AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2022 - 14

LETTERS
Surf 'n turf
Surf 'n turf
Thoughts on flying
the California Twofer
What a wonderful write-up about the California
Double ( " Surf 'n Turf, " July 2022 AOPA Pilot),
and highlighting all that can be shared by
California and GA. Having grown up in the
Orange County area and flying out of John
Wayne Airport (SNA), I would like to share my
California Triple: Wake up early for dawn patrol
surf session at Huntington Beach. A quick sunrise
session, for an hour or so, then off to the
car and Long Beach airport for the quick flight
to Big Bear and a few later morning ski runs.
Then-and here is the kicker-fly down the valley
to Bermuda Dunes (UDD) or Palm Springs
(PSP) to play the back nine at any one of the several
golf resorts in the Palm Springs area. Surf,
ski, golf-all in a day. The California Triple.
Michael Brunella / AOPA 990969
Las Vegas, Nevada
The first composite aircraft
I enjoyed Ian J. Twombly's look back at the
Windecker Eagle in " Aviation History: Who
Designed the First Composite Aircraft? " (June
2022 AOPA Pilot). He stated that the Windecker
Eagle was the first certificated composite aircraft.
That's not quite correct. It was the first
composite airplane to receive certification, in
December 1969 by the FAA. If the article had
replaced the word " aircraft " with " airplane, " it
would have been correct.
The first certificated composite aircraft
was the German Akaflieg Stuttgart fs24 Phönix
sailplane, certificated in January 1957. Other
fiberglass sailplanes, such as the German
Glasflügel H-301 Libelle, the German Bölkow
Phoebus, and the Glasflügel H-201 Standard
Libelle, preceded the Windecker Eagle. In
1964 the Glasflügel H-301 Libelle ( " Dragonfly " )
received the first U.S. type certificate issued to
an all-fiberglass aircraft.
Carl Niedermeyer / AOPA 692287
Everett, Washington
Water skiing
I enjoyed the debate " The Merits/Demerits of
Recreational Airplane Water Skiing " (June 2022
AOPA Pilot). I have participated in the sport of
aviation water skiing and can assure you that it
14
AOPA PILOT / August 2022
The California Double: Skiing and surfing in one day
BY ALICIA HERRON
PHOTOGRAPHY BY CHRIS ROSE
C
alifornia-one of the
few places on Earth where
you can ski and surf in one
day. Or so the ads from the
tourism board say. I know
people who have done the
double trick with cars,
and even one who did the
trip with motorcycles, but
those are long drives-a
solid three hours one way
without heavy traffic from
60
AOPA PILOT / July 2022
AOPA PILOT / July 2022
61
is not only safe but a heck of a lot of fun. But, like every new endeavor, it is wise to
do your homework before taking action. I note that Dave Hirschman, who thinks
airplane water skiing is a bad idea, offered up the secret to success: a ground speed
more than nine times the square root of the tire pressure! And, while Hirschman has
divulged the secret, it is Koontz who has admonished those who would try water skiing
to plan properly and fly within the legal limits imposed by the FAA. In the end,
the decision to water ski or not in your airplane is up to you. As my current ride is
the Commemorative Air Force's B-25 bomber Maid in the Shade I think it would be
prudent to restrict my operations to hard asphalt. But, if I can borrow your J-3 Cub....
Ron Schreck / AOPA 5652004
Gilbert, Arizona
We welcome your comments! Send letters to Editor, AOPA Pilot, 421
Aviation Way, Frederick, Maryland 21701 or pilot@aopa.org. Letters may
be edited for length and style.
Hangar Talk /
" Photo flights in the Bahamas require close crew coordination, " said AOPA
Director of Photography Chris Rose. " So does swimming there. " (Left
to right: Travis Klumb, Ivy McIver, Rose, and Dave Hirschman.) See how
the Bahamas are recovering from Hurricane Dorian in " People Make the
Place, " p. 50.
AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2022

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