March 2003 - American Bonanza Society

Columbia mission specialistloved his BonanzaDavid Brown, fallen NASA astronaut, wasa very special friend. I met Dave in the summerof 1995 when he flew into Ennis, Texas, in aBonanza he had purchased out of Florida. Asan ABS member. he had called the Society fora list of shops to refurbish his 1956 035. Ourname was on the list.Dave was a Navy pilot at that time, stationedat Fallon, Nevada. After he chose us forthe refurb job, we developed a great workingand fami ly relationship. He wou ld come by asoften as he could to help on the project. Heloved it! He was very mechanically and technicallyastute. and loved work ing on the aircmft.When anyone would ask Dave what he didfor a living, he would answer shyly, "Well, Iwork for NASA." That was his unassuming way.Dave fl ew everything from F-18s to T-38s, but hi s favori te was the V-tail. He flew itDavid at work on his G35 restoration projecl.David Brown in N42810, his restored 1956 G35.many times between Houston and Arlington,Virginia to visit his family. One September weinvited Dave to go dove hunting but he turnedus down. His reason? He said he felt as thoughhe shared the sky with the birds, so he shouldstay on friendly terms with creatures of the sky.Dave's beloved Bonanza-over manyhours and much labor-went through a majormetamorphosis with the addit ion of new windaws,antennas and instrumentpane l. There also was acomplete new interior by Philand Nancy Trichler, and ashiny new paint job byFrancis and Frank Poplawskiof Ennis.Dave was right in thereworking with us too, elbow toelbow, down and diny, everymoment he could get awayfrom pi lot training. a doubtabout it-he loved hisBonanza!-Gary Hommock, Ennis, TexasTop Canadian mechanicI recently bought a 135 and joined the ABS .I thoroughly enjoy read ing the anicles in theABS Magaoille and commend you for a job welldone. (You must hear that all the time and youdeserve it.)I would like 10 pass on a lead for any visitorsto eastern Canada, especially in the Ottawaarea. My mechanic, Harley Melnick at theOttawa Flying Club, is exceptional. He'sextremely knowledgeable and does a very thoroughjob getting me back in the air safely. Hevery patiently spends time explain ing what he isdoing and he encourages me to get involved.Two of Harley's best traits are his innovativeness and resourcefulness. Since my 135 hadspent all of her time in the US south, she wasn'tused to the Canadian winter. On the first coldday, my ignition sw itch wouldn't work. I ge ntl yplayed with it for about \0 minutes until I final ­ly got it 10 tum. Afler 20 minutes of flying , itworked perfectly. So I asked Harley 10 look intoreplacing the switch.Harley contacted a few suppliers and quick·Iy came back with the bad news: It would beover $1,000 to replace. He suggested I invest$20 in a ceramic heater and try wamling thecockpit for 20 minutes before try ing the switch.ABS March 2003