11-01-14: Solar weather report you ask? Does anybody care? Most people might wonder what you are talking about when you say solar weather. However, as a pilot, it's probably a good idea to be aware of anything that might affect your flight. You look at the sun and see a bright ball of light, but astronomers see a large ball of fire and gas that's constantly boiling with explosions and magnetic storms that are so powerful they periodically blast a ball of gas and particles out into the solar system. These explosions are more than 10 times the size of the earth and sometimes are blasted right at the earth. When these explosions happen to hit the earth, most of the time, we only see nothing more than the northern lights. But in 1989, an unusually large explosion, called a Coronal Mass Ejection, hit the earth and disrupted the earth's magnetic field allowing high voltage spikes to hit the earth causing a blackout in Canada and disrupted weather satellites. It even caused erroneous gauge readings on the space shuttle and disrupted hf radio transmissions. If you are on the alert, sometimes you can see a sunspot, which is were a CME comes from, with the naked eye. So, the next time you go for a flight, be sure to check the weather... but don't stare at the sun.

TFR ALERT!  10-28-14: FAA to establish VIP TFR over Portland, ME on Thursday, October 30, 2014. A NOTAM (FDC 4/3832) has been published that will affect flight in the area during President Obama's planned visit.

Runway 15 WIP  10-20-14: The work has begun on 15 and Steve has provided us with this panoramic shot of the work crew. Click on the pic to open a scrolling view. (move the mouse left and right)

Runway 33  10-19-14: The runway construction project is moving right along. Thanks to Steve Hyde, president of the Skyhaven Flying Club for sending in these great aerial shots of runway 33.
Click on the pictures to open index of large size.

TFR's are coming  10-14-14: Check the NOTAMS for the latest TFR alerts. Heading towards Long Island will require some extra prep.

EAA AirVenture Attendance Up  10-13-14: Have you ever been to the EAA AirVenture? Well, I must confess that I have never been, but I've heard a lot of hangar talk about the show and about the adventure of flying into and out of Oshkosh. According to EAA chairman Jack Pelton, the attendance at AirVenture 2014 appears higher than last year and may be up as much as double digits for some days. Final numbers won't be available for a couple of weeks. AVweb says that Saturday reported good foot traffic and strong sales among exhibitors. This year was the first time the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds performed at the AirVenture. EAA heavily promoted the airshow acts. According to Avweb, "We tried to promote the fact that we were having the Thunderbirds and that we were having a lot of variety. The Valdez routine got a lot of buzz. For me, the One Week Wonder is one of the best things we're doing this week," Pelton added. Pelton said the Thunderbird show fits Oshkosh better then some of the more show-center military acts, which can be painfully noisy at times. CLICK HERE TO SEE THUNDERBIRD PICS

The AOPA Debonair winner is...  10-6-14: Congratulations to the new AOPA Debonair winner. But... but... he already has an airplane! Oh well, it seems that all the winners lately are current plane owners. Although, it would be nice to see someone win one of the planes that doesn't already own an aircraft. How about one of those rusty pilots they talk about that hasn't flown in a while and is having doubts about keeping up his private pilots license due to the increase in rental cost, not to mention the need to keep up with regulations, seminars, FBO requirements and procedures. However, if you won the Debonair you might need to add the $175,000 value of the plane to your income... yikes! Not to mention the convoluted technicalities of a 30 or 40% up front gift tax? Hmm, that might cost you around $70,000 before you even say, "clear!" So, you fly the Debonair for a year at $160/hr for 300 hours ($48,000) then sell at the end of the year and you might have around $50k left over. Then you can take your wife on a cruise to the Bahamas.

Presidential & Football TFR's  10-5-14: What does a presidential visit and a football game have in common? TFR's

EAA 225 October 2014 Newsletter  10-5-14: Hello Everyone, Here is a copy of the October 2014 Newsletter. Also, I 'm reminding you that EAA 225 postponed the last EAA Young Eagle Flight Rally from Saturday, Oct 4th to Sunday, October 5th. If you have time come join us at our last Chapter Young Eagle Flight Rally at Skyhaven Airport from 8am to 4pm wx permitting. Regards, Gerry

