Bob and Shirley pose with the Red, White and Blue cake that has become her signature dish for the first Sunday in July ...
I had an ear problem that started last December and this was the week for the fixup job. So far I can report that the healing is going just as expected and I'll be ready to fly later this month. For my fellow pilots, I had a middle ear infection that was caused by a cyst of sorts that formed behind my eardrum. Look up "cholesteatoma" on Google. It's not all that common and not all that uncommon, caused by the failure of the eustacian tubes to adequately ventilate the middle ear. The resulting infections could be treated with antibiotics, but they'd return. The fix is to go in and clean the goop out of the middle ear, remove the cyst and fix what damage the cyst might have caused (bone tissue is eroded by the enzymes from these cysts and can result is loss of the little bones in the middle ear and a loss of hearing. It gets more gruesome if left untreated, but you should read more authoritative sources about that). Very good news: no disequilibrium, no bone damage, none of that stuff. The condition requires a review by the Medicos at FAA, but I foresee no problems.
Bill T and Bob are rib stitching the new cover over Bill's wing tank installation. It's already painted and Bill should be in the air in a few days with his Super Vagabond ER (85hp, extended range). When he goes away on flights now he can stay gone longer, though I suspect the average flight will remain an hour or less. It's just that when he goes to places like Lock Haven from Long Island he can make it nonstop. I know the agony of multiple fuel stops, but I don't mind since just about everywhere I go in the Cub people welcome me (or at least the airplane).
It's July 4th week and since the 4th falls on a Wednesday this year not much is going on at work. That's a good thing - gives me time to enjoy the company of the great people at Bayport Aerodrome and time to reflect on the blessings that our freedoms make possible. The men and women who are serving us overseas, far away from home in circumstances that are unimaginably difficult both physically and mentally are the best of our best. I thank God for them every day and I hope you do, too.
There are actually more airplanes in the air ... I just didn't take pictures of them ... Steve had the Fleet and the Aeronca Chief flying, Bill T hauled the Vagabond out for a spin around the Great South Bay and Bob M flew just about everything there was to fly. Stu coaxed the Auster in the air and thrilled the folks along the beaches. All in all, there were about 11 of us out flying one thing or another.
Finally, Bob F and Bill J cranked up the Stearmans with a couple of excited passengers and gave rides they will always remember. There's just nothing like a turn out over the Bay in a biplane.
