Plane Will Be Open "Right Down To Belly Skins"
The Aircraft Owners and Pilots
Association (AOPA) tells ANN it will publicly debut its 2007
Catch-A-Cardinal Sweepstakes airplane at the Lakeland Fly-In in
Lakeland, FL next month... and it will be the most unusual AOPA
sweepstakes debut ever.
"The Cardinal will be on display as no other AOPA sweepstakes
airplane has been -- open right down to the belly skins," said
Julie Boatman, project manager and AOPA Pilot technical editor.
"This is a unique opportunity for all pilots to see its inner
workings for a better understanding of airplanes and the mechanics
involved in restoring them."
The 1977 Cessna Cardinal 177B (seen below in its previous life)
will be freshly painted, and will have a factory overhauled
Lycoming O-360-A1FB engine and a completely upgraded panel. But the
fun begins when you see what the plane is missing.
The doors will be removed; the inside will be stripped down to
the floorboards; and the cowling will be off. Everyone who stops by
AOPA's Big Yellow Tent at the show will have the unique experience
of seeing what is on the inside of an airplane -- how the flight
controls work, and how the airplane is structurally put
together.
In addition, AOPA members are encouraged to become a lasting
part of the project by signing a floorboard. Two of them will be on
display outside of the airplane throughout the week at
Lakeland.
Power will be hooked up to the plane so visitors may also see
the avionics, which were chosen for their ease of use and
popularity among pilots. The following are among the avionics on
the upgraded panel: dual Garmin GNS 430 Wide Area Augmentation
System (WAAS)-capable Global Positioning Systems (GPSs); Garmin GDL
90 datalink with automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B)
capability; L-3 Communications Avionics Systems Stormscope
lightning detector; J.P. Instruments engine monitor; Honeywell
Bendix/King horizontal situation indicator (HSI); and S-Tec
autopilot.
Representatives of three major contributors -- The AvNet, Cessna
Aircraft Company, and Sarasota Avionics International -- will be on
site throughout the week to answer questions and talk about the
Cardinal and its process of refurbishment. In addition, more than
30 contributors will be exhibiting at the Fly-In.
Boatman will join representatives of the Cardinal Flyers type
club and Cessna Aircraft Company on Friday, April 20, and Saturday,
April 21, for hangar sessions at Lakeland. Visitors to AOPA's Big
Yellow Tent may participate in discussions about the updates that
have been performed on the aircraft, and what is yet to come in the
yearlong refurbishment project.
The Lakeland Fly-In gets underway April 17-23.