March 2023

Hello, Friends and Family of W10!
Welllllllll, I kinda thought we'd be starting to see the warmer temperatures move in and some spring sunshine since we are in March, however, those in charge of our weather apparently had different plans and we are still experiencing snow and cold temperatures.  Since it is cold out, we have been taking advantage of ongoing indoor activities like attending the NW Aviation Conference, meeting our newest WSDOT aviaiton resource, David Ison, and advocating politically for protecting W10 from incompatible use and trying to encourage the county to take over the North part of Crawford Road and discourage their plan to build on the South end that will end up cutting off airport zoned properties from the airport.  Without the incompatibility protections in place this is literally paving the way for high density development on the southern centerline of W10.  The county may also need to hear the voices from friends of W10 as we struggle to save the future of this unique and special airport (we'll keep everyone posted).

(Interesting mist glazing the runway at W10)

Saturday Social @ W10
Be sure to come out this Saturday, March 4th at 10 am to Seabiscuit bakery for some yummy treats, coffee and good conversations with fellow aviators.

Honoring a Great Man

We want to take a moment to share our appreciation and acknowledge the large impact that Gary Smith and his family has had on this community.  Pilots all over the NW and beyond have fond memories of dropping into the Cafe in the Woods and stocking up on their favorite Mukilteo Coffee.  Check out our FaceBook page for a message from the Mukilteo Coffee Roasters and feel free to contribute to honoring Gary as he transitions to hospice care by sharing memories with the Smith family by clicking HERE.

W10 Cessna 150 Flight SimulatorIt’s taken some time, but we have cleared room for our new Cessna 150 flight sim!  There is some work to be done to get it up and running now though, and some ongoing upgrades and maintenance so we are looking for some interested volunteers to help with this project.
If interested please email [email protected] and we will get a group together and start orientation and planning on this project.  We are hoping for some folks in the group with some decent X-Planes experience, but interest is more important if you are willing to learn.  (Greg Ridder - are you still interested?)
Once it is up and running we will make another announcement for availability.  Long term goal is to get it certified, but we will want to work with it a bit first and ensure it is in a stable hardware/software configuration before we go for certification.
Instructors Corner
From Dave Bennett's desk: 
Greetings all. I don’t know about you…yes, the snow is beautiful, but this is March.  I would like to think about making a flight without worrying about the snow slush clogging my wheel boots or watching my carburetor temperature gauge hang out in the yellow on takeoff.  Maybe making an IFR flight that doesn’t involve plummeting into freezing clouds.  Take heart, nice weather will be here…eventually.  At some point, we will be actively participating in lively discussions involving airplanes, clear blue skies, and temperatures soaring into the 60’s.

I got a great email from Eric Hansen who recently attended the WA aviation conference in Puyallup. “One takeaway that you might pass along to students.  TRACON representatives were there trying to let pilots know they should call approach when they're below the 3000' shelf of Bravo airspace if they're flying above 2000 feet. They assured me it was legal to fly there at 2900' but expressed their worry about conflicts with landing aircraft that must sometimes fly below 3000 feet. “
This is really good info to pass along.  I have also extended that if I am flying above or below class B, C or D airspace, or just outside, at least monitor the tower frequency if you are not with flight following.  After all, what else would be better listening?
Reading Eric’s note, I was reminded of a quick trip I made to Monroe from W10.  I opted to fly north of the KPAE's class D and tuned in the tower to listen.  I was quite surprised to hear my call sign from the tower as I was well outside the class D and not in contact with them.  They had someone coming in on the ILS and asked if I would mind doing a 360 to let traffic pass.  I of course obliged and he thanked me for monitoring the frequency !  Nice to know we can be a help to someone and it makes the skies a little safer. If you have questions related to aviation, or if you have any suggestions about other educational opportunities, you can reach Dave Bennett at [email protected].
Ground School @ W10
Ground school is held based on interest by enough potential sturdents.  Please let us know if you are interested in taking ground school.  Ongoing discussions are in the works regarding other possible class offerings.  Feel free to share your ideas and interests.  
Please contact Dave Bennett at [email protected] for further information or if you would like to attend ground school! Proceeds go directly to Whidbey Airpark (W10) to help cover maintenance, improvements, future programs, and facilities.
Scarlett and the South Whidbey Flying Club
In between the snowflakes it was great seeing Scarlett out doing her best to keep the current students on track.  Congratulations to Cory Jennings for doing his first solo in Scarlett!  Keep up the good work!  
 
