EAA Chapter 186

I have a few miscellaneous but important items this month.

Elections: The annual Chapter 186 officer election process will end with a membership vote at the November 22 Member Gathering. The current President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary are Bob Prange, Jim Stone, Michael Iachini and Dan Botzer, respectively. They have each indicated they wish to continue in their positions for next 2026. Terms are for one year. In the interest of fairness and transparency Chapter 186 accepts nominations for any member hat wishes to run. No other nominations have been received at this point.

Survey: EAA is conducting a survey of its membership to respond to questions about their local chapter. We encourage you to participate in this survey. EAA will share the results of Chapter 186 members’ responses with us to help us better understand our areas of strength and areas that need improvement. Results will be de-identified so we will not see individual member information or responses. If enough Chapter 186 members respond, we will get credit toward the ten criteria for maintaining our Gold Chapter status. Please click the link below to the survey. If the link does not work, please copy and paste to your browser.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/ZW9WXBL

Party: Our Holiday Party is just a couple weeks away! Please plan to attend at 12:00 Noon on Sunday December 7 for great camaraderie and good food. As always, we will provide a cooked ham, turkey and beverages. Please bring a favorite side dish or dessert. This promises to be another blockbuster party! See the announcement in the next pages. Please consider bringing your 2026 dues renewal form and check to the Holiday Party!

Membership: The 2026 membership renewal process has begun! Please complete a membership renewal form and either mail it with a check or if you prefer, pay with Zelle or PayPal using the payee as indicated on the renewal form and mail or bring the form to the next meeting. And, also please consider bringing your 2026 dues renewal form and check to the Holiday Party!

Scholarships: EAA has several flight training scholarships in addition to the Ray Foundation Scholarship. Some of these are for all ages and ratings, not just for a young adult working on their Private license. Click below to learn about these various scholarships. Many have a December deadline for application. These are administered by EAA Headquarters, not the local chapters.

https://www.eaa.org/eaa/learn-to-fly/scholarships/eaa-flight-training-scholarships

Blue Skies,
Bob

Our 2022 Ray Scholarship recipient is newly commissioned in the U.S. Air Force
Juliette Burton, begins her first T-6 Texan II flight at Laughlin AFB!

Congratulations Juliette!

ONLINE APPLICATIONS

https://eaa186.org/events/eaa-chapter-186-membership-online-application-2025/

To order a nametag, go to https://eaa186.org/events/eaa-chapter-186-name-tag-order-form-paypal-only/.

CHAPTER MEMBERSHIP FEES

$30 Jan–Dec Single Member Dues
$35 Jan-Dec Family Member Dues
$12 for Name Tag and postage
$12 – hard copy of Directory (printing & mailing)
$2 surcharge if paying by PayPal

Contact Meredith Martin-Richards for Membership info: Meredithm.m7@gmail.com

DID YOU CHANGE YOUR E-MAIL?
Please advise Meredith Martin-Richards, 703-594-1281 (call or text) or Meredithm.m7@gmail.com if any of your membership directory information changes. Thanks.

In January 2026, Chapter 186 will apply to EAA to administer a 2026 Ray Foundation Aviation Scholarship. If we are selected to give another Ray Scholarship, we will begin a search in March for a motivated youth aged 16 1⁄2 to 19 who would like to participate in a concentrated one-year effort to acquire his/her Private Pilot License.

Our current 2025 Ray Scholar, Cliff Storey, flew his first solo (powered) flight in October. He is training at Aviation Adventures at Manassas.

Our 2022 Ray Scholar, Juliette Burton, graduated from University of Maryland last May and was commissioned into the Air Force in June. She reported to Laughlin AFB in Texas and has spent 10 weeks in academics and simulator training. On November 10 she received her first flight in a T-6A Texan II. See cover story.

Thank you to all the volunteers that keep this Chapter busy and visible. That helps us qualify to grant another Ray Scholarship each year.

Scholarship Application List:

Virginia Aviation Business Association:
Charles J. Colgan Scholarship – https://www.thevaba.org/colgan-application
Virginia Department of Aviation: https://doav.virginia.gov/virginia-aviation-scholarships/
Willard G. Plentl Sr. Aviation Scholarship
John R. Lillard Foundation Aviation Scholarship
Kenneth R. Scott Aviation Scholarship
Chad Weaver Aviation Scholarship
Virginia Aeronautical Historical Society:
Captain Earle Worley Scholarship https://www.vahsonline.com/programs/aviation-scholarships/

AOPA:

Numerous aviation scholarships https://www.aopa.org/training-and-safety/students/aopa-
flight-training-scholarships

EAA:

Numerous aviation scholarships https://www.eaa.org/eaa/learn-to-fly/scholarships/eaa-flight-training-scholarships

EAA Air Academy 2026 Registration

Parents: Information (dates, course content, ages, tuition costs) and on-line registration for the June and July 2026 camps are now available at https://www.eaa.org/eaa/youth/eaa aviation-and-flight-summer-camps.

