the rare pieces of legislation that regularly passes Congress and is signed into law. In addition to Space Force and paid parental leave, the law calls for a 3.1 percent pay raise for active-duty personnel; it prohibits Turkey from participating in the F-35 program as long as it continues to possess a Russian-made missile system. It prescribes active-duty strength for all the services while also carrying provisions to improve military housing and

OF A

PEN, U.S. SPACE FORCE BECOMES In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

health care, purchasing 60 F-35s for the Air Force and thousands of other directives and recommendations. Trump mentioned a number of the law’s signature items in a 20-minute address in a hangar at Andrews before signing the legislation into law. He was surrounded by hundreds of military personnel, members of Congress and senior leaders from the Pentagon including the Joint Chiefs as well as Air Force Secretary Barbara M. Barrett and Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein. Air Force Gen. Jay Raymond, who was named the first Chief of Space Operations, was also present. Trump, who first mentioned the Space Force idea in March 2018 and for whom bringing it to reality was a personal priority, offered a rationale for the first new branch of the military since 1947. “There are grave threats to our national security,” said Trump. “American superiority in space is absolutely vital. The Space Force will help us deter aggression and control the ultimate high ground.” He was echoed by Secretary of Defense Mark Esper who said, “We are at the dawn of a new era for our Nation’s Armed Forces. The establishment of the U.S. Space Force is an historic event and a strategic imperative for our Nation. Space has become so important to our way of life, our economy and our national security that we must be prepared as a Nation to protect it from hostile actions,” said

Secretary of Defense, Mark T. Esper. “Our Military Services have created the world’s best space capabilities. Now is the time for the U.S. Space Force to lead our Nation in preparing for emerging threats in an evolving space environment. This new service will help ensure we are postured to deter aggression, defend our national interests and outpace potential adversaries.” For many in the Air Force-heavy crowd at Andrews, the Space Force and the historic moment were particularly meaningful. Barrett, for example, has made creating Space Force her highest priority since becoming Air Force secretary in October. Now is the time for a separate service totally focused on organizing, training and equipping for space, she said. While once a wide open “domain” reserved only for the United States and Russia, space today has become far more congested and crowded with other nations and commercial interests actively operating in space. At the same time space has also become a crucial factor in protecting national security and supporting activities of everyday life ranging from cell phone service, GPS, banking and the ability to easily and instantly transmit data anywhere in the world. As such, the United States says space must be protected and preserved and that the United States’ superiority in space maintained. “The U.S. Space Force will help the DoD meet the challenges of

itary operations across all domains, such as sea, land, air, space and cyber operations. The technology under development via ABMS enables this concept by simultaneously receiving, fusing and acting upon a vast array of data and information from each of these domains – all in an instant. The Air Force expects to receive around $185 million this fiscal year for this effort, and intends to bolster these resources over the next five years, underscoring both its importance and potential. “In order to develop the right capability that the operator needs at speed, we partner with Combatant Commanders every four months to ensure that what we are building addresses the array of challenges presented by the National Defense Strategy across the globe,” said Preston Dunlap, the Chief Architect of the Air Force who is kick-starting ABMS. This initial exercise focused on

defending the homeland. “Peer competitors are rapidly advancing their capabilities, seeking to hold our homeland at risk,” said Air Force Gen. Terrence J. O’Shaughnessy, commander of U.S. Northern Command, which designed and managed this scenario. “Working across all of the services and with industry toward solutions to complex problems ensures we meet defense challenges as well as maintain our strategic advantage in an increasingly competitive global environment,” he said. Yet while JADC2 has been embraced for three years as a critical tool by senior leaders, including Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein, until recently it was an idea confined largely to PowerPoint slides and a slick animated demonstration of the concept. But that changed this week when aircraft from the Air Force and Navy, a Navy

REALITY January 2020

President Donald Trump signs S.1790, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 as senior leaders look on, Friday, Dec. 20, 2019 At Joint Base Andrews. The act authorizes a budget that supports the U.S. armed forces and postures the Air Force to meet the requirements of the National Defense Strategy. (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Spencer Slocum)

the future security environment,” a Department of Defense statement says. “Space is integral to national security and our way of life, and this service will posture us to compete, deter, and win in an era of great power competition.” By creating a new, separate service with a dedicated purpose, the United States will maintain space superiority, even as space becomes more crowded and contested. The new defense law also directs that the Space Force “shall provide the freedom of operation in, from, and to space, while providing prompt and sustained space operations.”

AIR FORCE, NAVY, ARMY CONDUCT FIRST ‘REAL WORLD’ TEST ADVANCED BATTLE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

By Capt. Cara Bousie and Charles Pope

Secretary of the Air Force Public Affairs

In the first field test of a novel approach to warfighting, communicating and decision-making, the Air Force, Navy and Army used new methods and technology Dec. 16-18 for collecting, analyzing and sharing information in real time to identify and defeat a simulated cruise missile threat to the United States. A three-day long exercise of the Advanced Battle Management System (ABMS) tested technology being developed to enable the military’s developing concept called Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2). When fully realized, senior leaders say JADC2 will be the backbone of operations and deterrence, allowing U.S. forces from all services as well as allies to orchestrate mil-

destroyer, an Army air defense sensor and firing unit, a special operations unit, as well as commercial space and ground sensors came together to confront – and defeat – a simulated threat to the U.S. homeland. Upon detection of a potential cruise missile threatening the United States, simulated by QF-16s, in quick succession using new software, communications equipment and a “mesh network,” the information was relayed to the USS Thomas Hudner, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer deployed in the Gulf of Mexico. The same information was passed to a pair of Air Force F-35s and another pair of F22s. Also receiving the information were commanders at Eglin AFB, a pair of Navy F-35s, an Army unit equipped with a mobile missile launcher known as HIMARS and special forces on the ground. Events culminated on Dec. 18 when Continued on Page 43

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

WELCOME TO THE AUBURN, CA AIRPORT (KAUN)

t/E'͛^ 'Z/>> dĞůĞƉŚŽŶĞ͗ ;ϱϯϬͿ ϴϴϱͲϬϰϮϴ ,ŽƵƌƐ ϳ͗ϬϬ D ʹ Ϯ͗ϬϬWD ĂŝůǇ

^/ ZZ , >/ KWd Z^ dĞůĞƉŚŽŶĞ͗ ;ϱϯϬͿ ϰϭϱͲϱϵϳϮ ttt͘^/ ZZ /Z, >/ KWd Z^͘

D , ϱ s/ d/KE dĞůĞƉŚŽŶĞ͗ ;ϱϯϬͿ ϴϴϵͲϮϬϬϬ ttt͘D ,ϱ s/ d/KE͘ KD

dŚĞ ƵďƵƌŶ ŝƌƉŽƌƚ ;< hEͿ͕ ũƵƐƚ Ă ĨĞǁ ŵŝůĞƐ EŽƌƚŚ ĂƐƚ ŽĨ ^ĂĐƌĂŵĞŶƚŽ ŝƐ ƚŚĞ 'ĂƚĞǁĂǇ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ^ŝĞƌƌĂ͛Ɛ ĂŶĚ ĂŶ ǀŝĂƚŽƌƐ WĂƌĂĚŝƐĞ͘ dŚĞ ŶĂƚƵƌĂů ďĞĂƵƚǇ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ĂƌĞĂ ŵĂŬĞƐ ŝƚ ĂŶ ĂǀŝĂƚŽƌΖƐ ĚĞƐƚŝŶĂƚŝŽŶ ŽĨ ĐŚŽŝĐĞ͘

d', s/ d/KE dĞůĞƉŚŽŶĞ͗ ;ϱϯϬͿ ϴϮϯͲϲϮϬϰ ttt͘d', s/ d/KE͘ KD

dŚƌĞƐŚŽůĚ ǀŝĂƚŝŽŶ ŝƐ ƚŚĞ &ƵĞů ^ĞƌǀŝĐĞƐ ƉƌŽǀŝĚĞƌ ĨŽƌ ƚŚĞ ŝƌƉŽƌƚ ĂŶĚ ŝƐ ƉƌŽƵĚ ƚŽ ďĞ ĂƐƐŽĐŝĂƚĞĚ ǁŝƚŚ ƚŚĞ ǀŝĂƚŝŽŶ ƵƐŝŶĞƐƐĞƐ ůŽĐĂƚĞĚ Ăƚ < hE͘

