BBQ Hangar Party for the Special Olympics 07/03/2009
 Several party-goers watching Red Baron rides On Saturday, we - along with the Branding Iron in Nevada - co-hosted a BBQ Hangar Party for Boomer (aka Brandon Zimmerman) and Kathy Dubanksy and 20 of their friends. Boomer and Kathy were the winning bidders of the first BBQ Hangar Party at this year's Taste of Ames auction to benefit the Special Olympics. After a windy day, the evening turned into perfect weather, where a few party-goers took a ride in the new Red Baron Stearman. And, everyone enjoyed the unbelievably tasty pulled pork buffet, courtesy of the Branding Iron. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it. num num... New Plane in the Half Fast Fleet 06/28/2009
 Courtesy of a ride by Mike and Jeff in Mike's sweet Cardinal, on Friday Brian brought home the newest plane in the Half Fast fleet. The Red Baron Stearman was an orphan after the Red Baron Squadron closed down a year ago. While the others had already been sold in an auction, Schwanns had held two back for the museum. Well, lucky for us they changed their minds and decided to sell off the remaining two planes. We quickly jumped on the chance to own one of only two Red Baron Stearmans remaining with the authentic Red Baron logo and paint scheme (all other planes had the logos removed upon sale). Stop on by to see the newest member of our family, and look to the skies if you hear a round engine because we plan have fun this summer.  The Red Baron logo. Only two Stearmans are left in existence with this logo.  N806RB: 80 for the number of kills the Baron had, 6 for the number in the Squadron, and RB for Red Baron (or, as I prefer, Rachel and Brian).  Despite strong storms (and damaging winds) on Friday and rain again on Sunday, the 2009 Quad City Airshow produced another great year of aerobatic greats, such as the Blue Angels (with the ever lovable Fat Albert), an A-10 Warthog, a Harrier Jet, Otto the aerobatic helicopter, Mike Wiskus, Kyle Franklin, and the unbelievably awesome John Mohr. Heck, even a jet school bus as well as a jet outhouse joined the show. With that kind of variety, every one of us had a different favorite... from Duane's love of the Harrier to Brian's analyis (and awe) of John Mohr. My favorites changes like my mood, but this year I really enjoyed the air-to-air wingwalker (it was either Kyle Franklin or Todd Green) transfer from John Mohr's stock Stearman to Otto's helicopter. Even in the sweltering 90+ degree humidity, it looked like several tens of thousands enjoyed the show.  Otto, the wild helicopter, racing the jet-powered outhouse... and winning First Airshow of the Year 06/18/2009
Tonight we're getting the Texan ready and packing up for the Quad Cities Air Show this weekend (Saturday and Sunday shows). Weather permitting, we'll be hanging out in the warbird area the entire weekend. Stop by - we'd loved to see ya! Stinson Paint Scheme Has Been Approved 06/15/2009
 We've settled on a paint scheme for the Stinson after we get it restored... it will be pink (like I wanted) with a military scheme (like Brian wanted). Brian and his brother Travis realized the two ideas fit together nicely when they saw the desert pink P-40 at the Airzoo recently. If you look closely, the teeth have full lips and the eyes are complemented with long, pretty lashes. With a complete restoration ahead of us, it will be several years before you'll see Pinky in the air, but we'll keep you posted.  Nose Art on Sue Parish's P-40 Yard Art for Aviators 06/09/2009
 Setting the prop onto the concrete support What to get that special someone who happens to be an aviation fanatic? Prop yard art, of course! The DC4 prop is the latest addition to the Half Fast Hangar. Thanks to help from a few volunteers and Ray Robinson's welding expertise & truck, the 1,000 pound yard art has found a new home at the Ames airport. If you drive by and catch sight of the 6+ foot long blades, stop by for a visit.  Jeff Bryant, Ray Robinson, and Brian Memorial Weekend Hangar Flying 05/27/2009
 Brian at the Yard Art project Aside from the Sully Memorial Day Breakfast Fly-In (which was great but as usual - I forgot to bring my camera), we remained land lubbers most the weekend, taking time to work on various projects around the hangar. Brian and Jeff have been busy covering the interior walls with tin, but they took a break to work on our "yard art" project - laying the concrete for the (very heavy) DC-4 prop Keith Campbell donated. By next week or so we'll have pictures of the completed project for you. My First Airplane 05/12/2009
 Yep, it's true. I am now the proud owner of my very own airplane. This past week Brian, Sparky, and Duane picked up my "brand new" Stinson 108. It's a little rough around the edges (what do you expect for $100 price tag?), but incredibly the engine still runs! This is a picture of the 108 in front of the corn crib that it called home for the past 25 years. With a lot of elbow grease and a little bit of magic, you'll see a desert pink Stinson 108 dancing across the Iowa skies. Ideas for Mothers Day 05/07/2009
 Weather is forecasted to be perfect for flying this weekend... which means the Pella fly-in breakfast Saturday morning should be a full-tarmac. If you fly (or drive) to Pella, it's safe bet you'll see plenty of colorful tulips and parades of people in wooden shoes. Toolin' Around Ames 04/30/2009
 Now that the weather is warm (albeit a tad soggy), we can fly a lot more often. And with the 2009 fly-in season already begun, it's impossible not to find a good excuse to go for a flight. The weather for this coming weekend looks promising, which is good news for the Young Eagles Rally in Waterloo Saturday morning. | Welcome to our virtual hangar Authors Brian and Rachel Aukes are aviation nuts based in Iowa. ArchivesJune 2009 |
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