THOMPSON
VALLEY SPORT AIRCRAFT CLUB
(Member of
Recreational Aircraft Association)
Beautiful
Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada
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2009
Next meeting: Saturday, May 9,
2009, at 10am.
Location: Clubhouse, Blair Field, Knutsford.
Renegade
for sale
Tony
will be 93 this July, and has decided it's time
to quit flying. So his professionally built
Renegade is for sale. (The paint job was $4500.!)
Built in 1989, it is powered by a Rotax 618, with
a 68" GSC prop. Registered as an Advanced
Ultralight and rated for aerobatics, with a Pitts
seat and harness for that purpose. It is clean
and been very well maintained, and has always
been stored in a good hangar. Tony is asking
$20,000. and can be reached at 250-374-6591 You
can also e-mail me about it at villeneuve@shaw.ca
Editor's
Notes
What?
Bill
Huxley sent me this photo and asked me If I could
identify the aircraft... Can you?
Hangar
Available!
The
#3 hangar at Knutsford is available. Call Bill
Davidson at 250-573-2357 or pilotbill@telus.net
Last
month we finally seeded part of the Knutsford
strip. But due to the lack of rain the seeds are
still laying in the dust, only the original grass
is growing. I hope it finally rains for a few
days before the seeds blow away or the birds eat
them all!
SPOT
Satellite Tracker
As
reported last month, we acquired a SPOT Satellite
Tracker that any Club member will be able to
borrow when leaving for a flight. I have been
using it to get familiar with the operations, and
found that the instruction manual leaves a lot to
be desired. As I found at the Vernon Rust
Remover, the folks there came to the same
conclusion, and have come up with an accurate
instruction sheet that was available at the
meeting. Unfortunately, by the time I got to that
table to get one, they were all gone. But they
will e-mail me a copy soon.
What
fish was that?
I
finally checked with the Ministry of
Environment... It is locally called a Bullhead,
or Bullfish. The real name is Sculpin.
Who's
Flying?
Greg
Peterson sent me this from Barriere on April
26th: "I've
been flying the north valley the last couple
weeks whenever the weather would allow. On
my last trip to clearwater, I saw 90mph ground
speed on my way back. Needless to say,
landing back at home was a challenge."
Bill Huxley sent me this
photo of Gerald and his Kitfox on April 15.
From Bill again, a photo of
Gerry Lieuwen and his Power Parachute:
We have to pick the right
day, because at this time of the year the wind
can get quite strong. But last Friday May 1st I
flew to Quilchena with Bill Huxley and Larry
L'Heureux, and it was a nice ride on the way
down.
Looking down at the
Quilchena Hotel. You can see Larry and Bill by
the truck in the parking lot by the store.
Line up on the strip.
After a coffee I decided to
keep on going to the Merritt Airport, while Larry
and Bill came back to Knutsford. At Merritt
Airport:
By the time I left Merritt
at 11:45, the wing was getting stronger from the
North. I could have taken off right from the
apron! I followed the same route by Nicola Lake,
and flew on the East side of the valley and the
lakes. Encountered turbulence, thermals, and a
few downdrafts that taxed my skills as a pilot...
I could not let go off the joystick! Like riding
a bronco all the way back to Knutsford! What does
not kill you makes you stronger!
As if I did not have enough,
I took off again for a look at a spot that Larry
had told me about, a bunch of pup-tents and
larger ones on the hillside by Goose Lake Road.
Somebody told me it might be a film crew:
That was a great day, with 2
hours 20 minutes
airborne!
THE VIETNAM
MEMORIAL
By Barry Meek
Most of the pilots who lost their lives in the
Vietnam war were flying jet fighters or
helicopters when they died. There was a
group known as forward air controllers
(FAC’s) who flew the small observation
planes that many general aviation pilots use
today. One of those aircraft is the Cessna
L-19, a version of the original Cessna 305.
Designated the O-1 (observation) Bird Dog
when put into service in Vietnam , many now serve
as towplanes in glider operations. Several
L-19’s were refitted with larger engines and
are now known as the Super Mountaineer.
One hundred and twenty two O-1 pilots were lost
in combat between 1963 and 1972. Politicians of
the day said they were defending the world
against Communism. Somehow they involved
the U.S. in a war in a tiny corner of the globe,
and sent a generation of youth to fight it for
them. History shows the way it was handled
was arguably a terrible mistake, and America
’s most unpopular military involvement.
