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GACE Flying Club www.egace.com
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Oct 2003 |
2099 Smithtown
Avenue, Ronkonkoma, NY 11779 Volume
6 Number 10 |
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Directors President Alan Klug 631-981-6518 ---- Vice Pres. Rob Terano 516-779-7943 ---- Secretary Rich Raine 631-897-3030 ---- Treasurer Joe Leonard 631-563-6752 ---- Administration Doug Weston 516-883-2574 ---- Membership Mark Goodman 631-000-0000 ---- Operations John Blosser 631-912-0290 ---- Training John Vahey 631-835-6106 ---- At Large Mark Hervan 631-473-4253 · · |
GACE
Fly In Thanks
to Rob Terano’s initiative, the
club assembled the entire GACE aircraft fleet at Sky Acres
for a Saturday morning for breakfast.
This impressive squadron of aircraft was noticed by ATC more than
once. When we departed ISP as the
third aircraft called for clearance to Sky Acres the controller asked,
“What’s going on at Sky Acres?” As we
were passed to the next controller he asked the same question. Once
there we enjoyed a great breakfast.
When it came time for us to leave we all reached into our pockets to
split the bill, but we were informed by the waitress that Doug Weston,
in an incredible gesture of generosity, had picked up the bill. We all appreciated this wonderful thought
that was not necessary but sincerely appreciated. The
Left Seat Al Klug The
September plane wash was held on the 15th even though there was the threat of
rain. The following members and prospective member showed up to wash and wax
the fleet; John Koch, John Costello, Joe Fontana, Ed Santiago, Charlie
Raymond, Don Hayn, S. Borowski, Dan Bednarz, TK, Jeff McArthur, Tony Monaco,
DW Weston, Jan & Mark Goodman, Neil Gmoser and myself. After the work
was done, Chef Mark barbecued franks & burgers and his own specially
prepared chicken kabobs, which were delicious. When the rain finally came, we
moved the party into the empty hangar next to the office. It appeared that a
good time was had by all. Thanks to all those participants for a fine job. I
have had a few requests to hold a plane wash on a Saturday, so this month’s
(the last of the year) will be on Saturday, October 11th.10 AM to
noon. Hope to see you all there. As
has become the custom, a barbecue will follow. Recently,
while I was at the airport, Martin Pohrille stopped by for a visit.
Marty was one of the only pilots that consistently flew our C152. He would
enjoy hearing from members and anybody looking for company on a flight,
preferably on weekends. It was great seeing Marty, hope he stops by more
often. As you
all know, we got involved in the sales of air show tickets due to the
initiative of Chuck Calabrese. With the help of many members we sold
quite a few tickets and the club realized a net gain of $779.00, which I have directed our
treasurer to add to the “new or newer” fund for future a/c. On
September 16th the TSA held a meeting for airport tenants to
discuss security issues, present and future. John Koch and Tom
Klemenko attended as representatives of our club. The “primary” speaker
was Ms. Anna Hicki. With my approval,
TK extended an invitation for Ms. Hicki to speak to the members at the
September meeting, which she graciously accepted. She had handouts for those
present and also left a batch in the office for those unable to attend. |
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Instructors Michael Baldari (718)
428-6925 John Brook (631)
368-1901 Rich Clinton (631) 368-9693 Bernie Davidson (516)
931-7699 Dave Ferrara (631)
874-8492 Frank Hayes (516)
767-0391 Bob Klemfus (631)
744-0764 Roy Matthews (631)
968-0154 Jeff McArthur (631)
288-6276 Bill Rudock (631)
874-6155 Rob Terano (631)
467-4159 John Vahey (631) 835-6106 Bob VanSise (516)
799-8684 James Weisberg (631)
689-1636 GACE Flying Club 2099 Smithtown Ave. Ronkonkoma, NY 11779 Phone: (631) 737-6879 E-mail: We’re on the Web! www.egace.com |
At the
October meeting, James Weisberg will speak to the group. The subject
will be “CQI” (continuous quality improvement) Approach to Pilot Judgment and
Airmanship. As a psychologist and
flight instructor, James is well qualified to speak on this subject. October
27th at 7 PM. Hope to see you all there. This is also the last date for
members wishing to run for office to make their intentions known. Candidates
will be announced at this meeting. One
last item. Thanks to James Weisberg for the photo’s he took of the
last fly out. They are presently available for viewing on our web site. Check
them out. Secretary’s
Corner Rich Raine Many
of you may be aware election time is approaching. So far there are two candidates for President, Al Klug
and Mark Hervan. Each member
should be aware of the candidate’s position on where the club is going and
how we will get there. The President
sets the tone for not only the year to come, but also the direction we head
in the future years. Please
let me know if you have any concerns or suggestions that could make this
group more responsive to YOU. You can
email me by clicking here. Or send regular mail to the office. Phone calls are great too! 631-897-3030. Presidential
Ambitions Mark Hervan I came
to the realization that I wanted to run for office after attending
September’s Board meeting and seeing just how much I missed being deeply
involved with day to day operations of G.A.C.E. Seeing the Board in action discussing the future of the Club
and the very difficult decisions that will need to be made in the near
future, reminded me of what things were like when I first joined the Board as
Vice-President some 7 years ago. Back
then we faced many of the same challenges that are with us today. A declining
base of Pilots, the uncertainty of gaining competent new members and what
will our fleet be comprised of. High
on the agenda of most Board members then was to sell 6PN and replace her with
a fixed gear model. After becoming President, as many of you know, I lead the
charge to refurbish our Skylane and to bring the rest of the fleet up to
date. 6PN became our most popular aircraft soon after. A few years later came
2112K. Some on the board referred to the Archer as “Mark’s Airplane” which at
the time I thought was meant as a dig because I pushed hard for it. In the
long run I’m glad I did push because it helped to bring us some excellent
members who flew 2112K at Metro to G.A.C.E. after Charlie retired and Metro
closed. I’m proud to say it turned out to be one of our most popular
aircraft. The addition of the Garmin
430 along with the new interior didn’t hurt either. I always said that my job as President was to come up with
ideas to spur interest in our organization and on that account I think I
succeeded. Plane washes became fun
again. Member participation increased
dramatically, as the washes became family affairs. Now we
face a new set of challenges.
Insurance has become an issue. The ever-increasing cost of fuel,
maintenance and fixed costs remain while we face a decreasing number of
active pilots. These are problems
that I look forward to tackling. I ask
for your support in my candidacy for President of GACE. Together we can continue to keep GACE the
finest flying club on Long Island. First
Solo Congratulations
to Chuck Calabrese upon completion of his first solo flight on
September 29th. Chuck’s
instructor, John Vahey, advised that Chuck’s shirt appeared to be too
expensive to cut up. Remember
your first solo? |