January 2000 - American Bonanza Society

decades of
aviation
and we
are uniquely quaUfled to provide ABS members a little
"plane talk" about their individual insurance requirements.
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features expanded coverages, access to a variety of
underwriters and competitive rates. The professional
Falcon staff is dedicated to serving ABS members with an
insurance program that is settin g the standard for the
industry. Call today for same day quotes and coverage.
Falcon Insurance Agency is the Insurance Program Manager for the
ABS INSURANCE PROGRAM
1-800-2S9-4ABS (422 7)
www.falconinsurancc.com
Fax: 512-891-8483
PO. Box 92409 • Austin, Texas 78735
Gerry and Diane Flaugher with their 1962 Travel Air.
1962 Travel Air
T
ravel Air N969Q, SI TD-495,
was manufactured in October
1961 as the fifth production aircraft for the 1962 model year. From the
manufacturer, the title was conveyed on
December 5 to United Airmotive Distributors, Inc. of Wichita, Kansas. The
title was then conveyed to United Aircraft Sales, Inc. of Wichita on March 31,
1962. Apparently these first two owners
were part of a dealer distribution business. Dr. R.T. McCreight of Ness City,
Kansas, was the first retail owner of the
airplane. taking ownership on May 1. He
owned it until December 7 when he sold
it back to United Airmotive Distributors,
Inc.
On March 9, 1963, 69Q was purchased by the owner of Platte Valley
Construction Company of Grand Island,
ebraska. He based it at the Grand Island Municipal Airport. After the
owner's lengthy illness and subsequem
death, 69Q was sold by his widow to
Anderson Aircraft, Inc. of Grand Island.
This was on July 31 , 1981. During those
years of ownership, the airplane is reported 10 have sat pretty much idle in a
hangar for about 12 years with the FHO
having started the engines on occasion
at the request of the wife of the deceased
owner.
Anderson Aircraft, lnc. then sold 69Q
to Stanley Metelman of Walhalla, North
Dakota, on December 10, 1981. He
owned it until March II , 1983, which is
when after overhaul ing both engines,
O.w. Ball of Okolona, Mississippi, purchased it. During the time Mr. Ball
owned 69Q. it got a new paint job and
all new avionics were installed. Mr. Ball
then purchased a Baron for a replacement
and eventually sold 69Q to a man in Orlando, Florida, who was reported to have
purchased it only as a multiengine time
builder before applying for ajob as a pilot for an airline. A a result, he only
owned 69Q for nine momhs, during
which time he apparently did little if any
maintenance on it.
This came to light when Roger Frick
of Minneapolis, Minnesota, saw it adver-
tised for sale, and went 10 look at it.
Roger told me that he found it in a somewhat uncared for condition compared 10
a previous encounter with 69Q in Jackson, Mississi ppi , when it was owned by
Mr. Ball. Roger mentioned that at the
time he had been researching the Travel
Air market for about two years with plans
to buy one to replace his E35 Bonanza.
While in Orlando, he met with the
dealer representing the owner and eventually agreed to a price of $35,000. This
was on April 28, 1989. Roger then flew
69Q to Minneapolis where he based it at
the Minneapolis International Airport.
In 1990, he had all new avionics installed along with all new coded wiring.
This work was performed by Page Aviation in Minneapolis. In 1991, he had the
interior completely refurbished at Hill
Aero in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Mr. Frick owned 69Q until he was approached by Allan Johnson of Stillwater,
Minnesota, who wanted 10 purchase 69Q
if it was for sale. Roger said that he declined at first but about two weeks later
called Allan and agreed 10 sell it since at
that time he was only flying it about 15
hours a year. Allan then sold his Cessna
182 and took ownership on November 13,
1995.
cOlltillued Oil page
6046
TRAVEL AIR OFTHE MONTH
Cover: Gerry and Diane Flaugher's 1962 Travel Air . .. .. __ ..... _ ..... 6029
FEATURES
ROUTINE PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE
By JOllathan Cayle, M.D. . . . ............... . ..•.•. _ .. ......•.•.... 6032
TWO HAPPY MAINTENANCE EXPERIENCES
By Richard Lentz ............
. ....... ..... ......... . ........ 6033
(ISSN 1524-5438)
Pub);shed bX
SMOKE & FIRE
By George Wilhelmsen ....... ... . .. .... ............ _ ............. 6040
AMERICAr< BONANZA SOCIETY
Organized January 1967
A BRIEF HISTORY OF PILOT TRAINING IN THE ABS
By Jack Hirsch . . . ... . . .. ...... .
. ..... 6044
" FATE IS THE HUNTER"
By Ellioll Schiffman . ........................................ • .... 6047
ASS LOGO
RESTORING NORMAL OPERATIONS FOR EARLY BONANZAS
By Willis Hawkins ............................................... 6049
HOWARD STARK: THE PIONEER AVIATOR OF INSTRUMENT flYING
By John Miller . .............. . .............. ... ................. 6050
ABS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
EDITOR IN CHIEF
Nancy Johnson
PUB LI CATION OFFICE
1922 Midfield Road
P.O. Box 12888
PRESIDE T'S COMMENTS . . . 6031
by 7ildell D. Richa rds
Wichita, K5 67277
316-945- 1700
Fax 3 16-945-17 10
ASS web site: hup:llwww,bonanza .org
ASS e-mail : bona [email protected]
COLVIN 'S CORNER . . ....... 6034
by Neil Poban z and Arky Foulk
Send articles/letters to the
above address/fax/e-maiL
ABS MED ICAL PANEL ....... 6039
by Jolm Hastings, M.D.
EDITOR
Betty Rowley
AVION ICS .. ... ........... 6042
by Jim Hughes
CURRENTS . ...... ... _.... 6054
by Lew Gage
A RT D IR ECTOR
Jim Simpson
EDITORIAL CONSULTAr<T
Patrie Rowley
."' BP.~P SCHEDU,LE .. _... _. _.. 6045
D ISPLAY ADVERTISING D IRECTOR
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
John Shoemaker
FORUM .................. 6057
SHOPTALK . .............. 6059
by Lynll Jenkins
REG IONAL N EWS ..
. ... 6062
INSU RANCE .... . .. ....... 6064
by Jolm Allen, Falcon Insurance
GROUND CONTROL ....... 6065
by Nancy Johl1son
CALENDAR .......... . .... 6066
SERVICE CLINIC SCHEDULE "~ "' 6063
Term
T~m
ex
II'
2779 Aero Park Drive. P.O. Box 968
Traverse Ciry, MI 49684
TILDE D. RIC HARDS, President (Area 7)
PO Box 1047. Sutter Creek, CA 95685
1-800-773-7798, ext. 3317
Phone 209-267·0640. fax 209-267-1546
Phone 303-333-3000. fax 303·333·2000
e-mail richardsOvolcano. net
PRI NTER
Vill age Press, Traverse Ci ty, Michigan
ION ROADfELDT, V. P. (Area 4)
1548 W. Sextant, Roseville, MN 55113
Phone &51-488·9385. fax &51-488-9475
e-mail jcroninOix.netcom.com
JOHN D. HASTINGS, M.D. (Director At-Large)2002
1432 S. Newport Ave. Tulsa, OK 74120
Phone 918-747-75 17, fax 918-742 -7947
e-mail hastings200aol.com
2002
2001
e-mall [email protected]
HAROLD BOST, Treasurer (Area 3)
AME~IO\f'; ROl'.Al'ZA SOCIETY MACAZIM is publishedmonthty by !h~Amcrican Bonan/d Society a! the
Wichita Mid·Continent Airport, 1922 Midfield Road,
Wichita, KS &7209. The p!'lce of it yearly subscription is
iocludro in thto .. nnoil,1 dues IS4S, of SOclely members.
Pefiodical po!taRc piud al WlChlt.l. Kansas, and addl·
tlonal mailing offices.
The Soc~.lnd Publisht-f canno! olCCcpI r~sibiJjt\i
lor thto conecrness Of' ,lCCUracy of the mattoo; printed
herein or for a~ opinions e)(pr~c;cd, ,Opinions 01 the
Editor or contributors do not n('(.<..'SS.lfll~· represent the
position oi the Society. ,Publisher f'('5Cf\'CS the right to
reled ;lny m;lt('ri;ll.subrTllttoo for public;ltlOn. Copy submitted for pubhWthOO shall become the propen)' of the
Societ) and shall not be returned. Metes suIXmaed"
accompatl):I'!8 pictUI1!'S f@Cl!i~"I' puhlic.ation prl."ier....1<e
Pictures Will t)e relumed wfK>nC\'('t possible.
1m
A"r-.L;Al DLES: US-S45.
Canada & Me)(ieo-$45 (1..:51, For~ign-S;5 II..:SI
llie membershlp"-:-$ I.OOIl
Cootact ABS Headq uaners for dct.lils
POSTMASTER: SC'nd addres~ changes to AMERICAN
BONANZA SOCIeTY MAGA7/I\'E. P.O. Box 12888.
"""!Chita. KS 67277-2888.
0 CIJIMight 2000
Page 6030
2000
760 Birkdale Drive, Fayetteville, GA 30215
Phone 770·719-0638, fax 770-719-9826
c-mail [email protected]
MI CHAEL HOEFFLER, Secretary (Area 1)
43 Old Sugar Road, Bolton, MA 01740
2001
lACK CRONIN (Area &)
2000
261 Vine Street, Denver, CO 80206
WILLIS M. HAWKINS (Area 8)
2000
21931 Burbank Blvd., :35, Woodland Hills, CA 91367
Phonelfax 818-888-5776
e-mail [email protected]
lACK THREADGILL (Area 5)
2002
1602 Brook Hollow Drive, Bryan, TX 77802
Phone 409-779-7155, fax 409-775-7432
e-mail [email protected]
Phone 508'-351-9080. fax 508-351-9081
e-mail [email protected]
WILLIAM C. CA RTER (Area 2)
2001
7131 Driftwood Drive, SE, Grand Rapids, MI49546
Phone &1&-974·001 &. fax &1&-&7&·034&
e-mail wccOegl.net
PAST PRESIDENTS
1967, 1971
1971 _ 1973
Frank C . Ross .
1973-1975
Russell W. Rink ..
1975- 1976
Hypolite T. L;lndry. Jr..
Calvin It E;lrly, MD. PhD ... 1976-1977
Capt. Jesse F. Ad.lms. US, RET) 1977-1978
1'176-1979
David P. Barton ..
Alden C. Barrios
1979- 1980
1980-1981
Fred A. Driscoll, Jr..
B.I. "leCianah<ln, ",0 .
E.M. Anderson. Jr..
Donald l. Monday .
Harry G. Hadler.
John E. f>ilCton
Charles R. Gibbs ..
Joseph McClain, III .
lee larson.
William H. Bush.
Ray l. lcada brand .
1981-1983
1983· 1984
1984- 1985
1985- 1966
1986-1987
1987-1988
1988-1989
1989-1990
1990-1991
JamH C. C.i§scll, III .
Warren E. Hof(ner .
John H. Kilbourne.
B.lrric Hicrn ..
Ron Vickrey .
Willis H;lwkins .
William C. Caner .
199 1- 1992
1992-1993
1993-1994
1994- 1996
1996-1997
1997-1998
1998- 1999
ABS Janu ary 2000
rect indication that the name bothers our
international members, but staff brought
an interesting phenomenon to my attention: U.S. members typically referto "our"
magazine, while intemational members far
more often say "your" magazine.
President's
Comments
TILDEN D. RICHARDS
ith the dawning of a new year,
the lime is right for change.
1t's been quite a few years
since the ABS Magazine was the subject
of a cosmetic revamp, and many members have noted their desire for an update to the "look of the book." Thi s issue debuts our response to that input.
For starters, we focused on the cover,
size and three-hole punch . Additional
changes will be introduced to the interior of the magazi ne in future issues.
W
About the cover
Almost universally, the publication is
referred to as the ABS Magazil/e-obviously less of a mouthful than the American Bonanza Society Magazine. So it
was a natural progression to make the
name the one that everyone uses. Simple
change.
Al so, although we always have been
and always will be the Alllerican Bonanza Society, we are in fact an international organization. There's been no di-
ABS January 2000
Maybe we read more into that than is
intended. But if changing to the abbreviation in the magazine title helps even
one international member fee l more ownership in the Society. it's worth it.
We hope you agree that the overall
appearance is improved with the change
in masthead. As you can see, the color
scheme of the letters is no longer the standard red, white and blue used since May
1994. In fact, the color of the letters will
now complement the colors of the featured picture.
About the size
This change may be transparent to
most of you, since the size of the magazine has been reduced only slightly. This
was purely an economic decision, pertaining to the fact that the ABS Magazine previously has been over-sized compared to most comparable publications
and so used nonstandard-size paper.
By trimming a mere quarter inch from
the height and three-eighth s inch in
width, we will experience a saving of
several thousand dollars each year. The
main source of the savings is the ability
to use paper the pri nter buys in much
larger quantities for other publications.
Thi s is a hi gh-q uality publication
from a production perspective, with an
annual cost of approximately half a million dollars. So any economies here free
funds for other Society programs and
activities.
About the three holes
The elimination of the three holes coincides with the reduction in paper size.
The fact is though , that even in the
magazine's larger [annat, the holes created challenges in layout--especially for
articles, pictorials and advertisements
that spread across two pages.
Something we did not want was for
the size reduction to allow less space for
articles or force us to use smaller type
size. 1don't know about you, but I don 't
like having to squint when J read. Leaving the holes would have necessitated one
or the other of those unattractive options.
Now, before you jump to the conclusion that we've made it impossible to
save back issues in three-ring binders, we
offer a simple solution: ABS now has
binders available with easy-to-insert
wires that you place in the center of the
magazine and pop into the binder. The
binders are much sturdier and more
stable, making them less likely to fall
over than the plastic ones now do. See
the Company Store ad on page 6048GG
to order your new binders.
About the content
These cosmetic changes have in no
way distracted us from our primary focus on the content. We defi nitely believe
in "substance over fonn /' and will continue to strive to offer articles of value to
you. But we're also aware of the importance of making the magazine attractive
and a source of pride to you as members.
[ encourage you to submit articles of
interest to your fellow members, and to
suggest topics and writers for our followup. Each of us is an important source of
ideas and information to be shared. After aU, this is ollr magazine.
SAVE YOUR BACK ISSUES
OF THE ABS MAGAZINE
In sturdy, attracti\:e binders in
burgu ndy or navy. $9.00 through
the Company Store, page 60~8CC.
Page 6031
MAIIIEI nCE MAlnlEnAnCE MAIIIE"A"C
Routine preventive maintenance
BY JONATHAN E. CAYLE, M.D., LEMOORE, CALIFORNIA
I am a U.S. Navy Pilot, flight surgeon and board
certified OBlgyn. I have accumula ted over 2,700
hours of flight time, over 1,200 in tactical jets. I
am presently stationed at NAS Lemoore, California, serving as senior medical officer, BMC
Lemoore, and the VFA-I22 flight surgeon. I fly the
Navy's FIA - IS Hornet and will be flying the FIAI S ElF Super Hornet. I believe routine maintenance
by qualified individuals is as essential to safe flight
as any other aspect of flight planning or conduct
of the flight. Take advantage of scheduled routine
maintenance to uncover pending catastrophes.
t was with sadness that we felt the passing of actor George
C. Scott from a ruptured abdominal aonic aneurysm. I was
panicularly aware of the diagnosis, having helped my mother,
a very sweet woman of similar age to Mr. Scott, survive the operation to correct the same condition, only three weeks earlier.
Ironically, I found the topic at the forefront of my thoughts,
once again, two weeks later when I flew our 1979 Baron 58TC,
6039T, SIN TK-97, from Visalia, California (30 miles southeast of Fresno), to Carlsbad, California (nonhwest of San Diego), for a routine oil change. I change my oil every 25-30
hours as a means to prolong the longevity of its engines and to
monitor their health more accurately.
One might question a two-hour, round-trip $240 flight to
accomplish an oil change, but my maintenance facility, Leading Edge Aviation, has earned my loyalty since I've first owned
airplanes. Our Baron's predecessor, a beautiful 1979 A36, had
been expenly cared for from the day I took possession and that
conti nued quality care persisted with our Baron. Jeff Farrell
and Johnny Yorba, the two mechanics with whom I have dealt
almost exclusively, have taken care of my planes as if they owned
them. My positive impression from working with them was
reinforced, once again, this October day.
I always asked Jeff and Johnny to "let me know if you see
anythi ng else going on," as I firm ly believe that etfective preventive maintenance, while more expensive in the shOrl term,
pays dividends in the long run . Little did I know how true that
thought process would prove.
While addressing several other minor discrepancies just prior
to reassembling the cowls on the left engine, Johnny methodically ran his fingers over each cylinder's exhaust pipes and
their extensions to the common ex haust. He was surprised to
fi nd a bulge of impressive proportions at the underside of the
joint between the third cylinder's exhaust and the main exhaust!
Failing to have run his fingers over the exhaust would have
I
Page 6032
missed the finding. My same day in and out flight was quickly
rescheduled to include a round trip on the local commuters so
that I could leave the ai rplane fo r a few days and return to
retrieve it.
The significance of this bulge, in essence, an aneurysm, or
weakening of the pipe, was that it could have resulted in catastrophic consequences. As serious as such a condition can
threaten the life of a human, so it can also do so in an airplane's
engine-especially since the exhaust temperatures of my turbocharged engines are very high. Had this sign of wear been
neglected or missed, a neocanalized channel (i.e., new hole
where there wasn't supposed to be one) would have directed
extremely hot gases to a place for which they were not designed to be vented. Engi ne fire, melted cowling, engine loss,
wing loss, ai rcraft loss and pilot loss were all in the differential
diagnosis of conditions which might have resulted.
While I was irritated by having to change my immediate
plans to fulfill the maintenance requirement, failing to have
done so might have had a more significant alteration in my
plans. The left exhaust was removed, separated and sent to be
repaired. The remaining exhausts on the aircraft were similarly
inspected to ensure they were not suffering similarly. Four days
later, minus a few extra dollars, I retrieved N6039T for an uneventful flight back to the Central Valley.
The importance of this finding is that routine maintenance
by qualified individuals is as essential to safe flight as any other
aspect of flight planning or conduct of the flight. And there are
parts of airplanes that are subject to extremes of operation which
may not be routinely inspected during a normal preflight. All
the more reason to take advantage of scheduled routine maintenance to uncover pending catastrophes.
Learning can he achieved by a variety of means. Vicarious leaming at no cost to the student is one of the most efficient. I hope this
helpful hint proves as successful for you as it did for [email protected] January 2000
Two happy maintenance experiences
8Y RICHARD LENTZ, SEATTLE, WASHINGTON
I've been an A8S member (with one interruption )
since the earfy 70s. We owned a 7948 "straight 35"
80nanza for eight years, then a 7959 K35 for eight
years. IFR or VFR, we loved them both, but the "K"
was outstanding. Our family outgrew the airplane
and we flew a "brand C" for awhile. Around 7994
we bought a share in our present 7960 895 Travel
Air. Since then, we've upgraded some avionics and
the windshield, added an interphone system, replaced one engine and revamped the interior. New
paint is next. The airplane has been a very capable,
comfortable and economical machine.
W
e have a very nice 1960 B95 Travel Air that normally is a
reliable machine, but sometimes thi ngs happen. One of
the things that usually means a headache is fuel gauge
trouble. Over the past couple of years, J had noticed the left
main fuel gauge becoming increasingly inaccurate. Past maga-
zines are full of articles about fuel quantity problems, so I knew
such problems were widespread and could be costly without careful diagnosis.
Our airplane has four tanks and two gauges using the AC
senders, which have not been produced for many years. The
aux tanks use two senders in each, the mains use one. Our problem happened only when using the left main tank, so the cause
was unique to that circuit.
IIndlng and filing our fuel gauge problem
I could eliminate the gauge itself and wiring common to
aux and main tank circuits as cu lprits. The gauge worked fine
with a full tank, but became erratic as fuel level dropped below
half full. A nearly empty tank produced useless needle twitching up to the full mark. Swapping the left and right main fuel
senders moved the problem; clearly the sender was the villain.
The senders are simply wire-wound rheostats connected between the fuel gauge and airframe ground. As the fuel level varies,
the float arm slides a contact across the winding to vary its resistance. For the main tanks, resistance is about 32 ohms with the
float in the full position and one ohm or less at empty. Resistance
should vary smoothly through the range, but ours did not.
Almost nobody fixes these units anymore, so I decided to
open it up myself before facing the awful ($$$) alternatives.
TheAC sender is mounted to the tank flange with five screws.
The screws are safety 'd and one also secures a grounding strap
from the airframe, which is the sale ground connection from
the sender. The sender itself consists of an upper and lower
cover secured with two rivets. Some have a rubber gasket be-
ABS January 2000
tween the covers, others don' t.
The upper cover mounts an insulated stud for connection to
the gauge. The lower cover houses the pivot and stops for the
float arm. J carefully drilled off the rivet heads and separated
the covers. Voila, J had access to everything!
