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  #1  
Old 05-07-2011, 01:53 PM
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bhester bhester is offline
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: Hopkinsville, KY
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Unhappy Second RV-7A on Floats, well sorta

A buddy of mine sent me this email along with the pictures. He keeps his plane at West Kentucky Airpark near Paducah, KY
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I always wanted a plane on floats but this is not what I had in mind. These pictures were taken on Tuesday, the water has risen another 14+ inches since. By the time I received the call, it was to late, I could not fly the plane out, I was at mother natures mercy. We met at Ed's house yesterday and ended up using a quad to pull the boats to a point to get them in the water to get back to the airport. We had to cross wheat field to accomplish this. By the time I got to the plane yesterday, it was in a nose down configuration but floating. The engine was not under water, yet?. I added two more floats, one under each wing, and one more under the nose to help level it. The water was very cold and the outside air temp was not much better. The water is nasty, it is filled with gas, oil, sewage, snakes, and I can't forget about the leaches. At this time I am totally dependent on the floats. If I could get the door open I would attempt to float it to dry ground but seeing that there really is not much of that either then there is no since even trying. I cannot really complain to much because there are alot of people losing there homes. It is a hard thing to watch and witness. Some of us has lost a home in hurricane Andrew so we know the feeling.
Ed's hangar is in bad shape as well, When we have the Fly-In don't be to surprised if you see another jug for "Flood Relief" donations, just kidding.
Sam





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Last edited by bhester : 05-07-2011 at 01:58 PM.
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  #2  
Old 05-07-2011, 02:30 PM
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Location: Flanagan, IL
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Default Tough spot, genius resolution...

I got the same pictures from Sam. I also so the pictures of the Tech Welding shop. Bad situation. I think the raft idea is perfect. Absolutely makes the best of a bad situation. It appears that the damage will be concentrated to the gear. Perhaps brakes & bearings, and he will be back in service. Might even get it in there for less than the insurance deductible.

Sad to see that happen to anyone, really brings it home when it is someone you know.

Ben
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  #3  
Old 05-07-2011, 02:35 PM
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Location: Stuart, FL /Hartford, CT/Virgin Gorda,BVI
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hang in there and keep er floating. thats a great idea. been through 3 floods at my house since 1995. the smell is , well, unique. we had 24 inches of rain in 24 hours back in 95. that put 2 plus feet of water in my house with no warning. ouch. hopn it doesnt get any higher in the plane for you. good luck.
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  #4  
Old 05-08-2011, 10:30 AM
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Location: Collinsville, IL
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The rafts are a great idea, but if you could find styrofoam like they use on floating docks, they wouldn't leak air for a potential sinking. Good luck and I hope the water levels drop soon.
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  #5  
Old 05-08-2011, 11:58 AM
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How far from the river does this type flooding occur?
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  #6  
Old 05-08-2011, 01:45 PM
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Michael White Michael White is offline
 
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Location: Cartersville, Georgia KVPC
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron Lee View Post
How far from the river does this type flooding occur?
Ron,
Depends on the extents of the flood plain, which is determined by the topography around the river. Lots of low lying land around the river means those floods can go a long way. Steeply rising land means they won't go as far. Your county services department should have a map showing the flood plains in your area. Find your airport on that map and you'll have an idea what kind of danger you face.

Best,
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  #7  
Old 05-12-2011, 06:26 PM
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Location: Maple Grove, MN
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Any update on this? So sickening to see all the flooding happening right now.
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  #8  
Old 05-12-2011, 08:55 PM
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Geico266 Geico266 is offline
 
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Location: Huskerland, USA
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They didn't know the hangers were going to flood?
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  #9  
Old 05-13-2011, 08:00 AM
shodges shodges is offline
 
Join Date: May 2011
Location: Dawson Springs, KY.
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The airport is located more than an hour away from where I work. By the time I received a call and made it too the airport, it was to late, water was over the runway and the storms just lingered over head. I constantly kept an eye on the NOAA "projected" water levels. According to NOAA's projection only the tires were going to get wet, wrong, within a hour NOAA increased its projections by 4 more feet. At one point the tires floated 2' above the hangar floor below. Sometimes we're only as good as the information given and have to adjust our decisions as things change.
Good news, my RV is back on its feet and water never touched the wings or fuselage. The airport is a mess and water still covers the runway, now starts the clean-up effort. I was very fortunate but many others were not.
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  #10  
Old 05-13-2011, 08:07 AM
compren compren is offline
 
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Default Good to Hear

Glad to hear your plane survived the flooding...
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