Cha cha cha

Pilots!

I am just catching my breath from a very busy week, here is what I missed (but you may not have):

First -- we have a new IFR-rated pilot this week! Please join me in congratulating Ming L, who scored his blindfold in Cessna 739 with DPE Andrea E!

Way to go, Ming!



I know some things in maintenance land:

Cessna 526 completed an oil change

Cessna 61Q completed a 100hr

Cessna 68U completed her 100hr

Cessna 739 is rocking

Cessna 94M completed her 100hr

Cessna 63B is cruising

Cessna 17J has her new engine hung and is poised for paint work, acceptance, and will be back!

Bonanza 11N is a powerhouse

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There is a gorgeous Baron on our ramp. We will know more next week, but it may find room in our nest. Please mop up any drool left on the wing, or inquire with the office for our proposed rates/club participation.

There are 3 other aircraft we are in assorted states of discussion with. Woof!



We are officially in the acceptance phase of our FAA Part 141. Target for final approval is 45-60 days hence. The office will be very busy.

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We have a new CFI/CFII/MEI who has joined the Fly Corona family -- please say hello to Will K., who joins us from Long Beach, and we are happy to have flying with us! Will is friendly like us, enjoys flying, and brings a wealth of local knowledge -- and is ready to show you everything he knows!

Welcome, Will!

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We have completely shuffled up the office.

Cris moves from Line Management to the office, and is currently in training. Please be nice to him, or escalate issues to Beth or myself if needed.

Ruth moves from Office Management to the Maintenance side of the house, where she will be assisting our wrenches as they get busy. And they are getting busy, if you've peeked inside there.

Kate joins us in the Office and is currently in training. Please be nice to her too :)



A lot is moving around -- and we might drop some stuff through the cracks! Don't let us -- drop me a note here, email beth@flycorona.com or mike@flycorona.com, or ask around -- someone should be able to help :)

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A friend of ours has had a Garmin GPSMAP 495 Stolen, serial # 1E0003018 -- if you see a suspiciously good deal on a great GPS, please get in touch with the office, so we can reunite our friend with his backup navigation :)

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We seem to have the only good weather in SoCal for flying... yay us! Grab some sky!

See ya,

- Mike

(by the way -- nice work to whomever called the Bellanca Cruisemaster -- how bout this one below? ;) )

Boom boom boom!

Pilots!

Who ordered up the thunderstorms? What the heck? We have deliberated and decided to blame our Dallas emigre' Paul, who clearly brought these shenanigans with him. Uncool! A lightning bolt even set one of our airport palm trees on fire, with 40' high flames. Very uncouth. Luckily the Corona FD is just around the corner and foamed the thing. I'm certain we're in the market for a new palm tree.



Our friend Andy S. was in the market for a Pilot's License this morning, and refused to accept "No" for an answer -- Please join me in congratulating the newest U.S. Private Pilot in the US, and one who snuck into CNO under Special VFR plus took off in Cessna 739 when the lightning passed -- then knocked out a PPL with DPE Mark D. Wow. That must've been quite the ride.

I tip my hat, Andy. Well done!

Andy's idea of checkride weather:

KAJO 101711Z AUTO 28005KT TSRA FEW001 BKN014 18/14 A2988 RMK AO2 LTG DSNT SW TSB07RAB09 P0002 $

Proof that large brass orbs do not make good lightning rods. ;)



We are shaking some things up around here:

We have paid our landlord a friendship fee to grant us access to the restaurant restrooms -- a very gracious gesture on his part. Please ask the office for the key to the "modern facilities" which boast features such as running water, soap, and a "flush", whatever that is. Fancy! We may need to pass out monocles and top hats to our aviators when they avail themselves of this new facility.

The Fly Corona Line staff have promised to keep the restrooms habitable. Please notify the office if you find them anything but spotless.

