Old, Bold Pilot...Henry Botterell Dies at 106 Off Icial Publication of EAA Chapter 501 Was the Last Surviving Combat Pilot of World War I
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PROPWASH EAA CHAPTER 501 NEWSLETTER February 2003 No. 29-02 PROPWASH Old, bold pilot...Henry Botterell dies at 106 Off icial Publication of EAA Chapter 501 Was the last surviving combat pilot of World War I. www.eaa501.org From several news sources... President: Bart C occh iola Henry Botterell, believed to have been the last surviving World War I combat 77 Sp ruce S treet pilot, died on January 3 in a Toronto nursing home. He was 106. Nutley, NJ 07110 973-667-3727 [email protected] In 1916 he was working at a bank in Ottawa when he learned his brother had been killed in action in France serving in the Toronto 48th Highlanders. He Vice-President: then traveled to Britain as a civilian and enlisted in the Royal Naval Air Service George B rewer 422 T erhun e Drive and trained to fly fighter planes. W ayne, NJ 07470 973-839-6764 Less than a year later he was assigned to an operational squadron in France on the Western Front, but on [email protected] his second takeoff of a training mission, an engine failure and crash put him in the hospital with broken Secretary: bones. He convalesced for several months in England and he was demobilized with a medical discharge. Dick W edemeyer 6 Shawn Court But after a chan ce meeting with pilots on leave in England with whom he had trained, Henry re-joined, W ayne, NJ 07470 973-694-0292 re-qualified as a fighter pilot, and by May 1918 returned to operational flying with R.F.C. Squadron 208 [email protected] in Serny, France. He saw active service for the remainder of the war flying Sopwith Camels with 208 Squadron until the Armistice in November. Treasurer: Jon H anna 38 Beaverbrook Lane By war's end on November 11,1918, he had downed two German planes and several observation balloons. Denville, NJ 07834 973-625-2549 Although he had no claim s to be [email protected] an ace, Mr. Botterell's most Fly-In Co-Chairmen: memorable action came when he Mike Maniatus shot down a balloon on August 29, [email protected] 1918. Flying from Tramecourt, Harry Bark er [email protected] northern France, he was carrying four 25-pound bombs to attack the Young Eagles railway station at Vitry, 50 miles Coordinator: Bill Anderes [email protected] (continued on page 4) Newsletter Editor & Webm aster: NEXT EAA 501 CHAPTER MEETING Don Provost 34 Brookvale R oad WHEN: Wednesday, February 12 TIME: 7:30 PM Kinnelon, NJ 07054 973-492-9025 WHERE: Pilots’ Room, Lincoln Park Aviation, 425 Beaverbrook Road fax: 973-838-6251 PROGRAM: A&P/1A and EAA Technical Counselor Alex Pucciarello, an active [email protected] Newsletter Assistan t: builder and restorer (currently a Steen Skybolt) will talk about the importance of having Harry Bark er a Tech Counselor involved in your project from start to finish. Page 2 Propwash February 2003 MINUTES OF THE CHAPTER 501 MEETING OF JANUARY 08, 2003 Attendees at 1/08/03 Meeting: Held at Lincoln Park Aviation - Pilot Lounge Members John Shaw Bill Arsics Meeting was called to order by our new President, Bart Dick Wedemeyer Harrison Wood Cocchiola. Minutes of the previous meeting as printed in Bart Cocchiola Allen Dunn Propwash were approved. Walt Reuter Gene Friedemann Bill Anderes Jon Hanna Treasurer's Report: Don Provost Harry Barker John Hanna advised us that we have a very positive checking John Distefano account and that there were no outstanding bills. About 24 members took advantage of the "Pay Early" discount Guests program by paying their dues prior to 2003. Dave MacMillan Bill Kanter Allen Dunn, Jr. Emil Csedrik Young Eagles Report Bill Anderes reported that he was in contact with a youth correctional program, which is controlled by the state of NJ. At our last Y.E. event we flew only a couple of these people. It now has mushroomed into a state approved deal and this could lead to a large number of potential Y.E. Bill has scheduled a meeting with the local director to get all the "facts and details". If this program gets in place, we will run it as a separate event. This is would take place in April. Fly In Our annual Fly-In is scheduled for Warwick Airport on May 18th. Mike Maniatus will be in charge of the event with Harry Barker as his assistant. Caps & Shirts: There are still some hats available at $9.00 each and shirts at $23. Shirt sizes available are only Large and Xlarge. Business Meeting: Actually there was no set agenda, just a gen eral discussion of what EAA 501 should be doing during 2003. The basic topics of discussion were: 1) Membership drive - hopefully in March all members would or could bring a guest! 