Pilots!
Let me just save a few thousand words right off the bat with some neat pictures...
As you can see, Mother Nature has turned our friendly little airport into a waterpark this week -- what a mess! The airport is expected to remain closed through the weekend -- sorry Christmas flyers!
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It was with a herculean effort from our own Carlos C, Ricardo C, Chris C, Nick K, Fernando P, and Dylan A, as well as several of the Airport personalities, that we evacuated nearly 400 aircraft to the "dry side" of the airport -- we have even commandeered Butterfield park for aircraft storage.
Thanks, guys!
The water level has stabilized for now, but there are more rains on the horizon. If the Prado Dam does it's job and allows more outflow, we'll be fine. Why it has been running at 1/3 capacity this entire time, only an Army Corps of Engineers Colonel knows.
Our maintenance hangars are dry, and the office is dry -- damp, but dry. We have relocated our tooling and equipment, and moved many items to "high ground" -- including our 7 Office PCs. The servers remain on the 14th floor at One Wilshire's peering point downtown, and if they flood, we all have problems of a more biblical proportion.
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It has been suggested that we change our Demo Flight to something more along these lines:
...Cheeky, cheeky monkeys. :)
I would like to take a moment to say a few things:
First, Airplanes are replaceable, people are not. This flood, even if it erases our entire airport and business for a few months, has claimed no lives, it has not impoverished anyone, nor displaced anyone. Please keep perspective where it belongs. People are what matter, and none were harmed in the making of the KAJO Slosh n Slide fun park. :)
(That having been said, I hope we can all talk about Mike A's inflatable raft and oars for QUITE some time -- Fly Corona's mobile Aircraft Maintenance Boat begins operation today. :D )
Second, the pilot community is one of my favorites, and this week reminds me of why. Everyone was out in force, helping their neighbors box up hangar contents, tow aircraft, secure aircraft, or just being available to make someone else's life a little more pleasant. While these events tend to be scatter-brained and not well organized, at the end of the day, everyone is laughing about it and telling hangar tales -- even if their hangar is under 8 feet of water. I'm proud to be part of it.
Third, for those who keep asking about our business, this is not our first Rodeo. We have endured this before -- in 2005 to be exact, and we will get everybody flying as soon as practicable. We do apologize for the inconvenience, however, it has been very nice to hear from our friends from across the country, and in fact, the world -- who inquired to find out how we were. It was even nice to see some friends at Removed Forum #1 inquiring. (Thanks, Lee -- we're fine! ;) )
So if I had one wish, I would ask that you focus on the things that matter -- friends, family, camaraderie, and the Christmas Spirit. Let the insurance underwriters worry about our aluminum playthings, and know that we'll be back in action the instant the airport re-opens.
Happy Holidays, my flying friends, and we will see you in 2011!
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Blue Skies,
- Mike
