spring 2015 - Redstar Pilots Association

Transcription

RED Alert
THE MAGAZINE OF THE REDSTAR PILOTS ASSOCIATION
SPRING 2015
2
Red Alert Spring 2015
Red ALERT
Features
6
Capitalist Chang..................................................................................... 6
Or, How We Sell Groceries Nanchang Style
Going to the analyst............................................................................. 12
Using Oil Analysis to Predict Engine Health
Yak/CJ General Condition Inspection............................................... 14
Part 1: Preparation
12
Buddha's Calling Card......................................................................... 18
Mark of Disobedience
Red Stars Honor Red Tails..................................................................20
Tribute to the Tuskegee Airmen
Venting Installations On 14-Series Engines......................................26
Oil Plumbing Mod
Yolo Jet Blast..........................................................................................30
14
Jet Formation Training
Fly-By Timing........................................................................................ 32
Trigonometry to the Rescue
How Well Do You Know Your Airplane............................................36
What the Heck Do I Do Now?
Flying While Fatigued.........................................................................38
It's Not Just An Airline Issue
20
Jet Museum Buys A CJ-6 From The US Post Office........................ 40
Transition Trainer
Formation Pilots: "We Few, We Happy Few...". . .............................. 44
Formation Training At Spruce Creek, Florida
Columns
26
President’s Message. . ..............................................................................4
Elections, NWOC, and Spring Tune Up
Wingman................................................................................................. 11
The "Right Stuff" to Fly Formation
Website Update.. ................................................................................... 13
Latest and Greatest
Aviation Medicine. . ...............................................................................22
30
Sleep Well—The FAA Wants To Help You
John "Chevy" Ford's CJ-6A...................................................................24
Chevy's Chang
RPA Financial Statements.................................................................. 46
Annual Report To Members
32
www.flyredstar.org
3
President's Message
G
reetings, Comrades, from bloomin’ San Antonio! By that I mean
the colors, the f lowers, the fragrance, the new growth, and the sight
of leafed-out trees are quickly forcing the memories of winter travel, to
and from Colorado, into the deep recesses of my memory. Spring always
seems to invigorate my desire to get back into the air and it is working
its magic extremely well this year.
So, let’s talk about the Regional Director elections, two topics from the
National Warbirds Operating Conference (NWOC), and managing a
Spring tune up.
Our new web site handled the voting process very well. The Region specific ballot, easy access to candidate resumes, and the embedded survey
resulted in a satisfactory or better evaluation. We will be tweaking the
process to make the upcoming National Director elections even better.
The membership re-elected three incumbents: Joe Griffith, Northwest,
Scott Andrews, Southwest, and Rob Mortara, Northeast. Three new
members were elected: John Casper, North Central, Mark Davis, South
Central, and Cecil Boyd, Southeast. Their
contact information is on the web site and
in this issue of Red Alert. Personally, and
on behalf of the RPA, I thank them for
stepping up to serve both the membership
and the RPA. I would also like to thank
the outgoing Directors, John Shuttleworth, Joe Wilkins, and Dave Jester for
their outstanding service to our Association, Well Done, guys! We will present
the new Regional Directors to you in the
Summer issue of Red Alert.
The first topic from NWOC this year is an update on the 100LL substitute fuel. As you know, there are many challenges to finding a substitute
fuel. 100LL is a low volume, broad distribution product. There will be
no market for a fuel requiring recertification of the entire piston engine
GA f leet. Despite 20+ years of research, no drop-in substitute fuel is
available. The chemistry of unleaded fuel is dramatically different than
100LL, and its impact is unknown without impartial, standardized testing. In 2011, the EAA took the lead in forming a collaboration between
industry and the government because of pressure from environmental
groups, pending EPA regulations, and market forces because of a single
source of TEL and the absence of lead from just about everything.
This collaboration resulted in the formation of PAFI, the Piston Engine
Fuels Initiative, under the FAA’s leadership. It has been fully funded
and scheduled for completion in 2018. Its primary objective is not to
pick a single fuel, but to qualify the best fuels for use by the diverse GA
f leet. Nine fuels from five vendors were submitted to PAFI in July, 2014.
Four fuels from three vendors were selected to enter Phase 1 testing in
September, 2014. The next milestone will be selecting the fuels to enter
Phase 2 in January, 2016. The FAA has said the supply of 100LL will remain stable throughout this process. We will keep you informed.
The second topic concerns the impending release of FAA Order 8130.2G
(Certification and Operation of Experimental Aircraft). Things addressed in the new order include: new information for program letter
requirements, the removal of over 100 limitations, and a new Advisory
Circular for stadium over-f lights requiring all f light members to be a
member of ICAS or WOA. It also looks like the FSDOs want control of
the stadium f lights. If everything can be agreed upon, the current restrictions on stadium over f lights could end by Fall, 2015. We will also
keep you informed about the progress of 8130.2G.
If you have experienced a significant reduction in f lying over the Winter, there are three equally important aspects of a Spring tune up you
must pay attention to—your aircraft, your body, and your skill sets.
Your aircraft should receive an expanded pref light check. Start with a
look on the f loor under the aircraft for any unusual puddles, droppings,
or unexplained debris. Open the cowling to check all f luid levels, search
for uninvited guests, search for new f luid leaks, and ensure nothing
combustible has taken up residence in any
intake, vent, or small dark place. Check
tire and pneumatic system air pressures.
Shine a bright light in every corner of the
cockpits and every open access location
on the aircraft. If necessary, open panels
into these areas to ensure they are free of
critters and debris.
Your body is not as tuned up for f lying as
it was when your f lying season ended last
year. This is especially true with regards
to G tolerance. We all know a two week
layoff can noticeably affect us. A two to three month layoff can have a
catastrophic GLOC (G-induced loss of consciousness) effect if we don’t
systematically ramp up the G over a series of f lights.
Skill set muscle memory also atrophies from reduced use over a few
months time. Start with a POH, checklist, and emergency procedures
review. Then, spend some time in the cockpit reviewing switch positions, normal and emergency procedures, and your ground egress and
bailout procedures. When you do f ly, start with the basics of transition
f lying before advancing to aerobatics and formation f lying. If possible,
f ly with an IP, CP, or fellow RPA aviator. Third parties can often notice
performance deficiencies that we may not notice ourselves because of
task saturation. Once you develop a Spring tune up profile, don’t hesitate to periodically repeat it throughout the f lying season. Proficiency
and currency are the bedrocks of a safe, competent, and professional
pilot.
I am excited about our 2015 f lying season and hope to share the air with
you at one of our many events.
As always, train hard and train often.
Best wishes, Terry “Mags” Slawinski
4
RedStar Pilots Association
VOLUNTEERS
OFFICERS
President Terry Slawinski [email protected]
Vice President Scott McMillan [email protected]
Secretary David Jester [email protected]
Treasurer Gil Lipaz [email protected]
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Southwest Scott Andrews [email protected]
Northwest Joe Griffith [email protected]
Southeast Cecil Boyd [email protected]
Northeast Rob Mortera [email protected]
Northcentral John Casper [email protected]
Southcentral Mark Davis [email protected]
National Mike Carter [email protected]
National Scott Glaser [email protected]
National Rich Hess [email protected]
MANAGERS
Public Relations John Graham [email protected]
Standardization Skip Slyfield [email protected]
Maintenance Jill Gernetzke [email protected]
Flight Physiology Chuck Crinnian, MD [email protected]
RPA Store Byron Fox [email protected]
IT Dean Henthorn [email protected]
RPA/FAST Records Mark Weidhaas [email protected]
Senior Sales and Advertising Kirk Heiser [email protected]
RED ALERT
Editor Mike Filucci [email protected]
Associate Editor Alan Cockrell [email protected]
Associate Editor Robert Genat [email protected]
Associate Editor John Warwick [email protected]
Sr. West Coast Correspondent Robert Genat [email protected]
Contributors
Craig Barnett [email protected]
Greg Davis [email protected]
Chris Dilley [email protected]
Robert Genat [email protected]
Thomas B. Haines [email protected]
Michael Mainiero [email protected]
RED
Bob Minkin [email protected]
Advertisers
Ladd Gardner Aviation Insurance................. 2
Compressed Gas Systems.............................. 16
Pacific Coast Avionics.................................... 17
Flying Eyes....................................................... 23
M-14P ............................................................. 28
Retro Air Designs........................................... 36
Whirlwind Propeller...................................... 37
Don Mayer Parachute Shop.......................... 39
Mort's Aero...................................................... 42
CEP................................................................... 43
Air Power Insurance...................................... 45
Straube's........................................................... 47
Red Alert is your magazine and would not exist
without your input-your stories and experiences are what bring the magazine alive.
Mike
NEXT ISSUE WRITERS' DEADLINE
Summer: 25 May
Please submit material to:
Mike Filucci [email protected]
Material contained herein is published for examination and evaluation of the reader. The RedStar Pilots
Association has made no attempt to verify any of the
contents and accepts no responsibility for any items
printed in this publication. Articles written and published in this magazine are for entertainment only and
are the opinion of the author(s). They are not intended to be instructional in nature nor promote deviation from a published flight procedure in any aircraft
or technical flight manual, FAR, law or other regulation. The contents are not intended to be construed as
offering legal advice or counsel.
Alert
THE MAGAZINE OF THE REDSTAR PILOTS ASSOCIATION
Cover
Tim "Teflon" Stevens executes a
pitch-up break away from Tom
"Cuda" Reynolds over the Eastern
Shore of Maryland.
Photo by Greg Davis
SPRING 2015
www.flyredstar.org
5
Capitalist Chang
Or, How To Sell Groceries Nanchang Style
I
was headed home on a Wednesday afternoon when my cell
phone rang. At the other end of the line was an acquaintance
of mine who just happens to be a local movie/TV/commercial
personality and avid aviator. I had the privilege of meeting him
a few years before at my local airport while I was fuelling the
Chang, and then gave him a ride. “How would you like to be in a
TV commercial?” he asked. What followed this simple question
is still a big blur in my mind, but one thing is for sure, it was a
fun and wild ride.
The concept was simple, a local grocery chain was working on a
commercial to promote the inauguration of their rewards program and wanted to feature a red airplane that could f ly upside down. I am told that in TV and movies things happen at a
turtle's pace but in TV commercials things happen at lighting
speed. Within seconds after the initial phone call, I was on the
phone with an executive from the production company, negotiating prices for my services. He already had in front of him all the
specs of my airplane and even some photos downloaded from the
internet. We agreed on some basics and the first thing I knew, I
sat in a room filled with TV people talking about the logistics of
making a TV commercial.
Producers, executive producers, directors, sound guy, camera
man, president, accountant—there must have been 20 people in
this small conference room, and all eyes were on me (or at least
that is what it felt like) since everything in this project depended
on what could be done with the airplane.
After the customary introductions, the conversation (or interrogation) went something like this:
Them: "So, how low can you f ly with your airplane?"
By Dan "Bandit" Fortin [email protected]
Them: "You mean 300 feet!"
Me: "No, I mean three feet."
Them: "You mean 30 feet!"
Me: (Holding my hand at my waist three feet off the ground) "No,
I mean three feet!"
Them: (Talking amongst themselves with weird looks on their
faces.)
Them: "So, how close to a helicopter can you get in f light?"
Me: "Three feet."
Them: "You mean 300 feet?"
Me: (Just looking with a “are we going to go through this again”
look on my face.)
Them: (Talking amongst themselves with weird looks on their
faces.)
Director: (Looking around the room) "I think this will work."
We spent the better part of an hour reviewing the scenario. Most
of it was quite good, actually. There was only one scene that made
the hair on my neck stand up. So we discussed it and they decided
CGI was their best option. After the meeting I was assigned my
very own production assistant who was tasked with making sure
things went smoothly with my part of the production (and who
became my BFF for duration of the production with countless
emails, texts and calls everyday). The dates were set for the shoot.
Their first choice was the following week, but there was a conf lict
with my annual recurrent training (aka simulator training) and I
was unavailable. We agreed for the following week and I now had
to find a rent-a-pilot to cover me at work.
Me: "Three feet." (What can I say, I like to f ly low!)
One of many story boards used in the production
6
Left: production crew sets up for shoot. Above: front cockpit actor reviews his
lines while back cockpit actor gets makeup touch-up.
Two days after the original meeting, we had our first safety brief
for the aerial part of the commercial. Present were the helicopter
pilot, my new BFF and myself. We discussed every aerial shot
planned and how we could complete them safely. We also came
up with the basic plan for the one day we had to get all these shots
done. Speed was a concern for me, the Twin-Star helicopter that
would lead our formation was fitted with one of those big round
camera balls on the nose which significantly increases drag.
Maximum cruise speed: 90 knots. Flying formation at 90 knots is
definitely not ideal, but it is certainly feasible. This would most
certainly be a learning experience for both the helicopter pilot
and myself, but we were confident after our initial meeting that
we could pull it off without a hitch.
The next order of business was
finding the field from which
the ground-to-air shots would
be filmed. This was actually not
my job per se, but I did negotiate
in the contract some veto powers over everything aviation, so
I needed to approve their choice.
The first field they found was
perfect. Lots of free space around
in all directions, no buildings in
the ingress or egress routes. Perfect. Except for one little detail,
the farmer/owner sold his carrots
to the competing grocery chain.
Back to square one. The second
field was also good, but not as
good as the first. Unfortunately,
I was unable to view it for myself
since I was out of town, so I had
to rely on Google maps for my safety analysis. Ingress and egress
routes were not as clean as I would have liked, which increased
my workload on filming day, but it was an acceptable site and I
gave my go-ahead for the production to proceed.
The endless stream of emails, texts and phone calls continued
even as I was away on simulator training. Finally we had a sound
plan (or at least a good plan to deviate from) and upon my return
from the sim we plunged into one of the two busiest f lying days
of my career.
DAY ONE: Ground to Air
The driver showed up at my house at 0530. Yes, I had my own
driver. He drove me to the location (just outside of Montreal) for
one last safety briefing with the people involved, and also to put
on my costume (as if they will actually see me on TV). All looked
good and we were ready to go. I had designated my 500 foot line
that no one could cross (a big ditch), and I was happy with the set
up. Next came make-up, costume and hair. Yes I did say HAIR.
The male hair dresser did not seem to like me. At all. I think he
failed to understand that I am bald and would be wearing my
helmet while f lying. The irony escaped him totally and I could
see the frustration in his every move.
Finally I strapped on the Chang and it was time to go to work.
After a quick aerial survey of the field we lined up for the first
shot—me doing a simple banana pass. All is good, I was holding until the director screamed “ACTION!” on the discrete frequency. I turned in, dropped to three feet and f lew by the robot
camera in the middle of the field and egressed. “CUT!” followed
by a semi-long silence. Finally, the radio broke: “Dan that was
good, excellent even, but can you f ly the next one a little higher?”
"OK", I replied, thinking to myself, which part of three feet did
you not understand ;-)?
Dan, in "costume."
www.flyredstar.org
7
The first shot went quite well, actually. We only needed to do it
three or four times. The other shots were a bit more complex.
