Monday, June 21, 2021
A break from the heat
Get outside and enjoy a couple days of cooler temperatures. 70's and 80's stick around for the next couple of days. It will be a little breezy with winds gusting around 15-20 MPH. Warmer temperatures along with showers and thunderstorms return later this week.
Dry pumps cause of aviation aggravation
By LeRoy Cook
The final week of Spring 2021 was more like high summer, with scorching heat blasting up from the southwest. Bill Koons flew his Cessna 172 up from Tucson, where it was 107 the morning he left; he found our humidity level matching the feels-like temp, even at 10 degrees cooler.
Our Friday morning flight found a warm 45-knot wind flow at 2,000 feet above ground level, from 220 degrees. Even so, the ride was smooth once above the wind shear, just slow when southbound. Lots of traffic was out that day, including a Cessna Citation jet making the RNAV 18 low approach. Randy Shannon bounced in with his Zenith CH750SD homebuilt, seeking fuel.
Other traffic observed this week was a Beech Bonanza K35, a Cessna Skylane, a Piper Meridian turboprop, and a Cirrus SR22. Locally, Roy Conley flew his Grumman Tr2 to Paola Saturday morning, Brandt Hall had his Lark Commander out, Jeff Arnold and Jeffery Adams made Cessna 150 flights and I made a one-way maintenance trip to El Dorado Springs.
About 20 years ago, self-service airplane refueling took over at smaller airports, and as an alternative at big fields, replacing attendants waiting for airplanes to land. The flexibility of 24-hour gas access, like automobile pumps, seemed to make sense. Even so, pilots would rather have someone drag out a heavy hose or drive a truck up to their plane, at a reasonable price. The problem we’ve had is that computers don’t always cooperate, card readers can be finicky, and the fuel pump doesn’t work at times. And if the operator is out of gas, you won’t know until you get there unless a NOTAM has been published.
I’ve experienced all of these at self-serve airports in recent times; always have enough fuel to reach an alternate facility, one that you’ve verified as having fuel. One pilot who found dry pumps here went to Harrisonville, couldn’t get his credit card to work, and had to go on to Lee’s Summit to get gas. At Columbia one cold day last winter, the avgas truck wouldn’t start, so we left without refueling, and at Joplin a couple of months back the only truck had differential problems and wouldn’t move, so we had to bring the plane to the truck instead of vice versa.
This being the last weekend of the month, Saturday morning would be the time for the Fliars Club to have a breakfast flyout. Weather permitting, we should assemble on the Butler ramp at 0730 hours, whereupon we will determine an appropriate course of action. At least there’s plenty of early daylight this time of year.
The week’s question asked what was a “toilet paper cutting” contest, as sometimes staged at old-fashioned airport fly-ins. The trick is to toss a roll of TP out the window, where it unrolls in the wind as it falls. The pilot who can cut the streamer the most times before running out of altitude wins the prize. For next time, tell us how WW-2 fighter squadrons obtained cold beer in the South Pacific, far from refrigeration. You can send your answer in to kochhaus1@gmail.com.
Rich Hill park getting much needed rubber mulch
The crew is spreading rubber mulch for safety. Thank you for your patience!!
Statement issued from Pleasanton Kansas Water Department:
The water is safe to drink and the problem should be rectified this week. We are flushing lines to get new water into the system.
Please contact City Hall at 913 352-8257 if you have any questions.
Updated Obituary - Vicki Jo Lyon
Vicki was born September 3, 1954 in Harrisonville, MO, a daughter of Donald M. and Patricia Lou (Richardson) Lyon. She married Stephen Spellman on March 29, 1975 and to this union three children were born: Patricia, Brandi, and Justin. Later the marriage ended in divorce. Vicki was a 1972 graduate of Cass Midway High School. She had lived in West Line, MO, Osawatomie, KS, Kansas City, MO, and Cleveland, MO before moving to Drexel.
Vicki was a school bus driver for Cass Midway Schools (Apple Bus) and Blue Valley School District (Durham Bus Company) where she was a member of the Bus Drivers Local #838. She also worked as a waitress for Sanderson’s in Kansas City and other area restaurants. Vicki loved to watch golf and football (Kansas City Chiefs) on TV; she loved playing board games and cards, especially Wahoo, Yahtzee, Dominos, Canasta and Bingo, and she enjoyed teaching her grandchildren how to play them. She loved bowling and had been in a bowling league in the past. And of course, she loved going to the casinos
Vicki enjoyed nature and camping at LaCygne Lake. She really enjoyed traveling, and some highlights include the Rocky Mountains, the Smoky Mountains, the Deserts of Arizona and New Mexico, the San Francisco Bay, the Gulf of Mexico (from Texas to Florida), the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas and Mexico. She especially loved her 12-day trip across the nostalgic famous Route 66. Vicki took great pride in being a shuttle bus driver during the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia.
