Letters

The blue-crab caper

With " Operation GA: The Blue-Crab Caper" (May Pilot) you've hit the general aviation nail on the head. Born in 1960, I first got my "wings" in 1963 from Maj. Don Westbrook, U.S. Air Force, missing in action, Vietnam.

From the day I was able to comprehend what those wings he gave me really meant, I was destined to become an aviator. For the next 39 years, I would be an armchair pilot, yielding to the overriding priorities of a college education, a career, a family, timing, and economics.

When timing and economics finally relented, I made good on my personal commitment to earn those wings. Having long passed prime time for a military career, GA became my de facto avenue for seat time. Yet the yearning continued beyond pattern work and the mere 50-minute dash for a hamburger or shopping destination. "The Blue-Crab Caper" is a testament to what individuals, friends, and even foremost, families, can do with the mobility of mainstream GA aircraft. Each of these outings becomes an adventure in and of itself. Fifty years ago, not many photo albums included snapshots of folks unloading the airplane, arriving at the next great family vacation. Even fewer recorded the spoils of such adventures. This article has inspired me to embark on my next ambitious sortie: a family Bahamian island hop. Isn't this what GA is all about?

Brett Stephens AOPA 4712131
Venice, Florida

I have thoroughly enjoyed the past two months' articles from Chip Wright. I also hail from the Baltimore area and call Martin State Airport, about 30 nautical miles north of Annapolis, home. This month's article about the mission for Maryland blue crabs got me counting the days until summer vacation and crabs buried in Old Bay. Last month Wright talked about seeing old friends, both human and aircraft (" It's a Small World," April Pilot). In college in Florida, I don't see too many old friends, but on my long seven-hour cross-country flight for my commercial pilot training, I flew to Marathon Key and, almost 1,200 miles away from my Maryland home, found a friendly face...and her pilot. The beautiful jet-black Mitsubishi MU-2 was unmistakable along with the corporate logo on her tail, and I got a chance to chat with the pilot before he had to depart. With fewer than 200 hours and about 1.5 years of flying, I don't have many new friends, much less old ones, at the airport, but seeing a familiar airplane and/or pilot far from where you first met makes you realize how small our flying community really is.

Colin S. Reid AOPA 4386833
Daytona Beach, Florida

The sands of time

I hate to throw cold water on your article (" The Sands of Time," May Pilot), but that photo of Patton was not taken in 1942 or in the desert. You'll note the four-star plate in the airplane cockpit, as well as the stars on his helmet and uniform. Patton was a two-star major general in 1942 and during World War II. That photo was most likely taken in Germany in the summer of 1945. The article implies that everything the author saw was from the 1940s. Not true. In 1964 the U.S. Army returned to the desert for the largest exercise since World War II. Called "Desert Strike," it had three regular divisions and two National Guard divisions. I was in the first armored division, and we were out there for about six weeks. We chewed up a lot of desert — so a lot of our "remains" are still visible too. We found lots of reminders of Patton's folks, including weapons (ruined, of course, but still identifiable), campsites, and railheads. It was a great military exercise, which did nothing to prepare us for Vietnam. But that's another story.

James P. Westbrook AOPA 1102201
Dallas, Texas

"The Sands of Time" was an enjoyable and interesting part of World War II U.S. history. Accounts like this should be available to everyone, especially the younger population. For the record, though, the caption for the photo of Gen. Patton in the rear seat reads that he "piloted his Stinson Voyager." The aircraft is a Stinson L-5 Sentinel. The Stinson Voyager is a postwar civilian four-place airplane.