Inside the lower cover are the float arm mechanism and a
thin flexible brass strip that carries the ground connection
around the pivot to the wiper contact. One end of the strip is
riveted to the cover. The other end connects to the contact. supported by a thin bronze leaf spring on the pivot arm. The contact was tarnished, so I cleaned and polished it.
The leaf spring gently presses the contact against the resistance wire as it moves, so I took care not to deform it. The
upper cover houses the wire-wound resistance assembly, fine
wire wound around a narrow plastic strip. It's shaped in an arc
like a letter "C" and nestles inside the curved hump of the top
cover. One end is secured by the stud, which protrudes through
the cover, insulated with a rubber grommet and fiber washer.
The other end fits in a notch stamped into the cover. The rheostat is isolated from ground by another plastic strip between
the wires and the cover itself.
The rheostat wires were very dirty and exhibited a wear path
around the arc. The wear from the wiper contact was greatest
in the area corresponding to fuel levels above a half full tank
and kept those wires brightly burnished. Below about the middle
of the arc the wires were more tarnished since the wiper contact rubbed across them infrequently. This is consistent with
AD 72 02 against Beech Models 35/33/55/95, requiring main
tanks to be at least half full for takeoff. The wiper doesn 't keep
the "empty end" wires clean because we're less likely to fly
with low main tanks. (I find it ironic that the AD may actually
contribute to this kind of gauge trouble!)
Along the arc was a trail of black debris, especially toward
cominlled on page 6048
Page 6033
Neil Pobanz
Drive pins for
Thompson fuel pumps
Michael LeBlanc
Orangevale, California
Glen "A rk y" Foulk
fuel lines are clamped in the floor. These
are very hard to find , however. Only
while on the ground, try wrapping fresh
newsprint around the )jnes and running
the Thompson fuel pump. My usual
source went out of business. I am trying
to find the entire kit that consists of the
pin and seal. Any help would be appreciated. The PIN 1991 is fur the Thompson fuel pump TF-1900.
the engine for a shon period. If there is
a leak, the stain will quickly show itself.
Pressurizing the fuel lines in the engine compartment with the boost pumps,
/lot by running the engine, while a qualified mechanic observes the fuel lines can
show hose leaks that leave no other
sign.-NP
Aircraft Systems (Terry Norris) at
815-399-0225 has the kits and pins and
can overhaul the pump for you.-NP
Ed Whicker
Q: I cannot find any drive pins for
A:
Repairing }35 door handle
Roosevelt, Utah
A36 fuel odor in the cockpit
Paul Wun sch
Heartland, Wisconsin
Q: After landing, I occasionally have
a fuel odor in the cockpit. Upon inspection , J cannot find a source for this fuel
odor. My fuel usage upon filling the tank
agrees with my flight consumption,
which leads me believe it is something
happening at landing or turning off the
runway. At a recent annual, they inspected the fuel system and could find
no problems. Any ideas?
A: You may smell fuel coming out of
fuel vents during turns. It could be a
plugged up anti-siphon valve at the outboard end of the tank. This valve has a
hinge marked on top and an arrow for direction of flow for tank venting. Thisva1ve
can be cleaned and returned to service.
We have also seen some airplanes
with small corrosion pin holes where the
Page 6034
Q:
How do you remove the inside
door handle to make repairs? What Service Bulletins apply and how do I obtain them?
A: This is a difficult job as parts are
hard to find and the service manual is
not much help. But patience and careful
planning will get the job done. One possibility is that Raytheon is offering a
complete replacement handle that may
be the simplest and best way to go. When
you are taking the assembly apart, there
is a pin holding the handle to the shaft.
Do not mistake the lock pivot pin for this
retention pin. Also, there are three screws
holding the bearing plate that will need
to be removed.
Service Bulletins can be obtained
through the Raytheon Service Centers. I
believe Western Aircraft (208-338- 1800)
in Boise, Idaho, is the nearest to you.
Woodland Aviation (916-662-9631) in
California is an alternative. Both can provide the Service Bulletins. Give me a call
if you have any questions about disassembly before you start.- NP
F33 speed modification
Arne Korf
Berlin, Germany
Q:
J would like to speed up my 1991
Bonanza F33. I have heard of a speed
kit that can be mounted to the ailerons
and maybe other points, but I don' t have
any other information about it. Do you
have any comments about how sensible
this speed kit really is? Also what real
advantages and disadvantages can be
expected? Do you have an address for
ordering these kits?
A: I believe you are referring to aile-
ron and flap gap seals available from
Beryl D' Shannon (612-404-9000 or
www.beryldshannon.com).Aviation Research Systems (503- 668-4542) and
Knots 2 U (414-763-6152). I flew a
C33A with gap seals for a while and believe they really did help.- NP
Best paint shops for Bonanzas
David Beaver
R;chmond~
Texas
Q: Where are the best paint shops for
Bonanzas and what are the approximate
prices for a high-quality job? I only want
ones to which you personally can aUest
or have had multiple referrals.
A:
Byerly in Peoria, Illinois, at 309697-6300 or Murmer in Arcola, Texas,
ABS January 2000
at 281-431-3030 are ones with which I' m
familiar. Cunentl y I wou ld expect a good
quality job to ru n between $7,000 and
$10,000. This wi ll vary in different regions of the country.
Key factors include the amou nt of airframe repair work required, the number
of paint colors and the design. Also, consideration mllst be gi ven to the overall
general paint quality and the amount of
detailing necessary to make sure all the
little things are done properl y. The installati on of stainless steel fasteners and!
or new rubber seals at the wing, tail roots
or other places would also affect the cost.
-NP
S35 fixed source quick drain
James Usher
Fort Worlh, Texa s
Q:
In San Diego, one of the exhibitors was offering fixed quick drains for
our planes. Do yo u know who it was?
A:
Aircraft Fuel Cell Repair at 800437-8732.-N P
Source for Rosen sun visors
Albert
L.J.
Gruensfelder
Atlanta, Georgia
Q:
Do you have an e-mail, phone, address or website where I might purchase
or find information on the Rosen sun
visors?
A: The Ro se n visors are available
through Performance Aero (800-2003141), DBM (800-835-4392), American
Aero (800-359-6673) and Aircraft
Spruce and Specialty (877-477-7823).
-N P
V35 ADF antenna
A:
Some sal vage yards are Dodson
(800-255 0034 ), At lanta (800-237883 1), White Industries (800-821-7733)
or Wentworth (6 12-722-0065) . Gulf
Coast Avionics at 800-474-97 14 may do
repair.-NP
Travel Air instrument light
rheostat, mixture control
access
Kevin Oelaney
Germantown, Tenn essee
Q:
Is PI J-22-F2-35I correct for the
instrument lights? I am having trouble
finding the instru ment light rheostat in
the Trave l Air parts manual. The one I
re moved from the aircra ft is made by
Ohmite Mfg. Co. of Chicago, Illinoi s. [
wa nt to check to see if this is the proper
rh eostat since [ have a separate rheostat
to control the lights on the fligh t instruments. [ th ink this may have been a
modification made by an avionics shop.
I also need to replace the ri ght mi xture co ntrol. I have the short two- piece
wi ndshield and it is very tight to get behind the instrument panel. Is remov ing
the fuel flow gauge and the manifold
pressure gauge the easiest way to get to
the bolt that connects the end of the cable
to the mixture control lever?
Q: Our 1980 V35 has the King digital electronics stack. About a year ago,
the KA-44 fin antenn a failed and we replaced it with a used one the avionics
shop had on hand. It appears this one has
also quit working (head and indicator
appear to be normal , bu t no needle swing
or "ident" on aural). A new one is $ 1,200
or more. Do you know any shops that
stock used units or could rebuild the
"hockey puck" electronics package in
the antenna itself? Since ADFs are goi ng
the way of the old "range course," we are
hesitant to put a lot of money into this thing.
ABS January 2000
El3A S- TEe autopilot
Gary and Patsy Mexted
Finley, NSf Australia
Q:
Can you point me to a supplier for
the S-TEC autopi lot that is authorized
fo r my 1967 E33A?
A: Aviation Research Systems (503A: I wo uld try Crossroads Aviation 668-4542
or 6 16-957-4920) , Elliott
(972-239-0263) for both the rheostat and
the mi xture control cable. It 's normal for
the flight instruments and radios to be
on separate rheostats. The PIN you mention sounds correct. I would also remove
instruments to obtain access to the mixture control lever. You wi ll fi nd that the
removal of several inst ruments is necessary in order to work on these control
levers.-NP
jerry Burns
Des Moines, Wa shington
ginning in 1972 had the harness mounting
brackets installed in the cabin roof, making factory system retrofits less costly.
Other shoulder harness optio ns have
been described in several ABS articles
including those appearing in the March
'74, May '88, August ' 86, March '93,
November ' 95 and January '98 issues.
ABS member Harry Cameron of
Safety, Ltd., and Cameron Ai rcraft Interi ors (800-866-4886) has deve loped a
non-STC'd shoulder harness system for
the Bonanza and Baron line under a field
approval. Aero Fabricators (800-5586868) has an STC that is limited to some
of the earlier aircraft models. Aviation
Research (503-668-4542) may also be
able to help you.
Before proceeding with any installation, be certain it is STC'd for your particular aircraft model or that your local
FAA FSDO will grant a Form 337 field
approval for a non-STC'd installation.
-NP
V358 shoulder harness
Ken Desserault
Yakima, Washington
Q:
Is there any source other than Beech
for an approved seat belt and shoulder strap
restraint for my 1970 V35B?
A:
For yo ur aircraft, the Beech system is the only option that would not require a field approval. The Beech systems consist of either the inverted " Y"
belt that is suspended from the ceiling
and fits over both shoulders or the sidemounted systems that cross the chest.
Bonanzas and Barons manufac tured be-
Aviati on (309-799-3183) and Jetsun
(800-747-3304) are some of the many
good sources in the United States. Airc raft Spruce (877-477-7823 or
www.aircraft-spruce.com) markets the
S-5-TEC but on ly for non-certified aircraft. S-TEC's website at http://www.stee,com li sts several dealers in Australia as well as other locations around the
world.-NP
A35 wing stall vane, engine
heater and environmental
cooler control
Steve Schlager
Carterville, Illinois
Q:
Are parts available for the top of
the wi ng-mounted stall warning vane on
my A35? !fna parts are available, is there
an upgrade to the newer style stall vane?
Who makes an engine heater for an
E-225?
Is there an STC to move the evaporator control in my airplane from the panel
Page 6035
to the evaporator unit like the newer
model aircraft?
A:
To my knowledge there are no new
parts available. The kit book shows no
upgrade kits. Dave Monte at 775-7825282 may have additional information
or know of a salvage yard with serviceable parts. The upgrade could be done
with field approval, but this would be a
very difficult task.
Tanis at 800-443-2131 makes a very
good engine heater that heats the cylinders, crank case and oil sump. Aircraft
Spruce (877-477-7823) sells EZ heat pads
and other devices that will heat the oil.
The newer style evaporator control
could be adapted, but would need a field
approval. Your IA will have ideas on how
best to approach thi s change, and 1 suggest the FAA FSDO be asked for advice
prior to starting such work.-NP
E33A yoke refinishing and
push-to-talk switch
Darrell Shy
Oak View, California
n: Where can 1 have the yoke in my
1~8 E33A refinished? Where can I pur-
chase the press-to-talk switches?
A: Air Mach (580-43 1-2333) or War-
ren Gregori se (800-634-0094) can be
reached to discuss refinishing. Elliott Aviation (309-799-3183) or your local avionics shop will have the switches.-NP
K35 InterAv alternator and
Cleveland brake pads
lohn K. lohnson
Santa Rosa, California
Q: Is the InterAv alternator rotation
direction solely a function of the oflentaLian of the exterior alternator cooling
fan, or are there internal changes for the
left- vs. right-hand rotating models? After installation of a new unit, I noticed
that it is rotating in the wrong direction,
according to an arrow placard on the alternator. However, it works Fine.
What is the minimum thickness allowed on my Cleveland brake pads? r have
the 30-66 Cleveland calipers and would
like to know the pad part number.
A:
InterAv can be reached at 210-3442785 for service information. Ask for Eric.
The Cleveland 30-66 break assembly
uses the 06604400 linings. Per the
Page 6036
Cleveland service guide, the minimum
lining thickness is .100 inch (2.54mm).
Cleveland's hotline is 800-272-5464.
Note that if your 30-66 calipers have a
suffix letter, they may take a different
lining.-NP
very acceptable for a radome as long as
they haven't been painted with metallic
paint or had lots of repairs. Obviously, a
Norton radome is superior, but when I
H. Robert Nelson
Dresher, Pennsylvania
ran fleets of aircraft we were surprised
at how well the Beech nose cone did with
radar installations.
Salvage yards are Dodson (800-255 0034), White (800-82 1-773) and Atlanta
(800-237-8831 ).-N P
Q:
A: All ADs recorded by the FAA
Bob Hayden
Williston , North Dakota
Airworthiness Directives (ADs)
Where can I get a list of ADs for
our aircraft and their explanations?
through January 1999 may be found in
the current version of the ABS CDROM. For ADs issued after the AD list
was published, check for free updates
available at <www.summitaviation.com/
> Other informational sites include
<www.fedworld.govlftplfaa-cailfaacai.htm> or <www.tc.gc.caiaviation/
index.htm>
In addition to all ADs and ABS Magazine issues from April 1967 through December 1998, the ABS CD-ROM includes FARs, STCs and the AIM. This
CD-ROM is one of the benelits of ABS
membership. Call ABS Headquarters for
info on ordering or look at the Company
Store ad on page 6048GG.-NP
Model 35 CHT gauge
Q:
My cylinder head temp quit and I
checked out the lead and the gauge with
a spark plug thermocouple for a Westach
cylinder head temp gauge. When I
heated this thermocouple, the aircraft
gauge was activated so I believe the indicalOr and the lead are OK. 1 ordered a
copper constantan thermocouple from
Aircraft Spruce, but after 1 installed it,
the cylinder head temp still doesn·t work.
Is the spark plug thermocouple for the
Beech gauge a special order item or will
an iron/constantan thermocouple work?
A:
Q:
The AC thermocouple that was
original equipment is no longer available. Instrument Technologies at 972458-8785 can supply a thermocouple and
resistor that enables you to use the old
gauge. Otherwise, you need the Rochester gauge kit that involves changing
most of that cluster, fuel senders and all.
Not a good option.-NP
A: The best place to order the shop
Model 36 wing bolts and
control cables
A36 shop manual source
Robert Pearce
Redlands, California
Do you know where 1 might find
a shop manual for a 1981 A36 (E-1846)
aircraft?
manual is a Beech Service Center. Call
Woodland Aviation (916-662-9631) or
Rapid (888-727-4344).-NP
855 radome
David T. Hays
Albany, Georgia
n: I160amcolor
in the process of adding an
radar to my '95- B55
RaR:
Baron, SIN TC -863. I have searched
quite a few of the used parts dealers, but
have not had any uccess in finding a
used radome.1 really don't want to spent
$ J 0,800 for a new orton radome. Do
you have any ideas where 1 might find a
used or reasonably priced radome for my
Baron?
Parker Johnstone
Redmond, Oregon
n:
I just took my plane in for its ann~. I received a call from my mechanic
asking if 1 wanted to replace the wing
attach bolts as per the Beech factory recommendations (every 15 years). The bolt
area drain holes have been clear, not allowing any corrosion to take place. Should
the bolts be removed and replaced even
though they appear to be fine?
My mechanic also wanted 10 know if
the main control cables (rudder, elevator, and ailerons) should be replaced.
Upon visual inspection, they seem 10 be
in good condition. The airframe has a
total of 4,800 hours.
A: The Beech fiberglass nose cones are A: r think the cables should be care-
ASS January 2000
fully inspected. Making sure that the
pulleys turn and that when flexed in the
area that the cable bends, you don't feel
any loose strands. For many years, we
didn't think the bolts needed changing but
have recently changed our mind due to
many showing corrosion as the fleet ages.
An inspection sure would be warranted if they have never been replaced.
but it is not required for operation under
FAR Part 91.-NP
B£58 Grimes power source
Ian P. Green
Orange, Connecticut
Q:
I am looking for a power supply
for a Grimes three-light strobe for my
1976 BE58. My unit works OK when
warm. If it is cold, there is I/O flash.
A:
Avlite at 805-239-4037 and AAR
Cooper are Grimes distributors. Cooper
only sells to FBOs and flight departments. Spruce at 877-477-7823 may be
able to obtain spares for you.-NP
subject to constant jarring and those headlights last forever. Can't they get the lamps
to last a similar length of time for airplanes?
A:
The frequency of the vibration may
be a factor as well as the difficulty of
incorporating improvements due to the
approval process. I would look for any
place the front cowl might be touching
the engine. Sometimes the intake mani-
fold crossover tube that runs across the
front of the engine under the propeller
rubs on the nose bowl. eventually wearing a hole in it.
PropJe ngine dynamic balancing
might help ifbalancing is req uired. Also,
changing the orientation of the bulb filament to the vertical position sometimes
helps as does not tightening the bulb too
tightly in its mount.
Weve had some success on later airplanes using a Beech kit that reduces the
current flow with a resistor. Engineering
Solutions at 253-859-5166 also has an approval to change to a lower wattage
)35 Zep 02 System
D. Ryan Carslens
Prescott; Arizona
Klein, Texas
Q: Where can I obtain the male fit-
Q:
A: Raytheon is seeking approval for a
procedure to remove the speed restriction that was imposed by AD 98-13-02.
A package was submitted to the FAA that
was subseq uentl y returned with some
further questions. The ABS has been
monitoring this on a weekly basis and
will publicize any pertinent information
as soon as it becomes available.-NP
Jerry Osborne
tings that mate with the manifold for this
system? The cylinder is strapped to the
baggage floor and it is about 6.75 inches
in diameter, and about 26.75 inches long,
including the valve. A tube carries the
02 up the wall behind the upholstery to
an overhead Zep Automatic Oxygen System. Model 707, five-outlet manifold.
The system will work fine. but I don't
have the four male fittings to mate with
the manifold.
A: Try Aviation Oxygen Supply in Van
Nuys at 818-787-3852, Oxygen Systems
at 800-543-3994 or Precise Flight at 800547-2558. They will be able to suppl y
the fittings or give you a lead as to other
sources.-NP
A361anding light bulb failure
John Drumheller
Toledo, Ohio
Q: We're having a rough time keep-
ing the landing light going. It burns out
every 10-15 hours. The taxi light on the
front gear seems to last a bit longer, but
not much. I can't detect any excessive
vibration from in the COCkpit. There must
be a longer lasting lamp; automobiles are
ABS January 2000
A:
Placards are available from Moody
(800-749-2462, American Aero (800
359-6673), Performance Aero (800-2003 141 ) and Rapid (888-727-4344); International sales, 3 16-676-3300).
Salvage yards include Dodson (800255-0034). Atlanta (800-237-883 1) and
White (800-82 1-7733).
The fasteners are avai lable from
American Aero, Performance Aero, Aircraft Spruce (909-372-9555) and
Skybolt (407-889-2613).-NP
bulb.-NP
Bonanza speed restriction
AD 98-13-02
l awn a B35 Bonanza. I have not
heard anything regarding the speed limitation AD since I complied with it last
year. Do you know who I may contact at
Raytheon to find out info about its status?
Will this be a permanent AD or will they
actually attempt to devise a fix for it?
placement placards for the nose locker
and rear baggage compartment (inside
cargo door). Can you suggest a supplier?
Secondly, during the current repaint
of our aircraft, we found that the bullnose
cowling beneath the RH engine air intake is split at one of the screw holes. Repair looks impractical. Can you suggest a
source who might be able to help out?
Finally, I am looking for a supplier
of F5-35 twist fasteners and GF5-175
grommets in stainless steel.
Baron placards, fasteners
and cowling
Tony Lavan
Kenmore, Queensland, Australia
Q: I am a new member of the Bonanza
Society and am currently holidaying in
the United States with my family. I have
three questions regarding sources of
parts for my Baron 55. First, I need re-
A35 inspection forms
Gary Grosvenor
lOWn , Missouri
g
: We recently purchased a classic
A3 . My brother (an A&P) wi ll be doing the annual on it. Is there a 100-hour
annual inspection form specific to A35s
or the 35s in general? If so, where can
we obtain a copy? Is it available on-line
anywhere?
A:
The inspection checklist is in the
shop manual , which you should have
anyway to do an ann ual. It is also avai lable from Rapid, which is Raytheon's
(Beech) parts department, at 888-7274344. They can also provide a pad of inspection sheets. If yo u have the electric
propeller you should obtain the propeller manual to ensure adeq uate repetitive
lubrication which, ifnot done, will cause
failure of very scarce parts.-NP
V35B main wheel jack
adapter
Bruce Benson
Burgaw, North Carolina
n:
Where can l arder the tool that fit s
i~e main gear hub and is used to jack
the main gear up? Also, do you have a
description and/or part number?
