Cessna Pilots Association
Systems & Procedures 2002
By Kevin Mackenzie

The 2002 CPA Systems and Procedures course was held in Cincinnati, OH April 26th to 28th. (Your scribe is quite delinquent in getting this article done.) From the accounts of those who attended, it was a valuable educational experience as well as an opportunity to spend 3 days with 23 other folks who have great taste in aircraft!

Hal Shevers, of Sporty's Pilot Shops, donates the use of his facility for the CPA's eastern US seminars. (Other seminars are held at CPA's Santa Maria headquarters.)

There were 24 attendees this year: 21 owners and 3 mechanics. 7 owners brought their airplanes to the course, and a couple were picked for demonstrations (victims?) of maintenance and inspection techniques. The attendees came from all over the U.S., as well as two missionaries from Africa. All were owners except for one gentlemen who is in the market for a Skymaster, and felt attending this course would be the best way to become a knowledgeable buyer.

The course was taught by Tom Carr, CPA's 337 specialist and an A&P/AI with 22 years of experience maintaining Skymasters, as well as being a pilot and aircraft owner, and John Frank, a 14,000 hour ATP rated pilot, A&P, AI who is a recognized expert on Cessna aircraft. John is also a former Skymaster owner.

The classes ran from 8AM to 6PM each day, and the pace of the course was "like a fire hose", according to Paul Hall, a 337 owner from Houston, Texas. "I'm an A&P" he continued, "and I heard a lot of good advice, and no bad advice in the course. The technical level was high, and even with my background, there was still enough to leave me interested."

"A wonderful time was had by all" says John Frank, Executive Director of CPA. "The Skymaster is truly a great aircraft that doesn't get the respect it deserves."

Hall says he took away a lot of valuable tips from the course. His favorite was McCurtain Technology Group (www.mccurtaintg.com) who offer Cessna 337 service manuals on CD for $25 (1965 - 1971 only).

More pictures of the seminar are included below, courtesy of John Frank at CPA. No date has been set for the next seminar. Word is that it may be a couple of years before another is held in the eastern US. For more information, contact the CPA, www.cessna.org or 805-922-2580. (Sorry it took me so long to get this article out. The weather in the Pacific Northwest has been fabulous...)

Click on each for larger image.