Congratulations to:
Parker Davis for passing his private pilot checkride and
Chris Martell and
Lucas Seastrom for winning the monthly drawing of a month's dues or an hour of instruction.
Learn to fly Day - May 15, 2010
Saturday, May 15 will be Learn to fly day in the U.S. Executive Flyers will be giving seminars in the conference room at 10 and 3 and will have static aircraft displays in front of the terminal. If you have a friend that has expressed interest in learning to fly, bring him or her with you to visit the airport on the 15th. You can also recommend that they go to
http://www.learntofly.com for more information. Even if you don't have someone to bring with you, please stop by the airport that day, pick up an "I'm a pilot, ask me" name tag at the office and chat with the people there and tell them first hand what it's like to be a pilot, why you enjoy it and what you did to get started. Free tickets for the 10 and 3 seminars are available on the
home page of Executive Flyers.. The rest of the day doesn't require any pre-registration.
Mustang airport threatened
An email from a Mustang airport supporter:
"You may be aware that the Nature Conservancy has appealed the approval of
Mustang Airfield to the Board of Supervisors.
The hearing date is set for sometime in July. We'll keep you posted.
I've attached a list of "talking points" which any of the pilots can use in
making a supportive comment to the Board. They only need to choose one
comment.
If any pilots will send an email or make a phone call to the Supervisors (see list below) and say they support Mustang, it will be appreciated. All phone calls and emails are important. Showing up for the hearing is even better.
Roger Dickenson: District 1 - (916) 874-5485 dickinsonr@saccounty.net
Jimmie R. Yee: District 2 - (916) 874-5481 jyee@saccounty.net
Susan Peters: District 3 - (916) 874-5491 susanpeters@saccounty.net
Roberta MacGlashan: District 4 - (916) 874-5491 macglashanr@saccounty.net
Don Nottoli: District 5 - (916)874-5465 nottolid@saccounty.net"
You can email Richard Goni at rgoni27(at)yahoo.com for a list of talking points if you contact your supervisor. (Use the @ sign where I put (at) in his email.)
One of two WAAS satellites out of service
According to an article in the AOPA newsletter, one of the two WAAS satellites is not working and will not be replaced until the end of the year. Those of you instrument rated pilots flying GPS equipment that is WAAS capable should be aware that LPV approaches may not be available at all times and should always plan to fly to the LNAV (higher) minimums.
New taxi instructions effective June 30, 2010.
As of June 30th, you will no longer be cleared across inactive runways when told to taxi to the active runway. You will be given hold instructions at the first runway you come to and you will have to wait for a clearance across that runway to proceed. You would then be cleared to hold at the next runway (if there is one before the active runway) and then cleared across it to continue on. More in the June newsletter as things are more clearly explained.
Buying fuel for the aircraft
The price of a gallon of fuel has been rising again and is higher at Executive Airport than at other nearby fields. If you are practicing at or near another field where the price is lower, please fuel the plane there. Bring the gas receipt back with you and we'll credit your flight for the amount you spent on gas. It isn't worth it to fly to another field just to get fuel, but if you are there anyway, do fuel up to whatever amount you can safely (weight and balance!) carry. Hopefully, that will encourage the fuel vendor here on the field to be a little more competitive with their prices.
Aviation Safety
One of the best links for safety information, on-line courses, the new WINGS program and other pilot information is The FAASTeam's
http://faasafety.gov. You should log on so that you can get updates on safety programs in your area. If you have any questions about the page, please drop Ed an email and he'll check it out for you.
Light sport aircraft
If you have a chance to fly a light sport aircraft, you'll have a ball. However, these light aircraft have very little inertia and tend to lose airspeed much faster than a Cessna 172. Please be sure to get several hours of instruction in the plane before you fly it solo, so that you are aware of its characteristics. Several VERY EXPERIENCED pilots that I know have recommended this training after they flew a light sport for the first time.
Two planes temporarily off line - update
N1920F is back on the flight line and flying well! The engine work on N44996 has been delayed at the engine shop, but hopefully will be back in the plane soon. We'll keep you posted.
Airport taxiway diagrams
To avoid runway incursions, you should have a taxiway diagram of
any airport that you fly to with which you are not familiar. Use
the URL for the
FAA runway diagrams to find it. The
actual URL is http://www.faa.gov/airports/runway_safety/diagrams/
if the blue click area doesn't work.
30th year in business party
Saturday, September 11th from 5pm to 9pm will be the date of the 30th year in business party for Executive Flyers. It will be in a hangar at Sacramento Executive Airport and there will be food (for sure), light entertainment (probably) and a good time for all (definitely). More details to follow as we get closer the party.