A:
Thi s is a Beech part called an
adapter assembly, main wheel jack, PIN
Page 6037
35-590006, avai lable Ihrough Rapid
(Beech) (888-727-4344) and Ihrough
Performance Aero (800-200-3141). You
mighl want 10 price bOlh.- NP
D35 starter
preny well. They are thin wall sockels
and if you wrap ducllape around the flex
drive 10 give a litt le extra stiffness-Ihe
combination will work well.-NP
Purchasing a new Bonanza
Paul Edzards
Emery, South Dakota
jesse Kent
(): 1 have a 035. SIN 3628, wilh an
~5-8 and am looking for a E80 slarter.
PIN 397- 13B. Do you know of anybody
I could COntaCl1O help locale one?
Please send any information you
have on sources or anything thai mighl
be helpful 10 a prospeclive owner. I plan
on purchasing an earl y model Bonanza
and need as much information as I can
oblain on whal I should be looking for
as I shop.
A: I would Iry EMI (800-851-4392),
Aircraft Accessories of Oklahoma, (800255-9924) or Aero EleClric (3 16-9436100).-NP
N35 exhaust bolts
Dave Daniel
~y, Idaho
~: Are Ihere approved AN Allen head
boils Ihal can be used for Ihe e"baust
flanges on my airplane? I believe it
would make Ihe installalion much easier.
A: There are FAA-approved internal
wrenching boils. However, the thread is
wrong for Ihal applicalion and 1 don ' t
believe there is an approval for Allen
boll~ for Ihe exhaus!. Snap-On and Mac
both have a quarter-inch drive flex
socket wilh an eXlension Ihal works
AD 98- 17-03
Anderson, South Carolina
Q:
A: FirSI, we suggesl you join Ihe ABS.
We also have IWO books sold in Ihe Company Siore (3 16-945- 1700) Ihal would
be especially helpful: Those II/comparable BOl/al/zas and Colvil/ 's Clil/ic. In
addition, the ABS CD-ROM of back ABS
Maga:ille issues has many articles which
would be helpful. The CD-ROM is easy
10 search and provides valuable informalion including ADs and STCs.-NP
B33 governor oil leak
A:
The repair should be done at a repair station . One Ihat I use is Aircraft
Propeller Service aI800-323-4130. I believe you can expeci 10 pay between
$800 and $1 ,OOO.-NP
Neil Pobanz, ABS technical consultant, is a
retired U.S. Army civilian pilot and mainte-
nance manager. Neil has been an A&P and
fA for 40 years.
Glen "'ArkyH Foulk, whose business is Delta
Strut, is an ABS assistant technical consultant who has served as a part-lime ABS Service Clinic inspector since 1988.
Please send your
questions and/or tips
and techniques to:
American Bonanza Society
Attn: Neil Pobdnz
p.o. Box 12881/
Nicholas Frankovich
Ormond Beach, Florida
Q:
My queslion concerns our Woodward Propeller governor. We have developed an oi l leak on the oUlboard end
Wichita, KS 67277
fax 316-945-1710 or
e-m.lil at bon.mza2(a,'bondnza.org
NEIL'S NOTES
After IwO years of nOlification. effective September
1999, AD 98-17-03 has suddenly become an item of intereSllO many airplane owners. I've heard many undeserved
crilical comments direcled al Hartzell. In many cases, if
aircrafl owners had reserved the equivalent COSI of a few night~
oUI for supper and saved Ihis money for propeller mainlenance
each year, il would cover Ihe propeller cOSI now.
My experience indicates that aircraft owners typically
under-maintain propellers when compared 10 mainlenance
dollars spent on interiors, exterior paint or radios. Owners
of laler model aircrafllhat are affected-Sleel hub Hartzells
wilh an ··X·' or "Y'· in Ihe hub model designalion-have
various 0Plions and aile male propellers 10 use. Owners of
E series engines have fewer 0Plions. The Beech 215 e1ecIric prop provides good service if taken care of, bUI many
people are unnecessarily using up pans which are in scarce
supply by not performing preventative maintenance in the
form of 250 hour greasing of pilch change bearings.
Hartzell has developed a replacement prop for the splined
shafl engines. In addilion to this replacement propeller, Ihere
is the 0Plion of converting to a MY propeller which eliminales the recurring AD and has a new hub, clamps and in-
Page 6038
where Ihe control arm attaches. Is there
a repair kil Ihal can be inslalled in Ihe
field and, if so, do you have a source for
the kit? If no kil is available for field
repair, do you have an address for a good
repair sial ion 10 do Ihe overhaul and the
a~proximate cost?
specled and redesignated blades.
Another oplion is jusl compleling the AD inspection
requirements and having a 500-hour, five-year repelitive
inspection. The problem is that any part replacement needed
may bring this oplion price close 10 Ihe MY option cost.
There will be parts for Ihe MY configuration and, of course,
the new model props will have parts. I agree wilh Ihe philosophy Ihal if a better design is created, you quit making
pans for Ihe obsolete design.
Vacuum warning lights
We have had several questions about the availabiliry of
vacuum warning lighls. To my knowledge, Ihe company who
used to supply Ihem does nOI at Ihis time. However. Cessna's
new l72s have one in the panel and it seems 10 me a case
could be made for a field approval using Cessna components.
Another idea thal new Cessnas have is two vacuum
pumps using a spare drive pad with a twin engine shuttle
valve installed wilh a twin engine vacuum gauge and a warning bUllon for each pump. I sti ll recommend changi ng Ihe
pump at 500 hours. I have heard of failures in less than 500
hours, but Ihe 500-hour limil seems pruden!.
ABS January 2000
UNiTeD STATeS OF AMERICA
DEPARTMEN1' Of' TRANSPORTATION
FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION
MEDICAL CERTIFICATE
~ CLASS
ABS MEDICAL PANEL
BY JOHN D. HASTINGS, M.D.
S
everal ABS members posed inter
est ing questions about medical cer
tification at the annual convention
in San Diego. Recurring questions were,
"When do I have to report a condition
and to whom should I report itT and
"Can I wait until my next physical?" and
"Do I report it to my AME or the FAA?" I
suspect these questions pop up frequently
among members so let's discuss them.
I guess most ABS members possess a
third-class airman medical certificate,
renewable at two-year intervals. If an
aviator developed appendicitis one day after renewal, his next physical would be two
years away. Must he report his illness?
This question might be answered differentl y, depending upon variations in
judgment and strictness or looseness of
interpretation. The FAR governing this
question follows:
61.53 Prohibition on operations during
medical deficiency.
(a) Operations that require a medical
cenificate. Except as provided for in paragraph (b) of this section. a person who
holds a current medical certificate issued
under pan 67 of thi s chapler shall not act
as pilot in command, or in any other capacity as a required pilot flight crew mem-
ber. while that person:
( I) Knows or has reason 10 know of any
medical co nd ition that wou ld make the
perso n unable to meet the requirements for
the medical certificate necessary for the
pilot operation ; or
(2) Is taking medication or receiving
other treatment for a medical condition that
results in the person being unable to meet
the requirements for the medical certificate
necessary for [he pilot operation.
cal condition that would make the person
unable [0 operate the aircraft in a safe
manner.
What illnesses must be reported?
Transient illnesses such as bronchitis, a bladder infection or a dental abscess
need no reporting once the condition is
cured. Many surgical procedures including appendectomy, hernia repair, gall
bladder surgery, hip replacement, fractured ankle repair and oLhers can be reported at the next physical. The airman
must ground himself until healed.
Serious conditions such as stroke,
heart attack and many cancers should be
reported before fl ying again. The FAA
wi II want evidence Lhat any condition
potentially compromising aviation safety
is corrected or stable before certification
is continued or renewed.
Some cancers-including breast ,
lung, colon and melanoma skin cancers
can behave aggressively, possibly compromising aviation safety. They should
be reported to the Aeromedical Certification Branch in Oklahoma City. Others, including basal cell skin cancers and
prostaLe cancer, change very slowly and
in general pose no immediate threat to
aviation safeLy.
If you are uncertain about reporting
requirements. get some advice. Your
AME may be helpful. but remember that
some AMEs may not have much experience with problem medical certification.
(The typical AME in the United States
performs about 20 exams per year, all of
which may be uncomplicated normal
exams.) If you are an EAA or AOPA
member. reporting advice can be obtained through member services. As you
have read in recent columns, ABS is developing a program in which advisory
service will also be available. Using these
advisory services may help you (and your
AME) in reponing judgmenLs.
(b) Operations that do not require a
med ical certificate. For operations provided for in 61.23 (b) of this pan. a person shall not act as pilot in command, or
in any oLher capaciLy as a required pilot
fli ght crew member. while that person
knows or has reason to know of any medi-
ABS January 2000
One last message: To my teacher. my
adviser, my colleague and my dear friend
Itzhak Jacoby-we mi ss you. Godspeed
to you, Gail and Atira. We wish your
family courage and strength .
- Jack Hasrillgs
QUESTION OF THE MONTH:
Q:
When I developed headaches six
months ago, a CAT scan was done. A tumor was found on the right side of my
head. just inside the skull. A neurosurgeon completely removed the tumor
which he said was benign. I have been
doing fine for five months since the sur-
gery and take no medicaLions . My CAT
scan two weeks ago was clear. Can I resume flying?
A: The tumor was likely a meningioma
that ari ses from the coverings of the
brain. These are common and very slow
growing. You should not resume fl ying
until the FAA has cleared you . Brain
tumors may cause se izures, bleeding,
changes in memory and thinking, weak-
ness, impaired vision and other symptoms. You should gaLher all records and
send them Lo the FAA, including a statement that you are currently doing well.
You will in all likelihood be certified
after a period of observation. The FAA
will likely ask for annual follow-up reports including scans (which your neurosurgeon would also require). After a
period of years, the special reports may
be dropped.
ABS member John
Ha stings, M. D., holds
board certification in
neurology and aero-
space medicine. He
has been an avia tion
medical examiner in
1976 and serves as a
senior AME. He holds
a commercial pilot Ii·
cense with mulUengine
and instrument ratings.
He is chairman of the fAA Aeromedical Ad-
visory Council, past president of th e Civil
Aviation Medical Association and on the
council of the Aerospace Medical Association. He is an AB5 Director and heads the
Society's Medical Committee.
Page 6039
before fi re actually breaks out
and ca uses smoke . This
the complete att(~nti'on.
means that the pilot has a
of a pilot as quick ly or effecchance in some cases to detect
tively as smoke.
problems and take action beWhether it is in the cockfore they become problems
with a capital "P" and cause an
pit or coming from the engine
companment, our life pv ,~"'"
in-flight emergency.
rience tell s us that seei ng
Electrical fires have a parsmoke is almost never a good
ticular smell, so if you notice
sign . We have smoke detecan acrid odor during a fli ght,
tors in our homes and hotel
you may have an impending
electrical problem. However,
rooms , since smoke in our
looking for th is prOblem
homes can prove to be lethal
to our family. We have sayings
while in flight can be chalBY GEORGE R. WILHELMSEN
such as the always helpful, but
lenging. If you are in flight
not always true, ''Where there is smoke, there is fire."
and you smell insulation burning, I strongly recommend that
Smoke in airplanes is no treat either. The enclosed cabin
you land as soon as possible and have professional help brought
provides a limited amount of air circulation, which means smoke
in to find the problem.
One of the byproducts of an electrical shon is the generacan reduce forward visibility, choke a pilot's ability to breathe
or steal power from the engine. To combat this, Beech/Raytheon
tion of a great deal of heat. By looking with a mechanic for
browned or blackened insulation, you may be able to find your
has come up with emergency procedures in our Pilot Operating Handbook that tell us what to do in the event of in-flight
problem before it finds yo u. One place to look for overload is
on
your circuit breakers. These breakers had a rating of 5 to 40
fires. When followed correctly, these instructions will assure
amps and up when they were installed, but in some planes that
that a night has a good chance of being safely concluded when
was 40 years ago or more! Believe it or not, the rati ng of a
smoke is detected .
breaker changes with time, and may become non-conservative.
Still, there are some things that pilots should consider when
Worse yet, any circuit breaker can weld itself shut, rendering it
they thi nk they have smoke in the cabin or from the outside of
inoperable
to protect your aircraft from overload. This is most
the cabi n coming from the engine companment. The "thinking"
notable on the breakers that get frequent use, such as the switchhere comes from trying to quickl y detennine what is causing the
type breakers used for many appliances in the Beech line.
smoke, and then taking prompt action to put a stop to the source.
There are factors that work in the favor of the pi lot and meSources of fire
chanic looking for overheated circuits. For example, most airThere are two primary sources for smoke on board an aircraft wire is light in color. [f a lug connected to a circuit breaker is
craft. The first is related to the electrical system and is caused
overloaded, the insulation on that wire at the connector wi ll likely
by shon circuits, frayed wires, failed components or burned
be discolored or even burned away. If you have any doubts if a
out voltage regulators. The other source is the gasoline we carry
connector is burnt, compare it with several others; the difference
in our tanks and the oi l we carry in our engine. Both of these
between a good connector or circuit and a bad one should be obvisources can become a significant problem, and can generate
ous to even an untrained observer. Any signs of burned insulation
both fire and smoke unless prompt action is taken by the pilot.
must be investigated and resolved prior to resu ming flight.
There are other signs that should be looked for, ones that
Electrical fires
can
be quite obvious to the skilled pilot. These are the discolElectrical fires usually are pretty easy to identify because in
orations that appear on various pans of our airplane from time
most cases, they emit a strong odor of burning plastic. Smoke
to time. Apart from drinks spilled or minor food related accican be localized in the airplane to a location such as the instrudents, the chances are that discolorations in carpet or the panel
ment panel fairly easily. Since many types of insulation used in
aren't caused by the airplane being parked in the sun once in a
aircraft bum and give off poisonous gasses, electrical fires are
while. If your carpet, side panels or instrument panel are
also very dangerous, which can make it difficult to breathe.
becoming singed. the sman pilot asks why, and gets those signs
Many electrical fires will give off this characteristic odor
Electrical fires hm'e a particular smell, so ijyollnotice an acrid odor during a flight, YOll may hm'e
an impellding electrical problem. HOII'ever, looking for this problem while ill flight call be c1zal/enging. ljyoullre ill flight and YOli smell insulation burning, I strongly recommelld that YOll lalld as SOOI!
as possible and have professional help brought in to find the problem.
Page 6040
ABS January 2000
£\w\' takeoff reall."l1eet!s to be planned. Aper all. 11'110 kl101"s ,,'hen WI il1~flightfire is going to break
Ollt, and hoI\' big the fi re lI'ill be? By planning each takeoflby thinking abollt 111/{/t YOIIll'ilI do if afire
breaks Olif, \'011 will take {/\\,ay the need to make last-minlife decisions, alld be able toF.\' YOllr plan.
ofheat distress investigated.
There are a good number of items that can signal an impending problem. A circuit breaker that pops unexpectedly could
be signaling that the breaker is dying, a bad connection is developing, or that a fault has come up on the airplane and it has
just protected the airplane from a shan. In any case, what pilot in
his or her right mind would reset such a breaker in night? Let's
take a look at the potential consequences of reselling the breaker.
If the breaker tripped due to overload, the overload condition is still probably out there just waiting for the now of current to stan again. You heard the breaker pop, and reaching
down, you push the bUllon on the breaker home with a click,
As you close the breaker. you press the bullon in for two or
three seconds. In that time, the current flow across the contacts
weldS them closed. The wires begin to glow, and smoke erupts
from behind your instrument panel.
Being a sman pilot who can recognize cause and effect, you
grab the breaker and pull the cap to the OFF position. but the
smoke doesn' t stop. This is because the contacts are burned
together. You just pulled the cap off the contacts. Smoke now
begins to fi ll the cabin, causing you to cough and choke,
What can you do? In thi s case, electrical triage is in order.
CUllhe master switch to the airplane as soon as you safely can.
What determines "safely" is dependent on the situation. In hard
IFR with a little smoke, this is less urgent. If the cabin is black
with smoke and you can't breathe, you need the instruments
less than you need the air to breathe, so kill the power and deal
with panial panel as your training has taught you to. Exit the
IFR conditions and land as soon as possible,
Of course, in retrospect, the best option would have been
for you to leave the breaker [ripped and land without the equipment. The consequences of this course of action are clear. The
worst things that could happen from a single breaker failure
are that a single instrument will be lost, a single radio will be
lost or that the pilot won't be able to extend the landing gear or
flaps. None of these events is as signi ficant as an in-fli ght smoke
event or worse yet, a fire.
Petrochemical fires
Unlike their electrical counterpans, fires driven by an avgas
leak or an oil leak are simple to stop, with immediate consequences, In order to stop these fires, the source of fuel must be
secured. This means thatlhe engine has to be shutdown in flight.
and the fuel selector turned to the off position to stop the fuel
from getting (0 the engine.
Make no mistake about it. The fuel has to be stopped to stop
the fire and it must be stopped quickly. Every minute the fire is
working in your engine companment, it is overheating components that can result in an eventual structural failure, The gasses
ABS January 2000
given off by the fire are equally hazardous, and depending on what
is burning with the fuel, can give off carbon monoxide.
Some pilots contend that rather than shulling off the fuel ,
they would dive or increase their speed to "blowout" the fire,
However, thi s approach does not work well with the physics
involved. Considering that the fire has a nearly infinite source
of air to fuel the fire. The faster you fly, the more air is available to fuel the flre, An increase in speed clearly isn 't going to
help here.
Here, the Pilot Operating Handbook direction is clear and
concise. Tum off the fuel, get the engine to idle cutoff, and then
look for a place to land. In the event the fire bums oul, do not
restan the engine. Pulling fuel back into the component that was
on fire is a bad idea, since it isn't likely that the leak sealed itself.
and is more likely that more leaks are now available to make a
really spectacular fire instead of the small one you just survived.
What about a fi re on takeoff? The same rules appl y, which
is why pilots need to think about what they will do in the event
of a fire on takeoff as pan of every takeoff, Again, the fire is
unlikely to "blowout" as the takeoff progresses. If possible,
the engine should be shut down, the fuel secured, and the brakes
applied during the roll.
If the plane has become airborne when the fire breaks out,
this becomes aj udgment call forthe pilot. The pilot has to consider the terrain involved to determine if it is best to fly a normal pattern, gain a minimum of altitude, reverse course and
land upwind, or to land straight ahead. What you will do depends on where you are flying out of and what your conditions
are, and it means that you need to plan your takeoffs to include
what actions you will take in the event a fire breaks out.
Every takeoff really needs to be planned. After all, who
knows when an in-flight fire is going to break out, and how big
the fire will be? By plarming each takeoff by thinking about what
you will do iF a fire breaks out, you will take away the need to
make last-minute decisions, and be able to fly your plan.
With in-flight fires almost a one-in-a-million event, some
might question whether they need to plan their takeoffs, Since
none of us can see the future with any clarity. we need to take
every reasonable precaution to protect our lives when we fly.
For the cost of a few seconds, you can have a clear plan instead
of a hastily decided course of action,
The facts are simple: When the chips are down and smoke
is pouring from your cowl or instrument panel. having your
plan up front will save time and most likely, your life!
ABS member George Wilhelmsen, Morris, Illinois, is a Senior System Engineer with an SRO license Ivilh Corn Ed. lie is a lOO-hour
commercial instrument rared pilot, is the avionics editor for Priva te
Pilot. the avionics and electronics editor {or Custom Planes and is a
con tributing editor for Plane & Pilot magazine and Avio nics News.
Page 6041
Avionics
BY JIM HUGHES
Happy New Year!
By now, all the Y2K things-forebodings, escapes, screw ups, did-and-didn'thappens-will have either happened and
been dealt with, or will not have happened after alL We will all be into the
rest of our respective lives, however long
they may last. One thing is for sure right
now: Nobody who reads this column will
be around for the year 3000, so we may as
well make the best of whal's here right now,
It is customary for writers far and
wide to issue prognostications at tbe beginning of the new year, which all who
care to can dig up and read again at the
end of the year, or even years later, If the
writer is lucky, maybe 50 percent of his
predictions will come to pass, giving the
writer the right to loudly proclaim "See? I
told you so!" Otherwise the writer hopes
everybody will forget what he said in print
at the beginning of the year, and can just
shut up and hope what was predicted will
be quietly and quickly forgotten,
I have not bad enough background in
Page 6042
either anthropology or history to address
what things were like in the year 1000
AD, and I'm not quite old enough to have
been an eyewitness to the events 100
years ago, I am lucky enough, however,
to have had a family member who as a
young lady in her twenties, kept a complete diary for the year 1900, which she
left to her heirs.
If any of you wish to leave a wonderfullegacy for generations of your families to read and compare to their present
lives, I highly recommend you keep a
daily diary throughout the year 2000.
Writing talent is not required, just consistency in writing down what happens
in your life every day for the whole year.
Hint: The more family names and
public figure names you mention in your
diary, the easier it will be for readers of
your diary to relate. Jfyou can' t sit down
and write each and every day, clip and
save the newspaper headlines or front
page for that day.
The most surprising thing to me about
my relative's life was how much traveling they did. Remember, airplanes had
not been invented yet. Automobiles were
such an oddity they attracted crowds
wherever they appeared. Roads were
mostly unpaved.
