===================================== CASCADE FLYER March 2010, Vol. 10, Issue 3 Website: http://co-opa.com/ President's Message: As pilots we know to plan ahead and then work prudently to execute our plan. As pilots we also know to quickly ditch a plan when conditions change. As pilots we also know that the path finally taken is just as rewarding. Thus it was as we had a late cancellation last month. Ed Endsley our valiant program chair dug out his long retired LaserDisc player and its companion flight disks for an impromptu night of video snippets. Amazing how good such old equipment looked on the big screen and in the end a merry time was had by all. Sadly, new work commitments will make it difficult for Ed to continue as program chair. We thank him for all his hard work while we look for anyone willing to step up and volunteer his or her efforts for our small but worthy group. Spring has not quite yet sprung but already flying season has abruptly returned. That means some old, and some new, conflicts have arisen above the Bend Airport. Being proactive our airport manager Gary Judd has some ideas and he be joining us this month discuss them. Be part of the solution by attending. Wing into the Flight Services Building at 6pm for some socializing, scrumptious potluck at 6:30pm and participate in the formal program at 7pm. Be there or be square. Calendar: 18 March - Monthly Meeting 20 March - Monthly Flyout 15 April - Monthly Meeting 17 April - Monthly Flyout 20 May - Monthly Meeting 22 May - Monthly Flyout - OPA Quarterly Meeting at KBDN 15 June - Monthly Meeting 17 June - Monthly Flyout Web doings: As always you can check out current and past CO-OPA newsletters, view our membership list and view hot aviation links on our website at: http://co-opa.com To access the members only areas the username is "BDN" and the password is "123.0". My Inbox: Good news in my inbox this month. After some prodding by the county the city is going to assemble a Planning Advisory Committee (PAC) to come up with the next revision of the KBDN Master Plan. No further details yet but the initial signs are encouraging. … and, as always, a bit of worrisome news. Recently a fixed wing aircraft was forced to do a go around, and elected to sidestep to the right for the maneuver. Unfortunately that intruded on the helicopter pattern and led to a close call. My Inbox -- continued: On your next go around try to remember that powered planes fly left hand traffic at KBDN and the gliders and helicopters have right hand traffic. Random Thoughts: Well, in respect to Gary Judd, our airport manager, maybe my thoughts are a bit random but let's all consider some of his requests for potential improvements on airport procedures seriously. The first proposal is to change the calm wind runway (below 5kts) from the current runway 16 to 34. On the plus side: This makes glider operations easier as the tow plane can hookup to gliders next to the current glider parking area. Takeoffs will also be a bit easier as they will be downhill. A lot of traffic from the south makes straight in for 34 even when the winds are calm regardless of the current calm wind runway. On the negative side, landings will also be downhill and require more runway. Until I hear a compelling reason against it, the change to 34 makes sense to me. Any opposing ideas? Another proposal is for potential changes to the Fly Friendly program. Some pilots have complained that flying that downwind leg to 16 is too close to the field for a safe base leg. The program requests pilots to fly that downwind to the west of Cimarron City to avoid that noise sensitive area. Do we need a newer procedure that allows for a wider pattern? Personally I can not imagine how fast you would have to be flying to need that. Airlink also has a safety proposal of their own. They are requesting comments on a plan to only fly at 500ft AGL. As long as they avoid the takeoff and departure areas of our many local airports that seems like a good plan to me. People flying ultralights and helicopters may differ. Does anyone have any objections or amendments? The last proposal is the toughest one. That is a proposal to designate Class E airspace around KBDN all the way to the ground instead of the current 700' AGL. Currently that airspace from ground to 700' is Class G and thus is uncontrolled. Some IFR operators have requested the change so that they are assured exclusive use of the airport area during actual IFR operations. Conversely this makes VFR operations in marginal weather harder. Currently aircraft can operate in this class G airspace when they have one-mile flight visibility (three at night) and are clear of clouds. If this airspace became Class E then the requirement would change to three miles flight visibility, 500ft below, 1,000 ft above and 2,000ft laterally from clouds. That is not a huge difference, and if we can obtain a Special VFR clearance the requirements become one mile flight and ground visibility and clear of clouds. I have seen a lot of pilots finish long cross-countries barely making it to KBDN under the current rules. So, to me the deciding factor is whether ATC is willing to handle the extra burden of Special VFR clearances during bad weather. If so it is a win-win, otherwise we are just shifting the safety issues around