My wife and I were cleaning out some boxes stuffed with old photos when we came across some pictures of the late John Thun. The pictures really set my mind whirling as I thought about this bigger-than-life character from the Tacoma, Wash., area, where we have made our home since 1970. When I mention John, […]
Opinion
SERIOUS TROUBLE
I just read “Got an older airplane? Rumors abound that maintenance shops refuse to work on them” (Feb. 2 issue). In the fourth paragraph, your writer states that you have “found no confirmation that shops have turned away older airplanes…” I am not sure which shops you may have called, but it appears not the […]
A rose by any other name? Quirks in rental aircraft inspire nicknames
There is a learning curve that must take place when you go from being an aircraft owner to a renter. A number of my clients are learning this. Some of them are between airplanes. Others decided that it is a better financial decision to rent airplanes than to own them at this time. They all […]
TURNED DOWN
The article on older aircraft getting turned down for service is timely. This morning KCAC — Kansas City Aircraft out of OJC in Olathe, Kan., turned me down. We needed an inspection on our 1977 Navajo. PHILLIP BUTTRAM via email Editor’s note: We talked with Tom Conley, who told us that we must contact KCAC […]
Use fees get cold shoulder from lawmakers: Speculation already exists that reauthorization bill won’t be ready by deadline
WASHINGTON, D.C. — “”My intention is to give it a decent burial.”” With those words, Rep. James Oberstar (D-Minn.) closed his opening comments at a House Subcommittee hearing into reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration. Oberstar’s comment referred to the administration’s, FAA’s, and airline industry’s efforts to establish user fees for general aviation. The House […]
Can we convert from dual mag drive to separate drives?
Can we convert a Lycoming O-540-J3A5D from dual mag drive to separate drives? Can it be done on a 1980 Dakota 236? Our club, The Flying 20 Club of Danbury, Conn., has three planes, a Dakota and two Archers. Recently,during the overhaul of one of our Archers, N8198P, we had the plane equipped with the […]
DO YOU KNOW THE NAME OF PAUL REVERE’S HORSE?
Re: Tom Norton’s article on Charles L. Lawrance, (Paul Revere’s horse: Charlie Lawrance and his engine that changed aviation, Jan. 19 issue), the name of Paul Revere’s horse was Brown Beauty. I know this because I was once asked in my capacity as executive director of the Lexington, Mass., Historical Society. A gentleman from New […]
YOU DON’T WANT TO FLY FOR THE AIRLINES?
Nice article by Meg Godlewski in the Feb. 2 issue titled “What’s your motivation?” I was a 20-year Marine Corps A-4 Skyhawk pilot and I loved every minute of it, including Vietnam. When I retired in 1990, I went looking for a second career. Every time I found a flying opportunity, I saw it as […]
User fees: it’s time to get into this fight
If you don’t think user fees are the most serious among current threats to general aviation, listen to Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo). His wry comment was that the plan would give us the “safer skies” the airlines keep talking about, but only “because it would rid the skies of general aviation aircraft.” I agree. Graves […]