CAUTION – Sandhill Cranes migration starting!

The Fall migration has started along the Foothills, at about the 1,500′ elevation, where they can ride any thermals,
or, today, they are riding the 30 kt south wind, so their ground speed is about 60 kts.

Note that they will be flying at 4,000 ft and above, and fly in wide ‘V’ formations of 50+ birds.

If they find a strong thermal they will spiral up, single file, to over 10,000′ before reforming their ‘V’ formation again.

So, be careful flying along the Foothills, or crossing them…. they are nordo and no ADSB.

Follow us on Facebook Gold medal

Radio Communications 1 Radio Basics

Topic: Join us for this introductory lesson on radio basics, to feel confident while operating in complex airspace of the SF Bay Area.
On Saturday, February 27, 2021 at 12:00 Pacific Standard Time (13:00 MST, 14:00 CST, 15:00 EST, 10:00 HST, 11:00 AKST, 13:00 Arizona, 20:00 GMT)

Select Number:
WP15103818

Description:
Flying through SF Bay Area airspace requires a high degree of situational awareness and sophisticated radio skills. And yet, radio communication is rarely taught as a specific subject during private pilot training. Usually, new pilots just absorb what they hear on the frequency around them, both good and bad. Although some radio techniques are covered in ground school, rarely do student pilots get the time devoted to demystifying this often-confusing subject.

San Carlos Flight Center invites Chief Pilot Herb Patten and pilot Dan Dyer to bridge the communication gap, help newer pilots understand the structure of radio and how to improve their own. The presentation will begin with a review of radio communication phraseology and use. What part is structured? What part is unstructured? What words are good official phraseology, and what words are considered jargon, slang, or poor grammar?

If you are new to radio communication or just want a great review to fill gaps in your pilot education, please join us for this unique opportunity.

Herb Patten is the Chief Pilot at the San Carlos Flight Center, a CFI and an FAA certificated advanced and instrument ground instructor who teaches private pilot ground school at San Carlos Flight Center. He is a commercial pilot with an instrument rating, has flown over 1,500 hours into at least 120 different California airports. He is the current chairman of the Upwind Foundation, famous for its Upwind Summer Scholarship Program. In 2015, Herb was named a Master Instructor by the National Association of Flight Instructors.

Dan Dyer is the founder of the San Carlos Flight Center, and has built the motto of Safety, Community, and Adventure for over 8 years. Dan was an instructor for 15 years, accumulated over 4,000 flight hours, and is the Bay Area’s local expert in crosswind landing instruction. He is known for finding simple and innovative ways to explain complex topics and regularly speaks on advanced ground school topics. Find out more about Dan at www.sancarlosflight.com or contact him at dan@sancarlosflight.com

To view further details and registration information for this webinar, click here.

Chapter 1541 Ray Scholars just keep on achieving!

Amy Whelan, chapter 1541’s first Ray Scholar, just passed her IFR checkride and is now Instrument Rated! Amy is shown here with her Embry Riddle University IFR achievement pin, standing in front of the “Pathways to the Sky” statue at ERU (known to the students as the Eagle Statue). Her Designated Pilot Examiner was a retired Air Force Pilot who flew out of both McClellan and Mather.

Amy says she is really enjoying college, but is looking forward to coming home for Christmas. She had the highest score in her class on the written test and finished her first semester on the Dean’s List, which caused proud Papa Scott to note “Pretty smart kid – must be from her Mom. She comes home tomorrow and is home for 3 weeks. When she returns to Embry-Riddle she will start her commercial rating.”

Congratulations, Amy!

Follow us on Facebook Gold medal

Fuel at KLHM

The existing fuel pumps are down and will not be repaired.

The new pumps are ready to go but there are inspection issues, so they are not yet available.

Richard will fuel aircraft from the truck at the self-serve price during the week.

Follow us on Facebook Gold medal

EAA1541’s Ray Aviation Scholar, Amy Whelan, has passed her Private Pilot checkride.

Amy Whelan, who started out as a Young Eagle, went to Oshkosh as a recipient of our Air Academy sponsorship, and won a coveted Ray Aviation Scholarship, passed her Private Pilot checkride on June 6th.

Amy thanks the entire chapter, but especially her instructor Randy Sharp and Bruce Robinson for the use of his Cessna 150. Amy would also like to thank the Ray Foundation for their financial support, the EAA and Lightspeed Aviation.

Amy will be soon be studying Aeronautical Science at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida.

Follow us on Facebook Gold medal

Pics, PIREPS and Project updates needed

One of the most fun things about a face to face EAA meeting is just standing around chatting about what’s new. Since we can’t do that at present, and we know you have a smart phone in your pocket, we are going to add a new feature to the newsletter called “Pics, PIREPS and Project Updates”.

Here’s how it works: for anything of interest related to aviation that you have experienced or are currently involved with, just take a picture and text it to us along with a few words describing what’s in the picture. Working on a project? Just snap a picture of the part you are working on (or the whole project) and text it or email it with a brief description of what you’re doing. Better yet, make it a selfie of yourself and your airplane part together. Flown somewhere interesting? Saw a cool thing in the sky? Found a great price for avgas? Anything flying related that you would mention over a cup of coffee at an EAA meeting is fair game. We’ll include it in the next newsletter, which for the month of May will go to press this coming Sunday.

Why, you probably already have a great pic on your phone — just check your photo gallery and either:
1. Text it to the newsletter at 360-797-3260 (editor’s phone), or
2. Email it to eaa1541@gmail.com

No smartphone? Then just send a note without a pic. A sentence or two will suffice.
Oh, and include your name. : )

Tailwinds,
-Dan Masys
EAA 1541 newsletter editor

Follow us on Facebook Gold medal

Temporary Control Tower Hour Adjustments

Notice Number: NOTC0103

To ensure the continued resiliency of the air traffic control system amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the FAA is planning to temporarily adjust the operating hours of approximately 100 control towers nationwide (PDF). Making these adjustments allows for continued safe operations throughout the national airspace system while minimizing health risks to our workforce. The FAA plans to begin making control tower hour adjustments on Monday, April 27 and complete the process within about a week.

These facilities have seen a significant reduction in flights, especially during the evening and nighttime hours, since the pandemic began. Adjusting the operating hours will further protect our employees and reduce the possibility of temporary tower closures from COVID-19 exposures by ensuring enough controllers are available to staff the facilities during peak hours. It also will enable us to allocate difficult-to-source supplies where they are most needed.

Most of the towers are historically closed at night, during which time the radar facility with oversight assumes the airspace. The FAA expects the adjustments will not have any operational effects. The agency plans to begin adjusting facility hours later this month.

The FAA will continue to monitor traffic volume at all of these facilities and may make future adjustments to operating hours as appropriate.

For additional information on adjustments to control tower operating hours, as well other regulatory updates due to coronavirus, go to: https://www.faa.gov/coronavirus/regulatory_updates/

Donation items for sale

After Frank Burkhead‘s passing last year, his family have donated a large sum of money to our chapter, and some aviation items for us to sell to raise even more money.

These are:

Bruce Estes (650 504-4464) is holding these items, so contact him directly to purchase them.

Follow us on Facebook