Indiana to Texas in a GN-1 Aircamper

Bringing my GN-1 Aircamper Home
Elkhart, Indiana to Sherman, TX
(Click on any picture to enlarge)

April 15th, 2005 - Elkhart, Indiana - 3C1

I finally had three days of forecasts that looked good enough to make a VFR flight from Indiana to Texas. I had been waiting since December for a weekend like this. I was finally going to be able to fly my first plane home. The only problem with the forecast was that I would be facing a 10-15mph headwind the entire way back. That was OK, more flight time I can deal with, 30 degree temps and storms I can't. I jumped on a commercial flight to Chicago on Friday afternoon, and made it to South Bend, Indiana on Friday night.

The owner of the plane and his wife (Brian and Janet) came and picked me up at the airport in South Bend. We went to the airport where the plane was located so I could spend some more time going over the plane (I had already gone over it in December, and I paid an A & P / IA / EAA Tech Counselor to go over it for me as well). I spent a few hours going over it, checking everything I knew how to check. I was going to get in it the next day and fly it halfway across the country, I wanted to make sure I knew if there were any problems! Flying a new (to me) airplane that far solo would give me plenty to do without running into any surprises. I read through the airplane and engine logs for a while, and finally made it to my hotel at around midnight. Brian gave me the keys to his truck, I had a rental car reserved but didn't have to use it, they said I was welcome to use their truck instead. Very nice people!

April 16th, 2005 - Elkhart, Indiana - 3C1

Saturday I met Brian at the airport at 7AM to spend some more time going over the plane. I asked a few more questions about things I had found, and then it was time to start the plane and taxi it around for a little while to start getting the feel for it. I warmed it up, and went out to the grass runway to make some practice runs. I made a few slow passes, and progressively increased my speed in short bursts on each pass, trying to get a feel for the plane. Once the engine was warmed up, we pulled the oil screen to check for metal and did a compression check on all four cylinders. 75/80, 75/80, 75/80, and 69/80. All good numbers on the cylinders. We put it all back together, and I went out for some more taxi practice. Sometime when taxiing, a tailwheel spring popped off the tailwheel. Another pilot made a quick trip to the hardware store, while Brian and I started searching the airport for a suitable spring, and his wife was nice enough to go walk the grass strip looking for the spring. In about 30 minutes, the other pilot came back with a new pair of identical springs. We installed them and it was time to load up for the trip home.

We topped off the tanks, I strapped in my bag and "temporary electric system", a 16A*Hr lead-acid battery and went out for a little more taxiing. I said thanks and bye to Brian and Janet, and after a couple of taxi passes, I decided I might as well get it done. I lined up on the grass runway, open the throttle, and a few seconds later I was flying. My first flight in my new plane...not enough time to be excited though, I got it up in the air, now I had to get it down. I was now into the "china store policy" (you break it, you buy it). I climbed up to pattern altitude, and started getting ready to come down for a touch and go. Throttle back to 1,500rpm, airspeed at 70. Turn for a long final, and begin my descent. My first touch and go went OK, not a textbook landing, but it worked! I throttle up again, and decide that my next landing should be 150 miles to the southwest. I waved to Brian and Janet, who were sitting behind their hangar watching their airplane fly away, and then I turned to a heading of 229*.

On first leg I was pretty nervous. Not about the plane, I had gone over it pretty well, I was pretty confident in the plane, and checking the compression and oil made me feel about as good as I could have for an unknown engine. I was more concerned about being able to land the plane without breaking it. A GN-1 is a lot different than any of the other taildraggers I've flown. The high-lift airfoil, drag and control wires outside the plane, and open cockpit make it slow down a lot fast than anything I've flown. In the other planes I've flown, you have several seconds of "float" over the runway just before you touch down without power. Maybe 7 to 8 seconds to get everything lined up. Not in a GN-1 though. At 2-3' above the runway, when you pull the power, you slow down and drop almost immediately. I hoped I could manage not to ground loop the plane at my first stop.

My first planned fuel stop was Rantoul National Aviation Center in Rantoul, Illinois. Just a little more than a 2hr flight from my starting point. Enroute, my groundspeed wasn't as high as I had planned on due to the headwind, so I decided to make a precautionary fuel stop in Kentland, Indiana. The only problem was that the runway at Kentland was 09/27, so I would have to land in a direct ~10mph crosswind on concrete. That would only be my second landing in the plane, and the first one was on grass, which was a lot easier. I made one pass over the runway to get a feel for the winds, and set it down on the next pass. Not a pretty landing at all, but it worked. I put 8.5 gallons of 100LL in it, said spoke for a few minutes with a father and son who had just landed in a Champ, and I was on my way again.

One nice thing about flying a plane across this part of the country is that the terrain is mostly open, plowed fields. If you had to make an unscheduled landing, there are plenty of places to do it. You'd have to try really hard to find a tree, as shown by the pictures on the right.

Some small farming community somewhere in Illinois. It didn't look to me like much had changed there in the last 80 years, I bet it is a pretty interesting place.

