The International Cessna^® 170 Association

Hi all. I just bought a 1954 170B about a month ago and wanted to say hi and thanks to all for the useful information on this forum. It's a fairly unmodified plane with O300. I learned to fly it from an old cropduster in Texas. Or should say that (after 60 hours getting my private pilot license in cherokees) in about 30 hours in the 170 I went from not being able to taxi it straight on the taxi way to not being able to keep it on the runway in ground roll to being able to land it on a taxiway fairly straight in a cross wind, within about a week of intense effort. Apparently the pedals do something useful in a 170! I couldnt imagine learning the 170 from someone without the experience my instructor had, just laughing at me without flinching as I'm up on one wheel going sideways countless times, getting me straight again if I couldnt just as we're about to head into the weeds (which happened a few times anyway...). A 170B was his first plane 40 years ago, so I think it was nostalgic for him too. But now I at least feel reasonably competent, having nearly fully explored the ground roll envelope... Anyway, I love the plane and I'm looking forward to learning a lot more and making a few of the recommended modifications I've found on this forum, and one day perhaps sharing something useful. At the moment, all I can recommend is finding an old crop duster to learn from, if for no other reason to get first hand demonstrations of what the plane is really capable of when handled by a skilled pilot! I also can recommend learning at an out-of-the-way airport in Texas or similar far from home where you can practice landing on taxiways, the grass on the side of the runways, on fields, etc., both for the experience of different surfaces, widths, lengths, etc and so that no one but your instructor will see you going sideways, as I dont think I would ever live that those initial landings down if done at my home airport...

Congratulations on your ownership of the 170 and having learned how to keep it between the ditches Now you can continue your tail wheel education. We never learn it all as there are just too many different circumstances that can confront us while flying these aircraft. Hopefully you have become a member of our association or if not you will choose to do so now that you own one of the real classics. As a Texan I have to be curious where you found your 170 and where you have now placed it in its new home. Be sure to watch for 170 fly ins in your area so you can attend them and meet other members. It is a great organization with tons of super nice folks, many with loads of knowledge of the 170's. When possible try to attend one of our conventions. Welcome aboard

Frank

Thanks Frank. Yes, I will join but havent yet. I'm in Fairbanks, the plane is still in Texas, I plan to fly it back up next month after another week or two of 'cropdusting' experience. Vernon TX (F05) is the place, and I cant recommend it highly enough for flight training. The husband, wife, daughter and grand-daughter are all CFIIs, A&P, IA, etc, and seem to specialize in intensive training, for any stage of learning, from beginning to advanced, and will fly you from dawn to midnight if you let them. There's a pilot house on the ramp, camping is fine, and the local food is great. They also have a strong commitment to training women, both because it seems women have a higher drop out rate (apparently a lot of which has to do with male instructors) and because they have a theory that the more wives that are pilots the more husbands will remain pilots. They sponsor week-long women-only ground and flight schools from time to time, and I learned a lot from the other students and families staying at the pilot house for their training. I think one of the things I enjoyed most about it was the ability to land on such a variety of locations and surfaces so close to base, as doing this locally at home means largely means being far away from roads and civilization, which adds a lot of intimidation factor. I had never been to Texas before, but I can see why so many pilots must like it.

pingo,
Where to people in Fairbanks keep their small airplanes today? When I was up there 65 years ago, I had a Stinson L-5 and kept it at Weeks Field which was the Fairbanks City Airport in those days. It was just a gravel strip almost down town. No tower, no kind of radio communication at all. This was before the days of VHF radio and unicom. Lots of traffic and airplanes as large as Curtis C-46 airliners using it. Wein was flying Cessnas and Noorduyn Norseman , Alaska Air;ines still had an old Pilgrim, and Northern Consolidate had a bunch of Stinson V-77s. Pan American Airways using DC-4s used Ladd AFB.

They reside at East Ramp on International, Chena Marina and many private strips scattered about. Weeks no longer exsists

Hello, "pingo"!!!
Glad to see you found us! Welcome!

Feel free to give names/contact info of the folks in Vernon, if they're willing. YOu never know how that might help someone!

The single, best advice I can give anyone starting out in taildraggers is...... do it on GRASS! Concrete is very unforgiving until you learn what rudder is!

Here's a story about the Vernon folks, just out in Flight Training magazine.
http://flighttraining.aopa.org/magazine ... wings.html