Container #1 Arrived! And other dribble

Finally. Good timing too, right after SNF show.  I was able to get up to Dayton to meet and unload the container and get the kit deliveries started.

It was a real challenge to get this container shipped. The container ships were full. Then the dock workers were overload or understaffed or just plain Covid worn out. Once the container arrived to USA I expected more of the same. Delays at Newark off loading then delays to the train. Then delays at customs. Then delays on truck from Columbus to Dayton. I was really surprised the USA side of this shipment went flawless and quick and exactly as quoted. Shocking.

Unloading the container and filling the hangar. And I know NOTHING about the Czech beer we found by accident. But there might be a pattern….

And here they go to points all over!

Some big news for those Merlin Lite followers/customers: The new long wing arrived and it is perfect!

The wings are now in our Dayton R&D lab and will remain there a couple weeks for testing before shipping to Florida for installation to the Merlin Lite prototype and finally some fun flight testing! That new flap is longer than the Merlin wing!

Also arriving over SNF were 5 more reduction drives for the Vtwin program. There is huge interest and many orders for this new engine. Big gap to fill with HKS out and the 582 being 2-stroke and pending discontinuation by Rotax. Now we have the fuel system, cooling system, exhaust, and redrive all sorted.

Now I am back in Florida. Barely. Couple days after I left Florida last week my daughter Lilly tested positive for Covid. So I had direct Covid exposure before I flew up to Dayton. Try to follow this story. There will be a quiz later:

I had Covid really bad in November/December. I figured I am good now full of anti-bodies. Wrong. After 3-4 months the antibodies wimp out. So maybe I could have caught it from Lilly before I left for Dayton? Better check. Tuesday I subjected my finger to a pin prick and tested for antibodies. And I had two. Meaning lgG and lgM antibodies. WTH? Turns out there are short-term and long-term antibodies. But not long long term antibodies. Bottom line is my November antibodies were gone and I had Covid between 2 and 4 weeks ago. Again. And I didn’t even know it.

My Wife was really sick about a month ago and had a lot of Covid symptoms but tested negative. We are convinced she had Covid. And passed it to me. And although I thought I was exposed to Lilly’s Covid I probably gave it to her. It explains the gap between Jana’s and Lilly’s Covid.

So now what? I need to meet colleagues at our lab. I need to fly back to Florida. I need to play hockey. I don’t need to be a super spreader. So I got tested. Again. Negative. Oh the drama.

My girls are OK!

Oh forgot, this is an airplane blog. So Monday I fly to the Czech Republic to inspect container #2, to check on Vtwin to Merlin installation to check on Merlin Lite production, and to plan deliveries for all the new orders from SNF and after.

But of course there will be more Covid drama with the Czech still mostly locked down. Good thing for the ‘official’ letter I have from my dentist requiring my travel for an urgent and vital teeth cleaning.

Next report from Olomouc!

Chip