December 2003 - American Bonanza Society

of dJ~!llirict in aviation and we 

qwlllfui!d to provide ADS members a little 

their Individual Insurance requirements. 

The ABS Program is one of the most comprehensive 

insurance programs available in the industry today and 

features expanded coverages, access to a variety of 

underwriters and competitive rates. The professional 

Falcon staff is dedicated to serving ABS members with an 

insurance program that is setting the standard for the 

industry. Call today for same day quotes and coverage. 

I 

Falcon Insurance Agency is the Insurance Progrnm Manager for the 

ABS INSURANCE PROGRAM 

1-800-259-4ABS (4227) 

www.faJconinsurance.com 

Fax: 830-792-1144 

P.O. Box 291388· Kerrville, Texas 78029

ICT 

-Or How the Bonanza Warped M~ ~ife 

IhiS is a different kind of article for 

the Beechcraft of the month. It's the 

story of a Bonanza that was rescued, 

just barely, from being parted 

out. It is also a warning, dear reader. 

of what could happen to you if you 

should ever come across a derelict 

Bonanza at a really. really good price. 

Let's go back to the beginning. 

In 1957. having flown Skyraiders 

in the Korean War, instructing in SNJs, 

then continuing in the reserves in 

Corsairs and F9Fs and with a year to go 

at MlT. I took a summer job flying 

charter for a fellow on Martha's 

Vineyard who had a 035. I liked the 

way it handled and it made the real 

estate go by aI a familiar rate-with less 

noise and smoke. It was a great summer 

job and left me with a lasting impression 

of a fine airplane. 

Fast forward almost 40 years. It's 

early on a Sunday morning and. having 

fini shed the funnies, I turned to the 

c1assifieds: "Airplanes for Sale [hardly 

ever anything there anymore, but it's an 

old habit]: 1953035 completely disassembled, 

whole or parts ..." 

Two lines and that's it. Egad, 

Tom lewis Wlth N341 DB 

sounds like a Bonanza. So I call. Yes it 

is! Another 035, yet I And I' m on my 

way over there to check it out. 

My first look at the airplane was a 

bit surreal: The fu selage sat on a 

makeshift dolly in a one-car garage, the 

interior gutted. Most of the wiring had 

been removed with a pair of dikes and 

thrown away! The windshield had been 

removed as was most of the instrument 

panel structure. The engine was still 

installed but with the accessories 

removed and, mysteriously, one prop 

blade was removed. (The guy must have 

been trying to figure out how to get the 

prop off, but that leads to a whole 

'nother story ... ) The wings were leaning 

against the wall outside in the carport. 

You get the picture. It was all there, 

had only superficial damage, and the 

only corrosion was on the mag skins. It 

had been left in Nevada for some years: 

the present owner bought it, flew it 

home, took it apart- and then decided 

to take on another hobby. 

Well, here I was at the far end of 

my career presented with a superb 

retirement project! The price was right 

(although it could have been free and I'd 

still be in the hole today) and [ got it. 

And just in time, too, because the guy 

was about to sell it to a salvage yard to 

be parted out. 

So began another 

adventure in my life. 

rst, [ had to figure out what to do 

with the load of airplane parts now 

outside my two-car garage/shop. A 

plan, that's what I need! 

Because of the long-term prospect. 

it wouldn't do to pay rent for more 

hangar space. So I had to design some 

GSE (ground-support equipment) to be 

able 10 move fuselage or wings in and 

out of my shop without damaging them. 

That worked out well. Quite a few 

things. such as work in the wheel wells 

or in the cabin, were much easier to do 

than on a fully assembled aircraft. 

Once started. the project became 

one of those, "It's not the destination, 

but the journey" kind of things. You 

learn a little bit more, you do a little bit 

more, you shell out more than a little 

bit, and soon you can't SlOp. Like an 

addiction-and you get in deeper and 

deeper. 

[ wanted to do everything myself. 

for the learning experience, and I did: 

stru cture. rigging. wiring, plumbing, 

engine overhaul, avionics installation, 

the whole A&P school syllabus and the 

interior, too. 

cOlllilll/ed 011 page 8162 

ABS December 2003 

 

Page 8153

1\ r) ("" 

J r)?j 

MAGAZINE 

Pultli ~bed by AMERICA:" !JO'WANZA SOCIETY 

Orpnl/.td J~uary 1%1 

~~ 

316-945-1700 

ASS EXECUTIVE DlRECfOR 

EDITOR IN CHI EF 

Nanc)' Johnson 

PUBUCATrON OFACE 

1922 Midfield Road 

P.O. BOlt 12888 

Wichita. KS 67277 

316-945· 1700 

Fax 316-945- 1710 

ASS ~ebsite: 

hup:llww\\ ,bonanza.org 

ASS e-maH: bonanza2@bonanza.-9588 

PRL'ITER 

Village Pre\. 

Page 8154 

DEPARTMENTS 

8155 PRESIDENT'S COMMENTS 8184 AVIONICS AD SECTION 

by Jack Haslings by Jim Hughes 8178A 

8156 TECH TIPS 8191 GENERATIONS 

by Neil Poban z. ami A rk)1 Foulk 

8192 INSURANCE 8182 

BPPP SCHEDULE 

8180 TECH NOTES by JO/III Allell, Falcoll Insurance 

WATCH FOR THE 

8170 ABS MEDICAL PANEL 

8193 FORUM 

2004 SERVICE 

by Charles Da\';dson. M.D. 8197 REGIONAL NEWS CLINIC SCHEDULE 

IN AN UPCOMING 

8179 CURRENTS 8199 CALENDAR 

ISSUE. 

by Lew Gage 

The opinions expressed in this magazine are the sole opinions of the authors ond do not constitute on endorsement 

of any products or services by the American Bonanza Society, its employees or members of its board 01 directors. 

term exp ires 

s.crelary 

JAMES E. SOK. (ANa 1) 2004 

9 Spruce Dr" PO Box 1895. Lakeville, CT 06039 

phone 232-484-6696. fax: B60435-6114 

e-mail 

STEVEN W, OXMAN (Area 2) 

385 Westbury Dr .. Rive, MD 21140 

phone: 41()..956-308Q. ta x: 410-956-6956 

e-mail 

2004 

CHARW S. DAVIDSON, M.D, (ANa 3) 2006 

1605 Wood Duck Ln ., Kill Devif Hills, NC 27948 

phone: 252-441-5698. tax: 252-441-5853 

&moil 

 

term expires 

IIU SlOVAU (A .... 6) 2006 

32675 Woad~de Dr .• Evergreen. CO 80439 

phone: 3OJ.lI10-1350, fox: 303-070-338S 

e-mail

, 

President's Comments 

BY JACK HASTINGS 

~ear passes quickly for me now, and we have 

much to do. [ am very happy that one of our 

ew directors. Charles Davidson, M.D., has 

offered his full support to our medical program, 

which has grown and prospered. 

Charles has kindly agreed to chai r the medical 

committee (I will work for him now). and he 

will oversee the medical column. He has already 

written a letter to ABS members who are aviation 

medical examiners (AMEs) soliciting their 

support in answering member questions and 

helping with problem medical certification. The 

number of medical requests is growing, and we 

need to involve willing ABS/ AMEs in the timely 

handling of requests. Welcome aboard, 

Charles. I also welcome new directors An Brock 

and Bill Stovall. 

To guide my priorities as president, I 

reviewed our most recent member survey of several 

years ago. The top two reasons for being an 

ABS member were the magazine and technical 

support. and they were closely ranked. BPPP and 

the Service Clinics were third and fourth, also 

closely ranked to each other (and not far below 

magazine and technical in importance). The convention 

ranked eighth. 

ABS MAGAZINE 

We always work hard on improving the 

magazine, and we will continue to do so. There 

are renewed efforts to expand the pool of talented 

authors to provide articles of substance and 

value to the members. 

TECHNICAL SUPPORT 

In the technical arena, we have a new 

Manager of Technical Services, Tom Turner. I 

am very happy to have Tom on board, not only to 

ThIS magazine exists ta exchange information between and omong the 

members. so please keep your contributions coming. 

The February ABS Magazine will focus on the classy twin. the Trovel Air. 

Articles that relate to some facet of the Travel Air are needed by January 1. 

tn March we witl be looking for tips and gadgets for flying your airplane 

' in the system ." These need to be received before February 1. 

The complete Editorial Cal-endar was printed In the November Issue. 

page 8110. 

shepherd the technical program. but to work on 

implementing the goals of the very successful 

technical summit held last June. Additionally, as 

many of you know, Tom has broad experience in 

education. This background will be extremely 

helpful in the development and integration of all 

education and training programs for members. 

BPPP & SERVICE CLINICS 

Numbers three and four in the survey were 

the Beechcraft Pilot Proficiency Program and 

our Service Clinics, indicating that our members 

desire programs that will increase their aeronautical 

knowledge and knowledge of their aircraft. 

Members want education in these areas, and we 

will work hard to provide that education. 

CONVENTION 

Number eight in the survey (fOllowing 

insurance programs and a couple of other items), 

was the convention-and I hope to see that 

change. We are revamping the format of the seminars 

in the form of educational tracks, from 

which a member can choose. These tracks may 

include broad areas such as Flight Operations 

and Training, Technical and Maintenance, 

Aircraft Systems. Vendor Specific Topics and 

other items (such as workings of the Society, 

etc.). 

I feel the educational tracks, by providing a 

learning opportunity unattainable in one "package" 

elsewhere should increase the value of the 

convention and attract greater attendance. The 

social value of the convention should increase as 

well. I would like to see the convention in the top 

five benefits of ABS membership on the next 

survey. 

During my watch I will work hard on these 

priorities that you. the members, have indicated 

as reasons for belonging to this organization. 

Education seems to be the common thread that 

binds them. 

Until next month ... Jack 

Send your contributions to 

Nancy Johnson. ABS Magazme. 

PO. 12888. Wichita. KS 67277; 

bonanza l@bononzo.org; fox' 

945·1710 

More detol ed Info on how to 

submit IS olso avmlable otthese 

numbers 

"During my watch, 

I will work hard on 

the priorities that 

our members 

have indicated 

are their reasons 

for belonging to 

ABS. Education 

seems to be the 

common thread 

that binds them .• 

- Jack Hastings 

I>_-\ST PRHII>E:!'

582188 

Rod l.ancaster 

Bakersfield. California 

Q: Where can I find Beech Service Bulletin 

2188, or do you have a copy I can look at? 

A: SB 2188 refers to kit 35-4017-1. a multipage 

set of drawings, which is available from 

ABS by mail. 

Elevator cracks 

Allen Johnson 

Bullhead City, Arizona 

Q: My IA just informed me that the small 

crack in the right elevator is not repairable. Is 

there a source that stocks this item? My 

mechanic said it would be advisable to replace 

both elevators. Is that a good recommendation? 

If there is not a source for a replacement elevator, 

is there a shop around Arizona, California 

or Nevada that cou ld take a second look to see if 

a repair is possible. 

A: Repairs are not usually recommended 

depending on the location on the control. There 

are shops that reskin your elevator such as Biggs 

(405-258-2965), Princeton (763-389-2 134) and 

Stebbins (800-852-8155). You could try CruiseAir 

(760-789-8020) in Ramona, California. 

Wing spar reinforcement 

Morray Ross 

Doyton. Ohio 

Q: [s there a need to install some sort of 

"main spar support" in an A36. Do the wing bolts 

need to be replaced at some specified time? 

A: The spar reinforcement is only required if 

you find cracks as the AD note required. The 

wino bolt check is not required by AD, and we 

o 

believe Beech is overly conservative on the interval, 

but if they have never been done, it would be 

good to do it to detect possible corrosion. 

Kalamazoo Aircraft at 269-381-0780 is a good 

source in your area for this work. 

Wing-root vents 

Jeff Jones 

Plano. Texas 

Q: My lower front cockpit vents provide little 

(if any) forced outside air during flight. I have 

checked the vent valve position, and they are full 

open in the cabin. The upper, overhead eyeball 

vents seem to work fine. I had my [A do an 

 

extensive examination during the May an nu al 

inspection, but he could not find any blockage or 

problem. Any idea why I can't get the lower front 

air vents to deliver forced air? 

A: The front side vents (leading edge 

screened inlet) don't have a duct. They let the air 

into a portion of the wi ng structure which acts as 

plenum. If there are leaks such as at the wing 

rOOt or bulkheads, then there will be little flow 

out the vent. Just taping with duct tape can help. 

Flared wing tips 

Doniel Drew 

Buffalo, New York 

Q: I want to put the modem flared wing tips on 

my airplane. [ see a lot of ABS members advertising 

wingtips they have removed for tip tank installation. 

What models would fit my Bonanza? 

A: All of the later style tips fit. The question 

becomes approval method and compatibility of 

any strobes installed in the tip and the nut plate 

locations. Strobes are not all the same, and a field 

approval might be required. There are STCs for 

what is loosely called M style tips. Before you 

purchase, check with your IA. 

Gear doors droop 

John R. Owings 

Long Grove, Illinois 

Q: One of my inner gear doors does not close 

all the way. [ notice the droop when I preflight 

the plane. It is only short of closing completely 

by less than half an inch, but I am still concerned. 

The plane is 3 112 years old with about 

500 hours. Any advice? 

A: This usually is a sign of a weak gear motor 

or a low voltage situation. Please do not let 

someone start rerigging your gear until you 

check the operating voitage. the extension arms 

for bending or a weak motor. The gear should 

never get out of rig. It's usually something bent, 

broken or weak when people want to adjust it. 

Landing gear system 

Cart Raymond 

Argyle. Texas 

Q: [ have a 1966 V35 SIN 8274. Gear-down 

indications are one green light for both main 

gear and a manual down-lock indicator near the 

floor. Is there a modification available to install a 

three-light indication system similar to the one 

installed on the new A36? 

ABS December 2003

A: There was an STC for a threelight 

aftermarket. The STC owner has 

chosen not to market it. I suggest mirrors 

from Performance Aero (800-200-3141 ). 

Blinking alternator light 

Robert Pearce 

Redlands, California 

Q: 1 appreciated the August publication 

of my question on the alternator 

light blinking continuously, but here's 

another answer. Upon the overhaul of 

the alternator (850 hrs), the A&P/IA 

found a loose terminal co nnection on 

one of the field wires. This was cleaned 

and recrimped. No problems since. 

This was a continuing problem 

since engine overhaul and a factory 

alternator replacement. Just some info 

for you. Thanks for the great answers 

you publish. 

A: We've seen a lot of problems 

from corroded crimps lately. Thanks for 

the feedback. 

Bendix ignition switch 

replacement 

Keith Grfffith 

Niwot. Colorado 

Q: Regarding AD 76-7- 12 for Bendix 

ignition switches: For the first time, one of 

my switches failed the simple test outlined 

in this AD. Do you recommend repairing 

or replacement. and do you know of a 

reasonably priced source for new switches? 

If new switches are installed, does that 

elinninate the AD for good? The part 

number is 10-357230-1. This is the 

"twist-to-start" type. not keyed. 

A: Ai rcraft Spruce & Specialty 

(877-477-7823) has the Bendix switches. 

The AD note wi ll still apply to some 

part numbers. 

Turn coordinator 

Ben Crebbs 

Tucson. Arizona 

Q: Where can I obtain a good tum 

coordinator wi th the Beechcraft logo for 

a reasonable price? Mine is getting really 

noisy. I've been quoted S 1,000 to 

replace it. 


A: The requirement for the logo is 

possibly the reason for part of the price. 

Try Air Capital Instruments (316-942- 

8668). Kelly Instruments (800-835-1054) 

or Century Instruments (800-783-0116). 

Valve washers, 

directional gyro 

Richard Osborn 

Bakersfield, California 

Q: I recently read about a source for 

the fuel strainer valve washers, but now 

1 can't find the issue with that information. 

Could you send it to me? Also, do 

you know of a directional gyro that will 

replace the old drum type for the B-4 

autopilot and still give output to the 

autopilot? 

A: The seals can be purchased by 

FBOs from Trimcraft (800-558-9405). 1 

don't know of a DG of the type you are 

looking for, but you mi ght call 

Autopilot Central (9 18-836-64 18). 

Avionics panel 

Ron Reese 

Bal/win. Missouri 

Q: I have a '77 A36 and recently had 

an extensive avionics replacement that 

involved the removal of the old King 

RNAV. The plastic vertical strip just to 

the left of the avionics stack that has the 

avionics master, VOR on/off and #1 and 

#2 select and, on my plane, radar 

altimeter on/off also had the RNAV on 

light and a ci rcuit breaker that has now 

been moved to another breaker subpanel. 

The vertical strip is now outdated 

and 1 would like to have it redone. Who 

would you recommend? 

A: Most avionics shops have an 

engraver and stock of plastic to layout 

what you need. I'm surprised they didn't 

include that. 

Panel hole cover 

Robert Loss, Jr. 

Rochester. New York 

Q: 1 had a new avionics system 

installed in a 1988 A36. With the equipment 

removed from the right-hand 

panel, a "cover" of aluminum was 

 

placed over the holes, which is not cosmeticall 

y acceptable. Can the whole 

area be covered or the panel replaced? 

A: The whole area could be covered 

with wood grai n from 3M or a plastic of 

your choice. Air Mod (5 13-732-6688) 

or any of the bigger avionics shops 

should be capable. 

STCs for 10-470 

Jeff Wirs 

Coral Springs, Florida 

Q: I'm thinking of putting an 10-470 

into my '54 E35. Can you give me a 

selection of STC uppliers? I intend to 

do the work myself, rather than take the 

bird to them . Also, have you 

heardlseenlhave 337s or log entry to 

convert the old panel and switches to a 

"new" style (rather than an STC)? 

A: D'Shannon (800-296-76 16) is the 

only one I'm sure of. Gary Hammock 

(972-875-4279) may have his own. We 

know of people who have done their own 

but recommend that you use one of the 

above sources of STC panel conversion. 

Radio noise 

Forrest Holly 

Iowa City. Iowa 

Q: I am looking for the source of 

increasi ng mag static in my Garmin 430 

Com that has been installed for about 

two years. Over the past 18 months, 

there has been a "spitting" sound when 

the com is tuned to frequencies above 

about 120.0. The spits are random, not 

regular, but lately have gotten almost 

continuous at higher frequencies. 

I do not hear the spits on my KX 

170B tuned to the same frequencies. 

The spits also di appear on left-mag 

onl y, so I know they are ignition-related. 

Finally, the spits clearly increase 

with engine rpm. 

I've squawked this a couple of 

times, including for the annual, but no 

mag anomalies were found. I do not 

know if wires were checked and plugs 

have been changed in the interim. 

Should I suspect the mag andlor the harness 

or the Garmin? 

Page 8157

A: I would suspect the harness in 

such a case. You can try installing a 

ground wire from the P-Iead shielding 

to the mag body screws. Sometimes that 

works. 

Beech electric prop 

F. W. Stevens 

Omaha, Nebraska 

Q: I am considering the purchase of 

an F35 and would like your comments 

on the pros and cons of the Beech electric 

prop. Is there an STC for the addition/conversion 

from the wobble pump 

to an electric replacement? 

A: The electric prop is a great prop. 

There is a lillie shonage of pans, which 

we are trying to fix. You need to grease 

the pitch change bearing every 250 

hours. Warren James (9 18-786-4506) 

has a fuel pump STC. 

Beech 215 prop "hunts" 

Sfeve Rochna 

Fallon. Nevada 

Q: I recently bought a Bonanza that 

has the 215 prop and I'm nOl all that 

familiar with its quirks. It works as 

expected in manual (variable pitch) and 

in auto (solid state controller installed 

early 80s) in smooth air. But here in 

northern Nevada with the thermals and 

mountain turbulence, the rpm hunts 

around quite a bit (+/- 75 rpm). Is this 

normal ? If nOl, where should I troubleshoot? 

When the pitch change system 

fails or starts to fail. what are the 

normal symptoms? 

A: First, the pitch change bearing 

should be lubricated (greased) every 

250 hours. The motor condition and 

brushes could also be the problem. 

Consult with E-series engine expert 

Lew Gage (775-826-7184). 

Corrosion proofing 

Chris Fenger 

\.t!lOna, Wisconsin 

Q '. 

I am considering relocating to 

Florida from Wisconsin and want to 

know about corrosion proofing. I'd 

appreciate your recommendation for 

rustproofing. 

A: Florida is hard on :tirplanes. It's 

hard on exteriors as well as interiors of 

cowhngs, wings and fuselage as well as 

the engine itself. Ventilated hangars 

help and so do interior coatings such as 

zinc chromate or Corrosion X (800- 

638-7361). Even if yours had zinc chromate, 

it should benefit from the 

Corrosion X treatment and a touch-up 

treatment every couple of years. 

Prepurchase inspection 

Mork Manning 

Collierville. Tennessee 

Q: I have found a V35B in the area 

around Memphis, Tennessee, and want 

to find a good A&P to do a prepurchase 

inspection. Can you recommend a shop 

in western Tennessee. northern 

Mississippi or eastern Arkansas? 

A: Try Midwest Aviation in West 

Paducah. Kentucky (270-744-8686). 

Plastic finish plate 

Regis Ramel 

Newport Rhode Island 

Q: I am missing a plastic (looks like 

burl wood) finish plate that fits on the 

front passenger side elbow rest. Do you 

know where I can Ii nd a replacement? 

A: If you can't find it at the factory or 

a salvage yard, try Select Airports (800- 

318-0010), Arrell (805-604-0439), 

Avstat (888-287-8283), White 

Industries (800-82 1-7733) or Dodson 

(800-255-0034). 

Replacement floorboards 

Clifford Schmidt 

Hiram, Georgia 

Q: I want to replace all the floorboards 

in my V35B SIN D9247. Are 

there options out there other than plywood? 

Are there composites available? 

Can you suggest a supplier? 

A: We're not aware of a supplier. 

Your mechanic can help you make them 

out of marine plywood. 

Cowl fasteners 

Daniel Houx 

Harrod, Ohio 

Q: I want to replace the fasteners for 

the engine cowl. What is the most effective 

way to go? 

A: Performance Aero (800-200- 

3141 ) has a kit to replace them in two 

different manufacturer's fasteners. 

Chafe tape 

Mark Mayer 

Winchester. Kentucky 

Q: What kind of chafe tape do you 

recommend for the edges of the engine 

cowling and where can I obtain a roll? I 

seem to be getting a 101 of rubbing of the 

engine cowl doors against the cowling 

that causes a carbon streaking emanating 

from the interior of the engine 

compartment. 

A: Aircraft Spruce & Specialty (877- 

477-7823) or Wag Aero (800-558-6868). 

Fairings source 

Jim Hughbanks 

Evergreen. Colorado 

Q: Do you know of a source for the 

fairings around the engine nacelle 

where it meets the wing? I'm talking 

about the wide plastic piece. If it makes 

any difference, the engines are the 

Colemill 10-5205. My fairings are 

buckled and wavy and some of the 

screw holes are split. 

A: Globe Fiberglass (800-899-2707) 

is an alternate source to the Beech faclOry. 

Some people have had fitting problems 

and we've discovered that not all 

the nacelles were the same. The Globe 

ones are of a better quality material. 

POH needed 

Barton Tate 

Birmingham. Alabama 

Q: I need an approved manual for an 

aircraft that has the engine performance 

charts for the -N (260 hpj engine. 

A: Many of the holders of STCs did 

nOl provide supplements to the POH. In 

those cases, the original POH is the 

Page 8158 

 


legal approved POH. You can use a 

performance/power chan out of a 1972 

G33 POH as a reference or a 1963 P35. 

Realize that your limits have probably 

not changed. 

Too low compression 

Ron Hart 

Edmond. Oklahoma 

Q: At what point should I really be 

worried about engine compressions? 

Seems like everyone is comfonable 

with numbers in the 70s, but how low 

into the 60s should I go before looking 

at topping my engine? 

