As you probably know by now, The FAA has issued its approval for a final fix on our wing “problem.” It started with the front spar, then the rear spar and finally the center section. Thanks to the folks at the T34 Spar Corporation for coming up with a fix that was acceptable to all parties involved. That being said, we had all the modifications done to our aircraft and now back to being fully aerobatic. (With the exception of our two B models…that’s will be another blog story.)
This aerobatic thing that we do has two components. The first one is the airplane that is now fully certified. The second is the pilot. We all have to go through an aerobatic certification process by an approved FAA designated examiner. This requires the examiner to watch us perform our act (from the safety of the ground) and make sure that we are both proficient and safe. Three of us did that back in November and the other three are scheduled to get certified next week.
Then on March 19 we all meet up in Florida for our annual spring practice. Once we feel good about the aerobatic act again, we are off to the Dominican Republic for the first show of the year. That will be March 26 & 27. We have done the show before but it still is a challenge flying single engine aircraft that far over water. We plan on making two fuel stops after departing from Florida. One in Great Exuma (Bahamas) and the next in Providenciales, (Turks and Caicos Islands). I will try and start to be a better blogger to keep you up to date on our progress as we go through the year.