EAA Chapter 54 Beacon May 6, 2025

May 6, 2025

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.

Board of Directors
Monthly member meetings to start earlier

At its monthly meeting last night (May 5), the Chapter 54 Board of Directors voted to move the start time for monthly meetings to 7 p.m., starting with the regular meeting in July. Under the proposal the social hour will move to 6:30 p.m.  Chapter President Marlon Gunderson, who authored the change, said he noticed members were already seated and ready for the night's presentation at 7 p.m. at recent meetings and that recent meetings had run late. The change will not affect next Monday's meeting, nor the June meeting, which is the annual chapter picnic, which already starts at an earlier time.

In other Board action, the chapter officers voted to end the practice of allowing parents of Young Eagles to walk near the airplanes to take pictures of their kids. The move came in response to the question of whether we need to still be posting pictures of Young Eagles on the website if parents already have taken pictures. It has been a growing practice to allow parents near airplane as long as they're escorted by ground crew. YE Coordinator Dale Seitzer indicated he'd be more comfortable for safety reasons limiting access to the ramp.

Jeff Dale, the chapter's education coordinator, reported on a planned tour of the airport by Farnsworth students, scheduled for May 20 from 10:30 to 2 pm. Chapter members with hangars and something interesting inside are encouraged to volunteer to be a tour stop.

Considerable discussion took place on the future of the chapter's tool crib. President Gunderson has been trying to find chapter members who would be willing to house some of the larger items, donated by Vicky Moore, and making them available to members in need of their use. No members have responded. The Board had no appetite for a proposal to sell the tool crib and Gunderson suggested members aren't reading his quarterly President's Letter and he intends to try an email appeal.

Status updates were heard on planning for the August pancake fly-in fundraiser. Several members visited Eau Claire's chapter breakfast where attendance was about 800, the goal of Chapter 54's planning. The next chapter planning meeting is May 14.

And, finally, a proposal to clarify an item on the chapter's bylaws on chapter dissolution was pulled after questions about the process surfaced that were not answered by either the original article nor the proposed change. Presently, the bylaw says the chapter "may be dissolved by a two-thirds majority vote of voting members in good standing of this organization." That wording does not clarify if that's total membership eligible to vote (i.e. "voting members") or the majority of members who vote. The proposed change to "“This organization may be dissolved if approved by two-thirds of members voting,” clarified that, but directors questioned how much notice of a vote should be given. The proposed change was pulled for reworking. See minutes >>

Events
Saturday features a chapter doubleheader

Saturday is an aviation smorgasbord around Lake Elmo Airport. It's our first Young Eagles Day of the season, starting at 8 a.m., and you can still volunteer as a pilot or ground crew. Contact Dale Seitzer. With the "What's Next?" program moving out of the Chapter House and over to the observation area, the Saturday Open House and Wings program will be held as usual. This Saturday's topic is the second in a series on home flight simulators. Starting at 9, Keith Smith from Pilot Edge (a simulated ATC service) will cover best practices and pitfalls.  Keith will discuss aircraft positioning, setting the weather, and the importance of knowing how to utilize pre-configured views to get around the cockpit when you don't have a "full" home cockpit.  He will then give us a short demonstration using human-driven ATC.  Meanwhile, next week is the Great Minnesota Aviation Get Together in Buffalo, MN. There are a number of great seminars starting on Friday. There is no Saturday Open House on Saturday May 17 as the chapter is hosting the Flying Start Day. Volunteer pilots are still needed to be able to answer question from our guests.

Learn to Fly Week
Chapter poised to help make dreams come true

There is no doubt, whether it was at the barbershop or doctor’s office, when you’ve talked about your love for aviation, you’ve been met with this response: “I have always wanted to learn to fly, but….” Or “I started my ground school years ago and took a few lessons, but…”

It is a story as old as time: Aspiring aviators have the desire, but there are extenuating circumstances that are preventing them from pursuing their dream of flight. Here at EAA Chapter 54, we know there is an opportunity to turn these dreamers into doers.

EAA’s mission is to “grow participation in aviation by sharing The Spirit of Aviation.” This mission is fully embraced by EAA’s 300,000-plus members and 900 local chapters. Though we can’t break down every barrier, it is hard to find an organization and group of members more well-equipped to help aspiring aviators find their place in the sky.

