DOPE SHEET CHAPTER 13. EAA AirVenture September Speakers FOR 63 YEARS THE NEWSLETTER OF. Volume 63 Number 8 website: EAACHAPTER13.

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1 DOPE SHEET FOR 63 YEARS THE NEWSLETTER OF CHAPTER 13 OF THE EXPERIMENTAL AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION SERVING SPORT AVIATION IN THE DETROIT AREA Volume 63 Number 8 website: EAACHAPTER13.ORG September 2018 September Speakers EAA AirVenture 2018 There will be no formal presentation at the September regular meeting. However, we will hear from the two Chapter #13 sponsored Air Academy Cadets about their experience at AirVenture, Oshkosh Please be with us to welcome the fellows home, and to hear what they have to say about what they observed and accomplished. OSHKOSH, Wis.: EAA AirVenture 2018 is now in the books, and Action 2 News reported the following attendance numbers: By the Numbers AirVenture officials say about 601,000 people were on the grounds throughout the week, a nearly two percent increase from 2017's record of about 590,000 people. More than 10,000 aircraft arrived at Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh and other airports in east-central Wisconsin this last week. Total show-planes came in at 2,979, 1,160 home-built aircraft, 1,094 vintage airplanes, 377 war-birds, 185 ultra-lights and light-sport aircraft, 75 seaplanes, 22 rotorcraft, 52 aerobatic aircraft, 14 hot air balloons. Randall Novak Mark Mancuso The estimated economic impact the show brought to five counties in Northeast Wisconsin totaled $170 million, that's based on the 2017 University of Wisconsin Oshkosh economic impact study. Of course we will be attending to the regular business of the Chapter. And, this September that includes opening the floor to nominations for Chapter Officers. Wow, those two years sure go by fast when you re having fun. Ed A record 2,714 visitors registered from 87 nations. The top countries represented included Canada (538 visitors), Australia (386) and South Africa (277). Next year the air show will be celebrating its 50th consecutive year in Oshkosh. If you missed it, you missed a lot. REGULAR MEETINGS 1ST Thursday of Each Month DeHavilland Mosquito Our regular meeting place is Ray Community Airport, in the Chapter #13 hangar (#304) located on the Northeast corner of the field. The address is Indian Trail. Meeting time is 7:30pm to 10pm. Burgers and dogs are available for a donation between 6:30 and 7:30pm. -1-

2 EAA Chapter #13 Officers President Rex Phelps Vice President Mike Fisher Treasurer Steve Greene Secretary Cliff Durand Newsletter Editor Tom Vukonich Asst News Editor Bill Appleberry Web Site Manager Carol Lynn Tech Counselor Bob Hunt Tech Counselor Ron Walters Tech Counselor Chuck Valade Young Eagle Coord Dennis Glaeser Building and Grnds Pete Dugdale Chapter Calendar 2018 Sept 6 Regular Meeting* 7:30-10 pm 9 Young Eagles 9 am-2pm 13 Officers Meeting** 7:30 pm Michigan Air Tour Page 5 Oct 4 Regular Meeting* 7:30-10 pm 6 Young Eagles 9 am-2pm 11 Officers Meeting** 7:30 pm Nov 1 Regular Meeting* 7:30-10 pm 8 Officers Meeting** 7:30 pm *All Regular Meetings (not all are listed) will have a premeeting Bar-B-Q/Setup that starts at 6:30 pm. **Officers Meetings are normally held the 2nd Thursday of each month, in President Rex Phelps s hangar, 420C. So, What Can You do at Oshkosh? The Options are Limitless. Well, we certainly can t give you the full picture. But here is what Bill Appleberry and I did during our four day stay. We started by volunteering to be a driver/ conductor team for the Tram service for three days. That s Bill way up front there. (Serving on another tram were Mike and Jane Fisher.) Bill and I have been a team for six years now. It s a fun job. So, what can you do in one day? Here s our list. We visited the Replica Fighter Association for a look at the well publicized Bally Bomber. This is a 1/3 scale B-17 bomber, powered by four Hirth engines and built by Jack Bally from a set of 1/9 scale modeler s plans. While driving the Tram I overheard a number of people refer to it as a large model aircraft. Not so I corrected them. That is an operational aircraft, There s a guy in there and he flew the craft into AirVenture to be displayed here. They were astonished. I wonder if the plane won the annual Dead Grass award? Next we moved on to the display of WW-I aircraft. They were there to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the close of the war in November of This was right down my alley. I, of course, photographed them all, but there isn t enough room in the Newsletter to show them. Here are a couple of them to give you a -2-

