June 2024



John Brereton is our 5th Ray Scholar. He is modeling the LightSpeed headset he was issued by the LightSpeed foundation. Once you pass your Private Pilot written test, the foundation will send a headset to use for your training.

 

Peter Maszczak is our 4th Ray Scholar and passed his check ride a few weeks ago. He is modeling his new Ray Scholar shirt from EAA.



The Don Gordon Scholarship Board was alarmed at the high cost of pilot licensing check rides.  We decided to reimburse aspiring pilots for check ride costs.  Here Frank Becker, representing the Board, presents Peter Maszczak with the first reimbursement check.  Congratulations Peter!



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April 2024

 




Ray Scholar Eric Scheidecker After many delays, today Eric had his instrument check-ride and passed it! The DPE said Eric was in the top five of students he has tested.  


Next is taking and passing the Commercial written, for which he’s been taking a class for this semester. Eric will stay in Kentucky this summer to do his Commercial flight training.



~  ~  ~





Our latest Ray Scholar Matt Auletta models his new hat.  Matt just passed his written test.



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January 2024

 



Matt was granted a combination award from the Don Gordon and Ray Scholarships. Don Gordon is funding 25% and Ray is 75%.  Congratulation Matt!


Ray Scholar John will be soloing this week, if the weather cooperates.


Ray Scholar Peter is beginning his long cross country flights.





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July 2023


           



Ray Scholar Eric Scheidecker  -  Eric will be attending Eastern Kentucky University this Fall, majoring in Aviation.  His goal is to become an airline pilot.





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March 2023




Ray Scholar Peter Maszczak  -  First Solo March 28, 2023




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February 17, 2020



 Connor Boland & Eric Szurek

were awarded the 2019 

Donald R. Gordon Memorial Scholarships
(Click here for more info and to donate)





I want to thank everyone who showed up for the February meeting. The house was packed. Great to see you all. It was especially nice to see so many of our youth in attendance. 


I want to thank all of you that have supported the Donald R. Gordon Memorial Scholarship. Because of your generosity we were able to award two, yes two, scholarships. Thank you to the scholarship selection committee for selecting two very worthy candidates. Donald Gordon Memorial Scholarships were awarded to Connor Boland & Eric Szurek. Congratulations on your hard work and your scholarships. We look forward to hearing about your progress as you pursue your dream. We hope to see you at more EAA Chapter 643 events. 


Our Ray Scholarship recipient Robbie gave us an update on his training progress. If you attended the January meeting, then you know that evening was Robbie’s first night flight. Since then he has gotten in another night flight. Flying has been hampered by the weather. Weather permitting Robbie has some cross countries planned, maybe we’ll hear about them next month.


If you’re an Amazon user, the next time you order, please go to smile.amazon.com and select EAA Chapter 643 Inc as your charity. Amazon will donate 0.5% of your purchase to any charity.  And since EAA Chapter 643 Inc is a non-profit charity, they will donate to our chapter. You can select or change your charity just below the Amazon search bar on the far left side. You can find out more by clicking here About AmazonSmile.


Craig Johnston had planned on doing a presentation on Slips and Skids. But he was called away at the last minute. I hope that we can get him back on the agenda in the near future.


Larry Higgins did an awesome presentation on water takeoffs and landings. Larry is currently giving lessons up at Aeroflex–Andover Airport 12N with Damian DelGaizo’s Andover Flight Academy. A great place to get your tail wheel endorsement. Larry also does seaplane endorsements, flying out of Greenwood Lake and Stony Point, NY on the Hudson, soon to be offered at Andover Flight Academy. Good news to the seaplane community, recent legislation was passed that hopefully may see a return of seaplanes on New Jersey waters in the near future.


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January 24, 2020



Special thanks to all of our 2019 Service Award recipients, leading off with our outgoing president Brent Connelly and our outgoing treasurer Rich Kiselewsky (aka Big Rich). Thank you both for your years of service. A big thank you to our other Service Award recipients: Technical Counselor - Adam Silverstein; Young Eagle Coordinators - Frederick Slapa & William Shay; Web Editor - Adam Dagys; Ray Scholarship Coordinator - Joe Preston.  And our 2019 MVP Brent Connelly.


