August, 2005
Jackson, Miner, and Truex Buy a Piper
Three members of the Warsaw Flying Club have purchased an airplane.
Brad Jackson (of T.L. Jackson), Ron Truex (of Creighton Brothers), and Mike
Miner (of Valentine, Miner, and Lemon) all took to aviation very recently.
Brad's wife, Tracy, bought him an introductory flight. He loved it so much
that he contemplated getting his license, but hesitated about the money, so
Tracy gave him his license for his birthday. She didn't want him to worry
about how much it was going to cost, and kept the cost a secret from Brad as he
trained. Even now, he still has no idea how much it cost him (I'm sure he
never reads this, so I can say that it was less than $4000). As he
trained, Brad would go to the County board meetings and tell Ron Truex all about
his flying. Ron bit.
After deciding that they needed a higher performing aircraft capable of carrying four passengers, baggage, and full fuel, they began their search. The fact that Brad, Ron, and Mike had no plans on getting a multi-engine rating eliminated the possibility of a multi-engine aircraft, while the speed of a retractable aircraft attracted them. Their price range kept them out of the large singles like the Pilatus, Cessna Caravan, Centurion, and the like, but opened the possibility of the Cessna 182RG. As they continued their search, a local pilot who owned a Piper Archer heard that they were in the market. The Archer is a heavy-duty 235 horsepower single engine aircraft that is well capable of the demands that the three friends had, but due to its fixed-gear, it is a slower aircraft. But the price was right. Very right. The three amigos made an offer, which was promptly accepted. Again, it was a win-win situation. The seller got the price he wanted and the buyers got a great deal.
Since Brad Jackson is the only certified pilot at this point, he acts as the
chauffer for any of the friends who would like to fly. Jackson is also
continuing his training by receiving training from WFC Flight Instructor
Erik Fussle for his instrument rating. This
will enable him to fly in nearly any weather conditions without needing the
sometimes impossible convenience of seeing the ground or horizon.
Jackson, Truex, and Miner are all excellent examples of the manifestation of the Warsaw Flying Club's goal here in Warsaw. One-by-one, they came to the Club with the goal of learning to fly, and loved it so passionately, that they decided to buy their own aircraft. Although they are not going to put the aircraft in the Club, they all plan on remaining in the Club and reap the benefits of its membership. The Warsaw Flying Club is proud of these three men in their recent excursion deep into the world of aviation.
Joel Harstine Makes First Solo Flight
On August 15th at 7:00pm, Joel Harstine soloed for the first time. With his wife and kids looking on, Erik Fussle endorsed Harstine's logbook and sent him on his way to make three takeoffs and landings. Although there was a high-overcast layer when Joel began his flight, the sun came out and provided a breath-taking sunset as he worked through his assignment. When asked how the sunset looked from the air, Harstine confessed to being so focused on flying that he never even noticed. Talk about focus.
By his own admission, the first landing wasn't one to write home about. he was a bit excited and nervous, but as his nerves settled and the adrenaline wore off, he found his rhythm and the next two were exactly as planned. The training that Joel received in the previous 14 days (plus a seven-day break just before soloing) prepared him for the flight that culminated on August 15th. Through those fourteen days, Joel trained to recognize and recover from stalls, control the aircraft during slow-flight, fly certain maneuvers with reference to the ground, and exercise proper judgment in safety issues in flight. Complex as it sounds, it is truly an enjoyable and rewarding experience.
Joel has always wanted to learn to fly. His grandfather was a pilot and really enjoyed flying, and even left his Comanche 260 to the family. Joel plans on learning to fly in the Club's 152 and then moving on up into the larger, faster, and more comfortable Piper. His grandfather would be proud. Congratulations Joel.
A Letter from the Director
(July in Review)
It
has been another busy month at the Warsaw Flying Club. We'd like to thank you
all, once again, for your business here at the club and want to encourage you to
keep current and keep flying. There is much to do in the world of aviation, and
people you know would love to go up for a ride. Take someone who has never been
flying to go see their house and a little tour of town and then make a few
landings out of the event. This will keep you current and will make you a safer
and better looking pilot. Just kidding, you're already good looking. Just
kidding. Okay, on to the dipstick...
Remember to only tighten the oil dipstick on all aircraft snugly to the fitting,
not as tight as you humanly can.
Recently, we have had to call maintenance to loosen the dipstick after it had
been tightened down quite hard. After a good preflight--including checking the
oil and making sure the dipstick is on really tight--and a long flight where the
engine and all accessories get nice and hot, the dipstick and the receiver form
a special bond that is only separable by a good pair of pliers. Please, help us
keep this inappropriate relationship from forming by tightening the dipstick
only to where it will not move on its own.
Speaking of maintenance, we are pleased to announce Chris Ochs (pronounced just
like it looks) as our new Director of Maintenance. He is the owner of Air
Mobility and the Warsaw Flying Club is ecstatic to have him on board. If you
have any maintenance issues, feel free to
e-mail him or call 574-904-1256
or even write up a squawk on the schedule. Many options, pick one.
As you may have noticed, the 152 has been having issues with the nose wheel ever
since Brad Jackson passed his Private Pilot Checkride. I'm sure it just misses
him, since he's moved on to the 172. So maintenance has replaced the steering
bungees and will be replacing the bearing down there that the steering rods are
attached to. Seems to be worn out a bit. Have patience, Chris will be working
progressively on the aircraft to straighten the problem out. The transponder is
also removed from the aircraft for maintenance.
A big congratulations to Brad Jackson! As previously mentioned, he
passed his Private Pilot Checkride. What an
accomplishment. He worked so hard at this and finally reached his goal.
Congratulations, Brad!
Also, congratulations to Marek Tipton on his first solo!
He did a great job and pulled off the three takeoffs and landings without
incident. Nay, he did a spectacular job! Congrats to Marek, too!
Another checkride for Erik Fussle, by the way, has further enhanced his
relationship with the FAA. Robert Koneful, of South Bend's Flight
Standards District Office (FSDO) sat in on Erik's checkride with Cliff Walters
and spoke very highly of the event and the level of knowledge that Fussle has.
Erik is a great pilot and all, but he's not THAT great, Mr. Koneful. If he
is, bear in mind who taught him everything he knows.
There have been questions surrounding Karina's upcoming vacation. You might have
noticed that she has an accent, which generally means that one is not from the
local area, or one is retarded. Fortunately, she is the former. So she's going
to be going home (far away) for about a month, then will return to Warsaw. The staff at the
Warsaw Flying Club is going to miss her and will be looking forward to her
return in mid-September. Seriously, she's coming back.
In the meantime, the Warsaw Flying Club will have another monthly cookout in
early September. Come on out and check out
the new addition to the WFC fleet--a Piper Comanche-- as well as the Archer that
WFC members just purchased.
Who knows, but there will be food, flying, and friends. If you have a friend who
is interested in learning to fly, bring them for a $10 airplane ride and buy one
for all the neighborhood kids! Keep an eye on the website for more details.
Jon Fussle is the President of the Warsaw Flying Club and has over 2000 hours teaching people to fly.