RichC | April 18, 2020
The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is one of the most celebrated Allied fighter planes of WW II. It continues to have wide-spread aviation enthusiasm to this day … and one look (and listen – volume up!) will have you understanding why it is so admired.
RichC | January 25, 2020
EDIT – A Boeing 777X airliner lifts off for its first flight at Paine Field on January 25, 2020 in Everett, Washington. Getty images – Stephen Brashear The new Boeing 777X enters the next phase of its rigorous test program. Based on the most successful twin-aisle airplane ever, the Boeing 777, and with advanced technologies […]
RichC | December 26, 2019
While sifting through a few old .MP4 files, I found one of my first iPhone 5 test video clips from 2012 and it had a bit of footage of my Sonex airplane project (posted a few photos back then) that I was working on a year before selling it. It was shortly before I sold […]
RichC | December 11, 2019
Pocketknives have been part of my life since I was a 5 year old … yes, you heard that right, FIVE YEARS OLD. My grandfather gave me my first 1-inch semi-toy pocketknife when my family was still living on Spencer Street in Toledo – which means I was likely still only 4 (it was a […]
RichC | August 28, 2019
RichC | August 26, 2019
Although our local EAA chapter’s EAA284.org Fly-In and Sunday’s pancake breakfast was questionable this year if there wasn’t an airshow on Saturday, the Stewarts were able to gather the pilots together for the Red Stewart Airfield 22nd Annual Airshow. The weekend is always well attended and appreciated by the community and those who enjoy aviation […]
RichC | April 7, 2019
The Antonov An-225 is one big aircraft … a strategic airlifter built in the Soviet Union in 1985 with a first flight in 1988 with the designed purpose of airlifting Energia rocket’s boosters and the Buran orbiter for the Soviet space program in the 1980s.
RichC | February 27, 2019
Since printing presses (and bindery equipment) is in my DNA, I can’t help but have a soft spot for this guy tweaking his equipment to spit out paper airplanes. Personally I would rather … and remember many-a-late nights … calculating $$$ as our sheet-fed offset presses mesmerizingly crank out piles of paper. 🙂
RichC | January 25, 2019
As more and more federal employees decide they aren’t going to continue to work without a paycheck, the focus has shifted to the unpaid in the Coast Guard, TSA and Air Traffic Control. Air travel has now moved front and center as the “shutdown-standoff” continues (the Senate is at least negotiating). Flyers are feeling it […]
RichC | January 17, 2019
One of my favorite YouTube channels is Engineering Explained and in this video car guru and mechanical engineer Jason Fenske explains just how BMW used water injection to increase power at full throttle and high manifold pressures. Great stuff. And if this kind of "automotive engineering stuff" interests you and you like aviation like me, […]
RichC | January 4, 2019
Aviation has bogged in the last few decades, but with computer assisted quadrotors, private space ventures and renewed supersonic travel … perhaps the next couple decades with be inspirational? Supersonic jets may be about to make a comeback – Reinventing Concorde
RichC | October 1, 2018
Air Force One is parked at Joint Base Andrews in Prince George’s County. Want to board? Run for the highest office in the land or join the White House press corps. Or, for a slightly easier route, visit National Harbor as of Oct. 19, when what’s billed as an “identical model of the president’s aircraft” […]
RichC | August 25, 2018
This Labor Day weekend is the annual Stewart Airshow and our EAA chapter’s fly-in and pancake breakfast. If you enjoy aviation and mostly vintage aircraft flying in and out of a well cared for grass airstrip, this outing is for you. The gathering in Waynesville Ohio is always an enjoyable community time and is fun […]
RichC | August 17, 2018
While monitoring a military history Twitter feed, decided to add this “bomb bay view” photo from the World War II bomber group my father-in-law flew with. He was the navigator for the 394th Bomb Group of Martin Marauder B-26s and flew nearly 50 bombing missions over Germany. They were known as the “Bridge Busters.” (Read […]
RichC | June 28, 2018
Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird The SR-71 was designed for flight at over Mach 3 with a flight crew of two in tandem cockpits, with the pilot in the forward cockpit and the reconnaissance systems officer operating the surveillance systems and equipment from the rear cockpit, and directing navigation on the mission flight path. The SR-71 was […]
RichC | June 13, 2018
Just an impressive photo for North Korea to sleep on (and me to include on my blog) … and just in case Kim Jong Un is having second thoughts regarding his historic handshake and agreement with President Trump at the Singapore Summit. Let’s hope we are all on the same page and that hardliners in […]
RichC | March 11, 2018
Ah yes … the stress of a mom flying by herself with a one-year-old … it can be stressful. My daughter Katelyn flew to San Diego, California “alone” with Annalyn on Saturday and reported that all her “distraction” preparations paid off … well she didn’t exactly say that … BUT that fact that she was […]
RichC | February 25, 2018
For frequent long distance flyers, give this airline reservation travel tip a try … We have never bought an upper-class seat; if ever we’ve flown anywhere up front, we’ve used miles to upgrade from economy. If you want to do that, call reservations and drop the name “revenue management.” The reason is that revenue management’s […]
RichC | February 22, 2018
Previously I’ve detailed a bit about the shooting down of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 and some of what I have learned … here is a National Geographic channel video that summarizes what we know in 44 minutes.