Shot number two was me simulating rolling the Chang inverted for a CGI inverted carrot pick up pass. The third shot was a
head-on pass trying to hit the robot camera. The complexity of
these shots, combined with lens changes (so they can have plenty
of varied raw footage), and countless factors out of our control
made it difficult for these things to happen rapidly (I don’t really mind, I am getting paid by the hour, but being 6’ 4” and 230
pounds, the Chang is a tight fit). Just as an example, I had to hold
for the better part of 20 minutes because a bird decided to use the
robot camera as a perch. The TV crew had to chase it (I suggested
we use the Chang, but I was vetoed), but not before it left them a
nice parting gift. You can imagine how sensitive a piece of equipment like this is (probably worth more than the Chang), and how
delicate they must be with its care. So patience truly is a virtue.
We went at the last two shots for the rest of the morning and most
of the afternoon. We did break for lunch (we are civilized after
all) and my driver picked me up at the airport to drive me to the
site. For some unknown reason, everyone in the crew of over 100
(yes there were over 100 people on site working the ground part
of this gig) were looking at me with wonder in their eyes. A few
even came to see me and said they are amazed at what I did with
the airplane. I guess when you live in our warbird world, it is easy
to forget how truly amazing what we do really is.
Finally, around 1600 hours, after sortie number four, the radio
came alive: “Its a wrap!” and I was free to travel to Quebec city
where operations would resume the following morning.
Twin-Star helicopter with gyro-stabilized camera rig.
Day one ended in
a Quebec city restaurant with a last
minute
meeting
between the helicopter pilot, the
camera
operator
and myself. We reviewed our safety
procedures,
the
weather
(which
could NOT have
been better) over
dinner and called
it an early evening.
The rest of the team
(reduced team, only
three in the chopper and four in two
chase cars) arrived
long after I fell
asleep.
Dan's "GIB."
Total for day one: three official shots, miles of raw footage, five
sorties, and 5.5 hours in the Chang.
DAY TWO: Air to Air
Day two began even earlier: 0430 hours in the hotel lobby. We
had to take off 30minutes before sunrise so we could be at our
first location for the best light of the day.
I strapped my “GIB” in the back seat. The scenario required me
to have a lady passenger in the back seat of the Chang, but my
insurance company outright refused. So we had to come up with
a plan B—a six foot tall male mannequin with a blouse and a wig
stapled to it’s head. On day one, our friendly hair dresser had
given me specific instruction to regularly brush the mannequin’s
hair between shots so it’s hair would remain perfect. He even
gave me two different hair brushes! Needless to say, the brushes
remained with the chase crew.
The helicopter departed first, as they are much slower than the
Chang. I took off approximately ten minutes later and rendezvoused with them over the St. Lawrence river. Per our brief, the
helicopter pilot worked both his radios, one on ATC and one
on our discrete frequency. Everyone else, the director, my BFF,
the camera operator and I were on the discrete frequency. As I
first approached the helicopter, I called my distance to the crew,
so they knew where I was. As briefed, I joined on the right side
(where the helicopter pilot sat). We traveled approximately five
minutes like this before my BFF finally looked out of her window
and saw me. You should have seen the look on her face. Priceless.
I could see her pointing at me to the others in the helicopter and
saying “He’s right there!” I clicked the mic, asked Lead permission to cross under so the people on the other side could see me.
He approved and I crossed. Exact same reaction from the rest of
the crew.
8
Minutes later, before our first shot of the day, the helicopter had
to do an unscheduled stop on the side of a road. Some nasty
business about a bug smashing in the camera lens. Finally, we
were ready to work. We ran through the same five or six shots
at different locations so they could have all the raw footage they
needed for the final cut. They wanted shots of the Chang passing
the helicopter and crossing it’s f light path. They wanted shots
where the helicopter followed the Chang. They wanted shots of
the Chang with the mountains in the background. They wanted
shots of head-on passes. I had the scenario schedule on my kneeboard and the director called the shots: “OK Dan, next shot is
number 27. Let me know when you are in position.” Then after
the shot “Excellent! Reset and do it again.” Countless times.
During the day we traveled approximately 100 nm east of Quebec city along the St. Lawrence river, and then back to Montreal,
filming different shots along the way. Every time I got out of the
airplane, I was startled by the quiet demeanor of my GIB. So quiet that I constantly forgot he/she/it was there. Wig and all. We
had planned fuel stops at various airports along the route and at
every stop one of the chase cars was waiting for us. Mainly they
supported the film crew, swapping memory cards on the camera,
but they also had some of my stuff, like my engine oil and my
emergency tool kit.
The toughest shot of the whole shoot came just before we broke
for lunch. I had to f ly directly underneath the camera mounted
on the nose of the helicopter. Forget FAST standards, with nose
to tail separation, this was 100% nose-to-tail overlap. This was
the shot that took the longest to film, or at least that’s what it
seemed like to me. Perhaps it was because I was f lying formation on a Twin-Star helicopter less then 10 feet below it, looking
directly up at my limited references (namely
the camera and the skid) with reduced f light
controls authority, trying to smile for the
camera. Luckily, the air was clean because
even at this slow speed, all the rotor wash
from the helicopter was well behind us, and
the sides were perfect for ingress and egress
from the shot.
camera followed me. It turns out that this was, to me, the most
beautiful shot of the entire process. Seeing the Chang from this
unusual angle is quite unique. Unfortunately, it didn’t make the
final cut and isn't in the commercial.
Towards the end of the day came the most logistically complex
shot of the entire shoot. Although it is simple in principle, timing and proximity to the Montreal International airport made
it a difficult one. Basically, the helicopter hovered at 1000 feet
AGL over downtown Montreal as I did countless runs at it so
they could have the Chang with the city as the back ground. The
complexity came because ATC refused to allow us to use a dicrete
frequency and required everyone to be on the tower frequency.
You can only imagine the ease of communication between the
director, the helicopter pilot, and myself on tower frequency during the peak arrival hours when all those tired airline pilots are
lining up to land from their oversea’s trips. But we did make it
work. Later I was told that we were directly over the production
company’s head office and that a lot of people came out on the
street to see us work.
Finally, the words I never thought I would hear: “It’s a wrap!”
Total for day two: countless shots, five sorties, 9.1 hours in the
Chang, all in formation on a helicopter. (Yes, 9.1 hours. I had to
double check my log when I did research for this article. My longest Chang f lying day, ever.)
When I finally landed I had cramps in my legs and took it 10
minutes to unfold myself from the seat.
Dan, in his other costume.
One other shot had me f lying up and down
a mountain following the terrain as the helicopter followed me from above. The beauty
of the helicopter is that they can follow from
above at a certain distance and keep visual
on Lead through the lower part of the bubble
canopy. So, basically, for this shot, I took the
Lead and they followed me. As I reached the
summit of the hill I had to chop the power,
follow the terrain down and remain at the
same speed so I would not drive away from
the camera. It did take us a few takes to get
the speed right, but this was actually quite
fun and relatively easy to film.
One other shot required me to f ly underneath the camera and overtake them as the
www.flyredstar.org
9
DAY THREE: Ground Filming
Or, as I like to call it, sleeping under the wing of the Chang while
they film. For me, the biggest part of the work was done. My role
was now changed from “stunt” pilot to simple safety guy. Basically, I had to make sure no one got hurt by the airplane or no one
damaged the airplane. My safety briefing went something like
this: “So, this is the propeller. If you touch it, you die. Because if
it doesn’t kill you as the engine starts, I will!” Of course, I had a
radiant smile while saying it, so they understood the importance
of not touching it and to this day still think I was kidding. To
their credit, they avoided the propeller like the plague.
This day was very long for me. Other than starting the engine
with the robot camera inches away from the spinner, I did nothing but sit in silence as they went from take to take, to the actor
forgetting his line, or improvising a few new ones, to the director
having a tantrum over a reason long forgotten but that seemed
important at the time, to the sound guy dropping the microphone during the shot, to the clouds being at the wrong place, to
the hair dresser complaining because of the wind, to the…
As most of you know, there isn’t much cooling in our airplanes
on the ground while the engine isn’t running. And day three was
a hot summer day. Hot and humid. So both actors had a tough
time sitting in the Chang all day even if they were in the shade.
Between takes, they would turn on a giant ventilator so they
could cool down a bit. At one point in the afternoon there was a
small issue, we needed to rotate the propeller because it was in
the shot, so they woke me from underneath the wing (it is unbelievable how many people are hanging just outside each shot) to
fix it. Since I am not looking for a callsign change anytime soon,
I first went on the wing to make sure the mags were off. When I
Cocpit mockup used for inverted f light CGI scenes.
turned to step off the airplane I was taken by surprise by the actress in the back seat. Her pants were neatly folded on the side of
the seat and she sat there in her panties. I guess I must have had
a funny look on my face because she burst out laughing out loud.
I guess movie people are used to these shenanigans the same way
we are used to meaning three feet when we say three feet.
Around 1900 hours, they were done with the airplane and it was
time for me to take her home. Needless to say, I did a very thorough pre-f light inspection, inside and out. There were plenty of
carrot leaves on the f loor of the airplane, and it seems that for
months after the shoot, once in a blue moon, a leaf would appear,
f loating at the top of a loop. Eventually they disappeared.
As I was strapping on the Chang, I could see the team still working in the hangar. They still had some shots to film, but didn't
need the airplane because they were using a contraption they had
built, outfitted with a canopy purchased from Doug Sapp, and
painted the same red color as my bird. Even if I was dead tired,
half of me wished I could stay and watch what was happening.
But after three long days of an endless blur, it was time to put the
Chang to rest and enjoy my driver for the last time as he drove
me home.
I was told the team wrapped up filming at approximately 2300
hours that night. Following this, all the raw footage went through
an endless series of transformations and approximately one
month later the commercial was broadcast on TV. It can still be
seen online at: jetfilms.com/fr/adbrault#695
Kudos to everyone involved in the production of the commercial. Although their aviation experience was limited, they all performed with the utmost professionalism and made this production a very fun experience for me.
I kept in touch with many of the people from
the production company, which led to my cell
phone ringing once more. But this time it was
for something completely different than a TV
commercial.
Perhaps when this next story ends it will be my
pleasure to share it with you.
Daniel Fortin f lies as a corporate pilot in Montreal, Canada. He has been a Nanchang pilot
since 1996 and has logged more than 1000
hours in his Red Beast. Dan holds type ratings
on the Fouga Magister, L29 Delphin, and Hawker Hunter. He is also the Team Lead for YakAttack airshows (www.yakattack.ca), a member
of the Redstar Pilots Association, the Classic
Jet Aircraft Association, the Canadian Owner
and Pilot Association, the EAA, and a lifetime
member of the Canadian Warplane Heritage
Museum for which he is a FAST Check Pilot.
10
Wingman
The "Right Stuff" To Fly Formation
By Bill Cherwin [email protected]
W
hat does it take to be a good formation pilot? In my opinion, there are three things, or qualities. First, you must be a good
pilot. You do not have to be a "Lindbergh," but you must be above average. Second, you must conquer the "psychology" of
formation flying. And lastly, you must be disciplined.
A good pilot can handle his airplane in all situations with good stick and rudder coordination. He can fly his airplane well, through
its full operating envelope if necessary. He has good judgment and a cool head. The formation pilot must know his airplane so
well, that he can operate any switch or control by feel. Some acrobatic experience is also desirable.
Now for the psychological part: Most of us in general aviation get introduced to formation flying when we obtain or buy into a
warbird. We have lots of flying time (I had close to 15,000 hours when I started.) and have learned to make decisions as the pilot
in command. We are alive today, in part, due to our skill, cunning, and decisiveness. We may have had some good luck along the
way, but we long ago learned to look out for our own ass. Military pilots learned to fly formation early in their flying careers, so
their command posture had not become so deeply rooted.
Most of us are in vocations where we are "in charge.” We make all the critical decisions in our businesses, hobbies, and at home. We
have above average egos and are generally "the boss." Now we want to become a formation pilot. When you become a wingman,
you must be prepared to give up most of your command authority. You never give it all up, but you certainly give up 99%. If you
try to retain too much, by second-guessing the leader, or dwelling on things other than “holding station," your formation flying
suffers. Like a computer trying to multitask, your brain cannot do two things well at once.
Concentration (110%) is the secret to good formation flying. Learn to hold stations and ignore the attitude of the leader. Trying to
remain oriented to the world will only tax your already overloaded brain. The leader is your only world for the moment. You must
have absolute trust in your leader. If not, then go find a leader on whom you can bet your life.
Experienced formation pilots can remain oriented to the world, but only because their formation flying skills are so honed, that
they have occasional fleeting milliseconds to ponder their attitude and speed. Believe me when I say that seasoned formation
pilots still concentrate 110%! Formation flying is so much easier when you concentrate.
The third aspect of formation flying is as important as the other two. Just as each leg of a three-legged stool is vital to the support
of the stool, discipline is essential to formation flying.
Discipline starts with a thorough knowledge of the formation manual, standard operating procedures, and hand signals. Discipline is holding station with a high level of precision. Discipline is taking on a subordinate role as a wingman, and not trying to
second-guess the leader. Radio discipline is also critical to any formation flight.
Items of emergency nature are always appropriate over the radio. Chatter at altitude, en route, if allowed by the leader is OK, but
any other transmissions should not be made. Wingmen are always second-guessing the leader, and tend to want to make their
ideas known. Disciplined wingmen maintain radio silence, so as not to break the leader's concentration on his job getting the
flight safely to point B. As the instructor admonished the student, “I only want to hear two things from you over the radio Your
number when you check in, and Lead, you’re on fire!"
The leader is constantly thinking and planning ahead, and does not need any unsolicited advice from his wingmen. In fact, pressure from a flight member could distract the leader and cause an accident. A formation flight is not a democratic body. It is a
dictatorship, run by the flight leader, whose qualifications should have been determined before the flight ever left the ground.
Do not volunteer information over the radio unless it is of an emergency nature.
In summary, to fly formation, a pilot must be "a good stick," be prepared to give up 99% of his autonomy, exercise discipline in
holding station and maintaining radio protocol. Even the best formation pilots are never in “perfect position,” they are merely
passing through that spot, and constantly making very small and timely corrections towards it.
Bill Cherwin is a retired United Airlines B-747 Captain, former Formation And Safety Team (FAST) President, former Lead pilot for the
Lima Lima Fight Demonstration Team, current FAST check pilot, and formation aerobatics instructor.
www.flyredstar.org
11
Going to the
analyst
Using oil analysis to predict engine health
W
aiting for an oil-analysis report is a bit like waiting for
test results from your doctor. What will it show, how life
changing might the results be, and how much might the problem
cost? When it comes to our aircraft engines, the “how much” part
can quickly become a five-figure problem—making health care
seem cheap.
Just as we work hard on preventative maintenance in caring for
our bodies (how’s that New Year’s gym membership going for
you?), we should be so proactive in the care of our engines. One
tool (and just one of several you should use) is oil analysis.