A: The master orifice, which is a 

graduated leak to calibrate your tester, is 

the cutoff point. It usually will be 

around 50/80. However, even with readings 

in the 70s. if there is leakage by 

exhaust valves (hearing air out the 

exhaust). funher investigation is indicated. 

TCM 58 M84-15 explains this 

and is available at . 

Hot-running cylinder 

Joseph Weinberg 

Moorestown, New Jersey 

Q: I have an A36 with an 10-550-8 

with about 700-plus hours on the 

airframe and engine. The plane is 

equipped with an EDM-700 engi ne 

analyzer. I have noticed that on climbout, 

on occasion, my #3 cylinder reads as 

high as 463 on the CHTs. That is with the 

mixture at full rich. The other cylinders 

are not reading over 400. The high reading 

lasts until after leveling off in cruise. 

I n a recent response to another letter, 

I noticed you said that any reading in 

excess of 400 on the CHTs is cause for 

concern. What should I be doing? What 

is the problem? How serious is this? 

A: Make sure your injector nozzle is 

clean and has a good spray pattern on 

the #3 cylinder. You also could ensure 

there is no intake leak on that cyl inder. 

Also check bailles on that cylinder. A 

momentary 463 degrees may not have 

been high enough to hun anything, but a 

463 indication needs to be investigated. 

Fuel flow indicator 

Fred Parkinson 

Knoxville, Tennessee 

Q: My fuel flow indicator behaves 

erratica ll y. often indicating a much 

lower number than actual. The engine 

seems to perform normally. 

A: There could be ai r in the line or a 

sticky gauge. Tee in a master gauge like 

on the TCM S8 SID 97-3A test and you 

can compare readings. Kelly Instruments 

(800-835-1054) or Century instruments 

(800-733-0116) should be 

able to repair if it's the instrument. 

EGT monitor 

John Blrk/e 

Socramento. California 

Q: I am installing an EGT monitor 

in my F35 with E225 and pressure carbo 

To program the monitor. I need the EGT 

low and high temperature limits for this 

engine. I could not find this info on the 

Type Data Sheet. 

Most people tell me to install the 

six-probe EGT monitor; some recommend 

a six-prObe CHT monitor instead. 

What do you recommend? 

A: The six -cy linder installation 

provides you with much more information. 

A single probe with a pressure carb 

might mislead you as to what your other 

cylinders are doing or, if in stalled 

downstream, only give you an average. 

Without a six-cylinder installation, you 

would not want to try lean-of-peak 

operation. The low EGT can be an arbitrary 

number, and I don't believe it is 

needed. The high EGT would be 1500 

near the cylinder and probably should 

be et lower if downstream in the 

exhaust system. 

JPI engine analyzer 

Perin Mahler 

Grand Rapids. Michigan 

Q: l awn a 1979 58TC in which I'd 

like to install a JPI engine analyzer with 

fuel flow on the panel. Can I put this 

where the original fuel flow gauge is 

installed? 

A: You should be able to with a 337 

field approval. What you probably 

cannot get rid of is the factory-installed 

TiT temperature gauge. 

Fadec system 

Steve Bollinger 

Chesterfield, Missouri 

Q: I've been following the development 

of the Fadec engine control system 

from Teledyne Continental Motors 

since I first became aware of it during 

an A8S factory tour several years ago. It 

sounds great. but is there any actual data 

out there from members who have 

already installed the system? 

A: We have not received any information 

from member users. Members: 

Can you help out? 

MPgauge 

Ralph PeHersen 

Waldorf, Maryland 

Q: I planned on instalLing a digital 

fuel flow (JPIIShadin/El) and generic 

manifold pressure gauges in my 

airplane. I checked the STCs involved 

and they say I have to retain my original 

fuel flow gauge. In my case, that is the 

combination fuel f10wlMP gauge. 

Since the MP on this gauge reads 

low, I would like to have it overhauled. 

Can you suggest a company that can do 

this? 

A : Try Kelly Instruments (316-945- 

7171), Century (316-683-7571) or Air 

Capital Instruments (316-942-8668). 

E-225 electric 

aux fuel pump STC 

Jack Nelson 

Denton. Texas 

Q: I am trying to find an STC for an 

electric auxiliary fuel pump for my 

C35's E-225-8 engine. My idea of 

flying and pumping fuel by hand is less 

than desirable. 

A: Warren James (918-786-4506) has 

the STC. 

A8S December 2003 

 

Page 8159

Gap seals/550 Millenium 

John Vincent 

Cordova, Tennessee 

Q: Do you recommend gap seals for 

performance enhancements? If so, 

whose kit should I use? 

Also, I have 1400 hours on an 

original engine. At TBO I would like to 

put the most non-turbo horses up front, 

possibly the 550 Millenium? 

A: I had D'Shannon's gap seals on a 

C33A and really liked them. You can get 

the 550 from D'Shannon, Colemill or 

Hammock Aviation. 

Canvas cover replacement 

George E. Wilson 

Liffle Rock, Arkansas 

Q: For my 55 Baron, I need a 

replacement canvas cover for the rear of 

the wheelwell behind the inboard gear 

door. I understand it protects the flap 

actuator and some cannon plugs from 

water thrown off the wheel. I need a 

source other than Beech. 

A: Try Performance Aero (800-200- 

3141 ), Crossroads Aviation (972-239- 

0263) or Denises (321-725-9226). 

Janitrol heater 

Richard Moore 

Daytona Beach, Florida 

Q: I am installi ng a new rebuilt 

lanitrol heater d94-3el from Kelly 

Aerospace. It was not shipped with any 

aircraft-specific information. J have not 

located any installation instructions or 

diagrams for the wiring or plumbing 

regarding the installation of the new 

94e42 combustion pressure switch or 

for the new heater in my Baron. Any 

information you may have on thi s 

would be appreciated. 

A: Go to the shop and pruts manual to 

find a wiring diagram for a serial-number 

airplane new enough to show that heater 

as assigned. Then use those as supponing 

data to get a field approval. 

Reusable refrigerants? 

J.c. McKinney 

Stuart, Florida 

Q: I have a factory air conditioner 

(R-12). Are any of the substitute refrigerants 

useable in this system? 

A: They can of course be converted 

to 134. API in Memphis has a kit. I'm 

not certain of the legality of some of the 

other substitutes. 

Neil Pobanz, ABS technical consultant, is a refired 

U.s. Army civilian pilof and maintenance manager. 

Neil has been an A&P and IA for 45 years. 

Glen -Atly- Foolk wfJose business is Della Strut. has 

been an ABS assistant technical consultant since 

1986. 

VACUUM SYSTEMS 

When working on any part of the system, you need to 

ensure cleanliness. Even if the pump isn't changed and 

hasn't failed, clean out the hoses and check filters. Many 

instruments when overhauled, exhibit contamination that 

may be from previous pump failures. In-line filters are 

helpful in catching the debris carried opposite the flow by 

turbulence created by pump failures. 

HEAT DEFLECTORS 

They are only required on the rear two mounts, but are a 

good idea on all four as long as they don't rub the mount. 

FUEL CELLS 

We have heard of fuel cells being inswlled that don't have the 

baffle. We think you should have baffled cells when installing 

replacements, but must ensure that if you don't have baffles, 

have the placards and flight manual supplements. 

NEW TIEDOWN RlNGS 

Dodson (800-255-0034.) has new improved tiedown rings. 

MAN IFOLD DRA INS 

We have heard of 10-470s without manifold drain valves. 

The tech staff and Beech tech support believe they are all 

supposed to have drain valves. 

TECH NOTES 

MUFFLER HEAT STUDS 

Some cabin heat mufflers show up not having the proper 

number of heat transfer studs. 

BARON FIBERGLASS FAIR INGS 

Globe Fiberglass (8 13-644-2178) is willi ng to add components 

to their line of fairings. If you have one that's different 

(we've found some that are different from standard), 

they will try to match them. 

THROTTLE SHAFfS FOR THE GEAR HORN CAM 

Aircraft Accessories of Oklahoma (800-255-9924) has a 

jig to drill 10-520 throttle shafts for the gear horn cam. 

WINTER FLIGHT 

o Consider an alternate plan in case of failure of singlesystem 

components. Consider this possibility when 

looking at en route and destination weather. 

o Batteries may not last as long as advertised after alternator 

failure. 

o Can you handle the ice if you have to descend mid-segment? 

o 

Will the boots work on one pump? 

o Analysis of the type of ice you may encounter is also 

important. Sometimes our airplanes are not capable and 

a short wait is in order. 

--@-- 

Page 8160 ABS Decembe r 2003

Researching icing 

conditions 

BY RON ZASADZINSKI. BPPP INSTRUCTOR 

1t 

• c ....... , 1,""11 Pct."tial ( CIP) 

[ ClP !>!rlpm! ...... , $lftll*' 1 

his winter. we have even more tools than ever to create a 

mental picture of icing conditions before we Oy. Un til a few 

years ago, only two primary tools were available from Flight 

Service or DUATS: AirmetsiSigmets and Pilot Reports. These 

products are still valuable. AirmClS and Sigmets are forecasts for a 

vari ety of phenomena, including icing. 

An icing Airmet is issued if the forecast is for up-Io-moderate 

icing conditions. If there is any chance for severe conditions. a 

Sigmel is issued. For example, if the forecast was for moderateto-severe 

rime ice between 3.000 and 12.000 feet, an icing Sigrnet 

wou Id be issued rather than an Airmet. 

Pilot reports are also a critical tool, as they remain our only data 

source for actual icing conditions. There still isn't any wealher instrument 

that can measure icing. Researching pilot reports is an important 

way to verify if the Ainnet or Sigmet forecast is developing. 

Pilot reports, however, have several limitations. For instance, if 

you are flying early in the day, there may not be any because no one 

else is flying yel. Later in the day, a lack of icing pilot reports could 

mean that conditions are so bad that few pilots are flying, or that icing 

conditions have not manifested. How can you tell the difference? 

There are some very exce llent icing tools available from NOAA 

at the Aviation Digital Data Service website (hup:lladds.aviation, 

weather.noaa.gov) (Fig. I.). Navigate to their home page with your 

web browser, and click on the "Icing" tab. Once on (hal page, you 

can look at the probability of icing anywhere in the U.S. at different 

altitudes in 3.000-foot increments. 

One way to see this dala is to click on the text of the altitude you 

want to look at "3,000," "9.000,'· etc. (Fig. 2.) The more red you see, 

the higher the chance for ice in that area at that altitude. 

Note that this model does not predict the intensity of the icea 

high probability means you are very likely to get ice, but it may be 

severe, moderate or light. Check the Airmet or Sigmet for that area 

Figure 1. The -icing- page on the Aviation Digital Doto Service website. 

to verify the forecast intensity. And be sure to keep in mind thai any 

icing encounter can be more severe than forecast. 

On the same "Ici ng" page, you can get another piece of information 

by clicking on the word "bases" or the word "lOpS:' Clicking 

these text links will display a color,coded contour map of the bases 

(Fig. 3.) and lOpS (Fig. 4.) of the icing layers, respecti vely. Areas of 

white mean that no icing is forecast in that area by that model. 

These tools are updated at least once an hou r. 24 hours a day. So 

they are available even if you are checking the weather at 5 a.m. for 

an early flight. 

Using all of these tools together. you can figure out fairly quickly 

if you will be able to stay beneath the ice. go over it, around it, or 

would be better off watching it develop on the Weather Channel wi th 

a cup of coffee in your hand. 

ABS member Ron Zasadzinski instructs with the Beechcraff Pi/of Proficiency 

Program as a ground and ffight instructor and is secretory of the BPPP Board of 

Directors. He lives in Fort Collins, Colorado. where he works as a flight instructor 

and a computer consultant. Ron has 

more than 6.500 hours of flight time in 

general aviation aircraft. His website: 

. 

• II .. • 

--..... - w- ~ Ifv- 

y~ ~-- ~- 

ASS December 2003 Page 1161

"Why do it? Some say you gotta be a nut, But I like to think of it as a cap on a lifetime 

in aviation and getting involved with one of the best-designed products of the 20th 

century." -Tom Lewis 

When N341 DB was purchased, the fuselage sal ona makeshift dolly in a on~r garage, the interior gutted, the windshield gone and most of the instrument ponel 

structure and engine occesories hod been removed. 

80HRNZR OFTHE MONIH. 

conthllled from page 8153 

I wasn't alone in thi s, of course. I 

had the overview of a patient and knowledgeable 

lA, the cooperation of a thoughtful 

and professional FSDO inspector and 

many sessions of brain-picking with some 

real ex pens- not to mention a large bookshelf 

of publications. 

One should keep in mind that even 

with an A&P license, there is also an 

experience requirement for doing some 

things, and that dictates access to expens. 

There's a bit of irony here: They're 

expert enough to know not to try to make 

money on a project of this 

magnitude. Why is that? The reality is 

that older Bonanzas are woefully undervalued 

today. They are worth more as 

parts. 

While cruising a few salvage yards 

in the course of this project, it was sad 

to see several examples of thi s. As it 

worked out with me, I have far more 

dollars in this airplane than I've ever 

heard of a D35 going for-and that's 

strictly out-of-pocket costs, not including 

my time. Then why do it? Some 

might say you gotta be a nut. But I like 

to think of it as a cap on a lifetime in 

aviation and getting involved with· one 

of the best-designed products of the 

20th century. 

You know about that, don't you? 

Well, in the Smithsonian, there is a 

Bonanza with a plaque that notes how 

some prestigious institute a few years 

ago selected it as one of "The 100 best 

designs of mass· produced commercial 

products of the 20th century." That covers 

a lot of products-and only two of 

them were airplanes. The other one was 

the DC-3! 

OK. So if anyone out there finds a 

A jigsaw puule? Some of the dozens of pieces ond ports of N341 DB. 

derelict they decide to rescue, the best 

rationale for proceeding would be to 

treat it like a post-graduate project: lots 

of study, consulting and lab work. The 

out·of-pocket expense beyond what you 

cou ld sell the airplane for is your 

tuition ; the time spent is several semesters; 

and that first flight, well, the only 

way to graduate is with honors-or you 

forfeit more than the tuition. 

To undertake a project of this magnitude, 

you better be a retiree, because 

you have a lot of time (yeah, right) and 

Page 8162 


etired folks do all kinds of odd things. 

So be warned: Don' t do it for the 

money; do it only for love. 

How did it turn out? 

So far. so good. In fact, it's love 

requi ted. The first flight (in 17 years) was 

about two years ago. It flies straight; it 

flies faster than any other E22S I've ever 

flown. It's quiet and it's comfortable. It 

meets all the objectives I had for it. 

I flew it to the East Coast and back 

this year. Last year on the way to 

Tucson, I cruised it up to the base of 

Class A (I8,()()() feet) airspace. And it 

has left ti re tracks on several mountain 

airstrips in Idaho and Montana. 

STATEMENT OF WORK / EQUIPMENT LIST 

Here's a list of what took about five years 

of my post-retirement time and 30-plus items 

on 15 seporote 337s. including 17 Field 

Approvals: 

• Airtrome stripped. etch/olodine/prime with 

strontium chromole epoxy primer including 

white epoxy in wheel wells and engine camportment. 

• Installed Beech stobilizerltoil reinforcement. 

• Removed entire primary flight control system: 

rudder/nose gear steering. pitch/roil 

control. toil differential mechanism. pulleys. 

cables and bellcronks - inspected and all 

bearings relubricoted or replaced. 

• Replaced structure fram panel to firewall 

(using the some ports and attachments 

Beech still uses in current production) that 

accommodates the long-sloping windshield. 

Installed ARS instrument ponel and 

bottery box. The gloreshield is from on A36. 

is easily removable and makes access to the 

forward side of the instrument panel 

supremely easy, which was one of the main 

reasons for doing things this way. 

• LP Aeraplostics fromeless half-inch windshield 

and three-eighths-inch side windows 

installed flush with exterior skin. 

• Cobin door hinge plates and pins replaced. 

• Main fuel cells removed and refurbished. 

• Main nose strut overhauled and rebushed 

by Delta Strut. Main struts resealed. 

• MLG and flop gear boxes/motors and flop 

actuators disassembled. resealed and relubricated. 

• RuddeMJIOfS reskinned by Princeton Aviation. 

• Flops and ailerons (magnesium) replaced 

with aluminum . 

• All hoses, all wiring replaced with new. 

• Cowi-flop and NLG door hinges rebushed. 

• All reusable instruments overhauled. 

This is probably one of the more extreme "before- photos you'll ever see. 

Instrument ponel in Tom Lewis' 1953 D35 otter its restoration. 

• Overhauled engine to new limits with new 

TCM cylinders. 

• All accessories overhauled. 

• Propeller (Hartzell) refurbed and inspected. 

THE FOLLOWING WERE ALSO INSTALLED: 

• Cleveland wheels and brakes 

• Osbome tip tanks - 20 gal. each 

• Overhead vent and light panel (V35) 

• Aerox four-place oxygen system 

• AeroShield cobin blanket and engine comportment 

acoustic kits 

• Corbon-fiberlhoneycomb floor panels (half 

the weight) 

• Shoulder harnesses (frant seats) 

• A36 front seats 

• Gloreshield with valance lighting 

• Fibrelight instrumenllighting 

• Digital voltmeterlOAT gouge 

• Insight Graphic Engine Monitor 

• Westberg electric fuel pressure gouge 

• Electronics Intemotional fuel flow/quantity 

and tach gouges 

• Mid-Continent quartz clock 

• Whelen 'Comer three-point strobes 

AVIONICS INCLUDES 

• UPSAT Apollo interactive avionics stock: 

• SL15SM audio panel (connections at each 

seat) 

• MX20 mOVing mop/mUltifunction display 

• GX60 GPSlCom with approach IFR 

• SL30 Novcom wlDME upgrade 

• SL70 transponder 

• Apollo ACU and Mid-Continent CDI 

• Avionics Innovations CD/radio player 

• Artex ElT-200 

• The finish point was done before reassembly 

by Airways Aircraft Refinishing. 

ABS member Tom LewiS is a retired aeronautical 

engineer, pilot and mechanic WIth about 5. CXXJ 

hours PIC. N3410B hod 4.423 hours on If when he 

collected the parts; it now has 250 more. Future arti· 

cles have been requested from Tom with more 

detoiled information on how he went about 

reassembling on airplane that hod aff of Its pads 

and PieceS removed to become the beautiful airplane 

shown on this month 's cover. 


 

Page 8163

ev 

• 

By John M. Mij 

Poughkeepsie, 

hen I learned to fly 80 years ago 

I never met my flight instructor. That's 

right! My flight instructor wrote a book, 

away over in England during WWI, where 

he was in charge of flight instruction. He 

was Capt. Horatio Barber, RFC, DSO- a pioneer pilot before 

that war. The book came to my hands from an uncle who was 

in training when WWJ ended. He gave me several books on 

aviation, including one titled Aerobatics, a word coined by 

Capt. Barber. 

The book was used in training pilots to fly the Avro 504- 

K, the English training plane. It is still in mint condition and I 

treasure it. My uncle knew I had been enthralled by airplanes 

and flying ever since I was 4- 1/2, in 1910, when I saw Glenn 

Curuss land in a field across the road from my father's farm. 

He landed there to refuel on his famous I 52-mile flight down 

the Hudson River from Albany to New York in a primitive 

bamboo, cloth and wire flying machi ne. 

When I saw that little kite- like fl ying machi ne take off and 

fly down the river 'til out of sight, I lost interest in beconting 

a stearn locomotive engineer. Later, and older, I studied those 

books instead of such boring subjects as Latin all through high 

school, knowing that I would definitely fly. Unlike my school 

pals, I had a definite goal. 

IN THE SUMMER OF 1922 I had a 10-minute ride in a 

WWJ "Jenny" at Asbury Park, New Jersey. Then, in the spring 

of 1923, a barnstorming pilot came to Poughkeepsie, New 

York, my hometown, in an unbelievably decrepit Jenny. I was 

working at my usual summer job in a machine shop, but each 

day after work I would ride my 1920 Harley out to the meadow 

where the pilot, "Swanee" Taylor, was flying in the afternoons 

and evenings, hopping passengers on their first airplane 

rides. 

The airplane had the five-year-old original warti me fab ric 

covering that had been given coats of house paint to try to preserve 

it for another year or so. It had been standing out in the 

weather for the five years since the end of the war. The engine, 

however, was a brand new war surplus Curtiss OX-5 of 90 hp, 

with a wood propeller, which had been made in a fo rmer piano 

factory right in Poughkeepsie. 

The plane, a J -4 Jenny, commonly called a "Canuck" 

Page 8164 ABS December 2003

Swanee told me that he 

and spend the wi nter in ew York City. He could obtain another 

war surplus plane in the 

spring for far less than 

the cost of reconditioning 

this old one. He 

then said he was abandoning 

the Canuck and 

I could have it for my 

own'" 0 Bill of Sale," 

decided to hop the plane over to another field 

to leave it for the winter and gave me my second 

ai r ride, in that hop. It was dusk, and the 

hop was only about five or six minutes. He let 

me take the controls. but I violently over-controlled. 

so he took control again and landed. 

After tying the plane down with stakes 

and ropes, he told me that he could obtain 

another war surplus plane in the spring for far 

less than the cost of reconditioning this old 

one. He then said he was abandoning the 

he said. "It's yours." 

Canuck and I could have it for my own!" 0 

Bill of Sale," he said. "It's yours." (At 17, I 

didn't even know anything about Bills of Sale). In addition, he 

said that if I would recondition the plane, he would teach me 

to Ily it! What a surprise for a boy of not quite 18! 

WITH MY wiLDEST DREAM FULFILLED, I could 

hardly contain my exciteme nt at being the owner of a real airplane. 

I went home on my Harley with sense enough to keep 

quiet about it. That evening while eating a late dinner saved for 

me by my wonderful mother, the family assumed that I had 

merely been riding around on my Harley. In addition to 

Mother and Dad there were my younger sister and brother. 

1 was not keeping a diary at that time, but 1 do remember 

that it was a Sunday when 1 became the owner of my first airplane. 

Swanee took off for New York and I did not see him 

again for many months, until after I was graduated from high 

school in 1924. So I was on my own wi th no idea of what to 

do or where to start. 

The days were getting shorter as we approached the end 

because it was made in Canada. had belonged to the wellknown 

early-bi rd pioneer pilot, Ruth Law. (I met her once in 

1914 when she had let me sit in the seat of her original Wright 

biplane.) 

The "Canuck-Jenny" was actually a hybrid, with long 

upper wing installed in place of the normal shorter lower 

wings, thus it had three bays of wing struts and long lower 

ailerons. With all of that extra wing area, it had low speed 

landings and takeoffs. 

Swanee was a native of Texas and had learned to fly in the 

war but too late for combat. He was a rather wildish guy. mainly 

interested in the local speakeasies, friendl y when sober, belligerent 

when drunk. But I admired him for his fl ying and he 

was quite impressed by my knowledge of the mechanics of the 

plane and its engine and of aerodynamics, gained from the 

intense studying of my books. 

I helped him all that summer, servicing the plane and 

engi ne, subjects in which he had little interest or knowledge. 

We had many discussions about the art of fly- 

ing. Then. in the middle of October, he decided 

to discontinue barnstorming until spring 

of October. I went to the field and started the engine after 

school, all alone, after chocking the wheels and tying the stick 

back wi th the seat belt. I had become ski lled at cranking the 

propeller by hand while working for Swanee. 

I would taxy around the field at gradually increasing 

speeds. By doing that, 1 could learn how to prevent the airplane 

from making uncontro lled sharp turns, called ground loops, by 

use of the control stick in the same direction and opposite rudder. 

There were no brakes and only a tailskid. 

After much practicing, I was able to make 90- and 180- 

degree turns by controlled partial ground loops. By the end of 

October, I was taxying at higher speeds across the field without 

groundlooping and actually lifting the tail off the ground 

while taxying fast, all wi th full control and without groundlooping. 