So how did they do it? In 1900, there
was a viable and relatively complete network of railroads and steamboats used
extensively to haul people and freight.
She rode the school boat across Mobile
Bay to school everyday. She wrote of a
day-long train trip across three states to
visit relatives for the summer, These
people really moved around ! They had
many of the same amenities we have today, such as ice cream made and kept
cold by huge blocks of ice, cut from frazen lakes in Minnesota in the winter,
packed in sawdust and sent south on the
Mississippi River via steamboat.
Well, enough about 1900. Your relatives in 2100 will appreciate having a
first-person account of where and how
you went in your Bonanza in 2000, the
pleasure (and perhaps displeasure) of
your vacation trip to Hawaii, jottings of
your everyday happenings about what
life was like in the year 2000. Now on to
"Jim's Avionics Predictions."
If any of you care to dig it out, I pre-
dicted that 1999 would be "The Year of
the Map," as in moving map displays.
Remember Jean Dixon, the astrologer
who predicted in 1964 that Richard
ixon would occupy the White House?
After she was loudly booed when Lyndon
Johnson won the election , in 1968 she
was quoted proudly as saying, "1 didn't
say when, did IT'
Well, I did not quite get my timing right
either, so I'll say it again for this year: 2000
will be "The Year of the Map' "
THE YEAR 2000 WILL BE ...
THE YEAR OF THE MAP!!!
Garmin 295
I think the hottest product will be the
Garmin 295 , a four-color moving map
that is portable and fits perfectly on the
yoke of a Bonanza. The avionics manufacturers have finally gotten access to
color, liquid crystal, active-matrix, sunlight readable, cool-running display technology, and I expect them to run with it.
Everything in the cockpit will soon
be digital color display. The Gannin 295
announced price is $ 1,495. As of this
writing, I don ' t think they are shipping
them yet. Whatever the reason for this,
I'm sure they' ll have it ready for sale by
the Sun ' n Fun airshow next spring.
Perhaps not this year but soon, look
for a "Glass Cockpit Bonanza" with digital instruments fumi shed by Meggitt Avionics. These instruments look like a miniaturized version of the displays found
in the newest Boeing jets, and are less
than half the cost of the existing Collins
and AlliedSignal systems. They are still
quite expen sive (about $45 ,000 to
$50,000 should cover it for a Bonanza),
but with a lot of late-model Bonanza and
Baron values now exceeding $200,000
or so, it begins to make sense to si nk that
kind of money into new display technology. Really!
The previ ously mentioned Garmin
GPS 295 can display a horizontal situation display (HSI) on a split screen, while
also showing a four-color moving map.
By now, all of us who have been using
GPS and even Loran for years know that
they are capable of showing '"Track" (aircraft heading corrected for wind).
When this information is displayed on
a compass card similar to a directional
gyro with a needle to show where the airplane is headed (not where it is pointed),
we have a pseudo HSI that does not have
to derive its information from either a
compass or a gyro.
What if we could somehow also derive
our airplane's attitude from something
other than a spinning gyroscope telling us
which way is up? If this were possible, we
could wipe out our trouble-prone air-pressure-dri ven or electric gyros!
ABS January 2000
Seagull Technology
Well. folks. here it comes. There is
an outfit in California named Seagull
Technology that is working on an AHRS
system for light airplanes!
What in the world is "AHRS"? Remember that we have solved, via GPS,
the question of where an airplane is and
where it isgoing anywhere on earth without reference to allythillg on the earth's
surface. We' re halfway there already.
Now what we need is something that can
keep us fro m hitting the earth when we
don't want to.
Again. the airlines have had AHRS in
their Boeings for several years. In their
case, th is is done with very powerful ,
very expensive laser-referenced gyroscopes that can sense minute accelerations and decelerations in any direction.
Assuming the ai rplane is sitting on the
ramp rightside up and reasonably level
when the LaserRef Gyro Inertial system
is powered up, the system can then remember which way is up and where it is
from then on.
AHRS stands for "attitude heading
reference system." This system, on both
big Boeings and linle guys, is accessed and
addressed most often through one or more
FMS or flight management systems.
The FMS lets us know when the inertial reference is up to speed and ready to
roll. While that's happening, we can be
loading the waypoints for our flight into
the FMS . (This is where the old joke
about airline pilots no longer being able
to fly any better but being able to type
60 words a minute comes in).
What if we're not really going anywhere except into the touch-and-go pattern or 60 miles away on a sunny day to
get a $100 hamburger? The SeagUll system envisions a fast erection time, utili zing the altitude function of the GPS.
Thus. when you' re ready to go, it is too.
How much will it cost? Hopefull y,
le ss than $ 10.000. Before you get
"sticker shock" again. have you priced
replacement of your old. wheezing gyroscopic instruments lately? I don't envision this system coming on the market
anytime this year. or perhaps not even
next year, but it's coming.
Since this is an avionics column, l will
not digress into the new technology coming in engines and airframes. I'll bet as
time passes I soon will be talking about
propulsion and aerodynamics more, because all those technologies are coming
together and their lines of distinction are
becoming more blurred.
My son, who flies for Executive Jets,
recently checked out in the Hawker 1000.
I read some of his manuals and leamed that
there are no mechanical connections between the cockpit throttles and the engines.
Electronics control the starting and the
running of the engines. Oh, sure. There
are throttle levers st icking out of the
middle of the console between the pilots,
but they are used merely to convey 10
the engines the wishes of the pilots.
These could just as easily be pushbuttons
marked "Start," "Taxi, " "Takeoff,"
"Crui se," "Land" and "Shutdown." (I
asked him if, when he pushes all the levers and buttons correctly, as seen by the
airpl ane computers, do the computers
dispense him and his copilot a banana?)
What else is ahead in 2000
I did not issue all my prognostications
for the coming year so that I can still add
some and retract some as the year goes
by. I did not, for instance, discuss Headsup Displays, even though I read that my
old fri end and longtime ABS member
Don Hawkins. CEO of Hawkins Associates, has been awarded distributorship of
HUDlS, a system I have been following
and encouraging for several years. It is a
heads-up guidance system for light airplanes, and I will discuss both heads-up
and headsets in later issues.
That 'S it for now. Happy New Year!
And please accept my wishes for all to
have a year of safe and happy fl ying.
Tailwinds always.
ABS member lim Hughes , Sanford, Florida,
holds a BS degree in Aero Engineering. He
is a CFII and an A&P mechanic. Jim heads
Marketing & Professional Services, a consulting and flight test firm involved in both
military and civil avionics applications.
Page 6043
A BRIEF HISTORY OF
The principal reason for the need to raise prices has been the cost
of transportation and lodging for our instructors.
PILOT TRAINING
In 1988 Sam introduced the Recurrent Training Course. The
Initial Coun;e (called Phase I back then) was unchanged, but
the recurrent (called Phase TT) included all new material designed to extend even further the skills of our customers. About
this time, [ joined BPPP as an instructor and taught weather
and Baron operations.
In 1991 Ken Pearce and John Eckalbar went to Australia to
present the course to the ABS members Down Under. Many
rave reviews followed.
IN THE ABS
/.M.
HIRSCH, ATP MEII, Secretary-Treasurer
Bonanza/Baron Pilot Proficiency Program
was asked to write this article to introduce George and Kathy
Tatalovich of Norfolk, Virginia, the new administrators for
the Bonanza/Baron Pilot Proficiency Program, who have
taken over from John and Agnes Porter. The Porters have elected
to retire at the end of 1999.
At this time, it seems appropriate to look back over the rich
history of pilot training in the American Bonanza Society and
acknowledge some of the major contributors. (If I have left
any out, I apologize in advance.)
I
Bonanza Pilot Checkout Program
Recurrent Training Course
Cockpit Companion Course
In 1992 Sandra Provenzano and I introduced the Cockpit
Companion Course for those companions who were not pilots
but who wanted a better understanding of what goes on in the
cockpit. This was not a pinch-hitter course; rather it was a course
designed to enhance the enjoyment of flying as a companion
and increase the safety of the flight.
Flight Instructor Refresher Clinics
The first indication of pilot training was recognized in a 1977
In 1994 we initiated Flight Instructor Refresher Clinics
issue of the ABS Newsletter in which a Bonanza Pilot Check(FIRC) designed to renew the instructorcertilicates of our BPPP
out Program (BPCP) was described. John Eckalbar's name apinstructors, as well as provide truly in-depth knowledge for our
pears prominently along with John Frank, the administrator for
customers. The course consisted of 24 classroom hours over a
ABS at that time, and John Howard. Many letters followed deperiod of three days; no flight time. Customers who particiscribing the success and value of this in-airplane training. From
pated really got down and dirty on the teChniques for getting
that point until 1983, the initials BPCP were
maximum performance out of their Bonanused and several clinics took place throughzas and Barons.
out the country.
Bonanza/Baron Pilot Proficiency,
In October, 1983, Sam James became adIncorporated (BPPP, Inc.)
ministrator of a program called the Bonanza
In 1994 ABS spun off BPPP as a separate
Pilot Proficiency Program, and the initials
corporation, with a seven-member Board and
BPPP were used for the first time. Sam, John Bonanzo/ Boron Pilot Proficoency Programs. Inc. governing bylaws. I was elected as the first
Eckalbar, Ken Pearce and others in BPPP, represident, Hank was vice president and Bill
George and Kathy
ceived accolades in almost every subsequent
was
secretary/treasurer.
Tatalovich are the new
newsletter. Clearly, the ABS had created a
Because of its training purpose and the
tremendous value by offering a training administrators of the BPPP.
way
BPPP is structured, it was able to attain
George has worked with
course that included significant "in-your"nonprofit"
status, which has tax advantages.
BPPP as an instructor,
plane" training.
Legally, BPPP is a discrete organization reABS Clinics
both in the classroom
and cockpit, and Kathy
helped Sam james with
running the clinics.
In 1985 the list of clinics included Phoenix, Arizona; Orlando, Florida; San Antonio, Texas; Fresno, California; Simsbury,
Connecticut; Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Portland, Oregon; and
Wichita, Kansas. By 1986 Austin, Texas; Santa Barbara, California ; Oshkosh, Wisconsin; Concord, New Hampshire; and
Nashville, Tennessee, had been added.
The price in 1986 was $375 for Bonanzas and $575 for Barons. Interestingly, the price for 2000 is $845 for Bonanzas and
$975 for Barons. That's slightly double for Bonanzas and less
than double for Barons. Think about inflation in the last 14
years. The price is cheaper in today's dollars than it was back then.
Page 6044
sponsible for its own actions and operations.
There is one share of BPPP stock, held by
the ABS Air Safety Foundation. This armslength connection ensures ABS members are
the primary participants in BPPP clinics.
In December 1996 Bill Hale was elected president, and [
took the secretary/treasurer job, a role more suited to the busy
corporate lifestyle [ have at Shell Oil.
Then in September 1997 John and Agnes Porter took on the
lead as administrator and operations manager respectively.
Under the Board's direction, they combined the Initial and Recurrent courses into one, retaining the COckpit Companion
Course. So the Friday ground school circus now had three rings.
ABS January 2000
In 1999 we introduced our registrar, Pam
Bailey. She's the pleasant voice who answers
our phone when you call to register.
That brings us to the next century. Now
we want to introduce you to George and
Kathy Tatalovich who are taking on the responsibilities of the BPPP. George has
worked with us as an instructor. both in
the classroom and cockpit , and Kathy
helped Sam with running the clinics when
she was available.
We welcome them
to our family as we
continue a traditi on
which is now 23
years old.
lack Hirsch
BPPP INC. SCHEDULE FOR 2000
Bononzos/Barons/Trovel Airs 01 alilacalians. Subject 10 change.
DATE
PHASE
LOCATION
CUTOFF DATE
Jan. 21-23
Phoenix (Deer Valley). Ariz.
Initial/Recurrent
Jan. 1
Feb. 11-13
O~ondo.
Fla.
Initial/Recurrent
Jan. 21
Feb. 8
Mar. 10-12
Austin. Texas
Inftlol/Recurrent
Apr. 7-9
Fresno. Calif.
Initial/Recurrent
Mar. 24
Apr. 14-16
Columbus, Ohio
lnitiol/Recurrent
Mar. 27
May 12-14
St. Paul. Minn.
Initlol/Recurrent
Apr. 10
June 2·4
Spokane. Wash.
Initial/Recurrent
May to
June 23·25
sept. 22-24
Oct. 6-8
Oct. 20-22
Nov. 3-5
Colorado Springs. Colo.
Utfle Rock. Ark.
Mountain Flying
Initial/Recurrent
Initial/Recurrent
Initial/Recurrent
Initial/Recurrent
May 20
Aug. 21
Sept. 21
sept. 20
Oct. 12
Fresno, Calif.
Nashua, N.H.
Greensboro. N.C.
Cockpit Companion course available at all locations except Colorado Springs.
CAll THE BPPP, INC. REGISTRATION OFFICE to make
arrangements to attend: 970-377-1877 or fax 877-694-3600.
SAN Alft'ONlO A'l"l'RACftONS
The Alamo in the hean of San Antonio on beautifully landscaped grounds.
Tour any of San Antonio's five military installations, including Brooks,
Lackland and Randolph AFBs.
Sunset Station in downtown San Antonio is a turn-of-the-century train station now housing a mix of live music venues, distinctive local restaurants,
dance clubs and great shopping.
The Tower of the Americas offers a panoramic view of San Antonio and the
surrounding area.
Fort Sam Houston, a 500-acre military museum, and site of the first military
plane Oight.
The famous Buckhorn Saloon and Museum with 75,000 artifacts and 10,000
species of animals.
The Cowboy Museum replicates a Western town, with thousands of western
artifacts on display.
Sea World of Texas, the world's largest marine life park, with more than 25
spectacular shows, educational experiences, rides and family attractions.
Fiesta Texas, a 2oo-acre theme park in the Six Flags tradition.
ABS January
2000
towering cypresses, oaks and willows, bordered
by gardens of flowering ornamental plants.
Unique retail shops, restaurants and nightclubs
line the horseshoe-shaped river bend.
Page 6045
TRAVEL AIR OF THE MONTH,
continued from page 6029
Allan and Lynne Johnson based 69Q
at the Lake Elmo (Mi nnesota) Airport.
Shortly after buying it, Allan had to replace the left engine case and three cylinders on the left engine. He told me this
was the result of an idle power rapid descent that too quickly cooled the engine,
which caused these engine parts to crack.
At that time, Allan also decided to have
the original oil screens replaced with an
Airwolf oil filtering system. Allan and
Lynne operated 69Q for about two years
in support of their business.
After an eight-month period of
searching for a Travel Air, I noticed 69Q
for sale in Trade A Plane. After the initial phone conversation with Allan, my
wife Diane and I talked our son Matthew
into flying us to Lake Elmo in a Piper
Arrow to have our first look at 69Q and
go over the logbooks. We quickly discovered Allan had been very thorough
in maintaining 69Q during the time he
had owned it.
After Allan took Diane, Matthew and
me for a short flight to New Richmond,
Wisconsin, and back to Lake Elmo in
69Q, we told Allan to consider it sold,
but wanted to take ownership of 69Q
with a new annual inspect ion. Since
Allan had done an annual on 69Q in May
1997, we agreed to split the cost of this
inspection.
Then Matthew and 1drove to Minnesota between Christmas and New Year's
Day to participate in the inspection and
visit with Allan and the inspector doing
the annual. I knew this would be very valuable knowledge for Matthew and me, but I
can't say enough about just how informative this actually was with regard to what
we learned about the airplane.
After the inspector signed the annual
off, we closed the panels, preflighted it
and did some flying for my currency in
a Travel Air. Matthew and I then departed
for Decatur, lllinoi s, the new home base
for 69Q.
To the best of our knowledge and research, this Travel Air appears to be the
lowest time airframe of the Travel Airs
Page 6046
still flying without having been rebuilt
from more than one airframe. We have
just recently completed the annual after
owning 69Q for the first year. We are
extremely encouraged that nothing was
found to be alarmed about.
During the first year of ownership, we
have only traveled in the Midwest to visit
friends and also to take part in the ABS
Service Clinic at Kalamazoo, Michigan.
That was such an enlightening experience to have such knowledgeable inspectors go over the airplane with us where
they pointed out obvious squawks to us.
Tcan't say enough about the benefits
gained from being a part of ABS. The organization provides a very valuable exchange of informarion on many areas concerning our Bonanzas, Barons and Travel
Airs. Diane and [ were also able to attend
the annual ABS Convention at St. Louis in
1998 and had a great experience.
As we own 69Q over the years, we
plan to keep upgrading the airframe from
the effects of aging as well as upgrading
the avionics.
Gerry Flaugher, Decatur, Illinois
UIPMENT LIST
1962 B95A Travel Air, N969Q
total time on air frame: 2012.3
King KMA-20 audio with three-tight
marker beacon
#1: King KX-155 with KIindicator (fully
coupled)
av/Com :2: Collins 25 1N351A
with Kt-209 VORILOCIGS
indicator (fully coupted)
Nav/Com
209 VORILOClGS
r
Loran: II Morrow 6 18TCA with
database (coupled). tncludes
IIMorrow altitude encoder with
vertical profi Ie fl ighl plan option
and interface witn 618TCA and
Loran CO l/annu nciators for
system and altitude alerts
DME #1: King KN64 (remoted to
Nav 1)
DME #2: King KN64 (remoted to
Nav 2)
Transponder #1: King KT76A
(encoder 1)
Transponder #2: King KT76A
(encoder 2 )
T-12 ADF with Davtron M701 B
digital frequency display
WX-10A Stormscope
Narco ELT-10 ELT (factory re-certified
to 1995 TSO standards)
Century III autopi lot with altitude
hold, coupled to av 1, Nav 2,
Loran, tLS 1 (LOC and GS), tLS 2
(LOC and GS), DG (heading),
backcourse(s) with electric trim
and NP disengage on yoke.
Vacuum and electric attitude
indicators (arti fi cial horizons)
Davtron MBBOO rOkeMmounted,
tighted, digita approach timer
and clock
David Clark DC-SOO five-place stereo
intercom with CD input
Avionics master
Yoke Push-to-Tatk
All avionics, panel and cockpit
wiring new in 1990
ASS January 2000
"Fate is the hunter"
glance showed the MP rising rapidly toward 25 inches. [pulled
back the throttle, started losing more speed and altitude than
expected, shoved the throttle in, no response. and started setBY ELLIOTT SCHIFFMAN, HINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS
ting up 10 land if possible on the uneven grass over-run at the
approach end, hoping 1 would get by the trees.
om Guyer and Ken MacDonald introduced me 10 Fate is
By now I was at 200 feet and there was no time to do anyrhe HIIllIer by Ernie Gann. Ken spent hours scouring
thing but "fly the plane." Suddenly performance returned and I
the flea market at B20SH to find a copy for me. It's a
made a routine landing at the approach end, still with half flaps.
wonderful book about fate nipping at your heels as you fly blissAs I was coasting down the runway, the engine just stopped. [
fully along. Each chapter is an event that could easily have
had enough speed to pull off onto the taxiway and come to a
stop out of everyone's way.
ended in death had it not been for fortuitous circumstances.
This was actually the second stoppage, but I had just orSo there I was, testing out my new engine. [ had just updered and installed ANR inserts from Headsets, Inc. for $169.
graded from an 10-520-BB to an 10-550-B. My first flight with
You wire these A IRs into
the engine was a half-hour
your
own headset. [ can' t
flight within glidi ng disbelieve the difference. The
tance of the field. The secengine sound just disapond flight was programmed
pears. My wife's headset
for break-in. This flight was
has
a deeper shell and a lot
planned to stay within a 20of foam. Mine is shalmile radius. I wanted 10
lower, and I am convi nced
check both climb perforI lost some passive noise
mance and fuel flow s (rereduction,
but the ANR is
cording MP and fuel flow
.
so impressive that it does
each 1.000 feet) to check on . ,
'
.....'
,.
",,,,, ".' I" 'I' .,.
~,,"'"
_
. ,\\\\\',,'1'
not seem to matter. The
the fu nctioning of the auto--.
.. "
ANR
was so good that I
lean gizmo.
E1fiOl/ Schiffman ~ 1988 F33A
couldn'
t "hear" engine
[ was al so interested in
slOppage
at
400
feet
and
low
power,
just
feel
the effects and
climb at less than gross weight, so took off with half tanks. but
see the resultant rise in MP as the pistons stopped sucking. I
with another 20 gallons in the tips. Yes, the fuel flow is impreswas a little 100 busy flying the plane and de-cision-making at
sive, over 27 gph, and the altitude compensator really does not
200
feet , but the next gauge over would have
make much difference until you hit about 6,000 feet , but flows
been
intere ting-seeing all the EGTs botwere between the minimum and maximum published in the
IOmed out with reverse video showing only
Continental engine manual at all altitudes to 12,000 feet. [ did
the CHTs. Had thi s happened at altitude,
a little flying there to let speed build up and engine temps sta[
wou ld have had more time for
bilize and drop a little, then did a gradual descent to 2500 and
the panel.
sightseeing
set up for the [LS into Provincetown. Thi s was an exercise to
What
happened?