^hE^,/E &>z Z^ dĞůĞƉŚŽŶĞ͗ ;ϱϯϬͿ ϴϮϬͲϯϰϰϮ ttt͘^hE^,/E &>z Z^͘ KD

LOWEST FUEL PRICES IN THE AREA! x x x

h KhEdZz s/ d/KE dĞůĞƉŚŽŶĞ͗ ;ϱϯϬͿ ϲϭϯͲϲϰϴϴ ttt͘ h KhEdZz͘ KD

ϮϰͲ,ŽƵƌ ^ĞůĨ ^ĞƌǀŝĐĞ /ƐůĂŶĚ ϭϬϬ>> Θ : d &ƵĞů dƌƵĐŬ ^ĞƌǀŝĐĞ ǀĂŝůĂďůĞ ϴ D ʹ ϱ WD />z ƌĞĚŝƚ ĂƌĚƐ ĐĐĞƉƚĞĚ͗ ǀ&ƵĞů͕ DƵůƚŝͲ^ĞƌǀĞ͕ sŝƐĂ͕ DĂƐƚĞƌĐĂƌĚ͕ ŵ ǆ͕ ŝƐĐŽǀĞƌǇ dŝĞͲ ŽǁŶƐ ǀĂŝůĂďůĞ͕ ĂŝůǇ͕ tĞĞŬůǇ ĂŶĚ DŽŶƚŚůǇ

&h>> d,ZKdd> s/ d/KE dĞůĞƉŚŽŶĞ͗ ;ϱϯϬͿ ϴϮϬͲϯϳϱϳ

< hE /ZWKZd /E&KZD d/KE x x x x x x x

/ĚĞŶƚŝĨŝĞƌ͗ < hE hŶŝĐŽŵ͗ ϭϮϮ͘ϳ ůĞǀĂƚŝŽŶ͗ ϭϱϯϲ tK^͗ ϭϭϵ͘ϯϳϱ &^^͗ ϭϮϮ͘ϯ d &͗ ϭϮϮ͘ϳ EKZ > ƉƉƌŽĂĐŚ͗ 125.4/127.4

CALL FOR FUEL TRUCK (530) 823-0744

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

January 2020

It has been said that the only voluntary act in aviation is the decision to take-off. Every action after take-off involves the skillful management of risk, the enjoyment of flight and a continuous stream of decisions that result in a safe landing. In 1974, NASA created the Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) to allow aviation professionals to share experiences in a frank, non-punitive manner. The ASRS structure allows pilots and other aviation professionals to file an anonymous report of an incident, error or occurrence that the contributor feels might be of value to others. These reports are gathered, analyzed and data based by NASA experts and made available to all interested parties as a tool for creating proactive aviation safety programs. Additionally, NASA distributes an electronic publication, CALLBACK, which contains selected, de-identified, reports on a free subscription basis. In Flight USA is proud to reprint selected reports, exerpted from CALLBACK, for our readers to read, study, occasionally laugh at, and always learn from. Visit http://asrs.arc.nasa.gov/ to learn how you can participate in the ASRS program.

NASA’s Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) receives, processes, and analyzes voluntarily submitted incident reports from pilots, air traffic controllers, dispatchers, cabin crew, maintenance technicians, and others. Reports submitted to ASRS may describe both unsafe occurrences and hazardous situations. Information is gathered from these reports and disseminated to stakeholders. ASRS’s particular concern is the quality of human performance in the National Airspace System.1 The ASRS Staff is composed of highly experienced pilots, air traffic controllers, and mechanics, as well as a management team that possess aviation and human factors experience. ASRS Analysts’ experience is comprised of more than 600 cumulative years of aviation expertise, covering the full spectrum of aviation activity: air carrier, corporate, military, and general aviation; Air Traffic Control in Towers, TRACONs, Centers, and Military Facilities. Analyst cumulative flight time exceeds 175,000 hours in more than 90 different aircraft.1 In addition, the ASRS Staff has human factors and psychology research experience in areas such as training, fatigue, crew resource management, user interface design, usability evaluations, and research methodology. Says ASRS Director, Dr. Becky Hooey, about the Program, “ASRS reporters can know that every report submitted to ASRS is important. Each one is evaluated and processed by our uniquely qualified team of aviation safety analysts. We are passionately committed to improving aviation safety by helping you share your concerns and lessons learned with all who could benefit or need to know.” At the current rate, ASRS will receive over 108,000 reports this year that cover a broad range of topics. This month, ASRS extends Season’s Greetings in a lighthearted medley of reports. The narratives exemplify praiseworthy performance, reiterate sound aviation wisdom, and sprinkle a dash of humor over some good old common sense.

ASRS YEAR END ROUNDUP

What’s in Your Back Seat?

This private pilot had an interesting learning experience departing an airport near the DC Flight Restricted Zone (FRZ) with a dog in the rear seat. • I departed this morning on a Special Flight Rules Area (SFRA) flight plan, and my intention was to maintain 1,400 feet until [laterally] clear of [Class] B airspace, which would keep me clear of the Flight Restricted Zone and all [Class] B airspace. At approximately 1,200 feet in my climb, my dog, which had been harnessed in the back seat, leapt into the front passenger seat. In doing so, he hit the dash, somehow managing to clear my flight plan out of my Garmin 430. He pulled my GDL 39 out of the cigarette lighter (my backup navigation), he knocked my tablet (also my backup navigation) onto the passenger side floor, and he ripped the microphone port of my headset out at the connector. I didn’t initially realize that had happened, and I could still hear the radio because the listening port was still plugged in. In trying to keep my dog off of the controls, and flipping the autopilot off to hand-fly, I inadvertently made a climbing turn to 2,200 feet and may have broken into Class B airspace. Upon recognizing this, I immediately descended and made my initial radio call to Potomac. At the time, I thought they had acknowledged my call, but in retrospect, I don’t think they did. A few minutes later as I was still trying to re-trim the airplane, Potomac was trying to reach me, and it was clear to me they couldn’t hear me. It was at this point that I realized my microphone port had been unplugged, and the cord was now wrapped around my 50-pound dog, which was dead weight on top of it. I finally freed the cord and made contact with Potomac. In doing so, my concentration was broken, and when I looked at my position, I was either in or very close to violating the FRZ. I immediately turned around and again made contact with Potomac. At this point forward, I stayed clear of Bravo and the FRZ.

Dispatching Details

This air carrier Dispatcher made a rare but significant discovery. Without the revelation, confusion would have been likely for pilots and controllers alike. • Aircraft X… was delayed into [the following day]. [Aircraft Y, using the same call sign, was] operating on time. Both flights were in the air at the same time and would both be in ZZZ Center at the same time. Actually, both flights would have been line of sight with each other just north of ZZZ1 VORTAC. The Dispatcher noted this just after takeoff for Aircraft X. The ATC Coordinator was notified, who, in turn, contacted ZZZ Center. A temporary call sign was assigned to the eastbound flight for crossing ZZZ airspace. Dispatch notified both flights of the situation, the remedial action, and of the similarity between [the two] call signs. A long delay of 20 hours had caused [the call sign] overlap in this datechange flight. Do not delay flights into the next day without setting them up as an extra section or by stubbing immediately upon determining the length of the delay.

If the Nozzle Fits

This twin Bonanza pilot exhibited sound aviation wisdom after the aircraft was serviced improperly. Distraction was one link in the chain of events that could have been costly. • This aircraft is equipped with “AVGAS ONLY 100LL” placards. I requested, “Top off the main tanks only.” I then became… distracted with securing the aircraft for heavy weather. When I finished, I noticed the… fuel truck was labeled with the black placard, “JET-A.” [The fueler] told me he had just added 29 gallons of JET-A to my aircraft, a twin Bonanza. This aircraft is clearly an old vintage aircraft and does not resemble in any fashion a turbine-powered engine cowling or exhaust system. It was apparent… that the fueler was… new to this position. When I examined the fueling

nozzle, there was no duckbill [fixture]. I could not understand how he could have inserted a JET-A duckbill-style refueling nozzle into my AvGas tanks. In place of the duckbill was a conventional round AvGas nozzle. The fueler was unaware of the difference between the designs. Further discussions… revealed he was unaware of the deadly consequences of this error. His… supervisor, who had been there during part of this refueling, suggested they would drain and refill the tanks for me. I told him that only an A&P would be doing any work on the aircraft… The fuel tanks were drained and flushed by the local A&P. However, prior to the next engine start, further research… with my A&P revealed that the electric fuel pump would hold jet fuel even though the tank was drained of fuel. This small but significant amount of JetA would be delivered to the engines. I then disconnected the fuel supply lines at the firewall and drained the fuel lines and crossfeed system prior to the next flight.

