AIR CURRENTS

April, 1999

Edited by Carol Patterson

ARIZONA SOARING ASSOCIATION

The Arizona Soaring Association is a chapter of the Soaring Society of America. It is a non-profit corporation in the State of Arizona for the purpose of fostering the sport and science of soaring and educating the public on motorless flight in Arizona.

Officers and Directors, 1999

President John Goodman 395-9334 Vice President Peter Van Camp 842-2953

Secretary Bob Blakemore 483-6482 Treasurer Cliff Hilty 374-5387

Director Carol Patterson 561-5454 Director Rick Rubscha 878-6750

Director Kirk Stant 933-1572 Director Jason Stephens 545-0965

Director Mike McNulty 994-9658

Committees

Ship Manager Kirk Stant 933-1572 Contest Manager Tony Smolder 942-6519

Equipment Rick Rubscha 878-6750 Legal Advisor Peter Van Camp 842-2953

Membership Arnie Jurn 279-7840 Newsletter Ed Carol Patterson 561-5454

Airspace Mike McNulty 994-9658 Safety Jason Stephens 545-0965

Historian Ruth Petry 274-3968 Social Director Patti Johnson 374-5387

MEETINGS

Tuesday, April 27, 7pm General Membership Meeting Barros Pizza - Coral Gables & 7th Street, Phoenix

Tuesday, May 4, 7pm Board Meeting Barros Pizza - Coral Gables & 7th Street, Phoenix

ANNUAL SPRING PARTY

SATURDAY MAY 15TH AT ESTRELLA

ASA Statistical Data for March, 1999 Web site: http://www.glider.com/asa/index.html

Current Membership Count 90, Reciprocal Newsletters 10, Air Currents Circulation for March 1999: 100

AIR CURRENTS is published monthly but the Arizona Soaring Association to disseminate news, opinion, education and items of interest to members. The subscription rate for non-members is $20/yr. Complimentary copies are mailed to: editors of sister publications on an exchange basis, regular members, advertisers, and non-members who have contributed materials for publication. Articles on any subject pertaining to soaring are welcome. Electronic submissions by Email, modem or IBM compatible floppy disk are preferred. Typed or clearly hand written submissions are also acceptable. Please submit to: Air Currents, c/o Carol Patterson 8903 W. Salter; Peoria, AZ 85283 561-5454. cpatter@dfni.com

ADVERTISING POLICY: Non-commercial advertising from ASA members will be printed without charge. Other advertising will be printed, on a space available basis, at the following rates: full page, $10; half page, $5; less than half page, $3.

1999 ASA CALENDAR OF EVENTS

Date Location CD

March 6 Estrella (Practice) None (Practice Day)

March 7 Estrella (Practice) None (Practice Day)

March 20 Turf (Practice) None (Practice Day)

March 21 Turf (Practice) None (Practice Day)

April 3 Estrella Cliff Hilty

April 4 Estrella Neal Olshan

April 17 Turf Bob Blakemore

April 18 Turf Bob von Hellens

May 1 El-Tiro Oliver Spatscheck

May 2 El-Tiro Rick Rubscha

May 15 Estrella Bill Poore

May 16 Estrella Andy Durbin

May 29 Willcox Neil McLeod

May 30 Willcox Bill Prokes

May 31 Willcox Kirk Stant

July 24 Turf Mike Parker

July 25 Turf Ralph Bergh

August 7 Estrella Barbara MacLean

August 8 Estrella Casey Lenox

August 21 Turf Mike McNulty

August 22 Turf Hans Heydrich

September 11 Estrella Tony Smolder

September 12 Estrella Alan Reeter

September 25 El-Tiro Nilton Renno

September 26 El-Tiro John Leibacher

Other Contest Dates

June 7 - 11 Region 9 - Penrose, Colorado

June 15 - 24 Standard Class Nationals - Minden, Nevada

July 6 - 15 15 Meter Nationals - Hobbs, New Mexico

Arizona Soaring Association Board Meeting Minutes: March 2, 1999

The meeting was held at Barros Pizza, Coral Gables & 7th St. Phoenix, Arizona.

The meeting was called to order at 7:32 PM, A quorum was present.

Attending: Bob Blakemore

Cliff Hilty

John Goodman

Kirk Stant

Rick Rubscha

Carol Patterson

Peter Van Camp

President John Goodman asked that the minutes of the February board meeting be submitted and approved. There being no amendments the minutes were approved as read.

President Goodman then proceeded with the committee reports.

Kirk Stant reported that the Grob 102 would be taken out of service for a couple of days in March while the new interior is installed. He reported that the billings had been mailed out for the period ending December 31, 1998 and that the outstanding balance was $1002. He noted that an assembly and disassembly day would be scheduled in March for those interested and he would be sending out notices.

Kirk then recommended to the board that they consider a policy for past due aircraft billings. After some discussion the board approved a motion that billings sixty-days past due would be deemed delinquent and those members would be considered not in good standing until such time as those receivables where paid in full. Members who are deemed not in good standing will have their flight privileges suspended until the account balance is brought current.

