Are you a diver? How would you like to dive on a B-29 that has sat undisturbed below the surface of Lake Mead near Boulder City, Nev., for the better part of the last century? The National Parks Service, in charge of protecting the site, is pondering ways to allow access to the plane while […]
Grass roots effort thwarts fuel bill
When pilots in Washington State learned of legislation to require all automobile gas sold in the Evergreen State to contain ethanol, they went off like a stall warning horn. The problem is that many aircraft have been modified through a Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) to run on auto gas. Operating an airplane engine with auto […]
It takes a bomber to build a complex
After World War II Uncle Sam had hundreds of surplus B-17s. The ones that were not scrapped became cargo aircraft or fire bombers. A few were even converted into executive transport. B-17G Serial #44-85790 may have had the most unusual fate of the Boeing brethren as it was converted into the roof of a gas […]
Student vote against Boyington memorial sets off firestorm
Several members of the Student Senate at the University of Washington in Seattle managed to offend the Greatest Generation, the United States Marine Corps and many others with comments made during a debate about the creation of a monument on campus to honor Marine Lt. Colonel Greg “Pappy” Boyington. Boyington, a 1934 graduate of the […]
New digs, new optimism at Northwest Aviation Conference
The combination of a new building, an increase in the number of exhibitors and an expanded activity area for children contributed to the electricity in the air at the 2006 Northwest Aviation Conference held in Puyallup, Wash., the weekend of Feb. 25. Part trade show and part educational seminar, the show attracted between 12,000 and […]
It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a… well, we are not really sure
When an airplane flies by and someone asks, “What is that?” they are usually talking about the airframe. When Roger Ryon and Martin Kosina fly by in their Piper Apache, it’s not the airframe that people remark on — it’s the paint job. They fly an airplane that looks like a mythological creature come to […]
Picking the right kit
Building your own airplane can be a very fulfilling experience. It can also be very challenging and consuming. Don’t let promises of it being a “quick build kit” and “less expensive than a factory-built aircraft” fool you. No matter what kind of aircraft you choose, understand that you will be investing a lot of time […]
Charter company provides rainbow rides
A specially painted Lear Jet helped the Make-A-Wish Foundation celebrate 25 years of service and brought a smile to the faces of some 30 kids last month. The model 35A jet, owned by International Jet Aviation of Englewood, Colo., was due to be repainted. The company’s employees wanted to do something special for the kids […]
Finding a type club that’s just right for you
When World War II ended there was a general aviation boom. Thousands of people learned to fly during the war and there was a glut of military airplanes on the market that were defanged and made available to civilian pilots. Civilian manufacturers got into the act too. Many had been under contract to produce aircraft […]