A Menacing Memory

This MD11 Captain reported that his First Officer (FO) had allowed the aircraft to descend below the assigned altitude. The Captain suggested a possible root cause and mitigating strategy. • We were descending on the arrival. The FO decided to hand-fly, announced it, and disconnected the autopilot. As we were approaching level off, the aircraft started a slight left turn away from course. He said, “What’s it doing?” and went up to the Flight Control Panel (FCP) to select a heading back to course; then he reselected NAV. The aircraft stayed in a slight left turn, and as we approached our level off, he made no effort to raise the nose. I said, “There’s your altitude,” as we passed through it, and he raised the nose to level off. We descended 200 to 300 feet below our assigned altitude. As he was correcting, he responded, “I forgot the motion was on!” meaning he forgot he was hand-flying. Nothing was heard from ATC about the deviation. Continued on Page 43

January 2020

First ‘Real World’ Test of ABMS Continued from Page 40 senior leaders from across the Department of Defense arrived at the test’s command and control hub for an ABMS overview and abbreviated exercise. All at once in a well-secured room, they watched real-time data pour in, and out of, the command cell. They observed information from platforms and people flowing instantly and simultaneously across air, land, sea and space that provided shared situational updates as events occurred whether the information originated from jets, or passing satellites, or from sea and ground forces on the move. Then, the group transitioned to outdoor tents to continue the exercise in a rugged environment, where senior leaders could also inspect first-hand and learn about high-speed Air Force and industry equipment and software that enabled the week’s test. “Today’s demo is our first time demonstrating internet-of-things connectivity across the joint force,” Air Force acquisitions lead Dr. Will Roper said. “Cloud, mesh networking and software-defined systems were the stars of the show, all developed at commercial internet speeds.” He also spoke to the necessity of industry partnership and leveraging their

www.inflightusa.com expertise. “Our four-month ‘connect-a-thon’ cycle unlocks industry’s ability to iterate with testers, acquirer, and warfighters. For example, the insights from connecting the F-22 and F-35 for the first time will help our industry partners take the next leap,” Roper said. The demonstration was the first of its kind in a series of exercises scheduled to occur roughly every four months. Each new exercise will build on the one before and include responses to problems and lessons learned. Dunlap said the intent is to move much faster than before to conceive, build and test new technologies and strategies despite complexity or technical challenges. “The goal is to move quickly and deliver quickly. We want to show it can be done and then we want to push ourselves to continually enhance and expand our capability in roughly four-month cycles partnering with Combatant Commanders and operators,” Dunlap said. An equally important goal is to demonstrate the real-world value of the hard-to-describe effort in tangible, understandable ways. JADC2, previously named multi-domain operations com-

mand and control, relies on ABMS to develop software and algorithms so that artificial intelligence and machine learning can compute and connect vast amounts of data from sensors and other sources at a speed and accuracy far beyond what is currently attainable. ABMS also includes hardware updates including radios, antenna, and more robust networks that enable unimpeded data flow to operators. Aside from tools and tech, JADC2 also demands a cultural change among service men and women that embraces and responds to multi-faceted battlespaces driven by information shared across the joint force. The critical difference going forward is to create a failsafe system that gets – and shares - real time information across multiple spaces and platforms simultaneously. Achieving this will remove barriers that can keep information from personnel and units that need it. For example, once in place, the new command and control ability will allow F-16 and F-35 pilots to see the same information at the same time in the same way along with a submarine commander, a space officer controlling satellites and an Army Special Forces unit on the ground.

Members of the 6th Special Operations Squadron use a tablet to upload coordinates during an exercise showcasing the capabilities of the Advanced Battle Management System at Duke Field, Fla., Dec. 17, 2019. During the first demonstration of the ABMS, operators across the Air Force, Army, Navy and industry tested multiple real-time data sharing tools and technology in a homeland defense-based scenario enacted by U.S. Northern Command and enabled by Air Force senior leaders. The collection of networked systems and immediately available information is critical to enabling joint service operations across all domains. (U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Joshua J. Garcia)

Ross Aviation Acquires Signature Flight Support Base

Continued from Page 38 senior leadership of the company has actually had a service presence on the field for decades. The purchase of Signature Flight Support’s operation in Thermal comes just over a year after Ross Aviation purchased other ramp space and hangar facilities at Thermal and allows the company the capability of handing additional heavy jet aircraft, as well as more capacity for base customers. Staffing at the acquired facility is anticipated to remain virtually unchanged, as the incumbent team is

Safe Landings

Continued from Page 42 [The FO] managed to remember he was hand-flying for the rest of the descent and approach. For some reason, the FO decided to hand-fly the arrival then promptly forgot he was doing it! This was our second leg of the night, and we were definitely on the back side of our body clocks. When you even remotely feel tired, let the automation be your friend.

A Classic, Costly Error

This B777 Captain discovered a discrepancy in the paperwork prior to flight.

already well-known at the airport for their high standards of service and safety – two key attributes of every Ross Aviation team member. “We’re very proud to welcome our newest team members in Thermal” said Mr. Corbett, “and to having them become an integral part of our operations as we continue to increase our footprint in the region.” Headquartered in Denver, Ross Aviation and its affiliated companies are dedicated to soaring higher – in the FBO services they provide and the environment they create for both customers and team

members. The company is guided by four fundamental beliefs: Safety, care, performance and drive – and strives to embody those beliefs in every action taken, from the flight line to the front office. Ross Aviation currently operates 17 fixed base operations under both the Ross Aviation and Rectrix banners. Whether customers are making their first visit to a Ross Aviation location, or their one-hundredth, they’ll experience highly skilled staff who are deeply committed to the successful completion of every mission.

The classic error could have resulted in serious consequences if not corrected. • As Pilot-in-Command (PIC), I was reviewing the operating flight plan and load sheet prior to flight. I discovered a discrepancy between the two and found the operating flight plan to be 118,989 pounds lighter than the load sheet data. I contacted the Flight Dispatcher on duty and voiced my concerns. A new operating flight plan and load sheet were generated with the correct data. I was informed it was confusion between kilograms and pounds that was the cause of the paperwork error.

Inquiring Minds

A Pilatus pilot learned a lesson from a situation exhibiting a hint of hindsight humor. The public was allowed access to the aircraft interior, and Murphy prevailed. • The aircraft Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) was inadvertently activated… at an airport event. The Medical Crew was on an outside call and… was not present. The public was allowed access to the aircraft interior. Children in the cockpit flipped several switches, including the ELT. After remov-

Ross Aviation now has the largest ramp and hangar facilities at Thermal, California. (Courtesy Ross Aviation)

ing the children, the ELT was reset. The Communications Center called to inquire. The pilot and copilot seat belts were cross-connected from left to right to restrict cockpit access. Always have at least two crew members monitoring the aircraft during public events. Do not allow public access to the aircraft interior.

