If you ask pilots what their dream machine is, many will reply “P-51 Mustang.” There’s just something about the sleek Mustang that fuels fighter-pilot fantasies galore. Alas, the Mustang is out of the price range of most pilots…unless you are willing to scale back and build one yourself. Titan Aircraft, “where dreams take flight” as […]
Get a Ford Tri-Motor rating
Most people travel to the Grand Canyon for the view or the outdoor recreational activities. For pilots, a trip to the Grand Canyon could bring the opportunity to get type-rated in a Ford Tri-Motor. That’s right. A Ford Tri-Motor. “The Ford Tri-Motor paved the way to fly passengers safely in transcontinental air travel,” says Bryan […]
Meet the Fleet
One of the best parts of attending a fly-in like Sun ‘n Fun is the opportunity to see rare and unusual vintage aircraft. This year a 1930s-era Consolidated YPT-6A Fleet made the show for the first time. The airplane, painted brown and COME FIND ME yellow, rocked gently in the wind that blew across the […]
Beech vs. Electra
A small group of people stood in front of two tail-dragger twin-engine planes on the Warbird ramp at Sun ‘n Fun, wondering if they were looking at a pair of Beech 18s or Lockheed Electras? Or both? The airplanes are about the same size. Both airplanes have a pair of rounded rudders. Both have retractable […]
Pilots continue to fight for Oceano Airport
Pro-airport signs and a tailgate party marked the second of six public meetings to gather information about the possible closure and redevelopment of Oceano Airport (L52) in San Luis Obispo County, Calif. The second meeting was held April 21 at the Filipino Community Center in Grover Beach. According to Mitch Latting, one of the pilots […]
Tips for traveling in a group
Making a long distance flight, say from the midwest to Florida in your own airplane, takes careful planning and lots of preparation. Now imagine making it with a large group. It can be done, notes Steve MacCabe of the Sunday Morning Breakfast Club, made up of about 60 pilots from the Chicago area who get […]
From WASP test pilot to airport greeter
Many airports have an official greeter — someone who meets the airplanes at the GA terminal and drives the passengers to where they need to be. At Sebring Regional Airport (SEF) in Sebring, Florida, the person behind the wheel of the six-person golf cart is 90-year-old Barry Benson Smith. She works long hours during the […]
Vintage airplane, vintage pilot
When Brad Larson learned to fly, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was president and “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” was at the top of the jukebox hit parade. The year was 1932. If you do the math that’s 78 years of aviating. The 94-year-old is still flying. During Sun ‘n Fun 2010 he could be found […]
Four states, one destination
One of the best parts of Sun ‘n Fun is meeting up with friends. The Sunday Morning Breakfast Group from the midwest met in front of the FAA building every day at 1p.m. “And then we go on our separate ways,” said Carol McCabe from Chicago. “We come from a four-state area and once a […]