L O N G, Hard Week

I spent a long week down in Creswell working on the 206. It is in good shape now, after fixing a lot of small things and a few major problems. We put in several 12 hour days, and it is just about ready to fly again. Tomorrow I'll hopefully be flying down again in our 172, finishing up the maintenance issues on the 206 and then flying that back tomorrow afternoon/evening. While I was there I met a cute little dog named Sarah.

Ironically, she looks almost exactly like the dog I grew up with. Sorry Chelsea, I've fallen for a younger cocker spaniel!

Working on the 206 this week has given me the opportunity to brush up on my 206 maintenance skills, and learn a thing or two from the inspector we were working with. This may prove crucial in my preparation for technical evaluation in April, which is fast approaching!

I also got the opportunity to go on a cross-country flight Saturday, and log 4 more hours of flight time. I'm up to 360 now, and still pressing on toward my goal of 400. I will probably get 2 or 3 tomorrow as well, which will keep me right on track. God is providing for our needs and opening the doors that need to be opened. We are excited to have come this far, and anticipate the future!

Short & Sweet

Yesterday I flew down to Creswell to work on our other airplane. Here are a few picutres I snapped along the way.

This one is on final approach. The weather was very marginal, with low clouds, rain and snow, and low visibility. And since we weren't on an "IFR flight plan" it was illegal for us to fly in the clouds. We will be driving down today and staying overnight to work a little extra hours on it to try and get it done. It's going well so far.

R & R

There will be none of that this week! Each day is packed full already. Yesterday saw our Skyhawk 172 "airworthy" again. The plane was grounded for what we call an annual inspection, a very in depth look over, and in the whole airplane. This was the first major inspection done on this airplane since we acquired it last summer. And unfortunately, we found a lot of things wrong with it. It has been sitting in a hangar for almost two months, unable to fly due to repairs and replacements that needed to be done. Working part time at Hillsboro really limited the amount of time I could spend on our 172, and being down over the holidays didn't help much either. But yesterday we completed all the necessary paperwork, and the plane is "airworthy" (flyable) again. Today the weather was good enough to ferry the aircraft back to Pearson from where it's been sitting for a while, and once again, I got the privilege of putting it back up into the air where it belongs! I couldn't help but take an extra 45 minutes to re-familiarize myself with the little quirks about how it handles in the air, and get the feel for flying it again. Airplanes are a lot like cars in that each one drives a little different, and each one has its own set of quirks. This 172 is like a Honda Civic, very common, easy to drive, light and sporty. Our 206 is like a big truck, heavy, bulky, lots of horses under the...uh cowling, built Cessna tough. It is good that our 172 is up flying again, because our 206 is now down for the same inspection the 172 just got out of. The only difference is that the 206 annual inspection will be done in Creswell down in central Oregon. So, I will spend much of the week down there attending to its needs, and brushing up on my 206 maintenance skills (which I will need for my evaluation in April).
Joy will be working every day this week, as well as studying and doing homework for the Bible classes she's taking right now. And we're in the middle of sending out our winter newsletter! So needless to say, this week probably won't be much of a break for us at all. We're young though!

1.25.08

Got a lot of things accomplished today. Started the day with a little maintenance on the 172. The rudder was taken off to fix some worn bushings and touch up a couple spots with some paint. Got that done, and while the paint was drying, I filled the engine with oil, serviced the battery, tightened all the exhaust clamps, and then, when the rudder was dry, I re-installed that. 3 hours of work...and a job well done. Our 206 is also due for an annual inspection in February, which will be done down in Creswell, Oregon, which is down by Eugene (central Oregon). I had the privilege of ferrying the plane down there. This past week has been extremely good weather considering it's the gloomy corner of the US at the really gloomy time of year! Here's what the Wilamette Valley looked like around 2pm...