1.https://asrs.arc.nasa.gov/docs/ASRS_P rogramBriefing.pdf

FORMER FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR USES REAL ESTATE SALES MODEL BUILD THE NATION’S LARGEST AIRCRAFT BROKERAGE In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

“It's a pleasure to get up every day and do what you love!" says Keith Latour, owner and president of USA Aircraft Brokers, Inc. Latour started USA Aircraft Brokers in 1991 with the goal of becoming a nationwide network. “One of the unique aspects of USA Aircraft Brokers is that it allows individuals who are interested in aviation the opportunity to work in the industry and make money doing something that they love, without any prior experience or without investing a lot of money up front,” states Latour. “I started out as a flight instructor and charter pilot in 1974. By 1975 I owned and operated flight schools in three cities. I worked hard to make these schools successful. My work weeks were usually 60 hours or longer. One day I sold one of my small aircraft to a flight student. This was a real eye-opener for me. I immediately realized that the profit from that sale was as much as I would have earned from four to five months of hard work flying. At that point I actively began to pursue aircraft sales as a primary occupation.” One of the unique benefits of working as a broker instead of a dealer is the low initial start up cost. “Initially I tried to inventory aircraft for sale,” said Latour,

(Courtesy USA Brokers)

“but I quickly found that this was a very time-consuming and expensive way to proceed. A credit line needed to be established to allow the purchase of aircraft. I had to locate an aircraft, travel to its location to make the purchase, insure it, fly it back, hope that nothing broke, and pay interest until it sold.” Another drawback to being a dealer as opposed to a broker is a dealer is exposed to significant amount of liability. “I found even after it was sold and delivered, as the dealer I potentially was libel for damages associated with that aircraft for years to come. The cumbersome process associated with maintaining the inventory severely limited the number and size of aircraft I could manage. More importantly, dealer inventorying was not as profitable as the initial sale that had inspired me to enter the aircraft sales business in the first place” said Latour. Latour, who had prior experience in the real estate industry, began to think of aircraft sales along the same lines as a real estate. “It soon occurred to me that principles used in the real estate industry may apply to aircraft sales. My experience in real estate several years earlier had been lucrative enough to allow me to purchase most of my flight training in a relatively short period of time. With this in mind I sold all my aircraft and began brokering, which quickly became extremely profitable. For example, my first sale was an aircraft listed at $100,000. I made an $8,500.00 commission without having to invest any of my own money. I didn’t have to go to the bank to borrow the money. I didn’t have to insure the aircraft, pay interest or accept product liability on the aircraft after the sale. Within a few months I had a large number of aircraft listed and was able to live comfortably from brokering commissions.” After years of success with his own brokerage, Latour began to expand on his idea and build the USAAircraft Broker network, what he likes to refer to as “the RE/MAX of the Sky.” “Over the years I

began to envision a national network of aircraft brokerages similar to what RE/MAX accomplished in the real estate industry.” Today, USAAircraft Brokers has a network of 18 Area Brokers and 53 FBO Sales Agents located across the country. “I think that the model Keith built, a nationwide network of brokers working together is what initially attracted me to USAAircraft Brokers” says Jim Schmidt, Area Broker for Ohio. Jim joined USA Aircraft Brokers in 1999 after being bitten by the flying bug a few years earlier. “I got my private license in 1994 and it immediately became an ambition of mine to work in the aviation industry. I found out very quickly though, that legitimate opportunities to make a successful living in aviation are few and far between” said Schmidt. “Then I came across Keith’s ad in “Trade-a-Plane” and gave him a call.” Latour explained that his brokers had every incentive to work together to promote all of the aircraft in the USA Aircraft Brokers system. “Just like a real estate agency, we will split commissions on any aircraft that we sell, even if we are not the listing agent. This gives everyone the incentive to work hard to find a buyer all across the country. That is especially important in aircraft sales because 90 percent of the time, a buyer is going to come from another part of the country” said Schmidt. USA Aircraft Brokers has allowed Schmidt to fulfill his dream to work in the aviation business. “I started as a broker part time and used it as a way to fund my flying. I would fly out every weekend to FBO’s in my local area, looking for aircraft to list and to promote those that we already were representing”, said Schmidt. “I was able to sell some aircraft, write off my flight expenses and meet a lot of great people who shared my passion for flying. That’s not a bad way to spend a Saturday,” Schmidt concluded. USA Aircraft Brokers uses the latest technology to promote the sale of it’s air-

(Courtesy USA Brokers) craft, including an interactive website that uses audio messages from brokers to promote their aircraft and email campaigns to all of the FBO’s in the country whenever a new aircraft is listed. “We try to reach the market anyway we can after we list an aircraft. Using our internet ad program and time honored methods like our quarterly newsletter that goes out to over 15,000 FBO’s and high performance aircraft owners nationwide, we can guarantee our clients the best possible exposure for their aircraft and sell it at top retail dollar.” While pleased with the growth that the network has had so far, Latour feels that there is ample room for growth. “Like real estate, the key to successful aircraft brokering is listings. The more you have, the more successful every broker will be. My goal is to have hundreds of brokers working internationally for the success everyone in the network, and I believe we are well on our way to achieving that goal,” concluded Latour. Established in 1991, USA Aircraft Brokers is the oldest and largest network of aircraft brokers in the USA. The company is not a franchise or franchisor. It is a licenser selling a license to own and operate an aircraft brokerage under the name USA Aircraft Brokers. They offer comprehensive training and support to allow you to start working successfully as a broker within a two-week period. For more information on becoming a Certified USA Aircraft Area Broker fill out the Become an Aircraft Broker application on the USA Aircraft Brokers web page at www.usaaircraft.com.

Visit In Flight USA’s website for the latest aviation news...

www.inflightusa.com

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

AIRCRAFT BUILDING WORKSHOP RETURNS

Zenith Aircraft Company is returning to Florida this winter to host its popular hands-on workshop session. The workshop will be held Jan. 24 and 25, 2020, in Edgewater, Florida. Earlier this fall the company hosted a successful workshop session at the DeLand Sport Aviation Showcase (held Nov. 14 -16 in DeLand, FL) which included kit assembly demonstrations of the high-wing STOL CH 750 Super Duty sport utility aircraft in addition to the standard “Zenith workshop” where participants built the rudder tail section of a Zenith aircraft, such as the high-wing CH 750 or low-wing CH 650 model. With the demise of the annual Sebring Expo (held in January in Sebring, FL), Zenith has decided instead to return with its workshop to Edgewater, Florida (located south of Daytona Beach), hosted by Wheels and Wings at the Massey Ranch Airpark in Edgewater. Headed by Herman Eshuis, Wheels and Wings provides professional builders assistance and kit finishing services, specializing in Zenith kit aircraft and lightsport aircraft (LSA). The Florida workshop will start on Friday morning, Jan. 24. The hands-on workshop is primarily for the first-time airplane builder, and has become popular

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

with sport aviation enthusiasts who are considering to build their own aircraft and are unsure if they have the required skills, workspace and tools. During the workshop each participant builds and assembles their own Zenith aircraft rudder tail section from a standard Zenith kit, and concludes on Saturday, Jan. 25. In the process of building the rudder assembly, participants tackle many activities including learning how to read drawings (blueprints) and work with assembly instructions (manuals) under the expert guidance of factory staff. They learn the procedures for putting together an aircraft assembly, including drilling and blind riveting. In the end, they have an assembled rudder that is ready to install on a Zenith kit airplane. “The rest of the kit is constructed the same way as the rudder, using the same tools,” said Sebastien Heintz, president of Zenith Aircraft Company. “People get far more out of the workshop than just a finished aircraft rudder: they go home with the knowledge, skills and confidence they need to build their own airplane. Most importantly, they learn that kit building is enjoyable and something that can engage the whole family. Many of our prospective builders bring their spouses or other family member, who

TO FLORIDA

often encourage them to move forward with the rest of the kit. With modern technology and good instructions, aircraft construction has become much easier than most people think.” The hands-on workshop is an excellent way to learn about building your own amateur-built kit aircraft and about the many advantages of owning and flying an airplane that you’ve built yourself. Kit aircraft is a segment of general aviation that is growing while much of general aviation continues to decline. For many, building an aircraft (from a kit) is a very rewarding experience, and today’s modern kits make it easier and quicker to build than even before. Standard workshop fees are $375 (or $425 for the CH 750 Super Duty model) and include the complete rudder kit for a Zenith aircraft. Additional helpers are encouraged to attend and can participate for free. To learn more about the workshop program, visit zenithair.com or call Zenith Aircraft directly: (573) 581-9000 (Mon – Fri, 8 – 5 Central) or Wheels and Wings at (386) 690-4239. Prior registration is required for the rudder workshop. Also on Saturday, Jan. 25, Wheels and Wings will host a Zenith fly-in at its facilities at the Massey Ranch Airpark (X50) in Edgewater. All Zeniths are invited to fly in for the day! The informal flyin will include flying demonstrations and technical sessions for Zenith owners. Enthusiasts and current builders are also invited to attend. More info: https://www.facebook.com/events/44319 3556609696/and https://wheelsandwings .net/2020-rudder-workshop. Massey Ranch Airpark is also home

January 2020

Zenith Aircraft Company is returning to Florida this winter to host its popular hands-on workshop session, Jan. 24 and 25, 2020, in Edgewater, Florida. (Courtesy Zenith Aircraft Company)

of Viking Aircraft Engines, maker of popular Honda-based engine conversions that power many Zeniths. Viking will hold its second annual Viking Engine Workshop on Sunday, January 26 at its facilities. More info: https://www.face book.com/events/3267053750003485/.