Vicki had many friends including lifelong friends and friends she recently met, neighbors and coworkers, past and present, whom she loved very much, and who will miss her dearly.
Vicki was preceded in death by her parents and two brothers, Steve Lyon and Eric Sechrest. Vicki is survived by her three children and Tricia’s fiancé, Eric Moore; one brother, Bob Lyon and wife, Lori, West Line, MO; two sisters, Donna Barrett and husband Ray, West Line, MO and Lori Brock, Cleveland, MO; a sister-in-law, Gail Lyon of West Line, MO; three grandchildren, Jade, Ryleigh, and Ashlynn, and many nieces, nephews, and extended family.
Missouri Senator Rick Brattin Urges Governor Parson to Assist Texas, Arizona with Border Security
JEFFERSON CITY — Republican State Sen. Rick Brattin, R-Harrisonville, submitted a letter to Governor Parson today encouraging him to join other Republican governors in sending law enforcement agents to assist with border security efforts in Texas and Arizona.
“President Biden has shown that he has no intention of securing our border with Mexico,” Sen. Brattin said. ”Instead of taking this issue seriously, he has put the woefully-unprepared vice president in charge, and she has made it clear that she will not do anything to curb illicit cross-border travel. Interstate 35 is a common route for drug smugglers and human traffickers, providing a direct road into Missouri for fentanyl producers and those who smuggle people across the border. Any border security effort has a direct impact on Missouri, and this is why I am encouraging Governor Parson to help bolster state-level efforts in Arizona and Texas.”
Senator Brattin grew up in Greenwood and graduated from Lee’s Summit High School. He lives in Harrisonville with his wife and five children. In addition to owning a small construction company, Sen. Brattin also operates a 40-acre farm north of Harrisonville. He served in the United States Marine Corps as a non-commissioned officer for six years. Prior to his election to the Missouri Senate, he served as Cass County auditor and as a member of the Missouri House of Representatives.
For more information about Sen. Brattin, visit https://www.senate.mo.gov/brattin/.
New police officer in Nevada
We are excited to welcome Officer Nathaniel Cunningham to the Nevada Police Department!
MSHP: Plan A Safe July Fourth Weekend!
Safety should be at the top of the list when planning how you’ll celebrate our nation’s freedoms. No matter how you decide to spend the long weekend, your smartest choice is to follow all Missouri traffic and boating laws.
During the 2020 counting period, 15 people were killed and 671 injured in Missouri over the holiday in 1,356 traffic crashes. Over the 2020 July Fourth holiday, troopers arrested 145 people for driving while intoxicated. In 2020, there were 14 boating crashes, which included seven injuries and zero fatalities. Two people drowned during last year's July Fourth holiday. Troopers made six boating while intoxicated arrests over last year’s July Fourth holiday weekend.
The 2021 counting period for the July Fourth holiday will be from 6 p.m., Friday, July 2, to 11:59 p.m., Monday, July 5, 2020.
The Highway Patrol will be participating in Operation C.A.R.E. (Crash Awareness & Reduction Effort) and Operation Dry Water over the July Fourth holiday weekend. Operation Dry Water specifically targets impaired vessel operators. All available troopers will be patrolling Missouri roadways and waterways to enforce traffic and boating laws, and offering assistance as needed.
Missouri’s boaters are asked to do their part by remaining alert for other boats and swimmers, and being courteous on the water. With more boats on the water, it is even more important to pay attention when operating your vessel. Never operate a vessel if you’ve consumed alcohol. Boaters need to be aware that it is illegal to discharge fireworks from a vessel. Leave all fireworks in a safe place on shore. Watercraft operators must consider the effect their actions have on others: Share the waterway and use common sense, good judgment, and courtesy to ensure the safety of all. Life jackets save lives. Wear It!!
Anyone needing assistance or who witnesses criminal activity while traveling on Missouri’s roadways or waterways can contact the nearest Highway Patrol troop headquarters by calling the Patrol Emergency Report Line at 1-800-525-5555 or *55 on a cellular phone. Motorists may call 1-888-275-6636 to check for road construction along their travel route.
Too many people die in traffic crashes each year in Missouri. The choices you make when you’re behind the wheel matter. Make good choices, so you’ll never have to say, “If I could just go back …”
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