The 2015 Great American AeroTow!

[Tom]

Doesn't get much better then this.....2 buddies flying side by side into the evening........

[Nodd]

Great to see everyone & a big thank you to the SKSS guys for putting on another outstanding event.

[Steve P]

A big thanks to Charlie and the crew for a great event. It's hard work for you and appreciated by all.

Those rain storms on Thursday were a blessing not because they caused us to find a good brew pub -- rather they ushered in beautiful blue skies, lower temperatures, low humidity and HUGE FREAKING PLANE SUCKING UPPING THERMALS FROM CRAZY DEMENTED LAND. Friday was one of the best flying days in years. Saturday weren't too darn shabby either!

Flew everything I brought, towed a bit with Len's Bidule including hauling the massive Queen Mary DG-1000, and came home with a bigger belly and a nice Top Gun trophy for the Slingsby Falcon III. Even the traffic driving home cooperated for the most part.

Until next August!

[Csessa]

Home safe with just a little traffic. Great extended weekend of flying with great friends and plenty of food. Although Thursday afternoon's flying made it questionable, I am home with everything I brought with me ready to fly again. That may be a first for this season.

Thursday flying was an experiance to remember. Friday, Saturday, Saturday night, and Sunday morning were outstanding.

Thanks to all the tow plane owners and pilots for their efforts. It seems we are getting more and more folks capible of doing that task. Thanks also to Charlie and Tony for the effort setting it all up and keeping us in line. Food, food and more food!!!

[stevekremer]

Back home safe and sound. Awsome event. Just a little rain, at the beginning, but then outstanding lift and food. SKSS takes excellent care of us. Thanks Charlie. Looking forward to next year.

Steve K

[Roger K]

Thanks to all for a great day of flying and catching up with friends! Roger

[JimD]

Got home at 8:00 pm, traffic was pretty heavy on I-95 and moved slowly in spots but never got down to stop and go. Added about 20 minutes to the drive, but once I got on the Baltimore beltway, we moved right along with no problems the rest of the way home.

I agree with Steve and the others, after Thursday's rain we were treated to some of the best flying conditions that I can remember! Thanks to Charlie and Tony and Ed and Sean and all of the other SKSS crew members for a terrific event. I know how much effort and expense goes into putting one of these events together and SKSS can be very proud of this one...job well done...event well enjoyed by all who came.

Looking forward to the next time we can all get together again!

[gunny11]

Team Long Island got home safe at 10 o'clock and no traffic at all! we left at five. it was a great great event Charlie, Tony and the entire SKSS crew as always. And thanks to everyone who voted for best of show on my third scale 233.
I had a fantastic time and the weather was great on Friday Saturday and Sunday.
And finally thanks to Sean Jim Alex Len and everyone else who towed us up into the blue skies.

[Jeff D]

Back about dinner time. Some traffic but just passed the time remembering ask the great times from the last 4 days. Too many to mention but started to get familiar with the ASW20, great lift, great friends, new friends, great food! Does it get much better than this?

Probably the coolest part was helping Dan with his new Cularis on Friday, seeing him go to town with it through the weekend and the getting to fly formation with him with mine this morning. Topped it off with a formation landing. Way to go Dan!

Charlie, Tony, Sean and the rest of the SKSS crew, thank you for a great event! Top notch (as always).

Will get going on the pictures and get them up as soon as I can.

[lenb]

Lift? what lift?
You meant the stuff that sucked the paint off the top of our wings? To be able to take an 82 ish pound DG 1000 and suck it up to altitude over and over is a sight to see.
The event was outstanding this year, Charlie and the gang have things running like clockwork and the combined efforts of all the tug owners and operators make for a good time for all.
We left about 4:15 and rolled in around 9:00 .. Thats a record!!! We avoided the Del Mem Bridge and went up to Phillie, then back across to the NJ pike. This proved to be a blessing as traffic was never stopped, only slowed in a few area's. If we could teach idiots to drive the same speed we would never have an issue.

The Bidule took Sunday off and Jim's revived Porter hauled up anything you were brave enough to put behind it. Wow, that plane has come alive since the re-fitting of new canisters and prop.

I had the chance to fly Tom's Duo Discus on Sunday, what a nice plane. Its the Rosenthal fuse with Mueller wings. Since I have one on order I figured It was only right that I fly it. lol
Thanks for the flight Tom. Awesome plane.

Finally,
Thank you Sean, Bob K, Jim, Alex, Tony and Steve for keeping us all in the air. Great job!!

See you guys in VT.

LEN

[hello82]

Hey all

Thanks so much for the great event Charlie and Tony. It was my first soaring event and a real true pleasure. Everyone was so helpful and nice and the thermals were super kicking. It is great to be soaring again...it has been about 35 years since I flew gliders, just like Daniel as a teenager! Yes it was a pleasure to see him fly and learn and do formation with Jeff. Thanks to Len and Scot for getting me back into shape with some skills, knowledge and new birds. The Cirrus maiden flew great and loved the event! Thank you Jim, Alex, Sean, Bob and all tow pilots for the lift up. BBQ was a blast. Hope to see everyone again next year here and many in Vermont and Cumberland this fall.

I'm still on the road with the wife and did a detour into PA for a day trip before heading back to Boston. Will post some photos from my angle once home and downloaded.

best

Matt

[gunny11]

Matt it was good seeing you again after so many years. Glad to see you also in the sport of soaring too.

[Tom]

Well that was fun! I guess the first two days of rain and wind where offset quite spectacularly by the last three days! Flew the pants off the Duo......as Len said....it's a sweetheart of a plane........it can do almost everything.....acro.....to a point.....and it's a thermal queen! It will stay up on the lightest of lift and just seems to want to "hang" .......on the other hand the Hemple Ka-6 makes the Duo look like a dog thermal wise.......I wish I had an altimeter installed.......you know your "up there" when 7.5 meters of wing looks small and is starting to make you nervous ........had a bunch of good 1/2 hour flights with the spoilers out for over half of the flights......the lift was pumping!
Thanks to all the tow pilots for the "rides".......couldn't do this without you......thanks to Tony and that other guy......I forget his name....for putting this shindig on every year......job well done! Next year is the 10 th Anniversary of this show.........If you missed it this year....by all means put in for the time off next year right now!

[Stew]

"Probably the coolest part was helping Dan with his new Cularis on Friday, seeing him go to town with it through the weekend and the getting to fly formation with him with mine this morning. Topped it off with a formation landing. Way to go Dan!" -Jeff D


Jeff,

(Dan wrote this) Totally agreeable. It was very interesting and fun to learn how all those minor adjustments really impacted the airplane. Thanks for all the help you gave me on the airplane. And of course, everybody loves formation landings.

Dan

[Steve P]

Kudos to the SKSS crew on some nice local press coverage of the event!

http://www.newarkpostonline.com/news/article_1ef2a34a-8c58-51fb-9a4f-5929862b9792.html?mode=jqm