Flymall / Kraemer Aviation October 2026 Wheels & Wings Newsletter

Saturday, October 24th, 2026

Welcome to the Kraemer Aviation/Flymall.org Wheels & Wings Newsletter

You can view past newsletters here.

This month, we’re covering our visit to the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum and their annual Mid-Atlantic Small Craft Festival.

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: Here’s a video of Harry riding a very rare bicycle from his collection. It’s a Herbert Torrey Upright. There were 2 examples of this bicycle known to exist. It seems that the whereabouts of the other one has been unknown for years. So Harry’s example may be the only one remaining.

On October 10 1954, Juliane Margaret Beate Koepcke was born. Koepcke is known for being the sole survivor of the 1971 LANSA Flight 508 crash. When the plane was struck by lightning, she fell 10,000 feet while strapped to her seat and suffered numerous injuries including a concussion, broken collarbone, and a torn knee ligament. She survived 11 days alone in the Peruvian Amazon rainforest until she located a lumberjack camp.

On October 12 1868, August Horch was born. August Horch was a German engineer and automobile pioneer, the founder of the manufacturing giant which would eventually become Audi. And on October 12 1956, Chrysler introduced record players for their cars. Chrysler Corporation introduced high fidelity record players for their 1956 line-up of cars (October 12, 1956). The unit measured about four inches high and less than a foot wide and mounted under the instrument panel. The seven inch discs spun at 16 2/3 rpm and required almost three times the number of grooves per inch as an LP. A set of 35 classical recordings were available that provided between 45 and 60 minutes of uninterrupted music. The players would be discontinued in 1961.

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.

October 14 1965, the 1966 Oldsmobile Toronado was introduced on this day. The vehicle is historically significant because it was the first mass-produced front wheel drive American car since the Cord ended production in 1937.

October 16 1958, Chevrolet introduced the El Camino. Pictured here is the “Oak Camino”. Click here to read about this awesome car and to see more pictures from the “Member’s Cars section of our Laytonsville Cruise In page.

On October 17 1938, Robert “Evel” Knievel was born. Pictured here is an Evel Knievel tribute bike seen at the Timonium Motorcycle Show.

Achievements & Special Recognition: October 27 1957, Buck Baker became the first repeat champion in NASCAR.

October 28 1949, Martin test pilot O.E. (Pat) Tibbs completes the first flight of the prototype Martin XB-51 trijet bomber, flying from the Martin plant at Middle River, Baltimore, MD, to the Naval Air Test Center, Patuxent River, MD. The XB-51, a unique airplane, had three General Electric J-47 engines, a T-tail, and swept wings with variable angle-of-incidence selection for takeoff and for landing. The XB-51 uses spoiler ailerons for lateral control. It also has bicycle landing gear, the main landing gear retracting into the fuselage; the wing tips carry small retractable outrigger wheels. The wing spans 55 feet and the fuselage runs 80 feet. It has a two-man crew, consisting of the pilot and a bombardier-navigator.

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.

From our history archives. Noah’s first solo was on October 10 2023. This was on Noah’s 16th birthday. Sixteen is youngest age at which you can solo an airplane.

Noah passed his private pilot checkride on October 10 2024 at just 17 years old. Noah started flying when he was 11 years old. He soloed on his 16th birthday and passed his private pilot checkride on his 17th birthday. Seventeen is the youngest age that you can get your private pilot certificate.

Aviation/Aviators in the news: Earlier in October, Harry was at Southern Maryland Seaplanes getting current in seaplanes and working on some of his FAA Wings for seaplanes. The first day of Harry’s recurrent training was too windy and the seas were too rough. So day one was just classroom briefings and learning how the preflight the Cessna 185 floatplane.

Harry enjoyed a nice dinner at the Ruddy Duck Alehouse while in Southern Maryland. Click here for more pictures.

The first day of seaplane flying was canceled due to strong winds and high seas. Harry did get some flying in on the second day in St. Mary’s County. Here’s a YouTube video with some highlights.

Harry’s good friend, Yaffa returned to Mexico this month. She was one of the best pilots and flight instructors Harry has flown with. Yaffa will be missed at the flight school. Harry surprised her with a going away cake. You’ll notice in the pictures, Jett is ready to steal some cake.

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.

We sold another fine airplane this month. This beautiful Zodiac 601 XLB is going to it’s new owner.

We have a 1978 Cessna 172XP for sale. It only has just over 100 hours on the engine. Complete with Garmin avionics. It also has the 210 horsepower upgrade. Click here for more details. From 1977 to 1981 Cessna produced the R172K Hawk XP, a model available from both Wichita and Reims. This configuration featured a fuel injected, Continental IO-360K (later IO-360KB) derated to 195 hp with a two-bladed, constant-speed propeller. The Hawk XP was capable of a 131-knot cruise speed.