The process is simple: Get an oil sample kit from one of numerous providers. Grab a sample midstream when draining the oil
during an oil change. Record the number of hours on the oil and
the engine, the type of cylinders, and the number of quarts of oil
added between changes, and send it to the lab that provided the
kit. A few anxious days later, receive a report, typically emailed
these days, that shows an analysis of the types of metals and other particulates picked up by the oil—and small enough to make it
through the oil filter or oil screen.
By Thomas B. Haines [email protected]
In addition to particulates, most reports include details on the
viscosity of the fuel, f lash point, and other properties that can be
helpful in noticing trends or problems. While reports from some
companies only compare to previous reports, Blackstone Laboratories is one that compares the current report to previous reports
and also to a set of standards it has developed over the decades.
Its database contains many thousands of reports of normal levels
of the amount of iron, for example, that a sample might contain
given the number of hours on the oil and the engine.
The Blackstone reports come with a chatty, personalized message
at the top written in plain English. For example, a recent report
on my Continental IO-550 came back with this message at the
top: TOM: The viscosity of your oil was in the normal range this
time, so we are happy to be giving your IO-550 perfect reports
again. This was after a previous report where the viscosity was
out of whack for some reason. The comments went on to relay
a few more observations, including a reference to a trend from
three years earlier—someone is clearly paying attention to what
is happening over time with my expensive engine.
Oil analysis is only helpful if it is done regularly—ideally at every oil change, so trends can be spotted. A
hit-and-miss approach isn’t useful. What the
reports can do is help you understand what
parts of the engine are wearing, based on the
types of metal found in the oil. High levels
of copper, for example, might result from
the installation of a new oil cooler. If no
new oil cooler, then it might be as a result of
the wearing of bronze valve guides in some
types of engines.
None of that would show up in an oil filter
or screen—the particulates are too small.
Partner oil analysis with regular examination of the oil filter for larger chunks of metal and you can more easily discern problem
areas, such as valve train wear and especially
camshaft wear.
Expect to pay between about $15 and $20
per analysis, depending on the company and
whether you choose to prepay for the analysis kits or not. With 50-hour oil changes,
over the 2,000-hour TBO life of an engine,
you’ll spend less than $1,000 on oil analysis, which buys a lot of peace of mind—and
probably gives you a lot of comfort in f lying
beyond TBO if the numbers all look good.
12
The range of tools available to an aircraft owner for monitoring
engine health includes oil analysis for trend information, visual
and magnetic oil filter examinations, oil consumption trends,
cylinder compression trends, digital trend analysis from an onboard engine analyzer, and regular borescope investigations—
ideally using a modern, digital borescope. Use them all, and the
likelihood of an engine surprise right after takeoff is greatly reduced.
Certificate of Formation Qualification
Presented By The RedStar Pilots Association To:
____________________________
In recognition of the successful completion of the prescribed Wing Pilot
course of formation training as required by the RedStar Pilots Association and
the Formation And Safety Team (FAST)
Aircraft Make, Model and Registration Number:
______________________________________________________
Recorded on this ______ day of __________ in the year __________
__________________________________
Qualifying Pilot
__________________________________
Check Pilot
A SAMPLING OF POPULAR OIL ANALYSIS COMPANIES:
ALS (sold through Aircraft Spruce and other catalogs): www.alsglobal.com/
en/Our-Services/Industrial/Tribology/
Capabilities/Aviation-Oil-Analysis
Analysts, Inc.: http://analystsinc.com/markets-we-serve/aviation/
Aviation Laboratories Metal Check
(sold through Chief Aircraft and other
catalogs): www.avlab.com
Blackstone Laboratories: www.blackstone-labs.com
Aeroshell, ExxonMobil, Phillips 66,
and others also offer oil analysis services, typically private labeled by one of
the above or other companies.
Congratulations to our pilots who have
achieved formation qualification
Wingman
John Warwick
12/14/2014
Scott Wallace 2/27/2015
Flight Leader
Thomas Mitchell
2/28/2015
Originally published in the February, 2015 issue of AOPA Pilot
Website Update
By Gil "NAFOD" Lipaz [email protected]
F
olks, the website continues to improve each month and we
hope you agree with us that it looks great and is finally functioning! We have really enhanced the content in the Library so check it
out. Most every form you need is in there and can be downloaded, included the Formation Proficiency Reports that all patched
pilots need to submit each year.
We are now working on adding PayPal as a payment option which
wlll help all our overseas members with RPA store purchases and
membership payments. Stay tuned.
We have stopped using our former mass email vendor, MailDog,
since we can now do all emails to the membership through the
website. That will save us $50 each month.
Under the Training tab, we have now added a Check Pilot tab
and an Instructor Pilot tab. Under each of these you will find
names and contact info for CP's and IP's throughout the country.
Please contact these wonderful folks to help you with training,
qualification, or to help you set up a f lying event. They are all
available and happy to help.
Finally, we have organized ads on the website and are now in the
process of attracting more advertisers to help subsidize our site
costs and add more cash to the RPA budget to support more and
better events throughout the country.
www.flyredstar.org
www.flyredstar.org
13
Yak/CJ
General Condition
Inspection
By Craig Payne [email protected]
T
he General Condition Inspection, an Annual by a different
name, should be regarded as an opportunity to keep your
bird in good condition rather than as a nuisance, even though it
can be a nuisance with your busy schedule. If you are not certified to sign-off the General Condition Inspection, as specified
in your Operation Limitations document, then your choices are
limited. You could hand over the aircraft to a maintenance shop,
get an A&P to perform the inspection, or work with the mechanic
in an owner-assisted inspection. In any case, it is in your interest
to understand the process by preparing for it. This article is the
first of three parts that will remove some of the mystery from the
process.
Usage Interview
As an A&P, I prefer to work on airplanes that have been f lying on
a regular basis. Their squawks and issues are well known, unlike
when approaching an airplane that has been sitting for months.
For “hangar queens,” the unknowns are always an issue. Issues
take time, and time is money. My process begins with interviewing the owner about the regularity and type of f lying the aircraft
has experienced. There are different mechanical effects created
from hard acro on every f light compared to occasional hops to
pancake-breakfast f ly-ins.
Hard acro stresses the airframe, loosens mechanical connections, wears control system bearings, and stretches cables. Regular wingman work works the prop and engine
harder than normal cruise. Sunday breakfast airplanes seem to be susceptible to corrosion from
sitting, as well as deterioration of rubber seals,
and leakage of oil.
•
Squawk list: Usually it’s not hard to list what needs to be
fixed or adjusted. Anything from a busted knob to a heavy
wing. Perhaps an uneven fuel burn? A soft main strut? Ball
off center in cruise? Not always safety of f light issues, but
still an annoyance that detracts from the business of f lying
the airplane.
•
Maintenance List: Research the logs and maintenance
manual for what tasks are interval-specific and due—hose
changes, air bottle service, transponder checks, ELT batteries, prop grease, wheel bearings, and such. These will become
part of the work to be performed. I prefer that the owner do a
fair share of “grunt work” as Part 43.3(g) allows. Tasks, such
as removing the wheel bearings and cleaning them for my
inspection, shortens my hands-on time and saves the owner money. Knowing what must be done also leads to having
parts ready to do the work. Appendix A, Part 43(c) provides
a list of preventative maintenance tasks that may be owner/
pilot performed.
•
Upgrade List: Certainly, “annual” time is also an opportunity to swap out an old gauge, add a modification, or install
new avionics, since your schedule has built-in some down
time for just this occasion.
•
Inspection Checklist: Yaks and CJs, as well as other Experimental-Exhibition certificated aircraft will specify Appendix D of Part 43 for the General Condition inspection
The Owner-Assisted Inspection
My preference is for an owner to be involved in
the maintenance and inspection of their aircraft.
In the long run it makes my job easier and the
owner more knowledgeable. Knowledge is power
when it comes to understanding what will happen when you hire someone to work on your bird.
Making Lists
Every few days I make a list of what I want to get
done. I might not get it all done but at least I am
starting with a road map. Do the same with your
“Annual.” Certainly, there must be an inspection, some maintenance done, and maybe some
upgrades. Break it all down.
Specialized tools: Partial Yak set, plus bent 14mm for front mag nuts, offset 17mm open
end, 22,24,27,28, and 32mm open ends. Large socket is for Huosai prop removal; digital
level for prop angle.
14
Part 1: Preparation
in their operations limitations document.
While Appendix D covers a lot, it is general in nature. M-14P engines come with
a detailed manual that includes dozens
of “Tasks” to be performed, and there are
interval-specific checks listed in the Nanchang manuals. Same with Yak airframes.
However, for annual use, there is a checklist
focused on these aircraft that can be found
in the RPA Store under "manuals." I updated
that list a few years ago and it is a good place
to start. Review this list with your inspector
and come up with an agreed upon inspection
plan. There may be some overlap between
the maintenance list that doesn’t need to be
repeated.
Cleaning
While the airplane is sitting out for the run-up,
it’s a great time to wash and dry it, especially the Common inspection tools: Plus mag timing equipment and torque wrench for spark plugs
belly where all that engine oil ends up. Paragraph
(a) of Appendix D of Part 43 specifies that the airframe and en- of a transponder check with the last 24 months. An instrument
gine must be cleaned, as well as having panels and the cowling certified A/C also requires a pitot-static check.
opened up and removed for inspection. Expect to find some oil
on the inside of the belly panels. Now is the time to clean all of Following a recent engine change, my CJ was used in a weight
that off, but take time to note where the oil was found. It could and balance demonstration for an EAA chapter meeting. I was
pleased to see that only seven pounds were added since the last
lead back to the leak.
weigh-in ten years ago. EW was measured at 2350 pounds, and
While cleaning the airplane, note where any “smoking” rivets that included 51 pounds of ballast and an aux fuel tank. I canare and mark them with a crayon for the mechanic’s inspection. not be positive about the accuracy of that old W&B because the
The “smoke” is actually traces of aluminum resulting from the equipment used was not as good as the WiFi load cell setup used
movement of loose rivets. Cracks in the cowling and fairings are for the recent demo. Check that equipment changes made over
reason for concern, but cracks in the skin or airframe are reason the last few years do not affect your W&B.
for alarm! Mark any cracks with that crayon or sharpie.
Don’t forget to have all of your manuals handy, as well as logData Collection: Establishing a baseline
books. While a propeller log is not mandatory, I prefer keeping
The inspection checklist begins with an engine run-up—oil and one since my prop has spanned the life of two different engines,
fuel pressure readings are recorded, idle RPM, magneto drop, so far. Above all, have paper and a clipboard to record each task
prop governor operation, and other engine parameters are all to be performed and finished. The log book entries will be built
noted. All are important to building a baseline. Note if any read- from these notes.
ings are not within specification. At the end of the inspection and
maintenance, the same run-up will be done to compare against Organizing the Hangar
manufacturer’s recommendations as provided in Part 43.15(c)(2). Say what? I’m not making a big deal out of this but, in a profesThe best time to perform this task is just prior to going into the sional shop or military maintenance hangars, it is a really big
deal. Get the equipment needed staged and ready:
hangar for the “annual” work.
• Hangar space—book at least two weeks if you do not norDocuments: It’s not done until the paperwork’s done
mally hanger your bird.
Every aircraft is required to have certain documents on board:
Aircraft Registration, Airworthiness Certificate, W&B, POH. • Aircraft jacks and tail stand—I made a simple tail stand out
of a sawhorse with concrete weights and a strap that attaches
Additionally, “Experimental-Exhibition” also requires a current
to the tail skid.
Program Letter. In the airframe logbook, there must be evidence
www.flyredstar.org
15
•
Oil catch buckets
•
Ladder and mechanic's stool
•
Drop lights and overhead lighting
•
Air compressor for the differential compression test
•
High-pressure air bottle for system refill after gear swings
•
Nearby work table for parts
•
Cardboard or carpet on which to set the cowlings
•
Yak or Nanchang tool set. It does not matter which one, as
they seem to be the same tools anyway. Some of the prop
tools differ. See "Specialized tools" photo.
•
Metric wrenches and sockets—provide tools for each specific task
•
Mineral spirits and rags—a parts washer is a handy luxury
•
De-fueling barrel and pump if testing the fuel level sensors
is required
•
Paper tags and zip lock bags for small parts
Ask the mechanic which tools he will be bringing. Most likely a
differential compression tester, a torque wrench, LCD borescope,
and perhaps some custom tools as well. See "Common inspection
tools" photo. I always place my cowlings and larger panels on carpet or big pieces of cardboard. Back in the days when most FBO’s
did maintenance, it was common to see fresh “hangar rash” on
your painted parts after an annual.
Unbuttoning
Once positioned in the hangar, the cowling, panels and fairings
come off and are set aside out of the way. Strip out the seats, kick
panels, and rear “baggage” hatch in the CJ, which once was the
avionics bay. The integrity of the harness and security of the attachment to the seats will be inspected. Provide a furniture blanket or carpet to protect the rudder cables, as well as the inspector,
when he or she is kneeling down in the fuselage. Bag and tag all
the screws removed, as one never knows how long the inspection will take. If something comes up that creates a few days of
interruption, you will wonder where all that unmarked hardware
belongs.
Miscellaneous: If an oil change will be part of the work, the oil
cooler will slowly drain overnight into your bucket. The propeller reduction gear case and oil tank drain much more quickly.
Notes on the Inspection
The actual inspection will probably be done in a day or so but
prep, maintenance, and re-assembly will consume a work week.
I have done general condition inspections on both Yaks and CJs,
and 40 man-hours is a consistent benchmark I experience. Expect that upgrades and modifications will add even more time.
Clearly, the work that the owner does will substantially lower the
expense of paying an A&P, but the big benefit is that the owner
knows what went into the effort, and generally, a lot more about
the airplane. Even after 20 years of working on these critters, I’m
still seeing issues I never ran across before.
Next Issue
Part 2: The Inspection Process and Maintenance
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testing
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16
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The RPA membership includes many former
military aviators within its ranks, and has
proudly taken on the vital role to provide
aircraft for memorials, as well as other special events.
The Missing Man Formation was originally
a military aerial salute honoring a Veteran
who had died—performed as an aircraft
flyover at a memorial service. There are
variations but most common is a 4-ship
of aircraft with the Missing Man inside the
flight, trailing smoke, and pulling up and
away from the rest of the 4-ship as the flight
passes overhead.
The Missing Man aircraft represents the
Veteran who has passed away, symbolizing
their departure from their squadron, their
friends, and their family. When that single
plane pulls up, trailing smoke, and departs
the flight, it is always profound. It will bring
tears to the toughest among us. The tradition is long and the RPA is honored to make
it available for America's Veterans.
To learn more about the RPA's charitable
Missing Man Flight Program, please email
[email protected]
You’ll be glad you did.
T ALL
WE BEATISED
ADVER ES!
PRIC
s part of the RedStar Pilots Association's
charitable mission, the RPA has several
airshow teams based throughout the country that are proud to perform flyovers for
appropriate US veteran memorials. These
flyovers, the venerable Missing Man Formations, have become a historic tradition in
the military and, specifically, for veterans
from the various aviation corps. US budget
constraints have led to sequestration, and
the military has reduced or eliminated its
budget for these important flyovers.