Cliff Hilty reported expenses and revenues for the month. The board approved the expenditures and it was noted that the month end checking balance was $3,629.72. The savings account balance is $12,549.00. Cliff also reported that he expected that the final payment for the repair of the Lark would be approximately $2,200.00. This expenditure would bring the total purchase price to approximately $16,000.00.

Mike Wymann advised the board that the annual party would be held at Turf on Saturday March 13, 1999. The cost would be $75 per aircraft and that times were already being scheduled. The board also approved $225 for the spring social function at Estrella following the first contest day on April 3, 1999.

Kirk Stant recommended to the board that four people be designated as check pilots for the Lark. After some discussion the board approved Rick Brown, Roy Coulliette, Barbara MacLean, and Dan Weber as check pilots. In addition the board approved funds necessary for the familiarization check rides.

The annual fees for the aircraft were reviewed and approved by the board. They are as follows: for the Grob 102 $500 per year, the Lark $400 per year, and for both aircraft the rate is $700 per year. Priorities for flight remain unchanged: badge, contest, and then cross-country. The rates become effective April 1, 1999.

The board then considered a recommendation by the contest manager that would encourage all pilots to attend the pilots meetings prior to racing. After some deliberation the board approved a motion re-confirming the contest director’s authority to penalize pilots for any conduct that the director feels is not in keeping with safe and prudent flying practices. Further, that any pilot who is unable to attend the pilots meeting for any reason must get the contest directors approval prior to the grid time in order to be scored for that day. Failure to get the contest directors approval will result in disqualification for that day.

Cliff Hilty reviewed with the board a plan that the City of Peoria is considering for Pleasant Valley airport. This plan calls for a 7000-foot runway for jet aircraft and an adjacent 3000 dirt strip for recreational aircraft. After some discussion the board asked that the secretary confer with Roy Coulliette on this matter and to report back to the board his findings.

Their being no further business the meeting was adjourned at 9:30 PM. The next meeting was scheduled for Tuesday April 6, 1999.

Bob Blakemore

Secretary

I have inserted 1 accident report from the NTSB at www.nstb.gov. Suggestions are always welcome!

Report 1

NTSB Identification: MIA99LA066. The docket is stored in the (offline) NTSB Imaging System.

Accident occurred JAN-21-99 at WINTER HAVEN, FL
Aircraft: Schleicher ASW27, registration: N387T
Injuries: 1 Serious.

On January 21, 1999, about 1400 eastern standard time, an Schleicher ASW27 glider, N387T, registered to a private individual, had an in-flight collision with wires about 1 mile southeast of Winter Haven, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time, and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. The glider received minor damage. The private-rated pilot reported serious injuries. The flight had departed from Winter Haven, about 1350.

Full narrative below

MIA99LA066

On January 21, 1999, about 1400 eastern standard time, an Schleicher ASW27 glider, N387T, registered to a private individual, had an in-flight collision with wires about 1 mile southeast of Winter Haven, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed at the time, and no flight plan was filed for the 14 CFR Part 91 personal flight. The glider received minor damage. The private-rated pilot reported serious injuries. The flight had departed from Winter Haven, about 1350.

The tow plane had taken the glider to an altitude of between 2,200 and 2,300 feet. The pilot stated he was over the airport and was going to land. While on approach, the pilot noted that he would not have enough altitude to land at the airport. He then attempted to clear a lake and land in a field short of the airport. As he approached the field, the canopy struck wires and the glider landed in the field. The pilot was taken to the hospital and was diagnosed with a broken bone in his vertebra and a broken rib.

ASA MEETINGS


Suggestion:

Let's make the informal Bull Sessions that happen before, during and after the meetings more productive by sharing thoughts and experience on safety related or other (such as performance related) issues.
Here are some topics I thought up:
o Emergency procedures
- Bail out
- Rope break .. various scenarios including rope busting canopy
- Release failure
- various landing gear or control mechanism problems
- Thermal upset at low altitude during tow (this killed Peter) (This raises a related topic: Low tow position vs high tow. In Waikerie they switched to Low Tow after losing 2 tow pilots due to thermal upset.)
- instrument failures.. partial or total
- Spin recovery
- Mid-air

o Landing out in unfamiliar strip, fields or worse.. We know what this did to Ken.. Do we really know the sequence of events?? Can we learn from it? It's unpleasant to bring this up again but he would hope we learn from it.

o Mental rehearsal of procedures (This helped me immensely when I bailed out of my hang glider. Lack thereof almost killed me when I destroyed my Cirrus and reacted instinctively and incorrectly according to the "first learned" principle.)

o Other "what if" scenarios..

o Strategies for fast racing times. Seminars by the pros (Like Alan or Neil)

o Tips to get the most out of your glider (If you cannot afford the latest state-of-the-art)

o How to make your glider last longer, smell good, etc. (Sweat and spilled urine!)

