Patricianjuly08 2

Victoria Flying Club

July 2008

The highlight of VFC's June 7th Open House Career Day was the arrival of the F-18 from Cold Lake, flown in by Major Bren Eichel.

Inside

Story and more photos inside.

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Short Final

Letters to the Editor

Bears Air

In My Travels

Aviation Certification

Mental Airworthiness

Crash Landing

Flight Itinerary

Eleanor’s

The

Patrician

S hort F inal

Newsletter of the Victoria Flying Club

JULY 2008 Editor:

Eleanor Eastick PatricianEditor@shaw.ca Advertising inquiries: Bob Mace (250) 361-6996 or bmace@shaw.ca Publisher: Seaside Designs seasidedesigns@shaw.ca (250) 383-7777 Published monthly.

Unsolicited articles welcome.

The deadline for submissions is Wednesday, July 23, 2008.

Board of Directors President Vice President Treasurer Secretary Directors

Paul Levie Doug Marin Lloyd Toope Colin Dormuth Eleanor Eastick Ellen Wood Sean Steele Jim Sutherland

General Manager Gerry Mants Chief Flying Instructor Graham Palmer 1852 Canso Road Victoria, BC V8L 5V5

Phone: Fax: Email: Web:

(250) 656-4321 (250) 656-2833 (250) 655-0910 info@flyvfc.com www.flyvfc.com

Opinions expressed are those of the authors alone. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced in any format without the written authorization from the publisher or author.

We can help YOUR business GROW and FLOURISH. Call today.

250.383.7777 seasidedesigns@shaw.ca seasidedesigns.net

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SEASIDE designs & photography

How many times so far have I said summer was here? Well it is officially here now as of June 20, but whoever is in charge of the weather didn’t know that. One or two fine days do not a summer make – five or six good days in a row would help convince me that we are indeed in the “lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer; the days of soda and pretzels and beer.” Hey! Does that date me or what?

Well, anyway, there has been lots of flying and now that we are at the end of June, the sun has started to shine and a few good days are in the offing.

Speaking of flying – and what else do we want to talk about – Shannon Tomren took the aerial photo of a crop circle near Duncan. Anyone know anything about it, or have any alien friends who might have made it?

Canadian Search A Canadian geologist and a team of about ten will resume the search for Steve Fossett, who vanished in rough country last September while flying his Citabria Super Decathlon. Geologist Simon Donato plans to hike into an area on the east slope of the Sierra Mountains on the Nevada/California border. He speculates that Mr. Fossett and his plane may be in an area underneath the trees or deep in a crevasse or against a cliff face. This would explain why he has not been spotted in the many aerial searches. Donato plans to examine an area on the periphery of the main search area, southwest of the Flying M ranch where the Citrabia last took off.

August Flyout Let’s have another go at the Pemberton flyout. The May 19th Victoria Day weather completely precluded the planned flight to CYPS – we were lucky to make it to CYCW, which was the only destination available that lousy day.

So, BC Day, Monday August 4th, will see the second try at a fantastic flight, weather permitting. Remember you will need to have taken the mountain course to fly into and out of Pemberton; the total route can be divided into sections such as CYYJ-CYCW-CYPS-CAT4 so that pilots without the mountain endorsement can do some flying as well as sight-seeing. Keep your fingers crossed for a perfect day!

Short Final cont’d p. 4

Letters to the Editor Hi Eleanor I don't know too much about the trailer park itself, except that it's the weirdest one I've ever seen. It's called the Birch Bay Leisure Park....It's a weird sight to behold from the air. I took this shot flying back from Chilliwack 2 years ago: Cheers, Colin Thanks Colin. I flew over it many times before I found out what it was. Weird is the only word!

- Ed

Here is the explanation of the June Mystery Aircraft

Piper Malibu Mirage The June ’08 Mystery plane is a Piper Malibu Mirage.

The full frontal profile photo in last month’s Patrician made the Mirage difficult to identify so our apologies to all of our readers.

