Bob Hoover continues to prove to the world why he's an ace: http://blog.al.com/live/2012/02/vintage_fighter_plane_lands_sa.html
Martha Matthews shared a link to some pretty cool aviator stamps, and I thought I'd pass along the share for any scrapbookers or rubber-stamp collectors out there: http://www.artisticoutpost.com/newcham.html 
Brian and I are recuperating from a weekend of hangar spring cleaning and opening up the hangar for a local party (pre-event picture below). It was a productive weekend, and we met some great new folks, although I think our ole bodies could use an extra day of R&R. Alright, trivia of the day: Can you find all three airplanes in the picture below? 
Still under the winter blanket, we spend more time reminiscing about fly-ins than actual flying. Here are some unique photos Jim Pippert shared from the National Antique Fly-In in Blakesburg. Enjoy! 
The compass card reads, "hen house faces south". Finally, a compass card we can all understand!
a creative protection for a cowl (or airplane alarm system)
With much help from the Sokolowskis and Matthew, the Champ has its wings back on! Under a freshly painted patch sits a shiny new gas tank with a Ford Model A gas gauge (that's what they used in Tri-Champs). Much of the airplane is sporting new wiring and new upholstery is on the way. Plenty more little things are being done to make the Champ as reliable as possible (as well as cleaning on the other planes), but I won't bore you with details. Oh, and one of the highlights of the weekend was most definitely a tasty, spur-of-the-moment biscuits-n-gravy breakfast courtesy of W&C Aircraft Works in Boone. Stay warm!!! Marty Metzgar shared a link with some beautiful photos of the B-17 Aluminum Overcast in flight. If you'd like to see all the photos by Bernard Zee of this old bomber, visit here. 
This Ghost Grey article contains the story and pictures behind a modification to transport booze to bases. Hmm... gives us ideas about the Texan. I'm not sure the tri-champ (our little supply plane) could support full kegs. 
Annual inspection/restoration of the tri-champ continue (Brian's renamed it to "Patches"). We took a break last night to take part in the new national holiday: the Superbowl. Every year we get together with a few friends to eat too much and enjoy the game. But, I don't go to watch the game (I had to ask Brian this week who was playing). I go to watch the commercials. And, this year was a solid year. A few really caught me: loved the Doritos missing kitty, the Chevy apocalypse, and especially the dead-by-headlights vampires. How about you? What was your favorite Superbowl commercial?  Dale Snodgrass giving a new definition to the LOW pass (or as Matthew pointed out, nice Comanche) | 
Welcome to our virtual hangar Authors Brian and Rachel Aukes are aviation nuts based in Iowa. They love to fly, and when the weather keeps them on the ground, they love to talk about flying. When they aren't in the air, Brian keeps the airplanes running while Rachel cleans them and keeps this website running. ArchivesApril 2013 |
RSS Feed