Paul's Aviation Page

Paul Pakusch
Flying
e-mail: ppakusch@yahoo.com

EAA Chapter 44

I started flying lessons in 1990 and passed my flight test in 1991. In 1998 I earned my Instrument Rating. In 2007 I decided
to go inactive as a pilot. For 17 years, I spent many flying hours criss-crossing western and central New York and into parts of
Pennsylvania. I was an active participant in EAA's Young Eagles program and flew a total of 112 kids.
This page shows some of my flying highlights, including photos and some stories. Scroll down to see some videos.

Photo Gallery:

Young Eagles Flights 2007
Young Eagles Flights 2005
Seattle 2005
Sun n' Fun 2005
Binghamton to Rochester 2005
EAA Airventure Oshkosh 2004
Winter Flight
EAA Airventure Oshkosh 2003
Shore of Lake Ontario & Fall Foliage 2002
Aviation Day at Pine Hill Airport 2002
Parasailing 2002
Niagara Falls, 2001
IFR Flight 1999
Canandaigua Balloon Fest 1996

Stories:

Aviation Safety
Oshkosh 2001
Videotape and Niagara Falls, 1999
Flying Through New York City, 1997
First Passenger, 1991
First Solo, 1990

Video Gallery:

"Flying Fun and Niagara Falls"

Described in the Stories above as "Videotape and Niagara Falls," this is the video shot that day. It is a half hour long. Since YouTube doesn't allow videos to be longer than 10 minutes, I broke it up into 4 parts.

On this day in 1999, two friends, Dave (another pilot) and Al (a videographer) went flying with me. First we flew my club's Piper Archer (low wing) from Rochester (ROC) to Ledgedale (7G0) with two cameras running. This is edited so you can see views from both. At Ledgedale, Dave got his club's Cessna 172 (high wing) and Al video'ed both of us doing takeoffs and landings. Then the three of us got into my Archer and we flew to Niagara Falls. On the way back to Rochester, we picked up an IFR flight plan and popped in and out of cumulus clouds.

"Once Around the Patch"

When I take kids for airplane rides in the Young Eagles program, I like to go for a quick flight by myself before the rides begin. This is one of those flights. I put a videocamera on a tripod in the back seat of a Cessna 182 Skylane. This video shows the entire flight, from start-up to shut-down, including taxi, run-up and once around the patch. Except for the part where I had to break it up into two videos per YouTube.

"Brockport to Kingston"

Just a routine cross-country flight from Brockport to Kingston, NY in a Cessna 182 where I took some videos along the way. I also got some aerial shots of Rochester airport. The folks you see greeting me at the end are my in-laws and their great-granddaughter.

"George Washington Bridge"

By now, everyone knows that Flight 1549 flew over the George Washington Bridge just before splashing down in the Hudson. I flew over the same bridge in 1997 on a flight through the NYC VFR Corridor. On that flight, I stayed at 900 feet to avoid controlled airspace that was right above me (for jets, etc.) Therefore, I was at 900 feet when I cross over the bridge. On this video, you can see how low that is! It's not a great video, as it was bumpy that day, but you do get a sense of what the pilots of Flight 1549 saw. Since this was in 1997, you can also see the World Trade Center in the distance.

"B-17 Ride"

In 1991, I got a ride on the B-17, "Fuddy Duddy." This was a press ride to promote an upcoming airshow in Geneseo, in the good old days when the National Warplane Museum used to be there (don't get me started). Anyways, I had my cheap videocamera, which shows the first half of this clip. The second half is raw video shot by a news photographer, and includes a young, good-looking yours truly sitting in the waist-gunner's position shortly before engine start.

"Super Cub Over Seattle"

While on a trip to Seattle in 2005, my sister-in-law surprised me with a one-hour introductory lesson in a Super Cub on floats. I sat in front, the instructor sat in back. After covering floatplane procedures, we did some water takeoffs and landings. Then we did some sightseeing around Seattle, including a 180 around the Space Needle. Since I didn't need any help during this portion of the flight, the instructor took my videocamera and shot some of the scenes. The video ends just before he had to help me through the last water landing of the flight.

