---------------------------------------------------------- Seaplane-List Digest Archive --- Total Messages Posted Wed 03/21/07: 4 ---------------------------------------------------------- Today's Message Index: ---------------------- 1. 08:17 AM - Beaver in the news saving boaters -Floatplane lands to save boaters (D. Fisher) 2. 05:46 PM - Re: float rigging (Peter C) 3. 07:31 PM - Re: float rigging (Malcolmbru@aol.com) 4. 08:01 PM - Re: float rigging (Noel Loveys) ________________________________ Message 1 _____________________________________ Time: 08:17:12 AM PST US From: "D. Fisher" Subject: Seaplane-List: Beaver in the news saving boaters -Floatplane lands to save boaters .http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/westcoastnews/story.html?id=b4 e8d1a2-2e90-4133-8b06-c4335da4c6ff&k=5111 Wednesday =BB March 21 =BB 2007 Floatplane lands to save boaters Chad Skelton Vancouver Sun Tuesday, March 20, 2007 STRAIT OF GEORGIA - A father and son from Vancouver whose boat capsized in the Strait of Georgia Monday may well owe their lives to a veteran seaplane pilot from Saltspring Island and his sharp-eyed passenger. Around 5:20 p.m., St. Clair McColl, owner and pilot of Saltspring Air, took off from Vancouver harbour for his last run of the day back to Saltspring Island. It was a light load, with just two regulars on board -- Jonathan Yardley, who sat in the co-pilot seat, and Mary Paul, who sat a row behind. Due to high winds, McColl was flying much lower than usual. The plane was about two kilometres off Point Grey when Paul looked down and noticed a small red speck in the ocean -- what, on closer inspection, appeared to be a life jacket. "She tapped Saint on the shoulder and said, 'Down there. Look, down there,'" Yardley recalled. McColl circled around and, after confirming it was a capsized boat, called the Vancouver control tower to report the emergency. Then, despite choppy seas, McColl, a pilot for 30 years, successfully landed the plane alongside the 16-foot aluminum boat. "We made several attempts to tie up to the overturned vessel without injuring the people who were on it, because there was quite a bit of swell and chop," McColl said. Eventually, the two men on the boat threw McColl a line and he was able to pull them close enough to his plane so they could jump aboard. The two boaters -- a 55-year-old man and his 16-year-old son -- were wearing life-jackets but were very cold. They told him they had been on the overturned boat for an hour and a half. "They were glad to see me, but in hypothermic shock, so they couldn't say much," said McColl. "[The father] asked me my name and I said, 'It's Saint.' And he looked at me and said, 'Yeah, right.'" McColl took off again, landing at the Richmond seaplane terminal, where paramedics treated the two men for hypothermia and shock. Yardley, an architect who flies to Vancouver once or twice a week, said McColl is the best pilot he knows and he doubts many other pilots could have landed in such rough conditions. McColl, modestly, credits Paul for spotting the boat in the first place -- and his plane, a deHavilland Beaver. "They were lucky it was a Beaver," he said. "It's really time-tested -- it's a good aircraft to land in such waters." Marc Proulx of the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre said the pair aboard the capsized boat were on their way to Valdez Island from Vancouver -- about an hour-long journey -- when they ran into mechanical difficulties and capsized. Asked if such a small craft was safe to travel such a long distance, Proulx replied: "If you were to ask the people onboard, they'd probably say no. And I wouldn't ... argue with them." cskelton@png.canwest.com =A9 The Vancouver Sun 2007 ________________________________ Message 2 _____________________________________ Time: 05:46:22 PM PST US From: "Peter C" Subject: Re: Seaplane-List: float rigging The point about setting up for good performance with an aft cg is sounds reasonable. We have all likely experienced having to move forward in an outboard boat to help get it up on plane. However, a friend pointed out that perhaps the best route is to rig for the most common loading which may be one person and little baggage. Guess it all comes back to personal preference. One thing I have noticed with two Rans S-7's I've owned which were both rigged with step just a little aft of empty cg is very little tendancey to nose down after touch down. With all ther other certified planes I've flown especially Cessnas is the need to be ready with up elevator after touch down; the Rans needed very little of this. Peter ________________________________ Message 3 _____________________________________ Time: 07:31:32 PM PST US From: Malcolmbru@aol.com Subject: Re: Seaplane-List: float rigging I really enjoy the chatter about float flying and such I have completed my zenair floats but don't expect to install them for a while. I still need to build a trailer and then reg them to my model 2. i have flown several plans on floats and also watch the kolb site, they are talking about Jim lee now and some of the paten's he had for float flying Please keep up the chatter I really enjoy it mal Michigan kit foxer Find out more about what's free from AOL at http://www.aol.com. ________________________________ Message 4 _____________________________________ Time: 08:01:21 PM PST US From: "Noel Loveys" Subject: RE: Seaplane-List: float rigging Come back next month when I get my 'Fox in the water! Darned cold here tonight Blizzard this morning no float flying for a few weeks yet. G' night all Noel -----Original Message----- From: owner-seaplane-list-server@matronics.com [mailto:owner-seaplane-list-server@matronics.com] On Behalf Of Malcolmbru@aol.com Sent: Thursday, March 22, 2007 12:01 AM Subject: Re: Seaplane-List: float rigging I really enjoy the chatter about float flying and such I have completed my zenair floats but don't expect to install them for a while. I still need to build a trailer and then reg them to my model 2. i have flown several plans on floats and also watch the kolb site, they are talking about Jim lee now and some of the paten's he had for float flying Please keep up the chatter I really enjoy it mal Michigan kit foxer _____ from AOL at AOL.com. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Other Matronics Email List Services ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Post A New Message seaplane-list@matronics.com UN/SUBSCRIBE http://www.matronics.com/subscription List FAQ http://www.matronics.com/FAQ/Seaplane-List.htm Web Forum Interface To Lists http://forums.matronics.com Matronics List Wiki http://wiki.matronics.com Full Archive Search Engine http://www.matronics.com/search 7-Day List Browse http://www.matronics.com/browse/seaplane-list Browse Digests http://www.matronics.com/digest/seaplane-list Browse Other Lists http://www.matronics.com/browse Live Online Chat! http://www.matronics.com/chat Archive Downloading http://www.matronics.com/archives Photo Share http://www.matronics.com/photoshare Other Email Lists http://www.matronics.com/emaillists Contributions http://www.matronics.com/contribution ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- These Email List Services are sponsored solely by Matronics and through the generous Contributions of its members.