| | | December 11, 2003: Look who's home! I salvaged Nanna from a yard full of bruised and broken airplanes in Georgia, roped him onto an open trailer, and drove him home to Arizona where he is resting comfortably in his hangar. You can still see a smear of red Georgia clay on his left tire. As I wrestled prop, cowling, alternators, starters, oily hoses, and engine off him, I found lots of red Tennessee dirt, as well. Bit by bit, such remnants of our last flight are falling away, and the hope of future flights grows brighter. Brent Patty is rebuilding wings and tail in Kansas. Jim Embede is working on the prop up the road in Arizona City. Friends at my home airport drop by regularly to coach me about the mysteries of airplane parts and ask lots of helpful "Did ya' think of this..." sort of questions. It takes a village... 2004 will see much of the restoration complete. I'm guessing a 2005 launch. Can't wait! Thanks to all for your notes of concern and encouragement. February 16, 2004: Nanna is shucked and shelved, shown here rotated and resting on his side. My fingernails seem to stay blackened, I have a persistent cut on my right thumb, and I have discovered muscles in my hands I never knew I had. When I finish cleaning the dirt, grime, pebbles, and feathers from Tennessee, Texas, and nearly every other state off the fuselage, I will begin repairing dents and replacing stringers (the wooden strips that hold the fabric in shape). Then it's on to taking pieces off the shelf for inspection, repair, and reinstallation. When the shelf is empty, I will be done. Every day that I work, at least one local villager stops by to offer encouragement and share a secret of the black art of restoring the soul of a flying machine. So far, so good. March 3, 2005: Over a year later, it does not look like much has happened, but it has: fuselage completely repaired, engine overhauled, and wings due back from rebuilding in Kansas within a month. I expect to start covering in late spring or early summer. December, 2005: I've had a huge delay getting the repaired wings back, but, here they are! January - March, 2006: I have become an expert in covering a biplane and hanging wings from hangar rafters. Sixty-plus yards of fabric and dozens of gallons of pink-then-gray-then-white-then-blue PolyFiber goop later, the pieces have progressed from sticks and wires to cloth-encased to UV-protected to color-bedecked. April 28, 2006: Nanna sees the light at the end of the tunnel. Soon, the sheet metal will be complete and painted, and final assembly is well underway. Now if we could just find that darned alternator! September 1, 2006: First test flight -- and nearly perfect! All we need is a tailfeather, logo, and name. September 15, 2006: Home from California with artwork complete. Done! Anne Hopkins | |