(Scarlett ready for take-off)

If you are interested in aviation and would like to know more about learning to fly or about the South Whidbey Flying Club, contact Fred Lundahl via [email protected].  

W10 Projects

• Grounds keeping
  • Mowing & weed eating - mowing will resume when it finally decides to quite snowing and warm up a bit.
  • Tree debris clean-up - lots of strom debris 
  • Removing scotch broom & blackberries
  • Filling dips and rehab grass
  • Extend fence
  • Patch runway cracks
  • Pressure wash the moss off of the runway
• Vehicle maintenance
  • Lawn mowers
  • Courtesy cars
  • Fire truck
  • Loaner bikes (including 1 electric bike)
• Facilities
  • Porter hangars
    • Roof & gutter replacement
    • Repair/rebuild doors
    • Siding
  • New FBO building
  • Northend Hangars
• Special projects
  • Convert PAPI hardware to LED & Solar, then install
  • Set up runway cameras and get them streaming to the internet (thank you to Dave Riffle for volunteering to work this project) 
  • Set up Live ATC stream for the field
  • Run firewood processor to turn cleared trees into firewood and prep area for the future hangars
  • Eric Hansen is working on the possibility of getting a weather station up on the tower SW of the airpark. 
• Political Advocacy
  • Join Tara (and sometimes Sky) most Monday's at 3pm for a Fireside chat hosted by Island County Commissioner Melanie Bacon.
  • Attend other meetings (ie. Commissioner's meetings, planning commissioner's meetings, transportation (TAC) meetings, etc.)

*If you would like to volunteer for an upcoming project please contact [email protected].  If we seem slow getting back to anyone, we plead for you patience as we are working on many things.  Rest assured we are 100% grateful for your interest and will gladly accept any available help.

W10 Classifieds
Seabiscuit Bakery is now open 7 days a week! and they have extended their hours from 7a.m.- 3 p.m. or until sold out. Follow Seabiscuit on FaceBook and check out their Pizza nights and Friday's Cocktail's and Crumb's nights.  Click HERE to link to Seabiscuit's website.

Nose cozy for sale! 
The nose cozy located on the northwest side of the runway is for sale. The nose cozy will help protect the nose of your aircraft from the elements, is secured in its location, and has permanent tie down anchor points for your plane. The door facilitates being able to pull your airplane into the nose cozy without having to worry about pinning yourself between the nose cone and the nose cozy.
 
Asking $750 – Contact Kristin at [email protected] for more information
 Coffee and Treats!  


Job listing! We are looking to hire construction personnel for our QuickSilver Construction team! Seeking dependent and motivated folks that would be comfortable with both residential and commercial projects. Upcoming projects may include hangars, a multi-use facility, and small community projects. 
Please send your resume to [email protected]. 

Job listing! Get your resume ready, QuickSilver Aerospace, LLC is looking for high quality Engineers to join our Flight Test Team.  We are looking for individuals with top notch problem-solving skills that enjoy a variety of challenges, are able to travel globally, are well organized and can work independently as well as with a team.  For further information contact Sky at [email protected]

2017 Fisher Dakota Hawk
FOR SALE in LANGLEY: 2017 Fisher Dakota Hawk tailwheel LSA.  Only 7 hours on the airframe - both regular and tundra tires.  Engine: Continental 0-200 100HP with total time of 1700hrs (900 since top overhaul).  Prop: Cessna 150 low time.  All documentation /certification included.  Asking $18,000.  Contact Byron (360) 202-5337.


*If you have something you'd like to put in the classified section,  just let us know and we can add it to the newsletter. ​