CASCADE FLYERS

WEEKEND FLYING-McMINNVILLE, OREGON - EVERGREEN FLIGHT MUSEUM

More weekend flying - from the most recent couple of nice days. I keep checking in with Cliff Mass but improving weather does not look too hopeful.

 

Rob and his main co-pilot, Randall, flew from Seattle to beautiful McMinnville, Oregon to the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. A GREAT place to go! 

The main attraction is the Spruce Goose, from Howard Hughes which was rescued from Long Beach, California by Del Smith the guy who started Evergreen Airlines.

 

This should be on your long list of destinations - it's only 1+25 from Seattle in a C-172 (no-wind).

AIRPLANE RESCUE IN OREGON-WEEKEND FLYING/(NON-FLYING)

This photo was taken very early Sunday morning. This airplane had a catastrophic engine failure and had to land on a highway in Oregon. They waited until very early Sunday morning to put the airplane on a truck and take it back to the The Dalles airport. Members from the local area sent in these photos and a description of the event below (thank you!):

"In the hanger (near) mine the owner went out today with the flight
instructor for a bi annual they got out of the dalles almost to Biggs when a
cylinder blew up it just had 6 new jugs on it. they thought (about landing) on the freeway or (highway 14) he picked 14 the windshield was covered with oil no traffic, came in
under a power line got out and pushed the plane off the road. We will tow it
back Sunday. The flight instructor was asked if he passed his bi annual and he answered in the affirmative."

Then this account later after the rescue:

"The recovery of the plane went well I did not sleep got up at 3:00am showered
and went to the airport to get my nitrogen tank ( we use that to air up the
struts that keep planes up it is an inert gas if we put air in it would
explode) so much for the department of useless information...The first picture was taken at 540 AM when the plane was loaded on the low boy the low boy was on a recess next to
the road there was no flash that is why the picture is so grainy. They (had)
to have two flag cars up front and one in the back there was three cars
including my truck in back One state trooper showed up at 430 right on time
and he thought we would have it loaded the man with the bucket is getting
straps out to tie the airplane down it took up the entire road. I found out
at 500 AM on Sunday morning not many people are out there we got it to the
air port the send picture is on the airport road it took up the entire road
the state policeman  went ahead and got the traffic out to pull off the road
we were unloading the plane on the airport at 545 (a worker) came over and
mowed down the grass and we unloaded the plane at the side of the new
hangers. ... We did not put more nitrogen in the struts as I cautioned... that it could cause damage to
the struts as they can get bent. All in all it was an excellent adventure
and no damage to the plane... I whish you could be there it
was a good learning experience, I am easily entertained. You have to
understand that when someone who fly's has a problem they don't want the
world  to know about it but we want to be there to help them and we learn
from each problem."

 

What a morning - Mt. Hood in the background.

PC-12 LANDING AT PACIFIC CITY, OREGON

MT. HOOD OREGON FLY-BY

Central Oregon pilots RS and EC went for a spin the other day and did a fly-around of Mt. Hood.

 

A great reminder that general aviation can be so much fun.

Mount Hood Facts

Elevation	Mt. Hood – 11,245 feet (U.S. Geological Survey Office, Vancouver, Wash.)
Facts	Base spreads over 92 miles; highest mountain in Oregon and fourth highest in the Cascade Mountain range; Indian name – “Wy’East”; dormant volcano
Average Snowfall	Average base is 175-200 inches per season measured from Timberline’s opening date until end of winter season in April. Average snowfall is 500-600" per year.
Ski Areas	Timberline Ski Area, Mt. Hood Skibowl, Summit Ski Area and Mt. Hood Meadows

STARK'S TWIN OAKS AIRPARK IN OREGON

 

I flew down to Oregon on Wednesday to visit family. I landed and parked overnight at Stark's Twin Oak's Airpark, just west of Tigard. I did my single engine conversion training there in the mid 90's. They have continued to improve the airport since then now allowing take-offs and landing in both direction after having cut down the tall trees at the approach end of RWY 20.

This airport is popular for getting some cheaper fuel.

 

Twin Oaks Airpark is a little like going back to an earlier time in aviation to the days of small private airports near farms. The area around Twin Oaks is beautiful farm land, quite spectacular actually.

 

For those of you in Oregon, or anyone from out of the area, I encourage a visit to Twin Oaks Airpark, even if just to top off the tanks.

LOADING HELICOPTERS FOR AFGHANISTAN

Cascade Flyers long-time member "MK" sent some incredible photos while he was loading helicopters into one of the world's largest aircraft, the Antonov-124. "MK" will be heading to this garden spot soon when he gets cleared for a contract. We wish him well. He will monitor the CF list serve via email and view our website while he is there - you can contact him directly and stay in touch to show your support.

The helicopter before being taken apart (slightly) for shipping.

From aerospaceweb.org: "The An-124 is equipped with an upward-hinging nose and a tail ramp for true roll-on roll-off loading capability. In addition, the two sets of nose wheels can be retracted on the ground to lower the nose and ease cargo loading. The An-124 design also features full-span leading-edge slats on a swept wing allowing excellent short-takeoff ability for such a large plane. The landing gear also feature 24 wheels so that the An-124 can operate from rough fields. A large compartment for up to 88 passengers is provided aft of the flight deck in addition to the 118 ft x 21 ft x 14.5 ft main cargo deck for a total volume of 44,725 ft³."

Return home safely so you can fly in to Orcas Island again and to other events one way or another!

ROSE AIR - JANE'S PART 135 COMPANY

If you have any need to fly around the Pacific Northwest please consider Rose Air an incredible and unique Part 135 air taxi company operated by CF member Jane. Especially for any and all women who are interested in aviation in any aspect - Jane is truly an amazing inspiration. Please contact her through her website if you any question about aviation or any trip ideas that you may have. 

            

JANE FLEW ALONG THE OREGON COAST FOR LIGHTHAWK

Jane has been flying around Oregon, in the fall she did a flight for Light Hawk, "I do occasional  flights for Light Hawk. There may be some interest for others in becoming a volunteer." Contact Jane directly if you are interested. We will have much more to say about Jane and Rose Air in future posts.

"Light Hawk was able to help new partner Our Ocean, a coalition of conservation groups, scientists, and business leaders working to promote marine reserves in Oregon, collect photographs along Oregon’s rocky coastline. [THE PHOTOS WERE TAKEN FROM JANE'S AIRCRAFT] The day of the flight was clear and beautiful, allowing the photographer to collect stunning images for Our Ocean’s outreach materials."

THERE IS FLYING GOING ON IN OREGON

Last week I asked via our email listseve if there was any flying going on in Oregon. Alan from Edmonton wrote back and said he had been flying all over the State but his camera phone malfunctioned and he had no pictures. Mark plans on flying more this spring and summer and offered this:
"I'm planning to spend a weekend or two at Doe Bay, hit all of the Islands up there with airstrips, fly around eastern WA some, bounce up to Tacoma Narrows a couple times for lunch, etc). If anybody is interested in nailing down a date to get together while I'm in Seattle, please email me. I'm thinking late April would be good. I could be talked into stopping at Renton, Boeing, or other nearby GA airport to take passenger(s)." Please email via the listserve or contact Mark directly.