The RPA raises funds to help support this
important and honorable mission. If you, or
your business, would like to make a tax-deductible contribution to help sponsor the
RPA's Missing Man Flight Program, please
email: [email protected]
6/2/14 10:19 AM
www.flyredstar.org
17
Buddha's Calling
By Alan Cockrell [email protected]
S
omething was wrong. The moving map display showed we had
crossed over a waypoint where we should have turned. Yet I
could clearly see Buddha’s jet out in front, wings level continuing straight ahead. I thought maybe my moving map display was
lying. I was f lying f luid trail on him. It was actually easier to see
his shadow zipping across northern Arizona 500 feet below us.
The A-7 was the first fighter to have a moving map, maybe even
the first aircraft ever to have one. Our Dash-1 called it the PMDS,
or Projected Map Display System. In a nuts and bolts sense it bore
little in common with today’s multi-function displays. Incredibly, it was actually a round scope that showed the movements
of a tiny little low resolution camera somewhere in the plane’s
innards scanning microfiche of VFR charts. These images were
piped up to the cockpit and displayed on a scope with a rearscreen projector. The movements of the camera (or maybe of the
microfiche—I don’t remember) were driven by signals from the
inertial measurement system (IMS), which was also a “first” for
fighter aircraft.
My F-4 friends tell me the Rhino had a rudimentary IMS for navigation, but unlike theirs ours also computed aim points for our
bombs. The F-4 guys drank a lot of beer while bemoaning our
bombing accuracy vs. theirs.
We had some other neat “firsts” on the A-7. The HUD, for example. That was the one that made us the envy of the aviation world.
And the Allison TF-41 behind our backs was the first turbo-fan
engine in a fighter. It was a good engine after they figured out
how to keep the oil pump running. Some guys had to make nylon
landings, and their planes are still available if you wish to buy an
acre in southern Arizona. You can get one free if you dredge off
the East Coast. Yet the TF-41 ran well when it ran, had decent
power, and was satisfyingly noisy.
The jet had a lot of other new stuff in it, but you get the point.
You can get carried away with all the bells and whistles and find
yourself a passenger and—whether it’s an A-7, Nanchang, Yak or
Albatross—that’s bad.
We didn’t regard the PMDS very highly. The thought of a little
gremlin working like hell down in our avionics bay trying to focus that fuzzy TV camera on a piece of moving film came over
to us as a smoke and mirrors scheme. It seemed like every time
we loaded up with Gs he got off balance. That’s why we carried
paper charts.
Part of the job of every 2nd Lieutenant in the squadron (that
would have been me, the squadron’s only 2nd balloon at the time)
was to cut the paper charts into knee board-sized strips with the
selected low-level training route drawn on it, and arrange them
so that you could f lip the pages as you progressed along the route.
(Okay, let’s get something straight: I did not get passed over for
18
First Lieutenant. Back then you had to serve two years in grade
before promotion to 1st Lt. That’s why I was still a butter bar in
an operational squadron. So quit laughing.)
Seeing Buddha blast straight ahead over the turn-point made me
check my strip chart. Yes, the PMDS was right. We were headed
north when we should have been heading west. About then he
made a slight right turn toward Humphreys Peak, the highest
mountain in Arizona at over 12,000 feet. It wasn’t like Buddha
to screw up like that. I got concerned. Could he be on autopilot
and incapacitated? We were supposed to stay quiet on the radio
so I hesitated to call him. But Humphreys was getting bigger fast.
I glanced down and switched the transmitter to FM—“Fox Mike,”
we called it. FM (another new innovation in fighters) was our
link to Army units on the ground. We could talk to the grunts directly—didn’t need a FAC. But in all my time in the A-7 we never
talked to the Army. We used FM for inter-aircraft communications and for com with the squadron back at the base, where the
duty desk had a transceiver.
I was concerned that if I called Buddha out on a deviation as
serious this they would hear it back at the squadron. But FM was
short-ranged and we had a lot of real estate between us and home
plate. I called.
“Buddha, you missed the turn point back there.”
His response stirred me with both anxiety and excitement. “Keep
quiet and hang tight.”
Buddha was up to something, and it wasn't like him to deviate
from the game plan. Found outside his hooch in Thailand sitting
under a tree with his legs crossed and belly hanging out, somebody laughed and said he looked like Buddha, and so the moniker
stuck and became his call sign. With his jutting jaw, linebacker
neck (which he was at Oklahoma State), cocky swagger, and a
combat tour under his belt, Buddha was a model fighter pilot.
His name was a fixture on the monthly Top Gun board in our
wing headquarters, and his skills as a f light lead were respected
across the base.
But Buddha’s time was approaching for his obligatory desk job.
This was the pre-Reagan, post-Viet Nam era of brooding and reproving in the U.S. military. Realistic training took a back seat to
CYA ops and not rocking the boat. This is amply demonstrated
by the fact that we were f lying the “low-level” route at the required 500 AGL—hardly realistic.
Once I was in a 4-ship in finger-tip headed to the gunnery range.
Two F-100s from the Arizona Air Guard tapped us. Back then
the Guard was a wonderful f lying club where pilots went to f ly
Uncle Sam’s marvelous winged toys on their off days from their
airline or whatever they did. Careerists in the USAF regarded
g Card
them as traitorous miscreants. But most of them were highly experienced, skilled and aggressive traitorous miscreants.
The Huns rolled in on us and made gun passes. Dissimilar air
combat training was several years in the offing. Joining the fight
would have been a career-ending move for our f light lead. That
humiliation was hard to suffer. It added to our collective mood of
restlessness and frustration. I remember the banner painted on
our base water tower: The Mission: Safety. My f light commander
said it should read: The Mission, Safely.
In that era of misplaced priorities the USAF grounded pilots
as soon as they became seasoned. (They may still do it; I don’t
know.) Everybody needed to get their career progression ticket
punched. Buddha, a respected senior captain, should have been
being groomed for squadron commander. Instead, he was heading for an ROTC unit to become a teacher of college kids, and
after that, possibly a return to a f lying assignment, but no promises.
Yet Buddha would not leave his cockpit kicking and screaming,
as you might expect; he would depart leaving a single colossal
mark of disobedience, which would remain known only to himself and a certain wingman who was expected to hang tight and
keep his mouth shut.
Humphreys towered above the canopy bow when Buddha started
his pull. The mountain seemed to kneel and let us go over it.
Within seconds I saw Buddha’s jet roll inverted at the top and
disappear down the back-side. I was as excited as a kid on Christmas morning, and I followed his maneuvers exactly. It was so
easy it felt like a f light through a fantasy world. We leveled out
on the Kaibab Plateau, still ripping northward. I guessed now we
would turn southwest and go pick up the published route. But
still he didn’t turn.
You didn’t need to be a rocket scientist to figure out what Buddha intended next. We were so low on the f lat plateau I couldn't
see the gouge in the Earth ahead of us, but I knew it was there. I
thought maybe he planned to f ly over the Canyon, perhaps buzz
it from rim to rim, maybe zoom up high and roll inverted, looking up at it through the top of his canopy. Yeah, I thought, that's
what Buddha planned. That would be a kick. I got ready to pull
back on the stick for rocket zoom.
Suddenly, his wings snapped steeply to the right and Buddha f lew
down into the Kaibab Plateau—gone in a f lash. I swallowed hard,
felt my adrenalin pick up to about the pressure of the A-7's hydraulic system, 3,000 psi, and in a few heartbeats I was across
the rim looking at the Vishnu Schist a mile below. I snapped my
wings past 90 degrees and followed Buddha into the Earth's butt
crack.
The canyon's tight meanders forced us up over the rim a few
times, but we plunged back into it and followed its sinuous kinks,
our senses buzzing, eyeballs dancing left and right, riding riproaring sky fighting machines not designed for underground
work, fiery death only seconds on each side of us. A hundred or
so electrified miles later Buddha hauled back on his stick and left
the Canyon shrinking beneath his tail, and somewhere behind
him—I'm sure he hoped—a silent wingman still hanging tight.
Buddha left a mark on the world—a mark in the mind and the
memory, the best place for marks, the only appropriate place
sometimes. We were among the few in modern times who had
f lown through the Grand Canyon, f lew fast and made a hell of a
lot of noise doing it. Had our tour become known to the powersthat-be, that would have been our last f light, and if done today
it would probably get us tossed into the federal penitentiary. He
swore me to secrecy, but I figure his statute of limitations is up
by now.
It was a hell of a chance he took with his career and our lives.
It dawned on me later that despite my newness he trusted me
enough to stay out of the rocks, and I felt honored by it. But losing me against the canyon wall would have been haunted him the
rest of his life.
Shortly afterwards Buddha hung up his G-suit and helmet and
went to his school room to teach frat rats air power doctrine, and
after that he quit the Air Force and got into computers. Since
then every time I have crossed the Grand Canyon, looking down
at it from the lofty f light levels, it's Buddha I remember—Buddha
and his trust in me to keep my mouth shut and hang tight.
Our little deviation was a breach of f light discipline of the most
serious order. We lived through it, but back then we were young
and bullet-proof. And we didn’t have any kids. Our wives were
young and pretty enough to easily replace us with more responsible men. We really didn’t have that much to lose.
But today we have plenty to lose. Recklessness has no place in
what we do. Flight discipline keeps us safe and lets us keep enjoying the freedom and camaraderie only sport aviation can give.
We always have fun telling the old stories of daring-do, but the
real satisfaction is in being professional and doing it the right
way.
Ironically, Buddha knew this. He was a consummate professional—his deviation was not impulsive. He precisely pre-planned his
tour, not telling anyone until that unforgettable radio call: “Keep
quiet and hang tight.” That desk job assignment was just too hard
for him to accept without leaving his calling card in the Grand
Canyon.
His other call sign is Larry Mills and he’s somewhere in the Dallas area. If you know him, tell me.
www.flyredstar.org
19
Red Stars
Honor the
Red Tails
By Dave “Costco” King [email protected]
T
he administration’s sequestration had eliminated virtually
all military f lying tributes for those who have served. One
of the most rewarding aspects RedStar aircraft ownership is our
ability to efficiently honor veterans, whether it's exhibiting or
performing at airshows, ride alongs, or f lying Missing Man tributes.
In February, 2012, shortly after MLK Day and the release of
George Lucas’s film, the Red Tails, the Gnoss Field Community
Association in Novato, CA hosted a special tribute to honor the
20
Tuskegee Airmen who broke the military’s color barrier in World
War II—the Red Tails.
The event included a breakfast, talks by the airmen and their
family members, an aircraft display, rides for the airmen and
their family members, and a Missing Man tribute f light. More
than 200 attended the event, including two original Airmen,
relatives of Airmen, aviation buffs, Marin County officials, and
Civil Air Patrol cadets.
Bob Minkin
Red Stars takeoff from Gnoss Field
Five RPA pilots f lew at the event and all had Tuskegee Airmen
or their relatives in our back seats. Airman Lt. LeRoy Gillead
was my GIB, and it was his first f light since World War II. Also
f lying with our group was Capt. Leslie Williams, the first black
bomber pilot.
Flight Line-up:
In her welcome, Marin County Supervisor Judy Arnold said,
“They protected white bomber pilots, but weren't allowed to eat
with those pilots. But events like this are a reminder that we're a
country that welcomes everyone. We're proud of you.”
4 – Kurt Howerton
1 – Dave King
2 – Kirk Heiser
3 – John Long
5 – Blitz Fox
Stu Eberhardt, a former RPA Check Pilot and Reno Air Race
champion brought his pristine P-51 to the event for display and
ended the day with several low, high-speed passes before majestically departing up through the clouds.
It was truly a privilege and honor to f ly with Lt. Gillead and honor the men who contributed so much to the war effort and who,
for too long, went largely unrecognized for their service and role
in integrating the military.
To view a video of the event:
http://baybombersquadron.com/videos.php
www.flyredstar.org
21
Aviation Medicine
Sleep Well—the FAA Wants to Help You
By Chuck Crinnian, MD [email protected]
n theory, FAA regulations are to promote aviation safety. Many
times, a regulatory change or proposal sounds the alarms with
the EAA, AOPA and pilots. Opposition to change may or may not
be in the best interest to the pilots that the regulation or proposed
regulatory change is intended to help. One such relatively recent
proposal was how the aviation medical examiner deals with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and the body mass index (BMI).
New OSA screening guidelines will be published and take effect
March 2, 2015. Major points in the new guidelines are as follows:
OSA is just one of a list of sleep related disorders that can impact
a pilot. Many health issues can impact good restorative sleep.
Poor sleep hygiene will negatively impact cognitive functioning.
Poor cognitive functioning can be a substantial contributor to an
aviation accident or incident. Thus, the AME must be aware of
sleep disorders. Examples are insomnia, restless leg syndrome,
neuromuscular disorders and connective tissue disorders. Medicines for many of these disorders are also disqualifying as they
can impact cognitive functioning and levels of alertness.
I
As far as OSA is concerned, it has been shown that it is universal in obese individuals who have a BMI over 40 and a neck circumference of 17 inches or more. Thus, the FAA wanted to push
for AME screening of this set of physical exam findings. Anyone
meeting these exam parameters would be “guaranteed” to have
OSA and should be disqualified from medical certification…until effectively treated. It also should be noted that 30% of individuals with BMI’s under 30 also have OSA.
OSA inhibits restorative sleep. The obvious effect of OSA is
that of excessive daytime sleepiness and its impact on cognitive
functioning. However, more ominous medical issues are linked
to OSA. There is strong relationship to sudden cardiac death,
stroke, hypertension and coronary artery disease, to name a few.
Does this get your attention! However, OSA can be effectively
treated. So I view the issues of failing an OSA screening not as
being too restrictive. It can be a lifesaving finding that should
prompt the airman to get treatment. Once treated, the airman
gets their medical certificate and will live to f ly another day.
The EAA, AOPA and other pilot groups strongly opposed this
regulation. The basis for the opposition was the perception of
an overly zealous FAA and more restrictive regulations. There
was and is significant push back to initiate this proposal. In response to industry stakeholders and Congressional concerns,
the proposed BMI screening guidelines give the AME are now
“scrapped”.
22
•
No disqualification of pilots based on BMI alone. The risk of
OSA is determined by an integrated assessment of history,
sympotms and clinical findings.
•
The OSA screening process must be completed and documented by the AME.
•
Pilots determined to be at risk for OSA will be issued a medical certificate and will be referred for evaluation.
•
If required, OSA evaluations can be completed by any physician (including the AME) using the American Academy of
Sleep Medicine’s guidelines.
•
Evaluations do not require a sleep lab or home study if the
evaluating physician does not require it.
•
Results of the evaluations will be forwarded to the FAA within 90 days of the medical exam to satisfy this new guideline.
The pilot continues to f ly during this period.
•
Pilots diagnosed with OSA can send documentation of effective treatment to the FAA in order to receive consideration
for a Special Issuance medical certificate.
