AOPA Pilot Blog: Reporting Points

I don’t know about you, but I’m in full shopping mode for the holidays. I’ve been buying for my family and others in my life. My husband asked me what I wanted for Christmas, and I had to stop short, because I honestly hadn’t thought about it.

But after doing some thinking, I remembered that I’m a student pilot and there are still many things I need to buy to keep up. So I decided to take a spin through the Aircraft Spruce and create my wish list in no particular order. Enjoy!

1. Student pilot flight bag ($59.95 to $62.75) — right now, I’m carrying my stuff in an AOPA tote bag I got when I was hired.  I like this bag because it comes in red (my favorite color) and can hold all of my stuff, including my headphones, batteries, kneeboard and charts.
2. Sureflight pro checklists for Cessna ($10.95 to $14.50) — I currently use a many-times-Xeroxed copy of the checklist I’m using for my training in the Cessna Skyhawk SP. It would be nice to have this tough, laminated checklist.
3. Bose A20 headset with dual GA plugs and bluetooth ($1095.00) — when I started my lessons, I used an old pair of headsets from the AOPA Pilot prize box.  But I knew I wanted Bose after meeting a rep at Sun ‘N Fun and testing them out.  A former co-worker sold me his older Bose headsets, but I want to upgrade to this puppy.
4. iPad undermount stowaway ($169.95) — I love my iPad 2 and am learning about all the great apps for pilots (check out my latest weekly app review column here). I want to take my iPad with me in the cockpit, but space is tight in the Skyhawk, so I’d love this tool that lets me have access when I need it.
5. Red Canoe Cessna jacket ($87.50 to $89.99) — I saw someone wearing this jacket at Oshkosh, and I’ve wanted one ever since.
6. Noral seat cushion with back ($69.75 to $89.95) — I’m short, and I appreciate that the Skyhawk I fly in has rudder pedal extenders.  Right now, I’m using an outdoor furniture cushion to make up for my short stature, and this seat would be ideal for me to have.
7. Maglite XL50 LED flashlight, red ($27.85) — Every flight bag needs a good flashlight, and I’m a big fan of Maglite, which my sister the cop recommends highly.
8. Leatherman Juice C2 tool, red ($45.95) — One morning, my flight instructor had some trouble getting the cap off the oil tank, so she whipped out a version of this tool to help. I’ve wanted one ever since.
9. I’d rather be flying license plate frame ($9.95) — I just got my personalized, aviation-themed license plate, and this frame would help further explain my love of flying.
10. Aircraft Spruce gift card ($100.00) — We’ll end with this, because with a $100 gift card, I could choose an assortment of items!  And AOPA members can get discounts on gift cards — $5.00 off a $25 card; $10 off a $50 card; and $20 off a $100 card.

But it looked so real!  WGN-TV news anchors Larry Potash and Robin Baumgarten were just doing their job when they went live and began reporting on what appeared to be an aircraft accident in Chicago, reports the Herald Sun.  The problem was, the accident was fake, having been staged for the NBC television series “Chicago Fire.”

Rocky Mountain Low.  Pilot Carl Steven Gruber’s excuse that he flew 55 pounds of pot into Boulder Municipal Airport to provide medical marijuana didn’t fly with Judge Thomas Mulvahill.  Gruber was sentenced to two years probation and a $10,000 fine, reports the Daily Camera.

Those were expensive airplane rides!  Among the gifts Inland Waters CEO Tony Soave gave former disgraced Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was private jet flights totaling nearly $400,000, reports WXYZ-TV.  Soave, who also gave Fitzpatrick and his family an all-expenses-paid trip to Naples, Fla., says he did it because he didn’t want to lose the city’s business.

From private to commercial.  Juan Manuel Marquez, who will fight Manny Pacquiao on Saturday in Las Vegas, arrive six hour later than expected.  Why?  The private jet he was using had to make a U-Turn after the pilot discovered a problem with the tire right before taking off, reports Yahoo Sports. The pilot determined the aircraft would not be able to fly, so Marquez ended up catching a commercial airline flight.

