 |
|
|
Click below for previous
newsletters: |
AUGUST 2007 “Greetings from Chapter 64”- The July minutes are as follows: Dennis also presented an award and bottle of wine to Marsha in appreciation for all she does and made her an honorary member of EAA64 for life. Good job Marsha! Secretary’s Report: A motion was made to forego reading of the secretary’s report due to mailing of the newsletter – motion passed unanimously. Treasurer’s Report: Larry rolled over an expiring CD for 8 months at 4.7% interest. Current treasury balance is $33,503.00. The membership roster is complete, some folks still owe dues. Correspondence: None Old Business: We need to vote tonight on when to go to Dayton. We have examined a couple of opportunities in the past. Dennis made a suggestion to go in the November timeframe and by show of hands the majority agreed. Dennis would also like to offer the trip to the fellow Ultralight Association(GAUA), members of the Illinois Pilot’s Association pilots association and the nearby EAA chapter. A motion was made and seconded and passed to extend the invitation to those parties. A show of hands indicated members preferred to leave on Friday night, Nov. 2, and drive thru the night. We need to make commitments to fill the bus. Brian Kissinger arrived back to the St. Louis Downtown Airport on June 21 and earned $35k in donations to cancer research for his efforts. He is going to be at the Scott airshow on static display and will be at Osh Gosh. Brian has finance everything related to the trip himself and 100% of the donations go to cancer research. Those who have had bouts with cancer explain that “You never know what tomorrow will bring so every day is a gift.” Great job Brian! New Business: We have the new meeting place downstairs in hangar 2 and would like to arrange a work party with the goal to begin using it for the August meeting. Dennis will get supplies and we will store them there and members can stop in and work as time allows. Looking for volunteers to help paint and repair. Work nights will be posted on the website. The Senate bill for the FAA will be posted on the website. New date for Dutchmen poker run is next Sunday July 1. Meeting Schedule Meeting adjourned @ 7:24 and all members went
outside to enjoy the air show! THE AUGUST LEADING EDGE (Message from the President) Welcome back from Oshkosh…the best Air Venture yet according to Tom Proberezny. I hope your visit to the Mecca of Aviation was a good one. We’d like to hear about what you saw, so be prepared to give us a short run-down on the activities and aviation advances during the August meeting. Speaking of the next meeting… Next Meeting: We are back to our regular meeting schedule in August. I will attempt to provide the entertainment with a slideshow presentation on the C-5 Galaxy…what it’s like to fly one of the largest aircraft in the world (easy is the answer) and what the aircraft is really capable of performing. In addition, we will discuss the events planned for the rest of the summer and fall to include the move from the existing facility to the new meeting room in Hangar 2. The plan is to hold a painting party on 18 Aug from 8 AM to 4 PM to prep the room for our first meeting in September. With enough people, we should be able to paint the meeting room and move the furniture in one day. I will layout the plan at the August meeting. User Fee Update: Round one of the fight against User Fees went in favor of General Aviation as the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee passed a “fee-less” ATC system as part of the FAA Reauthorization Proposal. We recommend you read the details in the latest issue of Sport Aviation or on-line at EAA.org because the fight to keep User Fees at bay is not over. The change in heart by our civil leadership was driven by the support offered by EAA, AOPA and our letters…so keep up the correspondence to our elected officials. The push from the airlines is unrelenting and a recent flight on American Airlines proved this fact. On the flight I picked up a copy of the American Way airline magazine and the President’s article was focused on telling the uneducated passenger why the current system is unjust and costly to the traveler…stating that General Aviation was getting a “free ride” on the traveler’s dollar and this had to stop. Be glad for EAA and AOPA having representation on the Hill…I am certain having all those government and industry officials visiting Air Venture is a good thing. Having said all this, I believe we will see some form of hybrid process where we pay fot a portion of the system we use; however, the goal is to keep any fees to a minimum and spread fairly amongst the heaviest users. My concern is the government will stop support to local airports resulting in closures or the addition of fees to keep the facilities operating. We should not be against User Fees as long as the provide services to support our hobby at a reasonable cost…remember, fees are better than having a shopping mall replace your favorite airport. First-Ever Sparta Fly-In: Brian Kissinger and I are looking at hosting a fly-in at Sparta-Hunter airport in Sparta IL this fall. The event will be open to all local EAA chapters and members of the Illinois Pilot’s Association. Plan is to have food and drink, offer awards for best aircraft and a hold a few flying events…you know, flour bombing etc. Brian and I will be seeking support from the chapter…or at least a few helpers so we can kickoff this event. Marvin Campbell, Sparta-Hunter airport manager, has shown interest and is willing to support; however, we have not discussed the insurance issues associated with such an event. We will solicit your expertise on how to run such an event at the meeting, so come prepared to discuss. Until then…. …keep ‘em flying. dd |