Simple. I ran out
find out what power settings and attitude I would need for an
of fuel on short final. The engine
approach speed of 105, again at low weights, sort of what you
coughed to life once. letting me make
would expect at the end of a trip. With the new [0-550 engine,
the runway. Draining the last dribbles
it turns out 10 be about an inch less MP than with the [0-520.
of the tank in use showed one-half
out
Midway across the harbor, I switched tanks. I did a low speed
Each
gallon. The gascolator under the fuel
lLS maintaining 105 knots down 10 200 feet, then dropped the
tank seleclOr was practically empty. chapter of " Fate
flaps and landed to see if there would be any difference in stopTurning
on the fuel pump resulted only is the Hunter " is
ping distance or runway need. I don 't like touch and go's, so I
in
a
gurgling
noise.
an event that
did a routine taxi back, took off and headed back for Marshfield.
I ow for "the rest of the story."
Approaching the 45 , I switched 10 the fullest tank, both now
could eaSily have
When the mechanic and I opened the
showi ng about a quarter full. For my last trick, I wanted to see
ended in death
fuel tank. the bladder was pulled up
how difficult it would be 10 lose altitude in the pattern at low
from the floor and down from the had it not been
power and low weight (am I nuts for doing all this?), so [ ensnaps on top. There was resistance for fortuitous
tered a high key at the end of the runway at 1,500 feet. All
(bul not complete blockage) of flow circumstances.
looked good. 1turned base, dropped half flaps , turned final and
blowing in the vents.
held off dropping the second notch of flaps, using pitch to conThe Bonanza is interesting. At the
trol descent rate. At 400 feet, the plane was "just different." A
T
·
~'.___
ABS January 2000
-
Page 6047
wing root is a curved thin pipe for one vent into the airstream.
Nearby, in a recess, probably protected from icing, is a second
vent. These two join together going to the tank. Outboard of
the tank is a third vent. At places are one-way valves to prevent
fuel from venting overboard. Interestingly, all three vents eventually join, entering the bladder through a single nipple. The
obstruction was at thi s spot, causi ng a panial block of all vents.
The prolonged full power climb with high fuel flows was probably enough to create a partial vacuum and dislOrt the bladder
and fuel gauge indication. I was too new to this engine to have
a good feel for how much of the partially filled tank I had actually used.
Now for the "Fate is the Hunter" analogy. Had this happened before I switched tanks doing the ILS into P-Town, wou ld
I have been smart enough 10 switch tanks over the harbor? Six
miles from the nearest shore over cold water, I like 10 think that
2,500 feet would have given me the time 10 figure tbis out.
Had [ not tried a "high key" at 1,500 feet, would I have
made the runway? Had I made a wide pattern like so many
people do, would I have made the runway? Had I not been in
MAINTENANCE EXPERIENCES,
comililled from page 6033
the stud (empty) end which caused erratic, higher resistance. Diligent work
with cotton swabs and electronic contact
cleaner removed the crud and tarni sh.
The wires are quite small and easily disturbed. so 1scrubbed along the wires, not
crosswise to them. Finally. I scraped the
metal around the rivet holes and the
ground lug to ensure a good ground contact with the airframe.
After reassembling the unit, its resistance varied smoothly. Problem solved'
Reinstallation in the tank was simple,
although safety-wiring the mounting
screws is tedious since space is tight. Our
A&P inspected our work and functionall y checked the circu it to finish the
project with the proper log entry.
This effort was educational and much
betterthan buying the Rochester kit from
Beech at some unholy price.
1111n! a sloner solenoid problem
A few weeks ago on a quick turn after a fli ght. the right engine wouldn't
start. It wouldn't turn over at all. No click
or anything. I suspected the starter sole-
Page 6048
coordinated flight, would I have been able to use 2.5 of the 3
gallons of unusable fuel ? (Remember, J could have tried to slip
10 lose the extra altitude.) Had I put down full flaps when I
turned final, would [have made the runway? Many people put
down half flaps on base and fuU flaps turning final.
Some people talk about a no-flap approach until you have
the runway "made." That is essentially what we do on an ILS
in the Bonanza. Why not in the pattern? Had I transferred fuel
from the tip tanks or been more tuned in to what the fuel gauge
should have shown, I wouldn't even be writing this.
Yes, instead of routinely switching to what appeared to be
the fullest tank for the landing, I should
have been more aware of fuel usage and
timed the climb, but that familiarization
with the new engine wi ll become part of
me as it did with the old.
At any rate. I'm here, the plane is back
flying . The GAMls go in tomorrow and a
pitot-static check in three days, then back
to the routine.
[email protected] Elliott Schiffman
noid was the problem, but it was late on
a Friday- no chance for a shop to fix it
or get pans until Monday. So [checked
further.
Pressing the starter button put battery
voltage at the solenoid, but prodUCed no
response. I took out the solenoid (original
1960 equipment, Guardian Electric PIN
348 lOA) to check its coil resistance. To my
surprise, it wasn't shorted nor was it open;
the reading of 110 ohms looked reasonable.
Why didn't it work?
I noted two plastic covers on the unit
that could be easily removed. The lower
one, big and rectangular, enclosed the
heavy contactors that carry juice to the
starter motor. The contacts were only
slightly tarnished, but I cleaned them anyway. They moved freely within the coil and
made good eleclrical connection.
The top cover was circular with a
single safety wire. Inside was a very
small pair of contacts on a leaf spring. A
resistance check revealed the contacts
were not "contacting" about II 0 ohms
instead of zero.
A simple cleani ng restored good continuity. Great, but what do these contacts
do? The solenoid, it seems, actually comprises two coil windings. The small con-
tacts are normally closed, connecting the
windings in parallel. That draws a high
current to provide maximum magnetic
force when the starter button is first
pressed.
Pressing the starter button causes the
armature to snap the bottom contactors
closed very rapidly with a loud click. Armature motion also opens the small top
contacts which cuts out one winding, reducing the current through the solenoid
to a level that just keeps the starting
contactors closed.
Interestingly, this "sustaining" coil is
not strong enough to move the armature
when you first press the starter button.
Both windings are needed. So if the tiny
contacts atop the solenoid get dirty, the
thing won't work. This isn't mentioned
anywhere in the Beech manuals (whicb
in my opinion are poorly written).
Re-assembly was routine. The top cap
uses safety wire and the bottom cover
uses jam nuts. I put it back in the airplane, connected the starter wiring and
made sure my A&P was happy with the
work. At several hundred dollars to needlessly replace the solenoid, plus labor,
thi s is a very simple repair that saved a
bunch of money!
[email protected]
ABS January 2000
PROGRESS REPORT
Restoring normal operations for early Bonanzas
BY WILLIS M. HAWKINS
A
s repol1ed in the May 1999 ABS Magazine, the Board
differences between the new and the "used" airplane.
of Directors of ABS created a technical comminee to
Raytheon also proposed the use of new replacement magaddress problems like the elimination of the FAA renesium skins which are rivet-assembled rather than spot-welded,
strictions of AD 19-13-02 which applied to Bonanza models
thus requiring more counterweight to balance. This difference
35, 35R A35 and B35. This comminee developed a proposed
between original and present models of the early Bonanzas is
test program that was presented to both Raytheon and the FAA
of specific interest because all of the "vibration incidents" which
office in Wichita, Kansas.
led to the issuance of AD 19Both Raytheon and the
13-02 had "res kin ned"
FAA agreed that such a proruddervators with the necesgram was a rational approach
sary, heavier counterweights.
to identifying the probable
An early Model 35 Bosource of vibrations on these
nanza was obtained by
early Bonanzas. This testing.
Raytheon and has been full y
however, would not be coninstrumented for ground visidered valid by the FAA unbration testing. These tests
less it was done under the dihave now been completed
rection of Raytheon with the
with both the original spotreview that the FAA would
welded rudder va tors and
BonanzaA35
normally have.
with reskinned ruddervators
The ABS Technical Comwith heavier counterweights.
minee di scussed several apWith this new dynamics
proaches with Raytheon to
baseline data, Raytheon has
obtain their supervision of
al so completed supporting
the aircraft selected for tests
analyses covering the critical
and the subsequent analyses
flight speeds and aircraft opto satisfy the FAA. These alerational weights. These reternative approaches were
sults have been presented to
also discussed with the FAA.
the FAA .
During these exploratory
Raytheon has reported to
talks, Raytheon also considthe ABS Technical Commitered what they might do intee that these early airplanes
Bonanza BJ5
house aided by their substanwith e ith er the old or
tial background of knowledge of the dynamics of these Boreskinned ruddervators, if properly maintained, are free of flutnanza models required initially during certification. It appears
ter. Raytheon is now sharing thi s complete data with the FAA
that this wealth of early data and their specific individual talks
seeking their confirmation of its adequacy to be pertinent for
with the FAA fostered a Raytheon conviction that a simpler
all of the "small tail" Bonanzas.
program than theABS plan might lead to the elimination or modiIt may be necessary to make "small changes" in the aircraft
fication of AD 19-13-02. One essential FAA question, if clearly
to ensure that enough margin exists for all of the early older
answered, was: ''What are the dynamic characteristics of an older,
aircraft, but their present view is that AD 19-1 3-02 is on the
well used but adequately cared for airplane compared to its
way out. Let'S all hope so. Raytheon has shared their view of
what these "small changes" may be and the Technical Comcharacteristics when newly built and certificated."
mittee concurs that they are "small."
Satistied that this might be a route to convinci ng the FAA of
As chairman of the Technical Committee, I believe we are
the continuing airworthiness of these early Bonanzas, Raytheon
nearing a solution that won't require theA BS to become a "testdid seek out what they hoped would be a convinci ng test article with which they could duplicate some of the certification
ing agency." I also believe that our efforts were useful and.
perhaps, critical to finding an answer.
---@tests and thus provide complete airplane dynamics data on the
ABS
January 2000
Page 6049
HOWARD STARK
The pioneer aviator of instrument flying
BY JOHN M. MILLER, Poughkeepsie, New York
In about 1923 I became acquainted with Howard Stark when we both happened to be riding our motorcycles
to Connecticut to all air show at Bethany Flying Field in Naugawck. Ho ward's flying career and mille
started about the same tim.e. I would like my ABS friends to know more about the accomplishments
of this velY shy and extremely modest person. This is a greatly condensed version of his career.
H
oward Stark was born before the
turn of the 20th century on a
farm at Pawling, ell' York.
This typical farm boy was drafted into
the U.S. Army in World War I. and since
he knew how to drive an automobile, not
a common skill at that rime, he was assigned as the driver for a general.
While in France, he observed the military airplanes and decided he would like
to fly, but without the required education, he was not accepted for transfer to
flight training. Eddie Rickenbacker, a
driver for General Pershing, had been accepted without the required education because of his fame as an automobile race
driver. Rickenbacker became
the ranking "ace" of
American pilots in
France. (Incidentally, I
had the honor of knowing Capt. Eddie well and
worked for him as a captain on Eastern Air Lines.)
After World War I was over,
many surplus Jenny training planes
were sold as surplus to Curtiss, their
original manufacturer, in Mineola, New
York. Curtiss adverti sed them for sale for
only $500, about one-twentieth of their
original price, together with some instruction for flying them. In the earl y
1920s, $500 was the equivalent of perhaps $10,000 in today's market--{juite
an accomplishment for a country farm
worker.
Howard saved the $500 purchase
price whi le working on his father's farm
and driving a car for a nearby family.
He bought one of those surplus
Page 6050
Jennys, and was assisted in assembling
it at Curtiss Field at the factory, then was
given a mere two hours of flying instruction. That's about eight hours less than
is usually required for learning to fly a
safe solo.
There were no aviation regulations in
those days and Howard new the airplane
to his father's farm, crossing Long Island
Sound on the way-a really surprising
navigational accomplishment for such a
neophyte pilot. Unfortunately, hi s inexperience showed when he crashed while
attempting to land in a very shon field.
By 1926, Howard owned a
Stinson cabin biplane. Colonial Airways, the New York to
Boston air mail contractor,
had a shortage of modern airplanes and tried to buy the
Stinson from Howard. Because he wouldn 't sell it, they
finally rented it and hired him
to fly it. That's how Howard
started flying the mail.
Flying for pay
The way to make a living with your
airplane in those early days was to barnstorm from place to place, taking passengers up on their first air flights. There
were no airlines, and only the Post Office Airmai l Service to California. In
1926. the Post Office contracted with private corporations to take over the airmail
flights. By that time Howard owned a
very modern airpla ne for it s day, a
Stinson cabin biplane-{)ne of the first
enclosed-cabin airplanes manufactured
in the United State.
Colonial Airways,
the New York to Boston air mail contractor, had a shortage of
modern airplanes and
tried to buy the Stinson
Cabin Biplane from
Howard. Because he
wou ldn 't sell it. they
finally remed it and
hired him to fly it. That 's how
Howard started to fly the mail between
ell' York (Hadley Fie ld,
ell'
Brunswick, New Jersey) and Boston.
There was no known way to fly
through the fog so all flying in bad
weather was made down low, under the
clouds. Attempts to fly nigher into the
clouds was very dangerous. Flying under the overcast also caused a lot of collisions with terrain or other obstructions.
and flying the mai l was a risky occupation. There were many fata lities, which
gave aviation a bad reputation, actually
much worse than it deserved.
The Sperry Gyroscope Company at-
ABS January 2000
tempted to solve the problem of flyin g
in the fog. They invented a small gyroscopic instrument called a "Turn Indicator" and delivered samples to the Army
Air Service. Two experienced Army pilots, Capt. Ocker and Lt. Crane, were
assigned the task of evaluating the instrument. They worked on the problem for
about a year at San Antonio, Texas.
Then they wrote a report which was
published as a book. It was their conclusion that it was not possible to fly continuously by referring to that instrument
in the fog without losing control of the
airplane. In fact, the report said, one
could not fly for more than about three
minutes before losing control.
In the meantime, most of the airmail
planes had been equipped with turn indicators, but the pilots soon discovered
the same problem as Ocker and Crane.
They could use it occasionally to zoom
up through a layer of clouds to get up in
the clear air to pass over the mountains
by keeping the airplane going straight.
But their attempts to fly for more than
three minutes or so always resulted in
loss of control-and quite often ended
in disaster when they suffered severe vertigo and disorientation resulting in a false
sense of turning and diving.
Stinson's cabin biplane was equipped
with a turn indicator, but fortunately for
Howard, he had not heard of the Ocker
and Crane experiments and did not know
oftheirconclusion that it was impossible
to fly with the turn indicator in the fog
for longer than a few minutes.
Except for the fact that he had been
told what it was for, the turn indicator
was a mystery to him. He noticed, however, that when he kept his hands off the
controls and simply kept the airplane in
a straight heading by referring to the turn
indicator and the compass- using his
feet on the rudder controls to do so-that
his airplane flew itself very well. The
Stinson cabin biplane had a reputation
as a very stable airplane.
He found that he could fly the entire
distance between New York and Boston
that way. He simply adjusted the stabilizer trim to maintain his desired altitude,
ASS January 2000
The Stinson cabin biplane
was equipped with a turn indicator, but fortunately for
Howard, he had not heard of
the Ocker and Crane experiments and did not know of
their conclusion that it was
impossible to fly with the turn
indicator in the fog for longer
than a few minutes.
he could adjust the longitudinal trim to
climb over the ridge and when he was past
it, he would readj ust the trim to descend to
the original low altitude again on the other
side. He recorded the time required to
safely pass over the ridge and concluded
after several such flights that if he could
do it infair weather, then he should also
be able to do it in foggy weather.
all without touching the control stick.
Across the route of the New YorkBoston airmail line there is a low mountain ridge in the vicinity of the Connecticut River. When the cloud ceiling was
lower than that ridge, it was sometimes
not possible for the pilots to get past the
ridge, even by an end run around the
south end at the shore of Long Island
Sound where the fog would usually be
right down to the surface.
When this si tuation occurred and the
pilots could not find a slight gap to
squeeze through, they would either have
to land and wait for cond itions to improve or else return to their starting point.
This problem caused some fatal accidents when the pi lots tried to get over
the ridge in the fog .
In this modern day of aviation, people
do not realize how many pilots lost their
lives flying themail as well as others fl ying in bad weather during those pioneer
days. As a matter of fact, from 1918 to
1926 during the Post Office operation of
the Transcontinental Airmail Service
alone, there were 42 fatalities.
Even in fair weather, much of the flying was done at low altitude so the pi lots
could become very fami liar with the terrain and the obstructions along their
routes. In bad weather, some flying was
common ly done under ceilings as low as
100 feet, or even lower. Of course, there
were accidents and that was the very reason Colonial Airways had a shortage of
airplanes and the reason they needed
Howard 's airplane.
Howard discovered that when he flew
at a low altitude with hi s hands off the
control stick as I have just described that
So he did exactly that when the cloud
ceiling was very low, arriving at Boston
with the mail, while the westbound pilot
had found it necessary to return to Boston, unable to get over the ridge. Howard
would then take that pilot's mail back to
New York successfully, much to the embarrassment of the other pilots. They
were very rank led when this country
farmer pilot outflew them.
When he explained to the other pilots
-all of them experienced ex-Army pilots from WWI- how he had done it,
they refused to believe him. They thought
he had used a secret gap he had discovered in the ridge. After one more pilot
lost his life, they were finally convinced.
This type of fl yi ng was only done in
a practically straight line. Whenever
Howard attempted to fly in a higher overcast for practice in making turns, he
would quickly lose control due to severe
vertigo and disorientation. Such attempts
invariably resulted in a spiral dive out of
the base of the overcast. That was what
had happened 10 several other pilots who
had experienced fatal accidents when
they dived into the ground or their airplanes disintegrated in the air due to the
high-speed spiral dives.
As I said, Howard had not read the
Ocker and Crane report and other literature about other pilots having this same
difficulty. So he assumed that since such
an instrument existed, someone must
know or had known how to use it. So he
set out 10 teach himself how. The fact was
that even the pilots for Sperry, the originator, and Pioneer Instrument Co., the
manufacturer, were unable to use the turn
indicator successfull y. All of them lost
How Howard
got the mail through
Page 6051
control, so flying by means of the tum
indicator was considered to be just an unproven theory.
It was assumed that instrument flying wou ld not be possible umil an entirely
dilferenttype ofinstrumem was developed.
Later. of course, Sperry did develop the gyroscopic anificial horizon and the directional gyro. All three instruments in various forms are used to this day and are the
backbone of instrument flying .
In the absence of the false information that it was not possible to fly continuou sly with the turn indicator, my
friend Howard was able to analyze the
reason for always getting into a spiral
dive when he attempted to fly turns in
the boltom of the overcast clouds. The
fal se sensations had to be forcibly ignored by the pilot. then the turn had to
be stopped-first with the rudder, then
the wings leveled by means of the gravity ball indicator and finally, the airspeed
adjusted with the elevator controls.
He accomplished what the scientists
at Sperry and all of the other pilots had
failed to do: He found that tirst of all ,
the pilot had to learn to ignore the fal se
sensations which were caused by vertigo
and must believe the instruments only.
day as the Stark 1-2-3 System. It must
be learned by all pilots when they obtain
their instrument ratings. The important
thing that Howard had learned was that
vertigo had to be ignored by the pilot's
own sheer willpower and complete dependence had to be maintained on the
readings of the instruments.
"Blind or Instrument Flying?"
With the ass istance of hi s wife,
Howard wrote and published a pamphlet
called "Blind or Instrument Flying?" By
"blind flying," he meant "trying to fly in
fog without instruments," hence the use
of the question mark. He distributed the
pamph let by mail. He did not realize that
he should have submitted the information to a scientific publication.
Numerous pilots bought the pamphlet.
He gave me one and I used it successfully. In it he explained that those teaching themselves to fly by the tum and bank
indicator in the clouds must learn to ignore the many false sensations which they
were always certain to experience from
vertigo. They must force themselves to
believe in the instrumem readings only and
to use them in the proper 1-2-3 order.
After instructing the Colonial Airways
pilots in the use of his 1-2-3 System,
word spread about him. When the information reached National Air Transport,
the contractor airmail line from ew
York to Chicago, they requested that
Howard teach their chief pilots to use the
turn ind icator properly. Boeing Air
Transport, the airmail contractor from
Chicago to the west coast, used Howard's
instruction also. (Those two airlines later
combined and alomg with Varney Airlines. formed today's United Air Lines.)
The word spread quickly and American Airlines, Transcontinental Air Transport and Western Air Express fo llowed.
The latter two later combi ned to form
today's TWA .
The Royal Du tch Airl ines (KLM)
hired Howard to go to Holland to teach
their pilots. Pilots of Lufthansa and British Imperial Airways (now British Airways) were soon usi ng Howard's 1-2-3System, too. He became a pilot for Eastern Air Transport (later EAL) and taught
their pilots.
