Because flying is cool
There’s a sporty little gem tucked away in a hangar at Montgomery County Airport in North Carolina, when its builder and pilot, Billy Miller, isn’t flying it in those “Carolina blue” skies.
This plans-built Thatcher CX4 (S/N 426) is one of only 70 CX4s listed on the FAA Registry as of May 2020. N426F received its airworthiness certificate Dec. 28, 2017 — and Billy is one proud “papa” of Guardian.
[Read more…]It isn’t very often that authors and photographers step away from their keyboards and lenses into the spotlight. Typically, these professionals are focused on conveying the stories and accomplishments of others. Yet scribes and photographers don’t necessarily just live vicariously through their subjects — they can and do lead interesting lives of their own.
Take, for example, American aircraft historian and author John Swick.
The day dawns bright and sunny in eastern Colorado, so John hops in his restored 1979 Ford pickup and drives a short distance to Kit Carson County Airport (KITR) in Burlington. Eagerly pushing open the T-hangar doors, a light zephyr ruffles his hair as he casts an admiring gaze at his 1946 BC12-D Taylorcraft (N96290).
After a thorough preflight, John hand props the Continental A-65-8 and removes the tiedown and chocks. The two seniors, whose combined ages total 161 years, taxi onto the runway and rise into the sky for an ephemeral refreshing respite.
[Read more…]Bill Tinkler was born four years after Jack Knight flew the first day-and-night transcontinental air mail route in July 1924. By the time he was 8, he was eagerly devouring each issue of Flying Aces, which featured fanciful Phineas Pinkham stories and model aircraft building plans. By the time he was in high school, his focus side-slipped from academic lessons to flying lessons.
Flight instructor and former WASP Yvonne Stafford took Bill under her wing and and he soloed at 16. After school, Bill worked for Southern Aviation at Shreveport, Louisiana, and then interviewed with United Air Lines (UAL). Hired by UAL as a pilot in 1955, he enjoyed a 26-year flying career — but not without facing a significant challenge.
[Read more…]When you’re out flying low over the countryside, have you ever wondered if somewhere down below you, a child may be gazing skyward, watching your airplane? Sometimes, that’s all it takes to catalyze an enduring love for aviation.
In the early 1950s, a very young Ira E. “Bud” Coward II was captivated by a yellow Cub dusting the cotton fields on his family’s farm in Aiken, South Carolina.
“I was the fastest pedaling little guy you ever saw when that airplane landed — I couldn’t wait to see it up close, and I still remember the odor of DDT,” Bud recalls with a chuckle.
[Read more…]In August 2011, private pilot and truck driver Ron Brown of Memphis, Missouri, discovered an ad in Trade-a-Plane for N5738B, a restored and airworthy 1928 OX-5-powered, three-place Pheasant H-10 biplane.
Immediately intrigued, Brown’s wheels started turning.
“Our generation heard the old timers talk about the Pheasant for years because the Pheasant Aircraft Company built 36 of the biplanes here,” said Brown.
He decided it would be great to be able to buy that Pheasant and bring it home to its birthplace in Memphis.
[Read more…]NC80309 has the remarkable distinction of having flown fewer than 200 hours since it came off the Beech production line in August 1946 at Wichita.
Its saga began shortly after its first owner, Oles Envelope Corporation of Baltimore, Maryland, took delivery of it around October 1946.
“The president of Oles Envelope Company’s son was flying home from Texas and stopped in Charleston, South Carolina, to refuel,” recounts Jim Francis of Winter Haven, Florida, who is a previous owner of the airplane. “As he walked to the administration building, he looked back at the airplane and the tail was on fire. It burned all the way up to the cabin doors. He had landed with a flat tailwheel and they surmised that sparks from the magnesium wheel started the fire, fueled by old grass clippings that had collected in the tail area during landings on sod strips. That was March 28, 1947, and the airplane was only six months old with roughly 75 hours’ total time.”
Some 40 years later, Jim was excited by the prospect of owning a low-time G model Staggerwing, and wasn’t deterred by its fire-damaged and environmentally-ravaged condition. That’s because he knew just who he wanted to restore the airplane.
[Read more…]Larry Long beams happily as he pushes his Sonex out of the hangar at Montgomery County Airport (43A) for a flight on a beautiful North Carolina blue-sky day. His sprightly gait and radiant smile belie his age — he seems 20 years younger than his 84 years.
Maybe that’s because he turned his dream of flying into tangible reality after more than half a century. He first soloed a Piper J-3 Cub in July 1957 on the grass runway at Moore County Airport in Southern Pines.
After logging 15 hours, he joined the Army, completed two years of service in 1959, and then … well … life intervened and his devotion to his wife, career, children, and grandchildren took precedence. During those years, he tried to satiate his hunger for flight by building and flying RC models.
Finally, at 76, Larry decided it was time to get back into flying. Valentine’s Day 2011 couldn’t have been any sweeter for him — it was the day he started taking lessons at Raleigh Executive Jetport at Sanford-Lee County Airport (KTTA). He was thrilled to earn his sport pilot certificate in November 2014.
[Read more…]The phone rang within 10 minutes of placing a classified ad for my Continental A65-8 engine. A kind and calm voice informed me that he was making a standing offer and I could take my time to consider it. I returned Dave Stevenson’s call the same day and accepted his offer.
He and his wife, Helen, showed up a few days later, cash in hand, and we had a pleasant exchange as he loaded the engine in the back of their minivan. That was 18 years ago, and we’ve stayed in touch ever since.
The proverbial hands of time have flown by, allowing Dave to achieve a special milestone on June 15, 2019 — one that perhaps few pilots ever have the thrill of celebrating. He flew his Aeronca Champ that day to celebrate the 75th anniversary of his very first solo. Four days later, he celebrated his 92nd birthday.
[Read more…]Pleasant weather prevailed at Tullahoma, Tennessee, in late October 2019 when more than 620 people made the journey to enjoy the 46th annual Beech Party.
A colorful array of airplanes lined the fields, ranging from early Staggerwing models to King Airs.
[Read more…]Once aloft, the Cub door is opened and a chilly breeze blasts into the cabin as the pilot noses closer to the target.
The back-seat bombardier grabs a pumpkin, peering intently at the carefully-placed circle of cones around the target below. Trying to time it just right to score a bullseye, the bombardier liberates the pumpkin for its impressive one-time flight — but alas!
[Read more…]