RichC | January 29, 2018
My friend Jeff is planning on ordering a DJI Mavic Pro this weekend. I sent him a recent article that has him pondering models. Jokingly I sent him this ani.gif suggesting he let me borrow it when I head to the boat … to which he replied, “Sure, if you put down a $1000 deposit. […]
RichC | January 3, 2018
Before sending another check to the guy I have doing some bottom work on Encore, I really need to inspect the work. I don’t want him to stop working, but I don’t want bottom paint slapped on the new epoxy fiberglass repair before double checking the layers, fairing and keel work and epoxy barrier coats […]
RichC | July 22, 2017
Along with the Red Stewart Airfield airshow and night airshow on Saturday September 2, 2017, my EAA284 Chapter will be serving up a pancake breakfast for those camping over or flying in on Sunday morning September 3rd. Always a great time.
RichC | June 3, 2017
Stratolaunch, cited as the "world’s largest plane," has been under construction for four years, but is finally ready to come out of the hanger. The plane has a wingspan larger than a football field and according to the design firm Stratolaunch Systems, is designed to carry rockets into the stratosphere before firing the payload into […]
RichC | April 28, 2017
This “daily” desultory blog started back in April 2005 as an offshoot from my paper journal started in college. It is a place from me to post and talk about life, family, hobbies and whatever happens to be on my mind. I noticed that one of my first posts started on this day 12 years ago about […]
RichC | February 5, 2017
Homing pigeons were outfitted with lightweight cameras in WWI with time-delayed shutters for aerial reconnaissance photography, likely the first "drones." They were used very effective as messenger pigeons prior to wireless radio and effectively in communicating behind enemy lines in World War II. Interestingly the Swiss Army continued they military pigeons until it was disbanded […]
RichC | January 15, 2017
The quality of the photo isn’t the best, but the content is pretty impressive. The latest issue of the weekly Cruising Compass had this photo as the "Cruising Shot of the Week" … excellent! This busy shot of Boston Harbor from July 2013, with the Navy Blue Angels flying over the USS Constitution (Old Iron […]
RichC | November 10, 2016
When contemplating just how crazy men were when trying to fly in the era of the Wright brothers, you realize "some" are still testing the envelope when it comes to craziness and flight (or perhaps "stupidity and flight?")