This time the FAA listened to pilots and industry groups and
changed a rather restrictive policy. The result will benefit pilots
as they can still f ly during the evaluation period and save months
being grounded while the FAA processes a deferral. Overall aviation safety and pilot health will be positively addressed. And
most important, the financial burdens and disincentives for obtaining OSA evaluation have been reduced.
More Good News
Over the past year the FAA Medical Certification Branch has
changed the internal workings of how the AME can streamline
the process for airmen to get their medical certificates in the face
of a long list of health challenges. Traditionally, the AME had
to defer issuing a certificate for most health issues. This process
of special issuance has been a thorn in the side of many airmen.
Now, for many of the more common health challenges and diseases, the AME has guidance on what to review, and if positive,
can issue the certificate. This new program is known as “CACI”Cases/conditions AME Can Issue. Some examples of conditions
the AME can now issue are: Arthritis, Glaucoma, Hypertension,
Asthma, Hep-C, hypothyroidism, Renal Cancer, Prostate Cancer, and Migraines. The list is still growing. It is great to see the
FAA decentralizing the authority to grant medical certification
to the AME’s out in the field. Progress!
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Member, FAAST Lead Representative, ATP, CFI and AME. Please
call Chuck if you have any questions regarding the FAA Wings
program, safety or medical certification concerns.
Office#: 480-451-7676 or website:
www.aviationdoc.net
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www.flyredstar.org
23
John "Chevy"
Chris Dilley
24
24
Ford's CJ-6A
Manufacturer : Nanchang (1969) Model: CJ-6A
360 HP M-14 engine with mt focke-wulf prop
Dynon 10A in front and back cocpits
dynon autopilot
Garmin SL30 with glide slope, Garmin Sl40,
Garmin GTX transponder, Garmin 796
Long range Fuel bladder tanks & fuel vent valve
Malcolm hood canopy
Smoke System
www.flyredstar.org
www.flyredstar.org
25
25
Venting Installations
On 14-Series Engines
B
efore examining the different venting systems, a review of the
CAA/FAA requirements is instructive. Civil Air Regulation
4 (1940) only had requirements for aircraft structures. CAR 4a
(1950) requires that oil tanks be “suitably” vented. Federal Air
Regulation 33.39 (current) requires that the crankcase be vented
to the atmosphere to preclude leakage of oil from excessive pressure in the crankcase. This can be a serious problem, as we have
an engine in the shop today that was somehow pressurized and
blew out all seals and some gaskets. The repair requires a complete engine teardown.
Since the FAA has no regulatory interest in oil streaks on the
fuselage, it is at the discretion of the designer, manufacturer and,
in the case of experimental aircraft, the owner to solve this problem. I would get an argument from some FAA persons, but FAR
43 Appendix A clearly does not classify alterations to the venting
system as a major alteration. Therefore, per FAR 43, this can be
accomplished and approved by an A&P mechanic with a logbook
entry. The rule is the same for experimental exhibition, as there
is no “major repair or alteration” under the operating limitations
requiring notification of the FAA.
Crankcase pressure is primarily created from combustion gases
that blow by the rings. It is also created by oil introduced into
the crankcase by the oil pump that is not counterbalanced by
Figure 1
By Carl W. Hays, M14P, Inc.
[email protected]
the oil removed from the crankcase by the oil scavenge pump.
The power section, cam section, and nose case are vented to each
other by more than 1.5 square inches internally. The accessory
section and forward blower section plate are vented to the rest
by approximately 0.3 square inches internally. For venting only,
a 620 cubic inch engine should have a vent line diameter of 0.50.625 inches. When the vent is also used as an oil return, the
diameter should be larger.
First, we will look at the Yak-52 system with the M-14P. The Yak50, -55, -18T and Sukhoi systems are functionally identical. It is
more complicated because it is an aerobatic aircraft with an inverted oil system. In positive G operation (Figure 1), the breather
from the top of the nose case does nothing. The breather between
intake tubes #9 and #1 breathes the entire engine. While it looks
like it is connected to the blower, it is not. The passageway connects to the crankcase. With the engine running, oil is sucked
from the oil tank by the oil pump, adding pressure to the crankcase, and sucked out of the sump and into the oil tank, reducing
crankcase pressure. Ring blow-by and any pressure imbalance is
carried to the oil tank. The oil tank has a f lop system where the
oil pickup moves to the positive G area of the oil tank, while the
vent opening moves to the opposite.
Notice that there is no breather exit, so far. Unless there is a gasket or seal leak, there should be no oil on the engine. The breather opening (in Figure 1) is on the
left side of the oil tank. From here
it runs to an air/oil separator, entering at the bottom. Oil that separates is caught on the baff les and
runs to the bottom of the tank and
then to the engine sump. The gases
go (as installed) over the top of the
oil tank and exit the engine cowling past the firewall.
Next, look at the same system
during inverted f light (Figure 2).
The lines that were on the bottom
are now on the top and vice versa.
The line on the nose case and the
breather are now oil return lines
to the oil tank. The oil return line
from the separator to the sump is
now the breather for the entire engine. What was up on the oil tanks
is now down, except for the f lop
system. It still f lows oil to the oil
pump and the vent still goes to the
separator. The separator no longer
26
Figure 2
separates. Instead all of the breather gases and oil mist leaves the
aircraft through the same outlet breather.
If this engine is to be used on a positive G-only aircraft, the sump
opening and top of the nose case opening serve no purpose and
can be capped. Every American-made radial engine installation
has a breather line connection between the engine and oil tank. I
suggest doing this is a good idea.
Next, let's look at the venting systems on the Wilga and CJ6
(Figure 3). These are the only manufactured aircraft in the US
using the AI-14 series engine. Both systems are the same and
Figure 3
very unique in the US. The engines
are identical internally to the M14P and have the same crankcase
breather opening between #9 and #1
intake tubes and a breather opening
on top of the nose case. There is no
opening on the side of the sump for
an oil return.
The oil tank is vented independently of the engine. The crankcase
“breather” (B) is really an air intake. It is connected to a tube with a
bell end that turns forward through
the baff ling facing forward. This
receives propwash air that includes
rain and dirt and forces it into the
engine. The actual exit breather is
the offset casting (A) on top of the
nose case. The blow-by gases and
oil mist exit the engine at this point.
Yes, it works well as a vent system
and is understandable if you know
the history of the engine models. It
also leaves an oily engine, which, in
a dusty area, results in a very hard to keep clean engine.
Recommendations
The basic system in the Yaks and Sukhois cannot really be
improved. While it is a great deal of work, running the outlet
breather line out of the tail of a tailwheel aircraft will clean up
the belly of the aircraft. Many tailwheel homebuilt aircraft do
this. Be sure to add a “whuss” hole in the line in the engine compartment in case water gets trapped in a low point and freezes.
CJs and Wilgas: The easiest alteration is to weld a female pipe
thread bung near the top of the oil tank and an AN male fitting
to the breather casting between intakes #9 and #1. Connect the
two with a hose. Blank off the nose
case opening. On the Wilga, run a
hose from the oil tank breather vent
tube past the oil cooler and secure.
See also #3.
Positive-G homebuilts, see photo
1. Block off the nose case openings. Buy a Kimball’s fitting for the
breather (-12 AN male). Run a -12
hose to a Peterson Fluid Systems air/
oil separator #08-0410. Run an -8
hard line from the separator to the
top of your oil tank. While the filter
on top works fine as a breather with
positive Gs, an option is to weld a
plate on top, thread the plate and
run the vent line down a fixed gear
leg on a tailwheel aircraft or out the
tail on other aircraft. The breather
line can also run down the firewall
www.flyredstar.org
27
and extend out past the belly. The
separator has a drain into a ¼” female hole on the bottom. This can
be run to the engine case to return
the oil. The best place to return
the oil is to a plate on the side of
the accessory case just forward
of the start air distributor. If you
want to do this, call us first. Remove the wrong plate and major
engine damage is a certainty.
Photo 1
May you spend more time f lying
and less time cleaning oil off your
aircraft!
IMPORTANT SAFETY NOTE
While nearly all US radial engine
aircraft have either a front exhaust or a stainless steel dishpan
between the exhaust and the accessory section, the Eastern bloc
aircraft do not. This creates an extreme fire hazard if a hose leaks fuel or oil in the engine compartment or an exhaust leak contacts a hose with high temperature
gas. Be sure your hoses are safe from the exhaust system and are
28
in good shape. If you have any doubt, this is a critical problem—
call me. I will tell you what I have seen and heard, along with
how vulnerable you can be. An immediate off-airport landing is
nearly never a survivable option.
FOR SALE
Accepting Offers!
Totally Restored 1966 Nanchang CJ6—N26CJ
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L
ead pilots, keep your head on a swivel. When you assume
the responsibility of flight leader, you go from flying one
airplane to flying four airplanes in a 4-ship. It's particularly
critical whenever you signal a wingman or wingmen and
put them in motion, as with a cross-under. It's not enough
to give a signal, look for acknowledgment, and then look
away. You must be sure that the wingmen have interpreted
your signal correctly and are moving as directed. We have
had several situations where cross-under signals were misinterpreted and both #2 and the #3/#4 element all started
moving down and aft to cross.
Newly rebuilt Super Housai Engine by M14P, Inc.
High compression American ceramic coated pistons & rings
Engine total time: 40 hours
Burns less than ½ quart of oil per hour
Airshow smoke system
Automotive wiring harness
US radio
Intercom
Mode C transponder
ELT
Oil filter system
All in excellent condition
Fastest Housai-powered CJ in the US!
Michael Li-Paz
KCMA
[email protected]
(805) 857-4262
This is also one of the reasons you must caution your wingman to, when signaled, move slowly and deliberately. You
must have time to react and redirect the wingmen if things
go haywire.
www.flyredstar.org
29
YOLO JET BLAST
By Phil Wood with photos by Robert Genat & Michael Mainiero
Kevin Roll leads an L-39 three-ship with Bret Cox and Kevin Walker on the wing.
A
fter a three-month rain delay, the CJAA Yolo Jet Blast finally took off on March 8, 2015. In addition to three L-39
participants, this Jet Blast was to include two T-33s, a Marchetti S.211, a T-6 and the Patriot Jet Team’s 1976 Sabreliner
piloted by the team’s head, Randy Howell.
Among the early arrivals, the S.211 showcased exceptional approach, landing and taxi handling capabilities. After arrival,
Doug Matthews removed a number of service panels to provide unobstructed visual examination of this aircraft’s electrical and starter subsystems, and offered detailed cockpit and
instrument tours, before leaving it on static display for the
balance of the event. The lone prop participant, Mike Pf leger,
having fulfilled his responsibility to explain the S.211’s starter
subsystem to the participants, the attending crowd,
FBO employees, and anyone else in the neighborhood, returned home leaving this Jet Blast without
stick time in the aforementioned S.211.
Formal f lying kicked off with L-39s piloted by
Kevin Roll, Bret Cox, and Kevin Walker practicing
formation skills with Mike Mangold and Mike Peterson as IPs. With their remaining fuel, they rendezvoused with the Bonanza photo ship with Greg
Blanck at the controls. Even at the Bonanza’s low
150 knots TAS, the L-39s smartly executed FAST
maneuvers for some amazing photos. Meanwhile,
in another sector, SAE (Specialty Aircraft Exam-
30
30
Red Alert
Alert Spring
Spring 2015
2015
Red
iner) John Penney was running T-33 pilot Greg Colyer through
a 61.58 proficiency f light. A 61.58 check f light is required each
year for all turbine powered aircraft pilots who want to carry
passengers. Colyer passed easily in spite of an environmental
system malfunction that directed more cooling to the rear seat
(Penney) than the front. Curious …
The afternoon saw more FAST practice and a T-bird checkride
for future CJAA member, David “Tef lon” Mitchell. Mitchell is
a current Air Force f light instructor and former A-10 driver
who wants to expand his resume. Congratulations!
Saturday’s Sabreliner arrival brought a new dimension to
CJAA Jet Blasts. Howell offered upset training in his Sabre-
The smiles on the Yolo Jet Blast attendees attest to the excellent f lying conditions and
multiple training f lights f lown.
liner; Peterson, Walker and Cox took advantage of the opportunity, and returned telling stories of unusual attitudes in a
20,000 pound jet. No photos—sorry…
During lunch, Penney explained pilot certification for experimental aircraft types without a designated examiner, which
he referred to as “Strange.” His presentation, previously presented by Mark Peterson during the 2015 CJAA Convention,
explained the options available to the candidate and examiner.
That afternoon, another photo shoot took place with T-33s, piloted by Colyer and Mitchell f lying in formation with the Sabreliner. Also Cox completed his 61.58 ride and Roll relived a
dream f lying a newly built, pristine, RV-8 around the pattern.
Sunday morning there was one last 3-ship formation f light
with the L-39s, earning Cox FAST currency. And then it was
quiet at Yolo.
CJAA wants to thank Colyer and Walker for a well-organized
and executed Jet Blast. Gary Pelfrey and the crew at Davis
Flight Support provided world-class facilities, food, beverages, ground support, and good cheer throughout the event. We
had access to a wonderful pilot lounge and large conference
room with excellent audio/video systems that were utilized for
briefings and several presentations and videos. A big “Thank
You” to Gary and his team!
Above: Kevin Walker f lies over Lake Berryessa with IP Mike Mangold in
his back seat.
Below: Dave "Tef lon" Mitchell leads Greg Colyer in a second T-33 and
Sabreliner piloted by Randy Howell.
www.flyredstar.org
www.flyredstar.org
31
31
Fly-By Timing
W
hen it comes to doing a f ly-by you can either show up
sometime during the ceremony, make a few passes, and
head for home, or you can arrive overhead for the missing man
pass on the last note of "Taps." The former offers the challenge
of finding the event and getting a good looking formation across
the crowd. But, throw in timing so the f lyby coincides with end
of "Taps," and you have a much more difficult but much more
touching performance.
In 2003 Tracy (my wife and fellow T-34 wingman—we only had
one T-34 so guess who was usually GIB?) asked me to put together a f ly-by for a close friend's funeral at a nearby cemetery. We
decided from the get-go that we didn't want to just be overhead
during the ceremony—we wanted an "End of Taps" f ly-by. Naively (which I am), I contacted the Thunderbirds (I am a retired
USAF pilot) but never heard anything back from them. (Sometime later I asked Bill Cherwin, leader of the Lima Lima Formation Team (www.limalima.com), how he does it. He said he f lies
a figure eight pattern at a predetermined point and when he gets
the call from his ground guy, he knows which way to turn, how
much to dump the nose, and what other adjustments he needs to
make. His fellow Lima Lima pilots, who hang on his wing while
doing over-the-top aerobatics during airshows, have no problems
staying with him no matter what he does—and it all works out.
In other words, he's done it so many times he can just do it without thinking about it.)
I'm a numbers kind of guy. Trigonometry is my friend. I can tell
you what your turn radius is going to be at any speed and any
bank angle and how long it is going to take you to make a 180°
turn. (Don't worry, you don't have to be like me. I have worked
it all out. All you have to do is execute.) Trouble is, I can only
do that when I am sitting at my computer with my spreadsheets.
