From Tara:

Here are some photos from my recent flights.

My first solo was on Feb. 2 at Stead, & I've had a couple more flights with PIC time since.

I expect to be moving right along with my flight training in the next couple weeks with solo to another airport, cross country flight planning, & night flying.

I've also coordinated a weekly study session via the What'sApp & zoom with Rosella to go over the oral exam prep book. So far we've coordinated regular study sessions on Wednesdays around 5:30p. Anyone interested in joining can link up with us on the WhatsApp

Christine K (JLM Final Approach Scholarship Recipient) passed her Commercial Checkride.

From Elizabeth:

Sarah Krammen (Advanced Rating Scholarship Recipient) passed her checkride for her instrument rating on December 17, 2022.  

Let's give her a congrats!!

Hello Aviatrices,

Just a reminder that the Spring First Wings scholarship submittal is coming up fast.  Here are some (not all!) of the requirements.

https://www.ninety-nines.org/first-wings-award.htm

• Member of 99s for at least 3 months

• Logged at least 5 hours in last 6 months

• Need a mentor

• Must be student pilot

• Show financial need

• April 1st deadline

Although the deadline is April 1st, I strongly recommend that you review the application now and contact me with any questions.  The First Wings scholarship comes around again in October.

Take care,

Moe Makowski

RHS 99s AEMSF Scholarship Chair

775-409-9959

Per Tara, yesterday:

I flew solo today for the first time! I'm very thankful for my CFI at GBA, Troy, the little plane 752DW, & for everyone in this group for all the advice & support in my aviation journey!
I still can't believe I flew & landed this little plane all by myself!

Hello my fellow aviatrixes! It’s the beginning of the year and the Literary Aviatrix Book Club has published this years reading list. If you read any of them, please write a review and send it to us as rhswebmistress@gmail.com. See the reading list below. Happy Reading!

As of yesterday, we have new runway numbers at KRNO! Goodbye 16/34 and 7/25! Hello 17/35 and 8/26!

If you’re flying instruments, check out the new approach numbers as some of the have changed as well.

And of course the published documentation is not quite correct…

Photo from Great Basin Aviation

Photo from David Fishman

Photo from David Fisherman

As some of you know, RHS Member Rhonda D. is an artist, and creates amazing aviation art! See some of her pieces below. Much of her art is large scale, as in * Hangar sized *. Next time you see her at a meeting or social event, ask her to show you some photos. :)

Last Saturday a group of RHS 99s met at PF Changs for dinner. A member of the Reno Area Chapter also joined us! Bonus Points if you can identify who is in the photo….

Dani here -

The hubby and I were flying back from having lunch in Concord. I was flying and was on base for 16 R when we heard a distinctive “THUNK” sound.

We looked at one another and my husband said, “What was that?” I replied, “I don’t know…” Then we noticed the low voltage indicator was on.

Turns out it was our alternator belt, it broke. Nothing that 0.75 aviation units didn’t fix. Thank goodness it was an easy fix.

What are sounds you’ve heard while flying that meant something expensive (or possibly life threatening) occurred?

Well we get to high places in the sky in other ways! Moe and Elizabeth sometimes meet up for your average "hike" - Moe picked the first one above Lake Tahoe. It was so nice that Elizabeth picked the next one in Colorado. You may think this isn't flying, but if you were to slip, I can assure you, you'd be flying.

Elizabeth and Moe, high above Lake Tahoe, talking about landing planes on hillsides.

Here you see Elizabeth and Moe “hiking” in Colorado. I don’t know about you, but I think perhaps my definition of “hiking” and THEIR definition of “hiking” might be different. All I know for sure is that if either of them invites me for a hike (and I hope they do!) I will be careful to discuss a “Hiking Plan” before taking off…

What do you do when you’re not in a plane? Send your photos a stories to RHSwebmistress@gmail.com

On October 16, I completed my first little cross country trip (100nm) in 24 years. Sometimes I have moments where I’m a little unsure of myself until I conquer it and this was one of those times. I planned a trip to Yerington, down to Lake Topaz and up to Minden. I landed at Yerington for the first time. Then we continued on and I landed at Minden. The cool part was Jere and Chris invited me to brunch ( you never know who you will find in the air!) except the Taildragger was closed! So Jere says let’s go to Lake Tahoe! So I added yet another airport to my trip. I struggled a bit to figure out how to go into South Lake but managed a great landing! Brunch was excellent! Lastly, we headed back to Carson where I had my best buttery landing ever and used the opposite runway for the first time. A big thanks to Jeff Goodwin, Jere and Chris for all the encouragement. I’m so proud of myself today!

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Congrats to Stacie! Figuring out a new airport on the fly like that is a skill indeed.

Also, I think we need some type of notification system for Airport Restaurant closures. What do you think?

You may recall a year or so ago, the FAA started changing the runway numbers. I even snapped a photo of the new numbers! But then inexplicably, they undid everything and we stayed with our current numbers.

Well, they’re at it again, and maybe it’ll stick this time. If you’ve flown in or out of Reno lately, you’ll have notice that 16L is closed. If you’re like us in a small plane based on the east side, you’ve been requesting an intersection departure at Delta on 16R.

Why is this happening though? Magnetic Variation my fellow aviatrixes. Check out this article for an in depth explanation of how and why.

In preparation of our new runway headings, practice with me now, “35 Right” “35 Left”…

See the bulletin below! And if you know why they changed their minds a while back, let us know!

Report by RHS Treasurer Stacie!

The Utah Air Hearts Chapter (Love their name!) put on a great weekend. Everything went very smoothly and that included any transportation I needed for events and to and from the airport. I also ended up with a fantastic roommate from Palm Springs. All in all I saved a bit of money in the end.

