Northern Wings

Volume 6 No.16 The Aero Club of Northern California Official Newsletter OfSummer Animal Husbandry-Fall2009 www.aeroclubnorcal.org MikeMelvill to receive 2009 CrystalEagle SpaceShipOne Pilot 1st Commercial Astronaut Test pilotMike Melvill, who flew SpaceShipOne into spacefiveyears ago to become the first commercial astronaut, will be the 2009 recipient of the Crystal Eagle, awarded by the Aero Club of Northern California to honor those whose achievementsareamong the highest in aviation. The award will be presented during the Aero Club’s annual Crystal Eagle Dinner on Saturday, Oct. 24, at the Hiller Aircraft Museum in San Carlos. Melvill will become the27th recipient of the Eagle, which wasfirst awarded in 1983 to legendaryaviator James “Jimmy” Doolittle. Over the years, recipients have included such aviation luminaries as Chuck Yeager, Bill Lear, Jeana Yeager, Scott Crossfield, Elgen Long, Sean D. Tucker and Steve Fossett. Melvill made history on June 21, 2004 as thefirst pilot of SpaceShipOne, which was built by Burt Rutan’s (Continued on Page 3) Mike Melvill,SpaceShipOne--Scaled CompositesPhoto Aero Club members tour test pilot’s vineyard Members of the Aero Club of the “Fruit House,’’ whichfeatures a Northern California enjoyed a display of Cooper’s test pilot career different type of activity this and the 145 types of aircraft he flew summer with awine-tastingtour of over the years. the Cooper-GarrodVineyardsin the Winemaster emeritusCooper hillsofSaratoga. himself staffed the bar to pour Thefamilywinery is operated by samples of the differentvarieties George Cooper, retiredengineering produced at the winery and to share test pilot for NASA who was the stories with fellow Aero Club Aero Club’s1990 Crystal Eagle members. recipient. Cooper, a World War II P-47 pilot, Club members toured the retired in 1973 after 28 years as a vineyards and processing facilities distinguished research test pilot at NASA Ames Research Center. at the winery and trieda variety of --Northern Wings Photo wines in an historic tasting room, (Continued on Page 4) George Cooper– WinemasterEmeritus Page 2 Northern Wings Summer-Fall 2009 NTSB: Downdraft caused 2007Fossettcrash in Sierra Nevada Aviator and adventurer Steve Fossett-- the first person to fly solo, Summer-Fall2009 nonstop around the world in both a hot-air balloon and an airplane– flew into a severe downdraft on the east side of the Sierra Nevada causing his fatal crash two years ago, the National Transportation Safety Board has ruled. Fossett, the 2007 recipient of the Aero Club’s Crystal Eagle award, --Special to Northern Wings disappeared on Sept. 3, 2007, but his Rick Willson and his Fly Baby homebuilt– after2,000 hoursof work remains and aircraft were not found on a mountainside for more than a Board of Directors Profile year. Investigators determinedthat Fossett After 10 years of work, Rick Willsonhad run into a downdraft exceeding 300 feet per minute at an altitude so high that the aircraft, a Bellanca is ready to test-fly homebuilt Fly Baby8KCAB-180 Super Decathalon, could Ten years. Two-thousand hours of University, he discovered that he climb only about 300 feet per minute. labor. could fly with a restriction– no night Fossett had made a 180-degree turn in And now Rick Willson’s little flights. So he was back in the air. the mountains shortly before the homebuilt Bowers Fly Baby is ready Then came marriage and children, crash, the NTSB said in its July 10 to take to the skies. So is Willsonafter so Willson and his wife, Leah, agreed report. a long hiatus from the pilot’s seat. to put aviation on hold until the kids Investigators said they could not For the past decade, building the were grown and married. findevidence in the wreckage that tiny, mostly wooden monoplane with Now that they are empty nesters, suggestedsomethingwaswrong with fabric covering has been a major Willson is returning to the skies. the plane before the impact. project for Willson, past president of (Continued on Page 3) He chose the Fly Baby to construct the Aero Club of Northern California because it is very similar to a model and a current member of the board of airplane he built when he was8 years directors. Carl Honaker–president old, a model he still has. Scott Yelich–vice president The single-seat, open-cockpit “So it’s just a big model airplane,’’ Eric Peterson– treasurer aircraft is in a hangar at South County Willson said. Ray Hutchings– secretary Airport in San Martin as Willson The Fly Baby is made mostly of Rick Willson–pastpresident prepares to get current again so he can wood with fabric covering. It is just Jerry Bennett– director fly it. under 19 feet long, with a 28-foot Ron Blake–director Sandra J. Clifford–director Willson, a retired senior manager wingspan. It weighs just 605 pounds Glynn Falcon– director with Intel, started flying light empty and can cruise at 100 mph with Janet Russell Hitt– director airplanes when he was 15 years old at its 65-horsepower Continental engine. Thomas E. Leonard– director an airport that no longer exists in The hardest part of the project was Harold Oberg– director Lodi. He paid for lessons with money finding a place to paint it. Airports Sharon K. Sweeney–director earned on his newspaper route. Then don’t allow painting in individual Frank Sweeney–director he learned that being color-blind hangars any more, so Willson folded andnewsletter editor Northern Wings ispublished quarterly would prevent him from getting a up the wings and trucked the plane to by the Aero Club of Northern pilot’s license. a horse barn in Sunol where it took