First Efforts to Renew

Once I decided to start flying again, I started reading about current FAA rules. A few things have changed since 1982.

Part of being a Private Pilot is having your health checked periodically.  In 2011, I visited an FAA Medical Examiner who performed an intensive physical exam and issued a Third Class Medical Certificate.  At that time, my main purpose was to use that as an indication of whether I was truly fit to race cars competitively in real life.  I was.

In addition to racing cars, I did build a nice flight simulator, using Lockheed Martin's Prepar3D software.  

But, at my age, I felt that continuing to get my Third Class renewed every two years, in addition having my annual physical with my Primary Care Physician seemed impractical.  

I later learned about the Sport Pilot License and was intrigued. Hmmm---OK, now this makes sense-let the old man fly a light/slow airplane for fun as long as he able to drive a car. After all, all you need to drive a big motorhome on highways is a driver's license. 

So I started looking at all the various Light Sport planes.  I never really felt comfortable with the thoughts of flying 30-60 year old planes.  Most of the Light Sport planes were "new" or at least not much older than 10 years--and affordable.  And, welded steel and aluminum structures seemed a lot like race cars---and since I have survived many race car crashes, I felt that these fabric covered steel/aluminum structures were relatively safe.  So, three possibilities became interesting.

A "new" replica of a Piper Cub by American Legend, a "new" replica of a Piper Cub by Cubcrafters, or a "new" version of the Champ by American Champion.

Texas has a special place in my heart, so my first effort to buy a Light Sport involved contact with the American Legend Factory in Texas. As expected--really nice down to earth people and a good quality product. I made a firm offer on an 11 year old plane with low total time. The owner rejected my offer. I decided not to pursue the deal further because the plane was "heavy" allowing only a 400 pound payload.

OK, let's go shopping again. This time I found a 10 year old Cubcrafter's Sport Cub for sale that was interesting. Owned by a very competent pilot--always hangared and in very good condition.  I concluded the Cubcrafter design with flaps and toe brakes was really what I wanted and it weighed 50 pounds less than the Legend. (The Legend had standard heel brakes and no flaps. And, the Cubcrafter's weight would allow a 450 pound payload.)  The seller accepted my $90,000.00 offer, we went thru Aero Tech Escrow Service and the owner delivered the plane  (Sierra Charlie) to my rented hangar at Carroll County Airport in Westminster, Maryland on June 14, 2018.

Drew Seguin & Sierra Charlie at Carroll County

Since I already had a Private Pilot License, I only needed two things to fly my plane: 1) A Tail Wheel Endorsement; and 2) A Flight Review.   Also, I learned that under the new Basic Med regulations, I could use my regular Primary Care Physician to perform a physical---and then in addition to my own plane, I could also be qualified to fly other (not Light Sport) planes, like a Cessna 172 or a American Champion Decathlon. 

While I was "shopping" for a plane, I also started looking for a Certified Flight Instructor to get me the Tail Wheel Endorsement and Flight Review.  I was delighted to find Duane Reigle in Palmyra, PA ---about an hour's drive from me. Duane is a Airline Captain flying with Frontier Airlines. His family has owned the 2000 foot grass and asphalt Reigle Airport since the 1940's. He soloed in a Piper Cub in 1980 at age 16.  He owned a J3 and a Pitts Bi-Plane.

Duane gave me my first "dual" in a tail wheel (The J3 Cub) on May 25, 2018.  Unfortunately for me, Duane recently moved to Florida and was unable to give me any more time. 

Duane Reigle's Beautiful 1946  J3 Cub

The flight in the J3 was fantastic. We flew ground reference manuevers: follow a winding creek; s-turns about a road; turns about a point, and some stalls. He reviewed airport pattern protocol but did not let me land the plane.  I was sure my decision to go with the "Cub" and specifically "Sierra Charlie" was the right one.

So, I continued my search for a CFI.  Dave Myers at the York, PA airport is an excellent CFI with thousands of hours.  My first plan was to rent a hangar at the York Airport (2 miles from my home) and have Dave fly with me in my plane. Unfortunately, the one hangar available was rented to another person over the Memorial Day weekend so my best next choice for a hangar was at Carroll County. (45 minute drive from my home)  I just could not stomach the concept of parking my plane outside.