AOPA 2012 Sweepstakes Aircraft8-26-11: They are really mixing up the variety of aircraft for the sweepstakes aircraft give away. This year they are taking one of the damaged/repairable Huskies from the Florida Sun'n Fun where a tornado hit and caused massive damage to aircraft on display. AOPA has claimed to have restored it to be, "better than new" condition. I'm not sure what they mean by "better than new," the video didn't say anything about any enhancements or equipment changes, but it sounds like it was actually returned to its original factory condition. Metaphor seems to liven and at times reassure it's good and strong, as is "stronger than dirt!"

Global Hawk UAV Tow Kit!  8-23-11: The RQ-4B Global Hawk high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft system with an integrated sensor suite that provides intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissancece plane receives a new tow kit attachment. Apparently, there was something about the landing gear that required a special tow bar that was so unique that the UAV could only land at airports that has one of these special tow bars. Wanting to be able to land this UAV at any airport, a structural engineer at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio designed an attachment that can be carried in a special compartment in the wing that when attached, allows the Global Hawk UAV to be towed by conventional tow bars found at any airport. I would find it very strange being on final at Portsmouth (Pease) number two behind Global Hawk on final.

SQUAWK & TALK, or 10-DAY TFR!  8-20-11:  That's the catch phrase for entering the Martha's Vineyard's VIP TFR. The Vineyard TFR is a special one where entering the TFR doesn't seem to be shunned like they used to be. Most pilots I talk to about TFR's seem to have a feeling of, "Stay Away or Pay!" There's a few stories about F16's and Blackhawk copters chasing Cessna's and Piper's around the neighborhood but we seem to be entering a new attitude about coping with TFR's. In the case of Martha's Vineyard we have the, "GATEWAY AIRPORTS." There's three of them for the Vineyard TFR and one of them is inside the 30nm ring. Hmmph! So, remenber to "Squawk & Talk" or you might "Moan & Groan," or "Yell & Screem" if you don't.

Space shuttle cockpit in 360°~ 8-17-11:  Here's another 360° pan-and-zoom tour of the Space Shuttle Discovery to celebrate the end of the shuttle program. Some folks are indifferent about the celebration part, seeing that it's not only the end of the space shuttle, but the end of the United States sending anything to the space station. The end of the space shuttle was supposed to be a transition to another launch vehicle that was canceled with the option of having Russia take over transportation flights to the space station. Either way, whether you are celebrating or lamenting of the shuttle program, it's still a pretty good trick to view the 360° picture. The editorial I read said that someone saw "a creative use of duct tape in the cabin. It takes a good bit of noodling around to find it." I noodled a little bit and couldn't find it.

TFR Over MARTHA'S VINEYARD! ~ 8-16-11:TFR OVER MARTHA'S VINEYARD, MA BEGINNING THURSDAY A NOTAM has been issued that will restrict flight in the area during 
President Obama's planned vacation on Martha's Vineyard, MA.
 ==> 30 NM RADIUS TFR <==
Location: On the MARTHAS VINEYARD VOR/DME (MVY) 186 degree radial at 0.4 nautical miles
Surface to 17,999-ft-MSL  Times: 4:30 PM local Thursday, August 18, 2011 until 7:59 PM local Saturday, August 27, 2011
==> 10 NM RADIUS NO-FLY ZONE <==
Location: On the MARTHAS VINEYARD VOR/DME (MVY) 186 degree radial at 0.4 nautical miles
Surface to 17,999-ft-MSL Times: 4:45 PM local Thursday, August 18, 2011 until 7:59 PM local Saturday, August 27, 2011
==> 10 NM RADIUS NO-FLY ZONE <==
Location: On the MARTHAS VINEYARD VOR/DME (MVY) 029 degree radial at 16.3 nautical miles
Surface to 17,999-ft-MSL  Times: 4:30 PM local until 5:30 PM local Thursday, August 18, 2011

All-electric, 50-seat passenger plane 8-15-11:  American and European companies are talking about  the possibility of all-elecltric passenger planes in 20 years. Recent breakthroughs in rare earth materials have given the electronic industry a boost in power for electric motors. That's one of the technologies that's given the RC model airplanes the ability to replace gas motors with electric. Just a little while ago we had an article about a company working on an all electric Skyhawk. Now, they are talking about an all electric passenger plane. The GE article talks about using special lithium batteries to power superconducting electric motors. As far as I know, there is no superconducting electric motor powering any vehicles around the golf course or any other course. The only commercial machine I know of that uses superconduction electronics is an MRI machine. The secret to superconduction is the application of liquid helium. Bathing a superconducting motor in liquid helium might prove to be a challenge with today's current technologies.

Skyhawk For Sale  8-14-11:  If you are looking for a nice Skyhawk for sale you don't have look any further. For more information see the posting on the bulletin board in the pilot lounge.