Richard Nixon is quoted as saying he would
not be the first U.S. president in history to
lose a war. Young Americans were sent
8,000 miles from home to fight for a cause so
many failed to understand.
Conditions were brutal in the Vietnam conflict,
both in the air and on the ground. FAC
pilots were particularly vulnerable to enemy fire
as they flew low and slow above the jungle,
searching, observing, and directing attacks on
NVA troop and gun positions. I have flown
the L-19 many hours, thankfully in peacetime,
towing gliders in the mountains of British
Columbia. It is a super-strong and powerful
aircraft with the bare-bones, green military
interior. I’ve sat in the stiff seat
and imagined the numerous radios and weapons
controls that were once attached to all the holes
drilled in the panel. The side windows are
set so that the cockpit is wider at the top than
the bottom, allowing excellent downward
visibility. Everything about the plane is
tough, from the landing gear to the heavy control
stick, but at times no match for anti aircraft
artillery and large caliber machine-gun fire.
There is a permanent memorial for the soldiers
and pilots killed or missing in action in
Vietnam. It’s called the Vietnam Veterans
Memorial Wall, and is situated in Washington ,
D.C.Built in 1982, it makes no political
statement about the war, rather it provides a
place for reflection and for visitors to
contemplate their own feelings. Over
58,000 names are inscribed in the glossy, black
granite. Those of us who have been termed
‘baby boomers’, are in the age group of
Vietnam vets. We lived through the
‘60’s and remember the war, mostly
through radio and television news reports.
Back then, there were times when there was as
much violence on the streets in American cities
as there was in the jungles in southeast Asia.
Protesters let their feelings about the
war be known on a daily basis. For the
most part, Canadians were not as close to it all,
but over the years, I have developed an interest
in the history and accounts of the experiences of
the soldiers and pilots in that conflict.
Many veterans have written excellent biographies
and graphic recollections of their experiences.
I read every book I can find.
Having flown over 200 hours in the L-19, it seems
to bring about a closer understanding for me of
what those FAC pilots had to work with.
Many times while in the air it crossed my mind
just how thankful I was that nobody was shooting
at me.
I will probably never get to Washington , D.C. so
will not see the Vietnam Wall. However,
there are replicas of it that are trucked around
the country and temporarily set up in various
locations so that folks like us can view them.
I was lucky enough to be in a southwest
U.S. city in March of 2009 when the memorial was
brought there. As it is something
I’ve often wanted to visit, I went down to
the park to see just what it’s all about.
It is difficult to put into words the
feelings and emotions felt by visitors when they
see so many names and realize each one was a
young, healthy and dedicated citizen. Each
name belongs to someone whose life was taken far
too early, before any hope of reaching the
potential they had. They all died a
brutal, terrifying death for a cause that was so
unpopular at the time.
Wars never seem to make much sense. But as
long as there are people who have different
ideologies and the freedom to express them, there
will be conflicts and violence. The
Vietnam war is for many reasons, a more personal
one to me. And standing beside the
wall, reading all the names on it brought out
feelings of sadness, made worse by seeing other
visitors who searched for the names of loved ones
killed in action. If ever the
opportunity comes along for me to fly the L-19
again, I’ll feel the presence of the ghosts
of one hundred and twenty two pilots who lost
their lives in the plane.
New
in the Buy&Sell
1998 Homebuilt , similar to
Aeronca $14,000. or trade.
One-seater,
funtastic well built tail dragger with A75, in
good running order. Hand prop, no electrical. Its
a short wing and not suited for a new flyer.
Looking to trade for 2
seater, or will sell for $14,000. Can be seen in
Pemberton all Summer. 250-837-2480 panzoodle@gmail.com
(09/04/24)
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Due
to the limited space available on the server, the
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year. For members only: If you need to look at a
specific newsletter from previous years, please
let me know, I will e-mail you the file. villeneuve@shaw.ca
To
anyone advertizing in our Buy&Sell section: as soon as the
item is sold, please let me know! That will help
me ensure that the page is up-to-date
We
welcome your feedback. Do you have any
contributions for the newsletter? Photos would be
great! So would flying stories, project updates
or tall tales... Contact me: Newsletter Editor:
Camille Villeneuve 1-250-374-4181 villeneuve@shaw.ca
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