January 2026
Issue 252
Next meeting—Holiday Party
10:00 AM – Noon
District 6 Fire Station Meeting Room
16220 Peterson Road, Burlington
We decided to postpone our annual Christmas party in December due to the heavy rains and flooding our area experienced. We’ve rescheduled the party in place of our normal January meeting. Join us on January 10 from 10:00 to noon at the fire station, 16220 Peterson Road (same place as last year). The board will meet before the party, starting at 9:30.Spouses, friends, kids and visitors are welcome to attend. No RSVP needed. The chapter will provide the turkey, ham, coffee, and soft drinks. We ask attendees to please bring a casserole, vegetable, salad, other side dish or dessert.
See the article later in the newsletter for more details.
President’s Message
Larry Buerk
Chapter President
Welcome to the new year!
The heavy rains and flooding last month put a wrench in our party plans, but now that the worst of the weather is (hopefully) behind us we’re gonna try again. Bring your family and friends to the firehouse, 163320 Peterson Road, from 10:00 to noon. See the article below for the full details. We’ll also have a quick board meeting at 9:30. While it was disappointing to have to cancel the December party, the upside for me is that we’re not traveling this month so will get to see everyone Saturday.
New year, new look for the newsletter. The intent was to create a more current look with less production time and effort. We now have a WordPress template we can reuse each month—just need to update text and photos for each article—and publishing it will automatically send it out as an email and post it so it’s viewable from the website. Note that if you want a more graphically interesting layout, open the online/website version. Regarding photos, they’re simple to add and they make the newsletter more engaging, so when we hold an event I encourage everyone to take pictures and send them to me. And for the eagle-eyed, I know, the second “N” is missing in the Empennage graphic. I used AI to generate the masthead and it doesn’t always get the details right. (I also asked for a photo of a homebuilt and the airplane had a three-bladed four-blade prop.) Anyway, I’m sure the second “N” is hidden behind the fuselage.
Another new year item—it’s time to renew your chapter membership. We’re holding the annual dues at $25 for 2026 so individual finances aren’t a barrier to membership. See the article below for renewal details or contact our new Membership coordinator, Rick Rathbun, at rwrathbun@live.com.
In EAA news, HQ will present the annual Homebuilders Week webinars at the end of January. I’ve participated since 2020 and have learned something new each time, even for repeat topics. See the article below for the schedule and to sign up.
To close out this message, let me reflect on how much the chapter has changed in the past year. We’ve taken on new projects, some real estate and the expenses associated with it, and a number of financial and project donations—all this in just one year. It greatly increases our potential but also adds responsibilities that weren’t relevant when we were smaller. In 2026 we need to file a more complex tax return. We need to create, approve and track our progress against a budget. We need to manage our project inventory and decide which we’ll keep and which we’ll sell to fund expenses and the next projects. And we want to apply for Washington state charity status, not only to make us eligible for more contributions and grants but to give us the controls and disciplines to be good stewards of what we’ve been given. This will be a lot of work but the board knows we can count on our members to share the load and set us up for continued growth and success.
See you Saturday!
New Year’s Party
Please plan to attend the annual EAA Chapter 818 holiday party this Saturday, January 10 at the fire station at 16220 Peterson Road in Burlington. This was postponed from December due to the heavy rains and flooding in our area. The fire station is about 1/2 mile north-east of the Skagit Airport on the right side of the road when leaving the airport.
The gathering starts at 10:00 AM and we’ll plan to serve by 11:00. The Chapter will provide turkey with stuffing, cranberry sauce, and ham, plus coffee and soft drinks. Attendees, please bring a casserole, vegetable, salad, or desert to share. Also, please note that spouses, friends, kids, and visitors are welcome and expected.
We’ll also hold a short board meeting at the firehouse starting at 9:30.
Sky Flight Update
Dan Holden
Sky Flight Coordinator
We took possession of a newly donated project that is to either be sold or used for education. It appears to be a modified Fly Baby that includes a Lycoming O-145 with logbooks. Seven chapter members volunteered to retrieve it from Lynden. It should make a fun flyer for someone on a budget! Come on by and admire our newest treasure.
We’ve started on the instrument panel for the Cessna 150, and Garmin has repaired the radio for the RV-12. They should ship it back next week. Also, we have had the RV engine running, with a few minor squawks, one of which is that there’s too little clearance between the cowling and the pilot-side valve covers. Scott has taken the lead on the required fiberglass surgery.
Speakers Schedule
Bill Calvert
Chapter Vice President
Members have already volunteered to provide speakers (or to speak themselves) at over half of our 2026 monthly gatherings. See the list below—the speaker or topic is in parentheses, if known. You can volunteer for one of the open slots; just send me an email or catch me at a Sky Flight session or monthly gathering.
| January: Ross Mahon (will reschedule) | February: James Nichols |
| March: Jay Findlay | April: Larry Buerk (Mike Lombardi) |
| May: Rowe Moyle (Dan Hammer) | June: Dan Holden |
| July: Brandon Holdeman (All About Rotax) |
Young Eagles
Scott Bushnell and Richard Lewellen
YE Coordinators
Hello EAA Chapter 818 members and visitors, I am looking forward to a new year of Young Eagles events with co-chair Rich Lewellyn. I’m still a relative newbie to the chapter, and hope this transition from Doug Seward’s long run is as smooth as possible. There are several months until the first Young Eagles event of the year, but there should be opportunities before then for individual flights as weather conditions permit.
