WestJet Flying into YKF

WestJet has announced that they will start flying into Kitchener airport starting 14 May until the end of October. There is one flight per day arriving at 1737 and departing at 1810.

This should not have a significant impact on SOSA operations (or at least not as much as Hamilton). All flights will use runway 25/07, so the arriving 737's will likely stay north of SOSA near the 401. Departures should be no concern at all as they climb rapidly and all departures are westbound for MB, SK, AB and BC. By the time arriving aircraft descend to altitudes that would conflict with our operations they will likely be within the YKF control zone.

The SOSA Airspace committee is aware of WestJet's YKF plans and will be in contact to determine routings and try to resolve potential conflicts. We should have better details available to pass along during the spring Instructor, Tow pilot and Field Manager meetings sometime in April.

As we find increasingly busier airspace moving into our flying area, it is incumbent on all of us to continuously be on the look-out while flying and to respect the required VFR separation from cloud.

So it might be a good idea to review what type of airspace is over SOSA and what the requirements are. This might make a great question during spring check flights!

2007 SAC Insurance Plan Details Released

The 2007 SAC Insurance Plan has been released and I will soon be sending the rating guides and renewal details to all private owners via email.

There have been some significant changes to the plan this year.

1. Private ship and club ship hull premiums have been decoupled to recognize that private owners have demonstrated a lower loss level in the past than the club aircraft.

2. All pilots must undergo an annual checkride to be insured (both private and club aircraft)

3. New deductible limits
a. the standard $500 deductible remains

b. 5% or 10 % hull deductible is available for a 5% or 10% hull premium decrease respectivley

4. a pilot claim declaration must be made by all private owners every year

5. The 2008 plan renewal date is moved to 1 Mar 2008, so this policy covers a 13 month period

6. On average the base premium decrease for this renewal is approximately 2.5% for Club Aircraft and 16.5% for Private Aircraft (Liability Only and Ground Risk Only aircraft receive a smaller decrease). Actual decreases will vary for individual aircraft.


Insurance coverage for all aircraft is bound over until 1 Mar 2007 when full payment is required for the 2007 policy.

2006 – It was a very good year

The 2006 flying season was a very good year at SOSA. Despite the wet weather in the latter part of the season we managed to fly 3597 flights, up from 3406 flights in 2005. We also celebrated FIRST SOLO flights for:

Dave Akaydin
Justin Allport
Dan Darragh
Dennis Dyke
Gary Green
Spencer Hunt
Mark Karamanis
Francois Labelle
Andy Mazur
Neil Wilson
Ping Wu

GLIDER PILOT LICENCES for:

Scott Hube
Anna Piascik
Tomas Rezek
Ping Wu

and INSTRUCTOR’S RATING for:

Rafael Bravo
Andrew Corrigan
Eric Gillespie
Sergei Morozov

This increase in flights is in part due to an increase in members in 2006, but flat rate programs also made a significant impact on the number of flights members take. The flat rate programs have become very popular since their introduction in 2004. Approximately 50% of the membership now purchase either the 10 hour block or unlimited flat rate package.


The atmosphere at the club is also a contributing factor to the successful year. During the year many visitors remarked that SOSA is the most welcoming club they ever visited! The flight line is a bustling happy place, hangar flying in the clubhouse, camaraderie on the field all contribute to the atmosphere at the club. If members feel happy while at the club they are more likely to spend time at the club and fly more. It is important that we make all members and visitors feel welcome.


The increase in the number of flights also translates into good fiscal performance for the club. Once again as a result of our flying operations we booked a good surplus in 2006. This surplus can now be used for future improvements to the club facilities, equipment and fleet. This also means that there will be no fee increases for the 2007 flying season.

Equipment upgrades for next season include a new LX5000 flight computer in the LS4. This computer will be identical to the unit in the DG505. The LX4000 will now be installed in the Jantar, improving its instrumentation and making it contest ready. The Blaniks will all receive new Borgelt electric audio varios. New seatbelts will be installed in GHL and CXC as well as the front seat of the Citabria.

LX5000 and B40


AGM

Don’t forget the AGM scheduled for Saturday 24 February at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum (CWHM). Registration will start at noon and the meeting will start at 1 PM. After the meeting the Annual Awards Banquet (with door prizes) will start at 6 PM at the CWHM. Join us for the meeting and banquet to celebrate the success of the club and our members during 2006.

A Contrast in Wing Loading

In 2003, Rod Crocker flew his 1-35 (K9) from SOSA to Lindsay Airport to visit a friend at his cottage. After landing in Lindsay he parked his glider beside this Cold War vintage CF-101 Voodoo Interceptor. With a 100,000 lb take-off weight, the Voodoo is quite the contrast to the 1000 lb MTOW of the 1-35.

As a side note, one of our members, Doug Bremner, flew Voodoos as both a rear seat weapons operator and later as the front seat pilot during his days in the Canadian Air Force. If you catch him on the airport one day ask him about intercepting Soviet Bear bombers over Northern Canada in his day. He might also have a story about a parachute!