Aces High Bulletin Board

General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: Wolfala on November 30, 2007, 02:10:39 PM

Title: Veterans Airlift Flight and wow sunset
Post by: Wolfala on November 30, 2007, 02:10:39 PM

All,


I was flying the mom of a 20 year old Marine who needs to have a heart transplant down to San Diego 2 days ago. On the way down, we had a pretty unbelievable sunset that I wanted to share with you all. Here are a few shots from that flight and a link to the Photobucket. These are unedited and not using any filters with a point and shoot Canon SD800IS

http://s145.photobucket.com/albums/r207/wolfala/San%20Diego%20VAC%20trip/


(http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r207/wolfala/San%20Diego%20VAC%20trip/IMG_2252.jpg)
(http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r207/wolfala/San%20Diego%20VAC%20trip/IMG_2249.jpg)
(http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r207/wolfala/San%20Diego%20VAC%20trip/IMG_2250.jpg)
(http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r207/wolfala/San%20Diego%20VAC%20trip/IMG_2251.jpg)
(http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r207/wolfala/San%20Diego%20VAC%20trip/IMG_2247.jpg)

Title: Veterans Airlift Flight and wow sunset
Post by: Maverick on November 30, 2007, 02:16:31 PM

Very nice shots. Looked like a special sunset indeed.

BTW, thanks for helping take care of our troops.

Title: Veterans Airlift Flight and wow sunset
Post by: Jappa52 on November 30, 2007, 02:17:41 PM

Wow, what a sunset!  Nice pics Wolfala.

Did that soldier catch a ride home for Thanksgiving?

Title: Veterans Airlift Flight and wow sunset
Post by: Wolfala on November 30, 2007, 02:23:21 PM

He can't fly or travel - he's got one of those LVAD artificial heart units implanted since his left ventrical is useless. Family has basically been commuting between Norcal and San Diego the last 6 weeks. They can't afford it, so we've got volunteer pilots that do it for them.

Title: Veterans Airlift Flight and wow sunset
Post by: Jappa52 on November 30, 2007, 03:23:20 PM

sir. Nice to see organizations such as this helping our soldiers.  Thank you.

The soldier I was asking about was from an earlier thread you posted:
California Pilots - Marine needs a ride home for Thanks Giving from Bay Area to San C.

Title: Veterans Airlift Flight and wow sunset
Post by: Wolfala on November 30, 2007, 03:24:35 PM

That was a different guy - but easy to confuse.

Title: Veterans Airlift Flight and wow sunset
Post by: Tigeress on November 30, 2007, 03:29:43 PM

Wolfala

Makes you guys feel good, huh? That's awsome.

BTW, What plane were you flying when you took those beautiful sunset photos?

Got photos of that plane?

TIGERESS

Title: Veterans Airlift Flight and wow sunset
Post by: Wolfala on November 30, 2007, 10:41:22 PM

Sure, its a 2000 Cirrus SR-20 which seats 4 reasonably comfortably. Holds around 60 gallons of gas, burns around 8 gallons per hour giving you a solid 6 hours and 800 miles range with no wind + reserve. From the Bay Area I can normally make Los Angeles on 14 gallons of gas in under 2 hours. San Diego would take another 30-45 minutes. By car, thats at least 8 hours to Los Angeles, 13 to San Diego if you don't hit traffic. It makes sense for certain geographies with economy of time and the flexibility to land where it isn't congested. In our case, Montgomery field in San Diego was 2 miles from the hospital where the young Marine is being treated. I took the grandmother, grandfather and the father down on the 15th of March late in the evening when a call was put out short notice.

There's always going to be a need for this type of travel - and traveling on short notice with an airline is mostly cost prohibitive and beyond the means of  our service members and their loved ones. So, if you have access to an aircraft, have lost interest in the $100 hamburger and hanging out with a bunch of rich hanger rats talking about doing something good and want to travel where there is a genuine need?

Goto http://www.veteransairlift.org

You donate your time and aircraft - and that time is at the end of the year tax deductible depending on how much you charge per hour for operation. Besides, its not like you can take money with you when your dead, and gas will only be going up from here on out.

Wolf

(http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r207/wolfala/SR-20%20related/IMG_1382.jpg)
(http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r207/wolfala/San%20Diego%20VAC%20trip/IMG_2007.jpg)
(http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r207/wolfala/Sr-20%20formation/th_MVI_0632.jpg) (http://s145.photobucket.com/albums/r207/wolfala/Sr-20%20formation/?action=view¤t=MVI_0632.flv)

Title: Veterans Airlift Flight and wow sunset
Post by: kamilyun on November 30, 2007, 11:20:56 PM

I've seen some beautiful sunsets lately in the Bay Area.

I've got a sneaking suspicion that it might be due to some of the particulate from the Santa Ana winds or the fires down South.  Winds move clockwise, so they're pushing up to 9, 10 and 11 o'clock over the Pacific.

Could be wrong, but was looking at satellite about a month ago when we had some other nice sunsets and I see the plume moving out NW.