July 2007 CPA newsletter
NEXT MEETING
Our next meeting will be held Sunday July 8 thth on the terrace of Corona Aero Partners at 5PM.
The open house to show Classical Aircraft displays will be from 10AM until 2PM for the group display along Aviation Drive and the open hangers display will continue until 4:30 PM. Plan on displaying your aircraft. This is an excellent opportunity to share with the community and to create interest in the airport and in flying, so let's all participate as much as we can.
Our program will be presented by Steve Panagotacos of Procraft Fame who will discuss the vital subject of Paper Work. This should be a very informative for all private pilots. Plan on attending, bring a dish to share a happy face and a thirst for knowledge.
LAST MEETING
About twenty-five aviation enthusiasts were on hand to enjoy a picture perfect evening on the Terrace. There was plenty of food and the fellowship was splendid as usual.
President Jim reported on the morning open house. Over twenty planes participated and there was participation by the community. Several people expressed interest in learning to fly or to renew their flying activities. In that respect the day was a real success and the future looks bright.
Jim also reported that he planned to prepare a list of display days and he would circulate that list to other airports as he visited them.
Teri Keiser reported on the progress of the scholarship committee. The committee is presently exploring the possibility of changing our program from actual flying lessons to a program to provide ground school to several students as a group. The change concept was well received my members present and the committee will continue to work on a proposal for the membership.
The Corona Airfaire (Saturday, October 13, 2007) plans are under way. We are always looking for volunteer's (for set up etc,) If you can help please contact Margaret or Jim Nunally.
FROM THE PREZ
By Jim Nunally:
Summer is here which means vacation time is here which means meeting attendance is down. We understand, but if you think it is too hot then put on your short britches and come on out. We always have good food and good fellowship. Our next meeting is July 8th at 5 PM. Maybe we could plan a hamburger/hot dog bash and see if we could sign up some new members the latter part of July or August.
Our July meeting has some words of wisdom by Steve from Procraft giving us the lowdown on required paperwork. It seems that on ramp checks most of the violations are improper or non existent paperwork of some sort. Steve should have some good words of wisdom on the topic and it just may keep us out of trouble.
Our June aircraft display was a huge success. We had 22 airplanes show up for display and we had about 20 people come to see them. We had a notice in the Corona edition of the Press about the display, and we had a sign on the fence at Smith and Butterfield stating AIRPORT EVENT TODAY. We moved the display in June to the grass area adjacent to Airport Drive. I do not know which of the noted items or maybe a combination was the alerting factor to our display but somehow a few people did come by to see the planes and to talk with us. We had two people inquiring about getting re-certified, maybe we can get some interest in flying from the local residents. Bob's Cafe also had the best day in a long while (the first time in months that a waiting list was required). Remember on July 8 bring your airplane out for display between 10:00 and 2:00 and it does not need to be classified as an antique.
CORONA MUNICIPAL AIRPORT
By Rich Brodeur, Airport Manager
Now is your chance to get rid of those unwanted metal and wire items; a Metal & Wire Only Container… is located at the east end of the airport. Please do not throw trash in this container.
A group of 30 Scouts from Pack 421 toured the airport on Saturday June 16. They really enjoyed watching the aircraft performing landing and take-off. They especially enjoyed boarding the DC-3 Rose. Maybe some of these Boy Scouts will become aviators.
Upcoming events:
July 4th Parade
July 21, 2007 10:00 am --
----* Celebration of Barney Starr's Life *
---- At the Corona Airport
---- See the flyer posted at the entrance gate and at the restaurant.
Safety: None to report this month...Thanks!
Aircraft complaints: None this month; Thanks!
Hazardous Materials: Please dispose of all materials properly. You can take your oil to the east end for $1.00 per gallon or in most cases you can take it to your nearest automotive center for disposal for free. Please do not leave any oils or gasoline in open containers in your hangars. If I am not available; please do not leave oil on the ground next to the oil reclamation area, at the east end of the airport. My office phone numbers is 951 736-2289… call and arrange a time to drop off your oil. By the way, this area is under constant camera surveillance and anyone who does leave hazardous materials on the ground is subjecting themselves to severe fines. Smile you're on camera!
