LadiesLoveTaildraggers

Have I got an interesting story for you! Actually, it’s Ken & Lorraine Morris’ story but I’m passing it along with pleasure!  This is one they’re going to be telling for years to come and I’d like to be there for the telling! So Ken… Lorraine…. the lady taildraggers fly-in’s coming up?!

At the end of February we purchased a Cessna 140A in California, sight unseen, with the intent to restore it. Ken bought it, took off, and within 15 minutes the engine quit. He had a choice of landing in the San Francisco Bay (cold, wet water) or landing in the Dumbarton Mud Flats (cold, wet tidal mud). He chose the flats and made a great landing. The ground was soft and as soon as the main wheels hit the mud they stopped. Unfortunately the rest of the plane kept moving and it went over and ended up on its back.

He jammed his finger and thankfully that was the extent of personal injuries but the poor little 140 got a bit of gear damage. We found out that the mud flats were in a protected area for some endangered stupid mud mouse, and the California Fish and Wildlife department head had a major fit when he found out Ken had the audacity to lose his engine power and do an emergency landing in HIS mud!

The insurance company hired a helicopter to remove the plane because God Forbid any other vehicles dared transgress through the Protected Mud Mouse’s territory (Ken never saw ONE)! The helicopter picked the plane up by its gear, upside down, and brought it back to an airport where is was dismantled and loaded on a trailer to be trucked to Illinois.

Kathy Devine is based at DYL, Doylestown, PA and flies a Maule MX-7.

I’ve been flying since 1992. Started out in gliders and got licensed in 1995 after a slight delay due to giving birth to my beautiful daughter. Started flying in airplanes around that same time after my husband bought a Cessna 140. That plane taught me a lot but we sold it before I could get licensed in it. We purchased a partnership in a Maule Mx-7 (180hp) Taildragger of course. I got my license in that bird. I have around 200 hours combined glider and SEL and to this day only have 1 hour of tri gear in my logbook!

Here’s a forward that’s pretty incredible — The demise of an FA18 and the ejection seat that saved a life ….

Interesting photos of the of the ejection from the F18 that crashed last year in Alberta, Canada .  You may have seen the full sequence as the aircraft hits the ground several seconds later.  This is the first time that I’ve seen the canopy being blasted off the aircraft by the twin rockets.  In the second photo, note that the pilot is ejecting horizontal to the ground while the wings of the aircraft are perpendicular to the ground, which is about one tenth of a second below.

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Then comes the amazing change in direction for the ejection seat and pilot!  Note how the directional control on the ejection seat rockets has automatically changed the pilot’s trajectory and attitude so that he is climbing away from the fireball that is about to happen.  His drogue chute is also visibly deployed

Close! I bet he swung once and then landed!

Charlotte Dadswell is based at EGHR, Chichester/Goodwood Aerodrome, West Sussex, UK.

With HY at Headcorn for a 'bent-wing' fly-in, there weren't many other taildraggers!

I have done most of my flying from Goodwood, a beautiful airfield on the south coast of England, and am now based there as an instructor.

Aeronca Chief G-IVOR, the first Chief in the UK, imported by my Dad, Ivor

My Dad owned a 1946 Aeronca Chief when I was a child, so I have wanted to fly taildraggers for as long as I can remember! I learned to fly in a PA38 in 2005, and my first experience of tailwheel flying was in a Super Decathlon, shortly after obtaining my PPL.

Me with Falconar F11-3 G-AWHY

I later purchased a share in a Falconar F11-3, and completed my tailwheel conversion in this aircraft. I had great fun flying this for several years, and did all my CPL hour-building in it, but sold the share in 2011 after qualifying as an instructor.

In HY at White Waltham. I once flew here for an interview, and got a few surprised looks when I climbed out in a skirt and heels!

Flying tailwheel aircraft is what I enjoy most, and I would like to do more tailwheel teaching in the future. We see a lot of tailwheel aircraft at Goodwood, and I always point out the ‘proper’ aeroplanes to my students!

Sitting in the Old Flying Machine Company's Spitfire IX MH434, maybe one day...