THE HILL NAMES AOPA AMONG TOP LOBBYISTS OF 2019

By Amelia Walsh AOPA

Washington, D.C.-based publication The Hill released its annual list of top lobbyists on Dec. 12. AOPA is among the nation’s top companies, labor unions, and associations. AOPA was named to the list for the sixth year in a row, which "highlights the broad range of talents needed to succeed in the influence industry." “Being named a top lobbyist is a significant recognition given the fact that there are thousands of trade associations in Washington, D.C.,” said AOPA President Mark Baker. “This honor is

truly a testament to the experienced government affairs team we have in Washington, D.C., fighting for the freedom to fly and making sure that general aviation is represented at all levels of government.” AOPA’s small government affairs staff is hard at work on issues at the international, federal, state, and local levels. Moreover, maintaining relationships with members of Congress is a huge aspect of the advocacy efforts by our government affairs team. AOPA’s regulatory experts also work every day to advance GA interests with federal agencies such as the FAA, the Continued on Page 47

THE COOLEST SHOW ON EARTH ROLLS INTO HALF MOON BAY

January 2020

There are car shows, air shows, motorcycle shows, tractor shows, maker fairs, music festivals, food festivals, and living history festivals galore. Mix them all together in one venue on one day and you’ve got Half Moon Bay California’s remarkable, one and only Pacific Coast Dream Machines Show – marking its 30th year in 2020 with a massive celebration of mechanical ingenuity, power and style. It’s quite simply the “Coolest Show on Earth.” This year’s spectacular 30th annual show will be held on Sunday, April 26, a one-day mega-show, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Half Moon Bay Airport, located in the picturesque seaside town of Half Moon Bay, Calif., about 20 miles south of San Francisco. The show is a whimsical, fascinating, amusing, curious and absolutely unique show and tell spectacle featuring 2,000 magnificent driving, flying and working machines from the 20th and 21st centuries. The world’s coolest cars of every era and style, model-T fire engines, vintage busses, custom motorcycles, tricked out trucks, sleek streamliners,

www.inflightusa.com

American Aircraft Sales Co. WE HAVE MOVED! 50 YEARS IN BUSINESS–NEW LOCATION LD SO

1955 Beechcraft T-34B Mentor

Terry Tarditi, owner of his own P-51, understands the ongoing love affair flight aficionados have with the Mustang. Catch Tarditi and other P-51 Mustangs at this year’s Pacific Coast Dream Machines Show, April 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Half Moon Bay Airport. (Courtesy Terry Tarditi and Pacific Coast Dream Machines/Miramar Events) one-of-a-kind antique engines and tractors and historic military aircraft will be among the mesmerizing displays. For show details and tickets visit the event website at www.dreammachines .maramarevents.com.

1976 Beech Sport

60 HRS Since Restoration............$225,000 1800 TTSN, 250 STOH, hangar kept very original paint and interior nice NDH...............................................$32,950

1982 Cessna 182R Skylane II

1978 Piper Warrior 161

500 SMOH, 9000 TTSN, Garmin 650 IFR GPS, 35 SMOH, 3000 TTSN, new paint, super clean ADS-B, S-TEC 60 A/P, Recent interior, nice paint, airplane .....................................................$59,950 NDH ........................................................$129,950

1977 Piper Warrior 180 HP

1979 Piper Warrior II 161

1300 SFRMAN 5000 TTSN, Garmin 430 GPS, IFR, NDH, nice paint, ..............CALL

1278 SMOH, 15,193 TTSN, Garmin Avionics ........................................$25,000

Top Lobbyists Of 2019

LD SO

1982 Cessna 172P 180 HP

1978 Piper Archer

1387 SNEW 180 HP Engine, 5200 TTSN, IFR, Hangar Kept, Looks like new, NDH. ..........CALL!

2400 TTSN, 400 SFRMAN, Garmin 430 GPS, new leather interior, one owner since 1980, NDH.....................................$79,959

LD SO 1977 Piper Archer 181

1978 Cessna 172N Skyhawk

Only 700 TTSN, one owner based in Livermore CA since New................$69,950

60 SMOH, 4000 TTSN, This is a prime condition hangar kept California airplane,....$79,950

AOPA named one of top lobbyist groups by The Hill. The Capitol is home to the U.S. Congress and its House and Senate governing bodies, two of the many government agencies that have influence over general aviation. (David Tulis/Courtesy AOPA) Continued from Page 46 Transportation Security Administration, Customs and Border Protection, the NTSB, and others. In a recent behind-the-scenes look, Jason Miller, a 20-year CFI and creator of The Finer Points series on YouTube, gave his viewers a glimpse of just where their AOPA membership dues are going when he visited the Washington, D.C., staff in September. According to Miller, “It was profound to see how much they [AOPA] knew about every airport fight across the country and

how they were speaking directly to the legislators on our behalf. This is exactly what I would hope AOPA is doing with my membership dues and I think it’s important that all pilots see what they are up to. It’s important that we all become members. Only together will we be able to protect the general aviation flying community which is so important for this country.” AOPA previously made The Hill’s list of top Washington, D.C., groups in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and 2018. To learn more about AOPA and their advocacy programs, visit aopa.org.

1977 Cessna 172 Skyhawk 180 HP

1976 Beech Sundowner

2085 SFRMAN, 3000 TTSN, L/R fuel, Garmin GPS, King IFR, new paint/leather interior and new windows, NDH ..........................$86,950

200 SMOH, 2450 TTSN, Garmin Avionics, ADS-B in and out, NDH, hangar kept and well maintained...........................................$49,950

Office Space & Tie Downs Available for Rent Robert Coutches

Cell - (510) 783-2711 • (925) 449-5151 550 Airway Blvd. • Livermore, CA 94551• Livermore Airport (KLVK)

www.americanaircraft.net

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

AIRCRAFT FOR SALE American Aircraft Sales, Livermore Airport, CA, www.americanaircraft.net, cell (510) 783-2711, (925) 449-5151. 3/13

From Trade-ins to Aircra™ft Management, financing and appraisals. T.J. Aircraft Sales, Novato, CA, (415) 8985151, www.tjair.com. 3/13

J.T. Evans Aircraft Sales. Specializing in landing gear & control surfaces. Also recovery & storage for singles & light twins. (800) 421-1729, Orlando, FL.11/14

AirplanesUSA Aircraft Sales, new office at San Carlos, CA, Airport, www. airplanesusa.com, (650) 394-7610.1/16

Small Manned Aerial Radar Target, Model 1. Tiny jet aircraft, long-range tank. SMART-1, Tucson, AZ, (520) 6821281, www.smart-1.us. 10/18

SPORT/ULTRALIGHTS Innovator Aircraft™, fast, comfortable, beautiful. (404) 969-5703, commutercraft. com. 2/19

HOMEBUILTS Kitfox Aircraft. Building kits for 30 years. Homedale Municipal Airport, ID, www.kitfoxaircraft.com, (208) 3375111. 8/14

RV12i5. Total performance perfected. Easy to build, fly and own. Van's Aircraft www.vansaircraft.com. 11/18

Express Aircraft, Composite Aircraft Technology, LLC. High-performance, four-place, experimental. (360) 864-6271, www.compairtechllc.com. 12/18

AIRCRAFT FOR RENT Fly right, fly better & fly with Attitude. Large selection of rental aircraft. Attitude Aviation, Livermore, CA, (925) 456-2276, www.attitudeaviation.com. 11/16

