November Meeting - 11/20/2011

     Our last chapter meeting of 2011 was held on Sunday, November 20th. After a lunch of chicken bog, slaw, and various other items and desserts, Libby read the minutes from the October meeting. Then, Don Bledsoe gave the financial report for treasurer, Joe Garner, who was out of town. Next, we held our annual election in which the same officers and directors were elected for 2012 as served during 2011: President - Randy Berry; Vice-President - Tony Gantt; Secretary - Libby Berry; Treasurer - Joe Garner; and three Directors - Don Bledsoe,  Larry Maner, and Glenn Temples. Don Schmotzer was also reaffirmed as our chapter safety advisor for 2012. Four members flew in (Eddie, Don B, Larry and Jim H). The weather turned nastier outside as our meeting progressed, but everyone got home safely afterwards. We also voted to sponsor a winter fly-in in February of 2012, but more on that later. We all agreed that we have a great chapter and look forward to 2012. Click the thumbnail above for photos from Eddie Price.

Dolittle Fly-in & Barnwell - 11/12/2011

        
         Dolittle Fly-in (Randy)                  Barnwell Airport (Randy)                    Barnwell, Wexford, Etc. (Eddie)

     Saturday, November 12th, was a beautiful fall day. Several of our members flew to the Dolittle Fly-in held at Dolittle Airport (SC90). EAA chapter 242 prepared a nice meal of BBQ, hamburgers, hotdogs, various side dishes, desserts, and drinks. Later in the day, several of us flew to Barnwell Regional Airport (KBNL), where they were holding a "Corvair college", a quite impressive event in which one could convert a stock Corvair engine into an engine suitable for powering an experimental aircraft. With proper modifications, the 6-cylinder Corvair makes a smooth running, dependable aircraft power plant which purportedly uses about 6 gallons per hour. Most are 100 HP conversions, but higher HP versions are possible. See the various photo albums by clicking the thumbnails above.

TTF/Gaston Fall Fly-in - 11/5/2011

    
Eddie's Photos                                             Randy's Photos

     Hefty crosswinds and cool weather blemished our fall fly-in. Only 5 planes flew in, but a substantial number of people drove in. In fact, it might better be described as a "drive-in", but we still had a great time. Had the winds been lighter, we feel sure that many more planes would have flown in. We enjoyed a great meal about noon. Steve Cromer & Jim Herpst cooked hamburgers and hotdogs, Neil Deye & Jim Wheat fried sweet potato and regular french fries, Don Schmotzer & Leon Strock fried corn and fresh fries, Norman Davis brought chili with beans, and we had iced tea, soft drinks, and several delicious desserts made by Glenn Temples, Libby Berry, and Myra Strock. John Leonhardt won the spot landing contest. Miranda Franklin won the 50/50 raffle. Aviation artist, Raymond Paul Moats (see www.artflight.us) , graciously donated 4 painting reconstructions, which were won by Mitch Lindsay from Spartanburg (P47 Thunderbolt) for "farthest flying in", Jack Starling (small P47 Thunderbolt) for "oldest active pilot" at 87, and Sandy Price (Yankee Lighthouse) given to a "lady attendee". Don Bledsoe won the final raffle for a painting reconstruction of a SR-71 Blackbird. Thanks to all who came and to our supportive members, especially the group at Gaston Airport (Don Bledsoe, Larry Maner, Joe Garner, Jim Franklin, Steve Cromer), who put much time and effort into making our fly-in a success. We gained three new chapter members (Dwight Van Zanen, Ken Berry, David Stratley) as well. For photos of the event, click on the thumbnails above.

October Meeting & Flight - 10/23/2011

     Our October meeting was well attended at Gaston Airport. After we enjoyed a lunch of brats with peppers and onions, we held our business meeting and finalized plans for our upcoming fall fly-in (click for details) to be held on Saturday, November 5th with a rain date of Sunday, November 6th. There was much discussion about the rules for the spot landing contest (for which there will be a cash award), but we finally decided to just keep it simple ... closest to the white line wins. After the meeting, 10 members in 7 planes flew to Edgefield County Airport (6J6). It was a great flight on a beautiful fall day, and we had a great time visiting with friends there. Click the thumbnail above for photos.

Carolina Sport Flyers Fly-in - 10/15/11

Joe Garner in BT-13

     Although the winds were not very favorable the latter part of the day, quite a few members of our chapter did manage to attend the Carolina Sport Flyer's Annual Fly-in at Holly Hill, SC on Saturday, October 15, 2011. The trip down was nice enough (and reportedly fast), but the ride back was bucking a strong headwind. At 4:00pm, Intellicast was indicating 21mph from the west with gusts to 29mph back at Gaston Airport. Glenn Temples won the raffle, but Joe actually got the prize, a ride in the vintage BT-13 trainer, since Glenn had to leave early. Steve Cromer also won an award for his Cessna Skylane. For photos from Eddie Price, click the thumbnail above.

VAA Regional Fly-in - Camden - 10/8/11

Frank Shumpert's AT-6

     Our chapter was also well represented at the VAA Regional Fly-in at Camden on October 8, 2011. A number of us flew in and several drove. We all had a great time. Eddie Price even managed to get rides in Bobby Jonte's AT-6 and Joe Baker's (see "friends in high places" on page 3) Hatz biplane. Way to go, Eddie! For nearly 400 photos taken by Eddie, including many in the AT-6 and Hatz in flight, click the thumbnail above.

Whiteplains Plantation - 9/25/11

Whiteplains residents

     Our September meeting was held in Jim Wheat's hangar at Whiteplains Plantation (SC99). Other airpark residents attended our meeting as well. We enjoyed a lunch of pizza, tossed salad, soft drinks, tea and banana pudding. After attendee introductions, we planned our upcoming chapter fall fly-in (click for details) to be held on Saturday, November 5th with a bad weather date of Sunday, November 6th. We had planned to have a presentation by Jack McGlumphy (ATP with over 11,000 hours), but David flew in near the end of our business meeting with a report that conditions aloft were turbulent and bad weather was on the way. Sure enough, we could see a red line advancing from the southwest on our cellphones, so we cancelled Jack's presentation so that those flying could get back home promptly. It's a good thing we did too because a thunderstorm hit the area later in the day which caused some local damage. Click the thumbnail above for Randy's photos of the meeting.