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PUFA NEWSLETTER
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February 16, 1996
Jeff Rochon, President
Bernie Strotmann, Vice-President
Ken Buck, Treasurer
Glenn Ursel, Secretary
Mail to: Pacific Ultralight Flying Association
102-16071 82 Avenue
Surrey, B.C. V3S 2L6
PUFA Newsletter published by Glenn Ursel
It seems that the worst of winter is past and once more we can get off our runways, now devoid of snow. I personally was grounded for almost a month, a cruel fate if you know how often I like to fly!
A matter of potential discrimination has come to my attention. Without naming names or going into any details, let me say this. The executive of PUFA have unanimously agreed that no potential candidate wishing to join the association will be discriminated against based upon gender. Neither will the executive permit such an individual to be ostracized by the association at the wishes of any special interest group or individual.
I was pleased with the turnout at the last meeting and was encouraged by the signing up of new members. Hopefully this trend will continue and the infusion of new members will bring in new ideas and revitalize the organization.
In this issue of the PUFA Newsletter, we highlight the writing talents of Fred Baron who has done it again - another literary masterpiece of lyrical prose blended with his unique historical perspective on the local ultralight aviation scene!
Also included are reprints of articles that have appeared in some of our competitor's newsletters, such as Charlenne Varrin's item on PUFA from the current issue of the national COPA Canadian Flight and another one from Ken Stephen of the Westview Flying Club up the Coast at Powell River.
We hope the writing talents of these people as well as that displayed in Jon Ormaechae's recent article "Up the Trench", will inspire more of you to set down your recollections of past and/or current aviation experiences and forward them to me for publication in future newsletters.
Once upon a time, yet not that long ago, a young eagle flew high above what has come to be known as Surrey, B.C. A free spirit, soaring and diving, unrestrained by rules, regulations or bylaws. There, above the regimented world below, he could fly as far and as high as he wanted. It was a glorious time.
It was a time for sharing soft summer breezes or the still coolness of a late evening flight. It was a time to enjoy the companionship of other free spirits, many of whom have, all too soon, made their final flight: Ron Inman, Jeff Way and Bert Saunders. At the mention of these names, my mind conjures up visions of aerial adventures untold, each flight remembered in vivid detail. But, most of all I remember the freedom and the camaraderie of that magical time.
Eventually a shadow was cast upon the land. An Orwellian "Big Brother" decreed that a licence was required in order to experience such delights and I forced my somewhat dyslectic mind into gear long enough to write the required test. But, that was just the beginning. Soon my simple set of wings required a registration, my radio had to be licenced and I was forced to purchase insurance. With each restriction, requirement and regulation, another feather was plucked from my wings and the free spirit that was such a big part of the adventure slowly began to slip away. Like so many others who have invested a lot time, effort and money in their aircraft, hangars and tie-down facilities, I have complied.
Now it seems that the-powers-that-be want to clip my wings completely. "Do not fly too low over Surrey!" - "Do not fly too high over the Straits of Georgia!" - "Close Delta Air Park!" - "Close the Museum of Flight!" - "Close the King George Airfield!" Perhaps, they are succeeding. Traffic at local airports has declined by 30% over the past four years. I am saddened when I think of all the folks that have made the effort to acquire a pilot's licence over the past few years only to have their dreams of flight crushed by the heavy hand of bureaucracy.
I wonder how many aviation related businesses are suffering or have disappeared altogether as a result of this conspiracy to stifle recreational aviation in the local area? In these troubled times free enterprise needs nurturing and a helping hand, not obstacles. One such business is Murphy Aviation in Chilliwack which was founded by a local ultralight aviation pioneer, Daryl Murphy. This company, which manufactures a line of Canadian designed light aircraft kits, is a shining example of free enterprise and entrepreneurship. Murphy aircraft kits are exported throughout the world; yet local sales, no doubt, suffer because of anti-aviation sentiment. General aviation is not only fun; it's good for the local economy! If you want more proof, try counting heads at the Abbotsford Airshow.
I wish everyone could experience the joy of flight, the freedom of the sky and the exhilaration of control over a free-wheeling bird. A familiarization flight from a local airfield is a great place to start.
Please don't put any more weight on my fragile wings and shoulders. I've got my licences. I've got my insurance. I've even got a place to fly from. I promise not to fly too high or too low and, in fact, I'll do my best to fly just right. Believe me, there is an interest in aviation here. All it needs is a helping hand, not a heavy hand.
Fred Baron
Finally "Floating" Around the Coast*
After waiting for some parts in order to mount my amphibious floats onto my Beaver Ultralight, I finally got it together. It looks like you could build one of these airplanes over the course of a weekend; but, take it from someone who knows, there's much more to it than it looks.