RichC | October 26, 2016
The advancements in unmanned aviation continue to impress me as a new generation of pilots is flying by remote control rather than “stick and rudder,” “yoke and peddle” … but all can still fly by the “seat of their pants.” I’m still unsure what to call these computer controlled devices nowadays … quadcopters, quadrotors (what […]
RichC | September 1, 2016
My son-in-law Drew shared a really impressive Phatom3 movie clip on YouTube after his July 2016 vacation in Michigan. There were some incredibly beautiful views, sunsets and shoreline video … of course it didn’t hurt that the weather was perfect for Katelyn and Drew’s vacation at his parent’s “cabin” (as they call it). Although I’ve […]
RichC | August 28, 2016
RichC | August 21, 2016
As John “Hannibal” Smith (the late George Peppard) from the A-Team would say, “I love it when a plan comes together.” As was the case when I had acres of grass to to mow into a rain filled weekend schedule — it is great when “plans come together.” I was able to squeak in and […]
RichC | July 18, 2016
Two years has passed since a missle downed Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, yet 298 families are still without closure. In the US we’ve heard the slogan “too big to fail” when giving a pass to big banks, companies or their decision makers. When it is the powerful like Vladimir Putin and Russia, one wonders if […]
RichC | July 6, 2016
My daughter Katelyn and husband Drew were in Iowa over the July 4th holiday weekend with his family. Since they were visiting the old farm homestead, it was a perfect time to get his new Phantom 3 quadrotor out and take a little more video. The time to visit northwestern Iowa is obviously the summer […]
RichC | June 28, 2016
I’m not sure how the whole "drone" future is going to turn out, but it is exciting to watch the improvements over a short period of time. The ease of flying, improvements in batteries and quality of video have really advanced. It will not be long before we’re "jumping" around town in a quadrotor. I […]
RichC | June 21, 2016
My son-in-law Drew had a special treat after an evening at the Ridgeview Medical Center fundraiser in Waconia, Minnesota. It looks like my daughter Katelyn persuaded her colleague, fellow pediatrician Dr. Adam Weber, to take Drew up for an evening flight in his Bellanca Citabria (Of interest: When the original manufacturer Champion Aircraft derived the name for this […]
RichC | June 8, 2016
As the second anniversary approaches of the downing of #MH17 by Russian missiles over the Ukraine, my brother-in-law Jerry Skinner is doing what he can to keep the tragedy in front of the public eye. Pressure on politicians for them to pursue justice, compensation and a admission from Russia and Putin (a long shot) is […]
RichC | May 25, 2016
My brother-in-law Jerry Skinner has been busy working on the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 case in order to bring closure for the families of victims. It is hard to imagine that shooting down of a commercial airliner was anything but a mistake, but who should be held accountable for Buk missiles capable of this kind […]
RichC | April 14, 2016
This isn’t the first close call incident according to the news coming from the Pentagon, but a very close and dangerous pass over the USS Donald Cook in the Baltic. They halted exercises with a Polish helicopter landing on the flight deck and shared the video below. Thankfully cooler head prevailed but at some […]
RichC | March 16, 2016
Watched an older aviation documentary this past weekend on YouTube (remembered reading about it years ago). The attempted rescue of the Kee Bird was a 1996 video story and heroic attempt ending in disaster — NOVA: B-20 Frozen in Time.
RichC | November 21, 2015
What a duffus! I don’t want to admit, but I made a MAJOR airport security mistake on Friday morning … and am thankfully a free man to tell the tale. KUDOS to the much maligned Transportation Security Administration (TSA) for doing their job and doing it well. Neglectful Rich left an extended round full 9mm […]
RichC | August 26, 2015
A passenger who was waiting for a storm to pass to board his flight caught the exact moment when a lightning bolt struck a Delta airliner. Source: Watch this Delta airliner get struck by a lightning bolt!