If you’re looking for a nice cross country plane, we have a 1977 Piper Arrow for sale. She’s on got about 500 hours on the engine. It’s equipped with a Garmin 430, ADS-B out, and more. It holds 72 gallons of fuel, so you have about 7 hours of flying time. Click here fore more details.

October 7 1963 was the first flight of the Learjet 23.

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.

October 23 was an award/trophy night at the Laytonsville Cruise In. Click here for more pictures of our award winners from October 23. We gave out over 30 awards/trophies that night.

The Classic Motor Museum of St. Michaels is an awesome place to visit, They have a very friendly and knowledgeable staff. The Flymall team visited this museum on one of the rainy afternoons while in St. Michaels for the Mid-Atlantic Small Craft Festival. Click here to read about some of the vehicles on display at the museum.

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. 

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.

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.

Earlier in October, Pat & Harry attended the FAA’s hypoxia chamber training event. It was cool to experience hypoxia in a controlled environment. Click here for more pictures.

Weather in the news: For the first time since 1994, not a single hurricane developed in the Atlantic during September 2026, which is typically the most active peak month of the Atlantic hurricane season.

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.

Here is a self-propelled vehicle (a 3 wheeler) that actually existed before the start of the Revolutionary War. The “Fardier à vapeur” or Steam Carriage, was built in 1769 by French engineer Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot for the French army. With a top speed of 2.5 miles an hour, its primary use was to haul artillery. Steam-powered vehicles had inherent limitations that ultimately contributed to their decline, such as range and efficiency, start-up time, maintenance, weight, size and speed. The invention of the internal combustion engine was a key factor in their eventual demise. But, would you believe the 1769 Fardier de Cugnot still runs today? It’s officially the world’s oldest self-propelled vehicle and it can be seen on display at the Musee des Arts et Metiers in Paris, France.

While in St. Michaels, Pat & Harry visited the Classic Motor Museum of St. Michaels. They had a Motorette in the museum. This is the first one Harry had seen in person. Here’s a picture of the Classic Motor Museum’s Motorette.

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

Prototypes:

Nautical Notes: While attending the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum and their annual Mid-Atlantic Small Craft Festival, Pat & Harry took a sunset cruise. Click here for more pictures of the sunset cruise.

On Friday night, October 2, Pat & Harry enjoyed dinner at Foxy’s Harbor Grille. The weather & food was perfect. The view from dinner was even better. Foxy’s is directly on the water at the main marina.

The St. Michaels Inn was an nice place to stay while attending the event.

Here’s some boats in the Harbor on Friday night October 2. Click here fore more pictures.

Saturday, October 3, Pat & Harry attended the annual small boat festival at the Chesapeake Maritime Museum. Click here for more pictures. Many of the boats at the festival were home made or made from kits or plans.

One of the highlights on Saturday was the cardboard boat race. Young kids built cardboard boats and then had to race them on the water.

Pat & Harry also toured the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. This is a very cool place to visit. They have over 100 years of boating history on display at the museum. Click here for more pictures of the museum and their exhibits.

Little Seneca Lake is at it’s peak fall colors. Pat & Harry had the Walker Bay out for a fall day on the lake. Click here for more pictures.

Here’s a YouTube video with highlights from the day on Little Seneca Lake.

Black Hill Regional Park held their annual Acoustics & Ales Witchy Waters Edition and it was very well attended. All parking lots in the park were full. There was well over 50 kayaks & paddleboards in the lake with everyone is costume. Click here for more pictures.

Here’s a video showing the launch area. It was very busy for about 30 minutes.

Riding The Rails:

Native American Indian Transportation: Here’s a three-log canoe on display at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. A three-log canoe is a traditional Chesapeake Bay watercraft with a hull carved and joined from three large local trees, typically loblolly pine. Origins of this type of boat is derived from Native American and African dugout traditions, these vessels were built when single large trees became too scarce in the 18th and 19th centuries, prompting builders to join multiple logs side-by-side with iron drifts. Click on the image for a larger view.

Animals in the headlines: On Friday, October 2, Pat & Harry met this lovely dog named York. He was joining his parents for dinner at Foxy’s Harbor Grille. York and his parents also joined them for their sunset cruise.

On October 9, Ace turned 3 years old. We celebrated with a steak dinner for Ace and Jett. Ace is pictured here as a puppy just a few months old and the other picture is Ace on our paddleboard from earlier this summer.

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