Through EAA’s vast library of educational materials and local chapter advocates, the organization is perfectly placed to help grow the pilot population.To further the efforts of growing the aviation community, EAA Learn to Fly Week, supported by Sporty’s Pilot Shop, is returning on May 13-17, 2025! Under the direction of Evangelos Savvas, Chapter 54's director, the chapter will host a session on Saturday May 17 from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm.  Flying Start events are open house-style activities that introduce local aspiring pilots to the local knowledge, tools, and connections that they need to accomplish their goal of becoming a pilot. During the Flying Start event, chapter members will break down the perceived barriers common to the nonaviation community that prevent people from pursuing their pilot certificate.

The online week will consist of three straight days of educational and interactive webinars. Topics will range from how to get started in flight training to tips for passing the FAA written exam, how to save time and money in flight training, strategies for the checkride, pinch-hitter presentations, and so much more!

Representatives from EAA, Sporty’s Pilot Shop, Redbird, TakeFlight Interactive, and designated pilot examiners from across the country will be presenting this wide range of webinars. Following each presentation, attendees will have time for Q&A with the presenters.

Following a short presentation from the chapter and local flight instructors about learning to fly, Flying Start attendees are paired with an Eagle Flight mentor pilot for a free introductory flight. At the conclusion of the flight, the attendee will be provided with a free six-month trial EAA membership!

Flying Start participants will walk away from the event with an “I can do this” point of view, and a clear understanding of “how flying can fit into my life,” and “what I can do with this hobby.”

Whether you’re in the midst of your flight training journey, or just thinking about getting started, we know you’ll value in EAA Learn to Fly Week

You can learn more and register at www.EAA.org/LTFWeek

VMC Club
Question of the Month

You’ve just taxied to the hold short line of the active runway after completing your runup and passenger safety briefing. What additional items should you now address as part of your pre-takeoff briefing? Find the answer >>

Chapter video
News from Oshkosh - May 2025

In this month’s Chapter Video Magazine, Charlie Becker gets you up to date on EAA happenings: Webinars Program; AirVenture News; Chapter News: IRS Form 990-N due May 15; International Young Eagles Day is June 14; Verify your Youth Protection status; EAA Aviation Museum Update. Watch the video >>

Events
Pancake fly-in attracting the best of Chapter 54

The cream of the Chapter 54 crop is rallying to help pull off the August pancake breakfast fly-in, the chapter's only major fundraiser of the year. About 40 or so members have signed up to help so far, down from a year ago, but what we lack in quantity we're making up for in quality.  The planning committee took critiques of last year's fly-in to heart and made changes and additions to this year's event. Chapter Vice President Jay Schrankler has attracted a number of sponsors for this year's event, including Lake Elmo Aero, Kwik Trip, Lake Elmo Bank, and Perceptive Avionics. Individual chairpersons should be contacting all of their volunteers now and submitting a plan for their area with a specific number of required volunteers. A planning session is scheduled for Wednesday May 14 at 6:30 at the Chapter House. There's still time for you to join the chapter's best and brightest. Sign up here.

Facilities
What's new at the Chapter House?

Thanks to Dale Seitzer, the Chapter House amplification system now includes a wireless microphone system.  For members of a certain age, hearing what's being said during a meeting can be quite difficult. We've been addressing that with use of the speaker system, but we don't have cables long enough for presenters to be mic'd up. Now we do.  Dale brought the system home with him from his Florida enclave and donated it to the chapter. The system features two choices: a lapel mic or a headset microphone.  We believe the system will also allow those viewing meetings at home to better hear our presenters.

Meanwhile, member Craig Mueller has donated a radio so members and visitors can listen to traffic while visiting the chapter house, which is available at any time for members to meet or have coffee. The door combination is available from chapter officers. Kindly clean up before you leave.

In other facilities news, the rebuilt ramp to the entrance has now been stained. The next step is replacement of the railing caps. Leaks in the rain gutters will also be addressed although we noticed hornets seem to be building their summer homes in the vicinity.  Inside, the white board has been returned to service and has been reinstalled at the front of the room.

John Ostrem's Musings
Why are we the Speed Holman Chapter?