The Piper Malibu series of aircraft are all low wing, with a single engine. Powered by a Textron Lycoming 350 hp engine, the Malibu Mirage has a better than 1500 fpm climb rate, a maximum speed of 197 knots and a service ceiling of 25,000 feet. The Mirage has a seating capacity of one pilot plus five passengers. Please see accompanying photo.

JULY

Mystery of the Month The July ’08 mystery plane has been around the Victoria International Airport longer than most aircraft here. It is of both local and national historic significance and will be familiar to most warplane buffs.

I took this photo while the mystery plane and other vintage planes were visiting the Victoria Flying Club open house around 15 years ago.

Send your educated guesses to

PatricianEditor@shaw.ca

Good luck with your answers!

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Short Final cont’d from p 2

Happy Birthday BC Lots of things taking place around the province this summer as we celebrate our 150th birthday, including a Victoria Air Show by the Snowbirds September 20 and 21. In fact, if you’re roving by road or air around western Canada in July, you’ll find the Snowbirds performing flypasts at the Calgary Stampede, the Edmonton Grand Prix and Wings over White Rock. They’ll also be in Penticton, Dawson Creek, Rocky Mountain House, Springbank and of course, Abbotsford.

Happy 141st Birthday, Canada!

the VIEW from the TOWER , YXJ

Former VFC member and dear friend, Michelle Philp is now at Fort St John (CYXJ) in Flight Services. Michelle sent these photos of interesting visitors to YXJ. Note our own GZXP, looking quite small taxiing past the tower.

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Pilot Unconscious Passenger Lands Plane

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friend and fellow pilot is about to lose his livelihood. He has a problem with his eyes that will be picked up on his next medical. As we get older, we become more and more concerned about it happening to us. A few years back, I had a personal experience which fortunately was resolved as a misunderstanding and mix-up in paperwork between physicians. But for about a week, it wasn’t a good feeling to think I could be grounded indefinitely.

Perhaps the requirements for a category one medical are a bit too strict. After the age of 40, a commercial pilot is obliged to pass the exam every six months, and face an ECG every 12 months. On the other hand, who would want to be aboard the aircraft with a pilot who is unable physically and mentally to fly? As far as his emotional condition during a flight is concerned, unfortunately there’s no way to police that under current regulations.

Although it does happen, it is rare that a pilot is disabled to the point where he cannot control his airplane. Heart attacks do occur. Gastrointestinal disorders are in fact, quite common, but rarely totally debilitating. Insulin shock can render the diabetic helpless, sometimes unconscious. But insulin-dependent diabetics are restricted from holding a cat one medical. Proven cases of diabetes mellitus may be considered fit provided certain specific control criteria are met. Movies and television play up the possibilities and produce dramatic accounts of an aircraft in distress where the unconscious pilot is tossed aside by a pilot-wanna-be passenger who successfully lands the airplane, which is chased down the runway by a cluster of fire engines.

Only in the movies you say? Documented cases prove that in reality, this type of thing does happen!

In February of 2002, a ten-passenger Cessna 402 was on a flight between the island of Martha’s Vineyard and Hyannis, Massachusetts. The short 15 minute commute carried three businessmen, a female security official from the airline, and the pilot. The security employee became concerned when she noticed the plane was offcourse, and the pilot began acting inappropriately. It

BEAR’S AIR Barry Meek

was obvious that he was unable to control the aircraft.

At the time, this security employee was also a student pilot, and had about 48 hours logged in small aircraft.

The other passengers were non-pilots. With their assistance, she was able to climb into the right seat, and as the captain was restrained by the passengers, she assumed control. Totally unfamiliar with the radios, twin-engine operation, retractable gear and instrument procedures, this was about to turn into an experience that could have been a movie script.

Fortunately, the new pilot had done some cross-country work in the area, and recognized a familiar airport below. In the darkness she was able to execute a successful, wheels-up landing at the uncontrolled field, from which everyone aboard walked away uninjured.

The investigation revealed that the captain was in a state of insulin shock.

He was a diabetic but had somehow managed to keep that fact from the FAA for his entire career. In his early 50’s he controlled his blood sugar levels well enough to stay out of trouble, but as is the case with so many who suffer from the condition, circumstances sometimes catch up and overwhelm the patient before he’s able to correct the problems.

