The International Cessna^® 170 Association

THIS IS FYI. ANY SOUTH LOUISIANA OR MISSISSIPPI 170 OWNERS WHO NEED TO EVACUATE COSTAL AREAS IN THE PATH OF THIS MONSTER HURRICANE ARE WELCOME TO SHELTER HERE IN WESTERN LOUISIANA AT OUR HOME AIRPORT OR THAT OF MANY (3R4) AND WE WILL PROVIDE AS MUCH ASSISTANCE AS POSSIBLE FOR THE DURATION.

CALL OLE GAR FOR "HEADS UP" ON SHELTER AVAILABLE.

MY NUMBER IS IN THE C-170 DIRECTORY

GOOD LUCK................

I've been thinking about all you guys in the path of Katrina. Sure hope you all survived OK. What a terrible tragedy !
We got just a touch-up from Katrina in Florida- blew down my fence and we were without electricity for 3 days, a minor inconvenience compared to the gulf coast.

Satellite Picture of New Orleans:
http://hosted.ap.org/specials/interacti ... index.html

Today we flew from Chattanooga to Baton Rouge to pick up two evacuees. For the flight down they routed us Meridian, Natchez, Baton Rouge. ATC said all traffic from the north or the east is being routed via Natchez. The ramp at Baton Rouge was the most aircraft and businest I have ever seen at any airport. The ramp, and some taxiways, were covered with all types of aircraft. Helicopters and corporate jets outnumbered piston singles and twins. All sorts of rescue people and people waiting to leave filled all of the FBO's to overflowing. We brought back a boy who was a senior in a New Orleans school, he is going to go to McCauley School in Chattanooga, and a elderly lady who was in a retirement home and is now going to live with her daughter in Chattanooga. For the return flight they cleared us direct to Chattanooga.

Harold
N92CP

Great job, Harold!

I only wish I was in a position to help in a similar manner.

Miles

Gary, how did you fare with the fickle Katrina? Haven't seen any more posts from you since all the disaster action took place.

Eric

I got word from a mutual friend yesterday that Don Poucher's hangar and 1953 C170B in Slidell, LA (north shore of Lake Ponchartrain, near the Mississippi border) survived the storm without damage, although an FBO hangar did take a hit. Also, Don's house is on high enough ground that he did not get flooded.

Word from another former flying buddy in Picayune, MS, is that his hangar and airplanes survived the storm, but they are now all out of gas, as he has drained them to keep generators running. The closest purchasable gasoline is Baton Rouge, over a hundred miles away.

Miles

Tell him to consider using TCP/MMO/snakeoil if he's burning 100LL in his generators. When I used 100LL in my Honda generator (for long term storage benefits), and burned it out a few months later, the next season there was no compression. Stuck exhaust valve. Had to pull the head, squirt it with penetrating oil, and use pliers to twist/free the valve. That was 10 years ago. Automotive motor oils these days also have no lead scavengers in them. No more problems since using TCP and AeroShell aviation oils in it.

One of his airplanes is a Starduster, so I suspect it had mogas in it. The other is an early model Bonanza ('50 or '51) with the E-series engine. It may or may not have had 100LL. Either way, there was probably an appropriate amount of "snake oil" in the fuel in the airplanes. At any rate, it is a moot point now; as of last Saturday he was about to run out of fuel of any kind, and has already done what he has done. I would imagine that if he has to drive a hundred miles for fuel, he will buy the cheapest stuff he can find, and that probably ain't avgas.

Actually it might BE avgas! Locally here in TX, mogas at the corner Exxon is $3.15 and avgas at the local airport is $2.95.

gahorn wrote:Actually it might BE avgas! Locally here in TX, mogas at the corner Exxon is $3.15 and avgas at the local airport is $2.95.

George, now that I think of it, you just might be right! I haven't bought any avgas in two months, so I've lost track. A little research shows the following:

airnav.com shows self-serve 100LL at $2.99 in Mojave (3-week old data), and $3.25 at Tehachapi (as of Aug. 30). The cheapest mogas (as of last night) in Tehachapi is $3.15.

