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[Bill Greenwood]

Steve, when I was invited to join the 365 forum and then this new one, I tried to bring some aviation topics that I have some knowledge and experience with. I mistakenly assumed that other people might have similar interests. In the non eaa forums world, there are many people interested in formation flying like the large flights into and at Oshkosh. There are clinics for many types of planes held all over the U S. Next year is the 75 anniversary of perhaps the greatest small trainer ever, Piper J3 Cub, and I'll bet there is a large flyin of that type. And judging from the number of visitors at the warbird part of EAA, that is popular also. Surveys by airshow promoters show it is the most popular to the civilan types to attendees.
The Duxford accident had alot of discussion on another site. And I attended two type meetings at EAA where formation flying was a major topic, and at one there were large blow ups and discussion of the midair. Some people were interested, just not you or on this site.
If fast point to point, and straight and level is your thing, then you'd be wasting your time to read my stuff. I do think that , for places they go, Southwest Airlines is going to do that cheaper, faster, and safer than private aviation. If the trip itself is not an goal, the airlines and corporate jets are faster.
I can see that for you , and others here, most of what I was writing about was a waste of my time.
I do have a few questions:
What is an EAB, is it an airbus? I am not up on all the lingo of the internet.
And why do you seem to think only L& O , Liason observation planes are sport aviation and other warbirds are not. To me sport aviation just means aviation for fun, not airlines or business jets or miltary or cargo. Our EAA magazine certainly considers warbirds and other fun stuff as part of it in SPORT AVIATION.
Now back to something fascinating like cell phones, on which I don't have any experitse to contribute.

[steveinindy]

I do think that , for places they go, Southwest Airlines is going to do that cheaper, faster, and safer than private aviation. If the trip itself is not an goal, the airlines and corporate jets are faster.

Not really if my design pans out the way it should. I could be from Indianapolis to Wilmington in an hour and twenty and then Bermuda in two. That's still faster than waiting around at the airport. I see your point, but the trip is the important part to me as I love flying. I guess having someone five feet from my wingtip makes me not as excited.

And why do you seem to think only L& O , Liason observation planes are sport aviation and other warbirds are not.

Because you say "sport aviation" and most people are going to go "light sport aircraft" not a radial powered multi-million dollar warbird that 99% of us will never get to fly. The only warbirds that meet that definition (other than the scaled down replicas) are the L and O-birds. That's why I make that comment.

Our EAA magazine certainly considers warbirds and other fun stuff as part of it in SPORT AVIATION.

Then again, if you see the other thread, there is a lot of crabbing about how they also discuss commercially built aircraft too much for most people's liking. I'm not saying that it's not welcome. I am saying you should not allow your feelings to be hurt or otherwise be perturbed if no one wants to have a discussion about formation flying with you. It doesn't mean that safety isn't interesting or a concern to most people. It's just that no one at the time has anything more to add to the discussion whether it be through lack of interest or that you have said everything that can/should be said about it.

What is an EAB, is it an airbus?

"Experimental, amateur built". It's the abbreviation the FAA and NTSB uses fairly frequently to describe what the EAA is about for the most part. It's a way of separating out the homebuilts from things that are "experimental" in other ways (demilitarized jets, commercial designs undergoing testing after modifications, etc)

[Bill Greenwood]

Sport Aviation has been the title of our magazine, for decades, long before there was any category called Light Sport Aircraft.
When I am talking about sport aviation I am talking about flying for fun, not limited to any one type of plane. Most folks are not going to fly a powered parachute, but I'd certainly think that it is part of fun or flying for sport. Same as riding in the zeplin or the Tri motor.Most folks are not going to build or fly a Wright eihter, but one of my EAA highlights was getting to fly the Wright simulator. By the way, it was Hard, and word got around, Even Patty Wagstaff didn't want to try while people were watching. There were a couple of catch points that once learned, helped , but it was a humbling experience.
If you are going to design a homebuilt to fly to Bermuda, good luck. I wouldn't want to be the passenger, but it will make a good story if you do.

I think EAA started out as homebuilts, but now is much broader, and bigger than that. I may not have much interest in a spaceship, but I like the diversity that is EAA, for the most part.
I co built a Starlite and flew it, never recall hearing about EAB.
I seem to be the only one on this forum intersted in LSA aircraft too.

[steveinindy]

If you are going to design a homebuilt to fly to Bermuda, good luck. I wouldn't want to be the passenger, but it will make a good story if you do.

Why would it be any different than riding in a King Air? It's a turboprop and will be built to (or exceed in several cases) the standards in place for standard category certification. Just because it's a homebuilt doesn't imply that I have an excuse to cut corners.

Even Patty Wagstaff didn't want to try while people were watching.

Yeah, I can understand why. It's tough to control especially after a few beers.

[Bill Greenwood]

Steve ,for some folks whipping out at turbo homebuilt to go to Bermuda may not be much of a problem. Wasn't Melmouth, though not a turbo, capable of that? And I never wrote anything about cutting any corners, you must have me confused with some Nascar guy.