As Larry Bunce, a CFI at North Island Navy Flying Club (I f lew
T-34s there back in the 90s), used to say: "The cockpit is not a
place for higher math." I needed to come up with something that
could be used in the cockpit to make it happen when the guy on
the ground gave me the call, and because I wanted to be able to
pass on what I came up with to others, I needed to turn it into a
procedure verses a "that looks about right" maneuver.
But first I want to digress for a bit—mainly because I like to talk
about the good old days and, secondarily, because it sort of relates to what I am talking about.
When I f lew the A-7D (1974-1978) we had a computed bombing system that calculated, 25 times per second, where the bomb
would hit. All I had to do was line up the "green stuff " in the
HUD (Head Up Display) with the target, hold the "consent button,” pull out, and the computer would let the bomb go at the
right time. But, after the A-7 I f lew the A-10, before the Warthog
32
By Don Ramm [email protected]
had a computed bomb dropping systems. I had to learn how to
drop “manual bombs.” Since the average pilot couldn't calculate
the proper release point 25 times per second for any possible
dive angle, airspeed, and release altitude, we picked specific dive
angles for ordnance delivery. All of the release parameters were
worked out by the weapons school guys and were published in
a manual called the T.O. A-10A-34, the "Dash 34.” Well, just as
back in my manual bomb dropping days, I needed to come up
with my own "Dash 34" for doing f ly-bys, such that if I hit all
of the parameters I'd get a "shack" (bomb hits the target). This
article will attempt to describe how I came up with those parameters, and the coordination that is absolutely vital, to get your
f light over the ceremony at just the right time.
A note about using a GPS: I never had a very good one. Mine
could only figure out how long it would take me to get from
where I was to the next point by going directly to that point—
it could not take into consideration a 30° banked turn I had to
smoothly negotiate so as not to lose my wingmen. So I never used
it for "close in" work – from the holding pattern to the ceremony.
I would use it to ensure I got to the holding point when I wanted
to but that's about it.
Overview
Contact the family. Tell them what you can do and find out what
they want. So I don't lose you while trying to describe multiple
passes, let's say they just want the missing man pass. The ground
guy gets there an hour early to meet with the honor guard to find
out how long Taps is, and finds an event at just the right moment
in the ceremony (that's the hard part) to cue the f light. The f light
enters holding at a predetermined spot (exactly two nm from
ceremony = one minute at 120 knots). When the predetermined
event arrives in the ceremony, the ground guy cues the f light.
The f light lead—depending on where he is in the holding orbit
—executes the appropriate maneuver and heads in to the target. As a final adjustment, the ground guy—knowing how long
Taps is, and knowing where the f light will be when Taps should
start—cues the bugler to begin. That's all there is to it, you have
a perfect f ly-by, there isn't a dry eye in the crowd, and they can't
imagine how you did it.
Timing
A burial service may start at a specific time but no ceremony is
going to stick to a schedule such that you can blindly f ly over
at exactly 10 minutes after the scheduled start time. In order to
arrive overhead at the last note of Taps you must have someone
on the ground who gives you a cue and you, no matter where
you are in the holding pattern, need to arrive overhead at exactly
some number of minutes and seconds later—for me that is three
minutes. I'll show you were I get that below. I've got a name for it:
Minimum Cue Time.
The ground guy knows about Minimum Cue Time. His number
one job is to work with the honor guard and find out where they
will be in their ceremony three minutes before the end of Taps.
Flight Planning
I highly recommend the use of Google Earth for f light planning.
Use it to:
There aren't a lot of real buglers out there. All honor guard ceremonies that I have done since 2003, except for one, have used
a recorded version of Taps. The bugler has a real bugle but the
electronic device that sounds Taps fits into the front of the bugle.
All the bugler has to do it turn it on and make it look like they are
blowing Taps. The recorded version takes one minute on the dot,
in my experience. If you do have a real bugler they can more than
likely tell you how long it will take to play Taps.
•
If Taps takes a minute, you need to find an event two minutes before that. Sometimes, two minutes before that is before the honor
guard starts. If so, work something out with them to stretch out
the ceremony or ask them to change things around a bit. If they
normally do a rif le salute immediately followed by Taps and then
fold the f lag, ask them to fold the f lag first. I have always found
the honor guard to oblige to make the f ly-by work out. This is
just as big of a thrill for them as it is for the family.
The best way to figure out when the cue should be? Find out
when the honor guard will be doing a similar ceremony (with or
without rif le salute—it depends on the status of the deceased)
and watch. Video the ceremony (from a respectable distance, of
course) and watch it back at your computer.
The ground guy does the best he can to come up with an event
that is two minutes before Taps will begin. If anything, wait a
little bit beyond that event before you cue the f light. Why? Because you have an ace in the hole to make everything work out.
The ground guy's number two job is to hook up with the bugler and get him to wait until a signal from you to begin Taps.
That way, if things happen more quickly than planned, instead
of starting Taps at the normal point in the ceremony (usually
right after the rif le volley if there is on), the bugler will wait.
Yes, there will be some dead time. Maybe even 30 seconds if the
chosen event wasn't at the perfect moment. Silence is fine. Don't
be afraid of having some. This isn't radio.
When the ground guy sees the f light at the one minute out point
(or maybe a few seconds before since the bugler has to turn the
bugle on and raise it to his lips—plus there is nothing wrong
with Taps ending and then another 5 -10 seconds until the f light
is actually overhead.
How does the ground guy know when the f light is one-minute
out? Read on.
Find the target.
Not just the general location of the cemetery. Find the place
where the ceremony will take place. At national cemeteries that
is at a "committal shelter" somewhere on the grounds and usually
easy to see; however, I have done f ly-bys over the plot where the
deceased will be buried. Grave-side ceremonies will have some
chairs set up, and possibly a tent.
•
Pick the direction from which you want to run-in to the target.
Ideally, you go to the cemetery ahead of time and figure out the
best heading to run in from. If you can't determine a good heading, ask the cemetery staff which direction the family will be facing and make the run in from their 12 o'clock.
•
Find an IP (initial point) on that run-in course that is two
nm away.
This is where Google Earth is a Godsend. Select the "Ruler" tool,
change the units to nautical miles, click on the target, and move
the crosshairs out the direction you are going to run in from until the "Ruler" says you are at two nm. Move the crosshairs from
side to side, maintaining the two nm distance from the target,
until you land upon some recognizable landmark. It doesn't have
to be huge.
Why two nautical miles? Because I f ly the whole thing at 120
knots, and it takes one minute to cover two nm. (I don't worry
about the winds , there is only so much my pea brain can handle.)
So when crossing the IP, you call your ground guy, who then cues
the bugler.
Now you have an IP and an aerial view that you can use to study
the run-in. Google Earth allows you to view the world from an
angle verses a direct overhead view. It even tells you what your
altitude is so you can (with some practice) "f ly" the run-in at the
altitude you will use to get a very near real world view.
Is the target small? Is the chosen IP small? Use the aerial view to
find big things nearby and use them to funnel you into the point
you are looking for. Get very familiar with the run-in.
How far out do you want to have #3 initiate the pull? 10 seconds
before overhead? 10 seconds is 1/6th of the run-in. That's 1/6th of
two nm. That's 1/3 nm. So bring up the "Ruler" in Google Earth
again and find a point that is 1/3 nm out. Well, that point is going to be directly under you when you get to that point—pretty
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33
hard to see. But if you look left and right of the run-in line at that
point, you can find something abeam your run-in that you can
look for that will tell you when you are 1/3 nm out. Resist the
urge (in my opinion) to look at your GPS to check your distance.
Better that you look outside for a landmark on the ground.
Holding and the "Go" Call
Holding is not a gaggle maneuver out away from the crowd. Sure,
you may have to kill 15 minutes because you took off early, and
the ceremony stated late, and they insisted on saying a few words
before the honor guard began their ceremony. But, when it gets
close to "Go" time, you need to be neatly established in the holding orbit.
Just in case it isn't obvious, this is what my holding pattern looks
like:
a few minutes of when you expect to hear the "GO!" call so you
are established in the holding orbit. All you have to do, no matter
where you are in the holding pattern when the ground guy calls
you in, is be over the IP exactly two minutes after you get the call.
Because I need to keep things as simple as possible, I don't figure
out what I should do for every possible point in holding. Instead,
I figured out what I would do in only four places and if I get
the call when somewhere other than one of those four positions
in holding, I would fudge a little bit—just like when dropping
bombs.
The four places are:
•
At the IP
•
One forth of the way around with 270° of turn left
•
Halfway around the circle with 180° of turn left
•
Three fourths of the way around with 90° of turn left
Since you are f lying a standard rate turn, a two minute 360, each
position is 30 seconds away from the next point.
Why a standard rate turn? Because it takes two minutes to do
a 360°, turn and it is very easy on the wingmen. This gives you
the ability to steepen the bank without turning holding into an
aerobatic maneuver. At 120 knots, a standard rate turn is 18° of
bank, or use that turn and bank indicator to help you find what
standard rate looks like through your windscreen and hold that.
Time to review: The ground guy is looking for an even three minutes before end of Taps. We set up the run-in so it will take exactly one minute for you to get from the IP to target. It is within
34
•
When you are at the IP, it will take you two minutes to go
around the circle to get back to the IP. If you get the "GO!"
call there, you just keep on doing what you were doing for
one more orbit, and then head in to the target.
•
Backing up to the 90° point: If you get the call when you are
here you are only 30 seconds from the IP so you need to soak
up an additional 1+30. Well, at 120 knots, if you steepen up
the bank just a bit to 24° you will use up 1+30. That is, when
you get the call, don't change a thing until you get back to the
IP and then steepen the bank up to 24°. When you get back
around to the IP you will have used up two minutes. You
could steepen up the bank at any point between there and
the IP—just do the slightly steeper orbit for a 360°turn, and
then head for the IP.
•
Backing up to the 180° point: If you get the call here you are
one minute away from the IP, so you need to do something
that uses up one more minute. At 120 knots, a 33° bank turn
•
takes one minute. Wait until you get back to the IP, or do the
33° bank 180 anywhere along the way for a full 360° turn,
and then resume the normal orbit and head for the IP.
you are going to do so he can knows what's up. And, you should
call when you are one minute out so he can queue the bugler—assuming the missing man is going to coincide with end of Taps.
At the 270° point you only have 30 seconds to soak up. As a
matter of fact a 53° bank 360 will soak up that 30 seconds and
your wingmen can probably hang in there, but in keeping
with making maneuvers gentle so the f light can look sharp
at all times, I have another suggestion for how to take care
of that 30 seconds. When you get to the 270 point, roll out.
Hold that for 15 seconds, and then roll back into your 18°
bank turn. When you are lined up with the run-in heading
you should be 15 seconds away from the IP and you've used
up that extra 30 seconds.
Google Earth Is Your Friend
Just like a simulator can help you be a better instrument pilot,
Google Earth can help you practice the "approach" as many
times as you want. But instead of looking at your instruments,
use Earth to help you find visual cues: For the IP, for a spot in the
middle of your holding pattern, for a spot that you will be abeam
when you tell #3 to begin pull up (because by that time the ceremony may be under your nose).
That's it. Apply fudge factor if you are any place else on the circle.
Let's say you are halfway between the 270 and 180 points. To use
up extra time at 180 you do a 360 at 33° of bank. To use up extra
time at 270 you could have used 53° bank, so you could use just
less than a 45° bank 360 and it would work out. Or you could
roll out at the 180 and go outbound for 22 seconds, do 180 to intercept extended run-in, and you'd be 22 seconds away from the
IP, and back on schedule. As you are going around and around
in holding, think about what you would do if you got the call at
various points and go over in your mind what you would do.
One of the reasons I like this approach is that when you get the
call you initially don't do anything—the adjustment you make is
always up ahead. So you don't have to make any sudden movements. Wingmen like it when lead doesn't make sudden movements.
In all cases, when you are at the IP, let the ground guy know so
he can cue the bugler. Ask the ground guy to hold the mic button
down so you can hear Taps. It will be too late to make any dramatic changes but it will put you a little closer to the ceremony.
Modifications
For the purpose of this article I will assume you are making one
pass—the missing man pass. In reality we always do two passes:
First one in diamond, a racetrack pattern, and the missing man
pass. Why two? For what we were charging for a f ly-by (we didn't
do them for free), we figured it was the least we could do. The
first pass to let them know we were there (the "hello" pass) and
the second one for the real reason were there—the missing man
pass. You can still use this procedure for making the first pass.
For the second pass, do a racetrack pattern: immediate turn to
"downwind" after passing overhead on the diamond pass, proceed outbound for 30 seconds, another 180 to line up on final,
and you should be 30 seconds out. So how long does the racetrack
pattern take? Depends on the bank angle you use, and what you
use depends on how quickly you want to get back in. Remember
that the 33° bank turn takes one minute. So use that for turn to
downwind and then turn to final and the circuit will take you
two minutes. Want to be more gentle? Fall back to a 24° bank
turn = 1+30 for 360 or 2+30 for the whole circuit. Using a standard rate turn (18° bank) would mean the race track takes three
minutes. Take your pick. Make sure the ground guy knows what
Source Material
Where did all of these numbers come from? Answer: A few equations and a spreadsheet. Unfortunately, I can't paste a spreadsheet that you can tweak into a printed article. What's to tweak?
Maybe you don't want to f ly at 120 knots. That changes distance
of IP from target and changes all of the bank angles I mention.
So, I have put this article and the spreadsheet on the T-34 Association's website. Go to www.t-34.com, click on "Formation and
FAST" in the left column, and then click on "Fly-by Timing" on
the "Formation and FAST" page. The T-34 Association's website
is supposed to be changing in the next few weeks so those directions may not be correct when you read this. Send an email to me
([email protected]) and I will send a copy to you.
I have done this in a T-34 which shows airspeed in knots. Some
of you may have an airspeed indicator that is measured in miles/
hour or even kilometer/hour. So figure out what 120 knots is on
your airspeed gauge and f ly that. If you want faster or slower, figure out what that speed is in knots and enter it in my spreadsheet
and figure out what bank to use to execute a 360° turn in two
minutes, 1.5 minutes, and so on.
IN CASE YOU WANT TO KNOW THE MAGIC FORMULAS:
Turn radius = V2 / 11.3* tangent (bank angle)
Turn rate = 1091 * tangent (bank angle) / V
Where:
V2 = velocity squared
Bank angel is in degrees
V = airspeed in knots
Note: If you use something other than knots (mph or kph), the constants
11.3 and 1091 will be different.
Please see page 43 for an abbreviated timing table for various angles of bank at 120 knots.
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35
How well do you know your airplane?
By Michael “Viper” Maloco [email protected]
Y
ou know what’s so great about being an arm chair quarterback?
You always know the right thing to do, there’s no pucker factor,
there’s no rush, and you can sit back and think about the situation—take as long as you like, peel back the layers like an onion,
and totally dissect the situation.
How many times have we looked at another’s performance and
thought to ourselves, “Why did he or she do that, when you could
have done this?”