He wrote some more updated pamphlets on the subject of instrument flying as the artificial horizon and directional gyro were developed and the radio range navigation system wa s in-
stalled. Howard became very well known
in airline aviation. The United States Department of Commerce, Aeronautics
Branch, employed him to teach their inStark's 1-2 -3 system
spectors to use the tum indicator so they
To recover lost control when the ai rcould make regulations for instrument
plane would start a spiral dive, the
(IFR) flying and finally for air traffic
turn had to be stopped first by refercontrol, as we know it today.
ence to the turn needle by pressure
In 1927 I was deferring my flyon the rudder pedals. Then the ball
ing while studying mechanical enhad to be centered by the ailerons to
gineering at Pratt Institute of Techlevel the wings. Third, the dive had to
nology. Several pilots were preparbe stopped by means of the elevators
ing to fly across the Atlantic to qualify
and the airspeed indicator and only in
for
the Ortieg prize of $25,000. I oc-o
that same order. And he knew the reacasionally went out to Curtiss Field
sons for it.
to watch the preparations. Some atHe called it the Stark 1-2-3 Systempts had ended in disaster.
tem. It consisted of scanning the inOn one of those visits I was
struments and maki ng corrections
standing there talking to Howard
for each reading. In only that way
when one of the pilots came over to
was it possible to regain and mainhim and paid him a compLiment on
tain control when one got into one
his instructional pamphlet on the use
of those otherwise almost certainly
of the turn indicator. A day or so
fatal spiral dives.
later, that pilot successfully flew his
This was Stark's important disairplane which was equipped with a
An Ortieg Prize
which appears at the
covery and it is still known to this
San Diego Aerospace Museum.
Sperry Turn Indicator and a Sperry
....
Page 605 2
ABS January 2000
Earth Inductor Compass, across
the Atlantic. Hi s name was
Charles A. Lindbergh. He was
the aile contes tant pilot who
knew how to fly in the fog with
the turn indicator-a crucial
thing which made his f1ight successfu l. I remember watching him
take off in that murky weather and
thinking to myself that we might
r am
very thankful that I knew
Howard so well. I feel he is an unsung
and forgotten heroic pioneer of aviation. And it is too bad that his own
hometown, Dutchess County, New
York, has failed to narne the Dutchess
County Airport in his memory.
Clyde Pangborn,
another close Friend
In 1931 , Clyde Pangborn was the
never see him again.
first pilot to fl y non-stop across the
By 1929, Sperry had develPacifi
c Ocean from Japan to the
oped the gyroscopic artificial hoUnited
States. After 41 hours in the
rizon and the directional gyro,
air,
he
landed in his hometown of
both standard equipment in one
Wenatchee, Washington. The town
form or another in all today's
was so proud of him, they named
well -equipped airplanes. In that
their
airport Clyde Pangborn Memoyear, th e well-k nown James
rial
Airport.
I worked for him on the
Doolittle practiced using all three
old
Gates
Flying
Circus. Wenatchee
instruments, plus a radio direcalso has a monument at the entrance
tion finder in a small Army trainto the airport, and a plaque in the tering plane, under the hood and
minal building dedicated to him.
with a safety pilot, at Mitchell
"Pang." as his friends called him,
Field, Long Island.
Jimmy Dooliule was able to COPilo~Hugh Hernd~nandPilot ClydePangbornwith their used Howard's pamphlet to teach
make complete flights under the plane M,ss Veedol.. Clyde was the first pilot to fly non- himself to fly with the turn indicastop across the PaCIfic Ocean from Japan to the United
hood from takeoff to landing and States Clyde used HO\1lard~ 7-2-3 System pamphlet to tor, making possible his long nonstop
did so before many witnesses. re- teach himself to fly with the turn indicator, making pos- manually-flown flight from Japan to
. .
f
Sible thiS 47 -hour manuafly-flown flight
his hometown of Wenatchee in a small
SUIling In a great amount 0 pub.
single-engine Bellanca Pacemaker airlicity about his demonstrations. Soon he
storm and made an emergency landing
plane
powered by a P& W Wasp engine.
was called the "Father of Instrument FIyin very deep snow in a remote area of
Whenever
you fly to Japan in a jet, reing." Of course, his accomplishment was
the Wasatch Mountains. He froze to
member
pioneers
Howard Stark and Clyde
very important and outstanding, but was
death trying to walk out in deep snow
Pan
born
whose
accomplishments
were
he really the actual "father" of instrument
and minus 20 degree temperature.
extremely important to aviation in those
flying when Howard Stark was the first
The Stinson had nosed over onto its
pioneer days and right to the present.
to fl y in actual fog in 1926?
back in deep snow, undamaged and was
Here J am in 1999-veteran pilot with
quickly covered by new snow so that it
75
years of flying behind me and still
1936 - End of Howard's career
was not visible to air searchers. It was
more
ahead of me-but Howard Stark,
In Jan uary 1936 Howard was flying a
found by a sheep herder the next spring.
Charles A. Lindbergh and Clyde
Stinson Model S, a four-place cabin airHoward 's body was not found until four
Pangborn are my civilian pilot heroes.
plane for the Department of Commerce
years later. And so ended the career of a
with orders to fly to the West Coast to
remarkable man, sad ly, too early.
A BS member John M iller is a retired miligive more instruction to D.O.C. InspecHoward Stark was so shy, so self-eftary, airline an d test p ifot. H e owns a V35·A
Bonanza and a 56TC Baron hotrod. H e is
tors. At Cheyenne, Wyoming, on Janufac ing and modest, that he never retained
94 years old and has lived in Poughkeepsie,
ary 16, after a few days delay due to sea public relations firm . Of course, the
New York, all his life.
vere winter weather, he got good weather
He has missed o nly
Army Air Service extracted all the pubthree A BS conventions.
reports and started to fly across that high
licity possible out of Doolinle's accomand flew his Bonanza
route to Salt Lake City. He had never
from Poughkeepsie to
plishment-and he deserved it. But in my
Bakersfield, California,
been there before and the plane and
opinion, Howard Stark is really the almost
lO visit his grandchilequipment were barely able to make the
forgonen but true father of today's instrudren on his way to the
ABS Conven tion in San
necessary altitude and distance by visual
ment flying. His discovery saved many
Diego.
flying only.
lives. It is a basic ingredient of today's airHe ran into a severe unforecast snowline, military and general aviation.
ABS January 2000
Page 6053
Currents
BY LEW GAGE
All-electric engine
instrument gauges
I have finally completed conversion
of the engine instruments in my airplane
to all-electric gauges. The benefit in addition to everything being new is elirni-
nating all of the pressurized sense lines
from the cockpit. I am especially happy to
get rid of the fuel pressure line and gauge,
a possible source of leakage considering
the age of the components (43 years).
The required instruments (fuel pressure, oil pressure, oil temperature and
cylinder head temperature) are in a separate panel mounted on the ri ght side of
the main instrument panel canted 45 degrees toward the pilot. The result is the
instruments are facing the pilot with no
parallax to affect the readings.
The pressure gauges and oil temperature gauge are TSO-certified units manufactured by Westberg, Inc. of Sonoma,
California, and available through Aircraft
Spruce. Chief Aircraft, San Val and other
sources. These units are able to replace
the original instruments when the proper
paperwork is submitted together with the
FAA Form 337.
Tsubmitted six pages of data with the
337 for each system and obtained a field
approval from the local FAA office. The
cylinder temperature system is not approved for replacement of the original
system, so the original stays in place.
Since all our eggs are now in the
"electrical basket," I wanted some prolection against failure of either the aircraft electric system or any individual
gauge. I've always had at least two inde-
pendent oil pressure gauge systems. An unscheduled or, worse, off-airport landing
made due to a fai led oil pressure gauge is
thus avoided.
The oil pressure gauge mounted in the
new panel is backed up with a second
independent electric pressure gauge located in an aux panel at the lower right
side. This panel also contains a volt
meter, generator load meter, pitot ammeter, electric tach, electric boost pump
controls, fuel quantity, battery ammeter,
starter run on light and original cyli nder
head temperature gauge.
The oil temerature gauge backup is
covered by the "Skinny Dipper" oil quantityltemperature system. Fuel pressure is
backed up by the fuel-flow system.
The possibility of an aircraft electrical system failure is covered by having a
standby power source for the required
engine gauges plus the GPS and Loran.
This system consists of a do ublethrow, double-pole miniature switch and
annunciator light installed in the face of
the new ly- installed engine instrument
group panel. This switch powers the entire engine instrument panel except the
fuel flow system, getting power through
a one amp fuse located on the "hot" side
of the master relay.
The GPS and Loran are also powered
from the same source, though separate
G35 instrument panel with engine gauges in aux panel at the far right. Loran is installed at original engine group location.
Page 6054
ABS January 2000
fuses. When everything is
length of 1.3 inches (I 51
16 inches), it should exert
operating normally, everya force of seven to eight
thing is powered from the
pounds on a platfonn scale.
aircraft buss. Should the
One
can check the spring
need arise, however, the
thusly. The valve housing
master switch can be
(Item #35 in Figure I) will
turned off and the standby
accept two inches of the
power switch turned on to
spri
ng. The valve piston
power the engine instruis 11l6-inch thick.
head
ments only. These instruTherefore, if we assemble
ments and the GPS draw
the valve housing, spring
less than 1.5 amps. The
and
pi ston and compress
ship's battery will operate
the
spring
against a platthose plus do a gear and
fonn-type scale, the scale
flap extension several
should register seven to
times over.
eight pounds whcn the end
If anyone is interested in
of the housing is 3/8 inch
planning a similar installaabove the scale platfonn (see
tion, I will furnish the paFigure 2).
perwork package Tused for
Figure 1: Oil pressure relief valve setup for "E" engine. Relief valve is
The hole through the
$5 per instrument. That
upper acorn nut on left side of accessory case.
valve
seat machined into
would be $15 total for fuel
the
accessory
case
is
.422 (27/64 inch),
pressure, oil pressure and oil temperature.
which is .1 4 square inch. Therefore, if oil
The fuel flow system is STC'd. The sixpressure is acting against that area, the
cylinder CHT system is also STC'd, but
-,
valve will open at 57 psi with a scale read"" - - - __ J
cannot replace the original CHT gauge.
I------~
ing
of eight pounds. and with seven pounds
too - - ___ J
Now there's a new project for you to
~
-----l
2%.
cale reading, the valve will open at 50 psi.
tackle.
1--- _.. _ 1
SPRING
~---- - l
an
area of pressure range that is desired.
.... - - - ... _1
LENGTH
Pressure relief valve
b-...... -~
It is useless to install washers under
~-- ---1
Although the "E" engine has a rela1----,.
,
the
correct spring in hopes of raisi ng oil
I--- ___ J
tively small oi l pump, an engine that has
pressure when the oil is hot and the presbeen overhauled to new limits (both
sure falls below the relief valve setting.
crankcase and accessory case) will hold
When the pressure goes below 50 or so
50 psi oil pressure even with a Hartzell
Figure 2: Setup to calibrate oil pressure
psi , the valve is closed, and closed is
relief valve spring on "E" engine.
prop installed.
closed! No amount of washers or spring
Occasionally, [' II get a call regarding
stretching, etc. will close it any more.
open slightly. Use a bright flashlight and
a sudden decrease of oil pressure that
There are a number of downsides to
inspection mirror to look into lhe valve
ranges from 5 to 25 psi change. This ocaltering the specified spring force on the
port. The offending object may be stuck
curs from one flight which is nonnal and
valve. If the correct spring alone is into the valve seat and be visible. It may
then the next run, the lower pressure is
stalled,
the correct pressure relief funcalso have been dislodged when removthere. The most common cause of this scetion will occur and any resultant oil presing the valve and dropped into the acnario relates to the pressure relief valve.
sure below that at which a properly funccessory case. These objects are usually
The relief valve is installed in the left
tioning valve relieves is the result ofbearvery small. It takes very little opening of
rear of the accessory case (see Figure I).
ing
clearances and other "Ieak" in the enthe valve to cause a large loss of oil presThe valve is the upper brass acorn nut of
gine being more than the oil pump can
sure when the oil is hot.
two such nuts at that location. The botkeep up with.
In any event. use a clean rag and a
tom nut is simply a plug to close an unIf after inspecting the relief valve and
quarter-inch wood dowel or other nonused hole in the case.
calibrating the spring as described above
scratching, non-metallic stick to swab out
When thi s sudden loss of oil pressure
the oi l pressure remains low. the next place
the valve port. There should be no washoccurs, the tirst step to find the cause is
to look is the oil filter or screen. If metal is
ers used behind the spring to obtain deto remove the relief valve and determine
found there, the problem is not a small one.
sired oil pressure.
if some foreign object is holding the valve
Under those conditions. good luck!
When the spring is compressed to a
T
1
ABS January 2000
Page 6055
any hobby store, works fine and
lasts for the life of the mount . The
Although old-time ABS memwould all be outboard for a
stripes
bers who have been reading info
year and then turned inboard for the
I' ve had pri nted in the ABS Maganext year.
~ille over the last number of years
The turning procedure requires
are aware of this problem, r I'e rethe
7/16-inch mount throughbolt be
ceived a number of calls from fo lks
backed off two to three turns and
to whom thi s is new stuff. Soooo,
then,
if the mounts are not already
we'll hit "E" engine mounts again.
out of center. rotated. I can
sagged
As can be seen in the photo, the
do
all
except
the left rear (on my airexample Lord engine mount is out
plane) using my hand only. The left
of center to one side of the mount
rear is not reachable enough for a
rubber. The bolt hole is eccentric by
good grip so careful use of the right
more than 5116 inch from the flange
size Channel lock pliers will do the
of the mount washer on the other side.
job.
This would allow the engine to sag
Aircraft and annual fli ght time
by that amount. The negative result
Lo
rd
mount
rubber
out
of
center
approximately
three·
the cri teri a for doing this
is
not
is two-fold .
eighths inch, resul ting in crack in engine mount leg.
rotation. Gravity works on
mount
First fold: The engi ne accessory
sagging
these mounts 100 percent
case will ride on top ofthe keel beam
of the ti me, even while fl ying. Also. an
causing cracking of the keel beam, create
shown in the photo and cracking of the
airplane that fli es 125 hours a year is not
funny noises while in fl ight, cause abrasupport structure of the airframe engine
fl ying 98.5 percent of the time. It is the
sion of the accessory case and keel beam
mount brackets.
calendar
and gravity that dictates the
and misalignment of the propeller spinner.
The method used to avoid all of these
need for thi s work.
Second fold: As may be seen in the
sorts of problems is to turn the Lord
photo. the hole in the engi ne mount leg
mount rubbers 180 degrees at each anLewis C. Gage, ABS member, ATP
multiengine la nd with Boeing 707/720/747/
through which the bolt and bushi ng pass
nual. The procedure requires about th reeAirbu5-3 1O ratings. Commercial single endoes not leave any clearance for the bushquarters of an hour of labor. The left rear
gine land; flight instructor MEUSEL airplanes
and instruments; ground instructor advanced
ing if the mount rubber has sagged very
moun! is the most difficult one, the other
an d instrument; flight navigator; flight engimuch. The result is the engine rests on
three being very easy to turn.
neer; mechanic-airplane and engine; and
FAA p arts man ufac turing a uthorization.
and is supported by metal-to-metal conTo keep track of the rotation, an inFlight time: I S,OOO-plus hours . Lew may be
tact between the bushing and engine
dex stripe should be painted across each
contacted a t Sunrise Filters, In c., 2255 Sun mount leg. This condition will lead to
rise, Reno, N V 89509. PhonelFax: 775-826·
rubbe r portion of th e Lord mount s.
7784.
cracking of the engine mount leg as
Testor 's yellow model paint, available at
"E" engine mounts
GA NEWS BRIEFS
C. Don Cary named VP
rCM acquires Mattituck Aviation
A Raytheon news release reports that C. Don
Cary has been named vice president/Customer
Relations.
In this new position, Don is responsible for
customer-focused functions. including customer
support newsletters, authorized service centers,
development of customer sati sfaction metrics,
operator conferences and seminars, weekly customer appreciation
breakfasts, major customer issues and the Deli very Center.
Donjoined Beech in 1966 as a pilot training instructor at the Beech
Training Center. He is a commercial pilot with multiengine and instrument ratings, holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in trade and industrial education from Oklahoma State University.
Teledyne Continental Motors has acqu ired the
assets of Mattituck Aviation Corporation of Long
Island, New York. Mattituck is a privately owned
aftennarket supplier and piston engine rebuilder and
overhauler for the general aviation marketplace.
The acquisition brings additional market service
capabilities to TCM. "The unique ski ll s and capabilities of the management and emplolyees of
Mattituck will strengthen TCM's efforts in the pursuit of excellence in manufacturing, service and
technology," said Bryan Lewis, president ofTCM.
Allegheny Teledyne' S website is <http ://
www.alleghenyteledyne.com>
-@-
Page 6056
ASS January 2000
and available. or not flying the aircraft
because the exorbitantl y priced "airwor_
thy" pans are not available.
- Barrie Hiern, Rome, Georgia
Thanks to Jim Hughes
Thank you for the article in the August 1999 ABS Maga:ille regarding GPS
rollover. My Trimble Flightmate wenl
belly-up in late Ju ly. Il refused to pick
up more than two satellites and by midAugust, it could pick up only one. Fortunately, I was delayed in sending it to
the manufaclUrer for service and also.
fortunately, Jim Hughes wrote an ar~
ticle on GPS rollover. As per that art icle,
we performed a "hard reset" and now
i""".~theFlightmate is back to normal.
- Des; Laperal
Makali Cily, Philippines
New fee to fly to Mexico
TeM parts prices
ABS has been working with the membership to try to keep Raytheon parts
prices as low as possible by providing a
form on the web site that can be printed
out with a questionably hi gh pilns price
and then submitted to RAPID for'review.
This frequently resulls in a lowered price
on said part. Kind of like the kid thal gets
caught wi th his hand in the cookie jar
putting some oflhem back-sometimes.
But ABS now needs to work with
TCM in the same manner, although not
as many indi vidual parts are needed from
TCM as are for the rest of the aircraft.
However, an example is th e alternator
belt for the 10-470 series engines, TCM
PIN 539547-32.00. List price on this bell
is $2 1.04; this compares to the same size,
and 1 wou ld bet quality. Gates PIN 7320
bell that is available for $8 at your local
aUlo store without the additional 53-plus
shippin g charge. The kicker: Not only is
the Gates belt cheaper, it is available.
I ordered several TCM belts in Au gust, one for th e airplane, and one for
the shelf as a spare. Guess what? I got
one, but the additional ones have been
on back order-sinceAugusl. So it boils
down to a choice of having the FAA
ground the airplane for having " non-airworthy" pans that are reasonably priced
ABS Jan uary 2000
I recently returned from my first fall
trip to our house in Baja, California. I
had been told there was a new fee, tax
or whatever being charged per plane. In
San Felipe airport, the sign read $42 per
plane. One "offical" said "Forget that.
it 's now $43 .55!" Of course, he didn ' t
have change. so (he cost was now S44
for my single engine A36 Bonanza.
I want to warn everyone so they wiII
have an opportuni ly to write our represenlatives and the Mexican government,
too. In addition. since this is a per-trip
charge, you may want to avoid the uip al-
together! We are not flying back to Mexico
untillhis mess is corrected, so beware!
- Bob Corbell, Yuma, Arizona
John Eckalbar, a teaching professor and
Ph.D. in Ihe California Un ivers ity sys-
tem, opened our ground school sessions
wi th perform ance topics. Bill Hale, a
multi·talented creator of aviati on inventions and patents, as well as a unique and
attention-getting teacher. taught systems.
David Treinis. an enthusiastic, motivalional personality, briefed the female companions about what goes on during a Bonanza flight. He also taught us the values
of Cockpil Resource Management.
Each of these gent lemen represented
the BPPP with knowledge and preparedness. We were fortunate to have th e wisdom and expe rie nce of Dave Monti. who
provided us with thorough and informative walk-arounds along with maintenance tips during our hangar sessions.
Approximately 32 CFls were gathered from all over the country to provide us with the flying portion of OUf
seminar. I have no way of evaluating the
indi vidual talents of each CFI, but my
instructor, Roland Cowser. a retired airline captain, was exceptional. His ability to make the sessions "pure fun" and
informati ve is unequaled . I left on my
flight home wi th renewed confidence
about my airplane and myse lf.
Another person who dese rves recognition is Agnes Poner who attended to
the logisti cs of scheduling and the distributi on of materials for th e classes,
which contributed to the efficient flow
of the program,. Her warmth and contagious smile was appreciated by all of us.
I make these comments without reservation and absolute sincerity.
-John R. Olson
Great BPPP in Arkansas!
I have flown my F33A since 1989 and
as a former airline pilot I held the feeling
that my level of training and experience
was sufficient that I did not need to take
the BonanzaiBaron Pilot ProfiCiency Program. I did. however, continue to keep proficient by employing the random services
of CAs on an occasional basis.
However, in September I listen ed to
an inner voice and enrolled in the Lillie
Rock BPPP. It was the best bang for the
buck I could have hoped for. From the
very first day to the last flight. 1 was in
the company of totally dedicated professionals endowed with credentials of exceptional quality.