My second stop was KTAZ, in Taylorville, Illinois. They had a nice, well maintained grass strip, and the winds had died down to almost nothing, so this landing was very nice. A lot less nerve wracking than the previous one. At the FBO I spent a few minutes talking to an older guy who had plenty of stories to tell about flying P-51s, P-38s, and other old fighters back when he was a little younger than me. Interesting guy.

The hangars at the FBO were full, and I didn't want to leave the plane outside since it is an open cockpit. I walked down to the opposite end of the tarmac where some skydivers were sitting around, waiting on some of their buddies to get down. We talked for a little while, and watched a couple of planeloads of people fall out of the sky. They found out I needed a place to keep my plane, and one of them told me I was welcome to keep it in their hangar. I wanted to leave at first light in the morning, so they gave me a key to the hangar, and told me to leave the key inside when I left in the morning! So we pulled the plane inside, and it spent the night in a carpeted hangar (picture on left). I was tired and hungry by then, so I walked back to the airport courtesy car to go get dinner and go to my hotel. The battery was dead on the courtesy car, and everyone had already left the FBO. I walked back down to the skydivers, they grabbed some jumper cables and came over to jump the car. Very friendly people, especially towards a complete stranger! It would have been a long night without them. I'm always amazed at the friendliness and unselfishness of the people I meet at small-town airports.

I went and grabbed dinner at a local diner, went to my hotel, spent a little time looking over my charts and I was off to sleep.

April 17th, 2005 - Taylorville, Illinois - KTAZ

I was up at 4:30 the next morning, I wanted to be in the air as soon as possible. I pulled the airplane outside, loaded my bag up, and started the plane. It was a cool, dewy morning, there wasn't much if any temp/dew point spread. By the time I had taxied to the run-up area, I already had a little carb ice. Glad I found out while I was still on the ground. I hit the power, took off, and headed southwest again.

I took this picture shortly after leaving Taylorville. A full tank of gas, great weather, and an early start. It was going to be a fun day. I watched the sunrise over my shoulder on my way to Missouri. Flying in the cool, calm morning air was a lot more pleasant than the bumpy ride I had the day before. With an empty weight of 593lbs, my Pietenpol really gets tossed around in turbulence.

This was my "setup" for the entire flight. There isn't any extra room in the cockpit, but then I guess that is the point of a Pietenpol. It is only what you need to go flying.

Here are some coal barges in the Mississippi River. I really started feeling like I was getting somewhere when I passed the Mississippi. This was probably 40 miles north of St. Louis.

Stop #1 on Sunday, and probably the neatest stop of my entire trip. Montgomery-Wehrman Airport in Montgomery, Missouri. There aren't many airports in this area, and it made a perfect fuel stop. It is just a small, 2,300' grass strip in Missouri, about 50 miles northeast of St. Louis. I arrived here at about 8:30AM on Sunday morning, and was worried I might have to wait until afternoon for someone to arrive so I could get gas. There were a few taildraggers in a hangar next to the house that was on the strip, and a few Cessnas sitting outside. I pulled up to the fuel pumps, climbed out and looked around. Not much was going on that early.

I walked up to the house, whoever owned the place had a small pilot's shop set up in one room of the house, so I went in. An older lady made her way to the office on her walker, and was just thrilled to see me. She asked if I needed fuel or anything, and told me her husband would be out in a second to help me out. I spoke with her for a few minutes, and then her husband, Howard Wehrman came out to see me.

Howard was as excited as could be about my simple little airplane, he was happy to see me as well, and was extremely friendly. We went to my plane, he looked it over and asked some questions, and he asked me to stand by the plane so he could get some pictures. We started talking, and he started telling me his flying stories. He has been flying for more than 50years, and has over 23,000 hours total time. In his office, the walls were covered with pictures of different planes and pilots, I probably could have spent a month listening to his stories. He took me around back to look at his planes, a Cub and Champ that he was working on. At the same time he was showing me around, he realized I was on a schedule and made sure he wasn't going to make me late. A really courteous and genuinly friendly guy. We swapped a few quick stories, and I had to get going. People and places like this are one of the things I like most about flying. I was a complete stranger to Howard, and he treated my like an old friend or like his own Grandson. Its pretty rare to get that from a stranger...

Here is Howard with my plane at his airport (4MO), one of the neatest airports I've ever been too. What a nice guy too. If I'm ever in Missouri again, I'm going to do my best to make it there. If you ever fly through the area, I suggest you make it a stop. Howard is about one of the nicest people you'll ever meet, and I can pretty much guarantee he'll be glad to see you.

Here is Howard's house, his hangars, and small strip. I hope I can make it back one day.

Nuclear power plant in Missouri. I had to divert a few miles around it. It was right on my flight path, but I didn't feel like getting chased by an F-15 so I went around.

Sunday I was really enjoying the trip. I was a lot less nervous about flying and landing the plane now, and spending a few hours in it had helped my confidence in the plane as well. Clear skies, great weather, and a new airplane....NOW I was having fun!