This ingrained the habit of using the stick to control 

direction with ailerons by movi ng the stick in the direction of 

a starti ng ground loop, and opposite rudder- very important. 

BY THE MIDDLE OF OVEMBER, 1 

dared to lift the wheels slightly and brielly 

off the ground, keeping the wings level while 

doing so. The normal steel or bamboo wing 

skids under the lower wingtips were missing, 

so when I dragged a wing into the grass, the 

aileron would be lifted by contact, and that 

would lower the opposite aileron. That would 

then keep that wing lifted uncontrollably and 

the dragging wing could not be lifted. In that 

case. the throttle had to be quickly closed to 

stop the forward motion and airspeed to let 

the wings come back to level. 

I finally was able to keep the wings level 

and increase the length of the "grass-cutting" 

hops across the field. What a thrill! I was 

"Ilying" in those short hops across the field, 

and then landi ng without groundlooping. All this got me 

accustomed to the gentle use of the controls so that 1 could 

maintain a foot or so above the ground brielly. keep the wings 

level, and land before getting too close to the stone wall at the 

end of the field. Then 1 would taxy back and do it again. 

This activity was performed all alone in that remote 

meadow, either in the brief daylight before dusk, or on weekends-a 

time when the family still a sumed I was riding my 

Harley. On some rainy or windy days when I was not "Ilyi ng," 

there were chores 10 be done around the house. So some days 

were devoted to that work, which I did quicker than u ual so I 

could get out to the field before it was too late. 

BY DECEMBER I was making more prolonged grasscutting 

hops, back and forth across the field. Fortunately there 

was no snow. I was getting excited about the possibil ity of 

really projecting my grass-cutting hop out over that stone wall 

into the great blue sky. But I knew all too well that I would be 

ABS December 2003 Page 8165

in deep trouble without any practice with banking and turning. 

In the book Aerobatics, Barber explained the art of 

making turns by banking, not by the rudder as in a boat. He 

explained that if not properly kept in a proper bank controlled 

by the ailerons and straight into the air by the rudder, skidding 

outward or sl iding inward wo uld occur. In the open cockpit, 

skids and stides could be detected by wind on one cheek or the 

other. Of course, in those grass-cutting hops I could not 

practice such banking. 

One day, when J went out to "fly" I found that some 

vandal had stolen the entire rear cockpit instrument panel, 

along with its alti meter, tachometer, oil pressure gauge and 

compass. There had been no air peed indicator. just as in most 

Jennys. I was able to obtain another oil pressure gauge and 

there was already an automotive water temperature gauge, 

called a Motometer, in the radiator cap. 

In the Canadian Jenny. Canuck, the ignition switch was a 

two-ended lever in the RH side of the fuselage, with one end 

sticki ng out of the side so that the man who was hand-cranking 

the propeller could see whether the switch was on or off. 

That was still there. However, the lack of the wood instrument 

panel allowed a strong wind to blow from the front cockpit 

through the empty space right into the face of 

the pilot, who norma lly flew from the rear 

cockpit to balance the plane. 

Before I had the time to make and install 

a replacement instrument panel to prevent 

that cold propeller blast of air into my face. I 

just had to accept it with my motorcycle 

helmet and goggles. The wind was strong on 

my neck and penetrated down into my shirt to 

chill me. I fi nally made a plywood panel, 

with only an oil pressure gauge. 

ON SATURDAY, DECEMBER 15, 

1923, my 18th birthday, the weather was fair 

and very mild for December. I was making 

those hops across the field and while doing so 

was mentally arg uing with my elf about the 

advisabi lity of throwing all caution to the 

wind by hopping over that stone wall and 

"going for broke." It was very tempting to do 

it on my 18th birthday, which was also only two days before 

the 20th anniversary of the Wright Brothers' first flights in 

1903. 

On one of the grass-cutting passes, my mind was on those 

thoughts when I realized that I had gone too far and was 

certain to crash against that stone wall. 1 was forced to make 

lip my mind instantly to open the throttle wide and hop over it. 

As the landing gear wheels brushed through the bushes, I 

had a terrific feeling of both despair and commitment, hard to 

describe. My feet were rapidly trembling on the rudder bar in 

excitement. I was both excited and lonesome, off the earth 

As I looked down at 

Main SI. it looked very 

crooked. I had always 

thought it was straight 

when driving on it. I 

turned and followed the 

street and then the road, 

leading to the meadow. 

The field looked like a 

mere postage stamp, 

with big trees on the 

approach end and the 

stone wall on the other. 

with no one to help me! I did not dare to look anywhere but 

over the engine ahead. with its valve rocker arms working 

furiously and the tops of the trees passing under me in my 

peripheral vision. I just don't have words to describe my 

feelings, almost dream-like, unbelievably slowly floating . 

I just kept the wings level and continued, slowly gaining 

altitude. the tops of the trees getting farther and farther below 

me. What a lonesome sensation' My feet were still rapidly 

vibrating on the rudder bar in the excitement, a sensation that 

I have never since experienced. I had a sensation of slowly 

drifting away from home and safety. 

I had never been in that area and therefore had no idea of 

my location. I was getting higher, perhaps 5()() or more feet. 

but without an altimeter [had no idea. Finally, I decided that I 

had to practice turns and started to do so. Of course, I slipped 

and skidded but remembered what I had read in the book about 

feeling the wind on one cheek or the other, so fi nally got 

control of it by the rudder. 

I WAS TOO BUSY FLYING to look at my wristwatch, 

but must have practiced the turns for a quarter or half an hour 

before feeling some confidence in the turns. By that time, I 

was totally lost and at a much higher altitude. 

I had finally slowed down the hard-worki ng 

engine by ear-no tachometer. 

I knew the sun was in the south and if I 

were to fly with it to my left. I would be 

heading west, toward the big Hudson Ri ver. 

It finally appeared. I turned and followed it 

southward and saw the big black iron RR 

bridge ahead of me. Just to the south of it, [ 

could see the big factory of the De Laval 

Separator Co. , along the east side of the river 

at Poughkeepsie, where my father was probably 

in his office on a Saturday morning. But 

wait, [ thought, maybe it is afternoon! I looked 

at my watch for the first time. Yes, it was long 

after noon. 

As I looked down at the city, Mai n St. 

looked very crooked. 1 had always thought it 

was straight when driving on it. I turned and 

followed it. Accord ing to my present memory 

of the view, I must have been at about 1,000 or 1,5()() feet 

altitude. I followed the street and then the road, leading to the 

meadow, but was much too high to make any attempt to land. 

Besides, that field looked like a mere postage stamp, with big 

trees on the approach end and the SlOne wall on the other. In a 

few seconds 1 was past it and started a gradual tum to the left 

to get back to it wi th the aid of the road again. 1 did that about 

three times before I finally got down fairly close to the tops of 

the trees. 

When 1 tried to come in over the treetops to land, I was 

much too fast . with too much power on. I do not know how 

Page 8166 A BS December 2003

many anempts I made, but finally got down low enough to 

bounce the wheels and go around again. 

I finally decided to fly over to the other field where 

Swanee had been hopping the passengers. He had glided over 

some wires, closed the throttle and landed. I went over there 

and did the same and made a fairly good landing. with one 

linle bounce, for I had really had a lot of practice in those 

grass-cuning hops. Solo No. I! 

What a thrilling feelin g! I had not crasbed my precious 

airplane. I was trembling with excitement, but then realized 

that Swanee was far behind on his payments to the farmer who 

owned that field, and he might come and demand the airplane. 

So, fu ll of confidence, I took off and went back to the original 

meadow, only a short distance. 

After several anempts over those trees. I got the plane 

down with one graceful bounce. Solo o. 2! After all, the plane 

had those extra long wings and landed very slowly, but it also had 

a tendency to float too far. I had carefully observed Swanee's 

warnings that the nose must always be kept pointing down a 

little when gliding for a landing, never up to or above horizontal. 

The Jenny had a sharp stall and no airspeed indicator. 

I TAXYED BACK TO THE TREE AREA and there was 

a man in a linle Ford pickup car who had been watching me 

make those attempts at landing. I still had the engine running 

and was about to take off for a third solo. The man in the car 

got out and came over near the plane and shouted, "That sbore 

was purty, the way you come down . D'you take people up?" 

Evidently he liked that graceful bounce. I hesitated a moment, 

then on the spur of the moment. realizing that he thought I was 

a real aviator. ye lled above the noise of the engine, "Sure!" I 

then realized I had commined myself. 

He yelled, "How much does it cost?" I pointed out over 

the side of the cockpit to a big white sign on the side of the 

fuselage that read FLY $5. He said, "How much is thatT I 

realized that he could not read, so yelled back, "Five dollars". 

He said. "1 ain 't got that much". I asked him how much he did 

have and he dug a pocketful of change out of his pocket, and I 

said, "Get in," 

The engine was still runn ing so I stood up in the cockpit 

to direct him to step on the proper area of the lower wing and 

climb aboard as he handed me the change. I needed that cash 

to buy a few ga llons of gasoline, at about IO or 12 cents per 

gallon. I climbed down and put the seat belt on him and got 

back in and took off. 

The gauge on the tank indicated almost half-full. I gave 

him about a six- or eight-minute ride while I circled around to 

make the landing. When I taxyed back, there were two people 

in another Ford and they paid me $5 ap iece for their rides, 

longer ones, one at a time. Oh, boy! I was in the money' 

I was so exc ited th at I just sat down to re t while I 

absorbed what I had done. It was dusk; the sun had set. I tied 

the plane down and went home with two empty fi ve-gallon 

cans on the carrier of the Harley after emptying the partially 

full one into the ai.rplane tank. 

During those two last flights, I had circled widely and 

noticed that there were long streams of cars going in both 

directions on a newly constructed concrete road that had just 

been opened for traffic. I had been told that it was the first 

concrete road ever, or anywhere. It had been a dusty dirt road 

and was now the only paved road leading in and out of 

Poughkeepsie, other than the macadam -S road known tben 

as Albany Post Road. 

People had never seen such a smooth road and everyone 

wanted to ride on it. They were driving about 12-15 miles to 

its end and then back. The road passed a large farm with a hayfield 

that was level and plenty large enough for flying , rigbt 

next to the new road. 

I HAD A WILD PLAN IN MIND by the time I got home. 

It was dark and no one noticed the two empty cans on the 

motorcycle. After dinner I went for one of my rides. It was 

Christmas vacation time. I went to the motorcycle club and 

called a motorcycle friend of mine and told him to meet me at 

the club. I had the cans filled and he said he would take them 

to that big field the next morning whi le I went to get the 

airplane and fly over to it. He had known of my interest in flying 

but could hardly believe that I was actually flying already. 

Neither could I! 

The next day was fine weather and Sunday. I got up early 

and rode first to the farm and paid the owner, Mr. , Tchennis 

(spelling?) $5 for the use of the tield that day, and got a receipt 

for it, then rode over to the other field to get the plane and fly 

it over to the big field, leaving my Harley. It was easy to land 

in that big field. 

It was not long before the parade of cars started along that 

new concrete road. When the drivers saw the plane sining 

there, they stopped, climbed over the old tone wall and came 

over to look at it. Very few people, at that time, had been 

closer to an airplane than one fl ying over them. They started 

buying rides. The worn appearance of the plane did not seem 

to bother them. They paid $5 apiece, quite a lot of money for 

1923. In fact, many whole families lived on that per week. 

My motorcycle friend, Ted Weeks, helped the people in 

and out of the plane and away from the propeller and I collected 

the money. Swanee Taylor had never had it as good. I 

was getting paid for my practice landings! a other student 

pilot ever had it as good. 

It went on all day, especially brisk after noon when 

people carne out of the church right acro s the road. One of the 

passengers I recogni zed. He was Mr. Goebler. the second in command 

under my father at the De Laval Separator plant. He had 

known me from the day I was born, but did not recognize me 

with my helmet and goggles on when he climbed aboard. When 

he got out and turned to hand me the $5 he did and he asked, 

·'Say. aren' t you Theodore Miller's son?" I had to admit it. 


;'1 didn't know you were already an aviator. Your father 

never mentioned it to me." I said, "Oh, I've been flying quite a 

while." I had to admit that my Dad did not know about my flying. 

He went away, shaking his head, and I knew my goose 

was cooked for he would go into Dad's office in the morning 

(Monday) and tell, or maybe even telephone him sooner. 

Finally, near dusk, the activity slowed and I hopped the 

plane back to the meadow where I could tie it down. What a 

day! My pocket was full of money. Ted rode over and I shared 

some of it with him . I went home in the dusk from my "motorcycle 

tour." 

Dad was home but didn 't say anything, so I was confident 

that Mr. Goebler had not called him. The next day at school, I 

was so elated that I was stimulated to work at school harder. 

When I got home earlier than Dad I did the chores, like 

stoking the furnace and carrying out the ashes and the garbage, 

for I was anticipating almost anything could happen. But Dad 

didn't say a thing; he just read the paper quietly. At dinner, he 

didn't say anything either, in fact, I felt that maybe Mr. 

Goebler had not told him. 

After dinner, he sat down to read the paper again and 

finall y said to me, "John, Mr. Goebler said you gave him a ride 

in Swanee Taylor's airplane." I admitted it and told him the 

entire story. 

WE HAD A VERY NICE CONVERSATION about the 

whole procedure. He had known that I had driven a car without 

permi ssion or any instruction and that I had taught myself 

how to type by the touch system. He didn 't really think it was 

such a difficult task to teach myself to fly. He mentioned that 

he could do it. I didn 't argue that point. 

He finally said, "John, I know that airplane is in terrible 

condition. You had better not fl y it any more until you fix it up 

properl y, and now you have the money to do it after school is 

out for the summer." 

I took the plane apart on Christmas day and with a team 

of horses and a hay wagon borrowed from the farm, moved it 

to Mr. Barne 's barn with permission to store and work on it, 

without charge. I ordered all the necessary war surplus 

materials from Dayton Airplane & Supply Co. After graduation 

the next spring, Ted Weeks and another friend helped me 

entirely re-cover the plane and repair some weather damage to 

the wing ribs, etc. 

By mid-summer I was flying again, giving rides to Ted 

and other friends. I then sold the plane and went to engineering 

school, with no more fl ying until after graduation, four 

years later. Then I had a proper check-out under the new 

regulations in another plane that 1 rebuilt from a wreck. I was 

issued Certificates A&E #2906 and Transport Pilot # 5945. 

Today, that field where I did the Sunday passenger-hopping is 

part of the Dutchess County Airport. 

John welcomes comments. Write him af 201 Kingwood Park, Poughkeepsie, NY 

12601. 

YES! I want to order John Miller's book. 

lvlAlL TO; (PLEASE PRINT NAlvtE)' _ ____ ___ _________ _ 

ADDRESS 

CITY SliXTE COUNTRY 

ZIP 

SEND ME 

BOOKS @ $50 EACH (PWS 56 SHIPPING & HANDU NGI 

(FOREIGN: ACTUAL POSTAGE +$2, CREDIT CARD ONLY) TOTAL $ 

o CHECK OR MONEY ORDER IS ENCLOSED. 

(payable to the ABS/ASF Endowment Fund) 

or 

o CHARGE TO: MasterCard VISA 

--- - 

Exp. Dare _-_ 

Acct. Noo ____ -____ -____ -_ _ _ _ 

SIGNATURE c;-::=====--------- 

(REQUIRED ON ALL CREDIT CARD ORDERS) 

FAX THIS FORM TO: ABS at 316-945-1710 

or MAIL TO: American Bonanza Society, r.o. Box 12888, Wichi .. , KS 672n 

Page 8168 

ABS Dece mber 2003

Weighing in for ASF 

BY NANCY JOHNSON, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR 

I 

mode a mistake in my October column, writing about the 

'Seeing Less of Nancy" fund-raiser. I hod so much fun telling 

you how I backed myself into a weight-loss corner that I sort 

of buried the point of the campaign. 

Since I have publicly committed to losing substantial body 

moss, it will happen. So there hod to be another reason for me 

to embarrass myself by talking about my girth in the ABS 

Magazine. 

The real goal is to get you to support your ABS Air Safety 

Foundation Endowment Fund. We used some of that money on 

the Technical Initiative, but the Fund needs to be much larger 

S'IW7?1:f (jREIfT kI E/(jIfT()El3IfTE 

'Twas after Thanksgiving the problem began, 

as Sama ate all the leftovers-again ! 

He hiccuped with pleasure then sighed with 

as he pushed from the table and struggled UV'I~lllj 

He patted his tummy, then bent to retrieve 

a morsel left right on his plate, 1 believe. 

When what with a startling rip did appear, 

but a pants-ruining, left-to-right split in his rear! 

"Oh dear, not another," exclai med Mrs. Claus. 

"The first time was funny, but this makes me pause 

to think about options, decide what is right. 

Is Spandex the answer when clothes get this tight? 

Or dare I to utter the awfu l "D" word? 

It's good to consider- plea 'e, let me be heard. 

It's not right to argue. get mad or decry it; 

the truth is. the fact is, you must start a diet!" 

The elves all fell silent, the thought left them shocked. 

Not a creature was stirring. their senses were rocked. 

A whittled-down Santa? A slender St. Nick? 

The thought was too novel; it just wouldn't stick. 

The whole room erupted with protests galore. 

Elves shouted and pouted and stamped on the floor. 

"We can't let this happen. no way is it right! 

It chills us. it kills us, it gives us a fright I 

We know he'd grow healthy and. sure, he'd grow strong. 

But the fact is those two rights add up to one wrong." 

Then Rudolph stepped forward; all present drew near. 

They knew that the Clauses respected this deer. 

He peered at the old gem, his gaze left no doubt. 

He'd give his opinion-Is Sama too stout? 

He looked at St. Nicklaus, stared at him directly. 

then uttered his viewpoint. "His wife spoke correctly. 

This man is too portly, he's simply too round. 

I can't see the harm if he dropped a few pounds. 

It wouldn't change Christmas, just Santa a little. 

He'd still be as jolly with less of a middle." 

before it can really be put to use. So every contribution helps 

taword making it on ongoing source of revenue for projects to 

keep your Bonanzas, Barons and Travel Airs flying. 

If just 20 percent of ABS members pledge a buck a pound, 

and I lose 50 pounds by the '04 Orlando Convention (September 

8-12), the Endowment Fund would grow by $100,000! And don't 

forget - your donation is tax deductible. 

At press time, we were at $159 per pound - a mix of 

pledges from $1 to $25 per pound. Now that's on incentive for 

me to hit my weight-loss goal. 

I can't wait for your call (316-945-1700) or e-mail with your per-pound pledge! 

Meanwhile, here's a liHie something I wrote many years ago 

about a Pilot we all know and love - one who doesn't core a whit 

about slimming down. Happy Holidays to you all! 

That pleased Mrs. Claus: she knew she was right. 

The elves, though, were worried about Christmas ight 

and all of the children who thought Santa's be lly 

was perfectly right 'cause it rhymed the word "jelly." 

Through all of the arguing, Shouting and noise, 

Olde Santa sat watching with comfortable poise. 

He listened and pondered, heard all he could stand. 

then gently but ftrntly he raised his left hand. 

That got their attention, they lent him an ear. 

He lowered his voice so they'd lean close to hear 

the words that he uttered 10 settle this matter: 

Was slender the right thing or should he stay fatter? 

"I need to remind you of what's often told, 

about Yuletide legend that's anciem, that's old. 

It's magic that's in me. and what I'm about; 

it's the wonder of childhood even grown-ups don't doubt. 

You seem to forget, dear friends and dear wife, 

I'm an unchanging constant in everyone's life. 

Though dreams may go drifting and spirits grow tame, 

Yours Truly and Christmas are alway the same." 

With that, Santa stood and turned 'round so they'd see 

the hole in his trousers, right where it should be. 

What happened that moment left all there in awe, 

for everyone knew of the tear that they saw. 

The soft hush of silence to which they adhered 

was broken by cheering as the ri~isappeared! 

"We should have known better," all present agreed. 

"A diet was silly, 'twas never a need." 

Sama smiled all around at the laughter and fun. 

Glanced right at the table to check-was he done? 

Meanwhile Mrs. Claus, with a twinkling eye, 

had left for the kitchen then returned with some pie. 

And she said as she gave him both apple and cherry. 

"I should have remembered your size makes you merry. 

What's left to be said is most fitting and sweet. 

Happy Christmas to you. and bon appetit!" 

-Nallcy F JOhIlSOIl, © 1989

Heart issues 

BY CHARLES DAVIDSON. MD. 

One of the biggest concerns for pilots is 

the possibility of losing their medical 

because of problems with their hean. 

The hean is a very sophisticated organ that operates 

as a pump nonstop for up to 100-plus years. 

Assuming an average heart rate of 80 beats per 

minute for 75 years, the heanbeats wou ld total 

greater than 3 billion! That's an engine that runs 

nonstop with a TBO of more than 657,000 hours' 

"Hean attack" is the lay tenn used to describe 

the medical condition of myocardial infarction. 

This occurs when the supply of blood to the hean 

is cut off or decreased to the point that the muscle 

tissue in an area of the hean dies (infarcts). 

The decrease in blood supply is usually 

caused by an obstruction in the artery itself. The 

blockage can be from a congenital nanrowing, a 

spasm in the anery or. most commonly, by the rupture 

of plaques adhering to the wall of the artery. 

In the Western world, we have identified 

many factors that may increase the risk for the 

formation of these small plaques that form in the 

arteries. A person may not be aware of them 

because, until they obstruct the opening of the 

artery to the degree that the person ha pain with 

exercise, they are "silent." 

When one of these plaques ruptures or 

becomes disrupted by the blood flowing around 

it, it may completely block the anery. A reaction 

in the anery involving blood cells called platelets 

and other factors act to completely block the 

anery over a short time period. The hean muscle 

supplied by the artery receives no blood supply 

and begins to die. 

Many of you may already know about these 

factors because you have experienced a heart 

attack or angina (pain caused by a blockage). 

Others of you may have spoken to your doctor 

about your cholesterol or other factors that are 

known to affect risk of coronary anery blockage. 

Over the past 20 years, a great deal more 

knowledge has accumulated concerning the how 

and why of the formation of these plaques and 

risk for having a heart attack. This has followed 

two generations of residents in the town of 

Framingham, Massachusetts, for 50 years. data 

on hean disease and other health issues has been 

analyzed and researched by the National Hean, 

Lung and Blood Institute (NHBLl), Boston 

University and other universities in the area plus 

collaborators around the world. 

The Framingham study developed a table 

that can enable an individual who knows his or 

her blood pressure and the total and HDL 

cholesterol levels to develop a IO-year risk 

profile for developing coronary artery disease. 

Framingham Table 

Let's look at the table and the factors it 

considers. Each category in the table contributes 

a certain number of points to your risk score. The 

total number at the bottom of the table gives your 

10-year-risk in a percentage number. 

Age: This is Obviously not a factor you can 

control. Note that points are slIbtmeted for ages 

less than 40, but positi!'e poillts are added qlliek 

Iy from age 40 to 60, then only three additional 

points are added by age 80. John Miller will tell 

us all that older is better! 

Total cholesterol: This table is interesting. At all 

ages, the higher the total cholesterol, the greater 

the risk. But a man with a total cholesterol count 

above 280 mgJdl before age 39 years has II 

points, while the same reading for a man 69 years 

old contributes only 3 points. While both may 

require attention to lower the cholesterol, such as 

diet andior medication, the younger man has 

many years ahead of risk. Nonetheless, at any age, 

the higher the cholesterol, the higher the risk. 

Smoking: There's no way around it. Smoking adds 

risk. Granted, some may be able to survive their 

habit into older age, but they are the exceptions. 

HDL cholesterol: This is commonly called the 

"good" cholesterol. Higher levels of this subtype 

of cholesterol are associated with lower levels of 

risk for coronary disease. Regular exercise and 

diets limiting carbohydrates may increase the 

HDL levels. Levels above 60 are optimal. 