Thank you to Rich Kulesa for hosting our December gathering in his beautiful workshop.


Dennis Patrick provided a treasurer’s report. He also presented a proposal to raise our annual dues from $26 to $30. After a discussion with members, we voted to change the 2020 dues as follows:

● Membership Annual Dues - $50

● New Member Dues - $25 for the first year.

● Members 25 years old and under are free.

Click here for our 2020 membership application form

Dues can be paid online at our chapter store http://eaa643.org/13.html


Our Ray Scholarship Coordinator, Joe Preston and Robbie gave us an update on the

scholarship and Robbies’ progress. Robby has passed his written. The real treat was that Robbie had his first night flight down to Trenton, then he flew into Sky Manor for our meeting.


Adam Silverstein gave us an update on the Don Gordon Scholarship. We have four good candidates and expect to award the scholarship at our February meeting on the 17th.  Frank Becker, Joe Hann & Rich Kuesa, volunteered to help raise the profile of the Donald Gordon Scholarship to increase donations to the scholarship.


We are always looking for ideas for future club activities. We discussed Aviation Museum Visits, such as The Intrepid, Aviation Hall of Fame - Teterboro, NJ, Harold F. Pitcairn Wings of Freedom Aviation Museum - Horsham, PA, Air Victory Museum - South Jersey Regional. Fly Outs to Fly Ins / Breakfast / Lunch with the idea that we might plan a few each year that are scheduled ahead of time so that allow for more participation. Hands on training, Neil mentioned that he would be interested in rib stitching since he just purchased a Kitfox. Joe Preston said he would be willing to provide some training. Youth Engagement - The good news here is that we had three new teenagers show up for our January meeting.


We continue to need speakers each month. If you have any ideas or presenters in mind please let me know. 


Lastly, we had a very interesting video on the Yak 110


Our next meeting is scheduled for February 17th and is planned for the Sky Manor Meeting Room.



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November 19, 2019



Just short note to recap our last monthly meeting for this year held this week.


First, please join me in congratulating our incoming Chapter 643 leadership team:


Doug Logg, President

Lee Hilbert, Vice President

Dennis Patrick, Treasurer


They will do a fantastic job leading our chapter heading into what will certainly be another highly successful year.


Thank you to our committee leaders Joe Preston & Bill Shay who provided updates on our Ray Foundation Scholarship program and Young Eagles last evening.  Please help us in finding suitable candidates for the Donald Gordon Aviation Scholarship that will be awarded in January.  We are offering $2,500 this year to help a deserving student complete his or her private license – details are available on our website EAA643.org.


And thanks also to Frederick Slapa who shared a very interesting overview of the TWA Hotel at Kennedy Airport.  Check out the hotel website if you were unable to attend the meeting; its really an impressive destination especially for aviation enthusiasts.


Finally, please join your fellow chapter members for a field trip to Rich Kulesa’s workshop in Morristown on the afternoon of December 7th. Rich has built an impressive workshop to facilitate his RV-14 build project which is well underway. This field trip is also our Chapter Holiday Social so please mark your calendars and come join us for some light food & beverages to mark the end of a great year at Chapter 643.  All chapter members and families are welcome to attend.


Brent Connelly

“Outgoing” President ;)


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August 19, 2019



Our August meeting kicked off with some experience flights by at least a half dozen EAA 643 members for other members – an annual August meeting event.   Thanks to all our participating pilots.  By the number of smiling faces, there were many happy and appreciative passengers. 


We discussed experiences from this year’s AirVenture at OSHKOSH and several members shared stories and pictures from their own adventures.  Despite some challenging weather during the lead in weekend, another successful year in WI. 


Our next major chapter event is the “A Day of Fun Fly-In” scheduled for September 7th at Sky Manor (N40).  Adam Silverstein summarized the plans and asked for all members to make a special effort to participate.  Assuming we get good weather, we do expect a large turnout this year (crossing our fingers that no TFRs will be scheduled) so we will need every available Chapter member to come out and support the event in whatever capacity possible.  Contact Adam Silverstein with specific questions; otherwise please plan to arrive at Sky Manor at around 8 am on the morning of September 7th. 


