FChat fly-in, last weekend in March

Would there be any interest in an FChat flyin at Fredricksburg, Texas, Gillespie County Airport, the last Saturday night in March? There is an excellent on airport Hangar Hotel, great restaurants, good shopping for spousal crew, a terrific restaurant on the airport plus a superb pilot bar. Very centrally located nw of San Antonio - even I can find it 2 out of three times and land the right way. Big ramp for all of you who need it.

Rob says he can drink all of you under the table, and if you out drink him you can be an AvChat mod*!

Check your schedules and I'll say a wx prayer.

If yu don't fly in, Fredricksburg is in the middle of Hill Country and a beautiful drive if you want to bring a car!



* not responsible for accuracy of this statement, as it may be totally made up in a shameless marketing ploy

 

I can't fly there because my arms git too tard. Can't drive there because one tank of fuel won't make it BUT I know that I have recall of that area from when I was at Hondo in '44. It was different then for sure but we used to fly over that beautiful country quite often (can't think of the name of the lake northeast of Hondo, buzzed it a few times)...wide open, no people, no houses much, and probably the prettiest part of Texas. Lots of little towns around including Hondo; Uvalde, Del Rio, etc. Had good duty there.
SWITCHES

 

I think that I remember Lake Medina. That is where two intrepid flyers flew a PT-19 into the water when it was ,
" Weren't you flying?" NO. Weren't you flying?" It turned out that neither was at the stick and the airplane simply cruised into the lake as both thought that the other was doing a low level pass.
As another memory pops up. We had two AT-7's do a head-on over a railroad track one night. The civilians wondered just how we were training our navigators...we did too.
SWITCHES

 

I could probably make it.... on second thought thatd be a 2,100 mile round flight round trip in a 172, Might be a while.

 

Ok everyone - last Saturday in March at Fredricksburg, Hangar Hotel. This is not an organized event requiring insurance, we just all show up for dinner if you can make it, wheels or wings.

Although he cannot make it, we will all toast one of our senior aviators, Mr Bob Parks, in absentia, as the most revered AvChat poster. In fact, this may be the first of many 'Annual Bob Parks Parties'; but if he ever finally decides to come, he buys his own drinks...

 

Lordy ! I'm humbled by Russ' comments and certainly appreciate the intent but I have done little to earn anything worthy of note except to have been allowed to live a long life. I have not accomplished anything with my flying except a happy time with a goofy airshow clown act and trying to enjoy as many airplanes as my friends and money would allow. I attended a sort of reunion last weekend and saw many of my old flying buddies and at the height of our remembering the good times one of the guys looked at me and said, " It's true ! The older we get, the better we were." So I think that is where I am. I really didn't do much but I can sure talk about it. You are the guys that deserve the KUDO'S. Look at all you have done! That's worth the party. It would be fun to be there, though. Never any beautiful airport facilities like that when I was down there. I have a photo somewhere of a sign outside Hondo that said, " This God's Country, don't drive through it like hell." Some cadet inserted between the words "country" and " don't " the word "NAVIGATE" Also there were a few streets in Hondo that were still dirt.
Thanks again,
SWITCHES

 

Lovely family, Rob. Lovely facility in Fredricksburg, too, and a nice T-28.
SWITCHES

 

Ok everyone - we are on for Sat 28 March at the Hangar Hotel on the field.

FAA Identifier: T82
Lat/Long: 30-14-35.7000N / 098-54-33.1000W
30-14.595000N / 098-54.551667W
30.2432500 / -98.9091944
(estimated)
Elevation: 1695 ft. / 516.6 m (surveyed)
Variation: 06E (2005)
From city: 3 miles SW of FREDERICKSBURG, TX
Time zone: UTC -6 (UTC -5 during Daylight Savings Time)
Zip code: 78624