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We also have an ulterior motive for this restroom refurb, over and above decorum -- the FAA has snuck in a requirement for having a restroom attached to our test center building. Our FAA test center has been suspended as a result of the hotbox out back that we thought was sufficient. We didn't know -- sorry about that! We expect to be back up ASAP, but in the meantime, we are referring folks to CNO or RAL for their writtens. Doh!



We have an old/new face at the ranch in our CFI roster -- please welcome our new Chief Pilot Robert S., who has agreed to assist us with our Part 141 transition with the FAA. Robert is also lending his wisdom for training, and is ready to share his 4000 hours of experience with our flyers.

Robert was part of the FlyC CFI Class of 2005, and holds a full set of ratings, is definitely a personality match -- we're happy to have him back in the roost.

Welcome (back), Robert!

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We have made an offer on a multi-engine aircraft. Don't get excited yet, but we have started the dance. :) More as I know it.

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Whoever called the Bay Super V -- nice work! Twin Bonanza, while I love them, are definitely very different. If you're ever midfield on aviation drive, there is a beige Twin Bonanza -- a giant thing, tail number N11KM.

I can play this game all day. Here's a soft pitch -- name that plane! :



No maintenance drama to report. Consider that situation now "jinxed" -- doh!

More as I know it!

Blue Skies,

- Mike

Touchdown!

Pilots!

Please join me in congratulating the newest US Private Pilot in the world, one RJ Z., who scored his wings yesterday with DPE Mark D in Cessna 739.

Nice work, RJ!



I know some things in maintenanceland:

61Q is cruising.

68U is under the microscope for an engine roughness we still have not fully cured.

739 is in the pit lanes for a 100hr inspection.

94M has had a repair to her carburetor air box.

63B is rocking her new cylinders.

17J's new engine is wrapping up. Just waiting on the airframe now.

...so about Julie...

Someone made an amusing comment about the cost of aviation repairs, and why some Pep Boys Bondo won't do the trick... check this work out -- we got an update from the sheet metal wizards at Tom's Aircraft, in Long Beach, CA, and literally, Julie is being remanufactured from the ground up. Any bent metal is unairworthy and discarded, to be replaced by new green zinc-chromated aluminum. When we say "airworthy", we're not messing around.

(the green zinc-chromate coating is corrosion-proofing -- sometimes it is a yellow-green color)

Here are some pics of what $120k in work looks like:










The little pins poking out from the sheet metal are called Cleco's -- little grabber claws that act like a temporary and removable rivet. Aircraft are genuinely hand-crafted and laboriously manufactured, to the point where every aluminum panel does not come with holes pre-drilled! The mechanic measures twice, drills, and holds the spot with a Cleco. After a few hundred clecos, the mechanic is ready to drive new, permanent rivets.

It's really one of the few major handcrafted products made in the USA still. If you ever get to Wichita, check out the tour at Independence, KS, it is simply amazing.

Julie rejoins us in a few weeks!

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We have a new staff member at the ranch! We have hired a legendary Maintenance Guru, Paul McCracken, who joins us from Dallas, TX. Paul has been our exclusive prepurchase inspection provider, and is a true piston-aircraft specialist, who jet sets all over the US, looking at aircraft, fixing them, and bringing them home.

Paul is also a Beechcraft Wizard of known repute, but works on all types of aircraft, and brings with him decades of aviation knowledge and lore. We have spent 3 years wooing Paul, and pouring him the Fly Corona! Kool-Aid, and he's onboard to level-up our maintenance facility! Paul joins us late this week or early next, depending on his packing arrangements and skills.

Paul's job number one will be to care and feed for our Flybabies like they were his own, as well as draw some fancier planes into Corona, and ultimately, our maintenance shop expansion to Chino Airport.

Welcome to the family, Paul!



We expect to have a welcome BBQ for Paul in a few weeks, and hope to see you there! Additionally, 5 points and a high-five from Paul if you can name the plane above without googling the N# :)

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Nice weather abounds... grab some sky!

Cheers,

- Mike