It’s great to be part of this group and see the beautiful taildraggers everyone is flying all over the world.

Jacqui Manley is based at a private grass strip, Swanborough Farm Airfield, West Sussex, UK.

Jodel G-OABB

I fly as often as the weather is kind in a 2 seater Jodel, G-OABB Mascaret D150. I have held my PPL for 20 years, my first taildragger was a Jodel D112 , which we owned for 16 years, G-BPFD.

Tiger Moth G-BFHH

Most of my flying has taken place in these two aircraft, although I have had some lucky rides around Sussex and over to France as P1 in a Tiger Moth.

De Havilland DH-82A Tiger Moth II

I have done a little gliding too, but this was many years ago. I share the flying with my husband Ken. We tend to take turns flying to and from airfields and strips mostly in the south of the UK, changing seats so we both get to be P1.

Jodel D.150 Mascaret

We enjoy holidays in our Jodel, mostly to France as it is so close, just a 20 min hop across the channel.

Many thanks,

Jacqui

Pamela Flesher is based at TS36, Silver Wings Airport, Fredericksburg, in the Texas Hill Country.

Pamela Flesher

I solo’d in an Aeronca Champion the early 80′s but didn’t finish my license until many years later. I currently fly a Grumman Traveler out of TX36, a private fly-in community in central TX. Once a summer my husband gives me a treat, some time in a T6 in Florida. I doubt they will let me solo but at least I get to fly “big iron”.

Me and Lil Red at the Women's Air Race Classic start in Ft. Myers, FL.

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Another pilot on our strip just completed building an RV8, and said I could fly with him, while my husband insists we need a Cessna 195. So, more taildraggers are in my future.

I love taildraggers (and am still in the group who hasn’t yet) because I feel they have made me a better pilot. The check pilot said he could tell I had flown taildraggers when he flew with me for my PPL.

Pamela

N5893L/Lil Red

Date:  Sept. 7, 8, 9, a Friday – Sunday.

KORS, Orcas Island Airport, Eastsound, Washington

Here’s your chance to meet other lady taildragger pilots for a fun 3 day weekend to the beautiful San Juan Islands. The fly-out group is in the process of planning the adventure and are looking for other ladies to join them.

Please check out the link at http://www.ladieslovetaildraggers.com/an-invitation-to-orcas-island-washington/ for details.

Also visit the FORUM for flyout discussions.

This is a perfect time of year to fly the San Juan Islands so let’s hear from you if you want to join the gaggle! 

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A personal invitation from airport manager, Bea vonTobel, to the lady taildraggers. Come and visit!

Big Big News for anyone wanting to join the group fly-out to Orcas Island, Washington!  Preliminary date has been set for Sept. 7, 8, 9, a Friday – Sunday. We already have a core group of gals and, now that the date is set, it’s time to spread the word. This is a perfect time of year to fly the San Juan Islands so let’s hear from you if you want to join the gaggle! Leave a comment and I’ll add your email to the group that’s communicating via email. Or…. visit the “new topic” in the FORUM for group discussions. Fly-out attendees will be working out the details for their big adventure!

Meet Victoria Bond who's plans on making the Orcas Island trip in her beautiful Super Cub.

Previous Dec, 29, 2011 info. posted about Orcas Island….

“Judy—

I think I should perhaps hire you to do some additional publicity for our airport; your gathering of photos and other items was quite well done.  And I hope it will bring us some of your taildraggers up this way later in the spring or summer—or fall, after most of the tourists have returned to their homes and the island still basks in Indian Summer—September is generally a wonderful month to visit here.

We’d love to have you come and visit—and perhaps stay!  That’s how a lot of current residents came to live here: they got off the ferry and suddenly decided they just had to live here . . .

I should mention that during our annual fly-in, which is the first full weekend of August every year, the pilots of the Blackjack Squadron from neighboring Island/Whatcom counties do some formation flying in their Vans RVs—usually 9-12 of they, and we all have stiff necks the next day.  Great group!