Blood pressure: Although it does not add as 

many points to the total as smoking, the higher 

the blood pressure, the more risk. Treated blood 

pressure that does not come under adequate 

control adds more points (right-hand column). 

Example: 

A 65-year-old male smoker with a cholesterol 

of 230 mgJdl and HDL of 41 mgJdl; blood 

pressure of 140/88 mm Hg untreated. 

Take his age of II points + Choles-terol I + 

HDL I + Blood Pressure I + Smoking I = 15 

points, a sum that gives him a 20 percent risk over 

 


the next 10 years. 

Now take the same man as a nonsmoker 

with blood pressure of 120/80, 

H DL of 50 and LOtal cholesterol of 190. 

Age II + Cholesterol I + HDL 0 + Blood 

Pressure 0 + Smoking 0 = 12 resulting in 

a 10 percent risk over 10 years. 

The modest change in blood pressure. 

along with not smoki ng and possibly 

following a beller diet and an increase in 

exercise, decreased his risk by one-half! 

Another example: 

A 30-year-old male smoker with cholesterol 

of 260 mgldl, HDL of 34 mgldl 

and blood pressure of 145/90 mm/Hg 

Age: minus 9 + Cholesterol 9 + HDL 

2 + Smoker 8 + Blood Pressure I = II . The 

sum is 6 percent risk over his next 10 years. 

Now take the same 30-year-old man 

as a nonsmoker. cholesterol of 200, HDL 

40 and blood pressure 125/80 

Age: minus 9 + Cholesterol 7+ HDL 

I + Blood Pressure 0 + Smoking 0 = -I 

and the sum is less than one percent! 

His yo uth was obviously a great 

advantage, taki ng 9 risk points away from 

this man's score. in spite of his habits, his 

cholesterol or blood pressure. But look at 

how low his risk became with modestly 

berter cholesterol. lower blood pressure 

and not smoking! 

Put your own numbers into the table 

and see what you get. If your numbers are 

good. keep it up! If they are not, see your 

physician and talk about it. 

Charles S. Davidson. M.D. holds board certification in 

famity medicine and emergency medicine. He has 

been on aviation medical examiner since 1978 and 

serves as a senior AME. He holds a private pilot license 

with multi-engine and instrument rating. He is an acf;ve 

pifot using general aviation for business and pleasure 

for 23 years. He is a ASS board member and flies a 

Bonanoza A36. He is a member of AOPA and EM . 

CORRECTION 

The OUt violations answer in the November 

issue (poge 81 33) contained on error. 

Alcohol or drug offenses (I.e. motor vehicle 

violation) should be reported within 60 days 

(not 6 months) of the occurrence to the Civil 

Aviation Security Division. AAC-700: P.O. Box 

25810: Oklohomo City. OK 73125-0810. 

Reporting the offense on the mediool oppti· 

ootion does relieve the airman of the respon· 

sibility to report to the Security Division. 

TABLE 6. ESTtMATES OF 10-YEAR RtSK FOR MEN ANO WOMEN 

(Framingham Point Scores') 

MEN 

WOMEN 

Age Points Age ~ints ~ Points Age Points 

2034 ·9 55-59 8 2034 -7 55-59 8 

35·39 ·4 6064 10 35-39 -3 6064 10 

4044 0 65-69 11 4044 0 65-69 12 

45·49 3 7074 12 45-49 3 7074 14 

5054 6 75-79 13 50-54 6 75-79 16 

Total Points Totol Points 

Cholesterol Age Age Age Age Age Cholesterol Age Age Age Age Age 

[!1g/dL 20·39 4049 5059 60·69 70·79 mg/dL 20·39 40-49 50·59 60·69 70·79 

280 13 10 7 4 2 

Pomts 

Points 

Age Age Age Age Age Age Age Age Age Age 

2039 40·49 5059 6069 7079 2039 4049 5059 6069 7079 

NonslT'lOler 0 a 0 0 0 Nonsmoker 0 0 0 0 0 

Smoker 8 5 3 Smoker 9 7 4 2 

HOl "'9I

BEYOND 

BUCKLINGUP 

BY DENNIS WOLTER, CINCINNATI. OHIO 

onanzas are legendary for their structural integrity. 

Walter Beech and his team certainly held to 

their end of the bargain when it comes to Beech 

strength, especially where it counts the most-in 

the cabin area. In reality, though, all of that structural 

strength is useless if the airplane comes to a stop and the 

occupants don't. 

No one likes to think about the possibility of an off-airport 

landing. Good pilots prepare for this and other flight-related 

challenges by actively involving themselves in recurrent training 

that deals with such situations. 

Bonanza owners are blessed with having access to the 

high quality training of BPPP. Taking your ski lls for granted is 

risky, and the training to maintain proficiency goes a long way 

in the interests of safety. In addition, good aircraft maintenance 

is elemental to safety management. It is crucial that an 

owner be knowledgeable and pro-active in the maintenance of 

hi s or her airplane. 

Without a doubt, the most safety-enhancing component 

you can purchase for a Bonanza or related airplane is a good 

passenger restraint system to complete your safety program. 

Speaking from unwanted personal experience where I have 

been first on the scene (more than once) of an ugly incident, I 

can't tell you how hard it is to see seriously or fata lly injured 

people who would have suffered far less if only a good shoulder 

harness had been used. 

In this article I will review what is good, how 10 get these 

products installed, inspection and maintenance, and how 10 

use these life-saving devices properly. 

What is good 

The whole point of a restraint system is to safely keep a 

seat occupant out of harm's way. It sounds simple enough, and 

it is, as long as some basic principles of physics and physiology 

are adhered to during the design and installation of these 

systems. 

Seat belts do only part of the job. The pan of your body 

that a seat belt protects from injury best is your derriere. While 

that might seem important, having only a lap restraint unfortunately 

allows critical upper body parts to flail about, greatly 

increasing the potential for serious injury. 

The addition of a harness can certainly add to your safety. 

Not all shoulder harnesses, however, are created equa l. Inertia 

reel systems are definitely better than fixed. Not only are they 

more convenient to use, allowi ng freedom of movement, but 

they also ensure that the harness is properly resting over the 

shou lder (or shoulders) 

wi th a comfortable pressure, 

in the right place if 

needed. 

Some shoulder harness 

systems, be they factory 

insta lled or not, can 

protect pan of the body at 

the expense of other areas. 

A Y-type shoulder harness 

system that holds both 

shoulders symmetrically 

and keeps the back from 

twisting prevents the probability 

of spine or nerve 

damage. 

The effectiveness of a 

diagonal harness (automo- 

Middle-age spread causes diagonol-type 

shoulder harnesses to ride too high up on 

the chest and increases the potenliol for 

occupant to slide under the lap belt. 

tive type) can often be compromised by the vertical and lateral 

center of gravity of the occupant's torso. The result can be 

twisting of the back, or even the possibility of a person tunneling 

out under or even lofting over the harness. Most of us 

don 't have the bodies we had in high school; middle age 

spread definitely affects vertical CG. 

Types of installations 

Good installations don 't always come easily. The FAA 

(and good engineering) requires that a seat belt be capable of 

restraining 12 Gs, which is 12 times the weight of a standard 

170 Ibs. FAA person, or 2,040 pounds. A shoulder harness 

must be rated at 9 Gs, or 1,530 pounds. 

Most people will suffer severe internal injuries when 

exposed to stresses in excess of 12 Os, and as we age the tolerance 

usually goes down. These numbers can and do present 

an engineering challenge. 

Is there an attach point strong enough for these belts and 

harnesses? Referting to AC 43.13-2A (my favorite FAA document 

and an airplane owner's best friend), chapter 9, section 2, 

figure 9.6, it is obvious that design geometry is very important. 

Look at this drawing. You 'll see that the optimum angle 

M; 43-13·2A illustrating 

proper shoulder harness 

llllachment geometry. 


~~;Iy= 1 

.... ~~ 

-_._----_._--,. --,.- 

., 

.,- 

Installation drawing for the Beech kit showing heavy tru ss, mounting bracket and external riveling. 

between the occupant's shoulder and the shoulder harness 

attach point is between 0" and 3~'. As inertia tries to move a 

person forward , too-Iowan attach point of the harness would 

result in a downward force on the spine, increasing the possibi 

lity of spi nal compression injuries. Too high an angle cou ld 

increase the potential of one or both harnesses slipping off the 

shoulder laterally. Not good. 

MS~Ff lnl'rtiQ Reel & , ~ S 'A. \07 

Iklrms As~y 

®~ PN-2-B, ~ 

(;)NI;;" @>Ol.......-r...,n.." C-I>41~ ~ \--i€.A.VE. ~ 

\ 

~!0 =@r' -B' '----""'--""-,y 

rlty 

~rNtts 

'-PN-S-Be 

\. '\::"'-3-Be 6 

V,bOng 

SrE8.. ?'t-•• 

PH-H, To '4'"'" \~}-; 

Section B-B Vie r A-A . I 

S.~~'3. 

T"'Pv1e,........ 

® ~~ Inertia reel oMitted for clnrity A \ 

Approx. location A Skin PN-5-Be 

""+B, r ",,1,9' "",\:-::;:..,--, 

St:. ticn ........ 116.0 , ...... 0 O(lI!lOS'ti' hl 

Installalion print for BAS shoulder harness. All attachment is internal· no external riveting is requIred. 

Chapter 9 in 43.13-2A covers this whole seat belt/shoulder 

harness design and installation thing. It's good infornlation 

for an owner to become familiar with. 

On the subject of lap belts, Bonanzas are blessed with a 

geometrically very good seat belt attach system. These lap 

belts are attached to the seat frames, facilitating an almost 

always perfect 45' angle for the lap belt as it restrains the 

I 

pelvic area. Because the belt is attached to 

the seat, this optimum angle is maintained, 

regardless of where the seat is positioned on 

the rai ls. 

So much for geometry class, it's time to 

move on to the engineering of structural 

integrity. In college we called it bend-andbreak 

class. 

Bonanza and related airframes have a 

strong upper cabin structure in the form of 

very beefy window frames. Thanks to this, 

finding and attaching a Y-type shoulder harness 

is possible and available. Feel sorry for 

owners of some other brands of aircraft 

who can only hope for a barely strong 

enough automotive type diagonal harness. 

It's not aU a bed of roses. though. Beech 

aircraft built between 1947 and 1971 have a 

very strong outer cabin structure, but do not 


 

Page 8173

, . 

An airplane with these rivets has the structure and brackets 10 boll in the ~ Y' type 

inertia reel shoulder harness. It cuts installation time to 4-5 hours. 

have a truss strong enough to support a 9 G shoulder harness 

attachment in a place that is geometrically correct. Not to 

worry: Beech, BAS Inc. and Wag Aero all offer approved kits 

that do a great job of solving this problem. 

BAS Inc. has a number of inertia reel shoulder harness 

kits for older airplanes that can be installed in six to eight 

hours. They require no riveting through the outer skin and are 

readily available (obtaining the Beech kits can often take 12 

weeks). The BAS kits come in about 20 webbing colors and 

cost around $1,000 for the two front seats. 

Wag Aero has an approved shoulder harness kit for the 

Bonanza that is ava ilable in eight colors and the cost is about 

$630 for both seats. This kit is less expensive due to the fact 

that the harnesses are the fixed type, nOl inertia reel. 

Last but not least are the Beech kits. They come in any 

color you want as long as it's tan or black, and cost approx.imately 

$1,500. In pre-I 972 airplanes. they require the installation 

of a heavy-duty bulkhead or two riveted in place between 

and attached to the two upper window frame hat section structural 

members. This creates a very strong structural beam to 

which a steel bracket is riveted and bolted at the appropriate 

lateral location. A small inertia reel is then attached to the 

bracket, completing the installation. 

Normal installation time is 20-24 hours. Beech. BAS and 

Wag Aero all use the original lap belt attachments. Note: It 

would be smart to insta ll any kit requiring external riveting 

prior to havi ng your aircraft painted. 

Starting in 1972 Beech installed the heavy truss and steel 

shoulder harness brackets in all Bonanzas and Barons. If 

you're lucky enough to own one of these later airplanes, all 

you need to do is buy the Beech kit and commit to 4-6 hours 

of labor for the installation, a lot less than that required for the 

reinforced structure desc ribed above. 

It's easy to determine if you have the proper structure and 

brackets. Look at the cabi n top from the outside and see if 

there are two clusters of six extra ri vets just above the center 

opening windows. about 5 inches inboard from the outer edge 

of the roof skin. 

Inspection and maintenance 

Forrunately, once properly installed, these systems require 

little maintenance. For both factory- or field-installed harnesses. 

it is important to inspect the installation to make certain 

that everything is in good condition and that proper installation 

procedures were followed. If your system was field-installed. 

confirm that it is an approved system with appropriate documentation. 

Of the 20 or so Beech interior renovations our shop does 

each year, we lind two or three airplanes with harness systems 

that were either poorly or improperly installed. The bad installations 

often have inaccurate or no paper work at all. a fact that 

really doesn't surprise me (I've seen a lot in 30 years of aircraft 

renovation). We find incorrect components, missing spaces, 

household hardware, missing cerrification tags and worn or 

faded webbing. 

Due to the fact that Beech seat belts are attached to the 

seat frames, it is very important to confi rm the condition of the 

seat rollers. roller feet, seat rails and seat latching mechanisms. 

Also, it goes without saying that you should verify the pedigree 

of all field installations during any pre-buy inspection. We 

An often found problem. The boll at the top is a nalvery-strong 

non-aircroff type. The correct MS type 

aircraft bolt with its two washers, hardened-steel 

spacer and self-locking nul is shown at the bottom. 

ThIS IS a properly connected shoulder harness/seat 

belt buckle with the shoulder harness webbing 

tongues facing outward. 

Incorrecllv routed lap belt that is wrapped around 

Ihe seat bock: frame. 


have found that a great source for technical 

information. repairs. rewebbing or 

replacement components is Aircraft Belts, 

Inc. 

Be aware that if your webbing is 

severely faded or shows visible signs of 

wear. your restraint system has lost its 

rated strength and is nOi airwonhy. It is 

imponant that legible cenification tags are 

permanently attached to each webbed 

component of the system. a tag, no 

approval. This is an aircraft grounding situation. 

Ask your IA to check these things 

out at your next annual. 

It is also a good idea to occasionally 

check the locking mechanisms of inenia 

reel harnesses. This is done by simply 

grabbing the harness webbing and giving 

it an abrupt pull 10 see if the reel locks up. 

Also check that the webbing rewinds 

smoothly and completely back into the reel, confinning that 

the retraction springs are in good condition. 

Using the system properly 

Now that the seat belt/shoulder harness system is properly 

designed, installed and maintained, it's time 10 make sure 

everything is used and maintained correctly. There's more to 

optimum protection than just buckling up. 

Once seated in the airplane, make sure the harness is properly 

secured to the lap belt. Some systems have separate shoulder 

harness attachments that must be connected to the lap belt 

buckle assembly with the webbing attachments pointing outward. 

Other systems have the harnesses permanently attached 

10 the lap belts. All must be worn in such a way as to avoid 

twisting of the webbing when buckled. 

It is also imponant that the lap belt webbing is not 

wrapped around the seat frame or other cockpit component. 

With a V-type harness system. be sure 10 adjust the seat belt so 

the two harness straps meet in the center of the lap, and snug 

up the lap belt so it does not ride up on your abdomen. With a 

fixed harness system, keep both the lap belt and harness snug 

but comfortable. 

With any system, get into the habit of resecuring the belt 

or harness if you have temporarily loosened or removed it to 

access something in the cabin. Many injuries have occurred 

si mply because someone forgot to rebuckle or retighten. 

Thanks to general aviation's good safety record, very few 

people will ever put one of these systems to the test, making 

all of the above seem to be a waste of good money and time. 

An old friend once said that safety can be the hardest 

product 10 sell. I guess it's human nature to hesitate spending 

money on something we think we'll never need. But remember, 

you can't write the check on the way down. 

i up 

on the body, creating a great potential for tunneling 

under and out of the restraint system. 

SOURCES: 

• Aircraft Belts, Inc. Kemah. Texas (8OQ.84 7·5651) 

• BAS Inc .• Eaton~lIe . Washington (360-832-6566) 

• Ellioft A~alion . Omaha. Nebraska (800·228·7088) 

• Wag Aero. lyons. Wisconsin (800·558·6868) 

Correel: Lop bell is snug but comfortable. lower 

shoulder harness ottachment is properly secured in 

lop bell longue. Everything is symelricaUy centered. 

ABS member Dennis Wolter started Air Mod to bring innovatIVe deSign and high 

quality renovations to the general aviation market. Dennis. hiS wife Cynthia and 

10 dedicated employees complete aboul40 renovaflans each year at their facil 

Ity on the east side of CinCinnati. Dennis has a degree in industflal deSign from 

the University of Cincinnati. He is an A&P and an LA. 

"Honey, where's the approach plater 

Con you figure out the couse of the levitoting approach plate 

in the tap right carner of the picture below? 

See 8790 for the answer. 


GUEST 

EDITORIAL 

Thoughts on the privilege 

of flight-l 00 years on ... 

BY MACARTHUR JOB. lILYDALE. VICTORIA. AUSTRALIA 

tr"ce- tie- da«ll( III !t/~tll"fjJ lfral(it"r/!taJ' r/,.e-Qlfrd III be-tir,t aile- til ". 

t(et it I~ 111(&# I" t!t/~ laJ't CMt«J"/I t!tat «Ie- !tan bWI( Mabld til rio J'II. 

Do we ever stop to think how 

utterly staggering this privilege 

of ours is? Even if it 

were possible to count all the 

pilots who have ever flown. from the 

inception of aviation 100 years ago to 

the presel1l day, their number would be 

infinitesimal compared to the hosts of 

the human race that have peopled the 

planet down the millennia. Yet each of 

us today is one of that elite! 

And of the vast multitudes that 

make up the earth's population at this 

very moment. how relatively few have 

learnt to fly. Yet again, we find ourselves 

members of an exclusive fraternity. 

Like the gods of ancient mythology, 

only we who are pilots know the exhilaration 

of personal flight! 

So is it any wonder that, for most of 

us, fly ing can be something of an ego 

trip? This is not to be critical, for nearly 

all human achievement is a product of 

the ego. But here we have to make a 

vital choice. 

Is our ego trip to be one of mastery-sure 

and certai nand depend- 

able-in a challengi ng (and alien) environment" 

Or is it to become the nearultimate 

opportun ity for irresponsible 

display, using our acquired skills. in 

combination with the aeroplane's inherent 

qualities, merely to impress those 

less privi leged? 

There is good reason for emphasizing 

the "mastery" aspect of a pilot's 

role. Be his aircraft large or small, his 

responsibility is one inherited from hundreds 

of years of seafaring- it has more 

in common with that of the master of a 

ship rather than the driver of a train or 

motor vehicle. He is expected to be "the 

pilot in command"-not just the one 

who drives or steers. 

For, like seagoing, aviation can be 

brutally unforgiving of fooli shness or 

error, or even of being taken for granted. 

Certainly, the unhappy experiences of 

countless pilots who have faUen victim 

to it since the Wright flyer first lifted off 

the ground iIf' 1903, attest to this 

unpalatable truth. The reality of the 

aphorism that there are old pilots and 

bold pilots, bur no old bold pilots is also 

borne out by the seemingly inexhaustible 

fund of nasty surpri ses aviation 

holds in store for the unwary, the 

ill-prepared or the foolhardy. 

Though few today would take seriously 

that other old maxim, "If God 

meant man to fly, He would have given 

him wings," this, too, has an element of 

truth. For flight is an alien environment 

for us and for it to be acceptably free 

from danger, it has to be performed 

within parameters that allow for the 

inevitable errors, misjudgments and 

other contingencies that are the consequence 

of human frailty. A margin of 

safety is thus fundamental to all aspects 

of flying. Safe pilots are those who fl y 

responsibly in accordance with this philosophy 

at all times. 

In all forms of human endeavour, 

responsibility and privilege are inexorably 

linked. And nowhere does this 

devolve more personally than in the 

command of an aircraft-particularly 

one carrying trusting passengerswhether 

or not it is from under the 

watchfu l eye of any regulating authority. 

The awesome privilege that is ours 

as pilots today continues to demand a 

simi larly exalted sense of personal 

responsibi lity! 

Macarthur Job is a well-known aviation 

writer in Lilydale. Victoria. Australia. He 

has given appraval for this article to be 

reprinted in ABS Magazine. He wrote it 

for the Ulydale Airport newsletter. 

• 

Page 8176 

 

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Straight tail , V-tail, or Baron. Specify model. $6.00 

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Durable plastic 

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Colors are 

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Pewter Keychains 

Indicate V-tail, Straight-tail 

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ABS Patches 

A reproduction of the original embroidered 

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Add ABS recognition to your own items. 

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NEVER AGAIN - I HOPE 

A "there-I-was ... " tale about my return from OSH 

BY STEVEN w. OXMAN. RIVA. MARYLAND 

I 

woke up in my tent at Oshkosh on 

Monday morning with the hope of 

leaving early. I had packed everythino 

I did not need overnight into 

e . 

the plane the day before and said my 

goodbyes to my many friends who were 

still there. I had especially and very 

carefully packed my new Contemporary 

Class Bronze Lindy Award. I was careful 

to load the plane without hurting this 

award. (This goes to my mental state 

later in the story.) 

I got a briefing, and determined that 

YFR was not possible. I tried several 

times to call the reservation telephone 

number to get an IFR reservation out of 

OSH, but it was perpetually busy. I 

guess a lot of people had the same idea 

I had, so I finally gave up on that idea. 

My plan was to wait until the beacon 

stopped turning (signifying YFR at 

the field) , fly down to Rockford, 

Illinois, check the weather from there, 

and determine if I am to fly YFR or \FR 

the rest of the way home to Riva, 

Maryland. If YFR, launch when ready. 

If \FR. file and then launch. At least out 

of OSH I would not need a reservation, 

just a regular IFR filing and release, 

which should be relatively simple since 

there is a tower on the field at Rockford. 

It was about II o'clock before the 

beacon stopped turning. Start your 

engines! But I was not the only person 

ready to go. OSH became a buzz of 

engine starts. I taxied with many others 

and by II :20 or so launched off of 36L. 

Those controllers really got the planes 

into the air quickly. A lot of YFR 

launches occurred in quick order. 

I understand I was lucky because 

not too much later, the beacon stopped 

turning again and the field was closed 

for YFR launches. Once airborne, I 

could only fly at about 1,900 feet MSL 

to remain clear of clouds. The visibility 

was also not too great. about four miles. 

I was happy to have my IFR rating 

while flying in this YMC. It was legal, 

just not great. 

The Ryan TCAD kept beeping at 

me that I had traffic all around. No surprise 

there-they were all from OS H. 

Much of the traffic was visible. I had now 

been in the air about five to ten minutes 

and had not had time to trim the plane or 

oet the engine leaned out to where I 

~ould like it-too busy watching the 

clouds, the weather and the traffic. 

I finally had a moment to trim the 

plane for cruise and lean the engine. All 

was well. I was on my way to Rockford. 

The plane was flying fine. The engine 

sounded fine. The weather was okay 

and traffic was manageable. 

My usual manner is to scan the ''T' 

instruments a lot, scan the engine instruments 

a bit less, and the other systems 

instruments and indicators even less. If 

an annunciator goes off, I quickly look 

to see what it is. Of course. the number 

one rule is "fly the plane:' All was fine. 

Something goes wrong 

Then there it was! The Shadin fuel 

flow computer said I was running the 

engine at less than 14.8 gallons per hour 

(gph). But wait. . .! was flying at 1,900 

feet MSL at 65 percent power of 285 

horses possible (an 10-520) atlOOF rich 

of peak-and less than 14.8 gph just is 

not right. It is not where I had set it a 

short while ago. So what'S up? 

