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Rain adds a bit of moisture to the air, producing early-morning fog after clear nights, as we encountered over the weekend. Still and all, it’s been a great stretch of fall flying weather; Harrisonville and Lamar had successful airport open-house/fly-in events and pilots were able to make flights with adjustments for the showers.
Some of the aircraft movements noted at Butler last week were a Cessna 210 Turbo Centurion, a Cessna Skyhawk and a Bellanca Citabria. Tom Bowles was in from Kansas City Downtown airport with his Turbo Skylane RG. Locally, Delaney Rindal ferried in a Cessna 172, the SkyDive KC Caravan journeyed to Iowa and back and Jeremie and Natalee Platt took the kids to the Lamar fly-in with the family Grumman Tiger.
We’re informed that there will be a fly-in at the Gardner, Kansas airport next Saturday, always a grand get-together of antique and experimental airplanes on the well-kept grass runways. Breakfast will be served from 7:30, with lunch available from 11:30 to 1:00.
One of the week’s notable worldwide aviation news items was the disaster that didn’t happen at Manchester, England. A RyanAir flight from Pisa, Italy to Prestwick, Scotland ran into heavy storm weather as it was attempting to land, missing its first approach to the airport and, after a lengthy holding pattern, it couldn’t get down on its second try. The pilots then diverted to Edinburgh, which also had unlandable condtions, so they finally backtracked to Manchester and got the airplane on the ground, with a reported six minutes of fuel remaining in the Boeing 737-800’s tanks. There was no going around on that landing.
A lot of AI-generated words were tossed around last week over the Federal government shutdown’s effect on airline flights, what with the already-stressed air traffic control system. Controllers were told to show up to work, even though they can’t be paid until the shutdown is over, and some didn’t comply. Burbank control tower out in California went unstaffed with airliners arriving, but Los Angeles Approach control took over sequencing of flights. Like we’ve always said, controllers don’t control aircraft, only the airspace and runways.
Canadian airline WestJet has laid off 44 pilots, who happen to be over the 65-year age limit for airline pilots outside of Canada. There’s no mandatory age limit in the Dominion, but trying to schedule crews with a senior citizen flying so they wouldn’t leave Canadian airspace was becoming too difficult, so they had no choice but to terminate the aged-out pilots. It’s not that they can’t fly, it’s just the legalities involved.
How long can someone keep flying? As long as they are healthy. I’m reminded of my friend at the Bolivar airport who took his Aeronca Chief up for a few landings on his 100th birthday. After proving his point, he sold it, but still drove out the airport every day.
A crew from Purdue University is heading to Nikumaroro atoll in the South Pacific next month, where its to investigate reports of an underwater object resembling Amelia Earhart’s 1937-crashed airplane in the lagoon. The Earhart-Noonan wreck has been a big mystery for 88 years, so maybe we’ll finally see it solved.
Our question from last week’s column asked how many of the famous World War II “Tuskegee Airmen” black pilots remain alive. Sadly, none; the last one died on September 25, George Hardy, age 100. For next week’s quiz, can a pilot allow an intoxicated individual to fly on their aircraft? You can send your answers to kochhaus1@gmail.com.