Today I was at the airport seeing some of my friends head off for
a local f light.
Although I was asked to back seat instruct, I chose not to go as I
was just getting over a head cold.
I watched them depart the area and went back into the hangar
to get a refill of coffee when I heard the distinct sound of a T-28
taxiing by. I headed outside to watch it take off.
God I miss my T-28, what a wonderful airplane, anyone who has
owned one, or f lown them in military, knows it has such a sweet
sound all to itself, just like a P-51.
Take off was normal, the plane climbed out and headed to the
northeast. Then a call came in to the tower that he needed to return to the airport. Tower asked if he needed assistance. “I have
a chip light warning.” I’m happy to say that this incident had a
safe ending with the plane landing and no further complications.
Now let’s take this example and bring it back to the planes we f ly.
If you’re reading this article, it’s because you belong to one of the
three organizations to which I am a member: NATA, the T-34 Association, or the RedStar Pilots Association.
Many of us who f ly warbirds climb into our cockpits, after donning our parachutes. You do have a parachute, don’t you?
With the parachute we now have two options should something
happen to that engine up front.
1. We get to ride the plane down.
2. We get to go over the side.
Options, these are wonderful things, and it’s nice to have more
than one.
So let’s look at what happens right after takeoff, now our chip
light comes on, or our engine starts to run rough. All of a sudden
that wonderful clear bright sunny day isn’t looking so sunny.
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What the heck do I do now?
Skip Holms wrote an article that helped save my bacon on one of
my f lights.
I had just departed KCMA, headed out for a fun f light in my
T-28. After takeoff, I selected gear up and all the lights, bells and
whistles went dark.
In Skip’s article he stated, “If everything goes to heck after you
f lip a switch or push a button, put it back the way it was before.”
That’s exactly what I did, I put the gear back down and everything came back on line. A safe landing followed.
For those of you unfamiliar with Skip, he was a USAF fighter
pilot who after serving his country, went on to f ly for Lockheed
aircraft as one of their test pilots.
By the way Skip, if you get to read or hear of this, THANK YOU!
Okay so we’ve just taken off, we’re in the climb, reducing our
power to climb power, and now the chip light comes on, or the
engine is starting to run rough. We’re still producing power and
the plane is still climbing. What now? Stay calm, f ly the plane,
and think.
In this scenario, altitude is life—oh, did I mention you’re over a
populated area, and under Class B airspace? Continue the climb,
stay in the pattern, or head back to the airport—check your instruments but touch nothing. It’s important that we need to get to
a position relative to the airport that if the engine goes full stop,
we’ll have the altitude to make a safe dead-stick landing.
Most Important: FLY THE PLANE. Do whatever you need to do
to get you back on Mother Earth safely. You can always explain
your reasons for doing whatever you needed to do, later.
Recently on the T-34 chat site we had a very lengthy discussion
on whether or not to use "Mayday," "Pan, Pan, Pan," or just saying: "I need to come back to the airport immediately."
It was VERY interesting to see the differences in opinion, as well
as the differences in what type of training you received as a student pilot.
Here’s the main thing—no one can make that call for you, and
you need to do what’s correct in your mind for your situation at
that time. The armchair pilots can have fun with your decisions
later.
Many reading this have probably had the privilege of f lying some
pretty exotic aircraft—I mentioned that I had a T-28B. I also have
a T-34A. I can tell you that the glide ratio between these two airplanes is dramatically different. The T-34 would give you many
options, whereas the T-28, which is a wonderful aircraft to f ly,
has the glide ratio of a brick. Remember it’s easy to lose altitude;
it’s not so easy to get it back.
If you have not had the privilege of watching Bob Hoover’s airshow demonstrations, pull it up on YouTube and learn. This gentleman is a master of energy management, but he has had many
years of practicing his routine.
When was the last time you practiced engine out landings? Have
you ever climbed up to a safe altitude, pulled the power, set up
your optimum glide speed, or tried a 180° turn to see how much
altitude you’ll lose?
Many of us, and I include myself, don’t practice these maneuvers
enough. Yes, we go out and do all the formation maneuvers, but
that’s not going to help if the engine quits.
The warbird community has done a real good job as far as safety goes, and we are helping the FAA come out with new, better
guidelines to further enhance the safety of our organizations.
Each and every one of you has, in one way or another, made a
contribution to this effort. You may not be sitting at the table
with the FAA, or helping to write the guidelines of the RPA manuals, (which are excellent)—the fact that we conduct ourselves
and our f lights in a safe manner helps greatly.
If you have not downloaded the latest version of the RPA Formation Manual, I encourage you to do so. I will tell you there are a
few mistakes in this DRAFT version that the writers are apprised
of, and the manual will be corrected.
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37
Flying While Fatigued
It's Not Just An Airline Issue
F
atigue is a common subject matter among professional pilots,
especially those who work long hours or cross many time
zones. It is a subject that has been intimately studied by researchers. The FAA and the military set strict work rules for aircrew
duty day and rest requirements. Unfortunately, as warbird pilots
we don’t usually follow the same make-sense guidelines as the
airlines and military. Let’s look at the causes of fatigue and see
what we can do to mitigate its effects.
Many things can cause us to feel fatigued. It is said you are what
you eat. Remember the old saying that a fighter pilot lunch is a
candy bar and a coke? Too many times true, and a definite no-no.
Your blood sugar spikes, your pancreas releases insulin, and then
your blood sugar crashes, making you feel very fatigued. Also,
who isn’t heavier now than they were when they were younger?
Heck, I’m carrying 40 pounds more than I did 30 years ago! Being overweight brings so many health issues including the fatigue
of carrying that extra weight around!
We also should not over-consume caffeine. Most people can tolerate about three cups of coffee per day. An overdose of caffeine
can cause a rapid or irregular heartbeat, headaches, and nervous
jitters. None of these are conducive to a feeling of well-being.
Here is the obvious one: sleep. Did you get enough last night?
Most people need six-eight hours of restful sleep each night.
Sleep loss is cumulative. You can go a few days getting less than
you need, but your body will stock back up when you finally allow it. I’ve personally slept 10-12 hours after a few days of sleep
deprivation.
For those of us who f ly internationally, changing time zones can
play heck with your circadian rhythm. The average person adjusts by one time zone per 24 hour period. So if you just got back
from that wonderful European vacation and have been itching to
f ly your warbird, you may be very tired when your eyes are open
and your body is still somewhere over the Atlantic!
Those of you who exercise regularly know the positive effects
from that activity: more energy, more endurance, less weight,
stronger libido, and fewer health issues. However, it is important to exercise at the right time. Try to avoid doing so right before bedtime, as the physical stimulus may keep you from falling
sleep. I use exercise at strategic times during those international
layovers to regulate my appetite and to help me sleep, even if it’s
at odd hours on my body clock.
Being able to take naps is a wonderful aid in combating fatigue
caused by time zones changes and f lying at night or “back side of
the clock” as we call it. Naps, coupled with exercise and proper
diet, can make a huge difference in being alert when you really
38
By Rich "Mongoose" Hess [email protected]
need to be. The normal human cycles from shallow, to deep, to
shallow sleep every 45 minutes. I am EXACTLY average. A short
15-30 minute “combat nap” is sometimes needed after an adrenaline rush but I can set my watch by my ability to nap in 45 minute
increments!
Speaking of adrenaline, we all know it is released into your blood
stream in a fight-or-f light scenario. It constricts your blood vessels and opens your airways so you can deal with the perceived
threat. Note the word perceived. It doesn’t have to be real. Regardless, being strapped in a cockpit doesn’t allow us to fight
or run away so the effects of that f lood of adrenaline can be
difficult to manage. Good training, procedures, and habits can
help. However, the after-effects of adrenaline can be devastating:
shortness of breath, high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat,
dizziness, headache, sweating, confusion, nausea, weakness, and
muscle tremors.
Anemia is another common cause of fatigue. A low red blood cell
count can occur because of a number of reasons: recent blood donation, a heavy menstrual period, or a blood imbalance. Vitamin
supplements or foods rich in iron, such as red meats, and dark,
leafy vegetables, can help.
A lack of other key nutrients can also cause fatigue. Low on potassium? Eat some bananas! Low T? Exercise and see your doctor.
I have my blood work analyzed with every Class One physical
because body chemistry changes with age!
A number of other medical conditions can also affect your energy level. Diabetes and an over- or under-functioning thyroid
can cause fatigue. Do you have blurred vision, have to urinate
often, or have eyes like Marty Feldman? See your doctor and get
a simple blood test.
Here’s a question: Do you snore loudly? It could be evidence of
an obstruction in your airway. Many people wake after a long
night’s sleep feeling worse than when they went to bed! See your
doctor or register with a sleep clinic. There may be a good reason
why your sleep does not refresh you.
Lastly, are you in good shape? Are you overweight? Do you have
bad eating habits? Do you drink or smoke to excess? Do you have
a family history of heart disease? A bad or over-worked heart,
or clogged arteries will definitely make you feel fatigued. Again,
there is no substitute for consulting your doctor.
So what can we do as warbird pilots? We can start by being honest with ourselves. We all live very busy lives with many things
going on, some good, and some bad. The airlines emphasize calling in sick if you’re not ready to f ly: physically or mentally. The
military had us fill out a personal rating sheet before every sortie.
It asked the following questions and assigned a numerical score.
•
Are you having any family problems: divorce, children, or
illness?
•
Did you sleep well last night?
•
Are you having any financial problems?
•
Have you prepared yourself for this mission? Are you current?
•
Do you have any health problems? Are you on any medications?
You get the idea. If you rated a particularly high or low score,
depending on the scale, you were either directed to talk to your
commander or removed from the mission that day. No penalty.
No repercussion. It is safer to stay on the ground than to place
yourself or someone else at risk in an airplane. We’ve had warbird accidents where fatigue was cited as a possible contributing
factor.
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For those of us who f lew as civilian or military instructors, remember being 20-something and f lying three or four times a
day? Try that now at age 50 or 60 at a formation clinic! Remember
Friday nights at the O-club? Heck, at 25 or 30 years old you have
plenty of spare liver and brain cells, right? Not so at 50 or 60!
Instructors, evaluators, and f light leaders have a responsibility
to monitor their wards and decide who should or should NOT be
in a f light the next day. Watch for the “red f lags” that say, “This
guy’s not in any condition to f ly.” Droopy eyes, tardiness, yawning, stretching, not paying attention during the brief, confusion,
and comments like, “I’m getting too old for this s__t!” might be
the signs of someone who is not ready to f ly. Sit them down and
modify the profile.
Like complacency, fatigue does not readily announce its presence
in our minds and bodies. We have to examine ourselves. We have
to constantly evaluate our thought processes and physical sensations, even after takeoff and during the f light as it progresses.
Just as we constantly watch for fields to put the plane into if the
engine goes AWOL, we should be frequently asking ourselves,
“Am I awake, aware and clear-minded enough to continue what
I’m doing?” If the answer is not an absolute “Yes” it’s time to
knock it off. This is especially important if we are f lying high energy, high stress, demanding profiles such as multiple aerobatic
and formation sorties, as we do at clinics and f ly-ins.
As many of you have heard me say before, this community of
warbird pilots and airplanes is my passion. I have shed tears over
the loss of numerous friends and acquaintances. Take the time
to be honest with yourselves, do the things that preserve your
health and alertness, and do not take unnecessary risks. Each of
you has many good reasons to live, if only so I can have the joy of
f lying with you one more time!
Fly safe and always check six!!!
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39
Jet Museum Buys a CJ-6
from the US Post Office ?
By Zach McNeill [email protected]
W
orld Heritage Air Museum is a non-profit, f lying jet warbird museum out of Detroit, Michigan. It rescues Cold War
era jets, brings them to f light status, and uses them to inspire the
youth of America while supporting the Armed Forces at airshows
and training centers all across the United States.
The World Heritage Museum currently has two locations. The
primary maintenance and restoration facility is at Detroit City
International Airport (KDET), right in the middle of the economically challenged portion of Detroit. The most recent addition to the museum is our show hangar. The show hangar along
with the museums headquarters is located at Oakland County
International Airport, located in Pontiac, Michigan (KPTK).
The museum was created by a small group of aviation enthusiasts. They started to work and f ly together, and one had an idea.
This individual identified that because of the cost of operations
and increases in regulation involving the operation of jet warbirds, there may need to be an organization that works closely
with the community and regulatory bodies to ensure that these
aircraft can continue to f ly in perpetuity. These gentlemen, under the leadership of Marty “Juice” Tibbitts, decided to form a
501C3 organization with three primary goals.
1. The first is to educate the general public on the history of
these aircraft through hands on experience.
2. Demonstrate the capabilities and limitations of these historically significant aircraft at public events.
3. Acquire a complete historical aviation collection that clearly
shows the evolution of jet warbirds f light characteristics.
Ensuring the availability of unique f lying characteristics are
available to our national test pilot organizations.
With these goals in mind, the museum expanded it’s collection
rapidly. This effort, over the past five years, has resulted in the
acquisition of the following aircraft:
•
Two L-29 Delfin’s
•
One L-39 Albatross
•
Two Dehavilland Vampires
•
One Dehavilland Venom
•
Two Mig 15 UTI’s
•
One Mig 17A
•
One Super Fouga Majister CM-170
•
Three Casa Jets
•
One Super Pinto TT-1
The museum's leadership has worked hard to increase the cross
section of aircraft the museum owns. The current collection
spans nearly the entire straight-wing jet trainers' performance
envelopes. Several of these jets have extremely unique f lying
characteristics that nest perfectly into the third mission area of
the museum.
The rapid acquisition in aircraft led to a period of time that the
museum had considerably more hangar queens than f lying machines. The museum had a to take a pause and look at the staff
and volunteer structure and make some fundamental changes
in order to increase the up aircraft rate without compromising
quality maintenance practices. Under the leadership of Mr. Tibbitts and newly joined director Tom “Mongo” Proctor the museum hired a new maintenance team and slowed their acquisition
rate. The maintenance team has gelled and the leadership was
given the opportunity to move their focus to pilot membership.
In all volunteer f lying organizations the primary source of revenue is generally provided by pilots and supporting foundations.
The World Heritage Air Museum is no different. As the board
discussed the type of pilot we were searching for we found a glaring safety issue. The museum lacked a transition aircraft. The
learning curve affiliated with shifting from a Cessna 172 with
only one thousand f lying hours and an instrument check to a
40
high performance jet is massive. In most
instances potential members declined the
opportunity. Attempting to handle a fast
moving aircraft coupled with not being able
to taxi because of the differential air brakes
was just too much to bite off at one time.
The board decided that the museum needed
a tricycle, propeller driven, castering nose
wheel, tandem-seat aircraft with handle
brakes. This was designed to mitigate the
training risks associated with a transfer
from a Cessna to a warbird jet. There are
many more safety controls in place but this
article is specifically written to describe the
logic behind a jet warbird museum purchasing a propeller driven aircraft.
