Club Captain
Messages from Owen Crees, 2010-2011 Club Captain
Dawn Patrol Sunday 12 September
Aldinga Aero Club will continue its tradition of commemorating the Battle of Britain with a Dawn Patrol on Sunday 12 September.
There will be two sorties, an aerial reconnaissance flight to locate the targets for a bomber attack to destroy vital enemy facilities. Briefing for the reconnaissance flight will be at 0600 h; briefing for the bomber group will be at 0700 h at Aldinga Aero Club. Please bring a camera as photos of the targets will be required to confirm successful identification by the reconnaissance flight, and successful attack by the bomber flight.
The weather forecast, a chart and route, the targets, a flight plan form and other information will be provided at the briefing. Before departure, pilots should prepare a detailed nav plan with ETE for each sector and ETA for YADG.
The usual sumptuous breakfast will be served from 0800, followed by a fly past and benediction at 0900 h.
Please let Owen know by email (captain@aldingaaeroclub.org.au) or phone (0414 538 542) by Friday 10 September if you are attending, the aeroplane you will be flying, and whether you can take a passenger or two.
Owen Crees Bio and Information for members:
Owen started flying in a C172 in Mackay QLD. He has been flying for about 33 years. After the C172 Owen moved into a P128 and then to a V-Tail Bonanza and a C210. He joined the Brisbane flying group with Grumman Tigers. Owen joined the Aldinga Aero Club a couple of years after moving to Adelaide with his family.
Owen’s flying usually includes one or two trips to Brisbane to visit his son and old friends, a fly-in or two with the Mooney Pilots Association, and occasional activities with the AAC, such as the Leukaemia Day. He is also very involved with Angel Flight Australia and has flown at least 12 missions.
Owen makes the following comments about a memorable Angel Flight.
“Some of my most enjoyable flights have been for Angel Flight. I’ve done 12 flights so far – to Tumby Bay with a young mother and three children (all under 5); to Jamestown, Port Lincoln, Mt Gambier and Cleve. Without doubt, the most memorable trip was late 2008 when I took Gemma and her mother back to Port Lincoln. They’d been in Adelaide since January and this was Gemma’s first trip home in all that time. Even better, they’d just had the first bit of good news about her health and were seeing the first signs of recovery. Gemma and her mum, as well as Dad and twin brother waiting at YPLC were very excited and happy to be together again after a long and difficult year. It was a great delight to have been able to help them in a small way.”