CPA_newsletter

July 2008 CPA newsletter

NEXT MEETING
Our next meeting will be held Sunday July 13th on the terrace of Corona Aero Partners at 2:30 PM.

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.

LAST MEETING
Nearly thirty members spent a nearly perfect afternoon in fellowship and enjoying the business of the CPA.

President Jim Nunally called the June meeting to order at 2:40.

The minutes of the May meeting were read and approved.

Introduction of the people running for office was made by President Jim.

The floor was open any new nominations. No other nominations were made.

The Candidates left the area and the election was conducted by John Elwell.

All candidates were voted in unanimously. New Officers for the coming year are now official:
President            – Jim Nunally
Vice President    – Chris Kelly
Treasurer           – Wally Lucett
Secretary           – Denise Whetzel

Old Business:
Dave Arnold gave an update on the Scholarship Program. He highlighted his progress and asked for volunteers to help read student applicant essays. He also asked for volunteers to work with the scholarship winners’ ground school training.

Requirements for the scholarship are students who do fairly well in school, an essay that will show intent of student to follow through. All applicants are welcome (even if they are friends or family of CPA members).

A budget for the scholarship is being developed.

Yolanda has CPA hats and t-shirts for sale.

The CPA still has 5 Hangar flags to sell.

New business:
A special thanks to Wally Lucett for the wonderful flag set up. We are now very patriotic!

A new Social Committee has been formed and includes CPA members Glenn & Denise Whetzel and Jon & Jency Wells. They will be getting a calendar of events and activities for the year planned. If you have any ideas of activities that you would like to see at AJO, please feel free to contact any of them.

A discussion was held concerning participation in the City 4th of July Parade – Jim will reserve a space,. We will need to see how we can participate.

New prop signs for display day were made and are being photocopied. We are pricing corrugated cardboard signs to help mark visiting pilots to the display area.

John Elwell announced that he needed help with the envelope stuffing for the membership drive.

The meeting adjourned at 3:30 and all enjoyed fine food and fellowship.

See the long line of planes on display at the June open house. We are attracting more visitors every week. Plan on joining the crew in July.

FROM THE PREZ
By Jim Nunally:

The weather is hot and aviation fuel is high so guess what, we are not flying as much as we did in the past but fear not because our social committee is planning some exciting day trips for us to enjoy. There is a scheduled fly out planned for each month starting in July. I understand there is a drive-in movie coming up and a couple of overnight trips in months to come. Our monthly airplane display is going strong, we are getting more participation from pilots based at nearby airports and we do have local residents come by to view our planes and stop to talk. I guess what I am getting at is that even though we are not flying as much as before we are still flying and still having fun. Next year promises to be a prosperous year for the CPA in terms of social involvement and we would hope that ALL members would become active.

Remember that although the tempo has let up somewhat on traffic pattern safety we MUST all still practice safe operations and remember our “good neighbor policy” while flying near populated areas. Although they may be present, I have not heard of any unsafe flying in our area in some time and we do have a lot of daily flight operations.

I see that the airport landscape and weed abatement has been stepped up recently. Maybe you have seen Wally riding around spraying weeds with Rounup furnished by Fred. I think we should thank them both for their efforts. Also, Richard has somehow coerced the city into stepping up their war on grass and weeds at the airport, things are certainly shaping up.

Plan on displaying your airplane (old or new) on the grass from 10:00 until 2:00 Sunday, July 13, and then come to the meeting upstairs on the midfield deck at 2:30. Please bring a dish to share at the pot luck following the meeting. We are scheduled to have one of our local aircraft controllers present to talk about flying safety in our area.

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.

Upcoming events:
The FAA has issued Marco Crane & Rigging Company a Temporary Determination of "No Hazard to Air Navigation". What this means is that the above mentioned company will be positioning a crane 130ft above ground level and 732ft above mean sea level. The address is 1350 Railroad Street Corona CA 92880 at 6:00 am on Monday 7/7/08 through 7/11/08. Latitude: 33-53-23.37 NAD 83 and Longitude: 117-35-17.76W.

The next MTFAS (Mayor’s Task Force on Aviation Safety) will be July 1, 2008 at 7 pm in the City Council Chamber located at 400 S. Vicentia Ave.

Corona Girls Softball Association an independent non-profit organization is still seeking sponsors for this year; Girls All Star team. The top 13 of 245 girls will go on to represent Corona and possibly the State of California. Donations will help supply these young ladies with uniforms and tournament expenses. In return for your support, a banner bearing all of the sponsor names will travel with the team to every tournament as a show of their appreciation.

Anyone interested in donating to this cause on behalf of their company or the airport may forward their checks to CGSA (Corona Girls Softball Association). For further information; please call Karen S. Bowley Sponsorship Director 10u All Star Team at (951) 371-2623. Non-profit # C1087781/Tax ID 95-3642797. Any support you can provide to this organization is much appreciated.

During the tournaments, the airport is loaning extra parking along Butterfield Road. However, the gates will be locked at night after the games.