I made a fuel stop in Bolivar, Missouri, had lunch at the restaurant on the field, and took off again, headed for Tahlequah, OK.

Due to headwinds, I wasn't getting the groundspeed I had planned for, so I made a precautionary fuel stop in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, just outside of Fayetteville (KSEG). It was going to be a quick stop, I landed just before 5:30, and should have had enough daylight to fly one more leg and spend the night in Oklahoma. I wanted to make a 10 minute fuel stop and be in the air again. The winds were forecast to be pretty stiff the next day, and I didn't feel like fighting headwinds or making any bad crosswind landings, so I wanted to get a little more flying in.

I taxied up to a hangar where a guy was sitting outside of a hangar, and asked him which way to the fuel pumps. He pointed me around the corner, so I pulled around and stopped at the pumps. I removed the fuel cap, swiped my credit card, and flipped the pump lever to fill the plane. When I flipped the lever though, the pump started spraying fuel everywhere. I was already next to the plane, and yanked the fuel cap off with my other hand, and felt the cork on the bottom of the fuel rod hit the filler neck. The pump kept spraying fuel, so I shut it off, and looked at the broken fuel stem in my hand. There was no way I was going to fly with the cork in the tank. I didn't know enough about the fuel system on this plane to take any risks.

My plane has a Piper Cub fuel gauge, basically just a rod that sticks through the fuel cap with a cork on the bottom of the rod. The cork floats in the fuel, and the rod's height tells you how much fuel you have. When I yanked the cap out, I had managed to break the cork off in the tank. I went ahead and filled the tank, knowing the cork would float to the top and I could fish it out.

About this time, the guy who had directed me to the fuel pumps walked up, and started asking about my plane. He introduced himself as Kerry. I told him what I had just done to it, and he went to his hangar and grabbed some tools. He gave me a pair of long pliers, and I fished the cork out pretty easy. For a second I thought I had solved the problem, until I noticed the indentation of a small cotter pin on the cork. No cotter pin though. That meant it was still in the tank. I didn't want to fly with that in there either.

I spent a little time talking to Kerry about the problem, before he had to go meet his wife for dinner. He grabbed some more tools for me, and told me I was welcome to use his tools and hangar if I needed to. Kerry gave me his phone number and then left, and I started taking the cowling apart, trying to figure out how to get that pin out of the tank. I spent an hour or so talking to a few people about it on the phone and at the airport. So much for getting another leg in today. Now I was afraid I might have to leave the plane there for a week. I called Matt, my friend and CFI for some suggestions. He said he could send a guy in a Cessna to come get me the next morning. At least I could get home that week.

I called Craig, a good pilot friend of mine, who called his mechanic and asked about my problem. He said there should be a screen in the tank, and the pin shouldn't cause any problems. Flying without a fuel gauge wasn't a big deal, I was flying timed legs anyway. I called the builder to verify that the screen was in place, he confirmed it, and confirmed that there was a screen at the gascolator as well. The pin wasn't going to go anywhere.

I had all of the nose cowlings removed from the plane, when Kerry pulled up with his wife. They walked up and he said he went home and told her about me, and she said "You go back up there and get that boy!". Kerry and his wife insisted that I stay with them that night. They were very friendly and helpful, Kerry had already trusted me with all of his tools and the planes in his hangar, so I went ahead and said yes. It sounds odd to accept an offer like that from a stranger, but between a lot of pilots there is a certain amount of trust that people really can't understand unless the experience it.

We put my plane in Kerry's hangar, he said I could leave it there for a week if I needed to, but I said I could fly it out the next morning. I offered to take Kerry and his wife out to dinner, but they had just eaten. They took me somewhere to pick up some food, and we went to their house to get some rest. We spent a little time talking, I made a few phone calls, and I went upstairs to bed. Once again, a stranger was helping me out. Without their help, I would have really been in trouble.

April 18th, 2005 - Siloam Springs, AR - KSLG

I got up early the next morning, and Kerry dropped me off at the airport on his way to work. Climbing out of Fayetteville, the winds were really strong, just like the forecast had said. In this picture I was climbing out at full climb power, and was showing only 25mph groundspeed on the GPS. I wasn't going anywhere fast that way. The winds were supposed to be lower at 5,000', so I went all the way to 5,000, and my GS never increased. I dropped down to a lower altitude and got some speed back, so I stayed down there all the way to McAlester, OK.

In McAlester, the winds were 14kts gusting to 19kts, luckily they were right down the runway. I only had two more hours of flying time to make it home, so I went into town for some lunch, then spent a couple of hours sleeping in the recliners in the pilots lounge at the FBO. Fly two hours, eat, take a nap, then fly two hours. That was the best Monday I've had in a LONG time.

Here I am after arriving at Grayson County. It was great to be home, that was a fun, once in a lifetime trip, but it was good to have the plane at home so I could really begin to get familiar with it. What made the trip twice as good though, were the people I met on the way. Strangers really went out of their way to help me out several times, which really just made the trip for me.

Here are a few pictures that Craig took of Brittany and I flying the plane the weekend after I made it home: