Newsgroups: rec.aviation.products

The latest brouhaha in the aviation community involves Dick Rutan, Jeana
Yeager, and Bill Williams of Microlon.  According to the December issue
of Aviation Consumer, Microlon president, Bill Williams is taking credit
as a sponsor and savior of the Voyager project, much to Dick Rutan's
chagrin.  During the round-the-world flight, Williams claims that his
product saved the mission when Dick Rutan inadvertently pumped all of
the rear engine's oil overboard while the plane was out over the
Atlantic.  To add fuel to these allegations, Jeana Yeager married
Williams this past summer and is corroborating the whole story.  Rutan
flatly denies the claims and said that Mobil and Teledyne Continental
(two of the official sponsors) would have pulled their support if
Microlon had been used.

Some of you may remember that Dick Rutan made an unsuccessful bid at a
Congressional seat this past election.  Initially, Jeana Yeager gave him
her support.  Then she switched camps, supported his opponent,
72-year-old, 14-term incumbent George Brown, and rebuked Rutan publicly,
calling him an amateur with no political experience and no public track
record.  Rutan alleged that Yeager did this because Brown promised a
quid-pro-quo in the form of a endorsement for Yeager to join the 
astronaut training program since he is the chairman of the House
Science, Space, and Technology Committee.  As it turns out, Brown had
*already* signed a letter to NASA supporting astronaut training for
Yeager in July of 1991.

I attended a talk given by Dick Rutan in the Eagle hangar at Oshkosh
this past summer.  He was a very good speaker and seemed like a
genuinely sincere person (i.e.  not a politician).  Jeana Yeager was
also scheduled to be there but she did not attend because of a 'previous
engagement'.  When Dick was questioned about Jeana's role in the
mission, he said, "We were co-pilots...., next question."  It was quite
obvious that something had gone awry and that the audience should not
broach the subject of Yeager again.

I got a copy of the Voyager book written by Dick and Jeana and found it
to be excellent.  I read it virtually without putting it down.
Incidentally, the story about pumping oil overboard was quite different
in the book.  There was never any mention in the book about pumping the
oil dry (and remember the book was co-authored by Yeager).  The book
also explains the nature of the relationship between Dick and Jeana and
how they started off as lovers and later became just friends due to some
irreconcilable differences.  It seems as if the story has taken yet
another twist that is turning it into a real-life 'Fatal Attraction'
story, in my opinion.

To add even more spice, Bill Williams has written some very disturbing
letters which Dick Rutan has shared with the press.  One of these has
become known as the 'Buckwheat Letter' because of the following excerpt:

Williams wrote to Dick Rutan:

"This places me in a position where I can really be most effective in
your campaign.  Wanna know how?  Read on Buckwheat."

Williams also mentioned in another letter that he has plans for Jeana
and related how he was "laying the foundation for her financial future,"
preparing presentations for her to deliver on the lecture circuit, along
with speech coaches and writers "to script her entire lecture, word by
word."

The Aviation Consumer article went on:  "A repetitive theme in the
Microlon promotions through the years has been its alleged ability to
'save the day' and keep engines operating without seizing or burning up
after all the oil is drained out.  The Voyager 'lost-oil' anecdote
Williams and Jeana portray in their ads is tailor-made for this
scenario.  Rutan told the Aviation Consumer he challenges Williams to
try out this concept in his own aircraft by draining out all the oil on
the ramp and then taking off and flying around the pattern 'just once'".

I think that Bill Williams' behavior speaks quite convincingly against the
validity of the Microlon claims.  I too, would like to see him fly his
engine sans oil around the patch "just once" and perhaps we wouldn't
have to listen to all the fantastic claims any more.

Lee Devlin              | HP Little Falls Site  | phone: (302) 633-8697 
Piper Colt N4986Z       | 2850 Centerville Rd.  | email:
"Spirit of rec.aviation"| Wilmington, DE 19808  | devlin@lf.hp.com
Newsgroups: rec.aviation.products