Jump to content

BCrystal

Basic Member
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    50

  • Joined

  • Last visited

Everything posted by BCrystal

  1. BCrystal
    Video: Brian Lloyd landed his aircraft "Spirit" after his solo flight completing the historic round-the-world Earhart equatorial route at Oakland airport, California, USA. On 31 July 2017, while at Oakland, he visited "ARINC" Rockwell-Collins Aeronautical Communications Center, where they use HF radio for air traffic control radio operations over the oceans. He also visited the historic Oakland airport building where Amelia Earhart stayed in the 1930s, which now houses the CAP #188 Amelia Earhart Squadron. Project Amelia Earhart 80th Anniversary Flight.
  2. BCrystal
    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Download: PDF TXT Brian Lloyd Pilots His Plane Round The World - Flight Followed Historic Route on Earhart 80th Anniversary - Spring Branch Texas, USA. August 4, 2017 - Brian Lloyd, solo-flying his single-engine aircraft Spirit, landed at Kestrel Air Park today, completing his circumnavigation of the globe. He was accompanied over the last few miles by an escort of pilots in eight planes flying in formation with him. On the ground, a reception and hangar party welcomed him home. At the celebration, Brian Lloyd said, "How do I say, 'thank you' to everyone here and abroad who has helped me along the way on this epic journey? I couldn't have done this solo flight without the time, effort, and good will of hundreds of people out there around the world." He began the round-the-world flight at that same spot on 31 May 2017, then flew to Miami on 1 June to commemorate exactly eighty years since the famous Amelia Earhart flight began. For two months, he followed the historic Earhart equatorial route, stopping at dozens of airports that were once grass and dirt airstrips where Earhart had landed. Some of those airstrips have grown up to become sprawling international airports, while others simply don't exist anymore, or are in the midst of conflict zones. Brian Lloyd completed the historic route on 30 July, by landing at Oakland, California, which was Earhart's unfulfilled final destination. He retraced the steps of Amelia by visiting the historic building at Oakland airport where she had stayed during her original flights. Brian Lloyd said, "I am driven by the spirit of historic flights. It is important to remember the aviation pioneers like Amelia Earhart, and their contributions to aviation. Their bold actions made today's air travel possible for all of us." Lloyd's route included an homage overflight of Howland Island, that tiny atoll in Pacific Ocean where the famous flight was mysteriously lost in 1937. He dropped two large pink tropical flowers over the site in memoriam for Earhart and Noonan. When he reached Hawaii, Brian Lloyd said, "My respect for Amelia Earhart has risen a thousand times now that I have flown 28,000 miles in her shoes. Speeds are comparable, and I have had to deal with the same sort of weather that she did." Brian Lloyd is the first solo aviator to complete the historic Earhart equatorial route. Spirit has endured fierce winds, blasting sandstorms, and severe tropical weather along the equator. It has not been an easy flight, due to the long flight hours and complex logistics. On July 14th, Spirit's engine failed momentarily at 21,000 feet over the Pacific ocean, forcing Brian Lloyd to land in New Zealand for repairs. Everywhere he went, he invited ground crew and friends to sign the airplane with a marker pen. It became a mission of outreach and goodwill. The plane's fuselage and wings are now covered in signatures that bear witness to the huge network of support that it takes to fly around the world. At the Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum in Atchison Kansas, Lloyd was awarded the medal from the Ninety-Nines, the famous international organization of women pilots founded in 1929, of which Amelia Earhart was its first president. Several world records were set by Brian Lloyd and Spirit on this flight: First solo flight of the Historic Earhart Equatorial Route, and first male pilot to fly the Historic Earhart Equatorial Route in a propeller aircraft. Upon landing in Texas, Brian Lloyd commented, "Hopefully I can motivate kids to go out and try new things. Here I am at sixty-three, in a single engine aircraft, flying around the world. You can go out and do something amazing, too." Brian Lloyd's aircraft, a Mooney M20K 231 with tail number N916BL, is outfitted with 200 gallons of fuel capacity and modern satellite avionics gear, giving it a 3000 mile range. But, like the Earhart's famous Lockheed Electra plane, there is a High Frequency (HF) radio in Spirit. Brian Lloyd used the HF radio to communicate with hundreds of ham radio operators all over the world while he was in flight, using the callsign "WB6RQN Aeronautical Mobile". About: Brian Lloyd, 63, is a pilot, flight instructor, engineer, educator, and radio operator. He lives near San Antonio, Texas, USA. The commemorative flights like Project Amelia Earhart, are co-sponsored by The Classic Aircraft Aviation Museum, a non-profit in Texas, and many other individuals who contribute to support the flights through donations. Project Amelia Earhart website: http://projectameliaearhart.org Press Kit: http://projectameliaearhart.org/press