For me, I don't have much experience with turboprops, kind of in a different price range. And like jets, they sound bad and smell worse. My first choice to go to Bermuda would be a DC-4M. Those are a little scarce, so how about at super DC-3? If not my next choice is a commercial jet. My best friend went there on a sailboat out of Maryland, had a great time.

I do have a great co-pilot in mind for you, Diana Niad. I don't know if she is a pilot, but she is experienced in ocean travel. If you are not sure, look her up on Google or watch the news the next couple of days.

Good luck.

[steveinindy]

Wasn't Melmouth, though not a turbo, capable of that?

I don't know. I had never heard of it until it was mentioned on this forum. I can't find any specifics on it.

And I never wrote anything about cutting any corners,

That wasn't directed at you or anyone in particular on this forum. There are some elements in experimental aviation that do treat the leeway we're given as an excuse to half-ass their construction or design. It's quite frightening to look at crashed experimentals and compare them to the plans they were allegedly built from. Often you find some glaring errors ranging from poorly thought out modifications (the guy who shortened a bar in the fuselage around the cockpit of his RV for some reason and wound up dying from head injuries and positional asphyxia comes to mind) to just shoddy craftsmanship. All too often these folks wind up dying and become part of my research. These are things that can be fixed from within (before the FAA decides to "do it" for us in a way we won't like at all) through better oversight, better education and forming a tighter knit community.

Also, when I talk about cutting corners, it also has a lot to do with the issue of folks not wanting to improve their aircraft (in a professional and concerted sort of way) because they feel a personal attachment to it, a sense of personal offense at the idea that their beloved RV/Sonex/Pietenpol/etc could be improved, etc. We have a very bad habit of sitting on our hands up until it's time to start wringing them when one of us dies. That's what I mean by cutting corners. I've lost three friends in small aircraft crashes, a girl I briefly dated in a commercial crash in Europe and nine friends in medical helicopter crashes. I looked into it, saw room for improvement and decided to apply what I had learned. That's why I am working on the design. The fact it will take me to Bermuda is just kind of icing on the cake.

And like jets, they sound bad and smell worse

Eh. Nothing smells worse than a burning human body at a crash site. I'll deal with the smell of Jet-A (which I actually don't mind...I don't think gasolines smell all that great either) in exchange for the reduced fire risk.

My first choice to go to Bermuda would be a DC-4M. Those are a little scarce, so how about at super DC-3?

Talk about out of our price ranges! LOL

If not my next choice is a commercial jet.

Where's the fun in that?

My best friend went there on a sailboat out of Maryland, had a great time.

A sailboat is one of the other things I would like to design eventually. I just enjoy a good engineering challenge.

you must have me confused with some Nascar guy.

More of an open wheel sort of fellow? Where are you out of?

[Hangar10]

I came over to "Support and Feedback" in order to suggest a Chapters section... glad I found this poll. I would really like to see a Chapters section... not a sub-section, but a top level section where chapters leaders, organizers, supporters and volunteers can share ideas on events and such. Whether it's Young Eagles, Learn to Fly Day, the B-17 coming to town or just organizing a fly-in, I know there are a lot of good ideas out there.

I saw that Young Eagles was suggested as another section... I would think that this discussion might also be conducted under the Chapters section as well. If we create too many splinter topics then the information becomes harder to track down and follow.

Just my .02

[uavmx]

what about a maintenance/troubleshooting type section? I'm an A&P/IA that doesn't visit TOO often, a section like that would be a great place for me and others with expertise to get people the information they need in troubleshoot, maintenance, repairs, etc.

[Eric Page]

My favorites for new topics:

• "Maintenance" (questions from a/c owners that could be answered by A&Ps or other owners)
• "Chapter Activities" (suggestions for activities/events and discussions of same)
• "Where Eagles Soar" (threads related to both Young Eagles and whatever the adult version is called)
• "Flying Destinations/Events" (pancake breakfasts, fly-ins, scenic flights, friendly airports, etc.)
• "Light Sport" (ultralights have a discrete topic; this growing segment deserves one as well)

I think type-specific topics are a good idea in theory (especially for types that presently rely on the awful Yahoo message boards), but I suspect it would quickly become unmanageable in practice. Unless the mods are willing to moderate scores of topics, or permit select members to moderate type-specific topics, it could be overwhelming. The most popular types, like Vans, already have forums on the manufacturers' websites.

I've seen "Buying & Selling" topics on other boards turn into a real mess. The mods end up spending an inordinate amount of time weeding out commercial postings from people/companies trying to get free advertising. Inevitably, ads for male enhancement products will slip through the net -- it's remarkable the registration hoops those folks will jump through to post their ads. Besides, there are plenty of established aviation classified sites (Barnstormers, Trade-A-Plane, etc.).

I'd suggest renaming "Learning To Fly" to "Flight Training" so that it captures more. We're all learning on every flight; this topic can capture a lot more than just ab initio training. There are already threads here that go beyond learning to fly.

"Homebuilders Corner" is really the core of what EAA and this site are about. Turn it into a major group heading and create topics within for the various construction disciplines and techniques:

• General Discussions
• Wood
• Tube
• Sheet Metal
• Composites
• Welding
• Fabric Covering
• Firewall Forward
• Electrical & Avionics
• Landing Gear & Brakes
• Floats & Skis