3 What to do at AirVenture (cont) flavor of the display. Here s a picture of the plaque on the wall explaining the historical purpose of the station. I expected to see fighters of this era, but I was surprised and delighted to find a DeHavilland DH-4 in their midst. I met two of the three fellows who built her. We spoke at length and they invited me to step up into the cockpit. Be still my heart. You can see me gloating in the photo at the right. Where else but AirVenture could an opportunity like this become available? Next we moved on to see the vintage and operational HAM Radio Shop at KidVenture We had heard last year that they had an operating HAM Radio Shop, but didn t get a chance to check it out. You see, I like DH-4s and Bill Appleberry is a top level Ham Radio Operator. Here s what we found, much more than we expected. Just like Henry Ford and Greenfield Village, this historic relic was brought to KidVenture, where it continues to function as it has for the last 90 years. At left is the station. And below is a shot of Bill exchanging notes with the s t a t i o n manager, in front of the original 1930s e q u i p - m e n t, a u g - m e n t e d by today s m o d e r n e q u i p - ment. T h e y k n e w what they were talking about. I was as lost as an Easter Egg. Never the less, I was so intrigued by the program I signed up to become a HAM operator myself. (Where on earth am I going to find the time to take on that challenge?) -3-

4 What to do at AirVenture (cont) Also, while at KidVenture, we checked out the model aircraft school where they gave kids the opportunity to fly models hands on, with an instruct o r. W hat a blast. A couple of years ago I was given the chance to disassemble and assemble an M-1 rifle, after 50 years. The young people there gave me a pat on the back. I was a little surprised myself since these days I can t remember where I put my glasses. Funny how some things just stick. The photos below were an interesting find that I hadn t seen before. It s the actual Bell 47 helicopter used in filming the M*A*S*H TV series. Nice touch. But it may be lost to the In the photo above one of the instructors is helping a student keep his plane in the air. I have to say that the majority of the students were a lot smaller than this young gentleman. At left is Head Honcho Gordon Davis, who manages the program. younger generation who weren t around for the war and probably weren't born until after the TV series was off the air. The WW-II vintage military encampment was the next thing on the list. The camp is manned (please excuse the term) by re-enactors, dressed and knowledgeable about each operational aspect portrayed at the display. The women also wore period dress, both civilian and uniformed. What a treat for these old eyes. (I still can t get used to gals wearing jogging suits and cut offs, or whatever they are. I guess this is an editor s comment.) At left, pilots getting together for a briefing. And above, jeeps to carry them to the flight line Salute to Veterans We were also privileged to be there for the sixth annual Yellow Ribbon tribute to veterans. At 6:30 am 100 veterans climbed into a passenger jet and were flown to Washington D. C. to visit the war memorials there as well as Arlington cemetery. They then returned to Oshkosh to be greeted by family and friends. They were also recognized by a General Officer, formally welcomed back and thanked for their service. For all too many this was a far cry from the greeting they received at their first -4-

5 What to do at Airventure (cont) home coming. It was a very long day for them, but I m sure, well worth it. Michigan Air Tour, Final Notice Dick Green, Chapter Spokesperson Registration Information for the 2018 Michigan Air Tour New this year - One Day registrations. Choose to either fly the whole tour ($110 per person) or join us for Friday ($55 per person) or Saturday s ($75 per person) activities. Go on line to Michigan Air Tour Our final stop was the One Week Wonder tent. More than 2,500 people participated in the 2014 project, which culminated in the successful completion of a Zenith CH 750 on the event's final afternoon. That airplane continues to fly today. This year, the construction project was a Van's RV-12iS, a member of the family of kit aircraft that are the most popular kits in the world. Van's Aircraft will be celebrating the10,000th RV flying during AirVenture Below is a photo of the RV airborne. These projects were very well r e c e i v e d. Look for them to become regular events in the future. Overall, one great day at AirVenture. Ed The room bloc for hotel reservations closed on July 30th. But, that doesn t mean you can t call and hold a room personally, depending on availability. So, if you are unable to do the entire tour, you can still meet the gang for a day. This year s MAT will be hosted from a central airport, KGDW (Gladwin) with fly-outs to other airports around that central location, including some grass strips. One hotel; no need to pack and unpack daily. We plan to incorporate flying competitions, such as spot landings and flour bag drop, at stops or at GDW. All grass strips selected have been determined to be in good condition by the FSDO. Community tours are being arranged at the stops. Frankenmuth is an on your own walking tour but the other tours will be as a group. Included meals are also as a group. Check the MAT website for more information. Hotel Information Gladwin Zettel (KGDW), Gladwin, MI Accommodations - Rivertown Inn, 1220 East Cedar Ave, Gladwin MI. *Call and reference Michigan Air Tour. Room rates: Thursday, $99/standard room and $119/king with jacuzzi Friday and Saturday, $109/standard and $139/king with jacuzzi *Note: Post July 30 reservations may not qualify for bloc rates. -5-

