Flymall August 2025 Wheels & Wings Newsletter

Welcome to the Kraemer Aviation/Flymall.org Wheels & Wings Newsletter. We have a lot of Wheels, Keels, & Wings info to report on this month.

You can view past newsletters here.

Kraemer Aviation hosted a birthday celebration for Larry Barker, our good friend that passed away this past October. We all enjoyed sharing memories of Larry. Click here for more pictures.

Interested in living at an airport?  Visit our Aviation Real Estate page here. You can view price data for airport property in our Market Watch section of the Flymall. Here is the data for all airport property. You can refine the search by “state” simply by searching for the desired state under “Model”.

Want to have your business highlighted on the Flymall???  We offer inexpensive rates to have your business featured on our Wheels & Wings page.  Contact us for more info.

History Trivia: August 4 1954: Roland “Bee” Beamont took the English Electric Lightning into the air for the first time. A creature of raw power and brute force, the Lightning, planned as an interim solution, remained in production until 1972 and served the RAF well into the late 1980s.

If you enjoy history we have a new aviation history fact each day at the bottom of our webpages.  Some days there may be more than one, just refresh the page.  And if you like Beatles history, checkout our Events Calendar and select the Beatles category.  This is a work in progress, we’re building the most comprehensive calendar of important dates in Beatle history.  For those that like to stick with current news, we have an aviation news ticker on our home page.  This is updated daily to show the current aviation news.

Achievements & Special Recognition: On August 18 1984, Harry took his first official flight lesson in N2346V, a Piper Tomahawk. Harry had been flying in general aviation aircraft since the late 1960s. On this day in 1984, he actually took the flight controls for the first time and it was logged in his logbook.

August 16, 1960, Colonel Joseph William Kittinger stepped away from his open gondola named “Excelsior” tethered to a massive helium balloon from an unbelievable altitude of 102,800 feet (31,300 m) above the surface of our Earth. The atmospheric pressure so low, that during the accent, Joe’s pressurization in his right glove malfunctioned, and his right hand swelled to twice its normal size. Taking that one giant step, Joe free fell for 4 minutes and 36 seconds, slamming into the thicker atmosphere below at speeds up to 614 miles per hour (988 km/h) before opening his parachute at 18,000 feet (5,500 m). Joseph William Kittinger II was decorated with a second Distinguished Flying Cross, and awarded the Harmon Trophy by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. Kittinger later served three combat tours of duty during the Vietnam War, flying a total of 483 combat missions. May 11, 1972, just before the end of his third tour of duty, while flying an F-4D, Kittinger and his wingman were chasing a MiG-21 when Kittinger’s Phantom II was hit by an air-to-air missile from another MiG-21 that damaged the Phantom’s starboard wing and set the aircraft on fire. Kittinger and 1st Lieutenant William J. Reich ejected a few miles from Thai Nguyen and were soon captured and taken to the city of Hanoi. Kittinger and Reich spent 11 months as prisoners of war (POWs) in the Hỏa Lò Prison, the so-called “Hanoi Hilton”

Instructors, want to highlight your students first solo or other achievement here?  Just send us a short write-up and a picture or two and we’ll post it here for you.  Click here for our contact info.

August 19 we remembered Orville Wright on his birthday. Orville was born on August 19 1871. We also celebrated National Aviation Day on Orville’s birthday.

Aviation/Aviators in the news: The first human to walk on the Moon, Neil Armstrong, was born on August 5 1930. He was an Apollo 11 astronaut, NASA test pilot, the command pilot of Gemini 8, and more.

The aviation section of the Flymall is full of aviation news, training info, and much more for the aviator.

The first “official airmail flight” took place on August 17 1859. John Wise ascends from Lafayette, IN, with the first official air mail (intended for NY) but lands at Crawfordsville, IN, 28 miles away. The airmail flights and the US Postal Service basically started the airlines. In the early days of flying the mail, they soon realized that they could make more money with paying passengers onboard. So bigger and faster planes were built with the intent to carry people as well as mail & cargo.

Air show season is always just around the corner.  Want to travel to air shows in your own aircraft?  Visit our used aircraft page on the Flymall to view our inventory. With the release of the FAA’s new MOSAIC, Cessna 150s are being listed for sale for as much as $100,000 USD.

Car/Motorcycle Show News:   The Laytonsville Cruise In is the place to be on a Friday night in Montgomery County.  The Laytonsville Cruise In was started by Harry in 2010. It has become one of the most popular cruise ins in the area. You can follow Harry on Facebook for daily updates during the many shows and events he attends.

We had a great turnout for our Award Night on August 15. Click here for more pictures of our award winners.

We had over 30 motorcycles show up on August 15. The word got out that we had a new award for “Best Sport Bike” and the bikes came out in groups. Click here for more pictures of the motorcycles we had on August 15.

Click here to view past pictures from the Laytonsville Cruise In. You can also view past pictures from the Laytonsville Cruise In home page by clicking here.

Our Events Calendar has the most current info regarding local and national car shows, air shows, and more.  With nearly 30 categories, there is something for everyone.  The Day Tripper section of the Flymall has dozens of day trip ideas and interesting places to visit.  Check it out here.  Our Day Tripper section now has different categories to choose from to make it easier to find events that interest you. 

Earlier in August, Harry attended Bikes & Breakfast of Poolesville. An awesome event in the town of Poolesville Maryland. Click here for more pictures.

After Bikes & Breakfast, Jim had an open house at his garage showing us his awesome collection of racing bikes and other very cool items. Click here for more pictures.

If you enjoy reading about historic vehicles, visit our Wheels & Wings section of the Flymall, we have numerous A to Z list there including; Automobiles, Aviation, Engines, Flying Cars, Motorcycles, and Nautical.

