EAA Chapter 563
The Beacon
January, 2025
Chapter dues remain $40, individual or family. You can leave your check in the mailbox or mail it in. If you need to update your contact information, you can use the application form from the Contact page of the chapter web site.
The annual holidays banquet was held the 20th at the Lariat Steakhouse in Peoria. Of the three dozen people who signed up, only two dozen attended, and the restaurant had to send one waitress home for lack of work. Those who attended liked the space better than that which Alexander's provided last year. Comments were also favorable regarding the meals.
The search for a dining room to reserve began late this year. The only Friday or weekend date available was close to the start of the Christmas week, and many people were occupied with family visits: Lesson learned.
The VMC Club will meet this Sunday at 6:30 in the hangar, and the IMC Club meets the following Sunday at 6:00.
Headquarters is again holding a week's worth of webinars on homebuilding. There are six per day from Monday the 27th through the Friday.
The chapter was offered for free an old and overweight ultralight (a Beachy Breezer) on the condition we restore it to flying condition before selling it. Ron Wright and Karl Kleimenhagen drove to the cute little airport at Dwight to inspect it. Afterwards, several members discussed the work that would be involved and concluded that other airplane projects at hand would offer a better return for the time invested.
Jim Fassino has donated a plywood pedal car project. It's in the shape of a P-51, and if you'd like to finish it, just ask Greg LePine.
Patrick Parker, who lives in Tremont and has recently finished a Zenith 750 STOL with a UL Power engine, has donated left over bits from his project, including a knockdown wing rack, spare fuel line, clamps, rivets, etc.
Thank you to both Jim and Patrick.
The hangar doesn't keep itself. Volunteers are needed to help with the various chores including:
You can coordinate your efforts through Greg LePine, who has the committee assignment for hangar operations and is at the hangar most days of the week.
JJ Hoevelmann has brought his Pietenpol fuselage to the hangar. Tim Threw's RV-7 has been here for heated storage over the winter. Rich Gilbert's Onex has been moved to the garage of his home in Bloomington. Dave Jackson will soon be bringing his Aeronca project to the hangar.
Julian Sturm's progress is summed up as "... doing cross countries and lots of ground school during the bad weather. I'm now at 44 hours total."
Among past scholarship recipients, Logan Turner is currently at SIU where he has earned his CFI. Brady Neuhalfen received a runners up prize from the chapter and went on to Lewis University. He is also a CFI and is now working on his CitationJet rating through a $20,000 grant. He plans to be a corporate pilot, of course.
Rob Meyer, the scholarships director at the chapter, will this month apply for a new Ray Scholarship grant.
The chapter funds two college level scholarships, one at Lincoln Land in Springfield and one at Lewis University. Our scholarship at Lincoln Land is restricted to candidates from the Peoria area, but this year they don't have a student from the area. No scholarship has been awarded, and we can accumulate it for next year or award it to a candidate from outside the Peoria area. At the December chapter meeting, the members present agreed we should expand the search radius to award the grant now, and the board will consider this.
At Lewis, business is great. They now have on-line classes with the lab classes in the evening, allowing them 3 shifts of in-lab training. It's a 2 year mechanics program, and such jobs in the Chicago area are fetching about $100,000 at the airlines.
On the teens' Zenith Cruzer project, both upper and lower skins are on the left wing. This wing will be ready to set aside in January, and the right wing will be brought back to the build table to fit a part mistakenly left off. The elevator and rudder cables are progressing slowly, with trial and error required in getting the lengths correct. The instrument panel has nearly all its cut-outs ready.
The airplane's build log is kept on the chapter web site.
Andy Meinert has been assisting in the build of the teens' Zenith Cruzer, and he began his own project this fall, a Panther from Sport Performance Aviation. It's a metal, single seat, folding wing, aerobatics airplane. He's documenting his build on the EAA Builder's Log site, a service free to EAA members.
Rob Meyer and his son Jeff built a Onex a number of years ago. Jeff has recently moved up a notch with the acquisition of a Vultee BT-13 WW-II trainer:
The airport has installed the new gate card system. Instructions for acquiring a new gate card were in last month's newsletter and are also found on the chapter web site's Contact page.
Place your card by the keypad, and after it lights green at the top, you must quickly enter your four digit PIN followed by the '#' key. In the photo, note the label is not correct. You do not "insert" anything, but you must enter your PIN.
They have also changed entry to the FBO, which will now be kept locked. Use your gate card to gain entry.
eaa563.org
Mt. Hawley Airport, Peoria, Illinois