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President's Message Sam Evans
You can tell when flying weather gets here. It seems like there's a fly-in, fly-out or some aviation event going on somewhere. Don't let the good weather pass you by without going flying. That's what it's all about. And while you're at it, invite one of our non-pilot, EAA'ers to go with you. Get'em "hooked"!
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I want to take this opportunity to thank the people that help with our breakfast setup and cleanup. The last couple of times, clean up was quick and through. This was due to (most) everyone pitching in to get the job done. Thanks for your help. Having said that, there has been a suggestion from a couple of our members to create "teams" that would handle the various aspects of producing the Chapter breakfast. There would be a setup team, a take-down team, a kitchen team and a cleanup team. Each team would have enough members to get their job done in ample time and not be adversely affected if
someone was absent. Perhaps the teams could rotate after each breakfast. The team concept is basically an idea "in the works", with the goal of making the breakfast more enjoyable for EVERYONE. Maybe the teams could rotate after each breakfast.
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It's amazing: the people "behind the scenes" that do things to make this chapter successful. Are you one of them? A BIG THANKS to you if you are. Along the same lines: If you enjoy the use of a decent Chapter T-hangar, on secure property, at a darn low lease rate, can you answer "yes" to this question?: Do you participate in Chapter activities and contribute substantial effort to the betterment of the Chapter? That is an exact excerpt out of the Chapter By-Laws that entitles a member to a Chapter T-hangar. Were you able to answer "yes"? *** A gentle reminder here: When entering the airport through the security gates, be sure to stay at the gate until it is fully closed behind you. Also, keep the gate security code to yourself. The airport management & TSA are serious about airport security and we should be, too. ~ Sam ~
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Airfest Update
The Airfest committee has been busy making plans for this year's event. Some of the highlights will be an emphasis on sport aviation and an expanded car and motorcycle show. Mark your calendar to attend September 24.
Stay tuned for more information to come.
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| Fly-out Fun in the Hill Country by Sam Evans
After a slightly "shaky" start, the Fredericksburg flyout developed into a great time for everyone there. Shellie & I drove down to Fredericksburg on Friday. The bluebonnets and all the other wildflowers were at their peak and made the drive down very enjoyable. We checked-in at the Hangar Hotel and found the facilities to be very accommodating. The next morning, I'm barely awake and still in bed when I hear my cell phone ringing. It's 8:00am. I jump up out of bed and grab my phone, and in my best "I'm wide awake" voice I say, "hello?" Well, it"s Gray. " #*!%#* ", I say to myself... I was suppose to be up & checking on the weather down here before he called! So, Gray says, "how's the weather?... I've been checking the weather down there and they're saying 900 ft. ceilings... is that right?" I'm rushing over to the window by this time and pulling back the curtains. I look up at the sky... I mean, clouds and say "yeah, it's pretty cloudy here." Now, if you've been down in that part of Texas, you know how those big fluffy clouds develop at night and into the morning. As I continued to peer out the window I could see glimpses of blue sky. I report to Gray that I can see some blue areas between clouds. "Well, do you think we can get down through them?" I said, "yeah I think so..." I didn't tell him that he'd have to be a .30-06 bullet to get through the holes before they closed up. Anyway, I told him I would go over to the FBO and get some weather info and call him back. Sure enough, the ceiling was 900 ft. but the folks at the FBO said that the clouds usually lift off by mid-morning. I checked back with Gray and give him the report. He was still waiting to join up with David Bradshaw. When we hung up, I wasn't sure if or when he was coming. Fast-forward to 10:00a.m. The clouds had lifted considerably and since Shellie & I haven't heard from anyone yet, we decided to head into town and check things out. But, before we headed to town I needed to drop the rental van keys off at the hotel concierge. As I step out of the car, I hear the familiar