April's Meeting Minutes
Respectfully Submitted by Jeff Dinius, Secretary

Derek Johnson called the meeting to order as Mike Bond was unable to attend. There were 8 members present.

Adrian Stack made it to the meeting and looked in fine shape. He said his right hand and arm feels a little “funny” but he is able to use his hand and also walk well. His stroke did not seem to present any debilitating problems.

Hugh Beckham reported that Dean Hall had another heart attack. He was taken to the hospital and released. No further details were available.

Treasurer’s Report: Ernie Stevens assured us we have money in the bank. Ernie also did a quick count of paid members. The count stands at 31. If you have not paid yet, you are behind.

Young Eagles: The rally was cancelled last Saturday due to the snow storm. The alternate date is April 11th. Depending on the weather conditions, this date may be cancelled as well. If so an alternate time frame would need to be discussed at the next meeting. There were not any of the normal YE pilots at the meeting.

New Business

• Chapter member Tom Lucas was heavily involved in the Rocky Mountain Regional Fly In but retired a few years ago. He has been drafted by some friends in Longmont to help with their special event August 29th. The entire city is involved as well as the airport. Tom passed around a flier stating the event will be a relaxed type fly in. There will not be an air show but they will choose some aircraft (maybe 10) out of those attending that represent the spectrum of general aviation aircraft. They will ask these aircraft to participate in a fly by pattern to showcase general aviation. The event at the airport will take place from 8 AM – 3 PM. There will be a pancake breakfast from 8-9. with the main fly bys from 11:30 – 1:30. Free admission and parking were advertised.

• Ernie gave a 2 minute presentation concerning the first airplane he ever owned which was a 1941 Taylorcraft. He gave a little verbal history stating that he sold the airplane to a person in Nebraska where he was at the time. A year later he received a call from an FAA investigator. Seems the T-Craft was seen flying under some power lines and the N number was traced back to Ernie. Ernie informed them he had sold the airplane to the other gentleman who had never bothered to register the airplane in his name. This set the stage for the character of the new owner. This story was the preamble to a newspaper clipping Ernie had  received from his sister who still lived in the Nebraska area. Seems this colorful individual had passed away but the article recounted another story of his flying deeds.

The meeting continued for another half hour with Hugh Beckham, Ernie Stevens and Adrian Stack telling stories of old airplanes from a time long gone when aviation was less regulated and aircraft required an intimate knowledge of their particular quarks. It was interesting to hear and participate in a discussion of flying in the “good old days”.

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The Airbus A380 is Coming to Oshkosh

Attendees will get 'up close and personal' for the first time in North America

With the announcement April 15 that the Airbus A380 is coming to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2009, EAA reinforced the reputation of its annual fly-in as a one-of-a-kind showcase of aviation's innovations, unique accomplishments, and wide-ranging interests. For the first time in North America,
AirVenture will provide the opportunity for the global aviation community and the public to admire the world's largest passenger airliner on static display and in flight.

The A380 will arrive and perform a flight demonstration to kick off the Tuesday, July 28 air show. After commanding the stage through the remainder of the week on AeroShell Square, AirVenture's main aircraft showcase area, it will open the air show again on Friday, July 31 with a flight demonstration before its departure.

"I'm pleased that Airbus chose EAA AirVenture Oshkosh as its first occasion in North America to provide an up-close and personal look at the A380," said Tom Poberezny, EAA president and AirVenture chairman. "The aircraft will stand out among the impressive lineup of features and attractions coming this year. The A380 represents an amazing feat of aircraft design, engineering, and construction ... and it will hold the distinction of being the largest passenger aircraft ever to have filled
our sky and rolled onto our ramp," he said.

"The Airbus team is very grateful to EAA for hosting the A380 this summer," said Airbus Americas Chairman T. Allan McArtor. "We have been looking forward to bringing the aircraft to AirVenture, where the innovative accomplishments of global aviation take the spotlight. It makes perfect sense for the A380 to be featured at Oshkosh - not only because it is the largest passenger aircraft in history, but also because the remarkable A380 would not have been possible without the considerable support of our airline- and supplier-partners from around the world who worked with us over many years to make the aircraft a reality."

The A380's visit marks the second time this decade that Airbus has brought a crowd-pleasing aircraft to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh. In 2003, the Airbus A300-600ST (known as the "Beluga") made an appearance in honor of the 100th anniversary of the Wright Brothers' first flight.

"AirVenture Oshkosh celebrates aviation's pioneering spirit and the various demonstrations of that spirit, large and small. With the A380 coming, I'd say we have the 'large' base covered this year," Poberezny said.

EAA and Airbus are making plans for Airbus officials to tell their story at AirVenture. Announcements of details will follow. Additionally, Airbus hosts will be on hand with the A380 as it stands on AeroShell Square.

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Longmont Airport Expo Fly-In
Submitted by Derek Johnson

What: 2009 Longmont Airport Expo (In Honor of Cole Kugel, Airport Founder)

Where: Vance Brand Airport

When: August 29th 8am-3pm

Why: Fun, Flying, Food, Antique Cars and Motorcycles, Skydiving, Shopping and Live Music

How: Fly, Drive, Ride, Walk (Crawl if you have to) Come and be part of the fun for the whole family.

There won't be an air show but there will be aircraft fly-bys.

Volunteers are needed. If you can volunteer, please contact Seth Hornstein at airportvounteer2009@gmail.com (I'm not sure if there should be an "L" in that address or if it was a typo. If that one does not work I'd try putting an "L" in "volunteer".)

For booth information, contact Anita Burki-Bragg at 303-682-0019

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