My oldest daughter who is a freshman at the University of Tennessee said that as of Sunday, car gas was up to $3.62 there. airnav.com indicates that Knoxville Downtown Island airport has managed to barely stay ahead by posting today's price at $3.75.

airnav.com shows 100LL prices in Baton Rouge range from $3.29 to $4.05, but that is all pre-Katrina data. With the price gouging that has apparently been going on, who knows what mogas prices are there, seeing as how that is the closest available fuel to New Orleans. If it is true that avgas is cheaper than mogas, there will soon be a boom market for new catalytic converters!

Miles

Av gas was $4.10 at Louisiana Aviation in Baton Rouge Sunday. Took about two hours to get fueled. I read somewhere that they are bringing fuel directly from a nearby refinery to the airport as all air rescue operations are now based out of Baton Rouge.

Harold
N92CP

Avgas @ Gregg County (GGG) in Longview, TX on Sunday was $4.20 per gallon + tax. I don't know how much the tax was as I didn't purchase any fuel due to the unacceptable price. I came back to the metroplex and bought it for $2.85.

DIJALL MISS ME SUM HYEAR THU LAS FEW WEEKS? OH YA DIDN'T WELL SHOOT I BIN UP TO MY EARS IN HEPPIN FEED SOME 500 OR SO EVACUEES HERE IN OUR NEK O THE WOODS. WEESA KINDA FELT BAD CAUS WE DINT EVEN GIT A DRAP OF RAIN OUR THAT THERE 'CANE, BUT GOTS SOME FOLKS NEEDIN HELP.

IN REALITY WE HAVE BEEN FORTUNATE HERE IN WESTERN LOUISIANA TO HAVE BEEN SPARED ANY OF THE STORMS FURY. WE SEEM TO BE IN A DROUGHT HERE. WE ARE THANKFUL FOR NO STORM DAMAGE THOUGH. MANY CHURCHES AND PRIVATE SHELTERS HAVE OFFERED SHELTER AND FOOD TO ABOUT 500 PEOPLE THAT FLED BEFOR THE STORM HIT. THEY MAY HAVE LOST EVERYTHING BUT MOST ARE IN THE PROCESS OF DEALING WITH THAT. WE WORKED WITH THE EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS CO-ORDINATOR IN OUR AREA AND HAVE COOKED AND SERVED SOME MEALS, DISTRIBUTED CLOTHING, NON PERISHABLE FOOD AND PERSONAL ITEMS TO MANY OF THE EVACUEES.

AS OF YESTERDAY SOME OF THEM GOT WORD THAT THEY CAN RETURN TO THEIR HOMES. THEY FACE SOME DIFFICULT TIMES AND MAY NOT HAVE MUCH LEFT. SAY A PRAYER FOR THEM.

I TALKED TO RON MASSICOT THE DAY AFTER THE 'CANE HIT AND THEY ARE JUST FINE. SOME PRETTY INTENSE RAIN BUT NOT TOO MUCH WIND.

SO LONG FOR NOW OLE GAR

Gar, I wonder how many towns over how big of an area have evacuees now. Russellville is about 400 miles away from where New Orleans was, by 170. Last I heard, Traci said that there were about 500 evacuees students enrolled in the school system. The different churches are taking turns feeding the families. The Red Cross is set up and the town is in a volunteer frenzy to help. What's interesting to me is that Atkins (down the hill from Petit Jean), a very small town, has 40 new students in their schools. According to Traci's cousins whom are teachers there. That should about double the size of that school's enrollment. I expected Little Rock, Houston, Atlanta, etc., to swell in population, but it suprises me to see towns like Booger Holler or Bald Knob gettting evacuees. BTW I think it's great to see them in country towns, that's exactly where I'd want to take my family.
My kids have had new atheletes joining their sports teams this last week. Tryston says they seem to be fitting right in, especially the ones that have interest like the sports. Arkansas was forcast to have about 100,000, don't know where that stands now.