We’ll end the week with this blog post from Huffington Post: The Emily Post Guide to Flying Private. Enjoy!

 Everyone loves a successful ditching!  All 29 passengers on an Embraer Brasilia turboprop were OK after the crew of charter operator Inter-Iles Air was forced to ditch the aircraft off the coast of Mozambique after a reported fuel leak, reports AvWeb.   The passengers and crew were rescued by fishermen in the area.

Why wasn’t he flying private in the first place?  Pittsburgh-based rapper Wiz Khalifa and his entourage were forced to charter a private jet to make it on time for a show in West Virginia, reports AllHipHop.com. The rapper was among 50 passengers on a US Airways Express jet departing from LaGuardia Airport that experienced a landing gear malfunction.

Get your birds straight.  A Philadelphia area animal rights group had a drone it was using to secretly film pigeon shoots at the Wing Point hunting grounds shot down, reports NBC10. The group claims a hunter shot down the camera, which sustained $4,000 in damage.

Case closed! Back on Oct. 19, I posted an item on an age discrimination lawsuit filed by a former pilot against Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Michael Jeffries, which included an embarrassing set of rules for those flying on the company’s Gulfstream G550.  The Columbus Dispatch reports that the sides reached a settlement right after the judge in the case ordered Jeffries to undergo a second deposition. No further details were released.

Pelicans hitch airplane ride home.  A set of pelicans that were blown from their home in Florida up to Rhode Island during Hurricane Sandy will not have to fly back, reports the Boston Globe.  After a stint at the Wildlife Rehabilitators Association of Rhode Island, local residents raised enough money to fly the birds back to Daytona Beach, Fla., on a private aircraft.

I am among the millions who bought a PowerBall lottery ticket as the jackpot hit $500 million.  On my drive into Frederick this morning, I daydreamed about all the aviation-related things I would do with the money.  My list included: an Embraer Phenom 300; an effort with AOPA to boost the number of minority pilots;  and major donations to the Delta Heritage Museum and Tomorrow’s Aeronautical Museum.

So I decided to put the same question to AOPA members via our Facebook page and Twitter account.  Below are some of my favorites. Enjoy!

FACEBOOK

• Saving that money after seeing how this economy is going! lol. BUT were just dreaming so Id say C190, C180, C320, Cessna Mustang, King Air 300, Stearman PT 17. hehehehe TO START WITH!
• Cessna 182. Simple as that.
•  I suppose I’d have some cool jet in which to travel afar, but after I get that Mustang I’ve wanted since I was 6, I’d be hankerin’ for (relatively) slow, radial engined aircraft like a Beaver, C195, Twin Beech or Staggerwing.
• I’m going with a Skyraider AD-5 (I think)….the big one…..to carry the family and dog…..a nice helo, and a Mustang of course. Then I’m going to donate money to a certain individual to get a B-17 done and I want naming rights and to fly it!!!
•  I would have to add that I would love to make donations to the Wounded Warrior Project, Honor Flight, National Naval Aviation Museum, AOPA Air Safety, T.I.G.H.A.R., Sun ‘N Fun, The Commemorative Air Force, The 99′s, to W.A.S.P. Museums, and make scholarships available to those who have the desire and dedication, but who are struggling to afford being able to solve their dream.
• BBJ for business jet, PC-12 for daily driver, Extra 300 for fun, Husky for more fun, and then take $20 MIL of it and fund my Welcome Sky Aviation Scholarship program to issue full-ride flight training grants to the best and brightest 16-21 year olds I could find.
• An AOPA LIFE Membership for me and 100 people and a shiny brand new Cessna 182 JT A.
• Im gonna finish getting my PPL, Then get every other pilot certification. Then I’m buying a Corvalis TTX, a Cirrus SR-22GTS, and a Citation Ten. I’ll of course buy a few Bose headsets for me and my Pax. I’d use the remaining money for fuel, maintenance, etc.
• An HA-420, and a Quest Kodiak, The former Mary Talbot airstrip in Vinalhaven, Maine, a few bose headsets, attend aviation mechanic school, get ratings for those planes, and maybe buy all the abandoned salvagable airstrips around Maine.

