Brothers soar in one-man aircraft

Tuesday, July 22, 2003

The sky's the limit, literally, for two Nevada brothers. Andy and Bill Haddan, self-confessed airplane junkies. They come by their interest honestly --their uncle and their grandfather had an aviation business that mostly involved military type aircraft. "I guess you could say we were airport bums as kids, hanging around, learning about stuff by watching and helping out," Andy said. The two brothers say they like living and working in Nevada but wish there were more hanger space at the airport. "We've tried everything we can think of to get more space but we haven't been able to. We have planes in Butler, Uniontown, wherever we can find to put them," Andy said. "Having more hanger space would not only help us but also the airport because it would probably get more business than it does if there were more hanger space available." The two were busy Friday afternoon, assembling a plane Andy had just brought in by trailer from Denver, where it was built. They worked in a borrowed hanger to keep out of the harsh afternoon sun. The Hawk ultralight was built using aluminum tubing and dacron fabric and the brothers noted the person building the plane had taken extra care with important features like the tail section that had three mounting points for the rudder instead of the usual two. "I've seen a plane that lost a mounting bracket and the pilot nearly lost it. The plane came in and the tail was just flopping back there. He made it down but he could have been killed. With the extra bracket, if something happens to one there are still two points holding it in place, it's much safer," Bill said. The assembly took about two hours with the brothers checking each part and each linkage as well as each other's work in between the many phone calls that kept their cell phone busy. "It doesn't usually take this long but with the heat and the interruptions we're not going as quickly as usual." After the plane was assembled the brothers took one final inspection of the plane. "It's ready for flight now but the wind is a little stiff, we'll wait till later in the evening to take it up for a test flight if the wind dies down," Andy said. That evening the brothers took turns taking the plane up and checking it out, making sure that everything functioned properly. "You always check everything out several times to make sure you're not missing anything and that nothing comes undone," said Andy. The Haddans sell airplanes as well as give pilot instruction, transport planes and take planes on consignment. A Web site, www.ustrasportavia-tion.com, that showcases the planes they have for sale and the services they offer.

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