FLIGHT INSTRUCTION Arizona Type Ratings CE-500/CE-525 type ratings or recurrent. Insurance approved, staff examiner. www.arizonatyperatings.com, (602) 6147994. 9309:TFN Training FAA CFIs since 1988. Intensive 3-week course, from start to checkride. CFI Academy, Acampo, CA, (916) 2090234, CFIacademy.com. 10/18

Earn WINGS credit from home. Safety seminars & latest GA topics. Only $9.99/mo. San Carlos Flight Center, (650) 946-1700. 8/19 Single engine sea ratings, reviews, training flights. Lake Havasu Seaplanes, Lake Havasu City, AZ, (928) 733-7122, www.lakehavasuseaplanes.com. 1/20

INSTRUCTORS WANTED

Attention Flight Instructors Now hiring a few flight instructors! $30/ hour, full- or part-time. Work out of Statesboro, Reidsville or Fort Stewart, GA. Call Jennifer, (912) 257-6782) or Bobby Smith, (912) 682-9635.191100:12

SIMULATORS Unique, integrated ground, simulator and flight training to fit any pilot level. Open daily, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. ACTIVE PILOT Flight Training Center, Van Nuys Airport, CA, (818) 528-6777, activepilot. com. 8/18

PILOT POSITION WANTED SoCal pilot desires Turbine/Jet SIC time. Comm/Instru/Multi-Eng with SIC for Gulfstream G-IV and scores of hours in the Citation V560. Many years of aircraft design/flight test/aerospace industry experience. Willing to travel as needed (and for repositioning). Contact Paul at (562) 714-6686 or ptglessner@ aol.com. 17400:TFN

AVIONICS Avionics for Every Mission. Installation, bench repair, a/p specialist, all major brands. Airtronics, Calaveras County Airport, CA, www.airtronicsavionics. com, (209) 736-9400. 11/14

Basic installs to complete panel and glass retrofits. Great service and value pricing. Pacific Coast Avionics, (800) 353-0370, www.PCA.aero. 7/15 New avionics shop at Chino, CA. Fullservice avionics installations and upgrades. Aero Performance Speciaties, (909) 927-4600, aero-performance.com. 10/19

MAINTENANCE/INSPECTIONS Need Maintenance? Fast, professional, service. Reasonable rates, quick turnaround. Mike Smith Aviation, Rancho Murieta, CA, (916) 607-4023. 8/18

ENGINES Quality, Service & Price, keeping the cost of aircraft engine maintenance down. Aircraft Specialties Services, Tulsa OK, (918) 836-6872. 10/06

Aircraft Engine Parts & Service. Gibson-Aviation, El Reno, OK, (800) 9924880, gibsonaviation@msn.com. 11/14

Corona Aircraft Engines. Complete engine overhauls on all Continentals & Lycomings. Superior air parts dealer. Corona Airport, CA, (951) 736-6452, www.coronaengines.com. 8/14 Oil coolers and more. Buy, sell, repair, overhaul or exchange. Pacific Oil Cooler Service, La Verne, CA, (800) 866-7335, www.oilcoolers.com. 4/17

FUEL Fuel Cells. Repair, overhaul or new. New tanks with 10-year warranty. Hartwig Aircraft Fuel Cell Repair, www. hartwigfuelcell.com. 2/09

OXYGEN SUPPLIES Morey Airplane Co., Middleton, WI, is seeking full-time A&P. Prefer IA with turbine experience. Maintain Cessna training & charter fleet and a variety of customer aircraft. Benefits. Email résumé to cfiirich@tds.net. Near Madison. Voted a top U.S. city. 191200:1

PROPELLERS

AIRCRAFT FINANCING

AIRCRAFT INSURANCE

Complete Propeller & Governor Service. Tiffin Aire, Tiffin, OH, (800) 5537767, (419) 447-4263. 2/08

Get Top Retail for Your Aircraft Aircraft sales, jet sales, management, financing. USA Aircraft Brokers, (877) 417-3069. 51218:TFN

Specializing in personal, business and charter aircraft. Best price, coverage & customer service. Zanette Aircraft Insurance Center, (650) 593-3030, (888) 723-3358. 10/06

AIRCRAFT PARTS Aircraft Parts for General Aviation. Special orders welcome. Aerozona Parts, Phoenix, AZ, (623) 581-6190.1/16

Dakota Aircraft Parts & Support. Visit our booths at: HAC Convention, 11/1416, #527; Dubai Airshow, 11/17-21, #1366; and Tri-Service Asian Exhibition, Bankok, 11/18-21, #X05. dakotaairparts. com. 11/19

AIRCRAFT EQUIPMENT FlareAssist™ RADAR. Radar altimeter that announces altitude through your headset. Low introductory price. (321) 253-9434, www.flareassistradar.com.2/19

Micro Vortex Generators installed on leading edge of wings and tail. Available for Singles and Twins. Micro AeroDynamics, Anacortes, WA, (800) 677-2370, (360) 293-8082, microaero.com. 10/19

PILOT SUPPLIES The Airport Shoppe, Reid-Hillview Airport, San Jose, CA, orders (800) 6344744, www.airportshoppe.com. 10/06

DuraCharts Best print quality, resistant to tearing and liquids. Produced by pilots for pilots. www.DURACHARTS.com. 8/14

No cheap imitation watches at HME! Special pricing on ATP series multifunctional watches with Altimeter. To order or for information, (323) 464-6660 or www.hmewatch.com. 11/16 Aircraft Spruce & Supply. Free 700page catalog, Corona, CA, & Peachtree City, GA, www.aircraftspruce.com. 10/06

Lightweight bike, international certification for mountain bike reliability. FLATBIKE, www.flatbike.com. 10/18

Great deals at online aircraft store. Wicks Aircraft Supply, Highland, IL, www.wicksaircraft.com, (618) 6547447, (800) 221-9425. 2/17 Protective covers for every make, and model, plus insulated engine covers. Bruce's Custom Covers, Morgan Hill, CA, (800) 777-6405, (408) 738-3959, www.aircraftcovers.com. 10/19

FBOs Serving the General Aviation Community since 1981. Wisconsin Aviation, Watertown Municipal Airport, WI, (920) 261-4567, WisconsinAviat2ion.com. 3/13

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES #1 Largest Network of Aircraft Brokers in the United States Become an Aircraft Broker — Available in Your Area Start today with USA’s proved system for listing and selling everything from high-performance single-engine airplanes, cabin class through jets, and helicopters & jet fractional shares. Includes multi-million-dollar inventory from which to start selling. Complete turn-key proved system. No experience necessary. Will train. Licensed USA Aircraft brokerage. Call today (504) 723-5566.

Visit Business Opportunity Section at www.usaaircraft.com. 4208:TFN

SERVICES Protect your assets. Legally avoid California Aircraft Sales and Use taxes. Call for free consultation. Associated Sales Tax Consultants Inc., (916) 3691200 or visit www.astc.com. 3/06 Aero & Marine Tax Pros Legally avoid sales tax on your aircraft purchase. In El Grove, CA, (916) 6919192, aeromarinetaxpros.com 18500:10 Susan Biegel, MD, Certified FAA Medical Examiner, Upland, CA, (909) 985-1908, wwww.susanbiegelmd.com. 11/16

Divorce-Paternity Cases. Contact Lawyers for Men's Rights, (213) 3848886, www.mensrightslawyers.com. Offices of Stuart J. Faber. 4/10 JoyStealingDragons.com by Linda Shively, professional speaker, executive coach & NLP master practitioner. 12/19

Reduce Worker's Payroll Taxes. WillServ Business Solutions, (877) 6405365, Brittany@WillServSolutions.com, or www.willservsolutions.com. 1/20

AVIATION RESOURCES Fly into the future with Wings Over Kansas. Voted one of the 500 Best McGraw-Hill Aviation Web Sites. Visit www.wingsoverkansas.com. 17100:TFN Looking for a plane, job or hard-to-find part? Use AEROSEARCHER.COM, the aviation search engine. 19/3