roar of airplane engines. I look up to see David and Gray come screaming about 300 ft. over the runway. Gray, in his RV6-A, makes a hard right bank into the down wind to complete his landing with David, in his sleek Meko, shortly after. Man, was I glad to see them! Don't get me wrong, I love my little wife, but I sure didn't want to spend "all" our time down here shopping. Not too long afterwards, our chapter members were coming in "droves" and were all over the place with one obvious exception. "Where's Bledsoe?", someone asked. Don had this big plan to have a champagne toast once everyone arrived... and he was bringing the champagne. Where's Don? Well, we wait and wait... then wait a little more. No Don, no champagne. Then Hobby announces, "hey... I've got some champagne! Well, we end up doing the celebratory toast and then decide to head on over to the Airport Diner there next to the hotel. We hadn’t been at the diner but just a few minutes and we look out to see the familiar Citabria. Don and wife, Jo, had arrived. After the gang finished eating, we all headed in several directions to take-in the sights of the hill country. Some made a trip to the local winery while others headed into town for shopping or out to the wildflower farm. Saturday night was topped off with dinner at the nearby Cotton Gin Restaurant. Everyone made a safe depart and trip back to Abilene. If you didn't get to go this year, keep the trip in mind for next year. The wildflowers were beautiful and the weather was great. This is a trip that everyone remembers. Here's all the folks making the trip this year: Gray & Teresa Bridwell, Hobby & Darlene Stevens, Lon and Renatta Beasley & their daughter, Bailey, Audie & Linda Gill, Don & Jo Bledsoe, Dan and Karen Ferrantelli & their daughter, Madisen, David & Susan Bradshaw, Barry & Fay Cotner, Larry & Susan Chapman, Sam & Shellie Evans.
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| The follow is an e-mail that Dan
Ferrantelli sent to Gray Bridwell. Dan had ventured on to San
Antonio after departing Fredericksburg. I thought it was an
interesting report worthy of consideration for a future
fly-out. Sam Hi Gray, I would have liked to hang out more with the EAA members as well but we all still had a great time in Fredericksburg. My wife really enjoyed all the shopping downtown. Sunday morning we drove out to Enchanted Rock and did a little hiking. It was a good way to start off the day before flying on to San Antonio. We had an awesome time in San Antonio. We flew in to Stinson Municipal airport (KSSF). If you make a trip to San Antonio that is the airport I recommend flying into. It is much easier than the big International Airport (KSAT). I flew in there a week earlier and had to deal with airliner traffic and the large jet oriented FBOs. At Stinson, Check Six Aviation was as friendly and professional an FBO as I have seen. Angie met our plane as we taxied in with ice cold bottles of water in her hand and a smile. She then drove our rental car up next to the plane so we could transfer our luggage. I went inside to take care of the paperwork and she had it all laid out for us. The rental car contract, hotel reservation information (Heritage Inn for only $49 night), local map, and she had even downloaded all the local events taking place during our stay off the internet. Awesome service! We did up San Antonio pretty good. We did the boat tour of the river walk, then took in the shopping scene on the river walk. We went to see the Alamo. We went to the top of the Tower of the Americas and saw a great view of San Antonio. We went to Market Square where they had a fiesta taking place. My wife shopped while I hung out with my daughter and listened to the music and people watched. We also drove out to the Natural Bridge Caverns and took the guided 1 hr tour of the caverns. It was really interesting. San Antonio was a really good time. It might be a good fly-out destination for all the EAA folks sometime. Take Care, Dan ***
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COLORADO SPRINGS TRIP READY FOR DEPART May 20
The Colorado Springs trip is still on. Gray has spent a great deal of time making sure everything on the Colorado end is setup. There are even some Lubbock EAA'ers that heard about the trip and are joining in. The group departs May 20th and returns the 22nd. Give Gray a call to get info and get on-board for the trip.
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CHAPTER BREAKFAST ON FOR THE 14th
Once again, EAA Chapter 471 will hold its renowned monthly breakfast. Come join the gang at the Pride hangar on Saturday, May 14. Breakfast begins at 9:00a.m.