TWITTER

• P-51, J-3, Corvalis TTx, Citation Mustang. In that order.
•  I think I will keep is lower key with a Cessna Mustang.
• TBM 850, Carbon Cub…pay off debt…Build churches all over the world and keep working
• Me? #Mooney factory, Kerrville TX.
• With my $500 million #Powerballwinnings I’ll first buy a @Terrafugia then work with @google (and @IBM) to make it self-flying
• Five T-6Bs or Super Tucanos. And start an airshow team.
• I would get a Cessna 210 and completely re-do it nose to tail. Oh, also, one of those little jets like the Cirrus or Piper.

Talk about coming down from a high!  Pilot Russell Hansen and his passenger, Jacob M. Beaty-Martinez were arrested at Hensley Memorial Airport in Fulton, Mo., after police seized $450,000 in marijuana from a Cessna 172, reports the News-Tribune.  They were both charged with second-degree trafficking of a controlled substance.

Watch what you say! Morning sports radio host Dean Molberg was suspended for the rest of the Canadian Football League season after saying on air that he wished the Saskatchewan Roughriders plane would have an accident and several players would die, reports Huffington Post. It was particularly in bad taste because in 1956, four of the team’s  best players were killed, along with 58 others in one of the worst accidents in Western Canadian history.

It was the end of the road. Helicopter pilot Henry Rosenau finally had to face the music and receive a sentence of 10 years for using his rotor craft to smuggle dozens of loads of marijuana into the United States from Canada, reports the Province. Rosenau fought extradition from Canada for nearly six years, and his first trial in April ended in a hung jury.

Speaking of helicopters…Medi-flight helicopter pilot Owen Park was cited for harassing wildlife in Colorado after a group of hunters witnessed him flying low over a group of elk several times near Grand Junction, Colo., reports Field and Stream.  He was assessed 10 penalty points against his hunting and fishing privileges, and fined $200.

Foam party!! A hangar at Las Vegas’ McCarran International Airport had fire retardant foam deployed although there was no fire in the facility, reports KTNV-TV. A local news helicopter showed photos of a hangar with foam flowing out.

We’ll end the week with this video of a coast Guard helicopter rescuing two men whose boat had capsized in Lake Erie.

One of the great things about general aviation is the willingness of the industry to help its own and others.  The Wolf Aviation Fund was created to provide grants to those who are doing great work in GA.

Each year the Wolf Aviation Fund provides grants for a number of individuals and organizations doing great work in general aviation.  The fund has made more than 330 awards,which have allowed worthy recipients the funding and recognition for their ideas. 

The deadline to apply for grants in 2013 is Dec. 15.  The fund seeks applications in seven major program areas: Developing Public Policy and Airports; Networking and Mutual Support; Development and Alternative Resources; Communications, Media, and Community Relations; General Aviation Technology, Safety, and Noise; Improving Public Understanding and Perception; and Aviation and Space Education.

Past winners include:

• Doug Stewart of the Society of Aviation and Flight Educators (SAFE), Inc., who received a grant to form a new Aviation Educator Hall of Fame to recognize those having made significant contributions to aviation education;
• The Atlantic Aviators Chapter of Women in Aviation International, which is building a custom-designed, aviation-themed playground at New Bedford Regional Airport in Massachusetts.
• Penny Rafferty Hamilton, Ph.D., who will research, write, and publish a Flight Instructor Communication Manual presenting proven and effective communication techniques for providing instruction to women wishing to be involved in General Aviation;  
• Teachers’ Day at AirVenture 2012, an event organized by Build a Plane’s Lyn Freeman designed to educate teachers how to use aviation in the classroom to motivate students to learn STEM subjects;
• John Zapp of the Flying Musicians Association, who received a grant to organize career fairs and related events supporting the Association’s objectives; and
• Flying High Coffee received a grant to support bringing its high quality product to the marketplace, with a portion of the proceeds being set aside to fund worthy non-profit aviation organizations. 