Anyhow, keep us posted.  Our only two major scheduled events are the Cascade Flyers on the last weekend of July and the OAA/EAA/PoO fly-in the first weekend of August.  If you’re really interested in books, the library fair is the following weekend, and you’d have to refigure weight and balance if you went home with a bunch of ‘lightly-used books’.  And, one of the resident orcas just had another calf, so we’re all out showing baby whale pictures . . .

Take care, and have a great new year!”

Bea vonTobel

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Posted 12/28/11

Here’s a special invitation to all our lady taildragger pilots from Bea vonTobel, Airport Manager at Orcas Island Airport. I pulled a few pictures together to include with Bea’s note and by the time I finished, I was so excited about Orcas Island I wanted to load up my Rans S7 and head northwest. It looks like a beautiful destination and Bea would be just as excited to see us as we would be to get there! It’s 1,910 statute miles for me so I’m not sure it’s going to fit on my dance card this year. But if any of you would like to do a trip together to Orcas Island, leave your comments.

"Goodbye" photo from the Orcas Island Airport Fly-in

From Bea: One of our 99s chapter members sent me a couple of your videos, and it was wonderful to see all those draggers piloted by women.  I’m afraid the only draggers I’ve flown have been sailplanes—but they were towed aloft by taildraggers, albeit with male pilots at the stick.  But, once in the air, it makes no difference!

Orcas Island, Washington, part of the San Juan Islands chain

At any rate, now that I’m where I am and doing what I’m doing, I feel a great urge to invite you all to come to the Orcas Island Airport off the northwest coast of Washington state, hard by Canada (I see it from my office window, which makes getting indoor work hard to get done).

Orcas Island Airport

We’ve got a great smaller airport here, paved with 2900’ of macadam, commercial service; if you see our upcoming ads in the GANews starting in January, you’ll see that both approaches to our runway put you over water on the narrowest part of the island.

We’d love to have a bunch of ladies in taildraggers come and camp out under their wings (we have a hot shower), with an ocean view guaranteed from your tent.  For $6.00/night, it’s a great place to stay, and there are lots of nearby things to do.

Check out our website,www.portoforcas.com and you’ll see what we can offer—aside from great weather most of summer through October, our dry season.

If we can help you plan an event around some of the island happenings, we’d love to do that.  Let us know how we can be your hosts on a very friendly island!

Bea vonTobel

Airport Manager

360.376.5285

Nancy Warren is based at KBAK, Columbus Municipal Airport, Columbus, Indiana.

Nancy Warren, DC-3

Many years ago I was checked out in a Citabria, 7-ECA (part-owner), also flew right seat in DC-3s and Beech 18s, currently fly a Cessna Cardinal 177.

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Nancy Warren & friend, Rusty Richards with Rusty's Cessna 195

I was a member of the 99s for 25 years, currently member of the United Flying Octogenarians (UFO), serve on its Board of Directors and as Area Director for the State of Indiana. I also write a monthly column (WOMEN IN THE SKIES) for www.aircraftowneronline.com.

Nancy Warren

Good news! This beautiful C195 will be at our Lady Taildraggers flyin and Nancy & Rusty will be in it!  Be sure and check out the upcoming February issue of www.aircraftowneronline.com. Nancy was so excited about our organization she suggested writing an article about LLT to her editor. It’ll be on-line soon!  Judy

Hey, a quick note from Summer Martell and a “commute to work” picture!  Summer was, and still is, the envy of many pilots for flying her Student Prince biplane 3,400 miles RT to our Lady Taildraggers flyin last year!

Commuting to work in the Puget Sound in my “modern” airplane. A 1946 Cessna 120. All the amenities, an electric starter, lights, radios, a heater and a roof!

Summer Martell

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Summer's '46 C120 .... and take a look at the backdrop(s). Mt Rainier and DC 3!

Here’s Summer’s other love, her 1931 Student Prince.

And the "not so modern" airplane, the Student Prince.

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Over the Cascades with blue skies and a tailwind!

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The Mighty Rockies. Rocky Mountain High...in Montana!

Happy New Year my dear sky sisters and blue skies to you and yours in 2012. Summer Martell