Just a matter of a couple of days after I got the airplane back up to the airport, the kind people from Airflow Ultralight Aviation Ltd. came up to test fly it and train me how to fly this new machine. I'd like to thank Rick MacIntosh, Vic Cole, Don McKinnon and Dave Garland for all of their help putting it onto the trailer and helping put the wings back on.
After my instructor, Todd Fleury, gave the "Cloud Dancer" a very thorough pre-flight, he taxied it out on the runway and about ten other people and I waited anxiously to see what would happen next. After about a 5 second ground roll, off it went. This is the first time I'd ever seen my own airplane fly and I must say I was very proud. Todd took it out over the ocean and put it through some manoeuvres that I didn't even know existed. He also went up to Powell Lake to do a few water landings.
He came back in and got me and away we went. It was my first take off with the floats and it felt very heavy, but now I'm a lot more used to it and it feels a lot better. We went up to Powell Lake and did about six or seven landings and takeoffs. I found it a whole lot easier to land on the water than I had anticipated. I think it's because you have miles of runway to use and, by reading the waves and the wind currents, you can really tell what the wind is doing.
On day two of my training, Todd and I went all the way up to the head of Goat Lake. We pulled the plane up onto the beach and I just happened to find a fishing rod under my seat. On my second cast, I had a fish on but lost it. We jumped back into the Dancer and flew up to Frog Pond Lake. I couldn't believe how easily the airplane took off and climbed up to 2,000 feet. We landed in Frog Pond Lake and tied up to a cabin at the west end of the lake.
On my second cast, I caught a beautiful fish. What a gas! I gave Todd the fishing rod and, on his third cast, he also caught a real nice trout. This is exactly why I bought this type of airplane. With the training completed, I continued to fly into all of these little lakes, getting more comfortable all the time. On the Father's Day Sunday, Sonya and I and Erik McClinchey and his wife flew up to Stuart Island. Everything was closed when we were there so we took off again and flew all of the way through Hole in the Wall onto Campbell River. We landed at a floating gas dock, right in the Marina, and fueled up the planes. Then we walked across the highway and had dinner in a restaurant. The trip back to Powell River was perfect; the sun was setting just as we landed. The most altitude we gained all day long was to get back into the Powell River Airport. Most of the time we were only about 50 feet off the water.
Since the trip to Stuart Island, I've been flying into a number of different places and loving it more every flight.
We've also got Vic, Don and Dave into the air taking their ultralight training. These guys could write a book on how to build a Beaver Ultralight. All their hard work has paid off. I wish I had a pix of each one of them as they came back from their first lesson - it was great! Hang in there guys; it's only going to get better!
As I write this letter, we've got Rick McIntosh's Beaver hanging from my carport and we've also put amphibious floats on it. We'll be finished it in a matter of days and then he'll be ready to take some float training. I'm really looking forward to one of these weekends when all of us ultra-nuts are going to get together and head up the coast and camp out on the beaches. Late word has it that an old member of the Westview Flying Club, Al Ladret, and his son, have bought yet another Beaver Amphib. Does this tell you something? We're having a ball!
Low and Slow,
Ken Stephen
*Originally published in the Westview Flying Club Newsletter of July, 1995.
Flying the Big Pond, A French Adventure*
It began with a call from Phil Lecocq in France asking what we would recommend if a Coyote were to fly across the Atlantic. Phil revealed that one of his customers, Laurent Bourgnon, was going to fly his two year old S-6ES over for the Oshkosh Convention. The attitude was it should be no big deal; in fact, Mr. Bourgnon was doing this totally without sponsors, nor was he asking us for any special favours. I guess Laurent just wanted to fly to Oshkosh in his own plane. After all, that's what he bought it for ... to travel!
9:30 am, July 25, I got a call from Laurent; he's calling from a pay phone. In the background I hear the buzz of aircraft. The conversation was short: "I have just landed at Oshkosh from France, the flight went well. Looking forward to meeting you. When will you be here?"
A feeling of awe swept over me. One of our planes - our tiny little speck of a plane - has just crossed the Atlantic. This was important news! Seconds later, I was babbling the news over the PA system and in minutes everyone in the place had swelled with pride. Nice going Laurent, nice going!
The RANS air crew of four planes left the next day for Wisconsin. I would fly the fifth plane up the next day. Thoughts of flying the Atlantic came with every body of water in sight. Still I tended to steer around such geological concerns, thinking how Laurent would laugh at this caution.