Most proposals receive  partial financial support because the Wolf Aviation Fund believes recipients can use the honor and recognition that comes from a grant to approach others and seek additional funding.  The fund also seeks donations in order to award more grants.

Go to www.wolf-aviation.org for more information about the Wolf Aviation Fund.

It’s a highway, it’s a runway! An unnamed pilot carrying two passengers flying a single-engine aircraft were forced to make an emergency landing on a stretch of I575 in Kennesaw, Ga., reports the Marietta Daily Journal.  The aircraft experienced engine problems.

It wasn’t a field of dreams. Pilot Charlene Fulton and her passenger managed to walk away after an emergency landing of her Cessna 172 in an alfalfa field outside of California’s Modesto City-County Airport, reports the Patterson Irrigator.  The accident happened when Fulton and her passenger were taking pictures and the plane lost power.

The only one missing was President Obama!  Cleveland-Hopkins International Airport found itself at the center of the presidential campaign when aircraft from Mitt Romney, Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Vice President Joe Biden all landed at nearly the same time, reports Reuters.  The visits were part of last-minute campaigning in the battleground state of Ohio.

Blommberg Businessweek: how to de-Romneyize an airplane.  Now that the election is over, the McDonnel Douglas MD-83 that presidential candidate Mitt Romney used for his campaign has been returned to USA Jet Airlines, reports the magazine.  The aircraft will get a thorough cleaning, a new livery and reconfigured seats. Romney also used a Hawker 400, a Learjet 35, a Cessna Citation, and an Embraer Phenom 300 during the campaign.

He’s now a hall of famer.  Former Livonia, Ohio, police officer Jim Work has become the latest inductee into the White Castle Hall of Fame after he used a helicopter in the late 1980s to deliver the chain’s addictive hamburgers to a fellow retired officer, reports Michigan Live.  More than 700 people applied for entry into the hall for 2102, but only 11 were selected.

Can’t she afford to buy her own aircraft? Singer Lady Gaga took to Twitter to rave about the Boeing 757 given to her by her concert promoter Live Nation, reports ABC News Radio.  She waxed poetic about the 757′s Internet acces and custom seats.

As one of the administrators of the AOPA Facebook page, I thought it would be interesting this morning to ask members the following question:  “so, the election is over. What do you think the prospects for general aviation will be in a second Obama term? And please — let’s just stick to the GA issue.”  We’ve already had 58 comments this morning.  Below are some of them.

“It’s not ideal for GA growth, but I’m not convinced user fees are inevitable either. I fly for a living, but also for pleasure thanks to a flying club at half the rates of a FBO. With over 10k pilots retiring from US carriers in the next 8 years, something is going to have to give. The pilot shortage finally coming to fruition should have a positive affect. Support AOPA and similar organizations. They are our voice.”

“General aviation will suffer… we pilots won’t have the money to fly! And it’ll be regulated to the point where it’s pointless to fly anyhow.”

“I don’t think the political climate is what GA needs.. what GA needs is a much lower cost of entry to new participants (Next generation training) and new certified airplanes that are capable of at least some useful load which don’t cost $300K new (I’m looking straight at you, Cessna and Piper).”

“Not good. Good thing I have a professional pilot job, because I can’t attract a single student as a part-time CFI due to the overwhelming cost of learning to fly.”

“$20 per Gal AVGAS.”

“It will be the same. Administration proposes user fees, GA rallies its membership with advocacy efforts, and Congress dispenses with user fees.”

“Costs have got to come down. This includes everything from hangar rent, insurance, to aircraft purchases. The days are gone of flour drops and pancake flyins at local airports. Those days need to come back. Also, airports need to be public friendly and appear inviting, not restricting. The FAA needs to push back expensive equipment installs (ADS-B appliances) timeframes and increase training for controllers to handle “flight following requests.”

“ I feel for those who are in aircraft manufacturing…. No reason to expect Obama will stop demonizing business GA aviation.”

