Airport Appreciation Day, Ely Airport (Yelland Field) July 9, 2011

Ely Airport (KELY) will have its Annual Airport Appreciation Day on July 9, 2011. Our plans include static displays of civilian and restored military aircraft, Young Eagle Flights, and food available at the field. Our FBO will have a discount of fuel, too, I am told. We will have shuttles to the local hotels, and our always interesting hotel and casinos of Ely welcoming overnight visitors.

I look forward to meeting some RVers in the region, too. We have an RV6 and a 7A (mine) based at Ely. Hopefully, I can organize an RV-specific event, perhaps dinner at the airport. More info to follow, but its not too early to mark your calendars for this day.

Mike Coster
RV7A N92MB (builder and owner, recently relocated from Virginia to Ely)

Hey Mike, I am in Ely sporadically throughout the year, but particularly in early summer when we run our geology field course in Ruth. Would like to talk with you and hope to make the summer event this year.

cheers,
greg

Access at Ely

Greg:

That is great. I'll look forward to your next visit. We can get some overnight hangar space, I think, and I'll help with anything else I can during your visits. Once I get permanent housing here, it'll be on the RV-Hotel list.

I work at the airport and fly when possible. Ely Airport is re-establishing its GA and experimental community -- which was not the focus of the previous manager. Likewise, I'll be looking for other NV/UT RV fly outs/airport activities.

Mike

So, are you the new manager???

What is the soaring activity there??

July 9 is my birthday, sounds like heading over there would be a fun present to myself

Soaring

Hi Mike:

Yes, we still have a big soaring season here. The principal season begins, based on temps/weather, in the third week of June and runs to third or fourth week of July. Tows are available throughout the summer, and in that peak season, two of them operate throughout the day.

Our FBO is owned by an accomplished glider pilot (Lee Hallerberg). The FBO (Ely Jet Center, 775-289-8804) really makes it a fun event for the glider pilots. The hangar is theirs to meet/organize each day, car rentals, and they have food storage/prep facility for their use. At the peak of the season, there is some open event each night in the hangar with experienced pilots from around the country and a good number of international pilots, as well. (Among other well known folk, Steve Fossett flew here over a number of summers, as recent as just two month before his unfortunate fatal crash.) James Adams, the FBO manager, is the lead tow pilot as well, and coordinates the morning briefs, maintenance, oxygen fills, etc. Ely has the National Northern Railway Museum, Great Basin National Park, and some other local attractions for the pilots and non-flying family to see, as well.

I'm new at this airport, so much of this info is gathered from Lee and other pilots here. It is quite the hopping place at the height of glider season. (We get 10,000 density altitudes in the afternoons, and it gets pretty hot, so the flights commence pretty early.) I'm told that some gliders will travel down the Grand Canyon and back in their flight. So, I'm looking forward to seeing it all first hand. This is much different from east coast glider operations.

In addition to the Airport Appreciation day, we plan some other annual events, including an RV event this summer. More info in the coming months.

Mike

We are coming back from the Arlington NW flyin on the 9th. Will try to stop for fuel there on the way home.

Fly in events

I would like to get to Arlington myself, but the schedule probably wont permit. There are a lot more RV-specific events in the western US and I haven't been to any (though I almost made Copperstate in 2009 on a return from Calif to Virginia).

We'd love to see you in Ely on any trip, and southbound from Arlington wold be perfect timing. We've got a loaner car for a quick (3 mi.) trip to town, and lots of cars and hotels for the longer stay.

On a more general note, the VAF calendar is a bit sparse for summer events. Let's get them loaded up so we can pencil in dates for later.

Mike