Bill Hoffrage wrote about his Stearman:

I am a 70 year old Stearman owner. Bought it two and a half years ago in West Palm Beach Florida and flew it to Madera CA arriving 31 March 2009. I was going to build one, collecting parts for years. Had enough "stuff' to build two of them. Gave all the stuff to my son, who is actively building one.

My wife and I are having a ball flying this one and offer auction rides to Charities in the area. We are raisin growers and our harvest is in September, so coming to your event is not likely. "Off Season" is a possibility though and would love to see your field. We are also involved in Eagle Field out in Dos Palos CA. It is an Army Air base from WWII and have been active in its restoral since the 70's. Our Dinner Dance is June the 11th. We bring the Stearman out and have a blast with the Big Band music and old cars, old airplanes and even old women.

If God wanted us to fly he would have given us wings. We thank him for giving us the brains to do just that.

have a Great day,
bill and gloria

We finally got all the water leaks repaired and it was time to run the OX-5. Dad had suggested earlier that running it on a stand might be a good idea and it paid off. When we first put water in it, we had alot of leaks which took some time to resolve. The stand made it easier to take the water pump off, and then back on and then back off...you get the idea. There are alot of water connections and alot of places for leaks. Here is a video of the engine running on the test stand:

Bob Jenkins Jr.

After an extensive (perhaps extreme would be a better term) multi-year restoration, Pat Hartness has his Spartan Executive, NC13PH sn #13, flying once again. Here is a video of the test flight at Pat’s Triple Tree Aerodrome.

If you want a chance to see this Spartan in person, mark September 7th – 9th 2011 on your calendar and make plans to attend the 5th Annual Triple Tree Aerodrome Fly-in, Greenville, SC. More details at the fly-in website.

If you attended last year’s AAA/APM fly-in you may have seen Brian Fitzgerald lugging his video camera gear around Antique Airfield and wondering what he was up to.

Well Brian has just released his first in a series of documentaries, featuring antique and classic aircraft; That They May Fly Again. Part 1 features AAA members Jim Clark’s Waco EGC-8, Larry Boehme’s Stinson V-77, the APM’s Ryan STA and an interview with AAA & APM founder Robert Taylor. Also included are several music videos several which feature many of the sights and planes that attended the 2010 AAA/APM Invitational Fly-in here at Antique Airfield.

"That They May Fly Again" is available on both Blu-ray and DVD discs and can be ordered directly from Fitzvideo.com. Check out the trailer of Part 1 and watch for the release of Part 2 which will feature AAA members Cam Blazer’s Monocoupe, Bill Koelling’s Cessna Airmaster, Jerry May’s Rearwin Sportster and more we’re sure.

Brent Taylor

Here are the May and June 2011 Chapter Newsletters. Find out more about all the AAA Chapters and see the newsletter back-issues.

• Texas Chapter May 2011
• Nebraska Chapter May 2011
• Georgia Chapter May 2011
• Texas Chapter June 2011
• Colorado Chapter June 2011

As of today we have 2007 sq ft of the available 2840 sq ft sold and paid for in the APM Restoration Center. That represents 70.66% of the available floor space for a total of $50,175.00. Thank you to all of the donors!

With construction getting underway on the concrete subfloor, it'd be great to sell out all the floorspace to fully fund assembly and finishing of the facility. Only 833 sq ft are remaining/available! Please consider a donation for this worthy project to "Keep the Antiques Flying".