Tom Wathen has opened a new aviation high school at Flabob Airport in Southern California. Wathen Aviation High School held its first classes Sept. 6, with 25 students. The new program features academic subjects relating to aviation, as well as hands-on experience in aircraft construction and maintenance.
News
L-19 recovered from Minnesota lake
A 47-year-old mystery in Minnesota’s Green Lake was solved Aug. 13 when divers recovered a Cessna L-19 that’s been in the water since 1958. Capt. Richard Carey, a pilot in the National Guard, was flying over the lake in October 1958 when he radioed that he was low on fuel and had hit something. The […]
Engine malfunction grounds last airworthy Lockheed Constellation
Maintenance checks are supposed to uncover mechanical issues on the ground before they become emergencies in the air, so in that respect the recent engine run up of the Airline History Museum’s Lockheed Constellation was a success. The aircraft, known as “The Star of America,” is the only airworthy Constellation left and the star attraction […]
Flying fish invade Sturgeon Bay
One of the highlights of summer in Sturgeon Bay, Wis., is the appearance of large Fiberglas fish on street corners. The sturgeons are part of a citywide art event called Sturgeon Around the Bay. This year two of the entries had an aviation bent. One resembled a cross between a sturgeon and a P-51 Mustang. […]
Blue Angels founder Butch Voris dies
Retired Navy Capt. Roy M. “Butch” Voris, a World War II ace and organizer of the famed Blue Angels flight demonstration team, died at his home in Monterey, Calif., Aug. 9. He was 85. In 1946, Fleet Adm. Chester Nimitz, who then was Chief of Naval Operations, went looking for a crack Naval Aviator to […]
Be A Pilot registered 250,000th prospect
The Be A Pilot program, the industry’s cooperative program to bring more people into aviation, registered its 250,000th prospect since its inception in 1997. Richard Roberson, 50, a dairy farmer from Locke, N.Y., won a free trip to Oshkosh courtesy of Be A Pilot. When Drew Steketee, Be A Pilot’s president, phoned to let him […]
Honoring the Greatest Generation
One of the complaints kids voice about having to learn history from books is how dry it is. If you could interact with it, it might be more interesting, they say. That could be done if you visited the Living History display that graced the warbird area of EAA AirVenture. Just behind the lines of […]
Eclipse to start deliveries in March 2006
Eclipse Aviation is slated to deliver its first Eclipse 500 in March 2006. “Eclipse is on the verge of becoming a real company,” said CEO Vern Raburn, who explained that a “real” company is one where customers hand over money and the company delivers products. “Until then, you’re playing at being a company.” That first […]
Chapel Hill rescued — at least for a year
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill must continue to operate Horace Williams Airport (IGX) for the public and Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Medical Air Operations for at least another year, according to the state’s recently-passed budget bill. Meanwhile, the Legislative Research Commission will study the effect the closure of the airport would […]