Adam, on behalf of the Scholarship Committee, shared the status of our Donald R. Gordon Scholarship Program and changes being implemented for 2019.  This year, we are raising the award amount to $2,500 which will be paid out in several installments.  We are also modifying the application and expanding the number of regional airports where flight schools and CFIs will be contacted to solicit qualifying applicants.  Our intent is to award at least one scholarship at the end of this year.  The updated criteria and application will be posted here in the coming weeks.  We have been very successful in identifying impressive past scholarship awardees and want to improve our ability to continue to support a strong and growing program going forward.  


Joe Preston, our Ray Foundation Scholarship Coordinator, also provided us an update on this important program in which EAA Chapter 643 is also participating.  The Chapter has nominated our first candidate and pending EAA National approval in the next month or so, we should be well underway in supporting yet another future pilot. 


Doug Logg, our EAA Chapter 643 Vice-President, shared a presentation regarding Youth Engagement and tips on how we, as a chapter, can better attract and include youth in aviation related activities.  There was general agreement that as a Chapter we can and should put more effort into youth programs.  This will clearly be a growth area for Chapter 643 in the months and years ahead. 


Finally, we want to extend a welcome to our newest member, Aiden Kinsey, who not only brings a great deal of positive energy to our group, but also took his first ride in an Aeronca Champ just prior to the meeting.


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July 16, 2019



A quick note and a few followup items after our July Meeting this week at Sky Manor:


First, we extend our thanks to Eric Hopkins who flew his Glasair Sportsman down from Boston and shared with us his experiences in building his aircraft at the factory in Washington state in just two weeks.  Many of us were clearly impressed with the aircraft, its performance specs and even the flexibility in changing gear configurations with this four seat model.  Factory/builder assist programs appear to be increasingly popular and it was great to learn about this one from an accomplished pilot/builder.




We also heard from and shared our goodbyes to fellow member Dr. Stan Tran who has finished his residency in NJ  and has decided to move on.  Stan described some of the aviation activities he was motivated to take on by hearing about them at Chapter 643 meetings.  He will be missed and we wish him the very best.


Adam Silverstein updated us on where the Donald Gordon Scholarship   committee is heading in terms of updating the criteria and design of this important Chapter program.  While it is not final, the committee is in favor of increasing the monitory size of the award, and also reaching out to a greater number of rural airports in order to generate more interest.  Adam also provided an update on plans for our September 7th "A Day of Fun" chapter Fly-In.  The Fly-In volunteer committee and Adam will be looking for ALL of our support as we get closer to the event.


It looks like a large number of Chapter Members will be attending Oshkosh AirVenture this year - some of us are there already!  We agreed to plan an informal get-together on TUESDAY JULY 23rd (6 pm) just after the airshow, at the "SOS" beverage tent which is located just outside the Airventure grounds.  Look for the SOS balloon overhead.


Finally, for our August meeting, in addition to debriefing on OSHKOSH, we are going to plan for those willing pilots with aircraft to offer rides for our fellow chapter members.  In previous years this turned out to be a great opportunity to experience aircraft that you may have an interest in buying or building in the future.  More details to follow closer to the meeting.


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June 19, 2019



Just a brief follow-up from our meeting earlier in the week.   For those of you unable to attend you missed out on several very interesting talks and updates.


First, Craig Johnston challenged us with a safety briefing on “angle of attack” which helped dust off some cobwebs for many of us about this critically important topic.  Then we had four of our more active “builder” members share the status of their projects.  Joe Preston described the very detailed “Great Lakes” restoration work he has been focused upon.  You may recall seeing this project over a year ago when many of us visited his nearby workshop.  Following Joe, Rich Kulesa provided us an update on the RV-14A build he began last year in his own incredibly inviting workshop.  Next, Oliver Spatscheck shared the engine inspection & repair work including a new propeller he added to his colorful RV-8 after a runway incident earlier in the year.  And finally, Neil Rosoff updated us about some engine heating issues he has been working though as he completes the phase 1 fly-off on his brand new RV-9A.


Our Chapter 643 Young Eagles Coordinator Bill Shay reviewed the plans for a special young eagles rally planned for this Thursday evening at Alexandria Airport.  As of now the weather may be challenging so stay tuned for updates from Bill, who also reminds all of us to log into the new YE Day website to register your participation, whether you are ground crew or a pilot volunteer.