  3. BCrystal
    Brian Lloyd, flying his aircraft Spirit, completed the circumnavigation of the globe today at 2339UTC 04AUG2017 (6:39pm Local Time) , landing at Kestrel Airpark, in Spring Branch, Texas, USA. He began the circumnavigation flight at the origin (Kestrel Airpark) on 31 May 2017, and then stopped at Miami (Ft. Lauderdale airport) to begin the Historic Earhart Equatorial Route commemorating the 80th anniversary of the Earhart round-the-world announcement day, 1 June 1937. Brian's route included an homage overflight over Howland Island (as well as Baker and Nikumaroro islands), where the Earhart-Noonan flight was lost. He completed the Historic Earhart Route on 30 July by landing at Oakland airport, then visited the same location and building at Oakland airport where Earhart stayed at the start of her original flight. A list of some records that were set on this flight. First solo flight of the Historic Earhart Equatorial Route. First male pilot to fly the Historic Earhart Equatorial Route in a propeller aircraft. First to fly the Historic Earhart Equatorial Route in a single engine propeller aircraft. Throughout the flight, Brian Lloyd's consistent message to the world has been, "the early pioneers of flight should be remembered and honored". More fascinating content will be added to the Project Amelia Earhart website within the next few weeks. There are a lot of videos, audio, text, and photographs still to be processed.
  4. BCrystal
    There are still some Flight Patches, for those who want them. They are given to contributors to the flight. https://fundly.com/project-amelia-earhart It is the same patch that Brian Lloyd wears on his flight suit, a high quality sewn embroidered round patch that has velcro hook on the back.. Brilliant red, white, royal blue, with gold, and forest green. Project Amelia Earhart 80th Anniversary Flight Patch Project Amelia Earhart 80th Anniversary Flight Patch
  5. BCrystal
    In preparation to meet Brian at his historic landing at Oakland airport, I had a few paper QSL cards printed for him. I prepared one of those cards ahead of time for his signature in person: it was for an HF radio contact we had while he was over the Pacific Ocean near Tonga.Normally, Brian prefers to use eQSL.cc electronic QSLs, rather than deal with paper QSLs. But, for this event, I thought this paper QSL would be a great memento to keep. QSL card of Brian Lloyd WB6RQN / Air Mobile confirming HF radio communication at 0415 UTC on 23 July 2017 with Bonnie Crystal KQ6XA on 14346.0 kHz USB ALE photo ©2017 Bonnie Crystal
  6. BCrystal
    Using ALE (Automatic Link Establishment) I was able to call and talk with Brian several times via HF radio yesterday. It was 1705 UTC on 03AUG2017 for our first contact. We linked first via ALE on 14346.0 kHz USB and Brian (call sign WB6RQN/Aeronautical Mobile) reported by voice SSB that he was flying over the Painted Desert of Arizona. Lat 35.845148, Lon -110.368522 There was a lot of fading during the voice conversation on 14 MHz, so we closed the link and I tried another scanning ALE call, to see if there was a better frequency. The ALE then linked us on 18117.5 kHz USB, and the signal strength was significantly better for our voice conversation on 18 MHz. After a while, 18 MHz faded out, so we re-linked again on 14 MHz. Several other ham operators wanted to talk with Brian at that point, so he continued talking with them for while, as he flew over New Mexico, then landed for a short pit stop in Dalhart Texas. He then flew to Atchison Kansas, the location of the Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum.
  7. BCrystal
    HF belly antenna on Spirit. WB6RQN / Aeronautical Mobile.Constructed of Dayton-Granger aeronautical antenna hardware.Photos: 31 July 2017 on the apron of Oakland airport, upon Brian Lloyd's completion of the solo flight of the "Historic Earhart Route" portion of the circumnavigation. photo ©2017 Bonnie Crystal photo ©2017 Bonnie Crystal photo ©2017 Bonnie Crystal
  8. BCrystal
    YouTube VIDEO: Brian Lloyd checks out the cockpit controls and data logging systems in the aircraft "Spirit" after his solo flight completing the historic Earhart route at Oakland airport, California, USA, on 31 July 2017. The airplane is a Mooney M20K 231, with modifications to the avionics, communications, and fuel capacity for long distance oceanic flights. Project Amelia Earhart 80th Anniversary Flight. video
  9. BCrystal
    Click to view: Photos of signatures on Brian Lloyd’s aircraft Spirit for the Project Amelia Earhart 80th Anniversary Flight in June-July 2017. http://projectameliaearhart.org/signatures/ http://projectameliaearhart.org/signatures/
  10. BCrystal
    Brian Lloyd with Spirit on the apron at Oakland California airport 31JULY2017
  11. BCrystal
    Flight update: 30 July 2017 Sunday. Kona, Hawaii : ETD 6AM Hawaii Time Oakland*, California : ETA 11PM California Time *Oakland was Amelia Earhart's original destination airport for her round-the-world flight in 1937. Oakland was also a familiar base of operations and of aircraft maintenance for Earhart over the years preceding the 1937 flight. HF Aeronautical Frequencies for Central Eastern Pacific MWARA (Hawaii-California) Listen for N916BL 2869 kHz USB 3413 kHz USB 3452 kHz USB 5547 kHz USB 5574 kHz USB 6673 kHz USB 8843 kHz USB 8915 kHz USB 10057 kHz USB 11282 kHz USB 13288 kHz USB 13354 kHz USB 21964 kHz USB click here for: Wall map 11" x 17" download (16MByte pdf) .
