VA Vol 27 No 4 April 1999 - Members Only

April is here, and almost everyone has gotten out their
dust rags and polish to get their birds up to speed and
ready for the flying season.
I don't want to sound like a broken record, but permit
me to once again say, "Let's be careful out there!"
We need to be very cautious at all times, but the during
the flight hours right after a long layoff, you should take
extra care. It seems that the ground is involved with about
95% of the accident reports I see. You know the old saying,
"It isn ' t the speed that kills, but it is the sudden stop at
the end." Keep thinking about it - you will live longer.
There will be a great many of you at Sun 'n Fun this
year, and so will I. It's remarkable how this fly-in has
grown over the past two and a half decades to become an
internationally recognized gathering ofaviation individuals.
It is a direct result of the dedication and great leadership of
the management team, Officers, Directors, and Volunteers,
past and present, that have made this success possible.
I have heard some people talk about the location of a
fly-in from time to time. In my humble opinion, that is of
a lesser concern, except from a weather standpoint. We
can use our aircraft to go to almost any locality with ease.
Think about it - who would have ever thought that a
town in mid-eastern Wisconsin would be visited by so
many, just to look at an airplane or two? Congratulations
to the Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In on your 25th anniversary.
May you continue to be successful in the years to come!
Here are some of the things you can look forward to
during your visit at the 25th Sun 'n Fun EAA Fly-In at
Lakeland, FL:
• The Seaplane Splash-In on Thursday, not Friday as in
years past.
• 451 Antique, Classic and Contemporary aircraft
parked in the Vintage Aircraft area last year - will
yours be one of them this year?
• Check the forums schedule, too - how about Henry
Holden's "The Fabulous Ford Trimotor" (Sunday, I
p.m., Tent 8) or Robert Czego's "Bellanca-Champion
Club" Forum (Sunday at 11 a.m ., Tent 7). There's
plenty more to take in. Check your program when you
arrive and register.
Be sure and visit with the folks at the Vintage Aircraft
Headquarters building, located in the northeast corner of
the Vintage Aircraft area. This building, complete with a
ST AIGHT & LEVEL
by ESPIE "BUTCH" JOYCE
PRESIDENT, VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION
great front porch, is hosted by Chapter I of the Vintage
Aircraft Association. During the balance of the year this
building is home base for the Chapter. During the fly-in
you can relax there, drink some lemonade or iced tea and
munch on some popcorn. It's also the place to go to register
your aircraft. These folks also are a great source for
information about almost anything you need to know
about the fly-in. Just writing about Sun 'n Fun gets me
more excited about going to the fly-in for the week! I hope
to see you there as well.
It was with great interest that I read this past month ' s
article written by Buck. I can relate to his experience with
a computer, but don't count him out because it won't be a
year before he will be putting floats on his one-eyed box!
Hang in there, Buck.
After Sun ' n Fun almost everyone will be enjoying
quite a few local fly-ins. Some of the type clubs will also
be holding their fly-ins at different locations in different
areas of the U. S. You can check the dates for many of
these activities by reviewing the Calendar section of
your Vintage Airplane.
Joe Dickey, Vintage Aircraft Association Director and
Type Club Chairman for your area, has written to inform
me that he is stepping down as a Director and also is giving
up the Chairmanship of the Type Club Headquarters.
If Joe was there to help you, you'll also recall that his
wife, Julia, was right there too. They make a powerful
team and I never had to worry about any project they
agreed to complete! It would be completed on time and
with a high quality level. The type club headquarters located
just to the south of the V AA Red Barn on the EAA
AirVenture grounds is one of the more important areas of
service to your membership that we offer, and they helped
bring it up to the next level of participation and organization.
On behalf of the membership and the Officers,
Directors, and Advisors of the VAA, I'd like to say:
"Joe and Julia, thank you for giving your time and talents
to be of service to the membership. You have been a great
help to me personally, and I thank you for that time and
friendship. Best wishes in your future endeavors!"
Ask your friends to join up with the Vintage Airplane
Association. Let's all pull in the same direction for the
good of aviation. Remember we are better together. Join
us and have it all! .......