Frank R. Liberti AOPA 1395145
Locust Grove, Virginia

Lessons learned chatting with pilots

A knowing smile crossed my face when I read Rod Machado's column "License to Learn: Lessons Learned From Chatting With Pilots" (May Pilot). I missed the Great Lakes International Aviation Conference in Lansing, Michigan, but the mention of Doc Strahle gave me an idea of what Machado experienced while enjoying the seminar on convective weather. Many years ago I was privileged to begin my IFR training with Doc Strahle instructing at our local airport, Bishop International in Flint, Michigan. I'll never forget his opening lines: "The books, the manuals, and all the other material handed out will not be covered in class. You are all adults, and I expect you to master it on your time. I'm going to spend our time teaching you about convective weather and IFR operations, and all the things that will make you a better and safer IFR pilot, and might save your life." We did thoroughly learn weather and IFR operations, and we saw a glimpse into the future when he showed us a program he wrote for his laptop computer that was linked to his cell phone and gave him Nexrad images in the cock-pit while flying. He took pictures as well, so we could see how the computer imagery depicted the various weather phenomena he encountered while flying. His enthusiasm for learning is indeed catching, and I will never forget the lessons learned from him.

Rodney Rajala AOPA 1099696
Flushing, Michigan

Pea soup

Your May issue was great, and made more so by an article by Barry Schiff. As usual, always informative. His article " Proficient Pilot: Pea Soup" had me riveted to my seat. For the first time in my many years I felt what it was like for a line captain to do what I think is the impossible. The only other article to move me so, "With Trusting Eyes Behind Me," by Ellen Paneok, was in the January 1998 issue. It is the translation of one's experiences, which can be felt by the reader, that makes for high-drama reading. This is true for all of Mr. Schiff's stories. I always look forward to his great tales of aviation and life in general. Nothing can stir you as real-life experiences can, especially told in the way Mr. Schiff can.

Vincent L. Nappi AOPA 702299
North Port, Florida

I enjoyed Barry Schiff's article on an all-night North Atlantic crossing followed by a Category III approach into a fog-laden Western European airport. As a former Pan Am captain, I did them in the Lockheed Tri-Star (as well as in the Boeing 747). Schiff's skillfully written article is a word painting, which had me right back in the seat (I wish I'd never had to leave). During my 30-year airline career, 10 of them based in West Berlin, I often did as many as six Boeing 727 or Boeing 737 Cat II approaches a day into West German airports. I found instrument approaches to minimums to be, far and away, the most rewarding kind of flying there is. I do them today in my Piper Seneca II two or three times a month, but my personal minimums are a bit higher now since my airborne electronics are not the same nor is the frequency with which I get to perform them. The Cat III, however, is the ultimate. Only a few pilots ever attain a position from which to make them. Schiff and I were among the privileged.

Robert Lane AOPA 1349601
Orlando, Florida

Just wanted to say I loved the "Pea Soup" article in the latest AOPA Pilot magazine. I'm just a Cessna jockey, but I always wondered what it would be like to watch an airplane land by itself from the left seat. Not being able to see the runway (even after you touch down) apparently brings a whole new dimension to it. Thanks for that.

Lawrence P. Mowles AOPA 5488657
Whittier, California

The unfiltered truth

For many years I have had to change filters in marine engines (" Airframe & Powerplant: The Unfiltered Truth," May Pilot). If you spill oil under the engine, you don't remove the cowling — you remove the engine. I place a one-gallon zip-lock bag around the filter (loosen one turn first), keeping the bag fully around the filter. Poke a small hole in the can and rotate one-half turn and let the oil run into the bag. I suggested this to a friend who has a six-cylinder Lycoming engine in his aircraft and he found it worked well. When installing a filter, wipe a small amount of used oil on the filter gasket and it will turn very easily.

Bob Downing AOPA 4404164
Opp, Alabama

Erratum

In the May issue of Pilot, we attempted to correct an error from "Never Again: Failure to Flight Check" (January Pilot). In doing so, we stated that the author was a Cessna dealer in Hillsboro, Oregon; however, he was a dealer in Wenatchee, Washington. Pilot regrets the error.

We welcome your comments. Address your letters to: Editor, AOPA Pilot, 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, Maryland 21701. Send e-mail to [email protected]. Include your full name, address, and AOPA number on all correspondence, including e-mail. Letters will be edited for length and style.