California, an affiliate of the National --Northern Wings Photo Later, as a student at San Jose State three weeks to paint. Aeronautic Association. Summer-Fall 2009 Summer-Fall 2009 Northern Wings Page 3 NTSB: SpaceShipOne astronaut toreceiveCrystal Eagle (Continued from Page 1) Downdraft caused Scaled Composites LLC. Hissub- orbitalflight was the first privately 2007Fossettcrash funded mission to reach space. He was the 435th person to go into space. in Sierra Nevada Melvill also flew the next mission of SpaceShipOne– the first competitive flight in the Ansari X Prize competition forthe first non- government organization to send a reusable manned spacecraft into space twice within two weeks. The SpaceShipOne project won the $10 million prize awarded by the X Prize Foundation. In 25 years as a test pilot, Melvill logged 7,600 hours as the pilot of more than 130 types of aircraft. He made the first flights in 10 of the Burt Rutan-designed aircraft. Mike Melvill inSpaceShipOnecockpit --Scaled CompositesPhoto Born in South Africa in 1940, Melvill came to the United States in aircraft that he built himself. He is the 1967 and became a U.S. citizen in sole or joint holder of nine FAI Crystal Eagle Dinner 1975. aviation world records. Melvill is a fellow in the Society of Date:Saturday,October 24, 2009 Melvill met Burt Rutan, who was Experimental Test Pilots. He Reception: 6:30 p.m. the 1989 Crystal Eagle honoree, after received the society’s Iven C. Dinner: 7:30 p.m. he had built a Rutan VariViggen in his Kincheloe Award in 1999 for his Location: Hiller Aviation Museum, home, beginning a long association high-altitude test flights of Scaled 601 Skyway Road at San Carlos with the legendary aircraft designer. Composite’s Model 281 Proteus. Airport. Melvill retired in October 2007 as Five years later, he was honored Cost: $60 for Aero Club members, vice president and general manager of with a second Kincheloe Award for $75 for non-members, including Scaled Composites. his work on SpaceShipOne. museum admission. In 1997, Melvill flew around the Melville and his wife, Sally, have Reservations: (408) 646-7139 world with Dick Rutan in a Long EZ two sons and four grandchildren. Crystal Eaglerecipients Sweeney elected chair ofSJC Commission over thepast 27years Aero Club director Frank 1996– Darryl G. Greenamyer Sweeney has been elected chair of 1983– James “Jimmy’’ Doolittle 1997– Robert L. “Hoot” Gibson the Mineta San Jose International 1984– Charles E. “Chuck’’ Yeager 1998– Donald D. Engen Airport Commission, which 1985– Stanley Hiller Jr. 1999– Paul H. Poberezny advises the City Council and 1986– William “Bill’’ Lear 2000– Wayne Handley 1987– James M. “Jim” Nissen airport staff on aviation policy 2001– Igor I. Sikorsky 1988– Anthony W. “Tony” LeVier issues. 1989– Elbert “Burt” L. Rutan 2002– A. Scott Crossfield Sweeney, who alsois editor of 1990– George S.Cooper 2003– Clay Lacy Northern Wings, is serving his 1991– Allen E. Paulson 2004– Elgen Long third year on the commission. The 1992– Jeana Yeager 2005– Eileen Collins airport is in the final stages of a 1993– Robert T. Jones 2006– Sean D. Tucker $1.3 billion upgrade and expansion 2007– Steve Fossett 1994– Frank L. Christensen of its airline passenger terminals 1995– James S. Ricklefs 2008– Phil Boyer 2009– Mike Melvill and parking garage. Page4 Northern Wings Summer-Fall 2009 AeroClub tour– winetasting, aviation lore (Continued from Page 1) His research project on human resource management in the cockpit achieved international attention and gained national funding to deal with human factor problems among airline flight crews. After retirement, Cooper helped develop NASA’s Aviation Safety and Human Factors Research Program. The Garrod Family acquired the vineyard property in 1893 and for decades operated apricot and prune orchards. In 1972, the family began to replace the aging orchards with grape vineyards that thrive in the Saratoga --Northern Wings Photo microclimate. Winemaker BillCooper explains to Aero Club membershow (Continued from Page 1) the grapes are harvested at the Cooper-Garrod vineyard. Abigsetback in fight to save Moffett’s Hangar One Thecommunitycampaign to save Environmentalcalls for the hangar’s should pay for new siding. The space Moffett Field’s Hangar One got a interior to be cleaned out, and a agency, which now owns Hangar One, setback in September when the Navy weather-resistant coating be applied to says it has no money to do so. announced theaward of a $22.3 the steel frame. The Navy said itfaced a deadlineto million contract to a London-based No date has been set for the removal award the contract to secure federal engineeringfirm to remove the yet as the Navy and NASA Ames moneyauthorizedfor the project. contaminated siding from the historic Research Center continue their debate Navy officials contend that a structure. in Washington over which of them is coating put on the hangar in 2003 to There are no plans to replace the responsible for replacing thePCB- contain the toxins is near the end of its siding, leaving the huge hangar frame contaminatedsiding. usefulness. However, the Moffett a skeleton exposed to the elements. The Navy is responsible for cleaning Field Restoration Advisory Board The contractwith AMEC Earth & up the toxins, but it contends NASA says tests show the coating works. NTSB: Downdrafts caused Steve Fossett Crash 2500 Cunningham Avenue Steve Fossett Crash San Jose, California 95148 in Sierra Nevada (408) 929-1060 Chartered in 1981 as a chapter of the National Aeronautic Association

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