In my work as a paramedic, it would be impossible to count the number of diabetics we responded to. Insulin shock occurs when blood-sugar levels drop below the point where the brain can function properly. The first signs include a decreased level of consciousness. The patient becomes confused, incoherent, and can progress to aggressive and violent behavior, seizures, unconsciousness and even death. It happens quickly.

Fortunately, the condition is pretty much always reversible just as quickly with administration of IV glucose. In just a few minutes, the paramedics have the situation under control with a fully coherent patient sitting up and wondering what just happened. These calls were usually very gratifying.

The captain of the flight was charged with making false statements to a federal agency (the FAA) and early in 2008 pled guilty. He received a sentence of 16 months in jail and 2 years probation following the jail term. He had managed to control and conceal his insulin story cont’d on p 6

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Bears Air cont’d from p 5 dependency for many years. It’s fortunate no one was injured or killed in this incident.

The next time you’re tempted to stretch the truth, omit a few details or actually lie to your aviation medical examiner, remember the consequences can be severe.

The whole adventure makes for good discussion around the coffee table. What would you do if you needed to take control of an airplane and had little or no pilot training?

Barry Meek bcflyer@propilots.net

August 8, 9 & 10, 2008

Happy Birthday to Larry D. - July 7th!

You and Eleanor's Philco fridge are the same age!

Still running and still good-looking!

BECOME A

Sustaining Member of VFC and receive 10% off flying and other purchases at the Club.

In Memoriam Bob Harrison The Victoria Flying Club announces with sorrow the recent passing of Bob Harrison,

To qualify, you must have been a Flying Member in Good Standing for a minimum of two consecutive years.

former AME and active member for many years. Both he and his wife June were Life Members.

Bob was an avid motorcyclist and collector of interesting bikes as well as a pilot.

In his honour, VFC held a flypast of his memorial service which took place in his garden where he

Application forms are available at Dispatch.

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spent a great deal of time in recent years.

We extend our sympathy to the Harrison Family.

In My Travels

by Larry Dibnah

Douglas A-26 Invader The Douglas A-26 Invader, although looking similar to earlier Douglas twin engine warplanes - the Havoc and the Boston, was a separate contract for the development of a medium bomber. In June 1941, three versions were proposed. The XA-26 light bomber; the XA-26A night fighter; and the XA-26B low level attack bomber. The XA-26 was flown for the first time in July 1942. By November 1944 the aircraft first saw action in the European Theater of WW2 as the A-26 Invader. A-26’s (later as B-26’s) were also used during the Korean and Vietnam conflicts.

Following their military service, surplus A-26’s were bought by private owners and used as executive transport aircraft among other things. Also, because of its great speed and maneuverability, the A-26 was well suited as an air tanker/water bomber. Several of them were converted for that role in Canada and the US after their retirement from the US military. A few former A-26 air tankers have now found their way back into military colours as part of the warbird collections in the US. In its air tanker role, the A-26 Invader was fitted with an internal tank inside the former bomb bay and could carry up to 900 gallons of water or fire retardant mix. These fluids were pumped aboard at ground bases using a 4” diameter hose. Tanker number ‘22’, civil registration CF-BMS, is the A-26C example now on display at the BC Aviation Museum in Victoria. This aircraft was one of about 12 converted to air tankers during the 1960’s and 70’s by Conair Aviation of Abbotsford, BC. Tanker number ‘22’ served on fire fighting duty throughout Western Canada right up until 1989 when Conair donated it to the BCAM. The Victoria tanker base was its last posting before official retirement. Conair has since replaced its old fleet of A-26’s with several newer types including the Grumman Tracker and Firecat.

When I worked in the BC Forest Service Engineering Division during the early 1970’s one of my assignments was to help plan, design and survey a series of tanker bases at airports throughout the BC Interior. Our team located these bases using technical specifications of the A-26 and larger air tanker types. Since these tankers had to land and be refilled quickly, the A-26’s radius of operations was a big consideration in the overall tanker base design.