Next month, in additional to some more very interesting presentations, we will also focus on preparation for our September Fly-In, the Donald Gordon Scholarship Program, and share plans with each other for this year’s Oshkosh AirVenture. 


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April 30, 2019



For those of you who could not attend our April meeting, you missed out on an incredible talk by Rich Kiselewsky that included original pictures, rare 35mm slides and even some video summarizing his remarkable years serving with the US Marine Corps in Vietnam.  We are clearly extremely fortunate to have someone of Rich’s character as an active member of Chapter 643.


Shortly after our meeting, we had our first field trip of the year to Neil Rosoff’s hanger and spent several hours going over his nearly completed RV-9A.   A short video has been posted in case you could not attend.  Since our visit, Neil has successfully secured his DAR sign off and we are eagerly awaiting news of his first flight.


Finally, Bill Shay, our YE Coordinator, organized our first Chapter 643 Young Eagle’s Rally for this year, held during a Sunday morning window of acceptable flying weather.  Before the rain finally arrived, we were able to offer an impressive 31 flights in just under 3 hours.  Considering our weather challenges, this was a very well attended and executed event with a fantastic outcome. 


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March 18, 2019



Our March meeting included a very interesting presentation and demonstration about “3D Printing & Aviation” by Bill Shay who is also our new Young Eagles Coordinator.  Bill generated some demonstration parts from an actual 3D printer live in our meeting room.  He had numerous model airplane parts and many other miscellaneous 3D generated items that illustrate the incredible versatility of these tools.  He also shared a very clear and informative summary of available printers & software in this growing space.  Finally, Bill shared a professional looking 3D model of the Philadelphia Class Bravo airspace that he designed and created just a day before the meeting.  Fellow member Robbie DeVergillo also had his impressive 3D printed RC Spitfire model on display at the meeting and shared a recent video of this same model in flight.


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March 14, 2019



Chapter 643 has been approved by EAA National to be a sponsoring chapter for the Ray Foundation Scholarship Program.  Qualifying is a significant achievement in itself as only 100 out of almost 1,000 US based chapters were selected.  This was clearly the result of having a very strong application supported by successful and active chapter members.  Fellow member and Past President Joe Preston is our Ray Foundation Scholarship Coordinator.  He will now be working to confirm the selection and approval of a suitable student for this important program.  Qualifying student pilots can receive up to $10,000 towards their private pilot flight training.  Special thanks to Joe for leading this initiative.


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Febuary 18, 2019



Our February Meeting featured Chapter VP Doug Logg and a very well researched and informative presentation about his experience serving the US Navy aboard an active aircraft carrier.  Doug shared numerous photos and detailed the fascinating history of the F-14 which he supported during his service.  We are very fortunate to have many highly experienced members who have been at the front line of both our armed forces and the evolution of aviation.


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January 21, 2019



 Simon Kinderman was awarded the 2018 
Donald R. Gordon Memorial Scholarship.
Please see the presentation on this short YouTube video.

Preview YouTube video Donald R Gordon Memorial Scholarship (2018) 


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November 19, 2018


We held our final 2018 chapter meeting last night and I want to thank all of our members for contributing to another very successful year at Chapter 643.  For those of you who were unable to attend, let me briefly summarize what we covered.

 

  • Members present voted on the following Chapter 643 Officers for the 2019 calendar year.  These will be reported to EAA National.
    • Brent Connelly, President
    • Doug Logg, Vice-President
    • Rich Kiselswsky, Treasurer

  • Chapter 643 Young Eagles Coordinator, Frederick Slapa summarized a highly successful year for our program.  In summary.
    • 112 Young Eagles were flown across 3 events by 13 different Chapter Pilots.
    • 30 Chapter Volunteers participated at our events helping make them an even greater experience for Young Eagles and their parents.
    • Frederick has done a tremendous job in helping grow our Young Eagles program and to exceed our goal of 100 flights for 2018.  We should all feel very proud of this accomplishment!

