NEXT MEETING: Saturday, May 5th, 10:00 A.M., at Modeleers Field in Wellington
A Letter from the President
Greetings Modeleers,
Our 2nd annual swap meet is in the books! I want to thank all those who graciously volunteered their time by coming early to set up and staying late to take down the room: Dave Dust, Durbin Seidel, Lance Albanese, Charlie Greeb, Fred Damm, Loren Deines, Mike Lohr, Jerry Craig, and Joe Wilson. We had a terrific outpouring of help, so I hope I am not forgetting anyone! We were hoping for a large crowd given the amount of effort put into publicizing the event this year; unfortunately, however, the attendance was less than expected. We had roughly the same number of sellers as we saw last year; trading was done early in the morning, so items moved out quickly. Although the attendance was low, the feedback we received was very positive, and I feel the event was a success for the majority of buyers and sellers who came. The club made over $200 from the event. It is undetermined yet if we will host the swap meet again next year. If we decide to do so, it has been suggested that we move the date back to a “colder” month when more modelers are looking for things to do indoors.
On behalf of the entire club, I want to express appreciation to everyone who came out to help with the Jax Field work day on April 22nd. We had a large group of people lend a hand, so I am not even going to attempt to name everyone individually! The board approved the expenditure of approximately $100 to purchase a load of recycled crushed concrete to have dumped at the field for the entrance road transition. This is something we overlooked doing last year and that has certainly been needed since the Jax parking lot expansion. The ruts in the entrance road were several inches deep, and any precipitation made it difficult for some vehicles to access the field due to the mud. The amount of rock needed was more than could be carried by a few pickups, so the commercial hauling was needed. We were able to secure a discounted rate through a local, individually-owned operation. The rock smoothed the transition nicely and will certainly help minimize the amount of mud being tracked through the Jax parking lot.
Members present for the work day were able to fill many of the large cracks in the runway with sand and a top coat of crack sealant. Although not perfect, this inexpensive fix will help extend the use of the runway and keep some of the smaller models from “digging” in on take-off and landing! The life of the Jax property is as uncertain as ever! Currently, there are plans in the works to build an apartment complex beyond the row of trees east of the runway. However, as we have experienced throughout the past several years, plans for this location can change quickly. Therefore, since the field is still a valuable asset to the club due to its convenient location, we will continue to use and maintain the property as long as possible!
The next meeting will be our first outdoor meeting of the season. It is scheduled for Saturday, May 5th, 10:00 A.M., at Horton Field in Wellington. Come on out for a great morning of flying!
Garret Hultgren, president
Minutes of the April Meeting
April 4th, 2012
President Garret Hultgren called the meeting to order at 6:40 P.M. with 12 members and 1 guest (Tracy Sampson) and the guest speaker in attendance.
Guest Speaker: Dave Sampson introduced Chief Warrant Officer (ret.) Gretchen Moran who flew C-47 Chinook helicopters in Iraq and Afghanistan from 2004 through 2008. Gretchen had 4 deployments in 6 years. She flew combat ops and transport in Afghanistan from 2004 through 2006 during which she participated in the Pakistan earthquake relief in October 2005. She participated in the U.S. embassy evacuation of Lebanon and also flew with Marine I while the President was in Europe. Her last deployment was combat ops and transport in Iraq 2007-2008 where she was promoted to Chief Warrant Officer and placed in command of the unit. By the way, she was the only female pilot in the unit.
Although the Boeing C-47 Chinook has a gross weight of 30,000lbs, it is a fast ship with a top speed of 149 knots (160mph) and a service ceiling of 24,000ft. They had to throttle back so their Apache escort gun ships could keep up. The turbines develop 11,000 hp. and can lift 30,000lbs. They can and do retrieve other Chinooks. They are called “hookers” because of the large cargo hooks attached to the bottom of the ship. At the cost of $5,000 per hour to fly, Gretchen calls them high priced hookers. The Chinook can be landed on a steep slope or cliff edge with its back wheels on the ground and front end hovering in space. Digitized flight controls permit the pilot to let go of the controls and the ship hovers itself and remains stable. Troops can then embark or deploy from the rear ramp. The rotors create 120knot (318mph) winds that can easily blow a person away. They kick up a lot of dust and landings are often blind. Due to the size of the ship, the pilot relies on the crew chief stationed at the back ramp to direct landing operations.