6 Young Eagles Day Summary July 2018 Submitted by Dennis Glaeser The rumors that we flew 85 kids are true!! We had great weather finally! We battled the new signup software and persevered We had to revert to using the old forms at the end, because I mistakenly set the cutoff for electronic signups at 11:30am. Lesson learned! Here are the totals: Doug Conciatu 8 Tobias Eiseler 15 This was Tobias s first YE event and I m super glad he came with his Cardinal!! Dennis Glaeser 9 Joe Gores 9 Steve Greene 15 Bob Mahieu 8 Dave Nellis 14 (Dave battled hot starts in his 172 rental all day ) Jim McDaniel 7 Vern Lancaster managed the ramp. Shonka did the grilling. John We had lots of goodies left over from the picnic, so there was plenty to eat. Allen Numerick was the main software wrangler, with help from Lorne Minor and Bill Appleberry. Gail Novak (mother of Air Academy attendee Randal) also stepped up to help with registration and even hand printing YE Certificates when the electronic registration quit working. Once again, the whole team stepped up and did whatever was needed to keep things flowing, and get every kid who showed up an airplane ride. Thanks for all your help! Dennis Young Eagles Day Summary August 2018 Submitted by Dennis Glaeser All I can say is WOW! We flew 139 kids!! The Flightsquid software was definitely a problem (again) and I ve already sent a couple of s to both Flightsquid and the EAA. As a result, we have 12 flights which may not be recorded. The parents signed up the kids online (I even helped with a couple), but we never got them onto our list. I have given Flightsquid and the EAA a heads up about them and hopefully they can be recovered. Once we realized that new signups and even some registrations of kids already in the system were not coming through, we had those folks fill out the original paper forms. We have more paper forms than electronic registrations!! Totally unacceptable. Enough bad news. Did I mention we flew 139 kids!!! A total of 11 pilots participated, including a couple of new ones thank goodness!! The new pilots are Matt Pollick a fairly new private pilot and chapter member, flying his Cessna 182, and TJ Johnson, who has been to a number of our Chapter meetings and has a hangar across from the SkyCatcher I fly at Troy. He has been flying his Comanche for a while. Here are the totals: Doug Conciatu 8 Tobias Eiseler 21 (2*) Dennis Glaeser 11 (1*) Joe Gores 9 (1*) Steve Greene 21 TJ Johnson 9 (2*) Bob Mahieu 10 Bob Martin 11 Jim McDaniel 16 (2*) Allen Numerick 8 (2*) Matt Pollick 14 (2*) Ron Lendon 1 *The numbers in parenthesis are the ones that may not be recorded. There are 12 of them, so we have 127 officially documented so far. The ground crew Marla Smith, Dave Nellis, Lorne Minor, Julie Fulmer, truly worked miracles to keep things going despite all the challenges. THANK YOU!! Mark Fulmer, Chuck Valade, Vern Lancaster, Randall Novak, Mark Mancuso kept the ramp safe and organized which was more of a challenge this time. Tom Mack had the hangar spiffed up as usual. My failing at this event was not arranging for someone to do the cooking! Didn t even think about it until Saturday morning!! And then things got too busy to do anything about it. I will do my best to not let that happen again. See you at the next meeting! Dennis -6-