Breakfast setup will be Friday at 5:15. Volunteers always welcome. *** EXECUTIVE AIRPARK TO HOLD OPEN HOUSE
Executive Airpark will be hosting a bar-b-que and flyin on Saturday, May 21st. The airpark is located near the Taylor / Callahan county line off of Elmdale road. The airpark features a 2730 ft. grass runway and surrounding acreage for home sites. There will be a flyer about the event available at the breakfast or you may call Phil Watkins at (325) 668-1408 for more information. *** EAA Chapter 471 Officers
President ~ Sam Evans Vice-President ~ Charlotte Rhodes Secretary ~ Arlis Wright Treasurer ~ Gray Bridwell Director ~ Seymour Beitscher Director ~ Harold Cannon Director ~ Bobby Nichols Director ~ Steve Krazer Past President ~ Chris Ulibarri ***
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Chapter 471 Extends Hospitality To California RV'ers Last week, a California couple, in route to the Cayman Islands, made Abilene one of their over-night stops. The RV-6 travelers, Chris Kleen and his wife, Indira, are good friends of Randy Moore, the ABI tower boss. The couple arrived at ABI around 4:00pm Friday. Randy Moore and Chapter members Gray Bridwell and Sam Evans greeted the couple at Hangar 3. On behalf of 471, Gray presented the Kleen's with a hospitality basket filled with goodies. The Kleen's RV-6 is a beautifully built plane to say the least. There was definitely a lot of attention to detail given during its construction. Chris & Indria planned on an 8:00am departure the next morning. However, the weather was not going to cooperate for a while. They made two separate attempts for VFR departure but had to return both times due to a low cloud deck twenty miles east of ABI. Chris and Indria got lucky and found a twin Cessna with two IFR rated pilots going to Texarkansas. One IFR pilot flew with Chirs in his RV and Indria hitched a ride in the twin. After getting to Texarkansas they left VFR to Merridan, MS. They got there around 2130. Sunday, they flew into Key West to meet up with 5 RV's from the SoCal RV group.
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Monday, they departed to the Cayman Islands for a week. Word has it that they were very impressed with the hospitality of the local EAA. ~ Sam ~
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(Original) Abilene Municipal Airport, Abilene, TX 32.44 North / 99.69 West (West of Fort Worth, TX)
An aerial view of the Abilene Air Terminal from The Airport Directory Company's 1937 Airports Directory (courtesy of Bob Rambo).
This former airfield is separate & distinct from the present-day Abilene Municipal Airport, which sits on the opposite side of State Spur 322 to the southeast. |
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The date of construction of the original Abilene Airport is unknown. The earliest reference to the airfield which has been located was in the 1934 Department of Commerce Airfield Directory (according to Chris Kennedy). It described the "Abilene Air Terminal" as having three sod runways, with the longest being a 2,500' northwest/southeast strip. The Airport Directory Company's 1937 Airports Directory (courtesy of Bob Rambo) described Abilene Air Terminal as having three gravel runways, with the longest being the 2,500' northwest/southeast strip. The aerial photo in the directory depicted a single hangar & a terminal building alongside the ramp. The airport manager was listed as L.E. Derryberry, and the operators were listed as American Airways Inc., C.J. Collier, L.E. Derryberry, and Paul Stambaugh. The 1942 Dallas Sectional Chart (according to Chris Kennedy) depicted "Abilene" as a commercial/municipal airport. According to Scott Murdock, a March 1943 airfield directory listed this field as "Abilene Army Air Field (old)", while a May 1943 directory listed the field as "Abilene Air Terminal". In any case, at some point after WW2 the original field was replaced by a newly constructed larger Abilene Municipal Airport on a separate plot of land one mile to the southeast, and the original field was abandoned. This was apparently prior to 1963, as only the later Abilene Municipal Airport is depicted in the 1963 TX Airport Directory.
The 1987 USGS topo map, showing both the runways of the original Abilene Municipal Airport (at the top) and the newer & separate airfield layout of the present-day airport (at the bottom). As still depicted on the 1987 USGS topo map, the original Abilene Municipal Airport consisted of a total of four paved runways (the longest being 3,600'), taxiways, and a ramp area on the west side.
USGS aerial photo of the site of the former airport in 1994.
(Thanks to Chapter member, Gray Bridwell for composing this page of interesting information about the history of Abilene's airport.) |
