We are nearing the finish line! When I say we, I mean 243CM, me, Josh and Ray. My airplane is mainly getting hands-on attention from Josh. He’s a 24 year old A/P mechanic student in Spokane, who holds a PPL and commercial pilot’s license and is a very impressive young man. He goes to school Mon-Thursday and then works for Ray Fri – Sun. Along with that, he has time to ski and do other fun activities. Another fun fact about Josh is that he went to the High School at Boeing Field.

He has done a great job working on Charlie Mike. Today he is replacing the landing gear for the second time. We were ready for final assembly (of the landing gear) when we realized the gear was bent and would not line up. Tony, from TK1 racing, was kind enough to overnight us a new set. This should be the last time the landing gear need to go on and off. Once the gear is on, we add new axels the big tires and then roll the plane outside and put the wings on.

While Josh has been working away, I have been doing a couple of projects too. Yesterday, I installed VG’s to the horizontal stabilizer. They also go on the wing, but I think I’ll wait until the wings are on to install those just to eliminate the risk of damage.

The oil is now changed, the avionics person has begun work, and next we install the prop, and fire CM up! My tentative (hopeful) departure date is April 14. Keep your fingers crossed.