New AJO Hats: Some of you may have noticed some individuals wearing a new Corona Municipal airport AJO hat. They look great and are now on sale for $15.00, also have some great looking shirts on sale now for $29.95 regular sizes and an additional $5.00 for larger size. New T-Shirts are also available at $17.00. Anyone interested in purchasing one, please stop by the Airport Office or Bob’s Cafe.

Gate Card Renewals: If you have not renewed your gate card; stop by my office or mail a check to Attn: Airport Manager, Gate Card Renewal, 400 S Vicentia Ave., Corona, CA 92882-2187. Be certain to include the 5 digit number located at the top of your HID Card, and your current phone number. The renewal rate is $10.00 and the card will be in effect until March 2009.

Safety: None reported this month. Please continue to assist me with monitoring and taking immediate corrective action if you observe a potential safety hazard.

Aircraft complaints: We have received two recent complaints regarding aircraft flying too low over their homes and making a lot of noise. Please avoid flying over heavily populated areas and if you observe anyone not practicing our Good Neighbor policy; please let me know. Or better yet, let the pilot know how important it is to our airport to get along with our neighbors and the negative impact it creates for Corona Airport.

Thefts: None this month. Please report any suspicious activity to your Master Lease Holder or me as soon as possible.

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.

Thank You for your continued support and Please help me keep our Airport Safe and Neighborly!

PILOT PROFILE
By Denise Whetzel

The profile this month is on AJO resident Chris Kelly. Chris Kelly is the new Vice-President of the Corona Pilot’s Association. He and his wife Pam have 9 children -- 7 daughters (Kyra, Karissa, Kaitlyn, Courtney, Colleen, Mairin & Brighid) and 2 sons (Casey & Liam). The Kellys can either be found hanging around their 1952 Cessna 170B, a little white and red number they have affectionately named “Lil Rose” or the restroom (someone always has to go!)

Chris did his first solo in January 26, 1983 and has his Private Pilot, Single Engine Land with a tail dragger endorsement (grandfathered). His favorite place to fly is to Corona, but is looking forward to flying to Tehachapi (KTSP). His dream plane is a Cessna Caravan (new) or a DC-3. Both planes that could definitely haul his crew!

Chris’s scariest experience happened while flying south from Paso Robles (KPRB) to Corona via the San Marcus VOR (near Santa Barbara), he found himself over an ocean of clouds. He quickly realized he needed to determine his exact location, lest he find himself over the Pacific Ocean on his way to Mexico waters. As he tuned in the Fillmore VOR, his navcom panel shorted, and left him with no radios or navigational aid. With the use of dead reckoning, the words of his CFII (the late Chris Okwudibonye) ringing in his head, along with a great sense of fear of running out of fuel somewhere near Catalina Island, he was able to determine his location and safely returned home.

The Kelly Motto: Turris Fortis Mihi Deus (God is to me a tower of strength)

NEWS YOU REALLY NEED
Gale Grant is back at the bench while recuperating from surgery, and the result is a much wiser bench than during his absence. He is even taking significant walks around the fueling station. The crew even got him in an airplane and gave him a ride. Of course it was in a high wing but Gale did not seem to mind too much. It is great to see him on the road to recovery and to have him back

Time to renew your CPA membership. You have all received your renewal requests, so be sure to send them back along with your dues. This keeps our association strong and vibrant.

As mentioned above we are back in the fly out efforts. These are a great deal of fun so plan on joining us. The schedule for the Fly-outs begins in July. Here is the schedule:

July 26 - Primary: Camarillo (CMA), Secondary: Apple Valley (APV)
August 23 -  Primary: Montgomery Field (MYF), Secondary: Santa Paula (SZP)
September 27 - Primary: Tehachapi (TSP), Secondary: Borrego (LO8)
October25 - Overnighter - Harris Ranch (More details coming)
November 29 - AJO Poker Run ( $5.00 a hand to enter - More details coming)

Pilot briefing: CAV office 9:30, Wheels up 10:00

So we can make arrangements with the restaurants, please contact us by email (CPA_Secretary) or post a message on the CPA Bulletin Board if you are planning to attend.
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As the economy and fuel prices force pilots to look for ways to lower the cost of flying, there is good news on the aviation insurance front. Recognizing the improving general aviation safety record on a large number of GA aircraft types, aviation insurance underwriters are offering rate reductions. While not all aircraft will see rate reductions, and certain state restrictions may apply, many GA piston aircraft owners could see savings. “An improved safety record with a significant decrease in accidents allows underwriters to offer lower rates on many GA aircraft,” said Brenda Jennings, branch manager and senior vice president of the AOPA Insurance Agency. “And those aircraft that have seen the best experience will see the greatest reductions in rates.”
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Congress has once again extended the current FAA funding system, preserving the status quo on aviation taxes and fees until Sept. 30. "The good news is that aviation fuel taxes won't change during the summer flying season, and there are no new user fees," said Phil Boyer, AOPA president. "And this extension will let airports spend all of their Airport Improvement Program grants during this construction season. The bad news is that user fees still remain a possibility."