DAY/DATE CHANGE - EAA 225 Young Eagle Flight Rally 10-4-14: Hello Everyone, EAA 225's Young Eagle event is moving from Saturday Oct. 4th to Sunday October 5th.  The weather guru's are reporting low ceilings with occasional drizzle and rain throughout the day for Saturday. If you are able to make the change we'd appreciate your attendance.  Thank you! Regards, Gerry

CAMERON AIRSHOW 2014  10-3-14:Have you seen the Cameron Airshow 2014 video? You gotta love what these guys do with a Pitts! The Vimeo links are circulating around but it's also on YouTube. Here's the link to YouTube. I must confess, I couldn't watch this only once. CLICK HERE TO SEE VIDEO

EAA Chapter 225 Young Eagle Flight Rally 9-28-14: Hello Everyone, Just sending out what might be one last reminder to everyone for the last EAA Chapter 225 Young Eagle Flight Rally event for 2014. It is being held at Rochester's Skyhaven Airport on Saturday, October 4th from 8 am to 4 pm. 
We are looking for both ground volunteers and for EAA Young Eagle Pilots who would like to help out at this event. As always, pilots eat free and you can stay for one or more flights. Please reply to this email if you can stop by to volunteer for a while and if you're a pilot if you can fly for one or more flights, so that I can get some idea as to a number of volunteers and pilots who can help out with this event.
Please note that Skyhaven is undergoing runway reconstruction and at present, there is 2300 feet of new pavement on the southerly end of the airport to use. That portion is serviced with only the end of runway taxiway, so pilots will be 'back taxiing' at some point either to launch or upon returning from the flights. If you have any questions regarding the airfield, the Web site for Skyhaven has pictures and information about the reconstruction and current layout of the airport. Skyhaven Website: http://www.skyhavennh.com Thank you & Regards, Gerry

FAA Safety Seminar at Sanford  9-26-14: AOPA Rusty Pilot Training Course, Topic: This Training Course Is A Refresher For Those Pilots Who Have Not Been Flying Recently, And Those Interested In A Review. Date and Time: Saturday, October 4, 2014, starting at 10:00 Eastern Daylight Time. Speaker(s): Sue Tholen and John Gary. Brief Description: Southern Maine Aviation Instructors Sue Tholen and John Gary will host an AOPA RUSTY PILOT COURSE to welcome back pilots not actively flying.  The intention of this course is to motivate pilots to complete a Flight Review.  This course will review Preflight Preparation, Airspace, Regulations, and other topics relevant to currency.  Take advantage of this exciting opportunity to rekindle your love to fly. 

Nano Hummingbird 9-24-14: The Nano Hummingbird is a miniature aircraft developed under the Nano Air Vehicle (NAV) program funded through the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). DARPA was established to prevent strategic surprise from negatively impacting U.S. national security, and to create strategic surprise for U.S. adversaries by maintaining the technological superiority of the U.S. military. AeroVironment developed the Nano Air Vehicle (NAV) under a DARPA sponsored research contract to develop a new class of air vehicle systems capable of indoor and outdoor operation. Employing biological mimicry at an extremely small scale, this unconventional aircraft could someday provide new reconnaissance and surveillance capabilities in urban environments. 

Yankee Ultralight Flyers at Sanderson's Field    9-19-14: Fixed Wing Ultralights, Trikes, Powered Parachutes, Rotorcraft, Light Sport & General Aviation Aircraft, Flying from Dawn to Dusk, Great Fun, Camping, and Fun for All!

New York TFR 9-19-14: Another TFR update... tfr's inside of tfr's.

New York TFR 9-12-14: FAA to establish VIP TFR over New York, NY beginning Tuesday, September 23, 2014

VFR Cross Country    9-11-14: If you're planning a VFR cross country you probably won't be leaving for a while:

EAA 225 Newsletter    9-05-14: Here's the EAA news letter for September.

Ultimate Plane Ride to see Sprites   8-31-14:

In a recent show on NOVA, scientist had pilots fly two bizjets above the clouds to take pictures of "sprites." Sprites are sparks that appear above powerful lightning bolts and extend up to the airglow that resides in the lower ionesphere (60 miles up). The service ceiling of bizjets is around 50,000 feet, so I'd guess that's where they took their pictures. However, a person from South Dakota captured some sprites from the  ground with his camera.  CLICK HERE TO SEE HIS PICTURE

Construction on 33 :  8-27-14

Here's an aerial update on the construction on 33.              CLICK HERE FOR PICS