Thunder Over the Valley Air Show 2012!

[SgurlEd]

Eddie Andrenini at our Airshow! He is an Awesome performers and a very Nice gentleman!

Here is one of the pix I took of him out of I think 800! Yes 800 well...maybe 1000 did edit the crappy ones ;-P

[JEFF TIPTON]

The words give us a look into what an airshow pilot does and many of the problems that they encounter while performing and trying to stay in the box.

Many people on the ground have no idea that the performers have an area to stay in nor why it is important. The people are just there for an afternoon of fun and adventure.

The words you used help to describe to people what is happening, the uncertainty that things will work out, the joy when all goes well. Some of the quick pace of your routine reminds me Leo Loudenslager performing his computer roll. A combination of snap rolls, barrel rolls and aileron rolls all performed in a single pass in front of the crowds. This combination was performed using full rolls, hesitation rolls and combinations left and right, that were easily missed as it happened so fast.

So I guess the answer would be yes. I see in my mind, the ups, the downs and turns as you performed. I can feel the G loading as you move through the three dimensions of flight.

I would imagine that you could practice more in isolated areas where you could maintain the five hundred foot separation from objects on the ground. During these practice sessions you would not be allowed to carry a passenger and I would recommend a ground observer just in case.

[EI-GYRO]

Having read post #13, I am equally in awe of Vance's flying, descriptive and typing skills.

A great read. Thank you for sharing.

[Vance]

Thank you for the kind words.

I have only flown in four air shows so I have a very long way to go to be an accomplished air show performer.

I feel that The Predator may be a little ponderous for an exciting show.

I found that moving continuously from one from one attitude to another helped me use less power and enhanced my feel for the controls.

I still haven’t flown a routine as planned yet. Bill, the announcer was very good at figuring out what I was actually doing and why; when I would change the script. I asked Bill about it later and he said that as long as he is describing something, most of the audience will never know if it is not accurate.

I only asked for 10 minutes because I feel that watching a gyroplane essentially do a non aerobatic fly by is not that exciting. Mike, who is the force behind the air show, Curtis, the air show boss and my personal announcer all suggested that I expand the “routine”.

The FAA air show representative, David keeps allowing me to do more. Unfortunately he is only doing a few shows.

I would love to practice in a more realistic environment than 1,500 feet AGL. It looks to me like § 91.303 prohibits practice for an air show below 1,500 feet AGL even away from civilization. Am I interpreting this incorrectly?

§ 91.303 Aerobatic flight.
No person may operate an aircraft in aerobatic flight—
(a) Over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement;
(b) Over an open air assembly of persons;
(c) Within the lateral boundaries of the surface areas of Class B, Class C, Class D, or Class E airspace designated for an airport;
(d) Within 4 nautical miles of the center line of any Federal airway;
(e) Below an altitude of 1,500 feet above the surface; or
(f) When flight visibility is less than 3 statute miles.
For the purposes of this section, aerobatic flight means an intentional maneuver involving an abrupt change in an aircraft's attitude, an abnormal attitude, or abnormal acceleration, not necessary for normal flight.

That last sentence fits virtually my entire “routine.”

I loved participating in the air show. I need to bet back to working on my commercial endorsement so I can accept the money people are offering.

I spoke to my friend David from the Van Nuys FSDO at some length about compensation and it is his opinion that as a private pilot with and experimental any compensation for flying is prohibited.

We also discussed sharing expenses in an experimental and he pointed out it was very far down on his enforcement priorities.

Thank you, Vance

[Vance]

I did not intend to fish for compliments.

It didn’t seem to matter how I arranged the words or how I tried to share the emotions; it looks flat to me and is an area I want to work on.

I tried describing the emotions and gave up.

I tried to describe the actions so people could have their own emotional response as they imagined they were flying The Predator in the Thunder Over The Valley air show.

I am amazed at the things The Predator can do and I find joy in discovering some little corner of her capabilities.

She is so big it is a little like doing an air show with a Shrike Commander but unfortunately I will never be Bob Hoover.

I asked Bob about it two years ago at Air Venture.

He has always been generous with his time and told me to focus on being smooth, consistent and conservation of energy.

I didn’t understand what he was talking about at the time.

I am sorry we lost the pilots pilot in July and I won’t get any more lessons from him.

Thank you, Vance

[WaspAir]

Originally Posted by Vance

I would love to practice in a more realistic environment than 1,500 feet AGL. It looks to me like § 91.303 prohibits practice for an air show below 1,500 feet AGL even away from civilization. Am I interpreting this incorrectly?

