photos by Karen Fien
A group of aviation enthusiasts, the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), Chapter 44 of Rochester, are three years into restoration of a Baby Ace aircraft. The Baby Ace was the world’s first aircraft to be marketed as a homebuilt aircraft when the plans were offered for sale in 1929. Plans are still available for Baby Aces, and they are still being built today.
The EAA, Chapter 44’s BART (Baby Ace Restoration Team) project consists of students and adults working together to completely restore a donated plane and engine. Young members are getting experience with the skills needed to build an aircraft, and the adults are sharing and teaching their skills to the youth. The BART Group meets every Wednesday evening at the Sport Aviation Center of Western New York (Ledgedale Airpark 7G0) in Brockport. Target date for completion of the Baby Ace restoration is Summer of 2022.
Over the past three years, high school students Dhruva Rana and Tyler Mullen have been involved with the Baby Ace restoration.
Dhruva Rana, a high school junior, said three years ago his mother suggested he look into the EAA Chapter 44 aviation group. “Every pilot needs to know about the working of a plane, inside and out, how it operates mechanically. Working on BART gives a unique perspective, I learn a lot from seeing how each part of the plane functions. You learn about the small things first, the sanding and fine tuning. Once you become skilled in doing that, you can do the big things like wood cutting and welding. When you stay committed to a project it is really rewarding,” Dhruva said.
Dhruva has also learned from working hand to hand with the people in the BART group. “Working with the restoration team is a really unique experience. You are three generations working together. I would never have been able to meet people like this in any other place, I would never be able to find them. If I hadn’t met them through the Chapter, I would be missing out on a lot. I am really happy that they are taking the time to teach us what they know.” For his future career, Dhruva plans to work for the Air Force as an instructor, teaching cadets how to fly. “I want to pass on to others what I have learned later in life, in my career.” Dhruva has over 100 working hours into the restoration program.
Hilton High School senior Tyler Mullen is already a licensed pilot. He has been an active member of the restoration team since the beginning, with approximately 550 hours of work on the Baby Ace. Tyler has been fascinated with aviation his whole life. For the first eight years of his life, his father was in the Air Force. He said, “My dad took me to air shows and I got a chance to see all of the planes. From the time I was little, aviation was my life. My bedroom was always littered with models and drawings of planes. When I went to my dad’s office and saw a model of a plane I would just stare at it.”
Tyler attended one of EAA Chapter 44’s Young Eagles Program. Attendance provides the opportunity to go flying in an airplane, free of charge. “When I walked through the door I saw the BART project, I knew that I wanted to work on it. I joined the Chapter right away.”
When Tyler participated in the Young Eagles free flight they gave him a log book. “The log book is like the Driver’s Handbook that the DMV gives you to study for your license. It contains all the information you will need to fly, rules and regulations, altitude restrictions, speeds, weather conditions, and about licenses and the rules of air space. With the help of the Chapter, I was able to attend ground school.” Tyler attended ground school online. Through an extensive series of video lessons, he was able to prepare for his pilot’s license. The Chapter also helped him begin flight training with the Ray Aviation Scholarship. The Chapter nominated him, and he was awarded a $10,000 scholarship. Along with the scholarship comes a requirement, a one-year deadline to earn his pilot’s license. It took Tyler only nine months to get his license.
Tyler said the EAA Chapter, “Helped make my dreams come true. Many people never do get to realize their dream, and I am able to do that through my EAA membership.” Working on the BART project, Tyler says he has learned about every nook and cranny of an airplane. “I have a more intricate point of view of an airplane. I realize that each piece has a purpose, like a wing, it is a complex piece of equipment that fulfills a specific purpose.”
Tyler has also learned from the mentors he has gotten to know through the Chapter. “They are like friends, incredible people, they share their stories and we learn from that, what to do and what not to do. They have provided me opportunities that I only dreamed of.” The future plan is for Tyler to fly the restored Baby Ace, solo, to the EAA’s AirVenture Aviation Celebration held each year in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Tyler’s goal is a career in design, construction and testing of aircraft.
Bob Nelligan-Barrett is the adult BART team leader. He said, “I am glad that we finally have young people involved with the Chapter. Through the Young Eagles program, our Summer Camp and Scholarship program we have some younger members that joined our Chapter. I hope to be to these young members, the person that I didn’t have when I was growing up with an interest in aviation.” Through the Chapter, the young members are educated in aviation, and learn about career opportunities in the field, and learn lessons of discipline. “I really love working with all of the young members of our group. Sharing with them, and encouraging them is fulfilling for me. Aviation people are unique, we are very passionate about all things aviation, and about sharing our passion.”
Rochester’s EAA Chapter 44 is an organization consisting of approximately 80 members. Founded in 1957, the Chapter enables people to realize their dreams of flight. Their mission states, “EAA Chapter 44 was established to encourage, aid, and engage in study for the improvement and better understanding of aviation and the science of aeronautics, to promote and engage in the cause of aviation safety and education, to encourage and promote the development of private aviation and the development of amateur-built aircraft through home engineering, and finally, to foster close fellowship through the exchange of ideas, skills, and mutual interests. And to have fun doing it. Members include builders, aircraft restorers, non-pilot aviation enthusiasts, pilots and student pilots, ultra-light enthusiasts, aircraft owners, renters, spouses and more.”
EAA Chapter 44 is the only chapter in Rochester and the members are from all across the Rochester area.
Anyone with an interest in aviation, or an interest in working on the Baby Ace restoration project are invited to visit. General meetings for EAA Chapter 44 are held on the third Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. The BART team meets every Wednesday 6 to 9 p.m. All meetings are held at the Sport Aviation Center of Western New York (Ledgedale Airpark 7G0), 44 Eisenhauer Drive, Brockport.
For more information on EAA Chapter 44 visit https://chapters.eaa.org/EAA44
