Page 6 - Volume 11 Number 7

Early on, Singer found a fulfilling way to be able to fly and keep up his hours while also giving back. He got involved with Flying Samaritans, a volunteer group that operates free medical clinics in Baja California, Mexico. Singer helps fly doctors, dentists, medical specialists, nurses, translators and other support personnel to the clinic, and says that some of the patients at the clinic have traveled a long way to get there, many times on foot.
As his schedule became more flexible, a friend got Singer involved in another charity organization, Wings of Rescue, that has become very close to his heart. He flies approximately 35 hours a year transporting animals that may be euthanized in California to other parts of the nation where there is more demand. Ninety percent of the animals he transports are from Southern California, where 4,000 pets per year are transferred out of the area. Singer says he has fit up to 60 cats and dogs in his C90B, if they’re small and have two in a cage. The animals are transferred to the country’s northern states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, New York once or twice a year, and even up to Canada on occasion.
Singer has also flown for the Veterans Air Command, which flies soldiers (and sometimes their families) who have been injured in combat or suffer from post- traumatic stress disorder to appointments or sometimes home from a hospital stay. “It’s much easier, and more comfortable, for them to fly in a private airplane and it’s
The cabin of Singer’s C90B filled with crates of animals. He says he has fit up to 60 cats and dogs in his King Air and since it’s pressurized it’s perfect for their transportation.
the least I can do for them, as they sacrificed their lives for us,” Singer said. “Giving back is extremely satisfying.”
The King Air – a Personal Gift
Singer has earned instrument and commercial ratings and has kept up with their requirements. Over the years he has owned various aircraft, including a Luscombe, Piper Cherokee, an older model Beechcraft Bonanza, followed by an A36 and later a B36TC (the only one he purchased new) and a Duke which he loved to fly.
He said that owning a King Air was a dream he had for many years, so when he finally had the money, he bought himself a seven-year-old, 1996 C90B for his 70th birthday. The King Air had a five-tube EFIS, but Singer added GPS and a MPD “glass panel.” At the time, it was “state-of-the-art,” but now is a bit outdated. Singer said he will not upgrade it anymore because “you can’t teach an old horse new tricks (and I’m an old horse),” plus it is still very service suitable. He has also added BLR winglets, Raisbeck wing lockers, Frakes exhaust stacks and Pulselite anti-collision lights, as well as an in-cabin TV and satellite phone.
“The engines are getting close to having 3,200 hours on a 3,600-hour overhaul requirement,” he said. “I’m considering the possibility of buying some mid-time engines, but sometimes I wonder what will ‘retire’ me from flying first – my airplane or the insurance company!”
4 • KING AIR MAGAZINE
JULY 2017