  • Donald R. Gordon Scholarship – Deadline for applications is November 30th.  We ask all members to encourage potential scholarship recipients to get their applications submitted before the deadline which is just a couple of weeks away.

  • New Ray Foundation Scholarship Program – We reviewed slides provided by EAA National that introduces this new scholarship program that offers as much as $10,000 to students 16-19 years of age to complete a Private Pilot license.  Scholarships are also available for Sport Pilot and Glider ratings. 
    • The program requires Chapters to apply to participate, to identify a Ray Foundation Scholarship Coordinator and to act as a mentor to student pilots identified and supported by the chapter.   All of the funds are provided by EAA National & the Ray Foundation and are administered by the Chapter.
    • These slides will be posted on our Chapter website for members to review.  The national EAA website also includes information about the program.
    • There was a strong consensus among Chapter 643 members to actively participate in this new program.  A dedicated chapter Coordinator will be appointed before the program launches in January 2019.

  • Aviation Video for Pilots – We reviewed some basics about using GoPro/Action Cameras in our aircraft.  Cameras, mounts, settings and video editing can be intimidating to some, but hopefully everyone with some interest in this topic learned a few tips and are more confident in shooting and posting interesting clips about their flying.

 

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October 15, 2018


Our October Monthly meeting began by welcoming two new members, Chris Racioppi and Mark Tolleson to our chapter.


Our Young Eagles Rally was scheduled to be held Saturday October 20th at Sky Manor Airport(NOTE:  Despite great attendance by both members and Young Eagles, due to poor weather, very few flights occurred. For those who attended, we will follow-up individually over the next few weeks to find suitable times to get these flights completed.) 


The Donald R. Gordon Memorial Scholarship program is soliciting applications for this year’s program and the deadline is November 30th.   If you know of any pilot who would qualify for the program in our area, please encourage them to apply.  You do not need to be student, just an active “student pilot.”

 

Chapter President Brent Connelly recently attended a regional EAA Bootcamp event in Connecticut.  He shared a few highlights including the new Ray Foundation Scholarship Program and the direction that the FAA appears to be taking with the MOSAIC rule making process.  EAA National is supporting interested members in the establishment of Flying Clubs and for Chapters to consider hosting Flying Start Programs – to encourage, educate and assist local adults to take up flight training.  This type of program may be something that our Chapter considers sponsoring in months ahead.


We enjoyed two very interesting but very different presentations by chapter members.  First, Chapter VP Doug Logg entertained us with a great summary of his flight to Oshkosh in July with member Lee Hilbert.  Doug and Lee saw and experienced an amazing range of sights across the mid-west on their way to, and back from, Wisconsin.  Doug also showed slides and videos illustrating a more recent visit to Indiana by float plane for a fly in event. 


Finally, Chapter Tech Councilor & member Don Kugler along with Master Pilot and fellow member Craig Johnson, shared a refreshed presentation about safely flying the Hudson River Corridor.  Don and Craig are both very experienced in flying this challenging airspace and their insights and advice were valued by everyone in attendance.



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September 17, 2018


Our September Monthly meeting began with remote control aircraft demonstration flights by chapter member Robbie DeVergillo, on the ramp near the meeting room.  Robbie clearly has incredible skills in controlling these models, including an impressive range of aerobatic maneuvers and smooth, controlled landings. 


We enjoyed two interesting but very different presentations by chapter members.  


First, Robbie DeVergillo shared background & information about RC aviation with an interesting overview of his many years of personal involvement.  He not only builds and flies these aircraft, but he also helps train new RC enthusiasts as well.   Tony DeVergillo and Robbie also brought their impressive dedicated trailer (hangar on wheels) which carries numerous RC models.


Finally, fellow member Lee Hilbert shared his own deep experience with float plane flying, including some absolutely amazing videos and great photographs.  Here are a couple of video links that are available on YouTube:

     1948 Aeronca Sedan floatplane launch at the Poplar Grove Airport

     Float Plane: The Return

Lee brings a tremendous amount of knowledge based on years of experience flying with floats.  Despite the sea-plane challenges we have in NJ, I suspect his passion will lead a few of us to find ways to take up this type of flying sooner rather than later.