from one set of pilots to another. Got your own opinions? Pass them on to me, or directly to Gary Judd. Now is your chance to setup a real proper 'I told you so'. Gary Miller February Fly-out The 'weather gods' finally cooperated and we had a great fly-out to Chiloquin. Between the COOPA contingent and other visitors, the ramp was really crowded! PHOTOS: Don Wilfong on final, RWY35 Chiloquin The COOPA Chiloquin contingent The crowded ramp Great air-air from Kitfox to C-182 … and the buffalo north of Chiloquin at Klamath Marsh Embry-Riddle to Test Swift Fuel in Fleet ERAU Ramp Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University announced plans this week to phase in lead-free biofuel produced by Swift Enterprises for use in its training aircraft, the nation's largest (95 aircraft) collegiate fleet. Swift fuel is a renewable biofuel synthesized from sorghum that has been successfully tested by the FAA Technical Center. Swift Fuel - continued Engineers at ERAU's Eagle Flight Research Center in Daytona Beach, Florida, will begin certification testing in about three weeks that will enable more than 40 Cessna 172s – nearly half the fleet – to operate on Swift fuel, said Richard "Pat" Anderson, associate professor of aerospace engineering, chief investigator in the research project, and director of the Eagle Flight Research Center. "We believe this effort by Embry-Riddle and Swift will guide the way to a large-scale switch by the general aviation industry to alternative fuels," he said. Swift Enterprises is based at the Purdue Research Park of West Lafayette, Indiana. ERAU will also test the fuel on one of its Piper Seminoles, operating one of two engines on Swift fuel at first. Tentative plans are to exhibit that airplane to Oshkosh this year and discuss the Swift-ERAU program, Anderson said. Anderson estimated the certification testing project to run about two and a half years. They are also partnering with AvFuel to distribute the fuel - about 15,000 gallons per year. ERAU uses about a million gallons of aviation fuel per year, Anderson said. Small aircraft burn nearly 190 million gallons of aviation fuel annually, contributing 45 percent of all U.S. lead emissions, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Removing lead from aviation fuel has been technically challenging because lead prevents detonation in airplane engines, which have much higher compression than automobile engines. Swift fuel has passed the FAA's detonation test and gets more miles per gallon than current aviation fuel. Aviation Partners Inc. (API) will begin testing "spiroid" loop-shaped wing tips on a Dassault Falcon "spiroids" ….. The development program is funded in part by a federal government grant administered by FAA's John A. Volpe Transportation Systems Center in Cambridge, Mass. The goal will be to explore wing modifications that have the potential to reduce FAR Part 36 noise signature and carbon emissions. The spiroid devices being developed for the Falcon 50 are a generation newer than the original designs tested by API on a Gulfstream G-II several years ago. API Senior VP Technology Louis "Bernie" Gratzer, claims that its current-generation winglets have saved the airlines more than 2-billion gallons of fuel since making their debut on Southwest Airlines' Boeing 737 aircraft in mid 2003. Av8 magazine We've just launched Reach For The Sky - a new series! In our brand new series we look at home built aircraft from around the world. This month we have a collection of stunning Vans RV aircraft and a Harmon Rocket. We'd like to invite your members to submit photos and a description of their airplane (around 150 words) to us for inclusion in this series. They can either email me direct at av8editor@gmail.com or via the magazine to info@av8magazine.com You and your members can subscribe to our free magazine by going to the homepage - www.av8magazine.com - scrolling down to register and following the simple instructions - it's totally free and there's no catch! Let me know if you need any more info - you can read more about the present issue below. In this month's issue we are covering the extreme ends of aviation. First up, we have 'Out Of This World!' A Fascinating insight into NASA's STS130 Space Shuttle mission. Our North American Editor Steve Wood was one of only five journalists allowed to speak to the astronauts on the launch pad and wasted no time in finding out how the Shuttle handles in 'aircraft mode' back in Earth's atmosphere. At the other end of the scale we have Alex Ledger who went paragliding in the Himalayas. Apart from flying in some truly breath-taking scenery, Alex was lucky enough to fly in formation with a huge Griffin Vulture. Regards, Steve Wood, North America Editor - AV8Magazine.com ================================================================== COOPA officer contact info: President Gary E. Miller 109 NW Wilmington Ave Bend, OR 97701 541-382-8588 gem@rellim.com Vice President --------OPEN---------- Secretary/Treasurer Don Wilfong 210 SE Cessna Dr Bend, OR 97702 541 389-1456 Temp Fly-out Chair Don Wilfong 210 SE Cessna Dr Bend, OR 97702 541 389-1456 wilfong.d@gmail.com Program Chair --------OPEN---------- And finally, send Newsletter inputs to Mike Bond 22052 Banff Drive Bend, OR 97702 541 317-8443 mvbond@spiritone.com