Page 29 - Volume 17 Number 4

making poor investment decisions and some say we don’t build things so well either, but I disagree. As you can see from the construction picture, I have actually overbuilt it a bit – maybe a lot. The winters get pretty cold in AZO, so the Fort needs to have provisions for insulation, and you never know when a stiff breeze will blow through the open hangar door. So, accordingly, Bunker-Strength Fort Building Techniques were used in the design. The exterior will have faux stone siding on the bottom three feet and faux wood siding the rest of the way up. The walls and ceiling will be insulated and double-pane picture windows will provide continuous, unobstructed views of the best cabin-class piston twin Beechcraft ever built. A wood door with a small window provides entry; I decided against using a tunnel like under Dad’s boat. And naturally, a sign prominently displayed on said door must proclaim: No Girls Allowed.Decorations will be Spartan and include only a couple of military awards; one has a polished 20mm shell attached. A poster of Glamorous Glennis will be there, complete with a signed picture of the General and me, and a few autographed Space Shuttle pictures. Perhaps a couple of airshow posters too – one from the best air show I ever attended. It was billed as a historic, once-in- a-lifetime airshow, and it was: The Gathering of Mustangs and Legends at Columbus, Ohio in September, 2007. Another is a skeleton-viewposter of the P-51 and, finally, a large picture of an F-16. For those of you that remember my first article called Issues (T&T, September, 2010), a loyal reader gave me a stuffed toy skunk with goggles and a scarf, a tribute to something I said in the story – it’s a must for the Fort. Some might suggest that a bathroom would be a nice addition: a sink, commode and shower. Well, I hope to not need all of that, especially the shower. But the potty and a place to wash your hands is a nice option. Fortunately for me, and it’s one of the reasons I chose this particular hangar, there’s a heated and air-conditioned public restroom just behind my hangar. It’s a twenty-five yard walk out the hangar door and around the corner; anyone can hold it that long, right?For Tax PurposesFall and winter may not seem the optimal time to engage in an outdoor construction project in Michigan, but the new hangar itself is insulated and a couple of torpedo heaters warm it up to flannel- shirt temperatures in short order. Progress was brisk until Christmas interrupted, then slowed even further when the new contract at my carrier was implemented. We’re now flying an average of fifteen to twenty hours per month more (85- 95 hours), and three or four days per month more than before. Getting used to the increased amount of time away from home has been challenging and construction on the Fort has suffered.I promised myself to install at least one board every day, though. Unfortunately, it seems that’s all that the Fort gets lately, sometimes while in uniform on the way to catch acommuter flight to ORD. Hopefully,by mid-summer it will be ready forits intended use: a Formal Officefor Reading and writing Time. I’manxious to enter the new Fort, secrettunnel or not. I’ll try to rememberto mention in a future article whena story is written from the Fort – fortax purposes, you know. Will it beas much fun writing in the Fort as itis to write from Los Cabos, as I amtoday? I think so. And ladies, I hopeyou can forgive my use of the No GirlsAllowed sign – a Fort wouldn’t be aright if the IRS auditor is a girl. T&T •Fort without it. It would serve meKevin Dingman has been fly- ing for 40 years. He’s an ATP typed in the B737 and DC9 with 19,000 hours. A retired Air Force Major, he flew the F-16 then performed as a USAF Civil Air Patrol Liaison Officer. He flies volunteer missions for the Christian organization Wings of Mercy, is employed by a major airline, and owns and operates a Beechcraft Duke. Contact Kev- in at Dinger10d@gmail.com.APRIL 2013 TWIN & TURBINE • 27