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September 8, 2018


We managed to successfully execute our annual Fly-In at Sky Manor Airport despite marginal weather conditions going into the day.  Overcast skies, and occasional light drizzle, did limit the number of arriving aircraft this year, but with a tremendous member turnout and some additional walk-in traffic we managed to sustain a chapter tradition. 



Judging by the smiles and laughter, it was a great day all around.  Special recognition and thanks to Past Chapter President Adam Silverstein for leading up this years’ Fly-In planning & organization once again.  Adam will share more details at our next monthly meeting.  See the Fly-In 2018 page for a link to a collection of photos from this year’s event. 



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August 20, 2018


Our August meeting was actually kicked off with some experience flights by at least a half dozen members for other members – a regular August meeting event.   Thanks to our VP Doug Logg who coordinated the activity. 


We discussed experiences from this year’s AirVenture at OSHKOSH; several members shared stories and pictures from their own adventures.  Despite some challenging weather during the lead in weekend, another successful year in Wisconsin.  Several important chapter initiatives such as the planned Sept 8th Fly-In, the next Young Eagles Rally and our Scholarship Program (which is now soliciting applicants), were all reviewed.  Several members shared recent TFR flying experiences.  


For the Fly-in, we expect a large turnout this year (crossing our fingers that no TFRs will be scheduled) so we will need every available Chapter member to come out and support the event, in whatever capacity possible.  Contact Adam Silverstein with specific questions, otherwise please arrive at Sky Manor by 8AM on the morning of Sep 8th. 


Finally, we discussed the pros and cons of establishing a 501(c)(3) recognized charitable structure for the chapter going forward and agreed to continue to pursue this initiative.


We also we want to extend a welcome to our new members, particularly Carlos and also several others who attended our meeting for the first time.  We look forward to seeing you all again!



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July 16, 2018


Special thanks to EAA Chapter 643 Past-President Joe Preston, who hosted our monthly chapter meeting in his hanger.  After some chapter business was discussed, Rich Kulesa shared his recently completed and flawless RV-14 rudder with the meeting attendees.  Joe then demonstrated the use of several different pieces of sheet metal equipment and encouraged fellow members to practice bending scrap pieces of aluminum on their own.  He also demonstrated riveting and hopefully by the end of the evening, he motivated a few more of us to jump into home building.  Whether or not we generated another aircraft project, it was an enjoyable and educational event.  Thanks Joe! 


Our September Fly-In Planning is well underway and Fly-in Coordinator Adam Silverstein is seeking out volunteers who can step in to help work the kitchen, park aircraft & cars, greet pilots, or just to help sell some 50-50 tickets.  Please help your chapter by contacting Adam and offering to help make the event an even greater success.  The annual fly-in event is scheduled for Saturday September 8th at Sky Manor Airport.


Frederick Slapa, our Young Eagles Coordinator, reports that our chapter members have now flown 87 Young Eagles year-to-date, which is very close to our goal to reach 100 by December.  Our next event will be in October after the summer TFR season has passed.


Finally, our chapter Scholarship Committee has now rolled out the updated application for the Donald R. Gordon Aviation Scholarship program (see Scholarship Page) and we are asking all chapter members to both help advertise and to seek out potential applicants.  We anticipate selecting the awardees at the end of this calendar year and formally presenting the scholarships at the January 2019 meeting.



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June 18, 2018


Our June meeting was held at the home of Jerry Cotter, who shared his incredible workshop with the chapter.  For those of you who attended, it was clearly one of the most impressive collections of equipment, tools and supplies that any of us have seen before.  Jerry’s varied interests are only matched by his enthusiasm and skills.  Thanks again from all of us to Jerry.   We also welcomed two potential new members - Piyush Patel & Dennis Harvan.  We look forward to seeing you both again!


Congratulations to fellow member Doug Logg who was unanimously elected as our new Chapter 643 Vice-President.  Doug has a been a member of our chapter for many years and has a passion for aviation and EAA. 


Bruce Windom, who served as Chapter VP earlier this year, is relocating to South Carolina and will unfortunately be leaving the area with his RV-8 this summer.  All of us want to extend our thanks to Bruce for his efforts this year to ensure the ongoing growth and success of Chapter 643.  Bruce brought forward numerous ideas, helped secure interesting speakers for our meetings, and was instrumental in adding additional social media to our group.  His contributions and friendship will be sorely missed.