We have many new members of EAA Chapter 54 and they see the “Speed Holman” Chapter 54 logo on our materials. So who is this “Speed” Holman guy? Charles Willis “Speed” Holman, born 1898, was a  famous Minnesota aviator from St Paul, flying in the 1920s until his death in 1931.  “Speed” got his nickname as a motorcycle racer but in 1918, after seeing Walter Bullock land a plane on the ice of Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis, Holman was determined to learn to fly.  He joined Bullock and did free mechanical work for flight lessons and became a wing walker and parachutist in Bullock’s airshows.  Later, in 1927 he received his actual pilots license from none other than Orville Wright!  Holman often did airshows during the day and flew the mail from Minneapolis to Chicago every night.  He was an early investor in Northwest Airlines and was actually the first pilot hired by the company. Read more >>

From Midwest Flyer
Star-studded cast at Aviation Hall of Fame ceremony

The 2025 Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame Banquet was held April 12 at the Mystic Lake Center, Minnetonka Ballroom in Prior Lake, Minnesota. Inductees included AOPA President Mark R. Baker, Astronaut and NASA Associate Administrator Robert D. Cabana, Minnesota Pilots Association Cofounder Randle S. Corfman, Author James C. Goodall of the Minnesota Air Guard Museum, Clarence J. Krotz of Grand Marais Municipal Airport, Amanda Lee of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, and World War I fighter pilot and National Air Derby recordholder, Nick Mamer. Read more >

May anniversaries
Happy anniversary

Dale Seitzer (23 years)
Kevin Szalapski (9 years)
Cory Carlson (7 years)
Don Wishard (4 years)
Susan Schmidt (4 years)
Kelly Schmidt (4 years)
Stephen Brown (2 years)
John Tangen (2 years)

From New Richmond Airport
When seven is an unlucky number
Please take it easy on the pilot-controlled lighting.  We need to make this system last for another seven years.  A training aircraft from a nearby flight school conducting a night flight at New Richmond last month got really, really aggressive activating the pilot-controlled lighting.  The runway lights are active from dusk to dawn on low intensity.  Pilots have the ability to increase the intensity to medium or high as necessary by clicking the aircraft radio five or seven times.  This pilot way over did it.  We’re talking several seven click events over the course of a minute.  I saw this in progress and noticed the lights weren’t responding after about the fifth time.  Uh oh.  A quick trip to the electrical vault revealed a bluish haze straight out of a Cheech and Chong movie and the smell of a burned circuit board.  Thanks a lot.  The pilot-controlled lighting was out of service for a couple of days until I could scrounge up some parts.  - Mike Demulling

Next meeting May 12
Sebastien Heintz on the Zenith Aircraft

Sebastien Heintz of Mexico, Missouri, known worldwide as the owner and president of Zenith Aircraft Co., a leading aircraft kit manufacturer, was honored by the Experimental Aircraft Association on October 16, 2024 with his induction to the EAA Homebuilders Hall of Fame.

Heintz was one of six individuals to be honored that evening with various EAA halls of fame inductions.

Heintz, founded Zenith Aircraft Co. in 1992 in Mexico, Missouri with the goal of making aircraft ownership affordable and accessible.

With the support of demo pilot Roger Dubbert and Production Manager Travis Kobush, Zenith has continuously grown in popularity amongst homebuilt aircraft enthusiasts.

The company also hosts monthly workshops to introduce new aviators to the world of homebuilt aircraft.

Heintz was the 2017 recipient of EAA’s Freedom of Flight Award for his contributions to aviation and the recipient of the Light Aircraft Manufacturers Association’s 2017 President’s Award.

He continues to be an active sport pilot and enjoys sharing the joys of homebuilt aircraft. Listen to the Green Dot podcast with Heintz >>

Wall of Fame

Is your plane too ugly for others to see it?  No!

Don't be embarrassed. There's a spot for it on the EAA Chapter 54 headquarter's Wall of Fame and online gallery. It's easy to show off your pride and joy and won't cost you any money. Someone else pays for it and does all the work.  All you have to do is send an original digital photograph of your bucket of  bolts and your job is done

Classifieds
Needs and Wants

Member Doug Weiler  is looking for a Tru Trak DSP-B pitch servo for his TruTrak Digiflight II.  "I am using a loaner from Tom Berge for the time being.  These are getting hard to find!  I did discover the xCruze 100 pitch servo on the new autopilot system from Bendix-King will work but they are on a 90-day back order." Contact Doug at dcw@mnwing.org .

Calendar
What's Happening at 54?

Find all of the events surrounding Chapter 54 on our chapter calendar, available here. Want to fly somewhere? You just have to visit Bill Schanks' fly-in calendar, which has all of the regional fly-ins and details. There are group fly-outs for chapter members all the time. Consult Bill's chapter fly-out page for more information.

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.