Editorial comment: The rising cost of fuel is painful, it hurts BAD. Should it really cause us to curtail the flying we all have in our bloodstreams? I think not. Most of us fly less than 100 hours per year and in a Mooney that is less than 1000 gallons of fuel. Each $1.00 increase amounts to $1,000. When compared to the total cost of having that aircraft. The increase, while painful, will not effect when I want to fly. I can still afford to fly I just can’t afford to drive to the airport.

The following Press Enterprise article was posted on our web site, but because of the strong interest by CPA it is included in it’s entirety.

[Quote Press Enterprise]
CORONA - A task force set up to study aviation safety in Corona following a deadly midair plane collision in January unanimously concluded Tuesday that the Corona Municipal Airport is safe.
However, there is room for improvement.

The nine members of the Mayor's Task Force on Aviation Safety drafted a series of recommended improvements for the City Council to consider.

Specifically, the task force recommended that the city ask the Federal Aviation Administration to study the airport's traffic pattern and whether the airport needs an air-traffic control tower.

The group also decided on a series of outreach efforts aimed at educating pilots about Corona's safety procedures through signs, fliers, publications, radio communication and a city-hosted aviation safety seminar.

Comprised mostly of local pilots, a majority on the task force predicted that the FAA would conclude the airport does not need an air-traffic control tower and that its landing and take-off pattern is safe.

"A lot of the stuff we are doing, we are doing to improve our public relations," explained task force member Chuck Ferano. "As for the tower, it's probably too small of an airport and too big of an undertaking, and I don't think the FAA will ever build one."

Citing the rarity of plane crashes, several members of the panel said drastic changes to airport operations would be less about improving safety and more about appeasing a panicked public.

After the January midair collision that killed two pilots, two passengers and Earl Smiddy, an employee at a car dealership where the debris fell, some in the community called for closing the airport. This year's wreck was the city's third midair crash in a decade, including one where the planes fell into a house and apartment below. There have been more fatal plane wrecks in Corona than in any other Inland airport community.

Task force members Eugene Montanez and Steve Nolan, who are also city councilmen, left Tuesday's meeting before drafting the recommendations, noting that it would be awkward for them to create recommendations to themselves.

During four months of task force meetings, Nolan was often at odds with other members of the panel in arguing for changes to the airport's traffic pattern. Nolan often struggled to explain the frustration and sense of insecurity that comes from living and working beneath an air traffic pattern where planes can and have fallen from the sky.

On Tuesday, he described the air space above Corona as a "free-for-all" where pilots fly at seemingly random altitudes, placing landing planes in the path of planes flying in from the coast through the Santa Ana Canyon along Highway 91.

"Up to this point, I have been the bad guy, the minority. How dare I talk about the traffic pattern," Nolan said. "I am not the minority outside this room," Nolan added in reference to the safety concerns of the community. "I was at Earl Smiddy's memorial. I don't forget that."

Task force Chairman Richard O. Haley ended the meeting with assurances to the pilot community that the airport is considered an asset to the city.

"When this tragedy happened ... the first response is to think the sky is falling," he said. "The pilots from the Corona Airport are, quite frankly, very, very safe and we thank them."

The specific recommendations of the task force are as follows:
--A recording attached to our AWSS describing airport procedures
--Better signage on both 25 and 7 describing airport procedures.
--A VASI on RWY 7
--Handouts and better information to be put in the AFD and flight guides
--Possible monitoring of airplanes' AGL in "complaint areas"
--Plain language "Information" on the city website about airplanes and patterns
--Better use of a ground-radio for Unicom
--Asking the FAA if it still advises patterns to the north as it did in 1998

[End Quote Press Enterprise]

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Burt Rutan has stepped down as president of Scaled Composites, LLC, the company announced Wednesday. Rutan, SpaceShipOne inventor, EAA Lifetime Member, and a pioneer of the homebuilt aircraft movement, gave up his day-to-day responsibilities at Scaled, the company he founded in 1982. Rutan will remain at the company as chief technology officer and chairman emeritus, while Doug Shane, the company's vice president, takes over as Scaled's president.

"I suggested this change to our organizational structure because I want to focus on developing our talented, innovative team and ensuring we continue to provide our customers the creative technical approaches that only Scaled offers," Rutan said. "I am successfully recovering from about eight months of significant heart health challenges, and with this move look forward to many more years of fun here at Scaled."

Rutan had open-heart surgery in February for constrictive pericarditis, a condition in which the sac covering the heart is inflamed.
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SPORT PILOT TRAINING AT FLABOB
Future pilots can now train for the sport pilot certificate at Historic Flabob Airport in a new two-seat Tecnam P92 Echo Super. "We are excited to be one of the few places in Southern California where pilots can learn to fly in a Light Sport Aircraft (LSA)," said Larry Lubak, owner of Gotta Fly Aviation. The new Tecnam LSA at Flabob Airport is available for beginners, and for pilots who have already earned their certificates as a modern rental alternative. "All of us hope the new Sport Pilot regulations passed by the FAA will make flying more accessible to a lot more people," said John Lyon, executive director of the Wathen Foundation, owner of historic Flabob Airport. "Our mission is to promote aviation." For more information, contact Gotta Fly Aviation at 951-778-0255.