A one-hour video I produced for cable access TV in 1991. Obviously this is dated by now, but it is a snapshot of what general aviation in the Rochester, NY area was like at the time. It includes a description of generation aviation, what it takes (or took) to get a pilot's license, a look at some local aviation organizations and businesses, and some flying footage from a Lake Renegade. The organizations featured include the National Warplane Museum (based in Geneseo at the time), EAA 44, and the Rochester Flying Club. I hope you enjoy it.

General Aviation in Rochester - 1991 from Paul Pakusch on Vimeo.

My Airventure Oshkosh Score: 1995, 2001, 2003, 2004

My Sun-n-Fun Score: 2000, 2003, 2005

"Flying Fun and Niagara Falls" Described in the Stories above as "Videotape and Niagara Falls," this is the video shot that day. It is a half hour long. Since YouTube doesn't allow videos to be longer than 10 minutes, I broke it up into 4 parts. On this day in 1999, two friends, Dave (another pilot) and Al (a videographer) went flying with me. First we flew my club's Piper Archer (low wing) from Rochester (ROC) to Ledgedale (7G0) with two cameras running. This is edited so you can see views from both. At Ledgedale, Dave got his club's Cessna 172 (high wing) and Al video'ed both of us doing takeoffs and landings. Then the three of us got into my Archer and we flew to Niagara Falls. On the way back to Rochester, we picked up an IFR flight plan and popped in and out of cumulus clouds.
"Once Around the Patch" When I take kids for airplane rides in the Young Eagles program, I like to go for a quick flight by myself before the rides begin. This is one of those flights. I put a videocamera on a tripod in the back seat of a Cessna 182 Skylane. This video shows the entire flight, from start-up to shut-down, including taxi, run-up and once around the patch. Except for the part where I had to break it up into two videos per YouTube.
"Brockport to Kingston" Just a routine cross-country flight from Brockport to Kingston, NY in a Cessna 182 where I took some videos along the way. I also got some aerial shots of Rochester airport. The folks you see greeting me at the end are my in-laws and their great-granddaughter.
"George Washington Bridge" By now, everyone knows that Flight 1549 flew over the George Washington Bridge just before splashing down in the Hudson. I flew over the same bridge in 1997 on a flight through the NYC VFR Corridor. On that flight, I stayed at 900 feet to avoid controlled airspace that was right above me (for jets, etc.) Therefore, I was at 900 feet when I cross over the bridge. On this video, you can see how low that is! It's not a great video, as it was bumpy that day, but you do get a sense of what the pilots of Flight 1549 saw. Since this was in 1997, you can also see the World Trade Center in the distance.
"B-17 Ride" In 1991, I got a ride on the B-17, "Fuddy Duddy." This was a press ride to promote an upcoming airshow in Geneseo, in the good old days when the National Warplane Museum used to be there (don't get me started). Anyways, I had my cheap videocamera, which shows the first half of this clip. The second half is raw video shot by a news photographer, and includes a young, good-looking yours truly sitting in the waist-gunner's position shortly before engine start.
"Super Cub Over Seattle" While on a trip to Seattle in 2005, my sister-in-law surprised me with a one-hour introductory lesson in a Super Cub on floats. I sat in front, the instructor sat in back. After covering floatplane procedures, we did some water takeoffs and landings. Then we did some sightseeing around Seattle, including a 180 around the Space Needle. Since I didn't need any help during this portion of the flight, the instructor took my videocamera and shot some of the scenes. The video ends just before he had to help me through the last water landing of the flight.
A one-hour video I produced for cable access TV in 1991. Obviously this is dated by now, but it is a snapshot of what general aviation in the Rochester, NY area was like at the time. It includes a description of generation aviation, what it takes (or took) to get a pilot's license, a look at some local aviation organizations and businesses, and some flying footage from a Lake Renegade. The organizations featured include the National Warplane Museum (based in Geneseo at the time), EAA 44, and the Rochester Flying Club. I hope you enjoy it.	General Aviation in Rochester - 1991 from Paul Pakusch on Vimeo.