The Shadin kept slowly clocking 

the gph indication down, not a good 

trend. The mechanical fuel flow gauge 

is agreei ng with the Shadin. the gph 

trend is slowly going down' I am over 

lakes and swamps at about 1,000 AGL. 

At this time, I was in the disbelief stage. 

With a road visible off to my west a 

few miles, I decided [ had beller climb 

between the clouds. Hitting the Nearest 

button on my Garmin GPS tells me that 

the closest airpol1s to my present position 

are Fon du Lac at six o'clock, and 

straight ahead is Dodge County airpol1 

in Juneau, Wisconsin. I remembered 

having been there a few times beforea 

real nice airpol1 with two nice. wide, 

paved runways (02/20 and 08/26). No 

tower. the CTAF is 122.7. My trusty 

Garmin reminded me quicker than my 

sectional sitti ng on the seat next to me. 

Dodge County always seems to 

have ome traffic. but I beheved that 

traffic there would be manageable. Fon 

du Lac is a secondary airport to 

Oshkosh. most likely with a lot of traffie 

there on this morning. 

What is the problem? 

There is a saying that once in trouble. 

the insurance company owns the 

plane so get yourself down safely. 

regardless of the outcome for the plane. 

Well, I am sure that is the correct idea. 

But remember the reference to my mental 

state at the beginning of this article? 

J was determined to get this plane and 

me down safely, at least that was my 

mental state at the time. I was not going 

to lose this plane to a lake or a swamp! 

And I "knew" that I would be fine. 

Okay, Steve... Now let's figure out 

what we are going to do. 

I was beyond Fon du Lac when I 

noticed 1 was starting to lose fuel 

flow-I was set up at about 14.8 gph 

originally on the cruise: first it showed 

14.5, then 14.3... 

I thought maybe I had a clogged 

fuel vent or fuel cap on the left main, so 

1 switched to the right main fuel tank. 

o hel p there. 

I thought maybe the mixture knob 

was not tight, so I checked it. It was fine. 

I gently and slowly pushed in the mixture, 

right to the panel-velY little help there. I 

went to the low electric fuel pump setting-a 

little help. but not a lot. I then 

went to the high electric pump setting, a 

little more help, but not much more. 

By now I am descending at 500 

ftlmin with only two minutes to 

ground-or water. All I am thinking 

about is this beautiful, award-winning 

plane getting hurt. 

I quickly set the prop and trimmed 

for best glide and the plane settled to a 

better 50 or so ftlmin descent. I am 

using about 10 gph. 

I checked the GPS. The nearest 

field is now Dodge County, straight 

ahead about 9 miles. The GPS also 

noted a large road or highway to my 3 

o'clock position (i.e., west of my present 

course). 1 looked out and I could see 

the road, and it did look large. 

Page 8177 

 


I called the field and asked about 

traffic and reported that I was coming in 

with a problem engine. My strategy 

would be to maintain as much altitude 

as I cou ld, fly to the field, and drop in 

when right overhead. 

I had decided that my back-up plan, 

if I noted that I would not get to the field, 

would be to use the road. I gave myself to 

500 feet AGL, outside of one mile from 

the field, to divert and land on the road or 

next to it if there was any chance of hurting 

people on the ground. The Dodge 

County field had two runways, four 

options for landings, depending on altitude 

and position when I get there. 

The winds were light out of the 

north at the time (l was then traveling 

approximately due south). People were 

using 02. I would try for 02, but no 

guarantee. On the way to the field , 1 

passed two avions in formation (they 

had to be slow for me to pass them in 

my Vy speed range). I had to go around 

them. Now I am at 8 gph. 

I got to the field with altitude left. 

spiraled once down to the 02 end. landed 

(with a few bounces, not my prettiest 

landing), taxied to the taxiway. started up 

the taxiway and the engine fuel flow went 

to 5, then 4, then 3. then 2. then I. then 0 

e 

oph-and the enoine 

e 

shut down. Wow! 

I was concerned for the plane, but 

cool during the event. After I got out of 

the plane and totally realized what 

might have happened ... Wow! 

Cause of the problem 

When 1 landed safely at Dodge 

County Airport (UNU), Beaver Aviation 

(the A&P shop) was closed for 

AirVenture. However, about the time 1 

landed. the owner, Chuck Swain, was 

returning with his trailer full of di splay 

materials. Even though his shop was officially 

closed, he was nice enough to 

assist me. A real lifesaver for me that 

day. 

We first looked at all the items that 

made sense for the problem, and were 

easy and quick to check: gas caps. fuel 

vents. fuel cells. fuel lines and evidence 

of gas leaks. Everything was in order. 

We then started to look at items that 

made sense for the problem. but took a 

bit longer to investigate. We looked at 

the lowest fuel point/sump drain wire 

mesh gas filter. It was clean, obviously 

not impeding gas flow. We then looked 

at the one-way gas flow valves in the 

wings; they were mounted correc tl y. We 

dismantled one and found that it was not 

impeding gas flow (as a matter of fact, 

the flapper was totally missing). 

We decided I should do a run-up, 

because maybe there was a bad vapor 

lock and maybe it was gone, given the 

cool-down time the engine now bad. 

When pushing in the mixture control to 

start the engine, I noticed it felt different. 

It gave very little resistance during the 

movement of the control. I pulled the 

control out to the idlelcut-{)ff position and 

again there was no resistance or the usual 

amount of friction I was used to feeling. 

I asked that we inspect the control 

wire inside the engine compartment (by 

tak ing off the pilot side lower engine 

access panel). When we looked in, we 

found the problem. 

The culprit 

The fuel throttle and metering unit 

shaft steel self-locking nut had loosened 

a lot. allowing the lever to move freely 

and not transmit any pilot commands to 

the fuel throttle and metering unit. This 

MS-21042-5 steel self-locki ng nut was 

the culprit. This nut had never been 

touched. and had come loose on its own. 

This single-point failure rendered 

me incapable of restoring proper fuel 

flow to the engine. The splined lever 

behind the nut had moved off the spline 

friction point enough that the cockpit 

mixture control wouldn't move it. 

We fixed the situation by using a 

lock-tight liquid on the nut and tightening 

it back down. I ground-tested the 

engine, and everything appeared normal. 

I was very thankful for the help. I 

took off and orbited the field for a 

minute or so, and then left for Rockford. 

I did not have any more problems. 

Postscript 

I called Teledyne Continental 

Motors and discussed this situation with 

a technical services person. The only 

thing he would say is that this should 

not have occurred (there is no torsion on 

that nut) and he had never heard of this 

occurring before. He was not interested 

in pursuing this case. If I wanted, I 

could check with Beechcraft to see if 

they have more reports of this situation, 

or I could have my A&P/IA submit an 

M&D report to the FAA. 

I have asked my A&P to order new 

parts and see if we can do a 337 to drill 

a hole in the shaft and then replace the 

self-locking nut with a castellated nut 

and cotter pin. For the time being. I am 

constantly inspecting that nut. 

For all my friend s, please consider 

taking the left engine access panel off 

and inspecting this nut (see the accompanying 

photo). Make sure it is secure. 

Safe flying. all ! 

ASS Director Steven W. Oxman received his solo certificate 

on his 16th birthday in 1965. He has since 

added Multi-Land, Commercial, IFR and Hot Air 

Bal/oon ratings. He is the owner af a computer systems 

development company in Lanham, Mary/and. 

He can be cantacted at 301·577-0527 Of e-mail 

---. 

The culpril: Arrow pomts 10 the MS-2 1 042-5 steel self-Iockmg nut that caused Ihe problem. 


 

Page 8178

Addendum to maintenance and overhaul manuals 

BY LEW GAGE 

Over the years I have come to the conclusion that, 

even though (he engine and accessory manufacturers 

have put their best effons into writing 

overhaul and maintenance manuals for their products, 

there are still a few procedures involved in both periodic 

maintenance and overhaul that are nO! covered. 

The following are a few things involving the overhaul 

of the E-series engines that I have determined to be necessary 

that are not well covered in the available manuals. 

This information is specific to the E engi ne, although 

some may extend to other engines of the same general 

type prodUCed by Continental Motors. 

The various steps outlined are in addition to all the 

official manufacturers' manuals. service bulletins and 

other publications. Many mechanics figure "Lf it ain't in 

the manual, it ain't necessary." And a great deal of the 

time, this would be tme. However, the people writing the 

manual assume that all of the pans going into the engine 

have been brought to the proper condi tion and dimension 

before the assembly begins. 

Not all of what follows is omitted from the manuals, 

but some that is in there needs to be highlighted--{)r at 

least included- to correspond to the other items I am 

attempting to introduce and describe. A better end result 

is my intention in writing this article. 

Do a bench check 

After the engine has been disassembled and the 

various pans that will be re-used (if they are fou nd to 

be probably re-usable by an initial inspection) 

are cleaned by standard methods, a bench 

check of the major components 

should be done. 

The cran kcase should be 

dimensionally checked and visually 

checked for frelling or 

cracks. Fretting occurs at the main bearing boss pads and 

shows up as what would appear to be a bead-blasted surface. 

The bores of the bearing saddles may also show fretting 

due to the movement of the bearing insens in those 

bores. This condition is caused by the through bolts not 

being brought to proper torque or losing that torque at 

some point during the previous service life of the engi ne. 

Although the through bolts have a required fit in the 

holes in the crankcase, it is not the dowel-pin effect the fit 

produces that prevents the relative motion of the two 

crankcase halves that would lead to fretting. The function 

of the through bolt fit (which would be a very sloppy 

dowel-pin fit) is simply for assembly alignment of the 

crankcase halves. The crankcase halves are restrained and 

held together securely by the preload or compressive 

clamping force applied by the through bolts. 

These bolts are, as are all bolts loaded in tension, 

merely very stiff springs and so must be stretched or 

"preloaded" to a point greater than the force trying to 

separate the two joined surfaces. Otherwise, the surfaces 

separate and the relative motion begins leading to fretting 

wear. This surface wear can be severe enough so several 

thousandths of an inch of the material is removed from 

both surfaces, and consequently the proper force cannot 

be reapplied to the joined surfaces again until they are 

made flat by machining. 

So if frett ing wear is noted at the mai n bearing surfaces. 

the crankcase will need overhaul to cor- 

II, I I rect that condition. However, if the 

, I I 

, 

case shows no fretting damaoe 

e' 

a 

check should be made of the fit 

'" 

between the two halves. Since 

• the case is cut about .007 on 

• each half (total of .01 4+1-) it 

is best to avoid this work if 

Page 8179 

 


the case checks out as serviceable by this initial inspection. Do 

a visual check of the cam bearing surfaces for obvious galling 

or grooving and, if they appear satisfactory, proceed wi th a 

check of the fit of the two case halves. 

To check the fit, apply a thin coating of Prussian Blue (a 

blue dye in a light grease) to all of the mating surfaces of one 

case half. Install the through bolts and, using flat washers to 

take the place of the cylinder base flange thickness, bri ng the 

bolts up to the speci fi ed torque. At this time, all of the bores 

through the center of the case should be accurately measured 

and all measurements recorded. The main bearing saddles 

should measure 2.5625-2.5635. 

Compare the cam bearing bores to the cam journals. 

Measure the starter pivot post bore. Meas ure the front crankshaft 

seal bore. Measure the diameter of the bos on the front 

of the case that aligns the Beech prop-mounting bracket or 

aligns the oil transfer unit of a Hartzell installation. This boss 

measurement should be taken both side to side and top to bottom. 

If the case has been cut before, it will show up as an outof- 

round boss since this boss is not made round again after cutting 

the case-mating surfaces. An out-of-round condit ion of 

about .0 14 would show one prior case overhaul. 

Inspect. compare. 

check. measure. inspect 

Separate the case halves and inspect the blue print left on 

the un-blued case half. If all mating surfaces received a transfer 

of bluing, the case should be OK in that regard. Compare 

all the dimensions taken wi th the fits and clearances in the 

overhaul manual , and if they are within new fit specs, things 

are OK there also. 

Measure the lifter body bores and check for spec. If any 

of the measurements show out of limits or the case shows any 

crack by visual inspection. then the case needs to go to an 

approved repair facility for overhaul. If all of the bench type 

checks show no need for overhaul , then the case should be sent 

out for a dye penetrant inspection to locate any cracking not 

seen by visual means. The four engine mount legs should also 

be dye penetrant inspected for cracks. 

The crankshaft should receive a visual inspection for 

galling or grooving. A dimensional check should be done and 

recorded. Runout is easily checked using a pair of V blocks 

and dial indicator. All that is needed is a sturdy wooden bench 

and a IO-pound piece of steel plate to attach the magnetic indicator 

base to. 

Measure the torsion damper weight bushings in both the 

weights and the crankshaft blades. If they meet new spec. I 

would not disturb them since there is risk of galling the bores 

for the bushings when removing the old bushings. If they do 

not meet spec, then the bushings will need to be changed. The 

crankshaft should then be sent out for magnetic inspection and 

polishing, or regrind (-.010) if necessary. 

Items to be sent out 

The camshaft and lifter bodies should be sent out for 

inspection and refinish. The hydraulic units of the lifter bodies 

are easi ly tested on the bench and do not need to be sent out. 

ALL STEEL PARTS THAT ARE TO BE RE-USED 

EED TO BE MAGNETICLY INSPECTED' That includes 

all through bolts, all special long AN bolts, all gears, damper 

weights. gear pivot posts and any other steel part not already 

mentioned. 

Unless the mechanic doing the overhaul is set up to overhaul 

the accessory case, I would recommend that the entire 

case (less the starter, generator, magnetos vacuum pump and 

fue l pump), as removed from the engine and still assembled. 

be sent to a shop that has been regularly and recently overhauling 

these accessory cases. 

Since the E engine has a relatively small oi l pump to 

supply a rather large engine, every fit in both the power section 

(crankcase) and the accessory case must be held to new fits. 

There is a great deal of handwork and fitting to be done in the 

accessory case to get everything right. It involves much more 

than just the oil pump itself as many mechanics might think. 

If they are to be re-used, the cylinder assemblies need to 

be sent out to a facility able to do whatever the owner or 

mechanic has decided. The options available are so many that 

a discussion regarding them is an article in itself and will not 

be covered here. If the cylinders have 3,000 or more hours' 

service, I would install new cylinder kits from Continental. 

Cylinders lead a tough life and new ones are hard to beat. 

Also, at this time one might consider looking into the retrofit 

of the engine with the now-STC'd IO-470N cylinders. If that is 

to be done, the crankcase needs to have the th rough-bolt holes 

increased to 112 inch from the present 7116-inch. 

Rocker arms should be sent out for overhaul- not just a 

rebush but complete overhaul. The shop that does the camshaft 

should also be able to do the rocker arms. The importance of 

these rocker arms being correct for long valve life cannot be 

over-emphasized. 

The connecting rods should be sent out for overhaul. The 

shop that does the camshaft should be able to do this work. 

New bolts wi II be used when the rods are assembled to the 

crankshaft. Leave the old bolts in the rods until a measurement 

check is made of the rod big end bore. 

All parts back in place 

Now we should have all the parts back from wherever 

they went and yellow tags hanging all over the place. That 

does not mean that we may simply start bolting the stuff 

together and have an engine we wi II know what is what inside 

of when we are finished. To me. yellow tags and the accompanying 

paperwork only say that somebody did somethillg to the 

parts. 

If the crankcase was overhauled (c ut and rebored), we will 

do the Pruss ian Blue check and all the measurements again. 


That will be the first time we boll the case together. 

After confirming that all the bores have been brought to 

the required size and that the case is flat at the parting line 

(blue print check). the main bearings should be installed in the 

case and the through bolts again torqued. The inside dimensions 

of the bearing bores is deternlined by direct measurement 

and compared with the crankshaft journals. 

"Plastigauge"-type measurement of bearing fit is useless. Only 

direct measurement by means of snap gauges and micrometers 

or inside micrometers should be used. 

Putting the case together again 

The third time we put the case together is when all the 

parts are put in their places: Lifter body assemblies, camshaft, 

crankshaft, starter gear pivot post and an extra handful of nuts 

and bolts. (Just kidding about the extra nuts and bolts.) 

The connecting rods may be installed before or after 

insta llation of the crankshaft in the case. Before installing 

them on the shaft, the big end bore should be checked for size 

(2.3755-2.3765). Then with the bearing inserts installed, the 

inside bore of the bearings should be checked and compared 

against rod journal size. 

It is very important that all of these bore dimensions be 

correct. both in the crankcase and connecting rods. The bearings 

are not held in position after the engine is assembled by 

the little locating tangs that are formed on the ends of the halfshell 

bearing inserts. Those tangs are for alignment of the 

pieces during assembly. When the bolts are drawn to required 

torque, the bearing is held securely by the interference fit of 

the outside of the bearing insert and the inside of the bore into 

which it fits. This clamps the insert tightly in place. si milar to 

pressing a one-piece bearing into a hole that is several thousandths 

of an inch undersize. 

It is also necessary to check the installed bearing insert's 

finished bore size and compare with the journ al it will be 

operating on to assure the bearing has the correct amou nt of 

clearance. Without accomplishing these tasks. we are putting 

our faith in that yellow tag and that the bearing parts taken out 

of the box are actually the correct ones. They usually are, but 

there have been accou nts of holes not being bored to correct 

size or not bored at ali, and bearings having the correct part 

number on the box and on the bearing but, in fact. not being 

that part at all. 

Assembling the case halves 

When the case halves are assembled, there is the si lk 

thread routine to accomplish and some sealant to be applied to 

the parting line around the outside of the case. A small amount 

neatly applied should be the Object. If you have X amount of 

sealant squishing out of the joint on the outside, there will be 

the same amount or more being left inside the engine-and 

that is not good. A lillie goes a long way. 

As an example, take two 2-inch square pieces of glass and 

run a 1/16-inch wide bead of sealer across one piece. Then lay 

the second piece over the first and squeeze them together. You 

will be surprised at how wide the sealant line will get. 

When filling the piston rings to the cylinders, there are 

two methods Continental has used in the past 20 years or so. 

The latest fits the ring to the bottom of the cylinder bore. I do 

not believe this method will work in all circumstances. This is a 

fairly new method. (See July 2001 ABS Magazine. page 6840.) 

The older method has the mechanic pushing the ring up 

the cylinder bore to the place it will occupy when the piston is 

at the top of the stroke. I know this method works since it takes 

the direct method of fit (similar to the direct bearing measurement 

method) rather than relying on several other factors all 

being correct. In any event, I would not recommend filling the 

tOP two rings to minimum gap. Just use the mid-dimension of 

whichever method of fitting is used. 

Checking the rocker arms 

The rocker arms should be checked for fit and tagged for 

installation on a specific cylinder. This check is done on the 

bench. A light coat of Prussian Blue is app lied to the rocker 

tip. The rocker is installed on the cylinder and the tip is 

brought into contact with the valve stem. The blue print left on 

the valve stem must be fu ll width of the top of the valve stem. 

If a print is only left partially across the stem. another rocker 

must be tried until a full width print is obtained.without this 

critical fit being correct. very rapid valve guide wear wi ll occur 

and cause valve leakage. Dependi ng on the severity of the misfit, 

the time to guide failure may be as little as 20 hours. 

When installing the assembled accessory case, center-tocenter 

(CIC) measurement of the dowel pins should be taken 

and compared to the CIC dimension of the dowel-pin holes in 

the accessory case. If the case does not slip onto the dowel pins 

without undue force, a set of joggled pins must be manufactured 

using the measurements to determine the necessary joggle 

in each pin. 

This is done on a lathe using an oversized piece of round 

stock and, after turning one end of the stock to the required 

size, the other end is turned to the required size after chucking 

the already turned end in a three-jawed chuck and shimming 

one jaw the required amount. All this is quite si mple if one has 

the necessary equipment and knowledge to use it. Again, do 

not over-apply the gasket sealer. 

After installing the accessory case and determining that 

there is proper backlash between the cam gear and the idler 

gear, a check should be made to deternline that the magneto 

gear pivot posts are centered in the magneto mounting holes. 

A close-fitting mandrel should be fabricated that will slip over 

the gear post and extend out through the magneto's mounting 

hole. Measurements are then taken at points arou nd the hole to 

the mandrel that will determine if the posts need to be moved. 

If the crankcase has been overhauled. the existi ng holes for the 

magneto gear posts may not have been moved to assure 


centering of the post in the accessory case hole. 

The shop that cut the case would have checked that proper 

gear backlash ex ists between the cam gear and the magneto 

gear. But due to the geometry of the gear positions, a case can 

be cut flat and not lose the required backlash. However, if the 

case halves are cut .007, the magneto gear posts will move that 

same amount and cause misalignment of the magneto drives. 

The problem is solved by (again using a lathe) turning the 

end of the gear post that inserts into the crankcase undersize 

about.100 inch. Then make a heat-treated steel bushing th at 

has an inside diameter so a .0015 press fit will exist between 

the turned-down end of the post and the bushing bore, and the 

outside of the bushing is .050 inch larger than the original 

diameter of the post. 

Then, by chucking the gear end of the post in a threejawed 

chuck and shimming the post in the proper direction and 

amount as called for by the previously determined measurements, 

the bushed end of the post is turned back to its original 

size. It is then installed in the engine and measurements again 

taken to confirm that the work of moving the post was done 

correctly. At this time, the modified post must be stamped with 

L or R and an arrow pointing up, since they will now only 

install in one position . 

The remainder of the items and work to be done is 

covered in the Overhaul Manual, the foregoing being those 

things that the manual either does not cover at all or does not 

cover adequately (in my opinion). 

One should become very familiar wi th the Overhaul 

Manual, Service Bulletins and any other sources of information 

on the particular engine being worked on. Also. some 

special tools, fi xtures and methods may be needed to return an 

engine not being totally supported by the manufacturer to a 

satisfactory airworthy condition- in this case, the E engine. 

One may be a first-ciass mechanic in general and highly 

qualified on one or several types of engines needing repair. 

Ninety percent of the work as a first-time effort by such a 

mechanic lacking expert familiarity on an engine may be done 

correctly. But it is that 10 percent th at is not quite up to par that 

will make a difference somewhere down the road. 

ABS member Lewis C. Gage has ATP muftiengine land with Boeing 

l07n2Gn47/Airbus-310 ratings. Commercial single engine land; flight instructor 

Mfl/SEL airplanes and instruments; ground instructor advanced and instru· 

ment; flight navigator; flight engineer; mechonic-airpfane and engine; and FAA 

parts manufacturing authorization. Flight time: 15,OOo-pfu5 hours. Lew may be 

contacted at 2255 Sunrise Dr .. Rena. NV 89509. Phane/Fax: 775·826-7184. 

E·mail: sunrisereno@maifsfation.com 

2004 BPPP SCHEDULE 

Bonanzas/Barons/Travel Airs of all locations, Subject to change. 

DATE LOCATION AIRPORT 

Jon. 16-18 Phoenix-Deer Volley. Arizona DVT 

Feb. 6-8 Melbourne. Florida MLB 

Mar. 5-7 Son Antonio. Texas SAT 

Mar. 19-21 Greensboro. North Carolina GSa 

Apr. 16-18 Fresno. California FAT 

May 14-16 Columbus. Ohio 

June. 11-13 Spokane. Washington 

CMH 

SFF 

Cockpit Companion course ovailable everywhere. 

CALL THE BPPP REGISTRATION OFFICE 

to moke orrongements: 970-377-1877 or fox 970-377-1512. 


[/irstjlfgfits rjSorfb8 verg fimoys /)irdS 

"I f all the industries that have propelled America into the leadership of the 

, world economy, few can match aviation for the incredible changes it has 

({) 

.' made in how we think and act and live. The events at Kitty Hawk started an 

evolution in human culture that will last forever. 

Something about aviation that turned our eyes upward and has kept them there 

is the incredible creativity of the planemakers. The history of the business is full of 

surpri ses-especially over at Beechcraft. Early in the game, they presented the 

aviation community with the fabulous Beech Staggerwing, a great idea whose time 

finally had comc. 