7 A Prop Blade with a Story Submitted by Cliff Durand The beginning of this story is a little complicated, so please bear with me. This all started approximately sixty years ago. A lifelong friend of mine (we grew up together on the same street) had talked his dad into visiting N. Silverstine s Surplus store located on McNichols near Mt.Elliot in Detroit back in the 1950 s. Many of you older members of the Chapter will remember your visit to this place. As for me, it was Disneyland before there ever was a theme park. Rows and rows of war surplus, wing tanks, military radios, former classified thing- a ma- jigs that were now Figure 1 after WWII just a lot of scrap. There was a military Duck (amphibian) on display in the parking lot and a small armored tank near the main entrance. These items and everything else was for sale. During this particular visit Larry, (my buddy) purchased a wooden Propeller blade the same one pictured in this article. His entire purchase was a total of fifty cents. This blade, (See Figure #1) along with whatever other trophies he bought, came home with him and graced his bedroom décor as a piece of industrial object d art. It lasted through his graduation from high school, a hitch in the Navy Sea Bees during Vietnam, two marriages, birth of a child, several moves and his eventual retirement from Detroit Edison. Virtually a lifetime of accomplishments and some disappointments. Fast forward to March 2018, Larry and I had attended a militaria collector s show and as we usually do, we went out to breakfast afterwards. During the breakfast discussion Larry stated that he thought about getting rid (selling) the prop blade as he and his wife were downsizing. I thought- how could you sell part of my childhood memories! How much are you thinking of selling the prop for, I asked. He replied, well I bought it for fifty cents; so I guess I ll ask fifty dollars. The subject was dropped until breakfast was over and we were waiting to get our check. While I was fishing out the money to pay my bill I pulled out a fifty and handed it across the table. I said, if you are really serious about selling that prop blade then I m buying it, lets just say I want to keep it in the family so to speak. I wasn t about to let something that had meaning to me, go to a complete stranger! I should explain myself, perhaps you are already aware of the fact that as a member of EAA and a Chapter secretary I do not hold a pilots license. My interest lies in the historical artifacts that speak to aviation, especially WWI and WWII. This prop blade is right up my alley. I finally picked up my purchase a few weeks ago, not that I was that busy but decided to let the prop stay where it was just in case seller s remorse might set in. It did not and he was happy to see the blade go to it s new home. As you can see in the second photo (See Figure #2, next page) there is a decal describing the name of the manufacturer and it s place of origin, other then that decal there are no identifying marks that I can find. Now I m not really what you call a computer savvy person. The secretary s job requires that I use Word and know how to place an attachment and send e- mails to our distinguished newsletter editor Tom Vukonich. Other than that I have learned that Google can be a great investigative tool. So armed with the information from that decal the search began. Much of what you will read from here on out is research compiled from the documents that have been filed on the Internet. So entering the word ERCO that I surmised was the acronym for Engineering Research Corporation located in Riverdale, Maryland. Henry A. Berliner founded the company in 1932 with Fred E. Weick as his chief design engineer. The company basically manufactured aviation parts and machine tools to make aviation parts. Part of their research led them to produce their own branded aircraft the Ercoupe another take off of the ERCO company name. From all that I have read this aircraft has a reputation for safety, affordability and ease of flight. I have seen them at Oshkosh and they are a sleek looking, low wing plane, that is a showstopper when polished to the nines. During WWII the ERCO Corporation was involved in production of propellers (obviously), antenna units, -7-

8 Cliff s Prop Blade (cont) fuel tanks and sub-assemblies for other aircraft. ERCO s claim to fame was the 250SH turret that could be used interchangeably as a nose, tail or upper turret mainly on Boeing Aircraft. It was also credited with the development of a successful waist turret used on the PB4Y Privateer. The Yankee air museum owns such a model and can be seen in their static aircraft collection. During the war, private aircraft production was suspended because of the war effort production. Both Berliner and Weick took a leave of absence from their company. Harry Berliner had a desk job with the 8 th Air Force but it is a fact that on one occasion he went on B-17 raid to Wilhelmshaven, Figure 2 aircraft. It weighs in at about 53 lbs. and stands approximately 52 tall from base to the tip. If any of you air aficionados have the answer, I would certainly be obliged. Oh by the way, a lot of these unsold blades became parking lot markers at Silverstein s only to rot away after being exposed to the elements. This prop blade continues to exist with the attached memories. I hope you enjoyed the read. Respectfully submitted from your Chapter 13 Secretary Cliff Durand pchdurand@yahoo.com Material for this article was drawn from: The Maryland Historic Trust, Inventory of Historic Properties pg. 6 Inventory No.# PG Wikipedia: Engineering and Research Corporation pg. 1 The Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission, College Park, Maryland Germany as a waist gunner. Weick commented that he was not surprised that Harry would do such a thing. After the war had ended, Berliner decided to leave the aviation industry and sold the drawings, tools, parts and materials along with the rights to manufacture the Ercoupe to Sanders Aviation. In all, the total production of these planes numbered 5,000. ERCO then manufactured aircraft simulators in 1948 and was subsequently bought out by larger corporations. As for the Ercoupe, serial no. 3 resides in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. One of ERCO s propeller blades resides in a private collection in the spare bedroom of my house. The story of that propeller blade is not over yet. For the life of me I cannot figure out just what aircraft this blade was meant to be attached. It has gearing inside the base to be adjustable but the blade body is wood. Being made of wood doesn t speak to being any type of WWII fighter or bomber The National Air and Space Museum, Washington Chesaning Airport Dawn Patrol Fly In Breakfast Here is a photo of the Ch #13 members attending the event, forwarded by John Kean, our Newsletter event photographer. Thanks John, for posting us. Ed -8-

