From the Left Seat
First Plane Wash of the Season
On Saturday, 8/1/2026, the first plane wash of the season was held with Frank Erbio, Warren Miller, Jeff McArthur, Carl Alongis, Tom Keller, Andrew Kallinikos, Ken (never slow down) Darmanins, Ken Kranz, Sam Llewellyn and his 2.5-year-old son Peter, who did a photo op in 28E and, at his height, inspected all of the aircraft tie-down ropes. Thank you, Peter! Thanks also to Mike Thury, Barbara Salva and two members who did not make it onto the sign-in sheet due to being distracted by the hangar flying.
12S Break-In Leaning Procedure Checkouts
On July 18, 20, 25, 27 and after the plane wash, Warren and Jeff completed the 20-minute 12S break-in leaning procedure with approximately nine club members, plus an unknown number checked out by CFII Nick D’Imperio. 12S has 14.9 hours remaining until the final mineral oil changeover to regular engine oil, after which it will return to full service.
Autopilot Ground Training for 28E
Warren and Jeff are finishing up the training modules for the new autopilot in 28E. Two dates and times will be posted for the first week of ground training, with two more for the following week to be announced.
Alternator Failure Recovery Flight to KPOU
On Friday, 7/31/2026, Joe Leonard and Jeff McArthur flew to KPOU to recover N5928E, which had experienced a failed alternator. They picked up the plane and inspected the paperwork; the bill had already been paid by Warren Miller, Ops/Maint. Director. The first leg of the flight was at 2,500′ MSL, pleasant and uneventful. Joe took off first in his plane, advising flight following of a southeast departure at 3,500′ MSL, and Jeff requested the same flight following service. After departing KPOU, both aircraft ran into a condensed cloud cover from 2,800′ MSL to 8,500′ MSL, with numerous building cumulus climbing higher. Eventually both pilots found a hole to fly through below the cloud deck, issued PIREPs and continued on to KISP.
IFR Proficiency Flight to Newport (KUUU)
On 7/3/2026, Jeff and Patrick Stue completed an in-depth Instrument Proficiency Check. The final training module prior to sign-off was Jeff’s requirement that Patrick file an IFR flight plan and fly it. We were in luck that one of Patrick’s sailing buddies is on the board of the American Sailing Association.
It was a Friday morning at HWV, and conditions were MVFR. After completing all our information and filing for the flight, we waited for our clearance to KUUU. No sooner had we taken off into IMC en route to CCC than we received an amended clearance to the south of HWV. This new clearance traversed the South Shore of Long Island eastbound, just south of BID, where the clouds opened up slightly and gave us a nice visual on the large windmills off BID’s south shore.
As we continued to waypoint LIBBE, the clouds opened up again and gave us an amazing view of the large grid formation of numerous windmills off the southern Massachusetts coast. An amazing sight to see. Finally, PVD ATC gave us direct to KUUU and issued the approach frequency. Upon arrival at the IAF for the RNAV 16, we were still in IMC, and the PIC was instructed to announce “UNABLE, IMC” if the approach controller kept asking other aircraft to cancel their IFR flight plans.
Twice the request was made to cancel our IFR flight plan, and both times the PIC responded with “UNABLE, IMC.” We finally broke out of the clouds at 600′, had the visual for the 16 approach and canceled our flight plan. Upon landing and making a quick pit stop to obtain new weather, TFR and other information, we were unable to file another IFR flight plan and flew back to HWV at 1,400′. All in all, Patrick earned his IPC (8 flight) endorsement.
Whaling Museum Fly-Out to New Bedford (KEWB)
On Friday, July 10, 2026, Joe Leonard, Patrice Stue and Jeff McArthur flew Joe’s C177RG to KEWB to tour the famous Whaling Museum. Joe took a VFR route direct to KEWB and parked at Colonial Air. The Uber ride to the Museum was just under 10 minutes, and the return trip took about the same. The Museum fees were not terribly expensive, but we can’t recommend the additional entry fee for the shark film. Most Americans have seen shark programming on TV that probably contained more information than the Museum’s film. The rest of the Museum was wonderful: visual illustrations, antique black and white photos, many static displays, large whale bones, harpoons and more, plus a mock-up of a whaling ship that visitors can board and tour.
Upcoming Fly-Out to Cape May (KWWD)
The fly-out to Cape May NAS, KWWD, will be announced shortly after we can get 12S back in full service. The museum recommends that we bring a cooler for lunch, as the Café was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. The lunch truck is sporadic, but you can get a hot dog and soda at the Museum’s ice cream area.
Respectfully Submitted,
Carl Alongis, Pres.
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