Airport Operations
Airport use: Open to the public
Activation date: 03/1947
Sectional chart: SAN ANTONIO
Control tower: no
ARTCC: HOUSTON CENTER
FSS: SAN ANGELO FLIGHT SERVICE STATION
NOTAMs facility: T82 (NOTAM-D service available)
Attendance: MON-FRI 0800-1700
Pattern altitude: TPA FIXED WING LGT ACFT 2500 FT MSL (805 FT AGL); TURBOPROP & JET ACFT 2700 FT MSL (1005 FT AGL) & HELICOPTERS 2200 FT MSL (505 FT AGL).
Wind indicator: lighted
Segmented circle: yes
Lights: DUSK-DAWN
MIRL RY 14/32 PRESET LOW INTST; TO INCR INTST ACTVT - CTAF.
Beacon: white-green (lighted land airport)

Airport Communications
CTAF/UNICOM: 122.7
WX AWOS-3: 120.0 (830-990-2716)
WX AWOS-3 at ERV (18 nm SW): 118.125 (830-895-2204)

 

NOTAMS, TPA, ERV, MSL. What is all that stuff, Russ? Can't find the A or N anywhere in there.
Switches

 

What is scary is that I know what you are talking about...

 

You must have read about it in a book somewhere. That system was the most God Awful thing to try to use ! It lost a lot of pilots who didn't even know that they were lost...like me.
SWITCHES

 

Bump reminder

28 mar saturday

hangar hotel (on the field) fredricksburg, tx (Gillespie Co. Airport.)
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What a beautiful airport! I'm sure that you guys will have a wonderful time there. Things are sure fancy now.
I Googled Hondo, Texas and I couldn't believe that the airbase is still like I remember it from 1944. The long ramp running north and south had a line of AT-7's three deep with some Lockheed C=60's interspersed. The PLM ( Production Line Maintenance hangar was around the corner at the north end of the ramp. AND my barracks was on what is now MacHaughten St., I think. Almost in line with the wooden control tower. MAN ! What a jolt! I think that Hondo Golf Course is where the PT field was located. I'll always remember the nights at midnight when all the airplanes returned from their training flights and the sky was full of nav lights and all where trying to enter the circular traffic pattern at once. Screaming at one another for cutting them off when they were in the process of cutting someone else off. It was mayhem to get them down and to get them parked and serviced. It usually took until 0400 or better. Never to be seen again.
SWITCHES

 

Bump reminder

Fly-in at Fredricksburg (T82) Gillespie County Sat 28 Mar at Hangar Hotel on Field.

Kerrville, home of Mooney, just a stones throw way if want to see factory.

 

I believe they have stopped the lines, but they are open.
You might want to nose over there on Friday...

 

Another great day to fly here around San Antonio - pretty blue skies and 80 degrees, and wind down the runway...
Should be about the same for the fly-in, so everyone come on over!

We're going to be all polished up and looking good I hope!!
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Russ, you really know how to get an old fire horse pawing at the ground, or in this case looking at the sky. I hope that this plan works for everyone because it sounds like a blast. Your airplane is SO inviting and I'll bet that it is a joy to fly. I have never flown a T-28 but it looks like it is just waiting for some one to try it. The Navion is the same and I flew one once without a checkout and it was very kind to me. North American never built an airplane that wasn't rightly done, I don't think. before the P-51 they had the O-48 and the B-25 and the Navion and the T-28 are of the same ilk: sturdy, stabile, and easy to fly. My late brother in law flew the B-26 and the B-25 in the Pacific Theater. He said that he would fly the B-26 in action because it was the toughest and could take tremendous punishment. But as an airplane for everything else, he would take the B-25 because it was so well balanced in everything and much easier to fly. For shear fun, though, he liked the B-26 because it was like a twin engined fighter. Far more demanding.
You guys have a good fly-in.
SWITCHES

 

Three weeks away!

28 March, Fredricksburg Texas (Gillespie County); Hangar Hotel on the field.
Dinner at the Cotton Gin, retire to the 'Officers Club' at the Hotel

 

I am always looking for a reason to go to the Hangar Hotel. What a great place! We usually go there for the dances, but any time is good. I'm in.

 

Less than 2 weeks to go!

Get those reservations in! It will be a small but elite few!!!

 

My plan:
Fly in around noon> Hang out on ramp
5pm OClub bar
630 dinner at Cotton Gin
Afterwards OClub bar - formal toast in honor of Switches with photo
Maybe Aussie GP at 0100

Breakfast at Airport cafe

Hope to see some folks there.