The Chapter 643 Scholarship Committee is fine tuning the entry criteria for the Donald R. Gordon Aviation Scholarship program, and will be asking all chapter members to both help advertise & to seek out potential applicants later this year.  Our fund has grown from the generous donations of many chapter members.  We plan on supporting up to two aviation scholarships of $750 this year, each targeting local student pilots.  We anticipate selecting the awardees at the end of this calendar year and formally presenting the scholarships at the January 2019 meeting. 



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May 21, 2018


May was volunteer theme month at Chapter 643 and, as many of you know, we have many volunteers in our group both in and out of aviation.  Some of our members have flown Angel Flights for many years, donated time & effort to maintain aviation museums and of course our members routinely volunteer at chapter events such as Young Eagles and others.


We were especially pleased to welcome several new Chapter members to share with us their own unique contributions to aviation.  Bill and Sophia Shay described their longstanding attendance at Oshkosh in the weeks prior to AirVenture, where they help prepare the grounds for the event and also participate during the week of the fly-in.  And Tony and Robbie DeVergillo shared stories about their own involvement with the restoration & ongoing public events with the B-25 Panchito based down in Delaware.  Without the continued contribution of time and effort by people like Bill, Sophia, Robbie and Tony, aviation would just not be as successful as it is today.  We as a chapter are richer for having people like the Shay’s and DeVergillo’s as active members.  Thanks again to all of you for what you do and for sharing with your Chapter.


Our Chapter’s first Young Eagles event for this year on April 21st at SkyManor was a great success.  We had 70 YE flights and a great turnout of ground crew and pilots from our chapter.  Great work by many, and special thanks to our YE Coordinator Frederick for leading up the planning and execution for this latest event.


Of special note, the flights by Craig Johnson pushed him up to the impressive milestone of 100 – Congratulations to him and several other Chapter 643 members who have also exceeded this milestone or who are very close to getting there.


Finally, we heard an amazing presentation from Adam Silverstein and Bruce Wodder about their recent journey to Nepal and up to the base camp at Everest.  Describing it here would not do it justice at all, but yet another incredible accomplishment from a fellow Chapter 643 member.



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April 16, 2018


Our monthly meeting was well attended and we began with our Young Eagle’s Chair, Frederick Slapa, giving us a briefing on all the planning and activity for our first 2018 YOUNG EAGLES RALLY on Saturday April 21st.  Volunteer ground crew are encouraged to arrive by 7AM, with registration scheduled to begin at 7:45AM.  The event wraps up at noon and we expect a strong turnout.    Please contact Frederick with additional questions (see contacts on this website).  


Almost 30 members attended the meeting and each introduced themselves to the chapter and described aviation interests.  Everything from gliders, powered parachutes, RC models, new aircraft, antiques and experimentals were represented.  We also had a number of student pilots as well as several active builders.  We look forward to hearing updates in the weeks & months ahead. 


Plans are coming together for our September Fly-in at Sky Manor.  Please contact Adam Silverstein if you are interested in helping with advanced planning for this signature event.


A reminder for those interested in our June 2/3rd Fly-Out to Ottawa, Canada -- Don Kugler will be holding a briefing at the Sky Manor Meeting Room on May 19th at 2pm for all those interesting in participating.  Please mark down these dates.


Finally, we enjoyed a truly interesting and informative presentation titled ADVENTURES OF A MISSILEER.    Fellow member Rich Kulesa shared his experiences as a USAF Missileer based in Colorado.  Rich not only described the fascinating technical aspects of our US Nuclear Missile Defense, but he also included interesting stories and behind the scenes insights into the training and operations as a key member of our armed forces.  A very memorable and unique presentation.


For those that missed the meeting, additional summary information is available here.



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March 19, 2018


This month, we began with a few updates on recent events and near term plans.  First, our very own member Sophia Shay was featured again in an article about the Chapter 643 Donald R. Gordon Memorial Aviation Scholarship.  You'll find more info in the monthly EAA Sport Aviation Magazine, page 106.  Also, our Chapter’s first Young Eagles event for 2018 is scheduled for April 21st at Sky Manor.  As usual, we expect a strong turnout and encourage as many members as possible to attend either as pilots or ground crew.  We are pleased to learn that member Rich Kulesa put his order in for a Van’s RV-14 tail kit (the first for EAA643).  We all look forward to regular updates on his build.  And finally member Neil Rosoff shared an update on his RV-9A build. 


