By David Paradis, EAA 877365
My RV-8, N814DP, was donated to the Western Antique Aircraft and Automobile Museum in December 2024. I convinced the founder Terry Brandt and his board of directors that even though this aircraft is not an antique, any aircraft museum in the state of Oregon should have at least one example of a Van’s Aircraft since the company was founded and is based in the state.
My desire to donate the aircraft to WAAAM was for a number of reasons. First, its collection of aircraft are mostly maintained in flying condition and are flown on a regular basis. It would not become just a static dust collector. Second, the paint scheme is reflective of my time in the U.S. Navy flying the T-34 out of Saulfey Field in Pensacola, Florida. The paint scheme is a combination of T-34 and T-28 paint schemes. The sale of the aircraft to a private party may have seen that paint scheme removed. Part of that paint scheme honors both my father, Lawrence Paradis, a WWII Pacific war veteran with the U.S. Army 11th Airborne, and Daniel Cochran, a dear friend from the Navy.
Dan passed away in 2003, and I was named, along with a number of other individuals, a recipient of part of his estate. It was neither a large amount nor was it insignificant at approximately $37,000. Dan loved aviation, and sport aviation was one area he did not get a chance to participate in. He was a former Navy helicopter and fixed wing pilot. He also flew for the U.S. Coast Guard and finally with American Airlines.
What to do with his donation was the question. With a growing family of four children, the funds could have easily gone to any number of uses and finally evaporate. My desire was to use the funds to commemorate Dan, so the decision to build an RV-8 was reached. All of his funds were used for the financing and building of this aircraft. He is truly a 50/50 partner in this project. I had always wanted to build an experimental aircraft dating back to the early 1970s when I got my pilot certificate at the age of 20. As an earlier EAA member (back then my member number was 101906), I explored the possibility of building a Bowers Fly Baby, or maybe a Monnett Sonerai I, or maybe a BD-5. None of those came to pass, but now was the opportunity to complete that dream. It took more than nine years of slow build time beginning in 2005, and it ended with the first flight in September 2015. That first flight was so awesome, and my son Ryan put together a YouTube video commemorating that flight. You can watch it here.
Now it has come time for me to give up my flying, some reasons related to health and vision issues and some to the fact that over 50 years of flying is a good stretch. I am hoping that WAAAM enjoys flying the aircraft and visitors will enjoy seeing the aircraft.