Rich and I will try to make contact with all of the past participants, and attempt to add new members to the program. If you’re interested or have questions, please let us know. Forms are available at the hangar, and online for youth participants. I look forward to a new year of introducing new aspiring pilots and families to the chapter.
Membership Update
Rick Rathbun
Membership Coordinator
As of the end of 2025, the chapter had 61 active members. Now it’s time to renew your membership for 2026. Just download the form here and send it to me at the address on the form, along with your $25 check—or hand them off to me at the holiday party.
Safety Corner
Ross Mahon
Safety Coordinator
It’s that time of year again where the weather is marginal most of the time, and of course you want to sneak in a quick flight whenever your schedule, the weather, and the airplane are all available and working at the same time! Several accidents in our area might be worth remembering when considering a push through marginal visibility in our mountainous terrain.
A night flight of a Mooney M20K (N123JN) clipped the top of the ridge and crashed into Chuckanut Mountain in February 2018 while heading into Bellingham for landing. In March of 1991 two C-172s of Canadian registry (CGJNM and CGIXI) crashed in the hills near Bellingham at the same time (A flight of 5 aircraft, 3 others detoured away from the mountains). Those same hills, and also at night, claimed the lives of four Civil Air Patrol personnel in the 1980s.
Bellingham airport itself had a couple of notable accidents, including a fatal accident on Lummi Island in October of 2000 when a Cessna 208 (N941FE) departed Bellingham on a Special VFR for a part 135 flight, ended up down low dodging fog, and crashed on Lummi Island. The tragic loss of Western Washington University’s President in November 1987 occurred when the pilot of a chartered 310 flying an instrument approach broke off to fly over the University, then unfortunately into a cloud bank and then into the mountain side. In February of 1981 a C-172 was landing at Bellingham on a Special VFR in one mile visibility in fog, with fatal consequences.
From the Anacortes area in August of 1998 a Cessna 172 (N1069M) seaplane picked up a passenger for some picture taking in the San Juans; however, the weather was marginal. The seaplane landed on the water due to bad weather but after some time departed again in 400 to 500 foot ceilings and one-half mile visibility. Impact was on a beach in some rocks. The pilot survived but the passenger did not.
I know the above appears to be a poor read/subject for the post-holiday season, but I hope that it makes everyone think twice about pushing your limits in marginal weather. Yes, we (mostly) have moving map displays that should keep us from hitting terrain (although that’s not a guarantee, depending on maps and resolution…a topic for another day). But step back a bit – what are your established personal weather minimums? (You do have those written down, specific numbers that define your personal minimums…don’t you???) For example, if Paine Field is IFR (the convergence zone is working) and Friday Harbor and Bellingham are IFR (OK, it’s more than a convergence zone….) and Skagit is 1100’ and four miles visibility, are you going to go? And if so, where are you going to go to? Do you really need to go on this flight with this weather?
Accident statistics consistently indicate that continued VFR flight into IMC conditions will most likely have fatal consequences. When we leave on a VFR flight, we don’t intend to fly in the clouds. But then the clouds lower, and there is the temptation to squeak over that next ridge to get home which is just on the other side…
Some items to keep in mind:
- Carb heat – You may need more of it, especially with Continental engines
- Night flying/daylight hours – Days are much shorter, cloudy skies bring the darkness sooner
- Freezing level – It’s lower; in fact it may be within a couple thousand feet on rainy days
- Winds, gusts, & turbulence – It’s that time of year. NAS Whidbey has many days with “G25”+
- Water ingress – It’s raining, check for water in your fuel sumps, in the pitot tube, etc.
- Weather trend, planning – Really study the forecast, Prog charts, and frontal lines
Homebuilders Week is a tremendous learning opportunity that celebrates the legacy of EAA founder Paul Poberezny. As he often said, using hand and mind to create aircraft that allow us to enjoy the personal freedom of flight!
Join us on January 26-30, 2026, during the sixth-annual EAA Homebuilders Week online event. Experts from every corner of the homebuilt aircraft community will bring their knowledge and information to builders everywhere through free and interactive webinars.
Feature Article:
My Visit to the National Air and Space Museum
Larry Buerk
echoes Saarinen’s TWA terminal at Kennedy airport.
The first half of December, my wife and I spent a week at Williamsburg, VA and the next week in Washington DC, where I got to visit the National Air and Space Museum (NASM) for the first time in many (25???) years. The historical chasm between the two was almost disorienting—from living the Christmas traditions of the 1770s to marveling at the aviation accomplishments of the 20th and 21st centuries. Within the scope of the NASM itself, there was the extra amazement of how far aviation and space have come in just 122 years.
First, I visited the main building, which is still undergoing a total rebuild of its galleries. (Sadly, the WWII gallery was closed for renovation.) The biggest change since my last visit was that major items like the Wright Flyer are now down at floor level where you can really look at them. I took tons of photos (you’re surprised, right???), but here are some of the most iconic artifacts.
