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Norcal DAR pireps

DrillBit

DrillBit

Well Known Member
My 9A project based at Livermore (KLVK) is getting scary close to inspect-ability. :eek:

The OAK FSDO relies exclusively on DAR's for experimental amateur-built airworthiness inspections. The FSDO sent me a list of five. One is up in Corning--a bit far for a DAR I guess. The other four are reasonably close: Tracy, Redwood City, Stockton, and San Francisco.

Any recent experiences/recommendations which DAR to go with?
 
Call them

If that is the same list I used s year or so ago (it sounds like it based on the locations) none of them but one are actually DARs any more. I ended up using Richard Ortenheim out of Tracy. He was great, really helpful with some tips and whatnot. It helped a bunch that all of my paperwork was in order and sent to him ahead of time.

Also, a hint: I asked for and got a 50nm radius on the ECA VOR, exclusive of Charlie and Bravo. He happily gave it to me. He said I could have asked for the entire Central Valley and he would have approved it. So, make your Phase 1 area opening bid generous and be prepared to take less.

At 50nm radius I could do a few cycles in s sawtooth climb series before I had to turn around, so it wasn?t so bad.
 
Is Dave Morss no longer doing DAR work?

I've known him a long time through soaring, DAR, racing, test-pilot work for a company I worked for
.
He is straightforward, knows RV's very well. He will look at the linkage that you use to drive the flaps, and was pleased to see I had replaced the kit-supplied non-captive rod-end + stud with a more standard captive rod-end connection.

He gave me a test area that included a 100 mile x 20 mile corridor down the central valley for Phase I, totally agreed with me that you need a long straight corridor for good testing.
 
I went through this process in December. Dan McGehee from Stockton conducted my inspection and I would use him again. It is my understanding that Dave Morss doesn't work outside the San Jose FSDO area anymore. I couldn't get a hold of Richard Ortenheim.

The gentleman out of Livermore (don't remember his name) was a lot more expensive than Dan McGehee so I went with Dan. Even though Dan is out of Stockton he was willing to come to Petaluma. I did not attempt to contact the DAR out of Corning.

I also contacted the Seattle MIDO, they have responsibility for WA, OR and Northern California. They had only one DAR in Northern CA, the guy from Corning. Sacramento FSDO had two on their list, Dan MeGehee and the guy in Corning.

Hope that helps.
 
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In Tracy do they mean Richard Ortenheim at Skyview? I take our club planes over to him whenever our mechanic is out of town. He's good and thorough though I don't know if he does experimental inspections. He's very pragmatic, which I like. I'm positioning to have him inspect my 14 when the time comes.
 
I recently used Danny McGehee when I re-imported my RV-8.

Very satisfied. I'd certainly be happy to use him again.
 
scsmith said:
Is Dave Morss no longer doing DAR work?
Click to expand...

No. When I contacted Dave about ~2 years ago, he basically would no longer act as a DAR. It came down to a story about a lawsuit, but the end of it is that he is no longer acting as a DAR.

And yes, Richard Ortenheim at Skyview in Tracy. I found him to be a very reasonable, pragmatic inspector for my plane. I'd recommend him in a heartbeat.
 
Looks like I have a DAR...

Thanks again for the info, folks. I contacted Richard Ortenheim at Skyview Aviation and he got back to me the next day.
 
George is the new DAR for OAK FSDO

George J. Schoen
DAR OAK FSDO
Aviation Resources Int'l, LLC
Mobile +1 415 298 4516
[email protected]


I used Danny and thought he was great. I'm sure George is a good guy too.
 
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