§ 91.303 Aerobatic flight.
No person may operate an aircraft in aerobatic flight—
(a) Over any congested area of a city, town, or settlement;
(b) Over an open air assembly of persons;
(c) Within the lateral boundaries of the surface areas of Class B, Class C, Class D, or Class E airspace designated for an airport;
(d) Within 4 nautical miles of the center line of any Federal airway;
(e) Below an altitude of 1,500 feet above the surface; or
(f) When flight visibility is less than 3 statute miles.
For the purposes of this section, aerobatic flight means an intentional maneuver involving an abrupt change in an aircraft's attitude, an abnormal attitude, or abnormal acceleration, not necessary for normal flight.

That last sentence fits virtually my entire “routine.”

Yes, you are reading it correctly. To do otherwise requires a waiver. There are aerobatic boxes already established in many areas, where pilots with waivers can go lower.

[EI-GYRO]

Samuel Clemens felt the same way.
You are in good company.

[JEFF TIPTON]

For the purposes of this section, aerobatic flight means an intentional maneuver involving an abrupt change in an aircraft's attitude, an abnormal attitude, or abnormal acceleration, not necessary for normal flight.

Vance I would agree that the above does apply. Let's take S turns for example. These are a basic private pilot maneuver that must be practiced, correct. The prescribed requirements from the PTS

B. TASK: S-TURNS
REFERENCE: FAA-H-8083-21.
Objective. To determine that the applicant:
1. Exhibits knowledge of the elements related to S-turns.
2. Selects an appropriate reference line based on wind direction and
emergency landing areas.
3. Plans the maneuver so as to enter at 600 to 1,000 feet (180 to 300
meters) AGL, perpendicular to the selected reference line.
4. Applies adequate wind-drift correction to track a constant radius
turn on each side of the selected reference line.
5. Reverses the direction of turn directly over the selected reference
line.
6. Divides attention between gyroplane control and the ground track
while maintaining coordinated flight.
7. Maintains the entry altitude throughout the maneuver, ±100 feet;
maintains airspeed, ±10 knots.

http://www.faa.gov/training_testing/...S-8081-15a.pdf

This maneuver can be accomplished using a straight road, power lines, or pipe lines. As these are man made objects we must maintain five hundred feet away. This distance could be horizontal, vertical or at an angle.

Now let's take a step in time to an FAA seminar I attended many decades ago. The question the gentleman asked was this. Can you as the pilot in command fly an aircraft legally three feet off the water in the Gulf of Mexico? For the purpose of this question we will agree that we are within gliding distance of the shore line, etc. The answer as he told is as usual, it depends. If you are flying by yourself, you could legally do this. If you had a passenger with you, you could not. You are considered in violation of FAR 91.13.

Sec. 91.13 — Careless or reckless operation.
(a) Aircraft operations for the purpose of air navigation. No person may operate an aircraft in a careless or reckless manner so as to endanger the life or property of another.

(b) Aircraft operations other than for the purpose of air navigation. No person may operate an aircraft, other than for the purpose of air navigation, on any part of the surface of an airport used by aircraft for air commerce (including areas used by those aircraft for receiving or discharging persons or cargo), in a careless or reckless manner so as to endanger the life or property of another.

If this thinking is allowable then what I propose would be finding a secluded area away from man made objects, river banks, streams, sand dunes etc would do. This would allow you to practice some of your maneuvers at a lower altitude. You may be practicing them at the most basic level but this is the basis for all airshow work.

Remember while practicing in the low level environment, NO passengers and to have a safety person on the ground at least five hundred feet away.

Run these by your FAA friends. They may be in agreement or at the least this might be something they could use to base a procedure that will work out for everybody.

[ckurz7000]

Vance, your narrative packs a lot of excitement and really takes me along with you. It is very much from a pilot's perspective but in a way that I would imagine also grabs a pedestrian and makes him feel the wind and exhileration.

Keep at it.

-- Chris.

[Vance]

Thank you Chris.

I feel you approach life in a similar way so it does not surprise me that you can turn my words into imagined emotions traversing borders, language and culture with the passion of flight.

Having you as a friend comes up often in my daily gratitude.

You are an inspiration to live life well.

I am glad to have you along and I will continue to try to share the joy I find in aviation.

I learned a lot by trying to describe this simple flight and the process amplified and preserved the joy for me.

Thank you, Vance

[Vance]

Originally Posted by JEFF TIPTON

If this thinking is allowable then what I propose would be finding a secluded area away from man made objects, river banks, streams, sand dunes etc would do. This would allow you to practice some of your maneuvers at a lower altitude. You may be practicing them at the most basic level but this is the basis for all airshow work.

Remember while practicing in the low level environment, NO passengers and to have a safety person on the ground at least five hundred feet away.