Specifications for the A-10C Invader include: Power plants Maximum speed Wingspan Length Gross weight

2 Pratt & Whitney R2800-79, 18-cylinder radial engines of 2000 hp each.

373 mph 70 feet 51 feet, 3 inches 35,000 pounds

References : The British Columbia Aviation Museum; Walter Henry, Vintage Aircraft in Canada – 1976.

Photo: Ken Hanson

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OPEN HOUSE

Everyone wanted to see the F-18 taxi in The Open House on June 7th went very well with quite a crowd showing up despite the less-than-perfect weather that plagued the first part of the day. Doug Marin spearheaded the event with able help from staff and directors as well as former instructors Brian Moon and Jason Stewart, both now corporate jet pilots. Former instructor George Gee was also present representing Viking Air. The sun broke out in the early afternoon and Chief BBQer Robert was kept busy cooking hamburgers. (George Gee's son pronounced the burgers awesome). The arrival of the F-18 caught everyone's attention as Pilot Bren Eichel did a couple of low-and-overs on 27 before landing and taxiing to VFC's ramp. Aside from being a fun day, there was a lot of interest shown in our flight training programs and the UVIC Aviation Option which was the purpose of the Open House.

Major Eichel is directed in by his little nephew

Gear down and ready for touchdown Staff was ready to answer questions and direct people to the lounge for the barbecue

BBQ chef Robert Clark with Vi Whalley

Lots of people came through reception to look at information

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Looking west from VFC - a cloudy June day

Enhance your employment prospects in the aviation industry by earning a Certificate in Business Administration (CBA) or Diploma in Business Administration (DBA) from the University of Victoria while you pursue your Professional Flight Training at the Victoria Flying Club.

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Mental Airworthiness As a devotee of Tony Kern, author of R e d e f i n i n g A i r m a n s h i p, F l i g h t D i s c i p l i n e etc., I applaud this pilot’s self-declared unreadiness to fly. Kern refers to our “medical airworthiness” – it’s not just the plane that has to be fit and ready to fly. This article was excerpted from the UK Telegraph online and the incident took place in June of this year – Ed A United airline flight was cancelled because the pilot decided he was “not calmed and focused enough” to fly after a row with his company.

The pilot, who was due to fly from Salt Lake City to Denver, told passengers waiting in the plane that he felt unable to safely pilot the machine. He is believed to have been involved in an angry and unusual confrontation with colleagues minutes earlier about whether to wear his hat and was still too enraged to control his reflexes. A businessman aboard the plane, related how the news was broken to frustrated passengers.

“The pilot came on the PA and said, ‘some of you may have witnessed an incident I was involved in at the gate.

I’m not going to go into the details, but it was an interpersonal confrontation that upset me significantly to the point where I’m not focused enough to fly you to Denver.

“I feel like I may not be calmed and focused enough to fly to Denver for another hour,’” The passengers emitted a collective groan before they were let off the plane while another pilot was found.

The comments posted were nearly all in favour of the pilot’s decision, although a few people felt he should have had better control of himself and not been so petty. To read more, follow this link - Ed Flight cancelled after pilot too upset to fly

VFC Smile Cards The Victoria Flying Club is very excited to partner with Thrifty Foods in their successful

Smile Card Program.

Pick up your Smile Card today and 5% of all your Thriftys grocery purchases will go towards creating scholarships and awards for VFC members.

To date, we have been able to create three new bursaries!

Pick up cards for your family and friends too.

This is a great opportunity for VFC members.

We thank you for your support!

SMILE CARD TOTAL TO DATE

$6289

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Raj Negi (Mike Chow)

First Solo

Hernan Pizarro (Mike Chow)

as of June 15•08

Martin Pepper (Yasuhiro Koide)

Charles Schell (Mike Chow) Sanu Krishnan (Tristan Nano)

Wouldn’t you rather be flying?

