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Vol. 3,
No. 8 AUGUST 2010 |
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BITS
AND PIECES, THE ORIGINAL! |
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There she
was, in row 366 in the homebuilt
aircraft section, Gus Chisholm’s
original Bits and Pieces first flown
at Goderich, Ontario, in 1958. Only
the second amateur-built aircraft in
Canada to receive a flight authority,
and still beautiful and going strong.
I met with Brian Harrington, who
had flown Bits and Pieces to EAA
AirVenture Oshkosh 2010 from The Tiger
Boys’ airpark in Guelph, Ontario. It
took him nine flying hours, and here
she was with a total of 732 hours on
airframe and engine.
It was
a good flight, he said, using about 40
gallons of fuel and taking 12 hours in
total time.
Read more |
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GATINEAU FEVER |
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As the
much anticipated "Wings over Gatineau"
approaches, aviation enthusiasts
across the country are planning a
gathering of friends to share a great
air show and a great party!
And
speaking of parties, Bill Beaton from
Calgary (reportedly the party capital
of the world) offers an "Old
West"-style invitation to all his
aviation buddies in his e-mail last
week. Bill's letter also highlights
some important information for all
aircraft heading off to the show!
Read more |
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ANOTHER
AIRPORT ON THE CHOPPING BOARD
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One of
Canada's most historic airports is
being closed to make way for urban
development. Edmonton City Centre
Airport in Alberta closed one of its
two runways earlier this month as
Edmonton moves to shut it down.
In a
recent e-mail to Bits and Pieces,
Rob Seale laments the poor advocacy
shown by the airport community. The
despair apparent in his brief note is
familiar and mirrors the sentiment of
previous closures. Perhaps the
aviation community has given up on
saving valued airports.
Read more |
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A380
TEST PILOT TALKS AMATUER-BUILT
AIRCRAFT PROGRESS/SAFETY AT AIRVENTURE |
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It was
hard to miss the Airbus A380 last year
at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. EAA member
Terry Lutz was one of the pilots that
brought the aircraft to AirVenture.
Terry has been an experimental test
pilot with Airbus since 2006, and the
awe and wonder of the A380 overshadow
many of the technical aspects Terry
and his fellow test pilots deal with
every day.
He
built his own RV-8, and he told
attendees at the AirVenture 2010
Technical Counselors and Flight
Advisors Breakfast meeting in Oshkosh
that electric-powered aircraft are the
future of sport aviation.
Read more |
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AIRCRAFT SPRUCE SPONSORS HOMEBUILT
HANGAR |
BITS AND
PIECES POLL
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Q. Will you start an
aircraft project before the
end of the year? |
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Please
review and rate this
issue of Bits and Pieces.
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Aircraft
Spruce & Specialty Company, a leading
distributor of homebuilt and
certificated aircraft supplies, made a
$100,000 donation to EAA to sponsor
the new Homebuilders’ Hangar on the
EAA grounds at Oshkosh.
Formally dedicated on July 26 at EAA
AirVenture Oshkosh, Homebuilders’
Hangar was buzzing with activity
throughout the week with presentations
by renowned aircraft designers and
builders.
Read more |
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LONGTIME AIRVENTURE VOLUNTEER RAY
FISET PASSES |
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Aviation
lost a great man llast month (July
2010) when Ray Fiset passed away. Most
pilots knew Ray as the fellow in the
wheelchair who represented the
Recreational Aircraft Association in
Quebec, but he was much more than
that.
In 1957
Ray was hit by a propeller when he
dove to save someone who was
unknowingly walking into it. Although
that act of bravery put him into a
wheelchair for life, it did not slow
Ray down.
He
built airplanes, operated an aviation
machine shop, and attended the EAA
fly-in convention for over 50 years
where he set up and manned the
information booth. No one has been a
stronger supporter of aviation than
Ray Fiset.
Read more |
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YOUR
CANADIAN COUNCIL IN ACTION |
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One of the
primary roles of the EAA Canadian
Council is to advocate on behalf of
all EAA members in Canada and to help
reduce the regulatory barriers faced
by other EAA members trying to fly
recreational and general aviation
aircraft into Canada.
During
the council's annual visit to EAA
AirVenture Oshkosh 2010, we continued
our very active role in this area by
meeting with several government
agencies to discuss cross-border
aviation issues.
Read more |
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THE
BEST OF AIRVENTURE THROUGH VIDEO |
The Top Ten Moments of AirVenture
Many are fortunate to attend
AirVenture and many more attend
online, but either way it's hard to
see everything. From new product
announcements to innovative aircraft,
fine craftsmanship, and great aerial
performances, AirVenture has many top
moments.
Read more |
Tell us your top moments |
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Top 10 AirVenture Videos
EAA Video kept a steady stream of
videos flowing to the new EAA Video
site during AirVenture. There were
more than 347,520 views last week, but
in case you missed a few, here are our
Editor's Choice of the Top 10
AirVenture Videos.
View the Top 10 |
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AirVenture Fan Videos
Just days after Oshkosh we started
receiving great videos shot by
AirVenture fans. Jeff Leisz posted a
stirring overview of Oshkosh with
AirVenture 2010. Derek Haskins took a
more introspective approach with his
video Oshkosh Dreamin’. And Wesley
“Slick” Perkins, whose 2009 AirVenture
video has tallied nearly 1 million
views since it debuted shortly after
last year’s show, is back again. This
time Slick presents an even more
comprehensive look at the World’s
Greatest Aviation Celebration.
Read more |
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LOOKING
TO GROW YOUR CHAPTER? WATCH THIS
WEBINAR! |
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Successful
EAA Chapters are growing and finding
new members. How can your chapter do
the same? Learn how successful
chapters grow and the mistakes that
failing chapters make. Barry will
share chapter recruiting and retention
ideas that you can use to take your
chapter to the next level. Big or
small, there will be ideas for you to
immediately start using which will
help you attract new members and keep
the members you have coming back. All
are welcome – not just for chapter
officers.
To find
out more about upcoming EAA Webinars
and to register, visit the
webinars page. |
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FROM
THE ARCHIVES |
Sport
Aviation, December 1964
Flying the Pacific Coast in a
‘Homebuilt’
Volmer
Jensen, EAA 4031, is partial to the
amphibian, and he's taken it many
places that other vehicles can't go.
In 1964 he told of a trip he had
always wanted to take, from southern
California to Vancouver, B.C.
When Balboa looked over the hills of
the Isthmus of Panama and called the
ocean "Pacifico," he couldn't have
been more correct! In the past five
years, I've explored some of the more
interesting spots of this coastline,
and heard stories of so many more that
I want to visit. Of course, I'm doing
it the easiest way possible. There
isn't a place along the Pacific
coastline where I can't take my
"Sportsman" amphibian, and if I live
long enough, maybe I'll fly to them
all. But let's explore part of the
Pacific coast — the parts I've flown
over — and conclude the tour with a
visit to the islands north of
Vancouver, B.C. in Canada, where I
flew recently to see the first
completed "Sportsman" built by Wright
J. Chappell, a grandfather three times
over.
Read the article |
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