It was a little hazy because people were burning stuff, but nonetheless, it was a gorgeous day to fly. It took just over an hour to make the flight from start to stop--makes a 2 hour drive real nice. I also got my first ride in a Beechcraft Musketeer, a small four place low wing airplane. Our director of maitenance in Servant Wings owns the aircraft and offered to fly down to Cresswell in his airplane so I wouldn't have to make the 2 hour drive back by myself. I actually took off after he did, but arrived in Cresswell about 20 minutes before he landed. The 206 is about 30 knots faster (but also burns twice as much gas!) Here's a picture from inside his Musketeer.

Notice the occupants sit "on top" the wings, much like an airliner. He even let me fly for about 30 minutes on the way back to Vancouver. I've actually gotten to fly a lot lately--I can't pass up the supurb weather, especially when I need to build my flight hours. I flew to work Tuesday through Thursday, and on Wednesday night, Joy and I flew down to Eugene airport for dinner in their cafe. The real purpose of the flight was so that I could get some night flying time and more cross country flight time. I now have 354 flight hours! So far, I'm on target to meet my goal by April 21st. Only 46 to go!

We also received an information packet and several worksheets and questionnaires from MAF today. Some of the forms outline the content of my upcoming technical evaluation and what I'll be expected to do. I have a lot of studying to do! I feel confident though, especially with the quality training I got from Moody and the experience I'm getting in an MAF 206 right now; I feel like I'm a little ahead of the game in a lot of respects. I'm sure it will be tough though, and I will have to work really hard.

Not bad for a day's work!!

A Good Day

Today I fulfilled a dream I've had since I started flying. I've always wanted to fly to work at least once. Well, today I shaved a good 45 minutes off my commute. What normally takes me an hour to an hour and a half, took me 12 minutes! Needless to say, I'm in a better mood than usual. It helps when I don't have to sit in stop and go traffic for an hour.

Moving Forward

Well, our official application to MAF is on its way. We finished it up last Friday and put it in the capable hands of the US post office Monday. I'm trying to fly at least 4 hours each week, so I can get 400 flight hours by the third week in April. Our next step in joining MAF is to complete a two week "technical evaluation" at their headquarters in Nampa, Idaho. One week will be spent flying with MAF instructor pilots as they evaluate the skills I do have, and determine my suitability with their organization. The other week will be spent in their shop, accomplishing various maintenance tasks and working on airplanes, so they can evaluate my mechanical skills. Thrown in between are several interviews and pyschological evaluations and tests that both Joy and I must complete satisfactorily. If all is well and they like what they see, and we like what we see, then they will extend a formal invitation to join their organization.

On a lighter note, I've been able to work on a lot of flying skills lately, and brush up on some rusty areas. The weather isn't always great, but that is just the beginning of a life long battle. One thing I have learned since I started flying over here is that if the birds aren't flying around, it's probably not a good idea for me to go either!

Lately, I've had the opportunity to take a lot of passengers with me as I hone my piloting skills. Having passengers adds many dynamics to flying and really makes me work hard on being a professional, especially when your passengers are the pastor's kids!

One In A Million

Unlike the past 3 months, Sunday was one of those days that only comes around once. It was so nice I just had to stretch the 206 wings a little and get out of Vancouver. I took Joy on a scenic tour of the Cascades; during the trip I was testing my cross-country skills without using the GPS. It was hard to focus on flying the airplane with views like this....

The mountain pictured is Mt. Hood. Joy and I had a great time. It was so good to feel the sunshine on our faces and have to wear sunglasses again!

We've been busy throughout the winter, working on airplanes, going to seminars, and traveling. Here I am working on a magneto that was taken of our 172.

Our official MAF application is now completed and will be sent in pretty soon. And our technical evaluation is scheduled for the last two weeks in April, which is really exciting. It's nice to feel like things are moving along. On Saturday we also sat in on an MAF ministry partnership seminar. There was some good information to learn and we got some pointers on how to better encourage people to join team Konop.

More to come later!