Hank Canterbury, a retired major gene ral and former Thunderbird pilot and
Georgetown, Texas
Black holes and ice
As I read the artic le by George
Wilhelmsen in the November issue about
John F. Kenn edy's sudden impact with
the ocean, I was reminded of a recent
experience of mine I would like to share
with the me mbers. But first, a liule background information. I grew up flying IFR
because I couldn 't see over the dash of
my father'S 1958 Comanche. In '76 I soloed at SIU Carbondale while in college.
Most of my 2.000 hours of flying the
past 15 years has been in a vintage '68
Baron. It's not pretty, but it's effective.
It has boots, radar and enough tools. It's
had three engine outs and one inflight
fire in my career and is still ticking.
Page 6057
A recent winter trip from Rochester,
New York, to Toronto. Canada (a 20minute flight ), shook me up. I had
Airmets for icing, but no pireps. (Pi reps
count in my book and I wish you pistonpoppers wo uld give more to Flight
Service.)
I was climbing to 6,000 and encountered lots of ice. My passenger wondered
who was throwing snowballs at this altitude. The boots were working overtime.
On approach to Toronto Island Airport,
we descended to 600 AGL into a black
hole a visual references. I called the
controller who reass ured me that I
wouldn't see Toronto light until three
miles out. He was right.
On the half-mile final , I was high
(normal for night flight). J pulled power
and eased back on the yoke. Shudder.
then second tail shudder was worse. I
was stalling-an abrupt shot of power.
But I thank God that the 4,000 foot runway had two inches of fresh snow on it.
My passengers complimented me on
such a nice landing.
Don' t underestimate the "black hole,"
There is absolutely nothing yo u can see.
And don' t underestimate ice. I thank God
for my fo rgiv ing Baron. If this had happened to me in that old Comanche with
that slippery wing. I'd be swi mmingjust
short of the ru nway. I think IFR training
should include ice training.) JFK could
easi ly have become disoriented, an easy
mistake for a new-bee. And bad fo r us
in general aviation.
I think ABS should publish a section
of the magazine similar to AOPA Pilot
called "Never again!" so we can learn
from others' mistakes. And one more
thing. At uncontrolled fields don't cancel until you're on the ground, espec ially
at night. Who can find you if you collapse a gear or crack a deer?
- Walter Gerhardt, Jr.
Markham, JIIinois
Wing explosion
Last May my sister Cathy and I were flying from Portland,
Oregon, on a local flight. We taxied for takeoff on 28R at POX
after our runup. When I was cleared for takeoff, I turned on the
strobes and proceeded with a rolling takeoff. At approximately
80 mph J began to rotate. With the nose wheel off the ground
there was a loud noi se and the aircraft veered to the left. At
first , I thought I must have had a tire blowout. As we were
going off the runway, out of the corner of my eye I saw metal
wav ing in the wi nd. I called tower and told them 22V was
aborting takeoff. leaking fuel and to send the CFR.
After we came to a stop, I first saw the damage and thought
I must have hit a mnway sign. My sister and I got out of the
aircraft as the firetrucks arrived. The follow ing Tuesday three
NTSB members came down from Seattle. Raytheon sent a man
out from Wichita and the local GADO sent one man over. They
were very excited because the wing was still attached to the plane
and we were alive.
They found the source of vapor right away. The left fuel
cell was improperl y repaired in 1985. The source for ignition
was harder. They couldn ' t find it that day, so the next week an
explosion expert from Washington. D.C., came out, along with
a man from Seattle and the man from Raytheon. She took a
two-foot wi ring bundle back with her and looked at it under an
electron microscope and found a slight cut in the wire cover
and some carbonizing from a possible arc.
Summary of the repairs and first test flight in N6222V
Flightcraft in Portland , Oregon, called all over the country
tryi ng to locate a wing. They finally found a repairable one in
Oklahoma. It took two months for the wing to be rebuilt and
shipped to Flightcraft, then another four months for parts to be
replaced and rewired. After an additional month for painting, I
finally have my plane back.
After a very long and thorough preflight, I started the plane
for the first time. I was very excited and a liule nervous. In the
run up area at POX, I waited un til all engine parameters we re
in the green, then r did the run up and pre-takeoff checks, taking a lot longer than nonnal. When I called clearance deli very, J
explained that this was a majortest fli ght and I would require a lot
of space between my takeoff and the landing traffic. The tower
said I had all the time I wanted and cleared me for takeoff.
Page 6058
An arcing wire is suspected of igniting an explosion in an
improperly repaired fuel cell.
As I accelerated, I was very tuned in to the sounds and the
feel of the plane. I rotated and leveled off at aboul 10 feet and
started a series of control checks almost to the end of the runway. When r was satisfied everything felt normal, I climbed to
3,000 feet and went southeast of Portland. When r was over a
less populated area. r started a series of turns and climbs and
lowering and raising the landi ng gear, etc. The plane responded
very nice ly, and it even flew a little straighter than it had before (less aileron trim requ ired). It was sure great to be back in
the air again in my Bonanza.
Greg Wilson of Boring, Oregon,
is an 8,OOO·hour pilot for American Airlines.
The American Bonanza Society was founded for
the purpose of sharing information among Bonanza, Baron and Travel Air aircrait owners and
pilots. Send your letters to:
ABS Magazine/ ABS Headquarters
P.O. Box 12888, Wichita, KS 67277
fax: 376-945-7770 or E-mel;/: [email protected]
ASS January 2000
Shop Talk
BY LYNN JENKINS
Gear-up landings and
what you can ao to help
prevent them
Size problems with
Michelin Air tires
Aeroshell W-l 00 Plus
Miscellaneous items
An FBO responds
I wish to thank those of you who responded to my need for material to publish in my "Shop Talk" article. I really
appreciate the input.
Gear-up landings/ what you
can do to help prevent them
A look at the recent NTSB repons reveals the fact that we still are having a
lot of gear-up landings. Some of these
are reponedly due to gear collapse. Maybe
they are and maybe they aren't. But there
are several things an aircraft owner can do
ABS January 2000
to help prevent those that are.
Every week or so during your preflight inspection. c1jmb (if you are still
young and agile) under the wing on the
inside of the wheel and strut and press
up on the down-lock control arm. If you
can move the arm up at the scissors, you
are probably not getting adequate downlock pressure and should have your mechanic look at it before funher flight.
Do the same check with the nose gear
down-lock scissors as well. What T normally do is hit the down-lock scissors at
the pivot point with the heel of my hand.
If the scissors bump up, it is probably
too loose.
Later model aircraft have a down-lock
mechanism (where as the older models do
not) that holds down-lock pressure against
the up-lock roller when the gear is down
and locked. Check to make sure that there
is some tension against the up lock roller
when the gear is down and locked.
Size problems with
Michelin Air tires
One of our ABS directors recently
came across a problem with a Michelin
Air 500 x 5 nose tire that was the wrong
diameter. When he installed it on his Baron
(this will give you a clue as to who it was),
it rubbed against the nose wheel suppon
assembly. When he contacted Michelin,
they told him that there was something
wrong with his airplane. Not so.
After several calls. they finally sent
him the specifications for the 500 x 5
wheel. The wheel measured 14.375
inches whereas the specification called
for 14.2 inches.
Again, another call to Michelin. They
still said something was wrong with his
aircraft, but they agreed to send him a
new tire. Voila! The new tire at 50 pounds
of pressure only measured 14.15 inches
and did not rub against the wheel suppan assembly. So if your tires don ' t fit
properly, check their size.
Aeroshell W-l 00 Plus
Several people have asked me what the
difference is between Aeroshell W-100 and
the Aeroshell W-IOO Plus. According to information that I have obtain, the Plus has a
Lycoming engine additive already in the
oil where as the W-100 does not.
For many years now, Lycoming has
required that you put a Lycoming additive in your oil each time that you do an
oil change. This has required you to purchase your oil at one place. then go to a
Lycoming Distributor or supplier to obtain the engine additive. Now, by purchasing the Aeroshell W-IOO Plus, you
no longer have to obtain the additive
separately.
Miscellaneous items
Baffle a~'ustments
behind t e #2 cylinder
Cooling problems with the #2 cylinder can frequently be attributed to improper placement or adjustment of the
baffle between the oil cooler and the bottom of the cylinder.
We frequently find that the bottom
baffle's rubber piece is below the oil
cooler- rather than facing up-keeping
air from passing through the cooling fins
of the oil cooler and the cylinder. You
might check yours to see if it is installed
properly.
Brackett air filter problems
A member who wants to remain
anonymous is having problems with the
oil saturated foam air filter manufactured
by Brackett.
He claims that when he goes to full takeoff power, his alternate air door opens, permitting silicons to enter the engine.
Upon contacting Brackett, they told
him the spring on the alternate air door
was probably weak and suggested he replace it. He did so but to no avai l. Frustrated, he contacted the FAA with the
problem. Someone did return his call but
as of yet, no resolution has been offered.
My only suggestion at this time is that
if you have the problem and choose to
do something about it, go back to the
original paper air filter that originally
came with the aircraft. You can obtain
the part number from the aircraft pans
manual and order it from normal supply
sources.
Page 6059
Questions and answers
I received a letter from a member with
many questions. In some cases, I don't
know the answer. In others, the information required is selective to particular air·
craft by serial number.
Q: Should there be any play in the aile·
rons when fully retracted'
A: I do not know what is meant by reo
tracted ailerons. Perhaps you mean flaps.
This seems to vary between aircraft. In
some cases, one or both of the fl aps will
be up tight. In other cases, one may be
tight and the other may have a lillie play
in it. What is imponant is that they are
rigged correctly. The bottom of the flap
should align up exactly (+ or -) with the
bOllom of the aircraft fuselage. I have
seen some cases where they have misrigged oneofthe flaps to compensate for
a wing low condition. Both flaps have
up stop bumpers that may need to be adjusted to minimize up play.
Q: Should there be play in the cowl flaps
when fully open?
A: If the bushings, hinges, linkage and
rod ends are in good shape as in a new
aircraft, then the answer is "no."' As
things start to wear (especially rod ends
and hinges), some play does appear in
the cowl flaps.
Q: Should there be any play in the nosegear doors when fully open?
A: Same answer as in the question above.
Q: What is the deal about removing the
mud scraper on the front wheel and about
using the wrong bolt to secure it (if you
don't remove it)?
A: If you primarily operate out of paved
strips and stay away from muddy fields,
removal of the mud scraper is not uncommon. If you leave the mud scraper
on, a drilled bolt head and safety wire
are required to ensure that the bolt does
not come loose.
Q: I saw a new ad in the ABS Magazine
for stainless-steel fuel-tank drain valves.
What's the Skinny on those? How are
they installed if they don't allach to the
tank?
A: These newly certified quick drains
insert into the fuel cell nipple similar to
the way the old style drains are installed
but are then secured to the lower wing
skin rather than allowing the fuel cell
nipple to flex as currently happens with
conventional quick drains. These drains
have been approved under STC SAO I II 0
CH. The washers used in the kit require
a PMA , which the FAA has verbally
approved, but the paperwork has not
been received as I write this column in
November.
By the time you read this in the Janu·
ary 2000 issue, the kits should be available for shipping. The supplier is a wellknown vendor formally known as Aircraft Fuel and Repair in Eagle River,
Wisconsin. Curt Hartwig, general manager, informs us that effective January
I, 2000, they have changed their name
to Eagle Fuel Cells to avoid confusion
with other companies. They may be contacted at 800-437-8732 for questions
concerning this new product and for fuel
cell repair or replacement.
Q: Are more expensive GA tires worth
the money? Do they last proportionately
longer?
A: The better grade of tires do have a
better wear life and exhibit a lot less
sidewall cracking. If you are on ly interested in the cost trade off vs. wear, it
probably does not equate out evenly.
Q: How does one determine the condition of rod ends' Should rod ends be lubricated periodically? How often? With
what?
A: A rod end should have virtually no end
play. Moving the attachment back and fortb
will show you if it has some play.
Yes, they should be lubricated. The
more often the beller. Their are several
types of lubricant you can use but with different results. Engine oil works well, however, it collects dirt which is detrimental to
the wear surface orthe rod end. LPS·3 can
also be used but with the same result.
I personally use Tri-Flo, which is a
Teflon-based material. It works very well
and does not collect dirt. I do not recommend LPS-I, WD-40 or any light pen.
etratin~
oil since it has no body, offers
poor lubrication and also collects dirt.
Q: How does one determine the condi·
tion of the nose strut? How often should
it require air, if at all? Ditto for fluid.
Should the chromed strut always be completely dry?
A: If the seals are in good shape, leakage of the nose strut will be minimal and
will not require serviCi ng for years. lfyou
detect fluid leaking down the strut, the
seals are starting to fail. You will also
note that the strut is probably lower than
it should be. Once the strut is leaking and
shows that it is probably under-inflated,
you should service both the fluid and
compressed gas. (I didn ' t say dehumidified air since nitrogen is a better way to
go, especially in very cold climates.)
If you are losing gas but see no evidenceoffluid leaking. you probably have
an O'ring or Schrader valve leaking in
the top section of the strut. (These are
special Schrader valves, not the same as
used in automotive tires.) Small Ouid
leaks are not serious as long as they are
monitored and the fluid is checked periodically. Once the fluid is gone, however.
the strut wi ll lose all of its gas momentarily and go flat.
Q: Are stainless steel screws for airframe
screws a good idea?
A: Many stainless screws on the market
today are not of aircraft quality and do
not meet strength requirement s for struc-
tural screws. I would only use stainless
steel screws if they are FAA-approved
and meet FAA standards for aircraft. Using stainless steel screws is not so important when used in a non·structural
area, but may not be legal.
Q: Should anti-seize be routinely used
on airframe screws. such as those around
the fuel fillers, etc. What type?
A: No. Normally, anti-seize is reserved
mainly for spark plugs. The use of anti.
seize on airframe hardware may permit
the Screw to come loose which is a nona. Permatex makes an aviation grade
anti-seize compound. Fuel tank screws
are normally plated, and if the plating is
Page 6060
ASS January 2000
An FBO responds
In the November issue of "Shop Talk." I wrote about what to look for in a service shop. As a result, I received a letter
from an FBO giving his views on the subject. He asked not to be identified so I am honoring his request. I neither agree
nor disagree with him. I just want to present another point of view. Here are his comments.
Before I purchased this FBO. I was one of its cu tomers.
I figured if I could at least break cven. I could get my own
is exactly what it is: a $ 150 annual. Buy Colvill 5 Corner and
read what should be done for an annua l inspection. No one
maintenance done at cost. Predicated on that assumption. I
knew the airplane better than he did, God bless his soul. and
purchased the FBO some four years ago. What a learning
experience it has been!
The fact that a lot of the Bonanzas and Barons and a few
of the Dukes that we see come in here don 't fall out of the
his estimate was that the inspection should take 15 to 20 manhours.
sky is a tribute to how well they were designed and built. It
gets worse for other makes of aircraft we work on probably
because Bonanzas are expensive, and the people who own
them tend to be more affluent than people who own othcr
makes.
We find it hard to believe that aircraft owners will take
chances wit h their aircraft on maintenance issues that they
wouldn't even consider wi th their automobi les.
Here are a few tips on how to get good maintenance for
your Bonanza or other aircraft:
I. Find a good shop with a good repllfatioll (lnd stick with it.
Look for all of the things mat Lynn mcmioned in his column.
Try to realize that the people who own and work in the shop
probably make less money and have less money than you. the
Bonanza owner. U you use the same shop. the mechanics will
know your airplane and work with you to keep it safe and the
cost of maintenance down. Let the shop make some money on
the job. Don't bring in tires or other items you bought by mail
order. Don't bring in your own oil and filters. If the shop is
making a profit, it wi ll be there for you in the future.
2. Avoid renegade lAs. If you scrimp on maintenance for
your aircraft, you are only cheating yourself and possibly
endangering your life as well as the lives of the people who
fly with you. A walk-around $150 annual inspection
not damaged, they will not rust. In other
words, replace them if you strip out the
Philips heads.
Q: How long do spark plugs generally
last? How often should they be checked!
serviced?
A: It depends on what type of plugs you
have installed in your engine. If you are
using fine wire iridium plugs, they will
normall y last the life of the engine. However, they should be cleaned and gapchecked every 2oo to 300 hours, depending on the type of fiying you do. On the
other hand, if you are using massive elec·
trode type plugs, they should probably
be c~ecked, cleaned and re-gapped between 100 and 150 hours.
ABS January 2000
At toda)"s hourly labor rates ofS55 to $75-we currently
are at 565 as are most shops at th is airport- it means just the
inspection phase of your annual inspection alone will be at
least 5800 and cou ld be as high as SI,500. And that 's if noth·
ing is wrong with it. Most Bonanza annuals we are doing
today are going out the door at between 52,000 and S3,OOO.
This is for a good. thorough inspection.
3. Take your airplane to a shop two or three times a yew:
Have the shop do your oil and filter changes, tires and brakes
and a complete safety inspection. Not only will you have a
well-ma intained. safe aircraft, but you will see a big reduction in the cost of your annual inspection if you use the same
shop. One of our cUSLOmers with a very nice 535 just had his
plane annualed by us for just over $1,000. He brings the aircraft in several times a year for routine maintenance.
In summary_ the owners of the FBOs that maintain your
aircraft are not getting rich. In most cases, they are in the
av iation busi ness because they love airplanes. Try to remember that you, the aircraft owner. need these people LO be around
to take care of your airplane.
Remember, FBO owners with a healthy, profitable business will be in a better position to give you the ma intenance
that will keep you and you r loved ones that fl y with you safe
from mechanical problems. Weather and good flying sense
you will have to do on your own.
Q: How can one tell if a Cleveland brake
is dragging? Should the wheel turn
freely? If it doesn 't. how does one fix it?
A: In automotive applications. the brake
puck is pulled back from the rotor a
couple of thousandths when you take
yo ur foot off the brake. In ai rcraft, this
type of master cylinder is not used. The
brake will normally drag a little, causing a small amount of drag to the wheel.
If the drag is excessive, you probably
need to disassemble the complete brake
mechanism, including removing the pistons from the hydraulic housing. thoroughly cleani ng it. then re-installing it
on the wheel.
Please let me know of any subjects
you would like me to comment on. Your
questions or suggestions are welcome.
Should you wish to contact me regarding this anicle or any other wicle that I
have written, you may do so by either
using my e-mail: [email protected]
orsending me a fax at 775-331 -49 11.
A8S member Lynn Jenkins (ATP. Multi and
Single Engine, Commercial Seaplane, A&P
and IA ratings) is an avid ABS supporter and
speaker al the ASS convention seminars. He
was a/50 a pioneer in selting up an aircraft
mail order parts business for general avialion aircraft owners. His company, under the
name of Jenkins Air Service, sells engines,
propellers, parts, accessories, avionics, ere.
wholesale 10 the aviation community. All
ABS members will receive Significant discounts. To contact Jenkins Air Service in
Reno, Nevada, call 775-331-4905, fax 775331-49 11 or e-mail <[email protected]>.
Page 6061
I
REGIONAL NEWS
Midwest Bonanza Society
Members of MBS met in Branson,
Missouri, the weekend of October 21-24.
Exceptionally mild weather in the area
allowed a good attendance of 33 airplanes
with about 60 people who came from as
far away as Pennsylvania, Florida, Michigan and Wisconsin.
We rented two large vans to shuttle us
from the airport to our various events
throughout the weekend. Some of us arrived on Thursday to attend the most
popular shows, which had been reported
to be sold out. But by standing in line to
take advantage of last minute cancellations, all of us were accommodatedsome got front row seats' Those not attending shows enjoyed dinner together
at a local restaurant.
On Friday MBS officers spent most
of the day greeting more arrivals. That
evening a caravan of rental cars and vans
carried us to a restaurant serving steak
and rotisserie chicken. After dinner. Allan
Edwards, a local entertainer, delighted
the audience with songs and stories. From
there, it was a short drive to the
Remington Theater where the group was
treated to front row seats for "Branson
City Lights," last year's winner of the
"Best Show in Branson" award.
Saturday morning. one van took shoppers to a local factory outlet mall where
there were 91 brand name shops and eateries. The other van was loaded with tirekickers who headed for the airport to
Page 6062
Lorn Honey, Richard Segura, Ja ck Billington, Lee Allen, Phil Gutwein, John Funk,
Robert Sleeper and Wayne Williams admire Phil and Julie Gutwein 's new 7999 A3 6.
check out the latest "toys" installed on
the airplaness. After lunch at a local watering hole, we returned to the airport to
watch a brand "P" fly-in. Discussions
ensued about whose airplanes were the
best. It was no contest!
Saturday night, another MBS caravan
set off on the short drive to Table Rock
Lake where we boarded the showboat
"Branson Belle" for a dinner cruise and
show-first-class entertainment of singing. dancing and magic-and a ventriloquistlcomedian who had us laughing until it hurt.
During a break. we toured the boat
and pilot house while the captain explained the various systems and showed
us how he steers such a large vessel. It
was a really fun evening.
nder a beautiful blue sky and moderate temperature on Sunday morning.
we said our good-byes until next time.
