“During my 37 years of flying, I have observed the results of hundreds of weather events, including F4 tornados, straight-line winds, microbursts and severe thunderstorms. What I saw today was the equivalent of an F4 tornado that traveled over 100 miles along the Gulf Coast combined with a tidal wave. The difference was, this tornado and tidal wave lasted for over 24 hours instead of just a few minutes.”
— James Lied, a professional pilot from Farmerville, La., who flew over the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina.
Before you complain too much about the restrictions placed on general aviation since Sept. 11, consider this:
“In the summer of 1942, all private flying on the Eastern seaboard was prohibited because submarines had been seen offshore. Airplanes had to be dismantled, wings off, so they could not be flown at all.”
— WASP Ann Baumgartner Carl
“It’s like a life insurance policy.”
— Boris Popov, inventor of the emergency ballistic parachute for aircraft
“Flying is done largely with the imagination.”
— Wolfgang Langewiesche, “Stick and Rudder: An Explanation of the Art of Flying,” 1944
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