Categories: all aviation Building a Biplane bicycle gadgets misc motorcycle theater
A moment in Ian's personal aviation history
I just looked, for giggles, to see who currently owns N1912H, the Piper Cherokee in which I did most of my training.
Imagine my dismay when I came across this entry in the NTSB database. Yep, 1912H was crashed two years ago, killing one of the passengers. The idiot pilot loaded it more than 100 lbs overweight, didn't do a weight and balance calculation, and plowed into some trees. Sounds like he did a fair job of piloting once he realized the predicament he was in, so credit to him for thinking fast. But really, minus several million points for thinking he could load four people in that little plane in 100° F temperatures and actually take off.
It's kind of sad for me, as I always liked that plane. It wasn't fast, but it certainly worked well for me. It took me to Portland and back, and I probably spent 40+ hours in it for my training. I was bummed when Zephyr went under, and it stopped being an option for rental (although I see Zephyr is still in business in some form, and still has the $100 I had on account there when they croaked in 2002). 5850W, the Cherokee 160 I now fly via Northway is fine, but I liked that 140 better.
Anyway, I'm taking a moment of reflection on the passing of a friend. It was just a hunk of metal and electronics, but it was my hunk of metal, on the occasions I was in it.
So things go, I guess. Note to self: weight and balance calculations are important.
Posted at 14:39 permanent link category: /aviation
Categories: all aviation Building a Biplane bicycle gadgets misc motorcycle theater