- John Whitehead
Northeast Bonanza Group
On February 19, we wi ll fly to Oxford, Connecticut (OXC), to meet for
donuts and coffee at the airport between
10:30 and 11:30. Transportation will be
provided to go to lunch at Thatcher's
Restaurant. This will be followed by two
short presentations, one on medical issues by an AME and one on customs information when flying into and out of
Canada.
From March 31 to April 2 the group
will be meeting at the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort and Spa in Farmington.
Pennsylvania.
In May,join us for a great fly in north
of the border when we go to Toronto,
Canada. Three of our Canadian members
(Jack Shipley, Gery Karker and Glyn
Walters) are setting up this spring fullweekend fly-in event. The date bas not
yet been set.
For more information, contact me at
<[email protected]>.-Jeff Rosell
ASS January 2000
I
Mid-Atlantic
Bonanza Society
On November 13, MABS had a flyin to Wilmington. Delaware, hosted by
Mickey Kraft. Eleven planes landed at
New Castle County Airpon. We had
lunch at the 94th Aero Squadron restaurant tight at the field. Some took a
cab to Old ew Castle and enjoyed the
sights of this histotic city which was
developed ptior to the Revolutionary
War.
There will be no fly-ins for January or February, but the Fly-in/Activities group headed by Everett Williams put a great schedule together
for the rest of 2000. Hope to see you
there. - Steve OXlllan
MABS 2000 Fly-In Schedule
March 11 - Reading, Pennsylvania
(RDG).Lunch. fo ll owed by a lour of the
Mid At lantic Air Museum. Hos ted by
Rich and Jeannine Campbell.
March t6- t9 - "Lap of Luxury"
Australian Bonanza Society
Here are a few exciting events being planned for your pleasure:
A 10-day Safari to Tasmania via King Island and Flinders Island wi ll begin on
March 3. Registrations are limited to 45 participants. Organizers are Peter and Judith
Gordon and Peter and Robyn Waterhouse. Also in March another fl y-in is being organi zed by Mark and Jo Davey to Tyabb and Mornington Peninsu la. The date is yet to
be set.
Carr and Ann Hordem are organizing a safari around Australia for August 12 to 26.
More details are available on our web site at http://www.ats.com.aulbonanza.
Barbie and the Bonanza
One day. not too long ago, I got a call from an old friend who works for
Mattei who said he wanted to shoot the Bonanza for some Barbie deal.
"Any excuse to show off 252V works for me," I said, and arranged to meet
him at the airport on a Saturday morning. I made sure that my 1971 model
vintage F33A looked like a 1991. Sitting there gleaming in the summer sun
rays she made my hean proud. And if 1 have said this once, I've said it 100
times: " I don't need another airplane after the Bonanza."
To make a shon story shorter, my friend the photographer showed up, took
some shots of the airplane, some with me in the cockpit and some without. So
if you should happen to be at your local lOy store and just happen to mosey
down the Barbie doll aisle, you can't miss the large Barbie the Pilot box, and if
you look closely, you' II see 252V and me taxiing past Barbie and her airplane.
-Joel Kirschner
Glendale, California
Weekend, The Cloisler. Sea Island,
Georgia. Contact Harold Bast.
770- 7t9-0638 or c-mait
<bostmail @carthliok.com>.
Apri l t5 - Annapolis. Marytand (ANP).
Lu nch fo llowed by a walking tour of
Annapolis and the Naval Academy.
Hosted by Steve and Judi Oxman.
May 13 - Hanover County. Virginia
(OFP). A party aI the home of Debbie
and Chri s Sterl ing.
June 10 - Williamsburg. Virginia (JGG).
Buz Ri ch will be host for an overnight to
Historic Jamestown and Willi amsburg
Jul y 15 - Old Rheinbeck , New York. A
fly-in to the World War I aircraft
museum.
Augu st 12 - Eag le Crest (a private grass
strip just south of Mihen, Del aware).
Hosts Joe and Robin Melchiorre invite
group to taxi in for a pany.
1971
Vintage F33A appear in
lower right-hand corner of the Barbie Airplane box.
September 17 - Tangier Island, Virginia
(TG I). A walking tour of the island and
lunch at a great family-style restaurant.
October 14 - Nemacolin Woodlands
Resort and Spa, Farmington, Pennsylvania. Thi s is an overnight at a resort with
its own strip. Host will be Rich
Campbell
November 11 - Frederick, Maryland.
Lunch and shopping downtown .
Contact for all except the " Lap of
Luxury" Weekend is Steve Oxman
410-956-3080 or e-mail
<[email protected]>.
ABS January 2000
2000 SERVICE CLINIC SCHEDULE
DATES
March 24-27
Apri l 7-10
FBO
Windward Aviation
Ultimate Engines
LOCATION
Lantana, Florida
Mena l Arkansas
Call ABS Headquarters (316-945-1700) to reserve a time slot, or sign up on the
Service Clinic page of the ABS web site <www.bonanza.org>. Cost of these
excellent one-hour visual inspections is $140 for Bonanzas and $175 for Barons
and Travel Ai rs. lime slots are limited to 32 during each four-day cli nic. Additional sites will be announced in futu re issues and on the web site.
Page 6063
Insurance
BY JOHN ALLEN, PRESIDEN T
FALCON INSURANCE
T
he aviation insurance industry continues to stress that all aircraft be
equipped with shoulder harnesses.
The need for aircraft occupants to use
their shoulder harnesses seems obvious
when safety statistics are examined.
A study of general aviation accidents
completed for the FAA's Civil Aeromedical Institute should be enough to get any
pilot or passenger who ignores the use
of their shoulder harness to change their
errant ways. This study estimated that use
of shoulder harnesses in light aircraft
would have reduced major injuries by 88
percent and fatalitie s by 20 percent.
These are huge numbers that have certainly caught the attention of the insurance industry.
The FAA has required that all new aircraft built since December 12, 1986,
must have shoulder harnesses installed
for all seats. Members of the General
nesses installed for the two front seats.
lt is unfortunate that the bulk of the general aviation light aircraft was built prior
to 1978 and certainly before 1985. This
means that there are many aircraft flying that do nO! have harnesses to protect
the occupants in a crash.
The requirement for shoulder harnesses for the pilot and copilO! seats was
a good fust step. However, rear-seat passengers in an aircraft face the same risk
as those in the rear seat of an automobile. The facts are that seat belts alone
do not offer sufficient protection in the
event of an accident. In fact, lap belts
have caused serious injury when nO! used
along with shoulder harnesses. It is clear
that all occupants should be offered the
protection of shoulder harnesses, and it
is important that all pilots understand the
safety implications of their proper installation and use.
If your aircraft is not fitted with shoulder harnesses, it is important to take the
steps to have thi s accomplished. Most
aircraft manufacturers offer shoulder harness kits for all of their current model
aircraft as well as for some of their earlier models. This is a cheap price to pay
for the safety provided.
There also are some reasonably priced
Page 6064
The estimated usage of shoulder harnesses is about 72 percent.
• About 59 percent of general aviation
aircraft have shoulder harnesses installed. This leaves about 80,000 aircraft without them.
• The retrofit rate is low because of concerns about cost, fit restricti veness
and quality.
Information about the cost and availability of retrofit kits is not well
publicized.
More education material for pilots
about the use of harnesses should be
made readily available.
If national use could be increased just
8 percent, it would mean as much as
17 fewer fatalities each year.
h seems that the problem with the universal use of shoulder harnesses by all
pilots and passengers is the mistaken belief that "accidents always happen to the
other guy, and could not possibly happen to me." The proper use of lap belts
with shoulder harnesses can mean the
difference between life and death in a
crash or emergency landing.
The concept of survi vability presumes
that accidents wi ll happen. But that there
are certain things that can be done to reduce the effects of the accidents.
My experience as an insurance agent
has shown that serious accidents happen
each year. We want to do our best to prevent these losses, but they inevitably happen. And when they do. we want any unfortunate ABS members and their passengers to survi ve these accidents with
the least arnount of injury. We know the
proper lise of shoulder harnesses will
help accomplish this.
AviaLion Manufacturers Association
started installing harnesses for all forward-facing seats in 1985. Aircraft built
between 1978 and 1985 were required
by the FAA only to have shoulder har-
after-market kits that do a good job. The
point is that good shoulder harnesses are
available and should be installed and used.
The most recent report on shou lder
harness installation and use was issued
in 1985 by the FAA's office of Aviation
Medicine which included the following
six major findings:
Four out of every 70 general
aviation aircraft do not have
shoulder harnesses installed.
Falcon Insurance is the agency for the official ABS insurance program. John Allen may
be reached at /-800-2S9-4A85 (4227).
ABS January 2000
'.
Ground
Control
BY NANCY JOHNSON
ABS Executive Director
Farewell to my friend
The weekend before Thanksgiving, I
was looking for a birthday card for my
mother-in-law when I came across the
perfect holiday greeting for Itzhak
Jacoby. It showed Santa Claus and a
rabbi under a sprig of mistletoe. Santa was
kissing the rabbi's cheek, with the word
"smooch" in a cartoon bubble. Inside, the
sentiment read, "Wishing you a holiday
filled with mistletoe and Mazel Tov!"
Itzhak would have been tickled, and I
will keep that card in his memory.
The November 26 airplane crash that
claimed the lives of Itzhak, his wife Gail
and daughter Alira was reported throughout the country. It was terrible in its dimension, beyond the details of its occurrence in a populated area of ewark,
New Jer ey.
Many hours will go into determining
the cause of the accident, focusing on
both the airplane and pilot. The investigation is important and will doubtless
yield facts and fault that will lead to some
resolution.
Emotional resolution will be far more
ABS January 2000
difficult for his remaining daughter Orit
and for those of us who knew and loved
this fine man and his fami ly.
Itzhak was my closest friend and confidant in the Society, and we spent countless hours on the phone in the three years
since I came to ABS. I relied on him for
his intelligence, excellent counsel and
good humor. Although our relationship
had its beginnings in aviation, it evolved
into a mutual affection that transcended
aircraft issues and Society business.
We first "met" via the phone and e-mail
in early '97 when he was co-writing the
three-part series on V-tail vibration. He
submitted the first draft of the first installment, and magazine editor Betty
Rowley returned it with my editing notes.
Before he read my input, he asked Betty
who I was, although I suspect the question really had been, "Who does she think
she is?"
To my good fortune, he didn 't hold
my editorial prerogative against me. As
time passed, I was honored to have him
send me the first drafts of his ABS articles to elicit my journalistic review. It
was easy work, as he was a superb writer.
Clarity of expression was one of his
many allribute .
Besides the tail-vibration series.
ilzhak authored or co-authored six other
articles for theABS Magazine in the past
three years. Each evidenced his pre-eminence as an aviator and as an authority
in preventive and aerospace medicine.
Hi s value to aviation in general and to
the Society specifically shines through
in the words he left behind.
Equally important, Itzhak had fun
writing for us and frequently complained
that his busy schedule precluded him
from doing more of it. His final article
appeared just last month, "Extending the
comfort zone." When returning my edits of this article on the delicate subject
of flying and the call of nature, I teased
that it should be titled. "To pee or not to
pee." From that point on, he delighted in
referring to it as hi "pee" article.
Actually, one of my favorite of
Itzhak 's articles wasn' t in theABS Magazine, but in The 10l//'llal of/he American
Medical Association titled, "Evidence
and Consensus." (lAMA, May 27, 1988).
In it, he gently took to task the medical
community for using "group judgment"
rather than research and evidence to
achieve consensus on medical issues. He
was a bit of a rabble-rouser, truth be told.
ilzhak's personal favorite among his
ABS articles appeared in the October '97
issue, "Flight to the Canadian Wilderness." It was a travelogue about a trip
with his daughter Orit. He spoke often
of her, wistfully noting the prospect of
her eventual departure as she grew into
a woman of substance. I remember the
tremendous pride in his voice when he
reported that she was graduati ng at the
top of her architecture class at Princeton.
I think the fact that he was the father
of high-achieving daughters and husband
of an accomplished professional woman
caused Itzhak to take a special interest in
my success at ABS. His protectiveness was
endearing, and I appreciated his words of
advice about courage and proactivity in
helping lead the Society.
Of all his qualities, I most loved his
sense of humor. Many times he would
call just to share ajoke or humorous anecdote. Let it now be known that Dr.
Itzhak Jacoby was the first to tell me a
Viagra joke: Q: What's the difference between Gentile wives and Jewish wives?
A: Gentile wives urge their husbands to
get prescriptions for Viagra. Jewish
wives urge their husbands to buy stock
in Pfi zer Corporation.
Proof positive that for all his diplomacy, my friend wasn't always politically correct. But he was wonderfully
funny nonetheless.
I last saw Itzhak at the San Diego convention in October. It was the second day,
and I spied him talking with a group of
friends. I went up and hugged him, to his
puzzlement, since he insi sted he had
hugged me the previous day. I accused him
of experiencing a "senior moment:' as I
certainly would not forget an "Itzhak hug."
On reflection, during these days of sadness, I realize I was mistaken. I'm as sure
as he was that we hugged on that first day.
I will always hold him close. --@Page 6065
CaIendar
2000
FEBRUARY
10-14 - Southeastern Bonanza
Society Fly-in. Maralhon, Florida.
Contact Tom Styer, 305-743 -5052.
11-13 - BPPP, Inc. (lnitiaVRecurrent)
Orlando, Florida . Cutoff date: 1-2100. Contact Pam Bailey at BPPP, Inc.
at 970-377-1877 or fax 877-6943600.
AMERICAN BONANZA SOCIETY HEADQUARTERS
1922 Midfield Rd.lP.O. Box 12888/Wichila, KS &7277
Phone: 31&-945-1700 - Fax: 31&-945-1710
Web Sile: http://www,bonanza .org - e·mail: bonanza2 Q"rbonanza.org
7-10 - ABS Service Clinic. Ultimate
Engines, Mena, Arka nsas. Contact ABS
Headquarters.
14-16 - BPPP, Inc. (I nitial/ Recurrent)
Columbus, Ohio. Cutoff date: 3-27-00.
Contact Pam Bailey at BPPP, Inc. at
970-377-1877 or fax 877-694-3600.
15 - Mid-Atlantic Bonanza Society lunch
fly-in. Annapolis, Maryland (A Pl .
Contact Steve Oxman, 410-956-3080 or
e-mail [email protected].
19 - Northeast Bonanza Group
AUGUST
12 - Mid-Atlantic Bonanza Society
fl y-in. Eagle Crest (south of Milton,
Delaware). Contact Steve Oxman,
410-956-3080 or e-mail
[email protected].
SEPTEMBER
7-10 - Southeastern Bonanza Society
Pre-Convention Fly-in. Biloxi,
Mississippi. Contact Harry La coste,
228-255-8796 or e-mail
[email protected] .
lunch fly-in. Oxford, Connecticut
(OXC). Contact Jeff Rosen, 978-7772805, fax 978-777-5929 or e-mail
[email protected].
MAY
4-7 - Southeastern Bonanza Society flyin. Savannah, Georgia. Contact Kent
Ingram, 803-564-5085.
10-13 - ABS Convention.
San Antonio, Texas. Contact ADS
Headquarters.
25-26 - flying Dentist Association
Arizona. Contact Pau l Hoffman at
520-648-5551.
12-14 - BPPP, Inc. (Initial/Recurrent) 51.
Paul, Minnesota. Cutoff date: 4-10-00.
Contact Pam Bailey at BPPP, Inc. at
970-377- 1877 or fax 877-694-3600.
17 - Mid-Atlantic Bonanza Societ
fly-in. Tangier Island,Virginis (TGI .
Contact Steve Oxman, 410-956-3080
or e-mai l soxman@ox ko.com .
25-28 - flying Dentist Association
Western District fly-in. Park City,
Utah. Contact Ray Rhoades at
913-782-8900 at 520-648-5551.
13 - Mid-A tlantic Bonanza Society Fly-in.
Hanover County, Virgin ia (OFP). Contact
Steve Oxman, 410-956-3080 or e-mail
[email protected].
22-24 - BPPp, Inc. (lnitiaVRecurrent)
little Rock, Arkansas. Cutoff dale:
8-21-00. Conlact Pam Bailey at BPPP,
Inc. at 970-377- 1877 or fax 877694-3600.
Pacific District Fly-in. Tucson,
MARCH
10-12 - BPPP, Inc. (Initial/Recurrent)
Austin, Texas. Cutoff date: 2-8-00.
Contact Pam Bailey at BPPP, Inc. at
970-377- 1877 or fax 877-694-3600.
11 - Mid-Atlantic Bonanza Society
lunch Fly-in. Reading, Pennsylvania .
Contact Steve Oxman, 410-9563080 or e-mail [email protected].
16-19 - Southeastern and MidAtlantic Bonanza Societies Fly-in.
"Lap of Luxury" weekend, The
CloISter, Sea Island, Georgia.
Contact Harold Bost,
770-719-0638 or e-mai l
<bostmai [email protected]>.
24-27 - ABS Service Clinic. Windward Aviation, Lantana, Florida.
Contact ABS Headquarters.
31 -4/ 02 - Northeast Bonanza Group
fly-in. emacolin Woodlands Resort
and Spa, Farmington, Pennsylvania.
Contact Jeff Rosen, 978-777-2805,
fax 978-777-5929 or e-mail
[email protected].
APRil
5-8 - Pre-Sun 'n Fun Formation
firing Clinic. Tallahassee, Florida
(T H). Contact Mark Chamlis at
850-877-9477 or fax 850-877-1045.
7-9 - BPPP, Inc. (Initia l/Recurrent)
Fresno, California. Cutoff date: 3-2400. Contact Pam Bai ley al BPPp, Inc.
a! 970-377-1877 or fax 877-6943600.
7-9 - Pacific Bonanza Society fly-in.
Tucson, Arizona. Contact Steve
Walker, 425-867-9443.
Page 6066
TBA - Northeast Bonanza Group fly-in.
Toronto, Canada. Contact Jeff Rosen, 978777-2805, fax 978-777-5929 or e-mai l
[email protected].
JUNE
2-4 - BPPP, Inc. (I nit ial/Recurrent)
Spokane, Washington. Cutoff date: 5-1000. Contact Pam Bailey at BPPP, Inc. at
970-377-1877 or fax 877-694-3600.
10 - Mid-Atlantic Bonanza Society fly-in .
Williamsburg. Virginia OGG). Contact
Steve Oxman, 410-956-3080 or e-mail
[email protected].
23-25 - BPPP, Inc. (Mountain Flying)
Colorado Springs, Colorado. Cutoffdate:
5-20-00. Contact Pam Bailey at BPPp, Inc.
at 970-377-1877 or fax 877-694-3600.
24-29 - flying Dentist Association 2000
National Meeting. San Diego, California.
Contact Winnie Huston at 714-994-1212.
JULY
6-9 - Southeastern Bonanza Society Fly-in.
"Music City USA." Nashville, Tennessee.
Contact Troy Branning, 803-359-2148.
15 - Mid-Atlantic Bonanza Society fly-in.
Old Rheinbeck, New York. Conlact Steve
Oxman, 410-956-3080 or e-mail
[email protected].
26-8/ 01 - EAA AirVenture Oshkosh.
Oshkosh, Wisconsin.
TBA - Pacific Bonanza Society fly-in.
South lake Tahoe, Nevada. Contact Ed
Smith, 702-656-8135 or e-mail
<[email protected]>.
22-25 - Pacific Bonanza Society fl yin. Victoria, British Columbia,
Canada. Contact Steve Walker,
425-867-9443.
OCTOBER
6-8 - BPPP, Inc. (Initial/ Recurrent)
Fresno, California. Cutoff date: 9-2100. Contact Pam Bailey at BPPP, Inc.
at 970-377-1877 or fax 877-6943600.
10-12 - NBAA Annual Meetinll & Convention. New Orleans, LouiSIana.
14 - Mid-Atlantic Bonanza Society
fly-in. Nemacolin Woodlands Resort
and Spa, Farmington, Pennsylvania.
Contact Steve Oxman, 410-956-3080
or e-mail [email protected].
20-22 - BPPP, Inc. (Initial/ Recurrent)
Nashua, New Hampshire. Cutoff
date: 9-20-00. Contact Pam Bailey at
BPPP, Inc. at 970-377-1877 or
fax 877-694-3600.
20-22 - AOPA Expo. Long Beach,
Ca liforn ia. Phone 30 1-695-2000.
NOVEMBER
3-5 - BPPP, Inc. (Initial/Recurrent)
Greensboro, North Carolina. Cutoff
date: 10-12-00. Contact Pam Bailey
at BPPP, Inc. at 970-377-1877 or
fax 877-694-3600.
11 - Mid-Atlantic Bonanza Society
lunch fly-in. Frederick, Maryland.
Contact Steve Oxman, 410-956-3080
or e-mai l soxman @oxko.com .
30 - 12/3 - Southeastern Bonanza
Society Fly-in. Freeport, Bahamas.
Contact Harvey Kriegsman ,
407-725-9226.
ABS Ja n uary 2000
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