There are two separate camps:

Explore Aviation Camp and Navigating Horizons Camp for either of two age groups, 14 to 15 and 16 to 18. Once you are registered and accepted for a camp, you can apply directly to the EAA for an EAA campership which may help pay for the tuition. EAA Ch 186 has also provided tuition assistance in the past couple years. If you are already registered for an Air Academy camp, let us know and we may be able to help with tuition assistance. If you are in either age group and interested in Explore Aviation Camp let us know. We have placed deposits on a couple camp sessions for campers to be named later. We may be able to help with up to 50% of your tuition. Transportation to and from Air Academy is the responsibility of the parents but room and board are all part of the tuition.

We flew 41 kids in October at Warrenton and 38 in November at Manassas. Our next Young Eagles Rallies are:

Dec 13 – Manassas at 1100
Jan 10 – Manassas at 1100
Feb 14 – Manassas at 1100

Young Eagles flights are available to kids between ages 8 and 17. We normally hold our rallies on the second Saturday each month.

Parents can register at events.eaachapters.org beginning at 8:00 AM on the 1st of each month.

Chapter 186 Young Eagles Coordinators
David Richards
Bob Prange

We meet on the 4th Tuesday each month. IMC Club at 7 PM. VMC Club at 8 PM. Come for one or both sessions; we usually meet beforehand at 5:30 PM for informal dinner at the Panera Bread at Bristow Center.

The IMC Club’s purpose is to promote instrument flying proficiency, safety and education through a community of pilots sharing information and fostering communications. You don’t have to be instrument rated to come to the IMC Club. The VMC Club, for pilots wishing to improve their VFR flying proficiency, is modeled after the popular IMC Club providing organized “hangar flying” with a focus on VFR procedures, regulations and publications.

TR Proven and Chuck Kyle are our facilitators for these meetings but the attendees are encouraged to participate with their knowledge and experience. Each one-hour meeting earns you one credit toward the FAA Wings Pilot Proficiency program.

After four years on display in the Chapter House, the Build & Fly airplane has been brought back to life. The project started with some Young Eagles just before COVID in 2019 and was completed at the end of 2020 by Mike Walpole and Bob Prange. Videos of the building progress can be seen on YouTube at “skigolfmike”. The plane survived its first test flight with issues and adjustments were made by Mike. However, he moved away and we never got to show any of the contributing Eagles their project in flight. I hadn’t been in the RC flying hobby in over ten years and didn’t feel comfortable taking over as chief pilot. That changed this year when a friend gave me a Turbo Timber model for my birthday in July. With a few hours of fresh experience under my belt, I brought down the Sig Kadet PT-40 hanging from the ceiling, dusted it off and brought it back to airworthy condition. Last Sunday I achieved 15 minutes of flying, 10 landings and one broken prop.

Apparently, taxiing on gravel is not ideal. The plane flies great and is very stable. It was designed as a trainer. The flight included a couple of loops and rolls, a hammerhead and a spin. This weekend, Bob and I are going to test the buddy box which allows for a trainer and a student to fly together. We will also find out if Bob is trainable. Hopefully a video will be forthcoming.

{UPDATE from Sam} It’s official, Bob is trainable. He logged more than 30 total minutes of flight time today on the Build & Fly LT-40. It was Bob’s first time flying RC and my first time attempting to train with the buddy box. All went well and the plane is reusable, always a good outcome! There was no one to film the training, but Bob filmed a couple of my takeoffs and landings to show the project successfully completed and tested after only 5 years.

https://youtu.be/zZ-1BHYFH8k
https://youtu.be/1uZStwsAL7k

{And from Bob} I knew from trying little indoor RC models that when the aircraft is approaching, my brain has never worked fast enough to figure out the reverse controlling necessary for left and right turns. But thanks to Sam’s experience and patience, I was able to fly the Ch 186 Build and Fly LT-40 and actually felt like I progressed a little. Certainly I would have crashed quite a few times but having Sam override my mistakes with the other controller saved the aircraft. That was a lot of fun.

EAA Chapter 186 Chili Cook-Off Heats Up with
Fun, Flavor, and Friendly Competition!

At the Chapter House on October 25, there was no shortage of spice, smiles, and spirited competition at this year’s Chili Cook-Off! No fewer than 40 members gathered for an event filled with simmering crock pots and secret recipes as our talented chili chefs battled it out for top honors.

After much tasting, our esteemed judges (Meredith Richards, Jack McCombs, Tim Lewis, Curtis Smith and Jim Stone) crowned the champions:

Best Overall: Barry Toole with his “Star MacAdam” chili
Hottest/Spiciest: David Richards with his “HolySmoke Chili”
Best Presentation/Most Attractive: George Philipps with his “Sailor Chili Delight”
Most Creative/Unusual: Eric Whiteside
Mildest/Subtle: Cathy Carey with her “White Chicken Chili”

A huge thank you goes out to everyone who entered their chili. Each pot was a winner in its own right, showcasing the incredible variety and talent across our members. We also want to recognize all the generous members who brought a wealth of delicious sides, desserts, and toppings — no one left hungry! And of course, a special shout-out to our setup and cleanup crew (Bob Prange, Jim Stone, TR Proven, Cathy Carey, DB Botzer, Judy Sparks and Dan Lawrence). Their hard work behind the scenes kept everything running smoothly and made the event a huge success. We can’t wait to see what inspires next year’s Cook-Off!