Updated 12 May 2008 Reunion VI Updated 12 May 2008

The DoubleTree is less than a mile from the S.A. International Airport and just across from North Star Mall, the best in town. The hotel provides free parking and a courtesy shuttle to/from the airport. More details will be provided later as they develop.

        Wayne Whitlatch, Chairman            jwwhitl@satx.rr.com
                Dale Shaw, Vice Chairman                daedalus@daedalians.org
        Tom Calkins                                        Reunion53A@aol.com
        Ed Fox                                                  edjohnafox@netscorp.net
        Ted Gesling                                          Ted2Joyce@aol.com
        Bobby Gilbert                                      bbg134@verizon.net
        Dave Medley                                        saberjet@centurytel.net
        Harry Spannaus                                  colspannaus@yahoo.com

Below is the latest status report from Wayne Whitlatch. Some of the information, above, is confirmed by this satus report.

Hotel Arrangements: 53A R-VI will be held at the San Antonio International Airport Double- Tree Hotel, 37 N.E. Loop 410, San Antonio, TX, 78216. Dates: 23-26 October 2008 (check-in: 3 P.M.; check-out: noon). Class 53A has 40 single/double rooms reserved (first come, first served). Room rate: $97 plus 16.75% sales tax (tax rate may increase by October). That rate applies from two days prior to two days after the reunion. Deadline for reservations at that room rate: 2 October. Reservation telephone numbers: (210) 366-2424 or 1-800-535-1980. Hotel has plenty of free open-air parking.

Do-it-yourself Dining Arrangements: The hotel has a good but small restaurant serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. Prices are very reasonable (for San Antonio). Within one-block is the best shopping mall in S.A. with Luby's Cafeteria, Cheesecake Restaurant, Luciano's Italian Restaurant (all three are excellent) plus the usual mall food court. Beyond walking distance are dozens of other calorie factories. The hotel courtesy shuttle will take you to any of those within (approx.) one mile.

53A Catered Events: Thus far we have only our banquet scheduled (Saturday evening). That will be a sit-down (meaning not a buffet line) dinner with two main-course choices: chicken or the "whisky marinated sliced strip steak". Your responses to my recent query indicate two of you strongly support a higher quality (and cost) beef entree'. Most of you preferred to stand pat with the sliced strip steak (or possibly the whisky marinade). So be it.

Also under consideration, but not yet confirmed, is a Thursday evening Mexican Buffet at the hotel.

Hospitality Suite: The usual soft drinks (including diet versions), beer (including light beers), a short-list of mixed drinks, and a Margarita machine (available, say, from 3 P.M. to 10 P.M.) Also the usual peanuts, pretzels, etc. Tentatively, the HS will open at 8 A.M. (earlier if an early bus departure pops up) with coffee, juice, pastries, etc. It will close NLT mid-night but earlier if the HS hosts/hostesses out-number the customers.

S.A. Adventures: The Friday A.M. graduation parade of approximately 600 new Basic Airmen at Lackland is the only non-hotel event scheduled thus far. We will have a reserved section of the covered grandstands. All takers will be bused from the hotel to a drop-off point approx. 15 yards from our seating area. There will be a special seating area at ground level for wheelchair riders. After the parade, bus departure will be delayed approximately 45 minutes to provide viewing and picture-taking of the many static display aircraft around the parade grounds; our cool bus will be standing by for dribble-in boarding. En route to the hotel any 53A'ers who so desire will be dropped off downtown at the Mexican Market for on-your-own shopping and lunch. The Market has two excellent Tex/Mex restaurants. Those who chose to be dropped off downtown will be picked up later by our bus. Our registration desk at the hotel will have recommendations and maps for do-it-yourself downtown walking tours and/or driving tours; transportation will be cobbled together as needed.

Is Saturday AWOL? Nope, just optional. As you have noticed, only the business meeting is scheduled for that day. This is the third reunion or convention I have staged in San Antonio, and the single most frequent complaint regarding the scheduling of each was that the attendees had too little optional play (or nap) time. This time we will focus on providing suggestions for on-your-own sight-seeing and dining. For those who want such activity but have no wheels, we will do our best to solve that problem.

Other items of interest to 53A members:

12 May 2008