February - March 2023

Alex Nelon

Apr 8, 2023 • 2 min read

EAA 1016 kicked off 2023 with an informal non-meeting meeting at Fahrenheit Pizza ... about 20+ of us gathered to enjoy a slice (or two) of Jim's good grub and refreshments from the beer tap ... I'm sure there are incriminating photos but I didn't get any. We had a great time and our appetites were whetted for the first real live meeting of the year in March.

...and what a meeting it was!

Chapter Member Sid Tolchin was awarded the FAA Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award for 50+ years of safe flying.

Paul from FAA, Sid and Sid's sponsor, Master Pilot Mike Cavanaugh

Penny Tolchin was also honored for her role in Sid's flying life ... Penny is a long time pilot and a member of the 99s. A superb navigator and keeper of the flame, Penny spent many hours flying with Sid in his Cessna 210s, VariEZ and LongEZ.

Flying is a family affair in the Tolchin household

There were about 30-35 of us on hand for a description of the Master Pilot Award and Sid's investiture. As it turns out there are several recipients in the Asheville-Hendersonville area and only a little over seven thousand nationwide, so it's a fairly exclusive group. Look back at our September 2022 meeting summary for the story of Sid's transatlantic house call in his LongEZ! Now there's a story!

Of course, Sid's award had to be capped by his respectful friends

Looking ahead, 1016 will be participating in Young Eagle Day in May, but first our April meeting will be a look at flying in Alaska! We hope to see you there at the Western North Carolina Air Museum on April 11th!

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