Experimenter

November 2012

Experimenter is a magazine created by EAA for people who build airplanes. We will report on amateur-built aircraft as well as ultralights and other light aircraft.

Issue link: http://experimenter.epubxp.com/i/90184

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What our Members are Bui lding Evelyn and Keith Kreth, with their dogs Hannah and Ginger. Keith Kreth Builds a Flight of RVs Builder fi rst, fl ier second By Larry Martin Keith Kreth (EAA 214482), a retired periodontist, has com- pleted two and most of a third aircraft in the last 14 years, all while fl ying more than 1,400 hours. On the recent occasion of his 80th birthday, when asked, "What's the secret of your success?" he said, "I'm committed to a regular schedule, and I never miss a day. I do nothing 24 hours a day, but never before 11 in the morning and never after 3 p.m. I'm not perfect, though. Sometimes I stay overtime, and when that happens I come in early the next day to make up." All joking aside, such perseverance pays. Since retire- ment, by adhering faithfully to this schedule, Keith has completed an RV-4 and an RV-8 and is putting the fi nal touches on an RV-7A for Evelyn, his wife. 30 NO. 3/NOVEMBER 2012 Beginnings Young people who came of age during World War II were aware of the dire possibility of an aerial attack on the main- land, similar to Pearl Harbor. The U.S. government encouraged men and women to learn to identify the silhouettes of U.S. and enemy aircraft, to watch the sky, and to report suspicious ac- tivity. Keith built solid wood identifi cation models during those years, painted them black, and hung them from the ceiling to memorize their silhouettes from many different angles. From solid wood he graduated to rubber-band-powered stick and tissue models. The models were held together with glue and dope. Photography by Desha McCluskey

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