Beech followed with the introduction of Our beloved Bonanza, a one-of-a-kind 

design triumph that gave high-performance owner-flown aircraft a new set of standard s. 

Then along came the legendary King Air, a family of airplanes that created a new 

concept for corporate air travel. 

And here they are: Photos of the first model of these three very famous and 

wonderful airplanes. Enjoy! 

THE STAGGERWING 

The first airplane buill by Ihe Beech 

Aircraft Co .. the Beech Macel17, was dubbed 

the Staggerwing because its upper wing was 

behind the lower, a negative stagger. The ideo 

for it come from Woller Beech's high ideals for 

a four·seat business plane. 

First flight of the Model 17 Staggenwing 

was November 4. 1932. 

The Model 17F. with a 690·hp Wright 

Cyclone engine. for exceeded Beech's goals 

with a top speed of 250 mph. foster than even 

the top military pursuit planes of 1934. 

In 1936, Olive Ann Beech persuaded her 

husband to enter a Staggenwing in the Bendix 

Transcontinental speed dash. In that plane, 

louise Thaden and Blanche Noyes broke Ihe 

transcontinental record, beat their closest 

rival by more than 45 minutes and become 

the first women to win the notion's most pres· 

tigious air roce, 

Staggenwing production ended in 1948 

with more than 730 built. 

THE BONANZA 

Eager to capitalize on the expected post· 

WWII flying boom, Beech deSigners began 

work on the Macel 35 even before the war 

was won. The Bonanza featured a distinctive 

"butterfly" or V·tail, chosen for its aerodynamics, 

ease of construction, and for instant visual 

distinction from any competition. 

Veteran pilot Vern Corstens test-flew the 

first Bonanza on December 22. 1945. Modern 

construclion methacs allowed Beech to market 

it at one-third the cost of a comparably 

pertorming Staggenwing, assuring that the 

V-toil would rise to the pinnacle of personal 

and awner-ftown business aviation. 

The record·setting Bonanza, in its many 

variations, continues to be the most popular 

and probably best-known personal airplane 

of all time, From certification on March 25, 

1947, to completion of the final V·tail, SIN D- 

10403, delivered to flight test on November 

11 . 1982, the Bonanza and its Debonair, 

Travel Air, Baron and straight-toil Bonanza 

progeny established a standard by which vir· 

tually all other light airplanes are measured. 

THE KlNGA IR 

The first King Air rolled off the production 

line on October 30, 1963. It become the 

personal plane of Olive Ann Beech, who 

signed the plane and hod the interior and the 

instrument panel decorated in baby blue. 

Four decodes later, the plane is still in 

pracuction. Nearly 6,000 King Airs with various 

modifications have been built over the 

years. 

The first King Air twin engine turboplOp is 

currently being restored in Mississippi by its 

owners, who plan to have it ftown by celebrity 

pilots on a 'round-the-world goodwill tour next 

year. 


HO, HO and HO! 

BY JIM HUGHES 

By the time you read this, all of us, including yours 

truly, will be in a condition known in the military 

as "Panic Condition One Alpha." It begins the day 

after Thanksgiving, the busiest shopping day of the year. 

It is characterized by all of us frantically running around 

in shopping malls, credit cards in hand, mumbling or even 

talking out loud, chanting our mantra, "What am I going 

to get for ... ? She (or he) already has everything!" 

Well, worry not! If he or she has a Bonanza or a 

Baron. that opens up a whole new list of possible gifts, 

some of which we can explore here. 

First, and most obvious of course, would be to surprise 

him or her with a new Bonanza' I know they love the 

old one, but wouldn't it be nice to surprise them with a 

faclOry-fresh new one with that new-airplane smell? 

Unfortunately, Raytheon is not making the V35 or even 

the F33A or 55 anymore. but wouldn't it be nice 10 surprise 

your sweetie with a nice stretched, roomy, factorynew 

A36 or Baron 58? 

Just think, by buying a new A36 or 58, you can also 

fulfill their avionics dream s. These airplanes come factory-equipped 

with a to-die-for Garmin 530/430 avionics 

suite. A new A36 can be had fur just around a half-million 

dollars (U.S .) and a new 58 for just under a million 

smooth. You may even be able to get in on a 2003 model 

year closeout! 

If any of you are thinking of doing this and don 't 

have a suitable deserving relative or grateful friend in 

mind, [ could be available for adoption. [ don't smoke or 

drink (any more). but I do retain an old ex-Marine's vernacular 

for occasional colorful language. 

Now before you chunk the magazine across the room 

in disgust at my suggestion that you buy yo ur ignificant 

other a new airplane. just consider this: First, if you have 

even close to a half-million dollars that you have not found 

a home for, maybe you should ask your bean counter about 

the ramifications of ''The Jobs and Growth Act of 2003." 

I'm no accountant. so getting tax advice from me is 

worse than getti ng it from your hairdresser, but this act was 

put in place 10 stimulate the economy in the USA. particularly 

in the manufacturing seClOr. Quick and dirty, it allows 

up to 50 percent depreciation in the first year for investment 

in new equipment! In addition, it allows so-called Section 

179 expenses of up 10 $100,000 forthe year! 

Lest I get letters telling me to stay out of the tax 

accountant business, I will stop with the above tidbit. 

Obviously, 10 depreciate the new Bonanza, it must be used 

in business. Even after all these years and after countless 

lectures by my business accountant, I still can't always 

tell the difference between a Section 179 expense and any 

other expense. 

However, to those of you so inclined, an appointment 

with an aviation-wise tax adviser before the end of the year 

could result in a new Bonanza or Baron in the hangar that 

the IRS substantially made possible. But you'd better hurry! 

New avionics 

aturally, there's an abundance of new avionics out 

there to choose from. GPS has matured to the point where 

if you don 't have one, you'd better sta,1 thinking about 

getting one. There are handhelds for airplanes, boats. hikers 

and hunters. There's even a GPS/localOr for your pet's 

collar! (I understand the manufacturer plans to make a 

"Designer Necklace" with a GPS/locator so you can track 

your wayward teenager.) 

You want to know why you need one when you 

already have VORIDME that works just fine? Let me 

enlighten you. If you routinely ny !FR, air traffic controllers, 

particularly in congested areas. are beginning 10 

just assume you have a GPS on board. 

For instance, the other day on a night into Orlando, [ 

overheard a Beech Duke inbound 10 the Orlando 

[nternational Airport.(MCO). He was at 15,000 feet and 

somewhere down the road had been "cleared direct to 

Orhlndo." The Miami Center controller, who was very 

busy. then cleared him thusly: 

"Duke 5153 Charlie, now cleared present position 

direct MOANS, join the MLNEE THREE ARRJVAL. 

descend and maintain 13,000 feet: ' 

The hapless pilot replied, "Where is MOANS and 

what is it?" The controller: "It's spelled M-O-A-N-S. 

Don't you have GPS?" The pilot: "No. ['m afraid not. We 

only have VOR, DME and ADF." 

The Controller: "Sorry, sir, I don't have time to look 

up the radial and distance right now. Tum further left. You 

are now cleared direct to the Lakeland VOR (LAL), maintain 

15.000 and stand by for further clearance." 

By not having a GPS with an aviation database 

on board, the Duke pilot was vectored at least 40 miles out 

of his way into Orlando. 

I won't even II)' to relate the horror stories I've heard 

while nying into the northeast corridor. There is at least 

one intersection on the arrival into Teterboro (TEB) that is 

defined ollly by GPS! It has 110 corresponding VORIDME 

rangelbearing backup! There are more coming! 

I won't go into the rest of the lFR-capable features of 

the various panel-mounted GPSs in this issue. but do stand 

by for a very complete explanation of their magic later. 

WAAS 

By now we have all heard of the WAAS or the Wide 

Area Augmentation System commissioned by the FAA in 


July 2003. WAAS promises to lower landing approach minimums 

at many airports not now served by precision approaches 

to as little as 250 feet above ground level. For those of us 

who routinely plunge around in the clouds for either fun or 

business, this is a godsend. 

However, we won't see much improvement for some years, 

not until the Flight Inspection people at the FAA can get around 

10 certifying the approaches. Until more WAAS approaches 

come online, it's my opinion we should not be in a big expensive 

hurry to buy a WAAS-capable GPS just to get WAAS. 

MSD-attitude indicators 

I think the most wildly exciting feature to come out of 

avionics technology this year, is the micro-sensor-driven attitude 

indicators! This technology has trickled down from the 

laser-ring electronic gyros in transports 10 peanut-sized, boardmounted 

sensors capable of sensing motion in three axes and 

displaying airplane attitude on an LCD screen! Think of it! 

I believe this teChnology, once the FAA swallows it, will 

make the word "gyros" extinct. These are not gyros, although 

they provide a platform from which to keep an airplane right side 

up! And they still show the top side of the instrument in blue to 

match the sky and the bottom in brown to indicate the ground. 

So far, the FAA has not signed off on these AHARS for 

use in your instrument panel. Remember, in spite of what they 

do, they are not "gyros." They are Attitude & Heading Aircraft 

Reference Systems. There is no spinning gyroscope wheel 

anywhere in the system, vacuum, pneumatic or electrically 

driven. That means no vacuum or air pressure pumps 10 fail, no 

plumbing 10 leak or rot, and one heck of a weight savings 

when we can get rid of all that junk behind our panels. 

There are a couple of these altitude instruments out now, 

although the ones certified for panel-mounting in 

Bonanzas/Barons are prohibitively expensive. One, the 

"eGyro-3" is portable, and can be mounted (although not permanently) 

on your glareshield. 

A couple of issues back, I reported on Control Vision's 

"Anywhere" series, including the Anywhere Map and 

Anywhere WX. They also have introduced an Anywhere 

Attitude in which the attitude sensor can be velcro'd 10 the airplane, 

usually on the floor between the pilot and copilot's seats 

to provide AHARS-type attitude data to a COMPAQ Ipaqseries 

PDA. 

That brings up what I call the "subscription services." 

Most of us are already caught up in paying monthly fees for 

cell phones. cable or dish television, security service-and on 

and on. Well, now it has migrated to airplanes! 

The thinking pilot will want to subscribe to some provider 

of 1I.TEXRAD weather. The choices include AirCell, Orheorn, 

Bendix/King "Wingman," Blue Sky network, Garmin/ 

Echoflight, WS I InFlight and WxWorx. one of these 

providers are cheap. Most start at about 550 per month, plus 

some kind of "entry fee"or by-the-minute usage fee. 

Satellite receivers 

As long as we are subscribing anyway. we may as well 

enjoy it via music. sports and weather. PS Engineering has led 

the way so far in the pay-for-play arena of satel lite radio. They 

have received an STC for a satellite receiver that can give you 

60 music channels (that never get out of range) plus sports and 

news channels. 

Obviously, since you're already linked to a satellite 

receiver. WxWorx can supply you with graphic weather data 

on a laplOp or PDA. Just think, no more having to listen on that 

scratchy old ADF receiver! 

Headsets 

There's also the usual selection of headsets, a most welcome 

gift to a pilot like me who parks his headset on the wing, 

then kicks it off to the concrete ramp or gets the cord caught in 

the airplane door. 

My choice for the pilot who has everything else is the new 

Bose Series X that lists for about $995. Check it out on 

 

Or maybe you'd rather save a little and buy your pilot one 

of those great big "I'm A Pilot" wristwatches and a headset. 

There are several new and improved ANR headsets for 

between $600-5700. 

ABS Magazine 

One of the best sources for finding pilot gifts is right here 

in the middle of this magazine. Our advertisers fund part of the 

cost of publishing our monthly tome, and it's because of them 

that we have the most attractive monthly publication of all the 

airplane affinity groups. 

Company Store-golf shirts and ball caps 

In addition, the ABS Company Store has everything a 

Bonanzaphile can dream of-and even a few things they've 

never heard of. I particularly like the new Bonanza golf shirts. 

When J wear one on my infrequent golf outings, my friends 

are so envious they miss even shon putts' (At least that's the 

excuse they use. I miss my short putts because one of them 

always wears a Gulfstream hat.) 

What not to buy 

As far as plotters, calculators, kneeboards and the like, 1 

no longer recommend them as gifts. The FAA and their 

Designated Examiners still insist we show up for our checkrides 

loaded down with marker pens, circular slide rules. plotters, 

scales, compass roses, charts and checklists. After we 

have completed our various rating rides, we begin 10 shed that 

stuff. and leave it in a drawer or in the back of the car. 

If YOll look closely, you can tell in what stage of flying a 

pilot is by how much "stuff' he/she is carrying out to the airplane. 

That thought progresses until finally, when a pilot reaches 

the level of "Chief Pilot," ''Examiner,'' "Check Pilot" or "Senior 


Pilot," they don' t even carry a pen or pencil out to the airplane. 

(If they need one, they'll borrow it from the other pi lot.) 

Here's my wish list 

Well, thm's it: maybe I've given you and your favorite giftgiver 

something to think about and now here's my wish list: 

o A new Bonanza A36 with Osborne Tip Tonks· and a Gormin 1000 avionics SUite, 

GAMlluel inleclors' and a JPI Engine ono~e"'. Speedbrokes. 

D A Gormln complele avionics sloot including a GPS 530. 43O.GTX 330 Mode S 

lransponder. oudk> ponel. GDL 49 dololint 500 slormscope. Ryon TCAD 9900. 

XM slereo radio. (In cose Raytheon doesn·1 gellhe A36 reody in lime.lhe Gormin 

slack will work unlil delivery of Ihe airplane.) 

D A poir 01 Bose new series X heodsels. 

D A Gormin 2610 Slreel No~golor for my cor. 

D 'A Powertow 10 move my new Bonanza in and out of the hongor 

D 'Schweiss bi·foid doors for my hongor. 

D A new Morgan Sleel hongor. 

o A private airstrip to buils the hangar on. 

D A life Membership in Ihe ABS. 

D 'A new ABS golf shirt 

D 'The 41h Edilion CD ASS Reference library. 

Please feel free 10 buy and give me 0$ much as you wish. I promise to 

be a humble and groleful recipienl. 

I could odd more. bul as you can see from Ihe list.l"m a simple man 

wilh simple losles.llems wilh on oslerisk (') ore Ihose advertised elsewhere 

in this magazine. 

Best wishes for the Holiday Season and a Prosperous ew 

Year. 

Jim Hughes is the chief pilof, corporate aviation at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical 

University, flying 0 Citalion If. He 0150 heads Marketing and Professional Services, 

a consulting firm specializing in (fight fest and avionics integration. His ratings 

include both an ATP and on A&P mechanics license, with a long fist at type ratings 

from 80eings to Sikorsky helicopters. He has more than 21.000 hours. 

including over 3,000 hours in Bonanzas. Barons, Dukes and King Airs. 

p.s. Have I got a great deal for you ... 

While I'm waiting oul my sentence as a ' penguin' (llightiess 

bird) aHer open-heart surgery. before fhe fAA resfares my Medical 

Certi ficale. l'm working port-fime as an avionics consultanl for CE 

AVIonics in Sonford. Florida. a~sing jel airplane operafors on the 

acquisilion. inslollalion and operafion of RVSM equipmenf 

(Reduced ,>,erticol Seporafion Minimums). which is mandaled by fhe 

fAA lor all oircroH lIying between 29.000 and 41.000 leel com· 

mencing January 20. 2005. 

During my associafion wilh CE Avionics. I can arrange 

special ABS-member pricing for avionics and inslallalion in sunny 

cenfral Flarida. Ca ll me af 386·774-4518. 

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e life without 

NlcseBu !2!N~S~~~g ? 

How many times have you 

heard it: "Without an instrument 

rating, an ai rplane just 

isn't a practical means of 

transportation." With about 2,000 hours 

of actual instrument time, I would normally 

be the first to agree with that 

statement. In the Northeast, if you just 

hal'e to get from point "A" to point "B" 

on a certain day at a certain time, you'd 

beller have a rating, an IFR night plan 

on file, an all-weather aircraft, and luck. 

However, when taking a fl ying 

vacation, watching the inside of a cloud 

for hours can be a bit boring, especially 

for your family. An alternative is to plan 

your trip to take advantage of fairly regular 

cycles in weather and differences in 

geography. In fact, there is a lot of very 

good flying weather for most of the 

summer in much of the United States. 

First, the western half tends to have 

beller weather in the summer for 

aviation vacations. Visibility is beller 

with low humidity, especially when 

compared to the sauna-like conditions 

from the Mid-Atlantic to the Florida 

peninsula where slant visibility can be 

reduced to less than three miles-even on 

a good day. Hazy conditions often prevail 

well into altitudes requiring the use of 

oxygen. Lower humidity usually means a 

more comfortable cabin for passengers. 

While it is not uncommon for thunderstorms 

to occur anywhere across the 

country, beller likelihood of isolated 

"air mass" storms vs. frontal storms and 

almost unlimited flight visibility make 

the West an ideal summer destination. 

Consideration must be given to the 

monsoonal flow that locks into place 

over the Southwest by about mid-June 

every year. Very simply, a monsoon is 

a seasonal change in the wind caused 

by the huge temperature variations 

between land and ocean. 

In the desert Southwest. the semipermanent 

low that forms in the 

extreme heat of California!Nevada! 

Arizona tends to block any weather system 

movement through the area. As the 

heat builds and the low deepens, a counterclockwise 

flow of moist air from the 

Pacific and Gulf brings significant 

humidity into the desert states with 

resulting afternoon thunderstorms virtually 

each day. 

Frankly, J have never been all that 

fond of 110+ degree heat anyway, so an 

alternative to the 90 degree/90 percent 

humidity of the East and the triple digit 

heat of the Southwest was my goal as I 

planned a recent family flying vacation. 

The monsoon of the Southwest often 

does not extend above Colorado and 

Utah. Further, the area north of a San 

FranciscolSalt Lake CitylDenverl 

Kansas City line tends to be some of the 

least visited-therefore least congested. 

Every ntile of our 5,OOO-plus nm 

trip from Pennsylvania to California, 

the Northwest and back through 

Montana was CAVU. so I never filed or 

needed an instrument clearance. Our 

plan was to visit some of the more outof-the-way 

places often overlooked by 

vacationers. An attempt to complete the 

flying portion of the day by noon meant 

the first day's run from Harrisburg to 

Rapid City required an early depm1ure 

at about 5 a.m. 

One advantage of good flying 

weather is the ability to adapt different 

navigation methods. Most often we use 

airways to plan and chart our course. In 

this case, the winds aloft for the first 

half of the 1,200 nm leg were from the 

NNW at 15 knots. For the second half, 

winds shifted to the SW at about 20 

knots. ormally, we tend to flight plan 

along airways that are close to straight 

line. However, with a 90-degree wind 

shift along the route, straight line across 

the ground is not the shortest distance. 

Departing Harrisburg, we simply 

set the heading at 300 degrees and 

allowed the wind to first blow us south 

of course about 100 ntiles and then, during 

the second half of the leg, shift us 

 


ack north as the wind shifted to the 

southwesl. This use of dead-reckoning 

shortened the first day by about 70 nm. 

After two fuel stops, we arrived in 

Rapid City before noon local, allowing 

plenty of time to relax before an early 

dinner. The next morning we were off to 

see Ml. Rushmore and the Black Hills. 

Mt. Rushmore is an awe-inspiring sight 

when you consider the immensity of the 

work and the vision of the creator. Now 

it can be enjoyed from the dining room 

in the visitor's center with its f1oor-toceiling 

glass, good food and varied 

menu of more than just the typical burgers 

and hot dogs. 

We returned to the airport for an 

afternoon departure to SaIL Lake City. 

As i often the case. the local terrain 

caused the development of pretty 

impressive thunderstorms right over the 

airport. Gelling airborne was a mailer of 

timing the developing storms as they 

moved east, waiting for a clear path 

westbound. 

Following a good night's rest in 

Salt Lake City, it was an early morning 

flight over Great SaIL Lake, the Nevada 

desert (with its many restricted areas!), 

Lake Tahoe and a descent into Napa 

County Airport. Napa is outside of the 

Class B airspace for SFO. so arrival is a 

simple mailer of contacting the tower. 

The folks at IASCO (a training facili ty 

for Japan Airlines) are incredible as 

FBOs go. 

Napa Valley is a great destination 

for just relaxing in a kind of '50s throwback 

rural selling just 90 minutes from 

San Francisco. Winery tours, great 

restaurants, bistros and quaint shopping 

are just about all there is to do, forcing 

those of us from the pace of the East to 

slow down! (Can that be a bad thing?) 

Most shopping can be done at either end 

of the valley in the towns of apa 

(south) or Sl. Helena (north). 

After sightseeing in San Francisco 

and an overnight stay in Larkspur to 

avoid the morning rush hour, it was off 

to Crescent City, California, the nearest 

community to Redwood ational Park. 

The weather was severe clear, so we 

flew directly up the coastline at 2,500 

fee~ allowing a great view of the mountains 

and small coastal towns. Redwood 

National Park is actually a combination 

of state parks. a national forest and a 

national park and contains some of the 

only remaining "old growth" redwoods 

on the planel. 

Redwood tree, a close relative of 

the sequoia. garner the title of tallest 

tree in North America at more than 300 

feel. (A bit shorter. the sequoia gets its 

fame from its tremendous girth and volume.) 

Several drives and hikes through 

the forests gave us an opportunity to see 

some of the greatest forests complete 

with roaring, crystal clear mountain 

streams. The area is also well-known 

for its herds of elk that are oblivious to 

our intrusions. 

ext we were on to Coos Bay, 

Oregon. where both types of coastal 

areas common in the Northwest are 

within 20 miles of each other. There are 

rocky cl iffs replete with islands loaded 

with sea lions, seals and sea elephants 

and miles and miles of sand dunes in 

Oregon Dunes National Recreation 

Area. Several companies rent various 

versions of dune buggies and ATVs for 

use on the dunes. Watching a Pacific 

sunset from the dunes just north of Coos 

Bay is truly magnificent and a wonderful 

conclusion to our coastal trek. 

The locals from Portland don't 

seem to appreciate the view from just 

about anywhere in the city like tourists 

do. Maybe that is because for about nine 

months a year allY view is blocked by 

clouds and rain. The view is even more 

impressive from 9,000 msl on approach 

to PDX where it is possible to simultaneously 

see Ml. Hood as well as Mts. 

Jefferson, Adams. Sl. Helens and-on a 

clear day-Ml. Rainier. from the 

Cascade Range. 

A drive through the Columbia 

River Gorge offers the same scenery as 

that enjoyed by motorists driving old 

Route 30 in the '20s. Short hikes offer 

great views of waterfalls all along the 

river, created when the Columbia River 

cut the gorge more quickly than its trib- 


utary rivers and streams. If time permits, 

the drive on around Mt. Hood is 

worth it, not only for its views and 

wildlife, but for the chance to taste the 

delicious fresh apples and cherries at fruit 

stands to the northeast of the mountain. 

A brief stop in Seattle to visit relatives 

was coupled with a visit to the 

Boeing Museum of Flight. Again, we 

chose to land outside of Seattle's Class 

B airspace at Auburn. The veil over 

Auburn is 3,000 msl if you remain just 

east of the approach corridor to SeaTac, 

and the airport is easi ly spotted by reference 

to the racetrack, Emerald Downs. 

The museum 's great collection of 

military and civil ian aircraft is displayed 

in its huge single glass room, 

including an SR71, a DC3, one of the 

most perfect Spitfires I have ever seen, 

and a straight-winged Stinson Reliant. 

Admission also includes the "Red 

Barn" of early Boeing manufacturing 

days that has been restored to various 

time periods throughout its several 

rooms on two floors. 

We flew to Glacier Park International 

over some very rugged mountains 

of northern Idaho where streambeds 

and logging trails would have been 

the only practical forced landing sites in 

many places. I was glad the 520 was 

purring like a kitten. 