People who have experienced some of these situations should be prepared to discuss this with the rest of us. Many minds will be able to think of situations and consequences that one alone will miss.

Have the meetings still got low turnout of only hard core types? (I will start coming again now that I no longer have a class on Tuesdays.) Perhaps, with a published agenda of speakers or discussion topics, we can get a bigger turnout.

Hansbert (AKA 6K)

AIRSPACE

Dear friends, following is a message from Roy Coulliette about the proposed airport by the City of Peoria, for your information.

Dear Cliff,

I want to thank everyone in ASA for their support in dealing with the City of Peoria. I think our turn out at the City Council meeting was effective. I received this letter from Phil Gardner the senior planner. The letter was dated April 7th, 1999. It reads:

Dear Roy:

Please be advised that the review of the airport feasibility study, tentatively scheduled for the City Council meeting of April 20, 1999, has been removed from that agenda and has not been rescheduled.

Please call me at 412-7107 if I can provide further information.

Sincerely,

Phil Gardner
Senior Planner


However, I don't think the war is over. We still need to convince the city to support Pleasant Valley Airport. We need their help in paving runways and protecting our borders from encroachment.

They probably have not forgotten the jet port idea so we need to keep an eye on the city web page.

For anyone in ASA who has not written to the Mayor, Vice-Mayor and City Council and would like to I am enclosing a list of names of City Officials.

Mayor John C. Keegan, Vice-Mayor Patricia Dennis, Council Members - Joe La Rue, Ken Forgia, Hortencia Gutierrez, Ella Makula and Rebekah Coty.
The address for all the City of Peoria Elected Officials is: 8401 W. Monroe St., Peoria, AZ 85345.

Thanks again for everyone's help.

Sincerely,

Roy

HILTY HUMOR


From: DrRuggles@aol.com (unknown)

Aviation 101
Takeoff's are optional. Landings are mandatory.

If God meant man to fly, He'd have given him more money.

If you push the stick forward, the houses get bigger, if you pull the stick back they get smaller. (Unless you keep pulling the stick back -then they get bigger again)

Flying is not dangerous; crashing is dangerous.

It's better to be down here wishing you were up there, than up there wishing you were down here.

The propeller is just a big fan in the front of the plane to keep the pilot cool. Want proof? Make it stop; then watch the pilot break out into a sweat.

Speed is life, altitude is life insurance. No one has ever collided with the sky.

It's best to keep the pointed end going forward as much as possible.

The only time you have too much fuel is when you're on fire.

Flying is the second greatest thrill known to man.... Landing is the first!

Every one already knows the definition of a 'good' landing is one from which you can walk away. But very few know the definition of a 'great landing.' It's one after which you can use the airplane another time.

The probability of survival is equal to the angle of arrival.

Always remember you fly an airplane with your head, not your hands.

Never let an airplane take you somewhere your brain didn't get to five minutes earlier.

You know you've landed with the wheels up when it takes full power to taxi.

Those who hoot with the owls by night, should not fly with the eagles by day.

A helicopter is a collection of rotating parts going round and round and reciprocating parts going up and down - all of them trying to become random in motion. Helicopters can't really fly - they're just so ugly that the earth immediately repels them.

Young man, was that a landing or were we shot down?

Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.

Trust your captain .... but keep your seat belt securely fastened.

Any pilot who relies on a terminal forecast can be sold the Brooklyn Bridge. If he relies on winds-aloft reports he can be sold Niagara Falls.

Good judgment comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgment.

Aviation is not so much a profession as it is a disease.

There are three simple rules for making a smooth landing: Unfortunately, no one knows what they are.

The only thing worse than a captain who never flew as copilot is a copilot who once was a captain.

Be nice to your first officer, he may be your captain at your next airline.

Any attempt to stretch fuel is guaranteed to increase headwind.

A thunderstorm is never as bad on the inside as it appears on the outside. It's worse.

Son, I was flying airplanes for a living when you were still in liquid form.

It's easy to make a small fortune in aviation. You start with a large fortune.

A male pilot is a confused soul who talks about women when he's flying, and about flying when he's with a woman.

A fool and his money are soon flying more airplane than he can handle.

Remember, you're always a student in an airplane.

Keep looking around; there's always something you've missed.

Try to keep the number of your landings equal to the number of your takeoffs.

You cannot propel yourself forward by patting yourself on the back.

There are old pilots, and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold, pilots!

Things which do you no good in aviation: Altitude above you. Runway behind you. Fuel in the truck. Half a second ago. Approach plates in the car. The airspeed you don't have.

Flying is the perfect vocation for a man who wants to feel like a boy, but not for one who still is.

Asking what a pilot thinks about the FAA is like asking a fireplug what it thinks about dogs.

Being an airline pilot would be great if you didn't have to go on all those trips.

Gravity never loses! The best you can hope for is a draw!

Cliff Hilty (CH) Ventus B
If we are all just dust in the wind, then I want to be at the top of a
"Huge Dust Devil"