Insanely Exciting News 11/01/2011
Thanks to a great instructor (Brian), I soloed the tri-champ this weekend!
My rusty flying skills are becoming a thing of the past. Watch out Midwest skies!
(Pictures courtesy of Dan Sokolowski) Dan & Diane and Matthew & Amy were there to cheer me on. Diane was my first passenger (next to Brian) since I got my license. Add Comment Happy Halloween 10/31/2011
 (picture courtesy of Dan Sokolowski) Annabelle's all dressed up for trick or treating. She loves this year's costume. Hope you all have a Happy Halloween. Stay tuned for an insanely exciting post tomorrow! Hangar Updates 10/24/2011
I left the camera at home. Again. So I don't have any great pics to share today. It was a busy weekend. My brother & his family moved into a new house, and on Sunday Brian and I wrapped up a couple hangar projects. We now have Keith Campbell's loaned Waco glider model displayed in the hangar, so you'll have to stop by and check it out. Even more, Keith showed us a Texan model that looks identical to our Smoke & Noise. How cool is that?! We'll post pictures when I get back in town this weekend. Oh, and the tri-champ continues to get little enhancements. This week, its old red skull cap was replaced by a shiny new chrome one. We'll be flying in style! Hope you had a great weekend! Any updates to share? For Stearman Lovers: Radio Broadcast 10/21/2011
For those interested in listening to a Galesburg radio broadcast from this year's 40th Stearman Fly-in, here's the link. I'm one of the interviewees, and I talk about my first date with Brian in the Stearman. Have a great weekend, and enjoy the good weather!  The Leaves Are Falling... Already? 10/17/2011
 This summer has literally flown by, and this past week I noticed how quickly the trees are shedding their leaves. Brian and Annabelle are putting on their cold-weather coats, and the days are numbered in 2011 where we can leave the hangar door open and let the airplanes play and sun themselves for the day. It looks like fall is officially here, which means... pumpkin drops! If weather and schedules hold, this year will be the tri-champ's first strafing run at Blakesburg. How about you? Anyone planning some fun fall flying?  Quick Updates 10/10/2011
Not much to add today. A bit too windy this weekend to fly the Tri-Champ (at least for my conservative standards). So I spent the weekend cleaning and tweaking the Tri-Champ, and Brian and Matthew replaced the carbs in the Red Baron Stearman. Busy weekend on the ground but a productive weekend. How about you? Have a nice weekend? Best Birthday Present. EVER. 10/02/2011
 Still happy after a full day of flying! Brian surprised me this morning with a Champion 7FC Tri-Traveler also known as the famous (or infamous) Tri-Champ. It is the most fun, cute-as-a-button airplane, and we put several hours on it today... with how slow it flies, we didn't get very far. :) So, if you're in the area of AMW, look out for shy Tri-Champ 7551B, and you'll find my big smile!  Don't Tri-Champs have the most adorable landing gear? :) This picture courtesy of Diane Sokolowski while formation flying tonight. Brr! Cleaning Season is Coming 09/26/2011
 There's a chill in the air, hinting that the leaves will soon be turning color and the 2011flying season will soon wind down. Time to buy more cleaning supplies and prepare for annual season (which for us, lasts from November through February). Like usual, we hope to wrap up the Texan quickly so we won't miss out on any perfect weather flying days in the winter. Until the snow falls, I want to fly. So tell me, what fly-ins are left in 2011 that folks need to attend? Time to share! FlyIowa 2011 at Newton 09/18/2011
This year's Fly Iowa was a full Saturday at Newton with a fly-in breakfast, airshow, carshow, and car race - all open free to the public.The chilly weather didn't seem to hurt a great turn-out of thousands. Here are some pictures from the day.  We flew to Newton (in the T6) in formation with Matthew & Amy Sawhill in their RV4  An interesting WW2 John Deere tractor tank - only 2 ever created.  Amy and I claimed the best seats in the house for the airshow - Craig Sommerfeld's golfcart!  A flyover by the rare B-52 was just one of the acts in the airshow.  It was my first visit to the Newton racetrack. Very, very impressive setup!  We flew home in formation with Craig Sommerfeld in his T-34 Beech Mentor. We Are Baaaaack! 09/11/2011
We're back from the National Stearman Fly-In safe and sound and with very dirty airplanes. We had a great time, but there's no place like home. Some highlights of the week include: - A near-record turn-out of 138 Stearmans - Tons of other warbirds and aircraft, including a Ford TriMotor, C-130, P-51 Mustang, RVs, Yak, T-6s, Cubs, and a cool Maule - Swapping out a fuel gauge in under a minute (trust me, it was impressive) - Rod Hightower's update on EAA and current aviation hot topics - Completing the Poker Run and ending up with a hand of an Ace, King, Nine, Seven and Four - Making an admirable attempt at flour bombing (there's always next year) - Watching the airshow of some of the country's best Stearman acts (including John Mohr, my all-time favorite) - Doing my first splash and dash in a Lake (LOVED IT!) Here are a few photos from our week.  Flying over the Galesburg airport in formation with Dan and Diane's Navy 66  A name fitting a ride plane: No Bucks, No Buck Rogers  John Mohr puts on an amazing airshow!  60+ Stearmans flew out to the Wolford Farm Strip for a great picnic lunch provided courtesy of the Wolfords and their generous friends. | 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. 
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