9 Officers Meeting Minutes for August 9, 2018 Submitted by Secretary Cliff Durand were accepted as read. New Business August 2018 Board Meeting Highlights Members and guests attending the board meeting: Rex Phelps, Mike Fisher, Dennis Glaeser, Dick Green, Bob Mahieu, Bill Appleberry, Marla Smith, Doug Conciatu, Dave Nellis and Cliff Durand. Cliff Durand read the meeting minutes for June 14, The minutes. Steve Greene sent his report via as follows: Starting Balance: $8,114.65, Credits: $1,250.45, Debits: $837.38, Ending Balance $8,527.72, CD#1: $13,472.50, CD#2: $13,171.23, Petty Cash: $200.00, Special Expenses: none, Membership 2018: 92, Membership 2019: 1. Steve also reported on the final tally for the Dawn Patrol: Gross receipts: $1,091.00, Expenses: $541.00, Balance less expenses: $550.00, Model A Rides: $47.00, Donations: $ Total served during the event: 146 Adults and 11 children.. Our speakers for September will be the Air Campers from Oshkosh who will relate their experiences. There are other speakers to be scheduled for the upcoming months, watch for them in the Newsletter.. The board is looking to form a barbeque team that will share to duties of cooking during the general membership meeting. Dick Green has volunteered to join the team. Look for details in the newsletter.. The Explorers will be helping out on the 23 rd of this month when the Young Eagles program flies the members of the local scout troop. They will also attend a field trip to Milton Manufacturing says post advisor Marla Smith on the 16 th of August. Marla also shared some new ideas that she and Doug Conciatu brought back from Air Venture.. Election time is drawing near for Chapter officers. Nominations will be at the September meeting and voting for those officers will be held at the October meeting.. The review of the Chapter Bylaws has been moved to October, as Steve Green will not be available until then start the procedure.. The Chapter website server is running fine reports Dick Green. No additional changes will be made until EAA National has finished their changeover. Dennis Glaeser has requested that the Young Eagles section be made more prominent and easier to find.. The supply of award plaques that we use for speakers and acknowledging Chapter members for their accomplishments is getting low. Dakota High School and their woodworking program will be supplying us with replacements when they start up school in September.. Dennis Glaeser reports that they are ready for the next event. He has 52 kids and 8 pilots signed up now with possibly more on Saturday. They will also be flying Scouts on the 23 rd. Young Eagles were also flown during Aviation Day at Oakland-Pontiac Airport.. Rex says that Pete Dugdale indicates that all is well at the Chapter hanger; no other large projects are planned.. Bill Appleberry reports that Tom Vukonich will be starting the September Newsletter on the 10th of August. Any items that were discussed at the board meeting that require an article for explanation can be seen in the next issue.. Rex has asked for a rescheduled date for the September Board Meeting. The new date will be the 18 th of September. Gerry Bryce has invited all members of Chapter 13 to a Fly in, drive in barbeque hosted by Gerry at his hanger at Marine City Airport. Look for details in an sent to all by Dennis Glaeser. Dave Nellis has volunteered to build a custom hunting knife as a fundraiser for the chapter. He passed around a sample of his work at the board meeting, it was certainly impressive, and details will be forthcoming in a future issue of the newsletter. Lauri McDaniel has told Rex that she is committed to producing another stained glass panel for the raffle at the December Awards Banquet. Start saving you money to buy those tickets! The meeting was adjourned a@ 9:18 p.m. The next board meeting is scheduled for September 18, 2018 Respectfully submitted: Cliff Durand EAA Chapter 13 Secretary/Ray Airport -9-

10 Sept 9th -10-

11 Recent Postings at Ray Community Airport -11-

12 Recent Postings at Ray Community Airport -12-

13 Recent Postings at Ray Community Airport -13-

14 Recent Postings at Ray Community Airport -14-

15 Recent Postings at Ray Community Airport -15-

16 THE DOPE SHEET Tom Vukonich, Editor 2961 Secluded Pines Dr Oxford, Michigan Pone: FIRST CLASS MAIL stamp here Who is building or has built what #23. Shown above is Grey Lane and his Skystar Kit- Fox Lite. Grey has retired from the Chapter, but a Chapter builder just the same. Photo taken at the Chapter s Annual Picnic. -16-