“ In my opinion, the US economy is in such bad shape that either candidate would have had difficulty coping with it. I’m not a fan of user fees – particularly since it already costs so much to fly. However money for economic recovery has to come from somewhere.”

“Hopefully people will start buying airplanes again and get down to the great business of flying again. Lets hope our leader stops criticizing business jets as well!”

“ User taxes, higher gas taxes, greater penalty for being successful enough to buy an airplane.”

“ It’ll be just fine. Obama is not one dimensional and he sees the economic benefits GA provides. The time for politics is over and we just need to work together for the greater good.”

It’s a runway, it’s a highway. Pilot John Wright found himself making an emergency landing on I-95 in Georgia’s McIntosh County, reports WTVM-TV.  He was not injured.

The timing for this purchase was bad. Nigerian Gov. Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State is getting some flak after taking delivery of a new $45 million Bombardier Global 5000 right after thousands of residents in his state have been displaced by the worst flooding crisis in the state’s history, reports the Osun Defender.  He traded in an Embraer Legacy 600 to buy the new jet.

Talk about the frozen tundra…A Cessna 207 enroute from Emmonak to Kotlik, Alaska, ended up making a tundra landing after developing engine problems, reports KTUU-TV.  The pilot and his passenger were uninjured.

Do the crime, do the time.  Jerry Edward Kuwata, a former executive at Lincoln-based aircraft parts company WECO Aerospace Systems Inc., is facing up to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to endangering aircraft, reports KSWT-TV.  He used uncertified parts and falsely certified that the FAA approved their use in aircraft repair.

Glad this one got caught.  Adam Gardenhire has pleaded guilty to pointing a laser at aircraft including a Cessna jet and a police helicopter, reports the Sacramento Bee.  He could get up to five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.

China sets up a no-fly zone.  The Chinese government has started to clamp down on the sale of radio-controlled helicopters and planes, reports the Globe and Mail.  The government made the move as it tightens security as the Communist Party begins a major transfer of power starting on Nov. 8.

We’ll end the week with this cool time-lapse video by Duncan Aviation on the painting of a Gulfstream GV at its new facility in Lincoln, Neb. Enjoy!

Wait — this *isn’t* a runway?  A pilot in Michigan thought he was landing at St. Cloud Regional Airport, but in fact landed on a country road, reports the Sleepy Eye Herald Dispatch. The pilot, who said it was raining, noted that the weather was “less than ideal” for flying.

Look up – you’re being pulled over! The Wisconsin State Patrol reports it has given out 1,324 speeding tickets, 1,662 citations and made 2,197 traffic stops using three Cessna Skyhawks, reports the LaCrosse Tribune.  The patrol called its aerial enforcement program, ”a valuable traffic safety enforcement tool,” and plans to bring it back in 2013.

This time, the plane was not to blame.  Officials at Philadelphia International Airport say an aircraft was not to blame for a tire that smashed a hole into the roof of a local building, reports NBC Philadelphia. Instead, the damage is being blamed on a truck that lost a tire.

It was the accident that wasn’t, part 1.  Residents in the Wildomar/Murrieta/Temecula, Calif., region reported an aircraft accident after hearing a “loud bang” around 7 in the morning, reports the Temecula Patch. A search by the Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department and the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department was called off after it was determined the residents just heard a loud noise.

The accident that wasn’t, part 2.  On the other side of the country, the Warwick, R.I. Fire Department called off the search for a airplane that appeared to drop off the radar at the air traffic control tower at T.F. Green Airport, reports the Boston Globe.  No calls about a downed aircraft were made and searches by the Marine Task Force and the Coast Guard came up empty.

Airplane meets deer. A pilot and his student are fine after their single-engine airplane hit a deer while trying to take off at Ohio’s Carroll County Airport, reports WTOV-TV.  The owner and student pilot, Tom Erb, had just bought the aircraft.

Taking some air out of the campaign.  A blimp being used for advertising by the Mitt Romney presidential campaign was forced to do an emergency landing in Davie, Fla., because of high winds, reports the Washington Post.  The pilot and passenger were unharmed.