• Tax and financial planning • Rapid refunds (electronic filing) • Personal, corporate and estate tax

A

Owner Evelyn J. Andrews-Greene, CA Sustaining Member of VFC since 1983

386-4466 #202-31 Bastion Square Victoria BC V8W 1J1

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VIEW…AND AIR PLA ITH A W NE M ST O O O R

Open 8am 4pm daily

O!

in the Victoria Flying Club

Join us for breakfast or lunch…inside & patio seating 101-1852 Canso Rd

250.655.9395

John Swallow, editor of the other VFC (Vernon Flying Club) newsletter, has graciously given me permission me to publish the following aviation mystery story written by himself.

It's fun, easy-reading, intriguiging and I invite your solutions (patricianeditor@shaw.ca). The truth will be revealed in the August Pat. Put your thinking caps on! We will have more of John's crafty stories in the future. -Ed

Cr a s h Recently appointed as Chief Pilot for Hirondelle Airlines, Johnnie Martin was relaxing at home on a Saturday afternoon when he got a call from Dispatcher Charlie Rosser that their Cessna 185 was about an hour overdue. “Who’s the pilot?” Johnnie inquired.

“Peacock Prescott,” replied Dispatcher Charlie.

“Peacock’s” real name was William Peter Prescott, but shortly after joining the company, his fellow pilots started calling him “Peacock” because of his tendency to show off. Although never overtly breaking regulations, he was known to “push the envelope” a little.

In answer to Johnnie’s question about routing, Dispatcher Rossiter indicated that Peacock Prescott had departed some five hours previously on a simple customer delivery/reprovision trip to two camps about a hundred and fifty miles away. Martin advised Rosser to continue with procedures outlined in the Company Operations Manual regarding overdue aircraft and that he, Martin, was heading to the airport. Before leaving, he got hold of the company helicopter pilot and told him to stand by at the airport.

Upon arrival at the company hangar, the dispatcher indicated that the aircraft had been spotted by a passing corporate aircraft about seventy-five miles to the east; contact had been made and it was ascertained that Peacock was uninjured.

By now, the helicopter and the pilot were ready to go: rounding up the Chief of Maintenance, Martin headed out to the downed aircraft. The trip should take no longer than forty minutes.

Upon arrival at the scene, they were met by

Landing!

Peacock Prescott, and led over to a somewhat worsefor-wear Cessna 185, tail-up in the air, supported by the two wheels and the nose, about two hundred feet from a tree line. There didn’t seem to be much real damage to the aircraft other than the propeller that was exhibiting a nice three-quarter forward curl to the blades. The Chief Engineer opined that an engine change and a new prop would have the aircraft back in the air within the week.

In explaining what happened, Prescott indicated that after dropping off his passengers and the provisions at the two camps, he was on his way back at 4500 feet when the engine started misfiring and after about thirty seconds, it quit. Attempts to restart were futile, so the engine was secured and a forced landing carried out. Peacock was a little chagrined to admit that although the field was more than adequate, he had misjudged and carried a bit too much speed on final resulting in a long landing. In the desperate attempt to get the aircraft stopped before running out of room, he applied too much brake causing the aircraft to nose over at the last minute. “But”, said Peacock with a smile; “Any landing you can walk away from is a good landing and if you can reuse the aircraft, it’s a great landing. Right?”

During his phone call shortly after to the company owner and president, Chief Pilot Johnnie Martin indicated that the aircraft was found, that there were no injuries, and that the aircraft was recoverable and repairable. “However,” he informed his boss, “I think we should get together when I get back… I think there’s more to this accident than meets the eye”.

What was it that has raised the suspicions of Chief Pilot Martin?

by John Swallow

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ACCELERATED PRIVATE PILOT Groundschool July 07 – 25, 2008 Time: 0800 - 1100

DATE

TOPIC

INSTRUCTOR

July 07

Canadian Aviation Regulations

Koide

July 08

Theory of Flight and Licensing

Ian Watt

July 09

Theory of Flight and Aerodynamics

Ian Watt

July 10

Airframes and Engines

M. Chow

July 11

Systems & Flight Instruments

M. Chow

July14

Flight Operations

Brad Fraser

July15

Navigation

J. Lightheart

July 16

Navigation

J. Lightheart

July17

Navigation

J. Lightheart

July18

Radio and Electronic Theory

Mike Chow

July 21

Human Factors and PDM

Brad Fraser

July22

Meteorology

Simon Dennis

July23

Meteorology

Simon Dennis

July 24

Meteorology

Simon Dennis

July 25

Meteorology

Simon Dennis

L indair Ser vices Ltd Specializing in Cessna, Piper, Beaver float and wheel equipped aircraft.