Insurance: Please make sure your insurance is current and up to date and indicates The City of Corona and the Army Corps of Engineers as additionally insured. The Master Lease Holders have been issued a copy of all non-insured aircraft and will be taking corrective action to ensure 100% compliance to this ongoing process. If your aircraft is not operational and does not have insurance, you must submit a Declaration of Non-Operation Status form. Please contact your Master Lease Holder or the Airport Manager for this form.
I will be on Vacation from June 22, 2007 through July 9, 2007. During my absence, please contact Dan Dominguez, Parks & Community Services Department at 951 736-2241 for any airport issues.
Please help me keep our Airport Safe and Neighborly! Thanks!!!
PILOT PROFILE
By Margaret Nunally
Mike Yero, an export administrator at Raytheon, became interested in flying as a young boy in Havana, Cuba. His family escaped Cuba in 1961 when he was 11 years old. In 1989 he decided it is "now or never" to learn how to fly and soloed in a Cessna 150 at Corona Airport. He holds a SE rating.
Mike owns a Cherokee 140. He has flown Cherokee 140, C-150 & a Comanche.
Favorite place to fly. Laughlin, Nevada but he would love to fly someday to Havana, Cuba. His scariest flying experience is when his tachometer froze in his Cherokee 140. He didn't know what to do, so he landed at Needles, fixed the tachometer and kept on going. It was his first flight with a passenger and that made it even scarier.
Mike's family loves flying and he has a long list of people who want to go. Mike says "It's the Corona Flying Family that makes flying enjoyable and affordable with all the expertise and technical help present at the airport.
News you really need
Have you considered having your newsletter delivered by e-mail from the web site. The cost of producing the printed version continues to rise and many times the cost is over $1:00 per copy. If you are interested, please send the editor an e-mail editor@CoronaPilots.com
Our Airport Manager is somewhat of a hero, especially where Spot the owl is concerned. It seems that Wiley the Coyote was chased away twice before Rich saw an injured Spot laying on the grass. Rich made several calls to get help for Spot. The City Animal Shelter was closed, but Rich managed to get the shelter truck dispatched to save Spot. Spot was taken to the Lake Elsinore Bird Sanctuary, where they assure Rich he would be OK. (Read the whole story at http://www.bb2.coronapilots.com/index.php?topic=106.0 And you can see picturs of our hero and Spot if you sign-in.)
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Our airport continues to remember Barney. His memory is discussed every day and the loss continues to bring such pleasant memories for all of us, in his memory the following is offered.
A memorial service will be held on July 21st at 10:30 a.m. at the airport. The Civil Air Patrol will be present to do the Color Guard and the Veterans Honor Guard will be on hand for the salute, playing of taps, and presentation of the American flag to Barney's sister, Alice. This will be a potluck event, so bring some food to share. The following day, July 22nd, his ashes will be sent to sea off the Lane Victory. If you would like to attend this service, please purchase tickets for the trip at www.Lanevictory.org In all probability, tickets are all gone by now but you can ride with the others in spirit.
The following letter was received from his old friend John Guenther and is shared with the members in memory.
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To ALL OUR FRIENDS
Of the Corona Pilots Association
And all members of the "Corona Bench"
And the Corona Airport Community
Greetings to you all!
It is with deep sadness that we acknowledge Barney Starr's passing. But it is with gratefulness and a smile that we think back and remember the many years that he has been our friend. He has been the most positive person we have ever known, and he has become an example for how to get farther with a smile - from the heart - than with a heavy thought.
We also say thanks for the fact that he was spared a prolonged period of extreme and demoralizing physical suffering -- although, as he said himself, he's been carrying a well-loaded duffle-bag of subtle suffering for many years. I have never heard him being discouraged from that fact.
I have been lucky to have been one of the pilots to fly Barney's airplanes. He has enjoyed the fact, that (sometimes) I would dare go on a "weedwhacker" flight along the mountain slopes, while he would squint through the little hole in his clenched fist to gain a clearer focus, and giggle: "You know, John - I am prospecting!" After the flights, he could explain in great detail, what he had been watching out for: the right kind of rock, or strata, or terrain break-off. Or - as in one case, even instrument panel items. Talking through his fist, he once asked: "John - does that little label there say "CABIN HEAT"? Indeed, it did, and only then did I realize that I too, had been shivering a bit from the lack of warm degrees, departing way UP from Mariposa in my Travel Air. I remember giggling most of the way back to Corona from his most ingenious and heartwarming way of asking: "Does this thing have a heater? I am freezing!" That's probably closer to what I would have put in words.
