Traron Squadron

Our flying season is now over. Laurie and I flew our last 2 airshows of the season during the early part of November. The first was a military show at an Air Force Base and the second was a civilian show with a fairly large military presence. We had the opportunity to meet a good many of our active duty military and as always, we were highly impressed with the quality of our young people and the deep commitment that they have to protecting the United States of America. When we see the way many of the nation’s young people act, we forget that there are a great number of very nice, clean cut and dedicated young people still out there. Our military is made up of the best that we as a nation have to offer and they deserve all the support that we can give to them. I know that I am preaching to the choir with the audience that I am addressing here, but we need to say these things more to be sure that our troops know that they are appreciated. Some of those great people are members of our organization and I want them to know how proud all of us are of them and what they do.

With the end of the year approaching, it is time to think about sending in your Traron dues for the new year. The dues are unchanged from last year, and from the last 8 or 10 years to the best of my knowledge. They are still $25.00. I will enclose a dues statement to help you. It is important to remember that your dues and evidence of your flight currency for the year are necessary in order for you to receive your formation card for 2010. If either of those items is missing, Julie will not be able to process your card. As I mentioned in my last e-mail, Julie Smith has taken over the position of Sec/Treas for Traron so please don’t send any of the information to Mark Novak. That will only delay the process and your card will not arrive in a timely fashion. I know that we had some delays in getting the cards out last year and I hope that we have taken the steps necessary to avoid that problem again this year. If your information is in Julie’s hands at the first of the year, you should get your card soon thereafter. For those of you that missed my e-mail, Julie’s contact info is

Julie Smith

04 Puesta Del Sol

Placitas, NM 87043

505-867-9268 H

505-379-4997 C

snj.aa@comcast.net

We will update the information available on the mydocsonline.com website so that you can check your status if you are unsure if your dues are paid or your currency is up to date. I hope that this site will be totally up to date as of the first of the year.

The folks at the Inland Empire Wing of the CAF have asked me to help them get out the word about the formation clinic that they plan to hold in the latter part of January. The dates are January 22-24, 2010. Mike Lindgren is the main contact for this event and I will enclose a flyer for the event. You can contact Mike at 951-781-9825 or email him at

lllindgren@hotmail.com. Those first 3 letters are small Ls rather than 1s and there are three of them. This clinic has always been a very good opportunity for the folks on the west coast to get an early start on their flying season and get their formation skills up to speed early in the year. I have been to almost every clinic they have sponsored and they have all been a great time. The people are very friendly and the food is always excellent.

Make plans now to attend and I know you will have fun and get a lot out of the experience. Don’t forget to invite your non-CAF friends since we can now have non- members join our clinics. We would love to include some of the Red Star guys as well as the NATA and JLFC folks. Spread the word.

I have one last note of interest for all you aviation nuts out there. We just had a blimp circle the airpark that we live on and then do a low pass down our runway, both directions, with duster turns on both ends. What a way to start a beautiful Sunday morning. As he flew by on his low pass, the pilot opened his side window, leaned out and was waving to all of us on the ground, and then he continued on his way. I am guessing that he was headed for a Sunday NFL game someplace a bit farther south.

Have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Keep ‘em Flying,

Rick