•
Intake drain
For the uninitiated, the preponderance of the jet warbirds operated in the US utilize a difficult to learn braking system that
requires the pilot to control which main mount is receiving brake
pressure by pedal position and then the amount of braking is
controlled by a lever on the stick. This is a very difficult skill
to learn. By utilizing an aircraft like the Yak-52 or the CJ-6 the
board could mitigate this risk by placing that training in a lower
performance aircraft.
•
Engine chip light
•
Electric fuel boost pump (eliminates wobble pump)
•
Dynon 10” Sky View EFIS with engine monitoring coupled to
SL-30 in front cockpit
•
Dynon 7” Sky View EFIS in rear cockpit
•
COMM/NAV 1: Garmin SL-30
•
COMM 2: ICOM A-210
The board overwhelmingly voted to purchase a CJ-6 or Yak52. All it had to do was wait for the right opportunity. Several
months of searching Controller, E-Bay, looking for donors, Juice
found an aircraft that was up for auction by the United States
Postal Service (another article is needed for that story). We entered the bidding process and ended up with one of the most pristine examples of a Super CJ-6 in the world.
•
Garmin GTX327 Transponder
•
SL-15 Audio Panel
•
TruTrak solid state stand by ADI with GPS heading and VSI
•
2 ¼” stand by airspeed and altimeter
•
SIRS lighted mag compass
•
Dynon AP coupled to EFIS
•
Custom rear instrument panel with refurbished original
gauges
•
Infinity stick grips in both cockpits wired to radios, smoke,
etc.
•
74 gallon, extended range, all metal fuel tanks with capacitance senders wired to EFIS
•
Electric fuel boost / prime system
•
Fuel f low meter
•
Fuel totalizer
•
OHD oil cooler
•
All new hoses
•
Electric fuel shutoff with reinforced oil reservoir
•
Oil cooler FOD screen / winterization kit
•
Entire airframe rewired to show quality standards
Here is a summary of the aircraft:
•
Five point Hooker harness in both cockpits
•
Fire-sleeved hoses FWF
•
Air bottles pressure tested
•
All new pneumatic hard lines
•
All new hoses
•
All new bearings
•
All pneumatic valves overhauled
•
Battery backup on EFIS and stand by ADI
•
Non-skid coating on wing walk
•
CO reduction kit
•
New f light control cables
•
New pitot static lines
www.flyredstar.org
41
Without stating the obvious, this aircraft is nearly perfect. Actually in the year or so since the museum acquired the aircraft the
team has not found any safety issues with the aircraft. It is simply
a stunning restoration. I do not know the team that completed
the restoration but Worlwide Warbirds Inc. has their sticker on
the back of the airplane so the author tips his hat to them!
•
Relays relocated to battery compartment
•
Full custom schematics and diagrams for entire aircraft
•
Custom circuit breaker panels and switches
•
Infinity stick grips
•
Three axis electric trim
•
AVG “Flying Tigers” paint scheme as seen on the cover of
Aircraft Spruce catalog, Trade a Plane, and others
•
Detailed landing gear with all Cad plated hardware
•
Polished stainless brake handles
•
Rudder pedals completely overhauled, painted and reassembled with chrome pedals and Cad hardware
•
Worldwide Warbirds rudder pedal extensions
•
Polished stainless hardware throughout
•
All US wiring
•
Electronic engine monitoring
•
Floor carpet with stainless heal pans
•
Diamond stitch interior padding made from fire resistant
material
•
Completely rebuilt using AN hardware and bulkhead fittings
whenever possible
Marty “Juice” Tibbits ([email protected])
•
All tubes painted dark gray, secured with walnut blocks and
neatly bent
Zach “Z” McNeill ([email protected])
•
All check valves overhauled
Inadvertently we found another huge benefit to the museum. The
CJ-6 is an incredible formation training platform. The aircraft
provides incredible cost savings while reducing the overall time
to train for each individual. WHAM’s formation training requires the student to train in the CJ-6 then advance to a jet platform. This greatly reduces the time to train in the jet warbirds
saving the student literally tens of thousands of dollars and saves
valuable time on the older jets.
Now that the museum has this new edition, all it needs is new
pilots. Whether you are an old fighter pilot or one who has always
dreamed about f lying a jet warbird, WHAM is here to work with
you. The team at the World Heritage Air Museum wants to talk
to you. Send an e-mail ahead of your visit and one of the board
members will be there to greet you!
Tom “Mongo” Proctor ([email protected])
Mort’s Aero
Conveniently located at THE FLYING W, N14 LUMBERTON, NJ
CJ6 and Yak Experts
[email protected]
(856) 495-3159
Morten Stoverud CFII, MEI, ATP, FE, A&P, IA
42
Mort’s Aero
Fly-By Timing
Continued from page 35
Abbreviated timing table for various angles of bank at 120 knots.
Airspeed
Bank Angle
(degrees)
Radius (feet)
Radius
(nm)
Diameter
(nm)
Turn Rate (°/sec)
Time to Execute
360° Turn (sec)
Time to Execute
360° Turn (min)
120
10
7227
1.19
2.38
1.6
225
3:44
120
15
4756
0.78
1.56
2.4
148
2:27
120
18
3922
0.65
1.29
3.0
122
2:01
120
20
3501
0.58
1.15
3.3
109
1:48
120
24
2862
0.47
0.94
4.0
89
1:28
120
25
2733
0.45
0.90
4.2
85
1:24
120
30
2207
0.36
0.73
5.2
69
1:08
120
33
1962
0.32
0.65
5.9
61
1:00
120
35
1820
0.30
0.60
6.4
57
0:56
120
40
1519
0.25
0.50
7.6
47
0:47
120
41
1466
0.24
0.48
7.9
46
0:45
120
45
1274
0.21
0.42
9.1
40
0:39
120
50
1069
0.18
0.35
10.8
33
0:33
120
53
960
0.16
0.32
12.1
30
0:29
Comment
2 minute 360° turn @ 120 knots
1.5 minute 360° turn @120 knots
45 second 360° turn @ 120 knots
30 second 360° turn @120 knots
www.flyredstar.org
43
Formation Pilots:
"We Few, We Happy Few, We Band of Brothers"
Formation Training at Spruce Creek, Florida
W
hen Shakespeare penned those famous words more than
400 years ago, he could have been writing about the residents and formation pilots of Spruce Creek, Florida. The f ly-in
community of Spruce Creek, 7FL6, is second to none. Genuinely
warm and welcoming residents, a 4000 foot lighted runway, GPS
approach, 1200 homes, a country club, tennis courts, and a fantastic restaurant named “The Downwind” make Spruce Creek a
place for a few, a happy few, a band of brothers (and sisters).
From January 9th, 2015, to January 16th, 2015, Dwane Ferguson,
Rusty MacSwords, Joe Oram, Ed LeBlanc, and I were honored
to be guests of the community for a Formation and Safety Team
(F.A.S.T.) clinic.
As one might expect, some incredibly accomplished pilots call
Spruce Creek home. There is Steve Wood, holder of 101 FAI
world records dealing with aviation. Stu Morse, an accomplished
aviation racer (and one hell of a lead pilot). Mike Taylor, one of
the most calm and level men I have ever met. Jeff Edwards, a
larger-than-life storyteller, active airline pilot, and lead pilot for
Lakes Flight. Dick Axelrod, a prominent retired attorney who
was involved in the human rights movement of the sixties and
seventies. Tony Crawford, a wise and skilled Reno air racer, and
F.A.S.T. Check Pilot. And, of course, our very own "Cherokees
to Oshkosh" extended family—Connie and Marcia Shad, Bernie
and Lolly Shaw, and Dan and Bobbi Garley. The list goes on and
on.
Something wonderful occurred during our intensive training,
and it had more to do with ourselves than our f lying. Our group
gained clarity on why we find such happiness in formation f lying. When you ref lect upon each and every formation f light, a
universal truth comes to light. Each formation f light involves:
•
Trust
•
Support
•
Mistakes
•
Accountability
By Chip "Foggles" Gentry [email protected]
•
Learning
•
Love
When you analyze any relationship you have, and the ones that
bring honest happiness to your life, it is the relationships that
have the components listed above that are the most important.
Those of us that are blessed to be surrounded by happiness enjoy
richer, fuller lives, and learn that the most valuable relationships
have trust, support, mistakes, accountability, learning, and love.
Trust. Every f light begins with a thorough briefing. Formation
f lying involves operational standards. There is required proficiency. There is a proper attitude. A proper focus. All pilots participating in a f light must have sincere trust in each other. Trust
is the foundation that allows happiness to grow and thrive.
Support. The Flight Leader supports his Wingmen. The Wingmen support each other, and their Flight Leader. Each pilot provides advice and help before, during, and after each f light. They
help each other understand the f light parameters, sight cues,
various maneuvers, tricks that help one maintain position, and
other helpful information.
Mistakes. If any pilot of a formation f light did not make a mistake or witness a mistake, they were not paying attention. Every
f light involves mistakes. Many may be quite small. However, the
goal of formation f lying is perfection. While we all understand
perfection is impossible, it is a worthwhile goal for which we all
strive.
Accountability. The most important part of any formation f light
is the debriefing. When a formation pilot makes a mistake during
f light, he owns up to it. In addition, other members of the f light
are expected to point out mistakes. This process is done respectfully and out of a sense of understanding. It isn’t to ridicule or
embarrass. Holding each other accountable to constantly search
for perfection builds trust and strengthens the bond between the
pilots.
Learning. Each and every formation f light also provides the
unique opportunity for each pilot to learn something new every
time. Every f light. They learn about their skills. Their machine.
Themselves. And their fellow brotherhood of formation pilots.
The consistent challenge and learning process keeps f lying fresh
and exciting.
Love. There are many forms of love. Formation pilots experience love at a high level. Because of the epic trust, support, accountability, learning, and excitement that is formation f lying,
formation pilots grow quite fond of each other. They have each
other’s back. They are there to help with personal struggles at
a moment’s notice. The nearly constant fraternal ribbing is one
44
of many examples of how formation pilots express their love for
each other.
Our training satisfied a number of our group’s goals. First, it
gave us the opportunity to befriend new people who enriched
our lives. Second, it improved our formation skills, which will
measurably improve our focus on safety. Third, it allowed us the
joy of satisfying our passion for f lying. Fourth, while incredibly
challenging, it was a ton of FUN! Most importantly, we gained
clarity. We more fully understand the driving force behind formation f lying. The reason we are so happy f lying in formation is
that it provides us a perfect opportunity to build and maintain
incredible relationships that enrich our lives.
As Leonardo da Vinci said, “For once you have tasted f light you
will walk the earth with your eyes turned skywards, for there
you have been and there you will long to return.” How right he
was. For those few of us who have challenged ourselves to enjoy
the privilege of f light, there are few opportunities to enjoy such
intense friendships and that bring the same amount of joy, thrill
and happiness. I can’t wait to continue to safely enjoy our passion
for f light with my formation f lying family!
Call Tom ‘TJ’ Johnson
@ 866 475-9199
[email protected]
www.flyredstar.org
45
RPA Financial Statements
In accordance with the RedStar Pilots Association Bylaws, Section IV, Paragraph 3, the 2014
financial statements are hereby presented to the membership.
Red Star Pilot Association
Red Star Pilot Association
Profit and Loss
BALANCE SHEET
As of December 31, 2014
ASSETS
Current Assets
Bank Accounts
10100 MAINB of A 9818
10110 EVENT B of A 7272
10120 MERCHANT B of A 2497
Total Bank Accounts
Other current assets
11200 Inventory Asset
January - December 2014
TOTAL
TOTAL
Income
40100 Membership Income
27,520.73
40200 Store Merchandise Income
6,481.66
5,923.18
13,723.66
$26,128.50
12,786.38
4,989.04
40300 Event Income
19,051.03
40500 Sponsorship Income
6,415.50
40650 Air Show to Reimburse Incom
1,200.00
40700 Advertising Income
Total Income
4,200.00
$
63,376.30
Cost of Goods Sold
50100 Membership Card Expense
981.00
Total Other current assets
$12,786.38
50200 COGS-Store
-1,796.49
Total Current Assets
$38,914.88
70900 Postage
2,230.98
Other Assets
80100 Projectors
80200 Computer Equiptment
Total Other Assets
TOTAL ASSETS
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Liabilities
Total Liabilities
Equity
30000 Opening Bal Equity
39000 Retained Earnings
Net Income
72000 Inventory Item Purchase Expense
2,078.90
681.21
$2,760.11
$41,674.99
Total 50200 COGS-Store
4,703.83
$
Total Cost of Goods Sold
$
6,119.32
Gross Profit
$
57,256.98
Expenses
70100 Advertising by RPA
1.60
70125 Newsletter
Total 70100 Advertising by RPA
7,270.34
21,630.57
12,774.08
Total Equity
$41,674.99
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
$41,674.99
16,442.81
$
16,444.41
70350 E-Com
642.98
70400 General Office
159.66
70410 Office Supplies
344.93
70420 Office Software
Total 70400 General Office
429.95
$
934.54
70450 Accountant
2,515.00
70600 CC transactions
70610 Merchant Fees
Total 70600 CC transactions
Saturday, Jan 10, 2015 10:51:32 AM PST GMT8 Cash Basis
5,138.32
287.24
$
287.24
70700 Website
1,486.40
70800 AIR SHOW Events
70801 Expense Advance
300.00
70805 Airshow to Reimburse
1,199.00
70810 Fuel
495.29
70820 Lodging
2,987.82
70830 Meals
8,736.43
70840 Rental Car/Transport
216.03
70870 Event Merchandise
2,276.73
70875 Awards
620.24
70880 Misc.Event Expenses
3,366.39
70890 Equipment Rental
414.40
70899 Event Insurance
Total 70800 AIR SHOW Events
1,500.00
$
22,112.33
71600 Bank Charges
60.00
void
0.00
Total Expenses
$
44,482.90
Net Operating Income
$
12,774.08
Net Income
$
12,774.08
Saturday, Jan 10, 2015 11:14:15 AM PST GMT-8 - Cash Basis
46
AIRCRAFT SERVICES
COAST II COAST CUSTOM AIRCRAFT PAINTING
Locations:
(928) 757-2727 - Kingman, AZ (801) 399-1699 - Ogden UT
(808) 682-2903 - Honolulu HI & Mobile Crew
[email protected] www.airstraube.com
Get your Paint Scheduled Now !
* Custom Paint Schemes & Logos
* Corporate/Commercial
* Government/Military
* Mobile Crews Worldwide
* General Aviation
* Helicopters
* OEM/MRO Staffing
* GSA Contract
www.airstraube.com
Contract Holder
GSA Contract # GS-06F-0078P
www.flyredstar.org
47
Forward all non-deliverable mail to:
RedStar Pilots Association
C/O Byron Fox
80 Milland Drive
Mill Valley, CA 4941
The RedStar Pilots Association is a notfor-profit organization dedicated to the
safe operation of all aircraft. For further
information or to become a member,
please visit: www.flyredstar.org
To advertise in this publication, please
contact the RPA administrator at:
[email protected]

spring 2015 - Redstar Pilots Association

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