HANGARS/TIEDOWNS

Corona Air Ventures. Low fuel prices, amenities, tie-downs & hangars. Corona Municipal Airport, (951) 737-1300, www. CoronaAirVentures.com. 8/14

One-piece doors. Hydraulic or bifold. Schweissdoors.com, (800) 746-8273.1/15

We keep you flying at 100+ U.S. airports. Signature Flight Support, signatureflight. com. 10/18

HOMES/AIRPARKS

Full range of services for business jet clients. Management, maintenance, hangars and support. Threshold Aviation Group, Chino, CA, (909) 606-6319. 8/18

AVIATION CONSULTANTS

4720:TFN

January 2020

Aircraft Sales & Corporate Aircraft Management NAAA-certified appraisals & sales, FDIC & RTC approved. Sterling Air, Carson City, NV, (800) 770-5908, (775) 885-6800, www. sterling-air.com. 11601:TFN

Aviation Building Systems, custom designed hangars for 44 years. R&M Steel Co., Caldwell, ID, (208) 454-1800, (866) 454-1800, www. aviationbuildingsystem.com.51217:TFN

The Valley Airport, Cotter, Ark. Homes & lots for sale in scenic airport community on the White River. Unique location for outdoor adventures. Contact Glennis Sharp, (870) 430-5088, www.thevalleyairport.com. 18100:TFN Hidden Treasures in South Dakota's Black Hills. Faith Lewis, broker associate, (605) 863-0725, faithlewis@kw.com.10/19

Aircraft Insurance WARNING! Need insurance? Call us first for access to the entire market. Best rates. Broadest coverage. All markets. Aviation Insurance Resources, (877) 247-7767, www.AIRPROS.com. 1716:TFN

FLYING CLUBS Join Private Jet Pilots, a flying fraternity of 6,000+ active pilots & aviation affiliates. Visit us on Facebook, call (561) 719-9692, or email bert@privatejetpilots. com, reference #85488056. 19200:TFN

ART/VIDEOS/GIFTS Specializing in aviation photography. www.horizontalrain.com. 1/15

Victory Girl Custom painted flight jackets & aircraft nose art. (909) 297-6688, www.victorygirl.com. 2/19

PUBLICATIONS Avionics Checklists & Quick Reference gudes. Available in book, card & new iPad editions. www.Qref.com or from your favorite supply shop. 8/14

The World Beneath Their Wings, A New Millennium of Female Aviators" by Julie Jervis. Dealer inquiries invited. Call (650) 358-9908. 51108:TFN

Things My Flight Instructor Never Told Me & other lessons for aviators of all levels. (561) 752-3261, www.tmfintm. com. 11/07

"GHOSTS" 2020 calendars — one each of WWI & WWII. $16+shipping. (800) 331-8231, www.ghosts.com. 10/19 COMMAND, sea stories of a U.S. Marine, Book 5. Available on Amazon and other online services. 1219

HELP WANTED IN FLIGHT USA, the leading source of general aviation news, seeks writers and photographers to cover all aspects of aviation. Send an SASE for writer’s guidelines to: In Flight USA, P.O. Box 5402, San Mateo, CA 94402. TFN

MUSEUMS Planes of Fame Air Museum Chino, CA, (909) 597-3722 www.planesoffame.org WACO Airfield & Museum Troy, OH, (937) 335-9226 www.wacoairmuseum.org Pacific Coast Air Museum Santa Rosa, CA, (707) 575-7900 www.pacificcoastairmuseum.org Hiller Aviation Museum San Carlos Airport, CA (650) 654-0200, hiller.org Sell Your Airplane FAST!! with an In Flight USA Classified Ad

Call (650) 358-9908

Current Ad Expiring? To renew, email: 3rdavenue@embarqmail.com

OCT. 22-24, 2019 SAW THE RETURN OF THE NBAA-BACE CONVENTION IN LAS VEGAS AND STATIC DISPLAY IN HENDERSON, NEVADA

January 2020

www.inflightusa.com

By Bob Martinez

With the Dow over 27,000 points and the U.S. unemployment numbers at a near historic low, the 2019 National Business Aviation Association Convention certainly was punctuated by enthusiasm and a strong aviation business outlook for the future. Once again the NBAA “invaded” the Las Vegas Convention Center and the Henderson Executive Airport. As usual there were ample meetings and seminars to fulfill business and aviation types’ must-attend lists. Aviation experts, motivational speakers and business professionals were all on board for this year’s convention. Held in confidentiality, it is always exciting to wonder who and what companies (or person) made convention deals for what and how many. Although the “N,” for National, is the beginning title of the NBAA, what happens at this event is a big part of the global business aviation atmosphere. Every state in the union was represented and more than 90 countries attended this year’s NBAA. There were in excess of 1,000 exhibitors, and 100-plus aircraft were on display. The exhibitors present their products and services at some very beautiful and elaborate booths, if you can call them booths. The variety of aircraft continues to make a strong presence at this year’s convention. If it flies, it was on display: manned or unmanned, and not just models but many were full-scale aircraft. A look into the future of quick business travel in cities and short flights presented aircraft a decade ago were just stardreaming concepts. Today at the convention they were there! In just two years since the last NBAA convention in Las Vegas, there has been a strong updraft of innovative technology and new contemporary aviation approaches to the current and future business climates. The most important aspect of the convention is to meet others of similar interests and for companies to display and talk about their products and services and build new friendships; some even partner with other companies that could provide benefits to both parties. Sometimes there is a small missing link that will make a big difference. That is the whole idea of this convention, to bring people together. The number of first-time companies to attend continues to grow. If you have a product or service and you want to show it off, this is the place. The convention is not just for the well-heeled participants, business people,

Showroom of exhibit hall with aircraft on display.

(Bob Martinez)

Front view of a Pilatus PC-12 with auto throttle.

(Bob Martinez)

Static display of Leonardo Helicopter AW139

(Bob Martinez)

Leonardo Helicopter Booth at Convention Center in Exhibit Hall Las Vegas, Nevada. (Bob Martinez)

and aviation types. It also provides an opportunity for the public outside of aviation or business to have an opportunity to experience aviation. The future is racing toward business aviation at an unprecedented rate of closure. Who will be tomorrow’s aviation shakers, inventors, scientists, aero-space engineers, and CEOs? Aviation is already feeling the crunch for pilots, mechanics, and flight attendants. Young men and women from all over the country attended the convention wanting to learn more about the direction of aviation employment and opportunities in all fields. Business aviation is approaching at the speed of sound for opportunity. In about a decade, there appears to be a potential shortage of those who will continue to take over the controls and break the barriers of business. There has never been a more exciting time in aviation history. Maybe one other time: powered control flight by those Wright boys. This year’s NBAA convention saw more than 27,000 participants. It is estimated that the convention provided about a $51 million economic charge to Las Vegas and Henderson, Nev. That sort of gives you the perspective of what business aviation is providing at a local event level to commerce.

NBAA-BACE CONVENTION •

Inside photo of cockpit of the Leonardo Helicopter AW139.

(Bob Martinez)

OCT. 6-8, 2020 ORLANDO, FL

In Flight USA Celebrating 36 Years

January 2020

AD INDEX Aero and Marine................17

JANUARY 2020

Aero Performance..............50

CFI Academy ......................6

Airplanes USA Sales ..........6

Corona AirVenture ............35

Aircraft Spruce ............15, 16 Airtronics............................31

American Aircraft Sales ....47

Lawyers for Men’s Rights 26

Signature Aviation..............14

Mountain High Oxygen ......3

TJ Aircraft Sales ................23

Columbia State Park..........21

Micro AeroDynamics ........39

Dr. Susan Biegel, MD........12

Pacific Coast Avionics ......10

Faith Lewis Aviation Realty 52

Pacific Dream Machines ....9

AOPA....................................7

Ghosts Calendars ..............16

Pacific Oil Cooler ................9

Attitude Aviation................51

HME Watches ....................24

QREF Media......................18

Arizona Type Ratings ........45

Aviation Ins. Resources ....20

Aviation Oxygen................17

Bruce’s Custom Covers ......2

Hartwig ................................3

Horizontal Rain..................36

JT Evans ..............................4 Lake Havasu Seaplanes ....24

Senior Care Authority........20

Threshold Aviation ............41

USA Aircraft Brokers ........36

Vans Aircraft ......................46

Victory Girl ........................26

Planes of Fame F4-U ........13

WillServ Business Services 27

R&M Steel Co. ..................12

Zanette Aviation Ins.............5

San Carlos Flight Center ..38

Schweiss Doors..................26

Wisconsin Aviation ............11

Zenith Aircraft....................25

Aero Performance Specialties w w w . A e r o - P e r f o r m a n c e . c o m Schedule your ADS-B Upgrade while there is still time!

