To all:
Due to some short notice changes in funding and site availability for
the Sun 'n Fun Fly In, we scrambled a bit and made it all happen this
year, as I assured folks we would be present.
A great crowd was in attendance this year with more airplane folks than
sight seers... No tornados, no drama, no accidents, I am a relieved guy
and happy with the overall show. This year I was adjacent to my new
friends at Spitfire (a 90% replica with a Chevy LS-2 Corvette car
engine). We had our own little British Corner at site N-20 and enjoyed
one another's company...
Troy Maynor, John Wigney, Chuck Reinas and of course my 12AY flew in
during the show.
Ira and Linda Rampil along with Jerry Hope and Jim Glover plus our
visiting owners helped with the tent operations. Jim Glover is a new
owner of Phillip Michaels Mono and has converted it to a Trigear. He is
based out of Baja Mexico, and was essential in talking to our South
American visitors. If anyone wishes to fly the Mexican airspace, Jim is
the guy to talk to as he has many airport, and Mexican Federal contacts.
My staff was helping other areas that were short of volunteers which
was a trend this year. Jerry Hope helped my chapter's area in the
mornings and my son Eric and his new bride Emily filled in and helped
for breakdown. We are all EAAers and I was pleased to see our Europa
owners and my staff serve the areas not blessed with sufficient
qualified volunteers, which made the fly in go smoothly. As a result,
the fly in and air show was a success overall.
For those who flew in, Troy was parked out at airshow front and John
was in homebuilt camping. Chuck only flew in for two days and was with
the transient line. On Tuesday, the first day, the homebuilt judges
began looking for Troy to open up his bird and let them see it up close.
We all know Troy's bird is a beauty and the judges finally got a chance
to see what we all knew already, Troy did a terrific job.
Unfortunately, I couldn't get any info from the judges and the decision
was not available when Troy left and still wasn't final when I had to
leave on Sunday night. As you all know now he was awarded "Best
Composite" late Sunday. A fine tribute to a true craftsman. Congrats
again to Troy and of course to his wife who supported him in his
efforts.
Many Europa owners were able to stop by and chat a bit. It was a
pleasure to talk to Jim and Lynn Puglise, Curtis Jaussi, , Jim Katra,
Bryan Allsop, Bill McClellan, and Peter Lewis and Ivor Phillips both
---From the UK. Memory serves me that there were more, but the beers of
the "engineering meeting" and daily sun stroke dims my memory right now.
As for the show, some long time vendors did not show this year or they
downsized to smaller sites. The inside of the hangars however was full
of new and improved airplane stuff though and was crowded with buyers.
Even I had to buy some new trinkets. I was surprised at how many South
American contacts came up and asked for information on the Europa and
Airmaster Propellers, as the long range and efficiency of the Europa and
Airmaster combination is tried and true. Jim Glover was indispensible
for communicating with them as I can only order drinks and dinner in
Spanish anymore. As for the US airplane crowd, it appeared that many
folks were looking for manufactured aircraft rather than kits. A trend
that has taken root a couple years ago and is increasing...
Hot new engine stuff:
We were visited by our friends at Rotec of Canada and Lockwood of
Florida over the new 912si as they call it. It is the new fuel injected
912S. Mark and Rob of Rotec are using a Europa for their engine
testing. We discussed the fuel system limitations, installation
concerns, timing control, fuel control and efficiency of the new engine.
Advertisements indicate the engine is nearly 20% more fuel efficient at
altitude over the Bing Carbs and current ignition system. This will no
doubt put a dent in the 914 sales, so I expect a fuel injected 914 in
the future. Alas, this new engine is not capable of being retrofitted
if you have an existing 912S. I was pleased to see each dealer is
putting this new engine on a test-bed aircraft and updating their staff
training to present this aircraft engine in the best light and have it
operationally tested fully, rather than just factory tested before
clients install them. A credit to our Rotax dealers. Rotax dealers are
taking orders and deposits at this time but not delivering the si
engines quite yet. Actual delivery is expected soon.
Jabiru has a new valve pushrod mod which should improve the oil
distribution to the head. This is great for the new hydraulic lifter
engine folks. There is also a mod for the cylinder through bolts. The
carb jetting and new oil coolers have really made the engine much better
at cooling according to our distributor.
I spent a bit time with a UL engine distributor, and sales are moving on
and so far no major changes are anticipated. We watch and wait with
anticipation as the engine looks promising. I am pleased to see the
torque of the engine is quite good due to improved electrics and
injection timing controls on the injected model. Cooling issues will
require dedicated ducting to assure trouble free operations.
Overall, Sun 'n Fun was a success for the show, venders, and of course
our Best Composite Award winner Troy Maynor.
Regards to all,
Bud Yerly
Custom Flight Creations, Inc.
www.customflightcreations.com<http://www.customflightcreations.com/>
(813) 653-4989
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