  12. BCrystal
    Schedule update: Early morning takeoff Sunday 20 July from Kona (Big Island) Hawaii to Oakland California, with ETA around 11:45pm Pacific Time.
  13. BCrystal
    Kailua-Kona (Big Island) Hawaii, to Oakland is scheduled for Saturday.
  14. BCrystal
    Audio clips of N916BL with Honolulu airport tower on VHF Click to play Click to play
  15. BCrystal
    Honolulu TV runs story on the flight Click here to watch video: http://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/story/35971227/pilot-closing-in-on-completion-of-amelia-earhart-tribute-flight
  16. BCrystal
    The International Date Line passes between Samoa and American Samoa. American Samoa is on the east (American) side of the dateline. Brian crossed the dateline "eastward" on his way from New Zealand to American Samoa. He will cross it 2 more times: 1. Dateline crossing "westward" into Kiribati area, on his flight tomorrow. 2. Dateline crossing "eastward" out of Kirabati area on his way over Howland Island to Hawaii.
  17. BCrystal
    I called Brian (WB6RQN/Aeronautical Mobile) via HF ham radio using ALE (Automatic Link Establishment) and we linked on 14346 kHz USB in the 20 meter band. ALE is similar to HF Selcall. He answered the call and immediately responded on voice with his callsign. It was about 9PM Pacific Time here in California. He was flying over the Pacific Ocean at about FL210 between Tonga and American Samoa. We talked for about 30 minutes on SSB voice, until around sunset at his position, when his signal started to fade. My HF radio station (KQ6XA) location is Silicon Valley, California. The equipment in use for this radio contact was:Transceiver: Icom IC-F8101, Power: 125 Watts, Antenna: vertical, with the top at 36 feet. Radio great circle path distance: approximately 4500 Nautical Miles (8330 km) or (5180 miles), The actual radio path distance was much longer, via multiple hops bouncing off the ionosphere and the surface of the Pacific Ocean. Great circle map of radio path between KQ6XA in California and WB6RQN Aeronautical Mobile over the Pacific Ocean near American Samoa.
  18. BCrystal
    Brian landed at about 8:45 PM local time last night, at Pago Pago airport.
  19. BCrystal
    Brian is at Pago Pago, American Samoa, today. He will spend a total of two nights there and leave at sunrise. For those interested, there are some flight patches still available. A sewn velcro patch for the flight, for those who donate to the project. Project Amelia Earhart Flight Patch
  20. BCrystal
    There's no HFDL (HF ACARS / ADS) in Spirit. So, flightaware and flightradar24 only track it when within UHF range of a ground station. The Project Amelia Earhart website tracker map works anywhere, via Iridium satellite email scrape, which reports lat/long/altitude every 10 minutes. If the Iridium tracking position is not accurate, it shows a yellow placemark. If it is accurate, it shows a red placemark. When over the ocean, the position reports to ATC are manual via HF SSB voice, usually hourly or at waypoints. Today, Brian's position reports to Auckland ATC for the MWARA SP (South Pacific) have been on 8867 kHz and 13261 kHz.
  21. BCrystal
    Listen: Amateur Radio Newsline report 2073 interview with Brian Lloyd 21July2017 http://projectameliaearhart.org/wp/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/A_R_Newsline_Report_2073_Brian_Lloyd_Interview_21July2017.mp3 If that doesn't work, try this:http://projectameliaearhart.org/a_r_newsline_report_2073_brian_lloyd_interview_21july2017/
  22. BCrystal
    Brian Lloyd reports from Hamilton New Zealand, that fuel contamination was found in the system. More info: http://projectameliaearhart.org/photos/ This view of a fuel screen shows a rubbery fibrous material. What is it?
  23. BCrystal
    Update: Today, 15 July (New Zealand time) , as he was heading to Pago Pago, Brian was climbing out over the ocean at FL200 and the engine started surging. He had to turn back. He landed safely at the same airport in Hamilton, and is checking a fuel flow problem. This may cause multiple days of delay. The schedule has tentatively been pushed by about 5 days. Watch video Flight path of Spirit on 15 July 2017 when fuel flow problem caused Brian Lloyd to turn back to Hamilton New Zealand
  24. BCrystal
    Brian Lloyd solo pilots his airplane "Spirit" round-the-world for the Project Amelia Earhart 80th Anniversary Flight. More info at http://projectameliaearhart.org Video clip shows Brian in the cockpit at high altitude wearing oxygen mask while in flight from Karachi Pakistan to Kolkata India on 16 June 2017. Brian Lloyd is the first solo aviator to fly the historic Earhart equatorial route. Aircraft: Mooney M20K 231. Modified with additional fuel capacity, improved navigation, satellite and HF communications equipment, and Ham Radio (callsign WB6RQN/Aeronautical Mobile). Video by Brian Lloyd, used by permission: ©2017 Brian Lloyd CC-BY 2.0
  25. BCrystal
    Spirit departed Darwin at about noon local time Sunday (0220UTC 02 July 2017 ) Brian's flight today is over the middle of Australia, including the Ayers Rock area.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.