Flymall / Kraemer Aviation December 2025 Newsletter

Welcome to the Kraemer Aviation/Flymall.org Wheels & Wings Newsletter This month: Kitty O’Neil, Wright Bros, William Harley, Charles Goodyear, and more.

You can view past newsletters here.

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Here’s our collection of different versions of Twas The Night Before Christmas.

The Sunday before Christmas was the annual Laytonsville Volunteer Fire Department “Breakfast with Santa”. There is always a lot of good food at this event. Click here for more pictures of the event.

And all of the kids got to sit on Santa’s lap at the breakfast.

There was even a mail box at the breakfast for the kids to mail their wish list to Santa.

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: December 6 1976, Kitty O’Neil successfully set the women’s land speed record, becoming the first woman to hit 400 & 500 MPH.

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: Saturday December 21, the first emergency use of Garmin’s Autoland system occurred with N479BR, a Beech King Air 200 series. Click here for the full story and audio tape.

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.

Aviation/Aviators in the news: Two wrongs don’t make a right, however, two Wrights made an airplane. December 17 1903, the Wright Brothers made the first successful powered flight. Pictured here is a replica of the Wright Bros plane. Within a lifetime, the Wright Bros made their historic flight, the Concord first flew on March 2 1969, and we landed men on the moon on July 20 1969. Plus, we had the birth of the internet on January 1 1983.

Also on December 17, a few years later (December 17 1935), the Douglas DC-3 made it’s first flight. Pictured here is a friend’s DC-3.

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

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.

The Flymall team attended the Massey Aerodrome Hangar Party on December 7 2025. This is an excellent event. The weather was perfect for the fly in event. It was just a little chilly.

Check out this line up of classic design yellow taildraggers at the Massey Aerodrome. You can read about some of the planes, vehicles, engines, etc., in our A to Z list in the Wheels & Wings section of the Flymall.

On December 13, Santa arrived at the Frederick Municipal Airport in a 1977 Decathlon. This was part of an event hosted by the Sugarloaf Chapter of the Ninety Nines. In the video you’ll see that the children were all directing Santa to his parking spot. You can view Santa’s arrival at the above link via YouTube or here’s the same video on Facebook.

There were ride on planes with runways for the children.

And the children got to sit on Santa’s lap.

Click here for more pictures of the event.

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.

As a rep for Hagerty, remember, we can insure your collector car , your boat (new and old), motorcycles, as well as autobillia. Check out the insurance section of Flymall.org.

December 13 1952, Debbie Lawler was born. Debbie is an American motorcyclist and stunt performer. Lawler is most noted as the first and the only female motorcyclist to beat one of Evel Knievel’s jump records.

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. 

December 29 1800, Charles Goodyear was born. Charles Goodyear was an American self-taught chemist and manufacturing engineer who developed vulcanized rubber, for which he received patent number 3633 from the United States Patent Office on June 15 1844. Our 1898 Rec Single, has an original rear tire made from Vulcanized rubber.

Charles Goodyear didn’t found Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, but it is named after the self taught chemist.

Fast forward to 1898, 38 years after Goodyear died, Frank Seiberling founded Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, naming it in honor of Charles. The company’s new automobile tires became popular due to their durability and the simple process required to change them. Goodyear is one of the top four global tire manufacturers in the world along with Bridgestone, Continental and Michelin.

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.

December 29 1880, William Harley was born. William, along with Arthur Davidson, started Harley Davidson in 1901 by tinkering with mounting a small engine on a bicycle in a shed in the Davidson family’s backyard.

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: On Friday December 19, we had a strong front pass through the Mid-Atlantic region bringing some strong winds.

Checkout the winds aloft at the 3,000 and 6,000 foot levels. Click on the image for a larger view.

We also had some very strong windshear, 50 knots. This is the strongest that we have seen in this area.

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.

Our site, 3-Wheelers.com now has a section for regulations. They are organized in an easy A to Z listing format or you can use the search box and search for your state, town, city, country, etc.

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

Nautical Notes: Although not likely a true story, here’s the tale of the SS Warrimoo. The passenger steamer SS Warrimoo was quietly knifing its way through the waters of the mid-Pacific on its way from Vancouver to Australia. The navigator had just finished working out a star fix and brought Captain John DS. Phillips, the result. The Warrimoo’s position was LAT 0º 31′ N and LONG 179 30′ W. The date was 31 December 1899. “Know what this means?” First Mate Payton broke in, “We’re only a few miles from the intersection of the Equator and the International Date Line”. Captain Phillips was prankish enough to take full advantage of the opportunity for achieving the navigational freak of a lifetime. He called his navigators to the bridge to check & double check the ship’s position. He changed course slightly so as to bear directly on his mark. Then he adjusted the engine speed. The calm weather & clear night worked in his favor. At mid-night the SS Warrimoo lay on the Equator at exactly the point where it crossed the International Date Line! The consequences of this bizarre position were many: The forward part (bow) of the ship was in the Southern Hemisphere & in the middle of summer. The rear (stern) was in the Northern Hemisphere & in the middle of winter. The date in the aft part of the ship was 31 December 1899.In the bow (forward) part it was 1 January 1900.This ship was therefore not only in: Two different days, Two different months, Two different years, Two different seasons, and in two different centuries – all at the same time! The navigation of this time period was not accurate enough to do this, so it is just a cool story to share.

Animals in the headlines: On December 6 2023, Pat & Chrissie picked up Ace from the breeder. Here’s the Kraemers on their first outing with Jett and Ace the same month.

Each year for Christmas, Sophie (of Cafe Sophie) dresses up in her Santa outfit and is available for pictures at the airport cafe.