Later, I made the long Metro/Uber slog out to the Dulles annex for the first time. Udvar Hazy is impressive for the open and airy main hall, giving the feeling that the airplanes suspended from the ceiling are actually in flight. There’s an amazing quantity and variety of aircraft on display, including some special homebuilts—Steve Whitman’s “Buster” tucked under the wing of the first 707, Ray Stit’s Sky Baby, the Sonex One Week Wonder (I saw it at my one and only visit to AirVenture in 2023). The centerpieces of the annex are the SR-71, the space shuttle Discovery in a gallery visible right behind the -71, and the B-29 Enola Gay. But there are so many other significant pieces housed there—Bob Hoover’s Shrike Commander beneath the Concorde, Leo Loudenslager’s Laser 200, the Boeing 247 (that took a dip in Elliott Bay right after restoration), and on and on. And you can now see projects in work in the restoration area.
An airplane there that’s special for me and that I didn’t expect to see is Art Scholl’s Super Chipmunk. I hadn’t seen it since a New England airshow in 1976.
A college classmate I was visiting in Boston talked his way past the flightline gatekeepers and persuaded Scholl’s crew to let us hold the poles for his inverted ribbon pickup. I still remember Art looping around to show center, rolling inverted (no overshoot, of course), kicking just enough rudder to correct his line, then he started driving down to our level, a big, BIG prop leading the way. It was all over in a few seconds but I’ll never forget that view, my feelings of excitement and danger, or the precision of Scholl’s flying. I’ll never match it myself, but I’m glad I got to experience it from a truly unique point of view.
Here’s a list of some upcoming webinars and in-person presentations. Click on a webinar title to go to the registration page. And for the most up-to-date list and registration links, check out the chapter’s calendar at http://skagiteaa.org/calendar/.
The EAA webinars are listed at https://www.eaa.org/eaa/news-and-publications/eaa-webinars.
January
| Jan 6, 13, 20, 27; 5:00 – 6:00 pm | Social Flight weekly webinar: speakers to be announced, Cockpit2Cowl with Brian Schiff on 1/13. See www.socialflight.com. |
| Jan 7, 5:00 –6:30 pm | EAA webinar: Mike Busch—9000 Exhaust Valves |
| Jan 8, 5:00 – 6:30 pm | EAA webinar: Sport Pilot 2.0 and Pilot Training: A Game Changer for Flight Instructors and Flight Schools |
| Jan 13, 5:00 – 6:30 pm | EAA webinar: Museum series—A Look Into EAA’s Museum Collections Storage |
| Jan 14, 5:00 – 6:30 pm | EAA webinar: Stepping Stones — From Student to Sport to Private |
| Jan 21, 5:00 – 6:00 pm | EAA webinar: Avoiding the Base to Final Spin Accident EAA’s 1,000th Webinar! |
| Jan 26 – 30 | EAA Homebuilders Week: course listings and signup at https://www.eaa.org/eaa/aircraft-building/homebuilders-week |
February
| Feb 3, 10, 17, 24; 5:00 – 6:00 pm | Social Flight weekly webinar: speakers to be announced, Cockpit2Cowl with Brian Schiff on 2/10. See www.socialflight.com. |
| Feb 4, 5:00 – 6:00 pm | EAA webinar: Mike Busch—Training Savvy Mechanics |
| Feb 10, 5:00 – 6:00 pm | EAA webinar: Museum series—The de Havilland Mosquito |
| Feb 18, 5:00 – 6:00 pm | EAA webinar: Tailwheel Flying Techniques |
In addition to SocialFlight Live’s webinar series on Tuesday nights (topics are announced 2-3 weeks before each session), there are a number of other webinars listed on their site. Go to https://socialflight.com to view their offerings and to register. Brian Schiff joins once a month for Cockpit2Cowl, which covers both flying and maintenance topics. The site also has a link to their YouTube channel, where you can catch up on past SocialFlight Live webinars. The Social Flight website also provides info about aviation-related events by geographic area.
Meeting Minutes
Kerry Taylor (LB: I promise to get a real photo of Kerry for next month’s newsleter)
Secretary
There were no meetings in December since we canceled the party.
Chapter Leadership
| Larry Buerk | President, Newsletter Editor, Webmaster | larryb55@live.com |
| Bill Calvert | Vice President | billcontheroad@gmail.com |
| Kerry Taylor | Secretary | ktaylor.vet@gmail.com |
| James Nichols | Treasurer | janich78@gmail.com |
| Dan Holden | Sky Flight Coordinator | tail_wheel@hotmail.com |
| Scott Bushnell, Richard Lewellen | Young Eagles Coordinators | sbushnell2@gmail.com r.lewellen@comcast.net |
| Ross Mahon | Safety | rossair178@gmail.com |
| Rick Rathbun | Membership | rwrathbun@live.com |
| Jay Findlay | Hangar Manager | jayfindlay@aol.com |
| Stu Ashley | Food Czars Leader | ashleysc@broadstripe.net |
EAA Chapter 818 