In Iraq, most of her flying was high altitude, mountainous terrain deployment, recovering and supplying combat units. In dangerous areas, they always flew with air support, usually 2 Apaches. They were shot at quite a bit, including several RPGs and one missile. The ships are equipped with sensors that automatically detect a missile and release counter measures. In emergencies, a Chinook will auto-rotate, but it is not good for the airframe.
The earthquake in the Cashmere Province of Pakistan killed more than 80,000 people in the Himalayan foothills and Gretchen was assigned for relief and rescue operations for the month of October 2005. The quakes and succeeding landslides flattened all structures, including bridges, so the only way in was by air. Her Chinook was among 35 aircraft (including Blackhawks) evacuating injured and supplying food and shelter to remote villages. They would bring food and shelter into the villages, and on the return flight they would evacuate the injured to the hospital at Islamabad. Although it was designed for carrying 35 people, her passengers frequently surpassed 90. Their Chinook evacuated about 5,000 people during their deployment. While in Iraq, they were stationed just north of Baghdad and flew air assaults strictly at night with each ship carrying 50 Rangers. Tight formations included 4 Chinooks and 2 gun ships equipped with IR to light up the landscape. All flying was with night vision goggles and landing was especially difficult to judge distance.
After 4 deployments, Gretchen felt that her luck was almost used up and returned to Colorado and enrolled in graduate school. Those of you who did not attend missed a very interesting program!
Minutes: The minutes of the March meeting werepresented and approved.
Treasurer’s Report: Jim Ferry reported the club’s checkbook balance is $6,010.86 with $00.00 in petty cash, and the savings balance is $5,505.94. The treasurer’s report was unanimously approved. Jim then requested approval to transfer $2,000.00 from checking to savings. A motion was made and approved unanimously.
Safety Officer’s Report: Joe Wilson was going to lecture on prop safety, but delayed it until the next meeting in interest of saving time. A recent ignition of a LiPo battery at the field sparked a discussion about a fire extinguisher for Horton field. Joe was approved to spend up to $50 to purchase one.
Old Business: Garret discussed the latest progress toward the swap meet this coming weekend. Several items have been secured as door prizes, including a few plane kits donated by Things with Wings and member Charlie Greeb. Volunteers agreed to meet at the facilities on Saturday at 7:30 to set up tables.
New Business: Jax Field maintenance was scheduled for April 15th at 10:00 A.M. Plan to bring shovels and rakes. We are also looking for several people to help haul road base to fix the entrance area from the Jax parking lot. We hope to have the road base material on site on by Friday, the 13th. We will also need sealant and sand to fill the cracks as was done at Horton Field last summer.
2. We are looking for a weather resistant storage box for Horton Field for items (such as the fire extinguisher) that may be needed at the site. Garret was approved to spend up to $50 to acquire one.
3. It was decided to drop trainer night on Thursday due to lack of trainees. Those people wishing to fly on a buddy box should contact one of the club instructors and schedule time with them.
4. Hobby Town is once more offering a special discount for club members if they purchase aircraft related items. The discount will be 15% above store cost. At present, no expiration date was given. To receive the discount, you will have to present your club and AMA cards.
Show and Tell #1: Charles Greeb presented his Seagull Models PC-6 Pilates Porter. The Pilates Porter is a Swiss-made aircraft designed for short field take offs and landings. It has a turbine engine that uses reverse thrust to stop rollout. 460 were built. Charles’ plane has a 63” wing span, weighs 6.3-7.1 lbs. and has a .46 electric motor that turns a 14x7 prop. It is fueled with a 4s 5500 mAh battery. The ARF has a printed covering that replicates panel lines and rivets. The plane goes together well in spite of the bad instructions. He added flaps to shorten the runway time.
Show and Tell #2: Garret brought his new Durafly Corsair. This reasonably priced EPO foam plane comes complete with motor, ESC, servos, electric retracts (that rotate as they fold), flaps, and running lights. It is also equipped with drop tanks and missiles. The wingspan is 34.5 in. and weighs 44oz. All you add is a battery. He plans to maiden it soon.
Meeting Adjourned at 8:15 P.M.
The next meeting will be Saturday, May 5th, 10:00 A.M., at Horton Field.
Respectfully Submitted,
Jerry Craig
Rocky Mountain Modeleers Secretary
