The EAA Chapter 54 Beacon November 13 2024

November 13, 2024

This is the semimonthly email newsletter from the Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter 54 of Lake Elmo, Minn.  If you have difficulty reading this information, view it on the chapter website. Unless otherwise noted, all events  occur at the Chapter House, at the south entrance of Lake Elmo Airport off Manning Avenue. Find fly-in and drive-in information here.

Full house packs EAA 54 headquarters to hear former NASA shuttle flight director

Minnesota might’ve been the best of times for a lot of aviators who once called the state home, but the rocketship-like career of Paul Dye, the longest-service NASA space shuttle flight director in history probably has pushed those years down on the list a bit. Still, when he spoke to EAA Chapter 54 on November 11, one could almost hear a touch of wistfulness in his via-Google Meet voice. "I started very early and I got a chance to  play around with the J3 (Cub) and flew that a lot and we polished airplanes and cleaned airplanes to raise money,” he recalled about learning to fly here for a grand total of about $500. “It was a great time to grow up, and, and I've always figured that I was going to be in aviation, but I was never quite sure how I was going to do that?” he said.

He was also in a confession mood. "The last time I think I landed at Lake Elmo was probably a few decades ago back before everybody had Mode S transponders.  I had a mode C, but I was flying my RV-8A and I was flying up from Houston and I and it’s very possible that I nicked the corner of the TCA coming downhill.  I said, ‘Oh this is a problem.’ So rather than going straight to Anoka County, landing and getting busted, I just landed at Lake Elmo, and I sat on the ramp for 10 minutes because nobody could tell if it's the same airplane.” Read more >>

PIREP: The Pulsar Fly-in
 "I recently attended a reunion of Pulsar builders in Lawrence, Kansas," Chapter 54 member Tom Gibbons writes. "I have not attended in quite some time, but, boy, was it enjoyable to go again. Just to set the story right, I have been working on my experimental aircraft, the Pulsar, since October 1990. I guess I don't know what made it such a slow project all these years except to say life just got in the way.  At one time I remember posting something in our newsletter about selling it, but it never got a hit, which was a good thing because I relented and never thought about it again.  I think, dream, and look at it almost every day as I love this little airplane. Read more >> (Downloads pdf) 

Welcome, new members!

John and Nancy Ostrem, WoonYi Hanson, Joe Connolly, and Drew Lindquist and Dan Bathke have recently joined EAA Chapter 54. Learn about some of them on our new members page. 

Saturday Open House: 'Fly so the neighbors love you'
At Saturday's Chapter 54 Open House and Wings seminar, Dan Dorson, Flying Cloud Airport Advisory Commission and Jennifer Lewis, Community Relations Coordinator, Metropolitan Airports Commission, will discuss (via Zoom) updates to the Flying Cloud Airport noise abatement efforts, including a new Fly Neighborly Guide and custom content created for use in ForeFlight. The Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) Fly Neighborly program consists of Fly Neighborly Guides and Fly Neighborly Zones to help build awareness to the sensitivity to aircraft activity that some airport neighbors experience. Fly Neighborly Guides offer best practices for all pilots to use while operating aircraft at MAC airports, including Lake Elmo, and Fly Neighborly Zones surround each airport. Coffee and (maybe, it gets a little pricey) doughnuts will be served. The Chapter House opens at 8:45 a.m. The presentation begins promptly at 9. 

November Chapter Video

In this month’s Chapter Video Magazine:

1.) Chapter Renewal
2.) Leadership Recognition Certificates and Pins
3.) YE Ground Volunteer Requests
4.) Ray Scholars Program for 2025
5.) Museum Updates
6.) Weeks Hangar Lighting
7.) Tax Exempt Basics Webinar

Watch the video here.

RSVP now for the Holiday Party

The EAA Chapter 54 Holiday Party will be held on Monday December 16 at 6pm at the Chapter House at Lake Elmo Airport. Please note that this is a week later than our usual monthly meeting date in order to accommodate some scheduling issues. Last year's party was so successful, we anticipate repeating it. The menu likely will include pizza (this is subject to change) and there is a sign-up section of the RSVP form for those who can bring a side dish, appetizer, or dessert.  We are not allowed to provide alcohol so BYOB. Soda/pop will be provided. There will be a donation jar to help defray expenses. The evening will include chapter awards and a trivia contest. Now the important part: We're a growing chapter but the Chapter House is not. While we might be able to jam in another table or two from last year's setup, we still have very limited seating. So reserving your spot is vital and even letting us know you're NOT coming is important.  Members, use this form.

Heard around the chapter

> Jeff Dale is ready to go ahead with his plan to learn to fly. He'd like to hear from other members regarding whether to start now or wait until warmer weather.

> Trent Redmann is buying an airplane. Details to follow. But while I'm on the subject, could it possibly be easier for you to have your airplane's picture on our wall? I've even bought (at my expense) the frames. All you have to do is go here. It'll cost you about $5. And the cost for adding to our virtual wall is zero. So what's stopping you?

> In an effort to increase Chapter 54's visibility on the field and unleash a bit of the power of our website, I am having some lawn signs made up (not at chapter expense) to be displayed on the weekend leading up to a monthly meeting. The signs, basically say, "We're Talking Aviation" and "join us", along with a QR code which leads to our website. I have two or three extra signs for members who have hangars and some foot or auto traffic around their hangar. Let me know if you'd like one. You'd have to remember to put them out and take them down; they're not intended to stay up all the time.

Rotax releases service bulletin

On Monday, Rotax issued a service bulletin for its 912 engines. The company said "field observations that are carried out as part of our obligations revealed an increased number of unexplainable engine power losses, engine vibrations, and piston damage. In-depth investigations  on various aircraft models have identified the main contributing factors and causes for the majority of these occurrences." Download the service bulletin here.

The E-Beacon is a semimonthly newsletter highlighting news items from Chapter 54. If you no longer wish to receive the email, you can unsubscribe by sending an mail to facilities@eaa54.org.