RichC | August 25, 2015
After getting a chance to play with a quad copter last week, I’ve been a little more intrigued with the advancements in “drones.” Who knows, this innovation may find its way into the first realistic personal transportation device someday? Sony’s Aerosense drone that takes off and lands vertically but during flight gets most of its […]
RichC | August 19, 2015
Well … one of the positive things that happen at funerals (and weddings) is that families get together. Taylor took a funeral day (plus weekend) from his job and Katelyn and Drew drove home from Wayzata (Minneapolis, MN) and brought along his “new toy” … quadcopter with a camera – what a great distraction. We […]
RichC | August 13, 2015
This year’s September 5th and 6th Red Stewart Airshow and our EAA284 TalilDragger FlyIn not until Labor Day weekend in September, but with my full plate I want to get my part done early. I’ve been up most every morning this week with Brenda (pain issues), and so while the PT/OT persona was at the […]
RichC | July 11, 2015
For those aviation “nuts” who flock to Oshkosh each July for Airventure, EAA has a couple smartphone apps for you. I am told (thanks Bob) that version are in both iOS and Android so both major mobile operating systems are supported. I've just download myself so am not sure how helpful it will be, although […]
RichC | July 11, 2015
It was a quick and inexpensive flight to Florida this past week to do a little tropical weather prep aboard Encore. Summer is the time of year that “commuter cruisers” double their line, remove sails and store an extra windage in case hurricane winds target the area … besides I really was looking forward to […]
RichC | June 17, 2015
Now I’ll be the first to admit, I spend too much time agonizing over purchasing things wondering if I’m buying the right model or brand … and am I paying too much. The Internet has only complicated matters since there is even more information to process. It’s the same thing when booking travel … although […]
RichC | June 13, 2015
If you have already traveled by airplane, chances are you’ve noticed a tiny hole on the lower portion of all airplane windows The hole is designed to balance out the pressure between the last two layers of a typical pressurized-cabin window. For more images and a more detailed explaination see the article at Interesting Engineering.
RichC | May 22, 2015
Out of sight, out of mind. Unlike a hard copy book sitting on my reading table, ebooks are easy to forget about … that’s one of the disadvantages of receiving the gift of an ebook (as is having multiple e-reading apps). My friend Jeff gave me David McCullough’s new book The Wright Brothers for my […]
RichC | March 30, 2015
After the rain on Friday (above), the weather improve for a weekend finishing up a long drawn out engine work (plus a few other repairs) to Encore at the marina in Florida. The weather improved and was high 70s on Saturday and Sunday but with the north wind felt cooler in the shade. I wasn't […]
RichC | March 26, 2015
News is slowly trickling or leaking out as to what may have happened to Germanwings Flight 9525 with 150 people on board in the mountain region of southern France. The lastest indication from a New York Times report is that one of the pilots left the cockpit after having a “very smooth, very cool” conversation […]
RichC | March 24, 2015
Early in the day I wondered why French President François Hollande was so quick to say that he expected no survivors in the crash of Germanwings Flight 9525 … after seeing the debris field photos in the afternoon, I understand why (below). Sure seems like a suspicious crash considering the reliability of this Airbus A320 […]
RichC | March 19, 2015
I received a few long overdue updates items from our EAA chapter’s president for the interior pages of the EAA284 chapter website on Wednesday and so before forgetting I jumped right on it. We are continuing to keep the EAA284.org domain, but opt to use WordPress.com to host because it is free. Still there are […]
RichC | February 12, 2015
The litigious society we live in gets plenty of criticism, most of it deservingly, but all to often the benefits are overlooked. Air travel for example is safer than it has ever been thanks to innovation and attention to design, maintenance, technology and training … and the improvements due to the costs forced on manufacturers […]
RichC | January 14, 2015
Imagine the Elio if it also came with wings? It might look something like the Aeromobil 3.0 prototype. I have to admit that I’m one of those dreamers who envisioned a flying car in my lifetime. Perhaps it is just a pipe dream, but I do envy those fortunate enough to be working on projects […]
RichC | December 27, 2014
From the trailer (below) and the previous Brian J. Terwilliger films, the new documentary movie Living in the Age of Airplanes should be another beautiful film. Tewilliger produced independent films One Six Right (One Six Left and Flying Full Circle), but the rights to his new film will have the National Geographic Studios brand to […]
RichC | December 15, 2014
Expedia posted a lighthearted polling of what annoys airline passengers which got me thinking about what I notice and where I may offend. I already do my best to be overly attentive to most of these annoyances, but probably would rank “The Aromatic Passenger” as #1 followed by the “Back Seat Grabber” as my #2 […]
RichC | October 31, 2014
The debris photos are starting to show up on the Internet on Twitter after the Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo prototype was lost after its first powered test since January. The crash of this suborbital “passenger carrying” spaceship happened at the Mojave Air and Space Port in California according to officials. Two pilots were aboard the craft […]
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