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Green-up continued last week, boosted by heavy rainfall. The surviving winter wheat shows some color and the new corn is coming up, so aerial excursions are looking more spring-like. Soon we’ll be complaining about the rough air from thermal updrafts.
Local air traffic was on and off over the past week. A regular Cirrus SR22 was in, a Piper Archer came by and the usual Army Guard UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter made an arrival. Of the local fleet, Jim Ferguson’s Cessna Skylane flew, the club Skyhawk made some circuits, and the Air Tractor sprayplane was busy aiding farmers inoculate some crop fields. The SkyDive KC jump plane also did some weekend runs.
U.S. Senator Tim Sheehy from Montana escaped injury on Friday when the engine quit in a light trainer airplane he was flying during his scheduled recurrency training. Fortunately, he’s an experienced air tanker fire-bomber pilot, his career before becoming a politician, and was able to execute the forced landing into a pasture without damage.
The big news of the week, of course, was the Artimus loop-around-the-moon mission that recovered successfully last Friday. The Iran War was even put on hold temporarily while the world focused on the PC-chosen crew’s problems with the capsule’s toilet. We’re glad they’re back safe, and they’re no doubt grateful to have fresh air to breathe.
If you are looking to buy a new turbine-powered aerial application aircraft, there’s only one place to spend your money, as of last week. It was announced that Air Tractor Holdings, builder of the big yellow cropdusters, has purchased Thrush Aircraft, its main competitor. Both types were designed by Leland Snow, who sold his first duster to Rockwell in the 1970s, then started up Air Tractor.
The FAA recently announced that it plans to hire 2,400 air traffic controllers this year, and 100 more each year thereafter, trying to overcome chronic staff shortages at the nation’s airports. Problem is, a hiree does not a controller make; it takes years of development to bring a new controller to full proficiency, and 30 percent of those enrolled never get there. Best prospects are video gamers, it’s been found.
An outfit called Reliable Robotics just completed a testing program at Hollister, California to promote “detect and avoid” technology for operating remotely-piloted drones in airport traffic patterns, integrated with regular traffic. Of course, it was entirely successful and the drone pilot evaded all human-occupied aircraft...this time. The FAA is under Congressional mandate to bring us all together. Hopefully, not literally.
Our previous question was about the airplane that was sold by Sears Roebuck in the 1940s. The answer was, the Ercoupe 415C two seater, which was also shown in some department stores. For this week, we want to know, is it possible to burn aviation gasoline in an aircraft with a turbine engine? You can send your answer to kochhaus1@gmail.com.
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