Most of our evening involved two very interesting talks.  First, member Don Kugler gave a talk titled: US-Canada Flight Operations (click here to see part 1 & part 2).  Don briefed us on the regulations and procedures to follow when crossing the Canadian-US Border, including details on aircraft equipment, pre-flight paperwork, US & Canadian specific rules, as well as general tips that help make the transition smooth and uneventful.  Our chapter is planning a weekend fly-out to Ottawa, Ontario (CYRO airport) for the weekend of June 1-3rd. 


Finally, guest speaker Tim Lelie share with us his history and experience as a military and corporate helicopter pilot.  Tim Lelie shared with us his passion for helicopters with pictures and many interesting stories.  Among other accomplishments, Tim is a retired NJ State Police Officer, Army National Guard Helicopter Pilot, Gulf War Veteran and an active Corporate Pilot.



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March 12, 2018



Ski flying yesterday, Joe P's Champ.  Click here for a short video clip.

 


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February 19, 2018


Our February Monthly Meeting was very well attended by both existing and several new Chapter 643 members.  We agreed to target Saturday April 21st as our first Young Eagles Rally day for 2018 at Sky Manor Airport (N40).  In addition, we reviewed the results of our recent member survey and also our goals and objectives as a chapter for this year.  We aim to grow our membership, support the Donald R. Gordon Scholarship program as well as the Young Eagles program.  And we are planning for another successful Fly-In in the fall.  In addition to improving our website, we have introduced several new communications platforms including public and membership only FaceBook pages as well as our own YouTube channel.  Finally, we are starting to identify great destinations for our chapter fly-out events, which will be open to all Chapter 643 members.  You can find detailed minutes and meeting slides here. 

Our keynote speakers were Adam Silverstein and Adam Hulse, who presented a very interesting and informative overview of formation flying.  They shared the training, some of the techniques and also the challenges pilots face when safely executing formation flying activities.  Both of them have flown in Oshkosh airshows and they described the preparation and unique challenges they deal with in getting ready to participate in large mass warbird formation flights at this premier EAA event.  Whether or not you have participated in this area of aviation before, there is no doubt that its an incredibly challenging and rewarding skill set to strive for.  Thanks again to both Adams for sharing their insights with the chapter.  You can find a video recap here.



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January 29, 2018


Joe Preston’s Workshop Field Trip:

We had a great turnout and a very interesting & fun morning on Saturday at Joe’s Preston’s impressive workshop.  Joe shared with us the background behind his Great Lakes Bi-plane project.  Wings, fuselage and other control surfaces in various stages of restoration were on display.  And as promised, he not only demonstrated his restoration techniques, but allowed many of us to rivet, glue and iron his new fabric skins.  A very informative and enjoyable event if you were able to attend.  If you were not, click here for a short video summary of what you missed.



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January 24, 2018


Newspaper article about Sophia Shay & the Donald R. Gordon Memorial Scholarship: 
click here: North Hunterdon girl wins aviation scholarship


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January 21, 2018



 Sophia Shay was awarded the first
Donald R. Gordon Memorial Scholarship.
Please see the presentation on this short YouTube video.


 


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January 16, 2018



Our first regular monthly meeting was held yesterday.  Click here for a summary of the meeting.


This was our 2018 kickoff meeting.  We had a packed agenda with everything from sharing initial insights from our Member Survey, discussing our goals and objectives for the year, as well as awarding the first Chapter 643 Don Gordon Memorial Scholarship. We also had a presentation on Aviation Legal Issues for Pilots by guest speaker Patrick Bradley, Managing Partner Reed Smith LLC.


                        


Monthly Chapter 643 Meeting

Monday, January 15th, 2018

Hanger on Ramp Area – Sky Manor Airport

6pm Food / 7pm Meeting


Open to ALL current and FUTURE members



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Last updated: 6-19-2024