NEW AVIONICS SHOP at KCNO (CHINO) GET FREE ADS-B FOR A LIMITED TIME!

Install a new IFD 540 and get a FREE remote mount APX322 ADS-B transponder! Full Service Avionics Installation and Upgrades. 2020 ADS-B Solutions to meet your needs. Customize your installation with our onsite design and CNC fabrication services. Anything you can imagine, we can make it happen! IFR Pitot/Static and VFR Transponder Certification Servicing the greater Southern California aviation community at your location or ours. AUTHORIZED INSTALLATION CENTER SkyView HDX AML-STC for nearly 600 aircraft!

Lowest prices on your avionics upgrade, period! (909) 927-4600 7000 Merrill Ave. Hangar B120/ #8 Chino, CA. 91710 Repair Station 9BDR738C

info@aero-performance.com

Veteran Owned and Operated

New autopilot STC for Cessna 172 - 185, and PA-28/ PA 32. Finally an affordable solution!

THE PLACE TO FLY Cessna 172R $170 /hr.

Piper Turbo Saratoga $330 /hr.

Cessna 172SP Skyhawk $170 /hr.

Cessna T210M $330 /hr.

Cessna 182S Skylane $205 /hr.

Piper Seneca PA-34-200 $350 /hr.

Cessna T182T $225 /hr.

Cessna 414A $720 /hr.

Aircraft Rentals • Lessons • Hangarage • Maintenance

Our Aircraft (Price includes fuel) CESSNA 172P SKYHAWK (N13CB, 160HP, Aspen Glass, Garmin 750, 2 Axis Autopilot) ..$160 CESSNA 172SP SKYHAWK (N90FL, 180HP, Garmin 750, Autopilot)..................................$160 CESSNA 172R (N411ES, 180 HP, Garmin 650, Dual Garmin G5 with F.D. GFC 500 autopilot ) ..................................................................$170 CESSNA 172R SKYHAWK (N2173Z, 180 HP, Garmin 650, 2 Axis Autopilot) ....................$170 CESSNA 172R SKYHAWK (N35079, 180 HP, Garmin 650, Aspen Glass, Garmin G5, 2 Axis Autopilot) ....$170 CESSNA 172SP SKYHAWK (N5203H, 180HP, Garmin 650, 2 Axis Autopilot, HSI) ............$170 CESSNA 182S SKYLANE (N374TC, 230HP, Garmin 750, Aspen, Coupled 2 Axis Autopilot) ..$205 CESSNA 182S SKYLANE (N9506W , Garmin 430, Coupled 2 Axis Autopilot) ......................$205

CESSNA T182T (N35206, 2001, O2, Garmin 750, Coupled 2 Axis Autopilot) ....$225 CESSNA 182 SKYLANE RG (N1188N, 1978, Garmin 750) ................................................$230 CIRRUS SR 20 (N345BS, 200HP, Cirrus Perspective by Garmin, Keyboard Controller) ..$260 PIPER SARATOGA PA – 32R – 301T (N8403D, Garmin 750, All Glass Panel, 2 Axis Autopilot, O2) ..$330 CESSNA T210M CENTURION (N761CF, Garmin 750, Aspen Glass, 2 Axis Autopilot) ............$330 PIPER SENECA PA-34-200 (N5051T, Garmin 650, Multiengine Trainer!) ....................$350 CESSNA 414A (N410NF, 1978, Garmin 750, Fully Coupled Autopilot, AC)..............$720

Nobody offers this kind of selection of aircraft rentals anywhere CALL TO BOOK OR COME ON BY TODAY

925-456-2276 299 W. Jack London Blvd., South Hangars, Livermore

WWW.ATTITUDEAVIATION.COM INFO@ATTITUDEAVIATION.COM

South Dakota’s Black Hills Hidden Treasures

LOT 4 MEDICINE MOUNTAIN MLS#62426 $234,000

TBD N. RIM RANCH MLS#60987 $245,000

25555 GLEN ERIN MLS#62392 $829,2000

Million Dollar Crazy Horse View! Imagine sitting on your front porch and watching the sunset reflecting on CRAZY HORSE MEMORIAL and the full BUCKHORN RANGE! 11.7 acre lot touching USFS lands.

Picture a John Wayne movie in all it’s splendor and this is it! The wild west – full of history – full of wildlife – ready for your own adventure on horseback or foot. This is a wildlife preservation ranch so great care is taken in the covenants for minimal disturbance of the land. 70 ACRE LOT.

BEAUTIFUL RARE 41+ acres nearly surrounded by USFS lands barely off paved road and very near the nice City of Custer! PLUS SPRING FED POND! Nice meadow bottom land with beautiful views and primitive RUSTIC CABIN to enjoy. Enjoy all the wildlife live water brings in and hike, hunt, and ride the miles of USFS lands surrounding this unique property.

TBD PLAYHOUSE RD MLS#62180 $175,000

TBD BEAVER CREEK RD MLS#60659 $519,900

TBD WILLIAMS DRAW RD MLS#57396 $799,000

Priceless! NEW driveway in place to home site! This pretty 4.64 acre lot is conveniently located off Playhouse road near Keystone and just 30 minutes from Rapid City. The owner, well-known architectural designer Dick Knecht, has drawn up a couple of different floor plans over the years intending to build a home that blended in with the property and captured the view.

A beautiful 80-acre piece of beautiful Black Hills land with Beaver Creek running through. Enjoy the bottom land with the creek and meadows or climb the hilltops for amazing views - or build anywhere in between. This property takes in from hilltop on the northwest to hilltop on the southeast and the meadow and ponds in between. Bordered by USFS lands on several sides for additional riding, hiking, and hunting pleasure. Great access. A one of a kind Black Hills Paradise!

Rare opportunity for complete seclusion! This beautiful 160 acres is an island in a sea of Black Hills National Forest. From the long graceful meadow that Healy Creek runs through, to the tippy top views were you can see Wyoming, this property is just plain amazing. Imagine stepping off the grid of our crazy world and being in complete peace with mother nature.

11860 ROUBAIX MLS#62771 $285,000

TBD SLATE PRAIRIE MLS#60287 $320,00

24001 MEDICINE MOUNTAIN/COPPER MOUNTAIN RANCH- MLS#53099 $1,550,000

Peace and quiet, ponds, wildlife galore, mostly surrounded by USFS lands with nice views. Once in a lifetime opportunity to own 28+ acres of meadow lands fringed with trees protected by adjacent USFS lands for your own private retreat from the world. Access on the north off Custer crossings USFS and from the south off private easement. Electric to lot. Just a beautiful piece of Black Hills Heaven.

ONCE IN A LIFETIME opportunity to own 40+ acres completely surrounded by USFS! Words that describe a unique piece of land like this secluded, remote, peaceful, beautiful, amazing views, manicured, off the grid, hunting heaven, fenced, old mine, amazing views... The owner of this land has spent so much on logging and thinning and completely replacing the perimeter fencing making it a one-of-a-kind treasure. Truly amazing!

AMAZING 240 ACRES completely surrounded by Black Hills National Forest lands! A perfect mix of lovely meadows with year round creek, springs, and a series of trout stocked ponds, along with high (6700 ft) mountain hillsides with long range views. A nice balance of ponderosa pine, spruce, aspen and native grasses. Views of Copper Mountain and/or Medicine Mountain from just about anywhere on the property and the entire Harney Range and Terry Peak from up high.

IF YOU’RE LUCKY ENOUGH TO LIVE IN THE BLACK HILLS YOU’RE LUCKY ENOUGH!

Faith Lewis Broker Associate 605-863-0725 faithlewis@kw.com

YOU GOTTA HAVE FAITH!