2) Fund Raising - Differen t ideas were discussed as how to raise some funds, with no firm decision. 3) Creation of a Board of Directors - suggested by national EAA. 4) Airport Day - general work party at Lincoln Park Airport. 5) Possible joint "Fly-Outs" with LPPA. EAA Flight Academy - a motion was made and 2nd that we send a "worthy candidate" to the EAA Air Academy at Oshkosh th is summer. The cost to the chapter cannot exceed $1200. More discussion next meeting. 2003 EAA Calendars It was also discussed that our webmaster post an issue of still available Propwash on the website. This issue should not be the current $9.00 issue! See Harry Barker Meeting was over at about 9:20 PM. Dick Wedemeyer, Secretary Page 3 Propwash February 2003 The Prez Sez discussed as a way to keep from having to pay the whole tab with cash. There are a lot of good I had an interesting experience at work this reasons for the Chapter to participate in this evening shortly after departing from Newark. program yet many issues have come up since the As we climbed through 10,000 feet and January meeting. accelerated past 250 knots we began to hear and feel a vibration coming from under the nose of I personally feel that if we want to spend our aircraft. The way we operate our flights, the $1,200.00 on any program, we should first raise last thing on the aircraft that a ramper touches the money specifically for that program. before we start our taxi is the ground power Treating the current Chapter balance as a slush access door. It's a small metal door on the left fund without a definite plan to replace the side of the nose that is much like the oil dipstick money doesn't make long-term sense. We can access panel on a Skyhawk. When we have an do it once this year and then work for five years extended layover between flights we can keep to replace the money, or figure out how to fund the airplane's electrical system powered up via a it sufficiently to make it an annual Chapter connection to a ground based electrical source. program. In addition to the ground power hook-up there is a receptacle for the ground crew (a.k.a. We'll re-open the debate on this topic at the 'rampers') to plug in a headset so they can February meeting and I'll be looking forward to communicate with the cockpit crew during the hearing your comments on the matter. push-back and engine starts. Once we're ready to go, they disconnect their headset, shut the Mr. Alex Pucciarello, a good friend of mine and access door and clear our wing tips as we taxi the EAA Technical Counselor for my Skybolt away. project, will be addressing our group at the February meeting. Alex is an A&P/IA and is It inevitably happens that the door either gets co-owner of Syrek-Mee Aviation at Morristown left open or it pops open in the air on its own Airport. He's also an active builder/restorer who and begins to vibrate loudly. For such a flimsy is currently rebuilding a Steen Skybolt in his door it does an admirable job of staying attached garage and, at his shop in Morristown, a North to the aircraft as it battles the oncoming rush of American Navion. Alex has graciously agreed air. From the cockpit though, we can't to speak to us about the EAA's Technical necessarily assume that the source of the Counselor Program and should provide a lot of vibration is the ground power access panel and insight about the program and why it's important must treat it as we would any other in-flight to have a Tech Counselor involved with your malfunction by returning to the departure, or project from its start to finish. some other suitable, airport. In the case of our access panel, there are many other panels/doors, Please keep in mind that we'll be trying to boost window seals, and external sensors (pitot, AOA, membership in March by making that month's TAT to name a few) that can come loose on meeting the official (it'll be as official as their own or by contact with a ramper or jetway anything can be with us which isn't very and make an equally discomforting amount of official) "Bring-a-guest-to-the-meeting" month. noise. The lesson in all of this is that it is I'll say it as many times as I have to that we need difficult and even dangerous to troubleshoot new faces to survive as a Chapter.