As far as the weekend went, I attended a tour of Salt Lake Center. If you haven’t toured a “Center” it is fascinating. Long ago, I toured SoCal Center in San Diego. Technology has changed a bit since then! In any case, we learned about traffic spacing and flow, where your flight plans go and flight following. Our guide had being working there for 10 years and was a wealth of knowledge.

Next we enjoyed the new Top Gun movie in a brewery. The business meeting was brief. My takeaways were that we need to find really goods ways to report back on our activities (none had been reported for 6months or more by any chapter!), nominate women for pilot of the year (nobody was nominated!) or for any other award. Lastly if we cannot attend events that other chapters put on, let’s offer support even from afar by attending on zoom as that option will now be a normal part of all events moving forward. It is soo much work to put on these fabulous events and it would be sad to see them not happen.

Next we had a wild west themed dinner and the formal banquet. So much fun with minute to win it games, a photo booth, live music and delicious food. I did not attend a few seminars as I had a chance to see some dear friends from when I lived in Salt Lake. I also did not attend the Salt Lake Tower tour as my flight home was at the same time.

We are an amazing organization and I was so glad I was able to connect with so many cool women!

The next event is the Winter Workshop in January in Los Angeles which will focus on Health and Wellness for Women Pilots. If I was going to be here I surely would consider going!

Keep in mind Aloha Chapter is hosting in Fall of 2024... how fun would it be to go to HAWAII Ladies!!

From Stacie:

Laura Starkey and I got to go flying in her VERY COOL plane. We had so much fun and shared so many fun stories. She even let me try flying! I have never flown a stick and I got to experience a glass cockpit which I will start flying with in Florida. Laura thank you for a fun morning and for your friendship!

Dani here -

My hubby and I flew out last weekend and noticed this plane sitting on the tarmac at Reno. I immediately knew who this plane belonged to (and I was VERY excited), but my husband had no idea.

Do YOU know who this plane belongs to? Write in the comments if you do (or don’t) and what generation you’re part of. My hubby is Gen X and didn’t know, I’m a xennial (or millennial) and did.

RHS99 Dani and Kid Rock’s Airplane at KRNO 10/8/22

For those who didn’t know - this plane belongs to Kid Rock, a musician. “American Bad Ass” is a hit single off his “History of Rock” album released in 2000.

After taking the photo above, we flew out to Concord to spend the weekend in the bay area with family and friends. My husband flew the leg down, and I flew the leg home (pictured below). You can tell some of the areas in which I was task loaded and drifted around. I’m looking forward to spending more time in the air and further improving my skills.

RHS member and student pilot Tara T working hard on her PPL at GIFT! She’s busy flying, but sent these photos to Stacie. Way to go TARA! We can’t wait to hear all about your week of flight training!

If you’re unfamiliar with GIFT, please check out their website and if you’ve the time, consider volunteering your time (or funds) to them!

It’s hard to believe it was just a year ago that RHS members Serena and Hannah M. were at GIFT! Check out Serena’s blog post from a year ago!

Some know her as our Chapter’s Amelia Earhart Scholarship Committee Chair, some know her for instituting the Chapter’s rule on use of the word “Just”, but I call her “My Favorite Moe!”. (If you’re new to the chapter, don’t worry, Chapter ATC will warn you before issuing a pilot deviation for the “Just” rule) However you know her, here’s the exciting news from Moe yesterday:

“Boom! All Done. Finished SIC checkride today. “

Moe - SIC Checkride - DONE!

There she was, having fun doing stalls in a Jet around Bozeman. Anyone (other than Heather and Moe) know what the stall speed on a Phenom 300E is?

But wait, there’s more….No, really, we have to wait until November, but stay tuned because Moe is out there flying.

Funny Cartoon, but a serious topic. I firmly believe that mid air close calls are a matter of when, not if. Whether you’re VFR in a glider or IFR in a jet we must all see and avoid, deconflict, and take aggressive action to avoid midair collisions.

Safety Guidelines From the FAA

Mid Air collisions in aviation tend to be deadly. Check out this FAA Air Circular and this FAAST publication on how to avoid them. The Circular in particular is interesting because it has reaction times, and my fellow aviatrixes, they are not as fast as you’d think.

AOPA Air Safety Institute Video and Preliminary NTSB Report - a Case Study

Check out this AOPA Air Safety Institute Video and the associated preliminary NTSB Report on a tragic accident that occurred on July 17, 2022, at the North Las Vegas Airport (VGT). This case study is particularly applicable for us because the accident took place on an offset parallel runway, which is of course what we have here in at the Reno Tahoe International Airport (RNO) .

Back to something fun

To end (dare I say land?) this post on a lighter note, take this fun Right-of-Way quiz from Bold Method which involves a plane on fire, a tow with Glider, and a balloon. Do you know who has right of way? Take the quiz and find out.

Because a picture is worth 1,000 words and just in case you don’t remember….

This past Saturday morning Dani did some touch and go’s in Reno with her hubby in their 182, Monday Heather flew her Dakota to breakfast in Reno, and on Tuesday Stacie was out flying a Cherokee during lunch.

You may wonder where we’re getting these flight paths from. If you’re interested in “following” your favorite pilots (and no, I’m not talking about social media here), check out a neat little website and app called “Flight Aware”. (Yes, I’m sure there are others, but this is what Stacie and Dani use.) All you need is a tail number and you can see your favorite pilots flight path. Not only this, but you can receive notifications of when they take off and land! This is all thanks to a little piece of technology required by all aircraft that enter airspace classes A, B, and C, known as ADSB.

So, tell us, what’s YOUR tail number?? Better yet, send trip reports with photos and or screenshots of your aviation adventures to rhswebmistress@gmail.com