Run these by your FAA friends. They may be in agreement or at the least this might be something they could use to base a procedure that will work out for everybody.

Thank you Jeff!

I have talked to my friends at the Van Nuys FSDO and they all feel I need to get an aerobatic waver and a commercial license.

They recognize that practice would make me safer but they have a lot of dead pilots on their minds when they talk about low level aerobatics.

The waivered aerobatic area near Camarillo is confined to the block of altitude beginning at 1500 feet AGL up to 5500 feet MSL. I thought this was typical.

http://www.cpaviation.com/aerobox.html

The ground level precision is mostly about speed and in my opinion that takes it outside of normal flight.

The faster I can enter the air box, the harder that first turn and the more dramatic that first climb the more likely I am to get the attention of the air show enthusiasts. I only get one chance to make a first impression.

In my opinion the closer I am to the aviation fans the more dramatic the presentation.

Most of the rest of the “routine” can be practiced at 1,500 feet.

Thunder over the Valley is particularly challenging in this regard because of where I enter the box and the distance to the runway that requires a hard deck limitation.

Hollister was much easier because the runway was the category 3 line and the hard deck was the ground.

I feel that part of the allure of gyroplane flight is their comedic takeoff followed by a steep climb and the engine off steep descent to an elegant 0 roll landing.

After I get back from Watsonville I am going to get back to work on my commercial license.

I have already passed the class II medical but I am having some challenges converting my Statement of Demonstrated Ability to a class II medical.

A friend and CFII at SMX offered discounted instrument training because he would like to see me get paid for having so much fun.

It is fun to imagine what I can do when I become more proficient at low altitude aerobatics.

Thank you, Vance

[StanFoster]

Vance- You requested comments about how you described your airshow experience. From my perspective, you made me feel I was in the routine. I got butterflies in my stomach reading your description. I could feel the excitement you had, and how the anxiety can creep in on any of us during such stress. Very well said in my opinion. Makes me more appreciative of the ones like you that go through all of the behind the scenes drama while we spectators just have to sit and be wowed as we watch the airshow. I only wish I could attend one of your shows that you are involved inz. Stan

[scottessex]

As usual, a great read from Vance, very eloquently written and very descriptive, You can feel the passion, Very nicely done Vance, congratulations on your airshow routine.

[Vance]

Thank you Stan,

Describing the details was a new direction for me and it was both frustrating and rewarding.

I tried describing the emotions and it didn’t make sense.

My first description of the process left emotions out all together and that didn’t work either.

I have seen you sport around pretty hard Stan, in both a gyroplane and your Helicycle so I have a feeling it is easier for you to imagine you are managing all the elements of a particular maneuver.


Thank you Scott,

I am glad you enjoyed it.

I tend underestimate peoples imagination.

I read the words and compare it to the experience and then search for more or better words when all along some readers can feel a lot of what I was feeling.

It is interesting that the people who responded are pilots with a lot of experience. I would like to learn to touch the imagination of those who have not flown a gyroplane.

Thank you all for your support, I have learned a lot from this particular exercise that I hope to apply to other adventures.

Part of the fun was seeing how the flight affected people emotionally. There were people even older than me who had given up flying for one reason or another and I could see their rekindled excitement. There were young people that asked all kinds of questions and recognized that I was having a lot of fun and technical people who tried to understand how she flew.

Several people with military flight suits came by and asked about managing some detail of the flight. None of them asked for a ride but I think one young radar man wanted to and I was too distracted at the time to recognize his desire. He would not say it out plain but he circled several times with his fiancé.

Ed admired his unit patch and he dramatically ripped it off with the Velcro making that wonderful ripping sound and gave it to her. Ed ripped off one of hers and wore his patch for the rest of the show.

It was too days of total aviation involvement on so many levels.

It is easy to lose sight of the fact that most people have never even seen an autogiro fly in person and they appear magical in even in their most basic flight regimen.

I am off to the hangar to complete the installation of two new shielded P leads to try to get the noise out of the radio for the flight to Watsonville. Working on the area of the magneto switches is very difficult and confined. Last night I dropped one of the little brass screws into the bowels of The Predator never to be seen again. I need one had to hold the switch, another to hold the two terminals, another to insert the screw and one more to hold and turn the screwdriver. There is not room for another person. My test last night was not successful and I need to find where one of the wires is grounded. It is also crowded in the area of the magnetos and I suspect that is where it went wrong.

Thank you, Vance

[SgurlEd]

Finally got almost all the pix downloaded to Flickr...Just Click the Link!
Cheers All! Ed

http://www.flickr.com/photos/9459540...7631305962304/