By Ted Luebbers, EAA 875984
EAA Chapter 534’s Aviation Youth Program presses on at their hangar located at Leesburg International Airport, through the hot Florida summer getting a donated Mini-Max airplane back to flyable condition.
The airplane had been damaged during a tornado at another airport, sustaining serious damage to both wings and ailerons. The engine, a two-cylinder, two-stroke Rotax, had not been run for some time and was inoperative when the Mini-Max was gifted to the chapter for its Aviation Youth Program.
When the fabric was removed from the wings and ailerons it revealed serious damage to the main spars, some of the ribs, and the leading edges of both wings and ailerons.
With the help of mentors from EAA Chapter 534, the kids will learn how to repair the wing structures and re-cover them. They have already removed the engine several times to make repairs to the magneto, the pull starter chord, and the exhaust system.
Recently, the engine was ready for its first test run and, much to the delight of the young crew and their mentors, it started well and ran smoothly.
Now that the engine work is behind them, the youth are now repairing the wings and ailerons.
Chapter 534 recently added a flight simulator to its Aviation Youth Program that uses Microsoft Flight Simulator X and has all the controls necessary to operate a single-engine general aviation airplane. The simulator was put together through hardware and software donations from chapter members and will be used to teach basic flight techniques to those youths who wish to learn more about flying an airplane. They will be mentored during its use by Chapter 534 pilots.
The Aviation Youth Program is headed up by Chapter 534 Vice President John Hunt Weber, EAA 278572, who has built several planes and is a certified light-sport flight instructor.
The youth group meets at the chapter hangar at the Leesburg International Airport on Saturdays, and volunteer chapter members help John with the teaching, which starts with the proper and safe use of tools. Among the volunteer teachers are chapter pilots, aircraft mechanics, and other adult aviation enthusiasts.