While first crossing into Montana, 

one of the real values of general aviation 

became apparent when we spotted 

a forest fire that had just beg un to flare 

up. Although it couldn't have been more 

than an acre in size, it was already 

crowning the trees and shooting a hundred 

feet in the air. Because of our high 

altitude, I was able to contact FCA 

tower and report the fire. They had 

received no other reports of it and crews 

were sent out immediately. General aviation 

may have saved thousands of 

acres of forest! 

FCA sits at the northern end of a 

large, flat valley where visual approaches 

are unobstructed, but turbulence is 

fairly common. Even though the airport 

is near some of the largest mountains in 

the Rockies, its combination of fairly 

low elevation (2,972) and long runways 

(9,000 feet) make density altitude a 

nonissue for a Bonanza. 

Glacier National Park is one of the 

most under-utilized parks in the co untry. 

More than 90 percent of the park is 

only accessible by trail, but the Road to 

the Sun drive through the park still provides 

access to some of the prettiest 

mountain scenery in the world and 

wildlife-viewing like no other park. Our 

[tfst day gave us a chance to see a lot of 

wildlife (bear, moose, mountain goat, 

bighorn sheep and marmot), but views 

of the mountains were restricted by 

smoke from several tires that later 

closed the park. 

Winds from the south cleared the 

smoke on our second day there revealing 

incredible views of the rugged 

mountains along the Continental Divide 

and their glaciers. Some hiking trails 

that abound in the park are quite difficult 

and only for the very fit. A cou ple 

of the trails we considered were closed 

because of grizzly bears. At the summit 

of Road to the Sun is Logan Pass where 

the visitors' center sits on a very large 

meadow stretching across the pass that 

straddles the Continental Divide. 

One hiking trail of about three 

miles roundtrip leads up the meadow 

and to Hidden Lake overlook where we 

saw a number of Columbi an grou nd 

squirrels, some marmot and mountain 

goats. From the view ing platform we 

could see Hidden Lake and Sperry 

Glacier on Gunsight Mountain. With the 

high altitude and dry air, we were glad 

we had brought along plenty of water. 

Another way to experience Glacier 

Park is whitewater rafting. Several companies 

offer half-day trips down the 

Middle Fork of the Flathead River. We 

chose Montana Raft Co. and their twoman 

inflatable kayaks. Montana Raft 

not only does a great job in whitewater 

trips, but also can outfit and guide you 

on packinglhiking trips into the park. 

In mid-summer The Flathead has a 

number of rapids rated Class I to ill, so 

the trip is fun without being frightening. 

OUf guide also turned us on to the best 

 


ice cream in Montana at the end of our 

raft trip at the gift shop/restaurant in 

West Glacier. $1.50 for a huge scoop of 

huckleberry ice cream. A neat end to a 

beautiful day! 

Our trip home included a college 

visit at the Uni versity of North Dakota 

in Grand Forks. UND has the premier 

aviation program in the nation for a normal 

uni versity setting. About 30 percent 

of the 15,000 students are in a program 

that offers degrees in aviation management, 

air traffic control, meteorology 

and fli ght education . It is not uncommon 

to see more than a dozen training 

aircraft in the air at once. And with the 

weather in orth Dakota, a student who 

can handle their cold, wind, snow and 

ice can fly anywhere! 

We traveled 5,241 nm in 31 hours 

with 10 destinations and clear skies the 

entire trip. Is a general aviation aircraft 

a viable aiternative for a long famil y 

vacation? Yes. The same trip by airline 

would have cost thousands of dollars. 

Two destinations did not have airline 

service. Four would have required hours 

of extra travel to include a reverse trip to 

an airline hub. 

Was 31 hours over three weeks 

comfortable for four in a Bonanza? 

Absolutel y! No leg of the trip was more 

than 4: 15 in length and the average leg 

was under three hours. We certainly 

lucked out in weather. But with just a little 

flexibility in schedule, this ki nd of trip 

can be routinely made in VFR conditions. 

If you fly early in the day, are willing 

to fl y around weather problems, can 

allow a day or two of cushion in each 

week and keep your reservations fl exible 

enough to allow skipping over a destination, 

you too can enjoy a trip li ke 

ours in your Bonanza. 

FBO GALLONS COST PARKING 

Central Il linois Air MTO 61 .0 Sl72.66 

Business Aviation FSD 48.0 136.32 

Jetstreom Av BP RAP 26.5 73.94 hangar/waived 

JetCenter SLC 53.0 155.29 waived 

IASCO APC 52 .7 136.49 waived 

Westlog Aviation CEC waived 

Coos Aviation OTH 52 .5 150.6B hangar/Waived 

FlightcraH PDX 17.4 56.56 S20/night 

City of Aubu rn S50 S5/night 

Edwards Jet Center FCA 42 .1 125.46 S5/night 

GFK Flight GFK 62.0 187.58 waived 

Lumanair ARR 19.8 53.71 waived 

Continued from page 8175. 

, "" ...... --- ------- - - ~-~-- 

, ; By Adrian Eichharn 

The problem is the "bolt-rope H isn't installed properly and the 

negative air pressure is holding the approach plate in place. 

The main purpose of the bolt-rope (yellOW arrow) is to help eliminate noise 

in the cabin by eliminating air from escaping around the door. I take an 

approach chart and run it along the seal during flight. If it is sucked in place. 

there is a leak. The screws that hold it in place can be removed and the boltrope 

can be ' wedged " deeper in with a putty knife to provide a tighter seal. 

There is a common misunderstanding and confusion as to which door 

seal does what. The green orrow shows the rubber seal that is glued to the 

door. The purpose of this seal is to prevent water from entering the cabin. 

and not noise. 

ABS member Jay Ledvina has been flying since 

1969 and now has well over 6,000 hours with 

almost holf of those in Bonanzas. He has commer· 

cial and instrument ratings, was a em and worked 

as a charier pilof and as a traffic reporter over Des 

Moines, Iowa, in the 70s. Besides his 1989 F33A, he 

has a Kiffox he built in 1998. 

ASS December 2003 

Page 8190

When the passion 

it can become an 

I DON'T KNOW HOW MY DAD gal interested in 

aviation. He come from a family that owned 

citrus groves and worked for an ourtit spraying 

pesticide. I suppose-like many people in the 

'30s- it was just the fascination of seeing the 

world from a perspective few others could. He 

soloed in 1939 in on OX-5 Eaglerock and 

become on instructor training Army pilots as a 

civilian in Pomona, California. 

As the wor intensified, he was going to 

be drafted or he could join up. He enlisted and 

ferried all types of aircraft in the U.S. and B- 

24s and B-17s to Europe. By war's end, he was 

flying C-54s into China over the Himalayas. 

After the war he went to wark for the CAA and 

retired from the FAA in the '80s. 

I hod my first airplane ride in a Culver 

Cadet with my porents when I was about two 

weeks old. But my first memories of flying 

were in Twin Beeches that the CAA used to 

check nov aids and IlSs. I was always pestering 

Dod to let me fly, but at 9 and 10 years old, 

0111 could do was steer around in the air. 

Dad started me on lessons in 1955 and 

I soloed on my 16th birthday in 1956. For a 

couple of years I worked for our locol airport 

washing and fueling airplanes but didn't fly 

much. I dreamed of f~ing a Bonanza when 

they would come in and pull up to the gas 

dock and I would get to touch them. They just 

hod to be like flying a lighter. 

Then one day Dod said, "let's go for a 

ride: and we drove to Corona, about a 30- 

minute ride. We walked out to a 1948 A35, 

and he said, "This Bonanza is ours. What do 

you think?" Well. you know what I thought! I 

went on from there to get my private, commercial 

and instructors ratings. Dad paid 

53,500 for that plane We sold it four years 

later, but I was forever hooked on 

Beechcraft-ond especially Bonanzas. 

In 1993 on old friend approached me to 

check his son-in-law out in his 1966 V35. He 

said he would trade me an hour in the 

Bonanza for every hour I flew with his son-inlow. 

His son-in-law lost interest and the owner 

said he wasn't flying much anymore and he 

would like his airplane to go to me. So I 

bought half then and about four years ago, I 

bought the other half. 

My wife and I use it to travel mostly 

around the Southwest. lost summer we took 

our longest trip and flew from our home airport 

in Upland, to Kifty Hawk, North Corolina. 

I occasionally get a compliment on my flying. 

I just I smile and remember my Dad, and I 

think, well,l did have 40 yeors of dual. 

-Gary Holden, Upland, California 

MY DAD'S PRIZE FOR WINNING a foot race at 

an American legion 4th of July picnic in 1927 

was a ride in a barnstormer's Jenny. From that 

doyon, he wanted to learn to fly. His opportunity 

come in WWII at Cal-Aero in Chino, 

California, in Steormans. He flew 25 missions 

over Europe in 1945, then stayed in the 

Reserves until mandatory retirement. 

His brother Ted instructed somewhere in 

Texas in T-6s and wasn't allowed into combat 

because of a heart murmur.They baught a Swift 

in 1947 with another portner. Ted and Dod 

added a 35 Bonanza to the hangar, then sold 

bath planes to step up to a B model Bonanza. 

When our banker repossessed a 0 model 

a couple of years later, they bought it and had 

a pair of Bonanzas until they traded them for a 

nearly new (50 hours IT) Cessna 31O.They sold 

the Cessna in 1968 when I was 14. 

I wanted to fly ever since my first ride in 

the Swift when I was 4. My youngest brother, 

David, convinced me to take my first lesson 

and pursue my license back in 1995. He 

became my constant copilot and started lessons 

of his own. After he soloed, we split the 

flying duty on my first trip to OSH in 1998 in a 

beat up Musketeer. 

David died in 1999 and never got to 

enjoy the camaraderie of this wondertul group 

of Beechcraft enthusiasts. Bonanzas-to 

Oshkosh in my J35 with him would have been 

the coolest thing ever! 

-Larry Gaines, Slacktan, California 

Gary Holden's 1966 V351hot he, his wife and 15-yeor-old grandson flew from Upland, California. 10 Kitty HQ'oIoIt 

in 13,5 hours. First Flight Monument in background. 

If you are a second or third generation pilot. you can submit a short write-up (200 to 400 words) by fax 316-945-1710 or e-mail about your family's aviation history for publication in this column as space permits. -THE EDITOR 


Aviation insurance facts 

BY JOHN ALLEN, FALCON INSURANCE 

Over the years we have all heard many interpretations 

and even myths presented to us on the subject 

of aviation insurance. Many of these views 

either miss the mark or are completely wrong. In an effon 

to set the record straight on a few of these misunderstandings 

that may be attributed to conventional wisdom (CW), 

we offer the following information: 

CW: Everyone knows it is better to buy low limits of 

liability coverage. If you do not have high limits, you will 

not be as likely to be sued. 

FACT: You should not count on the fact that if you carry 

low limits of liability you will be less likely to be sued, It 

is more likely that a serious accident will have the opposite 

effect and trigger much delay and legal expense, 

Plaintiff attorneys are retained to recover their client's 

injuries and losses, and it is in their interest to do so as 

they are most likely working on a retainer. 

If these losses are not recovered from your insurance 

policy, your personal assets are fair game. Legal expenses 

many times exceed the actual damage s. 

The best advice is to buy as much liability limit that is possible 

or at least affordable. Higher limits ore generally available for 

an increased premium. 

CW: Everyone knows that insurance companies will 

never pay you for the full amount of the physical damage 

insurance if your aircraft suffers a total loss. Therefore, 

you should insure the aircraft for the lien amount or for as 

small an amount as possible. 

FACT: The aviation insurance policy is written on a 

valued fo rm policy. This is not like the actual cash value 

policy that covers your automobile. The policy will pay 

you the insured value without deduction for depreciation 

in the event of a total loss. The app licable deductible will 

appl y, 

The best advice is to insure your aircraft to the current value 

including the value of the equipment and any upgrades. This not a 

replacement cost policy, so what you insure is what you recover on 

a total loss. 

CW: Everyone knows that as long as I have been issued 

an FAA ferry permit, the insurance carrier is required to 

pay a claim that may occur while the aircraft is flown 

under this permit. For example, a return fl ight back to the 

airport where the annual inspection will be performed. 

FACT: The insurance carrier must be advised of such a 

flight and grant an approval prior to a flight being taken 

under a ferry pennit. Otherwise, there will be no coverage 

in the event of a loss. 

Please remember that most insurance policies require 

that the airworthiness certificate on an aircraft be in full 

force and effect at the time of a loss or there is no coverage 

under the policy! This means that along with other 

requirements, the annual inspection must be current on 

the aircraft. 

The best advice is to natity your insurance carrier through 

your agent of an impending ferry flight and give them a copy of the 

FAA permit and the reason for the flight. You should get approval 

from the corrier in writing if possible before the flight IS taken! 

There can only be the necessary crew on boord such a flight. 

CW: Everyone knows that the territorial limits under 

aviation insurance policies extends to all of the USA 

including Alaska, Hawaii, Canada and Mexico. 

FACT: Read the territorial limits section of the policy and 

advise your agent of any fli ghts outside of the area shown, 

If you plan to enter Mexico, a special policy is required 

for the time spent while your aircraft is there. This is a 

requirement of the Mexican government and you can literally 

be detained, fined or be placed in jail for violating 

this law. 

Also, be sure the route you fly to and from the area is 

covered. For instance, a flight to Mexico fl own over the 

Gulf of Mexico rather than a land route may not be 

covered unJess the policy is properly endorsed. 

The best advice is to discuss these fli ghts completely with 

your agent, have the policy endorsed to cover the flight and toke a 

copy of the policy and certificate of insurance with you . 

CW: Everyone knows that if a pilot is approved by the 

FAA to fly an aircraft, the insurance company must automatically 

approve the pilot under the aircraft policy. 

FACT: This is not true! The pilot must be named under the 

pilot warranty section of the policy or meet any minimum 

pilot time warranties under the policy including the training 

requirements if any are required. 

The best advice is to get a pilot qualification form completed 

by any pilots allowed to fly your aircroH as permiSSive users. If you 

ore not sure they meet your poliCY requirements. ask your agent to 

have the underwriter review and approve the pilot. 

CW: Everyone knows you do not need to go to recurrent 

training instruction every year since it is not required by 

the FARs. 

FACT: Read and understand your policy with regard to 

recurrent training and know your limitations. If you need 

more training than the policy requires, find the best 

available. 

Most of us have listened to conventional wisdom 

from time to time and many times it may be correct. The 

best advice we can give to ABS members is to read and 

understand your aviation insurance policy. If you need 

any clarification, discuss it with your Falcon ABS 

representative. 

Fa/con Insurance is the agency for the official ASS insurance program. John 

Allen may be reached 01 i-800·259·4ABS (4227). Falcon's websile is 

. 


CORRECTION Our sincere apology to the family of the late Philip Rogers of Atlanta, 

Georgia. and to Philip Rogers of Manassas, Virginia. for our mix·up of their identities in the 

ovember ABS Maga:ine. The error was in the city/state listing on the page 8120 anicle, "What 

do you do when the hand crank won't crank," which Mr. Rogers of Atlanta wrote shortly before 

his death. Unfortunately, the article was incorrectly atu'ibuted to Mr. Rogers of Manassas. 

-Nancy Johnson, ABS execUlive director 

Oil filter praise 

Preparing to upgrade my BS5 with the 

Colemill President II conversion, I was a little 

surprised to find that the IO-550E does not come 

with an oil filter. Since I wanted the safety of 

filtered oil and the flexibility to extend oil 

changes beyond the 25-hour intervals called for 

in the POH for engines without oil lilters, I 

researched my options and decided on the oil 

filter adapter conversion from F&M Enterprises 

(888-317-5222). 

The F&M oil filter adapters are beautifully 

machined and easy to install. They fit directly 

into the previous oil-screen location and are 

torqued down and safety'd from an easily accessible 

position. They use a heavy brass ring to seal 

the tops below the torque nut and, as these are 

initially difficult to seat, they require retorqueing 

after 10 hours. Thereafter. they should run without 

oil seeps. 

The middle section, which holds the filter, 

wi ll rotate on the main shaft and may be angled 

as required to fit into available space. We had to 

re-rig the oil breather tubes a bit, but that was 

easy to accomplish. Now we just reach in, unsafety 

the oi l filter, change it out and screw on a 

new one. Great product, beautifully made! STCs 

are available for most TCM engines. 

Field approval was required on my 10- 

550Es because F&M forgot to apply for an STC 

on that specially-made engine. A sample 337 is 

on file at ABS Headquarters. 

- Fred Scoff. Jr. . Norlh Garden. Virginia 

Check your uplock cables 

We annualed our G35 about 50 hours ago 

and everything checked out as OK. During a 

recent preflight in pection. I ran my fingers 

across the uplock cable ends and detected some 

broken strands. Upon removal and flexing, I 

discovered that about 50 percent of the cable 

strands were broken on both the left and right 

main gear cables. 

It looked like there was some corrosion just 

inside the end of the swag fitting. Also con- 

,/~-=--....J. 

50 percent of the coble strands were broken on both the 

left and right main gear cables 

tributing was a poorly fitting cloth boot, which 

pre-loaded the cable in the wrong direction and 

added additional flex and fatigue at the end. The 

breaks were just inside the end of the fitting. 

Only one or two stray wires had popped outside 

to snag my finger. 

I can't find any record in the logs showing 

where these cables were changed, although I 

can 't believe they have been on since 1956 (and 

5500 hours)! I've put about 1200 hours on the 

airplane in the eight or so years I've owned it. 

-Steve Zeller. Alpharetta. Georgia 

Re: Looking for Avgas /I 

The article, "Looking for Avgas ll" on page 

8032 of the September 2003 ABS Magazine is an 

excellent treatise on the manufacture, blending 

and composition of petroleum fuels. However, 

the insert on detonation on page 8035 would be 

clearer with a little explanation. 

Detonation and pre-ignition are different but 

related phenomena in the combustion process. 

Detonation occurs when the pressure and temperature 

of the fueVair ratio reach a point where 

spontaneous combination of the fuel and air 

occurs. This usually occurs in the portion of the 

mixture ahead of the normal flame front after normal 

ignition has initiated the combustion process. 

This happens because charge pressure and temperature 

increase rapidly and dramatically during 

the combustion process as the charge burns. Some 

thermal energy is also probably added to the 

charge by conduction from the piston and cylinder 

during the compression portion of the cycle. Preignition 

is the initiation of the combustion process 

prior to the scheduled spark time. 

 

ABS DECEMBER 2003

Wilma 

In May 1998 my airplane was on the 

front cover of the magazine along, with the 

article I had written. The year before, I had 

represented all B models at the 20th ABS 

Convention in Wichita honoring the 50th 

anniversary of the Bonanza. 

Since that time I have flown this 1957 

T34B, affectionately known as lVilma. over 

a thousand hours visiting every state in the 

continental US, including Alaska. I have 

become a Formation Fli ght Lead and have 

had the experience of a lifetime. 

Wilma is a really swell dame for being 

46 years old. She has graced the front covers 

of other magazines, and I am enclosing the 

latest from the front cover of the T34 Association's magazine. 

The T34 in formation with me belongs to my dear 

friend , John Workman, from Muskegon, Michigan. John 

Wilma. Russell McDonald's 1957134. and John Waoonan's T-34 In background. 

and a few other close friends give rides to raise money for 

the Wings of Mercy organization as well as crippled children 

events around the country. 

-Russell A McDonald, Nappanee, Indiana, 

Detonation imposes shock loads on 

the engine and increases the thermal load 

on the cylinder and the oil cooling the 

piston. If severe enough and permilted to 

persist, the combustion chamber can 

become so hot that ignition of the charge 

ahead of the normal spark time can occur. 

Pre-ignition can also be caused by a 

cracked plug ceramic, glowing deposits 

in the cylinder or magneto failure that 

results in crossfiring. This wi ll rapidly 

destroy the cylinder, usually by caving 

the piston or burning a hole around the 

rings. On the other hand, minor or incipient 

detonation. if caught soon enough, 

can be controlled before destruction 

occurs. 

Detonation margin on type-certificated 

engines is established during the 

official type certification testing by simulating 

hot-day operation (I CO-degree F 

inlet temperature and maxi mum cylinder 

head and oil temperature) and leaning 

the engine operating on the specified 

fuel until detonation or instability 

occurs. Normally aspirated engines usually 

demonstrate adequate margins. As 

might be expected. margi ns will be 

decreased by supercharging, increasing 

the compression ratio or advancing the 

timing. 

My perspective, from outside the 

inner circle working on this problem. is 

that any fuel that can be introduced into 

the combustion chamber that will not 

spontaneously combine with the oxygen 

portion of the mixture at the temperatures 

and pressures developed during 

the combustion process will satisfactorily 

operate a piston engine on the ground 

or in the air_ In other words, burn without 

detonating. Of course, a fuel that 

leaves damaging deposits, dissolves 

nonmetallic fuel system components or 

corrodes metal components is not satisfactory. 

Use of automotive gas (MOGAS) 

per the Peterson or EAA STCs has apparently 

been giving satisfactory performance 

in lower compression ratio engines. 

This, of course, provides no help for the 

thousands of higher compression ratio 

and turbocharged engines. 

In the case of one model Bonanza, 

the model having an 8.6 CR TCM 10- 

470N engine, the original engi ne could 

probably be replaced with a TCM 10- 

520B with reduced CR pistons and 

operated at roughly 10-470 N power on 

MOGAS without airplane performance 

penalty. The engine would require calibration 

tests and possible reset of the 

fuel injection system and timing 

changes. Airplane cooling and possible 

performance tests may be required. This 

appears to be a lot of effort, but would 

be bener than grounding the airplane 

because of fuel unavailabilit y. 

Time will teU whether such drastic 

measures become necessary. Keep up 

the good articles. 

-Don Page. Mission, Texas 

Note: Butyl rubber O-rings. seals and tanks 

seem to be adversely affected by alcohol 

fuels. So car gas must be very closely tested 

for use in Bononzas. Barons ond Travel Airs. 

-Neil Pobanz. ABS Technical Consultont 


 

Page 8194

Navigating the ASS website: Hangar Flying 

SECOND IN A SERIES 

asl manlh we discussed Ihe ABS websile 10 

help you use ilia your besl advanlage. This 

monlh we will locus on the Hangar Flying seclion. 

which can be especially beneticialfor idea sharing 

and problem salving wilh your fellow members. 

To get to Hangar flying. click Ihe Membersonly 

lob on the novigolion bar ollhe lop oflhe ABS 

home page. Sign in by typing in your lost nome and 

ABS member number and clicking on Ihe log-in 

buHon. Then click on ABS Hangar flying in Ihe lisl. 

A nole will come up saying to use your ABS 

Fi 

Name 

Password 

LOG IN 

number far bath your user name and your password. 

Click on Hangar f'ying on the next screen 

(fig. 1). enler your ABS number for your nome and 

password and click on Ihe log-in buHon. 

These steps will gel you 10 the Hangar flying 

Welcome page (fig. 2).lhe Hangar f lyi ng area is 

supported today by sottware known as WebBoord. 

We will refer 10 it in Ih5 article as Ihe "board." 

Nolice that Hangar fly,ng has three seclions. 

(Marked by green arrows) 

A - The block navigation bar along the top is a 

menu of options. 

B -The left side is a listing of "conferences." 

C - The nght side displojS the current board function. 

in this cose the Welcome. 

A and B remain the same; C changes as you 

make selections. 

Before we go further. 

leI's get some terms defined: 

1 - A "conference" is a subject heading. Either your 

discussion item fits under one of the already 

developed conferences. or you should request 

a new one from Webmaster Peggy fuksa at 

. 

2 - "TopiCS" are discussions under conferences. 

You are free to add topics directly under 0 

conference title if it is a new subject. 

3 - "SubtopiCS" can be added under existing 

topiCS. 