The crew had arrived, both by air and highway, in time to have the display ready for business. As I walked through our booth, the story was the "French Couple" had been by already. I was stunned, what French couple? Oh you know, the ones who flew across the Atlantic. This just keeps getting better ... you mean to say he had a passenger? That's right, he brought his girlfriend.
A couple of days later a well-tanned couple came into the booth. It was Laurent Bourgnon and Isabelle Patissier, the French couple. The conversation quickly skimmed passed the issue of making it across. To them it is really no big deal. In fact, the big concern to them is to have me check over the plane to see if I can find any way to speed it up. Why? The plane is also their ride back to France!
Inspection of the plane revealed a stock Coyote II in all the critical places. Mods were made to reduce weight. Laurent has access to titanium and carbon fiber so certain easy-to-change parts benefited. A dual access trim system was installed in the form of four bungees used to keep the stick centered. Laurent said it was trimmed to the point the bungees did most of the flying.
For navigation, two hand-held GPSs and a wet compass were used. The trip would have been tough to complete without an artificial horizon. An electric unit was installed and well used. For over seven hours, Laurent flew that single horizon in actual IFR conditions at above 10,000 feet. Laurent claimed there was VFR condition lower, but wanted the fuel efficiency at altitude. This is a call one should never be forced into ... in other words, don't try this at home or on your way to another continent, unless you are not without large steel b....
To understand what would motivate a person to take what appears to be an above-average risk, one must know Laurent. To his credit are some very hard won achievements. Laurent holds the records for the fastest sail across the Atlantic and around the world. And just for fun, he spent over four weeks crossing the Atlantic with a Hobi 18. For you non-sailors, that is a small boat made up of two pontoons 18 feet long and 8 feet wide. There were no below decks or nice warm place to take a nap or fix a meal.
The way I figure it, Laurent was up there in his S-6ES cruising along a 100 mph plus thinking, "Hey, I'm doing way better than the Hobi 18"! It is from this perspective we must assume one can rationalize the risk into a capable chunk.
Risk is always a calculated factor. Flying the big pond once to see the big air show is enough of a feat for most of us. However, for someone like Laurent Bourgnon, it was not enough. After a couple of weeks of vacationing with friends in New York, Laurent and Isabell took off for home. This time their trusty little Coyote II was on course for the Azores, a mere 1,800 mile leg.
The story ends with a simple fax from Laurent. Three days after leaving New York he faxed: "Back in France. Got 15 more knots out or your prop. Thanks for all the help. Next year, we will fly to South Africa."
Thank God for lending that adventure-bound French couple safe passage. A few weeks later a package arrived from Laurent. It's a book filled with excellent photos of him in action on these incredible racing trimarans. It was written in French, but the title really was enough to get the drift. "THE LITTLE PRINCE OF THE ATLANTIC". A simple note fell from the folds of the book ... it read "Here is your ticket for a boat ride, you pick which ocean."
*Originally published in RANS Newsletter Issue 3 dated December,
1995.
I'll Huff and I'll PUFA*
It's not just a bunch of hot air. The Pacific Ultralight Flying Association (PUFA) was founded in British Columbia in the early 80's by Bert Saunders and his wife, Connie.
Ken Buck, Past PUFA President, and members of PUFA had a busy year fighting with Surrey Council for the very existence of ultralight flying in the area. It was a real rallying cry for ultralight enthusiasts. Hundreds of supporters crowded Surrey City Hall. In the end, the ban on ultralights in Surrey never came to be and PUFA can be proud of their efforts.
PUFA is a west coast organization that encourages the sharing of information and ideas, promotes safety and sponsors a number of events that bring ultralight enthusiasts together.
Meetings are held on the last Wednesday of most months, eight meetings each year. Meetings provide a forum to discuss issues facing pilots in the area, listen to an invited speaker to address topics of interest to the membership and sometimes view a video about flying or building.
Breakfast fly-ins to local fields are organized and often coincide with celebrations for Mother's Day, Father's Day, etc.
What would summer be if not for a bit of flying and pancakes on Sunday mornings?
Of course there are games to test pilots' skill, including a toilet paper toss, flying low and slow, into one of Thomas Crapper's finest. Organized fly-outs are also well attended, including those to Sechelt, Powell River, Nanaimo, Arlington, Grand Forks and the Abbotsford International Airshow.
The membership boasts renowned builders with several interesting projects on the go, not to mention a wealth of flying experience.
Local ultralight enthusiasts are invited to come and enjoy another successful year of flying and fun in 1996.
*Originally published in COPA Canadian Flight issue dated February, 1996 by Charlenne Varrin.