DreamFlight WACO Glider Update 9-July, 2008

Hello to all of our friends ~ we hope that this message finds things going well for you this summer. All is really great here. Since our last up-date there has been a tremendous amount of activity with our WW II Allied Glider Corps Program – all positive. Here is a quick up-date.

First, be sure to visit our web site at http://www.esharethis.com/ and follow along with all of the important forwards that are being shared by friends from around the world. We try to post pictures of our progress under the category WW II Glider Corps as often as possible. There are lots and lots of other very interesting items that you will enjoy – to many to go thru at this time – in the many different categories. Enjoy.

Now for our progress report:

Trip to England / Normandy – June 6, 2008: Betty, I and DreamFlight member Doug Calkins traveled to England and Normandy where we participated in the commemorative events – parachute drop re-enactments at three different locations where the American Paratroops landed during D-Day. While in England we visited with DreamFlight member Rod Brown and his crew from Denham Airfield – David and Stewart.

Our flights to and from England in our friend Paddy Green’s spectacular C-47 ‘Drag-em-oot’ – a C-47 that actually participated in the 1944 D-Day assaults – were great. The weather was good to us – CAVU both directions – and the plane flew flawlessly due to the outstanding engineering by DreamFlight member Mark Edwards of Edwards Worldwide Aviation. Keeping things in proper order (making sure that we navigated thru the English / French countryside appropriately) was DC-3 rated English Captain and good friend Bill Tollett.

That was all fine and good but the best part of the venture was meeting a dear person – Francine Noyon of Ste. Mere-Eglise. Francine was our hostess while in France and introduced us to the Mayor of Ste. Mere-Eglise, Marc LEFEVRE, Vice-president du Conseil General, President de la Communaute de Communes, Maire de SAINTE MERE EGLISE. Our meeting with Mayor LEFEVRE could not have been more enjoyable. We were greeted with a wonderful welcome and made to feel like we were truly a part of their community. The Mayor’s dinner on Saturday night was simply incredible. Our meeting with Mayor Lefevre confirmed that we will be welcome to bring the WACO CG-4A glider to a landing zone near Ste. Mere-Eglise next year for the 65th Anniversary of D-Day.

While there we also met many of our U.S.A.F friends who come to Ste. Mere-Eglise each year to join in the commemorative events.

Back in S. CAL mid-June and then off to the 4th of July celebrations at Crescent City: Upon our return in mid-June, we were privileged to have DreamFlight member and expert aircraft mechanic Dick Smith come down from Olympia, Washington to work on the glider. You will recall that Dick is preparing the nose chin section for installation. You can see the magnificent work he is doing – close to completion – at Nose Chin before Plywood on eShareThis.com.

We are also very, very happy to report that the rear section of the main cabin in now attached. As you read this report, even more has been completed on this section as we near the completion of the main cabin section structure. Please go to Rear Main Cabin to see this progress.

All of this on top of a most important contribution offer from the National Soaring Museum, Elmira, NY. The NSM has most graciously offered to us the several parts of their CG-4A that they are not using for our flyable glider. With this donation, we will now have the horizontal stabilizers, an elevator, dorsal fin and other significant parts which will help us to make our completion date. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, National Soaring Museum and all of its members.

If that was not all there is still MORE Great News !! Thru the generosity of Consolidated Aircraft Coatings / Poly-Fiber we will now be moving into our new hangar facility at Fla-bob Airport. I don’t have any pictures to show you at this time but will for the next up-date.

As everyone is aware, this program is truly a ‘community effort’ and could not possibly be done by any one individual or probably not even a single organization. We are truly grateful for the efforts by all who are putting in their time, money and support to make it happen.

We need your assistance now. This weekend – Friday, Saturday and Sunday we will be moving from our present location to the new hangar. For those in the S. CAL area, we could sure use your help. Even if you have felt a bit ‘out of place’ because you are not an aircraft rebuilder or mechanic, you can really help us a lot this weekend by coming out to help us move. Please e-mail or call me at 949 472 9612 anytime to let me know that you will be there to help. Fla-bob Airport is located at 4130 Mennes Ave., Riverside, CA 92509. A Google or MapQuest direction request will get you the best directions from your location.

As you are aware, we now have our California State filing of the IRS 501(c)(3) charitable organization The WW II Allied Glider Corps Commemorative Foundation and are taking contributions of any nature – cash, airplanes, property, etc. – which we will use to the benefit of the Foundation. Please find a way to help support this really truly great organization to benefit the community as set forth in our By-laws and send us your donations to: WW II Allied Corps Commemorative Foundation, 24611 Spadra Lane, Mission Viejo, CA 92691. You will receive an immediate acknowledgement of your contribution for your tax records. If you have any questions about the Foundation or any of our program matters, you can always e-mail or call me anytime at 949 472 9612.

That’s all for now. We appreciate your being a part of our ‘family’ and hope that you are getting as great a thrill out of this project as we are. We look forward to your participation in any way that you can as we move forward.

Best … John & Betty Pappas for DreamFlight and the WW II Glider Corps Program