The last time I spoke to him in April, he admitted that he did not feel too well. I offered to take him home, and he accepted. He said with that deep smile of his: "I've made it this far, and I have enjoyed it. I've already passed the '6-month's warning' and I have had so much help from so many. When I have to leave, I'll know that it's been a good life." With that, he got out of my car, shook my hand, and went into his home.
We feel in good company with the MANY people, who have known, shared time and life, deep conversations and also loud laughing fun, flying, dining, or faring on the "Lane Victory" with, - or just simply enjoying and loving Barney. We are grateful deep within to have been given a stretch of our lives alongside this marvelous, ever-friendly, always positive, best of all possible FRIENDS.
Thank you, Barney: "Bon Voyage!"
P.S. God Bless, from [John's wife] Linda. Thanks!
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What is happening to user fees?
The House got it right : an FAA funding bill that would modernize the ATC system, increase airport funding and do it all within the existing tax structure and no ATC user fees.
The transportation committee will recommend an increase in avgas from 19.3 to 24.1cents per gallon. A major victory for us since FAA is after a 70 cent increase..
The issue still has many hurdles. It now goes to the Ways and Means committee then to the floor of the House. Then the Senate must adopt a version and the two houses must reconcile the program into one bill.
OTHER IMPORTANT ISSUES for CPA members
[The following is an article from EAA Chapter One's newsletter with acknowledgments to their editor. I have changed the end to fit Corona. --Editor]
Isn't the internet amazing? To those of us who grew up in the days of card catalogues and microfiche, the internet remains a constant source of amazement. We don't need to go to the library; we have the world's largest library tucked somewhere in the bowels of this little box we call a computer. And then there's email. You can contact almost anyone (with, perhaps, the exception of Ray Stits) within seconds. I would lose touch with many friends and relatives if it weren't for email. Most people hate to sit and write a letter longhand, but it's a cinch to fire off an email within minutes. But email has its downside, too. It's known as spam (named after the famous meat byproduct). Any time you give a website your email address, you open your email to spam, which includes offers of products that will enlarge certain portions of your anatomy. Recently I've been getting a lot of emails from people promising to make me rich beyond my wildest dreams. All I need to do is give them some money, and they will reveal to me the secret to riches. If these people have this secret, why aren't they out there getting wealthy instead of trying to get $50 from me? Apparently the secret to riches is sending out spam emails promising to make people rich.
The internet is a great place for aviation buffs. Want to find out who owns an airplane? Get the N-number and go to www.faa.gov or to www.landings.com. At www.airnav.com you can get complete airport, navaid, airspace fixes, and gasoline price information. For the latest in aviation news and information, you can go to any of the alphabet aviation organizations (such as www.eaa.org) or go to www.avweb.com or www.aero-news.net. Want to sell your plane? Go to www.barnstormers.com.
You Tube (www.youtube.com) and Google Video (http://www.Google.com/video) have many aviation-related videos. I recently watched Bob Hoover pour a glass of lemonade while performing a roll in his Shrike Commander, then watched in horror the crash of Wayne Handley in his Raven, then watched a seven-minute performance and interview with Patty Wagstaff. Just go to either site and do a search on any specific subject. I typed "Pietenpol" in the Google Video search and found 34 videos on the aircraft, including one entitled "Getting in the Pietenpol Air Camper - What a Challenge!"
Over at www.pilotsharetheride.com I found 115 pages of pilots who are looking to share rides in their aircraft .At www.aeroplanner.com you can use the Airport Directory, terminal instrument procedures, weather data links, quick flight planner, reference materials, and a discussion forum for free.Then, of course, there's www.trade-a-plane.com. You can get an online only subscription for $2.95 per month ($35.40 per year), or get a print subscription for $14.95 per year which _includes_ an online subscription. Duh!
There are thousands of great aviation sites on the web. These are a few of my favorites.
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CPA Editor's note -- Don't forget the one website you need to visit regularly www.coronapilots.com. Our webmaster does a great job of keeping us up to date on happenings at Corona. {And don't forget there are _many_ important FAA links on the "resources" tab of CoronaPilots.com.)
End... newsletter July 2007