A high quality Service Department that is ready to complete any inspection or repair requirement you may have.

5180 Airport Road South, Richmomd, BC Tel: 1-800-663-5829 Fax: 1-800-667-5643

www.lindairservices.com 14

PRIVATE PILOT Groundschool Classes held Monday & Wednesday, 1900-2200

July

August

Sept

Achievements First Solo Raj Negi Martin Pepper Charles Schell Sanu Krishnan Hernan Pizarro

DATE

TOPIC

INSTRUCTOR

14

Theory of Flight & Licensing Requirements

Ian Watt

16

Aerodynamics

Ian Watt

21

Airframes and Engines

Mike Chow

Daniel Slade Aneil Mashiana

23

Systems & Flight Instruments

Mike Chow

PPL Written Test

28

CARS

Yasuhiro Koide

Ian Malcolm Daniel Slade

30

CARS

Yasuhiro Koide

CPL Written

06

Meteorology

Bryon Thompson

11

Meteorology

Bryon Thompson

13

Meteorology

Bryon Thompson

CPL Flight Test

18

Meteorology

Bryon Thompson

Geoff Steeves

20

Meteorology

Bryon Thompson

Class IV Instructor

25

Human Factors & PDM

Brad Fraser

27

Flight Operations

Brad Fraser

03

Flight Operations

Brad Fraser

08

Navigation

J. Lightheart

10

Navigation

J. Lightheart

15

Navigation

J. Lightheart

17

Radio and Electronic Theory

Mike Chow

22

Review (Tower Tour/Written Seminar)

John MacConnachie

24

Review

Brad Fraser

NOTE: There will be no Groundschool on Stat Holidays.

PPL Flight Test

Manish Jha Chris Ware Sean Brenton Arvind Kumar

Simon Dennis

Welcome New Members!

Tracey Knight Frank Van Gyn Bradley Engbrecht Nolan Labach David Hosick Ian French Nicholas Rouffiange Gary Jipp Gavin Johnstone James Jarvis Jordan Ofiesh Paul Ethier Victoria Gort

PART TIME dispatchers and line crew now Aviation experience an asset.

Apply at Reception at VFC with resume.

needed.

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Call DISPATCH 656-2833 for details.

A number of outside tie-down spaces are now available.

A P AV E F E W D AVA I S P A C E S LABL E!

August 8, 9 & 10, 2008

DATE

PLACE

EVENT

CONTACT

July 9 – 13

Arlington, WA

North West Chapter EAA Fly-in Arlington Airport

visit: www.nweaa.org

July 13

Texada Island, BC

Texada Annual Fly – in 09:00 hrs to 16:30 hrs

Bob Timms 604-486-0274 or bobtimms@onelink.ca

July 19

Nimpo Lake, BC

BC Floatplane AGM COPA Flight 72 and Nimpo Lake Social, and Pancake Breakfast. Guests welcome.

Nimpo Lake Resort 250-742-3239 logan@xplornet.com

July 19

Nelson, BC

Nelson Flightfest

July 19,20

McChord AFB, WA

McChord Air Expo

www.mcchordairexpo.com

July 25

Concrete, Wa

Annual Old-Fashioned Fly-in at 3W5, Concrete Municipal Airport.

360-853-7114

Aug 6

Penticton, BC

Penticton Air Show – Snowbirds performance

Aug 8, 9, 10

Abbotsford, BC

Abbotsford Air Show

Aug 15, 16, 17 McMinnville, OR.

Antique Airplane Club Fly-In

Sept 13

Port Alberni, BC

Alberni Valley Flying Club’s 60th Anniversary Open House & Fly-in

Sept 20, 21

Victoria, BC

Victoria Air Show – Snowbirds performance

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Darren Hansen