Tag Archives: DC-3

AirplaneGeeks 303 – Become a Pilot Day 2014

David, Rob, Max, and Benet

Recorded at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum during the 10th annual Become a Pilot Family Day and Aviation Display.

This annual event at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, located in Chantilly, Virginia offers not only the Museum’s amazing exhibits, but also about 50 vintage, recreational, and home-built aircraft flown in for one day only. This year, United brought in a Boeing 777 that was open for a tour.

Our visit this year was sponsored by Iridium Communications Inc.

National Transportation Safety Board training center tour

TWA 800

The day before the event at the NASM, the NTSB was kind enough to provide us special access to their training center in Ashburn, Virginia. This marvelous facility is used to train NTSB accident investigators, as well as investigators from other agencies and organizations.

We were given a briefing on the TWA Flight 800 accident investigation, and then toured the aircraft reconstruction, which is used for training with permission of the victim’s families. The depth of the investigation (which took over four years) is amazing and the examining the physical evidence first hand is an experience we will not forget.

None of us came away with any faith in the conspiracy theories that continue to swirl around the accident. All the analysis points to an internal explosion of the fuel vapor in the center tank.

General (ret) John R. “Jack” Dailey

A retired U.S. Marine Corps four-star general and pilot, he’s been the director of the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum since 2000. We talk with the General about his expectations for the event and stimulating STEM. Also, about the future of the Museum with more people visiting online. The NASM is digitizing their database and is planning for free online accessibility. The Museum also plans to bring in more of the aircraft they have.

Capt. Robert Randazzo

1941 ex-Pan American World Airways DC-3 (NC33611)

Robert Randazzo flew-in the 1945 ex-Pan American World Airways DC-3 (NC33611) he has restored in full Pan Am livery and named the “Tabatha May.” We also talk a bit about Randazzio’s past experience racing a T-6 at Reno.

Matt Desch

Iridium Go!

Matt Desch is the CEO of Iridium Communications, the world’s largest satellite system. Their new Iridium Go! product is the first satellite WiFi voice and data hotspot that works anywhere on the planet at any altitude. Interestingly, Iridium offers an API so developers can create apps for the device.

Matt is also on the Board of AOPA, and we talk about the organization’s mission, the value of being a member, current aviation issues, and the Rusty Pilots program. New AOPA President Mark Baker has initiated a series of regional fly-ins across the U.S., with very good results. On the topic of the cost to be a private pilot, we chat about renovating older airplanes as an affordable option.

Iridium was kind enough to sponsor the Airplane Geeks at the event.

Bill Barry

Bill Barry is Chief Historian with the NASA History Program Office, and we talk about what interests an historian at the NASM and the relationship between NASA and the NASM. The predecessor organization of NASA, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), will have been founded 100 ago next year, and we talk about the many significant contributions they made.

Follow the History Program Office on Twitter at @NASAHistory and visit them on Facebook.

Edgar “E.T.” Tello

Seabee

A current B757/767 Captain with United, Tello flew in the B777 on display. But he also owns a Republic Seabee and Rob talks with him about that aircraft. The Seabee was envisioned as a sport plane for pilots returning after the Second World War.

Opening and closing music courtesy Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at www.brotherloverocks.com.

Become a Pilot Day 2014, NASM

We’d like to thank the staff and crew at the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center for their hard work to make this event a success, and for facilitating the content we bring to you. We’d also like to thank the NTSB for giving us access to their training center, and for their strong dedication to making aviation safer for all of us.

Voices From The DC-3

DC-3 by Paul Filmer

Guest Julie Filucci manages the Cessna Pilot Centers program for Cessna, but she’s also written the book, Together We Fly: Voices From The DC-3. Published by Aviation Supplies & Academics, the book tells the story of the Douglas DC-3 through the voices of the people involved with it, from its design and production to the present day. Julie had completed her type rating in the airplane several years ago, and did an article for AOPA Pilot on the airplane for its 70th anniversary in 2005. “The feedback from that article was the most I’d ever received for a piece during my time at AOPA. And not just pilots wrote to tell their stories, but also engineers, mechanics, stewardesses, soldiers, and regular folks who had taken their first airline trip in the airplane. Capturing their voices became a quest for me, as so many of the people from the airplane’s early days have passed on.”

Learn more at the book’s Facebook Fan Page, and at Julie’s blog. Follow her on Twitter as @julieinthesky.

The week’s aviation news:

Steve and Grant discuss a variety of aviation topics in the Australia Desk Report. Find them on the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast, and follow the show on Twitter at @pcdu. Steve’s at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124.

This week on Across the Pond, Pieter Johnson talks to Phil Wallis, Chief Engineer for the Anglo American Lightning Organisation who has the task of getting English Electric Lightning XS422 back into the air. Its a rivetting insight into how to get a 1300 mph interceptor aircraft capable of 20,000 fpm climb airworthy after sitting around in a container for many years. The AALO Team can be found at www.XS422.com, on Twitter Twitter as @EELightning, and on Facebook. You can find Pieter Johnson on Twitter at
@Nascothornet.

 

XS442 in flight during her RAF service with the ETPS in the 1980's. Photo credit: AALO / Crown

XS442 in flight during her RAF service with the ETPS in the 1980’s. Photo credit: AALO / Crown.

Mentions:

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Episode 146 – Ice Pilots

Ice Pilots

Our guest this episode is Mikey McBryan from Buffalo Airways and the TV show Ice Pilots (known as Ice Pilots NWT in Canada). In the U.S., thie show airs Fridays at 10pm ET/PT on the National Geographic Channel. You can follow them on Twitter at @IcePilotsNWT.

The week’s aviation news:

Ice Pilots

Steve Visscher and Grant McHerron from the Plane Crazy Down Under podcast provide their Australia Desk Report. Follow their show on Twitter at @pcdu, Steve at @stevevisscher and Grant at @falcon124.

In this weeks Across the Pond segment, Pieter Johnson talks with Peter Vojinovic from the Tango Six Blog.

Ice Pilots

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.

Episode 108 – AirVenture Oshkosh 2010

Guest Stephen Trimble, author of The DEW Line on FlightGlobal joins in as we talk AirVenture Oshkosh 2010 and also military aviation. A sleep-deprived Dan brings us a bit of airline news to round out the GA, military, and commercial aviation conversation.

That’s Rob Mark and Dan Webb at Oshkosh in the photo, by the way.

The week’s aviation news:

Mentions:

This episode is dedicated to Mike’s mom.

Follow the @AirplaneGeeks on Twitter and on Facebook, send us email at thegeeks@airplanegeeks.com, or leave a message on our listener line: (361) GEEKS01.

Opening and closing music is provided by Brother Love from the Album Of The Year CD. You can find his great music at http://www.brotherloverocks.com/.