Attached is a picture of Agusta 109A Mk-II , tied down for the night, on the crest of the Pine Mountain Observatory, elevation 6,500’ MSL.

 

The ‘Gusta can carry 7 people and luggage comfortably at 150 knots.  It will carry 4 people and luggage at 150 knots for 350 NM with a helicopter reserve of 30 minutes.

 

The ‘Gusta’s longest flight was from Florida, to Hillsboro, by way of Las Vegas, in the first week of January (*_*)  Started in the late afternoon, spent the first night in Louisiana, and the second night in Las Vegas, and the third night home (^_^)  When we heard there were thunderstorms at the Great Lakes, and a typhoon in the Sea of Japan, we decided to make a precautionary landing at Las Vegas for the night.

 

The most interesting flight was to land at every public-use airport in Oregon.  I calculated that there would be no production aircraft that could do it in less time.  David Swan and I started after lunch on Friday, and finished after lunch Monday.  We even landed at the Portland Down Town Heliport, and threw in one California airport for refueling on Father’s day (applicable OR airports were shut down (*_*)  We did it in record time, beating a Bonanza by 3 hours.  The only failure was my pants zipper (^_~).

 

The ‘Gusta is too much fun – 3-dimensional hot-rodding with NO cops (^_~)  At a KONP Air Show, they made me the Grand Marshal, and I did a legal 200-mph pass down the runway, and then turned my famous inside-outside loop, all FAA legal (^_^)  

 

If there is any interest, I could give a presentation of the All Oregon Airports flight, in that we filmed the approaches, etc., for all the airports (^_^)  It would take to long to do every airport, but we might trim it by showing the wild ones, like the airports most at the corners of Oregon, the highest, shortest, etc.

 

C. Norman Winningstad

Newport, OR

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2225 NW Pacific St., Newport OR 97365

541/265-2955  Fax: -5302  normwin@aofe.com