August 26 1967, at the age of 68 and on a 47-year-old bike, Burt Munro set a new World Record in the Flying One Mile Class S-A 1000cc! Here’s his bike, the Munro Special.

August 27 1978, Don Vesco averaged 318.598 mph on the Lightning Bolt. The 21-foot streamliner motorcycle featured two 1016cc turbocharged Kawasaki KZ1000 engines.

We’re remembering Jessi Combs this month. She died August 27 2019, in an accident while driving a jet-powered car in the Alvord Desert in Oregon. Combs was 36. She was posthumously awarded the female land-speed world record by Guinness World Records in June 2020.

Barn Finds/Hangar Finds:  Need an appraisal on your barn find?  Visit our Appraisal Page for information on our appraisals.  If you need insurance for your barn find or collector car, visit our insurance section of the Flymall.

Visit our online store to search for hard to find car parts, aircraft parts, and much more.  You can pay online in our secure store, just click on the Store button on our home page.

Visit the Test Drive section of the Flymall for reviews on automobiles, aircraft, motorcycles, and more. Read about it before you buy it.  You can also research price info on a wide variety of vehicles, collectibles, and more in the Market Watch section of the Flymall. 

If you’re restoring a fabric aircraft, Ira Walker of Walker Aviation is your resource.  Visit his page on the Flymall by clicking here. 

CFI / DPE Notes:  Visit Harry’s Practical Test page for information on his checkrides.  You will also find useful information there to help you prepare for your checkride.  You can also visit Harry’s Lesson Plan section of the Flymall for other flight training information.  Visit our Flight Training page for information on our aviation training classes.

Weather in the news: Hurricane Erin was the first hurricane of the 2025 season. It had rapid intensification and became a Category 5 hurricane before it weakened some. Erin was also one of the largest hurricanes and one of the fastest moving hurricanes.

Three Wheel Association (TWA) & 3-Wheelers.com:  Harry started the Three Wheel Association in 2013 to promote/support the industry of three wheel vehicles of all types. Visit the Three Wheel Association page on the Flymall for more info on the association.

Want a reproduction vintage 3 wheeler.  Walker Aviation can scratch build from pictures or drawings.  Visit his page on the Flymall.  

Prototypes:

Nautical Notes: Earlier in August, the Kraemer Aviation team visited the Deltaville Maritime Museum & Holly Point Nature Park. To view some of the museum’s exhibits / displays, visit our Deltaville page in the Day Tripper section of the Flymall, and click on the link “Click here to view exhibits / displays in the museum”.

Here are pictures from inside the main building.

Here are some pictures of the park surrounding the museum. There were numerous boats and other displays outside of the main museum building.

Here’s a Deagle Ship Saw that was part of their outdoor displays at the museum.

There were numerous marinas with many abandoned yachts and/or boats. Click here for more pictures from day one exploring the abandoned boats. Here are pictures from day two of exploring the marina full of abandoned boats.

Here’s a boat similar looking to the Orca from the Jaws movie.

Being the boating lovers that they are, Pat & Harry wanted to be sure that they got some time on the water while they were in the “Boating Capital of the Chesapeake Bay”. They got lucky with the first place that they called, Norton Yachts had boats for rent. Norton Yachts was just 3 minutes from their motel. Pat & Harry were able to rent a 23 foot Bennington 23 SLSE Tritoon. They were soon boating on the Rappahannock River.

Harry was the pilot getting the boat out of the marina and out into deep water.

Here’s Pat running the boat wide open. Here’s Harry at the controls making just under 20 knots.

It was awesome seeing the bridge like this.

Earlier in August, Harry organized another boating day for the pilots and instructors at the Washington International Flight Academy. We had a total of 10 of us on the water in kayaks, paddle boards, and a pedal boat for the drone operator. Click here for all of the pictures and videos from that day. Here’s an awesome video from the drone. A cool video from deep inside turtle cove. This drone video is leaving turtle cove. Here’s a video where Harry knocks Tomer off of his paddle board and they both go in the water. In this video, Harry knew Tomer was after him and Harry just loss his balance. Here’s a video with Tomer knocking Harry off of his paddle board. This is the best video of the day, Tomer was chasing Harry and when he tried to knock him in the water, he slipped and fell in. Here is a YouTube video montage with highlights from the day. A drone video of Harry stalking a turtle.

We had another exciting day on the water in August. The Flymall team got their windsurfing board out for the first time. Harry’s friends Tomer & Yan are both experience windsurfers and/or kite surfers. Tomer did competition windsurfing in Israel and Yan was a kite surfer. The two were their instructors for a day on the water windsurfing. Click here for more pictures and videos. Here’s a nice drone video of the Walker Bay and their rented canoe. Harry gets some good wind in this video. Pat gives it a try. Here’s a YouTube video montage of all video from the windsurfing day.

Riding The Rails: While touring the abandoned boats, Pat & Harry came across this vintage travel lift or boat hoist. They were told that it was still in working condition and used often. This type of lift can also be fitted to railway tracks that go down in the water and the boat drives up to it similar to the way you use a boat trailer. And then, once the boat is on the lift, it can be carried via the railway tracks to it’s location in the marina.

Native American Indian Transportation: One of the displays in the Deltaville Maritime Museum was a Jamestown log canoe pictured here. Native American Indians were building log canoes long before the English arrived from across the Atlantic.

Animals in the headlines: On August 8 2013, Pat & Harry drove down to North Carolina to pick up Jett from the breeder.

Pat & Harry also had a boating day with Jett & Ace. It was an amazing accomplishment to get both dogs out on a boat together. Click here for more pictures.

We close this newsletter with these words: Always choose to be kind and happy!