TFR Over New York! ~ 8-10-11:FAA TO ESTABLISH TFR OVER NEW YORK, NY ON THURSDAY A notam has been issued that will restrict flight in the area during President Obama's planned visit. ==> WITHIN THE LATERAL LIMITS OF THE NEW YORK CLASS B AIRSPACE <==
 Surface to 17,999-ft-MSL Times: 5:00 PM local until 10:15 PM local Thursday, August 11, 2011
==> 8 NM RADIUS NO-FLY ZONE <== Location: Centered over the KENNEDY VOR/DME (JFK)
Surface to 17,999-ft-MSL Times: 5:00 PM local until 6:15 PM local Thursday, August 11, 2011
9:00 PM local until 10:15 PM local Thursday, August 11, 2011
==> 7 NM RADIUS NO-FLY ZONE <== Location: On the LA GUARDIA VOR/DME (LGA) 255 degree radial at 6 nautical miles Surface to 17,999-ft-MSL
Excluding: ==> 2 NM RADIUS <== Location: Centered over the TETERBORO VOR/DME (TEB)
Surface up to and including 2000 feet MSL Times: 5:15 PM local until 9:30 PM local Thursday, August 11, 2011

Small "a" Astronauts vs. Large "A" Astronauts  8 7-11:  All the astronauts we've known and read about in the NASA space shuttle and rocket programs that send people and stuff into space have been recently labeled as "A-astronauts." However, these days if you want to take a ride in outer space without all the hassle of astronaut training ("a" astronauts), all you need is an extra $200,000 and the willingness to subject yourself to some preliminary physical and mental testing. (If roller coaster rides make you nervous you probably don't won't to do this). Thanks to Virgin Galactic, we now have "a-astronauts." Articles have claimed that Virgin Galactic has found a way to reenter the earth's atmosphere without a heat shield by using a rotating wing that makes the aircraft float back down. Actually, I understand there's a magic altitude where if you pass that boundary without a heat shield you will come back as a french fry regardless of wing configuration. Also thanks to New Mexico politicians for getting the military to donate a parcel of land (desert), conveniently located in the middle of one of the most famous Military "Restricted" airspace areas at "White Sands" New Mexico. That's right, as a private pilot you can't get anywhere near this place (except for special invitations). However, if you do decide to go, you might be sitting next to Angelina Jolie who is rumored to have purchased a ticket for the ride (experience). I wonder if she will wear here Lara Croft outfit...

Cessna 182 Skylane Classic Crossover 7-30-11: 

So I'm driving down the road the other day and I hear a ding ding ding, cling clang, and then it stopped! I looked in the rear view mirror and I saw a piece of metal bouncing off to the side of the road. Well my car is 10 years old with over 200,000 miles and everyone tells me that my car's had it, and it's not worth anything any more. Not so with an airplane. What do you do with a 1974 Skylane? You strip it down inside and out, put on a new engine, give it a fancy paint job, new interior and instrument panel and voila! A new airplane for the AOPA airplane give away. Being a 37 year old airplane means it's a "classic" not a junk. Seeing that someone from New Hampshire won the AOPA give-away airplane last year, I guess I shouldn't get my hopes up to much for this aircraft. Can you  see yourself in the pattern? "Cessna two charlie x-ray downwind for 33 at Skyhaven..."

National Safecon Championship7-24-11: Editorials today all seem to follow the idea to trick & trap the reader by putting a "come on" phrase for a title that implies something strange and interesting but is vague and without detail. AOPA articles are no different. The one titled "SHORT WORK" in the recent issue actually didn't catch my attention, but the pictures did. Many pilots associate collegiate flying clubs with Embry Riddle. However, there's a bunch of universities that form the National Intercollegiate Flying Association and conduct a serious flying competition every year called the Safety and Flight Evaluation Conference (SAFECON). The AOPA article seemed to focus on "short field landings." The thing that caught my eye was that the contest is basically focussed around the Cessna 150 and 152. Here's a phrase right out of the article, "The venerable Cessna 150, with its 40 degrees of maximum flap deflection, is coveted by competitors." Many pilots believe that the Cessna 150 was, and still is, the most durable and forgiving trainer that was ever built... and Cessna stopped making them...

7-20-11: 
Aug 6 & 7  Antique Auto, Aircraft & Aerobatic Spectacular. All things wings and wheels. High-wheel bicycles, classic cars, antique planes and a high performance air show. Pre-1991 vehicles of any make or model are welcome to exhibit at any of our events. Vehicle demonstrations, Model T rides, biplane rides, family activities and more.  CLICK HERE for more information.

2011 AirVenture  O s h k o s h  EAA  7-14-11: Have you made it to Oshkosh yet? I haven't but I've heard a lot of stories from the special approach and landing procedures to mall type parking places for airplanes. How do you parallel park an airplane?

Catching the wind  ~

7-11-11: Although this article is not about an airplane, it certainly is about aerodynamics. The story is actually about an engineer who has a vision on creating a sailboat design that will reach a speed of 60 knots. In the realm of sailboats, I understand that 60 knots is unheard of if not impossible for a conventional sailboat design. But his design instead uses a pair of wings similar to aircraft wings, but with some design modifications that allows the wings to optimize the air flow through fluid dynamics.  The way I understood the article, the horizontal wing provides lift that takes everything out of the water except for the keel. The vertical wing acts as a super efficient sail. The wings are symmetrically opposite, are able to rotate about the spar and have a modified version of flaps that go the opposite direction than an aircraft flap.  One of the unique features of this design project is that they won't be building any prototypes. Instead, they are using computer design software to create a computer model to test the mechanical properties and another program to test the models efficiency in the air and water.