All Messages 1ll..Nm 1.Q...ru1n 

W.;lcc,me to American Bonanza SOCiety, Stevenl 

3 

2 

ABS H.nglr • Adding paw confectnc" (3, 2 New) IilD 

ABS Hangar _ Em.!! Notification when n.w 00""9,, are posted (1) 

ABS Hangar - TIp' On Using (3) 

Ayltrall,n Bonanza Society (2) 

AylpnlCl _ Bonaoza Baron Trayal Air & T .34 (501, 1 New) Ii.IZ:JI 

Aylonlc. p.\tb .." - downloading .tc (2) 

Bah. _ flying In (9) 

Bah.m .. _ flying In (11) 

B.,ch B.con _ W,nt.d .nd for 5,1, (3) 

Bitch Bonlnll - C,bln V-ntllatlon (2) 

~.tJ BIICh Bgnlnll • Wanl.d ,nd for 5.1. (62) 

:j Bllch Plrts _ Wlnted Sate or Trade (148) 

Bgch Publication. (9) 

B98Ch TraY'1 Air - Wanted and For 5,1. (2) 

:tl Buchcra" C.bln M.lnl.nlnCl - tips gn clllnlnQ and refurbishing (3, 1 New) Iia::II 

Bllchcraft Englnu" Malnllnlnc, & OQl@tlon _ All Mod.l. (998, 1 New) raID 

BetChcmft Flight In.tructo(J (52) 

Btlchcraft G,n,,,1 M.loten.o" . Bgo.nz. B.ron T@y,IAlr&T.34 (1004, 1New) raID 

~ Bon.nzll tg O.hko.h (3, 2 New) raID 

fed.r.1 Avl.lign Regylatlon. (52) 

flight Simylatgr. (6) 

flying. Bon.nn Baron TrAyel Air & T-34 (306, 4 New) IU:I 

Formalion Flying (4, 1 New) IiIZI 

Full PrIcas & frllndly fBO's (3) 

Germany _ flying In (7) 

GpS Apprg,ch" (1) 

Insuranct (25) 

IdosIllaI (12) 

p. lm Pllgt Computers In Th, Cockpit (16) 

Plac .. To Fly (118) 

Nemaoolln Resort and Spa (Steven Oxman) tf2o&12OOl 

Save Albert Whined Airport (Henry Van Kesteren) 5Ilt12OO3 

KENruc;KYI! (Don l. Loveless) tI2tI2OO2 

" (Gary TRead) 812812002 

~ (Robert Sidler) $1212002 

Marcg 1.lgnd fb (Adam Ratner) 411812002 

Alaskg flying Trip July 7 to 18 2003 (Ron Vickrey) 411312002 

Colorado Ski Trip (Lany Olson) 212312002 

~ 

United States Yk9jn Islands (robert p dillard) l111at2001 

fBDs 10 AyokJ 4112/2001 (3) 

SCOttldttIe/MHR AZ (Adam Ratner) 3l20l2001 

• I 

Fig 

To view topics within a conference, click a plus symbol 

next to a conference name (or the conference name itself) In the 

frame to the left. 

You have 13 new messagelsl 

Thank you for using our board! 

.:J O'Reily WebBoard 4.20.82 01tt5-2000 Duk. E~ & ANodIItH, InC. 

.!.l W~".~dO'R.-y&~Inc. 

Page 8195 

ASS December 2003

Now leI's look at 

the main navigation bar: 

• POST - This allows you to post a new topic. The 

topic-posting editor (Fig. 3) will appear on Ihe 

right side of your screen. It defaulls to the topic or 

subtopic (i.e., rep~ to) you selected on the left 

side. in the Conferences area. You con then odd a 

new posting on the right-side screen. 

Key Word Se.rch 

.. 

Search for: Ipublications 

Match 

S.orch I 

Co All Key Words e- Ally Key Words 

Confilrences' ASS Hanger - Adding new conferences 

To limit ttl. "'rd!. Mt.et ASS Hanger - Email Notification when new messages ere posted 

.oifIo oo .....,.nouCP'_ .. nd hotd ttl. CtrI uy to ASS Hanger - Tips On Using 

Mltet mOl. ttl," on.) Australian Bonanza Society 

Avionics - Bonanza. Baron. Travel Air & T-34 

From: 

Date' 1 1 

Elumplo: 1 Stp 19Q8 

Son ordor. 1 Date ::1 

Results format: 

r. Standard ("' Detailed 

To: 

-4 ::J 

~ 

I 

Figure 

• REFRESH - This buffon allows you to update the 

screen. This helps if you think olhers might have 

recenfly added or updated motenal to the boord 

and you wish to see the changes. 

• SEARCH - This tunction allows you 10 search the 

ABS Hangar F~ing boord. The right side will have 

two areas in yellow boxes (Key Word Search and 

Oote Range Search - Fig. 4). 

KEY WORD SEARCH allows you to search tor 

a selected word. You can also specify a dote 

range. 

DATE RANGE SEARCH is the boffom box on the 

nght side. It allows you to search for motenols 

bosed on a dote by specifying a dote range. (Fig.S). 

You can limit both search fypes to specific 

Conterences. You con also sort the resulls by different 

oftributes, like Oote or Author. And you can 

request the search resulls in standard or detailed 

report farmot (at fhe boffom of each box). 

For standard reports, you get the conference, 

fopic and date list far the entries that meet your 

search criteno. For defoiled reports, you also get 

the author and the first port of the actual text of 

the entry. 

• PAGE - This function allows you to ·poge· or contact 

another user who is present~ in 

Hangar F~ing . The poge list is updated More OpUons 

every 60 seconds to show who is present ....... 

at the moment. 

• MARK READ - This allows you to mark 

some or all new messages as having 

been read. 

MORE .. . - ThiS bOngs up a list (Fig. 6) of 

additional functions available to you- like 

the obili~ to edit your profile and see who 

has been on the boord that day. 

• HELP (Fig. 7) - This provides information 

on haw to use and navigate fhe boord. 

• LOG OFF - This exits you from the board 

and bock to the ABS website. 

That's iI! I hope you use and eniOY the new 

ABS website! 

(dh Your ProDi. 

ad-rill Bgok 

M.llln.U" 

Emili NptlflClttg" 

IRP 10 'IMm 

19,'Q epdlA 

I 

Mlrk AI' Bud 

Today" Mtall" 

CgnttAn" prpfiln 

D ate Range S.arch 

From: 

Date' 1 1 

To: 

Eumpl,: 1 SIP 1m 

S.orch I 

Conferences: ASS HangM - Adding new conferences 

To limit "'I M' ICItI. MIld 

ASS Hangar - Email Notification when new messelges are posted 

"loIfio cordtltn_(p_ ASS Hangar - Tips On Using 

.1,,4 1'1014 "'I CtrI key to 

MI,d tnOrt "'.In onl) Australian Bonanza Society 

Avionics - Bonanza. Baron. Travel Air & T-34 

Sort order: I Dele ::1 

f lQ ure , 

Resuhs format. r. Standard (" Detailed 

Message searth rnub for publications 

Found 3 Messag's. 

Com-renee Topic D ... 

1 Beech Publication. Ordenng publlcptlon. 11/10I2lll3 

POIl,cI by. Sl, .... n Qxm,n 

2 Beech Publication. Ordenng Publication. 

POIl'~ by: R,n Vldu.., 

RAPID II; no 1,/1",11'1, oonUct for orderln, p,ftI: ,nd MMC4! m,nll.b: .. ' llY ottltl pllbtl ..... 

v·tail sfmcl!l@lm)'9n)y 

Post" by. Ron VI • .., 

J Beech Publication. 

Ac:ullibI, only by Manlgl,.. 

Edit your p,raanal profil •. 

Man.ge your address book. 

&Jbscrib. 10 tnaMnsI ~ SI' 

R,c.,.. noIrfiution of new m, .. egl •. 

Search Ibe use, datab ... 

Vi ...... u .. rs"""'o are logged In now. 

View u.ers who loggld in loday 

View ,h. top 10 users by IQ9lI'II 

v....... the lop 10 mes.age posters 

M.rk rww mllsag .. 's r .. d. 

VItW m •• uges pasted tOdlY. 

V_ confer.nc. profil,. 

VIM' , list of MIiIabIt bolfds 

II • dihRnI u.er 

Table of Content. 

WebBoard Help 

lpsMn Tacks 

Edj!tng VPI![ PI" pmfift 

lJndlttl,nding Conft'lnctl ,nd Mes"QII 

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p."lciPlljng l!ygygb • Web BmwliI' 

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P'g[DP OIh" W.bHp,rd VII" 

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l099!DP OIWtbBoard 

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ASS December 2003 Page 8196

REGIONAL NEWS 

Northeast Bonanza Group 

The EBG "Leaf Peeping" fly-in 

of October 3-5 was extraordinary in the 

Nonh Country of New England. Fall 

foliage was at or near its peak for us as 

our four Barons, 10 Bonanzas and one 

Lake Amphibian ("my other airplane is 

a Baron") converged on KHIE in 

Whitefield, New Hampshire. 

The weekend was billed as a twonight 

stay at one of the most beautiful, 

fully restored Grand Hotels of Northern 

New Hampshire: the Mountain View 

Grand Resort and Spa. Forecasts were 

typical New England: Wait a minute and 

the weather will change. 

Beechcraft drivers began arrivmg 

early on Friday in a beautiful robin'segg·blue 

sky, winds light and variable. 

The folks at KHIE were more than 

accommodating with airport commission 

members providing ground services 

unparalleled in the North Country. 

The Resort's Hummer H2 picked 

us up and by late afternoon, everyone 

was safely on the ground. tied and 

chocked. We all met in the main baLlroom 

for a marvelous cocktail reception 

and si t-down dinner where fun and 

friendship flowed freely-a fitting end 

to a great day of VFR flying! 

Saturday morning saw the procession 

of a cold front across New 

England. bringing unsettled weather 

and record cold temperatures. But 

Beech drivers are a hearty bunch, and 

we decided to press on with our "Leaf 

Peeping" adventure! We loaded into a 

bus for the trip to Franconia Notch State 

Park, site of the former Old Man of the 

Mountains. 

We visited the Flume, an ancient 

geologic gorge of unsurpassed beauty, 

and were able to walk the ntile trek 

through its glorious beauty before the 

rains settled in. We traveled further up 

the notch to have lunch at the Cannon 

Mountain Tramway, a modern tram providing 

a seven-mi nute trip up the 4.300- 

foot incline. 

On our return to the Mountain 

Franconia Notch Slole Park offered the NEBG group 

many breathtaking sights, 

View, a quick stop at the airport confirmed 

all the airplanes were still solidly 

secured, despite the gale-force winds. 

Those who planned ahead had made 

reservations at their world-class spa and 

were treated to a relaxing massage. 

Others enjoyed the indoor pool, and 

some sat on the veranda sipping hot 

apple cider or drinks of slightly stronger 

proportions before the evening's buffet 

dinner and entertainment by a local gui· 

tarist at the lodge. Awards for furthest 

travel went to Baron drivers Chris Von 

Wormer from the Detroit area and Jack 

Fox from the Virginia Beach area. Seven 

other states were also represented. 

Good weather on Sunday morning 

allowed everyone to make it out with no 

problems, albeit LFR in most cases. It 

was a wonderful weekend getaway at a 

hidden oasis just perfect for exploration 

by aviation enthusiasts. Check it out on 

. 

- Paul Damiano 

Rocky Mountain 

Bonanza Society 

Our Engine Management Sentinar 

was a huge success! A standing-roomonly 

crowd participated in the one·day 

seminar at Denver's Centennial Airport 

on October 18. RMBS members Neil 

and Jan Schilmoeller invited GAMJ's 

John (Weebs) Wiebener to enlighten 

participants regarding the latest in rec· 

ommended big-bore engine operating 

techniques. 

With special emphasis on fuel 

economy and long engine life, John 

made it convincingly clear that a few 

thousand dollars invested in modern 

hardware and software can produce 

big dividends over the life of our 

engines and make us better pilots 

as well. 

Go fast, go far-in either case. it is 

important to know the di fference 

between OWT (old wives' tales) and 

the huge amount of empirical data now 

available to Bonanza and Baron pilots! 

To schedule a seminar in yo ur area, call 

1-888-Fly-GAM!. 

Our Butterflies and Valentines, 

 


Southeast Bonanza Society 

2004 Fly-in Schedule 

FEBRUARY 5·8 - PUNTA GORDA. Fl (PGD) 

Florida Aviation Expo. Contact Steve Ktine 

(941) 575·2001 or Troy Branning (305) 

378·8669. 

APRtL 1-4 - CALHOUN. GA (CZL) Bornstey 

Gardens Resort. Spa. Golf, Gardens. 

Contact Oscar Persons (941) 388-2121 or 

Troy Branning (305) 378-8669 

JUNE 24-27 - KITTY HAWK, NC (MQI) 

100+ years of flight and no big crowds, 

Hang Gliding Lessons. Contact Troy 

Branning (305) 378-8669. 

Neil Schilmoeilier. hosf of Ihe Engine Manogement Seminar. Introduces GAMl's John ~Wee bs · W i ebener . 

AUGUST 5-8 . BOSTON, MA (LWM) Contact 

Richard Beede (978) 475·7343 or Troy 

Branning (305) 378·8669 

Mexico, 2004 trip in February is almost 

filled. Go to http://www.rmbss.org for 

complete details. -Bill Stovall 

Pacific Bonanza Society 

The Bonanzas started arriving midmorning 

on September 26 at Sierra 

Blanca Regional Airport for our ny-in 

to Ruidoso. New Mexico. By even ing 

on this severe clear ew Mexico day, 

there were 19 of them and 36 attendees. 

All were greeted with welcome packets 

and cool drinks and then transported to 

their hotel s. 

That night we met at the Pasta Cafe 

for a get-acquainted cocktail hour and 

a great Italian dinner on the patio. The 

weather cou ld not have been more 

perfect. 

Saturday morning we took a van 

tour that included Capitan, home of 

Smoky the Bear, and Lincoln. which 

remains basically the same as it did in 

1870. Drew Gambor, the local historian, 

decked out in early Western garb, 

including pistOls, gave us some fascinating 

history on the Lincoln County Wars 

and the Legend of Billy the Kid, new to 

most of us. We had lunch at Rodney'S 

Coco Cabana, which was closed for our 

group. Rodney prepared a special Fly 

By menu. The food was wonderful! 

The van tour returned to Ruidoso 

for a guided tour of the Hubbard 

Museum of the West featuring a special 

gun fighter exhibition. In front of the 

museum is a grand multiple horse 

bronze statuary, named "Free Spirit." 

Back at the hotel, we had a few free 

hours before our banquet at the Alto 

Lakes Country Club where food, drink, 

door prizes and great camaraderie completed 

a perfect day. 

We woke to a rare foggy morning 

in the mountains on Sunday, which 

delayed a few departures, but clear blue 

skies prevailed by midmorning. Some 

members decided to stay over for some 

extra time in beautiful Ruidoso. 

Everyone had a wonderfu l time, 

especially those visiting this area for the 

first time, thanks to the special efforts of 

our hosts, AI and Debbie Ackerman. 

-David Lister 

The PBS group in Ruidoso. New Mexico. 

OCTOBER? . JACKSONVILLE BEACH, FL 

(CRG) Sea and Sky Spectacular. Contact 

Troy Branning (305) 378-8669. 

DECEMBER 2-5 - STELLA MARIS (MYLS) 

We Hod a Great Time Two Years Ago. 

Contact Harvey Kriegsrnan (321) 725· 

9226 or Tray Branning (305) 378-8669. 

The statue ~ Free Spiril" in front of the Hubbard 

Museum of the West in Ruidoso. 


 

Page 8198

16-18 - BPPP Clinic _ Phoenix-Deer Valley, 

Arizona (DVT). Contact: BPPP registration 

office 970-377-1877 or fax 970-377-1512. 

FEBRUARY 

5-8 - Southeast Bonanza Society Fly-in. 

Florida Aviation Expo. Punta Gorda, Florida 

(PGD). Contact Steve Kline 941-575-2001 or 

Troy Branning 305-378-8669. Or visit 

. 

6-8 - BPPP Clinic. Melbourne, Florida (MLB). 

Contact: BPPP registration office 970-377- 

1877 or fax 970-377-1512. 

7-15 - Rocky Mountain Bonanza Society Flyin. 

Butterflies and Valentines Trip to Central 

Mexico. Contact Bill Stovall 303-670-2244 or 

. Or visit 

. 

MARCH 

5-7 - BPPP Clinic. San Antonio, Texas (SAT). 


1877 or fax 970-377-1512. 

19-21 - BPPP Clinic. Greensboro, North 

Carolina (GSO). Contact: BPPP registration 

office 970-377-1877 or fax 970-377-1512. 

APRIL 


Barnsley Gardens Resort, Spa, Golf and 

Gardens. Calhoun, Georgia (CZL). Contact 

Oscar Parsons 941-388-2121 or Troy 

Branning 305-378-8669. Or visit 

. 

16-18 - BPPP Clinic. Fresno, California 

(FAT). Contact: BPPP regislration office 970- 

377-1877 or fax 970-377-1512. 

13-19 - Sun 'n Fun 

MAY 

8 - Regional B20sh Formation Practice 

Session. New Bedford, Massachusetts (EWB). 

For details visit . 

14-16 - BPPP Clinic. Columbus, Ohio (CMH). 


1877 or fax 970-377-1512. 

22-23 - Bonanza Formalion Mini Clinic . 

Grayson County Airport. Sherman, Texas. For 

details visit . For details visit 

. 

26-29 - Bonanza Formation Clinic. Grayson 

County Airport. Sherman, Texas. For details 

visit . 

.JUNE 

11-13 - BPPP Clinic. Spokane, Washington 

(SFF). Contact: BPPP registration office 

970-377-1877 or fax 970-377-1512. 


100. years of Flight. Kitty Hawk, North 

Carolina (Mal). Contact Troy Branning 

305-378-8669. Or visit . 

.JULY 

27-Aug 2 - AlrVenture OSH 

AUGUST 


Boston, Massachusetts (LWM). 

Contact Richard Beede 978-475-7343 or 

Troy Branning 305-378-8669. Or visit 

. 

SEPTEMBER 

8-11 - ABS Annuat Convention & Meeling. 

Ortando, Ftorida. For more info visit 

. 

~ 

ORLANDO 

Ail_leaH IONANZA SOClUl 

SEPTEMBER 8-12 

04 coin 1'10 

OCTOBER 

21-23 - AOPA Expo (Long Beach, CAl 

TBA - Southeast Bonanza Society Fly-in. Sea 

& Sky Spectacular. Jacksonville Beach, Florida 

(CRG). Contact Troy Branning 305-378-8669. 

Or visit . 

OECEMBER 


Stella Maris (MYLS). Contact Harvey 

Kriegsman 321-725-9226 or Troy Branning 

305-378-8669. Or visit . 

TO ADVERTISE IN THE ABS 

MAGAZINE, contact John Shoemaker 

at 1-800-773-7798, ext. 3317. 

TO PLACE A CLASSIFIED AD. use the 

online form at . 

click on Markelplace. Or call 1-316- 

945-1700. 

ASS welcomes the following new ASS member 

who joined as a Life Member: 

Joerg Eichhorn, Germany 

Call ASS for details on how to become a Life Member 316-945-1700 

RECRUIT A NEW ABS MEMBER 

NOW! Hurry! Membership forms 

were included in the center of 

fhe Sept. 2003 issue. Sign someone 

up before December 31, 

2003 and you'lI be eligible for our 

Grand Prize trip to the Bahamas! 

Page 8199 

 


True Flow 500 TSQ'dandsTc'd 

Save on installation cost and panel space 

with Insight's NEW True Flow 500 Sensor 

Computer with GPS interface. 

True Flow 500 is a new concept in fuel flow computers. 

True Flow 500 is designed to give pilots a simple and efficient way 

of reading fuel information directly on the GPS fuel pages. 

True Flow 500 eliminates tedious installation and set-up procedures 

that are required for other fuel flow computers. 

Install True Flow 500 on top of the engine and connect fuel lines, 

GPS power, ground and RS232 RX input. There is no K- factor to 

set-up, no switches to turn and no jumpers to remove or add. 

Turn on the GPS, enter total fuel on board and immediately you will 

have accurate fuel information. 

Tr e low Faatur s: 

First fuel flow computer that does not use 

up valuable panel space. 

First fuel flow computer with automatic 

compensation for K-factors. (no calibration required). 

True Flow 500 computes fuel flow rate, total fuel used and transmits 

data through a serial interface directly to the GPS. 

True Flow 500 communicates with the GPS using well known serial 

protocols that are supported by most of the general aviation GPS 

manufacturers. 

First fuel flow computer fully installed in the 

engine compartment. (no additional equipment 

required, works directly with the GPS) 

First fuel flow computer to eliminate "ground 

problems" (common-moos voltages superimposed 

on the ground wire that reduces SNR of the fuel flow 

computer) 

First fuel flow computer to providing a visual 

indication of both power and flow rate 

(LED). 

Simple and short installation reduces installation 

cost to a fraction of what is typical 

for other fuel flow computers. 

Garmin 430 GPS Fuel Pages 

I:I:I!I;J + C VSN 

86' 16.01 1 3'. 

56.~ 29 2~ 01·50 

9.6 819: 0 21 

Call now for pricing 

905-871-0733 

Fax: 905-871-5460 

Web: www.insightavionics.com

Response Code )5 

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 

A FEW REASONS WHY OUR ADVANCED MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY SHOULD BE 

VERY IMPORTANT TO YOU: 

TREE TOPS, SHORT FIELD TAKEOFFS, AND THE ROCKIES. 

I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I 

When blueprinters say they can Qut·blueprint factory specs, 

their dirty little secret is that they're not really saying they 

can do it better than the factory. And if they tell you they can, 

then you should ask, "How can the typical overhaul and repair 

shop compete with the factory's $50 million computer-controlled 

manufacturing facility?1I 

FACTORY 

NEW 

ENGINE 

FACTORY 

REBUILT 

ENGINE 

MATTITUCK 

PREMIUM 

OVERHAUL 

· Out - of - the- box new engine 

• World- beating f actory quality 

• 3- year, 1000 hour warranty 

• Zero- hour logbook. 

• Factory replacellent parts 

Fits & clearances to factory new specs 

· 1-year, 500 hour warranty 

• PrelliUII Qual ity by Mattituck 

• Factory- trained & properly equipped technicians 

• Factory- backed warranty by Hattituck 

factory new and factory rebuilt engines are built under the same 

kinds of quality control systems as those used to build today's finest 

luxury automobiles. After that, we put each individual engine 

through a computerized checkout that ensures it performs to 

new engine specifications. 

If you want to overhaul your current engine, we have a factorybacked 

option for that too - a TeM premium overhaul at one of 

our Teledyne Mattituck Service Centers. You get the backing of the 

factory along with the experience and reputation for service that's 

made Mattituck the largest overhauler of both Continental and 

Lycoming engines. 

We know the mission our engines face and we have done 

everything in our power to ensure they successfully complete 

that mission. So whether you choose to replace your engine with 

{tis not that some blueprinters aren't fine craftsmen, it's just 

that they can't hope to compete with a factory full of million 

dollar, computer-controlled manufacturing machines. That's why 

they call them million dollar, computer-controlled manufacturing 

machines. These machines can fabricate engine parts to within 125 

millionths of an inch, or 25 times thinner than this page. That's 

a factory new or rebuilt engine or have your current engine 

overhauled at one of our factory-backed service centers - you'l l 

know you're flying behind the best engine in general aviation. 

For more information on how you can order a new, rebuilt or 

factory-backed overhauled engine, please call 1-888-826-5465 

or log onto TCMlink.com. 

what we call Ilblueprinting". Our manufacturing systems can 

simply provide manufacturing accuracy and consistency beyond 

the capability of the equipment in conventional overhaul shops. 

And no one, no matter what they tell you, can Ilblueprint" engine 

components like the factory. We back this up by ensuring both our 

CONTINENTAL MOTORS 

www.tcmlink.com·888-826·5465

December 2003 - American Bonanza Society

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